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A Visit with Old Friends
By R.J. Harlick
"Sophie Hannah continued Poirot and Sebastian Faulks continued Bond. What character would you most like to write about, if the estate asked you?"
A tricky question. Like Meredith, I’m not a big fan of sequels written by someone other than the author whose characters have become almost like friends. I feel it verges on sacrilege for another author to take on the voice of characters created by someone else particularly when the original author likely had no say in the matter. I suppose that’s why it often doesn’t happen until the copyright has run out.
But let’s face it, it happens all the time when books are transformed into film and TV series and few get upset. Rarely does the author have any say in how their creations are portrayed after they pass them over to the scriptwriters and directors. While some avid fans won’t like the film versions, for the most part they capture a whole new coterie of fans, even if the characters bear little resemblance to those of the books. At least these authors have the opportunity to agree to their characters taking on another life in someone else’s hands.
That said, it doesn’t hurt to have a bit of fun and think of characters that I would like to see live again in a good book. Though I’d never presume to be that author. A good Sir Author Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes immediately comes to mind. There are now so many different film and TV versions of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson that it’s difficult to remember the original characters. It would be fun to resurrect them as the characters Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created.
Yup, Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane are two other characters I’d love to see live again, but I gather from Art it has already been done. Though John D. MacDonald wrote over 21 novels starring Travis McGee, I wouldn’t say no to another visit with him on the Busted Flush and a chance to explore another Florida byway. By the way, guess where I got the idea to include a colour in the title of my Meg Harris series? My homage to John D. But as much as I’d like to see Travis live on in another book, I am glad to read that John D’s heirs have refused to let another author try his or her hand with the salvage consultant.
I can’t forget Patrick O’Brian’s Captain Jack Aubry and Stephen Maturin. I’d love to set out on another voyage with him on a 19th century ship of the line to distant lands and distant seas. And while we are on historicals, the most intriguing character I have ever read is Dorothy Dunnett’s Francis Crawford of Lymond. His antics through 16th century Europe and the Ottoman Empire were mind-boggling. Another adventure with him would be the icing on the cake. Dunnett’s Johnson Johnson mystery series was rather fun too.
A chilly morning in the wilds of Quebec today. -31C or -24F. A good day to stay inside. But it follows a magical night. The full moon transformed the world outside my log cabin into a shimmering silvery cathedral. It was also a good night to howl. The coyotes were braying full force when they woke me in the wee hours of the morning. I think I will keep my two dogs close to me today.
Enjoy it, everyone.
Posted by RJ Harlick at 5:32 AM
Labels: Captain Jack Aubry, Dorothy Dunnett, John D. MacDonald, Meg Harris mysteries, Patrick O'Brian, R.J. Harlick, Sherlock Holmes, travis mcgee
Good point, RJ, about books/characters getting translated into movies and changing. Though a lot of people do prefer the book versions. But every once in a while the movies actually make an improvement on the book. Every once in a while...
Ha! I just watched (part of) Reacher last night. Talk about a travesty of an author's character.Tom Cruise had to stop smiling and, without that pearly grin, he's just nuthin.' I'd feel sad for Lee Child except that I heard his response was he was crying all the way to the bank!
RJ Harlick said...
I feel the same way about Craig Johnson's Walt Longmire. I love the character portrayed in his books. The character portrayed in the series, is a totally different and I find less likeable person. But as you say Susan, no doubt Craig is crying more like cackling all the way to the bank.
As much as I loved the Erle Stanley Gardner Perry Mason series (they were the first mystery / crime novels I read), I don't think another writer would necessarily capture the flavour of the old novels.
I remember feeling huge disappointment with Scarlett - the sequel to Gone With the Wind, although it was well received and on the NY Times best seller list.
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Opinion - Read all
Opinion – Boaventura – Brasil:Democracy on the edge of chaos and the dangers of legal disorder
Photo: Guga Melgar
March, 20
Boaventura de Sousa santos:
Brazil: democracy on the edge of chaos and the dangers of legal disorder
When I began studying the judicial system of various countries, almost thirty years ago, the administration of justice had the least public visibility among the state’s institutional dimensions. The big exception was the US, because of the central role played by the Supreme Court in defining the truly decisive public policies. Being part of the sole non-elected sovereign body and given their reactive nature (for as a rule they cannot be mobilized of their own initiative) as well as the fact that they depend on other state institutions (correctional services, public administration) to have their decisions enforced, the courts tended to play a relatively modest role within the organic life of the separation of powers introduced by modern political liberalism, so much so that the judicial function was viewed as apolitical. The reason for that had also to do with the fact that the courts dealt exclusively with individual rather than collective disputes and were designed not to interfere with the ruling classes and elites, which were protected by immunity and other privileges. Little was known about how the judicial system worked, the citizens who typically used it and their purpose in doing so. Since then everything has changed. This was caused, among other things, by the crisis of political representation that hit elected sovereign bodies, by the citizens’ growing awareness of their rights, and by the fact that, when faced with political deadlocks in the midst of controversial issues, the political elites began to regard the selective use of the courts as a way of lifting the political weight off certain decisions. Equally important was the fact that the neoconstitutionalism that came out of the second world war assigned a considerable weight to the control of constitutionality by constitutional courts. This novel development lent itself to two opposite readings. According to one reading, ordinary legislation had to be subjected to control in order to prevent it from being instrumentalized by political forces bent on scrapping all constitutional requirements – as had been the case, in the most extreme fashion, with the Nazi and fascist dictatorships. According to the other interpretation, the control of constitutionality was the tool used by the ruling political classes to defend themselves against potential threats to their interests, as a result of the vicissitudes of democratic politics and of “majority tyranny”. Be it as it may, these developments all led to a new kind of judicial activism that came to be known as the judicialization of politics and inevitably led to the politicization of justice.
The high public visibility of the courts over the last decades was largely caused by court cases involving members of the political and economic elites. The major watershed was the series of criminal proceedings known as Operation Clean Hands (Mani Pulite), which struck virtually all of Italy’s political class and much of its economic elite. Starting in Milan in April 1992, the operation comprised the investigation and arrest of cabinet ministers, party leaders, members of parliament (with about one third of all members being investigated at one point), businessmen, civil servants, journalists and members of the secret services, variously accused of such crimes as bribery, corruption, abuse of power, fraud, fraudulent bankruptcy, false accounting, and illegal political funding. Two years later, 633 people had been arrested in Naples, 623 in Milan and 444 in Rome. As a result of its having hit the entire political class under whose leadership the country had been governed in the recent past, the Clean Hands investigation shook the foundations of the Italian political system and led to the emergence, years later, of the Berlusconi “phenomenon”. Given these and other reasons, the courts of many countries have gained much public notoriety ever since. The most recent, and perhaps the most dramatic of all, to my knowledge, is Brazil’s Operation Lava Jato (“Car Wash” – or rather, and literally, “speed laundering”).
This anti-corruption operation mounted by the judiciary and the police was first launched in March 2014. Targeting more than a hundred politicians, businessmen and managers, it has gradually come to occupy centre stage in Brazil’s political life. As it enters its 24th phase, and in view of the criminal charges brought against former President Lula da Silva and the way this was effected, it is generating a political crisis similar to that which led to the 1964 coup whereby a vile military dictatorship was established that was to last until 1985. The judicial system – supposedly the ultimate defendor and guarantor of the legal order – has become a dangerous source of legal disorder. Blatantly illegal and unconstitutional judicial measures, a crassly selective persecutory zeal, an aberrant promiscuity in which media outlets are at the service of the conservative political elites, and a seemingly anarchic judicial hyper-activism – resulting, for instance, in 27 injunctions relating to a single political act (President Dilma’s invitation to Lula da Silva to join the government) –, all these bespeak a situation of legal chaos that tends to foster uncertainty, deepen social and political polarization and push Brazilian democracy to the edge of chaos. With legal order thus turned into legal disorder and democracy being highjacked by the non-elected sovereign body, political and social life has become a potential field of spoils at the mercy of political adventurers and vultures. At this point, several questions have to be addressed. How did it come to this? Who benefits from the present situation? What should be done to save Brazilian democracy and the institutions on which it stands, including its courts? How is one to attack this many-headed hydra, so that new heads do not grow for each severed head? In the present text I suggest a few answers.
How did it come to this?
Why has Operation Lava Jato gone well beyond the limits of the controversies that habitually arise in the wake of any prominent case of judicial activism? Let me point out that the similarity with Italy’s Clean Hands probe has often been invoked to justify the public display and the public unrest caused by this judicial activism. But the similarities are more apparent than real and there are indeed two very definite differences between the two investigations. On the one hand, the Italian magistrates always kept a scrupulous respect for the criminal proceedings and, at most, did nothing but apply rules that had been strategically ignored by a judicial system that was not only conformist but also complicit with the privileges of the ruling political elites in Italy’s post-war politics. On the other hand, they sought to apply the same unvarying zeal in investigating the crimes committed by the leaders of the various governing political parties. They assumed a politically neutral position precisely to defend the judicial system from the attacks it would surely be subjected to by those targeted by their investigations and prosecutions. This is the very antithesis of the sad spectacle currently offered to the world by a sector of the Brazilian judicial system. The impact caused by the activism of Italy’s magistrates came to be called the Republic of Judges. In the case of the activism displayed by the sector associated with Lava Jato, it would perhaps be more accurate to speak of a judicial Banana Republic. Why? Because of the external push that clearly lies behind this particular instance of Brazilian judicial activism, but which was largely absent in the Italian case. That push is what is dictating the glaring selectivity of such investigative and accusatory zeal. For although it involves the leaders of various parties, the fact is that Operation Lava Jato – and its media accomplices – have shown to be majorly inclined towards implicating the leaders of PT (the Workers’s Party), with the by now unmistakable purpose of bringing about the political assassination of President Dilma Rousseff and former President Lula da Silva.
In view of the importance of this external push and of the selective nature of the legal action it tends to generate, Operation Lava Jato shares more similarities with another judicial investigation, one that took place in the Weimar Republic after the failure of the German revolution of 1918. Starting that year, and in a context of political violence originating both in the extreme left and the extreme right, Germany’s courts showed a shocking display of double standards, punishing with severity the kind of violence committed by the far left and showing great leniency towards the violence of the far right – the same right that in only a few years was to put Hitler in power.
In Brazil, the external push comes in the shape of the economic elites and the political forces at their service, which did not accept the fact that they lost the 2014 elections and, in the midst of the current global crisis of capital accumulation, felt seriously threatened by the prospect of another four years with no control over that government-dependent portion of the country’s resources on which their power has always rested. The height of that threat was reached when Lula da Silva – viewed as the best Brazilian president since 1988, with an 80% approval rate at the end of his term – began being regarded as a potential presidential candidate for 2018. At that moment Brazilian democracy ceased to be functional for this conservative political bloc, and political destabilization ensued. The most obvious sign of the anti-democratic drive was the movement to impeach President Dilma Rousseff within a few months of her inauguration – a fact that was, if not totally unheard of, at least highly unusual in the democratic history of the last three decades. Realizing that their struggle for power was blocked by democracy’s majority rule (“majority tyranny”), they sought to make use of that sovereign body which is the least dependent on the rules of democracy and specifically designed to protect minorities, i.e., the courts. Operation Lava Jato – an otherwise highly worthy investigation – was the tool to which they resorted. Backed by the conservative legal culture that is widely predominant in Brazil’s judicial system, its Law Schools and the country at large, as well as by a full arsenal of high-powered, high-precision media weapons, the conservative bloc did everything it could to distort Operation Lava Jato. It thus diverted it from its judicial goals, which in themselves were crucial for the consolidation of democracy, and turned it into an operation of political extermination. The distortion consisted in keeping the institutional façade of Operation Lava Jato while profoundly changing its underlying functional structure, which was accomplished by seeing to it that the political took precedence over the judicial. Whereas the judicial logic is based on the fit between means and ends, as dictated by procedural rules and constitutional guarantees, the political logic, if propelled by the anti-democratic drive, subordinates ends to means and defines its own efficacy according to the degree of that subordination.
In this process, the intents of the conservative bloc had three major factors in their favor. The first was the dramatic change in character undergone by the PT as a democratic party of the left. Once in power, the PT decided to rule according to the “old style” (i.e., oligarchic style) to attain its new, innovative goals. Ignorant of the Weimar lesson, it believed that any “irregularities” it might commit would be met with the same leniency traditionally reserved for the irregularities committed by the elites and the conservative political classes that had ruled the country since its independence. Ignorant of the Marxist lesson it claimed to have absorbed, it failed to see that capital will allow no one to govern it but its own and is never grateful to any outsiders who happen to do it favors. Taking advantage of an international context in which, as a consequence of China’s development, the value of primary products had an exceptional increase, the PT government encouraged the rich to get richer. This was seen as a precondition for raising the resources it needed to carry out the extraordinary measures of social redistribution that made Brazil a substantially less unjust country, thanks to which more than 45 million Brazilians were freed from the yoke of endemic poverty. When the international context was no longer favorable, nothing short of a “new style” type of politics would do to ensure social redistribution. In other words, a new policy was required that, among other things, might use political reform to end the promiscuous relationship between political and economic power, tax reform to tax the rich as a way of financing social redistribution in the post-commodity boom period, and finally media reform, not to impose censorship, but rather to ensure diversity in published opinion. As it turned out, however, it was too late for all those things that should have been done in their own time and not in a context of crisis.
The second factor is linked to the first. It is the global economic crisis and the iron grip in which it is held by that which causes it – finance capital and its relentless self-destructiveness, which also destroys wealth under the pretext of creating wealth and turns money from a medium of exchange into a prime commodity of the speculation business. The hypertrophy of financial markets is an impediment to economic growth. Instead, it calls for austerity policies under which the poor are invested with the duty of helping the rich to stay rich and, if possible, to get richer. Under these conditions, the frail middle classes created in the previous period find themselves on the brink of sudden poverty. With their minds poisoned by the conservative media, they are quick to hold the very governments that turned them into what they are now responsible for what may befall them in the future. This is all the more likely to happen since a consumption ticket rather than a citizenship ticket was the fare they paid to travel from the slave quarters to the Manor’s outside patios.
The third factor working in favor of the conservative bloc is the fact that, after its adventures in the Middle East, US imperialism has returned to the continent. Fifty years ago, imperialism knew no means other than military dictatorship to submit the countries of the continent to its own interests. Today, imperialist interests have other means at their disposal, namely the financing of local development projects run by non-governmental organizations whose gestures in defence of democracy are just a front for covert, aggressive attacks and provocations directed at progressive governments (“down with communism”, “down with Marxism” “down with Paulo Freire”, “we are not Venezuela,” etc.). In such times as these, when the establishment of dictatorships can be avoided because democracy sees to it that the dominant economic interests are served, and when the military, still traumatized by past experiences, seem unwilling to embark on new authoritarian adventures, these forms of destabilization are viewed as more effective in that they allow replacing progressive governments with conservative governments while maintaining the democratic façade. All the financing currently abounding in Brazil comes from a wide variety of funds (the novel nature of a more pervasive imperialism), from the proverbial CIA-related organizations to the Koch brothers – who fund the most conservative policies in the US, their money coming mostly from the oil sector – to North-American evangelical organizations.
How can Brazilian democracy be saved?
The first and most pressing task is to save the Brazilian judiciary from the abyss into which it is sinking. In order to achieve that, its wholesome sector – surely the majority of the judicial system – must take upon itself the task of reestablishing order, serenity and restraint among its members. The guiding principle is simple enough to state: the independence of the courts under the rule of law is intended to allow them to fulfill their share of responsibility in consolidating democratic order and democratic coexistence. For that to happen, they are barred from putting their own independence at the service of any corporate or sectorial political interests, no matter how powerful. Although easy to state, the principle is very difficult to enforce. The top responsibility for enforcing it, at this point, lies with two different bodies. The STF (Federal Supreme Court) must assume its role as the ultimate guarantor of the legal order and put an end to the spreading legal anarchy. The STF will be faced with many important decisions in the near future, which must be obeyed by all, irrespective of what it decides. At present, the Supreme Court is the only institution capable of halting the plunge towards the state of emergency. As to the CNJ (National Council of Justice), which has disciplinary power over the magistrates, it should initiate immediate disciplinary proceedings by reason of reiterated prevarication and procedural abuse, not only against judge Sérgio Moro, who is directing the investigation in a blatantly biased manner, but against all those who have conducted themselves in similar fashion. If no exemplary disciplinary action is taken, the Brazilian judiciary runs the risk of squandering the institutional sway it has earned in recent decades, which, as we know, has not even been used to benefit left-wing forces or policies. It was earned simply by ensuring sustained consistency and the right balance between means and ends.
If the first task is successfully carried out, the separation of powers shall be preserved and the democratic political process shall resume its course. President Dilma Rousseff’s cabinet has decided to include Lula da Silva among its ministers. It is its right to do so and no institution, least of all the judiciary, has the power to prevent it. We are not talking about dodging justice on the part of a politician who never backed away from a fight, for he will eventually be tried (if that be the case) by that entity – the Supreme Court – which in the last analysis would try him anyway. From the legal point of view, it would be an aberration to apply here the principle of the “natural court”. One may, of course, disagree with the political decision in question. Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff know they are making a risky move, all the more risky in case Lula’s joining the cabinet does not translate into a change of course to wrest from the hands of the conservative forces the control over the extent and the pace of the erosion they have caused in the government. In fact, only early presidential elections could bring normalcy back. If the Lula-Dilma decision goes wrong, their careers will have come to an end, and a very undignified end it shall be, especially in the case of a man who restored dignity to so many millions of Brazilians. Besides, it will take PT many years to restore its credibility among the majority of the Brazilian people, not to mention that it will have to undergo a process of radical change. If all goes well, the new government will have to effect a change in policy, starting immediately, so as not to let down the trust of the millions of Brazilians who are taking to the street to protest against the putschists. If the Brazilian government has any desire to find help on the part of so many demonstrators, it will have to help them find reasons to help. Which is to say that, whether as opposition or as government, the PT will be forced to reinvent itself. And we know, this will be a lot more difficult to do when in government.
The third task is even more complex, because in the near future Brazilian democracy will have to be defended both in the country’s institutions and in the streets. And since policy-making is not conducted in the streets, institutions will be given due priority even in these times of authoritarian drive and antidemocratic emergency. The attempts at destabilization will continue and become more aggressive as the weakness of the government and the forces that support it become more visible. Popular organizations and movements, as well as peaceful demonstrations, will be infiltrated by provocateurs. Constant watchfulness is in order, as this type of provocation is currently being used in many contexts to criminalize social protest, reinforce state repression and declare states of emergency, albeit behind a façade of democratic normalcy. As Tarso Genro has argued, the state of emergency is somehow in place, which is why the “There will be no coup” flag has to be understood as a denunciation of the political-judicial coup that is already underway. A new type of coup, that needs to be neutralized.
Finally, Brazilian democracy can benefit from the recent experience of some neighbor countries. The way in which the progressive policies were implemented on the continent made it impossible to shift towards the left the political centre from which the positions of both the left and the right get to be defined. That is why, when progressive governments are defeated, the right comes to power possessed with an unprecedented virulence and bent on destroying, in no time, all that was built in favor of the popular classes during the previous period. Then along comes the right in its vindictiveness, to nip in the bud the possibility of a progressive government reemerging in the future. For that, it counts on the complicity of international finance capital to instill in the popular classes and in the excluded the notion that austerity is not a policy that can be challenged but rather a fate to which they must resign themselves. Macri’s government, in Argentina, is a case in point.
The war is not lost, but it will not be won if one battle after another is lost, which is what will happen if one keeps repeating past mistakes.
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Home / Shop / Books / Craft Books
The Amazing Toilet Paper Roll
Written by: Taghreed Najjar, Illustrated by: Dina Fawakhiri,
Toilet paper rolls are abundantly available in all houses. Instead of throwing them away we can recycle them into craft ideas. Making crafts keeps children busy, encourages their creativity and helps them strengthen their hand and finger muscles. Craft books help children follow instructions carefully and focus more on the work at hand.“The Amazing Paper Roll” has a lot of fun and easy to follow crafts for children of all ages.
The Amazing Toilet Paper Roll showcases fun easy to make craft ideas from paper rolls that will keep children happily busy while teaching them about recycling. In this digital age, it is important to encourage children to make things using their hands and small muscles instead of just clicking on a digital platform. Making crafts is an important part of childhood activities and should be encouraged by teachers and parents. It helps children express their creativity through color and through the objects they make. it also gives them the opportunity to relax from the stresses of the day. Craft books also help children follow simple instructions. Family crafts also bring families together. What better way than to make crafts from material that is readily available in every household, toilet paper rolls.
21 × 29.7 cm
Categories: Books, Craft Books
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Taghreed Najjar is a pioneer of modern children's literature in Jordan. A graduate of the American University of Beirut,Taghreed started her career as a teacher before becoming a full time writer of picture books and young adult novels. Her YA novels have been celebrated widely by her readers and various schools in the region have adopted them as part of their curriculum. A number of her books have won awards while others have been translated into foreign languages like English, Swedish, Turkish, French and Chinese.
One of her most critically acclaimed works is a series of ten picture books revolving around six-year old Jude and her family and friends.'The Halazone Series', deals with everyday childhood issues which are treated with humor and deftness by the author. One of Taghreed’s pet projects was collecting old Arabic children rhymes and publishing them in book and digital form to make them accessible to the modern child and family of today. She published two collections of rhymes, the latest entitled 'Musical Tickles' was selected by the National Centre for Children's Literature (a service of the French National Library) as one of the best publications in the Arab World in 2012/2013.
About the Illustrator: Dina Fawakhiri
Born and raised in the UAE, Dina Fawakhiri returned to her native Amman to earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Graphic Design in 1997, and began working in advertising soon after. Today Dina is the Creative Director of one of Jordan’s most prominent agencies, Wunderman, with numerous awards to her name. As a young artist, Dina’s favorite medium was pencil on paper, preferring black and white to color, with smooth rounded lines and perfect forms. But the fast-paced, commercially-driven advertising world eventually influenced her work as an artist. Inspired by the ease and speed of digital illustration, Dina’s lines got simpler, cleaner, bolder and faster. She began experimenting with color and found herself drawn to digital art as a new medium that lent itself to surrealist conceptual exploration. Several group exhibitions followed, and led to the “Space on board” skateboard exhibition in 2012, which presented a new and much welcome challenge – 3D work. Dina’s paper mache and wood carved skateboards were an opportunity ...
The Watermelon
This is My Dad
Sky is Raining Food
Uncle Khalfan’s Sheep
A Home for Arnoub
The Amazing Card
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SPENCER FINCH
is an artist.
New Haven, CT , United States
Living & Working Place(s)
New York City, NY, United States
Mini Biography About Finch,Spencer
Spencer Finch (b. 1962, New Haven, Connecticut) is drawn to the elusive and the ineffable and approaches scientific investigation with the sensibility of a poet. Known for collecting and recording data related to atmospheric light, weather patterns, and other of nature’s fleeting qualities, Finch masterfully reproduces these results using such innovative media as fluorescent lights, TV sets, household fans, even scotch tape, as well as more traditional media such as watercolor paint. He is driven by a persistent interest in light, color, and perception and the limitations of scientific methodology to study these forces and to achieve a complete understanding of their true essence when confronted with human imperfection and the inevitability of subjective error. Finch is probably best known for his electric-light installations, brightly colored fluorescent tubes intended to mimic natural light patterns, which are subject to the changing conditions of weather and atmosphere. Finch received his M.F.A in sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design (1989). He has had extensive international solo and group exhibitions, including at the Morgan Library & Museum, New York (2014), The Art Institute of Chicago (2011), and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York (2010). His work can also be found in the collections of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C., the Museum für Moderne Kunst, Frankfurt, Germany, and the High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA. Finch lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.
ARTWORKS(2)
PUBLICATIONS(0)
MISCELLANEOUS(0)
info@artlinkart.com © ARTLINKART 2020 - 沪ICP备09008038号
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European single-market
Wales needs full access to single market: Carwyn Jones
January 4, 2017 10:13 am gmt |
First Minister Carwyn Jones says Wales needs “full and unfettered access” to the European single market, as he flies to Norway to learn more about its relationship with the EU. The three-day visit comes as UK ministers prepare the way for Brexit negotiations. Although not an EU member, N...
Brexit: London must move fast to take more power – Sadiq Khan
June 28, 2016 11:40 am gmt |
London mayor Sadiq Khan on Tuesday (June 28) called for the city to be given more autonomy to allow it to ride out the economic uncertainty unleashed by Britain’s vote to leave the European Union. While Britons voted 52 to 48 percent to leave the bloc last week, London overwhelmingly backed rem...
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First Royal Canadian Air Force C295 Makes Maiden Flight
Royal Canadian Air Force C295 | Airbus
The first Airbus C295, purchased by the Government of Canada for the Royal Canadian Air Force’s (RCAF) Fixed Wing Search and Rescue Aircraft Replacement (FWSAR) program, has completed its maiden flight, marking a key milestone towards delivery by the end of 2019 to begin operational testing by the RCAF.
The aircraft, designated CC-295 for the Canadian customer, took off from Seville, Spain, on 4 July at 20:20 local time (GMT+1) and landed back on site one hour and 27 minutes later.
The contract, awarded in December 2016, includes 16 C295 aircraft and all In-Service Support elements including, training and engineering services, the construction of a new Training Centre in Comox, British Columbia, and maintenance and support services.
The aircraft will be based where search and rescue squadrons are currently located: Comox, British Columbia; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Trenton, Ontario; and Greenwood, Nova Scotia.
Considerable progress has been made since the FWSAR program was announced two and a half years ago: the first aircraft will now begin flight testing; another five aircraft are in various stages of assembly; and seven simulator and training devices are in various testing stages.
In addition, the first RCAF crews will begin training in late summer 2019 at Airbus’ International Training Centre in Seville, Spain.
The FWSAR program is supporting some $2.5 billion (CAD) in Industrial and Technological Benefits (ITB) to Canada, through high-value, long-term partnerships with Canadian industry.
As of January 2019, 86 percent of key Canadian In-Service Support (ISS) tasks have been performed in-country by Canadian companies in relation to establishing the FWSAR ISS system. Airbus is thus on track in providing high value work to Canadian industry and has demonstrated a successful start to the development and transfer of capability to Canadian enterprises for the support of the FWSAR aircraft.
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North Carolina School Bus Driver May Have Set Up a Hit on High School Student, Police Say
Olivia Messer
Published Jul. 30, 2019 10:56AM ET
REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni
A former Durham, North Carolina, public school bus driver may have coordinated the shooting of a 17-year-old student on his route, police said in a search warrant involving the May 29 encounter. When the boy exited the bus that day, men who were hiding nearby reportedly began firing shots, but the boy escaped into his house without injury, according to CBS 17. Police obtained a search warrant to look into the driver’s cell phone after the student said that the driver was texting someone throughout the ride. The driver was previously involved in a scuffle with a relative of the boy and police said that the driver argued with the student on the day of the shooting. The driver, who is no longer employed with the district, has not yet been charged with a crime.
Read it at CBS 17
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Turning social phenomena into data: measurement instruments for the social sciences (Part 2)
The new BMC journal Measurement Instruments for the Social Sciences is now open for submissions, and we continue our conversation with the Editor-in-Chief Beatrice Rammstedt and the Associate Editor Matthias Bluemke on what excites them most as researchers in this field and the challenges of describing social phenomena through scores and statistics.
Roberto Garbero 24 May 2018
(From pixabay.com, CC0 Creative Commons)
What social phenomena are the most difficult to grasp and describe quantitatively?
There can be no general answer to that question. Researchers interested in individual differences may say that getting to the bottom of individual personalities, or how they differ, is really challenging. Other researchers working on social groups may say that aggregate scores do not adequately present the reality of the dynamics in groups.
Researchers dealing with contextual phenomena at local, regional, or global levels may lament the fact that access to high quality data is difficult and the “right” level for aggregating data to describe the phenomena of interest cannot be disentangled. Understanding how to quantify characteristics through questionnaires used in different cultures and languages is incredibly interesting, because here the comparability of scores can be seriously hampered.
Getting to the bottom of individual personalities, or adequately presenting the reality of the dynamics in groups can prove very challenging (From pixabay.com, CC0 Creative Commons)
What does excite you most of your research activity and field?
Asking questions and getting answers that can be considered valid to describe a situation or a population more generally – more than just the group of people observed in a single lab study, at one particular research site, in a particular city or country. At the same time, populations are heterogeneous, and the differences within populations play a crucial role when analyzing data or drawing inferences. This is not always taken into account because we sometimes tend to overgeneralize our own (local) findings.
We believe this is an exciting time where we can finally start describing populations, groups, behaviors and social phenomena more adequately – with all the complexity that needs to be considered. It has become possible to supplement and validate the measures we use with real behavioral data from participants, because data acquisition in daily life becomes technically possible and virtually ubiquitous.
What is GESIS about?
GESIS – Leibniz-Institute for the Social Sciences is the largest German infrastructure institute for the social sciences. With its expertise and services, GESIS stands ready to advise researchers at all levels of their projects. With this support socially relevant questions can be answered on the basis of the newest scientific methods, high quality data and research information.
GESIS’ activity is targeting scientists who work with methods of empirical social research, especially at universities and non-university research institutions in Germany and throughout the world. The institute carries out interdisciplinary research in the four areas of survey methodology, research data management, contemporary societal issues, and applied computer science, and at their interfaces. GESIS is committed to the principle of open science.
GESIS maintains co-operations with various partner universities and participates in important international projects, i.e. the European Social Survey (ESS), the European Archive Association CESSDA, the OECD project Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) as well as the European Value Study (EVS). As a member of the Leibniz association GESIS keeps institutional and project based contacts with other institutes within the network.
Beatrice Rammstedt is professor of Psychological Assessment, Survey Design and Methodology at the University of Mannheim as well as vice president and scientific director of the department Survey, Design and Methodology at GESIS – Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences. Her research interests include issues from questionnaire design and validation to assessing non-cognitive skills (special focus on Big Five personality dimensions) to the methodology of cultural comparative large-scale studies. Prof. Rammstedt is a member of several advisory boards, such as the OECD expert panel on the measurement of personality traits and non-cognitive skills in PIAAC, the advisory group „Framework Programme Educational Research” and the scientific advisory board of the “Decade for Literacy” – both launched by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, Germany (BMBF). She has authored or co-authored more than 100 papers which are highly perceived by the research community (>4500 citations).
Having studied psychology at the Universities of Trier and Heidelberg (1997-2003), Dr Matthias Bluemke worked on his PhD-Thesis, titled „Chances and risks of psychological diagnostics with implicit association tests (IAT)“ (2006). Afterwards he taught and did research at the Social Psychology Department at Heidelberg, except for two years (2010-2012) when a DFG postdoc stipend supported his work as a visiting scholar at the University of Otago, Dunedin, in New Zealand (Social Cognition Lab). Parallel to working he studied Medical Biometry/Biostatistics at the University of Heidelberg (2014-2017), where he obtained his Master of Science. Since 2016 he has worked at GESIS – Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences, in the Survey Design & Methodology (SDM) department. He is currently member and deputy leader of the team Scale Development and Documentation (SDD), with a focus on and instrument development and method consulting.
HealthOpen AccessPublishing
psychologyScience:Socialsocial sciences
Turning social phenomena into data: measurement instruments for the social sciences
How important are open access books to academic authors?
Roberto Garbero
Roberto has a background in linguistics and studied at the University of Milan. He's been working in STM publishing with Springer Nature since 2011 and is now Journal Development Manager of journals in the field of microbiology and infectious diseases.
Latest posts by Roberto Garbero (see all)
Mycology research on the front line of environmental and health challenges - 7th June 2019
The greatest scientists are artists too - 23rd May 2019
It’s not just about nutrients – the Journal of Ethnic Foods now open for submissions - 19th November 2018
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Hispanic Heritage Month on PBS
By Joanne Ostrow
Television Critic
Canciones del Pasado, Chita Rivera, CPT12, Gloria Estefan, Hispanic Heritage Awards, Jean Rodriguez, Latin Tribute to Michael Jackson, Latinos, Mexican Independence Day, PBS, Pedro E. Guerrero, Rita Moreno, RMPBS
Jean Rodriguez performs at UNITY – THE LATIN TRIBUTE TO MICHAEL JACKSON
Courtesy of Ciprian Lacob
Latino history, music and culture take the spotlight during “Hispanic Heritage Month” on PBS with documentaries and arts presentations including the 28th annual Hispanic Heritage Awards. Both Denver public TV outlets, Rocky Mountain PBS and Colorado Public Television (CPT12), will feature related programs.
In coming weeks, Gloria Estefan will host the PBS Fall Arts Festival, beginning Oct. 9 on RMPBS with “Unity – The Latin Tribute to Michael Jackson” concert featuring Latin artists. Also Oct. 9 on RMPBS, Rita Moreno will host the Hispanic Heritage Awards.
On Nov. 9, Chita Rivera, fresh off of her Tony-nominated Broadway run in “The Visit,” is featured on Great Performances’ “Chita Rivera: A Lot of Livin’ to Do” on RMPBS.
Upcoming documentaries on RMPBS: “On Two Fronts: Latinos and Vietnam” (Sept. 22), American Masters’ “Pedro E. Guerrero: A Photographer’s Journey” on Sept. 18 and on POV, “Don’t Tell Anyone” (“No Le Digas a Nadie”) on Sept. 21.
On Sept. 16, CPT12 will commemorate Mexican Independence Day with four programs: “In The Americas with Dave Yettman – The Cry for Mexican Independence,” “Rudolfo Anaya: The Magic of Words,” “Salinas Project,” about the marginalized community close by the affluent Silicon Valley and Carmel areas, and a local co-production, “Canciones del Pasado,”
produced by CPT12 and KUVO in 1998, featuring performers of traditional music from the San Luis Valley in Southern Colorado and northern New Mexico.
Comments Off on Hispanic Heritage Month on PBS
Categories: Actors and Actresses, Awards Shows, Celebrities, Documentaries, Local Media, Musicals, Spanish-language, Television & Media News
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Joanne Ostrow
Joanne Ostrow has been watching TV since before "reality" required quotation marks. "Hill Street Blues" was life-changing. If Dickens, Twain or Agatha Christie were alive today, they'd be writing for television. And proud of it.
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A City Lit Up Anew
Blink returns for its second iteration Oct. 10-13 with another celebratory weekend of art, light and community
Kevin Michell
In the weeks following Oct. 15, 2017, Cincinnatians were aglow with city pride following the first-ever Blink light and art festival. Over a million people visited downtown that weekend and the buzz throughout the city continued long after the event had ended.
That may seem a tough act to follow, but the second edition of Blink Cincinnati, Oct. 10-13, is all planned out with brand-new art, projection mapping and light installations along many of the same streets of downtown and Over-the-Rhine, as well as seven blocks of Covington’s Madison Avenue for the first time.
The light shows and art fixtures will stay in place throughout the weekend, so visitors can experience the city-spanning event at their own pace and in whichever order they’d like.
“You can pretty much come downtown and park anywhere in Over-the-Rhine or downtown or Covington and you will be able to walk around and experience Blink and experience all that those neighborhoods have to offer,” says Brendon Cull, senior vice president and chief operating officer of the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber, which is handling event production in concert with local organizations Agar, ArtWorks, Brave Berlin and The Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile Jr. Foundation.
However, the one have-to-be-there event is the Blink Light Parade presented by Skyline Chili, which kicks off the weekend with around 85 different participating performers and legendary local chef Jean-Robert de Cavel as grand marshal.
“It’s going to be so creative and beautiful that I think people are going to remember it for decades,” Cull says.
Blink 2019 also promises the return of the Architects of Air, whose interactive luminarium Katena was a massive hit in Washington Park during the 2017 edition. This year’s giant air sculpture, Dodecalis, is being kept a tightly guarded secret until festival time but promises another one-of-a-kind experience. Dodecalis will be the only ticketed event at Blink, as the sculpture will have a maximum capacity that needs to be monitored and adhered to.
But the coup-de-grace of Blink 2019 will be the lighting up of the Roebling Bridge through the weekend, serving as a gleaming symbol of the city itself and the collaboration between Cincinnati and Covington for this year’s event. The Greater Cincinnati Foundation, Vincent Lighting of Erlanger and Brave Berlin worked together to make this centerpiece possible. Oggo will provide free rides across the bridge for attendees moving from one side of the river to the other.
Covington’s Madison Avenue will be the focal point of Blink on the Kentucky side, with the blocks flanking Braxton Brewing Company and Hotel Covington alight with art. There will also be a free concert by Grouplove on Saturday night in the RiverCenter parking lot.
Cull personally looks forward to the spontaneous way Blink makes connections between visitors to the city during the event.
“The art and showcasing our region is fantastic,” he says, “but there are these moments where as a community we come together, we are around people who we may or may not be around on a day-to-day basis as we are having a shared experience together. And that is, I think, the true beauty of Blink.”
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DREGULATOR VOL. IV # 11: DEM DEMS IS DEMNED
OK, it’s official: The Democrats are panty-waisted, snivelling, sissy-gut, eczematous, bedwetting, water-wing-wearing crybabies, who whine until snot rolls down their mustaches but hit like girls, and deserve to be dunked headfirst into toilets and forced to swallow live “pinkie” mice.
Gee Whiz, guys…..this is what you do with a majority? Are we going to need to call your parents? I’m sure there are plenty of other Americans out there who would love to have your responsibilities. You promised we could trust you with the American People, and look: You’re so boy crazy for those bad Administration boys, you follow them around like babies and let them pick on you. And now your Americans are running around in the middle of the street and getting killed by Iraqi insurgents.
I am very ashamed of you right now.
And while we’ve got our scold on:
You can’t play with Paris Hilton or American Idol anymore, either. Because they are cryptofascist tools of Orwellian propaganda, that’s why. Look: you may be only five years old, but you probably know that Paris is going to prison, and you know who this yodeling divot Jordin Sparks is…right?
But you wouldn’t recognize National Security Presidential Directive/NSPD 51 and Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-20 if they sat down next to you on the bus and started singing you a medley of Eagles hits.
Let’s introduce these playful guys.
These are Executive Orders that our Executive ordered himself, so he could Order himself to make ever larger Executive Orders. These Orders entrust our President with the entrusting of our President, in case of a “catastrophic emergency” (defined as “any incident, regardless of location, that results in extraordinary levels of mass casualties, damage, or disruption severely affecting the U.S. population, infrastructure, environment, economy, or government function”) with….get this….not just the Executive Branch of government (a job which most of us believe he has not been so hot at handling)…but with the ENTIRE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, as well. All of it. Entrusted to one man, by one man.
All those other, smarter guys? They won’t get to participate if “something bad” happens, – like, say, another Katrina, or another 9/11 or (insert your manmade disaster here, Bird Flu lovers… that Influenza of 1921 is still sitting on a Bunsen-burner somewhere…and that Polonium 210 stuff has definite possibilities…. ). But George Bush will officially dub himself Holy American Emperor and SuperPope 3000, and insure Liberty and Justice for Himself.
And there will be nothing anyone else can do about it.
OK, question: What incentive does the President have NOT to allow a large domestic “disaster” to happen? Just a thought. Don’t mean to be negative.
There is only one hope, as far as I can see it: The Globe, and its exclusive coverage of the “whorrible” Presidential divorce-cum-cheating-with-Condi scandal.
The soon-to-be-released book, “LUSTFUL UTTERANCES – Politics & BDSM, Part 1: Cohn to Bush 1981-1986” was written by Las Vegas dominatrix Leola McConnell, aka “Mistress Lee.”
McConnell operates behind the anonymity of the internet, “due to death threats she’s received.”
While few people claim to have ever seen her in person, internet photos show her as a “voluptuous, powerfully-built, middle-age woman with black waist length hair.”
But she is no ordinary dominatrix – she is also “politically savvy,” according to Globe sources.
Her list of “clients” included both Roy Cohn (the man playwright Tony Kushner referred to as “the polestar of human evil”) and “a former heavyweight in the Reagan White House.” As recently as 2006, Ms. McConnell threw her wig into the ring in an attempt to run for Governor of Nevada… but she failed to win the Democratic primary.
Anyway, she has some nasty dirt to dish about the President. According to a press release on May 1: “In 1984, I watched George W. Bush enthusiastically and expertly perform a (sexual) act on another.”
“Another Web site,” according to the Globe, reports that during Senate debates in Tennessee between Al Gore, Victor Ashe, and Ed McTeer, “The Las Vegas woman (McConnell) was paid $15,000 to arrange sexual liaisons for George W. Bush (then a private citizen).”
These affairs, allegedly involving “three encounters in three different cities,” included a “tryst in Chattanooga” with “an African-American woman…..(who) was paid $1500.”
An African-Amerian woman – hmmm. Who does THAT remind us of? Can’t remember. Breast or thigh, Madame Secretary?
If the President can arrange to have custom sex liaisons in Chattanooga, he can probably arrange to have another whatever-the-hell-that-thing-that-didn’t-look-like-a-plane fall on that section of the Pentagon that is exclusively inhabited by janitors, again.
Maybe I am just paranoid. But you know, I am a little concerned that the temptation to Have It All might be too great for someone with documented addiction issues. I’m just….you know….concerned.
That’s the Trash, Mein Fiends. It gets harder and harder to compact, and it is impossible to dispose of.
« DREGULATOR VOL. VI, NO. 10 » DREGULATOR VOL. VI # 12: THE RICH CONTROL THE LAWS THAT CONTROL YOU, PUNK
Ian "But Is She Vinyl?" Ransom
Smack-down Dreguloops for Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner!
I cringed watching Pelosi finagle a big ole “spin” hairball out of her throat on C-Span today.
Lovely, huh? My party is the Twit Party. It’s time to go to a new Party. Anyone been to a good Party lately?
Hot damn Cintra! You almost make me want to register to vote…
I want to cuddle your brains…
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Type: Ordinance Effective Date: 12/18/1997
Title: Authorizing a $107,890.10 contract with Tiffany Construction, Inc., for reconstructing sidewalks, curbs, driveway entrances, and appurtenances all along W. 65th Street from Main Street to Brookside Road; adjusting appropriations by $81,449.00 and authorizing its expenditure for the project; authorizing assessment of the costs against the properties benefited; authorizing the Director of Public Works to expend $56,218.00 in previously appropriated funds for the project; appropriating $110.00 to the Youth Employment Fund; and recognizing an emergency.
Prepare to Introduce
Referred City Operations Committee
Advance and Do Pass
No attachment(s) found
Authorizing a $107,890.10 contract with Tiffany Construction, Inc., for reconstructing sidewalks, curbs, driveway entrances, and appurtenances all along W. 65th Street from Main Street to Brookside Road; adjusting appropriations by $81,449.00 and authorizing its expenditure for the project; authorizing assessment of the costs against the properties benefited; authorizing the Director of Public Works to expend $56,218.00 in previously appropriated funds for the project; appropriating $110.00 to the Youth Employment Fund; and recognizing an emergency.
Section 1. That the work of reconstructing portland cement concrete sidewalks, curbs, driveway entrances and appurtenances, all along W. 65th Street from Main Street to Brookside Road, as part of the Public Improvements Tax Year 13 Projects in Council District 4, Kansas City, Jackson County, Missouri, Project No. 6710, is hereby provided for and authorized.
Section 2. That the work shall be done in accordance with the plans, specifications and the contract therefore between Kansas City, Missouri, through its Director of Public Works, and Tiffany Construction, Inc., a Missouri corporation, in the amount of $107,890.10, which contract is hereby approved and confirmed. A copy of the contract is on file in the office of the Director of Public Works and is incorporated herein by reference.
Section 3. That the appropriation in the Revolving Public Improvement Fund, Account No. 98-319-089-7763-T is hereby reduced in the amount of $81,449.00.
Section 4. That the sum of $81,449.00 is appropriated from the Unappropriated Fund Balance of the Revolving Public Improvement Fund to Project Account No. 98-319-089-6457-T, to be used within that account as follows:
To Account No. 98-319-089-6457-T the sum of $63,832.00 for construction;
To Account No. 98-319-089-6457-T the sum of $6,383.00 for contingent obligations;
To Account No. 98-319-089-6457-T the sum of $10,532.00 for engineering and supervision;
To Account No. 98-319-089-6457-T the sum of $702.00 for administration;
and the Director of Public Works is hereby authorized to expend the said sum for the purposes appropriated.
Section 5. That the special assessments are hereby authorized to be made and levied upon the lands fronting and abutting on the above improvement in accordance with Kansas City Charter Section 263 for eighty (80) percent of the costs relating to the replacement of sidewalks, curbs, driveway entrances, asphalt pavements and appurtenances condemned. Special tax bills evidencing the amount of such assessments shall be issued to Kansas City and shall be credited to the said Revolving Public Improvements Fund and, when collected, the proceeds thereof shall be returned to and become a part of the said Fund. The said tax bills shall be made payable in six annual installments at such times and with such effect as is provided in Article VIII of the Kansas City Charter. The said special assessments shall bear interest at a rate per annum equal to the rate of ten
year United States treasury notes as established at the last auction before the assessment is certified to the Director of Finance. If delinquent, said special assessments shall bear interest at a rate per annum two percent higher than the interest rate on assessments which are not delinquent.
Section 6. That the Director of Public Works is hereby authorized to expend the sum of $56,218.00 from funds heretofore appropriated to Account Nos:
98-209-089-7700-T Radii Fund $35,855.00
98-309-089-6402-T Curbs and Sidewalks - CD4 20,363.00
as and for the balance of consideration in the aforesaid contract and for engineering and administration associated therewith.
Section 7. That the appropriation in the following account of the Capital Improvement Fund is hereby reduced by the following amount:
98-309-089-6402-T Curb and Sidewalk Construction - CD4 $ 110.00
Section 8. That the sum of $110.00 is hereby appropriated from the Unappropriated Fund Balance of the Capital Improvement Fund to the following account in the Capital Improvement Fund:
98-309-012-9089-B Transfer to Youth Employment Fund $ 110.00
Section 9. That the revenue in the following account of the Youth Employment Fund is hereby reestimated in the following additional amount:
98-244-089-9202 Transfer from Capital Improvement Fund $ 110.00
Section 10. That the sum of $110.00 is hereby appropriated from the Unappropriated Fund Balance of the Youth Employment Fund to the following account in the Youth Employment Fund:
98-244-089-7004-T Quarter Percent for Youth Employment Fund $ 110.00
Section 11. That the Director of Finance is hereby authorized to transfer $110.00 from the Capital Improvement Fund to the Youth Employment Fund.
Section 12. That since the public improvement provided for herein is to be paid in part by special assessments, this ordinance is recognized to be an emergency measure within the provisions of Article II, Section 15 of the Charter and shall take effect immediately upon passage.
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Home » Transport in Wales
Transport in Wales
Logistics & Transport Focus;May2002, Vol. 4 Issue 4, p77
The Transport Statistics Users' Group held a joint seminar with the Wales Transport Research Center at the University of Glamorgan. The event focused on the themes of information, interchange, investment and integration in Wales. Professor Stuart Cole, Director of the Wales Transport Research Center, opened the day with a talk on the Information needs of the independent traveller in Wales. He spoke about how travel is an integral part of the tourist industry. The efficient provision of all transport mode is a prerequisite not only for the expansion of tourism but also in maintaining current levels. The role of an integrated transportation policy is best understood if placed in the context of everyday journeys. The afternoon session looked at individual modes and their place in the Welsh transport arena. Peter Mackenzie-Williams, head of Aviation, TRL, outlined current and future developments in the aviation market.
Foundation in Logistics. // Logistics & Transport Focus;Mar2000, Vol. 2 Issue 2, p64
The seminar, held in 2000 in London, England, for the members of the Freight Transport Special Interest Group of the Institute of Logistics and Transport which was sponsored by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) of Great Britain is the main focus of this article. Delegates were informed that two...
Confusion Over CPC Exemption. // Logistics & Transport Focus;Nov99, Vol. 1 Issue 5, p44
Announces that the next Transport Statistics Users' Group seminar will take place on March 1999 at the Glamorgan Business Center in Pontypridd, Wales and will focus on the four themes of information, interchange, investment and integration.
LOGISTICS SEMINARS AND COURSES. // Traffic World;3/1/2004, Vol. 268 Issue 9, p35
Provides information on schedules of seminars and courses that are of importance to professionals in the logistics and transportation industry in the U.S., gathered as of March 2004.
LOGISTICS SEMINARS AND COURSES. // Traffic World;6/28/2004, Vol. 268 Issue 26, p35
Presents a calendar of events related to seminars and courses in business logistics in the United States in June and July 2004. Classification Workshop of the National Motor Freight Traffic Association on June 21; Logistics Management seminar of the Schulich School of Business York University on...
LOGISTICS SEMINARS AND COURSES. // Traffic World;11/22/2004, Vol. 268 Issue 47, p35
Presents a calendar of seminars and courses on business logistics and transportation for November 2004 to February 2005.
National events 2013. // Logistics & Transport Focus;Mar2013, Vol. 15 Issue 3, p6
A calendar of events, conferences, seminars and awards for the logistics and transport industry scheduled in Great Britain for June to October 2013 is presented, including the Annual Logistics Conference & Dinner 2013, Logistics Research Network (LRN) Conference, and the Annual Awards for...
Logistics Seminars & Courses. // Traffic World;7/30/2007, Vol. 271 Issue 30/31, p35
A calendar of events related to business logistics in the U.S. for July-August 2007. A course on Modeling and Simulation of Transportation Networks is scheduled on July 30-August 3, 2007 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Dangerous Goods Advisory Council will hold an initial training how to...
Safe mail. // Management Services;Jun2002, Vol. 46 Issue 6, p32
This article reports on the seminar entitled Transport and Regeneration which was held at the Sheffield Hallam University in 2002. The seminar was designed to appeal to those with a general interest in the links between transport and regeneration. Speakers were specifically picked to represent...
Fit for the Future. // Management Services;Mar2000, Vol. 44 Issue 3, p14
Reports that the European Special Interest Group of the Institute of Logistics and Transport has hosted, in 2002, a breakfast seminar on environmental practices from a European perspective and how Swedish companies approached the challenges.
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Twitter Feed, 22-26 Feb 2011
The Boston Gazette Spin on Writs of Assistance
James Otis Tries a New Type of Politics
The Press Response to the Writs of Assistance Argu...
“The Writs Were Ordered to Be Issued”
In a Boston Courtroom, 250 Years Ago Today
Observing Washington’s Birthday
Anniversary Events in Greater Boston This Week
Symposium on the Princeton Battlefield, 26 Feb.
Building and Rebuilding Washington
The Neverending Supply of Washington Myths
“Avowed Themselves to Be Man & Wife”
The Marriage of Isaiah Thomas and Mary Dill
Elizabeth, Simeon, and the Cats
A “Romantic” Mansion in Roxbury
Oh, It’s On Now!—Tea Party Talks in February
The Mystery in Dr. Warren’s Recovered Letter
Visiting the Revere Family in February
Twitter Feed, 30 Jan-4 Feb 2011
Pvt. John Chatham’s “Humane Attempt”
A Snapshot of Jefferson-Hemings in the Mid-1990s
How Hannah Adams Spent the Revolutionary War
Bachmann, Burr, and Balderdash
Mapping the Faces of Early America
Slave Conspiracy Scares and the “Powder Alarm”
“And Shouting Greet, with Peals of Joy…”
“A Right to Life, to Food, and to Freedom”
Events to Dig Out For
Last month the Shirley-Eustis House in Roxbury hosted a lecture by Jonathan Fairbanks titled “Rum Parties – Not Tea — Launched Liberty in 1768 for Boston and America.”
Later this month the same house museum will host Prof. Benjamin Carp speaking on his book Defiance of the Patriots: The Boston Tea Party and the Making of America. Guess we won’t hear so much about rum then! Parliament never set a rum tax, after all! (It did put tariffs on the crucial ingredient of molasses, and colonies levied excise taxes on alcohol.) And Bostonians certainly never dumped rum into the harbor! (Like Capt. Jack Sparrow, they would never have been so wasteful.)
But can’t we all get along? According to Peter Edes’s recollection, quoted in full here, “on the afternoon preceding the evening of the destruction of the tea, a number of gentlemen met in the parlor of my father's house. . . . my station was in another room to make punch for them in the bowl which is now in your possession, and which I filled several times.” So the Boston Tea Party was probably carried out under the influence of rum punch.
Ben’s talk at the Shirley-Eustis House is scheduled for Sunday, 27 February, starting at 1:30 P.M. Admission is free, but donations and new membership fees are no doubt welcome.
In addition, Ben will speak about the challenge of researching individual Boston Tea Party participants at the New England Historic Genealogical Society on Wednesday, 23 February, starting at 6:00 P.M. The N.E.H.G.S. headquarters is at 99-101 Newbury Street in Boston’s Back Bay.
And earlier that day Ben’s speaking at the Museum of Fine Arts as part of its high-ticket afternoon semester course, “The American Journey 1620-Present: History, Art, and Culture.” So he might be appreciating tea’s caffeine content.
Labels: Boston Tea Party, Peter Edes, Roxbury
RFuller said...
"pot valour" and Dutch courage" come to mind....
Sunday, 13 February, 2011
I would be very much interested to know whether my ancestor was at the Boston Tea Party. There is a bit of a twist though, he was a tidesman at the Customs House at the time. In March 1776 he was evacuated to Halifax with his family. The family has been in Nova Scotia for the past 235 years. I found your blog a few days ago; it's very interesting.
Colin Kiley.
There were some Customs service employees caught up in the Tea Party, though not as participants. I think their names were recorded in the Crown's investigations of the event. There's also a list of Loyalists, including Customs-men, who evacuated with the British military in March 1776. But I don't know what name you're searching for.
He is there on that list. His name was John Kiely, which I believe is the John Ciely listed on the document.
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The cost of not calling Kroll
China Kanghui looks like a done deal:
It appears Medtronic closed it.
For the record Mr D Cameron Findlay was the contact officer on the merger agreement and was informed of (numerous) problems at Kanghui.
There was one way that the senior people at Medtronic could protect their reputations and their career. Two words of advice - but it is too late now. For the record here it was:
Call Kroll.
Posted by John Hempton at 8:36 AM 17 comments: Links to this post
My pick for CEO dead pool: Omar S Ishrak at Medtronic
I got a lot of nominations for CEO dead-pool but very few with clearly enunciated reasons and the reasons are what is going to determine the ultimate winner. There were popular nominations (Meg Whitman at HP just because HP is hard, Ballmer at Microsoft for missing every major trend of the last decade).
You can't win with the obvious - indeed I was almost going to suggest that Meg Whitman was a disqualifying guess...
One entry is going to be hard to beat. Someone nominated Cynthia Carroll at Anglo American literally hours before she stepped down. But in that case the writing was on-the-wall. She was a woman and not South African and her company was causing South African politics to spiral out of control. Of course the old-guard were going to gang up on her.
In any game of dead-pool the winner has to be someone with a sterling reputation and a job they should keep for decades. And the demise should be a sudden complete surprise (at least to the company if not to the CEO dead-pool player). What will win is a company where the CEO's main job is to keep his nose clean and keep a highly profitable machine humming along and where the CEO makes a stuff up so egregious that keeping him is not within the realms of possibility.
Such a speculative guess is more likely to be wrong.
So - revealing that I am going for the most outlandish suggestion I could justify (and hence I am likely to either be wrong or to win the dead-pool game) I made my pick.
Without further ado I will introduce you to Omar S. Ishrak, the CEO of Medtronic - the largest medical devices company in the world.
Well he is the CEO for now - but my guess is not for long. After all guessing that is the point of the game.
So who is Omar S Ishrak and what did he do wrong?
Omar Ishrak is the former CEO of GE Health Care Systems now the CEO of Medtronic. He has a PhD in electrical engineering from Kings College.
Medtronic has done some dud acquisitions in the past - and those acquisitions were the main reason for the departure of the previous CEO. The main problem acquisition was Kyphon, a company with a real technology for repairing damaged spines in elderly people. Kyphon got pinged for defrauding Medicare and paid a fine. The real damage however was not the fine - it was that the required change in sales practice caused Kyphon revenues to collapse (and hence meant the acquisition price was wildly inflated).
So Omar has been clear that he will be more disciplined about acquisitions.
You can see this in the following video:
Its worth reviewing what he says in this video:
First [acquisitions] need to have a very clear value proposition which are financial in nature and very granular in their content as to why we do a certain acquisition and we need plans in place that we can deliver on those value propositions.
I think this Omar Ishrak will be forced to resign because he cannot live up to the goals he set in this video (and which he has set publicly before and since).
Indeed the acquisition he is currently doing will prove far more embarrassing than Kyphon - existence of what he is thinking he is buying may even be questioned...
The acquisition in question is China Kanghui Holdings which Medtronic is paying over $800 million for and which I think will produce a write-off of about $800 million within a year. That is, this business will be a total write-off - they will have paid over $800 million for air...
The CEO's position will be untenable after that. After all, bad acquisitions have been a Medtronic problem in the past - which is why the above video starts with the (rejected) assertion that "billion dollar acquisitions" might be a thing of the past.
China Kanghui acquisition background
I can't do any better in describing China Kanghui's business than their official description:
China Kanghui Holdings, through its subsidiaries, engages in the development, manufacture, and sale of orthopedic implants and associated instruments for trauma, spine, cranial maxillofacial, and craniocerebral. The company offers 36 product series of orthopedic implants and associated instruments for trauma and spine indications under the Kanghui and Libeier brand names. Its trauma products used in the surgical treatment of bone fractures include a range of nails, plates and screws, and cranial maxillofacial plate and screw systems; and spine products used in the surgical treatment of spine disorders consist of screws, meshes, interbody cages, and fixation systems. The company also manufactures implants, implant components, and instruments for original equipment manufacturers based on their product designs and specifications. In addition, it is involved in the development, manufacture, and sale of implants and instruments for knee joint prosthesis; and titanium alloy and cobalt alloy hip joint prosthesis. The company sells its proprietary orthopedic implants to third-party distributors, who then sell those products to hospitals directly or through sub-distributors. As of March 31, 2012, it had a network of 335 domestic distributors covering 30 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions in China; and a network of 41 international distributors that sell products in 29 countries across Asia, Europe, South America, Africa, and Australia. China Kanghui Holdings was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Changzhou, the People's Republic of China.
You can see the attraction for Medtronic. It is within their industry. Most importantly it has a network of 355 domestic distributors covering much of China. Omar Ishrak would obviously be attracted to that. He has said many times that the growth of Medtronic will come from China and India: distribution in China is precisely what he wants.
This is a done-deal. Investor relations assure anyone who asks that due-diligence is complete and do not seem interested in negative feed-back (or even passing negative feed-back on). The market is trading the stock with less than 1 percent spread between the market price and bid price. There is nothing it seems that can derail this bid.
It is just that I do not see this deal as having "a very clear value proposition which are financial in nature and very granular in their content," instead I just see a mess. I could be wrong though - Medtronic have done thorough due diligence (at least according to investor relations) and I have done just a little.
China Kanghui's accounts
It is axiomatic that if you generate fake profits over time you will wind up with fake net assets on your balance sheet.
And that you can determine the profits are real by proving the assets are real, or you can determine the profits are false by proving the assets are false.
That is the nature of double-entry accounting.
If you read the accounts and you question the income you are by definition questioning the assets (or visa-versa).
So here are Kanghui's accounts - first the income account in thousand of USD.
Net revenue 51948
Cost of revenue -14689
Gross profit 37259
Selling expenses -6605
General and administrative expenses -7692
Research and development expenses -1933
Operating income 21029
Interest income 2530
Government grants 688
Other income 296
Other expenses -299
Foreign exchange loss -1361
Income before income taxes 22883
Income taxes -3738
Net income 19145
Net loss attributable to non-controlling interests 94
Net income attributable to China Kanghui Holdings’ shareholders 19239
It is a mighty profitable business - on 52 million in revenue they generate 19 million in post-tax profit. The purchase price of over 800 million is an extremely fancy multiple - but they are - it appears - getting something - indeed a world-beating profit-margin in an attractive company.
They are clearly not getting an R&D team of note however - the R&D is less than $2 million and cumulative R&D is a drop in the ocean. It is not original equipment they are after then - it must be the distribution team.
Here is the balance sheet - and whoa is this an amusing balance sheet:
Cash and cash equivalents 60391
Bills receivable 933
Short-term investments 12234
Accounts receivable, net 13915
Inventories, net 17621
Prepayments and other current assets 2135
Deferred tax assets 1444
Amount due from related parties 901
Total current assets 109574
Property, plant and equipment, net 41282
Intangible assets, net 9855
Prepaid land lease payments 3624
Goodwill 24681
Long-term Investment 4004
Deposits for non-current assets 752
Deferred tax assets 388
Other assets, non-current 41
Total non-current assets 84627
Total assets 194201
Accounts payable 3063
Accrued expenses and other liabilities 10389
Income tax payable 922
Deferred revenue —
Uncertain tax positions 667
Amount due to related parties 181
Total current liabilities 15222
Deferred government grants 1018
Deferred tax liabilities 2361
Total non-current liabilities 3379
Ordinary shares (par value of US$0.001 per share; 1,000,000,000 shares authorized as of December 31, 2010 and 2011; 136,821,600 shares and 140,401,842 shares issued outstanding as of December 31, 2010 and 2011, respectively) 162
Additional paid-in capital 145057
Accumulated other comprehensive loss -3115
Statutory reserves 7216
Retained earnings 24847
Total China Kanghui Holdings shareholders’ equity 174167
Non-controlling interests 1433
Total equity 175600
Total liabilities and equity 194201
Inventories are 17 million dollars - not a big number - but over 400 days of cost of goods sold.
We are asked to believe that in the relatively fast changing world of medical technology this company produces world-beating results whilst keeping well over a year in inventory and doing next to no R&D.
Strangely capital equipment is over 41 million - several years of cost-of-goods sold. It is a very strange business indeed that sells medical implant equipment (small devices you can fit easily into the palm of a hand but which cost huge sums of money) which has next-to-zero R&D but plant and equipment equal to over two years cost-of-goods sold.
Moreover without any obvious change in the business the plant and equipment well over doubled in the past year.
My qualms
These accounts ask us to believe that China Kanghui is
(a). Miraculous - learning how to make a substantial medical implant business on very thin R&D,
(b). Hopeless, keeping well over a year inventory - an out-of-control stocking process, and
(c). Suddenly and rapidly becoming massively capital intensive despite producing very small devices that involve no R&D.
There is an alternative hypothesis: the profits are fake, the huge inventories and plant and equipment are a balancing item.
If the alternative hypothesis is correct (and it is only a guess) then I am waiting for and expecting Omar Ishrak's resignation. And I can't wait - I will win the game of CEO dead-pool.
On-the-ground checking
I am not the only person who has thought China Kanghui has funky accounts. Other hedge funds have paid for investigators on the ground in China - and they have tried (unsuccessfully) to report their results to Medtronic.
Alas it seems Mr Ishrak has a protective cocoon around him that makes it impossible to approach him with anything that is negative to his agenda. He probably - at least until this blog post comes out - has no idea that people think he is a misled by his staff if not personally a fool.
But for the benefit of readers let me say what the on-the-ground checking shows. Amongst other things it shows that
(a). The property, plant and equipment in the SAIC (ie Chinese domestic) accounts did not match the SEC filings. [This check is hard to do now because SAIC accounts have become unavailable.]
(b). More importantly it showed that Libeier distributors would not even distribute Kanghui products - casting doubt on the assertion that they own Libeier (and hence casting doubt on the assertion that Medtronic is even buying worthwhile distribution in China).
Of course I could be wrong
The Medtronic people say they have done thorough due diligence. I have just poked around from my office, reading the accounts, interpreting the obvious.
But my gut interpretations of accounts are right often enough, and the on-the-ground research backs them.
For an outlandish guess on CEO dead-pool this is a pretty good gambit.
CEO dead pool
There is an old-and-in-bad-taste game of celebrity dead-pool. The object is to pick famous people who will die in the next six months. Points are scored inversely to age and also for high profile picks that nobody else guesses.
As I said, it is in bad taste.
With a small bunch of hedge fund managers I play a less macabre version of that game. Whether it is in bad taste or not I will let you (dear reader) decide.
We call it CEO dead-pool.
The job is to pick CEOs of large companies (more points for larger companies) who will in the next 18 months either be sacked or forced to resign in disgrace.
Extra points if the CEO had a fine reputation or if the company was very large. Double-points if you can predict the thing that causes the disgrace. [People who play this game get very interested in which CEOs are having affairs whilst espousing moral-conservative values...]
This game is a way of telling which hedge-fund managers really know the companies and management they are invested in. For us it is work - but it has a nice non-monetary way of keeping score. It is highly equalizing between the lowly analyst and the big-name manager. (Some managers excuse their lack of specificity by complaining that there are just too many candidates...)
This is a formal invite for suggestions/entries. A pick of one or two is fine (sent by email). In June 2014 I will announce the winner. Bragging rights are worth something. For a junior being the winner is probably worth a job. (Plenty of hedge funds want young analysts who really know their stuff. And what better way is there to prove you really know your stuff?)
If there are not enough good entries I might reveal my pick - to get the ball rolling...
PS. I would love Bess Levin to link this post. I am sure her readers could come up with some really good suggestions...
Posted by John Hempton at 2:21 PM 56 comments: Links to this post
Hempton at the Smithfield Sunday Sessions
Nick Hempton (my cousin), his eponymous band and Champian Fulton (my friend) are playing at the Smithfield Sunday Sessions - 8.30 pm on Sunday 21 October 2012.
The address:
NY 1001-5907
For starters - here is Nick and his band:
And here is Champian:
Oh - and I am in New York. So I will be there.
The Carlyle Group and the Sun Yee On Triad
Yesterday's post did not get much traction because the punch line was at the end.
So here is the short version.
I asked this man (David Rubenstein profiled on the cover story of the recent issue of Forbes),
To complete the following short letter to his clients:
Dear Limited Partners
We have lost some of your money in a company led financially by someone who the British Journal of Criminology asserts fronts for the Sun Yee On Triad.
I believe this loss is "insignificant" because ...
The basis for this request was the subject of my last post.
Posted by John Hempton at 11:41 AM 16 comments: Links to this post
Carlyle's China problem: some questions for David Rubenstein
I have spent considerable time pondering dumb deals done by Carlyle in China. Indeed I wrote a post that suggested that Carlyle's dumb-deals might be the start of the undoing of the China private equity business generally.
But I have spent more time wondering why Carlyle does nothing to patch what will shortly be a sinking ship.
My post (Guanxi vs Analyst) prompted the only public response I have ever induced from Carlyle - when the Carlyle Managing Director David Rubenstein dismissed my concerns in the Financial Times. To quote the FT:
David Rubenstein, co-founder of Carlyle, the US private equity group, has hit back at critics of two troubled Chinese investments, arguing that the amount involved is “insignificant” compared with its $3bn investments in Asia’s biggest economy.
Mr Rubenstein, one of the world’s best-known private equity deal makers, told the Financial Times that he was “extremely happy with our investments in China, and I wish we had more of them than we have”.
The controversy over the Chinese companies, which have been accused of fraud and suspended from trading in Hong Kong and New York, is potentially embarrassing for Carlyle as it prepares for a planned initial public offering.
I was a little off-put when David Rubenstein dismissed my concerns arguing the amounts involved were "insignificant". Mr Rubenstein has never responded to my (repeated) emails and I cannot tell whether he is cocooned from negative outside opinion.
Bluntly, I think David Rubenstein was ill-advised especially regarding China Agritech - but also possibly regarding other investments that Carlyle has made. The amounts of money may be "insignificant" but the loss can be significant in other ways.
This post gives some background to the loss at China Agritech and asks Mr Rubenstein whether he stands by the opinion that the loss was "insignificant" and whether he would be prepared to say so (in light of information presented) in a letter to his clients.
Background to the China Agritech loss
By way of background I wish to extensively quote an article in the British Journal of Criminology titled Beyond Social Capital: Triad Organized Crime in Hong Kong and China. Underlined sections are my emphasis.
The case is about how the leader of Sun Yee On [a major organized crime group], Jimmy Heung, used the social capital he developed in China in the 1990s to commit an organized ‘financial crime’ in Hong Kong (though it was not proven in court). In this case, Jimmy’s company (Win’s Prosperity Group) and a Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed company (China Prosperity Holdings) joined hands to manipulate the price of the listed company in the stock market. This case evolved through different phases between April and October 1999, as follows.
Phase 1: Accumulation of shares by ringleaders and associates (April to August 1999)
This case began with the renaming of a listed construction company, OLS Group, as China Prosperity Holdings (CPH) on 29 April 1999. Coincidentally, both the Chinese and English words for ‘Prosperity’ were the same as in Jimmy’s company, Win’s Prosperity Group. Jimmy Heung and a Mr Tang were the only directors of Win’s Prosperity Group. Tang was also the Executive Director of CPH, but Jimmy, as a triad figure, is not allowed to hold directorship of any listed company. It is assumed that both companies were actually under Jimmy’s control. Between April and August 1999, the masterminds of the crime had gradually accumulated the shares of CPH at a very low price, often below HK$1 (US$1 = HK$7.8). After the accumulation, the ringleaders leaked ‘privileged’ sensitive information to their associates about favourable price movement of CPH so that the associates would rush to buy in. In the first week of September 1999, CPH soared 35.39 per cent to close to HK$1.53 on 8 September...
Phase 2: Leaking of news to the mass media (mid-September 1999)
In Phase 2, a rumour about CPH was leaked out to selected mass media, which drew the attention of ‘smart guys’ to buy the company’s shares ahead of other investors. The rumour was about CPH’s entering into a conditional agreement to acquire a 33 per cent indirect stake in Jimmy’s Win’s Prosperity Group, which was to develop a Century Vision Network (CVN) project that would capture 200,000 subscribers in the first year of operation and 100 million subscribers within ten years in China. There was also a rumour that CPH would enter into a joint venture with a state-owned enterprise in China. The rumour also said CPH would invest about HK$780 million in this project, but we discovered that the company’s unaudited result for the six months ending 30 June 1999 was only a turnover of HK$60.50 million (CPH company announcement on 9 October 1999). As the rumour spread, the ‘smart guys’ who got the ‘privileged’ information bought up the shares speedily and, consequently, the price soared in a short period of time, drawing more share hunters to buy in amid its profitable investments. Overall, between 2 and 24 September 1999, the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index dropped 3 per cent, but the share price of CPH increased by 238 per cent (CPH company announcement on 9 October 1999).
Phase 3: Company directors’ exercise of share options (17 September 1999)
As the share price rose sharply, the company directors capitalized their gains by exercising their share options and this practice is absolutely legal. In total, 3 million new shares were allotted to an employee of CPH on 17 September 1999, and 10 million, 3 million and 1 million new shares were allotted to three directors of CPH on 24 September 1999, at an exercise price of HK$0.16 per share, pursuant to an exercise of share options previously granted to them (CPH company announcement on 9 October 1999). Jimmy’s partner, Tang, personally held 10 million new shares. On 24 September 1999, CPH closed at HK$5.05, and was traded between HK$5.0 and HK$6.0 most of the time. That is, the directors could have earned HK$48.9 million, HK$14.67 million and HK$4.89 million, respectively, in this period if they had sold all their shares.
Phase 4: Suspension of trading awaiting company announcement (25 September to 9 October 1999)
In Hong Kong, a company leaking share-price-sensitive information or having unusual trading activities may be requested to suspend its share trading. On 9 October 1999, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange warned that the Exchange was concerned about companies that were leaking information to certain news media instead of making public announcements so as to increase investor enthusiasm for their shares. These companies should release the information necessary to enable investors to appraise them in order to avoid the establishment of a false market. In Hong Kong, if the leaked information is inconsistent with what is announced formally later, the acts may be in breach of the Securities Ordinance.
CPH was requested by the Stock Exchange to suspend trading on 25 September 1999. On 9 October 1999, CPH was forced to make a public announcement, mentioning a joint venture, through Jimmy’s Win’s Prosperity Group, with China’s Telecommunications Bureau and State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT). It said the Win’s Prosperity Group had entered into a non-binding agreement to operate the venture with the Telecommunications Bureau, a SARFT subsidiary and other unnamed partners. Under the agreement, Win’s Prosperity Group would hold 33 per cent of the venture, while the Telecommunications Bureau—which controls China Telecom—and the SARFT subsidiary each would have 10 per cent interests. CPH said a final agreement was expected to be reached by the end of October. The following is part of the public announcement:
The CVN Project is in the development stage and may or may not materialise. WPGL [the Win’s Prosperity Group] has entered into two Letters of Intent for the purpose of launching the CVN Project in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). It is unclear if the structure will be changed or not. In addition, WPGL may or may not enter into formal agreements with the PRC telecom partner to arrange for the use of the telephone networks or with the PRC broadcast partner to obtain the approvals for the content to be broadcasted by CVN via the telephone networks in the PRC. As the Letters of Intent entered into are non-binding and commercial negotiations are still being conducted and are not finalised, it is possible that the structure set out in the Letters of Intent could be changed. It is also uncertain whether a formal agreement will finally be reached. If no formal agreement is reached, the CVN Project may not be launched in the PRC. (CPH company announcement on 9 October 1999).
As shown in the announcement, Jimmy’s Win’s Prosperity Group had signed two non-binding agreements with a Chinese telecommunications company. Two points are worthy of mention here. First, it was very difficult and extraordinary for a relatively small Hong Kong company to enter into an agreement with a giant Chinese state-owned enterprise. The Hong Kong businessman, in this case Jimmy, ought to have had outstanding social capital for this joint venture to materialize. Second, very astutely, since these were non-binding agreements, the deal could disappear suddenly without any cause.
Phase 5: Selling of shares by insiders (11–13 October 1999)
When the share price of CPH stood at a high level, the company made a public announcement on the possibility of a profitable venture, which, however, could not be verified immediately. The announcement triggered panic buying by the general public and trading volume soared extraordinarily, but it was time for the ringleaders and associates to sell their accumulated shares. When CPH resumed trading on 11 October 1999 after the announcement, its share price jumped 32.02 per cent to $5.05 from its previous close on 24 September. This provided the syndicate with a timely opportunity to sell their shares. The next day, 12 October 1999, CPH slid 11.38 per cent to $4.475 in heavy trading, suggesting that some investors were actively selling the shares, with insider knowledge that something might happen very soon.
Phase 6: The collapse of the share price (14–20 October 1999)
When the share price of a company is in a panic-buying or selling stage, the government’s watchdog will step in and request the issue to be clarified. The Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong challenged the $20 billion valuation of the joint venture as too high, and pointed out that such a venture would not be able to circumvent China’s restrictions on communications investment by foreign companies. The Commission also warned the public through the mass media:
Unequal dissemination of price-sensitive information could lead to insider dealing and the possible formation of a false or misinformed market for these shares . . .. Large changes in prices or turnover may also indicate that there is a false or misinformed market . . . [and the] public may be at risk and suffer loss because they can only trade on the basis of incorrect or incomplete information. (South China Morning Post).
The watchdog contacted the mainland Chinese partner to verify the status of the proposed venture because CPH had refused to provide information about the progress of negotiations. Five days after the company announcement, on 14 October 1999, CPH suddenly announced that the mainland joint venture was aborted, saying that Jimmy’s Win’s Prosperity Group had terminated negotiations with its mainland partner. With the excuse of commercial secrets, CPH declined to disclose the reasons behind the termination, and whether the Commission’s investigation had led to it.
After the announcement, the share price of CPH plunged 31.84 per cent on the first trading day, 26.22 per cent on the second day and another 12.88 per cent on the third day. The company’s share price surged to HK$5.05 after the announcement of the joint venture but collapsed 61.18 per cent to HK$1.96 after the termination of the negotiations, very close to its price before the early September rally (see Figure 2). To let the public forget its past devious dealings, not surprisingly, CPH changed its name to Prosper eVision Limited a few months later, on 5 June 2000. No one was prosecuted in the end. Moreover, the present study has not identified any evidence of money laundering involving the triad or Chinese stakeholders. Nonetheless, as money laundering is not uncommon in mainland China (Song 2002; Zhang and Chin 2008), the price fluctuation would provide a valuable and timely opportunity for money launderers to clean their illicit income through legitimate transactions in the stock market.
What is described here is appears to me to be a conventional (though very large) pump-and-dump scheme.
*The scheme was (it is asserted) controlled by Jimmy Heung (who the author describes as the leader of the Sun Yee On Triad). For reference Jimmy Heung's Wikipedia page also asserts he is the leader of the Triad.
*The front-man for the scheme is (it is asserted) a Mr Tang (of whom little details are given).
*The scheme (it is asserted) involved Chinese State Owned Enterprises who entered into and then did not consummate non-binding agreements which were marketable on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
*That the (asserted) malfeasant company in the end changed its name to Prosper eVision to help the public forget the dirty-dealings.
My obsession here is with the mysterious Mr Tang. The article does not tell you who he is. However cursory exploration of the SEC database will tell you that this Mr Tang is the same Mr Tang who later appeared as the Chief Financial Officer of China Agritech.
This SEC filing announced his appointment as the CFO of China Agritech and gives a brief CV:
On October 22, 2008, Mr. Yau-Sing Tang was appointed as the Chief Financial Officer of the Company. Mr. Tang, age 46, was most recently chief financial officer of Carpenter Tan Holdings Ltd., a retail chain in Mainland China which is applying to be listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Prior to that, he was the founder and managing director of GC Alliance Limited, a CPA firm in Hong Kong. From April 2003 to December 2005, he was executive director and chief financial officer of China Cable and Communication, Inc., which was listed on the OTC Bulletin Board. Mr. Tang received his Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honors) degree from the University of Hong Kong. He is a fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in the U.K. and the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He is also a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and the Taxation Institute of Hong Kong.
This release reveals that he was previously the CFO of China Cable and Communication. Following the trail you can find this filing which gives his CV at that company.
Yau-Sing Tang joined the Board of Directors in February 2003, and assumed the post of Chief Financial Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors shortly thereafter. Mr. Tang served as Chairman of the Board until October 2003, when he assumed the position of President of the Company. Since January 2002, Mr. Tang has served as Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of CCCL.
Since November 2000, Mr. Tang has served as Managing Director of GC Alliance Limited, a Certified Public Accountants firm in Hong Kong. Prior to that, Mr. Tang served as Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Prosper eVision Limited (Stock Number 979), a company listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited and CCCL. Mr. Tang has over 17 years of experience in accounting, finance, corporate finance and management, especially management of listed companies in Hong Kong, Australia and companies listed on NASDAQ. He is a fellow member of both the Hong Kong Society of Accountants and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and holds a Bachelor Degree in Social Sciences (major in Management Studies) from the University of Hong Kong. He is also the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of CCCL.
Note that this Mr Tang was the Chief Executive of Prosper eVision - the previously mentioned pump-and-dump.
Carlyle's China Agritech problem summarized
T. Wing Lo, a criminologist writing in the (peer reviewed) British Journal of Criminology asserts that Mr Tang fronted a major stock fraud for the leadership of the Sun Yee On Triad.
He was later the Chief Financial Officer of China Agritech - a company listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
This was a company Carlyle invested in and lost money.
Mr David Rubenstein dismisses that as "insignificant".
Perhaps he would like to finish this letter:
Carlyle has major problems in their investment process and competence in China. This should be dealt with by head office (and head office is being ill-advised if they believe the problems are "insignificant").
Focus media bank loans
Focus Media has accounts that suggest it is massively cash generative. According to their accounts they are sitting on over $500 million in cash - in this case all in Renminbi.
They also have expanding bank loans - now over USD200 million. These loans are made in US dollars backed by LOCs issued by a Chinese bank.
I have heard several (contradictory) theories for why these transactions were made in this manner.
I figured if I put this disclosure up readers might propose even more contradictory theories in their comments.
At least that is what I am looking for.
John...
14. Bank Loans
Notes December 31,
Short -term revolving loan
a) $ 100,000,000
Long -term revolving loan
b) 71,000,000
$ 171,000,000
Additional available long -term loan facilities
b) $ 29,000,000
a) The short-term revolving loan is denominated in U.S. Dollars, was obtained from a large commercial institution outside of the PRC (“Bank A”), and is secured by a stand-by letter of credit issued by PRC based financial institution (“Bank B”). The stand-by letter of credit is secured by short-term deposits of RMB628,030,000 (equivalent to $99,673,063), which is recorded as restricted cash on the Group’s balance sheet. The Group paid RMB 4,095,000 (equivalent to $649,907) to Bank B to issue the stand-by letter of credit to Bank A. The short-term revolving loan bears interest, which is payable monthly, at the rate of two-week LIBOR plus 2.1% per annum. The weighted average interest rate of this loan for the year ended December 31, 2011 was approximately 2.4%. The short-term loan is payable in November 2012.
b) The long -term revolving loan is denominated in U.S. Dollars, was obtained from Bank A, and is secured by a stand-by letter of credit issued by Bank B. The stand-by letter of credit is secured by restricted long-term deposits of RMB 628,030,000 (equivalent to $99,673,063) deposited in Bank B, The deposit is recorded as restricted cash on the Group’s balance sheet. The Group paid RMB 3,965,000 (equivalent to $629,275) to Bank B to issue the stand-by letter of credit required by Bank A, The costs incurred in connection with the stand-by letter of credit are being amortized to interest expense over the term of the loan. The loan bears interest, which is payable monthly, at the rate of two-week LIBOR plus 2.1%, 2.4% and 2.7% per annum for each of the twelve months ending December 8, 2012, 2013 and 2014, respectively. The weighted average interest rate of this loan for the year ended December 31, 2011 was about 2.4%. The principal of the loan is payable in two installments of $17,750,000 and $53,250,000, which are due in December 2013 and December 2014, respectively.
Neither the short-term or long-term bank loan contains financial covenants.
Source: here.
Posted by John Hempton at 12:54 PM 31 comments: Links to this post
Witnessing an assault
Not an investing post at all. Just using the power of a blog with a lot of readers to ensure something gets done and to make a record of what I have seen.
I was riding my (electric) bike home from the office at 1am. (Yes I worked late.)
I passed a local pub where three security guys were harassing/holding - then punching a young male. I rode so that I was on the other side of the road from them and shouted for them to leave him alone. One of them kicked him in the head while he was lying on the ground.
Another of the three started shouting at me telling me to go away - not directly threatening me - but shouting at me to "get lost" at the top of his voice. My presence I felt stopped them from continuing to kick the victim in the head. He did not like the presence of a witness.
I walked away with the victim - to the local police station - where I reported the assault. The police took my name and phone number but did not feel they needed to take a statement.
At a guess I would think taking a statement from a witness to a crime as close to the time of the crime is good policing practice. However my local police station did not feel that was necessary. (This post is being made as a public statement to rectify that oversight.)
If people with more expertise than me can fill me in on appropriate policing practice I would appreciate it.
Alas I think not much will be done until the said security guards kick someone in the head and he dies.
PS. I have no idea what victim was doing before he was held and punched. I did not see that. The victim was an Irish male (strong accent) who said it was his 21st birthday. He was drunk.
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Greg Brown's Pirate Boothblog
Follow the Pittsburgh Pirates' 2005 season with their longtime broadcaster
time to make some moves?
We’re still a ways a way from the July 31st trade deadline but I’m starting to think the time might be right for the Pirates to begin making moves now.
The Bucs were given a second chance to make amends with their fans when MLB named Pittsburgh the host city for the 2006 All Star Game. The Pirates blew it the first time when they opened up PNC Park and went on to lose 100 games. The five-year plan was a flop and the team has been trying to recover ever since.
The organization appears to be in a "must-win" mode. The string of consecutive losing seasons has reached an almost unthinkable 12 straight years. The club has to move forward with the idea that victories will outnumber losses by 2006. There can be no excuses.
In order for the Pirates to reach that goal, it seems to me, they must make some difficult decisions.
On his Sunday radio show on June 25th, Dave Littlefield presented us with "locks" at only a few positions for 2006.
Shortstop Jack Wilson and second baseman Jose Castillo are set as the double play combination. Littlefield said the club is happy with the job Humberto Cota has done behind the plate. Jason Bay is certainly the leftfielder for the foreseeable future. Firstbaseman Darlye Ward’s contract is up after this season; as is Matt Lawton’s.
Third baseman Ty Wigginton has not produced like the team had hoped and in center field the club has used both Tike Redman and Rob Mackowiak.
The rotation for 2006 will start with Oliver Perez and the remaining four will probably be chosen from among Kip Wells, Josh Fogg, Dave Williams, Ian Snell, Zach Duke, Sean Burnett and John Van Benschoten.
I have left out Mark Redman because there doesn’t seem to be a reasonable scenario which would bring him back for 2006. The monkey wrench is the mutual option between Redman and the Pirates. Both parties would have to agree on the team picking up the some $4.5 million dollars for 2006. However, if Redman continues to pitch the way he did for most of his first 15 starts, his agent knows full well that a lefthander with great numbers could land twice as much on the open market than that which is called for in the option year of his contract.
On the flip-side, if Redman does not pitch well and has more games like his first two starts against the Cardinals, the Pirates aren’t going to be willing to pay that same sum for another season. It appears as though the best option for the Pirates would be to deal the lefthander to a contending team before the deadline and receive some value in return for Redman. If that were to occur, a spot in the rotation would open up for lefthander Zach Duke who leads the AAA level in wins this season for the Pirates International League affiliate, the Indianapolis Indians.
Duke in the rotation for an entire half of a major league season would give him and the Pirates a jump-start on the ’06 campaign. He’s certain to experience a few bumps in the road while pitching in the big leagues but wouldn’t it serve the club better in the long run to have their top lefthanded pitching prospect getting his feet wet THIS season? It might cost Duke and the Pirates some wins this year but I would bet most fans would take the trade-off for the benefit of next year’s club.
In that regard, perhaps a couple of wholesale changes in the outfield would pay huge dividends for the 2006 Pirates. It’s becoming more and more apparent that the team is not sold on Tike Redman as their "answer" in centerfield and that Rob Mackowiak’s best role might be as a "super-sub" for the time being.
Between now and the July 31st trade deadline, one must wonder if a club might like to have an experienced left-handed hitter in the person of Matt Lawton. If the Bucs were to move Lawton, they would then be able to get Ryan Doumit the at-bats they so desparately want him to get at the major league level. Who knows? With a short porch in right field, Doumit might be able to adapt to the outfield while providing the Pirates with some offensive punch from both sides of the plate.
There seems to be little doubt that the only pure centerfielder in the offing for the Pirates is playing at AAA Indianapolis in the person of Chris Duffy. He put on quite a show in spring training down in Bradenton but the Pirates made a mistake by bringing him to the big leagues earlier this year and not playing him. The lack of playing time hurt his progress when he was returned to Indy and got off to a very slow start. By all accounts, he’s playing some of the best centerfield in the minor leagues these days and his average has been around .300 for over the past several weeks.
Two months (August and September) isn’t much time to allow rookies to adjust to the major leagues but, in my opinion, it’s a whole lot better than asking them to perform at a high level when a club leaves their spring training site and begins the regular season. The quicker these moves are made, the better off the Pirates will be in 2006.
While we’re making big (and exciting) changes to the 2005 Bucs, let’s start grooming a closer for next year! Jose Mesa has been nothing short of spectacular in his two seasons as the Pirates stopper. However, at some point, a successor needs to be thrown into the fire. Contending clubs will be looking for an inexpensive closer soon. It’s possible they’ll be calling Pittsburgh to inquire of Mesa’s availability.
It’s becoming more and more apparant in baseball that there are plenty of closers out there…. you just have to find them. The Brewers discoverd Dan Kolb a couple of years ago. This season, Derrek Turnbow has come out of nowhere. The Cubs tried a handful before settling on Ryan Dempster. The Nationals have the top closer in the league right now in Chad Cordero. How about B.J.Ryan? You can name a dozen closers who have only recently come on the scene and have enjoyed much success.
The Pirates have that new closer somewhere. Is it Mike Gonzalez? Perhaps. Perhaps not. He didn’t look nearly as unhittable when put in pressure set-up roles this season but that might be due to his sore knee. What about Rick White? He’s done it before on a handful of occasions with other clubs and, though he doesn’t seem to be your protype closer, he just might be your guy. Perhaps he’s somewhere else. Sometimes clubs have to get creative in these situations. Maybe a guy like Ryan Vogelsong (who has struggled mightily in the starters role and surely doesn’t seem to have the command necessary to pull of the role as stopper) would rise to the challenge and turn into one of the league’s best closers if given that chance. How about Ian Snell? They say his stuff is electric and he certainly has the demeanor for the job with an air of cockiness and confidence that would fit the mold.
All this is to say that the Pirates look to be at a crossroads. They don’t seem to have what it takes to challenge for a playoff spot this year and, in order to be ready to contend for something next year (which the fans are practically demanding), some bold moves just might need to be made in the coming weeks or even days.
That’s my two cents on the state-of-the-Bucs. What say you???????
Posted on June 27, 2005 at 5:41 pm
Remembering Dad
I wouldn’t be writing this blog if it weren’t for Dad. It was he who introduced me to major league baseball. I think about him every day wishing he had gotten a chance to see his son broadcasting for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Dad was a Pirates fan growing up in Connellsville, PA just an hours drive east of Pittsburgh. His mother and father and all four siblings grew up big Buccos fans, attending games at Forbes Field and listening to Rosey Roswell and Bob Prince on KDKA radio during the days of Pie Traynor and Max Carey and Paul and LLoyd Waner.
Dad married a girl from nearby Greensburg, PA and, after spending time as a writer for a national sports publication in Chicago, he and Mom eventually moved to Washington D.C. where she could be closer to her family(Mom’s dad was a congressman).
Dad would go on to become a top lobbyist for the coal industry and though he enjoyed the opportunity to meet often with the country’s top politicians on capitol hill, he became weary of the disturbances around the D.C. area and decided our nations’ capital was no place to raise seven children.
I was eight years old when the family moved to the Harrisburg, PA area. I loved playing sports with my five older brothers and neighborhood buddies but hadn’t found an allegiance toward any professional sports team until one weekend, Dad brought me along on a business trip to Pittsburgh. We stayed at the Hilton hotel and the Golden Triangle in downtown Pittsburgh and we attended a game at the brand new Three Rivers Stadium in the summer of 1970. I was hooked!
For the next seven years, I’d make one trip to Pittsburgh spending time chasing down visiting major leaguers for autographs at the Hilton or the William Penn Hotel and attending a Pirates game at night at Three Rivers Stadium.
Dad loved asking me about the players from whom I had received autographs; and about what I liked best about the game. He would ask me about my favorite Pirates players (Parker, Moreno, Stargell) and I would recite their statistics and accomplishments.
Dad was pretty excited when, out of high school, I received an internship to work in the Pirates front office. Though he never admitted it to me, I think it surprised him and the rest of my family that this kid from Mechanicsburg, PA would wind up working for a major league baseball team.
I spent ten years in the Pirates front office working in various capacities. Mom and Dad would visit a couple of times each summer. I’d show them around the offices, take them down on the field, and introduce them to various members of the organization. Dad wasn’t one for showing his emotions but I think he got a kick out of it all!
Later, I’d land a job broadcasting play-by-play for the minor league team in Buffalo, NY. Over a five year span, I’d eventually broadcast Buffalo Bills football, college hockey and basketball, and host a sports talk show; all the while giving Dad almost daily updates and sending along tapes that would allow him to listen to his son and provide critiques when neccesarry (Dad was a stickler for proper grammar.)
In the summer of 1992, Dad fell ill. It was most difficult on my mother. She knew he wasn’t well but he had always refused to see doctors. He never wanted to be a burden. She was worried. I was never aware of the seriousness of his poor health because Dad would always put up a strong front during our phone conversations.
I’ll never forget election night in November of 1992. We would often discuss politics. Dad had an amazing knowledge of world events and history and national issues. He was a long-time speechwriter for a handful of congressional leaders in the ’60’s and ’70’s and I was so proud of his association with some of the top politicians of our time.
It was with great interest that I called on election night to get his thoughts on Bill Clinton’s victory over George Bush 41. I was so anxious to talk to him about where the country was now headed under a new leader.
But our conversation on this night was unusually brief. Dad was having some trouble talking and would try to suppress a cough before handing the phone back over to Mom. It was our last conversation together. I was in the room with Mom when Dad passed away on December 9, 1992.
During the last couple of hours at his bedside, Mom told me how proud Dad was of my accomplishments. Dad had never been one to express his emotions to his kids. He didn’t have to say anything…we knew it. And I hope he knew how proud I was of him.
Just a year after his death, I was hired to broadcast major league baseball games for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Dad wasn’t around when I made the call to Mom to give her the news. She was so excited….. she said Dad was too!
MLB.com’s complete Father’s Day special
Posted on June 17, 2005 at 11:19 am
To Bunt or Not to Bunt!
Over the last several days, the bunt debate has arisen in Pittsburgh as the Pirates continue to hover near the bottom of the National League in sacrifice hits.
Veteran baseball fans harken back to the "old days" when every player in the lineup knew how to drop down a bunt to move a runner. "Why can’t these guys bunt anymore?" is the question that pops up time and again on the talk shows and in the stands.
I’m a firm believer in bunting a runner over when the opportunity presents itself but only when the opportunity is there for a player who CAN bunt! Power hitters and RBI men are NOT bunters despite what some would have you believe.
I did some research on some former Pirates to find out how often they bunted to prove my point.
Roberto Clemente played 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He amasssed 3,000 hits and was inducted into Baseball’s Hall Of Fame in 1973. He successfully dropped down a sac bunt 36 times over his brilliant career but 12 of those bunts came in his first two years in the major leagues, before he had established himself as real RBI threat. In fact, Clemente was credited with only two sacrifice hits over his last six seasons in the big leagues!
I was also curious to see what Willie Stargell did over his Hall of Fame career. Captain Willie is the Pirates all-time leader in home runs with 475. He actually was asked to bunt nine times over his 21 seasons in the majors but not once did he advance a runner via the bunt over his last 14 years with the Bucs!
Dave Parker’s career numbers stunned me. I figured, before the Cobra became one of the most feared hitters in baseball, that he would have bunted a few runners over in his early Pirates days but, incredibly, Dave Parker was credited with exactly one sacrifice bunt over his entire 19-year major league career…and that bunt came in his very first season in the big leagues, 1973.
It seems apparent that over the last several decades not a whole lot has changed when it comes to the bunt. Players who could handle the bat and COULD bunt, were asked to perform that task. Those who were considered the run producers and RBI guys were not.
Former Pirates shortstop, Tim Foli, who helped lead the Pirates to the 1979 World Series Championship, sacrifice bunted 169 times over his 16-year major league career. Jay Bell, who followed Foli as one the Pirates most dependable shortstops, dropped down 159 sac bunts over his 18 seasons in the big leagues.
Bill Mazeroski, best remembered for the game-winning home run in 1960 to beat the Yankees and for his unparalleled defense at second base, had 87 sacrifice hits over 17 years. Al Oliver, a doubles machine over his years as an outfielder/first baseman covering 18 years in the majors bunted 17 times but only twice over his last five years!
How about one of the great power-hitters in Pirates history, Ralph Kiner? Kiner spent ten seasons in the major leagues, eight with the Buccos, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1975. He ranks second on the Pirates all-time home run list. Kiner sacrifice bunted nine times (interestingly enough, five of those nine bunts came in one season: 1954 with the Chicago Cubs, his second-to-last season in the majors.)
Since the current Pirates manager, Lloyd McClendon has what appears to be a more "American League" philosophy about the sacrifice bunt (don’t give up an out unless it is absolutley necessary) I thought it might be interesting to see how often Mac bunted over his eight seasons in the big leagues…how about FOUR! Once each in 1988, 1989, 1992 and 1993.
So, what do you think about the sacrifice bunt? Is it used enough "these days?" Do the players who should know how to bunt, succeed?
To bunt or not to bunt… THAT is the question!!
Posted on June 2, 2005 at 2:12 pm
Team Effort for the Kids!
What a fabulous turnout on Thursday night, May 19th for our Gloves for Kids fundraiser! Thanks to an amazing show of cooperation from over half the Pirates roster, the ceaseless efforts of some underappreciated Pirates front office "all-stars", the great support from our partners at ****’s Sporting Goods and the remarkably enthusiastic fans who turned out in record numbers to the Mall in Robinson, we raised over $17,000 in a three-hour span!!
The Boys and Girls Club of Western PA will take that money and purchase baseball gloves for young kids who otherwise would never be able to afford such a "luxury." On Sunday, prior to our game with the Colorado Rockies at PNC Park, some of those kids were on hand to receive those gloves as Jason Bay and Tike Redman participated in the pre-game ceremony. It was a just another example of how much the Pittsburgh Pirates mean to so many people in the region of Western Pennsylvania.
I have been around thousands of professional athletes during my years as a front-office employee and a sports broadcaster but I cannot recall a bunch than this current edition of the Pittsburgh Pirates. I believe that each one of the 2005 Pirates is a "winner" off the field as solid, dependable, classy and caring human beings. One cannot help but root for them as they continue to win more games ON the field in the weeks and months ahead. They deserve our support and I’m proud to be associated with such an outstanding group of people.
Thanks to everyone for total team effort!
Posted on May 23, 2005 at 12:38 pm
Gloves For Kids
"Gloves for Kids" is the brainchild of Kansas City Royals broadcaster, Ryan Lefebvre. Ryan approached me before a spring training game in 2002 and explained that, thanks to the help of the Royals players and ****’s Sporting Goods, he had raised several thousand dollars the previous summer to help provide underprivelaged children with baseball gloves. Kids who otherwise might pass up the chance to play the greatest game on earth are now given an essential piece of equipment (and the most expensive) that will enable them to take part in America’s Pastime.
The great people at ****’s Sporting Goods (headquartered in Pittsburgh) met with us during the summer of 2002 and we decided to have our own "Gloves for Kids" fundraiser during the 2003 Pirates season. The event turned out to be a huge success. Thanks to the tremendous cooperation and support of the Pirates players and front office staff, we raised over $12,000 over a three-hour period. Baseball fans jammed the ****’s Sporting Goods at the Northway Mall on McNight Road to get autographs from players like Mike Williams, Brian Giles, Kris Benson, Kip Wells, Josh Fogg, Jack Wilson, Reggie Sanders, Kevin Young and Jeff Suppan.
Hundreds of gloves were then purchased and handed out several days later to help kids in the Pittsburgh area R.B.I. program. If only every person who donated money that evening could have seen the faces of those young children as they were handed their very own (and very first) baseball gloves!
That brings us to 2005, and once again the fine folks at ****’s Sporting Goods are "going to bat" for the kids. This year, we’ll be raising money to purchase gloves for the Boys and Girls Club of Western Pennsyvlania. On Thursday night, May 19th from 6 pm to 9 pm baseball fans will be asked to donate $20 for each hour of the event.
From 6 pm to 7 pm Jack Wilson, Spin Williams, Tike Redman, Mike Gonzalez and Mark Redman will be signing autographs. From 7 pm to 8 pm Lloyd McClendon, Oliver Perez, Jose Mesa, Daryle Ward, Dave Williams and Humberto Cota will be on hand. From 8 pm to 9 pm Jason Bay, Rob Mackowiak, Kip Wells, Josh Fogg, Bobby Hill and Craig Wilson will be signing autographs.
In addition to the autographs, some top-of-the line merchandise will available as part of a silent auction. Fans will also have a chance to win cash and other memorablia as part of our raffle.
Silent auction items include the following AUTHENTIC game jerseys autographed by the player: Jim Thome, Sean Casey, Ken Griffey Jr., Curt Schilling, Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, Derek Jeter, Oliver Perez, Jason Bay, Jack Wilson and Roger Clemens.
In addition, two authentic personalized and autographed bats are available in the silent auction: Jason Bay’s and Jack Wilson’s.
Memorablia ranging from color autographed photos of several Pirates players, plus an actual autographed base and home plate to autographed baseballs from Greg Maddux, Aramis Ramirez, Craig Biggio and others will be raffled off throughout the evening.
If you’re a baseball buff… You’ve Got To Be There!!!!!!!
The Bucs are playing great ball and there’s a bunch of excitement in the Pittsburgh area. We’re expecting quite a crowd to come out and meet the players plus contribute to a worthy cause.
Hope you’ll plan to join us at the ****’s Sporting Goods at The Mall at Robinson from 6-9 pm on Thursday night, May 19th.
If you can’t be there, tune in to KDKA radio AM 1020 throughout the evening for updates and place your bid on the Derek Jeter jersey which will be auctioned off on the air that night!!!
Major League Debut
Ray Sadler was called up to make his major league debut yesterday in Arizona. The 25 year-old from Clifton, Texas was 0-3 at the plate but contributed to a Pirates win by making a fine running grab in left field in the first inning on a slicing fly ball toward the line on a ball hit by Luis Gonzalez. Now, even though the final score in the ballgame was 16-2, that play was significant because, at the time, the Pirates led 1-0 and the Diamondbacks had a runner at first base with one out. If Sadler (pictured) doesn’t get an outstanding jump on the ball and is unable to make the catch, it likely scores the tying run and Gonzalez is standing at second.
Kip Wells has had first-inning troubles throughout his career. Going into the game on Sunday, the opposition was hitting .321 against him and had scored seven runs in the first frame over his first six starts. We’ll never know, of course, what might have happened to Wells and the Pirates if the Gonzalez fly ball had not been caught, but there is not question that the catch by the rookie left-fielder kept the Diamondbacks from scoring a first inning run.
I don’t know a lot about Ray Sadler, other than what his bio tells us and from what his former batting coach at Altoona, John Wehner says about him. Wehner is now one of our broadcast partners and "Rock" raves about Ray’s work ethic and determination. You could see that side of him in his debut against Arizona as he busted it down the line on his three ground balls.
Sadler’s name might be familiar. His cousin, Donnie was a big league infielder for a few years with the Red Sox, Rangers, Reds and Royals. In a bit of irony, his final major league at bat came last year as a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Cousin Ray will never forget his FIRST at-bat in the big leagues came against those same D-Backs.
Posted on May 9, 2005 at 11:28 am
offense IS contageous
It’s amazing how quickly a team can turn it around offensively.
When the Pirates started their most recent road trip, they were last in the league in nearly every offensive category with no sign of breaking out of their season-long slump.
Suddenly, it’s as if someone turned on the long-ball switch. In their last six games, the Pirates have smacked a dozen homers. This is not to suggest the 2005 Pirates will challenge some of the power-laden lineups in St. Louis or Cincinnati but at least they seem to be moving out of the dead-ball era.
It’s enjoyable to watch a team start to play well together. I don’t believe the Pirates are going to win the Central Division but I do think they have a legitimate chance of ending their 12-year run of sub-.500 seasons.
Posted on May 5, 2005 at 10:45 pm
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jdkowal@yayoo.com on Remembering Dad
sberber@cisco.com on Remembering Dad
g_scott_moore@comcast.net on offense IS contageous
pbanazak@yahoo.com on time to make some moves?
leisyllc@bellsouth.net on Remembering Dad
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General John Bell Hood
Hood County, Texas formed in 1866 is named in honor of Confederate General John Bell Hood, as is U.S. Army Base Fort Hood near Kileen, Texas, one of the largest military installations in the world.
John Bell Hood was born in Kentucky in 1831 and attended West Point Military Academy, graduating in 1853. He then served as an officer in California and also fighting Indians in West Texas under Col. Albert Sidney Johnston and Lt. Col. Robert E. Lee. Hood resigned from the United States Army immediately after Fort Sumter and, dissatisfied with the neutrality of his native Kentucky, decided to serve his adopted state of Texas. On March 7, 1862 Hood was promoted to brigadier general and because of his daring leadership the brigade, composed of the First, Fourth, and Fifth Texas Infantry regiments (the only Texas troops to fight in the Eastern Theater) became known as Hood’s Texas Brigade, despite his brief service of only six months as commander. Gen. Hood participated in numerous campaigns and battles, including Gettysburg where he was wounded and lost use of his left arm, and the Battle of Chickamauga in Georgia where another wound caused the amputation of his right leg. After recuperating he returned to duty and later became, at 33 years old, the commander of the Army of Tennessee.
There is no evidence that Gen. John Bell Hood ever visited the area of Texas comprising present day Hood County, Texas but a number of soldiers from this area served under his command and returned here after the war to help rebuild and lay the foundation for what we have today.
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Anyone familiar with classical violin music from the 18th or 19th century but not with Irish folk music written in the same era may be surprised to note many Irish tunes were constructed during that same era with modes other than the Ionian mode. The three modes often used in Irish music are the Mixolydian, Dorian, and Aeolian modes. These three modes correspond to the scales you’d get if you played the white notes of a piano, starting on the G, D, and A keys respectively.
The Ionian mode is exactly the same as the major scale and is the most common – over half the Irish tunes are created in the Ionian mode. But many other Irish tunes were created using the Mixolydian, Dorian, and Aeolian mode. The Mixolydian mode is similar to the Ionian mode but includes a minor seventh. Consider Tom Billy’s Jig, the song was written in the Mixolydian mode of A and has a G natural instead of G#; Cooley’s Reel, is presented in the Dorian mode of E with two sharps; and for another example, The Rights of Man was written in the Aeolian mode of E with a C natural instead of a C# as its sixth degree (note) of the scale.
It was not until the early 20th century that it became commonly known that some traditional Irish music used alternate modes. Additionally, it took time before Irish music was accepted as a sophisticated presentation of how mode degrees (specific notes in a scale) can be can be modified by intervals less than a semitone (quarter tones approximately half-way between the natural and sharp). Additionally, a few Irish tunes were constructed with gapped scales. They have only six rather than the usual seven different notes within an octave. The third degree is missing, for instance, from The Walls of Liscarroll while Brian Boru’s March lacks the sixth degree creating a rather archaic sound.
Clearly, the notion of modal music is not new; using modes in a sophisticated way is not limited to classical music. Irish music and Jazz music both embraced this concept. For me, the outcome of modes produces similar results with little regard to the music style; modes applied to both music styles produce a pensive presentation that is moody and thoughtful, giving the listener time to think about the message embedded in the music.
“I find that music makes people just sit and listen, firstly. Then, they seem to interpret their own emotions with the music and it makes them ponder their own life a lot. And then they start to question: Am I happy in my work? Am I happy in my relationships? What am I striving for?” – Enya
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Review: Friday Afternoon by Sylvia Ryan
Before kids and the responsibility of life, Levi and I shared a spontaneous, erotic, and deliciously deviant marriage. Years transformed what we had into something comfortable and worn. It hurts me to think his desire for me has cooled. I miss that look of his. Slightly evil and totally hot, like he wanted to devour me. Haven’t seen it in ages.
When I first married Mia, she submitted to every one of my erotic needs. Then came the children. With little complaint, I abandoned my pursuit of kink, content to be married to a beautiful, intelligent woman who’s a great mother to our twins. Out of the blue, Mia confesses she misses the intimacy in our marriage, misses the sex. After this enticing revelation, my plan to reconnect with her unfolds.
In our secret, kinky, Friday afternoon meetings I’m going to give her everything she wants and take everything I need. Will this be the answer to fixing our marriage?
Those of us who have put in some significant time working on a marriage complete with job stresses, kids, and such will resonate with this short novel that is told in the first person by both Mia and Levi. Both have been feeling the "cooling trend" in their marriage even though both are deeply in love with one another. Here is a novel that puts BDSM into the context of literally recharging a relationship that may be kinky for many but which was grounded in the D/s dynamic and which had become exceedingly vanilla.
The concept of "making a date" with one's spouse has been touted often by marriage counselors and psychologists as one way to recharge a relationship where both spouses have taken one another for granted, most often because that is the way things work when two people live together for years, become used to one another's habits and ways of doing things, or when the business of raising children takes over the dynamic of a home. And while raising the kids is certainly one of the most important tasks any couple can take on, keeping one's own personal relationship is, IMHO, foundational to keeping the kids safe, their future secure in a home where mom and dad know they are each cherished by the other.
This story outlines how one couple decided to put the "wow" back into their sex life and brought back the excitement of being in love with each other. It is beautifully told, and by going back and forth between Mia and Levi, the author gives readers the viewpoint of both the dominant and the submissive partner. This kind of solution won't work for everyone, but it is a story that brings the BDSM ingredient into the mix and while it is mild in many ways, it works for these two.
This is a read that won't take up a big chunk of time but it is a very romantic love story and I think it will be a good experience for most lovers of romance fiction. I give it a rating of 4 out of 5.
Oldie But Goody: "A Cold Creek Noel" by RaeAnne Thayne
Caidy Bowman had been the apple of her family's eye—until a devastating tragedy forced her to hide from the world. She was used to devoting her time to the animals on her family's ranch. Then widower Ben Caldwell and his two adorable children arrived in Pine Gulch, and suddenly, Caidy wanted more than a life in the shadows….As the town's new vet, Ben needed a place to stay for the holidays—and for his family to heal from their own loss. He absolutely wasn't looking for love again! But Caidy Bowman's sparkling green eyes and sweet smile touched Ben's broken heart, giving him hope for a new future. Their future—if he could convince the beautiful cowgirl that Christmas was a time for new beginnings….
Released in November, 2012, this continuation of Ms Thayne's Cowboys of Cold Creek series is a delightful holiday novel which brings readers a wonderful love story. This small Idaho town has been featured in 10 previous stories highlighting various families in the community and giving all of us a peek into the workings of a small Western community. There is a particular poignancy in the stories that have featured the Bowman family. Over a decade earlier their beloved parents were murdered during a home invasion robbery, one that had been planned to occur during the family's absence. As it happened, the parents and their daughter, Caidy, were home because Caidy was sick. Mrs. Bowman had become a well-known artist and it was for the purpose of stealing her paintings that the robbery was planned and carried out.
Now, 12 years later, the entire family labors under the burden of the memory of this horrible experience when happened just a few days before Christmas. It is especially difficult for Caidy who heard the entire crime being committed. She has longed for a way to move beyond the hurtful memories, to find a way to replace the grief with a new joy. As it happens, a new veterinarian is in town and together with his two young children, he begins to impact Caidy's life in unexpected ways.
This is truly the classic love story and yet it is not adversarial in nature but yet there is a good amount of tension between the main characters. It's never easy to move forward. For Caidy it means that she will have to let go of the pain and grief of that horrific day. For Ben it will mean letting go of his anger at his dead wife, a woman who never really accepted her diabetic condition and its limitations and who insisted on getting pregnant a third time, a decision that ultimately cost her the rest of her life, her husband the loss of his spouse, and his children the loss of their mother. At the core of this story lies the healing power of love and the redemptive power of faith and hope.
I downloaded this ARC a year ago and I just "found" it again on my Kindle recently. I fell in love with the story to the extent that I went back and read a couple of the early novels in this series. I know it's a year already since release, but I have a strong belief that such positive powerful stories never grow old. I know it can be found in libraries and is on sale on several websites. It's a really lovely holiday story and I think you'll find it worth reading. I give it a rating of 4 out of 5.
Book Review: Lying in Your Arms by Leslie Kelly
Madison Reid's engagement is a sham. Her movie-star fiance is actually her childhood friend who's gay. When he decides he can't keep living a lie, Madison ends things by leaking a salacious story about a hot if fictional affair. Now surrounded by swarms of news-hungry paparazzi, Madison escapes to the beauty of Costa Rica until things cool down.
Firefighter Leo Santori is on his honeymoon. Alone. Still torn up about losing his fiance to another guy, Leo isn't expecting anything from Costa Rica. That is, until Madison steps into his world, rocks it and then lights it on fire. The heat between them is undeniable and irresistible. But when Madison's scandalous past catches up with them, will it extinguish the flames or will they both end up burned?N
If you like hot sensual contemporary romance, I'm not sure it gets any better than Leslie Kelly. Several years ago I read one of her books and the gritty writing style, the overt sexuality and sensuality of her characters along with an irrepressible sense of humor served to "hook" me for the foreseeable future. Now we meet two more of her fun and entertaining characters, both of whom find themselves in unusual circumstances and both of whom are "running away" in a sense from the realities of normal life. To be sure, Madison's relationship with her longtime best friend under the guise of an engagement is anything but normal. But in the Hollywood world of "normal" it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Yet her life is being blitzed by the media and Costa Rica seems a good alternative. For Leo it is also a haven as he deals with the betrayal of the woman he fully expected to marry. Their resulting affair really lights up the pages in the way that only Leslie Kelly seems to be able to do. It is one of the reasons that I have always like her writing: she just tells it like it is.
This is a short novel that will engage you with its sharp and edgy writing, with characters who are different than often appear in novels, with Ms Kelly's appealing blend of sensuality and humor. (Through the years and reading a number of her stories she has written some of the funniest conversations I have ever read). All in all, it is a fun and entertaining read and one that is balanced between fun and deep emotion as readers deal with Leo's broken heart and Madison's fears for the future. It's not a book that will take up immense amounts of time. It will be a nice read to turn to when you don't particularly want to delve into something that is a much heavier reading effort. Do yourself a favor: enjoy this one and I hope it is as nice an experience for you as it was for me. I give this book a rating of 4 out of 5.
Posted by Dr J at 10:42 AM No comments:
Book Review: Wounded Heroes Boxed Set: They're Hard to Handle and Hard to Love
Favorite Romance Themes™: WOUNDED HEROES is a boxed set of five complete novels from some of today’s most exciting authors -- at an irresistible price!
He’s a loner and a lost soul, the man who keeps to the shadows. He may have believed in love once, but not anymore. Whether his scars are physical or emotional, he’s hurting and vulnerable and in need of redemption—but to get it, he’ll need a Beauty with enough courage to tame the Beast. This boxed set features five full-length romance novels with wounded heroes.
I recently found this boxed set on one of the romance ebook sites at a sale price and couldn't resist--fine full-length novels at a nothing price: what's not to like? But these novels are not for the faint of heart. Each one is about a man who has old wounds of heart or emotions or body and spirit, all tangled up in hopes for the future and disappointments from the past. These are tough stories and there were times I almost felt overwhelmed by the depth of despair as well as the sense that there was no hope for any of these guys to find some peace in a loving relationship. Yet all five stories have HEA endings and though it is difficult to get to that place, somehow the patience of genuine caring people and a loving significant other makes the ultimate difference.
Twenty-two years after coming home from Vietnam, Paul Tremaine is determined to erect a memorial to the comrades he left behind. Bonnie Hudson, the widow of a famous antiwar activist, doesn’t want to see that war glorified. Both Bonnie and Paul are survivors of a painful past. Can love heal their scars so they can make peace with that past and face the future together?
Both main characters in this story are struggling with difficulties from the past. For Paul there is the memory of trauma in Viet Nam and the determination to keep his promise to fallen comrades. For Bonnie it is the memory of her anti-war activist husband who died while continuing his public struggle against a war he hated. Now she is almost tied to a shrine set up in her living room but that haloed place takes a beating when some unhappy truths begin to surface. These two have a tough time finding common ground--a Viet Nam vet up against a woman who is absolutely anti-war. It makes for good reading and some very tense encounters that are often made even worse by the presence of Bonnie's teen son. The context is the late 80's so readers will have to adjust their historical memories on this one.
In Waiting For You, tough cop Joe Moretti meets the love of his life, Dana Devlin, on his brother’s dating website. Little does he know she’s harboring a very big secret, one that almost destroys their relationship. Joe must find a way to prevent that secret, and his own personal ghosts, from ruining their chance together.
This is a poignant love story that links two people with a heap of emotional baggage. JoeyD, as he is known on his brother's dating site, meets Dana and when finally meeting her face-to-face, learns that she is wheel chair bound for the rest of her life. Her stellar ballet career was cut prematurely short by a crush injury which has crippled her from the knees down. What she doesn't know is that Joe's dad died from ALS when Joe was 10 years old, and the memories of his dad's time in a wheel chair, the helplessness of both his dad as well as his own feelings of anger and helplessness have never been addressed. Now these two people are trying to find common ground, a way to trust one another after keeping facts from each other, and deciding if the stresses of being together are really worth it. It's a very emotional story with lots of ups and downs. I felt for both of them and this writer really addressed the difficulties of disabilities in a very forthright way. I really appreciated this story a lot.
Silken Threads
Graeham Fox comes to London to rescue his overlord’s daughter from her abusive husband, in return for which he is promised her sister’s hand in marriage and a vast estate—quite a prize for a landless soldier who’s never had a home of his own. Attacked and disabled by a broken leg, he rents a room in the humble home of Joanna Chapman, a silk merchant’s widow. Joanna, having learned not to trust handsome, charming devils like Graeham, lets him think her husband is still alive in order to keep him at a distance. Mindful of his mission—and the promised reward—Graeham struggles to resist his feelings for Joanna, but the white-hot desire simmering between them cannot be denied. Inspired by Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, Silken Threads was honored with Romance Writers of America’s RITA® Award for Best Long Historical Romance.
This was perhaps the most difficult story of the five for me. It was a full-length historical novel set in the 11th century when the Norman invasion and the Battle of Hastings in 1066 was not far past. It is a look at the difficulties of women in that time, their presence in society but without any value of their own. It is a story about trust and about the ties that bind human to human, lover to lover, friend to friend. It is about loyalty and being faithful to one's commitments. I found there were some passages that went long on discussions I didn't think added substantively to the story, but the fact that it won a RWA RITA award shows how much I know about those things. The main characters were delightful--Joanna was a woman whose marriage at age 15 turned out to be an emotional hoax while for Graeham, the possibility of becoming something more than a bastard and a military servant made his attraction to Joanna a great difficulty. Lots going on in this novel and even with the action taking place nearly a millenium past, loving someone and the problems between lovers never get old.
Texas Refuge
Seeking peace after nearly dying in a failed attempt to save his sister, the last thing former Houston detective Quinn Marshall wants is another woman to watch over, but his rugged Texas ranch is the ideal hiding place for soap opera star Lorie Chandler, who has already lost her husband to an obsessed fan. When the madman finds them, Quinn's sole focus is on keeping Lorie safe, even though his success will mean that he will have to give her up to a life where he cannot belong.
He's a retired Houston, Texas cop with psychic abilities he refused to acknowledge, and she's an Emmy winning daytime drama actress with a five-year-old son and a stalker who may have already killed her husband. The tensions that surround any stalker story are here but they are amplified by the inner struggle Quinn endures because his logical cop brain can't own up to his heritage as an empath. Their time spent at Quinn's ranch in Texas provides a setting where their love can grow and Quinn's relationship with Lorie's young son blossoms. The exchanges between this young boy and the adult characters in the story are delightful. Quinn's great-aunt, Tia Consuela, is also one of the background characters but her presence is far more important than the amount of dialogue given her would indicate. It's really about two people who manage to find themselves and each other under very difficult circumstances and while having to wade through Quinn's guilt over the death of his sister. The tension never lets up in this one.
The More I See
Cutting horse trainer Cody Gentry was riding high until he lost his eyesight in a freak accident. He hopes eye surgery will repair the damage to his eyesight. But just in case, his father hires guide dog trainer, Lyssa McElhannon, to help pull him out of depression. Lyssa didn't expect to fall in love or have Cody open her eyes to see there was a whole lot of living she’d been missing out on.
It's no secret that I like cowboy stories and found this one to be a very intense read. It is a little on the short side, but the main characters are gritty and intense. It is always difficult when a person as active as Cody--cutting horse trainer extraordinaire and championship holder--loses his eyesight while saving another young and foolish ranch hand who was unwisely mixing chemicals. Cody's descent into depression, his refusal to accept help, his determination to be stubborn in his isolation are the backdrop against which this story plays out. Lyssa is a woman who experienced blindness for twenty years of her life but was given a second chance because of modern surgical procedures. Now she trains seeing-eye dogs and has brought one for Cody. He patience is quite bountiful but even Lyssa gets fed up. It's a story that will tug at the reader's heartstrings when Cody takes his first horseback ride, remembering the trail so well and trusting in his steady and trustworthy mount who has taken him the cutting horse championships in the past. The story is very emotional and there are times when the reader will wonder if these two are going to manage to have their own HEA.
This Boxed Set is one of a number of collections that were recently made available on Amazon and other ebook sellers online for one 99 cents. Such a deal. I found all the stories to be really good reads and while I had my favorites (I think the story about the cop and the ballet primadonna was my number 1), all of them were very good reads. I gave the set a rating of 4 stars on Goodreads and I think a rating of 4 out of 5 is where I am going to stay.
Oldie But Goody: "A Cold Creek Noel" by RaeAnne T...
Book Review: Wounded Heroes Boxed Set: They're H...
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27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Stays Ahead of the Game
DMNA Home page More News Stories
Brigade Soldiers Build Huge Sand Table to Help Leaders Rehearse Maneuvers
Story by: Sgt. First Class Raymond Drumsta - 27th IBCT
Dated: Thu, Oct 6, 2011
Lt. Col. Joseph Biehler, commander of the 1st Battalion, 108th Infantry (standing, left), uses the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team’s sand table to brief brigade leaders about their unit’s planned actions during its movement through Fort Irwin’s National Training Center exercise area. The unit arrived at Fort Irwin in late September, and is conducting simulated combat missions and stability operations in preparation for its deployment to Afghanistan in early 2012.
NATIONAL TRAINING CENTER, FORT IRWIN, Calif. -- Composed of the same materials as the rocky, desert terrain it depicts, the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team’s massive sand table has allowed its leaders to better understand the areas they’ll be dealing with while training here.
"We definitely set a new standard for sand tables and the briefing process," said Sgt. Maj. Jason Zeller, the operations sergeant major of the New York Army National Guard brigade, which began arriving here in late September to train in preparation for the unit’s mobilization and deployment to Afghanistan in early 2012.
About 1,500 brigade Soldiers are currently scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan, and the training here includes simulated combat missions and stability operations under the realistic, demanding and stressful environment provided by the National Training Center (NTC).
The exercise will be controlled by an expert and experienced Operations Group, and Soldiers will confront a highly capable opposing force in an exercise area which mirrors the physical and cultural conditions of Afghanistan.
Before the brigade began tactical road marches into the exercise area on Oct. 6, brigade leaders gathered around the sand table and used it to rehearse their schemes of maneuver, streamline their plans, coordinate their actions with other units and refine a myriad of other details. More than a dozen brigade Soldiers helped build the sand table, which mirrors the rugged, desert and mountainous countryside the brigade will be operating in.
"Those are all accurate depictions of the mountains, to scale," said Sgt. First Class Vince Tomasella, who led the sand table’s design and construction. The sand table also shows the road network, cities, villages, brigade units, other units and the forward operating bases (FOBs) and combat operating bases (COBs) the units will occupy after moving into the exercise area, he added.
Tomasella, a Rochester, N.Y. resident who is the non-commissioned officer-in-charge of the brigade’s engineer cell, said the sand table also allows Brigade Commander Col. Geoffrey Slack to explain his intent and vision for full-spectrum operations, and gives leaders a line-of-sight understanding of what’s visible from any location, see vulnerable points and fine tune their plans for troop positions.
"A picture says a thousand words," Tomasella said of the sand table. "I think it’s pretty impressive. For the brigade commander to be able to walk through the entire area of operations is kind of monumental."
As was the sand table’s construction, which began on Oct. 3. Tomasella, Sgt. Luke Zuercher, of Mattydale, N.Y. and Spc. Ryan Blount of Medina, N.Y. and used a specialized computer system to coalesce satellite pictures and topographic maps into a 1 by 7000 scale map to base the sand table on. As far as he knows, no one has ever created a map that scale, Tomasella said.
While two brigade combat engineers built the sand table’s wooden frame, about 17 Soldiers of the brigade’s Headquarters and Headquarters Company collected and moved an estimated two tons of Fort Irwin rock and sand into the tent, Tomasella said. The sand table didn’t seem that large until they started building it, he added.
"It’s a good-sized swimming pool," he said.
Using waterproof bags, entrenching tools and their hands, Tomasella, Zuercher and Blount began shifting and shaping the sand and rocks to resemble the terrain on their map. They conferred often during this process, trading notes and consulting the map to decide on the final shape of ridges, spurs and other terrain features on the sand table.
Once the sand table was completed, Blount took part in the Oct. 6 rehearsal, stepping over the miniature mountains and ridges on the sand table as he moved pieces representing units to various spots to show their planned maneuvers in the exercise area.
Tomasella has built many sand tables during his two-decade Army career. Zuercher and Blount are honor graduates of the Army’s six-month geo-spatial engineering school, and analyze topography for brigade leadership.
"My knowledge of and sand tables and their knowledge of maps helped pull the whole thing together," Tomasella said.
Zuercher was surprised when they were told to start laying out the sand table, but Blount wasn’t.
"If you’re going to do something like this, why not pick the guys who’ve been staring at the images and maps?" Blount said.
Their faces lighted up when asked if they’re proud of the sand table. It seemed like an impossible task at first, Zuercher said.
"It feels good to accomplish something you weren’t sure you could do," he said.
Tomasella held them to a high standard, Zuercher said. The three also thanked and praised the other Soldiers who took part in the sand table’s construction.
"We couldn’t have accomplished it without their help," Zuercher stressed.
Over the years he’s developed kind of a love-hate relationship with sand tables, Tomasella said. Though the construction process is enjoyable, you know the sand table will be destroyed as soon as a unit is through using it, he explained.
He’s proud of this sand table nonetheless, and enjoys it when people look at it in amazement, Tomasella said.
"People have been coming through the door and saying ’oh my God,’ and ’unbelievable,’" he recalled.
Blount noticed that as well.
"I think half the brigade has come through to see the thing," he said.
© NYS DMNA: News Story: 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Stays Ahead of the Game
URL: http://dmna.ny.gov/news/?id=1318266691
Page Last Modified: Mon, Oct 10, 2011
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Before being requested to submit a full application, researchers submit a one-page letter of intent that describes the purpose of the proposed study and a brief description of activities that could be undertaken during the grant term that would facilitate incorporating the research findings into practice. The letter of intent is submitted to LOI reviews without the name of the applicant or their institution. In this way, the LOI is evaluated only on the research idea.
Full applications are evaluated by the Foundation’s science advisory committees based on the scientific merit of the research and its potential for impact. The committees are composed of individuals with expertise from a wide range of clinical and public health research experience, health-related policy, and statistical methods. Written feedback from reviewers is sent to all applicants.
In general, a standing review committee is used and at least three reviewers are assigned to each application. Each reviewer presents their critique at the review committee meeting and, following discussion by the full committee, reviewers score the application. We have estimated that every application receives approximately 15 person-hours of review prior to and during the meeting.
Occasionally, the Foundation encounters opportunities to support meritorious research that is outside existing program categories. In these instances, the application is reviewed by individuals who have been specifically chosen because of their expertise in the study topic and methods that are proposed in the application. As far as is possible, the process for evaluating these applications by assigned experts is done in a manner that is similar to that used by the Foundation’s standing committees.
The R3 program, which is designed to promote knowledge created from previously reviewed and funded Donaghue research grants, uses the expertise of the R3 Advisory Committee, which focuses on the potential for the future use of the intervention previously tested.
In all cases, decisions regarding grant awards are made by the Foundation Trustees after considering the committee recommendations.
Guiding Principles for Donaghue’s Application Review Process
One of the most important functions responsibilities of the Donaghue Foundation is to ensure that every application to its grant programs receives a thorough and fair review of its merits and its potential contributions to improving health. Therefore, we strive to conduct a review process that is equitable, based in expertise, transparent, accessible, and efficient.
The process is equitable to all applicants.
Every applicant gets the same opportunity to describe their proposed work. This means, among other things, that we do not allow additional material to be submitted after a deadline, and deadlines are uniformly observed.
Our reviewers have the required expertise to evaluate the applications and the review process is based on written standards.
Reviewers thoughtfully engage with the substance of the proposal and base their critiques and scores on only the considerations that are specified for each grant program. The collective review committee will have broad expertise in the fields related to the grant program and to the implementation and use of the knowledge being created, and Donaghue will recruit reviewers who are respected in their field and who observe the Foundation’s conflict of interest policy.
We are transparent as to components of the review process and timelines.
All necessary grant materials and a description of how we review applications are published on our website.
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We will strive to answer all questions that we receive about the grant program and review process in a timely way and circulate the answers, where it makes sense, to other applicants or reviewers.
We make the process to submit an application and to review an application as efficient and straightforward as possible.
We know that our applicants and reviewers have many demands on their time, so we work to structure a process that provides the needed information without extraneous requirements.
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[www.keralites.net] FIGHTING WITH CANCER
FIGHTING WITH CANCER
81-year-old Doctor is Living Proof of Compassion!
Dr. Ramamurthy hails from the town of Mayiladuthurai in Nagapattinam, a district in the South Indian State of Tamil Nadu. He is a native of Mudikondan Village in Thiruvarur, another such district.
As a young man, Ramamurthy grew up as part of a poor farming family. However, he loved academics very much, and used to walk long kilometers to attend school. Not only was he the first literate, educated member of his family, but also the first graduate and first doctor in that family. He graduated in medicine from the Madras Medical College in the year 1958.
Immediately after his medical graduation, he left to Mayiladuthurai. He placed his stethoscope around his neck that day and, ever since, he has never relieved himself of his responsibilities as a medical doctor. He works seven days a week, even today, at the age of 81. As most other doctors would be on holiday during Sundays, Dr. Ramamurthy would principally be in his clinic for the sake of patients who might face emergencies.
As he comes from a very poor farming background, Ramamurthy was well aware of the financial struggles and helplessness that farmers faced, and was moved by it. He decided to never charge full medical fees from his patients, for he knew they could not afford it. From the poor farmers' perspective, they would rather die of disease than sacrifice their life's savings, toiled in sweat and blood, on expensive medical fees. Even the medicine he prescribes would cost only less than twenty rupees and many times he would give his patients give free samples of medicine.
Compassionately thus, he began practice at just Re. 1 per patient. Even then, he never used to accept his fees by hand and, consequently, his patients just left the money on his table. As the decades rolled by, this fee has risen to only Rs. 5 today. Now, he finds even this fee of Rs. 5 to be more than his needs demand—one noonday meal and two steamed rice pancakes "idlies" for supper. His compassion was such that he would give money for transport and food to patients who came to him for treatment from remote villages.
When Dr. Ramamurthy first started practicing medicine, he used to wake up at 4'o'clock in the morning, seeing patients from 8 a.m. until 9 p.m. non-stop, without a break. Even today he follows the same habit but only now takes a brief noonday health-break. With 57 years of experience as a medical practitioner, Dr. Ramamurthy needs only less than five minutes to ascertain a patient's ailment. Furthermore, he prescribes medicines for not more than two days and, in 90 percent of the cases, does not administer injections to his patients.
Simple living and amicable speech is Dr. Ramamurthy's identity. As a doctor and a compassionate human being, he has made the virtues of Love and Compassion the first form of therapy. He is known to wear only a 4-yards dhoti (waistcloth) and baniyan (half-sleeved cotton vest), while he sees his patients, and puts on a shirt only for outdoor trips.
Dr. Ramamurthy recollects having met erstwhile Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, K. Kamarajar, and being appreciated by him for his simplicity. He humbly admits feeling greatly honored that someone so influential—and Kamarajar himself well-known for simplicity—must thus appreciate him. He considers the honorary Chief Minister's words more worthy than any other appreciation or award he may be given.
With blessings of longevity and vigor from Lord Vaitheeswaran at Mayiladuthurai, Dr. Ramamurthy wishes to continue and extend his love, service and support to as many people as possible in his lifetime.
Dear parents and readers. Let us, hence, inspire our children to be compassionate and lead a noble life, for humanity is all about compassion, the noblest of all virtues, morals, and deeds.
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Home Inspiring Story Fast food employee caused a stir when he was caught on camera...
Fast food employee caused a stir when he was caught on camera feeding disabled customer
Working at a fast food restaurant is a difficult job. With low pay and a constant stream of diners, some of whom don’t seem very grateful for the service, it’s no wonder many employees could become jaded.
But that doesn’t mean to say that compassion still doesn’t manage to manifest in the fast-paced world of quick-serve dining. In 2015 at a Qdoba in Louisville, Kentucky, a fast food Mexican restaurant, one employee went above and beyond his job description to help a disabled customer.
A few times a year, a disabled woman came into the restaurant to get something to eat
Ridge Quarles had been working at the Qdoba location for over five years. He’d met the disabled woman on many occasions but doesn’t know her name. She doesn’t leave her home very often, but when she does, the restaurant is her favorite place to eat.
Sadly, the woman is limited in a number of ways. Whenever she arrives at the restaurant, she has to wait for someone to notice that she wants to enter the building and is willing to help her.
Quarles helped the woman get settled in at the restaurant and brought over her meal.
As he was leaving he asked if there was anything else she needed
“I sat her down, and as I walked away I asked her if she needed anything else,” Quarles told the Associated Press. “She asked if I would help her eat.”
Quarles willingly obliged.
“I don’t think it really even caught me off guard. I just felt like it was something that had to be done,” he said. “If I wasn’t going to do it, nobody was.”
Quarles didn’t hesitate to put gloves on and start feeding the woman
The kind act caught the attention of a fellow diner, Dr. David Jones. He videoed Quarles feeding the woman and thought he would just share it with a few friends.
“I said, I don’t know, I think I’ll just send it out to some of my friends and say, ‘there’s still some good people in the world,’” he told local NBC affiliate WAVE 3.
The video quickly spread much wider than a few friends
Quarles is no longer working at the Qdoba, but he was sure that the woman would be taken care of the next time she came in regardless of whether he was working there or not.
“By now, she’s actually been in so many times that we know what she likes to eat,” he told WAVE 3 News.
And while Quarles shrugged it off and didn’t think his good deed was extraordinary, others saw it as an incredible example of selflessness.
“There’s still some good people in the world,” Dr. Jones said. “It seems to me that if everybody in the world would just use the little simple gift that they have to maybe benefit somebody else, think what the world would be like.”
Credit: Epoch Times
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