pred_label
stringclasses 2
values | pred_label_prob
float64 0.5
1
| wiki_prob
float64 0.25
1
| text
stringlengths 128
964k
| source
stringlengths 39
45
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
__label__cc
| 0.747211
| 0.252789
|
January, 2005:
Targeting smokers via tobacco product labelling: opportunities and challenges for Pan European health promotion
Mortality associated with passive smoking in Hong Kong
by AdminCTA.
BMJ 2005;330:287-288 (5 February), doi:10.1136/bmj.38342.706748.47 (published 27 January 2005)
S M McGhee, associate professor1, S Y Ho, research assistant professor1, M Schooling, research associate1, L M Ho, senior computer manager1, G N Thomas, research assistant professor1, A J Hedley, chair professor1, K H Mak, consultant, community medicine2, R Peto, professor of medical statistics and epidemiology3, T H Lam, chair professor and head of department1
1 Department of Community Medicine, University of Hong Kong, 21 Sassoon Road, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China, 2 Department of Health, Student Health Service, 4/F Lam Tin Polyclinic, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China, 3 Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6HE
Correspondence to: T H Lam hrmrlth@hkucc.hku.hk
Passive smoking can cause death from lung cancer and coronary heart disease, but there is little evidence for associations with other causes of death in never smokers. A recent study showed increased all cause mortality with exposure to secondhand smoke at home but did not examine associations with specific causes of death and dose-response relations.1 We have published estimates of the mortality attributable to active smoking in Hong Kong2 and now present the related findings on passive smoking at home.
Participants, methods, and results
Details of the sample selection and data collection have been reported.2 Each person who reported a death in 1998 at four death registries was given a questionnaire which asked about the lifestyle 10 years earlier of the decedent and of a living person about the same age who was well known to the informant. Passive smoking was identified in the interview with the question, “Ten years ago, in about 1988, excluding the decedent/control, how many persons who lived with the decedent/control smoked?” Decedents or controls who lived with one or more smokers were classed as exposed. Cause of death was obtained from the death certificate.
We selected never smoking decedents and controls aged 60 years or over because there were few younger controls. To avoid selection bias, we included only cases and controls who had a living spouse at the time of reporting. We used logistic regression to derive odds ratios adjusted for age and education, and for sex when men and women were combined.
What is known on this topic
There is strong evidence that passive smoking is causally associated with death from lung cancer, coronary heart disease, and all causes, and also with acute stroke
What this study adds
The dose-response relation between passive smoking and mortality from stroke and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, as well as from lung cancer, ischaemic heart disease, and all causes of death, strengthens the causal link
We identified 4838 never smoking cases (55% male) and 763 never smoking controls (55% male). All controls were used in the analysis for each specific cause of death.
We found significant dose dependent associations between passive smoking and mortality from lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, stroke, ischaemic heart disease, and from all cancers, all respiratory and circulatory diseases, and all causes (table). The association between mortality and passive smoking did not differ between males and females. Deaths due to injury or poisoning were not associated with passive smoking.
[in this window]
[in a new window]
Number of subjects who were or were not exposed to secondhand smoke at home and odds ratios (adjusted for age and education, and for sex when men and women were combined) for mortality in people aged 60 or over, Hong Kong. Values are odds ratio (95% confidence interval) unless indicated otherwise
Dose dependent associations between passive smoking and causes of death are consistent with previous findings for lung cancer and coronary heart disease and extend the evidence on stroke. Previous studies have shown associations between passive smoking and first acute strokes,3 4 and we have now shown a dose-response relation with mortality from stroke. Previous studies focused on ischaemic strokes but Chinese populations have a greater incidence of haemorrhagic stroke than do white populations,5 implying that many of the strokes in our study may have been non-ischaemic. Passive smoking probably affects all stroke subtypes, as does active smoking.
Our finding of a 34% increase in all cause mortality is consistent with but higher than that (15%) in the New Zealand cohort.1 Exposure to secondhand smoke at home is higher in Hong Kong than in New Zealand due to crowded living conditions. Before the 1990s, awareness of the danger of passive smoking was lower and smokers smoked freely at home.
We focused on passive smoking at home because the proxy reporter could most reliably supply these data, and we adjusted for education, which was also reliably recorded2 and is a good proxy for social class in Hong Kong. As data on cases and controls were derived from the same proxy, reporting bias should be minimal.2 If our results are not due to residual confounding, they provide further evidence that the dose-response associations between passive smoking and stroke and all cause mortality are likely to be causal.
See Editorial by Kawachi
This article was posted on bmj.com on 27 January 2005: http://bmj.com/cgi/doi/10.1136/bmj.38342.706748.47
We thank W L Cheung for help with analysis; the Immigration Department of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for data and assistance; and, in particular, the relatives who provided information.
Contributors: THL, SYH, AJH, KHM, and RP designed and carried out the study on which this analysis was based; SMcG, MS, LMH, and GNT planned and carried out this analysis; and all authors contributed to writing the paper. SMcG and THL are guarantors.
Funding: Hong Kong Health Services Research Committee (#631012) and Hong Kong Council on Smoking and Health.
Competing interests: THL is vice chairman and AJH a former chairman of the Hong Kong Council on Smoking and Health.
Ethical approval: Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Hong Kong.
1. Hill SE, Blakely TA, Kawachi I, Woodward A. Mortality among never smokers living with smokers: two cohort studies, 1981-4 and 1996-9. BMJ 2004;328: 988-9.[Free Full Text]
2. Lam TH, Ho SY, Hedley AJ, Mak KH, Peto R. Mortality and smoking in Hong Kong: case-control study of all adult deaths in 1998. BMJ 2001;323: 361-2.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
3. Bonita R, Duncan J, Truelson T, Jackson RT, Beaglehole R. Passive smoking as well as active smoking increases the risk of acute stroke. Tobacco Control 1999;8: 156-60.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
4. Iribarren C, Darbinian J, Klatsky AL, Friedman GD. Cohort study of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and risk of first ischemic stroke and transient ischemic attack. Neuroepidemiology 2004;23: 38-44.[CrossRef][ISI][Medline]
5. Kay R, Woo J, Kreel L, Wong HY, Teoh R, Nicholls MG. Stroke subtypes among Chinese living in Hong Kong: the Shatin stroke registry. Neurology 1992;42: 985-7.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
(Accepted 12 August 2004)
THE HEALTH EFFECTS OF TOBACCO AND HEALTH WARNING MESSAGES ON CIGARETTE PACKAGES – SURVEY OF YOUTH
Impact of Cigarette Health Warning Messages
“Not safe” is not enough: smokers have a right to know more than there is no safe tobacco product
Knowledge and Beliefs Regarding the Tar and Nicotine Content of Regular, Light, and Ultralight Cigarettes among Adult Smokers
THE HEALTH EFFECTS OF TOBACCO AND HEALTH WARNING MESSAGES ON CIGARETTE PACKAGES
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line455
|
__label__cc
| 0.544186
| 0.455814
|
Magebot › Magebot › General News
« Previous 1 ... 20 21 22 23 24 ... 68 Next »
The 2019 NFL Pro Bowl is today.
It’s the NFC versus the AFC. Who cares?More people than you think Youth Derek Barnett Jersey , sadly. According to ESPN, last year’s Pro Bowl drew an average audience of 8.6 million viewers. I don’t know why you’d find yourself watching such a meaningless game but here’s a thread for you if you wish to discuss.Note that Lane Johnson and Malcolm Jenkins are the only two Philadelphia Eagles players playing in today’s game. They made the Pro Bowl as alternates. The Eagles’ original Pro Bowl selections were Fletcher Cox, Zach Ertz, and Brandon Brooks but none of them will play today. Cox and Ertz opted out while Brooks is recovering from an Achilles injury he suffered earlier this month.Players from today’s winning team will receive a $67,000 bonus. The losing players, meanwhile, will each receive $34 Color Rush Destiny Vaeao Jersey ,000.2019 Pro Bowl Time, TV, and streaming infoTime: 3:00 p.m. ETLocation: Camping World Stadium | Orlando, FloridaTV: ESPNStreaming: WatchESPN UPDATE #2: He played through injury in the third quarter, but Fletcher Cox made his way into the locker room early in the fourth quarter, and for a real gut-punch, Jason Peters is also questionable to return with a back injury. So you know Color Rush Corey Graham Jersey , things aren’t getting much better for the Eagles at the moment.UPDATE: After being noticeably absent for much of the second quarter, Fletcher Cox was able to return just before halftime — and drew a holding penalty on his first play back, like a boss. And despite being looked at earlier in the quarter, Brandon Graham was able to stay on the field. So things could get a little better for the defensive line when they’re back from halftime.The second quarter has not been nearly as friendly for the Eagles, and things got worse after Nick Foles threw a pass that was intercepted by Saints’ Marshon Lattimore. First, you had Rasul Douglas getting carted off the field with an ankle injury.And then, on what should have been a three-and-out http://www.authenticsphiladelphiaeagles....eod-jersey , the Saints moved the sticks thanks to a fake punt, which also resulted in Fletcher Cox going down. He was able to leave the field under his own power, and could maybe return.As if things couldn’t actually get worse for the Eagles defense, two plays later, Michael Bennett went down forcing another injury timeout. Bennett, like Cox, was able to leave the field under his own power after what appeared to be a bit of stretching by trainers and was able to return later in the drive. (Phew.)Although that was about the only good news to come out of the first half of the second quarter — the Saints ended up scoring on the drive Youth DeAndre Carter Jersey , and then Brandon Graham was another Eagle being looked at on the sideline. So, a week after the team seemed to escape pretty injury-free, they are back to getting roughed up in New Orleans.
Forum Jump: Private Messages User Control Panel Who's Online Search Forum Home Magebot -- General News -- Bugs -- Suggestions -- Questions/Help -- Screenshots/Movies -- Ayuda en Espanol -- Portugues Help -- Key and License/Registration Problems Scripting -- Hunting Release -- Utility Scripts -- Libraries -- Script Development Discussion -- Requests
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line466
|
__label__cc
| 0.671881
| 0.328119
|
Board index » Hobby discussion / Port of Lothern » Tales and Stories / Great Library of Hoeth » High Elf Culture
The elves and their sexual orientation
Darasel
Post subject: The elves and their sexual orientation
Location: Valencia, Spain
I'm reading the three elven army books and they didn't said nothing about sexual orientation (of course I know that books are about war not love) I mean: Which point of view have the three races of elves (Asur, Asrai and Drucchi) on male-male and female-female relationships??
Personally I think the elves are the most ancient race in the world so they are most wise and open minded, I think they are bisexual because bisexuality can be useful in many aspects including war, when your mate is in danger you will fight fiercely just to help him/her (the ancient greeks did that).
I want to know what you think about this.
You Asur, maybe you have your knowledge written on old scrolls in your cold stone tower of Hoeth but my knowledge is on the trees, the earth and the rain.
Post subject: Re: The elves and their sexual orientation
The greeks may have done that but the roman legions actually outlawed it to prevent jealousy from affecting unit cohesion. It was a very serious military infraction in the legions. Not the choice of sexual orientation, but inter-legion relationships. I imagine high elves would follow that line of logic in pursuit of practical warfare, especially because their fighting style relies heavily on cohesion.
True to the End.
Prince Oberon, Hand of Tor Yvresse, Lord Admiral, Lord of Tor Lir
~Milliardo~
Location: Tor Skylla, Saraeluii Mountains
This is kind of a loaded question - some people will say one thing, another will say another, and depending on their own views on the subject of sexuality, it could potentially get quite vehement. Games Workshop wisely chooses not to mention this sort of thing in their background
I will say that I posted pictures of my army on this forum and several others, and because I chose to paint my elves with makeup, I got a few irritating private messages. I was thinking stylized war paint when I painted them, and thoughts of how it might reflect on their sexuality never even entered into it. Nevertheless, my decision to do so infringed on some people's deeply held beliefs and may have even disturbed them. Fortunately, at least in person, I'm intimidating enough that I don't have to defend my army as often as I do online - its why I no longer post pictures of my work.
Consequently I don't talk about this kind of thing myself. It only serves to strengthen my already considerable misanthropy. I try not to pry into the inner workings of others, because it interferes with my ability to work or communicate with them. War, politics, religion and sexuality are all on my list of things not to talk about with most people.
Elves are a pretty race, I'd be gay for a pretty elf prince. Knowing that elves don't have a lot of children, there are probably long ceremonies and courtships that go on and casual sex probably isn't common. Note that I use probably a lot, this is because we know next to nothing...
Elves don't have the same hang ups as humans, religiously dictated or otherwise. Though it's not mentioned, your soul mate may turn out to change gender in the next round of reincarnations. Then you have arcane ways to change gender.
After a couple of centuries of the missionary position, you too may be inclined to be more adventurous.
Surprise is an event that takes place in the mind of the enemy commander
Crowbot_Jenny
The_Castle_Series_4_Episode_5
But this did not surprise them, for as it is written in the Great Elven Book of Knowing: Isn't life just one bloody thing after another.
Well played Sir, how did I forget how magic might affect things, rookie mistake.
Given the problems with pleasure cults I think they are probay fairly open and easy going regarding sexual orientation
Hell they even named named an entire province after girl on girl loving...(Saphery/sapphic)
Elithmar
Young Eataini Prince
I expect they are much like humans - with varying preferences.
"I say the Eatainii were cheating - again." -Aicanor
"Eatainian jerks…" -Headshot
"It was a little ungentlemanly." -Aicanor (on the Eatainii)
"What is it with Eataini being blamed for everything?" -Aicanor
Senthuil
Location: Nagarythe
I think Elithmar has hit the nail on the head.
Bear in mind that with the pleasure cults of the Asur, and followers of Slaanesh among the Dark Elves, they would be more inclined to try new experiences. Slaaneshi cultists in particular would used sexual attraction as a weapon and/or means to distract their enemy.
There is nothing solid written about the Asur and bisexuality or homosexuality although we have this from the High Elves rule book:
Morvael the Impetuous
The next Phoenix King, Morvael first seemed to be no wise choice for a king, as he was not well versed in either state or warfare. He ordered an attack on Naggaroth, but the Druchii easily massacred the Asur forces sent there. Word of Morvael's failure spread panic through Ulthuan and Malekith used this opportunity to once again launch an invasion on Ulthuan. But Morvael had learned of his mistakes and he appointed Mentheus of Caledor as field commander and introduced the levy system that required every Asur to spend a part of the year as a soldier. Mentheus eventually won the war, but at a very high cost of High Elven lives. Morvael felt responsible for the great numbers of Asur slain, and he committed suicide by walking into the Flame of Asuryan when Mentheus died in retaking Anlec.
It has been suggested that Morvael loved Mentheus and took his own life upon learning of his death. This is not confirmed by GW though, and may well be nonsense.
"Show the Druchii no mercy, for they would offer you none!"
Its a bit of a chicken and egg situation, did the pleasure cults gain a foothold because the Asur arent so restricted in their lives as the modern west.
I often look at the High Elves to be a curious blend of influences including the ancient greek city states and all that entails.
its all a moot point as GW will never confirm one way or the other, but it has the potential to be uncover some of the psyche of the Asur (and since I think they are very influenced by Moorcock's Melnibonians so I think they are of the "anything goes" outlook)
That is a very interesting point. I imagine there would be a desire among some to dabble in certain behaviours to banish the ennui of a long lifespan. And by doing so, would grant the cults further strength. Slaanesh after all, is described as the youngest of the Chaos gods, and many blame the High Elves for his/her/its(!) rise to power.
Drainial Shadowheart
Location: the corner of your eye
Looking at elf books in general the Malus darkblade series have a fair bit of sex in them (never particularly graphic but present never the less) and may be the best available source. Granted the series is not considered cannon nor even close to such by many but I have always taken the view that anything semi official is more official than nothing at all.
Looking at those books there is prostitution and incest (well what can you expect from dark elves) but outside of the Slaaneshi cults no homosexuality as far as I can recall (my memory may well be faulty on this and I have not read past Lord of Ruin so I could easily be mistaken). This may say more about the writers than about the subjects but never the less in a race slowly dwindling in number sex without the possibility of conception may have become something of a social taboo. On the other hand part of the reason for child numbers being so low could be due to elves not concentrating their efforts in a fertile direction.
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
More of a social taboo than joining an evil, illegal pleasure cult?
I all honesty I dont think its remotely mentioned because its still quite taboo in our society, and no way do GW want some over zealous church group protesting they are promoting homosexuality.
Personally being a mature adult of 37 I dont give a monkeys, and in my world its a fully functioning society and all that entails (especially one with different mores and taboos than us) but to a company with a target audience in the early teens I can see how they dont want to rock the boat, so to speak.
Thats why its difficult to answer this question using GW source materiel.
Code13 has the right of it I think - including homosexuality is far too challenging, and they don't want to rock the boat.
This is the same reason they dropped Fimir originally - they were a race that only procreated through rape, as I understand it (slightly before my time). Even now that they've begun mentioning them again in Storm of Magic, they're far more PC than they were at the time.
Its also the reason you don't hear so much about High Elves wearing makeup (even the men), as well as jewelry, lazy, hedonistic, and not being able to grow a beard, even though its there in the first edition of WHFRP - its the reason why they don't have High Elves and Sea Elves anymore, and they've been lumped together. Those things are still around, and implied, but its much more subtle - like calling elves 'fey' in every other description.
Well elves continue to join evil illegal pleasure cults and in much the same way some could practice homosexuality outside of them (I think it can be taken as read that such things would take place within pleasure worship considering the more extreme activities which are alluded to). Of course we can never get a full view of this kind of thing and there is no way GW would ever speak about it at length in an official capacity (nor any good reason why they should) but it seems foolish not to take hints from the source material available in a debate.
I dont, because the social mores of the writer are entwined in the hints, added to that they wont even be consciously thinking about it and if they are itll be to not make any overly controversial statement
Considering their low population and birth-rate wouldn't same-sex relationships be banned in High Elf culture?
In fact if you want to pursue that idea then the elves wouldn't have marriage, but encourage their women to take as many lovers as possible to increase the chances of pregnancy.
I'd also point out that in many cultures other than the judeo-Christian-Islamic sects homosexuality is accepted and a part of life. In ancient Greece it was positively encouraged, in ancient Rome it was widespread and accepted, in medieval Japan Geisha were originally men.
The only reason it's ever frowned on is down to religious doctrines, and they are generally limited to the three mentioned above that all share the same religious texts.
Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 12:22 pm
I'm going to have to echo ~Milliardo~'s magic comment, if it was found that your soul mate was of the same sex, High Elves High Magic has endless possibilities, a simple magic sex change and boom, you're having babies(very slowly, and not many).
Going from the fact that a lot of HE culture / warfare seems to be modelled on greek and roman armies, I'll side with Code13 here. In these cultures homosexuality was widely accepted and in some cases even encouraged in the military. There isn't much reason to asume that HE will be any different.
There seem to be 2 reasons why homosexuality is frowned upon.
2. lack of reproduction (which in part is the basis of reason 1)
both are not realy an issue for HE. With a pantheon of gods, there is always at least one god that does what you want. And if you accept that part of the pantheon of HE gods is based on their greek counterparts then finding homosexual examples is no problem. I seem to remember a few greek myths about Zeus falling for some very handsome young greek guy and obducting him etc.
Lack of reproduction is not realy an issue in the sense that HE don't reproduce that much anyway. If you are certain that each opposite sex mariage is going to produce children then it makes sense to frown uppon every mariage that can't. However, not getting (a lot of) children seems to be the norm for HE for most of their live, so why make a big deal out of it in a few specific cases.
Code13 wrote:
Isn't the whole greeks were okay with gays thing still debatable? Didn't Arisotle hate them? And I remember Xenophon saying the spartans weren't all that fond of them.
Not all city states approved, but none of them banned it, moreover in may - especially Athens - it was very widespread, thats beyond doubt.
Heck, Gymnasiums were simply places where guys could hang out naked together.
The Silly Dragon
Location: South East England
I think everyone is comparing them too much with the human race of reality. They are a fictional race set in a fictional time in a fictional world.
Lets take the arguement that as they live long lives they may get bored and experiment. Your thinking in a human mindset that they would get bored (when people see i collect elves they joke about them being distracted with flowers etc etc) who is to say they get bored? The Citizen Levy means all train for the military (at least the males if models are anything to go by). They also have to have jobs like shopkeepers, blacksmith, builders etc etc etc. So they are plenty busy all their lives so the whole getting bored is wrong i think.
That and we can't seem to go through a single lifespan without some huge conflict or near catastrophic event happening where we die alot. Plus the low birthcount. How have they stayed populated enough to field all male spearelves for 9pts each? Even the Asrai need females to make it to 12pts minimum. So my guess is that the Phoenix King has put put through a law shall we call it to forbid it? Linking it to the cults of pleasure is an easy way for him to pass it through without arguements.
The fact GW doesn't get into this is because they don't need the protests and even lawsuits that could follow. Also the flowers thing i said earlier? Say they said some elves were gay then people can take the pi** about us even more!
My two pence.
War. War never changes
dum spiro, spero...
"Humans are strange creatures, in a world of such fascination and wonder they have managed to invent boredom"
Homosexuality was definitely widespread in the Greek world and very accepted, particularly in the military - see Sacred Band of Thebes for an example of it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_Band_of_Thebes
Although I have little hard evidence to cite off the top of my head, and its controversial, this is one of my major beliefs for why homosexuality is frowned upon in modern western religion - young men, banded together in pair-bondings were a source of constant irritation to the ruling classes and would frequently overthrow governments they believed to be corrupt.
In Greece, there was a ritualized form of 'abduction' where an older male and his friends would take a young boy from his house (with his fathers permission), and the boy would become a sort adored lover - some authors and historians say that this was platonic and unconsummated love, some say otherwise, and again, it seems to vary depending on the beliefs of the one writing it. The Romans, whose ideas on love were more about domination and control, found this kind of love abhorrent because they did not wish to see their heirs emasculated in any way, and slowly began to push it aside - nevertheless, it survives even to this current day in Greek Fraternities in a less sexual form called 'hazing' - something a lot of alcoholic jocks and people who call each other "brah'" would no doubt be horrified to learn. Ideas on polygamy were also a lot more relaxed during the Greek times as well, but our modern beliefs on monogamy were encouraged by Romans as well - it ties in with the need for more Rome-born citizen-soldiers the military demanded.
Rome continues to influence our beliefs even today, though none of us really realize it.
Similarly, as an addition to Code13's mentioning of Geisha, in many stories male samurai would have a young boy following them around as an apprentice/page, and also lover - Miyamoto Musashi had one in the stories about him, for example. Since Japan's introduction to the global community this has been pushed aside and downplayed, sometimes with a bit of shame, but the entire theater culture and military system was rife with it, as it encouraged loyalty to ones lord and comrades in the former, and narcissism and glorifying the male form in the latter.
This is all why we (as a collective whole) in the west are so uncomfortable with the idea of homosexuality in the military - it actually has a very long tradition in many cultures, was widely accepted, and very useful to military discipline, honor and loyalty, something modern society has trouble accepting in any way, shape or form. We live in the shadow of former religious rule, and that engendered widespread homophobia in society.
This could be seen either way. Do the elves have a declining population BECAUSE OF homosexuality, or do they NOT have homosexuality BECAUSE OF the declining population? Could be seen either way. We don't know. The second option is more in line with what ~Milliardo~ was saying about the Romans.
Romans may have committed homosexuality, but it was taboo and considered a decadent eastern practice. Julius Caesar was accused of being every woman's husband, and every husband's wife, as a slur.
Caesar's alleged homosexuality was not why that was an insult; the insult was in making him the 'passive' partner. Homosexuality was not so very taboo in Rome, just read a handful of poems by Catullus for example. The most common statue surviving from antiquity is of the Emperor Hadrian's male lover and this is not condemned in any surviving contempory writing other than in its inappropriate scale.
This does however drift from the point of the thread rather, elves appreciate beauty in all its forms which makes me suspect that they are more likely to be 'diverse' in their affections than anything else but that is to assume a connection with appreciation and lust in the elven mind which we not know is there, but probably is since this is a human construct.
draxynnic
When it comes to comparing the High Elves with historical societies, I've personally always considered them most comparable to the Byzantines (they have their politics, and the White Lions are basically an expy of the Varangian Guard except that instead of being outright foreigners, they just come from a less civilised part of the same kingdom). Now, the Byzantine Empire was remnant of the Roman thats core territories were effectively Greek, so the Greek and Roman comparisons come in from there... and the High Elves also have units (read: chariots) that were obsolete well before the fall of the Roman Empire.
That said, you could easily see High Elf history as a rough progression from Classical Greece to Rome to Byzantium. This progression might prove to be analagous to a progression of Asur views on sexuality - accepted before the Sundering, but between the pleasure cults and the decline in population, the expectation has grown that sex should at least have the chance of procreation. On the other hand, though, this could come in the form of encouragement rather than legislation - if a particular elf is bi they're encouraged to focus their attentions on the opposite sex, but if they're really not interested than others will understand.
Mind you, another thing that comes to mind is that in both Fantasy and 40K, the low birth rate seems to be something that's confined to the most civilised group of elves/eldar - the dark elves, for instance, seem to have no problem rebuilding their numbers while the high elves continue to decline. It's mentioned in 40K that both branches of eldar are missing something that was fundamental to the ancient eldar - the Craftworld Eldar as a whole lack the warrior spirit as incompatible with their regulated social structure except when carefully controlled, while the Dark Eldar lack psykers. This isn't expressly stated in Fantasy, but there is mention in the Lizardmen book about how the elves are supposed to be a united species rather than sundered - and while the Asur are generally considered the closest, they've lost something they need which the Druchii have. Namely, that in rejecting the debasement of the Cults of Pleasure, as a society they've overcompensated and adopted a set of sexual mores that makes the stereotypical picture of Victorian English look wanton, and the reason that the population of Ulthuan is in decline is simply that it's populace isn't participating in activities that lead to population growth on a sufficiently regular basis.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXPsXoLT ... re=related
Posted: Sun Apr 22, 2012 10:01 am
The Dark Crystal, I love this movie. Are you suggesting that High Elves are like Gelflings?
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line469
|
__label__wiki
| 0.96383
| 0.96383
|
Canadian-fusion artist, Erich Mrak releases single “Fake It”
Lauren Rosier
Erich Mrak
Our team here previously featured Canadian musician Erich Mrak and his song “Drive.” Today we’re sharing another brand new track titled “Fake It.” Written by Mrak and produced by Bento, “Fake It” is an introspective, moody song where you
Indie-folk quartet Wild Rivers shares beautiful song “Moving Target”
Alternative Folk, Moving Target
As the editor of the magazine, I receive many, many press releases from many different publicists from various public relations firms. This email from a Canadian quartet caught my ear. This was a simple email with no indication it was sent from a publicist, but Wild Rivers
Call Me When You're Single, David Browning, Stay Over
The South African-born, Canadian pop artist, David Browning, has always been enthralled with making music since a young age. While working in medicine, Browning maintains his true passion for music through his brand new EP, Now You See Me. While currently working as a primary
Ivor Lane shares visual for track “I Wait Too Long”
I Wait Too Long, Ivor Lane, Non-Binary
Independent Chicago non-binary artist, Ivor Lane, shares a new music video for their song “I Wait Too Long.” Following Ivor Lane’s debut EP, Postplay, is a collection of emotional, beautiful songs. A collection which touches upon isolation, loneliness, love, and
Swedish synth-pop songtress Krigaré releases cover of A-Ha’s “Take On Me”
A-Ha, Krigarè, TakeOnMe
Swedish synth-pop artist, Krigarè ( Kree-Gar-Uh ) shares a cover of A-Ha’s “Take On Me” and gives the track an updated synth-pop spin to the classic ’80’s song. Krigarè adds in drum machines and layers synths in a way that creates visual imagery,
British singer/songwriter Minke shares new track “Too Late”
Minke, Singer Songwriter, The Tearoom
Up and coming U.K. singer/songwriter, Minke, releases her shimmery, breezy new single “Too Late.” Minke is excited to start her live show on April 5 at The Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles, California. Get tickets here. Minke is just recently off the release of her debut EP,
« First‹ Previous3456789Next ›Last »
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line472
|
__label__wiki
| 0.623265
| 0.623265
|
2017 Fantasy Baseball: Washington Nationals Acquire Ryan Madson and Sean Doolittle
Scott Barzilla 2017-07-16
Scott Barzilla · July 16, 2017
The Nationals need for relief pitching has been one of the worst kept secrets in baseball. They spent the offseason flirting with different closers on the trade block (David Robertson) but were unable to make a deal. They finally pulled the trigger when they traded Blake Treinen, Jesus Luzardo, and Sheldon Neuse for Ryan Madson and Sean Doolittle.
Why the Nationals make this move
This is pretty simple. Their bullpen was dreadful up to this point (-0.9 combined fWAR) and while they have the best offense in baseball, there is no way they would make it through a postseason with what they had in the bullpen. The good news is that the package above doesn’t hamstring them in terms of available minor league talent from making another deal. The bad news is that those two may not be enough to get them over the top in the playoffs.
Madson served as the Athletics closer last season before settling in as their setup man this year. He has been a closer in Philadelphia as well, so he brings ample closer experience to the situation. He currently has a 2.06 ERA in 40 games with the Athletics. He has only one save, but is averaging a strikeout per inning and has a 0.788 WHIP on the season. Unfortunately, his track record (career 3.40 ERA) is not that of a dominant reliever, but he is competent.
Doolittle has had some injury problems this season, but has been effective when healthy. He has a 3.38 ERA in 23 games and has three saves on the season. He served as the A’s primary closer in 2014 and has excellent peripherals on the season (31 SO in 21 INN and a 2.35 FIP). As a lefty, he gives the Nationals some balance to their bullpen that they didn’t have before. Unfortunately, while both have closer experience, neither profile as a playoff tested closer type.
For the time being, they will likely serve as a lefty/righty platoon in the closer spot. That being said, there are a couple of weeks before the trade deadline and it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Nationals add another bullpen arm to give them even more depth. If they are able to add an established closer (Robertson or Zach Britton) they could give the Dodgers a run for the money in the National League playoffs.
Why the Athletics make this move
Doolittle and Madson were both signed through next season and the Nationals have agreed to take on all 11+ million that those two players would have cost. In exchange, they get a power arm in Treinen that could become a closer down the road. He has a 3.48 career FIP with a 3.75 FIP this season. So, while the basic numbers might look bad, the A’s probably get back at least someone that can produce equivalent to what Madson was doing for far less.
Luzardo and Neuse represent the very definition of middling prospects that might turn into something, but will likely serve as organizational depth. Neuse is a decent third base prospect currently in A ball. He has nine home runs on the season and has an .818 OPS. He’s also already 22 years old, so he should be productive at that level. Luzardo is in his first season as a professional at 19. He’s gotten off to a good start in short season A ball with a 1.32 ERA with 15 strikeouts in 13.2 innings. Still, it’s awfully early and there is still a ways to go.
The best value the A’s get is the money they save on the deal. They may absorb the money in their current roster as players like Yonder Alonso are due significant raises or a long-term contract. They could also go out and seek similar reclamation projects they can bring in and then flip for prospects like they did with Madson and Doolittle.
What the deal means for you
Both Madson and Doolittle were not likely on your fantasy radar because they did not get many save opportunities. Both are probably worth an add at this point until the Nationals make any other moves. If we assume that the Nationals will have 20 more save opportunities between now and the end of the season then it is not inconcievable that both pitchers could wind up with ten saves or more. Given their numbers to date, they could give your pitching a nice shot in the arm down the stretch.
2018 Fantasy Baseball: PECOTA Projections– Top 20 Closers
2017 Fantasy Baseball, Oakland Athletics Team Preview
2017 Fantasy Baseball: MLB Deadline Fantasy Winners and Losers
2015 Fantasy Baseball: Middle Relievers to Target
Fantasy Baseball Final: July 8, 2016
2014 Fantasy Baseball Week 24 Waiver Wire: 3 to Catch, 3 to Cut, 3 to Keep
Tags:Blake Treinenryan madsonSean Doolittle
2017 Fantasy Baseball, Week 15 Preview
2017 Fantasy Baseball: Three To Add, Three to Keep, Three to Drop-- Second Basemen
Scott Barzilla
2018 Fantasy Baseball: PECOTA Projections– Setup Men and Middle Relievers
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line479
|
__label__cc
| 0.71859
| 0.28141
|
Job lock: Introduction
Ask an economist about employer-sponsored health insurance (ESI) and it won’t be long until s/he tells you it distorts the labor market. To most health economists, “job lock,” the idea that workers work more or face constraints in job mobility due to provision of work-related health insurance, is a real and important phenomenon. It’s one reason why many advocate limiting or ending the exclusion of ESI from taxation, among other reforms.
But why, you might ask, do some so firmly believe in job lock? What’s the conceptual or theoretical explanation? Where’s the evidence that it exists and is substantial? If it exists, what laws and regulations help keep it in place? Finally, how does the Affordable Care Act (ACA) begin to address it, if at all?
We’ve touched on some of these questions and their answers on this blog over the years, but never addressed them in full. That’s about to end. In a series of posts and with some help from Nick Bagley and Daniel Liebman, I will tackle these questions. Daniel’s annotated literature review lists some sources that will inform the series. I will not exhaustively cover the papers he described, but will attempt to provide a representative overview. For this purpose, I will rely most heavily on the literature reviews contained in Gruber and Madrian (2002), Fairlie, Kapur, and Gates (2011), Bradley, Neumark, and Barkowski (2013), and GAO (2011). Nick’s forthcoming post will cover the legal landscape. He has also provided helpful feedback on early drafts of my posts.
By way of overview, the nature of ESI can affect the labor market in two ways. It can affect labor force participation (LFP), by creating disincentives for retirement—particularly before the age of Medicare eligibility—and affect the decisions of secondary workers (e.g., the spouse of a family’s primary wage earner). It can also affect job choice and create disincentives for job mobility, including entrepreneurship.
Gruber and Madrian wrote a job lock literature review in 2002, covering the literature on the subject that had developed through that year. Their review, divides the literature into studies of job choice and analyses of LFP for three types of adults: older adults (near retirees), prime-aged men/married women, and single mothers. The last group is largely considered in the context of Medicaid, and the studies are more properly viewed as analyses of “welfare lock” (nonparticipation in the labor force so as to maintain eligibility for means-tested benefits). Gruber and Madrian concluded that “there is a fairly consistent case to be made that health insurance matters quite a bit for decisions such as whether to retire or to change jobs.” A systematic literature review published in 2011 by the GAO concurs with Gruber and Madrian. It found that of the 31 studies reviewed, “29 presented evidence consistent with job-lock.”
This introductory post will serve as an index to the series’ posts. All expected posts are listed below, and links will be added as they posts go live.
Job lock: Introduction [this post]
Job lock: Theory
Job lock: Relevant laws and regulations
Job lock: Labor force participation (retirement decisions)
Job lock: Labor force participation (married couples)
Job lock: Job mobility
Job lock: Entrepreneurship lock
Job lock: What the ACA does
Job lock: Conclusion
employer-sponsored health insurance, job lock
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line484
|
__label__cc
| 0.747247
| 0.252753
|
Crisis-hit Greece sets up first "drug consumption" centre
The number of HIV-infected drug users rose sharply at the height of the crisis in 2011-2012
Greece has set up its first "drug consumption" room to contain a surge of infectious diseases among drug addicts in the crisis-hit country, Greece's Organization Against Drugs, OKANA, said. Following similar projects in Western Europe, Canada and Australia, the centre Odysseas lets users inject drugs they bring themselves, under medical supervision, and has been visited by more than 200 addicts since it was set up in October.
greece | HIV/AIDS | drug consumption rooms
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line487
|
__label__wiki
| 0.517295
| 0.517295
|
Dan Proft
Upstream Ideas
Homeowners Defense Association
Two Minute Warning
Mark Cavers
A Standard-Issue Cog In The Chicago Machine
If you’ve watched Chris Welch maneuver his way through Illinois government over the past decade, then you know he’s happy to be part of a system that benefits the politically-connected at your expense. You've been warned.
This is Pat Hughes with this week’s Upstream Ideas ‘Two Minute Warning.’
If you’ve watched Chris Welch maneuver his way through Illinois government over the past decade, then you know he’s happy to be part of a system that benefits the politically-connected at your expense.
Since 2013, Welch’s contributions to the State of Illinois have been … well, pretty much non-existent. His career is that of a standard, well-oiled cog in the Chicago Democrat Machine. He doesn’t challenge leadership. He bows to party bosses. He votes the way he’s told. And for that, he’s given the funding and manpower he needs to ascend.
His leadership on the Proviso school board led the district to ruin. Instead of educating children, it functioned as a contract warehouse for adults. It got so bad, the state had to step in to oversee the district’s finances. For that, he got "promoted" to the state legislature.
Mike Madigan had clearly found his next puppet.
Welch is very focused on those who keep him in power… and very out-of-touch with his district.
The state owes social service providers in his community hundreds of thousands of dollars. Did Welch go to bat for them? No. Instead, he sued the state to get HIS OWN paycheck.
While the people in his district see businesses flee and struggle with unemployment, Welch made sure his family and friends were given high-paying government jobs.
You can do better. You have to.
Politicians like Chris Welch are failing you. Set on advancing their careers, these shills have ignored the people they represent and put the state on a path to self-destruction.
Chris Welch should have been fired in 2013, not promoted. But, it’s not too late.
You can vote to fire him and any other political hack who sees the state as a mechanism for personal and financial gain. If you don’t, your community and your state will continue their man-made death-spiral.
You’ve been warned.
Two Minute Warning: Illinois has a leadership problem. To change the state’s destructive policies, we have to change out the policy-makers. During each episode of ‘Two-Minute Warning,’ Illinois Opportunity Project Co-Founder Pat Hughes exposes another government official standing in the way of progress and prosperity.
Happy Taxiversary!
Throw Money At It
I Won't Resign
Ruling Class Retaliation
Tagged: two minute warning, Illinois corruption, Chicago democrat ruling class, political class
Newer PostMugged By Reality At Middlebury
Older PostWill You Vote In The April 4th Local Elections?
ideas sent straight to your inbox
Thank you for signing up for the Upstream Ideas newsletter!
Illinois Opportunity Project
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line489
|
__label__wiki
| 0.780152
| 0.780152
|
South Hams
South Hams District
Statistical comparisons will be made with York (change comparison)
Total Population 1801 to 2011: Population grew from 47,412 in 1801 to 83,140 in 2011.
Infant Mortality Rate 1861 to 2011: The highest rate recorded was 115.7 infant deaths per thousand live births in 1861, and the lowest was 2.4 in 2001.
Precentage of workforce with degrees 1951 to 2011: In 1951, only 2.87 per cent of occupied males had stayed in education past age 20, but in 2011 34.27 per cent of the population had degree-level qualifications.
South Hams District, Devon
SOUTH HAMS Preferred English Census of Population (2001 Key Statistics)
18UG Code: Office for National Statistics English Census of Population (2001 Key Statistics)
SOUTH WEST Government Office Region Census of Population (2001 Key Statistics)
DEVON Modern (post 1974) County Census of Population (2001 Key Statistics)
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, South Hams District through time | Census tables with data for the District/Unitary Authority, A Vision of Britain through Time.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line495
|
__label__wiki
| 0.83872
| 0.83872
|
Redditch District
Statistical comparisons will be made with Cheltenham (change comparison)
Total Population 1801 to 2011: Population grew from 2,988 in 1801 to 84,214 in 2011.
Changing Industrial Structure 1841 to 2011: In 1841, 42.08 per cent of all workers worked in agriculture, but in 2011 this had fallen to .25 per cent.
Male Unemployment from 1931 to 2011: The highest male unemployment rate recorded by the census was 11.42 per cent in 1931, and the lowest was .68 in 1961.
Precentage of workforce with degrees 1951 to 2011: In 1951, only 1.676 per cent of occupied males had stayed in education past age 20, but in 2011 20.7 per cent of the population had degree-level qualifications.
Over-crowded housing, from 1911 to 2011: In 1911, 21.3 per cent of people were living in households with over 1.5 persons per room, but in 2011 this had fallen to .6 per cent.
Redditch District, Worcestershire
REDDITCH Preferred English Census of Population (2001 Key Statistics)
47UD Code: Office for National Statistics English Census of Population (2001 Key Statistics)
WEST MIDLANDS Government Office Region Census of Population (2001 Key Statistics)
WORCESTERSHIRE Modern (post 1974) County Census of Population (2001 Key Statistics)
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, Redditch District through time | Census tables with data for the District/Unitary Authority, A Vision of Britain through Time.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line496
|
__label__cc
| 0.711369
| 0.288631
|
Miss Adams County
Eligibility
Miss Adams County Fair Eligibility Requirements
1) The contestant must never have been married, pregnant or given birth to a child.
2) The contestant must be 16-22 years of age as of January of the competition year. Delegates must be a minimum of 16 years of age by the pageant date and not have reached her 22nd birthday by January 1, 2019.
3) Entrant agrees to attend the Miss Illinois County Fair Queen Pageant as the representative of Adams County if selected as the winner of the 2015 Miss Adams County and further abide by all the required services, rules and regulations governing this pageant. The new Miss Adams County MUST attend Miss Illinois Pageant with a chaperone at all times. That chaperone must be the pageant director or pageant committee member deemed by director and approved of by the Adams County Fair Board.
4) Eligibility for Miss Adams County are determined by meeting at least one of the following criteria: Current residency, employment, student status, property owner or reside in Adams County.
5) Former winners of a County Fair Queen Pageants are NOT eligible to compete for Miss Adams County.
6) Delegates may re-enter the pageant from year to year.
7) Entrant agrees to produce an original copy of her birth certificate to verify age and gender upon request.
8) No visible tattoos
Eligibility / Acceptance Determination Agreement:
All issues as to eligibility shall be determined solely and exclusively by Miss Adams County Fair Queen pageant director and/or fair board. Entrant agrees to abide by eligibility determination both as to her and others. Entrant agrees to produce an original copy of her birth certificate to verify age and gender upon request.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line502
|
__label__wiki
| 0.670657
| 0.670657
|
Guanakán
This piece was written in 2013, was given as a talk at UC Berkeley, and was published in nineteen sixty-eight, the Ethnic Studies journal at UCB. This is an excerpt.
The body is a storyteller. Each act of illness is an epic tale about interactions of flesh, spirit, and environment, for which we have no language, since we have split existence into these three domains. Language, naming, is a way to make the overwhelming sensory flood of experience manageable, and for the sake of defining this against that, we distinguish things, separate them, hold them against each other, make culture and are made by it, and still the truth of our bodies lies in a realm language can’t fully grasp, because to speak truly means surrendering the categories on which we have built our sense of reason and control, categories that are the tools of our daily work, as practical in their uses as scissors and hoe.
Consider skin: living in my skin, we say, jumping out of my skin, skin the boundary between us and not us, skin the receptacle of selfhood, skin, the percentages and shades of melanin, used to further shuffle and deal out the human deck, arrange us on a spectrum, dole out more and less of everything based on these degrees of difference in how we reflect light into each other’s eyes. We think skin is like the walls of our houses, that only sharp objects, or very hot ones, can open it, but skin is permeable. It isn’t the barrier between us and the world, it’s a conversation, cells lined up in a smooth collaboration, a layered surface that is constantly exchanging molecules with everything else. What’s more, a surface full of doors and windows, through which all kinds of wildlife passes. If skin is the wall of a house, that house is made of dried grass, is full of insects and small mammals and nesting birds, is its own habitat, constantly shedding stalks, or, to change the metaphor, is made of soft wood, growing mosses and mushrooms on its surface even as the shredded bark and wood fall away into the rich surrounding soil.
Like anyone whose life depends on being heard, our bodies tell their stories over and over and louder and louder until they are shouting, spewing symptoms. But wait. There’s that word body again, with its lie of separation. And yet it’s far too bulky to keep saying body-mind-nature-thing. So, I am renaming it here and now. I will call it guanakán which is constructed from Taíno language parts to mean “our center,” that cloudy gathering of denser particles and pulses in which our awareness exists. Our location. From now on, when I say guanakan speaks, when I hand it to you, take it to be a basket in which everything we think of as body and mind and spirit and ecosystem coexist, and often, but not always, are each other.
Well, then guanakan must tell its story. It does so without conscious decision. Storytelling is its being. When a hard object, denser than flesh, strikes flesh—a billy club, say—the strands of light and protein we call nerves begin winking and flashing their signal, telling receptors everywhere “something is harming us” which we call pain, and clusters of molecules rush out into the bloodstream, shouting at the legs to run, pulling blood away from its other work, away from gut and face and the many places of daily chores, into the trembling muscles of the thighs, and we call this fear. Coagulants crowd around the broken tissues, making bruises but preventing hemorrhage.
At the same time the synapses of memory summon up images of other beatings, layers of them: clubs that struck the same body, that struck the body before this one, since all cells except the brain shed over the course of seven years, like a slow forest where it is always autumn and spring together Clubs that struck others in our sight, clubs we heard about, historical clubs, the memories of which coat the surfaces of strands of DNA like slick oil, epigenetically instructing the body that the club is always falling, because in some generation before us, neither fight nor flight was possible or complete, and an ancestral body remained flooded with cortisol, shuddering with it, subtly altering the methyl layers of its genes. So, whether or not the club is still falling, parts of the guanakan still tremble with norepinephrine, images of past dangers still crowd what we call the inner eye, imagination and flesh collaborate to tell a story in which past and present are woven together into a composite, layered diagram of what is happening in the eternal now, and worst of all, what can be expected.
My guanakán suffered a series of invasions, which set up a repeating story of danger, which in turn shaped the behavior of the guanakán. My guanakán also inherited a huge stack of orders from the past, many of them meant to help with survival, the way sickle cells are meant to help with malaria but create so many other problems. Some of the orders are inexplicable. Random scramblings of genetic code. It’s hard to tell, because they have been translated from the original, passed through many hands, become smudged. They are incomplete fragments of an indecipherable past, coded inheritances, made up of traumas and unpredictable changes and cross pollinations.
My guanakán, already attuned to danger by invasion, has been gifted with nine CYP 450 polymorphisms, nine disturbances in the field of protection. Diesel fumes and tobacco, charred protein and estrogen, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories and blood thinners, phenobarbitol and bacon, all move differently through the guanakan, more slowly, leaving more damage in their wake. This is what I have inherited. Tiny broken places, gateways to change.
We are all of us full of unfinished stories, fragmented instructions, maps to places that may or may not exist any longer, new and ingenious responses to a changing environment, some of them life-saving, some of them sickening, some of them fatal, life continually exploring new pathways in the guanakán. We have lost a great deal of early knowledge about how to guide those explorations and other knowledge we are only now seeing sprout above the soil line of our collective questions.
This I know: the arc of a story must be completed or it stays in the guanakán and becomes a disturbance. It grows hard and dense and begins to have more mass, or becomes louder, alters the chemistry of emotion, the bones of belief on which we hang our perceptions, starts sparking, fluctuating, crackling, depending on where it expresses itself between matter and energy, particle and wave. A story whose arc is interrupted causes detours, must be stepped around, begins changing everything near it, has its own gravitational pull.
Some of the unfinished stories we carry were forced on us: you are a person to whom it is right that these things be done. You a person to be raped, to be paid less, to be made to live downwind from terrible smokestacks that corrode your lungs. You are a person who cannot think very well, who burdens the rest of us by existing. Broken stories like these make blood run the wrong way, make breath shallow, fill the arteries with plaque, distract the antibodies from devouring cancer cells before they can form tumors and take over, cause the voice to shrivel, make the imagination flinch, generate heavy clouds of despair that reorganize our neurotransmitters. But the story of what is broken is itself something whole. These broken stories must be completed through our telling, our owning; like the roots of poisonous plants, they must be pulled up and laid in the sun to dry, so that by steeping, boiling, grinding, they can be made into medicine.
About Aurora
Aurora Levins Morales is a disabled and chronically ill, community supported writer, historian, artist and activist. It takes a village to keep her blogs coming. To become part of the village it takes, donate here.
Healing Justice
Latin@s
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line505
|
__label__wiki
| 0.563377
| 0.563377
|
Orville Schell and Philip W. Yun: The Threat of a Nuclear North Korea
The current crisis between the US and North Korea has escalated with both sides firing off heated exchanges following North Korea’s missile tests and threats extending as far as Guam. While North Korea has tested missiles in the past, the US is on alert as Kim Jong-un accelerates the drive for nuclear capabilities which could bolster the survival of his regime. President Trump is now faced with his biggest challenge since coming into office, and it is one which is alarming from both a humanitarian and economic perspective as South Korea and China urge more dialogue and less military exercises.
Can the US and North Korea pivot from searing rhetoric and work toward strengthening diplomacy? To what extent is China willing to help in terms of diplomacy and deterrence? Is the Korean Peninsula less safe with a nuclearized North Korea?
Orville Schell
Arthur Ross Director, Center on US-China Relations, Asia Society
Philip W. Yun
Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, Ploughshares Fund
Jane Wales
CEO, World Affairs and Global Philanthropy Forum; Vice President, The Aspen Institute
For more information about this event please visit: http://www.worldaffairs.org/media-library/event/1758
Direct download: 08_22_17_Wales_Schell_Yun-North_Korea.mp3
Category:News & Politics -- posted at: 9:43am PDT
US, Iran, Saudi Arabia: A New Diplomatic Calculus?
President Trump’s first visit to the Middle East demonstrated a notable shift in US policy toward the region. In a marked departure from the policies of the Obama administration, the president not only embraced the Sunni Arab states, but signed a $110 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia, and stated that he will not lecture the Kingdom or other Arab autocracies on human rights issues. He also initiated a review of the Iranian nuclear deal, gave greater military emphasis to US actions in the area, and called for states in the region to isolate Iran. Meanwhile, elections in Iran have given President Rouhani a broader mandate to open Iran’s economy further.
How will President Trump’s policies and actions impact America’s relations with Saudi Arabia, the nuclear deal with Iran and the prospect of ending arduous conflicts as seen in Syria and Yemen? Will this further increase tensions, or is there potential for renewed diplomatic cooperation between the US, Saudi Arabia and Iran?
Banafsheh Keynoush, a geopolitical and communications consultant, Jessica Tuchman Mathews, distinguished fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and Ambassador Hossein Mousavian, Middle East security expert at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School, will discuss the US - Iran - Saudi Arabia nexus and whether we are destined for renewed diplomacy or conflict in the Middle East.
Seyed Hossein Mousavian
Middle East Security and Nuclear Policy Specialist, Program on Science and Global Security, Princeton University
Banafsheh Keynoush
Foreign Affairs Scholar and Author, "Saudi Arabia and Iran: Friends or Foes?"
Fred H. Lawson
Senior Fellow, Centre for Syrian Studies, University of St. Andrews
Jessica Tuchman Mathews
Distinguished Fellow, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
For more information please visit: http://www.worldaffairs.org/event-calendar/event/1737
Direct download: 06_27_17_Iran_Saudi_Arabia.mp3
Category:News & Politics -- posted at: 11:19am PDT
Arlie Hochschild: Strangers in their Own Land: Living in "Red" America Today
What drives voters to the election booth? Dr. Arlie Hochschild, UC Berkeley sociologist and author of New York Times best seller “Strangers in their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right,” embarked on a journey to the Deep South to explore this very question. What she found were lives damaged by lost jobs, poor wages and an elusive American dream. As she connected and became friends with the people she met, she was surprised to discover that their values mirrored the liberal values she grew up with, including a desire for community, the importance of family and hopes for their children. She came to appreciate how strongly emotions, including years of anger and frustration, drive political preference for many far-right voters.
What role did “emotion in politics” play in the results of the 2016 election? What feelings motivate Trump supporters and Tea Partiers to support these movements? Why do citizens who would seem to benefit most from “liberal” government programs detest the party that passed them? Dr. Hochschild will share her observations and the stories of those who have felt like strangers in their own land.
Arlie Hochschild
Professor Emerita, Sociology, UC Berkeley
John Sepulvado
Host of The California Report, KQED Public Radio
For more information about this event please visit: http://www.worldaffairs.org/events/event/1727
Direct download: 05_31_17_Arlie_Hochschild.mp3
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line508
|
__label__cc
| 0.73462
| 0.26538
|
Script Reviews
Notes Service
Write to Reel
Home Movie Reviews Pirates of the Caribbean 5 – Dead Disney Reboot?
Pirates of the Caribbean 5 – Dead Disney Reboot?
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales is not a terrible film. It is however completely uninspiring, but at film 5 in the series, how can it be? Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow is always fun to watch. He wasn’t the problem. You can tell he still enjoys playing this character. I think that’s why I enjoyed the 4th film, unlike so many others. It was a film that just focused on him. He for once was the main character. All the others, including this one, has Captain Jack as a secondary character, using two lovebirds as the real main players. In the first three films we had Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom filling those roles. Here we have… two people I’ve never heard of. They’re basically our Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom stand-ins.
Stand-in number one is Henry Turner. Henry misses his father, Orlando Bloom’s character Will Turner. If you remember in the 3rd film, Will was cursed to live on the ghost ship The Dutchman. Though I’m pretty sure at the end of that film eventually he does come back… See, my problem or at least one of my problems was I couldn’t remember everything that happened in 4 installments of this film series.
Shit would happen and I’d struggle to try and remember if it happened in any of the other films. Like Barbossa now having a peg leg.
When did he get that?
Was that in one of the films and I don’t remember?
Or the fact Captain Jack has his ship the black pearl stuck in a bottle.
When did that happen? It was mentioned Black Beard put it in there.
Did we ever get introduced to a Black Beard?
What film was that?
Was that the 4th film?
Did it happen at the end of the 3rd?
See, now I’m trying to remember if he had his ship in the 4th film, which I don’t think he did. That’s what I was doing throughout most of this movie. Just trying to remember what the hell happened in the others. I’ve only seen them once. The fact that I can remember anything at all is kind of a miracle.
I can’t stress enough how important it is you watch the other films before seeing this one. That might help with the confusion I was struck with.
Henry Turner is obsessed with trying to find a way to free his dad from his curse.
The one thing that can do it is Poseidon’s trident, something that most likely doesn’t even exist.
Now this story is kind of convoluted, so try to stick with me here while I try my best to break it down.
Stand-in number two is Carina Smyth. She’s a scientist, but being a woman that just means she’s a witch and is scheduled to be hung. She’s also obsessed with finding Poseidon’s trident but for very different reasons. She’s an orphan and the only thing she has of her father is this book, a map to the location of the trident. But it’s a map that only she can read. A star map.
Meanwhile, Henry Turner is working on a British navy ship when he breaks command and warns the captain that everyone is about to be led into a trap. Of course they arrest him and put him in the brig. And of course they fall into the trap, getting attacked by ghosts. But not just any ghosts, these ghosts are the ghosts of French pirate hunters. See, completely different from the first film. The first film they were ghost pirates, not pirate hunters.
The ghost pirate hunters are led by Captain Salazar, played by Javier Bardem. Captain Salazar always lets one person live, like Mickey and Mallory Knox from Natural Born Killers. The lucky soul who gets a pass is of course Henry.
He must deliver a message to Captain Jack Sparrow. But his accent is kind of heavy here, adding a filter to his voice didn’t help any either. Mostly it was a warning. You see, when Jack was just a wee lad, he took over the role as captain when Salazar defeated a bunch of pirate ships. Jack used the compass (I honestly only remember the compass being a thing in the 4th film, maybe it was prevalent in the others, I don’t remember) to lead Salazar into a trap, killing and cursing him and his crew.
Meanwhile, Jack is a land locked drunk trying to rob the world’s first iron vault out of a bank. Who wakes up inside the vault… I mean, why use a bunch of horses to drag the vault through town Fast and Furious 5 style when they already broke in… because then we wouldn’t get a 15 minute action sequence of them dragging the whole bank down the city streets, with Jack stumbling around everywhere.
While all of this is happening, Carina Smyth is also escaping the soldiers who are after her. Eventually her and Jack meet up, but quickly separate.
Carina is recaptured trying to sneak into the infirmary to talk with Henry. She knows about his obsession with the trident, like her. Though for some reason she’s searching for it with a scientific mind and dismisses any thought that it really belongs to Poseidon.
After the botched bank heist, what’s left of Jack’s crew abandon him. Now drunk off his ass more than usual, he goes to sulk at the local bar, trading his compass for some booze. This unleashes the ghost pirate hunters from their cave prison, now able to set out, sinking any pirate ships they run across.
Nowadays the only pirate ships out at sea belong to Barbossa, who like I mentioned now has a peg leg for some reason. He goes to a witch that the British army is holding captive and asks for help. She gives him Jack’s magic compass, saying this will lead him to the thing he wants most. And for some reason he offers himself to Captain Salazar. I guess so he’d stop attacking his ships. Anyway, they strike a deal, offering to lead Salazar straight to Jack.
Jack gets arrested and we are treated to yet another long action set piece of Henry trying to break everyone free, including Carina. Thankfully they were together so we don’t have to sit through another 30 minute break out sequence.
Eventually they set out to sea, looking for the trident.
And just like the first film they have the two “real” main characters start to fall in love. There’s an obsessed British navy captain after them, just like the first, though he is quickly killed off by Salazar’s creepy ship eating ghost ship.
That’s another thing this film has going for it. The visuals. The CGI looked a tiny bit spotty here and there, especially with Salazar’s underwater floating hair effect, but the set pieces… these have always been spectacle films. You can see the budget on screen. I’d really compare them with the Fast and Furious films, though I think the F&F films are much better. I make no excuse trying to hide my love for the Fast and Furious franchise. And I highly recommend The Fate of the Furious over this film. The one thing Pirates has over F&F is Captain Jack Sparrow.
Eventually Barbossa double crosses Salazar and teams up with Jack and the others. So small spoiler here. Turns out Carina is Barbossa’s long lost daughter. He didn’t leave her with the book so she’ll go find this treasure that may or may not exist. It had a jewel on the cover and thought it might be worth something, so he left it to her in hopes that it might provide for her later in life.
As Jack and the rest finally make it to the spot on the map with the trident, Salazar shows up, getting the mythical weapon first. As the trident is broken, it breaks all the curses of the sea, even Salazar’s.
Now human but still an asshole, he goes after Jack. Thankfully the black pearl shows up to save the day. Unfortunately, Barbossa has to sacrifice himself to save his daughter, killing Salazar and himself in the process.
Now with the curses of the sea broken, Henry sails back home to greet his father where he and his mother are waiting.
Jack on the other hand got his shit and his crew back. So he’s good.
All in all, like I said, not a terrible film. It did seem kind of pointless. I’m not sure we needed another tale to continue one the 3rd film left off at. I liked that the 4th film was its own contained story, starting a new adventure. This was just a rehash of everything we’ve already seen before but done slightly different.
It isn’t one I’ll ever watch again, but either were any of the other Pirates films.
If you’re a really big fan, sure, check it out. It is at least entertaining.
Want EARLY access to our videos, uploads, and movie/script reviews? Members get them FIRST! Follow this link to our Discussion Forum.
And be sure to check out our Notes Service, where I give my detailed thoughts and suggestions on your script.
homepost
Previous articleWhat Could Have Been – Whedon’s Wonder Woman
Next articleAll Eyez On Me – Unique Twist to Tupac Biopic
Spider-Man: Far From Home – Is the Cap’n the Only One with Marvel Fatigue?
Write to Reals: The Ranger (2018) – Sometimes you’re in the mood for a good slasher!
Child’s Play (2019) – A Remake Worthy of the Franchise?
Stuber – Is entertaining your audience enough?
Midsommar – Avoiding “Filler” Dialogue
Hank on Unsolicited Queries – Agents, Producers, Managers List
Angi B on Unsolicited Queries – Agents, Producers, Managers List
Wahha on The Wraith – Part 2
Lanena Bennett on Unsolicited Queries – Agents, Producers, Managers List
Captain Peachfuzz on The Wraith – Part 2
Unsolicited Queries – Agents, Producers, Managers List
1922 – Enough Mystery?
How to Pitch a Script
Script Reviews364
Write to Reel is a website dedicated to learning the craft of screenwriting by breaking down and analyzing both script reviews and the movies they're made into.
Contact us: info@writetoreel.com
Write to Reals: A Vigilante (2019) – The Importance of Delivering...
Suicide Squad – Um, backstory please?
The Unseen – Forcing Two Plot-lines Together Doesn’t Always Pan Out
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line510
|
__label__wiki
| 0.685086
| 0.685086
|
Blue Union stages second Everton protest
By Josh Merrick & David Downie, JMU Journalism Sport
The Blue Union march in protest as a growing number of fans are unhappy with the Everton board
Around 250 Everton supporters took to the streets around Goodison Park before the 2-1 win against Wolves at the weekend, in a co-ordinated protest against the way their club is being run.
Members and supporters of The Blue Union gathered on the council fields on Spellow Lane, near the stadium, at 2pm on Saturday before setting off on their second march this season.
As they made their way on to County Road, the numbers of protestors swelled significantly, whilst others who chose not to take part applauded.
The Blue Union is calling for Chairman Bill Kenwright to step down and appoint an autonomous board of directors whose primary aim is to sell the club. They believe the current personnel in the boardroom are incapable of doing that.
Holding banners and leaflets, the group chanted ‘Let go if you love the club’, ‘There’s only one Billy Liar’ and ‘We want Kenwright out."
There is growing concern amongst many supporters that a change of ownership is needed imminently because of the club’s weak financial position. And with the cash raised from the sales of key players such as Mikel Arteta likely to be used to pay off debt rather than be re-invested into playing staff, they are worried these issues will affect footballing matters.
Dave Kelly, chairman of The Blue Union, spoke to those in attendance before the start of the march, thanking them for turning up and getting behind the group. He said: “We are the fourth most successful club in England, we shouldn’t be referred to as ‘little old Everton'. For the good of the club, it is time for Bill to sell up and go.”
One of the protesters, Joe Ward, 24, from Norris Green, said that the need for change at Everton has never been more essential: “Kenwright has been in charge for 11 years now and all we’ve had in that time are broken promises and lie after lie. Bill is always going on about how much of a massive blue he is, if that is the case then why is he dragging this club down? It’s time for him to let go of the club.”
However, Kenwright reassured fans after Saturday’s victory against Wolves that he has been tirelessly working to sell the club, but reiterated it will only be sold to the right buyers.
Kenwright also revealed he has been trying to sell the club for around three years and stated that there are always “three to four” interested parties looking to buy Everton at any given time.
Should rivals share ground? >>
Blues lose early momentum >>
EFC season review 2010/11 >>
Bruno Senna exclusive >>
Rafa hints at Reds return >>
The Blue Union >>
Official Everton website >>
Kenwright on new investment >>
BBC: Everton attract investors >>
BBC: Fellaini pens new deal >>
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line524
|
__label__cc
| 0.726008
| 0.273992
|
Rogers Activity Center
21080 - 141st Ave. N
Rogers is located at the intersection of I-94 and Rt-101 in east central Minnesota, approx. 25 miles northwest of Minneapolis.
From Minneapolis: I-94 west approx. 22 miles to Main St./Rt-101 (exit 207). Bear right onto Main St./Rt-101 and proceed north approx. 1 mile to 141st Avenue. Turn right on 141st Ave. and proceed east approx. 0.2 mile to arena on the left.
From the West (St. Cloud): I-94 east approx. 37 miles to Main St./Rt-101 (exit 207). Turn left on Main St./Rt-101 and proceed north approx. 1.25 miles to 141st Avenue. Turn right on 141st Ave. and proceed east approx. 0.2 mile to arena on the left.
From the North (Duluth): I-35 south approx. 130 miles to I-35W South (exit 127). Proceed south on I-35W approx. 15 miles to I-694 West (exit 27B). Proceed west on I-694 approx. 13 miles to I-94 West (exit 27). Proceed west on I-94 approx. 9 miles to Main St./Rt-101 (exit 207). Bear right onto Main St./Rt-101 and proceed north approx. 1 mile to 141st Avenue. Turn right on 141st Ave. and proceed east approx. 0.2 mile to arena on the left.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line525
|
__label__cc
| 0.60074
| 0.39926
|
The Definition of Trigger Bar
Trigger Bar
On a semi-automatic pistol, or any other firearm in which the trigger is at some distance from the sear, this is an intermediate piece connecting the two parts.
Sight Radius
The distance between the rear sight and the front sight. As a longer lever provides greater mechanical advantage, the greater the distance between the two sights, the more inherently accurate they will be.
A plain, functional, unembellished firearm used to hunt in rough terrain where one might prefer not to put a more expensive, deluxe grade gun at risk of damage.
Underlug
The locking lugs on a break-action firearm that extend from the bottom of the barrels under the chamber(s) and connect into the receiver bottom.
Naked Bullet
A bullet not covered by a metal jacket or patch.
The part of the trigger mechanism which holds the hammer or striker back. Pressure on the trigger causes the sear to release the hammer or striker, allowing it to strike the firing pin and discharge the weapon.
Double-Base Powder
A rapidly burning powder made by absorbing nitroglycerine into nitrocellulose (guncotton).
Sleeved Barrels
An economical method of bringing new life to a damaged pair of barrels, regardless of their original method of jointing. The ribs are removed. The barrels are cut off 3" - 4" from the breech end and discarded. The bores of the remaining breech-end are reamed out oversize. New tubes are fitted down into the original breech section and filed down to fit flush. The original ribs are then replaced. Sleeving is considerably less expensive than building a completely new set of barrels. Much of the time required to build a set of barrels is concentrated in the fitting of the breech end to the receiver; this work is salvaged through sleeving. Sleeving can be recognized by a pair of circumferential lines around the barrels a few inches from the breech; the more invisible, the finer the job. A sleeved gun should always be identified as such amongst the proof marks, and if done in England must be properly reproofed. Photo Sleeving is not the same thing as Monoblocking.
A type of firearm action which uses a lever located around the trigger guard area, (often including the trigger guard itself) to load fresh cartridges into the chamber of the barrel when the lever is worked.
The chemical propellant which is burned to produce the hot gases which send the projectile flying downrange.
Abbreviation for Double Action Only. Is a type of firearm in which the firing mechanism cannot be cocked in a single-action stage. Firing always occurs as a double-action sequence where pulling the trigger both cocks and then fires the gun.
A firearm designed to fire a single cartridge, eject the empty case and reload the chamber each time the trigger is pulled. It uses the energy from the fired shot to eject the empty case and feed the next round into the chamber.
An imaginary straight line from the eye through the sights of a firearm to the target.
A mechanical device to make it easier to fill magazines using less hand strength and without hurting one's fingertips or thumbs.
Handspanner
German for Hand-Cocking or Cocker/De-Cocker. A type of action on a break-open gun or rifle where, in place of a traditional top tang safety, a somewhat more robust tab is fitted. Normally such a gun is carried in the field loaded, but with the action not cocked, an exceedingly safe condition. Then, when ready to fire, the shooter, instead of pushing a safety tab forward, pushes this larger tab forward, cocking the mainspring, making the gun ready to fire. Then, if the shot is not taken, he may simply slide this tab rearwards again, de-cocking the gun and returning it to the still-loaded, but very safe position.
A tube, usually metal, through which a controlled explosion or rapid expansion of gases are released in order to propel a projectile out of the end at a high velocity. It is the tube through which the bullet or shot travels. The barrel serves the purpose of providing direction and velocity to the bullet.
Decocker (De-Cocker)
On semi-auto matic pistols, a lever that mechanically lowers the hammer without firing the gun.
Speed Loader
A device used to load magazines or revolver cylinders quicker than by hand.
Smith & Wesson term for a revolver grip design introduced in the 1930s where the top of the grip extends higher than it had in earlier configurations, to provide a more comfortable hold.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line527
|
__label__wiki
| 0.601282
| 0.601282
|
You are hereMount Pleasant Patch: Couple Indicted for Illegal Donations to Graham
Mount Pleasant Patch: Couple Indicted for Illegal Donations to Graham
Campaign denies knowledge of illegal donations funneled from German businessman.
-By Adam Crisp
September 19, 2011- A Mount Pleasant business owner faces a multi-count federal indictment for a scheme to donate thousands of dollars in illegal campaign money to the re-election campaign of U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham.
Federal authorities allege in April indictments that were unsealed Monday that Jian-Yun “John” Dong took more than $30,000 from a German national and funneled the money through illegal sources from 2007-09 to support Graham’s re-election campaign.
He also used money from the German businessman to make donations to the Graham’s political action committee Fund for America’s Future.
Graham’s campaign on Monday said they have cooperated with investigators and they noted that in the indictment it notes that the campaign was not aware of the violations.
“Campaign officials met with authorities in October 2010 and provided information pertinent to the investigation,” said Thad Westbrook, treasurer of Lindsey Graham for Senate and Fund for America’s Future. “Our campaign has and will continue to cooperate fully with the investigation."
Dong and his estranged wife, Danher Wang, reportedly donated beyond the maximum federal limits to both Graham and the PAC in 2007 and 2008.
Then, to satisfy a promise to raise $25,000 for Graham’s campaign, the couple then took money from the German businessman, identified only as “R.H.” in the indictment, and had employees and minor children make donations to the PAC and Graham’s campaign, according to the indictment.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line534
|
__label__wiki
| 0.91295
| 0.91295
|
McGregor Birkett double rights Team SA ship at Canoe Marathon Worlds
Hank McGregor bagged a seventh world title when he mastered a powerful field and tough weather conditions to win the Men’s K1 crown at the ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships, with compatriot Andy Birkett grabbing his first senior medal to complete a historic South African one:two.
Racing in rainy, windy conditions that left the vast expanse of the Brandenburg an den Havel lake choppy and difficult to manage, McGregor raced a tactically superb race to stay in command of a threatening nine boat front bunch, with Portugal’s Jose Ramalho and Hungary’s Adrian Boros always well positioned.
It was McGregor’s sixth K1 title, defending the K1 crown the Euro Steel athlete won in Gyor last year, to go with the K2 crown that he won with Jasper Mocké in Oklahoma in 2014.
“Racing against some of the best paddlers, if not the best paddlers, and I managed to pull it off when it really counted,” said McGregor.
“I thoroughly enjoyed myself. It was a totally different type of racing, with sometimes fifteen guys on the front bunch. But that’s the World Championships, against the best of the best.
“To have my countryman working together with me was great. I am really happy,” he said after the race.
The silver medal is a massive result for Birkett, who won the Under 23 K1 world title in Copenhagen.
“I am super stoked to have been in such a tough race,” he said. “I looked at the bunch around at before the last portage with about seven or eight boats and thought that if I can somehow get a medal I would be so stoked.
“To come second I feel like I have just won the race.
“After the huge disappointment of last year where things didn’t seem to work out the way I wanted it to, I went back and worked harder and I am super stoked that things went my way today,” said Birkett.
Earlier in the 2014 Junior K2 world champ Jean van der Westhuyzen had to settle for fifth place in the Boys K1 race, in a race that was totally dominated by the Hungarian duo. Capetonian Mark Keeling finished eighth, just less than two minutes further back.
A disappointed Van der Westhuysen said that he had battled in the windy and choppy water, shipping water into his K1.
“Look the conditions were the same for everyone, that’s just the way it goes,” said Van der Westhuysen after the race. “It was a good hard race.”
“I was trying to pump as much water out of my boat as I could, but that’s the way I have trained and I was used to that.”
Van der Westhuysen put in a brave charge to try and get back onto the front bunch in the closing stages of the race.
“We tried really hard to get back onto the front, but they guys were pushing too hard for us and we weren’t strong enough,” the Michaelhouse scholar said.
The junior girls crew of Sabrina Lawrie and Christie McKenzie also found themselves rubbed off the hot-paced front bunch also dictated by Hungarian paddlers.
“At the start we were closest to the grandstand, which wasn’t the most desirable line to get down to the bottom turn buoy.
“We settled into our race and started to work our way back as best we could,” said Lawrie.
“We made a really good team today and really enjoyed our first experience at World Champs level,” she added.
The competition concludes on Sunday with the K2 races for senior men and women, and the junior boys.
Junior Boys K1
1.Ádám Varga (HUN) 1:43:15.8
2.Csaba Erdössy (HUN) 1:43:20.6
3.Augustin Rodriguez (ARG) 1:44:06.8
5.Jean van der Westhuyzen (RSA) 1:44:56.2
8.Mark Keeling (RSA) 1:1:46:30.6
1.Zsófia Korsos/Viktória Fruzsina Nagy (HUN) 1:29:59.30
2Lilla Banki/Csenge Virág Rekop (HUN) 1:30:34.8
3.Eliska Betlachova/Ludmila Koterova (CZE) 1:32:26.5
7.Sabina Lawrie/Christie McKenzie (RSA) 01:34:54.8
Senior Women K1
1.Renata Csay (HUN) 2:06:56.7
2.Vanda Kiszli (HUN) 2:07:00.3
3.Christina Beke (SRB) 2:08:17.8
10.Nikki Russell (RSA) 2:13:53.5
12.Bianca Beavitt (RSA) 2:15:09.5
Senior Men K1
1.Hank McGregor (RSA) 2:20:11.6
2.Andy Birkett (RSA)2:20:12.7
3.Jose Ramalho (POR) 2:20:13.3
Previous Post Purchase opens Team SA’s medal account at Canoe Marathon Worlds Next Post Golden double for McGregor at Canoe Marathon Worlds
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line535
|
__label__wiki
| 0.730938
| 0.730938
|
Home/Entertainment/Broadway And Glee Actor Jonathon Groff’s Message To Closeted Gay Actors: Come Out!
EntertainmentGay News From Around The GlobeGayGeek - All Things Gay and Geeky
Broadway And Glee Actor Jonathon Groff’s Message To Closeted Gay Actors: Come Out!
Jonathan groff, known for his roles on Broadway and Fox Hit sitcom Glee is encouraging his fellow actors still in the closet to come out. The actor recently discussed that his decison to be openly gay has not affected his career.
Groff, who is reported to be in a relationship with and activist Zachary Quinto diviluged his sexuality in 2009. In a recent interview in Out Magazine, Groff discusses his own personal experience and states:“I sort of always knew, in the back of my mind, that when the moment arrived for me to come out, I would.”I wasn’t yanked out of the closet [but] when I came out, people said it may have a negative effect on my career, and that’s definitely something I thought about before I did it,”
The actor noes that when he came out he didn’t experience a detriment to his career and mentioned “When I came out, people said it may have a negative effect on my career, and that’s definitely something I thought about before I did it. But I don’t hold that belief. I just go on my auditions and plug away as I normally would. At the end of my career, I can look back and ask, ‘Well, did it, or didn’t it?’ But at the moment, I just have to move forward and hope that people will follow my actions.”
There has been an evolution recently in how closeted actors come out about to announce their sexuality. His boyfriend, Zachary Quinto came ont in one of thew most nonchalant ways last years by csually mentioning it in a interview for New York Magazine last year. Actor Matt Bomer did the sdame thing this year by thanking his partner and their children at a Steve Chase Humanitarian Awards event.
A few months ago The New York Times discussed how instead of the former and outdated method of going through a publicist and making a huge announcement has phased out. The wasy that this earnest and humble announcement like Jim Parsons from CBS Geek Hit The Big Bang Theory in a non-eventual way (AS IT SHOULD BE).
I for one will be elated when an actor, or anyone else, won’t have to come out . BUT i appreciate Jonathan telling us his own personal experience as hopefully it will encourage those still in the closet and discuss their sexuality openly without fear that it’ll affect job opportunities. Be gay, straight, bisexual, transgender, questioning, curious or any other variant, just be proud of who you are.
advocacy coming out gay actors in the closet LGBT
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton To Address the 2012 International AIDS Conference
GaydyUp News Pride Edition! – Hosted By Zak Baldridge
Back2Stonewall Spotlight: Gay Canadian Indie Pop Duo – O Nouveau “Baby, I’ll Give It All” – VIDEO
Christo-Fascist Gay Bashers Use Myths to Deride New York’s New Marriage Law
Sundance 2013 – James Franco’s: “Interior. Leather Bar” – TRAILER
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line539
|
__label__cc
| 0.613985
| 0.386015
|
The American Yawp Reader
Abolitionist Sheet Music Cover Page, 1844
America Guided by Wisdom Engraving, 1815
American Revolution Cartoon
Anti-Catholic Cartoon, 1855
Anti-immigrant cartoon
Anti-Immigrant Cartoon, 1860
Anti-Thomas Jefferson Cartoon, 1797
Blueprint and Photograph of Christ Church
Broadening the Yawp
Burying the Dead Photograph, 1865
Casta Painting
Civil War Nurses Illustration, 1864
Cliff Palace
Constitutional Ratification Cartoon, 1789
County Election Painting, 1854
Drawing of Uniforms of the American Revolution
Effects of the Fugitive Slave Law Lithograph, 1850
F15 – Manifest Destiny Reader
F16 – Colonial Society Reader
F16 – Reconstruction Reader
Fifteenth Amendment Print, 1870
Genius of the Ladies Magazine Illustration, 1792
Johnson and Reconstruction Cartoon, 1866
Manifest Destiny Painting, 1872
Map of British North America
Martin Van Buren Cartoon, 1837
Missionary Society Membership Certificate, 1848
Painting of Enslaved Persons for Sale, 1861
Painting of New Orleans
Print of the Slave Ship Brookes
Proslavery Cartoon, 1850
Royall Family
Sectional Crisis Map, 1856
Sketch of an Algonquin Village
The Fruit of Alcohol and Temperance Lithographs, 1849
The New World Reader
Native American Creation Stories
Journal of Christopher Columbus, 1492
An Aztec account of the Spanish attack
Bartolomé de Las Casas Describes the Exploitation of Indigenous Peoples, 1542
Thomas Morton Reflects on Indians in New England, 1637
The story of the Virgin of Guadalupe
Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca Travels through North America, 1542
Colliding Cultures Reader
Richard Hakluyt Makes the Case for English Colonization, 1584
John Winthrop Dreams of a City on a Hill, 1630
John Lawson Encounters North American Indians, 1709
A Gaspesian Indian Defends His Way of Life, 1641
The Legend of Moshup, 1830
Accusations of witchcraft, 1692 and 1706
Manuel Trujillo Accuses Asencio Povia and Antonio Yuba of Sodomy, 1731
British North America Reader
Olaudah Equiano Describes the Middle Passage, 1789
Recruiting Settlers to Carolina, 1666
Letter from Carolina, 1682
Francis Daniel Pastorius Describes his Ocean Voyage, 1684
Song about Life in Virginia
Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address
Rose Davis is sentenced to a life of slavery, 1715
Colonial Society Reader
Boston trader Sarah Knight on her travels in Connecticut, 1704
Eliza Lucas Letters, 1740-1741
Jonathan Edwards Revives Northampton, Massachusetts, 1741
Samson Occom describes his conversion and ministry, 1768
Extracts from Gibson Clough’s War Journal, 1759
Pontiac Calls for War, 1763
Alibamo Mingo, Choctaw leader, Reflects on the British and French, 1765
The American Revolution Reader
George R. T. Hewes, A Retrospect of the Boston Tea-party, 1834
Thomas Paine Calls for American independence, 1776
Declaration of Independence, 1776
Women in South Carolina Experience Occupation, 1780
Oneida Declaration of Neutrality, 1775
Boston King recalls fighting for the British and for his freedom, 1798
Abigail and John Adams Converse on Women’s Rights, 1776
A New Nation Reader
Hector St. Jean de Crèvecœur Describes the American people, 1782
A Confederation of Native peoples seek peace with the United States, 1786
Mary Smith Cranch comments on politics, 1786-87
James Madison, Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments, 1785
George Washington, “Farewell Address,” 1796
Venture Smith, A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture, 1798
Susannah Rowson, Charlotte Temple, 1794
The Early Republic Reader
Letter of Cato and Petition by “the negroes who obtained freedom by the late act,” in Postscript to the Freeman’s Journal, September 21, 1781
Thomas Jefferson’s Racism, 1788
Black scientist Benjamin Banneker demonstrates black intelligence to Thomas Jefferson, 1791
Congress Debates Going to War, 1811
Creek headman Alexander McGillivray (Hoboi-Hili-Miko) seeks to build an alliance with Spain, 1785
Tecumseh Calls for Pan-Indian Resistance, 1810
Abigail Bailey Escapes an Abusive Relationship, 1815
The Market Revolution Reader
James Madison Asks Congress to Support Internal Improvements, 1815
A Traveler Describes Life Along the Erie Canal, 1829
Blacksmith Apprentice Contract, 1836
Maria Stewart bemoans the consequences of racism, 1832
Rebecca Burlend recalls her emigration from England to Illinois, 1848
Harriet H. Robinson Remembers a Mill Workers’ Strike, 1836
Alexis de Tocqueville, “How Americans Understand the Equality of the Sexes,” 1840
Democracy in America Reader
Missouri Controversy Documents, 1819-1920
Rhode Islanders Protest Property Restrictions on Voting, 1834
Black Philadelphians Defend their Voting Rights, 1838
Andrew Jackson’s Veto Message Against Re-chartering the Bank of the United States, 1832
Frederick Douglass, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” 1852
Rebecca Reed accuses nuns of abuse, 1835
Samuel Morse Fears a Catholic Conspiracy, 1835
Religion and Reform Reader
Revivalist Charles G. Finney Emphasizes Human Choice in Salvation, 1836
Dorothea Dix defends the mentally ill, 1843
David Walker’s Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World, 1829
William Lloyd Garrison Introduces The Liberator, 1831
Angelina Grimké, Appeal to Christian Women of the South, 1836
Sarah Grimké Calls for Women’s Rights, 1838
Henry David Thoreau Reflects on Nature, 1854
The Cotton Revolution Reader
Nat Turner explains the Southampton rebellion, 1831
Harriet Jacobs on Rape and Slavery, 1860
Solomon Northup Describes a Slave Market, 1841
George Fitzhugh Argues that Slavery is Better than Liberty and Equality, 1854
Sermon on the Duties of a Christian Woman, 1851
Mary Polk Branch remembers plantation life, 1912
William Wells Brown, “Clotel; or, The President’s Daughter: A Narrative of Slave Life in the United States,” 1853
Manifest Destiny Reader
Cherokee Petition Protesting Removal, 1836
John O’Sullivan Declares America’s Manifest Destiny, 1845
Diary of a Woman Migrating to Oregon, 1853
Chinese Merchant Complains of Racist Abuse, 1860
Wyandotte woman describes tensions over slavery, 1849
Letters from Venezuelan General Francisco de Miranda regarding Latin American Revolution, 1805-1806
President Monroe Outlines the Monroe Doctrine, 1823
The Sectional Crisis Reader
Prigg v. Pennsylvania, 1842
Stories from the Underground Railroad, 1855-56
Harriet Beecher Stowe, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, 1852
Charlotte Forten complains of racism in the North, 1855
Margaraetta Mason and Lydia Maria Child Discuss John Brown, 1860
1860 Republican Party Platform
South Carolina Declaration of Secession, 1860
The Civil War Reader
Alexander Stephens on Slavery and the Confederate Constitution, 1861
General Benjamin F. Butler Reacts to Self-Emancipating Slaves, 1861
William Henry Singleton, a formerly enslaved man, recalls fighting for the Union, 1922
Poem about Civil War Nurses, 1866
Ambrose Bierce Recalls his Experience at the Battle of Shiloh, 1881
Civil War songs, 1862
Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, 1865
Reconstruction Reader
Freedmen discuss post-emancipation life with General Sherman, 1865
Jourdon Anderson Writes His Former Enslaver, 1865
Charlotte Forten Teaches Freed Children in South Carolina, 1864
Mississippi Black Code, 1865
General Reynolds Describes Lawlessness in Texas, 1868
A case of sexual violence during Reconstruction, 1866
Frederick Douglass on Remembering the Civil War, 1877
William Graham Sumner on Social Darwinism (ca.1880s)
Henry George, Progress and Poverty, Selections (1879)
Andrew Carnegie’s Gospel of Wealth (June 1889)
Grover Cleveland’s Veto of the Texas Seed Bill (February 16, 1887)
The “Omaha Platform” of the People’s Party (1892)
Chief Joseph on Indian Affairs (1877, 1879)
William T. Hornady on the Extermination of the American Bison (1889)
Chester A. Arthur on American Indian Policy (1881)
Frederick Jackson Turner, “Significance of the Frontier in American History” (1893)
Andrew Carnegie on “The Triumph of America” (1885)
Henry Grady on the New South (1886)
Ida B. Wells-Barnett, “Lynch Law in America” (1900)
Henry Adams, The Education of Henry Adams (1918)
Charlotte Perkins Gilman, “Why I Wrote The Yellow Wallpaper” (1913)
Jacob Riis, How the Other Half Lives (1890)
William McKinley on American Expansionism (1903)
Rudyard Kipling, “The White Man’s Burden” (1899)
James D. Phelan, “Why the Chinese Should Be Excluded” (1901)
William James on “The Philippine Question” (1903)
Mark Twain, “The War Prayer” (ca.1904-5)
Booker T. Washington & W.E.B. DuBois on Black Progress (1895, 1903)
Jane Addams, “The Subjective Necessity for Social Settlements” (1892)
Eugene Debs, “How I Became a Socialist” (April, 1902)
Walter Rauschenbusch, Christianity and the Social Crisis (1907)
Alice Stone Blackwell, Answering Objections to Women’s Suffrage (1917)
Woodrow Wilson on the New Freedom (1912)
Woodrow Wilson Requests War (April 2, 1917)
Alan Seeger on World War I (1914; 1916)
The Sedition Act of 1918 (1918)
Emma Goldman on Patriotism (July 9, 1917)
W.E.B DuBois, “Returning Soldiers” (May, 1919)
Warren G. Harding and the “Return to Normalcy” (1920)
Crystal Eastman, “Now We Can Begin” (1920)
Marcus Garvey, Explanation of the Objects of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (1921)
Hiram Evans on the “The Klan’s Fight for Americanism” (1926)
Herbert Hoover, “Principles and Ideals of the United States Government” (1928)
Herbert Hoover on the New Deal (1932)
Huey P. Long, “Every Man a King” and “Share our Wealth” (1934)
Franklin Roosevelt’s Re-Nomination Acceptance Speech (1936)
Second Inaugural Address of Franklin D. Roosevelt (1937)
Lester Hunter, “I’d Rather Not Be on Relief” (1938)
Charles A. Lindbergh, “America First” (1941)
The Atlantic Charter (1941)
FDR, Executive Order No. 9066 (1942)
Harry Truman Announcing the Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima (1945)
Declaration of Independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (1945)
The Truman Doctrine (1947)
NSC-68 (1950)
Joseph McCarthy on Communism (1950)
Woody Guthrie, “This Land” (1940-1945)
Dwight D. Eisenhower, “Atoms for Peace” (1953)
Migrant Farmers and Immigrant Labor (1952)
Hernandez v. Texas (1954)
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)
Richard Nixon on the American Standard of Living (1959)
John F. Kennedy on the Separation of Church and State (1960)
Barry Goldwater, Republican Nomination Acceptance Speech (1964)
Lyndon Johnson on Voting Rights and the American Promise (1965)
Lyndon Johnson, Howard University Commencement Address (1965)
National Organization for Women, “Statement of Purpose” (1966)
George M. Garcia, Vietnam Veteran, Oral Interview (1969/2012)
Report of the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (1968)
Statement by John Kerry of Vietnam Veterans Against the War (1971)
Nixon Announcement of China Visit (1971)
Barbara Jordan, 1976 Democratic National Convention Keynote Address (1976)
Jimmy Carter, “Crisis of Confidence” (1979)
First Inaugural Address of Ronald Reagan (1981)
Jerry Falwell on the “Homosexual Revolution” (1981)
Statements of AIDS Patients (1983)
Statements from The Parents Music Resource Center (1985)
Pat Buchanan on the Culture War (1992)
Bill Clinton on Free Trade and Financial Deregulation (1993-2000)
The 9/11 Commission Report, “Reflecting On A Generational Challenge” (2004)
George W. Bush on the Post-9/11 World (2002)
Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)
Barack Obama, Howard University Commencement Address (2016)
David Walker was the son of an enslaved man and a free black woman. He traveled widely before settling in Boston where he worked in and owned clothing stores and involved himself in various reform causes. In 1829, he wrote the remarkable Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World. In it, he exposed the hypocrisies of American claims of freedom and Christianity, attacked the plan to colonize black Americans in Africa, and predicted that God’s justice promised violence for the slaveholding United States.
Having travelled over a considerable portion of these United States, and having, in the course of my travels, taken the most accurate observations of things as they exist—the result of my observations has warranted the full and unshaken conviction, that we, (coloured people of these United States,) are the most degraded, wretched, and abject set of beings that ever lived since the world began; and I pray God that none like us ever may live again until time shall be no more. They tell us of the Israelites in Egypt, the Helots in Sparta, and of the Roman Slaves, which last were made up from almost every nation under heaven, whose sufferings under those ancient and heathen nations, were, in comparison with ours, under this enlightened and Christian nation, no more than a cypher—or, in other words, those heathen nations of antiquity, had but little more among them than the name and form of slavery; while wretchedness and endless miseries were reserved, apparently in a phial, to be poured out upon our fathers, ourselves and our children, by Christian Americans!
… But against all accusations which may or can be preferred against me, I appeal to Heaven for my motive in writing—who knows what my object is, if possible, to awaken in the breasts of my afflicted, degraded and slumbering brethren, a spirit of inquiry and investigation respecting our miseries and wretchedness in this Republican Land of Liberty!!!!!!
…Will any of us leave our homes and go to Africa? I hope not. Let them commence their attack upon us as they did on our brethren in Ohio, driving and beating us from our country, and my soul for theirs, they will have enough of it. Let no man of us budge one step, and let slave-holders come to beat us from our country. America is more our country, than it is the whites—we have enriched it with our blood and tears. The greatest riches in all America have arisen from our blood and tears:—and will they drive us from our property and homes, which we have earned with our blood? They must look sharp or this very thing will bring swift destruction upon them. The Americans have got so fat on our blood and groans, that they have almost forgotten the God of armies. But let them go on…
I also ask the attention of the world of mankind to the declaration of these very American people, of the United States. A declaration made July 4, 1776. It says, “When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the Powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature’s God entitle them. A decent respect for the opinions of mankind requires, that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.—We hold these truths to be self evident—that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights: that among these, are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness ….” See your Declaration Americans!!! Do you understand your own language? Hear your language, proclaimed to the world, July 4th, 1776—”We hold these truths to be self evident—that ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL!! that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness!!” Compare your own language above, extracted from your Declaration of Independence, with your cruelties and murders inflicted by your cruel and unmerciful fathers and yourselves on our fathers and on us—men who have never given your fathers or you the least provocation!!!!!!
Now, Americans! I ask you candidly, was your sufferings under Great Britain, one hundredth part as cruel and tyranical as you have rendered ours under you? Some of you, no doubt, believe that we will never throw off your murderous government and “provide new guards for our future security.” If Satan has made you believe it, will he not deceive you? Do the whites say, I being a black man, ought to be humble, which I readily admit? I ask them, ought they not to be as humble as I? or do they think that they can measure arms with Jehovah? Will not the Lord yet humble them? or will not these very coloured people whom they now treat worse than brutes, yet under God, humble them low down enough? Some of the whites are ignorant enough to tell us that we ought to be submissive to them, that they may keep their feet on our throats. And if we do not submit to be beaten to death by them, we are bad creatures and of course must be damned, &c. If any man wishes to hear this doctrine openly preached to us by the American preachers, let him go into the Southern and Western sections of this country—I do not speak from hear say—what I have written, is what I have seen and heard myself. No man may think that my book is made up of conjecture— I have travelled and observed nearly the whole of those things myself, and what little I did not get by my own observation, I received from those among the whites and blacks, in whom the greatest confidence may be placed.
The Americans may be as vigilant as they please, but they cannot be vigilant enough for the Lord, neither can they hide themselves, where he will not find and bring them out.
David Walker, An Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World (Boston: 1830), 3-4, 73, 84, 86.
Available through Documenting the American South, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
← Dorothea Dix defends the mentally ill, 1843
William Lloyd Garrison Introduces The Liberator, 1831 →
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line543
|
__label__cc
| 0.624043
| 0.375957
|
cynthia e fruchtman
Ms. Fruchtman is a highly successful and seasoned civil litigator, with extensive experience handling complex Business Litigation cases, Intellectual Property, Labor and Employment, and Real Estate Litigation.
Northwestern University (B.A. 1979); IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law (J.D. 1986)
Founder/Principal The Law Offices of Cynthia E. Fruchtman, 1997 to present; Partner, Richman, Lawrence, Mann, Greene, Chizever.
Martindale-Hubbell’s A-V rating, its highest rating for Legal Ability and Integrity; Guest Lecturer, University of California Los Angeles Law School, 1987-1990; Adjunct Professor: California State University, Los Angeles, 1991-1992; Whittier Law School, 1993-1997; Mediator, Los Angeles County Superior and Municipal Courts, 2002-2008; Arbitrator, Los Angeles County Superior and Municipal Courts, 1991-1997.
Co-Author: “Ethical Aspects of Genetic Testing,” Whittier Law Review; “Advising California Employers Supplement”; “Genetic Testing in Assisted Reproduction,” Hastings Center Report; Author: “Equal Employment Law Development,” CEB Business Law Quarterly; “Reducing Employer Liability to Whistleblowers,” California Business Law Practitioner; “Advising California Lawyers and Employees”; “Whistleblower Issues”; Reviewer: Practice Under the California Family Code, “Parentage”
SES Employment Law and Landlord-Tenant Law Updates; HIPAA for Employers; Sexual Harassment in the Workplace; American Bar Association (Family Law, Estate Planning, Reproduction; Medical Education Speakers Network; Health Law Symposium, Whittier Law School.
Admitted to Bar California 1986; CEB Business & Intellectual Property Law Advisory Committee; Los Angeles County Bar Association (Bioethics Committee, Former Co-Chair)
Successfully prosecuted and defended multiple cases involving breach of contract, fraud, tort, real estate, partnership and control disputes and completion disputes.
Won cases and injunctions against former employees for unfair competition, unfair business practices, and misappropriation of trade secrets and proprietary business information;
Won judgments and obtained favorable settlements for business owners against unfair business practices, unfair competition, breach of contract and fraud;
Successfully represented employers and employees in numerous litigation, arbitration and mediation matters against claims of wrongful termination, unlawful harassment, discrimination, wage and hour violations, exempt and independent contractor status, breach of contract and other workplace related issues;
Favorably settled wage and hour class actions on behalf of employers;
Counseled numerous employers and employees with respect to employment contracts, employee handbooks, audits, management training, wage and hour issues, exempt status, independent contractor agreements, leaves of absence, disability, discrimination and harassment complaints, litigation holds, investigations and resolution of workplace issues, substance abuse, discipline and terminations, downsizing and layoffs, trial and claim avoidance;
Negotiated partnership, vendor, lease and sales agreements for business owners;
Successfully prosecuted and defended construction defects cases;
Favorably resolved an involuntary bailment action involving commercial property;
Obtained fraud judgment against debtor in bankruptcy.
Defeated preference claim in bankruptcy for manufacturer of goods.
Successfully defended producer in arbitration brought by Muhammed Ali for breach of contract, for false light, interference with prospective economic advantage, and related business torts.
Retained to file as amicus in the California Supreme Court regarding the appropriate standards for a court appointed guardian’s power;
Served as arbitrator and mediator in many cases for the Los Angeles Superior Court.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line556
|
__label__cc
| 0.521339
| 0.478661
|
A Neo-Geo Church
Omens & Portents
BIOS Blog
EARTH GODDESS GEO-GAIA, TEACH US HOW TO REVERSE CLIMATE CHANGE AND RESTORE OUR BIOS
I attended Sunday school across the street from our house in Chicago. This was a Lutheran congregation influenced by the Nineteenth Century evangelist Dwight Moody, who emphasized Christian teachings of peace, love, and easy redemption through personal prayer.
Good Gospel News! But my religious life seemed to involve a lot of guilt. Our home that was wracked by parental arguments. My prayer for a world then at war in Korea was, “Why can’t everyone get along and just be nice to each other?” The role model of Christ as a martyr, peacemaker and healer was a challenging one. I remember the Bible quotes repeated by my mother.
The Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Love thy neighbor as thyself.
Love your enemy and turn the other cheek.
Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth.
It’s easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter Heaven.
These proverbs seemed to be the formulas for a harmonious life. Wouldn’t everyone want to embrace them? Other sayings were more problematic.
“Now I lay me down to sleep; I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” Morbid if you think too much about it.
“It’s the thought that counts.” But on the other hand, “The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.”
“And God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” We memorized John 3:16 from the New Testament, because it forms the basis of the eternal reward and punishment system that has powered Christ’s church and the evangelistic rebirth movement. Other glimpses of afterlife are rare in the Bible, though they’re vivid in ecclesiastic art and preaching.
To me, just dying was scary enough. But along with the comforting promise of eternal life, I was warned of an underworld of permanent suffering and torture for sinners, or at least the unrepentant. I don’t recall whether I learned this in church or from pop culture. There was this ad for a musical called Hellzapoppin’. I found myself morbidly fascinated with the idea of Hell. Through its association with adult things such as drink, gambling, profanity and unguessed forbidden pleasures, it had a weird attraction for me. Sort of a sado-masochistic preview of Gitmo or Abu Grahib.
The only physical suffering I experienced, aside from the Chicago heat or bumping my head, was tickle-torture. I also felt guilt over hurtful things I said, petty thefts or disobedience, and wicked thoughts. One time I took the dollar I’d forgotten to give for a church offering and spent it on a 10-cent cap pistol and 90 rolls of caps. A major guilt, especially after the store lady got on the phone to my mother. Fortunately, both of my parents urged me not to blame myself over the adult problems that led to their separation and divorce.
Later in childhood, my musing about order and purpose in the universe focused on astronomical questions and my newfound love of science fiction: Was there really life on other planets? As a little kid, I swore breathlessly to my parents that I’d seen a flying saucer winking colored lights over Chicago, and then had nightmares about green cavemen scaling the walls of our 3-story walkup. But now I feared we might be alone in the universe, with no interesting aliens and no hospitable places to land our spaceships. Then I had an epiphany. I told my father, yes, I believed there was alien life. Otherwise, what did all those other stars and planets exist for?
This, of course, supposed that the universe had been created for a purpose. It’s called teleological reasoning, creation for use rather than by cause, and in science it’s regarded as a fallacy. Still it eased my fears about a barren cosmos. My concern for alien beings was based on the notion that, if they traveled in outer space and contacted us, they must have achieved a stable home world and a peaceful, enlightened society. This would make them helpful teachers and exemplars for our war-torn planet – something like the human Star Trekkers later portrayed on TV as dealing with alien races under a benevolent Prime Directive.
Yet I’d also seen a sci fi novel titled Invaders from Earth, where primitive Martian innocents were vilified and attacked by Earth colonists…a shame, but not such a scary threat, so long as we were the oppressors.
These cosmological ideas remained vague until my senior year in high school. Meanwhile my church attendance ceased. Never did it occur to me that aliens would come to Earth heralding Christian belief, like the Three Kings. I still retained a strong, tormenting guilt over my sexual yearnings and solitary practices, but this sense of shame and unworthiness came more from the Boy Scout Handbook than from any church or fear of damnation. How could God fairly punish me for my weakness if he made me this way? I never felt that I’d been personally tempted by the Devil.
My father’s views on spirituality were similarly obscure. He had briefly searched for Ancient Wisdom as a Rosicrucian, taking me to their Egyptian Museum in San Jose, and wangling a bargain price on the books (which weren’t adventurous enough for me to read.) As a typesetter educated mainly by newspapers, Dad once held up his hand and said, “Son, look at this, how it can move and grip, play music and do surgery. To me, the human hand is all the proof we need that there is a great designer out there who made this marvelous tool for us.” Fortunately, I didn’t have the resources to bring him a picture of an ape’s hand, and before that a rat’s paw and fish fin, to show how it had evolved down the ages. Would that have destroyed his faith, or kindled a new one?
My dad’s views on family life, by contrast, were based partly on ape’s habits, how the young gorilla always wanted to kill off the old silverback, to take his place as master of the harem. So evidently he was an evolutionist, more than me. We may have had a primal Oedipus thing going, but if so it was his complex, not mine.
After all this religious tutelage, coming of age in High School at 17, I took Biology 2, a specially challenging college-level course. After paper chromatography we studied natural selection, not genetic but inter-species, short-term in a tiny ecosystem. We were sent forth in pairs to obtain a small vial of ditch water, which we then uncorked and studied over a period of weeks under a microscope. The wet slides that we made daily from a single droplet showed teeming, pulsating life, a mass of simple algae cruised by occasional unicellular animals.
As we sketched the different life forms and recorded sample counts, we discovered new protozoans that had been scarce in the original samples, slipper-shaped paramecia and hungry rotifers that scoured up the lesser animalcules like a Hoover vacuum cleaner. Our tiny microcosm of ecology changed over time, and presumably deteriorated. Life in the droplet samples became scarce except for the occasional large, scary predator darting through our microscope field.
My experience of this natural world was all the more vivid due to embarking on my own process of selection and reproduction with my lab partner, Cheryl, who became my wife and companion of 50 years, till death did us part.
After this very compelling glimpse of the life process, our class turned to the detailed study of genetics, for which Crick and Watson had won the Nobel Prize two years earlier in 1962. With our basic knowledge of chemistry aided by diagrams in the text and on the chalkboard, we were able to see how the interaction of RNA and DNA, ribonucleic acid and de-oxy ribonucleic acid, were able to replicate and separate the strands of organic chemicals to control growth of single-celled organisms, or of stem cells which later diversify into the specialized tissues of a multi-cellular being.
Seeing this, I could then understand how a random mutation to the chemical string, in the rare case where it did not damage or kill the organism, could provide a favorable mutation and promote survival and reproduction, to the exclusion of less viable gene expressions. It became clear that, in the absence of a guiding spirit or intellect, all that was needed, here in Earth’s hospitable seas and wetlands was time. A lot of it, almost unimaginable ages—the vast, echoing cathedral of our planet’s geological and biological eons. Here indeed is Ancient Wisdom, more miraculous than anything dreamt of by the Egyptians or Israelites.
The first effect of this revelation on my young mind was predictable. So, great! There’s no creator God or divine will in the world, so I can do whatever I want. I can be a savage barbarian, a swindler, or a tyrant if I’m clever enough to get away with it. Much like on Wall Street today—I expressed these views to my girlfriend and boy friends, even in earshot of our biology teacher on a bus trip. He must have been bemused, because he was a regular church-goer.
But whoa up there, Nelly! For one thing, I’d been raised with Christian ideals of peace and brotherhood, which I still revered. They fit into my world views of fair play, equal opportunity and meritocracy. The most important thing to me was the esteem of my friends and teachers, whom I didn’t think would honor a gang leader. With a vision handicap that required me to wear these giant goggles, I was especially partial to a civilized society. The most important thing is getting along with your neighbors… if you can recognize them more than 20 feet away.
That left a problem: Without the promise of boundless rewards and diabolical punishments, could others be socialized and made interdependent? Was religion, like Santa Claus’s short-term carrot and stick or a boogeyman to scare them straight, just something we teach our children to civilize them until they’re old enough to more or less fit in and obey the rules?
Would it be possible to discern or to craft a universal religious ethic that would tighten up the frayed ends of our economy’s highest and lowest, most ruthless classes? A science-based doctrine such as Evolutionary Psychology seemed to suggest itself, emphasizing species cooperation and the vital interdependence of our human community. But in recent chat room mud ditches, I’m told, evolution has become a stronghold of Social Darwinian survivalists extolling unlimited fierce competition and “nature red in tooth and claw.”
Due in part to this unbridled (and illusory) self-interest, we face a literal and fatal global meltdown. It becomes abundantly clear, with or without guidance from above, that the miracle of earthly life that brought us here, and that may yet sustain us, is the true Gospel we should preach and heed.
email: leonard@best1.net
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line559
|
__label__cc
| 0.663836
| 0.336164
|
BIG BROTHER 12: Time For Superficial Judgments Of The New Cast, Based On Very Little Information!
It’s that time of year again! Big Brother is just a scant 48 hours away, which means it’s time to partake in that hallowed pre-season tradition: passing callous judgments on the cast based on very little information! I simply love doing this, mostly because I’m almost always proven wrong. But that’s the fun of Big Brother, isn’t it? Over the course of the next two months, we’ll learn more and more about these people, discovering their true colors and revising our opinions of them on a near-daily basis. It’s glorious.
For this cast, I used the biographical information on CBS.com, which included a few survey questions for the house guests as well as some Q&A videos, which I briefly skimmed through. I have no idea how on the money my analysis is, but I can assure you of one thing: I feel pretty good about it (even if I do veer into some lightly offensive territory).
Judgments after the jump…
Single, Jewish, podiatrist, ESPN-loving — these are some of the terms Andrew uses to describe himself. I’d like to add one more: annoying. Well, he could be a sweetheart. But I sense he could be super annoying too. Why? Well, let me partake in some obnoxious generalizations about my people, if I may. I’m Jewish. I know members of my tribe well, and I can assure you that the nebbishy, sports-lovin’ Jewish guy is always THE WORST. It’s not because he’s Jewish. It’s because for some reason, when my peeps love sports, they love it to the most obsessive, in-your-face extremes. We’re talking stat-spewing, frenetic, hyper maniacal sport devotion (start the hate mail now). I wouldn’t be surprised if subscribers to the live feeds get stuck listening to Andrew pontificate on end about the smallest minutia of the Florida Marlins’ outfielders’ kleets. Of course, being an obsessive Big Brother fan calling out someone else for being an obsessive sports fan is a bit hypocritical of me; so… YEAH.
On the other hand, Andrew could be just lovely! But his decision as an orthodox Jew to enter the Big Brother house seems a touch… meshuggener
Douche potential: 4 out of 10
Saboteur potential: 7 out of 10
Potential methods of sabotage: Starting every sentence with “As the resident podiatrist here” until people want to kill themselves.
ANNIE WHITTINGTON
Poor, sweet Annie. Her profile on CBS is tragic in so many ways, mostly in its vapidity. When asked what her favorite activities are, she lists things that are “fun,” (just in case we were concerned that her favorite activities might be things that are NOT fun). Annie describes herself as “over dramatic,” and yet she says she doesn’t want to be around people who are angry and “overreact.” Of course, she then goes on to reveal her favorite player of all time to be Evil Dick because “he was evil and hilarious.” I suppose consistency is not what we should be looking for when examining our token bartender of the cast. Nor are life ambitions. Annie proudly tells us that “My brother is a lawyer, my sister is a CPA and I will be the winner of Big Brother!” Clearly Annie has taken the path with the greatest career longevity…
On the plus side, Annie does have a sense of humor. When asked what her favorite quote is, she references Forgetting Sarah Marshall and says “When life gives you lemons… say fuck the lemons and bail.” Not sure if that mantra will work in the Big Brother household, but I appreciate the sentiment. Oh, and Annie’s bisexual; so we’ll see how that works out for her.
Bitch potential: 5 out of 10
Potential methods of sabotage: Staring at pillows, ambling about, being mesmerized by floating dust particles.
BRENDON VILLEGAS
Looking like he’ll be the resident hunk of Big Brother 12, Brendon could very well be a wolf in sheep’s clothing. His occupation is benign (swim coach), and his description of himself affable enough (“I’m always up for fun”), but a closer look at his profile reveals a shrewd and perhaps evil side to him. His strategy for winning the game? “Get girls to like me and turn them against each other.” That’s the sort of Machiavellian plan that I can get behind! Oh, and don’t let the good looks fool you. Brendon is a PhD candidate in Biometric Physics. Of course, that doesn’t really mean anything, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this guy had an ego that might do him in in the end… assuming he’s not the saboteur. But that would be too obvious, wouldn’t it?
Potential methods of sabotage: Playing mind games incessantly with his fellow house guests
BRITNEY HAYNES
Britney looks like a cutey-patootie, but she’s very clear about one thing: she’s kind of an ass. And I think that’s a good thing. In her CBS profile, she openly admits that she doesn’t want to live around old people and that one of her favorite activities is arguing. She also uses the words “argumentative” and “opinionated” to describe herself, which means she’s full of drama… or at least wants us to think so. In my experience, the people who are full of drama like to declare how much they HATE drama, and the people who are truly softies like to declare how much they LOVE arguing. Britney might fall into the latter category. Then again, she does claim to be a mix of Chelsea Handler and Martha Stewart. So… she’s a bitch.
Potential methods of sabotage: Doing something psycho like taking a lady dump on someone’s duvet (all the while claiming to be too much of a Southern belle to do such horrific things)
ENZO PALUMBO
Winning me over simply by having the most fun name of the bunch, Enzo fills the “colorful” spot that nearly every cast has. You know what I’m talking about: Renny, Evil Dick, Crazy James, Lydia, Michelle (season 10). Sometimes an oddball, sometimes an oddity – the “colorful” cast member usually has a funny accent or tattoos or something visually peculiar going on. We tend to either love or hate these people, and I’m still a bit perplexed as to why we haven’t had an entire cast full of them (spare us the bartenders and “models”). Nevertheless, it’s perhaps a bit cruel to suggest that Enzo is a weirdo, simply because he has a Jersey accent. Still, he most certainly is not a generic pretty boy. He’s Italian through and through, perhaps the future vision of what The Situation will grow up to be. Ultimately, I’m having a hard time deciding how the chips will fall for Enzo. We’ll either love his salt-of-the-earth personality or find him the biggest douche of all. Hmmmm…
Potential methods of sabotage: Shaping people’s personal artifacts into a map of Italy; fist pumping; beating the beat; gym, tan, laundry; screaming at Angelina. Wait, I think I’ve veered off course here.
HAYDEN MOSS
Hayden Moss is so all-American, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d been shit out of a bald eagle. The kid just oozes U.S.A., but with a little surfer / Abercrombie flair added for good measure. He seems pleasant enough, but under that goofy smile and shaggy hair is probably a giant asshole — the kind that has coasted through life on looks alone. Also, viewing some of his biographical videos, the guy doesn’t come off as particularly… what’s the word?…. smart. Chances are he’ll probably clash with one of the alpha-females in the house (who may or may not have an unrequited crush on him) and say something obnoxious to her along the way. I wouldn’t be surprised if he winds up in the center of some petty drama the first few weeks.
Potential methods of sabotage: Saying “Huh?” a lot. A lot.
KATHY HILLIS
Serving as the cast’s resident senior citizen, Kathy Hillis clocks in at the ripe old age of 40. Ancient. Kathy is also the über-mommy / outdoors enthusiast who lists one of her interests as “mudding” (which may or may not be some perverse sexual act exclusive to Texarkana). Oh, and Kathy also had cancer; so she has that card to play. Truth be told, everything about Kathy should be awful, but strangely enough, I kind of love her. Plus, she’s playing this whole sweet card, but I bet she’s a raging bitch (in the best possible way). Of course, it’s no huge surprise that I like Kathy. I do tend to pull for the older folk, and I’m a bit disappointed that after the awesomeness that was Renny and Jerry (even though people didn’t like him, he made for good TV), CBS has been loath to stock the Big Brother house with more elderly members. Seems like a wasted opportunity.
As for Kathy’s saboteur potential: she currently serves as a deputy sheriff, and I’m not sure that flagrant subterfuge would honor her badge. Then again, if anyone could be adept at going undercover, it’s a cop…
Potential methods of sabotage: Stabbing someone with a kitchen knife and then screaming “CANCER!” when the fingers get pointed at her.
KRISTEN BITTING
Kristen is my #1 pick for saboteur. She’s kind of bland, kind of forgettable, fairly hot, and overall generic. In other words, the perfect person to catch you by surprise. If she’s not the saboteur, then I imagine Kristen will happily fulfill the role of firebrand. After all, she dubs herself a “quiet storm,” but I wouldn’t be shocked if that quiet storm doesn’t full-on rage into a shrieking tempest. There’s something about this girl that makes me think she might be most likely to throw a glass of water at someone or toss a pillow off the edge of the second floor balcony.
Potential methods of sabotage: Lighting everyone’s toothbrushes on fire.
LANE ELENBURG
Snooze alert. Lane might look like a jock-y, jokey, fun-lovin’ fratboy, but ten seconds with his video clips reveals him to be a total bore. And just how bland is Lane? His favorite player of all time is MEMPHIS (season 10). Of course, maybe Lane’s dullness is but a clever diversion from his true identity as THE MOLE. After all, when asked if he has a strategy for Big Brother, Lane says “I do, but not revealing it.” HMMMM…
Potential methods of sabotage: Instantly forcing his housemates into a perpetual trance-like slumber via his soft, slow-talking voice.
MATT HOFFMAN
Wait, never mind what I said before. This guy MATT seems most likely to be the saboteur. Watching the videos of him, he comes off as savvy, bright, and clever. Plus, he has lots of tattoos, and we can never trust THAT. Matt also lists “annoying people for my own amusement” as one of his favorite activities; so inherently he sort of is a saboteur, even if he’s not officially called upon in that capacity. Matt could certainly be very likable, but part of me thinks he’s aware of this, and therefore, that makes him unlikable. Either way, there’s definitely a very Chill Town 2.0 vibe about him, which means he’s either the second coming of Dr. Will… or Mike Boogie.
Potential methods of sabotage: Existing.
MONET STUNSON
We’ll overlook for a moment the dubious compliment Monet’s parents gave her by naming her “Monet.” Instead, let’s focus on the woman herself, who seems like she may or may not have been a forgotten cast member of the ’80s sitcom Head of the Class. Monet describes herself as a “classy girl,” which is charmingly precious because a) any classy girl doesn’t go on reality TV, and b) it will only take about two days of footage to reveal some decidedly unclassy behavior on Monet’s part. Nevertheless, I appreciate her aspirations, and if it means that Monet can carry Countess LuAnn Delesseps’ torch into the Big Brother house, I’m all for that. As for whether or not she’s the mole, well, it might seem a bit cynical to say this, but I don’t think CBS will be too keen on having the one black girl be the sneaky one. But then again, EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED.
Potential methods of sabotage: Prancing about the house singing “Elegance Is Learned.”
RACHEL REILLY
Looking like the divine love child of Maria Kanellis and Wynonna Judd, Rachel could be a major drama type this season. I wouldn’t be shocked if she stirred the pot once or twice just for the heck of it, and we can be fairly certain she’ll piss off the other girls within the first two minutes. She’s probably the type that’ll enter the house with a cowboy hat on and Daisy Dukes, making loud proclamations such as “WHERE’S THE CHAMPERS? LET’S GET THIS PARTY STARTED!!!” Rachel’s true forte, however, will be going psycho on a guy’s ass. I can see a misplaced comb resulting in a late night temper tantrum on her part. Of course, I can also see her cuddling up with one of the dudes. She’s certainly the most likely to forge a showmance. And she’s also the most likely to go crazy when said showmance fizzles. Yay!
Potential methods of sabotage: Reminding people every hour, on the hour, that just because she’s a hot girl with big boobs doesn’t mean she’s not smart. Sadly, no one will believe her; so really, she’s just sabotaging herself.
RAGAN FOX
And here comes the gay. Arriving in the Big Brother house on a pink chariot of flames is Ragan, who happily rocks the bow-tie as perhaps an homage to Brad from The Rachel Zoe Project (Rachel: “Oh my God, Brad. You’re on TV. But you’re next to me. Why are you two places at once? Are you a ghost? Am I next to a ghost? And am I watching a show about a ghost? Is this the ghost channel? LITERALLY, you are two places in once. Where’s Tay? TAY?”). Anyway, Ragan earns stereotype points for equating himself to sucking on balls — admittedly, the gobstopper variety, not the salty genitalia kind. He claims his personality will make people pucker at first but eventually his sweetness will win them over. This could be true, especially since Ragan ultimately seems smart (and funny!). He earns bonus points for stating that “there’s nothing a well-placed fart joke can’t cure.” The real question is this: is Ragan justt a sassy ham? Or is he a cunning saboteur?
Potential methods of sabotage: Reenacting the entire Liza Minelli catalogue with hand puppets made from his bow-tie.
What do you think about the cast? Who are your favorites based on nothing? And who are your least favorites? And who do you think is the SABOTEUR?
Posted on July 6, 2010 by Ben Mandelker
This entry was posted in Big Brother, Television and tagged Big Brother 12 by Ben Mandelker. Bookmark the permalink.
34 thoughts on “BIG BROTHER 12: Time For Superficial Judgments Of The New Cast, Based On Very Little Information!”
Preston on July 6, 2010 at 9:25 pm said:
Oh my god….”the divine love child of Maria Kanellis and Wynonna Judd” is dead on for her!
If this saboteur thing turns into one of those “Whose pillow should the saboteur rub peanut butter on?” type deals, I’m gonna be mad, because that’s just stupid.
Otherwise, can’t wait!
SDphoto on July 6, 2010 at 9:38 pm said:
Nicely done, Ben.
I can only repeat “Central Casting must be so proud”.
Now, let the good times roll.
MisterMac on July 6, 2010 at 10:08 pm said:
This blog is absolutely hilarious and probably on target! Great stuff!
JJ on July 7, 2010 at 12:06 am said:
OMFGROFLMAO
How, after 11 years of Big Brother, did I not find you before??
And why are there only 3 comments on your BB judgements? This stuff is hysterical.
Hayden is so All American you’re pretty sure he was shit out of a bald eagle?! I think I love you.
I bet you’re spot on about all of them (or not, who cares?) and I am going to pass on your site to all my “super fan friends” in the chat rooms on superpass while we say the same offensive, sarcastic but oh so witty shit about the HG’s.
Now I’m going to check out the rest of your site….if your BB HG judgements are any indication I think I’ll be laughing my ass off well into the night….and I need a laugh right now. So….thanks 😉
B-Side on July 7, 2010 at 12:38 am said:
Thanks for coming by, JJ! I hope you and the people you forward the site on to enjoy it!
cyrus on July 7, 2010 at 1:07 am said:
So who do you think will win? Who do u think will be in the final 2? Who do u think will be the first to go?
shanti on July 7, 2010 at 9:45 am said:
Passing callous judgements based on very little information is why I read this blog in the first place. So, well done dear man!
Brendon is my hottie pick and Rachel the saboteur. No basis for either.
I am disproportionately excited about Thursday night’s show and your following day (?) photocap.
Dylan on July 7, 2010 at 10:18 am said:
So the house will be full of Douche’s and Bitch’s. I’m annoyed already.
I’m sick of season after season of weak house guests. Get some superstars in there that actually care about the game.
Corri on July 7, 2010 at 11:25 am said:
Great blog, as usual. However, I read online somewhere last week (can’t remember which site now!) that the saboteur will be the 14th HG and will not enter the house until July 15th. So I don’t think any of these people is the saboteur.
Debbi on July 10, 2010 at 5:29 pm said:
Ummm…I don’t think you’re correct on this. I’m a BB fanatic & have never heard this before. Think you’re misleading & will ultimately be disappointed. Go back and re-read or re-watch what Chenbot stated on Thursday’s opening show!
bonbon on July 7, 2010 at 12:10 pm said:
Pay attention Pu-Leeeeeez: There are only 2 truths to this synopsis.
1. My accent is North Joisey. Not the entire state of Joisey.
2. I find your remarks to be very gamey.
How declasse to spend so much time on deez losers when there’s all kinds of good stuff goin on on RHNJ. Like da pulling out of fake locks and da arresting of an ameoba brained teen.
Bet you don’t even know dat I was at Kim D’s fashion show protecting da models, do youse?
Smart ass B-side. Think you know everything and den some.
Dat being said, I am not da mole, but know who is, because I know everything because I am from North Joisey. And, sweetheart, I will not clap…at least not yet!
rita on July 7, 2010 at 12:13 pm said:
I laughed my ass off at this!!
I don’t know who you are but you are hysterical!!
Thank-you, I needed that today:)
Jan Carroll on July 7, 2010 at 12:14 pm said:
Very clever. I agree with pretty much everything. I think britney will go far and probably have a tight alliance with brendon. Although enzo looks like a fun guy to watch, I think he will be the first to go’
chick110 on July 7, 2010 at 1:05 pm said:
Kristen wins the award for weirdest-looking armpit.
Enzo seems to be the one with the major douche target on his back this time. Just looking at his pics and reading what he has to say–he’s a douche.
Thanks for outing Ragan–wasn’t sure if he was gay or just a nerd with the bowties.
honeybunny on July 7, 2010 at 1:22 pm said:
Kathy is already on my “Watch List”. I am betting she will play the Cancer card, the Mommy card, the Law Enforcement card AND the oldest card before getting blindsided out.
Let’s get that shirt off Brendon ASAP.
snarkmuffin on July 7, 2010 at 4:07 pm said:
someone should start a drinking game based on the rivulets created by her running mascara when she plays those cards….
PearlBlackDragon on July 7, 2010 at 9:52 pm said:
Hold the phone! I thought I heard drinking game…this is gonna be a great season~
tishamay on July 7, 2010 at 1:29 pm said:
I love your take on these houselosers. It’s too early to say who I think the saboteur is, and like someone commented before, maybe they aren’t there yet.
That Maria Kanellis comment was spot on!
To JJ, I’ve been reading Ben’s Big Brother recaps for forever now, probably since he started, and they are the best things you will ever read about BB.
JJ on July 7, 2010 at 2:46 pm said:
They are the best….it’s really my sense of humor and I was seriously belly laughing, but at the same time he made some good points. Thanks
To Corri…..I read that America will not KNOW until the 15th who the sabateur is…..I see no scenario that makes sense that they bring him/her in later in the game, it would be completely obvious if the day that person arrives weird shit starts happening in the house……..I’ve been wrong before, but I’m pretty sure he/she is already in the house.
Also I read this morning that if the saboteur goes 5 weeks undetected he/she wins 50k and may or may not continue on in the game. So if he/she does not get caught or evicted for another reason (or evicted because the HG’s are suspicious) in the first 5 weeks, the sabotaging will stop and the player may continue on to try to play to the end. Don’t know how true that is but it’s interesting and kind of makes sense gamewise.
I did see Cathy say she is not just a Deputy Sheriff that she is also trained in crimal profiling and can be a “human lie detector” if need be. I agree with honeybunny….she’s on my list to watch….she will either be a very good gamer or she will get on my last nerve. If she was smart she wouldn’t tell them she’s in law enforcement at all….but she already said she was so………I don’t have high hopes.
Do all or most of you guys get the live feeds?
Here are my lists, also based on no information and my own opinionated opinions:
Marry/Eff/Kill List
Marry: Andrew
Eff: Brendon
Kill: Hayden
Marry: Monet/Annie (Tie!)
Eff: Rachel
Kill: Britney
Douchy Names List
1. Lane – Come ON- this is top douchieness because it’s a BOY. Lane for a girl would be less douchy. It’s also a small street. How about Aisle or Path?
2. Monet – Really? Monet? May I suggest to her parents that Giverny is more feminine sounding. Or even Claude (queen’s name and all that, though a bit heavy-sounding. Heh).
3. Ragan – Last name as first name (LNAFN) and unisex-y but rated douchy for spelling.
Hayden – LNAFN of the douchiest variety. Glad it’s not Haydn or Hayd’n.
4. Britney – Place name as first name. Rated douchy for spelling. Come ON – who spells their name like that?
5. Annie – Rated douchy for cutseyness.
Please note correlation between the KILLS and the Douchy Names: Hayd’n and Brit’ny…
5.4 earthquake north of Borrego Springs about 4:55 which gave a pretty strong shock here in San Diego. I wonder if it was felt at the BB house. Too bad they don’t know about the saboteur yet so they could blame it on him/her.
SDphoto on July 8, 2010 at 6:32 am said:
According to the new promo released yesterday they did know about the saboteur before yesterday’s quake.
Oh yea, team SDphoto!
Potential methods of sabotage: Stabbing someone with a kitchen knife and then screaming “CANCER!†when the fingers get pointed at her. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
KC on July 7, 2010 at 10:06 pm said:
I think Brendan could be interesting. Even though he’s hot, he probably has enough nerd empathy from being a Biometric Physics PhD candidate that he will appeal to most people in the house. I see some Dr. Will potential there – if he fake cries and laughs about it later, then I’m going to be all in on him.
Hayden is completely hot, I don’t care if he’s dumb – he’s shiny and pretty. I think he’ll stay in for a while because no one will see him as threat, and the girls will love him so he will be easily manipulated.
I have to admit, Kathy being a cop and profiler totally fascinates me. Sometimes cops can be hard to read, and they are trained to keep their emotions in check – she could be a serious threat. I’ll bet her strongest skill will be anticipating the others’ strategies and playing off of them until she identifies her best partner. I think she will play the maternal role, but only as a means to build loyalty and gather information. I’m kind of rooting for her…
In general, the women seem pretty lackluster – Britney is pretty, but there are no real standouts in looks, intellect or ambition. I wish BB would cast a better range of women in general – A female Dr. Will type would be refreshing…
tishamay on July 8, 2010 at 6:18 am said:
I can’t wait until Rachel gives her first STD in the house.
Maybe it’s already happened.
sperhoodo on July 9, 2010 at 2:32 am said:
Hey guys, I found this web address for nudism. Its a brand new to see all kinds of nude teenagers, kids, parents that live a lifestyle together in a nudist community. Can anybody advise me if it’s a good website to go too or not. I thought it was good cause no torrent sites hold anything like this.
chick110 on July 9, 2010 at 7:34 am said:
Was I hallucinating last night when they said that Rachel is a scientist and works in a lab? Because that girl in the house that had her face was annoying and laughed awfully and was too concerned about flinging her tits in everyones’ faces didn’t seem too science-y… Or was that saboteur-like behavior? Hmm.
JasonR on July 9, 2010 at 8:33 am said:
I have Lane in my BB pool, which is great because the guy didn’t open his mouth once. He’ll skate along for a good long time. Yay!
Rob Cameron on July 9, 2010 at 10:17 am said:
I totally went to college with Annie. Yay for theater majors appearing on reality shows!!
honeybunny on July 9, 2010 at 11:14 am said:
I am thinking she could be the saboteur.
Susan on July 9, 2010 at 5:53 pm said:
Enzo is an Italian through and through. Please God this coming from a Jew who wrote this crap. Can we please get some real Italians who are not from New Jersey and don’t fit the Hollywood sterotype that make the majority of us Italians cringe
optionbot Reviews on June 25, 2013 at 10:10 pm said:
This is the perfect web site for anybody who would
like to find out about this topic. You know a whole lot its almost hard to argue with
you (not that I actually will need to…HaHa).
You definitely put a new spin on a topic that’s been discussed for ages. Wonderful stuff, just wonderful!
make beats on computer on July 5, 2013 at 5:28 pm said:
hello!,I love your writing so so much! percentage we keep in
touch extra approximately your article on AOL?
I require a specialist in this house to resolve my problem.
May be that’s you! Looking ahead to peer you.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line562
|
__label__wiki
| 0.540071
| 0.540071
|
ARC Review: Not the Duke’s Darling by Elizabeth Hoyt
December 18, 2018 By AnnMarie Leave a Comment
Not the Duke’s Darling (The Greycourt, #1) by Elizabeth Hoyt
Published by Forever on December 18, 2018
New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Hoyt brings us the first book in her sexy and sensual Greycourt Series!
Freya de Moray is many things: a member of the secret order of Wise Women, the daughter of disgraced nobility, and a chaperone living under an assumed name. What she is not is forgiving. So when the Duke of Harlowe--the man who destroyed her brother and led to the downfall of her family--appears at the country house party she's attending, she does what any Wise Woman would do: she starts planning her revenge.
Christopher Renshaw, the Duke of Harlowe, is being blackmailed. Intent on keeping his secrets safe, he agrees to attend a house party where he will put an end to this coercion once and for all. Until he recognizes Freya, masquerading amongst the party revelers, and realizes his troubles have just begun. Freya knows all about his sins. Sins he'd much rather forget. But she's also fiery, bold, and sensuous-a temptation he can't resist. When it becomes clear Freya is in grave danger, he'll risk everything to keep her safe. But first, Harlowe will have to earn Freya's trust-by whatever means necessary.
Features a bonus novella from New York Times bestselling author Grace Burrowes!
~~Reviewed by Monique~~
After a fortuitous encounter, Freya de Moray sees the opportunity to get her revenge on Christopher Renshaw, now the Duke of Harlowe. She is to attend a house party at the Lovejoys in her capacity of paid companion and chaperone to Lady Holland and her two daughters, and Christopher will also be there. For the duke, it’s not a pleasurable task: he is being blackmailed and intends to put an end to it at the house party. He hadn’t a clue that the fiery lady’s companion was Freya, his best friend’s little sister. But that wasfifteen years ago, when the Greycourt Tragedy happened.
Not the Duke’s Darling is the first instalment in Elizabeth Hoyt’s eagerly anticipated new Georgian romance series, and it does feel like an introduction to the next Hoyt’s new universe. It necessarily establishes the foundation, and judging by the number of characters and subplots, this series could go on for a very, very long time. I found it quite challenging to try to keep up with the numerous characters and to remember who’s what to whom. I kept forgetting who “Jane” was, and I got confused several times with all the gentlemen whose family names all have two syllables as well as the letter “o”. Or maybe I’m the one with a problem! There was so much going on, on so many levels, that I realised around halfway that I had as captivating that Freya had a mission for the WiseWomen – an ancient feminist secret society of women to help women. There was also another subplot regarding the Wise Women that seemed to have been left dangling, or else it entirely escaped my notice –which I doubt.
The revenge/enemies-to-lovers tropes served mostly to bring Christopher and Freya together; I think it could have been dealt with much more swiftly. It seemed their animosity acted as an aphrodisiac because I couldn’t grasp why they were attracted to each other besides lust which seemed brought about mostly by his “blue”, “cerulean” gaze, and her (too oft-mentioned) “green-gold eyes”. I didn’t particularly like either Christopher or Freya; she seemed little more than a feminist, and he was quite mystifying: was he weak, arrogant, cowardly, fearless, violent? I love strong heroines and beta heroes, but here the balance of power felt odd.
Elizabeth Hoyt’s prose flows effortlessly as usual, and her gorgeous descriptions are sparkling and crisp, but I did not find the story as captivating as the beginning suggested, because of all those subplots. While I understood the need to introduce the Greycourts, I’m still wondering if the Holland girls – Regina and Arabella –will figure in future instalments. I must say that Arabella was my favourite character along with Tess, Christopher’s dog – whom we would today call a therapy dog. As I’ve mentioned too many times already, because of the was fifteen subplots, I have no idea who the next book will feature.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
About Elizabeth Hoyt
Elizabeth Hoyt is a New York Times bestselling author of historical romance. She also writes deliciously fun contemporary romance under the name Julia Harper. Elizabeth lives in central Illinois with three untrained dogs, two angelic but bickering children, and one long-suffering husband.
By Elizabeth Hoyt
Blog Tour: My Fair Princess by Vanessa Kelly (Excerpt, Review & Giveaway)
Author Visit: My One and Only Duke by Grace Burrowes (Excerpt, Review & Giveaway)
ARC Review: Until There Was Us by Samantha Chase
Blog Tour: Earl of St. Seville by Christina McKnight (Excerpt, Review & Giveaway)
Blog Tour: Duke of Desire by Elizabeth Hoyt (Excerpt, Review, Five Things & Giveaway)
Blog Tour: Once Upon a Maiden Lane by Elizabeth Hoyt (Teaser, Review and Giveaway)
Launch Day Blitz: Duke of Pleasure by Elizabeth Hoyt
ARC Review: Duke of Pleasure by Elizabeth Hoyt
Release Blitz: Once Upon a Christmas Eve by Elizabeth Hoyt (Review & Giveaway)
ARC Review: Dear Santa by Nancy Naigle
Review: The Noble Servant by Melanie Dickerson
Blog Tour: Wild Horse Springs by Jodi Thomas (Excerpt, Review & Giveaway)
ARC Review: The Secret Orphan by Glynis Peters
Spotlight: To Catch a Texas Star by Linda Broday (Excerpt, Review & Giveaway)
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line565
|
__label__cc
| 0.566084
| 0.433916
|
The Music of Broadway with Charlie Zahm
Join Charlie Zahm for an Evening of Broadway Music on Friday, May 12th. With a baritone voice some have described as “coming along once in a generation,” Charlie is perfect to perform for us a great variety of Broadway Tunes. Charlie is also one of the most popular soloists at Celtic music festivals, Maritime, and American Traditional music events anywhere east of the Mississippi. A master of the guitar as well, Charlie brings an authentic love and respect for the music he sings-and with dashes of humor and a light in his eyes, he will draw you into the stories of his songs! Charlie will be accompanied by guitarist Steve Hobson. Charlie has always been taken by the senses of time, place and social consciousness preserved in traditional music, and through years of dedication and a wide variety of studies and travels he has earned a reputation of truly being committed to his craft. Tickets are $15, and will be available at the door. Doors will open at 7:00 PM, and concert will start at 7:30 PM. For more information call: 610-869-8076. Email: friendsfolkclub@aol.com or www.charliezahm.com. The Friends Folk Club is an all volunteer-community run concert series.
Add to Calendar 05/12/201707:30 PM 05/12/201709:30 PM America/New_York The Music of Broadway with Charlie Zahm Join Charlie Zahm for an Evening of Broadway Music on Friday, May 12th. With a baritone voice some have described as “coming along once in a generation,”... More info at www.chestercounty.com/events/111108/the-music-of-broadway-with-charlie-zahm Friends Folk Club (Oxford Friends Meetinghouse) 260 S. 3rd SSt , Oxford, PA 19363 axEakIwmdzNKaowyWmiv58927
Friends Folk Club (Oxford Friends Meetinghouse)
$15, Children 12 and under are free.
Charities & Fundraisers Community & Neighborhood Performing Arts & Dance Special Attractions Avon Grove Kennett Square Chadds Ford Oxford Unionville Landenberg
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line568
|
__label__cc
| 0.542479
| 0.457521
|
How Did Corporations Get So Powerful?
The short version goes like this:
Once upon a time there was a king. He wanted to get richer. He used charters to divide his lands into provinces run by lords.
The charters allowed the king to retain ownership of his lands, and require the lords make regular payments to the king and protect the king's land.
King's College Charter, 1446
They also granted lords broad administrative rights over their provinces and the inhabitants, allowed them to keep excess provincial profits after paying the king, and protected them with the king's court and army.
The charters worked quite well for the king and his lords; they became wealthier. Other kings followed suit, and they became richer, too. But suffering increased for serfs. Before charters, they only had to make kings rich. Now they were forced to make kings and lords rich.
Serfs complained. They sought help from the courts, but found no justice. The first order of business for “equity courts” was to protect kings’ charters. Common citizen’s concerns were secondary.
After centuries of oppression, people revolted and created democratic governments. Kings’ charters were nullified. In the US, authority over charters was given to each state.
Initially, the states took charters seriously. They specified what corporations were allowed to do, and required corporations to serve the general welfare.
But the states did not create new equity codes to enforce their people-centered charters. Instead, they deferred to British equity code, which was heavily biased in favor of the wealthy few. Consequently, state efforts to regulate corporations were consistently undermined by the courts.
Eventually the states gave up. They allowed corporations to create charters that emphasized shareholders and ignored the interests of common citizens.
After more than a century of growth in corporate power, the US was crippled by the Great Depression. A massive effort to reduce corporate power was launched by FDR. Scores of liberal laws were written. More importantly, they were enforced by FDR’s eight Supreme Court appointees. An era of widespread prosperity was launched, and it lasted for thirty years.
But FDR’s Court appointees were gradually replaced by conservatives. Eisenhower had two appointments, and Nixon added four more. The balance of power on the Court radically shifted in favor of corporations. Since Nixon, the Court has consistently ruled in favor of corporations, culminating in recent decisions such as Citizens United and WalMart.
History teaches us that the road to serfdom is ultimately paved in conservative legal code; code that places the interests of the wealthy few above the interests of the general welfare.
There have been scores of people’s revolutions. They have nullified corporate charters, passed sweeping laws governing corporations, and appointed liberal judges. But such measures were never enough.
The essential ingredient is a liberal equity code that consistently places the interests of the many over the interests of the few. Only then can we reverse centuries of legal precedent favoring the wealthy few, and hope to enjoy centuries of prosperity for we the people.
Women: Want a Board Seat? Move to Italy!
Italy just passed a law requiring one-third of board seats go to women. A few irreverent questions:
Will this government regulation ruin Italy's economy?
Will Italian corporations move to other countries that let them keep their old-boy networks intact?
Whenever someone proposes regulating boards of directors in the US, a chorus of Chicken Little warnings are sounded along the lines of the above questions.
But European countries have been regulating corporate boards for a long time, and their skies never fell.
In the US, only 16% of board seats are held by women. What justifies this? Women just don't have what it takes? They aren't interested in these types of positions?
If the US is ever going to bring corporations in line with our values, then we'll have to start regulating them. It's been amply proven that our highest values don't match theirs.
They're Playing Chicken –– With Our Money!
J.P. Morgan just lost $39 billion. The Senate Banking Committee wants to know why.
Jamie Dimon, Wall Street's darling CEO, presented his defense: plausible deniability. He was advised by his staff to not unwind risky positions, even though they started to show big losses.
Can any financial sector executive claim they fully understand the risks of their complex investments? We all know the answer is no. It's been proven over and over again.
Think about what this means. Bank CEOs who do not eliminate these mysterious, huge risks are not acting responsibly. They have no ethical claim to plausible deniability.
Remember Ronald Reagan and the Iran Contra affair? That was plausible deniability in action. Today's big-time CEOs use it all the time. Our government, especially the judicial branch, has essentially handed out stacks of "Get Out of Jail Free" cards to these executives. It has to stop.
The financial sector is trapped in a game of chicken. Huge CEO egos are involved. They have built fancy, souped-up cars with other people's money. And they are driving by remote control: if the cars crash, they don't get hurt. So nobody backs down.
All four large banks must simultaneously retreat to pre-Gramm-Leach-Bliley risk levels. Since the banks won't self-regulate, we need to re-post the speed limits. Gramm-Leach-Bliley eliminated speed limits, and all but a few of us lost. How long are we going to let this game of chicken last?
The Loosey-Goosey World of Corporate Law
You think public elections are distorted by the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision? Well, corporate law is worse. It's so loosey-goosey that boards of directors can ignore "no" votes.
That's right. Corporate law allows plurality voting, which means top vote-getters win regardless of how many people vote against them. For example, just last month shareholders voted 2-to-1 against a Sirius XM director candidate, but plurality rules let him win anyway.
The chancellor and vice chancellors of Delaware's Court of Chancery
Making matters worse, corporate law does not give shareholders the right to nominate candidates, or call for votes on critical issues. But, it explicitly gives this right to boards of directors. So most of the time, shareholders only vote on candidates listed by the board, or on proposals presented by the board. Lacking legal pressure to do otherwise, board members usually nominate their buddies, and they almost always make proposals they strongly favor. Candidates who might shake things up on the board rarely see the light of day, and the same goes for proposals that might cut CEO pay, increase rank-and-file wages, or help restore the environment.
How did it get this bad? It's called the "race to the bottom." Early in the 1900's Delaware started competing for corporate revenue by creating a very biased legal code, called Title 8. It grants generous liability protection to shareholders and directors, and does not tax out-of-state sales. As frosting on the cake, it totally ignors the rights of employees, local communities, or the environment. Corporations flocked to Delaware, which is now corporate home to almost a million corporations and almost two-thirds of the Fortune 500. Isn't it ironic, that the second smallest state in the Union is number one in corporate law? (For details, see Deep Economics Part 2, Beware of Delaware.)
The real secret to Delaware's success has been favoring directors over shareholders. Why? Because directors make the decision about where to incorporate. If Delaware does not keep them happy, they just leave for a more director-friendly state. Delaware relies on corporate revenue more than any other state, so director satisfaction is more important in Delaware than any other state.
Since corporate law tilts in favor of executives, is it any wonder their pay is so high? Since corporate law ignores employees, is it any surprise that executives send jobs overseas, or pay non-viable wages? Since corporate law ignores the environment, is it any surprise that corporations do so much environmental damage?
The solution starts with federalizing corporate law. Now conservatives would have you believe this is tantamount to declaring war on freedom and America itself. But in truth, the only risk is that executive pay might decline, and boards might become more accountable to the people. Sounds like a risk worth taking to me.
For an entertaining puppet show on Delaware's Court of Chancery, watch the video below:
There's Only One Killer App: Averages
I just watched a Niall Ferguson presentation on the "The Six Killer Apps of Prosperity" (TEDTalks, on Netflix). These factors explain "The Great Divergence," or how the West came to dominate the East in terms of wealth, and how the East has now erased the West's advantage by adopting the killer apps themselves.
For context, it is useful to know that Ferguson endorsed Romney for President a year ago. His rationale: we need "a private-equity guy in the White House." Simultaneously, he dismissed the Occupy movement as "Occupopulists." If nothing else, this conservative has a dry wit.
Niall Ferguson
Back to his thesis. Ferguson, and a vast number of conservatives like him, assume it is OK to sum the wealth of everyone living in a country, divide it by the total number of people in the country, and use the resulting average to compare nations, continents, or civilizations with one another. To make things exciting, conservatives then compete with one another to invent stories, called "theories," for why average wealth went up or down over time.
For all his brilliance, Ferguson's work is flawed by an egregious statistical error: you can't use averages to describe skewed numbers! This tenet is taught in every introductory statistics class; it is a very basic principle.
As we all know, wealth is highly concentrated –– or skewed. For example, in 2007 the top 10% owned an incredible 83% of all non-home wealth! (See Part 2, Disparity for more details.)
Averages would allow Ferguson to proudly proclaim that average wealth has been rising in the US, when, in fact, wealth has been declining for most people. Since wealth has increased dramatically at the top, the average is inflated, and the important story impacting the greatest number of people is concealed.
Numbers can reveal the truth, or they can disguise it. It depends on your values. If you value compassion and the general welfare, then you studiously avoid averages in economics. But if you value greed or winning at any cost, then averages are a great tool for hiding the carnage.
Ferguson's failure to abide by the fundamental rules of statistics means his work is fundamentally flawed. It also means that every economist who uses averages is very likely making the same mistake. And, since there are lots of economists using averages, then ... well, I think I've made my point. The leading killer app in economics is averages.
Why Are Women Paid Less?
Women need a 65% pay increase to reach men. In 2009, average personal income was $25,370 for women and $41,750 for men.
$25,370 is a very low income. It's barely over the poverty line for a family of four.
It would cost $2 trillion per year to fix this problem. That's a lot of money. For example, we spent $4.8 trillion in four years on the financial sector bailout.
The simplest explanation for why women are paid less than men is that it would cost a lot of money to pay them the same.
From the US Census Bureau, Table 705, 2009
In classic economic terms, where markets are all-wise, the huge pay disparity between men and women can only mean one thing: women are worth far less than men. And, since the markets are never wrong, there must be a good, logical explanation for why women are worth less. Such as: women prefer lower paying jobs, or women don't perform as well as men.
But, if we make the far more rational assumption that women are just as capable as men and they want to earn as much as men, then we must conclude that the markets are not wise, and something else is going on. Indeed, all the evidence tells us the markets are anything but perfect, and that the cause of male/female pay disparity has nothing to do with capabilities or preferences, and everything to do with our values.
Take the Supreme Court's recent Wal-Mart decision. The following facts were uncontested: women fill 70% of the lower-paying hourly jobs, but only 33% of the higher-paying management jobs. If the Court valued fair pay, it would have ruled that Wal-Mart was obviously discriminating against women. But ever since Eisenhower's two and Nixon's four conservative appointments, the Supreme Court took a decisive turn in favor of corporate interests, and has rarely looked back.
We must ask ourselves: Do institutions like the Supreme Court and corporations value the same things we do? Certainly this can't be true. Otherwise, what kind of society are we –– one that values women less than men? And, if these institutions are not in alignment with our values, what are we going to do about it?
Hate Sells ... If We Buy It
One month ago Amendment 1 passed, making North Carolina the last Southern state to constitutionally ban gay marriage.
Where is the payoff from bashing gay rights? Perhaps history has a clue. The South's last unanimous campaign against civil rights targeted the black race. Even though most Southern whites had nothing to gain economically, they fought and died to protect slavery. Why?
Perhaps no one gave a better answer than Supreme Court Justice Roger B. Taney in the Dred Scott decision. His words resonated deeply in the South: "[people of the black race are] beings of an inferior order, and altogether unfit to associate with the white race, either in social or political relations, and so far unfit
that they had no rights which the white man was bound to respect." (For more details, see Part 1 of Deep Economics)
Taney's words succinctly captured Southern hatred of blacks. Southern gentry used it to their advantage: you poor white boys better fight and fight well, otherwise the North will force you to live cheek-to-cheek with those blacks. It was a powerful battle cry. Confederates were three times more effective than Yankees at killing the enemy. Fighting against feared personal degradation was far more motivating than fighting for somebody else's freedom.
And now Southern hatred rises again, but this time against gays. Posters like "God Hates Fags" present the essence of the message sent by Christian fundamentalists across the South. And it worked: 61% of voters supported Amendment 1 in North Carolina, which in politics is a tremendous margin of success. Liberals, fighting for somebody else's rights, were far less effective and took a terrible beating at the polls.
Conservative wealth needs voter support to maintain dominion. It wins that support by aligning with hate campaigns. War is a longstanding favorite. Hate is rallied to rationalize war, which in turn feeds the mammoth arms industry.
Another hate campaign is being tested today in Wisconsin. The campaign is presented by conservative wealth as a cure for our financial woes. But it's just another hate campaign, this time against public workers and their right to a decent wage, pension, and to be unionized. Conservative wealth hopes to win voter support, and thereby protect its dominion.
Hate campaigns restrict our vision, especially when polished by massive infusions of money. Well-financed hate campaigns make it hard to see what is really going on. They delude us into thinking hate brings deliverance. But God will not smile on Southern churches for bashing gay rights. Wisconsin's economy will not heal by cutting public spending and restricting unions. Yet hate campaigns supported by egregious wealth consistently make silk purses out of sow’s ears.
Mark Blessington
Author of Deep Economics
Participative Democracy
Wealth Disparity
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line576
|
__label__wiki
| 0.684219
| 0.684219
|
Paramount Home Video presents
Ted: Well, it looks like we have two girls for one part.
Bill: I'm glad you caught on.
- Donald O'Connor, Bing Crosby
Review By: Jeff Wilson
Stars: Bing Crosby, Donald O'Connor, Jeanmaire, Mitzi Gaynor
Other Stars: Phil Harris
Director: Robert Lewis
MPAA Rating: Not Rated for nothing objectionable
B C A- B+ D-
1956's Anything Goes is the movie equivalent of junk food; it's sort of tasty, goes down easily, and is quickly forgotten. At least it doesn't make you fat. Starring Bing Crosby and Donald O'Connor, with quality support on the ladies' side from Mitzi Gaynor and Jeanmaire, this is a well-shot, cleanly delivered production that doesn't leave much of an impression. But with Cole Porter tunes and some good dance numbers, there is nourishment to be had.
The story and screenplay, such as it is, was written by hack novelist Sidney Sheldon, which might explain the trite nature of the film. It has little to do with the original stage production, beyond using some of the songs. Our tale involves Bill Benson (Crosby), star of the musical stage. He is preparing to mount a new show, and he is to star with television phenom Ted Adams (O'Connor). Their problem is finding a suitable leading lady. Each departs for Europe, Bill to London and Ted to Paris. Wouldn't you know it, but each goes and signs up a leading lady on their own. Bill sees Patsy Blair (Gaynor) perform and is wowed. Ted discovers the charms of Gaby Duval (Jeanmaire), and is equally impressed. Cue confusion, as each wants the other to dump his signing, only to discover that each man is falling in love with that other woman. Somehow, during the cruise ship crossing to New York, they will have to sort this out so everyone can star in the show and go home happy.
Given the fairly lame nature of the script, this still plays pretty well, with O'Connor the real standout, as he is allowed to use his physical comedy skills as well as his dancing in a series of numbers. Der Bingle is genial, but has zero chemistry with Jeanmaire. Both women have unflattering hair but great costumes; they are each allowed to shine in their respective numbers, Gaynor in Anything Goes, and Jeanmaire in a lengthy ballet fantasia, choreographed by her husband, Roland Petit. Both men do fine with the songs, which include classics like All Through the Night, You're the Top, and It's De-lovely. For reasons I am unaware of, further songs by Sammy Cahn and James Van Heusen are included, and they are not up to Porter's high standard (what could be), though they are pleasant enough. O'Connor and Gaynor do an especially nice job on It's De-lovely, set on the deck of the cruise ship. It should be noted that at least a couple of the Porter songs have altered lyrics, to protect the gentle psyches of the audience. Anything Goes has the line about authors using "four-letter words" changed to "three-letter words," and I Get a Kick Out of You removes the reference to cocaine. Silly now, but I guess this was a threat to the nation at the time. Insert much eye-rolling here.
The problem with the show is that it just doesn't have a spark to lift it beyond the banal script; everything is kept at a pleasant but unchallenging pitch, and there is really no dramatic tension to draw the story along. Even when the ladies dump their man, we never really feel like there is even the faintest scintilla of doubt that things will not work out. Crosby is so nonchalant about the whole thing you can hardly believe he's in love in the first place. If you enjoy musicals, odds are you'll find something to enjoy here; I certainly did. But don't go in with great expectations. Just expect some cinematic candy, and you'll probably go home happy.
Rating for Style: B
Rating for Substance: C
Image Transfer Review: The VistaVision, Technicolor image is framed at about 1.66:1, and looks quite nice. The source material has few noticeable blemishes aside from the odd stray bit of dirt and such, and the colors remain vibrant and beautiful.
Image Transfer Grade: A-
Mono English yes
5.1 English yes
Audio Transfer Review: A choice of Dolby 5.1 and Mono are provided, and the 5.1 track sounds livelier and richer than the mono. In case you find Jeanmaire's dialogue hard to fathom at times with her French accent, English subtitles are provided.
Audio Transfer Grade: B+
Packaging: Scanavo variant
Extras Review: None, beyond chapter selections, and let's face it, that's not an extra.
Extras Grade: D-
Stale and dramatically flat , but with good numbers from the four leads to redeem it, Anything Goes is strictly second rate in the world of movie musicals. The DVD at least provides a quality audio/visual experience to allow viewers to judge its worth for themselves.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line580
|
__label__wiki
| 0.945312
| 0.945312
|
Forest of Fear doles out record amount of funds to community organizations as labor of love
Dan Sanderson | Staff Writer
Ideal weather, plenty of volunteers, and a steady stream of people seeking to get spooked allowed the Forest of Fear to scare up a record amount of donations to support local students and community organizations.
The Forest of Fear, located off of Stephan Bridge Road, ran every weekend in October up through Halloween.
The Forest of Fear marked its 13th anniversary this year.
Mother Nature cooperated, and there were times when there was an hour and a half wait for people to go through the haunted trail walk.
“We had a great year. The weather was good. We had lots of people and we made $9,800,” said Forest of Fear founder Tom Cojocar. “We thought we were going have to cancel one night, but we lucked out and never had to shut down at all.”
The Forest of Fear gathered a record amount in proceeds, which were donated to support local students and community organizations.
But instead of dropping of checks this year, Cojocar placed one condition on organizations that received the funds – they had to attend a pizza party hosted at the Grayling Eagles Club.
Cojocar said he simply wanted his crew, which he calls his “bloodline” – it helps staff and stage the haunted trail walk – to experience the goodwill they provide to the community.
“It was great and it just blew me away,” he said. “By the time that was done, if you didn’t have a tear rolling down your face, there was one hanging off your eye brow and that’s what I want my crew to experience.”
The Forest of Fear expanded which organizations it supports this year by giving an $800 donation to the Crawford County Commission on Aging and Senior Center.
“We had extra this year, and I want to branch out, and that was one of the only places I could think of that would kind of make us look good,” Cojocar said.
Christine Sayad, public relations coordinator for the Crawford County Commission on Aging, said the agency delivered 28,668 meals through the Meals on Wheels program last year. Only 40 percent of the cost to deliver the meals was covered by grant funding, so the Commission on Aging has to budget $100,000 to cover the rest of the cost. The Forest of Fear donations will help cut some of the operating costs for the Meals on Wheels program.
“When someone gives us a substantial donation, that’s where we put that money to cover that expense,” Sayad said.
Schools within the Crawford AuSable School District received $3,500 in Forest of Fear donations.
Donations of $1,000 each were given the Viking Food Pantries housed at the Grayling High School, Grayling Middle School, and Grayling Elementary School. The pantries send food, hygiene products, and cleaning supplies home to help students and their families.
“At our level we try to take care of the whole family,” said Grayling Elementary School Principal Gina Brunskill, who picked up the donation on behalf of the school district.
The other $500 was given to the Grayling Elementary School to buy hats, boots, and gloves for students who need them.
Brunskill said the items are a necessity for students coming to and from school, but also where they get a break from classroom during the school day.
“With outside recess they need that gear,” she said.
Brunskill said it was heartwarming to see the volunteers who put on the Forest of Fear, which included some fourth and fifth graders who help staff and stage the scenes on the trail walk.
“The people that put this whole thing on, I think it’s just phenomenal that they give up their time and give of themselves for what they do,” she said. “I was very moved by not just dollars, but the time effort. We are a very wealthy community, and it’s not just measured in dollars.”
The Roscommon Elementary School also received a $500 donation to purchase hats, boots, and gloves for students.
Project Graduation for the Class of 2019 from the Grayling High School and Roscommon High School each received $500 donations.
A $2,000 donation was given to the Crawford County Community Christian Help Center to help put food on the tables for area families.
Forest of Fear provided $500 worth of dog food to the AuSable Valley Animal Shelter though a deal made with Smokin’ Bucks owner Chet Chmielewski.
A $1,000 donation was given to the River House Shelter, Inc., which will be used to upgrade living quarters for people seeking refuge from sexual assault and domestic violence in the Grayling area.
Finally, separate from Forest of Fear proceeds, $568 was given to the Grayling High School tennis team. The funds came from the raffle of cornhole boards, by Forest of Fear volunteer Bobbi Jo Benson and her family.
“They made a set for every weekend,” Cojocar said.
Forest of Fear volunteers did some shopping to prepare to do the haunted woods next year.
“We always go shopping after Halloween to pick up some stuff,” Cojocar said.
While numbers were up this year for Forest of Fear, Cojocar said some volunteers did not participate this season.
“It’s a lot of work,” he said. “I love giving out the money and the feedback.”
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line584
|
__label__wiki
| 0.571006
| 0.571006
|
Posts Tagged: simulation
Taking the Cyberattack Threat Seriously
“Last month I convened an emergency meeting of my cabinet and top homeland security, intelligence and defense officials. Across the country trains had derailed, including one carrying industrial chemicals that exploded into a toxic cloud. Water treatment plants in several states had shut down,...
Stuxnet Leak Investigation, NASA Developing Flight Software For Deep-Space Missions, and More
Here is today’s federal cybersecurity and information technology news: The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched an investigation into who leaked information on U.S. involvement in Stuxnet. More here. A federal judge estimates that the number of secret electronic surveillance orders...
CACI Awarded $33.6 Million Task Order to Provide Irregular Warfare Technologies Support for U.S. Navy
FedCyber Wire, Financial
via BusinessWire CACI International Inc announced today that it has been awarded a $33.6 million task order to provide information operations as well as engineering, technical, and programmatic support services for the Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane Division’s (NSWC Crane) Irregular Warfar...
Air Force to kick off ACT military cyber security program to shield government computers from cyber attack
via Military & Aerospace Electronics ROME, N.Y., 18 May 2011. Military cyber security experts in the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory’s Information Directorate in Rome, N.Y., are readying an industry solicitation for release in July for the 5-year, potential $300 million Agile Cyber Tech...
New DOD test range serves as cyber training ground
via DefenseSystems.com The Defense Department has a new cyberspace sandbox for training exercises and for testing the limits of software applications. The Defense Department Information Assurance Range is designed to provide an operationally realistic simulation of the Global Information Grid,...
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line587
|
__label__wiki
| 0.996021
| 0.996021
|
Al Sadd Home
Al Duhail
Al-Ain
Al-Wahda
Al-Wasl
Beijing Sinobo Guoan
Buriram United
Daegu FC
Esteghlal
Gyeongnam
Jeonbuk Motors
Lokomotive Tashkent
Ulsan Hyundai
Zawra
Zob-Ahan
Xavi: I'm not ready to coach Barcelona yet
Barcelona Oct 5, 2018 ESPN
Gabi: Xavi convinced me to join Al-Sadd
Al Sadd Jul 3, 2018 Dermot Corrigan
Xavi re-signs to play in Qatar into his forties
Transfers May 24, 2018 Sam Marsden
1 Al Sadd 3 1 2 10
2 Al-Ahly 3 0 3 9
3 Pakhtakor Ta 2 2 2 8
Xavi not ready to retire, eyes playing into '19
Al-Ahli May 7, 2018 Ian Holyman
Xavi, Sneijder bringing star power to Qatar
Qatar Stars League Feb 22, 2018 John Duerden
Xavi: I want to coach Barcelona one day
Spanish Primera División Mar 7, 2017 Ian Holyman
Xavi extends deal with Al Sadd until 2018
Transfers Jan 26, 2017 Sam Marsden
Xavi: Messi will sign new Barcelona deal
Barcelona Dec 2, 2016 Adriana Garcia
By ESPN
Xavi Hernandez: I'm not ready to coach Barcelona yet despite Pep Guardiola comparisons
With Lionel Messi often lauded as being the best to play the game, Shaka Hislop and the FC crew resume the debate on his greatest-of-all-time credentials.
Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez has told TV3 he is not ready to become the club's coach despite comparisons to Pep Guardiola.
Xavi, 38, joined Al-Sadd in 2015 after ending a Barcelona career in which he won 25 major trophies, including eight La Liga titles and three Champions Leagues.
He is still with the Qatari side, but many in Spain have tipped him to follow in Guardiola's footsteps and return to the Camp Nou as manager.
"I have a part [of the coaching licenses to be a manager]," he said. "I...
Al Sadd
By Dermot Corrigan
Gabi Fernandez: Xavi Hernandez convinced me to join Al-Sadd
Gabi Fernandez has said new Al-Sadd teammate Xavi Hernandez convinced him to leave Atletico Madrid and play in Qatar.
Madrid-born Gabi played 413 games for Atletico in two different spells, winning six trophies including the La Liga title and two Europa Leagues.
He has agreed a two-year contract with Al-Sadd with an option for a further 12 months, with the deal reportedly worth a total of €19 million.
Speaking to the Al-Sadd website, the 34-year-old said he was looking forward to winning more...
By Samuel Marsden
Xavi Hernandez signs new contract to play for Al-Sadd into his forties
Former Barcelona midfielder Xavi Hernandez has penned a new two-year deal with Al-Sadd to extend his stay in Qatar until at least 2020.
Xavi, 38, is currently in his third season at the club after signing from Barca on a free transfer in 2015.
By the time his latest deal expires he will be 40, by which point he hopes to have completed his coaching badges.
"I am happy to keep on being a part of the Al-Sadd family for two more years," Xavi told the club's official website.
"I am delighted to be at...
By Ian Holyman
Xavi Hernandez not ready for retirement, hopes to play into 2019
Former Spain and Barcelona midfielder Xavi Hernandez wants to continue playing into 2019.
Xavi Hernandez will play on through the end of the year and the former Spain international has told AFP he may even extend his career beyond then.
Xavi, 38, has been playing for Al-Sadd in Qatar since leaving Barcelona in 2015. He had been expected to retire at the end of the season, but the 2010 World Cup and four-time UEFA Champions League winner will keep going.
"I have decided to continue at least six months more," Xavi said. "Because it depends on my physical condition. Maybe in December I...
By John Duerden
Wesley Sneijder learning ropes of Qatar Stars League from Xavi
Xavi and Wesley Sneijder, who faced each other in the 2010 World Cup final, now battle in the Qatar Stars League.
Fans in Qatar may still be coming to terms with the fact that the national team will not be at the 2018 World Cup -- they didn't come close to qualifying -- but there is some comfort. Four years before the 2022 edition comes to the country, there is a chance to see two of the finest midfielders of the modern game up close and personal. In January Wesley Sneijder joined Al Gharafa, thereby joining Xavi in the Qatar Stars League.
"Xavi is a legend," said Sneijder in January before the two met on...
Full Blog Post
Blog - Football Asia
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line596
|
__label__cc
| 0.641663
| 0.358337
|
Procedure : 2018/0009(NLE)
Document stages in plenary
Document selected : A8-0214/2018
Texts tabled :
Debates :
Texts adopted :
RECOMMENDATION ***
on the draft Council decision on the conclusion, on behalf of the Union, of Amendment 1 to the Memorandum of Cooperation NAT-I-9406 between the United States of America and the European Union
(05800/2018 – C8‑0122/2018 – 2018/0009(NLE))
Rapporteur: Rolandas Paksas
DRAFT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION
PROCEDURE – COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE
FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL IN COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE
(Consent)
The European Parliament,
– having regard to the draft Council decision (05800/2018),
– having regard to Amendment 1 to Memorandum of Cooperation NAT-I-9406 between the United States of America and the European Union (14031/2017).
– having regard to the request for consent submitted by the Council in accordance with Article 100(2), Article 218(6), second subparagraph, point (a), and Article 218(7), of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (C8-0122/2018),
– having regard to Rule 99(1) and (4) and Rule 108(7) of its Rules of Procedure,
– having regard to the recommendation of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (A8-0214/2018),
1. Gives its consent to conclusion of the agreement;
2. Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States and of the United States of America.
Sharing the common goal to develop safer and more efficient air transport, in 2011, the European Union and the United States of America signed the Memorandum of Cooperation between the United States of America and the European Union in civil aviation research and development (MoC). The cooperative activities carried out so far under the MoC mainly address air traffic management (ATM) systems, in particular the cooperation in the field of research and development (R&D) between the SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research) project, the technological component of the Single European Sky (SES) initiative and NextGen, the programme managed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). At that time, these two programmes were both in their research and development phases, which justified the initial focus of cooperation on research, development and validation activities.
Cooperation under the MoC, in particular between SESAR and NextGen, has now reached a high level of maturity and has delivered important results in terms of promoting global interoperability of ATM systems. This led the two parties to explore the potential for extending the scope of cooperation to topics relating to the deployment of ATM systems. On this basis, the Council authorised the Commission on 8 May 2017 to negotiate with the FAA concerning an amendment to the MoC to extend its scope to cover deployment.
The Amendment to 1 the MoC was negotiated between the Commission and the FAA and, on the basis of a corresponding Council Decision, was signed on 13 December 2017 on behalf of the Union while the present Decision follows its adoption process. The amendment builds entirely on the same objectives and principles that underlie the existing MoC. The extension of the scope of cooperation between the Union and the USA to all phases of ATM modernisation including deployment represents the natural evolution of the work successfully carried out under the current MoC. As indicated in the Commission's proposal to open negotiations to amend the MoC, the best option was to amend the scope of the existing MoC to encompass all phases of ATM modernisation, including deployment, within the scope of the Single European Sky policy, while limiting the scope of cooperation on non-ATM civil aviation topics to the field of research and development. The advantage of this approach is that the MoC would continue to cater for cooperation on any non-ATM civil aviation research and development topic while preserving the already negotiated binding cooperative framework with the USA.
The proposed Decision aims to authorise the entry into force of Amendment 1 to the MoC signed by the representatives of the Union and of the United States on the basis of a corresponding Council Decision. The amendment includes the revised main text of the MoC and a revised Annex 1 on "ATM modernisation and global interoperability". This initiative complies with the EU’s political priorities with regards to the internal market, growth and jobs and the European Union as a global actor. The recommendation is consistent with the EU’s Research and Innovation policy and the Trans-European Networks policy on which the SESAR research and development and deployment frameworks are based.
As rapporteur I firmly believe that it is in the EU’s interest to give the consent to the conclusion, on behalf of the European Union, of Amendment 1 to the Memorandum of Cooperation NAT-I-9406 between the United States of America and the European Union.
Council decision on the conclusion, on behalf of the European Union, of Amendment 1 to the Memorandum of Cooperation NAT-I-9406 between the United States of America and the European Union
05800/2018 – C8-0122/2018 – COM(2018)0027 – 2018/0009(NLE)
Date of consultation / request for consent
Committee responsible
Date announced in plenary
Committees asked for opinions
Not delivering opinions
Date of decision
Date appointed
Rolandas Paksas
Discussed in committee
Result of final vote
Members present for the final vote
Zigmantas Balčytis, Nikolay Barekov, Bendt Bendtsen, José Blanco López, David Borrelli, Jonathan Bullock, Cristian-Silviu Buşoi, Reinhard Bütikofer, Jerzy Buzek, Edward Czesak, Jakop Dalunde, Pilar del Castillo Vera, Christian Ehler, Fredrick Federley, Ashley Fox, Adam Gierek, Theresa Griffin, András Gyürk, Kaja Kallas, Barbara Kappel, Krišjānis Kariņš, Seán Kelly, Jeppe Kofod, Peter Kouroumbashev, Miapetra Kumpula-Natri, Christelle Lechevalier, Edouard Martin, Angelika Mlinar, Dan Nica, Angelika Niebler, Rolandas Paksas, Aldo Patriciello, Morten Helveg Petersen, Miroslav Poche, Paul Rübig, Massimiliano Salini, Algirdas Saudargas, Sven Schulze, Neoklis Sylikiotis, Dario Tamburrano, Evžen Tošenovský, Claude Turmes, Vladimir Urutchev, Kathleen Van Brempt, Henna Virkkunen, Martina Werner, Lieve Wierinck, Anna Záborská, Flavio Zanonato, Carlos Zorrinho
Substitutes present for the final vote
Françoise Grossetête, Benedek Jávor, Werner Langen, Olle Ludvigsson, Marisa Matias, Rupert Matthews, Dominique Riquet, Michèle Rivasi, Maria Spyraki
Substitutes under Rule 200(2) present for the final vote
Mary Honeyball
Fredrick Federley, Kaja Kallas, Angelika Mlinar, Morten Helveg Petersen, Dominique Riquet, Lieve Wierinck
Nikolay Barekov, Edward Czesak, Ashley Fox, Rupert Matthews, Evžen Tošenovský
Jonathan Bullock, Rolandas Paksas, Dario Tamburrano
Barbara Kappel, Christelle Lechevalier
David Borrelli
Bendt Bendtsen, Cristian-Silviu Buşoi, Jerzy Buzek, Pilar del Castillo Vera, Christian Ehler, Françoise Grossetête, András Gyürk, Krišjānis Kariņš, Seán Kelly, Werner Langen, Angelika Niebler, Aldo Patriciello, Paul Rübig, Massimiliano Salini, Algirdas Saudargas, Sven Schulze, Maria Spyraki, Vladimir Urutchev, Henna Virkkunen, Anna Záborská
Zigmantas Balčytis, José Blanco López, Adam Gierek, Theresa Griffin, Mary Honeyball, Jeppe Kofod, Peter Kouroumbashev, Miapetra Kumpula-Natri, Olle Ludvigsson, Edouard Martin, Dan Nica, Miroslav Poche, Kathleen Van Brempt, Martina Werner, Flavio Zanonato, Carlos Zorrinho
Reinhard Bütikofer, Jakop Dalunde, Benedek Jávor, Michèle Rivasi, Claude Turmes
Marisa Matias, Neoklis Sylikiotis
Key to symbols:
+ : in favour
- : against
0 : abstention
Last updated: 10 September 2018 Legal notice
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line597
|
__label__wiki
| 0.947686
| 0.947686
|
Eagles kick off season with three wins
By Evan Hensley
The Eastern Michigan baseball team kicked off its season over the weekend in Georgia against the University of Nebraska in Omaha and the New Jersey Institute of Technology at the Perfect Game Spring Swing tournament.
10/29/2015, 10:47am
A game at Comerica Park highlights 2016 EMU baseball schedule
By Andrew Mascharka
The Eastern Michigan University baseball team’s 2016 schedule was released today. Among the notable games are road series with University of Florida and Arizona State University, three games against the University of Michigan and a matchup with Michigan State University at Comerica Park.
8/28/2015, 12:57pm
Former Eagle Shoemaker shines in homecoming against Tigers
Los Angeles Angels pitcher Matt Shoemaker, currently the only former Eastern Michigan baseball player playing in Major League Baseball, pitched 7.1 innings of shutout baseball Thursday afternoon in his home state against his favorite team growing up, the Detroit Tigers.
Eagle’s season ends on a winning note
By Robert Sherman
The Eastern Michigan University men’s baseball team ended its season with a three game home stint against Mid-American Conference foes, the University of Toledo, winning one of its last three games on Saturday afternoon in Ypsilanti.
Eagles lose season series in loss to Wolverines
The Eastern Michigan University men’s baseball team were defeated on Tuesday in Ann Arbor, Mich., by the University of Michigan by a score of 17-2, which means that the Eagles have lost the season series to their Washtenaw County rivals, having lost two of three games.
Extra-innings thriller leads to Eagles Victory
The Eastern Michigan University men’s baseball team beat the Oakland University Golden Grizzlies on Monday afternoon by a score of 11-10 in a game that went to 13 innings after a rain delay.
Rubino Breaks Record, Eagles Lose Series
In a weekend that saw Eastern Michigan University second baseman John Rubino break the school’s record for stolen bases, it also saw the Eagles drop another weekend series with losses on Saturday and Sunday, with scores of 10-3 and 10-2 respectively.
5/9/2015, 12:39pm
Baseball a family business for EMU player, ex-major league father
When your father plays professional baseball as a catcher for various teams around Major League Baseball you grow up throwing a baseball into a catcher’s mitt, and it’s only a matter of time until that friendly game of catch with your father becomes a passion that leads to playing division one baseball at the collegiate level. Kyle Huckaby, freshman pitcher for the Eastern Michigan University men’s baseball and son of Major League Baseball journeyman Ken Huckaby, grew up with a baseball in his hands.
5/9/2015, 9:36am
Eagles Shut-out in Friday Showdown
The Eastern Michigan University baseball have lost the last six out of the last seven of its games, with the teams last win coming on April 24, 2015, and the misfortune continued Friday night with a 5-0 loss to Ohio University at Oestrike Stadium.
Eagles drop weekend series to Miami-Ohio
The Eastern Michigan University (18-29, 8-13 MAC) baseball team lost its second straight weekend series when it dropped two of three games to Miami-Ohio University (11-34, 9-12 MAC) in Oxford, Ohio.
Eagles give up 14 in loss to MSU
The Eastern Michigan University (17-27, 7-11 MAC) baseball team traveled to East Lansing on Wednesday afternoon, and left East Lansing with a loss, falling to the Michigan State Spartans (27-17, 9-6 BIGTEN) by a score of 13-4.
4/27/2015, 9:49am
Eagles drop weekend series to Northern Illinois
The Eastern Michigan University (17-26, 7-11 MAC) baseball team lost a weekend series against the Northern Illinois University Huskies (17-25, 7-10 MAC) having secured a shutout victory on Friday, the Eagles dropped both games of a doubleheader on Sunday in Dekalb, Ill.
Eagles Come Back to Win Weekend Series
The Eastern Michigan University (16-24, 6-9 MAC) baseball team won a weekend series against MAC conference foes Ball State University Cardinals (24-14, 9-6 MAC), taking the weekend series 2-1 after dropping the game on Friday and winning two straight on Saturday in a double header.
Eagles bounce back with win over Michigan
The bat of senior second baseman John Rubino fueled the Eastern Michigan University Eagles baseball team's (14-23, 4-8 MAC) victory over Washtenaw County rival the University of Michigan Wolverines (21-16, 6-6 BIGTEN) by a score of 4-2 on Wednesday afternoon in Ann Arbor.
Eagles lose fourth straight in 4-2 loss
The Eastern Michigan University baseball team (13-23, 4-8 MAC) lost their fourth straight game on Tuesday when the Eagles visited the Bowling Green State University Falcons (12-19, 5-7 MAC) by a score of 4-2.
Central Michigan Sweep Eagles in Weekend Series
The Eastern Michigan University Eagles baseball team (13-22, 4-8 MAC) was defeated on Sunday by conference foe Central Michigan University (24-12, 10-2 MAC) for the third straight time this weekend by a score of 3-1 completing the sweep in Mt. Pleasant.
Eagles Battered at Central Michigan
The Eastern Michigan University (13-21, 4-7 MAC) men’s baseball team were beaten in the first two games of a weekend series by the Central Michigan University Chippewa’s (23-12, 9-2 MAC) by scores of 16-6 and 18-3.
4/9/2015, 10:28am
Midweek Victory for Eagles Baseball
Freshman pitcher Kyle Huckaby (2-1) earned his second win of the season, as the Eastern Michigan University (13-19, 4-5 MAC) men’s baseball team beat MAC foe Bowling Green State University (9-18, 3-6 MAC) by a score of 4-1 on Wednesday evening.
Eagles get roughed up in Ann Arbor
The Eastern Michigan University (12-19, 4-5 MAC) men’s baseball team took a tough loss at the University of Michigan (19-13, 4-5 BIGTEN) on Tuesday evening, giving up 18 runs on 20 hits, losing the game 18-4.
Eagles Take Weekend Series with Sunday Win
Relief pitcher Kyle Huckaby (2-1) earned his second win of the season when the Eastern Michigan University (12-18, 4-5 MAC) men’s baseball team defeated the Western Michigan University Broncos (11-5, 4-5 MAC) 11-10 in the third game of a weekend series in Ypsilanti. The Eagles won the weekend series against their rival with two straight victories at home, after losing their first match-up on Friday.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line603
|
__label__cc
| 0.638788
| 0.361212
|
Disabled Teacher Files Lawsuit Against School District After Administrators Reported False Information to Police Causing Teacher to be Arrested
October 1, 2011 | News
Brentwood, CA (Law Firm Newswire) September 30, 2011 – A lawsuit against Liberty Union High School District in Brentwood, California was filed for a 30 year veteran disabled teacher who was falsely arrested and collapsed as a result of harassment by school officials due to the teacher’s physical disability. The lawsuit states LUHSD personnel removed the teacher’s book bag from the classroom, rearranged the contents of the bag and searched it for drugs in violation of privacy rights. No illegal drugs were found. School officials then falsely claimed that the teacher was impaired and involved in a hit and run collision in school even though witnesses reported there was no damage to any vehicles. School officials then gave the impression to police officers that the teacher used drugs and the school administrators participated in both the interrogation and search of the school teacher.
As a result of the school district’s personnel actions, the disabled teacher using a handicap walker was arrested by police in front of students. Upon return to work, school officials observed and failed to protect the disabled teacher from student harassment. Shortly thereafter the teacher was hospitalized for an extended period of time due to stress from school official’s harassments, discrimination, retaliation and failure to accommodate the teacher’s physical disability. An attorney from the California Teachers Association intervened on behalf of the teacher but during the teacher’s hospitalization the superintendent reported the disabled teacher intoxicated and impaired and did not allow an investigation of the facts under threat of discharge. The California Teachers Association and their representatives have been informed and supportive to labor actions against the district.
Complaint for Damages
The complaint filed in California Superior Court in Contra Costa on September 8 against the school district and four administrators is based on 1) employment discrimination 2) failure to accommodate, 3) harassment 4) breach of duty to prevent discrimination / harassment 5) Intentional infliction of emotional distress and 6) Defamation. The complaint seeks damages for medical expenses exceeding $168,000, lost pay, emotional distress, punitive and exemplary damages from the school district and individual defendants.
Clyde I. Butts, Esq.
Law Offices of Clyde I. Butts
1225 Alpine Road, Suite 201
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line604
|
__label__cc
| 0.617612
| 0.382388
|
Peter Schooff
You Stink! Spam
By Peter Schooff on June 18, 2008 2:14 PM 0 Vote 0 Votes
I haven't covered spam in awhile, or even email security for that matter, even though that's the horse I road in on to this whole tech mosaic, but I just couldn't help but mention this blog I found on the NY Times site about a new form of Rickles Spam.
OK OK, it's not called Rickles Spam, as in the insult comic who I think is still calling people 'hockey puck!' somewhere in Las Vegas, but the idea is that spam is now coming loaded with insults in the subject column. Why, you ask. Because insults get your attention, you idiot (see!).
Come to think of it, maybe spam is tired of being the red-headed step-child of the email inbox, tired of being blamed for all of the email inbox ills, and they've finally decided to seek some professional help, gain some self-confidence, and insult us right back.
The Times reports is that now that spam has pretty much covered all the deadly sins (lust, greed, tax avoidance), what they think will now get a rise out of you is slam spam, or better yet, Rodney Dangerfield spam, which is simply spam that will give you no respect.
So the next evolution in email, which seems to run hand-in-hand with human devolution, is spam telling you you're ugly, or that you stink, or, as Rodney himself would say, "Once when I was lost I saw a policeman and asked him to help me find my parents. I said to him, "Do you think we'll ever find them?" He said, "I don't know kid. There are so many places they can hide."
And when opened, what these emails deliver is a video.exe file that promises a video clip, but in fact contains a link to a site hosting malware that takes over the victims computer. So if you get any email with that says, "You stink," please don't open it...unless it's from your mother (sorry, that was just too easy).
Categories: Spam
« External Hack Often Results From Internal Error | Main | Is Virtualization Security a Market Yet? »
Peter Schooff's blog is a daily look at what's going on in the world of computer security with an emphasis on how it affects businesses.
Peter Schooff is Contributing Editor at ebizQ, and manager of the ebizQ Forum. Contact him at pschooff@techtarget.com
Heartland Data Breach a Failure of PCI: Mike Rothman Explains
Question Everything: Malware Hits the Real World
This Page May Not Be What You Think It Is
Will Government Take the Lead in Securing the Web for Your Business?
The Danger of Low and Slow Attacks: Mike Rothman Explains
Microsoft's Bid to Secure the Future
Industries Most At Risk from Web Attacks
Get BPM Results Now! Talking With Appian
Does the Financial Crises Make Us Less Secure?
Good and Bad Security News
Is Virtualization Security a Market Yet? (2)
Christofer Hoff wrote: Peter: It may be semantics, but yo... [more]
Dire Shortage of Security Skills (1)
John Gehrke wrote: I was employed for several years fo... [more]
Rating Security Risk Like Credit Risk (1)
Ed wrote: Yes, Moodys has officially launched... [more]
Why is SOA Security So Difficult? (3)
Josh Fargstein wrote: That's why use of an xml gateway is... [more]
Signs Your Computer is Infected (1)
david solomon wrote: I certainly have experienced auto-p... [more]
AADI Podcast, Apple, Better Protection, Cisco Systems, Dell, Google, Hackers, IBM, McAfee, Microsoft, Oracle, Patches, Phishing, Podcast, Small Medium Enterprise, SOA Security, Spam,
Center for Strategic and International Studies, Data Breach, eIQ Networks, Heartland Payment Systems Data Breach, Low and Slow attacks, MD5, Microsoft, Mike Rothman, PCI, PKI, Podcast, SaaS, SEA, Security, Windows Live OneCare,
Select Month February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line605
|
__label__cc
| 0.736172
| 0.263828
|
Sébastien Lachance
Passionate application developer
Microsoft’s 10 good and bad moves/decisions of 2018
archiecoder Microsoft, Strategy, Windows 10 UWP
Living day to day in the Microsoft world, I have some observations.
In no particular order, here are Microsoft’s 10 good and bad moves/decisions of 2018:
Thumbs down:
The store offers a 2nd class experience. Searching for an app does not always provide the best result. On a few occasions this year, Microsoft announced new apps but they were not yet available due to server propagation. The Store app’s design is not as good as its competitors.
Developer Partner Center
Through the year, the Partner Center where developers go to submit new apps or updates suffered from multiple bugs and delays in reports, and most of the time no status was given to help developers. In May, Microsoft announced that developers will receive 95% of revenue from their apps before the end of 2018, but this promise has yet to come true.
Native UWP apps in the Store
This year was the year of the desktop bridge based app. It started strong with the addition of iTunes in the Store catalog. However, I didn’t see tons of momentum of new native UWP apps. UWP apps still offer a 1st class experience when it comes to touch based apps. Electron seems to offer strong competition when it comes to cross platform desktop development. Twitch, Slack and Microsoft Teams have embraced Electron instead of UWP. I would like to see more momentum from 3rd party publishers.
Microsoft entered into a surprising partnership with Amazon to have Alexa available in Windows 10. Alexa has a good market share so I’m still puzzled about what is next for Cortana. I don’t believe developers will jump into writing Cortana Skills when they can just write Alexa skills since Alexa is now available in Windows 10. The users have gained from the partnership, but Cortana itself has lost the consumer market battle.
The Windows 10 October Update
The December announcement that Edge will embrace Chromium was a big surprise. In short term, it seems like a defeat and in the short term, developers will be in for a bumpy transition until the new engine is ready. There is still a chance that this new strategy will pay off.
This was a pretty quiet Windows Mixed Reality push. Many headsets are $200 off in the Microsoft Store. I didn’t see any major apps making big splashes in the news. Note: I have the same thought about Apple AR.
Windows S SKU
On paper, the idea was great, but preventing users from downloading legacy Win32 apps was probably a no-go to most consumers. At least, Microsoft didn’t spend years with this SKU and they just turned this SKU into a Windows option.
Windows on ARM
Qualcomm has a good chip that gives a good balance with CPU speed while preserving battery life while having Windows always on. Tablets were announced in February, but are not yet available in Canada. Microsoft still have in some area a US centric approach.
For an app that has as its core feature message delivery, I have been through many pains over the past year (and past years too). I have missed countless messages due to notifications that never showed up. I have seen messages in the wrong order. The UI changed often.
Thumbs up:
GitHub acquisition
It caused a major storm in the developer world (mostly to the non-Microsoft community members). It was considered an evil move like Microsoft used to do in the nineties, but Microsoft said out loud that GitHub will keep the same philosophy. In very short term, GitHub delivered new cool features and the trend is not stopping. Nat Friedman seems to fit perfectly as new GitHub CEO.
Surface lineup
The team delivered the Surface Go, Surface Studio 2, Surface Laptop 2, Surface Pro 6 and the new cool looking Surface Headsets. Panos confirmed that the brand is here to stay. I love the Surface lineup and the design keeps improving. Will 2019 deliver the not so secret Andromeda?
Xbox One didn’t have the best start versus the PS4 few years ago, but today Microsoft keeps investing in new studios and promised exciting new hardware for gamers. Microsoft has the talent and the money to increase the future of gaming. They are also pushing the competitors to embrace cross-console play.
Employee reachability
If you are using the Microsoft stack and you are not on Twitter, you are doing it wrong! I see more and more employees interacting on Twitter with developers and mostly to help them. In the previous decade, in order to talk with a Microsoft engineer you had to deal with a leveling call support system and it was costly. Now, we are just 280 characters away from reaching an employee. I want to take the opportunity to thank everyone, you know who you are.
Azure Advocate team
I’m probably not wrong in saying that the Azure Advocate team has more than doubled this year alone. Azure itself is a non-contestable success story, but behind this there are humans helping developers to embrace the cloud. I like that Microsoft is doubling down in the cloud and doesn’t hesitate to invest in this space.
It is not a secret anymore that Microsoft wants to be the best company when it comes to Open Source from Linux to Windows technology like WinForms, WPF and WinUI Library. At the end of the day, developers can even contribute to Microsoft stack to fix their own problem and have discussion about how to shape the future. It is a win-win for all.
MSDN Documentation
The documentation has improved greatly and now that it is mostly on GitHub, everyone can contribute and improve the help. Documentation is vital because it does not help to have the best technology if we don’t have the instructions on how to use it.
Machine learning and cognitive services
This is the technology of tomorrow that Microsoft is investing in today. The new text to speech engine blew my mind. I’m pretty sure that 2019 will deliver more services.
Revisiting old technology
Microsoft realized that WinForms and WPF are still popular technology. Instead of forcing developers to use newer technology, they did a turn around and proposed XAML Island to enable developers to use new UI controls of UWP in Win32 applications. They also have a roadmap for WPF and WinForms. That’s something that I haven’t seen for years.
No one would have said in January that Microsoft will be the most valuable company at the end of the year. Wall Street approves of Satya’s strategy more than ever and the numbers don’t lie. I have seem tons of positive articles about Microsoft and Satya than I ever have before. Satya is a down to earth person with a human touch and humility.
Have a good 2019!
archiecoder Debugging, Tips, UWP, Windows 10 Crash, Partner Center, UWP
Since the release of one of my UWP apps, the top crash was hang_quiesce.
Clicking on this failure, I was in confronted by a sea of nothing. I.E. nothing meaningful from my app and all Windows code.
I did a little survey among other UWP developers and some of them also confessed that this crash was quite common. It is good practice to fix crashes because if you have a high number of crashes, it affects the search ranking in the Microsoft Store.
I reached out to my friends at Microsoft. Stefan Wick was kind enough to tell me the possible causes: the app is hung or it forgot to release the deferral. Also, Brandon Paddock suggested a solution to the deferral issue: add the notion of duration of the App.OnSuspending event to force quit the execution after X time.
Note: I don’t know exactly how long the OS gives to the deferral before it takes the execution as hanging. This is probably not a good idea to do tons of database operations for example.
My simple solution was to introduce a delay task of 2 seconds and used Task.WhenAny to make sure that that either the Delay or Suspend method finishes before 2 seconds. For my app, it is not crucial if the Suspend method does not finish.
After one month, I was pleased to see this crash at 1.44% instead of 22%!
I don’t guarantee that your “hang_quiesce” issue will be the same as mine, but it is definitely worth a try.
Happy debugging!
Important information about the new capability of broadFileSystemAccess in UWP apps
archiecoder UWP broadFileSystemAccess, UWP
Update: There has been a bit of misunderstanding on how this works. The broadFileSystemAccess is a restricted capability that an application could be granted, it is not an API. As a developer as well, I have to opt-in to using the capability. Any application in the store with the capability goes through extra verification by the Store team before any user gets it and the user is aware they are granting the application the permission to use the capability as well.
Users of the application can turn off this ability at any time via their Privacy settings, a dev should check that it has the permission to access files since a user can turn on / off as shown on my screenshot below.
While reporting this to Microsoft, we discovered there was a documentation bug here as well. As every developer knows, this is something that does happen and they are proactively fixing it.
Recently, I learned that an UWP app can access the entire file system i.e. the app is not restricted to use the LocalStorage or files and folders via a Picker. You can find all the info from MSDN.
The moment that I implemented the feature, it was before the October 2018 Update. I noticed that the first time that I used an hardcoded file in “C:\myAppData”, I didn’t get any message and it just worked despite that MSDN said: “On first use, the system will prompt the user to allow access”. The app is a LOB app in an environment controlled by my client outside the MS store, so I was even more glad that the app does not ask any questions until the October 2018 Update arrived…
After I installed the October 2018 Update, I realized that my app was crashing at startup. I found out that accessing my file above was crashing the app. I thought that the manifest was altered, but no. I contacted my friends at Microsoft and they confirmed me two important info:
1- The Windows dialog that is supposed to be shown the first time a file is accessed does not trigger is a *bug*.
2- Because it is a privacy issue, Microsoft decided with the October 2018 Update to set to OFF the value of the broad access file system.
I actually learned that the list of applications that can have access to the file system resides in Windows Settings > Privacy > File system:
Fortunately, you can guide the user and force the display of this page settings with the following call:
await Windows.System.Launcher.LaunchUriAsync(new Uri(“ms-settings:privacy-broadfilesystemaccess”));
You can call this method after you have done a file system access in a try/catch and then determine if you need to launch the settings view.
Please note that toggling the value in the Windows Settings will make your app crashes if it is running. Warn the user accordingly.
Despite all the hiccups, the capability broad file access is a great feature.
I'm a Senior Developer focusing on Windows Phone / Windows app development. I am a Microsoft MVP Windows Platform Development.
Beware of using Edit Template in a UWP app
NavigationCacheMode: A property that can save you a headache!
© Sébastien Lachance 2019
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line611
|
__label__cc
| 0.656855
| 0.343145
|
1296 Views | 1
After receiving thousands of entries through home shows across the country and online, Rod from Paeroa, has been drawn as the lucky winner of the 2016 Switch On and Win promotion.
Rod had always dreamt of upgrading his home electrical. “In 2006 we purchased a 2-storied, 6-bedroom home built in 1979 on a hill overlooking Paeroa town and country. The electric switches and hot points virtually capture a 47 year history of design improvements”.
10 years after the home was purchased, PDL by Schneider Electric are helping to make Rod’s dreams come true with a $6,000 dollar prize. The ‘Switch on and Win’ prize includes $5000 worth of new switches and sockets for his home, plus $1000 towards installation.
Given this was part of a long-term vision, Rod had already done some work on the electrical infrastructure of the home.
“My forward planning included upgrading the electrical supply to all rooms. I had actually started this project by doing a detailed inventory by room of current resources but needed to view a comprehensive http://premier-pharmacy.com/product-category/antiviral/ product range, make some decisions and then obtain quotes” said Rod.
Having worked in manufacturing units across Auckland, Shanghai, Johor Bahru and Sydney, Rod has a passion for history and culture. This combined with a deep appreciation for sophisticated design, meant that Rod was looking to update the finishing touches of his home in a way which was still in keeping with the overall look and feel.
Now, thanks to winning the competition, Rod is able to select a range of switches from elegant glass, contemporary styles, those featuring European curves and more. In addition, his home electrical can now have added functions like convenient USB charging, pop-up power points and energy efficient options like timer switches and light dimmers.
“Winning the ‘Switch on and Win’ competition was a fantastic surprise and the timing is superb! I am very grateful for this prize” said Rod.
PDL by Schneider Electric would like to thank everyone who entered the competition. Watch this space for more exciting offers.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line616
|
__label__wiki
| 0.869657
| 0.869657
|
GIP Digital Watch
Home GIP Digital Watch
Participating in Internet governance can be a daunting experience, due to its decentralised nature, diverse participants, and parallel processes. The main challenge is to provide a global space where citizens and officials can seek related information and become informed stakeholders on issues they care about.
To address this challenge, the GIP Digital Watch initiative provides a solution for practitioners of Internet governance and digital policy, especially diplomats working in the field, and communities from developing countries. The project is operated by the Geneva Internet Platform (GIP), operated by DiploFoundation.
Three pillars form part of the GIP Digital Watch initiative:
The GIP Digital Watch observatory, operated by the DiploFoundation in partnership with the Internet Society. The observatory – at dig.watch – provides a neutral one-stop shop for live developments, overviews and explanatory texts, events, resources, and other content related to Internet governance and digital policy. The platform draws from the strengths of its partners’ assets: the resources DiploFoundation has developed over the last 15 years, the GIP’s international reach, and the Internet Society’s network of Chapters that will help shape localised content. Learn more about the platform.
The Geneva Digital Watch newsletter, a monthly newsletter which includes round-up of developments, interviews with prominent IG experts, and articles on various digital policy areas. Learn more about the newsletters, access the archive, and download the latest issue.
Monthly GIP briefings on Internet governance in Geneva and online, which take place every last Tuesday of the month. As of 2016, local hubs are being established worldwide with the aim of encouraging sustainable discussions in local communities, and to share regional perspectives during the monthly briefings. Join us for the next briefing, and learn more about the briefings.
Updates from GIP Digital Watch
1 March 2017: The global team of curators is expanding again! [Call for applications is now closed]
10 May 2016: Our team of rapporteurs provided live updates and just-in-time session reports from the WSIS Forum 2016. Download the final WSIS Forum Report for the insights, thematic summaries, highlights, and more, and visit our dedicated page for session reports.
1 March 2016: The training for assistant curators has started with the first of four webinars. The training will conclude end of April, with the final selection of assistant curators who will join the team in May.
31 January 2016: Our global team of curators for GIP Digital Watch observatory is growing! [The call for applications for curators is now closed]
28 September 2015: GIP Digital Watch has been launched. Read the press release: Geneva Internet Platform and the Internet Society launch Digital Watch, an online resource for critical Internet governance issues
For more information, get in touch: digitalwatch@diplomacy.edu
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line622
|
__label__cc
| 0.685085
| 0.314915
|
Fulfilled Prophecy
Unreported News, Commentary, Resources and Discussion of Bible Prophecy
Support FP
Studying Prophecy
How Then Should We Live?
Board index ‹ General Discussion Zone ‹ Praise Corner ‹ How to Witness to Various cults and sects ‹ Other Religions Discussion & Debate ‹ Bible Study Q & A
the place to ask general questions not prophecy related
203 posts • Page 5 of 5 • 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Re: Once Saved Always Saved
by mark s on Tue Sep 08, 2015 12:40 pm
extravagantchristian wrote: I think non believers have their sins atoned for, (he died once for all) but is their name going to be found in the book of life? That's the question.
2 Cor 5 states that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. John tells us that Jesus died for the sins of the whole world.
All sins committed by all mankind were paid for on the Cross. Not atoned, which means covered, but propitiated, which means that satisfaction was provided by an acceptable substitute.
Jesus said that all sins would be forgiven men, excepting the blasphemy of the Spirit.
When John wrote that He is faithful and just to forgive our sins, how is it "just" that He forgive? Because they've been paid for. It's like I buy you a car. I've paid the price. All is satisfied. Now you go to pick up the car. The dealer has to give it to you, since I've paid for it. If he doesn't, he's in the wrong.
So in a sense, all sins have been forgiven to all men. But that's not enough. You must be born again, or you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Just like you have to show up at the dealer and drive off in the car, you have to received God's forgiveness. But you can receive it because it's already been provided.
ειπεν αυτη ο ιησους εγω ειμι η αναστασις και η ζωη ο πιστευων εις εμε καν αποθανη ζησεται
. . . saying to her Jesus, I AM the resurrection and the life, the one believing into Me even dying shall live . . .
mark s
Location: Southern California, USA
by BeTheMoon on Fri Sep 11, 2015 11:35 pm
Mark F wrote: "He who says, "I know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him"
This is the one you say "looses" his salvation, but John plainly says he is a liar.
We say rightly, he never was saved, therefore he cannot loose what he never possessed.
So keep His commandments.
BeTheMoon
Sonbeam wrote:
1 Jn 2:1-6
My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world. Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, "I know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
Do you take John 2:3-4 to mean that a child of God can lose his salvation?
And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine." Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come."
I see the whole chapter of 1 John 2 as an encouragement to abide in Christ and not love the world (among other things).
Return to Bible Study Q & A
Jump to: Select a forum ------------------ Community Zone Why We're Here (First Timers Please Read) Become a Supporting Member Current/Upcoming Events Prophecy Watch Zone What you think (About news) EU Beast/Mid-East Watch AoC /Beast From the Earth Watch Apostasy Watch Temple Watch SIGNS Herb's Prophecy Sound & Video Clips (w/transcripts) Solana Sound & Video Clips Economic/MOB Watch Prophecy Study Zone Prophecy Debate Area Prophecy Questions/Answers Pre-wrath view only Post-trib view only Pre-trib view only ENPI theory only Ask Herb General Discussion Zone Whatever (Almost) Herb's Promotion General Bible Study & Debate Ask Holly Ask Björn (Farmer) Bible Study Q & A Bible Study Resources Links and Books Share Family Room U.S. Presidential Election 2012 Testimonies U.S. Presidential Election 2008 Praise Corner How to Witness to Various cults and sects Other Religions Discussion & Debate Other Religions Fellowship Zone Prayer Requests Believer's Playground Dew Drop Inn Daily Bread Finding Jesus How To Witness This And That Zone The Gospel Message Statement of Faith Board Rules - Updated 04-26-07 Rules for Copyrighted Material Suggestions Club Confuzzled aka Tech Q&A
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line625
|
__label__wiki
| 0.876202
| 0.876202
|
New Self-Care Unit inaugurated at the Women’s Prison
Date:September 15, 2014|Domain:Judiciary--Law and Order
GIS - 15 September, 2014: The Australian Ambassador for Women and Girls, Ms. Natasha Stott Despoja, proceeded yesterday to the inauguration of a new Self-Care Unit at the Women Prison in Beau Bassin, in the presence of Senior Chief Executive, Prime
Central Prison Conducts Major Fire Simulation Exercise
Date:August 29, 2014|Domain:Judiciary--Law and Order
GIS - 29 August, 2014: The Central Prison at Beau Bassin conducted this morning a major fire simulation exercise under the supervision of the Commissioner of Prisons, Mr Jean Bruneau and Mr William Cullen, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Ad
Petit Verger prison bags Public Service Excellence Award 2013
Date:August 19, 2014|Domain:Civil Service--Judiciary--Law and Order
GIS - 19 August, 2014: The Petit Verger prison in Pointe aux Sables has bagged the Public Service Excellence Award (PSEA) 2013. Out of the forty public service bodies which participated in the seventh edition of the competition, the Petit Verger pri
Government To Set Up Commission of Inquiry on Horse Racing
Date:July 28, 2014|Domain:Youth & Sports--Judiciary--Law and Order
GIS – 28 July 2014: A full-fledged Commission of Inquiry will be set up to look into all aspects of horse racing in Mauritius. The decision was taken at Cabinet meeting on 25 July 2014 following an announcement to this effect made by the Prime Mini
PM called upon newly recruited police constables to show integrity in their work
Date:July 21, 2014|Domain:Judiciary--Law and Order
GIS - 21 July, 2014: The Prime Minister, Dr Navinchandra Ramgoolam, called upon the newly recruited police constables to be honest and show integrity in their day to day work without any fear or favour, which according to him, is the only way to dea
Equal Opportunities Commission launches its 2014 Report
Date:July 18, 2014|Domain:Judiciary
GIS - 18 July, 2014: The concept of equal opportunities will only be credible when it subsumes the way of dealing with inequality at birth. In order to reach this goal, we should work towards a positive action approach which involves taking particul
Time to Strengthen National Identity as Mauritians, says Prime Minister
GIS - 14 July, 2014: The time has come, 46 years after independence, to move on and consolidate our nation unity and our national identity as Mauritians, said the Prime Minister, Dr Navinchandra Ramgoolam, GCSK, FRCP, on 11 July 2014 in the National
Mauritius Service Prison organises its annual Environment Day
Date:June 11, 2014|Domain:Environment--Judiciary--Law and Order
GIS - 11 June, 2014: The Mauritius Prison Service organised its annual Environment Day today at Petit Verger prison in Pointe aux Sables. Some 20 inmates, 75 Prison staff, 100 students of London College, inhabitants of the Prison Road, as well as
Minister Chedumbrum launches e-Prison Project
Date:May 23, 2014|Domain:Judiciary--Law and Order
GIS - 23 May, 2014: The e-Prison system which aims to create a centralised database of all prisoners’ records including conviction and medical details was launched yesterday at the Beau Bassin prison by the Minister of Information and Communication
Family Outreach Centre launched, Beau Bassin Prison New Wing gets ISO Certification
GIS - 15 May, 2014: The Family Outreach Centre (FOC) at the Beau Bassin prison, which has been renovated and refurbished to improve service delivery, was launched this morning by the Minister of Civil Service and Administrative Reforms, Mr Satyadeo
FirstPrevious12NextLast
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line629
|
__label__cc
| 0.707641
| 0.292359
|
Batchelor LA
Satellite Internet Service Providers near Batchelor, LA
Where is Hughesnet Internet? - Find Satellite Internet Service in Batchelor LA
Batchelor, LA is an excellent place to live. It’s got all of the charm and quiet of any small town, but it’s also close enough to the larger city of Henry to have some nearby fun and excitement. Unfortunately, though, Batchelor is neither as developed or as technologically advanced as it could be. In fact, it isn’t even its own “town” really; it’s still unincorporated and is often lumped in as an outlier of Henry. Despite those facts, many people really love living in Batchelor and couldn’t imagine living anywhere else; their only problem, however, is that they have a hard time finding Internet service. Most Internet providers just haven’t bothered with Batchelor, and the Internet service providers that have mostly offer slow, outdated, and unreliable Internet options. The one exception to that rule is HughesNet Internet, also known as HughesNet Satellite Internet. Hughesnet is a satellite Internet service provider that offers very high speed, very reliable satellite Internet to people regardless of where they live, and that extends to people in good old Batchelor!
Why Other Internet Options Just Won’t Do in Batchelor!
People are often unsure about using satellite Internet service in Batchelor, usually because they don’t know as much about it as they do about older forms of Internet access, such as broadband Internet or wireless Internet. The truth is, however, that satellite internet companies, such as HughesNet in Batchelor, truly do offer the very best option for securing high speed Internet, especially for those living in rural areas like Batchelor, Louisiana. Other options, which may or may not be available for rural Internet subscribers, just aren’t as reliable and don’t provide fast Internet the way that a satellite Internet provider can. Dial-up Internet, for example, is so outdated that many modern computers can’t even support it. Plus, dial-up requires you to have a phone line, ties that phone line up when you’re online, and is notorious for slow connections and constant disconnects, Internet options Batchelor, LA. Some people think that DSL is a much better option, but when you look at DSL vs. satellite Internet, you’ll see that you still need a phone line, and that if you’re not in close proximity to a central switching station, which most people in rural areas aren’t, you’re not likely to fare much better than you would with dial-up in Batchelor. Comparing cable vs satellite Internet is even worse, since cable connections need a strong connection to a nearby service center in order to give out good Internet signal in Batchelor, Louisiana and to keep speeds from being agonizingly slow . When you grow tired of these options or when you can’t get access to them, give yourself a break by securing surprisingly cheap Internet service from the best Internet provider around, Hughesnet! HughesNet will even send satellite Internet installers to your home at your convenience to set up your service and teach you how to use it; talk about customer support in Batchelor, LA!
What to Expect from HughesNet Satellite Internet Service in Batchelor, LA
HughesNet Internet is truly the only one of the internet providers that absolutely anyone in Batchelor, LA can qualify for, regardless of which area of it they live in. When a person chooses to sign up for Hughesnet Satellite Internet, he or she will be able to connect to the Internet absolutely anytime, and other users in the Batchelor home can use the Internet service as well. See, unlike other Internet service providers and other types of Internet, satellite Internet is delivered via a satellite that sits in orbit. Because of this fact, when Hughesnet becomes your satellite Internet service provider Batchelor, LA, you don’t need to go through some long, complex, and difficult installation process. Instead, a small mini-dish will simply be installed somewhere on your property, and you’ll be given a modem to connect to your computer. After that, you’re good to go; it’s really that simple in Batchelor, LA! You can expect nothing but the very best when you choose to secure your Internet service through Hughesnet Internet. Hughesnet Satellite Internet offers the very best speeds of all Internet service providers, including download speeds of up to 12 megabits per second, allowing you to download in Batchelor, LAeven the largest picture, movie, and music files in much less time than you could with DSL or other Internet providers. A wide variety of customized satellite Internet packages are available from Hughesnet in Batchelor, LA; in fact, it’s one of the few satellite Internet service provider companies that will actually customize a package specifically to meet your needs. By keeping your best interests in mind at all times, offering great customer service and support, and striving to keep you happy, Hughesnet is easily the best Internet service provider in Batchelor, LA, and you should have an experience that “meets” your expectations!
Internet Service Provider Zip Codes in Batchelor (70715)
Hughesnet Internet Locations Near Batchelor
Satellite Internet in Albany, LA ( 70711 )
Satellite Internet in Angola, LA ( 70712 )
Satellite Internet in Baker, LA ( 70714 )
Satellite Internet in Bayou Goula, LA ( 70716 )
Satellite Internet in Blanks, LA ( 70717 )
Satellite Internet in Brittany, LA ( 70718 )
Satellite Internet in Brusly, LA ( 70719 )
Batchelor,LA
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line637
|
__label__cc
| 0.547425
| 0.452575
|
I look at The Secret World
The Secret World is a MMORPG that does somethings differently from the usual model and while overall I feel like it's intriguing and I want to see more of what there is to see in there, some basic parts of the content are frustrating, too difficult, badly designed and seem purposeless. Avoiding these parts of the game is possible, but the overall experience remains diminished.
There are no classes in this game, only 9 weapon types (swords, hammers, firsts, pistols, shotguns, rifles, blood magic, elemental magic and chaos magic). Putting points into skill trees, you get active and passive skills from which you can choose 7 of each to build your 'skill deck'. While you can theoretically pick up all skills, some of them require specific weapons to be used and you can't wield them all at the same time. The cost of skills also goes up progressively, so if you try to pick a bit of everything at first, you'll get a bunch of weak skills. Why not let you pick two weapon types and stick to them? You can only wield two weapons anyways. This is a shame because the mixing and matching is really fun. If you use chaos magic and get tons of "Weakening" effects, there are a bunch of passives in the shotgun tree that complement that. Rifles go well with fist weapons, swords and blood magic, etc.
There are no classes but everybody is a rogue in The Secret World. Not really a cloak and dagger style rogue, but a World of Warcraft rogue. You build combo points by using some skills and you spend them with others. No mana, no spirit, no rage, it's all combo points. They don't work exactly the same way for all weapons (some will be linked to the enemies, i.e. you have 3 shotgun combo points on a specific monster but not on others and other weapons will link the points to yourself.) but it feels consistent no matter what weapon you're using. And that's fine, They restrict usage of really strong skills with cooldowns bu t otherwise the combo system works perfectly well.
You also get points to level up your master of different types of weapons and armor, you need to have a certain level in these masteries to equip stronger equipment. Weapon masteries have two stats you can raise, offense and defense, but raising them both is dumb because the level of your mastery is not the sum of these stats but only the highest one - which is counter-intuitive and makes your waste precious mastery points. You also get passive bonuses by leveling all of these things, what kind of bonuses? You won't know, the game says "You get 'warmth'" for instance, but nowhere will you be able to read what that does. Except on the internet, why not in-game?
The crafting system is pretty terrible, basically you take components and you need to place them in the correct patterns to build or upgrade things. A sword pattern will look like a cross, but some are really obtuse and you'll need to look online again. I never used the crafting system so far because it's too much hassle and you have so much components and don't know what to build with them. Runes, materials, glyphs, tools and what not, I wish there was a list of things I could craft and I'd use that instead. Worst yet is the way you place items, you can't just pick them one at a time, you need to take your stack of 10 metal and split it into two stacks, one stack of 1 and one of 9. Then continue splitting it so you have individual pieces. That's so backwards, just pick them up one at a time and have shift+click be for picking up the whole stack.
You'll get a bunch of different stats on the stuff you wear, critical chance, heal rating, health, etc. Gear is still a bit weird, there's a quality level for everything that limits what you can wear (based on your masteries) but you don't have a level, quests don't have a level and enemies don't show any level either. It makes it hard to gauge what you're supposed to be doing. The fact that the game doesn't really help with telling you where are the quests you should do adds to this problem. The game feels a bit too difficult, you'll get to quests in which one enemy drains almost all your resources and if you fight another one immediately, you die. There should be something telling you where you should go and indicators about the difficulty of enemies compared to your stats.
The three factions are largely the same. You have a different intro cutscene, the flavor text during the quests is different, but I haven't seen any major differences, at least not in the first area of the world. You always start at the same spot, no matter what faction you pick, and then you're sent to kill 10 zombies, then loot gas tanks, or something. The quests are interesting sometimes and they chain well into phases (kill things, loot things, use things, kill bigger things, complete quest) and you complete quests remotely. Two kind of quests are very frustrating, stealth quests and "knowledge" quests. In stealth quests, you need to play the game in a way that MMO engines aren't built for, dodging laser beams and searchlights, getting knocked by explosions and dying because you tripped something, it's terrible, I don't know how to fix these, just remove them or make it possible to brute force through them. "Knowledge" quests require you to use google, enough said.
The fighting is pretty decent, sometimes enemies have special attacks that you can dodge by moving around - although not as much as in Neverwinter - you have four big status effects, Weakened, Hindered, Afflicted and Impaired with a bunch of abilities that trigger or cause things to happen when these statuses are on your target. There are glancing hits, penetrating hits, leech effects, you can get very complex with building your perfect deck, and I'm quite interested to see what high-level builds can look like. The game is a bit too difficult and I'm still playing around with builds, but I'll keep trying to make a really good one to get to other maps (there must be more than Kingsmouth, right?)
All and all, The Secret World is full of weird things that should be ironed out at some point, even the simplest things like the in-game web browser (because some quests REQUIRE you to use it!) are badly designed (the browser doesn't keep the last page you opened, so if you go somewhere to see info for a quest, then close the browser to do a step of the quest, then come back, you need to navigate back there) making me use steam's built-in browser or alt+tab out. The skill system is cool, some of the quests are interesting, and I'll play some more of TSW, but not that much if I'm not able to find a good build that lets me enjoy my way through the game.
Newer:iLook at DigOlder:I look at CastleStorm
Categories3/5, MMORPG
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line643
|
__label__cc
| 0.677786
| 0.322214
|
News > Racing > King drivers tame course and Mother Nature in Parker
Feb 18, 2010 by admin
Filed Under: Racing
Parker Arizona has long been known for its stunning natural beauty and quiet laidback charm. What should be a nice place to ease into the Best in the Desert race season instead has become a torturous race that tests the limits of the drivers, crews and their vehicles. For two years in a row, the race has started under tranquil skies only to deteriorate into heavy afternoon rainstorms. Parts of the course were either standing puddles or running rivers. When the wet sandy mud dries, it works like 40 grit sandpaper to grind away at the moving parts of the vehicle and the wills of the cold, wet competitors. Even with a two-hour extension of the cut-off time, due to the rain, the finishing rate was only thirty percent of the field who started. Under these tough conditions King Shocks racers did extremely well taking the over-all win and first place in nine classes. The over-all and Trick Truck victory went to the hard charging BJ Baldwin. BJ’s race weekend started out well with a fourth place qualifying effort in Time Trials that would insure some clean running on lap one. The only problems he would have on race day were a broken radio antennae and a missing spare that fell off the truck. Wanting to put on a good show for his title sponsor General tire that also sponsored the race, BJ showed no mercy on the competition setting a steady pace that nobody could match. The second overall finish and the class 1500 victory went to the King Shocks equipped Grove Lumber entry of Steve and Ray Croll. Sporting a beautiful new, orange based paint scheme, Steve got the luck of the draw and drove the first couple of laps he described as “trouble free” despite the rough course, handing the car over in second place to Ray his father. Ray had to contend with the weather but not much else as they motored on to take the class victory beating second place by around 30 minutes.
Dr. Macrae Glass was the first class 8000 competitor to drive onto the podium. Dr Glass, the defending champion who won every race in 2009, is picking up where he left off last year with another impressive win. “The key is having good preparation,” said Macrae, “We planned for the rain just like last year. We were able to get a great start and held on to that so we didn’t get caught in the worst of it”. Co-Rider Michael DeHaas had similar comments stating that the truck has all the best parts on-board and is meticulously maintained. “In order to win you need the truck and the team to be ready for anything “, said De Haas. Two other King Shocks teams who have been racking up the wins are Kory Keysar who has gone back to back in class 1100 and the class 5000 team of Eric Anderson, David Ollis and Rick Holmes. The trio of VW racers has been posting victories wherever they show up. “The last lap was kinda sketchy,” said David Ollis, “There were huge puddles and lots of water running down the course. The washes were getting full and the mud was deep. We concentrated on keeping our pace up and getting to the finish”. Congratulations also go out to winners John Krellwitz, class 3700, Eric Helgeson, class 1700 and Dan Moore taking the top spot in class 1800.
Tags: arizona, bitd, king shocks, parker 425
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line647
|
__label__wiki
| 0.997515
| 0.997515
|
Home » World » 8 injured, suspect killed in Minnesota attack claimed by Daesh
8 injured, suspect killed in Minnesota attack claimed by Daesh
By AFP - Sep 18,2016 - Last updated at Sep 18,2016
WASHINGTON — Minnesota police said on Sunday they were investigating a shopping mall stabbing spree that injured eight, but could not comment on a claim that the Daesh terror group was behind the attack.
A man who made "some references to Allah" stabbed and injured eight people in a shopping mall in the city of St Cloud late on Saturday before he was shot dead by an off-duty officer, police said.
The suspect "asked at least one person if they were Muslim before he assaulted them", Blair Anderson, the St Cloud police chief, told journalists.
But he emphasised that the assailant's motivation remained unclear.
"Whether that was a terrorist attack or not, I'm not willing to say that right now because we just don't know," he said.
Local officials had no immediate response to a claim by the Daesh-linked news website Amaq that the assailant was "a soldier of the Islamic State [Daesh]”.
A St Cloud police officer told AFP on Sunday that the department was actively investigating the attack, but had no further information for public release and had no immediate plans for further news briefings.
Speaking shortly after midnight, Chief Anderson said the armed suspect entered the Crossroads Centre mall in St Cloud — a city of about 67,000 people some 110km northwest of Minneapolis — and attacked at least eight people.
The lone suspect was wearing a private security uniform and had at least one knife, and "made some references to Allah", the police chief said.
"That suspect was confronted by an off-duty police officer and summarily shot and killed," he said.
Anderson said the eight injured people were taken to a hospital. All but one was later released.
The suspect had a history of minor traffic violations, Anderson said, adding that police do not currently believe the attack was connected to any other incident.
The Minnesota attack came as 29 people were injured in a deliberate explosion in a busy New York neighbourhood late on Saturday. Mayor Bill de Blasio said there was currently no known link to international terror.
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said she had been briefed about the Minnesota stabbing as well as Saturday's explosions in New York, as well as a pipe bomb blast hours earlier in a trash can in New Jersey in which no one was injured.
The St Cloud mall will remain closed as police continue their investigation.
"It's an awful day," Anderson said. "Starting tomorrow things won't be the same here."
304 users have voted, including you.
New York bomb an act of ‘terror’, claim and motive unclear
NEW YORK — A bomb that tore through an upscale New York neighbourhood injuring 29 people was an act of terror, the state governor said on Su
Police search for gunman who killed five in shooting at Washington state
BURLINGTON, Washington — A manhunt was underway on Saturday in northwest Washington state for a gunman who entered a Burlington shopping mal
Palestinian stabs two Israelis in West Bank, shot by guard
A Palestinian teen stabbed two Israelis in a West Bank settlement in “an apparent terror attack” on Wednesday before an off-duty security guard shot him in the leg, Israeli forces said.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line652
|
__label__wiki
| 0.68229
| 0.68229
|
Trüby Trio
Release Date World: Monday 02nd July 2001
The latest installment in the prestigious DJ-Kicks series comes from the German club jazz crew TRüBY TRIO, and features an exciting journey into the world of club-jazz, brazil, latin and house. For those of you who are not familiar with the excellent releases of the TRüBY TRIO on Compost, here are some background infos.
Together with Christian Prommer and Roland Appel who also work under the name Fauna Flash, Rainer Trueby founded the TRüBY TRIO. Rainer Trueby is an internationally well known DJ, digs very deep into music, and he got much respect from DJs, club-runners and promoters. He is regularly booked all over the world. If he’s not on the road you can find him and maybe one of his various guest DJs on the decks at his monthly club "Root Down" in his hometown Freiburg, which lies in the black forest. At "Root Down", retro and future jazz, funky beats, jazzy house, brazil, boogie tunes and drum & bass is played to an enthuastic and dedicated crowd of passionate followers. Gilles Peterson chose Rainer Trueby as his favourite DJ in his personal Top 3 DJ-Charts in DJ Magazine and Muzik Dec. 98.
Besides DJing, it’s compilations that spread Rainer Trueby’s name and made it a well known current for every music lover. Digging in the vaults of his huge record collection, Trueby compiled the fantastic and still in-demand European fusion compilations Gluecklich (Vol. I-V) with a definite samba-flavour and the "Nitrogen – Trip Hop Sources From The Past" compilation for Compost Records. With Gilles Peterson, he also compiled "TalkinJazz III" for Talkin Loud and the "Root Down 99" compilation for Nuphonic Recordings.
The other two members of the TRüBY TRIO also record under the name Fauna Flash for Compost Records (and founded the Voom:Voom project with Peter Kruder). Their recently released "Fusion" album received great reactions globally and the pair has recently been busy touring the world.
Like for his compilations, Trueby’s record collection also serves the trio many great tracks of sampling-material. Wether jazz, brasil, funk or downbeat, the TRüBY TRIO knows no boundaries. Spot this attitude in tracks like "Dobaueschingen" (produced for"Future Sound Of Jazz Vol.4"), "Allegre" on the "Gluecklich" compilation or "A GoGo", that magical drum n’bass-samba that rocked dancefloors from San Francisco to Tokyo. But besides their own tracks, it’s the remixes the TRüBY TRIO is well known for: Frederic Galliano, Bebel Gilberto, Peace Orchestra, Turntable Rocker, Tab Two, Mr. Gone, Kim Sanders, Bobby Matos, Extended Spirit, Nitin Sawhney or Miyazawa were all remixed by TRüBY TRIO.
For their contribution to DJ-Kicks the TRüBY TRIO deliver one of the best and most exciting mixes in this series, making it straight into the all time top 3 Dj-Kicks . Tracks from the cream of the international club-jazz circuit, mixed with pure passion and a genuine understanding make this an essential mix.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line657
|
__label__cc
| 0.532121
| 0.467879
|
The leading title for fleet & plant managers in public sector & private contracting organisations
Fuel Card Services claims CO2 saving milestone
A green initiative has helped protect around 260 acres of Peruvian rainforest which locks up as much as one million tonnes of CO2 in trees, says Fuel Card Services.
The company partners the charity Cool Earth which aims to stop deforestation in the Peru. It helped Cool Earth launch its CO2 Count service which reports on vehicles’ greenhouse gas emissions for all customers. For every CO2 Count Certificate issued, Fuel Card Services makes a donation to Cool Earth’s community-led projects in Peru.
Commenting on the milestone reached by Fuel Card Services, Matthew Owen, Cool Earth's director, said: ‘We've been lucky enough to partner Fuel Card Services for the past three years. Thanks to them, there are a million fewer tonnes of climate-warming CO2 in the atmosphere.’
‘And as well as keeping 3,700 acres of at-risk rainforest safe from the loggers, Fuel Card Services has transformed lives. Their support has also equipped schools, installed safe drinking water, made childbirth safer and boosted incomes for some of the world’s poorest people.’
For the latest news and updates from LAPV.
Local Authority Plant and Vehicles - Summer 2019
Local Authority Plant and Vehicles - Spring 2019
Local Authority Plant & Vehicles - Winter 2019
Local Authority Plant & Vehicles - September 2018
LAPV (Local Authority Plant and Vehicles) is the only UK information source purely dedicated to local authority vehicles and affiliated plant equipment. Appearing four times a year, it offers well-researched technical articles on the latest equipment/technology as well as in-depth interviews with key industry professionals. More...
All content © Hemming Information Services 2019
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line659
|
__label__cc
| 0.607077
| 0.392923
|
Bureaucratic atrocity and conspiracy to dilute the judicial system of our country
1. This is to convey my displeasure and dissatisfaction about the bureaucratic atrocity and conspiracy to dilute the judicial system of our country so as to obtain unlawful gain by the so called public servants. The evidence gathered by me and available on record of the respective Government offices shows that the so called public servants are deliberately creating so many causes of action for a single dispute and forcing thereby the innocent common man to approach courts of law by filing litigation after litigation and thus are causing unnecessary work burden on the judiciary which results in the inordinate delay in the administration of justice.
2. In respect of criminal justice, even if the victim happens to be an individual, his act is treated as an offence against the Society at large. Therefore, the entire Society or community is concerned with such an act. It is, therefore, necessary that the Society should be protected from wrong-doers and offenders.
3. However, with due respect and salute to a few honest bureaucrats, most of the bureaucrats appear to be corrupt, united and conspired to dilute justice delivery system. Possibility of a person being oppressed, harassed or subjected to unjust trial or illegal proceedings is not ruled out in our country.
4. The victims of bureaucratic atrocity are further victimized and offenders and wrong doers are strengthened more and more by the bureaucratic unlawful unity and conspiracy. The charge-sheets are prepared defectively by the police with an ill- motive of helping the accused being acquitted on ground of benefit of doubt. The criminals benefited from unlawful service of bureaucrats are showing their gratitude by becoming their henchmen.
5. Bureaucrats themselves are doing dirty politics of dividing the people to stimulate fire of ego between two or more groups and suppress those who can raise voice against public servants who abuse their powers by openly supporting the wrongdoers. The bureaucrats stoop down to such an extent that they cause anonymous letters to be circulated to damage the family of the complainant in such a way that he might be discouraged in his genuine fight to secure justice through legal means out of humiliation or fear etc.
6. The bureaucrats have made a situation where the common man are convinced that “Law is above only those who obey it and not those who defy it” . This is the main cause for brain drain in India. Indian experts in various fields who cannot survive this kind of situation are constrained to leave the country which would be a great loss to our nation. The common man cannot easily fight with the bureaucrats who do wrongs for unlawful personal gain, and can easily approach even the Apex court of the country with the taxpayers’ money.
7. It is unfortunate to observe that some of the police stations in our country have become a place of refuge for the offenders and wrong doers. The victims or complainants are being called by the police without any summons or notice under the pretext of enquiry and are allowed to be ill treated by the offenders themselves even in front of the police personnel, notwithstanding the working of CC TV in the police station and thus victims / complainants are made to feel insecure even in police station itself so as to force them not to proceed against the bureaucrats.
8. Superior officers in the bureaucracy, when considering the complaints of the common man against the subordinate officers, are just doing the role of defense lawyers instead of redressing the grievance of the common man against the subordinate bureaucrats and their brokers (!). However, the superior officers get their unlawful work done from their subordinates by blackmailing them on basis of the complaints received against them from the public. The victims are further victimized and, therefore, are stressed whereas the offenders are blessed by their superiors.
9. The bureaucrats have conspired to convert the courts of law a place where private parties can quench their ego by creating causes of action for future litigation between them so as to enable the corrupt bureaucrats to go scot-free.
10. Victims feeling unsafe in view of bureaucratic atrocity and conspiracy, are getting scarred of even approaching courts of law. In absence of protection to the life of victims and witnesses, justice delivery system has also become “not easily accessible” to the common man. The common man is, therefore, suffering from stress related diseases and forced to die a sudden death either natural or unnatural. The most unfortunate thing is that the fourth estate of a democracy, i.e. press is also managed by the corrupt bureaucrats to report false news against those who raise voice against the bureaucratic conspiracy.
11. Provisions of laws including Right to Information Act are being diluted day by day and the persons seeking for information are taken revenge by the bureaucrats. Judgments of hon’ble Apex court of India and that of hon’ble High courts are taken for granted and violated by the bureaucrats without any fear of its consequences at all.
12. I regret to mention herein that Indian politics is going down in a narrow and selfish way. Politicians doing wrongs and offences cannot be spared in absence of the bureaucratic unlawful support. Our politicians, therefore, cannot be expected to support judicial reforms to ensure justice to the common man in our country. Courts are not only supposed to administer justice to those who can come and fight a legal battle, but also to those who cannot even come to court against the bureaucrats either out of fear or because of unaffordable expenses for securing justice, etc. till the Apex court of India for some practical reasons.
13. To-day, the victims are forced either to rely upon the mercy of Almighty God or to secure justice through violent self help as it was the practice in the primitive society, in spite of so many codified laws having been enacted and courts of law having been established to administer justice, etc. I am afraid to say that this may make the victims to form groups, if possible, for their own defence, land and security out of disappointment or dissatisfaction over the judicial system in the Country. Such a circumstance would be extremely bad because there would not be any security of life and property in the country. In the end, it may lead to unwanted civil war in any country. This could be prevented only by an independent judiciary like ours by ensuring timely justice to the victims, notwithstanding the political or social status of the offenders and wrong doers including the influential corrupt bureaucrats of our country.
WILL INDIAN JUDICIARY TAKE NECESSARY STEPS TO SAFEGUARD THE COMMON MAN FROM THE BUREAUCRATIC ATROCITY AND CONSPIRACY TO DILUTE THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM OF OUR COUNTRY? This question remains unanswered for quite a long time now.....
S.JEEVAGAN, Madurai.
Published in Criminal Law
Other Articles by - S.JEEVAGAN, Madurai.
Recent Comments Total: 2
Other Latest Articles
No retaliation is 'cowardice'
UAPA: SC Dismisses PFI Leader's Plea Seeking Discharge In RSS Worker Murder Case
Land acquisition by government: Fair compensation and rehabilitation under new enactment
Section 148 of Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881
All about Industrial Disputes Act
How to make a successful career in law
What a family Settlement essentially is
Importance of Contract Drafting in a lawyer's life
Per Incuriam Cases
Arbitration in People's Republic of China
LCI Articles
You can also submit your article by sending to article@lawyersclubindia.com
Sexual Harassment Compliance: The way forward
Stages of a Civil Suit in a nutshell
Look-Out Circular: Arrest or Bail
Condition Of Lady Advocates Vulnerable: Lawyer Approaches Supreme Court
How To Record The Evidence Of Deaf And Dumb Rape Victim?
Institution of suits in India
7 Reasons India Needs More Female Lawyers
A critique of the Ninth Schedule vis a vis Article 31A-31B of the Constitution of India
Similar Forum Post
Labour & Service Law
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line663
|
__label__wiki
| 0.734494
| 0.734494
|
Board index ‹ PRO: Maine & National ‹ Baseball
Portland Sea Dogs Running Thread
Any pro talk from around the leagues
274 posts • Page 24 of 28 • 1 ... 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28
Re: Portland Sea Dogs Running Thread
by MattyB » Wed Aug 22, 2018 7:35 am
Sea Dogs walk off with a win! https://t.co/PXHIcl5zWO
Jordan Weems earned the win for the @PortlandSeaDogs tonight, but a few years ago he was a catcher for Portland: https://t.co/nZpHOoimi4
by MattyB » Thu Aug 23, 2018 8:20 am
Portland swept in a doubleheader by the Fisher Cats on Wednesday. https://t.co/a5sS7aNcSj
by MattyB » Fri Aug 24, 2018 8:16 am
The Sea Dogs score all six runs with two outs, winning 6-0 at New Hampshire. https://t.co/oMgiEyDG65
by MattyB » Sat Aug 25, 2018 7:23 am
After falling behind 3-0 at First Energy Stadium in Reading on Friday night, the Reading Fightin' Phils fought back to defeat the Portland Sea Dogs 5-4 in 10 innings. The winning run came on a bases loaded walk.
Reading first baseman Austin Listi went 2-for-3 and drove in three runs on the night.
Esteban Quiroz went 1-for-5 in his return to the Portland lineup and drove in two runs. Danny Mars knocked a run home as well.
Kyle Hart went six innings for the Sea Dogs. He allowed just four hits and two runs while striking out four, but got a no-decision.
Portland and Reading play the second game of their three game series tomorrow night at 6:45.
by MattyB » Sun Aug 26, 2018 8:45 am
Sea Dogs get even in Reading with a 4-3 win on Saturday: https://t.co/wo951oZdQP
by MattyB » Mon Aug 27, 2018 7:24 am
Portland takes the series with a 10-2 win at Reading: https://t.co/r64FITsHV2
The Sea Dogs start their home series with a 12 to 6 win over the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. The Sea Dogs were the first to score bringing in two runs in the bottom of the 1st, highlighted by a Christian Vazquez sac fly that brought home Jeremy Rivera. The Dogs would tack on five more runs in the bottom of the 2nd three of those runs would come of the bat of Jantzen Witte who hit a three run shot.
New Hampshire would get on the board in the 5th with three runs. The Sea Dogs would answer driving in three runs of their own in the bottom of the 5th. The Sea Dogs would drive in two more runs in the bottom of the 7th to make it 12-3. New Hampshire would get three more runs in the top of the 9th.
Eduardo Rodriguez worked four scoreless innings and Christian Vazquez had three RBIs as the Sea Dogs defeated the Fisher Cats 12-6: https://t.co/YOS9eJCQQy
Celtics center Aron Baynes visits Hadlock: https://t.co/a4N8NvlRtZ
Jacoby Ellsbury and Charlie Eshbach are the newest inductees into @PortlandSeaDogs Hall of Fame, Sea Dogs lose to Fisher Cats on Tuesday #mesports: https://t.co/Q666hJ16qP
The Portland Sea Dogs out-slug the Fisher Cats 10-9: https://t.co/emzKNCWQ9g
Portland, Maine - The New Hampshire Fisher Cats (75-59) scored twice in the seventh inning and defeated the Sea Dogs (60-75) 4-2 in the final game at Hadlock Field in 2018.
Portland and New Hampshire split the four-game series as well as the 22-game season series.
With the game tied 2-2 in the top of the seventh, Jon Berti led off the inning with a triple off of Harrison Cooney (L, 0-1). Bo Bichette hit an infield single to break the tie, then after a walk to Max Pentecost Harold Ramirez doubled to give the 'Cats a 4-2 advantage.
Josh DeGraaf (W, 7-5) earned the win with three scoreless innings in relief of Hector Perez. DeGraaf struck out six and allowed just two hits. Perez went five innings and allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits while walking one and striking out seven. Corey Copping earned his second save of the year with a scoreless ninth and stranded the tying runs on base to end the game.
Kyle Hart made his 24th and final start of the season for Portland, the southpaw went six innings and allowed two runs on eight hits with one walk and six punch-outs. The quality start was Hart's team-leading 13th of the year.
New Hampshire took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first on an RBI singles by Bichette and Santiago Espinal. Bichette, Berti, and Espinal each had three hits apiece, while Ramirez had two.
Portland tied the game in the fourth on an RBI single by Chris Madera and an RBI groundout by Deiner Lopez.
The Sea Dogs drew 346,341 fans through the gates at Hadlock Field in 2018. Single game tickets for 2019 go on sale Saturday, November 3rd.
The Sea Dogs open up their final series of the season on Friday night against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies (Mets affiliate) at NYSEG Stadium. LHP Dedgar Jimenez (9-7, 4.59) is on the mound for Portland. Binghamton counters with RHP Harold Gonzalez (0-8, 7.85). Radio coverage begins at 6:50 PM on the WPEI U.S. Cellular Sea Dogs Radio Network. MiLB.TV starts at 7:00 PM
Return to Baseball
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line669
|
__label__cc
| 0.689752
| 0.310248
|
DAUGHTERS OF
ROCK ROYALTY - VANITY FAIR SUPPLEMENT
Emma had the pleasure of working alongside Emma's dear friend George Northwood on a 14 page spread for the August Issue of Vanity Fair's Jewellery Supplement.
Emma worked alongside other stylists on these three models (right) in particular for the shoot - Eliza Doolittle, Joni Karmen and Amber Le Bon.
You can find all these images and more on the Vanity Fair website pages 78-91.
After entering 4 categories at the Great Lengths Awards - Classic Creation, Men Enhancements, Gold Salon and Best Newcomer - Emma Choremi walked away with the Best Newcomer Award.
BEST NEWCOMER AWARD
We were delighted to receive Hair Salon of the year at the Bristol Lifestyle Awards held this March at the beautiful Bristol Harbour Hotel.
We would like to thank all our clients for their support over the years and for voting McQueens to win this award.
HAIR SALON OF THE YEAR 2017
Emma and Bryony were lucky enough to make it into the final of the GL Awards with their entries for Gold Salon/Freelance Award, Gold Trophy Award and Classic Volume Award. Emma and the team attended the awards night in Leeds in September 2016 and were delighted to walk away with the Gold Salon/Freelance Award.
GOLD SALON/FREELANCE AWARD WINNERS 2016/17
EMMA IS INCREDIBLY WARM AND FRIENDLY, AND AN ABSOLUTE EXPERT AT WHAT SHE DOES
I am proud that after 28 years I am still here and doing better than ever... We are winning awards, we have never been so busy and I truly have a brilliant team of stylists with me who I am really proud off. - Emma Choremi Q&A in Bristol Life Issue 230, page 90.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line670
|
__label__wiki
| 0.85345
| 0.85345
|
Suzzanne Unrein's Oil On Paper Flowers At Scope Miami 2012
Suzanne Unrein says her paintings of flowers were inspired by how she saw flowers always moving, growing and dying and wanted to capture this in an image. Flowers have not been the object of her work before these remarkable pieces.
She begins with an image and then adapts it in her head. The end result is not a representation of a specific flower of that image but an image all it's own. She captures life and decay and motion in all these paintings. She doesn't see flowers as still life but rather being all about the motion.
Unrein has a degree in design from the University of Florida. She says, at the time this was the same as a Bachelor of Arts except you had to take an additional 16 credit hours of art history.
Her next work will be paintings of animals. She heads to Africa this summer to work with an animal behaviorist on these pieces. Watch the video below to find out more about her process. Find out even more at her website, suzanneunrein.com.
Unrein is originally from Sacremento but attended the University of Florida (proving she had a first rate education). She currently resides in New York City.
Cuban Artist, Dayron González, Talks A Bit On His Painting Series, "Pionero"
Cuba's Pioneers is a program of education and,also, indoctrination of the nations youth. The best American analogy would be the Scouts. Certainly the Scouts are not run by the government and are only loosely connected to public education but there is an element of societal indoctrination there (which implies nothing sinister necessarily).
Cuban-born artist Dayron González explores the process of Cuba's Pioneers in his series of paintings, Pionero.
In the video below he speaks a little about the Pioneers, his art, the uniforms and more. He doesn't delve into ideology in the video or when talking to him subsequently. The images are often from above, either looking straight down on the subjects or down at an angle.
Some of the works focus on the group, all in the same uniforms, gathered sometimes in geometrical formations, unified, undifferentiated. Not all of the series are distant, some show individuals and the style of various "Pioneer"paintings also varies. You can see more at the Cernuda Arte website.
While speaking to González he asked if I knew Cuban painters. I listed those I am fond of and he replied, "Ah, the masters." It was a little bit embarrassing; why didn't I know more about the numerous young artists coming out of Cuba?
Wilfredo Lam and Rene Portaocarrero, as great as they are, are not the story of Cuban art. Young artists like Gonzalez, now working away from his homeland, carry something unique to Cuba with them. Lam also worked away from Havana in his career.
González was born in Quivicán, Provincia Habana, Cuba. He studied painting at the San Alejandro National Art Academy. He has received numerous awards for his work in Cuba.
Formación Cerrada II
Transgresión
Bex Marshall Talks Blues, Recording And Gives Terrible Card Shuffling Advice
photo by Sue Fielding
Everyone who gets into the blues has someone who got them into the blues. It never just seems to happen, there is always a blues loving sibling, father, mother or guy you met at the gas station who sat there all day with his Kay guitar.
For English musician, and blues enthusiast, Bex Marshall, it was her uncles.
“I had uncles on both sides of my family who inspired me ... One was a live rock n roll singer in the 60 s who had a huge voice and stage presence the other a very knowledgeable blues music fan who had an incredible collection of records which I used to sneakily play while he was at snooker ! Also my guitar tutor who taught me to pick ragtime blues inspired me to that roots playing.” says Marshall.
Marshall's latest record, House of Mercy, is out now.
Marshall learned as much about the basics of guitar playing as she could and says she spent her teen years listening to music ranging from ACDC to John Lee Hooker. Then she started writing on her own and, more important, traveling.
“That kind of thing grounds you and the blues music that has always been the root of what I have been into the acoustic pickin' style always challenged me so I started developing a style of playing which incorporated it all,” she says. “Then I bought my OZARK resonator ... Of which I have several now including a one off to my very own spec s.”
Marshall says she plays the blues when she is up, when she is down—and it might even be the same song.
“Blues must come from whatever provokes you emotionally. The serious tunes can make you smile too. It's the music you should feel most at ease with like an old buddy,” says Marshall. “It is the building block of all music and most respected, it’s for me it’s the most exciting genre. When you hear the first few bars of a good blues tune it gets my haunches up!”
But how does a new artist fit themselves into the rarefied world of blues. How do you fit into the time-honored and sometimes even calcified genre?
“By sticking to the basic rule of good blues--the songs, the songs have to be good. Lyrics are so important to me; I love play on words, and blues can be very repetitive, so if you gonna sing one line many times it better be a good line!” she says. “I love writing stories and the blues genre is all about stories, usually troubles that begin between a man and a woman ha, but I want to explore the music and try to push boundaries while still keeping it real, there are so many incredible influences in blues music, roots to hardcore electric blues, the main thing is arching your back and putting your heart and soul into it!”
Then there is the whole blues MAN aspect.
“It’s always tough when you try to break into a male dominated world, so you have to be made of strong stuff. I grew up with lots of men around me in my family, so I was toughened up early. I prefer the company of men to be honest, so I am comfortable in the blues environment. I have always had a need to strive to be as good if not better than them at what I do,” she says.
“I just want to add a slightly different dimension to the whole thing, to be original and the mission is to get under the skin of the hardcore purists and get them secretly listening. I want to take the pure and make it interesting in my own way, with as much real blues quality as I can.”
How does Marshall view playing in the USA—artists coming here to play smaller venues are often not treated as well as in Europe (by venues).
“Although I will say the USA is the home of the blues and the people know it-- The audiences rock! There is a respect for musicians here which is unrivalled anywhere else in the world I think,” says Marshall. “It is a joy to play here. Whether it’s a big club or a mom n pop bar, I feel much more relaxed playing here(the U.K.),I think, like coming home.”
Her new record House of Mercy has an interesting genesis.
“Barry my husband who booked a club called The Borderline in Soho for 6 years, wanted to buy it and after researching the location, found that St Barnabas Church ( next to The Borderline) had in the 18 & 1900's been a prostitutes refuge called the House of Mercy, he wanted to use that name for the restaurant venue above the Borderline which he wanted to transform into a weekly residency show bar for top class artists he eventually lost out in a bidding war to corporations and eventually left the club, but kept the name for our company that now that includes a weekly syndicated radio show which is produced from the Snake Pit Studios which we built in the back garden. “ she says. “It also incorporates our record company through which the record has been released. The radio show has two 'as live' radio sessions a week, taken from the wide vista of Americana, so we are always full of musicians and their music, jams happen all the time and that's where I got the House of Mercy song from and now the title of the record, it's a song that encapsulates all of my styles that eventually appear on the record. We also subsequently put up the odd band and traveling minstrels so in effect we are a refuge for musical prostitutes.”
This record was also self-produced with assistance from the engineer from previous outings.
“I wanted to have a go a producing this record myself this time around, I had learnt a lot from my first two records Bootlace and Kitchen Table and took it on this time, I have an incredible engineer who I work with called Nick Hunt and he is so fantastic to work with, he made it very easy for me, considering I’m " THE ARTIST " I was very aware about not being too precious and over indulgent about things and having a definitive goal for the record to sound like,” says Marshall. “Although I did have a certain amount of freedom in the studio, which was a luxury, I recorded the bands rhythm tracks in the same small studio I used for Kitchen Table which is about a mile from my house in Muswell Hill called Boogieback Studios, sticky carpets and amps in the bathroom etc, and a great vibe, a lot of the overdubs with the Reno Brothers, Brigette De Meyer, Eileen Healy and BJ Cole were done there.”
The mastering was done at Snakepit Studio and at The House of Mercy. She would mix with Hunt and then spend time listening to the recordings in her car (always a great way to really hear music how people listen to it—at least in the old days).
Marshall also worked as a dealer. No, not meth or smack, but in the gambling, card-tossing way. One thing that has always eluded me is shuffling cards. So I asked if she could teach me.
“Yes there is a cool shuffle I could teach you; split the pack and hold the two packs facing outwards in both hands and squeeze gently at the top and bottom of the cards so they bend slightly in the middle towards your palms then squeeze hard so that the fly out of your hand and fly across the room ..... It’s called a 52 card pick up shuffle...heeee. My advice? Don't play cards.
Sound advice.
Marshall recently finished a tour of the USA. Be sure to keep an eye open for Marshall in tour during 2013 in the USA and Europe. This most recent tour was solo but the next will be with a band. She also hopes to hit Australia down the road.
Go for the blues, not the card tips!
Bex Marshall's Ozark Resonators
Preema Nazia Andaleeb At Art Asia (In Scope Pavilion) During Art Basel Week 2012
Preema Nazia Andaleeb is a visual artist working in a number of different media. The piece at Art Asia during Art Basel week 2012 was a video piece, Marry my Egg, revolving around that particularly vexing woman's issue, fertility.
And while women's issues in the West may differ from those in Bangladesh in many respects the notion of the woman of a certain age NEEDING to reproduce seems to afflict women everywhere.
The videos below show Preema at Art Asia and the reactions of passersby. To see her actual video go to the artist's website.
Her work has been shown around the world. Keep an eye open for her at
There was an interview with Preema but, unfortunately, before it was transcribed that interview, and numerous others, was lost in a hard drive disaster.
This section is interviews with artists, musicians, writers and anyone else we think is interesting.
Art Basel 2012 Previews
Art Miami
Art Week Miami 2013
Art Week Miami 2014 Previews
Miami Art Week 2017
PFAF 2019
Superfine!
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line678
|
__label__cc
| 0.697653
| 0.302347
|
Modelling contrast discrimination data suggest both the pedestal effect and stochastic resonance to be caused by the same mechanism
Goris, R., Wagemans, J., Wichmann, F.
Journal of Vision, 8(15):1-21, November 2008 (article)
Computational models of spatial vision typically make use of a (rectified) linear filter, a nonlinearity and dominant late noise to account for human contrast discrimination data. Linear–nonlinear cascade models predict an improvement in observers' contrast detection performance when low, subthreshold levels of external noise are added (i.e., stochastic resonance). Here, we address the issue whether a single contrast gain-control model of early spatial vision can account for both the pedestal effect, i.e., the improved detectability of a grating in the presence of a low-contrast masking grating, and stochastic resonance. We measured contrast discrimination performance without noise and in both weak and moderate levels of noise. Making use of a full quantitative description of our data with few parameters combined with comprehensive model selection assessments, we show the pedestal effect to be more reduced in the presence of weak noise than in moderate noise. This reduction rules out independent, additive sources of performance improvement and, together with a simulation study, supports the parsimonious explanation that a single mechanism underlies the pedestal effect and stochastic resonance in contrast perception.
ei Goris, R., Wagemans, J., Wichmann, F. Modelling contrast discrimination data suggest both the pedestal effect and stochastic resonance to be caused by the same mechanism Journal of Vision, 8(15):1-21, November 2008 (article)
gBoost: A Mathematical Programming Approach to Graph Classification and Regression
Saigo, H., Nowozin, S., Kadowaki, T., Kudo, T., Tsuda, K.
Machine Learning, 75(1):69-89, November 2008 (article)
Graph mining methods enumerate frequently appearing subgraph patterns, which can be used as features for subsequent classification or regression. However, frequent patterns are not necessarily informative for the given learning problem. We propose a mathematical programming boosting method (gBoost) that progressively collects informative patterns. Compared to AdaBoost, gBoost can build the prediction rule with fewer iterations. To apply the boosting method to graph data, a branch-and-bound pattern search algorithm is developed based on the DFS code tree. The constructed search space is reused in later iterations to minimize the computation time. Our method can learn more efficiently than the simpler method based on frequent substructure mining, because the output labels are used as an extra information source for pruning the search space. Furthermore, by engineering the mathematical program, a wide range of machine learning problems can be solved without modifying the pattern search algorithm.
ei Saigo, H., Nowozin, S., Kadowaki, T., Kudo, T., Tsuda, K. gBoost: A Mathematical Programming Approach to Graph Classification and Regression Machine Learning, 75(1):69-89, November 2008 (article)
Machine Learning for Motor Skills in Robotics
Peters, J.
K{\"u}nstliche Intelligenz, 2008(4):41-43, November 2008 (article)
Autonomous robots that can adapt to novel situations has been a long standing vision of robotics, artificial intelligence, and the cognitive sciences. Early approaches to this goal during the heydays of artificial intelligence research in the late 1980s, however, made it clear that an approach purely based on reasoning or human insights would not be able to model all the perceptuomotor tasks of future robots. Instead, new hope was put in the growing wake of machine learning that promised fully adaptive control algorithms which learn both by observation and trial-and-error. However, to date, learning techniques have yet to fulfill this promise as only few methods manage to scale into the high-dimensional domains of manipulator and humanoid robotics and usually scaling was only achieved in precisely pre-structured domains. We have investigated the ingredients for a general approach to motor skill learning in order to get one step closer towards human-like performance. For doing so, we study two major components for such an approach, i.e., firstly, a theoretically well-founded general approach to representing the required control structures for task representation and execution and, secondly, appropriate learning algorithms which can be applied in this setting.
ei Peters, J. Machine Learning for Motor Skills in Robotics K{\"u}nstliche Intelligenz, 2008(4):41-43, November 2008 (article)
Kernels, Regularization and Differential Equations
Steinke, F., Schölkopf, B.
Pattern Recognition, 41(11):3271-3286, November 2008 (article)
Many common machine learning methods such as Support Vector Machines or Gaussian process inference make use of positive definite kernels, reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces, Gaussian processes, and regularization operators. In this work these objects are presented in a general, unifying framework, and interrelations are highlighted. With this in mind we then show how linear stochastic differential equation models can be incorporated naturally into the kernel framework. And vice versa, many kernel machines can be interpreted in terms of differential equations. We focus especially on ordinary differential equations, also known as dynamical systems, and it is shown that standard kernel inference algorithms are equivalent to Kalman filter methods based on such models. In order not to cloud qualitative insights with heavy mathematical machinery, we restrict ourselves to finite domains, implying that differential equations are treated via their corresponding finite difference equations.
ei Steinke, F., Schölkopf, B. Kernels, Regularization and Differential Equations Pattern Recognition, 41(11):3271-3286, November 2008 (article)
Mixture Models for Protein Structure Ensembles
Hirsch, M., Habeck, M.
Bioinformatics, 24(19):2184-2192, October 2008 (article)
ei Hirsch, M., Habeck, M. Mixture Models for Protein Structure Ensembles Bioinformatics, 24(19):2184-2192, October 2008 (article)
Structure of the human voltage-dependent anion channel
Bayrhuber, M., Meins, T., Habeck, M., Becker, S., Giller, K., Villinger, S., Vonrhein, C., Griesinger, C., Zweckstetter, M., Zeth, K.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 105(40):15370-15375, October 2008 (article)
The voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC), also known as mitochondrial porin, is the most abundant protein in the mitochondrial outer membrane (MOM). VDAC is the channel known to guide the metabolic flux across the MOM and plays a key role in mitochondrially induced apoptosis. Here, we present the 3D structure of human VDAC1, which was solved conjointly by NMR spectroscopy and x-ray crystallography. Human VDAC1 (hVDAC1) adopts a β-barrel architecture composed of 19 β-strands with an α-helix located horizontally midway within the pore. Bioinformatic analysis indicates that this channel architecture is common to all VDAC proteins and is adopted by the general import pore TOM40 of mammals, which is also located in the MOM.
ei Bayrhuber, M., Meins, T., Habeck, M., Becker, S., Giller, K., Villinger, S., Vonrhein, C., Griesinger, C., Zweckstetter, M., Zeth, K. Structure of the human voltage-dependent anion channel Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 105(40):15370-15375, October 2008 (article)
MRI-Based Attenuation Correction for PET/MRI: A Novel Approach Combining Pattern Recognition and Atlas Registration
Hofmann, M., Steinke, F., Scheel, V., Charpiat, G., Farquhar, J., Aschoff, P., Brady, M., Schölkopf, B., Pichler, B.
Journal of Nuclear Medicine, 49(11):1875-1883, October 2008 (article)
For quantitative PET information, correction of tissue photon attenuation is mandatory. Generally in conventional PET, the attenuation map is obtained from a transmission scan, which uses a rotating radionuclide source, or from the CT scan in a combined PET/CT scanner. In the case of PET/MRI scanners currently under development, insufficient space for the rotating source exists; the attenuation map can be calculated from the MR image instead. This task is challenging because MR intensities correlate with proton densities and tissue-relaxation properties, rather than with attenuation-related mass density. METHODS: We used a combination of local pattern recognition and atlas registration, which captures global variation of anatomy, to predict pseudo-CT images from a given MR image. These pseudo-CT images were then used for attenuation correction, as the process would be performed in a PET/CT scanner. RESULTS: For human brain scans, we show on a database of 17 MR/CT image pairs that our method reliably enables e stimation of a pseudo-CT image from the MR image alone. On additional datasets of MRI/PET/CT triplets of human brain scans, we compare MRI-based attenuation correction with CT-based correction. Our approach enables PET quantification with a mean error of 3.2% for predefined regions of interest, which we found to be clinically not significant. However, our method is not specific to brain imaging, and we show promising initial results on 1 whole-body animal dataset. CONCLUSION: This method allows reliable MRI-based attenuation correction for human brain scans. Further work is necessary to validate the method for whole-body imaging.
ei Hofmann, M., Steinke, F., Scheel, V., Charpiat, G., Farquhar, J., Aschoff, P., Brady, M., Schölkopf, B., Pichler, B. MRI-Based Attenuation Correction for PET/MRI: A Novel Approach Combining Pattern Recognition and Atlas Registration Journal of Nuclear Medicine, 49(11):1875-1883, October 2008 (article)
Support Vector Machines and Kernels for Computational Biology
Ben-Hur, A., Ong, C., Sonnenburg, S., Schölkopf, B., Rätsch, G.
PLoS Computational Biology, 4(10: e1000173):1-10, October 2008 (article)
ei Ben-Hur, A., Ong, C., Sonnenburg, S., Schölkopf, B., Rätsch, G. Support Vector Machines and Kernels for Computational Biology PLoS Computational Biology, 4(10: e1000173):1-10, October 2008 (article)
Approximations for Binary Gaussian Process Classification
Nickisch, H., Rasmussen, C.
Journal of Machine Learning Research, 9, pages: 2035-2078, October 2008 (article)
We provide a comprehensive overview of many recent algorithms for approximate inference in Gaussian process models for probabilistic binary classification. The relationships between several approaches are elucidated theoretically, and the properties of the different algorithms are corroborated by experimental results. We examine both 1) the quality of the predictive distributions and 2) the suitability of the different marginal likelihood approximations for model selection (selecting hyperparameters) and compare to a gold standard based on MCMC. Interestingly, some methods produce good predictive distributions although their marginal likelihood approximations are poor. Strong conclusions are drawn about the methods: The Expectation Propagation algorithm is almost always the method of choice unless the computational budget is very tight. We also extend existing methods in various ways, and provide unifying code implementing all approaches.
ei Nickisch, H., Rasmussen, C. Approximations for Binary Gaussian Process Classification Journal of Machine Learning Research, 9, pages: 2035-2078, October 2008 (article)
Accurate NMR Structures Through Minimization of an Extended Hybrid Energy
Nilges, M., Bernard, A., Bardiaux, B., Malliavin, T., Habeck, M., Rieping, W.
Structure, 16(9):1305-1312, September 2008 (article)
The use of generous distance bounds has been the hallmark of NMR structure determination. However, bounds necessitate the estimation of data quality before the calculation, reduce the information content, introduce human bias, and allow for major errors in the structures. Here, we propose a new rapid structure calculation scheme based on Bayesian analysis. The minimization of an extended energy function, including a new type of distance restraint and a term depending on the data quality, results in an estimation of the data quality in addition to coordinates. This allows for the determination of the optimal weight on the experimental information. The resulting structures are of better quality and closer to the Xray crystal structure of the same molecule. With the new calculation approach, the analysis of discrepancies from the target distances becomes meaningful. The strategy may be useful in other applicationsfor example, in homology modeling.
ei Nilges, M., Bernard, A., Bardiaux, B., Malliavin, T., Habeck, M., Rieping, W. Accurate NMR Structures Through Minimization of an Extended Hybrid Energy Structure, 16(9):1305-1312, September 2008 (article)
Similarity, Kernels, and the Triangle Inequality
Journal of Mathematical Psychology, 52(5):297-303, September 2008 (article)
Similarity is used as an explanatory construct throughout psychology and multidimensional scaling (MDS) is the most popular way to assess similarity. In MDS, similarity is intimately connected to the idea of a geometric representation of stimuli in a perceptual space. Whilst connecting similarity and closeness of stimuli in a geometric representation may be intuitively plausible, Tversky and Gati [Tversky, A., Gati, I. (1982). Similarity, separability, and the triangle inequality. Psychological Review, 89(2), 123154] have reported data which are inconsistent with the usual geometric representations that are based on segmental additivity. We show that similarity measures based on Shepards universal law of generalization [Shepard, R. N. (1987). Toward a universal law of generalization for psychologica science. Science, 237(4820), 13171323] lead to an inner product representation in a reproducing kernel Hilbert space. In such a space stimuli are represented by their similarity to all other stimuli. This representation, based on Shepards law, has a natural metric that does not have additive segments whilst still retaining the intuitive notion of connecting similarity and distance between stimuli. Furthermore, this representation has the psychologically appealing property that the distance between stimuli is bounded.
ei Jäkel, F., Schölkopf, B., Wichmann, F. Similarity, Kernels, and the Triangle Inequality Journal of Mathematical Psychology, 52(5):297-303, September 2008 (article)
Comparison of Pattern Recognition Methods in Classifying High-resolution BOLD Signals Obtained at High Magnetic Field in Monkeys
Ku, S., Gretton, A., Macke, J., Logothetis, N.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging, 26(7):1007-1014, September 2008 (article)
Pattern recognition methods have shown that functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data can reveal significant information about brain activity. For example, in the debate of how object categories are represented in the brain, multivariate analysis has been used to provide evidence of a distributed encoding scheme [Science 293:5539 (2001) 24252430]. Many follow-up studies have employed different methods to analyze human fMRI data with varying degrees of success [Nature reviews 7:7 (2006) 523534]. In this study, we compare four popular pattern recognition methods: correlation analysis, support-vector machines (SVM), linear discriminant analysis (LDA) and Gaussian naïve Bayes (GNB), using data collected at high field (7 Tesla) with higher resolution than usual fMRI studies. We investigate prediction performance on single trials and for averages across varying numbers of stimulus presentations. The performance of the various algorithms depends on the nature of the brain activity being categorized: for several tasks, many of the methods work well, whereas for others, no method performs above chance level. An important factor in overall classification performance is careful preprocessing of the data, including dimensionality reduction, voxel selection and outlier elimination.
ei Ku, S., Gretton, A., Macke, J., Logothetis, N. Comparison of Pattern Recognition Methods in Classifying High-resolution BOLD Signals Obtained at High Magnetic Field in Monkeys Magnetic Resonance Imaging, 26(7):1007-1014, September 2008 (article)
A Single-shot Measurement of the Energy of Product States in a Translation Invariant Spin Chain Can Replace Any Quantum Computation
Janzing, D., Wocjan, P., Zhang, S.
New Journal of Physics, 10(093004):1-18, September 2008 (article)
In measurement-based quantum computation, quantum algorithms are implemented via sequences of measurements. We describe a translationally invariant finite-range interaction on a one-dimensional qudit chain and prove that a single-shot measurement of the energy of an appropriate computational basis state with respect to this Hamiltonian provides the output of any quantum circuit. The required measurement accuracy scales inverse polynomially with the size of the simulated quantum circuit. This shows that the implementation of energy measurements on generic qudit chains is as hard as the realization of quantum computation. Here, a ‘measurement‘ is any procedure that samples from the spectral measurement induced by the observable and the state under consideration. As opposed to measurement-based quantum computation, the post-measurement state is irrelevant.
ei Janzing, D., Wocjan, P., Zhang, S. A Single-shot Measurement of the Energy of Product States in a Translation Invariant Spin Chain Can Replace Any Quantum Computation New Journal of Physics, 10(093004):1-18, September 2008 (article)
Voluntary Brain Regulation and Communication with ECoG-Signals
Hinterberger, T., Widmann, G., Lal, T., Hill, J., Tangermann, M., Rosenstiel, W., Schölkopf, B., Elger, C., Birbaumer, N.
Epilepsy and Behavior, 13(2):300-306, August 2008 (article)
Braincomputer interfaces (BCIs) can be used for communication in writing without muscular activity or for learning to control seizures by voluntary regulation of brain signals such as the electroencephalogram (EEG). Three of five patients with epilepsy were able to spell their names with electrocorticogram (ECoG) signals derived from motor-related areas within only one or two training sessions. Imagery of finger or tongue movements was classified with support-vector classification of autoregressive coefficients derived from the ECoG signals. After training of the classifier, binary classification responses were used to select letters from a computer-generated menu. Offline analysis showed increased theta activity in the unsuccessful patients, whereas the successful patients exhibited dominant sensorimotor rhythms that they could control. The high spatial resolution and increased signal-to-noise ratio in ECoG signals, combined with short training periods, may offer an alternative for communication in complete paralysis, locked-in syndrome, and motor restoration.
ei Hinterberger, T., Widmann, G., Lal, T., Hill, J., Tangermann, M., Rosenstiel, W., Schölkopf, B., Elger, C., Birbaumer, N. Voluntary Brain Regulation and Communication with ECoG-Signals Epilepsy and Behavior, 13(2):300-306, August 2008 (article)
Multi-class Common Spatial Pattern and Information Theoretic Feature Extraction
Grosse-Wentrup, M., Buss, M.
IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 55(8):1991-2000, August 2008 (article)
We address two shortcomings of the common spatial patterns (CSP) algorithm for spatial filtering in the context of brain--computer interfaces (BCIs) based on electroencephalography/magnetoencephalography (EEG/MEG): First, the question of optimality of CSP in terms of the minimal achievable classification error remains unsolved. Second, CSP has been initially proposed for two-class paradigms. Extensions to multiclass paradigms have been suggested, but are based on heuristics. We address these shortcomings in the framework of information theoretic feature extraction (ITFE). We show that for two-class paradigms, CSP maximizes an approximation of mutual information of extracted EEG/MEG components and class labels. This establishes a link between CSP and the minimal classification error. For multiclass paradigms, we point out that CSP by joint approximate diagonalization (JAD) is equivalent to independent component analysis (ICA), and provide a method to choose those independent components (ICs) that approximately maximize mutual information of ICs and class labels. This eliminates the need for heuristics in multiclass CSP, and allows incorporating prior class probabilities. The proposed method is applied to the dataset IIIa of the third BCI competition, and is shown to increase the mean classification accuracy by 23.4% in comparison to multiclass CSP.
ei Grosse-Wentrup, M., Buss, M. Multi-class Common Spatial Pattern and Information Theoretic Feature Extraction IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 55(8):1991-2000, August 2008 (article)
At-TAX: A Whole Genome Tiling Array Resource for Developmental Expression Analysis and Transcript Identification in Arabidopsis thaliana
Laubinger, S., Zeller, G., Henz, S., Sachsenberg, T., Widmer, C., Naouar, N., Vuylsteke, M., Schölkopf, B., Rätsch, G., Weigel, D.
Genome Biology, 9(7: R112):1-16, July 2008 (article)
Gene expression maps for model organisms, including Arabidopsis thaliana, have typically been created using gene-centric expression arrays. Here, we describe a comprehensive expression atlas, Arabidopsis thaliana Tiling Array Express (At-TAX), which is based on whole-genome tiling arrays. We demonstrate that tiling arrays are accurate tools for gene expression analysis and identified more than 1,000 unannotated transcribed regions. Visualizations of gene expression estimates, transcribed regions, and tiling probe measurements are accessible online at the At-TAX homepage.
ei Laubinger, S., Zeller, G., Henz, S., Sachsenberg, T., Widmer, C., Naouar, N., Vuylsteke, M., Schölkopf, B., Rätsch, G., Weigel, D. At-TAX: A Whole Genome Tiling Array Resource for Developmental Expression Analysis and Transcript Identification in Arabidopsis thaliana Genome Biology, 9(7: R112):1-16, July 2008 (article)
Graphical Analysis of NMR Structural Quality and Interactive Contact Map of NOE Assignments in ARIA
Bardiaux, B., Bernard, A., Rieping, W., Habeck, M., Malliavin, T., Nilges, M.
BMC Structural Biology, 8(30):1-5, June 2008 (article)
BACKGROUND: The Ambiguous Restraints for Iterative Assignment (ARIA) approach is widely used for NMR structure determination. It is based on simultaneously calculating structures and assigning NOE through an iterative protocol. The final solution consists of a set of conformers and a list of most probable assignments for the input NOE peak list. RESULTS: ARIA was extended with a series of graphical tools to facilitate a detailed analysis of the intermediate and final results of the ARIA protocol. These additional features provide (i) an interactive contact map, serving as a tool for the analysis of assignments, and (ii) graphical representations of structure quality scores and restraint statistics. The interactive contact map between residues can be clicked to obtain information about the restraints and their contributions. Profiles of quality scores are plotted along the protein sequence, and contact maps provide information of the agreement with the data on a residue pair level. CONCLUSIONS: The g raphical tools and outputs described here significantly extend the validation and analysis possibilities of NOE assignments given by ARIA as well as the analysis of the quality of the final structure ensemble. These tools are included in the latest version of ARIA, which is available at http://aria.pasteur.fr. The Web site also contains an installation guide, a user manual and example calculations.
ei Bardiaux, B., Bernard, A., Rieping, W., Habeck, M., Malliavin, T., Nilges, M. Graphical Analysis of NMR Structural Quality and Interactive Contact Map of NOE Assignments in ARIA BMC Structural Biology, 8(30):1-5, June 2008 (article)
Kernel Methods in Machine Learning
Hofmann, T., Schölkopf, B., Smola, A.
Annals of Statistics, 36(3):1171-1220, June 2008 (article)
We review machine learning methods employing positive definite kernels. These methods formulate learning and estimation problems in a reproducing kernel Hilbert space (RKHS) of functions defined on the data domain, expanded in terms of a kernel. Working in linear spaces of function has the benefit of facilitating the construction and analysis of learning algorithms while at the same time allowing large classes of functions. The latter include nonlinear functions as well as functions defined on nonvectorial data.
ei Hofmann, T., Schölkopf, B., Smola, A. Kernel Methods in Machine Learning Annals of Statistics, 36(3):1171-1220, June 2008 (article)
Cross-validation Optimization for Large Scale Structured Classification Kernel Methods
Seeger, M.
Journal of Machine Learning Research, 9, pages: 1147-1178, June 2008 (article)
We propose a highly efficient framework for penalized likelihood kernel methods applied to multi-class models with a large, structured set of classes. As opposed to many previous approaches which try to decompose the fitting problem into many smaller ones, we focus on a Newton optimization of the complete model, making use of model structure and linear conjugate gradients in order to approximate Newton search directions. Crucially, our learning method is based entirely on matrix-vector multiplication primitives with the kernel matrices and their derivatives, allowing straightforward specialization to new kernels, and focusing code optimization efforts to these primitives only. Kernel parameters are learned automatically, by maximizing the cross-validation log likelihood in a gradient-based way, and predictive probabilities are estimated. We demonstrate our approach on large scale text classification tasks with hierarchical structure on thousands of classes, achieving state-of-the-art results in an order of magnitude less time than previous work.
ei Seeger, M. Cross-validation Optimization for Large Scale Structured Classification Kernel Methods Journal of Machine Learning Research, 9, pages: 1147-1178, June 2008 (article)
Reinforcement Learning of Motor Skills with Policy Gradients
Peters, J., Schaal, S.
Neural Networks, 21(4):682-697, May 2008 (article)
ei Peters, J., Schaal, S. Reinforcement Learning of Motor Skills with Policy Gradients Neural Networks, 21(4):682-697, May 2008 (article)
Information Consistency of Nonparametric Gaussian Process Methods
Seeger, MW., Kakade, SM., Foster, DP.
IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, 54(5):2376-2382, May 2008 (article)
AbstractBayesian nonparametric models are widely and successfully used for statistical prediction. While posterior consistency properties are well studied in quite general settings, results have been proved using abstract concepts such as metric entropy, and they come with subtle conditions which are hard to validate and not intuitive when applied to concrete models. Furthermore, convergence rates are difficult to obtain. By focussing on the concept of information consistency for Bayesian Gaussian process (GP)models, consistency results and convergence rates are obtained via a regret bound on cumulative log loss. These results depend strongly on the covariance function of the prior process, thereby giving a novel interpretation to penalization with reproducing kernel Hilbert space norms and to commonly used covariance function classes and their parameters. The proof of the main result employs elementary convexity arguments only. A theorem of Widom is used in order to obtain precise convergence rates for several covariance functions widely used in practice.
ei Seeger, MW., Kakade, SM., Foster, DP. Information Consistency of Nonparametric Gaussian Process Methods IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, 54(5):2376-2382, May 2008 (article)
Relating the Thermodynamic Arrow of Time to the Causal Arrow
Allahverdyan, A., Janzing, D.
Journal of Statistical Mechanics, 2008(P04001):1-21, April 2008 (article)
Consider a Hamiltonian system that consists of a slow subsystem S and a fast subsystem F. The autonomous dynamics of S is driven by an effective Hamiltonian, but its thermodynamics is unexpected. We show that a well-defined thermodynamic arrow of time (second law) emerges for S whenever there is a well-defined causal arrow from S to F and the back-action is negligible. This is because the back-action of F on S is described by a non-globally Hamiltonian BornOppenheimer term that violates the Liouville theorem, and makes the second law inapplicable to S. If S and F are mixing, under the causal arrow condition they are described by microcanonical distributions P(S) and P(S|F). Their structure supports a causal inference principle proposed recently in machine learning.
ei Allahverdyan, A., Janzing, D. Relating the Thermodynamic Arrow of Time to the Causal Arrow Journal of Statistical Mechanics, 2008(P04001):1-21, April 2008 (article)
Generalization and Similarity in Exemplar Models of Categorization: Insights from Machine Learning
Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 15(2):256-271, April 2008 (article)
Exemplar theories of categorization depend on similarity for explaining subjects ability to generalize to new stimuli. A major criticism of exemplar theories concerns their lack of abstraction mechanisms and thus, seemingly, generalization ability. Here, we use insights from machine learning to demonstrate that exemplar models can actually generalize very well. Kernel methods in machine learning are akin to exemplar models and very successful in real-world applications. Their generalization performance depends crucially on the chosen similaritymeasure. While similarity plays an important role in describing generalization behavior it is not the only factor that controls generalization performance. In machine learning, kernel methods are often combined with regularization techniques to ensure good generalization. These same techniques are easily incorporated in exemplar models. We show that the Generalized Context Model (Nosofsky, 1986) and ALCOVE (Kruschke, 1992) are closely related to a statistical model called kernel logistic regression. We argue that generalization is central to the enterprise of understanding categorization behavior and suggest how insights from machine learning can offer some guidance. Keywords: kernel, similarity, regularization, generalization, categorization.
ei Jäkel, F., Schölkopf, B., Wichmann, F. Generalization and Similarity in Exemplar Models of Categorization: Insights from Machine Learning Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 15(2):256-271, April 2008 (article)
Manifold-valued Thin-plate Splines with Applications in Computer Graphics
Steinke, F., Hein, M., Peters, J., Schölkopf, B.
Computer Graphics Forum, 27(2):437-448, April 2008 (article)
We present a generalization of thin-plate splines for interpolation and approximation of manifold-valued data, and demonstrate its usefulness in computer graphics with several applications from different fields. The cornerstone of our theoretical framework is an energy functional for mappings between two Riemannian manifolds which is independent of parametrization and respects the geometry of both manifolds. If the manifolds are Euclidean, the energy functional reduces to the classical thin-plate spline energy. We show how the resulting optimization problems can be solved efficiently in many cases. Our example applications range from orientation interpolation and motion planning in animation over geometric modelling tasks to color interpolation.
PDF AVI Web DOI [BibTex]
ei Steinke, F., Hein, M., Peters, J., Schölkopf, B. Manifold-valued Thin-plate Splines with Applications in Computer Graphics Computer Graphics Forum, 27(2):437-448, April 2008 (article)
Bayesian Inference and Optimal Design for the Sparse Linear Model
Seeger, MW.
Journal of Machine Learning Research, 9, pages: 759-813, April 2008 (article)
The linear model with sparsity-favouring prior on the coefficients has important applications in many different domains. In machine learning, most methods to date search for maximum a posteriori sparse solutions and neglect to represent posterior uncertainties. In this paper, we address problems of Bayesian optimal design (or experiment planning), for which accurate estimates of uncertainty are essential. To this end, we employ expectation propagation approximate inference for the linear model with Laplace prior, giving new insight into numerical stability properties and proposing a robust algorithm. We also show how to estimate model hyperparameters by empirical Bayesian maximisation of the marginal likelihood, and propose ideas in order to scale up the method to very large underdetermined problems. We demonstrate the versatility of our framework on the application of gene regulatory network identification from micro-array expression data, where both the Laplace prior and the active experimental design approach are shown to result in significant improvements. We also address the problem of sparse coding of natural images, and show how our framework can be used for compressive sensing tasks.
ei Seeger, MW. Bayesian Inference and Optimal Design for the Sparse Linear Model Journal of Machine Learning Research, 9, pages: 759-813, April 2008 (article)
Consistency of Spectral Clustering
von Luxburg, U., Belkin, M., Bousquet, O.
Annals of Statistics, 36(2):555-586, April 2008 (article)
Consistency is a key property of statistical algorithms when the data is drawn from some underlying probability distribution. Surprisingly, despite decades of work, little is known about consistency of most clustering algorithms. In this paper we investigate consistency of the popular family of spectral clustering algorithms, which clusters the data with the help of eigenvectors of graph Laplacian matrices. We develop new methods to establish that for increasing sample size, those eigenvectors converge to the eigenvectors of certain limit operators. As a result we can prove that one of the two major classes of spectral clustering (normalized clustering) converges under very general conditions, while the other (unnormalized clustering) is only consistent under strong additional assumptions, which are not always satisfied in real data. We conclude that our analysis provides strong evidence for the superiority of normalized spectral clustering.
ei von Luxburg, U., Belkin, M., Bousquet, O. Consistency of Spectral Clustering Annals of Statistics, 36(2):555-586, April 2008 (article)
The Metric Nearness Problem
Brickell, J., Dhillon, I., Sra, S., Tropp, J.
SIAM Journal on Matrix Analysis and Applications, 30(1):375-396, April 2008 (article)
Metric nearness refers to the problem of optimally restoring metric properties to distance measurements that happen to be nonmetric due to measurement errors or otherwise. Metric data can be important in various settings, for example, in clustering, classification, metric-based indexing, query processing, and graph theoretic approximation algorithms. This paper formulates and solves the metric nearness problem: Given a set of pairwise dissimilarities, find a nearest set of distances that satisfy the properties of a metricprincipally the triangle inequality. For solving this problem, the paper develops efficient triangle fixing algorithms that are based on an iterative projection method. An intriguing aspect of the metric nearness problem is that a special case turns out to be equivalent to the all pairs shortest paths problem. The paper exploits this equivalence and develops a new algorithm for the latter problem using a primal-dual method. Applications to graph clustering are provided as an illustratio n. We include experiments that demonstrate the computational superiority of triangle fixing over general purpose convex programming software. Finally, we conclude by suggesting various useful extensions and generalizations to metric nearness.
ei Brickell, J., Dhillon, I., Sra, S., Tropp, J. The Metric Nearness Problem SIAM Journal on Matrix Analysis and Applications, 30(1):375-396, April 2008 (article)
Plant Classification from Bat-Like Echolocation Signals
Yovel, Y., Franz, MO., Stilz, P., Schnitzler, H-U.
PLoS Computational Biology, 4(3, e1000032):1-13, March 2008 (article)
Classification of plants according to their echoes is an elementary component of bat behavior that plays an important role in spatial orientation and food acquisition. Vegetation echoes are, however, highly complex stochastic signals: from an acoustical point of view, a plant can be thought of as a three-dimensional array of leaves reflecting the emitted bat call. The received echo is therefore a superposition of many reflections. In this work we suggest that the classification of these echoes might not be such a troublesome routine for bats as formerly thought. We present a rather simple approach to classifying signals from a large database of plant echoes that were created by ensonifying plants with a frequency-modulated bat-like ultrasonic pulse. Our algorithm uses the spectrogram of a single echo from which it only uses features that are undoubtedly accessible to bats. We used a standard machine learning algorithm (SVM) to automatically extract suitable linear combinations of time and frequency cues from the spectrograms such that classification with high accuracy is enabled. This demonstrates that ultrasonic echoes are highly informative about the species membership of an ensonified plant, and that this information can be extracted with rather simple, biologically plausible analysis. Thus, our findings provide a new explanatory basis for the poorly understood observed abilities of bats in classifying vegetation and other complex objects.
ei Yovel, Y., Franz, MO., Stilz, P., Schnitzler, H-U. Plant Classification from Bat-Like Echolocation Signals PLoS Computational Biology, 4(3, e1000032):1-13, March 2008 (article)
Causal Reasoning by Evaluating the Complexity of Conditional Densities with Kernel Methods
Sun, X., Janzing, D., Schölkopf, B.
We propose a method to quantify the complexity of conditional probability measures by a Hilbert space seminorm of the logarithm of its density. The concept of reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces (RKHSs) is a flexible tool to define such a seminorm by choosing an appropriate kernel. We present several examples with artificial data sets where our kernel-based complexity measure is consistent with our intuitive understanding of complexity of densities. The intention behind the complexity measure is to provide a new approach to inferring causal directions. The idea is that the factorization of the joint probability measure P(effect, cause) into P(effect|cause)P(cause) leads typically to "simpler" and "smoother" terms than the factorization into P(cause|effect)P(effect). Since the conventional constraint-based approach of causal discovery is not able to determine the causal direction between only two variables, our inference principle can in particular be useful when combined with other existing methods. We provide several simple examples with real-world data where the true causal directions indeed lead to simpler (conditional) densities.
ei Sun, X., Janzing, D., Schölkopf, B. Causal Reasoning by Evaluating the Complexity of Conditional Densities with Kernel Methods Neurocomputing, 71(7-9):1248-1256, March 2008 (article)
Natural Actor-Critic
In this paper, we suggest a novel reinforcement learning architecture, the Natural Actor-Critic. The actor updates are achieved using stochastic policy gradients em- ploying Amaris natural gradient approach, while the critic obtains both the natural policy gradient and additional parameters of a value function simultaneously by lin- ear regression. We show that actor improvements with natural policy gradients are particularly appealing as these are independent of coordinate frame of the chosen policy representation, and can be estimated more efficiently than regular policy gra- dients. The critic makes use of a special basis function parameterization motivated by the policy-gradient compatible function approximation. We show that several well-known reinforcement learning methods such as the original Actor-Critic and Bradtkes Linear Quadratic Q-Learning are in fact Natural Actor-Critic algorithms. Empirical evaluations illustrate the effectiveness of our techniques in comparison to previous methods, and also demonstrate their applicability for learning control on an anthropomorphic robot arm.
ei Peters, J., Schaal, S. Natural Actor-Critic Neurocomputing, 71(7-9):1180-1190, March 2008 (article)
Inferring Spike Trains From Local Field Potentials
Rasch, M., Gretton, A., Murayama, Y., Maass, W., Logothetis, N.
Journal of Neurophysiology, 99(3):1461-1476, March 2008 (article)
We investigated whether it is possible to infer spike trains solely on the basis of the underlying local field potentials (LFPs). Using support vector machines and linear regression models, we found that in the primary visual cortex (V1) of monkeys, spikes can indeed be inferred from LFPs, at least with moderate success. Although there is a considerable degree of variation across electrodes, the low-frequency structure in spike trains (in the 100-ms range) can be inferred with reasonable accuracy, whereas exact spike positions are not reliably predicted. Two kinds of features of the LFP are exploited for prediction: the frequency power of bands in the high gamma-range (40–90 Hz) and information contained in lowfrequency oscillations ( 10 Hz), where both phase and power modulations are informative. Information analysis revealed that both features code (mainly) independent aspects of the spike-to-LFP relationship, with the low-frequency LFP phase coding for temporally clustered spiking activity. Although both features and prediction quality are similar during seminatural movie stimuli and spontaneous activity, prediction performance during spontaneous activity degrades much more slowly with increasing electrode distance. The general trend of data obtained with anesthetized animals is qualitatively mirrored in that of a more limited data set recorded in V1 of non-anesthetized monkeys. In contrast to the cortical field potentials, thalamic LFPs (e.g., LFPs derived from recordings in the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus) hold no useful information for predicting spiking activity.
ei Rasch, M., Gretton, A., Murayama, Y., Maass, W., Logothetis, N. Inferring Spike Trains From Local Field Potentials Journal of Neurophysiology, 99(3):1461-1476, March 2008 (article)
ISD: A Software Package for Bayesian NMR Structure Calculation
Rieping, W., Nilges, M., Habeck, M.
Bioinformatics, 24(8):1104-1105, February 2008 (article)
SUMMARY: The conventional approach to calculating biomolecular structures from nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) data is often viewed as subjective due to its dependence on rules of thumb for deriving geometric constraints and suitable values for theory parameters from noisy experimental data. As a result, it can be difficult to judge the precision of an NMR structure in an objective manner. The Inferential Structure Determination (ISD) framework, which has been introduced recently, addresses this problem by using Bayesian inference to derive a probability distribution that represents both the unknown structure and its uncertainty. It also determines additional unknowns, such as theory parameters, that normally need be chosen empirically. Here we give an overview of the ISD software package, which implements this methodology. AVAILABILITY: The program is available at http://www.bioc.cam.ac.uk/isd
ei Rieping, W., Nilges, M., Habeck, M. ISD: A Software Package for Bayesian NMR Structure Calculation Bioinformatics, 24(8):1104-1105, February 2008 (article)
Probabilistic Structure Calculation
Nilges, M., Habeck, M., Rieping, W.
Comptes Rendus Chimie, 11(4-5):356-369, February 2008 (article)
Molecular structures are usually calculated from experimental data with some method of energy minimisation or non-linear optimisation. Key aims of a structure calculation are to estimate the coordinate uncertainty, and to provide a meaningful measure of the quality of the fit to the data. We discuss approaches to optimally combine prior information and experimental data and the connection to probability theory. We analyse the appropriate statistics for NOEs and NOE-derived distances, and the related question of restraint potentials. Finally, we will discuss approaches to determine the appropriate weight on the experimental evidence and to obtain in this way an estimate of the data quality from the structure calculation. Whereas objective estimates of coordinates and their uncertainties can only be obtained by a full Bayesian treatment of the problem, standard structure calculation methods continue to play an important role. To obtain the full benefit of these methods, they should be founded on a rigorous Baye sian analysis.
ei Nilges, M., Habeck, M., Rieping, W. Probabilistic Structure Calculation Comptes Rendus Chimie, 11(4-5):356-369, February 2008 (article)
Fast Projection-based Methods for the Least Squares Nonnegative Matrix Approximation Problem
Kim, D., Sra, S., Dhillon, I.
Statistical Analysis and Data Mining, 1(1):38-51, February 2008 (article)
Nonnegative matrix approximation (NNMA) is a popular matrix decomposition technique that has proven to be useful across a diverse variety of fields with applications ranging from document analysis and image processing to bioinformatics and signal processing. Over the years, several algorithms for NNMA have been proposed, e.g. Lee and Seung‘s multiplicative updates, alternating least squares (ALS), and gradient descent-based procedures. However, most of these procedures suffer from either slow convergence, numerical instability, or at worst, serious theoretical drawbacks. In this paper, we develop a new and improved algorithmic framework for the least-squares NNMA problem, which is not only theoretically well-founded, but also overcomes many deficiencies of other methods. Our framework readily admits powerful optimization techniques and as concrete realizations we present implementations based on the Newton, BFGS and conjugate gradient methods. Our algorithms provide numerical resu lts supe rior to both Lee and Seung‘s method as well as to the alternating least squares heuristic, which was reported to work well in some situations but has no theoretical guarantees[1]. Our approach extends naturally to include regularization and box-constraints without sacrificing convergence guarantees. We present experimental results on both synthetic and real-world datasets that demonstrate the superiority of our methods, both in terms of better approximations as well as computational efficiency.
ei Kim, D., Sra, S., Dhillon, I. Fast Projection-based Methods for the Least Squares Nonnegative Matrix Approximation Problem Statistical Analysis and Data Mining, 1(1):38-51, February 2008 (article)
A Unifying Probabilistic Framework for Analyzing Residual Dipolar Couplings
Habeck, M., Nilges, M., Rieping, W.
Journal of Biomolecular NMR, 40(2):135-144, February 2008 (article)
Residual dipolar couplings provide complementary information to the nuclear Overhauser effect measurements that are traditionally used in biomolecular structure determination by NMR. In a de novo structure determination, however, lack of knowledge about the degree and orientation of molecular alignment complicates the analysis of dipolar coupling data. We present a probabilistic framework for analyzing residual dipolar couplings and demonstrate that it is possible to estimate the atomic coordinates, the complete molecular alignment tensor, and the error of the couplings simultaneously. As a by-product, we also obtain estimates of the uncertainty in the coordinates and the alignment tensor. We show that our approach encompasses existing methods for determining the alignment tensor as special cases, including least squares estimation, histogram fitting, and elimination of an explicit alignment tensor in the restraint energy.
ei Habeck, M., Nilges, M., Rieping, W. A Unifying Probabilistic Framework for Analyzing Residual Dipolar Couplings Journal of Biomolecular NMR, 40(2):135-144, February 2008 (article)
Contour-propagation Algorithms for Semi-automated Reconstruction of Neural Processes
Macke, J., Maack, N., Gupta, R., Denk, W., Schölkopf, B., Borst, A.
Journal of Neuroscience Methods, 167(2):349-357, January 2008 (article)
A new technique, Serial Block Face Scanning Electron Microscopy (SBFSEM), allows for automatic sectioning and imaging of biological tissue with a scanning electron microscope. Image stacks generated with this technology have a resolution sufficient to distinguish different cellular compartments, including synaptic structures, which should make it possible to obtain detailed anatomical knowledge of complete neuronal circuits. Such an image stack contains several thousands of images and is recorded with a minimal voxel size of 10-20nm in the x and y- and 30nm in z-direction. Consequently, a tissue block of 1mm3 (the approximate volume of the Calliphora vicina brain) will produce several hundred terabytes of data. Therefore, highly automated 3D reconstruction algorithms are needed. As a first step in this direction we have developed semiautomated segmentation algorithms for a precise contour tracing of cell membranes. These algorithms were embedded into an easy-to-operate user interface, which allows direct 3D observation of the extracted objects during the segmentation of image stacks. Compared to purely manual tracing, processing time is greatly accelerated.
ei Macke, J., Maack, N., Gupta, R., Denk, W., Schölkopf, B., Borst, A. Contour-propagation Algorithms for Semi-automated Reconstruction of Neural Processes Journal of Neuroscience Methods, 167(2):349-357, January 2008 (article)
A Quantum-Statistical-Mechanical Extension of Gaussian Mixture Model
Tanaka, K., Tsuda, K.
Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 95(012023):1-9, January 2008 (article)
We propose an extension of Gaussian mixture models in the statistical-mechanical point of view. The conventional Gaussian mixture models are formulated to divide all points in given data to some kinds of classes. We introduce some quantum states constructed by superposing conventional classes in linear combinations. Our extension can provide a new algorithm in classifications of data by means of linear response formulas in the statistical mechanics.
ei Tanaka, K., Tsuda, K. A Quantum-Statistical-Mechanical Extension of Gaussian Mixture Model Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 95(012023):1-9, January 2008 (article)
Learning to control in operational space
International Journal of Robotics Research, 27, pages: 197-212, 2008, clmc (article)
One of the most general frameworks for phrasing control problems for complex, redundant robots is operational space control. However, while this framework is of essential importance for robotics and well-understood from an analytical point of view, it can be prohibitively hard to achieve accurate control in face of modeling errors, which are inevitable in com- plex robots, e.g., humanoid robots. In this paper, we suggest a learning approach for opertional space control as a direct inverse model learning problem. A ï¬rst important insight for this paper is that a physically cor- rect solution to the inverse problem with redundant degrees-of-freedom does exist when learning of the inverse map is performed in a suitable piecewise linear way. The second crucial component for our work is based on the insight that many operational space controllers can be understood in terms of a constrained optimal control problem. The cost function as- sociated with this optimal control problem allows us to formulate a learn- ing algorithm that automatically synthesizes a globally consistent desired resolution of redundancy while learning the operational space controller. From the machine learning point of view, this learning problem corre- sponds to a reinforcement learning problem that maximizes an immediate reward. We employ an expectation-maximization policy search algorithm in order to solve this problem. Evaluations on a three degrees of freedom robot arm are used to illustrate the suggested approach. The applica- tion to a physically realistic simulator of the anthropomorphic SARCOS Master arm demonstrates feasibility for complex high degree-of-freedom robots. We also show that the proposed method works in the setting of learning resolved motion rate control on real, physical Mitsubishi PA-10 medical robotics arm.
am ei
am ei Peters, J., Schaal, S. Learning to control in operational space International Journal of Robotics Research, 27, pages: 197-212, 2008, clmc (article)
Voltage-Controllable Magnetic Composite Based on Multifunctional Polyethylene Microparticles
Ghosh, A., Sheridon, N. K., Fischer, P.
SMALL, 4(11):1956-1958, 2008 (article)
pf Ghosh, A., Sheridon, N. K., Fischer, P. Voltage-Controllable Magnetic Composite Based on Multifunctional Polyethylene Microparticles SMALL, 4(11):1956-1958, 2008 (article)
Adaptation to a sub-optimal desired trajectory
M. Mistry, E. A. G. L. T. Y. S. S. M. K.
Advances in Computational Motor Control VII, Symposium at the Society for Neuroscience Meeting, Washington DC, 2008, 2008, clmc (article)
am M. Mistry, E. A. G. L. T. Y. S. S. M. K. Adaptation to a sub-optimal desired trajectory Advances in Computational Motor Control VII, Symposium at the Society for Neuroscience Meeting, Washington DC, 2008, 2008, clmc (article)
ENHANCED ADHESION OF PDMS SURFACES FUNCTIONALIZED BY POLY (n-BUTYL ACRYLATE) BRUSHES INSPIRED BY GECKO FOOT HAIRS
Nese, A., Lee, H., Dong, H., Aksak, B., Cusick, B., Kowalewski, T., Matyjaszewski, K., Sitti, M.
Polymer Preprints, 49(2):107, 2008 (article)
pi Nese, A., Lee, H., Dong, H., Aksak, B., Cusick, B., Kowalewski, T., Matyjaszewski, K., Sitti, M. ENHANCED ADHESION OF PDMS SURFACES FUNCTIONALIZED BY POLY (n-BUTYL ACRYLATE) BRUSHES INSPIRED BY GECKO FOOT HAIRS Polymer Preprints, 49(2):107, 2008 (article)
Design and development of the lifting and propulsion mechanism for a biologically inspired water runner robot
Floyd, S., Sitti, M.
IEEE transactions on robotics, 24(3):698-709, IEEE, 2008 (article)
pi Floyd, S., Sitti, M. Design and development of the lifting and propulsion mechanism for a biologically inspired water runner robot IEEE transactions on robotics, 24(3):698-709, IEEE, 2008 (article)
Control of Cell Behavior by Aligned Micro/Nanofibrous Biomaterial Scaffolds Fabricated by Spinneret-Based Tunable Engineered Parameters (STEP) Technique
Nain, A. S., Phillippi, J. A., Sitti, M., MacKrell, J., Campbell, P. G., Amon, C.
Small, 4(8):1153-1159, Wiley Online Library, 2008 (article)
pi Nain, A. S., Phillippi, J. A., Sitti, M., MacKrell, J., Campbell, P. G., Amon, C. Control of Cell Behavior by Aligned Micro/Nanofibrous Biomaterial Scaffolds Fabricated by Spinneret-Based Tunable Engineered Parameters (STEP) Technique Small, 4(8):1153-1159, Wiley Online Library, 2008 (article)
Texture, microstructure and mechanical properties of equiaxed ultrafine-grained Zr fabricated by accumulative roll bonding
Jiang, L., Perez-Prado, M. T., Gruber, P. A., Arzt, E., Ruano, O. A., Kassner, M. E.
{Acta Materialia}, 56(6):1228-1242, 2008 (article)
mms Jiang, L., Perez-Prado, M. T., Gruber, P. A., Arzt, E., Ruano, O. A., Kassner, M. E. Texture, microstructure and mechanical properties of equiaxed ultrafine-grained Zr fabricated by accumulative roll bonding {Acta Materialia}, 56(6):1228-1242, 2008 (article)
Theory of size mismatched alloy systems: many-body Kanzaki forces
Shchyglo, O., Diaz-Ortiz, A., Udyansky, A., Bugaev, V. N., Reichert, H., Dosch, H., Drautz, R.
{Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter}, 20, pages: 1-9, 2008 (article)
mms Shchyglo, O., Diaz-Ortiz, A., Udyansky, A., Bugaev, V. N., Reichert, H., Dosch, H., Drautz, R. Theory of size mismatched alloy systems: many-body Kanzaki forces {Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter}, 20, pages: 1-9, 2008 (article)
Pinning of domain walls in composite particles
Kronmüller, H., Goll, D.
{Physica B}, 403, pages: 237-241, 2008 (article)
mms Kronmüller, H., Goll, D. Pinning of domain walls in composite particles {Physica B}, 403, pages: 237-241, 2008 (article)
Chaotic vortex dynamics and low current phases in the remanent state of MgB2 thin films
Albrecht, J., Audehm, P., Djupmyr, M.
{Superconductor Science and Technology}, 21, 2008 (article)
mms Albrecht, J., Audehm, P., Djupmyr, M. Chaotic vortex dynamics and low current phases in the remanent state of MgB2 thin films {Superconductor Science and Technology}, 21, 2008 (article)
Continuous and discontinuous grain-boundary wetting in ZnxAl1-x
Straumal, B. B., Gornakova, A. S., Kogtenkova, O. A., Protasova, S. G., Sursaeva, V. G., Baretzky, B.
mms Straumal, B. B., Gornakova, A. S., Kogtenkova, O. A., Protasova, S. G., Sursaeva, V. G., Baretzky, B. Continuous and discontinuous grain-boundary wetting in ZnxAl1-x {Physical Review B}, 78, 2008 (article)
Magnetic circular dichroism in two-photon absorption and depth-resolved magnetic microscopy
Seib, J., Fähnle, M.
mms Seib, J., Fähnle, M. Magnetic circular dichroism in two-photon absorption and depth-resolved magnetic microscopy {Physical Review B}, 77, 2008 (article)
Heat of adsorption for hydrogen in microporous high-surface-area materials
Schmitz, B., Müller, U., Trukhan, N., Schubert, M., Férey, G., Hirscher, M.
{ChemPhysChem}, 9, 2008 (article)
mms Schmitz, B., Müller, U., Trukhan, N., Schubert, M., Férey, G., Hirscher, M. Heat of adsorption for hydrogen in microporous high-surface-area materials {ChemPhysChem}, 9, 2008 (article)
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line686
|
__label__cc
| 0.59872
| 0.40128
|
Barely Breathing
"Nobody reads a crowd, then consequently owns a room, better than the versatile, multi-genre, dance party-starters, known as Mezcal" - Aaron Gomes (Sound & Vision Foundation)
Visalia, Ca U.S.A.
mezcalmusic@me.com
Born out of the belly of the San Joaquin Valley, MEZCAL has been entertaining audiences across the state for the past ten years. Their Latin groove's have taken them from Visalia’s annual Dia Del Niñ o Celebration at the Manuel Hernandez Center to Las Vegas for the nationally televised America’s Next Great American Band competition in 2007. Out of over 10,000 acts, MEZCAL was chosen as one of the top 60 bands for the FOX series. They have shared the stage with the likes of Los Lobos, Malo, El Chicano, Tierra, and Poncho Sanchez.
The band consists of local members, Alejo Delgado- Bass, and family members Carlos- Guitar, Estevan- Congas, and Marisa Rodriguez- Timbales. Over the years, MEZCAL has kept their audiences moving to their mix of Rock and Afro-Cuban rhythms. In addition, core members Carlos, Estevan, Marisa, and Alejo actively participate in community events to support local youth and migrant farm workers through volunteer work and music workshops/performances. Their involvement with organizations like CASA, Sound & Vision Foundation, and other groups has helped raise funds and/or spread awareness for the enrichment of community interests.
MEZCAL has successfully operated as a grassroots effort with the support of local family, friends, and fans. Check the Shows page to see when Mezcal will be playing near you!
Classic Mezcal Wrist Bands
The Classic Mezcal Wrist Band!
Available in 3 Colors!
Red / Black
Swirl (Red / Black)
Order 1 of Each and start your Mezcal Collection today!
Select Color BlackRed / BlackSwirl (Red / Black)1 of Each Color
"2009 Entertainers of the Year" - Hispanic Round Table
Mezcal Music © 2014
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line690
|
__label__cc
| 0.643245
| 0.356755
|
Legg Mason is an Attractive Target, Say Researchers
June's wedding season may have passed, but that is not stopping speculation on which fund firms will be the next to pair off. Among the observers filling out a betting card is CreditSights, which is recommending that BNY Mellon should buy another asset manager to be competitive with State Street and BlackRock/BGI.
The independent research group singled out Legg Mason as the "most attractive target." CreditSights' report was picked up by the Financial Times.
"We believe the company (BNY) could look to address the gap in its product mix by acquiring an asset manager with equity products, and we believe Legg Mason is the most attractive target," said CreditSights in its report entitled Scale Acquisitions.
The report noted that Legg Mason's stock has lagged the asset management sector.
"Largely due to the asset manager�s performance during the current cycle, BNY Mellon could improve its earnings by almost 15 percent by acquiring Legg," CreditSights' David Hendler wrote.
Reached by The MFWire, BNY Mellon spokesman Mike Dunn said the firm does not comment on rumor or speculation. Legg Mason spokeswoman Mary Athridge said the company does not comment on speculation.
In May, BNY CEO Robert Kelly was quoted in media reports as saying that his company was looking to buy asset managers.
BNY's name cropped up as a possible bidder for BGI, which eventually was purchased by BlackRock. BNY is also thought to be one of the three remaining bidders for Nikki, Citigroup's asset management arm.
Edited by: Armie Margaret Lee
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line691
|
__label__cc
| 0.722854
| 0.277146
|
Posted Mar 28, 2008 at 2:47 pm by Allan Hough
Want to tell us something good? You have several options:
Send email to allanhough at gmail dot com
Post something on our Facebook wall.
Check out our official Twitter account.
Ask a question via the “Ask a question” form on our Tumblr.
Leave a comment below. (We don’t recommend this method anymore.)
[Photo by Brock Keeling]
210 Responses to “Contact us”
Spencer says:
Thank you for the photo credit.
Jeff Cleary says:
Just thought you’d like to know, there’s a new stand-up comedy night right in the heart of the Mission at the Delirium on Wednesdays from 6:30 to 8:30. The two guys running it, Joey Divine and Joe Gorman, have only done it 3 times so far, so it’s still ramping up. But on April 30th, they’re having their most ambitious show, “Kevin’s vs. Joe’s” featuring upper-level local comics who have performed at the Punchline and all over the Bay Area.
If you’re interested in covering the event for your blog, send me an email and I’ll put you in contact with them and forward you the flyer. I work for SFstandup.com and run my own open-mic room at Annie’s Social Club on Tuesdays.
I love your blog. I’ve lived on Albion Street for 12 years, so I’m hopelessly pro-Mission.
Allan says:
thanks to Allan for mentioning our show on here. Nice name!
drake says:
your mom is a genius. does it trouble you, then that all of you cleverness may be genetic and have very little to do with anything you bring to the table? Keep up the good work man, I hope my forthcoming media blog can be half as interesting as all of this.
does not trouble me at all
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/bfs/680557456.html
Which mission club is for sale?
“Allan,
This is confidential information.
I can’t disclose the business name unless you are interested in acquiring it.
You are also required to sign a confidentiality agreement.”
Aye, there was an apartment fire this morning on Valencia street, between 16th and 17th. Thing is, it was on the 2nd floor of the building that Limon is in. It looked like it was contained to one apartment, but I’m assuming there had to be some water damage to Limon. -Not good for one of our best restaurants.
jinkypatio says:
hi, your blog smells like someone who moved to the city 2 years ago and thinks they can turn this into a moneymaking scheme. and thinks living in the mission is cool. mabes your friends with brock on sfist? overall, kind of lame, starting with the name of the blog. if this is actually a personal endeavor of a recent resident, then i’m a total dick, and i’m sorry. something just smells funny.
some us moved to the city as recently as nine months ago, some of us have been here five years, we all like making money, not all of us live in the mission, none of us have ever met brock, and we like the name and don’t think it is lame. also, since you seem to appreciate jonathan richman, i think you’re only kind of a dick. thanks for reading!
Katie Ann says:
But not only have some people moved to SF, some people are native californians who’ve grown up in the bay area. Which is rare – no?
Aye, you guys heard anything about this:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/07/08/onthejob.DTL
A couple of people in the comments section seem to be pointing the finger at Zeitgeist,but it’s hard to tell if that’s right.
spiritinthecity says:
LOVE LOVE LOVE YOUR BLOG!!! Is there any way to subscribe to the whole thing? When I click on “subscribe” it takes me to a page with old posts and doesn’t actually have anything to click on to subscribe.
http://www.SpiritInTheCity.com
Check this out, from the TRAVEL section of the New York Times:
http://travel.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/travel/13surfacing.html?em&ex=1216958400&en=1cfa8d996268d6ad&ei=5087
jojo dancer says:
Those graffiti frogs on yopur homepage belong to a little tweaker punk, who lurks on haight st. . I won’t support this blog untill you remove those from the banner.
Fuck this blog.
Haight Hate « Mission Mission says:
[...] From the Contact Us page: [...]
dogfella says:
Heads up on a:
COMMUNITY MEETING IN RESPONSE TO 7 KILLINGS LAST WEEK TONITE 5PM
Mission Community Council, SFPD meeting of residents, nonprofits and religious groups on Tuesday at 5 p.m. at the Mission Recreation Center.
Mission Recreation Center 2450 Harrison St @ 20th & 21st
USE 745 Treat St @ 20th & 21st ENTRANCE
Breaking News: Community Meeting Tonight « Mission Mission says:
[...] Breaking News: Community Meeting Tonight Reader Dogfella just wrote in with this news: [...]
Just heard that they will be discussing the recent killings in the Mission on KQED this morning (like right now…)
Crime in the Mission
Seven people have been murdered in San Francisco’s Mission District in the past three weeks. We talk with community members, the mayor’s office and the police about what can be done to stem the increase in violence in the neighborhood.
Host: Michael Krasny
Right Now: KQED on Violence in the Mission « Mission Mission says:
[...] Right Now: KQED on Violence in the Mission Jenn brings this to our attention: [...]
cyn says:
I have a deck that overlooks Clarion Alley. This morning, at 4:40 a.m., we were woken up by 21 gunshots. Does anyone know what happened??
bougainvillea says:
Just before 10pm Sunday night, I heard more than the usual number of sirens and looked out the window to see ten police cars pulling up on Cesar Chavez at Valencia. They stopped what looked like a grey SUV and arrested the five guys who were traveling in it. It was quite a dramatic scene. The cops had guns drawn, and they had the passengers get out of the car one at a time and walk backwards towards the cops with their hands in the air. Then they brought someone by for a “cold show,” which meant that a witness was sitting in a car across the street trying to ID the suspects. The whole thing took almost an hour. Does anyone know what this was about?
Cold Show « Mission Mission says:
[...] Cold Show bougainvillea says: [...]
Was at Muddy’s around 10 AM yesterday and sat next to Chuck D. Yes, Public Enemy Chuck D. At Muddys. I was in disbelief, but after he asked me to watch his laptop (a Mac) while he got a cup of coffee, I confirmed. Any other Chuck sightings in the Mission?
Chuck D and His Mac at Muddy’s « Mission Mission says:
[...] Link. Explore posts in the same categories: Music [...]
Hi Allan,
It’d be great if you could pass the word on the Prop 8 protest going on tonight, 5:30pm starting at Market & 7th, Civic Center.
We’re not going down without a fight! This is the big one. Pass the word!
Wish you went to Wednesday night’s Prop. 8 protest instead of watching Dancing with the Stars? Well, you get another chance. TONITE there will be an even bigger protest (Friday) against Prop 8. The march will start at Civic Center at 5:30 p.m., ending in Dolores Park. (Interesting that it’s not ending at an LDS temple. That seems to be what’s going on in LA today.) It will be going down Market from Seventh, continuing onto Castro and turn on 18th Street which will lead to the park.
Really, people are pissed. We need this second protest to vent. So….have at it, folks.
http://sfist.com/2008/11/06/protest_prop_8_march_on_friday.php?referer=sphere_related_content
Brian Gorman says:
hey, would like an address for your group. I’m publishing a 10 county media guide of the bay. email thanks
Douglas says:
Do you have an email?
~d
Worst Graf-Name ever:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9802096@N02/3271777577/
This was tagged on my apartment on Albion last weekend.
C$ says:
I’m a Lower Haighter (outsider, I know), who thinks your blog is kickass. i just linked to it from my blog. How about throwing a brother a bone and throwing mine up there?
http://colinoscopy.wordpress.com/
anyone else noticed the number of speed traps in the city? there were 4 cops on geary near arguello a few weeks back. yesterday i saw 3 in the mission. one owas at harrison and 15th another at folsom and 18th. effort to increase revenue?
LINDYLULA says:
Been scouring the web for a picture of the old sign for the Tip Top Inn. Gonna have it painted for my man friend for our anniversary. That’s where we first laid beer goggles on one another. Can’t find a picture of it anywhere and somebody made off with the sign. Do you think the Mission Mission readers might be able to help?
Ariel. says:
Hey, I was wondering if you’ve ever looked into Woodward’s Garden. (not the restaurant) Very interesting piece of Mission history.
- AD.
Anyone else here about 10-15 gun shots last night, around 10:45PM? At Guerrero/20th St, approximately. I can’t find any info on it, but it sure sounded like a gun, plus we saw flashes accompanying the sound.
I heard the same thing, same time, different location though – near 25th and South Van Ness – assumed it was gun shots, but didn’t hear any sirens after. The sound was a little too “boom-boom” though – not enough “pop – pop”.
Yeah, we didn’t hear sirens after either. It sounded like it could have been right on our corner there…
Just got this e-mail from my mom (That’s right, my mom):
Waiting to cross at Valencia on 16th heading east, a guy pulls up on a bicycle, sprays a dark green dot over some other colors on the curb over the sewer, and then dropped a 2″ X 1″ filled (don’t know with what) baggy into the sewer. A middle ageish white guy with a vest with day glow stripes. Who dat? What’s he up to? On my way, I noticed all the sewer curbs had dark green dots over other colors. So very curious.
Jonathan Foote says:
That’s a mosquito control guy. He’s dropping a non-toxic hormone-based insecticide into the storm drain so skeeters don’t breed there. He spraypaints a color code on the curb to indicate it’s been treated.
(How do I know? I asked a guy who was doing that.)
Awesome that they are on bicycles — unexpected!
Neal Gorenflo says:
hey mission mission folks, i’m looking for a editor / writer for blog. an actual paying gig, really, i swear. let me know if you know anyone. here’s a link to the job ad on CL, which will expire in ~25 days:
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/npo/1165653308.html
Ray Fernandez says:
There was a shooting tonight on Florida between 21st and 20th, just a few doors down from the Pink Palace. We heard some shots and then a few minutes later there where police and emergency vehicles on the scene. We went out to check it out and I was standing by a woman giving her statement to the police and my friend noticed two shell casing at my feet. I told the police and they roped off the area.
radaniels says:
hi-
i just moved to the Mission about a week ago. I have a photojournalism internship with the Associated Press, i like news and events…in the mean time i make many, many, many mobile images of my daily SF wanderings, a lot from the Mission- neurotically daily uploaded to a Facebook album with many family and friend admirers.
if Mission Mission is interested in photographic contributions, let me know.
Russel A. Daniels
I watched the go-getter this evening as per your suggestion. I enjoyed it. It made me want to go on a road trip, or at least steal a car.
Then I ran across a pretty funny spoof of the ubiquitous indie movie…
http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/b080b3abab/my-mother-s-red-hat-w-alicia-silverstone-alanis-morissette
Allan Hough says:
All is well! Thanks for the spoof.
Hi Dudes… Thanks for the rockin blog. Does anybody know what happened to Tenderblog.com? I loved reading that blog every day, but it hasn’t been updated since 7/24.
Oops. Thanks for using my picture from the skateboarding competition, but the link isn’t working. Can you fix it with this link?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonbauer/3870734175/
- Thanx
mission skateboards says:
come visit. http://missionsk8boards.com/
oh and push bike too. pushbikesf.com
Any chance of getting the “snapshot” plugin turned off?
If you don’t want it, I think this will turn it off:
-> Presentation -> Extras is where you can turn it off
uncheck “Enable Snap Previews anywhere on this blog” and then click “Update Extras” to save.
Hi ya’ll../ Is this thing on? Hey I am opening up a gorgeous vintage boutique on 20th street. I live inthe same building and ah hem… I am an Native of SF. Is that unheard of? Anyhoo.. how can I get some publiciity? xoxoxox Dj’s weekly as well… xoxox
lobzo says:
homie (well not thug but brown, and decently dressed with backpack) knocks over recycling bin, tossing bottles at cars/ busses/ scooters at 21/mish this am ~7:30. with every toss says “you go pick it up!” i called the cops
Cranky Old Mission Guy says:
Jeff — you’re using IE, right?
Anyone know how to do this in Firefox?
Cranky Old Mission Guy, those instructions were for Mission Mission to do on their Word Press server, I don’t know how to turn it off in Firefox or IE, though I’d love to hear.
This original rap and accompanying youtube video created by Sunset (sorry, not mission, but SF native nonetheless) native, Emil Deandreis, celebrates San Franciscans obsession with the discount chain store “Ross (Dress For Less).” The entire video was filmed at various locations in San Francisco. Thank you for taking the time to review it, here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6QcEChH7eo
olu says:
another weapon in the war for/against street art!
http://gizmodo.com/5392743/the-muralizer-draws-art-on-your-wall-automatically
york says:
Girafa tagger arrested – http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_13670589?nclick_check=1
I just thought you’d think this was funny. My friend used Nair on his chest for Halloween.
http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs055.snc3/14245_869952531077_8619420_52656781_909662_n.jpg
Yo, MM blog…
Saw a strange site heading down Guerrero today about 3pm…
A man was on a rampage down the street, knocking over some parked mopeds and throwing himself on the hoods of cars. Didnt appear to be homeless or crazy, but more in the throws of a serious LSD or other drug related craziness. Anyway, thought ya’ll might have your ear to the ground (or ye olde police scanner).
Hope the dude didnt get run over.
Random!! I read that you guys were wanting a new mascot to replace the 2 frogs in the header. I keep Cartoon Brew in my RSS reader right below Mission Mission. Today they posted about Mish Mish:
http://www.cartoonbrew.com/classic/mish-mish-in-national-defense.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+CartoonBrew+%28Cartoon+Brew%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher
He’s public domain by now. In case you want some crudely animated antique egyptian propaganda, that’s as far as I can possibly think of from having anything to do with the Mission.
dave d says:
This super-cute bike MUST belong to some super-cute woman from the Mission.
I put it in lost and found at craigslist, but it has been in my ‘hood for three weeks now.
Maybe u guys can help?
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/laf/1522144956.html
Citer says:
The Food Network is filming at Humphrey Slocombe.
Mr. P says:
Last night around 10:45pm there was a hit-and-run at mission and 18th street – a pedestrian was run over completely by a car, which then sped off. It was about the most awful thing I’ve ever seen. Have you guys heard anything about it?
We haven’t heard anything about it. I’m about to check with SFPD, but could you tell me a little more about what you saw?
A car parked on Mission Street was pointed south and pulled out quickly from a parking spot after someone driving by seemed to shout/throw something at the car. After the car pulled out it accelerated quickly and then gunned the engine turning right (west) onto 18th street. The pedestrian was in the crosswalk and basically was mowed down as the car went by.
A fire truck, police, and ambulance were there pretty quickly. It was a pretty scary thing to see in our neighborhood!
neas says:
The SF birding community is puzzled and excited by some unusual Mission bird residents. I’m a geek, but I think this is really cool. Black Crowned Night-Herons are roosting on Dolores. Heron Skyler Mendoza hasn’t headed North yet. Caught a few shots here: http://www.urbandelicious.com/
Heron Skyler Mendoza
Wondering if you knew what the new place going in on Valencia is (cross is 22nd) with the stone and exposed wood. I asked the guys working on the place and they said it’s a restaurant. Wondered if you know anything about it?
what is the new restaurant going up on 24th and folsom? next to philz??? oh so curious!
Could this be it? http://sf.eater.com/archives/2010/01/04/plywood_3.php
MelanieKameko says:
Meeting on Wednesday re: Dolores Park closure!
http://sf.streetsblog.org/2010/02/26/dolores-park-public-meeting/
http://missionmission.wordpress.com/2010/02/21/public-meeting-re-dolores-park-closure/
andrew, quick question-is your mom a teacher in southern california? sorry if that sounds really random.
Andrew Sarkarati says:
crikes! you found me! yeah, she’s a high school bio teacher for a bunch of stuck up rich girls in pasadena (present company excluded of course!). did you know my sister katie who went there too?
not only did i know your sister, she was in the class above me. ha. she was good friends with my sister. we were the only persians in the whole school.
i remember your mom mentioning you and your band the l-m-n-o-p’s i always thought that was hilarious. your mom was seriously my favorite teacher. she is so awesome.
ps i can’t argue that all the girls there aren’t stuck up.
Aurah says:
Any ideas of what happened last night at 14th and Guerrero? I could see the police but not the actual guy they were screaming at, “Put down the knife! etc.” Then it sounded like maybe they shot him with that beanbag gun and then a couple real gunshots. Of course, the folks in the bar nearby were just hanging on the corner watching the whole thing from across the street. That’s how you know you’ve seen too much.
Yatima says:
Could you signal-boost this competition? We could raise $30K for McLaren Park, the jewel of the Excelsior:
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/dap_10153_12605_DAP_More+Green+Across+America
Surely the Bay Area can do better than VIRGINIA!
Anybody know what happened last night @ or by Beauty Bar? Police cars, firetrucks, crowds on the street, oh my!!
Ninja says:
McLaren Park is nominated but needs some serious help to get $30,000 to restore the playground.
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/dap_10153_12605_DAP_More+Green+Across+America?storeId=10153&vName=More+Green+Across+America&catalogInd=DAP&catalogId=12605
Matt Strauss’s “Heirloom” @ 21st and Folsom: private opening tonight May 7th??
some notes from a chat with wait staff posted to the Nov. 2009 post on MissionMission
Bubs says:
hey man, just curious, who won the meat story contest back in late april?
Gunshots last night on 20th and Florida around 5am.
People on foot and running right below my window.
No ambulance, so maybe nobody got hit or injured? Anybody got any information.
Then of course the pinche mocking birds started up and I was basically up for the rest of the morning. There’s a reason why they have to go out of their way to tell you not to kill a mocking bird.
What the f happened with some guy running down bicyclists last night in the Mission/Potrero Hill? The news is sparse…
Because, like, no one knows anything.
Except, maybe, SFPD, and they’re, like, not saying until they arrest the drunk-ass motherfucker who did the deed.
‘Cause they don’t understand the power of 24/7 blogging!
jimbo says:
anyone know what’s up with rock nation cafe on 21st and alabama? is it good? is it owned by the same folks who own rosamunde? i see the metal dude with the bandanna there everyday. what’s the scoop, missionmission?
Loveofmystery says:
You might like this one..a wee bit commercial but sounds cool.
http://www.sfstreetfoodfest.com/2010/
jinksy says:
Spotlight on some Mission fashion. Pretty cool article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/02/fashion/02Diary.html?_r=1
Mission Fashion in the New York Times « Mission Mission says:
[...] for the tip, jinksy!) Explore posts in the same categories: [...]
Neo Displacer says:
I think you should do a post on how Shotwell is the most beautiful street in the Mission. I think folks may say Valencia, but they would be wrong. It has truly stunning people walking to and fro, but the street? Not so much, it’s a commercial strand. How about Dolores? Nah, it’s the border between the encroaching Castro at the 18th St end and further south it’s Baja Noe. 24th? Are you kidding me? It’s great to walk between Papalote at one end and Dynamo at the other, great coffee can be had at at least 3 places. But again commercial, and what with the strollers it’s not as beautiful in walking human terms as Valencia. Now I live on Folsom, and you may argue it’s beauty. The allee is indeed gorgeous but the fact that is four lanes ruins it. That brings me to Shotwell. It shares tree lining with Folsom yet it is informal. I was walking down it today and was struck by its loveliness. There are many old, pre-quake, houses. They are well kept. There were many folks sitting on their stoops. There were several grills fired up cooking meat. I saw some kids playing. I saw one sexy-as-hell girl. Oh god Shotwell is there anything you can’t do? My first place in the Mission was at the far North end. It was a railroad flat and it was dirt cheap. That was 1992. Junkies often parked their cars in front and shot up. But I forgive. My landlord had AIDS. He didn’t make it the 2 years I was there. He was cool and it was sad he left. He planted 2 ficus trees in front. One night The 20-something chick upstairs had a party. Hipster dufii, drunk and disorderly, swung around the tree and dislodged it from its shallow roots. Needless to say I was pissed. I carefully replanted the tree and re-staked it. I watered it and hoped for the best. It was the least I could do for my old landlord. That tree is now huge. It stands next to its paired tree almost as tall as the old railroad flats. Here is the tree. It’s on the left, its partner on the right.
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=shotwell+and+14th+sf&sll=37.780982,-122.218714&sspn=1.037621,1.686401&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Shotwell+St+%26+14th+St,+San+Francisco,+California+94103&ll=37.766542,-122.416534&spn=0.008108,0.013175&z=16&layer=c&cbll=37.76646,-122.41652&panoid=UvRFQx1Wb7-HypIbED9Jng&cbp=12,63.05,,0,6.03
Shotwell, the Most Beautiful Street in the Mission « Mission Mission says:
[...] A love letter to Shotwell Street from reader Neo Displacer, via our Contact Us page: [...]
Dunno if you’ve seen this, but here it is again anyway http://vimeo.com/14349409
fixies in la.
OK, some jackass is screwing around with MM, I think.
Ne’mind — it was a software glitch on my end. Sorry.
Jevir says:
I love your Mission Mission blog! thanks, keep up the good work.
follow mine: http://wecareallot.tumblr.com/
-Jevir
Yesterday, around 5pm, we passed what looked like a large funeral procession on Dolores between 17th and 18th. Dolores was pretty much blocked off by large crowds of people, and, at the heart, was a small band and a large alter covered in purple decorations and large photos of…something? In a quick drive by, we couldn’t tell. Any idea of what this was for?
C.A.M.P. seems to have been having a temper tantrum about losing their funding for the annual noise festival at Clarion Alley. That was a coffin you saw — they declared ART dead or something.
Nixon chance says:
great video about craigslist dating. hilarious must check it out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8w40_LKO-U
Mickey Bennett says:
“Tubby Tagger” is not ok and you know it. Please retract or remove that article. I don’t understand why that was appropriate or funny.
Jack Walker says:
In this article(http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/mar/07/dave-eggers-zeitoun-hurricane-katrina/print) about Dave Eggers, the English author compares the Mission to Camden London. Never been to Camden, is it true? Is the Mission like Camden? Or is it like Berlin or some part of Brooklyn? I once read that Chicago, LA, and New York were the jocks and cheerleaders in high school and San Francisco and Amsterdam were the cool kids huddled in the back of the room mocking the whole thing. So what is it? Also, on a video posted on Uptown Almanac, KQED declares the New York Times declares that the mission is the hippest neighborhood. Is that true, I see a lot of schlubs walking around (including me.) I keep singing the Dave Frishberg song “I’m Hip” in my head (“when it was hip to be hep I was hep.”) The song is really about how uncool he is. Maybe the Mission is like that?
san jose says:
hey andrew, are you my neighbor?
Teppei Ando says:
Hi. Me and my partner are putting on a free event, that’s happening this Sunday, the 13th of Feb.
It’s a popular cafe in Berkeley called, Local 123.
it’s an art show/ craft fair with a stellar list of participating artists including Alika Cooper, Marci Washington, Deth P Sun, Kara Joslyn and many others including my partner and myself. Products will vary from drawings and books to clothing and jewelry to sculptures. We’re trying to give the public an alternative and fun way to shop for Valentines gifts, while having a drink and eating food at the same time. Oh, we’ll also be grilling delicious Takoyaki on site.
The event will be a one day only thing, and will run from 2pm- 8pm
Full list of participants and other information is listed on out site/blog
http://heartsncraftsoakland.blogspot.com
-Teppei (and Riki)
Hi! can you put me on your mailing list?
Cut from your blogroll. Dropped like a bad habit. Disposed of like a used tissue. Do you really want to hurt me? Do you really want to make me cry?
We had to keep it to 17, and it came down to either you or Janebook. C’mon. We’ll try to rotate you back in at some point.
Yeah, I’d rather read Janebook than my blog. Or at least look at the pictures. Sigh.
the easter bunny says:
Love the new look. One request: Can you put back the links at the top of each entry that take you to the previous or next entry? It’s a pain to have to click back to the main page every time.
Vic Wong says:
Done. Single post views will show the next, previous links at the top now.
yay!!! Thanks. Extra Cadbury eggs for you. Or Peeps, if you prefer.
Herr Doktor Professor Deth Vegetable says:
Heya guys! The “Notify me of follow-up comments via e-mail” functionality is still not really working since the (admittedly awesome) re-vamp. I have received a grand total of One notification since the swap to the new site. Somehow, the fact that one random one made it through is even odder than if none at all came through.
That’s weird. Did you get a notification about this reply? Are you sure you made sure to check the checkbox? It’s off by default.
Another possibility is it’s getting caught in a email spam filter. Any chance of that?
I did! I did! Or, Rather, I got your FIRST reply, but not the second one. How Very Odd.
Cool, I got yours too. Yeah so the second one was actually a reply to my first reply, so I think nested replies wont send a notification to the parent comment. Sorry, just a limitation of the system.
I have noticed lately that sometimes when I have your site up that Firefox crashes. It has only happened since the change of format and does not happen with other things up and running.
Steve-Z says:
SFPD and SFFD were in the process of taking someone out of the 16th Mission BART plaza toilet on a stretcher this morning around 8. Didn’t seem to be in a rush at all — either cuz they don’t give a hell or cuz it’s no biggie or cuz it’s too late to do anything for the sad soul.
Garry Bowden says:
Yo Allan, I wanted to invite you and the rest of the Mission Mission crew to the premiere of my next short Saturn Rising. I was hoping you guys could get the word out about the film. It was made right here in SF!
It’s premiering on April 8th at the Roxie. There’s going to be poetry reading, an art show, the screening and a concert by Wild Child. You can get tickets here http://www.ticketweb.com/t3/sale/SaleEventDetail?dispatch=loadSelectionData&eventId=3584125
Check out the trailer http://vimeo.com/21126895
Please let me know if you guys can make it.
~Garry
SF Fiber says:
Hey Mission Mission,
We’re in the early stages of launching an effort to push for Fiber-to-the-home service here in the city!
It’s very much a work in progress at this point, but we encourage people to get involved, or sign on to our “I Want Fiber” map and to contact their elected officials.
You can check out the site below,
http://sffiber.info
Anthony B says:
I made a little app to help people meet up and get ice cream in the Mission. http://i.wanticecream.com
Jesus, there’s some fuckwad been yelling on Clarion for the past half-hour; I’m about to call the cops!
Marcus says:
Hi guys, thought you might like this video of my friend eating shit on BART tonight!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XDPk745eQc
Kelly Malones benefit/art show at my friends bar tonight. http://www.hotelbiron.com/events.htm See you there.
Here is some recent Toms Shoes activity, Focus On The Family is a real classy group http://www.focusonlinecommunities.com/blogs/Finding_Home/2011/06/28/toms-shoes-discount
prince says:
Hey at Mission Mission.
I figure you are the most relevant place to suggest an investigative report on the availability of rare original formula Four Loko, Joose, and other caffienated booze drinks in the city.
I was inspired to ask after I stopped by a corner store I will not name, and I unearthed several cans of original formula Joose lurking in a dilapidated corner behind a bunch of newer reformulated ones. They are my treasure stash until I drink them probably next week.
Are there any enterprising craigslist sellers offering them for “collectors”? How rare are they now, anyways?
Guillermo says:
Hey MM folks, dropping a line to let you know about a little party the Sweater Funk crew is throwing on July 29th. We’re taking over Som for our 3 year anniversary party and bringing 80′s funk legend Steve Arrington of Slave out for a live performance! We’ll be playing all the heavy boogie funk folks have come to love and get sweaty to before and after Steve’s performance. Come out, dance your ass off, drink a shit ton too much and experience a FUNK LEGEND!
Check out the info:
-Guillermo
last night I was at the uptown and these sweet little angels came down and sold chicken and waffle sandwiches with legit BBQ sauce. My friends and I stuffed our faces like fat kids and are craving more…does anyone know who these amazing chicken waffle sandwich people are?
sheida says:
I tried to send you an email at the above address and it got bounced back – help?
Hi, I run very lively dive bar club called Mission Dive Bars. Every second Friday we get together at a different bar in The Mission, I usually get drink specials or extended happy hours for the group. We are having an event this Friday and I wish you guys would come check it out http://www.meetup.com/missiondivebars/events/30390611/
-Tomorrow Eugene Violet Ryan Hendry an Adam Szyndrowski of Violet Hour will be on The Afternoon Delight, Sex Talk Radio Between 6-7 You can stream it live @ http://beca.sfsu.edu/KSFS-Radio
Take a listen we will be talking about our new album “Cowardly Loins E.P.”, The CD RELEASE SHOW VIOLET HOUR “Cowardly Loins” EP Release Extravaganza 10/19/11
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=lf#!/event.php?eid=208966882502973
ALSO: we will be playing some of our new songs, talking a little bit about Sex, Rock and Roll, Purple and the Russian drug Crocodile.
SHOULD BE FUN!
Would be awesome if you could re post this. Would help us out alot..
Thank you we really appreciate your help..
-Adam
atomsyn@gmail.com
KSFS Radio | Broadcast and Electronic Communication Arts Department – San Francisco State University
beca.sfsu.edu
EH says:
is RSS broken?
Holler!
Sending some blog love your way..! I’m like a newborn when it comes to blogs about SF, but get in touch if you ever want to use some photos from my blog! And please keep posting!!!
Lostinthe415.com
Jordan Carver says:
Lol, that is a gigantic phone…
tinachristina says:
is anyone else alarmed that sf is “soul patchy?”
http://laughingsquid.com/the-united-states-of-beard-types/
some jerk stole my bike and propped the door open with five fingered shoes. Those shoes are the worst. If you need me i’ll be binge eating my sorrows away tonight.
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/bik/2792194934.html
Help a guy out?
We love reading your blog here at UpOut. We are a events and activity discovery engine focused on helping people find fun and interesting things to do. We’d love pick your brains and work together on this. Check us out and shoot us an email.
http://upout.com
Justin@upout.com
http://blog.sfgate.com/cityinsider/2012/02/06/vandals-cause-at-least-25000-of-damage-in-dolores-park/
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/03/18/HO811MLK18.DTL
HAS says:
why not something on the new coffee shop at the 24th St. BART station, Silver Stone? That’s a huge improvement from Carlos’s bar, which was a continual mess and engendered lots of fights that spilled into the street.
http://sanfrancisco.grubstreet.com/2012/03/silver_stone_caf_coming_soon_t.html
Mission Resident says:
FYI, another cell phone mugging tonight at about 8pm on 23rd Street between Potrero and Hampshire. Victim started screaming and the two assailants fled and have not been apprehended. Wearing dark hoodies and baggy jeans.
Ima furry dog says:
Saturday, 4/14, 2:30 AM, Mission between 16th and 17th (mcdonald’s side): any idea what caused the fresh trail of wet blood running the entire length of the block? (and possibly farther, I didn’t check.) A stabbing? Do you guys keep up with the police blotter?
Daniel Zarco says:
I have seen that there is the option to follow Mission Mission on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and FeedBurner. Why not give the option to follow Mission Mission on Google+. Please consider this request.
P.S.-Reply soon.
I’ve never met anyone who uses Google+.
Wow, I guess Google+ is for younger people?
I don’t think so. I meet lots of young people.
I know a few people who use google+, but all of them work for google.
Ya, Google+ is for googleholics (like me).
Well, I don’t know. It is an alternative to Facebook and Twitter. You know, without all the noise.
Well, I think you’re a motherfucking spammer. Cut it out.
I’m sorry. Did I forget to check the box?
Good point; we need to change the copy next to the box.
Chrispy says:
I thought you guys might be interested in this new Mission event.
I came across a band (Huntinanny) playing from their van on Friday nights across the street from the Delirium bar.
They use a small generator to power their amps and lights and the drummer plays INSIDE the van. I have seen them every Friday night and they played for Critical Mass last night – pretty sweet.
http://www.facebook.com/huntinanny
Timmy says:
I just found out and wanted to spread the word that the guys behind Whiskey Commons Street Food at Dear Mom on Sundays are going to be offering bike delivery to Dear Mom’s sister bars, Evelyn Lee and Thieves Tavern.
So now when we’re playing pool at Evelyn or Tavern (because there is no more pool table at Dear Mom), no one has to miss out on food.
My neighbor informed me that SFPD came by her house and told her a violent sex offender had just moved into The Mission Hotel @ 520 S Vav Ness. Google Dwight Jackson sex offender for more info. Please spread the word. Thanks, scum.
Furries says:
Walking home through the Mission in a fursuit at 1AM is scary!
http://www.flayrah.com/4121/fursuiting-san-francisco-pride-2012
There is a fursuit rap video shoot this week for MC Crumbsnatcher. Last time he did a show at Truck on 15th and Folsom, they said it was like “Chuck-E Cheese from a gay nightmare.”
http://www.facebook.com/MCCrumbsnatcher/info
http://www.superofficialnews.com/bill_murray_party_tour.pdf
bill murray coming to party crash in sf? someone GET ON THIS.
P.D.Bird says:
Hey guys,we were wondering if maybe our blog, Pdbird.tumblr.com could be added to the blog roll. While not soley a Mission blog, we have a lot of content that is relevant to the Mission,Dolores park and cycling. Thanks for the consideration.Cheers
Tam Rose says:
Does anyone know what happened to the bicyclist that was hit by a car on July 25th, near 16 & S. Van Ness around 7:50am? I hope that person is okay, but I didn’t see any information anywhere about it. I was waiting for a bus near there but couldn’t hear any information.
This is kinda cool:
http://www.businessinsider.com/groovy-pictures-of-san-francisco-in-the-summer-of-1971-2012-6
Some of them coulda been shot on any sunny day in Dolores Park today.
wo myn says:
International Go Topless Day, 12-3 in Mission Dolores park today http://gotopless.org/gotopless-day
Buddy M. Balmer says:
You realize that San Francisco is a city where even a supervisor from a predominantly gay district can’t get TOTAL nudity prohibited?
Fight the good fight in a REALLY fucked up town.
Luckyme says:
twice now I’ve been in dp and heard the ‘cold beer cold water’ man walking by only offering cold water! This totally ruins my park experience (and the Official Slogan of the Mission). Is this due to police pressure? can we protest somewhere? sign me up!
Some Guy in North Dakota says:
I have been reading your website all evening. I didn’t know I could connect to websites on other friggin’ planets.
Being from North Dakota, all I can say is “Wow”. Maybe I should include “Whew!” WHAT IS IT WITH YOU PEOPLE???
There are about as many people in this entire state as there are in SF. The few that dress/act/talk/think like you folk get put in our State Mental Hospital.
I am stunned. Amazed. (mostly stunned).
Is there something they put in the water there? What’s the deal?
I just do NOT get it.
//ya, youbetchya
D. Jon Moutarde says:
That’s our story — we’re a magnet for people who are driven nuts by living in North Dakota.
Some other Guy from ND says:
I am responding to “Some Guy from ND”. He is so correct in his evaluation of North Dakota. Last evening I went out for dinner at a local Chinese restaurant whose cuisine was SO bad I should have been paid to eat it. The best on offer was deep fried salad shrimp. Other questionable offerings consisted of individual oysters placed on mussel shells and topped w/ an indeterminate cheese. I’ve always realized that ND’s limited offerings were at the bottom of any scale thus it should be comforting to know that ethnic variation is no culinary adventure. It is not comforting. These small minded and conservative locals deserve nothing better than is on offer and in my opinion deserve less, if it can get any worse.
You know, I don’t want to stir up a fuss, but it would give me a great deal of pleasure to kill spam comments on Mission Mission with a heavy hand.
Something going on at Guerrero and 21st. Not sure what, but I just drove by on my way home and there were 10 cop cars, including some police in riot gear. The cops were just sort of standing around on the median, but more were arriving as I went by.
Hello MissionMission,
This is a blog from a guy I know in passing in our small dive bar community – turns out he is an amazing writer, I am completely addicted to this blog and I think he deserves some props from his community. Just was hoping that you could put the word out about him!
http://talesfromthewhorehouse.wordpress.com/
i still have my eye stite, so it’s safe to watch, i think
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ixsn81SqU6E&feature=g-logo-xit
You guys might like this. I think it’s interesting:
http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/10/16/israeli-inventor-creates-cardboard-bicycle-that-can-change-the-world/
Leon says:
I am probably not a good fit for this apartment:
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/roo/3340929382.html
Mission Douchebaggery at its finest.
fish says:
I was at Dalva Friday night when some random person started tasering people…Have you heard details?
Kevmo says:
KevMo gets called out, and shuts down comments. Write a story on that.
http://uptownalmanac.com/2012/10/were-number-1#comments-anchor
ryancube says:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/walkingsf/4981425631/in/set-72157624812674967/
Bill Anderson says:
Is anyone interested in a public defender trying to conceal FBI and police crimes by threatening possible confinement to a mental hospital if I did not plead guilty to a charge if interference? My story can be found with a search for “New police weapon against homeless” and “Historic coverup of FBI and police crimes currently taking place”. Middletown CT Masters degree Harding University 1993
“If” interference should be of interference.Sorry I didn’t catch that the first time.
Pearl Street says:
I live at Pearl and Duboce, and was awoken last night at around midnight to about 10-15 gunshots that sounded very very close.
Anyone know what happened? I don’t see it reported in the local news.
Chachito415 says:
Looks like YOUR favorite place, Hog n Rocks, to buy bottles of whiskey has been ripping us, among others: http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/SF-businesses-listed-in-health-care-audit-4227172.php
NJL says:
BAASICS INVITES YOU TO:
Happy Hour @ Dr. Teeth & the Electric Mayhem
February 7, 6-8 pm
SAN FRANCISCO, CA- This is the first of several opportunities we are creating for our diverse community of scientists, artists, & visionaries to come together in a casual, fun environment and learn about each other. Dr. Teeth has graciously offered to donate a percentage of Happy Hour sales to BAASICS on this one night only. We would be thrilled to see you there and raise a glass.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 6-8 PM
DR. TEETH AND THE ELECTRIC MAYHEM
2323 Mission Street (between 19th & 20th)
ABOUT BAASICS:
BAASICS (Bay Area Art & Science Interdisciplinary Collaborative Sessions) is a series of San Francisco-based evening programs that bring together local visual artists, musicians, choreographers, scientists, and interdisciplinary thinkers to present engaging, multi-media lectures and performances that explore a given theme. http://www.baasics.com
Allan’s mug is on Uptown Almanac. http://uptownalmanac.com/
Gas leak at 24th and Bryant.
codesmith says:
Bike thief caught in the act 23rd and Harrison
http://www.plattyjo.com/2013/02/meeting-a-would-be-miyata-bike-thief-in-the-mission/
Van Ness was blocked off by Police this morning between 21st and 20th St. Any idea what was going on? I went by around 9:30 and they had yellow caution tape strung all the way across the Van Ness, and cop cars forcing traffic to turn at 21st st.
Please erase my previous comment with a link. Thanks.
HBO filming at 17th and Treat right now.
U Suck A says:
The POTUS is in town.
Ginger Rubio Salon says:
Hello Mission Mission!!
I just wanted to send out an invitation to Ginger Rubio Salon’s fashion show called ‘Chelsea Girls’. It will be taking place at 20th and Shotwell on May 11 7pm. Its a runway show exhibing Andy Warhls girls living in 2013 mission district. DJ and drinks. Clothing by Stone Pnoy, hair and makeup by the staff of Ginger Rubio. Hope you can come check it out!!!
please put the word out to SAVE ESTA NOCHE!!! Its our local mission Latino gay bar!
Giacomo Balli says:
SF Street Cleaning app for iPhone has been released by Apple just in time for WWDC http://bit.ly/12mcbdL
Giacomo Balli
http://giacomoballi.com
I think you guys will dig this:
Gorgeous time-lapse photography of fog rolling in/over SF and environs.
This Saturday, August 10th, is a massive fundraising party for the Noisebridge Hackerspace, which will include 18 acts: bands, poets, comics, and a DJ. Entrance is free and food is provided. All ages. 4pm – Late. Bring your friends and enemies.
Doctor Popular says:
I thought I’d drop a line about our pal Leef’s new KS fundraiser for a new sign. http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/missioncomics/a-new-sign-for-mission-comics-and-art He’s got a great shop, filled with local art, zines, and comics, and a new sign could help him stand out a bit.
Somanabolic Muscle Maximizer Review says:
As mentioned, thousands of people have already seen life changing results after using Kyle Leon’s Muscle Maximizer for just
a few weeks, and there is nothing that says that you can’t experience the same changes as
well. Yes we would like muscle, but in the right way, and gaining lean muscle without fat is the key to doing this.
this program developer, Kyle Leon, is a well-known personal trainer and
nutrition expert in recent years and is regarded as one of the most respected
coaches in the world when it comes to building muscle mass
naturally.
my blog post :: Somanabolic Muscle Maximizer Review
hypertension says:
Eat a healthy diet that is low in cholesterol,
saturated fat and salt. Also see the article, ” Mercury from chlor-alkali plants: measured concentrations in food product sugar. High blood pressure may lead to several heart diseases like stroke. It maintains proper blood circulation in the body leading to proper control of BP. There are quite a lot of antihypertensive medications out there, and they have different mechanisms of action.
Here is my web-site hypertension
Nosy Norbert says:
Can we get pitch-torches ready? At the market across the street from the auto body shop on 16th near Kilowatt I overhead the landlord talking to the shopkeep. He said someone is trying to open a Bi-rite clone there — in the auto body shop. It can’t be! The poor market owners on 16th between Mission and Guerrero will be devastated. Is there no low that these greedy yuppies will not sink?
troll says:
methinks you already know the answer to that last question. at this point, you should.
phen375 says:
Hi, i belіeve that і noticed yоu visіted my wеb sіte thus і came
to return the chοοse?.I am trуing to in fіnding iѕsues
to improve my ωeb sіtе!I assume its adequate to usе a feω of your іdеas!!
The Ruth Asawa School of The Arts vocal department is having a fundraiser next Friday night at The Ramp. DJ Purple, Karaoke, Taco Bar and Beer for $20. Help send the SOTA kids to Carnegie Hall in December!
https://scontent-a-sjc.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/1238280_10153184029970524_1710147731_n.jpg
Philip Arambula says:
I was on your site and noticed that you used WordPress as your platform. I thought I’d reach out and invite you to preview our advanced content delivery WordPress plugin that reduces bandwidth resources. In addition to reduced bandwidth resources your site will also experience more efficient image serving based on your end users geographical location like a traditional CDN. This is a free plugin and takes only a few minutes to install. We’re offering early adopters like yourself free use of the service too.
Although we are a type of CDN you can run our plugin concurrently with your CDN (or any host) and we actually encourage it. For example, we have many sites running us on top of MaxCDN, Cloudflare, Cloudfront and others for maximum efficiency.
I was hoping we could discuss further and you’d allow me to send you our special invitation (billing bypass) link to create your account.
SwarmCDN
colleen schmidt says:
opened a discount designer home furnishing and clothing store at
thread lounge
724 valencia between 18-19th street
formerly PJ’S 2GO owner dressed the stars !!! Traveles the world over
to find the best pcs of clothing and home furnishing
opened a amazing bizarre …teamed up with her boyfriend jon Vohr who built out an amazing space… used to be a welding studio on now the new home of thread lounge
we have great photos and a story
thank you love mission mission!
David Kraine says:
Hi Mission Mission!
I wanted to send a request for help getting out the word for a scifi series I’m publishing. I live at Baker/Fell and am throwing a release party for my multimedia, scifi adventure at Vinyl (Oak and Divis) on January 29.
I’d love for you to publish even a short mention of the open release party on Mission Mission, and for you to attend for a follow up story if you’re available. You can check out excerpts from both the e- and companion comic book series on their websites, and see the growing grassroots support at my facebook page:
– http://www.ThePlagueSeries.com
– http://www.EzekialComics.com
– facebook.com/ThePlagueSeries
I’ve attached more information, but please don’t hesitate with questions.
Thanks for considering!
Snapshot Details:
What: The Plague – indie scifi series release party
When: January 29, 2014 @ 7p
Where: Vinyl (@Oak and Divisadero)
jeff ross says:
contact at missionmission dot org is bouncing back…..
-jeff at sf indiefest
Jupiter Henry says:
Hey guys, I was trying to email you, but I keep getting this auto reply that says “Delivery to the recipient has been delayed” – are there new email addresses I should be using?
Jupiter Henry
Your daily dose of WTF?!
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/apa/4314151092.html
I just noticed a place called Pollo Campero on Mission Street. From the Yelp reviews, it seems like its been open since 2013. I checked out the website and they have more than 50 restaurants in the US. Why was there no protests over this chain restaurant? It just really angers me that people act all holier than though and talk about maintaining the neighborhood feel…only when it’s in their best interests.
have you actually set foot in there? it DEFINITELY maintains the neighborhood feel!
alpo wasteland says:
Bit of spam at the bottom of this excellent page:
http://www.missionmission.org/2008/10/14/throwback-mission-1989
Ariel Dovas says:
Cool, should be gone now.
Hey, have you guys seen this yet? It’s nonsense, of course, as everyone with any sense knows, Taqueria CanCun is the best burrito in the world. But, still, seems right up your alley.
http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/in-search-of-americas-best-burrito/
Thanks for wasting my time with this.
Howard Cosell says:
You are The Worst of All Time, HDPDV.
You spelled “Best” wrong.
Forced out says:
You should be doing this story
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Mission-artists-struggle-to-return-to-building-5613858.php#photo-6580255
Mikey sfdoggerwalker says:
http://www.popssf.com/HelpPops.html
This sucks
Jason Lund says:
Howdy there,,
I’m writing you today to invite you a preview tasting of my new venture called Hal Jr’s Bar B Q.
Hal Jr’s Bar B Q Is Kansas City style bar b q meat, slow cooked for 10-12 hours in a real hardwood smoker, using a blend of hardwood oak charcoal, hickory & applewood. It’s a secret KC- style spicy dry rub, with a tomato molasses based sauce served on the side. Sides vary from the traditional such as mac n cheese & baked beans, to the locally inspired corn salad.
You may be curious about me. My name is Jason Lund. I was born & raised in St. Louis, which fostered my love of midwestern BBQ. I perfected my cooking craft in a variety of kitchens in Lawrence, KS & New York City, before taking a brief hiatus. Now, I’m back and excited to bring the midwestern BBQ i loved and grew up on here to San Francisco.
Please join us at Mission Minis, September 20th at 7:30 , for our first preview tasting. I’m excited to show you what I’ve been working on!
Please RSVP by September 15th to haljrsbarbq@gmail.com
Thanks for your time and see you soon,
I give up. You have 13 or 14 “authors”, and not one of you can be bothered to delete the comment spam on this blog? Guess you like it, don’t you? Lotta hits, beau-coups bucks, eh?
Precita Park says:
Just saw a permit license up for a Hop Oast Pub and Brewery from Graf Zeppelin LLC on the corner of Bryant and Cesar Chavez where the short lived furniture store was and K&B Market before that. Know anything about it? New drink spot for post-Sheepskin City shopping?
Shotwell St says:
Any idea what is going on with the property/parking lot on Shotwell & South Van Ness between 23rd and 24th? People there have regularly been burning trash there in what appears to be a metal barrel, creating a lot of flames, smoke and foul odor. The past two nights the Fire Dept has shown up.
foo says:
There is a burrito place called Dolores Burrito in Alexanderplatz in Berlin and it is decorated with huge maps of San Francisco. The burritos are pretty good.
timbo says:
It’s been covered here already:
http://www.missionmission.org/2010/06/21/another-mission-review-of-dolores-burritos-in-berlin/
http://www.missionmission.org/2008/05/26/guten-tag-mission-burritos-in-berlin/
http://www.missionmission.org/2008/07/16/review-dolores-burrito/
Okay for Pedestrians to Occupy and Hold Parking Spots?
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line694
|
__label__cc
| 0.576451
| 0.423549
|
REPENTANCE AT QUMRAN
Pengarang Mark A. Jason
Penerbit FORTRESS PRESS
Mark A. Jason offers a detailed investigation of the place of repentance in the Dead Sea Scrolls, addressing a significant lacuna in Qumran scholarship. Normally, when the belief system of the community is examined, ?repentance? is usually taken for granted or relegated to a peripheral position. By careful attention to key texts, Jason establishes the importance of repentance as a fundamental way of structuring and describing religious experience within the Qumran community. Repentance was important not only for entry into the community and covenant but also for daily governance and cultic activities, and even for authenticating understanding of the end times. Jason shows, then, that repentance was a central and decisive element in shaping that community?s identity and undergirded its religious experience from the start. Further, comparison with relevant texts from the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha shows that the Qumran community represented a distinctive penitential movement in Second Temple Judaism.
Penerbit : FORTRESS PRESS
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line698
|
__label__wiki
| 0.891104
| 0.891104
|
Awesome: 5.88%
Pretty Crappy: 0%
See another review of this film:Charles Tatum (Worth A Look)
Extreme Measures
"Sturdy if implausible thriller."
The medical thriller 'Extreme Measures' concerns itself with a neurologist who kidnaps homeless men and conducts experiments on their spinal cords. Ah, the stark realism of these thrillers!
The movie is borderline preposterous, but it's sturdy and professional, and I surprised myself by having a pretty good time with it. It's tightly constructed, and it takes time to unfold smoothly; if it's never as scary or provocative as it means to be, at least it's straightforward and satisfying.
Hugh Grant, as the doctor hero Guy Luthan, provides one of the movie's more pleasurable surprises by proving he has the chops for a Hollywood thriller. Intelligent yet never arrogant (he's a model of British self-deprecation), Grant is easily the politest thriller hero in years; when he isn't saying "Please" and "Thank you ever so much," he's apologizing profusely for taking people's time. Grant's hesitant persona, sometimes annoying in other roles, works here as a '90s-guy tribute to James Stewart's uncertain heroes in Hitchcock's films.
The script, adapted by Tony Gilroy (Dolores Claiborne) from a Michael Palmer novel, follows Guy as he hunts for information about a homeless man who turned up in Guy's hospital with mysterious symptoms. The man dies and then vanishes; it becomes clear that someone powerful wants Guy discredited and, if necessary, dead. You've seen a lot of this before. But then Extreme Measures turns into an ethical thriller. An ambitious (i.e., mad) neurologist, Dr. Lawrence Myrick (Gene Hackman), has been swiping homeless people and tinkering with them in his secret lab. His goal is to cure paralysis by regenerating damaged nerves, and he believes he's on the brink of a breakthrough. Your take on Myrick's mission depends on which description you prefer: "His methods are barbaric, but his motives are good" or "His motives are good, but his methods are barbaric."
There is a difference. And there is no better actor than Gene Hackman at suggesting the shifting gray tones of morality. When Hackman delivered a long and quite persuasive speech defending his actions, I found myself nodding in agreement with some of it. That's the mark of a great actor. But then Grant counters with his own speech denouncing the experiments, and I could hear people in the audience agreeing with Grant out loud. I wonder if they'd have done the same if Hackman, not Grant, had been allowed the last word.
But this isn't a philosophy film; it's a Hollywood thriller, and it comes down firmly on the side of decency. That's fine -- we know early on that we're not in Vertigo territory. The ethical questions are there, quite frankly, to restore Hugh Grant's moral glow after his unfortunate 1995 comedy What Do I Get for Fifty Dollars?
Devotees of Freudian symbology will notice that director Michael Apted stages a prolonged and spooky odyssey for Grant inside a dark, wet tunnel. Elizabeth Hurley, the film's producer, may have appreciated the irony.
link directly to this review at http://www.hollywoodbitchslap.com/review.php?movie=5800&reviewer=416
12/29/17 morris campbell disturbing entertaining film
10/21/08 Shaun Wallner Thought this was a good film.
1/11/08 Ronin A very good movie.. A lot better than most todays products. And I hate Grant
3/25/03 Jack Sommersby A flawed but spellbinding thriller. Grant is sensational.
3/10/02 Cat This movie was pretty good not an oscar but still an enjoyable watch
03-Mar-1996 (R)
DVD: 14-Dec-1999
John Toles-Bey
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line702
|
__label__cc
| 0.573995
| 0.426005
|
Horizon North Logistics Inc. Announces Recent Contract Award
CALGARY, ALBERTA, April 12, 2017 – TSX Symbol: HNL
Calgary, Alberta (April 12, 2017) – Horizon North Logistics Inc. (“Horizon North” or the “Corporation”) (TSX – HNL) announced today that its Industrial division has been awarded a new camp service contract.
Horizon North has recently been awarded a three-year contract for the provision of camp solutions in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut. Horizon North will be providing a turnkey 380 person hybrid camp as well as providing camp services at the customer’s existing camp facilities. Concurrently with the provision of these services the customer will be installing an 800 person permanent workforce accommodation facility (the “Permanent Facility”). Horizon North will be providing camp services at the Permanent Facility as it comes online. Combined revenue over the term is expected to be approximately $62 million and will require approximately $7 million of capital to be deployed which is already included in the Corporation’s 2017 capital budget.
“Horizon North has a long history of working in Canada’s Arctic regions. It is this history combined with our ongoing commitment to safety and engagement with the local communities in which we operate that we believe were instrumental in securing this award,” said Rod Graham, President and CEO of Horizon North. “We look forward to continuing our relationship with the Inuit communities to maximize benefits through local sourcing, direct employment and capacity building.”
About Horizon North
Horizon North is a publicly listed corporation (TSX: HNL.TO) providing a full range of industrial, commercial, and residential products and services. Our Industrial division supplies workforce accommodations, camp management services, access solutions, maintenance and utilities. Our Modular Construction division integrates modern design concepts and technology with state of the art, off-site manufacturing processes; producing high quality building solutions for commercial and residential offerings including offices, hotels, and retail buildings, as well as distinctive single detached dwellings and multi-family residential structures. As a result of our diverse product and service offerings, Horizon North is uniquely positioned to meet the needs of our customers in numerous sectors, anywhere in Canada.
Additional information related to Horizon North, including the Corporation’s annual information form, news releases, financial statements and MD&A are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com
For further information, please contact Rod Graham, President and Chief Executive Officer or Scott Matson, Senior Vice President Finance and Chief Financial Officer, 1600, 505 -3rd Street S.W., Calgary, Alberta T2P 3E6; Telephone (403) 517-4654, Fax (403) 517-4678; website: www.horizonnorth.ca
This news release contains certain “forward-looking statements” or “forward-looking information” (collectively referred to herein as “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, forecasts, estimates, expectations and objectives for future operations that are subject to a number of assumptions, risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of the Corporation. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words “expects”, “plans”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “intends”, “estimates”, “projects”, “potential” and similar expressions, or are events or conditions that “will”, “would”, “may”, “could” or “should” occur or be achieved. This news release contains forward-looking statements, pertaining to, among other things, the following: the Corporation’s provision of a camp and camp services at the customer’s existing camp facilities; the customer’s installation of the Permanent Facility; the Corporation’s provision of camp services at the Permanent Facility; revenues generated from the new camp service contract; deployment and availability of capital; and the Corporation’s relationship with Inuit communities.
Although Horizon North believes that the material factors, expectations and assumptions expressed in such forward-looking statements are reasonable based on information available to it on the date such statements were made, no assurances can be given as to future results, levels of activity and achievements and such statements are not guarantees of future performance. Horizon North’s actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward-looking statements and readers should not place undue importance or reliance on the forward-looking statements.
The forward-looking statements contained in this news release reflect several material factors, expectations and assumptions of Horizon North including, without limitation: that Horizon North will continue to conduct its operations in a manner consistent with past operations; the general continuation of current or, where applicable, assumed industry conditions; availability of debt and/or equity sources to fund Horizon North’s capital and operating requirements as needed; and certain cost assumptions.
Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements including, without limitation: general economic, market and business conditions; the camp and Permanent Facility may not be completed in the timelines anticipated, in the manner anticipated or at all; the delivery of the project may not have the results currently anticipated by Horizon North; Horizon North may be unable to resolve mechanical or operational issues in the timelines anticipated, in the manner anticipated or at all; increased costs and expenses; reliance on industry partners; and certain other risks detailed from time to time in Horizon North’s public disclosure documents including, without limitation, those risks identified in this news release, and in Horizon North’s annual information form, copies of which are available on Horizon North’s SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive.
Statements including forward-looking statements are made as of the date they are given and, except as required by applicable securities laws, Horizon North disclaims any intention or obligation to publically update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.
Certain information set out herein may be considered as “financial outlook” within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The purpose of this financial outlook is to provide readers with disclosure regarding Horizon North’s reasonable expectations as to the anticipated results of its proposed business activities for the periods indicated. Readers are cautioned that the financial outlook may not be appropriate for other purposes.
Horizon North Logistics Inc. Announces Recently Awarded Industrial Services Contracts
Horizon North Logistics Inc. Announces Conditional Award of Camp Service Contract
Horizon North Logistics Inc. Provides Operational Update
affordable housing award Business Business development camps Charity community community involvement construction award corporate eco friendly Financial results Fire camps Horizon North Investors Karoleena Luxury Homes matting Mike Holmes Modular Building modular construction modular homes modular hotels modular housing Office space oilpatch Open lodge Organizational Change Prefab Homes renovations safety shares soil stabilization stocks temporary housing Training facility work camp workforce accommodation Workforce housing
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line703
|
__label__wiki
| 0.589809
| 0.589809
|
You are here: Home Art History Courses
Jessica O'Donnell
e: jodonnell.hughlane@dublincity.ie
Peoples College Lectures 2018-2019 (pdf)
Peoples College article (pdf)
About Education & Research
Adult Classes & Courses
Portfolio Courses
Art History Courses
Seminars and Symposia
In Service Courses for Teachers
Collaborative Outreach
The Eve of St Agnes by Harry Clarke
Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane is committed to providing dynamic, innovative and engaging programmes of education, appreciation and information on modern and contemporary art. Special art history courses taking place over a number of weeks include Avenues into Modern and Contemporary Art in conjunction with the ICTU Peoples College. Taking place in the Gallery at 11.00am on Saturday mornings from October to April, places on this 24 week course can be booked by contacting 01 8735879, e. JLIB_HTML_CLOAKING . Fee €135
For details of upcoming Peoples College lectures please see: http://www.hughlane.ie/drawing-classes-for-adults/courses-forthcoming/2084-peoples-college-lecture-series-2018-2019
Basic Talks is a series of informal talks with leading contemporary practitioners, taking place at Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane on the second Friday of every month. Curated by Basic Space in partnership with The Hugh Lane, BASIC TALKS is an open platform for talks, panels, lectures and performances. Speakers will include artists, curators, writers and critics who will generate discourse on producing and exhibiting art. BASIC TALKS is a collaboration between Basic Space and Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane, exploring alternatives in the dissemination of contemporary art and its discourses. Free and no booking required unless otherwise stated. For details of upcoming talks please see http://www.hughlane.ie/lectures/forthcoming-lectures
Art History Series
Fridays 22 and 29 March 2019, 2-4pm
A Drama in Muslin: Dublin in Art
During these four illustrated talks, Jessica Fahy will explore inter-relationships between authors’ descriptions and artists’ representations of Dublin city and society. Fee €20 including tea/coffee. Booking through eventbrite.ie is required here.
Thursdays 9 and 16 May 2019, 2-4pm
Artists’ Memoirs
Join Jessica Fahy for these four illustrated lectures when the vivid accounts of artist’s lives and careers are explored through the medium of writing by artists. Fee €20 including tea/coffee. Booking through eventbrite.ie is required.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line707
|
__label__wiki
| 0.62337
| 0.62337
|
Home > World > British postal workers begin national strike
United States. Youth and Socialism: The Reasons for a Meeting Venezuela — The Washington Condor Wants to Intevene in Caracas Indian Lok Sabha elections 2019 Venezuela: coup d’État scenario too perfect HAITI. Wave of Protests Against Miserable Living Conditions Michel Mujica: “It’s up to the Venezuelan people to resolve these problems” Apocalypse Brazil Asia : The Koreas forge ahead Brazil, Year 1 of the Bolsonaro Regime Mumia Abu-Jamal — A Formidable Success, But ... The Cubans Will Have the Last Word Latin America: Brazil - Under the control of extreme-right authoritarianism
0 | 12 | 24 | 36 | 48 | 60 | 72 | 84 | 96 | ... | 1068
ORIGINAL FRENCH ARTICLE: Les postiers britanniques démarrent leur grève national
by London Special Correspondant Peter Avis
British postal workers begin national strike
Translated Wednesday 28 October 2009, by Clare Faulder and reviewed by Clare Faulder
The already extremely unpopular privatisation of the Royal Mail now comes up against the mobilisation of public sector workers opposed to the ruinous effects it will have in terms of jobs.
Some 120,000 British postal workers decided to stop work for two days, starting a long-expected strike action yesterday to save jobs, increase salaries and defend the oldest public service in the country. At the same time, last-gasp negotiations between the Communication Workers Union (CWU) and Royal Mail management broke down, which has already caused the postal workers to schedule a further three day strike for the end of next week.
Royal Mail management is obviously tempted to force an outcome: it announced a few days ago the immediate employment of 30,000 temporary, untrained workers in order to break the action already underway at regional level with numerous localised walk-outs. Some 42,000 sorting office workers kicked off the action yesterday. They will be joined today by their 78,000 collection and delivery worker colleagues.
Postal workers oppose the reorganisation prompted by the Government’s privatisation project, which is currently deferred due to the opposition of 140 Labour MPs. The most profitable sectors of the postal service are targeted by the project. And Royal Mail management continues to head in this direction, undaunted by proceeding with job cuts. In total, a further 60,000 jobs are threatened, following a first round of 40,000 job cuts over two years.
The union accepts the importance of modernising the service, but it denounces the Government’s method. It intends to go through Acas, the national industrial relations conciliation service.
One hundred MPs — mainly Labour — have appealed to the Government to do all it can “in order to ensure that the Royal Mail responds positively to the union’s proposals for conciliation”. But the Government and Enterprise Minister Lord Peter Mandelson are not budging for the moment, except to condemn the action.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line708
|
__label__wiki
| 0.576361
| 0.576361
|
The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Upas Tree, by Florence L. Barclay
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net
Title: The Upas Tree
A Christmas Story for all the Year
Author: Florence L. Barclay
Release Date: August 6, 2005 [EBook #16454]
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE UPAS TREE ***
Produced by Robert Cicconetti, Janet Blenkinship and the
Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
"That figure was not his own."
From a drawing by F.H. Townsend. (page 202)]
The Upas Tree
Florence L. Barclay
Author of "The Rosary," etc
G.P. Putnam's Sons
New York and London
The Knickerbocker Press
The Knickerbocker Press, New York
V.C.B.
CHAPTER I—WHICH SHALL SPEAK FIRST?
CHAPTER II—THE SOB OF THE WOMAN
CHAPTER III—HELEN TAKES THE INITIATIVE
CHAPTER IV—FIRELIGHT IN THE STUDIO
CHAPTER V—THE INFANT OF PRAGUE
CHAPTER VI—AUBREY PUTS DOWN HIS FOOT
CHAPTER VII—A FRIEND IN NEED
CHAPTER VIII—PARADISE LOST
CHAPTER IX—THE PINNACLE OF THE TEMPLE
CHAPTER X—RONNIE ARRIVES IN A FOG
CHAPTER XI—THE MIRAGE
CHAPTER XII—A FRIEND IN DEED
CHAPTER XIII—RONNIE FACES THE UPAS
CHAPTER XIV—AS IN A MIRROR
CHAPTER XV—"THE FOG LIFTS"
CHAPTER XVI—"HEMUSTREMEMBER"
CHAPTER XVII—"HE NEVER KNEW!"
CHAPTER XVIII—THE FACE IN THE MIRROR
CHAPTER XIX—UNTO US A CHILD IS BORN
CHAPTER XX—GOOD-NIGHT TO THE INFANT OF PRAGUE
Part I.
WHICH SHALL SPEAK FIRST?
Ronald West stood at the window of his wife's sitting-room, looking across the bright garden-borders to the wide park beyond, and wondering how on earth he should open the subject of which his mind had been full during their morning ride.
He had swung off his own horse a few moments before; thrown the bridle to a waiting groom, and made his way round to her stirrup. Then he had laid his hand upon Silverheels' mane, and looking up into his wife's glowing, handsome face, he had said: "May I come to your room for a talk, Helen? I have something very important to tell you."
Helen had smiled down upon him.
"I thought my cavalier was miles away from his horse and his wife, during most of the ride. But, if he proposes taking me on the same distant journey, he shall be forgiven. Also, I have something to tell you, Ronnie, and I see the turret clock gives us an hour before luncheon. I must scribble out a message for the village; then I will come to you at once, without stopping to change."
She laid her hand on his shoulder, and dropped lightly to the ground. Then, telling the groom to wait, she passed into the hall.
Ronald left her standing at the table, walked into the sitting-room alone, and suddenly realised that when you have thought of a thing continuously, day and night, during the best part of a week, and kept it to yourself, it is not easy to begin explaining it to another person—even though that other person be your always kind, always understanding, altogether perfect wife!
He had forgotten to leave his hat and gloves in the hall. He now tossed them into a chair—Helen's own particular chair it so happened—but kept his riding-crop in his hand, and thwacked his leather gaiters with it, as he stood in the bay window.
It was such a perfect spring morning! The sun shone in through the old-fashioned lattice panes.
Some silly old person of a bygone century had scratched with a diamond on one of these a rough cross, and beneath it the motto: In hoc vince.
Ronald had inveighed against this. If Helen's old ancestor, having nothing better to do, had wanted to write down a Latin motto, he should have put it in his pocket-book, or, better still, on the even more transitory pages of the blotter, instead of scribbling on the beautiful diamond panes of the old Grange windows. But Helen had laughed and said: "I should think he lived before the time of blotters, dear! No doubt the morning sun was shining on the glass, Ronnie, as he stood at the window. It was of the cross gleaming in the sunlight, that he wrote: In this conquer. If we could but remember it, the path of self-sacrifice and clear shining is always the way to victory."
Helen invariably stood up for her ancestors, which was annoying to a very modern young man who, not being aware of possessing any, considered ancestors unnecessary and obsolete.
But to-day the glittering letters shone out to him as an omen.
He meant to conquer, in this, as in all else.
It was curious that Helen should have chanced upon the simile of a distant journey. Another good omen! In hoc vince!
He heard her coming.
Now—how should he begin? He must be very tactful. He must break it to her gently.
Helen, closing the door behind her, came slowly down the sunny room. The graceful lines of her tall figure looked well, in the severe simplicity of her riding-habit. Her mass of beautiful hair was tucked away beneath her riding-hat. But nothing could take from the calm sweetness of her face, nor the steady expectant kindness of her eyes. Helen's eyes always looked out upon the world, as if they expected to behold a Vision Beautiful.
As she moved towards the bay window, she was considering whether she would decide to have her say first, or whether she would let Ronnie begin. Her wonderful news was so all-important. Having made up her mind that the time had come when she might at last share it with Ronnie, it seemed almost impossible to wait one moment before telling him. On the other hand, it would be so absorbing to them both, that probably Ronnie's subject would be allowed to lapse, completely forgotten and unmentioned. Nothing which was of even the most transitory interest to Ronnie, ever met this fate at his wife's hands. Therefore the very certainty that her news would outweigh his, inclined her to let him speak first.
She was spared the responsibility of decision.
Ronald, turning quickly, faced his wife. Hesitation seemed futile; promptness, essential. In hoc vince!
"Helen," he said, "I want to go to Central Africa."
Helen looked at him in silence, during a moment of immense astonishment.
Then she lifted his hat and gloves, laid them upon a table, seated herself in her easy-chair, and carefully flicked some specks of dust from her riding-habit.
"That is a long way to want to go, darling," she said, quietly. "But I can see you think something of imperative importance is calling you there. Sit down and tell me all about it, right from the beginning. It is a far cry from our happy, beautiful life here, to Central Africa. You have jumped me to the goal, without any knowledge of the way. Now suppose you take me gently along your mental route."
Ronald flung himself, with a sigh of relief, into the deep basket-work chair opposite Helen's. His boyish face cleared visibly; then brightened into enthusiasm. He stretched out his legs, put his hands behind his head, and looked admiringly across at his wife.
"Helen, you are so perfectly splendid in always understanding, always making it quite easy for a fellow to tell you things. You have a way of looking past all minor details, straight to the great essentials. Most women would stand——"
"Never mind what most women would do, Ronnie. I never stand, if I can sit down! It is a waste of useful energy. But you must tell me 'the great essentials,' as they appear to you, if I am to view them properly. Why do you want to go to Central Africa?"
Ronald leapt up and stood with his back to the mantel-piece.
"Helen, I have a new plot; a quite wonderful love-story; better than anything I have done yet. But the scene is laid in Central Africa, and I must go out there to get the setting vivid and correct. You remember how thrilled we were the other day, by the account of that missionary chap, who disappeared into the long grass, thirteen feet high, over twenty years ago; lived and worked among the natives, cut off from all civilisation; then, at last, crawled out again and saw a railway train for the first time in twenty-three years; got on board, and came home, full of wonderful tales of his experiences? Well—you know how, after he had been out there a few years, he found he desperately needed a wife; remembered a plucky girl he had known when he was a boy in England, and managed to get a letter home, asking her to come out to him? She came, and safely reached the place appointed, at the fringe of the wild growth. There she waited several months. But at last the man who had called to her in his need, crawled out of the long grass, took her to himself, and they crawled in again—man and wife—and were seen no more, until they reappeared many years later. Well—that true story has given me the idea of a plot, which will, I verily believe, take the world by storm! So original and thrilling! Far beyond any missionary love-stories."
Helen's calm eyes looked into the excited shining of his.
"Dear, why shouldn't a missionary's love-story be as exciting as any other? I don't quite see how you can better the strangely enthralling tale to which we listened."
"Ah, don't you?" cried Ronald West. "That's because you are not a writer of romances! My dear girl, two men crawled out of the long grass thirteen feet high, at the place where the woman was waiting! Two men—do you see? And the man who crawled out first was not the man who had sent for her! He turned up just too late. Now, do you see?"
"I see," said Helen. "Thirteen is always apt to be an unlucky number."
"Oh, don't joke!" cried Ronald. "I haven't time to tell you, now, how it all works out. But it's quite the strongest thing I've thought of yet. And do you see what it means to me? Think of the weird, mysterious atmosphere of Central Africa, as a setting for a really strong love-interest. Imagine three quite modern, present-day people, learning to know their own hearts and each other's, fighting out the crisis of their lives according to the accepted rules and standards of twentieth century civilisation—yet all amongst the wild primitive savagery of uncivilised tribes, and the extraordinary primeval growths of the unexplored jungles, where plants ape animals, and animals ape men, and all nature rears its head with a loose rein, as if defying method, law, order and construction! Why, merely to walk through some of the tropical houses at Kew gives one a sort of lawless feeling! If I stay long among the queer gnarled plants—all spiky and speckled and hairy; squatting, plump and ungainly on the ground, or spreading huge knotted arms far overhead, as if reaching out for things they never visibly attain—I always emerge into the ordinary English atmosphere outside, feeling altogether unconventional. As I walk across the well-kept lawns, I find it almost difficult to behave with decorum. It takes me quite a long time to become really common-place and conventional once more."
Helen smiled. "Darling," she said, "I think you must have visited the tropical plants in Kew Gardens more frequently than I realised! I shall have to forbid Kew, when certain important County functions are pending."
"Oh, bother the County!" cried Ronnie. "I never went in for a French dancing-master to bid me mind my P's and Q's! But, seriously, Helen, don't you understand how much this means to me? Both my last novels have had tame English settings. I can't go on forever letting my people make love in well-kept gardens!"
"Dear Ronnie, you have a good precedent. The first couple on record made love in a garden."
"Nonsense, darling! Eden was a quite fascinating jungle, in which all the wild animals conversed with intelligence and affability. You don't suppose Eve would have stood there alone, calmly listening while the serpent talked theology, unless conversations with animals had been an every-day occurrence. Think how you'd flee to me, if an old cow in the park suddenly asked you a question. But do let's keep to the point. I've got a new plot, and I must have a new setting."
"Why not be content to do as you have done before, Ronnie; go on writing, simply and sincerely, of the life you live and know?"
"Because, my dear girl, in common with the Athenians, people are always wanting either to tell or to hear some new thing. I've got hold of a jolly new thing, and I'm going to run it for all it's worth."
Helen considered this in silence.
Ronald walked over to the window, and beat a tattoo upon the In hoc vince pane.
"Do you see?" he asked.
"Yes," she answered, slowly. "I see your point, but I also see danger ahead. I am so anxious that, in your work, you should keep the object and motive at the highest; not putting success or popularity in their wrong place. Let success be the result of good work well done—conscientiously done. Let popularity follow unsought, simply from the fact that you have been true to yourself, and to your instinctive inspiration; that you have seen life at its best, and tried to portray it at its highest. To go rushing off to Central Africa in order to find a startling setting, is an angling after originality, which will by no means ensure doing really better work. Oh, Ronnie, my advice is: be content to stay at home, and to write truly and sincerely of the things you know."
Ronald came back to his chair; sat down, his elbows on his knees, his chin in his hands, and looked earnestly into the troubled eyes of his wife.
"But, Helen," he said, "that really is not the point. Can't you see that I am completely possessed by this new plot? Also, that Central Africa is its only possible setting? It is merely a satisfactory side-issue, that it varies my mise-en-scène."
"Must you go off there, Ronnie, in order to write it? Why not get all the newest and best books on African travel, and read up facts——"
"Never!" cried Ronald, on his feet again, and walking up and down the room. "I must be steeped in the wonderful African atmosphere, before I can sub-consciously work it into my book. No account of other men's travels could do this for me. Besides, one might get all the main things correct, yet make a slip in some little unimportant detail. Then, by-and-by, some Johnny would come along, who could no more have written a page of your book than he could fly, but who happens to be intimately acquainted with the locality. He ignores the plot, the character-study, all the careful work on the essentials; but he spots your trivial error concerning some completely unimportant detail. So off he writes to the papers, triumphantly airing his little tit-bit of superior information; other mediocre people take it up—and you never hear the end of it."
Helen laughed, tender amusement in her eyes.
"Ronnie dear, I admit that not many Johnnies could write your books. But most Johnnies can fly, now-a-days! You must be more up-to-date in your similes, old boy; or you will have your wife writing to the papers, remarking that you are behind the times! But, seriously, Ronnie, you should be grateful to anybody who takes the trouble to point out an error, however small, in one of your books. You are keen that your work should be perfect; and if a mistake is mentioned, it can be set right. Why, surely you remember, when you read me the scene in the manuscript you wrote just after our marriage, in which a good lady could not sit down upon a small chair, owing to her toupet, I—your admiring and awestruck wife—ventured to point out that a toupet was not a crinoline; and you were quite grateful, Ronnie. You did not consider me an unappreciative Johnny, nor even a mediocre person! Who has, unknown to me, been trampling on your susceptibilities?"
"Nobody, thank goodness! I have never written a scene yet, of which I had not carefully verified every detail of the setting. But it has happened lots of times to people I know. Unimportant slips never seem to me to matter in another fellow's work, but they would matter desperately, horribly, appallingly in one's own. Therefore, nothing will ever induce me to place the plot of a novel of mine, in surroundings with which I am not completely familiar. Helen—I must go to Central Africa."
THE SOB OF THE WOMAN
Helen took off her riding-hat, and passed her fingers through the abundant waves of her hair.
"How long would it take you, Ronnie?" "Well—including the journey out, and the journey back, I ought to have a clear seven months. If we could get off in a fortnight, we might be back early in November; anyway, in plenty of time for Christmas."
"Why do you say 'we,' darling?"
"Why not say 'we'? We always do, don't we?"
"Yes, dear. For three happy years it has always been 'we,' in everything. We have not been parted for longer than twelve hours at a time, Ronnie. But I fear Central Africa cannot be 'we.' I do not feel that I could go out there with you."
"Helen! Why not? I thought you would be keen on it. I thought you were game to go anywhere!" Amazement and dismay were in his eyes.
She rose slowly, went over to the mantel-piece, moved some little porcelain figures, then put them back again.
When at length she spoke, she steadied her voice with an effort.
"Ronnie dear, Central Africa is not a place for a woman."
"But, my dearest girl, a woman arrives there in my story! She crawls into the long grass with the man she loves, and disappears. Our missionary's bride did it. Where a woman could not go, I must not go for my local colour. Oh, I say, Helen! You won't fail me?"
He walked over to the window, and drummed again, with restless, nervous fingers, upon the In hoc vince pane.
She came behind him, laying her hand on his shoulder.
"Darling, it will break my heart if you think I am failing you. But, while you have been talking, I have faced the matter out, and—I must tell you at once—I cannot feel it either right or possible to go. I could not be away just now, for seven months. This place must be looked after. Think of the little church we are building in the village; the farms changing tenants this summer; the hundred and one things I, and I only, must settle and arrange. You never see the bailiff; you hardly know the tenants; you do not oversee the workpeople. So you can scarcely judge, dear Ronnie, how important is my presence here; how almost impossible it would be for me suddenly to go completely out of reach. My darling—if you keep to it, if you really intend to go, we must face the fact that it will mean, for us, a long parting."
The tension of suspense held the stillness of the room.
Then: "It is my profession," said Ronald West, huskily. "It is my career."
She moved round and faced him. They stood looking at one another, dumbly.
She knew all that was in his mind, and most that was in his heart.
He knew nothing of that which filled her mind at the moment, and only partly realised the great, unselfish love for him which filled her heart.
He was completely understood. He rested in that fact, without in the least comprehending his own lack of comprehension.
Moving close to him, she laid both hands upon his shoulders, hiding her face in silence against his breast.
He stroked her soft hair—helplessly, tenderly.
With his whole heart he loved her, leaned upon her, needed her. She had done everything for him; been everything to him.
But he meant to carry his point. He intended to go to Central Africa, and it was no sort of good pretending he did not. You never pretended with Helen, because she saw through you immediately, and usually told you so.
He had not spent a single night away from her since that wonderful day when, calm and radiant, she had moved up the church in presence of an admiring crowd, and taken her place at his side.
He was practically unknown then, as a writer. No one but Helen believed in him, or understood what he had it in him to accomplish. Whereas Helen herself was the last representative of an ancient County family, owner of Hollymead Grange, and of a considerable income; courted, admired, sought after. Yet she gave herself to him, in humble tenderness. Helen had a royal way of giving. The very way she throned you in her heart, dropped you on one knee before her footstool.
He had fully justified her belief in him; but he well knew how much of his success he owed to her. Their love had taught him lessons, given him ideals which had not been his before.
But there was nothing selfish or sentimental about Helen. When the most sacred of their experiences crept into his work, and stood revealed for all the world to read; when his art transferred to hard type, and to the black and white of print and paper, the magic thrill of Helen's tenderness, so that all her friends could buy it for four shillings and sixpence, and discuss it at leisure, Helen never winced. She only smiled and said: "The world has a right to every beautiful thing we can give it. I have always felt indignant with the people who collect musical instruments which they have no intention of playing; who lock up Strads and Cremonas in glass cases, thus holding them dumb for ever to the eager ear of a listening world."
Only once, when he had put into a story a tender little name by which Helen sometimes called him, unable to resist giving his hero the bliss he, on those rare occasions, himself felt—he found a firm pencil line drawn through the words, when he looked at the proof sheets, after Helen had returned them to his desk. She never mentioned the matter to him, nor did he speak of it to her; but his hero had to forego that particular thrill, and it was a long time before Ronald himself heard again the words Helen had deleted.
He heard them now, however—murmured very softly; and he caught her to him with sudden passion, kissing her hair.
Yet he meant to go. In hoc vince. He must conquer his very need of her, if it came between him and the best thing he had yet done in his work.
He could not face the thought of the parting; but there was no need to face that as yet. A whole fortnight intervened. It is useless to suffer a pang until the pang is actually upon you. Besides, every experience—however hard to bear—is of value. How much more harrowing and vivid would be his next description of a parting——
Then, suddenly, Ronald felt ashamed. His arms dropped from around her. He knew himself unworthy—in a momentary flash of self-revelation he knew himself utterly unworthy—of Helen's generous love, and noble womanhood.
"My wife," he said, "I won't go. It isn't worth it."
Her arms strained around him, and he heard her sob; and, alas—it was the sob of the woman in the long grass, when she clung to the man who had crawled out first. His plot stood out to him once more as the supreme thing.
"At least," he added, "it wouldn't be worth it, if it costs you so much. It is my strongest plot, but I will give it up if you would rather I stayed at home."
Then Helen loosed her detaining arms, and lifting a brave white face, smiled at him through her tears.
"No, Ronnie," she said. "I promised, when we married, always to help you with your work and to make it easy. I am not going to fail you now. If the new book requires a parting, we will face it bravely. At the present moment we both need luncheon, and I must get out of my habit. Ring, and tell them we shall not be ready for a quarter of an hour, there's a dear boy! And think of something really funny to tell me at lunch. Afterwards we will discuss plans."
She had reached the door when Ronald suddenly called after her: "Helen! Hadn't you something to tell me, too?"
She turned in the doorway. Her face was gay with smiles.
"Oh, mine must wait," she said. "Your new plot, and the wonderful journey it involves, require our undivided attention."
The sun shone very brightly just then. It touched the halo of Helen's soft hair, turning it to gold. In hoc vince gleamed upon the pane.
For a moment she stood in the doorway, giving him a chance to insist upon hearing that which she had to tell. But Ronald, easily satisfied, turned and rang the bell.
"All right, sweet," he said. "How lovely you look in the sunshine! If it was business, or anything worrying, I would certainly rather not hear it now. You have bucked me up splendidly, Helen. Seven months seem nothing; and my whole mind is bounding forward into my story. I really must give you an outline of the plot." He followed her into the hall. "Helen! Do come back for a minute."
But Helen was half way up the stairs. He heard her laugh as she reached the landing.
"I am hungry, dear," she called over the banisters, "and so are you, only you don't know it! Crawl out of your long grass, and make yourself presentable before the gong sounds; or I shall send bananas for one, to your study!"
"All right!" he shouted; gave Helen's message to the butler; then went through the billiard-room, whistling gaily.
"Why, she is as keen as I am," he said to himself, as he turned on the hot and cold water taps. "And she is perfectly right about not coming with me. Of course it's jolly hard to leave her; but I believe I shall do better work alone."
His mind went back to Helen's bright face in the doorway. He realised her mastery, for his sake, of her own dread of the parting.
"What a brick she is!" he said. "Always so perfectly plucky. I don't believe any other fellow in the world has such a wife as Helen!"
HELEN TAKES THE INITIATIVE
Having once made up her mind that it was right and wise to let Ronnie go, Helen did not falter. She immediately took control of all necessary arrangements. Nothing was forgotten. Ronnie's outfit was managed with as little trouble to himself as possible. They dealt together, in a gay morning at the Stores, with all interesting items, but those he called "the dull things" apparently selected themselves. Anyway, they all appeared in his room, when the time came for packing.
So whole-hearted was his wife's interest in the undertaking, that Ronnie almost began to look upon it as her plan.
It was she who arranged routes and booked his passages.
When Cook's cheque had to be written it was a large one.
Helen took out her cheque book.
"No, no, dear," said Ronnie. "I must pay it out of my own earnings. It is a literary speculation."
Helen hesitated. She knew Ronnie did not realise how much the new building and necessary repairs on the estate were costing her this year.
"What is your balance at the bank, Ronnie?"
"I haven't the remotest idea."
"Darling, why don't you make a note of your last balance on your counterfoil? Then at any moment you can add up all subsequent cheques and see at a glance how you stand."
"Yes, I know, you have explained all that to me before, Helen. But, you see, most of my counterfoils are blank! I forget to fill them in. You can't write books, and also keep accounts. If you really think it important, I might give up the former, and turn my whole attention to the latter."
"Don't be silly, dear! You are blessed with a wife who keeps a careful account of every penny of her own. But I know nothing of your earnings and spendings, excepting when you suddenly remark at breakfast: 'Hullo! Here's a useful little cheque for a thousand'—in much the same tone of voice as you exclaim the next minute: 'Hullo! What excellent hot-buttered toast!' Ronnie, I wish you would manage to invest rather more."
"My dear girl, I have invested heaps! You made me. But what is the use of saving money when there are only ourselves to consider? We may as well spend it, and have a good time. If there were kiddies to leave it to, it would be different. I had so long of being impecunious, that I particularly enjoy feeling bottomless! Besides, each year will bring in more. This African book ought to be worth all the rest put together."
Helen was silent; but she sighed as she filled in Cook's cheque and signed it. Ronald had spoken so lightly of the great disappointment of their married life. It was always difficult to get Ronnie to take things seriously. The fact was: he took himself so seriously, that he was obliged to compensate by taking everything and everybody else rather lightly. No doubt this arrangement of relative values, made for success. Ronnie's success had been very rapid, and very brilliant. He accepted it with the unconscious modesty of the true artist; his work meaning immeasurably more to him than that which his work brought him, either in praise or pennies.
But Helen gloried in the praise, kept a watchful eye, so far as he would let her, on the pennies; and herself ministered to the idea that all else must be subservient, where Ronnie's literary career was concerned.
She was ministering to it now, at a personal cost known only to her own brave heart.
FIRELIGHT IN THE STUDIO
It was Ronnie's last evening in England. The parting, which had seemed so far away, must take place on the morrow. It took all Helen's bright courage to keep up Ronnie's spirits.
After dinner they sat together in a room they still called the studio, although Helen had given up her painting, soon after their marriage.
It was a large old-fashioned room, oak-panelled and spacious.
A huge mirror, in a massive gilt frame, hung upon the wall opposite door and fireplace, reaching from the ceiling to the parquet floor.
Ronald, who used the studio as a smoking-room, had introduced three or four deep wicker chairs, comfortably cushioned, and a couple of oriental tables.
The fireplace lent itself grandly in winter to great log-fires, when the crimson curtains were drawn in ample folds over the many windows, shutting out the dank bleakness of the park without, and imparting a look of cosiness to the empty room.
A dozen old family portraits—banished from more important places, because their expressions annoyed Ronnie—were crowded into whatever space was available, and glowered down, from the bad light to which they had been relegated, on the very modern young man whose uncomplimentary remarks had effected their banishment, and who sprawled luxuriously in the firelight, monarch of all he surveyed, in the domain which for centuries had been their own.
The only other thing in the room was a piano, on which Ronnie very effectively and very inaccurately strummed by ear; and on which Helen, with careful skill, played his accompaniments, when he was seized with a sudden desire to sing.
Ronald's music was always a perplexity to Helen. There was a quality about it so extraordinarily, so unusually, beautiful; combined with an entire lack of method or of training, and a quite startling ignorance of the most rudimentary rules.
On one occasion, during a sharp attack of influenza, when he had insisted upon being down and about, with a temperature of 104, he suddenly rose from the depths of a chair in which he had been lying, talking wild and feverish nonsense; stumbled over to the piano, dropped heavily upon the stool, then proceeded to play and sing, in a way, which brought tears to his wife's eyes, while her heart stood still with anxiety and wonder.
Yet, when she mentioned it a few days later, he appeared to have forgotten all about it, turning the subject with almost petulant abruptness.
But, on this their last evening together, the piano stood unheeded. They seemed only to want two chairs, and each other.
She could hardly take her eyes from his face, remembering how many months must pass before she could see him again. Yet it was Ronnie who made moan, and Helen who bravely comforted; turning as often as possible to earnest discussion of his plot and its possibilities. But after a while even she went under, to the thought of the nearness of the parting.
Though it was late in April, the evenings were chilly; a fire glowed in the grate.
Presently Ronnie rose, turned off the electric light, and seated himself on the rug in the firelight, resting his head against his wife's knees.
Silently she passed her fingers through his hair.
Something in the quality of her silence turned Ronald's thoughts from himself to her alone. "Helen," he said, "I hate to be leaving you. Shall you be very lonely?"
She could not answer.
"You are sure your good old Mademoiselle Victorine is coming to be with you?"
"Yes, dear. She holds herself in readiness to come as soon as I feel able to send for her. She and I lived alone together here during eighteen months, after Papa's death. We were very quietly happy. I do not see why we should not be happy again."
"What shall you do all day?"
"Well, I shall have my duties in the village and on the estate; and, for our recreation, we shall read French and German, and do plenty of music. Mademoiselle Victorine delights in playing what she calls 'des à quatre mains,' which consist in our both prancing vigorously upon the same piano; she steadily punishing the bass; while I fly after her, on the more lively treble. It is good practice; it has its fascinations, and it will take the place of riding, for me."
"Shan't you ride, Helen?"
"No, Ronnie; not without you."
"Will you and Mademoiselle Victorine drive your four-in-hands in here?"
"No, not in here, darling. I don't think I shall be able to bear to touch the piano on which you play to me."
"I don't play," said Ronnie. "I strum."
"True, dear. You often strum. But sometimes you play quite wonderfully. I wish you had been properly taught!"
"I always hated being taught anything," said Ronald. "I like doing things, without learning to do them. And I know what you mean, about the times when I really play. But, excepting when the mood is on me, I don't care to think of those times. I never feel really myself when it happens. I seem to be listening to somebody else playing, and trying to remember something I have hopelessly forgotten. It gives me a strained, uncanny feeling, Helen."
"Does it, darling? Then let us talk of something else. Oh, Ronnie, you must promise me to take care of your health out in that climate! I believe you are going at the very worst time of year."
"I have to know it at its worst and at its hottest," he said. "But I shall be all right. I'm strong as a horse, and sound in wind and limb."
"I hope you will get good food."
He laughed. "I expect to have to live on just whatever I can shoot or grub up. You see, the more completely I leave all civilisation, the more correctly I shall get my 'copy.' I can't crawl into the long grass, carrying tins of sardines and bottles of Bass!"
"You might take meat lozenges," suggested Ronnie's wife.
"Meat lozenges, darling, are concentrated nastiness. I felt like an unhealthy bullock the whole of the rest of the day when, to please you, I sucked one while we were mountain climbing. I propose living on interesting and unique fruits and roots—all the things which correspond to locusts and wild honey. But, Helen, I am afraid there will be quite a long time during which I shall not be able either to send or to receive letters. We shall have to console ourselves with the trite old saying: 'No news is good news.' Of course, so far as I am concerned, it would be useless to hear of any cause for anxiety or worry when I could not possibly get back, or deal with it."
"You shall not hear of any worries, or have any anxieties, darling. If difficulties arise, I will deal with them. You must keep a perfectly free mind, all the time. For my part, I will try not to give way to panics about you, if you will promise to cable occasionally, and to write as often as you can."
"You won't go and get ill, will you, Helen?"
She smiled, laying her cheek on the top of his head, as she bent over him.
"I never get ill, darling. Like you, I am sound in wind and limb. We are a most healthy couple."
"We shall both be thirty, Helen, before we meet again. You will attain to that advanced age a month before I shall. On your birthday I shall drink your health in some weird concoction of juices; and I shall say to all the lions and tigers, hippopotamuses, cockatrices and asps, sitting round my camp fire: 'You will hardly believe it, my heathen hearers, out in this well-ordered jungle, where the female is kept in her proper place—but my wife has had the cheek to march up to-day into the next decade, leaving me behind in the youthful twenties!'—Oh, Helen, I wish we had a little kiddie playing around! I am tired of being the youngest of the family."
She clasped both hands about his throat. He might have heard the beating of her heart—had he been listening.
"Ronald, that is a joy which may yet be ours—some day. But my writer of romances, who is such a stickler for grammatical accuracy, is surely the younger of a family of two!"
"Oh, grammar be—relegated to the library!" cried Ronnie, laughing. "And you really presume too much on that one short month, Helen. You often treat me as if I were an infant."
The smile in her eyes held the mother look, in its yearning tenderness.
"Ronnie dear, you are so very much younger than I, in many ways; and you always will be. Unlike the 'Infant of Days,' if you live to be a hundred years old, you will still die young; a child in heart, full of youth's joyous joy in living. You must not mind if your wife occasionally treats you as though you were a dear big baby, requiring maternal care and petting. You are such a veritable boy sometimes, and it soothes the yearning for a little son of yours to cuddle in her arms, when she plays that her big boy is something of a baby."
Ronald took her left hand from about his neck, and kissed it tenderly.
This was his only answer, but his silence meant more to Helen than speech. Words flowed so readily to express his surface thoughts; but when words suddenly and unexpectedly failed, a deeper depth had been reached; and in that silence, his wife found comfort and content.
Ronnie was not all ripples. There was more beneath than the shifting shallows. Deep, still pools were there, and rocks on which might eventually be built a beacon-light for the souls of men. But, as yet, it took Helen's clear and faithful eyes to discern the pools; to perceive the possible strong foundations.
"Do you remember," he said presently, "the Dalmains coming over last January, with their little Geoff? When I saw that jolly little chap trotting about, and looking up at his mother with big shining eyes, full of trustful love and innocent courage, absolutely unafraid—notwithstanding her rather peremptory manner, and apparently stern discipline—I felt that it must be the making of two people to have such a little son as that, depending upon them to show him how to grow up right. One would simply be obliged to live up to his baby belief in one; wouldn't one, Helen?"
"Yes, darling; we—we should."
"I hope you will see a lot of the Dalmains while I am away. Try to put in a good long visit there. And she would come over, if you wanted her, wouldn't she?"
"Yes; she will come if I want her."
"You and she are great friends," pursued Ronnie, "aren't you? I find her alarming. When she looks at me, I feel such a worm. I want to slide into a hole and hide. But there is never a hole to be found. I have to remain erect, handing tea and bread-and-butter, while I mentally grovel. I almost pray that a hungry blackbird or a prying thrush may chance to come my way, and consider me juicy and appetising. You remember—the Vicar and Mrs. Vicar came to tea that day. She wore brown spots. But even the priestly blackbird, and the Levitical thrush, passed me by on the other side."
"Oh, Ronnie, how silly! I know Jane admires your books, darling!"
"She considers me quite unfit to tie your shoe-strings."
"Ronnie, be quiet! You would not be afraid of her, had you ever known what it was to turn to her in trouble or difficulty. She helped me through an awfully hard time, six months before I met you. She showed me the right thing to do, then stood by me while I did it. There is nobody in the whole world quite like her."
"Well, send for her if you get into any troubles while I am away. I shall feel quite brave about her being here, when I am safely hidden in the long grass!"
"Is there any possible chance that you will get back sooner than you think, Ronnie?"
"Hardly. Not before November, anyway. And yesterday my publishers were keen that I should put in a night at Leipzig on my way home, and a night at the Hague; show whatever 'copy' I have to firms there, and make arrangements for German and Dutch translations to appear as soon as possible after the English edition is out. I think I may as well do this, and return by the Hook of Holland. I enjoy the night-crossing, and like reaching London early in the morning. By the way, haven't you a cousin of some sort living at Leipzig?"
"Yes; my first cousin, Aubrey Treherne. He is studying music, and working on compositions of his own, I believe. He lives in a flat in the Grassi Strasse."
"All right. Put his address in my pocket-book. I will look him up. My special chum, Dick Cameron, is to be out there in November, investigating one of their queer water-cures. I wish you knew Dick Cameron, Helen. I shall hope to see him, too. Has your cousin a spare room in his flat?"
"I do not know. Ronnie, Aubrey Treherne is not a good man. He is not a man you should trust."
"Darling, you don't necessarily trust a fellow because he puts you up for the night. But I daresay Dick will find me a room."
"Aubrey is not a good man," repeated Helen firmly.
"Dear, we are none of us good."
"You are, Ronnie—in the sense I mean, or I should not have married you."
"Oh, then, yes please!" said Ronnie. "I am very, very good!"
He laughed up at her, but Helen's face was grave. Then a sudden thought brightened it.
"If you really go to Leipzig, Ronnie, could you look in at Zimmermann's—a first-rate place for musical instruments of all kinds—and choose me a small organ for the new church? I saw a little beauty the other day at Huntingford; a perfect tone, twelve stops, and quite easy to play. They had had it sent over from Leipzig. It cost only twenty-four pounds. In England, one could hardly have bought so good an instrument for less than forty. If you could choose one with a really sweet tone, and have it shipped over here, I should be grateful."
"With pleasure, darling. I enjoy trying all sorts of instruments. But why economise over the organ? If my wife fancied a hundred guinea organ, I could give it her."
"No, you couldn't, Ronnie. You must not be extravagant."
"I am not extravagant, dear. Buying things one can afford is not extravagance."
"Sometimes it is. Extravagance is not spending money. But it is paying a higher price for a thing than the actual need demands, or than the circumstances justify. I considered you extravagant last winter when you paid five guineas for a box at Olympia, intended to hold eight people, and sat in it, in solitary grandeur, alone with your wife."
"I know you did," said Ronnie. "You left me no possible loop-hole for doubt in the matter. But your quite mistaken view, on that occasion, arose from an incorrect estimate of values. I paid one pound, six shillings and three-pence for the two seats, and three pounds, eighteen and nine-pence for the pleasure of sitting alone with my wife, and thought it cheap at that. It was a far lower price than the actual need demanded; therefore, by your own showing, it was not extravagant."
"Oh, what a boy it is!" sighed Helen, with a little gesture of despair. "Then, last Christmas, Ronnie, you insisted upon fêting the old people with all kinds of unnecessary luxuries. They had always been quite content with wholesome bread-and-butter, plum cake, and nice hot tea. They did not require pâté de foie gras and champagne, nor did they understand or really enjoy them. One old lady, in considerable distress, confided to me the fact that the champagne tasted to her 'like physic with a fizzle in it.' It made most of them ill, Ronnie, and cost at least eight times as much as my simple Christmas parties of other years. So don't go and spend an unnecessary sum on an elaborate, and probably less useful, instrument. I will write you full particulars when the time comes. Oh, Ronnie, you will be so nearly home, by then! How shall I wait?"
"I shall love to feel I have something to do for you in Leipzig," said Ronnie; "and I enjoy poking about among crowds of queer instruments. I should like to have played in Nebuchadnezzar's band. I should have played the sackbut, because I haven't the faintest notion how you work the thing—whether you blow into it, or pull it in and out, or tread upon it; nor what manner of surprising sound it emits, when you do any or all of these things. I love springing surprises on myself and on other people; and I know I do best the things which, if I considered the matter beforehand, I shouldn't have the veriest ghost of a notion how to set about doing. That, darling, is inspiration! I should have played the sackbut by inspiration; whereupon Nebuchadnezzar would instantly have had me cast into the burning fiery furnace."
"Oh, Ronnie, I wish I could laugh! But to-morrow is so near. What shall I do when there is nobody here to tell me silly stories?"
"Ask Mademoiselle Victorine to try her hand at it. Say: 'Chère Mademoiselle, s'il-vous-plait, racontez-moi une extrêmement sotte histoire.'"
"Ronnie, do stop chaffing! Go and play me something really beautiful, and sing very softly, as you did the other night; so that I can hear the tones of the piano and your voice vibrating together."
"No," said Ronnie, "I can't. I have a cast-iron lump in my throat just now, and not a note could pass it. Besides, I don't really play the piano."
He stretched out his foot, and kicked a log into the fire.
The flame shot up, illumining the room. The log-fire, and the two seated near it, were reflected fitfully in the distant mirror.
"Helen, there is one instrument, above all others, which I have always longed to play; yet I have never even held one in my hand."
"What instrument is that, darling?"
"The violoncello," said Ronnie, sitting up and turning towards her as he spoke. "When I think of a 'cello I seem as if I know exactly how it would feel to hold it between my knees, press my fingers up and down the yielding strings, and draw the bow across them. Helen—if I had a 'cello here to-night, you would listen to sounds of such exquisite throbbing beauty, that you would forget everything in this world, my wife, excepting that I love you."
His eyes shone in the firelight. An older look of deeper strength and of fuller manly vigour came into his face. The glow of love transfigured it.
With an uncontrollable sob, Helen stooped and laid her lips on his.
The clock struck midnight.
"Oh, Ronnie," she said; "oh, Ronnie! It is to-day, now! No longer to-morrow—but to-day!"
He sprang to his feet, took her hand, and drew her to the door.
"Come, Helen," he said.
Two men, in a flat at Leipzig, sat on either side of a tall porcelain stove.
The small door in the stove stood open, letting a ruddy glow shine from within, a poor substitute for the open fires blazing merrily in England on this chill November evening; yet giving visible evidence of the heat contained within those cool-looking blue and white embossed tiles.
The room itself was a curious mixture of the taste of the Leipzig landlady, who owned and had furnished it, and of the Englishman studying music, who was its temporary tenant.
The high-backed sofa, upholstered in red velvet, stood stiffly against the wall, awaiting the "guest of honour," who never arrived. It served, however, as a resting-place for a violin, and a pile of music; while, on the opposite side of the room, partly eclipsing a fancy picture of Goethe, stood a chamber organ, open, and displaying a long row of varied stops.
Books and music were piled upon every available flat space, saving the table; upon which lay the remains of supper.
Of the three easy chairs placed in a semi-circle near the stove, two were occupied; but against the empty chair in the centre, its dark brown polished surface reflecting the glow of the fire, leaned a beautiful old violoncello. The metal point of its foot made a slight dent in the parquet floor.
The younger of the two men sat well forward, elbows on knees, eyes alight with excitement, intently gazing at the 'cello.
The other lay back in his chair, his thin sensitive fingers carefully placed tip to tip, his deep-set eyes scrutinising his companion. When he spoke his voice was calm and deliberate, his manner exceedingly quiet. His method of conversation was of the kind which drew out the full confidence of others, while at the same time carefully insinuating, rather than frankly expressing, ideas of his own.
"What a rum fellow you must be, West, to pay a hundred and fifty pounds for an instrument you have no notion of playing. Is it destined to be kept under lock and key in a glass case?"
"Certainly not," said Ronald West. "I shall be able to play it when I try; and I shall try as soon as I get home."
"Give us a sample here."
"No, not here. I particularly wish to play it first with Helen, in the room where I told her a 'cello was the instrument I had always wanted. Oh, I say, isn't it a beauty! Look at those curves, and that wonderful polish, like the richest brown of the very darkest horse-chestnut you ever saw in a bursting bur! See how the silver strings shine in the firelight, against the black ebony of the finger-board! It was made at Prague, and it is a hundred and fifty years old. I call it the Infant of Prague."
"Why the 'Infant'?"
"Because you have to be so careful not to bump its head as you carry it about. Also, isn't there a verse somewhere, about an Infant of Days who was a hundred years old, and young at that? Helen will love the Infant. She will polish it with a silk handkerchief, and make a bed for it on the sofa! I shan't write to her about it. I shall bring it home as a surprise."
He took his eyes from the 'cello and looked across at Helen's cousin; but Aubrey Treherne instantly shifted his gaze to the unconscious Infant.
"Tell me how you came across it. There is no doubt you have been fortunate enough to pick up an instrument of extraordinary value and beauty."
"Ah, you realise that?" cried Ronald. "Good! Well, you shall hear exactly what happened. I arrived here early this morning, put up at a hotel, and sallied out to interview the publishers. I had a mass of 'copy' to show them, because I have been writing incessantly the whole way home. Curiously enough, since I left Africa, I have scarcely needed any sleep. Snatches of half an hour seem all I require. It is convenient when one has a vast amount of work to get through in a short space of time."
"Very convenient. Just the reverse of the sleeping sickness."
"Rather! I was never fitter in my life—as I told Dick Cameron."
Aubrey Treherne glanced at the bright burning eyes and flushed face—the feverish blood showing, even through the tan of Africa.
"Yes, you look jolly fit," he said. "Who is Dick Cameron?"
"A great chum of mine. We met, as boys in Edinburgh, and were at school together. He is the son of Colonel Cameron of Transvaal fame, killed while leading a charge. Dick has done awfully well in the medical, passed all necessary exams, and taken every possible degree. He is now looking out for a practice, and meanwhile a big man in London has sent him out to investigate one of these queer water friction cures—professes to cure cataract and cancer and every known disease, by simply sitting you in a tub, and rubbing you down with a dish-cloth. Dick Cameron says—Hullo! Why are we talking of Dick Cameron? I thought I was telling you about the 'cello."
"You are telling me about the 'cello," said Aubrey, quietly. "But in order to arrive at the 'cello we had to hear about your visit to the publishers with your mass of manuscript, which resulted from having acquired in Central Africa the useful habit of not needing more than half an hour of sleep in the twenty-four; which, possibly, Dick Cameron did not consider sufficient. Doctors are apt to be faddy in such matters. Whereupon you, naturally, told him you were perfectly fit."
"Ah, yes, I remember," said Ronnie. "Am I spinning rather a yarn?"
"Not at all, my dear fellow. Do not hurry. We have the whole evening before us—night, if necessary. You can put in your half-hour at any time, I suppose; and I can dispense with sleep for once. It is not often one has the chance of spending a night in the company of a noted author, an African traveller straight from the jungle, and the man who has married one's favourite cousin. I am all delighted attention. What did your friend Dick Cameron say?"
"Well, I met him as I was hurrying back to the hotel, carrying the Infant, who did not appear to advantage in the exceedingly plain brown canvas bag which was all they could give me at Zimmermann's. When I get home I shall consult Helen, and we shall order the best case procurable."
"Naturally. Probably Helen will advise a bassinet by night, and a perambulator by day."
Ronnie looked perplexed. "Why a bassinet?" he said.
"The Infant, you know."
"Oh—ah, yes, I see. Well, of course I wanted to introduce the Infant properly to Dick Cameron, but he objected when I began taking it out of its bag in the street. He suggested that it might take cold—it certainly is a dank day. Also that there are so many by-laws and regulations in Leipzig connected with things you may not do in the streets, that probably if you took a 'cello out of its case and stood admiring it in the midst of the crowded thoroughfare, you would get run in by a policeman. Dick said: 'Arrest of the Infant of Prague in the Streets of Leipzig' would make just the kind of sensational headline beloved by newspapers. I realised that he was right. It would have distressed Helen, besides being a most unfortunate way for her to hear first of the Infant. Helen is a great stickler for respectability."
Aubrey Treherne's pale countenance turned a shade paler. His thin lips curved into the semblance of a smile.
"Ah, yes," he said, "of course. Helen is a great stickler for respectability. Well? So you gave up undressing your Infant in the street?"
Again Ronnie's eager face took on a look of perplexity.
"I did not propose undressing it," he said.
"I only wanted to take it out of its bag."
"I see. Quite a simple matter. Well? Owing to our absurd police regulations you were prevented from doing this. What happened next?"
"Dick suggested that we should go to his rooms. Arrived there he ceased to take any interest in my 'cello, clapped me into a chair, and stuck a beastly thermometer into my mouth."
"Doctors are such enthusiasts," murmured Aubrey Treherne. "They can never let their own particular trade alone. I suppose he also felt your pulse and looked at your tongue."
"Rather! Then he said I had no business to be walking about with a temperature of 103. I was so much annoyed that I promptly smashed the thermometer, and we had a fine chase after the quicksilver. You never saw anything like it! It ran like a rabbit, in and out of the nooks and corners of the chair, until at last it disappeared through a crack in the floor; went to ground, you know. Doesn't Helen look well on horseback?"
"Charming. I suppose you easily convinced your friend that his diagnosis was rubbish?"
"Of course I did. I told him I had never felt better in my life. But I drank the stuff he gave me, simply to save further bother; also another dose which he brought to the hotel. Then he insisted on leaving a bottle out of which I am to take a dose every three hours on the journey home. I did not know old Dick was such a crank."
"Probably it is the result of sitting in a tub and being scrubbed with a dish-cloth. Did he know you were coming here?"
"Yes; he picked up my pocket-book, found your address, and made a note of it. He said he should probably look us up at about ten o'clock this evening. I told him I might be here pretty late. I did not know you were going to be so kind as to fetch my things from the hotel and put me up. You really are most—"
"Delighted, my dear fellow. Honoured!" said Aubrey Treherne. "Now tell me about the finding of the 'cello."
"I interviewed the publishers, and I hope it is all right. But they seemed rather hurried and vague, and anxious to get me off the premises. No doubt I shall fare better in courteous little Holland. Then I went on to Zimmermann's to choose Helen's organ. I found exactly what she wanted, and at the price she wished. On my way downstairs I found myself in a large room full of violoncellos—dozens of them. They were hanging in glass cases; they were ranged along the top. Then I suddenly felt impelled to look to the top of the highest cabinet, and there I saw the Infant! I knew instantly that that was the 'cello I must have. It seemed mine already. It seemed as if it always had been mine. I asked to be shown some violoncellos. They produced two or three, in which I took no interest. Then I said: 'Get down that dark brown one, third from the end.' They lifted it down, and, from the moment I touched it, I knew it must be mine! They told me it was made at Prague, a hundred and fifty years ago, and its price was three thousand marks. Luckily, I had my cheque-book in my pocket, also my card, Helen's card, my publisher's letter of introduction to the firm here, and my own letter of credit from my bankers. So they expressed themselves willing to take my cheque. I wrote it then and there, and marched out with the Infant. I first called it the Infant on the stairs, as we were leaving Zimmermann's, because I almost bumped its head! Isn't it a beauty?"
"Undoubtedly it is."
"They put on a new set of the very best strings," continued Ronnie; "supplied me with a good bow, and threw in a cake of rosin."
"What did you pay for the organ?" inquired Aubrey Treherne.
"Twenty-four pounds. Helen would not have a more expensive one. She is always telling me not to be extravagant."
"That, my dear boy, invariably happens to an impecunious fellow who marries a rich wife."
Ronnie flushed. "I am impecunious no longer," he said. "During the past twelve months I have made, by my books, a larger income than my wife's."
"I can well believe it," said Aubrey, cordially. "But I suppose she can never forget the fact that, when you married her, she paid your debts."
Ronald West sprang to his feet.
"Confound you!" he said, violently. "What do you mean? Helen never paid my debts! She found them out, I admit; but I paid them every one myself, with the first cheque I received from my publishers. I demand an explanation of your statement."
The other two members of the trio round the stove appeared completely unmoved by the fury of the young man who had leapt to his feet. The Infant of Prague leaned calmly against its chair, reflecting the fire in its polished surface, and pressing its one sharp foot into the parquet. Aubrey smiled, deprecatingly, and waved Ronnie back to his seat.
"My dear fellow, I am sure I beg your pardon. My cousin certainly gave her family to understand that she had paid your debts. No doubt this was not the case. We all know that women are somewhat given to exaggeration and inaccuracy. Think no more of it."
Ronnie sat down moodily in his chair.
"It was unlike Helen," he said, "and it was a lie. I shall find out with whom it originated. But you are a good fellow to take my word about it at once. I am obliged to you, Treherne."
"Don't mention it, West. Men rarely lie to one another. On the other hand women rarely speak the truth. What will my good cousin say to one hundred and fifty pounds being paid for a 'cello?"
"It will be no business of hers," said Ronnie, angrily. "I can do as I choose with my own earnings."
"I doubt it," smiled Aubrey Treherne.
"The man who married my cousin Helen, was bound to surrender his independence and creep under her thumb. I am grateful to you for having saved me from that fate. As no doubt she has told you, she refused me shortly before she accepted you."
Ronald's start of surprise proved at once to Aubrey his complete ignorance of the whole matter.
"I had no idea you were ever in love with my wife," he said.
"Nor was I, my dear fellow," sneered Aubrey Treherne. "Others, besides yourself, were after your wife's money."
A sense of impotence seized Ronald, in nightmare grip. Indignant and furious, he yet felt absolutely unable to contradict or to explain.
Suddenly he seemed to hear Helen's voice saying earnestly: "My cousin Aubrey is not a good man, Ronnie; he is not a man you should trust."
This vivid remembrance of Helen, brought him to his senses.
"I prefer not to discuss my wife," he said, with quiet dignity; "nor my relations with her. Let us talk of something else."
"By all means, my dear fellow," replied Aubrey. "You must pardon the indiscretion of cousinly interest. Tell me of your new book. Have you settled upon a title?"
But the instinct of authorship now shielded Ronnie.
"I never talk of my books, excepting to Helen, until they are finished," he said.
"Quite right," agreed Aubrey, cordially. "But you might tell me why this one took you to Central Africa. Is it a book of travels?"
"No; it is a love-story. But the scene is laid in wild places—ah, such places! One cannot possibly understand, until one gets there and does it, what it is like to leave civilisation behind, and crawl into long grass thirteen feet high!"
"It sounds weirdly fascinating," remarked Aubrey. "So unusual a setting, must mean a remarkable plot."
"It is the strongest thing I have done yet," said Ronnie, with enthusiasm.
Aubrey smiled, surveying Ronnie's eager face with slow enjoyment. He was mentally recalling phrases from reviews he had written for various literary columns, on Ronnie's work. Already he began wording the terse sentences in which he would point out the feebleness and lack of literary merit, in "the strongest thing" Ronnie had done yet. It might be well to know something more about it.
"It will be very unlike your other books," he suggested.
"Yes," explained Ronnie, expanding. "You see they were all absolutely English; just of our own set, and our own surroundings. I wanted something new. I couldn't go on letting my hero make love in an English garden."
"If you wanted a variety," suggested Aubrey Treherne, "you might have let him make love in another man's garden. Stolen fruits are sweet! There is always a fascination about trespassing."
"No, thank you," said Ronnie. "That would be Paradise Lost."
"Or Paradise Regained," murmured Aubrey.
"I think not. Besides—Helen reads my books."
"Oh, I see," sneered Aubrey. "So your wife draws the line?"
"I don't know what you mean," replied Ronnie. "Falsehood, frailty, and infidelity, do not appeal to me as subjects for romance. But, if they did, I certainly should not feel free to put a line into one of my books which I should be ashamed to see my own wife reading."
"Oh, safe and excellent standard!" mocked Aubrey Treherne. "No wonder you go down with the British public."
"I think, if you don't mind," said Ronald, with some heat, "we will cease to discuss my books and my public."
"Then there is but one subject left to us," smiled Aubrey—"the Infant of Prague! Let us concentrate our attention upon this entirely congenial topic. I wonder how long this dear child has remained dumb. I have seen many fine instruments in my time, West, but I am inclined to think your 'cello is the finest I have yet come across. Do you mind if I tune it, and try the strings?"
Ronnie's pleasure and enthusiasm were easily rekindled.
"Do," he said. "I am grateful. I do not even know the required notes."
Aubrey, leaning forward, carefully lifted the instrument, resting it against his knees. He took a tuning-fork from his pocket.
"It is tuned in fifths," he said. "The open strings are A, D, G, C. You can remember them, because they stand for 'Allowable Delights Grow Commonplace'; or, read the other way up: 'Courage Gains Desired Aims.'"
With practised skill he rapidly tightened the four strings into harmony; then, after carefully rosining the bow, rasped it with uncertain touch across them. The Infant squealed, as if in dire pain. Ronnie winced, obviously restraining himself with an effort from snatching his precious 'cello out of Aubrey's hands.
It did not strike him as peculiar that a man who played the violin with ease, should not be able to draw a clear tone from the open strings of a 'cello.
"I don't seem to make much of it," said Aubrey. "The 'cello is a difficult instrument to play, and requires long practice." And again he rasped the bow across the strings.
The Infant's wail of anguish gained in volume.
Ronnie sprang up, holding out eager hands. "Let me try," he said. "It must be able to make a better sound than that!"
As he placed the 'cello between his knees, a look of rapt content came into his face. He slipped his left hand up and down the neck, letting his fingers glide gently along the strings.
Aubrey watched him narrowly.
Ronnie lifted the bow; then he paused. A sudden remembrance seemed to arrest the action in mid-air.
He laid his left hand firmly on the shoulder of the Infant, out of reach of the tempting strings.
"I am not going to play," he said. "The very first time I really play, must be in the studio, and Helen must be there. But I will just sound the open strings."
He looked down upon the 'cello and waited, the light of expectation brightening in his face.
Aubrey Treherne noted the remarkable correctness of the position he had unconsciously assumed.
Then Ronnie, raising the bow, drew it, with unfaltering touch, across the silver depths of lower C.
A rich, full note, rising, falling, vibrating, filled the room. The Infant of Prague was singing. A master-hand had waked its voice once more.
Ronnie's head swam. A hot mist was before his eyes. His breath came in short sobs. He had completely forgotten the sardonic face of his wife's cousin, in the chair opposite.
Then the hot mist cleared. He raised the bow once more, and drew it across G.
G merged into D without a pause. Then, with a strong triumphant sweep, he sounded A.
The four open strings of the 'cello had given forth their full sweetness and power.
"Helen, oh, Helen!" said Ronnie.
Then he looked up, and saw Aubrey Treherne.
He laughed, rather unsteadily. "I thought I was at home," he said. "For the moment it seemed as if I must be at home. I was experiencing the purest joy I have known since I left Helen. What do you think of my 'cello, man? Isn't it wonderful?"
"It is very wonderful," said Aubrey Treherne. "Your Infant is all you hoped. The tone is perfect. But what is still more wonderful is that you—who believe yourself never to have handled a 'cello before—can set the strings vibrating with such unerring skill; such complete mastery. Of course, to me, the mystery is no mystery. The reason of it all is perfectly clear."
"What is the reason of it all?" inquired Ronnie, eagerly.
"In a former existence, dear boy," said Aubrey Treherne, slowly, "you were a great master of the 'cello. Probably the Infant of Prague was your favourite instrument. It called to you from its high place in the 'cello room at Zimmermann's, as it has been calling to you for years; only, at last, it made you hear. It was your own, and you knew it. You would have bought it, had its price been a thousand pounds. You could not have left the place without the Infant in your possession."
Ronald's feverish flush deepened. His eyes grew more burningly bright.
"What an extraordinary idea!" he said. "I don't think Helen would like it, and I am perfectly certain Helen would not believe it."
"You cannot refuse to believe a truth because it does not happen to appeal to your wife," said Aubrey. "Grasp it clearly yourself; then educate her up to a proper understanding of the matter. All of us who are worth anything in this world have lived before—not once, nor twice, but many times. We bring the varied experiences of all previous existences, unconsciously to bear upon and to enrich this one. Have you not often heard the expression 'A born musician'? What do we mean by that? Why, a man born with a knowledge, a sense, an experience, of music, who does not require to go through the mill of learning all the rudiments before music can express itself through him, because the soul of music is in him. He plays by instinct—some folk call it inspiration. Technical, skill he may have to acquire—his fingers are new to it. The understanding of notation he may have to master again—the brain he uses consciously is also of fresh construction. But the sub-conscious self, the Ego of the man, the real eternal soul of him, leaps back with joy to the thing he has done perfectly before. He is a born musician; just as John the Baptist was a born prophet, because, into the little body prepared by Zacharias and Elisabeth, came the great Ego of Elijah reincarnate; to reappear as a full-grown prophet on the banks of the Jordan—the very spot from which he had been caught away, his life-work only half-accomplished, nine centuries before. Even our good Helen, if she knows her Bible, could hardly question this, remembering Whom it was Who said: 'If ye will receive it, this is Elijah which was for to come; and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed.'"
"Great Scott!" exclaimed Ronnie. "What a theory! But indeed Helen would question it; and not only so, but she would be exceedingly upset and very much annoyed."
"Then Helen would fully justify the 'If' of the greatest of all teachers. She would come under the heading of those who refuse to receive a truth, however clearly and unmistakably expressed."
"Lor!" exclaimed Ronnie, in undisguised perplexity. "You have completely cornered me. But then I never set up for being a theologian."
"No; you are a born artist and musician. Music, tone, sound, colour, vibrate in every page of your romances. Had your parents taught you harmony, the piano, and the fiddle, your music would have burst forth along its normal lines. As they merely taught you the alphabet and grammar, your creative faculty turned to literature; you wrote romances full of music, instead of composing music full of romance. It is a distinction without a difference. But, now that you have found your mislaid 'cello, and I am teaching you to KNOW YOURSELF, you will do both."
Ronald stared across at Aubrey. His head was throbbing. Every moment he seemed to become more certain that he had indeed, many times before, held the Infant of Prague between his knees.
But there was a weird, uncanny feeling in the room. Helen seemed to walk in, to seat herself in the empty chair; and, leaning forward, to look at him steadily, with her clear earnest eyes. She seemed to repeat impressively: "Aubrey is not a good man, Ronnie. He is not a man you should trust."
"Well?" asked Aubrey, at last. "Do you recognise the truth?"
Then, with an effort, Ronnie answered as he believed Helen would have answered; and her face beside him seemed to smile approval.
"It sounds a plausible theory," he said slowly; "it may possibly be a truth. But it is not a truth required by us now. Our obvious duty in the present is to live this life out to its fullest and best, regarding it as a time of preparation for the next."
Aubrey's thin lips framed the word "Rubbish!" but, checking it unuttered, substituted: "Quite right. This existence is a preparation for the next; just as that which preceded was a preparation for this."
Then Ronnie ceased to express Helen, and gave vent to an idea of his own.
"It would make a jolly old muddle of all our relationships," he said.
"Not at all," replied Aubrey. "It merely readjusts them, compensating for disappointments in the present, by granting us the assurance of past possessions, and the expectation of future enjoyment. In the life which preceded this, Helen was probably my wife, while you were a beautiful old person in diamond shoe-buckles, knee-breeches, and old lace, who played the 'cello at our wedding."
"Confound you!" cried Ronnie, in sudden fury, springing up and swinging the 'cello above his head, as if about to bring it down, with a crashing blow, upon Aubrey. "Damned old shoe-buckle yourself! Helen was never your wife! More likely you blacked her boots and mine!"
"Oh, hush!" smiled Aubrey, in contemptuous amusement. "Excellent young men who make innocent love in rose-gardens, never say 'damn.' And in those days, dear boy, we did not use shoe-blacking. Pray calm yourself, and sit down. You are upsetting the internal arrangements of your Infant. If you swing a baby violently about, it makes it sick. Any old Gamp will tell you that."
Ronnie sat down; but solely because his knees suddenly gave way beneath him. The floor on which he was standing seemed to become deep sand.
"Keep calm," sneered Aubrey Treherne. "Perhaps you would like to know my excellent warrant for concluding that Helen was my wife in a former life? She came very near to being my wife in this. She was engaged to me before she ever met you, my boy. Had it not been for the interference of that strong-minded shrew, Mrs. Dalmain, she would have married me. I had kissed my cousin Helen, as much as I pleased, before you had ever touched her hand."
The incandescent lights grew blood-red, leaping up and down, in wild, bewildering frolic.
Then they steadied suddenly. Helen's calm, lovely figure, in a shaft of sunlight, reappeared in the empty chair.
Ronnie handed the Infant to her; rose, staggered across the intervening space, and struck Aubrey Treherne a violent blow on the mouth.
Aubrey gripped his arms, and for a moment the two men glared at one another.
Then Ronnie's knees gave way again; his feet sank deeply into the sand; and Aubrey, forcing him violently backward, pinned him down in his chair.
"I would kill you for this," he whispered, his face very close to Ronnie's; blood streaming from his lip. "I would kill you for this, you clown! But I mean to kiss Helen again; and life, while it holds that prospect, is too sweet to risk losing for the mere pleasure of wiping you out. Otherwise, I would kill you now, with my two hands."
Then a black pulsating curtain rolled, in impenetrable folds, between Ronnie and that livid bleeding face, and he sank away—down—down—down—into silent depths of darkness and of solitude.
AUBREY PUTS DOWN HIS FOOT
Ronnie's first sensation as he returned to consciousness, was of extreme lassitude and exhaustion.
His eyelids lifted heavily; he had some difficulty in realising where he was.
Then he saw his 'cello, leaning against a chair; and, a moment later, Aubrey Treherne, lying back in the seat opposite, enveloped in a cloud of tobacco smoke.
"Hullo, West!" said Aubrey, kindly. "You put in your half-hour quite unexpectedly. You were trying, in a sleepy fashion, to tell me how you came to purchase this fine 'cello; but you dropped off, with the tale unfinished."
Ronnie looked in silence at his wife's cousin.
"Are you the better for your sleep?"
"I am fagged out," said Ronnie, wearily.
Aubrey went to a cupboard, poured something into a glass, and handed it to Ronald.
"Drink this, my boy. It will soon wake you up."
Ronnie drank it. Its tint was golden, its odour, fragrant; but otherwise, for aught he knew, it might have been pure water.
He sat up and took careful note of his surroundings.
Then an idea seemed to strike him. He leaned forward and twanged the strings of his 'cello. They were not in tune.
"Will you lend me your tuning-fork?" he said to Aubrey.
But Aubrey had expected this.
"Sorry," he said. "I don't possess one, just now. I gave away mine last week. You can tune your 'cello by the organ."
"I don't know how to tune a 'cello," said Ronnie.
"Let me show you," suggested Aubrey, with the utmost friendliness.
He walked over to the organ, drew out the 'cello stop, sounded a note, then came back humming it.
Then he took up the Infant and carefully tuned the four strings, talking easily meanwhile.
"You see? You screw up the pegs—so. The notes are A, D, G, C."
"What have you done to your lip?" said Ronald, suddenly.
"Knocked it on the stove just now, as I bent to stoke it with my fingers, for fear of waking you. It bled amazingly."
Aubrey produced a much-stained handkerchief.
"It is curious how a tiny knock will sometimes draw as much blood as a sword-thrust. There! The Infant is in perfect tune, so far as I can tell without the bow. Do you mind if I just pass the bow across the strings? After each string is perfectly tuned to a piano or organ, you must make them vibrate together in order to get the fifths perfect. A violin or a 'cello is capable of a more complete condition of intuneness—if I may coin a word—than an organ or a piano."
He took up the bow, then with careful precision sounded the strings, singly and together. The beautiful open notes of the Infant of Prague, filled the room.
"There," said Aubrey, putting it back against the empty chair. "I am afraid that is all I must attempt. I only play the fiddle. I might disappoint you in your Infant if I did more than sound the open strings."
Ronald passed his hand over his forehead. "When did I fall asleep?" he asked.
"Just after suggesting that we should not discuss your books or your public."
"Ah, I remember! Treherne, I have had the most vivid and horrid nightmares."
"Then forget them," put in Aubrey, quickly. "Never recount a nightmare, when it is over. You suffer all its horrors again, in the telling. Turn your thoughts to something pleasant. When do you reach England?"
"I cross by the Hook, the day after to-morrow, reaching London early the following morning. I shall go to my club, see my publisher, lunch in town, and get down home to tea."
"To the moated Grange?" inquired Aubrey.
"Yes, to the Grange. Helen will await me there. But why do you call it 'moated'? We do not boast a moat."
Aubrey laughed. "I suppose my thoughts had run to 'Mariana.' You remember? 'He cometh not,' she said; the young woman who grew tired of waiting. They do, sometimes, you know! I believe her grange was moated. All granges should be moated; just as all old manors should be haunted. What a jolly time you and Helen must have in that lovely old place. I knew it well as a boy."
"You must come and stay with us," said Ronnie, with an effort.
"Thanks, dear chap. Delighted. Has Helen kept well during your absence?"
"Quite well. She wrote as often as she could, but there was a beastly long time when I could get no letters. Hullo!—I say!"
Ronnie stood up suddenly, the light of remembrance on his thin face, and began plunging his hands into the many pockets of his Norfolk coat.
"I found a letter from Helen at the Poste Restante, here; but owing to my absorption in the Infant, I clean forgot to read it! Heaven send I haven't dropped it anywhere!"
He stood with his back to the stove, hunting vaguely, but feverishly, in all his pockets.
Aubrey smoked on, watching him without stirring.
Aubrey was wishing that Helen could know how long her letter had remained unread, owing to the Infant of Prague.
At length Ronnie found the letter—a large, square foreign envelope—safely stowed away in his pocket-book, in the inner breast-pocket of his coat.
"Of course," he said. "I remember. I put it there when I was writing Zimmermann's cheque. You will excuse me if I read it straight away? There may be something requiring a wire."
"Naturally, my dear fellow; read it. Cousins need not stand on ceremony; and the Infant now being thoroughly in tune, your mind is free to spare a thought or two to Helen. Don't delay another moment. There may be a message in the letter for me."
Ronnie drew the thin sheets from the envelope in feverish haste.
As he did so, a folded note fell from among them unseen by Ronnie, and dropped to the floor close to Aubrey's foot.
Ronnie began reading; but black spots danced before his eyes, and Helen's beautiful clear writing zig-zagged up and down the page.
Presently his vision cleared a little and he read more easily.
Suddenly he laughed, a short, rather mirthless, laugh.
"What's up?" inquired Aubrey Treherne.
"Oh, nothing much; only I suppose I'm in for a lecture again! Helen says: 'Ronald'—" Ronnie lifted his eyes from the paper. "What a nuisance it is to own that kind of name. As a small boy I was always 'Ronnie' when people were pleased, and 'Ronald' if I was in for a wigging. The feeling of it sticks to you all your life."
"Of course it does," said Aubrey sympathetically. "Beastly hard lines. Well? Helen says 'Ronald'—?"
Ronnie's eyes sought the paper again; but once more the black spots danced in a wild shower. He rubbed his eyes and went on reading.
"'Ronald, I shall have something to tell you when you get home, which will make a great difference to this Christmas, and to all Christmas-times to come. I will not put it into a letter. I will wait until you are here, and I can say it.'"
"What can it be?" questioned Aubrey.
"Oh, I know," said Ronnie, unsteadily—the floor was becoming soft and sandy again. "I have heard it all before. She always thinks me extravagant at Christmas, and objects to her old people being given champagne and other seasonable good things. I have heard—heard it—all before. There was no need to write about it. And when she—when she says it, I shall jolly well tell her that a—that a—a fellow can do as he likes with his own earnings."
"I should," said Aubrey Treherne.
Ronald went on reading, in silence.
Aubrey's eye was upon the folded sheet of paper on the floor.
Suddenly Ronnie said: "Hullo! I'm to have it after all! Listen to this. 'P.S.—On second thoughts, now you are so nearly home, I would rather you knew what I have to say, before your return; so I am enclosing with this a pencil note I wrote some weeks ago. Ronnie, we will have a Christmas-tree this Christmas.' Well, I never!" said Ronnie. "That's not a very wild thing in the way of extravagance, is it? But it's a concession. I have wanted a Christmas-tree each Christmas. But Helen said you couldn't have a Christmas-tree in a home where there were no kids; it was absurd for two grownup people to give each other a Christmas-tree. Now, where is—" He began searching in the empty envelope.
With a quick stealthy movement, Aubrey put his foot upon the note.
"It is not here," said Ronnie, shaking out the thin sheets one by one, and tearing open the envelope. "She has forgotten it, after all. Well—I should think it will keep. It can hardly have been important."
"Evidently," remarked Aubrey, "third thoughts followed second thoughts. Even Helen would scarcely put a lecture on economy into a welcome-home letter."
"No, of course not," agreed Ronnie, and walked unsteadily to his chair.
Aubrey, stooping, transferred the note from beneath his foot to his pocket.
Ronald read his letter through again, then turned to Aubrey.
"Look here," he said. "I must send a wire. Helen wants to know whether I wish her to meet me in town, or whether I would rather she waited for me at home. What shall I say?"
Aubrey Treherne rose. "Think it over," he said, "while I fetch a form."
He left the room.
He was some time in finding that form.
When he returned his face was livid, his hand shook.
Ronald sat in absorbed contemplation of the Infant.
"It appears more perfect every time one sees it," he remarked, without looking at Aubrey.
Aubrey handed him a form for foreign telegrams, and a fountain pen.
"What are you going to say to—to your wife?" he asked in a low voice.
"I don't know," said Ronnie, vaguely. "What a jolly pen! What am I to do with this?"
"You are to let Helen know whether she is to meet you in town, or to wait at the Grange."
"Ah, I remember. What do you advise, Treherne? I don't seem able to make plans."
"I should say most decidedly, let her wait for you at home."
"Yes, I think so too. I shall be rushing around in town. I can get home before tea-time. How shall I word it?"
"Why not say: Owing to satisfactory news in letter, prefer to meet you quietly at home. All well."
Ronnie wrote this at Aubrey's dictation; then he paused.
"What news?" he asked, perplexed at the words he himself had written.
"Why—that Helen is quite well. Isn't that satisfactory news?"
"Oh, of course. I see. Yes."
"Then you might add: Will wire train from London."
"But I know the train now," objected Ronnie. "I have been thinking of it for weeks! I shall catch the 3 o'clock express."
"Very well, then add: Coming by 3 o'clock train. Home to tea."
Ronnie wrote it—a joyous smile on his lips and in his eyes.
"It sounds so near," he said. "After seven long months—it sounds so near!"
"Now," said Aubrey, "give it to me. I will take it out for you. I know an office where one can hand in wires at any hour."
"You are a good fellow," said Ronnie gratefully.
"And now look here," continued Aubrey. "Before I go, you must turn into bed, old chap. You need sleep more than you know. I can do a little prescribing myself. I am going to give you a dose of sleeping stuff which brought me merciful oblivion, after long nights of maddening wakefulness. You will feel another man, when you wake in the morning. But I am coming with you to the Hague. I can tend the Infant, while you go to the publishers. I will see you safely on board at the Hook, on the following evening, and next day you will be at home. After all those months alone in the long grass, you don't want any more solitary travelling. Now come to bed."
Ronnie rose unsteadily. "Aubrey," he said, "you are a most awfully good fellow. I shall tell Helen. She will—will—will be so—so grateful. I'm perfectly all right, you know; but other people seem so—so busy, and—and—so vague. You will help me to—to—to—arrest their attention. I must take the Infant to bed."
"Yes, yes," said Aubrey; "we will find a cosy place for the Infant. If Helen were here she would provide a bassinet. Don't forget that joke. It will amuse Helen. I make you a present of it. If Helen were here she would provide a bassinet and a pram for the Infant of Prague."
Ronnie laughed. "I shall tell Helen you said so." Then, carrying the 'cello, he lurched unsteadily through the doorway. The Infant's head had a narrow escape.
Aubrey Treherne sent off the telegram. He required to alter only one word.
When it reached Helen, the next morning at breakfast, it read thus: Owing to astonishing news in letter prefer to meet you quietly at home. All well. Coming by 3 o'clock train. Home to tea.—Ronald.
Helen suffered a sharp pang of disappointment. She had expected something quite different. The adjective "astonishing" seemed strangely cold and unlike Ronnie. She had thought he would say "wonderful," or "unbelievable," or "glorious."
But before she had finished her first cup of coffee, she had reasoned herself back into complete content. Ronnie, in an unusual fit of thoughtfulness, had remembered her feeling about the publicity of telegrams. She had so often scolded him for putting "darling" and "best of love" into messages which all had to be shouted by telephone from the postal town, into the little village office which, being also the village grocery store, was a favourite rendezvous at all hours of the day for village gossips.
It was quite unusually considerate of Ronnie to curb the glowing words he must have longed to pour forth. The very effort of that curbing, had reduced him to a somewhat stilted adjective.
So Helen finished her lonely breakfast with thoughts of glad anticipation. Ronnie's return was drawing so near. Only two more breakfasts without him. At the third she would be pouring out his coffee, and hearing him comment on the excellence of Blake's hot buttered toast!
Then, with a happy heart, she went up to the nursery.
Yet—unconsciously—the pang remained.
A FRIEND IN NEED
As Aubrey Treherne, on his way back from despatching the telegram, stood in the general entrance hall, fumbling with the latch-key at the door of his own flat, a tall young man in an ulster dashed up the wide stone stairs, rapidly read the names on the various brass plates, and arrived at Aubrey's just as his door had yielded to persuasion and was admitting him into his own small passage.
"Hullo," said a very British voice. "Do you happen to be Ronald West's wife's cousin?"
Aubrey turned in the doorway, taking stock of his interlocutor. He saw a well-knit, youthful figure, a keen resourceful face, and a pair of exceedingly bright brown eyes, unwavering in the steady penetration of their regard. Already they had taken him in, from top to toe, and were looking past him in a rapid investigation of as much of his flat as could be seen from the doorway.
Aubrey was caught!
He had fully intended muffling his electric bell, and not being at home to visitors.
But this brisk young man, with an atmosphere about him of always being ten minutes ahead of time, already had one of his very muddy boots inside the door, and eagerly awaited the answer to his question; so it was useless to reply to the latter in German, and to bang the former.
Therefore: "I have that honour," replied Aubrey, with the best grace he could muster.
"Ah! Well, I'm sorry to bother you so late, but I must have a word with you; and then I am going round to spend the night with Ronnie at his hotel."
"Come in," said Aubrey, in a low voice; "but we must not talk in the passage or we shall wake him. I saw he was not fit to be alone, so I sent to the hotel for his traps, and am putting him up here. He turned in, half an hour ago, and seemed really inclined to sleep. He was almost off, when I left him."
Aubrey, closing the door, led the way to his sitting-room, where the three easy chairs were still drawn up before the stove.
"I conclude you are Dr. Cameron," said Aubrey, turning up the light, and motioning his visitor to the chair which had lately been Ronnie's.
"Yes, I am Dick Cameron, Ronnie's particular chum; and if ever he needed a particular chum, poor old chap, he does so at this moment. But I am glad he has found a friend in you, and one really able to undertake him. You did right not to leave him at the hotel; and he must not travel back to England alone."
"I have already arranged to accompany him," said Aubrey Treherne.
"Good; it will save me a journey."
Dick pulled off his ulster, threw it across the red velvet sofa, flung his cap after it, and took the proffered chair.
In his blue serge suit and gay tie, he looked like the captain of a college football team.
Aubrey, eyeing him with considerable reserve and distaste, silently took up his position in the chair opposite. He felt many years older than this peremptory young man, who appeared to consider himself master of all situations.
Dick turned his bright eyes on to the empty chair between them.
"So Ronnie has spent the evening with you?"
"He has."
"Who was the third party?"
"The third party was the Infant of Prague."
"Oh, bother that rotten Infant!" exclaimed Dr. Dick. "I came near to putting my foot through its shining tummy this morning! Still it may serve its silly use, if it takes his mind off his book, until we can get him safely home. I suppose you know, sir, that Ronald West is about as ill as a man can be? It will be touch and go whether we can get him home before the crash comes."
"I thought he seemed excited and unwell," said Aubrey. "What do you consider is the cause of his condition?"
"Well, the bother is, we can't exactly tell. But I should say he has been letting himself in for constant exposure to extreme heat by day, and to swampy dampness by night; not taking proper food; living in a whirl of excited imagination with no rational companionship to form an outlet; and, on the top of all this, contracted some malarial germ, which has put up his temperature and destroyed the power of natural sleep. This condition of brain has enabled him to work practically night and day at his manuscript, and I have no doubt he has written brilliant stuff, which an enchanted world will read by-and-by, with no notion of the price which has been paid for their pleasure and edification. But meanwhile, unless proper steps are taken to avert disaster, our friend Ronnie will be, by then, unable to understand or to enjoy his triumph."
Aubrey's lean face flushed. "I hope you are taking an exaggerated view," he said.
"I hope you understand," retorted Dr. Dick, "that I am doing nothing of the kind. I cannot tell you precisely what course the illness will run; the nuisance of these African jungle poisons is that we know precious little about them. But I have known Ronnie since he and I were at school together, and any poison goes straight to his brain. If he gets influenza, he never sneezes and snuffles like an ordinary mortal, but walks about, more or less light-headed, all day; and lies dry awake, staring at the ceiling all night."
"What do you recommend in this case?"
"Ah, there we arrive at my reason for coming to you. I don't know Ronnie's wife. I conclude you do."
"She is my first cousin. I have known her intimately all her life."
"Can you write to her to-night, and mail the letter so that it will reach her before he arrives home?"
"I have every intention of doing so."
Dick Cameron sat forward, eagerly.
"Good! It will come better from you than from a total stranger. No doubt I am known to her by name; but we have never chanced to meet. Without alarming her too much, I want you to make Ronnie's condition quite clear to her. Tell her he must be kept absolutely quiet and happy on his return; and, with as little delay as may be, she must have the best advice procurable."
"Whom would you recommend?"
"To be quite honest, I am afraid a brain specialist. But I will give you the name of a man who has also made a special study of the conditions caused by malarial fever, and exposure to tropical heat."
Dick produced a note-book, wrote down a name and address, tore out the leaf, and handed it to Aubrey.
"There! You can't do better than that. Of course it is everything that you are taking him right home. But, even so, let your letter get there first. You might have difficulty in seeing Mrs. West alone, and mischief might be done in a moment, which you would be powerless to prevent. Tell her, that above all else, she must avoid any sort of shock for him. A violent emotion of any kind would probably send him clean off his head."
"I am sure you are right, there," said Aubrey. "He suddenly became violent to-night, while we were talking about his 'cello; got up, staggered across, and struck me on the mouth."
Dr. Dick's keen eyes were instantly bent upon Aubrey Treherne in perplexed scrutiny.
Aubrey shifted uncomfortably in his seat; then rose and put fuel into the stove.
Still Dick sat silent.
When Aubrey resumed his seat, Dick spoke—slowly, as if carefully weighing every word.
"Now that is peculiar," he said. "Ronnie's mental condition is a perfectly amiable one, unless anything was said or done to cause him extreme provocation. In fact, he would not be easily provoked. He is inclined rather to take a maudlinly affectionate and friendly view of things and people; to be very simply, almost childishly, pleased with the last new idea. That wretched Infant of his is a case in point. I should be glad if you would tell me, sir, what happened in this room just before Ronnie hit out."
"Merely a conversation about the 'cello," replied Aubrey, hurriedly. "A perfectly simple remark of mine apparently annoyed him. But I soon pacified him. He was obviously not responsible for his actions."
"He was obviously in a frenzy of rage," remarked Dr. Dick, drily; "and he caught you a good one on the mouth. Did he apologise afterwards?"
"He fell asleep," said Aubrey, "and appeared on awaking to have absolutely forgotten the occurrence."
Dick got up, put his hands in his pockets, walked over to the organ, and, bending down, examined the stops. He whistled softly to himself as he did so.
Aubrey, meanwhile, had the uncomfortable sensation that the whole scene with Ronnie was being re-acted, with Dick Cameron as an interested spectator.
It tried Aubrey's nerves.
"I do not wish to hurry you," he suggested presently. "But if I am to post my letter to my cousin before midnight, the sooner I am able to write it, the better."
Dick turned at once and took up his ulster.
Aubrey, relieved, came forward cordially to lend him a hand.
"No, thank you," said Dr. Dick. "A man should always get into his coat unaided. In so doing, he uses certain muscles which are exercised in no other way."
He swung himself into the heavy coat, and stood before Aubrey Treherne—very tall, very grave, very determined.
"You quite understand, sir, that if you were not yourself taking Ronnie home, I should do so? And if, by any chance, you are prevented from going, just let me know, and I can be packed and ready to start home with him in a quarter of an hour."
"Very good of you," said Aubrey, "but all our plans are made. We reach the Hague to-morrow night. He requires a day there for making his translation and publishing arrangements. So we sleep at the Hague to-morrow, crossing by the Hook of Holland on the following evening. I have wired to the Hôtel des Indes for a suite. I feel sure my cousin would wish him to have the best of everything, and to be absolutely comfortable and quiet. At the Hôtel des Indes they have an excellent orchestra, and a particularly fine 'cellist. West will enjoy showing him the Infant. They can compare babies! It will keep him amused and interested all the evening."
"Good idea," agreed Dr. Dick. "But Ronnie need not come down on his wife for his hotel expenses! He is making a pot of money himself, now. You will be careful to report to Mrs. West exactly what I have said of his condition?"
"I will write immediately. As we stay a night en route, and another is taken up in crossing, my cousin should receive my letter twenty-four hours before our arrival."
"Impress upon her," said Dr. Dick, earnestly, "how dangerous any mental shock might be."
"Do you fear brain fever?" questioned Aubrey.
Dick laughed. "Brain fever is a popular fiction," he said. "It is not a term admitted by the faculty. If you mean meningitis—no, I trust not. But probably temporary loss of memory, and a complete upsetting of mental control; with a possible impairing, for a considerable time, of his brilliant mental powers."
"In other words, my cousin's husband is threatened with insanity."
"Lor, no!" exclaimed Dick, with vehemence. "How easily you good people hand a fellow-creature over to that darkest of all fates! Ronnie's condition is brought about by temporary circumstances which are not in the least likely to have permanent results. He has always had the eccentricity of genius; but, since his genius has been recognised, people have ceased to consider him eccentric. Now I must be off. But I will see him first. Will you show me his room?" "He is asleep," objected Aubrey. "Is it not a pity to disturb him?"
"I doubt his being asleep," replied Dick. "But if he is, we shall not wake him."
He stepped into the passage, his attitude one of uncompromising determination.
Aubrey Treherne opened the door of Ronnie's room. It was in darkness. He stepped back into the passage, lighted a candle, handed it to Dick Cameron, and they entered quietly together.
Ronnie lay on his back, sleeping heavily. His eyes were partly open, his face flushed, his breathing rapid. One arm was flung out toward a chair beside the bed, on which lay his pocket-book, his watch, and a small leather miniature-case containing a portrait of Helen. This lay open upon the watch, having evidently fallen from his fingers. A candle had burned down into the socket, and spluttered itself out.
Dick picked up the miniature, held it close to the light of his own candle, and examined it critically.
"He certainly went in for beauty," he remarked in a low voice to Aubrey Treherne, as he laid the miniature beside the pocket-book. "Of course Ronnie would. But it is also a noble face—a face one could altogether trust. Ronnie will be in safe hands when once you get him home."
Aubrey's smile, in the flare of the candle, was the grin of a hungry wolf. He made no reply.
Dr. Dick, watch in hand, stood silently beside the bed, counting the rapid respiration of his friend. Then he turned, took up an empty tumbler from the table behind him, smelt it, and looked at Aubrey Treherne.
"I thought so," he said. "You meant well, no doubt. But don't do it again. Drugs to produce sleep may occasionally be necessary, but should only be given under careful medical supervision. Personally, I am inclined to think that any sort of artificial sleep does more harm to a delicately poised brain, than insomnia. However, opinions differ. But there is no question that your experiment of to-night must not be repeated. I have given him stuff to take during his homeward journey which will tend to calm him, lessen the fever, and clear his mind. See that he takes it."
Young Dick Cameron walked out of Ronnie's room, blew out the candle he carried, and replaced the candlestick on a little ornamental bracket.
Aubrey followed, inwardly fuming.
If Dick had been at the top of the tree, the first opinion procurable from Harley Street, W., his manner could hardly have been more authoritative, his instructions more peremptory.
"Upstart!" said Aubrey to himself. "Insolent Jackanapes!"
When Dick Cameron reached the outer door his cap was on the back of his head, his hands were thrust deep into his coat pockets.
"Good-evening," he said. "Excuse my long intrusion. I shall be immensely obliged if you will let me have a wire reporting your safe arrival, and a letter, later on, with details as to Ronnie's state. I put my address on the paper I gave you just now, with the name of the man Mrs. West must call in."
Dick crossed the great entrance-hall, and ran lightly down the stone steps.
Aubrey heard the street door close behind him.
Then he shut and double locked his own flat.
"Upstart!" he said. "Jackanapes! Insolent fool!"
It is sometimes consoling to call people that which you know they are not, yet heartily wish they were.
Aubrey entered his sitting-room. He wanted an immediate vent for his ill-humour and sense of impotent mortification.
The leaf from Dick's note-book lay on the table.
Aubrey took it up, opened the iron door of the stove, and thrust the leaf into the very heart of the fire.
Aubrey Treherne sat at his writing-table, his head buried in his hands.
Before him lay the closely-written sheets of his letter to Helen; beside them her pencil note which had fallen, unnoticed by Ronnie, from her letter to him.
Presently Aubrey lifted his head. His face bore traces of the anguish of soul through which he had been passing.
A man who has yielded himself to unrestrained wrong-doing, suffers with a sharpness of cold misery unknown to the brave true heart, however hard or lonely may be his honourable way.
Before finally reading his own letter to Helen, Aubrey read again her pathetic note to her husband.
"Ronnie, my own!
"Excuse pencil and bad writing. Nurse has propped me up in bed, but not so high as I should like.
"Darling, I am not ill, only rather weak, and very, very happy.
"Ronnie, I must write to you on this first day of being allowed a pencil, though I shall not, of course, yet send the letter. In fact, I daresay I shall keep it, and give it to you by-and-by. But you will like to feel that I wrote at once.
"Darling, how shall I tell you? Beside me, in your empty place, as I write, lies your little son—our own baby-boy, Ronnie!
"He came three days ago.
"Oh, Ronnie, it is so wonderful! He is so like you; though his tiny fingers are all pink and crinkled, and his palms are like little sea-shells. But he is going to have your artistic hands. When I cuddle them against my neck, the awful longing and loneliness of these past months seem wiped out. But only because he is yours, darling, and because I know you are soon coming back to him and to me.
"I could not tell you before you went, because I know you would have felt obliged to give up going, and your book is so important; and I have not told you since, because you must not have anything to worry you while so far away. Also I was glad to bear it alone, and to save you the hard part. One soon forgets the hardness, in the joy.
"Jane was with me.
"We are sending no announcement to the papers, for fear you should see it on the way home. Very few people know.
"Our little son will be six weeks old, when you get back. I shall be quite strong again.
"I hope you will be able to read this tiny writing. Nurse would only give me one sheet of paper!
"His eyes are blue. His little mouth is just like yours. I kiss it, but it doesn't kiss back! He is a darling, Ronnie, but—he isn't you!
"Come back soon, to your more than ever loving wife,
"HELEN.
"Yes, the smudgy places are tears, but only because I am rather weak, and so happy."
Crossing the first page came a short postscript, in firmer hand-writing:
"After all I am sending this to Leipzig. I daren't not tell you before you arrive. I sometimes feel as if I had done something wrong! Tell me, directly you take me in your arms, that I did right, and that you are glad. I am down, as usual, now, and baby is quite well."
Aubrey's hands shook as he folded the thin paper, opened a drawer, pushed the letter far into it, and locked the drawer.
Then, with set face, he turned to his own letter to Ronald West's wife.
"My own Beloved—
"Yes, I call you so still, because you were mine, and are mine. You threw me over, giving me no chance to prove that my love for you had made me worthy—that I would have been worthy. You sent me into outer darkness, where there was wailing and gnashing of teeth; where the worm of remorse dies—never. But, through it all, I loved you still. I love you to-night, as I never loved you before. The whole world is nothing to me, excepting as the place on which you walk.
"I have seen the man—- the selfish, self-absorbed fool—on whom you threw yourself away, six months after you had cast me adrift. At this moment he is my guest, snoring in an adjoining room while I sit up writing to you.
"He has spent the evening talking of nothing but himself, his journey, his wonderful book—the strongest thing he has done yet, etc., etc., etc.; till I could have risen up and strangled him with my two hands. Oh, Helen—my lovely one—he is altogether unworthy of you! I saw a letter of yours long ago, in which you said he was like a young sun-god. Handsome he is, I admit. He says he has never felt fitter in his life, and he looks it. But surely a woman wants more than mere vitality and vigour and outward beauty of appearance? Heart—he has none. The wonderful news in your letter has left him unmoved. He thinks more of a 'cello he has just bought than he does of your little son. When I remonstrated with him, he rose up and struck me on the mouth. But I forgave him for your sake, and he now sleeps under my roof.
"Helen, he must have disappointed you over and over again. He will continue to disappoint you.
"Helen, you loved me once; and when a woman loves once, she loves for always.
"Helen, if he could leave you alone during seven months, in order to get local scenery for a wretched manuscript, he will leave you again, and again, and yet again. He married you for your money; he has practically admitted it to me; but now that he is making a yearly income larger than your own, he has no more use for you.
"Oh, my beloved—my queen—my only Love—don't stay with a man who is altogether unworthy of you! If a man disappoints a woman she has a right to leave him. He is not what she believed him to be; that fact sets her free. If you had found out, afterwards, that he was already married to another, would you not have left him? Well, he was already wedded to himself and to his career. He had no whole-hearted devotion to give to you.
"Helen, don't wait for his return. Directly you get this come out here to me. Bring your little son and his nurse. My flat will be absolutely at your disposal. I can sleep elsewhere; and I swear to you I will never stay one moment after you have bid me go. As soon as West has set you legally free, we can marry and travel abroad for a couple of years; then, when the whole thing has blown over, go back to live in the old house so dear to us both.
"Helen, you will have twenty-four hours in which to get away before he returns. But even if you decide to await his return, it will not be too late. His utter self-absorption must give you a final disillusion.
"See if his first words to you are not about his cursèd 'cello, rather than about his child and yours.
"If so, treat him with the silent contempt he deserves, and come at once to the man who won you first and to whom you have always belonged; come, where tenderest consideration and the worship of a lifetime await you.
"Yours till death—- and after,
"AUBREY TREHERNE."
THE PINNACLE OF THE TEMPLE
Aubrey's letter fell upon Helen as a crushing, stunning blow.
At first her womanhood reeled beneath it.
"What have I been—what have I done," she cried, "that a man dares to write thus to me?"
Then her wifehood rose up in arms as she thought of Ronnie's gay, boyish trust in her; their happy life together; his joyous love and laughter.
She clenched her hands.
"I could kill Aubrey Treherne!" she said.
Then her motherhood arose; and bowing her proud head, she burst into a passion of tears.
At length she stood up and walked over to the window.
"It will be bad for my little son if I weep," she said, and smiled through her tears.
The trees were leafless, the garden beds empty. The park looked sodden, dank and cheerless. Summer was long dead and over, yet frosts had not begun, bringing suggestions of mistletoe and holly.
But the mists were lifting, fading in white wreaths from off the grass; and, at that moment, the wintry sun, bursting through the November clouds, shone on the diamond panes, illumining the cross and the motto beneath it.
"In hoc vince!" murmured Helen. "As I told my own dear boy, the path of clear shining is the way to victory. In hoc signo vinces! I will take this gleam of sunlight as a token of triumph. By the help of God, I will write such an answer to Aubrey as shall lead him to overcome his evil desires, and bring his dark soul out into the light of repentance and confession."
The same post had brought her a short letter from Ronnie, written immediately on his arrival at Leipzig, evidently before receiving hers. It was a disappointment to have nothing more. As Aubrey had got a letter through after hearing the news, Ronnie might have done the same.
But perhaps, face to face with her wonderful tidings, words had altogether failed him. He feared to spoil all he would so soon be able to say, by attempting to write.
To-morrow—the day which should bring him to her—would soon be here.
Meanwhile her reply to Aubrey must be posted to-day, and his letter consigned to the flames.
Feeling unable to go to the nursery with that letter unanswered, she sat down at once and wrote to her cousin.
"I only read your letter, Aubrey, half an hour ago. I am answering it at once, because I cannot enter the presence of my little son, with such a letter as yours still in my possession. As soon as I have answered it I shall burn it.
"I may then be able to rise above the terrible sense of shame which completely overwhelmed me at first, at the thought that any man—above all a man who knew me well—should dare to write me such a letter!
"At first my whole soul cried out in horror: 'What am I? What have I been? What have I done—that such words should be written—such a proposition made—to me?' The sin of it seemed to soil me; the burning wickedness, to brand me. I seemed parted from my husband and my child, and dragged down with you into your abyss of outer darkness.
"Then, into my despair, sacred words were whispered for my comfort. 'He was in all points tempted, like as we are, yet without sin,' and, through my shame and tears, I saw a vision of the Holy One, standing serene and kingly on the pinnacle of the temple, where, though the devil dared to whisper the fiendish suggestion: 'Cast Thyself down,' He stood His ground without a tremor—tempted, yet unsoiled.
"So—with this vision of my Lord before me—I take my stand, Aubrey Treherne, upon the very summit of the holy temple of wifehood and motherhood, and I say to you: 'Get thee gone, Satan!' You may have bowed my mind to the very dust in shame over your wicked words, but you cannot cause my womanhood to descend one step from off its throne.
"This being so, poor Aubrey, I feel able to forgive you the other great wrong, and to try to find words in which to prove to you the utter vileness of the sin, and yet to show you also the way out of your abyss of darkness and despair, into the clear shining of repentance, confession, and forgiveness.
"As regards the happenings of the past, between you and me—you state them wrongly. I did not love you, Aubrey, or I would never have sent you away. I could have forgiven anything to an honest man, who had merely failed and fallen.
"But you had lived a double life; you had deceived me all along the line. I had loved the man I thought you were—the man you had led me to believe you were. I did not love the man I found you out to be.
"I could not marry a man I did not love. Therefore, I sent you away. There was no question then of giving you, or not giving you, a chance to prove yourself worthy. I was not concerned just then with what you might eventually prove yourself. I did not love you; therefore, I could not wed you. Though, as a side issue, it is only fair to point out—if you wish to stand upon your possible merits—that this letter, written four years later, confirms my then estimate of your true character.
"Aubrey, I cannot discuss my husband with you; nor can I bring myself to allude to the subject of my relations with him, or his with me.
"To defend him to you would be to degrade him in all honest eyes.
"To enlarge upon my love for him, would be like pouring crystal water into a stagnant polluted pool, in order to prove how pure was the fountain from which that water flowed. Nothing could be gained by such a proceeding. Pouring samples of its purity into the tainted waters of the pool, would neither prove the former, nor cleanse the latter.
"But, in order to free my own mind from the poison of your suggestions and the shame of the fact that they were made to me, I must answer, in the abstract, one statement in your letter. Please understand that I answer it completely in the abstract. You have dared to apply it to my husband and to me. I do not admit that it applies. But, even if it did, I should not let it pass unchallenged. I break a lance with you, Aubrey Treherne, and with all men of your way of thinking, on behalf of every true wife and mother in Christendom!
"You say, that if a man has disappointed his wife, she has a right to leave him; the fact of that disappointment sets her free?
"I say to you, in answer: when a woman loves a man enough to wed him, he becomes to her as her life—her very self.
"I often fail, and fall, and disappoint myself. I do not thereupon immediately feel free to commit suicide. I face my failure, resolve to do better, and take up my life again, as bravely as may be, on higher lines.
"If a woman leaves her husband she commits moral suicide. By virtue of his union with her, he is as her own self. If disappointment and disillusion come to her through him, she must face them as she does when they come through herself. She must be patient, faithful, understanding, tender; helping him, as she would help herself, to start afresh on higher ground; once more, with a holy courage, facing life bravely.
"This is my answer—every true woman's answer—to the subtle suggestions of your letter.
"I admit that often marriages turn out hopeless—impossible; mere prisons of degradation. But that is when the sacred tie is entered into for other than the essential reasons of a perfect love and mutual need; or without due consideration, 'unadvisedly, lightly, wantonly,' notwithstanding the Church's warning. Or when people have found out their mistake in time, yet lacked the required courage to break their engagement, as I broke off mine with you, Aubrey; thus saving you and myself a lifetime of regret and misery.
"Oh, cannot you see that the only real 'outer darkness' is the doing of wrong? Disappointment, loss, loneliness, remorse—all these may be hard to bear, but they can be borne in the light; they do not necessarily belong to the outer darkness.
"May I ask you, as some compensation for the pain your letter has given me, and the terrible effort this answer has cost, to bear with me if, in closing, I quote to you in full the final words of the first chapter of the first epistle of St. John? I do so with my heart full of hope and prayer for you—yes, even for you, Aubrey. Because, though my words will probably fail to influence you, God has promised that His Word shall never return unto Him void.
"'If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.... If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.'
"Oh, Aubrey, act on this! It is true.
"Your cousin, who still hopes better things of you, and who will not fail in thought and prayer,
"HELEN WEST."
RONNIE ARRIVES IN A FOG
Ronnie reached Liverpool Street Station at 8 o'clock on a foggy November morning.
After the quiet night on the steamer, the landing in darkness at Harwich, and the steady run up to town, alone in a first-class compartment, he felt momentarily confused by the noise and movement within the great city terminus.
The brilliant lights of the station, combined with the yellow fog rolling in from the various entrances; the onward rush of many feet, as hundreds of busy men and eager young women poured out of suburban trains, hurrying to the scenes which called for their energy during the whole of the coming day; the gliding in and out of trains, the passing to and fro of porters, wheeling heavy luggage; the clang of milk-cans, the hoot of taxi-cabs, and, beyond it all, the distant roar of London, awaking, and finding its way about heavily, like an angry old giant in the fog—all seemed to Ronnie to be but another of the queer nightmares which came to him now with exhausting frequency.
As a rule, he found it best to wait until they passed off. So, holding the Infant of Prague in its canvas case in one hand, and the bag containing his manuscript in the other, he stood quite still upon the platform, waiting for the roar to cease, the rush to pass by, the nightmare to be over.
Presently an Inspector who knew Ronnie walked down the platform. He paused at once, with the ready and attentive courtesy of the London railway official.
"Any luggage, Mr. West?" he asked, lifting his cap.
"No, thank you," replied Ronnie, "not to-day."
He knew he had luggage somewhere—heaps of it. But what was the good of hunting up luggage in a nightmare? Dream luggage was not worth retrieving. Besides, the more passive you are, the sooner the delusion leaves off tormenting you.
"Have you come from the Hook, sir?" inquired the inspector.
"Yes," said Ronnie. "Did you think I had come from the Eye?"
He knew it was a vile pun, but it seemed exactly the sort of thing one says in a nightmare.
The inspector laughed, and passed on; then returned, looking rather searchingly at Ronnie.
Ronnie thought it well to explain further. "As a matter of fact, my friend," he said, "I have come from Central Africa, where I have been sitting round camp-fires, in company with asps and cockatrices, and other interesting creatures. I am writing a book about it—the best thing I have done yet."
The inspector had read and enjoyed all Ronnie's books. He smiled uneasily. Asps and cockatrices sounded queer company.
"Won't you have a cup of coffee, sir, before going out into the fog?" he suggested.
"Ah—good idea!" said Ronnie; and made his way to the refreshment room.
It was empty at this early hour, and quiet. All the people with rushing feet and vaguely busy faces had breakfasted at a still earlier hour, in their own cosy homes. Their wives had made their coffee. To-morrow Helen would pour out his coffee. It seemed an almost unbelievably happy thought. How came such rapture to be connected with coffee?
He spent a minute or two in deciding at which of the many little marble tables he would sit. He never remembered being offered so large or so varied a choice at Liverpool Street Station before. You generally made a dash for the only empty table you saw, usually close to the door. That was like Hobson's choice—this or none! A stable of forty good steeds, always ready and fit for travelling, but the customer must take the horse which stood nearest to the door!
Well, to-day he had the run of the stable. Forty good marble tables! Which should he choose?
The young women behind the counter watched him with interest as he wandered about, carefully examining each table and sitting down tentatively at several. At last he chose the most central, as being the furthest removed from Hobson's choice; sat down, took the Infant out of its bag, and, screwing in its pointed foot, leaned it up against another chair at the table.
Then he found that one of the young women had come from behind the counter, and was standing at his elbow, patiently awaiting his pleasure.
He ordered a cup of coffee and a roll and butter, for himself; a glass of milk and a sponge-cake for the Infant.
Just after these were served, before he had had time to drink the steaming hot coffee, the friendly inspector arrived, accompanied by another railway official. They said they had come to make sure Ronnie had found what he wanted in the refreshment room.
Ronnie thanked them for their civility, and showed them the Infant.
They looked at it with surprise and interest; but nudged one another when they noticed the glass of milk and the sponge-cake, which Ronnie had carefully pushed across to the Infant's side of the table.
Then they saluted, and went out.
Left alone, Ronnie drank his coffee.
It instantly cleared his brain of the after-effects of the sleeping draught which Aubrey had insisted upon giving him just before the steamer sailed the night before. His surroundings ceased to appear dream-like. A great wave of happiness swept over him.
Why, he was in London again! He was almost at home! If he had let Helen meet him, she might have been sitting just opposite, at this little marble table!
He looked across and saw the unconscious Infant's glass of milk and sponge-cake. He drew them hurriedly towards him. He felt suddenly ashamed of them. It was possible to carry a joke too far in public. He knew Helen would say: "Don't be silly, Ronnie!"
He particularly disliked milk, and was not fond of sponge-cakes; but he hastily drank the one and ate the other. He could think of no other way of disposing of them. He hoped the young women who were watching him from behind the counter, would think he enjoyed them.
Then he called for a whisky and soda, to take out the exceedingly beastly taste of the milk; but instantly remembered that old Dick had said: "Touch no alcohol," so changed the order to another cup of coffee.
This second instalment of coffee made him feel extraordinarily fit and vigorous.
He put the Infant back into its bag.
The inspector returned.
"We have found your luggage, Mr. West," he said. "If we may have your keys we can get it out for you."
"Ah, do!" said Ronnie. "Many thanks. Put it on a taxi. I shall leave it at my Club. I am afraid I was rather vague about it just now; but I had been given a sleeping draught on board, and was hardly awake when I got out of the train. I am all right now. Thanks for your help, my good fellow."
The inspector looked relieved.
Ronnie paid his bill, took up the 'cello, handed his bag to the inspector, and marched off gaily to claim his luggage.
He felt like conquering the world! The fog was lifting. The roar of the city sounded more natural. He had an excellent report to make to his publisher, heaps of "copy" to show him, and then—he was going home to Helen.
In the taxi he placed the Infant on the seat beside him.
On the whole he felt glad he had told Helen not to meet him at the station. It was so much more convenient to have plenty of room in the taxi for his 'cello. It stood so safely on the seat beside him, in its canvas bag.
As they sped westward he enjoyed looking out at the fog and mud and general wintry-aspect of London.
He did not feel cold. Aubrey had persuaded him to buy a magnificent fur-coat at the Hague. He had lived in it ever since, feeling gorgeous and cosy. Aubrey's ideas of spending money suited him better than Helen's.
His taxi glided rapidly along the greasy Embankment. Once it skidded on the tramlines, and Ronnie laid a steadying hand upon the 'cello.
The grey old Thames went rolling by—mighty, resistless, perpetually useful—right through the heart of busy London.
Ronnie thought of the well-meaning preacher who pointed out to his congregation, as an instance of the wonderful over-rulings of an All-wise Providence, the fact that large rivers flowed through great cities, and small streams through little villages! Ronnie laughed very much at the recollection of this story, and tried to remember whether he had ever told it to Helen.
Arrived at his club he shaved, tubbed, changed his clothes, and, leaving his 'cello in charge of the hall porter, sallied out with his manuscript to call upon his publisher.
In his portmanteau he had found Dr. Dick's bottle of stuff to take on the journey. Aubrey had persuaded him to pack it away. He now took a dose; then slipped the bottle into the pocket of his fur coat.
All went well, during the rest of the morning. His publisher was neither pre-occupied nor vague. He gave Ronnie a great reception and his full attention.
In the best of spirits, and looking the bronzed picture of perfect health, Ronnie returned to his club, lunched, showed his 'cello to two or three friends, then caught the three o'clock train to Hollymead.
The seven months were over. All nightmares seemed to have cleared away. He was on his way to Helen. In an hour and a half he would be with her!
He began to wonder, eagerly, what Helen would say to the Infant.
He felt quite sure that as soon as he got the bow in his hand, and the 'cello between his knees, the Infant would have plenty to say to Helen.
He had kept his yearning to play, under strong control, so that she might be there to enjoy with him the wonderful experience of those first moments.
As the train slowed up for Hollymead, and the signal lights of the little wayside station appeared, Ronnie took the last dose of Dick's physic, and threw the bottle under the seat.
Helen awaited in her sitting-room the return of the carriage.
It had been a great effort to let it go to the station without her. In fact she had ordered it to the front door, and put on her hat and coat in readiness.
But at the last minute it had seemed impossible to meet Ronnie on a railway platform.
So she sent the brougham off without her, went upstairs, put on a soft trailing gown specially admired by Ronnie, paused at the nursery to make sure all was quiet and ready, then came down to her sitting-room, and tried to listen for a sound other than the beating of her own heart.
The room looked very home-like and cosy. A fire crackled gaily on the hearth. The winter curtains were drawn; the orange lampshades cast a soft golden light around.
The tea-table stood ready—cups and plates for two. The firelight shone on the embossed brightness of the urn and teapot.
Ronnie's favourite low chair was ready for him.
The room seemed in every detail to whisper, "Home"; and the woman who waited knew that the home within her heart, yearning to receive and welcome and hold him close, after his long, long absence from her, was more tender, more beautiful, more radiant, than outward surroundings could possibly be made.
No word save the one telegram had come from Ronnie since her letter to Leipzig. But she knew he had been desperately busy; and, with the home-coming so near, letters would have seemed to him almost impossible.
He could not know how her woman's heart had yearned to have him say at once: "I am glad, and you did right."
Her nervousness increased, as the hour for the return of the carriage drew near.
She wished she could be sure of having time to run up again to the nursery with final instructions to Nurse. Supposing baby woke, just as the carriage arrived, and the first sound Ronnie heard was the hungry wailing of his little son!
Passing into the hall, she stood listening at the foot of the stairs.
All was quiet on the upper landing.
She returned to the sitting-room, and rang the bell.
"Simpkins," she said to her butler, "listen for the carriage and be at the door when it draws up. It may arrive at any moment now. Tell Mr. West I am in here."
She sat down, determined to wait calmly; took up the paper and tried to read an article on foreign policy. It was then she discovered that her hands were trembling.
She laughed at herself, and felt better.
"Oh, what will Ronnie think of me! That I, of all people, should unexpectedly become nervous!"
She walked over to the fireplace and saw reflected in the mirror over the mantel-piece, a very lovely, but a very white, face. She did not notice the loveliness, but she marked the pallor. It was not reassuring.
She tried to put another log on to the fire, but failed to grip it firmly with the little brass tongs, and it fell upon the rug. At that moment she heard the sharp trot of the horses coming up the last sweep of the park drive.
She flung the log on to the fire with her fingers, flew to the door and set it open; then returned to the table and stood leaning against it, her hands behind her, gripping the edge, her eyes upon the doorway. Ronnie would have to walk the whole length of the room to reach her. Thus she would see him—see the love in his eyes—before her own were hidden.
She heard Simpkins cross the hall and open the door.
The next moment the horses' hoofs pounded up the drive, and she heard the crunch of the wheels coming to a standstill on the wet gravel.
A murmur from Simpkins, then Ronnie's gay, joyous voice, as he entered the house.
"In the sitting-room? Oh, thanks! Yes, take my coat. No, not this. I will put it down myself."
Then his footstep crossing the hall.
Then—Ronnie filled the doorway; tall, bronzed, radiant as ever! She had forgotten how beautiful he was. And—yes—the love in his eyes was just as she had known it would be—eager, glowing.
She never knew how he reached her; but she let go the table and held out her arms. In a moment he was in them, and his were flung around her. His lips sought hers, but her face was hidden on his breast. She felt his kisses in her hair.
"Oh, Helen!" he said. "Helen! Why did I ever go!"
She held him closer still, sobbing a little.
"Darling, we both thought it right you should go. And—you didn't know."
"No," he agreed rather vaguely, "of course I didn't know." He thought she meant that he had not known how long the parting would seem, how insistent would be the need of each other. "I should not have gone, if I had known," he added, tenderly.
"I knew you wouldn't, Ronnie. But—I was all right."
"Of course you were all right. You know, you said we were a healthy couple, so I suppose there was no need to worry or to expect anything else. Was there? All the same I did worry—sometimes."
She waited for more.
It did not come. Ronnie was kissing her hair again.
"Were you glad when you had my letter, Ronnie?" she asked, very low.
"Which letter, sweet? I was always glad of every letter."
"Why, the last—the one to Leipzig."
"Ah, of course! Yes, I was very glad. I read it in your cousin's flat. I had just been showing him—oh, Helen! That reminds me—darling, I have something to show you! Such a jolly treasure—such a surprise! I left it in the hall. Would you like me to fetch it?"
He loosed his arms and she withdrew from them, looking up into his glowing face.
"Yes, Ronnie," she said. "Why, certainly. Do fetch it."
He rushed off into the hall. He fumbled eagerly with the buckles of the canvas bag. It had never taken so long, to draw the precious Infant forth.
He held it up to the hall lights. He wanted to make sure that it was really as brown and as beautiful as it had always seemed to him.
Yes, it was as richly brown as the darkest horse-chestnut you ever saw in a bursting bur!
He walked back into the sitting-room, carrying it proudly before him.
Helen had just lighted the spirit-lamp beneath the swinging kettle on the brass stand. Her face was rather white again.
"Here it is, Helen," he said. "The most beautiful 'cello you ever saw! It is one hundred and fifty years old. It was made at Prague. I paid a hundred and fifty pounds for it."
Helen looked.
"That was a good deal to pay for a 'cello," she said, yet conscious as she spoke that—even as Peter on the Mount—she had made the remark chiefly because she "wist not what to say."
"Not a bit!" said Ronnie. "A chap in the orchestra at the Hague, with a fine 'cello of his own, told me he had never in his life handled such a beauty. He considered it a wonderful bargain."
"It is a beauty," said Helen, pouring hot water from the urn into the teapot, with a hand which trembled.
Ronnie wheeled a third chair up to the low tea-table, opposite his own particular seat, leaned his 'cello up against it, sat down, put his elbows on his knees, and glowed at it with enthusiasm.
"I knew you would say so, darling. Ever since I bought it, after choosing your organ at Zimmermann's, I have been thinking of the moment when I should show it to you; though an even greater moment is coming for us soon, Helen."
"Yes, Ronnie."
"Look how the two silver strings shine in the firelight. I call it the Infant of Prague."
"Because it is a hundred and fifty years old; and because you have to be so careful not to bump its head, when you carry it about."
Helen put her hand to her throat.
"I think it is a foolish name for a violoncello," she said, coldly.
"Not at all," explained Ronnie. "It seems to me more appropriate every day. My 'cello is the nicest infant that ever was; does what it's told, gives no trouble, and only speaks when it's spoken to!"
Helen bent over the kettle. It was boiling. She could hear the water bubbling; the lid began making little tentative leaps. Without lifting her eyes, she made the tea.
Ronnie talked on volubly. It was so perfect to be back in his own chair; to watch Helen making tea; and to have the Infant safely there to show her.
Helen did not seem quite so much interested or so enthusiastic as he had expected.
Suddenly he remembered Aubrey's joke.
Helen at that moment was handing him his cup of tea. He took it, touching her fingers with his own as he did so; a well-remembered little sign between them, because the first time it had dawned upon Helen that Ronnie loved her, and wanted her to know it, was on a certain occasion when he had managed to touch her fingers with his, as she handed him a cup of tea.
He did so now, smiling up at her. He was so happy, that things were becoming a little dream-like again; not a nightmare—that would be impossible with Helen so near—but an exquisite dream; a dream too perfectly beautiful to be true.
"Darling," he said, "I brought the Infant home in a canvas bag. We must have a proper case made for it. Aubrey said you would probably want to put it into a bassinet! I suppose he thought your mind would be likely to run on bassinets. But the Infant always reminds me of the darkest horse-chestnut you ever saw in a bursting bur; so I intend to have a case of polished rosewood made for it, lined with white velvet."
Helen laughed, wildly.
"I have not the smallest desire, Ronald, to put your 'cello into a bassinet!" she said.
It dawned upon Ronnie that Helen was not pleased.
"It was a silly joke of Aubrey's. I told him so. I said I should tell you he said it, not I. Let's talk of something else."
He turned his eyes resolutely from the 'cello, and told her of his manuscript, of the wonderful experiences of his travels, his complete success in finding the long grass thirteen feet high, and the weird, wild setting his plot needed.
Suddenly he became conscious that Helen was not listening. She sat gazing into the fire; her expression cold and unresponsive.
Ronnie's heart stood still. Never before had he seen that look on Helen's face. Were his nightmares following him home?
For the first time in his life he had a sense of inadequacy. Helen was not pleased with him. He was not being what she wanted.
He fell miserably silent.
Helen continued to gaze into the fire.
The Infant of Prague calmly reflected the golden lamplight in the wonderful depths of its polished surface.
Suddenly an inspiration came to Ronnie. Brightness returned to his face.
He stood up.
"Darling," he said, "I told you that an even greater moment was coming for us."
She rose also, and faced him, expectant.
He put out his hand and lifted the Infant.
"Helen, let's go to the studio, where I first told you I felt sure I could play a 'cello. We will sit there in the firelight as we did on that last evening, seven months ago, and you shall hear me make the Infant sing, for the very first time."
Then the young motherhood in Helen, arose and took her by the throat.
"Ronald!" she said. "You are utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish! I am ashamed of you!"
They faced each other across the table.
Every emotion of which the human soul is capable, passed over Ronnie's countenance—perplexity, amazement, anger, fury; grief, horror, dismay.
She saw them come and go, and come again; then, finally, resolve into a look of indignant misery.
At last he spoke.
"If that is your opinion, Helen," he said, "it is a pity I ever returned from the African jungle. Out there I could have found a woman who would at least have given me a welcome home."
Then his face flamed into sudden fury. He seized the cup from which he had been drinking, and flung up his hand above his head. His upper lip curled back from his teeth, in an angry snarl.
Helen gazed at him, petrified with terror.
His eyes met hers, and he saw the horror in them. Instantly, the anger died out of his. He lowered his hand, carefully examined the pattern on the cup, then replaced it gently in the saucer.
"I beg your pardon," he said. "I ought not to have said that—about another woman. There is but one woman for me; and, welcome or no welcome, there is but one home."
Then he turned from her, slowly, deliberately, taking his 'cello with him. He left the room, without looking back. She heard him cross the hall, pause as if to pick up something there; then pass down the corridor leading to the studio.
Listening intently, she heard the door of the studio close; not with a bang—Ronnie had banged doors before now—but with a quiet irrevocability which seemed to shut her out, completely and altogether.
Sinking into the chair in which she had awaited his coming with so much eagerness of anticipation, Helen broke into an uncontrollable paroxysm of weeping.
A FRIEND IN DEED
Precisely how long she remained alone in her sitting-room, Helen never knew; but it cannot have been the long hours it seemed, seeing that Simpkins did not appear to fetch the tea-tray, nor did Nurse send down any message from the nursery.
Helen had wept herself into the calm of exhaustion, and was trying to decide what her next move should be, when the hoot of a motor sounded in the park. In another moment she heard it panting at the door. Then the bell pealed.
With the unfailing instinct of her kind, to hide private grief and show a brave front to the world, Helen flew to the mirror, smoothed her tumbled hair, put away her damp handkerchief; and, standing calmly beside the mantel-piece, one foot on the fender, awaited her unexpected visitor.
She heard voices in the hall, then Simpkins opened the door and tried to make an announcement, but some unseen force from behind whirled him away, and a broad-shouldered young man in an ulster, travel-stained and dishevelled, appeared in his stead, shut the door upon Simpkins, and strode into the lamplight, his cloth cap still on the back of his head, his keen dark eyes searching Helen's face eagerly.
His cap came off before he spoke to her; but, with his thick, short-cropped hair standing on end, a bare head only added to the wildness of his appearance.
He stopped when he reached the tea-table.
"Where's Ronnie?" he said, and he spoke as if he had been running for many miles.
"My husband is in the studio," replied Helen, with gentle dignity.
"What's he doing?"
"I believe he is playing his 'cello."
"Oh, lor! That wretched Infant! Is he all right?"
"So far as I know."
"What time did he get here?"
"At half-past four."
The dishevelled young man glanced at the clock.
"Oh, lor!" he said again. "To think I've travelled night and day and raced down from town in a motor to get here first, and he beat me by an hour and a half! However, if he's all right, no harm's done."
He dropped into Ronnie's chair, and rumpled his hair still further with his hands.
"I must try to explain," he said.
Then he lifted a rather white, very grubby face to Helen's. His lips twitched.
"I'm dry," he said; and dropped his face into his hands.
Helen rang the bell.
"Bring whisky and soda at once," she ordered, the instant Simpkins appeared in the doorway.
Then she crossed over, and laid her hand lightly on her visitor's broad shoulder.
"Don't try to explain," she said kindly, "until you have had something. I am sure I know who you are. You appear in all sorts of cricket and football groups in Ronnie's dressing-room. You are Ronnie's special chum, Dick Cameron."
Dick did not lift his head. As a matter of fact, at that moment he could not. But, though his throat contracted, so that speech became impossible, in his heart he was saying: "What a woman! Lor, what a woman! Ninety-nine out of a hundred would have offered me tea—and tea that had stood an hour; and the hundredth would have sent for a policeman! But she jumps instantly to whisky and soda; and then walks across and makes me feel at home. Eh, well! We shall save old Ronnie between us."
She administered the whisky and soda when it appeared; sitting gently beside him, in exceeding friendliness.
The rugged honesty of the youth appealed to her. His very griminess seemed but an earnest of his steadfast purpose, and suited her present mood of utter disillusion with the artistic and the beautiful.
Dick's look of keen alertness, his sense of forceful vigour, soon returned to him.
He stood up, surveyed himself in the glass, then turned with a rueful smile to Helen.
"It was both kind and brave of you, Mrs. West," he said, "not to send for a policeman."
Helen laughed. "I think I know an honest man when I see him, Dr. Dick. You must let me use the name by which I have always heard of you. Now, can you explain more fully?"
"Certainly," said Dick, getting out of his ulster, and sitting down. "But I must begin by asking a few more questions. Did you get your cousin's letter yesterday morning? It was absolutely essential you should receive it before Ronnie reached home. I hoped you would act upon it at once."
Helen gazed at him, aghast.
"I did receive my cousin's letter," she said.
"Was it quite explicit, Mrs. West?"
"It was absolutely explicit."
"Ah! Then on that point I admit I have wronged him. But you must excuse me if I say that I am inclined to consider your cousin a liar and a scoundrel."
Helen's face was white and stern. "I am afraid I have long known him to be both, Dr. Dick."
"Then you will not wonder that when I found he was not keeping his word to me, and bringing Ronnie home, I dashed off in pursuit."
"Was there ever any question of his returning with my husband?"
It was Dick's turn to look perplexed.
"Of course there was. In fact, he gave me his word in the matter. I mistrusted him, however, and the more I thought it over, the more uneasy I grew. Yesterday morning, the day he was to have crossed with Ronnie, I called at his flat and found he was expected back there to-day. I should dearly have liked to wait and wring his neck on arrival, but naturally Ronnie's welfare came first. I could not catch the night boat at the Hague, but I dashed off via Brussels, crossed from Boulogne this morning, reached London forty minutes too late for the 3 o'clock train to Hollymead. There was no other until five, and that a slow one. So I taxied off to a man I know in town who owns several cars, borrowed his fastest, and raced down here, forty miles an hour. Even then I got here too late. However, no harm has been done. But you will understand that prompt action was necessary. What on earth was your cousin's little game?"
"It is quite inexplicable to me," said Helen, slowly, "that you should have any knowledge of my cousin's letter. Also, you have obviously been prompt, but I have not the faintest idea why prompt action was necessary."
"Didn't your cousin give you my message?"
"Your name was not mentioned in his letter."
"Did he tell you of Ronnie's critical condition?"
"He said Ronnie told him he had never felt fitter in his life, and added that he looked it."
Dick leapt to his feet, walked over to the window, and muffled a few remarks about Aubrey Treherne, in the curtains. Nevertheless Helen heard them.
"Is—Ronnie—ill?" she asked, with trembling lips.
Dick came back.
"Ronnie is desperately ill, Mrs. West. But, now he is safely at home, within easy reach of the best advice, we will soon have him all right again. Don't you worry."
But "worry" scarcely expressed Helen's face of agonised dismay.
"Tell me—all," she said.
Dick sat down and told her quite clearly and simply the text of his message to her through Aubrey, explaining and amplifying it with full medical details.
"Any violent emotion, either of joy, grief or anger, would probably have disastrous results. He apparently came to blows with your cousin during the evening he spent at Leipzig. Ronnie gave him a lovely thing in the way of lips. One recalls it now with exceeding satisfaction. When I saw your cousin afterwards he appeared to have condoned it. But it may account for his subsequent behaviour. Fortunately this sort of thing— "Dick glanced about him appreciatively—"looks peaceful enough."
Helen sat in stricken silence.
"It augurs well that he was able to stand the pleasure of his home-coming," continued Dr. Dick. "He must be extraordinarily better, if you noticed nothing unusual. Possibly he slept during the night-crossing. Also, I gave him some stuff to take on the way back, intended to clear his brain and calm him generally. Did he seem to you quite normal?"
Then Helen rose and stood before him with clasped hands.
"He seemed to me quite normal," she said, "because I had no idea of anything else. But now that I know the truth, of course I realise at once that he was not so. And, oh, Dr. Dick, I had a terrible scene with Ronnie!"
Dick stood up.
"Tell me," he said.
"I told Ronnie that he was utterly, preposterously, and altogether selfish, and that I was ashamed of him."
"Whew! You certainly did not mince matters," said Dr. Dick. "What had poor old Ronnie done?"
"He had talked, from the moment of his return, of very little save the 'cello he has brought home. He had suggested that it might amuse me to put it into a bassinet. Then when at last tea was over, he proposed, as the most delightful proceeding possible, that we should adjourn to the studio, and that I should sit and listen while he made a first attempt to play his 'cello—which, by the way, he calls, the 'Infant of Prague,' explaining to me that it is the nicest infant that ever was."
"Oh, that confounded Infant!" exclaimed Dr. Dick. "I have hated it from the first! But really, Mrs. West "—he looked puzzled—"all this was no doubt enthusiasm misplaced. But then Ronnie always is a perfect infant himself, where new toys are concerned. You can hardly realise how much he has looked forward to showing you that 'cello. His behaviour also proved a decided tendency to self-absorption; but there the artistic temperament comes in, which always creates a world of its own in which it dwells content, often at the expense of duties and obligations connected with outer surroundings. We all know that this is Ronnie's principal failing. But—excuse me for saying so—it hardly deserved quite so severe an indictment from you."
Helen wrung her hands.
Suddenly Dr. Dick took them both, firmly in his.
"Why don't you tell me the truth?" he said.
Then Helen told him.
She never could remember afterwards exactly how she told him, and no one but Helen ever knew what Dr. Dick said and did. But, months later—when in her presence aspersions were being cast on Dick for his indomitable ambition, his ruthless annihilation of all who stood in his way, his utter lack of religious principle and orthodox belief—Helen, her sweet face shadowed by momentary sadness, her eyes full of pathetic remembrance, spoke up for Ronnie's chum. "He may be a bad old thing in many ways," she said; "I admit that the language he uses is calculated to make his great-aunt Louisa, of sacred memory, turn in her grave! But—he is a tower of strength in one's hour of need."
"No," said Dick, after a while, gazing straight before him into the fire, his chin in his hands; "I can't believe Ronnie knew it. He was just in the condition to become frantically excited by such news. He would have been desperately anxious about you; wild that you should have gone through it alone, and altogether absorbed in the idea of coming home and seeing his child. The Infant of Prague would have had its shining nose put completely out of joint. I don't believe Ronnie ever had your letter. Write to the Poste Restante at Leipzig, and you will receive it back."
"Impossible," said Helen. "He opened and read it that evening in Aubrey's flat. He told Aubrey the news, and Aubrey mentioned it in his letter to me."
Dick looked grave.
"Well then," he said, "old Ronnie is in an even worse case than I feared. I think we should go at once and look him up. I told my friend's chauffeur to wait; so, if further advice is needed to-night, we can send the car straight back to town with a message. Where is Ronnie?"
"He took his 'cello, and went off to the studio. I heard him shut the door."
"Show me the way," said Dr. Dick.
With his hand on the handle of the sitting-room door, he paused.
"I suppose you—er—feel quite able to forgive poor old Ronnie, now?" he asked.
The yearning anguish in Helen's eyes made answer enough.
They crossed the hall together; but—as they passed down the corridor leading to the studio—they stopped simultaneously, and their eyes sought one another in silent surprise and uncertainty.
The deep full tones of a 'cello, reached them where they stood; tones so rich, so plaintively sweet, so full of passion and melody, that, to the anxious listeners in the dimly lighted corridor, they gave the sense of something weird, something altogether uncanny in its power, unearthly in its beauty.
They each spoke at the same moment.
"It cannot be Ronnie," they said.
"It must be Ronnie," amended Helen. "There is no one else in the house."
"You go in," whispered Dick. "I will wait here. Call, if you want me. Don't startle him. Go in very softly. Be very—er—you know?"
Helen moved forward alone.
She laid her hand upon the handle of the studio door.
She wished the weird music within would cease for one moment, that she might feel more able to enter.
Cold shivers ran down her spine.
Try as she would, she could not connect that music with Ronnie.
Somebody else was also in the studio, of that she felt quite certain.
She nearly went back to Dick.
Then—rating herself for cowardice—she turned the handle of the door and passed in.
Dick saw her disappear.
Almost at that moment the 'cello-playing ceased; there was a crash, a cry from Helen, a silence, and then—a wild shriek from Helen, a sound holding so much of fear and of horror, that Dick shouted in reply as he dashed forward.
He found himself in a low room, oak-panelled, lighted only by the uncertain flame a log-fire. The door by which Dick had centered was to the left of the fireplace. On the wall at the farther end of the room, opposite both door and fireplace, hung an immense mirror in a massive gilt frame.
On the floor in the centre of the room lay Ronnie, unconscious, on his back. The chair upon which he had been sitting and which had gone over backwards with him, lay broken beneath him. His 'cello rested on his chest. He gripped it there, with both his hands. They fell away from it, as Dick looked at him.
Ronnie's wife knelt on the floor beside him, but she was not looking at Ronnie. She was staring, with white face and starting eyes, into the mirror. Her left arm, stretched out before her, was rigid with horror, from the shoulder to the tip of the pointing finger.
"Look, Dick!" she shrieked. "Oh, heavens! Look!"
Dick flashed up the electric light; then looked into the mirror.
He saw himself loom large, dishevelled, grimy, travel-stained. Then he saw Ronnie and the Infant in a dark heap on the floor, and the white face of Ronnie's wife, kneeling beside him with outstretched arm and eyes upon the mirror. On the other side of Ronnie, in the very centre of the scene, stood a queer old chair of Italian workmanship, the heads of lions completing its curved arms, on its carved back the fleur-de-lis of Florence, its seat of padded leather, embossed in crimson and gold.
This was all Dick saw, excepting the leaping flames of the fire beyond.
And even as he looked, Helen's arm fell to her side; he saw her turn, lift the Infant off Ronnie's breast; and, bending over him, draw his head on to her lap.
Dick turned from the mirror. The scene in the room was identical with the reflection, in all points save one. The Florentine chair was under Ronnie. It had fallen with him. Its back was broken. Not until he had lifted his friend from the floor did Dr. Dick see the panelled fleur-de-lis of Florence, nor the crimson and gold of the embossed leather seat.
As he and Helen together loosed Ronnie's collar and tie, she whispered: "Did—you—see?"
"This is no time for staring into mirrors," said Dr. Dick, crossly. "I saw that I need a good wash; and you, some sal-volatile! But we shall have plenty to do for Ronnie before we can find leisure to think of ourselves. Send a couple of men here; sturdy fellows whom you can trust. Order that car to the door; then bring me a pencil, a sheet of note-paper and an envelope. There is just one man in the world who can help us now, and we must have him here with as little delay as possible."
When Helen had left the room, Dick glanced furtively over his shoulder into the mirror.
The Italian chair, in the reflection, now lay broken on the floor!
"Hum!" said Dr. Dick. "Not bad, that—for an Infant! Precocious, I call it. We must have that 'cello re-christened the 'Demon of Prague'!"
RONNIE FACES THE UPAS
Ronnie had walked from his wife's sitting-room, along the corridor and into the studio, in a state of stunned stupefaction.
He carried his 'cello in one hand, its case and bow, which he had picked up in the hall, in the other; but he had for the moment completely forgotten the Infant.
He leaned it against a chair, laid down the case, closed the studio door; then walked to the fireplace.
He stood looking at the great crackling logs, and into the glowing heart of the fire beneath them.
"Utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish," he repeated slowly. "That is what my wife considers me; that is as I appear to Helen. Utterly—preposterously—altogether—selfish. She is so lovely—she is so perfect! I—I have longed for her so! But I am utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish!"
He put his arms upon the mantel-piece and dropped his head upon them. He felt a queer contraction in his throat, a stinging beneath his eyelids, such as he had not experienced since the days of childish mortifications and sorrows. But the instinctive manliness of him, held back the actual tears. He was debarred, even in solitude, from that form of relief.
Presently he lifted his head, took out his pocket-book, and wrote down the words, spelling each with a capital letter.
He looked long at them; then suddenly exclaimed: "U, P, A, S! Why, it is the Upas tree; the deadly, mysterious, poisonous Upas tree! I found it in the jungle. I felt ill the night I camped beneath it. I have never felt quite well since. The nightmares began on that night; and the nightmares have followed me home. This is the worst of all. Helen calls me the Upas tree—the poisoner of her content. Utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish!"
He turned on the electric lights, and walked up and down the room, with desperate, restless tread.
"Poisoning all it touches," he said. "Blasting the life of all who pass beneath its deadly foliage—U,P,A,S—Upas."
He paused before the great mirror, gazing at his own reflection.
He put his face quite close to the glass, staring into his burning eyes.
Then he struck at the reflection with his clenched fist. "Upas tree!" he snarled. "Take that, and be damned!"
He had hurt his knuckles. He walked back to the fire, rubbing them carefully with his left hand.
"Poor old chap," he said. "It is hard lines! You meant well; but all the while you were a Upas tree. 'I, Helen, take thee, Upas, to be my wedded husband.' Poor lovely Helen! What a bargain!"
He sat down in a deep basket-chair, lighted a cigarette, pushed another chair into position, exactly in front of him, with his foot; then filling it, one by one, with friends of his own and Helen's, held conversation with them.
"Quite right, my dear Mrs. Dalmain! You need not now confine yourself to looking your disapproval; you can say exactly what you think. You see, Helen herself has told me the worst truth of all. I am a Upas tree. She sums me up thus: U, P, A, S! You can hardly beat that, Mrs. Dalmain. In fact, you look distressed. I can see that your kind heart is sorry for me. Helen said you were a wonderful person to turn to in trouble. There is no one in the world quite like you. Well, now's your chance to prove it; for surely nobody ever came to you in more desperate trouble. If you wish to be really kind and comforting, talk to me of my wife. Say how sweet and lovely she is. Say that her arms are tender, her eyes gentle and kind. I am the thirsty traveller in the desert, who sights pure water, hastens eagerly forward, and finds—a mirage! But a deadly stream flows from the roots of the Upas—Hullo! Here comes Aubrey Treherne. Look out, Mrs. Dalmain! He owes you a grudge. Hey, presto! Vanish from the chair, or Helen's cousin will lean over, with a bleeding face, threatening to kill you with both hands!...
"Good-evening, Cousin Aubrey. How is your lip to-night? You mustn't kiss Helen again, until that lip is well. Helen will be ashamed of you for not being able to put fuel into a stove without knocking your lip. Fie, man! Poor happy Ronnie, going home to show his wife his 'cello, believed you. But the Upas tree knows! You can't deceive the Upas tree, you liar! You may as well tell Helen that you wounded your lip on a branch of her Upas tree....
"Hullo, Dick! Come in, and welcome! Sit down, old boy. I want to ask you something. Hist! Listen! That motor, which hooted in the park a moment ago, contained a policeman—so it is essential we should know whether there is any by-law in Leipzig against men, as trees, walking. Because you weren't walking about with a man, you know, but with a Upas tree. When in doubt, ask—my wife! It would have made a sensational paragraph in the papers: 'Arrest of a Upas tree, in the streets of Leipzig!' Worse than 'Arrest of the Infant of Prague.' ... Why! Where is the Infant?"
He turned and saw his 'cello, where he had placed it, leaning against a chair.
He rose, took it up, and walked over to the piano.
"A, D, G, C. 'Allowable delights grow commonplace!' What did the fiend mean? C, G, D, A. 'Courage gains desired aims.' That's better! We aimed pretty straight at his lying mouth."
He opened the piano, struck the notes, and tuned the 'cello exactly as he had seen Aubrey do.
At the first sound of the strings his mood changed. All bitterness passed out of his face. A look of youth and hope dawned in it.
He carried the 'cello back to the circle of chairs. He placed it where it had stood before; then lay back in his own seat smiling dreamily at the empty chair opposite.
"Helen," he said, "darling, I don't really play the piano, I only strum. But there is one instrument, above all others, which I have always longed to play. I have it now. I own the 'cello I have always loved and longed for; the 'cello on which I used to play a hundred years ago. Now I am going to play to you; and you will forget everything in this world, my wife, excepting that I love you."
He drew the Infant between his knees; then realised at once that his chair was too low.
Rising, he went over to a corner where, against the wall, stood a beautiful old chair which he and Helen had brought back, the winter before, from Italy. Its arms and feet of walnut wood, were carved into lions' heads and paws. Its back bore, in a medallion, the Florentine fleur-de-lis. The high padded seat was of embossed gold, on crimson leather.
Ronnie placed this queer old chair in the centre of the room, facing the great mirror.
Then he clicked off the electric lights, stirred the fire, and threw on a couple of fresh logs.
The flames shot up, illumining the room.
"AS IN A MIRROR"
Ronnie returned to the Florentine chair, took the 'cello between his knees, placed his thumb behind its polished neck and his fingers on the ebony finger-board. He let them glide lightly up and down the strings, making no sound. Then he raised the bow in his right hand, and slowly, softly, sounded the four open notes.
Each tone was deep and true; there was no rasp—no uneven scraping of the bow.
The log-fire burned up brightly.
He waited. A great expectation filled him.
He was remembering something he had long forgotten.
Looking straight before him at his own reflection in the mirror, he smiled to see how correctly he held the 'cello. The Infant seemed at home between his knees.
The sight of himself and the Infant thus waiting together, gave him peculiar pleasure.
The fire burned low.
His reflected figure dimmed and faded. A misty shadow hid it from his eyes. He could just see the shining of the silver strings, and the white line of his linen cuff.
Then suddenly, he forgot all else save that which he had been trying to remember.
He felt a strong tremor in his left wrist. He was gripping the neck of the 'cello. The strings were biting deep into the flesh of his finger-tips.
He raised the bow and swept it across the strings.
Low throbbing music filled the studio, and a great delight flooded Ronnie's soul.
He dared not give conscious thought to that which he was doing; he could only go on doing it.
He knew that he—he himself—was at last playing his own 'cello. Yet it seemed to him that he was merely listening, while another played.
Two logs fell together in the fire behind him.
Bright flames shot up, illumining the room.
Ronnie raised his eyes and looked into the mirror.
He saw therein reflected, the 'cello and the Italian chair; but the figure of a man sat playing, and that man was not himself; that figure was not his own.
A grave, white face, set off by straight black hair, a heavy lock of which fell over the low forehead; long white fingers gliding up and down the strings, lace ruffles falling from the wrists. The knees, gripping the 'cello, were clad in black satin breeches, black silk stockings were on the shapely legs; while on the feet, planted firmly upon the floor, gleamed diamond shoe-buckles.
Ronnie gazed at this reflection.
Each movement of the gliding bow, corresponded to the rhythm of the music now throbbing through the studio.
Ronnie played on, gazing into the mirror. The man in the mirror did not lift his eyes, nor look at Ronnie. Either they were bent upon the 'cello, or he played with them fast closed.
Ronnie dared not look down at his own hands. He could feel his fingers moving up and down the strings, as moved the fingers in the mirror. He feared he should see lace ruffles falling from his wrists, if he looked at his own hands.
The fire burned low again.
Still Ronnie played on, staring before him as he played. The music gained in volume and in beauty.
The fire burned lower. The room was nearly dark. The reflection was almost hidden.
Ronnie, straining his eyes, could see only the white line of the low square forehead.
He wished the eyes would lift and look at him, piercing the darkness of the darkening room.
Another log fell. Again flames darted upwards. Each detail in the mirror was clear once more.
The playing grew more rapid. Ronnie felt his fingers flying, yet pressing deeply as they flew.
The right foot of the figure, placed further back than the left, was slightly raised. The heel was off the floor.
Ronnie's right heel was also lifted.
Then, looking past the figure in the chair, he marked behind him, where in the reflection of the studio should have been the door, heavy black curtains hanging in sombre folds. And, even as Ronnie noticed these, they parted; and the lovely face of a woman looked in.
As Ronnie saw that face he remembered many things—things of exquisite joy, things of poignant sorrow; things inexpressible except in music, unutterable except in tone.
The 'cello sobbed, and wailed, and sang itself slowly into a minor theme; yet the passion of the minor was more subtle, sweeter far, than the triumph of the major.
The woman glided in.
Ronnie watched her. She came and softly stood behind the Florentine chair.
Apparently she made no sound. The 'cellist did not raise his eyes. He appeared totally unconscious of her presence.
The woman bent her beautiful head, observing him closely. Following her eyes, Ronnie saw a ruffle of old lace falling from the 'cellist's throat, a broad crimson ribbon crossing his breast, on which glittered a diamond star.
The woman waited.
Ronnie watched.
The 'cellist played on.
Then another log fell. Again flames darted upward.
Ronnie saw the woman lay her left hand noiselessly upon the back of the Italian chair, then slip her right behind her and take something bright, off a table covered with bright things. And, as he watched, she flung her right hand high above her head, and in it, point downwards, gleamed the sharp blade of a dagger.
Her eyes met Ronnie's in the mirror. A gleam of malicious triumph shot from them.
He knew she was about to kill the unconscious 'cellist.
His one thought was to warn and to save him. He knew no sound he made could be heard in a past century; but whatever he himself now did, he instinctively felt the 'cellist in the mirror would also do.
With a desperate effort he stopped the movement of the bow.
He had just time to see the 'cellist in the mirror also pause.
Then Ronnie dropped his bow, gripped the 'cello with both hands, and, as the swift blow fell, drew the body of the 'cello up over his breast.
Then the back of his chair seemed to give way; his feet left the floor, and he fell over backwards—down—down—down—into a never ending abyss of throbbing, palpitating, rolling blackness.
"THE FOG LIFTS"
When Ronnie came to himself, emerging quite suddenly from a long, confused dream, which had held many voices, many happenings over which he had exercised no control and which were too indefinite to be remembered, he found himself sitting on a seat, on the esplanade at Hazelbeach.
A crisp, wintry feeling was in the air; but the sun was brilliant, and the high ground behind, sheltered the sea-front from wind.
He was muffled in his fur coat, and felt quite warm.
The first thing he consciously noticed was the sparkling of the ripple on the calm water.
There is something particularly reviving and inspiriting about sunshine on the gaily moving sea. The effect is produced with so little apparent effort. The sun just shines; the water just moves; and lo, hosts of sparkling diamonds!
Ronnie watched it in silence for some time, before giving any sign that he actually saw it.
He was anxious carefully to take his bearings, without appearing to do so.
Helen sat beside him on the seat. She kept up a flow of conversation, in the kind, cheerful, intelligent voice in which you talk to a child who has to be kept happy and amused.
Ronnie let her go on talking in that voice, while he took his bearings.
He glanced at her, furtively, once; then turned his eyes seaward again.
Helen, also, was wearing a fur coat, and a pretty grey fur toque on her soft hair. Her face seemed thinner than it used to be; but the sea breeze and sunshine had brought a bright colour to her cheeks.
Ronnie's eyes left the ripples, and wandered cautiously up and down the shore.
The beach was deserted. No moving figures dotted the esplanade. Helen and he would have been alone, had it not been for one tiresome man who sat reading on the next seat to theirs. He looked like a superior valet or upper footman, in a bowler and a black morning coat. He was just out of earshot; but his presence prevented Ronnie from feeling himself alone with Helen, and increased the careful caution with which he took his bearings.
At last he felt the moment had arrived to stop Helen's well-meant attempts at amusing him.
The man on the other seat was a dozen yards off to the right. Helen sat quite close to him on the left. He turned his back on the other seat and looked earnestly into his wife's face.
"Helen," he said, quietly, "how did we get here?"
"We motored, darling. It isn't very far across country, though to get here by train we should have to go up to town and down again."
"When did we come?"
"Yesterday. Ronnie, do look at those funny little wooden houses just beyond us on the esplanade. They take the place of bathing-machines, or bathing-tents, in summer. They can be hired just for the morning, or you can engage one for the whole time of your visit, and furnish it comfortably. Don't you think it is quite a good idea? And people give them such grand names. I saw one called 'Woodstock,' and another 'Highcombe House.' If we took one, we should have to call it 'The Grange.'"
"Helen, you have told me all about those little huts twice already, during the last half-hour. Only, last time you had seen one called 'Runnymead,' and another called 'The Limes.' Presently, if you like, we will walk along and read all the names. It is just the kind of thing which would appeal to our joint sense of humour. But first you must answer a few more questions. Helen—where is my 'cello?"
"At home, Ronnie."
"Was it broken?"
Helen looked distressed. "No, darling, it was not injured at all. It is safely put away. Look how the sunlight sparkles on those distant ripples!"
"I have finished with the ripples thank you, darling. Helen, I know I've been desperately ill. But I'm all right now, and I want you to tell me all about it."
He saw her glance past him, at the man who sat reading on the next seat.
"Don't worry about him," he said. "He can't overhear. If you think he can, let's move on."
"No, no!" said Helen, quickly. "We are so cosy here in the sunshine. Ronnie, do you see those—"
"No, dear," he said, "I don't! At this moment I see nothing but you. And I decline to have my attention drawn any more to the exciting things to be seen on the shore at Hazelbeach in winter.... Oh, yes, I knew it was Hazelbeach! Five years ago I spent a jolly week here with some friends. We hired a little wooden hut and called it 'Buckingham Palace,' I remember."
He slipped his hand into her muff, capturing both hers.
Her look of anxiety and alarm went to his heart. He had never seen Helen frightened before; and he knew with unerring instinct that she was afraid—of him.
It was hard; for he was desperately tired in mind and body. To subside into passive acquiescence and watch the ripples again, would be the easier way. But he must make a fight for his newly-recovered sanity and reason, and to convince Helen in the matter seemed the first thing to be accomplished.
Her hands were shaking in her muff. He held them firmly with his.
"Darling," he said, "I know I have been very bad. I was ill in Leipzig, though I didn't know it. But Dick Cameron told me I ought not to have been going about there. I suppose since then I have been quite off my head. But, oh, Helen, can't you see—- can't you see, darling—that I am all right again now? I can remember practically nothing which has happened since I played my 'cello in front of the mirror in the studio. But, up to that moment, I remember everything quite clearly; my travels, my manuscript, the time when I began to get feverish and lost my sleep—I can see now the very spot where I camped when I had my first nightmare. Then working night and day on board ship, then Leipzig, the Hague, London in a fog; then home—to you. Helen, it has all come back. Can't you realise that the clouds have lifted; can't you believe, my own dear girl, that my mind is clear again? Look at the sunshine on the sea, dispelling the morning mists. In hoc signo vinces! You said the path of clear shining was the way to victory. Well, I have conquered whatever it was which poisoned my brain for a while. I am absolutely myself again now. Can't you believe it, Helen?"
The tears were running down her cheeks. She looked full into his earnest eyes.
"Oh, Ronnie, you do look different! You do look your own dear self. Oh, Ronnie, my own! But Dick is coming back to-morrow. He went up to town only this morning. He will tell us what to do. Till then, don't you think we had better just talk about the sea, and the little houses, and—and how happy we are?"
"No, Helen," he said firmly. "We are not happy yet. I must know more. How long is it since that evening in the studio?"
"About a month, darling. This is Christmas week. To-morrow will be Christmas Eve."
Ronnie considered this in silence.
Then: "Let's walk up and down," he said. "It ought to be too cold to sit about in Christmas week."
She rose and they walked along the sea-front together.
Ronnie glanced behind them. The man on the seat had risen also and was following at a little distance.
"What cheek of that chap," he said. "He seems determined to overhear our conversation. Shall I tell him to be off?"
"No, dear; please don't," she answered hurriedly. "He cannot possibly overhear us."
Presently she dropped her muff and stooped to pick it up. But Ronnie turned also, and saw her make a sign to the man following them, who at once sat down on the nearest seat.
Then poor Ronnie knew.
"I suppose he is a keeper," he said.
"Oh, no, darling! He is only a trained attendant; just a sort of valet for you. Such a nice man and so attentive. He brushes your clothes."
"I see," said Ronnie. "Valets are quite useful people. But they do not as a rule sit reading in the middle of the morning, on the next seat to their master and mistress! Do they? However, if Dick is coming to-morrow, we can discuss the valet question with him. Take my arm, Helen. I feel a bit shaky when I walk. Now tell me—why did we come here?"
"They thought the change of scene, the perfect quiet, and the bracing air might do wonders for you, Ronnie."
"Who were 'they'?"
"Dr. Dick and—a friend of his."
"I see. Well, I won't bully you into telling me things you are afraid I ought not to know. But I will tell you just how much I do know. It is all a queer sort of black dream. I absolutely can't remember seeing anything, until I found myself watching the sparkle of the ripples on the sea. But I vaguely remember hearing things. There was always a kind voice. Of course that was yours, Helen. Also there was a kind hand. I used to try not to do anything which could hurt the kind hand. Then, there were several strange voices; they came and went. Then there was Mrs. Dalmain. When her voice was there I always tried to do at once what the strange voices and the kind voice wished; because I was horribly afraid of being left alone with Mrs. Dalmain! Then I sometimes thought I heard a baby cry. Wasn't that queer?"
Helen did not answer. A deep flush overspread her face, mounting from her chin to the roots of her hair. Was Ronnie going to remember?
"The kind voice used to say: 'Take him away, Nurse'; but I am vague about this; because I was miles down a deep well when it happened, and the baby was up at the top. I expect I got the idea from having called my 'cello the Infant of Prague. Did you hear me playing, on that evening, Helen?"
"Yes, I heard."
"Was it beautiful?"
"Very beautiful, Ronnie."
"I am longing to get back to play my 'cello again."
"By-and-by, dear."
"Did I talk much of the 'cello when I was ill?"
"A good deal. But you talked chiefly of your travels and adventures; such weird things, that the doctors often thought they were a part of your delirium. But I found them all clearly explained in your manuscript. I hope you won't mind, Ronnie. They asked me to glance through it, in order to see whether anything to be found there threw light on your illness. But of course you know, dearest, I could not do that. I never 'glanced through' any manuscript of yours yet. Either I do not touch them at all, or I read them carefully every word. I read this carefully."
"Is it all right?"
"Ronnie, it is magnificent! Quite the best thing you have done yet. Such brilliant descriptive writing. Even in the midst of my terrible anxiety, I used to be carried right away from all my surroundings. Of course I do not yet know the end; but when you are able to work again we can talk it all over, and you will tell me."
His sad face brightened. A look of real gladness came into it; the first she had seen for so long.
"I am glad it is all right," he said, simply. "I thought it was. I am glad I am not altogether a rotter."
After that they walked on in silence. His last remark had been so unexpected in its bitterness, that Helen could find no words in which to answer it.
She glanced at her watch. It was almost time for luncheon. She pointed out their hotel.
"Come, darling; we can talk more easily indoors. We have a charming private sitting-room, overlooking the sea."
He turned at once; but as they entered the hotel gardens he said suddenly: "Did I talk of a Upas tree, while I was off my head?"
"Yes, Ronnie, constantly. In fact you thought you were a Upas tree!"
"I knew I was a Upas tree," said Ronnie.
"Why?"
"Because my wife told me so, the evening I came home. How do you spell 'Upas'?"
"U, P, A, S. Oh, Ronnie, what do you mean?"
He paused, and shading his eyes, looked away over the sunny sea to where the vessels, from the Hook of Holland, come into port.
"Just that," he said. "Exactly that. Utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish. That is the Upas tree."
"Oh, Ronnie," she cried, "if you knew—"
But Ronnie had seen a bowler hat behind the hedge. He called its wearer forward.
"Mrs. West tells me you are my valet," he said. "Kindly show me to my room."
"HE MUST REMEMBER"
Dick arrived very early the next morning, having to be off again by the twelve o'clock train, in order to reach that evening the place where he was due to spend Christmas.
A telegram from Helen had prepared him for a change in Ronnie, but hardly for the complete restoration of mental balance which he saw in his friend, as they hailed one another at the railway station.
Ronnie had breakfasted early, in order to meet Dick's train. He had said nothing of his plan to Helen, merely arranging his breakfast-hour overnight with the "valet."
He walked to the station alone; but, arrived there, found the "valet" on the platform.
"Thought I might be wanted, sir, to carry the doctor's bag," he explained, touching his hat. But, just as the train rounded the bend, he remarked: "Better stand back a little, sir," and took Ronnie firmly by the arm.
Ronnie could have knocked him down; but realised that this would be the surest way to find himself more than ever hedged in by precautions. So he stood back, in wrathful silence, and, as Dick's gay face appeared at the window of a third-class smoker, the "valet" loosed his hold and disappeared. It may here be recorded that this was the last time Ronnie saw him. Apparently he found it necessary to carry Dr. Dick's bag all the way back to town.
"Hullo, old chap!" cried Dick.
"Hullo, Dick!" said Ronnie. "This is better than Leipzig, old man. I'm all right. I must give you a new thermometer!"
"You shall," said Dick. "After Christmas we'll have a spree together in town and choose it. No need to tell me you 're all right, Ronnie. It's writ large on you, my boy. He who runs may read!"
"Well, I wish you'd write it large on other people," said Ronnie, as they walked out of the station.
"What do you mean?"
"Dick, I'm having a devil of a time! There's a smug chap in a bowler hat who is supposed to be my valet. When I went to bed last night, I found I had a decent room enough, opening out of the sitting-room. I was obviously expected to turn in there, asking no questions; so I turned in. But the valet person slept in a room communicating with mine. The latch and the lock of the door between, had been tampered with. The door wouldn't shut, so I had to sleep all night with that fellow able to look in upon me at any moment. After I had been in bed a little while, I remembered something I had left in the sitting-room and wanted. I got up quietly to fetch it. That door was locked, on the sitting-room side!"
"Poor old boy! We'll soon put all that right. You see you were pretty bad, while you were bad; and all kinds of precautions were necessary. We felt sure of a complete recovery, and I always predicted that it would be sudden. But it is bound to take a little while to get all your surroundings readjusted. Why not go home at once? Pack up and go back to Hollymead this afternoon, and have a real jolly Christmas there—you, and Helen, and the kid."
"The kid?" queried Ronnie, perplexed. "What kid? Oh, you mean my 'cello—the Infant of Prague."
Dick, meanwhile, had bitten his tongue severely.
"Yes, the jolly old Infant of Prague, of course. Is it 'he,' 'she,' or 'it'? I forget."
"It," replied Ronnie, gravely. "In the peace of its presence one forgets all wearying 'he and she' problems. Yes, I want most awfully to get back to my 'cello. I want to make sure it is not broken; and I want to make sure it is no dream, that I can play. But—I don't want to go, unless I can go alone. Can't you prescribe complete solitude, as being absolutely essential for me? Dick, I'm wretched! I don't care where I go; but I want to get away by myself."
"Why, old man?"
"Because my wife still considers me insane."
"Nonsense, Ron! And don't talk of being insane. You were never that. Some subtle malarial poison, we shall never know what, got into your blood, affected your brain, and you've had a bad time—a very bad time—of being completely off your balance; the violent stage being followed by loss of memory, and for a time, though mercifully you knew nothing about it, complete loss of sight. But these things returned, one by one; and, as soon as you were ready for it, you awoke to consciousness, memory, and reason. There is no possible fear of the return of any of the symptoms, unless you come again in contact with the poison; hardly likely, as it attacked you in Central Africa. Of course, as I say, we shall never know precisely what the poison was."
Then Ronnie spoke, suddenly. "It was the Upas tree," he said. "I camped near it. My nightmares began that night. I never felt well, from that hour."
"Rubbish!" said Dr. Dick. "More likely a poisonous swamp. The Upas tree is a myth."
"Not at all," insisted Ronnie. "It is a horrid reality. I had seen the one in Kew Gardens. I recognised it directly, yet I camped in its shadow. Dick, do you know what the Upas stands for?"
"Selfishness! It stands for any one who is utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish."
"Oh, buck up old man!" cried Dick. "We are all selfish—every mother's son of us! Perhaps that's why! Most men's mothers spoil them, and their wives continue the process. But you will be selfish with a vengeance, if you don't buck up and give that splendid wife of yours a good time now. She has been through—such a lot. Ronnie, you will never quite realise—well, I never knew such a woman, excepting, perhaps, Mrs. Dalmain; and of course she has not your wife's beauty. I haven't the smallest intention of ever coming under the yoke myself. But I assure you, old chap, if you had pegged out, as you once or twice seemed likely to do, I should have had a jolly good try as to whether I couldn't chip in, by-and-by."
"Confound you!" said Ronnie. But he laughed, and felt better.
Dr. Dick saw Helen alone.
"Well," he said, "so we've pulled him through. Ronnie's all right now. No more need for watching and planning, and guarding; in fact, the less he realises the precautions which were necessary, the better. I shall take Truscott back to town with me. He seems to have done awfully well. I suppose you have no complaints. Why don't you hire a car and run straight back home with Ronnie this afternoon. Think what a jolly Christmas you might have. Show him the boy as a Christmas present! I believe he is keen to be at home; and the less you thwart him now, the better. Don't suggest it until I am gone; but send a wire home at once to say you are probably returning this afternoon. Then your people will make all needed preparations for the festive day; turkeys and holly, and all that sort of thing; have fires lighted everywhere, and all in readiness. My old sweetheart, Mrs. Blake, will put on cherry-coloured ribbons, and black satin, and be in the hall to receive you! You had better mention, in the wire, that I am not coming; then she won't waste her time hanging mistletoe in likely corners."
Helen wrote the telegram, rang, and gave it to a page.
Then she turned to Dr. Dick.
"Ronnie is not fully himself, yet," she said.
Dick looked at her keenly. "How so?"
"He professes to remember, and does remember, everything which happened, up to the final crash in the studio. Yet he has made no mention to me of—of our child."
"He is shy about it," suggested Dick. "You speak first."
"I cannot," she replied. "It is for Ronald to do that."
"Ah, you dear women!" moralised the young bachelor. "You remind me of Nebuchadnezzar—no, I mean Naaman. You bravely ford the rushing waters of your Abanas and your Pharpars, and then you buck-jump at the little river Jordan!"
"My dear Dick, I am becoming accustomed to the extraordinary inaptness of your scriptural allusions. But this is hardly a small matter between me and Ronnie. I am ready to make every allowance for his illness and loss of memory; but I don't see how I can start life with him at home, until he manages to remember a thing of such vital import in our wedded life. He may be sane on every other point. I cannot consider him sane on this."
"Shall I tell him?" suggested Dick.
"No, let him remember. He can remember his Infant of Prague; his mind is full of that again. Why should he not be able to remember my baby son?"
"Oh, lor!" sighed Dr. Dick. "Why not put that poser to Ronnie direct, instead of putting it to me? Forgive me for saying so, but you are suffering just now from a reaction, after the terrible strain through which you have passed. And Ronnie is wretched too, because he remembers how you let fly at him that evening, and he thinks you really meant it."
"I did," said Helen. "Of course, had I known how ill he was, poor old boy, I should have been more patient. But I have a little son to consider now, as well as Ronnie. I did think him selfish, and I do."
"My dear angel," said Dr. Dick, "we are all selfish, every mother's son of us; and it is you blessed women who make us so."
She looked at him, with softening eyes. "You are not selfish, Dick," she said.
"I am," he answered; "and a long chalk worse than Ronnie. I combine ambition with my selfishness. I jolly well mean to get to the top of the tree, and I don't care how I get there. I down every one who dares stand in my way; or—I use them as stepping-stones. There! Isn't that a worse Upas tree than poor old Ronnie's? Mine is a life untouched by love, or any gentler feelings. All that sort of thing was killed in me when I was quite a little chap. It is the story of a broken halo. Perhaps I'll tell it you some day. Meanwhile, this being Christmas Eve and not Ash Wednesday, I'll make no more confessions. Don't you want to hear the result of my psychic investigations, concerning our mirror experiences?"
"Exceedingly," said Helen. "Have you time to tell me now?"
"Heaps of time. It won't take long. Last night I told the whole story to a man who makes a special study of these matters, and knows more about things psychic than any other man in England. The Brands asked me to dinner and arranged to have him also. After dinner he and I went down alone to the doctor's consulting room, and talked the whole thing out. I was careful to mention no names. You don't want to be credited with a haunted room at the Grange, neither do we want Ronnie's name mixed up with psychical phenomena. Now I will give you this man's opinion and explanation, exactly as he gave it to me. Only, remember, I pass it on as his. I do not necessarily endorse it.
"He holds that inanimate objects, such as beds, walls, cupboards, staircases, have a power of receiving, absorbing and retaining impressions transmitted to them through contact with human minds in extreme conditions of stress and tension. This would especially be the case with intimately personal things, such as musical instruments, or favourite chairs. Old rooms and ancient furniture might retain these impressions for centuries; and, under certain circumstances, transmit them to any mind, with which they came in contact, happening to be strung up to the right key to respond to the psychic impression. He considers that this theory accounts for practically all ghost stories and haunted rooms, passages, and staircases. It reduces all apparitions to the subjective rather than the objective plane; in other words the spirit of a murdered man does not return at certain times to the room in which he was done to death; but his agonised mind, in its last conscious moments, left an impress upon that room which produces a subjective picture of the scene, or part of the scene, upon any mind psychically en rapport with that impress. I confess this idea appeals to me. It accounts for the undoubted fact that certain old rooms are undeniably creepy; also that apparitions, unconnected with actual flesh and blood, have been seen by sane and trustworthy witnesses. It does away with the French word for ghost—revenant. There is no such thing as a 'comer-back,' or an 'earth-bound spirit.' Personally, I do not believe in immortality, in the usually accepted sense of the word; but I have always felt that were there such a thing as a disembodied spirit, it would have something better to do than to walk along old corridors, frightening housemaids! But, to come to the point, concerning our own particular experience.
"I carefully told him every detail. He believes that probably the old Florentine chair and the 'cello had been in conjunction before, and had both played their part in the scene which was re-acted in the mirror. If so, poor old Ron was jolly well in for it, seated in the chair, and holding the 'cello. His already over-excited brain found itself caught between them. The fitful firelight and the large mirror supplied excellent mediums for the visualisation of the subjective picture. Of course, we do not yet know what Ronnie saw. I trust we never shall. It is to be hoped he has forgotten it. Had you and I seen nothing, we should unquestionably have dismissed the whole thing as merely a delirious nightmare of Ronnie's unhinged brain.
"But the undoubted fact remains that we each saw, reflected in that mirror, objects which were not at that moment in the room. In fact we saw the past reflected, rather than the present. My psychic authority considers that both our impressions came to us through Ronnie's mind, and were already fading, owing to the fact that he had become unconscious. I, coming in later than you, merely saw the Florentine chair in position. All else in my view of the reflection appertained to the actual present, into which the long-ago past was then rapidly merging. But you, coming in a few moments sooner, and being far more en rapport with the spirit of the scene, saw the tall man in a red cloak—whom you call the Avenger—strangling the girl. By the way, why do you call him the Avenger?"
"Because," said Helen, slowly, "there was murder in the cruel face of the woman, and there was a dagger in her hand. She had struck her blow before he appeared upon the scene. I know this, because it was the flare of his crimson cloak, as he rushed in, which first caught my eye, in the firelight, and made me look into the mirror at all. Before that I was intent on Ronnie. The Avenger seized the woman from behind; I saw his brown hands on the whiteness of her throat. Grief and horror were on his face, as he looked over her shoulder, and past the chair, at the prostrate heap upon the floor."
"Which heap," said Dick, trying to speak lightly, "was our poor Ronnie."
"No," said Helen, gazing straight before her into the fire, "the heap upon the floor was not Ronnie."
"But—I am positive!—I saw it myself! I saw you kneeling beside it. I helped to sort it, afterwards. The actual heap on the floor was the broken chair, Ronnie mixed up with it; and, on top of both, that unholy Infant, whose precocious receptivity is responsible for the entire business. I exonerate the Florentine chair; I exonerate poor Ronnie. I shall always maintain that that confounded 'cello worked the whole show, out of its own unaided tummy!"
But Helen did not laugh. She did not even smile. "The heap on the floor was not Ronnie," she repeated firmly, "nor was I kneeling beside it. The Italian chair had not fallen over. Not a single thing appertaining to the present, was reflected in the picture as I first saw it. Dick, there was a conclusion to my vision of which I have never told you."
"Oh, lor!" said Dick. "When I guaranteed the psychic chap that I was putting him in full possession of every detail!"
"I am sorry, Dick. But until this moment I have never felt able to tell you. I cannot do so now, unless you are nice."
"I am nice," said Dick, "very nice! Tell me quick."
"Well, as I knelt transfixed, watching—the heap on the floor moved and arose. It was a slight dark man, with a white face, and a mass of tumbled black hair. He lifted from off his breast as he got up, a violoncello. He did not look at the woman, nor at the man in the crimson cloak; he stood staring, as if petrified with grief and dismay, at his 'cello. Following his eyes, I saw a dark jagged stab, piercing its right breast, just above the f hole. The anguish on the 'cellist's face, was terrible to see. Then—oh, Dick, I don't know how to tell you!"
"Go on, Helen," he said, gently.
"Then he turned from the 'cello, and looked at me; and, Dick, it was the soul of Ronnie—my Ronnie—in deepest trouble over his Infant of Prague, which looked at me through those deep sad eyes. I cannot explain to you how I knew it! He was totally unlike my big fair Ronnie, but—it was the soul of Ronnie, in great distress, looking at me! The moment I realised this, I seemed set free from the past. The 'cellist, the woman, the Avenger, all vanished instantly. I saw myself reflected, I saw you, I saw the studio; I saw Ronnie on the floor. I turned to him at once, lifted the 'cello from his breast, and drew his head into my lap."
"Was there a jagged hole—"
"No, not a scratch. The stab belonged to a century ago. But, listen Dick! Several days later, when I had a moment in which to remember Ronnie's poor Infant of Prague, I examined it in a good light, and found the place where the hole made by that dagger had been skilfully mended."
"Lor!" said Dr. Dick. "We're getting on! Don't you think you and I and the Infant might put our heads together, and write a psychic book! But now—seriously. Do you really believe Ronnie was once a slim, pale person, with a shock of black hair? And if he and his Infant lived together in past ages, where were you and I? Are we altogether out of it? Or are you the lady with the dagger, and I the noble party in the flaming cloak?"
She smiled, and a look of quiet peace was in her eyes.
"Dick," she said, "I am not troubled at all about the past. My whole concern is with the present; my earnest looking forward is to the future. And remember, that which set me completely free to think only of the present, was when my Ronnie's soul looked out at me from that strange vision of the past. I cannot say exactly what I believe. But I know my entire responsibility is to the present; my hope and confidence are towards the future. I realise, as I have never realised before, the deep meaning of the words: 'Lord, Thou hast been our Dwelling-place, in all generations.' I am content to leave it at that."
Dick sat silent; sobered, impressed, by a calm confidence of faith, which was new to him.
Then he said: "Good for you, Helen, that you can take it so. Personally, I believe in nothing which I cannot fully explain and understand. 'Faith,' in your sense of the word, has no place in my vocabulary. I was a very small boy when my faith took to itself wings and flew away; and, curiously enough, it was while I was singing lustily, in the village church at Dinglevale: 'As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be; world without end, Amen'!"
"It will come back again," said Helen. "Dick, I know it will come back. Some day you will come to me and you will say: 'It has come back.' The thrusting hand and the prying finger are the fashion nowadays, I know. But the grand old faith which will win out in the end, is the faith which stands with clasped hands, in deepest reverence of belief; and, lifting adoring eyes, is not ashamed to say to the revelation of a Risen Christ: 'My Lord and my God!'"
Dick stirred uneasily in his chair.
"We have got off the subject," he said, "and it's about time we looked up Ronnie. But, first of all: how much of all this do you mean to tell Ronnie?"
"Nothing whatever, if I can help it," replied Helen. "So far as I know, I hope, after this morning, never to mention the subject again."
"I think you are wise. And now let me give you a three-fold bit of advice. Smash the mirror; burn the chair; brain the Infant!"
Helen laughed. "No, no, Dick!" she said. "I can do none of those things. I must take tenderest care of Ronnie's Infant. I have had his valuable old chair carefully mended; and I must not let him think I fear the mirror."
"You're a brave woman," said Dick. "Believing what you do, you're a brave woman to live in the house with that mirror. Or, perhaps, it comes of believing so much. A certainty of confidence, which asks no questions, must be to some extent a fortifying thing. By the way, you will remember that the long rigmarole I gave you was not my own explanation, but the expert's? Mine is considerably simpler and shorter. In fact, it can be summed up in three words."
"What is your explanation, Dick?"
"Whisky and soda," said Dr. Dick, bravely. "You mixed it stiffer than you knew. I was dead beat, and had had no food. I have always been a fairly abstemious chap; in my profession we have to be: woe betide the man who isn't. But since I saw that chair standing on its four legs in the mirror, when it was lying broken on the floor in reality, I have not touched a drop of alcohol. There! I make you a present of that for your next temperance meeting. Now let's go out and buck Ronnie up. Remember, he'll feel jolly flat for a bit, with no temperature. Temperature is a thing you miss, when it has become a habit."
"HE NEVER KNEW!"
Ronnie saw Dick off by the mid-day train.
After the train had begun to move, Dick leaned from the window, and said suddenly: "Ronnie! talk to your wife about her Leipzig letter, and—the kid, you know."
Ronnie kept pace with the train long enough to say: "I wish you wouldn't call it the 'kid,' Dick; it is the 'Infant.' And Helen declines to talk of it."
Then he dropped behind, and Dick flung himself into a corner of his compartment, with a face of comic despair. "Merciful heavens," he said, "slay that Infant!"
Meanwhile Ronnie was saying to a porter: "When is the next train for town?"
"One fifty-five, sir."
"Then I have no chance now of catching the three o'clock from town, for Hollymead?"
"Not from town, sir. But there is a way, by changing twice, which gets you across country, and you pick up the three o'clock all right at Huntingford, four ten."
"Are you sure, my man? I was told there was no way across country."
"The one fifty-five is the only train in the day by which you can do it, sir. I happen to know, because I have a sister lives at Hollymead, so I've done it m'self. If trains aren't late, you hit off the three o'clock at Huntingford."
"Thanks," said Ronnie, noting down particulars. Then he walked rapidly back to the hotel.
"I can't stand it," he said. "I shall bolt! With me off her hands, she can go and have a jolly Christmas at the Dalmains. She is always welcome there. I must get away alone and think matters out. I know everything is all wrong, and yet I don't exactly know what has come between us. I only know I am wretched, and so is she. It is still the poison of the Upas. If I knew why she suddenly considered me utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish, I would do my level best to put it right. But I don't."
He found Helen in the hall, anxiously watching the door. She took up a paper, as he came in.
"Helen," he said, "do you mind if we lunch punctually at one o'clock? I am going out before two."
"Why, certainly we will," said Helen. "You must have had a very early breakfast, Ronnie. But don't overdo, darling. Remember what Dick said. Shall I come with you?"
"I would rather go alone," said Ronnie. "I want to think things over."
She rose and stood beside him.
"Ronnie dear, we seem to have lost all count of days. But, as a matter of fact, to-morrow is Christmas Day. Would you like to go home this afternoon? We can order a car for two o'clock, and be at the Grange for tea. Ronnie, wouldn't it be rather lovely? Think of the little cosy tea-table, and your own especial chair, and the soft lamp-light—"
She paused abruptly. The mental picture had recalled to both the evening on which they last stood together in that golden lamplight.
Ronnie hesitated, looking at the floor. Then he raised his eyes to Helen's. "I don't think I could bear it," he said, turned from her quickly, and went upstairs.
In his room he scribbled a note.
"My wife—I am awfully sorry, but I simply had to bolt. Don't be alarmed. I have gone home to the Grange. I believe, when I am by myself in the house where we spent the three years I thought so perfect and so happy, I shall find out what is the matter; I shall get to the very root of the Upas tree.
"I know I somehow hurt you horribly on the night I reached home, by asking you to come to the studio to hear me play my 'cello; but, before God, I haven't the faintest idea why!
"You would not have said what you did, had you known I was ill; but neither would you have said it, unless it had been true. If it was true then, it is true now. If it is true now, we can't spend Christmas Day together.
"I want you to go to the Dalmains by motor, as soon as you find this, and have a jolly, restful time with them. You look worn out.
"RONNIE."
"P.S.—I am obliged to leave this in my room. I hope you will find it there. I don't even know where your room is, Helen, in this beastly hotel."
Ronnie considered his postscript; then crossed out "beastly" and substituted "large." But "beastly" still showed, pathetically, beneath the line. And, by-and-by, the heart of Ronnie's wife, from which all clouds had suddenly rolled away, understood it, and wept over it, and kissed it; and thought "beastly" a dear word! It was so quaintly like Ronnie to substitute "large" for "beastly."
All clouds had rolled away, before Helen read the note; for this is what had happened.
Ronnie had excused himself when lunch was half over.
Helen let him go, trying to act on Dr. Dick's advice not to worry him by seeming to watch or follow him.
So she sat on alone, finishing luncheon, and thus did not see Ronnie walk out of the front door, carrying his bag.
Soon afterwards she passed into the hall, and sat dipping into the papers and thinking over her talk with Dick.
Presently a page stepped up to her with a letter on a salver.
Her heart stood still as she saw the stamp, the post-mark, and the writing. It was from Aubrey Treherne, forwarded from Hollymead.
Helen was sorely tempted for a moment to burn it unread. She had suffered so much through a former letter in that handwriting. She suddenly realised how cruelly Aubrey's words about Ronnie had, in the light of Ronnie's subsequent behaviour, eaten into her soul.
She looked at the fire. She rose and moved towards it, the letter in her hand.
Then better counsels prevailed.
She went slowly upstairs to her sitting-room, closed the door, sat down, and opened Aubrey's letter.
It contained a smaller envelope sealed, on which was written: "Read letter first."
She opened the folded sheets.
"DEAR HELEN,
"Yes, you are right about God's Word not returning void. Your own words, I admit, only hardened me; but those at the end of your letter broke me up. I am so very far removed from light and fellowship, love and forgiveness. I doubt if I can ever get back into the way of peace.
"But, anyhow, before the great Feast of Peace upon earth, goodwill toward men, I can take a first step by fully confessing the great wrong I did to you and to your husband rather more than a month ago, on the evening which he spent at my flat.
"Possibly you have found it out already; but possibly not, as I hear he has been very seriously ill.
"The evening he was here, he was more or less queer and light-headed, but he was full of you, and of his delight in going home. I suppose this all helped to madden me. No need to explain why. You know.
"He had found a letter from you at the Poste Restante; but, rushing around to his publishers, etc., had not had time to read it.
"When he remembered it and found it in his pocket-book, he stood with his back to my stove, in great excitement, and tore it open; I sitting by.
"As he unfolded the large sheets of foreign paper, a note flew out from between them, and fell, unseen by him, to the floor.
"I put my foot on it. I gathered, from extracts he read me from the letter, that this note was of importance.
"When he found in a postscript that you mentioned an enclosure, he hunted everywhere for it; not thinking, of course, to look under my foot.
"He then concluded, on my instigation, that, after all, you had not enclosed any note.
"At the first opportunity I transferred it to my pocket, made an excuse to leave the room, and read it.
"Helen, believe me, had I known beforehand the news that note contained, I don't think I could have been such a fiend.
"But once having done it, I carried it through. I allowed your husband to go home in total ignorance of the birth of his son. It was I who put the word 'astonishing' into his telegram; and, in my letter to you, I led you to suppose I had heard the news from him.
"I don't know exactly what I expected to gain from all this. But, in a condition of mad despair, I seemed playing my very last card; and I played it for all it was worth—which apparently was not much!
"I did plenty of other devilish work that night—chiefly mental suggestion. This is the only really confessable thing.
"The letter your husband never saw, is in the enclosed envelope. He will like to have it now.
"Thus, as you see, the Word has not returned unto you void. It brings you the only reparation I can make.
Helen tore open the sealed envelope, and found her little pencil note, the tender outpouring to Ronnie, written three days after her baby's birth.
So Ronnie never saw it—he never knew! He came home without having the remotest idea that she had been through anything unusual in his absence. He had heard no word or hint of the birth of his little son. Yet she had called him utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish, because he had quite naturally expected her to be as interested as ever in his pursuits and pleasures.
Oh, Ronnie, Ronnie!
She flew to his room, hoping he had not yet gone out.
On the table she found a note addressed to herself.
She tore it open, read it—- then went back into the sitting-room, and pealed the bell.
"Send my maid to me at once, and the hall-porter."
They arrived together.
Helen had just written a long telegram to her housekeeper.
She spoke to the hall-porter first.
"Send off this telegram, please. Then procure the fastest motor-car you can find, to run me over to Hollymead this afternoon. We can be ready to start in half-an-hour's time."
Then she turned to her maid.
"Jeffreys, we go home for Christmas after all. Mr. West has gone on by train. We must pack as promptly as possible, and start in half-an-hour. We may perhaps get home before him. I doubt whether he can catch anything down from town before the five o'clock."
She flew to her room, pressing Ronnie's sad little note to her heart. All the world looked different! Ah, what would it be, now, to tell him of his little son! But she must get home before him. Supposing Ronnie went upstairs alone, and found the baby!
THE FACE IN THE MIRROR
Ronnie caught the three o'clock train from town, at Huntingford, as the porter had predicted.
No carriage was at the station, so he had a rather long walk from Hollymead to the Grange.
It was a clear, crisp evening and freezing hard. He could feel the frost crackle under his feet, as he tramped along the country lanes.
When he came in sight of the lodge, it reminded him of an old-fashioned Christmas card; the large iron gates, their grey stone supports covered with moss and lichen and surmounted by queer rampant beasts unknown to zoology, holding in their stone claws oval shields on which were carved the ancient arms of Helen's family; the little ivy-covered house, with gabled roof and lattice-windows, firelight from within, shining golden and ruddy on the slight sprinkling of frosty snow.
As he passed in at the gate he saw the motherly figure of Mrs. Simpkins, a baby on her arm, appear at the window, lifting her hand to draw down the crimson blind. Before the blind shut in the bright interior, Ronnie caught a glimpse of three curly heads round a small Christmas-tree on the kitchen-table. Simpkins, in his shirt-sleeves, was lighting the topmost candle.
Ronnie walked on beneath the chestnuts and beeches, up the long sweep of the park drive, a dark lonely figure.
He was very tired; his heart was heavy and sad.
It had been such a cheery glimpse of home, through the lodge window, before the red blind shut it in. Simpkins was a lucky fellow. Mrs. Simpkins looked so kind and comfortable, with the baby's head nestling against her capacious bosom.
Ronnie turned to look back at the brightly-lighted cottage. The ruddy glow from the blind, fell on the snow. He wondered whether there was a Upas tree in that humble home. Surely not! A Upas tree and a Christmas-tree could hardly find place in the same home. The tree of Light and Love, would displace the tree of subtle poison.
He turned wearily from the distant light and plodded on.
Then he remembered that, in her last letter, Helen had said: "Ronnie, we will have a Christmas-tree this Christmas." Why had Helen said that? He had fully intended to ask her, but had not thought of it from that hour to this.
Possibly it was just a wish to yield to his whim in the matter. Perhaps she was planning to have all the little Simpkins kids up to the house.
Well, if Helen spent Christmas with the Dalmains, she would come in for little Geoff's Christmas-tree, which would certainly be a beauty.
He plodded heavily on. He felt extraordinarily lonely. Would Helen miss him? Hardly. You do not miss a selfish person. He would miss Helen—horribly; but then Helen was not selfish. She was quite the most unselfish person he had ever known.
He went over in his mind all the times when Helen had instantly given up a thing at his wish. Amongst others, he remembered how, on that spring morning so long ago, when he had told her of his new book and of his plan, she had been wanting to tell him something, yet he had allowed her interest to remain untold, when she threw herself heart and soul into his. He began to wonder what it could have been; and whether it would be too late to ask her now.
At last he reached the house, and felt slightly cheered to see lights and fires within. He had almost anticipated darkness.
Mrs. Blake herself opened the door, resplendent in black satin; lavender ribbons in her lace cap.
"La, sir!" she said. "Fancy you walking from the station! You must please to excuse Simpkins being out. He has some Christmasing on at the lodge, for his fam'ly."
"I know," said Ronnie. "I saw a Christmas-tree as I passed. I shall not require Simpkins. Blake, is there a fire in the studio?"
"There is, sir, a fine one, for the good of the piano. There is also a fire in the sitting-room, sir, where I will at once send in some tea."
"No, not there," said Ronnie quickly. "I will have tea in the studio."
But Mrs. Blake was firm. "That I couldn't ever, sir! Mrs. West wouldn't wish it. She thinks so much of you having tea in her sitting-room, and beside her fire; which is much more, so to say, cosy than that great unfurnished room, all looking-glass."
At mention of the mirror Ronnie shivered, and yielded. He had almost forgotten the mirror.
So he sat in his own favourite chair, while Blake stood and poured out his first cup of tea, then left him to the utter loneliness of being in that room without Helen.
It is doubtful whether Ronnie had ever loved his wife so passionately as he loved her while he experienced, for the first time, what it was like to be without her, in the room where they had hitherto always been together.
Everything he touched, everything at which he looked, spoke of Helen; forcing upon him the consciousness of the sweetness of her presence, and the consequent hardness of her absence.
Yet he had brought this hardness on himself. She had said: "Wouldn't it be rather lovely to have tea together?" But he had answered: "I don't think I could bear it." And now he did not know how to bear the fact that she was not with him.
Then he saw the chair against which he had leaned his 'cello, and with a thrill of comfort he remembered the Infant of Prague.
How had it fared all this time, in its canvas bag? Perhaps no one had remembered even to put it back into that.
Having hastily swallowed his tea, lest Blake should arrive at the studio to inquire what had been amiss with it, Ronnie hurried down the corridor, entered the long, low room, and turned on the electric light. As before, a great log fire burned on the hearth; but he needed more light now, than mere fitful fire-gleams. He wanted to examine the Infant.
He looked round the room, and there, on a wide settee under one of the windows, lay a polished rosewood 'cello-case.
Ronnie, springing forward, bent down eagerly. The key was in the lock. He turned it, and lifted the lid.
There lay the Infant, shining and beautiful as ever, in a perfectly-fitting bed, lined with soft white velvet. The whole thing carried out exactly Ronnie's favourite description of his 'cello: "just like the darkest horse-chestnut you ever saw in a bursting bur." The open rosewood case, with its soft white lining, was the bursting bur; and within lay his beautiful Infant!
Helen had done this.
Ronnie's pleasure was largely tinged with pain. Helen, who did not like his 'cello, had done this to please him, yet was not here to see his pleasure.
Ronnie drew forth the bow from its place in the lid, opened a little nest which held the rosin, then tenderly lifted the Infant of Prague and carried it to the light.
At first sight, its shining surface appeared perfect as ever. Then, looking very closely, and knowing exactly where to look, Ronnie saw a place just above the f hole on the right, where a blow had evidently been struck deeply into the 'cello. A strip of wood, four inches long, by one inch wide, had been let in, then varnished so perfectly that the mend—probably the work of a hundred years ago—could only be seen in a good light, and by one who knew exactly where to look.
Ronnie stood with grave face gazing at the Infant.
What did it all mean?
He remembered with the utmost vividness every detail of the scene in the mirror.
Had he thought-read from his 'cello the happenings of a century before? Had it transmitted to his over-wrought brain, the scene in which it had once played so prominent a part?
Had it, before then, in the Leipzig flat, imparted to Aubrey Treherne—unconsciously to himself—an accurate mental picture of its former owner?
Ronnie mused on this, and wondered. Then the desire rose strong within him to hear once more the golden voice of the Infant, even at the risk of calling up again those ghostly phantoms of a vanished past.
He drew the Florentine chair into the centre of the room.
He took his seat on the embossed leather of crimson and gold.
He glanced at his reflection. His face was whiter than it had been five weeks ago, when he returned, deep bronzed, from Africa. His hair, too, was longer than it ought to be; though not so long as the heavy black locks of the 'cellist of that past reflection.
Ronnie's rough tweed suit and shooting boots, were a curious contrast to the satin knee-breeches, silken hose, and diamond shoe-buckles he remembered in his vision; yet his manner of holding the 'cello, assumed without conscious thought, and the positions of his knees and feet, were so precisely those of that quaint old-time figure, that Ronnie never doubted that when he raised the bow and his fingers bit into the strings, the flood of harmony would be the same.
He waited for the strong tremor to seize his wrist.
It did not come.
He sounded the four open strings, slowly, one after the other.
Yes, the tones were very pure, very rich, very clear.
Then he took courage, pressed his fingers into the finger-board, and began to play.
Alas, poor Infant of Prague!
Alas, poor born musician, who preferred doing things he had never learned to do!
The exquisite rise and fall of harmony, came not again.
Bitterly disappointed, Ronnie waited, staring into the mirror.
But a rather weary, very lonely, and exceedingly modern young man stared back at him.
At last he realised that he could no longer play the 'cello by inspiration. So he began very carefully feeling for the notes.
The Infant squeaked occasionally, and wailed a little; but on the whole it behaved very well; and, after half-an-hour's work, having found out the key which enabled him to use chiefly the open strings, Ronnie managed to play right through, very fairly in tune, "O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant!"
This gave him extraordinary pleasure. It seemed such a certainty of possession, to be able to pick out all the notes for himself.
He longed that Helen might be there to hear.
The Infant of Prague grew dearer to him than ever. He was now mastering it himself, independent of the antics of an old person of a century ago, bowing away in the mirror.
He tried again; and this time he sang the words of the first verse, as he played. His really fine baritone blended well with the richness of the silver strings.
The words had occasionally to wait, suspended as it were in mid-air, while he felt about wildly for the note on the 'cello; but, once found, the note was true and good, and likely to lead more or less easily to the next.
A listener, in the corridor outside, pressed her hands to her breast, uncertain whether she felt the more inclined to laugh or to weep.
Ronnie began his verse again.
"O come ... all ye ... faithful ...
joyful and tri ... tri ... tri ... um
... phant ... O come, ye, O come ye,
to Beth ... Beth ... Beth ...
Be—eth—le—hem!"
He paused, exhausted by the effort of drawing Bethlehem complete, out of the complication of the Infant's four vibrating strings.
He paused, and, lifting his eyes, looked into the mirror—and saw therein the face of a woman, watching him from beside the door; a lovely face, all smiles, and tears, and tenderness.
At first he gazed, unable to believe his eyes. But, when her eyes met his, and she knew that he saw her, she moved quickly forward, kneeled down beside him, and—it was the face of his wife, all flooded with glad tenderness, which, resting against his shoulder, looked up into his.
She had spoken no word; yet at the first sight of her Ronnie knew that the cloud which had been between them, was between no longer.
"Helen," he said; "Oh, Helen!"
UNTO US A CHILD IS BORN
Ronnie laid down his bow, and put his right arm round his wife.
He still held the precious Infant of Prague between his knees, his left hand on the ebony finger-board.
"My darling!" Helen said. "So we shall be at home for Christmas after all. How glad I am!"
He looked at her dumbly, and waited.
He felt like the prodigal, who had planned to suggest as his only possible desert, a place among the hired servants, but was so lifted into realisation of sonship by the father's welcome, that perforce he left that sentence unspoken.
So Ronnie looked at her dumbly, reading the utter love for him in her eyes.
Back came the words of his hymn, replete with fresh meaning.
"O come, all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant!"
They were such faithful eyes—Helen's; and now they seemed filled with triumphant joy.
"Ronnie," she said, "do you remember how I wrote to you at Leipzig, that this Christmas we would have a Christmas-tree? Did not you wonder, darling, why I said that?"
"Yes," answered Ronnie. "I thought of it this evening when I saw a Christmas-tree at the lodge. I had meant to ask you the night I reached home, but I did not remember then."
"Ah, if you had," she said, "if you only had!"
"Well?" he questioned. "Tell me now."
"Ronnie, do you remember that in that letter I said I had something to tell you, and that I enclosed a note, written some weeks before, telling you this thing?"
"Yes, dear," said Ronnie. "But you forgot to enclose the note. It was not there. I tore the envelope right open; I hunted high and low. Then we concluded you had after all considered it unimportant."
"It was all-important, Ronnie; and it was there."
"It was—where?" asked Ronnie.
"Under Aubrey's foot.... Oh, hush, darling, hush! We must not say hard things of a man who has confessed, and who is bitterly repentant. I can't tell you the whole story now; you shall hear every detail later; but he saw it fall from the letter, as you opened it. He was tempted, first, to cover it with his foot; then, to put it in his pocket; and, after he had read it, he wrote to me implying that you had told him the news it contained; so, when you arrived home, how could I possibly imagine that you did not know it?"
"Did not know what?" asked Ronnie.
She drew a folded paper from her pocket.
"My darling, this will tell you best. It is the note intended to reach you at Leipzig; it is the note which, until this afternoon, I had all along believed you to have received."
She put her note into his hand.
"I hope you will be able to read it by this light, Ronnie. I was very weak when I wrote it. I could only use pencil."
Ronnie unfolded it gravely.
She knelt, with bowed head, beside him. She dared not watch his face.
She heard his breath come short and fast. He moved his knees, and let go his 'cello.
The Infant of Prague slipped unnoticed to the floor.
When he read of the birth of his little son, with a hard choking sob, Ronnie turned and gathered her to him, holding her close, yet eagerly reading the letter over her head; reading it, to its very last word.
Then, dropping the letter, he clasped her to him, with a strength and a depth of tenderness such as she had never before known in Ronnie. And his first words were not what Helen had expected.
"Helen," he said, with another desperate tearless sob, "oh, to think that you had to go through that—alone!"
"My darling boy," she answered, "don't worry about that! It is all over, now; and it is so true—oh, so true, Ronnie—that the anguish is no more remembered in the greatness of the joy."
"But I can't forget," said Ronnie—"I shall never forget—that my wife bore the suffering, the danger, the weakness, and I was not there to share it. I did not even know what she was going through."
"Ronnie dear—think of your little son."
"I can think of nothing of mine just yet," he answered, "excepting of my wife."
She gave in to his mood, and waited; letting him hold her close in perfect silence.
It was strangely sweet to Helen, because it was so completely unexpected. She had been prepared for a moment of intense surprise, followed by a rapture of pride and delight; then a wild rush to the nursery to see his first-born. She was quite willing, now her part was over, that her part should be forgotten. It was as unexpected as it was comfortingly precious, that Ronnie should be thus stricken by the thought of her pain, and of her need of him to help her bear it.
At last he said: "Helen, I see it all now. It was the Upas tree indeed: utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish!"
"My darling, no!" she cried. "Oh, don't be so unjust to yourself! When I used those terrible words, I thought you had had my letter, had come home knowing it all, yet absorbed completely in other things. Misled by Aubrey, I cruelly misjudged you, Ronnie. It was not selfish to go; it was not selfish to be away. You did not know, or you would not have gone. I was glad you should not know, glad you should be away, so that I could bear it alone, without hindering your work; letting you find the joy when you reached home, without having had any of the hardness or the worry. I wished it to be so, my darling boy—and I was glad."
Then Ronnie gently put his wife out of his arms, and took her sweet face between his hands, looking long into her eyes, before he made reply. And Helen, steadfastly returning his gaze, saw a look growing in her husband's face, such as she had never yet seen there, and knew, even before he began to speak, what he was going to say; and her protective love, longing as ever to shield him from pain, cried out: "Oh, must I let him realise that?"
But, at last, through the guidance of wiser Hands than hers, the matter had passed beyond Helen's control.
"My wife," said Ronnie slowly, "when I called it 'the Upas tree indeed,' I did not mean the one act of going off in ignorance and leaving you alone during the whole of that time, when any man who cared at all would wish to be at hand, to bear, and share, and guard. I do not brand that as selfish; because you purposely withheld from me the truth, and bid me go. But why did you withhold it? Why, after the first shock, did you feel glad to face the prospect of bearing it alone; glad I should be away? Ah, here we find the very roots of the Upas tree! Was it not because, during the whole of our married life, I have been cheerfully, complacently selfish? I have calmly accepted as the rule of the home, that I should hear of no worries which you could keep from me, tread upon no thorns which you could clear out of my path, bear no burdens which your loving hands could lift and carry out of sight. Your interests, your pleasures, your friends, your pursuits, all have been swept on one side, if they seemed in the smallest degree likely to interfere with my work, my desires, my career. You have lived for me—absolutely. I have lived for myself. True, we have loved each other tenderly; we have been immensely happy. But, all the while, the shadow of the Upas tree was there. My very love was selfish! It was sheer joy to love you, because you are so sweetly, so altogether, lovable. But when did I—because of my love for you—do one single thing at any cost to self? I was utterly, preposterously, altogether, selfish! You knew this. You knew I hated pain, or worry, or anything which put my comfortable life out of gear. So you gladly let me go, leaving you to bear it all alone. You knew that, had you told me, I should have given up my book and stayed with you; because my self-love would have been more wounded by going than by staying. But you also knew that during all those months you would have had to listen while I bemoaned the circumstances, and bewailed my plot. You knew the bloom would be taken off the coming joy, so you preferred to let me go. Oh, Helen, is not this true?"
She bent her head and kissed his hand. She was weeping silently. She could not say it was not true.
"It was the Upas tree indeed," said Ronnie.
"Darling," she whispered, "it was my fault too—"
"Hush," he said. "There are faults too noble to be accounted faults. But—if you think you were at all to blame—you must atone, by truly and faithfully helping in my fight to root up the Upas tree."
"Ronnie," she said, "a pair of baby hands will help us both. We must learn to live life at its highest, for the sake of our little son."
Then, knowing he had endured as much heart-searching as a man could bear and be the better for it, she said, smiling:
"Ronnie, his funny little hands are so absurdly like yours."
"Like mine?" repeated Ronnie, as one awaking slowly from a sad dream, to a blissful reality. "Why are they like mine?"
"Because he is a tiny miniature of you, you dear, silly old boy! You do not seem to understand that you are actually a father, Ronnie, with a little son of your own!"
She looked up into his worn face, and saw the young glad joy of life creep slowly back into it.
"And his mouth, darling—his little mouth is just like yours; only, as I told you in the letter, when I kiss it—it does not kiss back, Ronnie."
"What?" cried Ronnie. "What?" Then he understood; and, this time, it was no mirage. Ronnie's desert wanderings were over.
"But don't you want to see your son?" Helen asked, presently.
Ronnie leapt up.
"See him? Why, of course I do! Oh, come on!... Helen! What does one say to a very young baby?"
Helen followed him upstairs, laughing.
"That entirely depends upon circumstances. One usually says: 'Did it?' 'Is it then?' or 'Was it?' But I almost think present conditions require a more definite statement of fact. I fancy one would say: 'How do you do, baby? I am your papa!' ... This way, Ronnie, in my own old nurseries. Oh, darling, I am afraid I am going to cry! But you must not mind. They will only be tears of unutterable joy. Think what it will be to me, to see my baby in his father's arms!"
GOOD-NIGHT TO THE INFANT OF PRAGUE
The last hour of Christmas Eve ticked slowly to its close.
On all around grew that sense of the herald angels, bending over a waiting world, poised upon outstretched wings. The hush had fallen which carries the mind away to the purple hills of Bethlehem, the watching shepherds, the quiet folds, the sudden glory in the sky.
The old Grange was closing its eyes at last, and settling itself to slumber.
One by one the brightly lighted windows darkened; the few remaining lights moved upwards.
The Hollymead Waits had duly arrived, and played their annual Christmas hymns. They had won gold from Ronnie, by ministering to his new-found proud delight in his infant son. The village blacksmith, who played the cornet and also acted spokesman for the band, had closed the selections of angelic music, by exclaiming hoarsely, under cover of the night: "A merry Christmas and a 'appy New Year, to Mrs. West, to Mr. West, and to Master West!"
Ronnie dashed out jubilant. The Waits departed well-content.
Helen said: "You dear old silly!"
"Master West," wakened by the cornet, also had something to say; but he confided his remarks to his nurse, and was soon hushed back to slumber.
In the studio, the fire burned low.
The reflections in the long mirror, were indefinite and dim.
The Infant of Prague lay forgotten on the floor.
As midnight drew very near, the door of the studio was pushed softly open, and Helen came in, wearing a soft white wrapper; a lighted candle in her hand.
She placed the candle on a table; then, stooping, carefully lifted Ronnie's 'cello from the floor, laid it in its rosewood case, and stood looking down upon it. Then, smiling, touched its silver strings, with loving fingers.
"Poor Infant of Prague!" she said. "Has Ronnie forgotten even to put you to bed? Never mind! To-morrow you and he shall sing Christmas hymns together, while I and his little son listen and admire."
She closed the case. Then some impulse made her open it again. Her sweet eyes filled with tears. No one was there to see. Ronnie's wife knelt down and gently kissed the unconscious, shining face of the Infant of Prague.
Turning from the settee beneath the window, she saw herself reflected in the mirror—a tall fair figure in trailing garments, soft and white.
She held the candle high above her head, looked at her own reflection, and smiled.
She was glad she was so lovely—for Ronnie's sake.
Ronnie's love to-night was very wonderful.
She moved towards the door, but paused in passing, to look into the smouldering embers of the fire.
At that moment the clocks struck midnight. She heard the Westminster chimes, up on the landing.
It was Christmas Day.
"Unto us a Child is born; unto us a Son is given," murmured Helen. "Oh, holy Christ of Christmas, may the new life to come be very perfect for my Ronnie, my baby, and me."
"Helen!" came Ronnie's eager happy voice, shouting over the stairs. "I say, Helen! Where are you?"
"Coming, darling!" she called, passing out of the studio, and moving swiftly down the corridor.
Ronnie, on the landing, was leaning over the banisters, an expression of comic dismay on his face.
"Oh, I say!" he whispered. "I've done it now! I believe I've woke the baby!"
Helen, mounting the stairs, paused to look up at him, love and laughter in her eyes.
"Undoubtedly you have, you naughty boy! No shouting allowed here now, after dark. But what do you think I was doing? Why, I was in the studio, putting to bed the Infant of Prague."
Almost One Million Copies of Mrs. Barclay's Popular Novels Printed.
By Florence L. Barclay
Cr. 8vo. $1.35 net. ($1.5O by mail.) Holiday Edition, with Illustrations in Color by Blendon Campbell. $2.50 net. By mail, $2.75.
"An ideal love story—one that justifies the publishing business, refreshes the heart of the reviewer, strengthens faith in the outcome of the great experiment of putting humanity on earth. The Rosary is a rare book, a source of genuine delight."—Syracuse Post-Standard.
The Mistress of Shenstone
Cr. 8vo. $1.35 net. ($1.50 by mail.) Holiday Edition, with 8 Illustrations in Color by F.H. Townsend. $2.50 net. By mail, $2.75
"A worthy successor to The Rosary."—Phila. Press.
The Following of the Star
With Frontispiece by F.H. Townsend. Cr. 8vo. $1.35 net. ($1.50 by mail.) Holiday Edition, with 8 Illustrations in Color by F.H. Townsend, $2.50 net. By mail $2.75
"A master work."—Chicago Inter-Ocean.
Through the Postern Gate
(Under the Mulberry Tree)
A Romance in Seven Days
With 9 Illustrations in Color by F.H. Townsend. $1.35 net. ($1.50 by mail.)
"A sweet and appealing love story told in a wholesome, simple way."—Literary Digest.
With Frontispiece in Color. $1.00 net. By mail, $1.10
A story of rare charm, powerful in conception, compelling in narrative, and wholesome in effect.
New York G.P. PUTNAM'S SONS London
Myrtle Reed's New Book
The White Shield
By the Author of "Lavender and Old Lace," "The Master's Violin," etc.
These fascinating bits of fiction reflect the characteristics of the writer: the same vivid imagination, the quick transition from pathos to humor, the facility of utterance, the wholesome sentiment, the purity of thought, the delicacy of touch, the spontaneous wit which has endeared Myrtle Reed to thousands of readers.
Frontispiece in color and 4 other illustrations by Dalton Stevens beautifully printed and bound.
Cloth, $1.50 net. By mail, $1.65
Uniform with "A Weaver of Dreams"
G.P. Putnam's Sons New York
New York London
"A born teller of stories. She certainly has the right stuff in her."—London Standard.
The Way of an Eagle
E.M. Dell
$1.35 net By mail, $1.50
"In these days of overmuch involved plot and diction in the writing of novels, a book like this brings a sense of refreshment, as much by the virility and directness of its style as by the interest of the story it tells.... The human interest of the book is absorbing. The descriptions of life in India and England are delightful. ... But it is the intense humanity of the story—above all, that of its dominating character, Nick Ratcliffe, that will win for it a swift appreciation."—Boston Transcript.
"Well written, wholesome, overflowing with sentiment, yet never mawkish. Lovers of good adventure will enjoy its varied excitement, while the frankly romantic will peruse its pages with joy."—Chicago Record-Herald.
Frontispiece in Color by John Cassel
Endorsed by A.C. Benson, A.E.W. Mason, W.J. Locke
Beyond the Law
By Miriam Alexander
The Great Prize Novel. Awarded Prize of $1,250.00
Frontispiece in Color. $1.35 net. By mail, $1.50
A lively, unaffected, and interesting story of good craftsmanship, showing imagination and insight, with both vivid and dramatic qualities.
The scene is laid in Ireland and in France, the time is the William of Orange period, and deals with the most cruel persecution against the Catholics of Ireland.
"The great charm of the story is that it is so essentially Irish. Country and people are so lovingly, so feelingly, so understanding described. The characters are strikingly original creations, finely conceived and consistently developed. Its literary style is all that the most critical would ask."—Baltimore Sun.
End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Upas Tree, by Florence L. Barclay
*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE UPAS TREE ***
***** This file should be named 16454-h.htm or 16454-h.zip *****
This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
http://www.gutenberg.org/1/6/4/5/16454/
Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
will be renamed.
Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules,
set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project
Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you
do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is
subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
redistribution.
*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
http://gutenberg.net/license).
Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic works
1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be
used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works. See paragraph 1.E below.
1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the
collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an
individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in
a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check
the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning
the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
copied or distributed:
1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
1.E.9.
1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked
to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
Gutenberg-tm License.
1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or
distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.net),
you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is
owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments
must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License. You must require such a user to return or
destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
Project Gutenberg-tm works.
- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
of receipt of the work.
- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the
Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
1.F.
1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
your equipment.
1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
DAMAGE.
1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with
the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy
is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
opportunities to fix the problem.
1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER
WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any
provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists
because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
people in all walks of life.
Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org.
Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
http://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at
809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
[email protected] Email contact links and up to date contact
information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
page at http://pglaf.org
For additional contact information:
Dr. Gregory B. Newby
Chief Executive and Director
Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation
Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations
($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
status with the IRS.
The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations
where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To
SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
particular state visit http://pglaf.org
While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
approach us with offers to donate.
International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other
ways including including checks, online payments and credit card
donations. To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate
Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works.
Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily
keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
http://www.gutenberg.net
This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
*** END: FULL LICENSE ***
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line709
|
__label__wiki
| 0.877819
| 0.877819
|
Hear Ariana Grande Tap Nicki Minaj for Snappy ‘The Light Is Coming’
June 19, 2018 Moderator
Ariana Grande unveiled a snappy new collaboration with Nicki Minaj, "The Light is Coming," off her upcoming album, Sweetener, out August 17th via Republic Records.
"The Light is Coming" features production from Pharrell, who crafts a jittery beat of quick drums and peculiar synths that rush
This article originally appeared on www.rollingstone.com: Hear Ariana Grande Tap Nicki Minaj for Snappy 'The Light Is Coming'
Tim Lambesis Reunites With As I Lay Dying One Year After Prison Release
Tim Lambesis, the heavy metal singer who was convicted in 2014 for his role in a murder-for-hire plot to kill his estranged wife, reunited with his band As I Lay Dying in San Diego, California over the weekend,
This article originally appeared on www.rollingstone.com: Tim Lambesis Reunites With As I Lay Dying One Year After Prison Release
Julian Casablancas’ Voidz Extend Tour With Beck, Phoenix Shows
Julian Casablancas' the Voidz extended their 2018 tour in support of their new album Virtue to include another North American leg this fall.
The trek
This article originally appeared on www.rollingstone.com: Julian Casablancas' Voidz Extend Tour With Beck, Phoenix Shows
Can an EP Recorded by Prisoners Spark Criminal Justice Reform Talk?
In May 2015, B.L. Shirelle was finishing up a prison term at Muncy State Correctional Institution in Pennslvania. She felt apprehensive about her imminent return to civilian life, having spent most of her last decade behind bars, and this tension served as the basis for a track titled "Headed to the Streets." "It took me maybe 15 minutes to write that song," Shirelle tells Rolling
This article originally appeared on www.rollingstone.com: Can an EP Recorded by Prisoners Spark Criminal Justice Reform Talk?
We’ve Only Begun to Understand XXXTentacion’s Musical Legacy
Popular music has never known a story like that of South Florida rapper Jahseh "XXXTentacion" Onfroy.
In his final month as a 17-year-old high school dropout, he uploaded a song to SoundCloud that – almost single-handedly – changed the way hip-hop
This article originally appeared on www.rollingstone.com: We've Only Begun to Understand XXXTentacion's Musical Legacy
Iceage, Black Lips Unveil Co-Headlining Tour
Danish punks Iceage and Atlanta garage rockers the Black Lips will unite for a co-headlining North American tour this fall.
The trek launches November 5th at the Rickshaw Theatre in
This article originally appeared on www.rollingstone.com: Iceage, Black Lips Unveil Co-Headlining Tour
The Subtly Radical Vision of Maxwell’s ‘Glass House’
Maxwell is throwing stones. It’s an unexpectedly violent phrase to describe someone who’s made a career of soothing tensions with soft, intimate songs like 1996’s “Sumthin’ Sumthin” and 1998’s “Matrimony: Maybe You.” But two years after his last
This article originally appeared on www.rollingstone.com: The Subtly Radical Vision of Maxwell's 'Glass House'
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line710
|
__label__cc
| 0.506443
| 0.493557
|
Venice is elegant, precious, inimitable, entertaining, and romantic. It is a jewel in the Italian touristic landscape, where churches, buildings, old bridges, monuments and piazzas are the evidence of the artistic and cultural vivacity that marks the history of this city.
The heart of Venice is the wonderful Piazza San Marco – the most elegant in Europe - surrounded by outstanding buildings: the impressive bell tower and the Cathedral – with its five portals of marble and mosaic decorations (foreshadowing the luxury of the interiors); the Ducal Palace, a symbol of the golden age of the Serenissima; Torre dei Mori (the clock tower), the engineering masterpiece that has been telling Venice the time for centuries; and the Napoleonic Wing, site of the Correr Museum.
Not far away is Campo Santo Stefano, with the church of the same name (i.e. St. Stephen’s), one of Venice’s biggest.
Venetian Canals Gondola Tour – Semi-Private
Take our enchanting Semi-private gondola tour and glide through centuries of history, allowing yourself to be captivated by the glamour and...
€31.00 per person
Visit of Peggy Guggenheim Museum
Housed in the former residence of Peggy Guggenheim, Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, located on the Grand Canal in Venice, showcases Peggy Guggenheim’s...
from € 47.50 p.p.
Saint Marks Basilica Tour – Past and Present
Walking around this open air museum our informative guide will take you to the external sights of Saint Marks square, the Doges palace, the...
Venice in a Day Tour – The best of Venice!
Venice in a day tour is the best way to spend a whole day in Venice or divide these tours over two days. Visit Venice in one day with most famous...
Venice Sightseeing Walking Tour
Here we offer two hours away from the crowed, public tours and all the flurry and scurry. Instead we offer a serene guided walking tour. Through...
Private Venice Gondola Tour
For centuries the Gondola has been the most prominent feature of Venice and an important means of transportation. With its magnificent form and...
Discover Venice – unbeaten paths
We make our way through the labyrinth of alleyways towards the famous Opera house La Fenice which burned down and has now been rebuilt to is...
Venice Murder and Mysteries Tour
Discover an entirely different Venice as we make our way through a labyrinth of narrow alleyways, where shadows linger and footsteps echo....
Overview of Venice and Gondola Ride
The Overview of Venice and Gondola Ride is real favourite with our clients, and an absolute must for the first time visitor. Enjoy a relaxing 2...
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line715
|
__label__cc
| 0.53176
| 0.46824
|
Jeep rolls out Gladiator -- first pickup in 25 years
Jeep rolled out something really big at the LA Auto Show last week, and it came in the hulking form of the Gladiator -- the brand's first new pickup in just over 25 years. The very versatile midsize truck line promises open-air freedom, impressive on- and off-road dynamics, best-in-class towing (up to 7,650 lb) and 4x4 payload (up to 1,600 lb), fuel-efficient powertrains, innovative safety and advanced technology features, and more.
Signature Jeep off-road capability comes courtesy of the Command-Trac and Rock-Trac 4x4 systems, third-generation Dana 44 axles, Tru-Lock electric front- and rear-axle lockers, Trac-Lok limited-slip differential, segment-exclusive sway-bar disconnect, and 33-in. off-road tires. The truck can also handle 30 inches of water fording.
The brand's last pickup line was the Jeep Comanche (MJ), which was produced from 1986 to 1992. The Gladiator moniker was used once before in the Jeep Gladiator/J-Series Pickup: 1963 to 1987.
The 2020 Jeep Gladiator is available in four different trim configurations: Sport, Sport S, Overland, and Rubicon (premium).
All new 2020 Jeep Gladiator models are equipped with the standard six-speed manual transmission. This transmission features a unique design that employs optimized gear ratios for bolstered crawl ratio performance and is cable-operated, eliminating shifter vibration and bolstering sound isolation.
The shift pattern features a comfortable shifting position and bolsters shift accuracy. A 4.41 ratio spread offers better fuel efficiency at faster speeds and delivers quick acceleration with smooth, precise shift quality.
More than 80 active and passive safety and security features are available, including Blind-spot Monitoring, Rear Cross Path detection, forward-facing off-road camera, standard ParkView rear backup camera with dynamic grid lines, Adaptive Cruise Control and electronic stability control (ESC) with electronic roll mitigation.
2020 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon.
The Gladiator boasts a rugged, distinguished design aesthetic that is immediately recognizable with traditional Jeep design cues.
The Jeep design team kept the traditional seven-slot grille seen on Wrangler, but widened the grille slots for additional air intake to assist with the increased towing capacity. The top of the keystone-shaped grille is gently swept back to enhance aerodynamics.
Gladiator Overland and Rubicon models offer available LED headlamps and fog lamps that project crisp white lighting, adding to the truck's modern look. Gladiator models equipped with LEDs feature daytime running lights, which form a halo around the outside perimeter of the headlights. Forward turn signals are positioned on the front of the trapezoidal wheel flares.
From behind, traditional square tail lamps feature available LED lighting and give way to a wide tailgate opening for unobstructed loading of cargo into the durable 5-ft steel bed. The tailgate is damped and capable of stopping in three positions, while cargo is easily secured with a power-locking tailgate.
Clever functionality and versatility were the focus while designing the Gladiator's durable bed to streamline usability. Under-rail bed lighting, an available covered external power source (400-W 115-V, three-prong), and strong integrated tie-downs provide durability and versatility. The available Trail Rail Cargo Management System provides additional storage options to organize and secure cargo.
The full-size spare tire and mount is located under the bed, behind the rear axle, and is capable of holding up to a 35-in. tire. An available spray-in bed liner, bed divider, and tonneau cover provide even more options to keep cargo secure while helping with durability. Gladiator Rubicon models are equipped with protective cab and cargo bed rock rails. A four-bolt design at the top of the windshield's frame allows for the windshield to fold down quickly and easily. A header bar connects the A-pillars and stays in place even when the windshield is folded down. This allows the rearview mirror to remain in place even with the windshield folded.
Lightweight, high-strength aluminum doors feature the Torx bit size stamped directly onto the hinge to eliminate guessing which size bit is needed to remove the doors. A tool kit with the necessary Torx bits to remove the doors and lower the windshield is provided as standard equipment.
All Gladiators feature body-color sport bars, which are welded to the body and feature integrated grab handles for front occupants. A premium Sunrider soft top provides a segment-exclusive easy open-air option.
Gladiator Overland and Rubicon models share an available three-piece body-color hardtop option, offering a unique, premium appearance, while a black three-piece hardtop, available on all models, offers even more options for open-air driving. The two Freedom panels and quick-release latches enable fast removal and installation of the hardtop. All hardtops feature a manual rear-sliding window.
Dozens of different door, top, and windshield combinations allow for endless configuration possibilities.
The heritage-inspired center stack features a clean, sculpted form that complements the horizontal dashboard design and sports a finish dictated by the model choice. A hand-wrapped instrument panel features a soft-touch surface with accent stitching on Gladiator Overland and available on Rubicon models.
Functional features, including climate and volume control knobs, media charging and connectivity ports, and Engine Stop Start (ESS) control are all sculpted for quick recognition and are easily within reach of the front-seat occupants. Inboard and outboard circular HVAC vents are surrounded by a platinum chrome bezel for a precise and premium yet rugged appearance with full functionality.
Jeep functionality and versatility are celebrated in the center console and distinguished with metal-plated accents. The center console houses gear shift selection, transfer case, and parking brake. Real bolts featured on the shifter, grab handles, and the infotainment screen's frame highlight genuine construction methods.
A 7-in. or an available 8.4-in. touchscreen houses the fourth-generation Uconnect system and sits prominently atop the center stack. The fourth-generation Uconnect system enhances the user interface and system performance with quicker startup times and improved screen resolution. A 5-in. touchscreen is standard on Gladiator Sport. Directly below the touchscreen are functional features, such as climate and volume control knobs and media connectivity ports.
Exclusive to Gladiator Rubicon models, a forward-facing off-road camera allows obstructions ahead on the trail to be easily seen. The front camera sits behind the middle slot of Gladiator's seven-slot grille and can be accessed through the available Off-road Pages. A push-button starter, featuring a weather-proof surround, is standard on the 2020 Gladiator and is easily located within the driver's reach. Cloth or leather-contoured seats feature accent stitching and adjustable bolster and lumbar support. Available comfort features include heated front seats and steering wheel.
All-new rear seats feature high-quality premium materials giving the seats an athletic look that also delivers comfort and support. The rear seats, exclusive to Gladiator, feature segment-leading rear legroom and utilize a unique design that can be locked in place to provide secure storage behind the seat back. The rear seats can be folded flat to access cab-back storage and provide a load floor for larger items.
With the rear seats folded flat, LED lights on the quarter trim panels illuminate the storage space behind the seats. Two storage nets on the cab-back wall provide even more secure storage. Clever storage solutions are found throughout the 2020 Gladiator, including durable mesh pockets that extend the entire length of the doors and numerous phone storage areas.
The rear seat cushions can fold up into "stadium" position to reveal a standard open storage bin, which utilizes the space under the seat for stowing miscellaneous items. An optional lockable bin provides secure storage space when the top or doors are removed.
Gladiator's body-on-frame design uses advanced materials and engineering to be lightweight, yet stiff and durable, and features an all-new lightweight, high-strength steel frame. When compared to Jeep Wrangler 4-door, Gladiator's frame is an additional 31 in. longer, while the wheelbase is 19.4 in. longer. The longer wheelbase and the bed's positioning center aft of the rear axle centerline enables for better weight distribution and a more comfortable and composed ride when carrying cargo. The prop shaft, brake, fuel lines, and exhaust system were lengthened to accommodate the changes needed to make the proven body-on-frame design work.
A traditional steel bed utilizes four steel cross-members to reinforce the load floor while the aluminum tailgate is damped. Utility and versatility are maximized with strong integrated tie-downs, under-rail bed lighting, and an optional covered external power source.
To protect critical vehicle components while on the trail, including the fuel tank, transfer case, and automatic transmission oil pan, Gladiator employs four skid plates and bars. Rubicon models benefit from the use of heavy-gauge tubular steel rock rails to curtail potential body damage inflicted while out on the trail. Rubicon models also feature segment-exclusive rock rails for the bed corners.
The use of lightweight, high-strength aluminum closures, including the doors, door hinges, hood, fender flares, windshield frame, and tailgate, help curtail weight and boost fuel economy. Other ways the Jeep engineering team looked to manage weight included using hollow track and stabilizer bars, aluminum engine mounts and steering gear.
Gladiator uses the proven five-link coil suspension configuration, with the front suspension using a lateral control arm and four longitudinal control arms. Full-width track bars made of forged steel control lateral movement of the axle with minimal angle change during suspension travel.
The all-new Jeep Gladiator offers the proven 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 engine at launch, with a 3.0-liter EcoDiesel V-6 engine being offered in 2020.
The FCA US 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 engine delivers 285 hp and 260 lb.-ft. of torque and features ESS as standard equipment. It is engineered to provide a broad torque band with a focus on low-end torque, an essential trait needed for extreme off-roading.
A six-speed manual transmission is standard on all Gladiator models equipped with the 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6, and an eight-speed automatic transmission is optional.
2020 Jeep Gladiator Overland.
The 3.0-liter EcoDiesel engine will be available starting in 2020. Gladiator models will offer the 3.0-liter EcoDiesel V-6 engine, rated at 260 hp and 442 lb.-ft. of torque, with ESS standard. An eight-speed automatic transmission is standard and is designed to handle the increased torque output.
The EcoDiesel V-6 engine implements refined turbocharger technology with a low-friction bearing designed for low-end and transient performance. The EcoDiesel V-6 engine also features low-friction pistons to improve fuel economy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and provide an enhanced combustion system -- injector nozzle, piston bowl, and glow plug with integrated combustion pressure sensor to optimize combustion. Low Pressure Cooled Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) assists to combine with the high-pressure system to expand the range of EGR usage and to improve fuel economy.
The Jeep Gladiator gets its impressive off-road capability courtesy of two advanced 4x4 systems. The Command-Trac 4x4 system, standard on Sport and Overland, features a two-speed transfer case with a 2.72:1 low-range gear ratio, and heavy-duty third-generation Dana 44 front and rear axles with a 3.73 rear axle ratio. On Gladiator Rubicon, a Rock-Trac 4x4 system features heavy-duty third-generation Dana 44 front and rear axles with a "4LO" ratio of 4:1. A 4.10 front and rear axle ratio is standard as are Tru-Lok locking differentials. Gladiator Rubicon models offer improved articulation and total suspension travel with help from a segment-exclusive electronic sway-bar disconnect. With the standard six-speed manual transmission, Gladiator Rubicon has an impressive crawl ratio of 84.2:1, and 77.2:1 on Rubicon models equipped with the optional eight-speed automatic transmission -- both of which make scaling any obstacle on the trail easy. Both Command-Trac and Rock-Trac systems offer full-time torque management, enabling optimal grip in low-traction conditions.
Built in Toledo, OH, the all-new 2020 Jeep Gladiator arrives in showrooms in the second quarter of 2019.
Pricing and fuel-economy ratings have not been released.
Learn more at www.jeep.com/gladiator.html.
Sources: Jeep, FCA US
[Wheels:
Jeep rolls out Gladiator -- first pickup in 25 years]
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line719
|
__label__wiki
| 0.691689
| 0.691689
|
Eric Gelinas
North American Skater - Lewiston, QMJHL
Position: Defenseman Shoots: Left
Born in: Vanier, ON, CAN
Drafted: 2009: NJD (2nd Round / 54th Overall)
• At 18 years of age, Gelinas led all Lewiston defensemen in points, registering 10 goals and 29 assists in 67 games in 2008-09. He also participated in the 2009 CHL Top Prospects Game.
• His father, Marc, was drafted by Major League Baseball’s Pittsburgh Pirates in 1978 and his older brother, Karl, was drafted by the Los Angeles Angels in 2003. Eric and Karl, who currently plays in the Canadian-American Baseball League with the Quebec Capitales, train together in the summer.
• Born in Vanier, Ontario, before moving to Montreal at the age of seven, Gelinas played on his first hockey team the Rockland Nats at the age of four following in the footsteps of his older brother.
• He patterns his game after Anaheim defenseman Chris Pronger and wears number 44 because Pronger used to wear it.
• He credits his parents for having the most influence on his career for their encouragement and support and if he could invite any three people to dinner he would choose his parents and brother “because they are the people I love the most in the world”.
GELINAS BLOGS FOR THE HOCKEY NEWS
NHL Team: Montreal Canadiens
NHL Player: Chris Pronger
Shootout move: “Fake slap-shot and go top shelf on the backhand.”
Goal celebration: “Fist pump followed up with pointing to the guy that fed me the puck.”
Video game: NHL ‘09
Movie: American Gangster
TV Show: Two and a Half Men
Actress: Jessica Alba
Cartoon: Family Guy
Website: Google
Book: Dave Morrissette’s book
Sport (other than hockey): Golf and Tennis
Activity away from the rink: Shopping
Breakfast food: Breakfast sandwich
Superhero: Superman
2018-2019 BRATISLAVA SLOVAKIA 52 5 10 15 32
2018-2019 ROGLE SWEDEN 8 1 3 4 4
2008-2009 LEWISTON (defunct) QMJHL 67 10 29 39 80
2007-2008 LEWISTON (defunct) QMJHL 54 3 16 19 34
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line721
|
__label__cc
| 0.63196
| 0.36804
|
Local Editorials
Our view: Helping prevent teen suicide
By NORTHWEST HERALD EDITORIAL BOARD
Thumbs up: To the McHenry County Mental Health Board and Crystal Lake-based Community High School District 155 for their partnership to train about 250 staff members to be better equipped to help prevent suicide. High school communities around the area including in District 155 have been devastated too often when students have taken their own lives, leaving permanent wounds to surviving family members and friends. This training will help those who are around young people everyday better identify risks and guide students toward seeking the help they need.
Thumbs up: To Huntley resident Cynthia Schumann, for creating an online program designed to help train staffs in the hospitality industry on what to do if they see a potentially unsafe situation for guests or employees. Using her 30 years of experience with the Chicago Police Department, Schumann has created a program that should help employers better utilize anti-violence strategies. The course, found at learnwithluma.com/domestic-violence-in-the-workplace, takes about an hour to complete, and we encourage those who can take it to do so.
Thumbs down: To Illinois House Democrats who once again voted Michael Madigan their leader. Madigan was elected to his 17th term as Speaker, putting him on track to soon become the longest-serving statehouse speaker in modern U.S. history. During Madigan’s tenure, Illinois has amassed a $120 billion pension deficit, the worst-in-the-nation; more than $11 billion in unpaid bills to vendors who already have supplied the services they are owed for; the worst credit rating of any state in the country; and we could go on and on. Yet House Democrats think he is their best option to lead them for another two years? No, the truth is they are afraid of him and his power. Shame.
Thumbs up: To the lone Democrat, Rep. Scott Drury of Highwood, who did not vote for Madigan. “I am confident that my vote represents the view of the vast majority of my constituents,” Drury, who voted “present” on the speakership election, said in a written statement. “In that respect, the decision was easy. Unfortunately, I have learned that what is popular with constituents does not always align with what is popular in Springfield. In the end, I chose the public over politicians.” So now we’ll get to see how Madigan chooses to punish Drury for his defiance.
Our View: Rauner contract offer generous
Our view: Heroes who save lives
Our view: Rooting for Donald Trump's success
Our View: Census data brings little joy
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line723
|
__label__wiki
| 0.714218
| 0.714218
|
Homepage admin 2017-01-04T14:01:41+00:00
The prosthetic center of Amman
It is dedicated to Paola Biocca.
Paola Biocca, disappeared tragically November 12, 1999 during a humanitarian mission in Kosovo as a spokesman for the WFP (World Food Programme). By mines to the dispossessed of the world, Paola had worked for Amnesty International, Greenpeace and the Italian Campaign to Ban Landmines, for which he also helped organize the important conference “From mine to food: demine the road to development.” His novel “Darkness at Jerusalem” won the literary prize Calvin. Paola Biocca has always played with passion his press office of the World Food Programme (World Food Programme, WFP).
“We must stand on the side of the poor, the dispossessed, of those who have nothing. We need to talk about them ’cause the world to know,’ cause the people feel involved, ’cause the tragedies do not pass into oblivion “in these words the essence of acting and feeling of Paola. Who has had the good fortune to meet her on her path he knows that the world view of Paola, in the cords of his action the term solidarity was a fact and not a mere aspiration.
(Giuseppe Schiavello, Direttore Campagna Contro le Mine).
KAMEL SAADI At the age of 14, Kamel Saadi was amputee due to a mine. The March 16, 1979 Saadi was at a picnic with family and friends near Umm Qais, an area along the Jordanian-Israeli border contaminated with mines from the 60s and 70s.
A step on a rock that hid a mine, eight hours later, doctors amputatano foot.
In 1985, he completed his university studies in Los Angeles and returned home a third intervention that amputated eight inches below the knee strain.
Inspired by his experience and that of other survivors from mine, he founded Life Line Consulting and rehabilitation in 2007 to provide assistance to landmine survivors and other persons with disabilities. LLCR is a non-profit-Jordanian national organization that assists survivors by providing physical support, emotional and financial, promotes educational activities with respect to mine-risk, carries out advocacy activities.
“ According to Saadi, “Our style is based on simplicity, direct interaction, involving
professional knowledge based on specific needs, and the provision of immediate needs; a hug or a handshake for your surprise can often be an immediate need.”
The LLCR mission is to help people with disabilities to achieve their goals by using their skills.
Rehabilitation is a process that aims to improve the quality of life of people. This means, in our case, do not achieve the result giving the user who suffered an amputation an aid that allows him to move, but a taking charge of the amputated person who plans to accompany and support in recovering its autonomy and independence and reintegrate into society, assitendendola in rehabilitative physical path, providing a social support that is grounded in the approach peer-to-peer.
The Amman Orthopedic Center is a pilot project of three organizations: Life Line Consultancy and Rehabilitation (Giordania); Campagna Italiana contro le Mine anti persona; You Able Onlus.
© Copyright 2016 - All Rights Reserved | LLCR – LIFE LINE CONSULTANCY AND REHABILITATION WORKSHOP ORTOPEDICO: 44 Queen Rania Street, Amman - Jordan. LLCR - Life Line For Consultancy & Rehabilitation Mbl: (++ 962) 0789560220 Amman - Jordan | CAMPAGNA ITALIANA CONTRO LE MINE | YOU ABLE ONLUS | design by INK to PIX
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line745
|
__label__cc
| 0.507968
| 0.492032
|
Paranormal news 2015: Page 116
Advanced Search only this category Random Link
Home > Paranormal news 2015 > Page 116
Paranormal news 2015 (Subscribe)
1 ... 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 ... 1020
Psychic Astronaut Out To Save The Universe In WORLD READER - Newsarama
http://www.newsarama.com/32852-psychic-astronaut-out-to-save-the-world-in-world-reader.html
Jeff Loveness and Juan Doe are exploring dead space in a new creator-owned series from AfterShock Comics titled World Reader. Scheduled to launch April 19, the ongoing series ??. "Working on World Reader from Jeff Loveness has been a blast," said ...
Lecture illustrates the repression of powerful women in witchcraft - Indiana Daily Student
http://www.idsnews.com/article/2017/01/nasty-women-in-witchcraft
The alternative title to Tuesday night's lecture would have been “How Women of Power Cannot be Tolerated," Duan Evema said. The lecture, actually titled “History of Witchcraft: Nasty Women,” highlighted defining women in witchcraft who were persecuted ...
Lance Wallnau: Women's March Was A Manifestation of 'The Spirit Of Witchcraft' - Right Wing Watch
http://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/lance-wallnau-womens-march-was-a-manifestation-of-the-spirit-of-witchcraft/
Manipulation, intimidation and control are the hallmarks of “the spirit of witchcraft” and “witchcraft is the spirit of Jezebel,” Wallnau said, “so it makes sense to me that there would be half a million women who would show up” in Washington, D.C., on ...
Internet only 'Ghost Restaurants' are the next big thing - The Next Web
http://thenextweb.com/business/2017/01/24/internet-ghost-restaurants-next-big-thing/
How publishing platform Ghost plans to save journalism - TechRepublic
http://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-publishing-platform-ghost-plans-to-save-journalism/
Ghost wants to save independent journalism, and the independent content management system has the money and tech to fund it. Launched in 2014 with a successful Kickstarter campaign, Ghost is a simple but powerful publishing platform inspired by robust ...
Ghost ship adrift for months ends up on Whidbey Island - KOMO News
http://komonews.com/news/local/ghost-ship-adrift-for-months-ends-up-on-whidbey-island
CLINTON, Wash. -- An apparently abandoned boat that has been reported adrift for months has ended up on Whidbey Island near here. Joe Smiley, of the state Department of Natural Resources, said crews are waiting for high tide to pull the boat off the ...
Ghost ship adrift for months ends up on Washington's Whidbey Island - KOMO News
CLINTON, Wash. (KOMO) - An apparently abandoned boat that had been reported adrift for months ended up on Whidbey Island in Washington. Joe Smiley, of the state Department of Natural Resources, said crews are waiting for high tide to pull the boat off ...
Ghost ship adrift for months ends up on Washington's Whidbey ... - KOMO News
CLINTON, Wash. (KOMO) - An apparently abandoned boat that had been reported adrift for months ended up on Whidbey Island in Washington.Joe Smiley, of ...
Ghost Note's next measure of Capitol Hill coffee: craft subtlety, no tipping, and Bellevue Ave's fir
http://www.capitolhillseattle.com/2017/01/ghost-notes-next-measure-of-capitol-hill-coffee-craft-subtlety-no-tipping-and-bellevue-aves-first-barista-dress-code/
Ghost Note is a tuneful reference to “a note that has rhythmic value but no musical value,” Andrews says, and a nod to the nuances his new venture will foster to help raise the cafe to a higher register of Seattle coffee culture. Custom mugs from a ...
Delhi municipal bodies paid Rs 1942.82 crore to ghost pensioners? - Times of India
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/mcd-paid-rs-1942-82-crore-to-ghost-pensioners/articleshow/56766698.cms
NEW DELHI: The chief auditor of municipal accounts has found that the erstwhile Municipal Corporation of Delhi, and one of its successor bodies, North Delhi Municipal Corporation, paid a whopping Rs 1,942.82 crore pension over 18 years to their ...
Dakota Stage presents comedy witchcraft - Bismarck Tribune
http://bismarcktribune.com/entertainment/dakota-stage-presents-comedy-witchcraft/article_24291754-df6b-5107-8a8a-a9df12bcf5b5.html
CIA feared a widening "psychic gap" with the Soviets - MuckRock
https://www.muckrock.com/news/archives/2017/jan/25/cia-feared-widening-psychic-gap-soviets/
Campus organization seeks out answers to paranormal activity - The Northeastern
http://www.nsunews.com/Home/TabId/56/ArtMID/544/ArticleID/1338/Campus-organization-seeks-out-answers-to-paranormal-activity.aspx
Are aliens real? These unsolved space mysteries could PROVE ... - The Sun
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/2692554/are-aliens-real-these-unsolved-space-mysteries-could-prove-existence-of-extraterrestrials/
Check out the astonishing space discoveries which have left baffled stargazers scratching their heads.
A Ghost Story has it all: romance, metaphysics, and Rooney Mara eating pie for five minutes - The Ve
http://www.theverge.com/2017/1/24/14366856/a-ghost-story-review-sundance-2017-casey-affleck
The first thing you will hear about A Ghost Story, director David Lowery's indie follow-up to last year's Pete's Dragon reboot, is that Rooney Mara spends five minutes comfort-eating a pie. Or maybe the unedited shot lasts 10 minutes. Or 15 or 20 ...
A Deed Without a Name: Unearthing the Legacy of Traditional Witchcraft - Patheos (blog)
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/poisonersapothecary/2017/01/23/deed-without-name-unearthing-legacy-traditional-witchcraft/?ref_widget%3Dtrending%26ref_blog%3Dbyathameandstang%26ref_post%3Dfake-witches
Those of us who claim to be traditional witches or identify with the idea of pre-modern traditional witchcraft, enjoy our scholarly books with research done by academics using primary sources. We enjoy the hunt for books written by shadowy masters ...
'Ghost' From The Ring Pranks Shoppers In TV Store. Over 3 Million Views - NDTV
http://www.ndtv.com/offbeat/ghost-from-the-ring-pranks-shoppers-in-tv-store-over-3-million-views-1652541
'First you watch, then you die.' If you've watched The Ring and its sequel, you've probably had nightmares of Samara (the ghost) crawling out of your TV screen like she did in the horror films. Thank your stars you weren't in this New York electronics ...
'Ghost Ship' fire adds urgency to Marin arts nonprofit's upgrades - East Bay Times
http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/01/24/ghost-ship-fire-adds-urgency-to-marin-arts-nonprofits-upgrades/
When 36 people perished in the “Ghost Ship” warehouse fire in Oakland in December, it was a horrifying reminder for Elisabeth Setten, executive director of Art Works Downtown in San Rafael, that a tragedy like that could happen here. “It was so ...
'A Ghost Story' Is An Ethereal Arthouse Daydream, In A Good Way - UPROXX
http://uproxx.com/filmdrunk/ghost-story-review-sundance/
David Lowery's A Ghost Story is a singular experience — it's existential and ultra-serious, openly aspires to high art and arguably achieves it. It's a mysterious little film, the kind I might normally hate for a variety of reasons, but that seems to ...
You may not believe in Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster — but this museum may persuade you otherwi
http://www.latimes.com/travel/la-tr-cryptozoological-museum-20170122-story.html
In 2003 he set up what is thought to be the world's only International Cryptozoology Museum. The 10,000-item nonprofit, which focuses on these legendary creatures, called cryptids, moved in the summer into new digs in a restored industrial landmark in ...
You may not believe in Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster — but this ... - Los Angeles Times
Monsters are the stuff of children's nightmares, right? Maybe. Maybe not. Let this Portland, Maine, repository of evidence help you make up your mind.
What caused the deadly Ghost Ship fire? Officials aren't saying, but attorneys have unexpected theor
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ghost-ship-fire-20170123-story.html
In the nearly two months since 36 people died in a warehouse fire in Oakland, one central question remains unanswered: What caused the worst fire in modern California history? Investigators with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and ...
UFO expert claims spooky image shows ROBIN HOOD'S ghost ... - The Sun
https://www.thesun.co.uk/uncategorized/2683341/ufo-expert-claims-spooky-image-shows-robin-hoods-ghost-brandishing-a-sword/
Legendary outlaw said to have been caught on camera in ancient Devon village.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line747
|
__label__cc
| 0.580292
| 0.419708
|
Redback Publishing | Sydney | Australia
Redback Publishing
Specialist Australian Children's Book Publisher
Redback Publishing specialises in publishing books that are researched, written and designed for children in Australia.
Our non-fiction titles are written specifically to complement the Australian Curriculum topics taught in primary schools and in the lower years of high school. Their eye-catching design and illustrations are created to both attract young readers and to provide information in a bold and accessible way.
Educators will find that the content has been professionally compiled and that the presentation of our non-fiction books will enable children to use them easily for research or just for the fun of learning something new.
Our fiction titles are published with the aim of delighting young readers, as well as promoting their literacy levels and fostering a lifelong engagement with literature.
Beautiful Books by Redback Publishing
Australia's Endangered Animals...and Their Habitats: A Focus on Alpine Habitats
March 2019 RELEASE
Explorers of Australia: From the Ancient Explorers to James Cook (Volume 1)
September 2017 RELEASE
How We Used To Live In Australia: Schools & Education
April 2018 RELEASE
Australia's Neighbours: Philippines
February 2018 RELEASE
Australia's Neighbours: Vietnam
June 2017 RELEASE
Exploring the World of Computers: Software
Australian Landscapes: 4 Book Paperback Pack
Book Pack
Migration to Australia: Migration From The Middle East and Africa
August 2017 RELEASE
How We Used To Live In Australia: Transport
Australia's Neighbours: Malaysia
Australia's Neighbours: South Korea and North Korea
May 2018 RELEASE
Engineering Marvels of Australia: Australia's Communications Structures
Australia's Endangered Animals...and Their Habitats: A Focus on Urban Habitats
Australian States and Territories: Tasmania (TAS)
Australian Landscapes: Forests In Australia
Australia's Neighbours Paperback Pack of 5
Australia's Neighbours: New Zealand
Exploring the World of Computers: Hardware
October 2019 RELEASE
Migration to Australia: Refugees
Migration to Australia: Migration From Europe
Copyright © Redback Publishing 2019
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line749
|
__label__wiki
| 0.940179
| 0.940179
|
March 15th has seen Copenhagen based Heavy Psych Rockers REDWOLVES release their hotly anticipated debut album, Future Becomes Past on Argonauta Records. Moving between modern Rock n Roll, intelligent vocals, heavy grooves and finest guitar licks, REDWOLVES manage to combine the classic Scandinavian sound with a fresh approach.
The band formed in 2012 and found a musical community in their common affinity for the classic heavy rock and the 00’s new wave of Scandinavian rock. Their brand new album marks a noticeable further development of REDWOLVES’ expression which through the records’ eight songs unfolds itself in a songwriting carrying catchy melodies, energetic and virtuoso musicianship and a modern and analogue attentive production by Jacob Bredahl (Riverhead, LLNN, Rising a.o.).
The band describes their music as “modern classic heavy rock” or at other times “future rock”. Both terms appropriately describes how heavy Rock n’ Roll effortlessly can remain relevant, as long as the classic virtues and a good dose of edge and innovation keep being present. REDWOLVES’ first full-length is a complex record, that shows several aspects of REDWOLVES’ talent for writing songs with both directness, catchy hooklines, dynamics and experimentation. This record is party, light and joy, but equally despair, darkness and depression – and with good reason….
When REDWOLVES had started off the songwriting for their debut, a brutal incident occurred which was to be determining for the album. On New Years Eve 16/17, singer Rasmus Cundell was the subject of a violent attack which carved its deep traces, both personally and within the band. The event caused a delay of the creative process but at the same time, the band became an important catalyst for pulling through. The lyrics were written after the attack which therefore naturally constitutes the thematic subject matter of the album. On a personal level, the violence spawned a spiral of depressive and fearful thoughts but also on a more general level, the incident initiated a contemplation in regards to the possibilities of agency in a world that appears hostile and destructive.
Even though many of the songs origin from this depressive state, one still senses a path towards the light in the music, and it is this adamant hope that the record will remind you of. As the good sides of life can put depression, hopelessness and contingency into perspective, the negation of life can also put perspective on joy and light: “Especially because we all will perish soon, we must insist on living, partying, loving and not to be conquered by darkness, hate and destruction.” The band explains. “And thus, we must necessarily seek to journey out of the dark again.”
Future Becomes Past
Cover art by Michael Lierly
Music video for “Fenris” from Redwolves’ new album Future Becomes Past
The Pioneer T-shirt black w/white print
The Pioneer T-shirt white w/pink print
CD Future Becomes Past
Vinyl – Future Becomes Past
Walking Roads T-Shirt (Black)
Walking Roads T-Shirt (White)
Walking Roads EP
Walking Roads – EP
Walking Roads - EP by REDWOLVES
Download press kit here.
Click here to read our terms of trade
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line750
|
__label__wiki
| 0.786646
| 0.786646
|
Focus Collections
Upcoming Focus Issues
Plant Cell Teaching Tools
Follow plantphysiol on Twitter
Visit plantphysiol on Facebook
Research ArticleBIOCHEMICAL PROCESSES AND MACROMOLECULAR STRUCTURES
Cytochrome P450-Dependent Metabolism of Oxylipins in Tomato. Cloning and Expression of Allene Oxide Synthase and Fatty Acid Hydroperoxide Lyase
Gregg A. Howe, Gyu In Lee, Aya Itoh, Lei Li, Amy E. DeRocher
Gregg A. Howe
Gyu In Lee
Aya Itoh
Amy E. DeRocher
Published June 2000. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1104/pp.123.2.711
Copyright © 2000 American Society of Plant Physiologists
Allene oxide synthase (AOS) and fatty acid hydroperoxide lyase (HPL) are plant-specific cytochrome P450s that commit fatty acid hydroperoxides to different branches of oxylipin metabolism. Here we report the cloning and characterization of AOS (LeAOS) and HPL (LeHPL) cDNAs from tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum). Functional expression of the cDNAs inEscherichia coli showed that LeAOS andLeHPL encode enzymes that metabolize 13- but not 9-hydroperoxide derivatives of C18 fatty acids. LeAOS was active against both 13S-hydroperoxy-9(Z),11(E),15(Z)-octadecatrienoic acid (13-HPOT) and 13S-hydroperoxy-9(Z),11(E)-octadecadienoic acid, whereas LeHPL showed a strong preference for 13-HPOT. These results suggest a role for LeAOS andLeHPL in the metabolism of 13-HPOT to jasmonic acid and hexenal/traumatin, respectively. LeAOS expression was detected in all organs of the plant. In contrast, LeHPLexpression was predominant in leaves and flowers. Damage inflicted to leaves by chewing insect larvae led to an increase in the local and systemic expression of both genes, with LeAOS showing the strongest induction. Wound-induced expression ofLeAOS also occurred in the def-1 mutant that is deficient in octadecanoid-based signaling of defensive proteinase inhibitor genes. These results demonstrate that tomato uses genetically distinct signaling pathways for the regulation of different classes of wound responsive genes.
Fatty acid hydroperoxides produced by 13-lipoxygenases are important intermediates in the oxylipin pathway of fatty acid oxygenation in plants. In one branch of oxylipin metabolism often referred to as the octadecanoid pathway, allene oxide synthase (AOS) commits 13S-hydroperoxy-9(Z),11(E),15(Z)-octadecatrienoic acid (13-HPOT) to the formation of jasmonic acid (JA) and related cyclopenta(e)nones (Creelman and Mullet, 1997) (Fig.1). Products of the AOS pathway are essential signals for plant defense against pest attack (Staswick and Lehman, 1999), mechanical responses (Weiler et al., 1993), and some developmental processes (McConn and Browse, 1996). An alternative pathway for 13-HPOT metabolism is initiated by fatty acid hydroperoxide lyase (HPL; Fig. 1). Short chain aldehyde products of HPL, together with their corresponding reduced alcohols, are important volatile constituents of the characteristic odor of fruits, vegetables, and green leaves (Gardner, 1991; Hatanaka, 1993). C6aldehydes produced by HPL are also reported to act as phytoalexins against protozoa, bacteria, and fungi (for review, see Blée, 1998), and may be signals for gene regulation (Bate and Rothstein, 1998). The C12 oxo-acid product of HPL is the precursor of the previously identified “wound signal” known as traumatin (Zimmerman and Coudron, 1979). 13-HPOT is metabolized by other plant enzymes including lipoxygenase (Salch et al., 1995), peroxygenase (Blée et al., 1993), and divinyl ether synthase (Grechkin et al., 1995; Hamberg, 1998), and may be subject to degradation by non-specific alkyl hydroperoxide reductases (Baier and Dietz, 1999).
Cyt P450-dependent metabolism of 13-HPOT. AOS (CYP74A) commits 13-HPOT to the production of JA and related cyclopenta(e) nones. In the absence of allene oxide cyclase (AOC), the epoxide product of AOS undergoes spontaneous hydrolysis to α- and γ-ketols and racemic 12-OPDA. HPL (CYP74B) cleaves 13-HPOT to produce C6 and C12 products that are further metabolized as shown.
AOS and HPL comprise an unusual class of cytochrome (Cyt) P450s that is specialized for the rearrangement of fatty acid hydroperoxides. Unlike typical P450 monoxygenases, AOS and HPL demonstrate low affinity for carbon monoxide and do not require O2 or NADPH-dependent Cyt P450 reductase for their activity (Song and Brash, 1991; Shibata et al., 1995a, 1995b). Identification of cDNA sequences encoding AOS and HPL has provided additional insight into the relationship between these two enzymes, and their divergence from classical P450s (Song et al., 1993; Pan et al., 1995; Laudert et al., 1996; Matsui et al., 1996; Bate et al., 1998). Based on the amino acid sequence identity between AOS and HPL (approximately 38%), the two enzymes are classified as subfamilies CYP74A and CYP74B, respectively, within the CYP74 family of P450s (Nelson, 1999).
The importance of oxylipins as signals for plant stress responses has prompted interest in understanding the mechanisms by which their synthesis is regulated (Creelman and Mullet, 1997; Farmer et al., 1998). JA accumulation, for example, is stimulated by mechanical wounding and herbivory (Creelman et al., 1992; Blechert et al., 1995;Conconi et al., 1996), pathogen attack (Penninckx et al., 1996), treatment with elicitors (Gundlach et al., 1992; Doares et al., 1995), and water or nutrient deprivation (Creelman and Mullet, 1995; Lehmann et al., 1995). Similarly, mechanical injury and some plant-pathogen interactions lead to the production of HPL products (Hatanaka et al., 1987; Gardner, 1991; Croft et al., 1993). Formation of AOS- and HPL-derived oxylipins is controlled in large part by the availability of hydroperoxide substrates that are generated from lipase/acyl hydrolase-mediated release of fatty acids from membrane lipids, followed by lipoxygenase-catalyzed conversion to 9- and 13-hydroperoxides (Galliard et al., 1977; Hatanaka, 1993; Mueller et al., 1993; Narváez-Vásquez et al., 1999). Nonenzymatic lipid peroxidation, such as that associated with the initial stages of plant-pest interactions, may also contribute to the pool of hydroperoxides available to AOS and HPL (Gardner, 1989; Hammond-Kosack and Jones, 1996).
In addition to substrate availability, fatty acid hydroperoxide metabolism may also be influenced by the spatial and temporal expression of enzymes that utilize these substrates. For example, the localization of both AOS and HPL to the chloroplast (Vick and Zimmerman, 1987; Song et al., 1993; Blée and Joyard, 1996;Laudert et al., 1996; Bate et al., 1998; Froehlich et al., 1999) suggests that these enzymes utilize a common pool of hydroperoxide substrates. Recent studies indicate that AOS expression is positively regulated by wounding, as well as by terminal products of the AOS pathway (Laudert and Weiler, 1998). These results, together with transgenic studies showing that AOS is a rate-limiting step in JA biosynthesis (Harms et al., 1995), indicate that up-regulation of AOS activity during the wound response may provide a mechanism to amplify the octadecanoid signaling pathway. On the other hand, others have shown that exogenous methyl JA stimulates oxylipin metabolism through the HPL pathway, and thus may shift oxylipin metabolism away from JA biosynthesis (Avdiushko et al., 1995; Kohlmann et al., 1999).
The aim of the present work was to gain an understanding of the molecular basis of Cyt P450-dependent metabolism of fatty acid hydroperoxides in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum). Owing to the wealth of knowledge of plant-pest interactions in tomato, this system is likely to provide a good model for assessing the role of oxylipins in plant defense. The importance of HPL-derived volatiles in determining the flavor and aroma of fruits and vegetables provides additional incentive for investigating oxylipin metabolism in tomato (Kazeniac and Hall, 1970; Buttery and Ling, 1993). Toward this goal, we report here the isolation of cDNAs that encode functional members of the CYP74A (AOS) and CYP74B (HPL) subfamilies of P450 enzymes in tomato. The results of expression studies in Escherichia coli suggest a role for AOS and HPL in the commitment of 13-HPOT to the JA and C6 aldehyde/traumatin pathways, respectively. We also report findings relevant to the developmental and defense-related expression of these two genes in planta. The significance of these results for understanding the regulation of fatty acid hydroperoxide metabolism is discussed.
cDNA Isolation and Sequence Analysis
An AOS-encoding cDNA from Arabidopsis (Laudert et al., 1996) was used to screen for related sequences in a tomato cDNA library. The longest clone obtained (designated as LeAOS) contained a 1,533-bp open reading frame, a 57-bp 5′-untranslated region (UTR), and a 111-bp 3′-UTR excluding the poly(A) tail. The open reading frame was predicted to encode a 510-amino acid protein having a calculated molecular mass of 57,202 D. The presence of an in-frame stop codon (UAA) 30 nucleotides upstream of the putative AUG start codon indicated that LeAOS contained the full-length coding sequence. The deduced amino acid sequence of LeAOS was approximately 61% identical to AOS from flax (Song et al., 1993), guayule (Pan et al., 1995), and Arabidopsis (Laudert et al., 1996) (TableI). Thus, LeAOS is classified as a new member of the CYP74A subfamily of Cyt P450s. The N-terminal region of LeAOS displayed features of a typical chloroplast targeting peptide including an enrichment of hydroxylated amino acids. Conclusive evidence that LeAOS is localized to the chloroplast was recently obtained (Froehlich et al., 1999). These findings indicate that LeAOS is more similar to AOS from flax and Arabidopsis, which also reside in the chloroplast (Song et al., 1993; Harms et al., 1995; Laudert et al., 1996), than it is to the cytosolic AOS from guayule (Pan et al., 1995).
Percent amino acid and nucleotide identity between different AOSs and HPLs
A cDNA encoding HPL from bell pepper (Capsicum annum) was used to screen a tomato cDNA library for related sequences. Among the 15 positive clones identified, the longest cDNA (designatedLeHPL) contained a 1,431-bp open reading frame that was predicted to specify a 476-amino acid protein with a molecular mass of 53,542 D. LeHPL contained a 169-bp 5′-UTR, and a 210-bp 3′-UTR excluding poly(A) residues. The presence of an in-frame stop codon (UGA) 93 nucleotides upstream of the putative initiator AUG codon indicated that LeHPL encoded the entire protein. This was confirmed by DNA sequence analysis of RACE products derived from the 5′ end of LeHPL transcripts (“Materials and Methods”). The deduced amino acid sequence of LeHPL was 88% and 55% identical to the published sequence of HPL from bell pepper (Matsui et al., 1996) and Arabidopsis (Bate et al., 1998), respectively (Table I). This establishes LeHPL as a new member of the CYP74B subfamily of Cyt P450s. Unlike HPL from Arabidopsis (Bate et al., 1998), LeHPL does not appear to contain a typical chloroplast targeting sequence at the N terminus of the protein (Fig. 2).
Comparison of cDNA-deduced protein sequences of plant AOS and HPL genes. LeAOS and LeHPL sequences were aligned, using the ClustalW 1.7 program available athttp://mbcr.bcm.tmc.edu/searchlauncher. AOS sequences were from flax (Song et al., 1993; accession no. U00428), guayule (Pan et al., 1995; accession no. X78166), and Arabidopsis (Laudert et al., 1996; accession no. Y12636). HPL sequences were from bell pepper (Matsui et al., 1996; accession no. U51674) and Arabidopsis (Bate et al., 1998; accession no.AF087932). Black boxes indicate amino acid residues that are conserved between all seven CYP74 members. Subfamily-specific substitutions are indicated with an asterisk. The three subfamily-specific motifs discussed in the text are underlined by the black bars. The symbol denotes the T → (I/V) change within the I helix that is a hallmark of CYP74 enzymes. The conserved Cys within the heme-binding domain is marked by a # symbol. The boxed residue (Pro-43) at the N terminus of LeAOS denotes the site where the His-tag was added in the pQE-AOS expression construct.
Comparisons between the primary sequences of the seven known CYP74 members (four AOSs and three HPLs) revealed 182 positions (38%) that were conserved in all members of both subfamilies (Fig. 2). Many conserved residues were clustered at the N and C termini, and may be important for functions common to HPL and AOS (e.g. heme or substrate binding). We also noted subfamily-specific amino acid differences that might play a role in distinguishing AOS function from that of HPL. Specifically, there were 39 positions at which an amino acid was invariant among all AOSs, and was substituted to a different residue in all HPLs (Fig. 2). One HPL-specific motif was PPxFP, which represents a variation of the N-terminal PPGP tetrapeptide that is important for stability and catalysis in many P450s (Szczesna-Skorpa et al., 1993). A hallmark of all CYP74 enzymes, including LeAOS and LeHPL, is a T → (V/I) substitution within the I helix that, in most P450s, participates in O2 binding (Song et al., 1993). Sequences surrounding this site show a subfamily-specific character, with the AOS and HPL consensus sequences being KI(L/F)F and (S/T)IFL, respectively. Several other subfamily-specific signatures were located near the C-terminal heme-binding domain. The most striking of these was an eight-amino acid insertion in AOS sequences relative to HPL sequences, at the extreme C-terminal end of the protein (Fig. 2).
Genomic DNA-blot analysis using the LeAOS cDNA as a probe revealed a simple hybridization pattern for each of the restriction enzymes tested (Fig. 3). This result indicates that LeAOS is derived from a single copy gene. However, detection of additional hybridizing bands (data not shown) under conditions of reduced stringency leaves open the possibility of related sequences in the genome. The results of hybridization analysis using a LeHPL cDNA probe revealed a more complex pattern of weakly and strongly hybridizing bands (Fig. 3). Use of a probe derived from the 5′-UTR of LeHPL reduced the complexity of the hybridization pattern as expected, but nevertheless still detected two or more bands for each restriction digest tested (Fig. 3, right panel). These results indicate that LeHPL is one member of a family of highly related genes that may be clustered as tandem repeats in one region of the genome.
Southern-blot analysis of LeAOS andLeHPL. Genomic DNA from tomato was digested with restriction enzymes BamHI (B), EcoRV (E), XbaI (X), or BglII (Bg). DNA blots were hybridized to labeled probes derived from the open reading frame of LeAOS (left),LeHPL (middle), or the LeHPL 5′-UTR (right). Blots were hybridized in 5× SSPE at 65°C and washed in 0.5× SSPE at the same temperature, as described in “Materials and Methods.” Molecular mass standards (in kb) are indicated on the left.
Functional Expression of LeAOS and LeHPL in E. coli
To confirm that LeAOS and LeHPL encode the expected P450 enzymes, the cDNAs were subcloned into the pQE-30 expression vector to yield pQE-AOS and pQE-HPL, respectively, and transformed into an appropriate E. coli host. Bacterial cultures induced to express the constructs accumulated high levels of the recombinant proteins as determined by SDS-PAGE of bacterial lysates (data not shown). Crude lysates from cells expressing either pQE-AOS or pQE-HPL efficiently degraded 13-HPOT (Fig.4A) but did not metabolize 9-hydroperoxide derivatives of linolenic or linoleic acid (data not shown). Recombinant LeAOS and LeHPL metabolized the C20 hydroperoxide 15S-hydroperoxy-11(Z),13(E),17(Z)-eicosatrienoic acid at a rate comparable to that observed with 13-HPOT (Fig. 4A), indicating that both enzymes can accommodate a range of fatty acid hydroperoxide substrates. However, the two enzymes differed in their ability to metabolize 13S-hydroperoxy-9(Z), 11(E)-octadecadienoic acid (13-HPOD), a common C18 hydroperoxide derived from linoleic acid. Whereas LeAOS utilized 13-HPOD at about one-half the rate observed with 13-HPOT, the rate of breakdown of 13-HPOD by LeHPL was less than 5% of that observed for 13-HPOT. Similar results were obtained using a coupled enzyme assay (Vick, 1991) to measure aldehyde production in the in vitro reactions. As expected from the known products of AOS and HPL (Fig. 1), aldehyde production was associated with reactions catalyzed by LeHPL but not by LeAOS (Fig.4B). This assay also confirmed the strong preference of LeHPL for 13-HPOT over 13-HPOD.
Activity of LeAOS and LeHPL expressed in E. coli. Total lysates of E. coli cells expressing pQE-AOS, pQE-HPL, or the empty vector (pQE-30) were tested for their ability to metabolize C18 (13-HPOD and 13-HPOT) and C20 (15-HPET) fatty acid hydroperoxides. Activity was measured either directly as a decrease in absorbance of the substrate at A 234 (A) or indirectly as the production of aldehydes using a NADH-coupled assay (B). Error bars represent the mean and sd of activity determined from three enzyme preparations of each culture.
Gas chromatography-mass spectometry (GC-MS) was used to identify the trimethylsilyl (TMS) derivatives of metabolites produced upon incubation of 13-HPOT with lysates from bacteria that expressed either pQE-AOS, pQE-HPL, or the pQE-30 mock control. In the case of pQE-AOS, three prominent peaks (A, B, and C) that were not present among the products of the mock reaction were observed. The relative abundance of these compounds, as estimated by integration of the GC peak areas, was 22% (peak A), 100% (peak B), and 13% (peak C) (values normalized to peak B). The retention time (11 min 9 s), molecular ion ([M]+. at m/z 364), and fragmentation pattern of peak A were identical to that of an authentic 12-oxo-phytodienoic (12-OPDA) standard (Cayman Chemical, Ann Arbor, MI). Peak B eluted at 12 min 37 s and gave the following mass spectrum as m/z (% relative intensity, ion structure): 526 (18%, [M]+.), 511 (13%, [M − CH3]+.), 457 (100%, [M − C5H9]+.), 367 (8%), 221 (5%), 179 (4%), 147 (12%), and 73 (28%, TMS+). This fragmentation pattern was consistent with identification of the compound as the tri-TMS derivative of the α-ketol compound 12-oxo-13-hydroxy-9(Z),15(Z)-octadecadienoic acid (enolization of the 12-oxo group provided an additional hydroxyl for derivatization). The major fragment atm/z = 457 ([M − C5H9]+.) indicated that this compound represented the α-ketol rather than the γ-ketol (12-oxo-9-hydroxy-10[E],15(Z)-octadecadienoic acid). Peak C eluted with a retention time of 13 min 10 s and produced a mass spectrum identical to that of peak B, indicating probable double bond isomerization during derivatization or GC analysis. α-Ketol and 12-OPDA, together with minor amounts of γ-ketol, are known to arise by spontaneous hydrolysis of the unstable epoxide product of AOS (Song and Brash, 1991) (Fig. 1). The products of the pQE-HPL-catalyzed reaction were analyzed by GC-MS as the oxime, TMS derivatives. The major product eluted with a retention time of 8 min 59 s. A molecular ion, m/z 371 [M+.], was observed for the di-TMS derivative of this product, and the fragmentation pattern was identical to that of an authentic 12-oxo-trans-10-dodecenoic acid standard, the expected product of HPL (Fig. 1). These results confirmed the identity of LeAOS and LeHPL as functional members of the CYP74A and CYP74B subfamilies of P450 enzymes, respectively.
Developmental Expression of LeAOS andLeHPL
RNA-blot analysis was used to investigate the distribution ofLeHPL and LeAOS mRNA in different organs of tomato (Fig. 5). LeHPLtranscripts accumulated to high levels in developing flowers, and decreased during flower maturation. LeHPL mRNA levels were also relatively high in leaf tissue, with greater expression detected in younger leaves compared to older leaves from the same plant (see Fig. 7). Very low levels of LeHPL mRNA were detected in stems and immature green fruit, whereas roots and mature green and red fruit lacked detectable transcripts. Hybridization probes derived from either the full-length LeHPL cDNA or the LeHPL5′-UTR revealed a similar organ-specific expression pattern (Fig. 5). This result showed that LeHPL transcripts detected by RNA-blot analysis are derived from a single LeHPL gene, or highly related LeHPL genes that have a similar developmental expression pattern.
Expression of LeAOS andLeHPL genes in different organs of tomato. Total RNA was extracted from roots (R), stems (S), leaves (L), developing flower buds (B), mature unopened flowers (UF), mature opened flowers (OF), small (<0.5 cm) immature green fruit (IF), mature green fruit (GF), or mature red fruit (RF). Ten-microgram samples of RNA were subjected to RNA-blot analysis. Specific transcripts were detected by hybridization of blots to probes corresponding to full-length LeAOS, full-length LeHPL, the 5′-UTR of LeHPL, or aneIF4A probe used as a loading control. Also shown is a photograph of an ethidium bromide-stained gel of the RNA used for the experiment (EtBr).
LeAOS mRNA was broadly distributed among all organs examined (Fig. 5).LeAOS transcript levels were relatively low in fruit, and appeared to decrease during fruit development. Polyclonal antibodies raised against recombinant LeAOS, but not preimmune serum from the same rabbit, reacted with a polypeptide in the membrane fraction of extracts prepared from different organs (Fig. 6). The estimated mass of the cross-reacting polypeptide as judged by SDS-PAGE was 55 kD, which is consistent with that expected for theLeAOS gene product. Furthermore, the distribution of this polypeptide in different organs correlated with the distribution ofLeAOS mRNA. Taken together, these results indicate thatLeAOS is expressed in all tomato organs with the possible exception of ripe fruit. A second cross-reacting polypeptide of slightly lower M r was often observed in immunoblot experiments, particularly in extracts derived from flowers (Fig. 6). This band could represent a polypeptide that shares common epitopes with LeAOS, or a post-translationally modified form of LeAOS.
Accumulation of LeAOS protein in different organs of tomato. Fifteen-microgram samples of membrane protein prepared from young flower buds (buds), roots (root), stems (stem), petioles (pet), cotyledons (cot), and leaves (leaf) were separated by SDS-PAGE. Protein was transferred to Immobilon-P membranes and probed with either antiserum raised against LeAOS (left) or an equivalent amount of preimmune serum (right). The numbers on the left of the figure indicate the position of M r standards.
Wound-Inducible Expression of LeAOS Is Mediated by a Def-1-Independent Signaling Pathway
The importance of oxylipin metabolism for wound-inducible defense gene expression in tomato prompted us to examine the effect of wounding on LeAOS and LeHPL gene expression. Damage inflicted to tomato leaves by Manduca sexta larvae resulted in a modest (approximately 2-fold) increase in LeHPL mRNA accumulation (Fig.7). Wound-induced accumulation ofLeHPL mRNA was more apparent in the lower damaged leaf than it was in the younger undamaged leaf. This is likely to reflect the higher constitutive expression of LeHPL in younger leaves. Wound-induced accumulation of LeAOS transcripts was much more apparent, and thus became the focus of additional experiments. The time course and amplitude of LeAOS expression differed in several ways from that of the well-characterized proteinase inhibitor II (Inh-II) gene (Fig. 7). Whereas the maximum level of induction of LeAOS in local and systemic leaves was approximately 9- and 5-fold, respectively, Inh-II mRNA levels in these tissues increased by at least 60-fold. Wound-inducible accumulation of LeAOS mRNA was also more transient than that of Inh-II. These results indicated that the mechanism controlling wound-inducible expression of LeAOS might be different from that regulating Inh-II gene expression.
Accumulation of LeAOS,LeHPL, and Inh-II mRNAs in tomato plants in response to herbivory. Tobacco hornworm larvae (third instar) were placed onto the lower leaf of 3-week-old cv Micro-Tom plants and allowed to feed for 5 to 10 min. During this period, approximately 5% to 10% of the area of the attacked leaf was consumed by the larvae. Leaf tissue was harvested for extraction of total RNA immediately after removal of the larvae (0 point) or at the times indicated (in h). RNA was prepared separately from the lower damaged leaf (Local response) and from the third leaf (counted from the base of the plant) (Systemic response). RNA was also prepared from a set of control plants that received no damage (C). Duplicate RNA blots containing 5 μg of RNA per sample were hybridized to cDNA probes for proteinase inhibitor II (Inh-II), LeAOS, LeHPL, andeIF4A as a loading control.
To further test this idea, we examined LeAOS expression in the tomato def-1 mutant that is deficient in the octadecanoid-based signaling pathway that mediates the expression ofInh-II and other defense-related genes (Howe et al., 1996). Previous characterization of def-1 showed that it is deficient in JA accumulation in response to wounding and other elicitors (Howe et al., 1996). Genetic mapping studies have shown that the def-1 phenotype does not result from a defect in theLeAOS gene (A. Itoh and G.A. Howe, unpublished data). Moreover, direct measurements of 12-OPDA levels in def-1 and wild-type plants indicated that the mutant has both AOS and allene oxide cyclase activity (B. Stelmach, E. Weiler, G.A. Howe, unpublished data). Taken together, the available evidence suggests that theDef-1 gene product plays a role in the regulation of a late step in the biosynthesis of JA, or in the further metabolism of JA (e.g. transport or stability). A dramatic aspect of thedef-1 phenotype is the lack of wound-induced accumulation of defensive proteinase inhibitor genes such as Inh-II and cathepsin D inhibitor (CDI) (Fig.8). In contrast to this, the pattern of wound-inducible LeAOS mRNA accumulation in def-1plants was comparable to that in wild-type plants. This effect was not specific for LeAOS, as other transcripts, including those for lipoxygenase (LoxD) (Heitz et al., 1997) and a senescence-induced RNase (LE) (Lers et al., 1998), were also induced by wounding in both mutant and wild-type plants. These results demonstrate that wound-induced expression of LeAOS,LoxD, and LE mRNA is Def-1independent.
Analysis of wound-induced gene expression in wild-type and def-1 mutant plants. Fifteen-day-old wild-type (cv Castlemart) and def-1 mutant seedlings were mechanically wounded at the distal end of the terminal leaflet of the lower leaf. Undamaged tissue on the same leaflet was harvested for RNA extraction at the indicated times after wounding. RNA blots were hybridized to cDNA probes for proteinase inhibitor II (Inh-II), cathepsin D inhibitor (CDI), TomLoxD (LoxD),LeAOS (AOS), LE RNase (LE), andeIF4A as a loading control.
Fatty acid hydroperoxides derived from lipoxygenase are precursors for an array of oxylipins that function in diverse aspects of plant growth and development. In this paper we report the isolation and characterization of tomato cDNAs encoding AOS and HPL, two similar P450 enzymes that commit 13-HPOT to different branches of oxylipin metabolism. The LeAOS and LeHPL proteins are 36% identical at the amino acid level, and are classified as members of the CYP74A and CYP74B subfamilies of Cyt P450s, respectively. Identification of AOS and HPL genes in tomato brings the total number of reported AOS and HPL sequences to seven. In comparing the primary sequences of these, we noted 39 positions at which all AOS members contained one common amino acid and all HPLs contained a different residue. The significance of these subfamily-specific substitutions will become more or less apparent as additional CYP74 genes are identified. Subfamily-specific substitutions might reflect differences in the catalytic properties or substrate specificity of the two classes of enzymes. The facile expression of recombinant forms of AOS and HPL in E. colishould facilitate studies aimed at understanding the structure-function relationship that defines the catalytic identity of these unusual P450s.
A major difference between the predicted amino acid sequence of LeAOS and LeHPL was the presence of a typical chloroplast targeting sequence at the N terminus of LeAOS (Fig. 2). Previous studies indicate that chloroplast targeting peptides are present on AOS from flax and Arabidopsis (Song et al., 1993; Harms et al., 1995; Laudert et al., 1996), as well as HPL from Arabidopsis (Bate et al., 1998). A plastid location for AOS and HPL is consistent with biochemical studies demonstrating that AOS and HPL activity is associated with chloroplasts (Vick and Zimmerman, 1987; Gardner et al., 1991; Blée and Joyard, 1996; Zhuang et al., 1996). Recently, we have shown that LeAOS is imported into chloroplasts where it specifically targets to the inner membrane of the chloroplast envelope (Froehlich et al., 1999). This finding suggests that LeAOS obtains its hydroperoxide substrates from one or both of the plastid-localized lipoxygenases (TomLoxC and TomLoxD) that have been described in tomato (Heitz et al., 1997). In contrast to LeAOS, the deduced N terminus of LeHPL lacked a typical transit peptide. That the N-terminal sequence of LeHPL is very similar to that of bell pepper HPL (Fig. 2) suggests that these proteins share a similar subcellular location. Given the preponderance of evidence indicating that HPL activity is associated with the chloroplast, additional experiments aimed at determining the subcellular location of LeHPL are clearly warranted.
Characterization of LeAOS
Expression of LeAOS in E. coli showed that the open reading frame encodes an authentic CYP74A enzyme (LeAOS) that metabolizes 13- but not 9-hydroperoxides of linoleic and linolenic acids. LeAOS expression was detected in all organs of the plant except mature red fruit. Similar expression patterns were observed for AOS in Arabidopsis and flax (Harms et al., 1998; Laudert and Weiler, 1998). Accumulation of LeAOS mRNA and protein in flowers is consistent with previous studies in Arabidopsis showing that AOS promoter activity is high in flowers, particularly in pollen sacs and pollen grains (Kubigsteltig et al., 1999). It is presently not known whether AOS-derived products are required for pollen development in tomato, as they are in Arabidopsis (McConn and Browse, 1996). Detection of LeAOS mRNA and protein in leaves supports previous reports of AOS activity (Caldelari and Farmer, 1997) and inducible JA synthesis in tomato leaves (Peña-Cortés et al., 1993; Doares et al., 1995; Conconi et al., 1996). The relatively high accumulation of LeAOS mRNA in stems (Fig. 5) compared to that in leaves suggests that LeAOS is expressed in vascular bundles, as was reported to be the case in wounded leaves of Arabidopsis (Kubigsteltig et al., 1999). LeAOS mRNA and protein were also detected in tomato roots. Given that root development appears normal in JA-deficient mutants of Arabidopsis (McConn and Browse, 1996), this result suggests that AOS-derived oxylipins serve a non-developmental role in roots. LeAOS mRNA expression in green fruit, while being relatively low, is consistent with previous studies showing increased levels of cis-JA during the early stages of tomato fruit ripening (Fan et al., 1998). However, our results do not exclude the possibility that JA synthesis in tomato fruit involves a different AOS-encoding gene that is undetectable by high stringency nucleic acid hybridization.
Characterization of LeHPL
Expression of LeHPL in E. coli confirmed that this cDNA encodes a functional member of the CYP74B subfamily of enzymes. LeHPL was similar to LeAOS in its ability to use 13- but not 9-hydroperoxides of C18 fatty acids. However, LeHPL was clearly distinguishable from LeAOS in its strong preference for 13-HPOT over 13-HPOD. This feature is shared by HPL isolated from other sources, including bell pepper (Shibata et al., 1995b), tea leaves (Matsui et al., 1991), and Arabidopsis (Bate et al., 1998).Fauconnier et al. (1997) reported the purification from tomato leaves of an HPL that, like recombinant LeHPL, did not utilize 9-hydroperoxides and showed a strong preference for 13-HPOT over 13-HPOD. However, the purified enzyme displayed a molecular mass (73 kD) much greater than that predicted for LeHPL (53.5 kD). Additional experiments are needed to clarify the relationship between LeHPL and this purified form of tomato leaf HPL.
LeHPL mRNA was most abundant in developing flowers. This finding suggests that HPL-derived products might have a role in the production of floral scent. Relatively high levels of LeHPL mRNA were also detected in leaves. The overlapping expression pattern ofLeAOS and LeHPL in leaves is consistent with the idea that these two enzymes compete for the same pool of substrate (Avdiushko et al., 1995; Blée and Joyard, 1996; Blée, 1998). However, additional studies aimed at determining the subcellular and tissue-specific location of both enzymes are needed to substantiate this hypothesis. The paucity of LeHPL mRNA accumulation in mature green and red fruit was surprising since cis-3-hexenal, derived from the action of HPL on 13-HPOT, is a prominent volatile component of the aroma and flavor of tomato fruit (Buttery and Ling, 1993). A possible explanation for these results is that LeHPL plays only a minor, if any, role in the production of C6volatiles during tomato fruit ripening. Additional insight into the contribution of LeHPL to fruit aroma and flavor might be gained by altering LeHPL expression in transgenic plants.
Damage inflicted to tomato leaves by hornworm larvae triggered the accumulation of LeAOS mRNA both in the damaged leaf and in the upper undamaged leaves of the plant (Fig. 7). Similar changes inLeAOS expression occurred in plants subjected to mechanical wounding (Fig. 8; data not shown). The transient accumulation ofLeAOS transcripts in these experiments was a consequence of the limited damage inflicted to the plant (e.g. 5–10 min of feeding by the insect). It is likely that sustained feeding by herbivores, such as that occurring in natural and agricultural ecosystems, would result in much greater increases in LeAOS expression. Increased expression of AOS, and possibly other octadecanoid pathway enzymes, could serve to amplify the JA signaling cascade as a means of enhancing the induced resistance response. Wound-inducible increases in AOS mRNA, protein, and activity have been documented in Arabidopsis (Laudert and Weiler, 1998; Kubigsteltig et al., 1999) and flax (Harms et al., 1998).LeHPL transcript levels also appeared to increase in response to insect attack (Fig. 7) and mechanical wounding (data not shown), but only by about 2- fold relative to unwounded controls. Additional studies are needed to determine whether the expression ofLeHPL and LeAOS in tomato leaves is affected by other defense signals, or by interactions with pathogens.
The wound-inducible expression pattern of LeAOS differed in several respects from that of proteinase inhibitor genes. First, the time course of LeAOS mRNA accumulation was more transient than that of the inhibitor genes. Second, the amplitude ofLeAOS mRNA accumulation in both damaged and systemic leaves was 10- to 20-fold lower than that of Inh-II mRNAs. Finally, wound-inducible expression of LeAOS was observed in thedef-1 mutant, while that of the Inh-II andCDI genes was not. Two additional genes, LoxD andLE, were also wound inducible in the def-1background. These results demonstrate the existence of two classes of genes whose requirements for wound induction in tomato can be defined as being either Def-1 dependent or Def-1independent. Given the involvement of Def-1 in wound-inducible JA accumulation (Howe et al., 1996), we suggest that endogenous JA is a signal for Def-1-dependent, but notDef-1-independent, wound responses. It is noteworthy that some genes exhibiting Def-1-independent expression, such asLeAOS and LoxD, are inducible by exogenous JA (Heitz et al., 1997; G.I. Lee and G.A. Howe, unpublished data). This raises the possibility that genes whose expression is altered by exogenous JA might not be under the control of the JA signaling pathway as it operates in planta. Alternatively, LeAOS andLoxD may be controlled by both JA-dependent and -independent wound-response pathways. This interpretation is consistent with the observation that wound-induced accumulation of LeAOS andLoxD mRNA in def-1 plants was slightly less than that in wild-type plants (Fig. 8). Regulation of AOS and LOX activities by both JA-dependent and -independent signaling pathways might allow amplification or increased sensitization of wound responsiveness under different conditions. This notion is consistent with other studies showing that wound and defense responses in tomato involve multiple signaling pathways (Chao et al., 1999; Ryan, 2000). In Arabidopsis, JA-dependent and -independent wound responses have been shown to be differentially regulated by Ca2+/calmodulin, as well as by reversible protein phosphorylation events (Titarenko et al., 1997; León et al., 1998; Rojo et al., 1998). Thorough analysis of mutants such asdef-1 or those that are suppressed in the action of systemin (Howe and Ryan, 1999) may provide further insight into the role of oxylipins in wound and defense signaling pathways in tomato.
Plant Material and Growth Conditions
cv Micro-Tom seed (Lycopersicon esculentum cv Micro-Tom) was obtained from Dr. Avraham Levy (Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel). Seed for the tomato def-1mutant was collected from a def-1/def-1 homozygous line that had been back-crossed four times to L. esculentumcv Castlemart, the wild-type parent of def-1. Seedlings were grown in Jiffy peat pots (Hummert International, St. Louis) in a growth chamber maintained under 17 h of light (300 μE m−2 s−1) at 28°C and 7 h of dark at 18°C. Flowers and fruit were collected from plants maintained in a greenhouse.
cDNA Cloning and Sequencing
A 1.1-kb XhoI fragment derived from the coding region of an Arabidopsis AOS cDNA (Laudert et al., 1996) was labeled with [α-32P]dCTP and used to screen a tomato cDNA library constructed from tomato plants that overexpress the prosystemin gene, as described by Heitz et al. (1997). Duplicate filters were hybridized at 42°C in a solution containing 5× SSPE, 50% (v/v) formamide, 5× Denhardt's reagent, 0.5% (w/v) SDS, and 50 μg/mL denatured salmon sperm DNA. Filters were washed at 42°C in a solution containing 5× SSPE and 0.5% (w/v) SDS, followed by an additional wash at 65°C. Four positive clones were obtained among approximately 4 × 105 plaque-forming units screened. Following excision of the cDNA from the phagmid, DNA sequence analysis showed that all clones were identical with the exception of minor differences in the length of the 5′ end. The longest cDNA insert, designated LeAOS, was sequenced completely on both strands using a primer walking approach. The sequence of the LeAOS cDNA was deposited to GenBank (accession no. AF230371).
A bell pepper (Capsicum annum) cDNA encoding HPL was isolated using a reverse-transcription PCR (RT-PCR) kit (Life Technologies/Gibco-BRL, Cleveland) and total RNA isolated from bell pepper as a template. Two gene-specific primers were designed from the cDNA sequence reported by Matsui et al. (1996) (GenBank accession no.U51674). The sequence of the forward and reverse primers used for RT-PCR was 5′-(GTG-GAT-CCA-TTC-ATA-AAA-CAA-CAA-CTA-C)-3′ and 5′-(GTG-AAT-TCA-GCA-ACC-TTT-AGT-ACC-TAC-C)-3′, respectively. An amplified 1,477-bp product was subcloned into pBluescript SK(−) (Stratagene, La Jolla, CA) and sequenced to confirm its identity to the published sequence (Matsui et al., 1996). This clone was used to screen a tomato leaf cDNA library as described above but with the following modifications. Filters were washed at 65°C in a solution containing 5× SSPE and 0.5% (w/v) SDS. Fifteen positive plaques were identified among 3 × 105 plaque-forming units screened. DNA sequence analysis of eight cDNA inserts showed that all cDNAs were identical except for minor differences in the length of the 5′ end and the number of poly(A) residues at the 3′ end. The longest clone, designated LeHPL, was subcloned into smaller fragments and sequenced in its entirety on both strands. The sequence of the LeHPL cDNA was deposited to GenBank (accession no. AF230372). A RACE procedure (Life Technologies/Gibco-BRL) was used to obtain additional sequence information at the 5′ end of LeHPL. First strand cDNA was synthesized from total RNA prepared from either tomato leaves or flowers as a template. The sequence of the gene-specific primer used for this reaction was 5′-(ACT-TCC-TTG-GCT-TCA-TTT-T)-3′. PCR amplification of the dC-tailed cDNA was performed using the manufacturer's abridged anchor primer and a gene-specific primer having the sequence 5′-(AGC-GCC-GAG-GAT-AGT-GAG-GGA-GAA)-3′. PCR products were re-amplified using the manufacturer's abridged universal amplification primer and a nested gene-specific primer having the sequence: 5′-(TGG-AGT-GCA-GGA-AGA-AGA-GAA-G)-3′. Amplified PCR products were subcloned into pBluescript SK(−). DNA sequencing of 5′ RACE products derived from both leaf and flower mRNA confirmed the structure of the 5′-UTR of LeHPL, including the presence of the in-frame stop codon upstream of the initiator Met.
Expression of LeAOS and LeHPL in Escherichia coli
A PCR strategy was employed to subclone the LeAOScDNA into the E. coli expression vector pQE-30 (Qiagen USA, Valencia, CA). Forward and reverse primers were designed to contain BglII and PstI restriction sites, respectively. The sequence of the forward primer was 5′-(GCT-AGA-TCT-CCT-ATA-AAA-TTA-TCT-ACC-AGG)-3′ and that of the reverse primer 5′-(GTT-CTG-CAG-CCG-ATA-GTG-ACA-GTG-TAG-ACC)-3′. Using theLeAOS cDNA as a template, the PCR-amplified product was cut with BglII and PstI and cloned intoBamHI and PstI sites of pQE-30. The resulting expression vector was called pQE-AOS. This strategy removed the first 42 amino acids from the N terminus of LeAOS, and added the sequence MRGSHHHHHHGS to Pro 43 of LeAOS (Fig. 2). A similar strategy was used to construct a vector for expression of LeHPL. Forward and reverse primers were designed to contain BamHI andSstI sites, respectively. The sequence of the forward primer was 5′-(CGG-GAT-CCC-CGA-TAA-TGA-ATT-CTG-CTC)- 3′ and that of the reverse primer 5′-(GCG-AGC-TCT-CAT-AAG-TCA-GAA-CAG)-3′. PCR products obtained using the LeHPL cDNA as a template were digested with BamHI and SstI, and cloned into BamHI and SacI sites of pQE-30 to give pQE-HPL. This strategy added the sequence MRGSHHHHHHGSPI to the deduced initiator Met of LeHPL.
Expression constructs pQE-AOS and pQE-HPL were transformed intoE. coli strain M15. Bacteria grown under standard conditions (37°C in Luria-Bertani medium) and induced with isopropylthio-β-galactoside produced recombinant protein that was associated with inclusion bodies (data not shown). Induction of cultures using the following procedure significantly enhanced the recovery of active enzyme in the soluble fraction of lysed cells. Bacterial cultures (50 mL) were grown in Terrific Broth medium at 37°C to logarithmic phase (A 600 of 0.6), at which time the culture was induced by the addition of isopropylthio-β-galactoside to a final concentration of 0.5 mm. Cultures were incubated for an additional 8 h at 26°C with gentle shaking (150 rpm). Bacteria were harvested by centrifugation and resuspended in 5 mL of a solution containing 50 mm potassium phosphate (pH 7.5) and 5% (v/v) glycerol. Following one freeze-thaw cycle, cells were broken by sonication and centrifuged at 10,000g for 20 min. SDS-PAGE analysis of supernatant protein from induced culture extracts showed the presence of the recombinant protein, migrating with the expected molecular mass (data not shown).
Enzyme Assays and Preparation of Fatty Acid Hydroperoxides
The hydroperoxide-degrading activity of recombinant LeAOS and LeHPL was measured spectrophotometrically using two methods described by Vick (1991). One assay, which does not distinguish between AOS and HPL activity, involved monitoring the decrease inA 234 that results from disruption of the conjugated diene bond in the substrate. The second method was specific for HPL and involved an NADH-coupled assay for detection of aldehyde reaction products. The protein content of cell extracts was determined by the Bradford assay. Fatty acid hydroperoxide substrates (9- and 13-substituted) were prepared using soybean lipoxygenase (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis) or corn seed lipoxygenase as described (Vick, 1991). Fatty acids for these reactions were obtained from Nu-Chek-Prep, Inc (Elysian, MN). Substrate specificity results were confirmed using purified hydroperoxides (9-HPOD, 9-HPOT, 13-HPOD, 13-HPOT) purchased from Cayman Chemical.
Identification of Metabolites
Two micromoles of 13-HPOT, dissolved in 30 mL of 50 mm potassium phosphate (pH 7.0), was mixed with 1 mg of soluble protein (enzyme source) obtained from E. colicells expressing either pQE-AOS, pQE-HPL, or the pQE-30 vector control. The reaction was allowed to proceed for 10 min at room temperature and then stopped by acidification to pH 4.0 with 1 m citrate. Products were extracted twice with diethyl ether and dried under N2 gas. TMS derivatives of pQE-AOS reaction products were prepared by treatment of the extract with 30 μL of BSTFA (bis[TMS] trifluoroacetamide/trimethylchlorosilane) (99:1, v/v) (Supelco, Bellefonte, PA) and 10 μL of pyridine for 1 h at 80°C. Oxime TMS derivatives of pQE-HPL products were prepared by first reacting enzyme products with hydroxylamine hydrochloride at 80°C for 1 h, followed by treatment with BSTFA and pyridine as described above. One to 2 μL of the derivatized compounds was used for GC-MS analyses, which were carried out on an AX 505H double focusing mass spectrometer (JEOL, Peabody, MA) equipped with a 5890 gas chromatograph (Hewlett-Packard, Palo Alto, CA). GC separations employed a DB-1 methyl silicone capillary column (30 m × 0.25 mm i.d.) (J&W Scientific, Folsom, CA) interfaced directly to the ion source via a heated transfer block. The temperature program was initiated at 50°C and ramped to 225°C at 20°C min−1. The temperature was then increased to 270°C at 2°C min−1. The ion source was operated at 70 eV with the scan rate of the instrument set to approximately 1 spectra s−1.
Antibody Production and Western-Blot Analysis
A 0.5-L culture of E. coli was induced for the expression of pQE-AOS as described above, except that induced cells were grown at 37°C for 4 h in Luria-Bertani medium. Cells were harvested by centrifugation and resuspended in 1/10 volume of lysis buffer (50 mm sodium-phosphate, pH 8.0, 10 mmimidazole, 300 mm NaCl, and 0.25% [v/v] Emulgen 911 [Kayo Corporation, Tokyo]). Following one freeze-thaw cycle, cells were broken by two passes through a French press calibrated at 17,000 pounds per square inch. Insoluble inclusion bodies containing LeAOS were recovered by centrifugation for 20 min at 8,000g. The pellet was washed twice with 40 mL of lysis buffer and recovered by centrifugation. Washed pellets were solubilized at 4°C in 35 mL of a solution containing 6 m guanidine HCl, 100 mm sodium-phosphate, pH 8.0, and 10 mmTris (tris[hydroxymethyl]aminomethane) HCl, pH 8.0. The mixture was sonicated for 10 min at 4°C to facilitate solubilization, and then centrifuged at 12,000g for 20 min. Recombinant LeAOS in the supernatant was purified by nickel affinity chromatography as described by the manufacturer (Qiagen). His-tagged LeAOS, which eluted from the nickel column at pH 4.5, was dialyzed twice for 4 h against 100 volumes of 50 mm Tris, and 0.2% (v/v) Emulgen 911. Approximately 0.5 mg of protein was solubilized in Laemmli sample buffer and further purified by preparative SDS-PAGE (12% [w/v] gel). Acrylamide gel slices containing His-tagged LeAOS were stained with Coomassie Brilliant Blue and macerated through a syringe as described (Harlowe and Lane, 1988). For the initial immunization, 100 μg of antigen in the mashed gel slice was mixed with Freund's complete adjuvant and injected at multiple subcutaneous and intramuscular sites of a New Zealand white rabbit. Four boosts, each consisting of 50 μg of antigen mixed with Freund's incomplete adjuvant, were administered over the course of a 90-d immunization schedule.
Protein extracts for western-blot analysis were prepared from fresh plant tissue that was extracted with a mortar and pestle at 4°C in a buffer containing 50 mm sodium-phosphate, pH 7.0. The buffer to tissue ratio (w/w) was about 2:1. Crude cellular debris was removed by centrifugation at 2,000g for 10 min. The membrane fraction of the resulting supernatant was recovered by centrifugation at 100,000g for 15 min at 2°C. Pelleted membranes were washed with 1 m NaCl, and recovered by centrifugation as described above. Membrane material equivalent to 15 μg of total protein was solubilized in Laemmli sample buffer, boiled for 5 min, and separated by SDS-PAGE (10% [w/v] gels). Separated proteins were electrophoretically transferred to Immobilon-P membranes (Millipore, Bedford, MA) in a solution consisting of 25 mm Tris, 192 mm Gly, and 20% (v/v) methanol, using standard procedures (Harlowe and Lane, 1988). Membranes were probed with anti-LeAOS antibodies used at a 1:2,000 dilution in a Tris-buffered saline solution containing 1% (w/v) bovine serum albumin as a blocking agent and 0.05% (w/v) Tween 20 to reduce non-specific binding. Antigen-antibody complexes were detected with the use of an alkaline phosphatase-conjugated second antibody as described by the manufacturer (Kirkegaard and Perry, Gaithersburg, MD).
Southern-Blot Analysis
Genomic DNA from young leaves of cv Micro-Tom plants was purified as described by Rogers and Bendich (1985). Ten-microgram aliquots of DNA were digested with restriction enzymes, electrophoresed on a 0.8% (w/v) agarose gel, and blotted to Duralon-UV membranes (Stratagene) as suggested by the manufacturer. Blots were pre-hybridized at 65°C in a solution containing 5× SSPE, 5× Denhardt's solution, 100 μg/mL denatured salmon sperm DNA, and 0.5% (w/v) SDS. Blots were hybridized at 65°C and washed at the same temperature in a solution containing 0.5× SSPE and 0.5% (w/v) SDS. DNA probes were prepared using a T7 Quickprime Kit (Pharmacia Biotech, Piscataway, NJ). The following cDNA fragments were labeled for use as probes: a 1.7-kb EcoRI-XhoI fragment containing full-length LeAOS; a 1.4-kbEcoRI-HinDIII fragment containing the coding region ofLeHPL; and a 0.2-kbEcoRI-EcoRI fragment containing theLeHPL 5′-UTR.
Wounding Experiments
Manducta sexta larvae were reared on artificial diet as described by the vendor (Carolina Biological Supply, Burlington, NC) from which the eggs were purchased. One larva (third instar) was placed on the terminal leaflet of the oldest leaf of a 3-week-old cv Micro-Tom plant that contained three fully expanded leaves. Larvae were allowed to feed on the leaf for 5 to 10 min, during which time 5% to 10% of the area of the leaf was consumed. Plants were sampled for RNA analysis at different times after the challenge. Leaf tissue from six to eight plants per time point was pooled prior to RNA extraction. Mechanical wounding of plants was performed using a hemostat as described previously (Howe et al., 1996).
RNA Gel-Blot Analysis
Total RNA was isolated from tomato tissue and analyzed by RNA-blot hybridization as previously described (Howe et al., 1996), except that Duralon-UV membranes were used in place of nitrocellulose. All gels were run in duplicate, with one set stained with ethidium bromide to ensure equal loading of the samples and intactness of the RNA. Hybridization signals were visualized by autoradiography using Kodak XAR-5 film, or were measured using a Phosphorimager (Molecular Dynamics). These signals were normalized to signals obtained using a probe for translation initiation factor eIF4A mRNA (Taylor et al., 1993). Hybridization and subsequent washing ofeIF4A-probed blots was performed at 60°C in 2× SSPE. DNA probes were prepared as described above.
NOTE ADDED IN PROOF
Another allene oxide synthase-encoding cDNA from tomato, displaying 69% amino acid identity to the LeAOS sequence reported here, was recently described (S. Sivasankar, B. Sheldrick, S. J. Rothstein [2000] Plant Physiol 122: 1335–1342).
We acknowledge Kathy Hubley for assistance with the isolation ofLeAOS cDNAs, Dr. Douglas Gage for assistance with GC-MS analysis, and Drs. Pamela Green and Miguel Perez-Amador for help with hybridization experiments involving eIF4A andLE. We are also indebted to Drs. Elmar Weiler, Brady Vick, and Avraham Levy for providing the Arabidopsis AOS cDNA, a 12-oxo-trans-10-dodecenoic acid standard, and cv Micro-Tom seed, respectively.
↵1 This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture/National Research Initiative Program (grant no. 9801335) and by an All University Research Initiation Grant from Michigan State University.
↵2 Present address: Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, 4 Nickerson Street, Suite 200, Bothell, WA 98021.
↵* Corresponding author; e-mail howeg{at}msu.edu; fax 517–353–9168.
Received November 23, 1999.
Accepted January 28, 2000.
LITERATURE CITED
Avdiushko S,
Croft KPC,
Brown GC,
Jackson DM,
Hamilton-Kemp TR,
Hildebrand D
(1995) Effect of volatile methyl jasmonate on the oxylipin pathway in tobacco, cucumber, and Arabidopsis. Plant Physiol 109:1227–1230.
Baier M,
Dietz K-J
(1999) Alkyl hydroperoxide reductases: the way out of the oxidative breakdown of lipids in chloroplasts. Trends Plant Sci 4:166–168.
Bate NJ,
Rothstein SJ
(1998) C6-Volatiles derived from the lipoxygenase pathway induce a subset of defense-related genes. Plant J 16:561–569.
Sivasankar S,
Moxon C,
Riley JMC,
Thompson JE,
(1998) Molecular characterization of an Arabidopsis gene encoding hydroperoxide lyase, a cytochrome P-450 that is wound inducible. Plant Physiol 117:1393–1400.
Blechert S,
Brodschelm W,
Holder S,
Kammerer L,
Kutchan TM,
Mueller MJ,
Xia Z-Q,
Zenk MH
(1995) The octadecanoic pathway: signal molecules for the regulation of secondary pathways. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 92:4099–4105.
Blée E
(1998) Phytooxylipins and plant defense reactions. Prog Lipid Res 37:33–72.
Blée E,
Joyard J
(1996) Envelope membranes from spinach chloroplasts are a site of metabolism of fatty acid hydroperoxides. Plant Physiol 110:445–454.
Wilcox AL,
Marnett LJ,
Schuber F
(1993) Mechanism of reaction of fatty acid hydroperoxides with soybean peroxygenase. J Biol Chem 268:1708–1715.
Teranishi R,
Buttery RG,
Sugisawa H
Ling LC
(1993) Volatile components of tomato fruits and plant parts. in Bioactive Volatile Compounds in Plants. eds Teranishi R, Buttery RG, Sugisawa H (American Chemical Society, Washington, DC), pp 23–34.
Caldelari D,
Farmer EE
(1997) A rapid assay for the coupled cell free generation of oxylipins. Phytochemistry 47:599–604.
Chao WS,
Gu Y-Q,
Pautot V,
Bray EA,
Walling LL
(1999) Leucine aminopeptidase RNAs, proteins, and activities increase in response to water deficit, salinity, and the wound signals systemin, methyl jasmonate, and abscisic acid. Plant Physiol 120:979–992.
Conconi A,
Miquel M,
Browse JA,
Ryan CA
(1996) Intracellular levels of free linolenic and linoleic acids increase in tomato leaves in response to wounding. Plant Physiol 111:797–803.
Creelman RA,
Mullet JE
(1995) Jasmonic acid distribution and action in plants: regulation during development and response to biotic and abiotic stress. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 92:4114–4119.
(1997) Biosynthesis and action of jasmonates in plants. Annu Rev Plant Physiol Plant Mol Biol 48:355–381.
Tierney ML,
(1992) Jasmonic acid/methyl jasmonate accumulate in wounded soybean hypocotyls and modulate wound gene expression. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 89:4938–4941.
Juttner F,
Slusarenko AJ
(1993) Volatile products of the lipoxygenase pathway evolved from Phaseolus vulgaris (L.) leaves inoculated with Pseudomonas syringae pv phaseolicola. Plant Physiol 101:13–24.
Doares SH,
Syrovets T,
Weiler EW,
(1995) Oligogalacturonides and chitosan activate plant defense genes through the octadecanoid pathway. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 92:4095–4098.
Fan X,
Mattheis JP,
Fellman JK
(1998) A role for jasmonates in climacteric fruit ripening. Planta 204:444–449.
Farmer EE,
Weber H,
Vollenweider S
(1998) Fatty acid signaling in Arabidopsis. Planta 206:167–174.
Fauconnier M-L,
Perez AG,
Sanz C,
Marlier M
(1997) Purification and characterization of tomato leaf (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) hydroperoxide lyase. J Agric Food Chem 45:4232–4236.
Froehlich JE,
DeRocher A,
Howe GA
(1999) Allene oxide synthase is imported and targeted to the inner envelope membrane of pea and tomato chloroplasts (abstract no. 317). Plant Biology '99 1999:85.
Galliard T,
Matthew JA,
Wright AJ,
Fishwick MJ
(1977) The enzymatic breakdown of lipids to volatile and non-volatile carbonyl fragments in disrupted tomato fruits. J Sci Food Agric 28:863–868.
Gardner HW
(1989) Oxygen radical chemistry of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Free Radic Biol Med 7:65–86.
(1991) Recent investigations into the lipoxygenase pathway of plants. Biochim Biophys Acta 1084:221–239.
Gardner HW,
Weisleder D,
Plattner RD
(1991) Hydroperoxide lyase and other hydroperoxide-metabolizing activity in tissues of soybean, Glycine max. Plant Physiol 97:1059–1072.
Grechkin AN,
Fazliev FN,
Mukhtarova LS
(1995) The lipoxygenase pathway in garlic (Allium sativum L.) bulbs: detection of the divinyl ether oxylipins. FEBS Lett 371:159–162.
Gundlach H,
Muller MJ,
Kutchan T,
(1992) Jasmonic acid is a signal transducer in elicitor-induced plant cell cultures. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 89:2389–2393.
Hamberg M
(1998) A pathway for biosynthesis of divinyl ether fatty acids in green leaves. Lipids 33:1061–1071.
Hammond-Kosack KE,
Jones JDG
(1996) Resistance gene-dependent plant defense responses. Plant Cell 8:1773–1791.
Harlowe E,
Lane D
(1988) Antibodies: A Laboratory Manual. (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, Cold Spring Harbor, NY).
Harms K,
Atzorn R,
Brash A,
Kuhn H,
Wasternack C,
Willmitzer L,
Peña-Cortés H
(1995) Expression of a flax allene oxide synthase cDNA leads to increased endogenous jasmonic acid (JA) levels in transgenic potato plants but not to a corresponding activation of JA-responding genes. Plant Cell 7:1645–1654.
Ramirez I,
(1998) Inhibition of wound-inducible accumulation of allene oxide synthase transcripts in flax leaves by aspirin and salicylic acid. Plant Physiol 118:1057–1065.
Hatanaka A
(1993) The biogeneration of green odor by green leaves. Phytochemistry 34:1201–1218.
Hatanaka A,
Kajiwara T,
Sekiya J
(1987) Biosynthetic pathway for C6-aldehyde formation from linolenic acid in green leaves. Chem Phys Lipids 44:341–361.
Heitz T,
Bergey DR,
(1997) A gene encoding a chloroplast-targeted lipoxygenase in tomato leaves is transiently induced by wounding, systemin, and methyl jasmonate. Plant Physiol 114:1085–1093.
Howe GA,
Lightner J,
Browse J,
(1996) An octadecanoid pathway mutant (JL5) of tomato is compromised in signaling for defense against insect attack. Plant Cell 8:2067–2077.
(1999) Suppressors of systemin signaling identify genes in the tomato wound response pathway. Genetics 153:1411–1421.
Kazeniac SJ,
Hall RM
(1970) Flavor chemistry of tomato volatiles. J Food Sci 35:519–530.
Kohlmann M,
Bachmann A,
Weichert H,
Kolbe A,
Balkenhohl T,
Feussner I
(1999) Formation of lipoxygenase-pathway-derived aldehydes in barley leaves upon methyl jasmonate treatment. Eur J Biochem 260:885–895.
Kubigsteltig I,
Laudert D,
Weiler EW
(1999) Structure and regulation of the Arabidopsis thaliana allene oxide synthase gene. Planta 208:463–471.
Pfannschmidt U,
Lottspeich F,
Hollander-Czytko H,
(1996) Cloning, molecular and functional characterization of Arabidopsis thaliana allene oxide synthase (CYP 74), the first enzyme of the octadecanoid pathway to jasmonates. Plant Mol Biol 31:323–335.
(1998) Allene oxide synthase: a major control point in Arabidopsis thaliana octadecanoid signaling. Plant J 15:675–684.
Lehmann J,
Brückner C,
Reinbothe S,
Leopold J,
Parthier B
(1995) Accumulation of jasmonate, abscisic acid, specific transcripts and proteins in osmotically stressed barley leaf segments. Planta 197:156–162.
León J,
Rojo E,
Titarenko E,
Sánchez-Serrano JJ
(1998) Jasmonic acid-dependent and -independent wound signal transduction pathways are differentially regulated by Ca2+/calmodulin in Arabidopsis thaliana. Mol Gen Genet 258:412–419.
Lers A,
Khalchitski A,
Lomaniec E,
Burd S,
Green PJ
(1998) Senescence-induced RNases in tomato. Plant Mol Biol 36:439–449.
Matsui K,
Shibutani M,
Hase T,
Kajiwara T
(1996) Bell pepper fruit fatty acid hydroperoxide lyase is a cytochrome P450 (CYP74B). FEBS Lett 394:21–24.
Toyota H,
Kakuno T,
(1991) A fatty acid hydroperoxide cleaving enzyme, hydroperoxide lyase, from tea leaves. Phytochemistry 30:2109–2113.
McConn M,
Browse J
(1996) The critical requirement for linolenic acid is pollen development, not photosynthesis, in an Arabidopsis mutant. Plant Cell 8:403–416.
Spannagl E,
(1993) Signaling in the elicitation process is mediated through the octadecanoid pathway leading to jasmonic acid. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 90:7490–7494.
Narváez-Vásquez J,
Florin-Christensen J,
(1999) Positional specificity of a phospholipase A activity induced by wounding, systemin, and oligosaccharide elicitors in tomato leaves. Plant Cell 11:2249–2260.
Nelson DR
(1999) Cytochrome P450 and the individuality of species. Arch Biochem Biophys 369:1–10.
Pan Z,
Durst F,
Wreck-Reichhart D,
Camara B,
Cornish K,
Backhaus RA
(1995) The major protein of guayule rubber particles is a cytochrome P450. J Biol Chem 15:8487–8494.
Peña-Cortés H,
Albert T,
Prat S,
Willmitzer L
(1993) Aspirin prevents wound-induced gene expression in tomato leaves by blocking jasmonic acid biosynthesis. Planta 191:123–128.
Penninckx IAMA,
Eggermont K,
Terras FRG,
Thomma BPHJ,
Samblanx GWD,
Buchala A,
Metraux J-P,
Manners JM,
Broekaert WF
(1996) Pathogen-induced systemic activation of a plant defensin gene in Arabidopsis follows a salicylic acid-independent pathway. Plant Cell 8:2309–2323.
Rogers SO,
Bendich AJ
(1985) Extraction of DNA from milligram amounts of fresh, herbarium and mummified plant tissue. Plant Mol Biol 5:69–76.
Berger S,
Vancanneyt G,
(1998) Reversible protein phosphorylation regulates jasmonic acid-dependent and -independent wound signal transduction pathways in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant J 13:153–165.
(2000) The systemin signaling pathway: differential activation of plant defensive genes. Biochem Biophys Acta 1477:112–121.
Salch YP,
Grove MJ,
Takamura H,
(1995) Characterization of a C-5,13-cleaving enzyme of 13(S)-hydroperoxide of linolenic acid by soybean seed. Plant Physiol 108:1211–1218.
Shibata Y,
(1995a) Fatty acid hydroperoxide lyase is a heme protein. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 207:438–443.
(1995b) Purification and properties of fatty acid hydroperoxide lyase from green bell pepper fruits. Plant Cell Physiol 36:147–156.
Song W-C,
Brash AR
(1991) Purification of an allene oxide synthase and identification of the enzyme as a cytochrome P-450. Science 252:781–784.
Funk CD,
(1993) Molecular cloning of an allene oxide synthase: a cytochrome P450 specialized for the metabolism of fatty acid hydroperoxides. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 90:8519–8523.
Agrawal AA,
Tazun S,
Bent E
Staswick PE,
Lehman CC
(1999) Jasmonic acid-signaled responses in plants. in Induced Plant Defenses against Pathogens and Herbivores. American Phytopathological Society Press, St. Paul, eds Agrawal AA, Tazun S, Bent E pp 117–136.
Szczesna-Skorpa E,
Straul P,
Kemper B
(1993) Deletion of a conserved tetrapeptide, PPGP, in P450 2C2 results in loss of enzymatic activity without a change in its cellular location. Arch Biochem Biophys 304:170–175.
Taylor CB,
Bariola PA,
Delcardayré SB,
Raines RT,
(1993) RNS2: a senescence-associated RNase of Arabidopsis that diverged from the S-RNase before speciation. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 90:5118–5122.
(1997) Jasmonic acid-dependent and -independent signaling pathways control wound-induced gene activation in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Physiol 113:817–826.
Vick BA
(1991) A spectrophotometric assay for hydroperoxide lyase. Lipids 26:315–320.
Vick BA,
Zimmerman DC
(1987) Pathways of fatty acid hydroperoxide metabolism in spinach leaf chloroplasts. Plant Physiol 85:1073–1078.
Albrecht T,
Groth B,
Luxem M,
Lib H,
Andert L,
Spengler P
(1993) Evidence for the involvement of jasmonates and their octadecanoid precursors in the tendril coiling response of Bryonia dioica. Phytochemistry 32:591–600.
Zhuang H,
Andersen RA,
Hildebrand DF
(1996) The impact of alteration of polyunsaturated fatty acid levels on C6-aldehyde formation of Arabidopsis thaliana leaves. Plant Physiol 111:805–812.
Zimmerman D,
Coudron CA
(1979) Identification of traumatin, a wound hormone, as 12-oxo-trans-dodecenoic acid. Plant Physiol 63:536–541.
Thank you for your interest in spreading the word on Plant Physiology.
You are going to email the following Cytochrome P450-Dependent Metabolism of Oxylipins in Tomato. Cloning and Expression of Allene Oxide Synthase and Fatty Acid Hydroperoxide Lyase
Message Subject (Your Name) has sent you a message from Plant Physiology
Message Body (Your Name) thought you would like to see the Plant Physiology web site.
Plant Physiology Jun 2000, 123 (2) 711-724; DOI: 10.1104/pp.123.2.711
Decreasing the Mitochondrial Synthesis of Malate in Potato Tubers Does Not Affect Plastidial Starch Synthesis, Suggesting That the Physiological Regulation of ADPglucose Pyrophosphorylase Is Context Dependent
UDP-Glycosyltransferases from the UGT73C Subfamily in Barbarea vulgaris Catalyze Sapogenin 3-O-Glucosylation in Saponin-Mediated Insect Resistance
Acyl Editing and Headgroup Exchange Are the Major Mechanisms That Direct Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Flux into Triacylglycerols
Show more BIOCHEMICAL PROCESSES AND MACROMOLECULAR STRUCTURES
Plant Physiology Preview
Classic Collections
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line753
|
__label__cc
| 0.645014
| 0.354986
|
Posts by Shairbek Juraev
Commentary | Комментарии
Kyrgyzstan - New Mayors Elected in Bishkek and Osh
Shairbek Juraev 01-15-2014
OshMayor.jpg
This is a brief note on the mayoral elections in Bishkek and Osh. Both cities now have new mayors. Replaced were Bishkek’s hugely unpopular Isa Omurkukov and Osh’s enormously problematic Melis Myrzakmatov. Mayoral seats have never been much contested at the voting stage in the past. Elections often reflected decisions already taken by the country’s key executives. This time expectations were different. To begin with, Osh’s former mayor Myrzakmatov became...
Juraev, Kyrgyzstan
"Friday-the-13th" SCO Summit in Central Asia: Focus on Syria and Afghanistan
SCOCAS.jpg
The 2013 summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization once again revealed the member-states do a better job at developing a common rhetoric on international politics than agreeing amongst themelsves on concrete development-oriented initiatives. The thirteenth summit of the SCO, hosted on September “Friday the 13th“in Bishkek, gathered leaders of all six member-states as well as the presidents of Afghanistan, Iran, and Mongolia, along with high-ranking...
Juraev, Central Asia
Rakhmon Haggles with Putin
Rahmon.jpg
On August 1, Tajikistan President Emomali Rakhmon paid a quick visit to Moscow to meet with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Commentators agree the visit is essentially linked to the expected presidential elections in Tajikistan in November, as Rakhmon needs to ensure full support for himself in Moscow. Russian-Tajik relations remain fairly complicated. Some key unresolved issues that have dominated the bilateral agenda for past years include:...
Juraev, Tajikistan, Russia, Central Asia
Kyrgyz Parliament Votes to Close U.S. Transit Center at Manas
Atambayev.jpeg
On June 20, 2013, the Kyrgyz parliament voted 91-5 to cancel the U.S.-Kyrgyz agreements on the Transit Center at Manas airport to be effective one year from now in July 2014. There has been much speculation about parliament accepting or rejecting President Almazbek Atambaev’s decision to close or transform the Center. Whether the decision will be implemented is yet to be seen as the president still has to sign the documents. Discussions about the fate of...
Juraev, Kyrgyzstan, Manas
Politics of Gold or a Failed Revolution in Kyrgyzstan?
KyrgyzstanProtestGoldMine.jpg
A wave of unrest hit Kyrgyzstan last week, creating two “hot” zones, one in northern Issykkul and another in southern Jalalabad. The events turned dramatic, illustrated by the president decreeing a state of emergency in the Jeti Oguz district of Issykkul as well as the protesters' implementation of a “people's governor” in Jalalabad. A crowd of several hundred protesters blocked the road leading to the Kumtor gold mine, and on May 31 they cut the power...
Bishkek Hosts Informal CSTO Summit
photo_28855.jpg
On May 28, 2013, Kyrgyzstan hosted an informal summit of the heads of state of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). The summit discussed various issues related to regional security, mainly the situation in Afghanistan - particularly the local measures needed to withstand the challenges related to the ISAF's withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2014. However, there was little information for the media on what exactly was covered at the high level...
Juraev, CSTO, Central Asia
April in Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyz_Government_House.jpg
This month Kyrgyzstan celebrates the third anniversary of the overthrow of country’s second president, Kurmanbek Bakiev, which led to major changes in the country’s structure of governance. Three years on, a more inclusive political power sharing system appears to remain the key tentative achievement of the “April Revolution.” One can indeed observe a drastic difference in the way political governance is set up. In direct contrast to pre-2010, the current...
Juraev, Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyz-Uzbek Border: No Progress; Sokh Still Sensitive
UzKyborder.jpg
Over March 25-28, the Kyrgyz-Uzbek joint commission for delimitation and demarcation of state borders, chaired by deputy prime ministers Shamil Atakhanov of Kyrgyzstan and Rustam Azimov of Uzbekistan met in Tashkent. The only reported outcome was the agreement on the dates of the next meeting in late April. Unfortunately, lack of results from these intermittent bilateral talks is rather expected. The joint commission has not made any progress concerning...
Juraev, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Osh, Sokh, Borders, Central Asia
Shairbek Juraev
Marie Curie Fellow
University of St. Andrews, Scotland
View all policy memos by Shairbek Juraev
View all posts by Shairbek Juraev
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line754
|
__label__cc
| 0.678098
| 0.321902
|
Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Applied Linguistics at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, 2014. Supervisor: Luiz Paulo da Moita Lopes. Thesis: (Un)learning what one ‘is’: trajectories of socialization and narrative performances in the Brazilian transsexualizing process.
Applied linguistics, queer linguistics, linguistic anthropology, qualitative sociolinguistics, feminisms and queer theory, conversation analysis, critical discourse analysis, language, gender and society, doctor-patient interaction, linguistic ethnography, corpus linguistics.
(Un)learning what one ‘is’: trajectories of socialization and the (meta)pragmatics of social (un)identification (2014) – This research aims to understand, from a Foucauldian viewpoint, how certain individuals become institutionally recognized types of subjects in the microdetails of their day-to-day interactions. In order to do so, we investigate the Program of Integral Attention to Transsexual Health (PAIST), one of the centers of reference in the transsexualizing process in the Brazilian Unified Health System, where a 13-month ethnographic fieldwork investigation was carried out. We discuss how systems of biological knowledge pathologize transsexuality and make certain semiotic resources available for the identification of “true transsexuals”, thus solidifying a metapragmatic model of identity (WORTHAM, 2006). Our analytical focus is placed on the micro-interactional dynamics of socialization trajectories (WORTHAM, 2005) during which PAIST users slowly learn how to entextualize (SILVERSTEIN & URBAN, 1996) the model of the “true transsexual” in their narrative performances (BAUMAN & BRUGGS, 1990). It is argued that such an apprenticeship takes place through the organization of turn sequencing in medical meetings, and, most of all, through the adjacent question-answer pair in which health professionals repeatedly offer semiotic items for users to produce narratives which will satisfy the demands of the Federal Council of Medicine for Transsexualizing Processes. The research focuses on understanding how, in the micro-interactional details of doctor-patient meetings, users’ comprehensions of their own bodies and subjectivities are slowly eclipsed by the diagnostic construct of the “true transsexual”.
This project is linked to the Centre of Studies in Discourses and Society (NUDES).
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line755
|
__label__cc
| 0.576088
| 0.423912
|
Office Workers, On Your Feet!
Report calls for at least 2 hours a day of standing on the job
HealthDay Health (June 4, 2015)
(Photo: Dean Drobot/Shutterstock)
TUESDAY, June 2, 2015 (HealthDay News) -- Desk jockeys should make a point to stand up for at least two hours during the workday in order to avoid the negative health consequences linked to too much sitting, new research suggests.
Gradually break up periods of prolonged sitting until you're on your feet four hours a day, advises a panel of international experts. Aside from taking regular walks throughout the workday, desk-bound employees can opt for sit-stand desks or workstations that require them to stand.
Related: Thinking of Switching to a Standing Desk? Weigh the Pros and Cons First
The recommendations are based on an analysis of research that links prolonged periods spent seated with a heightened risk of serious illness and premature death.
"The evidence is clearly emerging that a first 'behavioral' step could be simply to get people standing and moving more frequently as part of their working day," the study authors reported online June 1 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
Increasing the amount of time that people stand could be a more achievable goal than encouraging more daily exercise, the researchers said in a journal news release.
The report was commissioned by Public Health England, which is an agency of the U.K. Department of Health, and another British organization, Active Working Community Interest Company.
Among the panel's other recommendations for office workers:
Move around. Standing in one place for too long can also have harmful health effects. Changing your posture or position, or going on a brief walk can reduce the risk for musculoskeletal pain and fatigue.
Employers can warn their staff about the health risks associated with prolonged sitting or being sedentary both in the office and at home.
Employers can invest in the health of their staff by designing working environments that encourage more activity.
Related: 5 Easy Workout Moves You Can Do at Your Desk
The researchers acknowledged that the materials they reviewed don't prove a direct cause-and-effect relationship between prolonged sitting and chronic illness.
Still, they believe on-the-job adjustments are in order. "While longer-term intervention studies are required, the level of consistent evidence accumulated to date, and the public health context of rising chronic diseases, suggest initial guidelines are justified," the panel wrote.
The American Academy of Family Physicians has more on the adverse health effects ofprolonged sitting.
SOURCE: British Journal of Sports Medicine, news release, June 1, 2015
-- Mary Elizabeth Dallas
Last Updated: Jun 2, 2015
PrevCould That Headache Be Brain Cancer?
Help your garden grow and avoid danger
A dangerous pest is spreading across the US
Conserve water, save the future
Give yourself a break at work!
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line758
|
__label__wiki
| 0.726944
| 0.726944
|
Young woman with Down syndrome dreams to become fashion model
Madeline Stuart is 18 and she has Down syndrome. However, the girl never gives up her dream of becoming a model. Modeling, she wrote on her Facebook page, can "help change societies view of people with Down Syndrome," Pravda.Ru said.
Madeline's mother, Roseanne Stuart, said her daughter has struggled with her weight throughout her life but recently started going in for dancing, swimming and cheerleading. "People with Down syndrome can be sexy and beautiful and should be celebrated," Roseanne said.
"Things were a lot different 18 years ago. I remember having her in a stroller when she was a baby and small-minded people telling me she should not be out in public. Even her doctors said Madeline would never achieve anything. But things are changing every day and people are more accepting of what they don't understand yet," the woman shared her memories.
Madeline has become very confident despite her disability and she constantly reminds her that she's perfect just the way she is. "I have made a point of never letting anyone be critical of her. I tell Maddy every day how amazing, funny, smart, beautiful, [and] wonderful she is. People need to see how she shines, how her personality just bursts out."
Earlier this year, Jamie Brewer became the first woman with Down syndrome to walk the runway during New York's Fashion Week, lifenews.com said.
Source: EntryNews.com
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line764
|
__label__wiki
| 0.910877
| 0.910877
|
Psx 2017 - News
PSX 2017 Listen to Ashley Johnson, Troy Baker Perform The Wayfaring Stranger
Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker opened The Last of Us: Part II’s PSX 2017 panel with a live rendition of classic American folk song The Wayfaring Stranger today. Both of the stars appeared to be performing in-character, and later discussion suggests that the performance will have relevance in the game. Numerous artists have covered The...
Mon 11th Dec 2017
PSX 2017
PSX 2017 Tennis World Tour Hits the PS4's Baseline in May
Come out swingin'
Sony casually debuted the first footage of Tennis World Tour at PSX 2017 this weekend, a title which it seems to be taking a lot of interest in. This is alpha footage so it does look pretty rough around the edges, but we can definitely see the Top Spin inspirations in the action, with the animation-heavy movement and the...
Reaction Sony Must Pick Between PSX or Paris Games Week
Platform holder's stretching itself thin
It’s been a curious conclusion to the year, we must admit. Back at E3 2017 we pondered whether PlayStation Experience was becoming more important to Sony than the Electronic Entertainment Expo after it opted for a safe but unspectacular presentation in Los Angeles. And then,
PGW 2017
PSX 2017 Dreams Has a Full Digital Audio Workstation
Just another Reason to be excited
Everything you see and hear in Dreams is made in Dreams, including the music. As such, the game has a full digital audio workstation for you to faff around with, complete with sequencers, effects, and even processors, such as EQ plug-ins. This means that you can, essentially, create full songs within the software to...
Sun 10th Dec 2017
PSX 2017 Killing Floor: Incursion Gets a Headshot on PSVR
Co-op shooter out next year
Virtual reality first-person shooter Killing Floor: Incursion will take aim at PlayStation VR next year, bringing co-operative gunplay to Sony’s flagship virtual reality format. In addition to a four-to-six hour campaign – which can be played solo or with a friend – the title will also feature a horde-inspired mode...
PSX 2017 Sucker Punch Collaborating with Sony Japan Studio on PS4's Ghost of Tsushima
Dev wants to keep things respectful
Western developers tackling Eastern themes is, for whatever reason, a rarity when it comes to gaming. When Ghost of Tsushima was announced at Paris Games Week 2017, we'll admit that we had it pinned as a Japanese-developed title, and like many, we were surprised to see American studio Sucker Punch credited at the...
PSX 2017 Blood & Truth Is Comfortably PSVR's Most Visually Impressive Game
Looking good, guv
The exciting thing about PlayStation VR is that we’re now approaching the second generation of software, with many teams already experienced with the medium and returning for a second bite of the cherry. This applies to Sony’s own London Studio, who worked on launch title PlayStation VR Worlds and is now back with Blood &...
PSX 2017 Uncharted Series Lifetime Sales Top 41.7 Million Units
Surely there’ll be life in Uncharted beyond The Lost Legacy? Sony announced during a 10th Anniversary panel at PSX 2017 today that the franchise has now topped 41.7 million units. This includes sales of each instalment, as well as the PlayStation 4 remaster The Nathan Drake Collection. It’s a wildly impressive figure, especially...
PSX 2017 The Last of Us 2 Is 50-60% Complete, Gameplay at E3 2018
Druckmann cautiously spills some details
The Last of Us: Part II’s panel at PSX 2017 was a fun watch, as host Hannah Hart grilled a visibly restrained Neil Druckmann on specifics about the game, but he did give away a few tidbits. Perhaps most notable is confirmation that the title is approximately 50 to 60 per cent complete. Druckmann was...
Live Watch All the PSX 2017 Panel Livestreams Right Here
Dreams! Ghost of Tsushima! The Last of Us: Part II!
PlayStation Experience begins properly today, with a string of panels and livestreams straight from California. Sony will be spotlighting its biggest and best first-party developers with a throng of presentations throughout the day, and it’ll also be showing off some of the best gameplay demos...
PSX 2017 Shadow of the Colossus Looks Outrageous on PS4 Pro
Wander of the world
Remember earlier in the year when we previewed Shadow of the Colossus’ upcoming PlayStation 4 remake and noted that it looks just as good as any current-gen release? Well here’s the proof. Sony’s gone live with a new PlayStation Underground video showing off the title in all of its spangly new glory, and we’re sur
Sat 9th Dec 2017
PSX 2017 Go Behind the Scenes with Marvel's Spider-Man on PS4
Thwip
A new behind the scenes trailer for Marvel’s Spider-Man has been released alongside PSX 2017, touching upon the story, art direction, and more. There’s no new gameplay footage here, but it’s nice to get an update from Insomniac Games on how the project’s moving forward, and there are also some narrative tidbits that fans of the...
PSX 2017 Mega Man Joins the Hunt in Monster Hunter: World
Palic-okay, then
Remember when Capcom treated Mega Man with such disdain that Keiji Inafune went and raised a fortune for spiritual successor Mighty No. 9, only to let everyone down with the final product? Well, the Japanese publisher’s finally bloody remembered its mascot, announcing an all-new entry in the series – and a Monster Hunter:...
PSX 2017 Firewall Zero Hour Brings Rainbow Six Tactics to PSVR
With full PSVR Aim Controller support
Ever wanted to play a tactical first-person shooter in PlayStation VR? In that case, Firewall Zero Hour may very well have been made for you. Launching exclusively on the PlayStation 4 with full PSVR Aim Controller support, the title sees you divided into teams, working to either recover or defend a laptop that...
First Contact Entertainment
Guide When and Where to Watch PSX 2017
Press conference, panel times, and predictions
This year’s PlayStation Experience is sounding like the biggest yet, with double the floor space and more games than ever before. But unless you’re actually heading out to the Anaheim convention, you could be forgiven for thinking the opposite: Sony’s confirmed that it won’t be holding a...
PSX 2017 Concrete Genie Seriously Looks Special
PixelOpus brings painting to life
God bless, PlayStation! Seriously, where else can you find such wild creative variety as Death Stranding, Dreams, and Concrete Genie? The latter, announced at Paris Games Week earlier in the year, has been flying under the radar a little bit – but boy does it look special! The title was on display as part of a PSX...
Concrete Genie
PSX 2017 Ghost of Tsushima Eclipses the Scale of inFAMOUS: Second Son
From Seattle to Tsushima
Sucker Punch’s shock feudal PlayStation 4 exclusive Ghost of Tsushima sounds like it’ll be the Seattle studio’s biggest ever game, eclipsing the scale of the small but obsessively detailed inFAMOUS: Second Son. Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida confirmed as much during a PSX 2017 panel, adding that the project...
PSX 2017 Sony Commits to Single Player, Jokes About Service Games
Layden lays the smackdown
Sony does make service-based games; MLB The Show 17 and Gran Turismo Sport are examples of that business model in action. However, the platform holder’s also one of the few publishers doubling down on single player titles right now, and speaking at PSX 2017 overnight, PlayStation boss Shawn Layden has noted the...
Shawn Layden
PSX 2017 Shadow of the Colossus Has a 60FPS Performance Mode on PS4 Pro
If you prefer
The port masters over at Bluepoint Games have revealed that Shadow of the Colossus will feature two different modes on PlayStation 4 Pro: Performance mode and Cinematic mode. Cinematic mode, as you can probably imagine, bumps the game's resolution up -- supporting 4K -- while keeping the frame rate capped at 30 frames per second...
PSX 2017 Monster Hunter: World Gets a Gorgeous Story Trailer
Plot armour
Playing the Monster Hunter: World beta this weekend, are you? Well, if you're not quite hyped to give Capcom's creature-slaying test run a shot, then we'd recommend watching this new trailer. The three-minute video gives us a better idea of what to expect from the game's story. Yes, you'll be spending most of your time taking out beasts...
PSX 2017 Virtual Reality Punch Out Knockout League Coming to PSVR
Jab merchant
Boxing is a brilliant fit for virtual reality, and Knockout League looks set to bring some Punch Out-inspired sparring to PlayStation VR next year. Using a combination of Sony’s headset and the PlayStation Move wands to allow you to dodge, weave, and throw a mean haymaker, the title will see you training before duelling against a cast...
Grab Games
PSX 2017 SoulCalibur VI Sharpens Up with More Gameplay Footage
It's time to duel
SoulCalibur VI has received a fresh trailer at PlayStation Experience 2017, showcasing some more in-depth gameplay as Mitsurugi and Sophitia duel on a newly revealed stage. We're sure this'll be one for the more hardcore fighting game fans to analyse, as it seems to highlight a number of different mechanics. Right off the...
PSX 2017 Sony Working to Allow PSN Name Changes within the Next Year
Good news for those with embarrassing IDs
You may finally be able to change your PlayStation Network username next year. The oft-requested feature, which has become a bit of running gag in recent years thanks to certain podcast segments, has been met mostly with silence from the platform holder. But at PSX 2017 overnight, PlayStation chief Shawn...
PSX 2017 Death Stranding's Nuts New Trailer Had Gameplay in It
Game makes sense after "four or five hours"
Death Stranding’s new trailer is not a CG concept – it’s running in real-time on the PlayStation 4 Pro, courtesy of Guerrilla Games’ stunning Decima Engine. In fact, according to creator Hideo Kojima there’s actually bits and pieces of gameplay in it – although it’s not immediately obvious...
PSX 2017 Dreams Single Player Screens Reveal Staggering Visuals
We must be Dreaming
Dreams has a three-pronged single player campaign which you can read about through here. The most impressive thing about it, though, is that it’s been built entirely within, well, Dreams. Confused? Okay, let’s try again: Dreams is essentially an imagination simulation where you’re given the freedom to design, animate,...
PSX 2017 Days Gone Will Bring the Apocalypse to PS4 in 2018
Hell's angels
Post-apocalyptic open world undead-‘em-up Days Gone will ride to the PlayStation 4 in 2018, Worldwide Studios chief Shuhei Yoshida told Greg Miller as part of a PSX 2017 panel. The title was previously undated, but Sony’s been pretty weird with release windows in the last couple of years, refusing to commit to anything until the...
PSX 2017 Patapon 2 Drums Down a PS4 Remaster
Pata-pata-pata-pon! Hot on the heels of this year’s Patapon remaster for PlayStation 4, Sony’s announced that Patapon 2 Remastered is on the way. Once again boasting 4K presentation on the PS4 Pro, this port of the legendary PSP rhythm role-playing sequel introduces a slew of new characters to the mix – including the fully customisable...
PSX 2017 Lost Soul Aside Will Keep You Occupied Until Devil May Cry 5
There was no sign of the rumoured Devil May Cry 5 at PSX 2017 overnight, but Lost Soul Aside should hold your interest in the meantime. The Chinese developed character action has an impressive story, starting life as a fanmade project that went viral before being snapped up by Sony and entering full-scale production. Playable at...
Bing Yang
Lost Soul Aside
PSX 2017 Jupiter & Mars Announced for PS4, PSVR
Jupiter & Mars was announced at PSX 2017, and it's coming to both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation VR. No date was confirmed, but we'd say 2018 is a safe bet. It appears to be an undersea adventure/exploration game, set in a distant future where humans have "disappeared". Details are thin on the ground, but we do know you play...
Tigertron Inc
PSX 2017 Rick & Morty: Virtual Rick-ality Revealed for PSVR
Rickroll'd
Well-liked virtual reality title will release on PlayStation VR in 2018. The puzzler is renowned for being impressively tactile, allowing you to use your PlayStation Move wands to interact with virtually everything that you can see in the world. The game's playable at PSX 2017 this weekend, and there's a trailer embedded above.
Adult Swim Games
PSX 2017 Take a Trip to Donut County, Coming to PS4 in 2018
What's updog?
Donut County, the latest indie title from Annapurna Interactive, is heading to PlayStation 4 next year. Announced during Sony's PlayStation Presents show at PSX 2017, this unusual game sees you play as a small hole in the universe, with a loose goal of swallowing up all and sundry to grow bigger, though to what end remains a mystery...
Annapurna Interactive
PSX 2017 MediEvil Rises from Its Grave with a PS4 Remaster
Bone-rattling
It started at the beginning. Shawn Layden has become infamous for his t-shirts that hold subtle and not-so-subtle secrets, and he was at it again with PSX 2017 by zipping it up in a jacket. At the conference's end, he finally revealed that his apparel of choice for the night points toward a remaster of MediEvil, which will be coming to...
MediEvil
PSX 2017 WipEout Omega Collection Ups the Ante with Free PSVR Patch
Are you VReady to go?
WipEout Omega Collection is getting a free update in Early 2018 which will incorporate PlayStation VR support. This will allow you to play through all three titles in the compilation in virtual reality. But that's not all: Sony's also adding three new bespoke PSVR vehicles with full 3D interiors. If that wasn't enough, the...
PSX 2017 Get Up Close and Personal with Trico in The Last Guardian VR
Bonding with Trico is a magical, emotional experience throughout The Last Guardian. The story-driven and mechanical themes of teamwork are spread throughout Fumito Ueda's projects whether you're playing alongside Agro or Yorda, but it's even more intimate with Trico since you're immensely dependent on each other. Wondering...
PSX 2017 God of War PS4 Takes 25-30 Hours to Beat, Says Dev
The longest in the series by far
God of War director Cory Barlog has revealed a juicy detail regarding the upcoming PlayStation 4 release. During the PlayStation Experience 2017 opening presentation, Barlog stated that the game takes around 25 to 30 hours to complete. If accurate, that means it's easily the longest title in the series. We already...
Live Watch the PlayStation Presents PSX 2017 Livestream Right Here
Live coverage from Sony's presentation
Sony’s PSX 2017 press conference has been swapped out for a more low-key PlayStation Presents presentation this year, but we’re bringing you the livestream all the same. Featuring developer interviews, updates, and some smaller announcements, this laidback affair promises to be a must-watch for fans –...
PlayStation Presents
News Media Molecule to Host Dreams Game Jam at PSX 2017
What are you Dreaming of?
Those attending PSX 2017 next week will have the opportunity to drop by the Dreams booth in order to participate in a Game Jam that Media Molecule’s planning. According to the PlayStation Blog, the creative competition will give attendees a crash course in “how quick and easy it is to make games, music, and more just...
Sat 2nd Dec 2017
News PSX 2017 Will Require Coffee if You're in Europe
Sony outlines schedule for show
We’re sure attendees are going to have a blast on the PlayStation Experience 2017 showfloor this year, but it’s sounding like a disaster if you want to follow the show outside of the United States. Sony’s revealed the schedule for the annual event which kicks off on Friday, 8th December – and you’re going to...
Wed 29th Nov 2017
News Chinese Devil May Cry Lost Soul Aside Targets PSX 2017
Do you remember Lost Soul Aside? It first emerged as a really promising fan project, but it got so much attention that Sony actually signed it up as part of its China Hero Project, and now it’ll be playable at PSX 2017 next month. The game was listed as one of the titles that will be playable at the PlayStation convention, and now...
News It Looks Like Dragon's Crown Pro Will Be Heading West on PS4
Playable at PSX 2017
There's been no official word on whether Dragon's Crown Pro -- the PlayStation 4 remaster of fantastic dungeon brawler Dragon's Crown -- will make it West, but it's now looking very likely due to it being playable at next month's PlayStation Experience event. PlayStation Experience 2017 will take place, as per usual,...
Thu 16th Nov 2017
News Sony's Bringing Over 100 PS4, PSVR Games to PSX 2017
PlayStation heaven
The press conference may be a low-key affair this year, but Sony’s still bringing the heat for attendees at PlayStation Experience 2017 next month. The platform holder has revealed the near-final list of playable games for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation VR, and there’s over 100 titles on the docket. Many of these are yet to be...
Rumour Devil May Cry 5 and SoulCalibur VI Will Be at PSX, Says Hard-to-Believe Leak
We'll see
Okay, so this is one of those big fat Reddit rumour posts that we don't usually report on, but since a number of sites have already picked it up and people are starting to pay attention, we thought that we'd better weigh in with our thoughts. This particular poster claims to have leaked the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles being in Injustice...
Sun 12th Nov 2017
News Media Molecule Will Light Up PSX 2017 with Dreams Re-Reveal
It’s been a long time since we learned anything about Dreams, the madcap imagination simulation from Media Molecule. But as alluded overnight, the Guildford-based developer will return at PSX 2017 next month to tell us more about the game. While it sounds like Sony will have a very low-key presentation instead of a press conference...
Tue 7th Nov 2017
News PSX 2017 May Not Have a Proper Press Conference This Year
Expect updates on Ghost of Tsushima and Dreams, though
PlayStation Experience has become known for its pre-show press conference in the early weeks of December, but it’s starting to sound more and more like this year’s event may not have a media briefing on the scale that many are expecting. We’ll try to clarify with Sony, but there was...
News Sony's Unique Collectible Cards Will Return at PSX 2017
Gotta catch 'em all
For those of you who don’t know, Sony weirdly started a collectible card series at PlayStation Experience a few years back. It’s been adding to its collection of foil-embossed ephemera at various events like E3 and Road to Greatness, and once again the popular paper-based goods will return at PSX 2017 later in the year...
News PlayStation Experience 2017 Tickets Can Be Purchased Now
Sony teases "special event" before the show
Sony’s annual PlayStation Experience bonanza will return to the Anaheim Convention Center on 9th and 10th December – and you’re all invited. Well, if you buy tickets, of course. Sony’s flogging Early Bird passes online right now, and they include access to a “special event” the evening before...
News PlayStation Experience 2017 Makes Tracks for Malaysia This August
There’ll be a PlayStation Experience in South East Asia in addition to the main event planned for Anaheim in December. Sony’s confirmed that a similar show will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 5th August, where fans will get hands-on time with a variety of upcoming games. Confirmed titles thus far include Detroit: Become...
Fri 7th Jul 2017
E3 2017 Sony Considering Gamescom 2017 Press Conference
Platform holder pondering European show
Sony’s always been a big presence on the Gamescom showfloor, but it opted not to hold a German press conference in 2015 due to scheduling issues and again in 2016 as it placed increased focus on E3 and PlayStation Experience. But now PlayStation Europe chief Jim Ryan has hinted that it may hold a European...
Fri 16th Jun 2017
Talking Point Is PSX Now More Important to Sony Than E3?
Priorities may be shifting
Here’s a question worth pondering: is Sony’s own PlayStation Experience now more important to the platform holder than E3? Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida said yesterday that the company held back PlayStation 4 exclusive announcements during its press conference this week, and that we’d learn more about...
Thu 15th Jun 2017
E3 2017 PlayStation Experience 2017 Slated for December
Clear your diary
We love covering all of the conventions here at Push Square, but we definitely have a soft spot for PlayStation Experience. The annual fan event has become a part of the PlayStation fabric in recent years, so we’re excited to learn that it will return to the Anaheim Convention Center between 9th December and 10th December this...
Psx 2017 - Features
The Chit Chat Thread
3,120 replies | 25 mins ago
General PlayStation 4 Thread
772 replies | 30 mins ago
All 1442 PlayStation 3 games need rating in order - I need you!
61 replies | 3 hours ago
Games you've recently beat
1,557 replies | 8 hours ago
The Movie Thread
PS4 recommendation thread
Ten Forward - The Star Trek Topic
817 replies | 11 hours ago
Psx 2017 - Guides
Follow Push Square
75k Subscribers
Rumour: PlayStation Plus August PS4 Games Leaked Ahead of...
Guide: Best PS4 Co-Op Games
Tue 9th Jul 2019
Guide: How to Watch Virtual Reality Porn on PSVR
Guide: Best PS4 Horror Games
Guide: Mortal Kombat 11 - How to Perform All Fatalities
Guide: All Free PS Plus Games in 2019
Tue 2nd Jul 2019
Guide: Best PS4 Online Multiplayer Games
Guide: Best PS4 Local Multiplayer Games
Guide: How to Fix PSVR's Blurry Image
Xbox Germany Mucks Up by 'Announcing' Final Fantasy VII R...
PS Plus July 2019 PS4 Games Changed After Fan Backlash
Yes, Cyberpunk 2077 Has a Reversible Cover for Male or Fe...
Join 291,363 people following Push Square:
All the latest PlayStation goodness straight to your inbox
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line767
|
__label__cc
| 0.62155
| 0.37845
|
IL --Catholic priest charged with child porn; survivors group grieves for the victims
For immediate release Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Statement by Melanie Jula Sakoda of California, Volunteer Member of SNAP’s Board of Directors (925-708-6175, melanie.sakoda@gmail.com)
A Catholic priest in Mascoutah, Illinois, Gerald R. Hechenberger, was charged yesterday with dissemination of child pornography. The clergyman worked at Holy Childhood Catholic Church in Mascoutah, as well as St. Pancratius in Fayetteville and St. Liborius in St. Libory. These are all Illinois parishes in the Diocese of Belleville http://www.bnd.com/news/local/article193595019.html
http://fox2now.com/2018/01/09/associate-pastor-charged-with-possession-of-child-pornography/
Child pornography is not a victimless crime. As members of the survivors group SNAP, we grieve deeply for the very real children who were hurt to produce these images.
While we are grateful that Bishop Edward K. Braxton has pledged to cooperate fully with the investigation, we are extremely disappointed that he ignored the victims. The bishop requested prayers for Father Hechenberger, but neglected to ask for prayers for those children whose images were, and probably still are, being shared on the internet.
http://www.bnd.com/latest-news/article193598094.ece/BINARY/diocesestatement.pdf
SNAP applauds the Belleville Police for acting on the tip from Internet Crimes Against Children. Both groups are to be commended for working to protect these innocent children from further exploitation.
So far, the investigating authorities are not sure if Father Hechenberger produced any images himself or if he had any inappropriate contact with minors. However, we urge anyone with information, particularly those who know of a child who was in contact with the priest, to contact the Belleville Police Department immediately and let them do their job.
However painful it might be to learn that your son or daughter has been hurt in this way, it is only with that knowledge that you can ensure that your child does not continue to suffer alone and in silence.
(SNAP, the Survivors Network, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings. SNAP was founded in 1988 and has more than 25,000 members. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)
Melanie Jula Sakoda (925-708-6175, melanie.sakoda@gmail.com), Joelle Casteix (949-322-7434, jcasteix@gmail.com), or Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, SNAP Executive Director (314-503-0003, bdorris@SNAPnetwork.org)
Dennis Ramsey commented 2018-01-15 10:34:31 -0600
The abuse goes on and the cover up continues. Come to Cincinnati and ask about Father Jeff Bacon. Why was he removed from Holy Cross Immaculata in November 2015? Archbishop Dennis Schnurr knows, Chancellor Father Steve Angi knows, Auxiliary Bishop Binzer knows. Where has Father Bacon been the last two years? The USCCB knows, but they claim they have no enforcement over the individual Bishops or Archbishops. If you have rules and no enforcement, shouldn’t the public know? Are the rules just a cover for another purpose? How much of the Archdiocese’s money has been spent counselling victims while a criminal investigation was ongoing? How much has the Archdiocese spent on treatment for Father Bacon and the associated legal expenses? The attached article states “Hechenberger was taken into custody Monday, after investigators from the Belleville Police Department and the Illinois Attorney General’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force obtained search warrants to search the rectory of the Holy Childhood Catholic Church located in Belleville”. Was anyone present besides Chancellor Father Angi and Father Jeff Bacon, when Father Bacon’s office at Holy Cross Immaculata was cleaned out?
Sandra Stilling Seehausen commented 2018-01-11 15:20:30 -0600
There is no way the. Bishop can assure parents that their children are safe. Who all has seen this man’s porn. What about the victims in the porn material? Shameful and disturbing
Chris Warren commented 2018-01-11 14:00:04 -0600
Now the focus needs to be shifted to Fr. McGrath from Providence Catholic High School in New Lenox, IL, who is under investigation by the New Lenox Police, and also is in hiding.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line772
|
__label__cc
| 0.516905
| 0.483095
|
NJ- Victims advocate wins award, SNAP responds
For immediate release: Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com)
New Jersey's attorney general is honoring the work of a wonderful, tireless volunteer who heads the state's chapter of our organization. We are grateful for Mark Crawford's ceaseless compassion and courage. His efforts over the past decade have helped expose dangerous clergy predators and corrupt church officials. And his work has deterred cover ups of child sex crimes while also consoling those who have been sexually assaulted.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2014/04/advocate_for_clergy_sex_abuse_victims_assistant_prosecutor_to_be_honored_by_attorney_general.html
Mark has also spent countless hours helping to bring legislative reform to sometimes archaic, arbitrary and predator-friendly state laws so that kids can better be protected.
Many victims of heinous child sex crimes struggle mightily to recover. Relatively few, however, are able to turn their pain into a positive source of healing and prevention for others. Mark is one of these few. We are thrilled that he's a part of our movement.
Contact - David Clohessy (314-566-9790 cell, SNAPclohessy@aol.com), Barbara Dorris (314-503-0003, SNAPdorris@gmail.com), Mark Crawford (732-632-7687, mecrawf@comcast.net)
James Leboeuf commented 2014-04-08 15:50:59 -0500
Victims advocate wins award, SNAP responds http://www.snapnetwork.org/nj_victims_advocate_wins_award_snap_responds?recruiter_id=21019
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line773
|
__label__wiki
| 0.735826
| 0.735826
|
All SNES games By Alphabet:
SEGA Games
Play Bazooka Blitzkrieg in browser
You can start playing game in 10 Seconds
Arrow Keys - Ctrl(Select) - Enter(Start) - Z(A) - X(B)
Bazooka Blitzkrieg - SNES Game
Sylon Corporation's robots, the XT7 Cyborg-Commando Fighting Machines, have gotten out of control and threaten the city. The citizens are in danger and the only way to stop them is to destroy them. Bazooka Blitzkrieg is a first person shooter game that uses the Super Scope light gun. Players begin the game in either Blitzkreig mode or Boot Camp (Training for each of the levels). Upon starting the game, the screen slowly moved from left to right. The player fires his weapon at the different robots to destroy them. The scope's fire has a regular "machine gun" firing, as well as a more powerful charged-up shot. There are three levels in all and bosses at the end of each level which must be destroyed in sections.
Download Bazooka Blitzkrieg ROM to PC
© 2017 snesconsole.com
You can download ROM in 10 Seconds
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line774
|
__label__cc
| 0.592886
| 0.407114
|
Board index General Discussion and ExchangeGeneral Discussion
Mobile phones 'more dangerous than smoking'
by nomo » Tue Apr 01, 2008 11:28 am
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style ... 02602.html
Brain expert warns of huge rise in tumours and calls on industry to take immediate steps to reduce radiation
By Geoffrey Lean
Mobile phones could kill far more people than smoking or asbestos, a study by an award-winning cancer expert has concluded. He says people should avoid using them wherever possible and that governments and the mobile phone industry must take "immediate steps" to reduce exposure to their radiation.
The study, by Dr Vini Khurana, is the most devastating indictment yet published of the health risks.
It draws on growing evidence – exclusively reported in the IoS in October – that using handsets for 10 years or more can double the risk of brain cancer. Cancers take at least a decade to develop, invalidating official safety assurances based on earlier studies which included few, if any, people who had used the phones for that long.
Earlier this year, the French government warned against the use of mobile phones, especially by children. Germany also advises its people to minimise handset use, and the European Environment Agency has called for exposures to be reduced.
Professor Khurana – a top neurosurgeon who has received 14 awards over the past 16 years, has published more than three dozen scientific papers – reviewed more than 100 studies on the effects of mobile phones. He has put the results on a brain surgery website, and a paper based on the research is currently being peer-reviewed for publication in a scientific journal.
He admits that mobiles can save lives in emergencies, but concludes that "there is a significant and increasing body of evidence for a link between mobile phone usage and certain brain tumours". He believes this will be "definitively proven" in the next decade.
Noting that malignant brain tumours represent "a life-ending diagnosis", he adds: "We are currently experiencing a reactively unchecked and dangerous situation." He fears that "unless the industry and governments take immediate and decisive steps", the incidence of malignant brain tumours and associated death rate will be observed to rise globally within a decade from now, by which time it may be far too late to intervene medically.
"It is anticipated that this danger has far broader public health ramifications than asbestos and smoking," says Professor Khurana, who told the IoS his assessment is partly based on the fact that three billion people now use the phones worldwide, three times as many as smoke. Smoking kills some five million worldwide each year, and exposure to asbestos is responsible for as many deaths in Britain as road accidents.
Late last week, the Mobile Operators Association dismissed Khurana's study as "a selective discussion of scientific literature by one individual". It believes he "does not present a balanced analysis" of the published science, and "reaches opposite conclusions to the WHO and more than 30 other independent expert scientific reviews".
by Asta » Tue Apr 01, 2008 12:48 pm
I guess I need some clarification.
Does Mobile Phone = Cell Phone?
Or should we also include cordless phones, like I use at home?
I rarely ever use my cell phone -- it's for emergency only. But geesh, I use my cordless phone alot!
I am not very learned in these fields of technology so I would greatly appreciate someone's input so I won't worry myself to death.
by Penguin » Tue Apr 01, 2008 1:01 pm
Mobile = cell. Cord phone is ok.
Mobiles / Cells are really small radio transmitters / receivers, working about at the same frequencies as microwave ovens.
Here in Finland, the government assures us theres no danger at all from mobiles, even thou they admit "cell and dna changes have been proven ,but they are negligible, and of NO CONCERN." Im sure the fact that Nokia is a finnish company has nothing to do with this.
by American Dream » Tue Apr 01, 2008 1:10 pm
Asta wrote:
Yes, mobile phones are the same as cell phones. Also, from what I understand, cordless phones are dangerous, too. Note also that handsets on cell phones are associated here with the same sorts of effects on the brain.
I can not claim to be an expert on these matters, but here's links to some articles that may be useful:
The Institute for Science in Society has some useful information on the topic, and Nick Begich also has useful information, as well as a product that may help reduce the damage from these sorts of electromagnetic fields.
AD: could you give some links to dangers of regular phones? Im not familiar with any..Imho, they dont generate microwaves, but every electronic appliance does create some kind of magnetic fields.
Regular phones work completely differently from mobiles.
"The voice parts of the telephone are in the handset, and consist of a transmitter (often called microphone) and a receiver. The transmitter, powered from the line, puts out an electric current which varies in response to the acoustic pressure waves produced by the voice. The resulting variations in electric current are transmitted along the telephone line to the other phone, where they are fed into the coil of the receiver, which is a miniature loudspeaker. The varying electric current in the coil causes it to move back and forth, reproducing the acoustic pressure waves of the transmitter. When a party "hangs up" (puts the handset on the cradle), DC current ceases to flow in that line, thus signaling to the exchange switch to disconnect the telephone call."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telephone
Penguin wrote:
My understanding is that corded land-line phones are the safest and best. The link I gave above from ISIS, The Institute for Science in Society, contains an article on why cordless, land-line phones are now considered as possibly dangerous.
Ah yeah, sorry missed that. Cordless ones are of course also radio transmitters. Just like wireless internet also. I dont think any radio transmitter close to your head can be good..Dont have any wirelsee devices either, though I loathe my phone nowadays, since here everyone has a cellphone, and its impossible to get things done without having one. I guess I should geat a corded hands free set so I could have the phone well away from my body when Im using it. That should help a lot.
Also the cell phone link towers are beasts. The transmitters there are pretty powerful, and you can thank your good luck if you dont live with one on your rooftop. Theres good evidence that cell link towers may cause leukemia and other cancers.
Edit: I seem to be reading like a blind man and typing like a cripple today..Sorry bout that
by OP ED » Tue Apr 01, 2008 2:34 pm
Giustizia mosse il mio alto fattore:
fecemi la divina podestate,
la somma sapienza e 'l primo amore.
S.H.C.R.
by yathrib » Tue Apr 01, 2008 2:49 pm
Has this been in the U.S. press anywhere? I thought not...
yathrib
new things to worry about
by annie aronburg » Tue Apr 01, 2008 3:12 pm
This seems like as good a place as any to mention that sleeping with a clock radio next to your head is no good for the same reasons.
I'm so freaked out about EMF/EMR safety that I had my house wired with a kill-switch so I can turn off the power to all the outlets.
This is supposed to save on energy consumption, but I did it so I could sleep without electricity swirling around me.
The crystal people say black tourmaline is supposed to help with these issues, if you go that way.
it's all in me
annie aronburg
Location: Smokanagan
by posting tulpa » Tue Apr 01, 2008 4:02 pm
yathrib wrote: Has this been in the U.S. press anywhere? I thought not...
Because the US News is the stuff to believe right? They never lie or omit things.
... and still, people like me are called anti-Semitic… nut jobs… and of course, ‘racist’ by members of the self-chosen at any one of the sewer forums where they gather to gang rape the truth.-Les Visible
posting tulpa
Actually, my comment should be taken as an indictment of the U.S. press.
posting tulpa wrote:
by §ê¢rꆧ » Tue Apr 01, 2008 6:18 pm
Another thing about cell phones is where you store them.. so many people clip them to a belt or put them in their pocket. It is still sending and receiving signals when not in use, isn't it? Keep that mofo as far away as possible (or turn it off when not in use).
§ê¢rꆧ
Location: Region X
by Occult Means Hidden » Tue Apr 01, 2008 10:25 pm
yathrib wrote: Actually, my comment should be taken as an indictment of the U.S. press.
That's exactly how your comment is interpreted. Tulpa is obviously very cynical. Aren't ya Tulpa?
Rage against the ever vicious downward spiral.
Time to get back to basics. [url=http://zmag.org/zmi/readlabor.htm]Worker Control of Industry![/url]
Occult Means Hidden
by chlamor » Tue Apr 01, 2008 10:36 pm
A journey into the most savage war in the world
My travels in the Democratic Vacuum of Congo
This is the story of the deadliest war since Adolf Hitler’s armies marched across Europe. It is a war that has not ended. But is also the story of a trail of blood that leads directly to you: to your remote control, to your mobile phone, to your laptop and to your diamond necklace. In the TV series ‘Lost’, a group of plane crash survivors believe they are stranded alone on a desert island, until one day they discover a dense metal cable leading out into the ocean and the world beyond. The Democratic Republic of Congo is full of those cables, mysterious connections that show how a seemingly isolated tribal war is in reality something very different.
This war has been waved aside as an internal African implosion. In reality it a battle for coltan and diamonds and cassiterite and gold, destined for sale in London and New York and Paris. It is a battle for the metals that make our technological society vibrate and ring and bling, and it has already claimed four million lives in five years and broken a population the size of Britain’s. No, this is not only a story about them. This – the tale of a short journey into the long Congolese war we in the West have fostered, fuelled and funded – is a story about you.
http://www.johannhari.com/archive/article.php?id=863
Cellphones fuel Congo conflict
Cellphones may have revolutionized the way we communicate, but in Central Africa their biggest legacy is war.
Nearly 3 million people have died in Congo in a four-year war over coltan, a heat-resistant mineral ore widely used in cellphones, laptops and playstations. Eighty percent of the world's coltan reserves are in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The mountainous jungle area where the coltan is mined is the battleground of what has been grimly dubbed "Africa's first World War," pitting Congolese forces against those of six neighbouring countries and numerous armed factions.
The victims are mostly civilians. Starvation and disease have killed hundreds of thousands and the fighting has displaced 2 million people from their homes.
Often dismissed as an ethnic war, the conflict is really over natural resources sought by foreign corporations -- diamonds, tin, copper, gold, but mostly coltan.
At stake for the multitude of heavily armed militias and governments is a cut of the high-tech boom of the 1990s, which sent the price of coltan skyrocketing to peak at US$400 per kilo. Coltan -- short for colombo-tantalite -- is refined into tantalum, a "magic powder" essential to many electronic devices.
The war started in 1998 when Congolese rebel forces, backed by Rwanda and Uganda, seized eastern Congo and moved into strategic mining areas, attacking villages along the way.
http://www.seeingisbelieving.ca/cell/kinshasa/
It is a war for coltan. It is a massacre for technology. It is impossible for me to get anyone's attention on this. I have tried on discussion board's, leafletting, tabling and people just look away.
Noone wants to face the reality of how their daily habits fuel the slaughterhouse.
Few- Well actually None- will give up their toys, the very toys that guarantee their own demise.
Who is calling you all the time, all day all night?
It is me calling you oh techno-man of the West wondering why you come to kill me.
Why do you seem to think the thunder in my ground is for you to steal?
Why do you think my life of fourteen-year-old prostitution-death-by-twenty is here to serve your need to know where you are all the time when you never know where you are any of the time?
Is this okay for you to force me into servitude for your colonial consumerism?
I know its long distance and collect but really who is paying the price here?
Liberal thy name is hypocrisy. What's new?
chlamor
Users browsing this forum: Majestic-12 [Bot] and 12 guests
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line777
|
__label__wiki
| 0.905388
| 0.905388
|
Board index General Discussion and ExchangeData And Research
Re: Michael Cohen
by seemslikeadream » Mon Aug 20, 2018 9:09 am
Michael Cohen Enlists Watergate’s John Dean to Signal He’s Still Willing to Flip
By Margaret Hartmann@MargHartmann
So many ways to say, “I’m flipping.” Photo: Yana Paskova/Getty Images
Capping off the most exciting weekend for Watergate aficionados since the premiere of the Slow Burn podcast, on Sunday night, Michael Cohen’s lawyer, Lanny Davis, revealed that he’s been consulting with John Dean, the former White House counsel who helped bring down Richard Nixon’s presidency.
“I reached out to my old friend John Dean because of what he went through with Watergate, and I saw some parallels to what Michael Cohen is experiencing. I wanted to gain from John’s wisdom,” Davis told Politico.
“I certainly don’t want to raise expectations that Mr. Cohen has anything like the level of deep involvement and detailed knowledge that John Dean had in the Nixon White House as a witness to Nixon’s crimes, but I did see some similarities and wanted to learn from what John went through.”
Dean confirmed that he’s been talking with Davis. He’d already come up this weekend in the drama surrounding Don McGahn, with the New York Times reporting that Trump’s White House counsel has been talking to Russia probe investigators because he didn’t want to wind up like Dean, doing time for obstruction of justice. (Dean became a key witness for the prosecution and he only wound up serving four months in prison.)
While Cohen once said he’d “take a bullet for the president,” in recent months he’s made it quite clear that’s no longer the case. Since the Feds raided Cohen’s office and residence in April, he’s ended his joint defense agreement with Trump, announced in a TV interview that “my wife, my daughter, and my son, and this country have my first loyalty,” and released a secret recording of Trump, which proves he knew about the hush money payments to Karen McDougal.
So why is Cohen’s legal team signaling his willingness to flip once again? A new report from the Times sheds some light on the situation. It was previously reported that federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York are investigating Cohen for bank and tax fraud, in addition to potential campaign finance violations related the hush payments. The Times revealed that prosecutors are focused on more than $20 million in loans obtained by taxi businesses owned by Cohen and his family in 2014:
Publicly filed financing statements indicate that Mr. Cohen used 32 taxi medallions as collateral for the Sterling [National Bank] loans. The medallions were then valued at more than $1 million each, and generated more than $1 million a year in income.
The loans were made to 16 separate companies controlled by Mr. Cohen and his family, each company owning two taxi medallions, the person who reviewed the transactions said. Mr. Cohen and his wife also personally guaranteed the loans, according to the filings.
The tax fraud aspect of the investigation has been focused in part on whether Mr. Cohen properly reported the income from the medallions, which was sometimes in cash, people with knowledge of the matter said.
The paper also reported that the investigation has entered its final stage, and prosecutors may file charges by the end of August. It’s unclear if Cohen’s attorneys have already had detailed conversations with federal prosecutors about a plea deal, which would likely also involve Cohen talking to Special Counsel Robert Mueller. If an agreement can’t be finalized by the end of the month, the matter will probably drag on until after the midterms, as the Justice Department has an informal policy of not releasing sensitive information in the weeks before an election (though as we all know, sometimes they ignore that).
Using the last few days of summer vacation to brush up on Watergate is probably good advice for everyone.
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/20 ... -dean.html
Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen reportedly investigated for bank fraud exceeding $20 million
Everett Rosenfeld
Michael Cohen, former personal attorney for U.S. President Donald Trump, exits the Loews Regency Hotel, May 11, 2018 in New York City.
Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's former lawyer, is under investigation for bank and tax fraud, and investigators are looking at more than $20 million in loans to a taxi company he owns with his family, The New York Times reported on Sunday.
The value of those scrutinized loans had not been previously reported.
The report, which cited multiple sources familiar with the matter, said authorities are additionally looking into whether the former fixer broke any laws by arranging financial deals with women claiming to have had affairs with Trump. The Times said two of its sources indicated that prosecutors could file charges by the end of August.
Lanny Davis, a lawyer for Cohen, did not immediately respond to a CNBC request for comment about the report from the Times. The newspaper said Cohen and his lawyers declined to comment for its article. A spokesperson for Davis told NBC News: "Lanny cannot comment on advice of counsel since there is an ongoing investigation."
The bank fraud portion of the investigation centers on whether Cohen misrepresented the value of his holdings in order to secure loans from two New York lenders, Sterling National Bank and the Melrose Credit Union, the report said. The Times added that there's no indication Cohen missed payments or caused losses to either financial institution, which, according to the paper, is usually part of a bank fraud charge.
Politics watchers are tracking Cohen's case because he could potentially reach an agreement with prosecutors that would offer him leniency in exchange for his cooperating with Justice Department special counsel Robert Mueller's probe into whether the Trump campaign was involved with Russian attempts to skew the 2016 U.S. presidential race.
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/20/former- ... eport.html
THIS IS THE END OF MY PRESIDENCY. I'M F***ED
- trump May 17, 2017
Dotard = Bulger Rat
trump is member of a transnational crime syndicate masquerading as a government
Why we do think that Trump owes debt to Putin? 50 reasons
seemslikeadream
Location: into the black
by seemslikeadream » Wed Aug 22, 2018 6:06 pm
MANAFORT GUILTY ON 8 COUNTS; JUDGE DELCARES MISTRIAL ON 10 COUNTS
8 felonies
Cohen's plea includes
hush money to women
Cohen said he helped a candidate to violate campaign finance law
pleads guilty to 8 counts
trump is NOT going to serve out his term
For the record, a guilty plea was reached pertaining to Trump's sex habits before a guilty plea pertaining to his conspiring with Russia.
Putin probably feels let down.
@PPVSRB
Max sentence he faces on all counts is 65 years.
Cohen admits to working “at direction of the candidate” Trump and national enquirer to silence Karen McDougal. He also admits to Stormy Daniels payment that he made “with and at direction of the same candidate.”
Zerlina Maxwell
What are we going to name the Tuesday when the President's campaign chairman is convicted, his personal lawyer reaches a plea agreement with prosecutors and his 1st national security advisor is still needed for the ongoing probe? TuesDay Massacre doesn't seem catchy.
Tuesday Takedown
The Tuesday Turn Up!
Tuesday Traitors
Tipping Point Tuesday
Swamp drainage Day
Rudy Tuesday
Twofer Tuesday!!!
TRUMP’S PECKER GOT HIM IN TROUBLE BEFORE HIS CONSPIRING WITH RUSSIA DID
August 21, 2018/2 Comments/in 2016 Presidential Election, Mueller Probe /by emptywheel
It was a three ring circus among top Trump advisors today: Jurors found Paul Manafort guilty on 8 counts (the jury was hung on the other 10); Michael Cohen pled guilty to 8 counts, and Mueller’s team continued Mike Flynn’s sentencing for 24 days, with a status report due September 17.
The big takeaway, however, is that Trump got named in a criminal information for his extramarital affairs before his conspiring with Russia did. [I’ve restated this headline, replacing “Dick” with “Pecker,” in honor of the National Enquirer’s role and so Democracy Now can show the headline tomorrow when I appear.]
TRUMP’S HUSH PAYMENTS MAKE IT INTO MICHAEL COHEN’S GUILTY PLEA
The Cohen plea — which developed quickly and reportedly came under pressure to plead before an indictment got filed this week — covered five tax charges, one false statement to a financial institution, one unlawful corporation contribution tied to Cohen’s quashing of a National Enquirer story on Karen McDougal, and one excessive campaign contribution tied to Cohen’s hush payment to Stormy Daniels. The first reference to Donald Trump — named as Individual 1 — is the 46th word in the in the criminal information.
From in or about 2007 through in or about January 2017, MICHAEL COHEN, the defendant, was an attorney and employee of a Manhattan-based real estate company (the “Company”). COHEN held the title of “Executive Vice President” and “Special Counsel” to the owner of the Company (“Individual-1”).
Cohen will reportedly face three to five years in prison and substantial fines.
In his plea, Cohen stated that he made the hush payments at the direction of a candidate — Trump was not named — knowing the payments violated campaign finance law.
For all the legal trouble his top aides have gotten in, this is the first time (aside from his cameo calling on Russia to find Hillary’s “missing” emails in the GRU indictment) where Trump has been implicated directly.
Thus the headline: His dick got him in trouble before his conspiring with Russia did.
There was reportedly not cooperation agreement attached to this plea. I suspect he will be or already has cooperated, however.
Contrary to what some of NYT’s hacks say, this doesn’t mean his dick got him in more trouble than he’ll face in the Russian inquiry: just that that will take a bit longer.
LIKE COHEN, PAUL MANAFORT IS A TAX CHEAT
Literally at the same time Cohen was pleading guilty, the jury in the Manafort case declared themselves hopelessly at odds on 10 charges, but found Manafort guilty of 8. Like Cohen, he is guilty of 5 counts of tax fraud. He was found guilty on one FBAR charge for not identifying foreign holdings (my suspicion in the other FBAR charges were hung because it was unclear whether the corporations that held the money faced the same liability. And Manafort was found guilty on two of the bank fraud charges. My guess — I’m trying to clarify this — is the jury hung on the one in which he didn’t get a loan (meaning TS Ellis’ criticism about prosecutors focusing on a loan that didn’t go through may have had an effect).
Manafort’s next trial starts in 27 days, and if Mueller wants a retrial on the remaining 10 charges here he could get that. Though he has bigger fish to fry.
MUELLER THINKS MIKE FLYNN WILL BE DONE COOPERATING IN THE NEAR FUTURE
While it’s far less sexy than the trouble Trump’s dick got him in, I’m most fascinated by the status report in the Mike Flynn case. While they’re continuing the sentencing process again (meaning he’s still cooperating), they’re asking for a status report on September 17, the same 27 days away as Manafort’s next trial.
That suggests they may be done with whatever they need Flynn to do in the near future.
Things are picking up steam.
https://www.emptywheel.net/2018/08/21/t ... ussia-did/
Trump's Dick Got Him in Trouble Before His Conspiring with Russia Did
https://www.emptywheel.net/2018/08/21/t ... ussia-did/ …
Donald Trump is named -- as Individual 1 -- in the 46th word in Cohen's criminal information.
[collecting my winnings on for the 5,295,371 predictions I made Trump would get named in a legal doc w/o being indicted]
s ago
This is why those claiming Trump's criminal actions can only be described in a report to Congress should find a new hobby.
trump is now an
UNINDICTED CO-CONSPIRATOR
and just a reminder who Cohen's best friend is
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT FELIX SATER
Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's former personal attorney, has surrendered himself to the FBI.
https://edition.cnn.com/videos/politics ... nr-vpx.cnn
AND THIS IS JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG
Little known fact re Michael Cohen: Cohen’s relatives by marriage were indirectly tied to Ukrainian/Russian Mafia thru an oligarch who, the FBI says, employed 3 execs who were part of Russian Mafia. One of them was an enforcer for Semion Mogilevich.
is this what taking a bullet for the president looks like?
what the beginning of the end looks like
I have been annoying you all for two years waiting for this headline .....sorry
THIS SHIP HAS SAILED
What Michael Cohen’s Plea and Paul Manafort’s Conviction Mean for Trump and the Mueller Investigation
In the history of the American republic, there has never before been a single hour in which, in two separate courts, in cases prosecuted by two separate offices, a president’s former campaign manager and his former lawyer simultaneously joined his former national security adviser as felons—and one of them implicated the president in criminal activity.
Normally, the sort of felonies that Paul Manafort was convicted of Tuesday and to which Michael Cohen pleaded guilty are beyond the scope of what Lawfare covers. Bank fraud and tax evasion are not exactly national security legal issues, and certainly payments to adult film actresses and models in violation of campaign finance law are not the sort of “hard national security choices” that are our bread and butter.
Yet the convictions obtained Tuesday create a remarkable moment, one that interacts inevitably and deeply with major national security investigations—and that places stress on a presidency, and presidential personality, in a fashion that inevitably poses national security concerns.
On Tuesday afternoon, Manafort was found guilty on eight felony counts of tax evasion and bank fraud in the Eastern District of Virginia. The judge declared a mistrial on the remaining 10 counts after the jury deadlocked. Shortly thereafter, in the Southern District of New York, Cohen pleaded guilty to eight felonies of his own: five counts of tax evasion, one count of bank fraud, and two counts of campaign finance violations involving hush-money payments to the actress Stormy Daniels (whose real name is Stephanie Clifford) and to Karen McDougal.
Here are seven questions and some related observations pointed up by Tuesday’s events.
Does Donald Trump choose the “best people”?
We didn’t need a raft of criminal convictions to answer this question. The consistent incompetence of Trump’s inner circle is all the answer one needs. That said, the starting place in this conversation must be the degree to which close associates of the president of the United States keep turning out to be felons. Yes, only one portion of Cohen’s criminal conduct and none of the charges on which Manafort was convicted connect directly to President Trump. But the parade of greed and the continuous criminal conduct on the part of two people closely associated with Trump and his campaign sheds disturbing light on who the president regards as appropriate top aides and associates. That Trump himself continues to express sympathy with Manafort, not outrage at his conduct, further undermines confidence in his judgment of character.
Presidential judgment matters. In a week dominated by headlines about the president’s real and threatened revocation of security clearances of current and former officials who have criticized him, take a moment to consider the individuals the president has favored with trust and confidence, as well as those to whom he has denied it.
Do these convictions have implications for L’Affaire Russe?
They may, and in both cases, there is reason to suspect they do, but we don’t know yet know for certain.
With both defendants, there are reasons to suspect the individual may have important information for Robert Mueller’s investigation. And in both cases, the current moment is one in which cooperation would be extremely well advised. In Cohen’s case, cooperation is almost certainly happening, though the plea agreement contains no cooperation provision.
In neither case, however, is it clear what the defendant knows. That is, assuming either Manafort or Cohen or both decided to cooperate, would either of them have anything important to offer Mueller? And at least in Manafort’s case, there is no particular reason to think that conviction on eight counts by a jury of his peers will concentrate his mind any more than the prospect of conviction did. Whether the verdict will cause Manafort to cooperate in order to avoid another trial and to obtain some sentencing leniency is a substantial open question. Embedded within that question is an even larger one: If Manafort and Cohen do cooperate, does either of them hold the keys to any kingdoms?
On MSNBC on Tuesday evening, Cohen’s lawyer Lanny Davis made his client’s feelings plain: "Mr. Cohen has knowledge on certain subjects that should be of interest to the special counsel and is more than happy to tell the special counsel all that he knows."
But keep in mind that there were high hopes that Trump campaign foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos would be in a position to offer Mueller substantial cooperation after his plea agreement. That turned out not to be the case.
How big a deal is the Manafort verdict?
Pretty big.
It is a big deal first because the failure to obtain it would have been an immense setback to the investigation. Going to trial is always a fraught process. And for the Mueller investigation to have failed to garner a conviction would have risked consequences for the legitimacy of the entire enterprise. A conviction on eight counts and a mistrial on 10 other counts may seem like a split decision—but it is not. The jury found Manafort guilty of substantial criminal conduct, and he faces significant jail time at his sentencing in December. Having the jury hang on some charges and convict on others shows independence and makes it hard to argue that Manafort did not get a fair shake. Mueller’s shop is no doubt satisfied with this outcome.
Tuesday’s verdict is also not the end of the story for Manafort—not even close. He is scheduled to go on trial in Washington, D.C., in September for alleged violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act and other charges. While the charges in the Virginia trial were not central to the core questions of the Mueller probe—the foreign conspiracy to interfere in the 2016 election—this trial did demonstrate that Manafort was under overwhelming financial stress and deeply indebted to foreign interests at precisely the time he agreed to join the Trump presidential campaign without pay.
What’s more, it is clear that the special counsel’s office believes the Manafort case is important to its mission. The evidence of this is the simple fact that Mueller chose to keep the Manafort prosecution within the office, not to refer it elsewhere. For some reason, Mueller’s team views the tax- and bank-fraud charges against Manafort as connected to the central inquiry, in a way the Michael Cohen case—which it referred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York—is for some reason not. That may be because Mueller’s team wants information it believes Manafort has. And that, in turn, makes his conviction, and the pressure on him that it generates, a significant event.
How big a deal is the Cohen plea agreement?
Very big.
The president’s former lawyer has not only confessed to criminal campaign finance violations, but he has also said under oath that he was doing so at the direction of the president himself. It’s hard to say yet what precisely this means. But it is not a small thing. Setting aside the question of whether Cohen will cooperate with Mueller, it remains to be seen whether prosecutors will pursue additional criminal charges against individuals mentioned but not charged in the criminal information.
Cohen’s plea agreement does not contemplate any specific cooperation. However, as Lawfare’s David Kris noted, the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure allow the court to reduce a sentence within one year of sentencing when the government agrees that the defendant has “provided substantial assistance in investigating or prosecuting another person.” That means the question of cooperation, on campaign finance questions or other matters, could remain open possibly even after Cohen’s sentencing. It seems preponderantly likely that Cohen is cooperating—or at least that he will cooperate.
This means that prosecutors in the Southern District of New York have a witness on their hands who was very close to Trump and knows a great deal about a lot of things—some of which he pleaded guilty to Tuesday.
How close is this to the president?
“It doesn’t involve me,” the president said Tuesday afternoon when asked about the Manafort verdict. Setting aside the implications of the Manafort case for the Mueller investigation as a whole, Trump is certainly correct that the specific charges on which Manafort was convicted, and those on which the jury could not reach a verdict, do not involve the president’s conduct. The closest connection is that Manafort’s alleged bank-fraud scheme was ongoing during the time he managed Trump’s presidential campaign.
As we noted above, the story is quite different in the Cohen case. Among the counts to which the president’s former lawyer pleaded guilty are two violations of federal election law: “causing an unlawful corporate contribution,” regarding Cohen’s role in silencing Karen McDougal’s story of an affair with Trump by persuading her to sell the rights to a tabloid that then quashed the story; and “excessive campaign contribution,” regarding Cohen’s payment to Stormy Daniels as part of a hush agreement, for which he was then reimbursed by the Trump Organization.
The criminal information made public Tuesday states that Cohen “caused and made the payments ... in order to influence the 2016 presidential election”—that is, to prevent damaging information about the affairs from surfacing during the campaign. It is the political motive behind the payments that transforms the matter into a question of federal campaign finance law. As former White House counsel Bob Bauer wrote of the Cohen case Tuesday evening, legal constraints on such expenditures are implicated when “motivation[s] materially if not wholly shaped by political objectives” come into play.
The criminal information is not clear on the extent of any coordination between Cohen and Trump personally, though it does state that Cohen “coordinated with one or more members of the campaign, including through meetings and phone calls, about the fact, nature, and timing of the payments.” But in his court hearing Tuesday, Cohen accused Trump of personal involvement in both arrangements in all but name, saying that he acted “in coordination with, and at the direction of, a candidate for federal office.” His lawyer then made the connection even more explicit on Twitter:
Trump’s current lawyer Rudy Giuliani declared that, “There is no allegation of any wrongdoing against the president in the government’s charges against Mr. Cohen.” That’s not quite right. Although it might not sound as good for the president, the proper formulation would have been that the Justice Department allowed a defendant to plead guilty to crimes on the basis of factual claims and sworn statements that, if true, potentially implicate Trump as well.
Is a second special counsel needed?
This is not a crazy question.
The purpose of the special counsel structure is to remove the normal Justice Department hierarchy from the process of investigating the president. With the Cohen plea, President Trump’s personal conduct is now clearly a matter of investigation in the Southern District of New York. Under normal circumstances, this would be a prototypical case for the appointment of a special counsel.
For a variety of reasons, however, that step would be unwise here. For one thing, there is no reason to question the Southern District prosecutors’ competence or independence here. (The president controversially interviewed Geoffrey Berman for the position he now holds as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, but Berman has recused himself from this case and his office has conducted itself professionally and admirably.) For another thing, a special counsel would—like Mueller—become a lightning rod for presidential anger and is potentially vulnerable to firing. By contrast, it is very hard for the president to shut down a career-level investigation in the Southern District of New York. Trump can’t fire his way out of this problem. Notably, this case began in the special counsel’s shop and was specifically referred to a normal Justice Department office to be handled in the regular order. At least for now, keeping it there is the right course.
Are there dangers here?
Yes. Big ones.
Major investigations that touch the president directly are always dangerous. Trump accentuates those dangers. The general danger is of presidential distraction. The burden of running the country is real—or at least it should be to a president who takes the job seriously. Being under federal investigation would distract almost anyone. And whether or not one likes Donald Trump should not obscure the reality that interfering with a president’s ability to govern and represent the United States globally—by compromising a president’s legitimacy and by distracting him from governance—is dangerous at the best of times with the most focused of presidents.
Trump is not the most focused of presidents. He is also mercurial and angry. With Trump there is the additional risk of his lashing out, taking vindictive action or engaging in irrational behavior—things he does in spades on a daily basis. This sort of behavior is inimical to cohesive national security policy, which requires presidential leadership and direction. The myriad bureaucracies involved with defense, intelligence, foreign affairs, economic security, law enforcement and homeland security all have different institutional needs, interests and missions. Absent policy direction and leadership from the White House, the national security apparatus does not work optimally on autopilot.
This does not mean that the office of the presidency should be above investigation, or that the risks of these particular investigations are too great to justify them. To the contrary, as described above, prosecutors have shown evidence of serious criminal conduct on the part of Trump’s inner circle, and unveiling Russia’s role in election interference is a matter of great importance for American democracy. The consequences of investigating a president may be great, but the consequences of not investigating such matters are far greater.
Most fundamentally, the burden lies with the president himself not to behave in fashions that necessitate such investigations—and, when they are necessary, to handle them in a manner that minimizes the dangers. Perhaps the greatest danger at this moment is that one can have no confidence that Trump understands this.
As the cloud over the president darkens, we are entering a dangerous period.
https://www.lawfareblog.com/what-michae ... estigation
Michael Cohen wants to tell Robert Mueller what he knows about what Trump knew about Russian hacking leading up to the 2016 election, lawyer says
By janon fisher
Michael Cohen, the personal attorney of president Donald Trump, leaves Manhattan Federal Court on Wednesday, May 30, 2018. (Jefferson Siegel/New York Daily News) (Jefferson Siegel / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS)
President Trump’s ex-lawyer Micheal Cohen wants to spill his guts to Special Counsel Robert Mueller, dishing on what Trump knew about meeting with the Russians at Trump Tower and the hacking of the 2016 Presidential Election, according to Cohen’s lawyer.
Heavy-hitting Democratic legal eagle Lanny Davis told MSNBC host Rachel Maddow Tuesday night that Cohen’s got the dirt on the President and “is more than happy to tell the Special Counsel.”
“I can tell you that Mr. Cohen has knowledge on certain subjects that should be of interest to the Special Counsel,” Davis told Maddow. “The obvious possibility of a conspiracy to collude and corrupt the American democracy system in the 2016 election,which the Trump Tower meeting was all about. But also knowledge about the computer crime of hacking and whether or not Mr. Trump knew ahead of time about that crime and whether he cheered it on. We know that he publicly cheered it on, but did he also have private information?”
Davis would not say if his client had met with the Mueller team yet.
Paid Post What Is This?
Cohen pleaded guilty Tuesday in Manhattan Federal Court to eight counts of tax fraud and campaign finance violations stemming from hush payments he said he made at the direction of the President to silence porn star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy playmate Karen McDougal.
The Trump Tower meeting that Davis referred to happened in the lead up to the presidential election during which the President’s son, Donald Trump Jr., the former — and now convicted — campaign manager Paul Manafort and Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, met with a Russian lawyer for reasons that are now in dispute. One theory is that the lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya, was lobbying the campaign to lift restrictions on Russian adoptions. The more sinister explanation is that the Trump campaign sought compromising information on Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton to gain the advantage in the polls.
In July 2016, Trump made an appeal to the Russians during a campaign event to hack into Clinton’s emails. Davis suggested Tuesday night that those were not just idle words.
The President had adamantly denied that he’s done anything wrong.
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny- ... story.html
Cohen lawyer: ‘There is no dispute that Donald Trump committed a crime'
The attorney representing President Trump's longtime personal lawyer Michael Cohen says that there is now "no dispute" that President Trump committed a crime during the 2016 election.
Interviewed on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Lanny Davis said that Cohen's decision Tuesday to implicate the president in directing him to commit campaign finance violations with relation to his payments to women such as Karen McDougal and Stormy Daniels as proof of Trump's wrongdoing.
"Well, let's clear up for some reason in ambiguity the smoke that [Trump attorney] Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump and the people around him are blowing," Davis says.
"Very clearly, there is no dispute that Donald Trump committed a crime," Davis continues. "No dispute, because his own lawyers said to the special counsel in a letter that he directed, that's the word they used, Michael Cohen to make these payments."
Cohen surrendered to FBI agents on Tuesday ahead of reaching a plea agreement on charges of tax and banking fraud, while admitting in court filings that the president had personally directed him to make the payments to Daniels and McDougal, who both claim affairs with the president, weeks before the election.
Prosecutors working with Robert Mueller's special counsel investigation have been probing the payments and their funding for possible criminal activity including campaign finance law violations as part of the ongoing investigation into alleged ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Cohen's surrender to authorities on Tuesday came amid the president's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, being found guilty on 8 charges related to his lobbying work in Ukraine by a judge in Virginia.
http://thehill.com/policy/national-secu ... ed-a-crime
Seth Abramson
(THREAD) So what happens now that Michael Cohen's attorney, Lanny Davis, has said on MSNBC that Cohen will tell Mueller (a) Trump colluded with the Russians, and (b) his collusion involved knowing about Russian hacking *in advance*? I'll break it down. Hope you'll read and share.
11:48 PM - 21 Aug 2018
2,171 Retweets 3,412 Likes Linda KelleyJulie LapointeLorraine Shawnutter buttersLisa SmithJoanne EObama Girl...kenrentzTim Anderson
1/ First, here's video of what Michael Cohen's attorney, Lanny Davis, said on MSNBC last night, which was perhaps the most shocking thing anyone has said on TV in the last decade when you think about its implications for this presidency and for the nation:
2/ Second, here's an example of how it's being covered. One question that will be answered today is whether The New York Times and The Washington Post appreciate the import of what Davis said *enough* to report on this story as they *did not do* yesterday:
3/ Third, understand that while Davis (@LannyDavis) is unlikely to walk back what he said to MSNBC, you *should* expect him to *clam up* and realize that revealing what he revealed was a mistake. He wasn't serving his client well and what he did on MSNBC was deeply irresponsible.
4/ What Davis did was irresponsible (and I say this attorney to attorney, as I've tagged Lanny and he follows this feed) because as an attorney you *mustn't* do *anything* that could jeopardize your client beyond the jeopardy they already face. Davis' words were harmful to Cohen.
5/ Cohen needs his value to Mueller to be as high as it can be; revealing what he has in the media damages the value of his information by giving information to potential jurors, the media, and Mueller critics when what Mueller *wants* is to have information others do *not* have.
6/ When a prosecutor doesn't control the flow of valuable information that's incoming to him—or for all we know, has already come to him—by a witness' proffer, it can slam doors in the faces of his investigators that wouldn't have been slammed if the information was closely held.
7/ For instance, imagine that there's a witness willing to talk to Mueller if s/he believes Mueller does *not* know about Trump's collusion who suddenly will *refuse* to talk to Mueller (or his investigators) if s/he discovers that Mueller *has* been told about Trump's collusion.
8/ Mueller wants to control the information Cohen is going to give him—when it's released, who has it, how it's framed, how it shapes his probe. He doesn't want Cohen's lawyer making those decisions. I suspect that's why Davis had *clammed up* by the time he spoke to @ChrisCuomo.
9/ So don't expect Lanny Davis—who I think, as a Clinton ally, was a bit giddy about being able to stick it to Trump, and let his emotions overrule his professional instincts—to repeat his claim that Cohen can confirm Trump-Russia collusion. But the thing is—he *already said it*.
10/ What that means is that The Washington Post and The New York Times *have* to report what Davis said. They can say, "Well, he *intimated*..." but the fact is, if the Times and Post report what Davis said, *most* Americans will assume Cohen is confirming Trump-Russia collusion.
11/ And let's be clear: Davis *absolutely* confirmed that what Michael Cohen is now offering Mueller is that Trump *did* collude with Russia under *any definition of that word* you might choose to use. And Davis *can't* unring that bell; that information in the public square now.
12/ The question now is, "Did Cohen already talk to Mueller?" If he already spoke to Mueller—gave even a partial proffer of the information he has—I was right to think there was a sub rosa cooperation agreement lying invisibly behind the favorable plea terms that Cohen got today.
13/ If he *didn't* talk to Mueller already one could *argue* Davis was trying to "tease" the proffer to get Mueller interested—but in fact that's unnecessary, you'd just go to Mueller privately. (And the next step would be Cohen meeting with Mueller's team for *scores of hours*).
14/ And that really is what comes next now: Cohen negotiating his *Russia* knowledge into, he hopes, no prison time. The theory? If Mueller knows I'm already going to prison for about five years, he may run any sentence I get *concurrent* to that one or just let me go altogether.
15/ And that *is* one way to read what Cohen did today: he knew he was getting prison time either way, on the campaign finance stuff *or* on Russia, so he needed to begin the narrative Lanny Davis was pushing on TV tonight and begin it *now*: "I'm here to tell America the truth."
16/ Today's theater—a man pleading guilty with no cooperation deal and accepting prison time—is almost certainly, then, just the appetizer for what Cohen *really* has to offer the government, which is Trump-Russia collusion. This *isn't*—in the end—about Stormy Daniels, that is.
17/ So I would expect Davis to claim up; Cohen to basically disappear; Mueller to *not* leak; and the Mueller *investigation* to take the view of Cohen—who is not a witness anyone will build a case around—it *must*: he can help us get the proof we need, but he can't be our case.
18/ So what changed tonight is we know where the story's headed—that *doesn't* mean we're suddenly going to have more *evidence* than we had, besides knowing what Cohen is telling Mueller behind closed doors in broad strokes. But there's something more important than any of this.
19/ I think I know what "hacking" Davis is referring to—and he's only got it partially right. Cohen can confirm Trump heard from Papadopoulos in April 2016 that Russia had the "missing" Clinton emails. Meaning that he knew Russia was claiming to be hacking. But there's a problem.
20/ The problem is, Russia *never had those particular emails*—they gave *fake* Clinton emails to Trump adviser Joe Schmitz and to Trump campaign agent Peter W. Smith, who said he was working with Michael Flynn, Steve Bannon, Sam Clovis, and Kellyanne Conway. So it's complicated.
21/ What I think Davis is *really* saying is that Trump knew Russia was boasting of being behind cyber-intrusions in April—about 50 days before DCLeaks and Guccifer 2.0. And he responded to that knowledge by furiously working—through his NatSec team—to find those Clinton emails.
22/ Meanwhile, Trump was almost certainly using any backchannel he could to let Russia know he approved of them getting as much Clinton dirt as possible. But did he know about the *DNC* hacking in advance? Davis intimates that he might have, but realize that's *far* less likely.
23/ Simply put, there was *no reason* for *anyone* associated with the Kremlin to risk their IRA/GRU operations by letting a moron like Trump know what they were going to do in advance. They *did* benefit from dangling Clinton emails before Trump because they knew he'd go for it.
24/ That said, *because* Russia *did* make criminal attempts (particularly on July 28, 2016, just one day after "Russia, if you're listening...") to get Clinton's emails, Cohen *is* implicating Trump in Conspiracy to Commit Computer Crimes—as this feed has been saying for a year.
25/ So is there Trump-Russia collusion? I think that's absolutely clear, and Cohen *will* help Mueller *add* to what he's already been told by Flynn, Gates, and Papadopoulos on that score, which I continue to think (particularly as to the first two of those three men) is a *lot*.
CONCLUSION/ The end of this story was all but confirmed tonight—proof of Trump-Russia collusion in the public square and Trump's impeachment or resignation (though resignation would lead to indictment, so he'll avoid that). The question now? *How long it takes to get there*. /end
https://twitter.com/SethAbramson/status ... 9510738944
The first two members of Congress to endorse Donald Trump, Chris Collins and Duncan Hunter Jr., have been indicted for financial crimes and campaign finance violations in the past two weeks.
Gee, I wonder what they saw in Trump?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=7waVUQzjqAc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jP-iqeppe8
.......AND
With Paul Manafort's guilty verdict, now seems like a good time to remember that it was Manafort who pushed Trump into selecting Mike Pence as his running mate and eventual vice president.
New York state investigators subpoena Michael Cohen in Trump Foundation probe
Last Updated Aug 22, 2018 5:14 PM EDT
Investigators in New York state have issued a subpoena to former longtime Trump attorney Michael Cohen as part of their ongoing criminal probe into the Trump Foundation, a state official confirmed to CBS News' Pat Milton.
The subpoena was issued Wednesday by the New York state's Department of Taxation and Finance seeking "relevant information in light of the public disclosure made yesterday," according to the state official. The news comes a day after Cohen pleaded guilty, in a separate case, to eight counts, including two campaign finance violations. The Cohen subpoena was first reported by the Associated Press.
As a former close Trump confidant, Cohen could potentially be a significant source of information for state investigators looking into whether Mr. Trump or his charity broke state law or lied about their tax liability.
Anyone charged with a state crime could not be pardoned by the president.
Messages the AP left with attorneys for Cohen and Mr. Trump were not immediately returned Wednesday.
In June, New York's acting attorney general Barbara Underwood filed a lawsuit against the Trump Foundation over alleged illegal conduct, claiming Mr. Trump used the foundation's charitable assets to pay off his legal obligations, promote his businesses and purchase personal items — including a painting of himself for $10,000 that was displayed at the Trump National Doral in Miami.
A Trump spokesperson at the time of the filing of New York lawsuit called it "politics at its very worst."
The Department of Taxation and Finance cannot prosecute anything on its own. Any potential evidence of wrongdoing found by the investigators at the Department of Taxation and Finance will ultimately be referred to the State Attorney General's office for prosecution, according to a source familiar with the matter.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-york-s ... ion-probe/
Michael Cohen accused of faking documents to flip rent-stabilized apartments
Housing group claims Cohen tried to drive out tenants in order to hike rents and lied to get construction permits
Erin DurkinLast modified on Mon 27 Aug 2018 15.29 EDT
Michael Cohen, Donald Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, has been accused of filing false documents for three New York City apartment buildings, buying the buildings for $10m and then flipping them for $27m.
According to an investigation by the Housing Rights Initiative (HRI), Cohen and his partners tried to drive out tenants whose rents were kept down by rent stabilization laws so they could hike the rent, the watchdog group said on Monday.
Cohen, through a managing agent, filed for construction permits claiming that the buildings were vacant and had no rent-stabilized tenants – when in fact dozens of such tenants were living there, according to tax records, the group said.
Separately, Cohen pleaded guilty last week in federal court to eight criminal counts including fraud and campaign finance violations, directly implicating the president in a crime.
Tenants working with the same watchdog group brought a lawsuit last month making similar false paperwork allegations against Kushner Companies, the company formerly headed by Trump’s son-in-law and White House adviser, Jared Kushner.
New York state then launched an investigation into charges the Kushner firm harassed tenants.
“Like the Kushner Cos, Cohen was playing a game of real estate roulette,” said the Housing Rights Initiative executive director, Aaron Carr.
In Cohen’s case, he made a $17m profit selling the three buildings after purchasing them through a shell corporation based out of his condo and owning them for just a few years. During the time he owned the buildings, more than two dozen rent-stabilized tenants moved out, and their apartments were converted to much more lucrative market rate units, the group found.
New York has launched an investigation into charges against the company formerly run by Jared Kushner.
New York has launched an investigation into charges against the company formerly run by Jared Kushner. Photograph: Pablo Martínez Monsiváis/AP
HRI claimed that Cohen’s agent submitted more than 20 documents to the city department of buildings falsely representing that there were no rent-stabilized tenants in the buildings in order to get construction permits.
When construction work was under way, the buildings were hit with multiple tenant complaints and city violations for excessive noise and dust, work done at unauthorized hours, and demolition without a permit.
Carr said the behavior is distressingly common for landlords looking to get rid of low-paying tenants and increase their profits. “A culture of real estate corruption has taken root in New York state,” he said.
A representative for Cohen did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Unlike the Kushner firm, Cohen is not being sued over the violations because he no longer owns the buildings. After pleading guilty last week to tax evasion, campaign finance violations and lying to a financial institution, he is set to be sentenced in December.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/201 ... are_btn_tw
by seemslikeadream » Sat Sep 08, 2018 12:20 pm
Michael Cohen wants to scrap the Stormy Daniels NDA
He wants the $130,000 in hush money back, too. But Michael Avenatti sees it as a way to avoid a deposition.
Emily StewartSep 8, 2018, 10:05am EDT
Stormy Daniels and Michael Avenatti as they exit the United States District Court in the Southern District of New York in April 2018.
Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Michael Cohen wants to let Stormy Daniels out of the nondisclosure agreement she signed to keep allegations about her affair with President Donald Trump under wraps — and he wants the $130,000 he paid her to do so back.
Essential Consultants, the company Cohen used to make the hush payment, filed a status report in a Los Angeles federal court on Friday to rescind the 2016 agreement that was meant to keep Daniels from speaking out but has become part of Cohen’s recent legal troubles.
”Today, Essential Consultants LLC and Michael Cohen have effectively put an end to the lawsuits filed against them by Stephanie Clifford, aka Stormy Daniels,” Brent Blakely, Cohen’s lawyer, told CNN. “The rescission of the Confidential Settlement Agreement will result in Ms. Clifford returning to Essential Consultants the $130,000 she received in consideration, as required by California law.”
Cohen, Trump’s longtime lawyer and fixer, in August pleaded guilty to eight counts of tax and bank fraud and campaign finance violations. The campaign finance violations were directly related to the Daniels payment made ahead of the 2016 election. (Cohen also implicated Trump in the illegal payoff.)
The Wall Street Journal in January first reported Trump’s alleged 2006 affair with Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, and the $130,000 payout. Daniels in March sued Trump and Essential Consultants, Cohen’s shell company, claiming the hush agreement is void because Trump never signed it.
Friday’s filing would seek to let Daniels off the hook for the nondisclosure agreement — but it’s not a deal she is eager to take, according to her lawyer, Michael Avenatti. In a pair of tweets late Friday, Avenatti said he sees the maneuver as an attempt by Cohen to bar him from deposing the president and Cohen. “My client and I will never settle the cases absent full disclosure and accountability,” he said.
The filing might close one chapter for Cohen — or it might not
Trump and Cohen initially said that Daniels could be liable for damages of up to $20 million if she spoke out, but that didn’t stop her. According to CNN, that’s part of why Cohen wants to rescind the NDA. The porn actress has already said plenty about her alleged affair with Trump, including with Anderson Cooper for 60 Minutes in March, so trying to block her no longer benefits him. He just wants the $130,000 back.
If the NDA is rescinded, Daniels will be able to speak freely about her alleged affair with Trump without the fear of legal or financial repercussions. As the Wall Street Journal points out, scrapping the agreement wouldn’t end all of Cohen’s and Daniel’s legal entanglements with one another: Daniels also has a defamation claim against Cohen related to his public comments. Both Cohen and Daniels have set up separate crowdfunding pages to help them raise money for their legal battles, including against one another.
The dismissal of the hush agreement lawsuit would likely mean that Avenatti wouldn’t be able to keep trying to depose Trump or Cohen about the payment, and that’s where Avenatti has taken issue. He told the Journal he would be “shocked” if Daniels agreed. “This is a hail Mary to try and avoid [a deposition], that’s my first guess,” Avenatti told CNN.
Daniels and Avenatti are scheduled to appear on ABC’s The View next week, where they’ve teased a “big announcement.”
As for the $130,000, Daniels already offered to pay it back months ago, though it’s unclear who would keep the money if she does return it. Trump reimbursed Cohen for the payment after it was made.
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics ... a-avenatti
by seemslikeadream » Fri Sep 14, 2018 4:25 pm
Poor Republicans: they're going to be about 2 months behind the more criminal exposed rats fleeing Trump's ship, at which point their taint will be very ugly too.
Michael Cohen Is the Latest Former Trump Ally to Talk to Mueller
In the wake of Manafort’s plea deal, sources confirm that it is now common knowledge among Cohen’s inner circle that Trump’s former lawyer has been in contact with the special counsel’s office.
Emily Jane Fox
The Cohen Files
Attorneys for Donald Trump were dealt another major blow on Friday as Paul Manafort, the president’s former campaign chairman, agreed to cooperate with Special Counsel Robert Mueller as part of a deal that involved pleading guilty to two conspiracy charges. Andrew Weissmann, a prosecutor from Mueller’s office, explained to the judge that as part of the deal, all other charges against Manafort will be dropped at sentencing or “at the agreement of successful cooperation.” Under the agreement, Manafort agreed to forfeit four properties and multiple bank accounts, along with cooperating with investigators by participating in interviews, providing documents and testifying in court.
Manafort is one of a number of members of Trump’s inner circle who have cut deals with the special counsel’s office, including former national security adviser Michael Flynn and Manafort deputy Rick Gates. In recent weeks, it has also become common knowledge among close friends of Michael Cohen, Trump’s former personal attorney, that Cohen is talking to the Mueller team, according to people familiar with the situation. (Cohen did not respond to request for comment, nor did his attorney, Guy Petrillo. A spokesman for the special counsel’s office declined to comment.)
The extent and purpose of those talks is not entirely clear. Last month, Cohen pleaded guilty to eight counts of tax evasion, lying to a bank, and campaign-finance violations. During his allocution in front of a packed courtroom, Cohen read carefully chosen words stating that Trump had directed him to make payments to two women who had alleged affairs with the then-candidate, implicating the president as his co-conspirator. Trump subsequently criticized Cohen, contrasting his disloyalty with the contemporaneous actions of Manafort, who he tweeted had “refused to break” by making up stories in order to get a deal. “Such respect for a brave man!” he added. (Trump has denied sexual relationships with both women, and has maintained that he did nothing wrong.)
For months, Cohen has appeared to signal his willingness to cooperate with the government, both with the Southern District of New York and the special counsel’s office. While prosecutors for the Southern District did not initially approach Cohen about a cooperating agreement before he pleaded guilty, many speculated that he could still cut a deal in the months between the plea and his sentencing in December. Those familiar with Cohen’s thinking were unsure about what he might have to offer prosecutors, but because he had worked so closely with Trump and his family for more than a decade, it was assumed that he could potentially be a useful corroborating witness.
It is a remarkable reversal from a year ago, when Cohen told me he would take a bullet for the president. But Cohen has now been squeezed financially, emotionally, and legally in a way he could not have imagined. Since last month, his primary concern has been his family—what a prison sentence could mean for them, and what his financial situation will look like, given his mounting legal bills and lack of income. He had expressed to friends that he was willing to share what he knows, both because he wants to be on the right side of history, and to spare them. As one longtime friend of Cohen’s put it to me, “He doesn’t feel he needs to go out of his way to protect Trump anymore, particularly because Trump has gone out of his way to hurt Michael.” Earlier this week, Cohen and his attorney sat down with New York state tax-department officials, who subpoenaed him last month as part of their inquiry into the Trump Foundation.
According to people close to him, Cohen closely watched the White House’s reaction to his allocution in court last month. He listened as Trump railed against anyone who makes a plea deal, telling Fox News that cooperating with the government “almost ought to be outlawed.” And he has bristled at the feeling that he has taken the fall for a man who has refused to take any responsibility or face any consequence himself. In conversations with Mueller’s team, he is making good on what he told ABC earlier this summer: that his loyalty to Trump is no longer his lodestar.
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/09 ... en-mueller
by seemslikeadream » Fri Sep 21, 2018 8:22 am
Michael Cohen is giving Mueller's Russia probe 'critical information' on Trump
Michael Balsamo, Associated Press
Michael Cohen and Donald Trump. Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer says he is providing "critical information" as part special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 US election.
Michael Cohen, who pleaded guilty to campaign finance and other charges last month, said Thursday he is providing the information to prosecutors without a cooperation agreement.
For more than a decade, Cohen was Trump's personal lawyer, and he was a key power player in the Trump Organization and a fixture in Trump's political life.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer says he is providing "critical information" as part special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election and possible coordination between Russia and the Trump campaign.
Trump's longtime fixer-turned-foe could be a vital witness for prosecutors as they investigate whether Trump's campaign coordinated with Russians. For more than a decade, Cohen was Trump's personal lawyer, and he was a key power player in the Trump Organization and a fixture in Trump's political life.
Cohen pleaded guilty in August to eight federal charges and said Trump directed him to arrange payments before the 2016 election to buy the silence of porn actress Stormy Daniels and a former Playboy model who had both alleged they had affairs with Trump. It was the first time any Trump associate implicated Trump himself in a crime, though whether — or when — a president can be prosecuted remains a matter of legal dispute.
On Thursday night, Cohen tweeted: "Good for @MichaelCohen212 for providing critical information to the #MuellerInvestigation without a cooperation agreement. No one should question his integrity, veracity or loyalty to his family and country over @POTUS @realDonaldTrump."
The tweet was deleted almost immediately and was later reposted by his attorney, Lanny Davis, who said he wrote the tweet for Cohen and asked him to tweet it because he has a "much larger following." Davis said he was delayed posting the tweet on his own account, so Cohen tweeted it first.
ABC News reported earlier Thursday that Cohen has met several times — for several hours — with investigators from the special counsel's office.
The television network, citing sources familiar with the matter, said he was questioned about Trump's dealings with Russia, including whether members of the Trump campaign worked with Russians to try to influence the outcome of the election.
Davis had asserted last month that his client could tell the special counsel that Trump had prior knowledge of a June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower with a Russian lawyer, Trump's son-in-law and Trump's eldest son, who had been told in emails that it was part of a Russian government effort to help his father's campaign. But Davis later walked back the assertions, saying he could not independently confirm the claims that Cohen witnessed Trump's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., telling his father about the Trump Tower meeting beforehand.
In the last two weeks, the special counsel secured the cooperation of Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort; signaled that he has obtained all the information he needs from former national security adviser Michael Flynn — who was also a government cooperator; and dispensed with the case of the campaign aide who triggered the Russia probe.
The president has continued a very public battle against the Mueller investigation, repeatedly calling it a politically motivated and "rigged witch hunt." He has said he is going to declassify secret documents in the Russia investigation, an extraordinary move that he says will show that the investigation was tainted from the start by bias in the Justice Department and FBI.
https://www.businessinsider.com/cohen-i ... ump-2018-9
by seemslikeadream » Fri Nov 02, 2018 4:56 pm
Michael Cohen Says Trump Repeatedly Used Racist Language Before His Presidency
As he awaits sentencing, Trump’s former lawyer says that he wants to clear his conscience and warn voters about what he sees as the president’s true nature in advance of the midterm elections.
Emily Jane FoxNovember 2, 2018 2:30 pm
Trump rallies in Columbia, Missouri on November 1, 2018.
By Scott Olson/Getty Images.
On Tuesday, mourners gathered in Pittsburgh to honor the victims of the harrowing attack on the Tree of Life synagogue. Days earlier, as they observed Shabbat, 11 Jews were murdered. Robert Bowers, the alleged suspect, later told a SWAT officer that he wanted all Jews to die. (Bowers has since pleaded not guilty.) The tragedy united thousands of Jews in Pittsburgh, who peacefully protested Donald Trump’s visit to the synagogue earlier this week. It also consumed a far larger constituency, which remained aghast that the alleged killer was motivated by fear fanned by the president of the United States.
Michael Cohen, the president’s former lawyer, was among those closely following the story. The son of a Holocaust survivor, Cohen has remained largely silent since the F.B.I. executed search warrants on his home, hotel room, and office this past spring. In August, he pleaded guilty to charges related to campaign-finance violations and tax fraud, and at the advice of counsel, he has not spoken publicly about his case or his relationship with the president ever since. Privately, he has been cooperating with investigators in the Southern District of New York, the special counsel’s office, and New York State. (He faces sentencing in the Southern District next month.) Yet Cohen wanted to express himself in the wake of the tragedy. Shortly after the sun rose on Tuesday, he tweeted, “In honor of those sadly being buried today resulting from #AntiSemitism #PittsburghSynagogueShooting, let’s follow the wisdom and thoughtful words of #RabbiJeffreyMyers ‘it can’t just be to say we need to stop hate. We need to do, we need to act to tone down rhetoric.’”
Like many, Cohen has observed the president’s scorched-earth campaign tactics as the midterm elections approach, and as the prospect of a Democratic House majority beckons, with its attendant promise of investigations and inquiries. He has heard Trump’s constant invocation of the migrant caravan moving through Central America; he’s noticed the president threaten to revoke birthright citizenship; he’s noted Trump’s tweet calling Florida’s African-American gubernatorial candidate, Andrew Gillum, a “thief,” without any evidence. He also watched Trump shirk responsibility after it was discovered that Bowers invoked the caravan in posts online ahead of the mass murder in Pittsburgh, and after one of his ardent supporters was charged last week with mailing pipe bombs to notable Democrats and other frequent Trumpian targets. (The suspect plans to plead not guilty.) On Twitter and during rallies, Trump has referred to the media as “the enemy of the people,” blaming the free press for “the anger we see today in our society.”
That message rang hollow to those most familiar with the president and his language, including Cohen, who said he has spent the last several months quietly reflecting on his former boss and his own role in the Trump Organization. Amid the president’s recent tirades, Cohen has re-registered as a Democrat and urged people on Twitter to vote in the midterm elections, calling it possibly “the most important vote in our lifetime.” He said that events also activated within him an urge to reveal details from his tenure at the Trump Organization, during which he said the president privately uttered chilling, racist language in one-on-one conversations. On Tuesday, the day of the first funerals in Pittsburgh, he shared some of these memories.
Certainly, Cohen is aggrieved, and his credibility has been questioned by the president, his lawyers, and others. His allegations could inflame the very divisions that he’s said he wants to diffuse. Through the president’s public attacks against him, he stayed silent, as his lawyers advised, and he’s taken a risk in sharing these recollections on the record. When I asked him why he was coming forward now with such uncomfortable claims, Cohen was clear: he knew that the president’s private comments were worse than his public rhetoric, and he wanted to offer potential voters what he believed was evidence of Trump’s character in advance of the midterm elections.
During our conversation, Cohen recalled a discussion at Trump Tower, following the then-candidate’s return from a campaign rally during the 2016 election cycle. Cohen had watched the rally on TV and noticed that the crowd was largely Caucasian. He offered this observation to his boss. “I told Trump that the rally looked vanilla on television. Trump responded, ‘That’s because black people are too stupid to vote for me.’” (The White House did not respond to multiple requests for comment.)
This conversation, he noted, was reminiscent of an exchange that the two men had engaged in years earlier, after Nelson Mandela’s death. “[Trump] said to me, ‘Name one country run by a black person that’s not a shithole,’ and then he added, ‘Name one city,’” Cohen recalled, a statement that echoed the president’s alleged comments about African nations earlier this year. (White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders denied those comments at the time. She added that “no one here is going to pretend like the president is always politically correct—he isn’t.” She subsequently noted that it was “one of the reasons the American people love him.”)
Cohen also recounted a conversation he had with Trump in the late 2000s, while they were traveling to Chicago for a Trump International Hotel board meeting. “We were going from the airport to the hotel, and we drove through what looked like a rougher neighborhood. Trump made a comment to me, saying that only the blacks could live like this.” After the first few seasons of The Apprentice, Cohen recalled how he and Trump were discussing the reality show and past season winners. The conversation wended its way back to the show’s first season, which ended in a head-to-head between two contestants, Bill Rancic and Kwame Jackson. “Trump was explaining his back-and-forth about not picking Jackson,” an African-American investment manager who had graduated from Harvard Business School. “He said, ‘There’s no way I can let this black f-g win.’” (Jackson told me that he had heard that the president made such a comment. “My response to President Trump is simple and Wakandan,” he said, referring to the fictional African country where Black Panther hails from. “‘Not today, colonizer!’”)
In retrospect, Cohen told me that he wishes he had quit the Trump Organization when he heard these offensive remarks. “I should have been a bigger person, and I should have left,” he said. He didn’t, he said, because he grew numb to the language and, in awe of the job, forgave his boss’s sins. Cohen, in fact, even defended the president publicly against charges of racism. Last year, he explicitly tweeted as much. Cohen explained that he defended the president because he thought the magnitude of the office would eventually force him to be more judicious with his words. “I truly thought the office would change him,” he said. But it hasn’t, Cohen continued. In fact, he said, it has exacerbated his rhetoric.
Cohen’s claims would damage most presidents. Trump, however, survived the Access Hollywood tape in the run-up to the presidential election in 2016. His supporters stayed with him after his jarring “both sides” comment regarding the racial violence in Charlottesville, and didn’t bend when Omarosa Manigault Newman accused him of using vile racial language after she left the White House. (Trump referred to her as “that dog” after her book came out.) When Trump portrayed Brett Kavanaugh as a man under siege, his poll numbers went up. Trump seems to perform best with his base when he appears like his back is up against the wall. For Cohen’s part, he said he is hoping that people bear his words in mind as they cast their ballots on Tuesday. He will.
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/11 ... al_twitter
by seemslikeadream » Fri Dec 07, 2018 12:41 pm
MICHAEL COHEN AND FELIX SATER’S EVOLVING COOPERATION AGAINST TRUMP
December 7, 2018/6 Comments/in 2016 Presidential Election, emptywheel, Mueller Probe /by empty wheel
Among the things I remain most amazed by, in the Russian investigation, is that even while Trump and the GOP are trying to discredit the Mueller investigation by claiming, without evidence, that the Deep State had a bunch of informants infiltrate Trump’s campaign, no one has ever alleged that Felix Sater had been sent by the Deep State, even though he had a known background of being an informant for the Deep State before this whole thing began. And while Trump has attacked Michael Cohen viciously since he discovered (after his personal lawyer got raided by the Feds), that Cohen had recordings that exposed Trump personally, it still seems that Cohen and Sater may be shading their coordinated testimony to protect Trump from the worst implications of the Trump Tower deal. I’ve even heard chatter that Cohen remained in touch with Trump as recently as September.
I argued back in August 2017 that Mueller had seemed to form a prosecutorial team with the lessons his FBI learned via Felix Sater. That was before BuzzFeed reported in March that Sater actually had ties to six of Mueller’s prosecutors, starting with Andrew Weissmann.
Today, as he is being questioned about Trump’s business deals and ties to Russia, he has built relationships with at least six members of special counsel Robert Mueller’s team, some going back more than 10 years.
Signing Sater’s cooperation agreement for the Department of Justice was Andrew Weissmann, then an assistant US attorney and now a key member of the special counsel’s team. Mueller himself would be the FBI director for most of the time Sater served as a source.
Even given the extensive background Mueller’s team has with Sater, they seem to have delayed interviewing him until fairly late in the process: December 2017. And it looks like Sater was no more forthright when he first met with Congress (and therefore possibly even Mueller’s team) than Cohen was.
In anticipation of today’s sentencing filings, I’d like to track the evolving stories on the Trump Tower deal, because I’m genuinely curious whether Cohen has now been more forthcoming than Sater.
May 31, 2017: Cohen and his lawfirm subpoenaed by HPSCI. Facing the problems with the Trump Tower story would have come up within weeks of Jim Comey’s firing, when the House Intelligence Committee — which was still conducting a marginally credible investigation — first asked and then subpoenaed him for documents. Ironically, they were likely after documents pertaining to the Steele dossier allegations, which may have been why Devin Nunes so readily assented to a subpoena. Those allegations have amounted to nothing, thus far.
July 8, 2017: First report on June 9 meeting creates a rush for testimony on that topic.
July 19, 2017: SJC requests documents from Trump organization. The request was written targeted specifically to the influence campaign, not ties with Russia generally, though it should have at least obligated Trump Organization to preserve the company’s contacts with Russian government officials.
If this has not yet been done, we ask that you immediately take steps to preserve all relevant documents in the possession, custody, or control of the Trump Organization related to Russian interference in the 2016 election, including documents related to the Trump Organization’s or Trump campaign’s3 contacts with: Russian government officials, associates, or representatives; any individuals who purported to act or whom were believed to be acting on behalf of Russian government officials, associates, or representatives; anyone who might have been involved in or in receipt of information obtained as a result of Russia’s influence campaign
But Sater was not among those it included in the communication list.
all communications to, from, or copied to the Trump Organization relating to Rob Goldstone, Emin Agalarov, Aras Agalarov, Natalia Veselnitskaya, Rinat Akhmetshin, Anatoli Samochornov, Irakly (Ike) Kaveladze, Christopher Steele, Aleksej Gubarev, Webzilla B.V., XBT Holdings S.A., Alfa Group, Dmitry Peskov, Vladimir Putin, the Ritz Carlton Moscow Hotel, Paul Manafort, Carter Page, Igor Sechin, Sergei Ivanov, Igor Divyekin, Sergei Millian, Dmitry Medvedev, Michael Flynn, Jill Stein, Michael Cohen, Konstantin Kosachev, Viktor Yanukovych, Corey Lewandowski, Sergei Kislyak, Yuri Ushakov, Anton Vaino, Mikhail Kalugin, Andrei Bondarev, Mikhail Fridman, Petr Aven, German Khan, Oleg Govorun, Sergey Lavrov, Rosneft, Sergei Kiriyenko, Oleg Solodukhin. This shall include any documents referring to any of the aforementioned using alternate spellings, pseudonyms, nicknames, abbreviations, or codes;
The very same day SJC submitted a document request that would not cover Trump’s business ties to Russia, the NYT published the interview in which it obediently set a “red line” on Trump’s businesses that Mueller should not cross.
August 27-28, 2017: Probably because of the way the June 9 meeting was disclosed, Congress more aggressively pursued testimony on it than on other issues. As a result, Don Jr got a request — and an early hearing date — for testimony from the Senate Judiciary Committee. In the lead-up to that (and to his own SSCI interview), Michael Cohen conducted a preemptive limited hangout on the Trump Tower story. It started with a WaPo scoop that cited several people familiar with the proposal when telling Cohen’s partial version, one of whom must be Cohen.
Trump never went to Moscow as Sater proposed. And although investors and Trump’s company signed a letter of intent, they lacked the land and permits to proceed and the project was abandoned at the end of January 2016, just before the presidential primaries began, several people familiar with the proposal said.
The next day, the Trump Organization turned over [some, but obviously not all of the] emails on the deal to Congress, leading to more reporting on it. At the same time, Cohen turned over a statement on the projected project, the following parts of which got quoted in his statement of the offense.
The proposal was under consideration at the [Company] from September 2015 until the end of January 2016 . By the end of January 2016 , I determined that the proposal was not feasible for a variety of business reasons and should not be pursued further . Based on my business determinations, the [Company] abandoned the [Moscow Project] proposal . To the best of my knowledge , [Individual l] was never in contact with anyone about this proposal other than me on three occasions . I did not ask or brief [Individual l] , or any of his family , before I made the decision to terminate further work on the proposal.
I primarily communicated with the Moscow- based development company . through a U. S . citizen third- party intermediary , [Individual 2] . [ Individual 2] constantly asked me to travel to Moscow as part of his efforts to push forward the discussion of the proposal . I ultimately determined that the proposal was not feasible and never agreed to make a trip to Russia . Despite overtures by [Individual 2] , I never considered asking [Individual l] to travel to Russia in connection with this proposal .
In mid- January 2016 , [Individual 2] suggested that I send an email to [Russian Official l] , the Press Secretary for the President of Russia , since the proposal would require approvals within the Russian government that had not been issued . Those permissions were never provided . I decided to abandon the proposal less than two weeks later for business reasons and do not recall any response to my email , nor any other contacts by me with [Russian Official l] or other Russian government officials about the proposal
Also that day, WSJ reported another part of the cover story: that Cohen had talked to Trump about it, but just three times. Later that day, WSJ published an interview with Cohen who described, in helpful detail for anyone trying to coordinate stories, the three contacts with Trump about it he admitted to.
In 2015, Mr. Cohen said, he informed the then-candidate that he was working on a licensing deal for a Trump Tower in Moscow. He subsequently asked for and received Mr. Trump’s signature on a nonbinding letter of intent for the project in October 2015. And in January 2016, he said, he informed the then-candidate that he had killed the proposal. Mr. Cohen said each conversation was brief.
NYT, too, picked up the story, even republishing fragments of emails sent during 2015. It did repeat Felix Sater’s boast that by building a Trump Tower it could get Trump elected. However, it quotes Sater seemingly backing the shortened (September 2015 through January 2016) timeline of the deal.
“During the course of our communications over several months, I routinely expressed my enthusiasm regarding what a tremendous opportunity this was for the Trump Organization,” Mr. Sater said.
By August 28, all media outlets had focused on the January 2016 Cohen email to the general press line for Dmitri Peskov, which was attention getting (because it involved Putin’s close aide) but could also be pitched to show (because Cohen used the general press line rather than a more direct line to Peskov) how few contacts with Russia Cohen purportedly had. Trump Organization provided a statement that mirrored Cohen’s lie that the deal had died in January 2016. It is clear that Cohen and Trump Organization coordinated this roll-out. Yet Cohen has not yet publicly disclosed that coordination.
August 30, 2017: On August 30, Dmitri Peskov substantially backed Cohen’s story. Notably, he denied knowing either Cohen or Sater and said that Vladimir Putin had never known about the deal. It’s possible — likely, even — that Peskov was just taking cues from Cohen’s public leaks of his cover story, though it would awfully damning if this coordination went further.
August 31, 2017: Then, Cohen released the letter his attorney had sent — two weeks earlier — along with two earlier tranches of documents for Congress. Having done his limited hangout of the Moscow deal, releasing the letter that focused entirely on his denials with respect to the Steele dossier shifted the focus back on that.
September 7, 2017: SJC interviews Don Jr. While he didn’t tell huge lies, he nevertheless claimed to know “very little” about the 2015-2016 Trump Tower Moscow deal, being only “peripherally aware” of the negotiations. Perhaps his most specific lie was that he did not know of Trump lawyer Michael Cohen’s outreach to the Kremlin seeking President Vladimir Putin’s help on the deal until that news had been reported by the press just weeks earlier.
September 19, 2017: Cohen attempts to preempt an interview with SSCI by releasing a partial statement before testifying, only to have SSCI balk and reschedule the interview. The statement alluded to, but did not incorporate, the statement on the Trump Tower deal he had released on August 28, though even his allusion to it included lies.
I assume we will discuss the rejected proposal to build a Trump property in Moscow that was terminated in January of 2016; which occurred before the Iowa caucus and months before the very first primary. This was solely a real estate deal and nothing more. I was doing my job. I would ask that the two-page statement about the Moscow proposal that I sent to the Committee in August be incorporated into and attached to this transcript.
October 24, 2017: HPSCI interviews Cohen. The timing of the interviews of the three players in the Trump Tower deal is rather curious, especially given Richard Burr’s recent suggestions the committee is working closely with Mueller. SSCI got Cohen and Don Jr on the record during the same period HPSCI was getting all three on the record. But SSCI doesn’t yet get Sater on the record, and it’s not until that same time period (presumably after the HPSCI interview) until Mueller gets Sater, even with his long relationship with six of Mueller’s team members, on the record. As the HPSCI report makes clear, however, as late as December 14, Sater was still telling a story that conflicts with the story both he and Cohen are currently telling.
October 25, 2017: SSCI interviews Cohen.
December 6, 2017: HPSCI interviews Don Jr. Of the three men, Don Jr gets closest to the truth in his interview with HPSCI, but in ways that conflict with his September SJC testimony.
December 13, 2017: SSCI staff interviews Don Jr.
December 14, 2017: HPSCI interviews Felix Sater in his lawyers’ NYC office.
December 2017: Mueller interviews Sater.
March 5, 2018: Mueller adds questions about the Trump Tower deal to those he wants Trump to answer. Note, this comes in the wake of Rick Gates’ cooperation deal; we still do not know what senior campaign official knew of Cohen’s attempts to travel to Russia as part of the Trump Tower deal but it’s possible Gates was in the loop on it.
March 12, 2018: BuzzFeed’s first long piece relying on Felix Sater focuses (like his statement to HPSCI) on his time as an informant, not the Trump Tower deal. It does, however, provide an unsatisfying explanation for why he thought building a Trump Tower would help Trump get elected.
Did he think the Trump Moscow deal could get Trump elected?
Even Trump “is fucking surprised he became the president.”
Then why send that email?
“If a deal can get done and I could make money and he could look like a statesman, what the fuck is the downside, right?”
It also includes details on the Ukrainian deal, and ends with Sater’s insistence (among comments explaining why he won’t say mean things about Trump) that once Trump leaves office he intends to build Trump Tower.
“First thing I plan to do when Trump leaves office, whether it’s next week, in 2020 or four years later, is march right into his office and say, ‘Let’s build Trump Moscow.’
“I’m serious.”
It also shows that the statement Sater gave to HPSCI doesn’t address his involvement with Trump at all, but instead focuses on his service as an informant. Which may explain the gratuitous statement on those activities in HPSCI’s report.
March 15, 2018: NYT reports that Mueller has subpoenaed Trump Org for documents relating to Russia, which it uses to suggest Mueller is inching closer to the false red line the NYT so obediently set in August 2017. Keep in mind: by this point the known witnesses on Trump Tower had claimed there was no follow-up on the Peskov email, which suggests they had reason to believe the discovery shared with Congress (which is what Mueller got in the first round) did not tell the complete story. If Gates was in the loop on the Cohen negotiations, Mueller would have known by that point that Trump Organization had withheld responsive documents.
March 22, 2018: HPSCI releases Russia Report. It shows that both Sater and Cohen were telling the same cover story when they met with the committee in October and December 2017, respectively, Don Jr’s December testimony was closer to the truth (and as such probably in conflict with his September testimony to SJC). But as the bolded passages make clear, HPSCI had a pretty good idea they were being lied to.
In approximately September 2015, he received a separate proposal for Trump Tower Moscow from a businessman named [Sater] According to Cohen, the concept of the project was that “[t]he Trump Organization would lend its name and management skills, but It was not going to borrow any money and it would not have any resulting debt for the purchase of the land and the building of the facility.”;~ Cohen worked on this idea with [Sater] and his company, the Bayrock Group, a real estate consultancy that had previously worked with the Trump Organization.
[gratuitous paragraph on what a colorful fellow Sater is — see note on statement, above]
(U) After signing a letter of intent with a local developer in October 2015,36 Cohen and [Sater] exchanged a number of emails and text messages in late 2015 detailing their attempts to move the project forward. For instance, in December 2015, [Sater] tried to get Cohen and candidate Trump to travel to Russia to work on the project.
(U) Several of [Sater’s] communications with Cohen involved an attempt to broker a meeting or other ties between candidate Trump and President Putin, and purported to convey Russian government interest in the project. Perhaps most notably, [Sater] told Cohen in a November 3, 2015, email, “[b]uddy our boy can become President of the USA and we can engineer it.” 39 [Sater] continued that if “Putin gets on stage with Donald for a ribbon cutting for Trump Moscow, . .. Donald owns the republican nomination.” 10 This assertion apparently arose from [Sater’s] rather grandiose theory that cementing a deal with a hostile U.S. adversary would increase candidate Trump’s foreign policy bona fides.41
(U) Sater testified that his communications with Cohen regarding President Putin were ”mere puffery,” designed to elicit a response from the · Trump Organization to move the project along.42 [Sater] explained that “[u]ntil the bank writes the check, it’s all salesmanship and promotion to try to get many, many, many parties towards the center to try to get the deal done.” 43 Cohen similarly characterized [Sater] as “a salesman” who “uses very colorful language.”44
(U) When the project started proceeding too slowly for the Trump Organization,45 Cohen and [Sater] began to exchange acrimonious text messages. 46 As part of those text messages [Sater] told Cohen that President Putin’s people were backing the deal, including “this is thru Putins [sic] administration, and nothing gets done there without approval from the top,” as well as meetings in Russia with “Ministers” and “Putins [sic] top administration people.”] [Sater] also mentioned Dmitry Peskov (President Putin’s spokesman) would “most likely” be included. 48
(U) Cohen thus attempted to reach out to members of the Russian government in an attempt to make the project proceed, but apparently did not have any direct points of contact. for example, Cohen sent an email to a general press mailbox at the Kremlin in an effort to reach Peskov.49 Cohen’s message notes that he has been working with a local partner to build a Trump Tower in Moscow and that communications have stalled with the local partner.50 The email further seeks contact with Peskov so they may ” discuss the specifics as well as arrang[e] meetings with the appropriate individuals.”51 Based on the documents produced to the Committee, it does not appear Cohen ever received a response from anyone affiliated with the Russian government.
(U) [Sater’s] testimony likewise made clear that neither President Putin nor any element of the Russian government was actually directly involved in the project. For instance, in one exchange, [Sater] testified he was offering the Trump Organization access to one of his acquaintances. This acquaintance was an acquaintance of someone else who is “partners on a real estate development with a friend of Putin’s.” 52
[Sater] testified that he was unaware of “any direct meetings with any [Russian] government officials” in connection with the Trump Tower Moscow project.53 In addition, neither candidate Trump nor Cohen traveled to Russia in support of the deal.54
[U] It appears the Trump Tower Moscow project failed in January 2016.57 Trump Jr. testified that, as of early June 2016, he believed the Trump Tower Moscow project was dormant.53 The project failed because “[t]he due diligence did not come through” and the Trump Organization’s representative “lost confidence in the licensee, and [he] abandoned the project.”59 In fact, the Trump Organization did not have a confirmed site, so the deal never reached the point where the company was discussing financing arrangements for the project.60 The Committee determined that the Trump Tower Moscow project did not progress beyond an early developmental phase, and that this potential licensing deal was not related to the Trump campaign.61
So by March 22, at least some of the people with influence over the HPSCI report (it’s unclear whether Democrats had any influence on the final product at this point at all) had doubts about whether Cohen got a response from the Kremlin, used hedged language about whether either candidate Trump or Cohen planned on traveling to Russia (a particularly important hedge, as Cohen appears to have made plans to do so specifically in response to the June 9 meeting), and didn’t entirely believe the deal failed in January. Indeed, Don Jr’s language suggested it continued afterwards.
April 4, 2018: SSCI interviews Felix Sater. Given that Sater almost certainly lied in his Mueller interview — given its proximity to the interview with HPSCI where he told the cover story — this may have been an attempt to see what the interim story would be. Note that it immediately precedes the Cohen raid. The BuzzFeed story published the following month, which noted discrepancies between Sater’s then currently operative story and Cohen’s, suggests that Sater did provide more of the truth to SSCI, noting, for example, that Trump got regular updates.
Last month, Senate Intelligence Committee staffers peppered Sater for hours with questions about the Trump Moscow project. Sater testified that Cohen acted as the “intermediary” for Trump Moscow and was eager to see the deal through because he wanted to “score points with Trump.”
Sater also testified that Trump would regularly receive “short updates about the process of the deal.”
And it revealed the plans went on into “at least” June.
[N]ew records show he was still working on it with Sater at least into June. In May, six weeks before the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Sater asked Cohen when he and Trump would go to Moscow. In a text message, Cohen replied: “MY trip before Cleveland. Trump once he becomes the nominee after the convention.”
April 9, 2018: Cohen raided by SDNY, based on a subpoena that names “many” people. In litigation that follows, SDNY made several claims about Cohen’s cooperation to this point, including fact-checking whether or not he has been fully cooperative with Mueller’s inquiry. Key to that was Cohen’s efforts to limit what Trump Organization turned over.
Cohen also states that the SCO “had requested that the Trump Organization produce all of Mr. Cohen’s communications that were within the Trump Organization’s custody, possession, or control,” and that Cohen objected “on the grounds that [the request] called for production of privileged communications, among other things.” (Br. 8-9). Although in the ordinary course, the USAO-SDNY would not comment on investigative requests or demands made to third parties, particularly those from a separate office undertaking its own, independent investigation, in light of the representations made by Cohen’s counsel, USAO-SDNY contacted the SCO about these representations and understands they are not accurate. In particular, the SCO did not request that the Trump Organization produce “all communications” by Cohen in the Trump Organization’s possession or control irrespective of subject matter or privilege. Indeed, the request made by the SCO was considerably narrower, and specifically omitted, among other things, any documents that were protected by privilege or of a purely personal nature. Cohen nonetheless objected to that request for documents and, after discussions between Cohen’s counsel and the SCO, the SCO decided not to seek production at that time. That Cohen sought to preclude the Trump Organization from producing these third party communications belies both (i) his general assertion of cooperation, and (ii) his stated principal interest in protecting attorney-client communications. Indeed, a careful review of Cohen’s motion papers reveals that he does not purport to have personally produced any documents to the SCO.
The SDNY statement also included a redacted passage suggesting that Cohen (or perhaps Trump Organization?) may have already destroyed evidence.
Elsewhere, the filing notes that “USAO-SDNY has already obtained search warrants – covert until this point – on multiple different email accounts maintained by Cohen,” which may by why they knew he might delete things.
For its part, Trump Organization tried to demand every single thing written between Cohen and the Trump Organization to be treated as privileged.
We consider each and every communication by, between or amongst Mr. Cohen and the Trump Organization and each of its officers, directors and employees, to be subject to and protected by the attorney- client privilege and/or the work-product privilege.
May 17, 2018: BuzzFeed presents what it calls the definitive story on Trump Tower deal, relying on “emails, text messages, congressional testimony, architectural renderings, and other documents.” As noted above, in the guise of telling BuzzFeed what his April testimony had been to SSCI, Sater admitted that Trump had gotten regular updates and that the deal went on into at least June.
But there were details that, the story made clear, Sater was still hiding. That includes the name of someone Sater and the developer, Andrey Rozov, met in early November 2015, in the Bahamas.
About a week after Trump signed the document, Sater and Rozov, the developer, went on vacation to the Bahamas. Rozov rented Little Whale Cay, a private island, for $175,000, and the two men went diving and spearfishing. In an email, Sater told Cohen that another, unidentified friend was flying in to join them. This mystery individual, who is not named in the documents and whom Sater would not identify, knew two of the richest and most powerful men in Russia, the Rotenberg brothers.
And there are differences between what Sater said publicly and what Cohen said. Sater focuses on this follow-up in the wake of Cohen’s attempt to reach Peksov.
Four days later, Cohen received a letter from Andrey Ryabinskiy, a Russian mortgage tycoon and boxing promoter. “In furtherance of our previous conversations regarding the development of the Trump Tower Moscow project,” Ryabinskiy wrote, “we would like to respectfully invite you to Moscow for a working visit.” The meeting would be to tour plots of land for the potential tower, to have “round table discussions,” and to coordinate a follow-up visit by Trump himself. Ryabinskiy did not return a message left with his attorney.
It is not clear how Cohen responded, but Sater asked Cohen for travel dates for both Cohen and Trump the same afternoon Ryabinskiy sent the letter. “Will do,” Cohen wrote.
Sater’s story doesn’t reflect the discussion with Peskov’s assistant that Cohen’s current story does.
Perhaps most remarkably, Sater seems to telegraph to Cohen a story about messages from between January and May being lost.
Sater has told investigators that during the first months of 2016, he and Cohen were using Dust, at Cohen’s suggestion, to communicate secretly about the Moscow project. Those messages, which were encrypted and are deleted automatically, have disappeared forever, Sater told BuzzFeed News. But on May 3, the day Trump won the Indiana primary and his top opponent Ted Cruz suspended his campaign, Sater sent Cohen an ordinary text message: “Should I dial you now?”
The claim that Sater and Cohen shifted to Dust and then shifted back to iMessage to plan travel in May doesn’t make any sense, and suggests something else is going on.
Finally, Sater’s story makes no mention of what Sater was doing in Trump Tower on July 21, ending instead with a dubious story about seeing a July 26 Trump tweet denying any business deals in Russia and realizing the deal was over. Anyone who knows Trump as well as Sater must, has to know that a public statement from Trump as often as not means the opposite of what he says. As I’ve suggested, it seems that the deal didn’t die, it just moved under a Sergei Millian and George Papadopoulos carried rock.
June 20, 2018: Cohen steps down from RNC position.
July 27, 2018: Sources claim Cohen is willing to testify he was present, with others, when Trump approved of the June 9 meeting with the Russians.
August 7, 2018: First Cohen proffer to Mueller.
August 21, 2018: Cohen pleads guilty to SDNY charges. Warner and Burr publicly note that Cohen’s claim to know about the June 9 meeting ahead of time conflicts with his testimony to the committee.
September 12, 2018: Second proffer.
September 18, 2018: Third proffer.
October 8, 2018: Fourth proffer.
October 17, 2018: Fifth proffer.
November 12, 2018: Sixth proffer.
November 20, 2018: Seventh proffer.
November 29, 2018: Cohen pleads guilty to false statements charge. In his statement to the court, he does not say that Trump (or anyone else at Trump Organization) ordered him to lie. Rather, he said that he did so to be consistent with Trump’s messaging.
I made these statements to be consistent with Individual-1’s political messaging and out of loyalty to Individual-1,
In his official statement, Rudy claims that Trump Organization turned over the documents underlying Cohen’s plea, which is almost certainly a lie.
It is important to understand that documents that the Special Counsel’s Office is using to show that Cohen lied to Congress were voluntarily disclosed by the Trump Organization because there was nothing to hide.
After the plea, Rudy gives an unbelievably hedged statement about whether the Trump Tower deal ever really died.
“The president, as far as he knows, he remembers there was such a proposal for a hotel,” Giuliani said. “He talked it over with Cohen as Cohen said. There was a nonbinding letter of intent that was sent. As far as he knows it never came to fruition. That was kind of the end of it.”
The day of Cohen’s plea, Sater provided BuzzFeed with materials and describes that he suggested giving Vladimir Putin a penthouse to make Trump Tower more lucrative. But he describes that as a marketing gimmick, not a FCPA-prohibited bribe that would further compromise Trump in his relationship with Putin.
Sater told BuzzFeed News today that he and Cohen thought giving the Trump Tower’s most luxurious apartment, a $50 million penthouse, to Putin would entice other wealthy buyers to purchase their own. “In Russia, the oligarchs would bend over backwards to live in the same building as Vladimir Putin,” Sater told BuzzFeed News. “My idea was to give a $50 million penthouse to Putin and charge $250 million more for the rest of the units. All the oligarchs would line up to live in the same building as Putin.” A second source confirmed the plan.
Given that BuzzFeed says this involved a Peskov representative, Sater may have been trying to hide this detail when he provided a different emphasis on the negotiations in the interviews leading up to the May story than Cohen did in his false statements admission (that is, Sater may have responded to seeing Cohen admit that detail by calling up BuzzFeed to provide a new limited hangout).
December 5, 2018: In his sentencing memorandum, Cohen repeats his line, from the oral statement he gave during his guilty plea, that he lied of his own accord.
Michael’s false statements to Congress likewise sprung regrettably from Michael’s effort, as a loyal ally and then-champion of Client-1, to support and advance Client-1’s political messaging. At the time that he was requested to appear before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Michael was serving as personal attorney to the President, and followed daily the political messages that both Client-1 and his staff and supporters repeatedly and forcefully broadcast. Furthermore, in the weeks during which his then counsel prepared his written response to the Congressional Committees, Michael remained in close and regular contact with White House-based staff and legal counsel to Client-1.
As such, he was (a) fully aware of Client-1’s repeated disavowals of commercial and political ties between himself and Russia, as well as the strongly voiced mantra of Client-1 that investigations of such ties were politically motivated and without evidentiary support, and (b) specifically knew, consistent with Client-1’s aim to dismiss and minimize the merit of the SCO investigation, that Client-1 and his public spokespersons were seeking to portray contact with Russian representatives in any form by Client-1, the Campaign or the Trump Organization as having effectively terminated before the Iowa caucuses of February 1, 2016.
Seeking to stay in line with this message, Michael told Congress that his communications and efforts to finalize a building project in Moscow on behalf of the Trump Organization, which he began pursuing in 2015, had come to an end in January 2016, when a general inquiry he made to the Kremlin went unanswered. He also stated that his communications with Client-1 and others in the Trump Organization regarding the project were minimal and ceased at or about the same time. In fact, Michael had a lengthy substantive conversation with the personal assistant to a Kremlin official following his outreach in January 2016, engaged in additional communications concerning the project as late as June 2016, and kept Client-1 apprised of these communications. He and Client-1 also discussed possible travel to Russia in the summer of 2016, and Michael took steps to clear dates for such travel.
In the heated political environment of the moment and understanding the public message that Client-1 wished to propagate, Michael, in his written statement to Congress, foreshortened the chronology of events and his communications with Client-1 to characterize both as having terminated before the Iowa caucuses. At the time, Michael justified his false summary of the matter on the ground that the Moscow project ultimately did not go forward. He recognizes that his judgment was fundamentally wrong, and wishes both to apologize and set the record straight.
Of course, this statement depends on the truth of the claim that the deal did not go forward — something about which Trump’s lawyer seems unconvinced and about which there is some evidence to the contrary. That is, this seems to be an effort to shift the date of the agreement to June or maybe July, when the deal was still active in January 2017 when Papadopoulos lied to try to keep his hand in that deal or even still active (as Sater said for the May story) for when Trump leaves office.
But the other problem with it is that Cohen’s explanation that he made up this cover story on his own, as a kind of mirror of Trump’s concerns rather than specifically conspiring to do so, only makes sense if he was the only person to tell this lie. But, at a minimum, Sater did, and Don Jr appears to have told a version of it. Now, it’s certainly possible that Cohen and Sater coordinated their story by leaking to the press; that’s the purpose the BuzzFeed stories seem to serve.
But if, as seems virtually certain, Trump Organization didn’t turn over any communications that would conflict with that cover story, then Cohen must have coordinated with Trump Organization, at a minimum. And given how Cohen stops short of attributing this move to Trump’s orders, whereas on the Stormy payoff he does attribute it to Trump, it seems to shy away from implicating Trump as much as must have happened.
Far more importantly, Russia seemed to know the outlines of the cover story, with Peskov matching what Cohen was saying (and Peskov has now matched Cohen’s currently operative story).
Given their past clear efforts to craft a joint limited hangout, and given a lot of other details about this story that don’t make sense, it seems that Cohen and Sater may still be working Mueller’s prosecutors (whom Sater knows as well as anyone).
That’s one thing we may get a sense of from the sentencing memo due by 5PM today. In any case, Cohen won’t get a 5K letter like Mike Flynn did. He still has some cooperating to do before Mueller will give him that. So if I’m right, he may still be caught in a dangerous game.
As I disclosed in July, I provided information to the FBI on issues related to the Mueller investigation, so I’m going to include disclosure statements on Mueller investigation posts from here on out. I will include the disclosure whether or not the stuff I shared with the FBI pertains to the subject of the post.
https://www.emptywheel.net/2018/12/07/m ... nst-trump/
by seemslikeadream » Sat Dec 08, 2018 12:08 pm
SDNY returns to this argument abt Cohen hiding possible past (organized crime) past conduct.
F581C6AC-8722-44F5-BC71-C0209EF3A57B.jpeg (109.85 KiB) Viewed 687 times
by seemslikeadream » Thu Jan 10, 2019 4:25 pm
MICHAEL COHEN, President trump's former fixer and personal attorney, will testify in PUBLIC before House Oversight on Feb. 7. Expect questions about his involvement in hush money scheme to silence Trump affairs, the Trump Tower Moscow project in 2016 and other controversies
by seemslikeadream » Tue Jan 15, 2019 8:32 pm
Mysterious source close to Michael Cohen tells WSJ he won't be able to testify re: Russia/Mueller, but will testify about working for "madman" Trump and will "say things that will give you chills."
Mueller Probe Likely to Restrict Michael Cohen’s Testimony
Trump’s former lawyer may be barred from discussing matters related to talks with the special counsel and Manhattan federal prosecutors
Nicole Hong Jan. 15, 2019 3:25 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON—The testimony of Michael Cohen, President Trump’s former lawyer, before the House Oversight Committee next month is expected to be highly restricted to avoid interfering with the special counsel’s Russia investigation, suggesting the hearing may be less revelatory on certain subjects than anticipated.
He also may be limited in what he can say about the continuing Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office investigation, which resulted in Mr. Cohen pleading guilty in August to eight felonies—including arranging hush-money payments during the 2016 presidential campaign to stop two women from publicizing alleged affairs with Mr. Trump. Mr. Cohen said Mr. Trump directed him to arrange the payments, which violated campaign-finance laws.
Since Mr. Cohen’s guilty plea, federal prosecutors in New York have continued to investigate the president’s company, the Trump Organization, according to people familiar with the matter.
While Mr. Cohen’s testimony may be restricted, he is expected to give an explosive recounting of his experience working for Mr. Trump. His testimony is expected to focus on his life story, examining how he went from serving as one of Mr. Trump’s most loyal aides for more than a decade to publicly breaking with him last year and implicating him in two federal crimes.
Mr. Cohen has previously made brief statements in federal court, but the hearing will mark his most prolific public comments about his former boss, for whom he once said he would take a bullet. At his sentencing last month, Mr. Cohen told a judge that his “blind loyalty to Donald Trump” had led him astray from his values. He was sentenced to three years in prison.
The House Oversight Committee is still in the process of consulting with Mr. Mueller and New York federal prosecutors on the terms of Mr. Cohen’s testimony, according to a Democratic aide on the committee. The panel also previously expressed interest in Mr. Trump’s failure to report in a 2017 financial disclosure form his debt to Mr. Cohen, whom he reimbursed for a $130,000 payment Mr. Cohen made to a former adult film star in October 2016.
Mr. Cohen has spent more than 70 hours talking to Mr. Mueller’s investigators, including about the president’s business dealings with Russia, according to people familiar with the matter. In a second guilty plea in December, he admitted to lying to Congress about Mr. Trump’s involvement in an effort during the 2016 campaign to develop a Trump Tower in Moscow, saying he made false statements to minimize his boss’s role.
Mr. Mueller is investigating whether Trump associates colluded with Russia’s efforts to interfere in the 2016 U.S. election. Mr. Trump has denied collusion, and Moscow has denied election interference.
The probe so far has resulted in the indictments or guilty pleas of multiple Trump associates, including former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, former national security adviser Mike Flynn and former campaign adviser Rick Gates.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D., Calif.), chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said last week he planned to schedule a closed session with Mr. Cohen to answer questions related to the Russia investigation. Mr. Cohen likely would be able to speak more freely in a closed session, but it is unclear what restrictions the special counsel might impose in that setting.
Mr. Trump has repeatedly accused Mr. Cohen of lying to investigators in recent months, even as the president’s lawyers have said they don’t dispute Mr. Cohen’s revised account of Mr. Trump’s real-estate development efforts in Moscow.
In an interview Saturday with Fox News, Mr. Trump sought to imply criminal activity by Mr. Cohen’s father-in-law—an attack that Democrats criticized as an effort to squelch Mr. Cohen’s cooperation with investigators.
Referring to Mr. Cohen, Mr. Trump said, “In order to get his sentence reduced, he says, I have an idea, I’ll give you some information on the president. Well, there is no information. But he should give information maybe on his father-in-law, because that’s the one that people want to look at.”
The chairmen of the House Intelligence, Judiciary and Oversight committees issued a statement criticizing the president’s comments.
“The integrity of our process to serve as an independent check on the Executive Branch must be respected by everyone, including the President,” they wrote. “The President should make no statement or take any action to obstruct Congress’ independent oversight and investigative efforts, including by seeking to discourage any witness from testifying in response to a duly authorized request from Congress.”
There is no mention of Mr. Cohen’s father-in-law, Fima Shusterman, in the government’s charging documents or sentencing memorandums for Mr. Cohen.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/mueller-pr ... 1547583925
by seemslikeadream » Thu Jan 17, 2019 11:33 am
Michael Cohen collected $50,000 from trump’s company to pay for “tech services” — including trying to rig online polls in trump’s favor during the 2016 campaign. The contractor says he got less than he was owed and Cohen paid him in cash (stuffed in a bag)
Cohen Hired IT Firm to Rig Early CNBC, Drudge Polls to Favor Trump
Behind the scenes, Michael Cohen hired RedFinch Solutions, then allegedly stiffed it—and his boss
Michael Cohen, President Trump's former lawyer, arriving for his sentencing at the federal court house in Manhattan last month.
Michael Cohen, President Trump's former lawyer, arriving for his sentencing at the federal court house in Manhattan last month. PHOTO: JEENAH MOON/REUTERS
By Michael Rothfeld, Rob Barry and Joe Palazzolo
Updated Jan. 17, 2019 9:25 a.m. ET
MICHAEL COHEN: FULL COVERAGE
Highlights from The Wall Street Journal on Trump's former lawyer
Mr. Gauger said he never got the rest of what he claimed he was owed. But Mr. Cohen in early 2017 still asked for—and received—a $50,000 reimbursement from Mr. Trump and his company for the work by RedFinch, according to a government document and a person familiar with the matter. The reimbursement—made on the sole basis of a handwritten note from Mr. Cohen and paid largely out of Mr. Trump’s personal account—demonstrates the level of trust the lawyer once had within the Trump Organization, whose officials arranged the repayment.
After this story published Thursday morning, Mr. Cohen said in a tweet that he attempted to have the polls rigged with Mr. Trump’s knowledge.
“What I did was at the direction of and for the sole benefit of [Mr. Trump],” Mr. Cohen wrote. “I truly regret my blind loyalty to a man who doesn’t deserve it.”
The Trump Organization declined to comment. Rudy Giuliani, a lawyer for Mr. Trump, said Mr. Cohen’s being reimbursed more money than he paid RedFinch showed the former Trump lawyer to be a thief. “If one thing has been established, it’s that Michael Cohen is completely untrustworthy,” he said.
The reimbursement was
Prosecutors wrote in a charging document that when Mr. Cohen asked Trump Organization executives for a $130,000 reimbursement for a hush payment he made to Stephanie Clifford, the porn actress known as Stormy Daniels, he also scrawled a handwritten note asking for $50,000 he said he spent on “tech services” to aid Mr. Trump’s campaign. Prosecutors didn’t name the company providing those services, but people familiar with the matter say it was RedFinch.
Mr. Cohen’s dealings with the company and Mr. Gauger haven’t previously been reported.
Mr. Cohen has pleaded guilty to campaign-finance violations, tax evasion, lying to Congress and other charges. He was sentenced last month to three years in prison. None of the charges were connected to his interactions with Mr. Gauger and RedFinch.
John Gauger, owner of IT firm RedFinch Solutions.
John Gauger, owner of IT firm RedFinch Solutions. PHOTO: LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
The episode further illustrates how the former self-described fixer for Mr. Trump, who incriminated the president in the hush payments, once operated in secret to advance his boss’s political fortunes. Mr. Cohen’s dealings involving Mr. Trump over the years, including during the 2016 presidential race, will be a focus of Mr. Cohen’s testimony at a Feb. 7 hearing before the House Oversight Committee.
Mr. Gauger’s lawyer, Charles E. James Jr. of the firm Williams Mullen, said federal investigators interviewed Mr. Gauger about his interactions over six years with Mr. Cohen, from their first meeting in 2012 until last April, when the Federal Bureau of Investigation raided Mr. Cohen’s home, office and hotel room.
Mr. Gauger, who recounted those dealings to The Wall Street Journal, said that though Mr. Cohen promised him lucrative work for the presidential campaign, his activities related to Mr. Trump consisted of trying unsuccessfully to manipulate two online polls in Mr. Trump’s favor.
During the presidential race, Mr. Cohen also asked Mr. Gauger to create a Twitter account called @WomenForCohen. The account, created in May 2016 and run by a female friend of Mr. Gauger, described Mr. Cohen as a “sex symbol,” praised his looks and character, and promoted his appearances and statements boosting Mr. Trump’s candidacy.
When Mr. Cohen requested the $50,000 reimbursement for technology services, he didn’t tell Trump Organization executives what specific services were performed, and they didn’t ask, people familiar with the matter said.
The reimbursement he obtained for the deal with Ms. Clifford and the technology work was paid to him over the course of a year and characterized by the Trump Organization as legal fees, though it didn’t pertain to any legal work he performed at the time, prosecutors said. Overall, Mr. Cohen was paid $420,000, mostly from Mr. Trump’s personal account, including $180,000 to reimburse him for Ms. Clifford and RedFinch, a $60,000 bonus, and another $180,000 to cover taxes he would owe because the money would be declared as income, according to prosecutors.
Michael Cohen, President Trump’s former personal attorney, was sentenced to three years in prison last month. In court, he said his blind loyalty to President Trump led him “to take a path of darkness.” (Photo: Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images)
Richard Hasen, an election-law expert and law professor at University of California, Irvine, said Mr. Cohen had an obligation to disclose the payment to RedFinch as an independent expenditure if it was for campaign-related work he didn’t discuss with the Trump campaign. Had he coordinated with the Trump camp, the campaign would have been required to report any unpaid-for work as an in-kind contribution.
The connection between Messrs. Trump and Cohen and Liberty University dates at least to 2012, when Mr. Falwell invited Mr. Trump to give a speech and Mr. Cohen accompanied him. Soon after, Mr. Gauger was introduced to Mr. Cohen, helped him set up an Instagram account and gave him his cellphone number should he need more assistance, he said.
Over the next several years, Mr. Cohen asked Mr. Gauger for help with services intended to elevate positive content in internet-search results for himself and for friends, Mr. Gauger said. While he didn’t pay for most of what Mr. Gauger did, Mr. Cohen often promised to connect RedFinch with executives at Mr. Trump’s hotel and golf-course businesses, though he never did, Mr. Gauger said.
In January 2014, Mr. Cohen asked Mr. Gauger to help Mr. Trump score well in a CNBC online poll to identify the country’s top business leaders by writing a computer script to repeatedly vote for him. Mr. Gauger was unable to get Mr. Trump into the top 100 candidates. In February 2015, as Mr. Trump prepared to enter the presidential race, Mr. Cohen asked him to do the same for a Drudge Report poll of potential Republican candidates, Mr. Gauger said. Mr. Trump ranked fifth, with about 24,000 votes, or 5% of the total.
After making the cash payment at Trump Tower, Mr. Cohen kept saying he would pay the balance of the $50,000 but never did, Mr. Gauger said. Mr. Cohen also promised to get RedFinch work for Mr. Trump’s campaign. He set up two phone calls for Mr. Gauger with campaign officials, who didn’t hire him, he said.
“Mr. Cohen promised but never was able to develop the business he predicted,” said Mr. James, Mr. Gauger’s lawyer.
Mr. Cohen did give Mr. Gauger some other paying work. Early in 2016, Mr. Cohen hired RedFinch to help create positive web content about the chief executive of CareOne Management LLC, a New Jersey assisted-living company that had given Mr. Cohen a consulting contract.
Mr. Cohen sent RedFinch checks totaling $50,000 for that work, Mr. Gauger said. Mr. Cohen collected $200,000 from CareOne but didn’t pay taxes on it, according to the charging document filed by federal prosecutors, who didn’t identify the assisted-living company by name. Mr. Cohen pleaded guilty to evading taxes on that income. CareOne didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Mr. Cohen asked Mr. Gauger to create the @WomenForCohen account, still active in 2019, to elevate his profile. The account’s profile says it is run by “Women who love and support Michael Cohen. Strong, pit bull, sex symbol, no nonsense, business oriented and ready to make a difference!”
Mr. Gauger said he last spoke with Mr. Cohen in April 2018, shortly after the raid by federal agents. He said Mr. Cohen told him the investigation was about taxes and how he had accessed money from some of his accounts. “It’s not a big deal,” Mr. Cohen said, according to Mr. Gauger.
—Rebecca Ballhaus and Rebecca Davis O’Brien contributed to this article.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/poll-riggi ... znTe6pAnmg
by seemslikeadream » Wed Jan 23, 2019 8:38 am
“media stunt.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AvtGBat9fA
Reps. Jim Jordan and Mark Meadows want Cohen's lawyer to prove the Cohen hearing isn't a Democratic plot to publicly embarrass Trump
Jordan, Meadows accuse Lanny Davis of pushing Cohen to testify before Congress
By ANDREW DESIDERIO and RACHAEL BADE
Michael Cohen's spokesman Lanny Davis. | Leigh Vogel/Getty Images
Republicans on the House Oversight Committee suggested Tuesday that Michael Cohen’s upcoming testimony before their panel is, essentially, a publicity stunt and called on his personal lawyer to give them more details about why he was appearing.
In a letter addressed to Guy Petrillo, the legal representative of President Donald Trump’s former attorney, Republicans outlined concerns about the purpose of Cohen’s scheduled appearance before the panel on Feb. 7.
But their letter mainly takes issue with Lanny Davis, Cohen’s spokesman, whom they accuse of turning the hearing into a “media stunt.”
They point to Davis’ longstanding role as a Democratic strategist and attorney with close connections to Bill and Hillary Clinton — a fact that Davis said had nothing to do with pushing Cohen to testify — as evidence that the hearing may be politicized.
GOP Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio and Mark Meadows of North Carolina said Davis recently told GOP staff that he “pushed” Cohen to testify before the House Oversight Committee next month.
“This was my idea; nobody else’s,” Davis said, according to Jordan and Meadows, who wrote to Cohen’s attorney in a letter obtained by Politico. Jordan is the top Republican on the Oversight Committee.
Republicans used Davis’ answers to question whether Cohen’s testimony would represent a “media stunt initiated, produced, and financed by career Democrat political operatives as a way of scoring political points against the President.”
Jordan and Meadows, two of Trump’s closest allies on Capitol Hill, wrote in the letter that “Davis made clear that Cohen’s upcoming appearance before the Committee is entirely a result of Davis’ orchestration.”
In a statement for this story, Davis hit back at Republicans, saying he had reached out to them on a bipartisan basis — only for them to accuse him of trying to create a circus.
“I offered to brief the minority staff to show a spirit of bipartisanship, encouraged by the Chairman’s office. I offered on Mr. Cohen’s behalf for Mr. Cohen to speak with Ranking Member Rep. Jim Jordan out of courtesy and the same spirit of bipartisanship, and we have not heard back,” he said. “Furthermore, I am proud of my past association with President and Mrs. Clinton. There is no conflict of interest in my representation of Mr. Cohen. Beyond that, I will not dignify the unwarranted attack by Mr. Jordan as to my motives.”
The letter also suggests that Republicans don’t want Cohen to appear. Democrats on the committee say the president and his party are likely fearful of what Cohen will say about his time working for Trump.
During last week’s meeting, GOP staffers pressed Davis on how Cohen’s appearance before the committee is relevant to the panel’s official business. Davis replied that Cohen’s answers would be “unsatisfying” and “frustrating” to lawmakers.
Davis, according to the congressmen, told GOP staffers that Cohen will not answer questions relating to ongoing investigations by the Southern District of New York and special counsel Robert Mueller.
“Among other matters, we learned from Davis our Members will not receive answers to why Cohen defrauded the United States and the State of New York through his business dealings,” the congressmen wrote, adding that the committee “will not be hearing testimony about why Cohen intentionally provided false and misleading testimony to the United States Congress in previous appearances.”
Rather, Cohen intends to share “anecdotes” about his time working for Trump when he appears before the House Oversight Committee next month, but will be unable to speak about ongoing investigations relating to the president, Davis told the committee’s Republican staff.
Petrillo told Politico that he sent the letter to Cohen, adding: “I do not represent Mr. Cohen in the congressional matters.” A Democratic committee aide said the panel has been consulting with the special counsel’s office about the hearing’s scope and that the committee “will not inappropriately interfere with the ongoing criminal investigation.”
“There is obviously widespread interest in hearing directly from Mr. Cohen, including from some — but not all — Republicans,” the aide said.
Democrats have indicated that they’re interested in asking Cohen a host of questions that could intersect with ongoing probes, including whether the president directed Cohen to lie to Congress about the Trump Tower Moscow project, as first reported by BuzzFeed. The special counsel’s office has disputed that report.
But lawmakers may not get many answers from Trump’s former lawyer. Cohen, according to the letter, will not discuss the Russia investigation and will refuse to answer questions about his guilty pleas for financial misdeeds and lying to Congress as well as campaign finance violations.
Jordan and Meadows asked Oversight Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) to bring in Cohen for a transcribed interview ahead of his testimony “so we may better understand the matters on which he is and is not willing to speak,” the letter says.
Davis indicated to Politico last week that the hearing might be canceled altogether, saying Cohen was “very fearful” of appearing before Congress. Davis also told Republicans, according to the letter, that Cohen would not testify, publicly or privately, before any other panel.
That could cause an issue for other committees in both chambers. The House and Senate Intelligence panels both want to question Cohen in a private setting.
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/01/ ... ay-1119540
by seemslikeadream » Wed Jan 23, 2019 2:58 pm
Witness tampering successful. If I was Cohen I’d double down the minute trump tweets his Triumph over justice. Watch. It will happen.
Michael Cohen postponing his Feb. 7 testimony after threats to his family from President Trump and his team.
by seemslikeadream » Thu Jan 24, 2019 12:57 pm
BREAKING: Michael Cohen was subpoenaed to testify at the Senate Intelligence Committee in mid-February, according to a source close to Cohen. Senate Intel usually does interviews in private. Cohen heads to jail in early March
Return to Data And Research
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line778
|
__label__wiki
| 0.646956
| 0.646956
|
Rascals Win 5th Straight, Sweep Boomers
O'FALLON, MO--The River City Rascals completed a sweep of the defending Frontier League champion Shaumburg Boomers on Thursday night, earning their fifth straight win in the process. They remain undefeated at CarShield Field through the first six home games of the 2018 season. The Rascals were led by hometown hero Gerrion Grim, who finished with a home run and three RBIs on the night.
Grim got the scoring started with a two-run shot in the second inning. The Boomers got on the board with a homer in the fourth inning from Kenny Towns, and tied the game with a run scoring on a double play ball in the fifth.
The Rascals took the lead on an RBI single from Grim in the eighth, and added on with a run-scoring single from Kevin Suarez later in the frame.
Cody Mincey closed things out in the ninth for his third save. Rascals starter Josh Kimborowicz went five innings, allowing two runs and striking out seven. Rascals reliever Logan Fanning (1-0) earned the win, pitching a scoreless eighth.
Boomers reliever Ivan Vieitez took the loss, giving up the go-ahead runs in the eighth. Boomers starter Darrell Thompson went three innings, allowing two earned runs and walking four.
The Rascals (8-3) host the Lake Erie Crushers for a three game weekend set starting tomorrow night. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35pm CT. Left-hander Dan Ludwig is expected to start on the mound.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line780
|
__label__wiki
| 0.802277
| 0.802277
|
Kylesku
The quickest way north from Lochinver is the A837 east to the junction with the A894 which heads to Kylesku. But by far the most scenic route is the B869 coast road that passes moorland, lochs and beautiful sandy bays. It's best travelled from north to south, giving you the most fantastic views of Suilven. Untypically, most of the land in this part of Assynt is owned by local crofters who, under the aegis of the Assynt Crofters' Trust, bought 21,000 acres of the North Assynt Estate, thus setting a precedent for change in the history of land ownership in the Highlands.
The trust now owns the fishing rights to the area and sells permits through local post offices and the tourist office in Lochinver. It has also undertaken a number of conservation projects, including one at Achmelvich, a few miles north of Lochinver, at the end of a side road which branches off the coast road. It's worth a detour to see one of the loveliest beaches on the west coast, with sparkling white sand and clear turquoise sea straight out of a Caribbean tourist brochure. You can stay here, at the SYHA Hostel, Tel. 844480, open mid-May to early October; or camp at the Shore Caravan Site, Tel. 844393, open April-September.
From the beach car park below the hostel a path leads northwest along the coast. Bear left off the sandy path shortly after the white cottage on the hill ahead comes into view, and follow the footpath until the road is reached at Alltan na Bradhan, where there are the remains of an old meal mill. Continue north from here along the coast for about a mile till you reach a small bay just before Clachtoll, the Split Rock. Close by are the remains of an Iron-Age Broch, but don't cause further damage by clambering over the ruins. Return to the beach by the same path. The walk there and back should take about 1 1/2 hours.
Phone code: +44 (0)1971
The road runs east from Drumbeg, under the shadow of towering Quinag (2,654 ft), to meet the A894 heading north to Kylesku, site of the sweeping modern road bridge over Loch a'Cháirn Bháin. From Kylesku you can visit Britain's highest waterfall, the 650-ft high Eas a'Chùal Aluinn, near the head of Loch Glencoul. Cruises leave from the old ferry jetty below the Kylesku Hotel to the falls on board the MV Statesman, Tel. 01571-844446. You can also see porpoises, seals and minke whales en route. You may be able to get closer to the falls by getting off the boat and walking to the bottom, then getting on the next boat. Info - The 2-hr round trip runs Apr-Sep daily at 1100 and 1400 (Jul and Aug also at 1600), and costs £9, children £3.
There's also a trail to the top of the falls. It starts at the south end of Loch na Gainmhich, about three miles north of Skiag Bridge. Skirting the loch, follow the track in a southeasterly direction up to the head of the Bealach a Bhuirich (the Roaring Pass). Continue until you meet a stream, with several small lochans on your right. Follow this stream until it plunges over the Cliffs of Dubh (the Dark Cliffs). You can get a better view of the falls by walking to the right about 100 yards and descending a heather slope for a short distance. Allow about three to four hours for the round trip.
Achiltibuie | Ullapool | Lochinver | Kinlochbervie | Poolewe | Loch Maree | Kinlochewe | Applecross | Torridon | Kyle of Lochalsh | Altandhu | Lochcarron | Loch Assynt & Inchnadamph | Knockan | Scourie & Handa Island | Plockton | Drumbeg
Northern Highlands of Scotland
Kylesku Hotels & Accommodation
Kylesku Hotel
The Kylesku Hotel, an old coaching inn dating from 1680, is situated by the former ferry slipway on the shores of Loch Glendhu. With an excellent restaurant, friendly family bar and cosy residents' lounge, the hotel is the perfect place for a peaceful and relaxing break and an ideal base for exploring the area. It is a gret place for delicious and great-value pub seafood, or for B&B, open Mar-Oct. There's also a more formal and expensive restaurant next door. Tel: Tel. 502231 more details about Kylesku Hotel
If you want to spend the night here, a cheaper option is the Newton Lodge, Tel./Fax. 502070,This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., open mid-Mar to mid-Oct. There's also a small hostel at Kylesku Lodges
Kylesku Cottages and Holiday SelfCatering
Recroy Holiday Cottage at Nedd in Assynt - Sleeps 5
Recroy is a holiday cottage nestled on a hillside above the tiny hamlet of Nedd on NW coast of Scotland in Assynt. Sleeps 5. True Seclusion beckons!
Cottage details.
Scotland Travel Guide
Aberdeenshire Guide
Angus Guide
Argyll Guide
Ayrshire & Arran Guide
Borders & Dumfries
Central Belt of Scotland
Fort William and Lochaber
Inverness and Loch Ness
Moray & Speyside
Perthshire Guide
Stirling, Trossachs & Loch Lomond
West Highlands Guide
Western Isles & Skye
Scottish History
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line783
|
__label__cc
| 0.726879
| 0.273121
|
Michael's Last Day
I wrote about a year ago about "The Office" and how, to me, it has jumped the shark. It jumped with Jim and Pam's wedding and subsequent birth of their baby, Cecile. I'm not a fan of babies being born on TV shows because that tends to ruin the series. Go ahead and name a series that got better after a baby was born.
Although technically it was a flashback in the first episode but I say it still counts.
This last Thursday featured Steve Carell's last episode as regular character Michael Scott. I say "last episode as regular character" because more than likely he will be back as a guest star either for Michael's wedding to Holly (Amy Ryan) or even one of the final episodes when the series is put to rest. In Michael's place, D'Angelo Vickers (Will Ferrell) was introduced and in a, I'll admit clever, interesting way of having him as an acceptable replacement for Michael. He was liked, acted like a boss and not like a friend. He seemed like a good fit but then we realize that D'Angelo is a terrible salesman, is sexist and yells at food that he thinks tempt him (he was once overweight). So that is how they will get rid of Will Ferrell.
Even though years of terrible movies still haven't.
I never thought that "The Office" would come to an end when Steve Carell left. They will have at least one more season to see if the show can continue. If NBC, the writers and producers are smart, all of the eighth season will be done with no mention of Michael. Hire the new boss (I'm hoping either James Spader or Will Arnett) and just keep going. Now I know what you may be thinking. "You just said Steve Carell will be a guest star. Why can't he guest star in the eighth season?!" Because the eighth season will be a test to see if "The Office" can continue and be just as good without Carell. It can do it. The new boss just can't overshadow the fact that this is, and always had been, an ensemble cast.
And ensemble casts are always the best.
From what I could tell from the preview after the episode, it almost seemed like a completely different series and since all the characters have grown and changed over the past seven years, it is like a whole new show. Look at early second season episodes and compare them with early seventh season episodes. It's a whole other show.
The thing is that unless NBC has a great season next year, "The Office" doesn't even have to try to get a ninth season renewal. It can just coast along with dwindling ratings and be picked up as long as NBC is the fourth most-watched network.
"It's like we're not even trying anymore."
by Brian Hall at 4/30/2011 06:00:00 PM 1 comment: Links to this post
Labels: The Office, WTS-TV
No, It Was an Accident Caused By the Principal Startling the Janitor...
That's some hardcore biting if she was able to break her tooth on a human bone. I guess if she bit at the wrist, there's not much skin it would be possible. Or the knee. I could definitely see Hattie attacking someone at the knee or ankle--like a rabid dog.
Professional basketball is so boring. It's not about the team, it's about the players and who can score more points and make more money.
When I was in school, I was always picked early on to be on a basketball team during gym because I was tall. I could barely make a basket so my teammates got mad at me and I was all "just because I'm tall doesn't mean I'm good at basketball" which usually shut them up. They then learned to start picking me last.
Labels: basketball, Brutus, Gladys, Hurricane Hattie, LAMNB, Wilberforce
#230: A Good-Bye, Of Sorts
Like many people, I check Facebook several times a day. Nothing rarely changes but I still do it. There are only 7 out of 76 people I am friends with who I legitimately care knowing about the little intricacies of their life and one of those people I live with and most do not go on Facebook very often. But I continue to check it--see people's stupid Status Shuffle updates, see pictures of them doing stuff I either don't care about or things I'm jealous of. Relationship problems have seem to vanish which is good (except from this one girl but she's a 15-year-old trapped in a 30-year-old's body) and basically I'm noticing a huge drop in posts which may be because I am home all day to see them come in but more than likely other people are bored too. So I am going to try to not go to Facebook for at least the month of May. I know it sounds impossible but I am going to try. I'll keep you informed on how I do.
I know when I posted POB #229, I figured that would be the last entry but then there's this one. It's been a struggle to figure out what to write for POB and since I have so many other things to be writing and just doing in general, POB is going on hiatus for a month or so. Hopefully, during that time I can finish up on everything I am writing and maybe get a backlog of POBs written and ready to be posted.
Currently what I am working on a as-yet-untitled short story about ghosts living in a cemetery but I am also working on expanding Seven to be a novel. I always felt drawn to the story of Seven--who I created way back in 1997. Even back then, the story was about a journey. I've always been fascinated with just getting up and going somewhere even if there is no destination in place. When I was younger I loved just getting out and going somewhere and while I can be extremely lazy, I still like to get out and do something--go somewhere. My friend and I were supposed to go to Rossville a few weeks ago because there was a time where I talked about Rossville all the time. He'd never been so I agreed but figured that since there really is nothing in Rossville that we would also explore the former Uniontown site. We have yet to go because our schedules don't line up or because he slept until noon.
I'm hoping with the return of POB to not only do the boring journalesque ramblings I've done since 2006 but also to do some history, some reviews and just random stuff so that posting this doesn't become a chore like it has been the last six months. So POB will be back probably in late June or early July so until then just enjoy the other stuff Watch This Space has to offer.
Until next time, I remain...
~Brian
Labels: POB
Beep Beep. Beep Beep. His Horn Went Beep, Beep Beep
He's also not on his cell phone or looking at himself in the vanity mirror or eating a hamburger! Does this man not know how to drive?
"And I swear to God if I don't get any chocolate chip cookies right now then I am going to lose MY FREAKING MIND!!"
Labels: Brutus, driving, food, Gladys, LAMNB, love, Wilberforce
Reincarnation Powers Activate! Form of...
I take it from Wilberforce's facial expression of rolling eyes and pursed lips that he, too, is tired of his mom complaining about her weight.
Labels: Gladys, LAMNB, weight, Wilberforce
You Wore That to Bowl?
Gladys doesn't care. She is just thrilled that she was able to keep her ball in her own lane unlike the previous times where the ball wound up going into other people's lanes and two people were killed.
Labels: bowling, Brutus, Gladys, LAMNB
Sundays at the DCR
There's no post over at The DCR this week. There may not be a post over at the DCR for quite some time. In case you haven't read, Jim Davis (or Paws, Inc.) ordered Photobucket to remove a few Garfield strips. I am assuming the Paws, Inc. Image Robot noticed those strips, sent a message to Photobucket who then saw all of the other comic strips on there and just decided to cancel the account. Even if Photobucket were to reinstate the account, all the comics posted from the last four years are gone. We're currently working on a solution and hopefully will be able to come back and be better than before. But, as promised, here is one last comics review.
The Knight Life
Amen. I get so tired of people complaining about the post office and the high price of stamps. What else can you buy for $0.44?
Much like Jesus, Johnny Hart has risen from the dead to do an Easter strip of his popular comic strip.
Girls & Sports
Hmm. So how come he can't just answer the phone or take it out and look at how's calling and press ignore? Because he's an idiot in a strip created by idiots? Oh, okay.
Maybe Daddy's Home will ease the suffering...
Sweet Holy Hell! There...is...no...God...
Hah! Gladys is fat and fat people can't control their eating. It's funny because it's a stereotype.
Have a great Sunday everybody. Hopefully the DCR will be back soon and we can get back to making fun of bad comics and bringing attention to good comics.
Labels: B.C., Brutus, Daddy's Home, food, Girls and Sports, Gladys, holidays, Knight Life, LAMNB, Sundays at the DCR
Stull #13
I’ve lived in Stull my whole life. I’ve studied extensively the history of Stanton County and the state of Ohio in general. I will always consider Stanton County my home and I’m sure a lot of you feel the same way.
For years I have run the Rock Creek Township Historical Society out of the old Stull Library at 7th and Ohio Streets. My goal is to create the most extensive history of Stanton County and so far, I’ve done what I think is a wonderful job but I can’t do it all on my own. My staff does a spectacular job and the citizens of the county who allow us to wander around on their properties and fields also deserve mention.
For the last few months the Society has been investigating the founding of Stull. We were told the founding of Stull was like that of any other Ohio town but as we’ve come to find out, it was a lot more violent. Before the 1830s, all of Rock Creek Township was a reservation for the Comchau Indians. Nearby was Fort Bradshaw which was in operation from 1817 until 1832. It was asked that the fort be closed because of the End Road Massacre.
As of now, we have yet to find any additional information on the End Road Massacre. We’re assuming it was a battle between the military at the fort and the Comchau. In the last 1800s, a book was published—possibly self-published—that told, in detail, how Stull and Rock Creek Township was founded. The book is now lost but there has to be a copy out there or someone who knows what the book contained. If anyone knows where a copy of this book can be obtained please contact the Rock Creek Township Historical Society at (937)555-8967 or stop by the Society 645 Ohio Street in Stull. It is important that we keep our past and our heritage alive, no matter the circumstances.
“Hey, Matt, check out this rebuttal to the letter I wrote to the Tontzville paper a couple days ago,” Frank folded up the paper and flipped it around toward Matt and pointed at the title of the letter.
“’The Past Is Past’,” Matt read. “That is clever. ‘I am tired of having history, most of which does not pertain to us, shoved down our throats. Mr. York’s previous letter talking about a book and some sort of massacre that happened 180 plus years ago. Why should we keep guilting the American people about things that happened before they were born and had no control over? Maybe I would feel a bit different if our county had a more extensive history like the East Coast cities or even Gettysburg but compared to other areas of the country, the history involving Stanton County is pretty boring.’ You know, he has a point,” Matt chuckled.
“Yeah, but that’s why I want to know more about this massacre thing. What if this is our big historic moment? I don’t want to ignore it,” Frank explained. “I’ve also gotten a couple phone calls telling me to ignore it which then makes me want to find out everything.”
“Did the people who called you have any idea what the massacre was?” Matt asked.
“No, they were just prank calls because one of them asked me if I…fellate myself.” Frank smiled. “That’s what happens when you publish your phone number in a newspaper.”
The bells above the front door jingled and Jen could be heard speaking to the person who came in. “How can I help you?” she asked.
“Is Frank York in?”
“Just a moment,” Jen said and came into the office. “Are you available?”
“Yes, Jen. I’m always available. We’ve been through this,” Frank sighed.
“How am I supposed to be a gatekeeper if there’s no gate to keep?” Jen wondered as she left the office.
The man walked into the office, holding his hat and a cane. He was an elderly man and walked slowly. “Mr. York?” he asked.
“Yes? And please, call me Frank,” Frank said standing up. Matt moved off to the side.
“My name is Jarvis Houk, my grandfather was stationed at Fort Bradshaw and was the namesake for Houk Township,” Jarvis began.
“Where Irving is located,” Frank acknowledged. “I’ve ran across Charles Houk’s name numerous times. Fine man.”
“Thank you. I’ve come to ask you about the book on the massacre.”
“Do you have a copy of the book?” Frank exclaimed.
“I’m here to tell you that you will ruin the honor of many great men if you reveal what happened during the massacre, including my grandfather and his great-grandfather,” Jarvis pointed at Matt.
“Sir, I respect the things that those men did but it’s a piece of our history and it needs to be remembered so we can learn from it. Lincoln wanted to abolish slavery but he still felt like blacks were not equal to whites and wanted to send them all back to Africa but that hasn’t changed people’s opinions about him,” Frank said.
“True but Lincoln was an extraordinary man. The men at Fort Bradshaw were ordinary men and a bad reputation can destroy an ordinary man,” Jarvis said.
“I don’t believe there are extraordinary men. I believe there are ordinary men who do extraordinary things. You’re not the only detractor I’ve had over the last few days and I don’t understand this aversion to history but I am not going to back down.”
“Okay. Have it your way. I hope you find what you are looking for,” Jarvis sighed and turned to leave the office. “I do hope you find the book so you will know what you are dealing with.”
Jarvis left the Society and Frank and Matt looked at each other. “Do you think he knows what the massacre is?” Frank asked Matt.
“I think so. Probably should’ve asked him,” Matt nodded. “Although what Mr. Houk said makes me think, even more certainly, that something really bad during the massacre. He mentioned that it could ruin the men at the fort.”
“History has already judged them. Nothing more can help or hurt them,” Frank said, sitting back down.
“Hope you’re right,” Matt said.
John and Katie arrived at Stanton State Lake in Palmyra Township. Palmyra Township had no towns or communities. John and Katie were out there to find the graves of Ludwig and Wilhemina Kaeckell. The Kaeckells homesteaded on most of the acreage that would become Stanton State Lake. Ludwig died in 1901 and Wilhemina passed in 1912. Their heirs took ownership of the property but like it fall into ruins. When the WPA began constructing the dam, the original plan was to move the graves to Pleasant Valley Cemetery, the only other cemetery in Palmyra Township. The Kaeckells demanded that the graves remain. It was difficult to get to the graves, they were located off the path down the Overlook hill. John and Katie exited the car and began walking the path toward the top of the Overlook where a bench had been placed that looked out across the lake.
“I find it hard to believe that Frank doesn’t have a picture of these graves,” John said. “I’ve seen his cemetery scrapbook. He has hundreds, possibly thousands of pictures of cemeteries and graves.”
“Well he doesn’t. He’s never been able to get out here with one of us and he doesn’t want to go alone.”
“At least it’s a nice day. Could use a bit more cloud cover though,” John said as he glanced at the sun.
They walked in silence most of the way to the bench at the top of the hill. As they reached the top, they noticed that someone was sitting in the bench. The reached the top of the hill and saw that the person was sitting slumped over, wearing a trenchcoat and hat.
“That’s odd,” John whispered toward Katie. John approached the man and tapped his shoulder. “Sir? Are you okay?”
The man did not move. John removed the man’s hat and knelt down to look closer at his face. Katie took a couple steps back. “John? Is he okay?”
“Do you have your cell phone?” John asked. Katie nodded. “Call 911.”
Labels: Stull
Screw You, Good Friday
Just a quick update. Here is today's full strip and don't forget that I am also on Twitter (and there's a WTS Facebook but it's not as good).
Labels: Brutus, echo, holidays, LAMNB
The Workers Are Revolting
As someone who has called out a boss on numerous occasions about how things could be better run, I have to tell all of you that it is a bad idea. Even if you don't get fired, your boss can make your job a living hell or even just the angry stare your boss gives you can shrivel your testicles (or ovaries).
Dammit, Biden!!
Labels: Brutus, LAMNB, work
Well, at least Uncle Sam isn't shooting up between his toes...
Labels: Bill Day, Editorial Comics
Lot of Jerks in the Service Industry
At least the barber didn't comment on giving Brutus a nice buff and wax. Yet another service employee that won't be getting a tip...
Labels: barber, Brutus, hair, LAMNB
The Price of Crude
I'm wondering why people aren't fussing more about gas prices. I remember back in 2008 that people struck back, using public transportation and just not going anywhere. This time, not so much.
I looked up gas prices in Cleveland, Ohio and the cheapest I saw was $3.67 per gallon which would give Gladys not even 3 gallons for her $10.
by Brian Hall at 4/19/2011 08:44:00 AM 1 comment: Links to this post
Labels: Brutus, gas, Gladys, LAMNB, topical
Monsieur--And He Uses That Term Loosely
According to Google Translate, the French word for 'cheeseburger' is 'cheeseburger' only it's pronounced sheh-zay bou-jay. Anyway, this waiter is not getting a tip.
Labels: Brutus, food, LAMNB, restaurant
Spousal Abuse Sunday
A new post is up at the DCR. There's Herb & Jamaal, Adam@Home and two days of The Born Loser. Go check it out.
Labels: Sundays at the DCR
Sweatin' to the Moldies
It's workout clothes like this that make me wish I were blind.
Labels: Brutus, exercise, Gladys, LAMNB
Disney Fairytale My Butt
Does Jerry Holbert make over $250,000 a year?
I don't think Obama thinks this at all. It's not a matter of getting "average Americans" to like him (or the government), it's reducing our debt, budget and generating more money which is what needs to happen. While raising taxes on the rich won't solve all of our budget/debt problems, it's a start.
Unfortunately, even if the higher taxes get approved and actually work to create revenue once a Republican gets into office tax cuts for the rich will be back.
Labels: Editorial Comics, Jerry Holbert
Brutus Is Like a Stupid Dog
Has Brutus done any kind of work this week? Veeblefester is an all-powerful CEO giving himself bonuses even when telling the federal government he won't but he can't get Brutus out of his office?
Labels: Brutus, LAMNB, Veeblefester, work
#229: Non-Issues
The Kansas House and Senate have approved two different budget plans for the fiscal year that starts July 1. The House plan includes a provision that eliminates the pass-through of federal family planning funding to Planned Parenthood clinics.
The Senate budget plan doesn’t have such a proposal. Legislators return from their break to reconvene the session on April 27.
What the hell? You would think the Kansas state government would have better things to do than deal with an issue that is technically not an issue. I've received mailings from Kansans for Life and I didn't like the message they preached then either. I'm getting tired of these non-issues being the ones the politicians we've erroneously elected deal with when there are 2 1/2 wars, economic problems, unemployment and a huge divide with the people on the left and right. We can't agree on anything like little kids on the playground who all want to be first to kick the ball.
“Americans don’t want their taxes to help an immoral business,” said Kathy Ostrowski, of Kansans for Life. Opponents of Planned Parenthood say the funds should go to other local health clinics.
Um, our taxes don't go to pay for an immoral business. Only 3% of Planned Parenthood's business is abortions and those cost between $300 and $1,000, definitely not tax-subsidized. I would like to know how many people the Kansans for Life actually know who have used Planned Parenthood or gotten an abortion. And people belonging to KFL don't count. Being someone who knows several people who have used Planned Parenthood and gotten abortions (myself, well a girlfriend, included), I honestly don't see the big deal. All are productive members of society with their own families and doing just fine. Do they regret what they did. Probably but their lives would've been much different had they not gotten the abortion.
Planned Parenthood says the funding is crucial to support Planned Parenthood health centers in Wichita and Hays, which according to a recent study serve nearly 9,000 women per year. No abortions are conducted at either one of those clinics. Planned Parenthood also points out that the Hays clinic is the only one for low-income women in Ellis County.
Nice. No Planned Parenthood in Kansas except for the one in Overland Park performs abortions. Overland Park, the mecca for Republicans in Kansas has the Planned Parenthood that does abortions. So there are Planned Parenthoods in Wichita and Hays that serve 9,000 women per year. Where will those women go if those places are shut down? How many county health clinics are out in the boonies of Kansas? Luckily, with a quick search of Google News shows that we are not taking the lead on this for once. Other states are also creating bills defunding Planned Parenthood or wanting to reject the Federal money for Planned Parenthood.
You would think Americans would get tired of non-issues such as gay marriage and abortions being shoved down our throats as an excuse for our representatives to not actually do any work but they apparently haven't. They would rather argue the merits of something that was already upheld by the Supreme Court in 1973. Why don't they demand our government do something about the debt, the wars, the economy, jobs, immigration or ending our dependance on oil?
What's interesting is that I'm seeing a lot more people who actually voted these people in wonder what they hell they are doing. The Religious Right (or Tea Party) elected these people based on the assumption they would bring down the deficit, cut the budget, create jobs and bring this country back to prosperity. That clearly isn't happening because during the budget battle, both sides came out looking like impotent dogs. I don't care who got the better deal--Obama or Boehner--both lost because they both looked and acted like children.
I feel offended that our government threatened a shut down. They think we can be manipulated to do their bidding. The President doesn't want a shut down because that makes him look really bad, like he has no power so this was completely Boehner's fault. I feel they made it public so the American would voice support for getting rid of Planned Parenthood funding, hence the scare tactics but a majority of Americans are not stupid and they can see through that. The only ones who actually think Planned Parenthood is a threat to the well-being of our daughter and women have been nicely brainwashed by Fox News so they agree with whatever Fox says.
I find it odd that the Republicans want women to bring children into this world when they are also slashing school funding and Medicaid. "Your child may be sick as a dog and dumb as a post but at least it's alive!"
It's Sports, You Really Don't Need Sound
Gladys should put away the vacuum, it's starting to rain the first panel.
Labels: baseball, Brutus, Gladys, house maintenance, LAMNB
The Not-So-Great Simpsina
I've been watching The Simpsons since it premiered which normally would be a pretty good feat because that shows dedication and an example of how good a show is and can remain to be. Unfortunately that's the case with The Simpsons anymore. Currently it's just a meandering shadow of what it used to be. Which is why people call it Zombie Simpsons.
Sadly, not good zombies but bad zombies.
A few weeks ago, the episode "Love Is a Many Strangled Thing" did something no other Simpson episode has done. It did not make me laugh. Anymore, Simpsons can make me chuckle but not laugh. "Love Is a Many Strangled Thing" did neither. I sat through the episode and just stared. It was a pretty much wasted 22 minutes. But I'm not here to discuss that episode. I'm here to bad mouth the following episode that aired this last Sunday. "The Great Simpsina".
The episode started out badly by being something that was whoring out the movie "Rio". There was no opening sequence so no couch gag, which is fine because it seems as if all couch gags have went on way too long. The episode starts with the Simpsons at a family-owned peach orchard. There is an establishing shot of the orchard with a few cars, the Simpsons' station wagon and an old truck but there is also a sign "Freestone Family Peach Orchard - Pick Your Own!" and I noticed something pretty glaring in the shot. There's no joke. The shot lingers a bit too long giving morons time to read the sign but what's the point? There's no humorous sign or comical object in the shot. Once we're inside the orchard, things don't go much better. Homer apparently picks 19 barrels of peaches all by himself and Bart and Lisa are harassed by Ewell Freestone (voiced by Jack McBrayer) who sings a song about all of the peaches. The song, like many jokes nowadays, go on too long and have no purpose.
The Simpsons bring home the 19 barrels of peaches and Marge quickly goes insane making all their meals out of the peaches. Homer then announces he's taking Marge for a massage and has Bart and Lisa work to get rid of the peaches. The storyline diverges here. After Bart and Lisa dispose of the peaches, Lisa notices a garbage can lid is moving and immediately goes to see if Oscar the Grouch is living in the garbage can.
Oscar the Grouch would be a bit more entertaining.
Why would Lisa think that Oscar the Grouch is living in that trashcan? In the classic episodes it was always refreshing to show Bart and Lisa actually acting like kids but now when it happens it doesn't work as good. Eight-year-olds know Oscar the Grouch is not real. What is in the trash can is a rabid raccoon who begins chasing after Lisa which ends up having her meet the Great Raymando (voiced by Martin Landau). Lisa then becomes his protege because Lisa has always shown an interest in magic and begins performing magic shows--and just a few weeks after Homer performed shows with Cheech Marin.
What's the reason Lisa is learning magic? She's not becoming more popular because of it and she immediately loses concentration when a cute boy cons her out of one of the tricks. The press release from Fox made it seem like the "schoolgirl crush" would a pivotal plot point but it's not. The boy, who is Craig Demon's (a parody of Criss Angel) son, shows up on screen, says a few things to Lisa and is nearly forgotten about the rest of the show. During the magic montage, Lunchlady Doris is seen and heard. Apparently she was heard back in season 18, 19 and season 20 and voiced by Tress MacNeille. This unnerved me because after Doris Grau passed away in 1995, the character was reduced to just a background character. And that's where she should remain--she doesn't need to talk.
Anyway, Craig Demon fails at performing the milk can trick that only Houdini, the Great Raymando and now Lisa can perform and the Great Raymando is attacked by fellow magicians Penn & Teller, David Copperfield and Ricky Jay (all voicing themselves) but is able to severely injure all of them.
In real life, these guys can kick your ass.
The episode ends on an odd note with the Great Raymando hepped up on ether and hallucinating about his deceased wife. The two begin dancing, fade to black. That would've been sweeter and a little less creepy if there was something in the plot about the Great Raymando wanted to dance with his wife again. It would've been a better plot if there was actual substance to the plot like Raymando wanting to show everybody that magicians like Craig Demon are not in it for the magic but for the fame and glory and used Lisa to achieve that goal but no, Raymando just seems like a bitter old man and this episode already had enough Grandpa.
We had to say 'dickety' because the Kaiser had stolen our number 20.
For the sake of posterity, here is how the peaches subplot ended:
Homer and Marge are getting a massage and Homer blurts out "The kids are getting rid of the peaches." Marge freaks out and screams "But what will we have to eat!" but then the masseuse begins working her elbow into Marge's back who slumps back down on the table and moans "Who cares?"
My thought exactly. "Who cares?"
Labels: The Simpsons, WTS-TV
No. 22: Wilbur and Kolak
Wilbur walked up to his father who was working on a car in the garage. “Dad? If I found a cat, could I keep it?” he asked.
“Of course not. You know I’m horribly allergic to cats,” Wilbur’s dad explained.
“Oh, yeah. Well, could I keep it in the tree house until we found it a home?”
“Sure, I guess. Why? Did you find a little lost kitten?” his dad chuckled.
“Kind of…” Wilbur said, walking away. Wilbur walked to the far back of the backyard to a smoldering crater with pieces of a rocket ship in it. Next to the crater was a calico cat wearing a fancy jeweled collar. “My dad won’t let me keep you but said you could stay until we do find you a home,” Wilbur said to the cat.
“Oh, well, I guess that’s better than nothing,” the cat replied.
“So your name is Kolak?” Wilbur asked the calico, now in Wilbur’s tree house behind the main house. “And what are you doing here?”
“I was sent by my planet’s High Emperor to evaluate humans, unfortunately I misjudged the landing so now I’m stuck here,” the cat explained.
“That’s too bad. Well, you can stay here until we can find you some other place to stay.”
“I appreciate that but I can’t put a burden on you or anybody else. Technically, I’m not even supposed to let on that I can talk.”
“Hate to say it but you’re doing a bad job of that,” Wilbur chuckled. “Look it’s no problem, you can stay up here until we can find you a place to stay and then you can be a normal cat for them.”
“I guess. It’ll be harder to do my reports but I...Wait! That’s impossible!” Kolak shrieked.
“I can’t be anyone’s pet. If I become anyone’s pet they will probably fall in love with me and when I have to leave and go back home…”
“You’ll break their heart. Well, I guess you’ll just have to stay up here until you leave.”
Wilbur glanced at his watch and stood up. “It’s suppertime so I’ll see you later. I’ll bring you something to eat when I’m finished.”
“No hurry. And Wilbur? Thanks,” Kolak smiled.
Inside, the Terwilleger family all sat around the dinner table as Wilbur’s sister, Nancy, talked about her day at school. Wilbur showed obvious disinterest in Nancy’s story.
“...And then, when I was in music class, I saw David walk past the door and he looked right at me!” she said in a shrill voice.
“Well, maybe he was looking at someone else. Your music class is pretty big…” Wilbur said, purposely trying to dash his sister’s dreams.
“He looked right at me because I heard later from my best friend’s cousin’s best friend’s girlfriend that David looked right at me as he walked by,” Nancy explained.
“Well, I’m glad you were able to verify that,” Wilbur sighed heavily and rolled his eyes.
“Leave her alone, Wilbur. How was your day at school?” asked his father.
“It was great. Alex threw up at recess and Trevor broke his collar bone. I also tripped Amy tripped twice and poured sand on her head. Principal Arevalo says ‘hello’ by the way,” Wilbur elaborated.
“Wilbur,” his mom sighed exasperatingly “why do you torment that girl?”
“Because he loves her,” Nancy mocked.
“Shut up! I do not! Girls are icky!” Wilbur shouted.
“Now everyone calm down,” Wilbur’s dad said, calmly. “There’s a perfectly reasonable explanation as to why Wilbur, and boys in general, treat girls the way they do: one, they want to feel a sense of superiority; or two, because he loves her.”
“I’m sorry but it’s cute. We and the Parkers are already planning the wedding,” Dad joked.
“Aargh!! Can I be excused?” Wilbur groaned.
“Yes, you can,” Mom answered.
“Can I take some meat out to Kolak?” Wilbur asked. “Maybe some milk or water, too?”
“Kolak? Is that the kitten? Where’d you come up with that name?” Nancy asked.
Wilbur loaded some meat and vegetables onto a plate. “I didn’t come up with it. It’s his name.”
“So the cat has a home?” asked Dad.
“No,” Wilbur said.
“Then how’d you come up with the name Kolak?” Mom demanded.
“He just looked like a Kolak, like I look like a Wilbur and Nancy looks like a horse,” Wilbur got up from the dinner table with the plate and went outside. He climbed up the tree to the tree house and placed the food in front of Kolak. “I brought you some turkey. Hope you like all this,” Wilbur motioned to the food on the plate.
“Thank you, Wilbur,” Kolak kneeled down and began chewing the turkey.
“Can I ask you a question, Kolak?” asked Wilbur.
“What do those jewels on your collar do?” Wilbur asked, referring to the six crystals upon the collar around Kolak’s neck.
“Every citizen of Juriorty has one and each crystal does something different. Green can create anything you desire; white can translate and decipher any language; blue has infinite knowledge; yellow can morph you into anything; red is a communicator and black, well, black should never be used.”
Wilbur looked out the tree house window to the house next door. “I think I know how you can stay close to me but have a true home,” Wilbur exclaimed.
“My neighbor Amy. She loves cats and we’re pretty good friends,” Wilbur said. “I’ll ask her tomorrow at school.”
The next day, Wilbur and Amy climbed up into the tree house and Kolak bounded over to them like a playful kitten. “Oh, he’s adorable Wilbur!” Amy said.
“I thought you’d like him. So, you’re certain your parents will let you keep him?” Wilbur asked.
“Pretty certain. I’ll take him home now.”
“No!” Wilbur screamed. “I mean, I want a little more time with him. I’ll bring him over in a couple minutes,” Wilbur snatched Kolak away from Amy.
“Okay. If that’s what you want. I’ll be at home talking to my parents just to confirm if it’s okay,” Amy looked at Wilbur oddly and climbed down the ladder of the tree house.
“Smooth,” Kolak said.
“I want to say good-bye. You be good over there, all right?” Wilbur ordered, holding Kolak out at arm’s length and looking right at him.
“I am twenty times more evolved than your primitive Earth-cats so I think I can handle it,” Kolak smirked at Wilbur and struggled out of Wilbur’s grip. “Is she your girlfriend?”
“What? No! Why does everyone think that?”
“You may think that now but it will soon change. Treat her good because she’s going to need a good friend down the line and she’s going to come to you.”
“How do you know?” asked Wilbur heading down the ladder.
“Another one of my many powers.”
“Kolak? This may be the beginning of a beautiful friendship,” Wilbur chuckled.
“That’s right, Wilbur, use a tired cliché to end the story.”
“Story? What are you talking?”
“Nothing. Just take me home...” Kolak chuckled and leapt out of the tree house.
Labels: Liberty, Wilbur and Kolak
Veeblefesters Cry Too
Hmm. I always figured Veeblefester would just outright kill people, not just lock them out. Learn something new every day.
Labels: Brutus, LAMNB, Veeblefester, work, wtf
The Caffeine Should Wear Off By Then
I love how Chip is doing some different things with "Thornapple" lately. First we got this, now we have a simple "Thornapple" with a faint gray underline. And it's the little things like that which really pull the strip together.
Labels: Brutus, coffee, LAMNB, Veeblefester, work
A List That Makes Me Sad
What annoys me is how the GOP are all up in a tizzy about Planned Parenthood and not giving the rich the tax breaks they so obviously deserve and getting rid of those overpaid teacher with their 1996 Toyota Tercels that they seemed to have stopped caring about the still languishing economic crisis. Jobs are still slim pickens, people are still being laid off, gas and groceries are getting a tad expensive.
Just for kicks, let's see what my own state's government has done to help job growth in Kansas.
Late-term abortion restrictions
Ordering an audit of the Kansas Bioscience Authority because a representative doesn't like the guy in charge
Planning "marriage initiatives" to keep people from filing for divorce
Loosening regulations on AT&T
Approved a budget that slashes the budget of education to the lowest level in a decade
Approving a bill requiring to show an ID in order to vote
Abolishing the Kansas Arts Commission, which was eventually overturned. Had it been shut down, Kansas would've been the only state without an arts commission.
Approving a bill raising speed limits and making it OK for motorcyclists to run red lights
Approving unannounced and surprise state investigations for abortion clinics
Wanting to introduce "faith-based solutions" into the state-run program of SRS
Repealing a law that says undocumented immigrants can pay in-state tuition
I still don't see how any of this creates jobs.
Labels: Editorial Comics, Signe Wilkenson
On Katzenjammer
It's Sunday again and your Sunday DCR is now posted. There's some Momma, Mark Trail and a rant about The Katzenjammer Kids.
There's also been some updates to WTS as well. You will see that the ads have been reduced to just the top row of small ads and that there is a "donate" button. All money received from the ads and from donations go back into the site so feel free to donate or click on one of the ads above.
And please remember to follow me on Twitter and tell your friends about this blog.
The moon was bright in the sky as Frank, Matt, Katie and John headed toward the Little Vawter Bridge in Pacific Township. It was almost one thirty in the morning as they turned onto Vawter Road to head to the bridge.
“I got the form filled out to send to the National Register,” Frank said. “Hopefully it’s approved.”
“Why are we going out there tonight?” Matt asked.
“After Katie fell off the bridge a few months ago, I’ve been wanting to get back out here and see if it was just a fluke that she fell off or if she was really pulled off the bridge,” Frank said. “And she refused to let me go without her.”
“I didn’t just fall off the bridge. I was pulled. I felt something tug on my arm,” Katie said. “I’m not some clumsy idiot who can’t sit down without toppling over.”
“Nobody said you were,” John said. “But I agree that there is not ghost out there. The ‘tug’ you felt was probably the wind or some odd body spasm that felt like someone grabbing you. You moved your body in an odd fashion thus causing you to fall into the creek.”
“That excuse still makes me a clumsy idiot!”
“And that excuse doesn’t explain how Judith’s friend died,” Matt reminded.
“He was being stupid and got himself drowned,” John argued. “I’m not saying I have all the answers but I know there is no ghost out there.”
Frank pulled over and put the truck in park and shut off the headlights. “We’ll see. We’re here.” Frank opened his door and stepped out. The others followed, each with a flashlight. Frank also had a camera.
The moon reflected off of the Little Vawter River and the bridge causing the bridge to be seen clearly as if it was the daytime. Frank headed toward the bridge, his flashlight leading the way.
John lagged behind the others pointed his flashlight toward the tops of the trees. “Watch out for snakes,” he said.
“I was sitting right here,” Katie patted her hand down where she was sitting when she fell over the bridge. “I felt something grab my arm which was kind of behind me with my fingers holding onto the edge. It then pulled on me and down I went.”
John shined his flashlight over the bridge and looked down at the river. “That’s a long way down. I’m shocked you only broke your arm,” he said.
“It could’ve been worse,” Frank began. “Cracked your skull, crushed a rib, broke your back.”
“Yes, thank you Frank,” Katie said angrily. “And I only broke my arm because that’s the arm I landed on.”
“So what are we doing here?” Matt sighed. “As much as I would love to get back at the ghost who hurt Katie, do we actually have a plan here?”
“We’re going to reenact the night Katie fell off the bridge while a couple of us investigate the river bank,” Frank revealed.
“I’m not sitting on this bridge again,” Katie spoke up.
“You won’t. John will. You will stay here and make sure nothing takes him while me and Matt put on boots and walk up and down the river bank.”
“Put on boots?” Matt questioned. “I don’t think ‘wearing boots’ is part of my job description.”
“Your job description says ‘…and any other duties or tasks ordered by the Society head’. And I am the Society head so go back to the truck and get the boots. Katie, here is a camera. Take as many pictures as you can but make sure John doesn’t go over the side of the bridge.”
“That’s reassuring,” John said.
Frank and Matt began following the Little Vawter River toward the west. They stayed along the south bank. “So how’s everything going?” Frank asked Matt.
“How’s everything going? It’s been awhile since we’ve hung out together outside of work. We’ve been spending a lot of time trying to find out why the male members of your family keep dying young and you’ve been doing a bulk of the work. I just want to make sure you are still doing okay.”
“I’m doing fine. Katie’s been really helping me through all of this.”
“That’s good. I know I’ve been spending too much time on trying to find that stupid book. I’ve been thinking of just forgetting about it and moving on to something else. Like the ghost you had sex with.”
“Can we not mention that?” Matt asked.
“Or figuring out what happened to the people of Rock Creek. There’s so much more we could be doing than trying to find a book that may not even exist anymore,” Frank sighed.
“I know what you mean. I’ve been wanting to take some time off and maybe do some stuff I’ve always wanted to do. Also, our ten year high school reunion is coming up and I feel like I haven’t really accomplished anything,” Matt said.
“Really? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to stand in your way…”
“No, I’ve loved working for you and helping out with the Society but don’t you ever want to leave and see the country?”
“I have been thinking about expanding our paranormal investigating to outside of Ohio,” Frank said. “If you really want to do some traveling, you could do some part-time investigating for the Society. I have been getting calls from people wanting us to investigate places in Wisconsin, Iowa and California.”
“I’ll think about it. It would be nice,” Matt said. “How far do you think we’ve walked?”
“I don’t know. Quarter of a mile maybe?” Frank looked back where they had come from. “I really haven’t been paying atten…” Frank stubbed his foot on a hard rock and toppled over, landing hands first into some mud.
Matt chuckled. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah,” Frank grunted as he stood up. “That was a really sturdy rock.” Frank shined his flashlight on it and saw that it wasn’t a rock.
“It’s a tombstone,” Matt said. “’In memory of Amelia Betts. Buried in Pacific City Cemetery’. Why is this all the way out here?”
“I don’t know. Here, hold the flashlights over it so I can get a picture. Maybe I can find something out about Amelia Betts when we get back to the Society.”
“I have your baby,” Katie said, leaning over the bridge as John sat on the edge. “I have your baby!”
“I don’t think this is working,” John said as Katie huffed and crossed her arms.
“I didn’t think it would,” Katie said. “Maybe I was just imagining being grabbed,” she sighed and leaned against the railing.
“Or you did actually feel something. Just because something isn’t there doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Whether it was a ghost or your own imagination, something grabbed you and pulled you off of the bridge,” John explained as he jumped off the railing and stood in front of Katie.
Frank and Matt emerged from the woods. “I see John is still alive and well,” Frank said. “So nothing happened?”
“No,” Katie said. “Did you find anything?”
“We found a tombstone,” Matt said.
“We’re thinking it’s the tombstone of the woman who supposedly drowned here. When we get back to the Society I can do some research on this,” Frank said.
Frank and Matt were alone in the Rock Creek Township Historical Society. Frank had finished researching Amelia Betts. Mrs. Betts went out for a walk in the woods but slipped into the river and drowned. Her body was found where the tombstone is now but she was buried Pacific City Cemetery. The stone near the river was eventually forgotten.
“I’m glad we found it, that way we can try to preserve it,” Frank said.
“Frank?” Matt began. “I’ve been thinking about our talk tonight and I have decided to do the out-of-state investigating. After our reunion, of course.”
“Yes. I think I need to get out of not only Stull but the county.”
Frank hesitated for a moment. “That’s cool. I think expanding our paranormal positions will really get our name out there. I’ll get to work on it,” Frank smiled.
Hattie Is Not Second Best
Hattie, you just have to prove to the coach that you are the better player and deserve to be the starter. Or you can shatter the knee caps of the kid the coach picked to start. Just make sure it looks like an accident, get someone to do it for you, or sneak up on him at night while he's taking out the trash.
Labels: baseball, Hurricane Hattie, LAMNB
What I Always Think When I Flush a Spider Down the Drain
Labels: non-BL
Yoga and Yogurt Are the Same Not
Pretty common, confusing yoga and yogurt is. Yes, hmmm. At least he did confuse yoga and Yoda not. Hmmmmmm. Because be a copyright violation that would.
Thanks to The Yoda-Speak Generator.
Labels: bad joke, exercise, food, Hurricane Hattie, LAMNB, Wilberforce
Watch It, Chip. Your Anti-Communism Is Showing
Air raid siren? You mean a tornado siren or civil defense siren or outdoor warning siren? They haven't been called air raid sirens since the end of the Cold War.
If You Haven't Had One, You Can't Comment
Yes, let's highly regulate something that is legal and make it so people won't get them and there will be even more poverty and unwanted children.
Look, I don't claim to know anything about sports, the military or how to build a house and I think politicians need to admit that they don't know anything about abortion, the people getting abortions or the people performing the abortions.
Labels: aborton, Editorial Comics, Signe Wilkenson
The Born Loser Featuring Rancid Veeblefester
You know how on TV shows one of the characters becomes popular and the show suddenly starts revolving all the plots around that one character with no regard to how good or bad the series could end up? It happened on "Happy Days" with Fonzie, "Night Court" with Dan, "How I Met Your Mother" with Barney and "The Big Bang Theory" with Sheldon. Heck, it even happened on Peanuts with Snoopy. Well, I think that has happened with Veeblefester. I just wonder how Chip got in his mind that Veeblefester was popular.
But What About My Family?
HEY! I believe in a lot of municipalities there is something called an election going on for city council/commission, possibly school board and numerous other things so you should get out and vote. It's one of the few things out there that is both a right and privilege.
Finally, a massive shake-up at the Veeblefester Corporation. Brutus, not wanting to admit that he may be one of the millions of unemployed in the next few weeks decides to look on the bright side and create his own definition for "downsize".
Labels: bad joke, Brutus, LAMNB, Veeblefester, work
Battle of the Bulge, Take IV
I'm guessing that Gladys is so upset that no matter what Brutus says it will piss her off. Or, she knows Brutus is lying and is basically saying 'shut up' to him. Or, Gladys feels that she is perfect and her mom is not and resents being lumped into the same vat of perfect. I love how Gladys is never at fault for any fight the Thornapples have.
Labels: Brutus, fighting, Gladys, LAMNB, marriage, wtf
That Crook'd 'Sipp
Go over to the DCR and check out today's post featuring Dick Tracy, Barney Google, Blondie and more.
It's the Weasels Year
So do you think Wilberforce participates in these city-sponsored (or neighborhood sponsored) sports because he wants to or do you think Brutus makes him? Either way, I'm sure Wilberforce's team is better than the Royals. I think they also spend more money than the Royals do.
Labels: baseball, Brutus, LAMNB, sports, Wilberforce
April Fool Haiku
Brutus lacking smarts
Veeblefester always wins
Comic strip not good
Labels: Brutus, holidays, LAMNB, Veeblefester, work
No, It Was an Accident Caused By the Principal Sta...
Beep Beep. Beep Beep. His Horn Went Beep, Beep Bee...
What I Always Think When I Flush a Spider Down the...
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line819
|
__label__cc
| 0.577589
| 0.422411
|
They Are Literally Shaking In Fear
You're being paid in education. You're being paid in ways to become a productive human being. Now, you are old enough to know 2+2 and 2+3 so get those numbers down.
The news isn't scarier, there is just more time to fill and for some reason, no one cares about all the good and decent things that happen in the world. While watching news segments about playful kittens, adorable children, and people turning 105 are fun for a minute, we all want to know who's been shot today. We just don't want to admit that about ourselves.
Hi and Lois
I just want pants that don't feel tight around my ankles or make it seem like my testicles are going to pop when I sit down.
Mary Worth
I saw a movie that started out this way. Finally, we can ditch the boring storyline of drug addiction and move on to the wild world of incest.
Labels: Comic Comics, comic strips, Dennis the Menace, Hi and Lois, Marvin, Mary Worth
And Since It's Chinese Food, Tommy Will Be Hungry Again In an Hour
I went to see Blair Witch the other night with my son. I was a huge fan of the original 1999 movie, which I will talk about next month, so I was actually thrilled when I saw that a sequel was coming out and even more thrilled that it would continue the story and be filmed the same way. Overall, it was a good movie. It was a very good companion piece to a movie that sort of reinvented the horror genre. Right away we are introduced to James Donahue, Heather's younger brother. Heather wandered into the woods nearly 20 years ago and apparently just got herself lost according to James who has a hard time letting go. James and his friends load up thousands of dollars of filming equipment and head off to the Black Hills Forest outside of Burkittsville, Maryland to debunk this witch legend and bring Heather home. No one gives a damn about Josh and Mike. Taking two locals with them, the sextuplet soon find themselves camping, getting attacked by weird sounds and discovering makeshift witch-like cross things hanging from the trees. They then decide to leave because it is too much. They soon start to suspect their two guides, Lane and Talia, are behind the strange occurrences and they part ways. The Blair Witch then begins to pick them off one-by-one. But I don't want to review the whole movie, just give out short criticisms on what I didn't like compared to the original movie.
3. Seeing the Blair Witch
To be fair, we don't really see her but we see, albeit briefly, quick flashes of her either as a pale, spindly appendaged creature or a shuffling person-sized hairball. The thing about the original was that we never saw anything. Whether it was Heather running through the woods screaming or Heather getting knocked over in the basement--nothing. No quick flashes of a creature, no odd possession scenes, it was all off-camera. While some of the flashes (the woman covered in hair) was spot-on and stuck to the legend, it just seemed to be something the audience doesn't need to see.
It seemed to me like there was a cut storyline of James and Lisa hooking up. During the scene where James is trying to calm Lisa down by telling her to breathe, I thought that they were going to kiss. The original didn't need a romantic backstory but it seems that everything in pop culture does now. And when there isn't a romantic storyline, fans write one in anyway. I much rather enjoyed the "three friends" motif of the original instead of the "three couples" motif this movie seemed to have.
1. The Set-Up
The movie seemed to waste quite a bit of the beginning on playing around with their gadgets and going to a club. While the original movie had them trying to figure out the cameras, picking people up, and going to the store for supplies, we didn't see much of their personal life. And that was fine. Why did we need to see them going out and partying and getting drunk? While the scene raised an ethical dilemma for Lisa, the audience knows that dilemma doesn't matter.
So is Blair Witch worth seeing? I think it is. It's a good movie and it reminded me that I like horror movies and need to start watching them again.
Mark Trail
Mark is currently trying to help this woman figure out why there are fire ants on this secluded island. It's also the start of a storyline where Mark is sued for paternity.
I'm hoping Tommy used "I'm addicted to vicodin" for every excuse now. "Why didn't you wash your dishes?" "I'm addicted to vicodin." "Why were you out so late?" "I'm addicted to vicodin." "Why did you run over that child?" "I'm addicted to vicodin."
Rex Morgan, M.D.
"Which is fine because I'd rather deal with this shit than your shit."
U.S. Acres
I don't know. Maybe it's a sign of the end of days or that Donald Trump will actually become president but today's U.S. Acres made me laugh.
Labels: Blair Witch, Blair Witch Project, Comic Comics, comic strips, Mark Trail, Mary Worth, movies, Rex Morgan MD, U.S. Acres
Last Wednesday of the Month Quickies
Chris is never going to visit her father ever again.
Family Circus
"I'll tie a double knot around your throat you little..."
Labels: Comic Comics, comic strips, Crankshaft, Family Circus
Maybe an Abraham Lincoln Scenario Could Occur
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith
You have to admit that the people of Hootin' Holler are very open and accepting of their own mortality. Unlike those Debbie Downers over in Pluggers.
Nobody can take Ed anywhere can they?
This could've taken a very different turn after the first panel. Very different indeed.
You have no idea how disappointed I was when I found that neither "Firefingers" Waters or "One-Arm" Chippendale are real people. It seriously ruined my day.
Labels: Barney Google and Snuffy Smith, Beetle Bailey, Comic Comics, comic strips, Crankshaft, Curtis
Ipomoea #1
Colonel Nicholas Bonaparte, possibly related to the Napoleon one, who honestly knows, opened his mail that he received during the 15 years he spent in stasis. Most he immediately deleted but one of the more legitimate ones was about his wife, Wendy. She had passed away five years ago at the age of 83. He knew this might be coming when he took the assignment but he wanted one last voyage before he retired. Col. Bonaparte had been the captain of the Earthian terraforming ship Ipomoea for 40 years and he was reluctant to give up command even though there were dozens of replacement who would be just as good. He was just being stubborn.
Attached with the email was a pamphlet on how to cope with the death of your spouse while millions of miles from Earth. Bonaparte decided against reading that and deleted the email and several others after it. The door to his office slid open and a statuesque woman walked in. She was in a uniform and was carrying several clipboards.
“Sir, here is the itinerary for the terraforming. We are within 12 parsecs of the planet and the terraformers are getting ready as we speak,” the woman said.
“Very good, Captain Fielding,” Bonaparte took the clipboard from Fielding and glanced over it. “I assume everything was good for you in stasis.”
“It was, sir. How was yours?”
“I’ve been in stasis more times than I can count and I always wake up with a cramp in the back of my leg,” he bent down and rubbed. “Why do you think that is?”
“Maybe it’s because you’re old, sir,” Fielding said with a smile.
Bonaparte smiled back. “Who’s going on the terraforming today?”
“Rizzo and Cardy. Under the command of Cpl. Rizzo,” Fielding answered.
“The brother and sister? Do you think that’s wise?”
“Cpl. Rizzo needs the experience of leading and Ensign Rizzo is one of our best terraformers.”
“Alright,” Bonaparte said. “I just hope they are okay with it.”
“Hey, Cardy,” Lester Rizzo said as he went into the quarters he shared with Manford Cardy. Rizzo had just finished taking a shower and was scrubbing his ears out with his towel. “What’s happening?”
“Just checking my mail. My girlfriend broke up with me, got married, and had three kids while I was in stasis,” Cardy said.
“If she broke up with you then why did she keep you in the loop about all that?” Rizzo asked.
“The girl is crazy about me,” Cardy exclaimed. “Have you checked your mail?”
“Oh, no. Not right now. Too many bad things could be there and I don’t need that kind of negativity in my life,” Rizzo walked into his closet. His robe that he was wearing when he walked in was tossed out onto his bed. “Besides, Sabrina will tell me any bad news we receive.”
As if on cue, Corporal Sabrina Rizzo ran into Rizzo and Cardy’s room with tears in her eyes. “Rollo is dead,” she cried. “He died three years ago.”
“Of course he did. He was a nine-year-old cat when we left Earth,” Rizzo came out of the closet dressed in his Ipomoea uniform which consisted of blue slacks, a blue shirt, and the wrist computer that everybody wore. “Nine plus fifteen equals 24 and cats rarely live to be 24, Sabrina. But 21 is still a pretty damn old cat,” Rizzo acknowledged.
“I guess,” Sabrina said quietly. “Ooh, you got your terraforming manifests. Did you see who all is going?”
“Well, clearly Cardy and I since we got the manifests,” Rizzo said.
“Did you see who your C.O. is going to be?” Sabrina smiled big.
“Oh, no. Not you.”
“Yes, me,” Sabrina’s happiness disappeared when her brother’s disapproval came. “I told you that this might happen but you didn’t care. You just had to follow Lisa Yates though.”
“Who’s Lisa Yates?” Cardy smiled, finally interested in one of Lester and Sabrina’s family squabbles.
“Nobody,” Rizzo snapped back.
“Lisa Yates is an old high school crush who works in the medical unit. Lester, here, applied when he dropped me off for my first day of work. He saw her and thought that maybe being on the same ship with her and 1,300 other people would make her love him.”
“So how is your relationship progressing?” Cardy asked.
“Right now, we’re at awkward passes in the corridor. I’m hoping in a couple of months that we can move up to awkward smiles and a ‘Hey’,” Rizzo said.
Sabrina chuckled. “I will see you two at Dock Number 3,” she left the room.
“I like your sister,” Cardy laughed.
“You want her? Take her.”
This was Rizzo’s third terraforming excursion but it was his first long-term excursion. His first was the Moon--a simple event that was hailed by numerous countries. Soon, he was sent to Pluto in a year-long event. Rizzo was then asked to do the Walbach Planetary Cluster, a triplet of planets in the habitable zone in the AA-20918 System. It was the furthest excursion that North American Civilization Administration commissioned but with the sparseness of habitable planets, they felt it was something they had to claim.
Cardy was a mechanic who mainly made sure that the vending machines and other machines that made life easier ran smoothly. Terraformers were required to have a mechanic with them just in case the ship they took broke down or the terraforming units died. No one wants a terraformer to be stranded on a desolate, inhospitable planet for the rest of their life.
Rizzo, Cardy, and Sabrina stood on the loading dock next to one of the personal ships, Blue Dwarf 2; Blue Dwarf 1 was currently getting its fluids changed. “Are we ready?” Sabrina asked.
“All the terraforming equipment is loaded into the Dwarf and Cardy’s tools are too,” Rizzo said. “Who’s piloting?”
“You can,” Sabrina offered. “But I have to ride passenger.”
“Just don’t criticize me. I am a much better driver than anyone give me credit for.”
“You drove the family car into a ditch,” Sabrina brought up.
“That was one time and everything was fine once the tow truck pulled the car out of the ditch,” Rizzo shouted.
“How did you drive a car into a ditch? You should’ve had your eyes on the road and ditches are so huge,” Cardy said.
“The car was a stick shift and this is a family argument,” Rizzo stormed off into Blue Dwarf. “Why do they even still make those kind of cars? They are an abomination…” he muttered, getting quieter and he walked into the cockpit.
Within minutes, Blue Dwarf was heading toward the cluster of planets while Ipomoea drifted silently along the rim of the system. “We have a problem, sir?” Capt. Fielding said, coming into Bonaparte’s cabin where he was monitoring Blue Dwarf’s voyage.
“We just started? What could possibly be wrong?”
“The Ipomoea is about to enter a wormhole,” Fielding said. “We’ve looked at trying to stop, turn around, and just avoid but there is no way we can do either of those things.”
“Why didn’t it show up on our monitors or scanners?” Bonaparte was furious but kept his cool.
“A wormhole gives off very little radiation or heat or light so unless you are very close, you can’t detect them. Also, wormholes are generally black and the thing about space is that it’s black, as are our monitors, so it’s really hard to see a wormhole,” Fielding tried explaining.
Bonaparte sighed. “So what do we do? Just fly head first into a wormhole?”
“That’s the only viable option. Best case scenario, nothing happens, everything turns out fine. Worst case scenario, the whole ship and everyone inside is ripped apart and scattered among millions of time periods and dimensions,” Fielding said matter-of-factly. “Should we tell the crew?”
The whole terraforming excursion took six hours and by the time Rizzo, Cardy, and Sabrina was returning to the Ipomoea, changes could be seen happening to each of the planets. Storms were clearing, fog was lifting. In about ten years, all three planets would be able to sustain life and be similar to Earth.
The Blue Dwarf landed softly on the loading dock and Rizzo, Cardy, and Sabrina got out and began walking across the dock. They noticed the small piles of ash on the floor but didn’t think anything of it. As they walked through the corridor they noticed more piles and how quiet it was.
“What’s going on?” Sabrina stopped walking and listened. “There is literally no noise on this ship. There’s also no talking.”
“It sounds like we’re in low-power mode,” Cardy said.
“Where is everybody?” Rizzo asked. He took his fingers and dipped them into a nearby pile of ash. He sniffed what got stuck to his fingers and licked them.
“Ah, you made it back safely,” an android began walking up to them.
“Robot-2? What’s going on?” Sabrina asked. Rizzo kept touching and eating the ash pile.
“Cpl. Rizzo, the Ipomoea had no choice to but to fly through a wormhole. While only seconds passed in this dimension, millions of years passed in the other one. The entire crew is now dead. Have been for millions of years,” Robot-2 explained.
“So where are all the bodies? And what’s this powder all over the ship?” Rizzo asked, taking another fingerful.
“The bodies all broke down into their basic chemical components over millions of years and became ash. That pile you’re eating is Second Navigator Trentus Ericksson,” Robot-2 said.
Rizzo began spitting and rubbing his fingers over his tongue in a panic.
“So we’re the last survivors on this ship? We’re the only ones alive?” Sabrina asked.
“I’m afraid so,” Robot-2 confirmed, sadly.
Sabrina looked at Cardy and Rizzo, who was still rubbing his tongue. “What are we going to do?”
Labels: Ipomoea, science fiction, Story Series, writing
I Hope It Becomes Like a Bob Hope Road Comedy
I made a joke to myself yesterday that I hoped we would actually see Spidey and Ant-Man signing paperwork and being offered the additional insurance while at the rent-a-car place and today we pretty much get exactly that. Why we needed this little interlude I don't know but when I thought about it yesterday, it was just a joke. Just a joke.
Mallard Fillmore
I only read Mallard on Sundays now. Doing that has really cut back on my headaches.
I would stop raking my leafs but if I just leave them there--especially if it is after I stop mowing for the season, the leaves kill my grass and end up leaving barren patches of dirt in my lawn. The thing is, Bruce Tinsley doesn't need to write and draw and color an entire Sunday strip just to justify to himself or his neighbors why he's not going to rake his leaves anymore.
Ugh. Finally, after months--possibly years--of flirting and innuendo, Iris and Tommy are going to kiss. The world thought their relationship was wrong, but it was the world that was wrong.
I love strawberry-rhubarb pie...and I hate strawberries. Going by Brutus' jerkass tone and look in the fourth panel, he doesn't get any pie.
Labels: Amazing Spider-Man, Comic Comics, comic strips, Mallard Fillmore, Mary Worth, Peanuts, The Born Loser
Tauy Creek Digest #25: Melvin & Helu
The white station wagon pulled into the driveway next to the giant moving truck. Mom and Dad got out of the car and Melvin, a dirty blond eight-year-old, soon followed from the backseat, carrying a stuffed brown bear. "Well, we're home," Mom said, smiling and putting her hand on Melvin's head. "Dad's unlocking the door if you want to head inside and figure out how you want your room."
Dad unlocked the door and then went to the moving van where two guys were getting out of the cab. Melvin went into the house, a blast of cold air hitting him. He went upstair to the room he had chosen as his own. He sat his stuffed bear on the floor and went over to the windows in the corner of the room.
"It's a nice room," a voice behind Melvin said. "It'll be better once your bed and other things get in here."
Melvin turned to the voice. His stuffed bear was now a 750 pound, four and a half foot tall brown bear. "I know, Helu. I worry about the floor though in a two-story house what with your size and all."
"Well, I have been eating more," Helu chuckled and patted his stomach. "You want to explore the neighborhood or something. Get out of the way of the movers?" he asked as he heard the movers grunted up the stairs. Helu reverted back to a stuffed animal and Melvin picked him up, waited for the movers to pass by and then went down the stairs.
"Helu and I are going to explore the neighborhood," Melvin said to Mom and Dad.
"Okay. Check in in a couple of hours. Be safe," Dad said.
As they got away from the parents, Helu was back to being a full grown bear, walking next to Melvin on all four legs. "I wonder if there are any other kids on this block," Melvin questioned out loud.
"More than likely. This seems like a neighborhood that won't let you live here unless you have at least 2.5 children," Helu said.
"Don't remind me. Why would Mom and Dad want another kid? I should be all they need."
Helu rolled his eyes. "Oh, I know."
The two of them heard a loud gasp. "You have a bear, too!" a voice squealed with delight.
Melvin looked down into his left arm where Helu had reverted back to his stuffed animal persona. He then looked back at the girl, maybe a year or two younger than him, who was playing with a stuffed panda and a kids table with a couple other dolls in the chairs. The girl grabbed her panda and ran up to Melvin.
"I have a panda. What kind of bear do you have?"
Melvin was confused. "A brown bear. A Kodiak bear."
"Ooo. My panda is named Mrs. Precious Panda. I just call her Mrs. Precious. What's your bear's name?"
"Helu."
"That's a strange name. I'd call him Mr. Brownie Bear. My name is Peggy Paulen. What's yours."
"Melvin."
"That's a strange name. We should play Bear House. We can have Mrs. Precious and Mr. Brownie get married and raise children."
"Yeah, maybe. Or not."
"I've never seen you before. Did you just move here?"
"Yeah, I live..." Melvin started to point to his house but stopped himself. "Yeah."
"Cool. I'll see you around then. And you, Mr. Brownie Bear," Peggy cooed at Helu, in Melvin's arm.
Peggy bounded off, grabbed Mrs. Precious Panda, and went inside her house. She waved at Melvin and Helu before closing the screen door.
"If her name is Mrs. Precious Panda, wouldn't that mean she's already married?" Helu asked.
"She's a six-year-old girl, don't think too much about it," Melvin said.
"Maybe we could do, like, a tea party or something," Helu said. The two of them had started walking again down the street again.
"Are you serious?"
"I'm just trying to be polite. She seemed nice and she was friendly. The least we could do is be friendly back."
"You are too nice sometimes, Helu. Where do you get that from?"
"Clearly not you," Helu sighed. "Did you notice that Mrs. Precious Panda had only one eye? The other was just a button sewn onto her."
"Probably lost it during the war," Melvin said. "Are you having second thoughts about tea now that you know Mrs. Precious Panda is deformed?"
"No, but it does make you wonder what happened. What did Peggy do to her?"
"Same thing that happens to a lot of stuffed animals. They get loved too much," Melvin looked at Helu and smiled. "Come on. Let's see if there are any lizards in that creek, Mr. Brownie Bear." Melvin and Helu ran off down the street toward a small creek that ran between the houses in the neighborhood.
Labels: Melvin & Helu, Story Series, Tauy Creek Digest, writing
Two Comic Saturday
Ooh, I can't wait until the trolls really start giving her the business. Seeing this old woman read comments like "I'm going to rape and slit the throats of your cats" will be the saddest but yet most believable thing to happen in a Tom Batiuk comic in years.
I get that this is a family strip and I don't think you can print the word 'penis' in a comic strip and many people don't want to see that word as they are eating their Froot Loops early in the morning but just tell your kid about the differences in boys and girls.
Although to be fair, it looks like Boog looks like he knows the score and was just trying to get his mom to 'penis' or 'vagina'. It didn't work this time, darn it.
Labels: Comic Comics, comic strips, Crankshaft, Gasoline Alley
The First Six People Had the Same Reaction
For those who have been living under a rock for the last century or haven't been born yet, Peggy and Lee are named for singer Peggy Lee who did the voice(s) for twin Siamese Cats Si and Am in the Disney animated feature Lady and the Tramp. So it's like a double honor. But I'm really just posting this strip so I can post pictures of my local bookstore's cats.
Dashiell, named for Dashiell Hammett
and Ngaio, named for Ngaio Marsh.
There are TWO Dagwood Bumsteads in this world? That seems highly unlikely.
The Lockhorns
This is the seventh person Leroy had told his "joke" to.
U.S. Acres tends to use the same four or five jokes: falling off a cliff, Roy's a jerk, Lanolin's a bitch, Wade's a pussy, and sign jokes. Why is Booker freaking out at the sign "yelling" at him? This happens a lot in U.S. Acres as well. U.S. Acres is a very lazy comic strip. Of course, I would do badly at my job too if I got hired at PAWS, Inc. but ended up writing and/or drawing U.S. Acres instead of something to do with Garfield.
Labels: Blondie, Comic Comics, comic strips, Crankshaft, Lockhorns, U.S. Acres
Sometimes Ballets Have a Lot of Sexual Innuendo
Well, screw you too. Nobody has anything to say in this comic strip either. For more nothing, check out Tom Batiuk's blog.
I love that Tom Armstrong had to put a sign that was pointing to him just to make sure readers understood that he was the creator/artist. I don't know why we had to have the creator make an appearance instead of just ending with the other kids' exclamation of "WHAT?!!". I think readers would've understood.
Girlfriend: "Isn't this just so beautiful?"
Shoe: "When...When are they going to get naked?"
Girlfriend: "...They're not."
Shoe: ...
Shoe: "I'm gonna try to get our money back."
Labels: Comic Comics, comic strips, Crankshaft, Marvin, Shoe
Maybe He'll Die of Cancer Soon
Funky Winkerbean
Goddamnit. People toil for years either sending the manuscript after manuscript only to see it be rejected or posting inane, pseudo-comedic garbage about comic strips and writing ongoing written serials or both and getting nowhere. But some idiotic in a TV show, movie, comic strip, whatever puts in the least amount of work necessary and gets the job of a lifetime. Weren't we just talking about suing this jackass? Let's go back to that.
I often wonder if, when Donald Trump says he wants to make America great again, he's talking about The Family Circus because this panel, right here, is everything that is wrong with our country.
Sally Forth
I honestly wish we were still on Sally and Ted's marriage crumbling without Hilary around. That was a fun week.
Labels: Comic Comics, comic strips, Family Circus, Funky Winkerbean, Sally Forth
Liberty #63: A Whisky Murder
Written by T.A. McNeal; originally published in "When Kansas Was Young", 1922. Capper Publications.
Medicine Lodge never acquired the reputation of being a wild and wooly town in the sense that that name attached to Dodge City, or Wichita in its early days, or Newton or Abeline when they were the end of the Texas cattle drive, or Caldwell or Hunnewell in the days of their pristine glory. Before the railroad reached Medicine Lodge, the day of the cattle drive was passed, and while a bad man occasionally sojourned there for a night, or maybe a week, there was no congregation of killers. Medicine Lodge never had a dance hall such as flourished in each of the other towns, when they were the objectives of of the vast plains of Texas on their ways to the markets of the North and East.
Still there were some tragedies, and this story relates to one which I think had something to do with the fact that in the election of 1880 this frontier county gave a majority for the prohibitory amendment to our state constitution. While there was not so much of it sold as in some of the towns, the quality of the whisky sold in Medicine Lodge was as bad as the worst. I have known men who were ordinarily quiet and peaceable when sober, after imbibing a few drinks of the beverage, to go stark mad for the time being and become more dangerous than Bengal tigers. I know a most reputable man, kindly, law-abiding and in every way a model citizen for many years past, who confesses that he shudders when he thinks of how near he came to being a murderer when crazed by a few drinks of border drug store whisky. But that is another story.
One May day in 1879 a country boy, perhaps nineteen or twenty years of age, rode into town. John Garten had not been known as a "bad man". He was just an ordinary, gawky, green country boy, who had reached the age when he probably thought it would be smart to show off and also an indication of manly quality to fill his hide with drink. It was probably this ambition, rather than any confirmed appetite for liquor, that caused him to take on several drinks. Probably at that, nothing serious would have happened if he had not been filled with another ambition, and that was to carry a gun and acquire the ability to draw and shoot like one of the gun fighters he had heard about.
It was along toward evening of the long beautiful day in the latter part of May, that young Garten mounted his horse, probably at the suggestion of the town marshal, and rode out of town, emitting a few "whoops" as he rode. A few miles west of the Lodge, at a crossing of one of the little tributaries of the Medicine, he overtook two women, a mother and her daughter. They stepped to the side of the road to let him pass. He rode past them a few rods and then with a drunken howl pulled his pistol from its holster and fired two shots in the direction of the women. With a cry of anguish the younger woman, Mrs. Steadman, fell mortally wounded. It is quite possible that young Garten did know know that he had hit either woman, for hte rode on without further looking backwards, stopped at the ranch where he had been working, unsaddled his horse and made no effort to escape. He expressed great surprise when a few hours afterward the tall, gaunt frontier sheriff rode up to the ranch house and said quietly, "John, I want you for murder."
Garten protested that he had just intended to give the women a scare and didn't suppose he had hit either one of them, and quite probably he was telling the truth. The murder aroused a storm of indignation when young Garten was brought into town. An inoffensive, popular young woman had been shot down without any provocation and there was talk of the law of the border. There were mutterings of vengeance and knots of men gathered and conversed in low earnest tones, more dangerous than loud threats or bluster. A few hours afterward the big, lank weatherbeaten sheriff with the prisoner in charge, rode away through the moonless night to the northward and put Garten for safe keeping in the Rice County jail to await his trial. In those days there were only two terms of court in Barber County and before the time for Garten's trial he escaped from jail and, it was believed, fled to the mountains of New Mexico.
The father of the murdered woman was a lean, powerful man by the name of Champion, a typical frontiersman. I think he had come originally from the mountains of Kentucky or Tennesse and if so was born to believe in the doctrine of the blood avenger. Sparing of speech and stern of face, Champion made little demonstration of his grief, though it was understood that he possessed a quiet and deep affection for his children.
When the news came that Garten had broken jail, Champion said nothing, but those who were in his confidence knew that he had gone to New Mexico. For almost a year nothing was heard from him, but there was a persistent rumor that he was playing the part of the avenger of blood; that he had gone on a relentless, tireless man hunt for the slayer of his first born.
Finally he returned. He said nothing for publication, but there was the look on his face of a man who had accomplished his task and fulfilled the old law, the law still of the mountains, an eye for an eye, a life for a life. No one outside of Champion and his few confidants knew what had been the result of that long year's hunt through the mountains and over the burning desert sands, but Garten was never found by the authorities or returned for trial.
Those who knew the boy never believed that he was a willful and deliberate murderer. His crime was the direct result of the villainous liquor that was sold in the frontier town. At the next election the question was up to amend the constitution so as to make the sale of whisky as a beverage forever unlawful. The rough bearded men riding the range, with ample time to meditate as they rode, considered the case of the boy Garten, the murdered woman, the lean-faced, stern, unsmiling close-lipped frontiersman on his lonely vigils in the mountains, searching with indomitable will and marvelous patience for the man he meant to kill. They considered and voted for prohibition.
Labels: alcohol, history, Kansas, Liberty, murder, Story Series, writing
So Much Hepatitis
So no one thinks it's odd that there's just a giant bag labelled "secrets" sitting in the open for anyone to notice and take?
Slylock Fox and Comics For Kids
Clearly on the brink of animals overthrowing human rule, Slylock attempts to rid the world of one more human by throwing a spare tire at him in an "effort" to rescue him knowing any weight on it would cause the tire to sink like a stone. Slylock then shows even more discrimination to the human by taking his radio and cell phone and setting the car on fire.
panels from Hi and Lois
I've seen a lot of throwaway panels but I think these are the most throwaway-iest.
Labels: Comic Comics, comic strips, Crock, Hi and Lois, Slylock Fox
And Since It's Chinese Food, Tommy Will Be Hungry ...
Homer's Night Out
Saturday Quickies
I Will Fight For You...Anything I Do...I Do It For...
Thursday Evening Quickies
Late-Night Comics
'Should Have' Not 'Should Of'
What Would Be Big Brad's Motive?
Zoe Bleak #7
Hello? SAMHSA? My Son Is Addicted To Vicodin. No, ...
Whiz Bang #5: Brilliant, But Canceled
Terrible Character Saturday
I'd Rather Draw a Raccoon Holding a Hamburger Like...
I Mean, Just Look At That Blank Stare
Wednesday Quickies
Screaming Into the Wind
Incredible Comics #9
Tauy Creek Digest #24: Swygart Road
The Vampire Fog
The Savage's Revenge
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line820
|
__label__cc
| 0.678971
| 0.321029
|
Home Forums > Off-Topic Forums > Hardware & Software >
Audiophiles, assemble! I'm looking at the Sennheiser HD598.
Discussion in 'Hardware & Software' started by Stigmata, Aug 18, 2013.
Stigmata The Freeman
It seems like it's a nice middle-ground between good build quality and good sound quality. I'm totally okay with, and actually prefer, open-ear designs when in public, and in private it lets me hear my kittens if they need anything.
Are there better alternatives within open-cup designs for the price? This will be a headset used primarily for music listening in public, but equally/semi-secondarily for gaming with mic usage. Ultimately all I know is the basics of impedance, and the fact that Sennheiser is a good brand. Any recommendations are welcome.
The 598s are about $250 on amazon.ca.
#1 Stigmata, Aug 18, 2013
Viperidae
Hard to go wrong with Senns. Very popular, middle-of-the-road sound quality, good durability. Too bass heavy for my taste.
I have a boner for Audio Technica despite never owning them (would love some ATH-A900s), but these will definitely have better sound (unsure about durability): http://www.amazon.ca/TECHNICA-ATH-AD900X-OPEN-BACK-AUDIOPHILE-HEADPHONES/dp/B009S331VU
For complete and utter unfiltered sound, and for price, I could recommend: http://www.amazon.ca/Sony-MDR-V6-Professional-Monitor-Headphones/dp/B00001WRSJ I own these, they're awesome, they will make you realise how much upper range (14-18k) hearing you've lost, and are perfect for monitoring, but not necessarily listening. If you're making music, there is no excuse not to own these.
#2 Viperidae, Aug 18, 2013
Krynn72 The Freeman
Dude u shuld totes get beats by dre phones man. Dey tha primo shit.
It still astounds me that people can justify multiple hundreds of dollars on a headset. I used a friend's expensive Sennheiser set (possibly the ones you're talking about) and noticed no appreciable difference over my Sennheiser PC156 set I bought for like $70 on amazon. Seems like another e-peen status symbol, like SLI graphics cards to get those extra 4 fps when you're already getting 60+. YOU TOTALLY NOTICE THE DIFFERENCE BRO.
My recommendation is to not spend more than $100 on a headset, the difference will not actually be noticeable. If your e-peen is too small, then it may be worth the investment of a higher priced set.
Argue me Vegeta, I know its coming.
He wants one with a mic Viper.
#3 Krynn72, Aug 18, 2013
DEATHMASTER The Freeman
Viperidae said: ↑
I have a boner for Audio Technica despite never owning them (would love some ATH-A900s)
I have the A700X, they do the job well, but they're much better with a good dac/amp than on just an mp3 player.
#4 DEATHMASTER, Aug 18, 2013
Tacoeaterguy Party Escort Bot
I need a new pair of headphones too pretty soon. I've been using this Microsoft LifeChat LX-3000 headset for about a year. Really great for only about $30, but you really get what you pay for. The microphone died a couple months ago and it kept getting in the way, so I tore it off. The whole thing is just falling apart now, but somehow they are still working.
I'm done with headsets, and I recommend you give up on them as well. Just pick up a nice, decently priced set headphones and buy a separate mic to put on your desk. The idea of having the two separate discouraged me for awhile, but I eventually got tired of being mic-less and bought a $20 microphone and it's honestly just as good.
#5 Tacoeaterguy, Aug 18, 2013
Vegeta897 Banned as all fuck
Krynn72 said: ↑
My recommendation is to not spend more than $100 on a headset, the difference will not actually be noticeable.
You're basing this off of one expensive headset from one brand that you tried, and probably didn't listen to a wide range of different types of audio.
Higher end headphones are usually purchased for their flat response, not "how good it sounds" to a casual user. Like Viper said. But this is not usually a desirable thing for most people playing games and listening to music.
But more than sound quality, you can trust the build quality of higher end headphones from a trusted brand. I hear about people's headphones ****ing up all the time after a year or two. My Sennheisers are relatively cheap (about 100) and have this annoying vibration at certain frequencies sometimes. Not often, and not deal-breaking, but it's there. And I won't be surprised when it craps out eventually (had them for 1.5 years now)
I can relate with Taco's plight. It's so damn hard to find a good headset, really. As convenient as they are, if you really actually want high quality phones, you may as well give up trying to find one with a mic. Get yourself a snowball or something (I know, more money..)
Edit: As far as recommendations, many people on Gearslutz have good things to say about these: http://www.amazon.com/AKG-K-701-Headphones-White/dp/B000EBBJ6Y
#6 Vegeta897, Aug 18, 2013
Vegeta897 said: ↑
Well, I played the new Deus Ex game with them, and listened to some music that was in flac format downloaded from the band's site. Granted it was only a day's worth of testing, but he claimed I'd notice the difference immediately. His bragging fell on deaf ears.
badum-tish.
Still though it was only one pair and you don't even remember which ones. Maybe he said they were expensive but they were low-mid range ($100-200)
He said $300.
It still astounds me that people can justify multiple hundreds of dollars on a headset. I used a friend's expensive Sennheiser set (possibly the ones you're talking about) and noticed no appreciable difference over my Sennheiser PC156 set I bought for like $70 on amazon. Seems like another e-peen status symbol, like SLI graphics cards to get those extra 4 fps when you're already getting 60+.
The word audiophile is relevant here. It's for obsessives. When I really want to test a new pair of headphones I pick a song I've listened to thousands of times--the kind of song I'll have in my head on my deathbed--because I've listened to it so many times on one pair/system I will notice all the tiny differences (oh hey the bass is slightly lighter but also a little clearer etc.). People with musical training/experience are also much more sensitive to sound differences and consciously listen for things that annoy them with certain cheaper brands. Hell, they know what to listen for, which is more than 99% of the population. Again, obsessives. Dumbasses use audiophile status for penis measurement, true, but IMO it's much closer to a shoe collector spending 5 hours picking a pair of shoes--they've worn countless shoes, they know what they want and can find tiny little flaws in the feel of almost all of them. It's not that their experience is superior, they just notice things you might not and have a preference for certain differences.
In my defense, I was drunk and didn't notice. Also in my defense, there is no such thing as quality headset outside of a pilot's headset.
#10 Viperidae, Aug 18, 2013
WELL THAT'S GREAT THAT YOU DIDN'T NOTICE ANYTHING SPECIAL ABOUT THE ONE PAIR YOUR TRIED KRYNN R. DOGGY
#11 Vegeta897, Aug 18, 2013
In my defense, I don't need an integrated mic, I was drunk when I made the thread and I don't know why I mentioned a mic or used the word "headset".
#12 Stigmata, Aug 18, 2013
I'd definitely recommend spending some of your cash on an amp/dac. Provided I've only listened to one, the one I have (mine is black but some reason the silver is $15 cheaper right now, no difference otherwise). I spent about $120 on that and the headphones each. I use them at my desktop only so it's not an issue of portability for me but since you're wanting to use them on the road, you might want to look at the portable kinds.
#13 DEATHMASTER, Aug 18, 2013
That DAC is running $155 on amazon.ca for some reason which makes me sad, but it's not that much of an increase. And I do need an amp, so I'll keep it in mind.
Speaking of, does anyone have an opinion on the HT Omega Claro series? I have an anti-hardon for Creative these days, and I feel uncomfortable buying an Asus sound card despite the quality of their motherboards and monitors.
If you buy an amp/dac, don't get a sound card unless you're hooking speakers up to it (the amp/dac would override the sound card).
Oh yeah, I only ask because it's a sound card with an integrated headphone amp (with selectable impedance), and it's $180 on Newegg. Sounds like the drivers and support are much better of other soundcards too, which is nice. It's one or the other, this or a DAC will do the trick.
I feel DAC is being used inappropriately here. The thing deathmaster linked is just an external usb soundcard. A DAC takes digital input (spdif or aes) and converts it to analog. A sound card is actually used by your system on the software level and can output both digital and analog (which the thing deathmaster linked does). I wouldn't call it an amp either since it's bus powered and, again, doesn't actually take any input.
You're basically just looking for an external soundcard that has a volume control with enough power to suit your needs.
This is what practically everything on amazon is like when you look up DAC or amp. Perhaps there's more than one kind, physical like for actual wires and software based for files. And aren't amps basically anything that can raise the volume? Maybe they're abusing the terms more than what you're used to them meaning, but it does state "headphone amp."
But the product description specifically states it's a DAC. I must be missing something about how these things actually function.
Anyway I don't need anything external per se, and I might upgrade to some higher-impedance headphones in the future, so I feel like a Claro Halo suits my needs pretty well. I can use the RCA out for my speakers or S/PDIF out if I upgrade them, input my PS3/4 audio through S/PDIF (assuming the console audio would get mixed down to 2.1, I don't know these things :V )., and set the headphone amp to a bunch of values up to 600 ohms. And people rave about the drivers and sound quality in reviews, placing it above pretty much any other card in the price range.
Keep trying to convince me to get a USB external though, I want to make sure I'm not missing anything about alternatives to the Claro.
Of course amplification is happening, but I mean, every sound card does that already. I guess the fact that it has its own hard volume control makes it more like a headphone amp. But it's first and foremost an external soundcard. And yes, technically DAC is happening. But calling it a DAC device is just misleading. All sound cards are DAC.
As far as what to get (external soundcards) I've only ever looked into ones used for recording/music.
There are headphone DACs sold separately from amps, with no volume control, which is probably why it's explicitly stated. I mean they could probably call it an external sound card, but it's more of a block so they don't? I can't say I'm too privy to naming schemes.
DEATHMASTER said: ↑
I mean they could probably call it an external sound card, but it's more of a block so they don't?
I don't understand this at all. What's the shape got to do with it? Replace "card" with "device". I only say card because it does exactly what a sound card does but it's external and connects via USB. You could say external interface too. It is the device that interfaces audio between your computer and your speakers/headphones/mic/etc
All audio generated from a computer is digital, so any interface with an analog output has DA converters.
When you say there are "headphone DACs", are you still referring to USB sound devices? If so, those are still just external interfaces, just without a volume control. They could be just as amplified as one with a control.
The typical meaning of an amp is something that takes an audio input (analog) and amplifies it. The amplification process is just the last step in the device you linked, and in any computer audio interface (unless it has only digital outs)
In summary: An amp and a DAC are specific devices with specific functions. Since both of these things are part of any computer audio device, I think it's silly to use these terms in the name of a computer audio device. It's just misleading, since it doesn't even take any digital or analog input to convert or amplify. It's just a computer audio device with a volume knob. It would be like advertising speakers as having amps in them. Well shit, it's a speaker system, I would hope it has powered amplification.
Semantics: Important Business.
#23 Krynn72, Aug 20, 2013
Education in a thread asking for help: Krynn's gonna be a bitch.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line823
|
__label__wiki
| 0.853314
| 0.853314
|
Metroid is a platform adventure action game with a science fiction theme released by Nintendo on the Famicom Disk System on 1986-08-06 and ported to the NES in 1987. It's the first game in the Metroid series. You play a bounty hunter trying to stop Mother Brain from making an army of Metroids, a terrible organism which can suck the life out of all living things.
Metroid is a pioneer of the Metroidvania genre, which is one of my favorite types of games. Unfortunately, like many pioneers, it suffers from several serious flaws that prevents it from being accessible to modern gamers. Thankfully, Nintendo remade it as Metroid: Zero Mission, which I suggest as the starting point for anyone wanting to get into the series. Metroid is also the sister project of Kid Icarus: Angel Land Story, and they share similar game engines. A lot of awesome sequels have been made, some with a similar 2D platform style, others with a first-person 3D format.
I first saw Metroid in The Official Nintendo Player's Guide. The game looked really cool, but I didn't own it. I must have borrowed it from a friend, because I remember playing it while I was still quite young. I didn't get very far on my initial run and died as I was ascending the first vertical shaft! I was a bit shocked to find that you only got one life, which gives you an idea of how popular the 3-life arcade style of game was at the time. Later, my step-brother brought the game over, and, with a lot of help from The Official Nintendo Player's Guide I watched them beat the game. I still remember wasting hours trying to fill up energy at an enemy spawn site. In the 1990s, I remember using the Justin Baily code to get invincibility and beating the game. In my 30s I decided to try and beat the game again, just from my memory. I did pretty good (only needed to consult a map a couple times), and got a better ending because I did it all in one sitting.
3.5 Fan Art
4.1 Title
4.2 Ending
I own this game on the NES and have beaten it and seen the ashamed ending and helmet reveal ending.
5 4 5 8 7 58%
Best Version: Metroid: Zero Mission for Game Boy Advance
— This section contains spoilers! —
The graphics are great for the time. Each zone has its own feel and ambience. Areas like Norfair have a hellish inferno feel, Kraid's hideout is alive and creepy, while Ridley's hideout is desolate and dangerous.
Hirokazu Tanaka's score adds so much to the feel of the game from the motivational Brinstar theme, to the loneliness of Norfair, the power of Kraid's hideout, and the insidiousness of Ridley's hideout and Tourain. The title and ending themes are fantastic and even the quietness of the item rooms and the game start and get item jingles are very hummable.
While the game has the typical platformer power-ups (high jump, longer range shot, better armor, etc.), Metroid pioneered a lot of interesting ideas like the ability to morph into a ball and drop bombs, the screw attack, and the ice beam turning enemies into platforms.
There are a lot of bonus items to find if you keep at it long enough.
Having Samus be a female was quite progressive of the game creators, and I like that it was possibly to play her as an obvious female.
This is one of the very first games to feature a new game plus mechanic.
The game is very difficult, too much of which comes from the poor player control. You can't shoot at angles or down, you can't duck, you slide while walking, getting hit throws you around erratically, etc. Thankfully, these problems were fixed in subsequent Metroid games.
Without a basic map or quest log, it is pretty much a given that you're going to get lost a lot and spend much of your time back-tracking. You have to draw your own map, but this is difficult due to the scrolling nature of the screens.
Several sections of the map are pointless (especially in Ridley's lair) and serve only to waste your time.
While there are a lot of bonus items, many of them are really hard to find, and, due the difficulty of the game, they're more mandatory than optional (like the screw attack and varia).
Rewarding players by having Samus take more of her clothes the better they do is not only inappropriate for a kid's game, but also makes the game insulting to female players.
Refilling energy and missiles is a very tedious process, and you're forced to do it every time you restart a game with a password, killing any chance at getting the best ending.
While the FDS version records your time and displays it to you at the character selection screen, the cartridge versions do not, which is disappointing, and instead requires a long complicated password.
Since the maps must reuse rooms, several places have what appear to be hidden passages, only to turn into a dead-end.
Most of the secret items are hidden without any visible hints, which makes you end up trying to bomb the floor, ceiling, and walls of nearly every room to find them.
The fake Ice Beam room in Brinstar is really obnoxious and punishes you for exploring.
The battle with Kraid is hard, getting his secret energy tank is torturous, and getting back up the long tower from his hideout is stupid frustrating.
The game was originally released on the Famicom Disk System in Japan which would let you save your character on disk. All other regions got a regular cart with a password system. Two versions were created for the Game Boy Advance, one could be unlocked in Metroid Fusion. Unfortunately, the GBA's height resolution isn't as tall as the NES, so all the graphics are squished making them look terrible. There are four different versions of box art.
Japanese box art for original Famicom Disk System release. Definitely my favorite.
The North American box art. My least favorite for obvious reasons. The designer must have gotten faulty advice, because zoomers don't float in the air, a rippers don't skid along the ground. However, if they were switched, Samus would be shooting at an invincible ripper.
Square box art for Asia and some European markets. I rather enjoy this art.
North American box art: Re-release. Huge improvement, and quite nice to look at, but it uses Samus's Varia suit from Metroid 2, which isn't actually used in this game.
Manual, USA.
Manual, USA - Revision.
Manual, USA - Revision, Digital.
Manual, Japan.
Metroid: Hissho Tekunikku Kan Peki-ban (Translated).
Hisshou Kouryakuhou Guide: Book FT84.
Hisshou Kouryakuhou Guide: Book FT84 (cover detail).
The Official Nintendo Player's Guide, part 1.
The Official Nintendo Player's Guide, blurb.
Nintendo Power, power-up Maps.
Nintendo Fun Club, 1987-Q2 - Blurb.
Nintendo Fun Club, 1988-06 - Tricks.
Japanese ad. This is the full art seen on the European and Asian boxes.
The complete map with spoilers.
The start of the game.
Art by Zac Gorman.
30 Year Anniversary art by Deimon-Remus.
Retro Samus fan art by Deimon-Remus.
Jumpsuit Samus fan art by Deimon-Remus.
Honest title.
CGA mockup.
youtube.com/watch?v=Q6GV9pSs4TQ - How Metroid creates dread.
youtube.com/watch?v=VYilGy1wYEA - NES Works review, part 1.
youtube.com/watch?v=6KeXq1OpssM - NES Works review, part 2.
youtube.com/watch?v=3HqBRt7PGSU - Son of a Glitch.
youtube.com/watch?v=qFCF4I09Avc - Progression of world record speed runs.
youtube.com/watch?v=Ly1PUEmxyyQ - Longplay, 100% items, best ending.
Graphically, Metroid's introduction is pretty typical of a 1986 NES game. The game's title logo is displayed, music plays, there are minor graphical changes, and the there is a single-screen message in Engrish to provide backstory. The great thing about it though is the music. It has a nice long and imposing tune.
Metroid has a pretty great ending sequence for 1986. The music is amazing, there are multiple scenes based on how quickly you can beat the game, and a really fast game changed the next play through.
The ending begins with a message in Engrish displayed above Samus standing on the desolate surface of Zebes. After a short delay, Samus begins to flash and, depending on how quickly the player has beaten the game, one of five things can happen. If the player takes over 10 hours (or five hours while suitless), Samus will turn away in shame. From 10-5 hours, she will raise a hand in victory. From three to five hours, she will remove the helmet of her powersuit, and her long brown hair identifies her as a woman. If they player is able to beat the game in one to three hours, Samus will remove her powersuit entirely and waves to the player while wearing a leotard. If the player can beat the game in under an hour, Samus strips down to just her underwear and waves to the player. After that, the credits roll. If the player beats the game in less than three hours, they can restart the game and replay the game with Samus in her leotard.
I don't approve of the "women as reward" trope in a children's game. I have nothing against provocative imagery in games, but I wasn't the only kid who hear rumors of Samus taking all her clothes off for an exceptionally fast play through.
This is a collection of Editors, utilities, and technical documents for Metroid, including disassembled source code.
Download (Info)
Executive Producer Hiroshi Yamauchi
Producer Gunpei Yokoi
Chief Director Satoru Okada
Director Yoshio Sakamoto
Writer Makoto Kanoh
Character Designers Hiroji Kiyotake, Hirofumi Matsuoka, Yoshio Sakamoto
Main Programmers Hiroyuki Yukami, Yase Sobajima, Toshio Sengoku, N. Shiotani, M. Houdai
Audio Programmer, Composer, Sound Effects Hirokazu Tanaka
Assistant Makoto Kanoh
NES Port Toru Narihiro
Special Thanks Ken Zuri, Sumi, Toru Osawa, Kacho, Hyakkan, Goyake, Takahiro Harada, Penpen
English Metroid
Japanese メトロイド Metoroido Metroid
Retrieved from "http://www.thealmightyguru.com/Wiki/index.php?title=Metroid&oldid=22973"
Links to MobyGames
Links to Wikipedia
Links to VGMPF
Links to NESHacker
Links to TCRF
Run and Gun
Game Mechanic - New Game Plus
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line832
|
__label__wiki
| 0.602129
| 0.602129
|
Biafra: Binta Nyako's Attempt to Defy Rule of law And Subject Kanu to Secret Trial is inadmissible
The Federal High Court judge, Justice Binta Nyako, who is currently dragging the Nigerian judiciary in the mud over Nnamdi Kanu's (leader of the Indigenous People Of Biafra, IPOB) case, was appointed by Muhammadu Buhari, the Nigerian President, a man who had in 1983, through a coup, committed treason without being convicted nor charged till date. This appointment followed after Justice John Tsoho, another notorious and corrupt judge, the first judge to overrule his previous order, was muscled out of Nnamdi Kanu's case on grounds of incompetence.
Justice Tsoho bowed out of Nnamdi Kanu's case on September 26, 2017 owing to the relentless demand by Nnamdi Kanu's defence team on him to rule on the basis of justice, equity and fairness.
Read also:Biafra: Nnamdi Kanu has proven truth cannot be extinguished – IPOB
After the installation of Justice Binta Nyako by the Dictator and head of the Nigerian State to preside over the case of Nnamdi Kanu, the Indigenous People Of Biafra has continued to draw the attention of the world to the efforts by Justice Binta to conduct a secret trial against Nnamdi Kanu and consequently deny him justice.
Attempts by Justice Binta to deny Nnamdi Kanu fair hearing became unarguably evident when she adopted the same old 'secret trial' pranks which was initiated by Justice Tsoho; which is a mockery not only to the judiciary, but to the well meaning judges like F. A Ademola who never staggered but stood for justice without fear or favour when he granted Nnamdi Kanu an unconditional release on December 17, 2015 at the Federal High Court Abuja.
Read also:BIAFRA: JUSTICE NYAKO'S IMPOSITION OF TAQIYYA IN KANU'S CASE IS DEAD ON ARRIVAL
"The court is mine I can do as please" was one of Justice Binta's arrogant statements in court which reflected her willingness to disregard the rule of law in delivering judgement. It can only happen in Nigeria, that a court of law becomes a personal property of a judge called to preside over a particular case; in which case, the judge rules based personal sentiment over the given case.
Consequently, Justice Binta has further intensified efforts to convict Nnamdi Kanu unjustly by suggesting Sharia Law as the standard on which she will deliver judgement. Though Justice Binta is aware that Nnamdi Kanu can never be tried under Sharia law, IPOB has condemned her moves as efforts to keep Nnamdi Kanu incarcerated and frustrate his trial.
<-- --="" adsense=""> Read also:Biafra: FG & DSS Disgraced Again As Court Frees Buhari's Most Wanted IPOB Artiste, Don Prince
It was crystal clear and has been proven beyond every reasonable doubt that Nnamdi Kanu pose no threat to Muhammadu Buhari's administration nor the Nigerian government except for speaking out against the injustice meted out on Biafrans since the unfortunate amalgamation of 1914. Nnamdi Kanu is a freedom fighter clamouring for the restoration of Biafra and emphasizing/expressing his legitimate rights for self determination as enshrined in the United Nations' Charter which Nigeria is a signatory to. Muhammadu Buhari has also been seen and heard acknowledging and supporting this right to self determination when he recently called for the independence of Palestine and Western Sahara.
Read also:Biafra: Pregnant Nigeria Will Give Birth to Another War If Kanu is Tried Under Sharia Law
However, recent events have proved that Justice Binta Nyako lacks the full understanding of the right to self determination and its application. Her incompetence and misconduct has disesteemed the Nigerian judiciary to almost an irredeemable state.
Her efforts to please Muhammadu Buhari, who swore never to release Nnamdi Kanu no matter the court rulings during a media chat, have rather necessitated the need to investigate the mysterious death of Justice Evoh Chukwu, a High Court judge presiding over her husband and son's fraud case filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Read also:Biafra: Americans Praying For the Leader of IPOB Nnamdi Kanu
With these in mind, IPOB warns that there is a limit we can be pushed. It took the Nigerian judiciary 17 months to realize that IPOB is a legal body and is taking them much more than that to obey court orders that ruled for the release of Nnamdi Kanu.
April 25, 2017 is another day the court will deliberate on Nnamdi Kanu's case. Justice Binta has the choice to uphold the rule of law and honour existing court orders or continue in her show shame. Some things are certain: Nnamdi Kanu's defence team will remain resilient, Nnamdi Kanu will be free and every judge that has frustrated his trial must be held accountable.
By Anyikwa Kelechi Cynthia
Edited By Somuadila Ugwummadu
Published By Nwosu C.S
it's stupid and insane for hausa-fulani terrorists tribes to talk of unity after killing thousands and millions of Biafrans? Did hausa-fulani terrorists tribes think that this unwanted unity sustained by guns and bullets will last forever? The civilized world has decided that self-determination is an inalienable right and we the Biafran youths cannot allow anybody, person, people, tribe, political party, government or country to deny us our right. We cannot allow anybody, person, people, tribe, political party, government or country to determine the future and destiny of the Biafra people. Whether restructure or no restructure we are not interested in any union with hausa-fulani terrorists tribes. We are not interested in the stupid, corrupt nigeria presidency which can never do the Igbos any good. All we are asking is release Nnamdi Kanu and allow us to conduct a peaceful referendum to determine the fate of Biafrans forcefully living in nigeria any other thing apart from that is a call for choas and war. Whosoever that make democratic solution impossible makes arm conflict inevitable. Whichever way nigeria choses, nigeria must lose. One thing is certain Biafra must be restored. Peaceforall
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line833
|
__label__wiki
| 0.560584
| 0.560584
|
Our monthly The Broker newsletter ▶
The Broker team
The Broker board
Sahel Watch
Inclusive Economy Africa
Inclusive Economy Europe
Experts and authors » Ruhs Martin
Rethinking migrant rights
Martin Ruhs | October 01, 2013
3 and 4 October, the UN General Assembly in New York discusses the global governance of international migration and development. A key theme will be the “mainstreaming of human rights into all aspects of the migration debate”. With so few countrie...
Martin Ruhs
Organisation: Oxford University - Department for Continuing Education / Centre on Migration,Policy and Society (COMPAS)
Website: Personal profile on the COMPAS website
Dr Martin Ruhs is University Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Political Economy at Oxford University, where he is also Director of Studies in Economics at the Department for Continuing Education and Senior Researcher at the ESRC Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS).
Martin has worked with various national governments and international institutions including the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), the Global Commission on International Migration (GCIM) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Martin Ruhs is the author of The Price of Rights: Regulating International Labor Migration, out now with Princeton University Press. Watch a 4 minutes interview with Martin about his new book.
You can follow Martin on Twitter at @MartinRuhs
© 2019 Publisher IDP Minahassastraat 1 - 1094 RS Amsterdam - The Netherlands | Csorba Media
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line834
|
__label__cc
| 0.728225
| 0.271775
|
“Schools for Democracy: Supporting Educational Reforms in Ukraine 2018-2021
EWC is launching a new enhanced programme in Ukraine aiming to support democratic school reforms. The Programme will run from 2018 until 2021 and build on the experience of the Schools for Democracy programme which started in 2015. It will be supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Norway.
The programme will be carriedout in close cooperation with the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science and focus on four major areas:
• Democratic development of schools
• Piloting of the new national curriculum for 5-9 grades
• Developing online resources for learning democracy
• Strengthening policy outreach and quality assurance
At the planning meeting with Minister of Education Liliia Hrynevych and Deputy Minister Pavlo Khobzey, EWCs Ana Perona-Fjeldstad pointed out that currently this is the largest programme of the EWC portfolio and she is sure that it will trigger many positive changes in the Ukrainian schools. Suggesting to set up a Contact group between EWC and the Ministry of Education, Lilia Hrynevych thanked Norwegian Ambassador to Ukraine Mr Ole T Horpestad for the continued Norwegian support of educational reforms in Ukraine and expressed her high appreciation of the successful cooperation with the European Wergeland Centre in building the New Ukrainian School.
It is expected that during upcoming years, the new Programme will facilitate implementation of school reforms in the country, contribute to development of educational policy, strengthen school autonomy and democratic governance, develop new materials for development of democratic competences, strengthen capacity of regional teacher trainings institutes and NGOs offering professional development programs for teachers, as well as support dialogue and cooperation between educators in different regions of Ukraine.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line835
|
__label__wiki
| 0.505596
| 0.505596
|
style / Accessories
Shin Murayama’s freaky face masks will blow your mind
Full-face coverage in the form of masks is entering everyday fashion, whether you’re ready or not.
By Layla Halabian
A post shared by Shin Murayama (@synmurayama) on Feb 8, 2018 at 10:50pm PST
There's something happening with masks and fashion. Gucci's balaclavas went from the runway to gaining favor with Rihanna, so it's only a matter of time until only keeping limiting visibility to only your eyes will be used for social and sartorial capital. Covering your face feels like a symptom of the times — in an age with seemingly innocuous facial recognition software and not-so-innocuous surveillance, our faces can be seen as collateral that should be protected.
Whether it's real world protection or a straight-up accessory, a conversation about contemporary masks without mention of Shin Murayama is a missed opportunity. The Japanese designer has been on the finely crafted mask-wave for a full decade, announcing his initial mask series when he moved to the United States back in 2008. Since then, the now Brooklyn resident has released impressive collections of deconstructed masks — ones made from hats, masks that give off a Friday the 13th-meets-Parsons-student feel, works that reuse bandanas or baseball gloves — as well as collaborations with HUF and ALYX under his belt. Murayama's recently linked up with A$AP Rocky, creating a mask made from crash test logos and safety belt features for the rapper's upcoming album Testing.
See a few of Murayama's masks below, and follow them on Instagram to keep up with their latest creations.
A post shared by Shin Murayama (@synmurayama) on Apr 13, 2018 at 5:32pm PDT
A post shared by Shin Murayama (@synmurayama) on Apr 5, 2018 at 12:12am PDT
A post shared by Shin Murayama (@synmurayama) on Feb 14, 2018 at 11:04am PST
A post shared by Shin Murayama (@synmurayama) on Sep 16, 2017 at 12:21am PDT
Thumbnail via Shin Murayama's Instagram.
style / News
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line836
|
__label__wiki
| 0.554307
| 0.554307
|
attic, part 4: taping & mudding
09.04 - 01.05 i heart drywall mud
click to see the full photo gallerySo we finally finished getting the attic drywalled. Every single nook, cranny, and/or crevice. And it was quite the job. It's not that the taping and mudding job was worse, just that it was a bigger job. The room itself is roughly 700 sq.ft. and it took almost 1300 sq.ft. of drywall to get the walls, slants, and ceilings done. For reference, that's forty (40!) 4'x8' sheets, which had to be delivered on a flatbed truck. (And getting them from the street up to the attic? Not good times.)
Remember that we had a good start on the taping and mudding thanks to Malinda's diligent work when she and Dad helped us wire the attic and got the drywall started for us. But they, being very smart people, focused their attentions on the back third of the attic, stopping just before where the dormer section cuts in and the general laws of geometry cease to apply.
Once we finished the attic closets, we really started on the taping and mudding in September but then our social calendar -- yes, I laughed when I typed those words -- kind of got in the way and we weren't able to get back to work until after Thanksgiving. We did work upstairs intermittently during the holidays, but again, we were all socialus interruptus so the attic didn't get our full attention again until after the 1st of the year.
The spacing of the rafters and knee wall studs necessitated using drywall sheets cut into smaller pieces, which equates into many, many, many seams. We're not so sure the seams didn't secretly couple up at night and reproduce like rabbits. In fact, there're only two sheets in the entire attic that didn't have to be cut down. Not to mention several seams that had large gaps almost an inch in places and in others, the two pieces on either side weren't close to flush with each other. Understand, this wasn't because of sloppiness on our part, just the nature of the space we were working in. And, as if we didn't already have a bunch of other issues to deal with, the two rough wooden beams that delineate the dormer, which had to remain exposed and weren't rough in that really cool, trendy loft way so as to be left untouched and natural, wouldn't hold onto the drywall mud we tried to coat them with. (We eventually conquered that particular challenge by covering them with a very wet skim coat, waiting for it to start to harden, then quickly wrapping them in mesh tape and holding it in place until the mud hardened. Once it set, we had a good foundation for the successive coats of mud; it took about seven layers to finish them off nicely.)
The mudding part is actually pretty fun, and if that were the only part of the job, we would've actually looked forward to all the work to be done. But along with taping and mudding comes sanding and that, my friends, is a sucktacular crapfest. It's messy and wearying and takes forever (especially on that first coat!) and the dust gets absolutely everywhere.
Now we knew before we even started that we were going to texture the walls because everyone told us that was the easiest thing to do considering the size and difficulty of the job. So we didn't have to spend all the time we did on the seams, but hello, perfectionists over here. The end result, of course, is that the seams turned out beautifully and all those places where it seemed like we'd never be able to disguise the irregularities and gaps disappeared seamlessly (heh) into the wall.
And remember all that trouble we had with the ceiling where the two beams for the dormer cut into the main room of the attic, all the wailing and gnashing of teeth about how to cut the sheets and get them to fit just right? Check out the picture gallery for evidence of how much we rocked the hell out of that whole thing.
Out of all of this, we're particularly proud of the tricky section where the dormer knee walls & ceiling slants, main room knee walls & ceiling slants, and wooden support beams all come together. On each side, there was a triangular section where we fit small pieces of drywall that to be blended at angles on all edges. But the rights side of the dormer in particular was especially difficult as there wasn't much structural support to screw the drywall piece into and the final result ended up sinking the triangular piece a half inch or more behind the rest of that wall. We weren't sure we'd ever be able to disguise the resulting indentation completely but after lots and lots (and lots) of coats, we're quite pleased with the outcome.
After all of our hard work, we seriously considered not texturing at all. We think it turned out that good. But there are a few places where no amount of diligence could disguise a crooked angle that shouldn't be there and we decided it'll be best to stick with our plan and texture. We have, however, decided to make it considerably thinner than originally planned. And in the case of the chimney, which is perfectly smooth all the way around, we did decide to leave it untextured.
Altogether, it took six 50 lb. boxes of mud, one 50 lb. bag of hot mud mix, and four smaller 5 lb. buckets of drywall compound to do the entire attic. What remained from all of that fits in a small covered yogurt container that we laughingly call our "emergency reserve".
click to see the full photo gallery
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line842
|
__label__cc
| 0.582345
| 0.417655
|
Judge: Anti-wolf activist Tony Mayer will face felony for poaching elk Western governors focus on endangered species
Idaho Fish and Game Commission suspends 2008-2012 Wolf Management Plan
By Ken Cole On December 8, 2010 · 24 Comments · In Delisting, Idaho, Idaho Wolves, Wolves
Directs Department to prepare a new plan consistent with 2002 Legislative Plan.
The IDFG Commission voted unanimously to suspend the 2008-2012 wolf management plan, which maintains a wolf population of 518 wolves in the state of Idaho, and directed the Department to prepare “an appropriate wolf species management plan, consistent with the 2002 Idaho Wolf Conservation and Management Plan approved by the Idaho Legislature and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.”
In other words, this means that the IDFG has abandoned all pretense of biological or scientific management of wolves in favor of a politically driven plan which only commits to maintain 10 packs minimum but would institute remedial management measures if the population falls below 15 packs.
IDFG Wolf Motion to suspend 2008 plan
Here is the language of the motion which was unanimously passed:
(1) Continue the pursuit of control actions under 10j for the protection of ungulate herds while wolves remain listed under the Endangered Species Act;
(2) Suspend immediately the 2008-2012 Idaho Wolf Population Management Plan; and
(3) Postpone consideration, until delisting resumes, as to the specifics of day-to-day state wolf management and upon delisting of gray wolves in Idaho; the Commission will direct the Department to prepare an appropriate wolf species management plan, consistent with the 2002 Idaho Wolf Conservation and Management Plan approved by the Idaho Legislature and the u.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Youtube video of the meeting and more comment to come. Watch this space.
Tagged with: Endangered Species Act • Idaho • Idaho Fish and Game • Idaho Wolves • Wolves
Ken Cole
Ken Cole is a 5th generation Idahoan, an avid fly fisherman, wildlife enthusiast, and photographer. He was formerly the Idaho Director for Western Watersheds Project and former Executive Director for Buffalo Field Campaign.
24 Responses to Idaho Fish and Game Commission suspends 2008-2012 Wolf Management Plan
Ralph Maughan says:
We always knew that they would do this. That’s why few believed the Idaho wolf plan which claimed it would allow about 500 wolves. For Butch Otter and crew, it was always 100 wolves, and better none at all.l
It also shows why the lawsuits against delisting (which meant state management) were necessary.
Idaho government never could be trusted to manage wolves above the absolute minimum level.
These Fish and Game commissioners are stuck in the 1890s and there is no reason for any policy toward them except relentless opposition on this issue.
So, they want to kill over 900 wolves. Disgusting bastards they are! They better prepare for many more lawsuits and more public backlash all from all throughout the country. Although I am against all predator hunting, a regulated hunt is better than killing off the majority of the wolf population.
Niwa argues with Butch Otter.
Otter- we didn’t want the dam things here in the first place.
Ken Cole says:
Okay, that’s all 5 of the videos. It seems that the anti wolf crowd wasn’t aware of the meeting with the exception of Lenore Barret. They were trying to recruit people to show up at the mega-loads hearings.
Ann Sydow says:
Horrible. This shows what they are made of. Its as if they are lashing out at the wolves in anger!
Ann, it was never about science with these people. It has always been about politics. They don’t want the wolves killing their elk and deer. This is pro-hunter politics at its finest. That is the problem with wildlife management. It is all about satisfying the needs of hunters and non-hunters have no say what so ever.
And no state should have the right to exterminate whichever wildlife they don’t want there.
nabeki says:
More proof why wolves need the protection of the ESA! We all knew before today where Idaho stood on wolves. They just aren’t playing pretend anymore. Montana is not any better. Wolves are doomed if they every get turned back over to the states.
william huard says:
It’s like a time warp and we have digressed back to 1926!
This thing gets more screwed up as each day goes by.
Quite honestly it is hard to tell who is at fault. I do believe, however, if this technical DPS legal argument had not been made and won in the trial court, and the plaintiffs had stuck to the science of recovery it would not be in the chaotic state it is today.
Something about winning battles but losing wars comes to mind. Be careful what you wish for.
“…plaintiffs had stuck to the science of recovery…”
The operative term here is “recovery”, and the fundamental issue here is that there is no “science of recovery”. There is science that suggests the population is viable and legislative history that suggests that recovery entails more than population viability. The “big picture” argument is over what constitutes “recovery”–the continuous focus on DPS issue and the population’s viability only detract from this debate and provide both sides with the pretense that science is on their side.
Dude, the bagman says:
The whole “recovery” thing is kind of a quagmire.
A species is not recovered until it is no longer endangered. A species is endangered if a state has a management plan that is an “inadequate regulatory mechanism.” But to determine if a species can be delisted, that state’s regulatory mechanisms must be evaluated using the “best available scientific data.”
How the hell do you evaluate the adequacy of a regulatory scheme with scientific data? It’s a legal question, and a value-laden one at that. Science can tell you if you’re clearly wrong based on empirical data, but when you add laws, human implementation and chaos into the mix you need a crystal ball (or a bias) to guide you. You can’t take clear pictures of fuzzy objects, but that’s what the law demands.
Technically, Wyoming could meet FWS’s recovery plan goals by keeping 150 wolves on display at Cabela’s in chemically induced comas (so long as the occasional female is artificially inseminated with outside genetic stock). But that kind of ignores the spirit and purpose of the ESA.
Of course, that probably depends on who you ask.
Brian Ertz says:
there can be ways to evaluate the adequacy of a regulatory scheme … for example, many environmental laws at the federal level (NEPA, ESA, FLPMA, NFMA) employ regulatory mechanisms that ensure lawful administration and mechanisms that protect the public interest/values. Each of the laws provide for public oversight via a suite of administrative requirements (public comment periods, administrative protest &/or appeal opportunities, and public enforcement via citizen-suit provisions granting public the ability to petition their grievance to courts, providing for objective judicial ‘check’ ~ enforceability from outside to keep decision-makers honest in the event that other remedies are exhausted).
Political science includes a variety of objective disciplines which describe mechanisms that provide for the assurance of protected values. The U.S. Constitution is perhaps the best known example of such. Checks & balances, bill of rights etc. etc. etc. = regulatory mechanisms. Their efficacy can often be measured via empirical inquiry ~ the discipline of political science does that.
All states have state statutes that provide for such “regulatory mechanisms” for a variety of public (& private) interests that could be reasonably inferred to provide assurances that a given value shall be protected. That’s what the law does. Why not determine and describe the adequacy of those mechanisms for wolves ? That’s what the ESA says needs to be present to pass management on to the states !
For the environment in general, California has a SEPA (state environmental policy act), Washington has a SEPA (both of the two also have state-level endangered species statutes) – and Montana has a MEPA (Montana environmental policy act). Many states have such with respect to the environment. Each of these statutes in these state have provisions providing for public oversight – including legitimate public involvement and access to administrative remedy (some better than others), judicial oversight (even by way of citizen access to courts !) to ensure that statutes are properly administered & enforced ~ values protected …
Idaho has statutes that protect regulatory mechanisms ensuring a variety of public and private values.
However – Idaho DOES NOT have statutes which employ those basic administrative, judicial, regulatory mechanisms of protection for wolves. If the public has a grievance with the way IDFG manages wolves – tough… it’ll probably take a petition to the federal government to do anything about it. Public comments hit the trash can – there is no legitimate/enforceable mechanism ensuring meaningful public oversight of wolf management provided by any of the proposed/passed wolf management plans. The IDFG isn’t even really independent (politically insulated) from the will of the governor … etc. etc. etc. and the game commission’s action today employed NO public comment, NO access to administrative adjudication/remedy (let alone judicial !) of any grievance. etc. etc. etc. there’s no accountability.
We know what regulatory mechanism are … we know how to describe which ones might be more successful and where within the state’s management.
With wolves — we can objectively say that state management plans flagrantly OMMIT most of them (certainly the effective ones) — and we can point to decisions like the commissioners made today and say “see, this administrative body just evaporated any pretense of scientific management within the course of an hour on a Wednesday morning conference call.”
That vulnerability for wolves exists, and would still exist – even with state management.
That’s NOT a governing system that demonstrates adequate regulatory mechanisms to ensure recovery – particularly in a political atmosphere as openly hostile to wolves as exists in this state !
I mean – this state has spited most meaningful provisions of the ESA … we might debate a clear reading of the statute regarding DPS, maybe debate the biology, perhaps the regulatory mechanisms … so many ways that the USFWS has failed in holding the states accountable – so many ways that the states have fallen short with respect to the statute …
the confusion comes when people respond out of fear, and would have wolf advocates bend over at each controversial headline or with the political wind.
we need to not confuse a feeble spine for an able mind, carry our facts with conviction, and stand tall.
I wasn’t saying that there aren’t procedural/regulatory standards or enforcement mechanisms designed to prevent arbitrary decisions. Rather, I was saying that they aren’t always meaningful, well designed, or faithfully applied.
Scientific data and legal standards may be objective on their faces, but the decisions that underlie their application are largely discretionary. The devil lies in the large adjectives. How do you convince a judge that something is/is not arbitrary if he disagrees with your reasoning? How reasonable is reasonable? How adequate is adequate, and to what degree of certainty?
Maybe that’s too cynical, but it seems to happen fairly often.
i think you’re probably right … the threshold for whether a reg. mechanism is adequate is largely unclear … it might take a demonstration of inadequacy (i.e. the slaughter of wolves below “recovery” levels) to compel a judge to act on such a legal standard …
I think it is crystal clear. Idaho’s state government never intended to honor their wolf management plan. It was created simply so USFWS would give them wolf management authority. They intended to abolish their state plan ASAP.
Because DOI apparently did not agree to seek a congressional delisting of wolves in the just failed negotiations, Idaho negotiators walked.
If Idaho got or gets a congressional delisting of wolves, they will kill them all. Now, the federal government is again managing wolves in Idaho and Idaho has said they won’t. They abolished the state wolf plan just like they had intended. They just did it soon then they had planned.
It’s back to 1995 – 2003 in Idaho. That time was just fine in my opinion.
If it was left and stayed the way it was with the Hunt last year would you have agreed with that Ralph? I think everything simmered down and hunters were happy, some pro-wolf agreed or went along! Now it’s screwed and I don’t think it is going to make things better, I think it’s going to get a lot worse.
Craig,
All said and done, I think the wolf status as of March 2010 was OK. The hunt did not decimate the wolf population, and it, and probably other things, stopped the wolf population from growing.
I think most folks could have adjusted to that. However, Butch Otter and the Commission could not leave well enough along. The greatly increased the take for hunt that would begin in the fall of 2010, starting talking about denning and poison, and pretty much scaring the hell out of folks on the pro-wolf recovery side.
So Ralph, where do we go from here? Idaho clearly wants to kill 900 plus wolves. We all know this isn’t based on science and rather politics.
I agree with you but did not know or hear of any greater kill rate or other tacics to decimate wolves! I did not read or was ignorant to the information on those options until I read things on this site,(denning and poison) never seen anything on that. That’s why I read your site to have actual info on all things going on, not just one side and I thank you for it!
Just my thought, I think this is going to more harm than good! If this stays tied up in court, I really think most ranchers ect are going to just kill wolves on site! And now with the F&G outta the way there is know way in hell the feds could possibly take care of inforcement. I do not in any way condone the poaching of wolves, but I gurantee it is going to become a major proplem. This is the last straw and shit gonna hit the fan, our Gov’t is so inept of solving anything anymore it is beyond ridiculous! This is not a good thing for Wolves or any Wildlife it’s going to become a bad example of things to come!
SEAK Mossback says:
I see a parallel or two with the state-federal relationship over subsistence management in Alaska. ANILCA, passed by Congress in 1980, required a “rural priority” for access to fish and wildlife on federal lands. Initially, it looked like the state (which has “subsistence” as a priority in law) was going to be able to manage in compliance with federal law and it didn’t seem to be like any big deal in the news. However, a few who were unhappy with the idea challenged it, and the Alaska Supreme Court ruled that the state constitution does not allow discrimination based on where you live, so the state could not comply. Then there followed a move for a vote to amend the state constitution so the state could comply. But opposition in urban areas began to build and found traction with politicians who repeatedly blocked putting it to a vote.
Finally, after numerous warnings and reprieves, the Feds moved in 2 decades ago and set up a shadow fish and wildlife system that deals with subsistence by federally qualified residents on federal land and waters and has authority to restrict other users. Opponents of a rural priority said the only remedy was to challenge the federal law (exemplified in the Katie John case) all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. But Governor Knowles declined to pursue the case after losing in the 9th Circuit, which pleased the Alaska native community but I believe was a mistake because it left unsettled forever in the minds of opponents a burning example of betrayal of states rights (and also may have cost him a later shot at that U.S. Senate).
So now, like the wolf issue, there is a very politically strong, resolute consensus in much of the urban and railbelt hunting community against a rural preference, and it continues to feed into anti-federal sentiment. On the other side of the issue, rather than environmentalists is mostly the statewide native community.
Although the feds made a few ham-fisted moves at first, my impression is that federal and state agencies have tried to make the confused, redundant system work as well as possible, although it is not a shining example of government efficiency. However, one fairly direct effect of having run out of options to challenge the big-gorilla federal wildlife law requiring a rural preference was that opponents turned their focus to pushing through a big-gorilla state law that officially designates “human consumptive use” as the highest and best use of most of the moose, caribou and deer populations in the state and requires implementation of an intensive management plan for any population falling below a level able to support a target level of harvest specified in law. If you can’t have an equal access right at all times and places with federally eligible rural residents, you can at least make sure you have legal priority over predators.
Like the western wolf issue, my feelings about a rural subsistence priority are not completely clear-cut on one side or another. It’s clear to me that each situation has a best overall solution that usually falls in between having a complete over-riding local priority and allowing none. A rural priority may constitute dreaded “zip code discrimination” but that’s a lot easier for an unhappy individual to do something about compared with racial discrimination which many Alaska natives would have preferred (but was traded away under ANCSA for land and money) and which prevails in wildlife management in Canada. One guy who took a teaching job at Anaktuvuk Pass has written a number of articles in outdoor magazines about his exclusive Dall sheep hunting in Gates of the Arctic Park, and a hard core hunter or two have retired to qualified towns around Wrangell-St. Elias expressly for legal access to the largest Dall rams in the world that live in the upper Chitina River and can only be legally accessed for “federal subsistence purposes” by foot or small boat, not airplane. It’s not entirely discrimination, but partly choice.
On the other hand, an absolute rural priority for a certain group to take as much as they want before anybody else has any access has serious problems because it promotes complacency and waste, which certainly does occur in some rural areas as ELK275 pointed out in another post. Managing for stable access to important local resources should be a high priority, but everybody should also have some stake as much of the time as possible — even if it’s a low-odds draw for a very small number of permits — above a population level that provides minimal subsistence needs.
When you leave dueling federal and state laws to decide things, you can end up with unintended consequences. One is that about the only subsistence priority that has passed muster in under the state system is Tier II, which awards points and allocates permits based on an individual’s historical use (including animals taken in the past by other hunters in a household). That quickly translates into something resembling private property rights that can practically be passed down from generation to generation. It gets a bit ridiculous when somebody is driving 2 days each way from Anchorage to their old home in the Chilkat Valley to exercise their subsistence right to a moose, an animal that might tide a small family over multiple years, when somebody who has lived continuously in the valley for 10 years may never get enough points to be allowed to hunt. In response to this complaint, the Board of Game in the past year attempted a new approach to allocate a portion of Nelchina caribou permits to be distributed within small local communities and put the rest up for drawing with the caveat that only one permit is allowed per household and you cannot hunt moose or caribou in the same year in any other unit (meaning if you are a globetrotting hunter it is not subsistence). Unfortunately, that attempt at fairness and reason was successfully challenged by a hunter who wanted to keep his exclusive annual right, and has so far been shot down in state court.
In any case, I think state politicians and governments in the NRM may be making a big mistake in putting their eggs in a single legislative solution basket and refusing to participate in managing wolves. In two decades, they could still be in indefinite stalemate just like we are with subsistence. They may prove to have been their own worst enemy, and that of their state in general, by amplifying the views of an extreme base. That’s not to say there’s a shining alternative example, because Great Lakes wolves have been persistently impossible to delist over a longer period under considerably more favorable social and biological conditions. Looking for something positive, I guess one potential benefit (although unwelcome by many and dependent on the level of mortality from poaching, wildlife services, etc.) of a state-imposed stalemate would be to allow more time to actually examine how a less-exploited wolf population (in combination with other predators) affects various ungulate prey populations — as opposed to states’ apparent intended early and broad application of the “precautionary principle”(apologies to conservation biologists) in suppressing wolves to protect prey. More information is usually good.
SEAK,
Your last paragraph sums up the risks pretty well. Seeking a legislative solution (definitely not a sure thing) to fix what states perceive as the problem, won’t mean they just wait around and do nothing in the interim.
There will undoubtedly be escalated efforts to pursue legal 109(j) reductions of wolves in certain areas, and if those are not granted by way of FWS denials of actions or continued litigation on the issue, there will likely be some self-help. It will be, as it has already shaped up in ID, no expenditure of state resources to investigate and prosecute wolf killings. Butch has already said that. FWS does not have the resources to do the job, and will likely not get them even if they plead. So, there will be self-help. Count on it. Whether it will suppress numbers of wolves, affecting density or distribution in range, is anyone’s guess.
My next questions – What will MT do and when?
Salle says:
Idaho legislature’s temper-tantrum-mentality has worked so well for them in the past, why stop now? It doesn’t require much in the way of intelligence or factual and objective reasoning.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line847
|
__label__cc
| 0.579559
| 0.420441
|
Category (Any category)Cities, Towns & VillagesRoutes & TrailsScenic PlacesSeaside Locations
Type (Any type)TownVillage
Burnham-on-Crouch TownQuiet, unspoilt riverside town known as the 'Cowes of the East Coast', the attractive quayside is full of old-world charm with listed buildings, boat-building yards and sailing clubs. Annual regatta and sea-wall walks. Burnham-on-Crouch is a historic town situated on the banks of the River Crouch in the East Coast of England.
Best known as a yachting centre hosting the internationally famous ' Burnham Week' it also boasts many other attractions including Mangapps Railway Museum
Whilst in Burnham-on-Crouch why not take the Burnham Ferry to explore Wallasea Island? http://www.visitessex.com/discover/maritime/wallasea-island.aspx
Burnham Ferry is the sole authorised ferry between Essex Marina, Wallasea Island and Burnham-on-Crouch Town Quay (opposite the Anchor Pub). Under new management 2013 and running 6 days per week (excluding Wednesdays) between end of March and end of September.
Contact details : Dial-a-ferry 07704 06 04 82 , www.burnhamferry.co.ukTown CentreBurnham-on-CrouchEssexCM0 8United Kingdom51.6283898086000.814511045500http://www.visitmaldondistrict.co.uk
Burnham-on-Crouch
www.visitmaldondistrict.co.uk
Town Centre,
Burnham-on-Crouch,
CM0 8
Quiet, unspoilt riverside town known as the 'Cowes of the East Coast', the attractive quayside is full of old-world charm with listed buildings, boat-building yards and sailing clubs. Annual regatta and sea-wall walks. Burnham-on-Crouch is a historic town situated on the banks of the River Crouch in the East Coast of England.
Contact details : Dial-a-ferry 07704 06 04 82 , www.burnhamferry.co.uk
Sat 28 Sep Burnham Carnival
Map reference: TQ 948959 Lat: 51.62839 Long: 0.81451
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line859
|
__label__wiki
| 0.594242
| 0.594242
|
VNS Message Board » VNS DISCUSSIONS » Legislative Activism In Regards to VNS » Sulphur
Author Topic: Sulphur (Read 1603 times)
dennis100
Device Problem Adverse Event Without Identified Device or Use Problem
Event Date 04/02/2015
Event Type Death
The autopsy finding were listed as clinical history of rett syndrome with a history of uncontrolled seizures, musculature atrophy of extremities, scoliosis; pulmonary congestion/edema; history that the decedent was found unresponsive in a prone position in bed. The conclusion was noted to be that the decedent died as a result of a seizure disorder associated with rett syndrome. The manner of death was listed as natural.
Analysis of the generator was completed on (b)(6) 2015. The module performed according to functional specifications. There were no performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator. Analysis of the lead was completed on (b)(6) 2015. Note that the majority of the lead assembly (body) including the electrodes was not returned for analysis; therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, zirconium, aluminum, sulphur and calcium. The condition of the returned lead portion is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portion were performed, during the visual analysis, and no discontinuities were identified.
It was reported that the vns patient passed away. The funeral home indicated that the device was explanted by the medical examiner and would be returned for analysis. The medical examiner's office indicated that the autopsy is pending, but would be provided when completed. The explanted generator and lead were received for analysis. Analysis is underway, but has not been completed to date. No additional relevant information has been received to date.
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfmaude/detail.cfm?mdrfoi__id=4772129
Re: Sulphur
Model Number 300-20
Event Type Malfunction
Manufacturer Narrative
Device failure is suspected, but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
Reporter indicated via the manufacturer¿s implant card that the patient had vns generator and lead replacement surgery on (b)(6) 2013 due to ¿increased seizures¿, and that a new model 104 vns generator was ¿wasted, inserted, and removed¿ but not implanted at the surgery. Attempts for additional information and return of the explanted devices are in progress.
Reporter indicated high lead impedance was observed for a patient at an office visit on (b)(6) 2013. Approximately two to three weeks prior to the office visit, the patient began experiencing dizziness, not feeling vns stimulation, and the patient's seizures were described as "different". The vns was disabled and x-rays were performed but will not be sent to the manufacturer. Vns diagnostics were last within normal limits in (b)(6) 2013. The patient had no known trauma and does not manipulate the vns. The patient is active is sports. The reporter feels the vns lead may be broken and causing the change in seizures, dizziness, and stimulation not perceived. No programming or medication changes preceded these issues. Surgery to replace the vns lead and generator is likely, but has not occurred to date.
The explanted lead and generator were returned to the manufacturer on (b)(4) 2013 and are pending product analysis.
Device failure is suspected, but did not cause or contribute to a death.
On (b)(4) 2013 product analysis was completed on the lead. During the visual analysis of the returned 47mm portion quadfilar coil 1 appeared to be broken approximately 12mm and 14mm from the end of the cut inner silicone tubing. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on quadfilar coil 1 coil break (found at 12mm) and identified the area as having extensive pitting which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with mechanical damage. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on quadfilar coil 1 coil break (found at 14mm) and identified the area as having evidence of being worn to the point of fracture which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with fine pitting. Flat spots and pitting were observed on the coil surface. During the visual analysis of the returned 58mm portion the (+) white electrode quadfilar coil appeared to be broken at the end of the abraded open / cut outer silicone tubing. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area as having extensive pitting and mechanical damage which prevented identification of the coil fracture type. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded openings found on the outer and inner silicone tubes, most likely provided the leakage path for what appeared to be remnants of dried body fluids found inside the outer and inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, aluminum, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the observed discontinuities, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pins provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified. Product analysis on the generator was completed on (b)(4) 2013. Review of the data indicated that the pulsedisabled byte was set to a value that represents a vbat
The generator and lead were returned for analysis. Analysis of the generator was completed on 11/06/2013. The device performed according to functional specifications. Analysis of the generator in the pa lab concluded that no abnormal performance or any other type of adverse condition was found. Analysis of the lead was completed on 11/12/2013. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, zirconium, sulphur, aluminum and calcium. The condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no discontinuities were identified.
Device manufacturing records were reviewed. Review of manufacturing records of the lead confirmed all quality tests were passed prior to distribution. Device failure is suspected, but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
It was reported that generator replacement surgery the surgeon inspected the lead and found that there was a calcified area on the lead. It was reported that the part of the lead that had the calcified area appeared to be cracked and damage. The surgeon decided to replace the lead also. The explanted devices are expected to be returned for analysis, but have not been received to date.
Additional information was received on (b)(6) 2013 reporting that the patient's mother indicated that vns therapy was not working properly for the patient which the physician attributed to the loss of vns therapy due to the high impedance. The physician reported that after the patient's generator replacement on (b)(6) 2012, everything was going well. Once the high impedance was observed at a follow-up visit, the mother complained that the vns magnet was not functioning as it was before and the patient]'s seizures were increasing in frequency and severity. The events began (b)(6) 2012. The physician believes the increased seizures frequency and severity, in addition to the magnet no longer appearing to function as before, was likely related to loss of vns therapy. With the therapy, the patient had seizure reduction around 20%. The length of the seizure and the reduction of post-ictal state was noticeable and was the most benefit from vns therapy. At the time of the high impedance, no further reduction in seizures was noted. No medication changes preceded the seizure changes, and the patient is reported to be adherent to the medication schedule. At this time medication doses have been risen, but the seizure frequency and intensity remains nearly the same per the physician.
The physician reported that during a follow-up appointment for the vns patient, high lead impedance was found on system and mode normal diagnostics. The reported impedance value was greater than 10,000 ohms. The physician disabled the patient's device and ordered a x-ray of site the device implantation. The patient´s mother told the physician that the patient did not suffer any trauma or manipulation that is believed to have contributed to the high impedance. The patient previously had a generator replacement on (b)(6) 2012. No patient adverse events have been reported. Ap and lateral views of the chest and ap and lateral views of the neck were reviewed by the manufacturer. The x-ray film images were dated (b)(6) 2013. Due to the angle of the x-ray it cannot be confirmed whether the lead pin is fully inserted into the generator header. The feed-thru wires appear to be intact. The lead appears to be routed upwards to the left side of the neck. The electrodes are visualized in the neck and appear to be aligned. There is a portion of the lead behind the generator; therefore, this portion of lead cannot be assessed for continuity. Based on the x-rays images received, there are no gross lead fractures that can be visualized. However, the presence of an unpronounced lead discontinuity cannot be ruled out. Although surgery is likely, the surgery has not occurred to date.
The patient had surgery on (b)(6) 2013. It was reported that during surgery the surgeon found a lot of fibrosis involving the generator and the route of the vagus nerve. Extraction of the generator was very difficult due to the fibrosis. After 30 minutes, the surgeon was able to remove the generator. The surgeon then loosened the screw of the lead pin from the generator. A generator diagnostic test was performed and resulted in results within normal limits. The lead pin was re-inserted, and system diagnostics resulted in high impedance again twice with impedance greater than 10,000 ohms. The surgeon suspects that fibrosis between the vagus nerve and the lead due to intra-operative findings. The surgeon removed a lot of the fibrous tissue but did not touch the nerve because the route of the vagus nerve was fibrosed, and it was difficult to assess. The patient had keloid tissue around the scar areas. The patient was put on corticoids in the area of the generator to prevent serious injury. He ordered a mri of the neck with the surgery findings and report of mri, the surgeon is referring the patient for lead replacement in another procedure. Neither the generator or lead were explanted/replaced. Although surgery may occur, it has not occurred to date. The high impedance was reported to have occurred about one month after generator replacement which occurred on (b)(6) 2012.
Manufacturer reviewed x-rays of implanted device. X-rays reviewed by the manufacturer, no gross lead discontinuities visualized.
Suspect medical device, corrected data: after review of additional x-rays, the suspect device is the generator. Suspect medical device, corrected data: after review of additional x-rays, the suspect device is the generator, so the initial report inadvertently reported the date incorrectly. Manufacturer reviewed chest x-rays of implant device. X-rays reviewed by the manufacturer, lead pin not fully inserted past the connector block of generator.
Although surgery is likely, it has not occurred to date. The patient's family has elected to move forward with surgery.
Review of device history records performed. Review of the lead device history records confirmed all quality tests were passed prior to distribution.
Device failure occurred, but did not cause or contribute to a death.
A mri was performed on (b)(6) 2013 per manufacturing labeling precautions, but the surgeon reported that the mri report was not conclusive for the report of fibrosis in the patient¿s neck. The patient is therefore being referred for surgery. Although surgery is likely, it has not occurred to date.
Date of event, corrected data: the supplemental report inadvertently reported the date of the high impedance being first observed incorrectly.
Additional information was received indicating the patient's family is evaluating the patient's benefit to vns prior to referral for surgery. Normal and system diagnostics on (b)(6) 2013 resulted in high lead impedance (>10,000 ohms). The device was turned off on (b)(6) 2013. Another set of x-rays were performed. Ap and lateral view of the chest x-rays were reviewed by the manufacturer. Based on the x-rays images received, there are no gross lead fractures that can be visualized. However, the presence of an unpronounced lead discontinuity cannot be ruled out. Additionally, the lead pin appears to not be fully inserted in the generator header which is the likely cause of the high impedance. Attempts for additional information have been unsuccessful to date.
Additional information was received that the patient had the vns lead replacement on (b)(6) 2013. The surgery came out ok and the high impedance was resolved. The explanted lead was returned to the manufacturer and product analysis was performed. During the visual analysis the returned 417mm portion the (-) green electrode quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 1mm from the electrode bifurcation. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the connector end of the (-) green electrode quadfilar coil break (found at 1mm) and identified the area on three of the quadfilar coil strands as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (fatigue appearance) with mechanical damage and no pitting. The area on the fourth broken coil strand was identified as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (fatigue appearance) with mechanical damage, no pitting and evidence of a stress indu ced fracture (torsional appearance) which most likely completed the fracture. Pitting and residual material were observed on the coil surface. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the electrode (mating) end of the (-) green electrode quadfilar coil break (found at 1mm) and identified the area as having extensive pitting which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with mechanical damage and residual material. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded opening found on the outer silicone tubing, most likely provided the leakage path for what appeared to be remnants of dried body fluids found inside the outer silicone tubing. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, zirconium, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the observed discontinuity, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted except for the set of setscrew marks found near the end of the connector pin indicating the lead had not been fully inserted into the cavity of the generator at one time. Additional setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is evidence to suggest a discontinuity in the returned portions of the device.
Additional information was received that product analysis was completed on the generator and lead. The pulse generator was interrogated at multiple orientations adjacent to the programming wand, with a one inch spacer between the pulse generator and the programming wand. The pulse generator interrogated at all orientations. In the pa lab, the device output signal was monitored for more than 24-hrs, while the generator was placed in a simulated body temperature environment. Results showed no signs of variation in the pulse generator¿s output signal and demonstrated that the device provided the expected level of output current for the entire monitoring period. The pulse generator diagnostics were as expected for the programmed parameters. In addition, a comprehensive automated electrical evaluation showed that the pulse generator performed according to functional specifications as defined in ets 28-0000-3300/2. The battery, 2. 952 volts as measured during completion of test parameter 7. 16. 10. 2 (measured diagvbat) of the final electrical test, shows a non-ifi condition. The data in the diagaccumconsumed memory locations revealed that 15. 884% of the battery had been consumed. There were no performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator. Note that a portion of the lead assembly (body) including the electrodes was not returned for analysis and therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sulphur, sodium, magnesium and calcium. The condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No obvious anomalies were noted. The resistance measurements taken during decontamination verified an electrical and mechanical contact between the generator and connector pins at one point in time. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, with no discontinuities identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is no evidence to suggest an anomaly with the returned portions of the device. Note that since a portion of the lead assembly (body) including the electrode array section was not returned for analysis, an evaluation and resulting commentary cannot be made on that portion of the lead.
It was initially reported that the patient was having her device explanted due to having pseudo-seizures and anxiety. The physician did not think the patient was a good candidate for vns therapy originally. Clinic notes dated (b)(6) 2013 reported that the patient¿s vns generator was checked and it appeared to be ¿malfunctioning. ¿ the physician reported in the notes that excessive stimulation was provided, and he was unable to program the settings down. Therefore, the vns magnet was taped over the device to disable the stimulation. The physician noted that it was desired to have the device explanted anyway, so she was referred for surgery. Previously on (b)(6) 2013, the patient asked to have her vns settings turned down. The physician turned the settings down to 0. 75 ma with the plan to turn it off at the next visit in two months. Patient was admitted to medical center on (b)(6) 2013 and discharged on (b)(6) 2013 due to recurrent seizures. Eeg confirmed that the patient does not have epileptic seizures. Attempts to the physician for additional information on not being able to program the device settings down have been unsuccessful to date. The patient was originally implanted with vns in 2001 but had generator replacement in 2010. The patient had generator and lead explant on 07/26/2013. The explanted products were received by the manufacturer on 08/01/2013. However, analysis has not been completed to date. The return product form indicated reason for explant was "patient desired. ".
Review of device history records. Review of the generator device history records confirmed all quality tests were passed prior to distribution.
Device manufacturing records were reviewed. Review of manufacturing records confirmed there were no unresolved non conformances found with the generator and lead prior to distribution.
Analysis of the lead was completed on 04/17/2014. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the connector end of the (+) connector ring quadfilar coil break (found at 63mm) and identified the area on three of the broken coil strands as being mechanically damaged with fine pitting which prevented identification of the coil fracture type and residual material. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. The remaining broken coil strand was identified as having the appearance of being melted, with re-solidified material (evidence of being melted at one time). Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the electrode (mating) end of the (+) connector ring quadfilar coil break (found at 63mm) and identified the area on two of the broken coil strands as being mechanically damaged with fine pitting which prevented identification of the coil fracture type. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. The remaining broken coil strands were identified as having the appearance of being melted, with re-solidified material (evidence of being melted at one time). Pitting was observed on one of the coil melt areas. What appeared to be spatter was found on the quadfilar coil strand. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded openings found on the outer and (+) connector ring inner silicone tubes most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside the outer and (+) inner silicone tubes. For the observed (-) connector pin inner tubing dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside, there was no obvious path for fluid ingress other than the cut ends that were made during the explanted process. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, aluminum, sulphur and calcium. Refer to attached eds sheet for additional information. The melted appearance on some of the quadfilar coil strands appears to be related to the explant procedure. With the exception of the observed discontinuity, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified.
New information changes the suspect device.
It was initially reported that the patient had high impedance. Diagnostics were run and resulted in an impedance value of 5208 ohms which did not trigger the impedance ¿ high. When diagnostics were run again high impedance was seen and the impedance value was 5352 ohms. High impedance triggers at 5300 ohms. There was no reported trauma or manipulation. Diagnostics were within normal limits on (b)(6) 2012 with an impedance value of 2460 ohms. Follow-up indicated that x-rays were taken and per the physician it did not appear that the lead pin was fully inserted as it could not be seen past the connector block. X-rays were not provided to the manufacturer for review. Surgery is likely but has not occurred. No further information was provided. Review of manufacturing records confirmed there were no unresolved non conformances found with the generator and lead prior to distribution.
Device failure occurred, but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
It was reported that the patient underwent surgery on (b)(6) 2013. It was reported that the lead pin was fully inserted into the generator header and was not the cause of the lead impedance. It was reported that the lead impedance was resolved with lead replacement and the generator was not replaced. The explanted lead was returned to manufacturer for analysis. Analysis is underway, but has not been completed to date.
On (b)(6), 2013 it was reported that the patient underwent generator replacement that day and during surgery, high impedance was discovered. The patient was scheduled for a lead revision surgery on (b)(6) 2013. It was reported that the patient¿s generator had been prophylactically replaced on (b)(6)2013 and the lead replaced on (b)(6) 2013 due to the high impedance observed during the prophylactic generator replacement surgery. After replacement, system diagnostics showed results within normal limits. The explanted products have not been returned for product analysis to date. Generator replacement captured on mfr. Report # 1644487-2011-01493. Device manufacturing records were reviewed. Review of manufacturing records confirmed that the lead passed all functional tests prior to distribution.
Analysis of the lead was completed on (b)(4) 2014. Note that the electrodes were not returned for analysis; therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. During the visual analysis the (-) connector pin quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 172mm from the end of the connector boot. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area as having evidence of being worn to the point of fracture with flat spots on the coil surface. What appeared to be pitting was observed on one of the broke coil strands. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting on one of the broken coil strands. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded opening and slice marks found on the outer silicone tubing, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids inside the outer silicone tubing. The abraded opening found on the (-) connector pin inner silicone tubing most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids inside the inner silicone tubing. There was no obvious path found for the fluid ingress observed inside the (+) connector ring inner silicone tubing. What appeared to be white deposits were observed on one of the inner silicone tubes. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, potassium, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the observed discontinuity, the condition of the returned lead portion is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portion were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified.
Analysis of the generator was completed on (b)(4) 2013. The device performed according to functional specification. Analysis of the generator in the pa lab concluded that no abnormal performance or any other type of adverse condition was found. Analysis of the lead was completed on (b)(4) 2013. Note that a portion of the lead assembly (body) including the electrodes was not returned for analysis and therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. During the visual analysis of the returned 309mm portion the unmarked connector pin quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 87mm and 98mm from the connector bifurcation. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the (-) unmarked connector pin quadfilar coil break (and identified the areas as having evidence of being worn to the point of fracture with flat spots, pitting and residual material on the coil surface. It is unknown if the breaks occurred while stimulation was present due to the absence of metal pitting on the broken coil wire surfaces. The abraded openings found on the outer and inner silicone tubes and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside the outer and inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, potassium, iron, aluminum, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the observed discontinuities the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pins provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified.
It was reported that the patient underwent generator and lead replacement due to high impedance. It was reported that the generator was programmed off after observing the high impedance. It is unknown if any trauma or patient manipulation occurred that could have caused or contributed to the high impedance. X-rays were not taken. The generator and lead were received by device manufacturer for analysis on 11/21/2013. Analysis is underway, but has not been completed to date. The implant card was received and indicated that the lead was replaced due to a lead break.
Describe event or problem: supplemental mdr #3 incorrectly reported that the high impedance was observed in 2012, when in fact, it was only observed in 2013.
On (b)(6) 2016, it was reported that low impedance with <600 ohms was observed on patient's device. Possible causes were discussed and patient manipulation was ruled out. X-rays were planned to be sent for review. Programming history for the device was reviewed. The device was temporarily disabled sometime after (b)(6) 2012 till (b)(6) 2013 due to high impedance. It is suspected that the current low impedance may be related to the previous high impedance observed in 2012. No known product replacements have occurred to date.
Device manufacturing records were reviewed. Review of manufacturing records of the lead confirmed all quality tests were passed prior to distribution.
It was reported that interrogation of the device resulted in high impedance >10,000 ohms. It was reported that the patient underwent generator replacement in (b)(6) 2012. The patient has been experiencing an increase in seizures and behaviors. The patient is being evaluated for replacement surgery. The patient was sent for neck and chest x-rays which were reviewed by the radiologist. The radiologist's review noted that the patient was experiencing neck pain. The review identified that the lead appears to be intact over the left lateral chest. The lead was coiled and was difficult to evaluate. Clinic notes dated (b)(6) 2013 noted that the patient's seizures have increased since the last visit in (b)(6) 2012. It was reported that the did well for several months following the last visit; however, 2 months ago she started experiencing an increase in seizures up to three to four generalized tonic-clonic seizures per week. It was also noted that the patient's mother reported that the patient's speech seems to have deteriorated and that the patient is having severe behavioral problems. The notes indicated that the recent increase in seizure frequency may be secondary to the vns malfunction. The notes indicate that the physician reduced the patient's settings from 1. 5ma/1. 8 min off to 1ma/3 min off. Attempts to obtain additional information have been unsuccessful to date. Surgery is likely; however, has not occurred to date.
Device failure is suspected.
Lead product information was received.
Further follow-up revealed that the patient underwent surgery on (b)(6) 2013. During the surgery after the patient was anesthetized, diagnostic tests resulted in normal impedance readings. The patient's head was turned in different orientations to rule out positional high impedance which were all within normal limits. Different programming systems were also used which also resulted in normal readings. The surgeon decided that he will not replace the lead since diagnostics were within normal limits. The surgery was aborted and the patient taken to recovery.
Date received by manufacturer (mo/day/yr), corrected data: 09/09/2016. Supplemental mdr #7 inadvertently reported the incorrect aware date of 07/18/2016. The correct aware date of supplemental mdr # 7 is 09/09/2016. Date received by manufacturer (mo/day/yr), corrected data: 10/26/2016. Supplemental mdr #8 inadvertently reported the incorrect aware date of 07/18/2016. The correct aware date of supplemental mdr # 8 is 10/26/2016.
The explanted generator and lead were received on 10/26/2016. Proper functionality of the pulse generator in its ability to provide appropriate programmed output currents was successfully verified in the pa lab. In addition, the septum was not cored, thus eliminating the possibility of a potential unintended electrical current path through body fluids, (addressing the allegations of ¿pain¿). In the pa lab, the device output signal was monitored for more than 24-hrs, while the pulse generator was placed in a simulated body temperature environment. Results showed no signs of variation in the pulse generator¿s output signal and demonstrated that the device provided the expected level of output current for the entire monitoring period. The battery, 2. 992 volts, shows an ifi=no condition. There were no performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator. An analysis was performed on the returned lead portions and the reported allegations of; ¿fracture of lead(s) / explanted / due to lead break / high impedance¿ (lead section) and ¿pain¿ (lead section) were confirmed. A condition was observed that could potentially contribute to the reported ¿low impedance / low impedance message, short circuit condition¿ (lead section) allegations. The ¿increased seizures¿ (patient section) allegation is beyond the scope of activities performed in the pa laboratory environment: however, the observed discontinuities may be a contributing factor. Note that since a portion of the lead assembly including the electrodes was not returned for analysis, an evaluation and resulting commentary cannot be made on that portion of the lead. During the visual analysis abraded openings were observed on the outer and inner silicone tubes and the quadfilar coils appeared to be broken. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the connector pin quadfilar coil break (found at 99mm) and identified the area on three of the broken coil strands as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (fatigue appearance) with mechanical damage and no pitting. The area on the remaining broken coil strand was identified as being mechanically damaged with no pitting and evidence of a stress induced fracture (rotational forces) which most likely completed the fracture. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the connector ring quadfilar coil break and identified the areas on the broken coil strands as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with fine pitting. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. During the visual analysis of the returned 160mm portion quadfilar coils 1 and 2 appeared to be broken. Scanning electron microscopy performed on the quadfilar coil 1 coil break identified the areas on the broken coil strands as being pitted with mechanical damage which prevented identification of the coil fracture type. Scanning electron microscopy performed on the quadfilar coil 2 coil break identified the area on three of the broken coil strands as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (fatigue appearance) with mechanical damage and no pitting and evidence of a stress induced fracture (rotational forces) which most likely completed the fracture. Determination could not conclusively be made on the fracture mechanism of the remaining quadfilar coil strand. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded openings found on the outer and inner silicone tubes and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside the outer and inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed on the deposit observed on the outer silicone tubing and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the discontinuities and abraded openings, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with those that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no discontinuities were identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is evidence to support the ¿fracture of lead(s) / explanted / due to lead break / high impedance / low impedance / low impedance message, short circuit condition¿ allegations.
Patient underwent full revision surgery on (b)(6) 2016. The explanted devices have not been received to date.
Clinic notes were received for patient's full revision surgery referral. Notes dated 7/15/2016 indicate that the lead impedance was greater than 10,000 in 2013 and patient was referred to surgeon for a lead revision. On the day of surgery on (b)(6) 2013, intraoperative device showed that the lead impedance was not over 10,000 but rather was okay at 3069ohms. The surgeon tested the device several times with the different programming systems but all of the tests showed the lead impedance was okay and the lead impedance values ranged from 3060 to 3179 ohms. As a result, the surgeon did not revise the lead at that time. More recently, patient was seen by the neurologist and the lead impedance was less than 600 ohms, and so patient was referred back to surgeon for evaluation and management. A chest x-ray was performed, which showed a lead fracture. According to caregiver, patient's seizures have been increasing in frequency. Patient had done quite well over the past couple of years, but more recently, within the past six months, experienced an increase in seizure frequency. Patient has had no real behavioral concerns until just recently likely related to the vns not working because of the lead fracture. Lead revision is planned but has not occurred to date.
Reporter indicated a patient was having increased seizures and was unable to feel vns magnet mode stimulation since (b)(6) 2013. High lead impedance was also noted with vns diagnostics testing in early (b)(6) 2013. The reporter felt the ¿lead was off the nerve¿ or not connected with the generator since (b)(6) 2013. The patient had no known trauma and did not manipulate the vns. The vns was not disabled. The seizures are above pre-vns baseline level, and are partial-complex seizures only. The patient forgot a dose of medication and had a seizure on (b)(6) 2013; this may be cause of the increased seizures per the reporter. The vns generator is believed to be at end of service per the reporter. The patient had been seizure-free since (b)(6) 2012. The patient had vns lead and generator replacement surgery performed on (b)(6) 2013 due to ¿battery/lead impedance¿. Attempts for return of the explanted devices are in progress.
Only a portion of the lead was returned for analysis which did not reveal any discontinuities. As the setscrew marks on the lead pin indicate proper insertion, a lead fracture is suspected in the lead portion not returned, but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
The generator and lead were returned for analysis on (b)(4) 2013. The abraded openings found on the outer and one inner silicone tubing and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for what appeared to be remnants of dried body fluids found inside the outer and inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be specs of white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sulphur and calcium. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no discontinuities were identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is no evidence to suggest a discontinuity in the returned portions of the device. However, since a large portion of the lead assembly (body) including the electrode array section was not returned for analysis, an evaluation and resulting commentary cannot be made on that portion of the lead. Proper functionality of the pulse generator in its ability to provide appropriate programmed output currents was verified. In the pa lab, the device output signal was monitored for more than 24-hrs, while the generator was placed in a simulated body temperature environment. Results showed no signs of variation in the pulse generator¿s output signal and demonstrated that the device provided the expected level of output current for the entire monitoring period. Magnet activations performed during output monitoring (at a distance of one-inch, spacer block, from generator), demonstrate the appropriate magnet output for the programmed settings. The pulse generator diagnostics were as expected for the programmed parameters. In addition, a comprehensive automated electrical evaluation showed that the pulse generator performed according to functional specifications. There were no performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator.
Follow up found that the patient went to the physician's office on (b)(6) 2013 and wanted the vns device turned back on. The physician has turned the device on to 0. 25ma and the patient is feeling some pain, especially when he turns his head to the right. The patient wants the device to remain on because he is having more seizures and is unable to get a replacement due to insurance issues. The patient also reports that he feels a pulling sensation to his neck when he turns his head to the right. The patient reports no seizures in august, but seventeen in september. The physician is aware of the manufacturer's recommendations to keep the device off, but has elected to turn it back on to a low setting.
Additional programming/diagnostic history from the manufacturer's database was reviewed which confirmed the high impedance observed on (b)(6) 2013. It does not appear that the device was programmed off on this date, but there was no history following (b)(6) 2013.
It was reported that the patient presented for follow up on (b)(6) 2013 at the neurologist's office and high lead impedance was observed. The patient was reporting discomfort in the neck when he turns her head to the left, when lifting things, but not during stimulation on-times. There was no specific cause for the high lead impedance, but the discomfort started about two months prior. Additionally, the patient did start working with his father about two months ago, which does include heavy lifting. There have been no drop seizures for the patient recently. The patient's father thinks that the lifting could be the cause, but the physician is not sure since he is a new patient. The device will be left on at patient's request since there are currently no adverse issues and increase in seizures. The patient is likely going for revision surgery due to the high lead impedance and believed related pain in the neck. The patient was referred for x-rays which were provided to the manufacturer for review. Ap chest and neck and lateral chest and neck x-rays dated (b)(6) 2013 were reviewed by the manufacturer. Based on the x-ray images provided, the cause of the high impedance could not be determined; however, a micro fracture or lead discontinuity in the portion of the lead that could not be assessed cannot be ruled out. Additional information received on (b)(4) 2013 indicates the physician states there is nothing obvious to be causing the pain. There are no interventions planned to date. The patient has not reported any complaints. Although surgery may occur in the future, it has not occurred to date.
Analysis of the generator was completed on (b)(4) 2014. The generator performed according to functional specifications. During the product analysis there were no anomalies found with the pulse generator. Analysis of the lead was completed on (b)(4) 2014. During the visual analysis of the returned 30mm portion quadfilar coil 1 appeared to be broken approximately 1mm from the proximal end of the anchor tether. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area as being mechanically damaged with pitting which prevented identification of the coil fracture type. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded openings found on the outer silicone tubing and one inner silicone tubing and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside the outer and one inner silicone tubing. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, potassium, aluminum, sulphur and calcium. Refer to attached eds sheet for additional information. With the exception of the observed discontinuity the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified. Te that since the (+) white and (-) green electrodes were not returned for analysis, an evaluation and resulting commentary cannot be made on that portion of the lead.
It was reported that the patient was seen by the treating neurologist on (b)(6) 2013. The patient's device was disabled at the visit due to a couple of reasons. The patient was experiencing discomfort in the neck (lead site). Per the patient, he experiences a "weird feeling" when he turns to the left. The patient and caregiver were unsure about if the discomfort was associated with vns stimulation when asked. The patient's device was disabled partly as a result of this. Additionally, the patient has been experiencing an increase in seizures over the past few months that are both above and below pre-vns baseline levels. The physician was still not sure the relationship of the increased seizures to vns because at the same time as the high impedance, the patient also had multiple changes in brand name medications, was switched to generic medications and also switched physicians and had a lack of care at one point. The physician thinks there are too many factors and decided to disable the device to have a better idea of the situation. Over the last few months, the seizures have been more than the patient is used to experience prior to vns. It was planned to switch the patient back to brand name medication, but no other interventions were planned at this time. Vns magnet mode was left on for rescue purposes if necessary; however, the patient stated that it does make his neck discomfort more pronounced when he swipes it. Due to insurance reasons, the patient has not been scheduled for surgery thus far. The physician was to re-evaluate the patient the following month.
Additional information was received stating that the vns patient was scheduled for surgery. The patient underwent generator and lead replacement surgery on (b)(6) 2014 due to high impedance. During surgery, the surgeon noted a suture above the electrode and dark areas on the nerve at the initial lead implant site. The patient¿s generator was replaced and the replacement generator was tested with the existing lead. Diagnostic results showed high impedance (impedance value >= 10,000 ohms). The patient¿s lead was replaced and diagnostic results showed lead impedance within normal limits for the replacement devices. The explanted generator and lead have been returned to the manufacturer where analysis is currently underway.
Manufacturer reviewed x-rays of implanted devices. Review of manufacturer device history records performed. Review of manufacturer device history records confirmed all quality tests were passed for the lead prior to distribution. X-rays reviewed by manufacturer, no gross lead discontinuities visualized. Device failure is suspected, but has not caused or contributed to a death or serious injury.
It was initially found while reviewing programming history for the patient that the patient had high impedance on (b)(6) 2006. The patient had their generator turned off (b)(6) 2007, unknown if related to the high impedance. The generator and lead were returned to the manufacturer for evaluation. Product analysis is planned but has not been completed. Good faith attempts for additional information have been unsuccessful to date.
Additional information was received that physician¿s office did not have information or records from the high impedance in 2006. Product analysis was completed on the generator and lead. The generator output signal was monitored for more than 24-hrs, while the generator was placed in a simulated body temperature environment. Results showed no signs of variation in the pulse generator¿s output signal and demonstrated that the device provided the expected level of output current for the entire monitoring period. The pulse generator diagnostics were as expected for the programmed parameters. In addition, a comprehensive automated electrical evaluation showed that the pulse generator performed according to functional specifications. There were no performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator. Note that the majority of the lead assembly (body) including the electrodes was not returned for analysis; therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, sulphur and calcium. The condition of the returned lead portion is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. The resistance measurement taken during decontamination verified an electrical and mechanical contact between the generator and connector pin at one point in time. Continuity checks of the returned lead portion were performed, during the visual analysis, with no discontinuities identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is no evidence to suggest an anomaly with the returned portion of the device. Note that since the majority of the lead assembly (body), including the electrode array section was not returned for analysis, an evaluation and resulting commentary cannot be made on that portion of the lead.
Only a portion of the lead was returned for analysis which did not reveal any anomalies. Device failure is suspected in the lead portion not returned, but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
Analysis of programming history.
Product analysis for the explanted lead was approved on (b)(6) 2012. The electrodes were not returned for analysis, and therefore, a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. The incision marks found on the outer silicone tubing, most likely provided the leakage path for what appeared to be remnants of dried body fluids found inside the outer silicone tubing. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing sodium, phosphorus, sulfur, molybdenum and calcium. The condition of the returned lead portion is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portion were performed, during the visual analysis, with no discontinuities identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is no evidence to suggest an anomaly with the returned portion of the device which may have contributed to the stated complaint. Product analysis for the explanted generator was approved on (b)(6) 2012. The generator was confirmed to be at end of service: an open can measurement of the battery voltage determined that the battery was depleted. The end of service condition was the result of normal, expected battery depletion based on the battery life calculation. The device performed according to functional specifications. Analysis of the generator in the pa lab concluded that no abnormal performance or any other type of adverse condition was found with the generator. On (b)(6) 2012, the patient's physician reported that the patient had not been seen and did not have any information. The physician was unaware that the patient underwent explant. Attempts for additional information have been unsuccessful to date.
Review of programming/device diagnostic history performed.
On (b)(6) 2012, a nurse reported that this vns patient was being referred for explant for an unknown reason. Follow up with the physician's office on (b)(6) 2012 showed that the patient recently presented with pain at the generator site and an indication that the patient's stimulator was not working. It was also stated that the patient never really received adequate therapy from vns. The patient underwent explant surgery on (b)(6) 2012. The explanted lead and generator were received on (b)(6) 2012 and are currently undergoing product analysis. A battery life calculation was performed on (b)(6) 2012. The years to eri = yes was negative. Attempts for additional information have been unsuccessful to date.
The patient had their lead replaced on (b)(6) 2013 and their explanted product has been returned for analysis. Analysis completion is pending.
Analysis of programming history. Device manufacturing records were reviewed. Review of manufacturing records confirmed that the lead passed all functional prior to distribution. Device failure is suspected but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
Notes from the patient's (b)(6) 2013 surgery were received on (b)(4) 2013. The device was reportedly not functioning for several years. (this was clarified to mean the device was at end of service). In surgery, the generator was disconnected and a new unit was connected to the existing lead. Testing showed impedance: the device was rechecked and retested. Inspection of the lead showed a longitudinal linear separation in the plastic around the metallic wires. While the wires themselves were grossly intact and there was no side of disconnect or fracture, the sheath around the wires appeared to have been worn down and split in a linear distribution. The plastic itself appeared to have eroded away from the wires. The lead was not replaced at this time. The generator was sewn into place. Lead revision is still likely but has not taken place.
The lead analysis was completed on (b)(4) 2013. Analysis of the lead showed that the electrodes were not returned for analysis; therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. Visual analysis of the returned 309 mm portion showed abraded openings on the outer and inner silicone tubing in some areas. Visual analysis found that the quadfilar coil one appeared to be burnt in half in the body area of the returned lead portion. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the burnt area as having the appearance of being melted, with re-solidified material (evidence of being melted at one time). Based on the obvious signs of mechanical damage on the coil surfaces, it is possible the thermally-damaged coils were exposed to a high temperature device such as a cauterizing tool (electrosurgical unit) during the explant of this lead. During the visual analysis of the returned 309 mm portion quadfilar coil two appeared to be broken approximately 211 mm from the end of the cut outer / inner silicone tubes. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area as having extensive pitting which prevented identification of the coil fracture type and mechanical damage. During the visual analysis of the returned 309 mm portion quadfilar coil two appeared to be broken approximately 250 mm from the end of the cut outer / inner silicone tubes. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (fatigue appearance) with mechanical damage, residual material and no pitting. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded openings found on the outer and inner silicone tubing two and the torn ends observed on both of the inner silicone tubes, most likely provided the leakage path for what appeared to be remnants of dried body fluids found inside the outer and inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be white deposits were observed on the connector boot. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, potassium, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the observed discontinuity, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified.
On (b)(6) /2013, it was reported that high impedance was seen during generator revision due to end of service. The surgeon performed a generator diagnostic on the newly implanted generator. The generator was then reconnected to the lead ensuring that the pin was past the connector block and fully inserted. Diagnostics again showed high impedance. The surgeon inspected the portion of the lead that was able to be visualized, and a break was seen with fluid in the tubing. The lead was not replaced at this time. No patient manipulation or trauma was suspected, no x-rays were taken, and the explanted generator was discarded. The new generator was not programmed on. The last known diagnostics indicated a system diagnostic with dcdc=2 approximately two years prior. The patient was lost to follow-up; however, the patient had been experiencing an increase in seizures six months prior (below baseline), and the resident generator could not be interrogated or programmed because it was at end of service. The patient could not feel normal mode or magnet mode stimulation. The patient's physician believed the increase was due to loss of therapy. A blc at this time indicated negative results. Lead revision is likely but has not taken place.
Event Type Injury
It was reported that the patient demanded the vns to be explanted. It was reported that the vns did not meet the patient's expectations and that the patient experienced shortness of breath during sports. It was reported that during sports the patient was disturbed when his colleagues saw the implanted device. Since the patient did not experience efficacy he wanted to be explanted. The patient underwent generator and partial lead explant (leaving electrodes). The explanted generator and lead portion were received for analysis. Analysis is underway, but has not been completed to date.
Analysis of the generator was completed on 10/09/2014. The device performed according to functional specifications. Analysis in the pa lab concluded proper functionality of the pulse generator and that no abnormal performance or any other type of adverse condition was found. Analysis of the lead was completed on 10/09/2014. Note that the lead assembly (body) including the electrode section was not returned for analysis and therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. White deposits were observed on the connector boot. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, aluminum, sulphur, zirconium and calcium. The condition of the returned lead portion is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portion were performed, during the visual analysis, with no discontinuities identified.
Device Problem Insufficient Information
An analysis was performed on the returned lead portions. Note that the lead assembly (body) including the electrodes was not returned for analysis; therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed on the deposit observed on the unmarked connector boot and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, sulphur and calcium. The condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pins provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no discontinuities were identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is no evidence to suggest an anomaly with the returned portions of the device. Note that since the lead assembly (body) including the electrode array section was not returned for analysis, an evaluation and resulting commentary cannot be made on that portion of the lead.
An analysis was performed on the explanted generator, the device output signal was monitored for more than 24-hrs, while the generator was placed in a simulated body temperature environment. Results showed no signs of variation in the pulse generator's output signal and demonstrated that the device provided the expected level of output current for the entire monitoring period. The pulse generator diagnostics were as expected for the programmed parameters. Analysis in the pa lab concluded proper functionality of the generator and that no abnormal performance or any other type of adverse condition was found.
It was reported that a vns patient died. No information is available to date regarding the circumstances around the patient's death. Review of manufacturing records confirmed that the lead passed all functional tests prior to distribution. The vns system was explanted postmortem. The explanted devices were received by the manufacturer; analysis of the devices is underway, but it has not been completed to date.
Review of available vns device programming history by the manufacturer indicates that the device was switched off on (b)(6) 2006. The explanted device was received by the manufacturer as programmed off and analysis showed the battery was not depleted. There is no evidence from the available information the device was ever turned on again and the patient was most likely not receiving vns therapy at the time of the death.
Initially, it was reported that the patient was underwent generator and lead explant due to being seizure free with medication. It was reported that the patient's generator had been programmed off for about 18 months for that reason. The patient requested that the device be explanted. The generator and lead were returned for analysis. Analysis of the lead was completed on (b)(4) 2013. Note that the electrodes were not returned for analysis and therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. The incision mark and abraded openings found on the outer silicone tubing, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids inside the outer silicone tubing. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, zirconium, sulphur and calcium. Abraded inner tubing openings were observed. With the exception of the abraded openings, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, with no discontinuities identified. Analysis of the generator was completed on (b)(4) 2013. There were no performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator.
Implant information on a hospital form was received by the manufacturer which confirmed that the patient had lead replacement on (b)(6) 2013. Follow-up with the surgeon¿s office confirmed that both the generator and lead were replaced per the operative notes. The explanted generator and lead were received by the manufacturer for analysis on (b)(4) 2013. However, product analysis has not been completed to date. The return product form listed the reason for replacement as ¿fractured vns electrode lead. ¿.
On (b)(4) 2013 product analysis was completed on the explanted lead. A portion of the lead assembly (body) including the electrodes was not returned for analysis and therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. During the visual analysis discoloration was observed on the (-) connector pin quadfilar coil and the coil appeared to be broken approximately 160 mm from the end of the connector boot and in several sections past the observed coil break. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the areas as having extensive pitting which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with mechanical damage and residual material. An attempt was not made to remove the residual material from the coil surface, since the coil appeared to be too fragile. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the residual material as containing sodium, chromium, silicone, sulphur and aluminum. Refer to attached eds sheet for additional information. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. What appeared to be residual material was observed in various locations. The abraded opening found on the outer silicone tubing, most likely provided the leakage path for what appeared to be remnants of dried body fluids found inside the outer silicone tubing. For the observed inner tubing fluid remnants, there was no obvious path for fluid ingress other than the cut ends that were made during the explanted process. With the exception of the observed discontinuities, the condition of the returned lead portion is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portion were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified. On (b)(4) 2013 product analysis was completed on the explanted generator. Results of diagnostic testing indicated the device was operating properly. Electrical test showed that the pulse generator was operating within specification. There were no adverse functional, mechanical, or visual issues identified with the returned generator. The impedance check performed by the generator showed that the impedance went from 7810 ohms to 10152 ohms on (b)(6) 2013.
Clinic notes dated (b)(6) 2013 were received for the patient¿s referral for vns revision surgery. The notes indicated that the patient had been seizure-free since temporal lobectomy surgery with the last (third) resective surgery performed in (b)(6) 2012. The patient was last seen in clinic on (b)(6) 2012, and the patient has continued to have seizures since (b)(6) 2012. Since surgery, the patient had one seizure in (b)(6), three in (b)(6), two in (b)(6), three in (b)(6), and two in (b)(6). Prior to the most recent surgery, the patients was averaging 1-2 seizure per month. The patent was reported to be tolerating vns stimulation without incident programmed to 1. 75 ma for 30 seconds every 3 minutes with magnetic activation of 2 ma for 30 seconds. Lead (system) diagnostics revealed high impedance with impedance value of 7810 ohms. Therefore, the patient¿s device was programmed off to 0ma, as the physician noted the findings indicated a potential lead fracture. The parents noted they were not sure whether vns therapy had been helpful for the patient. The patient¿s current semiology suggests origin within left frontal lobe and may be a good candidate for consideration of a left frontal lobe surgical procedure. The plan was to keep the generator off while awaiting admission to the epilepsy monitoring unit. If seizure control worsened over the next couple of months, they would plan to replace the lead, and if not, would remove the vns generator and lead. Follow-up with the physician revealed that no patient manipulation or trauma occurred that is believed to have caused or contributed to the high impedance. No x-rays were performed. The patient was admitted to the epilepsy monitoring unit, and seizures were recorded independently in the left and right brain. The physician believes that the patient has benefitted from vns therapy. The last good diagnostics were performed on (b)(6) 2012. The patient had generator and lead replacement surgery on (b)(6) 2013. Attempts for product return have been unsuccessful to date.
Device failure is suspected, but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury. Review of manufacturing history records performed. Review of the generator and lead manufacturing history records confirmed all quality tests were passed prior to distribution.
Initially, it was reported that high impedance was observed and the patient was experiencing an increase in seizures. It was reported that the patient had recently suffered a fall during ice skating. The physician assistant believes the device was damaged during the fall. X-rays were taken and sent to manufacturer for review. X-rays identified that the lead pin did not appear to be fully inserted into the generator header. The patient underwent surgery. The surgeon opened the chest pocket to check the connection and when the generator was removed the lead pin fell out of the header confirming a generator/lead connection issue. The surgeon implanted a new generator and lead. The explanted lead and generator were received for analysis. Analysis of the lead was completed on (b)(4) 2015. During the visual analysis of the returned 289mm portion what appeared to be rust-like deposits and pitting were observed on the connector pin surface. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified evidence of pitting on the surface of the connector pin. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed on the connector pin rust-like deposit and identified the area as consisting of chromium, iron, nickel, silicone and phosphorus. Another eds procedure was performed on the clean surface of the connector pin and identified the area as consisting of chromium, iron, nickel, sodium, manganese, silicone and sulphur. A definite cause for the pitting could not be determined based on the lead portion returned. No other obvious anomalies were noted except for the set of setscrew marks found near the end of the connector pin indicating the lead had not been fully inserted into the cavity of the generator at one time. Additional setscrew marks found on the connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified. Analysis of the generator was completed on (b)(4) 2015. A comprehensive automated electrical evaluation showed that the pulse generator performed according to functional specifications. There were no additional performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator. The generator decoder identified that the high impedance occurred prior to (b)(6) 2014.
Manufacturer reviewed x-rays of implanted device. X-rays reviewed by the manufacturer, lead pin not fully inserted past the connector block of generator.
The generator and lead were returned to manufacturer for analysis on (b)(4) 2013. The lead analysis was completed on (b)(4) 2013. During the visual analysis the white (+) and green (-) ribbons appeared to be embedded in what appeared to be remnants of dried body tissue. This condition may have prevented the electrode ribbons from coming in contact with the vagus nerve; therefore contributing to the reported allegations. With the exception of the observed tissue-covered (+) white and (-) green electrode ribbons the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The slice marks found on the outer and inner silicone tubes and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for what appeared to be remnants of dried body fluids found inside the outer and inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be white deposits were observed on the connector boot. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, zirconium, sulphur, chlorine and calcium. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no discontinuities were identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is no evidence to suggest a discontinuity in the returned portions of the device which may have contributed to the high impedance. However the "as-received" condition of the helicals suggest they were not mounted on the vagus nerve during some portion of the implant life. The generator analysis was completed on (b)(4) 2013. The end of service condition was the result of normal, expected battery depletion based on the battery life calculation, the electrical test results and the bench evaluation. The device performed according to functional specifications. Analysis of the generator in the pa lab concluded that no abnormal performance or any other type of adverse condition was found.
On (b)(6) 2013 it was reported that the vns patient¿s vns lead was referred for replacement due to high lead impedance. Battery life calculations revealed that the vns generator had 0. 0 years left til end of service. Good faith attempts have been performed and it was later reported that the high impedance issue was first observed on (b)(6) 2013. The patient did not experience pain or any other adverse events. The office reported that their patient¿s vns devices are not turned off unless they are in pain. Thus, the patient¿s device was not changed to 0 ma. No x-rays were taken. No patient manipulation or trauma is believed to have caused or contributed to the high impedance. However, the physician was not able to provide a reason as to why the high impedance issue occurred.
On (b)(6) 2013, it was reported that the patient had the vns generator and lead replaced on (b)(6) 2013. Diagnostics were performed which were all ok and the patient was interrogated prior to leaving the operating room to ensure the device was programmed off. However, when the patient came back into the office for a follow up visit, it was found that the device was turned on (reported in mfr #: 1644487-2013-02883). No other information was provided. The explanted device has not been returned.
It was reported that the patient underwent generator and lead explant due to the high impedance. It was reported that a new vns system was not implanted at this time. The explanted generator and lead were received for analysis. Analysis of the generator was completed on 02/16/2015. The generator performed according to functional specifications. During the product analysis there were no anomalies found with the pulse generator. Analysis of the lead was completed on 02/18/2015. Note that the electrodes, plus one inner tube and quadfilar coil were not returned for analysis; therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. During the visual analysis of the returned 314mm portion discoloration was observed on a portion of quadfilar coil 1 and the end appeared to be broken approximately 281mm from the end of the cut outer / inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be a greenish substance was observed inside inner silicone tubing 1 and quadfilar coil 1 appeared to be dissolved in this area. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on quadfilar coil 1 coil break found at 281mm and identified the area as being thin which prevented identification of the coil fracture type and evidence of electro-etching on the surface. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded opening and puncture marks found on the outer silicone tubing and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids inside the outer silicone tubing. For the observed inner tubing fluid remnants, there was no obvious path for fluid ingress other than the cut ends that were made during the explanted process. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, chlorine, zirconium, aluminum, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the observed discontinuity the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pins provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified.
Additional information was received on the patient's symptoms. The patient was experiencing dysphagia and hoarseness prior to being admitted to the hospital. The patient was then found to have left true vocal cord (tvc) paralysis. Due to a suspected abscess, the patient went into or for an incision and drainage procedure (found to be fluid collection not abscess). A lead fracture was then observed during the procedure with abraded insulation. The patient's neurosurgeon believes the lead fracture caused stimulation to surrounding neck tissue which led to necrosis and the fluid buildup. The neck fluid buildup is slowly resolving following vns removal. The patient is continuing to have hoarseness although dysphagia has improved. However, in his experience, the neurosurgeon believes tvc paralysis will likely be permanent due to nerve damage.
It was reported that the patient was admitted to the hospital with a sore neck and vocal chord paralysis. Device diagnostics resulted in high impedance. The device was programmed off and the patient was referred for surgery for generator and lead replacement. No additional relevant information has been received to date. No known surgical interventions have been performed to date.
The patient's vns device was replaced on (b)(6) 2013 and the explanted device was returned to the manufacturer. Note that a portion of the lead assembly (body) including the electrodes was not returned for analysis and therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. During the visual analysis of the returned 178mm portion the (-) unmarked connector pin quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 75mm from the connector bifurcation. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (fatigue appearance) with mechanical damage and no pitting. During the visual analysis of the returned 178mm portion the (+) marked connector pin quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 56mm past the end of the outer silicone tubing. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type, no pitting and a secondary break line. During the visual analysis of the returned 184mm portion quadfilar coil 1 and quadfilar coil 2 appeared to be broken approximately 3mm from the end of the abraded open / cut outer / inner silicone tubing. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the areas as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with pitting. During the visual analysis of the returned 184mm portion quadfilar coil 2 appeared to be broken approximately 16mm and 22mm from the end of the abraded open / cut / outer / inner silicone tubing. The coil breaks were observed inside the extending portion of inner silicone tubing 2. After the cleaning process determination could not be made between the two coil break areas. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the areas as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type. During the visual analysis of the returned 184mm portion the opposite end of quadfilar coil 2 appeared to be broken approximately 16mm from the end of the cut inner silicone tubes. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (torsional appearance) with mechanical damage, no pitting and a secondary break line. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded openings found on the outer and inner silicone tubes, most likely provided the leakage path for what appeared to be remnants of dried body fluids found inside the outer and inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, aluminum, sulphur, chlorine and calcium. Refer to attached eds sheet for additional information. With the exception of the observed discontinuities, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted except for the set of setscrew marks found near the end of the marked connector pin indicating the lead had not been fully inserted into the cavity of the generator at one time. Additional setscrew marks found on the marked connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. The setscrew marks found on the unmarked connector pin provides evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is evidence to suggest discontinuities in the returned portions of the device. Note that since a portion of the lead assembly (body) including the electrode array section was not returned for analysis, an evaluation and resulting commentary cannot be made on that portion of the lead.
It was reported that during generator replacement surgery for ifi = yes a high lead impedance (dc dc code 7) was obtained once the new generator was connected to the existing lead. The lead was removed from the new generator and reinserted to ensure proper connection and device diagnostics again resulted in high lead impedance (dc dc code 7). It was reported that diagnostics prior to the case showed no lead issues. A lead revision was not performed at that time due to consent not being obtained for lead revision prior to the procedure. The surgeon will consult with the patient prior to lead revision. It was reported that the device remained programmed off after the surgery. No patient manipulation occurred that could have caused or contributed to the high impedance reading. No x-rays have been taken as the surgeon was going to consult with the neurologist. Surgery is likely; however, has not occurred to date. Attempts to obtain additional information have been unsuccessful to date.
Additional programming history was reviewed. Review of data for the generator that was implanted on (b)(6) 2013 showed high impedance during three system diagnostics on the date of implant. A generator diagnostic with a test resistor was within normal limits indicating that the lead was likely the cause of the high impedance. Review of decoder data from the generator explanted in (b)(6) 2013 shows that based on the last internal automeasure of the device on (b)(6) 2013, the impedance was 3062 ohms; therefore, the high impedance likely occurred on (b)(6) 2013.
(b)(4) date of event, corrected date: previously submitted mdr indicated that the event date was (b)(6) 2013; however, this should be (b)(6) 2013. This report is being submitted to correct this data. Date of this report, corrected data: previously submitted mdr indicated that the aware date was 07/25/2013; however, this should be 07/24/2013. This report is being submitted to correct this data.
Product analysis was completed on the generator. The generator performed according to functional specifications. During the product analysis there were no anomalies found with the pulse generator.
It was initially reported that the patient had high impedance on system diagnostics (dcdc = 7). However the nurse reported when normal mode diagnostics the dcdc converted was 2. The generator was recently checked (b)(6) 2012 and impedance was fine with a dcdc converter of 3 but it was unknown which diagnostic mode was run. The patient has not had any recent adverse events and there has not been any recent patient manipulation or trauma. The patient does have drop seizures and these may have caused damage to the device as the patient violently falls during those seizures. The nurse brought the patient back for another appointment to have her generator turned off. The patient was sent for x-rays and the x-rays were provided to the manufacturer for review. Based on the x-ray received there was nothing seen that would indicate there was any damage to the generator or lead; however, the presence of a micro-fracture in the lead cannot be ruled out. The patient will likely have surgery but it has not occurred to date. Review of manufacturing records confirmed there were no unresolved non conformances found with the generator and lead prior to distribution.
Additional information was received that product analysis was completed on the generator and lead. The reported end of service allegation was duplicated in the pa laboratory and determined to be the result of normal expected battery depletion, based on the battery life analysis and electrical test results. The pulse generator module performed according to functional specifications. There were no performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator. Note that the lead assembly (body) including the electrodes was not returned for analysis; therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, potassium, sulphur and calcium. The condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pins provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no discontinuities were identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is no evidence to suggest a discontinuity in the returned portions of the device which may have contributed to the stated allegations¿. Note that since the lead assembly (body) including the electrode array section was not returned for analysis, an evaluation and resulting commentary cannot be made on that portion of the lead.
Additional information was received that the patient had a generator and lead replacement. The generator and lead were returned to the manufacturer for evaluation. Product analysis is planned but has not been completed.
Review of manufacturing records confirmed that the lead passed all functional tests prior to distribution. Device failure is suspected, but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
Analysis of the generator was completed on (b)(4) 2014. Electrical test results showed that the pulse generator performed according to functional specifications. There were no adverse functional, mechanical, or visual issues identified with the returned generator. Analysis of the lead was completed on (b)(4) 2014. Note that the electrodes were not returned for analysis and therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. During the visual analysis of the returned 197mm portion the (+) marked connector quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 25mm and 29mm from the end of the connector bifurcation. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the (+) marked connector quadfilar coil break (found at 25mm) and identified the area as having extensive pitting which prevented identification of the coil fracture type and residual material. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the (+) marked connector quadfilar coil break (found at 29mm) and identified the area as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with fine pitting on two of the broken coil strands. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. The abraded openings and slice marks found on the outer silicone tubing and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids inside the outer silicone tubing. The abraded openings found on the inner silicone tubes and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside the inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sulphur and calcium. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. With the exception of the observed discontinuity, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified.
It was reported that the vns patient¿s device was tested and diagnostic results revealed high lead impedance (impedance value ¿ 8620 ohms) during an office visit on (b)(6) 2014. The patient recently had some slips and falls. The patient underwent generator and lead replacement surgery due to high impedance on (b)(6) 2014. The generator was also replaced as diagnostic results revealed near end of service. The surgeon noted that there was a lot of scar tissue present. The explanted generator and lead have been returned to the manufacturer where analysis is currently underway. Review of the available programming and diagnostic history showed normal diagnostic results through (b)(6) 2013.
Device manufacturing records and available programming and diagnostic history were reviewed. Review of manufacturing records confirmed that the lead passed all functional tests prior to distribution. Device failure is suspected, but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
Manufacturer reviewed x-rays of implanted device. X-rays reviewed by manufacturer, no gross lead discontinuities visualized. Describe event or problem, corrected data: the initial manufacturer report inadvertently did not include that x-rays were received that were pending review.
Analysis of the generator was completed on 09/23/2014. The generator performed according to functional specifications. During the product analysis there were no anomalies found with the pulse generator. Analysis of the lead was completed on 09/23/2014. Note that the electrodes were not returned for analysis; therefore, a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. During the visual analysis portions of the returned lead assembly appeared to be compressed and twisted and numerous abraded openings were observed on the outer silicone tubing. During the visual analysis of the returned 216mm portion quadfilar coil 1 appeared to be broken approximately 32mm and 36mm from the end of the cut outer / inner silicone tubes. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the quadfilar coil 1 coil break (found at 32mm) and identified the area as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with pitting. Determination could not conclusively be made on the fracture mechanism. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the quadfilar coil 1 coil break (found at 36mm) and identified the area on three of the broken coil strands as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with pitting on two of the broken coil strands. The remaining broken coil strand was identified as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (fatigue appearance) with mechanical damage, no pitting and evidence of a stress induced fracture (torsional appearance) which most likely completed the fracture. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded openings found on the outer and inner silicone tubes and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside the outer and inner silicone tubes. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the observed discontinuities the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified.
It was reported that the vns patient visited the hospital due to an increase in seizures above pre-vns baseline levels. The physician reported that the event was related to vns stimulation. The patient¿s device was tested and system diagnostic results revealed high lead impedance (dc dc ¿ 6). The patient¿s device was not programmed off. X-rays and emg were planned but it is unknown it they have been taken to date. Patient manipulation or trauma is not believed to have caused or contributed to the high impedance. The patient had multiple seizure types that all increased. The seizure type, duration of the seizures, post-ictal period, and auras did not change. Review of the available programming and diagnostic history showed normal diagnostic results through (b)(6) 2013. No known interventions have occurred to date. Attempts for additional relevant information were made but have been unsuccessful to date.
Additional information was received stating that the vns patient underwent generator and lead replacement surgery on (b)(6) /2014 due to lead discontinuity which was reportedly visualized near the lead pin. It was noted that the patient¿s generator was not fixed with a non-absorbable suture, so the generator may have turned while implanted. The patient¿s replacement device was programmed on to previous device settings. The explanted generator and lead were returned to the manufacturer where analysis is currently underway.
X-rays were provided to the manufacturer on (b)(6) 2014. X-rays dated (b)(6) 2014 were provided to the manufacturer for further review. The generator appears in the left chest in a normal placement. The filter feed-through wires appear to be intact. The lead connector pin appears fully inserted into the generator connector block. The electrodes appeared to be placed in normal arrangement. Part of the lead was behind the generator and could not be assessed. No clear lead breaks or sharp angles were found in the parts of the lead that could be assessed. Based on the images provided, the cause high lead impedance remains unknown. No known interventions have occurred to date.
Review of the available programming and diagnostic history. Describe event or problem, corrected data: the initial manufacturer report inadvertently did not include the review of the available programming and diagnostic history. Relevant tests/laboratory data, including dates, corrected data: the initial manufacturer report inadvertently did not include the review of the available programming and diagnostic history. Evaluation codes, including dates, corrected data: the initial manufacturer report inadvertently did not include the review of the available programming and diagnostic history.
Review of the available programming and diagnostic history showed normal diagnostic results through (b)(6) 2011.
It was reported that during generator replacement for end of service, high impedance (9225 ohms) was seen when the new generator was attached to the existing lead. It was reported that interrogation of the device prior to surgery was unsuccessful and the high impedance was not observed until the new generator was attached. The surgeon went to explant the lead and observed that the tubing was "stripped back and exposed down to the wire". The surgeon was unclear if any trauma caused the damage. It was reported that the patient was recently mugged which resulted in bruising; however, it is unknown if this may have caused or contributed to the high impedance. The lead was explanted (leaving electrodes) and a new lead was placed. Diagnostics with the new generator attached to the new lead were within normal limits (1556 ohms). The generator and lead were returned for analysis. Analysis of the lead was completed on (b)(4) 2014. Note that the (+) white and (-) green electrodes were not returned for analysis; therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. During the visual analysis abraded openings were observed on the outer silicone tubing. During the visual analysis of the returned 292mm portion the (-) connector pin quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 282mm from the end of the connector boot. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area on two of the broken coil strands as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type, no pitting and residual material. The two remaining broken coil strands were identified as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (fatigue appearance) with mechanical damage and no pitting. One of the broken coil strands was identified as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (torsional appearance) which most likely completed the fracture. During the visual analysis of the returned 146mm portion the end of the (-) green electrode quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 31mm from the end of the abraded open / cut outer silicone tubing. Scanning electron microscopy was performed and identified the area as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type and no pitting. Determination could not conclusively be made on the fracture mechanism. It is unknown if the breaks occurred while stimulation was present due to the absence of metal pitting on the broken coil wire surfaces. For the observed inner tubing fluid remnants, there was no obvious path for fluid ingress other than the cut ends that were made during the explanted process. The abraded openings found on the outer silicone tubing, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids inside the outer silicone tubing. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy ¿ provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, potassium, aluminum, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the observed discontinuities and abraded openings, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified. Analysis of the generator was completed on (b)(4) 2014. The pulse generator module performed according to functional specifications. There was no condition noted during the product analysis evaluation that would suggest any anomaly with the device.
Failure occurred, but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
Analysis of the lead was completed on 04/22/2014. During the visual analysis the (+) white electrode quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 1. 5mm from the proximal end of the anchor tether. Scanning electron microscopy was performed identified the area as being mechanically damaged with pitting. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded opening found on the outer silicone tubing, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids inside the outer silicone tubing. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy, provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, aluminum, sulphur and calcium. Refer to attached eds sheet for additional information. With the exception of the observed discontinuity, the condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified.
It was reported that device diagnostics resulted in high impedance and the patient was referred for surgery. The patient underwent generator and lead replacement on (b)(6) 2014. Pre-operative device diagnostics resulted in high impedance. The explanted generator and lead were returned for analysis on (b)(6) 2014. Analysis of the generator was completed on (b)(6) 2014. The device performed according to functional specifications. Analysis of the generator in the pa lab concluded that no abnormal performance or any other type of adverse condition was found; however, during decontamination an elective replacement indicator was observed. Analysis of the lead is underway, but has not been completed to date. Further follow-up revealed that no patient manipulation or trauma occurred that is believed to have caused or contributed to the high impedance. Attempts to obtain additional information have been unsuccessful to date.
Additional information was received that the generator and lead were returned to the manufacturer for evaluation. Product analysis was completed on the generator but has not been completed on the lead. In the pa lab, the device output signal was monitored for more than 24-hrs, while the generator was placed in a simulated body temperature environment. Results showed no signs of variation in the pulse generator¿s output signal and demonstrated that the device provided the expected level of output current for the entire monitoring period. The pulse generator diagnostics were as expected for the programmed parameters. In addition, a comprehensive automated electrical evaluation showed that the pulse generator performed according to functional specifications. The battery, 2. 945 volts, shows a non-ifi condition. The data in the diagaccumconsumed memory locations revealed that 14. 910% of the battery had been consumed. There were no performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator.
Additional information was received that product analysis was completed on the lead. Note that a portion of the lead assembly including the electrodes was not returned for analysis and therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. The abraded opening found on the outer silicone tubing and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside the outer silicone tubing. The slice mark found on the (-) unmarked connector inner silicone tubing and the cut ends that were made during the explanted process, most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside the inner silicone tubing. What appeared to be white deposits were observed in various locations. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, potassium, sulphur, chlorine and calcium. Refer to eds sheet for additional information. The condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pins provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no discontinuities were identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is no evidence to suggest discontinuities in the returned portion of the device which may have contributed to high impedance. Note that since a portion of the lead assembly including the electrode array section was not returned for analysis, an evaluation and resulting commentary cannot be made on that portion of the lead.
It was reported that device diagnostics resulted in high impedance (> 10,000 ohms). It was reported that the patient was reporting an increase in seizures. It was noted that the patient suffers from drop attacks which are believed to be due to the high impedance. It was reported that the drop attacks are normally controlled with vns. There was no recent trauma and the patient did not manipulate the device through the skin. The patient underwent generator and lead replacement. The explanted devices are expected to be returned for analysis, but have not been received to date.
It was reported that device diagnostics resulted in high impedance. It was reported that x-rays were taken and did not identify any lead discontinuity; however, a portion of the lead was not visible. The patient was seen again and subsequent device diagnostics resulted in high impedance (dc dc code - 7). The device was programmed off and the patient was referred for surgery. No surgical intervention has been performed to date.
The explanted lead and generator were received for analysis. Analysis of the generator was completed on 01/07/2015. Analysis of the generator in the pa lab concluded that no abnormal performance or any other type of adverse condition was found. Analysis of the lead was completed on 01/09/2015. During the visual analysis the (+) connector ring quadfilar coil appeared to be broken approximately 233mm and 241mm from the end of the connector boot. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the (+) connector ring quadfilar coil break (found at 233mm) and identified the area as having extensive pitting which prevented identification of the coil fracture type. Pitting was observed on the coil surface. Scanning electron microscopy was performed on the (+) connector ring quadfilar coil break (found at 241mm) and identified the area on three of the broken coil strands as being mechanically damaged which prevented identification of the coil fracture type with pitting on two of the broken coil strands. The remaining broken coil strand was identified as having evidence of a stress induced fracture (fatigue appearance) with mechanical damage, no pitting and evidence of a stress induced fracture (torsional appearance) which most likely completed the fracture. It is believed that stimulation was present for a certain period of time as evidenced by the presence of metal pitting. Low magnification sem analysis of the quadfilar coil shows characteristics typical of a lead discontinuity which may include: material fracture, rough or pitted surface, thinned material thickness, electro-etching or material dissolution. The abraded openings found on the outer and 1 inner silicone tubing most likely provided the leakage path for the dried remnants of what appeared to have once been body fluids found inside the outer and inner silicone tubing. What appeared to be white deposits were observed on the outer silicone tubing. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing silicon, phosphorus, sodium, zirconium, magnesium, sulphur and calcium. With the exception of the observed discontinuities the condition of the returned lead portion is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No other obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portion were performed, during the visual analysis, and no other discontinuities were identified.
Follow-up revealed that the vns patient underwent generator and lead replacement surgery on (b)(6) 2014 due to high impedance. The explanted devices have not been returned to date.
Additional information was received stating that the vns patient¿s device was tested and system diagnostic results revealed high impedance (dc dc ¿ 7).
(b)(4).
An evaluation of data obtained from the generators memory revealed that a >25% change in system impedance was estimated to have occurred on (b)(6) 2012 (3235 ohms to 12832 ohms) signifying the start of the high impedance event. A high impedance warning message was first received during a follow up visit on (b)(6) 2012 during an interrogation of the patient¿s generator.
Device failure is suspected but did not cause or contribute to a death or serious injury.
Date of event, corrected data: the initial report indicated the event occured in (b)(6) 2013 however, a review of the generator data suggests that the high impedance was first detected on (b)(6) 2012. The information has been corrected in this report.
On (b)(6) 2013, it was reported that high impedance was seen regarding this patient¿s device. Follow-up showed that the high impedance was first noted in (b)(6) 2013 at which time the device was disabled. The patient was inconsistent with follow-up. At the last visit, many months prior, diagnostics were within normal limits. Clinic notes dated (b)(6) 2013 were provided. The patient was seen after a long hiatus, and the mother reported that the patient was having more seizures. The patient was seen by a different facility two months prior and was taken off of vimpat. Monitoring of the vns device showed likely dislodgement of the leads. It was recommended that the device was disabled, and appropriate adjustments were made. Clinic notes dated (b)(6) 2013 indicated that patient was having more frequent seizures; however, the physician noted that there was a very unconvincing description of the individual instances: the patient had a right hand tremor, and the mother pointed to it indicating a seizure. It was noted that the patient was treated with a powerful combination of anticonvulsants, including a very high dose of banzel. However, dosing and choice of anticonvulsants remained constricted by the interventions of the patient¿s mother who believed that the medications were causing behavioral issues and overlooked the prominent mental retardation. There was no specific injury or manipulation, but this was possible given the patient¿s mrdd and occasional aggression issues. X-rays had not been taken. Surgery is likely but has not taken place.
On (b)(6) 2013, this vns patient underwent a full revision. The explanted lead and generator were returned on (b)(6) 2013 and are pending analysis.
An analysis was performed on the returned lead portions. Note that a portion of the lead assembly (body) including the electrodes was not returned for analysis and therefore a complete evaluation could not be performed on the entire lead product. What appeared to be white deposits were observed on the outer silicone tubing. Eds (energy dispersion spectroscopy - provides chemical or element identity/composition analysis) was performed and identified the deposit as containing calcium, sodium, magnesium, potassium, zirconium, silicone, phosphorus and sulphur. Refer to attached eds sheet for additional information. The condition of the returned lead portions is consistent with conditions that typically exist following an explant procedure. No obvious anomalies were noted. The setscrew marks found on the lead connector pin provide evidence that, at one point in time, a good mechanical and electrical connection was present. Continuity checks of the returned lead portions were performed, during the visual analysis, and no discontinuities were identified. Based on the findings in the product analysis lab, there is no evidence to suggest discontinuities in the returned portions of the device. The pulse generator was explanted/returned due to "prophylactic replacement". In the lab, the device output signal was monitored for more than 24-hrs, while the generator was placed in a simulated body temperature environment. Results showed no signs of variation in the pulse generator's output signal and demonstrated that the device provided the expected level of output current for the entire monitoring period. The pulse generator diagnostics were as expected for the programmed parameters. In addition, a comprehensive automated electrical evaluation showed that the pulse generator performed according to functional specifications. The battery, 2. 963 volts as measured during completion of test parameter 7. 16. 10. 2 (measured diagvbat) of the final electrical test, shows a non-ifi condition. The data in the diagaccumconsumed memory locations revealed that 11. 067% of the battery had been consumed. There were no performance or any other type of adverse conditions found with the pulse generator.
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line860
|
__label__cc
| 0.630526
| 0.369474
|
INDEPENDENTLY RESEARCHED AND VERIFIED
The African Genesis of Christianity
By Neyo Webster
One of the propelling myths within certain segments of the Black community in America and abroad is that Christianity is "the white man's religion." And perhaps some white men and women are led to believe that this is also the case. And no wonder, the images projected by the Western media always portray Christ with blond hair and blue eyes, "a sugary Jesus," as it was once conveyed to me in a discussion. All of the historical fugures of the Bible are also portrayed as white: from the patriarch Abraham to the royal majesty of King David.
However, if one examines the historical and geographical context of the Bible without cartographical and anthropolical bias, you will see that the so-called "Middle East" (a political jingoist invention) is in fact Northeast Africa. I have compared the maps and have done research on the Biblical kingdoms: from Nimrod's Babylon to Sennacherib's Assyria on down to David's kingdom of Judah (ca. 1007-1000 B.C.) and its evolvement into the united Kingdom Israel (ca. 1000-970 B.C.) and have discovered that the monarchs and their subjects were black. Even white scholars such as Constantin Francois de Cheeseboeuf Volney in his paper "Ruins of Empires" circulated around 1786 in Europe and America (contents sadly censored in America)to George Wells Parker's The Children of the Sun published in 1919 and even Godfrey Higgins' Anacalypsis all substantiate that the biblical figures and ancient civilzations such as Mesopotamia, Cush (Ethiopia), and Egypt were black...and these are the asserions and conclusions of white scholars! True scholars in my book, though we may not agree on every point. This goes beyond the amenic Black History month in America that is scarfed down schoolchildren's throats every February.
This leads me into my defense of the African genesis of Christianity. Jose V. Malcioln record the following, within the context of the Europeanization of the Jews and hence Christianity itself,
"In the meantime many Jews had followed Yeshua (Jesus)--a Black Hebrew from the House of David--and were preaching Christianity. In the competition between Judaism and Christianity, the Roman Emperor Constantine I saw a profitable opportunity in proclaiming Christianity a 'permitted religion' and later the religion of the State. Soon after the Romans began regarding the pagans as barbarians and started accepting Judaism or Christianity. Many pagans accepted Judaism because because it was older and had been the respected religion of Rome. Furthermore, the Jews were usually more educated than the Christians whose religion did not permit reading of the Scriptures, but had it read to them instead. (Side note: Many Christians in the early church-circa 33-100 A.D. were illiterate. They could not read. So I would have to disagree with Prof. Malcioln's observation of Scripture reading being banned in Christendom, if he is referring to the apostolic era of the Ekklesia, the organic church) Apart from that, Christianity had not really identified itself with traditions distinctively different from the old Hebrew rituals, attire ot the simple burning of candles. The only outstanding feature with a marked difference was the sign of the cross, ill segno della croce. (It is apparent that he is referring to Christianity as it evolved in the Constantinian era, ca. 324-337. Christianity had become a "different animal" then, with all due respect to my faith.)
The Council of Nicea (325) decidedly separated Christians from Jews. Arianism was promoted and Africanism demoted. The heretics were gaining in power and as a result imbiancamento, the process of bleaching the skin, or emblanquecimiento as it was later called in Spain and Latin America began."
(African Origins of Modern Judaism, p. 212)
Such information is staggering to the Westernized mind. We see our world through a white supremacist lens. And this is not an indictment on all white people, it is simply an observation of fact. Even whites are victims of the white supremacist ideology that permeates the globe. Whites have a false sense of superiority given to them by the Zionists. The "Hamitic Myth" which says Ham was cursed because of the color of his skin and thence subjugated to his brothers Japheth and Shem is not from the Holy Bible but from the Jewish Babylonian Talmud (Sanhedrin 108b). The Babylonian Talmud is the authoritative Rabbinical text adhered to by the Judaic community, specifically the Ashkenazim and the Sephardim. The Talmud is, rather ironically, inherently racist.
Many Christians boast about wanting the truth but when it comes to discussing the ethnic identity of Jesus Christ, we sweep it under the rug with the pat answer, "It doesn't matter what color He was." But it does matter, simply because of the visual images we are given and passed off as truth. Truth in all respects must dispel the lie. Christ portrayed as a white man is a lie. In the natural, Christ was a black Northeast African Hebrew. This is scientific fact that should be recognized by all Christians regardless of skin color. The concept of "skin color" is another myth. We all have one skin color, it's called melanin.
Until next time, truth erases ignornace and sometimes it hardens and disillusions those who choose to remain in it. And I will leave you with this, "How can a religion that originated in Africa be called a 'white man's religion'?"
I am fully aware of the spiritual reality of Christ and have read, written, and spoken extensively over the years on the subject. But the spiritual complements the physical, it doesn't eradicate it.
Copyright © 2009 Zionism Unveiled Productions. All Rights Reserved.
http://zionismunveiled.blogspot.com/
Posted by Neyo Webster at 10:23 PM
Labels: christ, christianity, origins
Neyo Webster's YouTube Channel
Strength For the Journey
There is no such thing as a closed case.
LOGO Protection Disclaimer
This website's logo is under copyright © of Zionism Unveiled Productions, 2010. All rights reserved. This is the original work of a contributing artist. Infringement is prohibited and prosecuted by law.
A Needful Clarification....
Neyo's Essays
Revisiting Duet. 28
The Pre-Mesopotamic Origins of Abraham the Biblical Patriarch
Egypt: A Fixed Revolution?
The Hebrew Israelite Truth Defended
To The Hebrew Nation
A Secret Identity Revealed
The Forgotten Captivity
Thoughts on Palestine
We Are Not Africans
Rethinking Columbus
Slavery: Setting the Record Straight
An Open Message
Fallacy of White Supremacy
African Origins of Christianity
Lamentations of A Christian
Linguistic Origins of Hebrew
Who Are the Biblical Hebrews?
Who Are Today's Jews?
The Khazarian Link
Rethinking Anti-Semitism
Zionism Defined
Zionism Unveiled
Original Meaning of the "N" Word
The Gnosis Archive
The Anatomy of Slavespeak
Maafa21
Why Israel Hates Gaddafi
Why Google Earth Can't Show You Israel
The Bin Laden Photo Hoax
The Complete Malcolm X Files
Anti-Black Rabbis in American History
Matthew Hebrew Gospel
Jews of the Black Holocaust
The Parallels of Slavery
Seven U.S. Presidents, Jewish Pawns
Gog, Magog and Khazars
Short History of the English Bible
The Nationality of The Hebrews
A Return To The Hebrew Faith
Edomites and The Khazars
The Men Who Killed Malcolm X
EtymOnline
The Curses
Bible History Online
When Victims Rule
Earth's Ancient History
A Physical Israel
Beyond Roots
They Were White And They Were Slaves
Why We Must Not Follow Jewish Tradition
The Duty of the Chosen People
The Khazar Origin of the Ashkenazim
A Boy Named John
Obama's Healthcare Bill (Revisited)
The Boodlines
JFK On Secret Societies
Benjamin Freedman 1961 Speech
Nancy Banks, MD
Was Jesus a Jew?
The Protocols of Zion
The Thirteenth Tribe
Who Brought the Slaves to America?
Historical Backdrop of World Wars I & II
Inside the Jewish Cryptocracy
Etymology of the Word 'Jew'
Jewish Obstruction of Civil Rights Movement
How Jesus and Hebrews Became White
Black British Royalty
Real History World Wide
When Did Slavery End?
Images of the True Israelites
The Restoration of Is'ra-el
African-Americans are Israelites
Jewish Slave Trade of the Israelites
The Arab Slave Trade of the Israelites
The Last Captivity of Is'ra-el
The Scattering of Is'ra-el
Ashkenazim Are Not Israelites
The Name of Jesus Defended
Gleanings In Hebrew
Hebrew Heritage of Black Africa
Decline of Black Jews in Africa
Starving the Reptilians
Jewish Roots In Africa
Black Jewish Migration Into Europe
The Commandment Keepers
Into Egypt Again With Ships
100 Amazing Facts
From Babylon to Timbuktu
World's Best-Kept Secret
Hebrewisms of West Africa
Emeth Book Review
African Origins of Modern Judaism
videos (128) hebrews (88) jews (68) israel (63) israelites (63) history (24) current affairs (23) ashkenazim (20) hebrew history (19) Blacks (15) christ (14) khazars (14) middle east (13) race relations (12) virtual education (12) zionism (12) Black Jews (11) FAKE JEWS (11) books (11) hebrew heritage (11) obama (11) Black Hebrews (10) christianity (10) education (10) hebrew ancestry (9) egyptology (8) Israelis (7) edomites (7) music (7) palestine (6) white jews (6) Gaza (5) freemasonry (5) news and politics (5) 9/11 (4) Black Hebrew Israelites (4) bible (4) biblical studies (4) civil rights (4) gentiles (4) illuminati (4) judaism (4) prophecy (4) sephardim (4) slavery revisionism (4) white supremacy (4) Christians (3) GOD (3) christian (3) church history (3) cynthia mckinney (3) edom (3) egypt (3) haiti (3) hebrew language (3) israel lobby (3) nwo (3) rachel corrie (3) zionists (3) BIBLE DEFENDED (2) africa (2) artwork (2) ashkenaz (2) cesare borgia (2) communism (2) consciousness (2) esoterica (2) falashim (2) federal reserve (2) gnosis (2) iraq war (2) israeli prime minister (2) kabbalah (2) mind control (2) original biblical hebrews (2) origins (2) religion (2) the curses (2) theology (2) yahvism (2) 911 (1) Christ Our Passover (1) FABRICATED DNA STUDIES (1) FEMA (1) QUEEN TIYE (1) Rabbis (1) THE MEDIA (1) THE PROTOCOLS (1) THE SECRET (1) Talmid Chacham (1) Talmud (1) True Messiah (1) ahmadinejad (1) ancient europe (1) anti-semitism (1) apologetics (1) archaeology (1) aryanism (1) awareness (1) babylon (1) beethoven (1) bloodlines (1) cairo mars essays (1) chabad (1) chaldea (1) civil liberties obstructed (1) civil war (1) commemorative (1) conspiracy (1) cryptocracy (1) defamation (1) definition (1) deuteronomy 28 (1) dna (1) dreamer (1) early asia (1) education day? (1) ego (1) end times (1) entertainment industry (1) ethnicity (1) first black president (1) founding fathers (1) free speech (1) freedman speech (1) genetics (1) genocide (1) ghetto (1) gnostics (1) gnoticism (1) haplogroups (1) hate bill (1) health care bill (1) hip hop (1) hispanics (1) hyksos (1) jacob (1) jerusalem (1) jews and slavery (1) kosher tax (1) lamentations (1) lewis lattimer (1) libya (1) lost tribes (1) lubavitch (1) maafa (1) malcolm x (1) martyrs (1) matrix (1) mizrachim (1) monsanto (1) moors (1) mossad (1) multiculturalism (1) myth (1) natufians (1) netanyahu (1) new decade (1) noachide laws (1) opium wars (1) organized crime (1) paganism (1) perils (1) phoenicians (1) psy-ops (1) reparations (1) schools (1) serco (1) shabbat (1) social commentary (1) spirituality (1) symbols (1) talmudism (1) tavistock (1) technology (1) the awakening (1) the front lines (1) the matrix (1) vaccines (1) wailing wall (1) west african hebrews (1) world wars (1) world's religions (1) zionist logic (1)
"Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?" (Galatians 4:16)
"Here in the United States, the Zionists and their co-religionists have complete control of our government. For many reasons, too many and too complex to go into here at this time, the Zionists and their co-religionists rule these United States as though they were the absolute monarchs of this country. Now you may say that is a very broad statement, but let me show you what happened while we were all asleep." -Benjamin H. Freedman
"According to a statement released by the American Anthropological Association (AAA), the US Government should phase out use of the term 'race' in the collection of Federal data because the concept has no scientific justification in human biology."
-Stewart Synopsis
"I am very dubious to the utility of the concept 'race' in general because it is impossible to achieve any anatomical precision on the subject." -Martin Bernal
"I don't go for any organization--be it civil rights or any other kind--that has to compromise with the (white) power structure." -Malcolm X
"I AM NOT 'ANTI-SEMITIC' for teaching the truth. The very term 'ANTI-SEMITIC' is nonsensical, a mere invention by the Jew himself." -Neyo Webster
"Black Americans now are in position as never before in modern history to rediscover, and reclaim if they wish, a heritage which has profoundly influenced world history and mankind: the Hebrew heritage of Black Africa."
-Steven Jacobs
"(The) white rabbis want the black Israelites to submit family records to prove that they are Israelites. Now tell me how in the world can black Israelites possess written family records when a son or daughter were sold as slaves to different masters hundreds of miles apart and it was illegal for a slave to learn to read or write? It is ridiculous; it is comparable to putting a man's eyes out, then asking him if he can see." -Rudolph Windsor
Ted Kennedy: Zionist Puppet?
Breaking silence on Gaza abuses
The Making of Barack Obama
Speeches delivered at the B'nai B'rith Convention ...
The Jewish-Controlled Media: The Major Players
The Jewish Role in the African Trans-Atlantic Slav...
Zionist Jews in the Obama Administration
Jewish Terrorist Groups
The Transfer Agreement
The Founding Fathers of Zionism
Top Sweden newspaper says IDF kills Palestinians f...
The Fallacy of White Supremacy
The Talmud: Judaism's "Holy Book" (EXCLUSIVE)
The Lamentations of a Christian
Activist Cynthia McKinney Speaks Out Against the Z...
Former U.S. Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney's Trip ...
Rachel Corrie: Is There Not a Cause?!?!
Gaza 2009: We Will Never Forget
The Linguistic Origins of Hebrew and Other Tongues...
The Historical Origins of the Word "Jew"
Who are the Biblical Hebrews? (EXCLUSIVE)
Israel Bankrolls the U.S.
Zionist Israel at Work
Rethinking "Anti-Semitism"
Neyo Webster
"You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." DISCLAIMER: The owner of this blog has no connection or affiliation with any political, non-political, hate/racist, and/or terrorist groups, entities, and/or individuals. Neyo Webster is an independent researcher whose sole agenda is to advance the truth regarding the world in which he lives.
This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. It is being made available in an effort to advance the understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, and so on. It is believed that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
Copyright © Zionism Unveiled Productions. All Rights Reserved.
Deut. 28:14-68 Curses Placed On The Hebrews
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line864
|
__label__cc
| 0.525951
| 0.474049
|
Top 10 Best Three Wheeler Manufacturer In India
Indian Three Wheeler market is a growing sector of automobile industry in India and the country is the largest producer and exported of three wheeler vehicles, Here is the list of top 10 most popular three wheeler vehicles brands in India.
India is the largest producer of three wheeler in the world and largest among the auto rickshaw used in cities and towns for short distances.
Bajaj Auto
Bajaj Auto is the world’s largest auto rickshaw manufacturer company and part of the Bajaj Group. The company sells motorcycles, scooters and auto rickshaws and also the largest three wheeler manufacturer in India.
Piaggio Ape is a three wheeled light commercial and passenger vehicle produced by Piaggio with variety of different body styles in India.
Mahindra Alfa Auto Rickshaw by Mahindra & Mahindra is a passenger vehicle with a seating capacity of 3 plus 1. The Passenger and commercial vehicle are known as Badshah of 3 wheelers in India with exceptional standards of style and safety.
Atul Auto
Atul Auto is one of the leading three wheeler manufacturing company in India, The vehicles of Atul Auto are amongst the most reliable and low cost three wheelers in India. Atul Auto has list of product range such as Atul Gemini Auto,Atul Gem Auto,Atul Gem Cargo, Atul Gem delivery van, Atul elite passenger and Atul shakti pickup.
Scooters India
Scooters India is located in Uttar Pradesh and engaged in manufacturing and marketing of 3 wheelers in India. The company has its own 3 wheelers brands with various & versatile types of three wheelers named as Vikram tempo and Vikram load carrier.
TVS Auto
TVS Motor is the third largest motorcycle company in India but also competes in the 3 Wheeler segment with its TVS King auto.
Lohia Auto
Lohia Auto Industries is an Indian company that manufacturing electric 2 –wheelers and diesel 3-wheelers. Humsafar passenger auto rickshaw are design for low operating cost and highest level of comfort to the passengers.
JS Auto
JS Auto is a manufacturer and exporter of superior quality of three wheeler in India. The 3 Wheeler loader and passenger vehicles of JSA are most dependable with extremely reliable vehicles.
Force Minidor
Minidor Three Wheeler or Minidor Autorickshaw by Force automotive company is one of the most popular types of three wheeler vehicle in India and the company also manufactures a range of vehicles including cross country vehicles, Agricultural Tractors and small commercial vehicles.
Tempo Hanseat
Tempo company was popular for producing vans like the Matador and the Tempo Hanseat. Hanseat tempo was extremely popular in rural India and still used as goods carrying and passenger vehicles, extremely common on the streets of Indian cities like Dewas, Bhopal and other cities.
– Jugaad Vehicles
The Jugaad is locally known as Chakda and one of the best creative concepts of India, mostly seen in small villages of Gujarat and Rajasthan. The Chakda is not a motorbike or a rickshaw but yes indeed a three wheeler Vehicle used for commercial and passenger.
15 Types of Alcoholic Beverages Available in India
Top 6 Brands of Petrol Pumps in India
Top 12 Popular Brands of Engine Oil in India
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line866
|
__label__cc
| 0.737465
| 0.262535
|
Capture by Sandra Carmel
Erasing the past is the only way to survive the future…
It’s beyond love at first sight the day geneticist Richard Hall spots secretary Eva Fjelstad. They have so much in common—a love of rare steak, red wine and music, and they work for the renowned, yet enigmatic research corporation Sub Rosa.
The beauty of being a bright young geneticist is that Richard has access to cutting-edge technology, including a newly developed soulmate serum. A sip of the serum and a brush of hands confirm Richard and Eva are destined to be together.
But there’s a problem.
Sub Rosa in the swinging sixties isn’t as peace-loving as it seems, and when Richard uncovers corruption at the very core of the company—a secret that goes to the heart of his parents’ disappearance—he’s faced with a decision no man wants to make.
For generations, the Jade and Violet vampire clans have roamed the world, posing little threat to the blissfully ignorant human population. However, it’s Richard who unearths Sub Rosa’s genocidal scheme to eradicate the vampire species from existence.
Should Richard stay true to his moral compass and risk his relationship with Eva to expose the agency’s deep-seated cruelty and deception? Or does he toe the company line, let vampires vanish from the world and keep his soulmate safe, secure and by his side forever?
Sandra Carmel is an Australian-based author of engaging, thought-provoking romance novels, novellas, short stories and poetry, who writes for the pleasure of stimulating herself and others with words. An obsession with classic romance novels, particularly Jane Eyre, combined with marrying her own Mr Rochester were key motivators in commencing her romance writing journey. So far, she has taken the scenic route from contemporary to paranormal to erotic, creating provocative stories that delve beneath the surface of desire. She reads and writes a lot, frequently disrupted by her ever-attentive, cheeky cats, and sinfully amorous husband.
Author contact details
Facebook Page – @SandraCarmelAuthor
Instagram: sandracarmel_author
Email: SandraCarmelAuthor@outlook.com
Buy link!
http://www.totallybound.com/capture
Posted by Wendi Zwaduk and Megan Slayer at 4:10 PM 0 thoughts from the masses
Labels: Guest, Guest Author, Guest Blog, Guest Post, Guesting, Totally Bound, Wendi Zwaduk
Future, Broken by Jacey Holbrand & Elizabeth Monvey
Thank you for having us on your blog today! We’re so excited to share the release of the first book in our Project Mars series, Future, Broken. For a quick idea about the series, check out this trailer
A little more about the book
Book 1 - Future, Broken - Available July 10, 2019 - a Project Mars story - futuristic, sci-fi, romance series by best-selling authors Jacey Holbrand & Elizabeth Monvey
Genre: futuristic, sci-fi, Alternative (MM) MPREG Romance | Heat Level: 3 | Word Count: 66,125 | ISBN: 978-1-77339-998-0 | Editor: Karyn White | Cover Artist: Jay Aheer
In the future, be careful who you trust.
Nathaniel Stockton and Grover Silas Ranger are faced with the ultimate test to their relationship when the Project Mars Lottery comes to town. Nate wins a chance to have his dreams come true: live and work on the red planet with his love. His husband Ranger doesn't see the point of going from one bad place to another. But an evil organization called Sector has a completely different idea for the couple.
Kidnapped, experimented on, impregnated, and sent to Mars, Nate realizes too late he trusted the wrong people.
Ranger fights to find a way to Nate. Will he make it to his love before their dreams and lives are irrevocably broken by distance, a pregnancy, and the corrupt agency?
The phone rang, dragging Nate from his thoughts.
“I’m gonna put it on screen,” Ranger called out from the kitchen.
The wall flashed to life, and a dark-haired man with dark eyes, appeared. The stranger reminded Nate of the doctor at the lottery exams—lab coat, stethoscope, well-groomed—but this man was older and seemed to have an edge to him.
“Hey,” Nate greeted. “What can I do for you?”
“Am I speaking with Nathaniel Curtis Stockton?”
“Yeah.” Nate took a swig of his drink.
“Wonderful.” The man smiled but the expression didn’t reach his eyes. “I am Doctor Rafael Trask. I am one of the lead scientists in a series of special clinical studies being performed. I understand you failed the medical section of the lottery exams?”
“Yeah.” The guy’s voice sounded cool … exact. Combined with the discord of his face, Nate sensed an air of danger surrounding the man. Creeped out, Nate was hesitant to say too much.
“Well, first off, let me say, we are not associated with the lottery. But should you participate in our studies you may have another chance at traveling to and settling on Mars. We also offer outstanding compensation. Despite whether you are or are not picked for travel, you will pretty much be set for life.”
Ranger strolled into the room and sat beside Nate, twirling the comm-wand between his fingers. “What are these studies?”
The man’s eyes narrowed. “Who are you?”
“His husband,” Ranger answered. “Whatever he’s to be involved in, wherever he’s going, I’ll be at his side. What’s all this about?”
Doctor Trask leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers together. He looked down his nose at the camera on his comm device, appearing to contemplate what Ranger had said and giving Ranger a once-over. The doctor reminded Nate of a vulture.
“Okay,” Trask said. “Like I was about to mention to Mister Stockton, we are trying to find cures for people who did not pass the medical aspects of the lottery exams due to their diseases. We are also looking into the sterility epidemic and chromosomal changes in the female population.”
“Could you hold a moment?” Nate asked, grabbing the wand from Ranger and muting the call. He pointed the wand at the screen. “Do you think this is legit?”
“Yeah. It could be.”
“It might be the answer to our Mars problem.” Nate smiled, feeling a glimmer of warm hope spring up within him again.
“Perhaps. Should we see what’s what with it?”
Nate unmuted the call. “What if we say we’re interested?”
The doctor lifted a corner of his mouth. “I will digitize a package of information to you, and then we will be in touch with further instructions.”
“Well,” Ranger said, “count us interested.”
“Wonderful,” the doctor drawled.
Evernight Publishing ## Amazon: US ## Amazon: UK ## Barnes & Noble ## Kobo ## Smashwords
JACEY HOLBRAND believes life and love comes in all forms and should be celebrated. She’s committed to her muse and writing so she can share her stories with readers. Hot days. Sexy nights. Come play in her world. Jacey loves to hear from readers!
STALK JACEY HOLBRAND
Blog/Website ## Amazon Author Page ## Twitter ## YouTube
ELIZABETH MONVEY is the pseudonym for a single mother from Los Angeles. She writes manlove stories, where the hero meets the man of his dreams because happily ever after is one of her favorite things.
STALK ELIZABETH MONVEY
Amazon Author Page ## Evernight Author Page ## Facebook
Posted by Wendi Zwaduk and Megan Slayer at 12:30 AM 1 thoughts from the masses
Labels: Evernight Publishing, Guest, Guest Author, Guest Blog, Guest Post, Guesting, Jacey Holbrand, Wendi Zwaduk
Book Blast ~ Good Trouble by L Simpson
This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. L. Simpson will be awarding an e-copy of Beyond Today + $10 Boroughs Bucks to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
WRONG BEFORE IT'S RIGHT
Annie Clarke knew fairy tales were only in books, and love was a disaster. Nothing could convince her to go down that road again. But local football hero, Erik Strathmore, wore her down. Too cocky by half, and too damn good-looking for his own good, when he suggested they give friends with benefits a try, she relented. At first, it worked. Erik was a great friend, and a fantastic lover. But then their hearts entered the field of play, and Erik betrayed her. Annie cursed herself for allowing it to happen again, she'd loved and lost for the last time. After realizing his mistake, Erik couldn't have agreed more. Annie would never love anyone else again. She was his, and he intended to keep her by his side forever.
Read an Excerpt:
“That’s enough for today, you can put your shoes on.” Her words confirmed that the door was firmly shut. I set about doing as I was told, trying to find a way to get that warm look back in her eyes. I felt like today was the day to push it. She had let down her defences, if only for a moment, and I’d had enough waiting.
“So,” I said, moving in to stand close enough I could smell her. Shit. That sexy aroma would stay with me all day.
“The answer is no, again,” she muttered, not looking up from her device.
“You don’t know what I was going to ask.”
“Yes I do. You are going to ask me out for a drink or dinner. Again. And I am going to blow you off. Again.”
“And what if I have a different sort of proposal?”
“Will it end up with you asking me out?” she asked on a sigh but looked up at me with her big eyes partially hidden by her dark hair dancing across her brow and falling at her cheek. This look, the dancing spitfire eyes, a smirk on her mouth, head tilted to the side exposing her neck and shoulder as she waited to pounce on my next words, was one of my favourites. It’s what I conjured when I took care of myself lying in bed, in the shower… Enough.
“Well, that would be up to you. If you want to go out after, then sure, but I don’t do relationships,” I told her, unable to hide my grin as her brows furrowed.
“After what?” she asked, trying to look bored and failing. I could see the heat in her cheeks as she figured it out. I stepped closer, forcing her back, and she ended up against the shelves.
As a girl growing up in Australia, Laura was lost in the world of Anne of Green Gables and Little Women. During high school, volleyball dominated her life. There had to be something positive about being 6’1” with red hair. Representing Australia from a young age she eventually took a scholarship at the University of Iowa. Living in America and being a full time athlete in a college town was an eye-opening experience and lots of fun (from what she can remember). #gohawkeyes
Returning from the States, her career took a different turn as she started working at the Red Cross and completed her Masters of Law in Human Rights. As one of the few non-lawyers in the class, her essays were far more floral than the rest, something that caused the discerning professors to shake their heads. Through working and studying, she realised there are other ways to win hearts and minds.
While she’s spent the last 14 years as an advocate against poverty and homelessness, the desire to change the world through storytelling has only got stronger. She now lives in the Alpine Valleys of North East Victoria, Australia with her husband, daughter, son, two dogs and seven chooks. When she’s not doing the whole mum thing, working at a homelessness agency, renovating her farmhouse, or trying to do laundry bleary-eyed at midnight, she is writing.
Say G’day to Laura:
website: http://www.lsimpsonauthor.com
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/l.simpson.romance
twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ladyporepunkah
instagram: http://www.instagram.com/lsimpsonauthor
linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-simpson-47278971
Buy Link:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Good-Trouble-Alpine-Valleys-Book-ebook/dp/B07Q373CLR/ref=sr_1_1
Posted by Wendi Zwaduk and Megan Slayer at 1:30 AM 1 thoughts from the masses
This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The authors will be awarding a 16X20 Signed Matted Print "Flora Blanca" by author, Florida artist Sharon Goldman, to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
Landscape artist Alexandra Newborn dreams of a one-woman show at the Diamond Gallery. But the gallery owner dismisses her paintings as "old, tired, and dull. Lacking excitement." Those words also describe Alex's unhappy marriage.
Alex's shocking reunion with her college art professor, Dominick "Nick" Anselmo—once a world-celebrated Italian artist, now a homeless lawn man—reignites their passion and fuels a creative spark for both, helping Nick recover from his wife's death.
With Nick's provocative sketches, art imitates life, but Alex doesn't realize they reveal a dangerous liaison between her husband and the gallery owner. Without Nick's knowledge, Alex arranges an art opening that includes his drawings.
When the torrid affair between Alex's husband and his mistress is exposed, the seeds are sown for murder, mystery, and romance.
The man grabbed her hand.
“Let go!” Alex shrieked.
“Alexandra, wait.”
Startled, Alex twisted painfully in the man’s solid grip as she gave him a closer look.
Alex focused on his face, which was vaguely familiar, and tried hard to bury the image of the rest of the man’s body, which, although she’d only been exposed to a flash of flesh, was oddly disturbing. And when she did, she got another shock.
“P-Professore Anselmo?”
The man released her hand and came out from behind the shelter of the bushes, smiled shyly, and nodded. Although she hadn’t recognized his accent earlier, there was no mistaking his identity. But the last time she’d seen him, his smile had been almost smug and his mouth had been busy doing more than smiling. She’d buried the recollection of their last encounter so deep even she wasn’t clear about the details of just how far they’d gone and how far she had been prepared to go.
It was hard to reconcile the man of her dreams with this nasty-looking person standing in front of her. Professore Dominick Anselmo had been her college art teacher, her inspiration, her secret crush, until he’d been exposed for improper behavior with his graduate assistant and expelled from the university. The scandal had rocked the Art and Architecture Department and blasted a rift in Alex’s personal world.
“Professore?” she repeated, her jittery voice rising a level. “What are you doing here?”
About the Author: Marilyn Baron and Sharon Goldman are sisters. Groundwork for Murder won first place in the Suspense Romance category of the Ignite the Flame Contest, sponsored by the Central Ohio Fiction Writers Chapter of RWA.
Marilyn Baron
Marilyn Baron writes in a variety of genres, from women’s fiction to historical romantic thrillers and romantic suspense to paranormal/fantasy. She and her sister even wrote a musical called Memory Lane.
She’s received writing awards in Single Title, Suspense Romance, Novel with Strong Romantic Elements, and Paranormal/Fantasy Romance. She was also The Finalist in the 2017 Georgia Author of the Year Awards (GAYA) in the Romance Category for her novel Stumble Stones, and The Finalist for the 2018 GAYA Awards in the Romance category for her novel The Alibi. Her novel The Siege was nominated for the 2019 GAYA Awards in the Romance Category.
Groundwork for Murder is her 24th work of fiction. A public relations consultant in Atlanta, she is chair of the Roswell Reads Steering Committee.
A native of Miami, Florida, Marilyn graduated from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, with a B.S. in Journalism—a major in Public Relations and a minor in English (Creative Writing). She met her husband at UF and both of her daughters graduated from UF. Marilyn now lives in Roswell, Georgia, with her husband.
Find out more about Marilyn on her website: http://www.marilynbaron.com/
Visit her on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Marilyn-Baron/286807714666748
Follow her on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/MarilynBaron
Sharon Goldman
Sharon Goldman is an award-winning artist whose paintings are in private collections and who has exhibited in numerous galleries throughout northeast Florida, including the Haskell Gallery in the Jacksonville International Airport.
As a native Floridian, Sharon strives to create work that captures the spirit of Florida. Her colorful palette, unique cropping, and background as a designer and art director help her envision her novel compositions, which she describes as painterly realism.
Sharon has taught art school in her home studio to more than 200 students in her community. Sharon has also written and illustrated a children’s book.
Sharon is on the Dean’s Leadership Council at the University of North Florida’s Thomas G. Carpenter Library, where she gives monthly tours of one of the largest permanent art collections of regional artists in the state.
A graduate of the University of Florida in Fine Arts, Sharon had a long career in the advertising business. After having three children (now college graduates), she has more time to bring her ideas to light.
Website: http://www.sharongoldmanart.com
https://www.amazon.com/Groundwork-Murder-Marilyn-Baron-ebook/dp/B07SS5LMLN/ref=sr_1_1
Cover Reveal ~ The Fixer Upper by Maggie Mae Gallagher
Welcome to the cover reveal of Maggie Mae Gallagher's latest book The Fixer Upper which will be released September 6. Enter the Rafflecopter at the end of the post for a chance to win a $15 Amazon/BN GC.
Abby Callier is more in love with Shakespearean heroes than any real man, and she’s beginning to wonder if there is life for her outside the pages of a book. It doesn’t help that her esteemed parents tend to view her as they would one of their science experiments gone wrong. On the eve of finishing her dissertation, she escapes her staid existence to live in the house she inherited from her Great Aunt Evie in the small town of Echo Springs, Colorado. Because, let’s face it, when a woman starts comparing her life to horror films, it might be time for a break.
Sheriff Nate Barnes believes in law and order and carefully building the life you want. In his spare time, he has been remodeling his house in the hope that one day it will be filled with the family he makes. But Nate doesn’t like drama or complications and tends to avoid them at all costs. And yet, when Miss Abigail Callier, his newest neighbor, beans him with a nine iron, he can’t help but wonder if she might just be the complication he’s been searching for all along. It doesn’t hurt that he discovers a journal hidden away by the previous tenant and decides to use Old Man Turner’s advice to romance Abby into his life.
Abby never expected her next-door neighbor, the newly dubbed Sheriff Stud Muffin, to be just the distraction her world needed. The problem is she doesn’t know whether she should make Echo Springs her home, or if this town is just a stopover point in her life’s trajectory. And she doesn’t want to tell Nate that she might not be sticking around—even though she should because it’s the right thing to do, the honest thing—because then all the scintillatingly hot kisses with the Sheriff will come to an abrupt halt. Did she mention that he’s a really great kisser?
Enjoy an Excerpt
The Carruthers’ property was on a half-acre of land. The two-story home had fallen into disrepair. The pale blue paint was cracked and peeling in places. One of the black shutters had slats broken out of the middle. Jed was a mechanic at one of the local garages, who liked his whiskey more than he did working. And it showed. His wife, Clare, had taken herself and the kids to her parents’ house, which was only three miles away.
Nate knocked on the door. “Jed, this is Sheriff Barnes. I need you to open the door and come out with your hands in the air.”
“Fuck off,” came a slurred shout from inside.
Nate sighed. From the sounds of it, the man was already well on his way to being shitfaced. “Jed, don’t make this more difficult than it needs to be. I have a warrant for your arrest. If you come with me now, peacefully, it will help your case.”
Deputy O’Leary stood off to the side of the front door of the ramshackle home with its screen door torn in spots. When there was no response from Jed, Nate nodded at O’Leary, who made his way around to the back to ensure the idiot didn’t try to go out the back door and escape.
“Jed, I’m going to give you to the count of five and then I’m coming in.”
There was a shout from O’Leary around back. Nate took off and sprinted to the edge of the porch, just in time to watch Jed, in a pair of white boxers and nothing else, race around the corner and head toward the street.
“Halt, Jed.”
Nate charged after him on foot. This was why he ran six miles a day—so he could catch morons like Jed who thought they could outrun the police. Nate snagged him by the neck and wrestled him down to the ground. He took an elbow to the chin and swore before he had Jed pinned on the ground with his hands behind his back. Not quick enough, he thought as he slid the cuffs on Jed’s wrists.
“For that stunt, I will be adding resisting arrest and assault on a police officer, Jed.”
“Piss off, pig!” Jed yelled, uncowed by the fact that he was handcuffed. From the smell of him, he had started early on the Jack Daniels.
Nate shook his head and began reading Jed his Miranda rights. His chin throbbed like a son of a bitch and it wasn’t yet noon. So much for having a slow and easy day.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Maggie grew up listening to Cardinals baseball and reading anything she could get her hands on. She remembers her mother saying if only she would read the right type of books instead binging her way through the romance aisles at the bookstore, she’d have been a doctor. While Maggie never did get that doctorate, she graduated cum laude from the University of Missouri-St. Louis with an M.A. in History.
Maggie is a bestselling and award-winning author published in multiple fiction genres. She also writes erotic romance under the name Anya Summers. A total geek at her core, when she is not writing, she adores attending the latest comic con or spending time with her family. She currently lives in the Midwest with her two furry felines.
Visit her website here: http://www.maggiemaegallagher.com
Visit her on social media here:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MagMaeGallagher/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/magmaegallagher
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7846308.Maggie_Mae_Gallagher
Twitter: https://twitter.com/magmaegallagher
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/maggiegallagher
BookBub Author Page: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/maggie-mae-gallagher
Don’t miss these exciting titles by Maggie Mae Gallagher!
The Mystic Series
REMEMBER ME: https://amzn.to/2GuwEpY
CASKET GIRL: https://amzn.to/2Dmw9MD
The Cantati Chronicles
RUPTURED: https://amzn.to/2GueJ2L
ANOINTED: https://amzn.to/2Gu0Xgm
ASCENDED: https://amzn.to/2VRGSpz
And if you like your romance with a bit of spice and kink be sure to check out Maggie Mae Gallagher writing as Anya Summers on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/Anya-Summers/e/B01EGTVRKC/
Labels: Goddess Fish, Guest, Guest Author, Guest Blog, Guest Post, Guesting, Wendi Zwaduk
The Catnapped Lover ~ A Short Contemporary Romance by Rue Allyn
A woman, a man, and a cat. What could possibly go wrong?
What does a bet between best friends have to do with a kidnapped cat and a tumbled-down animal shelter? Nothing, unless you are Adam Talcott and you want to prove to your best-buddy that you can survive without access to your wealth and family connections. Adam would have succeeded too, if it hadn’t been for Dierdre Clancy and that blasted cat.
Get your copy here: https://books2read.com/u/ba2KBx
Hero Bio: Adam Talcott was born rich. He went into business with his best friend from college and made even more millions. His methods may be unorthodox, but he nearly always succeeds. Now he’s been challenged to live for two months without any of the privileges and resources he’s known all his life. Adam is confident that he can conquer this challenge as he has all others. But he didn’t count on Dierdre Clancy and that danged cat.
Heroine Bio: Dierdre Clancy grew up in a family of givers. Her parents were missionaries and often too busy saving other, less privileged people to realize how lonely and abandoned Dierdre felt. When she reached her teen years, she was shipped back to the USA to live with her Aunt Shea on Shea’s rundown farm and animal shelter. Finally she was in a stable environment with an adult she could count on. Dierdre went on to gain a degree in social work and took up the Clancy family tradition of helping others. Most of the time helping others was easy. But Adam Talcott broke that mold and every other box she tried to put him into. How could one man be so difficult to manage?
Balancing an armload of mail, an overloaded briefcase, and a gym bag with two yogurt cups teetering on top, Dierdre Clancy rushed to her cubicle. For the fourth time this week, and the umpteenth time this month, she was late. Once again, a power outage in the decrepit apartment building where she lived had caused her alarm clock to fail.
Please, Lord, don’t let my chauvinist pig of a boss realize I’ve been missing.
The yogurt cups threatened to topple off the gym bag. Dierdre wasn’t about to let her lunch decorate the linoleum. The mail showered to the floor. The briefcase hit her foot. With her free hand, she plastered the cups to her side. The gym bag slid down her arm. The webbed strap twisted, tourniquet style, around her wrist.
She managed a couple of sideways hops that brought her to the edge of her desk. The gym bag swung wildly. Leaning against the arm weighed down by the bag’s stranglehold, she managed to dump the yogurt cups onto the desk without mishap. She pulled herself upright and reached for the strap at her wrist.
Somehow, during all the hopping, the bag had swung around her legs and gotten wedged in the narrow space between her desk and file cabinet. The same strap that cut off circulation to her hand pressed into the backs of her knees, pinning her neatly to the desk. Only an act of extreme dexterity could save her from her own folly. Imbecile, why didn’t you make two trips?
Because I didn’t want to risk having the boss see me coming in late.
"Clancy! You’re late.”
Dierdre’s heart hit the ceiling. She knew the shout—a cross between an operatic tenor and a pig at slaughter. Still, she hadn’t been prepared to hear her boss’s screeching quite so soon.
Author bio-- Hi, I’m Rue Allyn, I write heart melting romance novels. Books about characters and’s heart. The type of book I like to read. Hope you will too.
adventures in which love triumphs at the darkest moment. The kind of hopeful, steal-your-breath romance that melts a reader
Freebie~~Get a FREE download of Rue Allyn’s May 2019 release Forever Hold My Heart, a Scottish historical novella. Just sign up for her newsletter here https://www.rueallyn.com/ravonsubscribe/.
Rue Allyn’s Social Media
Rue's Website: https://RueAllyn.com
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/rue-allyn
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RueAllynFriends
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/default/e/B00AUBF3NI/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5031290.Rue_Allyn
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/RueAllyn/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RueAllyn
Labels: Guest, Guest Author, Guest Blog, Guest Post, Guesting, Rue Allyn, Wendi Zwaduk
This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will be giving away a $10 Amazon/BN GC via Rafflecopter. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
Leon, a fallen angel cursed to exist as a vampire, has waited for his mate for centuries when Shana shows up on his dance floor wreaking havoc with the other immortals in his club. Embittered by the deaths of her angelic parents, Shana denies Leon. She wants nothing to do with vampires, and walks away only to put both of their lives in danger. Compassion brings Shana back to Leon's side only to find him hovering close to death. Love grows until they are both encompassed by The Burn. Together they battle dark spirits and Lucifer himself, all the while falling deeper in love.
His fingers slid over her hips and pulled her flush against his own body. The music thumped in his ears blocking out everything else but her. In sync they found each other and moved together. Seduction by an angel felt perfect and right. His hand slid around the nape of her neck. Her hair was damp underneath with sweet sweat. She smelled delicious. One of her legs slid in between his as she tried to get closer. The hand he placed on her hip slid around to the exposed skin of her lower back. His fingers rubbed against the soft butter of her skin. Her hands slid up the back of his thighs, over his ass, and up his back to cup his shoulders. Her breasts pressed into his chest. Her nipples strained against her blouse. He closed his eyes on a tortuous groan.
The music slowed into a sultry, Latin rhythm. A soprano voice filled the club with a song about desire and the deep love shared between two souls. With their bodies harmonized with one another, they danced. Time seemed to pause for one brief moment. Leon held her tight against his chest and leaned over to accommodate her smaller frame. His hips cradled hers. She melted into his body as he led her in seductive control. An electrical current began to spark everywhere they touched. His body became a living conduit for her energy as it thrust against his own.
Kristal Dawn Harris is an American author, born in Middletown, Ohio, on August 16, 1970. She currently resides in Ohio with her husband. Kristal has been married for 27 years and has two children. She graduated from Carlisle High School in 1988, then furthered her education at Miami University. She has a business degree in Accounting Technology. Kristal spent twenty years working as an Office Coordinator in the hospital until she released her debut novel, “The Rings of Faolan-Emeralds,” through The Wild Rose Press.
In 1999, Kristal suffered a debilitating disease called “Guillain-Barre Syndrome.” This rare disease damaged the nerves in her body requiring the use of drop-foot braces in order to walk. Kristal considers herself a survivor and encourages anyone with a disability to follow their dreams.
Kristal has one more book contracted with The Wild Rose Press which will release in 2019. She is considered a hybrid author since she published “Hand-Carved Wolf” on her own. Kristal is an avid reader who enjoys romance from all genres, but paranormal is her favorite.
CURRENT BOOKS BY KRISTAL DAWN HARRIS
The Rings of Faolan-Emeralds
Hand-Carved Wolf
The Rings of Faolan-Rubies
The Red Heart
Red Snowflakes
Website: http://www.kristalharris.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Kristal081670
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kristalharrisauthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristaldawnharris/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18576974.Kristal_Dawn_Harris
All Author: https://allauthor.com/author/kristaldawnharris/
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Kristal-Dawn-Harris/e/B07HP1YKMM/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PNK8CPS/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0
Labels: Goddess Fish, Guest, Guest Author, Guest Blog, Guest Post, Guesting, Wendi, Wendi Zwaduk
Guest Blog ~ The Tattoo Artist’s Mate ~ Book one, Bare Alley Ink
Hi there and thank you for welcoming to your blog, on this bittersweet occasion. (this is Raven)
As most people know, my bestie, the sister I’d never had, the other half of me, the lovely Doris O’Connor passed away in January from Cancer of an unknown primary.
To say this knocked me for six is an understatement. We knew it wasn’t going to be a good outcome, but it happened so fast. Those of you who followed her on Facebook and twitter will know how it went.
Ironically, she rang me to tell me, just as I was…at a large supermarket collecting for cancer research!
When she went into hospital she was in pain and bored. Nagging me over my Regencies (finish it already, write the sex, just do it) and wondering how to pass the time.
I remember a germ of an idea we’d had a couple of years ago about a tattoo artist who was a shifter. Wrote the first bit and sent it to her with a note…over to you…
I got a giggle gif and a thumbs up. Then Doris’ words. It was, I was told up to me to amalgamate everything.
So the Skype messages went back and forth, and we plotted the story, wrote it both in sequence and odd scenes we knew had to go in somewhere.
Until the time she was in too much pain to write any more. But she did make me promise to finish the book. Add as much as was needed, but finish it.
This is the result of our collaboration.
I have two hopes…okay three.
One, you enjoy it.
Two you can’t see the seams.
Three we sell lots and lots and lots and give Doris a fabulous best seller send off.
When Isla Campbell leaves her so-called Dom, she is determined never to sub again. All she wants is her tattoo removed and to live a quiet life with no dominant, or domineering men in it.
Until she meets Gaspar MacDonald, tattoo artist and unbeknown to her, a bear shifter.
Isla calls to Gaspar in the most basic of ways, he knows she is his mate.
Now all he has to do is persuade Isla of that fact. Oh and explain he’s a Dom, and a shifter, and that subbing for your Dom is not what she thought it was, but much better.
Will Isla trust him enough to discover if they have what would be the perfect match?
Fancy a wee tease?
~~ . I didn’t get a chance to answer. I was too busy trying not to come as he kissed and then sucked my nipples, and saints above, began to play with my clit. Oh Lordy, so bloody good. I think I moaned, but to be honest, I was drowning in the sensation so I had no idea.
Somehow, I managed to find his cock and stroke it. It was Noah’s turn to moan now.
“Fuck it, I want to be in you. Need to be in you, and I’ve no bloody condoms.” He moved away a bit and I took advantage of the fact to get onto my knees, take his cock into my mouth, and lave it.
Not a boy scout then.
“On the pill,” I mumbled around a mouthful of hot, hard, but soft as silk, male flesh. “Clean, and fuck it, fill me.” I took one long hard pull on his dick and let go with a plop. Better than an ice lolly any day.
Noah didn’t hesitate, thank goodness, and had me on my back and his cock poised at the entrance to my channel faster than I could say climax.
“Got to be now, love.”
Just as well.
He pushed. I clenched my inner muscles—thank goodness for Kegel exercises—and held him tight. Noah swore and laughed. I grinned and we set up that age-old motion of in, out, tighten, release until I felt him swell even more inside me.
My nipples hurt in the best possible way.
“Sheesh, now got to be, oh Lord, help please…” I was almost incoherent, sobbing, throbbing, and any other ing you could mention. It was pleasure, it was pain, it was…
“Now!” Noah roared, and his hot, sticky release filled me.
“Yes.” I let myself fly and saw stars as my climax hit me with all the subtlety of a baseball hit by a champion.
Yeah, I was a screamer. Did I care? Not one bit. I moaned, groaned, and wriggled as well. Loved it all.~~
You can get hold of Gaspar from
Amazon. com https://amzn.to/2FjgY86
Amazon Uk https://amzn.to/2KWi5Ou
Smashwords https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/944640
And Kobo
If you do decide to read this, the first story in Bare Alley ink, and like it, love it or tolerate it, we’d love a review. No pressure, just lots of love,
Raven xx
Labels: Doris OConnor, Evernight, Evernight Publishing, Guest, Guest Author, Guest Blog, Guest Post, Guesting, Raven McAllan, Wendi Zwaduk
This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Jessica James will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
Thrust together by chance. Bound together by destiny. A disillusioned socialite and a special operations veteran find a way to save a small town while healing themselves. A haunting read about the journey to restore an abandoned 200-year-old mansion and the secrets it reveals about a long-lost love.
Turning in a circle, Katie studied the room again. Faded wallpaper curled and peeled above the dusty wainscoting, but the walls themselves appeared sturdy. On the far side of the entryway, and dominating the wall, stood a mammoth fireplace with an ornately carved hearth. Her attention was immediately drawn to a painting of a woman in nineteenth century dress that hung prominently over the mantel.
The sheriff turned to the dusty, sun-bleached portrait in the heavy carved guilt frame. “One of the previous owners, they say.” He shrugged. “The family history kind of got lost with the house. Everyone around here calls her the Widow of Lacewood.”
Katie stood spellbound. The woman was clothed completely in black, but the magnificence of the gown gave the impression of sophistication and class. Her chin was slightly elevated as if to project strength, yet there was more than a hint of sorrow and pain in her eyes.
“She looks so sad.” Katie spoke without removing her gaze. “And so young. How could she be a widow?”
The sheriff had already started to walk away, but he turned back and glanced at the painting. “Not sure, but they say she never remarried.”
Katie’s heart suddenly struggled to beat. The anguish in the woman’s eyes kept her riveted. She could see the pain. Feel a heart ripped apart. Something was missing that could never be replaced. Katie had felt such loss before. In a way that’s why she was here.
“You coming?”
Katie heard the sheriff calling from the next room, and turned to follow. With one quick glance back, she noticed particles of dust now swirled and danced in a shaft of light, almost like a living thing. Her breath caught in her throat as the dust seemed to materialize into the form of a woman, her eyes dull with the same tortured despair and disbelief as the one in the portrait.
Katie jerked her head around for a closer look and blinked. The woman was gone.
Jessica James believes in honor, duty, and true love—and that’s what she writes about in her award-winning novels that span the ages from the Revolutionary War to modern day.
She is a two-time winner of the John Esten Cooke Award for Southern Fiction, and has won more than a dozen other literary awards, including a Readers' Favorite International Book Award and a Gold Medal from the Military Writers Society of America. Her novels have been used in schools and are available in hundreds of libraries including Harvard and the U.S. Naval Academy.
James is a member of the Romance Writers of America, the Historical Novel Society, and the Independent Book Publishers Association.
Website: https://www.jessicajamesbooks.com
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B001IYTXOG
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jessica-james
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/southernromance/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/586216.Jessica_James
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RomanticHistoricalFiction
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorjessicajames/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jessicajames
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Lacewood-Novel-Place-Jessica-James-ebook/dp/B07PW8BQJ4
BN: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lacewood-jessica-james/1129617849
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHEHQjD5Vac
Intrigue Me by Lacee Hightower #mf #bdsm #contemporary #romance #HEA
Intrigue Me (Tangled Pleasures)
An Erotic Romance Novel by Lacee Hightower
Publisher: Evernight Publishing
Keywords: MF, BDSM, Contemporary, Romance, HEA
Warning: This title contains explicit sex scenes, BDSM, and anal sex
What’s a person to do when they discover everything they’ve believed is nothing but lies?
I grew up wealthy, a spoiled rich kid some would say, blessed with a natural athletic physique and erotic good looks that could get me into the panties of just about any girl I set my mind to.
I wanted … what I wanted.
And that meant one thing: the beautiful brunette from study hall—but she left me high and dry.
Today, I have a heart made of stone. I’m angry, a professed lifelong bachelor, and a sexual sadist.
My soul is a cold river.
Eight years later, she’s back in my life and holding secrets that are ruthless, unforgivable.
I want to punish her, make her cry, watch her suffer. I want to hate her for what she’s done.
But I want my hands on her.
Mine. All mine.
I simply want … Ava Montgomery.
I ached for him with such a depth that it was a visceral kind of pain. I wanted his hands on me, touching me everywhere, taking me to that place I’d fantasized about for years.
“It’s your decision, doll.”
“Are you going to tear up my butt? Leave bloody marks on my back? Ruin my nipples? Are you…” My voice faded into silence as I stared at his focused expression that was so sure, so certain, his eyes that sent shimmers down my spine, his body that made me cave with pleasure every time it came near me. Heat flowed through my veins. “Yes. God, yes. I want to know everything. I want you to…”
Before I finished the words that were caught in my throat, his lips were on mine, crushing his mouth against me with a scorching kiss that felt like he was ravenous. His hands twisted fiercely through my hair, my body arching into him as he licked into me, purging deep, kissing me for long minutes like he wanted me more than any one thing in his existence.
I wanted this so badly that it hurt.
His lips fell to the sweet spot just underneath my ear. “You wouldn’t happen to still have that blindfold by any chance?”
Another whimper rose up my throat as I collapsed into his chest, turning to soft liquid and ceding in submission.
Of course, I still had the blindfold. I’d stared at it a dozen times. Fantasized about what it would feel like being bound, in the dark, his hands on me, oblivious to his next move, and if all my daydreams were a reality … or a fool’s paradise.
“Yes,” I breathed, captivated.
“Grab it, kitten. And follow me.”
Blistering heat flooded my core as he trailed kisses across my neck.
“And, Ava,” he added in a hard tone, “before the night ends, my marks will be all over you.”
Lacee Hightower is an American writer and romance novelist, referring to her style as contemporary romance with a nice big pinch of kink. Living in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, she describes herself as a foodie that can’t cook, a large lover of fashion and shoes, and an enormous hopeless romantic. Since she was old enough to know what the word meant, she loved the whole concept of romance and happy endings. Even though she has always enjoyed writing, life got in the way and she never really thought of pursuing it seriously until she decided to write her first book after both her children were grown in 2017. Now with a nice glass of wine in hand, or not, she is learning to love bringing the characters in her head to life on paper for those who enjoy peeking into another world.
Evernight: https://www.evernightpublishing.com/intrigue-me-by-lacee-hightower/
Amazon: https://amazon.com/dp/B07SSYJTQK
Books2read(Universal link): https://books2read.com/u/bQ6qAd
Facebook: Facebook
Instagram: Instagram
Website: laceehightower.com
BookBub: Bookbub
Labels: Evernight Publishing, Guest, Guest Author, Guest Blog, Guest Post, Guesting, Lacee Hightower, Wendi Zwaduk
Future, Broken by Jacey Holbrand & Elizabeth Monve...
Book Blast ~ Groundwork for Murder by Marilyn Baro...
Cover Reveal ~ The Fixer Upper by Maggie Mae Galla...
The Catnapped Lover ~ A Short Contemporary Romance...
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line868
|
__label__wiki
| 0.581998
| 0.581998
|
RECAP: ‘Black Lightning’ Season 1, Episode 4 “Black Jesus” (DCTV)
February 8, 2018 By Katie Leave a Comment
Things are starting to fall apart in Freeland and Jefferson Pierce is at the heart of all the drama. Here’s our recap of Black Lightning, “Black Jesus.”
Image Source: @BlackLightning
Mr. Pierce is having an extremely rough start to his day after he finds a student in the bathroom strung out on some new kind of drugs. He has to use his powers to subdue him, and it’s not a quick shot. It’s a whole lot of his powers.
When security arrives, he doesn’t tell him about the drugs.
Meanwhile, Anissa’s driving to school and sees two of her students talking to drug dealers.
She tells the girls to get into her car and then tells the dealers to stay away from those girls. One pulls up his shirt and reveals a gun, asking her what she’s going to do about it. After the second calls her a bitch for the second time, Anissa looks at him and smiles before getting back into the car.
It’s obvious where she’s going later….
Jeff goes to talk to Gambi about this new drug, “Greenlight”, and says that he needs to start hitting the 100 hard, but Gambi isn’t sure that it’s entirely the 100.
That night Black Lightning hits the streets and runs into a low level dealer, and after shocking the ever living shit out of him, he gives up the name of his dealer, Two-Bits.
He knocks the guy out and calls the cops.
When we get back into things with Tobias, he’s with Lady Eve and it turns out she’s a mortician? It’s the most uncomfortable scene because she’s so calm as she sucks out the insides of this dead person and Tobias is just standing there watching as she berates him for failing her.
“I’ve literally made you millions of dollars and you’re on my back over one mistake.”
Lady Eve tells him that since Black Lightning is back, it’s like Tobias’ legacy is ruined since that was his calling card. It’s hardly one mistake.
When he says he’ll take out Black Lightning, she points out the tool toward him and tells him that his shit is falling out of control. They shot a Reverend and a talented kid that had a future.
She ends by telling him to use his “albino magic” to get the job done.
It’s during the end of this scene that we see the person she’s messing with isn’t actually dead. Instead, they’re alive and seemingly feel it all and can’t move.
Do. Not. Cross. This. Woman.
You can watch the scene here!
Hope is bad for their business. Stream #BlackLightning for FREE only on The CW App: https://t.co/VOJ8Ja85nw pic.twitter.com/KbBOb35bIP
— Black Lightning (@blacklightning) February 7, 2018
Back at Garfield High, Mr. Pierce is talking to the student that was on drugs, Bernard, and his father. The father asks for a second chance since his son was just accepted into four colleges. Mr. Pierce promises that he won’t be suspended, but he has to tell him where he got the drugs.
“C’mon, Mr. Pierce, I ain’t no snitch.”
“Yes, you are! Tell him.”
His daddy isn’t playing around AT ALL.
Bernard tells Mr. Pierce that he got it from a guy named Ronald Wright and the first taste was free.
“Where’s the future?”
“It’s right here.”
“Who’s life is this?”
“What are you going to do with it?”
“I’m going to live it by any means necessary.”
After the call and response, they shake hands and head out. Mr. Pierce takes some pain meds right as Kara comes in. She says the board won’t let the kid stay at Garfield, and Jefferson says that it’s his decision.
Once again, Kara tells him that she’ll be there for him no matter what and she leaves.
When Jefferson calls Gambi, it turns out the Ronald Wright is already dead from an overdose. Jeff knows Two-Bit because they grew up together, so he plans on going to speak with him later.
“I think this is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.”
OBVIOUSLY, JEFF.
At physical therapy, Khalil is doing well, but he and Jennifer overhear the nurses talking about how bad his injury is and that he’ll probably never walk again.
After she leaves, Jennifer breaks down in the hallway.
Tobias is putting in work at the coroner’s office, by beating up the worker there and interrogating him about Black Lightning’s death.
“Was he dressed like Earth, Wind, and Fire?”
“Was the body your boss put into the fire dressed like Maurice White?”
The man finally admits that they don’t know if it was or not. He never saw the body.
After he hits the guy again, Tobias says:
“Well, since Black Lightning ain’t dead, you owe me a death.”
That’s when his killer assistant takes care of the coroner.
At the Pierce home, Jennifer arrives. Lynn and Jeff confront her about skipping practice and not answering her phone. They know she ditched practice to be with Khalil since his mom can’t be there. Her parents empathize with her wanting to help him, but she needs to take care of her own stuff, including her future in track.
“The only reason why I ran track in the first place was to make dad happy.”
Lynn asks her to take a couple of days, but Jennifer says she won’t change her mind. Jefferson doesn’t want her to leave for her room, but Lynn tells her she can go.
It seems that things with Jennifer are about to get more difficult now that she doesn’t have Khalil’s calming effect around like she did.
At dinner that night, Anissa is defending Black Lightning and expressing support for his cause.
Henderson doesn’t agree with her and says Black Lightning is a vigilante that causes harm as well. The Reverend and Khalil being the most recent collateral damage.
Lynn tries to get them to see that it must be hard for Black Lightning’s family to know he’s gone fight every night and Anissa asks what that has to do with anything.
“What does that have to do with anything? I’m sure his family supports him, because what he’s doing is heroic.”
“Yes! It is. Look, somebody has to do something, because all of this policing, and marching and praying, it hasn’t changed anything. I’m just saying.”
Honestly, just watch the video to see Cress Williams smile. It makes everything worth it!
Together, they can change the world. Stream #BlackLightning now on The CW: https://t.co/VOJ8Ja85nw pic.twitter.com/mln4qEZ8la
Anissa leaves after that, and Jefferson goes after her asking if she’s okay. You can’t mistake the sly grin he’s been wearing as she defends Black Lightning. He’s super proud of his daughter.
Anissa goes in search of those two guys that were dealing to those girls. She knocks the hell out of them and asks:
“Who’s the bitch now?”
When she realizes she’s practically killed them, she calls 911 to come and get them.
Jeff heads out to see Two-Bits, and they have a bit of small talk before Jeff lays it out for him. One of his students almost OD’ed on Greenlight, and they cops are coming for him. He tells him to get out of the game, but Two-Bits says he’s got a family to take care off.
Two-Bits tells him to tell Lynn and everyone hi, and that’s just how it ends.
Gambi tells him that the drug is seriously intense.
He even says that the 100 is operating like terrorists cells and not everyone knows everything. That’s when Jeff says that Black Lightning needs to pay Two-Bits a visit.
After he gets him talking, Two-Bits negotiates his way out of getting the cops called. The whole exchange is freaking hilarious! Two-Bits even asks for a selfie!
“I know your MO After I tell you what you wanna know, you just gonna knock me out and call the cops, and that’ll be my third strike. I get thirty years, man.”
“Really should’ve thought about that before you started dealing.”
“You think I deserve 30 years?”
“You deserve something.”
“Okay. But 30 years? I mean, come on, man. They throwing brothers in jail forever, like it ain’t nothing.”
“All right. I won’t call the cops if you tell me what I need to know, and you stop selling drugs. Now, I hear you dealing again, I’mma come find you.”
“Okay. Deal. So I leave the money at the drop spot. I go pick up the product at a warehouse on 389 Hart Avenue. Re-up is every Thursday at noon. Hey, hey, real, real quick. Before you knock me out, uh, you think I can get a pic? And can you make sure you light up.”
At the rehab facility, Khalil says that he’s going to get interviewed for T.V., and then Jennifer tells him that she quit the track team. He doesn’t really say much beside hmm.
He’s watching track on T.V. and tells her that he’s going to prove everyone wrong and walk again. Run again. And he wants her there with him.
“People should see that it takes more than a bullet to keep me down. Hey, we gonna do it together, right? You’re my ride or die, right?”
“Yeah. Yeah, ride or die.”
She doesn’t seem really committed, though.
At Garfield, the board is recommending that Bernard be expelled. Mr. Pierce says he has the final say, but the board disagrees and wants to make an impartial decision.
Kara tells him that he can’t save them all. The students need to do their part, and if they don’t they can’t be there.
He can either expelled Bernard or the board will do it, and he’ll end up getting non-renewed when his contract is up, and they’ll bring in someone with no connection the community. He’s between a rock and hard place.
Tobias’ sister, Tori, is driving around and shows up at his place. He’s playing with rats that I assume will end up eating someone.
And she asks him:
“So, how’re we going to kill Black Lightning?”
WELP!
On top of a building, Black Lightning is super impressed with the upgrades to his suit that Gambi has made. He has x-ray vision almost, and he’s watching as people load Greenlight onto temperature controlled semi-trucks.
He knows this isn’t simply the 100 but goes much deeper because it’s so organized and well-funded.
#BlackLightning is always watching. Stream now for free on The CW App: https://t.co/VOJ8Ja85nw pic.twitter.com/59m6qqRgAa
— Black Lightning (@blacklightning) February 11, 2018
As he watches all that go down, Anissa and Grace leave the bar that Grace works at and Anissa asks why she feels like she still needs to run things by her parents. Grace tells her that there’s not a day that goes by that she wouldn’t want her parents advice.
They’re approached by a group of men that call the bar a “lesbian whorehouse” and say someone needs to shut it down. Grace holds out her phone and tells them to call. She has a restraining order against them, and they aren’t supposed to even be there.
One man comes forward and pushes her down, and that’s when Anissa loses it, and knocks the hell out of this guy. She covers her head up with her hood as the guys come up behind her.
Black Lightning hears the explosions and goes to see what’s up. He asks Gambi is the cameras show anything, and Gambi sees exactly what happened and lies to Jefferson AGAIN.
I’m starting to think he’s behaving pretty selfishly about Black Lightning being back, to be honest.
Black Lightning goes back to the docks to see if the trucks are still there, and Gambi goes to the scene of the destruction.
Anissa is helping Grace with her head wound, and asks:
“Grace, if I could make people who did bad things pay for what they did, that’d be a good thing, right? Right?”
At Tobias’, Tori is setting a plan to help get rid of their problem.
He needs to turn people against Black Lightning, and one way he can do that is by getting Khalil to blame his injuries on Black Lightning.
Back the rehabilitation facility, Mr. Pierce delivers the horrific news that Khalil’s spinal cord is completely severed now and that he’ll never walk again.
At Garfield, Kara comes in and tells him that Bernard can stay but he’d have to give up having the final say in all future votes. It’s a catch-22, and you can tell he’s torn between what to do.
In the end, he decides to expel Bernard.
After Kara leaves, Jefferson calls Lynn and expresses all the guilt he has over this collateral damage, but Lynn cuts him off short, saying she’s busy and she’ll talk to him later.
Just as he hangs up, Bernard’s dad calls Jefferson, and it turns out that Bernard turned to Greenlight again and when his dad went get to him, the 100 beat him up.
Black Lightning shows up at this house and wrecks shop, trying to find Bernard. He carries him out of the drug house.
The next day, Bernard’s dad shows up at Garfield and talk to Mr. Pierce.
“I don’t understand how he got hooked so quick.”
“This new drug is bad like that, but Bernard is in the best treatment facility in Freeland, and when he’s straight, we’ll get him back on track and into college.”
“I’ve put everything I had into giving him a better life. I appreciate everything you’ve done for us.”
Mr. Lewis leaves but you know that everything is far from settled there.
So, while Mr. Pierce never had to expel Bernard, it did come with a price. As he sits back in his chair, he listens to Lynn’s message to him.
She says she’s mad about the Black Lightning stuff, but she still loves him.
All the while, Jeff is smiling.
Back in Khalil’s room, Tobias is there when he wakes up. He starts filling Khalil’s head with all sorts nonsense about Black Lightning being the reason that he’s there, and since Tobias needs to turn the tables on Black Lightning, he lays it on thick.
“Black Lightning’s the reason you’re lying here paralyzed. There was many times when I was younger I needed help, but no one showed up. I don’t wanna have to see you go through the same thing.”
“Well, I’ve followed your athletic career a long time, and it hurt me to see you hurt, but what I’ve learned about pain is, pain makes you stronger. Pain makes you tougher, and eventually, you get to a point where you don’t even feel it. If you’d like, I can show you how to kill your pain.”
YEAAAAHHHHH, I’m sure this is going to end really well.
What do you think is up next for the Pierce family? Will Anissa find out who her dad is? Will Gambi come clean? What’s up with him anyway? What about Jennifer? Is she about to go down a dark road, too, as she tries to find out who she is?
Tell us what you think and be sure to live tweet with us Tuesdays at 9/8c on The CW!
Black Lightning airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on The CW.
Filed Under: News, Reviews, TV Tagged With: Anissa Pierce, Black Jesus, Black Lightning, China Anne McClain, Christine Adams, Cress Williams, Damon Gupton, DCTV, Freeland, gif, Inspector Henderson, James Remar, Jefferson Pierce, Jennifer Pierce, Kara Fowdy, Lynn Pierce, Marvin 'Krondon' Jones III, Nafessa Williams, Peter Gambi, recap, Review, Skye P. Marshall, The CW, Tobias Whale, William Catlett
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line869
|
__label__cc
| 0.618117
| 0.381883
|
Posts Tagged ‘performance’
Ep. 94 Developing Greater Courage, Clarity & Confidence With The Mountains & Marathons Legends
Mountains and Marathons guides people to develop greater courage, clarity and confidence. They do this through 6 month leadership programs that leverage online coaching, community support, leadership Masterclasses and epic physical challenges. Each of their programs culminate in running a marathon or climbing a mountain in one of the world’s most extraordinary locations. The…
Ep. 61 Retrain Your Booze Brain, With Entrepreneur & Charity Founder Benny Wallington
Benny Wallington is the creator of a charity called Good Seats and he’s also the founder and creator of a community called 101 tokens, that teaches people how to retrain their booze brains. This concept is going gangbusters globally, he’s been on several major TV and radio stations promoting the community and the concepts. It’s even…
Ep. 53 Creating Abundance & Resilience Beyond Major Adversity, With Former Professional Motocross Athlete, Daniel McCoy
Daniel McCoy is a former professional motocross and supercross rider, turned motocross coach and clothing company owner. Dan raced professionally for 15 years before a major accident in Scotland completely changed his life forever. If you’re having trouble creating a positive outlook in life when you’re faced with challenges or adversities, this chat will really…
Ep. 51 Creating A Winning Mindset & Owning Your Philosophy, With World Leading Sports Psychologist, Dr Michael Gervais
Dr Michael Gervais is one of the worlds most sought after sports psychologists. He’s the co-founder of Compete to Create, a licensed psychologist and industry visionary. Dr. Gervais focuses most of his time on people at the “top of their game,” from the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and NBA players, to Olympians, military personnel and corporate…
Ep.45 The Art Of Bridging Human Performance, with World Renowned Conscious Coach, Brett Bartholomew
Brett Bartholomew is a strength and conditioning coach, author, consultant, and Founder of the performance coaching and consulting company, The Bridge Human Performance®. His book, Conscious Coaching: The Art and Science of Building Buy-In (Amazon), achieved “Best Seller” status in two categories and was ranked in the “Amazon Top 100 Books Overall” in 2017. Brett’s experience…
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line875
|
__label__cc
| 0.604822
| 0.395178
|
Derivatives Service Bureau Calls for Industry Input to 2019 Consultation
Pricing & Reference DataRegulatory ComplianceStandardsSymbology & Identifiers
The Derivatives Service Bureau (DSB) has opened its 2019 consultation with a focus on getting industry feedback on operations such as data submission enhancements, services such as data flow rationalisation, technical issues including infrastructure and workflows, and legal aspects including the fee survey and user agreement forum.
The consultation is seeking responses from both direct and indirect users of the DSB, and will be carried out in two phases. The first phase will allow the DSB to understand the items that are deemed most valuable for further evaluation in the second phase. The consultation form is available here and the consultant will run until 5 pm UTC on the June 5, 2019, with feedback to be supplied to industry_consultation@anna-dsb.com.
The DSB was founded by the Association of National Numbering Agencies (ANNA) to facilitate the allocation and maintenance of International Securities Identification Numbers (ISINs), Classification of Financial Instrument codes (CFIs) and Financial Instrument Short Names (FISNs), for OTC derivatives under MiFID II. It was recently designated by the Financial Stability Board as the sole service provider for Unique Product Identifiers once their code and reference data are set as international data standards by the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO).
Malavika Solanki, a member of the DSB management team, says: “The growing use of the DSB for purposes other than MiFID II has allowed the DSB to work with industry and provide a golden source for OTC derivative ISINs, CFI codes and other attributes contained in the OTC ISIN record. User feedback – through the consultation, the committees and other forums – has resulted in the provision of a variety of enhancements in the past year.”
Recorded Webinar: Data lineage to drive compliance and as a business imperative
The importance of data lineage has escalated in recent years in response to regulatory demand and increased business understanding of the benefits it can deliver. Like all capital markets technology, data lineage presents both challenges and opportunities, so how best can it be implemented and sustained? And how can your organisation reap the rewards of...
Data LineageRegulatory ComplianceData Management Insight
How to Meet the Data Rules and Requirements of Fundamental Review of the Trading Book Regulation
Implementation of Fundamental Review of the Trading Book (FRTB) regulation is complex, demanding and time consuming, but can be achieved by setting priorities, working with external data vendors, and taking best practice approaches to the data management challenges presented by the regulation. A well-attended A-Team Group briefing hosted at the Glaziers Hall in London, Meeting...
FRTBRegulatory ComplianceRegulatory complianceData Management Insight RegTech Insight TradingTech Insight
Data Management Summit New York City
Now in its 8th year, the Data Management Summit (DMS) in NYC explores the shift to the new world where data is redefining the operating model and firms are seeking to unlock value via data transformation projects for enterprise gain and competitive edge.
Data Delivery & DistributionData GovernanceData Innovation (Machine Learning, AI & Blockchain)Data LineageData QualityData Science & AnalyticsData StrategyEDM PlatformsEntity data & KYCManaged Services & CloudPricing & Reference DataRegulatory ComplianceStandardsSymbology & IdentifiersData Management Insight
Preparing For Primetime – How to Benefit from the Global LEI
They say time flies when you’re enjoying yourself, and so it seems the industry have been having a blast with its preparations for the introduction of the global legal entity identifier (LEI) next month. But now it’s time to get serious. To date, much of the industry debate has centred on the identifier itself: its...
Entity data & KYCData Management Insight
|
cc/2019-30/en_middle_0053.json.gz/line877
|
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.