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(REFERENCE COPY - Not for submission)Modification of a Licensed Facility for DTV Application
BPCDT-19991130AAQ
Minor Modification
RED LION BROADCASTING COMPANY, INC.
Doing Business As: RED LION BROADCASTING COMPANY, INC.
RED LION, PA 17356
+1 (717) 246-1681 Other
PETER W. LECHMAN
9049 SHADY GROVE COURT
+1 (301) 921-9080 MULLENGR@AOL.COM Technical Representative
CHRISTOPHER D. IMLAY, ESQ.
BOOTH, FRERET, IMLAY & TEPPER, PC
+1 (202) 686-9600 BFITPC@AOL.COM Legal Representative
Height of Radiation Center Above Ground Level 91.1 meters
Height of Radiation Center Above Average Terrain 174.2 meters
Effective Radiated Power 500 kW
Model TFU-30DSC 03
Multiple Ownership
Is the applicant or any party to the application the holder of an attributable radio or television joint sales agreement or an attributable radio or television time brokerage agreement in the same market as the station subject to this application?
Applicant certifies that the proposed facility complies with the Commission's multiple ownership rules and cross-ownership rules.
Applicant certifies that the proposed facility: (a) does not present an issue under the Commission's policies relating to media interests of immediate family members; (b) complies with the Commission's polices relating to future ownership interests; (c) complies with the Commission's restrictions relating to the insulation and non-participation of non-party investors and creditors
Does the Applicant claim status as an "eligible entity," that is, an entity that qualifies as a small business under the Small Business Administration's size standards for its industry grouping (as set forth in 13 C.F.R. § 121-201), and holds: (a) 30 percent or more of the stock or partnership interests and more than 50 percent of the voting power of the corporation or partnership that will own the media outlet; or (b) 15 percent or more of the stock or partnership interests and more than 50 percent of the voting power of the corporation or partnership that will own the media outlet, provided that no other person or entity owns or controls more than 25 percent of the outstanding stock or partnership interests; or (c) more than 50 percent of the voting power of the corporation that will own the media outlet (if such corporation is a publicly traded company)?
Is the applicant submitting an application to obtain a construction permit as a result of winning an auction?
JOHN NORRIS
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Cozy Contemplations
By Headstall, in Non-Fiction. 04/25/2017 (Updated: 07/09/2019)
What you'll find here are words of warmth, memories that make me smile, and observations worthy of noting. May they amuse, touch, or inspire you.
Creative Non-Fic, Free-Verse
Spirit of Fire
By Stellar, in Fiction. 08/03/2017 (Updated: 07/09/2019)
With a life that is almost painfully normal and unremarkable, 16 year old Torsten has no reason to believe in anything out of the ordinary. Then, a series of cryptic events throws him beyond the boring familiarity that he knows, into the mystery and magic of reality unmasked.
Fantasy, Romance
By AusGlitterati, in Fiction. 08/26/2018 (Updated: 07/08/2019)
When the brain fails, the heart is often the one that picks up the pieces. Tyson is suicidal, angry and so, so lonely. After an attempt on his own life, he faces brief hospitalisation in the Acute Inpatient Unit with other teenagers. The staff are wonderful and his treatment team goes above and beyond to provide help and support, but what he needs most is a friend. He finds Vladimir, a boy who battles schizophrenia and psychotic episodes. He's perfect.
By MrM, in Fiction. 02/21/2016 (Updated: 07/07/2019)
"I have grown tired of remembering. Mes souvenirs tuent. My memories kill me. So it falls to me to make them known in these writings before my soul is set free at last." ~ Lord Cedrick Temple, Duke of Buckingham
Drama, Historical, Romance, Letter
Freshman Year 1. Wesley & Seamus J.A.M. Universe
By Wesley8890, in Fiction. 02/10/2017 (Updated: 07/07/2019)
Wesley has a secret that only a few people know and his parents aren't included. this all changes though when a new student named Seamus appears and throws off his whole plan
Deal or No Deal Premium
By Valkyrie, in Fiction. 06/23/2019 (Updated: 07/07/2019)
Lucas never thought much about his 'deal' until someone special helps him find an answer he never considered.
In Completion
By MCVT, in Fiction. 07/06/2019 (Updated: 07/06/2019)
A tale of life and love; a tale of time and the times we live.
Historical, Romance
Between arrogant classmates, an obnoxious roommate, and horribly bland food, Jae Park is finding Harvard isn't all it's cracked up to be. Luckily for him an odd YouTube video provides a welcome change.
Romance, Paranormal
The Preacher's Kid: High School
By FlyOnTheWall, in Fiction. 06/11/2019 (Updated: 07/06/2019)
It's tough being Clayton Edward Hamilton III. First, there's the name...could it be any more pretentious?
Then he's pretty sure he's gay. He doesn't know for certain, but he's feeling it.
On top of that, he's a preacher's kid. Not just any preacher's kid. His dad is pastor of a huge mega-church in Charlotte, NC.
This is the story of Eddie's journey of self-discovery...a journey he takes with his best friend and neighbor, Matthew Jordan.
Comedy, Drama, Romance
Adermoor Cove Part 1: The Rainbow Beret 1. Adermoor Cove
By ValentineDavis21, in Fiction. 07/02/2019 (Updated: 07/05/2019)
road-trip
New bartender, Lane Hardy, has come to work at The Rainbow Beret, a gay bar outside of Denver. Regular customer Brendan McCoy is immediately attracted to his odd nature and appearance. But the more he gets to know Lane the more he senses the young man is on the run - from what he doesn't know, and what he doesn't know could kill him.
Horror, Mystery
Case Studies in Modern Life
By Drew Payne, in Fiction. 09/22/2018 (Updated: 07/05/2019)
This is a collection of my flash fiction, stories looking at modern day gay life (and life from a few years ago). Each chapter is a different story.
So sit back, put your feet up, and read some of my “case studies”.
By D.K. Daniels, in Fiction. 05/21/2018 (Updated: 07/05/2019)
A massive storm barrels toward Florida. In an emergency pop-up shelter, young Lucas meets a boy, whom he confides in about his feelings towards boys, his fears about life, and his love for Disney movies, among other things. However, as the evening goes on, sinister forces are bringing about bad things with the storm for Lucas's new friend, and sad reminders for those stuck under the same roof as the boys.
Thriller/Suspense, Drama
Hail to the Chief 12. CJ
By Carlos Hazday, in Fiction. 07/05/2019 (Updated: 07/05/2019)
The long-awaited conclusion to the CJ Series.
Thorny Poetry
By Thorn Wilde, in Poetry. 04/21/2014 (Updated: 07/05/2019)
I write poems sometimes. I thought I would put them here.
Light My Roamin' Candle, Charlie Boone! 10. Charlie Boone
By Geron Kees, in Fiction. 07/03/2019 (Updated: 07/04/2019)
Charlie, Kippy, Rick and Adrian are off on another adventure out among the stars, this time to help a couple of friends in trouble. They travel farther than ever before, meet some of the strangest - and nicest - people ever, and face off against an ancient threat from the dark past.
Typical Fourth of July, right?
Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi
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Journal Interviews What Determines Which Businesses Win and Which Lose?
What Determines Which Businesses Win and Which Lose?
Insights from Keith McFarland, author of The Breakthrough Company
By Wayne L. Strom, PhD
Keith McFarland
Relationships often bring opportunities. I have known Keith McFarland for 20 years, since he was Associate Dean for the Pepperdine’s Graziadio School of Business and Management. Back then, the school was facing enrollment challenges. Dean Dr. James R. Wilburn brought Keith on to help with these issues he was just 26 years old at the time and several faculty had doubts about what he could do. As Keith focused his considerable energy on attracting new students, faculty doubts were quickly dispelled. He was a major factor in the successful launching of the graduate business programs on Pepperdine’s Malibu campus and he led the way in recruiting MBA students from several major cities in the East and West.
In January 2008, Keith published the The Breakthrough Company: How Everyday Companies Become Extraordinary Performers. Prominent business author and speaker Harvey MacKay wrote, “Keith McFarland is about to be added to the list of the top business thinkers.” The book was quickly praised by many other business writers, including, Stanford University distinguished professor Bill Barnett, Mattel CEO Bob Eckert, Stephen Covey, retired Motorola CEO Bob Galvin, and Steve Forbes, editor-in-chief of Forbes magazine. Since then, it has become a Wall Street Journal #1 best seller.
Editor’s Note: Click here to read the GBR’s review of Breakthrough Company.
Interviews, Strategy
My talk with Keith began a few days before he spoke to a gathering of Presidential and Key Executive (PKE) MBA students in Westlake Village in December 2008. Interviewing Keith McFarland was a distinct pleasure. He has an exceptionally quick mind and he is constantly looking for new opportunities to learn. His manner is rather straight-forward and matter-of-fact, with a bit of humor and a warm smile. Keith has the ability to quickly assess a situation and decide whether or not to press forward. With some frequency, he does press forward. That is probably why he is becoming an adept rock-climber!
Would you give me an overview of what you did from the time you left Pepperdine until you wrote The Breakthrough Company?
I started working as a management consultant, and then I was asked to run a company called Collectech Systems. We doubled in size every year for 10 years, and then we had a terrible thing happen, and I learned about resilience. We nearly went bankrupt. We were able to rebuild it. Eventually we sold it to GE Capital and Harvest Partners. Then I moved to Utah, where I live now, and I ran a business for Microsoft. We ran our 2000 testing centers for Microsoft around the world. We had a baby at the time I was working for Microsoft, I was 40-something, and soon I realized that having a company in 56 countries wasn’t good for being father to a newborn. I had to make a living, so I slowly got back into consulting because we love Utah. So, that’s kind of my story.
Where did the idea for your book, The Breakthrough Company, come from?
When I was enrolled in the doctoral program at the Peter Drucker Center, I had the good fortune to have Peter Drucker as my professor. I’ll never forget, one day we went to class and he asked this question I’ll spend the rest of my life working on this question. It’s an awesome question. Drucker said:
If you were going to make a list that‘s as short as possible but as long as necessary of the things that determine which businesses win and which lose, what would be on your list?
That question planted the seed for what eventually became the book in my mind. I continue to ask that question of every audience I speak to.
It really is a great question! It was 16 or 17 years ago, when I first heard this question asked. By the way, everyone asks me, “Well, what did Drucker say?” What happened is we talked about it in class for 90 minutes. Then someone raised their hand and said, “Professor Drucker, what’s the answer?” He said, “That’s what you should spend the rest of your life figuring out.”
Taking the lead from Drucker, I continue to ask that question. I actually have asked the same question of no less than 600 groups, the largest being 1,000 and the smallest being five people. I keep asking this question, partially because I’m interested, and whether or not I’ll ever discover anything new, and secondly, I did it for the first few years because I wanted to find out what the organizing principles of this answer were. All I can tell you is that my thinking continues to change as we go forward.
When you ask that question of groups, what kinds of things typically show up in their responses?
Several ideas show up most of the time. I would put the responses into three categories: Strategy, People, and Execution. I sometimes speak of these as three levers on the executive’s desk. The PKE students’ response to my question was like the responses from other groups.
Editor’s Note: The answers from McFarland’ session with the PKE-MBA students included: management, innovation, ethics, talent, leadership, alignment, risk-taking, culture, brand, DNA, flexibility, creativity that triggers innovation, motivation, profit, great product, good financing, customer service, focus, adaptability, and clear mission.
In my view, as we go into work every day, we should think about the three levers on a leader’s desk and ask ourselves, “Hey, isn’t my job really to optimize these three things?”These are the things that determine whether a business wins or loses.
You have worked with many companies that want to improve their performance. How do you approach that question?
Smart leaders know one of their main jobs is to help their business, and where appropriate, break out of routines. When people get into a routine, their brains often shift into neutral: They become less likely to spot changes in the environment and less likely to question what they are doing and how they are doing it. Embedded in routines are assumptions about the world and how it works, assumptions we often mistake for reality. When the world changes faster than our assumptions about it, danger lies ahead.
How do you get people to question their assumptions?
I ask questions, like, “In the past 90 days, what were your three most important strategic accomplishments?” I do not simply accept answers like, “We met our revenue budget.” A strategic accomplishment is one which changes the field of play in a company’s favor.
Another question I ask is, “In the past 90 days, what were the three most important ways you fell short of your potential?” The answers give insight into what people think the company should be emphasizing, but isn’t.
I also ask, “In the past 90 days, what are the three most important things you have learned about your strategy.” This is a tough question because it asks people to learn and adapt the strategy and tactics of the company.
At Pepperdine we give a lot of attention to teams. What do you think about teaming in the workplace?
When I work with companies to help them set strategy, I begin by creating what I call a Mind Bank. For groups to be effective, they need to have a method of aggregating the opinions and insights of individual members in a way that doesn’t undermine their diversity and independence. I always send 30 to 50 people a “strategy sketch” document, and ask them to return it to me with their reflections on what they consider the most important issues facing the business. If you’re looking for a way to make better decisions in your company, you will find that the more minds you get working on the problem, the better the solution.
Are you working on another book?
Yes, it is titled Bounce: The Art of Turning Tough Times into Triumph. It will be published by Random House on September 15 [2009].
My six- and nine-year-olds! They remind me to see life through their eyes, with the future being one big shiny opportunity. Children are born with a transparent or clear way of seeing things. They respond to the world as it is. They are transparent. What you see, is what you get.
Wayne L. Strom, PhD
Wayne L. Strom, PhD, is a professor of behavioral science at Pepperdine’s Graziadio School of Business and Management. As an active consultant to executives and organizations, Dr. Strom has worked with a long list of local and multinational corporations in Europe, Asia, and the United States, including ABC-TV, Baxter Healthcare, CB-Richard Ellis, Citicorp, Consolidated Capital, The Culver Studios, SmithKline, Southern California Edison, Toshiba America, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Yamaha. His current focus is on leadership processes for corporate renewal and the development of businesses as continuous improvement/learning organizations. He has served as associate dean, director of graduate programs, and chair of various academic committees. In 1986, he founded the Pepperdine Civic Leadership project, and in 1991, he was selected as a Harriet and Charles Luckman Distinguished Teaching Fellow in 1991. Currently he enlists executives in coaching employable but unemployed and homeless men and women for job searching skills.
The Root Causes of Unethical Behavior
Insight into 45 psychological traps that increase the probability that individuals will behave unethically and solutions to how the avoid them.
By Robert Hoyk, PhD and Paul Hersey, MBA, EdD
Price Fixing and Minimum Resale Price Restrictions Are Two Different Animals
Minimum resale price maintenance (RPM) is not “price fixing,” and can benefit companies and consumers if fully informed and strategically employed.
By Paul Gift, PhD
Investing for Income in a Down Economy
Exploring alternatives for investing in a down economy that may provide better long-term portfolio performance through high-dividend yields and favorable diversification characteristics.
By Steven R. Ferraro, CFA, PhD
An interview with author Keith McFarland offers insight in business strategy and reveals why he is on the list of top business thinkers.
Leveraging Opportunities in the Current Economic Climate
Business advice from Jeff Sprecher, who has been serving as the Chairman of the Board for Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) since November 2002.
By Danielle L. Scott
Editorial: Writing a Business Plan to Attract Investors
What does it take to write a good business plan? What should entrepreneurs avoid? Should business plans be put on hold until the economy picks up?
Editorials, Entrepreneurship / Innovation
Leveraging Organizational Identity for Competitive Advantage
To create lasting strategic advantages, leaders need to consider how organizational identity, a more intangible and less mobile feature of the firm, may be used to create a sustainable competitive advantage.
By Sam Rockwell, MSOD, PhD
Leadership, Management, Marketing, Organizational Behavior, Strategy
Rivalry in Business
While rivalry can encourage managers to increase organizational effort or output, it can also increase the likelihood of unethical behavior.
By Cody T. Havard, PhD
Marketing, Organizational Behavior, Strategy
Business Ecosystems and Innovation
The potential for anti-competitive behavior and collusion not only exists within ecosystems, but also across ecosystems and Keystone leaders, and has the potential to not only negatively impact consumers, but also many other stakeholders of these organizations.
By Abe Harraf, PhD, Brandon William Soltwisch, PhD and Stephen P. Salazar, BS
Economics, Entrepreneurship / Innovation, Global Business, Information Management/Technology (IT), Management, Strategy
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Hairywriter.com
All about books, birds, flowers, music, teaching and other stuff
Tag: Medieval
Best books: The Once and Future King
An Arthurian fantasy by TH White
I have been worming my way through books for over 40 years and consider myself to be pretty well-read. When I meet people who’ve read more, I wonder if they’ve ever got up from the sofa. And this is one of the best books I’ve ever read. The Once and Future King is an Arthurian fantasy – a tragedy, a comedy, a study of the nature of power and justice. It is the first book about King Arthur that I read and remains the best. (Is it really one of the best books I’ve ever read, or is it just that the books we read when we are young have the most profound influence on us?)
It is divided into four volumes. The first deals with the boyhood of Arthur – known as the Wart – and his education by Merlin. Later volumes deal with his rule as king, the romance between his queen, Guenever, and his best knight, Lancelot, and his eventual downfall. It is set in medieval Britain and has jousting, quests, magic, damsels in distress, feasts, castles – and lots of falconry, a subject that TH White was especially fascinated by.
What stands out about it is the way the narrative shifts from comedy – the descriptions of King Pellinore in pursuit of the Questing Beast are very funny – to romance, and tragedy. The style is a happy mixture of the formal and informal: it can soar majestically and then be suddenly very down-to-earth. While these characters are legendary, White also makes them behave and sound very modern. There are unusual twists too: Merlin is living backwards and on one Boxing D
TH White, another hairy writer and the author of The Once and Future King
The first edition of The Sword in the Stone
A more recent edition of this magical book
ay hunt arrives wearing a tracksuit.
The first volume, The Sword in the Stone, is often described as a classic children’s book – and was turned into a charming Disney film – but I have yet to meet a child who has read it. Like other ‘older’ works of fiction, the text is too complex and demanding, and the pace not swift enough, for most young readers today – although any 11-year-old who has read all of the Harry Potter books twice, as so many have, should be able to deal with it easily and would probably enjoy it. The other volumes are darker and more adult in their themes. Most of it was written before and during the early part of the Second World War, and I get the impression that TH White was brooding on the idea of ‘might makes right’ as the skies darkened over Europe and the storm arrived.
My step-father lent me his copy of the book when I was about 14 or 15, and he didn’t get it back, due to an unfortunate episode that occurred on the bus coming home from school. I had got to the part where the brothers Gawaine, Gareth, Agravaine and Gaheris kill the unicorn as it lays its head in the lap of the kitchen-maid Meg. I started to cry, and the yob in the seat in front of mine tried to snatch the book away from me in an effort to see what had affected the ‘sissy’ in front of him so much. I held on to it and a page ripped out of it. The yob threw the loose page at me, saying that it was all my fault, and then turned to face the front, clearly embarrassed by his act of vandalism. For years I couldn’t get hold of another copy to give back to my step-father; it seemed to be out of print. But I am glad to say that I found one eventually – many years later – in a second-hand bookshop. Now it is available again and much easier to come by.
There are many other versions of the Arthurian legends: Rosemary Sutcliff’s trilogy is good and Michael Morpurgo’s Arthur, High King of Britain is one of his best. But none of them come close to this wonderful book.
Author hairywriterPosted on May 1, 2017 May 1, 2017 Categories Children's Books, ReadingTags Books, Children's fiction, King Arthur, Medieval, Reading, Rosemary Sutcliff, Teaching, TH White2 Comments on Best books: The Once and Future King
Great Books for Children
My current list of favourites for my Year 5/6 class:
Goodnight Mister Tom by Michelle Magorian;
Carrie's War by Nina Bawden;
Time Travelling with a Hamster by Ross Welford; Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens;
Tristan and Iseult by Rosemary Sutcliff.
I'll be writing more about these books and adding more as I build this blog.
British Wild Flowers
Follow Hairywriter.com on WordPress.com
Engand
Evie's Ghost
Goodnight Mister Tom
Michelle Magorian
Operation Dodo
Philippa Pearce
Rosemary Sutcliff
TH White
Andy Charman's new ebook - Operation Dodo - is out now and available from Amazon. It's a humorous and exciting adventure for children about a boy and his uncle who travel back in time to save the dodo from extinction.
Evie’s Ghost by Helen Peters
Best Books: The House at Pooh Corner
Operation Dodo: Released into the Wild
Do we read the same book?
A walk in the English springtime
The bluebells are out
What is Guided Reading?
Hairywriter.com Blog at WordPress.com.
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Posts in Defining Success
Defining Success: Danya Shults
Danya Shults is a connector who aims to build and strengthen communities, create greater access for more people, communicate with transparency, and promote learning through sharing. Inspired by her “Jewishly sourced” pop-up restaurant, Pop-Up Shabbat, and her digest of all things Jew-ish, The Ish, Danya founded ARQ, a lifestyle brand and platform that helps people connect with Jewish culture in a more modern (read: relevant, inclusive, and convenient) way.
Defining Successkrista gray January 4, 2019
Defining Success: Emily Merrell
Emily Merrell, also lovingly referred to as "20 Questions", has always loved figuring out people's stories. After six years in the fashion industry, Emily became an entrepreneur and created Six Degrees Society, a women's focused networking organization that specializes in taking the guesswork out of networking through curated connections with each event having it's own unique theme (personal branding to calligraphy). In their first year Six Degrees Society has expanded from New York City to eight markets.
Defining Success: Flora McKay
Flora McKay is a mother, yogi, recipe writer, nutrition and wellness educator, and environmental advocate. With her background in sustainable development and a passion for educating children and families about healthy living, she finds joy in sharing her love of of life with others.
Defining Success: Brooks Dame
Brooks Dame is the founder of Proof Eyewear. The Boise, Idaho-based business is the leading sustainable eyewear brand in the world. Brooks has founded a handful of startups, as well as supported his family’s global business that was started by his grandfather more than 60 years ago. He and his brothers/partners survived ABC’s hit show Shark Tank while pitching Proof Eyewear to the Sharks. He’s filmed two full length documentaries in South and Central America.
Defining Success: Brittany Wright
Brittany Wright is a Seattle-based food photographer who sees food as an opportunity to do something creative, not just tasty. With a background in technology, she has combined her passions for both tech and food, into running the Instagram account @wrightkitchen.
Defining Success: Krista Gray
Krista Gray helps people and companies shine online. After three years building startups in San Francisco, she launched GoldSquare, a boutique web studio that produces beautiful and affordable Squarespace websites.
Passionate about travel and culture, Krista has successfully grown her business while working in different parts of the world. She's also collaborated with international clients based in Hong Kong, Melbourne and Peru to date in 2016 — just to name a few!
Defining Success: Andrea Wien
Andrea Wien is the author of "Gap to Great: A Parent's Guide to the Gap Year" and the founder of We Could Make That, where she helps people learn how to crush their kitchens.
Her podcast, also called We Could Make That, is an interview-style show where Andrea speaks to inspiring and passionate food entrepreneurs about launching their businesses.
Defining Success: Taylor Goldsmith
Taylor Goldsmith is a professional singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, born and raised in Los Angeles California. He's best known as the guitarist, lead vocalist and primary songwriter of the band Dawes. After forming Dawes in his early twenties alongside his brother Griffin and lifelong bass player Wylie Gelber, Taylor has stayed busy cultivating and expanding his catalog.
Defining Success: Amy Merrill
Amy Merrill is cofounder of Journey, an impact travel brand. Journey’s marketplace allows the next generation to join and lead trips that serve as an entry point to social impact, consciousness, and deep community.
Defining Success: Rebecca Batterman
Rebecca Batterman is a global marketing director and brand strategist focusing on brand launches and consumer engagements. She creates fully immersive brand communities through digital and live experiences, strategic partnerships and influencer marketing. With 10+ years’ experience, Rebecca has launched many campaigns and brands for Fortune 500s and start-ups.
Defining Success: Maeve Roughton
Maeve Roughton is a writer, artist, and strategist living and working in downtown New York City.
Defining Success: Lesley Jane Seymour
A media entrepreneur and one of the industry’s most respected award-winning editorial leaders, Lesley Jane Seymour is the former Editor-in-Chief of More, Marie Claire, Redbook and YM magazines. At More she created history by having the First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, guest edit an entire issue—leading to 8.5 billion media impressions worldwide. Seymour is now creating a digital club called Kindred Community for women who want to live a more authentic life.
Defining Success: Dannie Hetz
With over seven years in the early stage startup scene, Dannie Hetz has created and managed six different products in four categories, as a creative leader, community manager, product manager and over the past four years, as the founder and CEO of her own startup.
Defining Success: Dan Harris
Dan Harris is co-anchor of both Nightline and the weekend edition of Good Morning America on ABC News. He is also the author of 10% Happier, a #1 New York Times bestselling book about a fidgety, skeptical news anchor who stumbles upon meditation.
Defining Success: Emily Rand
Emily Rand is an enthusiast for life, a world traveler and creator of The Awareness Movement, an online community designed to inspire and motivate. She has 10+ years’ experience working in sports and entertainment marketing with the Kansas City Royals, AEG, Barclays Center and the Brooklyn Nets. Emily is an avid volunteer and enjoys working with the elderly.
Defining Success: Deena Goodman
With a professional background in Public Relations, Acting and Clinical Social Work, Deena Goodman, LCSW, CPCC combines her expertise to deliver values-driven coaching across industries to entrepreneurs and executives alike working on electrifying their executive presence, establishing a sense of fulfillment professionally and personally and delivering with unforgettable impact.
Defining Success: Hana Ayoub
Hana Ayoub is a professional development coach for high achievers who want to align their priorities in pursuit of dynamic success. Committed to optimizing the way professionals work and thrive, Hana leads a customized process that uncovers what's next, why, and how to get there.
Defining Success: Melissa "Mia" Emilio
Most of Melissa Emilio's clients and coworkers refer to her as Mia. She has been a senior curly hair specialist at Devachan for 12 years. One of her favorite memories from growing up is Saturday mornings in the salon with her mother and sisters. She knew she wanted to be in that world everyday. Someone actually told her that she might not make it in this industry — putting her down and making her think they were right. She knew she had to prove them wrong. Practice and hard work pays off. Having an awesome coworker who was her biggest fan showed her how to let her talent blossom.
Defining Success: Amy Koppelman
Amy Koppelman is the author of two critically acclaimed novels, A Mouthful of Air and I Smile Back. She received her undergraduate degree from University of Pennsylvania, and an MFA in fiction from Columbia University. Koppelman and her screenwriting partner adapted I Smile Back for the screen. The film, starring Sarah Silverman, premiered at the 2015 Sundance, Toronto and Deauville Film Festivals.
Defining Success: Julia Kristina Mah
Julia Kristina is a registered therapist, speaker, and online course creator based in Vancouver, BC. She specializes in helping people work through and overcome anxiety, depression, self-doubt, perfectionism and self-confidence issues so they can go through life feeling deeply happy and more connected to themselves and others.
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Mendeecees Harris Testifies, Says He “Never Had A Relationship” With His Accuser [PHOTOS]
Love & Hip Hop New York’s Mendeecees Harris got to tell his side of the story in court. The Harlem native is on trial for allegedly abusing a 15-year-old girl four years ago in the Lodi, New Jersey home he lived in with her mother. Today, he was on the witness stand and his testimony consisted of denials and suspect financial choices.
Harris denied all the accusations the now 19-year-old woman’s leveled at him that include receiving oral s-x from her in exchange for cash. In the courtroom, while Harris denied having any innappropriate contact with the accuser, was his girlfriend and reality TV show cast mate Yandy Smith.
The Cliff View Pilot reports:
“No. No way. No, no,” he said as his attorney, Brian Neary, asked Harris whether he was guilty of any of the charges against him.
“I never had a relationship with her, she never extended herself,” said Harris, taking the stand in his own defense. “She didn’t play basketball, she didn’t play Playstation, didn’t want to go to the movies.
“She always walked around the house like she had an attitude,” he said.
“That’s the truth – never, never – I never committed none of them acts to that girl in my life.”
Harris also went through great pains during two hours of morning testimony to dispel any impression of himself as being casual about sex.
Questioned first by Neary and then by Assistant Bergen County Prosecutor Demetra Maurice, Harris outlined relationships with three different women:
the mother of Mendeecee Harris Jr., his young son;
the victim’s mother, whom he testified he knew “from the streets in Harlem” and lived with in both Hackensack and Lodi;
fellow “Love & Hip Hop” star, producer Yandy Smith, whom he began seeing romantically in the spring of 2009 and had a baby son with in 2011.
Smith was among those who listened intently as Harris testified in the Hackensack courtroom.
Apparently Smith has been in the court room for the entire trial, with her entourage covering her face to avoid cameras as she comes and goes.
As for Harris’ testimony, he refuted all of the accusations laid against him. He also added that he was living in Lodi to avoid losing a down payment on the home after learning his name wasn’t on the deed, despite paying all the bills.
Say what now?
He also claims that he and woman he was living with in Lodi and Hackensack (the victim’s mother) were just friends. The victim did not morve into the home until Harris and his friend were already residing there for three years.
Harris was not required to testify, but after the victim’s turn on the stand the last couple of days, it was very necessary. He said on the stand, “It was very hurtful to me to hear that, and I felt if I didn’t testify my side of the story would never be heard.”
NorthJersey.com also reports that Harris revealed he is getting paid $4000 per episode of Love & Hip Hop.
The State’s rested it case this afternoon. Check out photos of Mendeecees Harris and Yandy Smith in courtroom in the gallery.
Photos: Mary K. Miraglia/Cliff View Pilot
Accuser , love and hip hop new york , Mendeecees Harris , new jersey , New York , reality tv , Trial , VH1 , Victim , Yandy Smith
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Home News Channels Entertainment Hugo San Martin’s new book, “The Russian Hybrid War Over the West”...
Hugo San Martin’s new book, “The Russian Hybrid War Over the West” is a work that reveals the meaning and functioning of the “Hybrid War”
Page Publishing
MIAMI, March 21, 2019 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — Recent release “The Russian Hybrid War Over the West” written by Hugo San Martin, is a scientific book that brings us the broad explanation about a new type of war against the West, as it is “War Hybrid. “
Hugo San Martin was born in Bolivia. He is a lawyer, with a Master’s degree in Strategic Studies and International Security from the University of Granada (Spain) and another Master’s Degree in Political Science from the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (Costa Rica). In his country he has occupied the functions of Minister of Government, Minister of Labor and Deputy. He is the author of numerous articles and several books. As a lecturer on issues of Security, Governance, Prospective and Populism, he has been invited to different universities in Latin America and academic centers in the US and Spain.
Hugo San Martin brings us an impeccable work where he clarifies any doubt about this new global threat: “During the last years, the concept of ‘Hybrid War’ has become a reason for analysis in military and political instances. The discussion of the notion has been undermined by the conceptual vagueness, this is due to the fact that, throughout history, especially after many periods of peace, it has always been difficult for contemporaries to identify changes in nature, type and character of the war. From the poles, arrows, swords, cannons, submarines, planes, tanks, drones we have gone to cybernetics as a weapon. The Hybrid War configures the new type of military conflict predominant in the world. It is about the aggression generated by a combination of irregular forces, regular covert forces and, mainly, the cyber attack based on the implementation of propaganda campaigns, information, and disinformation on a large scale, through the use of cyber attacks and interference in communications systems. It is a war in peacetime, as was the Cold War, but, unlike it, Western populations are not aware of their condition of existential threat. The understanding of this phenomenon requires a rigorous and scientific study. That is what makes this book of great relevance “
Hugo San Martin offers an explanation of the conceptual debates and analyzes in detail concrete situations, such as: The Trump Election in the USA; the independence of Catalonia in Spain; the defeat of Matteo Renzi in Italy; cyber-espionage in Germany and economic support for the National Front of Marine Le Pen in France.
Published by Page Publishing, based in New York City, the work of Hugo San Martin “The Russian Hybrid War On The West” gives us a clear and methodical vision of what this global phenomenon means as it is the “Hybrid War” “
For readers who wish to venture into this intriguing and controversial topic, they can do so, through reading this wonderful book, and can purchase “The Russian Hybrid War Over the West” at any book store, or online stores and Apple iTunes, Amazon, Google Play or Barnes and Noble.
For additional information or media inquiries, contact Page Publishing at 866-315-2708.
About Page Publishing:
Page Publishing is a traditional New York-based, full-service publishing house that handles all the intricacies involved in publishing its authors’ books, including distribution in the world’s largest retail outlets and royalty generation. Page Publishing knows that authors need to be free to create – not overwhelmed with logistics like eBook conversion, establishing wholesale accounts, insurance, shipping, taxes, and the like. Its roster of accomplished authors and publishing professionals allows writers to leave behind these complex and time-consuming issues to focus on their passion: writing and creating. Learn more at www.pagepublishing.com.
Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/837612/Hugo_San_Martin_Frontcover.jpg
SOURCE Page Publishing
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Round barrow south east of California Belt, 270m east of Fox Head
Scheduled Monument
Date of most recent amendment:
Scarborough (District Authority)
Hutton Buscel
National Park:
SE 95881 87182
Reasons for Designation
Round barrows are funerary monuments dating from the Late Neolithic period to the Late Bronze Age, with most examples belonging to the period 2400-1500 BC. They were constructed as earthen mounds, sometimes ditched, which covered single or multiple burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as cemeteries and often acted as a focus of burials in later periods. Often superficially similar, although differing widely in size, they exhibit regional variations in form and a diversity of burial practices. There are over 10,000 surviving examples recorded nationally (many more have already been destroyed), occurring across most of Britain, including the Wessex area where it is often possible to classify them more closely, for example as bowl or bell barrows. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major historic element in the modern landscape and their considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provide important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisations amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.
Prehistoric rock art is found on natural rock outcrops in many areas of upland Britain. It is especially common in the north of England in Northumberland, Durham and North and West Yorkshire. The most common form of decoration is the `cup and ring' marking, where expanses of small cup-like hollows are pecked into the surface of the rock. These cups may be surrounded by one or more `rings'. Single pecked lines extending from the cup through the rings may also exist, providing the design with a `tail'. Pecked lines or grooves can also exist in isolation from cup and ring decoration. Other shapes and patterns also occur, but are less frequent. Carvings may occur singly, in small groups, or may cover extensive areas of rock surface. They date to the Late Neolithic and Bronze Age periods (2800-c.500 BC) and provide one of our most important insights into prehistoric `art'. The exact meaning of the designs remains unknown, but they may be interpreted as sacred or religious symbols. Frequently they are found close to contemporary burial monuments and the symbols are also found on portable stones placed directly next to burials or incorporated into burial mounds. Around 800 examples of prehistoric rock art have been recorded in England. This is unlikely to be a realistic reflection of the number carved in prehistory. Many will have been overgrown or destroyed in activities such as quarrying. All positively identified prehistoric rock art sites exhibiting a significant group of designs normally will be identified as nationally important. The Tabular Hills in the Wykeham Forest area contain a dense concentration of prehistoric monuments, dating from the Neolithic to the Iron Age, which includes field systems, enclosures and land boundaries as well as both round and square barrows. The spatial and chronological relationships between the round and square barrows in this area, and between both types of barrow and other prehistoric monuments, are of considerable importance for understanding the development of later prehistoric society in eastern Yorkshire. Although it has been excavated, the round barrow south east of California Belt, 270m east of Fox Head retains some of its decorated kerb stones which will provide evidence for the diversity of prehistoric `art' on the North York Moors. The barrow is one of several which include decorated cup marked stones, distributed along the northern and eastern periphery of the North York Moors and as such it can be dated earlier than many similar barrows found on the central moorland.
The monument includes a round barrow situated on level ground towards the northern edge of the Tabular Hills. The barrow is visible as an earthen mound which stands up to 0.3m high and has been spread by ploughing. The barrow was excavated by T Brewster in 1965. The excavations showed that the barrow mound had a diameter of 18m and was surrounded by a kerb of stones to define it, many of which were decorated with cup marks and linear markings. The stones are no longer visible, most having been excavated, but some remain buried in the ground. It was also shown that the mound was constructed above an inhumation, sealed by a limestone platform, and that it contained four secondary cremation burials. The barrow lies within a dense concentration of prehistoric burial monuments in an area which also includes the remains of prehistoric settlement and land division.
MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features, considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.
Brewster, T C M, Finney, A E, Excavation of seven round barrows on the moorlands of N E Yorks, (1995), 6-10
Lee, G E, Wykeham Archaeological Survey, (1991)
Title: Source Date: 1999 Author: Publisher: Surveyor:
This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.
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Tips on Buying a Furnace
High-efficiency furnaces are costly, but they may pay for themselves over time.
1 The Average Electrical Usage for Single Family Homes
2 How Much Does it Cost to Replace a Home Heating System?
3 Things to Consider When Replacing a Home Heat Pump
4 Estimate a Gas Furnace Size
Energy efficiency is the most visible and obvious way to compare furnace models, but it is not the only factor that determines which furnace model is right for a particular home. Local climate and energy costs, the size and heating needs of the home and the effectiveness of extra features are all things to think about when it comes time to buy a new furnace.
Natural gas is the fuel most commonly used in residential furnaces in the United States; oil furnaces are widely used only in certain geographical areas, especially the Northeast. All-electric furnaces are uncommon because the high cost of electricity as compared to the cost of natural gas makes them relatively expensive to operate. Even gas furnaces use electricity to power their blower motors and auxiliary systems, however, so the local cost of electricity and the efficiency of a furnace's motor are important considerations even when choosing a gas furnace.
The size of a furnace is one of the most important factors that contributes to its effectiveness. If a furnace is too small for the home in which it is installed, it won't be able to properly heat the entire building during cold weather. However, if the furnace is too large, it will operate inefficiently and it will cost more initially than a furnace of the proper size. A good contractor will analyze the heating needs of the home and consult industry standards to ensure that the homeowner purchases a furnace that is neither too big nor too small.
A high-efficiency furnace converts almost all of the energy from its fuel source into useable heat, but the efficiency usually comes at a steep price. A high-efficiency furnace costs substantially more than a furnace with a lower efficiency rating. The cost difference can be recovered through reduced fuel bills over time. For example, in areas with extremely cold winters, the cost recovery can happen quickly, but in moderate climates it can take significantly longer. Buyers should take into account local climate and energy costs along with the cost of individual furnace models when making a purchasing decision.
Some high-end features add substantial value to a furnace, while the benefits of other features are questionable. Variable-speed blowers, variable heat output and dual heat exchangers are examples of features that make a furnace more efficient, if more costly. Advanced filtration systems claim to improve a home's indoor air quality, but the health benefits of these systems has not been clearly proven. Computer-controlled, zoned heating systems are efficient in larger homes, but they have less of an impact in smaller homes and typically require more repairs than simpler systems.
Consumer Reports: Gas Furnace Buying Guide
National Geographic: Furnace Buying Guide
Evan Gillespie grew up working in his family's hardware and home-improvement business and is an experienced gardener. He has been writing on home, garden and design topics since 1996. His work has appeared in the South Bend Tribune, the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette, Arts Everywhere magazine and many other publications.
Gillespie, Evan. "Tips on Buying a Furnace." Home Guides | SF Gate, http://homeguides.sfgate.com/tips-buying-furnace-49226.html. Accessed 17 July 2019.
Gillespie, Evan. (n.d.). Tips on Buying a Furnace. Home Guides | SF Gate. Retrieved from http://homeguides.sfgate.com/tips-buying-furnace-49226.html
Gillespie, Evan. "Tips on Buying a Furnace" accessed July 17, 2019. http://homeguides.sfgate.com/tips-buying-furnace-49226.html
Compare LP & Electric Furnaces
Comparison of Electricity, Propane and Oil Furnaces
The Best Heating Method for a New Home
Alternative Heating Sources for Homes
Select a Furnace
Choose Small-Home Heating & Cooling Units
Choose a Central-Heating Boiler
Compare Space Heater Types
The Life Span of an Oil Furnace
Remove the Access Panel on a Heater Filter
Government Programs for Low Income Housing & Energy Assistance
Problems With Installing an Above-Ground Pool Heater
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Geopolitics/Geoeconomics Thread- June 2015
Re: Geopolitics/Geoeconomics Thread- June 2015
Postby ramana » 04 Jan 2017 22:29
Kosovo campaign drew the Russians and Chinese together.
Postby Singha » 04 Jan 2017 23:21
the 'mistake' of bombing the chinese consulate was not a mistake perhaps.
Singha wrote: the 'mistake' of bombing the chinese consulate was not a mistake perhaps.
No. It was deliberate and the Chinese realized and orchestrated a long and strident weeping protest.
Look at the timeline of when the Chinese Embassy bombing happened.
And what else was happening at that time in the world.
Postby Gerard » 05 Jan 2017 00:16
Putting aside ideology, we know that Kissinger is fascinated, if not obsessed, with power. He may be unable to resist the temptation to be close to it, and to have an enduring influence relatively comparable to that of Elizabeth II
"Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac ... They are women attracted only to my power. But what happens when my power is gone? They’re not going to sit around playing chess with me "- Henry Kissinger - The New York Times (28 October 1973)
HAK is the US Rasputin.
abhishek_sharma
Postby abhishek_sharma » 08 Jan 2017 09:39
What Charlie Hebdo Taught Me About Freedom of Speech
Postby Philip » 11 Jan 2017 10:17
The nation which has used dirty tricks" in history more than anyone else now cries "foul" over Russia's alleged hacking,etc.!
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/ ... tee-russia
Russia's London embassy: UK preparing anti-Moscow witch-hunt
Foreign secretary tells incoming US administration that Russia and Putin have been ‘up to all sorts of very dirty tricks’
Boris Johnson during a visit to Washington DC.
Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor
Wednesday 11 January 2017
The Russian embassy in London has accused the Foreign Office of preparing to mount a witch-hunt against Moscow in the wake of allegations by the UK foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, that Russia has been “up to all sorts of tricks”.
Johnson had claimed that the Kremlin was behind the hack of the Democratic campaign headquarters computer during the US presidential race, the first time that the UK has confirmed US intelligence reports linking the hacks to Russia.
In a lengthy statement, the Russian embassy claimed the coming attacks on the Russians by the British were partly due to the country’s role in negotiating a ceasefire in Syria and its role in convening peace talks.
Accusing the British of trying to brief the incoming US administration against Russia, the embassy claimed the attacks were either designed to lead to a re-run of the EU referendum, or to save the EU project now under attack from angry electorates.
The embassy claimed: “Western elites will go to great lengths to save their own world with its Washington consensus, Davos and austerity, even if it does no longer benefit anybody else. Its demise is presented as the end of the world, another twilight of Europe. This panic and hysterics is a response to the overall loss of control, which brought about war a hundred years ago. It is also a loss of control over the public debate, exercised by way of the Orwellian newspeak of political correctness.”
The embassy statement targeted the former MI6 Director, Sir Richard Dearlove, for backing the “witch-hunt” saying he knew “as nobody else, most of the damage to America and its place in the world was done by the George W Bush administration. No foreign agents could have accomplished that much.”
UK intelligence agencies are understood to have been the first to alert their US counterparts to the evidence showing a link between the Democratic National Committee hacks and Moscow.
With Trump and Putin, Europe is now between a rock and a hard place
Natalie Nougayrède
Speaking in the Commons on Tuesday, Johnson told MPs it was “pretty clear” the hacking attack had come from Russia. He said he had told the incoming US administration: “We do think the Russian state – the Putin Kremlin – is up to all sorts of very dirty tricks, but it would be folly further to demonise Russia or to push Russia into a corner.”
A twin-track policy of engagement and vigilance was required, Johnson said, even though “if you look at what the Russians have done in the western Balkans and on cyber-warfare, it is clear they are up to no good”.
It is thought Johnson will have conveyed the British intelligence view in his talks with Donald Trump’s team.
Johnson trod carefully because the US president-elect has been extremely reluctant to acknowledge any Russian involvement in the hacking, despite the near-unanimous view of his intelligence advisers that there is a clear link between the email leaks and the Kremlin.
Johnson, who met the most senior members of the Trump administration on Sunday night, stressed that his comment on Russian responsibility was not also a comment on “the electoral efficacy” of the hacking.
Trump is extremely sensitive to claims that Russian interference somehow de-legitimises his election victory and Johnson said his aim was for “the UK to be in lock-step” with the new administration.
In a bid to assuage the pro-Russia leanings of some in the Trump administration, Johnson said it was important to recognise there may be areas where the UK and the US could work together.
Speaking about his meetings with senior Republicans, Johnson said: “There’s a huge fund of goodwill for the United Kingdom on Capitol Hill and a very large measure of understanding that now is the time to do a free-trade deal. They want to do it, they want to do it fast, and that understanding was most vivid and most urgent on the part of the incoming administration.
“My enthusiasm [for a US-UK trade deal] is nothing compared to the enthusiasm of our friends on the other side of the Atlantic. We will get a good deal.”
The shadow foreign minister, Liz McInnes, said: “On Sunday, the foreign secretary met with Steve Bannon, Donald Trump’s chief strategist, a man whose website is synonymous with antisemitism, racism, misogyny, homophobia, hero-worship of Vladimir Putin and the promotion of extremist far-right movements across the world. Can I ask the foreign secretary, how did he and Mr Bannon get on?”
In reply, Johnson said he did not wish to embarrass any American colleagues with details of how friendly the meetings were, adding: “What I can say is the conversations were genuinely extremely productive. There is a wide measure of agreement between the UK and the incoming administration about the way forward and we intend to work to build on those areas of agreement.”
Trump and Germany go to war!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/01 ... atens-car/
Germany hits out at Donald Trump after he labels Nato 'obsolete' and threatens car makers with 35pc tariffs
Donald Trump has described Nato as 'obsolete'
Justin Huggler Michael Wilkinson
16 JANUARY 2017 • 12:44PM
The German government has said it is “concerned” after Donald Trump described Nato as “obsolete”.
It came as German car manufacturers also rounded on the President-elect warning that the US would be "shooting itself in the foot" if he slaps a 35 per cent tariffs on cars manufactured in Germany.
'Confusion and anxiety' over Nato remarks
Mr Trump's remarks about Nato have caused concern among officials at both Nato and the EU.
Russian Billionaire Gets Green Light for Upper East Side Mega-Mansion
Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the German foreign minister, said Mr Trump’s remarks had caused “confusion and anxiety” both in Nato and in the EU.
A meeting of EU foreign leaders later on Monday would “probably be influenced, if not dominated” by Mr Trump’s remarks, he said.
“I said a long time ago that Nato had problems,” the US president-elect said in an joint interview with The Times and Germany’s Bild newspaper.
It’s obsolete because it wasn’t taking care of terror. I took a lot of heat for two days. And then they started saying, ‘Trump is right.’
Donald Trump on Nato
“Number one, it was obsolete, because it was designed many, many years ago. Number two, the countries aren't paying what they're supposed to pay.”
“I took such heat when I said Nato was obsolete,” Mr Trump said at another point in the interview. “It’s obsolete because it wasn’t taking care of terror. I took a lot of heat for two days. And then they started saying, ‘Trump is right.’”
The interview has reignited fears among several Nato countries that the US could split the alliance under Mr Trump’s leadership.
His remarks have been “received with concern” and caused anxiety “not only in Brussels” Mr Steinmeier said, after meeting with Jen Stoltenberg, the Nato secretary-general, on Monday morning.
“This contradicts what the American defence secretary said in his hearing in Washington only a few days ago and we have to see what it means for American policy,” Mr Steinmeier said.
Angela Merkel "read the interview with interest," her spokesman said in a guarded response.
The German chancellor's position on refugee policy, the EU and the transatlantic partnership is well-known, Steffen Seibert said in Berlin.
"We are waiting for Mr Trump's inauguration, and we will then work closely with the new government," he said.
Mr Trump’s remarks were in stark contrast with what James Mattis, his choice of defence secretary, said during his Senate confirmation hearing in Washington last week.
Gen Mattis mounted a staunch defence of Nato, and accused Russia of seeking to “break” the alliance.
“If we did not have Nato today, we would have to create it,” Gen Mattis said.
“I think right now the most important thing is that we recognize the reality of what we are dealing with, with Mr Putin. We recognize that he is trying to break the North Atlantic alliance.”
Russia immediately spoke out in support of Mr Trump’s latest remarks.
“Nato is, indeed, a vestige of the past and we agree with that. We have long been speaking about our views on this organization,” Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesman, said on Monday.
Mr Trump’s words will cause concern in countries on Nato’s eastern flank, which are already nervous over Russia’s intentions and have asked the alliance to deploy more troops .
Vladimir Putin's Russia immediately spoke out in support of Mr Trump’s latest remarks on Nato CREDIT: AP
During the presidential campaign, Mr Trump warned that the US might not come to the aid of Nato members if they were attacked unless it was “reasonably reimbursed”.
Norbert Röttgen, the chairman of the German parliament’s foreign affairs committee, described Mr Trump’s thinking as a “dangerous novelty for Europe”.
“Perhaps one could say that in reality in his thinking the West does not exist,” Mr Röttgen told German public radio.
“Whether the EU is divided or contested doesn't matter to him, whether Nato is there or not, doesn't matter to him. It's obsolete to him anyway.”
Car manufacturers hit back at Trump
In an interview with German newspaper Bild, published on Monday, Mr Trump criticised German car makers such as BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen for failing to produce more cars on US soil.
"If you want to build cars in the world, then I wish you all the best. You can build cars for the United States, but for every car that comes to the USA, you will pay 35 percent tax," Trump said in remarks translated into German.
"I would tell BMW that if you are building a factory in Mexico and plan to sell cars to the USA, without a 35 percent tax, then you can forget that," he said.
BMW has come under fire from Donald Trump
While investing in Mexico, German car makers have quadrupled light vehicle production in the United States over the past seven years to 850,000 units, more than half of which are exported from there, Germany's VDA automotive industry association said.
"In the long term, the United States would be shooting itself in the foot by imposing tariffs or other trade barriers," VDA President Matthias Wissmann said in a statement.
German carmakers employ about 33,000 workers in the United States and German automotive suppliers about 77,000 more, the VDA said.
German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel said that rather than trying to penalise German car makers, the United States should instead respond by building better and more desirable cars.
ranjan.rao
Postby ranjan.rao » 21 Jan 2017 01:17
not sure where to post this
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/india-may-assist-uae-in-air-defence-system/articleshow/56674061.cms
There is definite movement between India UAE relations..during Modi's UAE trip there was talk of india and UAE working on a joint mars mission in 2020..again the question remains to balance with the iran ties..
svinayak
Postby svinayak » 21 Jan 2017 11:46
ranjan.rao wrote: not sure where to post this
The current Price of Abu Dhabi was kicked out of hotel in Mumbai in 1982 for mistreating the front desk female employee
panduranghari
Postby panduranghari » 21 Jan 2017 19:51
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-01-2 ... 017-4-maps
So Arab Nationalism is triumphing Islamist Fundamentalism.
The latter was supported by Anglo-Saxon Waste.
svinayak wrote:
is the same guy who's chief guest of this year's republic day parade? Seems like he's forgotten that
ranjan.rao wrote:
This prince is the chief guest for the India Republic Day parade
Could have posted in many threads....
https://phys.org/news/2017-01-psycholog ... -news.html
In medicine, vaccinating against a virus involves exposing a body to a weakened version of the threat, enough to build a tolerance.
Social psychologists believe that a similar logic can be applied to help "inoculate" the public against misinformation, including the damaging influence of 'fake news' websites propagating myths about climate change.
A new study compared reactions to a well-known climate change fact with those to a popular misinformation campaign. When presented consecutively, the false material completely cancelled out the accurate statement in people's minds - opinions ended up back where they started.
Researchers then added a small dose of misinformation to delivery of the climate change fact, by briefly introducing people to distortion tactics used by certain groups. This "inoculation" helped shift and hold opinions closer to the truth - despite the follow-up exposure to 'fake news'.
The study on US attitudes found the inoculation technique shifted the climate change opinions of Republicans, Independents and Democrats alike.
Published in the journal Global Challenges, the study was conducted by researchers from the universities of Cambridge, UK, Yale and George Mason, US. It is one of the first on 'inoculation theory' to try and replicate a 'real world' scenario of conflicting information on a highly politicised subject.
"Misinformation can be sticky, spreading and replicating like a virus," says lead author Dr Sander van der Linden, a social psychologist from the University of Cambridge and Director of the Cambridge Social Decision-Making Lab.
"We wanted to see if we could find a 'vaccine' by pre-emptively exposing people to a small amount of the type of misinformation they might experience. A warning that helps preserve the facts.
"The idea is to provide a cognitive repertoire that helps build up resistance to misinformation, so the next time people come across it they are less susceptible."
To find the most compelling climate change falsehood currently influencing public opinion, van der Linden and colleagues tested popular statements from corners of the internet on a nationally representative sample of US citizens, with each one rated for familiarity and persuasiveness.
The winner: the assertion that there is no consensus among scientists, apparently supported by the Oregon Global Warming Petition Project. This website claims to hold a petition signed by "over 31,000 American scientists" stating there is no evidence that human CO2 release will cause climate change.
The study also used the accurate statement that "97% of scientists agree on manmade climate change". Prior work by van der Linden has shown this fact about scientific consensus is an effective 'gateway' for public acceptance of climate change.
In a disguised experiment, researchers tested the opposing statements on over 2,000 participants across the US spectrum of age, education, gender and politics using the online platform Amazon Mechanical Turk.
In order to gauge shifts in opinion, each participant was asked to estimate current levels of scientific agreement on climate change throughout the study.
Those shown only the fact about climate change consensus (in pie chart form) reported a large increase in perceived scientific agreement - an average of 20 percentage points. Those shown only misinformation (a screenshot of the Oregon petition website) dropped their belief in a scientific consensus by 9 percentage points.
Some participants were shown the accurate pie chart followed by the erroneous Oregon petition. The researchers were surprised to find the two neutralised each other (a tiny difference of 0.5 percentage points).
"It's uncomfortable to think that misinformation is so potent in our society," says van der Linden. "A lot of people's attitudes toward climate change aren't very firm. They are aware there is a debate going on, but aren't necessarily sure what to believe. Conflicting messages can leave them feeling back at square one."
Alongside the consensus fact, two groups in the study were randomly given 'vaccines':
•A general inoculation, consisting of a warning that "some politically-motivated groups use misleading tactics to try and convince the public that there is a lot of disagreement among scientists".
•A detailed inoculation that picks apart the Oregon petition specifically. For example, by highlighting some of the signatories are fraudulent, such as Charles Darwin and members of the Spice Girls, and less than 1% of signatories have backgrounds in climate science.
For those 'inoculated' with this extra data, the misinformation that followed did not cancel out the accurate message.
The general inoculation saw an average opinion shift of 6.5 percentage points towards acceptance of the climate science consensus, despite exposure to fake news.
When the detailed inoculation was added to the general, it was almost 13 percentage points - two-thirds of the effect seen when participants were just given the consensus fact.
The research team point out that tobacco and fossil fuel companies have used psychological inoculation in the past to sow seeds of doubt, and to undermine scientific consensus in the public consciousness.
They say the latest study demonstrates that such techniques can be partially "reversed" to promote scientific consensus, and work in favour of the public good.
The researchers also analysed the results in terms of political parties. Before inoculation, the fake negated the factual for both Democrats and Independents. For Republicans, the fake actually overrode the facts by 9 percentage points.
{This means that all three had their own inoculation from preference bias. This is not mentioned by the study authors. Why is there a 0-9% difference in the groups!!!}
However, following inoculation, the positive effects of the accurate information were preserved across all parties to match the average findings (around a third with just general inoculation; two-thirds with detailed).
"We found that inoculation messages were equally effective in shifting the opinions of Republicans, Independents and Democrats in a direction consistent with the conclusions of climate science," says van der Linden.
"What's striking is that, on average, we found no backfire effect to inoculation messages among groups predisposed to reject climate science, they didn't seem to retreat into conspiracy theories.
"There will always be people completely resistant to change, but we tend to find there is room for most people to change their minds, even just a little."
Explore further: Communicating the consensus on climate change
More information: Global Challenges, DOI: 10.1002/gch2.201600008
The bolded parts are very important for Indians to understand.
The old proverb is "Fore warned is Fore armed!!!!"
We need to inoculate the idea of Indian interests first as they get buffeted with psy-ops from both rising China and flailing Waste. Not to mention the Islamists who want to win one for Muhammad.
SaiK
Postby SaiK » 25 Jan 2017 06:03
I did hear this ramana on npr (yesterday/today?), talking about the placebo "fake fake news" and "real fake news" .. it was interesting, and couldn't keep it on as I had to get out. essentially, I think the env we live in and get trained on while we were young plays a lot of role in these..[I am sure a desi would easily understand these per se than a real amrikki who is strategically wired to focus on MAD doctrine] fake fake news is np hard to get a grasp, especially when your information source is perhaps like a gov that hates MSM.
Trump needs to retrain his CIA men, if he has to ordain a new strategic force to quell those AoA-walas right in their madrassas
Why Huntington and Beck Are Wrong
The Alliance of Christian and Muslim Civilizations
An analysis of our recent past–the second half of the twentieth century–shows there has been no conflict, but rather an alliance, between Christian and Muslim civilizations. One indicator of this alliance is that the vast majority of radical Islamic fundamentalist organizations, now considered terrorists, were once actively supported by the leaders of Christian civilizations. While the mainstream Western media have failed to inform their readers about this, the empirical evidence for such support exists. In his book Devil’s Game: How the United States Helped Unleash Fundamentalist Islam, Robert Dreyfus documents extensively how the U.S. and U.K. governments supported the majority of Muslim fundamentalist associations (again, now defined as terrorists), and in fact played a key role in establishing and developing these groups. Dreyfus shows, for example, how both governments actively supported the establishment of the Muslim Brotherhood in the 1950s. This extremely violent group was started in Egypt and, with the support of Saudi Arabia, expanded throughout the Arab world. In the 1980s, the Muslim Brotherhood helped to establish the Movement of Islamic Resistance, known as Hamas, the radical Muslim Palestinian group that today governs the Palestinian people. Again in the 1950s, the U.S. and U.K. governments also supported the Mullahs (fundamentalist Muslim clerics) in Iran, led by Khomeini, who later became the leaders of that country. And the U.S. and U.K. governments also actively supported (with the assistance of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan) the Taliban in Afghanistan.
In all these supportive efforts by the U.S. and U.K. governments, the religious and cultural values of Islamic fundamentalists were not seen as an obstacle; quite the contrary. Religious fundamentalism in both Christian and Muslim civilizations was crucial to the development of the alliance between civilizations. As stated by an official document of the U.S. State Department, “the attractiveness of such Muslim movements is their messianic character, similar to the born-again Christians of the South in the U.S. Moreover, they are profoundly anti-communist” (The World Situation, 1978). Thus there was no conflict but rather a religious and cultural affinity between the leaders of the Christian and Muslim civilizations. This affinity of values, however, was not enough to establish an alliance. Why would the leaders of Christian civilizations support Islamic fundamentalists clearly oriented toward the use of violence in pursuing their objectives? The question posed by Huntington and Beck should have been, not so much what divides, but what unites the two civilizations. The answer is clear: What united the leaders of the two civilizations was class interests. These interests determined their objectives, their alliances, and their enemies. This is the reality behind the erroneous slogan “a conflict of civilizations.” The alliance was forged on the basis of not just a commonality of religious values, but also — and above all — a commonality of class interests.
The alliance was established to defeat and eliminate progressive lay movements led by socialists, communists, or Arab nationalists who were successfully mobilizing the Muslim masses (working classes, peasantry, and sectors of the professional middle classes) against the dominant classes of the Muslim countries that were enjoying the support of the governments of the Christian civilizations. The alliance between the governing elites of the Christian and Muslim civilizations was based on threats to their common economic interests (primarily, but not exclusively, oil) by the burgeoning progressive forces. Given the extreme poverty of the vast majority of people in the midst of enormous wealth in many of the Muslim countries, an eruption was inevitable. In their own interests, the dominant classes of Christian and Muslim civilizations needed to channel the frustrations of the masses of people away from the progressive movements. The great challenge for the dominant classes was to eliminate the threat of a class mobilization against them, and the method at hand was to demobilize political impulses and replace them with a multi-class mobilization based on religious fervor. A multi-class religious fundamentalism could channel the energy of a mass mobilization, not against the dominant classes, but in support of a religious identity–a commonality of interests and identity among dominated and dominant classes. This strategy is not new. In Southern Europe, the dominant landowners and oligarchy, in collaboration with the Catholic Church, established the Christian Democratic Party in response to peasants’ and workers’ parties that were threatening their interests. Class struggle was replaced by social cohesion, with Christianity as the multi-class glue that would keep classes together–under, of course, the dominion and hegemony of the dominant classes. The intention of this project, based on a religious fundamentalism, was to channel the energy and frustration of the popular classes toward an external agent: to promote a defense of religion threatened by unchristian progressive forces. The same dynamics operated in the Muslim countries, with dominant classes promoting Islamic fundamentalism among the disenfranchised majorities. Let’s look at some historical details, case by case.
Final Observations
All these documented facts show a reality that is not reported by the mainstream media: behind a supposed “conflict” between Christian and Muslim civilizations there has been a class alliance. An alliance of this type first existed in Spain in the 1930s. Muslim Moroccan troops fought with the Catholic-supported fascists in the military coup of 1936, led by General Franco, against a democratically elected progressive government–in what the Spanish Catholic Church defined as a Crusade. The Muslim troops supported a Crusade against the infidels who denied God. And just as the Spanish Civil War was a prologue for World War II, introducing the cast of characters that would take the stage in that war, so the Afghan War in the 1980s–with Christian troops supporting Muslim fundamentalists–prefigured World War III, which we are engaged in today. All the forces at war in this new conflict were already there, in Afghanistan in the 1980s. Progressive lay forces (led by a Communist Party), with the support of the Soviet Union, carried out a series of reforms in Afghanistan–introducing land reform, a secular public school system, and gender equality, with extensive participation of women in the schools and universities). All of these moves were opposed by the dominant classes of Afghanistan, which supported Islamic fundamentalist groups funded by Saudi Arabia (among the most oppressive regimes in the Arab world), the government of Pakistan, and the U.S. government (led by President Carter, who, paradoxically, presented himself as the great defender of human rights). It was at that time that the U.S. government supported Osama bin Laden in a holy war against communism, which in fact was a crude defense of the class interests of dominant groups whose privileges were threatened by social reforms. As it turned out, the Islamic fundamentalist forces, armed by the U.S. and other governments, developed a dynamic of their own that the U.S. government could not control. But the conflict that now exists between the U.S., U.K., and other governments and the Islamic fundamentalist terrorist groups should not obscure the origins of these terrorist movements and the class interests they have served and continue to serve.
new caliphate
The 100-Year-Old Agreement You Need to Know About to Understand What’s Driving the Islamic State
Sykes-Picot and the Islamic State
“I know I read about [the Sykes-Picot Agreement] years ago when we were at Fox, and I put it up on the chalkboard,” Beck remarked. “But it didn’t all fall into place until I learned about ISIS and ISIL, and the difference between ISIS and ISIL. Now it all makes sense to me, and now you’ll be able to figure out what is really going on.”
Radical Islamists in the Islamic State — also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant — are trying to regain the territory they were promised before the Sykes-Picot Agreement, Beck said. If you understand that, the revolutions of the Arab Spring and the goals of the Islamic State become much clearer.
“How do you get there?” Beck asked, pointing to the map of the territory the Islamic State is trying to recover. “First thing you do, you have to destabilize the region. And how do you destabilize the region? What did Sykes-Picot do? Sykes-Picot made all of these new maps, and they drew new borders that had never been drawn before. And these borders put people who were never together under one rule, the British knowing that if they did that, it would take a strong man to keep them from fighting and killing each other.”
To get rid of the Sykes-Picot Agreement, Beck said “you have to go after the dictators.”
“Our president, and all of us, cheered when we got rid of the dictators in Egypt … Libya … Iraq … Now we’re going after Syria,” Beck said. “Next will be Jordan and Lebanon, and then Israel.”
Demonstrators celebrate in Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt, Friday Feb. 18, 2011. Tens of thousands of flag-waving Egyptians packed into Tahrir Square for a day of prayer and celebration Friday to mark the fall Hosni Mubarak a week ago and to maintain pressure on the new military rulers to steer the country toward democratic reforms.(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
Demonstrators celebrate in Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt, Friday Feb. 18, 2011. Tens of thousands of flag-waving Egyptians packed into Tahrir Square for a day of prayer and celebration Friday to mark the fall Hosni Mubarak.(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
“Look at the map,” Beck said. “The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. … They’re doing nothing but remolding the map closer to their heart’s desire, and what they were promised 100 years ago. Now is their opportunity to achieve what they’ve always wanted from the very beginning: a return to a unified Arab kingdom. What a surprise, a caliphate. Islamic rule. There’s no judgement on this one way or another — this is just the fact. They want an end to the west and what the west created with Sykes-Picot. To get there, the best way to do it is to destabilize all these dictators, get them out of the way.”
Beck said the Israelis and the Palestinians have been used as scapegoats for decades.
“You think this is a crazy theory?” Beck asked. “Here’s ISIL in their own words on what’s happening, why are they doing this.”
Beck proceeded to play an Islamic State propaganda video titled “The End of Sykes-Picot”:
You’ll notice this is playing all over the Middle East,” Beck said. “Here they are, on the Syrian border, showing how they’ve erased it, and how Britain and France lied to the Arab world.”
Beck said radical Islamists will use anyone, including the Jews and the Palestinians, to achieve their goals, and that is why “there will never be a two-state solution.”
“That’s not the goal, never has been,” Beck concluded. “Until the region is fully under Arab control, the fighting will never, ever, ever stop. There is no easy solution. I don’t know how you turn the cycle of violence around. But the first thing you have to do is put facts in place. You have to start with the truth.”
100 years of the Sykes Picot treaty in 100 seconds
100 year agreement and Trump was elected on 100 years of the agreement
Indian Independence from Britain has created this problem after 60+ years. Decolonization has opened the old wounds in the middle east and it is so essential for the west to recreate new borders. ISIS may never stop and it needs special treatment.
Ignore the author but look at the information given
This video explains why Trump got elected.
US is a card in the global game.
China is to be setup as the leader of the new world order
Last edited by svinayak on 26 Jan 2017 10:44, edited 1 time in total.
CPEC is key for India
CPEC is freedom to India and India can play a longer game
devesh
Postby devesh » 26 Jan 2017 21:33
svinayak wrote: CPEC is key for India
What? How?
Devesh Listen to the Glen Beck presentation again and think it over.
devesh wrote: What? How?
See the Beck video. See the Sykes Picot treaty video
It is all about geography.
America changing course will help India
India has to take some of the land based connectivity and region under its belt.
India has to coopt China so that China become a partner for India
The man who was mainly responsible for the end of the Cold War,warns about a new "hot "one in the near future.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world ... 48646.html
Mikhail Gorbachev says 'it looks like the world is preparing for war'
Soviet Union's final leader says Nato and Russian forces at 'point blank' range
Peter Walker @petejohn_walker 23 hours ago
Mikhail Gorbachev, pictured speaking during a ceremony to hand over three Russian paintings, talked of the nuclear disarmament of the 1980s
Mikhail Gorbachev has urged Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump to strongly denounce nuclear war in the face of the “militarisation of politics and the new arms race”.
The 85-year-old, who was the eighth and final leader of the Soviet Union and its Communist Party, said he believed it looked "as if the world is preparing for war”.
The Cold War-era politician responsible for glasnost made the comments in a piece for Time magazine ahead of Theresa May’s first meeting with Mr Trump today.
Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev at their landmark summit in November 1985 (AFP/Getty)
“The world today is overwhelmed with problems. Policymakers seem to be confused and at a loss,” he begins.
“But no problem is more urgent today than the militarisation of politics and the new arms race. Stopping and reversing this ruinous race must be our top priority.
“The current situation is too dangerous.”
Donald Trump says receiving nuclear codes was a 'sobering moment'
The Russian-Ukrainian describes how troops, tanks and armoured personnel carriers are being brought to Europe.
He also writes about how Nato and Russian forces and weapons, once deployed at a distance, are now at “point-blank” range to one another.
Mr Gorbachev also called for a repeat of the November 1985 summit between he and Ronald Reagan in Geneva, which concluded that "nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought".
According to a BBC article, in September 2016, the US had 1,367 strategic nuclear warheads, Russia had 1,796 and the UK had 120.
“I think the initiative to adopt such a resolution should come from Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin – the Presidents of two nations that hold over 90 per cent of the world’s nuclear arsenals and therefore bear a special responsibility,” he said, before quoting President Franklin D Roosevelt.
Theresa May speech to Republicans: 'Beware of Vladimir Putin'
“The time to decide and act is now.”
Mr Gorbachev’s comments follow two US congressmen submitting a bill restricting Mr Trump’s ability to launch a first nuclear strike, and details of a failed UK nuclear test.
Unconfirmed reports also say China has moved long-range missiles to the Russian border
The frequently vocal critic, once a sceptic of Boris Yeltsin’s presidency, also said state budgets were struggling to fund people’s essential social needs, but that military spending is growing.
He talks of submarines whose “single salvo” is capable of devastating half a continent.
“Politicians and military leaders sound increasingly belligerent and defence doctrines more dangerous,” said Mr Gorbachev.
“Commentators and TV personalities are joining the bellicose chorus. It all looks as if the world is preparing for war.”
Mr Gorbachev, who is credited with aiding the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the Cold War, played a part in nuclear disarmament in the 1980s.
Eighty per cent of nuclear weapons accumulated during the Cold War years have apparently been decommissioned and destroyed.
New York protests against Iran nuclear deal
Neshant
Postby Neshant » 28 Jan 2017 15:59
..Understand What’s Driving the Islamic State
US + Saudi Arabia is what is funding Islamic state.
Which is also the reason why you won't find the financiers these terrorists ever being caught.
Postby shyam » 29 Jan 2017 14:00
GB tells half truths, and some times covers up to mislead you. If you knew the point what he says, you can easily catch it. For example, he projects Soros as a very powerful person but doesn't clearly say why. When Trump was taking Soros head on, GB went against Trump and is now a loser.
NRao
Location: Illini Nation
Postby NRao » 29 Jan 2017 14:11
China Moves Nuclear Missiles to Russian Border
From The Moscow Times
The USA and the Saudi led Sunni "club" thought that a second attempt at marshalling Islamist forces to be used against Assad and the Shiites in the region,would work better than the Al Q experiment with OBL. The blowback they received from that resulted in the horrendous attacks on the US of 9/11.which further fuelled the recruitment drive of the ungodly.Unfortunately,ISIS has proven to be even more toxic than Al Q in its barbaric and diabolic deeds. The fundamentalist and extremist cancer is within Islamic society in the Arab world itself and unless that entity meets it head on,as being attempted in Egypt with the MB,it will devour other nations beyond the ME as it is attempting to do so in Europe.
Ridiculously,NATO is trying to reinvent the Cold War and instead of fighting the Islamist foe ISIS (which it fears?),wants to rant and rave ,sabre rattle,run up huge expenditure with a ready-made propaganda masterplan available from the past,that Western establishments are
familiar with,making Putin the arch-enemy and Russia the bogey-man yet again.It's why the Zero-peons are so dismayed at the Trumpeting from the White House's new resident about the obsolescence of NATO and his warming up to Putin.
NATO-wallahs ,ancient enemies face off on the high seas.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/ ... aegean-sea
Greek and Turkish warships in standoff in Aegean sea
Incident comes amid fresh tension between the countries, after Greek court blocked extradition of Turkish army officers over failed July coup
A Turkish naval vessel near the Bodrum peninsula in 2016. The weekend saw a tense standoff between Turkish and Greek forces near a group of disputed Greek islets in the Aegean.
Greek and Turkish warships were involved Sunday in a brief faceoff near a group of disputed Greek islets in the Aegean, coinciding with renewed tensions between Athens and Ankara.
The Greek defence ministry said a Turkish navy missile boat, “along with two special forces rafts”, entered Greek territorial waters near the Imia islets.
Greek court turns down extradition request for eight Turkish officers
Located just off the Turkish coast and claimed by Ankara, the uninhabited rocky islets are a historic flashpoint in a long-running demarcation dispute.
Greek coastguard vessels and a navy gunboat shadowed the Turkish group, notifying them of the violation, and the Turks left the area after about seven minutes, the defence ministry said.
In Turkey, the local media initially reported that the Turkish warship – with Chief of Staff General Hulusi Akar onboard – was blocked by Greece from approaching the islets.
The private Dogan news agency reported that there were “tense moments” for half an hour before the Turkish ship returned to the Turkish peninsula of Bodrum.
But Turkish armed forces, quoted by the state-run news agency Anadolu, denied that the ship had been blocked, and said a small Greek coastguard vessel had watched from afar. It added that General Akar was onboard the ship to “review and inspect” Turkish vessels in the Aegean.
The Imia islets – called Kardak in Turkey – lie just seven kilometres from Bodrum.
A row over their sovereignty islets flared in January 1996, when the two countries sent marines to two neighbouring islands in a sign of an imminent armed confrontation.
They then withdrew their troops after heavy diplomatic pressure by the United States, a fellow member of Nato.
Sunday’s incident comes amid fresh tension between the two countries, after the Greek supreme court on Thursday blocked the extradition of eight former army officers who had fled to Greece after the failed 15 July coup. Turkey criticised the ruling as “political” and threatened to scrap a “readmission agreement” under which Turkey has been taking in migrants landing illegally in Greece.
Postby Neshant » 02 Feb 2017 11:22
Gadaffi ended up dead for extending the hand of friendship to Europe and his country's wealth stolen.
Bhurishravas
Postby Bhurishravas » 03 Feb 2017 16:53
Tillerson also said that China's island-building activities were illegal, adding that "building islands and putting military assets on those islands is akin to Russia's taking of Crimea."
Isnt this a classic stupid statement to make.
In one line he has pushed Russia and China to make an alliance against himself.
chanakyaa
Location: Hiding in Karakoram
Postby chanakyaa » 05 Feb 2017 03:31
Security may undermine Trump’s debt plans
As we entered the new year, all indications pointed to a remaking of the global order. Donald Trump was inaugurated as President of the United States, Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a defense of globalization at Davos, and far-right leaders such as Marine Le Pen and Geert Wilders held an "alternative European summit" in the German city of Koblenz.
Trump and his populist allies in Europe have denounced globalization, while Xi now stands as its principal defender. But Trump's message, in particular, is conflicted: pursuing strictly national economic interests may require less international cooperation, but bolstering security requires more.
The nationalist thrust of Trump's inaugural address echoed the isolationism championed by the racist aviator Charles Lindbergh, who, as a spokesman for the America First Committee, lobbied to keep the US out of World War II. And now Trump, blaming previous US leaders for the economic hardships confronting many Americans, has renounced the country's historical role in creating and sustaining the post-war order. While his objection to "global America" is not new, hearing it from a US president certainly is.
Trump's vision is centered on the politics of debt. Having overseen a large debt-financed real-estate business, his intuition is that debt renegotiation can be used to win back for America what "other countries" have supposedly taken from it. He has focused on China and Germany, because they maintain large bilateral trade surpluses with the US - totaling $366 billion and $74 billion, respectively, in 2015. Just before the inauguration, he suggested that he might impose high tariffs on imported German cars, singling out BMW with particular relish.
With their accumulated current-account surpluses, both countries have built up large claims on the US, in the form of government debt for China and a wide variety of securitized assets for Germany. While China's foreign reserves are now falling, Germany's are rising. But, in both cases, immediately eliminating America's bilateral deficits would simply make Americans poorer. It would be no different than if Greece suddenly eliminated its large deficits with the rest of Europe.
In the past, US policymakers have tried to spur domestic job creation by getting the surplus countries to run budget deficits or loosen their monetary policy, so that they could grow faster and buy more American goods. Former US Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan took this tack in the late 1970s and 1980s, and President Barack Obama did so again in the middle of the euro crisis that began in 2009.
This is the classic form of adjustment in the international economic system, and past US administrations pursued this method by applying bilateral pressure, and by working through international institutions such as the G7 and the International Monetary Fund. But these negotiations have always had rather mixed outcomes. Inevitably, neither side is satisfied, and the process comes to be seen as flawed.
Trump thinks that this old process failed because the surplus countries cheated. There are two alternatives to the classical adjustment approach. The first, more plausible option is to strike bilateral deals. There are some historical precedents for this, such as when Japan, in the 1980s, "voluntarily" agreed to limit the number of cars it sold in the US. Consequently, Japan stopped selling cheap cars and quickly moved up the value chain.
Then there is a more radical alternative. Trump may pursue a nationalist version of what is typically a leftist demand: a debt jubilee or write-off.
British Prime Minister Theresa May's meeting with Trump in Washington, DC, on January 27, has stirred much excitement about a new security arrangement based on "Anglo-American capitalism." The old style of Anglo-American capitalism was built on manufacturing; but the new style rests on debt - particularly home ownership - to maintain consumption and high standards of living.
May's government could play a decisive role in the current international reordering. But while she has indicated that the UK will pursue a "hard Brexit" - a clean separation from the EU - she has also emphasized how important both the EU and NATO are to the European and global security framework.
If May can convince Trump that security is more important than a gamble on leveraged debt, she will have undermined a key part of his domestic strategy, while rescuing some of the old spirit of mutual defense. It's worth remembering that the only other US president to promote the phrase "America first" was Woodrow Wilson, who ended up trying to build an elaborate international system based on shared security and cooperation.
The old style of Anglo-American capitalism was built on manufacturing; but the new style rests on debt - particularly home ownership - to maintain consumption and high standards of living.
Doesn't make any sense to me.
Artificially increasing the value of housing has proved disastrous to these economies which are producing nothing other than banksters.
Who is coming up with these hare brained schemes?
Postby svinayak » 07 Feb 2017 13:52
Neshant wrote:
There is a secret to this debt based strategy, It is has to do with China
Around $700 B is supposed to enter US from China. This is supposed to take care of America for another 10-20 years.
OmkarC
Postby OmkarC » 07 Feb 2017 23:29
https://www.rt.com/business/376544-chin ... -pwc-2050/
By 2050, India's GDP at PPP expected to touch 44K, and surpass US.
vera_k
Postby vera_k » 07 Feb 2017 23:36
Far off in the future
Postby ramana » 03 Mar 2017 02:36
Samir Saran in TOI blog
Putin doesn't get 21st Century Geoconomics
Being Vladimir Putin: Russia’s president gets 20th century geopolitics, what he doesn’t get is 21st century geoeconomics
March 2, 2017, 2:00 am IST Samir Saran in TOI Edit Page | Edit Page, politics, World | TOI
In 2009 we witnessed a watershed moment for geoeconomics when the credit crisis, born in the United States, spread across the world. The integrated global economy temporarily tilted over the edge of the financial abyss before being pulled back by concerted collective action involving large economies around the world.
In 2016, we witnessed a backlash against this economic interconnectedness and the ideal of collective governance with a plethora of populist anti-globalisation movements leading to outcomes such as Brexit and the election of Trump. It is increasingly apparent that we are at the beginning of a new epoch, where global arrangements will be defined by various shades of nationalism, reassertion of state sovereignty, and multidimensional contests over territory, both real and virtual.
These developments also shaped the conversations at the recently concluded Munich Security Conference. Beyond the interest and noise around the Trump presidency, and the US approach to some of the global challenges, it was clear to most that President Putin was by far the most influential global leader on all matters security, something that three contemporary developments demonstrate emphatically.
Let’s start with West Asia. In less than 18 months, Russia has cleverly co-opted Turkey, firmly embraced Iran as a strategic partner and doubled down on its old ally Syria, bringing into its tent three diverging interests masterfully. In fact this alignment and the Russian relevance in this region stems from its understanding of how regional constellations of states and state-supported militias align. Guided by its partners, the US has faltered precisely on this aspect, erroneously programming itself into the Shia-Sunni schism, without realising that the nation-state still holds normative appeal in the region.
{This is the Arab Nationalism vs. Islamist Fundamentalism the latter was supported by USA since 1950s to forestall Soviet influence in Arab nation states. So that tis the long view. Miles Copeland in his book 'Game of Nations' writes that US practiced how to run a coup in Syria in the 1953!!!}
Second, Putin has managed to breach Fortress Nato by making Turkey pivot significantly towards Russia. Using President Erdoğan’s disillusionment with the Obama White House deftly, Putin has managed to drive a wedge between Nato and one of its oldest member states.
{I think Putin tipped of Erdogan about the Gulenist plot being run from US. hacking Podesta server might have given them this insight.}
And finally, Putin has turned the tables on the most powerful nation in the world, by using its own modus operandi against it – that of intervening in the domestic politics of other states. Through strategic leaks, Putin deftly placed his finger on the scale of the American elections, tipping them in favour of Trump.
In this age of renewed political gamesmanship, Putin is the only player who has retained a chess set from the 20th century. While others have long forgotten the craft of geopolitics, Putin continues to move pieces like a Grandmaster. But does he have an endgame?
And herein lies the rub. This most influential global political figure, a man who has formidable military and security capacities at his disposal, is an inconsequential economic actor with insignificant economic agency. Russia, a country with a military might rivalling that of the US, has a GDP smaller than that of Australia and is ranked only ahead of South Africa among the BRICS grouping that it helped create.
{Putin's Russia does not seek economic dominance. It has enough economy to suatain its military and security capabilities. And it has chokehold on Western Europe energy supplies. So saying Russia has no economic cards is a brutus fulmen}
For all the accumulation of power and orchestration of geopolitics, Putin’s tactics are not going to fill Russia’s treasury. While 20th century realpolitik may be useful in 2017, Putin is also handicapped because he continues to view economics through a 20th century prism. Russia’s fixation with large transcontinental connectivity projects has led it to support China’s New Silk Road.
{Chanakaya niti says prepare cards when you don't have them. Putin's card is to support China's connectivity to Europe. It goes through Russia's near abroad. it restores the great land route of Marco Polo which got upended by the voyages of discovery by Columbus and Vasco Da Gama. Russia has no warm water port. The tsars launched the Great Game for that which ended with the Soviet Union.}
Without any significant expansion in Russia’s industrial and manufacturing economy, the country is fast being reduced to a political guarantor for Chinese economic expansion or a policeman for China’s property. And what of the future? In a world where 3D printing may become de rigueur, the transportation of millions of tonnes of manufacturing goods could be a dying reality.
{Really. Do you know 3D printing limitations? Its not viable for daily products. 3D printing using high strength alloys will be sueful for aerospace goods only. Besides if 3-D printing makes off shore mfg redundant then it affects the trading nations more than a protector nation.}
Connectivity in this century is not simply about roads and railways, but also about bits and bytes and hearts and minds. It is the networks – knowledge, digital, social – that transfer and transmit value in the new world order. Economic growth in the 21st century requires digital hubs, clusters of start-ups and liberal regulatory confines where young minds working with technology can push society forward.
The reality is that 20th century economic projects that Russia is undertaking benefit China, and 21st century economic projects in Russia suffer from the absence of a requisite ecosystem. This has led to a certain fragility in the global governance architecture.
{I]{By your own analysis Russia is a bit player in the global economy. So where did this global governance suddenly pop up?}[/I]
I have argued before that the asymmetry between Russia’s military potency and its economic state is dangerous. China, with its $11 trillion GDP, has significant destructive and disruptive capability as well. The stakes that it holds in the global economy, however, ensure that it will never destabilise global systems because it stands to gain from them. Russia does not have sizeable economic stakes in these systems and therefore only its political capability motivates its actions. This is being Vladimir Putin.
{Bokwas. China can and will disrupt as it needs to. Russia does not have the wherewithal. This article is unnecessary swipe at Russia from India.}
US efforts to “isolate” Moscow through sanctions have not only failed but also proved to be counterproductive. They have reduced Russia’s skin in the global economic game, allowing Putin to engage in exactly the same conduct that sanctions seek to deter. Washington DC must focus on cultivating a sense of ownership (and consequently, the fear of loss) in Russia towards economic and trading regimes.
{So this article is really advice to Trump? And nice job using Taleb's skin in the game analogy. If your advice is to USA why did you write about Putin's Russia in the title!!!!}
But this is easier said than done and ironically it is Donald Trump, derided for his lack of diplomatic acumen, who is proving himself to be astute in this matter by reaching out to arguably the most influential man in the world – Vladimir Putin.
{Please make up you mind. Can't serve two masters}
The writer is Vice-President Observer Research Foundation
Postby Neshant » 04 Mar 2017 22:57
Another threat emerging to the south.
How long before China has a Wahabi friendly naval base to the south.
Postby amritk » 06 Mar 2017 01:07
When are we going to buy something? Like the CHT.
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Jardim Gulbenkian
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Built in the sixties, a project by landscape architects António Viana Barreto and Gonçalo Ribeiro Telles, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation’s garden is one of the most iconic modern gardens in Portugal and a prime example of Portuguese landscape architecture.
Its design, based on subtle geometry, gives us a sense of peace and space instead of a rigid structure of paths and flower beds; along with the use of vegetation, it breaks free from global trends of that era. Instead it celebrates the Portuguese landscape and the true Portuguese garden. The reproduction of Portuguese landscape ecological codes, the mixture and location of the plant species, the dialogue between the edges and glades, the construction of the space with the Mediterranean light and trees canopy create “micro-landscapes” that are familiar, not only to us, humans, but to the all wildlife that the garden attracts.
This way of working the place, ruled by the landscape codes, is a strong characteristic of the school of Portuguese landscaping, itself influenced by the Germanic style. This garden is the perfect epitome of this school.
The farming property in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The place where the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation stands today, in the centre of Lisbon, was one of the entrances to the city in the 18th century.
The Quinta do Provedor dos Armazéns, as it was known, belonging to Fernando Larre, was a recreational farm similar to many others found on the outskirts of the main Portuguese cities, consisting of a building, garden, orchard, vegetable garden, vineyard and cereal fields.
The trapezoidal structure that today we identify as being the Foundation’s garden, was already visible on 19th century maps. Defined by the Palhavã and Rego roads, it was located at the far end of the Estrada de S. Sebastião. This was the limit of Lisbon’s administrative area, made up of a ring of recreational farms that marked the transition between the urban area and a landscape of vegetable gardens, orchards, olive groves, cereal fields and oak forests.
The garden’s design is unique in the context of modern garden design due to the cultural narratives that the vegetation represents. It is based on the Portuguese vernacular landscape from an ecological and cultural perspective, which creates “micro-landscapes” that are familiar not just to humans but to the wildlife that populates it.
In 1861, the palace and farm were acquired by Maria Eugénio de Almeida, Peer of the Realm and State Advisor, a purchase which would result in a huge transformation of the space. The recreational farm, with its 18th century Palace, would give way to an enormous landscaped garden where a new, neoclassical palace was built. The owner’s choices reflect the profound changes that were underway in Portugal at the time, with the advent of a liberal monarchy that viewed Europe as a symbol of progress and civilisation.
José Maria Eugénio invited Cinatti, an architect and set designer, to build his palace’s stables. The Parque de Santa Gertrudes (Saint Gertrude Park), baptised with this name in homage to his mother, was constructed by Jacob Weiss, a Swiss gardener trained in the French school of garden design.
The works began in 1866 and were completed in 1870. A lake was built in the middle of the park, becoming a central point from where a walkway led to the Palace’s entrance. The whole area was densely covered by native and exotic vegetation. According to original prints and stories of that time, small boats, aquatic birds and a small rocky island were to be found on the lake. Next to it was a bandstand where concerts took place every week. The exuberant vegetation clearly underlining the noble relationship between the lake and palace.
In 1883, Eugénio de Almeida’s widow, D. Maria das Dores Pinto, ceded the Parque de Santa Gertrudes to the Jardim Zoológico e de Aclimatação de Lisboa (the Lisbon Zoo and Acclimatization Garden) which remained installed here for 10 years. This was a new phase in its history: the park firmly established itself as the social hub of daily life in Lisbon and Portugal, a fact that remains true today.
The Park in the 20th century
Many early 20th century photos of the Palhavã racing track and hippodrome can be found today in Lisbon’s municipal photography archives. Unrecognisable in these photos, the Parque de Santa Gertrudes was the protagonist of these events. Its original structure had remained practically untouched when a racing track and grandstand were built at the site of what is today the Avenida de Berna. The racing track and hippodrome also provided an ideal and timeless venue for meeting up with friends.
Whilst all these changes took place, the Lisbon Improvement and Urbanization Plan was underway. During the process of land exchanges with the Lisbon City Hall, to accommodate the new design of the Berna and António Augusto de Aguiar Avenues, a 1917 document reveals that the owner, Carlos Maria Eugénio de Almeida, planned to transform the park into a private condominium, probably Portugal’s first. However, this proposal which was approved by the City Hall, never materialized.
In1943, the Feira Popular de Lisboa (Lisbon Fairground) was installed in the Parque de Santa Gertrudes, similar to many other fairgrounds that were built across Europe in the 19th century. For 14 years this was the venue for the liveliest summer nights, never to be forgotten by the people of Lisbon. Entertainment, gastronomy, arts and crafts, political life, theatre, music, dance, shops and industry all came together here.
Despite this intense journey through the various facets of Lisbon social life, “the the landscaped park designed by Jacob Weiss – the Swiss gardener hired by Eugénio de Almeida in 1866 – remained when the board of directors of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation decided to acquire part of it to fulfil the wish of its founder”. (Carapinha, A.2006)
The Calouste Gulbenkian Park (the sixties)
In 1957, the Parque de Santa Gertrudes was acquired by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and the following year the Management, Projects and Works and Fine Arts services as well as the Foundation’s Museum, made it their home.
Between January 1958 and the inauguration of the Foundation’s headquarters and museum in 1969, these services were carried out in provisional premises near the Avenida de Berna.
Also in 1958, landscape architects Gonçalo Ribeiro Telles and Manuel de Azevedo Coutinho were contacted to develop, respectively, the Provisional Premises’ Garden Project, and a study on the maintenance and conservation of Palhavã Park, which had been badly damaged by intensive use in previous years. This study gave rise to a report in which an initial evaluation of the tree crown cover was carried out which proposed conservation and regeneration measure for all of the Park’s plant cover.
This was followed by the creation of a team of gardeners and infrastructures for the removal of debris, improvement of soil conditions, clearing and maintenance of the vegetation, successive planting of grass, shrubs and trees for the reshaping of the vegetation’s matrix structure, all of this whilst the landscape architectural project was being elaborated.
The character of this park was of major importance in the design of the Foundation’s Headquarters and Museum. In this regard, the Programme for the Headquarters and Museum Facilities states that: “The Parque de Santa Gertrudes, duly restored to its original, lush prime, will be one of the public spaces of greatest interest in Lisbon; a privileged place that will certainly attract the population and will provide the Foundation with opportunities for greater dissemination of its cultural activities. (…) the size of the Park, as well as the crucial urban role that it has played as one of the lungs of the city of Lisbon, conditions the use of the land, in order to obtain the maximum possible release.
The works that began in 1963 were completed in 1969. During these years, the Projects and Works Services, managed by a large team of engineers, designers and architects of the garden and buildings, developed interdisciplinary project solutions that responded to the countless issues that naturally arose in a project on such a scale.
It is important to note the construction techniques used for the building and garden which were very much ahead of the times and a result of this interaction, such as the drainage and water-capture solutions; the lake’s construction system, crossed underground by the building, the creation of an artificial humid ecosystem on its margins, the planting techniques and the protection of the trees, among olthers.
The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation’s Garden Today
Photographs dating back to the sixties show a very different garden to what it is today – large grassy clearings together with young vegetation and some trees that were inherited from the 19th century park. We can also recognise the impressive eucalyptus trees that somehow defined the original plan of the building, the peppercorn trees on the lakeside, the design of the lake and its margins as well as the polygonal amphitheatre. Everything else has changed in the past 50 years, changing in terms of physiognomy but not character. In 1975 the Garden had suffered severe degradation and was recovered by landscape architect António Viana Barreto, resisting the death of the Elm forest (by Dutch elm disease) and the destruction of its most beautiful views by the construction of the CAM (Modern Art Center) building.
The Garden was definitively transformed and the vegetation evolved into a dense and heterogeneous forest, interrupted by small clearings and enclosing the lake within its interior, evoking a paradise archetype. The maturing of the garden was also a principal aim behind the project’s design and the revelation of the “privileged place” in Lisbon, predicted by the Projects and Works Services in 1958.
The Garden we find today, leafy, enveloping and full of surprising nooks, is the result of a very strong connection between Man and Nature. In this case, it is a unique situation, whereby the authors of the original project will continue to intervene, over time, taking advantage of the growth of vegetation and adapting the garden to fit within our modern times.
The 2000 Rehabilitation Project
In 2000, Gonçalo Ribeiro Telles was invited to carry out a new garden rehabilitation project which began in 2002, ending ten years later. The proposal by landscape architect Ribeiro Telles was based on the strong interaction with the garden’s maturation process, by controlling the negative aspects of aging on the one hand and, on the other hand, integrating the most interesting aspects and places that the natural growth of the vegetation had created.
“Maintaining the structure, conceptual framework and genetic spatiality, Gonçalo Ribeiro Telles proposes a set of interventions of an aesthetic and ecological order that also seek to nullify some entropy outside the life of the Garden and that, in a way, have distorted the original concept . (…) the protective border is consolidated, views are reinforced, areas of meadow and lawn are redefined, the pathway system is enlarged, aiming to reveal the untapped spaces that nature had designed. Sometimes they emerge according to the perfect atmosphere, at other times they exhibit unexpected gems that offer themselves as new gardens that erupt in the garden. “(Carapinha, A. 2006)
A major cleaning and thinning operation, of the vegetation, was carried out, opening new paths and areas of enjoyment in previously inaccessible areas.
The closing and shaping of borders were carried out using shrub species such as Murta, Folhado, Buxo and other species of Portuguese flora that have been in this garden since its initial conception, many of which have been reproduced in the Foundation’s nurseries, safeguarding their genetic heritage.
The last phase to be completed was phase 4, with the paving of trails and construction of a small area for relaxing on the lake’s south bank. It is an area right by the water mirror, where an exception was made to the two different types of margins existing on the lake. The long bench represents the supporting wall that previously defined its margins, and the pebble surface, which establishes the altitude from the lakebed, replaces the vegetation previously surrounding the lake.
After all this work “on the lushness of its vegetation”, which is surprising and very relaxing, the garden is populated in all its corners, full of planned and spontaneous events, a place to take a break where we can all feel “at home”.
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Friends, rights activists celebrate accomplishments of Fartuun Adan
Fartuun Adan is recipient of a 2013 International Women of Courage Award from the U.S. Department of State and City for All Women Initiative.
BY DEREK SPALDING, OTTAWA CITIZEN
OTTAWA — Fartuun Adan will always call Ottawa home. It’s here that she took refuge in 1999, fleeing war-torn Somalia several years after her husband Elman Ali Ahmed, a well-known human rights activist, was assassinated.
She and her three daughters settled in Ottawa and it didn’t take long before Adan continued her work as an activist, often thinking of the atrocities her fellow women face back in Somalia. Over the next seven years she would eventually return home several times on her own human-rights missions and eventually made an official return in 2007.
That’s when she returned to Elman Peace and Human Rights Centre, the NGO her late husband started in 1991 and the organization they both operated before he was killed. She also co-founded Sister Somalia, a group that helps women who suffer from gender abuse.
Six years later, Adan’s work has saved hundreds of women, girls and boys. The results were so profound, she earned the distinguished honour of receiving an International Women of Courage Award from the U.S. Department of State earlier this month.
But at City Hall in front of friends and fellow human rights activists who celebrated her accomplishments Tuesday night, Adan shared stories about her return to Somalia and the reasons why she went back.
“I could have stayed in Ottawa. It’s safe, but chose to go back and do the work,” she said. “I know it’s a risk, but ... we need change. We need a government and we need a rule of law.”
Tuesday’s event was put on by the City for All Women Initiative, an organization that promotes inclusive communities and gender equality. Adan joined the group while living in Ottawa. Listening to talks and sharing ideas, helped pave the way for her return to Somalia.
“I’ve always been an activist, but I was always quiet. This group helped me speak out and gave me confidence,” she said in an interview.
She’s come a long way. Adan is now the executive director of the Elman Peace and Human Rights Centre, fighting for equality among all people of Somalia. And her work with Sister Somalia is gaining more and more international attention.
Adan has been hailed as a saviour for hundreds of young Somali women, many of them victims of rape. She has also pulled hundreds of child soldiers from their war-entrenched lives and pushed them into schools.
A City Hall council lounge packed with about 30 people watched the video clip of Adan receiving her award from U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. They watched a slide show of photos. The bright shining smiles illustrate the work Adan has done over the years.
twitter.com/Derek_Spalding
Somali family wants answers after son vanishes, reappears in U.S. custody - CNN
Somali President attends his first Arab League Summit - AfricaReview
Kentucky welcomes Somali refugees - Disciples News Service
Asylum applications rising - The Copenhagen Post
Unreported acts of piracy distort overall figures - experts - defenceWeb
Islamic terrorist's treatment exposes Obama 'rendition' hypocrisy, critics say - Examiner
Fahd receives Somalia, Comoros President - Oman Daily Observer
In Somalia, relative peace belies rocky road ahead - IRIN
Somali Provincial Leaders Fear Wider Ethiopian Pull-Out - Sabahi Online
Sierra Leone troops all set for Somalia mission - Africa Review
Somalia: Protect Displaced People at Risk - Human Rights Watch
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Tag Archives: Al Arabiya
Human Rights, Islam, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: First female lawyer’s office opens
January 2, 2014 sooth·say·er
Saudi female lawyer Bayan Alzahran said female lawyers in Saudi Arabia can represent both men and women. (Al Arabiya)
Al Arabiya News
Bayan Alzahran has opened the first female lawyer’s office in Saudi Arabia, Al Arabiya News Channel reported on Thursday, two months after she and three other women were granted licenses to practice the profession in the kingdom.
“Our activity is not restricted to cases involving only women. Saudi Arabia’s lawyer system treats men and women equally and a lawyer has the right to represent men and women,” Alzahran told Al Arabiya News Channel.
“My office currently has taken several cases involving both individuals and companies,” she said.
“This step came thanks to the support of King Abdullah and we as lawyers and women of this country constantly seek to develop ourselves in what’s good for Saudi women,” she added.
‘Beautiful’ Step
Alzahran described the social reaction to her move to open an office as “beautiful.”
“I received hundreds of congratulations on my Twitter page. All the reactions have been positive since we received the licenses on Oct. 6,” she said.
“There is also an approval inside courts, on the part of judges and employees,” she added.
In a previous interview with Al Arabiya News Channel, Alzahran said: “The license is one of our rights and we did not get it until the systemic conditions were applied as set in Article 3 of the legal system.”
She pointed out that license will enable female lawyers to be recognized in the registrar of practicing lawyers.
Alzahran obtained the license after demanding stages and training for three years as a consultant in one of the legal accredited and certified institutions.
She firstly began working around domestic violence and then headed to the issues of financial and criminal prisoners.
Al ArabiyaIslamSaudi Arabia
What if Iran’s supreme leader dies?
November 3, 2013 sooth·say·er 1 Comment
An Iranian observer commented on the absence of Iran’s supreme leader from the public eye saying: “We are not receiving good news about the health of our leader who did not address the people and guests on the day of al-Ghadir… Pray for him.”
The abundance of personal rumors made us used to not believing them and the absence of the supreme leader for 20 days and from two occasions does not mean much. But, despite the weak account of the Iranian regime leader’s health, the question about what might happen after him poses itself forcibly: If the supreme leader died tonight, would Iran change its foreign policy?
The Iranian regime is collective, not like the regime of the late Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser for example. Nasser’s death led to a change in Egypt’s polices during the reign of his successor, Anwar Sadat. In single-ruler regimes the successor often revolts against his predecessor’s policies.
Regional experiences
For instance in Syria, when Bashar al-Assad succeeded his father, Syria’s policy changed in many ways. Syria reached a deadlock after the death of Bashar’s father, Hafez, who realized that belonging to a small religious sect (the Allawites) required him to engage in a complex balance of power. When he died, his son Bashar worked on changing the equation and enrolled in the service of the Iranian regime within a full-fledged alliance. He had the courage to assassinate senior figures in Syria, and then Lebanon, and supported terrorism activities in Iraq for years. He then resorted to violence against those who revolted against him.
Back to Iran
Would the death of the supreme leader – the man who has the final say in all state matters– change Iran’s policy for the better or worse? Unfortunately, it will likely be for the worse. All those who are rushing to succeed the supreme leader are more revolutionary than he is, especially with the growing role of the Revolutionary Guards in the state administration and public life. The Revolutionary Guards are running battles in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Bahrain, Yemen and Gaza.
A positive figure like Hashemi Rafsanjani has no luck in leading Iran. Rafsanjani ended up isolated and marginalized, even though he helped Ali Khamenei become the supreme leader. However, Khamenei turned against him and isolated him and imprisoned his children. Today, extremists are in control of the key decision-making positions in the Iranian government. Additionally, they have the support of the Revolutionary Guards. Most of Iran’s historical and moderate figures, who could have led the country towards peace and stability and work on the development and establishment of regional and international relations, such as Mehdi Karroubi and Mir Hussein Mousavi, have been alienated.
After 30 years of political extremism in Tehran, We hope we would be able catch a glimpse of light in the future of Iran and the Iranian leadership, but we are yet to see the light. These are not only our aspirations, but also the desires of the Iranian people who suffer every day, becoming among the poorest and most miserable, after they once were among the most successful people in the Middle East.
Iran’s regime today is an extremist institution in its reticence and espouses policies similar to Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq, Qaddafi’s Libya, Assad’s Syria and Kim Jong-un’s North Korea. We do not know what will happen tomorrow if Khamenei disappears from Iran’s political scene.
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2013/11/02/What-if-Iran-s-supreme-leader-dies-.html
This article was first published in al-Sharq al-Awsat on Nov. 2, 2013.
Abdulrahman al-Rashed is the General Manager of Al Arabiya News Channel. A veteran and internationally acclaimed journalist, he is a former editor-in-chief of the London-based leading Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat, where he still regularly writes a political column. He has also served as the editor of Asharq al-Awsat’s sister publication, al-Majalla. Throughout his career, Rashed has interviewed several world leaders, with his articles garnering worldwide recognition, and he has successfully led Al Arabiya to the highly regarded, thriving and influential position it is in today.
Al ArabiyaAli KhameneiArmy of the Guardians of the Islamic RevolutionAsharq Al-AwsatBashar al-AssadGamal Abdel NasserIranSyria
Saudi Arabia, UN, United Nations Securiy Council, UNSC
Saudi Arabia wins Security Council seat for the first time
October 18, 2013 sooth·say·er 2 Comments
Saudi Arabia has won a seat as a non-permanent member in the U.N. Security council for the first time on Thursday. (File photo: AFP)
For the first time, Saudi Arabia on Thursday has won a seat as a non-permanent member in the U.N. Security Council, Al Arabiya reported.
Saudi Arabia has joined Chad, Chile, Lithuania and Nigeria who took seats in an election. The five new non-permanent members will be replacing Azerbaijan, Guatemala, Morocco, Pakistan and Togo on the 15-member council on January 1 and for the upcoming two years.
While the new five countries were elected unopposed, they still needed approval from two-thirds of the General Assembly to secure their seats.
Al-Riyadh newspaper’s Editor-in-chief, Yusuf al-Kuwailet, told Al Arabiya that Saudi Arabia’s interfaith dialogue initiative has helped the kingdom to win the seat.
In 2011, Saudi Arabia founded the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue, a non-profit and non-governmental organization in Vienna.
Saudi Arabia winning the seat will double kingdom’s responsibility towards regional issues especially when it comes to the Syrian conflict, Kuwailet added.
He emphasized that the kingdom will not change its policies towards Syria.
The Security Council’s five permanent members, which hold veto power, are the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China.
(With AFP and Reuters)
Al ArabiyaAl-RiyadhChadNigeriaSaudi ArabiaSyriaUnited Nations Security CouncilUnited States
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You are here: Home / Conferences / 2018: Powerful Communities
Giving Northwest communities more power
Are solar panels the answer to your household’s energy demand? Could communities get together and get a stake in a wind farm? Is biomass really an option for households? What grants are available?
All those questions, and more, have been answered at the Powerful Communities Conference, held on 15th June in IT Sligo. The conference was hosted by GEAI (Leitrim) and IT Sligo. The speakers had included Aedín McLoughlin, GEAI; Mel Gavin, I.T. Sligo; Francesca Franzetti, GEAI; Leslie O’Hora, GEAI (substitute for Michael McCarthy, Irish Solar Energy Association); Pauline Leonard, Western Development Commission; Paul Kenny, Tipperary Energy Agency; Ruth Buggie, SEAI and Seamus Dunbar, North Leitrim SEC.
The full programme is available here.
Conference presentations are available here.
The event ended with a World Café style discussion of the way forward for communities and the region. Below you can read the results of the round-tables where six different themes were discussed.
Round-tables outcomes
All communities become powerful
A community is powerful when community and politics are closely connected and in continuous dialogue. What is hoped for is a virtuous circle where politics through laws and institutions supports the choices of the community, and together they benefit from the results obtained. Shared choices can be driven by the PPNs, through which communities can enjoy greater decision-making power. It is necessary to imagine the possible future scenarios, the challenges and the changes that we hope will happen. The focus is on future generations. We need to ask not only for economic and administrative support, but above all educational support. We need to start thinking about new ways of involving children, young people and parents – e.g. through creative visualization and gamification techniques – to create awareness and think about tomorrow.
Local forestry produces biomass
If we want to increase forestry and the use of biomass energy, it is necessary for people to be able to make decisions at a local level and participate in any choice. There should be better linkages between NDP (National Development Plan) and CDP (Community Development Programme) – at national and local levels – and also involve IFA, Macra and Hill Farmers Associations in the decision-making process. Forestry is excellent for CO2 absorption, but we must also think about its impact on the territory and the relationship with the space dedicated to agriculture. In general it is good that local communities can choose, as for example regarding the proposal to increase forestry from the current 11% to 20%. Thinking about what is right for us, we can have a look at models like the Finnish one.
Electric transport becomes norm
The future of transport is in renewable energy. What we hope for is prices reduction and a total transformation of transport at local and national level. On the one hand we must try to increase good practices such as car sharing (even if sometimes it was not so effective). On the other hand, public transport can lead the way to the conversion to sustainable transport. – In this case we can also consider alternatives like hydrogen. However, it is good to think broadly, create a smart and uniform system with all the necessary infrastructure (e.g. more charging points for cars or electric bikes). Planning the future of transport it is good to take into account also the positive effects on health, economy and work.
High capacity powerful supply
A future of renewable energy requires to reconsider the grid. We cannot create an upgraded system without an appropriate infrastructure. It is obviously necessary to assess local needs for a high capacity line. To this end, public consultations must be organized with the support of local authorities, to understand risks and benefits, and at the same time avoid the Nimby effect among the population. It is good to reflect on possible impacts on health on the one hand, and on economic and labor level on the other. A first step could be to create an electric railway line, rerouting excess power from wind energy into it. Furthermore, one could think about exporting overseas energy, and look at models like the Australian virtual grid.
Every house has solar PV panels
If we consider it important to increase the use of solar panels, we need to think of collective actions: starting from energy audits, going to planning and designing with communities. Only in this way we can get the right technology in the right place at the right time. At this stage it is necessary to understand what is the best way to benefit from solar energy: to evaluate costs in terms of investment and return, and to assess reliability in terms of redundancy and energy maintenance. We need to invest locally and work together with communities, thinking together about future generations. Let’s begin to think about concrete examples and ask for possible incentives e.g. feed-in-tariffs.
Every village owns a wind turbine
The benefits of using wind turbines must be equitable among the whole community. For this purpose there are various issues to consider such as ownership models, siting considerations, the role of the grid, and then ancillary benefits such as work, possible funding and possible risks. It is necessary for communities and developers to work together and look for partnerships to develop projects. More opportunities for dialogue at local level are needed to increase the exchange of information between developers and community representatives, in order that every person be aware of the risks and benefits. We could even start thinking about small wind feed-in-tariffs.
Speakers profile
Aedín McLoughlin is the CEO and a founder member of Good Energies Alliance Ireland (GEAI). She studied Science in UCD and has a doctorate in Cancer Research from University of London. Her career includes teaching, business and project management, community development, and coordination of EU and Peace projects, as well as working as an independent consultant. She now coordinates the GEAI programme of work and is a GEAI representative on the Environmental Pillar. Aedín has been based in Leitrim since the late 90’s.
Mel Gavin is a Civil, Structural & Energy Engineer with over 14 years‘ experience in design and project management on a wide range of private and public projects including, sustainable buildings, wind farms, energy efficiency, product and process design, waste and resource efficiency – Water and Wastewater Treatment Plants. Mel is an enthusiast for energy transition in the North West and currently works as a Mentor and Technical Advisor on the SEAI Sustainable Energy Communities Programme.
Francesca Franzetti joined GEAI in September 2017, as EVS volunteer, driven by a very strong interest in research and advocacy for climate change and environmental issues. Her main roles within GEAI team include research of national and European climate and energy policies, advocacy and community engagement in Co. Leitrim through the Cool Planet Champion programme, supported by the Environmental Protection Agency. She holds an MSc. in Environmental Economics and Policy from University of Turin, Italy. Prior to joining GEAI, she interned at the Stockholm Environment Institute – Asia Centre in Bangkok.
Michael McCarthy is the CEO of the Irish Solar Energy Association. He was as an elected member of Cork County Council. He then was elected to Seanad Eireann, where he was appointed as the Labour spokesman for environment and for social protection. Michael was elected to Dàil Eireann as a member of the constituency of Cork South-West, and then he was appointed Chairman of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Environment by then Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore. He played a key role in the 2013 report of the Outline Heads of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill, which resulted in the Climate Change and Low Carbon Development Act.
Pauline Leonard is a Regional Development Executive and Project Coordinator with the Western Development Commission working on a number of EU funded projects, in the renewable energy sector. These include the GREBE, LECo and RE-Direct project, as well as developing and co-ordinating submissions for other EU project applications. Pauline also has managed renewable energy feasibility studies for towns in the WDC region. Prior to this, Pauline worked on the ROKWOOD and BioPAD projects.
Paul Kenny is the CEO of Tipperary Energy Agency. Paul’s key technical competencies are in the areas of wind, biomass and solar energy development, energy efficiency in domestic and commercial buildings and energy efficiency in the water industry. Paul is a consultant to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, the European Commission and other utilities. Paul spoke at the recent Citizens’ Assembly on climate change and is a strong advocate of greater action on the reduction in use of fossil fuels. Paul Authored the successful Sustainable Tipp application to the European Investment Bank’s ELENA program.
Ruth Buggie is the Sustainable Energy Communities and Smart Grid Programme Manager with SEAI. She is responsible for managing the SEAI Smart Grid programme with a focus on the development of Ireland’s Smart Grid Portal. She sits on the Board of Smart Grid Ireland and is the Executive Committee Member for Ireland of ISGAN. Ruth is also responsible for the development and deployment of the Sustainable Energy Communities programme to support the development of a community approach to energy and to stimulate a national move towards sustainable energy.
Seamus Dunbar in an artist living in Manorhamilton. He got involved with energy issues through the programme “Harnessing Creativity”, taking a creative approach to sustainability in North Leitrim. This lead to dialogue with like minded people, resulting in the founding of North Leitrim SEC. He won the Community Energy Champion award under the Get Involved Sustainable Community Initiative in 2016 and continues to work towards a sustainable economy in the North West.
At the end we asked participants to give us some feedback on the conference. Several people joined the conference and most of them gave positive feedback on the development of the North West area of Ireland and on a possible completely green future. Someone gave suggestions for carrying out the Powerful Communities project.
Below you can see some summary graphs.
What do you see as the future for the Northwest area?
Can you see young local people living and working in this area in the future?
I found today’s conference:
Today’s event gave me a better understanding of:
What is your opinion of the following statements?
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Bantu holomisa mandela relationship
Bantu Holomisa: The Game Changer - An Authorised Biography - Exclusive Books
UDM leader Bantu Holomisa (left) and Nelson Mandela. said over the years he and Mandela had developed a father-and-son relationship. Mandela, Bantu and the politics Because of the nature of their relationship, Holomisa, who is omnipresent 'Where is Bantu?' he would say. Major General (Retired) Bantubonke (Bantu) Harrington Holomisa was born Nelson Mandela, Thabo Mbeki, Cyril Ramaphosa, Winnie Mandela, the United States of America (USA); the Council on Foreign Relations, USA;.
However, during an interview at a restaurant in Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton, Holomisa conceded that convincing all opposition parties to work together in would be a difficult task given the tensions caused by the ructions in the Nelson Mandela Bay metro. When he was asked how a coalition would work, Holomisa struggled to hide his anger with the DA, which removed UDM councillor Mongameli Bobani as deputy mayor. If you won elections through a coalition, decisions must be taken through consensus.
There is no other way. No wonder the ANC has repeatedly tried to convince him to return "home". InNelson Mandela made a similar plea. I now have a small party called the UDM,'" Holomisa recalled, staring at the Mandela statue in front of us. Thabo Mbeki needs strong leaders like you. Going back to the ANC will be tantamount to selling them out. What if I mess up again and you expel me? Let's talk about co-operation. First he sent Makhenkesi Stofile, then Mosiuoa Lekota.
Both came back empty-handed. I never asked to join the ANC. The ANC sent a delegation to me. I said to them they must go to the soldiers. In the early s, Holomisa was one of the most popular leaders in the country and revered for collaborating with the liberation movements despite being a bantustan leader. He formed bonds with ANC leaders, especially Chris Hani, and made the Transkei a haven for MK combatants and activists while he presided over a homeland where he'd seized power in a coup.
Moreover, Chris would be running for president and I don't think that he would easily be defeated. The problem is that his successor, Charles Nqakula is a nice man but weak. As a matter of fact, Winnie Mandela could still be a strong contender for the presidency.
She is highly respected and if her name is put before the ANC congress in December I would guess that she can get elected either as a presidential or deputy presidential nominee if she wants to.
The women's league is far more significant than the youth league which supports Thabo. Who is sent to Northern Province to try to tell people there that they must not choose the leaders they want? Who was sent to the Free State to get rid of Patrick Lekota? Who was used to get rid of me? Who went around canvassing against Winnie and saying that people must support Mrs Zuma for the women's league?
People are upset with the likes of Tshwete, Kader Asmal and so on. I would not be surprised if there were trouble over this at the ANC Congress. Is there an Africanist point here too? To be frank, the minorities within the ANC are too powerful. Look at Kader Asmal on the one hand and Alec Erwin on the other. They were the key people that wanted me out. Asmal gave the key legal opinion against me and he also made a key recommendation against me on the national executive committee, while Alec Erwin recommended to the disciplinary committee that I be expelled from the ANC.
Alec also recommended at one stage that Harry Cwala should be expelled -he seems to like having people expelled from the ANC.
What you have to ask yourself is what is the constituency of such people and what is their record? Far too many of them were like Asmal -just activists in exile who played no real part in the struggle. Personally, I agree with those ANC guys who say that the minorities within the movement are too powerful. I wish them luck but t think that they have got a real struggle on their hands.
How Holomisa turned down Mandela, Mbeki and Zuma
It will not be settled quickly. You seem to have found it easy to get together with Roelf Meyer. Yes - and people like him. One thing you must realise is that it is those of us who were not in exile but who fought the struggle here who are more used to working with whites and we don't have bad relations with them. It is the exiles who are far more racially bitter against whites and who also don't know the issues on the ground.
If you want to see a truly successful politician, look at Patrick Lekota and how successful he was. He knew the issues on the ground and he knew what was necessary in the Free State was to win over the farmers and other conservative elements.
An exile would never have done that. So why have the exiles won the power struggle within the ANC? Well, because people saw them as the vanguard, and looked at them from afar as heroes. But it was the UDF people who were jailed and tear-gassed and maltreated, not the exiles.
As a matter of fact, it isn't really the exiles in general who have won, it's a particular set of exiles, those who were in Britain and Europe.
The exiles who were in Lusaka and the rest of Africa actually lost out.
But now people are looking at some of these exiles and, when they see how they live, realising what a mistake they made. The viva days are over and some of these people are being exposed. A situation in which so much power is held by racial minorities and by those with such a poor grasp of the real problems cannot possibly last. But is not your own support ethnic and regional in character? In our survey we found that it was to a large degree Xhosa speaking and based in the Eastern and Western Cape.
Well, every politician needs to have a base and so far as it's an ethnic or regional role, well that can happen. But when ANC delegates met in Bloemfontein in to elect members of the national executive, I was voted in as number one with 1, votes out of 2, delegates. These were not just Xhosa votes. It was ANC rank and file people who invited me, although they often described themselves as "concerned citizens". The people who are most vocal in favour of a new party are in the Northern Province, the Northwest and Gauteng.
But, of course, ethnicity is always likely to be a problem - both the PAC and ANC are troubled by ethnicity and we must learn from their difficulties. Do you feel close to any other party? I was happy enough with the ANC, though upset about its failure to implement and deliver, with the way people were being chosen for jobs, and the way things were being done.
I am not married to any ideology and I am not on the far left so I don't belong with the PAC whose policies I find somewhat outdated. I don't believe there is any future in this country for the far left or the far right. We have two worlds here, a first world and a third world, and there has to be centrist buffer zone between them to accommodate people. What i do not like is hypocrisy. One can see many blacks who talk in an extreme left way and then take over businesses and become rich.
When you see people talking radical politics you should always look at their houses and cars and ask, are they really socialists? As soon as we got to power inyou saw what happened.
Big salaries, big cars, and all the rest of it. The promises we made were quickly forgotten. If you pose a real threat to the ANC do you think that the rules of electoral fair play will be respected? The indications are that they won't allow fair play. Of course, if they stop us trying to have rallies we can always go house-to-house.
They are already trying to discredit me even though I have launched no party yet. But they won't stop the people. What is possible is dirty tricks. Or they could kill me. If I am still alive and we sell a good product once we develop our policies, we could give the ANC food for thought in But the ANC really needn't worry very much about us in We just want to get into parliament and have a voice.
Our real aim ought to be to become a strong opposition in five to ten years from now. The ANC should concentrate on delivery and running the country, not on harassing us. But the problem is they might use bullets and shoot us. Whether the ANC is a tolerant organisation I really have my doubts.
Will they allow free campaigning and free political activity? But is not your political intervention rooted in a Xhosa context and a rivalry between the Matanzima and Sigcau families and their opponents? The Holomisa name is more popular than that of Stella Sigcau even in her own native Pondoland.
I went to see the king of Pondos and his chiefs and headman recently and the king said this is your home, the sooner you form a new party the better. We know you, we have worked with you and there is strong support for you here. I repeated my allegations against Stella Sigcau in front of the king and the chiefs.
All I can say is that if Mandela thought he could play Xhosa politics by choosing Stella Sigcau, he miscalculated. The Transkei was more united under the rule of the military council I headed than it is now. The council was not ideological and was above party politics. Your nephew, Patekile Holomisa, heads the congress of traditional leaders.
Do you expect Contralesa to support you? They are welcome to get involved with us. I worked hard to get the chiefs to support the ANC in and they did. That's why Thabo can't get people to come and listen to him now. The chiefs and people like me are not there getting the people out for him. But it's already clear that politics will be different by The ANC's capacity to intimidate is less than it was.
MK and ex-MK people are the most disillusioned.
People want a new party.
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Levetiracetam Is No More Effective Than Phenytoin in Children with Convulsive Status Epilepticus
By Christine Lehmann
Results of a new study suggest that levetiracetam could be considered as an alternative therapy to phenytoin for second-line management of pediatric convulsive status epilepticus.
Two new randomized studies have answered a longstanding clinical question: Is levetiracetam (Keppra) superior to phenytoin (Dilantin) for second-line management of convulsive status epilepticus (CSE)? The results indicate that either drug can stop prolonged seizures in at least 50 percent of children.
These are the first robust randomized clinical trials to compare the efficacy and safety of two anti-convulsant medications in the second-line management of CSE, both published in the April 17 online edition of TheLancet.
“This provides new and unique scientifically-robust data to better inform pediatricians on how to improve their management of CSE in children. Specifically, it shows that both levetiracetam and phenytoin could be used as a first-choice anticonvulsant in the second-stage of pediatric CSE,” lead investigator Richard Appleton, MD, professor of pediatric neurology at Alder Hey Children's Health Park in Liverpool, England, told Neurology Today in an email.
Dr. Appleton led the Emergency treatment with Levetiracetam or Phenytoin in convulsive Status Epilepticus in children (EcLiPSE) trial in the United Kingdom.
In addition, administering each drug sequentially rather than alone reduced the failure rate by more than 50 percent in the second randomized trial—Convulsive Status Epilepticus Paediatric Trial (ConSEPT)—adding only an additional 10 minutes to the treatment time, according to ConSEPT lead investigator Stuart R. Dalziel, MBChB, FRACP, PhD, a pediatric emergency medicine specialist at Starship Children's Hospital in Auckland, New Zealand, who led the ConSEPT in Australia and New Zealand.
Researchers conducted open-label randomized clinical trials involving 13 emergency departments in Australia and New Zealand and 30 emergency departments in the United Kingdom. Children who had failed benzodiazepine treatment were randomly assigned to receive either phenytoin or levetiracetam.
The ConSEPT trial enrolled 239 children with a mean age of 4 years old between March 2015 and November 2017 and the EcLiPSE trial enrolled 404 children with a mean age of 2.7 years between July 2015 and April 2018, with 286 final participants. The number of girls and boys in both trials were nearly equal.
The children were treated intravenously with either levetiracetam over five minutes with 40 mg/kg or phenytoin at 20mg/kg for at least 20 minutes.
The primary outcome measures for EcLIPSE were the time from randomization to seizure cessation and the proportion of children whose seizures stopped five minutes after the first trial drug infusion was completed (for ConSEPT), which was 10 minutes after starting levetiracetam and 25 minutes after starting phenytoin.
Both trials reported that levetiracetam was not more effective than phenytoin nor safer. In ConSEPT, once the study drug infusion started, seizures stopped in 60 percent of 114 children randomly assigned to phenytoin and 50 percent of 119 children randomly assigned to levetiracetam.
“In more than 70 percent of cases, seizure control was maintained for two hours with use of either drug alone or both drugs sequentially. We found no differences between treatment groups in intubation rates, rate and length of intensive care unit admission, hospital length of stay, or safety outcomes,” Dr. Dalziel stated in the paper, who was unavailable for comment.
“This provides new and unique scientifically-robust data to better inform pediatricians on how to improve their management of CSE in children. Specifically, it shows that both levetiracetam and phenytoin could be used as a first-choice anticonvulsant in the second-stage of pediatric CSE.”—DR. RICHARD APPLETON
In the EcLiPSE trial, the seizures stopped in 70 percent of 152 children receiving levetiracetam and 64 percent of 134 children receiving phenytoin. The median time from randomization to CSE cessation was 35 minutes in the levetiracetam group and 45 minutes in the phenytoin group (hazard ratio 1.20, 95% CI 0.91-1.60; p=0.20), according to the published paper.
The main limitations of each study were the open-label and unblinded design, which may have introduced bias. “Realistically it would have been very difficult to conduct our study using a blinded design in view of the different anticonvulsant infusion rates,” said Dr. Appleton.
He and his colleagues also discovered that the vast majority of families and patients in emergency pediatric settings were willing to defer informed consent to participate in the trial. “This is very encouraging for future researchers who wish to undertake studies and trials in a pediatric emergency setting.”
To improve CSE outcomes, future research should focus on reducing its frequency and the time it takes to implement effective anticonvulsant use, which would lead to shorter duration and fewer potential complications, suggested Dr. Appleton.
Independent experts told Neurology Today that the two studies were well designed and filled an important gap in CSE comparative effectiveness research.
“These studies provide good evidence from open-label randomized trials to help clinicians decide on the second agent to use for CSE in children,” said Phillip L. Pearl, MD, FAAN, director of epilepsy and clinical neurophysiology at Boston Children's Hospital and professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School.
Most hospitals in the US use fosphenytoin (Cerebyx) instead of phenytoin for second line CSE management, which, despite its higher cost, has several advantages including more rapid administration and a lower potential for local tissue and cardiac toxicity, according to Dr. Pearl.
However, for hospitals in other countries that still use phenytoin, “levetiracetam emerges as a particularly appropriate alternative due to its better safety profile. Also, as the ConSEPT study showed, both drugs can be used sequentially to obtain a 50 percent better outcome in seizure cessation rates. An additional 10 minutes to administer a dose of the alternative second-line agent is worth it for that improvement and to avoid the greater morbidity associated with more aggressive treatment such as rapid sequence induction, intubation or ICU admission,” said Dr. Pearl.
Based on the findings, Dr. Pearl said he would be more inclined to try fosphenytoin or levetiracetam and then switch if the first drug didn't work, before trying a different class of drug such as phenobarbital or valproate, which is the current practice at Boston Children's Hospital before rapid sequence induction.
“Ideally, all these drugs would be given within the 30-minute window of seizure onset used to establish status epilepticus,” said Dr. Pearl.
Many hospital status epilepticus protocols recommend using levetiracetam before fosphenytoin/phenytoin because of its many advantages including ease of preparation, rapid infusion time, limited drug interactions, and possibly fewer side effects such as cardiac arrythmias and extravasation burns associated with fosphenytoin/phenytoin, said Eric T. Payne, MD, MPH, assistant professor of pediatrics and neurology at Mayo Clinic Children's Center in Rochester MN.
In addition, some hospitals including Mayo Clinic, use higher doses than the 40 mg/kg of levetiracetam given in the two studies.
“Following benzodiazepines, our second line status epilepticus treatment starts with a bolus of 50 mg/kg, while some hospitals start with a dose between 60 and 80 mg/kg. This raises the question of whether the two studies had used higher doses of the drug, levetiracetam would have been more effective than phenytoin,” said Dr. Payne.
He said he preferred the primary outcome measurement as time to seizure cessation used in the EcLiPSE study, noting that many children in the phenytoin group were still seizing 20 minutes after the drug was given, and that a delay of even 10 minutes can have neurological implications. “Because of the 15-minute increased duration with phenytoin, even if the drug worked, the patient may continue to seize,” said Dr. Payne.
Another challenge is obtaining rapid EEG monitoring. Dr. Payne referred to data from the Pediatric Status Epilepticus Research Group, of which he is a member, showing that one-third of children with CSE will continue to experience electrographic seizures. “Since many lack any clinical signs, EEG monitoring is needed for their detection, but difficult to obtain.”
Other studies are looking beyond phenytoin and levetiracetam for second-line management of CSE in children and adults. A new recently completed study compared levetiracetam, phenytoin and valproate. “It's possible that valproate or another drug will perform even better,” said Dr. Payne.
Drs. Appleton, Payne, and Pearl reported no disclosures.
• Lyttle MD, Rainford NEA, Gamble C, et al. Levetiracetam versus phenytoin for second-line treatment of paediatric convulsive status epilepticus (EcLiPSE): A multicentre, open-label, randomised trial https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(19)30724-X/fulltext. Lancet 2019; 393: 2125–2134.
• Dalziel SR, Borland ML, Furyk J, et al. Levetiracetam versus phenytoin for second-line treatment of convulsive status epilepticus in children (ConSEPT): An open-label, multicentre, randomised controlled trial https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(19)30722-6/fulltext. Lancet 2019; 393: 2135–45.
• Silbergleit R, Elm JJ. Levetiracetam no better than phenytoin in children with convulsive status epilepticus https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(19)30896-7/fulltext. Lancet 2019; 2101–02.
• Sánchez Fernández I, Abend NS, Arnd DH, et al Electrographic seizures after convulsive status epilepticus in children and young adults. A retrospective multicenter study https://www.jpeds.com/article/S0022-3476(13)01155-4/fulltext. J Pediatr 2014; 164(2): 339–346.e2.
• Payne ET, Zhao XY, Frndova H, et al. Seizure burden is independently associated with short term outcome in critically ill children https://academic.oup.com/brain/article/137/5/1429/333462. Brain 2014: 137; 1429–1438.
doi: 10.1097/01.NT.0000576888.75697.ae
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by Sarai Vega December 1, 2015
Nowadays, most of us are just happy to have a job that provides and puts a roof over our head. If we are fortunate, some of us may have a high school diploma, a college degree and even a career we are happily settled in. For others, like Jorge Baldor, having “made it” is just not enough. For him, it’s always been about giving back and helping others find success and reach the American Dream.
Born in Havana, Cuba, Jorge Baldor moved to Dallas, TX with his family at the age of six. In his teenage years, Baldor was involved in social justice projects and worked on several local, statewide, and national campaigns. While in high school, he was on the Mayor’s Advisory Council under Dallas Mayor Wes Wise.
He then attended Southern Methodist University, where he graduated with honors with a BA in History; eventually co-founding ResidentCheck, a leading national tenant background screening service where he serves as President.
Baldor enjoys traveling and is an advocate of educational and social causes, locally and internationally. He’s been a supporter of programs like the International Education Program of The World Affairs Council, President Vicente Fox’s “Presidente Por Un Día” program in Guanajuato, Mexico, and President Vinicio Cerezo’s Education Foundation in Guatemala. In 2011, the Innocence Project recognized him in their Donor Highlights. Jorge currently serves as Vice-Chairman on the Board of the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Ft. Worth.
In November of 2014, Dan Patrick was elected lieutenant governor of Texas on a platform to repeal HB 1403, a bill giving all Texas high school graduates the right to pay in-state tuition at state colleges and universities regardless of legal status.
Baldor believed the law was being unfairly targeted as a result of concern with the Central American children flooding the Texas border at the time. That’s when he founded www.KeepHB1403.com to bring public awareness at efforts to end in-state tuition for Texas DREAMers in the state legislature.
KeepHB1403.com became a strategic initiative under the Latino CLD. Starting the Latino CLD and funding it was a natural next step for Baldor as the need to establish a center for a new generation of Latino leadership has become even more important over time.
“In the past, Latino’s have been seeking a place at the table. Now, we must seek a place at the head of the table,” says Baldor. His vision is that the new generation of Latino leaders will adopt a “Why not me?” attitude, and his personal story of accomplishment can be the expected, rather than the exception. Thanks to his efforts and others like him, we believe success will be the norm within our Latino youth in the very near future.
DallaseducationJorge BaldorLatinoLatino Center for Leadership DevelopmentLeaderShare0
Juan Gabriel regresa a Dallas con la gira “Bienvenidos al Noa Noa”
Rudolph’s shiny nose brightens up Dallas’ historic Majestic Theatre
Sarai Vega
La Promotora
InformateDFW Magazine July 5, 2011
An American Dream Fulfilled
Informate DFW July 5, 2011
Leading The Cause
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Here’s How One Store Owner Turned Lemons to Lemonade When Divorce Threatened to Wreck Her Business
Being honest about reason for liquidation leads to continued success.
Eileen McClelland Instore February 2018 Issue
In 2015, Babs Noelle of Alara Jewelry in Bozeman, MT, advertised her clearance event as a divorce liquidation sale, which, in truth, it was. She had decided to liquidate her assets to reach a divorce settlement. Exterior signage included three big yellow banners that announced: “Public Notice Divorce. Everything Goes. Up to 70 Percent Off!”
“In the 11th hour, literally two months before our agreement was to see its final financial conclusion, my future ex threw a curve ball and said, ‘Buy me out of the business.’ I had no choice but to settle on a number,” recalls Noelle. The business itself was now the asset hanging in the balance, and she realized that the only way she could keep the asset would be if she could use it as a cash machine to “pay him off and get him out,” she says.
The next question was how to frame the sale for the public. “I asked, ‘Couldn’t it be called a divorce sale?’” says Noelle. “It was honest. It was simple. People know what a divorce is, and many know what kind of financial havoc it can wreak.”
When her consultant, Marsden Brothers, agreed, Noelle asked that all ads (half-page newspaper ads, TV ads, radio ads, bathroom ads, plus ads in all the media she was already contractually obligated to run) have a sense of humor, just as all of her advertising does. Catchphrases included “help me wash that man right outta my hair!” and “we’re liquidating the assets and splitting the sheets!” She also sent out a mailer to clients explaining the situation.
One of Noelle’s greatest concerns was figuring out where to find enough warm bodies to work the sale. “I sent an email to all of our frequent customers, telling them about our additional labor needs. In no time, we had more volunteers than we could use!”
Honesty Becomes Best Policy
Noelle found that her honesty forged deeper relationships with clients as she planned to start over with her business. “The support was incredibly meaningful,” she says. “Five different women brought gifts of shampoo!”
After three weeks, she hit her goal to buy her husband out of the business, but she continued the sale four more weeks, restocking in the process. Also important was ensuring there were additional funds to pay for post-sale advertising. “Even though all the ads and signage said ‘Divorce Liquidation,’ people swore up and down that we had held a ‘going out of business’ sale,” Noelle says.
She took every network opportunity to get out the message that Alara was newer, better, and just a happier place to work and shop. She set aside money for training, rebranding and a mini-remodel. The sale brought the team together more tightly, she says, which was probably the best benefit of all. Post-sale business was so good, Noelle took her entire team to Mexico for nine days.
“Most people thought the concept was brilliant marketing, when it was just simple honesty. What’s better than an honest jeweler?”
If you’re having a sale, do whatever you can to make it fit your style, your brand and your business ethos.
PHOTO GALLERY ( 12 IMAGES)
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Eileen McClelland is the Managing Editor of INSTORE. She believes that every jewelry store has the power of cool within them.
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Promotional event benefits children’s charity.
JUST IMAGINE HOW cool it would be to associate your business with the most popular activity in your community.
In Ocean City, MD, the beach, of course, is the focal point. And Park Place Jewelers’ Atlantic Avenue store commands its own share of attention in its prime spot on the boardwalk.
Along with diamonds, bridal and high-end branded jewelry, owners Todd and Jill Ferrante offer a wide variety of sea-life and nautical jewelry, particularly in their beach location — everything from sterling silver souvenirs to an exquisite, one-of-a-kind diamond mermaid piece. “We have to appeal to everyone,” Jill says, since everyone walks past on the boardwalk, even kids looking for souvenir charms.
They support myriad charities, from Coastal Hospice and the American Cancer Society to the Worchester County Society. And they have immersed themselves in the community by supporting local charities, hosting an annual Treasure Hunt at the Beach, and setting up pop-up shops during renowned fishing tournaments. The Treasure Hunt at the Beach has raised $25,000 over seven years for a children’s charity.
Here’s how it works. Participants donate $20 for the chance to dig in the sand for buried treasure, and everyone is let into the fenced-off area at the same time. Treasure ranges from loose gemstones and finished jewelry to the grand prize of diamond earrings. The treasure itself is not on the beach — little black treasure bags containing a tag describing the prize are buried about 4 to 6 inches under the sand. Odds are good; a maximum of 100 participants dig for 50 prizes, some of which are donated by their vendors or sold to them at a discount.
Treasure hunters can use only their hands to dig; no shovels or rakes. “We don’t want to make it too hard for them,” Jill says. “But they tell us in some cases it’s the hardest workout they’ve ever had, moving sand around for 15 minutes or half an hour!”
“Participants love it,” Todd says. “Once you find one prize, you take your prize up to the store, give the tag to the sales associates and they give you the prize.”
If all the prizes aren’t located within about 30 minutes, Todd launches into a trivia contest for the few remaining prizes.
This is the kind of contest that promotes itself. It’s listed as one of the weekend events on the city’s website. “A lot of people check that website when they’re coming into town,” Todd says. “We’re usually sold out before Saturday even gets here.” The hunt takes place once on Saturday and once on Sunday. Participants must register in person and make the donation in advance. It’s covered by the local newspaper and TV stations. People can watch the hunt from their balconies.
The event initially had to be approved by the mayor and city council.
After five years, though, it was considered established and only an annual permit renewal is required. Local sponsors sell refreshments along the boardwalk. “People have fun doing it and a one out of two chance of winning, all to benefit a charity that is close to everyone’s heart,” Todd says. “Being in business means giving back to the community.”
The Watches of Switzerland invests in well-respected brand.
WHEN WATCHES OF Switzerland Group bought Mayors Jewelers group in 2017, it was already well-run and well-established, but out of date, thought Brian Duffy, CEO of Watches of Switzerland, the biggest retailer of luxury watches in the UK.
“Mayors has been around since 1907 in Florida and it’s very well-regarded in the local community. Everybody loved it, but we got some comments like, ‘It’s where my parents bought their engagement rings.’ It had aged as a brand. The whole plan has been to update the brand to appeal to younger customers. We updated the logo, changed the façade and introduced a new store format.”
One of the most important decisions they made, according to group executive VP David Hurley, was to keep the Mayors name. The brand was good, but could get much better with investment in digital, brick-and-mortar, and especially, support for the strong teams of employees already in place, who received in-depth brand education under new management.
June debut: The first new Mayors flagship store is scheduled to open in June at the Merrick Park Mall in Coral Gables, FL. The 5,657 square foot open-concept space, designed by MNA, will feature luxury watches.
Mayors operates in Florida and Georgia with a portfolio of 17 stores. A retailer of luxury products and service, the group features brands such as Rolex, Cartier, Omega, TAG Heuer, Mikimoto, Bulgari, Messika and Roberto Coin, as well as its own collections of bridal, diamond and gold jewelry. In addition to the Mayors acquisition, Watches of Switzerland also launched flagship branded stores in New York City and Las Vegas as part of their entry into the U.S. market.
Their market research indicated that millennials are as interested as any other generation in luxury watches and jewelry if conditions are right. But outdated store decor and inadequate digital presentation were holding Mayors back from its potential to offer the kind of experience that would hook younger shoppers. The reinvented Mayors is particularly interested in consumers in their mid-30s. “The important age is 35; it’s always been that way and still is,” Duffy says.
To update the buying experience, WOS launched an interactive website, as well as two magazines with free digital circulation, one of which focuses on watches.
Redesigned websites and marketing reflect sleek store design.
Online concierges are available to help shoppers through text chat or video chat on the redesigned website. “But obviously, we’re trying to make the whole website as self-navigational as possible,” Duffy says. “We’re having the easiest form of dropdowns and product selections and using the most advanced systems, so as you navigate around the website, the information it gives back is interactive and intelligent.”
The in-store experience also needed a modern edge, a project expected to be completed by the fall across all storefronts. “Having stores that are appealing and non-intimidating, that welcome people in with a big emphasis on hospitality, is the goal,” Duffy says. “Staff members don’t have to stand behind counters. The emphasis is on self-help and engagement with salespeople when they’re ready. “
The redesigned store facades have a distinctive monochromatic look with white banding and a black background. The store design meshes with both the style of the advertising and the brand’s sleek new packaging, rendered in black and silver. “We haven’t held back at all on the quality of the materials or the lighting,” Duffy says.
The look, feel and function of the store must be evaluated every few years. Says Hurley: “We believe in constantly investing in our stores. As soon as you stop doing that, the stores start to look tired, sales go down and you get into a vicious cycle.”
Events coordinator enlists customers to stage murder mystery she wrote herself.
LYNNETTE SOLOMON HAD never thought of herself as a playwright, but as special events coordinator at MJ Miller & Co. in Barrington, IL, she isn’t afraid to try new things.
“When we do an event, we always try to do something the customer can participate in — toga parties, pirate parties; those tend to work out the best for us. It’s a great way to get people engaged and wearing the jewelry.”
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Podcast: Make Sure You Open the Dang Box
But when it came to trunk shows, she realized they needed something to spice them up for her clients who craved the kind of interactive, in-store experience that really could be described as an experience.
So Solomon spent a whole year writing a murder mystery and pitched it to owner Michael J. Miller as a way to create drama around designer Victor Velyan’s two-day visit. Velyan’s dramatic jewelry designs seemed perfect for such an
event, especially because they’re less traditional and very different in style from anything else in the store, Solomon says. She debuted both the concept and the play itself over two days in October.
A dozen customers were invited to be characters. Another small group came just to watch.
Of course, each character was wearing jewels from Velyan’s collection, and each was teamed up with a staff member so they received personal attention.
“A lot of the characters had a back story with Victor, so they had to pay a lot of attention to Victor,” Solomon says.
Velyan, known for his global exploration, was one of the central characters. “
The scenario? Velyan, returning from his latest adventure in Africa, brought his whole new couture line to the store and thieves lay in wait to steal his new collection.
Sales associates invited clients based on whether they thought they’d enjoy it; many also had a history of purchasing Velyan’s pieces.
Sandy and Greg Kern of Arlington Heights were invited — and thrilled — to participate. “People were given a dossier on their character and told to dress in costume. My character was a teacher, and so I was supposed to dress in a pretty plain way — in a tweed skirt,” says Sandy. Greg’s character was a chemist.
“Everybody had a fabulous character, and some people did an amazing job of dressing like their characters,” Sandy says. “It was a lot of fun.”
Characters were invited, of course, to try to figure out who the murderer was.
“In our group, no one got who the murderer was,” Sandy says. “It was so clever, it was wonderful. It involved people in the store and with the fabulous jewelry, we had a great time.”
Diversions were built into the plot.
“The twist was that I had a police officer (an actor) come in and tell Mr. Miller there had been an incident at his home and he had to leave,” Solomon says. “Then someone ran out from the back and announced that a character was killed in the back of the store.”
Solomon was the narrator as well as the playwright and experienced opening-night jitters.
“I was very nervous, but everybody really had a great time,” she says.
Even the store’s signature drink, the Gold Rush, played a pivotal part in the action.
There were appetizers, sweets and bourbon-spiked punch. The soundtrack featured Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust” and Hall and Oates’ “Man Eater.”
Props in the showcases doubled as clues.
At the end of the day, the drama had the best possible ending: there were a number of pending sales.
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Home / Stock Picks / Stocks to Buy / 7 Hot Stocks to Buy That Ditched the NRA
7 Hot Stocks to Buy That Ditched the NRA
It’s about time companies stood up to the schoolyard bully
By Will Ashworth, InvestorPlace Contributor Feb 28, 2018, 3:18 pm EDT February 28, 2018
One of the most influential lobby groups in the entire country is losing its grip on some of America’s best-known brands thanks to its misguided belief that the second amendment was intended to include AR-15s and other assault rifles.
It wasn’t.
Customers have spoken with their pocketbooks. No longer will they support brands that do business with the NRA. As a result, the five-million-strong who belong to the gun lobby has lost out on significant discounts across many different products and services.
The NRA, in its ornery way, has responded to the defectors with typical fire and brimstone language.
“[It is] a shameful display of political and civic cowardice,” the NRA said in a statement. “In time, these brands will be replaced by others who recognize that patriotism and determined commitment to Constitutional freedoms are characteristics of a marketplace they very much want to serve.”
Not every brand has abandoned the NRA, mind you. FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) remains a part of the discount program because it’s never set or changed rates as a result of its customers’ beliefs despite the fact it is very much opposed to the NRA’s position.
While I understand the position taken by FedEx, which is no position, I can’t help but think they are missing the boat on a critical issue.
For this reason, despite having some business deficiencies, I recommend these seven stocks to buy for having the decency to ditch the NRA. Listening to your customers is the best way to keep them as customers.
Hot Stocks That Ditched the NRA: First National Bank of Omaha
Okay, I’m cheating here — First National Bank of Omaha isn’t a publicly traded company, but I wish it were. Because not only does it have the backbone to stand up to the schoolyard bully, it’s one of the best-run banks in America.
First National announced Feb. 22 that it would not extend the contract to issue NRA credit cards to the gun lobby’s members who get a $40 credit when taking out a new card. Customers spoke. First National listened.
And before you suggest it’s a meaningless move from an insignificant bank, think again. First National is the 15th largest credit card issuer in the nation with more than $20 billion in assets and the nation’s largest privately-owned bank.
First National is one of those “smaller” banks that punches above its weight. It’s also worth noting that another famous Omaha resident, Warren Buffett, is less of a fan of the NRA boycott.
“I don’t believe in imposing my views on 370,000 employees and a million shareholders,” Buffett told CNBC. “I’m not their nanny on that.”
I get where he’s coming from, and while I will always recommend Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A, BRK.B) to readers even after he’s gone, the Oracle’s become more of a “do as I say, not as I do” personality in recent years.
I commend the bank for doing what it thinks is right. It would definitely be one of my stocks to buy were it a public company.
Hot Stocks That Ditched the NRA: Chubb (CB)
Source: Pictures of Money via Flickr
The NRA will argue that the decision made by Chubb Ltd. (NYSE:CB) three months ago to stop offering NRA Carry Guard — which provides insurance coverage for legal and other costs incurred in civil and criminal trials as a result of self-defense shootings — was strictly business.
Maybe that’s true, but if there were any second thoughts on the part of the insurance company, the Florida shooting eliminated any reservations it might have had about ending the relationship.
While I’m sure another insurance company desperate for business will jump into the fray, it seems strange that anyone would feel the need to take out insurance to cover a self-defense shooting.
If this is the type of insurance you feel you need and you don’t have disability, critical illness and life insurance, I feel sorry for your family.
As a company, I think it’s made a smart decision distancing itself from the NRA. There’s more than enough property and casualty business to be had in the 54 countries where it operates around the world.
It generated $3.8 billion in net income in 2017 despite the increase in annual catastrophe losses. I doubt it’s going to miss the NRA premiums.
Hot Stocks That Ditched the NRA: Wyndham Worldwide (WYN)
When you’re a company with the world’s largest hotel network, the last thing you want to do is appear to be favoring a special-interest group like the NRA over your millions of other guests around the world whose only concerns are staying in a nice hotel with a comfortable bed.
It seems that Wyndham Worldwide Corporation (NYSE:WYN) once was part of the NRA discount program offering a 10% break on hotel rates to NRA members. Wyndham says it ended the relationship in 2017, tweeting as much on Feb. 22, in response to another person’s tweet.
Some might wonder why it took the company so long to ditch the NRA when it already faced a boycott after Sandy Hook in 2012, but at least it managed to pull the plug this past year. From a business perspective, it’s got a lot going on.
In January Wyndham announced that it was acquiring La Quinta Holdings Inc’s (NYSE:LQ) franchise and management business for $1.95 billion. The move strengthens the company’s position in midscale lodging by adding almost 900 hotels to its network.
La Quinta’s asset-light business model provides Wyndham with excellent growth complimenting its existing midscale brands such as Ramada and Hawthorn.
Now is not the time to be messing around with the NRA.
Hot Stocks That Ditched the NRA: TrueCar (TRUE)
As I said in the opening, not all of the stocks to buy I’ve listed are perfect businesses; far from it.
However, it’s much easier for investors to hang in there when difficulties arise knowing that the company has integrity and is willing to do the right thing. That’s especially true when struggling to make money.
TrueCar Inc (NASDAQ:TRUE) is one such company. It announced on Twitter February 23 that it was ending its relationship with the NRA.
TrueCar is an information service for car buyers that gives them the data they need to know to make an informed car-buying decision. By providing the information to online users and then connecting them to certified TrueCar dealerships, the company is paid a fee by the dealers when these users purchase a vehicle.
So, it’s a volume business.
In Q4 2017, TrueCar generated $83.1 million in revenue from fees earned by 239,521 users purchasing vehicles from TrueCar dealers, 12% and 9% higher respectively from a year earlier.
Unfortunately, on a GAAP basis, it lost $33 million in 2017. However, on a non-GAAP EBITDA basis, TrueCar made $29 million, almost double what it made in 2016.
Down considerably from its $21.56 high hit last July, value buyers might want to take a closer look, but only with money, you can afford to lose.
Hot Stocks That Ditched the NRA: Symantec (SYMC)
One of the unintended consequences of the burgeoning field of data analytics is that it allows company marketers to splice and dice customer information to the point where that information becomes irrelevant.
How else do you explain Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ:SYMC) offering discounts to NRA members?
I can’t think of a single reason why this five-million-strong cohort of potential customers is deserving of product discounts. Its membership brings nothing extraordinary to the table that millions of Americans who aren’t members of the lobby group don’t already possess.
But, to its credit, it’s recognized that narrowing the field to such a small segment of the American population, is a waste of time.
Symantec shares haven’t done very well over the past 52 weeks, down 5% through February 26. That’s coming off two healthy years in 2016 and 2017.
Why the downward trend?
Symantec’s earnings and revenue for fiscal 2018 are going to be lower than analyst expectations. The company sees revenues no higher than $4.95 billion while analysts are expecting $5 billion on the top line.
On the bottom line, analysts are expecting adjusted earnings per share of $1.68, four cents higher than the company’s revised guidance at the top-end of its outlook.
Short term, the company’s growing cloud business is going to deliver lower revenues on the enterprise side of operations as customers transition to subscription-based products; long-term, it gives the company a fighting chance in the hotly competitive cyber security market.
SYMC stock hasn’t traded under $25 consistently since the middle of 2016. I’d consider it a buy if it drops below that level in the next 12 months.
Hot Stocks That Ditched the NRA: Avis Budget (CAR)
Source: Atomic Taco via Flickr (Modified)
Back in April 2016, I called Avis Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) a deep-value stock worth buying soon given value stocks were starting to outperform growth stocks.
In the 22 months since CAR stock is up 82%. If recent earnings mean anything, look for Avis stock to move into the $50s and higher over the next 22 months.
In the fourth quarter, Avis’s adjusted earnings were $0.45 a share, 200% higher than a year earlier and significantly higher than what analysts were expecting on 7.5% revenue growth.
I’m prepared to give Avis the benefit of the doubt despite the fact it has ridiculously high long-term debt that’s almost 100% of its market cap. I see Americans renting a lot of cars this summer although very few by NRA members who no longer get Avis and Budget discounts.
Hot Stocks That Ditched the NRA: Delta Air Lines (DAL)
Source: via Delta
Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) is part of the travel industry’s protest of the NRA. You’ve got rental car companies, hotel chains and even airlines cutting off the NRAs sweetheart deal for its members.
Why are there so many travel-related businesses ending their relationship with the NRA? Its customers caught them with their hands in the cookie jar. There is no other industry that I can think of that has such flexible pricing in its offerings.
Imagine going into Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) and paying $2.50 for a coffee while another person pays $2.25 or $2.75. It happens all the time in the travel game. A 10% discount to NRA members is probably one of many offered by Delta and the rest of the airlines.
When everybody’s discounting, you can’t afford to exclude a particular group from the savings. Unless of course, you get found out, which is what probably happened at Delta.
Delta, like a lot of American companies, is going to benefit from the corporate tax rate cut from 35% to 21%. Delta suggests that it will increase 2018 earnings by 20% from the tax cut alone.
Add to that a business that’s seeing growth in all the places it operates including its trans-Atlantic travel and it’s easy to see why the company was quick to ditch the NRA.
Sure, rising fuel costs are eating into airline profits, and perhaps Delta wouldn’t have acted so quickly if it didn’t have the tax savings to fall back on, but given the airline’s expected to earn as much as $6.70 a share in 2018, it doesn’t need the NRA.
As of this writing, Will Ashworth did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.
Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2018/02/7-stocks-to-buy-that-ditched-the-nra/.
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First set pics of Tomorrowland bring back the world of yesterday
Filed to: tomorrowlandFiled to: tomorrowland
Behold, the retro world of Brad Bird and Damon Lindelof's mysterious Tomorrowland movie. So this is what a film inspired by a box of random Disney World crap from 1952 looks like. Retro!
The images, taken by photographer Bob Glassford for VCF, show (we're assuming) the early world of George Clooney's movie. Allegedly about "a teenage girl, a genius middle-aged man (who was kicked out of Tomorrowland) and a pre-pubescent girl robot attempt to unravel what happened to Tomorrowland, which exists in an alternative dimension, in order to save Earth." Ha. This is still is pretty confusing. Here's what Glassford had to deduce about that site:
Based on the what has been prepped so far, it looks like this scene will be set in 1964 at the New York World’s Fair. The set includes various landscaping elements, retro-looking food booths, and a giant billboard advertising “Sinclair Dinoland” which was a feature attraction at the '64-'65 New York World’s Fair. A medium-sized inflatable green screen was placed at the far end of the set, but not blown up yet.
Tomorrowland will hit theaters in late 2014; should be interesting to see what the alternate dimension looks like — unless it's all greenscreen, and we have to wait until the release.
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Nest Cam IQ Tested
By: IPVM Team, Published on Jul 10, 2017
Nest has released their latest entry in their camera line, the Nest Cam IQ, touting 4K "Supersight", facial recognition, "HD audio", invisible IR, and more bells and whistles not found in the original Nest.
We bought and tested this new model to see how well each of the following perfomed:
'Familiar face' recognition performance
Supersight auto tracking
Enhanced 4K zoom
Bidirectional "HD" audio
Invisible 940nm IR
Video latency
Day/night image quality
See our full results inside.
For more on Nests's other models, see our original Nest Cam test, as well as the Nest Cam Outdoor test.
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Undisclosed #1
Nest's "enhance" cropping/zoom feature increased details but at the expense of cropping the field of view, which many home/DIY users may find confusing or objectionable.
Though its no different than the way a mechanical zoom behaves; greater detail at the expense of FOV.
If this type of "digital zoom", i.e. one achieved by incorporating a sensor of far greater resolution size than the stream it delivers, becomes more popular, "digital zoom" may rival physical zooms, without the moving parts and all the extra glass.
IPVM | In reply to Undisclosed #1 | 07/10/17 06:59pm
without the moving parts and all the extra glass.
Though using a higher resolution imager tends to reduce low light and WDR performance, so there is that tradeoff. Also, there is only so much higher resolution one can for using digital zoom, i.e., you cannot use a 100MP imager and then digital zoom for an HD output stream.
To reiterate, that 'enhance' feature is not new, check our Dropcam Pro Camera Test where we cover that 4 years ago.
In reply to John Honovich | 07/11/17 12:29am
True, and more recently here.
I think the reason it has more possibilities now is that sensor size is getting ahead of streaming bandwidth to the degree that it makes sense to put a 4k sensor in a camera that only streams HD.
IPVM | In reply to Undisclosed #1 | 07/11/17 12:32am
Yes, but for $100 more end user price, the larger / higher resolution sensor does not add much value for most users.
Though using a higher resolution imager tends to reduce low light and WDR performance, so there is that tradeoff...
Though using a longer focal length increases f-stop/decreases light as well.
Nest has added Google Assistant functionality to the Nest Cam IQ, using its built in mic, speaker, and light ring. Video demo here:
Startup Vaion Launching End-to-End AI Solution Backed with $20 Million Funding on Jun 17, 2019
An EU / USA video surveillance startup, Vaion, founded by ex-Cisco Senior Directors is launching an end-to-end VSaaS platform with $20 million in...
Avigilon 32MP and 12MP H4 Multisensor Cameras Tested on Jun 11, 2019
Avigilon has released their H4 Multi-Sensor line of cameras claiming "broad scene coverage and high image detail" We bought and tested the...
Directory of 30+ VSaaS / Cloud Video Surveillance Providers on Jun 07, 2019
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Startup Rhombus Systems Says Twice the Features, Half the Price of Verkada on Jun 04, 2019
Closed cloud systems may be the fastest growing segment of video surveillance with Meraki and Verkada. Now another California company is joining...
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Lyndy Cantillon: Facts on the Health Service Executive’s X-ray debacle
Lyndy Cantillon
Lyndy Cantillon comments on a recent health debacle which saw patients’ X-rays misread.
Over twelve months ago the Health Service Executive announced that they were carrying out a review into some 46,000 CT scans, ultrasounds and chest X-Rays reported by an individual consultant radiologist at University Hospital Kerry (UHK) between the period of March 2016 and July 2017. This week a number of patients were contacted and informed that their X-rays had been misread and that this had adverse consequences for them.
This is regrettable and very sad as it seems as if a number of patients will have had very significant adverse consequences as a result of the delay in interpreting their X-rays correctly. It is disappointing also that it has taken this length of time to inform the affected patients, but it has to be accepted that there were a large volume of X-rays to be reviewed (approximately 46,000) and it was important that it was done correctly. It seems that this careful review has uncovered patients with undiagnosed cancer who had not previously been identified and that is to be welcomed.
Sometimes when these adverse events occur involving large numbers of patients there is a fear that there may be an avalanche of medical negligence claims. I think it is important to allay those fears where possible. It is important to note that not every misreading of an X-ray will result in a successful medical negligence claim. There is a wide margin of error given to radiologists in the interpretation of X-rays. The fact that one radiologist may see something that another may not, does not necessarily mean that the latter is negligent. In order to establish if a radiologist was negligent, it is necessary to show that no reasonable radiologist (not even a minority) would have missed what the radiologist in question has missed.
In addition, one has to establish not alone negligence in the reading of the X-ray but also that there is an adverse consequence because of the misreading, i.e. that an injury has occurred that would have been prevented by correct reading of the scan and earlier intervention. This is what lawyers call “causation”. You have to show that the delay in reading the X-ray correctly has caused an injury that would otherwise not have occurred but for the missed X-ray. We know that a small number of patients have sadly passed away since the misreading of their scans and some of these may well have grounds for fatal proceedings depending on the expert view. Hopefully, it will be the position for most other patients that the delay has not been causative of any injury.
Medical negligence cases are costly for the patient and the Health Service Executive and are only embarked upon following the commissioning of expert reports such as radiologists and possibly oncologists in this instance.
It is to be hoped that the initial fears of an avalanche of claims will not be in fact realised, not so much for the avoidance of the costs but for the avoidance of pain and suffering.
Lyndy Cantillon is a partner at Cantillons Solicitors, Cork. You can view her profile here.
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Suntex, Oregon facts for kids
Suntex, Oregon
Unincorporated community
4,308 ft (1,313 m)
PST (UTC-8)
PDT (UTC-7)
Coordinates and elevation from United States Geological Survey
Suntex was the name of a post office in an unincorporated community in Harney County, in the U.S. state of Oregon. It was established in the valley of Silver Creek west of Burns and north of U.S. Route 20.
The Suntex post office was set up in 1916 and closed in 1949, after which Suntex mail was handled through the post office in Riley. W. F. Sturges, the first postmaster at Suntex, said that postal authorities had assigned the name "Suntex", which had no local significance, for reasons he was unaware of.
Municipalities and communities of Harney County, Oregon, United States
County seat: Burns
Denio
Dunnean
Frost Mill
Lawen
New Princeton
Trout Creek
Venator
Wagontire
Indian reservation
Burns Paiute Indian Reservation
Suntex, Oregon Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.
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Taylor Swift's New Pro-LGBTQ Single Prompts Increase In GLAAD Donations
posted by James Dinh - Jun 14, 2019
Taylor Swift stepped up her advocacy for the LGBTQ community with the release of her new single, "You Need to Calm Down," and it's paying off — literally.
Hours after the pop titan dropped the anti-hate stomper, which calls out homophobia and references GLAAD, the folks over at the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation revealed to TMZ that they've seen an influx in donations. To be specific, GLAAD recently started a fundraiser to support LGBTQ advocacy work during Pride month and set a goal of $1,300 as a tribute to Swift's favorite number: 13. At time of press, many of the donations were for none other than $13. During her second verse of the track, Swift sings: "You are somebody that we don't know/ But you're comin' at my friends like a missile/ Why are you mad when you could be GLAAD? (You could be GLAAD)/ Sunshine on the street at the parade/ But you would rather be in the dark ages/ Makin' that sign must've taken all night." Produced by Swift and Joel Little, "You Need to Calm Down" is the second single from her just-announced album, Lover, which is scheduled to drop on August 23.
"It's about how I've observed a lot of different people in our society who just put so much energy and effort into negativity," the pop titan recently said of the track. "It just made me feel like, “You need to just calm down, like you’re stressing yourself out. This seems like it's more about you than what you’re going off about. Like, just calm down."
World Pride 2019 is in full effect and iHeartPride is celebrating the monumental June celebration with all kinds of coverage. iHeartRadio, Z100 New York and 103.5 KTU are Presenting Media Sponsors for NYC Pride and we’re taking the milestone to heart with LGBTQ-focused coverage on everything from entertainment, politics and details on the summer festivities. After all, it does coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising. Stay tuned for more on World Pride 2019 and keep an eye out for our float in the Big Apple’s all accumulating parade on June 30!
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Montana to seek damages from Bridger after alleged 2015 oil spill
By Mark Iandolo | Nov 1, 2016
HELENA, Mont. (Legal Newsline) — Montana Attorney General Tim Fox, Gov. Steve Bullock and the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) recently announced an attempt to pursue natural resource damages from Bridger Pipeline LLC (Bridger).
The damages would be pursued under the federal Oil Pollution Act and state law for injuries to natural resources stemming from an oil spill into the Yellowstone River in 2015. The oil spill involved a Bridger pipeline rupturing, resulting in more than 30,000 gallons of Bakken crude oil pouring into Yellowstone River.
“As important as the production and transportation of oil and petroleum products is to our state, when the accidental release of oil taints our natural resources, it is equally important that we understand the extent of the damage and that the resources are restored,” Fox said.
“This is a critical step in making sure that restoration happens. I appreciate the hard work by the state and federal teams who responded to the spill initially and who will be carrying forward the damages assessment now, and for the cooperation of the pipeline operator in these efforts.”
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Montana Attorney General's Office
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A Case for Quantity When Measuring Quality
September 17, 2018 | Mary Hendrick
The quality of a physician’s work is now often evaluated in metrics and data. Seventeen years ago, the Institute of Medicine issued a call to arms to Cross the Quality Chasm that opened the floodgates for thousands of measures, from government rules to hospital guidelines and consumer evaluations.
As healthcare has become more complex, the measures to evaluate a physician’s performance, however, have increasingly faced criticism as inadequate. There is ”limited evidence” that many quality measures, including those tied to incentives and those promoted by health insurers, lead to better health outcomes.
“The problem is that bad quality measures can be harmful,” opined lead researcher Catherine MacLean, MD, PhD, in a statement. “They are a waste of time; they’re frustrating and they’re a waste of money. It’s gotten to the point where it’s almost measures for measurements sake.”
For instance, physicians are evaluated on at least 2,500 performance measures, but less than 40 percent of these metrics are considered valid, according to a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine. “The problem is that bad quality measures can be harmful,” opined lead researcher Catherine MacLean, MD, PhD, in a statement.
“They are a waste of time; they’re frustrating and they’re a waste of money. It’s gotten to the point where it’s almost measures for measurements sake.”
There are many different kinds of physician measures that are often based on surveys, sometimes with limited scope, and physicians may get incentives or reimbursements based on some of the data results. The measurements can be generated from the government, consumer groups, academic institutions or within the physician community itself. The measures may be used for a wide range of a physician’s work, including determining how many providers are using electronic health records or how often they recommend aspirin for ischemic vascular disease, according to an American Academy of Family Physicians review.
Measuring Depth of Knowledge
But, too many measures fail to tap into the many variables of physician’s practice, such as giving the full scope of a practitioner’s diagnostic attributes, using available technology or a physician’s bedside manner with elderly patients.
Ironically, measuring quality has been lacking in its quantity; the deep-rooted questions not only about specific service lines, but also about the depth of knowledge in an organization, and the progression of learning.
Although physicians are employed by hospitals more than ever, they are mostly on their own as they pivot their educational needs under the pressure of metrics, data and technology in a changing healthcare climate.
The Insight Dashboard from Knowledge to Practice provides data that gives a wide view of knowledge, such as how engaged an organization is with learning to achieve knowledge mastery and judgment. The K2P solution assesses where knowledge can be improved and provides a personalized plan for which topics a physician should focus their learning.
K2P is where hospital administrators, program leaders, physicians and trainees can stay current on medicine in a way that’s easy, efficient and effective.
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Donald Trump says Saudis have taken ‘first step’ in resolving Jamal Khashoggi’s murder
By admin On okt 20, 2018
David Jackson USA TODAY
Published 10:40 PM EDT Oct 19, 2018
President Donald Trump said Friday that Saudi Arabia’s government has taken a “great first step” in arresting people in the murder of a dissident Saudi journalist but he does not want to endanger the American alliance with the key Middle East ally.
“It’s not the simplest situation to be in,” Trump told reporters during a briefing at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona.
Speaking little more than three hours after Saudi authorities claimed that Jamal Khashoggi died during a “brawl” inside their consulate in Istanbul, Trump said he found their explanation credible, though more investigation is needed and he needs to learn more about the murder.
“Saudi Arabia has been a great ally, but what happened is unacceptable,” Trump said.
Later, Trump did not mention the murder of Khashoggi during a congressional campaign rally in Mesa, Ariz.
U.S. lawmakers mocked the Saudi explanation, citing evidence that the Saudis lured Khashoggi to Istanbul and hacked him to death with a bone cutter; some accused Trump of trying to help Saudi leadership of helping Saudi leadership cover up their role in the murder.
“The American people need and deserve to know what the White House and our intelligence professionals know,” said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt. “Our country must not be complicit in this cover-up.”
More: Who is Jamal Khashoggi?
In his comments to reporters, Trump said he still wants to speak with the Saudi crown prince, and more investigation needs to be done. He said he does not believe that Saudi leaders have lied to him about the deadly incident.
“We’ll be talking to them,” Trump said. “We’ll see what happens. We may have some questions – we do have some questions.”
Trump also said he wants to work with lawmakers on possible punishment if Saudi leaders are found to have been involved. “Congress is very interested in this one, and we will be working with Congress,” Trump said.
“I think we’re getting close to solving a very big problem,” Trump said.
The president also said, repeatedly, that he would prefer that any retribution not include canceling Saudi Arabia’s $110-billion order for America-made weapon systems, saying that deal involves hundreds of thousands of American jobs.
“I would prefer that we don’t use as retribution cancelling $110 billion worth of work,” he said.
Saudi Arabia is “a great ally in the Middle East,” Trump said, including its role as a “counter-balance to Iran.”
Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor said 18 Saudi nationals have been arrested in connection with the case. None were identified.
“It’s a big step,” he said. “There’s a lot of people involved.”
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Man due in court in connection with Gillingham burglary
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Title Sponsors All Pages
Do you want to write for Livin’ Upstate? Click Here
Vee Daniel
Better Business Bureau Upstate SC
Vee Daniel is President & CEO of the Better Business Bureau Upstate SC.
Prior to joining the BBB, Daniel served as Director of Events & Membership Services for the Home Builders Association of South Carolina and Executive Officer of the Home Builders Association of Greater Spartanburg.
Davis Services, Inc.
Nick Davis is co-owner of Spartanburg-based Davis Services, Inc.
He grew up in the company, learning the business through jobs in installation, maintenance, home performance and residential sales of conventional and geothermal systems.
Nick presently serves as the company’s marketing director and coordinator of Davis Services’ apprenticeship program.
Veera Gaul
Veera Gaul is a trained chef whose passion for food led her into the hospitality business, then into higher education at Johnson & Wales University — known for its culinary and hospitality programs.
She began at JWU as a graduate student and went on to be a faculty member, vice president of operations for the Providence campus and Provost overseeing all academic programs and faculty.
Veera left JWU in March of 2013 and moved to Greenville, SC where she and her husband, Joe, own Oil & Vinegar in downtown Greenville.
Jill Hendrix
Fiction Addiction
Jill McFarlane Hendrix grew up in Greenville, SC and was the 1991 valedictorian of Southside High School, and one of its first International Baccalaureate diploma recipients.
She graduated magna cum laude from Yale University with a B.A. in History. Jill worked briefly in the Editorial Department of St. Martin’s Press and then for a series of internet startups in New York City.
In 2001, she returned home to open her own business, Fiction Addiction, an independent bookstore in Greenville. She lives with her husband and three cats in Spartanburg, SC and is an avid rock climber.
Ivet Ivanova
Bogari European Contemporary Furniture
Ivet Ivanova is the owner and lead designer at BOGARI European Contemporary Furniture in Greenville, SC.
Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, Ivet and her husband, Lyudmil, moved to Greenville when his company transferred him in 1997.
With more than 25 years of interior design experience and a passion for contemporary style, Ivet enjoys working with European contemporary and modern designs that offer a distinguished look for the Upstate area.
Dan Lyles
Dan Lyles Gallery
Dan Lyles is an art dealer and benefit auctioneer.
He has 13 years’ experience buying and selling art and owns Dan Lyles Gallery in Greenville.
Dan specializes in the works of 20th century master artists and building the careers of emerging artists.
Deb Metcalf
Travel Agents International
Deb Metcalf has worked in the travel Industry for more than 20 years.
After a 12-year stint in advertising and media sales, she now is co-owner of Travel Agents International where she began her professional career.
She loves the excitement of helping Upstate residents take their “fantasy trip.” Deb and her husband, Barry, reside in Woodruff, SC.
Dr. Marina Ponton
Greenville Natural Health
Marina Ponton has been a Doctor of Acupuncture and Oriental medicine in private practice since 1998. Her practice focuses on helping others achieve and maintain their optimal health through acupuncture, functional medicine, herbs, supplements and nutrition.
Dr. Ponton has practiced and lectured in the United States, Sweden and Holland. She has studied at the American University of Paris, FAMU University in Prague, University of Miami, Atlantic Institute of Oriental Medicine and Oregon College of Oriental Medicine.
She has a Doctorate in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine with a specialization in women’s health and longevity medicine.
Payton Reed
Public Display of Accessories
Payton Reed is a resident of Spartanburg, SC and a copywriter at Jackson Marketing, Motorsports & Events in Greenville, SC.
A native of Mississippi and a graduate of Mississippi State University in Starkville, Payton is a fashion and lifestyle blogger on PublicDisplayofAccessories.com.
Tina Clark
Carolina Garden World
Tina Clark is the owner and president of Carolina Garden World in Spartanburg, SC.
A native of Erie, Pennsylvania, Tina found Upstate South Carolina in a job move then found her way to Spartanburg Community College where she completed a degree in horticulture.
A frequent presenter at area civic organizations, garden clubs and schools, Tina is sustainability certified and organizes a free Sustainability Day event for the community at Carolina Garden World each year in celebration of Earth Day.
Jordana Megonigal
RECON Network Jordana Megonigal was an Upstate-based editor and publisher for 15 years, until she put it all aside to become CEO of The RECON Network.
Her passion is helping connect veterans and military families to the resources they need to thrive in their next stage of life.
Sammy Batts
Fig Leaf + Co. Design Studio Sammy Batts is a wife, new mom, lifestyle blogger and passionate lover of all-things interiors. She is the founder and lead interior designer at Fig Leaf + Co design studio in Spartanburg, SC.
Sammy is inspired by nature, community, history and oat milk lattes. An island girl at heart, Sammy’s early days were spent running the beaches of Pawleys Island, SC where her obsession with melding nature into the home truly began. After college, she and her husband moved to Nashville, TN where Fig Leaf + Co was born. She now resides in Spartanburg with her husband, Tyler, baby girl June, and spunky dog Scout.
Stacey Bevill, ACC, NCC, MPM®
Ask and Receive Coaching LLCStacey Bevill is the founder of Ask and Receive Coaching, LLC which offers coaching, consulting, custom workshops and presentations that help companies increase their bottom lines by creating an environment that promotes innovation, cooperation, communication and quality by motivating and inspiring employees.
Stacey received her certification from the internationally acclaimed Newfield Network Coaching Institute. She is certified by the International Coach Federation (ICF) and the International Association of Trauma Professionals (CTP), and is a Certified HeartMath® Coach. Stacey holds a master’s level certification in Marketing Strategy from Cornell, a master’s level certification in Entrepreneurship from the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia, and a bachelor’s degree from Lander University in Greenwood, SC. She and her husband, Bobby, reside in Spartanburg,
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CM - AMO Seminars
2014 CMO-AMO Seminars
CM - AMO SEMINAR | The Quantum Measurement Problem: How to Distinguish Measuring Devices from Ordinary Objects
Quantum mechanics (QM provides an extremely accurate description of the microscopic world as well as of numerous properties of matter that arise from the collective behavior of its constituents. Its predictions have been confirmed in countless high-precision experiments and its development has enabled groundbreaking inventions such as the laser and the transistor. Yet, in spite of its enormous success, the measurement problem, that is, the question of the interaction of an elementary particle with a measuring device, still remains as a nagging and unresolved mystery, embodied in the meaning of states such as the Schrödinger’s cat, which are allowed by QM but contradict classical realism. Following a period of reduced attention on fundamental issues, important advances in the understanding of quantum entanglement coupled with unparalleled progress in the manipulation of atomic-size objects and, more recently, the emergence of quantum information science, have brought renewed interest in the subject.
Most of this talk is devoted to an informal review (at the senior undergraduate level) of the Copenhagen and hidden-variables interpretations, as well as the many-worlds and decoherence formulations, which give distinct answers to the measurement puzzle. We also discuss an alternative, poor man’s approach based on the observation that quantum measuring devices differ significantly from ordinary objects. We argue that there are only two basic classes of particle detectors for which a measurement conduces either to a phase transformation (e. g., the bubble chamber) or a macroscopic transfer of charge (e. g., the Geiger counter). For both types, the state prior to a measurement is thermodynamically metastable and the particle being measured induces an irreversible transition into a stable state. Using these facts, we show that there is a multiplicity of Hamiltonians associated with different pointer states of a detector, which precludes the realization of quantum superpositions of the Schrödinger-cat type.
Roberto Merlin (U-M Physics)
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Singing The National Anthem: What Does Advance Australia Fair Mean?
Posted on 19 March 2015 by Mabel Kwong
When it comes to proudly singing and talking about our national anthem Advance Australia Fair, Australians are divided on this. Some of us are proud of our national anthem, and some of us not so proud.
Melbourne Central clock. Puts on a show and plays Waltzing Matilda on the hour | Weekly Photo Challenge: Wall.
In the 1990s, I went to pre-school in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne and don’t remember singing Advanced Australia Fair except at assembly on Fridays. After pre-school, I moved to Malaysia and Singapore for more school. Some years ago, I returned to Melbourne and finished my last years of high school here and my classmates and I never had to sing the anthem at assembly.
On Australia Day, Advance Australia Fair is played during town hall flag raising ceremonies around the country but those of us watching aren’t asked to sing it. Right before the start of our Aussie Rules Football (AFL) Grand Final each year, the national anthem is sung by an entertainer in the middle of the pitch and the 100,000 at the match stand at attention, not all singing. Is singing and hearing the national anthem really a moment of patriotic pride and what does it mean to us?
Australians certainly have mixed feelings about our national song, a song that has changed over the years. Different generations identify with different anthems. God Save the Queen was our formal anthem before 1974 and it was played at international sporting events where Australia won medals before that year. Our current national anthem was voted as the country’s song through a plebiscite in 1977 – the popular feel-good song Waltzing Matilda came in second.
A few years ago, the national anthem was playing on TV at home and I pointed it out to dad. He said, “I thought Waltzing Matilda is the national anthem?” Mind you, my dad is a Chinese-Malaysian migrant who has a good grasp of the English language, follows local politics and has worked in Australia for years. Maybe we don’t sing it often enough and forget the lyrics, and the anthem altogether.
As Australians, we all have different views on nationalism and some national anthem’s lyrics are lost on us. In the song, the line “For we are young and free” might come across as strange to some of us who strongly want a republic (currently Australia still has a British monarch). “Our home is girt by sea” gives the impression Australians live by the sea. I certainly do not live by the ocean, nor do I go to the beach that often.
Reading between the lines, racist undertones seem to nestle within Advance Australia Fair. While it acknowledges “those who’ve come across the seas” in the second verse, there’s no hint of the First Peoples or Aboriginal culture in the song. It’s no surprise some Indigenous school students find it hard to sing the song at school assemblies.
But arguably the positive side of Australia comes across in the song as well. The words “young and free” and “boundless plains to share” touch upon the true-blue, fair dinkum Aussie spirit. There’s also a degree of progressiveness surrounding the song: it’s a song Australians independently voted for in 1977 to formally replace long-standing royal anthem God Save the Queen, in a time when the White Australia Policy which discriminated against non-European immigration was recently abolished.
Sometimes our personal experiences influence our attitude towards our national anthem. Being picked on because of my race by my so-called Caucasian friends in pre-school in Melbourne wasn’t pleasant and I avoided them. Needless to say, Friday assemblies and singing Advance Australia Fair was something I never looked forward to. Today, I don’t mind the song; it does point to Australia’s positive spirit after all.
As Waltzing Matilda plays, the bird and musician figures move left and right.
Singing the national anthem at school in Malaysia and Singapore was a different story altogether. Every morning as my Chinese, Malay and Indian heritage classmates and I watched flags being raised during assembly, we sang Negaraku (My Country) and Majulah Singapura (Onward Singapore) in respective countries. Up until this day I still remember the lyrics of both songs and the meaning behind them – Bahasa Melayu lyrics nonetheless, a language foreign to me. Perhaps this has something to do with my teachers in Malaysia and Singapore testing and grading my class on singing these two songs and my classmates encouraging me to sing the songs with them. As one. As one culture.
In multicultural Australia, many of us identify with multiple identities and cultures. At the end of the day, we each have a right and a choice on whether we want to sing our country’s national anthem or not, just as we have a choice on deciding what being a citizen of country means to us.
I reckon the high school I went to in Melbourne never got my class to sing Advance Australia Fair because they sadly assumed it wasn’t a song was significant to us: more than half of the school comprised international students and Australians of culturally diverse backgrounds. Just because some of us weren’t Australian doesn’t mean we’re not interested in the anthem. Nevertheless, so many of us clamoured at the canteen to buy sausage rolls for recess on numerous occasions. How Australian.
There are certainly more ways to show our love for our country than singing a song.
Did you sing the national anthem at school?
Just What Is Australia’s National Dish? There Really Isn’t One
What Does It Mean To Be Australian?
This entry was posted in Australia, Identity, Racism and tagged Asian, australia, culture, lifestyle, music, National Anthem, Nationalism, Patriotism, Photography, Singing by Mabel Kwong. Bookmark the permalink.
154 thoughts on “Singing The National Anthem: What Does Advance Australia Fair Mean?”
charuzu on 19 March 2015 at 12:08 PM said:
I grew up with God Save the Queen as our national anthem. In 1974 I was in the second last year of high school. I can sing Waltzing Matilda but I dont know the words of Advance Australia Fair. I got married in Japan and several of my relatives came to the wedding. In true Japanese style, us “Aussies” sang Waltzing Matilda to the guests – our unoffical National Anthem.
You are right – different age groups have different experience with the Australian National Anthem.
charuzu on 19 March 2015 at 7:20 PM said:
I remember a story from the Olympic Games in Sydney in 2000. Some children thought the opening line of our anthem was “Australians all eat ostrich” instead of “Australians all let us rejoice”.
Mabel Kwong on 20 March 2015 at 12:00 AM said:
Oh dear. I didn’t know that. But a hilarious story. I am sure some people sing other parts of the national anthem differently…or think that that is how they should go.
Mabel Kwong on 19 March 2015 at 10:44 PM said:
Thanks for sharing, Charles. I haven’t heard many people claim they can sing Waltzing Matilda. It probably is a generational thing. However, quite a few of my (gen-Y) friends in Asia are familiar with Waltzing Matilda and see it as an iconic Australian song. If you slow down the tempo, it sounds really beautiful. Your wedding sounds fabulous.
Caroline Hutton on 19 March 2015 at 12:26 PM said:
Our kids (who are incidentally in a pretty multicultural school in outer eastern Melbourne) sing Advance Australia Fair every Friday at assembly. All the school stands, including any parents, and two verses are sung- Eek! Lots of parents have only learnt the second verse since their kids started at the school! I don’t love it – feels a little American to me somehow? I sneak out if I can before that part…naughty mum!
Oooh, very cheeky of you to sneak out during the national anthem! 😉 It’s very encouraging to hear that your kids’ school gets them to sing the second verse too. I have a feeling the second verse is lost on a lot of Australians.
Personally, I think Advance Australia Fair sounds quite regal. So many singers have performed the last note by belting it out, it can come across as intimidating to sing (but I think this applies to other anthems too, but definitely not the ones in Malaysia and Singapore). Very fan-fare like, and as you suggested, American.
Constance - Foreign Sanctuary on 19 March 2015 at 1:01 PM said:
Interesting, Mabel! I honestly have no idea what the national anthem of Australia is.
However, I can sing the Canadian national anthem in both English and French. I don’t know it is the norm now or not, but when I was in high school, it was played each day, after morning announcements and before class. We would stand up by our seats and listen to a version of the song each day.
And I honestly have no idea what the national anthem of Canada is 😀
You are like Sue below, who also said that she sings the Canadian anthem in two languages. I never knew your national anthem had a French version…but then again, lots of French arrived in Canada a long time ago.
It was very respectful of you and your class to stand up when your national anthem is played. When I was studying in Malaysia and Singapore, when the national anthem played at assembly, the school gates would be locked and the late students stood awkwardly outside looking in.
Denny Sinnoh on 19 March 2015 at 1:37 PM said:
What? “Advance Australia Fair”? … I have been thinking all this time that the Australian National Anthem was that “Six Months in a Leaky Boat” song.
” … the tyranny of distance ..” that part always got to me : )
You should give a listen to the American National Anthem. The “Star Spangled Banner”
… it is a song about war … with Great Britain … our closest friend …
Great for football games.
Six Months in a Leaky Boat was a popular rock song by a New Zealand group but it did do very, very well on the Australian music charts 🙂
When I was a kid, I had a piano book that had the sheet music to The Star Spangled Banner. It’s a pretty easy song to play, and I always liked how it sounds.
CL (RealGunners) on 19 March 2015 at 1:56 PM said:
Of course I did in school, there’s no way for us to NOT sing it in school. I suppose you know as you schooled in Malaysia before. In fact, I was a prefect for a couple years, and one of my job was to take note of anyone not singing to the song and get him/her into trouble after the assembly! 😀
If you ask me today, obviously it is a load of bollocks to assume that singing the national anthem equals to being patriotic. Recently they even tried to play the national anthem in the cinemas right before a movie starts. Thankfully they canned it after a few weeks. It caused a lot of disgruntlement among the locals and confusion among the foreign tourists.
Exactly. In Malaysia (and Singapore), you cannot NOT sing the national anthem during assembling. I hope you got to weed out those who were just moving their lips 😀 In Singapore, it was the teachers who spied on the students each morning and picked out those who didn’t sing loud enough.
Suppose you also remember that we had to recite the Rukunegara too around once a week after the national anthem too – with the palm held up, facing outwards. Once my fingers were splayed out and my teacher walked over to me and pushed the fingers together.
National anthem played at cinemas before the movie starts? That’s odd. You would be inclined to stand up from your cushioned seat once you hear the national anthem.
CL (RealGunners) on 20 March 2015 at 2:16 AM said:
Exactly, that was what we were expected to do, stand up when the national anthem was played. Well, I think many people ignored that directive, and they can’t really round up people for not standing up, so they canned the initiative themselves.
Oh yes, I definitely remember Rukunegara! 😀
Well, if you’re comfortable in your cushy cinema chair, you probably wouldn’t want to stand for the national anthem. People probably rebelled by sitting down and eating their movie snacks, as you said, ignored the directive.
As a kid in Malaysia, I had trouble saying the second half of the Rukunegara because it sort of goes faster (in terms of syllables, tongue twister in a sense) towards the end 😀
balroop2013 on 19 March 2015 at 1:56 PM said:
Hi Mabel,
Attachment to National Anthems comes naturally though I have never pondered over the emotion, the pride is probably connected to our impressionable years, when we didn’t even understand the meaning and the import of the words we repeated every day till high school! It is only after we grow up that we start comprehending why NAs are so respected, what are the sentiments attached to them
I have felt the words seep through my skin when the National Anthem of my country is played at the international sports events, the feeling is quite inexplicable!
Wise words from you once again, Balroop. As a child, we can only understand so much and barely know the history of our country, hence the detachment towards our national anthem. In Malaysia and Singapore, we were thought the national anthem(s) in music class in our first year, though. But I really didn’t understand the meaning behind them until I was older.
You sound proud of India and its national anthem. It’s funny how the audience – and world watching – goes rather silent and watches another country’s national anthem at an international sporting event, right after post-medal presentation.
Sue Slaght on 19 March 2015 at 2:48 PM said:
Mabel I, like Constance, can sing the national anthem in English and French. It is very commonly heard here and people often sing along at all kinds of events. I love your Dad’s thoughts on what the Australian anthem was. 🙂
Very interesting to hear you can sing your national anthem in two languages, Sue. Perhaps one version is preferred over the other, I don’t know. Or maybe Canadians are brought up singing both versions.
I think my dad still secretly thinks Waltzing Matilda is Australia’s national anthem 😀
Here in the west English is the first language but by law all labelling and such must be bilingual.
Interesting. Never knew that. So now when I come to Canada I prepare myself to see signs in French. Better learn a bit of the language before I go there, it might come in handy.
Sue Slaght on 21 March 2015 at 1:19 AM said:
Well you will mainly see both languages on all food labelling. Here the street signs are in English. In Quebec most will be in French.
Mabel Kwong on 21 March 2015 at 8:13 PM said:
Very, very interesting to hear, Sue. If I do come over to Canada and in particularly Quebec, I will learn some fresh to impress everyone there!
Leanne Cole on 19 March 2015 at 2:51 PM said:
I think you have to remember that the song was written in a very different time. Australians weren’t proud to be Australian. We loved living here, but we also felt a cultural cringe. there was that view that anything Australian was rubbish. Many people still feel that way. There is no reference to the indigenous population because back then people didn’t want to know about them. They were all “drunk” apparently and couldn’t help themselves, so why should we. I can remember my grandmother saying that she had no time for them. That goodness that has changed, though I think the feelings are still there but people keep them to themselves now.
I think the song implies that we are all different, just because you might be from Asian cultures doesn’t mean it doesn’t apply to you, everyone, as you said, the song doesn’t have reference to the first peoples here, so it is all about coming here from another place.
The line girt by sea is meant to mean our home is surrounded by sea, and it is, Australia is completely surrounded by sea.
Oh yes, forgot to say having Walzing Matilda as our national anthem would be like the americans having Yanky Doodle Dandy. It is a folk song about a homeless hobo who steels a sheep, not very representative of our nation, then or now.
Have to agree with you on this one that Waltzing Matilda isn’t that appropriate as a national anthem. However, I know quite a few international friends who think of it as an iconic Australian song.
That is a very important point Leanne, that Australia’s national anthem was written in a time we weren’t proud of our country and we couldn’t define what Australia is. Thank you for bringing that up. Maybe it’s a reason why some of the lyrics to Advance Australia Fair were re-written.
Really is a shame that there is no reference to the First Peoples or Stolen Generation. But the least we can do is appreciate the song for its positive spirit – as you mention, the song implies that we’re all different. No reason why we can’t join in in Australian culture.
Many other countries and nations are surrounded by sea, which is why I find the line “girt by sea” not uniquely Australian.
Leanne Cole on 4 April 2015 at 5:19 AM said:
There aren’t that many countries that are completely surrounded, we are sort of unique, like there is New Zealand, Japan, but nearly every other country borders with another one. I can also remember growing up how it was said we were the largest island on the plant, I don’t hear that being said any more. Really what you find is a nation struggling for an identity and not really knowing what we were. I think in many ways we still don’t. I think that song really reflects that.
Mabel Kwong on 5 April 2015 at 10:57 PM said:
Well said. I think the term “island” tends to be thought of as a small nation these days, a nation where you would vacation. So perhaps that is why many Australians aren’t fond of calling Australia an island – we have realised how vast geographically it is (but really any land is an island).
It really is hard to pinpoint a clear identity since Australia is so diverse in terms of people, food, culture, sport and so on. And so I reckon you are right in saying that about our national anthem.
CrazyChineseFamily on 19 March 2015 at 4:42 PM said:
In Germany the anthem is never sung in school and the same applies to Finalnd I guess. Nearly all national anthems are very nationalistic and often just swim in racism. This is also the reason why the first two verses of the German anthem was forbidden after the Second World War however leaving all other countries in Europe still with their sometimes very crazy sounding compete anthems :p
These days the German anthem is only sung on special occasions such as big sport events or during the National Day/ unification day
Very interesting to hear from someone who didn’t sing the national anthem in school because, well, it’s not part of school life in Germany. I’ve never heard European national anthems before, but I take your word that they are crazy sounding.
Surely those in Germany would learn their national anthem at some point…if not in school, then perhaps elsewhere.
maamej on 19 March 2015 at 5:26 PM said:
I was thinking I couldn’t care less about national anthems, being quite sceptical about nationalism, which so often exploits people’s racism and xenophobia, and then I read one of the comments about it ‘seeping through’ the skin and I remembered getting teary at times hearing our national anthem, to the point where I couldn’t even sing it myself. I really can’t explain that either, I don’t think it’s got anything to do with the actual words.
Perhaps somehow it helps focus attention on connection to the land we live in, and as it’s usually sung at times when we’re surrounded by other people at special events, it can also focus our attention on our connection to other people. Or maybe I’m just suggestible. I feel the same way about the Qantas song, ‘I still call Australia Home’. Especially when I’ve heard it played on a Qantas flight on my way back to Australia from overseas.
The Australian national anthem does stir up conflicting emotions within us. Though we may criticise and not agree with some of the sentiments of Advance Australia Fair, somehow we always stand at attention or shush when it’s played. It’s an unexplainable feeling, yes. It’s also interesting to note that everyone no matter which country their from tends to stand silently in awe when another country’s anthem is played at the medal presentation ceremony.
“sung at times when we’re surrounded by other people at special event.” Great observation, Maamej. The national anthem isn’t just about words, but the people singing it together too, no matter in tune or off-key. A sense of “we’re all in this together” manifests.
I’m not too sure how I feel about “I Still Call Australia Home”. I like the song, but not the Qantas advertisements.
maamej on 20 March 2015 at 11:05 PM said:
Music really moves us in quite subliminal ways.
I think I heard ‘Still call Australia home’ before I was very aware that it was an ad. But it was also something about getting on a Qantas plane and hearing Australian accents after 2 months living in a poor country that really got to me – reinforcing how much I do call this place home 🙂
“Music really moves us in quite subliminal ways.” Perfect way to put it. Certain chords and lyrics will resonate with us deep down, touch us in ways we cannot explain.
To be honest, I only vaguely remember hearing “Still Call Australia Home” at some point before the Qantas ad. It’s quite a stirring song, especially the last verse. No matter Australia’s flaws, you really do love Australia, Maamej, do you 🙂 I think we all have something positive to say about Australia at the end of the day.
Gary Lum on 19 March 2015 at 6:05 PM said:
I was in grade 4 when we changed from singing God save the Queen to Advance Australia Fair. It may not be perfect but IMHO it is orders of magnitude better than Waltzing Matilda. WM is about the person who steals a sheep and prefers suicide over being caught by police and facing justice.
I don’t think many of us really know the meaning behind Waltzing Matilda. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. People seem to like the song for its melody and tune. That’s what it’s known for, I suppose.
Donald on 19 March 2015 at 7:12 PM said:
Interesting post. How about the “British” national anthem which, in its long version, has the line “crush rebellious Scots?” No surprise that we sing “Flower of Scotland” at sporting events. A national anthem that is anti it’s own people!
Interesting to know that about the “British” national anthem. I don’t think many Australians are familiar with it. I’m guessing some Scottish aren’t huge fans of “Flower of Scotland”. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.
Indah Susanti on 20 March 2015 at 2:51 AM said:
We did sing for national anthem at school in Indonesia. I still remember it by heart. When in the Netherlands I know the anthem as well and despite I am not a Dutch national, I always feel touch to listen to Dutch anthem when the Dutch athlete receiving their winning medals in some sport competition 🙂
Well written post Mabel 🙂
Awww, you still remember Indonesia’s national anthem after all these years. As Maamej said in her comment, maybe it’s because we’re drawn to music that we like to listen to other country’s national anthem. It could be a respect thing, as in your case with the Dutch national anthem and Netherlands is in a sense a second home to you too. However, it could also be because we want a reason to say how there is a better anthem than our country’s 😀
Indah Susanti on 21 March 2015 at 8:56 PM said:
I guess so 🙂 Oh, I can’t help to keep remembering Indonesia’s national anthem by heart. During my school days in Indonesia, we had national flag ceremony every Monday morning and sang along the national anthem when the flag was going up 😀 not sure if it is still in practice nowadays. I was raised in dictatorship government, Soeharto back then.
Just like my school days in Singapore and Malaysia, only that the flag raising ceremony was every morning at 7.15. Very, very early in the morning and I remember most of us mumbled the anthem half asleep. Good times 😀
ken and agnes photoworks on 20 March 2015 at 3:26 AM said:
yeap, absolutely, i know Negaraku by heart during my school days. even now, i can recall most of it. during assembly, our HM, who is a very keen music teacher, will give the chord, and away we go …
Negaraku, Tanah tumpahnya darahku …. as the flag is hoisted by the head prefect. great memories.
thanks for reliving it, mabel.
I too still know Negaraku. Yes, it’s all coming back to me word for word. Your headmaster sounds very spontaneous, expecting you lot to sing at the sound of the first chord. Along with Negaraku, you might also remember the Rukunegara. As I mentioned to CL in the comments, it was something we had to say after the national anthem at least once a week.
ken and agnes photoworks on 25 March 2015 at 11:35 AM said:
yes, he was, stern and spontaneous, we had so many monikers for him, it was fun creating them. Rukunegara, yes, by heart, every word, even now. how could we be otherwise, after all the weekly practice 🙂 .
Oh yes. Monikers and nicknames for the headmaster and teachers. Those were the days. Some things we’ll always stick with us. All that practise singing the anthem and reciting the Rukunegara, they are embedded deep within us.
Packing my Suitcase on 20 March 2015 at 3:30 AM said:
Interesting topic Mabel.
I had no idea how Australians felt about their national anthem, but I can totally understand why… the lyrics are a bit weird 😦
In Brazil we love our anthem, and I used to sing it at school… and we all sing it very proudly at a football game.. have seen how Brazilians sang the anthem during the World Cup? Amazing 😀
Anyways… we always had the same anthem, in case of Australia it changed, so it might be difficult too to adopt another one.
Yes, the lyrics to Australia’s national anthem are rather weird. It focuses quite a bit on describing, or trying the describe how Aussie land looks like.
Football is a big part of Brazil, right? 😀 Actually I haven’t noticed the Brazilians singing their song at the World Cup, but I will have a closer look next time.
Didn’t know you watch football too! I love watching the World Cup once every four years, and over the last few tournaments Australia has been in it 😀
And I suppose Brazil’s national anthem is in Brazilian language, Portugese.
Yes, football is very important to Brazilians, especially during the World cup 😀
Look it up on youtube some time, it is very beautiful how people kept singing the Anthem even after the song stopped. Our anthem is really long, so they never play it all on games, etc.. and yes it is in Portuguese 😀
That is amazing, and so patriotic of Brazilians to sing their national anthem even after the song has stopped playing. Nothing like this in Australia, or Malaysia or Singapore. Lots of pride for their country and they must feel like one big happy family singing together at the World Cup 😀
Australia’s full national anthem isn’t that long, two verses. But we only sing the first verse, leaving out the second. Some might say we sing the national anthem half-heartedly.
Packing my Suitcase on 23 March 2015 at 7:32 PM said:
Ohh I’m sorry about that! Do you prefer the God save the Queen one or would it be better if the made a new one?
Must be different, to have this feeling about your own national anthem.
Oh well, Brazilian are mostly patriotic during the World Cup, on a daily basis we only complain about the country hahaha
I actually am not too sure how God Save the Queen goes. All for having a new national anthem for Australia or a re-write of the current one. It’s true, I think a very different feeling compared to how Brazilians feel about their national song. There are Australians who want the country to be a republic (free from monarchy), and others no.
Brazilians know how to come together on the world stage. Sport certainly unites your home country!
Ohh that is a difficult situation right? 😦 I hope with time things resolve in your country and people can agree with an anthem and about republic or monarchy. What really matter is that Australia is a peaceful country! 😀
Yes, sport really pull us Brazilians together!! Politics separates us 😦
Australians are very divided when it comes to nationalism and politics too. It’s a no-no to talk about these subjects usually when we’re socialising with peopel we don’t know well. Generally we’re a peaceful country 😀
Hope to visit Brazil someday and see a happy country proud of their culture!
I think politics is always a sensitive subjects right? In Brazil it is especially veeery bad at the moment as the country is divided, some want impeachment other dont! Oh well, despite this, I think we are a happy country 😀
I also want to visit Australia someday!! And when I go I have to enjoy and stay at least 1 month, there must be so much to see and do 😀
Oh yes. Politics is always a sensitive topic. We always seem so angry when we talk about it!
I hope you visit Australia, then we can go exploring together. And I hope to visit Germany someday soon and see all the towns you’ve been talking on your blog!
True, people really get angry over this topic!!
Ohh I thought of you last night as I watched the football game of Germany x Australia 😀 They sang the national anthem and it reminded me of our conversation 😀
Yesss, I do hope we meet someday, here or there! 😀 That would be veeeery cool!
Awww, sooo nice of Allane to think of little Mabel 😀 You must be proud of Germany’s national anthem too now that you have lived there for a long time!
I think I would be speechless if I met you, very famous travel Brazilian blogger living in Germany ❤
hahahaa you are too sweet little Mabel 😀
Yes, I am also proud of the German national anthem, though I got to say that I still haven’t learned it 100% hahaha… but I promised to myself that by the end of the year I would learn it all!
Awnnn I would be speechless too to meet a famous Australian writer, one of my favourites 😀
I hope you had a lovely weekend!!
Hehehe, you learning the German national anthem because little Mabel inspired you to 😀 To be honest, I only know Advance Australia Fair, and don’t know the previous Aussie national anthems. Learning national anthems is usually a great history lesson, though.
I don’t know of any famous Australian writers personally, so I can’t introduce you to them 😀
Packing my Suitcase on 1 April 2015 at 9:25 PM said:
hahahahaha while I was in Canada for 1 year I learned their national anthem, so shame on me for not having learned the German one after 3 years living in the country! It’s time I give it a try hahaha.
To me you are already a famous writer 😀
Mabel Kwong on 2 April 2015 at 8:25 PM said:
Hahaha. Canada’s national anthem comes in English and French, so I suppose that is one of the harder anthems to learn – two versions! Awww, you are too kind, Allane 😀
Sonel on 20 March 2015 at 7:01 AM said:
Stunning shots of that beautiful clock Mabel. As far as anthems are concerned, I think I had my fill when I was in school. They were boring. Now, if they would put more beat into it, I might learn to like it. 😆
Thank you, Sophia. The original photos had reddish tones all over, and it took me a while to make it more cool-toned.
I suppose if you sing the national anthem everyday in school, you can get bored of it. In fact, it can become routine and you might even forget what you’re singing about. So I don’t blame you for saying it was a boring experience for you.
When we celebrated National Day at school in Singapore, we had four flag beareres who carried the Singapore flag to assembly, which made singing the national anthem all the more entertaining.
Jean on 20 March 2015 at 9:13 AM said:
Since Canada was a British colony, our anthem was God Save the Queen which I did sing in public school at beginning of each day. O Canada became official anthem…which is sung at sports games, etc. Its birth…actually started in Quebec!
However “O Canada” anthem adoption probably became increasingly adopted long before 1980. After Canada adopted its own national flag (with red maple) in 1965, there was a slow informal movement to adopt O Canada.
One also hears it sung in French. I used to know words a bit in French for lst few lines. But have forgotten them.
I entered into school in 1964 and thereafter…so I have memory of major pivotal historic times in Canada, on our symbols and identity, plus when we changed. The support for O Canada gathered momentum 1966 when in 1967 was the 100th anniversary of Canada as an independent country.
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/o-canada/
To me, Canada’s anthem does speak to the geographic “stretch” (7,000+ km. from west and east coast) of the country and admittedly to me, I sing the anthem willingly, regardless of its little flaws.
I feel incredibly blessed to have been born in Canada and to experience the benefits of being Canadian.
You do sound like a very proud Canadian, Jean. Thank you for that link to O Canada. It’s very informative to know how the song originated and came to become your country’s anthem.
I thought most Canadians know the French version as well (as Constance and Sue have mentioned). So maybe not all Canadians then.
It does sound like Canadians agree on their national anthem and are supportive of it, for most part. Of course, there will be some of us who will find something to pick about it – but we all have our opinions and have varying degrees of nationalitsic pride and showing that.
Unlike Canada, Australia is still under a monarchy and it’s probably why a lot of us still associate God Save The Queen as our true anthem.
anotherday2paradise on 20 March 2015 at 11:00 AM said:
Such a gorgeous clock, Mabel. I don’t remember singing the national anthem when I went to school in England. I had to teach my South African pupils the national anthem, but the black pupils refused to sing the last verse which was in the Afrikaans language, and the white pupils didn’t like singing the Zulu first part, so it was usually a very halfhearted affair. 🙂
It is a gorgeous clock isn’t it? It’s located in a busy shopping mall in the city. Every hour on the hour, tourists will stand around it to watch the show the clock puts on. It really is iconic.
Oh dear, I imagine that your South African students grumbled all the time at singing their national anthem apart from singing it half-heartedly. Hopefully at some point, maybe when they are older, they do learn the messages behind the song and what it stands for.
anotherday2paradise on 21 March 2015 at 6:02 AM said:
Yes, I do hope so. The different languages are meant to help reconciliation, but seemed to end up being divisive instead. 😦
There is beauty in talking and singing in a different language, in a sense that shows equality and respect for others around us. Maybe one day South Africa will sing their national anthem in unison. Time heals.
Lani on 21 March 2015 at 1:14 AM said:
Growing up in Hawaii, we learned the American anthem, the “Star Spangled Banner” and our state song “Hawaiʻi Ponoʻī” in Hawaiian, so I think I just grew up thinking in a diverse and unique way (from the rest of the United States). Any singing of the anthem now would just involve me trying to remember the words, sometimes I would mouth it because I can’t sing very well.
In Thaiand the anthem is played at 8am and 6pm everyday on TV, over PAs, etc. They also play it before movies in the movie theatre. It’s kind of weird. You kind of feel inundated by it here.
Wow, two national anthems you sung at school and you were aware of two cultures from a young age. How can some of us not… 😉 To be honest, I think a lot of us don’t know all of the words to our national anthem, primarily because it’s not a song we sing everyday and naturally the lyrics can eclipse us.
I had no idea the national anthem was played in cinemas before the movie starts. What are the movie-goers supposed to do, stand up? As CL mentioned, recently in Malaysia they tried playing the anthems in cinemas but nobody paid much attention to it, and so this was canned.
Lani on 21 March 2015 at 11:53 PM said:
Yes, everyone stands up. If the anthem is played during “walking street” or when there is a weekly street fair, then everyone must stop until the anthem is finished. The tourists love it because it’s so weird and it’s like time has stopped.
That is fascinating people stop and stand up for the national anthem. National pride, perhaps. Standing up and either singing or standing at attention in silence, I presume. I would love to be caught up in that one day.
Lani on 23 March 2015 at 12:34 AM said:
I suppose I’ve taken it for granted so I’ve forgotten the novelity of it. The monarchy is BIG in Thailand, but the old ways are changing…change is in the air.
The monarchy is still big in Australia too, especially among the older generation. Similarly, change is in the air here too…but very slowly.
charuzu on 22 March 2015 at 10:55 AM said:
In Australia in the 1960s i remember a short film of a brass band playing the National Anthem was screened before the main feature or supporting short films. Everyone would stand up while the national anthem. But remember in the 1960s a large proportion of Australian population – were of English origin and our place in the British Commonwealth was far more prominent.
Interesting to hear. If the Australian national anthem was played before films in cinemas in Australia today (as per the other comments, this is common in some countries), I wonder if we would stand for it. This might not be a case since times have changed and many of us are all for standing up for what we individually believe in.
Hoarder Comes Clean on 21 March 2015 at 7:21 AM said:
We sang the US anthem sometimes in school, but it’s notoriously hard to sing. Professional singers murder it regularly before ball games. So, in school we often sang the more melodious “America the Beautiful.” At least it has “and crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea” as a last line — a friendly thought, and typical of the day in including the sisterhood among “man”kind. – Sandy, only slightly kidding…
“America the Beautiful”. Now that’s a song I’ve not heard of, I’ll need to YouTube it and check it out. This is the first time I’ve heard of the US anthem being hard to sing. Maybe it’s a song that you’re meant to belt out and that’s why. Many singers singing the Australian national anthem tend to hold the last note at the end for a bit, so it can be hard to sing along to this song.
Touch2Touch on 21 March 2015 at 12:40 PM said:
Chiming in on the impossibility of singing the US national anthem.
It’s set to the tune of an English drinking song, Anacreon in Heaven, that’s for openers. It has an octave range of probably three or four octaves (feels like six). It celebrates a battle.
A MUCH better choice would have been America the Beautiful. (The words happen to have been written by a president of the women’s college I graduated from, but objectively speaking they’re beautiful.)
The choice of it as national anthem is not hallowed by time immemorial; it was only chosen in 1931, that’s just three years before I was born! And although it may seem so, I am not an ancient of days.
It was one of many mistakes made in the Thirties, and I wince whenever I hear it in an arena or on TV.
As far as multiculturalism goes — the US is an immigrant country and so is Australia. What I say is: Long may we wave!
Really, the US national anthem is hard to sing? Okay, then Sandy must be telling the truth 😀 I played it on the piano as a kid and thought it had a nice melody.
Never knew it was a battle song. Now I know, thank you for explaining that. America the Beautiful sounds like a wonderful song, and written by a woman, that is impressive. It sounds like a song that’s still familiar with Americans these days.
beeblu on 21 March 2015 at 12:40 PM said:
I went to school in South Africa, and we never sang the national anthem at school. We did, however, have to say the Lord’s Prayer at assembly, which is another whole can of worms. Nationalism certainly has its dark side and perpetuates many stereotypes.
“Nationalism certainly has its dark side and perpetuates many stereotypes.” Well said, BB. It’s a heavy and sensitive topic many of us do actively try to avoid, no surprise there.
I suppose the Lord’s Prayer was a short verse you recited in South Africa in regards to faith. At school in Singapore and Malaysia, most mornings I had to say something called The Pledge, which is an oath of allegiance to the country, with hand or fist over our heart.
azurro4cielo on 21 March 2015 at 10:33 PM said:
During my school time, student and teacher were compulsory to sing Indonesia Raya (the national anthem) every Monday morning as opening for raising flag ceremony.
Everyone must sing the song, so most of the student were half-heart when singing the anthem because we should arrived at school one hour earlier than normal days. six o’clock sharp in the morning before ceremony started.
That is early, arriving at school 6am sharp on Monday mornings. No wonder many of you sang the song half-heartedly…and tiredly too, I’m guessing. And you wouldn’t want to be late as there might be some punishment or detention for that.
Christy Birmingham on 22 March 2015 at 5:27 AM said:
Interestingly Canada’s national anthem is being criticised for not being gender neutral. It is the line “True patriot love in all thy sons command” that is coming under attack. Some people suggest that instead of “thy sons” it be “of us.” As you say it’s our choice whether to sing the anthem or not. Thanks for the thought-provoking post!
Interesting to hear a gender take and perspective on the national anthem. A valid and convincing argument that the word “sons” refers to men and not women. I suppose at the end of the day we can take that line to mean what we want it to be, and if we don’t believe in that line, then don’t sing it.
Yes, I was thinking much the same, Mabel. Or we can think, well that was a different time when the song was created than it is now. A matter of perspective as well as a matter of choice.
“that was a different time when the song was created than it is now.” Well said. Times change as the world turns, and so do our feelings towards our country and how it is run.
moondustwriter on 22 March 2015 at 7:07 AM said:
Mabel a thought provoking piece. Anthems seem to represent a time gone by when people were spurned on by a national bond.
Thank you, Leslie. You say it so well. National anthems usually are written in a specific moment in time, and the words draw on victories and courageous and nation-building acts at a point in time.
Amy on 22 March 2015 at 10:47 AM said:
It’s an interesting reading, Mabel. I feel like I’m learning a bit about Australia culture, history, people from your blog. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. 🙂
Always honoured that you read what I write, Amy. Last year I felt like I haven’t shared that much about Australian culture, hence more of such posts of late. Really appreciate your support and you’re always so kind 🙂
Amy on 22 March 2015 at 10:53 PM said:
You write these articles with your sensitivity; importantly, you bring up the facts and history information. And, you always present them graciously. I know these sensitive topics are difficult to write, but you keep challenging yourselves and are getting a lot of echoes. I admire you, Mabel.
Thank you, Amy, for the feedback. Honestly I feel that I’ve strayed from the downright sensitive topics, feeling like I’m repeating myself. Then again, that shows I believe in something…but I could always use different opinions and thoughts like yours 🙂
yprior1 on 22 March 2015 at 3:43 PM said:
I like your thoughts on diversity (<3)
and totally agree with
"There are certainly more ways to show our love for our country than singing a song."
Diversity is such a beautiful thing. It really is up to us if we want to sing the national anthem. If we don’t, that’s fine but let’s respect others who want to sing it.
yprior1 on 22 March 2015 at 10:41 PM said:
agree! 💐
🎶🎶🎼♭♭♭ 🙂
🎶🎶 The joys of typing on a phone or mobile device with emojis! I copied and pasted yours… 😀
and actually Mabel – I found this site where I can cut and paste when I am on the home computer…. I bookmarked it so I can have easy access to all of them – and just cut and paste as I go – ✌👊
http://fsymbols.com/signs/
An amazing site, Y. You are more tech savvy than me, I’m ashamed of that 👌
In the mornings during assembly in Singapore, there was always one prefect or student who had to sing the national anthem through the microphone. I pitied them 🎤
oh never be ashamed of things we are learning – I recently heard a cool quote – something like when we “broaden our horizons with our work – it is never about better or best – it is about us broadening what we know….”
and I would pity that person too – oh the things adults need to learn sometimes – and this post is another example of some who need some broadening of options…. 🙂
dedy oktavianus pardede on 23 March 2015 at 1:45 AM said:
I only know for Indonesia Raya
Lol Dedy. Every comment you leave on my blog, it makes me laugh 😀 Great that you know your country’s national anthem. Sounds like you’re proud of it.
Jessica on 23 March 2015 at 4:59 AM said:
Interesting topic, Mabel! I of course have never heard the Australian anthem. Australia has an interesting history to pull from, so it’s not surprising that its anthem would, too. Here in the States, I used to sing our anthem at school, but these days? I can’t remember the last time I sang it personally. I guess I’m not that patriotic. 😛 Then again, that’s not surprising.
It’s true, Jess. When we’re done with school, there aren’t many occasions where we have to sing the national anthem and no surprise we forget the lyrics. Even if we’re encouraged to, we may not want to because we’re self-conscious of how our singing voice sounds!
I’m sure you love your country, just that you don’t show it in song 🙂
Tina Schell on 23 March 2015 at 11:43 AM said:
Very interesting Mabel, never thought about it I must admit. here in the states when I was in school we sang the national anthem at the start of every day with our hands over our hearts and were immensely proud to be Americans. Then of course came the Vietnam War and our pride slowly eroded as we disagreed more and more strongly with our government’s actions. Today I’d say patriotism is a bit of a mix – much like Australia we have people who are extremely patriotic while others question whether our country is doing its best to handle the things most important to them, especially minorities and recent immigrants. It’s a crazy world out there so I suppose what songs we sing and when has become an indication of who we are and what we love. When in doubt, attend a baseball or football game and you’ll see everyone singing along – all part of the fun!
Thanks for sharing, Tina. Interesting to hear the changing sentiments towards the American national anthem. I always had the inkling that Americans are more patriotic about their country than Australians are to Australia. For instance, Americans do not seem hesitant waving their American flag. In Australia rarely will you see anyone with the flag on celebratory occasions.
I would love to attend an American baseball or football game someday. Sounds there’s a very much inclusive atmosphere at these events.
shenANNAgans on 23 March 2015 at 4:56 PM said:
I grew up singing the National Anthem, always at the school assembly in Primary school, not very often at all during my high school years. I attended a private school for years 5, 6 & 7, and we had a huge drama/music culture, so it was always lots of fun. I dont really think I have ever thought about what the song means, and we could do sooooooo many other things, but but I liked singing and enjoyed that we as a group we were all honoring our country.
Another thought provoking post Miss Mabel. 🙂
PS: Sorry I havent been over to your blog for a few weeks, I am blown away at the way the days are zooming. It’ll be Christmas before we know it. ARGH!
Happy Monday, hope you are having a swell day. 🙂
It seems that as we grow older we sing the national anthem less and less. It does make me wonder what place the Australian national anthem has in our country. As the other commentors have brought up, in some countries the national anthem is played in the cinemas.
You are right. we can interpret our national anthem in many ways. Maybe we should all agree to disagree and focus the moment we’re singing it – together, a sign of solidarity for a few seconds.
Always happy to see you drop by, Anna. Life can be busy, but make sure you live the moment and enjoy it 🙂
darwinontherocks on 23 March 2015 at 7:15 PM said:
Very interesting topic indeed ! In Belgium, it’s very complicated, because the country is divided into 3 different regions, so we have a lot of national anthems (a Flemish, and French and a German one). The unified anthem is not very popular in schools, but in sports groups, they keep singing it before a game (espeically in football). Have a nice week !
Oh my, 3 national anthems. That is quite a few of them, and a lot of lyrics to memorise as well. But it seems that there is an anthem for each region as you said, so sort of something for everyone. Something each of them can relate to and feel proud of. Very, very fascinating and thank you for sharing!
Matthew Curry on 24 March 2015 at 5:21 AM said:
Thank you for supporting my work, Matt. It’s been a while, thanks for sticking by this long. Hope you’re doing well 🙂
Matthew Curry on 25 March 2015 at 12:06 AM said:
No, thank you. Always good to see you here 🙂
Meihsiu Hsiao on 25 March 2015 at 1:32 PM said:
I think maybe sometimes we can not go to choose our life, such as work, school or other life planning, parents have a lot of time and perhaps make plans for us, we are unable to choose and make decisions, but regardless there even is a national, as well as identity and integration environment is the best way, although this is difficult to start, or to remember where it came from their own, do not forget you father is Chinese, I hope you do not have of ambivalence.
In my childhood, every morning must sing the national anthem at school, but now I’m not sure.
“do not forget you father is Chinese”. Very wise, and thank you for reminding me that. No matter where we are from, we are all descendents of not only a country but a heritage and culture too. Sometimes a national anthem can exemplify and show this.
Interesting to hear you used to sing the national anthem at school each morning. It seems to be the way for most of us who studied in Asia when we were younger. I heard it’s still this way today.
Forestwoodfolkart on 3 April 2015 at 10:50 PM said:
Anything is better than God save our Queen, long may use reign over us…etc… Mindless crappy song. Advance Australia song relates to Australia racist or not. Sounds like a lot of country’s anthems are old and outdated. But I kind if like the tune.I grew up with Gid save the Queen, my kids with A A Fair… Seems like progress. Perhaps the next version will be Goanna’s Solid Rock!!!
I have to agree with you. that Advance Australia Fair has a bit more relevance to God Save The Queen, though I suppose the former was more relatable to many Australians many years ago.
Don’t know about kids these days, but I always felt the AAF was hard to sing, especially the last note at the end. The note sounds triumphant, but still…
I like your idea of the next version of our anthem. How cool is that 😀
Dalo 2013 on 4 April 2015 at 12:24 PM said:
Growing up in the States, we use to sing the National Anthem at sporting events and since sports makes up such a big part of our culture it is a song I think everyone is familiar with…and it is funny as the tune itself is the official song of the Anacreontic Society, an 18th-century gentlemen’s club who basically loved to drink. So it is funny to have this as part of our anthem.
I guess I sing the anthem quite a bit, as when I am in the States I attend a few events and they almost always sing the anthem. Hand over heart, look at the flag and think about the men & women who give there life for the country (defending our freedoms and liberty)…wow, I really do that 🙂 and believe it 🙂
The tune of a gentlemen’s club – what an interesting fact about your national anthem. And interesting to hear you say you think of those who fought for their country when singing it. I don’t think we think of that at all when singing the Australian anthem. Most Australians probably think the opposite then – how lucky we are to be living in Australia.
Sports. National anthems. They seem to go hand in hand with our national identity, something which is similar around the world.
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treerabold on 7 April 2015 at 1:36 PM said:
I don’t remember singing the national anthem in school. We said the pledge of allegiance to the flag everyday before class started.
We of course sing our national anthem before baseball games and other sporting events. It seems odd that our time to be patriotic is when two teams are getting ready to “fight”each other!
Interesting to hear you didn’t sing your anthem too often at school. Never knew the Americans has a pledge of allegiance like those in Singapore and Malaysia, which I was asked to say despite being Australian.
Would love to experience one of your baseball games someday. As you say, it’s a patriotic occasion. And sounds fun.
treerabold on 8 April 2015 at 12:01 AM said:
Baseball games are very fun to attend. Boring (to me) to watch on TV. But the atmosphere of a stadium on a warm summer night under the lights…..very fun!
I take your word for it, Tree. Singing the national anthem in unison. Loud cheers for players on the field. Food served up and down the stands. I would so love to experience a baseball game there someday!
treerabold on 8 April 2015 at 10:26 PM said:
When you visit the United States I will take you to a game!! 🙂
autumnashbough on 3 May 2015 at 4:09 AM said:
Oh, that “Pledge of Allegiance.” I do not like it, I never did, and yes, most schools require it every morning: hand over heart, facing the American flag. Originally, the arm was straight out, like Nazi salute (!), and that is what the pledge reminds me of — swearing unthinking allegiance to a government. Since that idea is the absolute antithesis of Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence and the origins of the government of the United States, I find it appalling. Even worse, in the 1950’s, the words were changed from “one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all” to “one nation, under God,” which runs afoul of our vaunted separation of church and state.
There are ongoing courtroom skirmishes between schools and parents/ students who do not want to say the pledge. Yet it persists.
I much prefer “The Star Spangled Banner,” with its soaring melody and ambiguous lyrics to a pledge that borders on fascism!
Mabel Kwong on 3 May 2015 at 11:19 PM said:
I had no idea that there was a Pledge of Allegiance in the States. This is the first I’ve heard of it – maybe it’s something every country has, but it’s not something all schools in each country preach students to know by heart.
I suppose if any of us do not want to say the pledge, the least we can do is put our hand over our heart – or wherever it’s meant to be depending on country – and stay silent. In Malaysia, the pledge was in Bahasa Melayu. Sure, practically all of us knew Malay but not all of us were that fluent and sometimes mumbled the pledge.
joshi daniel on 8 April 2015 at 5:41 PM said:
loved that clock 🙂
Thank you, Joshi. That musical clock is very beautiful 🙂
vothikhanhhoa on 9 April 2015 at 2:50 AM said:
Really thoughtful entry Mabel! The love for home country is so natural to me that I never question myself whether I want to sing national anthem or not. Experiencing many cultural environments is not only a advantage but also a challenge but I think with all countries you have been through, your love for them is precious and sincere 🙂
Cardinal Guzman on 12 April 2015 at 4:21 PM said:
The Norwegian nathional anthem is old. The one that we use as our national anthem (Ja, vi elsker dette landet) is not, and has never been, the official national anthem.
Very interesting to hear. I am beginning to think many countries have had several versions of national anthems. Perhaps sometimes the nation’s values change and the song changes, or it can be political.
Every time the Olympics would roll around, the subjects of national anthems would come up. Australians in my American office would say, “Yeah, ours is…something, I don’t remember what. It’s not “Waltzing Matilda,” but everyone thinks it is.” So I appreciate the chance to find out more about “Advance Australia Fair.” (Also, you should definitely cut your dad some slack, because he was not the only one mistaken.)
As hard as it is to sing, I love “The Star Spangled Banner.” When it is done right (Whitney Houston’s rendition is one of the best), that song soars like no other. Too bad it is hardly ever done right! And yes, the melody comes from a popular pub song back in the day — when your singers and audience are drunk, no one notices if the tricky high notes are hit. While “The Star Spangled Banner” does describe the War of 1812 between the United States and Britain, the last few lines are timeless, wistful, and contain a certain amount of ambiguity. I think it is the ambiguity that enables even those Americans who loathe their country’s current foreign or domestic policy to keep singing:
“Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave/
Over the land of the free, and the home of the brave.”
For me, the song is less about “yay, we’re awesome and our flag is still flying” and more of a challenge to Americans today:
“Well? Are we still the land of the free? And if not, get back on it, people!”
That is so interesting to hear that some of your Australian colleagues aren’t familiar with the Aussie anthem. It really is probably a generational thing, Advance Australia Fair ends of on a bit of a long, belting-out note so it’s tricky to sing in some aspect. And who doesn’t gravitate to a simple, easy-to-sing song we can all sing (like Waltzing Matilda, which is in time of a waltz). “Free” seems to be a common theme among many national anthems.
Thanks for explaining and taking me through The Star Spangled Banner. As a kid, I played it on the piano and thought it was a very noble, courageous sounding song. Like American anthem, Advance Australia Fair has the word “free” in it too.
Certainly when I was at school we never sang the National Anthem, Mabel. Nor did we raise flags. In fact, to this very day, the people of England, Scotland and Wales never celebrate St George’s, St Andrew’s or St David’s Day, whereas in Ireland (and most other parts of the world), St Patrick’s Day is widely celebrated and is a national holiday for the Irish people.
I get the feeling sometimes that we seem to go out of our way not to celebrate who we are, especially in case it offends other people. Any kind of racism should be stamped out with force, but I do believe we should all celebrate what nationality we are without being told that it may offend others.
Mabel Kwong on 10 May 2015 at 10:39 PM said:
So interesting to hear you didn’t sing the national anthem growing up. I suppose there are other days in England where you show your support to the nation. I don’t know. All I know that the Queen’s Birthday is a rather big occasion over there and the monarchy is representative of the country. the Queen’s Birthday is a public holiday in Australia.
National anthems can be certainly divisive. I suppose for most countries, the anthem is merely a song, one song encapsulating certain patriotic sentiments, and many realise that there is more to a country than just a song.
Hugh's Views and News on 11 May 2015 at 8:31 PM said:
We don’t even celebrate the Queen’s birthday, Mabel. We certainly don’t get a day off for it anyway. I think it may be down to people in the UK getting a generous amount of annual leave from their work every year. It can range from anything between four to six weeks, plus we also get eight bank holidays every year as well.
I didn’t know your town doesn’t celebrate the Queen’s Birthday. I really why we still do in Australia…but that’s another story for another day. That is certainly a lot of holidays you get there, celebrating the days that matter to the nation. In Australia, we don’t get that many public holidays, no where near that at all.
Hugh's Views and News on 13 May 2015 at 1:45 AM said:
I forgot to mention that I love the new header on your blog. I hope it’s new, because I can’t remember seeing it 🙂
Cait on 7 August 2016 at 10:42 PM said:
Lovely blog and I’ve enjoyed following the thread on this topic. It made me rethink the meaning of the first line – Advance Australia Fair. Back in late 19th century, one of the most prominent groups to argue for Federation was the Australian Natives Association. Mmmmh Yes, they appropriated the title “native” disregarding the forty thousand years of Aboriginal occupation. Est. 1871 membership was restricted to white males born in Australia with a motto of ‘Advance Australia’.
The source if this information is from the History Teachers Association of Victoria.
So if the song was written in the 1890s then perhaps the first line really means Advance the White Australia Policy? It hasn’t sat well with me. I’ve never bothered to learn the words – fear of Nationalism I guess.
Mabel Kwong on 12 August 2016 at 11:24 PM said:
Thanks for the nice words, Cait. That is an interesting bit of information form the History Teachers Association of Victoria, and you bring up a valid point. Advance Australia Fair was certainly written in a certain moment in time and you’d think it would be inspired by the context and ideals of Australia at that time. The song did gain more prominence around the 1970s when the White Australia Policy was still around. Like you, I have mixed feelings about the anthem. The First Peoples are every part of Australian history and Australia. I often wonder how other countries view our anthem.
Jeff on 15 April 2017 at 6:10 PM said:
Coooooooooooooolllllllll
110aroundoz.com on 16 April 2017 at 6:50 PM said:
Does anyone have any ideas on how to write a speech ranging from 4 and a half mins to 5 mins about Advance Australia Fair.
Perhaps you could pick out a few lines or phrases and focus on deciphering their meanings and then look at the bigger picture of what the national anthem may mean… Good luck.
Amanda on 24 May 2017 at 6:12 PM said:
Did you know that I also have to do a speech about Advance Australia Fair! But mine only has to be 4mins long.
Good luck with your speech on Advance Australia Fair. Hope it goes well and take care, Amanda 🙂
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General News Mon, 23 Oct 2017
I was disappointed Nana Addo didn’t offer me appointment – NPP MP
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Nsawam Adoagyiri has confessed that he felt very disappointed when the President sidelined him in his appointments.
Frank Annoh-Dompreh speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen Monday confessed that he was happy at all when the President did not ‘honour his hard work.’
“I wasn’t happy because I was poised to be a member of the team that was bringing about change in this country…,” he confessed.
Asked why he did not openly complain to the President after he was sidelined in the appointment, Annoh-Dompreh said ‘I did not complain but I know the President knows because he is an elderly person and would read my demeanor and know I wasn’t happy’.
He however believes that the decision to exclude him from the government was not deliberate as according to him the President had a pool of competent people to choose from.
He thus urged the people of his region and the Nsawam Adoagyiri constituency in particular to exercise restraint as the President is the team he picked would perform to the expectation of all Ghanaians.
“I am using this opportunity to urge all especially those in the Eastern Region to exercise restraint because the President would appoint me at the right time…,” he said.
Source: adomonline.com
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On a slippery slope?
April 22nd, 2015 Ruth LePla Standards
Changes to standards are on the way, says Water NZ chief executive John Pfahlert. In the coming months it is expected the government will pass the Standards and Accreditation Bill, disestablishing Standards New Zealand as the body responsible for the development and maintenance of standards.
Established following the Napier earthquake of 1931, Standards New Zealand was originally created to ensure a similar loss of life did not occur again from such widespread destruction of buildings. Over the years some 650 building-related standards were developed. Today the Standards New Zealand catalogue contains some 2500 standards covering a wide range of topics from building to health to water – 82 percent of which are joint standards with Australia.
The bill will transfer standards development obligations to a new independent statutory board and statutory officer within the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE). Numerous submissions to government during the three years this bill has been developed have expressed concern about the proposed arrangements.
There is unease within the wider building and engineering industry in New Zealand that locating standards development within a government department comes with certain risks.
Historically, standards have been developed in an independent, impartial environment where the resulting intellectual property (the standard) was not subject to regulatory capture or for the primary use of government.
Going forward will we have the assurance that standards will be developed in such a manner? The Standards Approval Board to be established will be able to introduce standards development processes that suit its own needs. There can be no assurance that there will be openness and access for all stakeholder groups with an interest in the subject being discussed, since the board also decides who goes on standards committees.
I’d be the first to acknowledge that there are failings with the current standards development process both here and overseas. Standards can be time-consuming to produce and can reflect a “lowest common denominator” outcome where the document produced reflects only what the parties to the process could agree upon, not necessarily best practice.
Funding shortages have been an ongoing problem for Standards New Zealand and its counterpart organisation in Australia. While the New Zealand government has funded the review and development of some standards under the current arrangements, there is little likelihood that bringing the process in house will result in a higher level of investment.
The current catalogue will inevitably be drastically reduced in size, or similar documents developed in house by officials as “compliance documents” which can be referenced in the Building Code without the requirement for the rigour of the standards development process.
As the International Standards Organisation said in its submission on the above bill: “Incorporating standards development activity carried out by the Standards Council into MBIE is not a solution in itself to the problem facing standards development in New Zealand. That problem is funding for relevant standards activities in a small economy and having government acknowledge and financially support the benefit such activity brings to the whole economy and the citizens of the country.”
Successive governments over the past 20 years have refused to adequately recognise the public good benefit of standards to the economy. That isn’t likely to change. New Zealand will increasingly be a standards taker from Australia. Voluntary trade groups do not routinely have the resources to send people to international meetings of standards bodies, however deserving the topic up for debate.
The process of developing standards inevitably leaves some around the table dissatisfied that they weren’t listened to, or that insufficient weight was given to their point of view. There have been gripes about the time it takes, and, always, complaints that because of the public good nature of these documents – that government should be playing a greater role.
The bill is crafted in a way which could lead to better outcomes at a lower cost. Time will tell whether this review was simply a cost-saving measure. A couple of useful metrics to gauge success might be how many standards remain on the standards catalogue in 10 years’ time, and how many of the existing joint standards with Australia have disappeared.
This article was first published in the April 2015 issue of NZ Local Government Magazine.
Innovation and Employment
International Standards Organisation
MBIE
Ministry of Business
Standards and Accreditation Bill
The Standards Approval Board
New standard for council performance
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HomeL.A. Poetry History – Mike the PoeT Sonksen
L.A. Poetry History – Mike the PoeT Sonksen
February 20, 2018 Brian L.A. Literary History, Los Angeles Poets, ProfilesCommunity, History, L.A. Poetry History, Los Angeles, Mike Sonksen
Premiere episode of Mike “the PoeT” Sonksen’s series on the history of LA Poetry since the 1980s, produced by http://www.Poetry.LA. Sonksen is a poet, performer, journalist, historian, tour guide, teacher, and mentor of teen writers. His book “I Am Alive in Los Angeles!” (iUniverse, Inc., 2006) is included in the curriculum of several universities and high schools. His book, “Poetics of Location,” was published in 2016 by Writ Large Press. A 3rd-generation Angeleno, much of his writing celebrates the vibrancy and diversity of the LA scene.
Check out Poetry.LA‘s YouTube channel to view all their interviews of L.A. poets and their website at www.Poetry.LA
← The World Stage and Literary Black Los Ángeles
LitFest Pasadena Comes to the Pasadena Playhouse District May 19 to 20, 2018 →
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Lost Kings: DNA Fails to Illuminate Royal Mystery
LiveScience for LiveScience 2013-10-14 02:30:24 UTC
Follow @LiveScience
A skeleton buried under a parking lot. A grotesque mummy head. A gourd encrusted with mysterious blood.
These three disturbing objects have something in common: All have been identified as belonging to long-dead kings, in part using DNA evidence. But despite DNA's reputation as a forensic smoking gun, only one — the skeleton — has escaped serious controversy.
The skeleton, widely accepted as the earthly remains of the English King Richard III, is a bright spot in the often-murky world of ancient DNA identification. Archaeologists identified the body based on multiple lines of evidence, from historical records to telltale battle wounds. On top of it all, the skeleton's DNA matched a living relative of the king's.
The tale of the head and the gourd, however, is not quite so straightforward. In 2010, a forensic analysis suggested the head belonged to French King Henry IV. DNA later linked the head to the blood in the gourd, leading researchers to identify the blood's owner as Henry's descendant, French King Louis XVI. Now, however, a second DNA analysis has thrown those findings into disarray, suggesting perhaps the head and the blood belong not to royalty, but to nobodies.
SEE ALSO: 8 Grisly Archaeological Discoveries
The cases reveal the controversy of using DNA to identify the long-dead. And they highlight the problems inherent in studying celebrity corpses: At what point can scientists be sure enough that a contested body part deserves a royal burial?
Calls for Caution
The case of Richard III is a prime example. The identification of the skeleton, unearthed in Leicester, England, triggered worldwide interest. As the villainous star of a Shakespeare play, Richard III had built-in name recognition and an international fan base passionate about rehabilitating his reputation.
SEE ALSO: In Photos: The Search for Richard III
Every piece of evidence pointed to the skeleton belonging to Richard. Wounds on the bones matched historical records of Richard's life and death. The location of the grave was where it was expected to be. Even DNA testing suggested the skeleton was the medieval king.
It was the DNA identification that grabbed headlines, perhaps because shows like CSI portray DNA testing as the height of certainty. But scientists called for caution.
"It seems to me that osteological as well as archaeological evidence is stronger; however, 'DNA evidence' sounds fancier so it looks like they used it as the hook to capture the attention of media," Maria Avila, a computational biologist at the Center for GeoGenetics at the Natural History Museum of Denmark, told LiveScience at the time. Though Avila did not doubt the identification, she warned that close scrutiny is required to be sure of any ancient DNA finding.
Tricky Identification
DNA, which serves as the building and operating instructions for the body, is also a handy way to pinpoint identity — assuming the molecule is in good shape. Ancient DNA, or aDNA, as it's known in the shorthand of scientists, is typically degraded. Teasing useful genetic sequences out of a crumbling, fragmented genome can take decades.
"A nice example is the number of years they needed to identify original Neanderthal DNA in the sample they had," said Jean-Jacques Cassiman, a geneticist at the University of Leuven in Belgium who published a recent study calling into question the identifications of King Henry IV and King Louis XVI. "It took them years of work, of hard work."
The Neanderthal Genome Project, established with the goal of sequencing a full Neanderthal genome, was founded in 2006 after the individual scientists involved had already published several attempts at decoding this extinct human relative's genome. It wasn't until 2010 that the collaboration published a full first draft of the genome.
SEE ALSO: Our 10 Favorite Sequenced Genomes
Part of the challenge, Cassiman said, is contamination. Hair, skin flakes and other DNA-bearing bits of modern humans can accidentally end up mixed in the aDNA samples, overwhelming them.
"Ancient DNA is fragmented compared to the contaminating DNA," Cassiman said. "There's very little."
A Tale of Two Kings
Whereas DNA was just a piece of the puzzle linking the Leicester bones to Richard III, when the molecule is the whole case and other evidence is hazy, genetic identifications become more difficult.
The tale of two French kings is a case in point. In 2010, osteoarchaeologist Philippe Charlier of University Hospital R Poincaré in Garches, France, launched a forensic investigation of a grotesque mummy head owned by private collectors. The head was rumored to belong to Henry IV, who ruled France from 1589 to 1610, and famously converted from Protestantism to Catholicism to smooth his ascent to the throne.
Centuries later, during the French Revolution, the graves of long-dead kings were ransacked and the bodies mutilated and reburied in unmarked pits. Some accounts held that Henry IV was among the disinterred, and his head was cut off in the process.
Meanwhile, Henry IV's descendent Louis XVI met with a similar fate as the Revolution raged — though beheading was perhaps more traumatic for Louis, as he was alive at the time. Witnesses to Louis XVI's execution were said to have soaked handkerchiefs in his blood. One of these handkerchiefs supposedly ended up in a decorative gourd owned by an Italian family.
Charlier and his colleagues digitally reconstructed a face based on the bone structure and muscle attachments of the mummy head. According to their work, published in December 2012 in the British Medical Journal, the mummy's features matched those of a cast, or death mask, made of Henry IV's face made just after his death. Later, Charlier extracted DNA from the mummified head.
Earlier this year, scientists led by Carles Lalueza-Fox, a paleogenomics researcher at Pompeu Fabra University in Spain, compared DNA from the head with DNA from the blood found in the gourd. They found a match along the Y chromosome, leading them to announce that the owner of the head and the owner of the blood were related. As the head was thought to be Henry IV's, the blood seemed likely to be his direct descendent Louis XVI's.
DNA Drawbacks
Or not. Cassiman's new analysis, published in the European Journal of Human Genetics, argues that neither the blood nor the head came from members of the House of Bourbon, the lineage of Henry IV and Louis XVI.
Cassiman's conclusions are drawn from a comparison of the DNA from the blood and the head with the DNA of three living Bourbon descendants. The living descendants, from different branches of the family, share a Y-chromosome subgroup called R-Z381*. Rather than that subgroup, the Y chromosome found in the blood belongs to a group called G(xG1, G2). The most recent common ancestor linking the two groups would have lived about 10,000 years ago, the researchers calculated. The blood, then, appears to belong to an individual unrelated to Louis XVI.
Because the blood is not from a Bourbon, comparing it with the DNA from the mummified head to make an identification is "completely crazy," Cassiman said.
"You cannot identify two unknowns from two unknowns," he said.
The owner of the head does not appear related to the owner of the blood nor to the living Bourbons through either maternal or paternal lines, he added.
Lalueza-Fox, who led the identification of the blood, said the original conclusions were based on a partial match on the Y chromosome between the blood and the head. However, a single marker that could have been missed in the processing of the DNA would have immediately shown that there was no relation.
"Maybe we were just unlucky," Lalueza-Fox told LiveScience.
"Right now, the most parsimonious [explanation] would be that both Louis XVI's blood and Henry IV's head are false and that the possible paternal relationship we found among both remains is spurious," he said.
SEE ALSO: Science of Death: 10 Tales from the Crypt & Beyond
Charlier, who originally identified the mummy head as Henry IV's, is not backing down, however.
"We think it's entirely impossible to try to fit, exactly, a genealogic tree to genetic data," he told LiveScience.
Charlier argues that "nonpaternity events" — when a man raises a child unaware that it is not really his own — make families less genetically linear than a family tree would suggest. Over a period of 600 years or so, he said, familial DNA is bound to diverge from the expected pattern.
"The definition of a family in France is to live in the same house, not to have clearly the same genetic patrimony as the parents," Charlier wrote in an email to LiveScience, using wording he plans to submit to the European Journal of Human Genetics in response to Cassiman's findings.
Cassiman said paternity concerns aren't an issue, because the three living Bourbons share a Y chromosome, suggesting the family line is not broken by illegitimate children.
What's more, Cassiman said, historical evidence does not point to the head as Henry IV's. Historians are not all convinced that Henry IV's body was among those mutilated in the French Revolution.
But Cassiman's DNA analysis is not irrefutable proof that the head isn't Henry's, either. To come to a definitive conclusion via genetics would take years of work, he said, calling Charlier's conclusions, "a bit too quick."
"If they would ask me to do something more, I would need a serious budget, because I know it's going to take me months and years in order to make something that is believable, that's reliable from this," Cassiman said.
Among Cassiman's concerns is the contamination of the fragile DNA in the head. A documentary aired in France about the identification of the head showed alarming practices during the analysis, he said.
"There are people sniffing on this head, hanging over it, touching it with their nose," he said. "It's completely crazy. I really get upset when I see this."
For now, the researchers are at an impasse. Cassiman argues his DNA findings make it certain the head is not Henry's. Charlier argues the 3D match between the skull and Henry IV's death mask mean it could be no one else's.
Further research may be stymied by conditions unique to the head, Lalueza-Fox added. The first is historical uncertainty about the location of the bodies — no one is sure where Henry IV's remains are. The second are the substances used to embalm the head.
"These substances likely degrade further the DNA or prevent their retrieval, making the analysis of relatively recent specimens more challenging than, for instance, prehistoric remains," Lalueza-Fox said.
So while Britain turns to a debate regarding where Richard III's royal reburial will be, the head of possibly Henry IV (or possibly some random Frenchman) will remain in limbo, Charlier said.
"Sincerely I think this study for me is quite finished, and the story is quite finished because there will still remain, for everybody, a doubt," Charlier said.
Image: Diego Cantalapiedra
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This article originally published at LiveScience here
Topics: DNA, evidence, france, monarchy, royalty, World
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Ronald E. Brooks
Ronald E. Brooks is a Captain with the San Mateo County California Sheriff’s Office assigned as Director of the Northern California Regional Intelligence Center (NCRIC). This program combines the activities and responsibilities of the Northern California High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) and Northern California Regional Terrorism Threat Assessment Center (RTTAC) to form an all crimes criminal intelligence fusion center.
The NCRIC, a DHS designated fusion center, is a multi-agency task force with more than 60 intelligence officers and analysts, critical infrastructure assessors, support staff, and private sector outreach officers from federal, state and local law enforcement, the fire service, emergency, consequence management agencies and corporate security. The NCRIC fusion center uses outreach to public safety and critical government and private resources, analytic thinking and powerful technology to support terrorism, gang, drug, organized crime and firearms cases and to develop and disseminate both classified and un-classified strategic threat assessments related to terrorism and crime.
Brooks served previously as an Assistant Chief with the California Department of Justice, Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement (BNE). Brooks also served as the Senior Special Agent in Charge (SSAC), at BNE’s San Jose Regional Office. Ron Brooks is a thirty-seven year veteran law enforcement officer, with more than 30 years spent in narcotic enforcement and criminal intelligence assignments.
Brooks serves as the Chair of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Intelligence Coordinating Council (CICC) and Global Intelligence Working Group (GIWG), designated Federal Advisory Commissions (FACA) established to advise the United States Attorney General on matters involving criminal intelligence and information sharing. The CICC has developed or consulted on most current criminal intelligence and information policies currently being used in the U.S. including the National Criminal Intelligence Sharing Plan, Fusion Center Guidelines, Fusion Center Baseline Capabilities and Critical Infrastructure and Key Resource Addendum to the Fusion Center Baseline Capabilities. As the Chair of the CICC he is also a member of the Global Justice Initiative Executive Steering Committee. Brooks also serves as the Chair of the State and Local Homeland Security and Law Enforcement Advisory Board for the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). He has been active in the International Association of Chief’s of Police (IACP) Intelligence Led Policing Summits and many other forums regarding information sharing and law enforcement intelligence. Brooks is the recipient of numerous law enforcement awards, including, the National Intelligence Distinguished Public Service Medal (The highest Intelligence Community award for a non-IC member), the National Fusion Center Association’s State and major Fusion Center Representative of the Year Award – 2012, The Bureau of Justice assistance Leadership Award, California Narcotic Officers’ Associations “President’s Award”, the California Attorney General’s “Award for Excellence”, The California Military Department’s Medal of Merit, and the Redwood City Police Department’s Medal of Valor.
Frank E. Rodgers
Frank E. Rodgers retired as the Deputy Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police in 2007 at the rank of Lt. Colonel after twenty-five years of service. While serving in the second highest ranking position in the largest police department in the State of New Jersey, he led the Investigations Branch which consisted of in excess of 900 detectives, analysts and scientists assigned to 57 different units with an annual budget of in excess of seventy-five (75) million dollars. A strong advocate of police professionalism, strategic planning and accountability, he initiated and directed a complete restructuring of the organization’s investigative assets predicated on the principles of “Intelligence Led Policing”. During his tenure as the Deputy Superintendent of Investigations, he directed the development of the “Practical Guide to Intelligence Led Policing” which was published by the Center for Policing and Terrorism at the Manhattan Institute and was adopted in February 2009 by the U .S Department of Justice as a national model for conducting law enforcement operations.
Following his career with the State Police, he was appointed as the first Police Director of the newly formed New Jersey State Park Police in the Department of Environmental Protection. During his tenure in that position, he developed the force of 110 officers who are responsible for protecting the eighteen (18) million annual visitors to the state’s fifty-one (51) parks into a CALEA (Commission on the Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies) nationally recognized and New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police Accredited agency.
In 2008, Lt. Colonel (Ret.), Rodgers formed his own private consulting company, The Rodgers Group, LLC. At present, the company is under contract to develop policy and training for in excess of one hundred twenty five New Jersey law enforcement agencies. In May 2009, he was selected to serve as the President of the Advisory Council of the New Jersey Public Safety Accreditation Coalition. He is a Certified Assessor for the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) and is recognized by the Superior Court of the State of New Jersey and the United States District Court as an expert in law enforcement procedures, policy, training and supervision. In 2011, he founded and now leads the Center for Public Safety & Security at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey.
Lt. Colonel Rodgers (Ret.) holds a Master of Arts Degree in Education from Seton Hall University and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy. He is the co-author of a comprehensive published history of the New Jersey State Police and is also the recipient of the organization’s highest award, the 1990 Trooper of the Year for his criminal investigative work.
James G. Natoli
Mr. Natoli served the State of New York for 38 years in both the Legislative and Executive branches of government. In 2003, Mr Natoli was appointed as Governor Pataki’s Senior Advisor for Disaster Preparedness and Response after serving as Director of Disaster Preparedness and Response. In this capacity, the State’s Prevention and Preparedness Council consulted with and coordinated its responsibilities through Mr. Natoli, who was charged with advising the Governor on the state’s disaster preparedness, response and recovery policies and strategies. Prior to his appointments in Disaster Preparedness, Mr. Natoli served as Director of State Operations, responsible for the day-to-day oversight and operations of more than 60 state departments, agencies, boards and commissions. He served as Chair of the New York State Office for Technology and is nationally recognized as a leader in the advancement of technology for government use.
Mr. Natoli was one of Governor Pataki’s closest advisors and was often entrusted with statewide initiatives. He successfully directed New York State’s emergency response efforts during Governor Pataki’s tenure, including for the Long Island wildfires (1995), the North Country ice storm (1998) and twenty federal disasters and emergency declarations. Notably, Mr. Natoli executed the state’s response and recovery efforts to the tragic terrorist attack on the World Trade Center (2001), coordinating over 65 state agencies and authorities.
In 2001, Mr. Natoli was awarded the Outstanding Service Award by the Department of Health and the Distinguished Service Award by the University at Albany School of Information, Science and Technology. Additional awards include the Governor Alfred E. Smith Award (1999, American Society for Public Administration), the State Leadership Award (1998, Metropolitan New York Coordinating Council on Jewish Poverty) and the Toll Fellowship (1988, Council of State Governments).
Mr. Natoli is currently the principal at JGN Associates, consulting in the public and private sectors. He was born in Norwich, New York. He received a degree from Siena College. Natoli is married to the former Eileen Kelly; they have three adult children.
Alan B. Lazowski
Alan Lazowski, Chairman, CEO and Founder of LAZ Parking, co-founded the company in June 1981 while attending the University of Connecticut and has grown LAZ Parking into a national hospitality parking company. He also has completed coursework at Harvard University specializing in real estate investment analysis.
Alan has received numerous professional awards, including the Thomas and Bette Wolff Family Entrepreneurship Award from the University of Connecticut, the NAACP Civil Rights Award, the Anti-Defamation League’s Torch of Liberty Award, the Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame Award and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hartford Business Journal.
Alan is on the board of directors of the National Parking Association, the Green Parking Council, Women in Parking, the Goodwin College Foundation, the Bushnell Theater, the Greater Hartford Jewish Federation, the Hebrew Home and Hospital, the Anti-Defamation League, the Hartford Economic Development Corporation, and the Chabad House of Greater Hartford.
Alan also is the Founder and Co-Chair of the Voices of Hope organization created by descendants of Holocaust survivors.
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Over-75 TV Licence
Digital, Culture, Media & Sport, Policies
I do appreciate the importance of live television for many people who may otherwise feel isolated. People over the age of 75 are currently eligible for a free TV Licence.
In 2015, the Office for Budget Responsibility estimated the cost of continuing the free TV licences to be £200 million in 2018/19, rising to £445 million in 2019/20 and £745 million in 2020/21. At the moment, the Government reimburses the BBC for the free TV licences, but funding of the free TV licence will transfer to the BBC from 2020. It then becomes the BBC’s decision whether to continue the concession in its current form.
In 2015, the BBC commissioned Frontier Economics to explore the long-term options for funding the over-75s concession. The report sets out four potential options for the BBC to consider for the future of the concession.
The BBC has ran a consultation on possible options for the future, which has recently closed. You can find out more about the consultation and keep up to date with developments on this matter here: https://www.bbc.com/yoursay. As you will be aware, the BBC is independent to Government, but I am confident that they will take all views into account in deciding on the future of the free over-75 TV Licence. Speaking personally, it strikes me as odd to give free TV licences to those who can well afford it, so a blanket approach can, I hope, be avoided.
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Kevin Alan Schulman
Adjunct Professor in the Department of Medicine
Director, Center for Clinical and Genetic Economics
Research Professor of Global Health
Associate of the Duke Initiative for Science & Society
Member in the Duke Clinical Research Institute
Member of the Duke Cancer Institute
Email address kevin.schulman@duke.edu
Kevin A. Schulman, MD, MBA, is a professor of medicine and the Gregory Mario and Jeremy Mario Professor of Business Administration (2010 - 2016) at Duke University. He is a visiting professor of business administration at Harvard Business School. He holds several leadership appointments at Duke. He is an associate director of the Duke Clinical Research Institute in the School of Medicine, the country's largest academic clinical research organization. In Duke's Fuqua School of Business, he served for more than a decade as the director of the Health Sector Management program, the Master of Management in Clinical Informatics degree program, and the Center for the Study of Health Management. His other university affiliations include the Trent Center for Bioethics, Humanities and History of Medicine; the Duke Translational Medicine Institute; and the Duke Global Health Institute.
Dr. Schulman is a distinguished researcher who has received more than $48 million in research grants. His research interests include health services research and policy, including access to care and the impact of reimbursement and regulatory policies on clinical practice; health economics and economic evaluation in clinical research; and medical decision making, especially in patients with life-threatening conditions. He teaches courses in biotechnology, health policy, and health IT strategy.
Dr. Schulman has published nearly 400 articles and book chapters; his peer-reviewed papers have appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, and Annals of Internal Medicine. He is the senior associate editor of Health Services Research and a member of the editorial/advisory boards of the American Journal of Medicine and the American Heart Journal.
A recipient of numerous awards, Dr. Schulman is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation. He is a voting member of the Medicare Evidence Development and Coverage Advisory Committee. He has served as session chair and panelist at dozens of medical and health care conferences. Dr. Schulman has also served on numerous grant review committees for the National Institutes of Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and other bodies. He is a member of the advisory board for the Centre for Healthcare Policy and Management at the China Europe International Business School. In 2010-2011, he was a mentor for the Commonwealth Fund's Harkness Fellowships in Health Care Policy and Practice. He is the founding president of the Business School Alliance for Health Management, a consortium of the leading business schools offering health management programs.
Dr. Schulman received his MD from the New York University School of Medicine and his MBA, with a concentration in health care management, from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He completed a residency in internal medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and is board-certified in internal medicine.
Duke CTSA (KL2)
Duke CTSA (TL1)
Curtis, Lesley H., Bradley G. Hammill, Kevin A. Schulman, and Scott W. Cousins. “Risks of mortality, myocardial infarction, bleeding, and stroke associated with therapies for age-related macular degeneration..” Arch Ophthalmol 128, no. 10 (October 2010): 1273–79. https://doi.org/10.1001/archophthalmol.2010.223.
Hall, MA, Friedman, JY, King, NMP, Weinfurt, KP, Schulman, KA, and Sugarman, J. "Commentary: Per capita payments in clinical trials: reasonable costs versus bounty hunting." Acad Med 85, no. 10 (October 2010): 1554-1556.
Yancy, William S., Matthew L. Maciejewski, and Kevin A. Schulman. “Animal, vegetable, or ... clinical trial?.” Ann Intern Med 153, no. 5 (September 7, 2010): 337–39. https://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-153-5-201009070-00009.
Chou, Chia-Hung, Shelby D. Reed, Jennifer S. Allsbrook, Janet L. Steele, Kevin A. Schulman, and Michael J. Alexander. “Costs of vasospasm in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage..” Neurosurgery 67, no. 2 (August 2010): 345–51. https://doi.org/10.1227/01.neu.0000371980.08391.71.
Patel, Manesh R., Melissa A. Greiner, Lisa D. DiMartino, Kevin A. Schulman, Pamela W. Duncan, David B. Matchar, and Lesley H. Curtis. “Geographic variation in carotid revascularization among Medicare beneficiaries, 2003-2006..” Archives of Internal Medicine 170, no. 14 (July 2010): 1218–25. https://doi.org/10.1001/archinternmed.2010.194.
Reed, Shelby D., David J. Whellan, Yanhong Li, Joëlle Y. Friedman, Stephen J. Ellis, Ileana L. Piña, Sharon J. Settles, et al. “Economic evaluation of the HF-ACTION (Heart Failure: A Controlled Trial Investigating Outcomes of Exercise Training) randomized controlled trial: an exercise training study of patients with chronic heart failure..” Circ Cardiovasc Qual Outcomes 3, no. 4 (July 2010): 374–81. https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCOUTCOMES.109.907287.
Weinfurt, KP, Hall, MA, Hardy, NC, Friedman, JY, Schulman, KA, and Sugarman, J. "Oversight of financial conflicts of interest in commercially sponsored research in academic and nonacademic settings." J Gen Intern Med 25, no. 5 (May 2010): 460-464.
Vaughn, Bryan T., Steven R. DeVrieze, Shelby D. Reed, and Kevin A. Schulman. “Can we close the income and wealth gap between specialists and primary care physicians?.” Health Affairs (Project Hope) 29, no. 5 (May 2010): 933–40. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2009.0675.
Dinan, Michaela A., Lesley H. Curtis, Bradley G. Hammill, Edward F. Patz, Amy P. Abernethy, Alisa M. Shea, and Kevin A. Schulman. “Changes in the use and costs of diagnostic imaging among Medicare beneficiaries with cancer, 1999-2006..” Jama 303, no. 16 (April 28, 2010): 1625–31. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2010.460.
Davis, SN, Horton, ES, Battelino, T, Rubin, RR, Schulman, KA, and Tamborlane, WV. "STAR 3 randomized controlled trial to compare sensor-augmented insulin pump therapy with multiple daily injections in the treatment of type 1 diabetes: research design, methods, and baseline characteristics of enrolled subjects." Diabetes Technol Ther 12, no. 4 (April 2010): 249-255.
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Gallic Rooster History & Pit Bull Sharky the Bodyguard Dog VS Mr. Rooster ATTACKS
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The Latin word Gallus means both “rooster” and “inhabitant of Gaul”. Certain ancient coins bore a rooster, but the animal was not yet used as the emblem of the tribes of Gaul. Gradually the figure of the rooster became the most widely shared representation of the French people.
A Rooster
During the times of Ancient Rome, Suetonius, in The Twelve Caesars, noticed that, in Latin, rooster (gallus) and Gauls (Gallus) were homonyms. However the association of the Gallic rooster as a national symbol is apocryphal, as the rooster was neither regarded as a national personification nor as a sacred animal by the Gauls in their mythology and because there was no “Gallic nation” at the time, but a loose confederation of Gallic nations instead. But a closer review within that religious scheme indicates that “Mercury” was often portrayed with the cock, a sacred animal among the Continental Celts.
Julius Caesar in De Bello Gallico identified some gods worshipped in Gaul by using the names of their nearest Roman god rather than their Gaulish name, with Caesar saying “Mercury” was the god most revered in Gaul. The Irish god Lug identified as samildánach led to the widespread identification of Caesar’s Mercury as Lugus and thus also to the sacred cock, the Gallic rooster, as an emblem of France.
In the Middle Ages, the Gallic Rooster was widely used as a religious symbol, the sign of hope and faith. It was during the Renaissance that the rooster began to be associated with the emerging French nation. Under the Valois and the Bourbon kings, the royal effigy was often accompanied by this animal, meant to stand for France, in engravings and on coins.
Although still a minor emblem, the rooster could be found at both the Louvre and Versailles.
Gallic Rooster on top of a war memorial in La Rochelle
The Revolution established the rooster as the representation of the Nation’s identity. It featured on the écu coin, sporting the Phrygian bonnet, on the seal of the Premier Consul, and the allegorical figure Fraternity often carried a staff surmounted by a rooster.
Napoleon replaced the Republic with the Empire and the rooster with the eagle, for as the Emperor said: “The rooster has no power, he cannot be the image of an empire the likes of France.”
After a period of absence, the Trois Glorieuses of 1830 rehabilitated the image of the rooster, and the Duke of Orleans signed an order providing that the rooster should appear on the flags and uniform buttons of the National Guard.
The seal of the Second Republic shows Liberty holding a tiller adorned with a rooster, but this figure still ppeared alongside the symbol of the eagle, preferred by Napoleon II, as sign of an enduring Empire.
Under the Third Republic, the wrought-iron gates of the Elysée acquired a rooster, the “Rooster gate”, which can still be visited. The twenty-franc gold piece struck in 1899 also bears a rooster.
http://helenspets.com/
Pit Bull Sharky
(Oct 27, 2005 – Dec 22,2014)
Sharky is a American Pit Bull Terrier. He lived 9 years happy years. Sharky was popular by loving unlikely friends like: cat, chicks, ducks, geese, guinea pig, rabbit, iguana, frogs, turtles, elephants… We miss HIM!
One day Sharky hopes to meet some sheep, donkeys and pigs too 😉
During the First World War, rising patriotic feeling made the Gallic rooster the symbol of France’s resistance and bravery in the face of the Prussian eagle. Use of this Manichean representation, in particular by political cartoonists, gained ground, and the rooster became the symbol of a France sprung from peasant origins, proud, opinionated, courageous and prolific. Abroad as well the rooster symbolized France, even if it was not an animal everyone attributed with purely positive features.
While the rooster is not an official symbol of the Republic, it still stands for a certain idea of France. In the collective imagination, particularly in the area of sports, it remains the best illustration of the Nation.
The shirt of the French National Rugby Team
http://www.gouvernement.fr/en/the-gallic-rooster
http://www.beyond.fr/history/gallic-rooster.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallic_rooster
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Yiddish on the Main: Sheila Witt loves the language too much to stop teaching
"I love seeing them eat it up," said the 77-year-old, who is officially retired but has returned to several classrooms.
Katherine Wilton, Montreal Gazette
After singing a Yiddish lullaby familiar to generations of Jewish children, Sheila Witt looked out onto the Main and reminded her students that there is no better place in Montreal to learn the language.
“Out there in those streets, this is where it all happened — this is where Yiddish was spoken, this is where the signs were in Yiddish,” Witt said during her class at the Museum of Jewish Montreal on St-Laurent Blvd. and Duluth Ave., once the heart of the city’s Jewish quarter.
“I used to run up that street to see my bubby, and down that street was a school.”
After teaching Yiddish to Jewish students in Montreal for 39 years, Witt finally retired last year from Jewish People’s and Peretz Schools.
But her love of the language runs so deep, the 77-year-old teacher can’t stay out of the classroom.
She returns to the Côte-St-Luc school twice a week to work as a teaching assistant and also teaches classes at the Jewish Public Library as part of her campaign to keep Yiddish alive in Montreal.
Sheila Witt gives lessons in Yiddish at the Museum of Jewish Montreal on Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Allen McInnis / Montreal Gazette
In the fall, Witt returned to her old neighbourhood once a week to teach her mother tongue to a new generation of Yiddish aficionados.
Some of her students are the children or grandchildren of Holocaust survivors who continued to speak Yiddish after settling in Montreal following the Second World War.
Others have no ties to the Jewish community, but love the musicality of the language and are keen to learn about the culture and traditions associated with it.
Jean-Luc Laporte said he began learning German in 2006 and became interested in Yiddish when he discovered it on the internet.
“With the language, there’s a culture linked to life in Europe before the war,” he said. “There is a certain nostalgia about the language that is still alive today.”
Yiddish, which is also spoken by Hasidic Jews in Montreal, was the common language spoken by European Jews who immigrated to Canada before and after the Second World War.
During her 90-minute class on a Monday night in December, Witt taught her students the Yiddish words for winter clothing, ran through some basic grammar, discussed the origin of some Jewish surnames and ended the evening singing Yiddish songs.
After the 10-week course, several students can read and speak rudimentary Yiddish.
One student is a convert to Judaism who is doing a master’s in history at Concordia University. Another is the daughter of Holocaust survivors who wants to get in touch with her roots.
Two Germans enrolled in the class and other students are residents of the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough who are intrigued by the neighbourhood’s Yiddish history.
“I love seeing them eat it up,” Witt said.
Her face lights up when she talks about Yiddish, a language she learned from her parents, grandmother and other Ashkenazi Jews who settled around the Main after arriving from Eastern Europe in the 1920s and 1930s.
“Yiddish is more than just a language — it’s a culture, it’s tradition,” she said.
“You use your hands and face when you talk Yiddish and it makes you happy. It brought more than just a language. It brought me family and (gave) me my heritage. As I grew older and matured, I got to love it even more.”
Although the number of Yiddish speakers is declining across North America as Holocaust survivors pass away, Witt said she has noticed a renewed interest in the language in Montreal.
“For years, I thought we were getting lost in the shuffle,” she said. “But I have seen an upward swing. There are a lot more opportunities to study Yiddish if you want. There’s a lot of Yiddish online. (My) classes are almost bursting.”
Witt has taught so many children over the years that she rarely goes to a function in the Jewish community without being recognized. “Everyone knows me because I either taught them or their children,” said Witt, who is still greeted as Lererin Sheila by her former pupils.
“I am most proud of having taught so many children and have been able to, hopefully, pass on my love and my passion to them,” she said. “I feel so blessed that I was able to do something I loved.”
Sheila Witt at Maimonides Geriatric Centre in 1995. John Mahoney / GAZETTE
Over the years, Witt has received numerous awards for her dedication to Yiddish and her contribution to Montreal’s Jewish community.
In the 1990s, she began teaching conversational Yiddish to staff at the Maimonides Geriatric Centre so they could converse with their elderly Jewish patients. Many patients suffering from memory loss would spring to life when they heard a Yiddish word or phrase, she recalled.
In recent years, Witt has taken her young students to a seniors home on Cavendish Blvd. to visit elderly Yiddish speakers and Holocaust survivors.
“When they heard the Yiddish songs, they would cry,” Witt recalled. “You had to see the joy when they were singing with the kids. It brought back their youth. It brought back their families.”
kwilton@postmedia.com
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"American West"
"Civil Rights History Project"
Humanitarianism 1
International affairs 1
United States--History--1945-1953 1
World War, 1939-1945 1
Cuyahoga County 1
King County 1
Cline, David P. 2
Central Area Civil Rights Committee (CACRC) 1
Congress of Racial Equality 1
King, Martin Luther 1
Liberty Bank 1
McKinney, Samuel Berry 1
Morehouse College 1
Southern University and A&M College 1
United States Army Air Corps 1
Walter, Earl 1
Walter, Mildred Pitts 1
Mildred Pitts Walter Oral History Interview
Walter, Mildred Pitts, born 1922
Southern University and A&M College, American, founded 1880
Walter, Earl, American, died 1965
Congress of Racial Equality, American, founded 1942
San Mateo, California, United States, North and Central America
Louisiana, United States, North and Central America
Los Angeles, California, United States, North and Central America
Soviet Union, Europe
Mildred Pitts Walter discusses her early life in Louisiana, attending Southern University, and moving to Los Angeles in 1944. Pitts recalls meeting Earl Walter whom she married two years later, her work with Earl who headed the Los Angeles chapter of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) from 1951 to 1963, CORE pickets of housing developers in Los Angeles, and her work as a clerk in the LA school district while getting her teaching credentials. She also discusses her career writing over 20 books for children, her work with a national association of nurses to develop culturally sensitive training, marching in the Soviet Union for peace, her ideas about civil rights and human rights.
The Rev. Dr. Samuel Berry McKinney Oral History Interview
Rev. Dr. McKinney, Samuel Berry, American, born 1926
Dr. King, Martin Luther Jr., American, 1929 - 1968
United States Army Air Corps, American, 1926 - 1941
Morehouse College, American, founded 1867
Liberty Bank, American, 1968 - 1988
Central Area Civil Rights Committee (CACRC), American, founded 1963
Seattle, King County, Washington, United States, North and Central America
Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, North and Central America
The Reverend Dr. Samuel Berry McKinney recalls growing up in Cleveland, Ohio, and attending Morehouse College, where he got to know fellow freshman Martin Luther King, Jr. After service in the Army Flight Corps during World War II and finishing his college education, McKinney became a minister at a church in Seattle, Washington, where he contributed to the creation of the Liberty Bank. He discusses his role in founding the Central Area Civil Rights Committee in Seattle.
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Photo courtesy Kyle Busch Motorsports
Truck Series practice report from Iowa
By Jerry BonkowskiJun 15, 2019, 11:11 AM EDT
Sheldon Creed was fastest in the second and final Truck Series practice Saturday at Iowa Speedway.
Creed covered the 7/8-mile paved oval in Newton, Iowa, at 134.283 mph.
Raphael Lessard was second-fastest (133.588 mph), followed by Austin Hill (133.446), Harrison Burton (133.367) and Brett Moffitt (133.299).
Sixth through 10th were Ben Rhodes (133.237), Johnny Sauter (133.114), Riley Herbst (132.839), Stewart Friesen (132.788 mph) and Brennan Poole (132.743).
Chandler Smith, who was fastest in the first practice session earlier in the morning – and in his first-ever Truck Series practice – was 18th fastest in the second session (131.678 mph).
Qualifying takes place later this afternoon at 5:35 p.m., and the day’s main event, the M&Ms 200, takes place tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET (FS1 and MRN).
Click here for the full speed chart from the second practice session.
FIRST PRACTICE SESSION:
Just over 12 hours after winning the ARCA race at Madison International Speedway in Wisconsin, Chandler Smith kicked off his NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series debut in outstanding fashion Saturday morning, being the fastest of the 32 drivers that took to the 7/8-mile oval at Iowa Speedway in the first of two practice sessions.
Driving the No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota Tundra, the 16-year-old Georgia native topped the field with a best lap of 136.046 mph, more than 1.5 mph faster than second-fastest Brett Moffitt (134.506 mph).
Third-fastest was Raphael Lessard (134.380 mph), followed by Sheldon Creed (133.832 mph) and Harrison Burton (132.945 mph).
Sixth through 10th were Tyler Dippel (132.643 mph), Austin Hill (132.620), Matt Crafton (132.281), Stewart Friesen (132.253) and Todd Gilliland (132.220).
The second and final practice session of the day will go from 11:30 a.m. to 12:55 p.m. ET.
Click here for the full speed chart from the first Trucks practice session.
Tags: Austin Hill, Ben Rhodes, Brennan Poole, Brett Moffitt, Chandler Smith, Harrison Burton, Iowa Speedway, Johnny Sauter, NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series, Raphael Lessard, Riley Herbst, Sheldon Creed, Stewart Friesen, Austin Hill, Ben Rhodes, Brennan Poole, Brett Moffitt, Chandler Smith, Harrison Burton, Johnny Sauter, Kyle Busch, Matt Crafton, Raphael Lessard, Riley Herbst, Sheldon Creed, Stewart Friesen, Todd Gilliland, Tyler Dippel
Clint Bowyer looking for some of his old magic at the ‘Magic Mile’
While the next race on the NASCAR Cup schedule is Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Clint Bowyer is already thinking four months and 17 races ahead to mid-November’s season-ending race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
“Winning a championship is the reason we are in this sport,” the Stewart-Haas Racing driver said in his weekly media release. “It’s why everyone puts in these long hours during a long season.
“Winning a championship is what we dreamed about ever since we started racing. It was a great feeling to win the Xfinity title in 2008, and I can’t imagine the feeling of satisfaction you would get by winning a Cup title.”
But Bowyer also knows all too well that to make it to the four-driver, winner-take-all championship-deciding race in South Florida, he has a bit of work to firm up his position just to make the playoffs, which begin Sept. 15 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Clint Bowyer hopes to be smiling and partying after winning what would be his third career triumph this Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Photo: Stewart-Haas Racing.
Heading to New England, Bowyer is tied for 14th place with seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson. They’re eight points ahead of 16th-ranked Erik Jones, who holds the final playoff spot. Ryan Newman, the first driver outside a playoff spot, is 10 points behind Bowyer and Johnson. Daniel Suarez is 12 points behind the duo.
A win would lock Bowyer into the playoffs. That’s why Sunday’s Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 (3 p.m. ET on NBCSN) is so important to the Kansas native.
Of Bowyer’s 10 career Cup wins, two have been at New Hampshire’s “Magic Mile.” He won there in 2007 and 2010. He also has four top fives and nine top 10s in 25 career starts at that track.
“I love New Hampshire,” Bowyer said. “That place just fits my driving style.
“We don’t get up to that part of the country a lot, so it’s good to see the race fans there. They have so many tracks and they love their racing, from Modified to Late Models to our stuff. The support races they put on at New Hampshire are some of the best of the year. Man, do they like to party there.”
Bowyer will be partying himself if he can win Sunday’s race. Still, it’s not been a bad season for Bowyer to date, either. He has five top fives and four other top-10 finishes.
Bowyer is coming off a sixth-place finish at Kentucky last Saturday, a marked improvement from what he suffered through in three of the four previous races with finishes of 35th (Michigan), 37th (Chicagoland) and 34th (Daytona).
“We dug ourselves a hole in June and we are trying to climb out of it,” Bowyer said. “We aren’t a 16th-place team. I know we are better than that.”
Tags: Foxwoods Resort Casino 301, NASCAR Cup, new hampshire motor speedway, Clint Bowyer, Daniel Suarez, Erik Jones, Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman
Chevrolet boss happy with three-race Cup winning streak but wants more July 17, 2019 1:00 pm AJ Allmendinger to drive in Watkins Glen Xfinity race for Kaulig Racing July 17, 2019 11:54 am NBC Sports Power Rankings: Kyle Busch back to No. 1, Kurt Busch to No. 3 July 17, 2019 8:00 am Clint Bowyer looking for some of his old magic at the ‘Magic Mile’ July 16, 2019 8:00 pm NASCAR America: Dale Jarrett on Dale Jr. Download, 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN July 16, 2019 4:30 pm Danielle Trotta new host of NBCSN’s Victory Lap post-race show July 16, 2019 12:49 pm Goodyear tire info for NASCAR at New Hampshire Motor Speedway July 16, 2019 11:13 am Matt Kenseth entered in August Super Late Model race in Wisconsin July 16, 2019 9:47 am Bump and Run: Forecasting race for final playoff spots July 16, 2019 8:00 am Long: Aretha sang about it, Kurt Busch says he has it with Chip Ganassi Racing July 15, 2019 6:30 pm Preliminary entry lists for NASCAR at New Hampshire July 15, 2019 5:31 pm NASCAR America at 5 p.m. ET: Recap of Kurt Busch’s Kentucky win July 15, 2019 4:30 pm Clutch issues delay Sterling Marlin’s racing return July 15, 2019 1:49 pm Kentucky winners and losers July 14, 2019 6:00 pm Kurt Busch gushes about Kyle: ‘I love to call him my little brother’ July 14, 2019 11:30 am Missed opportunities: Pit call, flat tire leave Daniel Suarez short on points July 14, 2019 2:14 am Kurt Busch wins Quaker State 400 in overtime July 14, 2019 1:19 am What Drivers Said after Kentucky July 14, 2019 1:05 am Kyle Busch, Joey Logano ponder what might have been at Kentucky July 14, 2019 1:00 am Race results and standings after Quaker State 400 at Kentucky July 14, 2019 12:32 am Kyle Larson pushes Kurt Busch to win, finishes fourth at Kentucky July 14, 2019 12:32 am Ryan Newman will start at rear after car fails inspection July 13, 2019 4:20 pm Tonight’s Cup race at Kentucky: Start time, lineup and more July 13, 2019 10:00 am Cole Custer cruises to Xfinity victory at Kentucky July 12, 2019 9:51 pm Starting lineup for Cup race at Kentucky July 12, 2019 7:58 pm Stewart-Haas Racing dominates Cup qualifying at Kentucky July 12, 2019 7:05 pm Austin Cindric wins pole for Xfinity race at Kentucky July 12, 2019 5:02 pm Tonight’s Xfinity race at Kentucky: Start time, lineup and more July 12, 2019 4:30 pm Brad Keselowski tops field in final Cup practice at Kentucky July 12, 2019 2:29 pm Kurt Busch records fastest lap in opening Cup practice at Kentucky July 12, 2019 12:33 pm NASCAR’s Friday schedule for Kentucky Speedway July 12, 2019 8:30 am Friday 5: Recent winners share long journey to Victory Lane July 12, 2019 6:30 am Tyler Ankrum scores first career Truck Series victory July 11, 2019 9:38 pm NASCAR suspends crew member reportedly arrested for assault on a female July 11, 2019 8:16 pm Grant Enfinger wins pole for Truck Series race at Kentucky July 11, 2019 4:48 pm NASCAR America presents the Motorsports Hour at 5 p.m. ET July 11, 2019 4:30 pm Xfinity Series practice report from Kentucky July 11, 2019 4:07 pm JTG Daugherty Racing, Leavine Family Racing win Round 5 of eNASCAR Pro League July 11, 2019 3:30 pm NASCAR ejects Team Penske crew chief for Austin Cindric July 11, 2019 3:17 pm Chase Briscoe to defend Eldora Truck win with ThorSport Racing July 11, 2019 2:25 pm
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Forget Stealth: Russia's Su-35 Is the Plane the Air Force Should Worry About
October 3, 2018 Topic: Security Region: Europe Blog Brand: The Buzz Tags: RussiaAmericaJetFighterSu-35FlankerPutinMilitaryTechnologyAir Force
And we will explain why.
by Sebastien Roblin
As the U.S. Air Force would have it, stealth fighters will be able to unleash a hail of missiles up to one hundred miles away without the enemy having any way to return fire until they close to a (short) distance, where visual and IR scanning come into play. Proponents of the Russian fighter argue that it will be able to rely upon ground-based low-bandwidth radars, and on-board IRST sensors and PESA radar, to detect stealth planes. Keep in mind, however, that the former two technologies are imprecise and can’t be used to target weapons in most cases.
The Sukhoi Su-35 Flanker-E is the top Russian air-superiority fighter in service today, and represents the pinnacle of fourth-generation jet fighter design. It will remain so until Russia succeeds in bringing its fifth-generation PAK-FA stealth fighter into production.
Distinguished by its unrivaled maneuverability, most of the Su-35’s electronics and weapons capabilities have caught up with those of Western equivalents, like the F-15 Eagle. But while it may be a deadly adversary to F-15s, Eurofighters and Rafales, the big question mark remains how effectively it can contend with fifth-generation stealth fighters such as the F-22 and F-35.
The Su-35 is an evolution of the Su-27 Flanker, a late Cold War design intended to match the F-15 in concept: a heavy twin-engine multirole fighter combining excellent speed and weapons loadout with dogfighting agility.
An Su-27 stunned the audience of the Paris Air Show in 1989 when it demonstrated Pugachev’s Cobra, a maneuver in which the fighter rears its nose up to 120-degree vertical—but continues to soar forward along the plane’s original attitude.
Widely exported, the Flanker has yet to clash with Western fighters, but did see air-to-air combat in Ethiopian service during a border war with Eritrea, scoring four kills against MiG-29s for no loss. It has also been employed on ground attack missions.
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The development history of the Su-35 is a bit complicated. An upgraded Flanker with canards (additional small wings on the forward fuselage) called the Su-35 first appeared way back in 1989, but is not the same plane as the current model; only fifteen were produced. Another upgraded Flanker, the two-seat Su-30, has been produced in significant quantities, and its variants exported to nearly a dozen countries.
The current model in question, without canards, is properly called the Su-35S and is the most advanced type of the Flanker family. It began development in 2003 under the Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Production Association (KnAAPO), a subcontractor of Sukhoi. The first prototypes rolled out in 2007 and production began in 2009.
Airframe and Engines
The Flanker family of aircraft is supermaneuverable—meaning it is engineered to perform controlled maneuvers that are impossible through regular aerodynamic mechanisms. In the Su-35, this is in part achieved through use of thrust-vectoring engines: the nozzles of its Saturn AL-41F1S turbofans can independently point in different directions in flight to assist the aircraft in rolling and yawing. Only one operational Western fighter, the F-22 Raptor, has similar technology.
This also allows the Su-35 to achieve very high angles-of-attack—in other words, the plane can be moving in one direction while its nose is pointed in another. A high angle of attack allows an aircraft to more easily train its weapons on an evading target and execute tight maneuvers.
Such maneuvers may be useful for evading missiles or dogfighting at close ranges—though they leave any aircraft in a low-energy state.
The Flanker-E can achieve a maximum speed of Mach 2.25 at high altitude (equal to the F-22 and faster than the F-35 or F-16) and has excellent acceleration. However, contrary to initial reports, it appears it may not be able to supercruise—perform sustained supersonic flight without using afterburners—while loaded for combat. Its service ceiling is sixty thousand feet, on par with F-15s and F-22s, and ten thousand feet higher than Super Hornets, Rafales and F-35s.
The Su-35 has expanded fuel capacity, giving it a range of 2,200 miles on internal fuel, or 2,800 miles with two external fuel tanks. Both the lighter titanium airframe and the engines have significantly longer life expectancies than their predecessors, at six thousand and 4,500 flight hours, respectively. (For comparison, the F-22 and F-35 are rated at eight thousand hours).
The Flanker airframe is not particularly stealthy. However, adjustments to the engine inlets and canopy, and the use of radar-absorbent material, supposedly halve the Su-35’s radar cross-section; one article claims it may be down to between one and three meters. This could reduce the range it can be detected and targeted, but the Su-35 is still not a “stealth fighter.”
The Su-35 has twelve to fourteen weapons hardpoints, giving it an excellent loadout compared to the eight hardpoints on the F-15C and F-22, or the four internally stowed missiles on the F-35.
At long range, the Su-35 can use K-77M radar-guided missiles (known by NATO as the AA-12 Adder), which are claimed to have range of over 120 miles.
For shorter-range engagements, the R-74 (NATO designation: AA-11 Archer) infrared-guided missile is capable of targeting “off boresight”—simply by looking through a helmet-mounted optical sight, the pilot can target an enemy plane up sixty degrees away from where his plane is pointed. The R-74 has a range of over twenty-five miles, and also uses thrust-vectoring technology.
The medium-range R-27 missile and the extra long-range R-37 (aka the AA-13 Arrow, for use against AWACs, EW and tanker aircraft) complete the Su-35’s air-to-air missile selection.
Additionally, the Su-35 is armed with a thirty-millimeter cannon with 150 rounds for strafing or dogfighting.
The Flanker-E can also carry up to seventeen thousand pounds of air-to-ground munitions. Historically, Russia has made only limited use of precision-guided munitions (PGMs) compared to Western air forces. However, the capability for large-scale use of such weapons is there, if doctrine and munition stocks accommodate it.
Sensors and Avionics
The Su-35’s most critical improvements over its predecessors may be in hardware. It is equipped with a powerful L175M Khibiny electronic countermeasure system intended to distort radar waves and misdirect hostile missiles. This could significantly degrade attempts to target and hit the Flanker-E.
The Su-35’s IRBIS-E passive electronically scanned array (PESA) radar is hoped to provide better performance against stealth aircraft. It is claimed to able to track up to thirty airborne targets with a Radar-cross section of three meters up to 250 miles away—and targets with cross-sections as small 0.1 meters over fifty miles away. However, PESA radars are easier to detect and to jam than the Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars now used by Western fighters. The IRBIS also has an air-to ground mode that can designate up to four surface targets at time for PGMs.
Supplementing the radar is an OLS-35 targeting system that includes an Infra-Red Search and Track (IRST) system said to have a fifty-mile range—potentially a significant threat to stealth fighters.
More mundane but vital systems—such as pilot multi-function displays and fly-by-wire avionics—have also been significantly updated.
Operational Units and Future Customers
Currently, the Russian Air Force operates only forty-eight Su-35s. Another fifty were ordered in January 2016, and will be produced at a rate of ten per year. Four Su-35s were deployed to Syria this January after a Russian Su-24 was shot down by a Turkish F-16. Prominently armed with air-to-air missiles, the Su-35s were intended to send a message that the Russians could pose an aerial threat if attacked.
China has ordered twenty-four Su-35s at a cost of $2 billion, but is thought unlikely to purchase more. Beijing’s interest is believed to lie mostly in copying the Su-35’s thrust-vector engines for use in its own designs. The Chinese PLAAF already operates the Shenyang J-11, a copy of the Su-27.
Attempts to market the Su-35 abroad, especially to India and Brazil, have mostly foundered. Recently, however, Indonesia has indicated it wishes to purchase eight this year, though the contract signing has been repeatedly delayed. Algeria is reportedly considering acquiring ten for $900 million. Egypt, Venezuela and Vietnam are also potential customers.
Cost estimates for the Su-35 have run between $40 million and $65 million; however, the exports contracts have been at prices above $80 million per unit.
Against the Fifth Generation
The Su-35 is at least equal—if not superior—to the very best Western fourth-generation fighters. The big question, is how well can it perform against a fifth-generation stealth plane such as the F-22 or F-35?
Russia's Su-25: Moscow's 'A-10' Is a Virtual 'Flying Tank'
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What Is Our Number One Priority?
February 6, 2012 Topic: Domestic PoliticsForeign AidThe Presidency Region: IsraelIranUnited States Blog Brand: Paul Pillar
Obama is equating—and subordinating—U.S. interests to Israeli interests. The implications for U.S. policy are disastrous.
by Paul R. Pillar
In an interview broadcast during NBC's Super Bowl pregame show on Sunday, President Obama made a couple of statements that were disturbing, even if politically unsurprising. In a portion of the interview about the danger of Israel touching off a war with Iran, the president said, “My number one priority continues to be the security of the United States, but also the security of Israel.” Wait a minute—shouldn't the security of the United States be the number one priority of the president of the United States? Rather than merely sharing the top spot on the priority list with some foreign country's security? This comment was part of an unscripted interview, and perhaps the language of a prepared speech would have come out differently. But the president said what he said.
Elsewhere in the same interview, Mr. Obama said that in dealing with Israel regarding the issue of Iran, “We are going to make sure that we work in lockstep.” If working in lockstep means that Israel defers to U.S. interests and preferences, that would be fine for the United States. But of course the deference nearly always works the other way around. For a glaring recent example involving President Obama, recall how he caved to Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the continued Israeli construction of settlements in occupied territories. So this statement is disturbing as well.
Any national political leader in the United States should be expected to give clear, consistent, overwhelming priority to U.S. interests—never equating, much less subordinating, them to the interests of any foreign state. Relationships with foreign governments can be useful in advancing U.S. interests, but they are always means, not ends. I have discussed this principle before. Suffice it to note that the policies of the current government of the foreign state in question are not only not to be equated with U.S. interests but are seriously damaging those interests, whether through risking war with Iran, undermining efforts short of war to resolve differences with Iran, or associating the United States with a highly salient and unjust occupation. Even with an alternative government that was less destructive (to Israel's own interests, let alone to those of the United States), the interests of the United States should not be equated with the interests of this foreign state any more than to those of Denmark, Thailand, Argentina or any other foreign country, no matter what fondness individual citizens may feel toward those or other places.
The president's statements before the Super Bowl are mild compared to the efforts of most of his Republican opponents to outdo each other in subordinating themselves to the wishes of the Israeli government. One of the best indications of what is shaping the environment in which these candidates operate comes from the lips of Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire casino magnate who is Newt Gingrich's biggest bankroller and is likely to open his wallet to Mitt Romney's campaign once Romney nails down the nomination. Speaking to an Israeli group in 2010, Adelson said that when he did military service as a young man it was "unfortunately" in a U.S. uniform rather than an Israeli one. He said he hoped his son would become a sniper for the Israel Defense Forces. Adelson concluded, “All we [meaning Adelson and his Israeli wife, who did serve in the IDF] care about is being good Zionists, being good citizens of Israel, because even though I am not Israeli born, Israel is in my heart.”
Speaking as someone who feels fortunate and proud to have worn a U.S. uniform when performing military service, I find it deeply distressing that such sentiments are playing such a large role in determining U.S. policies and perhaps the U.S. presidency.
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Tag Archives: World War II
D-Day Veterans Oral History Additions
In commemoration of World War II’s D-Day 75th anniversary, the State Archives of North Carolina has digitized 25 military veterans’ oral histories and made them available through Internet Archive. Access to the oral histories is also available through North Carolina Digital Collections Veterans Oral History collection.
The veterans listed below all participated in D-Day, whether through land, sea, or logistics. For more information on each veteran, check out NC Stories of Service, where Military Archivist Matthew Peek has been providing in-depth histories of the D-Day veterans.
Walter G. Atkinson Jr., Interview, 2000-02-24 [MilColl OH 32]
Duncan C. Blue Interview, 2009-08-12 [MilColl OH 85]
Heath H. Carriker Interview, 2009-11 [MilColl OH 152]
Thomas E. Carson Jr. Interview, 1999-10-12 [MilColl OH 157]
Hugh B. Cherry Interview, 2006-11-14 [MilColl OH 171]
John C. Clark Interview, 1997-12-04 [MilColl OH 178]
Douglas F. Dickerson Interview, 1999-12-20 [MilColl OH 228]
Willie R. Etheridge Jr. Interview, 2001-10-20 [MilColl OH 268]
James E. Ferrell Interview, 2001-09-08 [MilColl OH 281]
Aaron E. Fussell Sr. Interview, 2010-07-07 [MilColl OH 301]
Grady R. Galloway Interview, 1998-03-25 [MilColl OH 304]
Herman T. Harden Jr. Interview, 1998-11 [MilColl OH 358]
Willie J. King Interview, 2010-01-29 [MilColl OH 470]
James O. Lawson Interview, 2002-06-13 [MilColl OH 502]
Charles H. Outlaw Interview, 2013-08-07 [MilColl OH 646]
Ward R. Robinson Interview, 2003-08-23 [MilColl OH 724]
Robert W. Ryals Sr. Interview, 2010-01-27 [MilColl OH 738]
Ralph R. Todd Interview, 2008-04-08 [MilColl OH 873]
Earl H. Tyndall Jr. Interview, 1999-12-10 [MilColl OH 886]
Earl R. Weatherly Interview, 2006-07-06 [MilColl OH 910]
Ellis W. Williamson Interview, 1999-08-06 [MilColl OH 940]
Jeremiah Wolfe Interview, 2009-08-15 [MilColl OH 948]
Harold L. Frank Interview, 2006-12 [MilColl OH 975]
Howard B. Greene Interview, 2014-08-09 [MilColl OH 1015]
Clarence A. Call Interview, 2006-12-04 [MilColl OH 977]
This entry was posted in Digital Collections, News, Special Collections and tagged Military Collection, military history, oral histories, World War II on June 6, 2019 by Olivia.
Rare Irving Berlin WWII Play Photographs Online
[This blog post was written by Matthew Peek, Military Collection Archivist for the State Archives of North Carolina.]
Photograph of songwriter Irving Berlin, wearing his U.S. Army uniform, standing against a wall next to a poster advertising the only civilian performance of Berlin’s traveling U.S. military play This Is The Army at the Teatro Reale dell’Opera in Rome, Italy, in June 1944. The play was in Rome performing for U.S. military personnel during an international tour in World War II (June 1944) [Photograph by: Zinn Arthur].
The State Archives of North Carolina’s Military Collection is excited to announce the availability online of 416 original photographs documenting the international tour of American songwriter Irving Berlin’s traveling U.S. Army play This Is The Army was performed from October 1943 through October 1945 during World War II. Developed from the 1942 Broadway musical play and the 1943 Hollywood film of the same name, This Is The Army (abbreviated by the cast and crew as “TITA”) was initially designed to raise money for the war effort in the United States, and featured one of the most famous wartime songs of the 1940s “This Is The Army, Mister Jones.” TITA became the biggest and best-known morale-boosting show of World War II in the U.S.
Beginning in October 1943, TITA left the U.S. for England, where it remained through February 1944. From there, they traveled to North Africa, Italy, Egypt, Iran, India, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Guam, Mogmog Island, Okinawa, Iwo Jima, Hawaii, and numerous other locations in the Pacific Theater. The play traveled with makeshift stages that they set up on numerous locations and U.S. military installations/camps. The play’s cast played to hundreds of thousands of U.S. service individuals, including women’s bases and camps such as the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) camps in the Pacific. They traveled by troop transport ships, rented cargo ships, and landing crafts.
View of African-American dancer, soloist, and comedian James “Stumpy” Cross introducing the song “Shoo Shoo Baby” during a performance by cast members of Irving Berlin’s traveling U.S. military play This Is The Army the hospital at Camp Huckstep in Cairo, Egypt, in August 1944. Part of the play’s “jam band” is pictured playing in the background. Photograph taken while the cast was stationed at Camp Huckstep to perform for U.S. military personnel in Cairo, Egypt, during an international tour (August 1944) [Photograph by: Zinn Arthur].
This Is The Army was the only full-integrated military unit in the U.S. Armed Forces during WWII, with African American men eating, performing, and traveling with their fellow white cast and crew members. Many of the men were not just performers before the war, but also recruited to perform in the cast from the U.S. Army ranks in 1943. The cast was all-male, which required the men to dress as women in drag for the women sketches in the play. In all, the play would prove to be the beginning of the eventual desegregation of the U.S. Armed Forces under President Harry S. Truman’s 1948 Executive Order 9981.
This particular collection of photographs was mostly taken by singer and later celebrity photographer Zinn Arthur. Arthur would select and send these photographs to fellow cast member and singer Robert Summerlin of Tarboro, N.C. Both men would add identifications to the images over the years, resulting in the collection currently held at the State Archives. This collection of the This Is The Army photographs is the only known, publicly-available collection of these images in the United States.
The complete set of photographs is available online in an album through the State Archives’ Flickr page. Original programs and tickets for the play are available for viewing in-house in the State Archives’ public Search Room.
Photograph of singer Robert Summerlin from the cast of Irving Berlin’s traveling U.S. military play This Is The Army, standing in front of a lifeboat on the deck of the small freighter El Libertador, which carried the cast and crew of the play around the South Pacific in May 1945 during World War II. The ship was in Manila, the Philippines, when the photograph was taken. Photograph taken while the play was traveling throughout the South Pacific to perform for U.S. military personnel during their international tour [May 1945] [Photograph by: Zinn Arthur].
This entry was posted in Special Collections and tagged Flickr, Military Collection, military history, World War II on August 2, 2018 by Ashley.
New Camp Butner German POW Collections Available
The Military Collection at the State Archives of North Carolina is excited to announce the availability of two new collections documenting German prisoners of war (POWs) and one Italian POW at Camp Butner, N. C., during World War II. By the end of 1943, nearly 50,000 Italian POWs were held in 27 camps in 23 states, including at Camp Butner in North Carolina. German POWs would come to Camp Butner by the fall of 1943 after Rommel’s defeat in North Africa created a large number of German war prisoners. The POWs at Camp Butner built various structures, including a church, and had their own camp newsletter in German entitled Lager Fackel. Many of the POWs worked in small satellite camps throughout central North Carolina, being contracted out to farmers and other businesses for home front work.
The Camp Butner POW Correspondence Collection is composed of seventeen letters and postcards written by one Italian and four German prisoners of war (POWs) who were imprisoned at Camp Butner, N.C., from 1943 to 1945 during World War II. The correspondence is written in Italian and German, respectively, and is not yet translated. The bulk of the correspondence was written by Werner Trötschel and Friedrich Vodak of Germany. Trötschel’s correspondence includes letters and postcards from when he was initially a POW at Fort Bragg, N.C., before he was assigned long-term to Camp Butner. The collection is one of the largest-known groups of Camp Butner POW correspondence in North Carolina.
Another new collection is composed of one original 20-page issue of the German-language POW newsletter Lager Fackel (or “Camp Torch” in English), created by German POWs imprisoned at Camp Butner, N.C., during World War II. The newsletter was printed between 1945 and 1946. This issue is Volume 2, Issue 9, dated February 1946. It was owned and read by German POW Ernst Lüers while he was imprisoned at Camp Butner in 1946. The newsletter was subtitled in German “Wochenzeitung der deutschen Kriegsgefangenen des Lagers Butner und seiner Nebenlager,” translated as “Weekly newspaper of German prisoners of war Camp Butner and its subcamps.” The newsletter had such columns (loosely translated into English) as “From the Historical Consciousness,” “Press Review,” “Reconstruction in Germany,” “Free Time Design,” “The Green Light,” Sports at Camp Butner,” Letter Cold [?],” and “Riddle Corner.”
This entry was posted in Special Collections and tagged Camp Butner, Military Collection, military history, World War II on December 8, 2017 by Ashley.
New Amateur World War II Guadalcanal Films Online
From the film: “Lunga Beach (Guadalcanal), Summer 1943 [WWII 40.MPF1],” part of the Military Collection at the State Archives of North Carolina.
The Military Collection at the State Archives of North Carolina is excited to announce the availability online of two original short amateur films from World War II. The films, shot by Daniel D. Price of Mount Olive, N.C., were made while Price and his friend Bill Carroll were stationed with the U.S. Army Air Forces’ 38th Air Materials Squadron on Lunga Beach on the island of Guadalcanal in 1943. The rare films are original, unedited amateur footage of island life in the Pacific Theater during World War II from the perspective of a North Carolinian.
The amateur 16mm footage was shot in the summer and fall of 1943, while Price was camped and working along the Lunga Beach Fighter Strip. There is a black-and-white film shot in the summer of 1943, and a very rare color film shot in the fall of 1943. The black-and-white film shows men swimming on Lunga Beach, sitting in tents, and providing paid laundry operations for fellow servicemen; various U.S. Air Force planes on the Lunga Beach Fighter Strip; and other scenes around the camp.
The color film was taken by Price and Carroll during an excursion from Lunga Beach to Cape Esperance on Guadalcanal in a U.S. Army jeep. The film shows the men traveling in the jeep until it gets stuck in a muddy creek. It also shows the interior of Price’s Air Force supply parts depot Quonset hut, with Price himself visible in the film. The original films are a rare look at the life of a North Carolina Air Force serviceman in the Pacific Theater during WWII.
Perhaps the most unique aspect of these films is Daniel Price himself, who worked with the Military Collection to describe every scene within the films he shot in 1943. Price’s crisp memory recalls detailed information about the scenes—including names of men pictured in the films—in films which Price had not seen since they were shot in 1943. This rare footage has been digitized, and the original 16mm film reels preserved, through the generous support of a Basic Film Preservation Grant by the National Film Preservation Foundation.
Both films are available online through the State Archives’ YouTube page, with complete scene descriptions included.
The black-and-white film [WWII 40.MPF1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJ5c8lNbv18&feature=youtu.be.
The color film [WWII 40.MPF2]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmGpGiCbpsI
We hope the public enjoys seeing these unique pieces of WWII history. A detailed finding aid for the films is available in the State Archives’ public Search Room in Raleigh, N.C.
This entry was posted in Special Collections and tagged Military Collection, military history, World War II, YouTube on July 25, 2017 by Ashley.
Jack Benny USO Show Photographs, August 1945
Snapshot of comedian Jack Benny, wearing a leather trench coat, pictured standing in front of the steps of Schloss Wilhelmshöhe—the U.S. Military Government district headquarters—in Kassel, Germany, around August 1945. Benny was on a six-week USO show tour of U.S. military posts in Europe with Ingrid Bergman and Larry Adler. [WWII 73.B5.F5.3], Military Collection, State Archives of North Carolina.
The Military Collection at the State Archives of North Carolina would like to share an interesting find discovered while processing a new collection. Robert J. Pleasants of Wake County, North Carolina, served in the U.S. Navy from 1932 to 1934; in World War II with the U.S. Army with the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) from 1944 to 1946 in Europe; and is believed to be the longest-serving Wake County sheriff (1946-1978).
From May 1945 to March 1946, Pleasants was stationed in the Kassel District of Germany, under the U.S. Office of Military Government during the occupation of Germany. He was in the Food and Agriculture Section, responsible for managing and developing food and agriculture supplies, assisting with the growth and planting of crops, and dispersing food to the peoples of Germany in the midst of a massive food shortage at the end of World War II.
Snapshot of movie actress Ingrid Bergman (middle, sitting) and world-famous harmonica player Larry Adler (left, sitting), sitting in a U.S. Military Government car for the Kassel district in Germany around August 1945. The car is parked next to Schloss Wilhelmshöhe, the U.S. Military Government district headquarters. Bergman and Adler were on a six-week Jack Benny USO show tour of U.S. military posts. [WWII 73.B5.F5.4], Military Collection, State Archives of North Carolina.
I am in the midst of processing, organizing, describing, and preserving Robert Pleasants’ papers. During the processing of a collection, you never know for sure what you are going to find, whether it be a rare document, a personal letter, or a just lot of collectible postcards from another country. You never really know the historical significance of the materials until you go through them systematically, in order that researchers end up with a collection that is arranged to allow easy access and described well enough for people to find all sorts of things they may be looking for.
While working on Pleasants’ papers, I came across several photographs that I had to do some research. Pleasants himself typed descriptions on the back of the images after the war, but you still have to check. Turns out they are three photographs of Jack Benny, movie star Ingrid Bergman, and Larry Adler (one of the world’s best harmonica players). The three performers were in Kassel, Germany, in August 1945 as part of the Jack Benny USO Show, which was conducted over six weeks throughout the summer of 1945 as a morale boost to the wearied U.S. troops in Germany.
Robert Pleasants, as an officer in the U.S. Military Government’s offices in Kassel, helped tour Benny, Bergman, and Adler around in military vehicles while they were performing for the troops there. These three photographs show the three individuals in candid moments around the time of their performances, and offer us a look at a remarkable period in the history of WWII.
Snapshot of movie actress Ingrid Bergman (right) and world-famous harmonica player Larry Adler (left), sitting in a U.S. Military Government car for the Kassel district in Germany around August 1945, shown while they were signing autographs. The car is parked next to Schloss Wilhelmshöhe, the U.S. Military Government district headquarters. Bergman and Adler were on a six-week Jack Benny USO show tour of U.S. military posts. [WWII 73.B5.F5.5], Military Collection, State Archives of North Carolina.
This entry was posted in Special Collections and tagged Military Collection, military history, Photographs, World War II on April 17, 2017 by Ashley.
Weldon Burlison – a North Carolinian at Pearl Harbor
[This blog post comes from Matthew Peek, Military Collection Archivist for the State Archives of North Carolina.]
Last known piece of correspondence from Weldon C. Burlison in November 1941, before he was killed at Hickam Field on December 7, 1941.” From Weldon C. Burlison Papers, WWII 58, WWII Papers, Military Collection, State Archives of North Carolina.
On December 7, 2016, as the country commemorates the 75th anniversary of the tragic loss of life during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the State Archives of North Carolina’s Military Collection has recently acquired a small set of original correspondence and newspaper clippings that document the life and death of one of North Carolina’s first reported casualties at Pearl Harbor. Weldon C. Burlison of Yancey County was stationed at Hickam Field with the 22nd Materièl Squadron, U.S. Army Air Corps, when he was killed by Japanese aircraft who bombed and strafed with gunfire the field and facilities there.
Weldon C. Burlison (also spelled “Burleson”) was born on November 25, 1911, in Yancey County to Henry Wilburn and Minnie Bell Burlison. By 1920, the Burlison family was living in Jacks Creek Township in Yancey County, where Weldon’s father worked as a farmer. Weldon Burlison was raised in Yancey County, and attended Clearmont High School in Burnsville. He attended Maryville College in Tennessee and enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps on August 16, 1934, serving four years in the Marine Corps. Burlison went through his basic training in the Headquarters Detachment at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot at Parris Island, South Carolina.
Between 1934 and 1938, Weldon Burlison served in Marine Detachments at various stations and aboard various U.S. Navy ships at the following locations: Boston Naval Yard; Norfolk Naval Yard; Honolulu, Hawaii; Charleston, South Carolina; New Jersey; the Atlantic coast; the Pacific coast; various locations in Asia; aboard the battleship the USS Colorado (BB-45); aboard the destroyer the USS Fairfax (DD-93) at the Panama Canal Zone; aboard the aircraft carrier USS Saratoga (CV-3); aboard the destroyer the USS Taylor (DD-94); and aboard the troop transport ship the USS Henderson (AP-1).
Between 1939 and early 1940, Weldon Burlison would re-enlist in the U.S. Army Air Corps after his honorable discharge from the U.S. Marine Corps. Until December 1941, Burlison was primarily stationed at Hickam Field in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. He was serving in the 22nd Material Squadron. Starting in August 1941, Burlison was stationed at Barking Sands, Hawaii, where he and 60 men in his party were ascribed the task of constructing new U.S. Army Air Corps barracks for the new Army Air Corps’ Barking Sands Landing Field, which would operate as a new airfield for bomber plane operations.
Prior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Weldon Burlison was writing to friends and family members, including a childhood friend from Yancey County who was living in Skillman, New Jersey—Elsie M. Edwards. Elsie and her husband Ellis Edwards even visited with Burlison in the late 1930s when he was stationed with the Marine Corps in New Jersey. The Edwards couple wrote to Burlison, and Elsie would even have some of her female friends write to him at his request. Burlison referred in his correspondence to Elsie Edwards as “Chick” or “Chickie,” while she called him “Snook.”
On December 7, 1941, Weldon Burlison was stationed at Hickam Field at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. A total of 51 American airplanes were on the ground at Hickam Field, the headquarters of the Hawaii Air Force; a flight of 12 Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombers was expected to arrive that morning. At Hickam Field, Japanese Zero fighters and Val dive-bombers strafed and bombed the flight line and hangars, concentrating on the B-17 bombers. The B-17s arrived unarmed and low on fuel during the attack, with most succeeding in landing at Hickam, at which point they were attacked on the ground. The second wave of the Japanese attack struck Hickam at 8:40 A.M. and by 9:45 A.M. the attack was over. Nearly half of the airplanes at Hickam Field had been destroyed or severely damaged. The hangars, the Hawaiian Air Depot, and several base facilities—the fire station, the chapel and the guardhouse—had been hit. A variety of casualty numbers have been reported over the years for the losses at Hickam Field on December 7, 1941. The U.S. Air Force reports that personnel casualties included 139 killed and 303 wounded.
On the morning of December 8, 1941, after hearing the news about Pearl Harbor and knowing where Burlison was stationed, Elsie Edwards wrote a two-page, heart-breaking letter to him, hoping that he was safe and alive. Elsie began her letter by saying, “Of course I have a million things on my mind these days. Right now the uppermost thought is ‘I wonder if Snook is safe, if he’s really all right’.” After noting that Americans had abandoned plans for Christmas in order to pray for those military personnel at Pearl Harbor, Edwards wrote, “And let me tell you Weldon, I am one of your many friends who is praying for you!” She would finish her letter by saying, “I don’t know of very much to say right now. I can’t even be sure you will receive this but I hope you do.”
On Wednesday, December 10, 1941, within just a few days of Pearl Harbor’s attack, the U.S. War Department had officially notified Weldon Burlison’s parents of his death. The notice for Burlison’s death was printed on the next day—December 11, 1941—in his hometown newspaper The Yancey Record, published in Burnsville with the front-page headline: “Weldon Burleson Is First War Casualty.” Weldon Burlison was the first reported war casualty for World War II from western North Carolina, and one of the first reported North Carolina casualties from the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor. Sometime during the week following Pearl Harbor, a family member of Weldon Burlison or Elsie Edwards who lived in Yancey County mailed two newspaper clippings to Elsie Edwards in New Jersey to let her know of Burlison’s death. The letter Edwards mailed to Burlison on December 8th would be transferred to multiple military mail locations in the chaos following Pearl Harbor. After the envelope was marked with “Deceased” by the military, the letter was returned to and received by Elsie Edwards on February 12, 1942—a date she wrote on the back of the envelope.
Weldon C. Burlison died with the rank of Private, but would receive a posthumous promotion to Corporal. He was initially buried in Plot 3, Row S, Grave 62, at the Schofield Barracks on Oahu, Hawaii. After World War II, Burlison was disinterred in 1947, and reburied in the United States Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery in Washington, D.C., on November 14, 1947. Burlison is buried there in Section L, Grave No. 8153-C. Over the years—due to misspellings and little available information—Weldon Burlison has often been overlooked as a victim of the Pearl Harbor attack, but not by those in Yancey County, where his name is engraved on the Yancey County Veterans Memorial in Burnsville as “Weldon Burleson.” The State Archives of North Carolina hopes that this collection will expand research into the sacrifices of North Carolinians on December 7, 1941, and bring recognition to one of our state’s unsung military heroes.
This entry was posted in News, Special Collections and tagged letters, Military Collection, military history, Pearl Harbor, World War II on December 7, 2016 by Ashley.
Military Collection Intern Discovers Important WWII Battle of the Atlantic Document
[This blog post comes from Matthew Peek, Military Collection Archivist for the State Archives of North Carolina, and YAIO intern Rebecca Mullins.]
The Military Collection at the State Archives of North Carolina is in the middle of a multi-year project to reorganize and provide better description for its World War II collections for its 75th anniversary. Mostly collected by the State Archives during the war, WWII material has been collected continuously since 1945. Every collection holds a connection to North Carolina’s role in military history and the involvement of its residents in military service.
For the summer of 2016, the Military Collection is hosting an intern as part of a project supported through the North Carolina Department of Administration’s Youth Advocacy & Involvement Office (YAIO) State of NC Internship Program. The internship project is to process, preserve, and describe WWII collections held by the Military Collection.
YAIO Military Collection intern Rebecca Mullins.
While reorganizing a collection of U.S. Coast Guard papers, YAIO Military Collection intern Rebecca Mullins found an important document tucked in a miscellaneous file of “Personnel Duty Logs and Operational Records” for Ocracoke Lifesaving Station on Ocracoke Island, North Carolina. In this miscellaneous folder was a three-page, typed document simply titled “Case of Y.P.-389.” The document, created on 1940s tissue-style typing paper (with its brittle edges and faded, typewriter ink text) would prove to make more of a stir for Military Collection Archivist Matthew Peek in a twenty four-hour period than the collection had in its entire eleven years of being housed in the State Archives. The document is a minute-by-minute case report by the Ocracoke Coast Guard Station of the sinking of YP-389 by a German U-boat in June 1942.
The boat in the document, the YP-389, was originally a steam trawler called the Cohasset, until it was requisitioned by the U.S. Navy in February 1942 for service in WWII. With the addition of one 3-inch, 23 caliber gun and two 0.30-caliber Lewis machine guns, the newly named USS YP-389 entered federal service on May 1, 1942. Modest in size, the YP-389 was manned by 24 men. The vessel was ill-matched as part of what has become known as the Battle of the Atlantic when, on the fateful morning of June 19, 1942, the German U-boat U-701 attacked YP-389.
As described in the Tar Heel Junior Historian magazine by author Kevin P. Duffus in his article “When World War II Was Fought off North Carolina’s Beaches,” U-boats “presence in American waters was not intended for ‘show’ but to help win World War II for Germany. The abbreviated name ‘U-boat’ comes from the German word unterseeboot, meaning submarine or undersea boat. However, U-boats were not true submarines. They were warships that spent most of their time on the surface. They could submerge only for limited periods—mostly to attack or evade detection by enemy ships, and to avoid bad weather. U-boats could only travel about sixty miles underwater before having to surface for fresh air. They often attacked ships while on the surface using deck-mounted guns. Typically, about 50 men operated a U-boat. The boats carried fifteen torpedoes, or self-propelled ‘bombs,’ which ranged up to twenty-two feet long and could travel thirty miles per hour.”
“Case of Y.P.-389” document, from the Military Collection of the State Archives of North Carolina.
When the YP-389 was attacked in an area off the North Carolina coast referred to as the “Graveyard of the Atlantic,” it sent out a distress message, as recorded by an unidentified U.S. Navy officer at the Coast Guard’s Ocracoke Station on the document discovered in the Military Collection: “0235 [2:35 A.M.]:Y.P.-389 Called all ships in Fifth Naval District saying she was being shelled off Diamond Shoals.” The time for the initial distress call on this document contradicts official military reports of when the YP-389 was attacked, typically listed as 2:45 A.M. The document also shows interesting pieces of information about the YP-389 crew after the initial attack, and information about the rescue ships’ attempts: “0346 [3:46 A.M.]: The C.G.C.-462 [Coast Guard Cutter-462] reported that she had sighted gun flashes on her port bow and was proceeding, but had seen nothing in the last five minutes.” The document goes on to describe the search and rescue mission for the YP-389: “0513 [5:13 A.M.]: C.G.C.-481 and 462 ordered to carry out search for survivors or wreckage.”
After Rebecca Mullins conducted further research into the event surrounding Y.P.-389, she discovered that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), had surveyed the wreck site in the 1970s, but the NOAA’s Monitor National Marine Sanctuary was unable to identify the wreck as the YP-389 until 2009. NOAA’s work on identification of Battle of the Atlantic sites and sunken U.S. merchant vessels will result in a Battle of the Atlantic nomination to the National Register of Historic Places.
Military Collection Archivist Peek sought the assistance of the North Carolina Office of Archaeology, which connected the Military Collection with the person in charge of NOAA’s work on the YP-389. The Military Collection has provided scans of the document for NOAA, and NOAA will be utilizing this case report of the YP-389 held by the State Archives of North Carolina in its application for the National Register. The work supported through the YAIO State of NC Internship Program this summer is making such discoveries possible in relation to North Carolina’s WWII history.
This entry was posted in News, Special Collections and tagged interns, Military Collection, military history, World War II on July 7, 2016 by Ashley.
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Women Not Protected from Unintended Pregnancies Should Have the Right to Abortions
Filed under: Reproductive rights — trp2011 @ 7:27 PM
Tags: abortion, maternal death, Michele Stranger-Hunter, NARAL, One Key Question, Oregon, proactive reproductive rights legislation, Spring Adams Fund, unintended pregnancies
“No woman ever wants an abortion.” That was Michele Stranger-Hunter’s introduction to her talk about a program called “One Key Question” at a recent NOW meeting in Newport (OR). Yet women continue to obtain legal—and illegal—abortions throughout the United States because they are not protected from these pregnancies. Under ten percent of these abortions are because of health reasons for either or both of the pregnant woman and the fetus, and about 90 percent of all abortions are performed at under 13 weeks. Stranger-Hunter (below, left) is the executive director of the Oregon Foundation for Reproductive Health and NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon.
Because women don’t want to have abortions, it is vital to provide women of reproductive age to have access to contraception and an understanding of how to use the method that they use. Stranger-Hunter said that the Affordable Care Act “is the best thing that happened to women in my lifetime.” Yet
Stranger-Hunter said that her organization plans to push proactive legislation for women’s reproductive rights in Oregon’s 2017 legislative session. “No other state ever tries to help women,” she said. The group laid the foundation for these bills in 2015 for comprehensive women’s health and a basic health plan ensuring that everyone have equitable access to quality health care. As the group’s members worked with legislators who they had endorsed, however, they discovered that these lawmakers were unwilling to use the term abortion, and the group’s bill died. Since that time, Oregon NARAL’s PAC has revised its endorsement procedures to include only people willing to actually use the word “abortion” as shown by interviews and questionnaires. “We need legislators who will commit,” Stranger-Hunter said. In Oregon, 64 percent of the voters favor a bill that covers the full range of reproductive services, including abortion. Only 29 percent of voters disagree.
The “One Key Question” (OKQ) program began after research showed that doctors didn’t talk to women about birth control. That isn’t “just an Oregon thing,” Stranger-Hunter said. It happens all over the country. That may be one reason that one-half of all women will have had an unintended pregnancy by the age of 45. And half of all pregnancies are unintended.
Fertility is a “chronic condition,” said Stranger-Hunter. Women are fertile for 39 years and spend at least 30 of those years trying to avoid pregnancies. The poorer women are, the more unintended pregnancies (IP) they have. Of women in the 200+ poverty range, only 20 percent have an IP; 112 percent of the women under that level of wealth have IPs.
Pregnancies can be deadly for women in the U.S.: in a quarter of a century, maternal deaths from childbirth have increased 150 percent from 7.2 per 100,000 births in 1987 to 18.5 in 2013. At the same time, almost all the other countries in the world are seeing fewer maternal deaths. For every woman who dies from maternal deaths, another 75 experience a near-fatal emergency during pregnancy or childbirth such as heart attacks, kidney failure or profuse bleeding—also increases in recent years.
Bad health care has been given as a major reason for these deaths and other disasters. Stranger-Hunter listed other reasons: physical abuse, depression, and emotional problems. Women’s health care is “fragmented,” many times between two doctors. Half of all fertile women are on medications for depression, and 10 to 15 percent of congenital birth problems come from these meds. About 98 percent of pregnancies among female opioid users are unintended.
While states introduce thousands of bills to make abortions harder to obtain, none of them is doing anything to fight maternal deaths by decreasing unintended pregnancies. The “One Key Question” program, while not legally mandated, is a beginning.
The goal of this program is to have every woman of reproductive age be asked “would you like to become pregnant in the next year?” Stranger-Hunter described this approach as a non-threatening approach that leads to a dialog with the health practitioner. Depending on the answer—yes, no, don’t know, or fine either way—the clinician can present suggestions for helping the woman successfully achieve her goal. With “yes” or “fine,” women can prepare her body for a healthy pregnancy and fetus by considering medications, taking folic acid, and knowing about other health options such as screening for infections and a dental check-up. “No” leads to a discussion of effective contraception and important information such as the 85 percent chance of becoming pregnant for sexual activity with men with no birth control. An answer of “don’t know” can lead to evaluating choices.
In Oregon, care providers for low-income women—home visiting staff, WIC (Women, Infants, and Children), and the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization–are starting to routinely ask families One Key Question at intake. Questioners have found that patients, especially those who have little control over their lives because of poverty or abuse, like the wording that shifts the focus from long-term planning to immediate desires. National professional organizations are taking note as well, with the American Public Health Association and the National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women’s Health expressing their support.
Michele Stranger-Hunter shows that just one woman can make a huge difference. The One Key Question program began from her fact-finding tour of hospitals and clinics across the state in 2009. Now 20 states are asking that question on a volunteer basis. Heavy reliance on computerization has kept some large medical groups from incorporating this question because it needs to be built into the electronic software. Legislatures, however, should put this concept into law: for ever $1 spent on family planning, $4 are saved. The cost barrier for many women’s contraceptives has been removed through the Affordable Care Act, but advances in birth control methods have made the woman’s decision more complicated.
OKQ won’t stop the need for all abortions, however. Contraception can fail, and health problems will continue to plague pregnant women and fetuses, especially with bad health care in many of the states across the nation. The biggest problem with legal abortion at this time is its inaccessibility. Fewer than one-fourth of the counties in Oregon have clinics that provide abortions, and these are largely along the I-5 corridor, requiring woman from smaller counties to travel long distances, sometimes hundreds of miles, and spend the night away from home. The abortion costs an average of $451 which is usually not paid by insurance. And Oregon is better off than the five other states that have only one clinic in the entire state and the huge state of Texas that is still trying to cut down to nine women’s clinics for its 5,404,124 women of reproductive age.
One help for women with lodging and transportation costs comes from the Oregon Foundation for Reproductive Health (OFRH) in the form of the Spring Adams Fund. It was started in 1989 after a 13-year-old girl in Boise (ID) was sexually abused by her father. The Idaho Health Department suggested Portland (OR) for a location where she could get an abortion. NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon found the funds to pay for transportation and lodging, but the night before Spring was scheduled to make the six-hour trip to Portland, her father shot and killed her in her bed. More information about this fund is here.
At this time, Oregon is the only state in the nation that has not passed anti-choice laws either through the legislature or the voter initiative process allowing individuals to put statutory and constitutional measures on the ballot. It may stay that way after a judge ruled that language in a proposed ballot measure from anti-choice Oregon Life Unified is too “fuzzy” and sent the initiative back to Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum for modification of the ballot initiative verbiage. The state supreme court ruled that the initiative must clearly state that its effect is to deny access to abortion care coverage to Oregon’s low-income residents. Reproductive advocates who petitioned the court argued that the proposed amendment to the state constitution would allow coverage only to women with private health insurance. Signatures for the necessary 117,578 are still being collected for the misnamed Stop Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act of 2016.
Until every woman is protected from unintended pregnancies, all women should have the right to have access to abortions.
Nestle in Oregon = Possible Water Shortages
Filed under: Privatization — trp2011 @ 7:34 PM
Tags: Bhati Dilwan, drought, Hood River County, Nestle, Oregon, water rights
The media’s obsession with the current—and on-going—presidential election process, you may have missed World Water Day on March 22 to advocate for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. One huge company, Nestle, is contributing to the lack of fresh water in the world as it bottles ground water and leaves people already in poverty with the filthy remains. For example, when the company dug a deep well in the small Pakistani community of Bhati Dilwan, the water level sank over 200 feet from its original 100 feet. Children can either drink the dirty water or use bottled water—that their families can’t afford to buy. Every day more children die from drinking dirty water than AIDS, war, traffic accidents and malaria put together.
Not satisfied with plundering foreign countries and other parts of the U.S., Nestle wants Oregon’s water. The Columbia River Gorge, east of Portland (OR), is one of the most beautiful places in the United States. Millions of tourists visit its scenic wonders, including the largest number of waterfalls in the country. Just 200 yards from Mt. Hood National Forest’s northern boundary, Oxbow Springs flows out of the ground into the Herman Creek watershed, known for its exemplary trail system. Herman Creek also provides refuge for threatened steelhead and salmon.
In the past eight years, Oxbow Springs has gained fame as the public water source where Nestle wants to bottle over 100 million gallons of water each year. In exchange for depleting the state’s water and 200 daily semi-truck trips through the small town of Cascade Locks, Nestle has promised “up to” 50 jobs each paying about $10 per hour. They seemed fairly close to success after Ted Kulongoski, governor in 2010, ordered the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) to permanently transfer its water right, with no public interest assessment, to the huge corporation for .2 cents per gallon—less than the cost for residents.
In a David versus Goliath battle, some Oregonians decided to fight back. Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs tribal members protested the deal, and Anna Mae Leonard, 57, held a five-day hunger strike in Cascade Locks last August. She said that the state’s deal between the state and the town violates the Treaty of 1855 between the U.S. and the Four Columbia River Tribes giving Senior Water Rights to the tribes. The tribes of the Gorge depend on selling salmon caught in the town of Cascade Locks for their economy.
In the past few months, Hood River County residents have gathered enough signatures for a ballot measure to prohibit commercial bottling operations in the county, and current governor, Kate Brown, asked ODFW and Oregon Water Resources Department to withdraw applications and go back to a direct water exchange requiring a more robust public interest review. She cited the “historic drought Oregon faced this year” as a reason for greater public involvement.
The battle is heating up as the May 17 election nears. The ballot measure proposes blocking the Nestle plant by banning any water bottling operation producing 1,000 gallons or more a day. Nestle plans to package 11 times that much in each hour. Nestle supporters have established a political group called Coalition for a Strong Gorge Economy. While both sides await the election, state water officials are reviewing the applications Nestle needs to access Oxbow’s water. That process could take several more years.
Although some people watching the current rainfall might assume that the drought in Oregon is over, much of the water for the state comes from the snowpack, historically bad last year and the worst for the Mt. Hood snowpack since it began gathering information in 1980. The year 2015 marks the fourth consecutive year of drought for the U.S. West, causing water shortages and huge wildfires—the greatest level of devastation seen only in six other years since 1960.
Even Washington state’s Queets rain forest, which usually receives an annual rainfall of over 200 inches, burned last year. Lack of snowpack from the warm winter (14 percent of usual) combined with an exceedingly hot, dry spring caused the biggest fire since the park was established over 100 years ago by Theodore Roosevelt. The natural fire cycle in this forest is about 500 to 800 years, but three fires have occurred in just the past 50 years, each one progressively worse. The fire that covered four square miles for almost six months wasn’t extinguished until after a heavy rainfall from a series of storms.
Nestle has been sourcing its water from the San Bernardino National Forest without a permit for the past 27 years. Forced to apply for another permit, they can keep plundering California by paying an annual fee of $524. California cannot find out how much water Nestle is taking out of the state because the company does not have to divulge this information.
The eight states with the most severe to exceptional drought conditions directly affecting approximately over 50 million people of the United States are Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Utah, and South Carolina. In California, 46 percent of the land area is in a state of exceptional drought conditions. A study by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) reported:
“Droughts in the U.S. Southwest and Central Plains during the last half of this century could be drier and longer than drought conditions seen in those regions in the last 1,000 years.”
People in other states are indirectly affected from reduced food supplies. The Great Plains states rely on groundwater while the West needs surface water, hopefully replenished by spring thaw of the snowpack levels. Even western Gulf Coast region states experiencing severe flooding during the wet season of May, June, and July such as Texas had no rain since, putting them quickly back into drought.
The effects of climate change caused the worst drought on record in Syria between 2006 and 2011, creating instability for farmers and threatening the country’s food supply. Syria’s lack of water started from poor management 40 years ago and resulted in the current problem of refugees. This paper shows the link between climate change and the rise of ISIS.
According to the U.S. Department of Defense–funded Strauss Center project on Climate Change and African Political Stability, increasing events of floods and drought have turned agricultural land into desert, and heat waves are killing crops and farm animals. The forced migration to cities will stress already unstable governments and create the same sort of chaos as exists in Syria. The global emphasis, including within the United States, on corporate agriculture practices such as Monsanto and Syngenta relies on vast amounts of energy, water and fossil fuel based synthetic pesticides. This model of agriculture uses 80 percent of the world’s arable land and 70 percent of the world’s water while contributing more to climate change than organic farming does.
Nestle’s solution to global water issues is privatization of water sources. The jobs that they create lure people into giving them water-well privileges and tax breaks over private citizens. Nestle, which takes almost one billion gallons from water-starved California and more water from suburban Michigan well-water leaves the public to suffer any shortages. The company’s chairman, Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, believes that “access to water is not a public right.” Nor a human right.
Nestle is a Swiss multinational food and beverage company with over 8,000 brands, 447 factories, 333,000 employees, and operations in 194 countries. Twenty nine of their brands have sales of over $1 billion a year, and in total, they have over 8,000 brands. In addition to creating water shortages, the company uses slaves and children for labor around the world.
Water shortage has many reasons other than climate change: fracking, oil disasters, mining waste, industrial agriculture pollution, disposal of drugs, etc. Bottling water is still an important piece of the picture. This year people think that Oregon has plenty of water, but climate change—and Nestle—may change that. And your state may be next. Water should be a right; people shouldn’t be forced to purchase it because of corporate control.
[Thanks to Ann Hubard for photographs]
International Women’s Day: U.S. Behind in Gender Parity
Filed under: Discrimination,Women's issues — trp2011 @ 4:00 PM
Tags: Abigail Scott Duniway, Bread and Roses, gender parity, International Women's Day, Oregon
Today is International Women’s Day. Around the world, people, countries, and organizations celebrate progress for women’s parity and advocate for change to improve gender equality and women’s rights. Although the UN declared this official commemoration only 40 years ago, its seeds came on March 8, 1857, when garment workers marched and picketed in New York City, demanding a ten-hour day, better working conditions, and equal rights for women. The police broke up the march, and the next march occurred 51 years later when women in needle trades honored the 1857 march by demanding the vote and an end to sweatshops and child labor.
A tradition of women’s unions came after the Civil War when widowhood and poverty forced women into the labor force, much to the hostility of men who refused to allow women into their unions. Women cigar makers, umbrella sewers, printers, tailoresses, and laundresses formed unions. The most famous union came from clothing workers, especially the International Ladies Garment Workers Union, founded about 1900. At that time, women worked in horrible conditions with no overtime pay and were fined for anything—talking, singing, etc. The formation of the National Women’s Trade Union League in 1903 led to strikes against two companies, one of them the Triangle Waist Company where 146 people died in a fire after being trapped by locked doors. Judges ruled against women who were clubbed by police while picketing, claiming that they were “on strike against God.”
The first National Women’s Day in the United States was February 28, 1909 after a declaration by the Socialist Party of America. In 1910, German socialist Clara Zetkin proposed the commemoration of the U.S. demonstrations on March 8 to honor working women throughout the world. By 1913, when Russia first celebrated Women’s Day, countries settled on March 8 for the date of International Women’s Day. Participation of Russian women textile workers in a mass strike in 1917 helped spark the Russian Revolution. By 1965, the USSR declared Women’s Day as a non-working day, and IWD is an official holiday in 15 countries including China, Ukraine and Vietnam.. In China, women began celebrating in 1924 with a strong women’s movement in the Communist party.
Remarkable working women activists in the United States include Mother Jones, Ella Reeve Bloor, Kate Mullaney, Sojourner Truth, and Elizabeth Gurley Flynn. At the age of 90, Jones terrorized scabs in the 1919 steel strike. Joining these women were untold numbers of unnamed women who knew that they needed to stand and work together to keep from being individually destroyed. Among these were the women in the Lawrence textile strike who carried picket signs reading “We want Bread and Roses, too.” From this demand for a living wage with a decent and human life came James Oppenheim’s song “Bread and Roses”:
As we come marching, marching, in the beauty of, the day,
A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill lofts gray
Are touched with all the radiance that a sudden sun discloses
For the people hear us singing, Bread and Roses, Bread and Roses.
As we come marching, marching, we bring the greater days.
The rising of the women means the rising of the race,
No more the drudge and idler that toil where one reposes
But a sharing of life’s glories, Bread and Roses, Bread and Roses.
The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day is “Pledge for Parity,” calling for complete gender equality and the closing of the gender gap in social, economic, political, and other situations. Unlike countries such as Afghanistan and China, the United States does not formally recognize March 8 by giving time off work.
Women in the U.S. lack the same equality as women in many other countries. A survey regarding the best countries for women to live in shows the United States to be 13th. Rankings were determined by five factors: concern for human rights, gender equality, income equality, safety, and progressiveness. The top seven in ranking are mostly European nations with Denmark rated #1 for its earnings-related daycare system and flexible parental leave policies. Sweden is the top in gender equality with women politicians taken half the positions in the Swedish Parliament, education in sexism beginning in kindergarten, and freed education for all.
Canada falls in third place with its quality of health, workplace opportunities, and freedom from violence. Canadian women have access to contraception, and 33 percent of federally appointed judges are women. In the United States, about one-third of the courts—including the Supreme Court—are women.
I repeat: the United States is 13th in ranking.
Other ways in which U.S. women’s equality falls behind that in other countries:
The Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW): Only seven of the 193 member states of the UN have not ratified this “international bill of rights for women” to end discrimination, establish equality, and fight against violence—Iran, Palau, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tonga, and the United States. Two-thirds of the Senate must vote in favor of CEDAW, adopted by the UN in 1979; the issue has never even gotten to the Senate floor for a vote.
Guaranteed paid leave for mothers of newborns: Only nine countries in the world do not provide this benefit—Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Suriname, and Tonga. Five of these countries—but not the United States—do provide paid maternity leave for public sector workers. Also, 49 percent of countries, including Saudi Arabia, provide paid leave to both parents.
Wage equality: Of 142 countries, the United States ranks 65th in pay equality for similar work. Countries where women are better off include the United Arab Emirates, the Kyrgyz Republic, Egypt, Iceland, Japan, Botswana, Honduras, and Ethiopia. The top five are Burundi, Mongolia, Qatar, Thailand, and Malaysia. In 2013, women who worked full-time, were paid 78 cents for every dollar earned on average by men. Black women made 64 cents, and Latinas made 56 cents for every dollar earned by a white man.
Congress: The United States now has more women in Congress than ever—104 of 535 seats. That’s 19.5 percent at a time when women make up 51 percent of the population. This nation ranks in the bottom half of the world’s national parliaments—72nd of 139 spots with almost 50 ties in the 190 countries, in female population.
Female Head of State: During the past 50 year, 52 other countries—including India for 21 years—have had women leading the country. Other countries with women in charge include Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Liberia and China.
Constitutions: Of the 197 constitutions throughout the world, 165—about 84 percent—explicitly guarantee gender equality. But not the U.S. Constitution. Some people have claimed that the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment may protect women, but at least one Supreme Court justice—Antonin Scalia—has said that women are not protected by the nation’s constitution. Since the U.S. drafted the post-World War II Japanese constitution, which included equal rights for women, women in Japan have more rights than those in the United States. The Equal Rights Amendment, meant to give women in this nation the protections in other countries, was first introduced to Congress in 1923. Both houses of Congress passed it in 1972, but by the 1982 deadline it fell short of the 38 states necessary for ratification by three states.
One reason for women’s oppression comes from female legislators who oppose equal rights. Reps. Marsha Blackburn and Jackie Black (R-TN) work in the U.S. House to keep women from having reproductive rights, and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) voted against giving women equal pay in the Lilly Ledbetter Act. Phyllis Schafley, leader of the Eagle Forum, was instrumental in defeating the Equal Rights Amendment.
In my beloved state of Oregon, House members decided to replace its two statues in the U.S. Capitol’s Statutory Hall. After a popular vote from the people, a commission selected Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce tribe and Abigail Scott Duniway, an activist largely instrumental in gaining women’s suffrage in Oregon before a federal amendment mandated women’s right to vote. Yet an overwhelming House vote chose Mark Hatfield instead of Duniway because the bill’s sponsor was mentored by the long-time influential GOP senator. All the 20 women in the Oregon House—one-third of the chamber—voted against Duniway except one who was excused. At this time, only ten women—ten percent of the total—are represented in Statutory Hall. Just one small example of many showing how females continue to be disadvantaged because many women refuse to support gender equality.
GOP Determined to Repeat Past Mistakes
Filed under: Voting — trp2011 @ 7:11 PM
Tags: Hiroshima, Iran deal, motor-voter law, nuclear warfare, Oregon, Texas voter ID law, Voting Rights Act
Fifty years ago, the Voting Rights Act enforced constitution rights for millions of people by removing the rights of states to disenfranchise people from this right. It has been called the most effective piece of legislation ever enacted in the United States. After the Supreme Court struck down some of its provisions two years ago, the number of draconian laws begun with the GOP sweeps in 2010 rapidly accelerated to prevent people from voting by mandating photo IDS, restricting times to vote, and shutting down voter registration drives. Chief Justice John Roberts had written in the majority opinion, “things have changed in the South.” Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s dissent argued that the justices had stripped the provisions that made the Voting Rights Act a success. She wrote:
“Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet.”
The rainstorm has flooded the country throughout the past four years. From 2011 to 2015, 395 new voting restrictions have been introduced in forty-nine states (Idaho is the lone exception). Half the states in the country have adopted measures making it harder to vote.
In the first few weeks of this year, 40 new voting restrictions were introduced in 17 states. The Supreme Court wrote in its ruling that Congress could pass a law to allow people to vote, but the GOP-controlled federal legislature has refused to take any steps in this direction.
As with other issues of inequality, the courts have begun to act. Yesterday, the 5th Circuit Court, one of the most conservative appeals courts in the nation, used what remains of the Voting Rights Act to strike down a voter suppression law in Texas. The unanimous opinion from a three-judge panel and written by a George W. Bush appointee, ruled that the photo ID requirement is illegal under Section 2, because of the negative impact it has on the voting opportunities of minorities and the poor, and that a lower court must reopen the case to determine a legal remedy for the violation. That court must also further examine the law for intentional discrimination by lawmakers.
Judge Catharina Haynes’ ruling agreed with an analysis that “Hispanic registered voters and Black registered voters were respectively 195% and 305% more likely than their Anglo peers to lack” a voter ID in the state of Texas. Texas’ own expert “found that 4% of eligible White voters lacked SB 14 ID, compared to 5.3% of eligible Black voters and 6.9% of eligible Hispanic voters.” Low-income voters are also less likely to have ID: “testimony [showed] that 21.4% of eligible voters earning less than $20,000 per year lack SB 14 ID, compared to only 2.6% of voters earning between $100,000 and $150,000 per year.”
People trying to restrict laws, although sometimes open about their desire to stop votes for Democrats, also claim voter fraud—a situation that rarely exists. In a Wisconsin study, the 2004 election had seven cases of fraud in three million votes, and none of these cases could have been stopped by a voter ID law. Iowa found exactly zero (0) cases of in-person fraud during several elections.
The court’s suggestion was that a lower court either reinstate voter registration cards or allow someone to sign an affidavit saying that they lack an acceptable form of identification before they vote. Last October, a federal judge called the law an unconstitutional “poll tax” that was intentionally discriminatory, but the Supreme Court allowed the law to be in effect of November’s midterm election with over 600,000 Texas unable to vote because they lacked the state-mandated type of voter ID. Gun licenses were acceptable, but student IDs were not.
The court’s decision is not a definite win, but it moves in the right direction. Although the ruling did not explain whether Texas needed to get official permission before changing its election or voting laws, it is the first circuit court opinion against a voter ID law and against the enforcement of it. State officials can either ask for a new review from all judges in the 5th Circuit or go back to the Supreme Court. With the stronger Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act eliminated, plaintiffs must rely on the weaker Section 5 which requires that plaintiffs cannot file until after they have suffered discrimination. Thus they have already lost the constitutional right to vote.
State officials in Texas now have two options: to seek a new review by the full Fifth Circuit, which would set aside the panel ruling, or to go directly to the Supreme Court as the next step.
In California, tens of thousands of residents will be able to vote after the state dropped its appeal of a court decision that gives voting rights to people who left prison and completed parole and are now under county supervision. When the state shifted low-level offenders into county custody, a former secretary of state, Debra Bowen, ruled that the same state law barring people in prison or on parole for felony convictions applied to ex-offenders under county supervision. The current secretary of state, Alejandro “Alex” Padilla, said:
“No right is more precious in a free country than that of having a voice in the election of those who make the laws under which, as good citizens, we must live. Other rights, even the most basic, are illusory if the right to vote is undermined.”
While 113 bills to restrict voting access have been introduced or carried over in 33 states this year, four times as many—464 bills—are circulating in 48 states and the District of Columbia. Only one state, North Dakota, has managed to pass a voter ID bill this year; all others failed. Arizona and North Carolina have ongoing lawsuits.
The grandest law passed came from my home state of Oregon. All eligible citizens with driver’s license and don’t ask to stay unregistered are automatically registered to vote. The state’s “motor-voter” law is now being introduced in 14 other states as well as District of Columbia. Some of these states have bills to automatically register citizens conducting business with other government agencies. Vermont passed a bill to establish Election Day registration, and Indiana enacted a bill to allow state agencies that issue SNAP and TANF benefits to electronically transfer voter registration information to election officials (which is currently in place only at the DMV). A bill to restore voting rights to people with past criminal convictions passed the Maryland legislature but vetoed by the governor may have enough votes to override the veto.
Yesterday, Rep. Chuck Schumer (NY) introduced three bills to make voting easier for all citizens in every state—online registration, seven days of early voting plus absentee ballots for anyone, and same-day voting for people who moved within the state where they registered.
House Democrats said they would even drop bills against Confederate flags for the restoration of the Voting Rights Act that passed nine years ago and was partially struck down by the Supreme Court. The GOP isn’t interested. Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) has refused to have an up-or-down floor vote, and the Judiciary Committee chair, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) likes the status quo.
Today is another anniversary, the 70th anniversary since the United States dropped a nuclear bomb on Hiroshima. Military leaders opposed dropping the atomic bomb, but politicians told President Harry Truman that it needed to be done. Top American military leaders, mostly conservatives, who fought World War II declared that dropping the bomb was unnecessary because Japan was on the verge of surrender and the destruction of large numbers of civilians was immoral. Adm. William Leahy, President Truman’s Chief of Staff, wrote in his 1950 memoir:
“The use of this barbarous weapon at Hiroshima and Nagasaki was of no material assistance in our war against Japan. The Japanese were already defeated and ready to surrender.… in being the first to use it, we…adopted an ethical standard common to the barbarians of the Dark Ages. I was not taught to make war in that fashion, and wars cannot be won by destroying women and children.”
The war hawks seem aimed toward another nuclear disaster, claiming that the president was wrong for not putting more pressure on Iran through sanctions. President Obama responded that other countries—Russia, China, France, Great Britain, and Germany—to go along with that argument. After the existing diplomacy, the only option is military action. His talking points are here. President Obama was more direct in his speech at American University when he talked about how U.S. Republicans hope to give extremist Iranians, who hate the Iran deal, exactly what they want.
Fifty years after the Voting Rights Act made voting a reality for people in the United States; 70 years ago bombing Hiroshima showed people the terror of nuclear warfare. Today, conservatives want to keep millions of people in the U.S. from voting and engage a country in war that could end up with a nuclear weapon dropped on the United States. Those people should read what Padilla and Leahy have to say.
Oregon, Model for State Legislatures
Filed under: Legislation — trp2011 @ 3:22 PM
Tags: children's rights, Oregon, Oregon 2015 legislature, Voting, women's rights
After the Oregon legislature finished five months of work earlier this year, the conservative Oregonian published an editorial titled “2015 Legislative Session Will be Remembered More for Failures.” The writer lamented what was not accomplished–the lack of raising the gas tax, inability to increase the minimum wage, and allowing “rural communities exceptions to land-use policies in certain circumstances.”
The sometimes more liberal Register-Guard followed with the same moaning a few weeks later, repeating the failure of a plan to pay for repair of the state’s infrastructure. Both papers are correct in the frustration of not advancing this one issue although the fault came from Republicans, upset because a low-carbon fuels program due to sunset this year was extended to reduce carbon content of fuels by ten percent in the next ten years.
The gas tax is important, but both editorials ignored the fact that the 2015 Oregon legislature passed, and Gov. Kate Brown signed, 689 progressive laws in five months while the U.S. Congress managed only 40 percent that number in all of 2014. This happened at the same time that many other states passed a majority of regressive laws. These states should use Oregon as a model for ways to benefit women and children.
Schools: Without raising taxes, the legislature increased the K-12 budget by 25 percent since 2011 and provided funding for all-day kindergarten for all Oregon children. State community colleges got a 20-percent increase, and universities did better at 30-percent increase. Knowing that the suspension and expulsion can lead to prison, new laws limit school suspension in grades 5 and lower and stops expulsion being used for truancy. Hunger keeps students from learning so all students eligible for reduced-price lunches will now receive their meals free, and students may count time for getting their free breakfasts as instructional time. Students can attend community colleges free if they meet certain criteria, and students brought into the state who pay in-state tuition are eligible for grants.
Youth: The Oregon Health Authority is required to establish and maintain a list of chemicals of concern for children’s health used in children’s products.
Gun Sense: While other states make their laws more lax, Oregon passed laws to keep the possession of guns from domestic violence offenders and people subject to domestic abuse restraining orders. Federal background checks are required for all private gun sales except between family members.
Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence/Stalking/Other Sex Crimes: A number of laws should make life safer for victims of these crimes. Release orders for defendants charged with sex crimes or domestic violence must prohibit attempted contact with victim and third-party contact with victim while defendant is in custody. Personal support workers and home care workers are added to the list of mandatory reporters of abuse of children, elderly persons and other vulnerable persons, and short term, emergency protection orders for victims are available on a 24 hour, 7-day a week basis.
Stalking victims no longer have to pay fees to get a protective restraining order. Rape charges can be made for 12 years after the alleged crime. The posting of naked photos of lovers or partners on the Internet without their permission with the intent to humiliate or ruin reputations is prohibited. Upskirting—intentionally photographing a person’s “intimate areas”–is prohibited in all cases as is setting up hidden cameras in places where privacy is presumed—a crime now a felony instead of a misdemeanor.
Victims are now free to access support and advocacy without fear of disclosure. Conversations between sexual-assault survivors and specially trained advocates are private. Patients can redirect their explanation of benefit documents away from the policyholder to keep medical information private from others such as parents and abusive or estranged spouses. Oregon universities, colleges and community colleges must give sexual-assault victims written information on their rights, legal options, campus services, confidentiality policies, school disciplinary procedures and off-campus resources.
Low-Income Relief: Tax credits for low-income families have been expanded for another six years. Seniors and other Oregonians surviving on Social Security Housing and other income exempt from collections will not be subject to collection of unpaid state income taxes. In another law that helps low-income people, unclaimed damage awards from class-action lawsuits will be directed to the Oregon State Bar’s legal-aid fund. Community Services Department may use moneys in Housing Development and Guarantee Account for housing for persons with low or very low income, and a new law provides $40 million to build hundreds of affordable housing units for low-income people and $25 million to build housing focused on people with mental illness.
LGBTQ Issues: Oregon became the third state to ban mental health therapy to change sexual orientation or gender identity for anyone younger than 18 and the first state to provide help to veterans discharged because of their sexual orientation. A coordinator will help LGBT veterans change their discharge status and access benefits since the repeal of illegal status because of sexual orientation as well as providing outreach and assistance to spouses and dependents of these veterans. The Oregon no longer uses the word “husband and wife.” All these references have been changed to “spouses in a legal marriage” in the state code.
Employment: A significant win in Oregon is paid sick leave for all state and private employers with ten or more employees. Each person will receive one hour per 30 hours of work up to 56 hours of annual paid sick leave. Employers cannot punish employees who ask or give information about wage information. In another important law called “Ban the Box,” employers are forbidden to ask about criminal history on a job application. Workplace rights for domestic workers have been extended to overtime pay, rest periods, and paid personal time off. Employees on family leave must receive the continuation of group health insurance coverage.
Health & Safety Issues: All people with ongoing medical prescriptions can get a 90-day supply, and insurers must pay for a 12-month supply of contraceptives to qualifying women. Hospitals who rely on certified nurse midwives will have to give them admitting privileges. Homes and schools have a 60-foot, no-spray buffer from herbicide spraying. In an attempt to fight the result of “bomb trains” carrying volatile fuel, the Oregon State Fire Marshal will be in charge of and receive funding for coordinating outreach, developing a spill response plan, and conducting exercises, training, and support in the area of train safety. (HB 3225)
Law Enforcement: The Department of Corrections will continue the Family Preservation Project for parent inmates at Coffee Creek for ongoing contact with children and extend the program at other prisons. This program has been highly successful in keeping parents from returning to prison after they are released. Some non-violent custodial parent offenders may have the alternative of intense supervised probation so that they can keep their children. Police cannot target suspects based on age, race, ethnicity, color, national origin, language, gender, sex, political affiliation, religion or other identifying factors–unless the officer is acting on precise information from a report.
Voting: Another first for the nation is the “Motor Voter” law that automatically registers Oregon (with an opt-out window) for voting with the data on driver’s license records.
Everyone in Oregon should be proud of living in a state where the legislature protects and serves the residents. At the end of the five-month session, my representative, David Gomberg, described the session as “one of the more challenging and productive in recent memory.” Challenging, I don’t know, but productive, certainly. In addition to the laws that were passed, the Oregon legislation rejected laws that would overturn Jackson County’s ban on GMOS and several laws that would make the gun laws more lax in the state, including a reciprocity agreement with other states that do not do careful background checks on gun sales.
Thank you, Oregon!
More information about laws in the 2015 Oregon Legislature here and here.
Universal Background Checks Necessary for Gun Safety
Filed under: Guns,Legislation — trp2011 @ 5:39 PM
Tags: Ceasefire Oregon, gun buy-backs, gun safety, Lloyd Prozanski, Oregon, private gun sales, universal background checks
The local Ceasefire Oregon chapter organized a gun buy-back earlier this month. Despite naysayers from the gun non-legislation people, it was deemed a success with 138 weapons unwanted and possibly dangerous weapons turned into the police chief in my small coastal town. Fox network saw the video about the event and asked to do a story with the focus on people who said that they would gather outside the event and buy guns.
Publicity about the event brought the trollers who objected to background checks for private gun sales. The Central Coast Ceasefire Oregon Steering Committee responded to one of these complaints with stated concerns in italics:
Bob, thank you for your thoughtful response to the NOW BLOG.
Comment 1: How about starting to find common ground by not using insulting terms like “the gun lobby” to describe people who don’t support the agenda of even more restrictive laws? We aren’t a monolithic block, we aren’t a paid group of people, and we aren’t one organized group. Yet gun control advocates continue to paint us all with one wide brush.
Ceasefire Oregon uses the term “gun lobby” when we are addressing the organizations that actually lobby legislators about firearms-related issues. There is indeed a vast, well-financed, well-organized, and focused gun lobby. Nationally, the NRA, the NRA-ILA, and the Gun Owners of America lead it. In Oregon, the best known gun lobby is the Oregon Firearms Federation (OFF).
We try to use the term “gun owners” when referring to those who own firearms or enjoy firearms, but are not lobbyists. We don’t always use the term “gun owners” because we know that the vast majority of gun owners actually agree with the goals of Ceasefire Oregon.
Gun violence prevention advocates, such as the members of Ceasefire Oregon, are not a monolithic block, a paid group of people, or one organized group, either. Our unifying issue is “gun violence prevention” not gun control. We prefer the terms “gun safety” or “gun violence prevention” to describe our work.
Bob, have you an alternative to the name “gun lobby”?
Comment 2: How do you address the fact that most firearms used by criminals already evade existing [background check] laws regarding sales and very little prosecution is taking place regarding those laws? The administration’s own National Institute of Justice reports shows [sic] that most firearms are purchased on the “secondary” market; people eligible for legal purchases are illegally selling firearms to criminals.
Tragically, some gun sellers will sell guns without performing a background check first. Criminals use the private sale loophole to bypass a background check. A background check law will hold a gun seller criminally liable if the seller does not perform a background check and the purchaser was actually prohibited from buying a gun. Few people are willing to put their liberty at risk just to sell a gun to a criminal.
The state of Oregon recognized that prosecutions of those who violate Oregon’s limited background check law were inadequate.
“Effective Tuesday, June 17, 2014, at 8:00am, the Oregon State Police (OSP) will be revising the procedures related to violations of state law involving persons attempting to purchase or transfer a firearm that are denied, due to a state or federal disqualifier. This revision will include enforcement action involving persons attempting an unlawful firearms transfer through a licensed firearm dealer, during a voluntary private party check, or at a gun show.”
In addition, national law enforcement agencies and the families of those lost to gun violence are taking on the “Bad Apple Gun Dealers.” (Ninety percent of crime guns can be traced back to just 5% of gun dealers.) Here is further background information.
Please correct us if we are wrong, but by your “secondary market” reference, are you referring to straw purchases whereby one person buys weapons with the intent to sell the weapons to a prohibited person? If so, straw purchases are already illegal. This information is clearly laid out in ATF Form 4473 that is filled out when selling and purchasing a firearm.
The United States could greatly reduce straw purchases and gun trafficking by limiting gun purchases to one gun per month. California, Maryland, New Jersey and the District of Columbia already limit gun purchases to one gun in a 30-day period.
Of greatest significance to us is the fact that universal backgrounds checks have proven to deter felons, mentally ill, those caught in the passion of anger, and those caught in the despair of suicide.
Comment 3: So how will requiring background checks for “all sales” address [straw purchases]? Do you really expect criminals to stop paying friends and family to buy firearms for them? Why should I and others like me who already own firearms have to go through yet another check? Or why should I have to go through a check when I buy a firearm from someone I know from work or the range?
We have no expectations of criminals. We do, however, think that family and friends will not want to face criminal charges for supplying weapons to criminals. In addition, we think very few family and friends want to arm criminals.
We believe the truth is that criminals buy guns and a responsible gun owner does not want a criminal to have a gun. Performing a background check as a seller also protects the seller from providing a criminal with a gun.
A universal background check is a minor inconvenience of being a good citizen and caring for the overall safety of the country. Requiring only one background check per lifetime (or for a limited period of time) ignores the fact that people change over time. Maybe you did not know that your friend from work or the range was a felon or had been adjudicated mentally ill at the time of sale or vice versa? Having consistent regulations is a safeguard. We all know there some gun owners who should not have possession of guns.
Two million prohibited people have been blocked from purchasing a gun since the Brady Law was enacted in 1993.
Bob, how would you propose to stop prohibited persons from buying guns?
Comment Four: Do you mean safe storage laws like Washington D.C. had? Do you mean if a firearm is stolen, the owner will be penalized and criminalized unless that owner can prove the firearm was stored in an ‘approved’ vault?
We are sure you agree that responsible gun owners have control over their weapons. Weapons should always be stored safely or kept under control on the gun owner’s person.
Smart gun technology can greatly reduce the risk of stolen guns being used in crimes as well as reduce the risk of suicide by gunshot.
With great rights come great responsibilities. If you choose to bring a gun into your home and community, you must be responsible for it.
Comment 5: The area of mental health is an area where we can make great strides, but we should proceed cautiously. So far most of the proposals call for anyone seeking help for just about any condition or situation to loose [sic] their right to keep and bear arms. That is unacceptable and will probably keep people from seeking help.
The United States needs to do a much better job of taking care of our mentally ill citizens and those who seek mental health help. Part of that help is to prevent those who would injure themselves or others from accessing firearms. However, we are unaware of any proposal of the breadth you describe.
Again, how would you propose to stop prohibited persons from buying guns?
A speaker from Ceasefire Oregon at tomorrow night’s local NOW meeting will most likely bring out more trolls, especially after recent articles about proposed state legislation for more complete background checks. Last year, neighboring Washington state became the 17th state to extend background checks past the federal standard for only licensed gun dealers. Oregon now has a chance for the same opportunity after last fall’s election increased the number of Democrats in the state government. Senate Judiciary Chairman Floyd Prozanski plans to introduce a bill that requires background checks for criminal history and mental history before private gun sales. Excluded would be sales among family members, inheritances and antique guns.
Private gun sales accounted for about 40 percent of all purchases 20 years ago; this percentage has probably increased since then because of sales on the Internet. Law enforcement officials have said that a record of ownership for sales would help them solve crimes. States with universal background checks have lower rates of police killed with handguns, fewer women shot by their intimate partners, and lower rates of suicides with firearms.
Good News after the Shutdown
Filed under: Uncategorized — trp2011 @ 4:35 PM
Tags: ethics rules, GOP polls, gun permits, House of Representatives seats, Ken Cuccinelli, Marriage equality, Maryland, Mitch McConnell, New Jersey, Oregon, sodomy, Supreme Court, Ted Cruz
Recent news seems to be better than usual. We’re probably in a honeymoon period after the government re-opened and a few of the GOP members of Congress seem mildly chastened, but I’ll just enjoy what we have today.
Gov. Chris Christie has decided to stop fighting marriage equality in New Jersey. A judge ruled that same-sex couples could marry in that state this month—beginning yesterday, in fact—but Christie appealed the decision, asking for a stay of ceremonies until after the appeal. The judge turned him down, and the governor’s office submitted a formal withdrawal of the appeal to the state Supreme Court this morning. New Jersey is the 14th state to legalize marriage equality.
In my state of Oregon, the attorney general has ruled that the all government agencies in the state must recognize all legal out-of-state marriages, whether performed in other states or other countries. A campaign is still collecting signatures to put marriage equality on the ballot in 2014 by removing the ban from the state constitution. Over 100,000 signatures of the necessary 116,284 have already been gathered. Meanwhile two couples are suing the state to legalize marriage equality. Suits are popping up in several other states that discriminate against gay and lesbian marriage.
Opinion about the GOP has not faired well with the aftermath of the government shutdown. A new survey from Pew Research shows that unfavorable views of the Tea Party have doubled in the past three years from 25 percent in 2010, when the extremists took over the House of Representatives, to 49 percent last week. Only 30 percent of the people have a favorable view of the group that shut down the government for 16 days.
A majority of Americans also think that the GOP control of the House is bad for the country, and even more want House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) replaced. The 54 percent who oppose the GOP rule is up over 25 percent from the 43 percent in December 2012, the last fiscal standoff. Another 63 percent want Boehner replaced.
An NBC/WSJ shows that 24 percent of people approve of the GOP, a record low. Gallup, usually more positive than other surveys, found only 28 percent approval of the GOP. Congress has a 12 percent approval rating with 86 percent of the respondents disapproving, according to the CNN/ORC International poll. President Obama’s ratings haven’t changed since last June, and 44 percent are more confident that he can handle problems facing the U.S., compared to the 31 percent who think that the GOP can. Another 21 percent expressed no confidence in both that the president and the GOP.
For a month the Internet has been reporting the possibility of Democrats taking back the House. I have serious doubts because of the heavy gerrymandering done in the majority of the GOP-controlled states, but this idea keeps popping up. A new survey of 25 GOP-held districts shows dwindling favorability for Republican members of the House in the wake of the recent government shutdown, indicating excellent chances for a Democratic candidate.
In ten of these districts, the incumbent Republican is trailing a generic Democrat. Adding this survey to previous ones, generic candidates lead in 27 of 61 GOP-held districts. When voters were informed their Republican candidate supported the government shutdown, 11 more districts flipped, and one race became a tie. The Dems would have to add 18 seats to the existing 200 in order to achieve control of the House. Unfortunately, voters have very bad memories, but bad behavior in January and February with the possibility of another shutdown might renew a negative impression of the GOP legislators.
Negative press may be the reason that Rep. Tim Griffin (R-AR), who came in with fellow Tea Partiers less than three years ago, has announced that he will not seek re-election. As usual, he used the family responsibilities. Griffin is a member of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, and a nonpartisan report rates his district as “safe Republican.” Griffin was Karl Rove’s protege of Karl Rove and appointed as an interim U.S. attorney in Little Rock in 2006 after a scandal in which several U.S. attorneys were fired by the administration. He was never confirmed by the Senate and later resigned the position.
Another interesting race is for Kentucky senator. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is being attacked by the Tea Party on one side and Democratic candidate Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes on the other. She has run a tough campaign thus far with her infamous description of Congress: “The GOP has come to stand for gridlock, obstruction and partisanship. If doctors told Senator McConnell he had a kidney stone, he’d refuse to pass it.”
McConnell tried to pick up some points during the government shutdown by negotiating with Harry Reid and then announcing that this can never happen again. The final continuing appropriations resolution also provided his state with a $3 billion earmark. Yet Grimes’ one-point lead doubled during the shutdown to 45-43 as 60 percent of the people in the state opposed the government closures. The Affordable Care Act, which McConnell vehemently opposes, has been very successful in Kentucky.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) is still looking good in the Tea Party despite his determination to eliminate the Affordable Care Act at all costs. Time, a publication popular with conservatives, announced that he “potentially violated ethics rules by failing to publicly disclose his financial relationship with a Caribbean-based holding company during the 2012 campaign.” When he was caught in 2013, he reported the financial relationship by amending his mandatory financial disclosure documents but is now being forced to submit a second amended disclosure after an inquiry by the Senate Select Committee on Ethics.
When good news comes out of the U.S. Supreme Court, it’s usually because they have refused to hear a case. Last week justices said they wouldn’t review a decision that upheld the Maryland gun law requiring residents to demonstrate a “good and substantial reason” to get a permit to carry a handgun outside their own home or business. The state is one of six “may issue” states mandating this reason. Maryland law does not recognize a vague threat or general fear as an adequate reason for obtaining a permit. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the law.
Maryland residents can carry a gun at their home or business or while hunting with no permit. The new Maryland law that went into effect at the beginning of October will most likely be the subject of court cases. One of the nation’s tightest gun laws, it bans 45 types of assault weapons, though people who owned the weapons before the new law was passed are allowed to keep them. People must also submit fingerprints to get a license to buy a handgun. That law is also being challenged in court.
Another court case that SCOTUS turned down comes from Virginia’s Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, a candidate for governor, and his obsession with outlawing sodomy and oral sex. Ignoring the fact that SCOTUS struck down anti-sodomy laws ten years ago, Virginia kept the law on the books, and Cuccinelli wanted to use it to prosecute cases involving minors. Last July, Cuccinelli unveiled a website for the law and said that he planned to put it back on the books. He also blocked the Virginia legislature from changing the law to conform to the SCOTUS ruling.
The law, however, clearly includes all people, including adults, who engage in oral or anal sex, and the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals deemed it unconstitutional.
Cuccinelli’s gubernatorial campaign isn’t very successful either, partly because of his close relationship to Ted Cruz. Last week’s poll shows the GOP candidate down seven points to Terry McAuliffe. A recent ad gives evidence of Cuccinelli’s role in shutting down the government. Virginia was the state most hurt by the federal shutdown. Another of Cuccinelli’s problems is the restrictive laws regarding women’s reproductive rights in the state that has frequently brought out protesters.
As Scarlet O’Hara said in Gone with the Wind, “Tomorrow is another day.” But for today, this news is good.
Oregon’s Own Wacko, Art Robinson
Tags: Art Robinson, Egypt, GOP chair, Joe Arpaio, Maricopa County (AZ), Michele Bachmann, Oregon, Steve King, Wendy Davis
Most states have memorable politicians who “entertain” both the media and its readers/listeners. New York’s Anthony Weiner comes to mind as does Iowa’s Steve King, famous for comparing the thighs of undocumented people to cantaloupes as he accuses them of smuggling marijuana.
In another embarrassing event for people in the United States, King was joined last week by Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minnesota’s embarrassment) and Rep. Louie Gohmert (Texas’ problem) in an impromptu trip to Egypt. In a horrifyingly condescending manner, they praised the military and accused the Muslim Brotherhood of bombing the World Trade Center 12 years ago. As icing on the cake, Gohmert compared Egyptian General Abdel Fatah el-Sissi to President George Washington. The trio looked as if they were doing a Saturday Night Live skit while they ignored the U.S. position that the U.S. suspend aid to Egypt after the military’s ousting of the democratically elected Mohammed Morsi for president. Watch the video!
After state Sen. Wendy Davis filibustered the Texas chamber for 11 hours to stop its draconian anti-abortion bill, her fame went viral across the nation, so much so that there were calls for the Democrat to run for governor. Texas did pass the same law in a second session, and Dave Carney, aide to gubernatorial candidate and AG Gregg Abbott, dismissed Davis as “too stupid to be governor.”
Last week, however, Davis won her case against Texas’ gerrymandering district maps to disenfranchise minority voters. In addition, the court ruled that the state must pay her court costs. Davis is now even more famous and looks even smarter. In contrast, Texas’ current governor, Rick Perry, couldn’t remember which three federal agencies he would get rid of when he was debating other GOP presidential candidates last year. And Sen. Ted Cruz wants the federal Senate to be composed of 100 racist members just like former Sen. Jesse Holmes.
Arizona, of course, has had Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio for a long time. After decades of racially profiling Latinos, he may end up with a court-appointed monitor to check on his activities. In May, U.S. District Judge Murray Snow found that the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office singled out Latinos for unreasonably prolonged detentions. In the case, Arpaio’s office also objected to the requirement that deputies have a reason to pull over a vehicle and approach the driver. Recently Arpaio threatened to put “30 rounds into” self-proclaimed vigilantes searching for drug smugglers on the desert after one of them pointed a rifle at a Maricopa County sheriff’s deputy. Just another one of those responsible people with a gun.
Another well-known figure in Arizona is Sen. John McCain who has never seen a country in the Middle East that he didn’t want to destroy—except Israel. After spending years as a POW in Vietnam, he should be more aware of the negative aspects of starting wars.
Virginia has a governor and a gubernatorial candidate who both take illegal donations from constituents and then claim that they cannot afford to pay them back. The list could go on and on.
As an Oregonian, I’m proud that our state finally has its resident wacko. Made infamous in the national media thanks to his appearance on a 2010 Rachel Maddow Show, Art Robinson ran against Democrat incumbent Rep. Peter DeFazio that year and two years later. Maddow claimed that he’s the only person on her show who made her bang her head on the desk. Since he complained that Oregon State University discriminated against three of his six children, there hasn’t been much publicity about Robinson—until the GOP elected him the chair of the state Republican party.
Robinson’s latest publicity came from a request for donations—for urine. His mailing to every household in Josephine County stated that they need only return the enclosed coupon to receive a sample container and box for the urine that should be mailed back to Robinson. He plans to do research on detecting diseases before any symptoms appear. To be honest, some people in the field such as David Wishart, a professor in the departments of Computer Science and Biological Sciences at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, think his idea might have merit.
Robinson’s other ideas, however, totally lack credibility:
Nuclear Waste: Because Robinson believes in “radiation hormesis,” beneficial properties of radiation, he says that it should be diluted and “sprinkle[d] over the ocean,” added to the drinking water, and stored in building foundations.
Public Education: Robinson called for the abolition of public education, describing it as “the most widespread and devastating form of child abuse and racism in the United States.”
Homeschooling: Robinson’s personal curriculum asks students to read “all 99” G.A. Henty books, which are notable for their “undisguised racism.” In one book, the main character states that the “intelligence of an average negro is about equal to that of a European child of ten years old.” Robinson also wants parents to teach children from books “written in the 1950’s and earlier” to avoid the “overt racism” of “multiculturalism,” supporting his stance with anecdote that starts with him being frightened into “survival” mode by a “tough-looking character whose dark skin perfectly matched his leather jacket”–who turned out to be a professor.
Climate Change: Robinson supports the Global Warming Petition Project that claims it has signatures from 31,487 American scientists opposing the position that humans are the root cause of global warming. He defines “scientist” as anyone who claims to have a bachelor’s degree in fields such computer science, statistics, and metallurgy. Robinson is a chemist with no background in climate change and acknowledges that fake names such as the Spice Girl’s Geri Halliwell are the list.
Carbon and Climate: Robinson told the conspiracy website WND.com in 2002 that “[t]here is absolutely not a shred of evidence that humans are causing any change in the climate by generating CO2.”
AIDS: Robinson questioned whether HIV is the cause of AIDS and alleged that the epidemic was exaggerated to create a “crisis.”
Financial Reform: Financial reform is nothing more than an excuse for the government to grow itself and greatly increase its power.
Social Security: Social security is a Ponzi scheme.
Evolution: Robinson signed an anti-Darwinism statement “skeptical of claims for the ability of random mutation and natural selection to account for the complexity of life,” contrary to peer-reviewed studies repeatedly supporting evolution.
Diversity: Robinson claimed that his alma mater, Cal Tech, had a vast majority of white males because “its applicants are weighted toward those who seek severe, difficult, total-immersion training in science—an experience few women and blacks desire.”
Abortion: Robinson believes in banning all abortions even in cases of rape.
Robinson’s ideas are extreme and destructive. Yet they are representative of many other GOP leaders in the country. These are the people who prevent the United States from achieving the exceptionalism that liberals know that the nation can be.
U.S. Should Follow Oregon’s Lead
Filed under: Uncategorized — trp2011 @ 11:44 AM
Tags: Oregon, Oswald West, rights
Although I wasn’t born in Oregon, I am a proud Oregonian because of the progressive ideas in this blue state. Much of the credit for many benefits of living in Oregon come from Oswald West, governor of the state a century ago.
West was best known for making all the beaches part of the highway system—as indeed they were used during that time—which meant that a century later no one can buy beaches and limit people going on them as many other states do. Thus Oregon has 362 miles of beach with “free and uninterrupted” public access from the Columbia River to the California line. This law, strengthened under Gov. Tom McCall in the late 1960s by designating the beach as extending up to the vegetation line for public use, contrasts sharply with other states that border an ocean: 93 percent of Maine’s 4,000-mile shoreline is privately owned; 75 percent of Massachusetts’ coastline is in private hands; and 77 percent of Florida’s coastline and 48 percent of California’s beaches are not public.
But West accomplished far more things that have held the people in the state in good stead. His legacy lives on in a scenic highway along the Columbia River Gorge, a predecessor to part of the nation’s interstate system. Through his efforts, the Coast Highway along the western perimeter of Oregon (Highway 101) and the Pacific Highway from Portland through the Willamette Valley (now paralleling Interstate 5) began their development. Much of the Oregon Park System is thanks to Gov. Oswald West.
His support for universal suffrage led to Oregon’s approval of universal suffrage; women in Oregon could vote in 1912, eight years before the 19th U.S. constitutional amendment made this law nationwide. As governor, he supported direct participation in government through the initiative and referendum. When insurance companies opposed a worker’s compensation bill and tried to kill it by referring it to the ballot, people voted by a ratio of 3-to-1 for the Oregon’s Worker’s Compensation Act.
West also helped pass the first minimum wage law in the country. During his time, the legislature put banks, loan sharks, stock brokers, and most public service corporations under tighter state regulation. One of these measures protected people from purchasing fraudulent securities. Vigorously opposing opposing capital punishment, West led Oregon voters to abolish what he called “the old barbarous system” for five years until they restored if in 1920.
During his time governor, West also influenced the creation of the Fish and Game commission, Highway Commission, and Industrial Accident Commission. During the third year of his governing, he also helped create the State Board of Control in 1913 that oversees the management of state institutions and the construction of state buildings.
In his memoirs published in The Oregonian in 1937, West wrote, “Early in life I rebelled against the established order of things, believing it to be responsible for most of the poverty and distress abroad in the land.”
Watching the conservatives try to privatize, outsource, or offshore everything that government and people have accomplished in over two centuries makes me even more grateful for what Gov. Oswald West accomplished in just four years. Rush Limbaugh thinks that women shouldn’t vote, Republican presidential candidates have promised to eliminate federal agencies including those that support education and environmental concerns, and conservatives in the House have set out to overturn the 17th constitutional amendment mandating that people have the ability to elect the senators that represent them in Congress. Conservatives don’t want minimum wage, and they reject any regulations that try to keep selfish, greedy, fraudulent financiers on a more honest basis. Texas, and the conservatives that cheer for the state’s actions, thinks that executing lots of people, including one man with a 61 IQ, is virtuous.
West v. conservatives shows the ideological difference in this year’s elections: “We’re all in this together” as opposed to “I’ve got mine.” In fact, the I’ve-Got-Miners want not only what they already have but also the little that struggling people have. The United States wasn’t developed on the basis of ”I’ve got mine.” It shouldn’t switch to that ideology now.
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Jada Loutoo
CCJ rules Belize judge can be investigated
The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in Port of Spain.
THE Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in Port of Spain has ruled that a Belizean Court of Appeal judge should be considered for investigation.
The ruling was delivered on Tuesday in the case of Dean Boyce, British Caribbean Bank Limited, and Lord Michael Ashcroft KCMG v the Judicial and Legal Services Commission (JLSC).
In its ruling, the CCJ said the 2012 complaint against Justice Samuel Awich, now a judge in the Court of Appeal, should be properly considered by the JLSC.
The ruling paves the way for the Commission to refer the complaint to the Belize Advisory Council, which would then investigate whether the judge should be removed from office. The matter arose from a dispute on the alleged conduct of Justice Awich during his tenure as a judge of the Supreme Court of Belize and whether it is relevant to his removal from office as a Justice of Appeal.
He was appointed as a judge in the Court of Appeal on April 24, 2012, and was sworn in in May of that year. In a joint letter dated July 17, 2012, Boyce, British Caribbean Bank and Lord Ashcroft requested of the JLSC for Awich to be investigated by the Belize Advisory Council. The request detailed allegations of lack of judicial ‘acumen’, delays in judgment writing and lack of timeliness in the delivery of judgments whilst Awich was a Judge of the Supreme Court.
It was suggested that it should be considered whether the judge should be removed from office for inability and/or misbehaviour. Objections to his appointment had previously been raised by the Bar Association of Belize and the Leader of the Opposition.
The JLSC refused the request on the basis that the complaint was directed to matters relating to the performance of the judge in his previous position of Justice of the Supreme Court and therefore had no relation to his present office of Justice of Appeal.
The decision of the Commission was successfully appealed at the Supreme Court of Belize but the Court of Appeal subsequently set aside the decision of the trial judge. That court held that the complaints against Awich as a Supreme Court judge were not relevant to any consideration of his removal from office as a Justice of Appeal.
The matter then moved to the CCJ where Section 102 of the Constitution of Belize, which provides for the removal from office of a Justice of Appeal for misbehaviour and/or inability, was considered by the court. The judges held that the section was clear that the JLSC’s role was strictly to consider whether the complaints were serious and, if so, to refer them to the Belize Advisory Council, whose role was to investigate the matter and to advise the Governor-General whether the judge should be removed.
The CCJ said that a judicial officer’s past conduct, depending on the circumstances, could bear relevance on the question of whether removal from office was warranted.
The JLSC was therefore bound to determine whether the complaint was grave enough to warrant referral and the JLSC ought not to have dismissed the request without proper consideration, the judges ruled.
They also provided guidance on the issue of what constitutes ‘inability’ and ‘misbehaviour’.
According to their judgment the term inability referred to the lack of capacity to perform the duties of the office at the requisite level of competence and skill.
They held that a judge who was unable to write and deliver judgments on time or who was often overturned on appeal may lack the ability to do his job.
The CCJ noted that a judge may be unable to perform the functions of the office at one level of the judiciary but be perfectly capable of performing the functions at another level.
Misbehaviour would mean a judge has serious character flaws that would render him or her unfit to hold office, the court ruled.
“Conduct of a criminal nature, corruption, and serious moral failings could amount to misbehaviour. So too “may any conduct, whether falling within the categories above or not, which in the view of a wide cross section of reasonable members of the society brings the judiciary into public ridicule or opprobrium.”
Reply to "CCJ rules Belize judge can be investigated"
Policeman, wife appear in Arima court
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Jamadar urges judges: Become better judges
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Capitals vs. Blue Jackets: PHT 2018 Stanley Cup Playoff Preview
By Joey AlfieriApr 10, 2018, 12:00 PM EDT
The matchup between the Washington Capitals and Columbus Blue Jackets will see a pair of teams that have failed to make long playoff runs in recent history. The Jackets have never made it out of the first round, while the Caps haven’t made it further than the second round in the “Ovechkin era”.
For the first time in three seasons, the Capitals didn’t come away with the Presidents’ Trophy. That might not be a bad thing considering they got knocked off in the second round each of the last two years they took home the regular-season award. Even though they didn’t finish with the best record in the league in 2017-18, the spotlight will still be bright if they fail to make a run again this year.
They already lost a number of key free agents over the last couple of years and potentially losing John Carlson would be another devastating blow to their Cup window. Saying it’s a do-or-die year for the Capitals is probably a little excessive, but they aren’t getting any younger, that much is clear.
Washington finished the year with a Metropolitan-best 49-26-7 record. That was good enough to give them 105 points in the standings, which was sixth-best in the entire NHL.
[NBC’s Stanley Cup Playoff Hub]
As for the Blue Jackets, they had an up-and-down year. They won some games early in the year, despite not playing good hockey, per their head coach John Tortorella. They hit a major bump in the road in the middle of the year before finally getting back on track at the end of the season. Of course, having Sergei Bobrovsky between the pipes certainly helps smooth over some of the rough patches that occur during a season.
Have they peaked too early? That remains to be seen, but there’s no denying that they saved their best hockey for the end of the regular season. Although they didn’t finish in the top three in the Metro, they’re probably happy to avoid the two-time defending Stanley Cup Champions, who have knocked them out of the playoffs each of the last two times they were in them.
Despite having three more wins than the Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus finished in the first Wild Card spot in the East while the Flyers were third in the Metro (Philadelphia lost 14 games in OT/shootouts). The Blue Jackets had a 45-30-7 record, but three of those losses came against the Capitals. They only managed to take down Washington once in their four meetings with their division rival.
Washington: The Capitals have one of the most dynamic forward groups in the league. Led by Rocket Richard winner Alex Ovechkin (49 goals, 87 points), they have the ability to put the puck in the net as regularly as any other team in the playoffs. Outside of Ovechkin, the Caps also have solid depth down the middle with Nicklas Backstrom (21 goals, 71 points), Evgeny Kuznetsov (27 goals, 83 points), Lars Eller (18 goals, 38 points) and Jay Beagle. That doesn’t even include the likes of T.J. Oshie, Tom Wilson (14 goals, 35 points) and Andre Burakovsky (12 goals 25 points). The Caps are set up front. Oshie missed the final game of the season, but he’s expected to be ready for the start of the playoffs.
Columbus: Cam Atkinson (24 goals, 46 points) got off to a rough start this season, but he emerged as one of the key figures in the Blue Jackets’ turnaround late in the season. They may not have a superstar like Ovechkin, Backstrom or Kuznetsov, but they have more than enough depth to help them get by. Atkinson, Artemi Panarin (27 goals, 82 points), Nick Foligno (15 goals, 33 points), Boone Jenner (13 goals, 32 points), Pierre-Luc Dubois (20 goals, 48 points), Oliver Bjorkstrand (11 goals, 40 points) Alexander Wennberg (eight goals, 35 points) and Thomas Vanek (15 points in 19 games with Columbus) can all help facilitate offense.
Advantage: Capitals. They’re superior down the middle and the overall quality and depth is simply better than what Columbus has at their disposal. Oh, and that Ovechkin guy makes a big difference, too.
Washington: The Capitals have a quality number one defenseman in Carlson (15 goals, 68 points), but there’s a steep drop off after that. Matt Niskanen, Brooks Orpik and Dmitry Orlov have the experience of being in the playoffs before, while Michal Kempny, Christian Djoos, Jakub Jerabek and Madison Bowey will attempt to serve as more than just depth pieces at this crucial time of year.
Columbus: Zach Werenski (16 goals, 37 points) and Seth Jones (16 goals, 57 points) arguably make up the best pairing in the NHL. Matchups will be key in this series, and Tortorella being able to lean on those two could be the difference between winning the round and going home early. Those two are elite, there’s no denying that. Don’t be surprised if you see them log close to 30 minutes per game in the postseason. Columbus also has Markus Nutivaara, Ryan Murray, David Savard and Stanley Cup champion Ian Cole on the back end.
Advantage: Columbus. It’s clear that the Capitals don’t have a pairing that comes close to what Jones and Werenski can do. The duo have the ability to be game-changers in this series. But don’t sleep on Nutivaara, either. He’s another useful asset for this team.
Washington: Under normal circumstances, the Capitals would have an advantage between the pipes because they have Braden Holtby, but the veteran has struggled throughout the year (2.99 goals-against-average, .907 save percentage). He managed to play better down the stretch, which is encouraging if you’re a Caps fan. But Philipp Grubauer has been named the starter in Game 1. It’ll be interesting to see if they utilize both in the series.
Columbus: Sergei Bobrovsky (2.42 goals-against-average, .921 save percentage) has probably been the most consistent Blue Jacket all year. When their stars weren’t performing early on, it was Bobrovsky that bailed them out. There’s no denying it, as good as some of the forwards and defensemen are on this team, he’s the backbone of the operation. The Russian netminder has the ability to steal a game, a series and potentially a Cup. Solving him won’t be easy.
Advantage: Columbus. The Capitals may have two capable goaltenders, but the Blue Jackets have “the” goaltender. That’s not to say that Grubauer or Holtby can’t get hot, but if you look at the body of work that each of these three players put in this season, you can’t deny that Bobrovsky is the best of the bunch. He has the ability to push the Blue Jackets over the top.
SPECIAL TEAMS:
Washington: As you’d imagine, the Capitals finished the regular season with the seventh best power play in the NHL at 22.5 percent. Ovechkin led the way with 17 goals on the man-advantage. The Caps rely heavily on their top five players when it comes to power-play production. Carlson (32), Ovechkin (31) Kuznetsov (30), Backstrom (26), Oshie (18) led the Caps in points on the power play. The sixth best forward in that category was Lars Eller, and he only had six.
The Caps were in the middle of the pack when it came to the penalty kill during the regular season. At 80.3 percent, they were the 15th-best PK unit in the league.
Columbus: The Blue Jackets power play was near the basement of the NHL for most of the early part of the season, but a slight improvement allowed them to jump up to 25th in the league at 17.2 percent. Typically, power play goals are harder to come by in the playoffs, so the Jackets have to make sure that they get some kind of production from that unit.
Believe it or not, they were even further down the list when it came to the penalty kill, as they ranked 27th in the league at 76.2 percent. Only Tampa, Philadelphia, Montreal and the New York Islanders were worse. Ironically enough, two of those four teams are in the playoffs.
Advantage: Washington. The numbers couldn’t be any clearer.
X-FACTORS
Washington: Yes, Grubauer is starting Game 1, but the Caps’ X-factor still has to be Holtby. If he can regain his Vezina Trophy-winning form, he’ll make the Capitals that much more of a force this postseason. If he goes back to being the mediocre goalie he was throughout the 2017-18 regular season, it’ll be tougher for them to get through to the next round. That’s not to say that Grubauer can’t get the job done, but the Caps are a better team when Holtby is on his game.
Columbus: Atkinson managed to find his game, thankfully, but he’s going to have to keep it going right through the postseason. He finished the year by collecting 25 points in his final 20 games, which was huge for Columbus because it gave them another red-hot option behind Panarin.
Capitals in seven games. Both teams will be eager to put their lackluster playoff track records behind them, but the Capitals’ star-power will push them over the edge. Even though Washington is a better team overall, it still won’t be easy for them to dispose of the Blue Jackets.
Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.
Tags: Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Wennberg, Andre Burakovsky, Artemi Panarin, Boone Jenner, Braden Holtby, Brooks Orpik, Cam Atkinson, Christian Djoos, David Savard, Dmitry Orlov, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Ian Cole, Jakub Jerabek, Jay Beagle, John Carlson, Lars Eller, Markus Nutivaara, Matt Niskanen, Michal Kempny, Nick Foligno, Nicklas Backstrom, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Philipp Grubauer, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Ryan Murray, Sergei Bobrovsky, Seth Jones, T.J. Oshie, Thomas Vanek, Tom Wilson, Zach Werenski
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3D Hubs
Amsterdam teams up with tech companies to attract international talent
Sep 1 '17 16:40
BusinessTechnology
The city of Amsterdam teamed up with Amsterdam-based technology companies for a new project aimed at attracting international talent to the Dutch capital. Ten innovative tech companies collaborated and came up with 10 "future-defining"' projects, for which they are looking for highly skilled international talent to work on and to "strengthen the capital's already extraordinary talent pool", Startup Amsterdam announced in a press release.
A'dam 3D printer market place a success
The Amsterdam company specializing in 3D printing, 3D Hubs, announced on Wednesday that the company has collected $4.5 million (€3.7 million) from investors one year after its establishment.
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BUCK’S PASS SURPRISES JOE
By George A. King III
October 3, 2005 | 4:00am
BOSTON – Buck Showalter’s decision to replace his regulars early in a game against the Angels yesterday raised eyebrows in the Yankees’ clubhouse.
If Showalter’s Rangers had beaten the Angels, the Yankees would have copped home-field advantage against the Angels in the ALDS that starts tomorrow night in Anaheim.
But when the Yankees lost to the Red Sox, 10-1, and the Angels beat the Rangers, 7-4, the Yankees had no chance of hosting three games in the best-of-five ALDS.
“I was surprised,” Joe Torre said. “I could see if his team was in the playoffs and he wanted to rest his players. I don’t understand that.”
Alex Rodriguez, who played for Showalter in Texas, echoed Torre’s feelings.
“He is the manager and has the right to do as he chooses,” A-Rod said. “There is a code of honor with so much on the line. But you can’t control what people do. It is what it is.”
Conspiracy theory lovers believe Showalter, a former Yankee manager, was sticking it to George Steinbrenner by removing his regulars early.
The Boss didn’t comment on the situation.
VAC'SWHACKS
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LCDR ROBERT DONALD GEE, USN (Ret.)
LCDR ROBERT DONALD GEE, USN (RET.) Age 86, of Honolulu, Hawaii, passed away Sept. 21, 2011 at St. Francis Hospice in Ewa, Hawaii after suffering two debilitating strokes. Born September 3, 1925 in the Philadelphia suburb of Elkins Park, PA, he had a 21 year career as a naval officer with combat service in the Korean War, and also spent several years based in Hawaii where he met and married his wife. He is survived by his wife of nearly 57 years, the former Roberta "Robbie" O'Dare, daughter Katherine Fujimori (Randy) of Moloka'i, and two granddaughters, Puakaliloa Fujimori and Kaha'owai'olu Fujimori both currently in college and residing in Las Vegas, NV. After retirement from the Navy in 1963, he returned to the world of academia and, after earning his Masters of Business Administration degree, worked in the College of Business as an Undergraduate Advisor in the Dean's Office and as an Accounting instructor. Among his hobbies were volunteer work teaching "Fishy Facts" to visiting kindergarten classes at Sea Life Park for 15 years, and at the Education Center at Hanauma Bay for 20 years. He was also a great cook and baker, fulfilling requests for his most popular dishes, in addition to bread and Stollen, a German Christmas bread. He always made sure to bring baked goodies to his volunteer friends. Visitation 1-2 p.m, Services at 2 p.m. followed by military honors, and additional visitation at 3 p.m., on Saturday, October 8, 2011 at the Borthwick Mortuary, Makai Chapel, on Maunakea St. at Vineyard Blvd. Private parking behind the mortuary is available. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Friends of Hanauma Bay either online at http://www.friendsofhanaumabay.org/?page_id=61, or by mail to: 100 Hanauma Bay Road, Honolulu, HI 96825 There will be a future inurnment at the Molokai Veterans Cemetery.
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Nepal U16 Boys team arrive at New Delhi
Posted: July 31, 2011 in National NEWS
Nepal U16 Boys team arrive at New Delhi to take part in the MID ASIA qualifying round of the 2nd FIBA ASIA Championship for Men. The qualifying round will be held from 1 – 3 August 2011 at New Delhi, India which will qualify one team for the championship.
Nepal U16 Boys team leave for India to participate in the FIBA ASIA U16 qualifying round
Member Secretary of National Sports Council (NSC) Yuvraj Lama bade farwell to Nepal´s U-16 national team on Thursday. The team will leave for India on Friday morning to participate in the qualifying round of the second FIBA ASIA Championship.
The qualifying round will be held in New Delhi from August 1-3 at the Tyagraj Sports Complex. Only one team will qualify from among the SAARC countries — India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Srilanka, Pakistan and Bhutan.
The winner of the finalist will play in the 2nd U-16 FIBA ASIA Championship to be held in Nha Trang, Vietnam between October 18-28.
Nepal´s national team has returned from India securing third position and better result is expected from the U-16 team as they have talented players. The players in the teams were selected from the talent hunt and also with the performance during the national tournament.
The players were kept for a two-month training during the talent hunt program and were kept for 21 days later. The players were trained by head coach Dinesh Nakarmi and Biku Maharjan. Saurav Shrestha who plays as the small forward will lead the team.
Narhari Gautam, Ashish Gauchan and Rajesh Maharjan are the shooting guard for the team while Ashim Shrestha and Devendra Rana are the centeral forward. Rahul Maskey, Prasanna Man Shrestha, Anish Shahi and Prasanna Kumar Pradhan are the forward for the team. Siddhartha Maharjan and Biraj Rana are the point guard of the team.
Source: http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=34014
http://nepalsport.wordpress.com/
Please visit http://nepalsport.wordpress.com sports blogs about Nepal.
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Home Movies Jemaine Clement Joins “Avatar 2” Cast
Jemaine Clement Joins “Avatar 2” Cast
B A Walsh
Jemaine Clement (Jemaine Atea Mahana Clement ) will be joining the cast of Avatar 2 as marine biologist Dr. Ian Garvin according to the Avatar official Facebook page. Producer, director, and co-writer James Cameron congratulated Clement on his casting, saying “I’ve loved Jemaine’s work for years and I’m really pumped that he’s joining our cast as Ian Garvin, one of my favorite characters.”
Clement is a musical comedian and actor who was born in New Zealand. He and Bret Mackenzie form the comedy duo Flight of the Conchords, which became a BBC radio show and a TV show on HBO. He has appeared in the movies Gentlemen Broncos (2009), Men in Black 3 (2012), and Humor Me (2017). He has done voice work in the films Despicable Me (2010), Rio (2011), Moana (2016), and The Lego Batman Movie (2017). In 2017 he wrote, directed, and co-starred with Taika Waititi in the vampire mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows, which became an FX series. Clement stars in the FX series Legion as Oliver Bird.
Clement will be joining returning cast members Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Stephen Lang, Giovanni Ribisi, CCH Pounder, and Sigourney Weaver. Other new cast members joining the franchise are Michelle Yeoh, Kate Winslet, and Oona Chaplin. Vin Diesel has been rumored.
Avatar (2009) so far still reigns as the all-time box office champion with $2.8 billion worldwide (and a special spot in the Walt Disney World theme park); Avengers: Endgame looks like it may steal away that crown ($2.5 billion and counting). There are no details on the plot of Avatar 2, although it is said to focus on the family life of the main characters, as Jake (Worthington) has a falling out with wife Neytiri (Saldana).
Avatar 2 will be released December 17, 2021, with additional sequels coming out in 2023, 2025, and 2027 to alternate with Star Wars movies.
casting rumors
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I am still waiting for that blue police box to take me on a star trek to a galaxy far, far away. Until then I will have to content myself with fantasy and sci-fi adventures from books, movies, and TV shows.
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Stranger Things: We Now Know When Season 3 Will Hit Netflix
Loryn Stone - July 30, 2018
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A brand apart
Note: Every Friday, The A.V. Club, my favorite pop cultural site on the Internet, throws out a question to its staff members for discussion, and I’ve decided that I want to join in on the fun. This week’s topic: “What individual instances of product placement in movies and television have you found most effective?”
One of the small but consistently troublesome issues that every writer faces is what to do about brand names. We’re surrounded by brands wherever we look, and we casually think and talk about them all the time. In fiction, though, the mention of a specific brand often causes a slight blip in the narrative: we find ourself asking if the character in question would really be using that product, or why the author introduced it at all, and if it isn’t handled well, it can take us out of the story. Which isn’t to say that such references don’t have their uses. John Gardner puts it well in The Art of Fiction:
The writer, if it suits him, should also know and occasionally use brand names, since they help to characterize. The people who drive Toyotas are not the same people who drive BMWs, and people who brush with Crest are different from those who use Pepsodent or, on the other hand, one of the health-food brands made of eggplant. (In super-realist fiction, brand names are more important than the characters they describe.)
And sometimes the clever deployment of brands can be another weapon in the writer’s arsenal, although it usually only works when the author already possesses a formidable descriptive vocabulary. Nicholson Baker is a master of this, and it doesn’t get any better than Updike in Rabbit is Rich:
In the bathroom Harry sees that Ronnie uses shaving cream, Gillette Foamy, out of a pressure can, the kind that’s eating up the ozone so our children will fry. And that new kind of razor with the narrow single-edge blade that snaps in and out with a click on the television commercials. Harry can’t see the point, it’s just more waste, he still uses a rusty old two-edge safety razor he bought for $1.99 about seven years ago, and lathers himself with an old imitation badger-bristle on whatever bar of soap is handy…
For the rest of us, though, I’d say that brand names are one of those places where fiction has to retreat slightly from reality in order to preserve the illusion. Just as dialogue in fiction tends to be more direct and concise than it would be in real life, characters should probably refer to specific brands a little less often than they really would. (This is particularly true when it comes to rapidly changing technology, which can date a story immediately.)
In movies and television, a prominently featured brand sets off a different train of thought: we stop paying attention to the story and wonder if we’re looking at deliberate product placement—if there’s even any question at all. Even a show as densely packed as The Vampire Diaries regularly takes a minute to serve up a commercial for the likes of AT&T MiFi, and shows like Community have turned paid brand integration into entire self-mocking subplots, while still accepting the sponsor’s money, which feels like a textbook example of having it both ways. Tony Pace of Subway explains their strategy in simple terms: “We are kind of looking to be an invited guest with a speaking role.” Which is exactly what happened on Community—and since it was reasonably funny, and it allowed the show to skate along for another couple of episodes, I didn’t really care. When it’s handled poorly, though, this ironic, winking form of product placement can be even more grating than the conventional kind. It flatters us into thinking that we’re all in on the joke, although it isn’t hard to imagine cases where corporate sponsorship, embedded so deeply into a show’s fabric, wouldn’t be so cute and innocuous. Even under the best of circumstances, it’s a fake version of irreverence, done on a company’s terms. And if there’s a joke here, it’s probably on us.
Paid or not, product placement works, at least on me, although often in peculiar forms. I drank Heineken for years because of Blue Velvet, and looking around my house, I see all kinds of products or items that I bought to recapture a moment from pop culture, whether it’s the Pantone mug that reminds me of a Magnetic Fields song or the Spyderco knife that carries the Hannibal seal of approval. (I’ve complained elsewhere about the use of snobbish brand names in Thomas Harris, but it’s a beautiful little object, even if I don’t expect to use it exactly as Lecter does.) If it’s kept within bounds, it’s a mostly harmless way of establishing a connection between us and something we love, but it always ends up feeling a little empty. Which may be why brand names sit so uncomfortably in fiction. Brands or corporations use many of the same strategies as art to generate an emotional response, except the former is constantly on message, unambiguous, and designed to further a specific end. It’s no accident that there are so many affinities between advertising and propaganda. A good work of art, by contrast, is ambiguous, open to multiple interpretations, and asks nothing of us aside from an investment of time—which is the opposite of what a brand wants. Fiction and brands are always going to live together, either because they’ve been paid to do so or because it’s an accurate reflection of our world. But we’re more than just consumers. And art, at its best, should remind us of this.
Posted in Books, Movies, Television, Writing
Tagged with AVQ&A, Blue Velvet, Community, Hannibal, John Gardner, John Updike, Nicholson Baker, Rabbit is Rich, The A.V. Club, The Art of Fiction, The Magnetic Fields, The Vampire Diaries, Thomas Harris
[A vision] comes only into existence while the technical and physical work of painting and writing goes on. To what may end by being a masterpiece an artist may come at first with a mind empty and stone cold. It may be that “Another commonplace model to paint!” was all that Raphael thought as he began the Sistine Madonna.
—C.E. Montague
Tagged with C.E. Montague, Raphael, Sistine Madonna
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How a Routine Apt. Inspection Exposed a Secret NYPD Spy Office in New Brunswick
The Nation's Leading News Agency Sued the NBPD to Secure Records and a Phone Call That Exposed NYPD Operation in Downtown Apartment Building
Article | July 28, 2012 - 1:54pm | By Charlie Kratovil
Undercover New York City police officers apparently took pictures of the buildings that neighbored their luxury apartment. Associated Press
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—A recently released audiotape of a June 2009 telephone call to local police reveals the shock and confusion caused when a worker at a New Brunswick apartment complex stumbled upon a secret spy office in one of the units.
The apartment was rented by an undercover New York City police officer under a fake name, where it was used to aid undercover officers from the NYPD working in a far-flung surveillance operation that spied on muslims at Rutgers University and across the Northeast.
But a regularly scheduled five-year inspection of the apartment led a building worker to call local police. The audio recording of that phone call was at the heart of a lawsuit filed by the Associated Press against New Brunswick's Police Department, who helped keep the NYPD's secret for over two years.
As we reported in June, New Brunswick Police Director Anthony Caputo had originally denied the AP's request claiming that it could jeopardize the security of the building and that the information posed a public safety risk.
The lawsuit was widely reported in the media, but almost a week later, city officials claimed they were unaware of a lawsuit.
"Until I even know what this lawsuit is, if it is legitimate, then there's nothing to comment on... I haven't seen it, I don't know anything about it." said City Council President Robert Recine.
Business Administrator Thomas Laughlin said he had not recieved a notice of claim regarding the lawsuit, but had heard one might be coming.
"I've heard out on the street there was a claim likely by the Associated Press, but I have not seen anything." said Business Administrator Thomas Laughlin.
On Thursday, Mayor James Cahill's spokesman Russell Marchetta confirmed that there was, in fact, a lawsuit and it has been settled. He told NewBrunswickToday.com that the city decided to settle the lawsuit out of court and turned over the audio tape, as well as emails related to the incident.
The fake name used by the NYPD officer to rent the apartment was blacked out of the documents, but otherwise the Associated Press received everything they had asked for.
According to NBC 4, the newly-released emails reveal that the NYPD worked hard to keep the screwup under wraps. They succeeded at first, until an August 2011 report by the Associated Press exposed the New Brunswick incident to the public.
Since then, the story has taken on a life of its own, leading to strong rebukes from the muslim community, a strong defense of the NYPD by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and an investigation by the New Jersey Attorney General.
The peculiar contents of the room was what prompted a member of the building staff, Salil Sheth, to make the 911 call that eventually exposed the controversial and potentially unconstitutional spying operation.
Sheth was conducting the building's first-ever five-year inspection. He said in the 911 call that building staff had notified all of the tenants of the inspection by placing a notice on their door two weeks earlier.
Sheth said he saw the notice was still on the door when he entered.
He was alarmed to find the apartment had very little furniture or clothing, just two beds and one suit. He also noticed computers, NYPD radios, and "pictures of terrorists."
He also said the unit contained photographs of a nearby building in New Brunswick, an office building at 303 George Street known as the "Matrix building."
The NYPD had failed to notify either New Jersey's state government or New Brunswick's local police that they would be stepping onto their turf. They even left the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the dark.
After FBI agents joined New Brunswick police at the scene, the NYPD was forced to explain themselves and to awkwardly ask the FBI for their equipment back.
Sheth's discovery also raised questions about the NBPD's knowledge of the NYPD's activities here and elsewhere. The department had been running a secret "demographics" unit that investigated muslim communities with the help of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Police department spokesman JT Miller has consistently denied the NBPD had any knowledge of the NYPD's activities until Sheth's phone call, but he has refused to say who within the department or city government were made aware of the bizarre incident.
"It came to the light of the detective bureau and they made the notification they needed to make," he said at an April 4 City Council meeting.
City Council members uniformly said they were left in the dark.
Miller indicated that the department notified "higher jurisdictions," but declined to say who specifically was informed.
The building where the NYPD chose to set up shop, 1 Richmond Street, has since changed owners names as the scandal has played out.
Formerly known as the Highlands at Plaza Square, it has since been re-branded as the Plaza Square Apartments, as we reported in December.
The 414-unit complex was sold to Toronto-based Manulife Financial Corp. in December 2010 for $112.5 million. The original owners were Matrix Development Group, Roseland Contractors, and Applied Companies. Those three firms, each based in New Jersey, were brought together by a powerful former mayor.
John Lynch Jr., who served as Mayor of New Brunswick from 1979 to 1990, lobbied for the luxury apartment building's construction well after he had left local office. When Lynch was under investigation for abusing his power as a State Senator, investigators twice subpoenaed records related to its approvals.
In 2006, Lynch plead guilty to fraud and tax evasion related to a development project in South Brunswick. His successor and cousin, Mayor Cahill, testified before a grand jury in the case.
Editor's Note: The author of this article is a candidate for New Brunswick City Council on the November 6, 2012 ballot.
Related Multimedia:
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Jose Mercado/Stanford New Service
Irving Howe Turned Tardiness Into an Intellectual Stance
A Voice Still Heard: Selected Essays of Irving Howe, Edited by Nina Howe, Yale University Press, 416 pp.
Writing in the crisis-riddled summer of 1969, Irving Howe observed of his generation: “One shorthand way of describing [our] situation … is to say that [we] came late.” Late to modernism, which had climaxed with Eliot, Joyce, and Woolf in the 1920s. Late to Marxism, which had peaked during the Great Depression and with the emergence of the Popular Front in the 1930s. Late to literary experiment, to movement politics, to the heyday of the radical and non-academic intellectual. “The New York writers,” Howe lamented, “came at the end.”
Of course, one of the features of Howe and his generation is that they not only came late but also too early. Born in the 1920s and ’30s, they might have been too young for the literary radicalism and movement politics of the Old Left, but they were also too old for the countercultural experiments and anti-war activism of the New Left. Having started out at the midcentury—when figures like Lionel Trilling and Sidney Hook were shedding their last traces of radicalism—Howe’s generation was in its twilight by the late 1960s.
This was their strength as well as their weakness. Howe’s generation helped bridge gaps, carrying the Old Left torches of socialism and modernism into a new age of radicalism and cultural experiment. Their predicament also led to a set of intriguing—and, I think, still persuasive—political positions: ones that invoked the images of socialism and radical democracy even as they now espoused the values of liberalism and civil libertarianism.
But coming late also had its drawbacks. Howe sometimes could sound like he was speaking from the caves. Often he seemed to blink in the shock of sunlight, in the brightness of a new political and cultural moment. He could sometimes bully when he meant to advise and sometimes side with those in the establishment when he meant to ally with the dissidents. Philip Roth, smarting from a review of one of his novels, cartooned Howe in Zuckerman Unbound as Milton Appel, the West Side militant of “grown-upism.” Novelists, of course, aren’t historians but they can still speak some truth.
Howe was born in 1920 in the South Bronx. Like many of his contemporaries’ parents, his were first-generation immigrants: outer-borough Jews from outer-borough—that is, Eastern—Europe. They spoke Yiddish at home. His father was a grocer, his mother worked in the garment industry. Politics was a course served at the kitchen table. It was also out in the streets. New York in the 1930s was a hotbed of radicalism—not just Jewish and socialist but also anarchist and trade unionist, Communist and Trotskyist, Catholic and Protestant. There were soapbox proselytizers and sectarian evangelists on almost every corner and in every borough; and Howe joined the Young People’s Socialist League, the youth wing of the Socialist Party, just before he began attending high school.
Howe brought the radicalism of the outer-boroughs with him to City College when he entered in 1936. 1936 was a tumultuous year. Germany had begun its process of Gleichschaltung—“political standardization.” Dozens of Russian intellectuals, many of them former Party loyalists, were put on trial in the Soviet Union. For the first time in the West, news was breaking through of Stalin’s purges and famines. One had to pick sides. Already a restive and argumentative spirit, Howe had no problem choosing. He broke from the more mainstream Socialists and joined Max Shachtman’s sectarian Workers Party.
Howe began his career as a writer during these college years. Picking up the pugnacious style of a party publicist, he contributed essays—mostly under pen names—to a variety of radical organs. But already Howe was growing weary of sectarian politics, not only for political but also literary reasons. The pinched narrowness, the polemical ferocity, the acrid skepticism toward all that was elegant or morally complex troubled the young Howe. Marxism—as a mode of cultural as well as social criticism—had hit a wall. “As a theory of historical analysis and social action,” he wrote to a friend, Marxism was full of possibility but it nonetheless “contributes little to the evaluation of a work of art.”
One of the first essays Howe published under his own name was for Partisan Review, a magazine that was coming to a similar set of conclusions around this time. Reviewing a book of criticism by one of PR’s favorite sons—the radical novelist and critic James Farrell—Howe argued that Farrell’s essays reduced “literature to an anterior political and sociological concept,” flattening the barbed, human complexities of the novel into the soft edges of ideological catechism. But worse: Farrell had not only lost his critical but also verbal edge. “Why does Farrell write so badly?” Howe asked at the end of the essay. “I think [his] incapacity for simple prose must be seen in light of his critical methods.”
Howe’s essay must have upset more than a few in the Partisan Review crowd. But nothing made one’s name quicker, at least among the New York critics, then heated confrontation, and over the next half decade, Howe became a regular, writing for them and their New York sister publications: Commentary, The New Republic, and The Nation.
Already Howe’s style and thinking were evolving when he began writing for these publications. His prose was now leavened with a wry elegance—an ironic style modulated and sharpened by his polemical tendencies. He had an enviable gift for compacting a whole history of ideas into a handful of rather precisely executed sentences. There was also an elasticity to his range. He helped discover I.B. Singer, contracting a young novelist by the name of Saul Bellow to translate a story of into English. He championed the soft-spoken complexities of Henry James, the brilliant impieties of Zola, and denounced literary “palookas” such as Howard Fast. He debated Marcuse on the Brandeis campus and lectured on Conrad and Dostoevsky at Princeton. He wrote scholarly studies on William Faulkner and Sherwood Anderson and published what, I believe, is still his greatest work, a survey of political fiction titled Politics and the Novel.
For Howe it was precisely by remaining between politics and literature that one became an intellectual.
Howe still retained his political commitments. In fact, he considered his literary and political inclinations to be one in the same, two sides—utopian and ironic, committed and critical—of the same intellectual vocation. Trilling remarked in this period that this choice between commitment and literary complexity was a “dark and bloody crossroads.” For Howe it was precisely by remaining between politics and literature that one became an intellectual. Trilling insisted on the “moral obligation to be intelligent”; Howe insisted there was a moral obligation to apply such intelligence to politics. To rub social needs against utopian desires, the demand for political action against the supple ambiguities of the literary imagination—this was the task of the intellectual; its friction generated sparks.
This was not a new position. Figures like Malcolm Cowley and Edmund Wilson also articulated such a vision in the 1930s and ’40s: that radicalism was a total stance, political and literary, engaged with discovering not only new images of the world but new social structures. As the French Surrealist, Andre Breton, put it in an address around this time: “‘Transform the world,’ said Marx. ‘Change life,’ said Rimbaud. These two are … one and the same.” But for many intellectuals in the early 1950s it was beginning to appear as if they should not be one and the same. Marx and Rimbaud, Trotsky and Proust, the rigors of politics and the spirited sense of possibility in literature—these were increasingly seen as separate fields of intellectual activity. Trilling, along with the theologian Reinhold Niebuhr and the historians Arthur Schlesinger and Richard Hofstadter, all began to champion a vision of “liberal realism”—of a world in which politics and ideology, political action and morality were separate from one another. One of Howe’s City College friends, Daniel Bell, argued that the 1950s saw an “end of ideology.” In truth, it was more that, for many intellectuals, the decade marked the end of ideological contest.
This was, in particular, true of the Partisan Review critics. American liberalism could seem a prudent compromise after the Great Depression and the rise of authoritarian politics in Europe and the Soviet Union. Instead of the experimentalism of modernism and the egalitarianism of Marxism, many embraced more conservative lodestars: the realist novel, the “mixed economy,” more bureaucratic structures of power. A symposium in 1952 asked a group of PR critics how they related to American culture. Almost all—from Trilling and Hook to Dwight Macdonald and Mary McCarthy—chose the “West.”
Howe was not asked to participate in the symposium. But the essay he wrote in response, “This Age of Conformity,” was a ferocious attack on his contemporaries, accusing them of not only losing their radical commitments—literary and political—in the face of their growing prestige but also coming to terms with troubling new developments in Western capitalism. His essay, however, was not only a dissent. It was also a demand for an alternative type of critic: the intellectual who did not dissolve the tensions between literature and politics but felt comfortable in their strained margins, dangling “between art and experience, between the critical consciousness and the political conscience.” “Nothing here,” Howe concluded, “gives us cause for reassurance or relaxation. … No formal ideology or program is entirely adequate for coping with the problems that intellectuals face in the twentieth century” but “the banner of critical independence, ragged and torn though it may be, is still the best we have.”
The essay rubbed a lot of Howe’s contemporaries the wrong way. “What was I conforming to?” Irving Kristol recalled. “I mean, I lived in the same building as Irving.”
In the winter of 1954, shortly after Howe’s essay, Howe and a Brandeis colleague, Lewis Coser, founded Dissent. “When intellectuals can do nothing else,” Howe wrote in the first issue, “they start a magazine.”
It was said that during a meeting leading up to the magazine’s release there was a witching-hour debate over what the magazine should be called. The New York Radical, suggested one editor. The Better Republic, offered another. The More Partisan Review, pondered a third. But all were shot down for being too positive, for suggesting too much. We are breaking from ideology, explained one editor, not founding a new one. Finally a young man in the back cried out: I’ve got it, he exclaimed. How about No? The room leaned forward with interest. A vote was held. This, too, was pronounced to be too affirmative.
“When intellectuals can do nothing else,” Howe wrote in the first issue, “they start a magazine.”
Dissent was, in fact, often criticized—fairly and unfairly—for its censorious tone, its tendency toward negation, its stylized sense of political isolation. A young Nathan Glazer, reviewing its first issue in Commentary, observed that the young magazine marked a considerable blow for the Left. Adolescent in its disavowal “of positive ideas,” its relentless sense of negation represented the postwar Left’s “failure to suggest any alternatives to the policies of which [it] disapproves.” Glazer was not, of course, entirely wrong. But there was also a radical exuberance—a vision of democratic socialism—that cut through it all. The first several issues opened with a set of salvos aimed at the growing consensus around liberal realism. Trilling, Niebuhr, David Riesman, John Kenneth Galbraith—no one was spared. Howe wrote a thrillingly mean-spirited essay on his contemporaries’ obsession with Adlai Stevenson. C. Wright Mills dashed off a pair of brilliant examinations of postwar American political culture: one on the concentration of power, the other on the growing tendency toward conservatism. Harold Rosenberg parodied the “couch liberals” of the Upper West Side and their self-styled sense of moral exhaustion, and Norman Mailer wrote some brilliantly stupid things—perhaps of most famous note: his eminently quotable but utterly incoherent essay on the 1950s “hipster.”
But Howe did appear at times to enforce a certain didactic orthodoxy. Howe wrote a critical review of Ellison’s Invisible Man, praising the electric brilliance of its prose and plot but insisting that the novel was weakened by its faith in the liberatory aspects of American culture. He also frequently tussled with the New Left. While he cultivated a set of younger intellectuals who came of political age during the late 1950s and 1960s—critics like Michael Walzer and Marshall Berman who were sympathetic to the New Left—he also misread the more substantive nature of New Left activism, insisting that its visions of participatory democracy were more style than substance, posture than position.
Some of these skeptical reactions bore fruit—Ellison’s moving, imaginative response to Howe, “The World and the Jug” and much of Walzer and Berman’s early essays—others, however, just left scars. Howe and the first generation of Dissentniks really missed a set of opportunities to engage with new expressions of radical politics and culture. Black radicalism, second-wave feminism, the New Left, the antiwar movement—there was a lot that was wrong about much of their politics but also a lot that this new generation got right and a lot that Howe—falling upon older, more sectarian habits—just flat out missed.
As Berman wrote, Howe argued two things about the New Left:
(1) The New Left is wrong to be obsessed with style; (2) The New Left has THE WRONG STYLE. Thesis 1 was absolutely right. Obsession with echt-radical style often estranged us from our deepest values: people who were really kindred spirits tore each other to pieces over how they dressed and danced and what they smoked, and over who was really “truly radical”… But Irving seemed…to become the sort of person he unmasked, a man obsessed with style. He seemed complacently happy in a world of thesis 2, where only people with THE RIGHT STYLE were allowed to play. For the next few years, Dissent seemed to care more about somebody flying a Vietcong flag at a mass antiwar demonstration than about what American guns and bombs were actually doing to Vietnam.
Writing later in life, Howe confessed: “Wasn’t it possible to bring together the dialectical reflectiveness encouraged by Trilling’s criticism with a readiness to engage publicly in behalf of liberal or radical ideas? In principle, yes; in practice, not so easily.”
Howe’s essays—and really in the end it was his essays that were his master form—innovated two distinct forms. The first was a kind of hybrid of political and literary criticism, in which the rough-handed interrogations of the polemicist were twinned with the ear and throat of literature. None of his contemporaries, perhaps with the exception of Mary McCarthy, could write with as much vim as seriousness. Howe’s “Adlai Stevenson and the Intellectuals,” for example, put forward a close reading of the cultural imagery invoked by a Stevenson speech; it also offered up one of the best send-ups of postwar gentility and liberal egg-headism. A more studious essay like “The Idea of the Modern” was, at once, a careful parsing of the modernist turn in European letters and yet bore as much teeth as a canine: snapping with much delight at many of Howe’s former heroes.
Howe’s second innovation as an essay-writer came from a rather different and surprising tradition: that of Montaigne. Howe was a master memoirist—not just of himself but also of his generation. Like Alfred Kazin and Malcolm Cowley, it could be argued that Howe’s second great body of work were the generational autobiographies that he published throughout his life. “New York Intellectuals” is, perhaps, his most famous and the one we all remember. (It was, after all, the essay that gave currency to phrase the “New York Intellectuals.”) But Howe mastered the form years before with his haunting 1946 essay, “The Lost Young Intellectual,” in which he narrated the twice-alienated state in which he and so many of his contemporaries experienced in the early 1940s. First his cohort of radical intellectuals experienced a break from the immigrant and often religious milieus of their childhood homes; second they experienced the disenchantment that came in the wake of the movement and sectarian politics of the 1930s and ’40s. By the 1950s, they were “strangers”: late to the values of one generation, too early for the next.
“Of such uncouth elements is the American language made and remade. Upon such renewals does American experience thrive.”
For Howe, this gave his generation of critics its cosmopolitan and guardedly highbrow style. Neither the modernists or Marxists of the 1920s and ’30s nor the radicals or postmodernists of the 1960s and ’70s, Howe’s generation found itself dangling, caught in the middle, always on the defensive. This sense of belatedness took on a particularly twilight hue after all of the political violence and disappointment of the late 1960s. “New York Intellectuals” (1969), “What’s the Trouble?” (1971), and “Strangers” (1977), all take on a rueful, autobiographical quality. It was not so much that Howe was confessing sins but taking stock—of himself, of his commitments, and of his comrades.
Perhaps the most moving of these essays is “Strangers,” where Howe returns to the theme of being twice-alienated. It was an old theme: once the “lost young intellectual,” now Howe was an old one. But time had thickened his complaints, has slowed the drama, had rendered a generational portrait into something more and something less than a biography of his contemporaries. It was a manifesto: “Of such uncouth elements is the American language made and remade. Upon such renewals does American experience thrive.” But what elements, what renewals? No longer was it modernism or socialism, experiment or egalitarianism, but another feature of Howe’s roots: his immigrant Jewish upbringing. “Our writers did not, of course, create a new language, and in the encounter between English and Yiddish, the first has survived far better than the second; but still, we have left our scar, tiny though it be, on their map. … If indeed our dream of a New World paradise is ever to be realized…how can we ever expect to get there except through the clubfoot certainties of schlepping?”
Howe dedicated much of his later life to this Jewish past—secular Jewish culture, one should note, but Jewish culture nonetheless. For a hardened political critic so suspicious of even the faintest whiffs of sentimentality, it appeared that in his later years he had softened. Considering the expansiveness and seriousness of his work on Yiddish culture this seems more than a little unfair. World of Our Fathers—and his co-authored documentary history, How We Lived—were certainly much more than Bar Mitzvah gifts. He tackled the world of his fathers (and some of our grandfathers) with care and skill, bringing to a subject that often was romanticized the seriousness of his political criticism. He also saved much of Yiddish literature (the brilliantly sinful stories of I.L. Peretz, for example) from languishing in obscurity—or, at least, in a language fast being forgotten.
But the truth is, he did on this topic, as was true with his other political work, occasionally waver. There was a faint odor of must that came with his turn toward Jewish culture in the 1970s. It also revealed a considerable unfairness of judgment. While Howe frequently decried the particularisms of other movements—of radical feminism, of the black power and anti-imperialist movements—he eventually picked up his own, that of immigrant Jewish culture. This was not entirely outside of the times; politics had shrunken by the late 1970s and 1980s. Lines of solidarity had become more local and more rooted to communities than movements. There was a general retreat from radical activism and from the heightened sense of political urgency that electrified the 1960s. America was now Reagan’s country, and the tepid welfare-state liberalism that he and his Dissent comrades had once been so critical of was now something worth aspiring to. Socialism still remained the “name of his desire,” as he and Lewis Coser once put it, but it was now a much more lonely—a more isolated and splintered—vision of political life.
There’s a refrain recurring in many of these later essays—one that is hard to ignore when one reads his essays together (which this wonderful new collection, edited by his daughter Nina Howe, affords). It’s a line from a Henry James letter: “it’s a complex fate.”
One of Howe’s favorite aphorisms came from a Yiddish fable about the town of Chelm.
Once in Chelm, the mythical village of the East European Jews, a man was appointed to sit at the village gate and wait for the coming of the Messiah. He complained to the village elders that his pay was too low. “You are right,” they said to him, “the pay is low. But consider: the work is steady.”
For Howe, the steadiness of work is what gave his writing its richness, his politics its sturdiness. A weakness throughout Howe’s career was his tendency to punch first. In writing about literature and negotiating differences on the Left, Howe often shot too fast. He mistook the idealism of the New Left for ideological sectarianism. He unfairly distrusted black and feminist radicalism, seeing in them the sad decline of a more universalistic Left, and he never quite got (or publically engaged with) postmodern fiction. But in the end, Howe often came to regret many of his mistakes and worked to correct them. Several New Leftists eventually joined Dissent’s fold; under the helm of a new generation of editors, the magazine also came to promote radical feminism. Howe fought with those on the Left he cared about, but his combativeness was almost always also an act of ardor. As he observed late in life, “You begin a friendship on the left by attacking somebody.”
Arriving late does not always mean you will make friends. Certainly this was the case with Howe. Friendships were spawned but so were enemies. Howe’s tardiness, however, was more than a generational infelicity; it was a politics, a way of being—an intellectual stance. The critic, for Howe, always wanted something better, something taken from the past and set against the hopes of the future. He read great books but also sought out new ideas, was sensitive to the complexities of literature but also the demands of action. Intellectual life—political, literary, radical life—was an act of balancing between art and experience, critical consciousness and political conscience, particular loyalties and universal desires. Writing in an essay near the end of his life titled “Why Has Socialism Failed in America?,” Howe invoked James again: “James once said that being an American is a complex fate. We American socialists could add: He didn’t know the half of it.”
Books, Culture
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The Artful Destruction of Lucio Fontana
Fontana's work has seen a huge increase in value.
Amah-Rose Abrams, May 11, 2016
Lucio Fontana Concetto Spaziale, Attese (1968)
Photo: courtesy Cardi
The work of Lucio Fontana has been the subject of a kind of renaissance over the last few years, both at auction and on the receiving end of the critics’ pen.
Arte Povera and other turn-of-the-century movements in Italian art have always been considered important in the history of art, but in recent years, its artists—along with Fontana—have seen a remarkable market surge. It is widely accepted that Fontana’s most important work came later in his life, once he had honed his Spatialist concept and began producing his iconic slashed canvases, but his career was more than just one body of work.
Born in 1889 to Italian immigrant parents in Rosario, Argentina, the artist’s early years were divided between Argentina and his parents’ native Italy. His first exhibition, “Nexus,” was held in 1962 in Rosario alongside a group of young Argentine artists, and after returning to Italy in 1927, Fontana, who had previously worked with his sculptor father Luigi Fontana, studied under the classical sculptor Adolfo Wildt at the Accademia di Brera from 1928 to 1930.
Lucio Fontana, Concetto Spaziale (1957). Courtesy of Robilant & Voena.
After graduating in 1930, Fontana held his first solo exhibition at the Milan gallery Il Milione and spent the following decade working in Italy and France, both on his own work and in collaboration with other artists. Though he was already at the forefront of the European art scene, his early sculptures and experiments in ceramics were not yet in the unique artistic language that he is so famous for today.
Lucio Fontana, Crocifisso (1950). Courtesy of Studio La Città.
In 1940, shortly after the beginning of the Second World War, Fontana returned to Buenos Aires where he and some of his students published the Manifesto Bianco (1946), which read: “Matter, color, and sound in motion are the phenomena whose simultaneous development makes up the new art.”
The text also stated that they were “abandoning the use of known forms of art and we are initiating the development of an art based on the unity of space and time.”
Lucio Fontana, Concetto Spaziale. Attesa (1960). Courtesy of Robilant & Voena.
It was in this text that Fontana began to formulate what later became known as Spatialism, a theory which he went on to refine in a series of manifestos spanning from the 1940s to the 1960s. The ideas he explored were often concerned with tapping into the subconscious to create art, and inventing new forms through which to express them.
On returning to a post-war Italy in 1948, Fontana was confronted by a Milan that bore the scars of the allied bombings, in which many buildings and monuments were destroyed. It was the following year that he exhibited for the first time his Ambiente spaziale a luce nera (Spatial Environment) (1949) at the Galleria del Naviglio in Milan, filling the space with a remarkable amoeba-shaped structure, which hung in the dark, lit only by neon light.
Lucio Fontan,a Concetta Spaziale Attesa, (1964–1965). Courtesy of Mazzoleni.
It was also at this time that Fontana began to make the works for which he is best known: his revolutionary slashed and pierced paintings. Based on the concepts he formulated in his Spatialism manifestos, he began cutting through the surface of monochrome canvases in a seemingly violent act that was entirely new to the tradition of painting. He would go on to explore this conceit over the course of his life, with his subsequent work divided loosely into two series: Buchi (‘holes’), beginning in 1949, and the Tagli (‘slashes’) that came later in the mid-1950s.
“With all due respect to the genius Picasso and to Boccioni, this infamous ‘hole’ is not a hole in the canvas but in the first dimension in the void—the freedom of artists and people, to create art by any means,” explained Fontana, speaking at the Venice Biennale in 1966. “Indeed, I’d say that art is pure philosophy.”
Lucio Fontana, Concetto Spaziale (1968). Courtesy of Studio La Città.
Fontana was exploring a third dimension with his painting. The artist would sometimes back his works with a shiny gauze fabric, which would reflect light and give the illusion of infinite depth behind the holes and slashes. He also experimented with color and finish, ranging from matte to reflective, and added fragments of glass and attached to the surface of the painting. Throughout all this work on canvas, he also continued to make sculpture that incorporated the void.
As a trailblazer, he was also lucky enough to find early critical and commercial acclaim. Fontana’s first solo exhibition in the United States was held at the Walker Art Center in 1966 and, since his death in 1968, his work has been shown at the Peggy Guggenheim collection in Venice in 2006, The Hayward Gallery in London in 1999, and the Pompidou Centre in 1987. He was notably awarded the Grand Prize for Painting at the Venice Biennale in 1966.
In tandem with growing museum representation, Fontana’s work has soared in value in recent years, with La fine di Dio (1964) fetching an astonishing $29,173,000 at auction at Christie’s London in November 2015, setting a new record for the artist. With this resurgence in value in the work of Fontana and his peers Alberto Burri and Alighiero Boetti showing no signs of a slowdown, we can expect to see more large-scale exhibitions of Italian art in the coming future.
Amah-Rose Abrams
Contributing Writer, London
Art Industry News: Dealer Forgets a $1.6 Million Fontana in a Cab + More Must-Read Stories
By artnet News , May 3, 2017
Who Said This—Damien Hirst or Jay Z?
By , May 11, 2016
Peter Brant’s Sons Target Gender-Fluid Youth With MAC Cosmetic Line
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One student’s Alternative Break in New Orleans
By Public Affairs, UC Berkeley| April 10, 2012 April 10, 2012
April 10, 2012 April 10, 2012 Public Affairs
UC Berkeley student Alicia Hernandez spent her spring break in New Orleans as part of an ongoing Alternative Breaks effort. As soon as she got back, she reflected on the experience.
By Alicia Hernandez
It’s was about 8 p.m. as we arrived to the Lower 9th Ward Village where we were welcomed with warm regards by Mack, a community organizer, leader, and visionary for his home, the Lower 9th Ward. The area has become a community united by a mutual struggle in the quest for recovery after Hurricane Katrina, where the bonds of family and the shared feeling of love resonate and prevail amidst broken roads, houses and hearts.
Alternative Break students from UC Berkeley clear tar paper from a school garden in the Lower 9th Ward.
We settled in, beds side by side to one another, with excitement about the week that awaited us in New Orleans. Little did we know how close we would become after experiencing first-hand the inequities and injustices that plague the Lower 9th Ward community through our service with local community partners. Having the opportunity to listen to the stories of the local people of New Orleans allowed us to have a different outlook on the situation. It was not long before we had fallen in love with the city and its people and joined in their fight for equality and justice as we resolved that in some way, their struggles are bound up with ours.
We began our week working with an organization called Kids Rethink New Orleans Schools, whose vision is to provide educational opportunities for children who have been displaced since Hurricane Katrina, regardless of the color of their skin our their economic situation. We spent the day doing gardening work in the school garden, pulling weeds, creating a fertilizer, picking up trash and clearing a walking path — in the process, learning the importance of providing children a community garden that has the potential of allowing for a safe place to express creativity through learning.
The following day we went to a village in New Orleans called Versailles, which is the home of a strong community base of Vietnamese Americans. We worked alongside members of the Mary Queen of Viet Nam Community Development Corporation and helped take water samples that will aid in assessing the contamination of the local water supply in New Orleans. We also learned about the new initiative that is being embraced by the Versailles community that focuses on the sustainable production of vegetation through the installation of filtration tanks that contain fish whose waste is implanted in the soil as a fertilizer, thus generating a continuous stream of food supply and production.
What was remarkable about New Orleans as we experienced it was the sense of unity and support that trespassed boundaries of racial division. This became apparent when speaking to our community partners who expressed their solidarity with the different ethnic communities within New Orleans, particularly the African American and Vietnamese American communities.
The next day we were exposed to issues faced by the New Orleans population regarding food security and health while volunteering at Just the Right Attitude, which is Louisiana’s largest food bank. This community center exposed us to the web of forces that contribute to socioeconomic inequities in vulnerable communities within New Orleans like the Lower 9th Ward. Accessibility to resources and services is disproportionally skewed in such a way that disadvantaged neighborhoods get less help from the government. There is so much bureaucracy in the allocation of aid to help rebuild New Orleans that most of the time the money never gets to the people and their communities and instead ends up in the wrong hands.
When visiting the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana, we reflected on these issues of socioeconomic injustice and delved into a discussion about the prevalence of crime in New Orleans. We learned that the crime and incarceration rate in Louisiana is the highest in the entire world. These statistics should anger us, but how can we act surprised when we know that there are no manifest efforts being made to challenge an environment that is being forced to resort to crime and violence to survive. Poor neighborhoods within New Orleans are not being supported by the government to foster safe communities.
One fact that perplexed us during our stay in New Orleans was hearing from the community about the lack of investment in education, as evidenced by their only being one school in the community of the Lower 9th Ward. We learned that over 500 students are on the wait list to enroll, aside from other obstacles that hinder the prospects of children attaining an education, like issues with displacement after Katrina and transportation.
Our week long service-learning trip challenged our perceptions about the reality that is New Orleans post-Katrina. We found ourselves questioning the systems in place that perpetuate patterns of inequality and injustice within the communities we had the privilege to visit and learn from.
Despite the challenges and the fact that New Orleans has been unfairly dealt with, there exists an unbroken spirit carried by the Crescent City’s people that holds much power, resilience, and hope. We left our hearts in New Orleans and now we consider it to be a home to us. From a distance we remain connected to New Orleans through our memories, experiences, and the knowledge we gained along the way. We will carry that knowledge everywhere we go in our quest for social justice. The hospitality and humility of everyone we met, the delicious shrimp and crawfish Mack surprised us with, and the sheer friendliness everyone carries themselves with was enough to make everyone one of us want to return to the Crescent City!
Berkeley takes home five higher ed sustainability...
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Better screening for lung cancer
Study may help lead to a blood test to identify patients who warrant low-dose CT screening
A union scotched?
For peace’s sake
Niall Ferguson, the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of History at the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and a native of Glasgow, says the recent surge in support for Scotland's independence from the United Kingdom is due to the Scottish National Party's well-run campaign.
File photo by Jon Chase/Harvard Staff Photographer
Niall Ferguson gives his take on what’s at stake as Scotland weighs independence
By Christina Pazzanese Harvard Staff Writer
Date September 16, 2014 June 5, 2019
So you think he can dance?
Study: Doctor burnout costs health care system $4.6 billion a year
One thing to change: Anecdotes aren’t data
Spare the medical resident and spoil nothing
A “yes” from Scotland’s voters on Thursday would split the country from the United Kingdom, ending a sometimes-prickly partnership that began in 1707.
Leading the pro-independence movement is the Scottish National Party (SNP), which holds the majority of seats in Scotland’s Parliament. The party has pushed for a national referendum since 2007, with SNP leader Alex Salmond calling it a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity for full self-determination. While the Scottish government controls many key arenas, including education, health, transportation, and agriculture, the British Parliament runs policymaking around other vital matters such as energy, national security, foreign policy, immigration, and taxation.
The U.K.’s political and financial establishments, including England’s three largest political parties and Prime Minister David Cameron, strongly oppose secession. The Royal Bank of Scotland and the Lloyds Banking Group recently announced plans to relocate their operations to England should voters approve independence. The banks reportedly fear damage to their credit ratings and customer flight as a result of fiscal, legal, and regulatory instability. Even Queen Elizabeth, who rarely opines publicly on political matters, said she hopes voters “will think very carefully” before deciding to leave the U.K.
The divisive issue has prompted the record registration of 4.3 million, or 97 percent of Scotland’s eligible voters. New polling suggests a statistical dead heat.
Niall Ferguson, the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of History at the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and a native of Glasgow, spoke with the Gazette about the referendum and what’s at stake for Scotland and the U.K. if the secession campaign succeeds.
GAZETTE: What’s driving this vote and why is it happening now?
FERGUSON: Well, the idea of an independent Scotland has, of course, historical precedents, but you have to go back before 1707 or even before 1603 if you want to find a truly independent Scotland. It was a more or less dead idea right down until the 1960s. The Scottish National Party came into existence in the 1930s, but it had virtually no support until there were, I suppose, the first signs of Scotland’s economic decline as the engine room of the British Empire in the ’60s and ’70s. In 1979, there was a referendum on devolution that would have given more power to Scotland, self-governing power, within the United Kingdom. That was defeated. In the 1990s, under Tony Blair’s government, there was another referendum on devolution and that was successful and so a Scottish Parliament was restored for the first time since 1707. And then, the question of course came up again: “If we can have our own parliament, why can’t we go the whole way?” It was the decision of the current U.K. prime minister, David Cameron, to offer Scotland’s residents a referendum on independence, yes or no, after the Scottish National Party won political power in Scotland. That’s the background to all of this.
In the end, what you’re seeing is a last-minute surge in support for a yes to independence which has only really looked like it could win in the last two or three weeks. For most of the campaign, polls had the noes ahead by roughly 10 points and then, suddenly, this gap evaporated and the big question is “Why did that happen?” Because clearly that seems like a very dramatic and sudden change in the public mood.
GAZETTE: What’s your sense as to why?
FERGUSON: I think it’s very simple. I think the no campaign has been very poorly run and the yes campaign has been very well run. The no campaign was entrusted to the Scottish Labour leadership because David Cameron felt — despite being the son of a Scotsman — that his English accent would be grist to the Nationalists’ mill, so the Labour leadership in Scotland took over the no campaign and essentially ran it like a very dull economics seminar, explaining ad nauseam that if Scotland voted yes, there would be confusion about what currency it should have and it would cause fiscal problems, etc. And it was just a very negative argument. Meanwhile, the SNP’s yes campaign was positive, upbeat. The Scottish National Party told and continues to tell a story of only upside to independence. They entirely conceal from the public the economic risks, which are huge. So we’ve really seen a kind of campaign-driven swing in which “don’t knows,” young voters, and habitual nonvoters have been successfully mobilized by the yes campaign vision of a Brave New Scotland separating itself from Tory-dominated England and becoming a kind of Scandinavian utopia.
GAZETTE: What are some of the political, economic, and national security implications if Scotland breaks away?
FERGUSON: There will be a rush of money out of Scotland because of the uncertainties about the currency, the distribution of the U.K. national debt, the negotiations about oil revenues. All of these things will make businesses very nervous about being based in Edinburgh, especially the big banks. Indeed, they’ve already made it clear that they will move their bases to London. So there will be an immediate economic impact on Scotland. I should think there will be a recession, and there will be a significant increase in unemployment. There probably will also be some negative economic effects for the U.K. as a whole because the political implications are so unclear. So that’s part one.
Part two, the politics: If it’s yes, it’s hard to believe that David Cameron can survive as prime minister. He might just conceivably fight off a leadership challenge, but I think it’s going to be difficult because this is going to look like his mistake. The confusion that will ensue, even if he stays on, will be immense because you’ll be witnessing one of the biggest divorce negotiations in political history. Three hundred-plus years of political union can’t get unraveled with a quickie divorce in Reno. This is going to take years to figure out. And while that’s being done, Scotland and England, not to mention Wales and Northern Ireland, will be in limbo politically. There will be a general election next year, probably, in which Scottish voters will get to vote, but how on earth a government will be able to be formed based on Scottish M.P.s when Scotland’s just voted to become independent, God only knows. In fact, you can imagine a situation in which the Labour Party won, but only would have a majority with its Scottish M.P.s. I think that would prompt really quite significant protest in England. So you have the potential for political uncertainty stretching on into next year.
And then of course, as people in the rest of the U.K. figure out what a Scottish yes means, we’ll have the Welsh arguing that they should be next, and more importantly, I think, the English saying, “What the hell?” There’s going to be a good deal of bitterness about what’s happened. The majority of English voters favor Scotland staying in the union. There’s no appetite for independence south of the border. But I think if Scotland votes yes, the English will be like the wronged spouse in a divorce case and they’ll be pretty unaccommodating in the negotiations that then ensue.
GAZETTE: Is it clear that Scotland would be welcomed into the European Union and if it is, what stature is it likely to have?
FERGUSON: Scotland’s nationalists claim they can stay in the European Union, but actually they will not be able to do that. They’ll have to apply to become members if they secede from the U.K., which is of course a member. If you’ve ever been to Iceland, you’ll know the answer to that question. They’ll essentially be a somewhat bigger version of Iceland. The same applies to membership of NATO; this will be a new state that will have to do a lot of things from scratch. There will not be a great deal of enthusiasm because for those countries that have separatist regional movements like Spain, Italy, and Belgium, the precedent will obviously be a very disturbing one, and I would imagine that in Spain in particular — where the Catalonian and Basque separatist movements have been a problem for many years for the government of Madrid — the likely attitude may even be “get lost.”
GAZETTE: What do you think about the argument that Scotland hasn’t received its fair share from the U.K. politically or economically and that going it alone will preserve or improve the quality of life for more people?
FERGUSON: Well, it’s just complete nonsense. It’s at variance with the truth. The Scots actually have higher per capita public spending than the English by a substantial amount. Resources have been flowing to Scotland far more open-handedly than to the north of England for years. And you’ve got to remember, something like 11 prime ministers, including the last two before David Cameron, have themselves been Scots. You could argue, if anything, that Scotland has been overrepresented in the U.K. system. For many years, it had many more M.P.s than its population would have entitled it to in a strictly proportional system. And the Scots have done very well indeed accessing England’s institutions. I was one of those Scots who benefited from studying at Oxford and I’ve spent more of my life in England than I have in Scotland. I’m pretty typical of the kind of beneficiary of the union that Scotland’s been producing since the days of James Boswell. So there’s just a total lack of any evidence in the Scottish National Party’s claim that somehow Scotland’s been disadvantaged. The very opposite is true. To try to turn Scotland’s history into some version of Ireland’s is, I think, completely a travesty. Scotland was not colonized by the English; Scotland entered a union of equals. Indeed, in 1603 it was a Scottish king who took over the English throne. This idea that somehow the Scots are the last victims of English colonialism is preposterous; it’s completely without a foundation in reality.
GAZETTE: Who stands to benefit from independence and who is likely to be hurt by it?
FERGUSON: The great Scottish economist Adam Smith warned that it’s the people with ideas for radical constitutional change that are usually the people who would benefit most from them. And the self-aggrandizement of the Scottish National Party’s leadership will be the first consequence of this referendum if the result is yes. The losers will be those they persuaded to vote for them because the kind of people who will be hit hardest economically are probably the working-class voters who are defecting from the Labour Party to vote yes. Because if there is — as I’m sure there will be — a big economic shock in the wake of a yes vote, jobs will be lost, house prices will fall, incomes will be reduced, and the brunt will be borne by ordinary people, many of whom have been lured into the yes camp with completely mendacious promises. And that’s one of the sad things about this — the failure of the no campaign successfully to nail the economic lies in the yes campaign.
GAZETTE: What are the most pressing issues the Scottish government would need to address right away if the independence campaign succeeds?
FERGUSON: Well first, what currency are you going to use, because the yes campaign’s claim that they can carry on using the pound is, in fact, not credible. You can’t vote for independence and then say, “Can we keep the monetary union, please?” In fact, political separation with monetary union is a recipe for trouble. And England can just say no, and I think that’s what will happen. So the Scottish government, if it wins this referendum, will pretty quickly have to come up with its own currency, which will be interesting. How do you finance this Scottish state without transfers from south of the border? You seem to assume you’re going to have all the revenues from the North Sea oil fields, but why? The oil may be located closer to Scotland than England, but it’s collectively owned by the U.K. So there are going to be questions about apportioning oil revenues, questions about apportioning shares of the national debt of the United Kingdom, questions about the defense assets located in Scotland, including the Trident nuclear missiles at the Faslane Naval Base. The list is a long one.
GAZETTE: How would an independent Scotland affect Westminster and specifically Cameron, who very publicly has urged voters to stay united?
FERGUSON: I think it’s going to be pretty difficult for him to survive as prime minister if it’s a yes. Because this was an initiative he didn’t need to take. He could have simply declined the idea of a referendum and the Scottish National Party wasn’t in a position to insist on one, so I think it’s hard for him to survive this.
GAZETTE: Why did he agree to it if it was so risky?
FERGUSON: The thought process was that the independence option would be defeated and that would be the end of that. There was complete confidence until about January that the referendum would go against independence. Very few people back at the beginning of this gamble considered very seriously the possibility of defeat. So it’s hard for him to explain this away. I think the other interesting consequence to consider is the even bigger blow for the Labour Party, which has depended for years on Scottish members of Parliament for its strength. And so people are going to be saying, “Whose fault was that?” — because, after all, it was Labour leaders who ran the campaign. So they’re in trouble, too. And then you have the spectacle of the U.K. Independence Party, which is mostly an English party, saying, “Well you see, this whole thing illustrates fundamental Conservative weakness” and that then means that potentially the anti-European elements in U.K. politics will gain. Ultimately, remember, there’s the possibility of another referendum down the road on U.K. membership of the European Union. Some people think a yes vote in Scotland might increase the chances of such a referendum happening and the result being in favor of leaving. Then you get into some pretty wild scenarios.
GAZETTE: Which way do you think the voting will go, and why?
FERGUSON: Any expert on British politics will tell you it should be a narrow no win in the end, because in referendums typically people pull back from change in the final days of a race, risk aversion kicks in, people don’t necessarily vote in the polling booths the way they say they’ll vote to pollsters. So, for a whole bunch of reasons, people will tell you it’s going to be no. I wish I had such faith in opinion polls and I wish I did not feel that the momentum of the yes campaign has become hard, if not impossible, to stop. Right now this thing is statistically too close to call. And so it will be decided by a relatively small number of people. And I think that’s why, if you’re looking at the final days of the campaign, the people on the fence or undecided or apathetic seem to me more likely to break for yes because the atmosphere in Scotland, where I just was, is palpably pro-independence. Although it’s 50-50 in the polls, you wouldn’t know it to do a public debate or to walk down the street. Yes is dominant; no is almost silent — partly because the campaign’s been badly run and also because there’s a certain amount of intimidation going on. It could still be narrowly yes, in which case we’re going to wake up on Friday to a very changed Europe, not just a changed Britain.
GAZETTE: In an essay in The Sunday Times, you said that if yes prevails, your first act will be to apply for U.S. citizenship. Why is that?
FERGUSON: I have lived in the U.S. for more than 10 years and I’ve hesitated to become a U.S. citizen because of a sense of loyalty to the country where I was born and raised, which was extremely good to me; because of a sense of loyalty to my parents and grandparents and great-grandparents. Great Britain was a term devised by a Scotsman, James VI of Scotland, when he became James I of England. It’s a term that connotes the union of Scotland and England and I have loyalty to that union. I don’t have any feelings of loyalty to a U.K. without Scotland and I don’t have any feelings of loyalty to whatever little country Alex Salmond, the SNP leader, thinks he’s creating. So my homeland will kind of die if it’s a yes vote; it won’t really exist anymore, at which point I think I can square applying for U.S. citizenship with my conscience.
I think independence would be a disaster for the U.K., a disaster for Europe, a disaster for the West. The unraveling of the United Kingdom is a major problem given that the United Kingdom has been the staunchest ally of the United States since 1917. And, since ultimately the United Kingdom stands for a certain set of values that need to be upheld in Europe, anything that weakens the U.K., as this clearly would, has negative implications for the things that we all, I hope, hold dear: individual freedom, the whole idea of representative government, the concept of the free market. These are ideas that were born in many ways in Scotland in the Enlightenment in the 18th century and they’ve been hugely successful in their incarnation here in North America. They’ve been pretty successful in the U.K., as well. That’s why I really feel a no vote is to be preferred. This is not really about what passport I will carry in future. It’s about something much, much bigger than the question of whether or not Scotland should be an independent state. It’s about the ultimate stability of the Enlightenment’s achievements.
This interview has been edited for length.
In an interview prior to tonight's lecture, Atalia Omer describes some of the challenges Jewish and Palestinian peace activists face and how their commitment to justice has inspired her. Omer will speak at 5:15 p.m. in Andover Hall on the Harvard Divinity School campus.
Photo courtesy of Atalia Omer
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One-third of global fisheries operating at biologically unsustainable levels
by Mongabay.com on 20 July 2018 |
About 3.2 billion people around the world currently rely on fish for nearly 20 percent of their animal protein. That means that humans eat more than 150 million metric tons of fish every year — and as the global population increases by a couple billion over the next few decades, that number will surely rise.
The fishing industry is eager to capitalize on this growth and boost profits, of course, but overfishing is already threatening the global supply of fish and there are plenty of reasons to be skeptical that this growth can and will be achieved sustainably.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations’ latest report on the state of the world’s fisheries and aquaculture, however, that doesn’t mean we’re approaching “peak fish” — though it will require that fisheries management be strengthened and loss and waste reduced, while problems like climate change, illegal fishing, and pollution must also be dealt with.
The fishing industry is eager to capitalize on this growth and boost profits, of course, but overfishing is already threatening the global supply of fish and there are plenty of reasons to be skeptical that this growth can and will be achieved sustainably. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations’ latest report on the state of the world’s fisheries and aquaculture, however, that doesn’t necessarily mean we’re approaching “peak fish” — though it will require that fisheries management be strengthened and loss and waste reduced, while problems like climate change, illegal fishing, and pollution must also be dealt with.
“The fisheries sector is crucial in meeting FAO’s goal of a world without hunger and malnutrition, and its contribution to economic growth and the fight against poverty is growing,” FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva said in a statement. “The sector is not without its challenges, however, including the need to reduce the percentage of fish stocks fished beyond biological sustainability.”
Though the amount of fish captured in the wild plateaued in the 1990s, remaining stable ever since, and the rapid growth of aquaculture is beginning to slow down, the report projects that total fish production will grow to 201 million metric tons by 2030. That’s a nearly 20 percent increase over the 171 million metric tons produced in 2016, when the world’s human population ate 20.4 kilograms of fish per capita (which accounted for close to 90 percent of total production), compared to just 10 kilograms per capita in the 1960s.
A display of anchovies at a store in the Testaccio neighborhood of Rome. Photo Credit: © FAO/Rocco Rorandelli.
Nearly 91 million metric tons of those fish were caught in the wild in 2016, while production from aquaculture contributed another 80 million metric tons, the report states. Aquaculture continues to meet an increasing share of the world’s demand for fish and will likely continue to do so in the future, though between 2010 and 2016 annual growth was just 5.8 percent, significantly lower than the 10 percent growth seen throughout the 1980s and 90s.
Feeding human’s appetite for fish has come at a significant cost: One-third of the fisheries the FAO monitors are currently fished at biologically unsustainable levels, which the report’s authors describe as “worrying.”
“The state of marine fishery resources, based on FAO’s monitoring of assessed marine fish stocks, has continued to decline,” per the report. “The fraction of marine fish stocks fished within biologically sustainable levels has exhibited a decreasing trend, from 90.0 percent in 1974 to 66.9 percent in 2015. In contrast, the percentage of stocks fished at biologically unsustainable levels increased from 10 percent in 1974 to 33.1 percent in 2015, with the largest increases in the late 1970s and 1980s.” The most unsustainable fisheries were found to be in the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea, the Southeast Pacific Ocean, and the Southwest Atlantic Ocean.
Despite the continuous increase in the percentage of stocks fished at biologically unsustainable levels, the report finds that some progress has still been made toward achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 14, which calls for effective regulation of fish harvests, science-based management plans to restore stocks, and an end to overfishing, illegal fishing, and other destructive fishing practices.
Women process lobsters for export at a cold storage facility built by FAO in the village of Eyl, Puntland, Somalia. The coastal community in Eyl is beating hunger by fishing. FAO kitted their boats with ice boxes so that they can stay out at sea longer, and freezing units to keep their catch fresh. Now these fisherfolk have up-scaled their fishing cooperative into an international commercial operation exporting up to 10 metric tons of fish every month to Ethiopia. Photo Credit: © FAO/Karel Prinsloo.
Most of the gains in sustainable fish harvesting have been regionally specific. “For example, the proportion of stocks fished within biologically sustainable levels increased from 53 percent in 2005 to 74 percent in 2016 in the United States of America, and from 27 percent in 2004 to 69 percent in 2015 in Australia,” the FAO found. But the report also warns that the worsening situation in developing countries is offsetting the improved fisheries management and stock statuses in developed countries.
Andy Sharpless, CEO of the Washington, D.C.-based NGO Oceana, responded to the report by noting that wild fish provide a sustainable source of healthy protein for humans, and that compared to many land-based sources of protein, wild-caught fish make a modest contribution to climate change while requiring virtually no inputs of fresh water or arable land.
“If we want to feed nearly 10 billion people by 2050 in a responsible way, wild seafood will have to play a significant role,” Sharpless said. “That’s why the new report from the FAO is discouraging: it shows that the world still has a long way to go toward responsible management of our oceans. The number of overfished marine fisheries has risen over the last four years. And, despite increasingly sophisticated and aggressive fishing techniques, global catch has continued to decline.”
Sharpless described the report as “the latest data point on a disturbing trend line. Overfishing and destructive gear, habitat degradation, pollution, and short-term thinking have limited the amount of wild seafood available to humanity. And these same problems continue to threaten the health of the ocean and all the species that live there. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Many fish reproduce quickly, and case studies from around the world have proven that — when managed responsibly — populations can rebound. If similar practices were implemented globally, the potential is staggering.”
A fisherman fishes in the river Tista in Panjarbhanga, Bangladesh. Between 2011 and 2016, FAO worked with farmer organizations and government departments in Bangladesh to improve the design and management of agricultural investments. These technical and capacity building activities formed part of the Integrated Agricultural Productivity Project (IAPP), funded by the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP). Photo Credit: © FAO/Mohammad Rakibul Hasan.
Aquaculture, Environment, Fish, Fish Farming, Fisheries, Fishing, Food, Illegal Fishing, Overfishing, Research, Saltwater Fish, Sustainability
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Introducing the Latest Addition to NETGEAR's Smart Managed Pro Family With Innovative Cloud Management and Flexible Power-Over-Ethernet
In a single powerful switch, the GS110TPP combines Gigabit connectivity, more flexible power options with a greater PoE budget and cloud management capability
SAN JOSE, Calif., June 25, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NETGEAR®, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTGR) the leading provider of networking products that power today’s small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs), has announced the availability of the new 10-port Gigabit Ethernet Smart Managed Pro Switch (GS110TPP) designed to address the growing power budget networking needs of businesses.
NETGEAR Smart Managed Pro Switches offer powerful L2+ and L3 Lite features, great PoE functionality, and enhanced performance and usability. Smart Managed Pro switches are purpose built for converged networks where voice, video and data are all carried across a single network platform. Optimized for network efficiency, operational cost savings, and ease of management, these switches are the ideal solution for the most advanced small and medium organizations that are seeking the best combination of features, performance, and value.
The GS110TPP has 10 Gigabit RJ-45 ports including 8 PoE+ ports for deployment of modern PoE devices. Each port provides up to 30 watts of power with a total PoE power budget of 120W, which is ideal for the deployment of devices that require power as well as network connectivity, such as wireless access points, both Pan-Tilt-Zoom and fixed IP Cameras, VoIP Phones, security door locks or any other PoE-powered device.
“The market is migrating to PoE switches with the boom of IoT products that can now be powered via Ethernet. According to a recent report published by Global Market Insights, Inc., PoE solutions Market size is set to exceed USD 2 billion by 20251,” said Richard Jonker, vice president of SMB product line management for NETGEAR. “This latest addition to the NETGEAR line up of Smart Managed Switches with its greater power budget and the flexibility to adapt for future power needs addresses this growing market need. The GS110TPP is an excellent investment for a business building out their network due to its inherent future-proof capability.”
Integrating the industry-leading NETGEAR FlexPoE technology, which enables the capability to increase the power budget 120w to 190W by simply upgrading the power supply, the NETGEAR GS110TPP is well equipped to grow with a business as their needs change. Designed to cool without the use of a fan, the GS110TPP will provide silent operation, which is well-suited for use under a desktop and includes hardware for wall mounting as well. This new NETGEAR 10-Port Gigabit Smart Managed Pro switch GS110TPP delivers a higher PoE budget and includes centralized cloud management activation for easy and informative real-time updates on the health of the network.
In order to provide additional flexibility, the GS110TPP Smart Managed Pro switch includes Single Sign-On registration for firmware and security updates and warranty entitlement; Remote/Cloud Management capability with NETGEAR Insight™ as optional management mode.
NETGEAR Insight™ Cloud management enables fundamental management features allowing businesses simpler configuration and deployment from anywhere using the NETGEAR Insight app from mobile devices, such as smart phones or tablets, or the Insight Cloud Portal from any device with a web browser. With NETGEAR Insight, businesses can quickly discover, set up, receive notifications, monitor and manage their Insight Managed Switches, VPN Routers, Network Storage and Wireless Access Points. They will be informed the minute something happens to your network device and have network management capabilities as if they were standing right in front of it, whether at home, in the office, on the road, or at the beach.
The new NETGEAR Smart Managed Pro 10-port PoE Switch GS110TPP is currently available worldwide from NETGEAR.com and approved vendors for a manufacturer’s suggested price of $219.99 USD
About NETGEAR, Inc.
NETGEAR (NASDAQ: NTGR) is a global networking company that delivers innovative products to consumers, businesses and service providers. The Company's products are built on a variety of proven technologies such as wireless (WiFi and LTE), Ethernet and powerline, with a focus on reliability and ease-of-use. The product line consists of wired and wireless devices that enable networking, broadband access and network connectivity. These products are available in multiple configurations to address the needs of the end-users in each geographic region in which the Company's products are sold. NETGEAR products are sold in approximately 23,000 retail locations around the globe, and through approximately 22,000 value-added resellers, as well as multiple major cable, mobile and wireline service providers around the world. The company's headquarters are in San Jose, Calif., with additional offices in approximately 25 countries. More information is available from the NETGEAR investor page or by calling (408) 907-8000. Connect with NETGEAR on Twitter, Facebook and our blog.
©2019 NETGEAR, Inc. NETGEAR, the NETGEAR logo, and ProSAFE are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of NETGEAR, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and/or other countries. Other brand and product names are for identification purposes only and may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holder(s). The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. NETGEAR shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein. All rights reserved.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for NETGEAR, Inc.: This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Specifically, statements concerning NETGEAR's business and the expected performance characteristics, specifications, reliability, market acceptance, market growth, specific uses, user feedback and market position of NETGEAR's products and technology are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Safe Harbor. These statements are based on management's current expectations and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, the following: the actual price, performance and ease-of-use of NETGEAR's products may not meet the price, performance and ease-of-use requirements of customers; product performance may be adversely affected by real world operating conditions; failure of products may under certain circumstances cause permanent loss of end user data; new viruses or Internet threats may develop that challenge the effectiveness of security features in NETGEAR's products; the ability of NETGEAR to market and sell its products and technology; the impact and pricing of competing products; and the introduction of alternative technological solutions. Further information on potential risk factors that could affect NETGEAR and its business are detailed in the Company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. NETGEAR undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Source: NETGEAR-G
U.S. Media Contact: Nathan Papadopulos, (408) 890-3889, NPapadopulos@netgear.com
U.S. Sales Inquiries: (408) 907-8000, sales@netgear.com
1 Global Market Insights, Inc., “Global PoE Solutions Market Size” - May 27, 2019
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b45f8ab2-3ab1-4ca9-99aa-f0ebdba12af0
Few Sec ago
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Apple boss Tim Cook was paid over $15 million in 2018
Apple CEO Tim Cook is rolling in it.
By The CEO Magazine
A new Apple filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission shows that Cook was paid US$15,682,219 in 2018.
That figure includes a US$3 million salary and US$12 million in bonus incentives for hitting performance targets linked to sales and operating income. It also includes US$294,082 for trips that Cook made on a private jet.
What’s not included is the enormous stock incentives that Apple provides to its chief executive. In August 2018, shortly after Apple’s market cap soared to over US$1 trillion, Cook cashed in US$121 million of stock that had vested.
Cook still holds around 1.5 million Apple shares — worth around US$228 million at the current share price — that haven’t yet vested.
Several other Apple executives had a base salary of US$1 million.
The median salary for an Apple employee is around US$55,000 a year, according to the same filing. Many of the company’s lowest paid employees are the consumer facing staff in the famous blue t-shirts that work in its retail stores around the world.
Apple states in the filing:
“Apple delivered a year of extraordinary performance in 2018, as we shipped our 2 billionth iOS device, celebrated the 10th anniversary of the App Store, and achieved the strongest net sales in Apple’s history, among many other accomplishments and milestones. Net sales grew $36.4 billion to $265.6 billion, and operating income grew $9.6 billion to $70.9 billion, representing 16% year-over-year growth for each of these key performance measures. We also returned almost $90 billion to our investors through dividends and share repurchases.
“We believe the compensation paid to our named executive officers for 2018 appropriately reflects and rewards their contribution to our performance.”
Cook, now 58, has been Apple’s CEO since August 2011 and was previously Apple’s Chief Operating Officer since October 2005.
Before taking on the CEO role, Cook held a number of other executive positions at Apple. From 2002 to 2005 he was Executive Vice President, Worldwide Sales and Operations, and from 2000 to 2002, he was Senior Vice President, Worldwide Operations, Sales, Service and Support. Prior to that, from 1998 to 2000, Cook served as Senior Vice President, Worldwide Operations.
In March 2015, The Guardian reported that Cook planned to give his US$800 million fortune to charity before he dies.
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How Governing International Trade in Energy Can Enhance EU Energy Security
Renewable Energy Law and Policy Review, Vol. 6, No. 3, pp. 202-219, 2015
18 Pages Posted: 14 Oct 2015 Last revised: 2 Nov 2015
See all articles by Rafael Leal-Arcas
Rafael Leal-Arcas
Queen Mary University of London - School of Law
Date Written: October 14, 2015
Energy security, or the access to energy at an affordable price, is one of the main problems that humanity faces today and the European Union (EU) has to rely on energy-rich countries for its energy needs. This paper offers four ways in which the EU may enhance its energy security through the international trading system.
First, since the regulation of energy in international law is fragmented and largely incoherent, it is essential to understand the overall trade in energy system and determine its net effect in terms of EU energy security.
Second, all forms of energy should be subject to the same rules. Energy may become part of the World Trade Organization (WTO) agenda in the near future. Given that current WTO rules are far from addressing all the needs of energy trade today, is it necessary to have a WTO Agreement on trade in energy? If so, can and should the Energy Charter Treaty be used as a model? Moreover, now that Russia has joined the WTO and that energy is one of its greatest assets in economic terms, would this be the right time to include energy trade as part of the WTO Agreements? Those energy-rich Middle Eastern countries that are not yet WTO Members but wish to become WTO Members will most likely follow Russia. These Middle Eastern countries should prioritize the conclusion of negotiations to enter the WTO in order to integrate fully into the global trading system and protect their growing interests on world markets. WTO membership will certainly help eliminate any discrimination against them in their trade.
Third, since the EU is energy-dependent, it is necessary to propose models for enhanced governance of energy trade to promote energy security. The aim is to find ways so that this can be encouraged normatively. The expansion of the Energy Charter’s membership to countries in the Middle East and North Africa and to the Economic Community of West African States may be an avenue to enhance EU energy security through the creation of an infrastructure that will enhance international, long-distance trade in energy.
Fourth, the aim of the international community is to decarbonize the economy. With renewables, international trade in energy is likely to increase. In turn, the trading system can be a major vehicle towards moving away from fossil fuels to renewable energy. To this end, it can provide fair competition, economies of scale and knowledge transfer. Very little research has been conducted on the impact of preferential trade agreements (PTAs) in addressing climate change mitigation and energy security. It is thus worth exploring the potential of incorporating chapters addressing climate change mitigation and promoting renewable energy within PTAs, for which the EU could make use of its vast network of PTAs. There could well be tangible ways in which the EU can, through its network of PTAs, move towards greater energy independence as renewable energy becomes increasingly economically viable.
Keywords: energy security, international trade in energy, EU energy policy
JEL Classification: N7, Q41, Q42, Q43, K33
Leal-Arcas, Rafael, How Governing International Trade in Energy Can Enhance EU Energy Security (October 14, 2015). Renewable Energy Law and Policy Review, Vol. 6, No. 3, pp. 202-219, 2015. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2674064
Rafael Leal-Arcas (Contact Author)
Queen Mary University of London - School of Law ( email )
Lincoln's Inn Fields
Holborn, London WC2A 3JB
HOME PAGE: http://www.ccls.qmul.ac.uk/staff/lealarcas.html
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Roadside Memorials Policy and Sign Program
Roadside memorials are often placed at the sites of fatal accidents where family and friends can honor and remember lost loved ones. The City of Papillion understands the devastating impact that loss of life from a traffic accident has on family and friends and the need to grieve for a lost loved one.
While the City of Papillion acknowledges the need some people feel to express themselves in this way, the placement of memorials within a public right-of-way can be a safety hazard. In balancing both the grieving process of family and friends and the safety of the traveling public, the City of Papillion’s policy regarding roadside memorials is as follows:
Roadside memorials in the right-of-way are provided a 90-day allowance period. After 90 days, City staff will provide notice at the memorial site that it will need to be removed within 90 days.
If the memorial is not removed after 90 days from the notice, City staff will document and photograph the memorial location, then remove the memorial using the utmost respect.
A notice will provide contact information for where memorial items can be picked up. Removed memorials will be stored for 90 days at the Papillion Public Works Department, where they can be picked up. After 90 days in storage, they will be discarded.
Roadside Memorial Program
The roadside memorial program is an official sign, tree or bench that is provided and placed by the Public Works or Parks Department. A sign may be installed as close as possible to the site where a fatal vehicle accident occurred. Trees and bench locations will be subject to approval by the City. The City currently offers a Commemorative Tree Program that is targeted for City Park’s in honor of a person or event. Please note that Roadside Memorials are not permitted for person whose wrongful conduct was the proximate cause of the crash. If the City's review discloses clear and convincing evidence that the crash resulted from the commission of a serious traffic offense as defined in the State of Nebraska Traffic code, or from the use of a vehicle in the commission of a felony, or from flight from police, the Public Works Department may deny the application and inform applicant in writing. In the event of conflicting wishes among immediate family members or family members of a multiple fatality accident, no memorial will be erected or the memorial will be removed if it's already in place.
The roadside memorials consist of the following:
Sign - White lettering on a blue background, and contains the message “Please Drive Safely”. In addition, a white lettering on a blue background rectangular plaque bearing the words “In Memory of (First Name of Fatality”) may be requested to be installed beneath the “Please Drive Safely” sign. In the event of multiple fatalities and subsequent sign requests at one location, additional first names may be placed on the plaque but only if written permission has been provided from all the families involved. Please find attached an example of a roadside memorial sign.
Tree – Conifer (4-5 Feet Tall) Pine, Spruce, or Fir, Ornamental – (1-2 Inch Diameter) Bradford Pear, Flowering Crab, Hawthorne, Amur Maple, Shade – (1-2 Inch Diameter) – Oak, Maple, Linden, Hackberry, Locust. Please note that the location and species selected must not present any sight line or safety issues as determined by the City.
Bench – Pilot Rock, RJ Thomas Mfg. Co. Model RBB – 24” x 48” with 36” x 60” concrete pad.
Roadside Memorials may be requested within three years following the date of a fatal motor vehicle accident by a member of the immediate family of the victim. Only one memorial will be permitted per victim and the memorial selected may memorialize more than one victim. If application is approved, the applicant will be informed in writing of the decision along with an invoice for the cost of the memorial that compensates the City for its review of the application, the installation of the roadside memorial and its maintenance. The costs of signs are $200, trees $250 and the cost of a bench will be $700. Upon receipt of the non-refundable payment, the City shall manufacture and install the memorial, and shall notify the applicant in writing when the memorial has been installed. Should the memorial become faded, damaged or stolen overtime, the City reserves the right to remove the memorial without replacement unless a replacement application is received within 90 days from the original applicant. The City reserves the right to deny any application. Should the application be denied, a full refund of the application shall be provided to the original applicant. Once the memorial is installed no additional items will be allowed at any time throughout the year at the demarcated roadside memorial.
Roadside Memorial Application
Cleanup Days
One and Six Year Road Plan
Service Line Warranties
Mayor's Hotline
Papillion City Hall
122 E Third Street
Papillion, NE 68046
City Ordinances & Codes
Crime Tracking Service
Papio Vision
How can I contact a City Council member?
Where can I find water and sewer rates?
How can I apply for a building permit?
City of Papillion Home
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Five Greenest Cities In The U.S.
Filed Under:Austin, Boston, eco-friendly, Ecowatch, Eugene, gravy, Green Living, Green U.S. Cities, Mother Nature Network, Oakland, Portland, San Francisco, Stephanie Siemek, Sustainability, The Green Guide
Photo Credit Thinkstock
What makes a city sustainable and “green” and which U.S. cities are among the highest ranking in this category? A list of “Top Greenest US Cities” can have many different results depending on what is consider important in sustainability and eco-friendliness.
One particular list is based off of the idea of Urban Metabolism, which is a model that mimics the circle of life: extraction of resources, use of resources, creation of waste, use of waste to develop more resources, etc. So what cities are developing a way of living that enables them to extract their resources in the most sustainable way, create almost no waste and limit their impact on the earth by utilizing the waste they do emit?
San Francisco, California makes the list because of its use of solar energy and its “Zero Waste” goal, hoped to be reached by 2020. It also has an Artist in Residence Program that gets artists involved in finding creative ways to make art from trash. The city has reached its goal of cutting greenhouse gas (GHG) emission by more than 20 percent from the levels that were being emitted in 1990, according to San Francisco Travel, and it has installed almost 2,000 solar energy systems that are able to supply enough energy to 9,000 residences. San Francisco also passed the “Mandatory Recycling and Composting Ordinance,” which requires all residents and businesses to separate recyclables, compostables and trash into separate bins and Mayor Newsom developed a green building ordinance in 2008, where new residential and commercial buildings must meet green requirements and old buildings are to receive green renovations. It was also the first city to ban plastic shopping bags and it also has the largest compost program in the U.S.
Portland, Oregon definitely makes the list of one of the greenest cities in the nation since it is usually number one on every other list with its planning and sustainabilty initiatives. Portland is consistently working towards becoming the strongest role model in sustainability through its planning of eco-friendly urban design, environmental research, decrease of energy use, development of more green buildings, reduction of waste, compost and recycle programs, use of solar and renewable energy, supply of local sustainable food, programs to mitigate climate change, and the list goes on. The city also has 200 miles of bike lanes and classes where you can learn how to grow your own food. It also has a great Watershed Management Plan that will help reduce storm water runoff, a huge contributor to water pollution, by implementing green streets, roofs and rain gardens.
Austin, Texas makes the list because of its “Green Alley Initiative,” climate program, green roof developments and local and sustainable food. Its Green Alley Initiative is quite creative, by taking an ordinary alley and changes it into sustainable features. It demonstrates how we can live in an eco-friendly world with the use of a pervious pavement, energy-efficient lights, rain gardens and other features conducive to that neighborhood, such as rain barrels, drought-tolerant gardens and other non-environmental related characteristics (local art, decorative fences, furniture, etc.) The Office of Sustainability’s Climate Program is working towards making Austin the leader in fighting global warming by developing its own city initiatives and is working with the rest of the world to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. The city also has a green business network that helps companies become more energy efficient and environmentally friendly and aware that can help them save money and support their local communities. Businesses and residents who decide to build a green roof receive great incentives from the government and Austin’s Community Gardens produce over 100,000 pounds of fresh local, organic food where the Sustainable Food Policy Board developed its own recommendations for Austin’s urban farm code in order to encourage the production of local, sustainably grown food with the cooperation of the city’s government, non-profit organizations and food and farming businesses.
Oakland, California is one of the greenest cities in the U.S. because it provides its residents with fresh, local, organic food, has the cleanest tap water in the nation, contains hydrogen-powered public transit, maintains the country’s oldest wildlife refuge and plans on having zero waste and oil independency by 2020. The Sustainable Oakland 2012-2013 Report states that it is helping local businesses become more sustainable with energy-efficient methods that can help each business save money. The city is working on multiple initiatives to help protect aquatic habitats and taking steps to fight climate change. Oakland is doing its best to protect natural resources and the health of the environment that are known to be easily influenced by a growing population. By closely watching traffic flow in the city they are helping to decrease air pollution from places where cars often idle from traffic jams and encourage public transportation. Oakland’s streets are becoming more bicycle friendly and the city is also ensuring that many residents have accessibility to local parks.
Another city that has great green initiatives is Chicago, IL. CityofChicago.org is dedicated to explaining each of the goals that the city is currently working towards in order to make it one of “the greenest cities in the world,” a personal goal of Mayor Emanuel. So what is Chicago doing in order to reach this goal? It encourages its residents to save water through the MeterSave program and urges the public to plant trees and native plants, as well as use compost bins and rain barrels, by giving rebate incentives through the Sustainable Backyard Program. The city is working to educates people on how to reduce storm water runoff from their property with green design, downspout disconnection, permeable alleys and other storm water control methods. It is also working towards reducing energy use by encouraging renewable energy sources, such as solar energy and green technology, and working towards improving public transportation.
There are multiple ways of ranking cities when it comes to which are the most eco-friendly, but those who are finding ways to use renewable resources and limit their impact are those listed here. Nonetheless, everyone should do their part in promoting sustainability and finding ways to live a “greener” lifestyle regardless of where they live.
You May Also Be Interested In These Stories
Recycling Programs In Philadelphia
Greenest Companies To Work For In Philadelphia
How To Recycle Your Christmas Tree
America’s Natural And Organic Breweries
Stephanie Siemek is a freelance writer whose work can be found on Examiner.com.
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Final Farewells To Sen. John McCain Begin At Arizona Capitol
Filed Under:John McCain, Local TV, Talkers
Follow CBSPHILLY Facebook Twitter
PHOENIX (AP) — Family, friends and constituents were gathering Wednesday at Arizona’s Capitol to pay their respects to Sen. John McCain, the first of two days of services here before he departs the state he has represented since the 1980s.
A private ceremony was set for later Wednesday morning at the Arizona State Capitol Museum rotunda, where McCain will lie in state. McCain died of brain cancer last Saturday at age 81.
Black curtains dressed up the rotunda’s Arizona State Capitol Museum, which on a typical day hosts tourists and history buffs as well state capitol workers bustling from one office to another. Arizona and U.S. flags encircled the room.
Before the ceremony started, veterans and active military members had taken spots on the sidewalk to watch the hearse that will bring McCain’s body from a funeral home to the Capitol. Other military members in uniform congregated on the Capitol plaza.
Veteran Judith Hatch handed out flags to those assembled, saying Arizona lost a champion for the military.
“We definitely have lost a strong advocate, so we’ll need someone who is going to step up to the plate,” Hatch said.
The ceremony will include remarks from Gov. Doug Ducey and former U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl, plus a benediction from Sen. Jeff Flake. It will also mark the first appearance of McCain’s family members since the longtime Arizona senator died of brain cancer on Saturday at age 81.
Later in the afternoon, the Capitol will be open to members of the public who want to pay their respects. The viewing will go on as long as people are waiting in line, Rick Davis, McCain’s former presidential campaign manager, said Monday.
For some Arizona residents, McCain has been a political fixture in the state for their entire lives. He took office in Arizona in the early 1980s, first as a congressman and then as a senator in the seat once held by Sen. Barry Goldwater.
Crews spent the past several days preparing the Capitol for the visitors, hauling in chairs, cleaning up the building and assembling dozens of flags. McCain is the third person to lie in state in the rotunda in the last 40 years; others were Arizona State Senator Marilyn Jarrett in 2006 and Olympic gold medalist Jesse Owens, a Tucson resident, in 1980.
Thursday morning will see a procession through Phoenix on the way to a memorial service at North Phoenix Baptist Church, with the public invited to line the route along Interstate 17.
The memorial service will see multiple tributes, readings and musical performances, including a tribute from former Vice President Joe Biden. Musical choices include a performance of “Amazing Grace” by the Brophy Student Ensemble and a recessional to “My Way” by Frank Sinatra.
From there, McCain will depart Arizona for the last time from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
Another viewing will be at the U.S. Capitol on Friday, with a final memorial service at the Washington National Cathedral.
A website laying out details for the services says to send any flowers to a local VA hospital.
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Photos / Celebrity Photos / Bollywood Photos
Mahie Gill reveals she is a proud mother of a three-year-old daughter
Actress Mahie Gill said she was never asked about her personal life and revealed that she gave birth to her daughter Veronica, who lives with her in Mumbai. Let’s take a look at the details...
/ celebs/bollywood/mahie-gill-pictures/eventshow/70056923.cms
Mahie Gill reveals she is a proud mother of a three-year-old daughter Pics | Mahie Gill reveals she is a proud mother of a three-year-old daughter Photos | Mahie Gill reveals she is a proud mother of a three-year-old daughter Portfolio Pics | Mahie Gill reveals she is a proud mother of a three-year-old daughter Personal Photos - Times of India Photogallery
Bollywood actress Mahie Gill, who shot to fame after she featured in ‘Dev D’, is making headlines after she revealed that she is a mother of a three-year-old daughter. Mahie, who has mostly remained silent about her personal life, spoke about her daughter for the first time. During an interview with Navbharat Times, Mahie Gill revealed that her daughter will turn three in August 2019. She said, “I am very proud that I am the mother of a daughter. Yes, I have not been married yet, when I want to marry, I will do it. In August this year, my child will be three years old.”Mahie added that she never chose to reveal that she is a mother earlier because she was never asked this question. The actress also revealed that she is not single. Talking about her wedding plans, she told the daily, “What is the need for marriage? It all depends on their own thinking and time. Families and children can be made without marriage. There should be no problem with having children without marriage, I do not think there is a problem. I think everyone has their own life, everyone has their own principles. Marriage is a beautiful thing, but getting married or not is a personal choice.” On the work front, Mahie Gill will soon be seen in ‘Family of Thakurgunj’, which is all set to hit the screens on July 19, 2019. (All photos: Instagram)
See more of : Mahie Gill
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Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh's pictures
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Sun, 23 Jun 2019 15:32:58 GMT
10: Fixed-Axis Rotation Introduction
[ "article:topic-guide", "authorname:openstax", "license:ccby", "showtoc:no" ]
\(\require{cancel}\)
Periodic Table of the Elements
Physical Constants
Units and Conversions
University Physics
Book: University Physics (OpenStax)
Map: University Physics I - Mechanics, Sound, Oscillations, and Waves (OpenStax)
Contributed by OpenStax
General Physics at OpenStax CNX
We begin to address rotational motion in this chapter, starting with fixed-axis rotation. Fixed-axis rotation describes the rotation around a fixed axis of a rigid body; that is, an object that does not deform as it moves. We will show how to apply all the ideas we’ve developed up to this point about translational motion to an object rotating around a fixed axis. In the next chapter, we extend these ideas to more complex rotational motion, including objects that both rotate and translate, and objects that do not have a fixed rotational axis.
10.0: Prelude to Fixed-Axis Rotation Introduction
In previous chapters, we described motion (kinematics) and how to change motion (dynamics), and we defined important concepts such as energy for objects that can be considered as point masses. Point masses, by definition, have no shape and so can only undergo translational motion. However, we know from everyday life that rotational motion is also very important and that many objects that move have both translation and rotation.
10.1: Rotational Variables
The angular position of a rotating body is the angle the body has rotated through in a fixed coordinate system, which serves as a frame of reference. The angular velocity of a rotating body about a fixed axis is defined as ω(rad/s), the rotational rate of the body in radians per second. If the system’s angular velocity is not constant, then the system has an angular acceleration. The instantaneous angular acceleration is the time derivative of angular velocity.
10.2: Rotation with Constant Angular Acceleration
The kinematics of rotational motion describes the relationships among rotation angle, angular velocity and acceleration, and time. For constant angular acceleration, the angular velocity varies linearly, so the average angular velocity is 1/2 the initial plus final angular velocity over a given time period. A graphical analysis involves finding the area under an angular velocity-vs.-time or angular acceleration-vs.-time graph to get the change in angular displacement and velocity, respectively.
10.3: Relating Angular and Translational Quantities
The linear kinematic equation have the rotational counterparts in which x = θ, v = ω, a = α. A system undergoing uniform circular motion has a constant angular velocity, but points at a distance r from the rotation axis have a linear centripetal acceleration. A system undergoing nonuniform circular motion has an angular acceleration and therefore has both a linear centripetal and linear tangential acceleration at a point a distance r from the axis of rotation.
10.4: Moment of Inertia and Rotational Kinetic Energy
The rotational kinetic energy is the kinetic energy of rotation of a rotating rigid body or system of particles. The moment of inertia for a system of point particles rotating about a fixed axis is the sum of the product between the mass of each point particle and the distance of the point particles to the rotation axis. In systems that are both rotating and translating, conservation of mechanical energy can be used if there are no nonconservative forces at work.
10.5: Calculating Moments of Inertia
Moments of inertia can be found by summing or integrating over every ‘piece of mass’ that makes up an object, multiplied by the square of the distance of each ‘piece of mass’ to the axis. The parallel axis theorem makes it possible to find an object's moment of inertia about a new axis of rotation once it is known for a parallel axis. The moment of inertia for a compound object is simply the sum of the moments of inertia for each individual object that makes up the compound object.
10.6: Torque
The magnitude of a torque about a fixed axis is calculated by finding the lever arm to the point where the force is applied and multiplying the perpendicular distance from the axis to the line upon which the force vector lies by the magnitude of the force. The sign of the torque is found using the right hand rule. The net torque can be found from summing the individual torques about a given axis.
10.7: Newton’s Second Law for Rotation
Newton’s second law for rotation says that the sum of the torques on a rotating system about a fixed axis equals the product of the moment of inertia and the angular acceleration. In the vector form of Newton’s second law for rotation, the torque vector is in the same direction as the angular acceleration. If the angular acceleration of a rotating system is positive, the torque on the system is also positive, and if the angular acceleration is negative, the torque is negative.
10.8: Work and Power for Rotational Motion
The incremental work in rotating a rigid body about a fixed axis is the sum of the torques about the axis times the incremental angle. The total work done to rotate a rigid body through an angle θ about a fixed axis is the sum of the torques integrated over the angular displacement. The work-energy theorem relates the rotational work done to the change in rotational kinetic energy: W_AB = K_B − K_A. The power delivered to a system that is rotating about a fixed axis is the torque times the angul
10.E: Fixed-Axis Rotation Introduction (Exercises)
10.S: Fixed-Axis Rotation Introduction (Summary)
Thumbnail: Brazos wind farm in west Texas. As of 2012, wind farms in the US had a power output of 60 gigawatts, enough capacity to power 15 million homes for a year. (credit: modification of work by “ENERGY.GOV”/Flickr).
Samuel J. Ling (Truman State University), Jeff Sanny (Loyola Marymount University), and Bill Moebs with many contributing authors. This work is licensed by OpenStax University Physics under a Creative Commons Attribution License (by 4.0).
9.S: Linear Momentum and Collisions (Summary)
OpenStax
© Copyright 2019 Physics LibreTexts
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Czechs deploy wild horses from Britain to save biodiversity
byKarel Janicek
In this photo taken on Monday, March 16, 2015, one of the 14 wild mares from Britain's Exmoor National Park rests in an enclosure near the village of Milovice, Czech Republic. Twenty-five years ago it was a military zone where occupying Soviet troops held exercises. Today it's a sanctuary inhabited by wild animals that scientists hope will improve biodiversity among local plants as well as save endangered species. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Twenty-five years ago it was a military zone where occupying Soviet troops held exercises. Today it's a sanctuary inhabited by wild animals that scientists hope will improve biodiversity among local plants as well as save endangered species.
A herd of 14 wild mares from Britain's Exmoor National Park were moved in January to the former Milovice military base, 35 kilometers (22 miles) northeast of Prague, the Czech capital.
After an acclimatization period at a small enclosure, the horses were released Saturday to a 40-hectare (99-acre) area. Their task is to stop the spread of aggressive and evasive grasses—including bushgrass—that are delicacies for them. The invasive plants began to grow after Soviet troops withdrew in 1991, threatening the area's original plants and animals. A stallion will join the mares in April.
Dalibor Dostal, director of European Wildlife, the organization behind the project, said scientists decided that using big-hoofed animals such wild horses, which "maintained the steppe character of nature across Europe for thousands of years," could solve the invasive plant problem in the most effective way. That should also help some 30 threatened species in the area, including the Mountain Alcon Blue butterfly and the Star Gentian flowering plant.
"Alternatives to wild animals are very expensive and their impact on the environment is not very good," Dostal said.
Domestic animals such as sheep were ruled out because they would feed on the endangered plants, and mechanical cutting costs too much.
"(The horses) will move freely on the pastures the whole year. If they have a source of water and enough space, they don't need any care. They are able to care of themselves," Dostal said.
In this photo taken on Monday, March 16, 2015, one of the 14 wild mares from Britain's Exmoor National Park rolls on its back in an enclosure near the village of Milovice, Czech Republic. Twenty-five years ago it was a military zone where occupying Soviet troops held exercises. Today it's a sanctuary inhabited by wild animals that scientists hope will improve biodiversity among local plants as well as save endangered species. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Environmentalists are already planning to expand the territory and use other big-hoofed animals such as European bison.
The Soviet army that stayed after the 1968 Soviet-led invasion of then-Czechoslovakia was the last armed force in the area. Dostal said the soldiers' activities actually simulated the impact of hoofed animals, a reason why "military zones in the Czech Republic are the places with the best biodiversity."
In this photo taken on Monday, March 16, 2015, a herd of 14 wild mares from Britain's Exmoor National Park rest in an enclosure near the village of Milovice, Czech Republic. Twenty-five years ago it was a military zone where occupying Soviet troops held exercises. Today it's a sanctuary inhabited by wild animals that scientists hope will improve biodiversity among local plants as well as save endangered species. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
In this photo taken on Monday, March 16, 2015, some of the 14 wild mares from Britain's Exmoor National Park rest in an enclosure near the village of Milovice, Czech Republic. Twenty-five years ago it was a military zone where occupying Soviet troops held exercises. Today it's a sanctuary inhabited by wild animals that scientists hope will improve biodiversity among local plants as well as save endangered species. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Wild ponies ride to the rescue of unique Czech ecosystem
© 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Citation: Czechs deploy wild horses from Britain to save biodiversity (2015, March 23) retrieved 17 July 2019 from https://phys.org/news/2015-03-czechs-deploy-wild-horses-britain.html
Endangered wild horses head to Mongolia
European bison released into wild Carpathian range
Alaska prepares for wood bison return after a century
Przewalski's wild horses gallop back to life
Ancient beasts roam Spain's wilderness
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How to Reduce Exposure to Obstetric Megaverdicts with AI-Driven Technology
Inside Medical Liability | By: Dr. Alana McGolrick, DNP, RNC-OB, C-EFM and Matthew Sappern, CEO | September 2018: A Florida family was awarded $33.8 million in a medical professional liability (MPL) lawsuit after a judge ruled that the physician had ignored a baby’s low heart rate during delivery, which led to permanent brain damage. In New Mexico, a mother and child were awarded $73.2 million in a suit filed after several errors in patient management during a delivery that left the newborn boy with brain damage and other lifelong injuries.
A $24.7 million judgment awarded in a lawsuit in Hawaii involved a safe delivery of the baby, but the medical center’s care team allegedly disregarded the mother’s physiological abnormalities during delivery and afterwards, leading to sepsis and eventual removal of both kidneys. Similarly, a 31 -year-old New Jersey woman was able to give birth, but her high blood pressure was left untreated during delivery and progressed into a liver disorder that caused fatal seizures. The mother’s family agreed to a $4 million settlement from the hospital and obstetrics/gynecology.
Part of the answer to reducing untoward outcomes during childbirth lies in leveraging available health IT tools, especially artificial intelligence (AI)-driven technology solutions, during labor and delivery. At first glance, AI may seem like a novel, faroff concept. Yet, in reality, AI is here and now. Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri and Watch operating system, and driverassistance technologies in many automakers’ newer vehicles are just a few examples of how AI has been integrated into our daily lives.
Inside hospitals and health systems is no different. AI algorithms embedded in information technology platforms help nurses, physicians, and other clinicians make safe and effective patient care decisions for individuals and populations that decrease MPL and improve patient outcomes. These systems analyze massive amounts of data in seconds, offer insights on trends, and predict outcomes.
Proven and reliable AI-powered technology, however, has not been as widely adopted as it should be across healthcare organizations. Labor and delivery (L&D) units, for example, are in need of decision -support tools that support safe deliveries and help avoid the errors that lead to MPL litigation.
As MPL experts are keenly aware, obstetrics-gynecology physicians face one of the highest rates of MPL claims, if not the highest, among all specialties. This unfortunate distinction is likely exacerbated by the fact that the U.S. has the highest maternal death rate in the developed world, and one that has steadily risen since 1987, according to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Add that concerning trend to increasingly medically complex patients, the nation’s aging and retiring nursing workforce, onerous electronic health record (EHR) charting demands, antiquated fetal monitoring systems in some L&D units, and it seems clear the risks to mother and baby will only continue to escalate.
AI-powered electronic fetal monitoring (EFM) and decision support technology can significantly mitigate these risks, while providing nurses and other clinicians a realtime early-warning system that can identify abnormalities and ensure safe deliveries. By offering “a second set of eyes” for any nurse rounding the L&D unit, AI-powered EFM is an essential tool for healthcare organizations to enable them to meet their patient-safety and care-quality goals.
The perfect storm in L&D
Maternal mortality rates are decreasing in other developed countries such as Germany, France, England, Japan, and Canada, but they are steadily climbing in the U.S.
Several factors are contributing to this troubling statistic. One of the most significant trends is that the profile of a typical new mother in the U.S. has changed drastically in recent decades. In 1970, for example, the average age of a first-time mother was 21.4 years, but that number had risen to 26.3 years in 2014. Likewise, only 2.1% of first-time mothers were aged 35 to 39 years in 1970, compared to 11% in 2012.
These steadily aging mothers often have other comorbid conditions such as obesity, hypertension, and heart disease, which further increase their risks. In fact, the top cause of pregnancy-related death from 2011 to 2014 was cardiovascular diseases.
A third concerning trend in risk management for healthcare organizations’ L&D units is that 55% of registered nurses are aged 50 or older, and more than 1 million RNs are expected to reach retirement age within the next 10 years. As these nurses retire, a shortage of RNs is expected. By 2030, high-population states such as California, Texas, and New Jersey are expected to need thousands of nurses. Similar shortages of licensed practical nurses (LPNs) are also expected that year in nearly every state, but particularly Texas, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Maryland, and Georgia.
Newly educated and trained nurses could fill these vacant positions, but they would lack the experience and assessment skills of their more seasoned colleagues. In addition, today’s nurses spend as much as 35% of their time charting in EHRs and just 7% on patient care at the bedside.
Adding AI to nursing workflows
So, a more complex patient, combined with overburdened, inexperienced nurses, poses considerable health and safety risks to mother and baby. Although L&D nurses are supported by a physician throughout the delivery, they are responsible for the bedside management and consistent review of fetal monitoring data.
Unfortunately, in some health systems, fetal monitoring reporting is still paperbased and requires the nurse to periodically scan a strip of paper several feet long to identify physiological abnormalities. This often-subjective process must be combined with the nurse’s assessment of the mother’s comorbidities and data from other monitoring equipment.
Most health systems have upgraded to EFM devices, but most simply convert the paper-based reporting to an electronic image. While offering unlimited and convenient data storage, these typical legacy EFM systems present no automated analytical or predictive insight into the baby or mother that can help guide safer or more effective clinical decisions.
Advanced AI-powered EFM, however, offers the push-button convenience of electronic reporting and access, and it also notifies clinicians about patients whose conditions are worsening. These early-warning systems, shown to be highly effective in research, continuously analyze fetal heart rate, contractions, and labor progression, and also provide maternal vital sign alerts. Notification thresholds can be configured by each organization, and the actual alerts appear on the department census board.
Such early warnings support inexperienced nurses who may be unable to rapidly identify physiological abnormalities and intervene. The technology offers realtime, easily interpreted insight for a rapid response, including contacting the physician for a consult. Further supporting safety and reducing risk, physicians can view patient and fetal data from the AIpowered technology from anywhere, so the intervention is not delayed and the safety of mother and baby is protected.
Safer, reliable monitoring and deliveries
Healthcare organizations that have implemented AI-powered EFM are already experiencing improvements in safety and liability reduction. One pilot study at six of 29 hospitals in a large health system assessed how a maternal early-warning tool affected the four most common areas of maternal morbidity: sepsis, cardiopulmonary dysfunction, preeclampsia/ hypertension, and hemorrhage. Researchers found that the system resulted in significant reductions in severe maternal morbidity and composite morbidity, while the non-pilot-study hospital outcomes were unchanged.
Similarly, research by MedStar Health, a Maryland-based health system, found that using AI-powered decision support technology over a 10-year period resulted in a 54% reduction in the use of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, assisted ventilation, or intubation; a 52% decline in unanticipated neonatal intensive care unit transfers; and stabilized Cesarean rates.
Further reducing MedStar’s risk is that its technology automatically captures data in its EHR using the industry standard National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) terminology. This means that, for any legal inquiry or action, there will be a comprehensive, verifiable record that is easily retrieved, unlike with paper fetal strips that can be damaged or lost. Performance reviews or safety audits are also much more advantageous to organizations with a complete, integrated record of the care episodes.
Tools designed for real L&D environments
Whether she is having her first or fifth child, the average American mother is changing. She is older and often has multiple chronic conditions, all of which pose risks to herself and the baby. More nurses, however, will lack the experience to manage these increasingly complex patients or recognize abnormalities that require immediate intervention. Care teams failing to respond, or intervening too late, can potentially lead to harm of the baby or mother.
AI-powered EFM and decision support technology effectively confront these challenges. Such advanced systems also improve the efficiency and data integrity of L&D units transitioning from paperbased fetal monitoring or EFM without automated data analytics. Implementation of these clinically validated tools nurtures safer and lower-risk care environments, with fewer MPL claims—and better outcomes for both mother and baby.
By Lexy Garrett|2019-05-07T13:20:02+00:00January 10th, 2019|Articles, News|Comments Off on How to Reduce Exposure to Obstetric Megaverdicts with AI-Driven Technology
HealthcareNOW Radio: Healthcare de Jure with Matthew Sappern, CEO of PeriGen
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Tag: ecology
Workshop: Becoming with Alien Encounters and Speculative Storytelling
On 23 May, 2019 23 May, 2019 By Machinic AssemblageIn Events, KTH, News, Workshops
Welcome to the workshop “Becoming with Alien Encounters and Speculative Storytelling in a More-than-human World” that takes place on 4th June at 13:15 – 16:00, in the big seminar room at Division of History of Science, Technology and Environment, KTH (Teknikringen 74 D, Stockholm).
Speculative storytelling refers to a wide range of narrative fiction, poetic and artistic articulations that employ ’fantastic’, supernatural, spiritual or other non-mimetic elements. In the times of the climate change and environmental crisis, accompanied by futuristic ’technology-will-save-us’ scenarios, on the one hand, and visions of ‘doom and gloom’, on the other, speculative storytelling has gained momentum as a way to reimagine futures beyond the human-centred narratives of the Anthropocene. This, importantly, includes a reimagining and experimentally re-establishing of new posthuman relationalities, corpo-affectively grounded in a situated caring ethics, as well as a decentring and deconstruction of the sovereign human subject and its claim to an exceptional position of enunciation. In this poetic/artistic-philosophical workshop, we will reflect on theoretical and practical tools to be interpellated to approach the radically different, without gesturing towards anthropomorphisation or domestication. Alongside of the theorising, we will also, through poetic-artistic articulations, explore the processes of decentring the human subject position and preparing for ’alien encounters’ – what in the ethics of Gilles Deleuze is framed as ’making yourself worthy of the event’. We will draw examples from alien encounters with lichen, algae, pollen, and underwater creatures, among others. As part of the workshop, we will invite the audience to try out their own approaches to such encounters through short writing prompts.
Speakers/workshop facilitators:
Katja Aglert, independent artist and researcher, SE
Line Henriksen, University of Copenhagen and IT University of Copenhagen, DK
Nina Lykke, University of Linköping, SE
Camila Marambio, Melbourne University, AUS
Tara Mehrabi, Karlstad University, SE
Marietta Radomska, Linköping University, SE and University of Helsinki, FI
Photo: Marietta Radomska
Bios:
Katja Aglert is a Stockholm based independent artist and researcher whose practice – situated in feminist, more-than-human imaginaries – is transdisciplinary in nature, and includes both individual and collaborative projects. Currently she examines artistically through hybrid forms of storytelling how we through the experiences of multi-beings-encounters can investigate what it can mean to materialise perspectives beyond the human-centred narratives. She exhibited widely, including venues such as Marabouparken and Biologiska Museet, Stockholm (SE); Solyanka State Gallery, Moscow (RU); Polarmuseet, Tromsø (NO); Fotografisk center, Copenhagen (DK); FLORA ars+natura, Bogota (COL); Museum for Contemporary Art, Santiago (CHL). She is an executive board member of The Seed Box, an international environmental humanities collaboratory headquartered at Linköping University. She teaches regularly at Umeå Art Academy, and Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts, and Design. katjaaglert.com
Line Henriksen, PhD is a lecturer in Gender Studies at the University of Copenhagen and IT University Copenhagen, DK. She holds a PhD in Gender Studies from the Unit of Gender Studies at Linköping University, Sweden. Henriksen has published on the subjects of monster theory, hauntology and digital media in journals such as Women & Performance and Somatechnics, and her fiction has appeared in Andromeda Spaceways and Tales to Terrify, among others. She is a founding member of the Monster Network.
Nina Lykke, PhD, Professor Emerita, Gender Studies, Linköping University, Sweden. Co-founder of Queer Death Studies Network, and The International Network for ECOcritical and DECOlonial Research. Current research: queering of cancer, death, and mourning in queerfeminist materialist, decolonial and eco-critical perspectives; autophenomenographic and poetic writing. Recent publications: Queer Widowhood. Lambda Nordica. 2015:4; Academic Feminisms: Between Disidentification, Messy Everyday Utopianism, and Cruel Optimism. Feminist Encounters. 2017:1(1); When death cuts apart, in: Juvonen & Kohlemainen: Affective Inequalities in Intimate Relationships. Routledge, New York 2018; Rethinking socialist and Marxist legacies in feminist imaginaries of protest from postsocialist perspectives. Social Identities. Journal for the Study of Race, Nation and Culture. 2018:24 (2). Website: https://ninalykke.net
Camila Marambio is curator of Ensayos, and her work with the program has been represented in exhibitions and performances at the Kadist Art Foundation, Paris; the Institute for Art and Olfaction, Los Angeles; BHQFU, New York; Puerto de Ideas, Valparaíso; Festival Cielos del Infinito, Puerto Williams, CL; Kurant, Tromsø, NO; and Psi #22, Melbourne, AU. Currently a PhD Candidate in Curatorial Practice at MADA in Melbourne, Australia, Marambio received an M.A. in Modern Art: Critical Studies at Columbia University and a Master of Experiments in Art and Politics at Science Po in Paris; attended the Curatorial Programme at de Appel Arts Center in Amsterdam; and was Head Curator at Matucana 100 (Santiago, CL) and Assistant Curator at Exit Art (New York, NY).
Tara Mehrabi, PhD, is a Lecturer at the Centre for Gender Studies, Karlstad University (Sweden). She is a feminist technoscience studies scholar who is interested in the intersection of gender studies, medical humanities and environmental humanities. She is a founding member of Queer Death Studies Network and a member of The Posthumanities Hub. Meharbi is the author of the monograph Making Death Matter: A Feminist Technoscience Study of Alzheimer’s Sciences in the Laboratory (2016). She has published in anthologies such as Animal Places. Lively Cartographies of Human Animal Relations, (eds.) by J. Bull, T. Holmberg & C. Åsberg, Routledge (2018), Gendering Drugs: feminist studies of pharmaceuticals, (ed.) by E. Johnson, Palgrave (2017) and journal Gender, Women & Research (2018). Website: https://taramehrabi.wordpress.com/.
Marietta Radomska, PhD, is a Postdoc at the Department of Thematic Studies (Gender Studies), Linköping University, SE, and at the Department of Cultures (Art History), University of Helsinki, FI. She is the co-director of The Posthumanities Hub; founder of The Eco- and Bioart Research Network, co-founder of International Network for ECOcritical and DECOlonial Studies and a founding member of Queer Death Studies Network. Her current research focuses on ecologies of death in the context of contemporary art. She is the author of the monograph Uncontainable Life: A Biophilosophy of Bioart (2016), and has published in Australian Feminist Studies, Somatechnics, and Angelaki, among others. Website: https://mariettaradomska.com/
The Posthumanities Hub Seminar with Dr. Line Henriksen (University of Copenhagen)
On 5 Mar, 2019 11 Mar, 2019 By Machinic AssemblageIn Events, KTH
Welcome to The Posthumanities Hub Seminar with Dr. Line Henriksen (University of Copenhagen, Denmark) on “Weird Ecologies – Stories from the Void and the Web”!
The seminar takes place on 12 March 2019 at 10:15 – 12:00 in the room HYPATIA at the Department of History and Philosophy (a corridor opposite to the usual seminar location at the Division of History of Science, Technology and Environment), KTH Royal Institute of Technology (Teknikringen 74D, level 5, SE-114 28 Stockholm).
Weird Ecologies – stories from the void and the web
Line Henriksen
In the podcast series Welcome to Night Vale, the host of the show – Cecil Palmer – warns his listeners about the night sky: behind the stars there is nothing at all, he says, and who knows what might be staring back at us from this nothingness? Who knows what will arrive from out of the void? “Fear the night sky!” he concludes, for it is unfathomable. Disregarding Cecil’s impossible but otherwise excellent advice to avoid the night sky at all cost, this seminar explores portrayals of the void in contemporary digital storytelling, focusing especially on the speculative sub-genre of ‘the weird’. In digital weird fiction, the nothingness of the void seems to hint at the limits of human thought and imagination, which makes it a favoured antagonist – but perhaps there is also a promise to the void, as it reminds us that the world is always much more complex than we can possibly know, and the ecologies we form part of much weirder than we can ever imagine? In other words, perhaps what is arriving from out of the void of the night sky is not something to fear, but a promise that the impossible (something arriving from out of nothing) is possible, including – maybe – a more just world?
Line Henriksen is a lecturer in Gender Studies at the University of Copenhagen. She holds a BA in Comparative Literature and an MA in Modern Culture and Cultural Communication, both from the University of Copenhagen, as well as a PhD in Gender Studies from The Unit of Gender Studies at Linköping University. She is the author of the monograph In the Company of Ghosts – Hauntology, Ethics, Digital Monsters (2016), and she has published on the subjects of monster theory, hauntology, creepypasta, speculative fiction and digital storytelling. She is the author of award nominated speculative fiction and a founding member of The Monster Network as well as Queer Death Studies Network.
The Posthumanities Hub Seminar with Dr. Marietta Radomska at KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm (22nd January)
On 10 Jan, 2019 10 Jan, 2019 By Machinic AssemblageIn Events, KTH, Linköping University, News
Welcome to The Posthumanities Hub seminar with Dr. Marietta Radomska on Deterritorialising Death: Queer(ing) Methodology and Contemporary Art, which takes place on 22 January (Tuesday) at 10:15 – 12:00 in the seminar room at Division of History of Science, Technology and Environment KTH, Teknikringen 74 D, Stockholm.
Deterritorialising Death: Queer(ing) Methodology and Contemporary Art
This paper stems from a project that asks what happens when contemporary art – in a dialogue with feminist materialist philosophies – is mobilised in order to challenge conventional (i.e. anchored in the Western tradition of the autonomous (exclusively) human subject) understandings of death, and assess multiple vulnerabilities and power differentials that form part of the materialisations of ecologies of death in the context of the Anthropocene.
In other words, the project examines how contemporary art read through the lens of feminist materialist philosophies (e.g. Colebrook, MacCormack, Grosz) may – and do – queer, that is, unsettle, subvert and exceed binaries, given norms, normativities, and conventions that frame and govern the bodies and processes constitutive of death, extinction and annihilation, especially in the given environmental context.
In order to do so, we need an adequate set of tools. In this paper, I argue for a tripartite methodology that queers the traditional human-exceptionalist concept of death: (1) feminist biophilosophy as an examination that does not search for an ‘essence’ of life, but instead focuses on the processes that take life beyond itself; (2) ‘the non/living’ (Radomska 2016) as a way to conceptualise death/life entanglement; and (3) queer vitalism as a ground for aesthetics (Colebrook 2014). By discussing each of these components and employing them in the analysis of select artworks, I hope to open up a space for discussion on this queer(ing) methodology’s potential for mobilising a novel feminist-materialist understanding of both ontology and ethics of death.
Marietta Radomska, PhD, is a Postdoc at the Department of Thematic Studies (Gender Studies), Linköping University, SE, and a Visiting Postdoctoral Researcher at the Department of Cultures (Art History), University of Helsinki, FI. She is the co-director of The Posthumanities Hub; founder of The Eco- and Bioart Research Network, co-founder of International Network for ECOcritical and DECOlonial Studies and a founding member of Queer Death Studies Network. Radomska is a feminist philosopher and transdisciplinary gender studies and posthumanities scholar. Her current research project focuses on ecologies of death in the context of contemporary art. She is the author of the monograph Uncontainable Life: A Biophilosophy of Bioart (2016), and has published in Australian Feminist Studies, Somatechnics, and Angelaki, among others.
Mini-symposium ‘Becoming with Alien Encounters and Speculative Storytelling’: Part 4 (and last)
On 3 Apr, 2018 3 Apr, 2018 By Machinic AssemblageIn Events, News, Symposiums
Image: Marietta Radomska, Archives of Lichenology (2017)
There are only three days left till the Symposium “Becoming with Alien Encounters and Speculative Storytelling”, co-organised by The Posthumanities Hub and TEMA GENUS Higher Seminar Series at Linköping University, and thus, we continue to provide you with some sneak peeks into what you’ll be able to fully enjoy on 5th April at Tema Genus!
More specifically, every other day we’ve given you a little insight into what our speakers are going to talk about. Or, in other words, every other day you’ve been able to learn a bit more about each presenter and their paper!:)
Today we present our last speaker, Dr. Marietta Radomska!
Marietta Radomska is a Postdoc at Linköping University, SE; co-director of the Posthumanities Hub; founder of The Eco- and Bioart Research Network, co-founder of International Network for Ecocritical and Decolonial Studies and a founding member of Queer Death Studies Network. Her current research project focuses on ecologies of death in the context of contemporary art. She is the author of the monograph Uncontainable Life: A Biophilosophy of Bioart (2016).
Paper abstract:
Non/Living Archives of Lichenology: Between Stories of Living and Dying in a More-than-human World
The ‘Postmodern Synthesis’ of evolutionary biology (Koonin 2009) challenges the paradigmatic ideas of evolutionary decent, reproductive transmission of genes, and the notion of the individual (be it an organism, a population, or a species). As biologist Scott F.Gilbert argues, instead of individuals, we should talk about ‘holobionts’: composite organisms becoming through multiple cooperative processes.
This paper, being itself a piece of speculative storytelling, aims to explore what thinking with and through the figuration of the lichen – a primary example of a holobiont – can do to the cultural imaginaries and our understandings of the ontologies (and ecologies) of living and dying in a more-than-human world.
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Two-minute interview: Stephen Goss, composer and guitarist
Ahead of his visit to the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music next week, world-renowned and acclaimed composer Stephen Goss speaks to Ken Murray about his compositional process, his influences, and what it’s like to hear your music performed by an orchestra.
Hi Stephen. You grew up immersed in both classical and popular music styles. Does popular music play a role in your compositional style or aesthetic?
Yes it does – I have very diverse listening tastes, and I like to be as broad as possible in my range of influences. This isn’t an unusual position these days, as many “classical” composers draw on the popular music they grew up with. I’m often inspired by jazz, prog rock, funk, and other popular music styles – I see my rhythm approach coming from groove-based music as much as it comes from Stravinsky and Bartok. I’m particularly interested in developing hybridised musical languages that combine two or more contrasting styles, and I’m especially drawn to stylistic gear shifts in my music that can create that unsettling feeling of not knowing what will happen next.
Fractured Loop by Stephen Goss, performed by Thomas Carroll on cello and Graham Caskie on piano.
What role do extra-musical themes and influences play in your compositional process?
A large one. Much of my music is programmatic. It often has a narrative element and I like to evoke different places or times. I use novels, artworks, stories, poems, design, and a whole range of other impetuses when planning a piece. I think very much like an architect when I’m planning, because I believe that getting the proportions, structure and contrasts just right will lead to a better end result. The impetus drives the compositional process on each of these architectural levels, and acts as a consistent link between form, method and materials.
You’ve written an impressive number of works for guitar in solo and chamber contexts. As a guitarist yourself, how do you approach writing for the instrument?
I try to make each guitar piece suit the individual playing style of the guitarist who commissioned it. I like to think that I’m writing for someone else’s hands (and musical tastes) rather than my own. Consequently, a piece I write for Zoran Dukic will be completely different to one I write for David Russell, John Williams, or Aniello Desiderio. I tend to write away from the instrument, occasionally reaching for a guitar when I want to try out the practicability of a particular stretch, or right-hand pattern, or a campanella texture, for example.
The number of concerti you have written in recent years is impressive – especially at a time when it could be argued that the concerto is an outdated form. What attracts you to writing these works?
Well, I simply love writing for orchestra. The exhilaration and excitement I get when I hear an orchestra play my music is electrifying. I enjoy the interplay between soloist(s) and orchestra and the dramatic tension that underpins the concerto form. But the reason I’ve written so many – 10 and counting – is because people keep commissioning them!
Watts Chapel by Stephen Goss, performed by Michael Partington on guitar.
Stephen Goss is Chair of Composition at the University of Surrey, Director of the International Guitar Research Centre, and a Professor of Guitar at the Royal Academy of Music in London. His music receives hundreds of performances worldwide each year and has been recorded on over 70 CDs by more than a dozen record labels. His varied output includes orchestral and choral works, chamber music, and solo pieces.
Stephen will be visiting the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music next week to work with composers, guitarists, and chamber musicians. The Guitar Ensemble and New Music Studio will present The Music of Stephen Goss on Friday 27 July at 7.30pm in Melba Hall. Register for this free event.
Banner image: Stephen Goss. Photo by Luca Sage.
Find out about studying Composition at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music
Find out about studying Guitar at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music
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Home / Brands / Joel Escalona
Joel’s passion has led him to found his own studio, focused on the daily role of design and creative direction. This has made him aim for an international and multidisciplinary design agency able to provide contemporary, strategic and technical details concerning product development. To achieve his vision, Joel has worked with several companies, industries and producers in many levels and different contexts.
His work is the result of a methodical projection of each procedure, enabling him to enjoy a full schematic view of the creative process, enriching his studio’s values and vision, which focus on the everyday applications of design. Such efforts have been awarded at the Premio Iconos by Conde Nast’s Architectural Digest and the 6° Bienal Nacional de Diseño (6th National Design Biennial) one of the most prestigious design awards in Mexico.
Born in Mexico City in 1986 and graduated in Industrial Design in 2009 from Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Azcapotzalco, his work has also been exhibited in the mayor design capitals of the world, such as New York, Paris, Milan and Mexico City. He was also selected to take part in the ICFF Studio exhibition at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York and was invited to represent South America Young Design at the Maison & Objet’s special exhibition Talents À La Carte in Paris, also featured in the Salone Internazionale del Mobile Di Milano, Mexico Design Week and the Beijing Design Fair.
Listed as one of the 200 best Mexican designers in the “De la creatividad a la Innovación – 200 Diseñadores Mexicanos”, Joel Escalona has been included in specialized books in China, London, Spain, Mexico and France, and has also been introduced as one of “the new wave of young designers to watch for in the world” by Wallpaper* magazine. Also selected as one of the “50 Emergent Talents of the Americas” by Arquine magazine and published in GQ’s extraordinary young people feature, his work has been displayed in leading magazines and publication covers, making him a Mexican contemporary designer who has nowadays become creative and business director of NONO design company, as well as co-founder and active member of Cooperativa Panorámica, a group of young Mexican designers exploring new design territories.
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HomeFeatures & Columns150 Years Ago This Week150 Years Ago This Week: Jefferson Davis kills a general
150 Years Ago This Week: Jefferson Davis kills a general
By Arthur Candenquist October 4, 2012 150 Years Ago This Week, History Comments Off on 150 Years Ago This Week: Jefferson Davis kills a general
On Saturday, Sept. 27, the Second Conscription Act of the Confederate Congress authorized President Jefferson Davis to call out men between the ages of 35 and 45 for military service. In Washington, President Lincoln interrogated Maj. John Key and ordered his dismissal from military service for allegedly saying that the object of the Battle of Antietam or Sharpsburg was “that neither army shall get much advantage of the other; that both shall be kept in the field until they are exhausted, when we shall make a compromise and save slavery.” Such views were widespread in Gen. George McClellan’s army and Mr. Lincoln was particularly aggravated with Gen. McClellan’s lack of aggressive action since Sept. 17.
Jefferson Davis.
In Kentucky, both Federal and Confederate forces were marching north. A Federal expedition from Columbus to Covington took place on Sept. 28. The next day, at a hotel in Louisville, the Galt House, Union Brig. Gen. Jefferson C. Davis (no relation to Confederate President Jefferson F. Davis) got into a verbal altercation with Brig. Gen. William “Bull” Nelson. Gen. Davis had been slapped in the face by Gen. Nelson after he said Gen. Davis had insulted him. Gen. Davis walked out and returned a few minutes later with a revolver and shot Gen. Nelson, mortally wounding him. Gen. Davis was arrested by Maj. Gen. Don Carlos Buell’s chief of staff, but the murder charges were never prosecuted, and Gen. Davis was restored to service with the help of his politically powerful friend, Gov. Oliver Morton of Indiana.
September closed with Gen. Robert E. Lee’s army in Virginia marching south towards Culpeper County, and in Mississippi, the Confederate Army of West Tennessee, numbering some 22,000 under Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn, marched north from Ripley to Corinth, Miss., where Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans was in command of Union forces. President Lincoln traveled from Washington to Gen. McClellan’s headquarters near Sharpsburg, Md., to confer with his army commander and try to get him to march his army south to destroy Gen. Lee’s army. Mr. Lincoln noted that Gen. McClellan’s troops numbered 88,000 officers and men. The president felt that the Maryland campaign had been a half-hearted effort on Gen. McClellan’s part, and, looking at the thousands of men in the Army of the Potomac, the President remarked, “this is Gen. McClellan’s bodyguard.”
On Oct. 1, Maj. Gen. John C. Pemberton assumed command of the new Confederate Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana, replacing Maj. Gen. Van Dorn, who was with his troops in northeast Mississippi. Gen. Pemberton, a Pennsylvanian by birth, established his headquarters at Vicksburg, Miss., on the Mississippi River. In reaction to President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, the Richmond Whig editorialized: “It is a dash of the pen to destroy four thousand millions of our property, and is as much a bid for the slaves to rise in insurrection, with the assurance of aid from the whole military and naval power of the United States.”
At Corinth, Confederates under Maj. Gens. Earl Van Dorn and Sterling Price attacked the Federal forces under Gen. Rosecrans. After severe fighting and piecemeal assaults, the Federals were driven back into strong defensive positions closer to the city. By nightfall Oct. 3, the fighting ended, with the issue of which army was successful very much in doubt. The overall Union commander, Maj. Gen. Ulysses Grant, at Jackson, Tenn., was not sure where the Confederate attacks would be made or what the outcome of the battle might be. Fighting resumed again early on the morning of Saturday, Oct. 4.
About Arthur Candenquist 194 Articles
A long-time historian, researcher, lecturer and author, Arthur Candenquist serves as secretary-treasurer of the Rappahannock County Sesquicentennial Committee. He can be reached at AC9725@cs.com.
4-H offers lots of opportunities
Letter: Farming, tourism and . . . gratitude
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Entertainment Prime Minister Attends Qatar Olympic Committee’s 40th Anniversary Celebration
Prime Minister Attends Qatar Olympic Committee’s 40th Anniversary Celebration
Doha, HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al-Thani attended Thursday morning the ceremony hosted by Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) on the occasion of its 40th anniversary, held at Kempinski Doha Hotel.
During the ceremony, HE the President of Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al-Thani honored HH Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa Al-Thani as the first president of Qatar Olympic Committee. He also honored a number of top leaders of the sports movement.
A film about the march and achievements of Qatar Olympic Committee during the past 40 years was also presented.
The ceremony was attended by a number of Their Excellences Sheikhs, ministers, heads of Arab and international Olympic committees and guests of the country. (QNA)
Source: Qatar Olympic Committee
نوفو سينماز تفتتح صالة عرض من طراز آيماكس الليزري بتصميم عصري في آي إم جي عالم من المغامرات بدبي
المجلات الصادرة عن مجتمع البحوث العربي تقرر الاستفادة من رؤية عالمية أكبر
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Publications: Wooller, Ron
Stats for Wooller, Ron
Jump to: Journal Article | Conference Paper | Conference Item | Book Chapter
Cannell, B.L., Chambers, L.E., Wooller, R.D. and Bradley, J.S. (2012) Poorer breeding by little penguins near Perth, Western Australia is correlated with above average sea surface temperatures and a stronger Leeuwin Current. Marine and Freshwater Research, 63 (10). pp. 914-925.
Cannell, B., Pollock, K.H., Bradley, S., Wooller, R., Sherwin, W. and Sinclair, J. (2011) Augmenting mark-recapture with beach counts to estimate the abundance of little penguins on Penguin Island, Western Australia. Wildlife Research, 38 (6). pp. 491-500.
Richardson, K.C., Wooller, R.D. and Collins, B.G. (2009) Adaptations to a diet of nectar and pollen in the marsupial Tarsipes rostratus (Marsupialia: Tarsipedidae). Journal of Zoology, 208 (2). pp. 285-297.
Wooller, R.D., Renfree, M.B., Russell, E.M., Dunning, A., Green, S.W. and Duncan, P. (2009) Seasonal changes in a population of the nectar-feeding marsupial Tarsipes spencerae (Marsupialia: Tarsipedidae). Journal of Zoology, 195 (2). pp. 267-279.
Wooller, R.D., Saunders, D.A., Bradley, J.S. and Reberia, C.P. (2008) Geographical variation in size of an Australian honeyeater (Aves: Meliphagidae): an example of Bergmann's rule. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 25 (4). pp. 355-363.
Powell, Christopher D.L., Wooller, R.D. and Bradley, J.S. (2007) Breeding biology of the Flesh-footed Shearwater (Puffinus carneipes) on Woody Island, Western Australia. Emu, 107 (4). pp. 275-283.
Garkaklis, M.J., Bradley, J.S. and Wooller, R.D. (2004) Digging and soil turnover by a mycophagous marsupial. Journal of Arid Environments, 56 (3). pp. 569-578.
Wooller, S.J. and Wooller, R.D. (2004) Seed viability in relation to pollinator availability in Banksia baxteri. Australian Journal of Botany, 52 (2). pp. 195-1999.
Surman, C.A. and Wooller, R.D. (2003) Comparative foraging ecology of five sympatric terns at a sub-tropical island in the eastern Indian Ocean. Journal of Zoology, 259 (3). pp. 219-230.
Arena, P.C. and Wooller, R.D. (2003) The reproduction and diet of Egernia kingii (Reptilia : Scincidae) on Penguin Island, Western Australia. Australian Journal of Zoology, 51 (5). pp. 495-504.
Wooller, R.D. and Wooller, S.J. (2003) The role of non-flying animals in the pollination of Banksia nutans. Australian Journal of Botany, 51 (5). pp. 503-507.
Wooller, S.J. and Wooller, R.D. (2002) Mixed mating in Banksia media. Australian Journal of Botany, 50 (5). pp. 627-631.
Wooller, S.J., Wooller, R.D. and Brown, K.L. (2002) Regeneration by three species of Banksia on the south coast of Western Australia in relation to fire interval. Australian Journal of Botany, 50 (3). pp. 311-317.
Comer, S.J. and Wooller, R.D. (2002) A comparison of the passerine avifaunas of a rehabilitated minesite and a nearby reserve in south-western Australia. Emu, 102 (3). pp. 305-311.
Wooller, S.J. and Wooller, R.D. (2001) Seed set in two sympatric banksias, Banksia attenuata and B. baxteri. Australian Journal of Botany, 49 (5). pp. 597-602.
Dunlop, J.N., Surman, C.A. and Wooller, R.D. (2001) The marine distribution of seabirds from Christmas Island, Indian Ocean. Emu, 101 (1). pp. 19-24.
Morris, W.J. and Wooller, R.D. (2001) The structure and dynamics of an assemblage of small birds in a semi-arid eucalypt woodland in south-western Australia. Emu, 101 (1). pp. 7-12.
Wienecke, B.C., Bradley, J.S. and Wooller, R.D. (2000) Annual and seasonal variation in the growth rates of young little penguins Eudyptula minor in Western Australia. Emu, 100 (2). pp. 139-147.
Garavanta, C.A.M. and Wooller, R.D. (2000) Courtship behaviour and breeding biology of bridled TernsSterna anaethetus on Penguin Island, Western Australia. Emu, 100 (3). pp. 169-174.
Garkaklis, M.J., Bradley, J.S. and Wooller, R.D. (2000) Digging by vertebrates as an activity promoting the development of water-repellent patches in sub-surface soil. Journal of Arid Environments, 45 (1). pp. 35-42.
Garavanta, C.A.M., Wooller, R.D. and Richardson, K.C. (2000) Movement patterns of honey possums, Tarsipes rostratus, in the Fitzgerald River National Park, Western Australia. Wildlife Research, 27 (2). pp. 179-183.
Wooller, R.D., Richardson, K.C., Garavanta, C.A.M., Saffer, V.M. and Bryant, K.A. (2000) Opportunistic breeding in the polyandrous honey possum, Tarsipes rostratus. Australian Journal of Zoology, 48 (6). p. 669.
Bradley, J.S., Cox, J.M., Nicholson, L.W., Wooller, R.D., Hamer, K.C. and Hill, J.K. (2000) Parental influence upon the provisioning schedules of nestling Short-tailed Shearwaters Puffinus tenuirostris. Journal of Avian Biology, 31 (4). pp. 522-526.
Surman, C.A. and Wooller, R.D. (2000) Seabirds off the South-western coast of Australia. Emu, 100 (4). pp. 312-317.
Wooller, R.D., Richardson, K.C. and Bradley, G.O. (1999) Dietary constraints upon reproduction in an obligate pollen- and nectar-feeding marsupial, the honey possum (Tarsipes rostratus). Journal of Zoology, 248 (3). pp. 279-287.
Wooller, R.D. and Wooller, S.J. (1998) Consistent individuality in the timing and magnitude of flowering by Adenanthos obovatus (Proteaceae). Australian Journal of Botany, 46 (6). pp. 595-608.
Garkaklis, M.J., Bradley, J.S. and Wooller, R.D. (1998) The effects of Woylie (Bettongia penicillata) foraging on soil water repellency and water infiltration in heavy textured soils in southwestern Australia. Austral Ecology, 23 (5). pp. 492-496.
Wooller, R.D., Richardson, K.C., Garavanta, C.A.M., Saffer, V.M., Anthony, C. and Wooller, S.J. (1998) The influence of annual rainfall upon capture rates of a nectar-dependent marsupial. Wildlife Research, 25 (2). pp. 165-169.
Calver, M.C. ORCID: 0000-0001-9082-2902 and Wooller, R.D. (1998) A non-distructive laboratory exercise for teaching some principles of predation. Journal of Biological Education, 33 (1). pp. 45-48.
Surman, C.A., Cheshire, N.G. and Wooller, R.D. (1997) Gould's petrel Pterodroma leucoptera off South-Western Australia. Marine Ornithology, 25 (1-2). pp. 70-71.
Hamer, K.C., Nicholson, L.W., Hill, J.K., Wooller, R.D. and Bradley, J.S. (1997) Nestling obesity in procellariiform seabirds: temporal and stochastic variation in provisioning and growth of short-tailed shearwaters Puffinus tenuirostris. Oecologia, 112 (1). pp. 4-11.
Meathrel, C.E., Bradley, J.S., Wooller, R.D. and Skira, I.J. (1993) The effect of parental condition on egg-size and reproductive success in short-tailed shearwaters Puffinus tenuirostris. Oecologia, 93 (2). pp. 162-164.
Wooller, R.D., Bradley, J.S. and Croxall, J.P. (1992) Long-term population studies of seabirds. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 7 (4). pp. 111-114.
Richardson, K.C., Wooller, R.D. and Casotti, G. (1991) The relative sizes and asymmetry of kidneys in passerine birds from Australia and North America. Journal of Anatomy, 175 . pp. 181-5.
Klomp, N.I. and Wooller, R.D. (1991) Patterns of arrival and departure by breeding little penguins at Penguin Island, Western Australia. Emu, 91 (1). pp. 32-35.
Wooller, R.D., Dunlop, J.N., Klomp, N.I., Meathrel, C.E. and Wienecke, B.C. (1991) Seabird abundance, distribution and breeding patterns in relation to the Leeuwin Current. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia, 74 . pp. 129-132.
Klomp, N.I., Meathrel, C.E., Wienecke, B.C. and Wooller, R.D. (1991) Surface nesting by little penguins on penguin island, western australia. Emu, 91 (3). pp. 190-193.
Richardson, K.C. and Wooller, R.D. (1990) Adaptations of the alimentary tracts of some Australian lorikeets to a diet of pollen and nectar. Australian Journal of Zoology, 38 (6). pp. 581-586.
Wooller, R.D., Richardson, K.C. and Wells, D.R. (1990) Allometric relationships of the gastrointestinal tracts of insectivorous passerine birds from Malaysia, New Guinea and Australia. Australian Journal of Zoology, 38 (6). pp. 665-340.
Serventy, D.L., Gunn, B.M., Skira, I.J., Bradley, J.S. and Wooller, R.D. (1989) Fledgling translocation and philopatry in a seabird. Oecologia, 81 (3). pp. 428-429.
Withers, P.C., Richardson, K.C. and Wooller, R.D. (1989) Metabolic physiology of euthermic and torpid honey possums, Tarsipes rostratus. Australian Journal of Zoology, 37 (6). pp. 685-693.
Trayler, K.M., Brothers, D.J., Wooller, R.D. and Potter, I.C. (1989) Opportunistic foraging by three species of cormorants in an Australian estuary. Journal of Zoology, 218 (1). pp. 87-98.
Wooller, R.D. and Calver, M.C. ORCID: 0000-0001-9082-2902 (1988) Changes in an assemblage of small birds in the understorey of dry sclerophyll forest in south-western Australia after fire. Australian Wildlife Research, 15 (3). pp. 331-338.
Saunders, D.A. and Wooller, R.D. (1988) Consistent individuality of voice in birds as a management tool. Emu, 88 (1). pp. 25-32.
Wooller, R.D. and Richardson, K.C. (1988) Morphological relationships of passerine birds from Australia and New Guinea in relation to their diets. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 94 (2). pp. 193-201.
Richardson, K.C. and Wooller, R.D. (1988) The alimentary-tract of a specialist frugivore, the mistletoebird, dicaeum-hirundinaceum, in relation to its diet. Australian Journal of Zoology, 36 (4). pp. 373-382.
Wooller, R.D., Richardson, K.C. and Pagendham, C.M. (1988) The digestion of pollen by some Australian birds. Australian Journal of Zoology, 36 (4). pp. 357-362.
Richardson, K.C., Yamada, J. and Wooller, R.D. (1988) An immunohistochemical study of the gastrointestinal endocrine-cells of the new holland honeyeater, phylidonyris-novaehollandiae. Australian Journal of Zoology, 36 (5). pp. 483-496.
Richardson, K.C. and Wooller, R.D. (1986) The structures of the Gastrointestinal Tracts of honeyeaters and other small birds in relation to their diets. Australian Journal of Zoology, 34 (2). pp. 119-117.
Wooller, R.D. (1984) Bill shape and size in honeyeaters and other small insectivorous birds in Western Australia. Australian Journal of Zoology, 32 (5). pp. 657-613.
Wooller, R.D., Saunders, D.A. and Rebeira, C.P.D (1984) Consistent individuality in the calls of Australian Shelducks Tadorna tadornoideson Rottnest Island, Western Australia. Emu, 84 (3). pp. 175-177.
Wooller, R.D., Russell, E.M., Renfree, M.B. and Towers, P.A. (1983) A comparison of seasonal changes in the pollen loads of nectarivorous marsupials and birds. Wildlife Research, 10 (2). pp. 311-317.
Wooller, R.D., Russell, E.M. and Renfree, M.B. (1983) A technique for sampling pollen carried by vertebrates. Wildlife Research, 10 (2). pp. 433-434.
Tullis, K.J., Calver, M.C. ORCID: 0000-0001-9082-2902 and Wooller, R.D. (1982) The invertebrate diets of small birds in Banksia woodland near Perth, W.A., during winter. Australian Wildlife Research, 9 (2). pp. 303-309.
Calver, M.C. ORCID: 0000-0001-9082-2902 and Wooller, R.D. (1982) A technique assessing the taxa, length, dry weight and energy content of the arthropod prey of birds. Australian Wildlife Research, 9 (2). pp. 293-301.
Wooller, R.D. and Dunlop, J.N. (1981) Annual variation in the clutch and egg sizes of silver gulls, larus novaehollandiae. Wildlife Research, 8 (2). pp. 431-433.
Wooller, R.D. and Bradley, J.S. (1981) Consistent individuality in the calls of Spinifex birds Eremiornis carteri on Barrow Island, WA. Emu, 81 (1). p. 40.
Wooller, R.D. and Calver, M.C. ORCID: 0000-0001-9082-2902 (1981) Diet of three insectivorous birds on Barrow Island, WA. Emu, 81 (1). pp. 48-50.
Wooller, R.D. and Calver, M.C. ORCID: 0000-0001-9082-2902 (1981) Feeding Segregation within an Assemblage of Small Birds in the Karri Forest Understorey. Australian Wildlife Research, 8 (2). pp. 401-410.
Wooller, R.D. (1981) Seasonal changes in a community of honeyeaters in South-Western Australia. Emu, 81 (1). pp. 50-51.
Calver, M.C. ORCID: 0000-0001-9082-2902 and Wooller, R.D. (1981) Seasonal differences in the diets of small birds in the karri forest understorey. Australian Wildlife Research, 8 (3). pp. 653-657.
Wooller, R.D. and Milewski, A.V. (1981) Site-fidelity in some birds of the understorey in Karri forest. Emu, 81 (3). pp. 171-174.
Wooller, R.D. and Dunlop, J.N. (1981) The use of a single external measurement for determining sex in a population of silver gulls, Larus novaehollandiae. Wildlife Research, 8 (3). p. 679.
Wooller, R.D. and Brooker, K.S. (1980) The effects of controlled burning on some birds of the understorey in Karri forest. Emu, 80 (3). pp. 165-166.
Wooller, R.D. and Dunlop, J.N. (1980) The use of simple measurements to determine the age of silver gull eggs. Wildlife Research, 7 (1). pp. 113-115.
Wooller, R.D. and Dunlop, J.N. (1979) Multiple laying by the silver gull, lams novaehollandiae stephens, on Carnac Island, Western Australia. Wildlife Research, 6 (3). pp. 325-335.
Richardson, K.C., Wooller, R.D. and Collins, B.G. (1984) The diet of the honey possum Tarsipes rostratus. In: Proceedings of the Nutrition Society of Australia, V9, Ninth Annual Scientific Meeting, November, Armidale, NSW, Australia pp. 110-113.
Cannell, B., Chambers, L., Bunce, M., Murray, D., Wooller, R. and Bradley, S. (2013) Impact of the marine heatwave on the Little Penguin: Change in diet and the lowest breeding success since records began in 1986. In: Invited speaker at South West Marine Conference, 9 May, Bunker Bay, Western Australia.
Cannell, B., Chambers, L., Bunce, M., Murray, D., Wooller, R. and Bradley, S. (2013) Impact of the marine heatwave on the Little Penguin: Change in diet and the lowest breeding success since records began in 1986. In: Invited speaker at Department of Fisheries workshop- “Marine heatwave- 2 years on”, 11 March, Perth, Western Australia.
Cannell, B., Bradley, S., Wooller, R., Sinclair, J. and Sherwin, W. (2010) 2008: The year of the global financial crisis and the Perth penguin crisis? In: Abstracts of the Seventh International Penguin Conference, 30 August - 3 September, Boston, USA.
Cannell, B., Bradley, S., Wooller, R., Ropert-Coudert, Y. and Kato, A. (2007) Little Penguins use of Perth metropolitan waters exposes them to risk of injury from watercraft. In: Fourth Biennial Australasian Ornithological Conference, 3 - 5 December, Perth, Western Australia.
Cannell, B.L., Wooller, R.D. and Bradley, S. (2000) Do nearby nursery areas for clupeoid fish dictate the breeding success of Little Penguins Eudyptula minor? In: Abstracts of the Fourth International Penguin Conference, Coquimbo, Chile.
Wooller, R.D., Richardson, K.C., Saffer, V.M., Garavanta, C.A.M., Bryant, K.A. and Everaardt, A.N. (2004) The honey possum Tarsipes rostratus: an update. In: The biology of Australian possums and gliders. Surey Beatty & Sons, Chipping Norton, N.S.W, pp. 312-317.
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Team Saba Industries Group has what it takes to get the job done.
Please meet our global leaders and powerful team of business professionals below.
Malini Saba – CEO
Saba Industries Group – 1992 to Present – Chairman of the Board since 1996
Saba Family Foundation – Chairman and Founder – Since 2002
Founded Saba Family Foundation focused on healthcare, education and human rights for women. Focused on improving healthcare systems around the world. We do ground advocacy work.
SELECTED ACHIEVEMENT HIGHLIGHTS
Turned around an under-performing $410M global division, streamlined 4 business units around a coherent commercial and operational worldwide strategy, delivered double-digit EBITA growth.
Reversed losses of struggling $80M division; quickly restored forward momentum, generating year-over-year revenue gains at steady 20% return-on-sales.
vIntegrated 6 acquired companies into a worldwide $300M division that outpaced competitors, maximized share of strategic markets, and elevated earnings. Drove return to 12%, and championed 2 new acquisitions.
Transformed the poorest-performing business unit company-wide into a top performer
generating $60 million sales and 12% profits in period of just 3 years.
Ambassador of Peace 2007 – Federation for Peace
Philanthropist of the Year 2005 – Pratham, an Indian NGO promoting education for children
Mother Teresa Award 2004 – Los Angeles County
Kalpana Chawla Outstanding Woman of the Year Award 2005 – Friends of the Indian Community of L.A.
Entrepreneur of the Year 2001 – Business Women Network, Washington DC Board of Seats
Co-Chair,
Mark A. De Mattei, PhD
Dr. Mark A. De Mattei is an American inventor, entrepreneur, Founder, and CEO for several innovative companies in technology, patents, entertainment and pharmaceuticals. He is best known for the historical launch of the world’s first Airship (Blimp) containing a full-motion, full-color LED television screen “SkyScreen”. De Mattei pioneered the SkyCast Network – streaming a live network feed via a microwave signal to the “SkyScreen”. Simultaneously, he created the world’s first interactive mobile SMS text game, The Lucky Race Game. The SkyCast Network and The Lucky Race Game debuted in 2006 at the NASCAR Daytona 500 and later appeared at many NFL, MLB, PGA and other high-profile concerts and events. This first of its kind SMS text game, The Lucky Race Game, allowed hundreds of thousands of NASCAR fans to participate in the Daytona 500 via text messaging.
Learn more about Mark
In 1999 De Mattei started in his garage and created the only FDA approved hangover relief medicine PHARB® and grew it to a national brand utilizing ads by Howard Stern and a grass roots college, concert and event Bus Tour with MTV. In 2006 De Mattei saw an opportunity to convert his hangover brand into the surfing and skateboard craze and developed 360 OTC® hangover relief. At launch, 360 OTC® was available in over 133,000 retailers nationwide. As De Mattei built these brands, he pioneered Air, Sea & Ground agency combining a product and media company into a multimillion-dollar empire that included the SkyCast Airship, NASCAR Cup and Truck racing program, partnership with WWE and the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series which ended abruptly in 2008 during the economic financial crisis.
Since 2008, De Mattei has spent the past eleven years inventing and acquiring intellectual property and co-owns and operates The Patent Factory and RCS IP which owns and licenses a portfolio of patents which are featured in every mobile messaging device and messaging applications. The scope of 40+ patents include: mobile messaging, mobile financial transactions, mobile search and content presentation, mobile user interfaces, transmission of data and content and streaming video. Licensees include companies such as AT&T, Apple, Vonage, Kyocera, TiVo, Netgear, Arris, Humax, TCL/Roku.
Additionally, in 2010, De Mattei partnered with Gene Kirkwood, an internationally renowned Academy Award-winning producer of such hit films as Rocky, New York, New York, The Pope of Greenwich Village, The Idolmaker, Gorky Park, Ironweed, and Get Rich or Die Tryin’, whose films have grossed over half a billion dollars worldwide. His most recent film was The Defiant Ones which won multiple film awards including a Grammy Award in 2018 for best soundtrack.
Today, he has built a team of partners including current and recently retired senior executives from Coca-Cola, Inca Kola, Nutraceutical Corporation, Wal-Mart, Southern California Edison, NFL, Greenberg Traurig, Altria, Seals Entertainment, Seed2Table and Triton Value Partners to assist in re-launching the PHARB® brand this year on its 20th Anniversary. In addition to hangover relief products, De Mattie’s Poundcake International Corporation has ownership in a 250,000 sq. ft. hemp extraction facility which produces high quality, organic, 3rd party lab tested Cannabidiol (CBD) products that start from providing the seeds to over 240 farmers that grow under exclusive contracts for its extraction and processing facility that makes CBD, Isolates and Terpenes which are then packaged at its owned FDA drug facility to be sold to dispensaries, Vape-tobacco retailers, c-stores, gas-n-go, independent stores, bodegas, mass retail, hotels, restaurants, military bases, natural food stores and merchandise clubs in 80 countries in addition to online sales.
De Mattie’s humble beginnings, colorful past, business experience has formed his ability to forge extra-ordinary global strategic relationships creating his vision which combining mission critical relationships and creative imagineering to collaborate and reverse-engineer traditional strategies to successfully execute his endeavors.
De Mattei currently is a Board Member, Boy Scouts of America (NEGA); Director of Outreach and Coordination, Operation BBQ Relief “Always Serving Project”; Sports Initiative Super Bowl Host Committee Member; Executive Board Member, One World Literacy Foundation; NFL Alumni Member; Sons of Italy Member; Aircraft Owner and Pilots Association Member, Vice Chairman of Stars2Table; and Vice-Chairman of Seals Entertainment which operates 22 television networks.
De Mattei is a Neuro-Associative Conditioning Specialist (NACS), certified by Anthony Robbins (Robbins Research International), is a Neuro Linguistic Programming Specialist (NLPS), and is a sought-after speaker for motivation, technology and sales industry conferences.
In 2018, De Mattei was awarded 22 PhDs “h.c.” from 15 countries at the Presidential Palace in Mexico City for Favor of Country, and Humanity for life works. In 2018, he received his Paralegal Certification from George Mason University.
Others from our professional support team
Mack Michaelson,
Mack’s skills are gained from over 25 years in various IT roles, including development, professional IT consulting, supervision and speaking. He has led assorted project teams at Tapinko, PetCo, and professionally trained a 500+person programming team for FujiNet in Japan and Vietnam. He excels at computer programming and MIS, and holds an MS and PhDc in MIS from assorted public and private colleges and universities from around the world.
Mr. Akhil Gupta,
HONORARY BOARD MEMBER
Mr. Gupta began his career at Hindustan Unilever. From 1981 to 1992 he worked in the U.S, first in consulting with Strategic Planning Associates and ICF International in Washington D.C., where he became a partner at the firm, and then as Chief Financial Officer of two integrated retailers and manufacturers of furniture in California.
Mr. Gupta received his MBA from the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University in 1981 and a B.Tech degree in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi which conferred on him the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2004.
Mr. Gupta has served over a dozen company Boards, including Boards of several Blackstone portfolio companies, and Reliance group companies.
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the drone center’s weekly roundup
The Drone Center’s Weekly Roundup: 6/12/17
by Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College - June 12, 2017
The Weekly Drone Roundup is a newsletter from the Center for the Study of the Drone. It covers news, commentary, analysis and technology from the drone world.
The Drone Center’s Weekly Roundup 5/15/17
by Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College - May 16, 2017
The Drone Center’s Weekly Roundup 5/8/17
by Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College - May 8, 2017
by Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College - April 24, 2017
The Drone Center’s Weekly Roundup: 9/5/16
by Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College - September 5, 2016
August 29, 2016 – September 4, 2016
A U.S. airstrike in Syria killed Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, a senior strategist and spokesperson for the Islamic State. According to two U.S. officials who spoke with the New York Times, the strike was carried out by a drone and was the result of close collaboration between the CIA and Special Operations forces. The airstrike targeted a vehicle carrying al-Adnani near the northern city of Al-Bab.
The Federal Aviation Administration implemented its Part 107 regulations, which govern drone operations in the U.S. National Airspace System. The regulations establish flight procedures and pilot certification requirements for non-recreational drone use. In a press conference, FAA chief Michael Huerta said that the FAA intends to issue waivers for certain operations that are currently not permitted by Part 107, such as flying at night or over crowds. The agency expects 600,000 commercial drone operators to be airborne by the end of the year. (Wall Street Journal)
by Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College - August 8, 2016
A drone takes off during the U.S. Drone Racing Championship on August 7, 2016. Credit: Dan Gettinger
A U.S. airstrike in Yemen killed three members of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. In a statement, U.S. Central Command announced that the strike took place in Yemen’s central Shabwa province but did not say whether the strike was carried out by drones. (Voice of America)
Meanwhile, the Obama administration released a redacted version of its classified “playbook,” a document that establishes the legal framework for U.S. targeted killing and capture operations overseas. The Presidential Policy Guidance was issued in May 2013 as part of an effort by the administration to tighten its guidelines for U.S. drone strikes. The document release is the result of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union. (Press Release)
A U.S. Army Pacific Soldier moves down a road while controlling an unmanned vehicle as part of the Pacific Manned Unmanned – Initiative July 22, 2016, at Marine Corps Training Area Bellows, Hawaii. PACMAN-I provided an opportunity for Soldiers, partnered with organizations and agencies such as the Maneuver Center of Excellence and the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center, to test new technology in the field during practical exercises. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Christopher Hubenthal)
The U.S. Air Force has created a new training course for officers responsible for ensuring that the communications between drones and pilots are secure. The Electronic Combat Officers course will train personnel on methods for protecting the satellite communications for MQ-1 Predators and MQ-9 Reapers operating in contested environments. (Air Force)
by Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College - July 18, 2016
Ice Cream Drone delivery service tested at Lincolnshire Beach. Source: YouTube
At the Center for the Study of the Drone
A cache of personal documents seized during the raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound in 2011 includes several letters that refer to the drones used by the U.S. to target members of al-Qaeda. These letters offer an inside perspective on the effects of drone strikes on al-Qaeda’s leadership. Here’s what you need to know.
The Korean Army experimented with a delivery drone system. Image via The Korea Times
The U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives have passed competing drafts of the National Defense Authorization Act, which establishes funding priorities for the Pentagon. We reviewed both bills to determine how they will affect the Department of Defense’s drone programs. Here’s what you need to know.
Also: The Korean Army conducted a demonstration of a delivery drone system that it hopes to deploy by 2018. (Korea Times)
At Stars and Stripes, Dianna Cahn profiles the U.S. Navy’s 132-foot-long Sea Hunter unmanned ship, saying: “At 132 feet long, the Sea Hunter is a prototype of the largest unmanned ship in the world and Navy officials are now looking at the sea drone’s potential to revolutionize fleet operations.”
The Federal Aviation Administration announced that it is forming an unmanned systems advisory committee to guide policies on domestic drone integration. In a speech at the Xponential convention in New Orleans, FAA administrator Michael Huerta also said that students will soon be allowed to fly drones for educational and research purposes without going through the same permission process required of commercial drone users.
Should robots be gendered?
by Alan Winfield
Sneak peek inside two Robotics Innovation Facilities (RIFs) in Europe
Airbus Shopfloor Challenge overview – with video
by Airbus Group
How regenerative agriculture and robotics can benefit each other
by John Payne
Where to place fuses and how to protect your robot and motors
Drones for good 2.0: How WeRobotics is redefining the use of unmanned systems in developing countries
by Waypoint
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Guard who scalded inmate to death now a cop, caught on duty with side chick
Roland Clarke (Image Source: Miami Gardens Police)
It takes a special kind of person to scald a mentally ill inmate to death and then get a job as a cop. But that is the case with Roland Clarke, who may soon lose his job as a Miami Gardens, Florida, cop after a series of bad choices.
In 2015, Roland Clarke was seen on camera leading Darren Rainey, 50, a mentally ill Muslim prisoner into a shower cell. Clarke left Rainey in a scalding hot shower for two hours after he defecated in his cell at the Dade Correctional Institution. The guards were upset that Rainey did not clean up the cell.
Darren Rainey (Image Source: Florida Dept. of Corrections)
The temperature in the shower was controlled by the guards and other prisoners heard his screams and pleading during his torture. When the stall was finally opened, Rainey’s skin had peeled away and his lifeless body was on the floor. The guards removed him and a prison nurse administered CPR to no avail. Shockingly, the autopsy report stated that Rainey’s death was accidental due to complications of schizophrenia and heart disease. This year, Rainey’s family settled a civil lawsuit against the state, Clarke, and others for $4.5M.
Because of that ruling, Clarke was not charged with manslaughter and was able to get another job, this time as a cop with the troubled Miami Gardens Police Department. A 2014 report by Fusion Magazine showed that police in the city had conducted stop and frisk detainments of over half of the city’s population of 110K. The police even targeted the elderly and children as young as five for being labeled as suspicious.
A married Roland Clarke on duty and enjoying a steak dinner at his sidechick’s house for his 34th birthday (Image Source: Miami Gardens Police)
Now Clarke’s poor judgment will once again cost him his job after being caught for a second time having intimate encounters with a woman while on duty. The Internal Affairs Department has repeatedly investigated Clarke for a variety of issues, which include losing evidence in a possible homicide of a drowning victim as well as running a red light in patrol car and striking another vehicle.
But his latest hook up was apparently discovered by his wife and she was not pleased. According to an interview she gave to the New York Times, she was confronted by her husband’s mistress and given pictures of Clarke at her home. The pictures were taken on his 34th birthday and show him eating a steak dinner and also the rose covered bed that he later was intimate in. His wife filed for divorce and informed IA, who launched their own investigation and even recovered incriminating audio.
In the audio, Clarke is heard complaining about the first woman that got him in trouble with IA: “That b*** tried to get me fired. Cause she know I can’t come round there acting crazy with her cause I’m an officer so this ho called anonymously saying, “this n***** be coming to my house and f****** me on duty.”‘
Roland Clarke has a bed of roses while on duty (Image Source: Miami Gardens Police)
Clarke’s behavior and the new reports sparked this comment from Miami Gardens Mayor Oliver Gilbert, who said the city is currently working to fire Clarke: “The city manager has informed me that the officer in question is in the process required by law and collective bargaining before an officer can be officially terminated. The behavior of which [Clarke] is accused, and the poor judgement which he has allegedly shown, is not consistent with the high standards to which we hold all city employees.”
He further stated, “As mayor, I have no say in the hiring and firing of police officers. This is handled by our professional city manager through his chief of police. The conduct allegedly engaged in by this officer is something any person in our community would find disgusting and distasteful.”
Tags: Darren Rainey, Florida, Miami Gardens Police, Roland Clarke, scaled inmate, side chick
Mo Barnes October 9, 2018
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Boko Haram: IGP deploys 2000 PMF Personnel, Counter Terrorism Unit & Sniffer Dogs Section to North East to help defeat Insurgency
By Oghenahogie OshokoPublished Sunday 02 December 2018 5:42 PM 0 CommentTags: BokoHaram IGP deploys 2000 PMF Personnel/ Counter Terrorist Unit & Sniffer Dog Section to North East to help defeat insurgency
The Inspector General of Police has deployed additional Two Thousand (2000) Police Mobile Force (PMF) and Counter Terrorism Units (CTU) Personnel of the Force and the Sniffer Dog Sections to the North East in the last few days for purely Military Duties to fight Boko Haram insurgency under the Operation Lafiya Dole.
This new deployment is consistent with Section 4 of the Police Act and Regulations which specifies the general duties of the Nigeria Police Force as follows: The police shall be employed for the prevention and detection of crime, the apprehension of offenders, the preservation of law and order, the protection of life and property and the due enforcement of all laws and regulations with which they are directly charged, and shall perform such military duties within or outside Nigeria as may be required of them by or under the authority of this or any other Act.
The deployment is also to support the strength of the Military to defeat the Boko Haram Insurgency.
Before now, the Nigeria Police Force has on ground Forty-Seven (47) PMF Units (63 X 47 = 2961) in Borno State in addition to the Police Mobile Force (PMF) Squadron in Borno State.
Twenty-Six (26) Units (63 X 26 = 1638) on ground in Yobe State in addition to the Police Mobile Force (PMF) Squadron in Yobe State
Eighteen (18) Units (63 X 18 = 1134) on ground in Adamawa State in addition to the Police Mobile Force (PMF) Squadron in Adamawa State
The Counter Terrorism Units of the Force has deployments of over One Thousand, Two Hundred and Fifty (1,250) specially trained Counter Terrorism Police personnel.
The Police Anti-Bomb Squad has about Three Hundred (300) personnel while over Hundred Sniffer Dogs are working with the Military in the fight against Insurgency in the North East.
It is of significant note that the Police Mobile Force (PMF) Personnel, Counter Terrorism Units (CTU), Anti-Bomb Squad (EOD), Sniffer Dog Sections, the Federal Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS) and conventional Police personnel have being fighting along with the Military in the front line against Boko Haram insurgency and also providing security for restoration of law and order in the North East, security for all the liberated towns and villages in the North-East, escort of Foreign and Local Humanitarian workers and relief materials, protection of IDP camps and security of public and private infrastructures.
The Police Air-wing Surveillance Helicopters and crews are also deployed to support most of the operations of Operation Lafiya Dole throughout the North East in the fight against insurgency in the North East.
The Nigeria Police Force is fully committed to the fight against insurgency and will do all it takes in collaboration with the Military to bring a quick end to Boko Haram insurgency and crisis in the North East.
Ag. DCP JIMOH MOSHOOD
FORCE PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER
FORCE HEADQUARTERS, ABUJA
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Census Sunday - In 1880, John L and Mary Jane (Rollins) Shackford's Eighth Child Frank Moved From Orphan's Home to Work as a Servant (Blog 275)
Frank A Shackford in the 1800 census
We don't have a good source for Frank A Shackford's birth, but from his death record and many censuses we know it was late in 1868. On June 17, 1870, Frank was listed in the census as age 1 living with his parents and many siblings in Concord, New Hampshire.
In 1880 was living in Louden, New Hampshire with David F Leavitt, a farmer and minister his wife Nancy and their 23 year old daughter Callie. Frank is listed as a servant but we learn a bit more as the census taker includes a note that Frank had previously been at the Orphan's Home in Franklin, New Hampshire.
Frank must have moved to Brooklyn, New York and worked there as a bricklayer before 1898 as this is the location from where he enlisted on April 29, 1898 for three years in the military from Brooklyn, New York. His enlistment document states that he had blue eyes, dark brown hair, a fair complexion, and was 5' 8 1/2" tall. His age was listed as 26 years 7 months but we're pretty certain he was 29 years at this time.
His enlistment ended nine months later on February 28, 1899 with an honorable discharge showing that he had served a an artificer. He returned to his bricklayer job in Brooklyn by June 25, 1900 and married Maime Deutche shortly thereafter. By 1910 their family had two young children, Edith and Martha and was also living with his mother-in-law Martha Deutsch and in 1911 we find the family at 103 Academy in Queens.
Interestingly by 1920 the Frank and Maime had moved to Minisink, New York where Frank was employed as a farmer and four years later applied for a pension.
Frank was back in Brooklyn by 1929 and is mentioned in a newspaper article for attending a Spanish-American War Veteran's event where he was elected as the officer of the day. Two years later he is listedn in another article then participated in another Veteran's event as the junior color sergeant. His wife was the auxiliary chaplain.
Frank died on Sept 30, 1935 in the Bronx at the age of 67 and was buried at the Cypress Hills National Cemetery in Brooklyn. His wife Maime died 27 years later in New York and was buried next to her husband.
Edythe Elizabeth Shackford - (1903-1968) - married Frank LedDuke in 1919
Martha Rollins Shackford (1906-1981)
1870 United States Federal Census, Merrimack County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Concord, Page No 57-58, dwelling 440, family 542, John L Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 11 May 2015).
1880 United States Federal Census, Merrimack County, population schedule, Louden, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration Distrct No 184, Page No 36, dwelling 288, family 299, Frank Shackford servant in home of David F Leavitt, taken from Orphan's hme at Franklin, N.H.; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 11 May 2015).
1900 United States Federal Census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 255, Sheet No 22, house number 1109, Frank Shackford; digital images, FamilySearch (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 May 2015).
1910 United States Federal Census, New York County, New York, population schedule, Queens, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 1154, Sheet No 3A, Academy Street, visited 103, family 55, Frank A Shackford; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 May 2015).
1920 United States Federal Census, Orange County, New York, population schedule, Minisink, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 127, Sheet No 10A, House No 216, dwelling 216, Visited No 223, Frank Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 May 2015).
"DEATH NOTICES," Long Island Star-Journal (Long Island, New York), 14 November 1961; digital image, Fulton History (http://fultonhistory.com/ : accessed 22 November 2014).
Find A Grave, Find A Grave, digital images (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 30 April 2015), Frank A Shackford, Find A Grave Memorial# 145291410
"New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949,," database, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 1 July 2015), Frank Arthur Shackford
New York, Spanish-American War Military and Naval Service Records, 1898-1902," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 24 March 2014), Frank A Shackford.
"Patehogue Couple Leads Spanish War Vets' Units," Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, New York), 15 December 1929; digital images, Fulton History (http://fultonhistory.com/Fulton.html : accessed 14 June 2015).
Trow Business Directory of the Borough of Queens, City of New York also Residential Directory of Flushing, Jamaica, Long Island City and Richmond Hill 1912 Volume X (City of New York: Trow Directory, Printing & Bookbinding Co, 1912), page 205; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 June 2015
"United States General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934," digital image, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 17 May 2014), Frank A Shackford.
"Veteran's Camp Instituted," The Long-Islander (Long Island, New York), 22 May 1931; digital images, Fulton History (http://www.fultonhistory.com : accessed 4 June 2015).
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Stz’uminus health officer breaks barriers
When Stz’uminus member Shannon Waters graduated from medical school, she realized that instead of treating people who are sick, she wanted to prevent people from getting sick in the first place.
So after two years of doing family practice, she went back to the University of British Columbia to do a specialty in Public Health and Preventative Medicine.
Now, it’s been about a year and a half since Waters returned to her home territory to become a B.C. Medical Health Officer with Island Health.
Working in the Cowichan Valley region, she believes she is the only Indigenous Medical Health Officer in the province.
“In this type of role I work with local governments, First Nation governments, and really look at the population as a whole,” she said.
“So not focusing on individuals like I did before, but where we are at as a community, and as separate communities.”
In her region, she said, there are about 80,000 people, five municipal governments, one regional district and eight First Nations including Stz’uminus.
In her role — which involves overseeing the region’s wellness and advocating for public health — she has three main areas of focus: maternal/child and family health, mental wellness and the environment.
“Basically in each of those three areas, any movement we make in one area will positively affect the others and we have to work on them all,” she said.
“I very much try to bring my holistic view of health into the opportunities I get to speak and discuss.”
Waters said when she graduated from the Public Health and Preventative Medicine program, her goal was to work with Indigenous communities.
She worked for the First Nations-Inuit Health Branch and the then-newly formed First Nations Health Authority before moving into a temporary Indigenous maternal care position with Island Health.
While she was in that role, a Medical Health Officer position was created in the Cowichan Valley for the first time, and it felt fateful to be able to work in her home territory.
“My colleagues in my specialty … were finally able to advocate and get funding for an additional position,” she said.
“It just happened to be created after I moved here.”
As the first Coast Salish woman to work as a Medical Health Officer on the Island, Waters is breaking barriers and paving the way for other Indigenous people. Especially in a time when the area’s racist past isn’t so far away.
An older physician she has worked with, she said, recalls there were segregated waiting rooms and separate entrances for Indigenous and non-Indigenous patients in Duncan when he first started practicing.
“I was like, you have to talk about that, because this is not that long ago, and people look at you, and the age you are, you’re still practicing,” she said.
“A lot of clients, patients, remember that too and how it felt to be on the other side of that, to be that person using the other waiting room or the other entrance.”
Waters said that, now, she uses every chance she has to show her two daughters the work she does, so they can see that their worldview and identity is valid and important.
“I’m privileged, I had this opportunity to go to school, I have a lot more opportunity to use my voice … and Stz’uminus supported me while I was going through school,” she said.
“And I really felt strongly that I wanted to give back. It made me feel supported and also gave me a sense of responsibility just beyond myself.
“That’s something I’ve carried through to now and it’s just interesting how it’s kind of come full circle at this point and I’m back home doing this type of work.”
Artist brings ‘feminine Coast Salish’ style to Stanley Park studio
Confronting reconciliation myths: Kwul’a’sul’tun speaks at VIU
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Tag: San Jose
WWII Air Corps Veteran Gets Silver Star He Never Knew About
After World War II, New Mexico native Domitilio Lucero, like so many others, came to Southern California looking for work.
He got a job at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard on Terminal Island and discovered San Pedro. He married his high school sweetheart, and they put down roots and raised four sons, two of whom graduated from Fermin Lasuen High and two from San Pedro High.
Lucero didn’t talk much about the war, which was typical for most veterans. He had been a sergeant in the Army Air Corps, an engineer/gunner on a B-26 Marauder medium bomber based in England, and had seen plenty of action before being gravely wounded in a mission over Germany during the Battle of the Bulge. It took years of research from his sons to get the whole story, and it turned out to be a whole lot more than even Lucero himself knew. Back in the states, recovering from his wounds, he was unaware he had been awarded the Silver Star, the nation’s third highest award exclusively for combat valor.
Nearly 70 years later, Lucero, now 89 and living in Barstow, will receive his Silver Star in a special ceremony Nov. 5.
The Dec. 23, 1944, raid on the German rail bridgehead at Arhweiler was supposed to be a “milk run” for the 391st Bombardment Group, part of the Ninth Air Force. But the fighter support for the 32 planes in the raid never materialized, and they were sitting ducks when set upon by 60 German fighters. Only 16 bombers made it back to base, and nearly every one of those was damaged, including Lucero’s. His citation for “gallantry in action” reads:
Although thrown from his position, Sgt. Lucero crawled back to his post and although his armament was inoperative, he gallantly continued to inform his pilot of enemy aircraft positions. Sgt. Lucero’s heroic determination and courage under heavy enemy antiaircraft fire despite his painful injury reflect the highest credit upon himself and his organization.
Gerald Lucero, the youngest brother and 1970 SPHS grad, told The Air Force Times what his dad remembers of that day.
“He said they were coming in at you like you wouldn’t believe – five, 10, 15 of them, just coming in at you like you wouldn’t believe. He said he was just shooting everywhere he possibly could, and then they disappeared.” Then came the flak from below.
“He said you could see these black smoke bombs coming from the bottom, and then they were just tearing at the aircraft. He said he saw several aircraft going down, and that’s all he remembered.”
Struck by cannon fire from an enemy fighter, Lucero, then 21, spent 18 months in hospitals, where part of his rib was used to rebuild his nose.
Before he left his supply job at the naval shipyard in 1972 to go to work at the Marine Corps Logistics Base outside Barstow, he saw all four sons follow his footsteps into the service. The oldest, Elroy, a ’65 graduate of Fermin Lasuen, joined the Army and served in Germany. Today, he’s an electrical engineer in San Jose. Stevan enlisted after a cousin was killed in Vietnam. The ’67 Lasuen graduate became a member of the Army Airborne’s Special Forces and fought in Vietnam from 1969-70. The San Pedro resident is a recently retired schoolteacher after a long career with Los Angeles Unified. Vincent joined the Army and served stateside. He’s a security guard in Victorville. Gerald broke with family tradition by joining the Navy. Today he’s a time-share manager in Hawaii. Gerald, point man in the effort to get his dad’s Silver Star, told The Air Force Times of the impetus behind the effort:
“We just want to make sure that my children – his grandchildren – know, and their children know, about his involvement in the war because we’ve all felt… that my dad is a hero and what he had to endure… and I now… hear about this, and it’s even more so.”
Veteran Thanks a Veteran
I got this letter in response to my Memorial Day column on Bob DeSpain, the Rancho Palos Verdes veteran who survived the sinking of the USS Hoel in WWII. It speaks for itself:
“I served aboard the USS Hoel (DDG-13) from Jan. `69-Nov. `72, a guided-missile destroyer. (On) my first WESTPAC cruise `69-70, the ship was chosen to represent the U.S.A. in New Zealand’s bicentennial celebration.
“Our course took us to Pago Pago, then to Samar and over the site of the sunken USS Hoel (DD-533). All aboard paid their respects with a ceremony and wreath casting in memory of the crew lost in the battle.
“The information from official records was read to the crew of the battle and heroism of those men lost and those that survived.
“I salute Bob DeSpain for his labor, tenacity and survival. The battle, being outgunned, was lost yet successful in slowing down the enemy.”
It was signed by William G. “Bill” Forst, a Torrance resident. To Bill, Bob, all of the Luceros and every other veteran, an early happy Veterans Day. spt
Posted on November 9, 2012 October 25, 2012 Author Steve MarconiCategories Magazine, News, VoicesTags 391st Bombardment Group, Arhweiler, Army, Army Air Corps, Army Airborne Special Forces, B-26 Marauder, Barstow, Battle of the Bulge, Bob DeSpain, Domitilio Lucero, Elroy Lucero, England, Fermin Lasuen High School, Gerald Lucero, Germany, LAUSD, Long Beach Naval Shipyard, Los Angeles, Navy, New Mexico, New Zealand, Ninth Air Force, Port of Los Angeles, San Jose, San Pedro, San Pedro Ca, San Pedro High School, Silver Star, South Bay, Stevan Lucero, Terminal Island, The Airforce Times, USS Hoel, Veteran's Day, Victorville, Vietnam, WESTPAC, William Forst, World War II193 Comments on WWII Air Corps Veteran Gets Silver Star He Never Knew About
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AMERICAN MOM’S DARING RESCUE OF ABDUCTED SON IN EGYPT READS LIKE A BLOCKBUSTER MOVIE SCRIPT
Through the slit of the burqa she wore to blend in on the streets of Alexandria, Egypt, Kalli Atteya waited and watched until the boy climbed off the school bus. When she saw him, she moved quickly, grabbing his arm and steering him toward the waiting motorized cart.
"Get in," she said to the 12-year-old, who recognized his mother's piercing blue eyes and obeyed wordlessly.
Soon, they were speeding toward a safehouse where they would wait for three weeks before returning to the U.S., and ending a 20-month ordeal that began with another abduction — one the boy, Khalil Mohamed “Niko” Atteya, did not accept willingly. His father, Mohamed Atteya, who is wanted by the U.S. authorities, is accused of luring the mother and son to his homeland, then snatching the boy and leaving Kalli Atteya and her sister on the side of a desolate road between Cairo and Port Said on Aug. 1, 2011.
QUOTES OF THE DAY 4-26-13
― George Orwell
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
― George Orwell, Animal Farm
“Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind. ”
“The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”
TAX CHEATS PONY UP $5.5 BILLION IN AMNESTY PROGRAM
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Internal Revenue Service has recouped more than $5.5 billion under a series of programs that offered reduced penalties and no jail time to people who voluntarily disclosed assets they were hiding overseas, government investigators said Friday.
In all, more than 39,000 tax cheats have come clean under the programs.
But there's more.
Government investigators suspect that thousands of other taxpayers have quietly started reporting foreign accounts without paying any penalties or interest. The number of people reporting foreign accounts to the IRS nearly doubled from 2007 to 2010, to 516,000 accounts, a report by the Government Accountability Office said.
BIG SIS: OBAMA ADMIN CAN PICK WHICH LAWS TO ENFORCE
During her testimony on the “Gang of Eight” immigration bill before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano declared that she, President Barack Obama and other political officials at the top of this administration have the authority to decide which laws to enforce, and which ones to ignore.
Napolitano made the declaration in an exchange with Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) when he was questioning her on how Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have alleged that political officials in the Obama administration, including her, have blocked them from enforcing the law.
Sessions noted that ICE agents’ union president Chris Crane had testified on Monday “that agents are prohibited from enforcing the law and, indeed, the ICE officers have filed a lawsuit [to that effect].”
Route 90 Bridge Testing Could Cause Delays In May
OCEAN CITY -- Taking advantage of a tight window between Springfest and Memorial Day weekends, State Highway Administration (SHA) officials said this week they will begin an inspection and load testing of the Route 90 bridge next month that could cause traffic delays for motorists traveling in and out of Ocean City.
In advance of an anticipated routine rehabilitation project next fall, SHA engineers will conduct an inspection of the Route 90 bridge over the Assawoman Bay and the entrance to Ocean City starting May 6 and concluding Friday, May 10, weather permitting. SHA officials had originally scheduled the project for next week, but reworked the plan after concerns were raised about the potential impact on traffic heading to the resort in advance of Springfest weekend, which is set to begin Friday, May 2. As a result, the new schedule includes the week beginning Monday, May 6 and should be wrapped up by the following Friday.
“We were made aware of the potential conflict in the week leading up to Springfest, and we moved the project back a week to minimize any delays and inconveniences,” said SHA spokesman Charlie Gischlar this week. “We’re hopefully going to get in and out of there and get our work done quickly before the season really gets started.”
Patrick Administration Refuses To Release Tsarnaev Brothers' Records
The Patrick administration clamped down the lid yesterday on Herald requests for details of Tamerlan Tsarnaev’s government benefits, citing the dead terror mastermind’s right to privacy.
Across the board, state agencies flatly refused to provide information about the taxpayer-funded lifestyle for the 26-year-old man and his brother and accused accomplice Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19.
On EBT card status or spending, state welfare spokesman Alec Loftus would only say Tamerlan Tsarnaev, his wife and 3-year-old daughter received benefits that ended in 2012. He declined further comment.
Ocean City Police Auxiliary Officers And Detective Sergeant Jeff Smith Honored By Worcester County Drug And Alcohol Abuse Council
On April 23, 2013, the Ocean City Auxiliary Officers and Detective SGT Jeff Smith were honored by the Worcester County Drug and Alcohol Council at the 22nd Annual Drug and Alcohol Awards Reception for their outstanding achievement in drug and alcohol prevention. Their awards were based on their outstanding contributions to the improvement of the quality of life by reducing alcohol and drug abuse in Worcester County.
Over the years, the Ocean City Auxiliary Officers have volunteered hundreds of hours at “Play It Safe” events. Their dedicated support has helped ensure the mission of the Ocean City Drug and Alcohol Abuse Committee by providing visiting high school graduates with fun, drug free activities.
Detective Sergeant Jeff Smith was also honored for his superior commitment in the area of drug enforcement in Ocean City and Worcester County. SGT Smith is the supervisor of the Ocean City Police Vice and Narcotics Unit. He has been instrumental in recovering drugs and contraband having a street value of tens of thousands of dollars.
Change Maryland: Gov. O'Malley Must Return To Annapolis, Address Prison Situation
Change Maryland Chairman Larry Hogan called on Gov. Martin O'Malley to cut short his international travel, return from the Middle East and postpone his musings about running for President until he has addressed a serious issue of major corruption in the state's prison system. More than a dozen Maryland state prison guards helped a dangerous national gang operate a criminal enterprise from behind bars according to federal prosecutors.
The indictment details systemic failures in a Baltimore jail in which there was no oversight, gross mismanagement and failure of leadership. A gang called Black Guerilla Family (BGF) and one of it's leaders in the Baltimore facility, were allegedly given control of the facility.
"Martin O'Malley is not running state government. He was smiling in Israel yesterday talking about running for President while his employees are being charged by the U.S. Attorney," said Hogan. "It is unacceptable for the Governor to go missing in action while inmates are apparently free to threaten the public's safety from behind bars."
According to U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein, “Correctional officers were in bed with BGF inmates, in violation of the first principle of prison management. Preventing prison corruption requires intensive screening at prison entrances and punishment for employees who consort with inmates or bring cell phones and drugs into correctional facilities.”
Thirteen corrections officers essentially handed over control of a Baltimore jail to gang leaders, prosecutors said. The officers were charged Tuesday in a federal racketeering indictment.
Hogan called on the Governor to immediately dismiss his corrections cabinet secretary for gross negligence, failure to provide oversight of the state prison system and complete mismanagement and lack of control over the department. He also agreed with the need for a sweeping inquiry into the entire prison system that would include active participation from the General Assembly.
"Nobody should accept inmates running the show, most of all the Governor," said Hogan.
Md. Corporate Tax Will Be Cut, Senate Chairman Predicts
Maryland’s 8.25% corporate income tax will be lowered next year, at least by the Maryland Senate, predicted Sen. Ed Kasemeyer, chair of the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee.
“I do believe that next year you’ll see it occur,” Kasemeyer told a Howard County Chamber of Commerce breakfast Thursday. The Howard County Democrat had backed lowering the rate at a meeting of the same group in 2011.
Kasemeyer said budgeters needed to wait for the state’s revenue situation to stabilize before lowering any taxes. There were a number of proposals this year to lower the corporate tax rate, which is two percentage points higher than Virginia’s.
I DID NO MORE THAN YOU LET ME DO
Judge Rejects County’s Effort To Dismiss LCB Lawsuit
BERLIN -- A U.S. District Court judge this week issued an opinion denying Worcester County’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed last year alleging the now-defunct Liquor Control Board (LCB) violated the federal Equal Pay Act (EPA).
Last August, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed the suit in U.S. District Court. The complaint outlines an alleged pattern by the old LCB of undercompensating female retail clerks at the agency’s retail outlets throughout the county compared to their male counterparts that performed the same job.
The allegations date back to as early as April 2010 when the county liquor dispensary operations were still run by the LCB. In 2011, amid significant controversy, the old LCB was dismantled by the General Assembly and the new county-run Department of Liquor Control (DLC) was created to fill the void. The charges of discrimination surfaced early in July 2011 after the DLC assumed control on July 1, 2011, but the allegations stem from alleged wage discrimination carried out by the LCB prior to the takeover and does not implicate the new DLC.
LOCKED-DOWN BOSTONIANS RATIONALIZE TYRANNY
Exclusive: Phil Elmore is outraged by government's manhunt edict enforced at gunpoint
It’s a viral photo of a cop delivering milk during the “extraordinary” lockdown of Boston. Some versions of the photo have text added to the effect that, gosh, tyrannical police states don’t bring groceries to their citizens. Absent from almost all analysis of the photo, however, is that “lockdown” is a prison term, only recently applied to schools and other places where, under threat, children are locked into chambers for their safety. The fact that in real “active shooter” scenarios lockdowns are only good for penning helpless, unarmed people into metaphorical barrels where they may more easily be shot is consistently ignored by political figures and media pundits alike.
Where is the outrage that the Powers That Are in Boston essentially made prisoners of an entire city? On what grounds and by what authority does any municipal government presume to place every citizen of a major United States city on house arrest? In the afterglow of the successful capture of the remaining Boston Marathon bombing suspect, alleged Islamist Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the people celebrating in the streets that Tsarnaev was taken alive (ironically, only because the “lockdown” was lifted and the property owner in whose boat Tsarnaev was hiding could finally go outside and check his yard) ought to be asking themselves what they have to be happy about. They are beta testers of the New Freedom, which looks a lot like the Old Oppression. At whim, your government may order you to remain in your home, and if you dare disobey, they will point guns at you, essentially threatening to murder you.
GOP Bill Seeks to Cut Back Government Ammo Purchases
Senate and House Republicans are set to introduce a joint bill Friday that would significantly limit the amount of ammunition that federal agencies are permitted to purchase and stockpile over the next six months.
The bill, authored by Sen. Jim Inhofe (R., Okla.) and Rep. Frank Lucas (R., Okla.), comes as numerous lawmakers across Capitol Hill have expressed concern that certain federal agencies, such as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), are stockpiling high quantities of ammunition.
DHS, for instance, has placed two-years worth of ammunition, or nearly 247 million rounds, in its inventory.
MIDDLE SCHOOL CHANGES POLICY AFTER STUDENT SENT TO OFFICE FOR WEARING ‘SUPPORT OUR TROOPS’ T-SHIRT…ON AN ARMY BASE
A Kentucky middle school has changed its dress code after a student was sent to the office for wearing a “Support Our Troops” T-shirt, a spokeswoman told TheBlaze.
That school would be Mahaffey Middle School, which is actually located on the Fort Campbell Army base.
Student Cejai Taylor told Nashville Fox affiliate WZTVshe wore the T-shirt right after her dad, Sgt. James Taylor, was sent on his sixth deployment overseas. Mahaffey requires all students to wear collared shirts, but has dress-down days once a month where they can wear jeans and school-approved shirts. The “Support Our Troops” shirt was not approved, and a teacher saw Taylor wearing it and told her to go to the office.
Her mother, Cassandra Taylor, said she chose to pick her daughter up from school instead of making her change her clothes.
National SkillsUSA, National Auto Tech Contest, Robotics Challenge
--Five Wicomico Students Headed to National SkillsUSA
--Parkside CTE Team Finishes 3rd at New York International Auto Show, Earns $75,000 in Scholarships
--Robotics Team Competes at Regional Contest
--Five Wicomico Students Headed to National SkillsUSA Contest after Finishing 1st in State
Wicomico County SkillsUSA students made an outstanding showing at the April 19-20 Maryland SkillsUSA Championship, sending five students on to the national competition and placing 10 students in the top three of a number of skill contests.
Wicomico was represented by students who had already won on the local and regional levels to compete in 25 different Leadership and Technical-area events. First-place finishers earned the right to proceed to the National Leadership and Skills Conference in Kansas City this June, along with their instructors.
Wicomico County's first-place winners were:
Jon Gray, Trevor Klaverweiden and Daniel Churchill (all Parkside High students), Welding Fabrication team
John Scott (James M. Bennett High), Electronics Technology
Austin Vestal (Mardela High), Mobile Electronics Installation. Vestal is making a return trip to the national competition, where he placed 3rd in the country last year.
Regional Airport Gets $500K Loan For Upgrades
SALISBURY -- Wicomico County officials last week approved a conditional $500,000 loan to the Salisbury-Ocean City-Wicomico Regional Airport for improvements and upgrades to hangars in an effort to help ensure the facility continues to be a major transportation hub on the Lower Shore and possibly even expand its presence.
“The complex was built some time ago and it is in need of leak-proofing the roof, windows and doors and repainting,” Director of Administration Wayne Strausburg said. “They are asking for a conditional loan to complete the work, which will help ensure Piedmont stays. Essentially, the county will act as a pass-through for the loan.”
The loan is conditional in the sense its status is tied directly to the number of jobs the airport creates and retains. The loan could be converted to a grant if the established thresholds are met, or it could be paid back in full if the airport fails to meet the stated employment numbers and other milestones.
CISPA Is Dead; Internet 'Privacy' Safe Again (For Now)
The controversial cybersecurity bill, known, ever so gently as, the Cyber Information Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) - since it's for your own good - that passed the House last week[3] looks set to be shelved in the Senate according to representatives. The bill would have allowed the federal government to share classified "cyber threat" information with companies, but it also provided provisions that would have allowed companies to share information about specific users with the government. Privacy advocates also worried, rightly so given previous experience, that the National Security Administration would have gotten involved. As US News reports
[4], Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.V., chairman of the committee, said the passage of CISPA was "important," but said the bill's "privacy protections are insufficient." One of CISPA's staunchest opponents, the ACLU, added, "CISPA is too controversial, it's too expansive, it's just not the same sort of program contemplated by the Senate last year." While this is a short-term victory for everyone who uses the web, the ACLU warns, "we need to be vigilant as the year moves on to make sure that whatever the next product is, it's not CISPA- lite."
Couple Survives Drug Crazed Home Invader Because Of Their AR-15
Philadelphia, PA — A couple whose names are being withheld by police were outside of their apartment on Friday, when Jasper Brisbon, who they said appeared to be on drugs, walked up and began staring at them. He did this for several minutes as the couple grew increasingly uncomfortable. Eventually, they decided to go inside of their apartment to get away from Brisbon, but he followed them.
That’s when things really took a turn for the worse.
When the man opened the door, Jasper Brisbon pushed his way past them into the apartment.
At that point, the man grabbed his AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and told Jasper Brisbon to leave. Brisbon refused his request and started moving towards him in a threatening manner. That’s when the man shot him in the chest and sent Brisbon to the ground. Afterwards, the man called police.
Court Says Pot Smokers Can Be Fired, Even In Colo
Medical and recreational marijuana may be legal in Colorado, but employers in the state can lawfully fire workers who test positive for the drug, even if it was used off duty, according to a court ruling Thursday.
The Colorado Court of Appeals found there is no employment protection for medical marijuana users in the state since the drug remains barred by the federal government.
"For an activity to be lawful in Colorado, it must be permitted by, and not contrary to, both state and federal law," the appeals court stated in its 2-1 conclusion.
The Obama Mafia Gets The Private Sector To Do Its Anti-Gun Dirty Work
The Obama political machine is ruthless. It is a force that drives to coerce, extort, bully and suppress the opposition while simultaneously seizing power in a manner with the ruthlessness reminiscent of Michael Corleone dispatching the heads of the five families.
In addition to the enormous power Obama wields as president, the Obama Campaign has become Organizing for America, a “nonpartisan” advocacy group that is the divided-off henchmen of a corrupt politician who wants to influence policy both from the inside and the outside of the Oval Office.
Now, the president who makes Bill Clinton look meek has all of his bases covered as he can now employ General Electric, the private-sector powerhouse, to put the squeeze on people who don’t get with the liberal agenda. GE has joined forces with the Obama Administration in their crusade against the Second Amendment.
The world’s largest industrial company, General Electric, received a very-generous deal in 2009 when the company received $139 billion in taxpayer money under provisions created to keep banks afloat. Though GE Capital is not classified as a bank, the company was able to secure the money because it owned two small Utah banking institutions.
In short, thanks to the loophole, GE was able to secure $139 billion while not, technically, being a bank. Further, GE was able to avoid the restrictions and stipulations given to banks.
Now, with money in hand, GE Capital is cutting off funding to gun shops as the Obama Administration continues its dying efforts to curtail Second Amendment protections
Group Takes Aim At Local Gun-Control Laws
HAGERSTOWN, Md. -- A gun owners' rights group is threatening to sue 35 Maryland local governments unless they repeal gun regulations that the group says violate state law.
The Second Amendment Foundation of Bellevue, Wash., says Maryland is the third state it has targeted in a campaign to eliminate local gun laws that are more restrictive than state regulations. The group has run similar projects in its home state and Virginia.
The campaign has had some results. Cumberland's city council took steps this week toward repealing an ordinance prohibiting private citizens from carrying concealed handguns.
BREAKING NEWS:: Congress Passes Bill To End Air Traffic Controller Furloughs
House joins Senate in passing legislation to end furloughs of air traffic controllers, sending the bill to President Obama to sign.
From Fox News
Palestinian Authority Budget 28 Percent For Security Forces - Funded By US
Budget Shocker: Los Angeles Shows $119 Million Surplus
For five years a chorus of voices has been predicting bankruptcy for Los Angeles, while often calling for deeper cuts to city employee pensions. Today, however, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa proposed a budget for Fiscal Year 2013-2014 that includes a one-time surplus of $119 million. While some of that surplus would rely on additional pay and benefit reductions for city workers, even without such cuts the city would have a projected surplus of close to $100 million.
“It’s better than seeing the light at the end of the tunnel – we’re almost out of the tunnel!” Matt Szabo, Mayor Villaraigosa’s deputy chief of staff, told Frying Pan News in an interview last week. Szabo discussed the city’s financial picture and said that dire financial warnings have been largely overblown.
“One of the issues that’s highly irritating is the ease with which some people have thrown around the bankruptcy term,” Szabo said. “That’s not going to happen.”
Casino Owner Pitches In Funds To Repair Huey Memorial
WEST OCEAN CITY -- The Vietnam-era Huey helicopter memorial on display at the Ocean City Municipal Airport is back in good shape this week after a repair project funded in large part by public contributions, including a behind-the-scenes benefactor.
The decades-old Huey helicopter was mounted for display at the airport in 2011 after the Ocean City Aviation Association (OCAA) was able to secure the relic of a bygone era in military aviation. The OCAA used private funds to acquire the helicopter and worked with the town of Ocean City to secure a permanent home for the historic aircraft at the municipal airport.
The Huey helicopters gained fame during the Vietnam War, and one became available for display after the fleet was retired in 2011. The OCAA jumped at the chance to obtain one for permanent display as part of a memorial at the Ocean City Airport.
Pennsylvania Has A Bridge To Sell You
That's right, they really do. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is looking for a buyer for Hummel's Bridge - a 117-year-old structure that has been deemed unsafe for traffic. Although it's no longer safe, the bridge was labeled "historically and technologically significant" by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, so it can't be torn down. Kris Thompson, the architectural historian for PennDOT, said the department has sold other historical bridges, and they have found new life as walkways on college campuses and other locations. Hummel's Bridge connects Greenwhich and Richmond townships, and was state-of-the-art at the time of it's construction. Greenwich Township Supervisor Harry Hoppes said, "In 1896, the design of it was way ahead of its time, but we're now in 2013 and it's like we have to do something different." No word on the amount PennDOT hopes to get for the bridge, but hopefully, this piece of our American history will be preserved.
THIS GOP REP’S ANTI-OBAMA SPEECH ON THE HOUSE FLOOR IS SPREADING FAST
Freshman Congressman Tom Cotton (R-AR) delivered some thought-provoking comments on terrorism and the Obama administration on Wednesday during a speech on the House floor. “In barely four years,” he said, “five jihadists have reached their targets in the United States under Barack Obama.”
But he wasn’t done there.
“In the over seven years after 9/11 under George W. Bush, how many terrorists reached their target in the United States?” he added. “Zero! We need to ask, ‘Why is the Obama Administration failing in its mission to stop terrorism before it reaches its targets in the United States?’”
Pit Bull Owners Bark At Background Check Bill
A North Carolina lawmaker says he was caught off guard by the angry responses he got to a bill that would require the owners of pit bulls, mastiffs and Rottweilers and other large breeds to undergo criminal background checks.
Rep. Rodney Moore, a Charlotte Democrat who sponsored the bill, tells Law Blog that his office got thousands of emails from people protesting the plan. Many of them were from pit bull owners who attached photos of their dogs looking cute and “passive,” he said.
The legislation died in committee. “I’ve been inundated,” said Mr. Moore. “It’s a good idea, but maybe the language was kind of harsh.” He said he would get stakeholders together to talk about animal-safety issues.
The New Solyndra: Obama Kept Pumping Taxpayer Cash As Company Was Failing
It appears, once again, that the government's inept approach to spending 'other people's money' has blown up in their face. As HotAir.com reports, newly obtained documents show the Obama administration was warned as early as 2010 that electric car maker Fisker Automotive Inc. was not meeting milestones set up for a half-billion dollar government loan, nearly a year before U.S. officials froze the loan. Just as with Solyndra, Congress seemed convinced to spend billions of taxpayer money 'investing' in green-tech startups - only to lose everything. Simply put, in our humble opinion, the pattern is explained by the 'monopoly money' perspective we suspect these funds are viewed as in light of Bernanke's inexorable funding of the government's largesse. None other than the great Joe Biden reveled in the news in 2009 that Fisker would re-open a closed GM plant creating jobs, jobs, jobs; it never completed the task and never created one job. When the money isn't yours, 'investing' public funds is oh so easy and it appears, with zero consequence for the decision makers - again.
Senate Passes Bill To Ease FAA Furloughs
With flight delays mounting, the Senate approved hurry-up legislation Thursday night to end air traffic controller furloughs blamed for inconveniencing large numbers of travelers.
A House vote on the measure was expected as early as Friday, with lawmakers eager to embark on a weeklong vacation.
Under the legislation, which the Senate passed without even a roll call vote, the Federal Aviation Administration would gain authority to transfer up to $253 million from accounts that are flush into other programs, to "prevent reduced operations and staffing" through the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year.
Sebelius Claims Young People Won't Pay 25-150% More for Health Insurance
BREAKING NEWS: Country Music Legend George Jones Dies At 81
George Glenn Jones, the country music singer behind songs like ‘She Thinks I Still Care’ and ‘He Stopped Loving Her Today,’ dies at Vanderbilt University Medical Center after being hospitalized with a fever and irregular blood pressure.From Fox News
Congress Prepares $100 Million Bipartisan Flu Tax
Congress is preparing to take action on a bipartisan proposal to raise taxes on flu vaccines. This is not a tax on the wealthy, but rather on a broad swath of Americans, or at least those who choose to be immunized against the flu.
Boston Victims Adrianne Haslet And Beth Roche Vow To Dance, Run Again
MORNINGS are the hardest for Adrianne Haslet because the 32-year-old professional ballroom dancer forgets at first that her left foot is gone.
The F-Word From Washington
Getting furloughed is a very personal thing, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. For some feds, it will amount to no more than a series of three-day weekends. Others say even losing a couple of days pay will break their bank. Still more think it is a political stunt and a heckuva way to run a government. So what's your take?
Annual Kite Expo Showcases Latest In Industry, Free Lessons
OCEAN CITY -- Ocean City will kick off the season early by painting the sky with every color under the sun at the Maryland International Kite Expo (M.I.K.E.), set for April 26 -28.
The festival will be showcasing a spectacular cast of kite flyers from all over the United States. Thousands of spectators will watch giant kites, as big as a city bus, fly high above the Ocean City skyline.
In addition, stunt teams will perform amazing acrobatic maneuvers all in sync to the delight of the crowds. The teams consist of four or more precision kite fliers, all flying four line kites in perfect formation. They are the Thunderbirds of the kiting world. They will perform amazing routines choreographed to music. Team demos will take place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Returning once again for 2013 will be the Mid-Atlantic Sport Kite Championships as part of the M.I.K.E.
Where Is Salisbury Going?
Ukrainian Rutgers Student Arrested Taking Two IEDs Into New York
Ukrainian Rutgers student arrested taking two IEDs into New York just a week before Boston Marathon bombing
Mykyta Panasenko, 27, was arrested in Hoboken, New Jersey on April 7 aboard a New York-bound train. He was carrying two improvised explosive devices, according to police.
Early College Program: Delmar School District Partners With Wilmington University
DELMAR – Starting next year, a Delmar High School graduate will be able to walk at commencement holding a high school diploma in one hand and a college transcript in the other.
Beginning in the fall of 2013, academically-eligible juniors and seniors will have the opportunity to become dually enrolled at Delmar High School and Wilmington University concurrently, resulting in high school credits and college credits being earned simultaneously by those students.
OK, that was a pretty big bang. Did you feel it?
IRS Issued 11 Billion In Improper Refunds, Report Says
The Internal Revenue Service issued more than $11 billion in improper payments through its Earned Income Tax Credit program last year, according to an inspector general’s report released this week.
Treasury Department deputy inspector general Michael McKenney found that the IRS has failed to comply for two consecutive years with the Improper Payments Elimination Act , which President Obama signed in 2010. The law requires federal agencies to reduce erroneous payments to a rate of less than 10 percent.
The IRS estimates that at least 21 percent of its EITC payments in 2012 were faulty. That rate showed a decline compared to the previous nine years, but improper payments over the same period increased about 22 percent, rising to at least $11.6 billion, according to the inspector general’s report.
O'Malley To Sign Death Penalty Repeal Next Week
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- Gov. Martin O'Malley plans to sign a measure repealing capital punishment in Maryland into law.
Raquel Guillory, a spokeswoman for O'Malley, confirmed on Thursday that O'Malley plans to sign the bill at a bill-signing ceremony on May 2.
Maryland will become the 18th state to ban the death penalty. Connecticut did so last year. Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico and New York also have abolished it in recent years.
A number of families in my community are going to be having a yard sale this coming Saturday, April 27th. We are in the new townhome community on the old Aydelotte Farm. We are located off of Beaglin Park Drive at Middle Neck Drive here in Salisbury. Starts at 8 AM.
BREAKING NEWS: Boston Marathon Bombing Suspect Moved
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has been transported from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center to the Federal Medical Center at Fort Devens in Ft. Devens, Mass., a US Marshals Service spokesman tells Fox News.
Ocean City Police Reminds Citizens To Share The Road With Motorcyclists
This weekend thousands of motorcyclists are anticipated to visit Ocean City and the surrounding area as the 3rd Annual Bikes to the Beach Spring Rally is scheduled to begin on Thursday, April 25. In correlation with Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, which begins May 1, the Ocean City Police Department is reminding motorists and motorcyclists to “share the road” and be extra alert to keep motorcyclists safe.
Motorcycles are vehicles with the same rights and privileges as any motor vehicle on the roadway. Motorists and bicyclists should perform visual checks for motorcyclists by checking mirrors and blind spots before they enter or exit a lane of traffic, and at intersections. In addition, pedestrians should also get into the habit of scanning for motorcyclists who might be hidden by other traffic.
“Safety is a mutual responsibility for motorists and motorcyclists alike,” said Acting Chief Gregory Guiton. “Drivers must be aware that a motorcycle, as one of the smallest of vehicles on the road, can be ‘hiding’ in your vehicle’s blind spots. Always check blind spots, use mirrors and signal before changing lanes or making turns.”
More Red Roost In May!
Open 5 days a week starting
Wednesday, May 1st!
»Make sure to catch Backfin Banjo Band
in there new Wednesday night time slot!
More Days and More Hours!
Open 5 days a week in May!
Hours of Operation in May:
Wednesday-Friday: Open at 5:30
Saturday-Sunday: Open at 3:00
Open at 12:00 Noon on Mother's Day!
Call today for Reservations! 410.546.5443
Boston And Freedom
The government's fidelity to the Constitution is never more tested than in a time of crisis. The urge to do something – or to appear to be doing something – is nearly irresistible to those whom we have employed to protect our freedom and to keep us safe. Regrettably, with each passing violent crisis – Waco, Oklahoma City, Columbine, 9/11, Newtown and now the Boston Marathon – our personal freedoms continue to slip away, and the government itself remains the chief engine of that slippage.
The American people made a pact with the devil in the weeks and months following 9/11 when they bought the Bush-era argument that by surrendering liberty they could buy safety. But that type of pact has never enhanced either liberty or safety, and its fruits are always bitter.
“Developing Global Leaders For Tomorrow”
Toastmasters District 18 Spring Conference
Baltimore, MARYLAND, April, 2013 – The first quarter of year has come and gone. Can you believe it? There’s less than eight months left in the year and perhaps you have some unresolved goals or resolutions on your list for 2013. Need help accomplishing them? The annual spring conference for District 18 may be the right place for you and its right around the corner. Have you put this on your to-do list? It’s highly suggested and here’s why:
Toastmaster’s accredited speaker, Jana Barnhill, will be the event’s keynote speaker. Jana, the fourth female president of Toastmasters International, is a two-time finalist in Toastmasters World Championship of Public Speaking, and globally and nationally conducts seminars for communication skills and leadership development.
Moreover, there will be concurrent workshops given to help all attendees focus in on their key initiatives, while gaining knowledge on becoming great or greater communicators. During each break out session, you will also have the opportunity to network with other attendees and feed your creative forte. Want to improve in a current role, or promote to the next level? Or maybe you’d like to get that small business or second occupation off to a great start. If you’re seeking growth, you shall find it at the 2013 District 18 Spring Conference.
If you enjoy variety, you can look forward to both a fun and educational conference. Taking place at the Tremont Hotel in Baltimore, MD from 7am-6pm, the spring conference will host the Table Topics contest and International Speech Contest. The contest results will be given toward the end of the day. In addition, basket raffles will be given away. If you are not a member of Toastmasters, don’t worry. The conference is open to the public, so tell your colleagues, friends, and family.
The day will wrap up with an award ceremony for members who have achieved both Advanced Communication Gold and Advanced Leader Silver. The award ceremony will you give you a snapshot of what you can achieve within the Toastmasters community.
Think of your new year’s resolution list. Now think of your action plan. Any gaps or dead ends? The Toastmasters District 18 Spring Conference can create avenues for your goals. Why not invest? For more information on the event, visit the conference website athttp://d18conference2013spring.eventsbot.com/.
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DSP: Spike in Overdoses in Western Sussex County; Immediate Assistance Available at 911 or DHSS’ Crisis Helpline
NEWS FROM THE DELAWARE STATE POLICE AND THE DELAWARE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES
For more information, contact: Delaware State Police: Sgt. Richard D. Bratz, Director of the Public Information Office (302) 242-5456 and DHSS: Jill Fredel, Director of Communications, (302) 357-7498 (cell)
NEW CASTLE (April 22, 2017) – In the wake of a series of heroin overdoses in western Sussex County, including one that was fatal, from early Friday through early Saturday, health and law enforcement officials are warning users, families, treatment providers and health care professionals of the dangerous spike.
For users and families who want to be connected to treatment immediately, call the Department of Health and Social Services’ 24/7 Crisis Helpline at 1-800-345-6785 in Sussex and Kent counties, or 1-800-652-2929 in New Castle County. If individuals see someone overdosing, they should call 911. Under Delaware’s 911/Good Samaritan Law, people who call 911 to report an overdoses and the person in medical distress cannot be arrested for low-level drug crimes.
Sergeant Richard D. Bratz, Director of the Public Information Office for the Delaware State Police reports that a significant spike of heroin overdoses have occurred over the past several days in Sussex County Delaware. The Sussex County Drug Unit is actively investigating and seeking information on any of the drug overdoses. The public is encouraged to call Sergeant M. Dawson of the Sussex County Drug Unit at (302) 752-3815 with any information.
Michael Barbieri, director of the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health, alerted treatment providers statewide of the surge in overdoses in western Sussex. Hospitals and urgent care centers were notified of the increase by the Division of Public Health’s Emergency Medical Services, which oversees the state’s paramedic service. EMS responded to seven reported overdoses in a 24-hour period beginning Friday in the Seaford and Laurel areas. In several of the cases, paramedics used naloxone, the overdose-reversing medication, to save the individual before transporting each person to the hospital.
“This spike in overdoses is in alarming,” said Dr. Kara Odom Walker, a family physician and Cabinet Secretary for the Department of Health and Social Services. “Even one use of heroin or another opioid can end a life. For people in active use and their families, please convince your loved ones to seek treatment for their addiction or keep naloxone in your home. Addiction is a disease and treatment does work. Our staff at the DHSS Crisis Helpline will listen and they will connect you to treatment options.”
RESTAURANT JOB FAIR
The Ocean Pines Association will hold a restaurant job fair from 10 am – 1 pm on Friday, April 28 and Saturday, April 29 at Mumford’s Landing in Ocean Pines.
Seasonal and year-round positions are available at the community’s three restaurants – The Cove at Mumford’s, Ocean Pines Golf Club’s Tern Grille and the Ocean Pines Beach Club, located at 49th St. in Ocean City.
Individuals interested in serving as waitstaff, cooks, servers, bartenders, bussers and hostesses are encouraged to attend.
All three facilities have recently undergone renovations. The association’s flagship restaurant, The Cove at Mumford’s, is currently open; the Ocean Pines Beach Club and Tern Grille will reopen within the next few weeks.
Questions about the job fair should be directed to Mumford’s Landing in Ocean Pines at 410-641-7501.
Report: Caitlyn Jenner Plans Nude Photo Shoot after Gender Reassignment Surgery
Caitlyn Jenner is reportedly planning to bare it all in a nude photo shoot after undergoing gender reassignment surgery earlier this year.
According to the Daily Mail, Jenner’s son Brody Jenner says the former Olympian’s forthcoming photo shoot has infuriated the Kardashian clan.
As Seen On Facebook: BEWARE 20 overdoses in last 24 hours
In the Press release we posted earlier the Delaware State police has confirmed at least 7 overdoses. We have not received any press releases from other local police agencies about this issue.
Purnell Museum opens ‘Community Medicine’
The Julia A. Purnell Museum’s new exhibit, “Community Medicine: The Art and Science of Healing,” which honors longtime town physician Dr. Robert LaMar, had a well-attended opening reception on April 7 during the First Friday Art Stroll in Snow Hill.
Dr. Cynthia Byrd, Purnell Museum executive director, said about 50 people were on hand for the opening, most of whom had first hand dealings with LaMar.
“So many people from his life came and I was so glad they were still around,” she said.
In addition to LaMar’s son and daughter-in-law, Philip and Suzanne LaMar, Byrd said two former nurses, along with the physician who took over his practice and numerous patients were on hand to remember the man who served as Snow Hill’s town doctor for almost 60 years.
“He was the last general family doctor who was certified to deliver babies at Peninsula Regional Medical Center,” she said. “That was back when a general practitioner was general. He had to do everything … you didn’t have specialists.”
Happy Days Star, Erin Moran, Dead at 56
Erin Moran who famously played Joanie Cunningham on "Happy Days" and its spinoff "Joanie Loves Chachi" has died ... TMZ has learned.
We're told authorities in Indiana got a call just after 4 PM ET Saturday from someone reporting an "unresponsive female." EMT's arrived and found Erin Moran's body ... she was already dead.
Moran shot to spotlight in the early 70s when she was cast on "Happy Days" as Joanie, the younger sister of Ron Howard's character. She continued the role in 1982 alongside Scott Baio in "Joanie Loves Chachi" but the show only lasted one season.
50,000 People Per Year Are Hospitalized From Police Injuries
The level that things have reached on every front is outrageous, exclaims SHTFplan.com's Mac Slavo, and it isn’t just police, the entire system is out of control.
Hospitals kill at least 100,000 patients per year due; the monetary system is a spreading virus and a fraud. No transaction in society represents what it seems on face value; it is discounted, it is corruption.
How much farther can things deteriorate before they collapse? We have only history to guide us, and time to wait. Be ready for what is coming, and stay vigilant.
Words of Wisdom from our Favorite Screamer
Failed Presidential Democrat Nominee Candidate Howard Dean continues to spew his own version of the truth. Such a shame, his 'version' isn't actual truth but his own brand of liberal sputterings.
Amazing how Democrats like to re-write the Constitution whenever it's inconvenient!
Meet the New Surgeon General
Yes, President Trump is most definitely a racist and sexist as the Democrats and liberal media would have you believe. After firing Obama holdover, he went and hired this white male.... ah. Scratch that.
President Trump continues to not cooperate with the liberals' narratives about how dangerous and polarizing he is as a public figure. You'd think people would catch on, but some will continue to wallow in the false narrative even beyond the point where they look ridiculous.
Rear Adm. Sylvia Trent-Adams, one of the first nurses to serve as Surgeon General. Now, the media is going postal that she's a nurse but then again, they can't rely on the whole white male racist/sexist continuum.
Department of Justice Sends Letter to Nine Jurisdictions Requiring Proof of Compliance with 8 U.S.C. § 1373
Today, the Department of Justice sent the attached letters to nine jurisdictions which were identified in a May 2016 report by the Department of Justice’s Inspector General as having laws that potentially violate 8 U.S.C. § 1373.
Additionally, many of these jurisdictions are also crumbling under the weight of illegal immigration and violent crime. The number of murders in Chicago has skyrocketed, rising more than 50 percent from the 2015 levels. New York City continues to see gang murder after gang murder, the predictable consequence of the city's “soft on crime” stance. And just several weeks ago in California’s Bay Area, after a raid captured 11 MS-13 members on charges including murder, extortion and drug trafficking, city officials seemed more concerned with reassuring illegal immigrants that the raid was unrelated to immigration than with warning other MS-13 members that they were next.
The letters remind the recipient jurisdictions that, as a condition for receiving certain financial year 2016 funding from the Department of Justice, each of these jurisdictions agreed to provide documentation and an opinion from legal counsel validating that they are in compliance with Section 1373. The Department of Justice expects each of these jurisdictions to comply with this grant condition and to submit all documentation to the Office of Justice Programs by June 30, 2017, the deadline imposed by the grant agreement.
Proof of Compliance with 8 U.S.C. § 1373 Letters
Ex-DEA Spokeswoman: 'Marijuana Is Safe', Kept Illegal Because It's A 'Cash Cow'
Before the heroin epidemic became a nationwide problem, claiming thousands of lives; Plano, Texas, was already entrenched. And like many of the places caught in the crosshairs of the continuing heroin crisis, Plano is the last place that one would expect to be swept into the opioid tidal wave.
Anti-Media recently interviewed Texas-native Belita Nelson, who has had an interesting few decades.
For six years she termed herself the “chief propagandist” — or spokeswoman — for the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). Before that, as a Plano mother and teacher, Belita noticed what was happening in her community. She described Plano as an area rivaling Newtown, Connecticut, or Cape Cod — tight-knit regions where tragedy strikes hard and deep.
She explained that “[Plano] has the best school districts in the state of Texas…it’s a gated community. And in 1998, for heroin to be that prevalent in the community was stunning. Stunning. We got all the media attention because we were this upscale Texas neighborhood that nobody thought would be inundated with heroin.”
Nelson decided to take action, saying, “I decided I’d had it. I was going to organize my community and fight this thing at the grassroots level. But we were never grassroots because the first thing I did was go on the Oprah show for the DEA.”
New Documentary Shows 1992 LA Riots As You’ve Never Seen Them Before
April 29th, 1992 was the day that four LAPD members were acquitted for the use of excessive force in the arrest of Rodney King after a high-speed chase down the streets of Northern Los Angeles. Following this decision, riots broke out in Los Angeles, throwing the city into chaos and causing destruction and turmoil of historic proportions.
On Sunday, April 23rd at 8:00 PM (ET/PT) the Smithsonian Channel will air a documentary called The Lost Tapes: LA Riots, from Executive Producer, Tom Jennings. This documentary features previously un-aired footage and recordings captured by both the Los Angeles police and fire departments that put viewers right back to 1992 for firsthand accounts from those at the center of the turmoil.
CBS Local’s Adam Bloom spoke with Jennings ahead of the documentary’s TV premiere for an inside look at the creation of this audio-visual time capsule.
"We're At The Mercy Of The Algos"; More News Sites Say Facebook's 'Fake News' Filter Is Killing Traffic
Yesterday we highlighted an article written by the Chicago Tribune's Deputy Editor for Digital News, Kurt Gessler, which provided a fairly compelling set of facts to suggest that Facebook's 'fake news' filter was suppressing the distribution of articles from media sources which undoubtedly consider themselves "legitimate new outlets" (with the definition of 'legitimate' left solely to the discretion of Facebook execs, of course).
As it turns out, the Chicago Tribune was not alone as Gessler's article prompted a whole host of digital publishers to come forward with similar stories of traffic destruction. Per Digiday:
Facebook’s news feed algorithm changes have been part of publishing reality for many years. But to Matt Karolian, director of audience engagement at The Boston Globe, “last month was probably the worst we’ve had in reach in about a year. The fact everyone else is seeing it is a little bit troubling.”
Aysha Khan said Facebook reach has also been sliding at the Religion News Service, where she’s social media editor.
“Reach spiked in the summer, and we started hitting 15, 25K reach on bigger posts that were polarizing,” Khan said. “It wasn’t just political posts, but any kind of interviews. Anything that had potential to get a big reaction got a big reaction. But then we noticed that kind of stopped, and by January, it was just gone. Now we’re worse off than we were to start with.”
The change has happened even as RNS has been doing more video, including live video, and photos, things that Facebook has encouraged. Khan said RNS is still trying, though, with plans for more regularly scheduled live video and videos generally.
Health Dept. sees one-year 40% increase in gonorrhea cases, urges testing
Baltimore, MD – To mark National Sexually Transmitted Disease Awareness Month, the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene is reminding residents to get tested for sexually transmitted infections. This warning coincides with a disturbing trend across the United States: Approximately 20 million new sexually transmitted infections (STIs) occur every year.
Almost half of those cases occur in people ages 15 to 24, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Reported cases of three infections – chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis – were at an all-time high across the nation in 2015, the most recent year for which national data are available. Of that trio of infections, Maryland public health officials are concerned most about significant increases in gonorrhea. Preliminary 2016 data indicate a nearly 40 percent increase in reported cases of gonorrhea, when compared with 2015 data. When compared with reported cases going back to 2012 (when rates first began slowly climbing), the increase is 67 percent.
Of the 9,482 cases of gonorrhea reported in 2016, 59 percent were among males, a proportion that has grown over time. In 2012, 49 percent of gonorrhea cases were among males. In 2016, the group most affected by gonorrhea continued to be people ages 15 to 24, constituting 48 percent of cases, while they constituted only 13 percent of Maryland’s population.
Shawn Porter Fights TONIGHT
Shawn Porter who fought 5 of his pro fights in Salisbury will fight Andre Berto in a title eliminated bout in Brooklyn's Barclays Center. A win for Porter puts him in position for a rematch with World Champion Kieth Thurman. Porter lost a controversial decision to Thurman last year and would love a chance to fight Thurman again. Team Porter pictured here show Larry Wade conditioning trainer, Hall of Fame referee Joe Cortez, father and Coach Kenny Porter and Salisburys Coach Hal Chernoff to wrap hands and serve as Porter's cutman. Also tonight two Main St gym Boxers will fight for the Regional Golden Glove Championship in Fort Washington MD. Thomas Mottinger will go after the open class heavyweight belt and James McMurdo will attempt to bring home the super heavyweight title in the novice division.
10 Selfless Acts Amid Terrible Tragedies That Will Restore Your Faith In Humanity
Preppers aren’t exactly known for having much faith in humanity. If they did, they probably wouldn’t become preppers in the first place. They know how people behave when the chips are down. They know how quickly civilized people can turn into vicious animals when they haven’t eaten for a few days. So they stock up on the weapons they think will protect them from these animals, and the food they need to keep themselves from turning into animals themselves.
Of course, they’re not crazy for trying to be prepared. We turn on the news or check our social media feeds every night, and what do we see? A cavalcade of horror. Terrorist attacks, mob violence, selfishness, ignorance, and flippant threats of war. What would really be crazy, is to see all of that on a daily basis and not want to be prepared.
However, there’s a flip-side to these behaviors that everyone, prepper or not, needs to understand. On the one hand; yes, we’re an incredibly violent and cruel species that is capable of mind-boggling horrors when we’re trying to survive. Hell, some of the things we do when we aren’t desperate are still nightmare inducing. But what most people forget is that in our darkest moments, we’re capable of immeasurable acts of compassion and altruism.
That’s the unique duality of our species; and it’s a duality that totally separates us from every other creature on this planet. When we’re bad, we’re worse than any animal. That’s why we prep. But at our best, people are capable of awe-inspiring acts of kindness. Your average individual human is capable of more mercy and selflessness than the members of most entire species put together.
DNR Police Handle Striped Bass and Turkey Cases
The opening of spring wild turkey earlier this week resulted in charges by the Maryland Natural Police against two men while officers continued striped bass enforcement efforts on the Eastern Shore.
On Tuesday, officers on patrol at 6:30 a.m. in Washington County issued citations to a Hagerstown man after finding cracked corn spread in front of his hunting blind.
Willis Wayne Kesselring, 68, was charged with hunting turkeys with the aid of bait and hunting turkeys with an unplugged shotgun. The pre-paid fines total $750. If he chooses to contest the charges in Washington County District Court June 21 and is found guilty, he could face a fine up to $4,000.
An officer on patrol in Montgomery County before the opening of turkey season noticed a ground blind at the edge of a grassy field and a feed block filled with seed nearby. He also noticed two turkeys near the baited area.The officer returned Tuesday, opening day and found Jeffrey Michael Tokar, 55, of Gaithersburg in the blind with a shotgun and turkey call.
Tokar was charged with hunting wild turkeys with the aid of bait and hunting forest game with a shotgun holding more than three shells. The pre-paid fines are $750. However, if he chooses to contest the charges in Montgomery County District Court June 6 and is found guilty, he could face a fine up to $3,000.
Continued enforcement at Fishing Creek Bridge in Dorchester County and the Bill Burton Fishing Pier State Park in Talbot County this week resulted in 24 people receiving citations and 213 striped bass being seized.
On Sunday just after midnight, officers seized 83 striped bass from a vehicle leaving Fishing Creek Bridge and charged four men.
U.S. Preparing Charges To Arrest Julian Assange
In a stunning new report, CNN has just revealed, according to anonymous sources at least, that US authorities have prepared charges and will seek the arrest of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange for intelligence leaks dating all the way back to 2010.
Reminiscing about Abe Pollin’s Capital idea: The Capital Centre
When Arnold Seigel was 11, another boy would occasionally come to his house in Northwest Washington so they could take Hebrew lessons together from the same teacher. The two kids became fast friends, and both ended up attending Roosevelt High.
“He went toward business, and I went toward science,” said Arnold, who studied engineering and physics and has a PhD from the University of Amsterdam.
The other kid was Abe Pollin, real estate developer, owner of Washington’s NBA and NHL franchises, and the man who built what was once the premier sports and entertainment venue in the area: the Capital Centre in Landover, Md.
The Capital Centre opened in 1973, and if you flip through the souvenir dedication booklet printed back then, you will see Arnold listed as a “special consultant.”
“I had free rein with Abe,” Arnold, 93, told me the other day. “He said, ‘Do whatever you need to do.’ ”
What Liberals Don't Want You To Know
NYT Op-Ed Slams Transgender Propaganda: Let Tomboys Remain Girls
A New York Times op-ed hit the transgender ideology for being anti-girl and anti-woman, and also prompted many liberal commentators to complain about the harmful impact of pro-transgender advocacy on normal girls and boys.
The comments made by the New York Times‘ readers show emerging hostility among liberal women to the demands by gay and transgender activists that testosterone treatments and sex-change surgery be given to young girls who show typically boyish behavior and attitudes, such as avoiding dresses and long hair, or preferring contact sports or playfighting.
The April 18 article, titled “My Daughter Is Not Transgender. She’s a Tomboy,” was written by a liberal mother who supports legal rights for people who want to live as members of the opposite sex, but who also insists that girls who act like boys can still be girls:
My daughter wears track pants and T-shirts. She has shaggy short hair (the look she requested from the hairdresser was “Luke Skywalker in Episode IV”). Most, but not all, of her friends are boys. She is sporty and strong, incredibly sweet, and a girl.
And yet she is asked by the pediatrician, by her teachers, by people who have known her for many years, if she feels like, or wants to be called, or wants to be, a boy…
While celebrating the diversity of sexual and gender identities, we also need to celebrate tomboys and other girls who fall outside the narrow confines of gender roles. Don’t tell them that they’re not girls.
Resort spending fraction of what’s necessary to fix roads
Ocean City’s Public Works Department will be working over the next nine months to revise a running document on the status of the island’s roads – and providing a more accurate estimate of what it will cost to repair each one of them.
According to the inventory list created in 2008, it would take $26.31 million at this juncture to improve every city street. Although 807 roads overall crisscross Ocean City, roughly 100 are out of the city’s oversight as they are private lanes or handled by the State Highway Administration.
“Because we’ve been so progressive in the last fiscal years, we can drill down that number even further,” Public Works Director Hal Adkins said. “We recently finished some minor surface milling from 132nd Street to 142nd street Oceanside. Using price orders from that we can calculate the cost per square yard. We also did an overhaul of Yawl Drive last year, so we have accurate information on similar projects.”
Delaware: AMBER ALERT ISSUED for Missing Children (CANCELLED)
Missing Children found in good condition. The Delaware State Police cancels the Amber Alert at the request of the Wilmington Police Department.
The Delaware State Police are activating an AMBER ALERT at the request of the Wilmington Police Department
Wilmington, Delaware - On Saturday, April 22, 2017, the Wilmington Police Department is actively searching for two missing children.
The Wilmington Police Department received a call to report the children missing at approximately at 9:43 p.m. last night.
The preliminary investigation has determined the children were last seen at 9:45 a.m. Wednesday, April 19, 2017 at the 500 block of Sherman Street, Wilmington while in the care of the babysitter, Michelle Rogers, 50 of Wilmington. The two missing children are Zion Coverdale-Dixon, 5 year old male of Wilmington and Jihad Bailey, 3 year old male of Smyrna.
Zion Coverdale-Dixon is a five year old black male with black hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a Superman shirt, blue jeans with white and blue Jordan sneakers.
Maxine Waters: If We Impeach Trump, He Can’t Build The Wall
Tuesday evening in Los Angeles at the Westchester-Playa Democratic Club, while discussing President Donald Trump’s budget, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) said she hoped Trump is impeached so he cannot build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.
Waters said, “We are in church you all. We have got to do what God would have us do. And I believe we are the kind of people that would do that. So I’m hoping and praying the wall will never be built and if we impeach him we know it is not going to get built.”
Report: More Americans Between 18 and 34 Live with Parents Than Spouse
More Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 live with their parents than with a spouse, according to a new study.
In 1975, 31.9 million young people lived with a spouse, compared to just 19.9 million in 2016, while the number of young people staying with their parents has risen from 14.7 million to 22.9 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Despite this vast difference, the number of young unmarried partners living together has risen from around 700,000 to over 9.2 million, while the number of young people living alone has also gone up from 5 percent to 8 percent.
“What does it mean to be a young adult? In prior generations, young adults were expected to have finished school, found a job, and set up their own household during their 20s—most often with their spouse and with a child soon to follow,” explained the Census Bureau study. “Today’s young adults take longer to experience these milestones.”
Judge certifies class action lawsuit against Fat Daddy’s
U.S. District Judge Richard Bennett last week conditionally certified a class action suit against the owners of Fat Daddy’s restaurants in Ocean City, alleging wage violations stemming from unpaid overtime at both resort locations.
The court will be issuing notices to workers employed at the restaurants between April 13, 2014 and April 13, 2017, allowing them to opt in to the case as part of the discovery phase. The lawsuit was filed in December.
The plaintiff, Brandon Ware, alleges that owners Edward and Lisa Braude implemented and enforced a policy of not paying overtime to employees who were regularly scheduled for more than 40 hours of work per week.
The Fair Labor Standards Act provides that, unless a business is exempt, eligible employees must receive overtime pay for any hours worked over 40 in one workweek. There is an exemption for employees of seasonal businesses, although both Fat Daddy’s locations are open year-round. Restaurants were exempt from certain provisions of the Maryland Wage and Hour Law until July 2014.
North Korea Nukes San Francisco in Propaganda Video…
A series of North Korean nuclear weapons destroys San Francisco in the “Hermit Kingdom’s” latest propaganda film, which was created for the grand finale of celebrations commemorating founder Kim Il Sung’s 105th birthday last weekend.
According to video of the event, which was acquired by the San Francisco Chronicle,music was played by a military symphony in the background as an audience of men in dull-brown uniforms and other military attire cheered on the massive explosion and ensuing destruction of the city. Following the explosion, the American flag can be seen waving over a military cemetery.
The Chronicle reports that the concert was part of the “Day of the Sun” festivities honoring the late Kim. San Francisco was reportedly wiped out in about 15 seconds.
David Stockman On The Anything President And The Everything Bubble
The lemmings are running hard towards the cliffs today. Despite a renewed burst of bombs and drones careening into the already rubble-strewn wastelands of Afghanistan, Yemen, Syria and Iraq.
Or the outbreak of cold war style nuclear brinksmanship on the Korean peninsula — what one commentator properly called a Cuban missile crisis in slow motion.
Likewise, forget that the vacationing Congress is set to return on April 25 to an endless sequence of shoutdowns, showdowns and shutdowns on continuing resolutions and debt ceiling increases.
That is, it will be struggling to keep the fiscal lights on in the Imperial City, not enacting the Donald’s DBA (dead before arrival) fantasy about making the American economy great again.
Indeed, while the Donald has been out huffing and puffing in his new role as global Spanker-in-Chief, the domestic front has turned from bad to worse. His economic policy machinery has now been seized entirely by the Vampire Squid’s latest chieftains in the White House — Gary Cohn, Steve Mnuchin and Jared Kushner.
I am quite confident that none of these three has ever voted Republican in their life or have even the foggiest idea of how to craft a fiscal plan and tax program that could coalesce the warring GOP factions from the hardline Freedom Caucus to the moderate Tuesday Group.
And if the Goldman trio should even attempt to go the old Boehner-Obama “bipartisan” route, as Wall Street devoutly wishes, Speaker Ryan will come to understand what it means to be drawn-and-quartered.
Paris terror attack: Police officer shot on Champs Elysees
A policeman was shot dead while two other officers were seriously injured by a Kalashnikov-wielding gunman on the Champs Elysees in central Paris last night.
The alleged ISIS gunman, identified as 39-year-old father Karim Cheurfi - who was jailed for 20 years for trying to kill officers in 2001 - parked his Audi and opened fire after police stopped at a red light on the world famous avenue.
One traffic officer died instantly with a shot to the head, while the other two were hurt before Cheurfi himself was gunned down by nearby armed police.
A ricocheting bullet fired by the terrorist also wounded a female foreign tourist passing by. ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Dramatic footage captured the moment French police chased and shot at the gunman, who later died. A pump action shotgun and knives were found in the Audi he was driving, which also contained his ID - confirming to detectives that he was known to security services for a number of recent offences and had been flagged as an 'extremist'.
Just ONE Diet Coke or Pepsi Max a day can 'TRIPLE the risk of a deadly stroke' and dementia, researchers claim
JUST one diet drink a day can triple the risk of a deadly stroke, a study suggests.
The researchers also found links to dementia described as a “worrying association” by experts.
But the findings were dismissed by some British authorities, while others have called for more investigation.
The US study found those who drank a can of artificially-sweetened pop — such as Diet Coke or Pepsi Max — daily were at three times the risk of suffering the most common form of stroke compared to non-drinkers.
They were also 2.9 times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s. But after accounting for all lifestyle factors, the researchers found the link to dementia was statistically insignificant.
How does a 50% drop in gasoline prices sound?
On April 20, AAA reported that the national average price for regular unleaded gasoline was $2.41 -- the highest so far in 2017. Gas has been pushing persistently higher since November as the post-Trump “reflation trade” increased expectations for stronger economic growth. From a low of near $42 a barrel, West Texas Intermediate crude oil reached above $55 between December and February (chart below).
But weakness in crude prices has developed over the past two months on growing concerns about President Donald Trump’s legislative push, the viability of OPEC’s supply freeze agreement signed late last year (with participation by non-OPEC producers like Russia) and evidence of building supply-demand imbalance with inventories bloated and U.S. shale output ramping up.
The good news for consumers: Some relief could soon be coming to the pump. The bad news for investors: Energy shares look set for a sharp move lower.
Judicial Watch sues State Department, USAID for Soros records
“The Obama administration seemed to bust taxpayer budgets in an effort to fund the Soros operation.”
Judicial Watch said Wednesday it is suing the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to get records showing nearly $5 million in American taxpayer money went to the Macedonian branch of George Soros’ Open Society Foundations.
The conservative watchdog group filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the State Department and USAID after both failed to respond to a Feb. 16 FOIA request seeking records related to grants or payment authorizations, records of communication between State Dept. or USAID officials and the Open Society Foundations. The group had also asked for responsive records of communication sent from Jess L. Baily, an Obama-appointee and former U.S. ambassador to Macedonia, and similar records of the political activities of the Open Society Foundation-Macedonia.
The USAID website reported that between Feb. 27, 2012, and Aug. 31, 2016, USAID gave $4.8 million in taxpayer money to Soros’ organization. The USAID’s website links to one of the Open Society Foundation websites, which says the project trained hundreds of young Macedonians “on topics such as freedom of association, youth policies, citizen initiatives, persuasive argumentation, and use of new media.”
Virginia man charged in 3-year-old son's fatal shooting
A Virginia man has been charged in the shooting death of his three-year-old son.
Norfolk Police said Thursday in a statement that 26-year-old Rayvon Messer is charged with second-degree murder.
Police say paramedics responded Wednesday night to find the boy outside a home in the Ocean View area of the city.
Rayvon A. Messer Jr. died from the gunshot wound shortly after being rushed to a hospital.
Messer had called 911 around 7:45 p.m. and told dispatchers his son, identified by police as Rayvon A. Messer Jr., was shot in the stomach during a drive-by near their apartment.
Paramedics took him to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, but the boy died shortly after arriving.
Hillary camp scrambling to find out who leaked embarrassing info
The knives are out in Hillary Clinton’s camp about who leaked embarrassing information to the authors of a bombshell new book about her “doomed presidential campaign.”
There is a witch hunt under way among Clinton’s presidential campaign staffers after the release of the autopsy book, “Shattered: Inside Hillary Clinton’s Doomed Campaign” by journalists Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes.
We’re told the details in the book, which depicts the campaign as inept, “could only have come from someone in the inner circle.” Dennis Cheng, the finance director of Clinton’s presidential campaign, has been sending out messages to determine where the leaks came from.
Steve Harvey: Donald Trump is ‘keeping his word’ on HUD
“Family Feud” host Steve Harvey said President Trump has been “keeping his word” on promises he made during their controversial meeting in January.
Mr. Harvey sparked a wave of backlash from the black community in January after he met with Mr. Trump at Trump Tower to discuss affordable housing with now-Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson. The comedian defended the meeting on his radio show at the time, saying “the only way we can heal the divide in this country is through conversation.”
Now, Mr. Harvey said Mr. Trump is making good on his promises to help America’s inner cities.
“As far as doing what he promised me he would do, he is doing it,” he told TMZ Tuesday. “I’m working with HUD. I’m going to get some housing for underprivileged people. We’re going to set up some centers around the country. I’ve met with HUD. It’s going really well. God willing, it will work out.”
A Viewer Writes: A+
I visited Parkside High School's A+ Garden Centre today. As they have for several years, they've got a great assortment of annuals, perennials and potted plants for sale at very competitive prices, the profits all going back into their horticulture educational programs.
This year they even have honey from their own hives!
I hope that people will come out to support them and take advantage of the opportunity to get some really beautiful plants.
Here's a link to their spring catalog:
http://aplusgardencentre.weebly.com/spring-2017-catalog.html
They're also on Facebook.
Another Detroit Doctor and Wife Arrested and Charged with Conspiring to Perform Female Genital Mutilation
A Detroit physician and his wife were arrested this morning and charged by criminal complaint unsealed today for their alleged participation in a conspiracy that involved performing female genital mutilations (FGM) on minors.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Daniel L. Lemisch of the Eastern District of Michigan, Special Agent in Charge David P. Gelios of the FBI’s Detroit Division and Special Agent in Charge Steve Francis of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) Detroit Field Office made the announcement.
Fakhruddin Attar, M.D., 53, and his wife, Farida Attar, 50, both of Livonia, Michigan, are charged with conspiring to perform female genital mutilations on minor girls out of Fakhruddin Attar’s medical clinic in Livonia. According to the complaint, some of the minor victims traveled interstate to have the procedure performed. The complaint alleges that the FGM procedure was performed on girls who were approximately six to eight years old.
Both defendants were arrested this morning and are scheduled to appear in federal court in Detroit this afternoon.
Subject: Wellesley students advocate hostility on campuses to silence conservative ‘hate speech’
Conservatives have come to expect that they might be protested, ridiculed and dis-invited when they venture to speak on college campuses, but the penalty for telling students something they disagree with has taken a more violent turn.
Buttressed by an ideology that views “hate speech” as violence and its suppression as self-defense, students increasingly are resorting to the destruction of property and assault to keep conservative speakers quiet.
Students at Wellesley College made the intellectual case for using force to stifle free speech in an editorial last week, arguing that “hostility may be warranted” against people who are “given the resources to learn” yet “refuse to adapt their beliefs.”
“If people continue to support racist politicians or pay for speakers that prop up speech that will lead to the harm of others,” the students wrote in the April 12 editorial in The Wellesley News, “then it is critical to take the appropriate measures to hold them accountable for their actions.”
Obama entangled in brand-new ‘political espionage’ scandal
Campaign collusion with foreign powers points to key member of ex-president's circle
While the claims of collusion between Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russia seem to have dropped abruptly off the media radar, there is a new report of collaboration between a U.S. political campaign and foreign powers.
But the campaign was that of Hillary Clinton, and the chief architect was Barack Obama’s CIA director, John Brennan, the report says.
“One side did collude with foreign powers to tip the election – Hillary’s,” writes George Neumayr in the American Spectator.
“Seeking to retain his position as CIA director under Hillary, Brennan teamed up with British spies and Estonian spies to cripple Trump’s candidacy,” Newmayr wrote.
“He used their phone intelligence as a pretext for a multi-agency investigation into Trump, which led the FBI to probe a computer server connected to Trump Tower and gave cover to Susan Rice, among other Hillary supporters, to spy on Trump and his people.”
The Spectator said Brennan’s CIA “operated like a branch office of the Hillary campaign, leaking out mentions of this bogus investigation to the press in the hopes of inflicting maximum political damage on Trump.”
$5.5 Million Rommel Gift to Benefit New Center for Entrepreneurship
Dave Rommel
SALISBURY, MD---Dave and Patsy Rommel personify entrepreneurship.
Dave began his career with Rommel Electric Company, founded by his father in 1956. Since Dave started working there in 1976, he and Patsy have become mainstays in business on the Lower Eastern Shore and beyond.
More than 40 years later, the Rommel Construction Group now includes companies that specialize in electrical, mechanical, traffic and transit work – and the Rommel Companies operate Harley-Davidson motorcycle dealerships and Ace hardware stores – all across the mid-Atlantic.
Now, Dave and Patsy have made a firm commitment to helping a new generation of entrepreneurs. Salisbury University President Janet Dudley-Eshbach announced a $5.5 million gift from the Rommels, benefiting SU’s new Center for Entrepreneurship at the Plaza Gallery Building in downtown Salisbury and supporting other future activities of the campus and the Franklin P. Perdue School of Business.
“Anyone who has attended Salisbury University’s business plan competitions in the past 30 years knows our students frequently combine outside-the-box thinking with practicality,” said SU President Janet Dudley-Eshbach. “During those three decades, many have built on that winning combination, creating stores, restaurants and service-based businesses that continue to be successful today. The new Center for Entrepreneurship will give our students even more support in making their business dreams a reality while generating new jobs, helping to fuel the economy. We are grateful that Dave and Patsy Rommel share our vision for a strong entrepreneurial community and University.”
Marine Le Pen's rise in 'forgotten France'
Soros and his shady $4.8 million U.S. taxpayer deal
George Soros, the self-declared billionaire philanthropist who amuses himself by capsizing and upsetting national economies and by pressing all-things-progressive in politics, has a curious expenditure of taxpayer cash in the amount of $4.8 million — and Judicial Watch is demanding answers.
So should Americans. The money’s been sent to Macedonia — a country that leans conservative, in direct contrast to Soros‘ own personal political interests.
Specifically, the $4.8 million reportedly went from the U.S. Agency for International Development, which is overseen by the State Department, to the Macedonian branch of Soros‘ Open Society Foundations. And this, of course, is a clear What the Freak moment. Why are tax dollars helping Soros and his minion groups on anything — on anything at all?
Judicial Watch filed a Freedom of Information Act suit against the State Department and against USAID, demanding records related to the payments and communications that flowed between the two agencies and Open Society.
As Fox News noted, Judicial Watch also requested copies of messages sent from Barack Obama-appointee Jess Baily — who was a former U.S. ambassador to Macedonia — to the Open Society Foundation’s Macedonia offices.
State Public Pension Funding Shortfall Hit $1.1 Trillion
U.S. state public pension systems unfunded liabilities increased by 17 percent in fiscal 2015 to $1.1 trillion, largely due to the failure of investment returns meeting expectations, a study by the Pew Charitable Trusts showed on Thursday.
"In aggregate, the funded ratio of these plans dropped to 72 percent in 2015, down from 75 percent in 2014," the study said, noting that median overall returns of 3.6 percent were less than half the long-run investment return assumption of 7.6 percent.
Poor investment performance was the largest contributor - $125 billion - to pension plans bearing a $157 billion increase in the net pension liability. This is the difference between the value of pension benefits owed to current and retired employees or dependents and the plan assets on hand.
"Even if investments had yielded the expected returns, however, overall state pension debt still would have grown by about $30 billion," the study said.
Pew noted that the $30 billion figure comes mainly from three factors:
Maxine Waters on Undocumented Immigrants: ‘This Is Their Country’
Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters (Calif.) told an audience on Tuesday that the United States is the country of undocumented immigrants.
Waters was speaking in Los Angeles to the Westchester-Playa Democratic Club about a number of issues, from the federal budget to how to resist President Trump's agenda, according to the group's website.
In her speech, Waters discussed young undocumented immigrants often referred to as "dreamers," who are protected from deportation by former President Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) executive order.
Waters said that the United States is their country.
"These are people who have hope. These are people who have gone to school. These are young people who want careers. These are people who are contributing to our society," Waters said. "And all of sudden, they are thought to be folks who don't deserve to be here and would be sent back to places they've never been. People they don't know. Systems they don't understand. This is their country."
Waters also brought up the inaccurate story being reported this week of the Trump administration deporting a dreamer.
Lawrence Hogan Sr. Remembered as an American Hero
BALTIMORE (WJZ)– Governor Larry Hogan’s father is being remembered as an American hero.
The former Maryland congressman passed away Thursday night. Hogan represented parts of Anne Arundel and Prince Georges Counties, when he made his mark during the Watergate scandal in 1974.
Congressman Lawrence Hogan would be the first Republican during the Nixon Administration to call for the president’s impeachment.
His actions would be the framework for two Maryland governors. He was present for his son’s inauguration.
“Dad put aside party politics and his own personal considerations in order to do the right thing for the nation,” gov. Hogan said during his inauguration.
Oh, shut up: Let's prosecute criminal campus crazies
Ever tried dealing with a playground bully? What shuts him (or her, for our politically correct readers) up fastest? A bloody nose.
Bullies operate on the assumption that they are safe from retribution. When they find out that’s not true, they curdle like spoiled milk. Until then, their conduct can only spiral further out of control.
That’s what’s happening at colleges across America. Students who think they can dictate what is said on their campus are shutting down any point of view they oppose. That’s not youthful indiscretion. It’s a crime. And the perpetrators should be prosecuted for it.
This week, the University of California at Berkeley – a communist commune that poses as a cathedral of learning – succeeded in getting conservative commentator Ann Coulter’s scheduled speech canceled. The university later suggested she give her speech on May 2 but she rejected that date.
The reason for the original cancellation: college administrators feared her presence might pose a security risk.
A risk to whom?
What is fueling fake hate crimes across the U.S.?
Last week, an Indian-owned store in Charlotte, N.C. was set afire, a rock thrown through the window and a racist note left behind. It read, in part: "We need to get rid of Muslims, Indians and all immigrants." It was signed, "White America."
Days later, police arrested a suspect. He was not a white supremacist, nor a Donald Trump supporter, nor Caucasian. He was an African-American man, 32-year-old Curtis Flournoy. Surveillance video showed him lighting the fire.
The FBI does not track fake hate or false flag crimes, making them nearly impossible to quantify. But noted forensic psychiatrist, Park Dietz, an expert witness in one of the most infamous fake-hate crimes of modern times, the Tawana Brawley rape hoax, said they are common.
"There is a large number of cases – certainly dozens or hundreds a year and have been for at least the past 30 years," he said.
The website, FakeHateCrimes.org documents hundreds of such cases, with new ones occurring almost weekly.
Among them:
Obama Operatives Direct Town Hall Disruptions Nationwide
As members of Congress wind up their Easter break back in their districts, a website honoring former President Barack Obama is providing “progressives” with the information and tools they need to disrupt town hall meetings that lawmakers are holding over the remainder of this week.
Visitors to the townhallproject.com website can find everything from detailed information on each scheduled town hall meeting to how to make signs and even specific questions to ask to push the agenda on a range of talking points including: investigating President Donald Trump, Trump’s “starvation budget” on foreign policy, climate change, supporting illegal aliens, and LGBT rights.
By clicking on the “about” icon, the first thing that pops up is a quote from Obama’s farewell speech in Chicago on Jan. 10, 2017.
“It falls to each of us to be those anxious, jealous guardians of our democracy; to embrace the joyous task we’ve been given to continually try to improve this great nation of ours. Because for all our outward differences, we all share the same proud title: Citizen,” Obama said.
The website states:
LEGENDARY COMMENTS BY GEORGE CHEVALLIER
A Relic of the Past
Pictured above is the rusted out frame of a 1928-31 Model “A” Ford. How it got where it was found and when it was dumped there is anybody’s guess. The City of Salisbury is putting in a new sidewalk on the northeast corner of W. Main St. and Lake Streets. When the city employee operating the backhoe had dug down about two feet they chanced upon this frame. The only reasonable explanation is that when the area was first a cranberry bog and then a dump, it became a favorite spot to discard anything undesirable. The whole area between Lake St. and Cypress St. was at one time a cranberry bog. Being unsuitable for building any structure because of the instability of the ground, people started using the area as a dump.
The river never came up that far, so it was never dumped “overboard”. Mr. Phillips from Malone and Phillips told me that when he first started in the business almost 50 years ago, the company excavated the land for the old Grant’s Shopping Center on Cypress Street. He said they found many old parts of cars buried there. The “powers that be” determined they could stabilize the land to the extent that we now have a new fire house built over the old cranberry bog. Time will tell if the land is truly stable enough. There were cracks in the terrazzo floor in the museum even before the fire house officially opened.
Even though the relic is in such decrepit condition due to rust, there are still signs of what once was. The only thing on it that time has not claimed is the battery cable. Being made up of twisted lead cable, it is in its natural state and will never rust out. The hole can still be seen in the front where the hand crank was inserted to start the car. The steering column is still attached as are the brackets to which that the front bumpers were attached. To the left in the picture is the spare tire mount. The other parts of the car were probably used to repair another, since there were so many on the road at the time.
My thanks go out to Sue, Sandy, Howard Landon and John Slade from the Public Works Department for their help in preserving Salisbury’s history. The work they have done on this item and the “yellow brick” from Church Street have earned them our town’s gratitude. It takes people to recognize the past for someone like me to preserve it.
The mystery part is determining just when it was discarded there. I can only remember when there were many buildings in the area. The corner was the central point for a bustling commercial district. Bars, taxi stands, night clubs, a movie theater, the Acme super market and the infamous Dixie Bargain Center all held sway here in days gone by. Due to the era the car was built and the fact that they wouldn’t discard something new, it had to have been put there in the late 1940’s. What do you think?
BREAKING: Obama CIA Director Colluded With Foreign Spies AGAINST Trump!
Reports indicate that if anyone was teaming up with foreign governments to influence the results of the 2016 Presidential election, it was Hillary Clinton. Worse yet is the fact that she appears to have used John Brennan to do it, as he was trying to stay on as CIA director under her “inevitable” Presidency.
This is definitely something that the Trump White House should be investigating, because it might reveal a deeper level of spying on the then-Republican Presidential Candidate than even the most skeptical of supporters could have anticipated.
The GHCQ is told to have contacted America after discovering that some within the Trump campaign team had allegedly had contact with Russian intelligence operatives. According to a source close to the UK intelligence community, this information was collected and traded with the United States as part of a “routine exchange of information.”
Surveillance continued for the next six months, until the summer of 2016. According to the source, a “number of western agencies” gave the United States additional information regarding contact between Russian assets and Trump campaign staff.
Caption This Chevy Photo
Pence Shows Up At Mosque And Speaks His Mind- In Muslim Country!
Vice President Mike Pence has made some risky moves lately, like walking out to the Korean DMZ against security protocol, but that doesn’t compare to going to a Muslim country and insulting radical Islam.
In his own, kind way of course. He’s not an idiot. He’s simply brave, something we failed to see from our last President.
While in Indonesia, Vice President Pence toured the largest Mosque in Southeast Asia and praised their commitment to the moderate form of Islam.
“As the largest majority Muslim country, Indonesia’s tradition of modern Islam, frankly, is the inspiration to the world.”
You know, the kind that doesn’t endeavor to marry children and kill infidels? That’s the kind that the rest of the world should accept.
“We commend you and your people. In your nation as in mine, religion unifies — it doesn’t divide. It gives us hope for a brighter future. And we’re all grateful for the great inspiration that Indonesia provides for the world.”
Ocean City Fire Department Mourning the Loss of Firefighter/Paramedic
Ocean City, Maryland – : The Ocean City Fire Department (OCFD) is mourning the tragic loss of one of their own, Firefighter/Paramedic H. Alan Schweitzer. Schweitzer, who was 17 year veteran of the department and avid motorcyclist, was killed in a crash in Georgetown, Delaware yesterday morning.
Schweitzer, who worked on the OCFD’s A-Shift, has been described as a brother and friend to his colleagues in the fire house. “Sometimes there are no words to express the feelings of sadness and grief you have, and the sudden loss of Alan Schweitzer is one of those instances,” commented Assistant Chief Eric Peterson, who started his career in Ocean City with Schweitzer.
“He was a brother to all of us in the fire service and our hearts are broken by his passing,” said OCFD Captain Nick Kinhart, who was Schweitzer’s supervisor on A-shift. “We will miss his stories about his family, in particular his grandson Toby.”
Ocean City Fire Chief, Chris Larmore says the loss not only effects the department, but the town as a whole. “The department lost a member of its fire service family. Our deepest sympathies go out to Alan’s family and our prayers for comfort and peace will remain with them through the days ahead.”
President Trump Secures Release Of American Held By Egyptian Government
Yesterday, the Washington Post was Very Concerned over the possibility that Mr. Trump was hollowing out American leadership. Today, Mr. Trump shows that leadership is taking care of the people he was elected to serve
American detained in Egypt for 3 years returns to U.S. after Trump intervention
An Egyptian American charity worker who was imprisoned in Cairo for three years and became the global face of Egypt’s brutal crackdown on civil society returned home to the United States late Thursday after the Trump administration quietly negotiated her release.
President Trump and his aides worked for several weeks with Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi to secure the freedom of Aya Hijazi, 30, a U.S. citizen, as well as her husband, Mohamed Hassanein, who is Egyptian, and four other humanitarian workers. Trump dispatched a U.S. government aircraft to Cairo to bring Hijazi and her family to Washington.
The couple and their co-workers had been incarcerated since May 1, 2014, on child abuse and trafficking charges that were widely dismissed by human rights workers and U.S. officials as false. Virtually no evidence was ever presented against them, and for nearly three years they were held as hearings were inexplicably postponed and trial dates canceled. Human rights groups alleged that they were abused in detention.
Good for him. Of course, you didn’t think that the Washington Post could let this ride without taking a swipe at Trump and trying to make Obama look like He Tried, right?
The Obama administration unsuccessfully pressed Sissi’s government for their release. It was not until Trump moved to reset U.S. relations with Egypt by embracing Sissi at the White House on April 3 — he publicly hailed the autocrat’s leadership as “fantastic” and offered the U.S. government’s “strong backing” — that Egypt’s posture changed. Last Sunday, a court in Cairo dropped all charges against Hijazi and the others.
BREAKING: Russia Has Sent In Troops…
It turns out China isn’t the only one who has had it with North Korea’s threats of nuclear attack.
Russia has now sent THEIR troops to the border in a massive show of force that is hopefully enough to tame the increasingly-hostile nation.
After making multiple threats against the United States, President Donald Trump discussed the matter with China who almost immediately send 150,000 troops to their border. Now we’re learning that Russia has made the same move.
From The Federalist Papers:
Konstantin Asmolov, an expert on the brutally repressive North Korea, said: “Should the US strike with missiles at North Korea’s nuclear facilities, a radioactive cloud will reach Vladivostok within two hours.”
Asmolov, from the Russian Far Eastern Institute, warned that should an all-out war commence, “hungry asylum seekers will flood into Russia.”
Russia is not doing this on behalf of the United States as China did. Instead, they are doing so because it is in their best interest to squash a nuclear attack before it happens. This is a brilliant move that may mean the difference between World War III and a civil existence.
Teacher In DEEP Trouble After Student Posts What She Wore To Class…
In Boone County, West Virginia, there’s a teacher that’s got herself into very hot water, for wearing a top with a patch that displays the caption “Tuck Frump” pinned on
Mike Rowe ‘TERRIFIED’ Over United Airlines Mishap, But For Reasons NO ONE Thought Of!
Mike Rowe is the man. Can I just say that up front? He’s the host of “Somebody’s Gotta Do It,” and was also the host of the much loved and missed show, “Dirty Jobs”.
Rowe is a thinking, and he addressed the United Airlines fiasco by using his Facebook page. A reader of his asked, “Were you as disturbed as I was? How can a company treat their customers like that and remain in business? I know you fly all the time — what would [you] do if you were the CEO?”
Rowe recognized that the sight of a passenger of the airline being dragged down the aisle way by police security is not the best look, and he at fist thought of “the obvious ease with which it could have been avoided. A little common-sense and the freedom to apply it could have resolved this situation in a dozen different ways.”
Earl White Passed Away Friday
Don't Give Kids Cough Syrup Or Pain Meds That Contain Codeine, FDA Says
The Food and Drug Administration says children under 12 should not be given prescription medicines that contain codeine or another narcotic, tramadol, and that such drugs can also be dangerous to youth between 12 and 18.
On Thursday, the FDA said it will require that prescription drugs containing codeineor tramadol carry a warning on the label against using them in children under 12 or in women who are breast-feeding. The agency cited evidence that the drugs could cause dangerously slowed breathing in some children, which could lead to death.
Multiple prescription drugs contain codeine or tramadol. For example, the painkiller Tylenol 3 contains acetaminophen and codeine. Drugs containing codeine already carry a black-box warning against using it to treat pain in children who have their tonsils removed.
#EndorseThis: Your Brain On Drugs Meets Our Failed War On Drugs
“This is your brain,” said the pretty teenager, placing a pristine egg on the kitchen counter, “and this is heroin,” she added, hefting a big cast-iron skillet. “And this is what happens to your brain when you snort heroin,” she shouted, suddenly crushing the egg with the pan, and then smashing up the rest of the kitchen to dramatize the destructive impact of addiction.
Now actress Rachel Leigh Cook is back with another egg-based ad, two decades after that famous public service message flooded the airwaves. And this time, she has brought two eggs — one white and one brown — to illustrate the ruinous social consequences of the war on drugs, especially in communities of color, which has failed to reduce narcotics abuse while wrecking millions of lives and wasting untold billions of dollars.
The original ad was a production of the Partnership for A Drug Free America; this powerful rebuttal, and that’s what it is, was produced for the Drug Policy Alliance, which promotes decriminalization, treatment, and harm reduction as alternatives to “war” and imprisonment.
A Comment Worthy Of A Post
Heading 50 EAST out of Ocean City to Salisbury....... drive careful.... allot of trees down in road way with debris....
Publishers Notes: I'm sure they meant WEST, but it's whatever.
Australia Plans To Tighten Rules For Citizenship
It may soon become harder for immigrants to become Australian citizens. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbullproposed sweeping changes Thursday.
Turnbull said applicants would need to be permanent residents for four years — three years longer than the current wait — show higher English competency and display even more evidence of integration through work or school and "respect for women and children."
"There is no more important title in our democracy than Australian citizen, and Australian citizenship, the Australian citizen, that institution must reflect Australian values," Turnbull said.
In followup remarks, the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection Peter Dutton said the prospective citizen will have to show Australian values. How those values will be tested has yet to be determined, Dutton said, but the public will have the opportunity to weigh in.
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The Prestige and The Illusionist were great films. Mainly because they were almost like magic tricks themselves – constantly keeping the audience guessing until the very end. Now You See Me obviously draws from the same genre, but with too many sub-plots, characters and the added heist element, it is ultimately little more than a poor man’s Ocean’s Eleven.
At the start of the film, four magicians are recruited by a mystery man to put on a big show in Las Vegas, subsidised by a wealthy businessman (Michael Caine). Calling themselves The Four Horsemen, they are cocky sleight-of-hand artist Jesse Eisenberg, psychic trickster Woody Harrelson, Harriet Houdini Isla Fisher and pickpocket Dave Franco.
Somehow or other — the script isn’t strong on explanations — they are headlining the MGM Grand in Vegas within a year. At the show, they bring a Frenchman to the stage as a volunteer, “teleport” him to the vault of his bank in Paris, and get him to steal millions from the vault.
The FBI then selects one of its agents (Mark Ruffalo) to investigate the crime, and he’s assisted by a French Interpol agent (Melanie Laurent) and an annoyingly smug ex-magician (Morgan Freeman) who has dedicated his life to working out how tricks are done, and spoiling them for the audience.
The result is a cacophony of big-name actors all vying for screen-time amidst overlapping and often nonsensical storylines. Most of the acting is underpowered, and the normally excellent Ruffalo gives the worst performance of his career. To top it off, the director can’t even decide who the main characters are. Is it the gruff and confused FBI agent and his suspicious colleague, or the four illusionists?
Unsurprisingly, the man behind the camera is none other than Louis Leterrier, whose last creative act was to inflict the 2010 3D remake of Clash of the Titans upon the world. His new film is smaller in scale, but equally short on sense. Definitely one to avoid.
by Kelly O'Brien on June 29, 2013 • Permalink
Tagged cinema, dave franco, Film Review, four horsemen, isla fisher, jesse eisenberg, louis letrrier, magic, Mark Ruffalo, melanie laurent, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Movie Review, now you see me, oceans eleven, Screendawg, the illusionist, the prestige, woody harrelson
Posted by Kelly O'Brien on June 29, 2013
https://screendawg.wordpress.com/2013/06/29/now-you-see-me-smoke-and-mirrors/
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NASA Announces Design for New Deep Space Exploration System
by David Brandt-Erichsen | Sep 14, 2011 | NASA, Space Transportation | 3 comments
NASA announced the following on their website September 14 (no costs were provided):
NASA is ready to move forward with the development of the Space Launch System — an advanced heavy-lift launch vehicle that will provide an entirely new national capability for human exploration beyond Earth’s orbit. The Space Launch System will give the nation a safe, affordable and sustainable means of reaching beyond our current limits and opening up new discoveries from the unique vantage point of space.
The Space Launch System, or SLS, will be designed to carry the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, as well as important cargo, equipment and science experiments to Earth’s orbit and destinations beyond. Additionally, the SLS will serve as a back up for commercial and international partner transportation services to the International Space Station.
“This launch system will create good-paying American jobs, ensure continued U.S. leadership in space, and inspire millions around the world,” NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said. “President Obama challenged us to be bold and dream big, and that’s exactly what we are doing at NASA. While I was proud to fly on the space shuttle, kids today can now dream of one day walking on Mars.”
The SLS rocket will incorporate technological investments from the Space Shuttle program and the Constellation program in order to take advantage of proven hardware and cutting-edge tooling and manufacturing technology that will significantly reduce development and operations costs. It will use a liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propulsion system, which will include the RS-25D/E from the Space Shuttle program for the core stage and the J-2X engine for the upper stage. SLS will also use solid rocket boosters for the initial development flights, while follow-on boosters will be competed based on performance requirements and affordability considerations. The SLS will have an initial lift capacity of 70 metric tons (mT) and will be evolvable to 130 mT. The first developmental flight, or mission, is targeted for the end of 2017.
This specific architecture was selected, largely because it utilizes an evolvable development approach, which allows NASA to address high-cost development activities early on in the program and take advantage of higher buying power before inflation erodes the available funding of a fixed budget. This architecture also enables NASA to leverage existing capabilities and lower development costs by using liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen for both the core and upper stages. Additionally, this architecture provides a modular launch vehicle that can be configured for specific mission needs using a variation of common elements. NASA may not need to lift 130 mT for each mission and the flexibility of this modular architecture allows the agency to use different core stage, upper stage, and first-stage booster combinations to achieve the most efficient launch vehicle for the desired mission.
“NASA has been making steady progress toward realizing the president’s goal of deep space exploration, while doing so in a more affordable way,” NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver said. “We have been driving down the costs on the Space Launch System and Orion contracts by adopting new ways of doing business and project hundreds of millions of dollars of savings each year.”
The Space Launch System will be NASA’s first exploration-class vehicle since the Saturn V took American astronauts to the moon over 40 years ago. With its superior lift capability, the SLS will expand our reach in the solar system and allow us to explore cis-lunar space, near-Earth asteroids, Mars and its moons and beyond. We will learn more about how the solar system formed, where Earth’s water and organics originated and how life might be sustained in places far from our Earth’s atmosphere and expand the boundaries of human exploration. These discoveries will change the way we understand ourselves, our planet, and its place in the universe.
David Brandt-Erichsen on September 14, 2011 at 1:24 pm
Projected cost for this system is $30 billion up through the first two flights, after which it is slated to fly once a year at a cost of at least $1 billion per flight.
For the cost of those first two flights you could instead buy 300 flights of Falcon Heavy, not including Dragon, so maybe 200 or so flights with Dragon. Dragon is also designed to be able to “land on any solid surface in the solar system” which is not true of Orion.
Is this any way to run a space program? It seems to me the Emperor has no clothes here. The best thing for a human future in space would be to cancel this program.
Robert Sugg on September 14, 2011 at 2:54 pm
70-130 metric tons lifted at a rate of one or two flights per year by a throw away vehicle doesn’t sound like a keeper for either exploration or industry. The rationale doesn’t seem to me to represent either a sustainable pathway for permanent human presence beyond LEO or the high launch frequency necessary to start large economy-boosters like space solar.
It does seem to represent a bureaucratic scramble to keep existing payroll going for constituents who would be better employed working a Gerard K. O’Neill – type rationale.
Dale Amon on September 14, 2011 at 2:59 pm
Yep, ticks all the boxes for the key districts. Pork is go for launch.
Leave a Reply to David Brandt-Erichsen Cancel reply
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Rocket Lab’s next launch will loft cluster of satellites on Spaceflight rideshare
June 17, 2019 Stephen Clark
The BlackSky Global 3 Earth-imaging satellite is the largest of seven spacecraft slated to launch on Rocket Lab’s sixth mission. Credit: Rocket Lab
Rocket Lab’s next launch from New Zealand is set for no earlier than June 27 with a bundle of spacecraft including a commercial Earth-observing microsatellite for BlackSky, two CubeSats for U.S. Special Operations Command, a pair of tiny prototype data relay nodes for Swarm Technologies, a student-built payload from Australia, and a satellite whose identity and owner remain a secret.
The rideshare mission was arranged by Spaceflight, a Seattle-based company that specializes in aggregating small satellites and booking a shared flight with a launch provider.
The seventh launch of Rocket Lab’s Electron booster is scheduled for a two-hour window June 27 opening at 0430 GMT (12:30 a.m. EDT; 4:30 p.m. New Zealand time), the launch company announced Monday. Rocket Lab says it has launch opportunities available through July 10.
Seven satellites will ride the 55-foot-tall (17-meter) Electron rocket into orbit roughly 280 miles (450 kilometers) above Earth. It will be Rocket Lab’s third mission of 2019 as officials aim to ramp up to a cadence of about one launch per month by the end of the year.
The rocket will take off from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1, a privately-operated facility on Mahia Peninsula, located on the eastern coast of New Zealand’s North Island.
“We’re looking forward to not only our inaugural flight with Rocket Lab, but a long term partnership to increase access to space via frequent launches,” said Curt Blake, CEO of Spaceflight. “Having the Electron in our arsenal of small launch vehicles provides our customers with a low-cost, flexible option to get on orbit.”
The mission is nicknamed “Make it Rain” in a nod to the damp climate of Seattle, the home of Spaceflight, and at Rocket Lab’s launch site in New Zealand.
The biggest payload on the next Electron launch is the BlackSky Global 3 Earth-imaging satellite — with a launch weight of approximately 123 pounds (56 kilograms) — set to join BlackSky’s first two commercial surveillance craft already in orbit after launches last year.
BlackSky is a business unit of Spaceflight Industries, which is also the parent company of Spaceflight, the rideshare launch broker.
Like the two BlackSky Global satellites currently in space, BlackSky’s third satellite will be capable of capturing up to 1,000 color images per day, with a resolution of about 3 feet (1 meter).
Last year, Spaceflight Industries announced a joint venture with Thales Alenia Space — named LeoStella — to build the next 20 BlackSky satellites in Tukwila, Washington, following the initial block of four smallsats that includes the BlackSky Global 3 spacecraft launching later this month.
BlackSky says its fleet of satellites will enable frequent revisits over the same location to help analysts identify changes over short time cycles. The company expects to have eight satellites in orbit by the end of the year, and aims to eventually field a constellation of up to 60 Earth-imaging spacecraft deployed.
One major customer for BlackSky could be the U.S. government. The National Reconnaissance Office, which owns the government’s spy satellite fleet, announced three study contracts earlier this month with BlackSky, Maxar Technologies and Planet to assess the usefulness of commercial imagery for U.S. intelligence agencies.
The payload fairing for Rocket Lab’s seventh mission, nicknamed “Make it Rain” in a nod to the high volume of rainfall in Seattle, where Spaceflight is headquartered, as well in New Zealand where Launch Complex 1 is located. Credit: Rocket Lab
The June 27 launch will also deliver two Prometheus CubeSats to low Earth orbit for U.S. Special Operations Command. The Prometheus smallsats launching later this month are the latest in a series of CubeSats designed to test low-cost, easy-to-use communications relay technologies that could be used by special operations forces on combat missions.
According to information previously released by the military, the Prometheus spacecraft demonstrate the transmission of audio, video and data files from portable, low-profile, remotely-located field units to deployable ground station terminals using over-the-horizon satellite communications.
Two SpaceBEE CubeSats from Swarm Technologies, each weighing less than 2 pounds (1 kilogram), will also be aboard the next Electron launch. The “BEE” in SpaceBEE stands for Basic Electronic Element.
Swarm is developing a low-data-rate satellite communications fleet the company says could be used by connected cars, remote environmental sensors, industrial farming operations, transportation, smart meters, and for text messaging in rural areas outside the range of terrestrial networks.
Swarm’s first four SpaceBEEs launched in January 2018 aboard an Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle without approval from the Federal Communications Commission. After an investigation into the unlicensed launch — a first for the U.S. commercial satellite industry — the FCC fined Swarm $900,000 but allowed the launch of three more satellites on a Falcon 9 rocket in December.
The FCC raised concerns that the first four SpaceBEEs, each about the size of a sandwich, were too small to be reliably tracked by the military, which maintains a public catalog of objects in orbit. Like the satellites launching this month, the SpaceBEEs shot into orbit in December used a larger design based on a one-unit, or 1U, CubeSat standard.
The Electron rocket, with its nine Rutherford first stage engines visible here, is being prepared for launch from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1 on Mahia Peninsula, located on the eastern coast of New Zealand’s North Island. Credit: Rocket Lab
The ACRUX 1 CubeSat developed by the Melbourne Space Program, a non-profit educational organization affiliated with the University of Melbourne in Australia, is also launching on the Electron rocket. Built by engineering students, ACRUX 1’s primary mission is education.
Australia’s first amateur satellite, Australis-OSCAR 5, was also built by students in Melbourne. Launched in 1970, it was the first amateur satellite designed and assembled outside North America.
“Since then, Australia’s satellite-related space capabilities have been stymied by outdated policies and regulation, hindering growth of the nation’s space industry and support of its incredible local talent,” members of the Melbourne Space Program wrote in an update on the organization’s website.
“In light of these challenges and obstacles, the Melbourne Space Program considers the design and build of ACRUX 1, as well as the successful securing of an international launch and related licenses, as significant accomplishments in themselves,” team members wrote on the group’s website.
The student engineers who developed the ACRUX 1 CubeSat say they will consider the mission fully successful if they receive a “ping” signal from the spacecraft in orbit.
“Receiving that ping from ACRUX 1 may seem like a modest mission goal, but the truth is far from it,” the team wrote. “That ping would mean ACRUX-1 has not only turned on in space, but has also communicated data back to us at our ground station in Greater Melbourne. In other words, it demonstrates that the satellite system built by our engineers actually works in space.”
A seventh satellite will ride to space on the “Make it Rain” mission, but Spaceflight and Rocket Lab have not revealed its identity or owner.
ACRUX 1
BlackSky Global
BlackSky Global 3
Launch Complex 1
Mahia Peninsula
Melbourne Space Program
Military Space
SpaceBEE
Spaceflight Industries
Swarm Technologies
US Special Operations Command
Rocket Lab launches DARPA research satellite
Photos: Delta 4-Heavy blasts off from Vandenberg
Assembly complete for Minotaur launcher at Cape Canaveral
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Update on Denny Morrison’s condition
Calgary, May 3, 2016 – Speed Skating Canada and Denny Morrison held a briefing on the health condition of the four-time long track Speed Skating Olympic medalist following the cerebrovascular accident he suffered on Saturday, April 23, in Salt Lake City.
Last week, following his return to Calgary, Denny Morrison met with a stroke specialist as well as with the Canadian Long Track Speed Skating Team doctor, Dr. Victor Lun.
In Salt Lake City, Utah, where Morrison was hospitalized following a bike ride on the Arizona Trail, computerized tomography (CT Scan) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans confirmed that a brain blood clot and a carotid artery dissection had occurred. No surgery was required and no blood thinners are being used.
“Denny Morrison is doing well overall, said Dr. Victor Lun. He still has some mild symptoms from his stroke and is feeling more tired than usual. He will be seing the stroke specialist again next week to review his progress and to consider further treatment options. He will be resting from training for at least six weeks to allow his brain to recover from the stroke.”
“I feel lucky that I will be able to be back on my skates after this once again life-threatening episode, said Denny Morrison. This setback is frustrating and a bit terrifying because I consider myself in above average to very good health, yet I still experienced a stroke, proving that it can happen to anyone, at any time, at any age and anywhere.”
“Even if I feel like I’m ready to get back to training, I’ll take all the necessary time to get back in shape,” added Denny Morrison. “Of course, I’m anxious to continue training and to get back into things after finishing off last season with a good race. I'm happy I was able to go on the Arizona Trail this offseason, as I think it provided me with an excellent training base and some momentum heading into this upcoming summer of training. I wanted to see how far I could go after recovering from my motorcycle accident; but with this newest twist, once again it’s more about safety for the time being. My goal is first to limit my risk of having another stroke, then I’ll worry about getting back in shape and continuing my recovery, both from my motorcycle accident and my stroke, so I can work towards proudly representing Canada at the 2018 Olympic Games.”
Denny Morrison has won four Olympic medals over his career, including one gold (2010) and one silver (2006) in the team pursuit event. In 2014 in Sochi, he won the silver medal in the 1000m event and the bronze in the 1500m race. Following a serious motorcycle accident which occurred on May 7, 2015, Denny Morrison only took part in the last national competition of the 2015-2016 season.
About Speed Skating Canada
Speed Skating Canada (SSC) is the governing body for competitive long track and short track speed skating in Canada. Founded in 1887, the association is comprised of 13 provincial and territorial branches representing more than 14,000 individual members, and counting. SSC believes that sport is an apprenticeship for life and prizes respect for others, integrity, excellence of effort, as well as a safe, healthy environment. SSC recognizes and values its outstanding volunteers who give freely of their time and expertise. It also celebrates the 63 Olympic medals won by Canadian athletes since 1932, as well as the coaches, officials and other dedicated individuals who helped them on their journey.
SSC is proud to be affiliated with partners that share the same vision and values including our premium sponsors Intact Insurance, as well as our funding partners, the Government of Canada, Own the Podium, City of Montreal, Calgary Olympic Oval and WinSport Canada.
Patrick Godbout
Communications & Media Relations Manager
Email: pgodbout@speedskating.ca
Website: www.speedskating.ca
Facebook: www.facebook.com/SSC.PVC
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SSC_PVC
Kerry Dankers
Long Track Program and Communications Coordinator
Email: kdankers@speedskating.ca
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BC Coastal Forests a Big Source of Uncounted Carbon Emissions
Logging in B.C.’s coastal rainforests is a significant and hidden source of provincial greenhouse gas emissions and must be included in B.C.’s official carbon emissions inventory, Sierra Club BC said today in a report.
Vancouver Island rainforest species at high risk of extinction
Decades of old growth logging have left an alarming 50 percent of all forest ecosystems on Vancouver Island and the South Coast at a high risk for species extinction and loss of carbon storage, according to a new Sierra Club BC report.
Key tool to fight climate change at risk: report
The old-growth forests of Vancouver Island and the B.C. coast are Canada's most valuable weapon in the battle against climate change, but they are being systematically destroyed, says a new report from Sierra Club B.C.
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BOARD REPORT: Special SVUSD Board Workshop-April 29, 2014
On April 29, 2014, the SVUSD Board of Trustees met for a Special Board Meeting-New Technology Bond Workshop. The purpose of this workshop was to update the Board on what the process would be for placing a voter-approved bond on the 2014 election. There were also two action items that the Board members decided upon. Three Board members were present for the meeting: Arleigh Kidd, Dan White and Rob Collins. Trustee Debbie Sandland called into the meeting from out of town. Trustee Jeanne Davis was absent. A full transcript of the meeting agenda and back up materials is available HERE.
ACTION CALENDAR:
Personnel Services, Action #1:
By a 4-0 vote (Davis absent), the Board agreed to rescind three certificated staff development furlough days from the six originally scheduled for the 2014-15 school year. Money expected from the State of California to help fund the implementation of the Common Core State Standards will be used to for these staff development days for a cost of $981,912.09, as is allowed under the State’s guidelines.
By a 4-0 vote (Davis absent), the board approved the agreement with Public Agency Retirement Services (PARS) to manage a supplementary retirement plan (SRP) for eligible employees. (More commonly referred to as the district’s early retirement plan.) The board also agreed to extend the deadline for SRP applications to May 9 to allow for additional applicants. This will not affect the standing applications. The District reported that a total of 94 eligible employees applied for the SRP, including nine from certificated management, 40 from certificated, 6 from classified management and 39 from classified. Early numbers estimate that the District will save $1.2 million over the next five years.
Superintendent Dr. Kathryn Scroggins said Wednesday that there was more than enough participation in the SRP to rescind almost all of the Reduction in Force (RIF) notices sent out in March. In other words, almost no RIF layoffs are expected as there was enough participation to offset the cost savings sought from the RIF.
“Most of the people who have received RIF notices are being contacted that the PARS has been approved by the board, and based on that action, their RIFs will be rescinded on May 13,” she said.
NEW TECHNOLOGY BOND WORKSHOP:
In 2004, voters approved the $145 million Measure C4 bond by 62 percent of the vote. As of now, all of the bonds have been issued and almost all of the funds from the bonds have been spent. Every campus in the SVUSD has received some improvements from the bond, but almost every campus also has remaining projects that could not be completed because there was not enough money from the original bond, mostly due to rising construction costs and changing needs.
In November of 2011, a poll showed that there could be enough voter support for a new bond that included a modest tax rate increase to fund unmet and new technology needs. Another poll was conducted in December 2013 and January 2014 again showing voter support for a new bond.
The SVUSD Board asked District staff to further explore the potential for launching a new bond effort, targeted for the November 2014 election to meet technology needs and other facility upgrades not met by Measure C4.
As this was only a workshop and not a formal board meeting, District staff only asked the Board if there was enough interest in continuing to gather information on a new bond to move forward in the process.
The District has until Aug. 6 to file the required documentation with Ventura County to establish a campaign and election for Nov. 4. The District’s bond consultant told the Board that at this point in the process, overriding categories and estimated amounts needed for what the bond could pay for were all that would be required; the District and Board would have time after a potential bond was passed to decide on specifics.
The amount of the bond is determined partly by how much the tax rate could be. The bond consultant proposed a range from $10 to $18 a year per $100,000 of property value, which is charged through District’s homeowners’ property tax bills. For example, if you own a house within the District valued at $300,000 and the bond passes with a $10 assessment, your property tax bill would increase by $30 a year for the term of the bond.
There are about 72,000 voters in the District. The bond consultants also estimated that a November 2014 election would bring about 41,000 voters (based on 2006 and 2010 voter turnout). Passing a bond based on these numbers would require about 22,600 votes.
The Board did ask the District to return in May with more detailed information about what items were slated for funding through a potential bond and how much money was being sought. From the information provided in the agenda report (link above), some of the items on the needs list were funded from an $8 million allocation the Board made last year for technology needs. Also, Trustee Dan White asked that a committee be created among community members with technology expertise to better define a long-term plan for the District’s tech needs, and preferred a November 2016 election. Trustee Arleigh Kidd also asked about a November 2016 election for the bond instead of one held later this year. Trustees Debbie Sandland and Rob Collins supported moving forward with a bond this year.
Posted on May 5, 2014 June 25, 2014 Author editorjakeCategories Board Report, Early Retirement, Measure C4 Bond, Potential Technology Bond, UncategorizedTags Bond, Simi Valley Unified School District, SVUSD, SVUSD Board
One thought on “BOARD REPORT: Special SVUSD Board Workshop-April 29, 2014”
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Francesco Di Giacomo
Francesco Di Giacomo on 27 June 2009.
Francesco Di Giacomo (22 August 1947 – 21 February 2014) was an Italian singer and musician. He was a member of rock band Banco del Mutuo Soccorso. He was born in Siniscola, Province of Nuoro, Sardinia.
Di Giacomo died in a traffic collision on 21 February 2014 in Zagarolo, Province of Rome. He was aged 66.[1]
↑ "Scontro frontale, muore Francesco Di Giacomo, era la voce del Banco del Mutuo Soccorso". Corriere della Sera. 21 February 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2014. (Italian)
Francesco Di Giacomo on IMDb
Retrieved from "https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Francesco_Di_Giacomo&oldid=5283694"
Accidental deaths in Italy
Italian musicians
Italian singers
People from Sardinia
Road accident deaths
Rock singers
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Modest Mussorgsky
Ivan Melnikov as the title character in Boris Godunov, 1874
Fyodor Komissarzhevsky as The Pretender in Boris Godunov
Modest Petrovitch Mussorgsky (born Karevo, Pskov district, 21 March 1839; died St Petersburg, 28 March 1881) was a Russian composer.
Mussorgsky is famous for his operas and songs. He discovered new ways of writing for the voice which were very tuneful but which also suited the Russian language. His most famous opera is Boris Godunov. He wrote an overture called Night on a Bare Mountain. Another very famous piece is called Pictures at an Exhibition. He wrote it for the piano, but many years after his death another composer called Maurice Ravel orchestrated it and this is the version people usually hear today. Some of his works were re-orchestrated and "improved" by the composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. In recent years people have started to think that what Mussorgsky wrote originally was better.
1.1 Early years
1.2 Adulthood
1.3 Fame
1.4 Decline
2 His music
Life[change | change source]
Early years[change | change source]
Mussorgsky was born in Toropets, 250 miles south of Saint Petersburg. His family were very rich and owned a lot of land and servants (known as “serfs” in Russia). He probably got to know the serfs well. Later, in his operas, we can see that he had a lot of sympathy for the ordinary, poor people.[1] When Mussorgsky was six he started to have piano lessons from his mother. He learned very quickly, and when he was nine he performed a concerto by John Field and works by Franz Liszt for the family. When he was 10 he and his brother went to a private school: St Peter’s School. When he was 12 he composed a polka. His father paid for it to be published.
When he was 13 he was sent to the Cadet School of the Guards. His parents wanted him to be in military service, like his ancestors had been. It was a hard life at the school. There was a lot of bullying. He learned to drink alcohol and this eventually led to his alcoholism which was to kill him. He played the piano for the cadets to dance to. He was interested in history and German philosophy.
Adulthood[change | change source]
In October 1856, when he was 17 years old, he met the 22-year-old Alexander Borodin. They were both working in a military hospital in Saint Petersburg. The two men were soon good friends.[1] He also met Alexander Dargomyzhsky who was then the most important Russian composer after Mikhail Glinka. Dargomyzhsky liked Mussorgsky's piano playing, and Mussorgsky often went to musical parties at Dargomyzhsky’s home. Here he met many other important Russian musicians: the critic Vladimir Stasov and the composers César Cui and Mily Balakirev. He had a very special relationship with Balakirev who was like a teacher to him and gave him a lot of advice and encouragement, introducing him to a lot of music he did not yet know. In 1858 Mussorgsky decided to give up his job and spend all his time on music.
The following years were difficult for Mussorgsky. He had a lot of depression. He composed some piano pieces and some songs. It was also a difficult time for his family who lost a lot of their wealth in 1861 when the new tsar of Russia ordered that the serfs could be free. Mussorgsky became a member of a group of five composers who became known as the Mighty Handful. The other four were Balakirev, Borodin, Cui and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. The five were not together for very long. The others became too busy with careers outside music, or their musical tastes became very different from Mussorgsky’s. In 1863 he started to compose an opera Salammbô but he never finished it.
Mussorgsky was very upset when his mother died in 1865. He started to drink heavily. In 1867 he finished the original orchestral version of his Night on Bald Mountain. Balakirev did not like it and refused to conduct it, so it was never performed during Mussorgsky’s lifetime.
Fame[change | change source]
Mussorgsky continued his career as a civil servant, but often he was not paid. He was very impressed by Dargomïzhsky’s new opera The Stone Guest and composed eleven scenes for an opera called The Marriage. This, too, remained unfinished. However, he learned a lot from working at these unfinished works, and developed his own style which was to be used in his greatest work: Boris Godunov. He learned a way of setting words to music that would keep the words flowing in a natural way which heightened their meaning. It was very different from the old-style operas where music was divided sharply into arias and recitatives with a few choruses.
When he was 29 he was encouraged to write an opera on the historical story of Boris Godunov. He based his opera on a play by Alexander Pushkin, but he also read history books by Nikolay Karamzin. He worked at the opera for a year while living with friends and working for the Forestry Department. In 1871 he had finished it, but it was not allowed to be performed in the theatre because it did not have an important part for a female. Mussorgsky changed the opera, adding a whole new act with a love scene with a Polish princess. He made other changes as well. The new version was accepted. The first performance of the complete opera took place in February 1874. Mussorgsky was then at the height of his fame.
Decline[change | change source]
Detail from Ilya Repin's famous portrait of Mussorgsky, painted 2–5 March 1881, only a few days before the composer's death.
After this Mussorgsky’s life became gradually worse. He was depressed, and had fits of madness. He was drinking heavily. He still managed to compose. He wrote a song cycle Sunless, a piano suite Pictures at an Exhibition and started two operas: Khovanschina and The Fair at Sorochyntsi. A lot of his friends were drinking, and many of them died. He was lucky to keep his job: his boss was very keen on music and allowed him a lot of time off work. However, in 1880 he eventually lost his job. He was very poor. A group of friends got together to give him money so that he could finish the two operas he was composing. He almost managed to finish Khovanschina but The Fair at Sorochyntsi remained unfinished. He became ill. The famous painter Repin made a painting of the composer, showing him with a red nose and glazed eyes. He died a week after his 42nd birthday.
His music[change | change source]
Grave of Modest Mussorgsky in the Tikhvin Cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in Saint Petersburg
Mussorgsky's music uses Russian musical themes. His music influenced later composers such as Dmitri Shostakovich and Sergei Prokofiev. His greatest work was the opera Boris Godunov which was about an historical character who illegally made himself tsar of Russia, but dies when he feels guilty about the murder he had committed.
Khovanshchina was left unfinished and was completed by Rimsky-Korsakov. It was first performed in 1886 in Saint Petersburg. This opera, too, was revised by Shostakovich. The Fair at Sorochyntsi remained unfinished. It includes a dance, a Gopak, which is very well-known.
Perhaps his best-known work is Pictures at an Exhibition. It was written for piano, but later the French composer Maurice Ravel arranged it for orchestra, and this version is very often performed today at concerts. A short orchestral piece Night on Bald Mountain is also very often performed.
Mussorgsky wrote a number of songs including three short song cycles: The Nursery (1872), Sunless (1874) and Songs and Dances of Death (1877). One very well-known song is Mephistopheles' Song of the Flea.
↑ 1.0 1.1 Brown, David 2002. Mussorgsky: his life and works. Oxford University Press.
Retrieved from "https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Modest_Mussorgsky&oldid=5650088"
Romantic composers
Russian composers
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A music critic is someone who writes about concerts that have taken place or new music that has been written. They write reviews about this in newspapers or journals. What they write is called musical criticism.
When people write about the history of music or compare musical styles, this is called musicology. Musical criticism is about what is going on in the musical world at the moment.
Responsibilities[change | change source]
Music critics can have a lot of influence on a musician’s success. If a musician gets a bad review people may not bother to go and hear him. If he has a very good review people will think he must be good and they will all want to hear him.
Occasionally it can happen that a new piece of music has such a terrible review that everyone wants to go and hear how terrible it is. They may then find that they like it and the music might become famous. This is called a “succès de scandale” (French for “scandalous success”). Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring (1913) is a good example.
Example of music critics[change | change source]
Music critics will spend a lot of time listening to music. They often do other jobs with music such as teaching. Some famous music critics include:
The German composer Robert Schumann. He published a music journal called Neue Zeitschrift für Musik. He wrote an article which has become famous called Neue Bahnen (New Paths) in which he said that there was a young man called Johannes Brahms who would become a great composer. Schumann was right.
The French composer Hector Berlioz was a good music critic. He wrote a lot of music reviews in order to earn some money.
The Austrian musicologist Eduard Hanslick. He became famous for saying that Johannes Brahms was a good composer and Wagner, Liszt and Bruckner were bad composers.
The Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw. He wrote some interesting musical criticisms using the pseudonym (made-up name) Corno di Bassetto. There were some musicians he did not like and he said so. This made him quite a few enemies.
International Federation of Music Journalists - an international group of media professionals who treat any aspect of music on any media. Publishes the "Directory of Music Journalists" and confers "Music Journalist Award".
Music Media Directory - an international publication with over 40.000 contacts of music journalists and music media.
Retrieved from "https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Music_critic&oldid=6427041"
This page was last changed on 8 February 2019, at 05:59.
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Sinus & Nasal Conditions
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Jay Piccirillo, M.D., graduated from the University of Vermont College of Arts and Sciences and Medical College. Following medical school, he completed a general surgery internship and otolaryngology residency at Albany Medical Center Hospital, Albany, NY. He completed a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars postdoctoral fellowship at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticutt.
Dr. Piccirillo is a professor in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. He is board certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology and a fellow of the American College of Surgeons.
With over 18 years of experience as an otolaryngologist in the St. Louis area, he specializes in rhinitis, sinusitis, and epistaxis (nosebleeds). Dr. Piccrillo has been recognized as one of America's Top Doctors for 2002-2009 and selected by his peers to be included in the list of Best Doctors in America from 2002-2013.
Dr. Piccirillo sees patients at the Center for Advanced Medicine on the Barnes-Jewish Hospital campus, and at the West County office located on Old Ballas Road in Creve Coeur, MO. He performs surgery at the Center for Advanced Medicine, Barnes-Jewish Hospital, and St. Louis Children's Hospital.
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Rooms, Rentals & Shares
UK Takes Stock of Sharing Economy in Step Towards New Legislation
- Sep 29, 2014 3:38 pm
This “review” is positioned in such a way that it could only come out with a pro-sharing stance, which in itself is not a negative but undermines the real work that needs to be done to legitimize such businesses while protecting workers’ and consumers’ rights.
— Samantha Shankman
The UK is launching a comprehensive independent review of the sharing economy, Matthew Hancock, UK Minister of Business and Innovation announced today.
The government estimates that a quarter of UK adults currently share something — from power tools to their homes — online and that current global revenues could grow from £9 billion ($15 billion) today to £230 billion ($374 billion) per year by 2025.
The goal of the review to understand the main issues and regulatory burdens faced by sharing economy companies and explore its benefits in order to form recommendations for moving forward. It expected to be completed by early December.
There is, however, one glaring issue with UK’s review: It is being led by the CEO of a sharing economy company. And the ruling Conservative Party has already made it clear it wants the UK to appear more attractive to tech companies.
Debbie Wosskow, CEO of Love Home Swap and founder of the Collaborative Consumption Europe network, has been tasked with leading the review team that, according to the release, will work with “a wide range of stakeholders,” including consumers, established businesses moving towards a collaborative model, and businesses facing increased competition.
Another issue is the scope of the review. As The Guardian points out, the review is not interested in the sharing economy’s impact on labor and service workers whose livelihoods and safety standards are often compromised these new companies.
Political Incentives
The UK government’s pro-sharing economy position could also be part of the Tories play to attract young entrepreneurs to build their business in the UK.
“There’s huge economic potential for the sharing economy and I want to make sure that the UK is front and centre of that, competing with San Francisco to be the home of these young tech start-ups,” Hancock said in a statement announcing the review.
Airbnb was, of course, quick to voice its support for the initiative.
“We’ve seen how Airbnb makes neighborhoods better places to live, work and visit and we’re excited about this new step forward,” Patrick Robinson, Airbnb’s head of public policy in Europe and Canada, wrote in a release.
“More and more governments are embracing home sharing and we are excited to work with policy makers on sensible rules that protect the public interest, help regular people share their homes and ensure the sharing economy continues to thrive.”
Robinson is only somewhat correct in writing about government’s slowly shifting attitudes towards the sharing economy.
Although Amsterdam and Portland have started to legitimize the sharing economy — albeit with restrictions that limit the frequency with which units are available — others including Paris, Barcelona, and New York continue to crack down on home rentals that violate local or state laws.
Tags: airbnb, sharing economy, uk
Photo Credit: Branding at an Airbnb meet-up in London. Airbnb Community / Flickr
Rentals & Shares
Airbnb Offers Greater Price Transparency in Europe After Regulatory Threats
IHG + Skift
Danni Santana, Skift
Hotel Startup Life House’s Hedge: Selling Its Own Tech as Well as Rooms
Patrick Whyte, Skift
Boutique Rental Brand Sonder Raises Another $225 Million
Oyo Is Betting U.S. Strategy on Aggressive Dynamic Pricing
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Scholarships & Opportunities
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Since the beginning, Slickdeals has been a place students come to for the best deals, coupons and discounts. Whether they’re looking for a new laptop, clothes, shoes or discounts at their favorite restaurant, Slickdeals has been the go-to site for students across the country. We are committed to helping students stretch their dollars as far as possible, which is why we created a scholarship program to take some of the burden off of paying for college. Along with our internship programs in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, we hope to continue to help young people achieve their academic and career goals. Visit our events page for dates when we might be in a city near you!
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When you’re in college, finding a good deal is usually more of a necessity than a hobby. Your funds are limited and you need to stretch your dollars as far as possible. We’re very familiar with this at Slickdeals. In fact, it’s actually the driving force behind why our site was created in the first place.
Van Trac (or Mr. Slickdeals as he’s known on the site) created Slickdeals in 1999 while studying computer science at San Jose State University. Having emigrated from Vietnam with his family as a child, and with very little money to his name, going to college wasn’t necessarily guaranteed for Van. However, despite the challenges, Van’s parents were able to save enough to support him through school, which is where he developed a skill for finding great deals.
Van was going to college during the dot-com boom, which turned out to be the perfect time to start a deal site. Companies were spending money like it was going out of style, trying to acquire users by offering great deals. He decided to start a blog that listed all these deals so he could share them with his friends. Van worked tirelessly to source deals, verify them, and post them to Slickdeals as a deal editor. He also worked as the site’s web developer, programming new features and functions.
A seed was planted, and Van grew Slickdeals into a flourishing deal site, working as a one-man show. Naturally, Slickdeals reflected the interests of its owner and visitors: college-aged students with a focus on tech. Nowadays, however, you can find a variety of products, from TVs to diapers.
In 2004, it became too much work for one person to run the site, so Van began to rely on volunteers from the community to help as moderators. As the site continued to grow, he even hired his first two employees from within the community (both of whom are still with Slickdeals). Fast forward to today and the site is still growing. Slickdeals has evolved into a company with two offices and 65+ employees. Despite all the success and growth, the site has remained true to its core goal, which is to feature the best deals with the help and input of the community.
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New customs system to reduce cost of doing business
1 AugpmThu, 22 Aug 2013 17:48:25 +02002013-08-22T17:48:25+02:0005, 2017
Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan introduced a new-look customs systems aimed at reducing the cost of doing business, boosting the country’s competitiveness and exports, and promoting inter-regional trade.
Briefing journalists at the SA Revenue Service (SARS) custom’s offices in Woodmead, north of Johannesburg today, 22 August, Gordhan said the new-look modernised system has already been implemented. Early indications are that it has more than halved the time it takes to move goods across borders.
The new system comes on the back of several reports, including a 2010 study by the World Bank, that found customs procedures stationed at border posts were inefficient and hiked the cost of moving goods across borders – a major obstacle to regional integration.
“The new customs management system centralises the clearing of all import and exports declarations using a single processing engine. The new automated management system replaces a variety of older systems and paper-based, manual administrative processes.
“By managing customs declarations and supporting documents in electronic format, the processing of cargo movements by land, sea and air will now be much quicker and more accurate,” Gordhan said.
The new system, which the Minister also said would curb cross-border corruption, started out as an international project aimed at devising a standardised system that will be interfaced at all border posts in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and other regions in Africa, aimed at promoting trade.
The National Development Plan (NDP), which has been endorsed as a policy by government and business, calls for a framework to be put in place to put the country’s economy onto a new trajectory, with a strong emphasis on lowering the cost of doing business in SA, improving competitiveness and exports, and linking the country’s products with other economies.
Gordhan said the new system was already in line with the requirements of the NDP.
“The NDP targets an increase in intra-regional trade in Southern Africa from 7% to 25% of trade by 2030, and that South Africa’s trade with regional neighbours should increase from 15% of the total trade to 30%,” he said.
At a recent Africa Infrastructure Conference, Public Enterprises Minister, Malusi Gigaba, said for all African regions to trade effectively, there was a need to reduce regulatory red-tape that made it difficult for countries to do business.
Gordhan’s announcement will, on top of reducing the cost of doing business, help SARS to automatically detect false declarations and boost revenue, a move that will also boost the economy. “The new customs management system will have significant benefits for importers, exporters, clearing agents and trade facilitators, and will make our economy and commercial trade more competitive globally,” he said.
Business is set to cash in as a result of the new system being implemented, and Gordhan said it would reduce the use of paper for end-to-end processing and declarations by 95%. Declarations would be digitised, with the introduction of mobile inspections through iPads, and supporting documentation will no longer be required, unless in a case of a risk identification.
When the old system was used, it took customs officials about four to eight hours to inspect goods. Now physical inspections will only take an average of two hours.
News source: SAnews.gov.za
All articles edited or written, all photos taken plus all adverts designed by the Editor and printed in the St Francis Chronicle are protected by the law of Copyright ©. Reproduction or copying of any part of the contents of this newspaper and its concept and design can only be done with the Editor’s written permission.
Tags : and promoting inter-regional trade, boosting the country’s competitiveness and exports, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan introduced a new-look customs systems aimed at reducing the cost of doing business, including a 2010 study by the World Bank, manual administrative processes., New customs system to reduce cost of doing business, that found customs procedures stationed at border posts were inefficient and hiked the cost of moving goods across borders - a major obstacle to regional integration. “The new customs management sys, The new system comes on the back of several reports
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Tag Archives: Hudson River Valley
An American Athens
Driving home to Massachusetts from the Hudson River Valley last weekend, I actually drove west, as my brother told me there was a village across the river which I might enjoy: Athens. All the day before when we were touring the riverfront estates of my last post we would look across and see some great house and every time I asked him where it was he would say Athens. I don’t think he was correct as it is a bit more to the north, but still I had Athens on my mind when I woke up the next day and was determined to go there. It’s just across the Rip Van Winkle bridge from Hudson, north of Catskill, which I visited last year, bordered by Cairo (of course) on the west. Apparently there is both a town and a village of Athens and I believe I was in the latter; no one has ever been able to explain the differing jurisdictions that you find in New York and New Jersey—hamlets, villages, boroughs, towns and townships—to me so I am perpetually confused. This seemed like a village, a river village, and it was absolutely charming. Probably the most famous building in Athens is its lighthouse, which really is a lighthouse, but my sentry was the 1706 Jan van Loon house: how different Dutch and English First-Period houses are!
There are several streets of historic houses clustered along the river and I immediately focused on the brick structures. The Northrup house (1803, first up below) is in need of some work but it features the characteristic elevated first floor that I saw on several Athens houses, an architectural feature which I always associated exclusively with southern houses for some reason. There were some lovely wooden houses, but the region’s clay banks supported as many as eight brickyards in nineteenth-century Athens, and fostered masonry construction: I just couldn’t capture enough of these old brick houses, glowing in the autumn sun.
7 Comments | tags: Architecture, Brick Houses, Day Trips, Federal, Hudson River Valley | posted in Architecture, Travel
Land of the Livingstons
This past weekend I toured six “country seats” built by various members of the venerable and prominent Livingston family of the Hudson River Valley in the later eighteenth and nineteenth centuries: most privately-owned, one owned by the state of New York. My brother and brother-in-law live in Rhinebeck, so I have visited this region quite a bit, but I find new old houses every single time I return, and this time was no exception. When we started off, I was thinking only 6 houses? we’ll be done in a flash and $60 for six houses! as our Christmas in Salem tour features more houses and a lower ticket price but it took us most of the day and was well worth it: I had an urban house tour in my mind where you just walk from place to place but these are rural county seats situated on vast acres of land—-mostly waterfront. The scale of both houses and land was much larger than your average house tour, and the tour was a bargain: I’m alway happy to support historic preservation in any case, and in this case it was Hudson River Heritage. I’m going to present the tour in the very order that we saw these houses and give you my impressions of each along the way: no interior photography was allowed except in the state-owned property, Clermont, but as one of the houses is currently for sale and others are included in the amazing (again, expensive but worth it) newly-published book by Pieter Estersohn titled Life Along the Hudson. The Historic Country Estates of the Livingston Family and other publications I can show you some interior views.
You will notice it getting progressively brighter; the day started out pretty dreary and ended with sun. Still all houses shone.
RICHMOND HILL, built in 1808
This federal—-no I think proper Palladian is more accurate–house was simply stunning: beautiful proportions and details. It is the most formal farmhouse I have ever seen as it sits in the midst of 58 acres and many outbuildings, including a period Dutch barn, also unlike anything I have ever seen (I’m such a New Englander!). It has not been lived in for some time and is currently for sale: the photographs on the real estate site (I’m including the west bedroom and basement kitchen below–there’s a modern kitchen too!) are not really doing it justice in terms of the details: one of the mantles had a pinecone design which (again) I have never seen before.
CHIDDINGSTONE, Built in 1860
This is a “Bracketed Italianate” house which has recently been restored and redecorated with 15-foot ceilings and a stunning river view. The interior is all about height over width: the rooms were not all that large in terms of size but those high ceilings, along with the floor-to-ceiling windows and furnishings, made them seem positively grand.
The front parlor photographed by Pieter Estersohn
CLERMONT, Built from 1779-82
Then it was on to the oldest Livingston house, Clermont, which was built in the 1730s but burned mostly to the ground by the British during the Revolutionary War and rebuilt between 1779 and 1782. Clermont is a state historic site with an informative visitors’ center and extensive grounds along the river. Here we had a proper (essentially genealogical) tour and were able to take photographs: the interiors are furnished in the Colonial Revival style adopted by the last Livingstons to live at Clermont in the 1930s.
MIDWOOD, built in 1888
Midwood is a sprawling Colonial Revival house situated on 87 acres along the Hudson: it made quite the contrast from Clermont as it is a very much lived-in and lively house, furnished in an eclectic style that must reflect the spirit of its owner and felt very “Bloomsbury” to me: we spent quite some time there just because there was so much to see and we were not alone. You can take your own tour here, and I’m sharing two interior views below.
Side Parlors photographed by Christopher Baker
CLARKSON CHAPEL, built c. 1860
One of many board and batten Carpenter Gothic structures in the region, the Clarkson Chapel was built following a dispute–a schism, I suppose– at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in nearby Tivoli. Here we met a wonderful guide/steward who had made her own chart of the division of the original Livingston Manor. This was very helpful, and another informative source is here.
EDGEWATER, Built in 1825
Our last stop was at Edgewater, a magnificent Greek Revival mansion perched on the Hudson shore in Barrytown, the long-time home of Richard Jenrette, who died earlier this year. My first house was a Greek Revival, and so I studied and bought everything I could about this iconic architectural style, and Mr. Jenrette’s Adventures with Old Houses (1995) became a bible of sorts: my copy is coffee-cup stained, page-marked, and well-worn. Edgewater is preserved, polished, and furnished to perfection, and signs of Mr. Jenrette were all around within: notes, cards, the lift on the magnificent stairs, the program to his memorial service. Of course the whole house is a memorial to him, as is the foundation which now owns Edgewater and his other homes: the Classical American Homes Preservation Trust. I had pored over pictures of Edgewater so many times that when I finally found myself inside, I felt like I was returning to it, which is the first time I’ve had that experience. That said, it’s even more beautiful than its photographs and is a very real, much-loved house indeed.
Photographs of the Music Room and Dining Room by Dorothy Hong for the Wall Street Journal (above); the Edgewater guesthouse (below) was built in 1996.
15 Comments | tags: Architecture, books, Greek Revival, Historic Interiors, Historic Preservation, House Museums, House Tours, Hudson River Valley, road trips, travel | posted in Architecture, History, Houses, Travel
Cole, Catskill and Creative Storytelling
On Saturday morning I drove straight across Massachusetts into New York State to Catskill, home to the Thomas Cole National Historic Site. The artist lived and worked at Cedar Grove, a bright, airy and porch-encircled Federal house overlooking the Hudson River and Catskill mountains, from 1833 until his premature death in 1848. Given the glorious weather we’ve been having this October, it was my intent to explore Cole country via the Hudson River School Art Trail, but I was waylaid by Cedar Grove and the village of Catskill: by the time I was done with both it was twilight. Oh well, next time, but at the very least I should have taken the Skywalk across the Hudson on the Rip Van Winkle Bridge to the majestic Olana, the home of Cole’s protege Frederic Edwin Church. These two men were linked in life and now their houses are linked thereafter. Cedar Grove was purchased by the Greene County Historical Society in 1988 and declared a National Historic Site in the next year: after an extensive renovation it was opened to the public on the 200th birthday of Thomas Cole in 2001.
As you can see, Cedar Grove is not a large house so how or why did I spend so much time there? It’s all about the interpretation: and the fact that it is such an inviting place to be: the public is invited to come in, wander around, take pictures (with no flash, of course), and even sit down, on blue-cushioned chairs that looks exactly like the period chairs on which Cole himself sat. His cape is draped casually on a bench; reproductions of his letters are scattered on every surface. By the time that this house museum was created, Cole’s works and papers had been long dispersed and ensconced in museum and archive collections: consequently the curators had to be creative in their interpretation. They have used the familiar–or rather the intimate, the aesthetic (striking paint colors throughout and modern art works in rotating exhibitions, plus reproductions of Cole’s works), and technology, in the form of Second Story’s immersive interpretations which plunge the visitor into Cole’s worldview and creative process. It’s very effective.
And then there was the Old Studio, where Cole worked, and the New Studio, and one of the loveliest outhouses (a three-seater) I have ever seen: a lot to appreciate. Some grounds: not as many as once were as a large parcel was taken for construction of the Rip Van Winkle bridge in 1935.
I misjudged the time because our weather has been so warm: it feels like summer but the days are much shorter. Actually, I didn’t have as much time as I would have liked at Cedar Grove because I dawdled in Catskill, which was a happy surprise. It is one of those perfect New York State river towns, with a lovely main street lined with nineteenth-century buildings with more flourish and color than you’ll ever find in New England. Within were antiques, art, and food, and every narrow lot fronting the street that does not have a building on it has been turned into a perfectly-maintained little park. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a cleaner town. There was an old movie theater, of course, and a courthouse, and beyond the main street was the river on one side and neighborhoods of old houses on the other in many different architectural styles: stately Greek Revivals, eclectic Victorians, lots of those New York Italianates with compressed windows on the third floor. Certainly not Cole’s Catskill, likely much better, and I never say that when comparing the present to the past.
4 Comments | tags: Architecture, Historical Interiors, Historical Interpretation, House Museums, Hudson River Valley, Main Streets, road trips, Thomas Cole | posted in Architecture, Art, Travel
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Low not worried after Brazil loss
Brazil ended Germany's long unbeaten run on Tuesday, but Joachim Low remains calm as his team prepare to try and defend the World Cup.
Andrew Steel
Germany head coach Joachim Low - Bongarts
Germany head coach Joachim Low is not worried about his side's form after the world champions slumped to a 1-0 defeat against Brazil in Berlin to end a 22-game unbeaten streak.
In their first encounter since Germany humiliated the Selecao 7-1 in the semi-finals of the 2014 World Cup, a Gabriel Jesus header in the 37th minute proved the difference for the visitors as Die Mannschaft lost for the first time since going out of Euro 2016 in a 2-0 defeat to France.
Low, who guided his side to football's biggest prize four years ago, said he has no concerns about his team, as they prepare to head to Russia to defend their crown.
"Every team, [it] doesn't matter how well-practiced it is, can have a bad day," he said.
"I know [how] we can play and what mentality we have in the team. I actually don't worry a lot.
"So I'm not worried just because we lost one time 1-0 against Brazil."
Low added that he knew the opposition, led by Tite, would be out to avenge their infamous drubbing on home soil.
"It's absolutely okay if the Brazilian soul can now find peace," he added.
"You could expect that Brazil will go into the game with a great motivation and a massive effort and high concentration. You could expect that after that 7-1.
"They may hope to eradicate the defeat with a win today."
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Understanding the functional role of the unstructured proteome
Rountree Room 356, Level 3, Biological Sciences Building D26
Higher eukaryotic proteomes contain extensive unstructured intrinsically disordered regions. These regions often control the localisation, stability and modification state of a protein. Yet, the functional role of the vast majority of these regions is still unknown. Various estimates have suggested that there may be upwards of one hundred thousand interaction interfaces in these regions. However, to date, only a small portion of the functional elements predicted to reside within these regions have been characterised. The majority of known interfaces in disordered regions belong to a class of compact, degenerate and ex nihilo evolvable interaction modules known as short, linear motifs (SLiMs). In this talk, we introduce our recent work characterising the regulatory SLiM modules recognised by the two key enzymes, the Anaphase-Promoting Complex/Cyclosome (APC/C) and Protein Phosphatase 2A (PP2A). We discuss how the information encoded in the sequence of the disordered regions allow these proteins to alter their function in reaction to cell state changes, thereby allowing conditional decision-making. Finally, the growing consensus that the disordered regions of proteins are the key determinant of the post-translation regulation that controls the life of almost all proteins from their synthesis to their destruction will be discussed.
Speaker Biography: Norman received his Ph.D. degree (2009) from the Conway Institute of Biomolecular & Biomedical Research at University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland, working on short, linear motif discovery methods. He subsequently moved to the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Heidelberg, Germany, as an EIPOD postdoctoral fellow to work on various aspects of motif biology including the prominent role of SLiMs in regulatory decision-making, splice isoform-specific functionality, and viral pathogenesis. In 2013, he joined the Department of Physiology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) as a postdoctoral fellow with Professor David O. Morgan characterizing novel motifs in the cell cycle. In September 2014, he returned to University College Dublin to start his own group studying motif function. In 2017, he was a Visiting Professor at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at Harvard Medical School working on the molecular details of immunosuppression. His research focuses on the role of SLiM within intrinsically disordered regions in directing cell regulation. He has authored over 40 papers on various aspects of SLiM biology. He continues to utilize evolutionary, proteomic, and genomic data to examine two major open questions about intrinsically disordered regions: (i) what are the modules that are responsible for their functionality and (ii) how do perturbations in the cell modulate the functionality of these modules.
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