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Popular Movies and TV Shows That Feature Casinos and Gambling
The film, television, and gambling industries are among the world’s most lucrative. It is no wonder, then, that the paths of these three industries often cross. If you’re a slot enthusiast, then you have most likely seen several slot machines inspired by popular movies and TV shows. In the same way, a good number of films and TV shows have gambling as a huge part of the setting or even the plot itself. Here we will take a closer look at the relationship between these industries.
TV- and Movie-themed Slots
Slots are perhaps the most popular casino games ever. Even today, when more and more people are choosing to go online instead of visiting a brick-and-mortar casino, slots are still a favorite among gambling site visitors. And one of the best things about slot machines is that they carry a wide variety of themes, so you’ll be sure to find one that suits your taste.
One of the reasons for the success of slot games is that game developers sign deals with rights owners of the world’s most popular movies and TV shows, and then create games featuring those films and TV shows. These slots give the films’ and shows’ fans a chance to interact with the characters and relive their favorite scenes even years after the films were shown and the shows ended.
Regardless of what industry a business is in, it is important to advertise that business in order to achieve success. Businesses that fail to give enough effort and investment in advertising often fail to achieve the level of success they are aiming for. Note that those who don’t advertise are giving their competitors the chance to get ahead of them and most of the time, businesses who do not advertise don’t really stay in business for long.
When film and TV show franchises are used as themes for slot games, the franchise is effectively advertised, such that any future projects belonging to the same franchise are instantly recognisable and are almost sure of attaining success. At the same time, when certain gambling products and activities are featured in movies and TV shows, they are getting some needed exposure. Some viewers might even become curious enough about the featured betting product to give it a try.
Top Casino/Gambling Films
If you are both a film buff and a casino enthusiasts, you’ll be sure to enjoy the following films, which effectively combine the two giant industries of gambling and film.
1. The Cooler
This romantic drama from writer/director Wayne Kramer was released in 2003. It tells the story of Bernie Lootz, who was so unlucky at gambling that he already owed the Shangri-la Casino more than $100,000. He was, in fact, so unlucky that the casino even hired him as a “cooler”, a gambler tasked to play alongside high rollers, with the aim of getting some of his bad luck to rub off on them and keep them from winning.
Bernie has almost paid off his debt from working as a cooler when he met cocktail waitress Natalie Belisario and fell in love. As he did, his luck began to change and he started winning in the casino. This is where the movie’s climax begins, because mob boss Shelly Kaplow wasn’t just going to sit and watch Bernie go from casino jinx to lucky player in a snap.
2. Rounders
Set in New York’s high-stakes underground poker world, this movie was released in 1998. It tells the story of Mike McDermott, a young, reformed gambler. He traded poker for law school and for a chance at a new life with his girlfriend. The seemingly legit road to success that he has found will be challenged, however, when his friend is released from prison. He will have to return to the high stakes to help his friend fend off loan sharks, while struggling to maintain the ideal life he has with his girlfriend.
3. Casino
This film by Martin Scorsese features a story of crime and punishment, exposing the inner workings of a corrupt Las Vegas casino. It tells the story of three characters: Bookmaking wizard Ace Rothstein, Mafia underboss Nicky Santoro, and prostitute Ginger McKenna. Ace plays by Vegas rules, but Nicky and Ginger have made a habit of lying, cheating, and stealing their way to the top.
The first half of the film shows the three characters’ rise to the top, while the second half tracks their downfall. The action shows the FBI, corrupt government officials, and angry mob bosses pick them apart.
4. Revolver
This rated-R action movie was released in 2005. It tells the story of gambler and conman Jake Green. He ran with a bad crowd, which led him to spend seven years in jail. Upon his release, he started using a formula he learned from two mysterious inmates to become unbeatable at the tables. After some time, he felt ready to exact vengeance on the man responsible for landing him in jail, Dorothy Macha. It is in this quest for revenge that Jake gets involved in the most dangerous game he has ever played.
5. Croupier
Set in London’s world of gambling, this film was released in 2000. It tells the story of aspiring writer Jack Manfred. When he suffered from writer’s block, he took a job as a croupier to support himself. He soon got swallowed deep into the world of cards, despite trying to remain a professional outsider. In time, he realized that his life as a croupier, with all the dangers and temptations he is exposed to, actually makes for a great novel.
6. Leaving Las Vegas
This romantic drama was released in 1995. It tells the story of Ben Sanderson, a Hollywood screenwriter who lost everything to alcoholism. Ben arrived in Las Vegas, determined to drink himself to death. It is there that he meets prostitute Sera and forms an uneasy friendship with her. The two also form a non-interference pact, vowing not to try to change one another.
7. Swingers
This funny and heartfelt movie was released in 1996, and was responsible for turning Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau into legitimate stars. It tells the story of five guys in their 20s, all trying to cope with the mysteries of life and women. Mike left his girlfriend in New York in hopes of making it big as a Hollywood actor. What he found instead is loneliness.
After a few months of seeing Mike down in the dumps, his friend Trent and the other swingers decide to take matters into their own hands and try to bring Mike back to life. The story is told in the language of what was known as “cocktail nation”, a retro-Swing dance movement that took Hollywood by storm at the time.
8. Hard Eight
An outstanding debut for Paul Thomas Anderson, this engaging feature film was released in 1996. It tells the story of an out-of-luck gambler named John, who meets suave professional gambler Sydney and learns the trick of the trade from him. Sydney offers to share all of his gambling secrets with John in Reno, and everything went well until John fell for the cocktail waitress Clemetine. This was when Sydney realizes John is a loose cannon who may never learn how to restrain himself the way Sydney does.
9. Casino Jack
Based on a fascinating true story, this fictionalized version was released in 2010. It tells the story of a man determined to enjoy everything that the good life has to offer. He frequents places where the high-rollers like to spend time, and isn’t afraid to con, scheme, and defraud his way to getting exactly what he wants. The fictional film may seem over-the-top, but even the true story that inspired it is too incredible for anyone to ever think of, even in the wildest of dreams.
This is the story of Jack Abramoff and his business partner, Michael Scanlon. The action reaches its peak when they involve a mob-connected friend in their illegal schemes. They soon find themselves in over their heads, deep in the mafia world of murder and scandal.
10. Bugsy
A film that pays homage to the underworld legend, Bugsy was released in 1991. It tells the story of Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel, who arrived in California in the 1940s, with the job of overseeing the L.A. rackets. He is soon seduced by the actress Virginia Hill and the glamour of Hollywood itself. But things really got interesting when he had a vision of transforming a barren strip of Nevada desert into a haven for enthusiasts of gambling and entertainment. This is the story of how Las Vegas was born.
Top Casino/Gambling TV Shows
The TV industry has its own share of gambling-inspired offerings. Here are some of the best TV shows that feature gambling as an integral part of the storyline:
This hit ensemble drama aired from 2003 to 2008. It told the story of the personal and work lives of employees at the Montecito Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. In particular, it focuses on the security-surveillance team. The action is fast-paced and as flashy as the glitzy casino setting.
2. Sneaky Pete
This exciting crime drama aired from 2015 until June of this year. It told the story of a con man who had just been released from prison. With a vicious gangster on his heels for unpaid debts, the con man took cover by assuming his cellmate’s identity. As Pete, he took a job in his faux family’s bail-bond business, consequently falling into a world that just might be as dangerous as the one he is trying to escape.
3. Stan Lee’s Lucky Man
This British crime drama series aired from 2016 to 2018. It told the story of a brilliant but flawed London cop. Murder Squad detective Harry Clayton was battling gambling addiction when he was suddenly given an ancient bracelet after spending a night with mysterious Eve. He soon discovered that the bracelet gave him the power to control luck, at which point he started using it to his advantage.
4. The Player
This crime drama aired in 2015. It told the story of former intelligence and FBI officer Alex Kane, who now works as a security expert in Las Vegas. He encounters an elite gambling organization called the House and got recruited after his wife is murdered. He works to solve crimes while members of the House place bets on whether he will succeed in preventing certain crimes.
5. Vega$
This TV series aired from 1978 to 1981. It told the story of Dan Tanna, a Vietnam veteran now working as a private investigator in Las Vegas. It shows both the seedy and the glamorous sides of Las Vegas and is notable for being the only TV show that portrayed a house with a “drive-in” living room.
6. Vegas
Eras collide in this TV show that ran for one season from 2012 to 2013. Set in 1960s Las Vegas, the show told the story of Army MP-turned-cattle rancher-turned-sherriff Ralph Lamb. He struggles to take control of the burgeoning Vegas crime scene, at the center of which is the mob boss of the Savoy Casino, Vincent Savino.
7. Billions
Explore the world of high finance in this show that first aired in 2016 and has recently been renewed for a fifth season. The show tells the story of savvy U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades who is in a constant battle with hedge fund king Bobby “Axe” Axelrod. This fictional series is loosely based on the real-life legal battles between former U.S. Attorney for the New York Southern District Preet Bharara and hedge fund manager Steve Cohen.
8. Breaking Vegas
Aired in May 2004, this special TV documentary tells the story of a group of MIT students who formed a blackjack team and attempted to get rich at casino tables throughout the United States. They employed Math techniques to win millions at the gambling tables in the 1990s. The documentary also showed casinos attempting to thwart the team’s plans.
9. Poker After Dark
Having debuted in 2007, this TV program has had an interesting run on air. It was cancelled in 2011, following a scandal that involved its major sponsor. It was revived in 2012, airing old episodes as well as unaired episodes from its 7th season. In 2017, this time hosted by PokerGO the show started airing fresh episodes.
10. High Stakes Poker
This televised poker cash game first aired in 2006 and ran until May 2011. It showed top poker players competing in no limit Texas hold ‘em. The competition, however, was not a tournament, and players played with their own money and had the option to buy in again.
The relationship between film, TV, and gambling is one thing that likely will not be broken anytime soon, if at all. For as long as these three industries continue to rake in the big bucks, they are likely to continue taking advantage of each other’s strengths. People will continue to see movies and TV shows that feature gambling, as well as casino slots with movie- and TV-inspired themes.
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Top 5 Slot Machine Providers With the Most Number of Games Online
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First NHS Gambling Addiction Clinic Opens in Sunderland
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TV20 Marketplace
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Sexual assault and harassment linked to long-term health problems for women, study says
Posted: 9:35 AM, Oct 03, 2018
Drew Angerer
<p>Protestors rally against Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh as they march on Capitol Hill, September 27, 2018 in Washington, DC. </p>
High blood pressure. Anxiety. Depression. Insomnia. These are just a few of the possible long-term health consequences facing mid-life women who had experienced sexual assault and harassment, according to a study published Wednesday in JAMA Internal Medicine.
With the nation's focus on accusations of sexual misconduct, it's a sobering reminder of the health toll that any form of sexual abuse can take.
"In a sense, the body is telling the story," said Nancy Krieger, a Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health professor who was not involved in the new study. "Not everyone is able and willing to identify what happened to them, but that doesn't prevent the body from having opinions about it and expressing them."
Significant health consequences
The study included 304 nonsmoking women between the ages of 40 and 60. Nineteen percent of the women reported experiencing sexual harassment, 22 percent reported experiencing sexual assault, and 10% reported both.
Women in the study who reported prior sexual assault were three times more likely to experience depression and twice as likely to have elevated anxiety than women without a history of sexual trauma, said senior study author Rebecca Thurston, professor of psychiatry at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
Those who experienced either sexual assault or harassment were twice as likely to have sleep problems, including insomnia, the study found.
Women who reported workplace sexual harassment had higher blood pressure than women who did not, at levels significant enough to put them at risk for stroke, aneurysms, kidney disease, heart attacks and other forms of heart disease.
Sexual harassment was also linked to higher levels of triglycerides, Thurston said, a key risk factor for heart disease, which is the leading killer of women in the United States.
Though not able to claim a direct cause and effect relationship between sexual abuse and the health impact, the observational results were intriguing, Thurston said, especially the impact of workplace sexual harassment on women's health.
"There was a lack of striking differences in the health outcomes between women who were sexually assaulted or sexually harassed," she said, "which speaks to the universality of these types of experiences."
Sexual trauma and poor health
More than one in three women have experienced sexual assault, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and up to 75 percent of women are estimated to have experienced workplace sexual harassment.
In prior research, women have self-reported what they believed to be negative effects of sexual abuse. The list is long and includes asthma, arthritis, digestive, heart and immunity issues, migraines and chronic pain.
But self-reporting by sexual abuse survivors can be biased by factors such as mood, memory and awareness of health conditions, Thurston said.
The new study used clinical measurements for blood pressure, depression, anxiety and sleep to more objectively measure the impact of sexual trauma, she said.
A study by Krieger over a decade ago also clinically measured blood pressure. That study had looked at more than a thousand low-income, racially diverse workers. It too found sexual harassment to be linked to hypertension.
"That's in the category of something that is completely preventable," Krieger said, adding that more research in this area is critical.
"The fact that our study, published 10 years ago, was the only other study that's actually had data on measured physical health outcomes of self-reported experiences of sexual harassment is pretty telling," she said. "In fact, it's absurd."
Both Thurston and Krieger recommend that women who have experienced any sort of sexual abuse find a health care provider and get the care they need.
"If they have issues going on with, for example, high blood pressure, there may be roots to that in addition to whatever else is going on in their lives that could potentially be contributing to high blood pressure," Krieger said.
Thurston offered this advice: "If you are a health care provider, recognize that these experiences can have implications for your patient's health. If you are a victim of assault or harassment, don't suffer through it. Get help. If you can, change the situation or remove yourself from it."
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Mitochondrial Replacement Therapyadmin2018-07-30T11:18:38+00:00
To date, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved human clinical trials for an in vitro fertilization technique that uses mitochondrial DNA from a healthy donor to attempt to prevent the transmission of mitochondrial disease from one generation to the next.
This procedure, called Mitochondrial Replacement Therapy, proposes to give women with mitochondrial DNA mutations an excellent chance of having a child that is over 99% genetically matched with her and her partner, and most importantly, is likely to be free of the mitochondrial disease.
Along with the North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium (NAMDC), the UMDF presented a webinar to explain Mitochondrial Replacement Therapy and its implications. The webinar was moderated by UMDF Science and Alliance Officer Philip Yeske, Ph.D.
Joining the webinar from NAMDC was Michio Hirano, M.D., Chief of Neuromuscular Division at Columbia University Medical Center and Co-Director of NAMDC; Dieter Egli, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Developmental Cell Biology (in Pediatrics), Columbia University Medical Center and Senior Research Fellow, New York Stem Cell Foundation; and Mark Sauer M.D., Vice Chairman and Chief of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Columbia University Medical Center and Director Center for Women’s Reproductive Care.
UMDF’s Position
UMDF POSITION & CLINICAL STATUS OF MITOCHONDRIAL REPLACEMENT THERAPY TO PREVENT TRANSMISSION OF mtDNA DISEASES
The United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation (UMDF) maintains that every individual has the right to safe and effective health care as well as access to all current therapeutic innovations for the alleviation and prevention of mitochondrial diseases.
Mitochondria are cellular components that contain their own DNA (mtDNA) and are responsible for generating more than 90% of the body’s energy. About one in 200 people is born with a pathogenic mtDNA mutation and one in 5,000-10,000 people develop a symptomatic mitochondrial disease. However, the incidence rates may be higher considering the difficulty of accurate diagnosis and the diversity of clinical presentations.
Most pathogenic mtDNA mutations affect children, who frequently suffer catastrophic organ failure. In adults, the symptoms worsen with age and often become debilitating. Mitochondrial dysfunction typically damages cells of the brain, heart, liver, skeletal muscles, kidney and the endocrine and respiratory systems. Currently, treatment is limited to symptomatic management using vitamins and supplements.
There is an important unmet clinical need to reduce the risk of transmitting mtDNA diseases to offspring. The mtDNA makes up only 0.1% of the entire human DNA and contains 37 genes, distinct from the nuclear DNA, which accounts for 99.9% of a person’s genetic makeup and determine one’s physical appearance and personality. As mitochondria are transmitted exclusively through mothers, a woman with defective mtDNA could potentially use her and her partner’s own nuclear DNA in combination with the healthy mitochondria of a female donor and have a child who is 99.9% genetically identical to her and her partner.
Mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT) uses healthy mitochondria coming from a donor’s egg whose nucleus has been removed and into which the mother’s nucleus is transferred. In vitro fertilization (either before or after MRT) produces an embryo that contains nuclear DNA from the father and the mother with healthy mtDNA from the donor. This procedure gives women with mtDNA mutations an excellent chance of having their own children, who will be free of the mitochondrial disease.
MRT is NOT genetic manipulation, but rather a technological innovation and an expansion of in vitro fertilization, a clinically-approved technique used for four decades. The latest evidence from leading mitochondrial research institutions in the US and the UK indicate that mitochondrial replacement techniques are safe and effective in primates, although further research will be necessary to fully understand the long-term effects of MRT.
We strongly support further scientific investigation of oocyte MRT as well as constructive debate towards the clinical approval of this therapy in women with mtDNA-related diseases. If demonstrated to be safe and efficacious, this technique should be made available with proper regulatory oversight as an option to families who carry mtDNA point mutations.
Clinical Status
In 2013, the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority (HFEA) in the UK completed an extensive public consultation on mitochondrial replacement therapy and found widespread support for it. In 2015 the UK Parliament voted to allow mitochondrial donation, and the HFEA is now charged with issuing licenses to practice MRT at UK fertility clinics on a case by case basis. In 2016 the HFEA approved the use of mitochondrial donation in specific cases and in March 2017 the HFEA granted the first clinical mitochondrial donation license to the Newcastle Fertility Centre at the International Centre for Life in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom.
In the US the FDA commissioned the National Academies of Science to convene an esteemed panel of experts to review the scientific, ethical and policy considerations of MRT. In a report issued in February 2016 the committee concluded that it was, on both a scientific and ethical basis, permissible to proceed with clinical testing of MRT with certain limitations. Importantly, the committee emphasized in their final report that concerns about genetic manipulation warrant significant caution and the imposition of restrictions rather than blanket prohibition of MRT to prevent transmission of serious mtDNA disease. Despite this position, the FDA has been prevented from further evaluating clinical applications of MRT by language included in the 2016 congressional spending bill banning the agency from evaluating clinical trials involving genetic modifications that affect the next generation.
In September 2016 it was publically announced that a male child was born earlier in the same year as a result of an MRT technique carried out by a US doctor in a Mexican fertility clinic for the purpose of preventing the transmission of Leigh Syndrome, a form of mitochondrial disease. Per the announcement at the time, the child is doing well with a very low level of mutant mtDNA. That being said, the editors of the journal that published the findings from Mexico expressed concerns about the approach and treatment process. In August 2017 the FDA posted a letter online informing the clinician who conducted the MRT technique that it is illegal at this time to market the procedure.
The story of mitochondrial replacement therapy shows how ethically tricky genetic manipulation is becoming.
PBS Newshour Story with Chuck Mohan and Dr. Bruce Cohen
“Why the term ‘three-person baby’ makes doctors wince”
UMDF Newsletter – By Philip Yeske, Ph.D
MRT and Mitochondrial Disease
Genome Magazine – by Brantley Hargrove
Designing Healthy Babies: Scientists are on the cusp of using DNA from a third parent to eliminate deadly mitochondrial genetic disease.
Good Magazine – By Nina Lary
The Challenge of Branding a Life Threatening Disease
Two and a Half Thousand Women Could Benefit from Mitochondrial Donation in the UK
Current Trials & Studies
COPMRS
The Columbia Oocyte Mitochondrial Replacement Study (COMRS) is investigating OocyteMitochondrial Replacement(OMR) to prevent transmission of
mitochondrial DNA mutations. The goal is to investigate the safety and effectiveness of Oocyte Mitochondrial Replacement (OMR) as means to prevent transmission of mtDNA to offspring. What is involved? Women who carry mtDNA mutations can participate in this study. They will undergo
the egg harvesting stages of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), a well-established treatment for many forms of infertility. The nuclear genome of an unaffected
donor’s oocyte will be removed. Then the nuclear DNA from the oocyte with a mtDNA mutation will be transferred into the enucleated oocyte of the donor.
This study will result in embryos that are cryopreserved and will not result in pregnancy. Embryo transfer into the uterus (womb) may be part of a future study that will require approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Click here for details and contact information.
Oregon Health & Science University Center for Embryonic Cell and Gene Therapy
OHSU is currently recruiting donors for an IRB approved project, Mitochondrial gene replacement in human oocytes #6709. OHSU is working on a clinical study to evaluate mitochondrial replacement in oocytes from carriers with mtDNA mutations. They are recruiting young women (21-33) with children who were diagnosed with inherited mtDNA based disease. For details, call (503) 346-3540.
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British Academy announces Sustainable Development Programme awards
News • 1 Dec 2016
The British Academy today (1 December) announces funding for major research projects which will further sustainable development and work to eliminate poverty.
The 16 grants awarded as part of the British Academy Sustainable Development Programme fund interdisciplinary, policy-focused research which addresses the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The projects will help advance the UK’s Aid Strategy by informing policies and interventions to improve people’s lives in fragile, conflict-affected states, or in developing countries.
The projects focus on sustainable governance, sustainable growth, and human development. Research projects include:
Investigating the effect of hosting 1.3m Syrian refugees on society, the labour market and access to public services in Jordan. (Professor Jackline Wahba, University of Southampton)
Examining the socio-political conditions that prevent access to affordable, reliable, sustainable energy in Mozambique. (Dr Vanessa Castan Broto, University College London)
Transforming infrastructure and practice to prevent the contamination of drinking water by sewage in the slums of Dar-es-Salaam and Dhaka. (Dr Manoj Roy, University of Lancaster).
The grants will fund projects from 1 December 2016 to 31 March 2018 as part of the government’s £1.5bn Global Challenges Research Fund.
Professor Ash Amin, Foreign Secretary and Vice President of the British Academy said,
“The UK government has committed to eliminating extreme poverty by 2030, yet our current understanding of what works is limited. The humanities and social sciences play a vital role in filling this gap. By bringing together researchers from a range of disciplines, the British Academy Sustainable Development Programme combines outstanding research with real-world impact, providing evidence for interventions that can improve the lives of developing communities across the globe.”
Professor Sir Richard Jolly, former Assistant Secretary-General of the UN and panel member for the Sustainable Development Programme said,
“The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) form the new global agenda, approved by all 193 countries of the UN and directed to reductions of poverty, inequality, building peaceful more inclusive societies and much more. Each of the British Academy Sustainable Development Programme research projects has been selected to enhance understanding of how practical development actions contribute to the SDGs. Taken together, they represent a major UK contribution to the global effort to implement the SDGs.”
View a full list of the 2016 awards here.
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The Convention Centre Dublin is Open for Business
DUBLIN – September 7, 2010 – The Convention Centre Dublin (The CCD) announced today it is open for business. After forty months of development and construction, Ireland’s first purpose-built conference centre is ready to support the local economy by attracting international delegates to Dublin to host events for up to 8,000 people. To date, The CCD has secured 150 events, which will result in a boost of over €110m* in economic benefit for Dublin.
“The opening of the Convention Centre Dublin marks the beginning of a new era for convention and business tourism in Ireland. Tourism is a vital export industry for Ireland and is an essential part of the Government’s strategy for economic recovery and job creation,” said An Taoiseach, Mr. Brian Cowan, T.D. “One area of opportunity for us is business tourism and this Centre will help Ireland win a greater share of this lucrative market, which, despite the international downturn, continues to provide high-value visitors. All Ministers and State Agencies will be working hard to identify international events which we can attract here. Likewise, I would like to ask all private and voluntary sector organisations to actively promote the Centre as a location for international conferences – so we can maximise its impact on the local economy.”
Recognised as the world’s first carbon neutral convention centre, The CCD is the result of a Public Private Partnership with The Office of Public Works. Located on the banks of the River Liffey, this exciting project was developed by Treasury Holdings and designed by Pritzker Prize-winning and Irish-born architect Kevin Roche. This is the first Irish building for Roche. The CCD’s focal point is a unique glass atrium, which contains 475 panes of different-sized curved glass panels that encompass the full height of the building. Visitors attending events at The CCD will have an opportunity to experience Dublin with extensive views across the skyline, bay and the Dublin Mountains.
“The CCD is a truly outstanding building. Not only does it enhance the Dublin skyline, but because it was designed from the inside-out, it provides the optimal user experience for all visitors,” said Dermod Dwyer, Chairman, The Convention Centre Dublin. “This iconic landmark will allow us to demonstrate new international standards of hospitality coupled with the renowned Irish welcome. I am confident we are on track to reach our goal of being recognised as the best conference centre in Europe by 2014.”
The CCD enables Ireland to compete in the lucrative business tourism market by attracting a range of conferences from the International association and corporate markets as well as a variety of national corporate and banqueting events. Whilst commissioning and testing the building, The CCD hosted a number of prestigious events including XFactor, The Britian’s Got Talent Show and 175th Anniversary conference for Engineers Ireland.
“It has been an incredible journey,” said Nick Waight, CEO, The Convention Centre Dublin. “The building is one of the best equipped and most flexible convention centres in existence and our magnificently talented and professional team will ensure we can compete with the top conference venues worldwide. We look forward to welcoming the world to Dublin’s doorstep.”
The CCD will benefit the local economy as international visitors spend on local services and suppliers, including local transportation, hotel rooms, dining and entertainment. The venue has also created both full-time and part-time jobs, which could reach over 250 staff on any given day depending on the size and number of events. In addition, The CCD aims to source all supplies locally, including food products, consumables, print and services.
About The Convention Centre Dublin
Developed by Treasury Holdings, The Convention Centre Dublin is situated in Spencer Dock on the banks of the River Liffey. Ireland’s first purpose-built international conference and event venue is positioned to become the leading convention centre in Europe. Recognised as the first carbon neutral international convention centre, the venue is configured to accommodate conferences from 8 to 8,000 participants in 22 purpose-built meeting rooms. It includes a 2,000-seat auditorium, 4,500 square metres of exhibition space and banqueting facilities for up to 3,000 guests. The centre combines flexible and elegant conference halls and meeting spaces with an experienced management team and an extensive range of support services. Offering the latest technology, this sophisticated venue offers advanced audio-visual equipment, lighting and sound systems as well as Wi-Fi enabled halls and meeting rooms. For more information, please visit www.theccd.ie
*According to recent research conducted by ipsos MRBI on behalf of Fáilte Ireland, the total value of an international association conference delegate over the period of their stay in Ireland is €1,507
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Writing an article, or reviewing our platform? We'd love to talk to you and provide you with specific information and bespoke images to meet your needs. Looking for hero images of our brand and team? Get in touch and we’ll be happy to share them with you!
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Accessible, Affordable, Meaningful: The Art You Always Wanted
The Commissioned enables you to have the artist of your choice create an original, customized work of art that’s perfect for you.
United States, Australia and Singapore -- September 18, 2015
Commissioned Art – art that is ‘personalized’ or ‘customized’ – can exude beauty, meaning and thoughtfulness, making it excellent décor or gift. Yet few people think about commissioning an art piece.
The Commissioned™ (www.TheCommissioned.com), a company based in the United States, Australia and Singapore, changes that with a web and mobile app that lets you easily commission customized, bespoke works of art – by a global community of artists.
Just as Uber made private cars and drivers easily available to everyone, The Commissioned makes customized art a luxury we can all experience.
How does The Commissioned work?
It starts by matching buyers with artists from all over the world. “Art is very personal,” said Founder and CEO Melvin Yuan. “Our clients enjoy viewing the portfolios of our community of artists. In doing so, they discover their personal preferences. And when they find an artist they like, they can commission a piece that’s perfectly suited to them – the subject, medium, style, color and size that they want.”
An ‘Online Art Concierge’ service supports users who are new to the commissioning process.
“When we commission an art piece,” adds Yuan, “we (together with artists) participate in a beautiful act of co-creation.” The Commissioned enables users to be part of a vibrant artistic community, where ideas are exchanged, and where both artists and their clients can use sketches and photos as part of their conversation.
The Commissioned is available as a web and Android mobile app (found in the Google Play store). The iOS version will be launched by the end of the year (2015).
A trusted platform for buyers & artists
“The Commissioned is a trusted platform for managing the artist-buyer collaborative process,” says Yuan. “We enable artists to do their best work for clients from all over the world. The Commissioned takes care of contracts, billing, payment, process documentation, logistics planning and other forms of administration.”
The birth of The Commissioned
Telling the story of The Commissioned, Yuan shared: “I’ve always struggled to find the perfect art piece. On hindsight, it’s because I’ve always wanted art that’s personal and meaningful, but I never gave a second thought to commissioning an art piece. I’ve always assumed it would be too costly to do so. A chance meeting with a talented artist on a remote island in Indonesia gave me reason to believe that anyone can commission beautiful and original works of art at affordable prices. So to me, there is no perfect art piece... until now. A commissioned art piece is always the perfect piece, and we now make that available to everyone.”
The Commissioned enables talented artists who want to build a strong profile globally to easily manage and scale their work—to make a connection with appreciative clients around the world.
Who would commission art?
Clients include individuals and businesses who want custom-created, bespoke art pieces for their homes and offices; as gifts for special occasions or valued customers; or to commemorate significant corporate milestones.
Strong early validation
In the past three months while the The Commissioned was in its private-beta stage, its community of artists has grown to over 200 from more than 35 countries all over the world. Completed art pieces have also found their place in the homes and offices of early clients. The number of registered users on the site has also grown to over 200.
Excellent feedback from early users
Said Karen Cheng, a well-known blogger, and a client based in Australia, “I’m really impressed by the way you’ve approached the whole idea of getting artworks commissioned. You've put in a lot of thought into the design and navigation of your website, and the overall presentation is professional and sleek, complete with useful tips on where to start. This makes The Commissioned come across as very trustworthy, secure and accessible – which is not often the case when it comes to the general public's perception of obtaining art."
Singapore-based client, Chin Su Yuen, who commissioned a painting of Buddha for her parents, said “I find commissioning my own custom made art pieces a lot more meaningful and valuable than those super expensive paintings I can buy from a gallery. I can communicate my preferences to the artist and have a completely unique work of art, all without burning a hole in my pocket.”
Leslie Low, one of the artists on the platform, said: “The Commissioned has been very helpful in connecting buyers and artists. The art concierge service helps match us (artists) to buyers, and the experience has been pretty rewarding!”
Managing Partner of Innosight, Scott Anthony, is a leading thinker in the field of disruptive innovation. One of the advisors and an angel investor in The Commissioned, Anthony says, “The Commissioned is a classic disruption, promising to open up a historically limited market. Like all disruptions, it will make high-quality art substantially more accessible and affordable. It's about time someone did this!”
Renowned American VC, Tim Draper, is also one of the investors in The Commissioned. He was one of its first users. “I had a great experience!” said Draper, “it was a delight to find so many talented artists. I was pleased with the art piece that I commissioned for my wife. I think the company is truly transforming the world of art!”
This is Yuan’s second technology venture. In 2010, he co-founded indoor positioning company, YFind Technologies, which was acquired by Ruckus Wireless, Inc. in 2013.
Howie Chang, co-founder and Head of Product at The Commissioned, was formerly head of UI/UX for Viki (acquired by Rakuten in 2013), and more recently, director of products for RedMart.
About The Commissioned™
The Commissioned is Your Online Art Commission™ - a web service that connects you with talented artists from all over the world, enabling you to commission a piece that’s truly yours.
The company is based in the United States, Australia and Singapore, with a curated community of artists from all over the world.
We envision a world where commissioned art is made accessible and affordable… where no one will ever say “I wish I could find the perfect art piece”, or “I wish I could paint”; a world where art is not just beautiful, but also deeply personal and meaningful.
For more information, please visit www.TheCommissioned.com
High-resolution images of The Commissioned’s logo and commissioned artworks are available for download from https://www.thecommissioned.com/press.
http://www.karencheng.com.au/2015/09/16/commissioning-artwork-from-around-the-world/
http://www.mamawearpapashirt.com/2015/08/have-faith-take-flight-a-commissioned-art-for-my-little-girl/
Han Chia
han@thecommissioned.com
Melvin Yuan
melvin@thecommissioned.com
The black logo works best on light backgrounds; the white one is designed for dark backgrounds.
Download (Black)
Download (White)
The press kit consists of our founders photos, profile, screenshots of our platform and stories of selected commissioned artworks.
View Press Kit
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Kelley Imaging Systems Acquires Tongass Business Center
EO Johnson Business Technologies Acquires Standard Dynamics, Inc.
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M&A News
Tech Data Enters Definitive Agreement to Be Acquired
November 13, 2019 News M&A, techdata
CLEARWATER, Fla.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Tech Data (Nasdaq: TECD) today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by an affiliate of funds (the “Apollo Funds”) managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE: APO), a leading global alternative investment manager (“Apollo”). Through the agreement, the affiliate of the Apollo Funds will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Tech Data common stock for $130 per share in a transaction with an enterprise value of approximately $5.4 billion.
The purchase price represents a 24.5 percent premium to the unaffected 30-day volume weighted average closing share price of Tech Data’s common stock ended Oct. 15, 2019, the last trading day prior to published market speculation regarding a potential transaction involving the company.
“Over our 45-year history, Tech Data has grown to become one of the largest and most respected technology distributors in the world. This agreement reflects the significant progress we have made in our strategy of delivering higher value and positions us for continued growth and success,” said Rich Hume, chief executive officer, Tech Data. “This investment by funds managed by one of the world’s leading global alternative investment managers will afford us additional resources to accelerate our ability to bring to market the technology products and solutions the world needs to connect, grow and advance. The transaction will enable us to build on our success, making Tech Data a growth platform and enabling us to further differentiate and expand our end-to-end solutions and provide our channel partners with unparalleled reach, efficiency and expertise.”
Charles E. (“Eddie”) Adair, lead independent director of the Tech Data Board of Directors said, “This agreement follows a process of consideration of Apollo’s proposal by the Board that included review and discussion of strategic alternatives with the Board’s financial and legal advisors. The transaction delivers significant cash value to our shareholders and creates exciting opportunities for our colleagues, channel partners and other key constituents.”
“Through this investment, we are committed to expanding Tech Data’s position as a trusted partner to the world’s leading technology vendors while providing best-in-class customer service,” said Matt Nord, Co-lead Partner of Apollo Private Equity. “As a private company with our sponsorship and a strong balance sheet, Tech Data will have significant financial and strategic flexibility to drive growth going forward.”
“We have tremendous respect for Tech Data’s talented management and colleagues around the globe and commend their success in establishing Tech Data as a leader at the center of the IT ecosystem,” said Robert Kalsow-Ramos of Apollo Private Equity. “We are excited to work with the Tech Data team and continuing to invest in the company’s people and end-to-end portfolio.”
The Tech Data Board of Directors has unanimously approved the transaction and recommends that Tech Data shareholders vote in favor of the transaction. The transaction is not subject to a financing condition and is expected to close in the first half of calendar year 2020, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions including expiration or termination of the applicable waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, foreign regulatory approvals and approval by the holders of a majority of the outstanding Tech Data shares. Tech Data expects to hold a Special Meeting of Shareholders to consider and vote on the transaction agreement as soon as feasible after the mailing of the proxy statement to shareholders.
Consistent with the Board’s commitment to maximizing shareholder value, the terms of the agreement provide that Tech Data will be permitted to actively solicit alternative acquisition proposals from third parties during a “go-shop” period from the date of the agreement until Dec. 9, 2019. There is no guarantee that this process will result in a superior proposal.
Following the close of the transaction, Rich Hume will continue to lead Tech Data as chief executive officer, and the company will continue to be headquartered in Clearwater, Florida. Tech Data will become a privately held company, and Tech Data’s common shares will no longer be publicly listed.
Tech Data plans to release its third quarter fiscal year 2020 results before market open on Nov. 26, 2019. In light of the pending transaction announced today, the company will not hold a corresponding conference call.
Bank of America Securities is serving as financial advisor to Tech Data, and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP is acting as legal counsel.
Citi is serving as lead financial advisor to Apollo in connection with the transaction. J.P. Morgan and Wells Fargo are also serving as financial advisors to Apollo. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is acting as corporate counsel to Apollo, and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP is acting as financing counsel to Apollo. Transaction financing is being provided by Citi, J.P. Morgan, Wells Fargo, Barclays and RBC Capital Markets.
About Tech Data
Tech Data connects the world with the power of technology. Our end-to-end portfolio of products, services and solutions, highly specialized skills, and expertise in next-generation technologies enable channel partners to bring to market the products and solutions the world needs to connect, grow and advance. Tech Data is ranked No. 88 on the Fortune 500® and has been named one of Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies for 10 straight years. To find out more, visit www.techdata.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.
Apollo is a leading global alternative investment manager with offices in New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Bethesda, London, Frankfurt, Madrid, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Delhi, Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo. Apollo had assets under management of approximately $323 billion as of September 30, 2019 in credit, private equity and real assets funds invested across a core group of nine industries where Apollo has considerable knowledge and resources. For more information about Apollo, please visit www.apollo.com.
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US Navy formally charges 2 Navy SEALs, 2 special-forces marines in death of Green Beret
Copyright The E.W. Scripps Company
<p>Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar, a Green Beret, was killed in June in Mali. He was part of a small group of U.S. military personnel working Bamako, Mali in support of the U.S. Embassy.</p>
Two US Navy SEALs and two US Marines have been charged for their role in the June 2017 death of Army Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar in Bamako, Mali, a death that investigators determined to be murder.
"Charges were preferred yesterday against two sailors and two marines," the Navy said in a statement.
The charges include felony murder, involuntary manslaughter, conspiracy, obstruction of justice, hazing and burglary.
The official charge sheets accuse the two Navy SEALs and two Marines of breaking into Melgar's bedroom, physically restraining him with duct tape and placing him in a chokehold.
The charge sheets say the murder took place while the accused were "perpetrating a burglary."
The four service members are also accused of lying to investigators.
The Article 32 preliminary hearing for the four accused is currently scheduled for December 10.
"We honor the memory of Staff Sgt. Melgar, our thoughts remain with his family and teammates," US Navy Capt. Jason Salata, a spokesman for US Special Operations Command, told CNN.
"If these allegations of misconduct are substantiated, they represent a violation of the trust and standards required of all service members. We trust our service members to safeguard our nation's most sensitive interests and to do so with honor," Salata added.
Earlier this month, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service sent its report on the investigation into Melgar's death to Rear Adm. Charles Rock, the commander of Navy Region Mid-Atlantic, in order to "make determinations regarding administrative or disciplinary actions as appropriate."
Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer ordered Rock to oversee see disciplinary actions relating to Melgar's death in late October.
Military officials told CNN last year that a military examiner had ruled Melgar's death at a US government compound, near the American embassy in the capital of the West African nation, was a homicide.
The Navy took over the investigation from the Army in September 2017.
CNN previously reported that two members of SEAL Team Six were under investigation.
Melgar's cause of death was asphyxiation, according to a defense official familiar with the findings of the medical examiner's report.
Melgar, a native of Lubbock, Texas, enlisted in the US Army in 2012 and began Special Forces training in 2013, according to the US Army Special Command statement. He served two deployments to Afghanistan.
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HomeWebcastUnderstanding The Federal Trade Commission’s Proposed Framework for Consumer Privacy Protection
Understanding The Federal Trade Commission’s Proposed Framework for Consumer Privacy Protection
Live Webcast Date: Monday, June 06, 2011 from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm (ET)
Legal (CLE)Recording
Recording for this event is not available.
Unlimited Annual Pass
Consumer Privacy Protection
Join us for this Knowledge Group Consumer Privacy Protection Webinar. Over the last few years, many companies have used consumer information as a business tool to create innovative products and services. However, due to uncertainties in the responsible utilization of consumer data, the FTC has proposed a new framework to protect consumer privacy. In addition, comprehensive privacy bills have been introduced in Congress. A new framework, if enacted by the FTC or by Congress, is intended to develop and implement best practices and encourage self-regulatory privacy rules for commercial entities that collect, use, maintain, and share consumer information. Companies and their policy makers should have a complete understanding of how this new framework may impact their businesses and/or clients.The Knowledge Congress is assembling a panel of distinguished thought leaders and key regulators to help you understand the proposed framework for consumer privacy protection and how they impact your firm and your customers. The speakers will present their expert opinions in a two-hour webcast.
Themes from the Privacy Roundtables
Proposed Privacy Framework
Privacy By Design
Simplified Choice
Increased Transparency
Comments to the report
Consumer Law Attorneys/Consultants
Corporate Senior Officers
Kandi ParsonsStaff Attorney, Division of Privacy and Identity ProtectionFederal Trade Commission
KANDI PARSONS is an attorney with the Division of Privacy and Identity Protection in Bureau of Consumer Protection, at the Federal Trade Commission in Washington, D.C. Ms. Parsons investigates and prosecutes violations of U.S. federal laws governing the privacy and security of consumer information and has worked on the FTC’s enforcement actions under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Safeguards and Privacy Rules, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act. Before joining the Commission staff, Ms. Parsons was an associate with Hogan Lovells in Washington, D.C., specializing in health care privacy. Ms. Parsons served as a law clerk to the Honorable John Steadman of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals. She received her J.D., summa cum laude, from Georgetown University Law Center and her B.A. in English from Columbia University
Fran MaierExecutive Chair & PresidentTRUSTe
Fran Maier is the President and Executive Chair of the Board of TRUSTe. Fran has over 20 years of experience building consumer brands and enhancing consumer trust online. In her role as President, Fran’s operational responsibilities include oversight of TRUSTe’s brand and policy functions.Since joining TRUSTe in 2001, Fran has expanded TRUSTe’s brand with companies, regulators, and consumers. Fran was instrumental in the policy and product development of TRUSTe’s TRUSTed Download Program, TRUSTed Ads, and ongoing improvements to TRUSTe’s web privacy seal program. In 2008, under her leadership, TRUSTe secured significant investment capital and transformed from a non-profit industry association to a for-profit business.Earlier in her career, as a co-founder of Match.com, Fran established credibility, safety, and trust in online dating, making Match.com the leading online dating service. In executive marketing roles at Women.com and Kmart’s BlueLight.com subsidiary, Fran both established online start-up brands and brought blue-chip offline brands onto the Internet.Fran speaks and writes widely on issues of online privacy, security, and trust and frequently represents TRUSTe in front of domestic and foreign regulatory audiences, including the Federal Trade Commission, Congressional committees, and foreign data protection commissioners.In 2009, Fran won a Stevie Award for Women in Business for Best Executive in the category of Service Businesses with less than 100 employees. In 2010, AlwaysOn named Fran among the Top 25 Women in Tech to Watch in Silicon Valley. She is active in mentoring women in technology and serves on a number of internet and trust-related advisory boards. Fran holds a BA and MBA from Stanford University.
Lydia ParnesPartner, Privacy & Data Security, Consumer Regulatory & Privacy Media Former Director, Federal Trade Commission, Bureau of Consumer ProtectionWilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati
Dana RosenfeldPartner (Former Assistant Director of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Bureau of Consumer Protection)Kelley Drye & Warren LLP
Aaron Brauer-RiekePlesser Fellow, Staff AttorneyCenter for Democracy & Technology
Aaron Brauer-Rieke is the Ron Plesser Fellow at the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) where he focuses on consumer privacy and internet identity.Prior to joining CDT, Aaron worked as a law clerk at Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, where he focused on patent and digital media litigation. Aaron also interned with the ACLU of Northern California, where he focused on privacy, free speech, and emerging technology issues.Aaron earned his J.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, where he served as the Senior Online Editor of the California Law Review, an Editor of the Berkeley Technology Law Journal, and a Fellow with the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology. Prior to law school, Aaron worked as web developer and digital media specialist. Aaron graduated with a B.A. in Philosophy from Pacific Lutheran University.
Co-Founder & Vice President, Business Development and PrivacyEvidon
Colin leads Evidon’s strategy and policy teams, and spear-headed the Design Partner Program, which included agency holding companies, advertisers, networks and associations. An expert in privacy matters, he was the Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Programs at TRUSTe from 2003 to 2009, where he developed and launched self-regulatory programs for email (Bonded Sender Program, Email Privacy Seal) and Software (Trusted Download Program). Execution across these programs drove the transition of TRUSTe to for-profit status and an A-Round from Accel Partners.Earlier he was the Manager of Product Development at NetCreations from 1999 to 2002. Colin is a published author and has a BS in Economics and Human and Organizational Development from Vanderbilt University.
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The Knowledge Group has been a leading global provider of Continuing Education (CLE, CPE) for over 13 Years. We produce over 450 LIVE webcasts annually and have a catalog of over 4,000 on-demand courses.
Speaker Firms
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Kandi Parsons
Staff Attorney, Division of Privacy and Identity Protection
Fran Maier
Executive Chair & President
TRUSTe
Lydia Parnes
Partner, Privacy & Data Security, Consumer Regulatory & Privacy Media Former Director, Federal Trade Commission, Bureau of Consumer Protection
Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati
Dana Rosenfeld
Partner (Former Assistant Director of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Bureau of Consumer Protection)
Kelley Drye & Warren LLP
Aaron Brauer-Rieke
Plesser Fellow, Staff Attorney
Co-Founder & Vice President, Business Development and Privacy
Website: https://www.truste.com/
Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2011, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati offers a broad range of services and legal disciplines focused on serving the principal challenges faced by the management and boards of directors of business enterprises. The firm is nationally recognized as a leader in the fields of corporate governance and finance, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, securities litigation, employment law, intellectual property, and antitrust, among many other areas of law. With long-standing roots in Silicon Valley, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati has offices in Austin, Hong Kong, New York, Palo Alto, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Shanghai, and Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit www.wsgr.com.
Website: https://www.wsgr.com/WSGR/Index.aspx
Website: https://www.kelleydrye.com/index
The Center for Democracy and Technology is a non-profit public interest organization working to keep the Internet open, innovative, and free. As a civil liberties group with expertise in law, technology, and policy, CDT works to enhance free expression and privacy in communications technologies by finding practical and innovative solutions to public policy challenges while protecting civil liberties. CDT is dedicated to building consensus among all parties interested in the future of the Internet and other new communications media.
Website: https://www.cdt.org/
Selected by the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) to power its Self-Regulatory Program for Online Behavioral Advertising, Evidon (formerly Better Advertising) enables a more trusted environment for everyone in the online ecosystem. It gives businesses an easy, standard way of providing evidence of compliance with industry guidelines, and consumers more transparency into, and control over how their information is used online.
Website: https://www.evidon.com/
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Divertissement: A Review
By Michael Huff • September 01, 2006 • Send Feedback
Paul Archibald and Juliet Edwards, Divertissement. Brass Classics #BC3004. Personnel: Paul Archibald, trumpet and Juliet Edwards, piano. Selections: Rimsky-Korsakov, Capriccio Espagnol; Mussorgsky, Gopak; Tchaikovsky, Ballet Suite; Shostakovich, Prelude No. 18; Mussorgsky, Capriccio; Moszkowski, Moderato-Allegro; Moszkowski, Bolero; Moszkowski, Allegro brioso; Granados, Berceuse; Moszkowski, Con Moto; Delibes, Waltz; Delibes, Passepied; Ravel, Sonatine (2nd movement); Debussy, Passepied; Fauré, Song Without Words; Ravel, Rigaudon; Bizet, Carmen Suite.
Paul Archibald has led an impressive career as co-principal trumpet of the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, a member of the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble, The London Sinfonietta and as principal trumpet of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. He is currently an active performer with the chamber ensemble The Fibonacci Sequence in addition to his own group, the English Brass Ensemble and is actively involved in collaborations with percussionist Simon Limbrick and pianist Juliet Edwards in addition to an active teaching schedule.
According to Paul Archibald's website, the music on his CD entitled Divertissement was initially intended to expose young performers and listeners to classic melodies by composers of the 19th and 20th centuries. All of the music on the CD was transcribed for trumpet & piano by Mr. Archibald and is available for purchase. The arrangements are clear and convey the spirit of the original work very well. The trumpet playing is powerful, sensitive and executed with a distinctive, beautiful tone. The ensemble between Mr. Archibald and Ms. Edwards is excellent and the duo seems to convey successfully the enjoyment of performing together.
CD purchase information can be found on the Brass Classics website: www.brassclassics.co.uk. All of the works featured on the CD are published by Brass Wind Publications and available through their website at www.brasswindpublications.co.uk.
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Undergraduates and Graduates
HHU StartAbout HHUFacts and Figures
About HHU
Studying and Teaching at HHU
Research and Transfer at the HHU
Living in Düsseldorf
HHU Information Centre
University Facts and Figures
Our young university already has a long tradition: It has grown out of the Medical Academy founded in 1907. In 1965 the university was created by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It started with three faculties: the Faculty of Medicine, the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, and the Faculty of Arts and Humanities.
In 1988 it was renamed Heinrich Heine University and experienced a period of dynamic growth. In the 1990s two new faculties were added: the Faculty of Business and Economics and the Faculty of Law. Today, around 35,000 students, more than 2,000 lecturers and 900 further employees study, teach, and work on our campus. At the beginning of the winter semester 2018/19 we were able to welcome about 4000 new students.
HHU: "A Short Portrait" (pdf in English, 2 MB)
The University in numbers
Responsible for the content:
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Opportunities for women
Fairness in the workplace
Challenging harmful gender norms
Advancing diversity & inclusion
Promoting safety for women
Enhancing women’s access to training & skills
Enhancing entrepreneurial & life skills through our brands
Expanding opportunities in our retail value chain
Inclusive business
Empowered women play a vital role in reaching our consumers and enabling our business to grow. By building skills among our small-scale distributors and retailers, we're creating new opportunities for women while strengthening our business.
Why helping women is good for business
Stores sell our products in more than 190 countries
Our products reach consumers through around 25 million stores in more than 190 countries, as well as through direct sales from micro-entrepreneurs. We know that millions of women work in this network, and that women own or operate 30–40% of the outlets in what is known as 'traditional trade' – the mom-and-pop shops, corner stores, kiosks, open market stalls and street carts that are vital to our sales in developing markets.
We also believe there are potentially millions of new opportunities for women to enhance their livelihoods and help grow our business by helping us reach consumers in new ways − including in remote or hard-to-reach areas through what is known as 'last-mile distribution'.
We want to help women throughout our distribution network address the factors that can hold them back – such as a lack of training and skills, lack of childcare, social attitudes, or financial exclusion – while improving their access to markets, information and financing. We do this directly through our programmes, or in partnership with civil society organisations, governments or financial institutions.
Potential increase in income if gender gaps in employment are addressed
Research shows that by narrowing the gender gap in employment in emerging markets, income per capita could rise by as much as 20% by 2030.1 By creating opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship, and addressing gender barriers, we can help women grow their businesses and gain greater control over their incomes. At the same time, they're helping us build stronger supply chains, distribution networks and markets as part of our drive to create a truly inclusive business.
Kabisig: supporting women store-owners, building our sales
In the Philippines, more than 90% of all retail outlets are small, ‘mom and pop’ style stores at the heart of their communities – and nine out of ten of them are owned by women.
These stores – also known as 'sari-sari' – play a vital role in bringing our products to consumers. But because they are not part of a group or chain, they often don’t benefit from training or development and they can lack access to business skills and information.
Helping these entrepreneurs unlock their potential boosts their businesses and gives us an opportunity to reach more consumers with our brands. A key element of Kabisig lies in making connections between us and our retailers, but also among retailers themselves. The programme is run alongside our Super!Store initiative which works with bigger, established stores who each act as wholesalers for up to 120 Kabisig partners.
Our Kabisig programme brings store owners together with our distributors at Kabisig Summits, where they learn skills such as stock control, financial management, sales techniques and customer service. Over 2015−2018, around 180,000 store owners have benefited from the Summits. Since it began at scale in 2016, Kabisig has enhanced the skills and training of over 165,000 women store-owners, and helped around 24,000 people set up new businesses. At the same time, our sales volume in participating Super!Stores has grown by 7%−12% higher than stores that have not been through the programme.
This work contributes to the following Sustainable Development Goal
New business models, new women entrepreneurs, new opportunities
As well as working to enhance the businesses of women within existing retail networks, we've created new distribution models, especially in developing countries. These enable women to use their entrepreneurial spirit and the skills learnt in their training to reach consumers in novel ways – increasing our sales while enhancing their incomes.
More reach, more growth
By recruiting, training and supporting women as independent sales agents, we can empower them to generate new business. It’s a big opportunity, for us as well as them. Billions of people live in hard-to-reach rural areas, or in cities with limited retail infrastructure, and connecting these consumers with our brands is vital to our business growth.
We've developed a range of new distribution models which support sales agents in a variety of ways including extended credit, marketing, sales and accounting training and sometimes equipment. And by offering the new lines across our portfolio of brands, we can also help women-owned outlets stock a more diverse range of products – to attract more customers to their shops.
TRANSFORM: exploring empowering partnerships
Many women are already acting as sales agents in our distribution network − which we describe in detail in Empowering small-scale retailers for growth. And we continue to explore new models which have a positive social impact, including through public-private models that support social entrepreneurship. One example is the work done by TRANSFORM, a joint initiative between Unilever and the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID).
TRANSFORM identifies, funds and delivers technical expertise and capacity-building to social enterprises that meet low-income household needs in developing countries.
DFID and Unilever founded TRANSFORM in 2015 with an ambition to bring private sector creativity and commercial approaches to solve persistent global development challenges. To date, it has supported over 40 projects across eleven countries, which have already benefited over a half a million people.
TRANSFORM is supporting a number of social enterprises that empower women − including MumsVillage, a digital marketplace and peer sharing community for low-income mothers in Kenya, and Kasha a mobile e-commerce platform.
Tackling social stigma through e-commerce distribution models
Combining mobile phones with entrepreneurial spirit, e-commerce models have enormous potential to create positive impacts for women and communities at the same time as boosting economic growth.
Kasha, a mobile e-commerce and content platform founded in Rwanda in 2016 and supported by TRANSFORM, shows what can be achieved. It confidentially sells and delivers women’s health and personal care products such as sanitary pads, contraceptives and soaps, helping women in urban and rural areas overcome issues of social stigma, so they can purchase the health products they need. It delivers products through an innovative system that incorporates direct delivery, various pick-up points and a network of over 60 distribution agents. The company is now expanding into Kenya.
“The majority of our agents are widows, single mothers or primary breadwinners for their families,” said Malyse Uwase, Kasha's regional health and impact manager. “We look for women who are motivated and trusted in their community, who can explain products and help people through the ordering process. They’re the face of Kasha.” By December 2018, Kasha had delivered over 100,000 orders and had close to 20,000 customers.
The platform doesn’t require internet connectivity to browse and pay, so it’s accessible with a basic mobile phone. And it’s supported by work in schools to deliver health information sessions that help young female students learn more about their bodies and self-care in a positive and supportive environment.
This work contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goal
Shakti – empowered women reaching consumers
Women in our Shakti network in India
Our best-known distribution model is Shakti, our door-to-door selling operation in India which began in 2001. In 2018, it provided work for around 97,000 women in India’s low-income rural communities. Shakti means 'power' or 'empowered', and the programme's success has brought a new level of respect for many women, who are known as Shakti ‘ammas’ or ‘mothers’, especially in communities where the norm was traditionally for men to be responsible for any sort of commercial enterprise.
My contacts have increased. I was not social but now I speak to many ladies and I share information with them as well. Now people know me. I have an identity in society. We normally can’t go out but because of this programme, I can go out now. I get to know many people. It’s like a designation to me in society. My credibility has increased in society. People know me now.
Shakti amma, Maharashtra
Shakti entrepreneurs distribute our brands in many thousands of villages across India. We provide training on basic accounting, sales, health and hygiene and relevant IT skills. We also equip them with smartphones containing a mini Enterprise Resource Package to help them run their business efficiently. The initiative expanded in 2010 to include Shaktimaans, typically the husbands or brothers of ammas, who sell Unilever products by bicycle to surrounding villages.
Assessing the impact of Shakti & our wider work
We want to get a better understanding of the impact our programmes and initiatives are having so we can focus resources on the best models.
That's why we're conducting evaluations and building impact-measurement tools that help us gain, and share, insights.
For example, we asked research agency Kantar Public to look at the impact of Shakti in four states (Karnataka, Maharashtra, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh). Completed in 2017, the analysis showed that the opportunity to earn an income was the biggest motivation in prompting women to join the initiative, and that most of them had not been employed before. They felt that Shakti enhanced their monthly income, leading to an increase in spending capacity, and also improved their financial decision-making abilities.
It also found that the programme helped women to increase their confidence, self-esteem, negotiating skills, communication and engagement capabilities, and supported the development of the entrepreneurial mind-set needed to run a business. Building good communication skills is crucial: many of the women surveyed said they lacked confidence to speak to customers. But once they’d gained this confidence, customers said the Shakti ammas’ explanation of product benefits motivated them to try and buy our products.
We're exploring other impact measurement tools, too. As described in Our strategy, in 2018 we worked with Acumen to co-develop a survey tool, the Lean Data Gender Toolkit, which focuses on the lived experience of participants. We applied the model to our Shakti Colombia network as a pilot. Over the course of two weeks, phone surveys were completed with 204 participants. Women in the programme highlighted the following positives:
improved income (48%)
access to high-quality products for the household (39%)
access to a more robust social and professional network (11%).
The data (PDF - 1.8MB) has highlighted areas we can improve, though. Roughly half of all respondents said that margins are still relatively small and are often driven by cost savings in purchasing products for their own homes rather than sales to external clients. Participants also indicated challenges with delivery and the credit programme. These findings will help us improve the experience of participants and continue building a robust Shakti Colombia network.
How we’re extending our reach
Shakti has become our model for reaching out to rural consumers on low incomes in developing and emerging markets – and we’re adapting it at scale around the world.
With our experience in India as a base, we’ve launched related programmes in many more countries, such as Ethiopia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Colombia. In Nigeria, our Gbemiga programme incorporates our Shakti model along with nutrition and hygiene education, using an innovative mobile platform to encourage long-term behaviour change and reaching around 3,300 women in 2018.
In Ethiopia, we’re collaborating with a social enterprise called Kidame Mart and the BOP Innovation Center to implement a new cost-effective, ‘open-basket’ distribution model – one in which women micro-entrepreneurs sell a mixed basket of products from Unilever and other producers. The Ethiopia model currently includes over 400 women.
In Guatemala, in 2018 we developed a collaboration with CARE International in which our distribution model focuses not just on income creation, but also serves as a platform to address social barriers to women's empowerment with a strong emphasis on women’s rights.
And in countries including Nigeria, Ethiopia and Bangladesh, we're working on ways to widen the training and support we offer our distribution agents, broadening the impact we can have on whole communities, as well as on individuals' livelihoods.
Guddi Baji: building knowledge, confidence & sales in Pakistan
Farah Qadri, our Project Manager of Guddi Baji, explains: “Guddi Baji means ‘good sister’. The initiative shows it is possible to create opportunities in rural areas where women face many challenges. The programme began in 2012, when it trained rural women to become beauticians, which is a service and a career that is sought in many villages."
In 2015, we enhanced it by looking for ambitious women retailers with small ‘hole-in-a-wall’ shops that could sell our products. Today, the programme recruits entrepreneurs and supports them in running shops from their own homes, where they make an income selling our brands.
Some of these women live impoverished lives and are the sole breadwinners in male-dominated societies. Many have become a symbol of advice in rural areas – with a real impact in terms of boosting their confidence and self-esteem. And we’ve seen that female shoppers who would hesitate to deal with a male shopkeeper are now happy to buy from a woman shopkeeper.
By 2018, Guddi Baji had trained 1,309 women, refurbished their home shops and helped them with sales and marketing. Guddi Baji entrepreneurs are increasing their disposable income. Using these well trained and well stocked retailers has lowered the risk of shops selling counterfeit products, a common problem in many areas. And armed with a good knowledge of our products and how to use them correctly, Guddi Baji sales and the reputation of our brands have flourished. The network is now reaching nearly 350,000 customers and is providing a substantial uplift in our sales growth.
We’ve also started a collaboration with multiple partners, such as Women’s World Banking, Jazz Mobile, the Danish Development Organization (Danida) and RSPN (Pakistan’s largest NGO) to promote financial inclusion for Guddi Baji retailers, as around 50 million women in the country don’t have access to bank accounts. Through this partnership, we’re aiming to develop a network of JazzCash Guddi Baji retail agents who can offer access to financial services for their customers.
1 Private Sector Engagement with Women’s Economic Empowerment: Lessons Learned from Years of Practice
Targets & performance
Smart solutions for a water-scarce future
Empowering small-scale retailers for growth
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Oxnard students learn about careers in military
Representatives from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard were at Oxnard High School’s seventh annual Military Career Day on Wednesday, talking about the benefits of serving in the military.
Oxnard students learn about careers in military Representatives from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard were at Oxnard High School’s seventh annual Military Career Day on Wednesday, talking about the benefits of serving in the military. Check out this story on vcstar.com: https://www.vcstar.com/story/news/local/communities/oxnard/2017/04/05/oxnard-students-learn-careers-military/99539016/
Special to The Star Published 5:38 p.m. PT April 5, 2017 | Updated 11:59 p.m. PT April 5, 2017
April Melendez, a senior at Oxnard High School, gets out of the miniature F-16 at Military Career Day at the school on Wednesday.(Photo: JUAN CARLO/THE STAR)Buy Photo
At age 14, Aaliyah Williams hopes to map out her future by joining the Air Force, figuring it will ultimately help her family by covering her college tuition.
“Your college tuition, your housing — everything’s paid for,” said the Oxnard High School freshman, whose grandfather served in the Navy and whose father was in the Marine Corps. “That’s a big thing, especially for kids here in Oxnard, because not of all of us come from rich, wealthy families that can pay for all of that. It’s an opportunity for me to have a better education in the future, and it will help my family because once I get back from college, I won’t have any student debt.”
“Serving my country — that’s a main thing for me,” Aaliyah said. “We all talk about going and dying, and everybody’s all against the new president. But as long as we’re all alive and OK, I want to be a part of making people comfortable in our country because everything’s crazy right now.”
Among the military representatives on campus Wednesday was Tomas Gitlin, a Navy recruiter who lives in Oxnard.
“I did one semester of college and figured out that I was going to owe about $40,000 by the time I graduated,” said Gitlin, 27. “I wanted a way to get a college education and not have to pay for it. So I looked at all the branches, and the Navy was the most technical, and that’s what I was most interested in.”
Gitlin joined the Navy at age 19 and now works as a nuclear engineer on submarines. He is 12 units away from a bachelor's degree in nuclear engineering and technology from Thomas Edison State University.
“The Navy provides education, training and experience,” he said. “So when we decide to get out, we can go get those jobs that our counterparts went to school and paid $40,000 for. We can show up with the same education, training and experience at the job interview.”
Many students at Oxnard High School don’t know what they’re going to do after they graduate, said retired Air Force Maj. Dale E. Weaver, a senior aerospace science instructor and head of the Junior ROTC program at Oxnard High. He established the school's annual Military Career Day.
“A lot of them don’t go to college, so we want to give them the opportunity to hear about these careers so they have an option,” Weaver said. “It doesn’t mean it’s for everybody. It’s just another thing to consider.”
Benefits of serving include the opportunity to travel the world, as well as medical and dental benefits, he noted.
“You get a discount on a VA (Veterans Affairs) home loan and you get VA preference for hiring and federal jobs,” Weaver said. “Also, you’re serving your country.”
Students were able to get information about the Naval Academy, Air Force Academy and U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
“We want kids to recognize that challenge is an opportunity for them, that they can all apply,” said Marv King, representing the U.S. Naval Academy. “An academy education is worth about $250,000 now. It’s a full-ride scholarship, and you’re paid to go to school, and how many people can say that? Plus you’re guaranteed a job once you get out.”
Gallery: Military Career Day at Oxnard High School
April Melendez, a senior at Oxnard High School, gets out of the miniature F-16 at Military Career Day at the school on Wednesday. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR
Navy recruiter Tomas Gitlin talks with senior Blas Castaneda during Military Career Day at Oxnard High School. The event included a tug-of-war between military and students and a display of military equipment. A miniature F-16 was parked in the quad so students and teachers could sit in it and have their photo taken. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR
A tug-of-war takes place between military and students during Military Career Day at Oxnard High School on Wednesday. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR
Jeanette Chavez, left, and Sandy Gandi, both freshmen at Oxnard High School, do 25 push-ups and try for a free T-shirt at the California National Guard booth during Military Career Day at Oxnard High School. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR
Sophomore Diego Duarte does 20 pull-ups at the U.S. Marine Corps booth, earning him a free shirt, during Military Career Day at Oxnard High School. Duarte is in the Junior ROTC program at the school. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR
David Pasmant, a freshman at Oxnard High School, does 10 pull-ups at the U.S. Marine Corps booth, earning a free water bottle at Military Career Day at Oxnard High School. Pasmant is in the school's Junior ROTC program. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR
Junior Ashley Limon participates in the tug-of-war between military and students during Military Career Day at Oxnard High School on Wednesday. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR
Sgt. Louis Reza III, with the Army National Guard, talks with senior Jesus Rodriguez during Oxnard High School's Military Career Day on Wednesday. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR
Navy recruiter Natalie Gutierrez talked with students about her experience of joining the military right out of high school. The Navy paid for her education and gave her the chance to travel to Australia, Dubai and elsewhere. She is a master at arms who provides security for the Navy’s bases and ships.
“That’s why we’re out here encouraging high school students to think about their future: I wouldn’t be as successful as I am today without the opportunity that the Navy has provided me,” said Gutierrez, of Oxnard, who is in the process of earning her bachelor’s degree in criminology from the University of La Verne.
“I have no student debt,” she said. “I’m debt-free, thanks to the Navy.”
Shawn Weatherwax, 17, said he decided to join the Navy about five months ago after being denied the opportunity to attend UC Irvine.
“I can use the G.I. bill and get in that way,” said the Oxnard senior, who leaves for boot camp in September.
Alexis Lopez, 16, said he’s not sure what he wants to do after high school. But after talking with representatives from the Marine Corps on Wednesday, he said, “I think joining would be good for me.”
“It will change my life for the better because I’ll get discipline,” the Oxnard teen said. “And I’ll learn what it means to be a man — a soldier.”
Read or Share this story: https://www.vcstar.com/story/news/local/communities/oxnard/2017/04/05/oxnard-students-learn-careers-military/99539016/
Ventura police investigate city's first homicide of 2020
Ventura police seek shooting suspect
Millennial-friendly apartments coming to Simi Valley
Local doctor suspected of prescription fraud
Camarillo real estate agent pleads guilty to tax offense
Moorpark man suspected of DUI while on meth
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THE VEGALITARIAN SOCIETY
Are you a human supremacist?
Think about it. Most of us have been led to believe we are superior to other species. But are we?
To put our existence into perspective, evidence suggests that life on Earth has been around for approximately 3.7 billion years, yet our own species, Homo Sapiens, has existed for just about 200,000.
True, we are unique, but we aren't "more" unique than others. All creatures on earth, be they amoebas, humans, or whales, possess unique traits. None of these traits, however, are "better" or "best." Thinking otherwise inevitably leads to exploitation and abuse. As history has shown, most atrocities committed by humans correlate directly with the urge to feel superior, be it toward people of a different color, the other sex, or entire populations "different from us."
Feeling superior to non-human animals and nature itself, we risk not only destroying our environment, but putting our own species at risk of extinction.
Collaborating with prominent experts in diffusion methodology, marketing and social psychology, The Vegalitarian Society is setting in motion a sustained chain effect that in a significant way will cause positive changes across the world related to ethics, equality, health, the environment, poverty, hunger and justice. Specifically, the strategy involves the rapid diffusion of a vegan way of life for the entire population on earth.
Now, what's the most efficient thing you can do to veganize the place where you live? Seduce the most charismatic, healthy-looking and outspoken person you know — the person others seek for advice and who inspires change — to adopt a vegan way of life, and watch the world around you go cruelty free in a hurry. It's really that simple. Indeed — counter to popular belief, it is not mass media and their televised personalities that instigate change; rather, it is your personal friends who do — those well connected, highly admired individuals among you who inspire the people they know.
Watch the progress:
www.google.com/trends/explore#q=vegan (International)
www.google.com/trends/explore#q=vegano (Spanish/Italian)
www.google.com/trends/explore#q=純素 (Chinese)
www.google.com/trends/explore#q=טבעוני (Hebrew)
www.google.com/trends/explore#q=ビーガン (Japanese)
www.google.com/trends/explore#q=веган (Russian)
www.google.com/trends/explore#q=vegansk (Scandinavian)
www.google.com/trends/explore#q=végan (French)
COPYRIGHT © 2008–2020 THE VEGALITARIAN SOCIETY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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Business, Finance & Law > Economics > International economics > International trade agreements
The Evolution of the Trade Regime: Politics, Law, and Economics of the GATT and the WTO (Hardback)
J.H. Barton (author), Judith Goldstein (author), T.E. Josling (author), T. E. Josling (author), Richard H. Steinberg (author)
The "Evolution of the Trade Regime" offers a comprehensive political-economic history of the development of the world's multilateral trade institutions, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and its successor, the World Trade Organization (WTO). While other books confine themselves to describing contemporary GATT/WTO legal rules or analyzing their economic logic, this is the first to explain the logic and development behind these rules. The book begins by examining the institutions' rules, principles, practices, and norms from their genesis in the early postwar period to the present. It evaluates the extent to which changes in these institutional attributes have helped maintain or rebuild domestic constituencies for open markets. The book considers these questions by looking at the political, legal, and economic foundations of the trade regime from many angles. The authors conclude that throughout most of GATT/WTO history, power politics fundamentally shaped the creation and evolution of the GATT/WTO system. Yet in recent years, many aspects of the trade regime have failed to keep pace with shifts in underlying material interests and ideas, and the challenges presented by expanding membership and preferential trade agreements.
Publisher: Princeton University Press
The World Trade Organization: A Very Short Introduction
Amrita Narlikar
The Political Economy of the World Trading System
Bernard M. Hoekman
The Oxford Handbook on The World Trade Organization
Fair Trade For All
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Mental health campaign swears to get it right.
A client close to our hearts launched their first ATL campaign this week. Bold, brash and bang on-brand.
Takers of the tube, readers of The Guardian and watchers of Channel 4, may recently have spotted a new campaign raising the profile of mental health research. Dynamic research charity, MQ, has launched a disruptive, celebrity backed campaign “swearing” that they’ll take on the challenge of mental illness if the public will “swear” to help.
Quoting the alarming fact that 75% of mental illness starts before the age of 18, this particular campaign is focusing on the mental health of children and young people, and offering the hope that, whilst it feels like an impossible problem, there was also a time when we never thought we’d get a man on the moon. Crucially, the road to getting there is compounded by the fact that only £8 per person in the UK is spent on researching mental health, compared to £178 per person for cancer. This cause is a long, long way behind.
These were the facts we were appalled to discover when MQ came to us two years ago to define and evolve their identity into a brand – and we soon discovered what a perilous landscape mental health was. Language, brand promises and photography all had to communicate the weight of the issue, but without using the traditional shorthand health research goals of ‘cures’ and ‘beating it’. It was a cliché minefield.
The most dramatic part of their transformation though, was giving the brand, and therefore the charity itself, a clear sense of purpose. Putting the word ‘research’ into the logo, and a simple clarity on what they were trying to achieve brought a new focus, and importantly, a massive boost of confidence.
s3-news-tmp-56351-untitled_design_24-2x1-940.png
I had the pleasure of attending the launch of their first TV ad last week (developed by London agency Pablo) and felt tremendous pride in seeing both the clarity of the message and the simple communication of the brand itself, being brought to life. If we’ve done our job right, the brand should be able to be used by any number of creatives, and remain consistent. It’s even better when they absolutely nail it – especially when its doing something as important as MQ are trying to do.
We salute you guys. On every possible level.
Natalie Maher
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Royal Armouries Museum Leeds from the air
✔ S - small (1008 x 604)
✔ M - medium (1224 x 734)
aerial photograph of Royal Armouries Museum Leeds Yorkshire England UK. Royal Armouries Museum was opened in 1996 and is a branch of the Royal Armouries Museum in the Tower Of London. The museum is one of the world's oldest having been established in the tower in the 15th century. The Royal Armouries Museum building in Leeds was purpose designed by Derek Walker and Buro Happold at a cost of £42.5 million. The museum has more than 5000 exhibits ranging from the edieval period to the 20th century.
West Yorkshire / Leeds
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Home / Products / 77th Aviation Brigade Unit Crest (Force From Above)
77th Aviation Brigade Unit Crest (Force From Above)
United States Army 77th Aviation Brigade Unit Crest (Force From Above)
Criteria: Unit Crests are unique to each unit in the U.S. Army and are officially known as Distinctive Unit Insignia - although most Soldiers refer to them as "Unit Crests." The insignia design is derived from the coat of arms authorized for a unit. All personnel assigned to the organization wear the insignia, except general officers, the Sergeant Major of the Army and the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman. Enlisted personnel wear the unit crests on the green service uniform coat, centered on the shoulder loops equidistant from the outside shoulder seam to the outside edge of the button, with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. Enlisted personnel are not authorized to wear the unit crest on the Class A uniform. Officers wear the unit crest centered on the shoulder loops, equidistant from the inside edge of their grade insignia to the outside edge of the button, with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam.
Note: Sold in pairs (i.e., if you order a quantity of 1 you will receive two Unit Crests).
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Acciona starts up 102 MW wind farm in Mexico
CFE connected Acciona's Oaxaca II plant to Mexico's grid on February 6, and confirmed its operations on February 15
Madrid, February 22, 2012 — The Mexican unit of Spanish energy company Acciona has started operations at its 102 MW Oaxaca II plant in Mexico's Tehuantepec isthmus. The plants required total investment of some $690 million.
CFE connected Acciona's Oaxaca II plant to Mexico's grid on February 6, and confirmed its operations on February 15. Acciona's 102MW Oaxaca III plant started operations at the end of January, and its Oaxaca IV plant is set to start up on March 5.
Oaxaca II brings private sector wind power capacity in the country to 995 MW, and total wind capacity to 1.08 GW.
Acciona built the three plants under the independent power producer model and used 1.5 MW Acciona wind turbines.
In March 2010, CFE awarded the three projects to Acciona, and will purchase energy generated under a power purchase agreement. Acciona submitted offers to CFE in a range between $0.065/kWh and $0.070/kWh for the first year of operation, and the prices are indexed for the contract's 20-year duration.
Acciona currently has the most installed wind capacity of any company in Mexico, including the 251 MW Eurus plant in Oaxaca state, which is the largest wind farm in Latin America. Acciona built it under the self-supply model to provide energy to cement producer Cemex.
Mexico has the second most operational wind capacity in Latin America behind Brazil, which has some 1.6 GW.
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RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD vs. NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD
That cliché of zombies craving and eating human brains comes not from the George Romero masterpiece NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD or any of the follow-ups in the franchise. It began with THE RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD. Gotta give credit where it is due. Romero invented the trope of zombie Horror. Everything that came after, all of it, couldn’t have happened without him. But it was Dan O’Bannon’s Horror-Comedy that invented the thing about brains, and also the thing where zombies can actually talk—typically just muttering “Braaaaaiiins…”
John Russo and George Romero collaborated on NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. After the movie came out and the two parted company, both retained the rights to the zombie world that film had created. Russo could continue to use the title “living dead” but Romero could still use the zombies. This all came about due to the copyright flub that led to NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD becoming public domain. Russo went on to write a novel entitled RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD. Dan O’Bannon agreed to direct the film version of that novel, THE RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD, only if he could rework the script into a black comedy, because he didn’t want to rip off Romero’s idea. (Good for him.) Thus the film bears little resemblance to Russo’s book.
TheCheezman
WAYNE MILLER is the owner and creative director of EVIL CHEEZ PRODUCTIONS, specializing in theatrical performances and haunted attractions. He has written, produced, and directed (and occasionally acted in) over two dozen plays, most of them in the Horror and True Crime genres. He obtained a doctorate in Occult Studies from Miskatonic University and is an active paranormal investigator. Is frequently told he resembles Anton Lavey. And Ming the Merciless.
Denn die totden reiten schnell!
www.evilcheezproductions.blogspot.com
TheCheezman • July 7, 2019
THE RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD Scam Card
Lorraine Warren and the Haunted Graveyard
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You are here: Home > Food & Drink > Cyan Restaurant & Bar
Cyan Restaurant & Bar
97-99 Kings Road
BN1 2FW
Housed in Brighton's most iconic seafront hotel, The Grand Brighton, and managed by enthusiastic staff, Cyan is the sort of contemporary stylish eatery that appeals to locals and visitors alike.
The restaurant opened under its new name at the end of the 2019, having undergone quite the makeover. The 155-year-old columns and their surrounding circular bar are still a real focal point, but there have been a number of exciting change to this all-day dining spot.
Sustainability is of the utmost importance to the team, which is evident not only in the menu but also the decor – keep an eye out for Weez & Merl artworks made from recycled plastic waste. Boasting an interactive dining experience, Cyan’s chefs use only the freshest locally sourced ingredients for their top-notch offering of small plates and sharing platters. There are options aplenty whether you’re a meat-eater or vegan, with a wealth of nibbles and sharing dishes that can be enjoyed by everyone at the table.
With a capacity that holds up to 80 people, Cyan a popular choice for groups and there’s plenty of space for those looking to relax with a few drinks or a full meal. At the centre of the restaurant sits an interactive bar area, where Cyan's chefs serve up a selection of dishes direct from the pass, and is the perfect spot to perch for couples or solo diners. During the day, remote workers are welcome to take advantage of complimentary WiFi and charging points at the bar. Then at night, why not ask the talented bar staff to mix you up one of their wonderful cocktails; the garnishes even come from the restaurant’s very own micro-herb fridge...
£35-£50 per head
Exclusive hire of restaurant
The Grand Brighton, Brighton and HoveThe Grand Brighton is an iconic Victorian property that is steeped in British…
The Grand Brighton, Brighton and HoveAn iconic property and a unique city, The Grand is the perfect venue for…
Victoria Terrace, Lounge & Bar, Brighton and HoveEnjoy sea views in the opulent Victoria Terrace, Lounge and Bar with a…
facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cyanbrighton
twitter: https://twitter.com/cyanbrighton
instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cyan.brighton/
2020 (1 Jan 2020 - 31 Dec 2020)
* Open 11am – 10pm daily
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Tomo Koizumi—New York Fashion Week’s Breakout Star—Takes His Show Home to Tokyo
By Janelle Okwodu
Photo: Courtesy of Tomo Koizumi
What’s a young designer to do once they’ve become the toast of New York? For Tomo Koizumi, the answer was simple: take the show back home. After two seasons of enlivening New York Fashion Week with his tulle statement gowns and star-studded casts, Koizumi brought his arresting Spring 2020 collection to Tokyo Fashion Week with an event at its Roppongi Hills show space. For his first show in Japan, Koizumi wanted to innovate. “I always want to do something different from the last time,” he shared post-finale. “We had shown in New York and taken the collection through Europe, so it was important to go in different directions.”
Debuted on model Ariel Nicholson during a performance-art-meets-presentation event at Marc Jacobs’s Madison Avenue boutique in September, the pieces were familiar, but a switch in format allowed for new excitement. This time around Japan’s runway talent was on full display with aughts catwalker Ai Tominaga leading a cast that included stars like Chiharu Okunugi, Rina Fukushi, and Miki Ehara. “Every outfit has a character based on the colors and silhouette,” says Koizumi, who paired music and muse to create a mood to match each look. Lighter moments were punctuated by retro pop while darker pieces, like the black number worn by Tominaga, necessitated arias and movement to match. “I love Japanese models,” says Koizumi. “I’ve known Ai for some time, and I knew I wanted to work with her on this.”
The pageantry wouldn’t be effective if the clothes weren’t epic all on their own, and his mountainous tulle capes and dresses brought a degree of drama to a week dominated by streetwear. Koizumi, who is based in Tokyo, was pleased to share his creations alongside his fellow designers. “I think I’m known more internationally than domestically in the media, so I wanted to do something here,” he says. “I’m happy to be here and be a part of this.”
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‘It just sounded like something exploded’: School roof collapses in NC storm; 3 students injured
CLINTON, N.C. (WTVD/WRAL/CNN) - A North Carolina elementary school is closed for repairs after a microburst blew out a wall and part of the roof, injuring three students.
The National Weather Service confirmed that a microburst with winds up to 85 mph was to blame for the damage to Union Intermediate School in Clinton, N.C. (Source: WRAL/CNN)
As storms moved through the area, 21 students and a teacher at Union Intermediate School in Clinton, N.C., were in the gym Monday afternoon when suddenly, the wall came crashing down.
Surveillance video shows the children running the other way as bricks, wooden beams and other debris fly inside.
“The students were doing their gym activities, and all of a sudden, it’s just debris starts flowing in and you see the sky,” said Sampson County Schools spokesperson Wendy Cabral.
Cabral says the school’s roof came off over a stage area near the back of the gym. The National Weather Service confirmed Tuesday that a microburst with winds up to 85 mph was to blame for the damage.
Three fifth graders were taken to the hospital with minor injuries and released by Tuesday afternoon. They are all expected to be OK.
One of the students who was injured, Chloe Brewer says she was standing to the left of the gym when chaos erupted.
“It was our P.E. day. We were playing basketball, and it just sounded like something exploded in there,” she said. “I just turned around and was looking at the stage, and it just collapsed. Then, we started running. Something hit me from behind, and I fell down. Then, the glass started breaking.”
Principal Dondi Hobbs said the stage curtain was closed at the time and helped to serve as a buffer between the students and the debris.
"I am appreciative of God's blessings," she said. "He takes care of us and directs us all the time."
Administrators dismissed the students early on Monday. The school was closed Tuesday and Wednesday for cleanup and repairs. Engineers deemed the rest of the school safe, and students are expected to return Thursday. Officials say counselors will be on hand at that time to help students process what happened.
“What a blessing it is that only three students were injured and those three students are going to be OK,” Cabral said. “We can fix this building, but students are our priority. We’re very blessed that they’re OK.”
A microburst is a column of sinking air, sometimes called a downdraft, produced by thunderstorms. Sampson County was under a severe thunderstorm warning Monday from 2:12 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Hobbs says there were no warnings or weather alerts on staff phones before the burst struck. She says if it had happened Tuesday afternoon, the gym would have been packed with 450 students during an assembly.
Copyright 2020 WTVD, WRAL, Union Intermediate School, Sampson County Schools via CNN. All rights reserved.
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How to Stop a Missile From Hitting a Tank? Shoot It Down
Author: Spencer AckermanSpencer Ackerman
You basically have three options when a rocket propelled grenade or small missile is headed for your armored truck. You can try to steer it out of the way. You can hope the truck's armor plates are strong enough to withstand the impact. And you can pray.
Saab's North American branch thinks it has a fourth option: shoot the round down before impact.
At the Army's annual Washington D.C. convention, known as the Association of the United States Army confab, Saab is showing off specs for a system it's testing called the LEDS, or Land Electronic Defense Systems. In development for several years, LEDS is a missile pod mounted on a truck or a tank combined with a sensor system. Its job is to seek and destroy anything that wants to blow up its host vehicle.
LEDS's most important feature is the battery of laser and radar sensors mounted next to its weapon pod. The sensors hunt for an incoming round – lasers in case of a high-end, laser-guided missile system has the truck in its sights; radars for a plain old dumb weapon. (Both have been used against U.S. Army vehicles in Iraq.) Once a threat is sensed, the system's computers figure out the counter-trajectory to launch a Mongoose interceptor missile about the size of a water bottle from one of six tubes per pod. (Human operators are strictly optional.) The Mongoose, homebrewed by a Saab subsidiary in South Africa, is supposed to seek out the incoming round and explode over it, ideally within 20 to 50 meters of the truck.
LEDS is hardly the first "active protection" tech for tanks. The Israelis have one called Windbreaker that stopped an anti-tank missile this spring. With help from Darpa, the U.S. military looks like it's merging two similar systems, known as Iron Curtain and Crosshairs, into something that can effectively stop an incoming round before it hits a Mine Resistant Ambush Protected truck.
But LEDS won't really be ready to market to the U.S. Army until 2013 – when the drawdown in Afghanistan will be in full swing. Saab vice president Brian Lawrence says that his pods are built to attach to legacy Army vehicles, like Abrams tanks or Humvees, and Saab wants to be integrated onto the Army's truck of the future, the Ground Combat Vehicle. That is, if the Ground Combat Vehicle – expected to cost about $14 million per truck – survives imminent budget cuts.
And if the system works. The Mongoose is a dumb round, since outfitting a countermeasure for a $500 RPG with a GPS system would cost up to $50,000 per missile. And it sounds like there are a lot of moving parts between the sensor, the trajectory determination and the Mongoose firing.
Saab anticipates its system will cost between $200,000 and $500,000 per truck, which a cash-strapped Army might not be able to afford. "You can't afford not to protect these vehicles, and more importantly, the people inside," Lawrence says. That is, if the Army doesn't want its soldiers strapping scrap "Hillbilly Armor" to their trucks anymore.
Photo: Saab
See Also:- New Truck Blasts Missiles From The Sky — Then Targets The Shooter
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Army: You Sure We Won’t Fight Another Ground War?
Armored Vehicle Demand Blows Up (Updated)
#Army and Marines
#AUSA 2011
#RPGs
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Barrett Brown Signs Plea Deal in Case Involving Stratfor Hack
Author: Kim ZetterKim Zetter
Image: Free Barrett Brown Group
Barrett Brown, whose case became a cause célèbre after he was charged with crimes related to the Stratfor hack, has agreed to a plea deal with prosecutors, according to court filings.
Prosecutors filed a motion this week in a Texas court agreeing to seal the plea agreement, which the court granted (.pdf).
Brown's attorney, Ahmed Ghappour, won't discuss the matter, due to a court-ordered gag, but another document filed by the government this week (.pdf) hints at the nature of the deal.
In the document, which supercedes two of Brown's previous three indictments, the government charges Brown with two crimes: allegedly assisting the person who hacked Stratfor after the fact, and obstructing the execution of a search warrant targeting Brown.
The first charge is a new one and relates to assistance Brown allegedly gave the person who hacked Stratfor "in order to hinder and prevent [his] apprehension, trial and punishment."
According to the government Brown worked to create confusion about the hacker's identity "in a manner that diverted attention away from the hacker," which included communicating with Stratfor after the hack in a way that authorities say drew attention away from the hacker. The hacker is not named, and it's not clear if it's convicted Stratfor intruder Jeremy Hammond, or an earlier hacker who's known to have penetrated the company first.
The obstruction charge relates to an attempt by Brown and his mother to hide a laptop from authorities during a search of her home in March 2012. Brown's mother was separately charged with obstruction and given six months probation.
The two charges greatly reduce the amount of time he could face at a sentencing hearing, which previously had been estimated at more than 50 years.
Brown's earlier indictments were poised to become a First Amendment test case. He was charged with 12 counts centered around a link he posted in a chat room that pointed to a file containing data stolen in 2011 from the intelligence firm Stratfor, or Strategic Forecasting. The data, stolen by Hammond, a member of the loosely affiliated Anonymous collective, included company emails as well as credit card numbers belonging to subscribers of Stratfor’s service.
Brown didn’t steal the data but simply copied a hyperlink from one public chatroom and reposted it to another.
Eleven of his charges accused him of aggravated identity theft for possessing and trafficking in stolen authentication features — which authorities identified as the three- and four-digit card verification value (CVV) printed on the back of the cards.
Last month prosecutors dropped these eleven charges against Brown, after his attorney filed a motion to dismiss on grounds that Brown's alleged conduct did not violate identity theft statutes as written.
The twelfth charge, for access device fraud, had remained in place. That one accused Brown of illegally possessing the stolen cards — presumably cards that were found on his computer after he downloaded the Stratfor cache himself.
But that charge has disappeared from the superceding document the government filed this week, which replaced the indictment. In its place is the new charge for accessory after the fact.
Brown is scheduled to be re-arraigned, on the charges on the superceding document, on April 29 in Texas.
Brown is also facing charges related to threats he allegedly made against an FBI agent. It's unclear if the plea agreement will cover that indictment as well. If it does, and the two cases are combined, Brown's maximum statutory sentence would likely be five years.
Brown has been in custody since he was arrested in 2012 while in the middle of an online chat.
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Press Releases NDRC: Affiliates Invest in state activity
NDRC: Affiliates Invest in state activity
Patrick Rodenbush
[email protected]democraticredistricting.com
Washington, D.C. – The National Democratic Redistricting Committee and its affiliated entities are announcing investments to support candidates running in spring elections in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania and fight a potential change to the judicial selection process in Iowa. In addition, NDRC Chairman Eric H. Holder, Jr., the 82nd Attorney General of the United States, will be traveling to Wisconsin on March 14 and 15 ahead of the upcoming state Supreme Court race and Texas on March 20. Holder will meet with local activists, young people, and people of color to discuss the importance of engaging in state and local races. More details on specific events will be forthcoming.
“The National Democratic Redistricting Committee will continue focusing on the important state and local fights that matter a great deal in the day to day lives of the American people,” said Eric H. Holder, Jr. “With state legislatures set to draw new electoral maps in 2021, what happens at the state level over the next couple of years will shape the next decade of our politics. We can and must rebuild our democracy from the local level up.”
The National Redistricting Action Fund (NRAF), the 501c4 affiliate of NDRC, is investing $350,000 in Together Wisconsin Acts and BLOC (Black Leaders Organizing Communities) to support advertising and organizing for Judge Lisa Neubauer’s campaign for the Wisconsin Supreme Court that will be decided on April 2nd.
Gov. Evers: Takes action to address youth vaping
American Dairy Coalition: Statement on bi-partisan passage of USMCA
Rep. Steineke: An important step in the fight to end homelessness
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Jacksonville regains no-kill status in animal shelters for 2019
The Jacksonville Humane Society and Animal Care and Protective Services announced the city of Jacksonville, once again, earned the no-kill designation for the year of 2019. According to Best Friends Animal Society, “A no-kill community is a city or town in which every brick-and-mortar shelter serving and/or located within that community has reached a 90% save rate or higher and adheres to the no-kill philosophy, saving every animal who can be saved.' According to a release put out by the JHS, the save rate for APCS was 90 percent and for JHS it was 95 percent, making a citywide save rate of 93 percent. In total, 16,874 animals entered the JHS shelters in 2019, which is a significant decrease from 19,366 animals in 2018, according to the JHS. According to JHS, Jacksonville earned the distinction of being the largest city in the United States to earn a no-kill status. The city has maintained that status until last year when ACPS save rate fell to 86 percent. “Examining the data and trends in 2017 and 2018 resulted in our renewed focus on cats and kittens in 2019,” said Deisler. “As a community, we had to take a look at ourselves ask – what can we do to save those lives? We knew that with the help of our community, a return to no-kill was possible. We are excited about the results from 2019 and even more excited for 2020. Thank you, Jacksonville!”
Fallen FHP troopers honored with roadway designation
Thirty-nine years after three Florida Highway Patrol troopers were killed in a plane crash, the state is honoring their sacrifice with a roadway designation. On July 13, 1981, Cpl. Cleo “Tommy” Tomlinsons, Trooper Merle Cook and Trooper Robert Pruitt were in an airplane that crashed in St. Johns County while assisting in the search for two suspects wanted for breaking and entering. “We had received a call requesting assistance from the Sheriff’s Office on some burglary suspects they were trying to track,” retired FHP Trooper Rick McIntyre said. McIntyre said it happened on a Monday. He dropped off his co-worker and friend, Tomlinson, at the airport so he could help search the wooded area. On his way back to assist on foot, he witnessed the horrific plane crash. “A person goes into shock when they see something like that,” McIntyre said. “At the time, I had less than five years on the patrol and it was something horrible to witness.” As the calls went out over the service radio, Tomlinson’s son was on the receiving end. He was in training to become a trooper. “I can remember every detail about that day,” Tomlinson’s son and retired FHP trooper Chet Tomlinson said. “That day I was in recruit training at Parris Island.” That day, three families lost a husband and father. The community lost three troopers who were protecting their homes. Now, almost four decades after the crash, family members said they are thankful that their fathers’ sacrifices have not been forgotten. “Hopefully the people and the citizens of the state of Florida understand the sacrifice the officers make each and every day when they walk out the door,” Tomlinson said. Of the 48 FHP troopers who have died in the line of duty, fewer than half have received a roadway designation. The sign, which includes all three troopers, is on U.S. Route 1 and stretch about 5 miles long. The FHP said it is in dedication of their sacrifice and a reminder for drivers to stay alert while on the road.
Dozens of strangers show up to make sure homeless veteran gets proper burial
Dozens of strangers showed up Friday afternoon at the Jacksonville National Cemetery to make sure a local homeless veteran got the proper burial he deserved. Many of the people attending didn’t know John Meade Jr. was a veteran when he was alive. But they wanted to honor him properly, now that he’s gone. “He was very much appreciated, and we all appreciate the service that he did. Not only for everybody else, but what he stood for,” said Shirley Greco, who attended the ceremony. He had a lot of family at his funeral – maybe not in blood, but in spirit. “I really do wish that he could be here to see the turnout today for him, I really do. And I think there’s a way that he knows how it turned out today,” Greco said. “Whoever the vet is, doesn’t get buried with no family, so we become their family,” said Wayne May. For at least 10 years, Meade sat on a bench in downtown St. Augustine every single day, and was a friendly face to everyone who passed by. While he talked to everybody, no one knew much about him. After Meade died, an officer with the St. Augustine Police Department spent 80 hours digging for information about him. When the officer found out he served in the Army, he wanted Meade to have a proper burial. He asked the community to come out to Jacksonville’s National Cemetery, and they showed up by the dozens. “People did care about him, and he’s never alone,” said Ken White, a veteran. “I wish I would’ve known him,” another veteran said.
School’s failure to stop racist, sexist bullying led to 9-year-old girl’s suicide, lawsuit states
McKenzie Adams was 9 years old when she took her own life on Dec. 3, 2018, in her Linden, Alabama, home. A federal lawsuit filed Thursday by her family alleges that administrators and teachers at her elementary school, U.S. Jones Elementary in Demopolis, failed to protect her from incessant bullying. Demopolis is located in west Alabama, about 60 miles southwest of Tuscaloosa. “(The defendants) exhibited deliberate and blatant indifference to the wrongful persistent bullying and harassment, rife with racial and gender-based slurs, imparted upon McKenzie by a boy who was her classmate,” the lawsuit states. Linden and Demopolis police officials investigated the allegations of bullying in the wake of McKenzie’s hanging death but said they could not find the evidence to back up the family’s claims. The school also denied the allegations that bullying had been reported to administrators by the girl or her family. “We have concluded our internal investigation to the allegations of bullying which led to this senseless death. There have been no findings of any reports of bullying by either the student or family,” a Dec. 11, 2018, statement from the school district said, according to the Tuscaloosa News. “The findings of this internal investigation are consistent with the results of the investigation of the Linden Police Department at this point in time.” McKenzie’s family begged police to reopen the investigation. Her mother and grandmother are adamant that the bullying was reported to school officials multiple times. “Her case deserves a second look,” her weeping mother, Jasmine Adams, said at a news conference last January, according to WBRC in Birmingham. “There are things that could have been missed on the first go-round. And I just feel she deserves a second look at her case.” Hundreds of mourners attended the girl’s funeral, which was held in the gymnasium of her school. According to the News, a wreath of flowers spelling out “You are loved, little one” stood near her white casket. McKenzie, who family members said hoped to be a scientist when she grew up, wore a silver tiara as she was laid to rest. McKenzie’s mother and grandmother, Janice Adams, filed Thursday’s lawsuit on behalf of the girl, whose death made national headlines. Named in the lawsuit are the school, the Demopolis school system, Superintendent Kyle Kallhoff, then-U.S. Jones principal Tori Infinger, then-assistant principal Tracy Stewart and fourth-grade teacher Gloria Mims. Infinger resigned in April 2019, according to the Demopolis Times. It was not immediately clear Friday where Stewart is currently employed, but Mims remains listed as a teacher on the U.S. Jones website. “The Demopolis City Board of Education has only recently learned of a lawsuit filed against them on behalf of McKenzie Adams,” the school system’s attorney, Alex Braswell, said in a statement obtained by WSFA in Montgomery. “While we are not permitted to discuss pending litigation, the Demopolis Board of Education can say that we look forward to defending this case and dispelling the allegations made therein.” ‘Tell it to the wall because I do not want to hear it’ The lawsuit, which seeks compensatory and punitive damages, alleges that McKenzie, who was enrolled at U.S. Jones Elementary for the 2018-2019 school year, was “targeted and taunted” by a white 9-year-old in her class, who called her the N-word and an “ugly a** bit**.” The abuse took place both in the classroom and in the school gym, her family claims. “According to information and belief, on Oct. 24, 2018, (the boy) passed a note to McKenzie in which he called her a “bit**” while in the classroom of defendant Mims,” the lawsuit states. He also used sexually explicit terms in the note. The Adams family believes the abuse stemmed from the fact that McKenzie went to and from school with a white friend and the friend’s mother. McKenzie wrote in her diary Nov. 5, 2018, that two boys at school had been bullying her, the suit alleges. “Upon information and belief, on the date of her death, Dec. 3, 2018, (the boy) told McKenzie to kill herself, told her that she was better off dead, and instructed her on the manner to take her own life,” the lawsuit says. McKenzie’s mother and grandmother say Mims, who was McKenzie’s math teacher at the time of her death, was aware but “deliberately indifferent” to the bullying taking place. Janice Adams, the girl’s grandmother, attempted in August 2018 to set up a meeting with Mims to discuss the ongoing abuse. “Plaintiff Janice Adams never received a return call from Mims,” the suit states. She tried again in September to set up a meeting to discuss the abuse and what it was doing to McKenzie’s “state of mind.” “On Oct. 1, 2018, she received a generic notice that there was no need for a parent-teacher conference,” the lawsuit says. Progress reports came out that month, and McKenzie’s report indicated she was failing math, the class Mims taught. Ordinarily, her family told media outlets, McKenzie excelled in math. “Plaintiff Janice Adams was aware that McKenzie was struggling in the course due to emotional challenges resulting from the bullying and harassment that McKenzie was experiencing in her class,” the complaint said. “Concerned about McKenzie’s state of mind, plaintiff Janice Adams went to Mims’ classroom on Oct. 12, 2018, to request a meeting with Mims. “At that time, Plaintiff Janice Adams identified (the alleged bully), informed Mims that McKenzie was being bullied by him, and asked that the school address the bullying. Plaintiff Janice Adams left her contact information for a follow-up meeting. Mims failed to call her back.” The lawsuit states that Infinger was present for the meeting and was made aware of the supposed bullying going on in Mims’ classroom. Janice Adams claims the principal failed to act. On Oct. 24, Mims obtained the harassing note the boy passed McKenzie in class. Mims contacted the girl’s grandmother and told her that, instead of disciplining the boy, McKenzie would be disciplined for responding to the bullying, the lawsuit states. Talking to law enforcement officials later, Mims admitted that there were two boys, including the one indicated in the lawsuit, who “bothered” everyone in the class, the court document says. Mims told police the boy was “often jumping around and striking other children.” She called him a “clown” and said the boy was always in trouble. Despite his behavior, the lawsuit alleges, no action was taken to discipline the boy for his harassment of McKenzie. McKenzie complained to the teacher multiple times about the bullying. “Upon information and belief, on numerous occasions, Mims instructed McKenzie to ‘tell it to the wall because I do not want to hear it,’” the lawsuit states. Read the entire federal lawsuit filed on behalf of McKenzie Adams below. The lawsuit alleges that Mims admitted to law enforcement that she was aware that the boy was engaged in conduct defined as bullying by Demopolis City Schools, that he specifically targeted McKenzie and that McKenzie’s family was concerned about the emotional impact the bullying had on the girl. “Upon information and belief, Mims was aware that one risk factor for suicidal ideation was bullying,” the suit says. The complaint states that Mims violated school and district policy by failing to notify Infinger, the principal, or the central office of the first instance of bullying. She also failed to inform them of the continual bullying and failed to take action on her own to stop the harassment, the document says. “Defendant’s deliberate indifference created a dangerous environment and barred McKenzie’s access to a safe learning environment. As the direct result of Mims’ conduct, McKenzie committed suicide,” the lawsuit alleges. The lawsuit also blames Infinger’s lack of action for the girl’s death. It states she had actual knowledge of the behavior toward McKenzie and failed to train teachers and administrators on gender- and race-specific bullying. Stewart is named in the lawsuit because McKenzie’s family alleges that Mims gave the harassing note of Oct. 24, 2018, to the assistant principal and she did nothing to stop the bullying. “Stewart contacted McKenzie’s family on Oct. 25, 2018, regarding the note,” the lawsuit states. “At that time, plaintiff Janice Adams informed Stewart that McKenzie was being bullied and had been bullied since the commencement of the school year.” Stewart informed Adams that McKenzie would be punished for responding to the note. It was not clear in the filing what the girl’s response was. “Following the phone call with plaintiff Janice Adams, Stewart spoke on a three-way phone call with plaintiff Janice Adams and McKenzie’s mother, plaintiff Jasmine Adams, to discuss McKenzie’s discipline regarding the note,” according to the lawsuit. “Plaintiff Jasmine Adams expressed concern about the bullying, the harassment and the fact that McKenzie was being disciplined by U.S. Jones.” The distraught mother informed Stewart that she planned to contact the State Department about the persistent bullying and harassment. “Stewart asked plaintiff Jasmine Adams not to contact the State Department and stated that U.S. Jones would handle the matter,” the suit says. “However, U.S. Jones did not handle the matter.” The lawsuit alleges that the school system did not adhere to state and federal anti-bullying measures. It claims that all the defendants named in the complaint had participated in the Jason Flatt Suicide Prevention Program, a program by The Jason Foundation designed to provide professional development for teachers and youth workers so they can better identify children at risk for suicide. The foundation was created in 1997 by Clark Flatt after his 16-year-old son, Jason Flatt, died by suicide. The lawsuit also claims the school and district failed to comply with the Jamari Terrell Williams Bullying Prevention Act, which AL.com reported was enacted to strengthen the state’s 2009 anti-harassment law. The act requires schools to define, control, report and stop bullying. The act is named after 10-year-old Jamari Williams, a gifted Montgomery dancer and honor roll student who took his own life Oct. 11, 2017, after being bullied for “being different,” according to the website for a foundation set up in his name. The federal lawsuit in McKenzie’s death accuses the district of violating Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits harassment based on gender, as well as Title VI, which prohibits discrimination based on race. The lawsuit also accuses the school system of denying Adams equal protection under the 14th Amendment. It asks for compensatory damages “in an amount that will fully compensate McKenzie and her family for all they suffered” and such punitive damages that would “properly punish them for the constitutional, statutory and common law violations perpetrated upon McKenzie as alleged herein, in an amount that will serve as a deterrent to defendants and others from engaging in similar conduct in the future.” Since McKenzie’s death, her aunt, Eddwina Harris, has been working to kickstart an anti-bullying organization called the McKenzie Foundation. A GoFundMe page set up to collect donations has raised $12,830 of its $20,000 goal. A large portion of the work of the McKenzie Foundation appears to be public speaking on the dangers of bullying. “If you knew your child was at a place where there was a ticking time bomb, you would come and get them out,” Eddwina Harris told the News following her niece’s funeral. “The time is now to get them out of a dangerous situation.” As for the national publicity McKenzie’s death received, Harris said she believed it would do some good in the wake of tragedy. “It’s touching that one little 9-year-old girl has changed the lives and minds of so many people and it’s going to stick with us for the rest of our lives,” she said.
Suspect arrested for November shooting death of Jacksonville mom
Two months after a young mother was found shot to death in a southside apartment off Gate Parkway, Jacksonville Police have announced an arrest. Police obtained an arrest warrant on Thursday for 23-year-old Keeshawn Glover for charges of second degree murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. 24-year-old Felisia Williams was found dead in her home at the Gardens of Bridge Hampton Apartments near Belfort Road. Family and friends say Williams had a 4-year-old daughter. According to JSO, Williams and Glover knew each other, but they did not elaborate on their relationship.
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El Morro National Monument - Unique Places in North America
El Morro National Monument is located in the US state of New Mexico.
El Morro National Monument is a popular tourist destination.
El Morro National Monument is located to the west of the state of New Mexico’s legendary east-west trail. The shaded oasis has hosted travelers for over 2,000 years. Visitors called it the Inscription Rock, where travelers inscribed different kinds of writings such as names, dates, signatures, and stories of their journeys. Spaniards named the land El Morro which means “the headland.” American Indians were the native settlers and gave the land a name, Atsina which means “inscription stone.”
As one approaches the majestic promontory, it is easy to tell why the monument is such a tourist spectacle. Some famous emigrants who left their inscriptions at the monument include Leonard Rose and John Udell of the Rose-Baley Party. There also exist intriguing stone carvings that were made by the Ancestral Puebloan who lived many centuries before Europeans made their first mark. Natural features and ecosystems include the pool, tinajas, and cryptobiotic soils. A more detailed description of the landmark is available on loan from the Rangers. It contains the exact locations of the inscriptions and has interpretations for most of them.
El Morro is well endowed with a great variety of birds, reptiles, amphibians, and butterflies. Numerous bird species live here. Reptiles include the fearsome diamondback rattlesnake, docile bullsnake, sagebrush lizard, and the New Mexico whiptail. The reptiles and other carnivores are sustained by the high rodent population. Amphibians include tiger salamanders which feed on frogs and worms. The presence of blooming flowers dramatically motivates the influx of butterflies to the site.
The monument is free to enter and has many benefits. First, there is a Visitor Center with a gift shop, restrooms, and a free 15-minute video. For those who dread rocky mountain hiking, El Morro’s hiking trails have made the exercise bearable by the stairs which run all the way to the top of the rock formation. Ruins left by Native Americans have also been the delight of tourists. A short stroll through the park trails will reveal many inscriptions, the water pool, and the promontory. However, making more carvings or inscriptions was prohibited by the US federal law in 1906. A more recent legacy features El Morro National Monument in Four Faces West film of 1948.
The monument had received 59,422 tourists by 2016 from different parts of the world to catch a fleeting glimpse of what native settlers experienced. There is a myriad of leisure activities to enjoy at the El Morro which include hiking, walking, picnicking, and so on. Visitors can engage in a fascinating 2-mile hike across the top of the rock formation. The campgrounds are also great and have a pit latrine for a restroom.
The native flora and fauna that beautified the ancient El Morro grounds have significantly reduced over the years. Reducing flora in the site is the primary threat that is raising concerns among the monument’s management. In addition to habitat threats, the monument’s inscriptions are gradually fading away due to weathering and a high tourist footfall.
What is the El Morro National Monument?
This page was last updated on May 4, 2018.
Fertility Rates In China: 1930 To 2020
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The Richest Cities in India
Delhi has the largest per capita income out of all Indian cities.
Mansions line the street of Mumbai, India. Editorial credit: bodom / Shutterstock.com.
India is ranked as the world's second-largest country by population after China, and the country has approximately 4,000 cities and towns. About 300 cities have a population exceeding 1 million whereas seven cities have a population exceeding 3 million people. It is estimated that about 108 million people live in the different largest cities in India.
Currently, the country is home to about 1.0 2 billion people. According to the estimates by the United Nations India will overtake China as the most populated country in the world by 2050. Currently, India constitutes 16.7% of the world population with a population growth rate of about 1.4%. Some of the register cities in India include.
Delhi is the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT) and covers an area of 573 square miles. By 2011 the population of Delhi was more than 11 million people, which was the second-highest in the country after Mumbai. The whole metropolitan area of Delhi had about 16.8 million people. By 2016 the population was more than 26 million people making it the second largest urban area in the world according to the United Nations. As of 2016 the city of Delhi was the most productive metro area in India and it is now the wealthiest city in the country with the nominal GDP per capita of $3,580. Delhi is estimated to have wealth valued at $450 billion and more than 18 billionaires and 23,000 millionaires.
Mumbai is the state capital of Maharashtra, and its official name was Bombay until 1995 when it changed the name. Presently, it is the most populated urban area in the country having approximately 12.4 million people. In 2008, the city of Mumbai was named one of the world’s alpha cities, and it is India’s second wealthiest city.In 2013 the city had a nominal GDP per capita of $1,990 and GDP per capita based on purchasing power parity of $7,005. The city of Mumbai is India’s center of commerce, finance, and entertainment and it is ranked the top-10 commercial capitals of the world. The city contributes approximately 6.16% of the GDP and accounts for 25% of the country’s industrial output. The city is home to crucial financial institutions like the Reserve Bank of India among other major financial players in the country.
The city of Chennai was initially known as Madras, and it is the state capital of Tamil Nadu. Chennai city is one of the largest economic, cultural, and educational centers in the southern part of India. In 2011 the city was the sixth largest and the fourth most populous urban centers in India. The metropolitan area is ranked as the sixth largest urban area regarding population, and it is among the most visited urban centers by foreigners in India ranking the world’s 43rd most visited city in the world by 2015. The city of Chennai is the safest urban area in the country. However, with the large population, Chennai has experienced substantial pollution and other socio-economic problems. In 2013 the city was ranked the third wealthiest city in the country with nominal GDP per capita of $1,870, while in 2014, it had GDP per capita based on purchasing power parity of $6,469.
Problem With Major Cities
Several problems have been associated with the major cities across the country, and these include housing problems and sprawling slums, transportation and traffic crowding, sanitation, acute pollution, shortage of water supply, and problems associated with drainage.
City
1 Delhi $3,580
2 Mumbai $1,990
3 Chennai $1,870
4 Hyderabad $1,430
5 Bangalore $1,420
The Richest Cities in Canada
The Richest Cities in China
The Richest Cities in California
The Richest Cities In Europe
The Richest Cities in the World
10 Famous Circus Performers of the 20th Century
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Impact Wrestling Announces WrestleMania Week Schedule In New Orleans
Posted By: Ben Jordan Kerin on Apr 03, 2018
Impact Wrestling has announced their full line-up and Twitch streaming schedule for WrestleCon.
Below is the official press release:
IMPACT Wrestling Announces Matches, Twitch Streaming Schedule, Press Conference for WrestleCon
TORONTO | NEW ORLEANS – Impact Wrestling announced today the full line-up and Twitch streaming schedule for WrestleCon, highlighted by IMPACT Wrestling vs. Lucha Underground on Friday, April 6 at 10:00 p.m. ET (9:00 p.m. CT, local time).
IMPACT Wrestling will live stream 30+ hours of on-site coverage from WrestleCon, in and out of the ring, including daily IRL streams, exclusive podcasts and the historic live event on Friday night from The Sugar Mill in New Orleans (1021 Convention Center Blvd).
The main event for IMPACT Wrestling vs. Lucha Underground will feature an intra-promotional fight with ramifications on the Redemption pay-per-view, as IMPACT World Champion Austin Aries will team up with Fenix against the team of Alberto El Patron and Pentagon Jr.
The main event for Redemption, which takes place on Sunday, April 22 in Orlando, Fla., is a World Title match with Austin Aries putting his gold on the line against former titleholder Alberto El Patron – and the two will be talking all about their feud on Friday, April 6 at a press conference starting at 5:30 p.m. ET (4:30 p.m. CT) at the Royal St. Charles Hotel (135 Saint Charles Ave). The public is invited to attend the press conference streaming live on Twitch, as Aries and El Patron continue their personal war of words.
IMPACT Wrestling's coverage of WrestleCon won't be limited to in-ring action, as there will be plenty going on from April 5 to April 7, and the IMPACT Wrestling Channel on Twitch will be live streaming all the festivities from WrestleCon, starting on Thursday, April 5 at 8:00 p.m. ET (7:00 p.m. CT) with a live two-hour "Twitch Cast" anchored by Josh Mathews and Sonjay Dutt.
The confirmed matches for IMPACT Wrestling vs. Lucha Underground include:
- Austin Aries & Fenix vs. Alberto El Patron & Pentagon Jr.
- Eddie Edwards vs. Jeremiah Crane (I Quit Match)
- Allie vs. Taya Valkyrie (Knockouts Championship)
- LAX vs. Killshot & The Mack (Tag Team Championship)
- Dezmond Xavier, Andrew Everett & DJZ vs. Drago, King Cuerno & Aerostar
Also scheduled to appear are IMPACT Wrestling stars Eli Drake, Brian Cage, Moose, Matt Sydal, Trevor Lee, Caleb Konley, oVe and Scott Steiner, plus Lucha Underground's Famous B, Jack Evans, Chavo Guerrero and Matanza.
Follow IMPACT Wrestling's live streaming schedule on Twitch below:
- 8:00 p.m. ET – 10:00 p.m. ET – "Twitch Cast" hosted by Josh Mathews and Sonjay Dutt from the lobby of WrestleCon in New Orleans.
- 10:00 p.m. ET – 11 p.m. ET – Dinner with the stars of IMPACT Wrestling.
- 11:00 p.m. ET – 1:00 a.m. ET – Moose travels to WaleMania to hang out with rap star Wale and other professional wrestling luminaries.
- 8:00 a.m. ET – 9:00 a.m. ET – Morning workout with former IMPACT World Champion Eli Drake.
- 9:00 a.m. ET to 10:00 a.m. ET – "Car Cast" hosted by Josh Mathews and Sonjay Dutt as they get ready for the first day of WrestleCon.
- 10:00 a.m. ET to 4:00 p.m. ET – IRL WrestleCon floor featuring a talent signing with IMPACT Wrestling stars Matt Sydal, Eli Drake and Alberto El Patron.
- 4:00 p.m. ET to 5:00 p.m. ET – Knockouts star Rosemary visits a voodoo shop to have her palms read.
- 5:00 p.m. ET to 5:30 p.m. ET – "Twitch Cast" with Josh Mathews and Sonjay Dutt as they prepare for the Redemption press conference.
- 5:30 p.m. ET – 6:30 p.m. ET – Live press conference for IMPACT: Redemption featuring main event rivals Austin Aries and Alberto El Patron.
- 6:30 p.m. ET – 8:00 p.m. ET – Dinner with the Cult of Lee: Trevor Lee and Caleb Konley.
- 8:00 p.m. ET – 9:00 p.m. ET – Live pre-show for IMPACT vs. Lucha Underground hosted on-site at The Sugar Mill.
- 9:00 p.m. ET – 10:00 p.m. ET – WrestleCon VIP experience featuring all the stars of IMPACT Wrestling.
- 10:00 p.m. ET – 12:30 a.m. ET – IMPACT Wrestling vs. Lucha Underground LIVE
- 12:30 a.m. ET – 1:00 a.m. ET – Live post-show for IMPACT vs. Lucha Underground, including exclusive interviews, fan reactions and more.
- 1:00 a.m. ET – 2:00 a.m. ET – The IMPACT Wrestling cameras follow DJZ as he competes at a local event.
- 7:00 a.m. ET – 8:00 a.m. ET – Coffee with former IMPACT World Champion Eddie Edwards.
- 8:00 a.m. ET – 9:00 a.m. ET – Morning workout with IMPACT Tag Team Champions LAX.
- 9:00 a.m. ET – 10:00 a.m. ET – "Twitch Cast" hosted by Josh Mathews and Sonjay Dutt.
- 10:00 a.m. ET – 4:00 p.m. ET – IRL WrestleCon floor featuring a talent signing with IMPACT Wrestling stars Moose and Eddie Edwards.
- 4:00 p.m. ET – 5:00 p.m. ET – Beignet donut tasting with Jimmy Jacobs.
- 5:00 p.m. ET – 6:00 p.m. ET – Hangout with oVe – Dave Crist, Jake Crist and Sami Callihan.
- 6:00 p.m. ET – 7:00 p.m. ET – "Twitch Cast" hosted by Josh Mathews and Sonjay Dutt.
- 7:00 p.m. ET – 8:00 p.m. ET – Dinner with the stars of IMPACT Wrestling.
- 8:00 p.m. ET – 10:00 p.m. ET – Knockouts prepare for their Pre-Mardi Gras party, featuring Rosemary, Allie, Sienna and Laurel van Ness.
- 10:00 a.m. ET – 11:00 a.m. ET – Eddie Edwards visits Crescent City Cat Club for a session of cat yoga.
- 11 a.m. ET – 12 p.m. ET – The stars of IMPACT Wrestling compete against each other in a high-stakes game.
Tags: #wwe #impact #impact wrestling
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Published: October 7, 2017, 11:40 pm
Tags: Sports
W&L Football Knocks Off Washington University, 28-21
The Generals are now 3-2
LEXINGTON, Va. – (via generalssports.com) Washington and Lee jumped out to a 14-0 lead and preserved a seven-point advantage with a pair of late interceptions to post a 28-21 win over Washington University of St. Louis in football on Saturday afternoon at Wilson Field.
W&L (3-2) amassed 162 rushing yards in the first quarter, scoring just 1:37 into the game when sophomore running back Jimmie Johnson (Hoover, Ala. / Hoover) took an option pitch and scampered 46 yards down the sideline for a 7-0 advantage at the 13:23 mark.
The Generals' defense held on the next series and the Bears (1-5) attempted a fake punt that was unsuccessful, giving W&L the ball on the Wash U 41-yardline. Senior quarterback Matt Sgro (Wilmington, Del. / Salesianum) capped a 7-play drive with a 6-yard touchdown run for a 14-0 lead with 8:16 left in the opening quarter.
The Bears got on the board with a 43-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Johnny Davidson to junior wide receiver Jason Singer at 1:22 of the first quarter. Both defenses stepped up at that point and neither team could break through again until Sgro finished off a 17-play, 85-yard drive with a 7-yard touchdown run at the 3:15 mark of the second quarter for a 21-7 lead.
Wash U made it a one-score game (21-14) just before the half when Davidson found Singer with a 17-yard scoring strike on a 3rd-and-goal play with 36 seconds remaining.
Neither team could dent the scoreboard in the third quarter, as W&L failed on a fourth down play from the Wash U 24-yardline and the Bears missed a 42-yard field goal. Wash U missed a 49-yard field goal on its next series and W&L opened a 28-14 lead with a 41-yard touchdown run from Sgro with 7:31 left to play, his third touchdown of the game.
The Bears struck quickly to pull back within one score (28-21); however, as Davidson and Singer hooked up for a 53-yard catch and run for a touchdown with 6:35 remaining in the game. W&L was stopped on the next series and punted to Wash U, which took over on its own 17-yardline with 3:08 left. The Generals produced a sack by junior defensive lineman Reed Clark(Westerville, Ohio / Columbus Academy) and sophomore defensive end Oak Mize (Henrico, Va. / Douglas Freeman) on first down, and then senior safety Michael Shields (Charlotte, N.C. / Charlotte Country Day) intercepted Davidson at the Wash U 45-yardline on the next play. The Bears' defense forced a 3-and-out by the Generals on the ensuing series and took over on their own 29-yardline with 1:38 left. Wash U drove to the W&L 48-yardline, before a strip back by junior defensive lineman Alex Cantrell (Charlotte, N.C. / Providence Day) pushed the Red and Green back to the Wash U 47-yardline. On the next play, Shields recorded a second interception of Davidson at the W&L 24-yardline with nine seconds left to seal the victory.
For the game, W&L amassed 469 offensive yards and 433 yards on the ground. On defense, the Generals produced five sacks.
Sgro led the offense with 146 yards and three touchdowns rushing on 22 carries. He also completed 4-of-6 passes for 36 yards. First-year running back Josh Breece (Lorton, Va. / Stone Bridge) rushed for 125 yards on 24 carries and Johnson totaled 66 yards and a touchdown on seven carries. On defense, senior linebacker David Hogan (Matthews, N.C. / Charlotte Christian) recorded 11 tackles, all solo, and Clark finished with five tackles and two sacks.
Wash U had 432 yards of total offense paced by Davidson, who completed 33-of-45 passes for 319 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions. Singer caught seven passes for 130 yards and all three touchdowns, while senior wide-out Marcus Ramspott caught nine passes for 76 yards. Senior defensive back Nick Doctors recorded a game-high 12 tackles.
Washington and Lee returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Guilford for a 1:00 pm contest.
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Posted on May 10, 2018 by Xenia Gazette
Students recognized by local company
Submitted photo Nate Klingbeil, dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science, with Reynolds and Reynolds Leadership scholars Hannah Wilburn, left and Alexis Frasher.
FAIRBORN — Eight incoming engineering students have been awarded the latest round of scholarships as part of the Reynolds and Reynolds Leadership Scholars Program at Wright State University.
The students, who will enter Wright State’s College of Engineering and Computer Science in the fall, are high achieving high school graduates from around the state. The scholarship awards were announced April 27 during the college’s annual awards ceremony at the Student Union Apollo Room.
Since creating the Reynolds Scholars Program in 2009, Reynolds has provided $740,000 in scholarship funding awarded to 74 incoming students enrolled in computer science and computer engineering programs at Wright State. Each student receives a $10,000 award payable throughout the four years of their academic program.
Each new cohort of scholars is hosted by Reynolds and Reynolds for a tour of the Reynolds campus and the opportunity to meet employees in key leadership roles. The visit includes an in-depth look at Reynold’s unique Customer Innovation Center.
“The Reynolds and Reynolds Leadership Scholars Program has made it possible for the Wright State University College of Engineering and Computer Science to recruit top students from Raider Country,” said Pete Williams, director of development and external relations for the college. “The generosity and vision of the Reynolds and Reynolds Foundation has helped create a stronger college and future workforce for the Miami Valley.”
The 2018–19 Reynolds Scholars Cohort:
Hunter Ellis, computer engineering; Lakota West High School, West Chester
Alexis Frasher, computer engineering; Piketon High School, Piketon
Nathan Johns, computer science; Franklin High School, Franklin
Hayden Mankin, computer science; Hilliard Darby High School, Hilliard
Denton Perry, computer science; Pymatuning Valley High School, Andover
Christian Peters, computer science; Dayton Regional STEM School, Dayton
Ryan Slater, computer engineering; Bellbrook High School, Bellbrook
Hannah Wilburn, computer science; Greenview High School, Jamestown
The Reynolds and Reynolds Company Foundation focuses on giving to programs in higher education to prepare quality students for key roles in regions where Reynolds has a significant presence.
As one of the oldest corporate citizens headquartered in the Dayton region, Reynolds’ support of the Leadership Scholars Program also dovetails with Wright State’s mission of transforming the communities the university serves.
https://www.xeniagazette.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2018/05/web1_reynolds-and-reynolds-CECS-scholars-508×331.jpgSubmitted photo Nate Klingbeil, dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science, with Reynolds and Reynolds Leadership scholars Hannah Wilburn, left and Alexis Frasher.
Hi! A visitor to our site felt the following article might be of interest to you: Students recognized by local company. Here is a link to that story: https://www.xeniagazette.com/news/29891/students-recognized-by-local-company
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Golden Globes 2020: When and where to watch it in the UK
Yahoo Movies UK• December 31, 2019
Ricky Gervais is presenting the Golden Globes for the fifth time. (Photo by Paul Drinkwater/NBC via Getty Images)
The 77th Golden Globes are due to kick off on Sunday, 5 January at The Beverly Hilton in California as the best of film and television turn out for the esteemed award ceremony.
When will the Golden Globes start?
Those of us in the UK won't find out the winners until the early hours of Monday, 6 January due to the time difference.
In the UK, the awards kick off on Monday, 6 January 2020, 1:00 am GMT.
Where can you watch the Golden Globes?
Unfortunately, no UK channels air the ceremony. However, Brits can get a glimpse of the pre-show action as the Golden Globes Facebook is expected to stream live from the red carpet.
Read more: Golden Globes 2020 nominations: The biggest snubs and surprises
Although of course, it's likely any notable moments or embarrassing blunders from the ceremony will make it onto social media so we won't miss out. Follow @GoldenGlobes on Twitter for the winners as they’re announced.
Who is hosting the Golden Globes 2020?
The proceedings will be helmed by Ricky Gervais who is returning to host the show for a record fifth time and is sure to direct some scathing barbs at the audience members. Although, he has said it will be his last.
See you on January 5th, 2020! pic.twitter.com/PI7DLZblnt
— Golden Globe Awards (@goldenglobes) December 22, 2019
What is likely to win at the Golden Globes?
Marriage Story has received the most nominations. (Netflix)
Marriage Story is the most nominated film having earned six nods. Trailing just behind is The Irishman and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood with five. Meanwhile, Chernobyl, The Crown, and Unbelievable have each picked up four nominations - but they are up against some stiff competition.
We’re predicting a big night for Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman, Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag, and Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. Read our full predictions here.
Golden Globes 2020 nominees in full
Best Motion Picture - Drama
Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama
Jonathan Pryce has been nominated for The Two Popes. (Netflix/Peter Mountain)
Christian Bale, Ford Vs Ferrari
Antonio Banderas, Pain & Glory
Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Cate Blanchett, Where'd You Go, Bernadette?
Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture
The Irishman could win big on the night. (Netflix)
Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture
The Joker was one of the big films of 2019. (Warner Bros.)
'Beautiful Ghosts', Cats
'(I'm Gonna) Love Me Again', Rocketman
'Into the Unknown', Frozen 2
'Spirit', The Lion King
'Stand Up', Harriet
Best Foreign Language Film
Best Animated Feature Film
Olivia Colman and Tobias Menzies in The Crown. (Sophie Mutevelian)
Chernobyl has received four nominations. (Sky)
Merritt Wever, Unbelievable
Kaitlyn Dever has received a nomination for her work in Unbelievable. (Beth Dubber/Netflix)
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Israel's first years
Photo: David Seymour
Watch: Israel's first years, through the lens
Watch the photos set to be shown in the upcoming exhibition of David Seymour's photographs, capturing Israel's first years through the lens of the renowned photographer.
Ynet|Published: 03.28.17 , 20:28
Polish-born Jewish-American photographer David Seymour (or Chim) fell in love with 1950's Israel, caturing with his camera day-to-day moments of the country's first years.
Chim was made famous for his pictures of the Spanish civil war and the pictures he took of orphans after WWII. He had a great affinity for Israel, and at some point even considered moving to Israel and establishing a photography magazine.
Tel Aviv's 1952 Independence Day parade (Photo: David Seymour)
A makeshift Chuppah from 1952, held up by pitchforks and rifles (Photo: David Seymour)
A tan man drilling into the cavernous mines of Timna, where the legendary mines of King Solomon were thought to be. The photograph was used in Life Magazine in 1952 (Photo: David Seymour)
In the end, he didn't manage to fulfill that dream. In 1956, while documenting the Suez Crisis, Chim was killed by Egyptian fire during a hostage exchange in the Sinai.
David Ben-Gurion with children, 1953, shot days after he announced his resignation from the prime ministership and plans to relocate to Sde Boker (Photo: David Seymour)
A little girl hangs up laundry below a sign marking the border between east and west Jerusalem, 1954 (Photo: David Seymour)
Tel Aviv's famed Independence Park, 1952, hosting an aerobics group (Photo: David Seymour)
A new exhibition named "Capturing History," curated by Asaf Galay, will display Chim's photographs, showing his capture of Israel's first years. It is set to open in March 29 in Beit Hatfutsot Museum in Tel Aviv. Here are some of the photos shown in the exhibition:
(Translated & edited by Lior Mor)
See all talkbacks "Watch: Israel's first years, through the lens"
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Dark Souls: not the worst
Comments Off on Dark Souls: not the worst
So, this dude who writes about video games for Forbes (hey, the topic is very important to businesspeople) thinks that Dark Souls is the worst video game ever. And that Dark Souls II is also the worst video game ever.
Only, by his own admission, he’s put close to 400 hours into Dark Souls, finishing it multiple times. And he’s deep into the sequel. I think he may not know what worst means.
Well, yeah. Be wary of everything in this game
Now, he does make a case. He thinks the game is too hard, too inscrutable, too complex. And famously, Dark Souls is a game where you die over and over, where enemies respawn, where barely anything of the complex gameplay is explained.
But jeez, the man’s got a day job, so to rack up those hours, he must have played it every night for like three months. You don’t play the worst game ever for three months. The game obviously satisfies Itch #1 of gaming: it makes you want to play it. It’s compelling. (For the counter-case, that the game is fabulous, see Yahtzee’s review.)
Now, that was a generic ‘you’… in fact I didn’t find myself going back to Dark Souls. Partly, I know I’m easily frustrated by unforgiving checkpoints and games you can’t play without a wiki. But knowing it’s probably not my kind of thing, I just don’t play it, and if others like it, I don’t begrudge them their fun. Also, I have like four Medieval Fantasy Games queued up– I’m really kind of tired of Medieval Fantasyland.
What the guy wanted to say, I think, is that the game is addictive but frustrating. You can’t get rid of frustration in gaming and shouldn’t want to; it’s part of the whole flow thing:
Basically you’re having fun when skill and challenge are balanced. If the challenge is above your skill level, you get frustrated; if it’s below, you get bored. Naturally, the balance changes as you learn the game, so challenge needs to ramp up over time.
There’s another factor that changes the boundary lines, which we might call explorativeness. Sometimes we want to relax with something we know very well– that’s when I replay Half-Life 2, or go beat up thugs in Arkham City for the nth time. You can think of this as the top part of the blue area becoming an attractive place. Other times we want novelty and even a little confusion– we want to explore the bottom of the red area.
Anyway, the Dark Souls guy describes replaying the game at harder difficulty levels, which means the process was working: he was mastering the arcane rules, and needed even more challenge. So he’s wrong to think that the game was too hard; he was actually adding unnecessary challenges. (It’s probably fair to say that the fun zone in the game is purposely narrow, or that it’s a game that you’d better set aside when your explorativeness is low.)
What is the worst video game? Obviously, one that you wouldn’t play, and ideally wouldn’t even buy. There’s a few games in my Steam library that I’ve played for about 15 minutes. But they’re not even the worst; surely the actual worst game would be something simultaneously dumb, tasteless, boring, and crash-prone. It was probably made by a particularly unpleasant third-grader and it’s hardly worth talking about.
Is there a category of enjoyably awful games, like MSTable movies? Probably, though this sort of enjoyment is more about the improv skills of you and your friends than it is about the game itself.
More often when we hate a game, it’s not that it’s bad, it’s not quite what we want. If we didn’t want it at all, we wouldn’t even buy it. But geeks have a special hatred for things that fall short of our geeky expectations. The Dark Souls guy probably falls in this category: if he was more self-aware he’d probably say that he got a lot out of the game– it was close to what he wanted in a game, it just wasn’t close enough, and he’s angry about it.
History of the Renaissance World
Posted by zompist under history
Comments Off on History of the Renaissance World
I just finished The History of the Renaissance World, by Susan Wise Bauer. The subtitle is From the rediscovery of Aristotle to the conquest of Constantinople, which means it’s about what most people would call the Middle Ages.
The major subject
It’s a weird mixture of new and old style history. It’s worldwide, so you get fairly good coverage of China and India, and sporadic chapters on Africa and Native America. But it’s also all about personalities– almost nothing about culture, literature, technology, economics. Which means it’s mostly stories about kings.
Condensed into one worldwide narrative, the story of human monarchy gets distilled to its essence: it sucked. Srsly, all over the world, it worked about the same way, and that was “badly”. The whole theoretical advantage of monarchy is that it avoids succession disputes. Only it doesn’t– no matter how sacredly the king vows that his successor shall be his well-beloved son, some cousin or uncle or general or duke is likely to object once the old man is laid out. Plus, of course, a new king is often a child, or at best inexperienced and dominated by his elders; very often this becomes institutionalized in some way.
Japan in this period provides a nice example. It became customary for the emperor to abdicate in favor of an infant relative– becoming the Cloistered Emperor, a position where he could wield the power while the child did all the onerous ceremonies. Only the military took over the actual administration of the country, producing the shogunate. Only the shogunate was hereditary, so there was a problem of infant shoguns… no problem, an older relative became the shikken, the shogun’s protector. For a time all four levels of this ridiculous hierarchy perpetuated themselves. (Nor did this prevent the country from being fragmented between senior and junior lines of the imperial family.)
If you did get a strong king, that often just meant that he had the resources available to spend his entire reign at war, or that he was enough of a sociopath to stop rivals before they could get going– usually by murdering them.
Elective monarchies in theory could choose only strong candidates, but of course the electors normally had little interest in electing anyone who would restrain their own freedom.
The other theme in the book is the ever-broadening idea of the crusade. It didn’t exactly start off as a noble idea, but it steadily worsened, soon being used against heretics and then anyone the Pope had a quarrel with. The last chilling echo of the crusades was the Pope’s blessing of the Portuguese slave trade. For all that, the crusades, like all of the Papacy’s secular schemes, were a self-defeating failure. The popes, like certain right-wing politicians, just never understood the difference between how they thought the world should work and how it did work. They constantly overreached, never learned from their mistakes, and eventually destroyed what unity the church had.
The multiculturalism of the book is refreshing, but also jarring– you’ll bounce from France to China to Sri Lanka to Egypt to Africa, in chapters that are only a few pages long. This makes longer-term stories (like the papal schism or the Hundred Years war) hard to follow. Plus it’s still Eurocentric: there are 54 chapters on Europe and the Middle east, 32 on India, China, and points east, and just 8 on everywhere else. And because of the focus on kings, regions only appear once they have some royal history– so e.g. Scandinavia doesn’t get any coverage till chapter 86. The chapters on Mexico and Peru are barely worth having.
I have some quibbles over names. Bauer mixes pinyin and Wade-Giles for no good reason. She insists on calling France “Western Francia” until the realm of Philip II, which is weird. (If it’s to underline that the king in Paris had little control over the territory until that time, that’s no less true of the kings of Germany.) She also uses English names for all the European kings– this is traditional, but with the short chapters it would be a lot easier to keep the kings apart if the local names were used.
I didn’t know it when I picked it up, but the book is the third in an ongoing world history. I can about 3/4-heartedly recommend it. It’s very readable, and presents quick, vivid portraits of a slew of kings, queens, and hangers-on. And the worldwide focus means that at least some of the stories will be new to you. But it has almost no interest in culture; you get very little about how these nations differed, or what anyone below the elite was doing, or about any non-kingly story that was going on: what scholasticism actually taught, courtly love, early capitalism, what the alchemists were doing, the windmill revolution, how exactly the Central Asian nomads adapted to ruling China, how the Arab scientific mindset stalled, how military tactics evolved. And even stories it focuses on, such as the English-French wars, are often better told elsewhere. Still, it’s a fun and fast read.
Details on Viscera Cleanup
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I’ve cleaned up as much Viscera Cleanup Detail as I can handle, I think. Though I’m hoping to do some co-op with my pal Chris.
I did all the maps, then redid the first one to test if it was easier doing it the right way. (It is.) But I’m not eager to repeat the maps, and I think there’s a game design lesson there, on feedback.
Most overdesigned door opener ever
The thing is, this game could be an addictive puzzler… if it gave you better feedback. It tells you the category of stuff you left: bloodstains, body parts, trash, bullet holes, etc. But it gives no hint as to how many were left. You don’t know if you were missing one bloodstain or ten. I even used the damn sniffer, but I still missed stuff. If the feedback were better, I’d go back and try to do better. But when you just don’t know how close you are, there’s little motivation to try. (They have the right idea– they hide (say) body parts in vents and such, so you can walk right past them. But the sniffer is fiddly and no fun to use, so the heck with it.)
Chris suggests that the game should allow cheating– e.g. leaving body parts in drawers or something. That would be fun. My suggestion would be to add ways to mess around… maybe you could write your own messages in blood, or temporarily wear the alien hands over your own, or take a pizza break. Janitors have to make their fun where they find it.
Again, it’s in alpha, so by the time it’s done it may well be a very different game.
Viscera Cleanup Detail
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After reading about Viscera Cleanup Detail, and especially after reading my friend Chris’s ambivalent review, I really wanted to try it. So I did.
The gag is brilliant, at least. Some space marine, perhaps you in a different game, has gone blasting through a space station, taking care of alien outbreaks or whatever. And they made a mess.
There were no magic markers around, OK?
You normally don’t think about the poor schmuck who has to clean up the blood, alien blood, body parts, shell casings, and other detritus. Except in this game, where you are that schmuck, and you have to restore the facility to a pristine state. You even have to refill all the single-use medical units they used.
You also have to type “SAVE US” on a nice memo pad
Does it work as a game? Well, I’ve cleaned up two of the half-dozen maps, so I guess it is. It’s worth the $8, at least. Note that it’s an early access game, still in development, so it will probably get better as it goes.
There is a certain satisfaction in getting things clean… which is good, since there aren’t (yet?) any achievements or ratings. (When you clock out, you go to the janitor’s office, where clippings on the wall tell you indirectly about anything you missed.)
The mechanics are simple enough: you have a machine that dispenses buckets of water, you have a mop, and you clean off the blood and goop. The mop gets dirty and you have to rinse it, and the bucket gets dirty after a few rinses, so you go back a lot to the Suds-o-Matic. Then you throw the bucket in the rather low-tech incinerator… along with the body parts and other detritus.
This is one game where, unusually, you’re going to move pretty slowly through the maps, so they’d better be visually satisfying. And they are– the look of the game and the cleaning mechanic are pretty solid.
There’s a certain dark humor about the whole thing– e.g. sometimes the Suds-o-Matic gives you body parts instead. There are notes and datapads scattered through the level, giving you a hint about what went wrong. The buckets and body parts are deliberately made awkward to carry, so it’s easy to make more of a mess. (It’s nicely balanced though– it doesn’t feel unfair; once you know the quirks of various things, you can work with them.)
A few places are hard to reach, which constitutes a puzzle of sorts. That seems promising; I hope they add more things to just complicate the task.
There isn’t any tutorial, and not much in the way of on-line help, so I thought I’d record a few things that might help the aspiring space janitor.
If you step in the goo, you’ll track it around. You may be tempted to ignore this, but it does multiply your work. If you clean the path from the Suds-o-Matic to the incinerator, you can get your feet clean, and then you can work out from the clean area.
Once the mop is dirty and it’ll spread goo instead of cleaning it– watch the color it turns. (Denser goo dirties it faster, so it’s not a set number of strokes.) Similarly, the water turns bright red (or whatever color) when it’s too dirty to use.
The buckets are easy to overturn. If you move slowly up to them, you actually climb on the edge, which gives you the best angle for rinsing. Only hit LMB to rince once; you can tell it works because the mop turns white again. (If you hit LMB again, you may actually re-dirty the mop.)
You pick up something with LMB. Hit LMB again to straighten it out– this is essential with medkits, buckets, and quite a few other things.
You can carry a bunch of body parts in the yellow biohazard boxes. (If you hold shift to walk slower, you won’t spill.) But it can save time to put stuff into the buckets once they’re too dirty to use.
The “sniffer” (tool 3) is mysterious, but turns out to detect either dirt or trash (hit RMB to switch modes). It seems pretty useless.
There’s a laser which can be used to repair bullet holes.
Tonight I did the second map, “Office”, which actually has a story behind it, which you can piece together from datapads and the state of the office itself.
Paleofantasy
Posted by zompist under books, science
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I just finished Paleofantasy, by the biologist Marlene Zuk; it’s largely a response to notions that we made a wrong turn with agriculture and cities, and should head back to the savanna, or perhaps the trees.
Which was a mistake?
The main objection is that attempts to come up with a “paleo” diet, or exercise regimen, or childrearing method, or sex roles, are generally bullshit: highly speculative at best, completely made up at worst. More specifically:
We aren’t cavemen, because we haven’t stopped evolving. Genetic changes like widespread lactose tolerance, or the adaptation of Tibetans to high altitudes, have occurred in historical times. Adaptation to disease happens even quicker. It’s just not true that the 10,000 years since the evolution of agriculture is too soon to adapt to our changed diet.
The idea that early hominins were perfectly adapted to their environment, with everyone who came after being disastrously out of place, is a misunderstanding of evolution. Evolution is not goal-directed, and animals are never perfect. They’re always a genetic mish-mash, just good enough to have survived, always subject to tradeoffs and sudden environmental changes.
We just don’t know exactly how early hominins ate and lived. The fossil record is scanty; our ape relatives live in very different ways; modern hunter-gatherers are themselves varied, and not necessarily representative of their ancestors.
One thing we do know: they lived in a wide variety of habitats and climates, from African savannas to Mediterranean shores to Ice Age caves. They didn’t all have the same diets, or tools, or cultures; there was no single paleo lifestyle.
Some of the specific ideas of paleo enthusiasts are almost certainly wrong. E.g. there’s good evidence that Neanderthals were grinding grain 30,000 years ago. A high-meat diet may only have become possible with the invention of ranged weapons, at about the same time. Some paleo fans claim that early hominins rarely ran; in fact one of the things humans are extremely good at is long-distance endurance running… we can run most animals down, including deer and horses.
(In case you didn’t get the memo, humans and their non-ape ancestors are now grouped together as hominins; the older term hominid now covers the chimps, bonobos, and orangutans as well.)
If you like a knock-out blow, Zuk rarely provides one– the usual problem isn’t that paleo fantasies are contradicted by science, but that they’re poorly supported. However, Zuk reviews the wide range of evidence that’s becoming available, from DNA analysis to ongoing evolutionary studies to finding food traces in Neanderthal teeth.
Another recent read, Chip Walter’s Last Ape Standing, is even more of a buzzkill. He presents life on the savanna as difficult: scant resources and plenty of competition. Some human features such as neoteny may be an adaptation to bad times– our infants are born prematurely, with a rapidly expanding brain, and thus can more quickly adapt to new or changed conditions. There’s also evidence that our species passed through a genetic bottleneck– compared with other species, we’re remarkably uniform, which could have happened if our total numbers dropped to 10,000 or so. The ancestral environment might not have been all that idyllic.
None of this, of course, means that you should stay on the couch, or eat loads of donuts and fries. We definitely have an unhealthy lifestyle; but the solution is to get more active, not to get more Australopithecine.
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The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 7: The Gods Who Conceived Them
I do not understand why the novels of Joe R. Lansdale are considered such a big deal. I've read three of them now, with diminishing returns. When I hear people proclaim the greatness and originality of his Edgar Award-winning book The Bottoms, I have the horribly snobby thought, "Jesus, you really need to read more." Or when I see Ramsey Campbell say that The Nightrunners is one of the few modern horror novels that truly scared him, I have to wonder at what point the world became so backwards. The Nightrunners was a particularly galling experience for me, because I'd hunted for that book for years, finally caving in and buying a used copy on-line -- a mass market paperback -- for twenty bucks, because a reprinting of the book did not seem to be in the offing. And I read it immediately, had to claw through clunky prose and dialogue to get, essentially nowhere. Now, I've forgotten the book, almost entirely. I read it last year.
On the other hand, I do understand why the short stories of Joe R. Lansdale are considered such a big deal. In fact, I don't think I've read a bad one yet. I would count at least one of them, "Drive-in Date", to be among the best modern horror stories I've ever read. That one is really haunting, not so much in its nastiness and violence, but in its attitude. The tone, so horribly casual, is meticuously crafted, and the reader strains for some sort of nightmarish pay-off, but instead the characters just get in the car and drive home. It reminds me in some ways of Charles Willeford's masterful The Shark-Infested Custard.
And of course there are others: "Night They Missed the Horror Show", "The Fat Man and the Elephant", "By Bizarre Hands", "The Pit". Why is this man, who is at best a middle-of-the-road novelist (in my view, anyway), so skilled at the short story? If Lansdale were more of a traditional horror writer, I would say this was very sound evidence of the idea that horror fiction's natural medium is the short story, but not only is he not a traditional horror writer, he's only occasionally a horror writ er at all (of the novels I've read by Lansdale, only The Nightrunners fully belongs to the horror genre). So that's not it. In any case, in the foreward to High Cotton, his best-of collection, Lansdale says:
...[S]ince I wanted to be a full-time freelance writer, I knew I had to eventually write novels. I almost regretted when the novels began to sell; my excuse to write short stories began to evaporate. By the early nineties I was writing fewer and fewer short stories. Some of the energy I had invested in them went into the novels, and into comic book and film scripts...
Short stories, and novellas, are still favorites of mine, but I have really learned to appreciate the novel. And since I get paind more for novels these days than I used to, it has allowed me to return a little more frequently to short stories...
...Now that I can get more [money] for my short stories, I also make more for the novels, so it's easy to see which one I give the time. Besides, I like doing novels as much as short stories now...
I don't know about you, but I don't believe that he likes writing novels more than short stories. He seems to be trying to convince himself that he does, but he's financially locked into writing novels, and that's what calls the shots. I don't even begrudge him this -- it's simply the attitude, an almost genetically-ingrained carry-over from the pulp era, of genre writers the world over. But the evidence is plain to me: Joe R. Lansdale is, by talent and inclination, a short story writer. The probelm is, he also has to provide for his family. I mean, for Chrissake, his novels are currently being published by Vintage/Black Lizard, which, if you don't know, is part of Random House. High Cotton was published by Golden Gryphon Press. And by the way, this is no knock against Golden Gryphon. Quite the opposite. They may not have Random House's money, but clearly they're the guys who care.
So today, obviously, I read a couple of Lansdale stories. The first is called "By the Hair of the Head", and it is so rooted in the classic supernatural stories that one of the two characters is named Howard Machen. The other character is our unnamed narrator, a budding writer who has rented a room in Machen's lighthouse domicile so he can finish his first novel. Machen, on the other hand, is an old, beat-up guy, who used to work the lighthouse, but has since, along with the lighthouse itself, retired from duty. This mismatched pair get along fine, but initially don't talk a whole lot, until a habit forms between them of drinking brandy after dinner, which loosens Machen's tongue. Machen talks a lot about his past as a ventriloquist, and his involvement with an old magic act, as well as that act's beautiful female assistant, Marilyn. Marilyn, he says, was the real talent, but being a woman, and given the era, she had to turn the spotlight over to a man named McDonald, who was the one who actually did the tricks. The source of Marilyn's talent, it seems, was her interest in, and practice of, witchcraft.
Our narrator and Machen have several conversations about this subject, and each night the narrator believes he hears Machen speaking to what sounds like a child, a young girl, though at first he can't make out what they're saying. In the mornings, when asked about it, Machen claims that their talks have inspired him to unpack his old ventriloquist dummy, a girl dummy named Caroline, and practice. But subsequent conversations reveal a story about Marilyn giving birth to a baby girl, who passed away:
"What happened to the child?"
"She died. Some childhood disease."
"That's sad," I said, "a little girl gone and having only sipped at life."
"Gone? Oh, no. There's the soul, you know."
I wasn't much of a believer in the soul and I said so.
"Oh, but there is a soul. The body perishes but the soul lives on."
"I've seen no evidence of it."
"But I have," Machen said solemnly. "Marilyn was determined that the girl would live on, if not in her own form, than in another."
The conversations, between our narrator and Machen, and between Machen and the little girl, continue. Eventually, what Machen and the girl (the dummy?) are saying becomes easier to make out, and what the girl wants, she says, is to be free.
It's a classic ghost/witchcraft story, in short, and it's a good one. Solid, well-crafted and spooky. The setting of the lighthouse, while not thunderously original, is handled very well, adding just enough Gothic lighting and crashing waves to set a steady tone of unease, without Lansdale ever tipping his hand until he's ready to. It is, in other words, a professional, well-made story, which I mean as high praise.
The other story I read, "Tight Little Stitches in a Dead Man's Back", is something else again. One of Lansdale's most famous and re-printed stories, it is, at once, more interesting, more flawed, more ambitious, possibly less satisfying (still not sure on that one), and better written. Partly inspired, Lansdale says, by The Day of the Triffids, "Tight Little Stitches..." is about a nuclear holocaust as seen through the eyes of one of the men who has brought it about, a nuclear scientist named Paul Marder. Ostensibly, the story is told through Marder's journal, though Lansdale shows little interest in maintaining any kind of verisimilitude with this conceit. There is no "Day One", "Day Two" separation, but rather one long, essentially unbroken narrative which Marder simply says is being written in his journal (which he also occasionally, and unfortunately, refers to as "Mr. Journal").
So one morning, Marder is getting ready for work, and he accidentally walks in on his 18 year-old daughter, Rae, as she's coming out of the shower. This will be the last memory he has of his daughter, and while he claims there's nothing sexual in this, liebestod is all over this story. Later, Marder is driven to work by his wife, Mary, where he's greeted by his co-workers with frothing panic and the announcement that "the missiles are flying". Marder, his wife, and 1100 of his colleagues immediately escape into the underground bunker set up for just such an occasion, leaving Rae above-ground to perish, alone.
Life in the bunker is not ideal. Here's how Lansdale describes it:
Before long, suicides were epidemic. I considered it myself from time to time. People slashed their throats, drank acid, took pills. It was not unusual to come out of your cubicle in the morning and find people dangling from pipes and rafters like ripe fruit.
There were also the murders. Most of them performed by a crazed group who lived in the deeper recesses of the unit and called themselves the Shit Faces. From time to time they smeared dung on themselves and ran amok, clubbing men, women, and children born down under, to death. It was rumored they ate human flesh.
If I didn't know for a fact that I'm the same guy who wrote the opening paragraphs of this post, about Lansdale's weaknesses as a novelist, I'd say that I'd like to read a novel about life in that bunker.
Paul's wife, Mary, was something of an artist in her earlier life, and underground she takes it up again, as a tattooist. A lot of people want to avail themselves of her skills, but her husband holds out, until he has a sex-death dream about his daughter. He goes to Mary -- who now hates him, and blames him for their daughter's death -- and asks her to tattoo an image of Rae caught in a mushroom cloud on his back. Mary agrees, because at least it will cause him pain.
I feel like Mary is supposed to be the audience stand-in, the one who expresses our outrage over nuclear proliferation and whatnot, but I have to say: You married him, sister. What, did you think he was a milkman? Further, that tattoo is maybe a bit too much, symbolically speaking. That's a recurring problem in the story, in fact, and I believe that Lansdale took the seriousness of his story a little too seriously, if you get me. I think symbolism is generally a mug's game anyway, at least easily decoded symbolism is, and Lansdale would have been better off pulling way back. I would say he should have pulled all the way back, but given the story's title, that tattoo was finding it's way in, come hell or high water.
Eventually, a small group of survivors, including Marder and his wife, venture above ground to see what's become of the world twenty years after the bomb landed. What they find is blasted planet, free of all humanity and populated with lumbering, mutated wildlife. There is some wonderfully surreal imagery in these passages, describing blackened ocean floors and hideous, slithering whales. There's also a new type of flower, and it is here that I'll ask you to remember that Lansdale was inspired by The Day of the Triffids.
"Tight Little Stitches in a Dead Man's Back" is certainly an overwrought story, but in a way that manages to highlight Lansdale's talent. He means it, and he can write it. If he betrays a flaw here, it's that he maybe needs to realize that he doesn't need to write it all. As flaws go, that's an excusable one. In Lansdale's case, what may end up being a less excusable flaw is letting his novels dry up his short fiction completely. Which reminds me that The Nightrunners, his horror novel about which I expressed such disappointment earlier, began its life as a short story, called "The God of the Razor". I haven't read it, because I figured doing so would be redundant at this point. But now I'm not so sure.
Posted by bill r. at 11:49 AM
Labels: High Cotton, Horror Project, Joe Lansdale, The Kind of Face You Slash
I'd love to read a good story about life in a bunker after a nuclear war but this doesn't sound like the one I would like to read. It sounds less psychological and more balls to the wall mayhem, carnage and dead whale carcases. Did you ever see the new Twilight Zone episode with Joe Mantegna in the bunker after a nuclear war? It was actually pretty good and dealt more with the psychological breakdown that occurs without all the no-holds barred physicalities of suicides and murder rampages.
Well, the two paragraphs I quoted are really it as far as bunker-mayhem is concerned. That's not what the story is about, and, in fact, the whole thing focuses, and depends on its effectiveness, on the psychology of the narrator. So take that!
Besides that, I would like to read the story you describe (or watch the Twilight Zone you describe, which I haven't seen), but I do like mayhem. Mayhem and psychology are the two things I like. But if the novel I imagined while reading that passage in the story were to be written, it would take it's own sweet time getting to the Shit Faces section (I find that name weirdly creepy). The psychological breakdown would be a slow burn, and then we get to the mayhem.
So take that!
I have taken it, and it was a bitter pill to swallow.
The New Twilight Zone episode has Mantegna cast in the role of a die-hard survivalist who has this incredible bunker built in case of nuclear war with the Russians. As news reports come in of escalating tensions he shows off his bunker to a buddy while his wife and daughter are out. That's when the flash comes and he and his buddy make it down just before the shock wave blasts away everything above them. But it's the Twilight Zone so it's not a normal stay in the bunker.
He tells his friend that after a few days the radiation and heat levels will be lowered enough that they could survey the area briefly but... after several days his instruments detect the radiation is still incredibly high and the ash hasn't cleared. A couple of weeks go by and still it's utter darkness, cold and intense radiation. His friend finally cracks and leaves only to return the next day banging on the door saying there's no one anywhere and it's pitch black. Mantegna doesn't let him back because of the radiation and soon the friend dies. More weeks go by, months, and still utter darkness and intense radiation. By this point Mantegna has lost his mind and the last shot of him sees him crouched in the corner of his bunker in war paint and bandana holding his machine gun mumbling incoherently before the final reveal...
What's the final reveal!? WHAT'S THE FINAL REVEAL!?!?!?
But if I tell you it'll spoil it.
Is it even on DVD or the internet, though? If I can't see it, what the hell am I supposed to do!?
No, it's not so here:
The camera pulls back from our crazy Mantegna "through" the wall of the bunker as we see a very dark, desolate landscape of destruction as the camera continues to pull back until we pass through another wall and now we see daylight and finally a massive cement dome. Outside is a Peace Park where we see his wife and daughter playing and are quickly told by the mother talking to her daughter about how a jet taking off with nuclear missiles had an accident, the bomb went off and thanks to the tragedy the hostilities between us and Russia calmed down. They built a dome over the radioactive area after clearing out any survivors but missed Mantegna hiding down in his bunker.
And of course, now that I think about it, the timeframe was a couple of years, not months.
L. Rob Hubb said...
That episode - and all of the 80's TZ's ARE on DVD - but it may take some digging.
re: Lansdale - I personally think that he does better work in the shorter form. The better Lansdale novels are THE MAGIC WAGON and THE DRIVE IN... and probably some of the wilder genre mashups like ZEPPELINS WEST. Of the East Texas novels, THE BOTTOMS was much better as the short story "Mad Dog Summer" - the best of those are the novella THE BIG BLOW and SUNSET AND SAWDUST.
The Hap and Leonard series are pretty good, though like any long running series, things start getting TOO familiar - I did expect him to perhaps kill off his characters, but it seems there's still a few more stories to be milked.
That episode - and all of the 80's TZ's ARE on DVD - but it may take some digging...
Oh great. Thanks for ruining it for me, Greg.
L. Rob - I actually have The Magic Wagon winging its way to me as we speak. And because I'd read The Bottoms, I didn't bother with "Mad Dog Summer", although leafing through it a while back I noticed that the story seems like a wildly condensed version of the novel, rather than a launching point. Which may have been a good thing, I don't knkow.
I've been curious about the Hap/Leonard books. The opinions I've read have been mixed. Do you have to start from the beginning, or can you just pick up any old one? I have a few, and one sounds particularly interesting, but it's from the middle of the series (can't remember the title off-hand).
Now I'll never win the Peace Prize.
You don't necessarily need to start at the beginning of the Hap/Leonard books (SAVAGE SEASON); there is some continuity, but they're designed for that not to be a big problem.
Will Errickson said...
Great write-up on an author who's grown from having a cult following to some mainstream success. When I started reading Lansdale it wasn't too long after NIGHTRUNNERS was published, which at the time I loved as a part of that "splatterpunk" movement. Subsequent readings of it have lessened its impact and highlighted its pulp fiction origins. I still remain a fan of his Hap and Leonard novels, as well as THE DRIVE IN series, as and especially the essential "Night They Missed Horror Show." *shiver*
Will, have you read "Drive-in Date"?
I don't recall that story, but your comments about it have me tracking it down! Thanks.
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 31: Hurrah fo...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 30: Ann Has a...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 29: That New ...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 28: Tell Me T...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 27: Laughing ...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 26: The Horro...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 25: What Must...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 24: It Was No...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 23 - Into the ...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 22: We Are Am...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 21: How Wrong...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 20: Her Flesh...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 19: I'd Rathe...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 18: Gonads Sm...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 17: A Confirm...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 16: I Can Bea...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 15: An Orchid ...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 14: Curse the...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 13: We Are No...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 12: You Don't...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 11: His Red, ...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 10: The Black...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 9: Tell Me Wh...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 8: Welcome to...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 7: The Gods W...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 6: Under the ...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 5: Here is Yo...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 4: We Are Mag...
The Kind of Face You SLASH!!! - Day 3: A Sound Li...
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More bad polls for Barack
Friday and I wish that the vacation could last forever. "Those were the best days of my life! Back in the summer of '69." I started to say that was John Mellencamp. :D My dad would have killed me. It's Bryan Adams. And this is Jake Tapper:
The latest ABC News/Washington Post poll found that President Obama's job approval rating has slipped to just 50 percent, with 47 percent disapproving. Fifty-one percent of those polled would rather have Republicans run Congress "to act as a check on Obama's policies," versus 43 percent who want to keep Democrats in charge.
But Democrats argue that the public's perception of Obama should be higher considering that 18 months into his presidency, he has chalked up a number of big achievements, including an $862 billion stimulus bill that many economist say staved off a depression.
What big achievements? The polls demonstrate ObamaCare is a lemon to most people. Over half of Americans see it as a negative. His suing Arizona is also seen as a negative by a majority of Americans. So does anyone not yet realize that a lot of Americans are feeling like their government doesn't listen to them?
Barack never listens. That's his biggest problem. You picture him yapping. You picture him never shutting up. But, pose as he may, he never convinces anyone that he actually listens.
Friday, July 16, 2010. Chaos and violence continue, the political stalemate continues, a US conference to end the war is on the horizon, corpses are again found in Baghdad (is it 2007 all over again?), and more.
David Vine: Counterinsurgency, just quickly, because it features in the title, it features in the title of the book that we're going to disccus today The Counter-Counterinsurgency Manual: Notes on Demilitarizing American Society. Counterinsurgency, just quickly, is a term that dates to about 1960, the Vietnam era, came to mean the elimination of an uprising against the govenrment. Although the tactics of course are much older. Dating centuries, most likely the United States so-called "Indian Wars," the occupation of the Philipines and certainly the tactics employed by the people inside the British and French empire.
David Vines is with the American Anthropological Association and he was speaking as moderator of the December 5, 2009 discusion by Network of Concern Anthropologists in Philadelphia for the AAA's annual meeting.
You won't hear these voices on NPR very often (David Price was on The Diane Rehm Show addressing this topic -- see the October 11, 2007 snapshot for an excerpt of the October 10th broadcast of Diane's show). You will, however, hear the 'insight' of David Kilcullen on Morning Edition and you won't hear it or him questioned. Is Morning Edition unaware of what took place in Philadelphia last year?
From the December 3rd snapshot:
The American Anthropological Association's annual meeting started yesterday in Philadelphia and continues through Sunday. Today the association's Commission on the Engagement of Anthropology with the US Security and Intelligence Communities issued their [PDF format] "Final Report on The Army's Human Terrain System Proof of Concept Program." The 74-page report is a blow to War Criminals and their cheerleaders who have long thought that the social science could be abused or that the social sciences were psuedo sciences. It was in December 2006 when Dumb Ass George Packer raved over Dumb Ass Montgomery McFate and her highly imaginative and fictional retelling of both her childhood and her current work which Packer identified as "Pentagon consultant" working on Cultural Operations Research Human Terrain. Packer was jizzing in his shorts and not even warnings from other anthropologists ("I do not want to get anybody killed") could sway him.
In May the US House of Representatives made an unusual move. Noah Shachtman (Wired) reported in May that the House Armed Service Committtee announced it would be limiting funding for the program.
If you click here, you will be taken to the AAA website and to a podcast (where I grabbed David Vine's statement from) of the Network of Concern Anthropologists' symposium featuring Roberto Gonzalez, David Price, Andrew Bickford, Gregory Feldman, Dylan Kerrigan, Cahterine Besteman, Catherine Lutz and Nancy Scheper-Hughes.
Counterinsurgency is war on a native people. In its current usage by the US government, anthropologists are embedded with the military in Afghanistan and Iraq and they give the guise of "social science," the appearance of it. The cover to allow what really are War Crimes to take place. It turns social scientists into spies, spying on a native people so they can run back and fine tune the US policies and goals of war and occupation. It is not social science by any means. At its most basic, social science, when studying a people, requires informed consent. Counterinsurgency dismisses it. Those interviewed do not know who is interviewing them. They often think it's the military (because the 'social scientists' are dressed in military garb) and that they have no choice but to answer the questions. That is not informed consent.
Information is not gathered to illuminate the human condition, it's gathered to advance military goals. That is not social science, it's so far beyond a bastardization of social science that it is, in fact, a War Crime.
When he thinks no one is watching, David Kilcullen can be very illuminating and drop all pretense that he's attempting to help anyone other than a military. Speaking this month to Byron Sibree (New Zealand Herald), Kilcullen described counterinsurgency as "a form of what the French call counter-warfare which kind of morphs in response to whatever we're dealing with." Michael Hastings' article on Gen Stanley McCrystal was about McCrystal's objections to counter-insurgency (portrayed in the article as McCrystal thinking they were a waste of resources). McCrystal is now out as the US' top commander in Afghanistan. Gen David Petraeus is now the top US commander in Afghanistan. Petraeus is a close friend of Kilcullen's (he even attend Kilcullen's wedding -- no word on whether he was the ring-bearer or flower girl). And all the War Criminals hang out together. The civilian side (which Kilcullen is on now, having left the Australian military) is represented by War Whores such as Samantha Power and Sarah Sewall -- America's very own Josef Mengele and Kurt Lischka. If you're late to the party, Ava and I covered the group in 2007 when two little War Criminals -- Sarah Sewer and Monty McFate -- went on Charlie Rose -- that's the episode where Sarah Sewer brags she can get Barack to say whatever she wants. Where were you brave journalists of the left? Oh, that's right. You were all up Barack's crack or else playing the quiet game. And if you're trying to lose weight, click here and see the War Criminals Monty McFate, Sarah Sewer and Michele Flournoy (I'm sure Susan Brownmiller could analyze that photo at great length). It may be days before you regain your appetite. These women are liars and include Samantha Power who is a blood thirsty War Hawk who blurbed the counterinsurgency manual Sarah and Monty 'wrote.' (Monty's academic 'writing' appears doomed to the same fate as her juvenile 'writing' -- massive charges of plagiarism. For those late to the party, I knew Monty McFate when she was an ugly, little girl and, if nothing else, her life has demonstrated that the old wives tale of "Ugly in the cradle, pretty at the table" was wrong. Sometimes it really is ugly in the cradle and ugly at the table.) You can also click here for Noam Chomsky's thoughts on the War Criminals (Monthly Review, 2008). Though women often lead on this (at least publicly -- and Ms. magazine and Feminist Majority Foundation were stupid enough to promote these War Hawks in a so-called 'feminist' confrence), Michael Ignatieff and many other men are also part of it. (One-time journalist Thomas E. Ricks, John Nagl and many others.) One of the few journalists to tackle counterinsurgency is Kelley B. Vlahos (Antiwar.com). Most recently (June 15th), she took on the counterinsurgency 'brains' big Center for a New American Security conference:
But a year later, "victory" in Afghanistan is more elusive than ever and the "COINdinistas" are either disappearing to other realms of pop doctrine or standing around defensively, trying to backtrack and redefine tactics to accommodate the negative reality on the ground. So, as last year's event mimicked the preening confidence of a new sheriff in town, this year it amounted to a lot of whistling past the graveyard.
Whistling past the graveyard seems to be the only way to describe the sense that no one really wanted to talk about the 800-pound gorilla in the room: how their venerated COIN formula -- you know, the one that would have worked in Vietnam if spineless bureaucrats and long-haired hippies hadn't gotten in the way -- is actually playing out in Afghanistan today.
This was the largest congregation of the uniformed and civilian defense policy establishment all year. CNAS (pronounced see-nass) had been writing non-stop about Afghanistan in some capacity since its inception in 2007 -- including a recent study by fellow Andrew Exum, "Leverage: Designing a Political Campaign for Afghanistan." The fact that on June 10, the morning of the conference, one of the major front-page headlines in the Washington Post blared "Commanders Fear Time Is Running Out in Marja" should have been the perfect launching point for a stimulating discussion.
Instead, you had panel after panel nibbling around the edges and a keynote speech that managed, gratingly, to avoid talking about current operations altogether. Indirectly, the day provided a few tiny glimpses into how the COIN community and all of its defense industry hangers-on are feeling about the state of things. And it is not good. Unfortunately for them, the lack of public candor just added to the growing sense of doom.
Good. And good for Kelley for continuing to call out the counterinsurgency 'gurus' at a time when most others take a pass and in spite of the fact that Thomas E. Ricks launches personal and sexist attacks on her for doing so.
In Iraq, the Sahwa movement was part of the counterinsurgency effort. The main part, according to Petraeus (who is now trying to replicate it in Afghanistan even though for two years now it's been noted that it probably can't be done in Afghanistan). Sunni fighters (and, according to Petraeus' April 2008 Congressional testimony, some Shi'ites) were put on the American tax payer's dime. A little over 90,000 of them were paid not to attack US miltary equipment or military personnel. It was like paying a school bully off not to beat you up in the playground. And how did it work out? Shor-term it may have helped somewhat. (The large refugee crisis did more to end the bloody ethnic cleansing than paying off Sahwa -- by Petraues' own testimony and that of then-US Ambassador Ryan Crocker -- Sahwa was only paid to stop targeting the US.) But there was never a diplomatic push (which the Sahwa and the escalation -- "surge" -- were sold on) and what we really see today is that the Sahwa is not, has not and will not be integrated into Iraqi society as long as Nouri al-Maliki is prime minister.
And how long might that be? Trend News Agency reports Iraq's Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi's adviser Khalil Azraa is stating the US has not done enough to resolve the political stalemate in Iraq and quotes him stating, "The U.S. can exert political pressure on the formation of the government, because it is responsible for building democracy in Iraq." Tariq al-Hashimi is a member of Iraqiya, in fact, he is, after Ayad Allawi, probably the most prominent member of Iraqiya (especially post-purge by Ahmed Chalabi and Ali al-Lami).
March 7th, Iraq concluded Parliamentary elections. Three months and two days later, still no government. 163 seats are needed to form the executive government (prime minister and council of ministers). When no single slate wins 163 seats (or possibly higher -- 163 is the number today but the Parliament added seats this election and, in four more years, they may add more which could increase the number of seats needed to form the executive government), power-sharing coalitions must be formed with other slates, parties and/or individual candidates. (Eight Parliament seats were awarded, for example, to minority candidates who represent various religious minorities in Iraq.) Ayad Allawi is the head of Iraqiya which won 91 seats in the Parliament making it the biggest seat holder. Second place went to State Of Law which Nouri al-Maliki, the current prime minister, heads. They won 89 seats. Nouri made a big show of lodging complaints and issuing allegations to distract and delay the certification of the initial results while he formed a power-sharing coalition with third place winner Iraqi National Alliance -- this coalition still does not give them 163 seats. They are claiming they have the right to form the government. It's four months and five days and, in 2005, Iraq took four months and seven days to pick a prime minister. Today makes it four months and nine days without any government being established. Salah Hemeid (Al-Ahram Weekly) notes the lengthy delay:
With many Iraqis describing this new postponement as unconstitutional, there are widespread fears that the ongoing political crisis over who will lead the country will now escalate further.
The parliament had previously convened on 13 June, the country's constitution stating that the president should be selected within 30 days of its convocation. The possibility of further delay raises the question of whether inaction is flouting a constitution that many Iraqis believe has already been violated by politicians.
Iraqi voters went to the polls on 7 March to elect a new 325-member parliament, but an indecisive result, and bickering over who should be the country's next prime minister, has delayed the formation of a new government and plunged the country into political stalemate.
Under the country's constitution the Iraqi parliament should have convened 15 days after the results were announced in order to elect a speaker, and a new president should have been elected within 30 days of the parliament's first session. The president should then have nominated the new prime minister, who should have submitted his cabinet within 30 days for ratification.
According to an understanding that emerged after Iraq's first post-Saddam elections in 2005, a Shia Arab would be prime minister, a Kurd president, and a Sunni Arab speaker of the parliament. This quota system also covers top jobs, such as ambassadors and senior government and army posts, and the country's Shias and Kurds have been insisting on the quota system despite strong Sunni opposition.
Tim Arango (New York Times) reports 29 dead in Sulaimaniya hotel fire. Gabriel Gatehouse (BBC News -- link has text and video) reports forty were also injured and that some of the dead "died jumping from their windows to escape the flames". Zhang Xiang (Xinhua) reports the death toll is up to 43 and "many of the dead were from Bangladesh, Phillipine and Thailand, said the [local police] source, adding four Americans were among the dead." Zhang Xiang then noted that the death toll had been lowered yet again. Al Jazeera notes that the death toll flucuates based on the governmental source and quotes their correspondent Rawya Rageh stating, "There is still confusion over the exact death toll -- but we know that the dead include Americans, Europeans, Koreans, Bangladeshis, Arab nationals and various other nationalities." Caroline Alexander (Bloomberg News) reports that the KRG e-mailed an official death toll of 28 with twenty-two wounded. UK Today News notes that the fire took at least seven hours for fire fighters to put it out.
Mohammed Tawfeeq (CNN) reports, "Jabbar Yawer, spokesman of the local security forces, told CNN that three Asians who work for a local cell phone company were among those killed." ABS-CBN reports that a female, Filipina engineer was among the dead according to the Phillppine Embassy in Iraq. The Inquirer notes that two Filipinos were wounded in the fire. AFP reports 4 US citizens were among the dead. Sam Dagher (New York Times) notes "two babies and a pregnant woman" were also killed in the fire and states that the Kurdistan hotel was "lacking basic safety precautions such as smoke detectors and fire extinguishers". BBC News offers a photo essay on the fire.
In other violence . . .
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad roadside bombing injured four people, another claimed 3 lives, a Baghdad motorcyle bombing claimed 2 lives and left ten people wounded, a Baghdad roadside bombing wounded two more people, and, dropping back to Thursday, a Tikrit car bobming claimed six live and left fourteen people wounded.
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports 1 teacher was shot dead last night in Baquba and that the teacher had been a Sawha.
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports 2 corpses were discovered yesterday in Baghdad
Meanwhile Turkey is forming new relationships to tackle the PKK (a Kurdish group which is in a battle for self-autonomy and resorts to violence leading it to be labeled a terrorist organization by many governments including Turkey, the US and Iraq). As noted in yesterday's snapshot, they want to pull together a 'professional military' with neighbors Syria and Iran (even floating the thought of that sent panic through the US White House) to combat the PKK. Xinhua notes (link has text and video) that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip "Erdogan said Turkey had mobilized all resources to fight terrorism, and was holding talks with executives of the European Union (EU), Iraq, Iran, Syria, Russia and the United States. Erdogan also said around 150 mini unmanned aircraft, manufactured by local resources, were joining the fight against terrorism, adding that a ceremony would be held later on Friday to launch the first local-manufactured unmanned aircraft."
On this week's Law & Disorder (began airing on WBAI Monday and on other stations around the country throughout the week), Michael Smith spoke with Jim Lafferty about the July 23 through 25 end the wars conference in Albany. Lafferty recommended two websites, we'll note National Assembly (because I don't think the other web address was correct, I may be wrong) and their explanation of the conference:
The purpose of this conference is to bring together antiwar and social justice activists from across the country to discuss and decide what we can do together to end the wars, occupations, bombing attacks, threats and interventions that are taking place in the Middle East and beyond, which the U.S. government is conducting and promoting. Attend and voice your opinion on where the antiwar movement is today and where we go from here.
In these deeply troubled times, Washington's two wars and occupations rage on, resulting in an ever increasing number of dead and wounded; more and more civilians killed in drone bombing attacks; misery, deprivation, dislocation and shattered lives for millions; and a suicide rate for U.S. service members soaring to unprecedented heights. At the same time, trillions are spent on these seemingly endless Pentagon conflicts waged in pursuit of profits and global domination while trillions more are lost by working people in the value of their homes, in the loss of their jobs, pensions and health care, and in cuts for public services and vitally needed social programs.
That was a brief segment. A longer one was with a discussion with Clifton Hicks.
Michael Smith: Why did you go? Did you think that Iraq had something to do with 9-11?
Clifton Hicks: Yeah, I sure did. Yeah. I didn't -- you know, I didn't think about it. Looking back, it's hard to sort out the thoughts that were going through my mind or the lack of thoughts that were going through my mind. But I definitely -- I was just a typical, Whitekid or just a typical kid in general. And I saw Arabic people, Muslim people, and sort of figured that they were all in cahoots and that they were all out to get us kind of thing really.
Michael Smith: Newspaper reports or TV reports that led you to believe? Because it was quite conscious on the part of the Bush-Cheney administration to mislead people into thinking that Iraq had something to do with 9-11. Was it the mass media that influenced you?
Clifton Hicks: There - there was probably an influence from mass media. I listened to a lot of AM radio, a lot of daytime, right wing radio. Both my parents and my two sisters and my whole family is a bunch of -- they're all sort of very open-minded, liberal, nice folks. And I was, I was real rebellious and black sheep as a kid and I was real, real heavily right wing and conservative in a lot of ways -- or so I thought.
For background on Hicks, from the June 11, 2007 snapshot:
Clifton Hicks is now discharged and some may remember his story from Peter Laufer's Mission Rejected: U.S. Soldiers Who Say No to Iraq. In the book Laufer recounts how Hicks father posted one his son's letters home (from Iraq) online and the military's response was "a Field Grade Article 15" (p. 185) which Hicks learned after his woke him up one morning kicking his cot and, pay attention easily shocked Heather Hollingsworth-types, cursing at him. "They were going to throw me in jail for treason." After he was demoted to private and fined $800, Hicks applied for CO status. Hicks told Laufer, "If I don't get it? I have other avenues of approach to get home. I've told them I am not going back to Iraq" and would rather go to prison but "[i]t won't come to that, though, because I think I'm too smart for that to happen to me. Civil disobedience is an option -- just refuse to put the uniform on. Maybe a hunger strike. There's all kinds of things you can do. It's looking like they'll approve it. But if they don't, I have Plan B, Plan C, all the way up to desertion" (p. 187). Laufer's chapter on Hicks ends with Hicks being told he will receive CO status and a discharge.
Back to the interview.
Michael Smith: How did your attitude change? Not just about the war but about the Iraqi people?
Clifton Hicks: Yeah, when I first got there, I had this whole opinion that -- I was toeing the party line just like everybody was. We didn't think we were going to be there long and actually my biggest disappointment was that I had missed the invasion. I'd felt like the war was over, I'd missed it and we'd won and I was just going to do just like police duty basically -- which is mostly what I did. I felt like a liberator, like I had helped these folks out and wanted to continue helping them. And really I've always been a pretty good kid, even back then, and I had pretty positive feelings about it and I was very nice to people and very polite and all that I could but it started to wear on me and then my buddies had already been there for six months before I got there. They were pretty nasty set. I mean, these were great guys, wonderful every one of them but they had got pretty nasty being over there.
Michael Smith: Nasty not to each other but nasty to the civilians whose country they were occupying.
Clifton Hicks: Yeah. Well. Just, you know, and there's a reason for that. Guys get nasty because their friends get killed and you realize that you really can't trust anybody and that nobody wants you to be there but you're stuck there and you're sort of like the grit between the sole of the boot and the ground. I mean, you're just getting ground up in the middle of it. It's them or you in many, many cases. And so the way that you get over that is by becoming a very callous, young man. And so I wasn't like that when I first got there but, after a few months, it wore on me. I saw a couple of people get killed and stuff and nasty things happen and I just got to where I just hated, hated every last one of them to death.
Lastly, political prisoner Lynne Stewart last week. Today on Democracy Now!, Juan Gonzalez and Amy Goodman and Petra Bartosiewicz discuss yesterday's travesty of justice.
PETRA BARTOSIEWICZ: Well, there are a lot of extraordinary things about this case. The appellate court was very harsh in its language and in its instruction to the district judge who initially heard the case. And they called the sentence "breathtakingly low," which, you know, the judge could have done anything. He didn't have to increase the sentence, but he would have really had to justify very carefully what he was doing, because if the government could have come back with another appeal and said, "We want this reviewed again," there might be other legal options, as well, on the appellate side. So it seemed inevitable that some increase would happen. The question was how much?
What is really amazing about this case is that it has spanned now three presidents and five attorneys general. It has gone on for year after year after year. And at the heart of the charges against Lynne is that she violated special administrative measures, and she spoke about that in the comments she made earlier, this morning in the clip we heard. But what is not really talked about a lot is that was a pre-9/11 offense that has occured in a post-9/11 world, and it makes a huge difference in terms of the context in which this has all played out, because at the time that the SAMs were imposed in 1996, Rahman was one of the first individuals who had these SAMs applied to him. It was a very new legal tool. It was evolving. There were several versions of the SAMs that came out. It's interesting to note that Patrick Fitzgerald, the assistant US attorney who was in charge of that process, when Lynne initially violated the SAMs, his reaction was not to seek an indictment. It was simply to give her a call and say, "Hey, you violated the SAMs. You're not going to be able to see your client anymore," which is kind of what she was expecting. And it's true, she was gaming the system to a certain degree. I think that there are a lot of judgment calls that maybe -- certainly she -- I'm sure she regrets at this point and that were probably the wrong decision to make at the time. But she was not barred from seeing him -- well, she was for a while. And then she re-signed a new version of the SAMs, so --
AMY GOODMAN: The special administrative measures.
PETRA BARTOSIEWICZ: Yeah, the special administrative measures, which essentially are a series of security requirements. They're designed kind of to prevent the defendant from communicating with the outside world. That was what she violated, in a sense. But they have other aspects to them which essentially keep defendants in total isolation, which is one of the reasons that she breached the agreement, because she saw how isolated he was.
And click here for Petra's column on Lynne published before the judge ruled yesterday. Also see Ruth's "No justice" and Marcia's "Lynne" from last night. At World Can't Wait, Elaine Brower reports:
I sat in the elaborate overflow room, with all of Lynne's supporters. She pleaded for the court's mercy by presenting her statement to the judge. In it, she declared that she no longer had a relationship with her grandson, who could not visit her any longer in the horrible prison. She said she felt alone, and withdrawn. Only when her friends and family came to visit for one hour a week did she rejuvenate for a short period, but then would retreat back into somberness and sadness.
At one point she choked up when saying that if the court decided to sentence her to anytime longer than the original 28 months, it would be a like imposing the "death sentence". She reiterated that many times, in so many different ways. She threw herself at the "mercy" of the judge.
Then the US Attorney stood up and for 30 minutes recounted the details of the entire trial, repeating hundreds of times "we were attacked on 9/11", and "Ms. Stewart gave comfort to Islamic terrorists." These references were the cornerstone of the prosecution's argument, and he couldn't say it enough. In every way, he connected Lynn with the terrorist "murder groups", and in reality tried to paint her as a terrorist. He said "the government trusted her as a lawyer, and she shouldn't have been trusted." He referred endless times to the DVD of her press conference prior to her remand to prison in 2009, and referenced her statements that she had "no remorse."
Lucky for me I was in an overflow room. I commented, loudly, how I hoped this guy would get the pox, and I wasn't alone. People booed, and said he better not come into their neighborhoods. How could he sleep at night? I would be embarrassed to be in his shoes. Is there no dignity?
TV notes. On PBS' Washington Week, Dan Baltz (Washington Post), Eamon Javers (CNBC), Doyle McManus (Los Angeles Times) and Martha Raddatz (ABC News) join Gwen around the table. Gwen now has a weekly column at Washington Week and the current one is "Entering the 'Twitterverse'." This week, Bonnie Erbe will sit down with Karen Czarnecki, Avis Jones-DeWeever, Nicole Kurokawa and Patricia Sosa on the latest broadcast of PBS' To The Contrary to discuss the week's events. And at the website each week, there's an extra just for the web from the previous week's show and this week's online bonus is a discussion onf 'Facebook fanatics.' Need To Know is PBS' new program covering current events. This week's hour long broadcast (Fridays on most PBS stations -- but check local listings) will feature "Congressional Oversight Panel chairwoman Elizabeth Warren on the possibility that a national commercial real-estate foreclosure crisis may occur, and the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Agency." And turning to broadcast TV, Sunday CBS' 60 Minutes offers:
Golf Company
Scott Pelley spends time with a U.S. Marine company battling the enemy in Helmand Province, sent there as part of President Obama's troop buildup in Afghanistan. | Watch Video
In a rare interview, the Spanish starlet opens up about her life, career and childhood. Charlie Rose reports.
Morley Safer interviews the actors and writers behind broadcasting's longest running drama, "Guiding Light," as they celebrate the soap opera's incredible run and discuss its cancellation after 72 years. | Watch Video
60 Minutes, Sunday, July 18, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
kelley b. vlahos
trend news agency
gabriel gatehouse
zhang xiang
rawya rageh
caroline alexander
sam dagher
sahar issa
michael ratner
heidi boghosian
bonnie erbe
NYT listens to NPR
Thursday! Almost the weekend but does it matter on vacation? :D Having a great time.
So today I'm reading Andrew Adam Newman's dumb article about Old Spice body wash in the New York Times and thinking, "This seems so familiar."
And then it hits me, it's a story my mom wrote about last week in "If you use a term, you need to know the meaning," Go to my mom's post, use the link to the NPR story she provides and then ask yourself if NYT doesn't owe a huge uncredited debt to NPR for the story they're 'reporting.' Even the stats.
Thursday, July 15, 2010. Chaos and violence continue, Lt Dan Choi and Capt James Pietrangelo II face no charges, a US service member in Iraq is wounded in a roadside bombing, Turkey wants to put together a private military to fight the PKK and the US government wants to 'contribute' weapons, the political stalemate continues, the US Army releases the most recent suicide data, and more.
Starting in the United States.
Victory for truth today! Government drops case against us. #DADT #LGBT about 21 hours ago via Twitterrific
That's Lt Dan Choi yesterday on his Twitter feed. Yesterday Lt Dan Choi and Capt James Pietrangelo II went on trial for peaceful demonstrations on the sidewalk in front of the White House March 18th and April 20th calling for the White House to end the policy of Don't Ask, Don't Tell and allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. They were charged with failing to obey a lawful order (to disperse). Yusef Najafi (Metro Weekly) reports both men were in the DC court yesterday prepared for the start of the trial only to be told by DC Superior Court Judge Fredrick J. Sullivan, "Your cases are dismissed." South Florida Gay News adds, "Although the prosecution was ready to move forward and the arresting officers were present in courtroom 120 of DC Superior Court this morning, the government decided at the last minute today to drop the charges against Lt. Dan Choi and Cpt. James Pietrangelo II. Apparently, Prosecutor Christine Chang was unaware of the government's decision as she stated, 'I was ready,' and wasn't able to explain the last-minute decision not to prosecute." Eve Conant (Newsweek) reports, "Both men have faced criticism for continued acts of civil disobedience designed to fight the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy, including a short hunger strike, as the Obama administration and Congress have recently begun steps toward repealing the 17-year-old ban. Choi has repeatedly told NEWSWEEK that any movement short of full and immediate repeal is welcome, but that without repeal the 'injustice' remains in force and he will continue to fight it. (Last week many gay-rights groups widely criticized a Pentagon survey on the repeal that they said was biased and could produce skewed results.)" Zachary Wilson (Queer Sighted) offers this evaluation, "Congrats to Choi, now a gay right icon, on his victory for truth. And congrats to the movement." Today he spoke to Neal Broverman (The Advocate) on the charges being dropped and other topics including Don't Ask, Don't Tell, "You've heard the Pentagon spokesperson say some ridiculous thinks about segregation. They're being so careful and 'lawyerly' about the repeal. You get the feeling that they're incompetent as far as showing real leadership." Appearing Tuesday on Patt Morrison's self-titled Soutchern California Public Radio show, Dan addressed the lack of leadership.
Lt Dan Choi: People who serve in the military -- the soldiers, the sailors, the marine, the air men, the people all throughout and any veteran -- knows very clearly education in the military does not start from a survey or a poll. Education starts from a commander laying down the law saying, "This is the right thing to do. Period. You will do this, you will not discriminate under my command." And anybody with any kind of moral or professional authority -- from the newest corporal all the way up to the commander in chief, the president of the United States -- has a moral responsibility to say, "This is the way that we are going" -- clearly, unambiguously. Discrimination of any sort is not only against the military codes and our traditions and our values but it's against America. This survey is absolutely anti-American.
Patt Morrison: So if this had happened, say, when [President Harry] Truman issued his order to [racially] integrate the armed forces?
Lt Dan Choi: Big if because it did not happen when Truman took the courageous step of just saying, "You know whatever the consequences to my political career, I am the commander in chief and the buck stops here with me. And I know the right thing to do so I am steering this ship and if you don't want to fall in line with the way that America has promised we will not discriminate, then go ahead and quit." And when he did that -- and the same thing when women entered West Point and the service acadamies, the same thing that happened when my particular Army National Guard unit allowed [. . .] the integration of Irish Catholics, the same thing that happened with Asians and all throughout our history: The military says, "This is the way we do business. We do not discriminate here." And we don't need polls to educate. It's the job, it's the duty of every commander.
GetEQUAL issued the following statement on the dismissal of charges:
WASHINGTON -- Although the prosecution was ready to move forward and the arresting officers were present in courtroom 120 of DC Superior Court this morning, the government decided at the last minute today to drop the charges against Lt. Dan Choi and Cpt. James Pietrangelo II. Apparently, Prosecutor Christine Chang was unaware of the government's decision as she stated, "I was ready," and wasn't able to explain the last-minute decision not to prosecute.
"Today, truth was the victor against a demeaning, discriminatory law known as 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,'" said Lt. Dan Choi. "We won't stop pressing for repeal and pressuring those standing in the way until the day comes when not one more gay or lesbian servicemember is fired. And, as of today, the President refuses to tell us when that day will actually come."
"It is clear that the government was embarrassed and we were prepared to make them defend this antiquated and homophobic law. The government is afraid of having to defend this issue," said Cpt. James Pietrangelo II. "The subpoena was an embarrassment for them, 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' is an embarrassment for them and, after three months of discovery and preparation, the government dropped the case because they know it's an embarrassment."
"Civil disobedience won today," said Robin McGehee, co-founder and co-director of GetEQUAL. "We're thrilled today that Dan and Jim's actions have been validated and that non-violent civil disobedience has been proven again to be effective in combating prejudice. We are proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Dan, Jim and other LGBT active-duty servicemembers who are taking action to end this discriminatory policy."
Lt. Choi and Cpt. Pietrangelo were both facing two charges each of Failure to Obey a Lawful Order, pursuant to DC Municipal Regulations (18 DCMR 2000.2 (1995). The charges stemmed from the two men's arrests on March 18th and April 20th when they chained themselves to the White House gate, in an act of non-violent civil disobedience, to protest the President's lack of leadership on repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
"We were ready to put 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' on trial today, but it was clear the government was embarrassed to defend an indefensible policy," said Mark Goldstone, lawyer for Lt. Choi's and Cpt. Pietrangelo's defense team. "Did the White House make a last-minute call to prevent this embarrassment from continuing? Clearly, someone did."
Goldstone continued, "ll fair-minded people should continue to agitate for actual and immediate repeal of this unjust, unfair policy. This is a big win for non-violent resistance to unjust policies and proves if you speak truth to power, good things can happen."
"They declined to prosecute because the case would embarrass the government," said Ann Wilcox, lawyer for Lt. Choi's and Cpt. Pietrangelo's defense team. "The President said it was important to pressure leaders like himself, and that is exactly what Lt. Choi and Cpt. Pietrangelo did before and intended to do again today."
GetEQUAL is a national, direct action lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization. Emphasizing direct action and people power, the mission of GetEQUAL is to empower the LGBT community and its allies to take action to demand full legal and social equality, and to hold accountable those who stand in the way. For more information on GetEQUAL, please visit http://www.getequal.orghttp://www.getequal.org/ . You can follow GetEQUAL on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/getequal, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/GetEQUAL, or on YouTube at
http://www.youtube.com/getequal.
Chris Geidner (Metro Weekly) reveals that GetEQUAL is already gearing up for a focus on ENDA, "The organization sent an email to its mailing list on Wednesday morning, asking 'Which Democratic leader should we hold accountable next for workplace protections for LGBT people?'"
There is no protection for the people of Iraq and among the groups targeted are LGBT member, presumably straight women, Iraqi Christians and other religious minorities, Sahwa, professors and just about any other group you can think of. Margaret Hassan met several criteria. She was an Irish, British and Iraqi citizen. She worked for CARE International in Iraq. October 19, 2004, Margaret was kidnapped and she was murdered at the start of November. Peter Cave (Australia's ABC) notes, "Margaret Hassan had lived in Iraq for more than 30 years and had worked there for Care International for 12 years before she was pulled from her car on the way to work in October 2004." Andy Winter (Sky News) reminds, "Her body has never been found and the family have been counting on Jassar al Rawi to reveal where it is so she can be given a proper burial." Only one person has been convicted in the crimes. Michael Jansen (Irish Times) reports, "Hassan's sister Geraldine Fitsimonds Riney said the family had been notified by their Iraqi lawyer that Ali Lutfi Jassar al-Rawi, sentenced to life imprisonment in June 2009, will not appear at his appeal today because he cannot be traced." The Mirror notes, "Ali Lutfi Jassar got life for the 59-year-old's abduction and murder in Iraq 2004." BBC News reports, "An Iraqi court has ordered a search for a man convicted of the 2004 kidnap and murder of British aid worker Margaret Hassan, amid fears he has escaped." Is he in another prison, is he in that prison but 'misfiled' or has he been released? No one's telling the family. Mark Tran (Guardian) quotes another sister of Margaret's, Deirdre Manchanda stating, "Jassar is known to be part of the gang that kidnapped and killed my sister. We have fought for justice for six years only to find that not one member of this gang can be brought to justice.
A poll won't tell you where Margaret Hassan's body is but it can be of some value. Gary Langer (US" ABC News) notes, "Reports based on a pair of ABC News polls in Afghanistan and Iraq last year were nominated today for an Emmy award for outstanding continuing coverage of a news story." Earlier this week, Stephanie Condon (CBS News) reported on the latest Iraq and Afghanistan Wars poll, "On Iraq, Americans continue to hold more positive views of the war- 55 percent say things are going well for the U.S. there." Are they optimistic because the only one convicted in the murder of Margaret Hassan is nowhere to be found? No, they're 'positive' because the network media abandoned Iraq. And they get crap churned out by bad writers like Dimiter Kenarov.
So what makes a man a man
In these tough times
As druglords buy up the banks
And warlords radiate the oceans
Ecosystems fail
Snakes and snails and puppy tails
Are wagging in the womb
Beneath the trampled moon
Tire skids and teethmarks
What happened to this place?
Lawyers and loan sharks
Are laying America to waste
-- "No Apologies," written by Joni Mitchell, first appears on her Taming The Tiger
Having bungled his own country's literature repeatedly (though few catch on -- possibly revealing their own ignorance when it comes to world lit) revealing his weak education and pushing centrist programs (and publications) while writing for The Nation, et al, Dimiter Kenarov shops his latest b.s. to Esquire and it's crap from the get go. The US military is pulling out of Iraq! They are! And Dmiter 'proves' it by focusing on two . . . Oops, Dumb Ass Dimiter, those aren't US soldiers, they aren't US service members. They are DynCorp employees. CorpWatch describes DynCorp as, "The world's premier rent-a-cop business runs the security show in Afghanistan, Iraq, and the US-Mexico border. They also run the coca crop-dusting business in Columbia, and occasional sex trafficking sorties in Bosnia. But what can you expect from a bunch of mercenaries?" Dumb Ass Dimiter thinks readers can expect 'honesty' from DynCorp. What an idiot and it just against demonstrates what I've long said: The Nation magazine needs real standards because they lower their own brand over and over by publishing these jerk-off neoliberals who then trade on the magazine's names to pass off their non-left programs and ideas. So Esquire readers -- Oh, I'm not in the mood, I'm so not in the mood. Closet cases who've yet to buy their first gay porn magazine (as Esquire internal surveys have demonstrated) will be greeted with the bad article and, when not pleasuring themselves to photos of scantily clad men (Oh, look! The designers are using hairy chested men again!), they can be spun into believing that things are good, good and great in Iraq! (For cheesy X-Treme factor, check out Dimiter's single-sentence paragraph that closes the article. It is too poetry what Bo Derek is to acting.) For those in the real world, violence continues in Iraq.
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad sticky bombing which claimed one life (three people wounded), a Baghdad mortar attack, a Tikrit suicide bomber who took his own life, dropping back to Wednesday for the next events: a Baghdad grenade attack which wounded two police officers, a Baghdad grenade attack which injured three people (including two Iraqi soldiers), a Bahgdad roadside bombing which claimed 2 lives and left two people injured, a Baghdad sticky bombing which wounded one person, a Baghdad sticky bombing which wounded Sahwa commander Salih Mizhir, a Mosul roadside bombing which wounded four people and a Mosul store bombing which injured three, and a Tuesday Baghdad roadside bombing which claimed the life of Judge Hasen Aziz Abdurahman.
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Wednesday attack on a Baghdad check point in which two police officers and one by-stander were wounded in shootings.
And Kevin Lloyd tells Iowa's KTIV that his son, Private First Class Kyle Lloyd, has been injured in a roadside bombing and will "be transferred to a military hospital in Germany."
Still with violence, Saturday AFP reported that the Turkish government has informed the governments of the US, Iraq and the KRG that it wants it to hand over rebels in nothern Iraq which they number at 248 and one official (unnamed) is quoted stating, "The net is tightening." Press TV added, "The list included senior PKK chiefs such as Murat Karayilan, Cemil Bayik, and Duran Kalkan. The call was made shortly after military and civilian leaders in Turkey voiced growing frustration with Baghdad and the Iraq-based US military over their inaction in confronting the PKK." Umit Enginsoy (Hurriyet Daily News) reported Tuesday that unnamed sources say the US has increased it's "cooperation" with Turkey: "The U.S. and Turkish militaries have been sharing intelligence about the PKK since November 2007, when President George W. Bush agreed to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's request in the wake of stepped-up attacks by the outlawed group, which is listed as a terrorist organization by both countries as well as the European Union. Stronger U.S. support for Turkey's fight against the PKK has been reflected in a number of recent developments, sources said Monday, citing increased Turkish access to Iraqi airspace, an agreement to transfer attack helicopters and the ramping up of intelligence sharing." Today's Zayman reports Turkey is attempting to team up with Syria and Iran to fight the PKK: "Preliminary signs of this cooperation have already emerged with Iran capturing and executing 29 PKK members in the past six months. Seventeen PKK militants were extradited to Turkey. Syria launched a military campaign against the group, killing 185 terrorists and arresting 400 others. Some 160 of these will be extradited to Turkey, while Germany returned three PKK members to Turkey very recently in what was a first in that country's history." Today's Zaman also notes a proposal that's meeting with some opposition in Turkey for Turkey to put together a professional army to fight 'terror' [PKK]. That proposed 'professional army' comes just as Aras Coskuntuncel (Hurriyet Daily News) reports that US Ambassador to Turkey (now nominated to be the US Ambassador to Iraq) James Jeffrey has stated that the United States government is looking for "additional ways that we can provide assistance to Turkey, including weapons platforms."
Meanwhile Alsumaria TV reports that Ali Al Dabbagh, apparently speaking on behalf of the State of Law slate of which he is a member, has stated that the next prime minister of Iraq must be a member of the National Alliance (State of Law slate or Iraqi National Alliance). March 7th, Iraq concluded Parliamentary elections. Three months and two days later, still no government. 163 seats are needed to form the executive government (prime minister and council of ministers). When no single slate wins 163 seats (or possibly higher -- 163 is the number today but the Parliament added seats this election and, in four more years, they may add more which could increase the number of seats needed to form the executive government), power-sharing coalitions must be formed with other slates, parties and/or individual candidates. (Eight Parliament seats were awarded, for example, to minority candidates who represent various religious minorities in Iraq.) Ayad Allawi is the head of Iraqiya which won 91 seats in the Parliament making it the biggest seat holder. Second place went to State Of Law which Nouri al-Maliki, the current prime minister, heads. They won 89 seats. Nouri made a big show of lodging complaints and issuing allegations to distract and delay the certification of the initial results while he formed a power-sharing coalition with third place winner Iraqi National Alliance -- this coalition still does not give them 163 seats. They are claiming they have the right to form the government. It's four months and five days and, in 2005, Iraq took four months and seven days to pick a prime minister. Today it is four months and eight days. Progress? They couldn't even meet the 2005 standard. UPI reports that the stalemate finds most participants objecting to "a second term for" Nouri and quotes Iraqi National Alliance member Ali Shubar stating today, "Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has consumed his full chances in performing his constitutional duties during the last four years and should be replaced by another figure who would be approved by political entities." And Jackson Diehl (Washington Post) reports that Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari met with the Washington Post editorial board yesterday and took questions from them and Post reporters. On the White House, he declared, "Their role has not been active, to be honest wit you."
Turning to England, BBC News reports that Paul Boateng is stating that the Blair cabinet (he was a member of it) "should have seen all the arguments on the legality of the Iraq war." As the Iraq Inquiry has already established then-British Attorney General Peter Goldsmith was of the opinion that -- without a second UN resolution -- a war with Iraq would be illegal. Goldsmith repeatedly advised Blair of that (leading Blair to scribble on one memo, "I just don't understand this"; while his underling scribbled that Blair had "specifically said we did not need further advis [on] this matter"). Days before the illegal war started, Goldsmith was finally pressured into changing his legal opinion. Goldsmith denied being pressured. He said it was more a case of choosing whether or not you wanted to be on the winning side. I believe that's peer pressure when we're speaking of youths. I think it falls under (politely) group-think when you're an adult or (truthfully) cowardice. The cabinet was not informed of any doubts and were only informed that Goldsmith was stating that the Iraq War would be legal. BBC News also notes:Separately, the inquiry published a newly declassified document showing that Treasury officials urged ministers to "step back" from taking a leading military role in post-invasion Iraq.An internal paper - written by senior Treasury official John Dodds - warned that Britain could be "sucked into" costly wider responsibilities if it took on security duties after the overthrow of Saddam Hussein.But the briefing note, sent to then Chancellor Gordon Brown, observed it was unlikely Prime Minister Tony Blair and other ministers would want to "walk away" from a leadership role in Iraq.Peter Mandelson was in Blair's cabinet -- in and out of the cabinet. He resigned twice. His memoirs are due out shortly and sections are being serialized in the Times of London. One section is especially gathering attention. Nicholas Watt (Guardian) reports on Mandelson's assertion that he challenged Blair on going to war with Iraq and Blair replied, "For God's sake, have you been spending all your time with George Galloway?" Mehdi Hasan (New Statesman) adds of that quote:Amazing. Is any more insight needed into what Mandelson refers to as Blair's "tunnel vision" on Iraq? Is any more proof needed that our former prime minister had no intention of debating the rights or wrongs of invading Iraq, not even with close colleagues and friends like Mandelson, but had instead made up his mind long before the March 2003 invasion and refused to seek out alternatives? "As military preparations intensified. those who had reservations of the sort I had raised were lumped together in his mind with anyone who felt he wasn't 100% on board," writes Mandelson. "The distinction between the two became blurred in Tony's mind."On the Iraq Inquiry, Carne Ross testified Monday (see that day's snapshot) and Colum Lynch (Foreign Policy) reports on the testimony including zooming in on Ross' testimony about leaking to Lynch.
In the US, the Army today released the latest month of suicide data:
The Army released suicide data today for the month of June. Among active duty soldiers, there were 21 potential suicides: one was confirmed as a suicide, and 20 remain under investigation. For May, the Army reported 10 potential suicides among active duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, four have been confirmed as suicides, and six remain under investigation.
During June 2010, among reserve component soldiers who were not on active duty, there were 11 potential suicides: one was confirmed as suicide, and 10 remain under investigation. For May, among that same group, there were 13 total suicides. Of those, two were confirmed as suicides and 11 are pending determination of the manner of death.
For reference, the Army's total for the first half of calendar year 2009 was 88 for active duty and 42 for reserve component soldiers who were not on active duty. For the first half of 2010, the totals were 80 for active duty and 65 for reserve component soldiers who were not on active duty.
"Our suicide prevention efforts must continue to be directed at all members of the Army family -- our soldiers, Department of the Army civilians and families -- during the busy summertime transition period," said Col. Chris Philbrick, director, Army Suicide Prevention Task Force. "The crucial elements are still caring, concern and decisive leadership. There will never be a substitute for a noncommissioned officer, first-line supervisor or friend who knows when a person is suffering and has the moral courage to act and get that individual the help they need. That ability to make a positive difference is the best method to render effective suicide prevention in the Army," Philbrick said.
Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact Military OneSource or the Defense Center of Excellence (DCoE) for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Outreach Center. Trained consultants are available from both organizations 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year.
The Military OneSource toll-free number for those residing in the continental United States. is 1-800-342-9647; their Web site address is http://www.militaryonesource.com . Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource Web site for dialing instructions for their specific location.
The Army's comprehensive list of Suicide Prevention Program information is located at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/default.asp .
Army leaders can access current health promotion guidance in newly revised Army Regulation 600-63 (Health Promotion) at: http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/r600_63.pdf and Army Pamphlet 600-24 (Health Promotion, Risk Reduction and Suicide Prevention) at http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/p600_24.pdf .
Suicide prevention training resources for Army families can be accessed at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/training_sub.asp?sub_cat=20 (requires Army Knowledge Online access to download materials).
The DCoE Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at Resources@DCoEOutreach.org and at http://www.dcoe.health.mil .
Information about the Army's Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf .
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention: http://www.afsp.org.
Suicide Prevention Resource Council: http://www.sprc.org/index.asp.
Yesterday, the US House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing on preventing suicides. In addition to yesterday's snapshot, Marcia reported on it in "House Veterans Affairs suicide hearing," Ann in "Dr. Robert Jesse," and Trina in "It's about respect and self-respect" (Trina's covering the Republican committee member in the hearing who came off looking like a real ass) and yesterday also noted the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee's hearing on claims processing which Mike also reported on in "Senate Veterans Affairs Committee."
Meanwhile US House Rep Loretta Sanchez weighs in at Politico on the issue of women in the military. This is the opening, use the link:
Imagine you have enlisted in the U.S. armed forces. You've gone through basic training, overcoming the same challenges as your peers. You have proved you have the strength and determination to defend our country, at whatever cost.
You're deployed to Afghanistan, where your first assignment is providing technical support for a combat unit. You are exposed regularly to enemy fire, roadside bombs and other threats. You may even be injured while fulfilling your duties. In and out of combat, you perform bravely and capably.
Unfortunately, your combat service means little -- because you are a woman.
More than 29,000 women are now serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. But official policy prevents them from joining ground units engaged in direct combat or support units that travel to the front lines.
iraqdan choiyusef najafisouth florida gay newsnewsweekeve conantqueer sightedzachary wilsonchris geidner
bbc newsthe guardiannicholas wattthe new statesmanmehdi hasanforeign policycolumn lynchthe irish timesmichael jansenthe mirrorthe washington postjackson diehl
Senate Veterans Affairs Committee
Hump day. And I was in DC today. Got to catch part of two hearings. C.I. left in the middle of a House Veterans Committee hearing to try to make it to a Senate Veterans one and you better move quickly. It was a distance. On C-Span, I always think everything must be right next to each other. Like rooms in one building. Oh, no. Until today, I did not know that there were buildings -- plural. We were in the Russell Building for one hearing. And that might have been the House or not. I don't know. But we had to walk fast. C.I. had said to stay in that one but I wanted to catch the whole experience.
And I'm glad I did because I really enjoyed the Senate hearing. Or the part we caught. This was the Committee on Veterans Affairs' hearing on claims processing. And Senator Daniel Akaka is the Chair of the Committee.
When I was going over the hearing with C.I. after, I said, "I may grab the Republican guy, is that okay?" She said sure and noted Kat always blogs on him when she's there.
And I can see why. He seems like he's a straight shooter type of guy. So this is Senator Richard Burr at the beginning of the second panel:
I guess I know the answer to my first question for you, Joe [Thompson], which was whether you think VA is doing enough with the compensation system? Just the compensation system and whether you think it's meeting its goals? And the fact is they're not focused on it. Let me make a general statement and then I'd just like to ask a couple of questions. My statement has no impact on the legislation, it has an impact on whether or not I believe that all stakeholders are willing to do the things it is necessary to do to solve the disability process problem that we have? And I've come to the conclusion that they're not. I think that there are efforts that are underway within VBA, there are individuals involved in the process setting up claims like Ms. Avant, there are deep interests on the part of VSOs, and we cannot find those common intersection points that will allow us to solve a very, very big problem. And I share that with you because this is very disturbing to me. I've made the statement before coming into hearings that we talk about the disability process because I believed there was real hope that we could solve it and I see a growing number of individuals who are going to be relying on our ability to navigate the system -- to redesign the system in a way that it can work for everybody. Well, if we're not allowed to redesign, I can tell you, it's not going to work for everybody. There's going to be unbelievable delays. They're going to be much longer than they are today. We're going to have antiquated requirements on individuals in trying to accomplish their job that are going to be impossible. There are tremendous bright spots -- the pod process we've undertaken in Arksansas. Geez, I'd like to roll that out everywhere in the nation tomorrow but I'm sure somewhere there's going to be opposition to that. And it's one of the reasons that I asked Mike [Walcoff] at what point can we make determinations as to when this works? How far can we roll it out? I'm tired of talking about this.
And he's the Ranking Member which means the highest ranking person in the minority. So I get now why Kat's always blogging about his remarks. You don't fall asleep on him, that's for sure. He doesn't get lost in the weeds. You can always tell what he's talking about.
I do agree with him. And I disagree with him.
In theory, everything he is saying is right.
But?
Is he honest? Is his party?
He has to live with the fallout from his party. When we (Dems) trust Republicans, we usually get screwed. (They probably feel the same way.)
So when he starts talking about how everything needs to be open to changing and all, the message this Democrat gets is, "Oh my God, he's about to slash everything."
I don't know that he would. He seems forthright and honest. But he's a Republican and he needs to grasp that Dems have reasons for not trusting them.
And while his words make complete sense to me, it's also true that they could be used to harm the system in place by just gutting it intentionally.
If that's not his secret itent (I have no way of knowing but will give him the benefit of the doubt), he has to accept the fact that Dems have felt lied to and manipulated by Republicans too many times to take anything at face value.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010. Chaos and violence continue, the US House explores the issue of veterans' suicides, the US Senate addresses claims issues, Bradley Manning needs support, and more.
Linda Bean: I think what -- There are families like mine who have experienced the home coming of a much loved child who is now out of harm's way and you are so grateful that they are back with you that you may overlook the fact that they are drinking too much or that they are irritated or that they insist upon being isolated. And you're not empowered as a mother or a sister or a wife to go to the VA and say, "My veteran is in trouble." I don't even know that I would have known how to do that. I think in the way that Mr. Cintron described we need to make sure that people know there are places to go before you hit the suicide hotline. There are veterans who are not -- who may, in the end, be alone in a room with a gun to their heads but the day before would not describe themselves to you as suicidal. So I -- I guess I would go back to my very strong feeling that as part of that, in addition to the messaging, we need to make sure that there are community based programs that are easily accessible. And we need to make sure that the information the VA has is geared to family and friends in a friendly and accessible way, made easily available so people can find it. And that the VA is willing to say, "Look, if you won't come here, it's okay. We'll help you find help somewhere else."
Linda Bean is the mother of Coleman Bean and the above is from her replies to questions from Committee Members today. Coleman Bean served two deployments in the Iraq War and was an army Sergeant. He returned home and struggled, taking his own life September 6, 2008. His mother was testifying this morning to the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations which is chaired by US House Rep Harry Mitchell. We'll note this from Mitchell's opening remarks.
Chair Harry Mitchell: As Chairman of this Subcommittee, I have repeatedly called upon the VA to increase outreach to veterans who need mental health services and are at risk of suicide -- and members on both side of the aisle have urged the same. In 2008, the VA finally reversed its long-standing self-imposed ban on television and their families about where they can turn for help. As part of the campaign, the VA produced a public service announcement featuring Gary Sinise, and distributed it to 222 stations around the country that aired it more than 17,000 times. The VA also placed print ads on buses and subway trains. According to the VA's own statistics, the effort proved successful. As of April 2010, the VA has reported nearly 7,000 rescues of actively suicidal veterans, which were attributed to seeing the ads, PSAs, or promotional products. Additionally, referrals to VA mental health services increased.
We're going to jump to US House Rep John Hall's questions because PSAs -- and when they air -- come up during that.
US House Rep John Hall: It's been obvious to many of us that when a person joins the military, they should also be automatically enrolled in the VA. And that members of the armed forces and their families should have access to their information and education about assimilating back into civilian life, into their communities before, during and after deployment. One of the problems as I see it here is that the Veterans Affairs Committee has one piece of jurisdiction and the Armed Services Committee has another one, on the executive side, there is one piece and the VA has another piece and there's not that overlap and seamless transition that we've talked about in so many ways -- not just medical records but health follow up. So perhaps, Ms. Bean, you could talk a little bit about what kind of information or resources were available to you and to your son before he took his life? What kind of outreach was there? You've told us a little bit about what you'd like to see available but was there any of substance?
Linda Bean: We have -- we have a strong VA system in New Jersey. When Coleman came home from his second tour of duty, the VA services were certainly available to him. Mental health care is at a premium and it's difficult to get an appointment in a timely fashion. I don't know when or how Coleman called the VA to seek mental health assistance. That's something that we learned only after Coleman had died. I didn't know -- this is a gap in my own understanding as much as anything else -- I didn't know what else was available. I didn't go looking for something else to be available and it wasn't until Coleman had died that I learned that there were many other programs that could have been available. I keep going back to the idea that, you know, our local newspaper run Little League box scores, we run the Butterball turkey hotline at Thanksgiving, we put out notices about bowling leagues. I think our local newspapers and radio stations could run a little box of resources. If you're a vet, if you're a soldier, if you're a family, you can go to these places for help. And that list could include the VA hospital and the vet centers. But it needs to go beyond that to include civilian resources, localized civilian resources. I'm not sure I'm answering the question.
US House Rep John Hall: No, that's helpful. Thank you. Mr. Cintron, would you discuss the kind of prevention that might help a veteran from reaching the point where they take their own life? We've heard about how Coleman and other veterans have -- have no exhibited or used the word suicide and then not exhibit those tendencies until it was too late. So what kind of outreach would you suggest could reach a veteran before they get to that point?
Warrant Officer Melvin Cintron: I think there are a few outreach efforts that can be done. But the first step would have to be to have the people to reach out to and that can reach out to the folks. And they have to have some minimal training. Not a lot. All it takes, often times, like I said, I've encountered many veterans and they start talking to me and share their experience. And it's like, "Wow, you don't the weight that was on me." And it just lingers with them. And al they wanted to do was get it out at least once with someone that can understand -- not to judge, but just listen to them. That? That's what needed. Those outreaches, I think, you know when you get with some of the groups that are available to us, if there's a combined effort with the groups, find the synergy with them and with the government organization so that we all own part of the solution and it's not just a VA solution, not just a DoD solution, not just the solution of any individual program. It is a combined solution we all own part of it. So the outreach would be retraining and identifying personnel who are willing to take the call -- at any [time]. Anybody -- I give my phone to friends and veterans that I need and I say, "Hey, if you ever have an issue, call." And I have actually received calls in the middle of the night. I was just thinking about this. And we talked through and we're done. But having that outreach -- the ability to call somebody -- doesn't have to be somebody that they know but it has to be somebody that knows what it is that they're going through.
US House Rep John Hall: Thank you. I know I'm over my time. But I would just mention that this committee has -- the full Veterans Affairs Committee on the House side has voted to give funding not just for PSA, as Ranking Member Roe mentioned, but for paid advertising. And IAVA who will hear from shortly partnered with the Ad Council in one effort to put together an ad that was more powerful than the average PSA -- Public Service Announcement -- shown in the middle of the night because that's when the time's the cheapest and the TV station will give it up to do there public service whereas what we really need is advertising during the Superbowl, during American Idol, during the highest rated shows, during prime time where the half-hours -- I mean, the thirty-second spot costs the most money. But we're willing to do that to advertise "Be All That You Can Be" [Army recruitment ad], or "The Few, The Proud, The Marines" -- you know, the lightening bolt coming down onto the sword. And if we want to recruit and attract people to go into the armed services and to go fight for our country, we'll spend the money for prime time advertising but when it comes time to help them find the resources that they need to stay healthy after they come home, we want to do it on the cheap. And just do it at 3:00 a.m. in the morning on a PSA. And I think that needs to change, something we in Congress should fund so that the outreach is just as strong afterwards as it is before they were recruited.
Linda Bean and Warrant Officer Melvin Cintron were the witnesses on the first panel. Melvin Cintron served in both the first Gulf War and in the current Iraq War. From Cintron's opening remarks, there's something that has to be noted because VA and military officials repeatedly deny that it happens but it does happen and it's not by accident.
Warrant Officer Melvin Cintron: As an example, when returning from Iraq, as we out processed in Fort Dix, New Jersey, in an auditorium, a sergeant asked, "Is there anybody here who feels they need to talk to someone about anything they saw or did?" Nobody raised their hand. He then stated, "If you want to do it confidentially, please sign the roster that will be in the adjoining room." On the day prior to our leaving the out processing center the sergeant again addressed the crowd of soldier and, with the pad in his hand, he read out the names of those soldiers that had signed up confidentially for the offer made the previous day and asked, "Do you still need to see somebody?" Needles to say, nobody responded with a "yes." I was one of those soldiers.
It happens, it's not an accident. And it would end tomorrow if the brass took it (and the need for mental health) seriously. This is not the first time Cintron has publicly shared that story. He's never had anyone call him up and say, "This sergeant that you're talking about. Not to get him in trouble, but just to talk to him and correct this behavior, could you tell me what his name is?" There's never been a follow-up and there probably never will be. Until there is, the commanders can pretend that they're 'changing' the attitudes but they're not doing a damn thing.
PSAs? When someone's despondent, it's most likely going to be during the middle of the night. That is usually why, in fact, you're not asleep like many people. (You can also be up because you work nights or because you're an insomniac or you had too much caffeine.) So it's good that they're available then. They should, as Rep Hall noted, be available at other times as well. But, to be clear, he wasn't just talking about the standard PSAs. He was talking about the ones that could reach those struggling before suicidal thoughts became the norm. Before he questioned Linda Beam, she'd already been asked what type of PSA she thought was needed.
Linda Bean: I think it would be the Public Service Announcement that said, "You're home, you're drinking too much, you're fighting with your wife, you can't get along with your boss, you need help." That's a message that resonates with people who are in that position. The message that says, "You're home and you're suicidal"? Not so much.
And this was why he was referring to Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America's ad they made with the Ad Council which went far beyond the standard PSA of "Here's a number to call." I'm not mentioning Republicans, I'm not mentioning them for a reason. I didn't enjoy the crap that went down at one point. Others at the hearing may report on it at their sites. If so, we'll link to them in tomorrow's snapshot and note the issues. Today, I'll just give all the Republicans a demerit and ignore them and hope they can bring one of their own in to order. (Hint, it's not about you. What a witness went through, their pain, is not about you. Nor is it a competition. You're a member of Congress and should show a little dignity.) I was at the hearing of the House Subcommittee for the start through the first two panels. I then went to Senate Veterans Affairs Committee hearing on veterans' claims processing. I had missed the first portion where Chair Daniel Akaka and other Committee Members had heard from and questioned VA's Acting Under Secretary For Benefits Michael Walcoff. From Senator Akaka's office, we'll note this:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Kawika Riley (Veterans' Affairs)
July 14, 2010 (202) 224-9126
AKAKA CHAIRS HEARING ON VETERANS' DISABILITY CLAIMS PROCESSING REFORM
Chairman preparing to move legislation, urges parties to offer suggestions
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Following a hearing today on how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) processes claims from veterans seeking benefits, U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii), Chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, urged interested parties to continue offering suggestions on how to improve the timeliness and accuracy of VA's claims adjudication.
"Compensating disabled veterans is among VA's most solemn obligations, and fixing the current system demands our best ideas. I am pleased that the Claims Processing Improvement Act is moving the discussion - from whether to change the status quo - to how to change it. I intend to move a claims processing improvement bill forward, and I ask those with an interest in this issue to continue to share their ideas," said Akaka.
Last month, Senator Akaka introduced S. 3517, the Claims Processing Improvement Act of 2010, to improve VA's disability claims processing. The bill would make various changes to the way VA processes disability compensation claims, including provisions to:
• Set up a process to fast-track claims that have been fully developed;
• Help veterans with multiple disability claims by allowing VA to provide partial disability ratings; and
• Require that the Department give equal deference to the medical opinions of a veteran's non-VA doctor.
At today's hearing, top VA officials, veterans organizations and advocates testified about the current status of VA's claims processing system and made suggestions for changes to S. 3517.
Today's hearing and the current legislation are a continuation of Senator Akaka's ongoing effort to improve the claims processing system. Akaka sponsored many of the provisions of the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 2008, enacted as Public Law 110-389. This and other bills have improved claims processing and enhanced compensation and other benefits for veterans. During Akaka's chairmanship, Congress has funded the hiring of thousands of Veterans Benefits Administration employees to respond to the rising number and increasing complexity of claims for disability compensation and other benefits.
More information about the hearing including statements, testimony and the webcast is available here: veterans.senate.gov
Kawika Riley
U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii), Chairman
http://veterans.senate.gov
Because there was a lengthy break between the first and second panel, I was able to catch the second panel. The second panel was composed of the American Federation of Government Employees' Linda Jan Avant, the National Organization of Veterans' Advocates Inc.' Richard Paul Cohen, VA's former Under Secretary for Benefits' Joseph Thompson and Disabled American Veterans' Joseph A. Violante. It was Linda Jan Avant's birthday and Chair Akaka wished her a happy birthday and noted her mother was present for the testimony. Thompson felt that the system was out of date and cautioned on the reading of pilot programs. The system being out of date provided a new "challenge" ("challenge" was his most used term). He saw each challenge as an opportunity. Avant went over the work requirements and duties. And, guess what? Under-staffed and the new staff -- permanent staff brought on by the economic stimulus -- will require at least two years to be fully trained. (These days? They busy themselves with photo copying.) Joseph Violante noted the VA's desire to get rid of the backlog, "Mr. Chairman, the backlog is not the problem, nor even the cause of the problem, rather it is just one symptom, albeit a very severe symptom, of a very large problem: too many veterans waiting too long to get decisions on claims for benefits that are too often wrong."
S 3517 was the heart of the hearing and it is a bill proposed by Senator Akaka entitled "Claims Processing Improvement Act of 2010." Summary of the bill, "To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the processing of claims for disability compensation filed with the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes."
Chair Daniel Akaka: While my legislation [S 3517] is largely a claims processing bill, I included a pilot program to test an alternative to the current rating schedule. I did this because I'm concerned that progress on claims processing will be limited until the rating schedule is reformed. Do you agree that status quo on the rating schedule is unacceptable? Do you have suggestions for specific changes?
Joseph Violante: Mr. Chairman.
Chair Daniel Akaka: Aloha.
Joseph Violante: Certainly DAV believes IB believe that changes are necessary; however, we have some concerns about the proposal and the legislation. As has been pointed out previously, we believe that there could be a great inequity in veterans similarly situated, the same disability being rated differently. In addition to the act, the VA will have to learn two different systems because not everyone will come under this new pilot program. If these two veterans -- one who is rated under the current system, one who is under the new pilot -- appeal those decisions, then the Board of Veterans Affairs and ultimately the court also have to make a determination based on two different sets of criteria. And we believe there have been other proposals out there again by the Veterans Disability Benefits Commission and the ongoing advisory committee that have made recommendations that should be looked at also and not just focused on this one change.
Chair Daniel Akaka: Mr. Cohen?
Richard Cohen: Thank you, Mr. Chairman, NOVA believes that you're on the right track on this proposal. As you suggested, the status quo is unacceptable. The present schedule is too difficult for rating teams to work with consistently. This is uh a well thought out system. Uh, the problems that were perceived by some -- and Mr. Violante had mentioned about the disparate treatment -- could be resolved by taking files that had already been rated into the pilot to see what the result would be had they been rated under the pilot program and not changing the particular rating that it had but just seeing how it would be rated under the new program. That's a way that the program could be tested on a pilot basis and then compare the results. And actually, the rating team could be requested to provide input on the difficulty or ease of using both systems. But the proposal that you've come up with is something that it time honored. It's been used consistently in the workers' compensation system and doctors know how to deal with frequency of symptoms and severity of symptoms so it should work.
Chair Daniel Akaka: Thank you. Any other comments?
Linda Jan Avant: Yes.
Chair Daniel Akaka: Ms. Avant.
Linda Jan Avant: AFG also agrees that the rating schedule does need to be updated. I understand VBA has been working on that. There are some sections that have not been updated since 1945. And as a rating specialist, viewing actual medical evidence, it's very apparent that there hasn't been a lot of changes in the information requested on the VA template, that what the rater gets and when they try to apply to the schedule, many terminologies and diagnosis have changed over the years. Also many items seem to be under-evaluated, musculoskeletal are very difficult. If you have a knee condition, it is easily -- does not reflect what the symptons are in the VA exam and some of the mental disabilities are also the same way. And we think it would be beneficial if there are changes. The changes to the ICB Code? It will take some adjustment if VA does change from our diagnostic code to the ICB Code but it is something that is used nationally and with all physicians so it is something that would be easily adaptable.
And we'll skip Thompson because the answer wasn't that in depth and we're short on space.
Today Chris Vallance (BBC News) reports that US State Dept spokesperson Megan Mattson has stated that State Dept cables may have been stolen as a result of "greater information sharing" among government departments following 9-11. The BBC argues this is how Bradley Manning could have accessed documents if, indeed, he did. (They state she argues that but they don't quote Mattson actually doing that.) And on this topic, dropping back to yesterday's snapshot, these three paragraphs confused some:
Monday April 5th, WikiLeaks released US military video of a July 12, 2007 assault in Iraq. 12 people were killed in the assault including two Reuters journalists Namie Noor-Eldeen and Saeed Chmagh. Monday June 7th, the US military announced that they had arrested Bradley Manning and he stood accused of being the leaker of the video. Philip Shenon (Daily Beast) reported last month that the US government is attempting to track down WikiLeaks' Julian Assange. Last Tuesday, the military charged Manning. Leila Fadel (Washington Post) reported he had been charged -- "two charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The first encompasses four counts of violating Army regulations by transferring classified information to his personal computer between November and May and adding unauthorized software to a classified computer system. The second comprises eight counts of violating federal laws governing the handling of classified information." Today on Antiwar Radio, Scott Horton discussed the issues with Glenn Greenwald. Strangely, Glenn Greenwald was able to talk about what Bradley was charged with, what he was alleged to have done. Example below.
Glenn Greenwald: Well one of the interesting parts of the charging document is how different it is than the chat logs that were released by Wired magazine in which he allegedly confessed to this hacker Adrian Lamo which is what started this case in the first place. There's a lot of facts that are very different if you look at what the charging documents said he did versus what he allegedly said in those chats.
In the final moments, Scott would point out that Wired refused and refuses to release the alleged transcripts in full (unexpurgated) and Glenn would talk about how, based on his legal experience, when someone refuses to do that, they generally are attempting to conceal something that doesn't jibe so easily with the rest of the narrative. This was a very brief segment.
There were five paragraphs. The confusion isn't the fault of anyone trying to follow along. The snapshot was too long and that's one of the dangers of editing in your head without looking over it. I said, "Pull __ and pull ___" and two of the paragraphs pulled (there was more pulled but that was largely a commentary about the State Dept event with Hoshyar Zebari and Hillary Clinton) were after "a very brief segment." I wrongly thought the comparison had been made in the above paragraphs. If you drop back to Friday's snapshot, you'll note it opens with Nancy Youssef's garbage -- broadcast over NPR's The Diane Rehm Show -- about Bradley. In Nancy's world, if you're charged with something, you are guilty. In Nancy's world, if a convicted felon insists you said something, even though you've never publicly stated anything, you said it. The term "allegations" is as foreign to Nancy as is "innocent until proven guilty." To show your support for Bradley -- who's been found guilty of nothing at this point -- you can click here:
We Stand With Bradley Manning
This statement was signed by almost all attendees at the IVAW conference this past weekend.
For more background information, see Wikileaks reveals video showing US air crew shooting down Iraqi civilians and Army Intelligence Analyst Charged for Releasing Wikileaks Video: Killers Remain Free
Also see: bradleymanning.org
Join the Save Bradley group on Facebook
Write to Bradley with your support:
Inmate: Bradley Manning TFCF (Theater Field Confinement Facility) APO AE 09366 USA
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad sticky bombing wounded two people and, dropping back to Tuesday, a Mosul bombing in which eight children and one police officer were wounded, 2 Baghdad roadside bombings which claimed the lives of 2 police officers (and wounded five more people), and a Baghdad sticky bombing which injured two people. Reuters notes a Mosul roadside bombing which injured one Iraqi soldier, a a Baghdad sticky bombing which assassinated 1 "senior appeal court judge," 2 Baghdad grenade attacks in which four police officers and three civilians were injured, a Baghdad sticky bombing which injured a Sahwa member, a Mosul bombing which left two people injured, a Kirkuk roadside bombing which injured four police officers, and an Abu Ghraib home bombing (home was base for Abu Ghraib military) in which 2 Iraqi soldiers were killed.
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Yousifiyah home invasion ("around dawn") on the home of Sahwa leader Khudhair Ouda in which his wife and 3 sons, a Falluja home invasion on "the home of a candidate of the National Unity Coalition" in which "his wife, daughter and son" were killed (the politician was not at home) and, dropping back to Tuesday a Baghdad home invasion in which university professor Adnan Mekki Abdullah was shot dead. Reuters notes an armed attack on a Baghdad checkpoint which resulted in three people being injured, 1 man shot dead in Mosul, a Mosul military raid which claimed the lives of 3 'militants.'
xxiraqbbc newschris vallance
antiwar radioscott hortonglenn greenwald
Reality of today
Isaiah, Third, TV, Barack
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Public Markets Warming Up to Venture-Backed Companies? Boston-Area IPO List
Ryan McBride
Xconomy Boston —
It’s a far cry from a hot market for initial public offerings these days, but there are reasons to believe that the long-awaited “IPO Window” is slowly opening for venture-backed companies in the Boston area.
Sensata Technologies, an Attleboro, MA-based maker of sensors and switches, jumped through the IPO window yesterday, pricing its initial public shares at $18 apiece. By offering 31.6 million new shares, Sensata (NYSE: ST) raked in a fresh $568.8 million. This price was, however, on the low end of the company’s hoped-for range of $18 to $20 a share. (Sensata, whose business dates back to 1916, is a former unit of Texas Instruments that Bain Capital took over in a leveraged buyout in 2006. So this isn’t a traditional venture-backed company IPO by any means.)
Next in line appears to be Cambridge, MA-based cancer drug developer Aveo Pharmaceuticals. Aveo plans to raise about $100 million, in an IPO that’s scheduled to price today, according Renaissance Capital. And though the company fell short of its estimated price range of $14 to $16 per share for its public debut, Cambridge-based Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD) managed to pull off an IPO last month for $11.25 per share that netted the firm $203 million. Fortunately for investors, Ironwood stock has traded up ever since, closing yesterday at $12.65.
The IPO drought for venture-backed startups in recent years has been a major bummer for both maturing startups and their investors. When public markets aren’t receptive to IPOs, it blocks one avenue that venture firms use to get liquid cash returns after years of locking it away in a startup. For private companies, the lack of a healthy IPO market forces some to look elsewhere for funding to keep their operations afloat. It can also make it harder to entice employees when there isn’t a realistic chance that all their sweat equity will someday turn into financial equity.
One recipe for venture-backed companies to break into the public markets appears to be having a product on or close to the market, which significantly reduces the risk for public investors. For example, A123 Systems (NASDAQ:AONE) made a successful public debut in September, which raised more than $400 million, in part because the Watertown, MA-based company was already generating revenue from sales of its advanced lithium-ion batteries. Ironwood’s IPO followed the firm’s successful completion of two pivotal trials for its lead treatment for constipation.
We’ve compiled a list of New England-based life sciences and technology companies that are in registration to go public. (While we’ve cross-referenced our list with the Renaissance Capital website, please let us know if we’ve missed any.)
Here’s the list of active Boston-area IPOs:
—Aveo Pharmaceuticals, a Cambridge, MA-based developer of cancer treatments, could launch its IPO sometime this week. A big question is whether the firm’s IPO price range of $13 to $15 per share will hold steady or fall. The firm plans to trade on the NASDAQ stock market under the ticker symbol “AVEO.”
—BG Medicine, a Waltham, MA-based developer of molecular diagnostics, registered for $86.3 million IPO in January 2010. The company aims to have its stock trade on the NASDAQ under the symbol “BGMD.”
—First Wind Holdings, Boston-based developer and operator of wind energy projects, has been in registration for a $450 million IPO since July 2008. The plan is to trade the stock under the clever symbol, “WNDY.”
—Glasshouse Technologies, a Framingham, MA-based IT consulting company, proposed a $75 million IPO in January 2010. The company wants to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “GLAS.”
—Nexx Systems, a Billerica, MA-based provider of semiconductors, registered for a $42 million IPO in February 2010. Planned ticker: “NEXX.”
Net@50
Join us on July 16 for a special two-part gathering that will take a unique and critical look at the Internet today, and where it is heading.
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Why are there more than two different spoken Chinese languages in China but only one written one?
December 21, 2019 by Karen Hill
There are more than two different spoken Chinese dialects in China.
Most villages and towns throughout China developed their own style of pronunciation and ways of communicating.
Therefore, there are several general areas of dialects, and depending on how you want to categorize them, hundreds of variations on these. Some of the main ones include Mandarin, Jin, Cantonese, Gan, Xiang, Min, Hakim, and Wu.
But thankfully, there is but one written language, making it possible for any literate Chinese to communicate with any other literate Chinese despite existing language barriers.
The reason the written form has remained is primarily because it isn’t a phonetic written language, like most other languages, but a pictorial language. Each character in the Chinese written language is a picture, and each picture represents a word.
In theory, that word can be pronounced any way you would like; the picture will always mean the same thing.
Although the written language has been simplified and streamlined over the years, it has remained largely unchanged and continues to offer a communication bridge, a unifying link, in a single country vast enough to have developed so many different spoken tongues.
How Many Different Languages Are Spoken In Europe and What Is the Most Widely Spoken Language In Europe?
What Languages Are Spoken In Africa and What Is the Most Widely Spoken Language In Africa?
What Are the Most Widely Spoken Languages In the World and How Do Languages Become Extinct?
How Many Different Languages Are Spoken In the World Today and What Is a Dialect of a Language?
How Many Different Languages Are Spoken In Indonesia and What Is the Population of Indonesia?
Why do the Chinese call the Yellow River in China "China's Sorrow"?
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