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Archivo de la categoría: amsterdam
amsterdam,interview
The magic of the six days, building houses, and learning to live for someone else : an interview with Guy East
10 noviembre, 2014 sixdaze Deja un comentario
I spoke with Guy East in Amsterdam (I know, this post comes late, but better late than never), while he was getting a massage from veteran soigneur Angus. Eventually, Angus started to chime in.
How are you enjoying Amsterdam? Do you get the chance to see the city, or is this only a business trip?
Guy: Actually, I’m one of the odd ones, I’m more adventurous and I actually explore the city and stuff like that, and try to know where I’m at. I come over, normally, a day or two early and I spend the first day with friends in another part of the country, and also tour around the city. It’s too pretty not to, it kinda stinks just to be cooped up in a hotel room, especially when it’s such a beautiful city. On a [rainy] day like today, you don’t want to go out, but some days I’ll sneak out before the racing, cruise around.
Especially because your wife is here as well, it’s great that you two can do that. How does she feel about this?
Guy: She likes it, she comes with me most of the time, because it’s hard to be away, you know? If she didn’t travel with me, I don’t think I’d be that motivated to keep going. She loves coming over, and seeing the world too.
And she really gets to enjoy the city in the mornings, no? She doesn’t have to — well, she might go for a massage, but it’s not for work.
Guy: We go to bed late, though, so we wake up late, but she’s going to go into town tomorrow, so she has more fun.
I heard that you also build homes in Mexico, that’s cool.
Guy: We live town there, just south of San Diego, near the Mexican border, I’ve been down there for three years. I had first raced for Lance and his team, and had raced and lived over here for four years, in Belgium, with the US National team. I started doing amateur six-day races in 2007. They wanted to prepare me for the Olympics, and in 2009 I rode through Mexico City — they took the Madison out of the Olympics, so I was pretty discouraged — and then I was riding through the city and I saw all of this poverty. I was like, what’s the point? What am I doing with my life, traveling around the world racing to a line that’s painted on the road when there’s so many other, more critical issues going on?
And so, shortly after that, I stopped. And I stopped for two years, I sold everything I owned, and I just had a backpack’s worth of stuff, for almost two years. I traveled around Latin America and stuff. And it was pretty cool, and during that time, though, I realized — our house also burnt down, that’s also a big life-changing experience — but during that time I realized I still like bike racing. And I can do it with a greater purpose. I don’t just have to be identified as a bike racer, I want to be a bike racer and also to help other athletes live with greater purposes themselves, because I know what they’re going through. It’s a hard thing, when your identity is only in one thing.
So part of that is, we bring professional athletes down, and they get to experience what it’s like to live for someone else. Because we live our whole lives just for ourselves, you know, eating right, just for us, training right, just for us, traveling, everything’s all about you. Which is good, to a certain extent, you have to have that mentality, but sooner or later your sport’s going to end, your career’s going to end, or you’re going to get married or something, and you realize: it’s not all about me. And it’s a really hard adjustment to make, and people don’t necessarily do it right. And also, there’s so many broken relationships all throughout sports and stuff, and it’s like, if we focus a little bit more on the emotional side, on the human side of who we are, then they’ll be better athletes because they’ll be happier, because they’re not divorcing their families or… so that’s kind of the focus that I’m taking with that. Right after this race we have a bunch of pro athletes coming to build a home in November, from auto racing to cycling to rugby to speed skating.
Why’d you move to Mexico?
Guy: Pretty much because of that, to do that. I moved to Mexico and then I was like, I want to start racing again. I like it, and I train a lot in San Diego, I train a lot in the US, so it’s pretty easy, it’s pretty chill.
You just stick your passport in your jersey pocket?
Guy: Yeah, it’s easy to cross.
Is this all the good work you got going on, for the moment? I mean, it’s a big project…
Guy: Yeah, it’s a lot. Also, bringing professional teams down, so they use it as a team-building opportunity, just organizing all that stuff. I raise all the money so the athletes can come, which is a lot of money, for every house we build I have to raise $20,000. And so there’s a lot of work involved with that, it’s practically a full-time job. I’m also trying to start a high-level amateur cycling team, a Mexican-American team, with a couple hundred thousand-dollar budget. So I’ve got… my wife’s pregnant, I do a lot of stuff, and I like having all this stuff going on and it kind of helps me… I wouldn’t just want to be a bike rider, and I just wouldn’t want to work on the charity stuff, or whatever, so it’s good.
Is there an exit strategy? Or are you never going to quit racing?
Guy: Nah, I’m gonna quit, I’m at the point where I could just stop whenever and totally be fine. And I think that’s a good place to be, you know, because you’re confident where you’re at and I’m not tied down to it. Some people stay in it out of fear, because they don’t know what they’re going to do, I think it would be hard to transition out of it but when I’m done I don’t know exactly but I would find something. I would find something pretty quick, there’s a lot going on.
But I just do the six days, pretty much, all the other guys are doing all kinds of big road races and stuff, which is pretty cool, and I probably should do a little bit more; I would like to and I would probably come here a little bit more prepared. But for the lack of racing that I do, I think that I come here with a fairly decent level. But I just like the six days, it’s something really cool and special, and Angus’ll tell you that they’ve changed so much over the years, but this one is special. They’re all special in their own way, this one isn’t a huge party, but you go to Berlin and it’s a huge party, you go to Ghent and it’s a big party, they all have their own little specialities.
Yeah, in Grenoble there’s acrobats!
Guy: Yeah, Grenoble’s super cool, that’s one of our favorites.
I don’t have to tell anyone else about your opinions on this, but do you have a ranking? What’s your favorite?
Guy: Well, I haven’t done Ghent — well, I did Ghent as an amateur, but — there’s something… Grenoble was my first pro 6-day and it so fun, and that track is fun, so I think Grenoble is one of my favorites…
I’m going on Thursday.
Guy: Oh yeah? It starts Thursday?
Angus: You have to say hello to Biondi and Thévenet, they’re two sport directors.
Guy: The sport director for AG2R, and Thévenet, he won the Tour de France twice.
Angus: You have to say hello from Angus, I was supposed to be going there, and then this showed up [laughs].
An offer you couldn’t refuse?
Angus: This is six days, that’s three days now, and just from here it’s 1.000 kilometres.
Guy: Grenoble is cool, the town and everything is cool, where you’re at in the Alps and whatever, but it’s — well, maybe if I had a contract to go there — but I can’t justify going to a three- or four-day race all the way from the U.S. A six-day race, it’s cool, and I like the stats, how many starts you have, stuff like that, I kind of chase that a little bit.
Angus: Me too, eh?
Guy: I think I’ve done…
Angus: 31 times in Grenoble, eh?
Guy: He’s done 400 six-day races, right? 400?
Angus: Nearly.
Guy: This’ll be, what, 396 or something?
Angus: Something like that, yeah
Guy: So I’ve only done 14 of those. But he’s been with me all the winter ones, at least, so that’s fun.
Are you coming over for anything else this year?
Guy: Um, I think we’ll do more, it just kind of falls into your lap, we’ll get quite a few, I think, like we did last year. Berlin, Copenhagen, Rotterdam, I’m sure. We got some sponsors who like seeing us over here, so they help us out. The Island 200 [track], they’re the sponsor for us here. All the teams have their own sponsors and our guy is American so he wants to have an American team, so it’s almost like a guaranteed start.
But when’s he going to tell you? Christmas Eve?
Guy: Sometimes. We found out about this one at the end of September.
Guy: Same thing for last year, too, but yeah, I would assume Rotterdam, maybe Bremen, Berlin, Copenhagen. That would be our goal, I think. Yeah, pretty fun. Rotterdam’s cool. This one’s fun, too, cuz it’s quaint and stuff, you know?
Yeah, they built a track in a warehouse?
Guy: But it’s a pretty prestigious six days, don’t you think, Angus?
Angus: Yeah, well it’s quite new, is the thing, the first one was in 2001, from the 60s. Last one [before that] was ’69, I think, but this is the way to build velodromes: it’s what they really have to start thinking about in the States. One of my friends was a six-day rider, then a promoter, and then he built tracks all over the world. Really what you need is not an Olympic track, you need a 200m velodrome inside a factory, because of the costs: you can get one for £300.000, so you put these in the towns, then you get the kids going on it, then you get good riders. It’s the way you have to do it. To build an Olympic velodrome, it’s too much money.
Guy: Yeah, you look at track cycling, honestly, and you look at how… I’m just thinking, if you want to sponsor a velodrome, like the LA velodrome, for example, it’s going to cost you like $30.000 per year, or more, just for a little logo. And then, during the UCI races, you’re not even allowed to have those logos up. And if you’re doing the World Cups and stuff, you can’t even show your own personal logos and sponsors if you’re a rider, you have to show your country.
Angus: It’s not allowed.
Guy: It’s not allowed, so it’s not a profitable business model for track cycling. The only one making money out of it is the UCI, right? Well, the six days do actually have a — I don’t know if it’s scaleable, but it’s more or less a successful business model, and it’s the only track event that’s doing that. Maybe there’s a couple in South America, but… six days are special, they’re actually an effective business model, which is extremely important.
Angus: In the old days, most had a big sponsor, which was normally a beer company, and then you had all of the little sponsors for the teams and things. It was good advertising, because people would come, but like Guy says, for the UCI events and everything, there’s a famous velodrome in Britain. And the biggest British soft-drinks company wanted to put advertising on, and they wouldn’t let them, because they wanted to have World Cups. And these guys, I know them because it’s from Scotland, and they were just like, ‘we want to give them half a million, and they don’t want it.’ But if they put the advertising on the track, like you see here, they have to take it off every time they have a World Cup event or a UCI event. It’s the way the sport develops: the international federation is in control of everything, so all the money has to go through them, you know? It’s difficult. But, in saying that, it’s almost the same as every other sport. You know, Formula 1, football, it’s all the same.
Guy: Anyway, it’s just interesting, they actually generate income.
Angus: And when beer companies were still around, you could tell which town you were in by the beer. You know? In Stuttgart it was Stuttgarter beer, in Bremen it’s Beck’s, in Berlin it’s Schultheiss, you know when I was young and starting, that’s how you knew where you were.
Guy: In general, man, I just think the six days are so cool. The tradition, the racing style is so different, it’s sport as entertainment, which I like because I feel like athletes are entertainers, and these guys, they know they’re entertainers, but it’s really still hard racing. We don’t take ourselves too seriously, for the most part.
But it’s fun, it’s exciting, it’s a thrill, I think if you go to a matinée show, you know the storyline for the most part. If you go to Beauty and the Beast, or whatever, you don’t go because you’re going to be surprised at the ending, but you go because it’s a beautiful show. It’s a cool story, and it’s professionally done and it’s entertainment. And it’s a similar thing with the six days, it’s like, yeah, you probably know who’s going to win, and the guy who’s going to win, they deserve to win anyway, because they’re the fastest guys on the track, but there’s some choreography, you know, so I think if you relate it to that, it brings a little more clarity to what they’re like. But to say that they’re fixed, or anything, isn’t an accurate description.
Angus: It’s a show with three battles going on. The guys for first, then the middle guys, then the little guys at the back, they’re always fighting with each other for points and places, there’s always something, somewhere, to watch.
One thing is the overall, but I really love that there’s keirin in the middle, and the miss n’ out…
Angus: It’s not even that. In the Madison, there’s three fights going on, the lead guys, the middle guys, and the back guys, because nobody wants to be the last of their group, so there’s always something to watch, that’s what’s actually good about it. And also, the variation of the different events. Here, there’s not a big program, there’s not a big variation, but in most races they have a lap record, and a 500m record, and you have different dernies, here they put in keirin, there’s always something different for the public to watch. And, like Guy says, that’s important. If you don’t put on a show, people don’t come in.
Guy: I think that’s probably actually okay to include [in your interview], if you’re going to take it that direction, it’s cool, people don’t understand: ‘ah, it’s all fixed, it’s so boring’…
Angus: Ed says to me, that’s fine, it’s all fixed, but riding at 54k per hour. Can you do that? How can you? It’s like Guy says, you can probably tell that there’s three teams up there, and probably one of them is going to win because they’re just the best, you know, but anything can happen.
And how do you feel about being on stage for a week straight?
Guy: It’s cool, I like it, I think it’s fun. What exhausts me a little bit is the loud atmosphere on the track. It’s not horrible here, but in Berlin, oh my gosh, you’re up there for six hours and there’s loud music the whole time and it’s just like, I wanna die right now.
Angus: Your brain hurts.
Guy: I can’t do this any more… after the first couple hours on the first day, you’re just like, it’s too much.
Angus: And you try to speak to each other, and it’s like, eh?
Guy: Rotterdam’s like that too…
AmsterdamdoMoreThanSportguy eastinterviewzesdaagse
Interview with Daniel Holloway.
28 octubre, 2014 sixdaze 1 comentario
I was lucky enough to catch up with Daniel “Hollywood” Holloway last week in Amsterdam.
So, how’d you get your nickname? Because you’re so friendly to fans like me and stuff?
Aw, I got that persona when I was 19 or 20, we had a national team training camp in the Bahamas, and I showed up with aviators and white jeans, a patent leather bag. One of the coaches was like, ‘Jesus, dude, you’re so Hollywood.’ I’m from California, and if you come from California, you’re either a surfer or from LA, so I was labelled pretty quickly and it stuck. And, you know, I like to have fun and do my best to put on a show, because we’ve gotten to the point in time where everybody is so focused on performance that there’s no crowd engagement anywhere, whether it’s criteriums or six-day racing or your local velodrome. People come to watch, so you need to engage them. It just makes it worth their time and everything else.
So which one are you? Are you a surfer, or are you from LA?
Ha, I’m from inland, a little valley called Morgan Hill. I grew up in the suburbs [of San Francisco], so I can’t swim, so I don’t know how to surf. I’m not the biggest fan of LA, just the rat race down there, even though I have been spending more an more time there. But I stay in the south bay, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, just a more laid-back vibe, you can find everything in its little pocket, good riding and stuff.
But there’s also stuff happening there, aside from the excelling road riding, I didn’t know until recently that they put on a half six days in Carson City.
Yeah, last year Jack Simes got a three-day going, brought some Euro guys over to try and gain some exposure, but the venue cost at the StubHub Center is just so exorbitant that it’s just not cost-worthy. It takes so much money just to get the facility, and in the end they nickel and dime you if you want good sessions, or if you want TV, or if you want music. It’s very controlled, so it takes lots and lots of money to try to do an event, right? And the infrastructure inside the velodrome isn’t really designed to host large events, it’s kind of difficult to work with, so you know, if you had a million dollars, you could put on a really good event, but if you’re trying to do it on a small budget, it’s just never going to work. It’s unfortunate.
So he’s not doing it again?
Yeah, we didn’t hear anything about it this year, and it’s just one of those money things, for such a kind of niche thing, to get a sponsor or a private investor, a lot of people want to see perfect success the first go-round, with any amount of money. I think it was a good starting point, but it just wasn’t successful enough either to have a private investor continue on or to attract another sponsor to replace that. So it’s unfortunate, but hopefully it was a learning experience for everybody that’s involved or looking in from the outside, about how to re-try or re-approach it.
It’s always a chase for sponsors in the cycling game.
Yeah, and a big problem is that everybody has their hand out but they don’t have a legitimate program, or a way to say how it’s worth it. Everybody’s like, or a team, is like, hey, I want ten helmets, we’re going to win all these races in our region. But the region is like 300 square miles and, you know, there’s no reach, they don’t do blogging, they don’t do social media, and they just take the helmets and say thank-you and that’s it. So you have an obligation to do more, do more for that sponsor, the sponsor wants the value of their helmets back plus some, right?
So, if you can continue to show them that it’s easy to build relationships and build a reputation, the industry is so small that just because this guy’s a marketing guy for this company doesn’t mean in three years he’s gonna move somewhere else, you know? And he can say, you know, this guy is reputable, he believes in you, and can vouch that you’re going to do things for their company that’s worth value. It goes a long way. A lot of people just have their hands out in the industry and don’t really give it back.
And if you start asking big businesses outside of cycling for money, they want to see the value. It’s a passion play, but then, a guy that’s in marketing, or even the CEO of a company, has to go to a board and present this proposal and say, yeah, I want to give a quarter of a million dollars to this team, or this race. And everyone else on the board is going to be a naysayer because it’s new to them; they don’t know how to approach it. So you have to give your marketing guy as much quality information and numbers for him to be able to stand up against this board, whether it’s three guys or ten guys, and say, no, this is why it works. And this is why it’s worth the time and the energy and our resources to do this.
You know, it’s just a lot of fine-line things, it’s a big puzzle: do you start from the outside or from the inside? As a new guy, with my current road team, we’re just figuring things like that out, we’re going to try a new approach to how the team operates next year, as far as what we do off the bike, like I was saying before: the cool bike racing is a bonus to being a professional sportsman, and having your sponsorship obligations and trying to sell product. We’re not really salesman, we’re more on the marketing side, but it’s giving the people who talk to us the most information so they can go actually buy a bike from the salespeople.
You wake up Monday morning, something new’s going on, ebola or whatever else that’s making headlines, and we don’t even make national news to begin with. But that stuff still overtakes us on Facebook and everything else, so we have to be relevant seven days a week. So we’re trying different things and a lot more outside of racing: visiting people, visiting shops, being in the community, talking to people, just you know, Cat 5s and weekend warriors want to talk to the professional athletes, you know, we gotta act like humans and show them we’re just normal guys that like music and like pizza and like movies, and build a conversation rather than being intimidated because I’m a pro. No, I’m just a regular guy that just happens to be a little talented and can win a bike race every once in a while.
But you build that connection, and all of a sudden they’re excited and it’s just positive imagery for our sponsors. It’s just always a positive connection to see a Felt bicycle with Fast Forward wheels, whatever else it may be, there’s positive brand awareness, and that’s really important. Down the road, these guys don’t always have thousands of dollars to just re-up new equipment, but it’s when it’s time, if you have this positive vibe and this positive image, they want to be associated with. And when they’re ready to spend the money, you hope that you’ve done everything right for them to purchase your product.
Makes sense. I also noticed that you also work mentoring in the Bay Area…
Yeah, it’s a junior team, kind of local, I know one of the guys that’s the co-founder of the program. I was super fortunate as a junior to get tons of support, and it made my life easier, it made my dad’s life easier financially, so he could spend time and energy getting to the bike races instead of more time working to be able to afford a new bike or new wheels if I crashed or whatever else. You know, I like to give back to the juniorws with my experiences, I made a lot of mistakes as a junior and U23s as far as handling relationships and just, you know, my attitude on the bike and off the bike, so…
Any examples or is that…
I just had more attitude than my results maybe alluded to and I didn’t always follow-up with the sponsors, to keep those relationships going or, you know, a clean slate. And on the bike, I wouldn’t say I was angry, but I was very vocal. If a guy did something I didn’t like, he’d know about it, and sometimes it’s better just not to say anything and just kind of ignore it. In the cycling world, that stuff just hangs on to you forever, the way you train and eat and stuff. All that stuff stays with you for a very long time, and it’s taken a long time to just remove some of those negative features that are garnered as a younger rider. So when these kids ask for information and tips and stuff, [I can share] my experience. If you go eat ice cream, don’t always go and post it on social media. Enjoy your ice cream, but online, that’s forever, and people see it.
How do you feel about the format, compared to a criterium? What’s the best part of coming over here to race the six days?
Just being unique, being one of two Americans to do it. I think now, I have the most six days under my belt, of the last couple generations of Americans, so it’s kind of cool to start building that kind of legacy. We haven’t done well but it’s a stepping stone and hopefully it’s just getting comfortable and we’re starting to just build our time here, so it’s knowing in August you’re going to do all winter, you can prepare for it, make a jump up.
So it’s unique in that aspect, and it’s a different outlet for my sponsors, get some good exposure, and the road season stops in September, so October through February there’s nothing going on. But if I can get on the track, I can do more racing and show my sponsors that that’s a value and keep it fresh. A lot of road guys die off and it’s hard to continue to do social media when you’re not racing and everything else, but if you’re racing and you’re traveling, you’re always relevant, you’re always posting something new, keeping your fans engaged and excited.
It’s cool to change it up.
I’m not the most focused trainer, you know, it’s hard for me to just go out and train a specific program by myself, I’m more of a social rider so group rides and small groups help me get out the door and start the day. So to come over here breaks up my winter, gives me short, focused goals that I can work towards. When road season starts, I have some good intensity and racing that didn’t take a lot of mental effort. Just get out there, I’m forced on the bike, and the fitness comes with it. It’s good that way.
How’d you get hooked up with Angus and Guy?
I’ve known Guy since we were juniors together, we were on the nationals program together, we have a long history. He knew Angus and built a relationship with him. It’s nice to be where your partner is, and not split up. You can see that not everyone on the European side shares soigneurs and stuff like that but here, it feels like it’s pretty important to be in the same space a lot and build that bond, because when you’re out there suffering, you just want to have that relationship. So if you split up, off the bike, it can kind of be detrimental.
Yeah, I noticed that there’s a team of Dutch brothers here [Christian Kos & Patrick Kos]. Do they have an unfair advantage?
Nah, well, I think in many different sports you can see that brothers have an unspoken bond, just from being brothers, they know how the other guy’s feeling and can really help each other out. It’s beneficial to know immediately how the other guy’s feeling, this connection that no other team would have.
One last question: what’s on your iPod? What are you listening to these days?
It varies a lot, I like a lot of hip-hop and stuff, through all kinds of generations, Kool Moe D all the way to Childish Gambino nowadays, and I also like folk music and some country to just even it out, but I can listen to just about everything.
Amsterdamhollywoodinterviewsix dayszesdaagse
Interview: Boro the bartender
Boro takes great care of the bar, part of the crack team of caterers that keeps the Amsterdam six-day fans from getting thirsty. I took a liking to him immediately, mostly because he always had a couple of words for me every time I passed by on the infield.
You excited for tonight?!
Eh… [shrugs].
No?!
Well, there’s football tonight…
Yeah, Barça – Ajax. I live in Barcelona!
Hm, careful, there’s a lot of Ajax fans around here.
I won’t say it too loud. Who’s going to win?
Eh… 4 – nil, Barcelona.
[Editor’s note: Barça did win, but the final score was 3-1.]
Oh, yeah, if you’re looking for the bar, just keep an eye out for the sign:
(Honey, where’s the bar?! I can’t find the bar. Why don’t they just tell you where it is?”)
Amsterdambartendersix days
Are you experiencing Amsterdam withdrawl?
Yeah, me too. Here’s what I’ve been doing to take the edge off:
First, put on this playlist of songs that DJ Coco played during the Amsterdam six.
Then, head back over to my Flickr (yes, the one I shamelessly plugged yesterday), where you can check out some blurry, poorly composed photos and even a video or two.
Maybe a better bet would be to check out what the pros have to say: Veloveritas has two posts’ worth of Amsterdam coverage. And turus.net has put up the pictures that I would have taken were it not for my utter lack of talent.
No, it’s not the same as being there, but if you want the real thing then you’d better start making plans for next year.
Congratulations to Niki Terpstra and Yoeri Havik, who moved from third to first place over the course of the final night. What a great race!
Interview: Nolan Hoffman
I had a chance to catch up with Nolan Hoffman in Amsterdam on Wednesday.
Do you race many six days?
Eh, I have before, and also I am now, quite a bit in the last 3 seasons.
How’d you get into it?
Because I always did track cycling, and my first was in 2009, in Zurich. Yeah, because I had a silver medal in the World Championships in 2012. The organizers always look to the world championships, to the medals, to see who they can bring. Normally if you medal, then it’s good for the six days and your profile.
I win a lot of races in South Africa, and it makes some sense for them to have me here; it, how do you say, it promotes cycling in Europe that it’s globalizing, like what the UCI did. I think people find it different to see all different sorts of nationalities just than the traditional Europeans, it brings some sort of diversity to the sport.
So what’s your favorite part of coming to Amsterdam? Do you get to see the city at all, or do you just come for the week and then go home?
Yeah, so far I haven’t been fortunate to get out, I’ve seen the city but yeah, it’s work as usual, you know, I don’t come for the holiday, I come for the racing and unfortunately I’m still pretty much in my season, so I have to keep focused, as I still have one really big race in South Africa in two weeks, so yeah, I have to stay healthy and keep going, and the racing here will also help me keep racing at a very high level, so it works for me.
And what’s your favorite six that you’ve ridden? They all have a different flavor, no?
Every six days is different, like here, people consider Amsterdam to be one of the smaller six days, but I would definitely say that my favorite would be Ghent, in terms of participation and the atmosphere. I don’t think anything beats Ghent, it’s like the monument of the six days, and it’s always considered to be the hardest. To finish Ghent, and be able to ride there, it was an incredible experience for me, the hospitality of the people there, it was phenomenal.
Yeah, they really know their cycling, don’t they?
That too, and I would say that the six days in the Netherlands and in Belgium is the best, it’s well-organized, it’s cycling crazy, it’s a cycling crazy nation, cycling here, to them, it’s… people really regard the athletes very highly. So it’s nice to be part of that small, niche group, and to show your talent in front of the crowds. It’s special, you don’t get it anywhere else in the world.
Which event hurts the most?
Uh… there’s so much…
So much pain?
Yeah, yeah, but I would say the last chase of each day, normally it’s longer than the first one and it’s more time suffering, and it’s the race where everybody gets tired, so it [requires] more concentration. Definitely the last chase, for me, is the hardest of the day.
I have one last question for you: what are you listening to on your iPod these days?
I’m a big — I’m a huge — Tiësto fan, I think he’s one of the DJs that’s been around forever and still is on top of his game. And I mean, he’s forever coming out with good music and that’s what makes the legs turn on the five-hour rides and all that, and on the rollers…
That’s the other reason why you like coming to the Netherlands, huh?
Yeah, yeah, I think I’m pretty Netherlands-crazy, because everything they have is pretty much up there in terms of talent, music, everything, it’s nice to be like the Dutch.
Amsterdaminterviewsix days
En Flickr…
Se pueden ver unas fotos de los seis días. Es más fácil, y más rápido, que esperar mis historias interesantes y graciosas.
Voy colgando cosas, es que tengo que revisar muchas fotos malas para encontrar algo que se pueda compartir.
Aquí tienes el enlace.
Amsterdamflickrfotosgantesseis dias
A typical day at the Amsterdam Six
Amsterdam is beautiful. Even (maybe especially) in October: leaves change color, the weather is crisp, cool, and, if you’re lucky, dry. But the best reason to go is to see the six-day race. Yes, there’s all sorts of touristy stuff to do during the day, and all sorts of trouble to get into during the night, but you kind of like bike racing, or maybe you just like watching stuff go fast, so you decide to head down to the track to see what all of the fuss is about.
Is it too mundane to talk about the trip there? The Amsterdam Velodrome is located in the south-west corner of the city, not far from the Schiphol airport. Obviously, you should have rented a bike, but maybe you forgot, or maybe you couldn’t find a rental bike in Amsterdam because you ran out of your disposable contact lenses/you are legally blind/and also a bilateral AE amputee, which is the only reason not to be able to swing your arms and hit a bike rental shop in the Dutch capital.
Anyway, the point is, if you had rented a bike it’s a sweet, easy 8km ride from the center, all in bike lanes (it’s hard to not find a bike lane in this country) with no one to bother you except the aforementioned motorbikes. If you’re taking the tram, you have to get off at the Kasterleepark stop near the end of the line 2 tram. The only challenge is to walk through the worst kind of strip-mall suburb. I’m not exaggerating.
Built inside an old factory, the track feels like it barely fits inside the structure. But the low ceiling makes it all the more intimate, and if you sit in the front row you can feel the wind as a group of riders flies by.
(The track, calm before the storm.)
But that doesn’t matter! You’re here, and it’s all good. You roll in the door, and the first guy you see is Lex van Deijl. Or maybe it’s his wife; she’s selling tickets, and he’s working the door, organizing people, chatting with retired derny drivers, smoking, and he’s been doing that since eight in the morning, he tells you. You (okay, me) wave at the coat-check staff, because you already got a reputation for being the last one out the door the night before, and they remember stuff like that. There seem to be two more of them working than is really necessary, but you’ve never seen coat-check staff smile so much.
Sure, it’s early, but you can find your seat and as the program gets going.The juniors have just finished, and the night starts as every night starts, with each team of two being introduced to the crowd, taking a lap under the spotlight. There’s no pause before the first Madison starts, and it’s chaos: 24 men on a 200m track, slinging themselves into and out of the action. The announcer starts getting excited as a pair attacks, trying to lap the field, and a foghorn blasts as they catch the group from the other side. The 90 laps go by quickly, and before you know it the crowd is cheering as the bell rings for the last lap. The racer sitting in third position slings his partner to do the last two turns, perfect timing to come around and win the sprint.
There’s a brief pause in the action, but not in the show, as the winners accept their flower bouquets and take a victory lap. One of the racers (Nick Stöpler, this time) stops to give his flowers to a woman in the crowd:
And, of course, it totally makes her night.
All that watching other people sweat has made you thirsty, so you head to the infield to grab a beer and watch the Miss n’ Out. What a great event; the teams compete Madison-style, and every three or so laps, the last one across the line is eliminated. The announcer manages to explain this to the eliminated teams in their own language (‘Ciao! Basta! Buona sera!’ he says to Marco Zanotti, as if the Italian hadn’t noticed himself being boxed in on the final drag to the finish line). And of course the barman remembers you, because you were talking football with him last night. Hopefully it’s because you were talking football with him; being remembered by a bartender is great, as long as you know why.
As you return to the stands to join your friends, who came up from Belgium to watch Jasper de Buyst race:
(Thankfully, they brought an extra pink hat along for me, otherwise I wouldn’t fit in.)
Next up is the flying-start time trial. Each team does two laps, with a Madison throw in the middle, against the clock. As the riders circle the top of the track, the crowd starts cheering, the music gets louder and louder, blasting “Simply the best” each time a new fast time is set. This is, by far, the most exciting time trial you’ve ever seen.
(Niki Terpstra, sharing the track for once, with partner Yoeri Havik.)
Just as the awards ceremony finishes, the derny drivers start to lap the track, and the smell of exhaust starts to fill the velodrome. The DJ comes over, because this is a break for him; no one could hear his music over the noise of the dernies. And he remembers you, too, and fortunately there’s no hard feelings, despite your attempts to convince him to play requests the night before. He’s still shell-shocked from seeing the previous night’s crash, but you still manage to gossip about the London six-day race next year.
(Twelve men on a track go fast, but it’s goes even faster if you put six of them on motor bikes.)
The derny racing is impressive, the strategy is totally different than any other event, and all of this at 62 km/hr. But even above the buzzing of the motors, you can hear the crowd getting excited as the racers position themselves to attack in the final laps.
Next up is the Keirin. As long as the dernies are already warmed up, might as well, right? Six racers jockey for position behind the derny as it makes its rounds, pulling off two laps before the line, signalling the start of a group dash to the line.
(And they say that Dutch people don’t queue. Pff!)
The evening closes with the second Madison race, which must hurt worlds more after three hours of racing. And tomorrow, the whole entourage will close up, hopefully get some sleep, and get ready to do it again the next day. So, for that matter, will you.
Amsterdamsix dayszesdaagse
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March against budget cuts
Jerica Lowman
Filed under News, Social Justice
[/media-credit]
Teachers, students, and union workers from around California gathered at Plaza de Cesar Chavez Park in the middle of downtown San Jose and marched to City Hall to speak out against budget cuts on Friday, April 13.
“We hope to bring more attention in the idea that we have to invest into education, we have to bring education into the reach of the masses,” said David Yancey, SJCC history instructor. “In California, we are slowly moving students into obscurity.”
The mile-long march to city hall was enthusiastic, and shouts of encouragement could be heard throughout downtown, including, “When teachers and students are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!”
“The goal of this march was to tell (San Jose Mayor) Chuck Reed that workers’ pensions should not be attacked and not be compromised,” said Barbara Hanfling, Executive Director of the Faculty Association. “I always believe that when people’s voices are heard, the people up there (City Hall) hear them.”
After the march, there was a rally in the plaza with speakers from unions and school districts. Teachers and students from not only colleges, but elementary schools, junior highs and high schools gathered to listen.
“The key message that we were trying to get across was that education is not a privilege, but a right,” said Neil Silverman, a teacher at Independence High School. “Education should be fully funded by tax dollars.”
Unions came to support the teachers and students. The unions included The United Food and Commercial Workers, which according to its website, consists of 1.3 million members standing together to improve the lives and livelihoods of workers, families and communities.
One topic during the speeches was about the petition going around colleges to raise the minimum wage in San Jose to $10 an hour from $8 and with many college students having to now pay more for units, this goes right along with the budget cut crisis.
“They’re asking you to live on $8 an hour and pay $46 per unit for classes,” said Khalid White, Black History instructor. “That’s six hours of working for a minimum wage job for only one unit, not even a full class. It doesn’t make sense.”
Students stood by teachers and union workers and voiced their opinions on the unfairness of the budget cuts.
“I want the rich to be taxed and have at least part of that money put into education so it can be better in California,” said Evergreen student Yasmin Garcia, 20, criminal justice and sociology major. “I want to have my voice heard, and I want to make a change.”
“I’m really passionate, and I’m really proud of myself and happy that I’m a part of this,” said Evergreen student Maria Pina-Carrasco, 29, business administration major. “It’s making me learn more about what I can do for my community versus when I use to limit myself.”
In the end, no matter what race, gender, sexual orientation or social status, everyone came together to fight for their rights.
“One rally won’t change the conditions in San Jose and is certainly not going to bring more funding to higher education or K-12 education,” said Joshua Pechthalt, president of the California Federation of Teachers. “It’s part of building the kind of
movement that we need to build in order to make spending for our community a priority.”
Tags: barbara hanfling, executive director of faculty association, faculty, Mayor chuck reed, san jose budget cuts, san jose city college, san jose city hall, SJCC, students, teachers, union representative, workers' pensions
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Paul Ryan Elected Speaker of the House in Foregone Conclusion
By Jeremy Stahl
Oct 29, 201510:53 AM
Paul Ryan was literally and figuratively embraced by his colleagues as he was about to be voted in as speaker.
Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images
Paul Ryan was elected as the 62nd speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday after receiving overwhelming support from the Republican caucus to win the office with 236 votes. Former speaker and current House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi had 184 votes.
Ryan takes over for John Boehner, who brought out tissues in his farewell speech in a nod to his famous propensity for tears. He didn’t appear to cry during the speech (though he reached for the tissues to continue the gag). But he did issue a call of praise for his successor, pointing to the fact that Ryan was essentially conscripted for the job after the previous candidate, Rep. Kevin McCarthy, had his bid done in by the same House Freedom Caucus that pressed Boehner into resigning last month.
“There’s a difference between being asked to do something and being called to do something,” Boehner said. “Paul is being called. I know he’ll serve with grace and energy and I want to wish his family all the best.”
In nominating Ryan, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington state also made a to-do about the drama surrounding Ryan being drafted to the job. “He did not seek this office,” she said, “the office sought him.”
Ryan was the 2012 Republican nominee for the vice presidency and the outgoing chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. Mitt Romney, who selected Ryan as his running mate in the last presidential election, was in the gallery with his wife, Ann, at the invitation of the new speaker.
The election bring some closure to a tumultuous month for the House of Representatives and comes on the heels of Boehner “cleaning out the barn” for Ryan by helping to pass a bipartisan two-year deal to fund the government and raise the debt limit on Wednesday night.
Boehner resigned when a renegade group of conservatives known as the House Freedom Caucus promised to challenge his speakership. They then torpedoed Boehner’s initial succor, McCarthy, for not being conservative enough after the California representative described the Benghazi committee as a successful political attack on Hillary Clinton.
Despite serious antagonism from the right-wing media to Ryan’s speakership bid—which he kicked off with a series of demands that he eventually backed down from—a “supermajority” of the about 40-member Freedom Caucus eventually supported Ryan.
Though that was good enough to easily put Ryan in the speaker’s chair, there were still more than a handful of straggling anti-Ryan votes, with nine members of the House Republican caucus voting against his bid. Rep. Daniel Webster of Florida, a member of the Freedom Caucus who continued his bid after Ryan won the nomination of the Republican caucus, received those votes.
Three Democratic members decided to vote for someone other than Pelosi, with Rep. Kyrsten Sinema voting for civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis, Rep. Jim Cooper of Tennessee voting for “General Colin Powell,” and Rep. Gwen Graham of Florida voting for Cooper.
House of Representatives Paul Ryan
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3 signs the crypto revolution is just beginning
October 1, 2018 | Eric Wade
You won’t hear about it in the mainstream media… but the crypto revolution is just getting started.
Right now, crypto headlines (and there are a lot fewer of them now than there were just months ago) are focused on the decline in the prices of cryptos – and bitcoin in particular. With bitcoin prices down around 66 percent since January, you see a lot about the death of bitcoin and cryptos altogether.
What you’re not hearing about is how investors, developers and entrepreneurs are all laying the groundwork for a tectonic shift in finance.
Is this the crypto market’s most reliable profit indicator?
An obscure pattern discovered by a group of crypto traders could appear in any of the 1,890 cryptocurrencies in existence… at any moment.
When it does, you know you’re looking at a potential winner that could rocket as high as Bitcoin’s historic 7,247%. Get the full story here.
It’s easy to glance at a price chart and talk about the “collapse in bitcoin prices”. But it’s much harder to dig into the infrastructure and the investments that happen behind the scenes.
So today, I’m sharing three reasons why I believe the crypto revolution is far from dead – and in fact, how it’s just getting started…
1. More and more people are using cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrency ownership is growing despite the plunge in prices.
Last month, the CEO of one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, Coinbase, said the company has been adding approximately 50,000 users per day in 2018. That brings their global userbase to approximately 25 million. That’s up 250 percent over the fall of 2017.
Binance, another leading exchange, is growing even faster. It quadrupled its userbase in the first six months of 2018 to 9 million users.
All told, about 9 percent of grownups across 15 countries own or have owned cryptocurrency (per a recent survey by banking giant ING), and 25 percent of respondents said they “expect to own cryptocurrency in the future.”
The number of bitcoin wallets is also growing. Crypto company Blockchain.info publishes a graph showing the number of bitcoin wallets created since 2011. At the start of 2016, bitcoin users had created 5.4 million wallets (which are used to store, send or receive bitcoin) on the platform. By 2017, that number was 10.8 million. Today, there are nearly 28.5 million wallets, according to Blockchain.info:
Cryptocurrency investors are following a well-established pattern. In 1962, American Sociology Professor Everett Rogers published the book “Diffusion of Innovations” that describes five distinct stages of technology adoption. First come the innovators. Then the early adopters. Following them are the early majority, late majority, and eventually, the laggards.
And the numbers back that up. According to Rogers, innovators and early adopters make up the first 16 percent of a population and right now, as I said above, we’re at nine percent adoption.
Why is Silicon Valley Pouring Millions Into a Burger Restaurant?
According to a Business Insider report, some of Silicon Valley’s top tech firms and venture capitalists invested US$18 million into a secretive burger restaurant.
Why are Silicon Valley billionaires suddenly backing fast-food restaurants? This presentation has the answer.
2. Cryptocurrency capital investments are accelerating
Hedge fund managers and venture capitalists are pouring cash directly into cryptocurrency start-ups. It’s money that is meant to help businesses build out the new services, technology and hardware required to push cryptocurrencies into the mainstream.
The rate of investment in cryptocurrencies is accelerating, according to the cryptocurrency news site Coindesk. Venture capitalists invested about US$2.5 billion into the industry in 2017. In 2018, they’ve already invested more than US$4.5 billion. The chart below shows a clear acceleration in venture capital funding on a month-by-month basis from less than US$100 million per month to US$200 million per month or more:
The number of cryptocurrency hedge funds is expected to grow by 50 percent in 2018 to more than 500, according to Crypto Fund Research. That’s an astounding number when you consider that cryptocurrency investments account for less than 0.1 percent of the assets invested by hedge funds.
Large corporations are also making their own investments in cryptocurrencies. For example, tech titan IBM has partnered with Stellar (XLM) to launch a so-called “stablecoin” (a crypto pegged to the price of the dollar) and to facilitate payment transfers in the South Pacific. Wire transfer company MoneyGram has partnered with the crypto Ripple (XRP) to reduce transfer costs. Microsoft has been offering cryptocurrency-based products to its large corporate clients since March 2016.
Even the owner of the New York Stock Exchange – Intercontinental Exchange – is launching its own bitcoin exchange. Called Bakkt, the start-up has joined forces with coffee giant Starbucks and tech company Microsoft, among many others, to build out an exchange and eventually a cryptocurrency payment network.
Initial coin offerings (ICOs) – a way for young cryptocurrency companies to raise funds much like initial public offerings (IPOs) in the stock market – are also accelerating. There have been 1,080 ICOs so far in 2018 – compared with just 873 in 2017. Combined, these ICOs have raised US$6.9 billion. Already, that’s nearly US$1 billion more than ICOs raised in 2017.
3. The “do-no-harm” approach to government regulation
China banned cryptocurrency trading in 2017. Many people predicted other countries would follow suit. That hasn’t happened, though. While regulations are still pending in the European Union (EU), most developed nations have taken a “do-no-harm” approach to regulating cryptocurrency (beyond stamping out obvious instances of fraud and illicit activities).
There are two big reasons for this. First, it’s difficult, if not impossible, to stamp out cryptocurrency trading. China has seen this first hand. Regulators there forbid financial institutions from holding or trading cryptocurrencies. To get around the ban, individual traders have simply started using Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) – networks that give them the ability to make it look as if their web traffic is coming from a different country – to access offshore cryptocurrency exchanges.
Second, there are very real dangers to overregulating the industry. If the U.S. implements stricter cryptocurrency rules than the EU, for example, it could stamp out associated potential technological innovation. Entrepreneurs might relocate, and the country could cut itself off from new tax revenue streams. China has seen this, too. When it cracked down on cryptocurrency mining (the process of running computers to verify transactions and solve mathematical problems in exchange for a payout in cryptocurrency), miners simply moved their expensive computers offshore.
Compare that to the northern European country of Estonia, which has seen an economic boom thanks to its pro-crypto stance. Estonia in recent years has implemented favorable regulations and crypto tax rules which created a business-friendly environment drawing crypto startups, mining companies, and ICOs.
In short, the amount of capital and talent that’s entering the cryptocurrency industry is staggering. Governments don’t want to turn away those investments.
Look beyond the headlines
So don’t let anyone convince you the crypto bubble has burst.
We’re witnessing the birth of several transformative technologies. This will be one of the greatest bull markets of our lifetimes. And I believe the best is yet to come.
Eric Wade
Editor, Stansberry Churchouse Research
About Eric Wade
Throughout his career, Eric Wade has been an internet entrepreneur, a Certified Financial Manager at the largest American retail brokerage, an angel investor and a cryptocurrency miner and investor. He was also the founder of a family business that was recognised locally and internationally.
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Filed Under: Asia Wealth Investment Daily, Cryptocurrencies
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Tag: polycaprolactone (PCL)
The Future of Medicine: New Cancer Tests and Treatments
While a cure for cancer is still beyond medical science, improvements in how we diagnose and treat the disease are being made every day. These range from early detection, which makes all the difference in preventing the spread of the disease; to less-invasive treatments, which makes for a kinder, gentler recovery. By combining better medicine with cost-saving measures, accessibility is also a possibility.
When it comes to better diagnostics, the aim is to find ways to detect cancer without harmful and expensive scans or exploratory surgery. An alternative is a litmus test, like the one invented by Jack Andraka to detect pancreatic cancer. His method, which was unveiled at the 2012 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), won him the top prize due to the fact that it’s 90% accurate, 168 times faster than current tests and 1/26,000th the cost of regular tests.
Since that time, Jack and his research group (Generation Z), have been joined by such institutions as MIT, which recently unveiled a pee stick test to detect cancer. In research published late last month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, MIT Professor Sangeeta Bhatia reported that she and her team developed paper test strips using the same technology behind in-home pregnancy tests, ones which were able to detect colon tumors in mice.
The test strips work in conjunction with an injection of iron oxide nanoparticles, like those used as MRI contrast agents, that congregate at tumor sites in the body. Once there, enzymes known as matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which cancer cells use to invade healthy tissue, break up the nanoparticles, which then pass out through the patient’s urine. Antibodies on the test strip grab them, causing gold nanoparticles to create a red color indicating the presence of the tumor.
According to Bhatia, the technology is likely to make a big splash in developing countries where complicated and expensive medical tests are a rarity. Closer to home, the technology is also sure to be of significant use in outpatient clinics and other decentralized health settings. As Bhatia said in a press release:
For the developing world, we thought it would be exciting to adapt (the technology) to a paper test that could be performed on unprocessed samples in a rural setting, without the need for any specialized equipment. The simple readout could even be transmitted to a remote caregiver by a picture on a mobile phone.
To help Bhatia and her research team to bring her idea to fruition, MIT has given her and her team a grant from the university’s Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation. The purpose of the grant is to help the researchers develop a startup that could execute the necessary clinical trials and bring the technology to market. And now, Bhatia and her team are working on expanding the test to detect breast, prostate cancers, and all other types of cancer.
In a separate but related story, researchers are also working towards a diagnostic methods that do not rely on radiation. While traditional radiation scanners like PET and CT are good at finding cancer, they expose patients to radiation that can create a catch-22 situation where cancer can be induced later in life, especially for younger patients. By potentially inducing cancer in young people, it increases the likelihood that they will have to be exposed to more radiation down the line.
The good news is that scientists have managed to reduce radiation exposure over the past several years without sacrificing image quality. But thanks to ongoing work at the Children’s Hospital of Michigan, the Stanford School of Medicine, and Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital, there’s a potential alternative that involves combining MRI scans with a contrast agent, similar to the one Prof. Bhatia and her MIT group use in their peestick test.
According to a report published in the journal The Lancet Oncology, the researchers claimed that the new MRI approach found 158 tumors in twenty-two 8 to 33-year-olds, compared with 163 found using the traditional PET and CT scan combo. And since MRIs use radio waves instead of radiation, the scans themselves have no side effects. While the study is small, the positive findings are a step toward wider-spread testing to determine the effectiveness and safety of the new method.
The next step in testing this method will be to study the approach on more children and investigate how it might work in adults. The researchers say physicians are already launching a study of the technique in at least six major children’s hospitals throughout the country. And because the cost of each method could be roughly the same, if the MRI approach proves just as effective yet safer, radiation-free cancer scans are likely to be the way of the future.
And last, but not least, there’s a revolutionary new treatment pioneered by researchers at Georgia Tech that relies on engineered artificial pathways to lure malignant cells to their death. This treatment is designed to address brain tumors – aka. Glioblastoma multiform cancer (GBM) – which are particularly insidious because they spread through the brain by sliding along blood vessels and nerve passageways (of which the brain has no shortage of!)
This capacity for expansion means that sometimes tumors developed in parts of the brain where surgery is extremely difficult – if not impossible – or that even if the bulk of a tumor can be removed, chances are good its tendrils would still exist throughout the brain. That is where the technique developed by scientists at Georgia Tech comes in, which involves creating artificial pathways along which cancer can travel to either more operable areas or even to a deadly drug located in a gel outside the body.
According to Ravi Bellamkonda, lead investigator and chair of the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University:
[T]he cancer cells normally latch onto … natural structures and ride them like a monorail to other parts of the brain. By providing an attractive alternative fiber, we can efficiently move the tumors along a different path to a destination that we choose.
The procedure was reported in a recent issue of the journal Nature Materials. It involved Bellamkonda and his team implanting nanofibers about half the size of a human hair in rat brains where GBMs were growing. The fibers were made from a polycaprolactone (PCL) polymer surrounded by a polyurethane carrier and mimicked the contours of the nerves and blood vessels cancer cells like to use as a biological route.
One end of a fiber was implanted into the tumor inside the brain and the other into a gel containing the drug cyclopamine (which kills cancer cells) outside the brain. After 18 days, enough tumor cells had migrated along the fiber into the gel to shrink the tumor size 93 percent. Not only does Bellamkonda think his technique could be used to relocate and/or destroy cancers, he says he believes it could be used to help people live with certain inoperable cancers as a chronic condition.
In a recent statement, Bellakomba had this to say about the new method and the benefits its offers patients:
If we can provide cancer an escape valve of these fibers, that may provide a way of maintaining slow-growing tumors such that, while they may be inoperable, people could live with the cancers because they are not growing. Perhaps with ideas like this, we may be able to live with cancer just as we live with diabetes or high blood pressure.
Many of today’s methods for treating cancer focus on using drugs to kill tumors. The Georgia Tech team’s approach was engineering-driven and allows cancer to be treated with a device rather than with chemicals, potentially saving the patient many debilitating side effects. Part of the innovation in the technique is that it’s actually easier for tumors to move along the nanofibers than it is for them to take their normal routes, which require significant enzyme secretion as they invade healthy tissue.
Anjana Jain, the primary author of the study, was also principally responsible for the design of the nanofiber technique. After doing her graduate work on biomaterials used for spinal cord regeneration, she found herself working in Bellamkonda’s lab as a postdoctoral fellow and came up with the idea of routing materials using engineered materials. In a recent statement, she said the following of her idea:
Our idea was to give the tumor cells a path of least resistance, one that resembles the natural structures in the brain, but is attractive because it does not require the cancer cells to expend any more energy.
Extensive testing, which could take up to 10 years, still needs to be conducted before this technology can be approved for use in human patients. In the meantime, Bellamkonda and his team will be working towards using this technology to lure other cancers that like to travel along nerves and blood vessels. With all the advances being made in diagnostics, treatments, and the likelihood of a cure being found in the near future, the 21st century is likely to be the era where cancer becomes history.
Sources: news.cnet.com, (2), (3)
By storiesbywilliamsin Medicine, News, Science, Technology March 9, 2014 March 11, 2014 1,514 Words1 Comment
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Counter-Terrorism: Jihadi Go Home!
October 18, 2006: In Afghanistan, staunch Islamic conservative tribes that formerly welcomed al Qaeda's "foreign fighters" into their regions, appear to be having second thoughts. Most religiously conservative tribes just want to be left alone to do things the way they've always done them. If this means fighting the government (as in Pakistan, Afghanistan, or elsewhere) then so-be-it. But so long as the government doesn't meddle in local affairs, the tribesmen generally aren't particularly interested in whether or not the rest of the country adheres closely to Islamic tradition or is wallowing in sin. Al Qaeda's "Global Caliphate" agenda thus often clashes with that of the local tribes. Lately there's been some evidence that the tribes are getting annoyed.
In the Waziristan region of Pakistan, al Qaeda seems to have committed two particular blunders. The first was trying to take on the Pakistani government, which led to retaliation in force, most of which ended up landing on the tribes rather than al Qaeda's minions. At the same time, some al Qaeda, apparently unhappy over the lack of enthusiasm displayed by the tribes for global jihad, tried some strong-arm tactics. This included harassing, and in some cases killing, tribal leaders. These actions annoyed the tribes. One result was the recent agreement between the Pakistani government and tribal leaders, that left the latter in charge of policing their own areas, if the government agreed not to harass them. In addition, some of the tribes have been taking action against "foreigners." How much action, is as yet unclear, but regional al Qaeda leaders reportedly "apologized" for the actions of some of their followers.
A similar situation is unfolding in Iraq's Anbar province. There, the pro-Baathist, or merely nationalist, Sunni tribes were rather heavily defeated by government and coalition forces earlier this year, and decided to lay low. This pretty much left the terrorist activity in the hands of al Qaeda. Miffed at being left to fight on alone, al Qaeda initiated a program of intimidation and murder against tribal leaders. This led to the recent agreement between the Sunni tribes and the government that established a tribal elders council to help police the province. As a result, Sunni tribesmen are now working with government police to patrol roads.
Counter-Terrorism: Current 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004
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The Rise and Fall of Video-Game Strategy Guides
These are the fanciest guidebooks to surviving a nuclear apocalypse ever!
Believe it or not, beating a game used to be serious business. If you bought a game and got stuck back in the day, that was usually it. In the 90s and early 2000s, getting stuck usually meant not being able to progress at all. This could be because of a tough boss fight, a lack of direction, or the inability to figure out a puzzle. However, there was something that would often help with such a problem: The strategy guide.
Strategy guides were special books, tailored to telling you how to beat the games they were based on. Strategy guides originally started off as sections in gaming magazines, ones that would walk you through sections of the game. There were also “Tips & Tricks” columns in various gaming magazine articles. These were usually designed to give the player secrets, hints, or general advice when it came to playing the game.
Nintendo Power, Electronic Gaming Monthly, and the official Playstation Magazine were pretty good when it came to giving out the good stuff. Eventually though, it was decided to give video-game guides their own separate books. Thus, the concept of “Strategy Guides” were born. These books were great, and still are in many ways!
Beyond them just telling you how to play the game, they also featured colored images from the game. While some guides did have a black-and-white color palette, these were usually less common than the colored ones. Fully colored strategy guides ruled, especially for people who just like to have the guide on hand.
I just love strategy guides, because they’re fun to read before bed. The one thing I hate doing is playing a game right before I go to sleep, and keeping myself up late because of it. Sometimes, it’s fun to just sit and read about the game. Sure, I love playing each and every game I can get my hands on, but I also love reading about them just as much.
That’s why both gaming magazines and strategy guides have a big place in my heart. Sadly, strategy guides are a dying breed. You’ll usually only see them being released for the big games, not so much the smaller titles. Back in the day, strategy guides would come out for almost every game under the sun. Nowadays, guides are a rarity.
Unless it’s a big release like Elder Scrolls, Fallout, or some other big franchises, then chances are it won’t be getting a guide. A lot of this comes down to GameFaqs, which made getting guides for games super easy. People would just write their own guides, post them to the site, and allow people to look up how to beat the game for free.
As a result of this, strategy guides were slowly phased out and are barely existent nowadays. Still, I love looking back at once was and reflecting on the greatness that was and still is strategy guides! Even when I don’t need them to help beat a game, it’s still fun to have one around to flip through on occasion!
Personal Thoughts: Did Bethesda Win E3?
Dream a Dream: The Bizarre Realities of The Dreamer
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Author: jamestwriter
I'm a published writer and I love being one! I write short stories, reviews, or whatever I feel like. I may even write a poem on occasion if the mood strikes me. I hope you all enjoy my content and have a great day.
July 17, 2019 July 17, 2019 jamestwriter Uncategorized
Interview With Tyson Poulin, Aspiring Filmmaker:
Hello, everyone! The concept of filmmaking has been around for ages, constantly evolving and growing with each passing decade. Filmmaking is a craft all its own, which requires meticulous planning and skill. Of course, I’m no expert in film production. I know some techniques and terms, but I’m not super knowledgeable on what goes into them.
That’s why I’ve decided to ask someone who knows a lot about films, and what goes into making them. Today, I have an aspiring filmmaker with me to share his craft with you all. Allow me to introduce you to a good friend of mine and a great filmmaker, Tyson Poulin.
Before we get into the nitty-gritty, how about you tell us about yourself?
I am a 23 year old independent Saskatchewan filmmaker who does it out of passion. I see filmmaking as the best form of storytelling in the world. From the stories, the characters, the emotions film can evoke, to everything that goes into making a film, there’s a lot involved. I’m also a 2018 graduate of the Recording Arts Institute of Saskatoon’s Motion Picture Arts program and work a full-time job to pay bills and support my passion. I’m a semi-hardcore gamer (PlayStation for life), am the eldest of three brothers, both of whom I am at least 10 years older than. They also have the ability to make me feel old whenever they like, but they are amazing kids and I love them to death.
What inspired you to get into film in the first place? Was it a movie you saw, or just general interest in the medium itself?
Some of it came from general interest. I was a huge nerd growing up and loved watching things like Star Wars, or the Sam Raimi Spider-Man films. I also really enjoyed Disney classics like Toy Story, Tarzan, or Monsters Inc. I was fascinated with those characters’ stories, the worlds I would get taken to, and in some cases the action. I love good action scenes in movies and TV.
However, a majority of my interest comes from life experience in creative arts. My entire life I’ve been involved with drama. From school to community theatre, I’ve always been involved somehow. Growing up. being a drama geek felt like the only safe place I could be myself. I played a few sports, Softball mostly. It was fun, but it never gave me the feeling I had whenever I had fun rehearsing and screwing up lines with my fellow actors, or whenever I performed on a stage.
While attending Tommy Douglas Collegiate in Grade 10, myself and a few people I knew got together and started making short YouTube videos that I acted in. It was during that time I also developed an interest in editing. The guys I made the skits with never let me do any of that. I was also a huge wrestling nerd at the time and in the slightly older WWE games, there was an option to export short twenty second gameplay highlights to YouTube. So with that, a YouTube downloader, and Windows Movie Maker I learned basic editing while making dream match highlight reels. From The Rock vs Shawn Michaels, to The Undertaker vs Sting, to Stone Cold Steve Austin vs CM Punk; I had a lot of fun making those. Then I moved to Warman for my Grade eleven year. When I was going through electives, there was an option for computer media. It was in that class that I learned some more advanced editing as well as some visual effects in Adobe Premiere and After Effects. I started to make live action videos of my own from there.
On top of my like of acting and editing, I also enjoyed creative writing as well. So with this trio of things I enjoyed doing, I wanted to make a movie. So, just before graduating high school, a few friends of mine helped me make my first film called Impulse. It was a 40 minute movie that I starred in, wrote, directed, and edited. The experience and enjoyment I had making that movie, as well as all my other previous experiences made me realize that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.
I imagine making your first film to be a rather daunting experience. What was it like making your first film, and what are the biggest takeaways you got from it?
As much as I enjoyed it, yes, it was a little daunting. At that time, just the idea of making a movie felt nerve-racking. I remember on one of the days we were shooting, the thought came across my mind was “We are actually doing this!”. However, just like whenever I was in drama, I always had fun with my friends on set. One of the things that made the decision to go into film much easier was how familiar some aspects of it felt to prior experiences I’ve had in my life.
The biggest takeaway I got from making Impulse was the certainty of wanting to be in film the rest of my life. Despite everything I did in creative arts up to that point, for some reason I wasn’t sure about it being the thing I wanted to pursue full-time. There were times where I would’ve wanted to be a teacher, or a video game tester, or even a professional wrestler at one point. Impulse changed that for me. I’ve been 100 percent certain since that day that this is what I want to do with my life.
Is there any specific film or project you’ve worked on in the past that has left a lasting impact on your filmmaking?
As someone who likes playing with visual effects, two action films I did called Resistance and Retired, taught me that if I’m going to do an effect, to do it well. Both films featured some terribly done 3D helicopters or drones. Next time I do any 3D object stuff I know to be more careful and if it doesn’t work, then toss it out.
My most recent film, The Confessional, on the other hand has taught me my biggest lesson to date. One of the biggest essentials to film is community. You can’t do it alone. Before then, I was always doing too much, from the acting to the directing, as well as everything else. I remember a conversation I had with a friend after making Impulse, and when I told him I did just about everything, he said “Holy crap, that’s a lot! You should get some help.” Over the last few years, I’ve had little to no success. I have a bad habit of carrying too much on my shoulders and doing it all myself. Then in the Confessional, I had help from the very beginning. When I was going through my idea for the project with a friend that would become my Co-Producer for the project, she jumped on board right away and took so much weight off my shoulders, that I don’t think I would have done this film without her. I still wrote, directed, edited, and shot the film. However, I didn’t act in this one. My Co-Producer casted, scouted locations, called people in to help. With her help, as well as the help of a few others, I know what it feels like to not have to carry it all on my own and that I have people in my life who are here and are as committed to this as I am.
When you started making films, what kind of issues did you face? Is there anything you’d go back and change about said films if you had the time/budget?
Finding people to commit to films alongside me. That probably was the reason why I developed the bad habit I mentioned of carrying too much on my shoulders. I knew little to no one when I started that were fully committed to film like me. I also faced then other character flaws like rushing to get certain things done. If I can go back to any projects I rushed when I started, I would take more time with them. I sometimes wish I could go back and either fix or get rid of terribly done effects that I wanted in there, because I wanted to do something cool. There’s a number of things I wish I could change with the proper time, budget and other resources. We’re all human, and we all have things we’ve done in our pasts that we would want to change. However, what I try to do is instead of spending time wishing I did this differently in one of my projects, I accept my film for what it is and learn for next time. I’ve learned from personal experience that I can’t keep looking back at everything that has happened and keep wishing for something else. It’s not how I want to live my life. Same goes for my film career.
Film has a ton of genres and sub-genres, so I imagine it could be taxing to someone starting out in the field. Do you think there’s specific genres one should avoid when starting out, or should a new filmmaker just go with the flow and try any genre?
Do genres you are comfortable with at the start before challenging yourself with genres you are less comfortable with. As you are starting out, you want to build a solid foundation for yourself and have an idea of what you are doing in the filmmaking process. If you challenge yourself right away with a genre you’re not comfortable with, you could get overwhelmed and even say to yourself, “This isn’t for me”. It’s like going to the gym for the first time, going crazy in your first workout, and then being unmotivated to go again, because you are too worn out from that first work out. You need to start easy.
Adaptations are pretty common in film nowadays. With that being said, have you ever adapted anything from a different medium into a film?
Not as of yet. With all the adaptations and remakes Hollywood is dishing out, I’d like to stick to original stories. With that being said, should the right story come along, I would love to make an adaptation out of it. It just has to be the right one.
Should someone starting out on their first project go all-out and make something big, or start off with something small?
This goes back to starting with what you’re comfortable with. You could be like me and go with a 40 minute sci-fi film where you’re blasting lighting out of your hands. You could also start with something small, like one which involves you having trouble studying for a test. It all depends on you, your skill level, and what you are comfortable with doing.
I imagine every film being difficult to make in its own right, but is there any specific thing that’s hard to get right in any film?
Personally, I would say it’s the script. If you have a terrible script, then not even the best acting, cinematography, and editing may be enough to save your film. While those things are also extremely important, the script is the main foundation of a film. It takes a lot of time and effort to write a fantastic story that makes sense, has great well written characters, and that has the least amount of plot holes as possible. There are so many things that can go wrong with a script. If you are not careful, bad writing can bleed all over a film and people will see that.
Alright, so we’re at the end here. It’s been a wild ride and I’m glad you could answer all my questions, Tyson! Anything else you’d like to add?
For any one starting out, one last thing I would like to make clear is that your first number of films will suck. Impulse and several of my other projects are not great. And that’s ok. Every filmmaker makes bad movies, especially at the beginning. Christopher Nolan’s first film wasn’t The Dark Knight. George Lucas’ first film wasn’t Star Wars. Filmmaking is something you learn to get better at with time and practice. Good film isn’t easy to make. Filmmaking is the ultimate creative art form. If you do it, do it because you love it.
Well spoken, Tyson! I’d like to thank you for answering all my questions, and providing some great tips for filmmaking beginners. I’m glad you could provide some insight into filmmaking for both my audience, and me as well. It’s good to have you on the blog, and I hope you have a good one!
I’ll conclude this interview by showing you Tyson’s website, which contains a ton of his amazing work:
https://www.tpoproductions.com/?fbclid=IwAR1sg8yeqAQYA69kGS2gqDtjY8Oho0o8sQMCzWh066wBVaYmx4x8JLWzaOo
I’ll be honest, I try to be a “one convention a year” kind of guy. I like to save money, and I usually don’t feel the need to attend conventions too often. However, a friend convinced me to head to “Ganbatte Anime Convention” this year. This is a con that’s been going on for the past few years, but I’ve never had a distinct interest in it.
After some fine convincing from a good friend of mine, I’ve decided to take the plunge and attend this year. There’ll be tons of awesomeness at this year’s event, such as a guest appearance from my favorite voice actor: Brendan Hunter! This is a guy who’s been voice-acting for years, but sadly goes unnoticed by the general populace. I’ll talk more about him in a later post, but for now I’ll just say that he’s super talented!
I hope to also find some sweet loot at this convention, preferably some cheap anime! The first anime convention I ever did had cheap anime by the bucket-loads, which was much appreciated. Here’s hoping this convention does the same! I plan on talking to all the voice-actors and writers as well. I have a feeling this event will be fulfilling, and I hope to see you all there!
July 8, 2019 jamestwriter Uncategorized
We live in an age where modern media is getting considerably dumbed down. A lot of the newer TV shows and movies are getting censored, while removing a lot of the edginess and weirdness of older franchises. As a result, the shows we consume nowadays feel watered down. I’m a guy who likes his media to have some kick to it, which is why I’m a huge fan of a streaming website called “Midnight Pulp”.
For those of you don’t know what that is, Midnight Pulp is a streaming website that focuses on showcasing the weirder and pulpier side of media. In fact, their slogan is “Streaming All Things Strange”. Midnight Pulp lives up to that name, and provides the viewing audience with a ton of old and extremely out there movies and TV shows.
It’s got old and obscure horror films, like Basket Case. It’s got a ton of forgotten old-school anime, such as Golgo 13. Heck, it’s even got the Toriko anime movie on its platform! There’s so much on this streaming platform that isn’t available on Netflix, or Amazon Prime. What makes the site so great is that it feels like you’re attending some kind of late midnight screening of old pulpy films.
Another thing I like about Midnight Pulp is the fact that it’s free, for the most part. You have the free version, which enables you to watch a fair portion of their library without paying anything. However, they have a ton of stuff you can only access through “Midnight Pulp Plus”. It’s only 5 dollars a month for a subscription, and it gives you access to their library of strange and surreal TV shows and movies.
That’s why I can wholeheartedly recommend Midnight Pulp, since it hearkens back to that older time when the surreal and strange was more accepted by mass media. I love watching something that’s odd, strange, or bizarre. As such, I highly recommend Midnight Pulp!
Also, I’m not affiliated with Midnight Pulp in any way. I do not work for them, and I’m not being sponsored by them. I just like their service and want to talk more about it! Also, keep in mind that not every show/movie on the service is acceptable for people of all ages.
A lot of the things on the service are horror films, gory anime, or schlock action movies, so it’s to be expected that they’d have a lot of kick to them. Still, if you’re like me and love old pulpy movies, this is the place to go! Show your support for the grit and dirt of old shows and moves by checking out this awesome app/website!
The website can be found here: https://www.midnightpulp.com/
July 5, 2019 July 5, 2019 jamestwriter Uncategorized
I know I’m late to the holiday party, but I just wanted to wish everyone a good belated Canada Day and 4th of July! Yeah, I know the 4th of July has already ended for most people, but I was working most of the night and didn’t get to this post until now. Regardless, I wish you all good holidays and good tidings!
This is the best E.T. Simulator ever!
If there’s one thing that most people can agree on hating, it would have to be the concept of “disappointment”. No one likes being disappointed, especially after being given promises of something grand and interesting. That’s the problem a lot of people were faced with upon the release of “No Man’s Sky”. No Man’s Sky was hyped up as being this incredible video-game about space exploration. The game’s developer, Hello Games, was hyping this game up a ton!
After several delays, the game was released to the public. Unfortunately for the people who bought the game, they were given an incomplete package. No Man’s Sky was missing a large percentage of its advertised features, and was considered a very underwhelming game as a result of this.
The lack of features, the simplistic gameplay, and the bland story were all big contention points for most people. Still, Hello Games didn’t give up on the game. Sure, they released a bad game, but they weren’t content with just leaving it in that state. Over the course of three years, they got to work on updating and fixing the game.
At this point, it barely resembles what it started out as. It’s still a grind-heavy exploration game in space, but it now has many features that made it more approachable. Character creation was added, along with a new story mode. You could now command a massive freighter and a group of frigates.
I’ve started playing No Man’s Sky just a week ago, and I’m enjoying this newer version of the game. While I’ve never played the old version, I can definitely see why it was so bad. Gameplay videos of the game’s previous version would put me to sleep every time I watched it. However, playing this new version fills me with a sense of wonder that I haven’t felt in ages.
Flying through space in my personal spaceship is definitely a fun experience! Being able to mine on planets, hunt for rare treasures, and buy new gear just helps add to this already great game. There’s so much to do and see, even if the game becomes extremely grind-heavy in just an hour or two.
I’m still in the early stages of the game, so I’m not going to review it until I’m far enough into it. I’ll say that it is a solid experience, and I genuinely enjoy this game! I’ll be sure to talk more about it in a week or two. Keep your eyes peeled for the full review!
Phantasy Star Mini-Retrospective Part 2
Wow, it’s been a long time since I’ve talked about Phantasy Star! Due to Phantasy Star Online 2 finally being announced for a US release at this year’s E3, I felt it was a good time to talk about the games I haven’t covered yet. After all, Phantasy Star is my passion and there’s still a ton of games left to talk about! So, let’s continue where we left off.
Phantasy Star Universe is certainly the black sheep of the franchise, and one of my least favorite games in the series. While I definitely wasn’t a big fan of Episode III, at least it felt like a Phantasy Star game. Universe is trying too hard to be “Monster Hunter In Space”, to the point where it falters under the weight of its own ambition.
The game revolves around a young man named “Ethan Waber”, who happens to be the playable character for this game’s story mode. The game starts off simple enough, showing Ethan bopping around and having fun. He’s then drafted into a war against an alien menace, and becomes a “Guardian” as a result.
Ethan is probably the worst part of this game. His voice is pretty obnoxious, and his design is overall bland. He looks and acts like some kind of “space hipster”, and it gets really grating after a while. It doesn’t help that you’re stuck playing as him through the game’s entire campaign, as opposed to the custom characters of the past few entries.
While you can still create a character in this game, it’s only in online multiplayer. There’s also another mode where you can create a character, but you have to play through the entire game to unlock the mode and all the quests available for it. Even then, you can only play through quests that are available in the story mode.
There was also a severe lack of quests in online multiplayer, which made the whole thing feel rather lackluster. Couple that with the game’s needlessly complex crafting system, generic story, and a lack of the classic Phantasy Star staples, and you have one of the more hollow experiences in the franchise.
Surprisingly, Sega took the fandom’s dislike of Universe to heart for the game’s sequels. The game was followed up with an expansion just a year later, “Ambitions of The Illuminus”. It added in a better story mode, the ability to play as a custom character from the beginning, elements and monsters from the original Phantasy Star Online, and tons of new content. Even better, Ethan was working for the villains this time around! Yes, that means that you get to smack around the unlikable protagonist of the previous game!
Illuminus also replaced the J-Pop theme song of the previous game with an epic rock cover of it. Almost everything about the expansion felt like a step up from the previous game. Unfortunately, Illuminus also created an odd “identity crisis” for the Phantasy Star Universe sub-series. The franchise kept flip-flopping back and forth between trying to use its own elements and stories, and trying to pander to fans of the PSO games. As a result, it made the later games feel a bit disjointed.
Regardless, Illuminus was a fun return to the Phantasy Star games of old. With Illuminus, Sega realized that people seemed to like the PSO stuff more than the PSU stuff. This resulted in them releasing a pair of games in 2008, each one being in set in the two different universes. Phantasy Star Zero was a prequel to the original Phantasy Star Online, and was certainly an interesting game.
Zero takes what people loved about Phantasy Star Online, and brings it to the Nintendo DS! In this game, you play as a custom character who has just joined the “Hunter’s Guild”. The Hunters in this game are similar to the Hunters in the original PSO games, right down to the fact that both destroy alien mutant creatures and save the world. It’s pretty awesome to go back to being a Hunter, especially since the Universe series introduced their less cool counterparts, “Guardians”.
Zero was interesting in that it brought back a lot of gameplay quirks from PSO. This included removing the crummy vehicle sections and weird crafting system from Universe, and bringing back the “MAGs” from the original game. A MAG is a tiny creature that floats over your should and requires subsistence, which means you have feed to him all of your excess items. Feeding the creature will result in his eventual evolution!
Zero also brought back the monsters and general feel of Online, while giving the game a rather interesting story mode. The thing that made this game’s story interesting was that the race you chose to play as DEFINED your character. Each of the three races got their own unique intro to the game, and choosing a certain race would also define which areas you go to first. While it doesn’t change what happens in said areas, it does add for a bit of variety on repeat playthroughs.
Of course, Zero wasn’t the only Phantasy Star game to come out in 2008. The PSP also got Phantasy Star Portable earlier that same year. Phantasy Star Portable was a handheld spinoff of the Phantasy Star Universe series. The game takes place after the first game, but before the events of the expansion.
You help a “CAST” (which is a robotic being) named “Vivienne” stop yet another alien invasion. Phantasy Star Portable is a decent game, but its status as a handheld game holds it back. It lacks a lot of the more interesting elements that made previous Phantasy Star games fun. There was no online multiplayer, you couldn’t walk around the store areas, and the game’s story was sufficiently lacking.
I’m not saying Portable 1 was a terrible game, but it was just too bare-bones for me to get into. Thankfully, it’s sequel more than made up for it! Phantasy Star Portable 2 was released a year later and fixes many of the problems I had with the previous entry. For one thing, the game has online multiplayer!
Being able to go online and play with random people on a portable device was extremely fun! Of course, the online multiplayer was prone to hacking and cheaters, but what online game isn’t? Phantasy Star Portable 2 also brought back the ability to walk around the space-station, while talking to various NPCs along the way.
The game featured a ton of weapons to collect, over 3000 to be precise! The combat was the classic combat you’d come to expect from this franchise, with a few slight changes made to streamline things. For example, “Photon Points” were no longer tied to weapons at all now, and were instead tied to the the character itself. This meant that you couldn’t just switch out your weapons when you ran out of juice, you’d have to just wait for your character to recharge.
By far, the best part of the game was its room customization. I know talked a lot about this in the Phantasy Star Portable 2 review I did a while back, so I’ll keep this brief. PSP2’s room customization is amazing! Imagine being able to choose from hundreds of different room layouts, and almost a thousand different decorations to fill the room up with. There are literally millions of possible room combinations. Best of all, you could go online and visit the rooms of other players, as long as they were in the same lobby as you.
PSP2 is probably one of my favorite games of all time, but it’s sadly also responsible for killing the franchise in the West. The lack of sales for the Portable games meant that the games stopped getting released over here. Sega blamed the fans, despite the fact that it was their lack of advertising that killed the franchise.
Phantasy Star did continue on in Japan, however. Phantasy Star Portable 2 received an expansion which tied it closer to the Phantasy Star Online series, which is pretty awesome. It just sucks that we never got that game! We also never got Phantasy Star Online 2, or any of its many spinoffs… At least, not until the aforementioned E3 announcement just a few weeks ago.
After the series being stuck in Japan for almost a decade, it’s finally making its return to the West. I’ve been waiting for PSO2 forever, so it’s gonna be awesome to finally get my hands on it! Hopefully all this waiting will be worth it! Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this Phantasy Star mini-retrospective! I apologize for part 2 taking so long, but at least I finally get it done.
Fallout 76 Review
Well, here’s a review I never thought I’d make! Fallout 76 is one of the most polarizing video-games to come out in the last decade. It was controversial, due to broken promises and tons of issues. It’s poor quality became an internet meme and was talked about nonstop by pretty much everybody. The game’s developer, Bethesda, even had to formally apologize at this year’s “E3” event.
However, something really interesting happened at that same event. Todd Howard (Bethesda’s President) announced that they would not only fix the game, but add many new things to it. This included a Battle Royale mode, numerous fixes, a new story mode with NPCs, and tons of new weapons and gear.
On top of this, they announced that they would be doing a “free trial” of the game for an entire week. Naturally, I decided to get in on this. I downloaded the crummy “Bethesda Launcher”, installed the game, and started playing it. Before I fully get into my thoughts, allow me to explain what Fallout is.
Fallout was originally an old-school RPG released in the late 90s, in a time when the RPG genre was starting to truly take off in the west. It was a post-apocalyptic RPG developed by people with a real passion for story-telling and world-building. These people cared about making a game that let the player role-play as their own character, while playing the game the way they wanted to.
The series had two entries and two spin-offs, before being bought out by Bethesda Game Studios. They then proceeded to turn Fallout into something it wasn’t, by removing all of the complex characters and writing. The series gradually became more dumbed down, and eventually felt like an entirely different series altogether.
Fallout 76 was the ultimate culmination of this dumbing down, while also being the point in which the fans put their collective feet down. Regardless of the main controversies and negative reviews of this game, I went into Fallout 76 with a fresh perspective. I tried to view the game through the lens of a new player, while ignoring the various controversies that plagued the game.
Unfortunately, this didn’t really help my experience at all. I hate to say it, but Fallout 76 is a bland and terrible game. My experience started off promising enough, I awoke in the titular “Vault 76”. While acquiring the starter items from the vault, a player started yelling at me not to leave. If only I heeded his advice, if only…
After leaving the vault, I wandered into the large vast world of Fallout 76. At first, things seemed cool. The environments were nice enough, and I found myself getting lost looking at the scenery for a while. I eventually made my way back to following the game’s compass, which lead me towards the main quest locations. Unfortunately, Bethesda had yet to add in all of the promised improvements they said they would.
This meant that the story was still bare-bones, and that I was stuck following random objectives until the end of time. Every quest involved finding holotapes, or going to a specific area. The inventive quests of previous games were gone, replaced by a bunch of pointless fetch quests.
The game’s story and side-quests are just lacking, much like the combat. All you do is run at enemies and swing awkwardly with a melee weapon, or camp out from afar and pepper them with bullets. The CPU is dumb as a sack of hammers, so it’s extremely easy to kite them into an area and pick them off one-by-one.
The combat is pretty boring overall. The “V.A.T.S.” targeting system from previous games doesn’t really function well at all in an online space, and there aren’t a whole lot of diverse weapon choices in these games. Something I did like about the gameplay was the crafting system.
Sure, they basically just copied the system from Fallout 4, but at least it functions well. Being able to craft better gear using random junk is definitely fun, even if your inventory has a tendency to fill up extremely fast. While creating new stuff is fun, your character will end up dropping items every time he dies. This could include valuable crafting supplies, prompting you to have to go out and retrieve them… By going to the area where you originally died. This means that you have the chance of dying again while trying to get that stuff back, risking the chance of losing even more stuff in the process.
Interactions with other players was scarce. People barely spoke to me, and would always run away as soon as they spotted me. I even bumped into a level 155 player, one who spent the entire time crouching for some reason. The social interaction aspect of this game was just bad, if I can be brutally honest. In fact, the whole experience felt very hollow.
While I appreciate that they fixed up most of the bugs and connection issues, there’s just not anything there to keep me enticed. I was only able to play the game for a few hours, since it became very boring very fast. While I’m sure the game will be more fun once more stuff is added, I just find it hard to recommend in its current form.
My suggestion is to wait for all of the game’s promised features, and then decide if you want to take the plunge. I would recommend not spending more than 10-20 dollars on it if you can, since it just doesn’t feel like something worth 60 dollars. Regardless, I did have a bit of fun with the game. It’s grindy and repetitive, but at least that first 30 minutes kept me engaged. At least it entertained me more than Fallout 4 did…
June 9, 2019 jamestwriter Uncategorized
Why The Divinity Games Are So Awesome
One question people often ask is this: What makes a classic a classic? What defines something as being so good that it transcends its medium? This isn’t an easy question to answer, and there’s no definitive answer for it. To me, what defines a “classic” is what it does for the genre as a whole. A true “classic” sets trends and becomes remembered for what it does well.
A good example of this is the “Divinity” series of RPG video-games. If you’ve never heard of Divinity before, allow me to explain. Back in the early 2000s, a fledgling game studio released their second game, “Divine Divinity”. Their previous game, “LED Wars”, was immensely obscure, so this second game needed to be a hit to make up for it.
Surprisingly, this new (at the time) release proved to be extremely popular! It became a cult classic in a short amount of time, launching a large franchise that continues to this very day. The original Divinity had the player select from one of several classes to create their character with, before being thrust into an action RPG adventure of grand proportions! The game introduced the land of “Rivellon”, a world full of great characters and fantastic adventures.
Divine Divinity played like your typical “dungeon-crawler”, but had a larger focus on story-telling and lore. DD had this level of depth not seen in most games, due to its massive world and many skills. It told the story of the player character travelling across a fantasy world, while doing battles with the forces of darkness. What starts off as something basic soon becomes a quest to ascend to godhood, full of twists and turns that make this game a true treat to play. DD was followed up two years later by “Beyond Divinity”. This game wasn’t very good, if I can be brutally honest.
This game had you controlling two different characters, both of which were pretty bland. The game has you playing as a Paladin stuck to a “Death Knight”, while you both fight your way out of the underworld. While it does sound cool, a lot of the game doesn’t factor into the previous entry at all. In fact, the only part that continues the previous game’s story is this game’s ending! You learn that the Death Knight is “Damian”, who was the son of the previous game’s playable protagonist.
While I’m glad that the game does continue the previous game’s plot in some way, I just couldn’t get attached to this world. Setting the game in what is essentially “Hell” limited the setting, taking away the fantasy trappings from the previous game. While some may view this as an improvement, it works against it feeling like a true sequel.
In essence, Beyond Divinity is more like an over-glorified expansion pack. It wasn’t a true sequel, and was essentially a canonical spin-off of the main series. We would eventually get a true sequel to the original Divinity… 5 years after Beyond came out. In 2009, we got “Divinity II: Ego Draconis”.
The concept of Divinity II was pretty damn interesting, since it dealt with two new factions: Dragon Knights and Dragon Slayers. Dragon Knights are humans with the magical powerful to transform into dragons, while Dragon Slayers are a sect of knights sworn to slay all of them.
You play as a Dragon Slayer recruit, who comes into contact with a Dragon Knight during their first mission. You are then forced into becoming the last Dragon Knight, while your former order turns against you. Worse still, Damian has returned and is plotting to destroy all of Rivellon.
Divinity II was my introduction into the series, and it was definitely an interesting one! Few games I’ve played have done this good a job of easing me into an already existing world. Sure, there was stuff I didn’t get. There were characters from previous games who showed up, but weren’t given much development. Regardless, I still felt at home here!
Divinity II was an open-world action RPG unlike any other. It was entirely in third-person, had a simplistic combat system, the ability to read the mind of any NPC in the game, and the awesome power of being able to transform into a FREAKING DRAGON! Not only that, but you even get your own kickass battle-tower, complete with a Necromancer who can make zombie minions for you!
While Divinity II was far from perfect, it still presented one of the more satisfying open-world experiences I’ve ever had. It helps that that open-world itself is split into multiple areas, which you’ll explore one-by-one while progressing through the game. Divinity II is probably the best Divinity game I’ve played thus far!
Thing is, it’s far from the newest game in the franchise. In fact, there’s been 3 new Divinity games since then! I just picked up 2 of them today, which are “Divinity: Dragon Commander” and “Divinity: Original Sin”. With Larian’s announcement of a new “Baldur’s Gate” game just a few days ago, I thought it was a good time to talk about and get back into playing their other games! I plan to play through all the Divinity games and review them when I get the chance, so look forward to that!
Obscure Anime Gems: Juuni Senshi Bakuretsu Eto Ranger
You ever stumble across some obscure 90s show, one that makes you wish you had grown up with it? Well, that show for me would have to be an extremely obscure anime known as “Juuni Senshi Bakuretsu Eto Ranger”, which roughly translates to “Twelve Warrior Explosive Eto Rangers”. Eto Rangers came out in 1995, and was released exclusively in Japan. These was an English version planned, but it was never finished or released.
This show takes place in a fantasy world named Mugen, which is home to a variety of anthropomorphic animals. 12 of these cartoon animals are chosen to be the “Eto Rangers”, a group of powerful dimension-travelling warriors based off the Chinese Zodiac.
Each episode involves them travelling to a different fairy tale and setting it right. In a way, it’s similar to the Kingdom Hearts series that would come along much later. The Eto Rangers would often deal with bizarre fantastical scenarios, or wacky shenanigans. These include Momotaro: The Peach Boy becoming a sci-fi epic, or The Little Mermaid becoming a story of a mermaid-turned-human trying to become a famous singer.
With over a dozen protagonists, the show often struggles with giving each and every one character development. It doesn’t help that the series only ran for 39 episodes, while several episodes were spent on nonsense filler shenanigans. I get that 39 sounds like a lot, but character development is often spaced out much farther apart in Japanese animation.
Most of the early episodes were spent just giving our heroes random adventures, while the plot itself doesn’t kick off until 13 episodes in. The series is already one-third through its run at this point, while only having developed the most marketable characters. The rest of the series focuses on their struggles with a bunch of cat-based villains led by “Nyanma”.
Naturally, the arch-enemy of these cats is our mousy main character, “Bakumaru”. Bakumaru starts off as a generic anime protagonist, but gets a bit of depth later on. A tournament episode helps establish him as more than just a generic hero, while a few episodes are spent on getting him over his fear of cats.
While this development is appreciated, it also means that the rest of the cast gets shafted. This is especially apparent when you factor in that only 5 characters are picked for each mission, while the other 7 are usually left out of the main plot of the episode. I’ve harped enough on the character development, let’s talk about the show’s animation and music. It’s pretty much what you’d expect from an early 90s anime. The animation is pretty solid, but nothing spectacular. The music has a lot of good tracks, but none of them I’d call “jams”.
What the show has going for it is its comedy, characters, and writing. For those of you who don’t know, Eto Rangers shared its director and writer with another anime called “Kyatto Ninden Teyandee”. Americans will know this anime better as “Samurai Pizza Cats” in the States, a show which is often considered one of the “best dubbed anime” of all time.
Eto Rangers is often looked at as a spiritual sequel to Kyatto, due to its shared staff and similar writing style. Eto Rangers often goes for silly gags, bizarre scenarios, and fun character interactions. It’s hard to dislike any character on the show, even the ones who get little development.
The voice-acting and characterization behind each character is really good, to the point where I feel it negates the lack of focus they get in the episodes. This is a good thing, since Eto Ranger bills itself as an “action-comedy”. It needs good characters to help the audience get invested, while also delivering good jokes and puns here or there.
Eto Ranger is nothing unique or spectacular, but it has a fun premise and some likable characters. It’s one of the many 90s anime that nobody talks about anymore, which is a shame. Thankfully, all 39 episodes can be watched on YouTube FOR FREE with English Subtitles. If you are even slightly interested in obscure 90s anime, I recommend giving this show a shot. I feel like this is a show most people can get a kick out of, even if they aren’t a huge fan of anime in general!
Skyrim: The Ultimate Mixed Bag of Open-World RPGs
A game with an open-world is usually a pretty enticing prospect. Having a large and vast world for the player to explore is fun, especially when you fill that world with fun stuff to do. Unfortunately, this style of game has become way too widespread in recent years. It seems like every franchise is trying to the open-world route, and a lot of them end up failing at it.
One game that popularized the open-world genre was the RPG series known as “Elder Scrolls”. The first game was released in 1994, and has gone to spawn a multi-billion dollar gaming franchise! The games themselves were and still are being developed by “Bethesda Softworks”, a company that has become controversial for sleazy business practices in recent years. By far, the most popular entry in the series was 2011’s “Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim”.
The concept for the game alone was pretty enticing: You play as a chosen one warrior, named “Dragonborn”. You can use the language of the dragons as a weapon simply by shouting! Using your “Dragon-Shouts”, equipment, and various skills you set off on an intense viking fantasy and combat ancient evils.
It’s typical RPG fanfare, but Bethesda did a really good job of hyping it up to no end. I was truly interested in what Skyrim was going to do with its world and setting, especially since the last Elder Scrolls ended on a rather somber note. Uriel Septim and all his heirs were now dead, and Tamriel’s throne was now vacant.
The Septim bloodline that had been a part of the franchise since the first game was now gone, which left hardcore fans of the series feeling a bit hollow. With the talk of the “Dragonborn” in Skyrim, I had assumed the Septim bloodline would find some way to return in the sequel. After all, the Septims were also known as “Dragonborn”!
Turns out, the Dragonborn in this game isn’t of the royal bloodline. Instead, the Dragonborn is the player this time around. I remember back when Skyrim was first announced, since it lead to a hype train unlike any other game. People were getting excited about this awesome new game, and so was I!
I had played Oblivion and fell in love with that game, so I knew its sequel would be just as good! I received the game on Christmas and ended up loving it, but I noticed something was off. The game lacked the same kind of “spark” Oblivion had, and felt less interesting as a result of this.
I still loved and played Skyrim to death, but I’d be lying if I said this game didn’t have glaring flaws. One of the things that really hurts this game is that it starts off on the wrong foot. The game opens with an infamous tutorial sequence, one which involves you being stuck on a cart with a bunch of random people.
The cart is slowly being pulled along by a horse, while a neurotic guy screams exposition at you. You are then brought to an execution block, which is interrupted by a random dragon attack. You then spend the next 20 minutes running away from a dragon and attempting to get out of the destroy town, just so you can get to the fun part of the game.
I’ll be honest, this tutorial is terrible. It’s slow, unskippable, and just flat-out annoying. Once you finish the tutorial, you are then greeted with a beautiful and vibrant open-world. Your first thought is to go out and explore, which is often the best way to play this game.
I’ll be brutally honest, following the story was always my least favorite part of the story. The plot of the game was a bland “chosen one” story, where you travel across the lands and fight dragons. I disliked most of the main quest NPCs, and I was always annoyed with how detached the plot was from the “Civil War” story-line going on the background.
It doesn’t help that doing the main quest will make you insanely overpowered, as well as result in the dragons appearing all over the land and attacking you frequently. Honestly, I sometimes prefer to just wait to do main quest for as long as possible. It’s more fun to just explore and do random quests, then to deal with repetitive dragon attacks.
Of course, not doing he main quest also means you can’t use “Dragon Shouts”. You see, these shouts were one of the game’s main selling points. They were special magical shouts that would recharge over time, while also being way more useful than typical magic spells. The shouts could do anything from knocking over foes, freezing them solid, or summoning dragons. Heck, you could even use a shout to RIDE A DRAGON! Sadly, it’s not as cool as it sounds.
While Skyrim is an impressive game, it was also a massive step backwards. The game ended up being over-simplified, while having most of its RPG elements removed. Several skill trees from previous games were removed, as was the ability to choose a class. This game went classless, choosing to let the player craft their own class through their play-style instead. While this does invite creativity, it also means that every player is essentially a “Wild Card”.
Everyone can be the character they want to be, but there’s no way to define yourself as a specific class in game. This removes a lot of the nuance from character creation, since all you can do now is choose your race and look. All of the other choices in character design are made outside of the tutorial.
I’d be able to forgive the lacking character creation, but so much of the game follows these poor design decisions. The combat is simple and often times boring, and the game is just filled with too many innocuous pointless quests. That being said, Skyrim had a world like no other.
You’d travel across snowy mountains, beautiful hotsprings, and gorgeous forests to get to your destination. The game’s open-world was truly breathtaking and it still stands as one of the best in any game I’ve ever played. On top of this, some of the caves and dungeons can be fairly entertaining to delve into.
The crafting/blacksmithing system is fun and rewarding, albeit very overpowered. There’s just generally a lot of things to do and take part in, even if not all of them are good. To me, Skyrim is a game that I forever will be mixed on. I’ve dumped so many hours into this game, especially when compared to any other game I’ve ever played.
I’ve put so much time into the game that I’ve made myself sick of it, to the point where I can’t even touch it anymore. Even when I do play it, I just find myself getting bored more often than not. People tend to tell me to revisit Skyrim with mods, but I feel I just can’t anymore. If I want to have fun in Skyrim at this point, I’d have to put so many mods into it that it’d become a different game entirely. At that point, I may as well just get a different game to play.
Still, Skyrim was a fun experience for its time. While my feelings will always be mixed on it, I’d be lying if I said I regretted the many hours I spent on it. Will I ever revisit the game? Probably not, unless some serious changes and additions are made to it in the future. I just hope the next game in the series isn’t a mixed bag, or a terrible game like Fallout 76 was. Here’s hoping Bethesda Softworks can learn from their mistakes!
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Possible new Las Vegas Raiders stadium: architect's impression courtesy Manica Architecture
Vegas Raiders
NFL Team to say Bye Bye to Oakland
By Gary Jordan
An old cliché says that you wait for something, such as a London bus or taxi cab, and then three arrive in a short space of time. This is a mild comparison to what has happened in the National Football League in recent times.
Nearly twenty years had passed since the Houston Oilers relocated to Memphis and for a short time played as the Tennessee Oilers, before rebranding made them the Titans. Then in 2016 the Rams upped sticks to go "home" to Los Angeles from St. Louis. A few short months later it was confirmed that after 56 years in San Diego the Chargers would clear their lockers and also head to Hollywood.
This past week the third franchise to announce its relocation was finally given approval. The Oakland Raiders, who in the past have been no strangers to seeing the removal vans turn up in its forecourt, had a near unanimous vote that sees them move to the bright lights and casinos of Las Vegas. A move that had been long talked of but for a while seemed a pipedream, as the NFL mulled over the implications of a team in Sin City (AKA "The entertainment capital of the world" - ed).
The Raiders will continue to play in Oakland for the next two seasons, possibly three, as their new stadium is built, then start the 2020 season in its new home.
Owner Mark Davis was a proud man when the owners voted 31-1 in favour of the move, with only Miami showing negative on the voting cards. "My father [Al Davis] used to say that the greatness of the Raiders was in its future. The opportunity to build a world class stadium in the entertainment capital of the world will give us the opportunity to achieve that greatness." He said to reporters after the vote.
At the turn of the year the proposed move looked to be off. Davis was the leader on the deal but needed that extra push. First to help bankroll the plans was casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, who pledged $650m for a domed stadium only to pull out when the Raiders made a lease proposal without his consent. Goldman Sachs then withdrew their offer to help and instead it was Davis and his Raiders colleagues that secured help from Bank of America that was equal to what Adelson had tabled. The rest of the money would be raised through public funds, namely a visitor’s tax to the Vegas area.
Mark Davis knew the move would not go down well with the faithful Oakland fans. They’ve had a Super Bowl team taken from them before and the current team is ready for a run at the playoffs again this coming season, so the immediate goal was to "bring a championship to Oakland". It was this feeling that prompted Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf into a last ditch attempt to stop the vote. She had her own plans for the team in a bid to keep them in her city. "We had a fully financed, shovel ready project that was a public-private partnership and we are incredibly disappointed that was not selected."
Schaaf would have seen a new $1.3b stadium complete with facilities for the Oakland Athletics baseball team. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wasn’t completely sold on the idea, "We understand that contingencies sometimes occur but major contingencies that put the entire project in doubt are just unreasonable" he said. He was concerned of the lack of a stated location for a new Oakland stadium, and the knock on effect it could have with the MLB team.
The Raiders have had a somewhat nomadic existence since their acceptance into the old AFL in 1960. They first played in the old Kezar Stadium in San Francisco, then briefly at Candlestick Park. In 1962 they moved to Oakland and were settled there for 20 years before they moved out to Los Angeles. After 13 years they went back to the Coliseum and now the lure of new pastures sees them on the road again.
>> MORE SPORTS
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Interview with Author Joshua M. Reynolds
Today we have a very special guest--author Joshua M. Reynolds! I first learned of Josh's writing when we shared page space in last year's occult detective anthology A Cat of Nine Tales. I read his story "An Ounce of Prevention" and was introduced to his delightful occult detective characters Charles St. Cyprian and plucky (and sometimes psychotic) sidekick Ebe Gallowglass. It was a rollicking good time that instantly reminded me of Robert Downey Jr.'s turn as Sherlock Holmes--only with monsters. I was hooked on St. Cyprian's stories and Josh's perfect blend of wit, thrills, and horror. I have stalked him on his site for awhile and have read through his Nightmare Men series of short essays that highlights occult detectives of the golden era of pulp fiction. Since meeting Josh, he has been very supportive of my own writing efforts, even letting me take the talking stick for a guest post at his blog, and it's a real treat to have him here.
Now, without further ado!
Greg Mitchell: Welcome to the blog, Josh! I look through your resume and you have quite the extensive one! Where did you get your start? Take me back to the beginning of your career.
Joshua M. Reynolds: The beginning of my career is lost in the mists of the distant past; like, Y2K-distant. The early entries on my resume are a sort of ‘best guess’ kind of thing. I wrote between twenty and thirty stories a year, and sold around half of them, but only bothered to keep track of about half of those.
I didn’t really intend to be a writer, y’see. At least not a professional one; so I didn’t think it mattered what I’d sold as long as the check cleared, or the contributor’s copy arrived. The idea of reprint rights, or collections or somesuch, just plain did not occur to me. I was a strict 9 to 5 man, paychecks and time-clocks and employee assessments.
It was a hobby at first. That’s my excuse. By the time I realized that I could do it for a living, that it was a viable career-choice, I had lost most of the floppy disks that held those first fifty or sixty stories. Somewhere, I imagine an ex-girlfriend has a set of floppies held together by rubber-bands, and labeled ‘My Stories’.
I don’t even remember the title of my first story…
GM: What were some of your inspirations growing up?
JR: Whatever I’d read or seen last, honestly; I was a bit of a sponge. If I’d read Chandler, it was Chandler. If I’d just finished Lovecraft, it was Lovecraft. If I’d been watching Thundercats, or Ducktales or reading comic books, that was the sort of thing I scribbled. But, the author who always inspired me--and still does when I need to refresh the well, so to speak—was Manly Wade Wellman.
Wellman wasn’t the writer who convinced me I could write, but he was the one who made me want to write. Whenever my drive to write begins to wane, I turn to Wellman. Whenever I’m having trouble with a story, or in danger of missing a deadline, I read Wellman.
GM: It’s easy to see from your non-fiction Nightmare Men series (which I adore), that you have a long standing fascination and appreciation of that loneliest of crime fighters: The occult detective. As a fan, what was your first exposure to that subgenre of horror?
JR: I’m glad you enjoy reading the Nightmare Men. I enjoy writing them, myself. My first exposure to the concept was William Hope Hodgson’s “The Horse of the Invisible”, featuring Carnacki the Ghost-Finder, in a YA anthology called ‘Ghastly, Grim and Gruesome’. The idea of somebody investigating a haunting, Sherlock Holmes-style, was a bit of a revelation to my tender eight year old self.
I spent the next year hunting down the other Carnacki stories. And from there I hunted down Blackwood’s ‘John Silence’ stories, and, in a belated moment of revelation, realized that Manly Wade Wellman wrote stories about, like, five different occult detectives. By the time I stumbled on Seabury Quinn, I had become a fan of the subgenre in all of its diverse forms and variations.
GM: So, let’s get down to it. Charles St. Cyprian: The Royal Occultist. For those at home who don’t know who he is, who is he?
JR: Well, let’s see…simply, Charles St. Cyprian is Rudolph Valentino by way of Bertie Wooster, with a bit of Manly Wade Wellman’s suave occult investigator John Thunstone thrown in to spice things up. As the Royal Occultist, St. Cyprian, along with his (slightly murderous) assistant, Ebe Gallowglass, is the first, last, and only line of defense between England and various dangers of occult, demonic, divine or otherworldly nature.
GM: What was the inspiration for St. Cyprian? How did he come about?
JR: He had quite a few inspirations, as far as that goes. I’m a fan of characters like John Thunstone and Jules de Grandin, who tend to confront the supernatural with cold steel and hot lead, rather than magic or supernatural abilities. I’m also a Wodehouse fan, and I like the dynamic he perfected, with a semi-competent protagonist and his much more intelligent sidekick/servant. Combine all of that with an abiding love of the old Avengers television show (John Steed and Emma Peel, not Captain America) and stuff like Adam Adamant and the Wild, Wild West, and, hey, presto, you’ve got St. Cyprian and Gallowglass.
As to how he came about, well, originally he was a secondary character in an early draft manuscript that eventually went on to become my 2010 novel, DRACULA LIVES (which is still available from Pulpwork Press, btw). The novel, as originally conceived took place in the 1920s, and saw St. Cyprian confronting a resurrected Dracula and the satanic cult that had done said resurrecting in a Sax Rohmer-esque sort of story that culminated in an extended homage to the film ‘Horror Express’, set on the Orient Express. The book changed between that draft and the final published version, becoming less Sax Rohmer and more John le Carre, and St. Cyprian got cut out entirely as the novel moved from the 20’s to the 90’s.
That same year, I was approached by an editor to propose a series of 10,000 word stories for a new magazine. I dug the character back up, proposed the concept, and wrote a few stories and then, after the first one had been published, the magazines changed direction, and the series was put on hiatus. But, by then, I’d managed to sell a few shorter stories with the characters to other markets, and…well, a few more since. People seem to like the character, and I enjoy writing stories about him, so it’s worked out for the best, I’d say.
GM: You have over a dozen St. Cyprian stories in print through various anthologies. What was the first St. Cyprian story you wrote?
JR: The first St. Cyprian story I wrote was “Sign of the Salamander”, but the first one that people read was “Krampusnacht”. You can read an excerpt from the former here: http://royaloccultist.wordpress.com/2012/08/31/sign-of-the-salamander-excerpt/ and the latter, in its entirety, starting here: http://royaloccultist.wordpress.com/2012/12/21/krampusnacht/
GM: What keeps you coming back to the character and his mythology?
JR: I’m a big fan of series characters, occult detectives or otherwise. I like the idea of multiple, one-off stories, featuring the same character, scattered across anthologies and magazines, like a bread crumb trail for intrigued readers. That sort of thing just appeals to me—I can’t say why. It’s simultaneously formulaic and yet, somehow, exciting.
Too, there’s the whole ‘occult detective’ thing. And, over the course of fourteen or fifteen odd stories I’ve become fond of St. Cyprian and Gallowglass. I *enjoy* writing them—their banter, their mishaps, the inevitable, yet sudden way they wreck their car or burn down a house. I get a kick out of St. Cyprian going head-to-head with cosmic horrors armed only with pluck and an erroneous belief that the mystic sigil he’s carrying will protect him, and Gallowglass’ brave (yet terrifying) assumption that if you fill something with enough bullets, it’ll pack its bags and go bother the French.
GM: Any long term plans for St. Cyprian’s future, or are you taking the series one story at a time?
JR: It’s a little from Column A, and a little from Column B. I take the series one story at a time; it’d be easy to give in to my urge to capitalize on a good thing and write dozens of stories, but unless there’s a market for them, or a commission, there’s not a lot of point.
BUT, I do have long-term plans. There’s a hub-site: http://royaloccultist.wordpress.com/ and the requisite Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RoyalOccultist. There might be a print collection in the works and some of the earlier stories are getting reprinted this year as well. Too, I’m pondering offering e-book mini-collections (consisting of, say two or three stories) at a later date through the site.
I got plans, basically. Not good ones, or even effective ones, but I got ‘em.
GM: Do I have any hope of reading a full length St. Cyprian novel in the future? If not, lie to me anyway.
JR: Actually, there is. I’m working on the (hopefully) first St. Cyprian novel, tentatively titled BEASTS OF BLACKHEATH. It’s a bit of an origin story, with added were-panthers.
GM: Hey, you had me at were-panthers.
JR: I talk more about it here, if anyone’s interested: http://joshuamreynolds.wordpress.com/2012/11/21/the-next-big-thing-or-blame-jonathan-green/
GM: What’s next for you?
JR: Well, right now I’m hard at work on my next book for Black Library, and then, I’ve got to write something-something and after that it’s something else. Oh, and more St. Cyprian stories, of course!
GM: Certainly! Thanks for taking the time to hang out. Any parting words? Where can people find you and throw large sums of money at you for your books?
JR: Thank you for having me! As to parting words—I hear that ‘Coming Evil’ series is pretty awesome. Y’all should get that.
GM: I heartily agree. There are links to your immediate right. Hurry.
JR: The easiest place to find me is http://joshuamreynolds.wordpress.com/ where you can find an up-to-date list of my works, with handy-dandy links to where they can be purchased for monies.
And if you’re interested in learning more about St. Cyprian and Gallowglass, you could always check out http://royaloccultist.wordpress.com/, which features links to available stories, news about forthcoming ones and even some free fiction!
Special thanks to Josh for stopping by and thanks to you all for reading!
Labels: A Cat of Nine Tales, author interview, Joshua M. Reynolds, monster hunter, occult detective
Interview with Author/Artist Bob Freeman!
Today we're continuing our coverage of The Coming Evil tie-in tale, Lengthening Shadows, the all-new e-novella that sets up my upcoming novel Dark Hour. Last week, I talked a bit about the thoughts that went into writing Shadows, but today I'm turning the spotlight on author/artist/paranormal investigator Bob Freeman. Bob's been by the blog before. I'm a huge fan of his work and he's been gracious enough to provide two covers for me: the first being my zombie short story Flowers for Shelly, and the recently released Lengthening Shadows. Last time Bob was here, we talked at great lengths about his writing, but Bob's wearing his artist hat today as we talk about comics, art...and, well, some more writing :p
Greg Mitchell: Welcome back, Bob! You’ve been busy since the last time you stopped by the blog, having released not one, but two Occult Detective comic book issues, worked on A Cat of Nine Tales anthology from Rookhaven and, last but not least, started your own publishing imprint with Caliburn House! What all have you been up to?
Bob Freeman: Too much, I dare say. As you mentioned I recently started my own publishing arm, Caliburn House, where I’ll be releasing my back catalogue of novels (Descendant, Shadows Over Somerset, Keepers of the Dead) as well as new material soon after. It’s been a lot of work, and there have been some missteps along the way, but it’s exciting to be in the driver’s seat of my career as opposed to feeling like a passenger for the past few years.
My primary focus will be occult detective stories, especially those concerning Dr. Landon Connors, but I also have a sword and sorcery novel in the works (albeit with an occult detective slant). Truth be told, I’m leaning toward a different approach to my writing, shifting to a greater emphasis on short stories and novellas, but with a serial mindset — stand alone stories that have subplots that connect to a larger narrative and mythology.
I’m also dabbling in tabletop board games and pen and paper RPGs, and some paranormal non-fiction.
Like they say, there’s no rest for the wicked, and I’m more wicked than most ;)...
GM: I am forever grateful to you for providing some killer cover art for two of my projects, now. As long as I’ve known you, art has been a part of your storytelling magic bag. I gotta ask, what came first? Drawing or writing? For me, I had hopes of being a comic book illustrator for the longest time before I realized that the breadth of my stories exceeded my rather limited drawing ability.
BF: I’m a storyteller, be it through words or pictures. I think that’s the deep root of it. My passion lies in writing, though. The art thing is a hobby, something I like to do. Writing is more of a have to proposition.
GM: What were your biggest art influences as a kid? Any particular imagery that stands out as a “I must devote my life to this” kind of moment?
Bob's art from Occult Detective Illustrated, on sale now!
BF: I was (and am) really into comics. The first artist that jumped out at me was John Byrne, whose career I’ve followed since Charlton’s Doomsday +1. I spent a lot of hours tracing his stuff. I especially loved his work on Iron Fist, his runs on X-Men and the Avengers, and his Fantastic Four was really mind-blowing.
But the artist that punched me right in the face and who I credit with being the single greatest influence on me, in many ways both as a writer and artist, was Frank Frazetta. Frank poured so much emotion into his paintings and his draftsmanship was really unparalleled. I cannot impress upon you how much his work meant to me, how much it still does.
GM: What comics are you reading nowadays? And, dare I ask…Marvel or DC?
BF: Hellblazer is my favorite book right now. Of course it’s being canceled in favor of a new Constantine series beginning soon. I’m a big fan of the entire Hellboy Universe of books from Dark Horse, particularly B.P.R.D. IDW’s Locke & Key is phenomenal. Will be sad to see it go. I’ve been picking up several of the Marvel NOW relaunch, even though I feel burned by the DC New 52 line. It’s a rough time to be a comics fan in a lot of ways these days. I was primarily a Marvel kid growing up, but the industry has changed so much. Sales are abysmal and everything is event driven. Thankfully I have a huge personal collection and I can sink into nostalgia, revisiting stuff like Tomb of Dracula, Werewolf by Night, or Son of Satan whenever the mood strikes me.
I will say this though, I will buy anything written by Cullen Bunn. His Oni Press book The Sixth Gun with Brian Hurtt is spectacular and I’ve really enjoyed his work for the book two as well. I can’t recommend his books highly enough.
GM: No doubt! I just discovered The Sixth Gun last November and have been picking up the trades. It's a great, fun monster book.
Let’s take a look at your own comic featuring Landon Connors. I’ve very much enjoyed his previous outings in comic book form. Any projection date on the next issue of either Connors series?
BF: Occult Detective Illustrated was something I put together while waiting for pages from Chris Wilson, my collaborator on Oddfellows Serenade. I had thought of making it an ongoing series, but unfortunately the sales don’t really warrant it. It’s kind of a niche thing, so instead I’m going to publish it online as a series of serials on my website once The Parker Brothers: Father Knows Best serial is complete.
Page 16, Oddfellows Serenade Issue 1
I really wish I could give you a firm date on the Oddfellows Serenade graphic novel. The artist is working on the final pages and then I have to format and letter them. I’m hoping we’ll have it ready by October, but I’ve had similar thoughts before. We’ve been at this for over three years now. There’s an old saying, “Some spells when cast take their dear sweet time to become manifest, and wizards are seldom known for their patience.” Well, this is one wizard whose patience is wearing mighty thin.
GM: I subscribe to your blog and it’s always a treat to find a new post in my Inbox. One of the things I love most about your posts is your frequent trips down Memory Lane. As do most monster fans, I’m sure, my strongest monster memories are firmly rooted in my childhood. I love experiencing your childhood—and others—and find a deep kinship in hearing about what it was like for others who first discovered the macabre at a young age. I’ve often reflected on why I love monsters and the like so much—often on this very blog. But now I turn the tables on you. What drew you to writing and drawing your monstrous tales? What lured you to studying real-world occult and lore? What’s the draw for you?
BF: The heart of it, I suppose, lies in my Arkansas roots, and the folk tales and legends my family brought from there and elsewhere, and those discovered in my native Indiana. I loved to hear scary stories as a little guy, and some of my earliest (and fondest) memories are of me hiding behind my dad’s recliner while he watched late night horror movies hosted by the incomparable Sammy Terry.
I was not your “normal” child. I stumbled upon magical tracts that had belonged to my great grandmother, most notably Unseen Forces by Manly Palmer Hall, and had a firm belief in the supernatural at an extremely young age. By nine years old I was sneaking out of the house and spending the night in the cemetery just up the road from where we lived.
When other kids were reading James and the Giant Peach, I was reading books like Sybil Leek’s Book of Curses, Hans Holzers’ Ghosts I’ve Met, and Francis King’s Ritual Magic. When they were playing Mouse Trap at sleepovers, I was pulling out the Ouija Board.
GM: Thanks for stopping by to hang out. Always a pleasure. Any parting words?
BF: There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t feel truly blessed. I have a wonderful family, the best friends a guy could hope for, and an outlet to express myself creatively. We live in an age undreamed of. Our only limits are those we set upon ourselves.
In closing, I want to thank you for being such a huge supporter of my work. I have become a huge fan of yours and I wish you continued success. You’re a breath of fresh air, my friend. It has been an honor and a privilege to know you and I look forward to us working together again in the near future.
GM: Thank you so much, Bob. That means a lot :)
That does it for another interview. Next up in the queue, we'll have another author familiar to occult detective fans--Joshua M. Reynolds, who will stop by for an insightful talk. In the meantime, drop some dollars and pick up one of Bob's books, will ya? We writers got families to feed!
Labels: author interview, Bob Freeman, flowers for shelly, lengthening shadows, Marvel Comics, occult detective
"Lengthening Shadows"--Commentary
In case you missed it, last week I released a brand new tale set within The Coming Evil Trilogy. Lengthening Shadows is an e-novella set between Enemies of the Cross and Dark Hour. It sets the stage for that final book in The Coming Evil Trilogy--due to hit the market in February 2013. So, here we are for a commentary on the new story. However, because Lengthening Shadows introduces many concepts that will be explored in full in Dark Hour, I'm saving the commentary on those aspects for Book Three's commentary.
There is one thing that Lengthening Shadows has that marks it as a unique entry in the saga--the inclusion of The Arbigast Group.
An early roster of the Arbigast Group appeared in my short story "Flesh and Blood" found within the pages of The Midnight Diner Vol. 3. The Arbigast Group is my answer to the grizzled monster hunters--a not-so secret passion of mine. I get a thrill at the idea of a group of guys getting together for the sole purpose of hunting evil. I've always imagined what kind of brotherhood might exist in such a group, facing nightly terrors that the world refused to believe in. I imagined it would be a life of quiet sacrifice and no glory--save for the moment you were slaying some unthinkable creature.
More specifically, the Arbigast Group, and its inclusion in The Coming Evil Trilogy, was informed by two sources: John Carpenter's Vampires (based on the amazing John Steakley novel Vampire$) and that Schwarzenegger flick End of Days.
The leader of the Group--Jon Arbigast--is a thinly veiled homage to James Woods in Vampires. He's crude, loud, a bit egotistical, and a drunk. But, at the heart of him, he's a man who loves his team and would gladly die for them. I'm pretty sure Vampires was a flop at the box office and pelted by critics as being misogynistic. I suppose some of the latter criticism is warranted, but there is such a tenderness that Woods adds to his tough guy monster hunter that really left a lasting impression on me. I wanted to create a character like that to explore. Being knee-deep in my Buffy obsession at the time, it was refreshing to see hunters struggling to win. I had become so used to a hunter who barely had to fight to defeat a hellborn foe--and always had a cutesy comeback, to boot--that it was quite shocking to be reminded of how "blue collar hunters" had the harder battle. These guys had to rely on their teammates and their quick thinking and every inch they gained in the war against vampires was won only with blood and tears. I wanted to write hunters like THAT, not like Buffy.
Years passed. 2003 rolled around and I was looking to break into writing for the Halloween film franchise--ironically enough, also a John Carpenter movie. I wrote a script that saw a group of mercenaries--either originally built by Dr. Loomis or inspired by the wild-eyed bogey chaster--hired to hunt down Michael Myers. I even pitched it as "John Carpenter's Vampires meets Halloween". This team was called The Loomis Group. I made a lot of contacts that year in the Halloween machine (which would eventually lead me to write "White Ghost") and knocked on Dimension Films' door in order to pitch it. But, things fell through, no one returned my calls, and the script languished. Same old story. I was pretty bummed, even though looking back, I can already tell that my super action movie take on a Michael Myers movie would have probably ticked off quite a few diehard fans. Perhaps, then, it's better it didn't get made. Nevertheless, I really liked the concept and I liked the characters. Seeing as how I'm not a guy who likes to let a good idea go to waste, I started thinking about turning this script into an original story and bringing this group to life in an original work.
However, I couldn't very well call them "The Loomis Group" anymore (Well, I guess I could, but I didn't want to). I was aware that John Carpenter took the name "Loomis" from Hitchcock's Psycho. I decided to return to that source and mine Psycho for another name. Ironically I turned to the closest thing to a "monster hunter" you could get in the movie--that of private investigator Milton Arbogast, coolly played by Martin Balsam. I spelled the name phonetically, though, making for a one-letter difference. After giving the characters a name-change, I had a handful of gunslinging spook killers, but no one to pit them against.
I said my other inspiration for the Arbigast Group came from End of the Days. Now, I've only seen that movie once, and that was in the theater on opening weekend way back in 1999, but I remember that I did not like it at all. Back then, I was just starting to formulate the early versions of The Coming Evil in my mind, and it struck me that a big muscle guy with lots of guns and a mean snarl wouldn't do a lick of good against the Strange Man. The entire point of the Strange Man was that he had to be fought with faith, so, early on, I had the question of what would happen if the traditional Hollywood tough guy went toe-to-toe with my monster. So, after 2003, it finally clicked that I could bring in my Arbigast Group into The Coming Evil Trilogy.
The results are found in Lengthening Shadows.
That idea rotated in the back of my mind for a number of years, until I finally brought the Arbigast Group into the first manuscript of Dark Hour. But, honestly, I had so many things going on in that draft and was well over 200 thousand words (Enemies of the Cross was 120k for a point of reference) that I had to cut something. So, I took all the scraps from Dark Hour, re-fitted them, and produced Lengthening Shadows--a prequel tale.
Still, though, I struggled just a bit with whether to bring the Group into the world of The Coming Evil. Now understand that practically everything I write "fits together" into a single mythology. From Rift Jump to The Coming Evil to most (if not all) of my short stories. So, from the moment I first wrote the Group in "Flesh and Blood", I knew they were connected, but I hesitated on making that connection blatant. Why? Because the Group hunts various kinds of monsters, but I wasn't sure how open my Coming Evil readers would be to the idea that more supernatural creatures than the Strange Man existed in this world. The Coming Evil is rooted very firmly in a Christian worldview, and I was aware that most of my readers also adhered to such a view. How would they feel about me dropping in werewolves, vampires, and the like into their belief structure? Especially since I couldn't give the "Coming Evil explanation" for werewolves and vampires in this book, due to time constraints.
I essentially had to drop the bomb that traditional monsters were real without giving any explanation for them at this time. I wasn't sure how that would go, or if I was going to stretch the bounds of believability in the fictional universe I had created. In hopes of diffusing the tension a bit, I was careful when describing the things that Arbigast faces not by their traditional names, but by the somewhat vague description of "ghouls, ghosts, phantoms, things in the closet, things under the bed, flesh eaters, dead walkers, blood drinkers, savage man-beasts, unnatural predators, everything people feared as children and grew up to laugh at, before they discovered they were real".
I thought this would suffice to get across the idea of the things Arbigast faced without having to get TOO specific. Ideally I'd like to continue writing Arbigast stories sometime in the future, and then I can get more into the specifics of my versions of the classic monster mythologies. We shall see.
There is, at the moment, one other short story with ties to the Arbigast Group slated for publication and that's "Divide and Conquer" coming soon in the Monsters! anthology. That story also connects the Group to my other monster-chaser character Vinnie Caponi: Urban Mythologist who made his debut in last Halloween's A Cat of Nine Tales occult detective anthology. Could there be a full-length Arbigast Group novel in the future? Honestly, I'd love that, but at the moment, my plate is full enough for two Greg Mitchells. I need to clear that away before I'd be able to dive into such a project. But the Group definitely has more stories in them, and it would be great to finally cut loose and just write about some denim-clad gunslingers traveling the American backroads, blasting away every kind of monster I can think of. Sigh... Only time will tell.
Thanks for sticking around for these end notes to Lengthening Shadows. I hope everybody checks out the e-novella. It's available for $2.99 at Kindle and Smashwords. And most importantly, be here in February when we release Dark Hour!
Labels: Arbigast Group, dark hour, enemies of the cross, monster hunter, occult detective, the coming evil, the strange man
The Coming Evil: Lengthening Shadows--Now Available!
Mornin'.
Look what came out today, just in time for Elvis' birthday?
I'm happy to announce that Lengthening Shadows--the brand new e-novella nestled within The Coming Evil Trilogy--is now available in all ebook formats! Hit up Kindle or Smashwords to download a copy for your platform of choice for $2.99.
Lengthening Shadows is an original tale that serves as an "inbetweenquel", bridging the gap between The Coming Evil, Book Two: Enemies of the Cross and the trilogy's final installment Dark Hour, headed your way in February. Shadows sets up some of the new characters you'll meet in Dark Hour, as well as laying the groundwork for that final tale. Think of it as an extended prologue, to get you ready for the trilogy's mind-shattering conclusion! Mind-shattering, I tells ya!
Buy your copy today, and stay tuned to this blog as I'll write up a couple posts about Lengthening Shadows, leading to the release of Dark Hour. You won't want to miss it.
ABOUT THE NOVELLA:
The Resistance Has Begun.
Rebellion is in the air as the demonic visitor known as “The Strange Man” begins his takeover of Greensboro. Promising prosperity and hiding his true identity, the creature adopts the name “John Graves” and makes himself at home in his position as the town’s new mayor.
It is a time of sedition as former pastor Jeff Weldon and a small band of faithful warriors plot to overthrow the hellish regime. By day, they carry on in their quiet lives, but at night they venture into haunted Greensboro on dangerous missions. A war is brewing in the town’s shadows as even the remnants of the Committee—the original conspirators who helped pave the way for the Strange Man’s arrival—now plot to betray him, hiring a group of hardened mercenaries to kill the monster once and for all.
In the middle of the conflict is Annie Myers, still reeling from the grim fate that befell her older sister Rosalyn. Annie’s blossoming faith is put to the test as she encounters a new and fearsome monster on the outskirts of Greensboro who is taking control of the skies.
As the Dark Hour draws nigh and the shadows lengthen, it becomes all the harder to determine who is friend and who is foe, and if anyone will survive the battle to come.
"Lengthening Shadows", an original e-novella, serves as the bridge between "Enemies of the Cross" and "Dark Hour", Books Two and Three of "The Coming Evil Trilogy".
Labels: Arbigast Group, Bob Freeman, dark hour, Darkwater, enemies of the cross, lengthening shadows, the coming evil
2013 is upon us. 2012 was a very busy year for me, writing-wise, and 2013 is already shaping up to be just as hectic. My New Year's Resolution for 2013 is to whittle down my projects so that, by 2014, I might just work on ONE novel at a time. ...Or maybe two. But hopefully no more of this seven novels at once nonsense. I need a break. I've got a certain story that I want to tell (no, I won't tell you what it is yet :p) and I want to be able to give it my full attention. Beyond that, I'd like to just rest and enjoy life for a little while.
Having said that, here's a quick rundown of what you can expect from me in 2013!
--Coming up in the next couple weeks will be the release of my e-novella, nestled in between Enemies of the Cross and the final book in the trilogy (see below). The e-novella is called Lengthening Shadows and introduces a new element to The Coming Evil mythology--that of the hardened monster hunter. The Arbigast Group--my gang of gunslinging monster killers from my short story "Flesh and Blood" in The Midnight Diner--will be moseying on in to Greensboro to see what they might do about this Strange Man spook. I've been dying to bring these guys into the story, proper, so it'll be fun to see what kind of trouble they might get themselves into. But more on them and that closer to the e-book's release.
--In late February/March, the trilogy will be complete as The Coming Evil, Book Three: Dark Hour will be released by Splashdown Darkwater. Everything has been building to the final moments in this book and I am on pins and needles to share it with you all. I shed many a tear writing this final story and count it as one of the most personal and heartfelt things I've ever written. It is going to be epic.
--In December of ye olde 2012, I turned in my first draft for my Unofficial Timeline to Back to the Future for Hasslein Books. In the months ahead, we'll be editing through that and hopefully have that released to you sometime this summer, depending on how fast we can put this thing together. If you've seen the Back to the Future Lexicon that's already available (and if you haven't, you need to buy it right now), you'll know that this is a massive endeavor, but, I think, worth every penny.
--I'm working on the sequel to last summer's release Rift Jump. The book is tentatively titled Sara's Song and wraps up the story begun in Rift Jump quite nicely, I think. It's going to be a very dramatic send-off of this story that's meant a lot to me growing up. The characters of Michael and Sara have been with me since I was a young teenager, and this is, in many ways, my good-bye to them. There could be more Rift Jump books in the future, but if not, Sara's Song will definitely bring about a tearjerking conclusion that will, hopefully, leave you as satisfied as I feel writing it. There are quite a few surprises in store for you in this book, so go buy Rift Jump now and get all caught up!
--In addition to that, I've finished a new occult/crime novel and am in the process of shopping that around to different publishers. If you've read my story "Metamorphosis" in Rookhaven's Cat of Nine Tales anthology last Halloween, then you've already met one of the main characters, Vinnie Caponi: Urban Mythologist. More on this project as it develops.
--I still have two short stories that will be released in the coming months. One about a bigfoot!
--Somewhere in all of that, I'm also slated to write the next installment in author Frank Creed's technothriller Underground series! It's a tremendous responsibility to write in another's universe and I take it very seriously. I can't say much about the book, at this point, except to say that it will feature Big Hoss Dupree, the character I created for Frank's Underground anthology released last year. I really have a soft spot for the grumpy Ex-Communicator and look forward to telling another tale. If you've yet to get started on Frank's series, you've got three books to catch up on! Start with Book One: Flashpoint and get to reading! It's a wild ride through a futuristic cyberpunk world, perfect for fans of The Matrix and the Shadowrun RPG.
So that's what I'm working on right now. Also, once Dark Hour is released, you can look forward to my usual coverage, including interviews, maybe a blog tour, as well as commentaries, and a soundtrack for your listening pleasure as you read the concluding chapter of The Coming Evil Trilogy. I hope to see you all every step of the way.
Happy New Year. May you make the most of it, tear down the walls, and seize your dreams--but also take time to enjoy the ones you keep close.
I'm exhausted just listing all these projects, so I'm giving myself the night off to order in a pizza and watch Quatermass and the Pit!
Labels: 2013, Arbigast Group, bigfoot terror tales, dark hour, Darkwater, New Years, Rift Jump, the coming evil, Vinnie Caponi
The Coming Evil: Lengthening Shadows--Now Availabl...
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Tag: Frustration
[Close Reading Rainbow Part 2]: Dead Letters, Dead Walls, and Dead Men: Artistic Uncertainty in “Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street”
Herman Melville was born on August 1, 1819 in New York City. He wrote short stories, novels, and poetry between the 1840s and 1880s. His most famous work is that of Moby-Dick. Despite his recognition and acclaim now as the author of Moby-Dick, in its time the novel nearly ruined Melville’s career as a writer, as the length and complexity of the novel served to alienate his readers and pushed him out of the literary limelight that he experienced through writing adventure/travel novels.
Melville had written travel/adventure stories like Typee: A Peep at Polynesia (1846) and Mardi, and a Voyager Thither (1849), both based on Melville’s own travels in the South Pacific, which were highly regarded during the time and well-received. His two Moby Dick (1851), which he regarded as his masterpiece, and Pierre (1852) were financial and critical bombs. Regarding this dilemma, Melville once wrote to his close friend Nathaniel Hawthorne However, despite his earlier success with these stories, after the publication of Moby-Dick and Pierre, Melville waited in vain for letters assuring him of at least an ounce of critical attention and the possibility of making some sort of profit off of his hard work. Melville admired Hawthorne and wrote an incredibly helpful review of Hawthorne’s collection of tales and sketches Mosses from an Old Manse (1846). He considered Hawthorne as a friend and gave praise to his tales and success as a story teller and his masterful prose style. In one letter Melville laments the underwhelming public response to Moby-Dick: “Dollars damn me; and the malicious devil is forever grinning in upon me, holding the door ajar… I shall be worn out and perish, like an old nutmeg grater, grated to pieces by the constant attrition of the wood, that is, the nutmeg. What I feel most to write, that is banned” Melville continues, “—it will not pay. Yet altogether write the other way I cannot” (Frederick Busch vii-viii).
After the reception of Moby Dick, and Pierre, Melville wrote several short stories that explored the feelings of utter despair and rejection he had felt at the hands of publishes and critics. One of those stories was “Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street.” This tale of frustration and annoyance can be seen as Melville’s own response to what he perceived as his literary downfall. In the story, the narrator relates his experience with a scrivener (law copyist) named Bartleby, who was “the strangest [he] ever saw, or heard of” (Melville 3). The narrator, a lawyer, is considered by many to be a “safe man” because he does a “snug business among rich men’s bonds” (4). He is “a man who, from his youth upwards, [had] been filled with a profound conviction that the easiest way of life is the best” (3-4). Though he sees himself as a successful and well-to-do lawman, he meets his match when Bartleby begins to work at this office. Bartleby is described as being “pallidly neat, pitiably respectable, [and] incurably forlorn!” (11). Hard-working as he seems to be at the beginning of the tale, Bartleby develops a disdain for doing anything that he prefers not to do. Throughout the story, the compromising and adaptable narrator is faced with unchanging and stubborn Bartleby as he prefers not to do anything at all. Bartleby prefers not to do anything to the point that the narrator moves his office because Bartleby won’t leave, and Bartleby is subsequently taken into custody and sent to prison where he dies because he “prefer[s] not to dine…[for i]t would disagree with him; [he being] unused to dinner” (44). Rather than preferring to do anything a sane person would do, Bartleby stares only at the “dead wall” outside his office window, and when he enters prison, he stares at a wall rather than doing anything he is told. Upon further examination after Bartleby’s death, the narrator discovers that he had been employed at the “Dead Letter Office in Washington” where letters that have incorrect return and forwarding addresses are sent, sorted through, and finally burned. Despite the narrator’s efforts to get Bartleby to move and do something, he is unsuccessful. Much like Melville’s own career, he felt that things were not moving, and that publishers and critics were preferring not to consider his work seriously. Through looking at the relationship between the narrator, Bartleby, the wall, and the Dead Letter Office, “Bartleby, the Scrivener” becomes an angry cry from a rejected artist and an accurate depiction of the total anxiety and dejection that struggling artists everywhere no too well. As Melville writes in his letter to Hawthorne, Bartleby exemplifies the emotions surrounding critical and financial failure that Melville felt as he bore the shame associated with what he felt was the “malicious devil… forever grinning in upon [him].”
The narrator feels as though he were secure in his identity as a semi-successful lawyer who is in the know about those under his control, but his interaction with Bartleby proves to expose his true character. He knows the routines, eccentricities, schedules, and personalities of every scrivener in his office. He gives definite and methodical descriptions of his employees three employees: Turkey, Nippers, and Ginger Nut
“Turkey was a short, pursy Englishman, of about my own age – that is, somewhere not far from sixty. In the morning, one might say, his face was of a fine florid hue, but after twelve o’clock, meridian – his dinner hour – it blazed like a grate full of Christmas coals; and continued blazing – but, as it were, with a gradual wane – till six o’clock, P.M., or thereabouts; after which, I saw no more of the proprietor of the face, which gaining its meridian with the sun, seemed to set with it, to rise, culminate, and decline the following day, with the like regularity” (5).
Nippers is described as being “a whiskered, sallow, and, upon the whole, rather piratical-looking young man, of about five and twenty. I always deemed him the victim of two evil powers – ambition and indigestion. The ambition was evinced by a certain impatience of the duties of a mere copyist, an unwarrantable usurpation of strictly personal affairs, such as the original drawing up of legal documents. The indigestion seemed betokened in an occasional nervous testiness and grinning irritability, causing the teeth to audibly grind together over mistakes committed in copying; unnecessary maledictions, hissed, rather than spoken, in the heat of business; and especially by a continual discontent with the height of the table where he worked” (7-8).
Ginger Nut, “was a lad, some twelve years old. His father was a car-man, ambitious of seeing his son on the bench instead of a cart, before he died. So he sent him to my office, as a student of law, errand-boy, cleaner and sweeper, at the rate of one dollar a week. He had a little desk to himself, but he did not use it much. Upon inspection, the drawer exhibited a great array of shells of various nuts. Indeed, to this quick-witted youth, the whole noble science of the law was contained in a nutshell” (10).
The narrator is able to easily profile each of his employees and is even able to work within each of their strange personal schedules. They, unknowingly, all work together to make the office work as efficiently, without too much effort needed, as the narrator wants. In each description given, the detail is methodical; it is a brief, but detailed character sketch of each scrivener. From eating habits to grinding teeth, the narrator has each of his employees figured out. They are round characters who have quirks that are relatable and understandable. Turkey can’t work efficiently in the afternoon in evening, so the narrator frontloads his work day and doesn’t give hardly any work to him in the afternoon and evening. Nippers is the opposite; he doesn’t work as hard in the morning, but come the afternoon and evening, his work is admirable. According to what the narrative deems fit, each employee is given specific workloads and tasks to enable the office to function like clockwork.
With Bartleby’s arrival, the narrator knows nothing about him. He has no next of kin or close family relationships that are on record. Bartleby is an enigma. After one of the first instances in which Bartleby “prefers not to” accomplish a task that the narrator expects of him, the narrator “look[s] at [Bartleby] steadfastly. His face [is] leanly composed; his eyes dimly calm. Not a wrinkle of agitation rippled him. Had there been the least uneasiness, anger, impatience or impertinence about him, doubtless I should have violently dismissed him from the premises” (13). Although the narrator feels strongly about Bartleby’s insistence that he “prefer not to” do anything, the narrator feels pity rather than anger. At one point the narrator even claims that he became “considerably reconciled to Bartleby. His steadiness, his freedom from all dissipation, his incessant industry (except when he chose to throw himself into a standing revery behind his screen), his great stillness, his unalterableness of demeanor under all circumstances, made him a valuable acquisition.” The narrator even applauds Bartleby’s integrity stating that he “had a singular confidence in his honesty. [He] felt [his] most precious papers perfectly safe in his hands” (20). Though these admissions seem to be heartfelt, the narrator is only trying to reconcile with the fact that Bartleby is no doing what he, the narrator, would prefer that he would do.
These feelings quickly turn to agitation and frustration and finally to apathy, but for a moment the narrator feels as though he has figured Bartleby out. While the narrator believes that he can understand Bartleby’s character, he speculates many of the details that are more readily apparent of his more long-time employees. With the passage of time, Bartleby’s obstinance proves too much for the narrator. After giving up copying completely, Bartleby, according to the narrator, becomes “a millstone to [him], not only useless as a neckless, but afflictive to bear” (29). Bartleby prefers to do nothing but stare at the wall outside of the office, in what he narrator defines as “dead-wall reveries” (24). Though the narrator shows compassion on Bartleby during this, and other occasions, his patience quickly runs dry leaving him with no other choice than to ditch Bartleby and part ways with him. This task becomes difficult for the narrator because, unlike his other employees, he has not yet been able to conquer the wall that is Bartleby.
The wall outside the office serves as an important symbol in both the obstructions faced by the narrator and those faced by Melville. Outside the narrator’s office stands a “lofty brick wall” that is white on one side and “black by age and everlasting shade” (5) on the other side. This wall creates a deficiency “in what painters call ‘life’” (5). Like the wall that stands outside of the office, Bartleby becomes a wall to the narrator; a barrier that prevents him from figuring this employee out and fitting him within the system of the office. Likewise, to Melville, he published his work according to what his readers wanted to read. He knew the publishers like the narrator knows his employees. Much like Melville’s experience with Moby-Dick, he had been publishing in journals, magazines, and periodicals for years before publishing Moby-Dick. He was an experienced and talented writer, but unlike his earlier novels, Moby-Dick was long, complicated, and difficult for readers to grasp. In a sense, Moby-Dick was dense, deep, and in many cases enigmatic. Readers approached it the same way one would approach a towering white and black wall. How can I climb this? Should I even bother? What can I use to destroy this so that I can just get to the other side? For Melville, the same questions were posited when trying to overcome the obstacle of the negative reviews and poor reception of Moby-Dick.
Questions like these are exactly the questions that the narrator asked regarding Bartleby. Before the narrator can truly understand Bartleby’s character, Bartleby is imprisoned and shortly thereafter starves to death. Following his death, the narrator recalls a rumor that was floating around concerning Bartleby’s history:
“Bartleby had been a subordinate clerk in the Dead Letter Office in Washington, from which he had suddenly been removed by a change in the administration. When I think over this rumor, hardly can I express the emotions which seize me. Dead letters! does it not sound like dead men?… a bank-note sent in swiftest charity – he whom it would relieve, nor eats nor hungers any more; pardon for those who died despairing; hope for those who died unhoping; good tidings for those who died stifled by unrelieved calamities. On errands of life, these letters speed to death.
Ah, Bartleby! Ah, humanity!”
In Melville’s attempts to write, publish, and see the success of Moby-Dick, he like the narrator and even in some ways like Bartleby, was met with insurmountably dead-walls, dead letters and submissions, and dead hopes and dreams. Melville’s hopes were not fully actualized until decades after his death. Between his death and the recognition he would later receive at the hands of modernists poets like D.H. Lawrence, his most famous work, his life’s work, sat on the shelf while readers and critics preferred not to recognize him for his masterful prose style and devotion to his craft. Oftentimes writers like Melville who go against conventional writing forms and styles are not widely accepted and recognized in their own time. Melville’s interjection of “Ah, Bartleby! Ah, humanity!” at the end of the story serves as a sometimes unwelcome reminder to readers and society generally of the importance of supporting and being involved the arts. In a time when civil discourse is on the decline in the media (social or otherwise), we would do well to step back and learn from authors and writers like Melville who hoped to illuminate moral and social issues and help us discover truths that need to be discussed so that we can learn what it really means to be human.
What do you think? What are your thoughts about Herman Melville? What can we learn from “Bartleby” in 2019? What piece of literature would you like to see next on the blog?
Also, a special thanks to Terence Wride for suggesting “Bartleby” for this series! Check him out on WordPress at Wride Rants.
meinjace Analysis, Close Reading Rainbow, Literary Criticism, Literature, Short Stories Leave a comment May 28, 2019 May 28, 2019 10 Minutes
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King’s Teachings on US Imperialism Opened My Eyes to Radical Thought – Dayvon Love on Reality Asserts Itself (1/2)
Young Baltimore activist Dayvon Love tells Paul Jay how MLK’s teaching that American blacks must be anti-imperialist, changed his life.
Direct Action Must Be Remembered As Part of Dr. King’s Legacy
Glen Ford: The Civil Rights Movement ended official racial discrimination in the U.S., but many of its leaders broke with grassroots organizing and direct action and instead chose to become business leaders or members of the Democratic party.
Obama’s March on Washington Speech Lacked Structural Analysis
Anthony Monteiro: Obama administration has nothing to do with MLK’s legacy
Should Obama be Welcomed at 50th Anniversary of March on Washington?
Writer and activist Ajamu Baraka explains why President Obama should not be welcomed at the March on Washington Commemoration
Tens of Thousands Mark 50 Year Anniversary of the March on Washington
The Real News’ Jaisal Noor speaks to Gary Younge, Cornel West and Amaju Baraka on relevance the 1963 March on Washington and if today’s civil rights leaders are true to the movement’s legacy
Cornel West Says Civil Rights Leaders Have Failed The Movement
In an exclusive interview with The Real News, Cornel West argues civil rights leaders have failed to hold president Obama accountable
Beyond Vietnam: A Time To Break Silence
Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. made the comment that the U.S. government [was/is] “the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today”. This was in context to a speech delivered on April 4, 1967 at Riverside Church in New York City – exactly one year before his untimely death.
The Black Elite and the Legacy of Martin Luther King
Glen Ford: Black upper class took advantage of legal victories won by MLK and the Civil Rights Movement and then helped to undermine the movement
The Radicalization of Martin Luther King
Anthony Monteiro: Obama’s presidency has nothing to do with the legacy of King, it’s actually the opposite
MLK: Why I Am Opposed to The War in Vietnam
Martin Luther King Jr gave this sermon at the Ebenezer Baptist Church on April 30, 1967
The Revolutionary MLK
The Revolutionary MLKJared Ball: In a startling interview, columnist and communications professor Jared Ball discusses how the image of Martin Luther King Jr. is distorted every year to foster compliance with the system King fought against. Jan. 17 – TRNN “Every year we'll remind people of a version of King that didn't actually exist but that will help people settle into an acceptance of what's still going on,” said Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at Morgan State University, Jared Ball, in an interview with The Real News. “Annually it's distorted, re-imaged, and repackaged into something that the state can continue to use. It's taken away from the King that actually existed and turned into something that will support the policies that he was actually advocating against… We're asked to forget his criticisms of capitalism, of racism and militarism.” In a startling interview with Senior Editor Paul Jay, Ball describes how King’s commemorative day cultivates complacency. “It's also to give the impression that that movement was successful and it could be put into the dustbins of history… Happily we can look back on it and smile and have fond memories of the hard times that we've overcome and so on and so forth, and then, of course, forget that almost everything that Dr. King was trying to get us to get rid of was actually worsening–and to this day is in some aspects still worsening,” Ball told TRNN. “That line that came out, that ‘Rosa sat so King could walk so Obama could run so…
Dr. MLK Jr: Struggling not to lose him
From SleptOn.com: Too often, we are treated to a view of a romanticized and whitewashed Dr. King in order to fit the man and his struggle neatly within the prevailing political and economic power structures in a largely uncritical and non-threatening manner. This portrayal of Dr. King has been mass marketed as an accommodationist figure and is now so pervasive in our schools, media, etc. that it threatens to neutralize and placate the most ambitious, daring and challenging of King’s critique along with his struggle to confront and organize against not only racism, but economic exploitation and militarism-imperialism as well. Due to such, SleptOn.com offers "Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: Struggling Not To Lose Him" as a direct challenge (as he would have it) to the views and practices of those who celebrate a thoroughly pacified legacy of a man. A familiar refrain, as of late, has been Rosa sat, King walked so that he (Obama) could run or some variation thereof. Was that the goal of King’s struggle?
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1994, 2370, Cardassian, Maquis, The Next Generation
May 27, 2015 Paul Leave a comment
“ZOMG this place is boring, I should’ve gone to Tashi Statio… sorry wrong universe.”
Wesley returns, and he’s really whiny. Meanwhile, the Enterprise must relocate some colonists from Dorvan V, a planet that will soon be in Cardassian space as part of the new treaty with the Federation. The colonists are a group of American Indians who are unwilling to leave the planet — and Picard notes the disturbing historical connection. Wesley beams to the planet and goes on a vision quest (or something) and meets up with the Traveler (from way back in “Where No One Has Gone Before”) who tells him he’s ready to explore new plains of existence. Meanwhile, Picard works it out so the colonists can stay on the planet under Cardassian rule. Wesley resigns from Starfleet and stays on the planet to begin his journey.
“As a Starfleet admiral, it’s my job to make bad decisions so the Enterprise crew can look good.”
Although they didn’t appear in Trek for a few more weeks — on “The Maquis” two-parter, on DS9, which we’ll eventually review — this episode lays the foundation for the Maquis. The situation stemming from the treaty between the Cardassians and the Federation leads to the formation of the Maquis terrorist group. In fact, Dorvan V is the home planet of Commander Chakotay, who led the Maquis ship that was swept into the Delta Quadrant in Voyager. Chakotay would become first officer of that ship.
It’s kind of cool that TNG and DS9 coordinated these storylines in TNG’s seventh season and DS9’s second. After “Journey’s End” and “The Maquis” two-parter, the second-to-last episode of TNG was “Preemptive Strike”, in which Ensign Ro (Michelle Forbes) returns and goes undercover to stop the Maquis. We won’t review that episode as it didn’t really advance the Maquis storyline — but it’s definitely worth a watch.
Of course, this episode is probably most remembered for the departure of Wesley Crusher, who hadn’t been a regular on the series since season four. Wesley was the most reviled character on TNG — aside from perhaps Dr. Pulaski — but I never really understood the hate. He was painful in the first season at times, but every character was at least once or twice in early TNG (watch Riker in “Deja Q” or Picard in “Code of Honor”). Some have argued that the series got better after Wesley left, but the series had already gotten a lot better in the third season.
“I’m off to explore other realms of being. And when that gets boring I’ll join Starfleet and cut a rug at Troi and Riker’s wedding?!”
I know the Wesley/Traveler thread had been around since the first season, and it certainly wasn’t a bad thing to bring the Traveler (Eric Menyuk) back in this episode. But way back in “Where No One Has Gone Before”, the Traveler saw a special sort of genius in Wesley in regards to engineering, mechanics and the Enterprise specifically. It’s never made a lot of sense that Wesley, in this episode, is written as some sort of super human, who can literally PAUSE reality. Or, that after exploring new realms of existence (or whatever) that he shows up in a Starfleet uniform for Riker and Troi’s wedding in “Star Trek: Nemesis”.
Beyond that, the Wesley storyline connected to the Dorvan V storyline is a weird combo. It’s not exactly a misfire (though it does sort of push Wesley into the “new realms” thing). The two plots overlap when Wesley tells the Native Americans that Worf is leading a security team to remove them. But Wesley’s involvement there really wasn’t necessary. And it’s not as if what he sees on Dorvan V pushes him out of Starfleet. At best, it accelerated a decision that was already pretty likely.
Finally, I’m amazed at how much the Federation bent over backwards to maintain peace with the Cardassians. And I’ve got to wonder what happened to the Native Americans on Dorvan V a few years later when Cardassia joined the Dominion. I can’t imagine it was anything good.
This is an incredibly average episode. The acting is good and the characters are written appropriately (Patrick Stewart was so at home as Picard at this point in TNG that he could make almost any episode work). I honestly don’t have a ton of thoughts about it — other than the fact that it’s another instance of the Riker Marginalization that we see in the later seasons. He’s just not on screen very much.
In seasons one and two, Riker was almost a surrogate father to Wesley. Wesley told him about his hopes and dreams and got advice from him about being a leader and about women. As Wesley got older, the surrogate father became Picard — and that’s totally fine.
But it’s odd that we don’t see more interactions between Riker and Wesley in the episodes in which Wesley appears in later seasons. In “The Game”, Riker was under the influence of mind control, so I can shrug that off. But why Riker isn’t around Wesley at all in this episode or “The First Duty”? The scene at the beginning of this episode where Geordi and Data come to greet Wesley was fine, but that was an instance where Riker’s presence would have made sense. The two were very close, and Riker’s interactions with Wesley in late-series episodes are almost nonexistent.
Regular readers might think I have some sort of man crush on Riker, given how much I complain about his lesser role as the series went on. I’m actually not that big of a fan of the character — but it’s odd to me how much he moved to the sidelines. He was, initially, the co-star of TNG. But after a while, he basically takes on the role of Scotty in TOS — running the ship as Picard and Data play Kirk and Spock with all the adventures. Given that no other actors who played first officers (Nana Visitor, Robert Beltran and Jolene Blalock) were listed with the actors who played commanding officers in the opening credits, I think the creators decided that counting on the second in command to be the second big character was a mistake after TNG. Note that Beltran does appear second in the Voyager credits (after Kate Mulgrew) but only because of alphabetical order.
And, sure — Jonathan Frakes took on a bigger role behind the camera as TNG progressed. But that doesn’t explain anything within the Trek universe.
Coming next week …
TNG hits the dusty ol’ trail.
Previous Post“The Pegasus”Next Post“All Good Things …”
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In a Chilly London November, War and Remembrance
Michael Winship,
In Great Britain, Remembrance Sunday falls on the second Sunday of November, the one closest to November 11, the anniversary of the end of the First World War in 1918. Once, the world called November 11 Armistice Day. Now, here in the States at least, it is Veterans Day.
As coincidence and travel itineraries would have it, twice over the last four years I’ve been in London on Remembrance Sunday. This time, my girlfriend Pat and I were on our way home from Greece, stopping off for a couple of days to see old friends.
As we unpacked at the hotel, a recap of the Remembrance Sunday ceremonies was playing on TV – Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife laying a wreath at the Cenotaph (the UK equivalent of our Tomb of the Unknown Soldier), a stirring parade of veterans along Whitehall, the military bands playing “Rule, Britannia,” “God Save the Queen” and “O Valiant Hearts.”
Remembrance Sunday fell just a couple of days after the horrendous shootings at Fort Hood, Texas, that left 13 soldiers dead and 30 wounded, many of whom were preparing for deployment to Afghanistan. From Greece, we had been watching the news reports on CNN with special interest. I’d been at Fort Hood several times – the huge military base is where my parents met during World War II, my father a medical supply officer, my mother a secretary from a nearby town. It was Camp Hood then.
Remembrance Sunday also fell less than a week after an Afghan policeman named Gulbadin, armed with a machine gun, shot five British soldiers dead at a police compound in Helmand Province. The men had just returned from patrol and had put their rifles aside, preparing for a rest. The policeman opened fire from a rooftop.
The wantonness of the killings only further deteriorated the already plummeting British support for the country’s involvement in the Afghan war, and anger worsened in the next few days after Prime Minister Brown accidentally botched a handwritten letter of condolence to the mother of Jamie Janes, a British soldier killed last month by an IED. He, too, was in Helmand province.
It seems Brown misspelled Janes’ name in the letter. The mother, urged on, some say, by Rupert Murdoch’s tabloid, The Sun (which recently switched its political allegiance from Brown’s Labor Party to the Conservatives), bitterly attacked the prime minister for insensitivity.
In a subsequent phone call with Brown, which she recorded – perhaps with the assistance of The Sun – she chastised him for failing to adequately equip and protect British troops in Afghanistan. After several days of media-manufactured controversy, she accepted his apology.
Brown blamed the incident on his notoriously poor penmanship and inability to see – he is blind in one eye.
Metaphor, remembrance and coincidence were in abundance during our brief London stay. As it happened, the next night, we went to see a play called “The War Horse.” Written by Nick Stafford, and based on a children’s novel by Michael Morpurgo, the drama uses remarkable, life-size puppets of horses, beautifully crafted and each masterfully manipulated by teams of performers so skilled you sometimes forget that what you’re seeing isn’t real.
“The War Horse” is the story of Joey, a horse that’s half thoroughbred and should be raised for riding in foxhunts by the landed gentry. But through fate and the cruel reality of rural life in southwest England’s Devonshire, Joey is brought up as a farm horse, trained and loved by a teenager named Albert. When World War I begins, Albert’s father sells the horse to the British cavalry. Albert runs away and joins the army to find him.
In the beginning, almost everyone is convinced that the war will be brief – “God help the Kaiser, because … we’re gonna run him right out of Belgium, right back into Germany.” But as a veteran British major tells a junior officer, “Every generation has to discover things for themselves, don’t they? There’s some things that can be understood through telling, but other things have to be experienced before they can be fully apprehended. War is one such thing.”
Joey is ridden into senseless, deadly charges against German machine guns. Eventually, he and another horse end up on the other side of the enemy lines, and are forced to drag German hospital wagons and artillery as both armies fall into the trench warfare of mud and misery that will go on for more than four bloody years, killing between 15 million and 16 million.
Our current reality, our deadly dilemma in Afghanistan as Barack Obama reportedly agonizes over the next steps there, were never far from mind, even as we lost ourselves in the story and stagecraft of the play. At one point, a young British recruit is given his grandfather’s knife to carry, a souvenir of the second Afghan War, he’s told. At another, a German sergeant named Rudi talks with a group of fellow soldiers:
“They’re saying that because we attacked, we’re paying for it. They’re saying that we must get rid of the Kaiser and make a democracy. It would be impossible for a democracy to start a war, continue a war against the will of its people. What do you think?”
In the penultimate scene, an injured Joey has been pulled from the barbed wire of no-man’s-land by a British soldier and is about to be put out of his misery by a doctor’s bullet when Albert, temporarily made sightless by gas, hears him and they are reunited. A happy ending of sorts, but what I was reminded of was another powerful metaphor, a painting by American artist John Singer Sargent that I saw a few years ago in London’s Imperial War Museum.
During World War I, Sargent, master of the exquisite, artful, society portrait, was commissioned by the British government to go to the front and create a work that would celebrate the cooperative spirit of British and American soldiers pulling together in “The War to End All Wars.”
Finding little to none of that alleged battlefield camaraderie, instead, he painted a massive canvas – 20 feet wide and more than seven feet high – depicting a group of soldiers felled by a mustard gas attack. In hues of yellow and brown, they stumble in a setting sun toward the hospital tents, eyes bandaged, each man in the line struggling to find his way, guided by a hand on the shoulder of the man in front of him.
The blind leading the blind.
Michael Winship is an Emmy Award-winning writer, and served as senior writer of the public television series, ‘Moyers & Company.’ He is also a senior writing fellow at the public policy and advocacy group Demos, and the president of Writers Guild of America, East.
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Montana’s “Clean-Coal” Governor’s Climate Change Blunder
Joshua Frank,
It was a good year for opponents of coal, the most plentiful and dangerous of the world’s fossil fuels. No new coal plants broke ground in the US, and a total of 26 were defeated or abandoned by the coal industry in 2009.
As coal-fired power plants are the number one source of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the country, climate change activists have placed shutting down the industry atop their to-do list.
“2009 has been a remarkable year in our fight for clean energy,” said Bruce Nilles, director of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign. “There is a shift going on across America as companies realign away from old dirty practices involving coal and toward cleaner energy options, including wind, solar and becoming more efficient.”
While the Sierra Club may be basking in exultation, coal opponents in Montana aren’t quite as happy with the year’s outcome in their state.
Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer and other members of the State Land Board, all Democrats, voted 4 to 1 on December 21 to open up Otter Creek, an approximately 10,000-acre checkerboard of public lands, to coal development in Montana’s region of the Powder River Basin. An estimated 572 million tons in all will be auctioned off to coal companies for 25 cents a ton, with a small percentage of the money to be funneled to public schools.
“The main beneficiaries of leasing Otter Creek coal won’t be coal miners or schools or the Northern Cheyenne or the residents of Powder River County,” wrote local residents Bill and Judy Musgrave in the Billings Gazette leading up to the vote. “It will be coal speculators and the proposed Tongue River Railroad.”
As of 2006, an estimated 74.6 billion tons of coal reserves existed in Montana, which is the largest recoverable coal reserves of any state in the country. In fact, nearly 7.5 percent of the world’s entire coal reserves reside in the Big Sky state.
Denise Juneau, Montana’s superintendent of public instruction was the only Land Board member that didn’t take the bait that the money would be going to fund the schools she oversees. On the contrary, she argued, the land would benefit the public more if it were left untouched.
“We could sell every parcel of state land and log every tree on state lands, but we don’t,” said Juneau. “We don’t because we want to sustain Montana’s lands for future beneficial use … Of course there is [monetary] value in mining the coal. But there is also value in keeping Montana ‘Montana.'”
In November Great Northern Properties leased its rights to Arch Coal Inc. to mine 9,600 acres of land that is interspersed with the State’s Otter Creek parcels. The opening of these private reserves was a power play that forced the Land Board to consider opening its own lands in the area.
In all, a total of 1.3 billion tons of coal will be opened for development, which equates to about 3,834 pounds of CO2 per ton of coal, or a total of 2.6 billion tons of CO2 if all coal is burned to produce electricity – 78 times the state’s annual output of CO2.
“We are disappointed they decided to stay with old, dirty energy instead of clean, sustainable energy of the future, but this isn’t over,” Jeanie Alderson, a Birney, Montana, rancher and co-chair of Northern Plains Resource Council’s Tongue River Railroad Task Force, told Truthout in regard to the Otter Creek deal. “We still maintain the entire process is flawed. There has been no overarching public process that includes a discussion of the environmental, economic, and social aspects and costs associated with leasing this coal.”
However, it is difficult to confront the real, burgeoning threat of climate change when Montana’s own leading Democrat, Governor Schweitzer, believes that coal can be clean.
Dubbed the “Coal Cowboy” by CBS’s “60 Minutes,” Schweitzer has been everything but critical of the industry and is a vocal proponent of “coal-to-liquid” technology. While using coal to make fuel may reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil, critics are unconvinced that coal-to-liquids could ever combat global warming.
“What they’re proposing is simply not allowable if we want to avoid the perils of unconstrained anthropogenic climate change,” said Pushker Karecha of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies. “The bottom line is that there’s one fatal flaw in their proposed [coal-to-liquids] process from a climate protection standpoint. It would allow liquid fuel CO2 emissions to continue increasing indefinitely.”
Schweitzer hasn’t been listening and has instead proposed a $15 billion coal-to-liquids venture in southeastern Montana. The process, like the coal development in Otter Creek, will require strip mining to bring the coal to the surface and then be burned to generate electricity for the coal-to-liquids refinery, which would in turn be used to run diesel engines for the intense strip mining project. It’s an endless cycle of CO2 emissions, which some environmentalists have called “Gov. Schweitzer’s Perpetual Pollution Machine.”
Schweitzer has made quite a name for himself in pro-coal energy circles, traveling around the country promoting “clean-coal” technology in speeches and presentations. The Montana governor has even appeared on several national television shows, even landing a prime-time spot at the Democratic National Convention in 2008 to promote his coal-intensive energy vision.
Many environmentalists are concerned that what President Bush was for oil, Governor Schweitzer could be for coal if his trajectory in the Democratic Party continues.
Speaking in Bismark, North Dakota, at a recent energy seminar, Schweitzer proclaimed that “clean-coal” technology would help generate billions in revenue for both Montana and North Dakota, not to mention the corporations that would be doing the digging.
“With the resurgence of the Democratic Party in the West, many Democrats are reluctant to openly criticize their leaders,” wrote Montanan Greg Gordon in High Country News last September about Schweitzer’s backward energy policies. “Unity, however, does not mean blind acceptance of misguided policies that will lead to economic and environmental disaster.”
Indeed, Schweitzer has worked hard to promote the coal industry in Montana, even helping to broker William Buffet’s purchasing of the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe railway, which serves as the main transportation means for coal mined in Montana. He’s also lauded the reopening of the Signal Hill mine near Broadview, Montana, which will become one of the largest in the state.
“This is a mine that will add 25 percent to the over all coal mining that we do in Montana,” stated Schweitzer at the mine’s reopening.
A portion of the coal mined in Montana will be shipped over to the exploding Asian markets that are increasingly burning coal to produce energy, but are lower in supplies than the US.
For the climate change movement to succeed in 2010, it seems vital that their fight ought to make its way to Montana’s capital in Helena to confront Governor Schweitzer and his pro-coal industry posturing. Even if all new coal plants in the US are abandoned or halted next year, it will mean little if our nation’s coal deposits continue to be exploited and incinerated overseas.
“What we have now is 387 parts [CO2] per million [in our atmosphere]. But we’re going to have to bring that down to 350 parts per million or less,” leading climate scientist James Hansen recently warned on Democracy Now! “And that’s still possible, provided we phase out [global] coal emissions over the next few decades.”
Joshua Frank
Joshua Frank is an environmental journalist and author of ‘Left Out! How Liberals Helped Reelect George W. Bush.’ He is co-editor, with Jeffrey St. Clair, of ‘Red State Rebels: Tales of Grassroots Resistance in the Heartland.’ Frank and St. Clair are also the authors of the forthcoming book, ‘Green Scare: The New War on Environmentalism.’ He can be reached at brickburner@gmail.com.
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Occam’s Razor Is Needed To Explain Murder-Suicide in America
Donald G. Schweitzer,
The response by gun advocates and religious fanatics to the murder of children in a Connecticut school is by itself another tragedy. Forget the search for motives, the arguments assigning blame, and the inevitable “God moves in mysterious ways” and begin legislation to ban assault weapons and high capacity ammunition. Require background checks and ID from gun owners. If we don’t find a solution we’re going to lose our humanity.
It is a fool’s errand to search for the cause of extremes in deviant behavior of Americans. Under the best of conditions, human behavior has more variables than any other problem faced by science. The best of conditions have come and gone, never to return. In the past century Americans, in the pursuit of wealth, have subjected themselves and their children to so many man-made toxins and mutagens that it is not possible to determine if bizarre and self destructive behavior is a result of nature or nurture.
If it weren’t for the fact that Americans can be distinguished from all 33 other civilized societies in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development by their proclivity for violent behavior, the three most ambiguous words written into our history would be “We the People”.
Who the hell are we? What are we?
Children ages 5 to 14 in America are 13 times as likely to be murdered with guns as children in other industrialized countries, according to David Hemenway, author of a book on gun violence.
All of the children killed by the gunman in the atrocity in Connecticut were shot multiple times, according to the state’s chief medical examiner, who said that it was the worst scene he had witnessed in three decades examining crime scenes.
“The tragedy isn’t one school shooting, it’s the unceasing toll across our country. More Americans die in gun homicides and suicides in six months than have died in the last 25 years in every terrorist attack and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq combined.”
Where did American’s unique love for guns come from? None of the common folklore about our violent breakaway from Britain, our fighting “savage” native Americans, our settling the Wild West or the too numerous to count excuses invoking the Second Amendment for protection of home against other hostile gun owners holds up to scrutiny.
Mother Jones staff set out to track mass shootings in the United States over the last 30 years. They identified and analyzed 61 of them. In not a single case was the killing stopped by a civilian using a gun. “Moreover, we found that the rate of mass shootings has increased in recent years—at a time when America has been flooded with millions of additional firearms and a barrage of new laws has made it easier than ever to carry them in public. And in recent rampages in which armed civilians attempted to intervene, they not only failed to stop the shooter but also were gravely wounded or killed.”
We are the only barbarian “civilization” that is going to have, along with millions of “Peace on Earth” signs, buttons, magnets bumper stickers and lawn lights, more guns than people by Christmas of 2022.
The responses to the disaster in Connecticut by gun advocates, religious fanatics, and supporters of NRA, has added further evidence that too many Americans are outliers on the curve of sanity.
The Less You Know The More You Explain-Touting and Spouting
Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, on Cavuto’s show on Fox, first touted the NRA’s talking points that there aren’t any laws that could be passed to prevent something like this from happening, then spouted-
HUCKABEE: “Ultimately, you can take away every gun in America and somebody will use a bomb. When somebody has an intent to do incredible damage, they’re going to find a way to do it… People will want to pass new laws, but unless you change people’s hearts, they’re our transition to the pastor side. This is a heart issue, it’s not something, laws don’t change this kind of thing. ….Should we be so surprised that schools would become a place of carnage? Because we’ve made it a place where we don’t want to talk about eternity, life, what responsibility means, accountability — that we’re not just going to have be accountable to the police if they catch us, but one day we stand before, you know, a holy God in judgment.”
Explain This You Dumb Bastard
March 12, 2005. A Living Church of God meeting was gunned down by 44-year-old church member Terry Michael Ratzmann at a Sheraton hotel in Brookfield, WI. Ratzmann was thought to have had religious motivations, and killed himself after executing the pastor, the pastor’s 16-year-old son, and 7 others. Four were wounded.
September 15, 1999. Larry Gene Ashbrook opened fire on a Christian rock concert and teen prayer rally at Wedgewood Baptist Church in Fort Worth, TX. He killed 7 people and wounded 7 others, almost all teenagers. Ashbrook committed suicide.
August 5, 2012. Six Sikh temple members were killed when 40-year-old US Army veteran and “White Christian” Wade Michael Page opened fire in a Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Page killed himself.
April 2, 2012. A former student, 43-year-old One L. Goh killed 7 people at Oikos University, a Korean Christian college in Oakland, CA.
On July 27, 2008, a politically motivated fatal shooting took place at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. Gunman Jim David Adkisson fired a shotgun at members of the congregation during a youth performance of a musical, killing two people and wounding seven others. Adkisson stated that he had targeted the church because of its liberal teachings and his belief that all liberals should be killed because they were ruining the country.
Motives and Misinformation-Guns and Depression
On Sunday Dec.16, at 11.50 AM, 3 days after the school killings, Connecticut State police in an interview with TV media, said “At this time, most of the information given by the media to the public is misinformation”.
Dave Cullen, in his analysis of the massacre at Columbine writes
“My big surprise was that most of what we “know” about Columbine was wrong. It wasn’t about the jocks, goths or the Trenchcoat Mafia. The killers didn’t even see themselves as school shooters: their primary focus was the bombs.
“Teen depression is the great unlearned lesson of Columbine. Six percent of U.S. adolescents suffer clinical depression. That’s 2 million kids. We keep getting wake-up calls, but it’s time to act. Readers tell me they don’t know where to begin, so I created Teen Depression 101 to share what I’ve learned and help get you started. It includes warning signs, resources, discussion-starters, etc.”
Overall, about 8.7 million people in this country received treatment for depression. Three groups of people accounted for much of this increase: older Americans, African Americans, and males.
According to a report published by the Associated Press, nearly two million teens in America are depressed and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force is calling for doctors to routinely screen all teenagers for depression. The government-appointed task force findings, reported in the April issue ofPediatrics journal, state that 6% of teens are clinically depressed.
In a recent anonymous posting “‘I Am Adam Lanza’s Mother’ – Let’s Talk About Mental Illness”, the author writes,
“I am sharing this story because I am Adam Lanza’s mother. I am Dylan Klebold’s and Eric Harris’s mother. I am Jason Holmes’s mother. I am Jared Loughner’s mother. I am Seung-Hui Cho’s mother. And these boys—and their mothers—need help. In the wake of another horrific national tragedy, it’s easy to talk about guns. But it’s time to talk about mental illness.”
“When I asked my son’s social worker about my options, he said that the only thing I could do was to get Michael charged with a crime. “If he’s back in the system, they’ll create a paper trail,” he said. “That’s the only way you’re ever going to get anything done. No one will pay attention to you unless you’ve got charges.”
“I don’t believe my son belongs in jail. The chaotic environment exacerbates Michael’s sensitivity to sensory stimuli and doesn’t deal with the underlying pathology. But it seems like the United States is using prison as the solution of choice for mentally ill people. According to Human Rights Watch, the number of mentally ill inmates in U.S. prisons quadrupled from 2000 to 2006, and it continues to rise—in fact, the rate of inmate mental illness is five times greater (56 percent) than in the non-incarcerated population.
With state-run treatment centers and hospitals shuttered, prison is now the last resort for the mentally ill—Rikers Island, the LA County Jail and Cook County Jail in Illinois housed the nation’s largest treatment centers in 2011.”
“Gone Boy: A Father’s Search for the Truth in His Son’s Murder”
“On December 14, 1992, Gregory Gibson’s eighteen-year-old son Galen was murdered, shot in the doorway of his college library by a fellow student gone berserk. The killer was jailed for life, but for Gibson the tragedy was still unfolding. The morning of the shooting, he learned, college officials had intercepted but not stopped a box of ammunition addressed to the murderer. They were also anonymously warned of the intended killing but failed to call the police. After years of frustrated attempts to find peace, Gibson woke one morning to a terrible vision of his own rage and helplessness. He knew he had to do something before he destroyed himself, and he resolved to discover and document the forces that led to Galen’s death.”
At 2:40 PM on Dec.16, three days after the Sandy Hook massacre Huff Po’s headline was
GUNS IN AMERICA: Indiana Man Arrested With 47 Guns After Threatening Local School… Gunman Kills 3 In Alabama… Shooter Opens Fire In California Mall Parking Lot… HOTEL HORROR: Murder-Suicide On Vegas Strip… Man Accidentally Shoots Himself While Playing With Gun… Chicago Man Shot Dead… North Carolina Man Fatally Shoots Wife, Elderly Mother-In-Law…
Obama’s Justice Department Shelved Ideas To Improve Background Checks
There were 52,447 deliberate and 23,237 accidental non-fatal gunshot injuries in the United States during 2000. The majority of gun-related deaths in the United States are suicides with 17,352 (55.6%) of the total 31,224 firearm-related deaths in 2007 due to suicide, while 12,632 (40.5%) were homicide deaths.
In 2009, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 60% of all homicides in the United States were perpetrated using a firearm.
The number of gun purchases in America are continuously increasing while the number of gun owners are continuously decreasing. How many guns do advocates need to satisfy “the guns in the home” allowance of the Second Amendment?
Most Americans disagree with the NRA and want gun control, while most politicians refuse to support gun control legislation.
In science, when you don’t know, or can’t control, all the variables involved in solving a problem, you invoke Occam’s Razor which states that “among competing hypotheses, the one that makes the fewest assumptions accounting for the observations is most likely to be correct.”
Access to guns, the lack of background checks, depression, and insanity are four inarguable variables contributing to murder-suicide in America. Evidence shows America cannot control depression or insanity effectively. As of this writing Obama put the kibosh on background checks.
Occam’s Razor demands removing access to guns. If we can’t develop legislation to remove or reduce it, we are going to be blackballed from humanity.
Donald G. Schweitzer
Donald G. Schweitzer has a PhD in Physical Chemistry, is a retired tenured Senior Scientist at Brookhaven National Laboratory and Chief Advisor to AEC, NRC, DOE, State Dept., the IAEA, and the US Air Force, on all forms of carbon and graphite chemistry, on nuclear and chemical safety, licensing, accident analyses, chemical and nuclear waste isolation and development of advanced fuels and advanced nuclear reactors.
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Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) map changes to a volcano's topography.
Observing and measuring changes to the surface shape of a volcano (topography) helps scientists understand the processes that cause both growth and erosion of landforms. Scientists create highly accurate maps of the ground surface called Digital Elevation Models (DEMs). Two or more DEMs that cover the same area are used to monitor topographic changes at several U.S. volcanoes. By comparing DEMs made at different times, scientists can calculate the volume of lava erupted or the rate of dome growth at an active volcano, monitor change at glaciers, measure debris flow thickness, understand how sediment is transported in a river or stream bed, and monitor changes to stream channel shape.
DEMs are generated from three-dimensional topographic point measurements made using remote sensing techniques, which means that the measuring devices or sensors are not in direct contact with the objects being measured. For example, DEMs can be made from overlapping photographs or satellite images taken of the ground surface or with instruments that capture high-resolution elevation measurements using lasers.
DEMs help scientist locate ideal monitoring sites and produce volcanic hazard maps.
At several U.S. volcanoes, topographic analysis using Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques has helped determine suitable locations to install monitoring instrument stations. Calculations made in a GIS can map the radio-transmission pathways for data to be sent from monitoring sites back to Volcano Observatory offices, determine the optimal location for sun to interact with solar panels, identify helicopter landing areas, and measure tree canopy height.
Creating models of how a material flows over the ground is very important to understand volcanic hazards. These models use DEMs as the ground surface for computer simulations of pyroclastic flows, debris avalanches, lahars, floods, and fluvial sediment transport. The models allow scientists to produce volcanic hazard maps, predict flooding caused by rain, snowfall and lake-breakouts, and reduce the impacts from sedimentation build up in rivers and streams.
Digital photographs are an inexpensive and fast way to create DEMs.
In a process called photogrammetry, VHP scientists take overlapping digital photographs of a volcano, which can be taken either from the air or ground. Using recent advances in camera and computer technology these images are used to build DEMs quickly and accurately. The method is akin to the older technique of using analog stereo cameras and comparing overlapping pairs of aerial photographs taken at the same time. Collecting and processing photographs to create DEMs can be done with relatively low cost and in near real-time (minutes to hours), which is an advantage when monitoring volcanic activity.
Lasers help to make ground surface maps underneath vegetation.
Light Detection and Ranging (lidar) technology uses laser scanners to measure the elevation of the ground surface, which is used to generate very high-resolution DEMs. The lasers are able to travel through tree canopy to the ground, so unlike photogrammetry methods, maps made from lidar reveal features of the earth's surface that are obscured by digital photographs taken of densely vegetated or forested areas.
DEMs made from lidar have helped locate previously unknown faults; map pyroclastic flow deposits and ground water at Mount St. Helens, glacier extent at Mount Rainier, and debris flow deposits at Mount Hood; and calculate the volume of Crater Lake. Most lidar scanners use near-infrared lasers that are absorbed by water, which allows scientists to map surface water features such as springs, rivers, and lakes.
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Home | Members | Publications | Research | Intranet | Facilities | Links | Models
Angel Ramirez Ortiz founded the Bioinformatics Unit of the CBMSO and directed it until is premature death in 2008, aged 41. An international workshop and a special issue of the journal Proteins were dedicated to honoour his memory as one of the most brilliant European researchers in structural biology.
Ángel Ramírez Ortíz
Bioinformatics Unit
Centre for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa"
Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid (Spain)
Tel:: (34) 91- 497-2376 (Office)
Tel:: (34) 91-497-2377 (Lab)
aro@cbm.uam.es
http://ub.cbm.uam.es
Angel R. Ortiz, started off his research career in Bioinformatics in 1990, as a PhD student at the Department of Pharmacology of the Alcala University, under the supervision of Prof. Federico Gago (1990-1992). Then he moved to the Structural Biology and Biocomputing Department of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg (Germany), where he was admitted in the selected PhD Program of this Institution. Between 1992 and 1996 he worked at EMBL under the supervision of Dr. Rebecca C. Wade in the development of simplified methods for the fast computation of protein-ligand affinities in congeneric series. Between 1996 and 2000, first as a postdoctoral and later as a Research Assistant at the Department of Molecular Biology of the Scripps Research Institute in San Diego (CA), he worked under the supervision of Prof. Jeffrey Skolnick, pioneering new approaches for protein structure prediction. In June 2000, Dr. Ortiz moves to the Department of Physiology & Biophysics of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, in New York (NY), where he is appointed as an Assistant Professor (tenure-track). In year 2001 he obtains a position of “Cientifico Titular” (tenured Assistant Professor) at the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), and as a result he decided to relocate the lab to the Centro de Biologia Molecular “Severo Ochoa” (CBMSO) in Madrid. He was appointed to “Investigador Cientifico” (Associate Professor) in 2003.
Scientific interests
Our research activity centers in the analysis, modeling and prediction of basic biological problems at molecular level. Our main research interests rests in the field of Structural Bioinformatics. The long term interest of the laboratory is in the use of structural information, together with the theory of molecular interactions, to obtain insights that can allow us to design new or better drugs, predict protein structure from sequence, or better understand the process of molecular recognition. Examples of areas of interest to us are the relationship between sequence and structure, understanding the process of structural evolution in proteins, or the study of physical basis of biomolecular recognition and selectivity, among others.
© 2010 CBM-SO Bioinformatics Unit
Web design: Alfonso Núñez Salgado
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Nonprofit Radio for October 23, 2015: Diversity In Your Office & .ngo
October 21, 2015 Fundraising Fundamentals.ngo, 14NTC, AMGlobal Consulting, Andrew Mack, divers, diversity, Evan Leibovitch, Fields Jackson, Glen McKnight, ICANN, NARALO, nonprofit, nonprofit technology, Nonprofit Technology Conference, nonprofit websites, nptech, NTEN, websitesNonprofit Radio
Listen to the October 23, 2015 archived podcast.
Fields Jackson: Diversity In Your Office
Fields Jackson is editor of “Racing Toward Diversity Magazine.” We’ll talk about the business reasons for having a diverse workplace. (Originally aired on March 28, 2014)
Glen McKnight, Andrew Mack & Evan Leibovitch: .ngo
(l-r) Glen McKnight, Andrew Mack, Evan Leibovitch
We’re explaining the new top level domain–and its affiliated community–for nonprofits throughout the world. Plus, a primer on how domains are managed by ICANN. I learned a lot! My teachers are Glen McKnight, secretariat of NARALO (it represents you!); Andrew Mack, principal of AMGlobal Consulting; and Evan Leibovitch, global vice chair of the At Large Advisory Committee of ICANN. (Originally aired on April 18, 2014 and recorded at the Nonprofit Technology Conference, hosted by NTEN.)
Hello and welcome to tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent. I’m your aptly named host. Oh, i’m glad you’re with me. I grow a mesen ca mama if it’s spread that you missed today’s show diversity in your office fields. Jackson is editor of racing toward diversity magazine. We talk about the business reasons for having a diverse workplace that originally aired on march twenty eighth, twenty fourteen and dot ngo, we’re explaining the new top level domain and its affiliated community for non-profits throughout the world. Plus ah primer on how domains are managed by icann. I learned a lot. My teachers are glenn mcknight, andrew mac and evan leibovich on tony’s take two thank you, responsive by pursuant full service fund-raising data driven and technology enabled, you’ll raise more money pursuant dot com here is field jackson with diversity in your office. I’m very pleased to welcome fields jackson to the show. He is founder and ceo of racing toward diversity magazine buy-in adjunct professor at chicago state university, teaching entrepreneurial sales and marketing. He was recently named by diversity best practices as one of the five diversity thought leaders you should be following on twitter on twitter, he’s at flea jack that’s f l e jack, please. Jack feels jackson. Welcome to the show. Only at the pleasure of the text of the well it’s introduction. I call an introduction on ad, but yeah. I mean, you have good things going on. I want to share them with with everybody. Thank you, tony. My pleasure. As always. You have a little background in nascar that’s. Kind of interesting field. You have to have that’s, actually. How the magazine got started. What do you know? Actually, about about ten. About fifteen years ago, i was a part owner of a nascar team. And yes, that’s the cars that go round and round and stop for gas. And, uh, we were down in north carolina where i live. Uh, we were running for about three years. It was the bush grand national. Now, it’s, i think the nationwide series, but dr pepper was our sponsor. Uh, lost a ton of money, however, uh, it started my diversity durney as we were the first minority team tio breaking the nascar in over twenty five years. Yeah, nascar is not particularly diverse. No, it’s. Not so as you could imagine would lead to very interesting cocktail conversations. Yeah, around around what i was doing and, you know where i was doing it, but like any place, you know, nascar’s got some issues about diversity there, but again, one of things that tell people we always had a great time at the nascar tracks. I met some great people, like, you know, jeff gordon, the late dale earnhardt, so just met him wonderful people, but again, you know, with their diversity and the issues they had, uh, tell people even even in those environments, um, there’s always people doing great stuff. So even in a if that and i didn’t consider it a bad environment or tough environment, but even in tough environments, there are people that are doing the right thing. They’re people that are that are have a passion about making change, so we we tend to focus on the folks that are doing it the right way as opposed to throwing everybody under the bus. Yeah, you’re focusing on the positive, and you’re pretty explicit that if diversity of cultural diversity is not an interest to you, then that’s ok, right, that’s fine, i mean, it’s, not for everybody on dh there, there, folks, that, you know, diversity represents something that they’re totally against and then understand that. But for those folks that believed there’s diversity is not there is another way forward. Those are the folks that we’d like to have a conversation with. Okay, so the diversity doesn’t mean everybody’s got agree or love each other or hug or kiss, but diversity is, you know, respecting ideas and thoughts and seeing things differently, and sometimes when you, when you approach it that way, tony, you actually not that you completely changed what you actually see another way to do things which actually create creativity and expansion. And a lot of we think positive things. Um what? Why is there some discomfort around the diversity discussion? I think it’s it’s a fear of the unknown. You know, it’s uh uh, it’s like my friends, my friends are my friends because they’re my friends that we all like each other. We get along. I probably don’t learn a lot from my friends if that makes it. What do you mean they’re? I think i know what you want. You know what? Their friends, because we think a lot, yeah, like, like, i got to go to the same movies or our families enjoy the same thing, so, you know, i’m usually, you know, people are friends because we share similar interests it’s when you get into places where there is not the shared interest and background, are background or or culture or what we know, whatever that that variable is, yeah, there’s a natural fear that, um, you know, do i share the same thoughts or or culture or or beliefs? So again, it’s natural, you know, i’m not going to talk as much, i’ll be, i’ll be shy, i won’t offer any opinions, but that’s where i think leadership come in because, you know, if you’re building a business and once you get beyond and tony way, i see it once you get beyond yourself, you know, i’m a pretty good listener to me, it was just me, yeah, i’m i’m probably going to agree with everything, right? So the second i get beyond me that you entered the world of diversity, um, you know, so unless you know and the more people you get the mohr, you’re just going to expand the bubble so having that expansion, how do you communicate how to communicate which direction you’re going, how to communicate the idea of how to communicate, how you’re going to reach new new profit centres? How you going to reach new non-profit how do you communicate that that’s where that cultural conversation comes in, where it doesn’t? And this is where i think people get hung up doesn’t have to be comfortable. It’s it’s you’re trying to communicate an idea, and once people understand that you’re not doing it in a hostile manner, you’re genuinely asking questions because you don’t know. And now the explanation becomes okay, this is why i do this that’s why i say this is why i think this a cup of coffee is going to appeal to this group that’s where diversity comes in and that’s what we think the magic happens and the questions being asked in both directions are valuable mean, we should be we should be asking people seeking people were going to challenge our beliefs. Well, if it comes down to tonight and i call it the i think the wizard of oz is like the greatest management movie ever. Yeah, um, you had ah, young woman who had, you know, put together a management team on the run. Right? So she basically, you know, is going to grab a couple of people that, you know, what do you got what’s in it for me and explains on the run, they find out that we got to go see this wizard, so they put together this quick management team there there got some task and objectives and obstacles they’ve got to get to, but they finally get to the wizard and they asked the question and, like, anything, you know, it’s like, how dare you? So it sort when people after questions that that’s, the entry point that’s, the gateway and most people, you know, it’s well, i explained it. How dare you ask that question and that’s where you know the line, start to come up in the you know? Well, you know that’s where the sort of like the barriers and the bridges get burned, but that’s that’s the entry point you’re asking a question and it’s, a lot of people don’t even have the courage to dafs that’s the thing most people, you know, everybody understand and most people won’t, but there is the one you know, i could you go over part two again, and you get your head ripped off. Well, i’m not gonna get out of the question. Um, i didn’t agree with what went on, so, you know, because i don’t agree, you know how how willingly am i goingto take on this task? Because i don’t understand, i don’t know what’s going on and that’s where i think things break them. We have we have a couple minutes before we take our first break. Tell us about the racing toward diversity magazine. Rachel rachel, university magazine is a quarterly publication. We focus on the business case for diversity to your point tell me if, uh, if you don’t believe in diversity, we don’t think you’re a bad person, we don’t think that you know that if you don’t believe in it, you don’t believe in it just like anything else. But if you do believe in diversity, um, and you’re looking for opinions of facts or are different ways of looking at things, we want to have those stories that offer unique ways of people and how they handled different situations and you deal with major, you cover major brands there. The issue you showed me was i saw an article with about coca cola, coca cola, att and t uh, hewlett packard del um sid xo, toyota, we’ve got some major brands uh, and we’ve got major brands that are doing a phenomenal global work around diversity, so we focus on them because not only are they doing work around their corporation, um, but as you can imagine, they’ve got internal issues with women’s affairs, they’ve got supplier diversity efforts, they have just a number of efforts that make up this corporation, and are they doing everything perfectly right? No, but they’re they’re pushing the envelope where they’re actually become an example of how ah, global corporation can navigate and ever changing world, and they see diversity as business case that helps them navigate that world. So we we use them as examples to kind of show others that may be struggling in certain areas. Well, you know, you don’t have to figure it out, but you know what? Here’s here’s a senior v p of finance that’s in toyota that you know you may want to reach out to if you’re struggling with something, so we try to provide those examples of of best practices that people can now sort of model themselves after all, right? We have to go out for a couple minutes, fields jackson, of course i’m going to keep talking about diversity, we’re goingto learn from some of these companies. What is the business case we’ve been talking around it? What is that business case and of course, live listener love hang in there, you’re tuned to non-profit radio tony martignetti also hosts a podcast for the chronicle of philanthropy fund-raising fundamentals is a quick ten minute burst of fund-raising insights published once a month. Tony’s guests are expert in crowdfunding, mobile giving event fund-raising direct mail and donor cultivation. Really all the fund-raising issues that make you wonder am i doing this right? Is there a better way there is? Find the fund-raising fundamentals archive it. Tony martignetti dot com that’s marketmesuite n e t t i remember there’s a g before the end, thousands of listeners have subscribed on itunes. You can also learn maura the chronicle website philanthropy dot com fund-raising fundamentals the better way, way welcome back to big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent feels jackson, what is this business case for diversity that we’ve been talking about? Uh, tony, we think it’s pretty simple, uh, business case for diversity, i think, started teo really expand when a small business owner named henry ford started a car company and he told his customers, but, uh, you can have any model t as long as it’s black it is custom, his competitors came up with different color, so i think they made mr ford sort of rethink his business strategy. So we look at anyone that’s in business on how many businesses do you go into, like a steak steak shop, steakhouse, and they’ve got one steak on the menu and just one steak, or you go into an ice cream shop and they’ve got they’ve got one one flavor of ice cream, so typically it’s the it’s, the variety of the flavors of the colors that attracts and keeps us with customers. And you’ve got those flavours because you’re looking to get a wider variety of customers that support your business. So the business case, i think, is all around us just when we start to talk about people. That people tend, teo now see that whole conversation completely differently, and we we don’t know why. Uh, we believe that if you’ve got a product and you’ve got, ah wide variety of people that enjoy that that’s going to be a healthy a support network for your business, as opposed to there’s one, you’ve got one customer that you’re relying on them. We think that’s a dangerous place to be for anyone, for non-profit for a corporation, you know, for for anything that that that that reliance on one. So just like the diversification of your portfolio that the financial people talk about, we believe the same holds true about that diverse business. Ditigal and the nonprofit sector employee’s roughly ten percent of our nation’s nongovernment, employee’s employee workforce, that’s, that’s a pretty large amount of people it’s between between ten and eleven million working in working in r one point two to one point four million non-profits depending on how you depending on how you count, what what is part of a let’s talk through what a diversity strategy looks like for a non-profit so from a from a non-profit standpoint, um, you know, if you’ve got a service, you’re doing something. Would you deny that to someone that or a culture or community that desperately needed? What’d you just say, well, no, we just serve one group i think part of the charters are we’re going, we’re going to serve and we’re going to eradicate or we’re going to we’re going to help this disease or cure or whatever it is. So the fact that you can get tome or more people, we see that as a good thing for everyone. So i’ma non-profit and i’m trying to hyre a more diverse workforce so that it reflects the the community that i’m serving. How do i? But the people who apply for my jobs only looked like me on only talk like me, and they’re all white and and male. How do i change that? How do i change that applicant pool so that i can get more diversity in it? What you would have to change because everybody looked like you. You know what, what’s the chain again? You know, maybe maybe somebody goes out and learn spanish, i don’t, but if every day was like you what’s the chance that that pool’s going to be even aware of what you’re doing so part of that it is now doing that that uncomfortable questions, you know, we’ve looked at our numbers, and it appears that we’ve got no one from this segment of the population here. All right, i got uncomfortable. Why is that now? Everything? Well, we we sent fliers. Okay, i know we did, but you know what? I’m just looking at the numbers. I’m just asking a question, folks, i’ve got nobody. So is there anyone that knows someone in from that community? But yeah, you know, one of the guys go see what your mind, you know, having him a lot of survey force. Would you mind? You know, you know what he would answer a couple questions about. You know what he even thinks you do. And part of that is now that uncomfortable question, you know? You know, mr jones, do you do you know what i do every time when your neighbor do you know what i do every day? No, i have no, um, you know, i do this and either he recoils in horror or he goes, wow, my grandmother has that, um, zoho we’re struggling. Fuck. Somebody to help fix it. Well, i’m telling you, we have a problem because we can’t seem to communicate to your grandmother. Do you volunteer? So again, it’s part of that conversation and nothing happens overnight. Tony, you know that it’s not overnight, but it’s part of that conversation where now you know the outreaches. Now, mr jones shows up at one of your meetings and he says, well, you know what? I could translate that for you because i’m going to bring this to a church where i know fifty, people would desperately need that and that’s that’s part of that, you know, looking at your numbers, who were serving we how can we do better and that’s an internal look that says, okay, are you comfortable with the hundred people in the room? Are you comfortable if you’re not, and you’re trying to expand our there another hundred that looked just like them? Or are there one hundred others that now i would need the service? We just don’t know how to communicate and get back aboard. So to answer your question, it’s part of that, that leadership that’s going a sort of force this uncomfortable conversation around. Getting whatever you do, some or more people that could that could use it or need it and that one okay, let’s move from employment to thinking about the people who supply your vendors, your suppliers, should we be asking about their diversity policies and looking for diversity among them as well? Absolutely. And part of that is when you look at diverse suppliers, they’re actually looking at businesses that are that are providing a good service to there customers. Um, cos that look at it that way, a tremendous amount of industry knowledge come from your supplies. Um, your suppliers, if they’re supplying you, they might be supplying fifty other stores that looked like you. So in conversations with suppliers, if you’ve got that type of relationship, their goal is to supply you more not to supply you left some most. Um, i don’t know you could, you know, sometimes, but if they want to do more than that, then what could we be doing better? That’s that uncomfortable conversation that, you know, if you don’t think you know it all, you come in here every day and you drop off these towels. What could we be doing that? Well, i’m glad you asked mr jackson, you know, the company called street, they do this really? On what what result? Won’t you take a ride with me to go over and then there’s a line wrapped around the building? Wow. Um now the question is, what are we doing that or can we do that? Or is there somebody there that’s providing a skill set or, you know, there’s an employee that we may need there’s there’s something that’s now expanding that network, so suppliers also, you know, usually have tremendous ideas about what makes their business successful and in making their business successful. Part of why they you’re buying from them is that you need that good in service. So if through that channel it could make you better that becomes a tremendous resource on the more diversity requires the mohr ideas that you’re going to get so of all your suppliers look the same. Well, you’re probably not gonna get a lot of creative ideas, but if your suppliers are diverse, they can also provide you customers, because now you’re you’re increasing your increasing supply, your increasing somethings that they’re going to tell their customers so people let us use that supply chain effectively find out that becomes a very good source of not only information, but it comes competitive talent, competitive information, potential employees, potential services and it becomes almost a part of the organization. If manage correctly and your value the divers input that you’re going to get, i want you to tell us a story. We have a couple minutes left tell us, ah doesn’t matter, it’s company or non-profit they struggled with diversity and with having diversity, whether it was among in their marketing and promotion, or in their workforce or in their vendors they struggled, they overcame it on dh how they did on dh just a couple minutes we have i’ll tell you a famous story. Okay, about two years ago facebook, zuckerberg, mark zuckerberg and i don’t know when but i i call them suck so okay, take his company public, right. So, it’s facebook uh, the the wonder kid, you know, come up with this thing in his dorm. Uh, you know, it’s going to change the world and how social media is and he’s going to go public. So zuckerberg posted the the wall street and they look at his company to go fuck there’s this there’s no women. Now, i think somebody remember, like, sixty five percent of users of facebook or women. Yeah, wellit’s probably at least fifty. I mean, but it would imagine i certainly imagine being higher than at least with monisha okay, maybe, but all right, look, look at the camera goes, i can’t i can’t find any. Well, um, you know, cheryl’s, aunt sandberg is there, and his sister, i see her running around offgrid, you know, it’s a lot to say so after he got beat up and he got beat up, one thing that was was refreshing was that zuckerberg didn’t dig in his heels like a lot of companies, and they still continue to say they can’t find women, and i tell him, you know, i can hear you, you know, fifty percent of the planet’s women you can’t seem to find women. Zuckerberg, you know, he took his medicine in about a week later, cheryl sandberg was on the board, um, and i think they’re actually bringing it actually brought another woman onboard. So unlike other companies that they would sort of resistance, you know, we can find women and, you know, you know, he took his lumps and it actually helped other aipo start up companies. I now realize that this idea that you just started in your garage that’s going to go global, you need to have a global footprint, so you need to start if they if they’re going to ask dr berg about this, they’re probably going to ask me, and you know, if i’ve got it, women on my board, um, it was fifty percent of my my my users being women, uh, they could probably help me navigate some things that probably wouldn’t cross my radar just because i’m a man. So that became a global case for for diversity uh, one that’s relevant right now, and i’m proud to say, you know, i’m proud of the work we have to leave it there. The magazine is racing toward diversity feels jackson is founder and ceo, and you’ll find him on twitter at flea jack f l e i j a c k tony’s take two and dot ngo coming up first. Pursuant, they’re just the right sponsor for non-profit radio. I love that they are with us. They’re made for you. Our listeners that aaron small and midsize non-profits you’re the ones who don’t get the headlines and nine figure gif ts or eight figure gifts and seven figure gifts are rare maybe never depending on the size your shop, but those three, four, five and six figure gifts i understand those are your life blood pursuing has the tools that help you get more of those gif ts that you need pursuant dot com thank you, i have to thank you for listening and supporting non-profit radio, whether you listen live or podcast or through one of our affiliates, if you’re letting me into your inbox each week with the weekly alerts about who the guests are. If you’re tweeting about the show retweeting about the show, by the way, twitter is a great way to get me. If you’re a fan of the facebook page, however, it is your loving and supporting non-profit radio. Thank you. I really am grateful for all our support. Thanks and that’s tony’s take two for friday twenty third of october fortieth show of the year here is dot ngo welcome to tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of ntcdinosaur non-profit technology conference two thousand. Fourteen note that hashtag it’s fourteen and tc we’re at the marriott wardman park hotel in washington, d c and joining me now are glenn mcknight, andrew mac and evan leibovich. And we’re going to talk about i can naralo there’s acronyms. We’re goingto flesh all that out and the new dot ngo top level domain all about domains and how these air all managed today. Glenn mcknight is secretariat of naralo, which is the north america regional at large organization. Andrew mac is principal of am global consulting and is helping with the launch of the dot ngo top level domain. And evan liebovitz is global vice chair of the at large advisory committee of i can gentlemen welcome. Thank you. Thank you. Thanks. Okay, evan, i can i see a n n the tell us what it is and why it’s important came. I can is the internet corporation for assigned names and numbers. It manages i p addresses, which is the machine numbers addresses of how machines find each other on the internet and the names of whatever dot com dot or ge got us dot uk of the names you used to actually translate to those. Numbers on how you get from your computer to wherever you’re looking for things every device connected to the internet, every single device in the world has to have a unique i pee or internet protocol address, right? If i overstated it, isn’t that? Is that right? Well, the problem is, is there’s a shortage of these numbers and everything, but i just need a number. You just agree with me that each single device that’s, right? So one person could have three or four easily i p address is right. You have your phone, you might have your ipad, you might have your desktop right and maybe have a fourth device that i can’t think about, maybe have two phones, so each individual device has to have its own unique i p address, right? You’re absolutely right. I can. The internet corporation for assigned names and numbers manages that that process is that right? The numbering scheme, as well as the naming scheme numbers and not right. Because in your address bar, i’m tryingto make this this’s relevant to every single person, absolutely who’s connected to the internet. So i’m not gonna make sure the relevance is clear when you go to your address bar, you either type in a name most likely or a number. And that all is an i p address at all. Or relates to an i p address and that’s how you get to a site or a device if you knew the number itself like one o six thought this thought this thought this you could type that directly into your browser. But most people don’t. I know that. Okay? Yes, but there is a number behind every name. So i have tony martignetti dot com there’s an i p address the number that that’s an adjusting itself. There’s a number behind that. That common name. Exactly. Okay. And if you think about it, if i can yeah, i can look at the andrew. It looks at the international policies around that. So it’s not just a question of the technical side, but also where is the internet going? What will the future of the internet look like? And it’s in a really interesting kind of public private partnership? Because it brings in people from many different sectors from the private world from the government world from the non-profit world. And they all come together to help design the policies that guide the internet as it goes forward. I can. I can is people. There are thie internet corporation there. There are fuller. This is a robot it’s important to understand that you think you want well, but the other thing to understand is that yes, there’s policies. But this is not about censorship. This is not about that neutrality. About that little sliver of regulations about names and numbers. Help me. Are there people are thie internet corporation comprised of people? Yes, or there is. There is an office in california and there’s offices in brussels. There’s officers in singapore where they have warm bodies that manage this. But there’s a massive community of volunteers that are. We’ll talk about it. It’s. Very bottom up. That’s what i think most people do not understand. I think most people think it’s dominated down top down. But it’s not and that’s. Where? The that’s where the regional at large organizations come in because there throughout the world. Right? Ok, now we’re going. We’re not tuna, rallo yet. Who appointed? I can to this role. How did they get that responsibility? Technically it’s a contract. With the department of commerce. So where did they come from? And let me explain, created icann the internet, as you, as you may know, was born out of a u s series of u s government contracts, right? He got big bird was originally a military was it was from the start, but yeah, profanity. So it was it was set up as an advanced way. I liketo, like, i don’t like to leave listeners with acronym, the defense advanced research project administration illustration, that’s, right, darpa and so darpa. And the idea was that we wanted to have systems that would that would be able to share data when bad things happen. Right then it migrated to you guys and probably know a little bit more about the academic side than i do, but been migrated to being a way of for academics to share data. And then as time went on, people realized that this was a really big thing, and it could have a lot more. It could have a lot more potential uses that wade initially thought it was a very exciting time, very exciting time and so that clinton was during the clinton administration. And they decided this is too big to just be held in the united states and that there’s a real value and having it be a global thing. And so there was a movement to try to create this. What is effectively a public private partnership that involves people from around the world. And then then then i can was born, and it has been moving in different directions to become more and more internationalist as time has gone on since the early nineties. Ok, ok. And, of course, where where i’m deliberately not mentioning the old al gore cliche. I’m so tired. Okay. All right now, let’s. Okay, so that is very interesting. Very, very i can. So now it is bottom up. So we have these these regional at large at large organizations throughout the world. Of which naralo the north america regional right regional advisory organs committee is one or the organization naralo? Well, i can has chopped the world into five region, so no, naralo is one of them. There’s, also one for latin american and caribbean, one for europe went for asia and one for asia pacific and one for africa. Okay, all these at large organizations throughout the world and they are helping to represent the people that are the people that are people, the individual internet users day in and day out, right? You’re not buying it. Domain. You’re not selling domain. You use them in your browser that’s, right? What does that mean? Well, so they thought the thought is that how does that relate to what i wait? Wait. Give it a chance. Okay? How does that relate to what i just said? Okay, if ford wants to have a website that you look at their cars, so ford goes out, they buy four dot com. And in germany, though, by four dot d e and so on and so forth. Okay, yeah. Then, it’s, they market to you here’s how to find us. All right, four dot com you type that into your browser, you’re not the one buying the domain. They’re paying money to somebody toe have four dot com. They’re buying an annual subscription to somebody toe have that? Yes, they’re paying to somebody else. They have four dot d and so on and so forth. Each of these top level domains dot com dot org’s every country. Has won so in canada’s dot see a uk, right? A you and so on. So there’s right now, there’s about twenty two dozen odd generic ones that aren’t associated with the country. Every country has designated their own and there’s about to be a very, very large expansion. Okay, we’re gonna get to that. We’re going to get there. Don’t worry. We have twenty five minutes together. Don’t worry. We’re not going to lose that. I know. It’s important. I happen to know, for instance, that morocco, the country, morocco is dahna emma. Because i have bought through bentley the custom earl. Tony. My name tony martignetti. Tony dot. So i know morocco is emma and you know, and in bit lee itself. Where is billy going through? I don’t know why. Libya. Libya, o b dot fulwider libya. Yes. Okay. Excellent. Who thought right? You do that. All right. You got the right people. Hear you, do you? Do you guys do well, that’s a rhetorical question for the three of you were when i was anywhere else than any other audience. That would be. That would not be rhetorical. If you see something. Dot tv. That money. Is going to the island of two tuvalu to value in the south pacific? Follow-up xero tuvalu otavalo alright to tuvalu. Okay, um, so well, all right. So i pay my money for the dot. Tony dahna emma. Andi. I paid it to whatever hover or domain director, you know where you bought it from? A registrar. Okay. That’s a recess, the registrar. And then they enter durney bought it from a registry. The guys who run the dahna registry makes sense within that within the country of morocco. So more cases in the case of morocco it’s run it’s, run by the whoever’s, the moroccan internet authority. Okay. In some case, it’s it’s managed by a third party because that you may have the technical skills. No doubt that the two blue government, in fact, i know that the two blue government uses uses it uses a third party that help them run that which is fine, you know? Okay, it’s good for them. But how does all this and how do do those relate to? I can’t. Okay. So i know there isn’t a direct relation. I mean, i know they’re not direct, but well, i hand through contracts essentially has relationships with the people that do dot com dot or dot net and the new ones that air coming around the ones that are the country codes. There’s. A little bit of a hands off relationship because that’s a national sovereignty thing. So i can doesn’t get involved in the national codes, but they coordinate them. So they do show up at the i can meetings. There is a relationship going, and they work on things like best practices. Okay, without i can we we would probably have duplicates all over the world. We wouldn’t be able to reach anybody. We’d have duplicates and triplets and quadrillion million connections thing. This is one of the things that tony that i think it’s really been important about. The way that the internet has developed is is that the real strength of the web is that it is a unitary web that there’s one place, that all of us can go where we can all meet online. So there’s, not a moroccan web and a saudi web. Yeah, and and and and and a senegalese web. And because of that, we can do so much more together and so one of the great things that i can has contributed, i think, is, is that it’s managed to keep the international community together, given them a voice so that all of these different groups, like the user groups, like the commercial groups like the government groups, can advise the board in such a way that we can keep the web together so that we can really leverage it to the maximum impact. So you’re you know, now you now you you have, ah user base that maybe mostly in north america say, but there’s no reason why this couldn’t expand out into different languages and all over the world non-profit radio. Yeah, and that’s, partly because of the web being, you know, tara unitary that’s one of the goals i think of i can is to keep it that way to try and get the most out of our way out of our ability to interconnect. But that also means satisfying the needs of people around the world. So you are now starting to see domain names that are in cyrillic that are in chinese script. There are in arabic or hebrew or hindi, and so they’re not in latin. Characters now you may not be able to read them. You may not be able to use them, but the people in china or saudi arabia that air using them don’t care if you do or not, because they’re targeting their own language audience. Okay? And of course, i could always get to the number that’s behind those, right? So if i i don’t know, i don’t know how i would do that. But i could. Well, if your key bird could do arabic, then you could type in arabic, drugged up there when you get it right. But short of that, there is a number behind everything. All those irrespective of the language that the address is in, right? Okay. In fact, you may have the arabic in the english pointing to the same number that conserve you in both languages have the arabic and the english pointing to the same number. Oh, sure. Okay. Yeah. Still a unique number. That’s, right, number’s gotta be unique. Okay. All right. Now, let’s. Let’s. Bring glenn into the conversation because, ah, he’s, the one who brought this topic to me yesterday. And there is something very exciting happening for non-profits there’s. A new top level domain like a dot com dot org’s. Glenn, why don’t you get real close tonight? Yes, and tell us what’s going on? Yeah, so actually the expert on this that is actually part of the p i r implementation of dot ngos is avenged and you crossed it well, but i felt back you haven’t contributed yet and you brought this very interesting topic to me because actually the nancy spoke at the podium yesterday and and we’re at the inten conference and actually addressed the twenty two hundred delegates saying, hey, we have this new ngo as not-for-profits you should be involved and i thought it was important that’s why we did a birds of a feather yesterday that’s why were going around with our brochures on naralo informing the not-for-profits sector hey, the internet, internet governance, all the issues that are pertinent important to you actually there’s organisations particularly naralo that can assist you in this process. We’re here particularly to promote not-for-profits to join as a lexus with i can’t okay, andrew will turn to you because you are helping with the launch of a new ngo, top level domain and in fact i was just because you mentioned it the other day. I was three weeks ago in morocco doing really doing, doing radio in morocco, actually, as part of it, right and all that brought you here. So that means you’re tony dot mm, exactly, right? So i mean, i just thinkit’s the world coming together and so perfect, right? So the idea behind a sze yu know the and that’s we’ve discussed that the internet has these amazing possibilities right for an especially corporate for non-profits if you think about it all around the world, non-profits many non-profits find themselves confronted by the same challenges they find themselves in need of partners, they find themselves in need visibility they find themselves in need of additional resource is and things like that. And thie as the internet. Azaz evan was describing there’s a tremendous interest in in in expansion of the internet so that so that more people can get on board can more people could take it, take use of it. There were historically twenty some or first there were thirteen and they were twenty some different. But they called generics. And this generics working like calm and like net. On like organ and the people public interest registry that brought as and have been managing dot or ge looked at this expansion of the internet that was proposed a few years ago and said, hey, there’s, a real opportunity or, like calm like that is an open space, okay, you do not need to be a non-profit to have a dot or go the most many, many orders are very interesting, right? Most are, but you don’t have to be don’t have dahna same way that you don’t have to be a company to be a dot com, you don’t have to be a network to be a dot net, but that was the original taxonomy of it, right? So they said, hey, this may make real good sense if we’re expanding the internet out this make make real good sense for us, get have a specific, targeted safe space for ngos to congregate on the web, right will give them additional tools that will allow them to meet up that will allow them to do things and for people to find them right and have a high level of confidence that this is the’s are, in fact, real. Ngos and that stems out of for a whole host of reasons i mean, one is the desire for ngos toe work together much more closely, which there, which is a huge issue around the world. Second one is there’s much, much more cross pollination and much, much more cross work between ngos from the global north and the global south. Donors are asking for the ngos themselves are asking for it. And yet, if you’re if you’re an ngo doing really great work on hiv aids in mali, it may be very difficult to get visible outside of bamako, right? And if you’re doing it from, you know, a secondary or tertiary city, its most impossible to do it. How will this new top level domain so the so the idea behind it is that way we create a a safe space, you get a dot ngo, a dahna omg and access to a portal and actually the ability to put up a little basic portal. Paige, if you’re if you like so that you could be found, you could be searched and found easily so that you can be you confined partners. You can share data with them. And you can import your own donate button. You know you’re on your own. You’re on your own don’t donate app when every whatever you would use i would like to use so that you could receive funds directly when i was in morocco is a perfect example, right i was in was in three cities in four and a half days was in robot casablanca in marrakech. We had a long conversation with the people in marrakesh. And he said, how many tourists come to america shevawn year and it’s hundreds of thousands. Right? So you think to yourself, wow, we met with remember that incredible woman she’s, a pharmacist who set up a she said open ngo to help deal with street children who were abandoned children who were abandoned the street. The babies are a bandit in the street and she said, you know i said, well, how many? How many of these tourists that come know that you exist? You can afford to fly all the way to america’s ah, fifty, dollar contribution is a nothing, right it’s a dinner and yet no one could find her and she couldn’t find them. This is the kind. Of thing that will allow her would connect in with other ngos doing similar kind ofwork and conceivably with tourists with hotels with other people who are of, you know, who would love to give her money and love to support her work and would never know that she existed. Okay, but tony there’s one there’s one important thing about this is that what andrew’s talking about? What dot ngo is doing is more than we’re just going to sell you a domain? Yeah. Now clearly wardle it’s a community where is the other ones that are doing like dot dogs there died n y c or a lot of these other let’s not let’s not know where i’m from it’s not put down and i see in the same category dot dogs it shouldn’t even be in the same sentence. You’re from new york. Yes, i’m yes. I’m wishing out there right now or dot bicycle or whatever the point is with most of these you by name you get a name it’s like dot com that’s it and you’re on your own right? This is not what this is deeper than that exactly how the gold? The goal. Is to create a real community and her career, a real international community with a lot of input. I mean, this is not a it’s p i r is helping to do the back and announcing the i r is right. The public interest registered the people who are doing the people who are running dot, dot launching dot ngo is the public interest registers people who do dahna arkwright, okay, they their goal, you know, there’s a there’s, a great sensitivity and it’s a valid sensitivity in the ngo communities and says who died and left you in charge? Right? And they’re very humble, and one of the things that we like about this approach is they’re very humble about it. They recognised that this has got to be a community organizer, you know, it’s got it’s, got it’s, got to be computer he organized pr can help the dot ngo people can help with the back end, but in the end, there’s going to be it’s about and for the ngo community itself, okay, with ngo governance and is part of it, you know. Like what you’re hearing a non-profit radio tony’s got more on youtube, you’ll find clips from stand up comedy tv spots and exclusive interviews catch guests like seth gordon. Craig newmark, the founder of craigslist marquis of eco enterprises, charles best from donors choose dot org’s aria finger, do something that worked neo-sage levine from new york universities heimans center on philantech tony tweets to he finds the best content from the most knowledgeable, interesting people in and around non-profits to share on his stream. If you have valuable info, he wants to re tweet you during the show. You can join the conversation on twitter using hashtag non-profit radio twitter is an easy way to reach tony he’s at tony martignetti narasimhan t i g e n e t t i remember there’s a g before the end he hosts a podcast for the chronicle of philanthropy fund-raising fundamentals is a short monthly show devoted to getting over your fund-raising hartals just like non-profit radio, toni talks to leading thinkers, experts and cool people with great ideas. As one fan said, tony picks their brains and i don’t have to leave my office fund-raising fundamentals was recently dubbed the most helpful non-profit podcast you have ever heard. You can also join the conversation on facebook, where you can ask questions before or after the show. The guests were there, too. Get insider show alerts by email, tony tells you who’s on each week and always includes link so that you can contact guest directly. To sign up, visit the facebook page for tony martignetti dot com. All right, all right. So, what way? Need some takeaways? We still have a good amount of time. We play time’s. Not that we’re not wrapping up yet. But what are some takeaways now for non-profits that have ninety nine percent of their there? Dot org’s people were talking to we’re listening. What? What should they? How did they take advantage of doubt, ngo, what do they what do they do? But first go to my office on monday. What do i do? Tow. Explore this more and see if i can. It makes sense for me. The first thing is to put an expression of interest and why. And what you do is you guys are laden with your acronyms. Oh, my god! Any? Oh, i an expression of inter prison of interest on. And what that does that puts you down puts you down is having expressed interest. There are a number of people who, for obvious reasons, have have names that might overlap, especially if you go by your acronyms. So, it’s, good to get your name down as early as possible. It gets you on the list. It gets you gets you information. About what? When? Things are going to roll out because it’s still, you know, with anything technical, where do you go? Where do you do where you do the eoe who’d buy something? Jodie cubine goto the one that i remember is g o t l d dot org’s. But there are others, and i’ll get you that in from okay, raymond. All right. So ngo tl d dahna latto or but if you could even also go to the p i r dot ord website as well, p i r dot org’s also. Right. So you know what i’m doing, listeners to be ableto take some actionable steps. Well, it hasn’t your well it hasn’t launched. It is a matter of getting getting on a waiting list. Effective bourelly theo, i stage its first hasn’t launched, right? Yo, i but so what do you know? So but the ideas it’s first come first served if you want to name that some other non-profit also wants to use the same name. So that kind of religion is that we don’t makes a lot of sense to get your eoe eoe eye your expression of interest in, you know, even if you may not have end up doing it that’s what right? But claim absolute claims in their advantage and claiming a space, of course. And then you get the choice later to actually use it or or let it let it let someone else that’s, right? It’s, not it’s, not a guarantee that you’ll get it, but and remember that space is only open to real ngos, right? So? So if a company cames in, if abc company wanted to come in, they wouldn’t qualify, so they won’t. They you know, they wouldn’t get a dot nt right, or an individual or on anything, even if i was doing that, even if you were an artist and even if you’re doing work for the public good, but still, you’re still not gonna qualify for dot ngos, correct. Okay, help zsystems sorry, what andrew’s getting out it’s, a vetting system. This is a real improvement over the previous system. Okay, we’re improving. No what’s, the what’s, the what’s. The next step then after the expression of interest what’s gonna happen. So where we are, we in the hole i can process just generally is is that is that as as these new names have been approved right then they have to get they have to go through their technical checkups and this kind of stuff. And then eventually that what they put into the root right then they become available. And so what? What will happen is over the course of the rest of the year, all of this stuff will be rolled out. There are new ones being rolled out every every few weeks. If i remember correctly that’s, right, and the one the ones for for dot ngo are going to be available late in the year. It looks like and when they’re available, everybody who’s on the list will get advance warning of everything that’s happening. Your people to follow it on on our on the websites and things like that. And then when and then and then when it when it when it, when it happens, when it comes live for sale and seven says it’s ah it’s a first come, first serve kind of thing there are, as you can imagine, a number of ngos that have the same name in different places around the world, of course. So if that’s one of the reasons why we’re encouraging people, especially people who are, you know, bigger networks that want to get in early, get torrio in now, as time goes on, there will be doing a whole host of launch events around this to try to sensitize people around the world and an important thing about this is it’s not just to do it for your own side, but share it with your network. This is a one of the great things about the dot ngo the community is that it will have a real network effect. The mohr ngos around the world that get into this community, the more people will be able to know, the more it’ll be easy for foundations and donors and individuals to say, i’m going to go there. I’m going to look for good, good people. I’m going to contribute. You may have heard of the of the work that people like eva are doing when you have a small micro lenders, you know, an individual can go on, give twenty five dollars to a to attu an entrepreneur in uganda imagine that on a huge scale for ngos around the world. And you got the idea that what what i’ve done, ngok very important to recognize that this is much deeper than just a top level domain, absolutely community it really worldwide commune and hopefully a real game changing technology for the ngo sector. Yeah, there’s going to be hundreds of these? I mean, a lot of them are just going to go to you and say, well, if you couldn’t get what you wanted and dot com come to us, this is something much bigger than that, okay, what else we got? Well, that was it sounds like a great wrap up, but i still want to spend a couple more minutes can tell you a bit about what we’d been doing around the world because i think it’s it’s pretty interesting stuff, okay, keep it, keep it relevant to our to our audio. Absolutely, absolutely it’s it’s just to give you a sense of what this is like, we’ve been actually talking with with ngo audiences around the world i think we’ve done them in, i don’t know maybe twenty different countries, at least, you know, morocco, senegal, cameroon, all over south america, india, singapore, delicate different places what’s so exciting about it is is that the feed back to the community has been that this is this is this is a really this is really good gig that they rupture, that they’re having a hard time, you know, they’re having a hard time getting the visibility and coming together because there’s not a common space. And so one of the things that we’ve we’ve made a big effort to do is to try to design all of the criteria for joining what it means to be an ngo real big challenge. What does it mean to be an ad to find across the world and be fair to everyone you got it? And so what we’ve made a big effort to do is to get impact input from the different communities around the world to say, well, you know, you know, you you know, the west african community better than us give us advice on what would constitute an ngo and so that’s been a great learning. Experience and and we’re continuing to we built this really great network of advisors and people who can give us input on, you know, does this work and and i’m guessing that this will be an ongoing process where, you know, as time goes on, well, will continue to refine and make this more and more and more appropriate to the local conditions as well as just a broad, broad international conditions i’m feeling i’m feeling very glad that non-profit radio is part of helping spread the word we’ll get, we’ll get nine thousand organizations. Well, tony it’s going to be very, very important, teo know about this kind of thing because you’re going to have this rollout of all these top level domains within the work i’m doing within at large, and i can’t there’s a really trust issue here that some of the domains, they’re just going to be a free for all, and anyone could be in there and there’s, no vetting their religions and so it’s important to know that there’s going to be some of them that are in this that are sort of a kind of above from the rest, okay? Glenn yeah, i like tio and to that is that i suggest connecting with i can the main staff, the vp, chris mondini would be a perfect person to be a host guest issue. Okay, we’ll talk about it. We’ll talk about that after. Can people get information at n g o t l d dot org’s their information they can and there’s a booth. The dot ngo. People have a booth right as you walk into this room. Well, but what are nine thousand aren’t here? So you get you a lot and i think there’s another one global tl d no global ngo dot dot or guy think also is it global ngo dot or believe that that’s, right? But d o t l d definitely okay, of course, that stands for non governmental organization. Top level domain you got learned all about. All right, glenn mcknight. I’m sorry. Yeah. Koegler mcknight, secretariat, secretariat of naralo you spoke the least, but i want to thank you very much for bringing this up, but i’m glad i’m glad i met you yesterday. And then you brought in andrew mac. Principle of am g global. Ok, am amglobal amglobal consulting is makes sense. And, of course, he’s also hoping with the launch of the dot ngo new top level domain on glen, also brought in evan leibovich, global vice chair of the at large advisory of what am i messing up, vice chair, global vice chair of the large advisory committee of of i can, which we all now understand is the internet corporation of assigned names and numbers i want thank you very much for revealing this this part of the back end of our magnificent internet and then also explaining the new top level domains. Gentlemen, thank you so, so much. Thank you so much. Pleasure, really joy. I don’t want a lot. I’ve never i’ve never heard this done in thirty minutes before. Okay, well, either we didn’t recover it superficially or we did a good job and kept a concise tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of ntc non-profit technology conference two thousand fourteen. Thanks so much for being with us next week. The halloween show. It won’t suck. I promise that if you missed any part of today’s show finding on tony martignetti dot com, it also did not suck. Where in the world else would you go pursuant? Lots of tools for small and midsize shops. You’ll raise more money, let’s. Just leave it at that this week. Pursuant dot com, our creative producer is claire meyerhoff. Sam liebowitz is the line producer. The show’s social media is by susan chavez. Susan chavez. Dot com on our music is by scott stein. Be with me next week for non-profit radio. Big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent. Go out and be great. What’s not to love about non-profit radio tony gets the best guests check this out from seth godin this’s the first revolution since tv nineteen fifty and henry ford nineteen twenty it’s the revolution of our lifetime here’s a smart, simple idea from craigslist founder craig newmark yeah insights, orn presentation or anything? People don’t really need the fancy stuff they need something which is simple and fast. When’s the best time to post on facebook facebook’s andrew noise nose at traffic is at an all time hyre on nine a, m or p m so that’s when you should be posting your most meaningful post here’s aria finger ceo of do something dot or ge young people are not going to be involved in social change if it’s boring and they don’t see the impact of what they’re doing. So you got to make it fun and applicable to these young people look so otherwise a fifteen and sixteen year old they have better things to do if they have xbox, they have tv, they have their cell phones me dar is the founder of idealist took two or three years for foundation staff to sort of dane toe. Add an email address their card it was like it was phone. This email thing is fired-up that’s why should i give it away? Charles best founded donors choose dot or ge somehow they’ve gotten in touch kind of off line as it were on dno, two exchanges of brownies and visits and physical gift mark echo is the founder and ceo of eco enterprises. You may be wearing his hoodies and shirts. Tony talked to him. Yeah, you know, i just i’m a big believer that’s not what you make in life. It sze, you know, tell you make people feel this is public radio host majora carter. Innovation is in the power of understanding that you don’t just do it. You put money on a situation expected to hell. You put money in a situation and invested and expect it to grow and savvy advice for success from eric sacristan. What separates those who achieve from those who do not is in direct proportion to one’s ability to ask others for help. The smartest experts and leading thinkers air on tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent.
← 15 NTC Videos: Technology Nonprofit Radio for October 30, 2015: Don’t Be The Founder From Hell & Chilling Laws And Regs →
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Tag Archives: Joe Cortese
A Movie A Day #336: The Bronx Bull (2017, directed by Martin Guigui)
Posted on December 11, 2017 by Jedadiah Leland
New York in the 1930s. Jake LaMotta (Morean Aria) is a tough street kid who is pushed into fighting by his abusive father (Paul Sorvino) and who is taught how to box by a sympathetic priest (Ray Wise). When Jake finally escapes from his Hellish home life, it is so he can pursue a career as a professional boxer. Ironically, the same violent nature that nearly destroyed him as a youth will now be the key to his future success.
In the late 60s, a middle-aged Jake LaMotta (William Forsythe) testifies before a government panel that is investigating that influence of the Mafia in professional boxing. LaMotta testifies that, during his professional career, he did take a dive in one of his most famous matches. LaMotta goes on to pursue an entertainment career which, despite starring in Cauliflower Ears with Jane Russell, never amounts too much. He drinks too much, fights too much, and gets into arguments with a ghost (Robert Davi). He also gets married several times, to women played by everyone from Penelope Ann Miller to Alicia Witt. The movie ends with Jake happily walking down a snowy street and a title card announcing that Jake is now 95 years old and married to his seventh wife. (The real Jake LaMotta died on September, 9 months after the release of The Bronx Bull.)
The Bronx Bull is a largely pointless movie about the later life of the antisocial boxer who was previously immortalized in Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull. In fact, The Bronx Bull was originally announced and went into production as Raging Bull II. Then the producers of the original Raging Bull found out, filed a lawsuit, and the film became The Bronx Bull. Because of the lawsuit, The Bronx Bull could cover every aspect of Jake’s life, except for what was already covered in Raging Bull. In fact, Scorsese’s film (which undoubtedly had a huge impact on LaMotta’s later life) is not even mentioned in The Bronx Bull.
William Forsythe does what he can with the role but, for the most part, Jake just seems to be a lout with anger issues. With a cast that includes everyone from Tom Sizemore to Cloris Leachman to Bruce Davison, the movie is full of familiar faces but none of them get too much of a chance to make an impression. Joe Mantegna comes the closest, playing Jake’s best friend. The Bronx Bull was not only shot on the cheap but it looks even cheaper, with studio backlots unconvincingly filling in for 1930s Bronx. The film’s director, Martin Guigui, occasionally tries to throw in a Scorsesesque camera movement and there are a few black-and-white flashbacks but, for the most part, this is the mockbuster version of Raging Bull.
Posted in Film, Film Review | Tagged Alicia Witt, Bruce Davison, Claudia Ferri, Cloris Leachman, Dom Irrera, Harry Hamlin, Jake LaMotta, James Russo, Joe Cortese, Joe Mantegna, Juliet Landau, Martin Guigui, Mike Starr, Mojean Aria, Movie A Day, Natasha Henstridge, Paul Sorvino, Penelope Ann Miller, Ray Wise, Robert Davi, The Bronx Bull, Tom Sizemore, William Forsythe | Leave a comment
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Greg Bell: Improving public education through collective impact
Author: Deseret News
Everyone has an opinion about the weather, Donald Trump, and how to fix our public education system. Four very rich and influential people have backed their ideas — about education, that is — with huge investments, it is reported. “Their bets have been as big as their egos and their bank accounts. Microsoft chairman (Bill) Gates, computer magnate Michael Dell, investor Eli Broad, and the Walton family of Wal-Mart fame have collectively poured some $4.4 billion into school reform in the last decade through their private foundations.”
Gates’ big idea was that high schools are too large, and that smaller, service-based schools could give students the individual attention they needed. He pledged $2 billion of his own money to bring these smaller schools about. Broad tried to train school boards, but found little payoff. “Graduates of his Broad Superintendents Academy and the dozens of MBAs he has placed in school district management, on the other hand, have largely measured up,” according to Broad.
All these investors favor the charter school concept. But charters haven’t lived up to their promise; they’re among the best and the worst of schools. Training principals, pay for teacher performance, business type dashboards have all been tried as well. “The bottom line? The billionaires aspired to A-plus impact, and came away with B-minus to C-minus results. …” Still, they’ve learned from their disappointments and are trying different ideas.
Asking how to “fix education” implies that it’s broken; yet Utah’s public education is serving many students and families well. Graduation rates are improving, as are some other important metrics. Still, for a host of reasons, many of which are not in the school system’s control, too many kids are missing the benefit of a great education.
Here’s why: “The greatest barriers to school success for K–12 students have little to do with anything that goes on in the classroom, according to the nation’s top teachers: It is family stress, followed by poverty, and learning and psychological problems.”
There is good news. A Harvard Business School paper has identified breakthrough efforts for business involvement in education in Cincinnati and Salt Lake City. Much of business investment in education goes to “nonprofit organizations that serve students outside the classroom. The tutoring, nutrition, counseling, mentoring and other services that these nonprofits provide are crucial for … students affected by poverty. But (typically) each nonprofit addresses only one part of a highly interrelated education system. The nonprofits seldom collaborate with each other. … The result is service delivery chaos.”
Thus, innovative business leaders have adopted an approach called Collective Impact (CI), which began in the early 2000s and was formally described and named by John Kania and Mark Kramer in their 2011 article. CI “shift(s) the service delivery system from chaos to coherence. CI focuses on developing a common set of goals for pre-K–12 youngsters (which) are critical for high performance.”
The Harvard paper continues, “In the Cincinnati and Salt Lake regions, for example, business leaders have been involved since early discussions of CI and have helped move the needle for tens of thousands of students.”
In Utah, the paper continues, “kindergarten readiness, 3rd-grade reading proficiency, and high school graduation rates, including those of English Language Learners, have improved.” Behind this success lies a lot of work. United Way, our backbone organization, placed a full-time community school director in each (Granite School District school chosen) as liaison between nonprofit service providers, the students and their families.
Currently, United Way’s CI initiative affects 12,000 students with more to be added soon. Some companies have gone all in to support this effort with both cash and volunteer hours. Savage Industries’ former CEO Allen Alexander, a volunteer tutor, observed: “This work gives our company its soul.”
Bill Crim, president and CEO of the United Way of Salt Lake, captures the essence of the Salt Lake region’s Collective Impact initiative: “(It’s) beginning to transform the complex ecosystem in which we live. We know that there is no single (party) that is responsible for the gains … we still have to make. It is truly the aligned action of multiple stakeholders from multiple sectors that is enabling more students to reach their potential.”
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Boston News
Phoenix News
A+E
V:Com
Studio 52 Featured Band of the Week: L.M.I.
Studio 52 Featured Band of the Week: Drive-By Bukkake
Studio 52 Featured Band of the Week: Mickey Rickshaw
RIP: J. Geils Band co-founder and guitarist J. Geils found dead at home
In Boston NewsMusic
By Michael Marottaon April 11, 2017
Studio 52 is a community artist space located in the heart of Allston, and is proud to support the Boston music scene and local artist community.
Note: This post is being updated…
There is sad news coming out of Massachusetts this evening as WCVB Channel 5 is reporting that Boston music legend J. Geils has died. He was 71.
WCVB broke the news around 7 p.m. local time.
Geils, born John Warren Geils Jr. and known professionally as J. Geils, was reportedly found dead in his home in Groton, Massachusetts. Early reports state he died of natural causes, and Groton police have confirmed his death.
Geils was the co-founder, former guitarist, and namesake of The J. Geils Band, most known for a raucous blues-led live show and sound as well as commercial hits like “Centerfold,” “Love Stinks,” and “Freeze Frame.”
A great American guitar slinger: J Geils, passed away today..
Rock in Peace. pic.twitter.com/3IZGCmXSJt
— Michael Des Barres (@MDesbarres) April 11, 2017
More from the Channel 5 report:
“Geils formed the band during his time at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, where he studied mechanical engineering. At Worcester, he formed J. Geils Blues Band with Danny Klein, Magic Dick Salwitz, Stephen Jo Bladd, and Peter Wolf, with Seth Justman becoming the last member before the band released its debut album in 1970.
The J. Geils Band was influenced by soul music and rhythm and blues, but it moved toward pop and rock by the time the album “Love Stinks” came out in 1980. After 11 albums, the band’s 12th album, “Freeze Frame,” hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts for four weeks in 1981 and remained on the chart for 70 weeks. The title track “Freeze Frame” made it to No. 4.”
Geils parted ways with J. Geils Band back in 2012. His town of Groton, where he lived for 35 years, honored him with a proclamation of J. Geils Day on December 1, 2009.
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Read Next: Montreal's Just for Laughs Festival Is the 'Coachella of Comedy'
August 9, 2000 12:00AM PT
The Cosmonaut’s Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved in the Former Soviet Union
They have forgotten us, pines a Soviet cosmonaut as he and his partner slowly, relentlessly orbit Earth, unable to communicate with the rest of humanity down below. Meanwhile, those on the ground look up for meaning, wondering whether someone is out there, watching us mostly unable to make emotional contact with the person standing right next to them. A clever metaphor in motion, David Grieg's play "The Cosmonaut's Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved in the Former Soviet Union,'' receiving its American premiere at La Jolla Playhouse, can at times be achingly evocative, especially early on. Lyrical writing, a gorgeously designed set and acting that captures the quirky peculiarities of a global cast of characters all contribute to a first act that presents the promise of a masterly, mature and important work. But in the second half, the characters become static, figuratively, and their musings become repetitive and dreary. What we're left with is a mood piece, affecting but disappointingly dry.
By Steven Oxman
Steven Oxman
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Oleg - Jan Triska Casimir - Kurt Fuller Vivienne/Sylvia - Gretchen Lee Krich Keith/Bernard - Mark Nelson Nastassja/Claire - Irina Bjorklund Eric/Proprietor - John Feltch Patient - Neil Vipond
They have forgotten us, pines a Soviet cosmonaut as he and his partner slowly, relentlessly orbit Earth, unable to communicate with the rest of humanity down below. Meanwhile, those on the ground look up for meaning, wondering whether someone is out there, watching us mostly unable to make emotional contact with the person standing right next to them. A clever metaphor in motion, David Grieg’s play “The Cosmonaut’s Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved in the Former Soviet Union,” receiving its American premiere at La Jolla Playhouse, can at times be achingly evocative, especially early on. Lyrical writing, a gorgeously designed set and acting that captures the quirky peculiarities of a global cast of characters all contribute to a first act that presents the promise of a masterly, mature and important work. But in the second half, the characters become static, figuratively, and their musings become repetitive and dreary. What we’re left with is a mood piece, affecting but disappointingly dry.
This now makes two shows, running simultaneously in the La Jolla Playhouse’s two spaces that start strong and finish in an unfulfilling fashion. “Cosmonaut,” though, is a lot more memorable than “Sheridan,” and its dramatic poetry is more accomplished. Scottish playwright Grieg has a unique voice, and director Neel Keller — with help from his highly creative design team, especially set designer Mark Wendland — delivers imagery that falls somewhere between “Dr. Strangelove” and Robert Wilson.
An egg-shaped steel cage, the cosmonaut’s spaceship revolves in a circle over the playing space. Below, a large rolling box, also metal, is the primary focus, representing a dance club in London at one moment and the shuttered windows of a home in Edinburgh the next. A turquoise chaise and table serve as hang-outs in different cities; a big, colorful map on the back wall gives us a sense of the global scope of the piece, with a list of cities running down next to it. A satellite dish joins the fray in the second act, the perfect emblem of the modern age, evoking how our technological world is somehow becoming conflated and yet more lonely at the same time.
It’s a problem, though, when the set is ultimately more interesting than the storylines, which interweave but don’t really pick up much steam. The characters, whom Grieg delineates with eccentric uses of language, include a married couple in Edinburgh (Mark Nelson and Gretchen Lee Krich), their pregnant policewoman neighbor (Irina Bjorkland), the husband’s Russian mistress in London (also Bjorklund), who happens to be one of the cosmonaut’s daughters; and an elderly relative of the wife (Neil Vipond), who can’t even manage to expel a complete sentence. There’s also a Norwegian World Bank official and a series of bartenders and waiters (French, English, Scottish), all played by John Feltch, and a French researcher (Nelson again) who’s convinced he can communicate with extra-terrestrials if only he can find the right words or music. Rounding out the cast are our lost, revolving cosmonauts (Kurt Fuller and Jan Triska).
As the play proceeds, Grieg almost seems to become disinterested in his characters as people; they start seeming like pure functionaries, spouting one more poetic monologue about their existential pains. There’s a lot of very pretty talk about how people don’t really talk to each other. For quite some time, it’s genuinely interesting to listen to, but once the show goes well past two hours, we begin to sympathize a bit more with one character’s claim: “Silence is heroic.”
The Cosmonaut's Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved in the Former Soviet Union
La Jolla Playhouse; 399 seats; $39 top
Production: A La Jolla Playhouse presentation of a two-act play by David Grieg. Directed by Neel Keller.
Creative: Set, Mark Wendland, costumes, Christal Weatherly, lighting, Geoff Korf; sound, Darron West; stage manager, Diana J. Moser; casting, Bernard Telsey Casting, Heidi Levitt Casting. Opened, reviewed Aug. 6, 2000; closes Sept. 3. Running time: 2 HOURS, 45 MIN.
Cast: Oleg - Jan Triska Casimir - Kurt Fuller Vivienne/Sylvia - Gretchen Lee Krich Keith/Bernard - Mark Nelson Nastassja/Claire - Irina Bjorklund Eric/Proprietor - John Feltch Patient - Neil Vipond
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Greta Gerwig and Oscar Isaac are taking on an adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” for New York Theatre Workshop in Manhattan. The company announced on Tuesday that they will feature two final performances to round out the 2019 to 2020 season, including the Chekhov play. “Three Sisters” will be directed by Tony award-winning Sam [...]
Montreal's Just for Laughs Festival Is the 'Coachella of Comedy'
Every summer, Montreal becomes the epicenter of the comedy world as the Just for Laughs Comedy Festival takes over the Canadian city. Now in its 37th year, the mindboggling scale of the festival is there in the numbers: more than 1,600 artists from across the globe (speaking English, French and other languages) performing 250 shows [...]
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Read Next: Disney Merges All Media Sales and TV Channel Distribution Under Justin Connolly
September 4, 2015 12:16PM PT
Google Plans to Bring App Store to China, Without Media Sales (Report)
By Janko Roettgers
Janko Roettgers
Senior Silicon Valley Correspondent @https://twitter.com/jank0 FOLLOW
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Google has plans to re-enter China and give Chinese mobile users access to its Google Play app store as early as this fall, according to a report by the Information. However, the Chinese version of Google Play won’t make media companies a whole lot of money: To appease censors, Google is planning not to sell any digital media through the store, according to the report.
A Google spokesperson declined to comment.
Google decided to pull out of China in response to cyber-attacks against it in 2010. It has since offered Chinese consumers access to its web search engine through servers set up in Hong Kong, but they don’t have easy access to Google’s mobile apps or its app store.
That’s despite the fact that Google’s Android operating system is extremely popular in the region: Android-based phones from both Xiaomi and Huawei outsold Apple’s iPhone in China during Q2 of 2015. However, both companies use modified versions of Google’s Android system that have replaced Google Play with their own app stores.
Google now wants to get back in the game by complying with local censorship laws, and also offering app publishers a more generous revenue cut that competing app stores, according to the report.
The rationale for getting back into the Chinese market is obvious: China has emerged as the world’s biggest mobile market, with companies like Apple now making more than a quarter of their money in China.
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Velodyne Lidar Showcases Groundbreaking Technology for Security and Safety Applications at the Unmanned Security Expo
Point Cloud from the Velodyne VLS-128™: providing industry-leading range and resolution to detect vehicles and people with unrivaled precision.
Velodyne Lidar, Inc. (booth #79) will exhibit its latest lidar technology for autonomous solutions in physical security and public safety at the Unmanned Security Expo New York. Velodyne’s lidar sensors enable essential mapping, navigation, and perimeter security capabilities in unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and unmanned ground vehicles (UGV) for commercial, government, and first responder applications.
“Our technology fuels autonomous aerial and ground solutions with a 360° view to see the entire environment around the system at a range of up to 300 meters. It is available in multiple form factors to support a variety of drone-based and ground-based applications.”
Unmanned Security Expo New York is co-located with ISC East and Infosecurity New York with more than 8,000 security and public safety professionals, buyers, and influencers expected to attend the events at the Javits Center on Nov. 14-15.
The Velodyne VLS-128™ enables autonomous aerial and ground solutions with a 360° view at a range of up to 300 meters.
Velodyne will feature a live demonstration of its VLS-128 lidar sensor, which provides industry-leading range and resolution, detecting vehicles and people with unrivaled precision under challenging environmental conditions.
“Velodyne Lidar helps security and public safety organizations keep pace with the changing threat landscape in protecting people and assets,” said Frank Bertini, UAV and Robotics Business Manager, Velodyne Lidar. “Our technology fuels autonomous aerial and ground solutions with a 360° view to see the entire environment around the system at a range of up to 300 meters. It is available in multiple form factors to support a variety of drone-based and ground-based applications.”
One of the most critical advantages of Velodyne’s lidar is the ability to detect threats in a 3D space, specifically in the air. Most intrusion detection technologies today can only detect ground-moving objects, such as people and vehicles. With the advent of flying drones and sky taxis, it is now imperative to be able to detect aerial intrusions and react accordingly. Many of these new aerial threats are too small to detect with conventional radar. Other technologies, such as pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras, struggle with their limited field of view. Velodyne’s lidar is the key technology in autonomously monitoring entry points to critical infrastructure such as tunnels, nuclear facilities, and high-rise buildings.
Due to their small form factor and low power consumption, Velodyne Lidar’s sensors are designed to facilitate integrating UAS and UBV devices with ground stations. Velodyne provides comprehensive documentation and support, as well as an expansive, global third-party integrator network. Velodyne sensors have built-in Robot Operating System (ROS) integration and can be daisy-chained together to create a cohesive network of multiple sensors.
Velodyne Lidar sensors help security and public safety organizations protect people and assets in an ever-changing threat landscape.
If you are a security professional who is interested in seeing Velodyne Lidar at the Unmanned Security Expo in New York City, on Nov. 14-15th, please contact Frank Bertini at fbertini@velodyne.com to secure a complimentary one-day hall pass.
LiDAR Q&A with Velodyne
Velodyne LiDAR Wins East Bay Innovation Award
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Montigny Could Be in Running for Senate Presidency
State House News Service File Photo
STATE HOUSE, BOSTON — Could there be a fifth Democrat in the running for Senate president in 2019?
The current Senate President Harriette Chandler seems to think so, but Assistant Majority Leader Mark Montigny, of New Bedford, firmly declared himself "not a candidate," before allowing that he would not be totally closed off to the idea if the opportunity presented itself.
"I think he is open to the idea if the right circumstances present," Chandler told a few reporters after Thursday's session, speaking of Montigny. She then declined to elaborate on why she believed the New Bedford Democrat was interested, saying, "You're going to have to talk to him."
Montigny, who was in his office after voting for the day had ended, a copy of the Wall Street Journal tucked under his arm, declined to comment at first, saying he was "not a candidate." But he then listened to the audio of Chandler discussing his openness, and elaborated.
"I can say this, as I said yesterday in the caucus, and it's the only thing I'll say, I've not asked one person for a vote. End of story. I think the Senate needs to be put back together," he said.
Senators on Thursday dropped the "acting" from Chandler's title and unanimously agreed to make Chandler the Senate president for the rest of 2018, a move intended to ensure stability amid a turbulent period marked by an investigation into Sen. Stan Rosenberg, the former Senate president, and interest in the permanent president's post from four other senators.
Sens. Sal DiDomenico of Everett, Eileen Donoghue of Lowell, Eric Lesser of Longmeadow, and Karen Spilka of Ashland have previously expressed their interest in the presidency.
While others interested in the Senate presidency in 2019 have been busy in recent weeks jockeying for support among their colleagues, Montigny said the only thing he has done is field calls from colleagues urging him to consider throwing his hat in the race.
"There have been lots of people calling and lining up votes, despite making agreements that the process would be respected. I'm not one of those. I have fielded calls from people who have certainly entertained that, and I said the same thing that I just said to you to every one of them: I care about the future of the Senate. I certainly will stand responsibly in the current position I have. I wouldn't say unequivocally that I wouldn't stand for it, but it's just not some raw ambition of mine, or I would tell you on the record and would have called every member to tell them the same," Montigny said.
Chandler appeared to inadvertently plant the seed of the Montigny candidacy as she was talking with a few reporters after Thursday's session about whether she would consider the four declared candidates for president as she looks to fill the vacant majority leader post.
"I don't know. They all have very important jobs, as far as I'm concerned. My chair and my vice chair of Ways and Means, and my Steering and Policy chair...there are five people actually... my Rules chair, and the fifth, I guess, is Sen. Lesser," Chandler said.
In addition to his assistant majority leader title, Montigny also chairs the Senate Rule Committee.
Montigny said he has not done anything, in his mind, to fuel speculation on his interest in the Senate presidency, nor has he asked any of his colleagues to put out feelers on his behalf. "I don't really do the dance," he said.
Montigny said he fully supported the decision by Democrats made Wednesday to make Chandler the president for the remainder of 2018.
"The reason we took the action yesterday was so we could actually do business," he said. "We have a lot of legislation. Of course, as Rules chair I have not only control of a lot of that, but the responsibility for it, and that's what I'm focused on. And we have a budget to do," Montigny said.
Chandler said she hoped by next week to choose a colleague to serve as majority leader, the position she held under the leadership hierarchy of Rosenberg.
"There's no reason why I should be holding on. I mean, we've got to get going here," Chandler said, suggesting the Senate was interested in moving more legislation.
She said she hadn't thought about not naming a potential presidency aspirant as majority leader, but agreed it was "a point" to consider when a reporter raised it.
Asked about changes she might make in the Senate, Chandler said, "I really want to just get moving and if you make too many changes you can't stay on track ... I'm not looking to change everything around."
--Matt Murphy and Michael P. Norton, State House News Service
Filed Under: harriett chandler, Mark Montigny, Massachusetts, new bedford, presidency, senate, senator, Stan Rosenberg
Categories: Articles, News, Politics, Southcoast News
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By: Meteorologist Michael Karow
Updated: Apr 22nd 2019
Upgraded Hurricane Michael
It was a storm that wrought over $25 billion in damage and was directly responsible for the deaths of 16 people as it roared ashore near Mexico Beach, Florida last October. A recent reanalysis of the weather data collected as Hurricane Michael made landfall has revealed that the storm was stronger than initially thought – a rare Category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. This makes Michael only the fourth Category 5 hurricane on record to strike the United States.
Initially forming in the Western Caribbean, just east of the Yucatan Peninsula, on October 7, Michael would attain hurricane status as it worked northward into the Gulf of Mexico. In the 24 hours before landfall, Michael underwent a period of rapid intensification, with the storm’s central pressure dropping 42 millibars. Unfortunately for the residents of the Florida Panhandle, especially in the vicinity of Mexico Beach, Hurricane Michael reached maximum intensity just as it was making landfall.
Upon re-examining the velocity data from Doppler radar sites near the landfall of the hurricane and correlating it with data collected from hurricane hunter aircraft, as well as satellite intensity estimates, Michael’s maximum sustained winds at landfall have now been estimated at 160 mph. This now bumps up Michael into the Category 5 range on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale which starts at 157 mph. Michael’s minimum central pressure of 919 millibars is the third lowest on record for a U.S. landfalling hurricane, behind only the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 and Hurricane Camille in 1969.
Selected wind observations and best track maximum sustained surface wind speed curve for Hurricane Michael, 7–11 October 2018 - [NHC]
Aftermath of Hurricane Michael in Mexico Beach, FL
High water level of Michael's storm surge (~14ft above ground level) - [USGS]
US Weather Spotlight: 10-29-18
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September 27, 2015 by janamejayan
॥ धन्वन्तरिस्तोत्रम् ॥
ॐ नमो भगवते धन्वन्तरये अमृतकलशहस्ताय,
सर्वामयविनाशनाय, त्रैलोक्यनाथाय श्रीमहाविष्णवे नमः ॥
चन्द्रौघकान्तिममृतोरुकरैर्जगन्ति
सञ्जीवयन्तममितात्मसुखं परेशम् ।
ज्ञानं सुधाकलशमेव च सन्दधानं
शीतांशुमण्डलगतं स्मरतात्मसंस्थम् ॥
मूर्ध्नि स्थितादमुत एव सुधां स्रवन्तीं
भ्रूमध्यगाच्च तत एव च तानुसंस्थात् ।
हार्दाच्च नाभिसदनादधरस्थिताच्च
ध्यात्वाभिपूरिततनुः दुरितं निहन्यात् ॥
अज्ञान-दुःख-भय-रोग-महाविषाणि
योगोऽयमाशु विनिहन्ति सुखं च दद्यात् ।
उन्माद-विभ्रमहरः हरतश्च सान्द्र-
मानन्दमेव पदमापयति स्म नित्यम् ॥
ध्यात्वैव हस्ततलगं स्वमृतं स्रवन्तं
एवं स यस्य शिरसि स्वकरं निधाय ।
आवर्तयेन्मनुमिमं स च वीतरोगः
पापादपैति मनसा यदि भक्तिनम्रः ॥
धं धन्वन्तरये नमः ॥
दीर्घ-पीवर-दोर्दण्डः, कम्बुग्रीवोऽरुणेक्षणः ।
श्यामलस्तरुणः स्रग्वी सर्वाभरणभूषितः ॥
पीतवासा महोरस्कः, सुमृष्टमणिकुण्डलः ।
नीलकुञ्चितकेशान्तः, सुभगः सिंहविक्रमः ॥
var स्निग्धकुञ्चित Bhagavatam 8.8.34
अमृतस्य पूर्णकलशं बिभ्रद्वलयभूषितः।
स वै भगवतः साक्षाद् विष्णोरंशांशसम्भवः ।
धन्वन्तरिरिति ख्यातः आयुर्वेददृगित्यभाक् ।
एवं धन्वन्तरिं ध्यायेत् साधकोऽभीष्टसिद्धये ॥
धन्वन्तरिङ्गरुचिधन्वन्तरेरितरुधन्वंस्तरीभवसुधा
धान्वन्तरावसथमन्वन्तराधिकृतधन्वन्तरौषधनिधे ।
धन्वन्तरङ्गशुगुधन्वन्तमायिषु वितन्वन् ममाब्धितनय
सून्वन्ततात्मकृततन्वन्तरावयवतन्वन्तरार्तिजलधौ ॥
धन्वन्तरिश्च भगवान् स्वयमास देवो var स्वयेमेव कीर्तिः
नाम्ना नृणां पुरुरुजां रुज आशु हन्ति ।
यज्ञे च भागममृतायुरवाप चार्धा var रवावरुन्ध
आयुष्यवेदमनुशास्त्यवतीर्य लोके ॥
Bhagavatam 2.7.21
क्षीरोदमथनोद्भूतं दिव्यगन्धानुलेपिनम् ।
सुधाकलशहस्तं तं वन्दे धन्वन्तरिं हरिम् ॥
शरीरे जर्जरीभूते व्याधिग्रस्ते कलेवरे ।
औषधं जाह्नवीतोयं वैद्यो नारायणो हरिः ॥
अयं मे हस्तो भगवान् अयं मे भगवत्तरः ।
अयं मे विश्वभेषजोऽयं शिवाभिमर्षणः ॥
अच्युतानन्त-गोविन्द-विष्णो नारायणामृत ।
रोगान्मे नाशयाशेषान् आशु धन्वन्तरे हरे ॥
इति धन्वन्तरिस्तोत्रं सम्पूर्णम् ।
http://sanskritdocuments.org/doc_deities_misc/dhanvantarIstotram.html?lang=hi
Temples and the State in India: A Historical Overview
http://indiafacts.co.in/temples-and-the-state-in-india-a-historical-overview/
This is the first of a new comprehensive series on Hindu Temples, their conception, history,…
M D Srinivas
Indology | 09-09-2015
This is the first of a new comprehensive series on Hindu Temples, their conception, history, heritage and legacy authored by M.D. Srinivas.
India indeed is a land of temples. Indian civilisation comprehends the entire creation to be a manifestation of the divine. It also understands that the Paramatma can manifest in the world as avatarafor the establishment of dharma from time to time. The places associated with the avataras as also the holy rivers, mountains, forests and other places sanctified by the presence of great rishis, bhaktas, and acharyas, are the great tirtha-kshetras, places which sanctify everyone. Further the Paramatma, out of infinite mercy for all beings, has made Himself accessible as archa vigraha, worshippable deity in various temples. This archa murthy can be either svayambhu, self-manifest or consecrated by great saints, devotees or acharyas.
Unlike a Church or Masjid, which are merely places of congregation and worship, the Temple insanatana dharma, i.e. Devalaya, Devasthana, Devayatana or Koil, is the sacred palace of the Deity who is a Sovereign Person.
Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati
The role of temples in Indian civilisation has been explained by the Paramacharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Pitham, Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati Swamigal in an interview in 1959:1
Our temples are not organised as places for meditation, nor for congregational worship. The purpose of a temple is different. We enjoy the goods of life, such as house, food clothing, ornaments, music, dance, etc. We pay a tribute in the form of taxes to the King – now the Government – for making it possible for us to enjoy them by giving us their protection. The King Protector is provided with a palace and other paraphernalia of royalty. Even as we render homage to the kings for the enjoyment of these things, we are bound to tender our gratitude to God who has primarily given us the good things of life. We offer a part of these good things as a token of our gratitude to Him in the temple. We first offer to Him all that he has given to us, in the shape of food, clothing, jewels, music, flowers, lights, incense, and so on with the grateful consciousness that they are His gifts to us; and we receive them back from Him as His prasada. The temple is the place where these offerings are made on behalf of the collective community where it is situated. Even if people do not go to the temple, it is enough that these offerings are made to God on behalf of the community. The duty of the people at the place is to see that these offerings are made in a proper manner. There have been people who would not take a day’s meal till the temple bell announced that the offering to God of food for the day had been made. Then only do they take their meal as God’s prasada.
Freeing Hindu temples from Government control – A Start is made
Reviving the Hindu Temple Ecosystem
The Present State of Hindu Temples: Morena as a Case Study
Government Control of Hindu temples: a Presentation
In another context, the Paramacharya has also noted that:2
If Hinduism has survived so long it must be due to some quality unique to it, something that gives it support and keeps it going. No other religion is known to have lasted so long. When I think of our religion I am reminded of our temples. They are not kept as clean as the churches or mosques…. Our sanctuaries are different because they are built of granite. Their foundations laid thousands of years ago still remain sturdy. … These temples still stand as great monuments to our civilization in spite of our neglect of them and our indifference. It is not easy to pull them down. Perhaps it is more difficult to demolish these edifices than it must have been to build them. Our religion, to repeat, is like these temples. It is being supported by something that we do not seem to know, something that is not present in other faiths… This something is varnashrama dharma.
The large number of temples in India:
Around 1820, when the British Government asked the collectors in various districts of the Madras Presidency to report on the number of religious institutions in their districts and their condition, it was reported that the twenty districts of the Presidency had over one lakh temples, chatrams and mathams. 3Most of the districts were reported to have about 300 to 400 major temples.
Adi Kumbeshwara temple – Kumbakonam
The Government at Madras reported in 1833 that 7,600 temples were directly administered by the Government, and that may be taken as the number of major temples in the Madras Presidency at that time.
We obtain similar estimates if we consider more contemporary reports on the number of temples in different states. The 2005-6 budget report of the Government of Tamil Nadu notes that there are 38, 409 Hindu and Jain religious institutions under its management. The Andhra Pradesh Endowment Department has 33,575 religious and charitable establishments under its management. There are similarly large numbers of temples under government management in several states.
There is another way of estimating the number of temples, by considering the number of localities. It is common knowledge that every locality in India has at least one temple, often several. From ancient times, the classical texts of India have enjoined that one should not stay in a place which is not sanctified by the presence of a deity.
The ancient great cities of Ayodhya, Mathura, Haridwar, Kasi, Kanchi and Ujjayani had (and most of them continue to have) several thousands of temples.
We can have some idea of how many temples there were in an average Indian locality in the eighteenth century by using the data of the survey of over 2000 villages in the Chengalpattu region around Madras, conducted by the British during 1767-1774.
The original Tamil records of the survey list the name, location and area of every temple in a locality. Unfortunately the data is not available for all the villages. In the available data, we do come across localities like Perunagar, near Kanchipuram, which had 33 temples. We find that each locality had four to five temples on an average.4
Though there would be enormous regional and sub-regional variations, it would be perhaps not too wrong if we estimate that on the average a locality in India would have four or five temples. And that would place the number of temples in the country to be more than two millions.
According to the 2001 census5 there are about 2.40 million “Census houses” which are classed as “places of worship” in the country. In 1991 this number was only 1.78 million and there has been a growth of 34.5% in the number of such places. It is not clear what the above growth represents. The census does not give the number of Temples, Churches, Mosques etc., separately.6
1 V.Raghavan, The Jagadguru, Madras 1965, p.48-9. Raghaven has reproduced the version of the interviewer, Arthur Koestler, as he published it in The Lotus and the Robot, London, 1960, p.54-63. Koestler says that he brought up the issue of “din and noise in Indian temples.” He then wanted to know whether this was the “reason why Indians with a meditative disposition had to resort to the solitude of the mountains or bury themselves in lonely caves.” The Paramacharya begins his answer by saying, “The case is just the reverse. Because solitude and a secluded spot have been prescribed from the oldest times, for contemplation, the temples do not have to serve that purpose.” The Acharya then goes on to explain the role of temples in Indian civilisation.
2 Hindu Dharma : The Universal way of Life, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mumbai 1995, p.660
3 Incidentally the number of Roman Catholic Churches in 1842 in the Madras Presidency was reported to be 847, of which 204 were in Madras city, 253 in the district of Madurai and 190 in Thanjavur.
4 It may be noted that a survey conducted by the Centre for Policy Studies in 1995, in about a hundred localities of the Chengalpattu district, found that the total number of temples had actually increased from what was recorded in the 1770 survey by more than 30%.
5 Census of India 2001, Tables on Houses, Household Amenities and Assets, H-1: Census Houses and the uses to which they are put.
6 According to a Christian missionary source, there were about 100,000 churches in India in 1987 which number has gone up to 350,000 by 2002 (http://www.mnnonline.org/article/5282) . Another source claims: “The number of churches in India has grown from 150,000, 20 years ago to some 400,000 today. That vast expansion means that there are more churches in India today than in the United States of America.” (Martin Robinson & Dwight Smith, Invading Secular Space: Strategies for Tomorrow’s Church , Monarch 2003, p.204). Incidentally the number of churches in the United States of America is estimated around 350,000. Islamic sources estimate the number of waqf properties in India to be around 300,000 in number. (Awkaf Experiences in South Asia, edited by Khalid Rashid, Indian Institute of Objective Studies 2002, page 124). However, it is not clear whether this gives any reasonable estimate of the number of Masjids and Dargahs in India.
Dr. M.D. Srinivas is Chairman of Centre Policy Studies, Member of the ICHR, Physicist, Sanskrit scholar, and author of numerous books including the widely-acclaimed Annam Bahukurvita and Indian Demographics.
Temples and the State in the Indian Tradition
The second part of the series on Hindu Temples, their conception, history, heritage and legacy authored…
The second part of the series on Hindu Temples, their conception, history, heritage and legacy authored by M.D. Srinivas.
Previous Parts of the Hindu Temple Series
Kings were the premier sevakas of the Deity
In recent times, the Vijayanagara Samrajya was a major effort at re-establishing sanatana dharma in Bharatavarsha. The Telugu chronicle on the Vijayanagara Samrajya, Rayakavachamu, begins with the following account of the daily routine of King Viranarasimharaya (the elder brother of Krishnadevaraya who ruled from 1505 to 1509), which clearly portrays the Indian ideal of a king functioning as the premier devotee and protector of temples:7
Statue of Krishna Devaraya
In the city of Vidyanagara, Viranarasimharaya [the elder brother of Krishna-devaraya who ruled from 1505 to 1509] …called the Great Court to assemble and then seated himself there. Sacred water and prasadam were brought from the 108 Tirupatis [temples of Vishnu] and sacred ash, scents and prasadam brought from the seventy-two temples of Siva.
The king rose and stepped forward, folded his hands in reverence and accepted the offerings. Then he raised his head again to greet the priests of Vishnu and Siva temples who had come from those distant places, requesting them to make themselves comfortable on seats befitting their honoured positions.
When the king asked the priests of the Vishnu temples if all was well and in order at the eight svayambhu kshetras of Srirangam, Srimushnam, Venkatachalam, Salagramam, Totadri, Naimisharanyam and Pushkara-kshetram, they replied that thanks to his lordships boundless majesty, the young officers appointed to assist the priests at the various temples were running matters so well that nothing further was needed and that, at the 108 Vishnu temples, all the daily rituals were being properly carried out.
The Siva temple priests reported that at the Panchabhuta Kshetras, temples dedicated to Siva in his forms as the five elements, earth, water, fire, air and akasa, namely Ekamranatha, Jambunatha, Arunachalesvara, Kalahastisvara and Chidambaram, as well as in the rest of the seventy-two temples of Siva and at the eighteen Devi Kshetras, all was prosperous, and the daily rituals were being carried out as they should be. When he heard this the king was greatly pleased and so he presented the priests with gifts of land.
Next he summoned Dharmasanam Dharmayya, the minister of religious gifts, who accordingly came forward and stood before the king. While the king listened Dharmayya reported: ‘In perfect accordance with your lordship’s orders, no one has caused either problem or misfortune for the residents of the brahmana villages in the Dravidadesa, Andhradesa, the Hayananadu, Morasanadu, Melnadu, Karnataka, Ghattamsima, Chera, Chola, Pandya, Magadha, Malayala and the other various localities. The inhabitants of these brahmana villages are devoted to the performance of the daily rituals; to the recitation of the four vedas; to the study of the six sastras; to the regular performance of the pancha mahayajnas; and to showing hospitality to guests. Fully devoted to their scholarly study, they are living comfortably in their villages’.
Next the king summoned his military commanders…
Virupaksha Temple
According to traditional Indian accounts, the kings Harihara and Bukka, the co-founders of the Vijayanagara Samrajya, are said to have handed over their kingdom, through Acharya Vidyaranya, to the deity Virupaksha at Vidyanagara (Hampi) and subsequently ruled their kingdom on the deity’s behalf. The same is recorded of the Gajapati kings of Orissa, at least from the time of Anangabhimadeva in the 12th Century, who referred to their kingdom asPurushottama Samrajya and themselves asPurushottama-sevakas, the servants of Sri Jagannatha. The Rajas of Thiruvanantapuram have traditionally called themselves asPadmanabha-dasas, the primary servants of the deity Padmanabhaswami at Thiruvanathapuram. On 3rd January 1750, Raja Martanda Varma made a public avowal of this relation when he made the celebrated Thrippati Danam of the entire kingdom in favour of in favour Sri Padmanabha Perumal.8
The duty of the kings with respect to temples: Dana (Gift) and Palana (Protection)
The main function of the kings or the state in the Indian tradition, in relation to temples and other religious institutions, was dana, making gifts and endowments, and palana, protection. Dana was not anything special to the kings, the records show that a large cross section of society made lavish donations to the temples, mathams and chatrams.
The dharmasastras lay down that that a king, whenever he makes a gift, should make a sasana, a written record, for the benefit of future kings. Thus, it is no wonder that most of the epigraphs and other records that have come down to us from ancient times are indeed records of such gifts made by kings and others for temples and other religious and charitable purposes. These have served as one of the major sources of historical information on state and society in India.
A majority of the gifts made by the kings are the so called “grants of lands” and even “grants of entire villages”. Here it is important to realise that kings in Indian tradition have only the right to receive revenue from the land in return for rendering protection; and when a king donates some land or even an entire village, what is being gifted away is only this revenue due to him and nothing else.
If a king wanted to confer ownership of some land on an individual or an institution, he had to first buy the land. The commentary Mitakshara on Yajnavalkya Smriti mentions9 krayena labhdhva. So do several inscriptions which mention how the king first purchased the given property and then gifted it away.10
The glory of Dana: Rajaraja’s endowments to the Great Temple at Thanjavur (c.1010)
The great Chola king Rajaraja I who ruled from 985 to 1014 AD, constructed the magnificent Rajarajeswvra or Brihadisvara temple at Thanjavur. The construction was begun in 1003, and thekumbhabhishekam performed on the on the 275th day in 25th year of his reign which is said to correspond to April 22, 1010 AD. The temple is built in a rectangular area 750 feet in length and 400 feet in breadth. The vimana of the main shrine rises to nearly 200 feet and is built on a square base of about 100 feet, is amongst the grandest such structures in India. During the period 1010-14, Rajaraja also made substantial gifts and endowments to the temple to ensure that it functioned as one of the richest and most magnificent temples of the period.
There are 107 inscriptions in the temple; nearly 64 of them pertain to the period of Rajaraja, which were published, with translation in 1891, as the second volume of the series South Indian Inscriptions11 . They give an idea of the grand economy of the temple as supported by the munificence of Rajaraja, his elder sister Kunthavai, his queens and other prominent persons of the period.
Carved figures on the walls of the Brihadeeshwara Temple
Rajaraja himself presented 41,559 kalanju (at 70 grains per kalanju, this would be over 500 lbs.) of golden articles, gold jewels worth 5100 kalanju(about 60 lbs.) and silver ware of 51,600 kalanju(about 600 lbs). His sister Kundavai gifted over 10,000 kalanju of gold (about 120 lbs.) and utensils of 9000 kalanju in gold (about 105 lbs.).
To ensure a regular income for the temples, Rajaraja assigned revenue from various villages of his empire. The inscriptions give details of the revenue assignments in 40 villages in Cholamandalam and 16 villages distributed over the empire, from Thondaimandalam, to Ilamandalam (Sri Lanka). Rajaraja’s inscriptions clearly mention the extent of lands in each village, the lands which were already exempt from paying any revenue such as habitats, flower gardens, tanks, channels, cremation grounds etc., the extent of the balance land and the revenue demand on it. The average revenue claimed is about 100 kalams of paddy per veli of land. Incidentally this implies a very high productivity of about 15 tons per hectare, if we note that 1 veli is about 6.5 acres and 1 Thanjavur kalam is about 60 kg of paddy and take the rate of revenue (as stated by the Chola kings in various places) to be one-sixth of the produce.
The total revenues assigned by Rajaraja to the great temple at Thanjavur, as recorded by these inscriptions, add to 144,500 kalams of paddy and 2800 kalanju of gold (which was roughly the cost of 11,200 kalams of paddy at that time). 12 The total revenue thus assigned amounts to about 9350 tons of paddy.
The inscriptions also describe grants made by Rajaraja to a host of shepherds for maintaining 4124, cows, 6924 eves and 30 buffaloes.13 In return for maintaining 16 buffaloes or 48 cows or 96 eves, the shepherds were required to supply I ulakku of ghee each day to the temple. In this way the temple received 158ulakku of ghee per day adequate to keep to keep 158 lamps burning.
Apart from this the inscriptions record that Rajaraja put together a large temple establishment and made assignments for their emoluments. The annual allocation to these temple functionaries is mostly stated in units of a pangu or share; each share is an assignment of 1 veli of land which yields a revenue of 100kalams of paddy per year. In all, the inscriptions mention 1001 functionaries14 and the annual allocations for these functionaries vary from a minimum of 0.4 share to a maximum of 2 shares.
One inscription gives details of 196 functionaries along with the names of the 144 villages from which they were drawn, and who were to pay for these functionaries. Among these are 174 brahamacharis (for temple paricharya) who were to get 1 padakku of paddy each day (amounting to 61 kalams a year) and 4 kalams each at the end of the year. This inscription also mentions 4 treasurers, 6 senior accountants who were to get 2 shares each and 12 accountants at 0.75 share each. Another inscription records 48Thiruppadiyam singers and 2 drummers who were to get 3 kurunis of paddy each daily (about 91 kalams a year) from the city treasury.
Another inscription records the name of 131 villages from which 143 tirumeykappu (protectors of the temple, the watch and ward) were to be drawn; they were to get 1 share each, which was to be provided for from the revenues of the respective villages.
Murals in the Brihadeeswara Temple
Another inscription records the allowances to be paid to 612 functionaries. Of these 400 aretallicceri pendugal (devadasis) who were to get a house and receive 1 share each. Their names, the names of the 69 temples where they were serving, are also mentioned along with the location of the house allotted. These houses were located along two long streets. Apart from these 212 other functionaries are mentioned who are to receive 180 shares in all. These included 6 dance masters (2 share each), 5 singers (1.5 share each), 7 nagaswaram players (1.5 share each), 16 musicians (0.75 share each), 66 drummers (0.5 share each), 1 master carpenter (1.5 share), 4 carpenters (0.75 share each), 1 master potter (1 share), 10 potters (0.5 share each), 7 lamp lighters (0.5 share each) and 10 parasol bearers (0.4 share each).
Further, the inscription also notes:
Instead of those among these share holders who would die or emigrate, the nearest relations of such persons were to receive that allowance and do the work. If the nearest relations were not qualified themselves, they were to select other qualified persons to do the work and receive the allowance. If there were no relations the other incumbents of such appointments were to select qualified persons from those fit for such appointments and the person selected was to receive the allowance.
Palana takes precedence over Dana
Though dana or making gifts for religious and charitable institutions, was a very important dharma or duty of the kings and every householder, and earned them great punya or merit, it was palana, protection, which was considered the supreme duty of the kings. In the sixteenth century, when the Pandyan King Abhirama Pandya assembled all the learned in his kingdom and asked them that between gift and protection which was greater, he was told:15
Palanam paramam loke danat pandyamahipate danat svargamavapnoti palanat acyutam padam iti pauranikassarve palanam paramam viduh asmanmatamidam deva palanam kuru pavanam
[Protection, O Pandya King, is superior in this world than gift. By gifts one attains heaven, but by protection the imperishable state. Thus all men versed in the Puranas have declared protection to be superior. This, O King, is our view. Render thou protection which is purifying.]
Palana or protection meant the protection of all the properties, and income, especially the endowments of revenue and lands made to the temples and its functionaries by the earlier kings and devotees, and more importantly, ensuring the functioning of the temple as per its sampradaya, customs and traditions.
All the sasanas, copper plate and stone inscriptions and other records of these endowments, declare that the endowment is to last as long as the Sun and Moon shine (achandrarka) and cite, in the end, a number of verses from the smritis (dharmasastras and puranas) which emphasise the importance of palana and the terrible sin that would befall one who violates this dharma. P.V.Kane gives over 40 verses some of which invariably appear at the end of every inscription.16 We may cite a few here:
svadattat dvigunam punyam paradattanupalanam
paradattapaharena svadattam nisphalam bhavet
svadattam paradattam va yo hareta vasundharam
sastivarsasahasrani vistayam jayate krimih
The primary duty of the king is protection of Dharma
In order to understand the primary responsibility of the state in relation to the Temples, it is important to understand the essentials of rajadharma in relation to society and its institutions.17 Palana, or protection is indeed the primary duty of state in India. Yajnavalkya states that:18
Pradhanam ksatriye karma prajanam paripalanam
[The primary duty of a kshatriya is to protect the people. ]
Protection of the people is to guard them against two sorts of dangers, those which come from outside and those that may arise in his kingdom. A King has to protect the people against the aggressive inclinations of his neighbouring or other states. Secondly, it is the protection offered against perils that threaten them within the kingdom. He should offer protection to individuals and institutions against thieves and oppressors and especially offer protection to the weak against the strong. Palana further includes protection of varta, the basic economic activity of agriculture, animal husbandry and trade, and ensuring livelihood for all.
Palana also implies protection of harmonious social order. All the classical Indian texts are unanimous that the role of state in relation to the society and its various institutions is not one of control, regulation, legislation or reform. It is essentially the protection of dharma.
To be continued in the next part of the series.
7 P.B.Wagoner, Tidings of the King, Honolulu 1993, p. 77-8.
8. In 1949, when the then Maharaja Chithira Thirunal was to take over as the Rajapramukh of the State of Travancore-Cochin, he informed the Government of India that it would not be possible for him to take the usual oath of office as the head of state as he had all the time been ruling on behalf of and as the servant of Sri Padmanabha Swamy. Finally a new precedent was created, where a letter was addressed by the Maharaja to the Government of India that he would give a solemn assurance (not an oath) that he would do his best to protect, preserve and defend the State of Travancore-Cochin, and this letter was read out by the Chief Justice in the presence of the Maharaja at the time of inauguration of the Union in 1949.
9 Vijnanesvara’s Mitakshara on Yajnavalkya II.17
10 Kane gives several instances of inscriptions, from the time of Ushvadatta (1st century AD), and later of the period of the Guptas etc., of the Kings having bought the lands which they donated (P.V.Kane, Historyof Dharmasastra, Vol. 2, Poona, 1974, p.856,864)
Temples and the State in the Indian Tradition: Part 3
The third part of the series on Hindu Temples, their conception, history, heritage and legacy authored by…
The third part of the series on Hindu Temples, their conception, history, heritage and legacy authored by M.D. Srinivas.
The state in India had no power to define or legislate what is dharma. On the other hand, the Brihadaranyaka Upanishat states that:19
Kshatrasya kshatram yaddharmah
Dharma is the sovereignty of sovereignty
Dharma, in its universal aspect, refers to rta or the natural order and harmony amongst all aspects of creation. There is also the dharma, of every constituent unit of society, the kulas or families, thegramas or localities, jatis or communities, srenis or professions, sampradayas or religious fraternities etc., which include the time-honoured customs and traditions, samaya, achara and vyavahara of these groups.
Manusmriti
Dharma in its universal aspect is the very principle of creation, and the state had no role in defining it. It was the great rishis and acharyas who served as the interpreters of this dharma which issanatana, eternal. As Manu states:20
Vedo’khilo dharmamulam tadvidanca smrtisile
Dharma as the achara and vyavahara of various groups was to be determined by the groups themselves and the State had no role in legislating them either. The primary duty of the King in India was to ensure protection to every group to follow their svadharma. As Manu states:21
jatijanapadan dharman srenidharmansca dharmavit samikshya kuladharmansca svadharmam paripalayet
Further, the kings in India were enjoined to protect and follow the desa-dharmas even in conquered countries. As Yajnavalkya states:22
Yasmin dese ya acaro vyavaharah kulasthitih
Tatghaiva paripalyo’sau yada vasam upagatah
When a new territory comes under one’s rule, the King should meticulously follow the achara, vyavaharaand kula-sthiti, the customs and practices of that region and the relevant group.
As regards settlement of disputes, the classical Indian position is that they are to be basically settled by the various component groups themselves. The role of the state is mostly as an arbiter for disputes between groups. The duty of the king to protect the dharma of every unit of society, kula, grama , sreni, etc., was equally valid even in respect of deviant groups such as pakhandis etc. As Yajnyavalkya states:23
sreninaigamapakhandigananampyayam vidhih bhedam caisam nrpo rakset purvavrttim ca palayet
Further, it is not only the major groups such as grama (locality), sreni (guild) etc., but all groups in general were entitled to settle disputes as per their time-honoured dharma. A famous injunction of Brihaspati is that:24
Kinasah karuka mallah kusidasreninartakah linginastaskarascaiva svenadharmena nirnayah
If the state had no role in legislating what is dharma of various groups and if its role in settling disputes was fairly limited, then what is the nature of rajasasana, the orders of the King? The classical Indian texts do consider this question in detail. Essentially, what emerges from such discussions as also from the examples available from the vast corpus of inscriptions, is that most of these rajasasanas are in the nature of vyavasthas or decisions of arbitration which are made in the context of settlement of particular disputes. It is very important to keep this highly circumscribed role of the state in India in mind, while we look at the relation between the state and the religious institutions.
Acarascaiva sadhunam atmanastustirevaca
The temples were managed by local bodies following established traditions.
From classical Indian position as regards the role of state, outlined above, it should be clear that the main duty of the King with respect to temples and religious institutions, namely palana or protection, in no sense implied any control or involvement with the administration of the institution or its endowments. He was to ensure that the properties and endowments to the temple or the religious institution and its functionaries were protected and that there were no obstacles in the way of the temple functioning as per the established customs and traditions.
Therefore, in the large corpus of dharmasastra literature, there is very little said on how temples and their endowments are to be administered and there is almost no discussion of how worship is to be organised. Such issues are sometimes discussed in the large number of sthala-puranas and other chronicles of various temples, the traditional histories of different sampradayas, and of course the various agamas which deal specifically with worship.
Kautilya in his Arthasastra states that the temple properties are to be managed by the elders of the locality:25
Baladrvyam gramavrddhah vardhayeyuh…devadravyanca
The large corpus of inscriptions which has survived in many of the temples clearly shows that, from ancient times, the management of temples has been invariably vested with a “local body” of Sthanikas, Sthanattar or Sthalattar. During the Chola times, they are referred to as the Variya-perumakkal (the elected or chosen elders). It is this body which accepted all the grants and gifts to the temple, administered the properties of the temple, appointed various temple functionaries and also participated in the deliberations on occasions when the king or his representatives arbitrated on disputes between different groups regarding the functioning of the temple.
We can have some idea of the composition of this local body of Sthanattar from an important inscription in Sri Venkatesvara temple at Tirumala. This inscription of 1390, while describing the share of the prasadams to be given to the Sthanattar, gives the following composition of this body:26
4 nirvaham for the Tirupati Srivaishnavas
3 nirvaham for the Sabhaiyar (Councillors) of Thirucchanur
1 nirvaham for the Nambimar (Archakas of the Temple)
2 nirvaham for the Kovil Kelkum Jiyars (the Periya and Chinna Jeeyar Swamis)
2 nirvaham for the Kovil Kanakku (Temple Accountants)
Tirupathi Temple.
It is important to note that this body ofSthanattars (comprising twelve members, as is stated in several other inscriptions also) had representation from the Sabha(council or assembly) of the locality, major temple functionaries (archakas and accountants), the religious leaders of the denomination associated with the temple (Jeeyar Swamis) as well as the local devotees (Tirupati Srivaishnavas). Most of the Indian temples have been closely associated with one denomination or other and the above composition is indeed a fair representative of the local committee of management in the case of most temples.
A study of the corpus of temple inscriptions and also of the sthala -puranas and other temple chronicles would show how the management of the finances, overall administration and organisation of worship at the temples, were supervised by the local body of Sthanikas in collaboration with other locality, community and denominational organisations and how the state’s role was essentially one of facilitating these bodies in their functioning and arbitrating in some of the disputes either between these bodies or with outside individuals and institutions. There was no authority for the state to interfere in the management of temple finances or in its administration or in the conduct of worship there. As regards the royal decisions regarding the settlement of disputes, such decisions were to be communicated to and implemented by the Sthanattars. Also the decisions were arrived at in the presence of and with the concurrence of the Sthanattars.
One scholarly study on temples and the state in pre-British India concludes that:27
Hindu kings …thus had two sorts of relationships to temple deities: endowment and protection. The latter aspect of their role, however, did not connote a capacity to legislate in the modern Western sense, nor did it imply centralised bureaucratic management of temple affairs. The effective bearers of royal commands, and thus of the “protective” function, were local, generally sectarian groups and leaders. Without endowment, the king would cease to place himself in an active relationship with the…deity and thus would fail to acquire the honour consecutive of sovereignty. Without protection, that is, without the authoritative royal ratification of local regulations by royal edicts (rajasasanam), the king would have abnegated his fundamental duty towards his subjects.
The inviolability of local traditions of worship
When the state has no direct role in the management of the temple and is duty-bound to protect the time-honoured traditions of the institution, there is indeed no question of the state having any say in matters of worship. The principle that no one from outside, however powerful or revered he may be, can seriously interfere in the established traditions of worship, is illustrated by a famous anecdote concerning the great Srivaishnava Acharya, Sri Ramanuja in relation to Jagannatha temple at Puri. This anecdote is mentioned in the traditional accounts of the life of the Acharya such as Ramanuja Champu, Prapannamritam and Ramanuja Divya Charitai.
Prapannamrita recounts28 that the Acharya, while on his way back from Saradapitha in Kashmira, visited Purushottama Kshetra (Puri) to have darsana of Jagannatha. He tried to persuade the archakas there to follow the Pancharatra mode of worship, as that was to give akshaya-phala, everlasting merit, and was the sure way to moksha. The archakas sought the refuge of Sri Jagannatha and obtained abhaya from him that their ancient mode of worship will not be disturbed.
Lord Baladeva, Goddess Subhadra and Lord Jagannatha.
Sri Jagannatha pleaded with the Acharya that: “O Jagadguru, I have made several divya kshetras follow your precepts, so let me have my way here. Let me freely enjoy myself here along with these people”. Still the Acharya thought within himself that he would somehow establish the Pancharatra mode of worship in this Purushottama Kshetra also. Sri Jagannatha, who felt that the Acharya would succeed in his endeavour and that would lead to immeasurable grief for his devotees, had no option but to employ his yogamaya to transport the Acharya to Srikurma Kshetra (Sri Kurmam in Andhra Pradesh) in the night while he was asleep.
It is important to note that this anecdote of the unsuccessful attempt by the Acharya to bring about a change in the mode of worship at the Jagannatha temple is presented in the traditional biographies of the Acharya, which describe his life and work with great respect and devotion. A somewhat abridged account of the same anecdote is also given in Madala Panji, the chronicle of the Jagannatha temple, where Sri Ramanujacharya is merely referred to as the “Acharya”. It is indeed of great significance that such authentic traditional accounts record that even great Acharyas and Bhaktas have no authority to alter the time-honoured traditional modes of worship. Such is the sanctity accorded to the dharma-vyavasthas of temples in the Indian tradition.
19 Brihadaranyakopanishat, I.14
20 Manusmriti I.6
21 Manusmriti, VIII.41
22 Yajnavalkya I.343
23 Yajnavalkyasmriti, II.192
24 Brihaspati cited in Vyavaharanirnaya, p.1
25 Kautiliya Arthasastram, 2.1
26 Tirupati Devasthanam Inscriptions, Vol. I, p.173-176
27 Appadurai, Worship and conflict under Colonial Rule, Cambridge 1981, p.71.
28 Prapannamritam, Ed. S.Krishnaswamy Iyengar, Puttur Vol. I, 1983, p.378 -85
29 Sita Ram Goel et al, Hindu Temples: What Happened to Them, Vols.I, II, New Delhi 1990, 1991. The list is contained in Vol.I, p.62-182.
The fourth part of the series on Hindu Temples, their conception, history, heritage and legacy authored…
The fourth part of the series on Hindu Temples, their conception, history, heritage and legacy authored by M.D. Srinivas.
Over history, the Indian temples have received great patronage and protection from the Indian Kings, they have also withstood great onslaughts. While nothing much is known about the way some of the earlier invaders, starting from the Persians to the Greeks, Sakas and Hunas treated the Indian temples, the Islamic invasion of India from the middle of seventh century singularly targeted the Indian temples for attack. This subject has been discussed at some length in a well-known study29, which also gives a list of about 2,000 Muslim monuments of today, which stand on the sites of deliberately demolished temples and in the construction of which materials from the demolished temples have been used.
What is perhaps noteworthy is that nearly 600 entries in the above list (30% of the total) happen to be located in the three southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, regions which are commonly supposed to have largely escaped from the Islamic invasion and conquest. Another important point which is noteworthy is that, it is not the so called Hindu temples alone which got destroyed in this onslaught.
Hiuen Tsiang
As has been noted in the above study, in the first half of seventh century, Hiuen Tsiang visited about 95 Buddhist centres in India each of which had between 50 to 500 Sangharamas and 1,000 to 10,000 Monks. The destruction of perhaps 50,000 or more Buddhist Viharas is also co-terminus with the destruction of the large number of Hindu temples in India.
Many temples however did survive the Islamic invasion and rule.The resurgence of sanatana dharma in the Vijayanagara Samrajaya and its successors in south India from the 14thcentury onwards, and later under the Hindavi Svarajya of Chatrapati Shivaji in the seventeenth century, and the rise of many regional kingdoms in north India which led to the end of Mughal rule in the eighteenth century, did restore the functioning and to some extent even the glory of our temples in many parts of India. This is borne out by several accounts in the eighteenth century of the functioning of our temples in various regions prior to the establishment of British rule there. We shall here present a few instances of the manner of functioning of our temples prior to the onset of British rule.
Integrating the regional polity: The great temples of Chengalpattu (c.1770)
A detailed picture of the way the temples and other cultural and religious institutions were maintained in the pre-British Indian polity in the 18th century is available from the detailed records of the survey conducted by the British, during 1767-74, of over 2000 localities in the Chengalpattu region, around the city of Madras.30 The survey records show that for the upkeep of various services and functions essential to the polity two kinds of arrangements were made. Firstly, a part of the cultivated lands of the locality, amounting to nearly a quarter of the cultivated lands, was assigned asmaniyam, lands whose revenue was assigned to the support of various functions and services. A more significant arrangement involved the allocation from the grain produce, which were known asswatantrams and merais, which together amounted to a third of the total produce.
In this way most of the services and functions were provided for and arranged at the locality level itself. Apart from the local temples and the cultural and religious establishment which received a share in the grain produce from their locality, there were a number of major religious and cultural institutions of the region which received a share of produce from several localities.
These allocations were in the form of merais. There were about 25 great cultural institutions which received a share of grain produce from more than 30 localities. The greatest of such institutions was the Varadaraja Perumal Temple at Kanchipuram which received a share from over 1,250 localities.
Temples were not the only cultural centres maintained thus. There were great Mathams such as “Kubhakonam Chikkodeyar”, Jagadguru Sankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Pitham then residing at Kumbhakonam, who received shares from over 300 localities. There were Muslim places like that of the Santhome Pirjada who received a share in the produce of over 100 localities. The Choultry at Tiruvottriyur received a share form nearly 50 localities. Thus the localities, while functioning as “self-sufficient autonomous republics”, were knitted together into a larger polity through the great cultural and religious institutions, apart from other administrative and military mechanisms.
The way the merais were received by these great temples is indicated by the following statement of a later Collector of Chengalpattu in 1840s:31
When the villages were originally assigned for the support of the institutions that which was given was, merely the proportion of the grain, or its equivalent in money which would accrue to the Government revenue, and … the collection of the revenue was then left in the hands of the persons controlling the affair of the temples &c …
While this could have been the situation at the time of the Chengalpattu survey around 1770, the situation changed drastically soon. The British Government as a matter of deliberate policy did not allow the great regional institutions of Chengalpattu polity to continue any direct dealings with the various localities of the region. The first Collector of Chengalpattu, Lionel Place, noted in his Report of 1799 that, soon after he became the Collector, he took over the “management of the funds of all the celebrated pagodas” into his own hands and allotted the expanses of the temples for their festivals and maintenance. By 1801, these were converted to “fixed money allowances” under a “permanent settlement”.32 Incidentally, as per Places accounts, the total merei was about 35%, and the temple mereiabout 4%, of the government share of the produce. They were estimated to be about 13.5% and 1.5% of the total or gross produce of the district.
Supporting a Great Establishment: Sri Ranganathaswami Temple (c.1818)
In response to the instructions of the Madras Board of Revenue, the Collector of Trichnopoly, Mr. C.M.Lushington sent a report33 in 1818, on the temples in his district, in which he included a detailed statement on the income and establishments of the “three principal temples”, Ranganathaswami temple at Srirangam, Jambukesvaraswami Temple at Tiruvanaikkaval and Tauyumanavaswami temple at the Rock Fort. As regards the importance of the Ranganathaswami temple, the Collector noted that Srirangam is held by the Hindus as a most holy place and that over a million persons assemble during the major festivals.
The Collector gave an inventory of the “property and articles” (jewels and other valuables) belonging to the temple whose value, he noted, “is estimated at the immense sum of SPs 2,21,664 – 4 – 3”. The collector’s report also includes a list of “persons employed in performing the ceremonies”. The total number of these temple functionaries adds up to 820 for the Sri Ranganathaswami temple, 201 for the Jambukeswaraswami temple and 146 for the Tayumanvaswami temple.
The list for Ranganathaswami temple includes 6 Sthalattars, 20 Archakas, 20 Adhyapakas, 20 Veda Parayanadars, 54 Sattanians, 20 Accountants, 80 Devadasis, 27 Musicians, 7 Potters, 5 Masons, 10 Sweepers and 90 “Brahmins attending in the pagoda”.
The Dharmasastra texts declare that the annadana, the Indian discipline of feeding anyone who happens to come at ones door is sadavrata, an observance, which is to be undertaken at all times and places
Unfortunately the report does not include any statement on the endowments or payments made to these temple functionaries. Such information is available for some of the smaller temples in the Baramahal area (later Salem District) at the time of British take over in the 1790’s. For instance, in the case of the Kshireshvaraswami temple in Palakkodu (in the present day Dharmapuri District), the Baramahal Records34 mention that the total income of the temple in 1793 was Chakrams 166-6-0, of which 46-6-0 were utilised for temple ceremonies. The rest were utilised towards emoluments of about 35 functionaries, which varied from about ½ chakram received by each of the four “masalgies” and 1 chakram which was received by each of the six “porters”, to 6 chakrams received by the “parpattegar” and by each of the two archakas.
Ensuring that no surplus remains: Sadavrat at Kedaranath (c.1800)
The Dharmasastra texts declare that the annadana, the Indian discipline of feeding anyone who happens to come at ones door is sadavrata, an observance, which is to be undertaken at all times and places. Thetitrtha-kshetras, the pilgrimage centres widely dispersed all over India, had large public endowments for the purpose of sadavrata, for free distribution of food to everyone. In the great kshetras of Badarinath and Kedaranath it was the Kings of Nepal who had made large sadavrat endowments in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
One of the Sasanas of Maharajah Rama Bahadur Saha35 in 1797 grants the entire revenues of the Pargana of Mahasuri for sadavrata at Kedarnath and for the requirements of the daily worship at the temple. It stipulates 12 chittaks of rice, 2 chittaks of dhal, and 2 tolas each of salt and ghee are to be given to each of the about 25,000 pilgrims who visited Kedarnath every year.
One of the important features of the aboveSasana is that it specifically lays down that any surplus which remained after defraying the above expenses was to be accumulated annually and spent in the Kumbhamela (at Hardwar) which takes place every twelfth year. This is based on the classical Indian principle that the state or public institutions were not to accumulate surpluses and ought to periodically distribute the entire accumulations away. We are in this connection reminded of the great Mokshaceremony performed by Raja Harshavardhana in the dana-kshetra of Prayaga, in which the entire royal treasury was distributed amongst people as charity.
Thriving on offerings by devotees from all over India: Tirupati Temple (c. 1800)
The wealth of the Sri Tirumala & Tirupati Devasthanams has always been legendary. This temple had somehow escaped Mohammeden invasion till mid-17th century. Around that period, the region came under the rule of Golkonda kings. It has been noted by Manucci, the contemporary Italian observer, that even Aurangzeb did not dare attack the temple in 1687 because he feared a widespread popular reaction.36
The fabulous riches of Tirupati temple, especially the wealth of gifts and offerings made to it by all class of devotees from all over India, was widely noted by European observers in the 16th and 17thcenturies. The account of Gaspar Correa of his visit in 1534, notes the large congregation at the temple during an utsavam:37
I have seen this festival (of the full moon of August) and the fair that is held on that day, this pagode-house being located in a large field, where people begin to gather with their bundles of goods fifteen days in advance, where three or four million people assemble, amongst whom there would be three hundred or four hundred thousand on horse, where one can find all the nations of people in the world, and as many goods as one can name from peoples mouths, in which I affirm that all the things in the world, nay in the universe can be found, and of each thing as much as one is searching for. I will write of only one thing here as the greatest achievement that I can relate, and it is this. When these peoples go to do their adoration at the pagode, they go washed and perfumed with sandal, dressed in their fine clothes, and arrayed with their gold jewellery, and the men shave their heads with a razor, leaving no more than a long thin tuft…And since there are so many people, as I have said, there are enough barbers to suffice for them, who are all set apart below some large trees, and they shave one head for only one copper coin which is called caixa [kasu]…
There is a Jesuit account of the Goanese ambassador being received by King Venkatapatiraya in Tirupati in 1602:38
The King was at Trepeti, which is a city two leagues from Chandegri, very beautiful and large and like another Rome for this Gentility [Hindus], on account of a greatly venerated pagoda that is there, where from this entire Orient there gather innumerable people, who come with great devotion and offerings to visit this demon which they call Permal…
There is the more detailed account of Abraham Rogerius, the Dutch Missionary at Pulicat in the 1640s:39
Some day’s journey from Paliacattta [Pulicat] is the very famous Pagode Tripeti, which has three festivals yearly. One is in September; at which time there is a great confluence there-wards from all directions, particularly of the Soudraes [Sudras], or common folk; who all come with gifts. The second is in December. At which time one finds for the most part Bramines with their gifts. The time of the third festival I am unable to ascertain. So that since, Tripeti has so many visits, it must necessarily have many incomes. It is also said that this Pagode yearly would have an income of 60, 70, 80 thousand pagodas all of which result from the gifts and offerings that are brought here. Since these Heathens do not come there with empty hands, but to discharge by means of gifts the promises they have made to the Pagode, on the occasion of recovering their good health, or to give thanks for some other benefit received, so that this Pagode has become extremely powerful and rich….the Kings used to allow the Pagodes to keep these, and nothing was taken out of the treasury, unless it were needed for the upkeep of the Pagode…
The Tirupati region passed on to the rule of the Nawabs of Arcot in the first half of 18th century. According to the British records compiled around 1800, the Mohammedan rulers started the system of blackmail, known as “renting out” the temple in “return” to the protection offered to the institution. This led to the introduction of various types of pilgrim taxes and fees for “sevas” in the temple. Apart from this, the devotees continued to shower Sri Venkatesvara with kanikais or offerings.
On the death of Nawab Anwaruddin in 1749, the British extended support to Muhammad Ali Wallajah for being installed the Nawab of Arcot and, in return, he assigned the revenues of Tirupati, estimated to be around 2.5 lakh rupees, to the British. The offerings of the devotees to the temple continued to be a major source of revenue for the British for nearly hundred years.
The Tirupati area came under direct British rule after the death of Mohammad Ali’s son in 1801. It was made a part of the North Arcot District and the temple came under the direct management of the Collector. One of the accounts of that time mentions that the temple owned 187 villages of which 40 belonged to the various temple functionaries and 124 were under the management of palayakkarars.40 A detailed report on the temple and its finances was submitted by the Collector Stratton in 1803, wherein he also noted:41
Three principal Gopurams or portals are erected on the slant of the hill on the road leading to the pagoda which Hindoos only are allowed to visit, all other castes being restricted from passing the portal which is erected near the foot of the hill about half a mile distant from the village of Tripatty. In such veneration is even the hill held that pilgrims resorting to the pagoda prostrate themselves on the ground on first getting a sight of the range of hills connected with it…
The pagoda in which this famous idol is placed must no doubt be of great antiquity, but not being allowed to visit it, the only information I have derived on this subject appears in some degree fabulous – the Bramins of the pagoda asserting that its erection took place at the commencement of the Caliyug… of which 4903 years have elapsed. It being generally understood as written in the Bhaveesheottarum Poorana that the worship of Vishnoo will cease at the completion of 5000 years from the commencement of Caliyug, should the prophecy be fulfilled, we may in about a century more expect a material decrease in the revenue of the Tripatty pagoda.
… during the Hindoo Government the whole of the collections from the pagoda, were disbursed in religious ceremonies and that only since the commencement of the of the Mahommadan Government in the Carnatic have those charges had a limit and the surplus net revenue been conveyed into the coffers of the state.
The first and the principal source of revenue at the Tripatty pagoda is from the Canukulu [Kanika] or oblations…These oblations are frequently sent by the inhabitants residing north of the Tombudra [Tungabhadra], by means of Ghoseyns [Gosayis], but people from the rest of the peninsula either attend with their oblations in person or send them by means of relations or friends. The names of 21 Ghoseyns are registered at the pagoda who obtain flags from the idol which they carry to their different countries and which they expose for 2 or 3 months before the annual festival, when those who are desirous of accompanying them in the pilgrimage assemble in crowds round the banners of each leader and those who cannot attend in person, trust them with their oblations…
During 1823-32, the average annual income of the Temple was Rs. 181, 341, of which Rs. 108,580 was from the kanikais or offerings of the devotees, and Rs. 28, 523 was the “tasdik” allowance from the government in lieu of the resumed maniyams and merais. The average annual expenditure on the Temple was Rs. 31, 256. Excluding the other expenses also, the average net annual income to the government from the Temple was stated to be Rs. 108,167. 42
36 Niccolao Manucci, Storia do Mogor, or Mogul India (1653-1708), 4 vols., rep New Delhi 1990, Vol. 3, p. 135-9
37 Gaspar Correa, Lendas, cited from Sanjay Subramanyam, An Eastern El Dorado: The Tirumala -Tirupati Temple Complex in Early European Views and Ambitions, 1534-1660, in D.Shullman Ed., Syllables of Sky, Oxford 1995, p.338-390.
38 Cited in Sanjay Subramanyam, 1995, cited earlier.
39 Abraham Rogerius: De Open-Deure tot het Verborgen Heydendom, cited from Sanjay Subramanyam, 1995, cited above.
40 Mackenzie Manuscripts, Vol. XVI, p.476 to 476-dt, cited in N.Ramesan, The Tirumala Temple, Tirupati 1981, p.462-464.
41 Report of G.Eo.Stratton dated 31.1.1803 to the Board of Revenue (Reprinted in, N.Ramesan, 1981, cited earlier, p.495-503).
42 K.T.Viraraghavacharya, History of Tirupati, Vol. II, Tirupati , 1954, p.927-8
Continuing the series on Hindu Temples, their conception, history, heritage and legacy authored by M.D. Srinivas….
THE STATE CONTROL OF TEMPLES DURING BRITISH RULE
Temples managed by the Collectors and the Board of Revenue
Whenever any area came under the administration of the British, the management of the major temples was immediately taken over by the local administrative authority. After the constitution of the Board of Revenue in Madras in 1789, the management of religious institutions began to be vested under its overall scrutiny with the Collectors functioning as the local authority. In 1796, the Government at Madras decided to take over the collection and distribution of all temple revenues in the territories under British control.43
A system of fixed compensatory payments was initiated for all the contributions, in the form of maniyamsand merais from various localities that were traditionally collected by the temples.
The Madras Presidency in 1913
By 1800, the British were in control of most of the areas that were administered for the next 150 years as the Madras Presidency, and the Board of Revenue was instructed to adopt the same procedure for taking charge of the temples and their endowments in the new areas that came under British control. This system was formalised by the Regulation VII of 1817. The ostensible purpose of the regulation was set forth in its preamble:
Considerable endowments have been granted in money, or by assignments of land or of the produce of the land by the former Governments of this country as well as by the British Government, and by individuals for the support of mosques, Hindu temples, colleges and choultries, and for other pious and beneficial purposes; and … endowments [are] in many instances appropriated, contrary to the intentions of the donors, to the personal use of the individuals in immediate charge and possession of such endowments; and… it is the duty of the government to provide that such endowments be applied according to the real intent and will of the granter.
In fact, the first such Regulation was Regulation XIX of Bengal passed in 1810; and a similar Regulation was passed in Bombay later, in 1827. The Madras regulation was stated to be “compiled from the Regulation XIX of 1810 of the Bengal Code”. It clearly vested with the Board of Revenue and the District Collectors “general superintendence of all the endowments in land or money” made “for the support of Mosques, Hindu Temples, Colleges and other public purposes, for the maintenance and repair of Bridges, Choultries or Chatrams and other public Buildings and for the custody and disposal of escheats”. 44
In practical terms the Board, based on the recommendations of the District Collectors, appointed and supervised the work of the temple trustees. If it was “discovered” that the temple endowments were “misused”, the collectors had the powers to “take over” the temple management. And the cost of all this “administration” was the first charge on the endowments made to the temples in each district.
The overall policy was clearly articulated in an article by the then collector of North Arcot on the Tirupati temple which appeared in the Asiatic Journal in 1831:45
The whole of the revenue of the temple, from whatever source derived are under the management of and appropriated by the circar or Government. A regular establishment is entertained paid by salaries…
Passing through the Bagalu vakili or silver porch the pilgrims are admitted into a rather confined part and are introduced to the God in front of whom are two vessels, one called the Gangalam or vase, the other Kopra or large cup and into these things the votaries drop their respective offerings and making their obeisance pass through another door. At the close of the day, the guards, both peons and sepoys round these vessels are searched. Without examination of any sort offerings are thrown into bags and are sealed…after which the bag is sent down to the cutcherry below the hill Govindarauz pettai. At the end of the month, these bags are transmitted to our cutcherry… and there they are opened, sorted, valued and finally sold at auction. However during the Brahmotsavam either the collector or a subordinate must be on the spot due to the value of the offerings…
And on this duty I was bound when I wrote from Chandragiri. I have little more to add except the average revenue of the last ten years. The annual net proceed from this source is about 87,000 rupees. In 1822 collections were 142,000 and odd, but this is exclusive of expenses, wherewith 20,000 may be deducted. In 1820 or fusli 1230, the collections were 102,000.
You may perhaps start at such organised system of religious, or rather you will say profane, plunder on the part of the government…as an admirable specimen of what, with other things, should draw down vengeance of heaven on us. The fact is this: we find that the resources of the pagoda were legitimately enjoyed by the mussalman government, for services earned with blood and presence, and that at the risk of losing our trade on the coramandel coast. One of the first rewards, or rather poor payment was this revenue; and it has been paid unremittingly ever since…
It was a strange but determined piece of policy when throughout the country the pagoda lands were resumed by the company and tustik allowances were granted in their place…Now let us contemplate the result of this plan. From one end of the country to the other, the pagodas are ruined, unmaintained…The revenues of Triptty are on a gradual decline and will die in the lapse of years a natural death. Some of the most celebrated temples in the country are worse off. But there are still, alas, many more strongholds of the devil.
In 1833 the Board of Revenue instructed the Collectors to prepare a consolidated statement, in a given format, giving the total income and disbursements made for the religious institutions, for the ten year period from 1823 to 1832. The Collectors were asked to specify the net revenue of the religious institutions both from lands and other sources, separately for the temples which were under the immediate management of the Government, and for those which were managed by the temple managements. They were also required to state the fixed allowances paid by the Government.
Further they were asked to give the total revenue collected by the government, total disbursements made and the balance with the Government. These details were to be given, wherever available, separately for the Hindu temples, chatrams, mathams, waterpandals, nandavanams (flower gardens), schools, brahmadeyams and other maniyams, yeomiahs (pensions), langarkhanas etc., and mosques.
It was found that the total income received by these institutions was about Rs. 40.56 lakhs and the total disbursements were about Rs. 38.83 lakhs. The largest income and disbursement, to the tune of nearly Rs. 10 lakhs, were in Thanjavur. There was a large balance of over Rs. 1.18 lakhs in the case of North Arcot because of the “surplus” generated by Tirupati temple. The total balance amount of about Rs. 1.74 lakhs pertained to all the religious charitable institutions, those managed by the Government as well as those privately managed. It was noted that the income of the Government managed temples was about 60% of the income of all the temples, though the number of temples under Government management were only about 7600 in the entire Presidency. This shows that most of the major temples were under the direct management of the Government.
The debate on a Christian state administering heathen institutions
The above review of the total disbursements made to the temples was undertaken at the behest of the Government of India, in the context of the instructions from London that the Government should “withdraw” from the administration of Hindu religious institutions. The policy decided upon by the Board of Governors, and communicated by the by the Court of Directors in London to the Governor General on 20 February, 1833 was that:
Toleration and civil protection of [Hindu] religion must on no account be converted into patronage of what is at variance with precepts and practices of Christianity.
The new policy statement also included a declaration of “withdrawal” from the management of Hindu religious institutions:
In all matters relating to their temples, their worship, their festivals, their religious practices, their ceremonial observances, our native subjects [shall] be left entirely to themselves.
The Lion Gate of Jagannatha Temple in Puri from the Archaeological Survey of India Collections: India Office Series (volume 24: ‘a’ numbers), taken by William Henry Cornish around 1868.
This policy was arrived at after three to four decades of heated debate in England. Starting in the 1790’s and more intensely from the first decade of the nineteenth century, the involvement of the State in the administration of Hindu temples came under vocal attacks by groups in England on the grounds that it amounted to support by Christian government of practices offensive to Christianity. The celebrated temple of Jagannatha at Puri was one of the main targets of the missionary attack.
After the British take over of Orissa in 1803, the British Government passed Regulation IV of 1806 taking over the supervision of the celebrated Jagannatha temple at Puri. Soon, there were mounting objections to the involvement of the Government with the administration of the temple. In a famous speech before the Cambridge University on July 1st, 1810, the Missionary Claudius Buchanan declared:46
I resolved …to visit the chief seat of Hindoo religion, for which purpose I made a journey to the great temple of Juggernaut which is to the Hindoos what Mecca is to the Mohammadans, the stronghold and fountain-head of their idolatry…Many of the pilgrims die by the way, and their bodies remain unburied, so that the road to Juggernaut may be known, at least for fifty miles, by human bones which are stewed in the way. On the great day the idol was brought out…It had the character of crudelity and impurity. Men and women devoted themselves before the Moloch. I myself beheld the libations of human blood. I give you this record because I witnessed the fact.
In view of such propaganda, the Court of Directors of the East India Company wanted to initiate moves to dissociate the Bengal Government from the direct administration of the temple, especially from the collection of the “pilgrim tax”. But the real authority which controlled all Indian affairs, the Board of Commissioners for the affairs of India, did not concur with the proposal at this stage.
Jagannatha’s Rathayatra again figured prominently in the famous speech of William Wilberforce in the debate in the British House of Commons during June-July 1813:47
A gentleman of the highest integrity, and better qualified than almost anyone else to form a correct judgement in this instance; I mean Dr. Carey, the missionary, has calculated that, taking in all the modes and forms of destruction connected with the worship at the temple of Jaggernaut in Orissa, the lives of 100,000 human beings are annually expended in the service of that single idol.
Because of the effort of the group of Evangelicals led by Wilberforce, the British Parliament resolved that Christianisation of India was the solemn duty of the British Government. This led to the unrestricted “opening” up of India to missionaries with full freedom to condemn and malign Hindu religious practices and institutions. It also led to the setting up of the Ecclesiastic Department as a part of the Government of India. There was no move however to dissociate from the administration of temples and the management of their large resources. These were in fact formalised by the various regulations such as the Madras Regulation of 1817.
Public attention in England continued to be focused on the Government’s patronage of all that is offensive in Hindu religion as evidenced by the State collecting taxes and making allowances for the running of Hindu temples and more so by the involvement and visible presence of Government officials in the Hindu festivals. Various Christian memorialists in Britain and India charged the governors and administrators of being “The Dry Nurse of Vishnu”, “The Churchwarden of Juggernaut”, etc.
The rathayatras in some of the great South Indian temples also involved a large scale involvement of the Collectors, starting from the recruitment of persons needed to pull the car to the supervision of these festivals where a large number of pilgrims gathered. For instance, it was reported in 1830 that the celebrated ratha of the Thyagarajaswami Temple at Tiruvarur, in Thanjavur District, required about 12,000 persons to draw it – the largest of the six ropes used for the purpose being 1260 feet long.48 In 1828, Robert Nelson, Sub-Collector at Thanjavur, wrote to the Collector Nathaniel Kinderslay attacking the “evils “ of the recruitment system and pressing for the Company’s total withdrawal from any involvement in recruitment operations. In reply, the Collector agreed that the system did entail loss of revenue to the Government and hardship to the officials. While agreeing that idolatry was undeniably an evil, and that its support should be deprecated he argued at some length that the Company could not afford to lose the goodwill of the people by withdrawing its support for these festivals. He confessed his belief that the “progress of Christianity in the East” seemed to depend upon the “permanency of British empire in India”, and that therefore “even the most zealous Christians” should be careful not to do anything “which may tend to weaken the efficacy of this apparently chosen instrument.”49
It was under such pressure, both from subordinates in India and from the ruling establishment in England that the Court of Directors, in February 1833, notified the Government of India of the policy of generally withdrawing from the association Hindu ceremonies and institutions.
Still there was seemingly no change in the all round involvement of the Government in temple administration and ceremonies. This led to further protests in England and India. On February 1, 1838 the Commander-in-Chief at Madras, Sir Peregrine Maitland sent his resignation protesting against the orders from London issued the previous year that none of the customary salutes or marks of respect to “Native” festivals be discontinued at any of the Presidencies.
While Maitland’s resignation created a major sensation, there were other resignations as well in 1838, like that of Robert Nelson, the former Sub-Collector of Tanjore, who contended that he could no longer serve two masters – the East India Company, which required civil servants to “to assist and uphold idolatrous worship in India” and the Lord Jesus Christ, who instructed him to “flee from idolatry”.50
The situation was serious and the President of the Board of Control, Sir John Hobhouse had to give an undertaking to the House of Commons, in early August 1838, that the Government would take urgent action. On August 8, 1838, the Court of Directors transmitted the following instruction, explicitly drafted by the Board to the Governor General (along with Maitland’s letter of resignation):51
You should accomplish, with as little delay as may be practicable, the arrangements which we believe to be already in progress for abolishing the pilgrim tax, and for discontinuing the connection of the Government with the management of all funds which may be assigned for the support of the religious institutions in India. We more particularly desire that the management of all temples and other places of religious resort, together with the revenues derived therefrom, be resigned into the hands of the natives; and that the interference of the public authorities in the religious ceremonies of the people be regulated by the instructions conveyed in the 62ndparagraph of our despatch of 20th February, 1833.
It may be noted that both the despatches of 1833 and 1838 were sent under protest by the Court of Directors, as per the directives of the Board of Commissioners which was the supreme body for deciding on the policies concerning India.
Summarising the debate in England, one scholar has remarked:52
The problem of the connections between of the Company with religious institutions in India became mainly a matter of dispute between home politicians and high officials of the Company in India on the one side and administrators of the East India Company on the other side. Whereas the latter justified the support of the religious institutions like the Jagannatha temple with pragmatic political arguments…the former strongly opposed these links with moral and Christian missionary arguments and condemned it as state sanction of idolatry. “At the heart of this reforming enthusiasm lay the doctrines of liberalism and evangelicalism. Though radically different in origin – the one a movement of religious revival, the other a doctrine of defiant secularism – [when it came to decrying Hinduism] evangelism and liberalism had much in common.”
A few years later, in 1843, the authorities in London were very angry with the Governor General of India, Lord Ellenborough, for bringing back the gates of the Somanatha temple from Ghazni to India. Strongly condemning the act of the Governor General in the British Parliament, Thomas Babbington Macaulay stated:53
Somnath temple, 1869
It is lamentable to think how long after our power was firmly established in Bengal, we grossly neglecting the first and plainest duty of the civil magistrate, suffered the practices of infanticide and Suttee to continue unchecked. We decorated the temples of the false gods. We provided the dancing girls. We gilded and painted the images to which our ignorant subjects bowed down. We repaired and embellished the car under the wheels of which crazy devotees flung themselves at every festival to be crushed to death. We sent guards of honour to escort pilgrims to the places of worship. We actually made oblations at the shrines of idols. All this was considered and still considered, by some …as profound policy. I believe that there never was so shallow, so senseless policy. We gained nothing by it. We lowered ourselves in the eyes of those whom we meant to flatter. We led them to believe that we attached no importance to the difference between Christianity and heathenism. Yet how vast the difference is! I altogether abstain from alluding to topics which belong to divines. I speak merely as a politician anxious for the morality and temporal well being of society. And, so speaking, I say that to countenance Brahminical idolatry, and to discountenance that religion which has done so much to promote justice, and mercy, and freedom, and arts, and sciences, and good government, and domestic happiness, which has struck off the chains of the slave, which has mitigated the horrors of war, which has women from servants and playthings into companions and friends, is to commit high treason against humanity and civilisation.
Gradually a better system was introduced. A great man…Lord Wellesley led the way. He prohibited the immolation of female children…In the year 1813 parliament gave new facilities to persons who were desirous to proceed to India as missionaries. Lord William Bentinck abolished the Suttee. Shortly afterwards, the Home Government sent a despatch to Calcutta…That despatch Lord Glenelg [Lord Chas Grant] wrote – I was then at the Board of Commissioners, and can attest the fact – with his own hand…That was in February, 1833. In the year 1838 another despatch was sent…Again in the year 1841, precise orders were sent out on the same subject…The orders were, distinctly and positively, that the British authorities in India shall not decorate these temples, shall not pay any military honour to these temple. Now Sir, the first charge which I bring against Lord Ellenborough is that he has been guilty of an act of gross disobedience…
He ought to have known, without any instructions from home, that it was his duty not to take part in disputes among the false religions of the East…But…he has selected as his object of his homage the very worst and most degrading of these religions and as the object of his insult the best and purest of them. The homage was paid to Lingamism. The insult was offered to Mahometanism. Lingamism is not mere idolatry, but idolatry in its most pernicious form…
The duty of our Government is as I said, to take no part in the disputes between Mohametans and idolaters. But, if our Government does take a part, there cannot be a doubt that Mohametanism is entitled to the preference. Lord Ellenborough is of a different opinion. He takes away the gates from a Mohametans mosque and solemnly offers it as a gift to a Pagan temple. Morally this is crime, politically this is blunder. No body who knows anything of the Mahometans in India can doubt that this affront to their faith will excite their fiercest indignation…Remember what happened at Vellore in 1806, and more recently in what happened at Bangalore. The mutiny at Vellore was caused by a slight shown to Mahometan turban; the mutiny of Bangalore by disrespect said to have been shown to a Mahometan place of worship. If a Governor General had been induced by his zeal for Christianity to offer any affront to a mosque held in high veneration by Mussalmans I should think that he had been guilty of indiscretion such as proved him to be unfit for his post.But, to affront a mosque of peculiar dignity, not from zeal for Christianity, but for the sake of this loathsome God of destruction, is nothing short of madness.
Earlier Parts of the Series on Hindu Temples
Administering the temples through judiciary (1863-1925)
In 1841, the Governor of Madras, Elphinstone, had emphasised that the policy of withdrawal did not mean that the Government was giving up its “duty” of ensuring that the endowments were “protected from misuse and embezzlement.” He cited the communication from the London Court of Directors to explain the British policy on this issue:54
Sir Mount Stuart Elphinstone
The Court of Directors manifestly intend that ample protection shall be given to native religious institutions… for they declare that such protection is to be given through the medium of the Courts of Justice at the same time that they desire that that Pagoda Funds shall not be managed or appropriated by Government officers.
This was reiterated by the Government of India while laying down the policy withdrawal, cited above, when they declared that the management of native religious institutions “should be left to those best qualified and belonging to the same faith, and these officials together with their subordinates were to be responsible to the Court of Justice for any breach of duty or trust.” 55
While the policy was clear, it had still to be given effect through a new regulation replacing the Act VII of 1817. The Act XX of 1863, which came on the statute book on March 10, 1863, divided public religious endowments to two classes, which later came to be known as the “non-hereditary” and “hereditary” temples. In the case of the first
category of institutions the nomination of the trustees, managers and other administrators were vested in the Government. For the superintendence of these institutions, the Government were to appoint once and for all local committees of three or more persons (in each district) to take the place and exercise the power of the Board of Revenue under the earlier Act of 1817. Appointment to the local committees could be effected through election. After the committees had been formed the Board of Revenue and the local agents (collectors) were to transfer to them the properties of the endowments in their possession or under their supervision.
For the “hereditary temples”, the management and properties were to be left in the hands of the trustees or managers who, though free from the control of the local committees, were liable to be sued in the Courts by any person interested in them for any breach of trust or neglect of duty.
This brings us to the crucial second tier of control set up by Act XX of 1863, namely the jurisdiction of the Courts. Sections 14 and 15 of the Act stipulated:56
Any person or persons interested in any mosque, temple or religious establishment, or in the performance of the worship or of the serviced thereof, may…sue before the Civil Court the trustee, manager or superintendent of such … religious establishment or the member of any committee …for misfeasance, breach of trust or neglect of duty…and the Civil Court may direct the specific performance of any act by such trustee, manager, superintendent or member of committee, and may also direct the removal of such trustee, manager, superintendent, or member of a committee.
The interest required in order to entitle a person to sue under the last preceding section need not be a pecuniary, or a direct or immediate interest or such an interest as would entitle a person suing to take any part in the management or superintendence of trusts. Any person having the right of attendance, or having been in the habit of attending, at the performance of the worship or service at any mosque, temple or religious establishment, or of partaking in the benefits of any distribution of alms, shall be deemed to be a person interested within the meaning of the last preceding section.
So, to start with, any person “interested” in the religious establishment as per the above stipulation could initiate a suit. To make the Courts the central agency of the State for the control of religious institutions, a new Section, Section 539, was added into the Civil Procedure Code in 1877, under which the Attorney General, acting on his own initiative, was empowered to bring suit to “prevent mismanagement” in both hereditary and non-hereditary temples.
As one scholar has remarked:57
The most significant feature of Section 539 dealt with what were called temple “schemes”. A court was empowered to settle a “scheme of administration” on a temple if the Court deemed that no other short range remedy was possible.
This step had far reaching implications. A “scheme” typically prescribed the in detail the way in which a temple was to be administered. It could specify the respective duties and privileges of different temple functionaries, the use to which temple funds were to be put, and even the kinds of rituals to be conducted. The court was effectively in a position to chart a temple’s future development, economically administratively and religiously…there were few, if any limits, to judicial jurisdiction.
Section 539 was further revised into Sections 92 and 93 of the Civil Procedure Code in 1908. Incidentally it may be noted that the above Section was directly modelled on a particular portion of the English Charities Procedure Act of 1812, popularly known as Sir Romilly’s Act, which was meant to provide a summary remedy for mismanagement of English trusts.
Sri Bhaskara Setupati, the Raja of Ramanathapuram
As an illustration of the way “custom” and “tradition” were decided, fixed and enforced by the judiciary, we may consider the dispute between Sri Bhaskara Setupati, the Raja of Ramanathapuram, and the Nadar community in late nineteenth century in relation to the rights of worship at the Minakshi Sundareswarar Temple at Kamuthi. There was a dispute at that time between the Maravars and Nadars about their relative status, and consequently the Nadars were being denied honours at this temple managed by the Maravar community. After an incident in May 1898, when a group of Nadars “forcibly entered” the temple and demanded honours, the Raja as the “hereditary trustee” filed a case that disgrace had been brought both to the temple and its community of devotees. The further proceedings may be recounted as described in a recent study:58
The Judge in the original suit of 1898 was astute and methodical in elucidating most aspects of transactions in South India. But although he was puzzled that witnesses did not refer to the Nadars as polluting, he nowhere seems to have understood the place of temple-honours and the relationship of the Setupati to them in determining relations between communities. After amassing an impressive body of information, he determined that it was the custom in the Kanmuthi temple to exclude Nadars from worship. The case then went to the High Court, and subsequently to the Privy Council.
Of particular interest in light of the Judge’s determination that Nadars had customarily been excluded from the temple was an attempted compromise in the year 1901. The Nadars and Setupati announced their proposed agreement. The Setupati agreed to allow Nadars to worship in the temple, with one qualification.
They were to worship “in the same manner and to the same extent as the Vellala, Chetty and other Sudra sects of the Hindu community.”…
Having considered the joint proposals of the Nadars and the Setupati, the Judge concluded that it was unacceptable. The lower court judge had found that the prevailing custom at the Kamuthi temple had been to exclude Nadars from worship therein. In light of this custom therefore, the Setupati, according to the High Court Judge, did not have the power to enter into a compromise which would “alter the fundamental character and uses of the temple as ascertained by judicial authority.” Seven years after this proposal of compromise, the decision of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council sustained the decision of both lower courts.
One scholar has summarised the developments during the period 1878-1925 as follows:59
The decisions of the Anglo-Indian judicial system in respect to the Hindu Temples after 1877 were guided by the…Act XX of 1863 and the Civil Procedure Code of 1877, 1882 and 1908. In the period between 1878 to 1925 an immense body of case law was generated all over India, which defined the scope of every clause of these sections, refined their applicability, explicated their interrelationship… [They] provided the framework as well as the impetus for a vast body of pan-Indian litigation in the period between 1878 and 1925, which provoked judicial codification of a large variety of rights, wrongs and rules concerning “public” aspect of conflicts in Indian temples…
He has also presented an incisive contrast between the management of the temples under the Hindu Kings and the system evolved by the British:60
Because the activities of the Indian kings in respect to temples were ‘administrative’ and not ‘legislative’ and because their resolutions were context specific and not absorbed into a general body of evolving case law, it is no surprise that a ‘law of endowments’ had not developed; instead, only an inscriptional record of specific instances of royal intervention and arbitration existed. But this seeming gap was rapidly filled by the British impulse to legislate and codify….…royal orders and judgements in respect of temples were not legislative, in so far as they were always addressed to specific groups and individuals, were not of general applicability, were subject to alteration or repeal according to the current needs of kingship, and could not fix the law or even strictly serve as illustration…
..unlike their Hindu predecessors who preferred to leave the day-to-day control of temples in local hands but did not hesitate to arbitrate of whatever sort, the British gradually expanded their day-to-day involvement in the temples, but grew increasingly reluctant to resolve temple disputes. The institutional separation, under British rule of ‘executive’ from ‘judiciary’ created ambiguities in the arbitration of temple disputes. Such ambiguities did not exist in the previous royal context…Given the contrast between the context-bound nature of Hindu royal orders made to resolve temple disputes and the generalising tendencies of the case law of the British courts (which grew immensely important after 1870), it is no surprise that the temple and the Anglo-Indian judiciary grew entangled in a growing cycle of interactions, which resolved little but provoked much new conflict.
Restoring bureaucratic control: The HRE Act (Act II of 1927)
Edwin Samuel Montagu was Secretary of State for India
The Government of India Act 1919 ( what is otherwise known as the Montegue-Chelmsford Reforms) provided for elected provincial councils, with jurisdiction over specified areas. Among the powers “transferred” to elected Indian representatives was the authority over religious endowments.
The Justice Party dominated Government in Madras with the Raja of Panagal as the Chief Minister, appointed a Committee in 1921 with Raja of Ramnad as the Chairman to draft a bill. At the instance of Sir Mohammed Habibullah the Muslim endowments (which had been included in the purview of the 1863 Act) were excluded from the scope of the contemplated bill.
When the issue of exclusion of the Mohammedan endowments was criticised by members who wondered whether the Government believed that the Mohammedan religious endowments were better managed than the Hindu ones, the Raja of Panagal replied that:62
I have no doubt that Honourable member will readily agree that the Khilafat question still disturbing the minds of the Islamic communities, the time is not quite suitable for undertaking legislation in regard to Mohammedan religious endowments.
As soon as the bill of 12 of 1922 was passed in 1923 and sent to the Governor for assent, several protests, memorials and presentations were addressed to the Governor asking him to withhold assent. A sammelana was organized by the Paramacharya Chandrasekhara Sarawati of Kachi Kamakotipeetham in Jambukeshwara in 1923, and another meeting of Dharmacharyas was held in Udupi. The Acharyas declared that the bill strongly violates the religious neutrality of the Government, guaranteed in the proclamation of queen Victoria in 1858 and reaffirmed in the Montegue-Chelmsford Report as also in the various statements of the British Viceroys. They pointed out that Mathams were not trusts, nor the Mathadhipatis trustees, and they should not be subject to any higher Government control than what exists in ordinary law and usage. They expressed their total disapproval of the new scheme of control of temples by a Board of paid commissioners and to the provisions which permit diversion of surplus funds towards secular objects such as education and similar purposes.63
During the debate in the Legislative Council in 1926, several features and clauses of the Bill were hotly debated. Many who had earlier supported an expanded state role in the administration of temples backed off, as they foresaw that the actual effect could be to further the Justice Party’s view of Hinduism.
Sri S. Satyamurti, the leading spokesman of the opposition Congress Party, vehemently criticised, what he referred to as the “extraordinary” provision of the bill vesting authority on the dhittams (or dittam – Anglo-Indian legalese for thittam or vyavastha, which in this context means the allocation made by the temple for daily worship and festivals) with the secular authority of the Board:64
This is the crux of my objection to this section. According to modern notions, to the committees and to the Board it will seem a wastage for instance to have a thousand plantains on the head of the deity or two thousand coconuts. But we believe that by offering these rich and varied offerings to the deities in the temples we are doing something meritorious. ..Are you going to vest in all these committees and the Board, without any test [of their faith] whatever, the right to determine the dhittam?
Opposing the provision of the bill empowering the Board to deploy “surplus income” of the temples, an authority which was so far vested in the Courts, based on the so called cy pres principle, Sri Satyamurty argued that the Board might well manipulate temple budgets to create artificial surpluses. But the main objection of Sri Satyamurthy was against the policy of Government control of religious institutions. He declared:65
…the complaint in this country is against over Government and against the initiative of the people and their capacity for local self-government being impaired. In this bill, even with regard to the most sacred right, we are asked to rely upon and look to the Government. The result will be…that just as the blighting hand of over Government has set upon our administration, the blighting hand of this Government will also fall tight on our temples and maths …
Sri Mayasaya, one of the bill’s most forceful opponents, tellingly referred to the difference between the Indian state in the former times and the Government of the day which sought to justify the provisions of the bill on the ground that kings in former times intervened in temple affairs:67
It has been said that the kings in the past interfered with the religious endowments and why then do you now object to the interference of the State as now constituted? The very constitution of the State will show the difference. Our kings in the olden days, the Hindu kings endowed properties for the temples and maths. They appointed trustees and constituted themselves as trustees. That is how they exercised their kingly duty of interfering with temple properties. But what is the case now? The Government which has got an ecclesiastical department for itself has nothing to do with the endowments of properties of the Hindus, yet wants to interfere with the religious institutions.
One interesting feature which emerged during the debate on the bill was that with such a draconian legislation of control coming into force, many communities and regions started making the claim that the temples of their area or community were not “Hindu” at all. A member from South Canara argued that the temples in his area were not “Hindu temples” but belonged to separate and independent “communities”. A representative from Malabar pointed out that in his area, perhaps with the exception of Palaghat, there were no villages, but only tarawads and the temples of tarawads were not public temples.68
Notwithstanding all this opposition, the Hindu Religious Endowments (HRE) bill was first passed as Act I of 1925 and later as Act II of 1927. The Act provided a machinery of supervision and administration, involving the Board of Commissioners, the Temple Committees and the Trustees and servants of the institutions. Under the Act, the religious institutions were divided into excepted temples, maths and non-excepted temples. The Board of Commissioners had direct jurisdiction over the excepted temples and maths and the Temple Committees exercised general superintendence over non-excepted temples.
54 Letter of Elphinstone, dated 12.2.1841, in G.O. 210, Public 2.3.1841, cited from F.A. Pressler, Religionunder Bureaucracy, Cambridge 1987, cited earlier, p.2
55 Tamil Nadu State Archives, Revenue Consultations, 15. 6.1841, p.4318.
56 cited from A.Appadurai, Worship and Conflict Under Colonial Rule, Cambridge 1981, p.170.
57 A. Pressler 1987, cited above, p.25-6.
58 Carol Appadurai Beckinridge, From Protector to Litigant – Changing Relations between Hindu Temples and the Raja of Ramanad, in South Indian temple: An Analytical Reconsideration, Ed. Burton Stein, New Delhi 1978, p.102-3.
59 Appadurai, 1981, cited earlier, p.175.
60 Appadurai, 1981, cited earlier, p.169-170, 214-5.
61 Notes on Letter 1892, L & M dated 18.10.1922, cited in C.Mudaliar, The State and Religious Endowments in Madras, Madras 1976, p. 65.
62 Proc. of Madras legislative Council, 19.12.1922, Vol.10, p.1006, cited from C.Mudaliar 1976, cited above, p.72.
TEMPLES IN INDEPENDENT INDIA: STILL IN A STATE OF SIEGE
The Constitution of India does not offer any protection to Sanatana Dharma
Indian independence was the result of a determined struggle by almost all sections of the Indian people with the hope that it will lead to the establishment of a polity that is informed by the fundamental principles of sanatana dharma, known to all Indians by the term Ramarajya. Such a polity would have been based on the traditional Indian view of state and society and their relationship, a polity where great emphasis would have been placed on the role of the state as the protector of dharma as we noted earlier.
Sardar Patel, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Baldev Singh and others signing the Indian Constitution.
However, when India achieved its Independence, the task of preparing its Constitution was essentially handed over to lawyers and administrators, experts in western constitutional jurisprudence and its application to India under the British rule. The resulting document was a reworking of the 1935 Government of India Act. Even if it drew no inspiration from the traditional Indian view on society and polity, the Constitution could still have recognised the social reality of India, the crucial role played by its organic units such as the locality, the communities based on kinship, profession or religious affiliations, and the traditional institutions all of which play a major role in Indian public life. By refusing to recognise their role in Indian public polity, the Constitution also turned a blind eye to the primary duty that was enjoined on any state in Indian tradition, namely the of protection of dharma – which in this context meant warding off all obstacles in the way of the constituent units of Indian society and their institutions functioning as per their time-honoured traditions.
Instead, the Indian Constitution guaranteed certain fundamental rights to individuals and groups, rights which were at the same time heavily circumscribed for “reasons of state”. For our purposes, we only need to consider those provisions of the Constitution which pertain to the right to equality, right to freedom of religion and the cultural and educational rights, which are reproduced below:
Right to Equality
Equality before law.—The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.
Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.—
(1) The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them.
(2) No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them, be subject to any disability, liability, restriction or condition with regard to— access to shops, public restaurants, hotels and places of public entertainment; or the use of wells, tanks, bathing ghats, roads and places of public resort maintained wholly or partly out of State funds or dedicated to the use of the general public.
Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any special provision for women and children.
Nothing in this article or in clause (2) of article 29 shall prevent the State from making any special provision for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes
Right to Freedom of Religion
Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion.—(1) Subject to public order, morality and health and to the other provisions of this Part, all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practice and propagate religion.
(2) Nothing in this article shall affect the operation of any existing law or prevent the State from making any law—
(a) regulating or restricting any economic, financial, political or other secular activity which may be associated with religious practice;
(b) providing for social welfare and reform or the throwing open of Hindu religious institutions of a public character to all classes and sections of Hindus.
Explanation I.—The wearing and carrying of kirpansshall be deemed to be included in the profession of the Sikh religion.
Explanation II.—In sub -clause (b) of clause (2), the reference to Hindus shall be construed as including a reference to persons professing the Sikh, Jaina or Buddhist religion, and the reference to Hindu religious institutions shall be construed accordingly.
Freedom to manage religious affairs.—Subject to public order, morality and health, every religious denomination or any section thereof shall have the right—
(a) to establish and maintain institutions for religious and charitable purposes;
(b) to manage its own affairs in matters of religion;
(c) to own and acquire movable and immovable property; and (d) to administer such property in accordance with law.
Freedom as to payment of taxes for promotion of any particular religion.—No person shall be compelled to pay any taxes, the proceeds of which are specifically appropriated in payment of expenses for the promotion or maintenance of any particular religion or religious denomination.
Freedom as to attendance at religious instruction or religious worship in certain educational institutions.—(1) No religious instruction shall be provided in any educational institution wholly maintained out of State funds.
Nothing in clause (1) shall apply to an educational institution which is administered by the State but has been established under any endowment or trust which requires that religious instruction shall be imparted in such institution.
No person attending any educational institution recognised by the State or receiving aid out of State funds shall be required to take part in any religious instruction that may be imparted in such institution or to attend any religious worship that may be conducted in such institution or in any premises attached thereto unless such person or, if such person is a minor, his guardian has given his consent thereto.
Cultural and Educational Rights
Protection of interests of minorities.—(1) Any section of the citizens residing in the territory of India or any part thereof having a distinct language, script or culture of its own shall have the right to conserve the same.
(2) No citizen shall be denied admission into any educational institution maintained by the State or receiving aid out of State funds on grounds only of religion, race, caste, language or any of them.
Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions. — (1) All minorities, whether based on religion or language, shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.
(1A) In making any law providing for the compulsory acquisition of any property of an educational institution established and administered by a minority, referred to in clause (1), the State shall ensure that the amount fixed by or determined under such law for the acquisition of such property is such as would not restrict or abrogate the right guaranteed under that clause.
(2) The State shall not, in granting aid to educational institutions, discriminate against any educational institution on the ground that it is under the management of a minority, whether based on religion or language.
That these provisions do not ensure any meaningful freedom or protection to the Hindus in the practice of their religion, or to their religious and cultural institutions to function as per time-honoured traditions, has been brought out succinctly in a recent study of the Indian Constitution from which the following is extracted: 71
The makers of the constitution also seem to have believed, along with the colonial British administrators, that India is not one nation, it is a conglomerate of numerous minorities placed alongside an uncaring and orthodoxy-ridden caste-Hindu majority. Therefore there was a deep concern to provide extraordinary constitutional protections for the minorities on the one hand and on the other hand to give powers to the state to act in order to “reform” the Hindu majority…
Provisions concerning the minorities
Every self-confident nation makes provisions for the protection of minority groups. Such protection is accorded so that the diverse cultural, linguistic and other capabilities of minority groups may contribute to and thus enrich the national mainstream, which naturally is constituted of the majority. Section 29 of the Constitution that guarantees protection of the minorities, however, almost invites diverse groups to claim special rights in the name of their distinct language, script or culture. The other provision regarding minorities, Article 30, gives the minorities the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice and thus creates an invidious distinction against the majority. The right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice is a natural right of all communities, whether constituting a minority or a majority. The article does not in fact give any special right to the minorities, but takes away a valuable natural right from the majority.
The current provisions of Article 25 instead of granting religious freedom have the effect of taking away the right of the Hindus to run their own religious institutions and affairs.
These two articles together have created a premium upon various groups to break away from the national mainstream. Groups that would have been happy and proud of being distinct yet inseparable parts of the mainstream have therefore begun to discover and claim separate identities. These constitutional provisions, instead of providing protection to the minorities, have had the effect of creating new minorities and vitiating the integrity and depth of the national mainstream.
There is an urgent need to seriously review both these provisions. The minorities of course must be provided guarantees of protection. But such guarantees must be such as not to create pressures on diverse groups to separate from the mainstream. Article 29 certainly needs redrafting. And, the protection of Article 30 needs to be equitably extended to all people of India.
Provisions concerning freedom of religion
Article 25 grants “freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practise and propagate religion.” Freedom to profess and practice the religion of their choice is of course a natural right of all citizens in a secular state. But, the freedom to “propagate” that has been included in this clause is highly unusual. No secular state guarantees the freedom to propagate and convert people from other faiths.
Conversion in India.
This freedom has been fortuitously circumscribed by the judicial interpretations of the term “propagate”, which have held that “propagation” does not mean “conversion”. But the phrasing of the original clause leaves much scope for intense proselytising activity on behalf of various religions and sects.
The second clause of the Article makes two provisos to the freedom of religion. The first proviso gives the State the authority to regulate or restrict “secular activities” associated with religious practice, and the second proviso vests in the State the power to make laws for “social welfare and reform” of Hindu religious institutions.
The first of these provisos is applicable to all religions, but in practice has been used to control and regulate the functioning of only the Hindu institutions. The second proviso is specifically aimed at Hindus and their institutions alone. Judicial interpretations of these provisos have so extended the definition of “secular activities associated with religious practice” as to allow the State to take over control of all aspects of the Hindu religious institutions, and directly interfere with the established rituals and customs…
This certainly amounts to invidious interference in the religious affairs of the majority of the Indian people. Religion is at the core of Indian civilisation. Provisions concerning religious freedom in the Indian constitution should therefore be the ideal for the world. India ought not to restrict or control the religious practice of any group, whether that of the majority or minority. The first clause of Article 25 already makes the freedom of religious practice subject to public order, morality and health. The only other proviso we need to add is that such practice may not interfere with the security and integrity of the nation; and that the religious affairs and religious institutions of no religion in India may be subject to foreign control or domination.72 The right to freedom of religious practice ought not to be circumscribed by any other provisos. People of India ought to be left free to organise, institutionalise and practise their religious affairs themselves, neither the State in India nor any foreign agencies or bodies need have any say in it.
The current provisions of Article 25 instead of granting religious freedom have the effect of taking away the right of the Hindus to run their own religious institutions and affairs. These also give the State the right to aggressively interfere with the custom, rituals and beliefs of the Hindus in the name of social reform. This article therefore needs to be reviewed seriously.
Continued in the next part of the series.
69 O.1878 E&PH 5.5.1941, cited from F.A. Pressler 1987, cited earlier, p.52.
70 Mudaliar 1976, cited earlier, p.194-5.
71 J.K.Bajaj, Towards a Review of the Indian Constitution, Centre for Policy Studies, July 2000.
72 Incidentally, Article 36 of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China (1982) makes just such provisions regarding religious freedom.
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FlipGive and HockeyShot will teamed up for the 2018 Hockey season to help deserving players get in the game - because hockey participation should be based on ability to play, not pay.
For each of us, and these families, hockey is more than just a sport; it’s a part of our lives and it’s what brings many of us together.
We are thrilled to have helped these teams and players hit the ice last year. For us, the grant is our way to make a small difference in the hockey community, but a huge difference in the lives of under-resourced players and teams.
2018 is shaping up to be another fantastic year and we are extremely proud to name the 2018 GET IN THE GAME Hockey Grant Winners. We look forward to watching them excel with the much deserved financial support.
McKinley Toye - Mississauga girls hockey league (Missisauga, ON)
Born with a disability, McKinley’s parents were told by doctors that she would never walk, talk, or live a productive life. However, she started defying expectations early when she took her first steps.
McKinley always looked up to her older sister, and when she first spotted a pair of skates she let everyone know she wanted to be wearing them as well. Once she got the hang of the skates, it was a done deal.
“She loved every minute - and so did we!” Said her father Adam. “It didn’t matter what time practice was, she would bounce up when we said it was a Hockey day!”
While we may not be quite as excited as McKinley at 6am on hockey day, we are super-stoked to help with her equipment costs and making sure that McKinley’s unstoppable spirit stays on the ice.
Samuel McGhehey – Columbus Flames (Bloomington, IN)
Sam is a special player that understands the importance of balance in life. On the ice, Sam is an excellent player and an even better teammate. Last season he showed great compassion and understanding, sticking up for a teammate being bullied who almost quit hockey as a result. His friend, a player new to the game, has since fallen in love with the game.
When he’s not playing hockey, Sam is working hard to maintain his grades, helping out around the house, and he plans to volunteer to help the younger kids on the ice. Sam’s father battles with back and GI issues that keep him from working. The Get In the Game grant is a huge help to his family, a household with 3 young players that struggle to afford paying for everyone to play hockey.
Sam’s mom says that all of her children play hockey but it is a definitely a strain. “They love the game though and I don’t want them to have to give it up.”
“Sam’s hopes are to attend Culver (Sam understands that he will have to work very hard to earn a scholarship to attend the prestigious school) and then would like to attend Notre Dame University.” He plans to continue working hard to keep his grades up, do community service, and achieve a 98% attendance rating.
A quote that Sam came up with himself, reads, “I’m not telling you it will be easy. I’m telling you it will be worth it.” We can’t wait to hear about what Sam and his siblings accomplish this season.
[earners]
Harper Farrier - 10U squirt select (Noblesville, IN)
“Harper was born into a hockey family, so it was only a matter of time before she started to play,” said Harper’s mother Amber.
Hockey roots run deep in this family, with years following her brother and father as a player and a coach across the Midwest for the better part of a decade. If a game was on, she would shout along with it when the action heated up on the ice – more than once Harper would holler ‘I’ll fight that guy!’ when the gloves came off on the TV.
Both on and off the ice, however, Harper’s style is quite different than that. A supportive player who knows how to make a clever play or pass, and a helpful soul who helped as much as she possibly could as her mother went through a difficult pregnancy, she’s constantly lifting up other and making sure they’re taken care of.
“It’s awesome to have HER be the one that is in the spot light,” said Amber. “I know she will be forever grateful for this.”
Lexie Brinkworth - Little Ray's Hockey (Moncks Corner, SC)
Moving around can be stressful for a child – and moving 5 times before you turn 7 isn’t exactly the best recipe for stability. It was hockey that provided the continuity that allowed Lexie to really blossom.
“Me being a single mom I am trying to have hockey be her passion,” said her mother, Jessica. “She has a spark back in her that she lost with all the instability in her life.” As an EMT who has twenty-four-hour shifts, she has to work extra hard to make sure all the games and practices work out. Luckily she part of a vibrant hockey community who is willing to help out giving lifts when needed.
Dylan Wright – Ajax Knights Minor Peewee AA (Ajax, ON)
Dylan is an 11-year old with a huge passion for the game of hockey. Since lacing his skates up for the first time at just three years of age, Dylan has grown significantly, not only as a hockey player, but as a remarkable young man.
As one of seven children, Dylan and his family know all too well the financial strain that hockey season causes - at least five of the six boys play rep-level hockey! “The grant will help pay for the upcoming season’s fees for Dylan and his brothers and allow them to play the sport they love and are deserving to play.” Dylan is a humble player, one that values hard work and always leaves everything on the ice. Those that know Dylan say, “the game means more than just fun to Dylan. It has taught him many life lessons. It’s taught him to always give his best effort, to work together as a team, and to be committed and responsible.” Dylan is integral player for the Ajax Knights and this grant will help keep him playing alongside his teammates and friends this coming season.
Josiah Zeitler – BlackJacks (Naples, FL)
Josiah, a 13 year old player from Naples, Florida, is an energetic kid with a love for the game as strong as anyone you’ll meet. Hockey has become an outlet for Josiah to channel his energy and strong personality.
“Hockey has helped him develop a passion for physical fitness and being active. He’s since become committed to working out and applying himself in school,” his mom says. “He is extremely happy to have made new friends on his team and has more confidence as a result.”
Josiah’s mom says, as a single mother, that financial aid is hard to come by, especially when it comes to paying for registration fees, equipment, and all of other costs associated with hockey. The grant will be used to help Josiah and his sister, Maggie, who he wants to share his grant with, keep playing hockey.
2018 Team Grant Recipients
Northumberland Predators (Trenton, ON)
Team website: http://www.fishabilitysports.org/
When you visit the FishAbility Sports Club website, the founding organization of the Northumberland Predators Sledge Hockey Team, you’ll be greeted with a mission statement that reads, “to provide sports and recreational programs to help support the physical, social and emotional well-being of persons of any age or disability.”
The FishAbility Sports Club was founded in June 2008, originally, as a fishing club for children, youth, and adults with disabilities. The club’s aim is to break down barriers and make the impossible, possible.
Following the club’s inaugural year, in June of 2009, the Northumberland Predators Sledge Hockey Team was formed. Based in Trenton, Ontario, the team plays out of the Bewdley Community Center (formerly known as The Vincent Massey Memorial Arena) and is completely volunteer run. This team has allowed children and adults with intellectual and physical disabilities an opportunity to play hockey. Without help from the community, the team wouldn’t be where it is today.
The Predators plays their games between September and April in the Ontario Sledge Hockey Association League. Each season, the team travels to London & Brampton for various tournaments.
Most notably, the 2010/2011 season is still remembered as the Predators best season yet. The Predators capped off a strong showing in the London Tournament, falling just short of making the semi finals for their first time, by finishing the regular season strong in 2nd place! With a 7-2-1 record, the Predators cruised into playoffs with home ice advantage and carried that momentum all the way to OSHAL Championship Game in Oakville Ontario.
The Championship was an extremely tight and spirited affair played at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex. After the end of regulation time, the score remained tied 0-0 and we were off to a five minute 3-on-3 overtime! With overtime settling nothing, a shootout was needed to decide the 2011 Championship. After a fierce battle, it was the Northumberland Predators sinking the Peterborough Patriots in a thrilling final game and capturing their first title.
Hockey has given the Predators players, children and adults alike, confidence and the chance to play a sport that they couldn’t normally. The sledges they use to play games are made available to youth so they can skating more often with their families and friends.
With the Get In The Game Grant, $1,000 will be used to purchase more equipement, everything including sledges, sticks, helmets, and protective gear.
FlipGive and HockeyShot are so proud to be able to help this fantastic club and team give their community members the chance to play hockey.
Canso Bluefins Novice - Canso, Nova Scotia, Canada
A small town often boasts a strong sense of community, and Canso, Nova Scotia boasts a community of 800. In the winter months, hockey is one of the only sports available to our kids. It keeps them fit and active at a time when kids are usually sluggish.
The parents are quite active as well, especially when it comes to supporting the team. There’s not a lot of corporate sponsorship opportunities, but they make up for it with a strong core of fundraisers.
“We as an association have been struggling for three years to keep our arena open so that we can keep our kids playing the sport they love,” said Karri Rhynold. “Most children and adults in this town have at some point played in our association.”
The funding is going towards keeping the rink open, and maintaining a staple of the community that has spanned generations.
“The sportsmanship the program teaches these kids and the camaraderie between players is unparalleled. We have often been told by outside teams how well-behaved and how well-liked our kids are.”
Gilmour Gladiators - USA Hockey Independent (Gate Mills, OH)
The Gladiators are a close-knit team of girls that understand the importance of sacrifice and dedication. Having played together for the past few years, these girls have shared the agony of defeat and triumphs that come with winning. Those close to the team say that the camaraderie between the girls is astounding.
Above all, the girls have embraced what it means to be a team and understand that being a supportive teammate is the most important quality, on and off the ice.
Cleveland, Ohio, isn’t what most would consider a “hockey hot-bed,” if you will. The area is home to only one girls hockey program and the team is forced to travel for games and practices. Many of the players travel around an hour and a half, each way, for weekly practices.
It goes without saying, but these girls and their families have sacrificed a tremendous amount to be a part of this team. Parents pay out of their own pockets for travel, tournaments, jerseys, hotels, etc.
Playing in a competitive league is an expensive sporting venture and the Gladiators busy schedule constantly takes them on the road. Between league play and tournaments, the girls travel about 3 weekends (or more), per month. The financial strain, oftentimes, can be too much for team parents and many sacrifices are made to help keep their daughters’ dreams alive.
The whole experience, one parents says, has been more than just playing a hockey for the girls. “While this sacrifice is not easy, the girls take it very seriously. They know that when we work hard and support one another, we win on the ice and in the classroom. I believe the girls have learned to be confident and comfortable in their bodies. They know how powerful and wonderful they really are, too. We have girls of all shapes and sizes who compete on this team, and our diversity and our work ethic is our strength.”
The Gladiators will use the Get In The Game Grant to help pay for uniforms, offset travel costs for season games and tournaments, and weekly practice ice times.
With the Get In The Game Grant, we’re excited for the Gladiators upcoming season and can’t think of a more deserving team than this group of girls!
FlipGive Stories Team Spotlight
Announcing the 2018 Get in the Game Hockey Grant Winners
Hockey Shot and FlipGive have announced the recipients of this years grant
Since the GET IN THE GAME hockey grant’s inaugural season, three years ago, HockeyShot and FlipGive have seen first hand the world of difference that this financial support provides for the recipients families.
Affordability is a commodity hard to come by when it comes to hockey, each season seeming more and more expensive. Every year we are blown away by the sacrifices and lengths that parents are going to so that their kids can play hockey - 2016 & 2017 were no exceptions. Because of that, we are so proud to have been able to help these players last season.
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Nintendo Direct Recap: Animal Crossing New Leaf
X-Men: Apocalypse (Spoiler Free Review and Discussion)
Q0CsCCk8sls
Band of the Week: Deep Sea Diver
Deep Sea Diver Delivers Perfection With Secrets
Deep Sea Diver is a very recent love for me, but I’m already obsessed. I cannot get enough of their music and have been enjoying all the live performance videos I could find on YouTube. I’ve also been checking their social media on a daily basis (sometimes hourly) to see if they are coming to a town near me. I just want to throw all my money at them. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind that, right?
Deep Sea Diver is a band from Seattle, Washington comprised of Jessica Dobson, Peter Mansen, Garrett Gue and Elliot Jackson. Jessica Dobson has an incredibly impressive resumé playing guitar alongside bands such as Beck, The Shins, Spoon, and Yeah Yeah Yeahs. With those incredible guitar playing chops it’s easy to see the unique sound she brings to the band. Her lead vocals also show a great range that lends itself well to both their high energy and beautiful songs.
KEXP brought the Seattle locals into their studio to perform songs off of their most recent release, Secrets. That performance shows off their abilities to bring their sound to a live setting and it’s amazing. Above, you can enjoy the song, See These Eyes, from their KEXP performance back in March of 2016. Since this video, Deep Sea Diver has made another appearance on KEXP through a live performance during KEXP’s New Home Grand Opening.
Photo Found on Deep Sea Diver Facebook. Photo Cred: Courtney Armitage
Deep Sea Diver’s 2016 album, Secrets, is by far my favorite album of the year so far. It has everything to satisfy my musical tastes. Awesome guitar parts, emotional melodies, long instrumental breaks and great layers mixing together to make brilliance. The second half of Secrets stands out to me and I keep jumping straight to it whenever I listen to the album. See These Eyes through New Day are perfect examples of what I love in music. From the energetic See These Eyes to the emotional Always Waiting, they achieve an eclectic range of emotions.
Deep Sea Diver is making the music we’ve always dreamed of listening to. They currently do not have a tour scheduled but are scheduled to open for Wilco. The band is quickly growing in popularity and are getting a lot of attention from all over. The band has released its most recent album on their own record label, High Beam Records. They have given themselves complete control over the music they create by also starting a record label that will allow them to pursue their creativity.
Check out their album, Secrets, below and for more Deep Sea Diver – Listen, Download, Follow:
Founder, Editor
Chuy is a musician, video gamer and improv comedian from a small mountain town in California. After earning a bachelor's degree in Media, he wanted an outlet to study and analyze the workings of media within our culture. He is currently exploring different states in the US while writing for WILD, creating gameplay videos on his YouTube channel, ChuyPlaysNintendo, and finding different venues to perform Improv and music.
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How many meals per day are the healthiest?
What fish cooking method is the healthiest
Allergy causes and ways to reduce this disorder risk
Busting consumer safety myths about BPA-free plastics
Does omega-3 do actually us any good?
Unripe and overripe fruits – are they healthy?
Meat food additives - beware of phosphates
Poisonous baby products and another chapter in BPA scandal
Diets of the future are lessons from the past
Aspartame and brain health: not-so-sweet side effects
The potential side effects of dietary supplements
Health Campaigns
Food & Dietary Supplements
Non-food Consumer Goods
Health Statistics & Statutory Regulations
Medical and Safety
Public Ambassadors
Healthy Life FAQs
Showing results for tags 'side-effects'.
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[WINNER on Mar 18th 2018] Aspartame and brain health: not-so-sweet side effects
kalle.stacy posted a topic in Vote Articles
I have found an alarming scientific article on aspartame https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24700203 It looks that it is a really dangerous substance, perhaps even more than thought by most. The article concluded that doses much smaller than recommended daily intake influence people's neurobehavioral health, i.e. participants who consumed aspartame were prone to depression and other mental ailments such as irritation. I would like whatishealthy.info scientists to look for similar researches and comprehensively write on aspartame effects on our brain in layman terms
side-effects
Margarita posted a topic in Food
Aspartame is a widely used artificial sweetener that has been associated with various health concerns, including seizures,[1] insomnia and migraines in children, adolescent and adults.[2] [3] Indeed studies suggest that aspartame can actually be a common trigger for migraines, especially when consumption is prolonged. Aspartame is composed of phenylalanine, aspartic acid and methanol. Phenylalanine is an important regulator of neurotransmission, whereas aspartic acid actually acts as a neurotransmitter in the central nervous system.[4] When ingested and then digested, aspartame is broken down in the gut wall into these aforementioned constituents.[5] [6] Methanol, which constitutes 10% of aspartame and can also be produced by conversion from aspartic acid, is oxidized in the body to form formic acid, formaldehyde[5] and numerous other carcinogenic and toxic derivatives.[3] Formaldehyde, a carcinogen,[7] is known to bind with nucleic acids and proteins, forming adducts that are difficult to remove via normal metabolic pathways and thus can accumulate within the body.[8] The consumption of aspartame has been linked to various neurological and behavioural reactions.[9] One study showed, shockingly, that healthy adults who were given just half of the the maximum acceptable daily intake level of 40-50 mg/kg body weight/day for just 8 days had a more irritable mood, exhibited more signs of depression and performed worse on orientation tests than those given a low aspartame diet.[9] Although some studies have found that aspartame did not cause more headaches than placebo, other evidence strongly suggests that it may be a trigger in people who consume moderate to high amounts (900 to 3000 mg/day) over a prolonged period of time.[3] Aspartame’s headache-causing properties are potentially a result of regional increases in neurotransmitters in the brain, including norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine.[11] It has also been shown that aspartame disrupts protein structure and metabolism, amino acid metabolism, the integrity of nucleic acids, nervous system function and hormone balances.[12] Aspartame breakdown products such as phenylalanine, aspartic acid and phenylalanine methyl ester cause neurons to fire excessively, which can indirectly cause a high rate of brain cell activity.[13] The link between aspartame ingestion and headaches, on top of all the other toxic side effects of aspartame, mean that its consumption should be avoided, particularly by those susceptible to headaches and migraines. This is especially important, as adverse effects have been seen in doses as low as half the currently recognised “safe” limit. Perhaps, therefore, it is not just our consumption that needs to change, but also the regulations that claim to be protecting us. [1] Maher, TJ, Wurtman, RJ. (1987) Possible neurologic effects of aspartame, a widely used food additive. Environ Health Perspect. 75. 53-7. [2] Millichap, JG, Yee, MM. (2003) The diet factor in pediatric and adolescent migraine. Pediatr Neurol. 28(1). 9-15. [3] Sun-Edelstein, C, Mauksop, A. (2009) Foods and supplements in the management of migraine headaches. Clin J Pain. 25(5). 446-52. [4] Humphries, P, Pretorius, E, Naudé, H. (2008) Direct and indirect cellular effects of aspartame on the brain. Eur J Clin Nutr. 62(4). 451-62. [5] Jacob, SE, Stechschulte, S. (2008) Formaldehyde, aspartame, and migraines: a possible connection. Dermatitis. 19(3). E10-1. [6] Oppermann, JA, Muldoon, E, Ranney, RE. (1973) Metabolism of aspartame in monkeys. Nutrition. 103. 1454-9. [7] Swenburg, JA, Moeller, BC, Lu, K, Rager, JE, Fry, R, Starr, TB. (2013) Formaldehyde Carcinogenicity Research: 30 Years and Counting for Mode of Action, Epidemiology, and Cancer Risk Assessment. Toxicol Pathol. 41(2). 181-9. [8] Trocho, C, Pardo, R, Rafecas, I, Virgili, J, Remesar, X, Fernández-López, JA, Alemany, M. (1998) Formaldehyde derived from dietary aspartame binds to tissue components in vivo. Life Sci. 63(5). 337-49. [9] Lindseth, GN, Coolahan, SE, Petros,TV, Lindseth, PD. (2014) Neurobehavioural effects of aspartame consumption. Res Nurs Health. 37(3). 185-93. [10] Maher, TJ, Wurtman, RJ. (1987) Possible neurologic effects of aspartame, a widely used food additive. Environ Health Perspect. 75. 53-7. [11] Fernstrom, JD. (1988) Effects of Aspartame Ingestion on Large Neutral Amino Acids and Monoamine Neurotransmitters in the Central Nervous System In Effects of Aspartame Ingestion on Large Neutral Amino Acids and Monoamine Neurotransmitters in the Central Nervous System. Springer, US. [12] Filer, LJ, Stegink, LD. (1988) Effects of Aspartame on Plasma Phenylalanine Concentration in Humans In Effects of Aspartame Ingestion on Large Neutral Amino Acids and Monoamine Neurotransmitters in the Central Nervous System. Springer, US. [13] Fountain, SB, Hennes, SK, Teyler, TJ. (1988) Aspartame exposure and in vitro hippocampal slice excitability and plasticity. Fundament Appl Toxicol. 11(2). 221-8.
Margarita posted a topic in Herbals
Much like prescription medicines, dietary supplements come with the potential for unwanted side effects. There are currently no requirements for clinical studies to verify the safety or even potency of a dietary supplement, as they are technically not allowed to claim any health benefits. Supplements also do not require a doctor’s prescription, making the vast majority of supplement use self-prescribed. This often means that people begin taking supplements without informed medical guidance. Many supplements contain active ingredients that can have varied and serious effects within the body, some desired, some not. In some cases, taking too much of a supplement can have serious complications. For example, some supplements can have unwanted effects before, during, and after surgery.[1] Supplements can also interact with prescription medicines to reduce or increase their activity, or to produce other unwanted side effects. Between 2008 and 2010, the American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) received 145,775 calls related to the side effects of dietary supplements, and the FDA (from 2008 to 2011) received 6,307 similar reports.[2] However even these numbers are still likely to dramatically underestimate the true scope of the situation, as most people suffering from unexpected side effects, illnesses, or drug interactions do not call a poison control centre or report the adverse reaction to the manufacturer of the supplement. Potential supplement side effects can include gastrointestinal symptoms,[3] liver toxicity,[4] heart attacks,[3] and even cancer.[5] Although these side effects can be serious and even fatal, consumers in general do not appreciate the risks. The use of the term “natural” on the product label often fools many into believing that the product is safe and can do them no harm, and the important ‘small print’ is often ignored. In addition to this, supplement manufacturers are not legally bound to indicate potential side effects on the product label. Increasingly popular diet and ‘muscle-building’ supplements can be some of the most dangerous. These types of supplements often contain stimulants which suppress the appetite, but which can also raise the blood pressure to dangerously high levels and increase the risk of a heart attack or stroke.[6] Whilst supplements can be beneficial to many users, individuals can react differently. Side effects can be experienced when using too high a dose of a product, when taking the recommended dose, or even when taking a less than recommended dose. Some supplements are marketed as having “almost no side effects”, but when combined with other substances, or taken too frequently, can quickly become toxic.[7] Vitamin C, for example, is often taken frequently to ‘boost’ the immune system, but taken in large amounts can cause diarrhoea. Other, more serious side effects are also possible - for example, the risk of lung and stomach cancers is significantly increased in those who consume 20-30mg/day of B-carotene.[8] In those taking calcium supplements, one study demonstrated a doubling of hospital admissions for gastrointestinal problems, a 17% increase in kidney stones and a 20-40% increase in the risk of a heart attack.[9] Once a side effect is found to be the result of dietary supplement intake in an individual, simply stopping taking the supplement will often lead to resolution of the side effect.[10] However this is not always the case, and some supplements can have longer-lasting effects, especially those with the potential for serious and even fatal side effects, such as cancer or increased risk of a heart attack. Given this potential for serious and even fatal side effects, sound advice would be to think twice before opting to take dietary supplements and at the very least consulting your doctor before taking them, particularly if you are taking prescription medication. If, when taking supplements, you begin to develop side effects or symptoms, you should stop taking the supplement and consult your doctor before it is too late. [1] Wang, CZ, Moss, J, Yuan, CS. (2015) Commonly Used Dietary Supplements on Coagulation Function during Surgery. Medicines (Basel). 2(3). 157-85. [2] GAO (2013) Dietary supplements FDA may have opportunities to expand its use of reported health problems to oversee products. Retrieved April 2016 from, http://www.gao.gov/assets/660/653113.pdf [3] Reid, IR, Bristow, SM, Bolland, MJ. (2015) Calcium supplements: benefits and risks. J Intern Med. 278(4). 354-68. [4] Haslan, H, Suhaimi, FH, Das, S. (2015) Herbal supplements and hepatotoxicity: a short review. Nat Prod Commun. 10(10). 1779-84. [5] Harvie, M. (2014) Nutritional supplements and cancer: potential benefits and proven harms. Am Soc Clin Oncol Educ Book. e478-86. [6] CDC (1996) Adverse events associated with ephedrine-containing products--Texas, December 1993-September 1995. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 45(32). 689-93. [7] Mulholland, CA, Benford, DJ. (2007) What is known about the safety of multivitamin-multimineral supplements for the generally healthy population? Theoretical basis for harm. Am J Clin Nutr. 85(1). 318S-22S. [8] Druesne-Pecollo N, et al. (2010) Beta-carotene supplementation and cancer risk: a systematic review and metaanalysis of randomized controlled trials.Int J Cancer. 127(1). 172-84. [9] Reid, IR, Bristow, SM, Bolland, MJ. (2015) Calcium supplements: benefits and risks. J Intern Med. 278(4). 354-68. [10] Felix, TM, Karpa, KD, Lewis, PR. (2015) Adverse effects of common drugs: dietary supplements. FP Essent. 436:31-40.
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Media Alert – Pee-wee’s Playhouse Saturday Morning Live Stream
Never Let Me Go: Part One by Jessica Gibson Pre-Order Now for $.99
Join us here at PeeweesPlayhouseSneakPeek.com on Saturday morning, October 18th at 10 am ET/7 am PT for a very special Pee-wee’s Playhouse live stream event!
Get a sneak peek at four episodes, newly remastered and now in brilliant high-definition, as featured on the new Pee-wee’s Playhouse: The Complete Series Blu-ray set, plus an exclusive premiere of one of ten brand-new bonus featurettes making their debut on the collection.
Be sure to wake up early for this blink-and-you’ll-miss-it event. (Just kidding, we’ll air it three times back to back for all you late risers! Expect it to end around 3 pm ET/12 noon PT)
Join the conversation on social media with the #peeweesplayhouse hashtag!
Quiver of the Pure Heart Book Blast (ends 10/17) and Giveaway
About Shout! Factory
Shout! Factory, LLC is a diversified multi-platform media company devoted to producing, uncovering, preserving and revitalizing the very best of pop culture. Founders Richard Foos, Bob Emmer and Garson Foos have spent their entire careers sharing their music, television and film favorites with discerning consumers the world over. Shout! Factory’s DVD and Blu-Ray™ offerings serve up feature films, classic and contemporary TV series, animation, live music and comedy specials in lavish packages crammed with extras. Shout’s audio division boasts GRAMMY®-nominated box sets, Broadway cast albums, new releases from storied artists, lovingly assembled album reissues and indispensable “best of” compilations. In addition, Shout! Factory maintains a vast digital distribution network which delivers video and audio content to all the leading digital service providers in North America. Shout! Factory also owns and operates Timeless Media Group, Biograph Records, Majordomo Records, HighTone Records and Video Time Machine. These riches are the result of a creative acquisition mandate that has established the company as a hotbed of cultural preservation and commercial reinvention. Shout! Factory is based in Santa Monica, California. For more on Shout! Factory, visit shoutfactory.com
Pee-Wee's Playhouse Saturday Morning Streaming with Pee-wee Herman
Becky October 17, 2014
Clip – Pee-wee’s Playhouse: The Complete Series on Blu-ray 10/21
Pee-wee’s Playhouse: The Complete Series Bonus Features [Update]
Pee-wee’s Playhouse: The Complete Series on Blu-ray 10/21
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Blood for blood
Shkodra, Albania Arben Celi
Updated 21 Aug 2013 7 images
These three children have spent their lives trapped within the confines of their home in northern Albania because of a blood feud.
For the last 10 years, twelve-year-old Zefi, seven-year-old Marsel, and nine-year-old Marsela have not ventured more than a few meters outside their house or yard to avoid being killed by another family in revenge for an earlier killing.
25 Jan 2013 . SHKODER, Albania. REUTERS/Arben Celi
The children are stuck in their house, one room of which is given over to the family cow. The cow is a highly treasured possession, and one of the main sources of entertainment for the siblings.
The family is trapped at home after one of their relatives killed somebody, causing the victim’s family to impose the ‘Kanun’. This is a Balkan code dating back to the 15th Century, which gives the dead person's relations the right to kill whoever was responsible for the death. Under a modern interpretation of the code, not just male members of the offending family, but women and children too can be the victims of these vengeance killings.
Liljana, an elementary school teacher, is one of the few people regularly allowed inside the house. She comes two or three times a week to help the children keep up with the curriculum. The government provides the family with teaching help at home, as well as a subsidy of 22 euros a month.
Blood feuds were almost stamped out under Communism in Albania, but as the country now struggles to emerge as a modern and prosperous democracy, the killings have increased.
The furthest that the children get from the house is a few meters outside the fence, where they go to collect firewood.
Normally, the only way those targeted by the code can feel entirely safe is if the aggrieved family expressly pledges to honour their freedom and spare them.
"The kids went into the cow’s manure-covered room as they would into a playground."
Arben Celi, Reuters Photographer
Visiting an Albanian family forced to live entirely within the walls of their own home because of a blood feud is something that always borders on the surreal.
The three kids I photographed for this story had grown up inside their leaky house without ever knowing what the world outside was like. They had lived inside their house in northern Albania for the last 10 years. For two months I had been trying to get in touch with a teacher to help me take pictures of them.
The teacher is one of the few people allowed into the house twice or three times a week to help the two sons and one daughter keep abreast of the curriculum. I thought she made things harder for me until I met the family myself on Friday.
The mother and the 19-year-old daughter grew fearful seeing me and barely concealed their opposition when I took out the camera. But they trusted Liljana, the teacher, and did not throw me out after we made it clear we meant no harm to them. The little kids also warmed to me.
They loved to be hugged and the presence of a stranger was welcome entertainment. Zef is twelve, Marsela is nine and Marsel, the youngest, is seven. Marsela and Marsel were born after the family had been confined inside their home and have not seen much of the world – nothing more than a few meters beyond their walls.
I was told the family had locked themselves up 10 years ago because a relative had killed someone by accident. They have many problems, the teacher said. No one wished to say more.
They now hide inside their home because the aggrieved family has imposed the harsh rule of the Kanun, a 15th Century Balkan code that gives the dead man’s family the right to kill the man who pulled the trigger in retribution.
But a modern-day interpretation of the Kanun — something that came back after Albania toppled Communism, which almost stamped out the feuds — means that not just men from the offending family but even children and women might not be spared. Some have been gunned down.
Liljana had apparently not made it clear enough a photographer would be visiting and she asked me not to show their faces. The mother refused to reveal the family name or give any more details about why they feared retaliation from the aggrieved family. The children went around barefoot or with torn socks over a floor that appeared to be rough concrete. They did not talk much and paused to stare for a long time when spoken to.
Children and women are considered untouchable under the medieval code that many use to justify the killings, which have increased over the past two decades. No one is considered safe nowadays unless the aggrieved family expressly pledges to honour their freedom and spare them.
The government, which has been unsuccessfully trying to stamp out the phenomenon, provides the family with a subsidy of 22 euros a month and visits by teachers for the children.
Next to the children’s bedroom, the family kept the cow in a separate room strewn with manure. All of them took great care of the cow, and cleaned, fed and patted it as if it was one of them. It seemed to me they treated the cow as if it was not just a gift, but Santa Claus himself. The kids went into the cow’s manure-covered room as they would into a playground. There was also a haystack in the yard for the cow.
Except for the cow, the only other entertainment the children got came from a TV and digital platform donated by a television crew who took pity on their plight. They also ventured a few meters outside the fence around the house to collect wood for their fire.
My stay inside lasted no more than 20 minutes because the more pictures I snapped the more the mother became stressed, almost shouting questions in desperation. Why doesn’t the government take measures to stop the blood feuds, she asked. She also worried about her children because they suffered from allergies and rheumatism, as a result of the leaks and humidity in their house.
It was one of those moments when you feel powerless at not being able to change things instantly. The least you can do is part with whatever banknotes you find in your wallet and tell the world about their existence.
Back at home in Tirana, I was told about a foreign-made film about the victims of the Kanun. It was about a 17-year-old boy sending text messages and playing video games. He was living in captivity in the 21st century because of 15th century rules.
Arben Celi
100 years of Grand Central
Teenage prostitutes in Bangladesh
The Chinese New Year exodus
Under fire in Damascus
Buying back guns
Backstage with a model
In Damascus with the Rebels
The masked taxman
Life in Crackland
A child born of children
Bloodshed in Pakistan
Who's the tough guy now?
Perton
Life goes on in war-torn Damascus
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Travis Kelce Broke Tight End Yardage Record, Lost It 55 Minutes Later
posted by Bill Galluccio - Jan 1, 2019
On the final game of the regular season, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce broke Rob Gronkowski’s 2011 record of 1,327 yards in a single season with a 25-yard catch from Patrick Mahomes II. The fourth quarter catch gave Kelce 1,336 yards for the season.
His time as the record-holder was short-lived because just 55 minutes later he would move down to second place. While Kelce finished the game on the bench to get rest for the playoffs, San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle suited up for the entire game in a 48-32 loss to the Los Angeles Rams.
The 49ers knew Kittle was close to the record and made a concerted effort to get him the yards he needed. Kittle finished the game with nine catches for 149 yards, giving him 1,377 yards in 2018 and sole possession of the NFL record for most yards from a tight end in a single season.
"We had a pretty good idea the game was over and we would have got people out of there, try to be as healthy as possible," 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said after the game. "But the whole team and us wanted to get that for Kittle."
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Outdoor Retailer Bass Pro Shops Is Buying Cabela’s
*(Courtesy of Forbes)
Hunting and fishing company Bass Pro Shops is acquiring outdoor gear competitor Cabela’s in an all-cash deal valued at $5.5 billion, the companies said on Monday.
Bass Pro Shops, which was started nearly five decades ago when billionaire Johnny Morris started selling fishing lures out of his dad’s liquor store, has agreed to pay $65.50 per share for Cabela’s. This represents a 19% premium over Friday’s closing price.
Cabela’s had been exploring strategic alternatives for its business after coming under pressure from activist investor Paul Singer’s Elliott Management, which took a position in the company a year ago and called its stock undervalued.
The deal will create an outdoor retailing giant with almost double the store count that sells fishing, hunting, camping and boating gear. Both companies have “an abiding love for the outdoors and a passion for serving sportsmen and sportswomen,” said Morris, founder and CEO of the privately-held Bass Pro Shops, who Forbes estimates is worth $3.9 billion.
Cabela’s, which was founded in Sidney, Nebraska in 1961, has struggled in recent times and saw sales at its existing stores fall 1.3% in the first half of 2016. The company attributed this to a decrease in demand for its clothing and footwear.
Under the newly combined company, Morris will continue to act as CEO and majority shareholder. Bass Pro Shops communicated its plans to retain Cabela’s operations in its home state, but it’s not immediately clear if jobs will still be lost.
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Women's Power Gap
Why Gender
Parity?
25 Biz.
Civic Orgs
50 Public Boards
& Commissions
Mindy Domb
Mindy is one of 46 women elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives on November 6, 2018.
We asked Mindy why we need more women leaders. Her response: “I am so proud to be in a class with such a diverse, experienced, and talented group of women. When there are more women in the room – wherever the room is, including government at all levels – our experiences, skills and perspectives follow and impact decisions, affect results and create change. Representation matters. At a minimum, our presence means the conversation will be deeper and more inclusive and the process will benefit.”
More about Mindy
A 20-year resident of Amherst, Mindy Domb has dedicated her life to addressing the needs of under-served communities and advocating for fairness, equity and opportunity.
As a nonprofit leader, public health educator, trainer, program developer, community organizer and advocate, and congressional aide, she has developed innovative services through partnerships, community education, and community coalitions.
She was the Executive Director of the Amherst Survival Center since 2013, a multi service basic needs organization that connects approximately 6,000 residents of Hampshire and Franklin Counties to food, clothing, healthcare, wellness, community, volunteer opportunities in over 49,000 visits.
Prior to that, she led statewide programs in Massachusetts to educate staff of drug and alcohol treatment programs, jails, and homeless shelters on how to integrate public health issues like HIV/AIDS, viral hepatitis, and opioid overdose prevention into their work with clients. In addition, she directed a training program for health and human service providers to support LGBTQ youth. Her work was recognized by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control for her work and the International Harm Reduction Association for the development of an online harm reduction training program. In 2010, she founded Make It Better Amherst, a social network of allies that formed in response to the suicide epidemic of LGBTQ teens. Mindy was also the co-founder of the Berkshire AIDS Coalition, served as the Department of Public Health’s regional coordinator of its HIV testing program in western Massachusetts, started Massachusetts’ first jail-based HIV education program in the Berkshire County House of Corrections. Before moving to Massachusetts, Mindy worked for Congressman Ted Weiss (D-NY), opening his lower Manhattan district office, conducting constituent services, advocating for a federal response to the HIV epidemic, and working to prevent the federal government from stationing nuclear weapons in New York Harbor.
Mindy is a former member of Amherst Town Meeting. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Barnard College and completed graduate coursework in adult learning at Teachers College Columbia University.
info@womenspowergap.org
WomensPowerGap.org
info@eosfoundation.org
EosFoundation.org
Copyright © 2019 Women's Power Gap
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Florida Releases Statewide School Grades; Sarasota Earns Lone 'A' In Tampa Bay
By Carl Lisciandrello • Jul 11, 2019
Students at Ridgecrest Elementary School in Largo show off their drone flying skills to Governor DeSantis.
Carrie Pinakard / WUSF Public Media
By Carl Lisciandrello
The number of schools receiving an A grade increased by 63%, while the number of those receiving a grade of F dropped to just 15, according to number released by the Florida Department of Education on Thursday.
According to the department, 1,172 schools statewide (36%) earned an A grade in 2018-19, compared to 1,043 the previous year – a 31% increase.
“It is a great day for education in Florida and today’s announcement shows we are on a successful trajectory,” said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. “We are resolute in our continued efforts to ensure that Florida students have the chance to receive a world-class education regardless of their circumstance."
“The ultimate gift we can give future generations is the ability to achieve their life’s ambitions. I appreciate our state’s hard-working educators who made it possible and applaud our students on a job well done.”
RELATED: Tampa Bay Area School-By-School Grades
Locally, Sarasota County was the only district in the Tampa Bay area – and one of 24 statewide – to receive a A grade. Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco, Polk, Hernando, Citrus, and Hardee earned B grades, while DeSoto and Highlands received grades of C.
Hardee improved from a C in 2017-18, while Sarasota maintained its A grade.
According to the agency, the number of D or F schools has declined 70% since 2015, and the number of F schools has dropped 93%.
RELATED: 2018-19 Statewide Grades By District
“Education is the means by which we free children from the shackles of ignorance,” said Richard Corcoran, Florida’s education commissioner. “A community has a right to have key insights into its schools and school grades. Meeting that goal is essential for any community to truly provide future generations the opportunity to achieve the American Dream.
“We are pleased to share this spectacular news and to reiterate our commitment to ensuring Florida has the No. 1 education system in the nation.”
Out of 67 school districts, 54 earned a grade of A or B.
Five districts improved from a B to an A
81 percent of F schools last year improved by one or more letter grade (21 of 26), as well as 77 percent of combined D or F schools (165 total).
Five districts (Alachua, Dixie, Flagler, Orange and Taylor) improved from a B to an A, and three (Hardee, Levy and Okeechobee) from a C to a B.
“For one student to spend even a single day in a failing school is unacceptable,” said Marva Johnson, state board of education chair. “That is why, as a board, we rely on the concrete evidence that our accountability system provides to make student-centered policy decisions. I express my sincere appreciation for the teachers and parents whose unconditional support enables our students to thrive.”
The Florida Department of Education uses a number of factors in compiling the grades, including student achievement and learning gains on statewide, standardized assessments, and high school graduation rate.
For more on the grades, visit the Florida Department of Education website.
Gov. Ron DeSantis
Rep. Richard Corcoran
Company To Get $1.3 Million For School Safety Tool
By News Service of Florida • Jul 11, 2019
By News Service of Florida
The Florida Department of Education will pay nearly $1.3 million to a company that will revise a tool used by all public schools to identify threats and vulnerabilities on campuses.
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Israeli defense minister announces resignation
Posted: 11:58 PM, May 19, 2016
Gali Tibbon
<p>FILE - In this Sunday, May 15, 2016, file photo, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heads the weekly cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said Tuesday that Egypt�s relations with Israel, rooted in a landmark 1979 peace treaty, can only be �warmer� if his country�s former enemy reached a settlement with the Palestinians and pledged to �make every effort� toward a solution. (Gali Tibbon/Pool Photo via AP, File)</p>
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's defense minister announced his resignation on Friday, citing a lack of "trust" in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after reports in recent days that he is soon to be replaced.
In a Facebook post, Moshe Yaalon said that he told Netanyahu that "following his conduct in recent developments and in light of the lack of trust in him, I am resigning from the government and the Knesset (Israel's parliament) and taking a time out from political life."
Netanyahu and Yaalon have clashed in recent days over the role of the military in public discourse, with the prime minister arguing that military officials should not discuss policy matters publicly.
Tensions between Yaalon and Netanyahu escalated in March, when military leaders criticized a soldier who was caught on video fatally shooting an already-wounded Palestinian attacker. The solider is now on trial for manslaughter. While Yaalon has backed the military, hard-liners have backed the soldier.
Reports over the past few days indicate that Netanyahu intends to appoint former foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman to the post. Lieberman, 57, is one of the country's most polarizing politicians. Over three decades, he has at times been Netanyahu's closest ally and at other times a fierce rival.
Netanyahu this week invited Lieberman's ultranationalist Yisrael Beteinu party to shore up his shaky parliamentary coalition and negotiation teams have been meeting to hammer out the details of their alliance.
Yaalon's resignation solidifies the takeover of hardliners in the party.
Cabinet Minister Gila Gamliel said that Yaalon's leaving is a "tremendous loss" for the ruling Likud party. She told Israel Radio she believes it was a "mistake" not to offer Yaalon another position and keep him in the coalition.
Many Israelis have questioned the wisdom of appointing Lieberman to the sensitive post of defense minister over Yaalon, a former army chief of staff who is generally respected for his knowledge of military affairs. Polls commissioned by Israeli TV stations broadcast Thursday showed that a majority of Israelis prefer Yaalon as defense minister over Lieberman.
Lieberman has held a number of Cabinet posts in the past, including stints as foreign minister.
His hard-line stance has made him an influential voice at home but has at times alienated Israel's allies overseas. He has questioned the loyalty of Israel's Arab minority and confronted Israel's foreign critics. He has expressed skepticism over pursuing peace with the Palestinians, and is now pushing a proposal to impose the death penalty against Arabs convicted of acts of terrorism.
With Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts in a deep freeze, Lieberman's addition to the government could push the prospect of reviving talks even further into the distance.
Lieberman rose to prominence as the engineer of Netanyahu's successful run for prime minister in 1996, and he later became Netanyahu's chief of staff.
His tough stances have long stoked controversy. As a Cabinet minister last decade, he called for the bombing of Palestinian gas stations, banks and commercial centers.
He also led a recent parliamentary drive to exclude Arab parties from running for election — a move that was overturned by Israel's Supreme Court.
Yet despite his rhetoric, Lieberman has shown signs of pragmatism. He served as a Cabinet minister in two centrist Israeli governments, though he was fired for opposing Israel's 2005 withdrawal from Gaza and resigned to protest peace talks that begun at the 2007 conference in Annapolis. His plan for redrawing Israel's borders would also mean dismantling some Jewish settlements.
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The Tag-Along 2: Predictable scares in a well told story
Released in 2017, The Tag-Along 2 is a Taiwanese horror film that became the became the highest grossing domestic film of the year.
Nathaniel Muir
Asia has long been a source of fan-favorite films. Anime, Hong Kong action, and J-Horror are all examples of the diversity in Asian cinema. Released in 2017, The Tag-Along 2 is a Taiwanese horror film that became the became the highest grossing domestic film of the year. Beneath its familiar surface is a surprisingly good movie.
The Tag-Along 2 may suffer in its translation to some Western audiences. The film takes a strong stand against abortion while exploring the mother-daughter dynamic. Much of the film is also reliant on Chinese and Taiwanese mythology. The antagonist’s motivations can be discerned from the events of the movie, but many of the other characters’ decisions are cultural. The most obvious example is Lin Jun Wei who is the embodiment of the Tiger Spirit that protects the forest. There is nothing wrong with the idea behind it, but Wei also walks around on all fours complete with tiger growls. Not the actor growling. Actual recordings of tiger growls that the audience is expected to believe is a result of the character. It is supposed to come off as mystical, but it is just silly. And while it is not necessary to watch the first movie, it does help.
The Tag-Along 2 seems to be a typical horror movie but is much more; the movie explores guilt and remorse specifically through mothers and daughters. There are some rough moments, but overall it is a fine addition to Asian cinema.
The Tag-Along 2
Is it good?
The Tag-Along 2 looks like other Asian horror movies but tells a unique story that separates it from the pack.
Interesting story that is not normally scene in horror movies
Camera work enhances the movie's tone
Asian mythology is central part of story and may be hard for Western audiences to understand
Bad CGI during the climax
In this article:horror, review
‘Game of Thrones’ showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss set to write/produce all-new ‘Star Wars’ films
It’s time to flash dance with Deadpool in this new poster
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AFGE Responds to President's Homeland Security Bill
Diane Witiak
John Irvine
(WASHINGTON, D.C.)--The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) today decried the Bush Administration's attempt to destroy basic civil service standards for thousands of federal workers who would be folded into the proposed Department of Homeland Security.
According to AFGE, the proposed legislation would grant the new agency's managers blanket authority to set pay and other conditions of employment without regard to existing rules or protections.
"This bill has the potential to allow the new Department to engage in personnel actions that are today illegal, such as picking out individual employees for transfer or removal from their jobs," said AFGE National President Bobby L. Harnage. "In opening the door to hiring and firing on the basis of politics and favoritism, the legislation would impose a modern day 'spoils system,' undermining the nation's long-standing civil service principles that ensure the integrity of our government.
"It fundamentally alters the current system of checks and balances that works so successfully to protect both taxpayers and employees as the important missions of the federal government are carried out.
"The bill would give the Secretary of Homeland Security the authority to establish regulations jointly with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to create a 'human resources management system' that could make virtually all current civil service protections inapplicable to employees of the new Department. Further, the legislation is silent on the question of whether the new agency will recognize existing unions that represent more than a third of those who would be moved into the new agency.
"This proposal appears to be an attempt to punish and blame rank and file federal employees for the security lapses that made our nation vulnerable to the September 11 attack. This blame is mislaid, and the punishment unwarranted.
"Homeland security requires a secure work force. Federal employees need the protections of a system that allows them to speak out about mismanagement in the new agency, without fear of losing their job.
"AFGE asks that when the bill is taken up by Congress, it include the continuation of existing union contracts and protections for all employees who currently have such protections. Further, the Human Resources Management System should be applied only to managers in the new agency. If the President wants 'flexibility' to make the new agency effective and efficient, he should direct his attention to those responsible for shaping its mission: the managers and executives, not rank and file federal workers."
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is the largest federal employee union, representing 700,000 workers in the federal government and the government of the District of Columbia.
For the latest AFGE news and information, visit the AFGE Media Center.
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Stevie’s story
Maintaining her spirits through treatment
Stevie considered herself breast-aware, she routinely performed self-examinations because her Mother had a history of cysts. Upon discovering a lump in her right breast, she went straight to her GP, who thought it was a hormone-related lump and not potentially cancerous – due to her age.
She was asked to come back later in her menstrual cycle and one week later she returned and was sent for an ultrasound, which showed an abnormality.
A mammogram confirmed that something was not right, so a needle biopsy followed. The wait for the biopsy results was horrible. Stevie remembers she went back to work to try to take her mind off it, but found it difficult. She prepared herself for bad news which arrived 10 days after the biopsy.
Aged just 27, Stevie was devastated to be diagnosed with an aggressive (grade 3) Stage 1 breast cancer. Being a fast-growing type of breast cancer, she was fortunate to have caught it very early, thanks to her being breast-aware and routinely performing self-examinations.
Her family and friends were also devastated when she told them of her diagnosis, the only history of breast cancer in her family, were her paternal cousin who had Hodgkins Lymphoma and her paternal uncle (pancreatic cancer). With her mother living abroad, Stevie’s closest friends became her family; they proved a great support. She also spoke to Macmillan nurses and benefited from the ‘Look Good, Feel Better’ campaign, learning about make-up, which she found really useful and it did indeed make her feel better.
Through her Facebook page, Stevie managed to increase awareness of breast cancer and how it can affect younger people like herself by encouraging her circle of friends to perform self-examinations. Several even contacted her to say thank you for the advice after they themselves found abnormal lumps in their breasts, fortunately these were all non-cancerous cysts.
Because her tumour was found early, it was small enough to not require a mastectomy, a lumpectomy was performed instead. A subsequent Oncotype test revealed that the tumour was classified as high-risk of recurrence requiring Stevie to undergo chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
The treatment was difficult, drugs prescribed to alleviate these side-effects of chemotherapy didn’t work, and an infection from her last dose required her to be hospitalised. Fortunately Stevie’s brother was able to support her throughout and she completed her treatment, finishing with radiotherapy as planned.
Happily Stevie has made good progress, her scheduled appointments with her surgeon are 6 months apart and her oncologist every four.
While she considers herself generally healthy, the experience has changed her mentally and her outlook on life is very different now than before her diagnosis. She was an adventurous person anyway, but now experiences paranoia, and worries more. But a new job, and being able to continue to ride horses provided comfort and stability.
Stevie wanted to raise funds for breast cancer research and booked herself and 8 friends onto a husky trail expedition across Sweden and Norway to do so. “I was so excited for this trip, I had been waiting 15 months from when I booked it. I didn’t really know what to expect! I suppose I didn’t know what I had signed up to!” From Tromso they transferred to the dog sled centre and after no sleep whatsoever on the first night, they made their way to the mountains to start their challenge.
The trek, over 250km, is completed entirely being pulled by a team of 6 beautiful huskies. It involved a mountain climb where fitness was put to the test and each night they were required to set up their own camp in knee deep snow! The following days involved Stevie and her team navigating their dogs and sleds across lakes, bridges, mountains and even through a tunnel before they reached the Ice Hotel in Sweden marking the end of their 5 day challenge.
With her permission, we posted a short film of their adventure.
Previous Mark’s story Next Sylvia’s story
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STEM Conference
From the beginning Where We are Now
Established in Fall of 2016, Aggie MEEN Girls has worked alongside Texas A&M's American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and the Department of Mechanical Engineering to develop a community among female engineers.
Aggie MEEN Girls is currently hosted our inaugural Aggie Women in STEM Conference in the Fall where STEM students shared experiences with professionals and faculty to develop technical skills and gain exposure to STEM career paths.
MEEN Girls Mechanical Advisors
Dr. Shima Hajimirza
Dr. Shima Hajimirza is an assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Texas A&M university and the director of the Energy, Control and Optimization (ECO) lab. Her research interests are Radiation Heat Transfer, Renewable Energy Systems, Computational Methods and Numerical Optimization, in particular those related to the design of solar energy devices. Prior to her appointment at TAMU, Dr. Hajimirza was an assistant professor at California State University Pomona, where she was also a faculty member of Women in Engineering program. She actively participated in outreach activities that promoted involvement of young females in engineering and science.
Dr. Astrid Layton
Dr. Astrid Layton joined the Mechanical Engineering department as an assistant professor at Texas A&M in January 2017. She received her bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Studio Arts from the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Layton went on to complete her PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia. At Texas A&M, Dr. Layton does research in Bio-Inspired Systems Design for Sustainability, looking at nature’s networks for inspiration on how to better design sustainable and robust human engineered systems.
MEEN Girls Directors
Jessica Jaksik / Executive Director
Keely Chacon / Internal Affairs Director
Jenny Jiang / Outreach Director
Greer Smith / Financial Director
Naomi Giselle Trevino / External Affairs Director
Brittany Snell / Events Director
Shannon Forrester / Public Relations Director
Sydney Heikkila/ Special Events Director
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Dr Richard Newton
Director of Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance
Richard advises the equine industry on matters of disease prevention and control and sits on the Veterinary Committees of the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) and the Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association (TBA).
Connect with Dr Richard Newton
01638 751000 ext 1266
richard.newton@aht.org.uk
Richard’s work is directed at maximising the prevention of disease wherever possible or the control of disease if it occurs. This research is centred on population health of horses and to a lesser extent dogs. Richard advises the equine industry on matters of disease prevention and control and sits on the Veterinary Committees of the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) and the Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association (TBA). He also sits on the Codes of Practice Sub-Committee of the Horserace Betting Levy Board’s (HBLB) veterinary advisory Committee and works closely with Defra on disease surveillance and outbreak control as a member of their Equine Experts Group which is involved with emerging and exotic disease threats to UK horses. Richard also works closely with other Animal Health Trust scientists and is closely involved in both equine inherited (genetic) and infectious disease research programmes.
BVSc, MSc, PhD, DLSHTM, DipECVPH, FRCVS
Expertise and interests
Richard’s areas of predominant interest are epidemiology and surveillance of infectious diseases of the horse, including influenza, EHV, EVA, strangles and bacterial lower airway disease. Other spheres of professional interest have included epidemiological aspects of internal medicine and non-infectious respiratory disease, including grass sickness, liver disease, tying up, EIPH and laminitis.
After graduating in Veterinary Science from Liverpool University in 1991 and working in mixed practice, Richard Newton joined the Epidemiology Unit of the Animal Health Trust in 1994.
Since completing a Masters in Communicable Disease Epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in November 1998 he has worked on the epidemiology of grass sickness, EIPH and equine infectious diseases, including equine viral arteritis, influenza and strangles.
He completed his PhD on the epidemiology of equine infectious respiratory disease in 2002 and in 2003 was awarded both the Diploma of Fellowship from the Royal College Veterinary Surgeons and became a de facto Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Public Health.
He is currently Director of Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance at the Animal Health Trust. The group at the AHT currently has programmes on infectious disease surveillance in the UK for which it prepares quarterly disease reports for Defra; a dedicated programme on grass sickness surveillance and recently completed programmes looking at the epidemiology of laminitis in the UK and assessing the accuracy of data held within the National Equine Database (NED).
Richard has previously been involved in trying to solve the mystery of seasonal canine illness (SCI). The Animal Health Trust first became aware of the disease in September 2010. SCI is an emerging and sometimes fatal illness affecting dogs walked in woodland environments in the autumn months.
View Dr Newton's latest publications
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Indonesia Moves Forward with Fighter Programs
by David Donald
- November 11, 2014, 7:47 AM
This 1:10 scale model of the IF-X was shown at the Indo Defence show last week, armed with air-to-air missiles, stand-off cruise missiles and glide bombs. (Photo: David Donald)
Faced with rising regional threats from China, Indonesia plans to modernize its fighter fleet, with the stated aim of having 200 on strength by 2024 to form a minimum effective force. The nation has three separate programs covering current, middle- and long-term requirements.
For the long-term requirement, Indonesia has joined the South Korean KF-X program for a 4.5-generation advanced low-observable fighter. This program, named IF-X in Indonesia, is intended to offer a capability pitched somewhere between the F-16 and F-35, but without the latter’s hefty price tag.
Last month Indonesia committed to providing 20 percent of the development funding as the project moves into the full development phase. Some details of the aircraft emerged during last week’s Indo Defence show, held in Jakarta.
In the summer South Korea settled on the twin-engine, single-seat C103 design as the basis for the KF-X/IF-X. The engines will offer a combined thrust of at least 36,000 pounds, and two contenders are the Eurojet EJ200 and General Electric F414. The aircraft is similar in configuration to the F-22, with chined nose and outward-canted fins. Alignment of the leading edges of the wings, root extensions and tailplanes is 40 degrees aft sweep, while trailing edges are aligned 10 degrees forward. The wings have an aspect ratio of 2.7:1. The caret-shaped intakes offer a capture area of 781 sq in.
Up to 16,000 pounds of stores can be carried on 10 hardpoints, including four staggered recesses under the fuselage for the semi-conformal carriage of missiles in the AMRAAM class. The IF-X model on show at Indo Defence was displayed with guided glide bombs. The Indonesian Ministry of Defense is currently undertaking a research program for a range-extension and precision guidance kit for application to Mk 80-series unguided weapons, and intends to make its first test drops next year.
While South Korea has yet to decide who will lead the program, PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI, the state-owned airframer) will take the major role in Indonesia’s participation. Lockheed Martin is also to be involved with some technology transfer, a stipulation of South Korea’s recent purchase of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. KF-X and IF-X will be similar in most respects, but with some local suppliers contributing to the Indonesian version. Avionics specialist Infoglobal has been selected to provide cockpit displays and other systems for the IF-X. First flight is expected around 2020, with service-entry around 2024/25.
In the medium term Indonesia is seeking an F-5 replacement. An RFI was issued in the summer of last year, and an RFP is expected early next year. A number of OEMs are bidding for this contract, which will initially be for 16 multi-role aircraft. Lockheed Martin (F-16), Sukhoi (Su-35), Saab (Gripen NG) and Eurofighter (Typhoon) are in the running. Sukhoi has been supplying Su-27/30 Flankers to Indonesia in small batches for some time, and this may play in its favor.
However, under Indonesian law new defense acquisitions must include a minimum 30-percent direct offset, while the selection criteria have been weighted 30 percent for aircraft/system performance, 30 percent acquisition/life-cycle costs and 40 percent for industrial cooperation. Both Saab and Eurofighter are offering attractive cooperation packages that include technology transfer, local production and development work. Each company has been holding talks with PTDI to finalize its joint industrial proposals.
In the short term, the Indonesian air force has received the first of its F-16C/D “Block 52ID” aircraft acquired through U.S. Foreign Military Sales. The 24 aircraft on order are former U.S. Air Force Block 25 aircraft that have undergone a thorough overhaul and modernization, including reworked engines and overhauled/strengthened airframes. The initial three were delivered in July to 3 Skadron Udara at Madiun, where they are augmenting the existing F-16A/B force. A second F-16C/D unit, 16 Skadron Udara, is to form at Pekanbaru.
https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/2014-11-11/indonesia-moves-forward-fighter-programs
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Opening of cancer research centre funded by major grant from ACRF
The vision of a maverick one-time refugee to Australia will once again pay dividends for those in the fight against cancer.
The Australian Cancer Research Foundation, set up by Sir Peter Abeles, was thrilled to be present at the opening of a brand new cutting-edge facility made possible by its largest ever grant of $5 million to a consortium of leading cancer research institutes to support work in Melbourne that will bring new hope to cancer sufferers.
The opening was announced in honour of Sir Peter Abeles. It is an alliance comprising the Royal Melbourne Hospital, the Royal Women’s Hospital, the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research and The University of Melbourne (Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences).
ACRF chairman Tom Dery made the presentation at the opening of the new facility to an audience at that included the Governor of Victoria Professor David de Kretser, Victorian Minister for Health David Andrews, Minister for Innovation Gavin Jennings, ACRF Trustees, Lady (Sonia) McMahon, Carrillo Gantner AO, Greg Camm. Dr Roby Abeles (daughter of Sir Peter Abeles), Sir Gustav Nossal and leading Cancer research scientists and workers.
“The ACRF is funding great research across Australia, but none better than here in Victoria – this new $5 million research grant takes the amount we’ve awarded to Melbourne cancer research centres to over $16 million – this includes funds to St Vincents, Ludwig, WEHI, Austin, Murdoch Childrens, the Royal Melbourne, and just a few weeks ago $2.5 million to the Peter MacCallum,’’ Dery told the audience.
“The new consortium is using our grant to establish the ACRF Centre for Therapeutic Target Discovery, officially opening today and potentially forming a scientific cornerstone of the first comprehensive cancer centre established in Australia. This will create an innovative Australian-first collaborative and integrated cancer research centre, where clinicians, diagnosing and treating cancer patients, will work closely with scientists researching the disease.’’
Dery explained the new initiative signifies the beginning of an Australia-first integrated cancer research project which is expected to widen in scope to encompass new research approaches.
“The hallmark of top-quality science is to have a team of people with a huge variety of skills working on a problem,” Mr Dery added. “The most exciting thing about this Centre is that it brings together a stellar team of specialists with different perspectives who are really committed to making cancer breakthroughs”.
Former Holocaust survivor and “Australian of The Year’’ Sir Peter Abeles established the ACRF IN 1984. Now in its 25th year, the Foundation has awarded $50 million to leading cancer research projects Australia wide.
For further information: txt or call Paulie Stewart 0430031630 or David Brettell 02 9223 7833
Download the press release.
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Downstairs at the Nanking restaurant
Denmark Street - that enticing and endangered link between St Giles High Street and Charing Cross Road - is much more than simply London's faded Tin Pan Alley, the once legendary home of music publishers and recording studios. It's the most substantial surviving remnant of old St Giles, one of the more notorious of the rookeries of mid-Victorian London. The wonderful early eighteenth century St Giles-in-the-Fields is yards away, and the area around was a stronghold of artisan radicalism 150 years ago. Denmark Street still has a handful of marvellous late seventeenth century buildings - and is still choc-a-bloc with guitar shops and music businesses which give it a wonderfully louche air.
It was also the spot where one of South Asia's most influential literary movements, the leftist Indian Progressive Writers' Association, was founded. The venue was the basement of the Nanking restaurant - and the date, according to the scholar Carlo Coppola, was probably the evening of Saturday, 24 November, 1934.
I've long wondered where exactly the Nanking restaurant was - whether it was a precursor of the Giaconda, the dining rooms where music magnates lunched (and now an up-market burger bar). With the help of a 1940 street directory in Holborn Library, I've cracked it. The Nanking was at number 4 (the street hasn't been renumbered), on the south side, and towards the St Giles High Street end. It was next to a labour exchange (that's now a Fernandez and Wells coffee shop).
After the Nanking, no. 4 became the Regent Sounds Studios, where the Rolling Stones put together their first album back in 1964 and where Black Sabbath, Elton John, the Kinks and Jimi Hendrix also recorded. So - quite a shrine to the golden age of British rock. There's more about the street's musical heritage here.
The main business in no. 4 today is Regent Sounds, not studios but a guitar shop specialising in Fender and Gretsch. And the basement - the spot where the IPWA met - is a bar and live music venue, the Alley Cat.
In the early thirties, Denmark Street was buzzing with Chinese and Japanese restaurants and businesses. The China Rhyming blog uncovered a description from the Queenslander newspaper (not quite sure why they were showing such interest, but I am glad they did) in 1932. Here it is:
“….enter Denmark Street, which is now almost wholly given over to Chinese and Japanese restaurants and emporia. Undoubtedly the most amusing of these places is The Nanking, presided over by Mr. Fung Saw. Mr. Fung is some thing of a politician, and to his restaurant come many of the more youthful of the budding Parliamentarians. These, together with composers and song writers, their publishers and film artists, comprise the chief of Mr. Fung’s clientele. The hall of feasting is reached by long, steep steps, which lead to an exceptionally large, light, and lofty basement. There is another and a mere prosaic entrance through a hall door on the ground floor, but somehow no one ever seems to notice it, and so we descend the more picturesque steps. Inside, the decorations are reminiscent of a Chinese junk, and the walls are decorated in vermilion and in greens and yellows, which only a Chinese artist is able to use to Oriental perfection. On the opposite side of the road are two Japanese restaurants, and just round the corner we can enter the banqueting hall of Wah Yeng, who contents himself with catering, to the exclusion of everything else. Mr. Yeng explained that he had a largo back room, which he reserved for Chinese business men, but as Chinese merchants do not so often come to London the hall at the back is usually thrown open to all.”
By 1940, there were only a couple of Chinese and Japanese restaurants on Denmark Street - though the East Asian aspect was reinforced by a number of Japanese shops and businesses.
And high-up on the north side of the street there's a ghost sign which, unless I'm imagining the trace of the Orient in its design, may have belonged to one of the Japanese businesses. It's too smart to be graffiti.
Does anyone recognise the logo or the initials?
But the directory demonstrates that by the outbreak of the Second World War, Denmark Street was already established as the centre of the music publishing industry - there were eighteen music related businesses in this single, short street as well as a handful of movie enterprises.
In his reminiscences, Sajjad Zaheer gave an account of the Association's first meeting: 'A Chinese restaurant owner of London was very considerate towards us and used to offer the back room of his restaurant free of charge. This small, unventilated cellar could accommodate forty to fifty people with difficulty. Our regualr meeting was held there.' (Zaheer wrote a novella about Indian student life in and around Bloomsbury, A Night in London - here's an excellent account if it and the context in which it was written.)
According to the novelist and founder member Mulk Raj Anand, it was at a monthly meeting of the Association at the Nanking restaurant in the followng year, 1935.that its manifesto was adopted. It opens with these stirring words:
Radical changes are taking place in Indian society. Fixed ideas and old beliefs, social and political institutions are being challenged. Out of the present turmoil and conflict, a new society is arising. The spirit of reaction, however, though moribund and doomed to ultimate decay, is still operative and is making desperate efforts to prolong itself.
It is the duty of Indian writers to give expression to the changes taking place in Indian life and to assist the spirit of progress in the country.
And a closing thought: Denmark Street sports a blue plaque celebrating Tin Pan Alley. Shouldn't there be one for the Indian Progressive Writers' Association too, perhaps on the outside of the Alley Cat?
Paul French
Funnily enough I was just looking through some notes the other day about London interwar "Little Tokyo", which was, as you suggest, Denmark Street. Over half a dozen Japanese businesses on the street and the first Japanese restaurant, the Tokiwa, predated the Nanking by a couple of years. Of course by 1942 they were all gone, but for a decade or more that street was the centre of Japanese activity in London - rather overlooked with all the talk of Tin Pan Alley etc.
Jane Mc
This is so interesting. I've been looking into the history of No. 8 where I worked when it was Southern Music, and I was told that when they first took over the building, the building was full of opium pipes. When I was there in the late 70's, you could still see pipes running all over the place and for all I know, they are still there. I had absolutely no idea there was such a huge Japanese and Chinese presence in the 30's. Brilliant stuff.
Burgers link
With this blog you really took our attention to the points that we never thought about. Thanks for sharing this with all of us. All the best, way to go
Dear Andrew
I was interested in knowing more about the meeting place of the Progressive Writers' Association, and I appreciate your research. Could I ask how does one check whether the street numbering has changed, or what it would have been at a certain time?
original site link
Besides the food, you can also indulge in varying types of beverages on offer.
Marshall Mateer
At last! - from your post and www.chinarhyming.com -A little information about the NANKING, which I only know because it advertised regularly in the 1930s in the small ads in the Daily Worker and I keep seeing it and wondering. Example ad.
TRY A CHINESE DINNER
FOR A CHANGE - or your English / Dinner in CHINESE Surroundings / Best Cooking - Dinner from 1s. 3d./
Open 11.0 a.m. until 11.00 p.m. including Sundays/ NANKING CHINESE RESTAURANT / 4 DENMARK STREET opposite Foyle's CHAR / ING CROSS ROAD, W.C.2 A Place for the /
Internationalist."
"Internationalist" I now understand with several dimensions.
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In search of Anne Brontë and her family
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Jane Eyre, The 1983 TV Adaptation
Thomas Newby, Brontë Publisher And Con Man
An Account Of Charlotte Brontë’s Wedding
Thomas Tighe And The Importance Of Kindness
Fathers In Brontë Prose And Poetry
The Story Of Anne Brontë’s Fair Godmothers
Anne Brontë was just a baby when her mother Maria died, with her Aunt Branwell and her older sisters Maria and Charlotte becoming mother figures to her. There were two more women in the young Anne’s life however, and although they may not have been in regular contact they still played a significant part in her life: Anne Brontë’s godmothers, Elizabeth Firth and Fanny Outhwaite.
When Reverend Patrick Brontë moved to his new parish of Thornton, near Bradford, in May 1815 he had a wife and two daughters, Maria and Elizabeth, over the course of his nearly five years in the parish he would have four more children – Charlotte, Patrick Branwell, Emily and Anne.
Thornton, like their next parish of Haworth, wasn’t a straightforward parish – most of the inhabitants preferred the non-conformist Methodist and Baptist churches to the official Church of England, and resented having to pay taxes to the official church as they were then made to do.
Elizabeth Firth, a loyal godmother to Anne Bronte
One Thornton family, however, made the Brontës very welcome – the Firths. The Firth family were the undoubted leaders of Thornton society, and lived at the imposing Kipping House to the south of the village, with a view looking over the moors (that’s a picture of Kipping House today at the top of this post).
By May 1815 there were only two Firths living there: John Scholefield Firth and his daughter Elizabeth, then aged eighteen. Mrs. Firth, also named Elizabeth, had died in a tragic accident a year earlier when she was thrown from a horse outside her home. John Firth was a doctor, but a man of considerable means, and he was a staunch supporter of the Church of England.
He saw it as a source of pride to regularly host the parish priest and his family, aided by his teenage daughter Elizabeth and from 1815 onwards his second wife Anne Greame.. Elizabeth Firth is of particular importance to Brontë lovers and researchers, because from the age of fifteen she kept a diary, detailing her daily activities. Many of them may seem mundane, for example one of her first entries is from 7th January 1812: ‘Miss Outhwaite went home’. From 1815 onwards however her diary becomes full of the Brontës: for example on 6th November 1817: ‘I went to Bradford with Mr Brontë. The Princess Charlotte of Wales died.’
The diary doesn’t go into too much detail, but it shows the vast social intercourse between the Firth and Brontë family. She also volunteered as a teacher at Patrick’s Thornton Sunday school. One mark of the respect that Patrick, and his wife Maria, had for Elizabeth Firth is that they asked her to be godmother to their daughter Anne.
Although the Brontë family moved to Haworth shortly after Anne’s birth, they did keep in touch with Elizabeth Firth. We know that she visited Maria Brontë in Haworth during her long terminal illness, and that she took the elder Brontë children back to Kipping House with her for a while. By this time, Elizabeth had become mistress of the house, as her father died suddenly in late 1820, with Reverend Patrick Brontë by his side.
Elizabeth was now a relatively wealthy young woman, and three months after Maria Bronte’s death, Patrick visited her at Thornton. After his return to Haworth he wrote Elizabeth a letter proposing marriage. She rejected his proposal, and may have been angered by it as her diary records on 14th December 1821 that she had sent ‘my last letter to Mr Brontë’. Why was she angry? It may have been the age difference, at 24 she was twenty years younger than him, or it could have been the difference in social standing between them. She may have found his courtship unseemly so soon after the death of his wife. There was also the fact that she had her heart set on another, and she later married Reverend Franks of Huddersfield.
The break between Elizabeth and Patrick didn’t last long, and by 1823 they were reconciled, with Patrick visiting her in Thornton again.
The young woman mentioned in Elizabeth’s 1812 diary entry, Miss Outhwaite, also features heavily within them. Fanny Outhwaite had met Elizabeth at the exclusive Crofton Hall school near Wakefield, and they soon became best friends.
Fanny Outhwaite too was the daughter of a surgeon, Dr. Thomas Outhwaite. As a frequent visitor to Kipping House from her Bradford home, Fanny came into regular contact with the Brontës, and thus it was that in 1820 Patrick asked her to join Elizabeth as godmother to Anne Brontë.
The choice of these two young women as Anne’s godmothers showed that they were looked on approvingly from a moral point of view, but it was also a practical choice. They were both women who had considerably more money than most in the Brontë circle, and it seems likely it was hoped that they could make a financial as well as spiritual contribution to Anne’s life. They didn’t disappoint.
Crofton Hall, where Anne Bronte’s godmothers met at school
Patrick Brontë spent large sums of money on medical care, fruitless though it was for his dying wife, and ran up significant debts in the process. Elizabeth and Fanny were among the friends who cleared his debts. They made further contributions throughout the lives of all the Brontës, regularly sending them gifts. Elizabeth paid for the eldest Brontë daughters to attend Crofton Hall School, where she and Fanny had met, but they were there for just a term, Patrick seemingly realising that it would not do to ask Elizabeth to fund their whole school careers.
It was this that led to the fateful decision to send the Brontë girls to the much more affordable Cowan Bridge School, and Elizabeth Franks, as she then was, and her husband visited Maria, Elizabeth and Charlotte there in 1824.
Elizabeth and her husband lived close to Roe Head School, and in the summer of 1836 they invited Charlotte and Anne to spend the summer with them. The girls did this under duress, as they would much have preferred to be back at home in Haworth with Emily and Branwell. It was to be one of the last times that Anne would see her godmother, as in September 1837 she died at the home of the Outhwaites. A local newspaper reported that she died after ‘a protracted indisposition’, and so it may have been that she was being treated by Dr. Outhwaite.
Fanny Outhwaite herself died at the beginning of 1849. She too had remained in some sort of contact with the Brontes, and we know that Patrick visited her in June 1836 after she had broken her arm. She did not forget her goddaughter, and in her will she left Anne the sum of two hundred pounds: in that time a very substantial amount of money.
By that time, however, Anne Brontë too was dying. The legacy from her godmother allowed Anne to pay for her final trip to Scarborough, the resort that she loved and which was to witness her last breath on 29th May, 1849.
Patrick and Maria had made a good choice of godmothers for Anne. They were kind and caring, and provided financial support when needed throughout their lives, even if they couldn’t always be with her as much as they would have liked. Anne was a prodigious letter writer, even though only a handful remain, so it seems likely to me that she would have kept in correspondence with her godmothers. Maybe this is why Fanny Outhwaite remembered Anne so fulsomely in her will? Alas, any such letters have been lost to time. Elizabeth Firth’s diaries however have been preserved, and are now in the Sheffield University archives. A transcription of the diaries can also be read online right here, and they’re a useful and fascinating resource for Brontë lovers, as well as a fascinating glimpse into social history.
Posted on 31st March 2017 Leave a comment on The Story Of Anne Brontë’s Fair Godmothers
The Death Of Charlotte Brontë – March 31 1855
Today is a sad day for Brontë lovers everywhere, as it marks the anniversary of the death of Charlotte Brontë, an event that occurred on 31st March 1855.
After Anne’s death in May 1849, Charlotte found herself the last of the six Brontë siblings. During the subsequent years her career as a writer prospered but she suffered increasing bouts of depression and neurosis. She could not even walk the moors in peace, sensing the spirits of Anne and Emily around her. It brought to her mind their poetry: ‘Once I loved it, now I dare not read it, and am driven often to wish I could taste one draught of oblivion and forget much that, while mind remains, I shall never forget.’
Nevertheless, in her final year she did at last find some real happiness and inner peace, much to her surprise. When she married Arthur Bell Nicholls on June 29th 1854, after a long campaign of wooing that had at first seemed far from propitious, she professed little liking for him, but after the wedding she rapidly fell in love with him. It seems that she also rapidly fell pregnant; whilst never mentioned specifically by her in her correspondence of this time she does seek advice from people who have had babies, in guarded language that can be easily interpreted. The Brontë Parsonage Museum also has a tiny, beautiful and moving baby bonnet that a friend had made for Charlotte in readiness for the impending happy event. It was never to occur.
The baby bonnet made for Charlotte Bronte’s child by Miss Wooler
By 19th January 1855, Charlotte was confined to bed with nausea, but thought little of it, and she was making plans to visit Ellen Nussey at the end of January. Before that time however her condition had sharply deteriorated to the extent that she didn’t even have strength to write back to Ellen’s letters.
When she died the cause of death was given as consumption, and it seems likely that all of the Brontë children had some latent level of tuberculosis in them throughout their lives, but this wasn’t the disease that claimed Charlotte. An expert opinion was given in 1972 by Professor Philip Rhodes, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of London. He stated that ‘the evidence is quite clear that she died of hyperemesis gravidurum, the pernicious vomiting of pregnancy.’
Charlotte became unable to eat, until even the sight of food made her vomit. She was becoming increasingly thin and weak, but without today’s medical understanding of this condition doctors didn’t know how to treat what should have been an easily manageable condition. After two months of vomiting, inability to eat and continuous fatigue, the bed ridden Charlotte suddenly changed. She was now ravenous, and frequently delirious. It was too late, there was nothing to be done.
Her last words were said to Arthur, her husband of just nine months, as he knelt by her side weeping and praying. A rare moment of clarity possessed her: ‘Oh, I am not going to die am I? He will not separate us, we have been so happy.’
The Bronte burial plaque, St. Michael’s, Haworth
On 31st March 1855, Charlotte Brontë Nicholls died. The Brontë line was now at an end forever, and her father Patrick had the unhappy fate of outliving them all. They are gone, and yet in a very real sense Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Brontë live on through their words, through their imagination, through their genius.
Posted on 31st March 2017 1st April 2017 5 Comments on The Death Of Charlotte Brontë – March 31 1855
Who Were The Real Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell?
When the Bell brothers published their book of poetry ‘Poems by Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell‘ in 1846 it seemed to be an act of little significance, reportedly selling just two copies (although one of this duo of readers was so impressed that he wrote to the publisher, Aylott & Jones, for the Bell’s autographs). Of course, we know now this was an act of incredible significance as it was actually the first book to reach print by the Brontë sisters (and, on a side note, every copy was eventually sold). The poetry is important of course, but the names are important too – so let’s look at why the names of Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell were chosen – for behind the names lie very touching tales of the sisters and what they cherished the most.
All of the Brontë sisters were shy, to a lesser or greater degree, possibly as a result of the relative seclusion they were brought up in after the death of their mother Maria, thriving in their own company rather than in that of others. Emily Brontë above all prized anonymity and secrecy, so it is likely to be she rather than her sisters who pressed for the use of pseudonyms when presenting their work.
Charlotte, in the biographical notices of her sisters she composed after their death, explained why they had used ostensibly male names:
‘ We did not like to declare ourselves women, because we had a vague impression that authoresses are liable to be looked on with prejudice’.
This is a sentiment that was echoed by Anne Brontë in her preface to the second edition of The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall:
‘All novels are or should be written for both men and women to read, and I am at a loss to conceive how a man should permit himself to write anything that would be really disgraceful to a woman, or why a woman should be censured for writing anything that would be proper and becoming for a man.’
So we know why the sisters chose to hide behind the mask of the Bells, but just why did they choose the names Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell? Firstly, it allowed them to retain their initials: Currer Bell was Charlotte Brontë, Ellis Bell was Emily Brontë, and Acton Bell was Anne Brontë.
The surname Bell could have been chosen simply because of the sound of the bells from their father’s St. Michael’s and All Angels church, a short stroll from the Parsonage in which they lived. It’s a sound they would have often heard – so could it be that they heard the bells peeling as they tried to conjure up a nom de plume for themselves?
Arthur Bell Nicholls
Another option is that they may have borrowed part of the name of their father’s new assistant curate – Arthur Bell Nicholls. He arrived in Haworth in May 1845, not long before the sisters began to send their poems to prospective publishers. At the time they could not have guessed the importance that Arthur would have to their lives – he would become dog walker to Flossy and Keeper after the death of Anne and Emily, and he was later to marry Charlotte Brontë.
I suggest a third possibility, however. Could Bell be a shortened form of the maiden name of their mother, and more pertinently perhaps their brother? By removing the middle letters of the name they could disguise it so that B(ranw)ell becomes simply B’ell or Bell. Branwell Brontë was unable to be part of their writing venture, but he was still regarded fondly by his sisters and in this way he still could, somehow, be present.
Winifred Gerin, the brilliant biographer of the Brontës in the sixties and seventies, suggested the origins of two of the pen names.
Eshton Hall, home of Frances Currer
Charlotte Brontë was for a short while a governess to the Sidgwick family of Stone Gappe at Lothersdale, North Yorkshire. The neighbouring property of Eshton Hall, a huge mansion near Skipton, belonged to a Miss Frances Mary Richardson Currer. She was famed for her large library, similar to the one Charlotte was familiar with at Ponden Hall near Haworth. Could it be that Frances Currer’s learning impressed Charlotte so much that she later adopted her name?
Acton Bell may have taken ‘his’ name from Eliza Acton. Largely forgotten now, she was a cookery writer and more importantly a poetess of note in the early to mid nineteenth century, and likely to have been read by Anne in the magazines that the sisters enjoyed, passed on from their father.
Eliza Acton, drawn in 1803
Another possible source of the name is Acton Castle near to Penzance in Cornwall. It would have been well known by Anne’s mother Maria and by her Aunt Elizabeth, who was like a mother to Anne throughout her life. It could be that Anne heard her aunt talk of the castle (after all, we know that she liked nothing more than talking of her beloved Cornwall), liked the name, and decided to adopt it as a tribute to the land of her maternal forebears.
Acton Castle near Penzance
Winifred Gerin is, however, unable to suggest an origin for Ellis Bell, but I believe I have not just one but two possible answers. Emily and Anne Brontë were incredibly close and loving sisters, and Emily was always longing to hear of Anne’s adventures as a governess. She would have known all about Mary Ingham, Anne’s employer at Blake Hall of Mirfield, recreated so searingly in Agnes Grey, and she would also have heard of Mary Ingham’s exalted father: Ellis Cunliffe Lister. Ellis was the member of Parliament for Bradford, in effect the Brontës’ parliamentary representative.
Alternatively it could be a tribute to Emily’s older sister Elizabeth, who tragically died of tuberculosis aged just 10 in 1825, a time when Emily was just six years old. Perhaps the young Emily found it hard to say the full name Elizabeth and so used a shortened form – Ellis? Elizabeth Brontë was, by all reports, a practical and loving sister and she would often lead her younger siblings across the moors. Emily Brontë would without doubt have loved these walks, and therefore she doubtless would have loved the sister who led them, and could have paid a touching tribute to her when selecting a pen name. This, I think, is the most likely origin of Ellis Bell.
So there we have the inspirations, possibly or even probably, of Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell – three very different people yet all represented in the Brontës works – the solitary yet scholarly woman, the greatly missed sister, the female poet – and at the end of the name, a tribute to their brother. We can see then that each name was carefully chosen and that each has a touching story behind it. We adore Charlotte Brontë, Emily Brontë, and Anne Brontë, of course, but we should also cherish the names of Currer Bell, Ellis Bell and Acton Bell.
Posted on 26th March 2017 11th December 2018 Leave a comment on Who Were The Real Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell?
Removing The Masks: The Young Brontës
Anne Brontë was a naturally shy woman who kept her feelings hidden whenever possible, and this reserve also extended to lesser and greater degrees throughout her siblings. Their father Patrick was well aware of this, and developed an idea that would help him find out what his children were really like, and what they thought. To unmask his children, he would put them behind a mask.
We have no idea what kind of mask Patrick had in the Parsonage, could it have been a Pierrot style mask, white and neutral, or even a large tribal style mask that would have fascinated his exploration loving youngsters? Whatever mask it was, Patrick lined his children up and made them wear it one after the other as he asked them a single question that would get to the heart of their character. The answers are very revealing, so we’ll look at each one in turn. Here is how Patrick Brontë explained the event:
“When my children were very young, when as far as I can remember, the oldest was about ten years of age, and the youngest about four, thinking that they knew more than I had yet discovered, in order to make them speak with less timidity, I deemed that if they were put under a sort of cover I might gain my end; and happening to have a mask in the house, I told them all to stand and speak boldly from under the cover of the mask.
The anonymity of masks helped the Brontes open up
I began with the youngest (Anne, afterwards Acton Bell) and asked what a child like her most wanted; she answered, ‘Age and experience'”
So Patrick started with the child of most interest to us, Anne Brontë herself. Was this because she was the most timid, or simply because she was the youngest? Her answer is both moving and illuminating. For a four year old girl she is wise and eloquent beyond her years. She doesn’t want a doll or to live in a fairytale castle, although we know she did love both these things; no, what she wanted were the two things she was fated never to have – age and experience.
“I asked the next (Emily, afterwards Ellis Bell) what I had best do with her brother Branwell, who was sometimes a naughty boy; she answered, ‘Reason with him, and when he won’t listen to reason, whip him'”
In Emily as a five or six year old child, we see Emily as an adult. Reason is all very good in its own place, but sometimes actions speak louder than words. She wouldn’t shy away from the harshness and cruelty of life.
“I asked Branwell what was the best way of knowing the difference between the intellects of men and women; he answered, ‘By considering the difference between them as to their bodies’.”
We can already see that Branwell was already a sometimes strong willed and troublesome child from Emily’s question and answer. We now hear him flippantly dismissing his sisters as being somehow less than him simply because they weren’t male, his arrogance and pride coming to the fore as it would with devastating effect years later.
“I then asked Charlotte what was the best book in the world; she answered, ‘The Bible’. And what was the next best; she answered, ‘The Book of Nature’.”
From this, we see that even at age seven or eight, Charlotte Brontë loved nothing more than reading books – which is why her father asked her which was her favourite. He may have been surprised by her answers though, which show that she loved her faith and the rugged yet wonderful countryside around the Parsonage even more than the books within it.
“I then asked the next what was the best mode of education for a woman; she answered, ‘That which would make her rule her house well'”
This is the oft overlooked second sister, Elizabeth Brontë. The straightforward, practical member of the family looking forward to a traditional life of domesticity that she would never know.
“Lastly, I asked the oldest what was the best mode of spending time; she answered, ‘By laying it out in preparation for a happy eternity'”
This is the most moving answer of them all. Maria Brontë, brilliant child genius who by this age of ten could already converse with her father on all the subjects of the day. Within two years of putting on the mask she would be called to her eternity by tuberculosis.
Patrick gained a lot from putting the Brontë sisters and their brother behind the mask, but we can also see a premonition of another kind. Timid in real life, Anne, Charlotte and Emily Brontë found that they could be bold, truthful and creative when hidden behind a mask of anonymity. It’s something they would do again little more than twenty years later, when they took upon themselves the masks of Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell.
Posted on 26th March 2017 26th March 2017 1 Comment on Removing The Masks: The Young Brontës
Anne Brontë And The Quest For Truth
Anne Brontë prized honesty above all other qualities, and her writing was a quest for the truth, so when she felt her integrity called into question she sprang into action. The result was the ‘Preface to the Second Edition of The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall’, and it’s not at all as dry as the title makes it sound. It contains anger, indignation, and pride in equal measures; it is a manifesto outlining all that Anne Brontë believed in, and it’s beautiful, powerful, and moving by turns. It is, in short, unlike anything else in the Brontë canon.
The catalyst for its creation was a series of reviews that followed the publication of both Agnes Grey and The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall. Critics had said that they seemed too wild and unreal, that they dealt with subjects that were not fitting for modern novels, that they were morally lax and even ungodly. The Spectator said the author had ‘a morbid love of the coarse, not to say of the brutal’. The Rambler intoned, ‘The scenes which the heroine relates in her diary are of the most disgusting and brutal species.’
Indifference to her books Anne could take, after all people had been indifferent to her throughout her life, but these accusations cut her to the bone. ‘If you cut me do I not bleed?’ the merchant of Venice famously said, and Anne was to bleed over the three pages of her preface.
The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall, stage production
A measure of Anne’s insistence on honour is shown by her swift action when she found that her publisher, Thomas Newby, had wrongly been telling people that she, or rather Acton Bell as he knew her, was also the author of Jane Eyre. Within twenty four hours of the letter arriving, she and her sister Charlotte Brontë were in London to confront their respective publishers. Charlotte no doubt expected Anne to break off her contract with Newby and turn instead to her publisher Smith, Elder & Co. Anne, however, would not turn her back on a contract she had signed, but instead insisted on Newby publishing a preface to the second edition being planned for The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall in which she would refute some of the accusations being made against her. It was to become her personal manifesto, as well as the last piece of prose she would ever have published. Anne Brontë would now speak with her own voice, as if she knew she was running out of time, on subjects close to her heart:
On the importance of truth in writing: ‘My object in writing the following pages, was not simply to amuse the Reader, neither was it to gratify my own taste, nor yet to ingratiate myself with the Press and the Public: I wished to tell the truth, for truth always conveys its own moral to those who are able to receive it.’
On the proper subject of fiction: ‘If I can gain the public ear at all, I would rather whisper a few wholesome truths therein than much soft nonsense.’ (This has sometimes, wrongly, been taken as an attack on Wuthering Heights, but it is instead a rebuttal of critics who said that the vérité scenes of her novels were not a fitting subject for literature.)
On the didactic power of literature: ‘When we have to deal with vice and vicious characters, I maintain it is better to depict them as they really are than as they would wish to appear. To represent a bad thing in its least offensive light, is doubtless the most agreeable course for a writer of fiction to pursue; but is it the most honest, or the safest? Is it better to reveal the snares and pitfalls of life to the young and thoughtless traveller, or to cover them with branches and flowers? O Reader! if there were less of this delicate concealment of facts – this whispering ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace, there would be less of sin and misery to the young of both sexes who are left to wring their bitter knowledge from experience.’
On the perfect work of art: ‘I love to give innocent pleasure. Yet, be it understood, I shall not limit my ambition to this – or even to producing ‘a perfect work of art’; time and talents so spent, I should consider wasted and misapplied.’
On being misunderstood by critics: ‘When I feel it is my duty to speak an unpalatable truth, with the help of God, I will speak it, though it be to the prejudice of my name.’
On the true identity of the Bells: Respecting the author’s identity, I would have it be distinctly understood that Acton Bell is neither Currer nor Ellis Bell, and therefore, let not his faults be attributed to them. As to whether the name be real or fictitious, it cannot greatly signify to those who know him only by his works.’
On the equality of the sexes: ‘All novels are or should be written for both men and women to read, and I am at a loss to conceive how a man should permit himself to write anything that would be really disgraceful to a woman, or why a woman should be censured for writing anything that would be proper and becoming for a man.’
Anne was an experienced and usually rapid writer, but days turned into weeks as she wrote this preface. She would delete lines, tear up pages, until she was satisfied that everything she said was just how it should be. This, after all, was Anne Brontë presenting her true self to the world: honest and truthful, courageous, bold, and not the downtrodden, quiet woman some people still think of. Today, increasing numbers are finding that her books may be set nearly two centuries ago, but they speak to us in a very modern way, and with an understanding that few other Victorian novelists have achieved.
I think Anne would have been proud of the impact her novels continue to have, and delighted at the praise she is now finding. I myself want here to give thanks for all the kind words people have given me regarding my biography of Anne, ‘In Search Of Anne Brontë‘. From a glowing review in The Mail On Sunday, to praise from readers on both sides of the Atlantic, it means so much to me, and I hope it introduces Anne Brontë to even more readers.
In Search Of Anne Bronte review, Mail On Sunday
Posted on 26th March 2017 Leave a comment on Anne Brontë And The Quest For Truth
To Write Invisible: The Brontës And Anonymity
Yesterday, I attended the annual lecture at the Brontë Society summer festival, this time delivered by acclaimed biographer of Charlotte Brontë, Claire Harman. The venue, Haworth’s large and impressive Hall Green Baptist Church, was packed to the rafters, so much so that I had to take a seat on the upper balcony. There were initial microphone problems, and at one pound a battering noise on the door as if somebody was trying to break in (reminiscent of Cathy at the window of Wuthering Heights), but Claire carried on like the professional she is and delivered a very interesting lecture.
Hall Green Baptist Church, Haworth, site of the Bronte Society lecture
In effect, the theme of the lecture could be called ‘To Write Invisible’, coming as it did just two days after completion of the BBC’s filming of the new Brontë drama ‘To Walk Invisible’ in Haworth. Claire looked at why the sisters chose anonymity, how their true identities were revealed, and how Charlotte craved anonymity once more even after she had gained fame and success.
We all know that the sisters chose to publish their first book, their poetry, and then their subsequent novels under the pseudonyms of Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell, retaining only their real initials. Charlotte herself, in her 1950 biographical notices of Ellis and Acton Bell, revealed the reasoning: ‘We did not like to declare ourselves women, because we had a vague impression that authoresses are liable to be looked on with prejudice.’
Charlotte also writes that the choice of names was ambiguous, rather than being positively masculine, which Claire repeated in her lecture, and which I have also heard Juliet Barker proclaim. In my opinion, however, the names are distinctly masculine, and Charlotte in her account was trying to circumvent any charge of dishonesty.
An example of the maleness of these names would have been well known to Anne at the time. Ellis Cunliffe Lister was the MP for Bradford, and he was also the father of Mary Ingham who had employed Anne as a governess at Blake Hall in Mirfield.
Anne addresses the choice of names in her preface to the second edition of The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall, in which she hits back at her critics:
‘As little, I should think, can it matter whether the writer so designated is a man, or a woman or two of my critics profess to have discovered.’
Claire also pondered why they craved anonymity. Emily, especially, was very desirous to keep her writing life a secret, but this was an extension of her extreme reserve and aloofness witnessed by Elizabeth Gaskell. Mrs. Gaskell was careful to draw a distinction between Anne’s shyness and Emily’s reserve. She said that Anne would have liked to please if she knew how, but Emily was indifferent whether she pleased or not.
Anne and Charlotte had particular reasons to hide their authorships behind a mask, their writings contained many autobiographical moments, and real people hidden under assumed names. In Agnes Grey, for example, the Bloomfields are obviously representative of the Inghams and the Murrays of the Robinsons, the two families that Anne Brontë worked for. She was careful, however, to change not only their names but their ages, slightly, to hide the real inspiration behind her often brutally frank portrayals.
Charlotte encountered this problem too with her portrayal of the dreadful head of Lowood school, the hypocritical calvinist Mr. Brocklehurst. He was closely modelled on Reverend. Carus Wilson, the head of the Cowan Bridge school that had led to the deaths of the eldest Brontës, Maria and Elizabeth. Charlotte would forever be adamant, as Claire Harman revealed, that the real life Cowan Bridge had been even more shocking than the fictional Lowood.
Charlotte’s second novel, Shirley, contained a large number of her friends and family under fictional names. Emily and Anne were the heroines Shirley and Caroline for example, while her great friend Mary Taylor and her family became the Yorkes. This brought anxiety for Charlotte, would some of the people in the book recognise themselves and therefore recognise who the mysterious author Currer Bell actually was?
Bronte biographer Claire Harman
Claire Harman here quoted from a letter of Charlotte to W.S.Williams, of her publisher, on 21st September 1849:
‘The original of Mr. Hall I have seen – he knows me slightly, but he would as soon think I had closely observed him or taken him for a character – he would as soon, indeed, suspect me of writing a book – a novel – as he would his dog Prince.’
Mr. Hall is one of the multitude of clergymen in the novel, and by far the kindest one. He was based upon Reverend William Margetson Heald, vicar of Dewsbury. He was more shrewd than Charlotte realised, however, and did indeed recognise himself. Shortly after the novel’s publication, the identity of Currer Bell was a matter of great speculation. A Haworth born merchant now living in Liverpool, John Driver, wrote to his local newspaper saying that he recognised the setting and many of the people in the book, and that the author must be from Haworth.
Charlotte was fighting a lost cause, and the true identity of Currer Bell as the tiny obscure daughter of a clergyman from a poor, moorside village in Yorkshire was finally confirmed. By this time, of course, both Emily and Anne had died, and so Charlotte, in her biographical notice, revealed their identities too.
Charlotte now became a literary sensation, and much sought after by society in London and elsewhere, but she soon longer for anonymity again more than ever. Her fourth novel (the third to be published) ‘Villette’ was her most personal yet. She revealed the true nature of her thwarted love for M. Heger, the stern teacher who had been her master in Brussels, and gave a searing and at times painful insight into her own character in the form of Lucy Snowe.
She begged her publishers to publish the novel under another pen name, rather than using either Currer Bell or Charlotte Brontë. This would have been commercial suicide of course, and eventually the publisher managed to persuade Charlotte of this, although she then implored them not to advertise the book.
The three Brontë sisters craved anonymity until the very end, only by obscuring their identities could these women gain the courage they needed to craft such incredible and often incredibly honest works. Timid in real life, under their anonymous cloak they were all powerful and dared to write anything.
Today, of course, they are known and lauded across the whole world, and Claire finished her lecture by talking about her visit to Westminster Abbey to see poet’s corner on the 200th anniversary of Charlotte Brontë’s birth. Amidst all the pomp and statues, in the bottom right hand corner sits a relatively tiny engraving to Charlotte, Emily and Anne: ‘With The Courage To Endure’. This motto itself is an echo of Anne Brontës final words to her sister Charlotte: ‘take courage’. This plaque may at first seem tiny and insignificant, as the girls themselves did to those who didn’t know their incredible secret, and yet fittingly it’s next to the statue of Shakespeare. Denied it in life, in death they have been placed among the true literary greats.
The Bronte memorial, poet’s corner
Posted on 26th March 2017 26th March 2017 Leave a comment on To Write Invisible: The Brontës And Anonymity
Triumph And Tragedy: Anne Brontë In London
When Anne Brontë, accompanied by her sister Charlotte, arrived in London on the dawn of 8th July 1848 they had intended to stay for one night only and return to Yorkshire on Sunday. That would give them enough time to meet Charlotte’s publisher, Smith, Elder & Co., and Anne’s publisher, Thomas Cautley Newby, to resolve the misunderstanding that had distressed them so: due to their use of male pseudonyms, Anne’s publisher had tried to convince the world that Acton and Currer Bell were the same person. Stung by this slur against their honesty, they sprung into action.
It didn’t take long for the sisters to convince George Smith of the truth of the situation, remarkable and undreamed of though it was, but this was to change their plans completely, with dreadful consequences. Smith, and his assistant William S. Williams, were in awe of these two young women who could produce such powerful writing. Waving away their protests, Smith insisted that they stay in London for at least a few days as his guests. They insisted that they couldn’t stay at his mother’s house, as he had suggested, but they would remain at the Chapter Coffee House. Thus it was that Anne and Charlotte remained in London until Tuesday, as Charlotte’s publisher paid tribute to their genius and introduced them to the delights of the capital.
On that first night the Brontës were to be guests at the Royal Italian Opera, Covent Garden, now the Royal Opera House. Charlotte, as usual when faced with stressful situations, came down with one of her bilious attacks and a severe headache, but as evening arrived their escorts for the night came to fetch them. Smith himself would be Charlotte’s escort, and Williams would be Anne’s. Plainly dressed as, be necessity, they were, they were horrified to see the men wearing tail coats. Upon reaching the opera house they saw ladies wearing the finest dresses and jewellery, and Charlotte in particular would have been mortified.
WS Williams
For Anne, her initial misgivings would soon have been replaced by extreme joy. Anne loved music, and often played the Haworth Parsonage piano, a pleasure denied to Charlotte by her extreme short sightedness. She regularly bought sheet music and had often attended recitals in Keighley and Scarborough. Her favourite form of music was light opera, and so she must have been thrilled to find that she would be watching an opera by the master of the genre, it was ‘The Barber Of Seville’ by Rossini.
On the next morning, Anne indulged the other great love of her life: worship. It may seem surprising that she didn’t go to mass at St Paul’s Cathedral, directly opposite their rooms, but typically she selected somewhere less ostentatious, and when Mr Williams arrived to collect them on Sunday morning she asked to be taken to St Stephen’s Church in Walbrook, whose minister was the renowned evangelist and philanthropist George Croly.
The magnificent interior of St Stephens Church, Walbrook
The next few days were a social whirl, as the two gentlemen paid the authors the homage their talents deserved. They dined at the homes of both Smith and Williams, walked around beautiful parks, were shown around art galleries. They were taken shopping, where they bought presents for everyone at the Parsonage, from Emily to Tabby Aykroyd. They also, of course, at some point visited the unscrupulous Newby. Alas, history doesn’t record what happened at this meeting, but we can easily imagine Anne laying aside her usual timidity to tell him exactly what she thought of his shabby methods.
Tuesday arrived, and the sisters had to return to Haworth. Smith tried to persuade them to stay longer but didn’t press the point, probably guessing the truth which was that Anne and Charlotte had by now used up all the money they came with. The train journey northwards must have been mixed with fatigue, excitement, and pride. They had done exactly what they had set out to do, and much more besides. It was Anne’s only journey outside of London and she had seen sights such as she’d never seen before, from beautiful architecture to some of the world’s greatest art.
It was the peak moment of victory for Anne, but it was to be followed by a rapid descent. Within a year, she, Emily, and Branwell would all be dead from tuberculosis, but where did the disease come from? Consumption is a disease that thrives in heavily populated areas and was relatively rare in Haworth which was instead prone to epidemics of cholera and typhoid. It seems likely that this contact, in London, with so many people saw Anne unknowingly pick up a huge dose of tuberculosis which was then passed on to her sister and brother. In this way, the triumph of London would lead directly to one of the most tragic episodes in the history of literature.
Posted on 23rd March 2017 1 Comment on Triumph And Tragedy: Anne Brontë In London
Smith, Elder & Co: Anne Brontë In London
When Charlotte and Anne Brontë arrived in London on the morning of 8th July 1848, they had just one thing on their mind: restoring their honour. A day earlier a letter had arrived from Charlotte’s publisher, Smith, Elder & Co. that would change literary history for ever. In it, George Smith asked if Currer Bell could explain how a book entitled The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall was being hawked to an American publisher as a new work by the author of Jane Eyre.
George Smith, publisher of Charlotte Bronte
The truth of the matter, of course, was that The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall was written by Anne Bronte under the pseudonym of Acton Bell. The sisters’ use of male pseudonyms had been intended to hide the real identities of this shy trio and to ensure that their books were not judged unfairly because of the gender of the authors. As the events of July showed, however, it had been causing confusion and speculation. Anne’s unscrupulous publisher, Thomas Cautley Newby, had used this uncertainty to try to gain a better deal for Anne’s new book in the United States. This swiftly resulted in the letter which devastated Charlotte, Anne, and Emily.
One thing they couldn’t countenance was having their honesty questioned, but how could they solve this problem? At this point even their publishers had no idea of the true identity of the authors, but the sisters quickly agreed that this had to change. Emily, the most insular of all the Brontës, would not make the journey, but she gave her blessing to her two sisters as long as they still kept the identity of Ellis Bell a secret.
After checking in at the Chapter Coffee House on Paternoster Row, a location Charlotte had earlier stayed in en route to Brussels, they wasted little time in setting out for Smith, Elder & Co. Here they encountered another problem. The publisher was located at 65 Cornhill, a street running off from the Bank of England premises, and home to many bookshops and publishers. The sisters had a vague idea that it was not far from Paternoster Row but after setting out on foot got completely lost, and were too shy to ask for directions.
Charlotte recorded, when relaying the story of her London adventure to her friend Mary Taylor, that it took them well over an hour to finally reach the publisher. I recently retraced their steps and it took me ten minutes of gentle strolling to reach 65 Cornhill. In effect it’s a straight road which leads from Paternoster Row, past St Paul’s Cathedral, and then turning into Cheapside which in turn changes its name to Cornhill. Many of the buildings still there today would have been seen by the sisters, and Anne would have loved the stately imposing architecture unlike any she’d seen before.
Eventually the reached the building today. The Shanghai Commercial Bank stands on the spot today, but the original building is no more. Anne and Charlotte must have taken a moment on the threshold to compose themselves, could they actually carry out their plan, could they throw their masks of anonymity aside? Holding hands for comfort they stepped inside.
The ground floor was a bookshop. Charlotte walked to an assistant and asked to be taken to George Smith, the head of the publishing house. Unworldly as they were, it had not occurred to them that he might not be at work on what was a Saturday morning. Luckily for them, Smith was a workaholic and in his office on the floor above. The assistant, unaccustomed to such requests, nevertheless went to Smith’s office to pass on the request. He was unhappy at being disturbed and told the assistant to find out their names and their business. The assistant returned shortly to say that the women would not give him their names but said that it was important business and they must see him.
Smith was now intrigued, and asked for them to be shown up. He was surprised to see two women standing before him, they were small in stature, timid, and wearing clothes that were far from fashionable. He took a moment to survey them and then asked them why they wanted to see him.
At this point Charlotte stepped forward and planted the letter on his desk that she had received just a day earlier. It was addressed to Currer Bell.
Smith was now on the verge of becoming alarmed, he was not adverse to publishing mysteries but didn’t necessarily want to be in one himself.
‘Where did you get this?’, he asked Charlotte.
‘From the post office’, she replied, ‘it’s addressed to me.’ There was no going back now.
Smith, a young man who had recently taken over the firm from his father, could hardly take in what was happening. Could this really be his stellar new writer Currer Bell with whom he had exchanged so many letters? He produced paper and a pen, and asked Charlotte to sign her signature. Her ‘Currer Bell’, of course, matched those that Smith already had.
Smith was amazed, but there was another surprise to come. Charlotte explained that she was a poor clergyman’s daughter from Yorkshire by the name of Brontë, and then introduced her sister Anne and explained that she was Acton Bell who had recently caused so much controversy with The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall.
The mystery was now cleared up, and any charge of deception was quickly transferred from the sisters themselves to the publisher Newby. Smith left the office briefly and came back with his head reader, William Smith Williams. It was Williams who had first recognised the brilliance of Jane Eyre, and he too was now amazed to discover who Currer Bell really was. The sisters explained that they were now going to visit Thomas Newby and then return to Haworth, but Smith would hear nothing of it. They were now his guests of honour, and he would show them the respect their genius deserved. In next week’s blog you’ll read more about their prolonged stay in London, and how a joyous few days for Anne would lead directly to one of the most tragic events in English literature.
The Cornhill history door, London
Cornhill hasn’t forgotten its two famous visitors. A wooden door stands at 32 Cornhill which is an incredible work of art by sculptor Walter Gilbert. Made in 1939 it’s one of London’s hidden treasures. The door features eight elaborate panels showing significant moments in Cornhill’s history. The first panel notes its founding by King Lucius in 179AD, and the eight panel shows two women talking to a man in a top hat: it is Charlotte and Anne Brontë at the moment of their ultimate triumph, and is at the head of this post.
Posted on 23rd March 2017 2 Comments on Smith, Elder & Co: Anne Brontë In London
The Chapter Coffee House: Anne Brontë In London
Anne Brontë and her sisters will forever be associated with Yorkshire, and indeed she only ever made one journey outside of her home county, but what a journey it was! I’m lucky enough to be spending some time in England’s capital myself, so in a series of three blogs I’ll be following Anne’s footsteps and reliving the adventures of Anne Brontë in London. In the next blog I’ll be looking at the reason for Anne and Charlotte’s sudden journey, the publishing house of Smith, Elder & Co. In the third blog I’ll examine the enjoyment that Anne gained from her visit, as well as the tragic aftermath, but in this first blog I’ll be uncovering the location of the Chapter Coffee House where Anne and Charlotte lodged during their London adventure.
On 7th July 1848 Charlotte Brontë received a letter that chilled her to the bone. It was from her publisher Smith, Elder & Co informing her that a publisher named Thomas Cautley Newby had been trying to sell the rights to The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall to an American publisher by stating that it was by the author of Jane Eyre, by then a smash hit. This confusion had resulted from the sisters’ use of pseudonyms, with Charlotte publishing as Currer Bell, and Anne and Emily as Acton and Ellis respectively. Nevertheless many critics and readers believed all their novels to be the work of one person. Newby, Anne’s unscrupulous publisher, had decided to exploit this belief to make a killing for himself, and Charlotte’s publishers were mortified that they may have been duped by the mysterious Currer Bell who had promised them rights to a new book.
The Bronte sisters were horrified, after all their very honesty was now being called into question. A conference was held and an incredible decision made – the only way that they could prove their identity would be to go to London themselves. This would involve the dramatic step of throwing off their ‘Bell’ masks but that position of secrecy had now become untenable. Emily gave them their blessing, but remained at Haworth, and within hours of receiving the letter at the Parsonage, Charlotte and Anne had already set out on their rail journey to London.
They had acted, as always, hastily and decisively, and when they arrived in London in the early hours of the 8th of July they realised that they had no idea where to stay. After a little thought, Charlotte recalled the Chapter Coffee House on Paternoster Row. It was here that she, Emily and their father Patrick had stayed as they made their journey to Brussels in February 1842, and a location that Patrick had stayed at himself as a young man. Hailing a cab, Charlotte asked to be taken there; it was quite simply the only location in London that she knew.
Once there, Anne found the location very much to her liking. It was exactly opposite St Paul’s Cathedral, and she could hear the bells ringing and look out at the magnificent building from her window. If the proprietors of the Coffee House could not have guessed the nature of the two young geniuses who were now staying with them, neither could Anne nor Charlotte have realised that they were the latest, if greatest, in a line of writers to frequent it. In the late eighteenth century it had become very fashionable among the capital’s literary set and had been visited by the likes of Samuel Johnson, Oliver Goldsmith, and Thomas Chatterton.
Once settled into the Coffee House, and having taken some refreshment, the sisters wasted no time in heading off for Smith, Elder & Co of Cornhill. You can read the incredible story of what happened then in the next blog. One mystery, however remains: just what happened to the Chapter Coffee House? By careful examination of descriptions, maps old and modern, and study of the area as it is today, I believe the location can finally be revealed.
We know, of course, that the House was on Paternoster Row to the rear of St Paul’s Cathedral, but the area has changed drastically since 1848. It has been supposed that the Coffee House was somewhere in the open area now known as Paternoster Square, yet it seems to me that the correct location is still on what is today’s Paternoster Row, directly in front of The Temple Bar.
Map showing the Chapter Coffee House by Patrick Bronte
As a starting point, let’s take a map that Patrick Brontë has very usefully drawn showing the location of the Chapter Coffee House. Some streets are no longer there, but some remain and the positioning of Ludgate Hill, Ave Maria Lane, Amen Corner and Cheapside give us a big clue to where it actually was.
We can see that the Coffee House was located on the corner of a street called Paul’s Alley which was no longer there, but below Amen Corner itself. This means that it couldn’t be in what is now the modern Paternoster Square. If we take a look at this modern map and compare it to Patrick’s, I’ve marked with a red C the spot where the Chapter Coffee House actually stood.
What is there today? Let’s take a look:
Site Of The Chapter Coffee House
Unfortunately on the exact spot where the Chapter Coffee House stood is now a gap. In the gap is a pump saying erected by St Faith’s Parish 1819, but this pump was only moved to its current spot in 1973 just as the imposing Temple Bar behind it was only moved to its current site in 2004.
How can we be certain that this is the correct spot? As well as matching the approximate location on Patrick’s map the buildings alongside the gap should also be taken into account. On the left hand side is Paul’s bakery. To the right is Chapter House, now being restored by St Paul’s, and bearing a sign saying ‘Paul’s Alley on the side. Whilst the façade of Paul’s bakery is modern, the doorway retains its original portico-like shape, as do the doors and windows of Chapter House. Take a look at them now:
The Chapter Coffee House neighbours today
Compare this to an early nineteenth century picture of the Chapter Coffee House and its neighbours:
The Chapter Coffee House in 1843
The roofline of Paul’s and Chapter House is different to that in the picture, but that is because the roofline had to be restructured. Examine the third story windows and you can see the outline of the taller windows that were originally placed there, just as in the illustration. The reason for this restoration is given in the architectural evidence provided by the company currently working on the restoration of Chapter House.
It’s well know that St Paul’s Cathedral itself survived the bombing of London, the Blitz, in World War Two, but the buildings opposite suffered a direct hit and were caught up in a conflagration. Much of the structure was gutted, yet the outside façade remained, and restoration saved what are now Paul’s and Chapter House. The building in the middle, where the gap now is, was obviously beyond saving and the Chapter Coffee House was lost forever.
There is little doubt in my mind that the gap next to Chapter House once saw two nervous young Yorkshire women walk through a door no longer there. The bricks are now gone, but the ghosts remain, and by standing on the spot we can still enjoy the view of St Paul’s Cathedral that must have thrilled Anne so.
Anne Bronte’s view Of St Paul’s Cathedral from the Chapter Coffee House
Posted on 23rd March 2017 4 Comments on The Chapter Coffee House: Anne Brontë In London
Haworth Sanitation And The Babbage Report
The 22nd of March is World Water Day; it sounds like a joke but it’s far from funny. One in three people around the world have no access to a toilet or clean water, and that has an incredible impact on the health and prospects of more than 1.8 billion people who are put in danger of contracting cholera, typhoid, polio and more. It’s a huge problem in the developing world today, but it was also a huge problem in the Haworth of Anne Brontë and her sisters.
Haworth today is a beautiful tourist village, but in the 1840s it was very different. The industrial revolution had led to a massive expansion of Haworth, and that brought with it overcrowding, disease and very insanitary conditions. The lack of toilets, sanitation and fresh water led directly to the epidemics of typhoid and cholera that annually wiped out a huge percentage of the population. In fact, in 1838, when Anne was eighteen, the average age at death in Haworth was just 19.6 years.
Lower Laithe Reservoir, built thanks to Patrick Bronte
Patrick Brontë, who was overworked simply from the non-stop funerals he had to hold, realised that sanitation was at the heart of the problems that had made Haworth the most unhealthy place in England outside of the London slums. He wrote repeatedly to the government, and at last in April 1850 a government inspector called Benjamin Herschel Babbage carried out an official inspection. He was shocked by what he found, and the results of his report, and Patrick’s persistence, were that Haworth gained a reservoir, a cleaner water supply and more toilets. It was a life saving transformation for the village, especially when you consider some of the astonishing facts contained in the Babbage Report into Haworth:
• There were 69 toilets for two and a half thousand people
• 24 houses shared one toilet
• Seven houses had no access to a toilet at all
• There were eleven water pumps for the whole village, two were out of order
• One tap was within two metres of a large cess pit in the middle of Main Street
• There were no drains, and human and animal effluent ran down the sides of the steep street
• The village drinking water was polluted by rotting flesh from the overcrowded graveyard
• 42% of children born in Haworth died before the age of six
These statistics are incredible, almost unbelievable, but true. It’s little wonder that Haworth became a place where people could sicken and die at any time. Anne Brontë and her family were lucky, as the Parsonage was one of only two buildings in the village with its own clean water supply, thanks to a nearby spring. We too are lucky who can take toilets, clean water, and sanitation for granted. One in three across the world are not so lucky, and yet, like Haworth after the Babbage report, things can change. Find out more, and maybe do your little bit to help, by visiting the World Water Day website. If Patrick Brontë had been alive today, we can be sure he would be a campaigner.
Posted on 22nd March 2017 1 Comment on Haworth Sanitation And The Babbage Report
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by Dallas Middaugh
Louis Comfort Tiffany was the son of Charles Lewis Tiffany, owner of that famous jewelry store of screen and song. While the younger Tiffany could have chosen to live a life of leisure, funded by the family's considerable wealth, he embarked instead on a path that would bring him almost as much fame as his father. Today, L.C. Tiffany is one of the best-known stained glass artists in the world, and his work is both much sought after and imitated. Examining Tiffany's many types of art glass could fill ten AuctionWatch.com Collector's Beat stories, so will focus today just on his stained glass lamps.
One Invention Edison Didn't Steal Tiffany spent many years cultivating his talent for stained glass, but it wasn't until his collaboration with Thomas Edison that the idea of creating a stained glass lamp shade occurred to him. Together Edison and Tiffany had already helped to create the first movie theater, the Lyceum, when Edison realized that the multicolored glass with which Tiffany worked would be ideal for a lamp. Tiffany agreed and implemented the idea in his factories. The lamps were highly successful, and Tiffany began to mass produce them, with the goal of having a Tiffany lamp in every home.
Lamp Shade Art Tiffany lamps weren't cheap, even back in the late 1890s when they were first produced, and they remained the province of the wealthy--and of museums, to which Tiffany frequently donated pieces. The lamps consisted of essentially two parts: the base and the shade. The base was typically made of bronze, while the shade consisted of a multitude of pieces of Favrile glass (this being a term Tiffany had created to describe his handmade glass) soldered together in a bronze framework. Often similar patterns were used, the most famous of which is a series of interconnected dragonflies. Other patterns included the use of the Zodiac or bamboo and apple blossoms or wisteria. These latter two included bases shaped as tree trunks, which were not sold as widely as other patterns, making them exceptionally valuable today.
How Much Are They Worth, Anyway? An original Tiffany lamp in museum-quality condition can be worth a lot. In 1985, the "Magnolia" sold for over $500,000 at auction, while more recently, the "Zinnia" sold for over $1 million! Less rare pieces can still command prices in the tens of thousands of dollars if they are in good shape and authentic. Identification can be difficult, though, as Tiffany was not consistent in how he signed his work, sometimes using initials, other times the company name, and still other times opting for no signature at all. Major auction houses specializing in art glass, such as Butterfield & Butterfield, Sotheby's, and Christie's, often contend with reproductions submitted for auction with forged signatures.
Original Tiffany lamps will be out of the price range of the average collector, which makes it all the better that his work has been an inspiration for so many modern-day glass artisans. Finding a Tiffany-style lamp is not difficult. In fact, some of the cheapest imitations can be found in stores like Target or Wal-Mart. Not surprisingly, these are the least likely to appreciate in value. Many studios continue to mass produce Tiffany-style lamps in a manner similar to the master himself. Moreover, because varying glass is used and each is still handmade, there is a near infinite variety available to you.
Tiffany-style lamps are a respectable investment. For the past several years, their prices have grown at a rate exceeding that of inflation. Nonetheless, it is unlikely any single piece will increase in value to the level of an original Tiffany work as the market is relatively saturated. In the final analysis, fine-crafted Tiffany reproductions are a worthwhile investment if you consider the enjoyment they will provide over the long term. Then if you want to sell it five years down the road, you'll see as much as a 50 percent return on your investment. Not bad!
Dallas Middaugh is a frequent AuctionWatch.com contributor and freelance writer specializing in collectibles.
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APB's Nicholas Kristof Interviews Hillary Clinton at 2017 Women in the World Summit
New York Times’ columnist and APB speaker Nicholas Kristof conducted the first extensive interview with Hillary Clinton since the election in November. On April 6th in New York City, Kristof asked Clinton thought-provoking and honest questions regarding the election, the current White House administration, her future, and women’s issues at home and abroad.
In light of our current political state, Kristof, a vocal advocate for equality, asked Clinton a question that took her by surprise: “Will you ever run for office again?” Clinton responded that she plans on making a difference and continuing to fight for what’s right in ways that likely don’t include running for office.
+Watch the Interview
APB speaker Tina Brown’s 8th Annual Women in the World Summit featured world- renowned female leaders from all around the globe celebrating strong women and men of alliance. Kristof and Clinton were among the incredible leaders at the summit, as was actress, activist and APB speaker Maria Bello. Bello spoke on a panel about “The Sun Ladies,” a group of Yazidi women fighting back against ISIS. She highlighted the inspiring actions of Yazidi women taking ownership of their own bodies and rising above atrocity to combat the terrorist group. Bello and Clinton did not shy away from the reality of how strong women are treated in the public eye. The interviews left audiences, both in the room and online, enlightened and inspired.
Following the interview, Kristof shared some of his personal insights into Clinton’s stance in his New York Times Op-Ed: “In the most wrenching, humiliating way possible, Hillary Clinton has been liberated. She is now out of the woods again, and speaking her mind.” Kristof takes this newfound freedom as an opportunity for Clinton to openly fight for women and children’s rights.
+Read the Op-Ed
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- Licensee
Home // About APEGA // Past-Presidents // 1951: Harold P. Randle, P.Eng.
1951: Harold P. Randle, P.Eng.
Born in Lancashire, England, Harold Randle moved to Ontario in 1910 and attended HamiltonTechnicalSchool and Hamilton Collegiate Institute. In 1913 he joined Canadian Westinghouse Company Ltd., where he worked for three years in assembly and component testing departments.
He served overseas with Canadian Engineers and Canadian Divisional Signal Corps during the First World War, then returned to the company in 1919. A year later he was appointed assistant to the district engineer in Winnipeg. In 1923 he became construction and service engineer for the FortWilliam district and in 1925 was promoted to district engineer for Calgary.
Four years later Randle joined Calgary Power Ltd. as an electrical engineer on its Ghost plant construction project. In 1942 he became the company's equipment and waterworks engineer and in 1963 was appointed systems planning engineer. He retired in 1970.
Randle was elected to council of the Association of Professional Engineers of Alberta (APEA; now The Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta) in 1946 and elected association president in 1951. He was subsequently awarded Honorary Life Membership.
He was also a member of the Engineering Institute of Canada and the American Water Works Association. He passed away in 1971 in Calgary.
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The History of Ice Cream
Who Invented Ice Cream?
Whether in a bowl, cone, or glass, ice cream is sure to please.
Photo by Thinkstock
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The history of ice cream is a messy one. Many nations claim to have invented it, just as various individuals take credit for it. Even if its origin remains murkey, it makes for a chilling drama!
NOTE: If you are searching for the answer to “Who invented of ice cream?” that’s a trick question. There isn’t just one single person! Read on …
A.D 54–68: For centuries, iced desserts were a luxury. Roman Emperor Nero is said to have sent his slaves into the mountains to fetch snow to mix with nectar, fruit pulp, and honey, although this widely told tale may be a myth.
A.D. 618–907: The origins of ice cream date back to China’s T’ang period, probably as a dish for the country’s rulers. The founder of the dynasty, King T’ang of Shang, kept 94 “ice men” on hand to lug ice to the palace to make a dish made of koumiss (heated, fermented milk), flour, and camphor.
1744: American colonists brought along recipes from Europe. On May 19, 1744, a group of VIP’s dined at the home of Maryland Governor Thomas Bladen. Present was a Scottish colonist who described “a Dessert…Among the Rarities of which is was Compos’d, was some fine Ice Cream which, with the Strawberries and Milk, eat most deliciously.” This is the first written account of ice cream consumption in the new colonies.
1782: Ever hear how Martha Washington left a bowl of sweet cream on the back steps of Mount Vernon one night, and the next morning discovered ice cream? Nice story, but not true. George Washington did have, described in his ledger, “a cream machine for ice.”
1843: Until September 9, 1843, ice cream was made by the “pot freezer method,” but on this day, Nancy M. Johnson of Philadelphia got her “artificial freezer” patented, containing a tub, cylinder, lid, dasher, and crank. This design is still widely used today.
1851: Baltimore dairyman Jacob Fussell opened the first commercial ice cream factory. He had a surplus of cream—so he built an ice cream factory in Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania, and shipped it to Baltimore by train. Business boomed, and Fussell became the father of the wholesale ice cream industry.
1880: Buffalo, NY; Evanston, IL; Two Rivers, WI; and Ithaca, NY all claim to have invented the ice cream sundae. Wherever it happened, it first started appearing in soda fountains during the 1880’s. It was invented because ice cream sodas weren’t allowed to be sold on Sundays; the ice cream sundae was a way to circumvent that restriction. On September 22, 1903, there is a recorded application for a patent for the ice cream cone by Italo Marchiony.
1939: Grocery stores didn’t start selling ice cream until the 1930’s, and by WWII, ice cream had become so popular that it turned into somewhat of an American symbol (Mussolini banned it in Italy for that same reason). Ice cream was great for troop morale, and in 1943, the U.S. Armed Forces were the world’s largest ice cream manufacturers!
Whatever the history, ice cream is here to stay!
Want to try making it yourself? See our tips on how to make old-fashioned ice cream!
The 2004 Old Farmer's Almanac: the article posted on 10-2015 has been updated.
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Mussolini & ice cream
Submitted by Don Fiore on July 2, 2019 - 10:17pm
Can you cite your source relating to Mussolini’s supposed ban on ice cream? I have long been a student of that era of Italian history and have never heard or read anything about that. I do know, however, that gelato (ice cream) was definitely made, advertised and sold in Italy during the 1920s and 1930s.
Mussolini banned ice cream
Submitted by The Editors on July 3, 2019 - 11:41am
Hi, Don. Two books that were of great help to us were Ice Cream by Robert T. Marshall and Everybody Loves Ice Cream: The Whole Scoop on America’s Favorite Treat by Shannon Arnold. Neither provides details about ice cream being made in Italy, but that Mussolini declared the treat “too American” and banned it.
ice-cream FLAVORS avail in the 1930s?????
Submitted by Exasperated Atc... on May 31, 2017 - 2:26am
Ok, this is VERY ANNOYING! I came here to find out what flavors ice-cream (BESIDES choc & vanilla) were available in the 1930s because Google returned this and of course: NO ANSWERS, just like in the rest of websites this articles copies. UGH! At least I can leave my comment here.
Ice Cream Came From Heaven
Submitted by Mila on May 7, 2018 - 5:05pm
God invented Ice-Cream
Probably too late but...
Submitted by Lucy on January 26, 2019 - 1:22am
You could try looking up the major manufacturers at that time. In my research, I came across the history of Haagen Dazs and how they first came out with vanilla, chocolate, and coffee ice cream.
Submitted by steve on May 6, 2017 - 5:22am
First ice cream invented by Persian, Persia or current Iran was a hot country and it was a common eating practice between royals to eat cold things such as ice cream. Even today if you go to cities such as yazd in central Iran you can find some place which they used to store ice. Its a very bad habit when it comes to ancient times just referring anything to Rome or Greece.
When was this submitted? I
Submitted by Cynthia on October 25, 2015 - 3:54pm
When was this submitted? I need this information for a research paper.
When was ice cream discovered article
Submitted by The Editors on November 2, 2015 - 5:46pm
The original source is The 2004 Old Farmer’s Almanac, and it later ran in abbreviated form in The Old Farmer’s Almanac for Kids Volume 2. Hope this helps!
No mention of Augustus
Submitted by Marcelsmind on July 14, 2015 - 12:25am
No mention of Augustus Jackson and his influence on modern day ice cream , huh? Why am I not surprise?@ This highlights the importance of people of color needing to know their own history because we definitely would be fools to think others are going to honor it.
Hi, Marcelsmind: Thanks for
Submitted by The Editors on July 14, 2015 - 10:43am
Hi, Marcelsmind: Thanks for bringing up Mr. Jackson, who is known as the "Father of Ice Cream" because of his innovative ice cream-making ideas. Just for the record, we have neither the time nor the inclination to check on the ethnicity of the thousands of people mentioned in our pages. We just do the best we can. Thanks again!
I like ice cream! I like
Submitted by Dog-Pool [Wilson] on April 21, 2015 - 11:18pm
I like ice cream! I like cookies n cream. What's your fav icecream
I think that this page really
Submitted by #I love icecream on March 23, 2015 - 7:05pm
I think that this page really helped me with my genius hour at school. It did not answer my question on who really invented Ice-Cream. I did find the time line helpful on the history of Ice-Cream though. When I found this page I was really hopeful that it would tell me as well as the history it would tell me who invented it. So I think one piece of advice from me would be make sure you put in the information you say you are going to when people click on your link.
Thanks. We revised the text
Submitted by The Editors on March 29, 2015 - 9:24am
Thanks. We revised the text to communicate that its origins are quite murkey. Perhaps this is a trick question on a school exam! There is no one inventor as is the case with many inventions; there are building blocks in history that lead us from one idea to another. Often inventions are clustered around the same time in different countries because the conditions are ready and the building blocks are there!
this is actually very good
Submitted by The youtube man on November 6, 2014 - 1:14pm
this is actually very good info but it didn't answer my question on ice cream who invented the desert
I want to know for my
Submitted by Lolsmith on October 13, 2014 - 11:28pm
I want to know for my homework
i honestly think that this
Submitted by ansent kukuma on October 21, 2014 - 7:18pm
i honestly think that this article is a a good article to read because it has helped me out a lot through the rough times with all m y homework! :) I have this article hanged up in my room and in a picture frame... Props to the publisher!
#I love ice cream!
in many ancient countries
Submitted by esmaeel on October 2, 2014 - 6:13am
in many ancient countries like china , Iran , Roma people used to eat a mixture of snow or icy snow & sweet juices or chopped fruits .so it is difficult to say who invented icecream .
First of all, how did people
Submitted by nataly carbonell on June 14, 2014 - 7:54pm
First of all, how did people made ice cream back then? The refrigerator didn't exist. How? did they get ice from glaciers?
Hi, Nataly: Check out the
Submitted by The Editors on June 16, 2014 - 11:25am
Hi, Nataly: Check out the History above. Wherever there was snow or ice, there was a way to make ice cream or something like it. Pretty cool.
I remember Momma going out in
Submitted by phyllismurphy on June 25, 2014 - 10:36am
I remember Momma going out in the snow and filling a container full of fresh fallen snow and tossed eggs, sugar and vanilla and beat it all up and we 6 Hardy kids back in the Great Depression were so thrilled at the magic created by our darling precious Mother during those terrible years. God bless Momma and thank God for snow and ice cream!
This doesn't make sense.
Submitted by Rosina f on March 20, 2014 - 12:58pm
This doesn't make sense. There are too many people who made this!
the sabbath is on
Submitted by bobbi patty on December 2, 2013 - 10:45pm
the sabbath is on saturday..so thats alittle strange
What's the actual date?
Submitted by Tahsin khan on November 30, 2013 - 10:55am
really? Wikipedia? how dumb
Submitted by anonymousg*rl on October 20, 2013 - 9:57pm
really? Wikipedia? how dumb are people getting these days. I know people in middle school that don't trust Wikipedia! I know people that edit it to! so your telling us to trust Wikipedia a site that people rarely trust and only use for very broad and general information?!? what is our world coming to...
How about the Italians, the
Submitted by Mario Minervini on July 15, 2013 - 5:20pm
How about the Italians, the sicilians came up first with GELATO
I do know that the ice cream
Submitted by Hoosier on May 29, 2013 - 7:10pm
I do know that the ice cream cone became popular after the St. Louis World's Fair.
Wikipedia seriously? That's
Submitted by Art Nelson on May 29, 2013 - 4:21pm
Wikipedia seriously? That's like saying snopes is a reliable source of info. I've known since I was 5 years old, in 1960, that ice cream was first made by the Chinese.
so sorry but it seems
Submitted by bita on September 18, 2012 - 8:01am
so sorry but it seems Persians were first people who invented and used Ice Cream, you may see below link as well:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I...
You're seriously trusting
Submitted by Anonymoussss on April 29, 2013 - 8:49am
You're seriously trusting Wikipedia?
duh its the best = you're
Submitted by say whaa? on June 14, 2014 - 3:14am
duh its the best = you're seriously not trusting wikipedia
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Site of the Week – SciFiDimensions
Lots of websites are devoted to scifi movies, scifi television and scifi books. But, if you want coverage of all that and more (scifi theater, scifi comics, scifi plays, etc.), then check out SciFiDimensions. Beyond the usual fare, the eight-year-old online science fiction magazine aims to investigate avenues of the genre overlooked by other publications. It also offers original fiction, including works by the website’s editor and published author, John Snider. “My not-so-subtle message to scifi fans is to think outside the box,” Snider says. “All too often, we get caught up in our own ruts. We get lazy, and we don’t reward writers and moviemakers who put out something different, then complain about how derivative everything is.”
Snider’s very conscious of his decision to launch an online magazine, as opposed to a website, because “to me a website is just a static thing, something stale that may or may not even get updated,” he notes. “I wanted to do on the Internet what magazines like the legendary OMNI did on paper — offer a wide variety of material on a regular basis.” SciFiDimensions, which averages about 90,000 page views a month, has new content nearly every week, with Snider writing at least half the new material and the rest coming from three or four contributors.
OMNI is Snider’s biggest science fiction influence because it
“combined cutting edge short fiction from folks like Orson Scott Card,
George R.R. Martin and Harlan Ellison with science reporting and
objective articles about things like UFOs.” That’s why readers will
find an eclectic combination of content at SciFiDimensions. There’s
commentary like “Meekly Going Nowhere: Sci-Fi in the 21st Century” and
a “Real Tech” column that focuses on science and technology, featuring
interviews with astronomers, scientists and technology entrepreneurs.
About “Real Tech,” Snider says, “If you’re interested in science
fiction, you’re interested in science, by definition. What science
fiction fan wouldn’t be interested in news about the space shuttle, or
genetic engineering?” There’s fiction to be had too, the latest
offering being “The Quarterback Gene,” by Kevin Ahearn.
And Snider, a prolific writer who will have a short story published in late summer in an anthology called Aberrant Dreams I: The Awakening,
doesn’t shy away from writing negative reviews. “I think it’s a false
choice that popcorn fun can’t also be logical and intelligent,” he
believes. A choice excerpt from his review of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith:
“When he’s choreographing duels, dogfights, vast space armadas locked
in combat, or exotic alien vistas, [George] Lucas is Leonardo da Vinci;
when he’s directing human beings, he’s Ed Wood.”
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S.M. Miller & Associates
A financial advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc.
Our financial advice team
About Ameriprise
Visit ameriprise.com
#1 in trust: Rating based on responses to a consumer survey as part of the 2018 Temkin Trust Ratings, www.temkinratings.com. The Temkin Trust Ratings (TTR) is an openly available loyalty benchmarking metric. When companies have earned trust, their customers are willing to believe their claims and are more inclined to work with the company. The TTR is based on consumer feedback of their recent interactions with companies. Consumers are asked “To what degree do you TRUST that these companies will take care of your needs?” Responses are on a scale from 1= “do not trust at all” to 7= “completely trust.” TTR is calculated by taking the percentage of consumers that gave a rating of 6 or 7 and subtract the percentage that gave a rating of 1, 2, or 3.
This web site includes details about the SecureSource® benefits available for an additional fee on RiverSource® variable annuities. Variable annuities are insurance products that are complex, long-term investment vehicles that are subject to market risk, including the potential loss of principal invested. Surrenders that do not qualify for a waiver may be subject to a surrender charge. Surrenders are subject to income taxes, and surrenders before age 59-1/2 may incur an IRS 10% early withdrawal penalty.
You should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the variable annuity and its underlying investment options carefully before investing. For a free copy of the annuity's prospectus and underlying investment's prospectus, which contains this and other information about variable annuities, call 800.333.3437. Read the prospectus carefully before you invest.
RiverSource Distributors, Inc. (Distributor), Member FINRA. Issued by RiverSource Life Insurance Company, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and in New York only, by RiverSource Life Insurance Co. of New York, Albany, New York. Affiliated with Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc.
1 Ameriprise Financial tied for first place based on responses to a consumer survey as part of the 2018 Temkin Trust Ratings, www.temkinratings.com. The Temkin Trust Ratings (TTR) is an openly available loyalty benchmarking metric. When companies have earned trust, their customers are willing to believe their claims and are more inclined to work with the company. The TTR is based on consumer feedback of their recent interactions with companies. Consumers are asked “To what degree do you TRUST that these companies will take care of your needs?” Responses are on a scale from 1= “do not trust at all” to 7= “completely trust.” TTR is calculated by taking the percentage of consumers that gave a rating of 6 or 7 and subtract the percentage that gave a rating of 1, 2, or 3.
2 Ameriprise Financial was ranked #1 in the investment industry for customer loyalty according to the 2017 Temkin Group Loyalty Index. The Temkin Group Loyalty Index is an average of five loyalty ratings: repurchasing from the company, recommending the company to others, forgiving the company if it makes a mistake, trusting the company, and trying the company’s new offerings. The survey was fielded in January 2017 to 10,000 U.S. consumers, with quotas for age, income, ethnicity, and region to ensure that the distribution of respondents matched the U.S. Census data for the U.S. population. Consumers were asked to identify companies that they had interreacted with over the previous 90 days and were asked a series of questions about a random sample of those organizations, drawing from a total of 329 companies across 20 industries. For each company, the percentage of customers who considered themselves “very likely” to exhibit each of the five loyalty behaviors is determined. The Temkin Loyalty Index is then calculated by averaging the percentage of those five behaviors. See www.temkingroup.com for more.
3 Ameriprise is rated #1 in the investment firm category for customer service according to the Temkin Group 2017 Customer Service Ratings. The Temkin Customer Service Ratings (TCSR) is an openly available benchmarking metric for a critical customer interaction. The TCSR is based on consumer feedback of their recent interactions with companies. Consumers were asked to rate how satisfied they were with recent customer service experiences. Responses were on a scale from 1= “very dissatisfied” to 7= “very satisfied”. TCSR was calculated by taking the percentage of consumers that gave a rating of 6 or 7 and subtracting the percentage that gave a rating of 1, 2, or 3. See www.temkinratings.com for more.
Any client featured on this page is a brokerage customer of Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc., a registered broker-dealer. No depiction of or reference to a client is intended as an advertisement of investment advisory services. Each client experience is unique, so one client’s success does not guarantee success for any future client.
The Confident Retirement approach is not a guarantee of future financial results.
Ameriprise Financial cannot guarantee future financial results.
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Investment advisory products and services are made available through Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc., a registered investment adviser.
© 2005-2019 Ameriprise Financial, Inc. All rights reserved. Users of this site agree to be bound by the terms of the Ameriprise Financial Website Rules and Regulations.
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Egypt: Amnesty International Staff Detained in Cairo
Amnesty International News Flash
Amnesty International Staff Detained in Cairo
Contact: Suzanne Trimel, 212-633-4150, [email protected]
(London) — An Amnesty International representative has been detained by police in Cairo after the Hisham Mubarak Law Centre was taken over by military police this morning.
Amnesty International USA called on President Obama to immediately demand the release of the Amnesty International staff members.
The Amnesty International member of staff was taken, along with Ahmed Seif Al Islam Khaled Ali, a delegate from Human Rights Watch, and others, to an unknown location in Cairo. Amnesty International does not know their current whereabouts.
“We call for the immediate and safe release of our colleagues and others with them who should be able to monitor the human rights situation in Egypt at this crucial time without fear of harassment or detention,” said Salil Shetty, Secretary General of Amnesty International.
A number of other activists are still being held in the Centre, including a second Amnesty International member of staff.
Whether in a high-profile conflict or a forgotten corner of the globe, Amnesty International, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, campaigns for justice, freedom and dignity for all and seeks to mobilize public support to build a better world.
www.amnestyusa.org
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Your Portfolio: Long-Run Inflation
This post was part of a series on building a portfolio of mutual funds or Exchange Traded Funds. Much of the series has been moved to articles on the Portfolios menu:
Basic Portfolios: Some simple ideas that work remarkably well.
Diversify: Effective ways to diversify with bonds and stocks, globally.
Factor Investing: Specialized portfolios that employ techniques from academic research.
Respond to Inflation: Realistic options for inflation-protection, near-term and long-term. (Not yet moved, this topic is covered below, in this post.)
It's been a few decades since inflation was much of a problem. As shown in the chart below, spiking inflation and plunging deflation occurred with disturbing frequency throughout most of the 20th century. The cliffs and canyons in the chart are daunting. In the last 30 years, however, consumer prices have been relatively calm. Producer prices, which are more closely linked to commodities, have been more volatile. Yet even they seem less craggy than in earlier decades. Not coincidentally, during the recent period of moderate inflation, recessions (shown in gray) have been spaced farther apart.
Inflation Rates and Recessions
Should we stop worrying about inflation? Or is the recent quiescence a fool's paradise, certain to be ravaged some day with cyclonic fury? If we only knew.
But we don't know. And the recent moderation poses a problem. To judge whether an investment or strategy might protect a portfolio against inflation, we need to look back at least to the 1970's, but many investments, including TIPS and commodity-linked ETFs, don't go back that far. We have to rely on logic and theory more than on data. Or we have to assume that what works now when inflation and deflation are tame will continue to work, should the extreme tumult of past decades revive.
Spot Commodities
Just before the last big surge in consumer prices, in late 1975, suppose you saw inflation perking up and purchased some hard assets as a hedge. You bought a barrel of crude oil (it still resides in your garage) and a gold bar (it remains encased in your foam mattress). The next chart shows how these possessions fared in the nearly 40 years you have held them in storage. For comparison, I've added your other two investments, a boring fund of 2-year Treasury bonds and a plain-vanilla fund of the total U.S. stock market.
Your gold bar and barrel of oil were fabulous in 1980, as consumer prices peaked. Then, however, the Federal Reserve mercilessly raised interest rates, causing inflation to subside, and your winners went south. Zoom ahead to August 2015, and the picture is very different. Your barrel of oil is worth exactly what you paid for it (the chart adjusts for inflation each year). Your bar of gold is worth a bit more than its original price, in real purchasing power, but your boring 2-year Treasuries have done equally well, with a lot less drama. Best of all, by a whopping margin, is your stock fund, whose purchasing power has grown more than 10-fold.
The message of the last 40 years is very clear. The best long-run protection against inflation comes from stocks, tempered perhaps by some bonds if volatility is a concern. Had we done a similar analysis of other 40-year periods, the conclusion would have been the same, going back well into the 19th century.
Spot commodities, like the barrel of oil in your garage and the bar of gold in your mattress, are passive investments. Would more active strategies, such as funds that manage baskets of commodities or real-estate properties, do any better? Let's see. We'll look at three other options: commodity funds, real-estate funds, and a simple strategy based on stock-sectors.
Some exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds specialize in managing baskets of commodities. Unlike investors who buy a spot commodity, most of them don't hold hard assets in storage (although some do, especially gold funds). Instead, they manage contracts for future delivery of hard assets. The head-fake is that they never take delivery. Instead, they roll the contracts, selling one that will soon expire and buying another with a future date. As collateral for their transactions, they deposit enough cash-equivalents (usually T-Bills) to cover their contractual obligations. Thus, these funds generate returns in three ways:
Spot values on the commodities they have contracted to purchase.
Cash returns in the form of interest earned on the collateral they have posted.
Roll returns, or the difference in price between expiring contracts closed and replacement contracts opened.
Andrew Ang (Asset Management, Chapter 11, section 5.3) analysed the spot, cash, and roll components of one commodity index (GSCI) for the 42-year period from 1970 through 2011. I've reproduced his findings in the following chart, after adjusting for inflation.* Over the entire period, the spot and cash returns were about equal, and the roll return was slightly negative, for a total return of 6.6% above inflation. That value is similar to the very long-run real return on U.S. stocks. Significantly, commodity indexes such as GSCI tend to have low correlations with both stocks and bonds. The combination of a good return and a low correlation argues in favor of managed commodity funds as a long-term inflation hedge for a diversified portfolio. There are some caveats, however.
First, as the chart shows, the spot component varies substantially. In the 1970s, when inflation was consistently high, the returns were handsome. From 1980 to 2000, however, virtually all the return came from cash collateral (interest on T-Bills or other cash-equivalents) and none from spot values. That's consistent with the earlier chart of spot-returns on gold and crude oil. In fact, if you compare the two charts, the elements coded in green are similar investments, short-term interest from Treasury notes or bills. Thus, a key reason why a managed fund may offer better inflation-protection than spot commodities is that it buys more than commodities. The fund also purchases short-term interest payments from the U.S. Treasury, which nicely hedge inflation (or deflation) when spot returns are poor.
Second, commodity funds differ in the commodities they track. Some track just one commodity (such as gold or crude oil) or one sector (such as energy or precious metals). Others track a basket of commodities, with energy-related components such as oil, gas, and coal getting more or less weight depending on the fund. Ang presents evidence that energy deserves to be weighted strongly because its correlation with inflation is higher than other classes of commodities.
Finally, the fees on commodity-related funds are sometimes high, close to 1%.
With these points in mind, here are some options to evaluate, as you consider whether to allocate a modest portion of your portfolio to a commodity fund.
Many of the largest and most liquid commodity-linked funds specialize in a single asset (spot gold with GLD or IAU, for example, or current crude oil with USO). Their low fees may be attractive, but they are poor diversifiers, unless you pick several of them to create your own basket.
GSG, from iShares, tracks the more diversified S&P GSCI index, which is about 70% energy-related. While not the largest commodity fund, it is large enough to offer reasonable liquidity.
DBC, from Invesco-Powershares, gives 55% weight to energy, with the remainder divided about equally between agriculture and metals. The fund has an active strategy intended to optimize roll returns. It is a very large fund and very liquid.
USCI, from United States Commodity Funds, samples multiple commodities in a manner intended to capture momentum and value (see my post on factor investing). Momentum is gained by selecting commodities whose spot returns have recently been the best. Value is earned by selecting commodities whose contracts currently offer the most favorable roll returns. The fund's exposure to a particular sector, such as energy, will systematically rise or fall as the sector gains or loses either momentum or value.
Should you invest in commercial real estate to diversify your holdings? And will commercial real estate help to guard your portfolio against inflation? It's important to acknowledge that these are two different questions. They may have different answers.
Before trying to answer them, let's consider your options for investing in commercial real estate. For most retail investors, the options are limited.
Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) are companies whose stock you can purchase in a brokerage account, mutual fund, or ETF, sometimes within a 401(k) or 403(b) retirement plan. A REIT owns, operates, or finances real property. For example, it may own office buildings, shopping centers, apartment complexes, hotels, timber land, nursing homes, storage facilities, commercial mortgages, or other income-producing land or structures. Only a small fraction of U.S.commercial property is held by REITs. The great majority is privately owned. By U.S. law, REITs must be listed on a stock exchange and must pay 90% of their taxable income as dividends to shareholders.
TIAA Real Estate is a unique fund structured as a variable annuity. It may only be available if you have a qualified retirement plan at TIAA-CREF. This fund is not a REIT. It is not listed on a stock exchange, and therefore cannot be bought and sold with the same liquidity and frequency as a REIT. By investing in this fund, you own shares in the real-estate portfolio that TIAA-CREF uses to manage its insurance operations. In addition, the fund holds some cash reserves and may purchase shares in true REITs. Mostly, however, it comprises the office buildings, shopping centers, and apartment complexes from which TIAA-CREF generates income to run its own business. The values of these properties are assessed infrequently, which means that the share-values are less volatile than those of a publicly traded REIT. The fees are also higher than, say, a REIT index fund.
Returning to the key questions, will either of these forms of commercial real estate diversify a portfolio that already has stocks and bonds? The answer is a weak yes.
REITs are mid-cap value stocks. Their average size is the same as the average mid-cap stock, and their factor profile (see this earlier post) is very similar to a mid-cap value index. Thus, where a small-cap or mid-cap value fund would diversify your portfolio, a REIT index fund such as VGSIX or VNQ from Vanguard will do much the same. One sensible strategy would be to assign half your U.S. stock allocation to U.S. large caps (such as the S&P 500) and split the other half equally between U.S. small-cap value and a REIT index. By doing so, you might see a small boost in return, maybe 0.2%, compared to using just U.S. large caps and small-cap value.
TIAA Real Estate, in nearly 20 years since its inception, has generated returns mid-way between bonds and stocks. The trend-line went smoothly upward from 1995 to 2008, then fell 40% during the financial crisis, then resumed a steady rise from 2010 to 2015 (see this chart from Morningstar). In contrast, the trend-line for intermediate bonds was upward throughout this period, while the pattern for stocks was a double-crash, first from 2001 to 2003, then again in 2008-2009. Because of the different historical patterns, a portfolio that contains some TIAA Real Estate, plus stocks and bonds, would be better diversified than stocks and bonds alone. A reasonable strategy might be to replace a small portion of stocks (maybe 5%) and a small portion of bonds (maybe another 5%) with an investment in the real estate fund (10% in this example).
By diversifying in this manner, will your portfolio be better sheltered from inflation? The answer this time is yes, but not strongly enough to matter. Both REITs and TIAA Real Estate have tended to rise when inflation is slowly rising. Sweet! Both collapsed, however, because of the brief but intense deflation that occurred in late 2008. Sorry! In the long run, to be fair, both have bested inflation. The return of REITs surpassed inflation by 5.25% since 1972; those of TIAA Real Estate did so by 4.17% since 1995. While these returns are good, the total stock market did even better in both cases. Thus, commercial real estate may add little inflation-protection above and beyond what stocks generally provide, in the long run. (Ang's analysis led to a similar conclusion.)
Stock Sectors
The evidence reviewed to this point suggests:
Stocks, combined with some bonds, offer excellent protection against long-run inflation.
Commodity funds may add value, too, but are volatile and often expensive.
Real estate may diversify stock holdings, but won't boost stocks' capacity to outlast inflation.
There's one final idea to consider. It may be the best of the lot.
The chart above shows, on the right-hand scale, that by the summer of 2015, it cost $2.31 to purchase consumer goods and services that would have cost $1.00 in May 1984. Over the same period of time, as shown on the left-hand scale, an "All Weather" fund rose from $1.00 to $17.52. Two attributes of this fund are significant:
The rate of return far exceeded inflation. The $17.52 generated by the fund in 2015 would have bought more than seven times the goods and services of the original dollar invested in 1984, even at 2015's inflated prices.
The pattern of growth corresponded nicely to the inflation profile, as shown by the close alignment of the two lines in the chart. The correspondence seems especially clear in the past 15 years, when the Consumer Price Index has been reported with increasing precision, compared to its earlier computation.
The All Weather fund is exceedingly simple. It's a one-third allocation to global energy stocks and two-thirds to 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds, rebalanced monthly. The rationale for energy stocks and intermediate Treasuries is sound. It's based on both logical and statistical considerations.
Logically, there are two ways in which consumer prices may change: inflation (the cliffs) and deflation (the canyons). Ideally, one wants protection from both extremes. But it is implausible that any ordinary security would rise in value when inflation spikes, equally rise in value when deflation plunges, and otherwise stay neutral. In a (long-only) commodity fund, this problem is partially solved by jointly holding commodity contracts, which tend to rise with inflation and fall with deflation, and cash collateral, which may mitigate deflationary trends during a recession. In the All Weather fund, energy stocks coupled with intermediate Treasuries offer an analogous solution. When inflation occurs, energy companies know how to prosper; in times of recession and deflation, Treasury bonds become a safe haven for investors. Yet, if held long enough, both energy stocks and Treasury bonds have returns that exceed the rate of inflation.
Among sectors of the stock market, energy correlates most strongly with inflation. One way to compute the correlation is to use the annual change in price from the end of December in a given year to the end of the following December. The U.S. energy sector, as measured by the XLE, the SPDR Energy ETF over the 16 years ending from 1999 to 2014, correlated 0.72 with corresponding annual changes in the Consumer Price Index. No other sector was even close. Second place went to Utilities (0.42). REITs did worse (0.14), as did spot gold, a surrogate for a gold ETF (0.26). If computed over three years, the correlation was again highest for Energy (0.73), with Utilities a distant second (0.48). Admittedly, the period from 1998 through 2014 saw generally mild changes in consumer prices, except for a few months of sharp deflation at the end of 2008. So this evidence has to be taken with a bit of caution.
Treasury bonds, in contrast, tend to have a decreasing correlation with inflation, the longer the maturity of the bonds (see Ang's chapter 9, section 3.3). In the data I examined from the last three decades, bonds with maturities of 10 years or longer correlated with consumer prices at values between zero and 0.2. The same bonds, over the same three decades, tended to be negatively correlated with stocks. Thus, if stocks fell, particularly when deflation or recession occurred, intermediate and long-term Treasuries often rose. It's been the perfect recipe. These bonds didn't pay much attention to consumer prices, except when we really needed them to, when stocks were getting slammed.
Note that intermediate TIPS don't dish up the same tasty meal. Because they are indexed to inflation, they will be marked down in value when deflation hits. Something like that happened during the financial panic of late 2008 and early 2009, when intermediate TIPS fell and Treasuries rose. That's why, for the intermediate or long term, Treasuries are better than TIPS in an All Weather fund. Despite the "P" in their name, intermediate TIPS protect less well against inflation than energy stocks do, for holding periods of a few years, and during deflation they hurt more than they help.
One final chart may serve to illustrate these points. Shown below are three portfolios. One is the same All Weather fund as in the previous chart. Another is like the All Weather fund, except that a U.S. REIT index replaces the global energy stocks. The third fund invests 100% in an index of the total U.S. stock market. All three portfolios are adjusted continuously for changes in consumer prices. Over the 31 years depicted in the chart, the All Weather fund had a compound real return of 6.7%, while the real return of REITs plus 10-year Treasuries was somewhat lower (6.0%), and the total stock market, noticeably higher (8.2%). Although, by this metric, the fund fully invested in stocks was best at exceeding inflation, all three were very good, and the all-stocks option was beset with volatility.
The three funds in the chart correlated with consumer prices in a manner consistent with the logical and statistical analysis presented above. For the all-stocks fund, correlations from 1984 to 2015 were virtually zero for continuously rolling 12-month periods (.04) and 36-month periods (.07). For REITs plus 10-year Treasuries, the correlations were no better, -.03 at 12 months and .00 at 36. Only the All Weather fund with its energy stocks and 10-year Treasuries had positive correlations at 12 months (0.40) and at 36 (0.55). In short, the All Weather fund best achieved inflation-beating returns at a pace that emulated yearly changes in consumer prices.
If the relatively mild inflation of the past 30 years continues, your portfolio may not need any special strategy to keep abreast of consumer prices. Simply including a reasonable dose of stocks in your portfolio may suffice. Then again, if rousing inflation and deflation come back to plague us, we cannot be sure that strategies tested on data from the past 30 to 40 years will continue to work. Still, those strategies are the best options available.
Investing in real estate is not one of them, although it might be productive as a way to add mid-cap value to your stock-holdings.
Purchasing a multiple commodity fund or ETF may diversify your portfolio and, over a decade or more, achieve inflation-beating returns comparable to stocks. But pay close attention to the costs, and limit your exposure to a minor portion of your total portfolio.
Alternatively, instead of purchasing commodity-linked funds, consider creating your own All Weather fund with global energy stocks and intermediate or long-term Treasury bonds. For global energy, Vanguard offers a mutual fund, VGENX, which was used for the analyses presented above; iShares IXC is a similar ETF. Both have somewhat higher fees than a U.S.-only energy ETF, which could work equally well. Vanguard and iShares both offer intermediate and long-term Treasury funds, all at low fees. A sensible strategy would be to set aside 10% to 25% of your portfolio for your All Weather fund, allocating a third of it to energy stocks and two-thirds to Treasuries with intermediate or long maturities.
* For other purposes, a different metric of inflation might be preferable. A manufacturer, for example, might prefer producer prices or a GDP deflater, rather than consumer prices. I'm assuming that, like me, if you cash in your commodity shares, you'll use the proceeds to buy more coffee, splurge on some spiffy jeans, get a nice surprise for someone you like, or take a trip to someplace warm and friendly.
Data sources: Yahoo Finance for historical prices of mutual funds and ETFs. FRED for Treasuries, spot WTI crude oil, spot gold, the Wilshire 5000 index of total U.S. stocks, and CPI-U. Morningstar for variable annuity prices of TIAA Real Estate. Andrew Ang for GSCI index price history. For those interested in technical details, a forthcoming article to be published at this site will explain how the measurements here were constructed and compare them to other possible methods of analysis.
Disclaimer: Historical data cannot guarantee future results. Although a mixture of bonds and stocks may be safer than investing exclusively in one class of assets, diversification cannot guarantee a positive return. Losses are always possible with any investment strategy. Nothing here is intended as an endorsement, offer, or solicitation for any particular investment, security, or type of insurance.
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The Barnett family is shown in front of their soon-to-be-opened Cupcakes and Kisses bakery, located at 210 S. Washington St. (the former Bagelman building) in Owosso. In front, from left are siblings Kam, Koby, Kora and Kendra. In back are married couple Toni and Kevin Barnett.
Argus-Press Photo/Sally York
Cupcake shop set to take over former Bagelman location
By SALLY YORK Argus-Press Staff Writer
OWOSSO — The shop interior is still being renovated but it won’t be long before Cupcakes and Kisses opens at 210 S. Washington St., in the space formerly occupied by the Bagelman.
The bakery’s freshly painted pink doors are expected to swing open sometime in early April, coinciding with springtime cravings for such sweet treats as cookies, cakes, sweet rolls, ice cream sundaes and shakes — and cupcakes, of course.
“We’re getting really excited,” Kam Barnett, 7, declared. “Things are working out.”
Kam, son of owners Toni and Kevin Barnett, is the designated dishwasher. His sister, Kendra, 13, decorates all the cakes. Their siblings Koby, 9, and Kora, 14, also work alongside their parents.
“We run the business as a family,” Toni Barnett said moments after Kam gave a visitor a tour of the spacious store, which features a large seating area for customers and curved counter that’s being built by the husband-and-wife team.
The Barnetts — who live in Grand Blanc, where the kids are home-schooled — aren’t starting from scratch. Four years ago, they opened a Cupcakes and Kisses in Holly that’s taken off in a big way.
Using Toni Barnett’s grandmother’s baking methods and recipes haven’t hurt the shop’s upward trajectory.
“I love to bake, and I still bake like my grandmother,” Toni Barnett said. “I use real cream, sugar, butter and eggs. When you walk in, it will smell wonderful.”
The Owosso bakery will offer special orders and event catering, including weddings, showers and open houses. For walk-in customers, there’s fresh-brewed coffee, WiFi, freshly made cinnamon rolls and a dessert of the day.
One section of the store, “Two Chics and a Scoop,” will serve as a full-service ice cream dispensary, with hard-scoop ice cream for cups or cones, sundaes and shakes.
Cupcakes and Kisses will purchase the ice cream from a vendor, she said, but not the special flavors. Brownie and chocolate chip sundaes, for example, will be made with store-baked brownies and chocolate chip cookies.
The shop’s menu also includes flour-less and vegan goods. Aprons, rice bags and dog scarves made by seamstress Lynnette Bailey of Goodrich, owner of Custom Creations, will be sold out of the shop.
Kevin and Toni Barnett both worked as nurses for years before seeking a “job-optional” lifestyle, she said. Following her gig as a high-level medical executive, for which she traveled across the country with her husband and kids, real estate became the Barnett family’s main source of income.
That’s how they found the building for their store in Holly, and how they discovered Owosso, by purchasing a house in the city.
“There’s a lot of people here, and good people,” Koby said, “and we’re already getting lots of love.”
Toni Barnett agreed, saying she is already indebted to several fellow downtown businesses whose owners have helped them gain a foothold in Owosso in different ways: Myrtle’s Handmade Chocolates, Foster Coffee, and Jumbo’s Burgers and Brew.
She said Cupcakes and Kisses wants to be a vital part of the Owosso community.
“We love for our businesses to be an impact on the community,” she said. “We want our light to shine on the community. We’re going to give back as much as we’re given.”
Big plans lay ahead. There’s a cupcake-decorating class the Barnetts hope to start. They also aim to open 19 Cupcakes and Kisses in coming years. Their children say they can hardly wait to run their own bakeries one day.
To start out, the Owosso store’s hours will be 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday; and 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
For details about Cupcakes and Kisses, and photos of Barnett-baked creations, find “Cupcakes and Kisses Owosso” on Facebook.
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Following the Brexit vote, are young European actors who have chosen to work in the UK likely to stay? Mark C. Hewitt sounded out a few of them.
Oxana Nico from Romania during an R&D week in London in November 2014
Nivine Keating
In 2013 I set up an artistic collaboration with Norwegian sampling percussionist, Thomas Strønen, who I invited to compose the music for my play Civilization (and its discontents). It was always intended to be an international work, and so when it came to R&D for the piece, I wanted the chorus in particular to have a multitude of foreign accents, much as you might find in any big city.
"I didn’t take it as a personal rejection or think the people with whom I work or live don’t want me to be here"
Accordingly, young performers from Romania, Italy, Turkey, Portugal, Greece and Switzerland got involved at different times. I’ve always delighted in hearing different versions of the way English is spoken, but it became clear last year that this delight is not shared by everyone.
After the EU referendum in June I wanted to know how the performers I’ve been working with felt about it and whether it had changed their attitude to working in this country. Here are the views of three of them.
From Greece to London
Dimitra Barla, from Greece, came to London to do a masters degree at East 15 Acting School. She says: “Once I’d finished the degree I didn’t want to go home but had to, for other reasons. It was very tough to work in Greece because of the social and financial circumstances, so I started developing my own work from scratch. When I moved back to London I continued with that.
“London is a tough city. It’s expensive, you have to find friends and a place to live… but I started doing little film projects and I thought maybe I can start developing my screen acting, which I hadn’t done back home. Here, there are student films, short films, just an abundance of screen acting experience one can acquire.”
I asked Dimitra if London was still the right place for her. “I definitely feel that. It’s so multicultural, there are so many venues and fringe festivals, there are pubs, there are writing evenings. The tricky part for me is that I have to juggle this with paying the rent and having a day job… but that’s the challenge for everyone.”
From Portugal to London
Marta Carvalho, from Portugal, also loves the multiculturalism of Britain. She spent ten years in her homeland working professionally in theatre and teaching movement and voice to young actors.
“I decided I should live abroad to challenge myself, experience different cultures, different ways of being an actor… I didn’t think of London as a first choice. I had thought about a Scandinavian country or Berlin. But in London everything was very easy. If you want to work you can work – there is opportunity and availability of jobs for everyone.
“It’s quite challenging because in Portugal I was working mainly as an artist and that paid for my house, my food… I was working on my craft and doing cultural projects. Here I have to struggle, I have to work in so many things, but I wanted to challenge myself so I guess I got what I wanted.
“I came here without knowing anyone, without knowing the industry, without having any connections and I’m starting to build that network – but I’ve realised a lot of other actors are doing the same, struggling like I’m struggling. So it is a place of opportunities but it’s also a tough city.“
Referendum reactions
And what about the referendum result? Dimitra replies: “I still remember waking up that day in June. I saw the result and I just couldn’t believe it. At the time I was living with two young British women. They were devastated. They were crying the whole day.
“I tend not to take a referendum result for granted… that’s how politics is where I come from. We had a referendum in Greece and it didn’t mean anything. And that made me feel better.
“The Brits, they have it worse than we do. We are the ones moving around and we can still move around. We’ve survived in London, we can survive anywhere!
“I didn’t internalise it. I didn’t take it as a personal rejection or think the people with whom I work or live don’t want me to be here. We live in London, it’s so multicultural… so I don’t feel that I’m in a hostile environment.”
Marta is also ambivalent. “We don’t know what’s going to happen. I’m here alone, so if I stay, if I go back or if I go to another country, that’s always open. It doesn’t really affect me.” But she conceded that if she had a family, things might be different.
“Maybe something good will come out of all this discussion. I do believe they are going to make it easier for people who are already here.”
Romania or London?
Someone who does have family to worry about is Oxana Nico from Romania. Her son was born in 2014. She was in Moldova when she first heard the news. “My mum was saying they’ve voted Brexit. I thought it couldn’t be possible. And we put on the TV. London has been my home for ten years. You start asking yourself if this really is the country that you know and that you grew to love.
“We’ve got British citizenship now. So from the legal point of view there’s no problem. But then you hear about people expressing their hate towards immigrants and all this xenophobia.
“My son was born in this country and I was imagining him going to school here and having fluent proper English with no accent. I’ve always felt that this is the most tolerant and the best European country to be in as a foreigner.
“I need to make sure, if we decide to stay here, that I can offer my son a positive experience, knowing that he’s European but he’s also part of this society, that he belongs here and he can feel at home here.”
Mark C. Hewitt is Founder and Artistic Director of Blank Productions.
www.mchblank.co.uk
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ASHP Consulting Service
We engage disciplined leaders who know and understand pharmacy practice. We focus on supporting health-system administrators, pharmacy leaders and managers, residency program directors, preceptors, and others in their quest for excellence in their organizations, departments, and programs.
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Dr. Nenad Avramovski is a board-certified infectious disease physician. He maintains a private practice in Savannah, Ga., and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the area, including St. Josephs/Candler Hospital and Memorial Health University Medical Center (MHUMC). Dr. Avramovski has been in practice for more than 20 years and is currently Chair of the Infectious Diseases Department at the Southcoast Health multispecialty group practice, Chair of the Infectious Diseases Department at MHUMC, and Chair of the Infection Prevention Department at MHUMC. He developed and serves as the citywide Antibiotic Stewardship Program Director in Savannah.
Dr. Avramovski earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Belgrade School of Medicine in Belgrade, Serbia (formerly Yugoslavia), and completed his internship and internal medicine residency at the New York Hospital Medical Center of Queens in Flushing, N.Y. Dr. Avramovski completed infectious diseases fellowships at New York University, New York, N.Y., and at the University of Alabama in Birmingham, Ala. He is a member of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the HIV Medicine Association.
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Stuart Beatty has more than 15 years of experience serving patients, teaching students, authoring papers, conducting research, and delivering presentations in the areas of ambulatory care clinical practice and management. He is Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs and Associate Professor of Clinical Pharmacy for the Ohio State University College of Pharmacy. Stuart also serves as the Residency Program Director for the Ohio State University PGY2 in Ambulatory Care. His expertise includes all aspects of ambulatory clinical and operational practice, including billing for services, pharmacist involvement in the medical home, medication therapy management billing, pharmacist involvement in pay-for-performance incentives, population health and outcomes, and transitions of care operations. Stuart’s consulting expertise includes assisting health systems, physician practices, and community-based-practitioner clients in preparation for or expansion of ambulatory clinical services. He also helps his clients align clinical initiatives with value-based payment models. Stuart earned his Pharm.D., with Distinction, from the Ohio Northern University Raabe College of Pharmacy in Ada, Ohio. He is a Board-Certified Ambulatory Care Pharmacist and a Fellow of the American Pharmacists Association.
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Katherine Benderev’s career as a pharmacy professional and entrepreneur spans more than 25 years in pharmacy management, administrative, consulting, and academic positions. She is a Senior Consultant to ASHP, bringing more than 15 years of experience in healthcare consulting. Katherine served in executive and consultant positions with Visante, a privately held healthcare consulting company, as well as with her own company, bringing expertise to clients in business development and growth, operations management, strategic planning, human resource management, marketing, client service/retention, physician practice management, and financial management. Her academic work involved serving as Associate Professor, Director of Pharmacy Administration Education, at Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED) College of Pharmacy and Director of the Master of Science Program in Health-System Pharmacy Administration at NEOMED’s College of Graduate Studies.
Katherine earned her Pharm.D. from the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy in Baltimore and her M.B.A. from the University of California, Irvine. She completed a residency in Pharmacy Practice at the University of California, San Diego, and a second-year residency in Health-System Pharmacy Administration at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center in Long Beach, Calif.
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Susan earned her B.S.Pharm. from the University of Washington and her M.S. from The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. She completed a residency in Health-System Pharmacy at The Ohio State University Hospitals and later completed the Wharton Pharmacy Executive Management Program. She was President of the Washington State Society of Health-System Pharmacists in 1999, has been a member of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, and has served as a member of the ASHP Board of Directors from 1989-1993.
Jannet M. Carmichael, Pharm.D., BCPS, FAPhA, FCCP
Jannet Carmicheal has served as a pharmacy executive, clinical pharmacy specialist, and academician for more than 30 years. In 2017, she retired from the Veterans Health Administration, where she was Veteran Integrated Service Network (VISN) 21 Pharmacy Executive for the VA Sierra Pacific Network, caring for 650,000 veterans in Nevada, Northern California, and Hawaii. She directed the Clinical Data Warehouse in VISN 21 and coordinated pharmacy operations; health analytics; pharmacoeconomics; academic detailing; and pharmacoepidemiology quality, safety, and value programs using the Clinical Data Warehouse and health analytics for the VISN. Prior to this, she was Clinical Pharmacy Coordinator at the VA Sierra Nevada Health Care System in Reno, Nev., and Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Nevada School of Medicine. Jan is a prolific writer, authoring hundreds of original publications and numerous abstracts, proceedings, and reports. She is a frequent speaker on progressive pharmacy practice.
Jan’s extensive career and practice experience will help clients in many areas, including leadership, team development, population health improvement, pharmacoeconomics and outcomes, formulary management, drug utilization and cost management, credentialing and privileging, ambulatory care clinical practice and management, clinical services and practice model evaluation and implementation, pharmacy residency advancement, metric development, and health-system integration.
Jan earned her B.S.Pharm. from the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy and her Pharm.D. from the University of the Pacific College of Pharmacy. She is a Board Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist, a Fellow of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy, and a Fellow of the American Pharmacist Association (APhA). Jan is a member of numerous professional boards and committees, and has served in leadership positions in several professional healthcare associations, including ASHP. She has received numerous awards, including the 2013 Harvey A.K. Whitney Lecture Award, was named Federal Pharmacist of the Year by APhA in 2012, and was named the Iowa Distinguished Alumni in 2011 and the Osterhaus Medal for Lifetime Achievement in 2017. She and her staff received the ASHP Best Practices in Health-System Pharmacy Award in 2002 and the ASHP Foundation Medication Safety Award in 2012. Jan is the Past Chair of the Board of Pharmaceutical Specialties (BPS), former Chair of the BCPS Pharmacotherapy Council, and an ACPE Practitioner Reviewer. She has served as a member of the National Quality Forum (NQF) Medication Management Steering Committee and was a member of the CMS Medication Measures Technical Expert Panel.
Curtis Collins, Pharm.D., M.S., BCPS-AQ-ID, FASHP
Curtis Collins has a record of local, state, and national leadership within the infectious disease community. He has an extensive track record of leading antimicrobial stewardship efforts in diverse healthcare settings. Curtis is a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, Infectious Diseases/Antimicrobial Stewardship, at St. Joseph Mercy Health System in Ann Arbor, Mich., and Adjunct Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy in Ann Arbor. Curtis’ work in the area of infectious disease and antimicrobial stewardship includes positions on the National Quality Forum (NQF) Infectious Diseases Technical Advisory Panel, the Safety and Healthcare-Associated Infections Work Group, the Surgery Maintenance Project Steering Committee, and the Pulmonary and Critical Care Steering Committee. He has also served as a member of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Pew Charitable Trusts Inpatient Antibiotic Prescribing workgroup.
Curtis earned his Pharm.D. from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, and his M.S. and residency in Health-System Pharmacy Administration from The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. He also holds Board Certification with Added Qualifications-Infectious Disease from the Board of Pharmaceutical Specialists. Curtis has served as an advisor with various healthcare organizations including the Michigan Department of Community Health’s Healthcare Associated Infections Advisory Group.
Sarah C. Erush, Pharm.D., BCPS
Sarah Erush has more than 35 years of experience as a clinician, academic, and researcher. She is currently the Associate Director for Professional Practice at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP). Previously, she served as the Clinical Manager and Residency Program Director at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for more than 11 years, and before that as the Director of the Drug Information Service, Residency and Clinical Coordinator at HUP.
Sarah’s areas of expertise include pediatric and adult clinical services and practice model evaluation, formulary management and P&T issues, and medication safety. She is also a skilled human resource manager and an expert in assisting clients with the specialized and unique medication needs of pediatric patients.
Sarah earned her B.S.Pharm. from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Sciences in Springfield, Mass., and Pharm.D. from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science. She completed a specialized residency in drug information from the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia.
Christopher A. Fausel, Pharm.D., M.H.A., BCOP
Christopher Fausel has more than 20 years of experience serving cancer patients. His expertise includes all aspects of oncology clinical and operational practice, plus billing for services, USP Chapter <800>, clean room technology and design, and integration of community practice sites into health systems. Chris has served as a clinical pharmacist and clinical director, and he currently serves as the Clinical Manager at the Indiana University Health Simon Cancer Center in Indianapolis. Chris holds academic appointments in the Department of Medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine, at the Butler University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, and at the Purdue University School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. He is the Chairman of the Board of the Hoosier Cancer Research Network, a not for profit oncology clinical research organization that serves as the administrative headquarters for the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium. Chris has written numerous journal articles and book chapters and is a nationally invited speaker on topics of oncology therapeutics and pharmacy practice.
Chris earned his B.S.Pharm. and Pharm.D. from the Albany College of Pharmacy in Albany, N.Y. He earned his M.H.A. from Simmons College in Boston, Mass. He is a Board-Certified Oncology Pharmacist and a founding member of the Hematology Oncology Pharmacy Association.
Michael J. Freudiger, Pharm.D., BCPS, CGP
Michael Freudiger is a board-certified clinical pharmacist and USP Chapter <795>/<797>/<800> Compliance Supervisor at Saint Agnes Medical Center in Fresno, Calif. He also consults with pharmacies engaging in sterile and nonsterile compounding, including hazardous drugs. Michael’s interest in the multifaceted area of sterile compounding compliance and implementation has led him to become an expert in areas such as regulatory compliance, risk assessment, clean room technology and design, and sterile compounded drug stability and administration. He assists clients with the development and maintenance of policies and procedures compliant with USP Chapter <795>, <797>, and <800>, including California-specific regulations. These materials include employee education, providing in-services, and writing learning modules with competency assessment programs as part of the quality assurance plan.
His California client sites have each passed multiple inspections with highly positive feedback from the state board of pharmacy.
Michael earned his Pharm.D. from the University of the Pacific and completed a PGY1 Pharmacy Practice Residency at the Department of Veterans Affairs Healthcare System in Loma Linda, Calif. He is a Board Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist (BCPS), Certified Geriatric Pharmacist (CGP), and Advanced Practice Pharmacist (APP).
Geneen M. Gibson, Pharm.D., M.S., BCPS (AQ-ID)
Geneen Gibson is an Infectious Diseases Clinical Pharmacy Specialist at the St. Joseph’s/Candler Health System in Savannah, Ga. Previously she was a Clinical Pharmacist Specialist at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, N.Y. Before attending pharmacy school, Geneen was a microbiologist for 15 years in the VA Healthcare System. She has been an adjunct clinical faculty member for numerous colleges of pharmacy and is currently a Clinical Assistant Professor in Clinical and Administrative Pharmacy at the University of Georgia and a Preceptor for the Infectious Diseases Clinical Rotation for doctor of pharmacy candidates.
At St. Joseph’s/Candler Health System, Geneen serves as Coordinator of the Antimicrobial Management Program. She is also a founding member of the City-Wide Antimicrobial Management Program in Savannah, Ga. Geneen brings her more than 30 years’ experience in infectious diseases to ASHP Consulting and its clients.
Geneen earned her Pharm.D. from the University of Florida in Gainesville and completed pharmacy practice and infectious diseases residency programs at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. She is a Board Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist (BCPS) with added qualifications in Infectious Diseases, and is a member of ASHP, ACCP, ASM, IDSA, and SHEA.
Roy Guharoy, Pharm.D., M.B.A., FASHP, FCCP
Roy Guharoy has more than 20 years of experience as a pharmacy administrator, academician, author, and researcher. Most recently, Roy served as Vice President for Clinical Integration and Chief Pharmacy Officer at Ascension Health, where he led the development of systemwide, value-based clinical excellence initiatives including strategy, design, and implementation of standardized, evidence-based medication therapy use, quality and safety protocols. Since 2007, Roy has served as Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, Mass., where he lectures on patient safety, regulatory requirements, and infectious disease management.
Roy has also served as the Chief Pharmacy Officer at the University of Massachusetts Memorial Health Care system and Director of Pharmacy and Associate Chief of Section of Clinical Pharmacology at the SUNY Upstate Medical University System. His operational excellence and achievements in clinical and transformational excellence make him an ideal consultant for system integration and resource optimization; metric-driven, evidence-based medicine and clinical outcome optimization; financial sustainability, including 340B Drug Pricing Program optimization, ambulatory care practice management and clinical practice, formulary management, management of drug use and costs, and regulatory/compliance issues; and practice model transformation.
Roy earned his Pharm.D. from the University of Minnesota and his M.B.A. from the Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management in Claremont, Calif. He also completed the Wharton Pharmacy Executive Management Program. Roy is a Past President of the Central New York Society of Health-System Pharmacists (2001–2003), a former member and national delegate for the Massachusetts Society of Health-System Pharmacists (2008–2012), and a member of three expert panels for the United States Pharmacopoeia (Medicare, National Drug Allergy, and Healthcare Quality). Roy has received numerous awards including the Institute for Safe Medicine Practices’ 2016 Cheers Award, the United States Pharmacopeia 2016 Award for an Outstanding Contribution to USP Standards, and the 2004 New York State Patient Safety Award.
Karl Kappeler, M.S., B.S.Pharm., FASHP
Karl Kappeler’s career in pediatric pharmacy management and administration spans more than 25 years, including both inpatient and outpatient services. Karl is currently the Director of Ambulatory Pharmacy Services at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. In this role, he leads the operations of three outpatient pharmacies, ambulatory clinical pharmacy services, and specialty pharmacy services. He also serves as the Administrator of the Central Ohio Poison Center. Karl served for 15 years as the Chief Pharmacy Officer (CPO) at Nationwide Children’s before moving into a Service Line Administrator role in the surgery division. As CPO, Karl led the medication use systems within the hospital, in over 50 clinics and in four off-site neonatal intensive care units in other area hospitals. He is an Assistant Professor at The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy, teaching graduate classes in pediatric pharmacy leadership. He has earned three grants as Principal Investigator in the area of pediatric health literacy.
Karl is a well-known and respected leader in pediatric pharmacy practice with key proficiencies in financial management, staffing needs analysis, operations management, medication distribution and control, emergency preparedness, and clinical services and practice model design. Karl’s expertise in pediatric services allows him to assist clients with strategic planning, medication safety, regulatory issues and compliance, and quality management.
Karl earned his B.S.Pharm. from the University of Louisiana, Monroe. He completed a residency at The Ohio State University Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio, and also earned an M.S. in Pharmaceutical Administration from The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy. He has served in numerous advisory roles including Cardinal Health Corporation; ForHealth Technologies, Inc.; Medimmune, Inc.; Anesiva, Inc.; Eli Lilly and Company; Eloquest, Inc.; CSL Behring, LLC; and Cadence Pharmaceuticals. Karl has served in leadership positions, including with ASHP, and he completed a two-year post as Chair of the Pharmacy Directors in the Children’s Hospital Association, a collaborative of over 40 leading freestanding pediatric hospitals in the United States.
Kevin C. Marvin, B.S.Pharm., M.S., FASHP, FHIMSS
Kevin Marvin is a national leader in pharmacy informatics. For more than 30 years, Kevin has demonstrated expertise in all facets of medication information technology including hospital pharmacy, retail pharmacy, software development, product management, information systems administration, and consulting. Kevin has served as a consultant, project manager, product director, pharmacy administrator, and senior systems analyst. He has worked as a consultant for Joint Commission Resources and a provider juror for the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology.
Kevin has installed or managed pharmacy systems developed by GE, McKesson, Eclipsys, Misys, Mediware, Cardinal, and Epic. He has also worked as product director and development manager for three healthcare software companies. Kevin’s Epic experience includes design and build, implementation, and optimization work at three major university health systems, and has worked with many others. His roles included Willow billing configuration, dispensing configuration, interfaces to robotics and unit-based cabinets, IV pump interfaces, order set build, oncology build workflow design, and project leadership. Kevin has contributed chapters on safe use of technology and electronic prescribing for two books published by ASHP and a book published by the American Pharmacists Association (APhA). He has also contributed chapters to the ASHP Pharmacy Forecast in 2014–2016.
Kevin earned his B.S.Pharm and M.S. in Computer Science from the University of Wisconsin in Madison. He has received several awards in the area of informatics, including the Distinguished Service Award from the ASHP Section of Pharmacy Informatics and Technology and two awards from the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center. Kevin has also served as a member of national organizations working on information technology issues, including the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) Healthcare Information Technology Advisory Panel, and the Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS) E-Prescribing and Pharmacy Informatics task forces.
William H. Puckett, M.S., M.B.A., FASHP
William Puckett’s career in pharmacy management and administration spans more than 30 years and includes diverse health-system settings. He has provided consulting services for over a decade with Hospira, Ernst & Young, and Wellspring Partners, and as the principal at WHP-Rx Consulting and Speaking. Prior to his consulting work, Bill was the Administrative Director, Pharmacy and Patient Care Supply at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital and Texas Heart Institute, in the Texas Medical Center in Houston, Texas. In these roles, and in prior pharmacy administrative positions, he developed financial interests and expertise in areas such as budgeting, charge master evaluation, drug pricing and rebates, and inpatient drug billing. He also developed proficiency in human resources management, staffing needs analysis, and leadership development. Bill assists clients in facility design, supply chain management, operations management, medication distribution and control, emergency preparedness, and investigational drug services. He is a change manager with consulting experience in strategic planning, medication safety, controlled substances and drug diversion, regulatory issues and compliance, formulary management/P&T, and in mentoring pharmacy managers.
Bill earned his B.S. Pharm. from The Ohio State University. He completed a residency at Grant Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and went on to earn an M.S. in Hospital Pharmacy from The Ohio State University and an M.B.A. from Capital University in Columbus, Ohio. He has received numerous awards for his research, management excellence, and leadership. Bill has served in leadership positions in several professional healthcare associations as well, including the Florida, Oklahoma, Ohio, and Texas Societies of Health-System Pharmacists, and ASHP.
Matthew H. Rim, PharmD, MS
Matthew H. Rim, PharmD, MS, is the manager of ambulatory pharmacy services at University of Utah Health. Matthew leads teams at the Pharmacy Ambulatory Clinical Care Center and is responsible for 65 pharmacy staff providing centralized ambulatory pharmacy services for outpatient pharmacies, providers, clinic staff, and patients. Matthew’s consulting expertise includes development and implementation of specialty pharmacy and ambulatory care services, pharmacy benefit management and data management. He has developed and managed a centralized specialty pharmacy to provide system-wide comprehensive care coordination and 24/7 services, including a central prior authorization program to support primary care and specialty clinics, a pharmacy care transitions program to reduce unnecessary hospital readmissions, a pharmacy call center to support 11 outpatient pharmacies, and a central refill authorization program (which was selected as one of winners of the Best Practices Award by ASHP in 2015). Matthew is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Pharmacotherapy in the College of Pharmacy at University of Utah. He is a course master for a graduate-level class, Operations Management, for Master of Science in Health System Pharmacy students. He is also a guest lecturer of the Healthcare Financial Management class for Master of Healthcare Administration students. Matthew earned his Pharm.D. degree from Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona, Calif. and his M.S. and residency from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Rita Shane, Pharm.D., FASHP, FCSHP
Rita Shane has an outstanding track record of more than 25 years as a pharmacy leader, administrator, and academician. She is the Chief Pharmacy Officer at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and Assistant Dean, Clinical Pharmacy Services, at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Pharmacy. She has also served as a consultant for a number of healthcare facilities. Rita’s leadership with national and international involvement in pharmacy practice establishes her as an Executive Consultant with ASHP Consulting, able to provide consultations in any setting for most of our service offerings.
Throughout her illustrious career, Rita has done leading-edge work in demonstrating and measuring the value of pharmacy services. She has written over 90 papers and was the U.S. facilitator and author of an international paper on medication administration at the Global Conference on the Future of Hospital Pharmacy held in 2008. Rita has provided over 190 presentations and recently served as the keynote speaker at pharmacy meetings in Singapore and Spain. In the area of research, Rita’s contributions are too numerous to list. Of special note, she was co-investigator of a 2000 National Patient Safety Foundation Research Award to study the impact of dedicated medication nurses on the rate of medication administration errors, which was subsequently published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. She also served as an investigator in a multicenter study of medications errors recovered by emergency department pharmacists, which was published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.
Rita earned her Pharm.D. from the University of Southern California. She has received numerous awards including being named one of the “50 Experts Leading the Field of Patient Safety,” in the 2013 Becker’s Hospital Review and receiving the 2012 Harvey A.K. Whitney Award, the highest honor in health-system pharmacy. Rita has served as advisor and board member of many healthcare organizations, including serving as the ASHP representative to the American Hospital Association Health Professions Committee (2003-2008) and the Joint Commission Hospital Professional Technical Committee (2007-2013).
Douglas Slain, Pharm.D., BCPS, FCCP, FASHP
Douglas Slain is a Professor and Infectious Diseases Clinical Specialist at West Virginia University (WVU). His clinical practice sites at WVU include the Infectious Disease Consult Service and the Infectious Diseases Clinic. For more than 18 years, Doug has shared his infectious diseases expertise through direct patient care, teaching and research. With more than 33 peer-reviewed publications, numerous domestic and international presentations and research in the field of anti-infectives, Doug has established himself as a subject matter expert in the field of infectious diseases and antimicrobial stewardship.
Doug earned his Pharm.D. from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. He completed a residency and fellowship in Infectious Diseases Pharmacotherapy at the Medical College of Virginia (Virginia Commonwealth University) in Richmond. He has the distinction of being a Board-Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist (BCPS) with added qualifications in Infectious Diseases. Doug has received numerous awards including the “Clinician of the Year” by the Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists in 2007. He was also granted the 2012-2013 Fulbright Specialist Scholar for the host country of India.
Willis Triplett, Pharm.D.
Willis Triplett is a pharmacy professional and entrepreneur with more than 30 years’ experience in a wide range of healthcare settings. Since 2012, Willis has committed his work to the field of sterile compounding and USP Chapters <797> and <800> compliance. His knowledge and passion regarding sterile compounding and regulatory and compliance issues make Willis an ideal partner for any organization facing challenges in this area. Willis excels when working with client projects involving sterile compounding automation assessment, implementation, and optimization; clean room technology and design; and quality assurance, improvement, and management. Prior to 2012, Willis held administrative and clinical roles in a number of infusion therapy settings that prepared him for assisting clients with home infusion therapy questions.
Willis earned his Pharm.D. from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science (now University of the Sciences). He has served as an advisor and a member of the boards of numerous professional healthcare organizations including the Healthcare Quality Association on Accreditation (HQAA).
Bruce Vinson, Pharm.D., FASHP
Bruce Vinson’s career spans several decades as a pharmacist, administrator, and consultant. He is the Associate Director of Pharmacy Services at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Much of Bruce’s career has been focused on cutting-edge pharmacy issues, including clinical services and practice models evaluation and implementation; formulary management including biosimilars policy; automation assessment, implementation, and optimization; managing drug use and costs; clean room technology and design as well as USP Chapters <797> and <800> compliance issues; oncology pharmacy practice; investigational drug services; and pharmacy regulatory compliance issues. Bruce’s broad experience in pharmacy practice enables him to deliver consulting expertise in facility design; human resource management and staffing resource needs; medication distribution, control, and safety; budgeting and inventory management; operations management; and transitions of care operations.
Bruce earned his Pharm.D. from Wayne State University. He completed the Fellow of Executive Management Program at the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics at the Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania. Bruce has served as an advisor and member of the boards of several professional healthcare organizations including the Advisory Board, Joint Commission’s Medication Use Task Force, Board of Pharmaceutical Specialties Task Force, Pharmacy Technician Certification Board Task Force, and ASHP.
David Weetman, B.S. Pharm., M.S., FASHP
David Weetman is a pharmacy administrator with over 20 years’ experience in health-system pharmacy. He is the Director, Acute Care Services of the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC), as well as the Coordinator of the UIHC Health-System Pharmacy Administration Residency Program. He also serves as Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy. As a Senior Consultant, David’s experience in change management, human resource management, and leadership development contribute to helping clients improve medication distribution and control, operations management, clinical services and practice models evaluation and implementation, staffing resource needs, regulatory and compliance issues, and transitions of care operations. As a practicing administrator, David possesses considerable knowledge of automation assessment and optimization, facility and clean room technology and design, controlled substances and drug diversion, pediatric pharmacy practice, medication safety, and emergency preparedness. David actively works with critical access hospitals regarding clinical services and the provision of pharmaceutical care to rural populations.
David earned his B.S. Pharm. from the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy. He completed a residency in Pharmacy Practice at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore and earned his M.S. in Business from Johns Hopkins University. He is the recipient of numerous awards including the 2015 Iowa Pharmacist Associate Health-System Pharmacist of the Year. David has served as an advisor and member of the boards of several professional healthcare organizations including the Iowa Pharmacists Association and ASHP.
Mark Woods, Pharm.D., BCPS, FASHP
Mark Woods’ career spans more than 30 years as a clinical pharmacist, academician, director of pharmacy, innovator, and mentor. He is currently the Clinical Coordinator and PGY1 Residency Program Director at St. Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City, MO.
Mark has demonstrated sustained leadership of pharmacy practice, clinical services, and educational programs throughout his career. His expertise includes clinical services and practice model development, implementation, and evaluation; formulary management and medication stewardship; human resources management; staff development, coaching, and mentoring; pharmacy and interdisciplinary research; leadership development; and strategic planning. Mark has focused much of his career on the development of student, intern, and residency programs; training of preceptors; and, more recently, layered learning models.
Mark earned his B.S.Pharm. from the University of Kansas and his Pharm.D. from the University of Nebraska Medical Center. He completed a clinical pharmacy residency at UCSF in San Francisco and is a Board Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist (BCPS). Mark has received numerous awards for his research, distinguished service, and leadership. Additionally, he is and has been a member of various FDA advisory committees. Mark has served in leadership positions in several professional healthcare associations as well, including the Kansas and Missouri Societies of Health-System Pharmacists and ASHP.
Why ASHP Consulting?
Using Consultants
Current and archived ASHP news, articles, press releases, and news feeds
Conferences, meetings, workshops, and recertification courses for pharmacy professionals
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Tennessee Legislature Adjourns with Big Gains for Animals
ASPCA commends legislators for soundly rejecting horse slaughter bill; urges governor to sign felony livestock cruelty, service dog bills into law
NEW YORK—As the Tennessee legislature adjourns its 2012 session, the ASPCA® (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) applauds significant victories for animals with legislators defeating a bill encouraging horse slaughter for human consumption and passing bills to protect livestock and service dogs, including law enforcement animals, from cruelty.
A particularly controversial bill introduced this legislative session–H.B. 3619/S.B. 3461–would have encouraged horses to be slaughtered in the state for human consumption in Europe and Asia. Spearheaded by Rep. Andy Holt, R-Dresden, his first version of the bill would have denied citizens their constitutional right to legally challenge the environmental and financial impact of horse slaughter facilities. Following the request of a review by Rep. Johnny Shaw, D-Bolivar, the bill was quickly declared unconstitutional by the Tennessee Attorney General. Then, in an effort to remove citizens from the legislative process, Rep. Holt amended the bill on what was thought to be the last day of the legislative session, attempting to gut a 60-year-old state law that bans the sale of toxic horse meat for human consumption by removing the Agriculture Commissioner's ability to regulate and label horse meat.
"The ASPCA and its members lobbied strongly to prohibit this bill from reaching the House and Senate floors," said Tennessee native and resident Sherry Rout, the ASPCA's legislative director for the Southern Region. "Horses are a revered treasure of our state and should not be slaughtered here for food, especially not at the expense of our constitutional rights."
Aside from the fact that horse slaughter is inherently cruel, horse slaughter plants have proved economically and environmentally disastrous to communities in other states. A nationwide poll commissioned by the ASPCA revealed that 80 percent of American voters are against the slaughter of U.S. horses for human consumption. Further, USDA inspectors uncovered rampant cruelty violations in U.S. slaughter plants when they were operating, as detailed in government documents.
In addition to this crucial victory, the Tennessee legislature passed two important pieces of humane legislation sponsored by Sen. Douglas Henry, D-Nashville, and Rep. Gary Odom, D-Nashville. S.B. 2759/H.B. 3082, which creates felony penalties for aggravated cruelty to livestock, passed through the legislature almost unanimously, with only three dissenting votes in the House. S.B. 2179/H.B. 2695, which increases penalties for reckless injury and intentional cruelty to service dogs or law enforcement animals, also enjoyed strong, bipartisan support with only two dissenting votes in the House. The ASPCA urges Gov. Bill Haslam to voice his conclusive support for both bills by quickly signing them into law.
"We commend Tennessee legislators for their work with residents and humane advocacy groups within the state to address necessary changes for Tennessee's animals," added Rout.
For more information on the ASPCA and to join the ASPCA Advocacy Brigade, please visit www.aspca.org.
About the ASPCA®
Founded in 1866, the ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) is the first animal welfare organization in North America and serves as the nation’s leading voice for animals. More than two million supporters strong, the ASPCA’s mission is to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the United States. As a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, the ASPCA is a national leader in the areas of anti-cruelty, community outreach and animal health services. For more information, please visit www.ASPCA.org, and be sure to follow the ASPCA on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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ABITRON Germany GmbH
Electrical Engineering & Electronics, Information Technology, Mechanical Engineering Industry, Mechatronics
Products/services: Radio remote controls; Construction Radio Remote Control,Radio remote controls; serial interfaces; BUS-Systems; CAN-BUS; Profi-BUS; RS 232; EX proofed systems according to ATEX
Turnover: not available
Adalbert-Stifter-Str. 2
Kelheim / Lower Bavaria
info@abitron.de
http://www.abitronremote.com/
English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish
Management, Cooperation: Daniela Hammerer (Mrs.)
ABITRON develops, produces, and distributes safety radio remote controls for a wide variety of applications - from wireless controls for construction machinery to industrial applications and specialist applications, and applications in potentially explosive atmospheres.
Electrical Engineering & Electronics: Communication technology
Electrical Engineering & Electronics: Electronic assemblies
Electrical Engineering & Electronics: Security systems
Information Technology: Radio transmission technology
Mechanical Engineering Industry: Control and sensor technology
Mechatronics: Control technology
Mechatronics: Measuring technology and sensor technology
NACE industries
Manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products 26
Manufacture of electronic components and boards 26.1
Manufacture of electronic components 26.11
Manufacture of instruments and appliances for measuring, testing and navigation; watches and clocks 26.5
Manufacture of instruments and appliances for measuring, testing and navigation 26.51
Manufacture of electrical equipment 27
Manufacture of electric motors, generators, transformers and electricity distribution and control apparatus 27.1
Manufacture of electricity distribution and control apparatus 27.12
Manufacture of other electrical equipment 27.9
Manufacture of other electrical equipment 27.90
Bau; Forst; Sonderanwendungen; Industrie; Hydraulik; Sonderfahrzeugbau; EX/ATEX
Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Congo, The Democratic Republic of the, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See (Vatican City State), Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Islamic Republic of, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Korea, Democratic People's Republic of, Korea, Republic of, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, The former Yugoslav Republic of, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Federated States of, Moldova, Republic of, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Palestinian territories, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic, Taiwan, Province of China, Tajikistan, Tanzania, United Republic of, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe
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Andrea Corr
The Corrs enter Michael Ball's Singers Hall of Fame
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/960x540/p01bqh38.jpg
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/6dc918ea-0bb6-4156-a324-0cf078678a06
Andrea Corr Biography (Wikipedia)
Andrea Jane Corr MBE (born 17 May 1974) is an Irish musician, songwriter and actress. Corr debuted in 1990 as the lead singer of the Celtic folk rock and pop rock group The Corrs along with her three elder siblings Caroline, Sharon and Jim. Aside from singing lead vocals, Corr plays the tin whistle, the ukulele and the piano.
With the others, Corr has released six studio albums, two compilation albums, one remix album and two live albums. Andrea has also pursued a solo career, releasing her debut album, Ten Feet High, in 2007. The album moved away from the sound of the Corrs and features a dance-pop sound. Her next album, released on 30 May 2011, was entirely made up of covers of songs that were important to her when younger.
Andrea is involved in charitable activities. She has played charity concerts to raise money for the Pavarotti & Friends Liberian Children's Village, Freeman Hospital in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, the victims of the Omagh bombing in Northern Ireland and The Prince's Trust in 2004. She is an ambassador for the Nelson Mandela's "46664" campaign, raising awareness towards AIDS in Africa. During the Edinburgh Live 8 on 2 July 2005 The Corrs performed "When the Stars Go Blue" alongside Bono to promote the Make Poverty History campaign. Along with her siblings, she was appointed an honorary M.B.E. in 2005 by Queen Elizabeth II for her contribution to music and charity.
Read more at Wikipedia
This entry is from Wikipedia, the user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors and is licensed under an Attribution-ShareAlike Creative Commons License. If you find the biography content factually incorrect or highly offensive you can edit this article at Wikipedia. Find out more about our use of this data.
Andrea Corr Performances & Interviews
Andrea Corr Tracks
Ar Hy Y Nos
Celtic Heartbeat
She moved through the fair
Pale Blue Eyes
The Evening Show
State of Independence
Alan Simpson
Tinseltown In The Rain
Gerry Kelly
Blue Bayou in session for Weekend Wogan
Weekend Wogan
I'll Be Seeing You in session for Weekend Wogan
Andrea Corr Links
Performances & Interviews from Similar Artists
KT Tunstall: "I was completely overwhelmed!"
Why Later... with Jools Holland has lasted 25 years
KT Tunstall: "James Bay is an incredible musician...and has better hair than me!"
KT Tunstall and Julie Fowlis - State Trooper (The Quay Sessions)
KT Tunstall - Black Horse and The Cherry Tree (The Quay Sessions)
KT Tunstall - Maybe It's A Good Thing
KT Tunstall: "Someone shouted 'My name is Ian' into my loop pedal..."
KT Tunstall Acoustic Session
The Corrs In Conversation With Gerry Kelly
Paul pays tribute to Cilla
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AWW gets green light for £16m marine centre
By Jim Dunton2017-10-23T06:00:00+01:00
Part new-build, part refurb project will provide new Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science HQ
AWW Architects proposals for the new Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science headquarters in Lowestoft
Source: AWW Architects
The new Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science headquarters in Lowestoft, designed by AWW Architects
The refurb element AWW Architects proposals for the new Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science headquarters in Lowestoft
AWW Architects-designed proposals to create a state-of-the-art new headquarters for the government’s Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science have won the backing of Suffolk planners.
The practice’s design, drawn up for Cefas – which is an executive agency of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs – will see the refurbishment of an existing laboratory near the seafront at Lowestoft, and the creation of a new three-storey office building.
Waveney District Council also approved outline proposals for a new public pavilion that can be used as a restaurant and visitor centre at the site.
Fisheries minister George Eustice said Cefas was at the forefront of marine research and innovation.
“I’m pleased this new centre is one step closer to reality,” he said.
“Once complete it will help bolster our research and understanding of sea life – solidifying our position as a world leader in marine science and a champion of sustainable fishing.”
Cefas said it expected the new headquarters to be complete in 2019.
The refurb element of AWW Architects’ proposals for the new Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science headquarters in Lowestoft
AWW scheme another victim of LSC fiasco
A scheme by AWW to build a new college on a former pork pie factory has officially been cancelled after the college failed to find alternative funding following the Learning and Skills Council funding debacle.
Architects appointed to BBC framework
Four practices land two-year deal
Housing design awards 2017: the winners
This year’s winners show schemes in private residential, custom build and housing for older people all setting a benchmark for others to follow
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Mr Mark Cahill
Suite 21 Beacon Consultants Clinic
Sandyford, Dublin 18
Suite 23, Beacon Mall
Mr. Mark Cahill is a consultant eye surgeon with a special interest in retinal diseases in The Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital and Beacon Hospital. He is also the clinical lead for Global Vision, which provides photography and grading services for Diabetic Retina Screen, the national diabetic retinopathy screening programme run by the National Screening Service (NSS).
Mark qualified in University College Dublin. After completing higher surgical training in Dublin and Cork, he undertook a one year fellowship in diabetic retinopathy at the Beetham Eye Institute in the Joslin Diabetes Center, a Harvard University hospital in Boston, where he participated in research on novel treatments to prevent vision loss in patients with diabetic eye disease.
Mark gained further experience in assessing and treating a wide range of eye conditions including age-related macular degeneration, retinal vein occlusions and macular holes following a two year vitreo-retinal fellowship at the Duke University Eye Centre. He worked as a consultant eye surgeon in Duke University Eye Center, before returning to Ireland in 2004.
Mark specialises in the treatment of patients with retinal diseases, cataract, glaucoma and general ophthalmology.
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Richard T. Jacobs
FBI NY
Clyde Langley
Matthew Rosenquist
Obama Suggests Putin Behind Hacks to Influence Vote
President Declares U.S. Will Retaliate for Cyberattacks Eric Chabrow (GovInfoSecurity) • December 16, 2016
President Obama at Dec. 16 press conference
President Barack Obama, saying the United States will retaliate against Russia for conducting hacks aimed at influencing the American presidential election, strongly suggested Dec. 16 that Russian President Vladimir Putin authorized the cyberattacks against Democratic Party computers.
At a White House press conference, reporters twice asked Obama whether he believed Putin authorized the hacks. Both times Obama declined to name Putin as the mastermind, but said:
"Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin; this is a pretty hierarchical operation. Last I checked, there's not a lot of debate and democratic deliberation, particularly when it comes to policies directed at the U.S. We have said, and I will confirm, that this [election hack] happened at highest levels of the Russian government, and I will let you make the determination as to whether there were high-level Russian officials who go off rogue and decided to tamper with the U.S. election process without Vladimir Putin knowing about it."
Retaliation: Time, Place of Our Choosing
At the press conference, and in an NPR interview broadcast earlier in the day, Obama said the United States would retaliate for the breaches. "There is no doubt that when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of our elections ... we need to take action," Obama said in the NPR interview. "And we will, at a time and place of our own choosing. Some of it may be explicit and publicized; some of it may not be."
The Central Intelligence Agency has concluded that Russian hackers targeted computers of both major U.S. political parties, but only leaked information regarding the Democrats to sway the election in favor of the eventual winner, Donald Trump (see CIA Says Kremlin Tried to Sway Vote Toward Trump). Obama earlier this month ordered an intelligence community review of the Russian cyberattacks, with the findings expected to be delivered to the president before he leaves office on Jan. 20.
Trump on several occasions has made positive remarks about Putin and his leadership, and the president-elect, before and after the election, questioned the validity of the CIA's analysis that Russia hacked U.S. political party computers.
Shift in Attitude after Inauguration?
Asked whether actions his administration might take against the Russians over the election interference would be continued by a Trump administration that views the Kremlin more favorably, Obama said a new president sees matters differently after taking office than he does during the campaign or during the weeks leading up to inauguration.
President Obama places the election hacks in context of overall federal government cybersecurity challenges.
Obama said the U.S. government avoided retaliation, at least publicly, before the election, expressing concerns that such actions might be seen as partisan meddling in the campaign. "We were playing this thing straight," he told reporters. "We weren't trying to advantage one side or the other. ... Imagine if we had done the opposite. It would have become one more political scrum."
The president said that when he met with Putin in China last September, he told his Russian counterpart to "cut it out."
Dmitry Pescov, a spokesman for Putin, in a statement published by Russian news agencies, said regarding the allegations of hacking that the United States should "either stop talking about it or finally produce some evidence, otherwise it all begins to look unseemly."
Report: FBI Agrees with CIA's Breach Analysis
The Washington Post, citing U.S. officials, reports that FBI Director James Comey and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper Jr. are in agreement with the CIA assessment that Russia intervened in the 2016 election, in part, to help Trump win the presidency.
The Post says a House intelligence briefing by a senior FBI counterintelligence official last week left some Republican and Democratic lawmakers with the impression that the bureau wasn't on the same page as the CIA, according to officials present. "The truth is they were never all that different in the first place," an official told the news organization, referring to the FBI and CIA positions.
On Capitol Hill, Richard Burr, the North Carolina Republican who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, announced that the panel will investigate the allegations of the Russian attacks on the electoral system. Most of the committee's work will be conducted behind closed doors, Burr said, although it will hold open hearings to help inform the public. "The committee will follow the intelligence wherever it leads," Burr said in a statement. "We will conduct this review expeditiously, but we will take the time to get it right and will not be influenced by uninformed discourse."
Third Alleged Hacker Arrested in Chase Breach
Romanian Cybercrime Suspects Extradited to Face US Charges
https://www.bankinfosecurity.eu/obama-suggests-putin-behind-hacks-to-influence-vote-a-9593
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Stanley F. Orszula
Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg LLP
Ellen Richey
Content by Greg Coticchia
Chairman of the Board, Digital Risk Management Institute
Coticchia, MBA, PC, is an award-winning technology executive with over twenty-five years experience in high tech products and services. He currently serves the University of Pittsburgh as both its Director of the University of Pittsburgh's Student Startup Accelerator, 'The Blast Furnace', and as an Executive in Residence (EIR) for software and information technology. Mr. Coticchia has led or been a major contributor in two of the largest and most successful software companies in the world, LEGENT (now CA) and AXENT (now Symantec). Greg has been in fourteen start-ups and founded four, and has held executive positions for better than two-thirds of his career, participating in various size organizations, from '$0M to over $1B' in revenue. A graduate of the University of Pittsburgh in Industrial Engineering, where he also received his MBA, he currently teaches several courses including B2B marketing at the University Of Pittsburgh Katz School Of Business. He holds certificates in Entrepreneurial Management from Carnegie Mellon University and Professional Coaching from Duquesne University. Coticchia was named as a finalist three times for the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award and for the Tech 50 CEO of the Year. He was also named a 2006 Distinguished Graduate of the University of Pittsburgh (Katz).
Advanced Cyberthreat Intelligence Against The 2018 Threat Landscape
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Down with apologies!
by Brian · 25 October, 2004
It seems to me absurd for governments or individuals to issue apologies for offences they have not themselves committed, and most absurd of all to apologise now for something that happened before anyone now alive was born (such as slavery). Often, of course, what those demanding apologies from the innocent really want is not apologies but lucrative compensation, which is even more unattractive than it is absurd. It’s a measure of the triumph of political correctness over common sense that those on the receiving end of these ludicrous demands — for apologies and money-money — so rarely respond by telling these aggrieved characters to stop being so silly and to shut up.
It’s anyway almost a contradiction in terms to demand an apology from a government, even — or especially — for something that the government in question has actually done, since if a government has committed a sufficiently grave offence to require a public apology, it ought to resign, not just apologise. Hence of course Blair’s refusal to apologise for taking us to war on what is now almost technically known as a false prospectus. There’s no way of knowing whether Blair has privately deluded himself into believing, passionately or otherwise, that he didn’t deliberately or negligently mislead parliament, the public and the rest of the world over what was really known or not known about Saddam’s WMD: what is absolutely clear, though, is that if he were to admit to having done so by apologising for it, he would have to resign (and it may now have dawned on his ministerial colleagues that if the prime minister goes, the whole government goes!). I have a rather large reservation about this whole argument, though, because it implies that if the intelligence had been as Blair and Co. described it, and if large stockpiles of WMD had been found by the coalition forces in Iraq on their arrival, that would have meant that the war was legal: whereas it wasn’t, WMD or no WMD. No longer an easy point to get across.
And we now have the repulsive spectacle of the leader of the Conservative Party issuing instructions to the editor of the Spectator on what he may or may not publish in his magazine (which depends for its appeal on its liveliness, irreverence and apparent independence) and instructing him to go and make a grovelling apology to a whole city. It’s not hard to imagine what Iain Macleod, when he was editor of the Spectator, would have said and done if Sir A. Douglas Home or Edward Heath had tried to humiliate him and destroy his independence like that. I had thought and hoped that the amusing Boris Johnson, who much enlivens our otherwise pretty dreary political landscape, was made of sterner, or at any rate of chirpier, stuff. It would be a real pity if Michael Howard’s indefensible intervention were to establish the impossibility of a vigorous and independent-minded politician combining a front bench appointment with the editorship of a political weekly, at any rate while his or her party is in opposition. The editorial in question, after all, made a serious and valid point: whether in doing so it incidentally strayed across the boundaries of good taste, who is to say? De gustibus non disputandum. And the idea of apologising to a whole city is inherently comic.
However, for evidence of Boris Johnson’s essential decency and spirit we need go no further than his sad and funny reflections on the whole tragicomic Liverpool ‘penitential pilgrimage’ (his own description) in the current issue of his splendid, disgraceful magazine.
http://www.barder.com/brian/
Next story Daring to install Windows XP Service Pack 2
Previous story Iraq: government vs. the BBC “ Greg Dyke speaks (again)
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Daily Ratings & News for Dorian LPG
Complete the form below to receive the latest headlines and analysts' recommendations for Dorian LPG with our free daily email newsletter:
$467.94 Million in Sales Expected for Superior Energy Services, Inc. (NYSE:SPN) This Quarter
$40.28 Million in Sales Expected for Dorian LPG Ltd (LPG) This Quarter
Posted by Kathy Lenkie on May 4th, 2019 // Comments off
Brokerages expect Dorian LPG Ltd (NYSE:LPG) to announce sales of $40.28 million for the current fiscal quarter, according to Zacks. Two analysts have made estimates for Dorian LPG’s earnings, with the lowest sales estimate coming in at $35.96 million and the highest estimate coming in at $44.60 million. Dorian LPG posted sales of $39.04 million in the same quarter last year, which would indicate a positive year over year growth rate of 3.2%. The company is scheduled to report its next quarterly earnings report on Friday, June 21st.
According to Zacks, analysts expect that Dorian LPG will report full-year sales of $163.00 million for the current financial year, with estimates ranging from $158.70 million to $167.30 million. For the next fiscal year, analysts expect that the business will report sales of $180.12 million, with estimates ranging from $175.30 million to $184.93 million. Zacks’ sales averages are an average based on a survey of research firms that cover Dorian LPG.
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Dorian LPG (NYSE:LPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 4th. The shipping company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.08. The business had revenue of $55.11 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $47.29 million. Dorian LPG had a negative net margin of 23.65% and a negative return on equity of 4.35%.
LPG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Dorian LPG from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $6.25 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 12th. ValuEngine upgraded Dorian LPG from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, DNB Markets upgraded Dorian LPG from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 8th.
In related news, Director Christina Tan purchased 5,000 shares of Dorian LPG stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $5.85 per share, with a total value of $29,250.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 72,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $425,464.65. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider John C. Hadjipateras purchased 7,500 shares of Dorian LPG stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $7.73 per share, for a total transaction of $57,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 141,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,097,613.62. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 32,500 shares of company stock worth $215,825 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 26.40% of the company’s stock.
A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LPG. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in Dorian LPG by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 1,755,254 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $13,988,000 after acquiring an additional 6,691 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Dorian LPG by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,012,986 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $24,013,000 after acquiring an additional 163,930 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Dorian LPG during the 3rd quarter worth $3,700,000. Robotti Robert boosted its position in Dorian LPG by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Robotti Robert now owns 542,709 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $4,326,000 after acquiring an additional 24,560 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc boosted its position in Dorian LPG by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc now owns 512,641 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $4,086,000 after acquiring an additional 5,047 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 55.26% of the company’s stock.
NYSE:LPG traded down $0.17 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $8.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 13,292 shares, compared to its average volume of 172,911. The stock has a market cap of $453.01 million, a PE ratio of -13.00 and a beta of 0.87. Dorian LPG has a 1 year low of $5.26 and a 1 year high of $8.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.
Dorian LPG Company Profile
Dorian LPG Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the transportation of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) through its LPG tankers worldwide. It owns and operates very large gas carriers (VLGCs). As of June 26, 2018, its fleet consisted of 22 VLGCs with carrying capacity of approximately 1.8 million cubic meters.
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XPO Logistics (XPO) Receives “Outperform” Rating from Cowen
Payment Data Systems, Inc. (PYDS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Strong Buy” from Brokerages
empowr coin Reaches Market Cap of $57,350.00
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Billy Joel Returns To Wrigley Field Sept. 7, 2018
First Artist Ever to Play Wrigley Field Five Years in a Row
Four Consecutive Years of Sold Out Shows
Sets Record for Overall Performances
Public on-sale Monday, January 29 at 10:00AM – CUBS.COM/BILLYJOEL
Legendary musician Billy Joel will return to Chicago to perform at Wrigley Field on Friday, September 7, 2018. This performance will make Billy Joel the first artist in history to play Wrigley Field for five consecutive years, and a record-setting seventh overall appearance. Billy Joel is undeniably the all-time leader in concert ticket sales for the storied ballpark selling over 165,000 tickets.
Citi® is the official presale credit card for this show. As such, Citi® cardmembers will have access to purchase pre-sale tickets beginning Wednesday, January 24 at 10a local time until Sunday, January 28 at 10p local time through Citi’s Private Pass® Program. For complete pre-sale details visit www.citiprivatepass.com.
Tickets for the general public go on sale Monday, January 29 at 10a via Cubs.com/BillyJoel.
In December 2013, Billy Joel became Madison Square Garden’s first-ever music franchise, joining the ranks of the storied venue’s other original franchises – the New York Knicks, Rangers and Liberty. Since January 2014, Joel has played one show per month at The Garden as part of the Time Warner Cable Concert Series. This unprecedented and wildly successful residency has led to 53 sold-out shows thus far.
Billy Joel is one of the biggest concert draws in the world and continues this achievement with an impressive run of sold-out consecutive stadium shows and concert arenas. Having sold 150 million records over the past quarter century, scoring 33 consecutive Top 40 hits, Billy Joel ranks as one of most popular recording artists and respected entertainers in history. The singer/songwriter/composer is the sixth best-selling recording artist of all time and the third best-selling solo artist. In 2016, the Library of Congress selected “Piano Man” for preservation in the National Recording Registry for its “cultural, historic, and artistic significance. ”
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Protecting endangered species and wild places of western North America
and the Pacific through science, policy, education, and environmental law.
GROUPS FILE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT LISTING PETITION FOR CENTRAL VALLEY VERNAL POOL CRUSTACEAN
Petition demonstrates that the Midvalley Fairy Shrimp is in danger of extinction and listing.
Contacts: Carol Witham, VernalPools.Org (530) 753-5872
Kassie Siegel, Center for Biological Diversity (510) 841-0812
More Information: Midvalley Fairy Shrimp, Goldenstate Biodiversity Initiative
Today the Center for Biological Diversity ("Center") and VernalPools.Org filed a listing petition under the federal Endangered Species Act ("ESA") for the Midvalley Fairy Shrimp. The petition demonstrates that the species faces a significant threat of extinction and requests that U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service ("Service") promptly protect the species.
Fairy shrimps are crustaceans that live in vernal pools, seasonal wetlands that fill with water during fall and winter rains. Fairy shrimps swim upside down and filter bacteria, algae, and protozoa from their aquatic habitat. They are short-lived animals that hatch and reproduce during a short interval in the winter when the vernal pools are filled with water. Fairy shrimp cysts (encysted embryos) fall to the bottom of the pool where they withstand the hot, dry summers of California's grasslands. After one or more dry seasons, the cysts will hatch when the pools are once again inundated, and the cycle of life begins again.
The Midvalley Fairy Shrimp (Branchinecta mesovallensis) is a newly-described species that inhabits pools in only a handful of counties within the Great Central Valley, including Sacramento, Solano, Merced, Madera, San Joaquin, Fresno, and Contra Costa counties. The Midvalley Fairy Shrimp is closely related to three other federally listed species, the Vernal Pool Fairy Shrimp, Conservancy Fairy Shrimp, and Longhorn Fairy Shrimp. These three species were listed by the Service in 1994, primarily due to the threats posed by destruction of their vernal pool habitat. Today's petition demonstrates that the Midvalley Fairy Shrimp is at an even greater risk of extinction that these species, however, because it has a more restricted range and inhabits the most shallow and ephemeral vernal pools.
Vernal pools are one of the most threatened habitat types in the world. Over 97% of California's original vernal pool habitat has already been lost due to urban sprawl, agribusiness, offroad vehicles, livestock grazing, and wetland draining. Vernal pools are home to many plants and animals that in turn form a valuable part of the food chain for a wide array of animals, including birds of prey, shorebirds, migratory waterfowl, frogs, toads, salamanders and pollinating insects. "Fairy shrimps are a vital part of the web of life," said Kassie Siegel, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity. "The Service must act immediately to prevent the Midvalley Fairy Shrimp and its habitat from disappearing forever."
One of the greatest threats to the Midvalley Fairy Shrimp is the University of California's plans to build a new campus and city on one of the largest remaining vernal pool mosaics in the state. The proposed 1,300 acre UC Merced campus will directly impact dozens of acres of vernal pools some of which are occupied by the Midvalley Fairy Shrimp. Increased urban sprawl, agricultural and residential conversion, and indirect impacts (such as altered hydrology) resulting from the proposed UC Merced campus, a new town of 30,000 people, and associated infrastructure development are anticipated to destroy, fragment and degrade nearby Midvalley Fairy Shrimp habitat as well. "Perhaps the largest single threat facing this species is the proposed UC Merced campus at Lake Yosemite," said VernalPools.Org Coordinator, Carol Witham. "The new site adjacent to the Merced Hills Golf Course contains important Midvalley Fairy Shrimp habitat and impacts will be significant."
Today's petition sets in motion a process that sets definite timelines the Service must follow in deciding whether to list the species. Within 90 days, the Service must decide whether the petition presents sufficient information showing the listing may be warranted. Within one year, the Service must either propose the species for listing or find that the listing is not warranted or precluded by other priorities. If the Service finds that listing is warranted, the listing must be finalized within 2 years of the receipt of this petition.
Under the Bush administration, the Service has vowed not to accept or consider listing petitions for new species until at least the end of this fiscal year. Since Bush took office, only two species have been listed under the Endangered Species Act, one as a result of a Center petition and one as the result of a Center lawsuit. At this time in the Clinton administration, 42 species had been listed. "The Bush Administration has deliberately decided to stand by and do nothing while multiple species, including the Midvalley Fairy Shrimp, spiral towards extinction," said Siegel. "If they fail to process this important petition, we will challenge the listing moratorium in court."
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Stansted Airport growth: Uttlesford District Council votes to review planning permission
Stansted Airport. (13214837)
Stansted Airport bosses are "considering their options" after councillors ignored legal advice and decided to review their own planning permission for expansion to 43 million passengers a year.
At an extraordinary meeting of Uttlesford District Council on Friday (June 28), members voted to return Manchester Airports Group's application to the planning committee and risk a costly appeal.
When the application to increase the current limit of 35m passengers a year was granted in November last year, the council had a Conservative administration, but the Tories were almost wiped out at the local government elections in May. when the Residents for Uttlesford (R4U) party swept to power and the Liberal Democrats became the new opposition.
Both R4U and the Lib Dems have been determined to force a review of the permission, agreeing with the Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) protest group that conditions attached to the consent do not go far enough.
A spokesman for Stansted Airport, which currently handles more than 28m passengers every 12 months, said: "We are concerned that the council has not only chosen to ignore the recommendations of its own officers but also disregarded its independent legal advice, which supports the original view that there is no legitimate reason to withhold approval for this application.
"Our frustration at this delay will no doubt also be shared by the considerable number of local residents, businesses, staff and on-site partners who have passionately backed these plans, which will boost our region's economic growth and deliver 5,000 additional jobs.
"From the outset we have listened to local views and this feedback led us to put forward a proposal which maintained the cap on the number of flights and committed to deliver the growth within a legally binding smaller noise footprint than our existing permissions require. This forms part of a comprehensive set of mitigation measures which have been independently endorsed.
"We remain in discussion with the council while we consider all the options available to us."
Cllr John Lodge (13214804)
Uttlesford's R4U leader, Cllr John Lodge, said: "There is a strong belief that the previous Conservative council administration tried to rush through the expansion before the May election. Stansted Airport is a significant part of our district and is nationally important, so it has to be done properly.
"The proposed expansion to nearly the size of Gatwick will bring jobs, but it will have a big negative impact on surrounding communities, our roads and railways, and particularly the environment. These impacts must be properly mitigated and so the council has voted for a new review before planning is granted.
"Very importantly, there are also new material considerations that directly relate to aviation. The UK's brand new Carbon Net Zero 2050 legislation was signed into law this week, a recent High Court decision backed Heathrow's third runway, the Government's issued its Aviation 2050 strategy and the European airport association has agreed its own Climate Change Net Zero initiative. These must now also be considered. If the airport's owners appeal this decision, it could well be the UK's first test case for the new Carbon Net Zero 2050 legislation."
SSE presented a petition with more than 1,600 signature to the meeting and chairman Peter Sanders said: "It was a truly uplifting day for local democracy, but this is only a first step.
"The planning committee will make its decision based purely on the facts, not emotion or popular opinion.
"SSE's task now is to provide all the relevant evidence and analysis to the planning committee so that it can make the right decision. We will take nothing for granted."
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Ensuring the Promise of the Every Student Succeeds Act
Education Uncategorized
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By Dr. Elizabeth Primas (Program Manager, NNPA/ESSA Media Campaign)
During the month of May, many of us celebrated the 63rd anniversary of the Brown vs. Board of Education decision. The unanimous 1954 ruling by the United States Supreme Court declared that “separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.” Last week, the National Newspaper Publishers Association partnered with the Thurgood Marshall Center for Service and Heritage for a special tribute to the first African American Supreme Court Justice. We also reflected on the significance of an improved national education law. The preservation of Thurgood Marshall’s legacy is dependent upon our dedication to our children.
In a column for The Washington Post, Richard Rothstein, a research associate at the Economic Policy Institute, noted that, “Today, nearly half of all black students attend majority black schools, with over 70 percent in high-poverty school districts.”
High poverty school districts are often overwhelmed by the external consequences of poverty that distract students from learning and prevent effective classroom instruction. Chronic absenteeism, poor nutrition, and various forms of abuse, are a few of the challenges facing high poverty school districts. Although, in-school psychological and academic resources cannot eliminate these challenges completely, they do help to mitigate their effects. Yet, many of these programs are routinely underfunded.
So, on the 63rd anniversary of the landmark decision to integrate educational institutions in the United States, we ask ourselves the question, “How far have we come?” We struggled to be allowed to get an education. We fought to have equal access to quality education. We endured forced integration, only to be placed at the back of the classroom and ignored.
The Every Student Succeeds Act attempts (ESSA) to fulfill the promise of a high-quality education for all of our children. ESSA advocates for qualified teachers, high standards, a robust programs, and assessments, which inform classroom instruction. The law, which was passed during the Obama Administration, also returns some responsibilities to create innovative and equitable educational policies back to Local Education Agencies (LEA).
In response to the passage of ESSA in December 2015, thirty-seven civil rights and education groups issued the following statement, “The Elementary and Secondary Education Act is our nation’s most important civil rights law for promoting educational achievement and protecting the rights and interests of students disadvantaged by discrimination, poverty and other conditions that may limit their educational opportunity.”
So, yes, we acknowledge that a single law won’t solve all of the challenges facing our community, but we still have a duty to continue the fight for equity in education for the benefit of our children, especially poor students and students of color. The key to the success of this education law rest in the hands of parents and communities across the nation.
Together, we can fulfill the promise of ESSA and ensure that every student succeeds.
Learn more about the Every Student Succeeds Act at nnpa.org/essa.
Dr. Elizabeth Primas is an educator, who spent more than 40 years working towards improving education for children of diverse ethnicities and backgrounds. Dr. Primas is the program manager for the NNPA’s Every Student Succeeds Act Media Campaign. Follow Dr. Primas on Twitter @elizabethprimas.
Related Topics:Brown vs. Board of EducationCommentaryElizabeth PrimasEvery Student Succeed ActNNPA ESSAOp-EdThurgood Marshall’s legacy
Building a Pipeline of HBCU Students to Washington, D.C.
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Freddie Allen is the Editor-In-Chief of the NNPA Newswire and BlackPressUSA.com. Focused on Black people stuff, positively. You should follow Freddie on Twitter and Instagram @freddieallenjr.
COMMENTARY: Where ‘Da Heck Are Black Leaders?
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COMMENTARY: Biden, Scarborough are creatures of the deep
COMMENTARY: Reparations For Slavery Are Long Overdue!
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Best Colleges in New Jersey
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Though New Jersey may be the fourth smallest state in the U.S., its postsecondary options are comprehensive and varied. As of 2013, the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association reported that NJ was home to more than 372,000 students in public postsecondary schools alone. 67 colleges are based in the Garden State, ranging from public and private research universities to community colleges and religiously-affiliated institutions providing both two-year and four-year degrees. With so many factors to consider when selecting postsecondary education, choosing the right school can feel overwhelming. After crunching numbers and sifting data, we have applied our rigorous methodology to the latest education data to rank the best colleges in New Jersey, including the top four-year and two-year schools.
Some of the most prestigious four-year universities are located in New Jersey, with students flocking from all 50 states and across the globe to study under world-class professors in historic yet state-of-the-art learning spaces. An IPEDs report found that close to 210,000 undergraduate and 38,000 graduate students take advantage of the many offerings in the state's urban and rural locations.
Although New Jersey tuition rates for both public and private colleges are above the national average (NJ public tuition averages $11,955, compared to the national average of $8,070, while NJ private tuition averages $31,195, compared to the national average of $24,525), student debt does not necessarily follow suit. As of the 2012-13 academic year, 70% of students graduated with an average debt of $28,109, placing New Jersey 18th in terms of state-to-state student debt.
While two-year degrees propel graduates into some entry-level roles, studies show that individuals with a four-year degree earn close to $150,000 more throughout their careers, on average.
Princeton, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 97%
Princeton, founded in 1746, is the fourth-oldest university in the nation. Set on 500 acres in a small community, the private research institution is a member of the prestigious Ivy League and is distinguished among colleges in New Jersey by the focus it gives to undergraduate education. About two thirds of the 8,000-member student body are pursuing their baccalaureate degrees, and they benefit from a 5:1 student to faculty ratio.
Only 6.5% of undergraduates who apply are admitted. 98% of undergraduates live on campus, and they select from 37 academic programs in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering. Princeton has the largest endowment per capita in the country, and its list of alumni is full of famous names, including former First Lady Michelle Obama, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and actor David Duchovny. 60 percent of undergraduates receive a form of financial aid.
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New Brunswick, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 80%
Rutgers is the official State University of New Jersey. The New Brunswick-based public research university is the largest college in New Jersey -- and one of the oldest in the nation. Founded before the United States was formed, Rutgers is one of the nine colonial colleges that predate the American Revolution. The school is a member of the exclusive Association of American Universities. Rutgers has more than 40,000 students enrolled in 18 schools and colleges -- over 32,000 of them undergraduates.
The school offers more than 100 undergraduate majors and has nationally recognized programs in philosophy, geography, geology, mathematics, Latin, and Greek. Freshmen can participate in "Byrne Seminars," small, hands-on classes that are limited to 20 students or less and expose first-year learners to Rutgers' extensive research. The school's list of famous alumni is extensive, including singer/activist Paul Robeson, Nobel-Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman, actor James Gandolfini, and Senator Elizabeth Warren.
Mahwah, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 73%
Ramapo College, located in the foothills of the Ramapo Mountains, is a public liberal arts institution in New Jersey's system of higher education, and its smallest school. The school serves 6,000 students and has a close-knit community. Ramapo has articulation agreements and partnerships with bigger colleges in New Jersey, including Rutgers, Caldwell University, Lake Erie College of Medicine, and Seton Hall. Because of these arrangements, qualified freshmen gain guaranteed admission to Seton Hall's School of Law upon completion of their baccalaureate degree. Most first-year students live on campus, and 87% continue their education at Ramapo after their freshman year.
Ramapo's five schools provide students access to more than 539 course offerings and 36 academic programs. The average class size is 23, allowing students to develop relationships with the college's faculty. The university's school of Business has been accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.
Newark, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 61%
NJIT is a public research institution located in Newark's University Heights neighborhood. The campus has doubled in size in the last decade, building on 130 years of polytech history. About 2,200 of the school's 11,000 students, including 50% of freshmen, make their home on-campus. The rest commute or study online.
Undergraduates pursue degrees in 50 academic fields at the college of engineering, the college of architecture and design, the college of science and the liberal arts, the school of management, college of computing, and the Honors College. The school's Enterprise Development Center is New Jersey's largest high tech incubator and one of the biggest in the nation. The New Jersey Innovation Institute, a think tank partnering with government and industry, is based at NJIT. The school is known for affordability among New Jersey colleges. NJIT offers master's and doctoral programs.
Stevens Institute of Technology
Hoboken, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 83%
Located across the river from New York, in Hoboken, Stevens Institute is one of the nation's oldest tech schools. The private research university is named for the nation's "first family of inventors," who left a bequest that endowed the school. When it was founded in 1870 it was the first school dedicated to mechanical engineering in the United States.
Undergraduates make up less than half of the 6,600 enrolled students, and they select from 34 bachelor degree programs. The 290-member faculty encourages collaboration, creating an "interdisciplinary, student-centered, entrepreneurial environment." The school emphasizes technical training, design projects, internships, and research in industries including finance, energy, cybersecurity, defense, homeland and maritime security, health care, STEM education, and urban and coastal resilience. Stevens is one of only two universities in the country to offer entrepreneurship training to freshmen. An accelerated five-year master's plan is available.
Montclair, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 65%
Montclair State, a public research institution, is the second-largest of all colleges in New Jersey with 21,000 students. Undergraduates make up two thirds of the student body, and about 5,000 of them live on the school's 252-acre campus in the town of Montclair. The school provides undergraduates with access to 54 majors, 60 concentrations, and 61 minors. Class sizes are kept to an average of 23 students.
Montclair was founded as a normal school, and its education department continues to be among the best in New Jersey. The university is home to the New Jersey School of Conservation, located in Stokes State Forest. Montoclair is becoming known for the fine arts, theater, music, and fashion studies available through its College of the Arts. Many programs can be accelerated to include a teaching certification. Famous alumni includes baseball great Yogi Berra, actor Bruce Willis, and poet Allen Ginsberg. The school's commitment to community involvement has won national recognition.
Galloway, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 70%
When Stockton welcomed its first class in 1971, students attended classes in an Atlantic City hotel. Today, the main campus is in Galloway, within the bounds of the Pinelands National Reserve. Stockton calls itself New Jersey's "Distinctive Public University," and it was established to provide the education of a high-end, private liberal arts college to South Jersey students at an affordable price.
Stockton's approach to education is interdisciplinary, and the school's 8,800 students select from 50 different academic fields. Programs include business, education, nursing, environmental and marine science, and tourism, which uses the school's own seaside hotel, Seaview Resort, in its training. About 3,000 students live on campus, and they participate in 130 official clubs and organizations, including the Student Senate. More than 90% of the faculty has terminal degrees. 88% of the school's graduates are employed or in graduate studies.
Ewing, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 87%
TCNJ, located in Ewing, has one of the highest graduation rates of all public universities. The school was founded in 1855 as the state of New Jersey's teacher's college, and has evolved over the years into a top comprehensive institution, with a student body of 7,400. The majority of those enrolled are undergraduates; 95 percent of freshmen live on the 289-acre campus.
TCNJ's seven schools -- Arts & Communication, Business, Education, Engineering, Health & Exercise Science, Humanities & Social Sciences, Nursing, and Science -- offer more than 50 baccalaureate programs. TCNJ has a reputation for faculty-student collaboration and research and is known for strong programs in business, education, engineering, and nursing. It was awarded a Phi Beta Kappa chapter in 2006, an honor granted to less than 10% of the nation's universities. The Lions have an active on-campus life, with title-winning Division III sports programs and more than 200 student organizations.
Rutgers-Newark is part of the larger Rutgers system. The former University of Newark joined Rutgers in 1946. Rutgers-Newark is a public institution of "high research activity," according to Carnegie.
More than 12,000 students are enrolled in the 38-acre campus in University Heights, and the student body has been deemed the most diverse in the nation. Many students are commuters -- the school only has 1,280 on-campus residents. Learners select from 45 baccalaureate degree programs at Rutgers-Newark's seven different undergraduate and professional schools. More than 60% of the student body studies at the College of Arts and Sciences, and they enjoy a student to faculty ratio of 13:1. A select few gain admission to the school's Honors College, an intensive program that prepares students for the next step in their education with small seminars and research activity.
Glassboro, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 71%
Rowan, located in Glassboro (about 20 minutes from Philadelphia), is a public research institution serving 16,000 students. Founded as a teacher's college, it has developed into a university with a reputation for excellence in engineering, education, health care, and business. The school's 13,000 undergraduates earn degrees in 74 baccalaureate programs on the historic, brick-clad main campus or at satellite locations in Camden and Stratford. About a third of undergraduates live on-campus.
In the past decade the university has added a medical school, a school of biomedical science, and acquired an osteopathic institute. The school is among the best colleges in New Jersey -- and nationally -- for military friendliness; for its commitment to sustainability, and for the avenue of "upward mobility" it provides its students. Campus life is enriched by dozens of student organizations and 16 Division III sports teams.
Madison, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 61%
Drew used to be a seminary and now has about 2,000 students enrolled in 30 undergraduate degree programs. More than 90% of students live on campus. Drew is known for its close-knit community, where faculty are mentors and students learn by doing. The student to faculty ratio is 10:1.
Majors at Drew include economics, psychology, business, theatre, and political science. Undergraduates can partake in a variety of educational opportunities at the Charles A. Dana Research Institute for Scientists Emeriti, the Drew Summer Science Institute, the Center for Civic Engagement, the Center for Holocaust/Genocide Studies, and the Center on Religion, Culture, and Conflict. The school hosts a full slate of "New York City Semesters," which take undergraduates to Wall Street, the United Nations, and famous art, theater, and media institutions. Drew is home to the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, a professional theater company, and is known as one of the best colleges in New Jersey for theater.
Trenton, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 45%
Thomas Edison State is the only college in New Jersey designed specifically for adults. The Trenton-based institution was founded in 1972 with the purpose of providing degree programs for non-traditional, self-directed students. All courses are delivered using distance-learning methods, whether it be through online classes, guided study, e-pack, or prior learning assessments. The school pioneered a "flash-track" delivery, which puts all course contents on a flash drive and doesn't require constant internet access. The average age of the school's 17,500 undergraduates is 35.
TESU's fives colleges offer more than 100 degree programs. Students can transfer up to 80 credits from a 2-year school and 120 from a 4-year program. The school has won national recognition for its use of technology in educational programs including psychology, sociology, and social sciences. The New Jersey State Library is an affiliate of the school.
Camden, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 59%
Rutgers-Camden, the smallest school in the Rutgers University system with just 6,100 students, expands the State University of New Jersey into the Greater Philadelphia area. The school was founded when the South Jersey School of Law and the College of South Jersey joined Rutgers in 1950; RUC is a public research institution with a focus on the liberal arts.
Rutgers-Camden offers 36 undergraduate majors, and an intimate 10:1 student to faculty ratio. The College of Arts and Sciences, which delivers programming in the humanities, natural sciences, social science, and fine arts, is the largest academic unit at Rutgers-Camden. During the winter semester, the traditional curriculum pauses to give students a three-week window to pursue internships and do focused research. In 2016, RUC renewed its partnership with the University of Havana, which provides research and exchange opportunities. Famous alumni includes politician Maria Rodriguez-Gregg and writer Daniel Nestor.
South Orange, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 64%
Seton Hall, founded in 1856, is one of the nation's leading Catholic universities. It's campus is 58-acres and resides in South Orange, New Jersey, just 14 miles from Manhattan. The private university provides 5,000 undergraduates with an education in over 90 fields of study. Service is important at Seton Hall; students donate more than 40,000 hours of their time to the community every year.
Seton Hall is considered among the best colleges in New Jersey and the nation. The school gives students with slightly lower than average high school GPAs (what they call "B" students) an opportunity to study at the university. Seton is nationally known for its business and law programs, and has been recognized for the internships it presents to students. Nursing, biology, finance, and general liberal arts studies are among the most popular undergraduate majors. Eighty percent of freshmen live on campus, where they can participate in Greek Life, 25 intramural sports, and join more than 130 official clubs and groups. New Jersey governor Chris Christie, sports announcers Dick Vitale and Bob Ley, slugger Mo Vaughn, and dozens of NBA stars are among its famous alumni.
Jersey City, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 54%
St. Peter's is a small, private, four-year, Catholic Jesuit college in Jersey City. The school is one of 28 institutions of higher learning in the country run by the Society of Jesus, and the only one among New Jersey colleges. St. Peter's is located on an urban, 30-acre campus, just two miles from New York City. More than 3,400 students are enrolled, including a diverse group from 29 states and 39 countries. The vast majority of students are undergraduates, and only 34% of them live on campus.
St. Peter's offers 60 degree paths and enriches student education through study abroad, research with faculty, honors programs, and internships. The Washington Experience places qualified upperclassmen into internships in their fields within the nation's capital. The most popular majors include business, health care professions, biology, Homeland Security, and criminal justice. The school offers minors, associate, master's, and doctorate programs.
New Jersey City prides itself on offering the lowest tuition of any four-year, public university in the state. The school's 10,000-member student body consists almost entirely of commuters -- 97% of students live off campus. The university's four schools offer 41 undergraduate degrees, the most popular degrees are early childho 100 degree programsod education and music.
NJCU is the only school in the state to offer a four-year fire science and professional security degree.The professional security degree prepares students for careers with the FBI, CIA, and other intelligence agencies. NJCU is a member of the National Student Exchange, a consortium of 200 colleges across North America, allowing students to pursue their Jersey City degree while studying elsewhere. The school features a small business development center, it provides confidential business counseling and training for entrepreneurs. Short-term individual and couples counseling is available for free to the school's students.
West Long Branch, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 70%
Monmouth is a private, liberal arts university in West Long Branch, New Jersey, with a focus on experiential education. The student body of 6,300 includes 4,700 undergraduates. Monmouth focuses on small classes, and caps them at 25 or 35, providing a 13:1 student to faculty ratio.
Students select from 32 baccalaureate degrees and can participate in studies outside the classroom in Monmouth's five centers of distinction: the Center for the Arts, the Monmouth Polling Institute, the Institute for Global Understanding, the Kislak Real Estate Institute, and the Urban Coast Institute. Business, education, and Homeland Security are among the most popular majors. MU is known for its software engineering program and its music industry concentration. It's the only GRAMMY museum affiliate school east of the Mississippi, giving students access to exclusive internships, research programs, and educational initiatives. It has the only Peace Corp Prep program among New Jersey colleges.
Lawrenceville, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 66%
Rider, founded as a private business school in 1865, moved to its current location in the Trenton suburb of Lawrence Township in 1959, and merged with Westminster Choir College in 1992, giving it a second campus in Princeton. (A shuttle service connects the two campuses.) The student body of 5,000, is comprised of over 4,000 undergrads; more than 70% of undergrads and 90% of freshmen live on campus.
Undergrads can select from 67 degree programs in business, education, counseling, and leadership. Most of the liberal arts and sciences are based at the Lawrenceville campus; Westminster is largely focused on music and performing arts, and has won national acclaim for its curriculum. The most popular majors at Rider include elementary education, psychology, accounting, and business administration. Ninety-seven percent of Rider's faculty hold terminal degrees. Westminster's Talcott Library has an extensive collection of scores and music-related books.
Union, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 50%
Kean is the third-largest public university in New Jersey, and it's largely a commuter school. More than 15,000 students attend classes on the main campus in Union or the satellite campus in Hillside; only 1,700 students live on campus. Kean has a long tradition of teaching teachers, and it produces more educators than any of the other colleges in New Jersey. Undergraduate programs are offered in more than 50 fields of study.
Kean's commitment to education is seen through its New Jersey Center for Science Technology and Mathematics, where the next generation of biology, physics, calculus, and algebra teachers can learn best practices in STEM education. The school is also noted for its strong programs in the humanities, particularly history. Kean is home to the Liberty Hall Museum, which contains a trove of papers and memorabilia from the American Revolution. Student life includes Division III athletics, 33 fraternities and sororities, and three game rooms on campus.
Lakewood, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 42%
GCU is a private, Catholic university founded and sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy. The entire campus is a National Historic Landmark, famed among colleges in New Jersey for its architecture, statuary, and gardens. GCU began as a college for women, with co-ed graduate classes, and went fully co-educational in 2013. It continues to have a "special concern" for women, stressing equality in all facets of life; women still represent over 75% of the student body.
Three colleges -- the school of arts and sciences, the school of education, and the school of business and media -- provide GCU's 1,500 undergraduates with more than 30 degree options. 92% of faculty have terminal degrees in their fields. The student to faculty ratio is 12:1, and the most popular areas of study include psychology, nursing, and business. GCU's focus on leadership is represented through its programs in Women in Leadership Development and Emerging Leaders. These programs use mentoring, seminars, and networking to help students find their potential. About 70% of students live off campus.
Centenary College
Hackettstown, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 60%
Based in Hackettstown, Centenary has received awards for the excellence of its academics, particularly with service to nontraditional learners. The school offers undergraduate degrees in history, theatre arts, political and governmental affairs, and pre-veterinary equine science. Students can also choose from graduate programs in fields like business, education, counseling, and leadership and public administration, the last of which can be completed entirely online.
Additional distance learning options are available through the School of Professional Studies, which offers entirely remote and blended programs for adult students who wish to advance their careers while continuing to work and care for their families. What sets Centenary apart from other private schools in New Jersey is the amount of financial assistance it offers to students, including generous scholarships for transfers and grants for state residents. Students enjoy campus engagement through several clubs and organizations, which allow them to build lasting relationships while also developing as community leaders and professionals in their fields.
Teaneck, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 38%
New Jersey's largest private university, Fairleigh Dickinson University's Metropolitan Campus bridges the communities of Hackensack and Teaneck. The school has two campuses in New Jersey including the Florham Campus in Madison, N.J, and campuses in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Wroxton, England. FDU's mission is to prepare world citizens through global education.
FDU has 8,500 undergraduate students, but still manages to keep class sizes low, the average is 18. Degrees in more than 100 academic disciplines are available. FDU's hospitality, engineering, business, sports management, homeland security, and integrative studies have received national recognition. The school's entrepreneurial studies program won accolades among New Jersey colleges. And the University has been ranked among the best for serving veterans. FDU allows students to combine undergraduate and graduate educations; learners can earn a master's degree in five-years. Campus life includes 100 clubs and organizations, the Division I sports teams, and national fraternities and sororities.
Wayne, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 51%
WPUNJ enrolls more than 11,000 students each year through 79 academic programs. Undergraduate pathways include geography, professional sales, and special education. Master’s programs include professional communication, business administration, and sport and exercise science. WPU also offers doctorate degree programs in nursing and psychology. Students may enroll in entirely online programs in liberal studies and education or in online classes during the winter session and over the summer.
Like other colleges in New Jersey, WPU offers two entry dates, one in the fall and another in the spring. Application materials include academic credentials and SAT/ACT scores. Transfer candidates with 60 or more credits must declare a major upon admission. WPU supports its students with services like the New Student Experience, which helps learners transition into college life. The school also offers internship support through the Career Development Center.
Lodi, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 41%
Felician is a private Christian university that was founded in 1942 in Lodi. The school serves approximately 2,130 students and offers 55 academic programs in subjects like health information management, business analytics, and graphic design. Felician also offers graduate-level studies in counseling psychology, nursing, entrepreneurship, and educational leadership. Distance learners can choose from 13 certificate and degree programs, which can be completed entirely online or in a hybrid format.
Financial assistance is available, and all new undergraduate students receive some form of aid. Felician also boasts a flexible transfer policy that allows students to transfer up to 90 credits towards their degree. Students receive additional support through personalized academic advising, tutoring services, and professional development opportunities. Felician is one of few colleges in New Jersey to be part of the United Nations Fellows Program, which enables participants to gain invaluable experience with the international organization.
Caldwell, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 58%
Caldwell is a Catholic school devoted to the liberal arts. The core curriculum is heavy on the humanities, social sciences, mathematics, and the physical and biological sciences. Caldwell gives its 2,200 students a well-rounded education.
The schools undergrads can select from 29 degree programs. the most popular are business, psychology, and education. The school's Center for Excellence for Teaching is known among colleges in New Jersey for innovation in education. Caldwell devotes many of its resources to the study of autism. A variety shortened degree programs are offered, called "Power Degrees." This includes bachelor's degrees in business and psychology that can be completed in three-years and a bachelor's-to-master's in business administration and accounting that can be completed in five-years. Nursing has an accelerated program and students in other disciplines can design their own fast-track degree with approval. About 40% of undergraduates live on campus.
Known as county schools, New Jersey boasts 19 community colleges with over 60 campuses spread throughout the state. Students attending these institutions account for nearly half the overall student population, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Of these 161,000 students, enrollment is split evenly between part-time and full-time study.
County schools are a great option for students looking to lessen the burden of student debt typically incurred at a four-year institution. Many have partnerships or Guaranteed Admission Program (GAP) agreements, with a number of four-year schools allowing students to make seamless transitions to a bachelor's degree program.
A report by the Community College Research Center found that for students who complete an associate degree before moving into a bachelor's program, the economic benefit totals almost $50,000 over 20 years. With New Jersey being ranked the fifth most expensive state in America, those extra funds can go a long way.
Raritan Valley Community College
Branchburg, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 28%
Founded in 1965, Raritan was first among community colleges in New Jersey to be sponsored by two different counties. Originally known as Somerset County College, the Branchburg-based institution took its current name when it became the official school of Hunterdon County as well. Raritan has more than Raritan, from accounting to nursing to web developing. Over 70% of students are enrolled in programs designed to transfer to a four-year school; the remainder are on a career-oriented path. Many classes can be taken online.
Raritan has been nationally recognized for environmental sustainability, for community service, and for its diversity initiatives. The school is a local hub, with a 1,000-seat regional theater and a planetarium. Its state-of-the-art Science Center includes the Institute for Biotechnology Education. A partnership with Rutgers University allows Raritan students who earn an associate degree to pursue their bachelor's in a variety of fields -- liberal arts, criminal justice, political science, psychology, and social work -- transferring up to 60 credits.
Warren County Community College
Washington, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 30%
Founded in 1981 by the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education, WCCC is located in Washington Township. The school operated as a "College Without Walls" for several years before putting down roots on its current main campus. It's enjoyed steady growth since, adding new wings to its building to accommodate more and more students. A second campus was opened in Phillipsburg in 2011, and today enrollment is around 1,800.
Like other two year colleges in New Jersey, WCCC offers dozens of associate and certificate programs, many of which are designed to be easily transferable to four-year programs. Those interested in continuing on to earn their bachelor's can do so right at WCCC, thanks to a partnership with Felician College. Students follow an articulated sequence of classes and graduate with a BA in one of four of WCCC's most popular majors: business, criminal justice, education, or nursing. Students can attend classes at either campus, study online, or mix the two. For added flexibility, WCCC has accelerated, weekend "PowerPack" classes. Courses run all summer long.
Randolph, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 28%
Set on 222 acres in Randolph, CCM has one of the highest graduation and transfer rates of all community colleges in New Jersey. The main campus, along with a satellite in Morristown, serves around 8,000 students in north central Jersey, the majority of them attending full-time. CCM offers more than 75 associate degree and certificate programs; a partnership with Rutgers gives students the opportunity to work toward a baccalaureate degree.
Nursing, business, early childhood education, and the humanities are the most popular fields of study. CCM has an honors program that provides students with another level of academic rigor and allows them to earn scholarships. It also has a series of special language courses in Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Latin, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish. In 2016 a new Music Technology Center opened with state-of-the-art recording and digital music facilities. Notably, CCM was one of the nation's first colleges to ban smoking from its grounds./p>
Edison, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 18%
One of the largest two year colleges in New Jersey, Middlesex County College has 12,000 students who are attending for credit. But there are nearly twice as many who are taking non-credit classes. With locations in Edison, New Brunswick, Perth Amboy, and digital classrooms online, the school serves a large audience. The student body is split in half between full- and part-time students, and about 70% are enrolled in a transfer program.
MCC offers 88 degree programs, the most popular of which are liberal arts, business, health, and the protective services. Graduates regularly move on to four-year programs, commonly at Kean University, Rutgers University, Montclair State University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Columbia University, New York University, and the College of New Jersey. They can also earn their bachelor's right at Middlesex -- the school hosts classes in nursing taught by faculty from Kean and Felician College, and a national security studies degree taught by professors from Jersey City University. MCC's Continuing Education department provides many classes for non-traditional learners and seniors and career training for those looking to change jobs.
Brookdale Community College
Lincroft, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 26%
With more than 13,000 students spread across all its locations, Brookdale is one of the biggest community colleges in New Jersey. The school has facilities in Hazlet, Freehold, Neptune, Long Branch, and Wall Township, in addition to its main campus in Lincroft. Online education is handled by BCC's Innovation Center.
Students have access to more than 74 fields of study, and the majority of students are enrolled in transfer programs. Even more options are available through the New Jersey Coastal Communiversity, a consortium of schools led by Brookdale, including Georgian Court University, Montclair State University, New Jersey City University, the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and Rutgers, which gives BCC students access to bachelor's and master's degree programs in business, education, public safety, IT, liberal arts, and health sciences. Admission to BCC is open to anyone over 18 -- even those without a high school diploma. A new Academic Tutoring Center is available to provide assistance to students. The campus is home to the Monmouth Museum, the Brookdale Performing Arts Center, and Brookdale Public Radio, an NPR affiliate.
Bergen Community College
Paramus, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 22%
Bergen was founded in 1965 to meet the need for higher education in New Jersey's most populous county. Today, the public, two-year college serves more than 32,000 students, over half of whom are enrolled in courses for credit, From its main campus in Paramus and learning centers in Hackensack and Lyndhurst, BCC is among the most comprehensive of New Jersey community colleges, offering 142 degree and certificate programs.
The campus in Paramus was built on the site of an old golf course, giving it a pastoral feel, and much of the action takes place there. In addition to administrative offices and classrooms, the grounds are home to the Anna Maria Ciccone Theatre, the School of Continuing Education, and the Moses Family Meeting and Training Center. The Phillip Ciarco Jr. Learning Center in Hackensack offers English as a Second Language and adult-ed programming; Bergen at the Meadowlands, in Lyndhurst, has a business incubator as well as credit-course curriculum. Students can earn "Credit by Exam" by passing proficiency tests of prior learning, and also accumulate credits for work experience. BCC has articulation agreements in place with dozens of schools in New Jersey and beyond.
Salem Community College
Carneys Point, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 37%
SCCC was founded as a technical school in 1958 and has grown to become one of the best community colleges in New Jersey. Located in the South Jersey town of Carney's Point, which sits across the Delaware River from the state of Delaware, SCCC is the only institution of higher education in the county. More than 1,500 students pursue 40 degrees in the liberal arts, business, nursing, and tech on the main campus and at three off-site locations. Most are enrolled full-time and the vast majority are from neighboring towns.
SCCC has articulation agreements with eight universities: Chestnut Hill College, Strayer University, Excelsior College, Thomas Edison State College, Kaplan University, Wesley College, Savannah College of Art & Design, and Wilmington University, which allows students to begin earning their bachelor's while still in a two-year program. This option is available for a dozen of degree programs. SCCC has a remarkable number of students enrolled at its Samuel H. Jones Glass Education Center, where they study in the very specialized field of glass art and scientific glass technology. The school ranks very highly in outside assessments of all New Jersey community colleges.
Ocean County College
Toms River, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 35%
Ocean County College is a public, two-year school in Toms River, not far from the Jersey Shore. Almost 9,000 students attend on the main campus, at the Southern Education Center in Manahawkin, and at a dozen other locations spread around Ocean County. The average age of enrolled students is 23.
Like many other New Jersey community colleges, OCC has articulation agreements with many four-year schools -- including Rutgers, St. John's, The College of New Jersey, Thomas Edison State University, the University of Maryland, and Colorado State -- helping students seamlessly move into a baccalaureate program. It also has a bachelor's-bridge partnership with Kean University, and is a member of the NJ Coastal Communiversity, an eight-college consortium that allows students to take classes at each school. The school believes in global outreach. It has a strong study abroad program, and is also home to a Center for Middle Eastern Studies. New Jersey's most famous son, Bruce Springsteen, briefly attended OCC before pursuing a musical career.
Sussex County Community College
Newton, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 31%
One of the smallest two year colleges in New Jersey, Sussex County Community College is set on 167, scenic, rolling acres in the rural town of Newton, not far from the New York border in Jersey's northeast corner. Founded in 1981, it has a total enrollment of about 2,700 students, who pursue degrees in 19 different academic areas or further their careers with 30 professional certificates and 24 corporate and community education programs. Average class size is 16. Most students are from Sussex County, though some come from other parts of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The AA in liberal arts is by far the most popular degree, followed by business and criminal justice.
SCCC partners with Felician University to bring a baccalaureate program to campus -- students follow a curriculum in their major and work their way towards a BA. The school also runs an Entrepreneurial Center, a Business Learning Center, and a public safety training academy for students interested in entering the world of first responders. Every year, SCCC picks a "College Novel," a piece of fiction that the whole community shares and discusses. The Skylanders are members of the National Junior College Athletic Association and participate in soccer, basketball, baseball, and softball.
Pemberton, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 23%
Rowan College forged a partnership with Burlington County College in 2015. The four-year school would lend its name to the community college and its students would benefit from a direct pathway to a baccalaureate degree. The arrangement also called for a sprucing up of BCC's main campus in Mount Laurel. It was win-win, especially for the school's 9,000 students. In 2016, RCBC became the first of New Jersey's junior colleges to offer a junior year, which allows students to earn an associate, stay one more year, and then transfer to Rowan to complete their BA or BS.
RCBC offers dozens of degrees in the liberal arts, health sciences, and STEM disciplines to a student population that is 85% local. The average age is 25. (More than 20%t of county high schoolers end up at Burlington.) RCBC has a pipeline straight to Rowan, but it also has articulation agreements with other schools, and, like the best junior colleges in New Jersey, it is part of the statewide transfer agreement, which allows for easy transitions from associate to baccalaureate degree programs at other NJ colleges. Administrators recommend students visit NJ Transfer to check the requirements of the institutions they're considering.
Mercer County Community College
West Windsor, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 16%
Established in 1966, MCCC was set up to serve the students of Mercer County, and that's largely who attends today -- county residents make up two-thirds of the 11,000-member student body. But MCCC is more worldly than that. In fact, it has more international students than most New Jersey community colleges with over 70 countries represented. The school is a mix of the green and the urban -- Mercer's woody main campus is located next to a public park; its satellite is the newly expanded James Kerney Campus in downtown Trenton. The school has an open admission policy.
Mercer provides its students with more than 75 different associate programs. A partnership with Rutgers lets MCCC students work towards baccalaureate degrees, and the school also has dual-degree agreements with four other New Jersey colleges, including Rutgers, Rider, The College of New Jersey, Montclair, and New Jersey Institute of Technology; students are guaranteed transfer admission to all of them. More than 35% of MCCC graduates move on to four-year programs.
Rowan College at Gloucester County
Sewell, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 25%
Formerly known as Gloucester County College, Rowan College at Gloucester County is one of the nation's fastest-growing two-year schools. Based in the town of Sewell, RCGC was born of a 2014 partnership between GCC and Rowan College. Still run as a community college, the school now offers conditional dual enrollment between the two schools, giving its 9,500 students a direct route to a bachelor's degree. Other partnerships with Fairleigh Dickinson and Wilmington University allow students to earn advanced degrees without leaving campus, and articulation agreements with Rutgers, Drexel, Stockton College, and Neumann University make transferring easy.
RCGC offers professional certification, degrees in allied health, nursing, business, liberal arts, criminal justice, the sciences, physical education, and recreation, and is home to fire and police academies. The school's main campus in Edison is a community hub with more than five miles of walking trails, an art gallery, common gardens, and county services. A daycare is available for the children of students.
Cranford, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 18%
UCC was the first community college in New Jersey and serves students seeking either entry-level careers or further education at the bachelor's level. The school operates campuses in Elizabeth, Cranford, and Plainfield. UCC offers associate degrees in several disciplines, including nursing, allied sciences, humanities, and social science. There are also associate degrees in paramedic studies, physical therapy, emergency medical studies, and American sign language and deaf studies.
One of the top community colleges in New Jersey, UCC administers a robust business program that develops students' competencies over the course of two years. Students can also enroll in the associate of applied science in accounting, business marketing, business management, or business and computer applications technology. Students pursuing science, technology, engineering, and math careers may enroll in associate degrees in math, biology, engineering, game design, and several technology programs.
Cumberland County College
Vineland, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 28%
Set on 100 acres in Vineland, CCC enrolls about 1,000 students in 125 associate and career preparation programs. The school's extensive list of majors include engineering, communications, computer science, public administration, and office administration. CCC's health science program trains healthcare professionals to enter the workplace right out of college. Degree plans include radiography, biomedical science, health information technology, and occupational therapy.
One of the top community colleges in New Jersey, CCC administers robust business programs that give students several associate of applied science options: entrepreneurship, finance, marketing, international, and human resources. The school also offers an associate of arts in liberal arts with concentrations in history, literature, social science, and Spanish. This degree is ideal for those who want to transfer to a four-year school. Students have access to an array of support services, including help desk support and a career services department.
Blackwood, NJ Cost: $$$$$ Graduation Rate: 17%
One of the largest colleges in New Jersey, CCC delivers programming on campuses in Camden, Blackwood, and Cherry Hill. The school ranks high among community colleges in the nation for its many associate degrees, especially in areas like nursing, the health professions, and sciences. CCC is one of the top schools in New Jersey that offers an extensive list of two-year degrees in disciplines like communication and media, public safety education, and humanities and languages.
The associate of applied science in engineering technology offers several degree plans. Those with experience in apprenticeships or military training can enroll in the AAS in technical studies. The school also administers nationally recognized programs in video game design and photonics. CCC graduates can pursue entry-level careers or transfer into bachelor's programs at four-year schools.
If you're thinking about applying to one of the best colleges in New Jersey, continuing reading to learn more about living in the Garden State.
Attending college in New Jersey can be an exciting undertaking, not only because the state offers so many cultural, social and historic amenities, but also for its proximity to other major cities. Public transportation between New Jersey and New York City is extensive and frequent, and other services can easily take students to locations throughout the New England area. Whether living on a stretch of the state's 130-mile coast line or enjoying the urban setting of Newark, there are terrains and paces of life suited to every student.
All of these benefits do come with a price tag: on-campus students at Rutgers University pay an additional $11,710 per academic year for room and board, while an off-campus room in the area can range from $569 to $1122, according to a 2015 estimate.
Major Cities: New Brunswick, Trenton, Middletown, Woodbridge, Middlesex
Attractions: Six Flags Great Adventure, Jersey Shore, Monmouth Park Racetrack, Gateway National Recreation Area
Cost of Living: Middlesex
Popular Schools: Rutgers-New Brunswick, Princeton University Monmouth University, The College of New Jersey
Major Cities: Newark, Jersey City, Elizabeth, Paterson
Attractions: Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, Prudential Center, Ellis Island, Liberty State Park
Cost of Living: Newark
Popular Schools: Berkeley, Montclair State University, Rutgers, University of North New Jersey
Best Colleges in New Jersey of 2017
1 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
2 The College of New Jersey Ewing, NJ
3 Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ
4 Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ
5 Rowan University Glassboro, NJ
6 Ramapo College of New Jersey Mahwah, NJ
7 Rutgers University-Newark Newark, NJ
8 New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark, NJ
9 Stockton University Galloway, NJ
10 Rutgers University-Camden Camden, NJ
11 Montclair State University Montclair, NJ
12 Drew University Madison, NJ
13 Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ
14 Saint Peter's University Jersey City, NJ
15 Kean University Union, NJ
16 Caldwell University Caldwell, NJ
17 Monmouth University West Long Branch, NJ
18 Georgian Court University Lakewood, NJ
19 Thomas Edison State University Trenton, NJ
20 New Jersey City University Jersey City, NJ
21 Fairleigh Dickinson University-College at Florham Madison, NJ
22 Rider University Lawrenceville, NJ
23 Pillar College Newark, NJ
24 College of Saint Elizabeth Morristown, NJ
25 Fairleigh Dickinson University-Metropolitan Campus Teaneck, NJ
Best Community Colleges
1 Raritan Valley Community College Branchburg, NJ
2 County College of Morris Randolph, NJ
3 Mercer County Community College West Windsor, NJ
4 Warren County Community College Washington, NJ
5 Brookdale Community College Lincroft, NJ
6 Ocean County College Toms River, NJ
7 Rowan College at Burlington County Pemberton, NJ
8 Middlesex County College Edison, NJ
9 Rowan College at Gloucester County Sewell, NJ
10 Bergen Community College Paramus, NJ
11 Sussex County Community College Newton, NJ
12 Passaic County Community College Paterson, NJ
13 Essex County College Newark, NJ
14 Salem Community College Carneys Point, NJ
15 Hudson County Community College Jersey City, NJ
3 Rutgers University - New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ
4 Rutgers University - Newark Newark, NJ
6 Rutgers University - Camden Camden, NJ
9 Montclair State University Montclair, NJ
17 Caldwell College Caldwell, NJ
20 William Paterson University of New Jersey Wayne, NJ
21 Centenary College Hackettstown, NJ
22 Bloomfield College Bloomfield, NJ
23 Felician College Lodi, NJ
Rank School Location
1 Assumption College for Sisters Mendham, NJ
3 Salem Community College Carneys Point, NJ
11 Rowan College at Gloucester County Sewell, NJ
13 Cumberland County College Vineland, NJ
14 Rowan College at Burlington County Pemberton, NJ
15 Atlantic Cape Community College Mays Landing, NJ
16 Union County College Cranford, NJ
19 Camden County College Blackwood, NJ
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Alan Rutherford Makepeace
Dr Alan Rutherford Makepeace
Consultant Oncologist
BSc MB, BS, FRCR, FRCS(Eng), FRCS(Ed)
+ Cancer Care
Hormone Therapies
Dr Alan Makepeace initially trained as a chemical engineer obtaining a first class honours degree from Imperial College, London University. He subsequently commenced medical training, qualifying in 1977 from Kings College Hospital. Initial postgraduate training was in surgery, becoming a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England and a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in 1981 and undertook post fellowship training in plastic surgery. He entered into clinical oncology in 1982, being a registrar and senior registrar on the Middlesex/Mount Vernon rotation and has acted as locum to the Windeyer.
He was the professorial chair of Radiation Oncology at the Middlesex Hospital prior to being appointed his current consultant post at Mount Vernon Hospital.
He is responsible for the breast service for the Mount Vernon Cancer Network providing the service to the South Bucks NHS Trust (Wycombe General Hospital). Dr Makepeace was the National Director of Continuing Professional Development for the Royal College of Radiologists as well being a member of their Training and Accreditation Committee.
Dr Makepeace is a senior oncologist based at the Mount Vernon Cancer Centre and has specialised in the treatment of breast cancer for over 20 years. He has led the development of the chemotherapy service for breast cancer at BMI The Chiltern Hospital which is staffed by three specialist chemotherapy nurses. For patients receiving treatment at the Chiltern, oncology advice is available on a 24 hour basis.
This service was recently further enhanced by a new, purpose-built chemotherapy suite which was opened in October 2009 by Princess Alexandra. For those patients requiring radiotherapy treatment, this may be arranged under Dr Makepeace's care at Mount Vernon Cancer Centre. Dr Makepeace also works closely with colleagues from the Oxford Cancer Centre with whom he liaises should it be more convenient for patients to receive their radiotherapy in that unit.
Buckinghamshire, BMI The Chiltern Hospital
Middlesex, BMI Bishops Wood Hospital
cancerspecialist-drmakepeace.co.uk
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Persistence pays off in search of uncle
Written by Doug Goodman
The faded photograph of a solider in uniform among the bundle of 1920s holiday snaps had little significance for me as a child; I remember once being told only that it was my uncle ‘lost in France in the war’. But it was to become very significant indeed.
In the early hours of Friday 15 September 1916, at a spot known as High Wood near Albert, a whistle gave the signal for infantrymen of the 47th Division to go over the top as Allied forces attempted to capture German trenches along a section of countryside on the Somme.
For Private Alec Reader, the battle was to be the culmination of 13 months’ training as a rifleman and bomb-thrower. It was also to be his last chance for action as his release papers were almost complete; he was being allowed to leave the army because on the day of his enlistment he was only 17 – four months underage.
The Times talked of the 15 September attack as a ‘great day for the cause of civilisation’ and The Telegraph listed several thousand killed and injured. Alec was one of them. His mother received a letter saying that his body had been found in the wood and properly buried.
For years she tried to find out the place of burial, but in 1923 the Imperial War Graves Commission told her that, although the area had been searched and the remains of all soldiers buried in isolated graves had been reverently reburied in cemeteries, the last resting place of Private B A Reader, No 3623 of the 1st/15th Battalion Prince of Wales Civil Service Rifles, remained unidentified.
And that might have remained the case had not his 77 letters home to his family come in to the possession of Doug Goodman, his nephew. His citations and medals were found, press cuttings and official correspondence assembled, photographs acquired and memories jogged. His name was ‘discovered’ on the roll of honour in the chapel of Emanuel School, south London. Military records were examined and visits to the Imperial War Museum and Musée de la Guerre in Paris provided valuable information. Old books on the battles and modern ‘then and now’ publications were obtained, battlefield maps and diaries held were scrutinised, until eventually the missing details fell into place.
It is difficult to imagine the Somme as a battleground now. Neat villages, well-signposted roads, ploughed fields and tidy woods cover one of the earth’s most devastated regions. But hundreds of cemeteries, monuments, memorials and museums attest that something terrible occurred there.
On the edge of High Wood where the last cavalry charge and the first tank attack took place and where more than 8,000 soldiers died, stands a monument to the men of the 47th Division.
On 15 September 2016, 100 years to the hour, on the spot where he died, eight family members remembered Alec. Later that day three generations of the Goodmans placed a wreath on the Thiepval Memorial where Alec’s name is carved in stone, along with over 73,000 other brave men who have no known grave.
Learn more about how to trace relatives from World War I in our guidebook:
Explore World War I Battlefields articles by tag
View all Belgium articles View all World War I Battlefields articles ← Explore World War I Battlefields
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RANKED: The best TV of 2017 so far
Carrie Wittmer
Betty Gilpin and Alison Brie in Netflix's "Glow"
2017 is already halfway gone. Have you had enough time to watch the literal hundreds of television shows that exist now? Probably not. But some of them are well-worth your time.
If the first half of the year is any indication, we have a lot of great stuff to look forward to, including the seventh season of "Game of Thrones."
With excellent writing, direction, style, and performances that stand out among the overwhelming amount of TV shows around today, this is the best of 2017 so far — from mid-seasons to new seasons to entirely new series.
Here are the best TV shows of 2017 (so far), ranked:
17. “Riverdale”
"Riverdale" stars Camila Mendes as Veronica, Lili Reinhart as Betty, Ashleigh Murray as Josie, Cole Sprouse as Jughead, Madelaine Petsch as Cheryl, and KJ Apa as Archie
If you're into glossy, cheesy teen drama that doesn't require much thinking, where the teens are played by adults well into their 20s, The CW's "Riverdale" is one of the best since The CW's "Gossip Girl." The characters are based on the Archie comics (Archie, Betty, Veronica, and many more) but in a modern setting. The show explores the darkness and weirdness of this small town that is so much more than it seems.
Where to watch: Netflix
Best episodes: "Chapter 1: The River's Edge," "Chapter 7: In a Lonely Place," "Chapter 12: Anatomy of a Murder"
16. “Pretty Little Liars“
Ashley Benson, Shay Mitchell, Troian Bellisario, Sasha Pieterse and Lucy Hale on Freeform's "Pretty Little Liars"
"Pretty Little Liars" was never great TV, but it's addicting TV. In June, the cell phone-friendly teen drama-mystery ended its seven season run on Freeform (formerly ABC Family). The final season and the final episodes threw in a lot of twists including an evil British twin, surprise weddings, and surprise pregnancies.
Where to watch: Hulu
Best episodes: "Playtime," "Choose or Lose," "Till Death Do Us Part"
15. "The Americans"
Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys in FX's "The Americans"
As the show nears its end, "The Americans" focuses more on the the Jennings family in season five. Season six, due next year, will be the final season of the FX drama. With incredible performances (as always) from Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, Noah Emmerich, Holly Taylor, Frank Langella, and Margo Martindale, the Cold War drama stays fresh. Even though we know how the Cold War ends, we have no idea what that will mean for the Jennings family and those around them, and season five, though a little slow at times, did an excellent job setting up our what could happen with these characters.
Where to watch: iTunes, Amazon Video
Best episodes: "Amber Waves," "Darkroom," "The Soviet Division"
14. "Superstore"
"Superstore" stars Ben Feldman as Jonah and America Ferrera as Amy.
Evans Vestal Ward/NBC
NBC's workplace comedy "Superstore" starring America Ferrara and Ben Feldman has a lovable cast of characters who in any other setting and with any other writers would be annoying and insufferable. In season two, the show proved that its quirkiness makes it one of the best comedies on TV right now. The show is also one of the best representations of blue collar workers, a large demographic that is rarely presented well (or at all).
Where to watch: Hulu, NBC.com
Best episodes: "Election Day," "Tornado"
13. “Catastrophe”
Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney on "Catastrophe"
In its first two seasons, "Catastrophe" took big risks, but never to the level that it did in season three. The heartbreaking third season combines fresh, laugh-out-loud comedy with an honest look at a strained marriage, and ends with a shocking revelation that could completely change the direction of the show. Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney work with the material and prove that comedy is not the only thing they're good at.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime
Best episodes: "Episode 1," "Episode 6"
12. “Feud: Bette and Joan“
"Feud: Bette and Joan" stars Susan Sarandon, left, and Jessica Lange.
Suzanne Tenner/FX
Ryan Murphy's new anthology series made an impactful debut with a colorful palette in costume and set design and colorful performances. Like most Murphy shows, it goes a bit campy, but in the context of the Old Hollywood actress feud between Bette Davis and Joan Crawford, it totally works.
Best episodes: "And the Winner Is...(the Oscars of 1983)," "You Mean All This Time We Could Have Been Friends?"
11. “Review”
Andy Daly on Comedy Central's "Review"
The Comedy Central show starring Andy Daly ended its run in a three-episode third (and final) season back in March. On the show, Daly's character Forrest MacNeil is a professional critic of life itself. From eating pancakes to divorce to committing murder, MacNeil will literally do whatever possible to get a realistic review for his audience. The humor, although sometimes uncomfortable, gets genuine laughs. And though it ended as well as it started, it's sad to see it go.
Where to watch: CC.com (Comedy Central)
Best episodes: "Co-Host; Ass-Slap, Helen Keller; Forgiveness," "Cryogenics; Lightning, Last Review"
10. “Jane the Virgin”
Gina Rodriguez on The CW's Jane the Virgin"
In season three of The CW telenovela spoof, one of the main characters suddenly dies. It was a bold move by the writers, especially because it happened mid-season, and just when things were looking really good for Jane Villanueva (Gina Rodriguez). After the shocking death, the show did a three-year time jump, after consulting grief counselors on the best time to jump back into Jane's life. Rodriguez can go from one second crying to then making you laugh the next.
Best episodes: "Chapter Fifty-Four," "Chapter Sixty-One," "Chapter Sixty-Four"
9. "Legion"
Dan Stevens on FX's "Legion"
The visually-stunning, X-Men-inspired FX drama from Noah Hawley ("Fargo") premiered earlier this year and received high praise for its non-linear storytelling, its performances — particularly from star Dan Stevens and Aubrey Plaza — and its views of mental illness as Stevens' character David struggles with what is real and what is in his head.
Best episodes: "Chapter 4," "Chapter 7"
8. "Better Call Saul"
Giancarlo Esposito, Bob Odenkirk and Jonathan Banks from AMC's "Better Call Saul"
After three seasons, the "Breaking Bad" spin-off proves that it's just as good as the groundbreaking show that inspired it. In its third season, "Better Call Saul" gets closer and closer to the events of "Breaking Bad," as big bad Gus Fring (Giancarlo Espositp) is brought into the mix. All the performances on "Better Call Saul" are Emmy-worthy, particularly Bob Odenkirk, who continues to impress with his ability to be funny and dramatic as Jimmy McGill/Saul Goodman.
Where to watch: AMC.com, Amazon Video
Best episodes: "Chicanery," "Fall," "Lantern"
7. "The Leftovers"
Justin Theroux on HBO's "The Leftovers"
In its extraordinary final season, "The Leftovers" proved it's one of the best TV dramas of the past few years, possibly ever, which is mostly attributed to performances from Justin Theroux and Carrie Coon. The series finale was a satisfying ending for the experimental show which vastly improved with every season. Theroux and Coon's performances made the show less about the mysterious sci-fi element, and more about the uncertainty of life itself.
Where to watch: HBOGo, HBO Now
Best episodes: "It's a Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt World," "The Book of Nora"
6. "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend"
Rachel Bloom on "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend"
Season two of "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" went even crazier and bigger than season one, with songs about the math of love triangles, a spoof of Beyonce's "Lemonade," and a spoof of R. Kelly's "Trapped in the Closet" (on "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend," it was called "Stuck in the Bathroom"). After losing a main character from the cast, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" managed by creating bigger roles for old characters and bringing in new ones, including Scott Michael Foster. Like "The Good Place," the season finale had a twist that the "Westworld" writers could learn a thing or two from.
Best episodes: "All Signs Point to Josh... Or Is It Josh's Friend?," "Can Josh Take a Leap of Faith?"
5. "The Good Place"
"The Good Place" stars Kristen Bell and Ted Danson.
Ron Batzdorff/NBC
The quirky NBC comedy starring Kristen Bell and Ted Danson is one of the most ambitious shows of the TV season, and probably one of the most ambitious network shows ever. The delightful comedy set in the after life premiered in 2016, but ended its 13-episode order in 2017 with a shocking twist. It will be back for season two this fall.
Best episodes: "The Eternal Shriek, "Michael's Gambit," "Mindy St. Clair"
4. “The Handmaid’s Tale“
Elisabeth Moss and Yvonne Strahovski on Hulu's "The Handmaid's Tale"
"The Handmaid's Tale" is horrifying and strangely beautiful in the thoughtful way it's written, executed, and acted by some of the best people in the business. The set combined with the use of color and light make the world look appealing, when the reality of Gilead is anything but. "The Handmaid's Tale" had a lot to live up to, but deviating from the book — and casting one of the best ensembles in years — made it one of the best new series out, with some of the best performances since "Mad Men." Seriously, everyone is great, and deserves a name drop: Elisabeth Moss, Alexis Bledel, Samira Wiley, Yvonne Strahovski , Joseph Fiennes, Max Minghella, and Ann Dowd.
Best episodes: "Birth Day," "Late," "The Bridge"
3. "Master of None"
Aziz Ansari and Eric Wareheim in Italy on the second season of "Master of None."
In season two of comedian Aziz Ansar's critically acclaimed Netflix original, the writing got more natural, along with the performances. This show isn't afraid to make a statement, but it's also not trying hard to do so. The love story in season two is one of the most captivating on TV in years — possibly ever.
Best episodes: "The Thief," "First Date," "New York, I Love You"
2. "Glow"
Alison Brie and Gayle Rankin on Netflix's "Glow"
A quirky cast of diverse women, thoughtful writing, and a fun setting in 1980s LA make "Glow" one of the best shows of 2017 so far, and one of the best Netflix originals to date. The performances are great, it's hilarious, but there's also some drama worth investing in. With 30-minute episodes, "Glow" is an ideal (and relatively quick) weekend watch.
Best episodes: "The Wrath of Kuntar," "Live Studio Audience," "Money's in the Chase"
1. "Big Little Lies"
Nicole Kidman, Shailene Woodley, and Reese Witherspoon on HBO's "Big Little Lies"
HBO's limited series was such a massive hit with audiences and critics alike that it's in talks to get a second season. The female-driven story proved that stories centered around women work. Nicole Kidman gave one of her best performances ever, as well as co-stars Reese Witherspoon, Shailene Woodley, Laura Dern, and Alexander Skarsgard.
Best episodes: "Living the Dream," "You Get What You Need"
SEE ALSO: Here's why season 6 is the best season of 'Game of Thrones' — and why the next one will be even better
More: Features Television 2017 TV
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The Flintstone House, a home so odd it was declared a public nuisance
The town of Hillsborough, California, has sued its owner, a retired media mogul in her mid-80s, for creating "a highly visible eyesore" that was "out of keeping with community standards". The home's owner, Florence Fang, will fight to save it, says her grandson, Sean Fang.
PHOTO: NYTIMES
A SMALL town in the San Francisco Bay Area is apparently unamused by improvements that one of its high-profile residents has made to a distinctive property known as the Flintstone House.
The town of Hillsborough, California, perhaps seeking to avoid becoming the next Bedrock, has sued its owner to force the removal of over-sized dinosaur statues, a sign reading "Yabba Dabba Doo" (the catchphrase of the animated television show's prehistoric patriarch, Fred Flintstone) and other landscaping, according to a lawsuit filed last week.
Nestled in a hilly community of about 11,000 people in San Mateo County, where homes routinely sell for millions, this particular residence, with its curving lines, red and purple domes, multicoloured mushrooms and scattered animal statues, has long attracted attention from neighbours (no, not the Rubbles).
One could even say it is "a page right out of history". But at least in its current form, officials and some residents do not want the home, which evokes the 1960s cartoon, in their backyard.
SEE ALSO: US retail vacancy rates down marginally in second quarter: Reis
A panel of code enforcement officials last autumn declared many recent renovations to the home to be a public nuisance, according to a town order, and have asked a judge to do the same.
The suit alleges that the homeowner did not secure the proper permits and approvals for the changes.
"It is one thing to spot this house when driving by on the freeway; you might find it amusing," said Mark Hudak, a lawyer for the town. "It is a different thing to be a neighbour and see it all day, every day."
The home's owner, retired media mogul Florence Fang - whose family once published The San Francisco Examiner and other newspapers - "will fight" to save it, her grandson Sean Fang said, according to a statement obtained by The Associated Press last week. "I think the dinosaurs are beautiful," Mr Fang said in the statement. "They make everyone smile and should stay."
A person who picked up the phone at the Florence Fang Family Foundation, a nonprofit organisation, said only that Ms Fang, who is in her mid-80s, was consulting with her lawyers.
The Flintstones, which ran for six seasons, tracked the misadventures of two modern-day Stone Age families, the Flintstones and the Rubbles. A movie version starring John Goodman and Rosie O'Donnell was released in 1994.
In 1976, Bay Area architect William Nicholson built the 2,700-square-foot home using a building technique known as monolithic dome construction, according to Atlas Obscura, a publication that highlights curious places.
Over the years, the home fell into disrepair but was later renovated and then painted orange, Atlas Obscura said.
Eventually, photos show, the domes became red and purple. In 2017, Ms Fang bought the home for US$2.8 million after about two years on the market, according to various reports.
Rather than cherry trees or a vineyard, she installed 15-foot dinosaur statues as well as a giant metal woolly mammoth and giraffe; a garden of colorful, oversize mushrooms; and a rainbow and peacock sculpture, according to The Mercury News, of San Jose, last year.
For decades, drivers crossing an area bridge had marvelled at the home, on Berryessa Way, and Ms Fang told the newspaper last March that she had been one of them.
"Before, passing by, I always wondered who's living in that house," she told the newspaper. "Now I'm the one."
In the front yard she installed a life-size statue of Fred Flintstone, a smaller statue of his pet dinosaur, Dino, and much more, the newspaper reported. She also made other modifications to the property, like adding a retaining wall, steps, gates and a parking strip, which the complaint, filed on March 13, says create "life-safety hazards".
The complaint alleges that Ms Fang kept working on her home despite being issued three notices telling her to stop and failing to procure various approvals and building permits. As a result, she was cited for multiple violations of the town's municipal code, according to the lawsuit.
After the hearing in October at which the home was declared a "public nuisance", Ms Fang was fined US$200 for creating what officials called "a highly visible eyesore" that was "out of keeping with community standards", according to the lawsuit.
The suit alleges that she paid the citation fee but has not met any of the other requirements of the town's order. As a result, the town has sued to force her to comply.
The "large figurines" she installed are so tall, they are "classified as unenclosed structures", which require a permit, according to the order, handed down by the town's administrative hearing panel in October.
The order notes the "dense population" of dinosaurs, mushrooms and animals positioned in the back and front yards, and refers to one of Ms Fang's neighbours, who, according to the document, "stated that the landscaping appeared to be outside the norms".
"The panel cannot support a project that proceeds on a 'build first, ask for permission later' basis," the order said.
Ms Fang's improvements, the panel added, were "designed to be very intrusive, resulting in the owner's 'vision' for her property being imposed on many other properties and views, without regard to the desires of other residents".
And that, Mr Hudak, the lawyer for Hillsborough, said, "is the heart of the problem". Ms Fang, he said, "has imposed her vision for this property on the entire community, without going through the permitting process that would have allowed public input." NYTIMES
Flintstone House
US property
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Dominique Ansel's Oreo Cookie Spread Is Coming To His Bakery & It's A Sweet Dream Come True
By Claire Warner
Scott Olson/Getty Images News/Getty Images
Instagram's favorite pastry chef has done it again. Not content with inventing the iconic Cronut and watching most, if not all, of his subsequent creations go viral, Dominique Ansel has created a gourmet Oreo cookie spread just a few years after trying one for the first time in 2014. Back then, the cookies inspired him to create a milk-and-cookie shot that went on to be one of his most famous recipes so far, but apparently, he wasn't done with the Oreo yet.
According to Eater, Ansel has partnered with the Nabisco corporation as a promotion for the #MyOreoCreation contest, which allows fans to submit their ideas for the next Oreo flavor. Given that he's a world-renowned pastry chef, Ansel's creation is probably a little fancier than most of the entries in the competition, but it's not as pricey as you might expect. In fact, it doesn't have a price at all. On Jun. 10 and Jun. 11, the Dominique Ansel Bakery in Soho will be giving out the cookie spread for free until it runs out. I repeat: This weekend, you can get what amounts to luxury Oreo cookie butter for free. Go ahead and cancel all your Saturday morning plans; I'll wait.
The spread combines milk-flavored ganache and a dark chocolate ganache containing chocolate cookies. To evoke an Oreo, the milk ganache is sandwiched between two layers of the chocolate flavor, and it all comes packaged in an ever-so-Instagrammable jar emblazoned with the name of the contest (naturally). A representative for the bakery told Teen Vogue that the spread is best enjoyed on crepes or fruit, although if you're really getting into the theme, you can eat it with a cookie.
Ansel hasn't shied away from brand partnerships. In 2014, he gave out free Cronut holes filled with Nutella in honor of their 50th anniversary, and before that, he collaborated with Belgian chocolate company Neuhaus. (He also trademarked the Cronut soon after it hit the market in 2013 — not that it stopped others from trying their hand at croissant-doughnut hybrids.)
If the Oreo spread is as popular as any of Ansel's other creations, Oreo-loving New Yorkers may want to plan to get to the bakery early to get their hands on a jar before they run out. Bonne chance!
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The 'Lorena' Documentary Will Make You Rethink Every "Lorena Bobbitt" Joke You Ever Laughed At
By Jack O'Keeffe
Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images
When the Lorena and John Wayne Bobbitt case made the news in 1993, everyone seemed to interpret the story of a woman cutting off her husband's penis differently. For some, it was a crass yet hilarious tale of a woman's revenge. For others, it was a horror story about a husband losing his "manhood." Kids on the playground joked about Lorena Bobbitt; mainstream comedians like Robin Williams and David Letterman worked jokes about her into their sets. But what was largely missing from the conversation at the time was a discussion of how this crime could also be seen as a cry for help from a victim living in a world that too often dismisses domestic violence. Finally, Lorena, Amazon's new docuseries premiering Feb. 15, will tackle just that.
Lorena makes the case that the news media helped to misconstrue some of the very serious issues at play for the sake of a penis joke, and questions why exactly people found Lorena Bobbitt's story so amusing. It is, after all, a story about a woman who mutilated her husband, and later alleged that he abused and raped her throughout her marriage.
Still, comedians like David Letterman, Martin Lawrence, Robin Williams, Carlos Mencia, Andrew Dice Clay, and "Weird Al" Yankovic, and many others all had their own takes on the event. Shock jock Howard Stern collaborated with John Wayne Bobbitt multiple times and, as shown in the docuseries, said on his radio show, "I don’t even buy the whole story that he was raping her. She’s not that great looking."
Amazon Prime Video on YouTube
There were eventually three trials in the Bobbitt case, though only two took place in an actual courtroom. Lorena admitted perpetrating violence against her husband, but she also alleged that she had suffered from years of abuse and rape in her marriage, which she testified to during both her and her husband's trial. John Wayne was found not guilty of domestic abuse at his own trial; Lorena was acquitted of mutilation in 1994 and spent time in a psychiatric hospital after her trial.
But Lorena was also tried, in a sense, in the media at the time, and there she was found decidedly guilty as its presented in the documentary, at least. Leading up to and throughout her trial, Lorena was often demonized as a jealous, lying, violent woman. Or, as one headline read, a "hot blooded Latina" who mutilated her husband because he orgasmed first. While there were groups that supported Lorena and attempted to draw attention to her allegations of abuse, they are shown to be in the minority in the documentary.
sivedan on YouTube
Lorena acknowledges that the culture is changing now and that people are having conversations about violence against women in a way that was absent from the broader cultural conversation in 1993, and that the nagging human impulse to turn everything into a joke can distract from the conversations that people should be having. While comedy can be an effective tool for calling attention to something, it's just as effective at disregarding legitimate issues that should be addressed.
The same way that jokes rooted in homophobia and transphobia invalidate queer and trans lives, or how blackface does the same for African-Americans, jokes about the Bobbitt case allow everyone to have a laugh at Lorena Bobbitt's expense, essentially turning her into an outlier.
ROBERT LUCERO on YouTube
According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. Every joke that claimed Lorena was lying about the spousal abuse she faced, called her "crazy," or made her look ridiculous invalidated the experience of domestic violence survivors.
Stern and other comedians may have been "just cracking jokes," but those jokes prop up a culture that allows women like Lorena to be dismissed and have their pain to be invalidated. Lorena shows America being given an opportunity to have conversations about topics about domestic violence, rape within a marriage, racial stereotypes, and ignoring all of that for the opportunity to crack penis jokes.
Thankfully, Jordan Peele's documentary may be as close as audiences get to a do-over.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, call 911 or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1(800) 799-SAFE (7233) or visit thehotline.org.
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Return of the Secaucus 7
film by Sayles
In John Sayles
…made his directorial debut with Return of the Secaucus 7 (1980), which chronicled the reunion of former college friends who had been activists in the 1960s. The cast, made up primarily of actors with whom Sayles had worked in summer-stock theatre, included his Williams College classmates David Strathairn and Maggie…
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Press release after the Governing Board of the Bank of Slovenia meeting on 29 July 2014
1. The Governing Board of the Bank of Slovenia discussed current supervisory matters.
2. The Governing Board of the Bank of Slovenia discussed the performance of the banks in the current year, developments on the capital market, and interest rates.
The Slovenian banking system’s total assets declined by EUR 170 million in May 2014. The key factors in the aforementioned decline were the continuing early repayment of liabilities to the Eurosystem from 3-year LTROs and debt repayments to the rest of the world. Despite a fall in liability interest rates, household deposits increased by EUR 57 million, half of which was accounted for by the large domestic banks. The contraction in loans to non-financial corporations continued in May, while lending activity in the household segment stagnated. Housing loans maintained positive growth, of 1.1%. The proportion of non-performing loans to total classified claims stood at 14.8% in May 2014, unchanged from April 2014, despite the contraction in the banks’ credit portfolio.
The banking system’s gross income was up 12.5% in year-on-year terms in May 2014. This was partly a reflection of a decline in interest expenses that was double the decline in interest income. The banking system’s interest expenses are declining as a result of cuts in liability interest rates and a contraction in funding. Interest rates on long-term deposits have already fallen by 0.9 percentage points this year to stand at 1.9%, which represents an opportunity to cut lending rates further. Impairment and provisioning costs this year are down a half on last year. The Slovenian banking system recorded a pre-tax operating profit of EUR 106 million over the first five months of 2014.
3. The Governing Board of the Bank of Slovenia discussed the report on the credit exposure of Slovenian banks to municipalities.
The debt of Slovenian municipalities to Slovenian banks totalled EUR 548 million at the end of May, equivalent to a third of all bank loans to the general government sector (i.e. central government, local government and social security funds). The most significant increase in the stock of municipality debt was recorded between 2009 and 2011, when lending to municipalities increased most at the banks under majority foreign ownership. This bank group accounts for 65% of total bank loans to municipalities. Year-on-year growth in loans to municipalities had slowed to 3.3% by May 2014.
In terms of per capita debt, the main problem is certain smaller municipalities with a smaller number of inhabitants and per capita debt in excess of EUR 690, while larger municipalities are the most indebted in terms of the nominal stock of debt. Although the distribution of municipalities in terms of per capita debt and revenue has improved in recent years, 25% of municipalities have a per capita debt in excess of EUR 422 and a ratio of debt to revenue in excess of 38%.
As of 2011 the banks were raising their interest rate premiums on loans to municipalities until this year, when a moderate cut has been recorded. This was partly the result of a shortening of the average maturity of new loans. The proportion of the banks’ classified claims against Slovenian municipalities more than 90 days in arrears was less than 3% in May 2014. The figure has been declining since 2011, when it stood at 4.3%.
Given the recent slowdown in lending to municipalities, and the low proportion of claims more than 90 days in arrears in this segment, it is thought that in their borrowing policy it is important for the municipalities to take account of the stability of their tax revenues (e.g. environmental taxes in Slovenia are now among the highest in the OECD) and their regular debt servicing capacity over the long term.
4. The Governing Board of the Bank of Slovenia discussed the May 2014 report on Slovenia’s International Economic Relations.
The current account surplus widened in year-on-year terms in May for the first time this year, taking the cumulative 12-month surplus to EUR 2 billion or 5.6% of GDP. The still-widening surplus in trade of goods amounted to EUR 465 million over the first five months of the year, taking the cumulative surplus over the last 12 months to a record high of EUR 871 million. The export of goods to EU Member States increased, while exports to non-EU countries slowed. The latter was particular true for the former Yugoslav republics and the countries of the former Soviet Union: exports to Russia and Ukraine were down around a third in year-on-year terms. By contrast, there was a decline in import of goods from EU Member States and an increase in import of goods from non-EU countries. The sole increase was in imports of consumer goods. The surplus of trade in services over the first five months of the year was down in year-on-year terms, taking the cumulative 12-month surplus to EUR 1,818 million or 5.1% of GDP. The decline was primarily the result of smaller surpluses in construction services and other business services. The surplus in travel services over the first five months of the year amounted to EUR 477 million, EUR 13 million less than in the same period last year, while the surplus in transport services continued to record slow growth. A wider surplus in current transfers and a narrower deficit in capital income were also factors in the year-on-year widening of the current account surplus.
In the capital and financial account, the government sector recorded borrowing of EUR 3.7 billion over the first five months of the year, while the private sector recorded net debt repayments of EUR 2 billion.
Slovenia’s external imbalance is improving. Slovenia’s net investment position at the end of 2013 was a net liability to the rest of the world of EUR 13.6 billion, EUR 2.5 billion less than at the end of 2012.
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Jesse Lockhart
Centerville, Georgia
Organization: National Cooperative Bank
It’s about caring for your fellow person and your neighbor. It takes a village to raise a child and I want to do my part or find a way to help a parent in need.
-Jesse Lockhart
Jesse Lockhart has been with Flint Energies Electric Co-operative for 13 years and in that time has volunteered to help at nearly every event the co-op sponsors, including donating blankets on the coldest days of the year, stocking food pantries and donating school supplies to local schools.
In his spare time, Jesse is an advocate for children’s rights and takes care of those who are abused or neglected through Rainbow House Children’s Resource Center, a child advocacy center. He has fought for child abuse prevention and organized 5K race events to build awareness during Child Abuse Prevention Month in April.
“I volunteer my time because everyone, although some people may not want to admit it, has needed somebody to look out for them or help them along the way at some point” said Jesse. "I’ve always been someone who tries to contribute. I got that from my parents when I was a kid.”
Jesse also encourages children to be healthy and team players through his involvement with the nonprofit, Kids and Pros, which develops character and skills through youth athletics.
“I always tell the kids, ‘I can’t stop you from doing something wrong, but I can hold you accountable’. I try to teach them to think about the consequences of their actions and if they still do it, they have to be willing to accept whatever punishment goes with it.”
His co-workers who nominated Jesse for the cruise say Jesse is an excellent role model to not only the children he encounters but also to his fellow employees. His volunteer spirit is contagious and makes them all want to do better.
When not volunteering, Jesse and his wife Rae Marie love taking weekend trips away and spending time with their six grandchildren. Rae Marie will be joining Jesse on the cruise!
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Cahill Represents Amicus Sanctuary for Families in Groundbreaking Appeal Expanding the Definition of Parent
On August 30, 2016, the New York State Court of Appeals ruled in Brooke S.B. v. Elizabeth A. C.C., that a partner who shows by clear and convincing evidence that she and her partner “agreed to conceive a child and raise the child together” has standing to seek visitation and custody under New York’s Domestic Relations Law, even if she is not the child’s biological or adoptive parent. The decision was a groundbreaking departure from 25 years of precedent under which partners in same-sex couples who were not the biological or adoptive parent of a child lacked standing to seek custody or visitation after the couple’s relationship ended.
Cahill represented Sanctuary for Families as amicus curiae in the appeal. Sanctuary, together with a number of other organizations who joined the amicus brief, urged the Court to recognize as a parent a partner who “can show by clear and convincing evidence that she and her partner jointly planned and explicitly agreed to the conception of a child with the intention of raising the child as co-parents.” Sanctuary also cautioned against the adoption of a broad “functional” parentage test advocated by others. Drawing on its experience as a leading advocate for survivors of domestic violence, Sanctuary argued that an overly broad definition of parent would open the door for those with subsequent, temporary relationships with a child – including perpetrators of domestic violence—to assert parental rights over the objection of a child’s legal parents and could put vulnerable parents at risk of unknowingly waiving their exclusive parental rights.
In holding that a partner who “proves by clear and convincing evidence that he or she has agreed with the biological parent of a child to conceive and raise the child as co-parents” has standing as a parent under New York’s Domestic Relations Law, the Court applied the standard urged by Sanctuary and its co-amici to “ensure equality for same-sex parents.” The Court also recognized the importance of “protect[ing] the substantial and fundamental right of biological or adoptive parents to control the upbringing of their children,” which “mandates caution in expanding the definition” of parent and “makes the element of consent critical.” The Court thus did not adopt the broader “functional” or “de-facto parent” standard that had been urged by others in the appeal.
Kerry A. Burns
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Tana L. Utley
Tana L. Utley is a vice president of Caterpillar Inc. with responsibility for the Large Power Systems Division. Through this global organization, Caterpillar designs and manufactures the most comprehensive lineup of large diesel and natural gas engines and remanufactured components in the industry.
Prior to her current appointment, Utley served as vice president of Caterpillar Inc. with responsibility for the Industrial Power Systems Division from 2012-2013, based in the U.K. From 2007-2012 she served as vice president and Chief Technology Officer of Caterpillar, Inc. with responsibilities that included redefining the company’s technology strategy and developing machines and engines to meet the US Environmental Protection Agency Tier 4 emissions regulations.
Utley joined Caterpillar in 1986 and held a variety of engineering and general management positions across Caterpillar prior to her appointment as vice president.
Utley earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Bradley University and a master’s degree in management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she was a Sloan Fellow. She currently serves as the Caterpillar representative on the Board of Directors of the Sustainable Manufacturing Innovation Alliance and is a member of the Board of Directors of SPX Corporation. In the Peoria, IL area, Utley is a member of the Board of Trustees of Bradley University, the Community Advisory Board of St. Francis Medical Center, and the Heart of Illinois United Way. She is also a member of the Society of Women Engineers, the Illinois Valley Striders and the US Triathlon Association.
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Spider-Woman Co-Creator Marie Severin Dies At Age 89
by Brian Cronin
in Comics, Comic News
Updated at 10:57 AM to reflect Marie Severin's passing
Longtime Marvel Comics artist and colorist, Marie Severin, who was inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame in 2001, has passed away at the age of 89, following a recent stroke.
Former Marvel staffer and close friend to Severin, Irene Vartanoff shared the news of her passing on her Facebook page.
RELATED: Marie Severin gets spotlight in 'The Mirthful Mistress of Comics'
Severin broke into the comic book industry in the early 1950s when her older brother, comic book artist John Severin (1922-2012), asked her to color one of his stories for EC Comics. She did such a good job that she was soon the regular colorist for EC Comics. When EC Comics' comic book line went out of business following the institution of the Comics Code Authority (which seemed almost designed specifically to put EC Comics out of business), Severin worked for Atlas Comics a little bit before leaving comic books entirely to go work at the Federal Reserve.
In the late 1950s, Severin began to get back into comic books, working for Atlas again doing some production work. As Atlas turned into Marvel and began to expand, Severin's work for them expanded, as well. By the end of the 1960s, Severin was the main colorist at Marvel while also doing the occasional penciling job. When the Hulk gained his own series, Incredible Hulk, Severin was the penciler for the first five issues of the series.
RELATED: The 'Marvel Method' As Depicted in Actual Marvel Comics
Severin was a particularly gifted artist when it came to likenesses, so she was a perfect artist for Marvel's parody comic book series, Not Brand Echh. In the early 1970s, Severin gave up her job as Marvel's lead colorist (handing the assignment over to comic book veteran George Roussos, who continued in the role until the 1980s) so that she could do more penciling work.
She co-created Spider-Woman in 1976, designing her iconic costume. In the 1980s, she began working in Special Projects for Marvel, doing a lot of licensed work (again, her likenesses were always amazing). She was let go by Marvel during their restructuring following their late 1990s bankruptcy. She continued working as an artist until retiring in the mid-2000s.
Tags: spider-woman, incredible hulk, Not Brand Echh
DC's Dan DiDio Addresses Vertigo Retirement
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Colts announce they're releasing Peyton Manning
The Peyton Manning era in Indianapolis is expected to end Wednesday, according to a report.
Published: 12:58 PM PST March 6, 2012
Updated: 5:13 AM PST March 7, 2012
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Peyton Manning's record-breaking run as quarterback of the Indianapolis Colts ended Wednesday, when owner Jim Irsay announced the team would release its best player.
"We all know that nothing lasts forever," Manning said. "Times change, circumstances change, and that's the reality of playing in the NFL."
Manning and Irsay each paused frequently, fighting tears and their voices shaking, when they appeared together at a news conference at the Colts' team complex. It was an unusual and awkward scene, two men whose NFL lives have been so closely intertwined, standing side-by-side in jackets and ties as they told the world they were splitting up.
"This has not been easy for Jim," Manning said, "and this has certainly not been easy for me."
The 35-year-old Manning will become a free agent, and is expected to generate interest from a half-dozen or so NFL clubs, provided he's healthy. Manning is coming off a series of operations to his neck and missed all of last season when his team's record, not coincidentally, plummeted to 2-14.
Indianapolis needed to cut him this week to avoid paying him a $28 million bonus, although both Irsay and Manning insisted the decision was not really about money. The Colts are widely expected to begin moving on by taking Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck with the No. 1 overall pick in April's draft.
Irsay repeatedly used the word "rebuilding" and acknowledged: "We're definitely a few years away."
Manning won't retire and hopes to be playing in the NFL at the start of next season.
Still, he said Wednesday: "I'll always be a Colt. I always will be. That'll never change."
He forever will be thought of around these parts as No. 18, the quarterback who led the Colts to an NFL championship.
He'll be remembered, too, for his record four MVP awards, his 50,000 yards passing and his 200 consecutive starts. Most of all, Manning will be the guy in the horseshoe helmet who turned around a franchise and transformed a basketball-loving city into a football hotbed that hosted the Super Bowl a month ago.
Arizona, Miami, Tennessee, Washington and the New York Jets all have been rumored as possible destinations; Manning's former offensive coordinator in Indianapolis, Tom Moore, worked for the Jets as a consultant last season.
"There will be no other Peyton Manning," Irsay said, adding that he hoped Wednesday's joint appearance would serve to "honor incredible memories and incredible things that he's done for the franchise, for the city, for the state."
This marks the end of a remarkably successful marriage between a player and team.
Manning started every meaningful game for 13 seasons in Indianapolis — 227 in a row, including the playoffs — and took the Colts from perennial also-ran to one of the NFL's model franchises and the 2007 Super Bowl title.
In the two decades predating his arrival, the Colts won 116 games, one division title and made the playoffs three times. With Manning taking snaps, the Colts have won 150 games, eight division titles, two AFC championships and the franchise's first league championship since moving from Baltimore in 1984.
Indianapolis broke the NFL record for most regular-season wins in a decade (115), and tied Dallas' mark for most consecutive playoff appearances (nine).
Manning is one of four players with more than 50,000 yards passing, one of three with more than 350 TD tosses, and one of two quarterbacks with more than 200 starts in a row. He broke all of the franchise's major career passing records, previously held by Hall of Fame quarterback John Unitas.
In 2009, Manning led the Colts to the cusp of NFL history with a 14-0 start, fueling talk of an unbeaten season.
But it has been mostly bad news ever since.
The Colts pulled their starters against the Jets and lost the final two games that season. Indy then wound up losing to New Orleans in the Super Bowl. During the offseason, Manning had the first of his neck operations.
Then, after making an early playoff exit in the 2010 season, Manning underwent another neck surgery to repair a damaged nerve that was causing weakness in his throwing arm.
When the nerve did not heal as quickly as expected, Manning had two vertebrae fused in September, an operation that forced him to miss a game for the first time in his NFL career. There are still questions about the strength of Manning's arm.
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And all over the ballpark, it seemed there were numerous reunions among fans and even ballpark personnel.
“I’m just happy to see everybody here,” State College Spikes General Manager Scott Walker said. “It’s a community gathering place.”
The Spikes opened their season Friday night at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, falling to the Williamsport Crosscutters 3-2.
The outcome was more important to some fans than to others.
Some were checking the roster, wondering if this season would bring a repeat of last year’s New York-Penn League Championship.
“It’s pretty cool,” State College resident Andy Gaertner said. “I’m hoping for a win today. I’m looking forward to it.”
Gaertner has a flex book and gets to a number of games, and caught most of the exciting end to last season.
“A lot of new faces out there,” Gaertner said. “It’s a new season.”
Others were just making it a special night.
Andy Weaver of Lock Haven made the trip with seven other family members, including his 11-year-old son Tyler. Four generations on hand, they were enjoying Father’s Day weekend at the ballpark.
“We just got done with Little League,” said Weaver, who coaches a team. “It’s nice to be able to sit and watch a game.”
The evening started with a little more celebration of 2014 before the first pitch of 2015.
Several Spikes players who returned from last year’s team entered the ballpark in a Corvette convertible with the championship trophy.
Walking alongside the car was pitcher Tyler Bray, and riding on his shoulders was Josiah Viera. Viera, 11, has been the team’s inspiration for several seasons as he battles through a rare, fatal disease, Progeria, which accelerates aging in children.
As Bray and Viera walked past the Spikes dugout, Viera got high-fives from each player, and he got a loud ovation as he walked out to the middle of the field to deliver the game’s ceremonial first pitch.
Then, once the game began, it time to enjoy baseball, even as Spikes management, and anyone who is involved in minor league baseball, knows, the nights are about so much more.
“It’s not about the baseball,” team President Jason Dambach said. “We’re opening the doors for the community. This is really, as we talk about here a lot, a community gathering place. It’s somewhere where folks don’t necessarily worry about who’s pitching or what the final score is, this is a night out and it’s an essential part of summertime in State College.”
Dambach had long been the team general manager, but was elevated to a new post and is also working with the Frisco Roughriders, an affiliate of the Texas Rangers that is also owned by Chuck Greenberg. Dambach has been spending most of this year in Texas with that organization, but he knew where he had to be Friday night.
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Dambach said. “I grew up in Pennsylvania my entire life, I have a lot invested in this franchise, and there’s something special about walking into this ballpark … that’s unlike anywhere I’ve been or where I’m at now.”
Standing in the press box in the fourth inning, gulping down a quick bite of food and wiping sweat from his forehead after sprinting from one end of the stadium to the other, Walker was beaming with pride over the sellout crowd for opening night, the culmination of months of planning.
“To get to June 19 and finally have professional baseball on the field,” Walker said, “is a good feeling – with a full house.”
With the stadium also hosting so many other events, from charity functions to 5K runs, from Penn State football tailgate parties to high school games, there was a little relief to get to Friday. He also admitted he’s already well into planning for the 2016 season.
But he did take a moment to enjoy the fruits of all that labor, showing off his giant championship ring he was wearing while racing around the stadium.
It was a nice reward for the 12 months of hard work they put in, almost as good as seeing the gates flooded by fans on a warm summer evening at the ballpark.
“The ring is awesome,” Walker said. “I’ve been a part of a lot of losing seasons in my career … but this is tremendous.”
Spikes feature local dogs on the diamond
Spikes games are a place for all to have fun
State College Spikes
From human cannonballs to aliens: How the State College Spikes get creative with marketing
By Jim Krueger
Minor league baseball teams often come up with quirky, pop culture-related promotions, and the State College Spikes are no different. The Spikes will have Area 51 Night on Saturday, where fans can not only celebrate the popular internet movement, but save money at the same time.
MORE STATE COLLEGE SPIKES
How Andrew Warner went from an aspiring policeman to a State College Spikes fan-favorite
How the State College Spikes’ Bark in the Park night extends beyond the ballpark
State College Spikes hope to send a message of inclusion with its first-ever Pride Night
Spikes cruise past Crosscutters, get blanked by Black Bears
Spikes honor Josiah Viera, start season strong despite rain
State College Spikes swing into 2019 season
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County board of supervisors select chair, vice chair
DeMartini is chairman again
Supervisor Jim DeMartini of the Westport district of Ceres. - photo by Contributed to the Courier
Cara Hallam
Courier Staff Reporter
Updated: Dec. 24, 2013, 6:25 a.m.
The Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors unanimously appointed Supervisor Jim De Martini and Supervisor Terry Withrow as the chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the board for 2014.
The appointments came at the Tuesday, Dec. 17 meeting.
As the new chairman, De Martini brings a lifetime of commitment to Stanislaus County. Having graduated from Grace Davis High School, De Martini immediately turned to farming more than 1,000 acres between Ceres and Patterson where he grows almonds, walnuts, peaches, grapes and row crops.
During his time on the Board of Supervisors, De Martini has represented most of Ceres and the cities of Newman and Patterson. His district has also includes thousands of acres in the unincorporated area of west Stanislaus County combining areas of Patterson and Newman that make up the west side.
In addition to his role as a county supervisor, De Martini serves on the Airport Advisory Committee, the Agricultural Advisory Board, is an alternate on the CSAC Board of Directors, the Central San Joaquin Valley Foreign Trade Zone Advisory Board, the Economic Development Action Committee, the Emergency Medical Services Board of Directors, the General Plan Update Committee, the Local Agency Formation Committee, the Retirement Board, the San Joaquin Valley Supervisors Board of Directors, the San Joaquin Valley Supervisors Endangered Species Committee and the Stanislaus County Disaster Council. He is also a member of the Stanislaus County Farm Bureau in addition to the Ceres, Newman, and Patterson Chambers of Commerce.
Throughout his first term in office, De Martini took the leading role on several important issues including authoring the scrap metal ordinance, writing the agricultural element of the county general plan, and forming a health care task force for communities on the west side.
Serving as vice chairman for 2014, Withrow has spent the majority of his lifetime in the Modesto area where he attended St. Stanislaus School and Central Catholic High School before receiving his bachelor's degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting from California State University, Stanislaus.
In 1984, Withrow became a certified public accountant and formed the accounting firm Ciccarelli and Withrow in 1991, located in downtown Modesto. In addition to accounting, Withrow farms almonds and grapes.
Over the past 25 years, Withrow has been actively involved in the community having helped found St. Luke's Family Practice and the Stanislaus County Farmland Trust. In the past, Withrow has served as a board member of the Woodland Avenue Fire District, the Gallo Center for the Arts, Central Catholic High School and the Stanislaus County Assessment Appeals Board, before joining the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors in 2011.
Smith remains on commission
Whitmore Ranch may be annexed
Vice Mayor Kline lone vote against department head salary adjustments
Help coming for Westpointe center medians, parks
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Title Recommendations based on Karen Smith
After being bitten by a genetically altered spider, nerdy high school student Peter Parker is endowed with amazing powers.
Marty and Doc are at it again in this wacky sequel to the 1985 blockbuster as the time-traveling duo head to 2015 to nip some McFly family woes in the bud. But things go awry thanks to bully Biff Tannen and a pesky sports almanac. In a last-ditch attempt to set things straight, Marty finds himself bound for 1955 and face to face with his teenage parents -- again.
Set during the Cold War period in the 1980s, The Americans is the story of Elizabeth and Philip Jennings, two Soviet KGB officers posing as an American married couple in the suburbs of Washington D.C. and their neighbor, Stan Beeman, an FBI Counterintelligence agent.
A science fiction fairytale about an extra-terrestrial who is left behind on Earth and is found by a young boy who befriends him. This heart-warming fantasy from Director Steven Spielberg became one of the most commercially successful films of all time.
Moulin Rouge!
A celebration of love and creative inspiration takes place in the infamous, gaudy and glamorous Parisian nightclub, at the cusp of the 20th century. A young poet, who is plunged into the heady world of Moulin Rouge, begins a passionate affair with the club's most notorious and beautiful star.
From the bestselling author of Funny Girl, About a Boy, and A Long Way Down, a wise and hilarious novel about love, heartbreak, and rock and roll.Rob is a pop music junkie who runs his own semi-failing record store. His girlfriend, Laura, has just left him for the guy upstairs, and Rob is both miserable and relieved. After all, could he have spent his life with someone who has a bad record collection? Rob seeks refuge in the company of the offbeat clerks at his store, who endlessly review their top five films; top five Elvis Costello songs; top five episodes of Cheers. Rob tries dating a singer, but maybe it’s just that he’s always wanted to sleep with someone who has a record contract. Then he sees Laura again. And Rob begins to think that life with kids, marriage, barbecues, and soft rock CDs might not be so bad.
Andrew returns to his hometown for the funeral of his mother, a journey that reconnects him with past friends. The trip coincides with his decision to stop taking his powerful antidepressants. A chance meeting with Sam - a girl also suffering from various maladies - opens up the possibility of rekindling emotional attachments, confronting his psychologist father, and perhaps beginning a new life.
From the comedy of Jerrod Carmichael and Nick Stoller ("Neighbors") comes an irreverent sitcom inspired by Jerrod's relationships with his say-anything, contrarian father, his therapist-in-training girlfriend, his ever-hustling brother and his mother who is always, always, always right with Jesus. Taking the next step and moving in together, Jerrod and his girlfriend, Maxine (Amber West), are your average young couple trying to make it in the city. They’re smart, motivated and looking to build a fulfilling life together. The only thing standing in their way is family. Between Jerrod's larger-than-life brother, Bobby (Lil Rel Howery), and his smothering and passionate parents (David Alan Grier, Loretta Devine), Jerrod and Maxine are put to the test navigating the boundaries of romance, family and sanity.
The ultimate X-Men ensemble fights a war for the survival of the species across two time periods as they join forces with their younger selves in an epic battle that must change the past – to save our future.
The series centers on Ryan Atwood, a troubled youth from a broken home who is adopted by the wealthy and philanthropic Sandy and Kirsten Cohen. Ryan and his surrogate brother Seth, a socially awkward yet quick-witted teenager, deal with life as outsiders in the high-class world of Newport Beach. Ryan and Seth spend much time navigating their relationships with girl-next-door Marissa Cooper, Seth's childhood crush Summer Roberts, and the fast-talking loner Taylor Townsend. Story lines deal with the culture clash between the idealistic Cohen family and the shallow, materialistic, and closed-minded community in which they reside. The series includes elements of postmodernism, and functions as a mixture of melodrama and comedy.
Staring unflinchingly into the abyss of slavery, this spellbinding audio transforms history into a story as powerful as Exodus and as intimate as a lullaby. Sethe, its protagonist, was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but eighteen years later she is still not free. She has too many memories of Sweet Home, the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. And Sethe’s new home is haunted by the ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved. Filled with bitter poetry and suspense as taut as a rope, Beloved is a towering achievement.
A teenager finds himself transported to an island where he must help protect a group of orphans with special powers from creatures intent on destroying them.
Hallie Parker and Annie James are identical twins separated at a young age because of their parents' divorce. unknowingly to their parents, the girls are sent to the same summer camp where they meet, discover the truth about themselves, and then plot with each other to switch places. Hallie meets her mother, and Annie meets her father for the first time in years.
Before there was Batman, there was GOTHAM. Everyone knows the name Commissioner Gordon. He is one of the crime world's greatest foes, a man whose reputation is synonymous with law and order. But what is known of Gordon's story and his rise from rookie detective to Police Commissioner? What did it take to navigate the multiple layers of corruption that secretly ruled Gotham City, the spawning ground of the world's most iconic villains? And what circumstances created them – the larger-than-life personas who would become Catwoman, The Penguin, The Riddler, Two-Face and The Joker?
A 50th-anniversary Deluxe Edition of the incomparable 20th-century masterpiece of satire and fantasy, in a newly revised version of the acclaimed Pevear and Volokhonsky translation Nothing in the whole of literature compares with The Master and Margarita. One spring afternoon, the Devil, trailing fire and chaos in his wake, weaves himself out of the shadows and into Moscow. Mikhail Bulgakov’s fantastical, funny, and devastating satire of Soviet life combines two distinct yet interwoven parts, one set in contemporary Moscow, the other in ancient Jerusalem, each brimming with historical, imaginary, frightful, and wonderful characters. Written during the darkest days of Stalin’s reign, and finally published in 1966 and 1967, The Master and Margarita became a literary phenomenon, signaling artistic and spiritual freedom for Russians everywhere. This newly revised translation, by the award-winning team of Pevear and Volokhonsky, is made from the complete and unabridged Russian text.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
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New CIGI papers explore the securitization of cyberspace and the future of multi-stakeholder Internet governance
Coordination among multiple levels and actors will be required to avoid instability in the global communications and information ecosystem, according to three new papers on Internet governance published by The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI).
Each of the new papers illustrates how shifting global power and growing security concerns within cyberspace are making it imperative for new policy-oriented research to inform and shape a globally legitimate Internet.
In Internet Governance: Inevitable Transitions, James A. Lewis argues that a new model of Internet governance must “find the balance between government and private sector, between US and global, and between sovereignty and human rights.” Recognizing that the current approach to Internet governance is “politically untenable because it lacks legitimacy in the eyes of many new Internet users,” Lewis says there is a need for a “clear division of labour among the multi-stakeholder community that explicitly recognizes where governments must play a leading role.”
In Adaptive Internet Governance: Persuading the Swing States, David Clemente says that “wholesale replacement [of the current model of Internet governance] is unlikely, given the political and economic costs that would be required.” Nations that are uncertain of what form of Internet governance they want — the multi-stakeholder or an alternate approach — will need to be “persuaded of the value of adopting inclusive and open governance, rather than the state-led model advocated primarily by Russia and China.” Attracting these swing states for the long-term, Clemente argues, will “come through patient diplomacy, demonstrating the complementarity between liberal democracy and social and economic prosperity, and a nuanced understanding of the swing states’ political and economic constraints.”
In Bounding Cyber Power: Escalation and Restraint in Global Cyberspace, Ronald J. Deibert evaluates current forces behind the security framework of cyberspace, while providing recommendations on how the global communications and information ecosystem’s securitization should be shaped. “As the securing of cyberspace unfolds, ensuring basic principles of transparency, accountability and mutual restraint will be critical,” he says. “There is an urgent need for the articulation of an alternative cyber-security strategy for civic networks and from the perspective of liberal democracy,” rather than dismissing “security as a myth to be demolished, rather than engaged.” Deibert says, “to secure cyberspace in a way that does not sacrifice openness, liberal democracies do not need a new ‘cyber’ theory, nor a reversion to old-school paradigms that reinforce international division; rather, we need to reinvest in and apply to the domain of cyberspace some timeless principles and practices.”
The papers are the latest in the Internet Governance Papers series, part of CIGI’s global security project “Organized Chaos: Reimagining the Internet.” The opinions expressed in the reports are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of CIGI. To access a free copy of the reports, please visit: http://www.cigionline.org/series/internet-governance.
James A. Lewis is a senior fellow and director of the Technology and Public Policy Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He is an internationally recognized expert on cyber security whose work includes the bestselling Securing Cyberspace for the 44th Presidency (CSIS, 2008), which was praised by US President Barack Obama in his first speech on cyber security. James teaches at Johns Hopkins University and has been on the faculties of Georgetown and George Washington universities. His current research examines international security and governance in cyberspace, the relationship between innovation and technology, asymmetric warfare and the effect of the Internet on politics.
Dave Clemente is a research associate in the Chatham House International Security Department. He has worked at the International Institute for Strategic Studies and the Overseas Development Institute, and his areas of expertise include technology and cyber security policy, and US and UK security and defence policy. He is the author of Cyber Security and Global Interdependence: What Is Critical? (Chatham House, 2013) and co-author of Cyber Security and the UK’s Critical National Infrastructure (Chatham House, 2011) and On Cyber Warfare (Chatham House, 2010).
Ronald J. Deibert is professor of political science and director of the Canada Centre for Global Security Studies and the Citizen Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto. He has published numerous articles, chapters and books on issues related to technology, media and world politics, including co-authoring the Tracking Ghostnet report, which documents an alleged cyber espionage network affecting over 1,200 computers in more than 103 countries. Ronald is co-founder and principal investigator of the OpenNet Initiative and the Information Warfare Monitor, and he presently serves on the editorial board of the journals International Political Sociology, Security Dialogue, Explorations in Media Ecology, Review of Policy Research and Astropolitics. He is a consultant and adviser to governments, international organizations and civil society/non-governmental organizations on issues relating to cyber security, cybercrime, online free expression and access to information.
Kevin Dias, Communications Specialist, CIGI
Tel: 519.885.2444, ext. 7238, Email: [email protected]
The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) is an independent, non-partisan think tank on international governance. Led by experienced practitioners and distinguished academics, CIGI supports research, forms networks, advances policy debate and generates ideas for multilateral governance improvements. Conducting an active agenda of research, events and publications, CIGI’s interdisciplinary work includes collaboration with policy, business and academic communities around the world. CIGI was founded in 2001 by Jim Balsillie, then co-CEO of Research In Motion (BlackBerry), and collaborates with and gratefully acknowledges support from a number of strategic partners, in particular the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario. For more information, please visit www.cigionline.org.
Global Security & Politics
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Bratz Movie Handed To Paula Abdul
Josh Tyler
In case you haven’t hard, there’s a movie in the works based on the popular yet slutty line of Bratz toys and cartoons for little girls. Turning those whorish Bratz dolls into a movie was a bad enough idea on its own, but Lionsgate has found a way to make it worse. They’re bringing in vapid “American Idol” judge Paula Abdul to play a part in making it.
Lionsgate’s official press release says Paula has joined the creative team of Bratz: The Movie, a live action feature film. Paula will serve as an executive producer on the project, and will “play an integral part in several key creative areas, including music, choreography and fashion.” They also say she will “closely with the director, producers and casting director to discover fresh talent for the film.” I’m sure they’ll love that. Nothing a director loves better than taking orders from a washed up music star who lucked into an television sensation to rediscover relevancy.
In addition to driving the movie’s real creative team nuts with endless suggestions, Paula will play a major character in the movie. She’s a bit old to be one of the Bratz, maybe they’ll find a part for her as a teacher or a parent or something.
Really though, this is a smart move for Lionsgate. They’ve just doubled the audience for the movie. Not only will all the little girls who buy the toys show up to see it, but all the idiot American Idol fans too. American Idol is a perfect fit for Bratz, two franchises devoted to promoting conformity by brainwashing kids with meaningless clothing, style, and hair obsessions wrapped in a façade of individualism. It’s amazing the two haven’t come together before this. Paula Abdul should be a perfect fit.
Paula agrees. She says, “I am extremely excited about working on this film, which incorporates and celebrates so many of my passions, from music, dance and choreography to fashion and design.” You know, stuff that matters. “As a brand, Bratz™ encourages young girls to follow their dreams and express themselves.” Translation: buy our products and wear what we tell them to. Parents who allow their daughters to tube tops should be elated. This should be a perfect way to get your girls ready for the pole.
Hero Blend #92: Our Hopes For The Future Of Black Panther
The Order: 1886 Developer To Announce New Game Next Week
Margot Robbie's Noir Thriller Terminal Is Putting Together An Incredible Cast
To 3D Or Not To 3D: Buy The Right The Lion King Ticket
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FG Begins RUGA Settlement In Sokoto,Kogi,Kebbi,Niger etc
Despite the harsh criticism of the planned establishment of Ruga settlements across the country, the Federal Government is set to commence the pilot phase of the project in Taraba, Adamawa, Plateau, Kaduna and seven other states
It was learnt in Abuja on Friday that the execution of the project would start in 11 states including Sokoto, Nasarawa, Kogi, Katsina, Kebbi, Zamfara and Niger.
Documents seen by one of our correspondents at the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development showed that all was set for the implementation of the initiative.
According to senior officials of the ministry, the Federal Government is determined to go ahead with the project, notwithstanding the public outcry, particularly in the South.
“The pilot states for its implementation are Sokoto, Adamawa, Nasarawa, Kaduna, Kogi, Taraba, Katsina, Plateau, Kebbi, Zamfara and Niger. They are actually 11 in number and the governors of these states are coming to the ministry to learn how the Ruga settlements will be implemented,” a senior official at the FMARD, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.
The source added, “These are the states that have fully shown their interest. But unfortunately, people are talking about this as if the Federal Government is planning to grab land in the states. That’s not true. The plan is mainly for these states that are ready and the Federal Government had a discussion with the governors concerned.
“Some of the governors came here and they promised to provide land because they have seen the benefits they will derive from the initiative. It is not that the Federal Government wants to invade the states, no!”
When asked whether the government would go ahead with the initiative despite its rejection by many other states, the official replied, “Why not? Of course, the government will go ahead with the programme, particularly in states that are willing to have it. For states that are not interested, no problem.”
On Tuesday, the Permanent Secretary, FMARD, Mohammed Umar, said aside from the states where the pilot phase of the programme would start, many other states had expressed their interest in the scheme.
The project is said to be part of the solution to the incessant clashes between farmers and herders.
Umar had said, “The Ruga settlement will attract a lot of investment to Nigeria and it is our belief that in the next five years, each Ruga settlement will provide nothing less than 2,000 employment opportunities. We are collaborating with the cattle breeders associations in Nigeria.”
On May 21, 2019, the immediate past Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, had announced that Buhari approved the Ruga settlement initiative earlier in the same month.
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Features • Sep 13, 2018
A Decade Devoted to the Gilded Age: The Richard H. Driehaus Museum Makes Its Own History
Ten years ago philanthropist Richard H. Driehaus's namesake museum opened with a mission to explore the art, architecture, and design of the late 19th and early 20th centuries with a focus on the Gilded Age. The Museum, located within the meticulously restored 1883 Nickerson Mansion, was Gilded Age Chicago’s “Marble Palace.” Period pieces from the Driehaus Collection, rotating exhibitions and cultural programs further illuminate the era.
It's not often that a new museum opens in Chicago, and the Driehaus quickly established itself as a unique addition to Chicago's cultural community. What at first was a restored jewel box that made the case for historic preservation in the heart of one of the world's centers for modern architecture, eventually matured into an immersive visual time machine.
Visitors to the museum, hidden just off of the city's busiest tourist highway, the Magnificent Mile, are able to experience another era as soon as they climb the museum's limestone steps and enter its stained glass doors. As they climb three levels of carpeted stairs and wander room to room they behold countless prime examples of furniture and decoration from the 19th century. Today the Driehaus's line up of period-relevant exhibitions provides additional context as well as opportunities to visit again and again.
Several special events taking place this fall celebrate the museum's 10 year anniversary in 2018
– GV
The Driehaus Museum’s Board of Trustees will host its first black tie gala this fall, in celebration of the museum’s 10th anniversary in 2018 and to honor Chicago architect, preservationist, and sustainable designer, Joseph Antunovich. September 13, 6–9pm. The museum's special auction offerings may be previewed online. Highlights include a 5 day/4 night stay at Richard H. Driehaus’ La Quinta, California Home, and a dinner for up to 10 at the Driehaus Museum with 5-Course Menu Created by Season 15 Top Chef Winner Joe Flamm, including Wine Pairings.
BEAUTY’S LEGACY: GILDED AGE PORTRAITS IN AMERICA
This exhibition, organized by the New York Historical Society, looks at the popular revival of portraiture in America during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and contains portraits of socially prominent Americans by artists such as Gilbert Stuart, Rembrandt Peale, John Singer Sargent, Eastman Johnson, and William Adolphe Bouguereau. September 8–January 6
Gilded Chicago: Portraits of an Era
The companion exhibition to Beauty’s Legacy, this intimate gallery comprised of ten paintings will focus on prominent Gilded Age Chicagoans, such as McCormick, Field, Pullman, and the portraits they commissioned. September 8–January 6
Treasures from the White City: Chicago World’s Fair of 1893
An exhibition featuring designs by Louis Comfort Tiffany, substantial silver pieces by Gorham Manufacturing and Tiffany Studios, as well as fair memorabilia. The Nickerson Mansion, home of the Driehaus Museum and this exhibition, hosted a reception in 1893 to celebrate the fair. September 8–January 6
The Richard H. Driehaus Museum, 40 E. Erie, Chicago • www.driehausmuseum.org
Top image: The stained glass dome in the Sculpture Gallery (ca. 1900), detail. Photo by Alexander Vertikoff, 2011
Features • Aug 31
The Evolution of a Vision: What’s Next for the Stony Island Arts Bank
Rising Up from the Roots: New Chicago Architecture Center Builds Engagement
Publisher's Letter: Art Saves Lives
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Chicago Reporter (https://www.chicagoreporter.com/reconstitution-trend-cools-boards-unions-team/)
Reconstitution trend cools as boards, unions team up
By Dan Scheid | July 26, 2005
A year ago, reconstitution was the hot remedy for turning around low-performing schools. Chicago was at the head of the pack, reconstituting seven high schools last summer.
But this year, Chief Executive Officer Paul Vallas and other urban school officials are putting a hold on the practice of abruptly restaffing schools. Instead, they are seeking less extreme measures to inspire success at what they consider their worst schools.
Many districts embraced reconstitution as a change strategy “without thinking seriously about it,” says Jennifer O’Day, an education professor at University of Wisconsin at Madison. “They found it much more difficult than they first anticipated.”
For instance, many reconstituted schools have had a tough time recruiting a qualified staff, she notes. In Chicago, principals at reconstituted schools say they have lost veteran teachers to less stressful positions inside the system.
It’s too early to tell whether reconstitution ultimately will yield positive results, says O’Day. But she says that the threat of reconstitution likely has motivated staff at other schools
In the meantime, O’Day agrees that alternatives are in order. “It is not just the teachers who need to take responsibility, but the district must ask ‘What can we provide, what resources are needed to help this school?'”
The American Federation of Teachers (AFT), the dominant teacher union in urban districts, took umbrage with the blame-the-teacher aspect of reconstitution, but it concedes that drastic reform is sometimes necessary. “If a school is so bad that you wouldn’t send your own kids there, it needs to be shut down and redesigned,” says Janet Bass, in public relations for AFT. “San Francisco and Chicago started badly because they blamed teachers and didn’t use them for input.”
In a memo published last December, the AFT called reconstitution “politically popular but educationally bankrupt.” Instead, the union suggested school officials collaborate with teachers to identify low-performing schools, pinpoint the causes of failure and set high standards for student academic achievement and behavior. It also encouraged districts to stick with programs that have a track record of success and to offer professional development and financial resources to troubled schools.
San Francisco, the city that pioneered reconstitution in 1984 under court order, is moving toward the AFT stance. “The expectations for improvement are the same, but now it will happen through collaboration,” says district spokesman John Flores, who was recruited from outside the district to head up a reconstituted school.
A districtwide committee of teachers and administrators will classify each school as exemplary, satisfactory or non-performing. Non-performing schools will be required to file a plan that spells out their goals and vision. The city will provide those schools with additional staff development programs.
At non-performing schools, teachers must reach consensus to approve the site plan. District officials say creating consensus and motivating staff are the most important elements in turning a school around. “We can come in with all this data,” says Associate Superintendent Robert Harrington. “but [teachers] need to believe it and want to make the changes themselves. People in the school need to take responsibility for improving the school.”
The new plan gives teachers one year to agree on a plan and improve curriculum. Teachers who do not stick to the plan will be “involuntarily transferred.” Some details remain to be worked out, such as how to identify teachers who don’t work with the plan and how voluntary and involuntary transfers will be carried out. But the teachers union won a major concession from the district: “No teachers will be forced to leave [their schools] this year,” says Flores.
When San Francisco reconstituted its first four schools in 1984, the district spent six months planning their curriculum and locating talented, veteran teachers. “The concentration of energy and effort and intelligence did bring about some measurable improvement,” says teacher union president Kent Mitchell. But in most of the schools reconstituted since 1993, he says, “An incredibly inexperienced staff [was] thrown together with an inexperienced principal.”
School officials in Cleveland were forced to find a new approach to reconstitution after an arbitrator ruled that the district’s first foray—it reconstituted two schools last summer—had violated the teacher contract. School officials then agreed to work in partnership with teachers and used the AFT model, says Chief Academic Officer Livesteen Carter. An academic intervention team comprising district and teachers union representatives will visit distressed schools, collect a broad range of data on them, and then decide how much money each needs to be turned around. After a year, the team will review the schools and determine if they have improved, still need help or should be reconstituted.
All schools in Cleveland must develop an academic plan that has the support of 70 percent of the faculty. At low-performing schools, the academic intervention team may recommend changes, but the school has right to reject them, says Richard DeColibus, president of the Cleveland Teachers Union.
Teachers who don’t agree with their school’s plan can “opt out” and look for a job elsewhere in the system, says Carter. “Everyone who stays will be assessed and expected to align their activities [with] the site plan,” she adds. “It’s a silent commitment.”
Cincinnati, Memphis and Minneapolis also have adopted some of the AFT recommendations.
Among the districts that tried reconstitution, Chicago took the hardest line on teachers. San Francisco, Cleveland and other districts guaranteed jobs for teachers who were dismissed from schools undergoing reconstitution.
Chicago plans to fire them if they have not found another job by the end of October. “You don’t take a teacher that one school doesn’t want or deserve and transfer him to another school,” Mayor Richard M. Daley said in a June 25, 1997 article in the San Francisco Examiner.
The Chicago Teachers Union has vowed to file suit if any of the reconstitution teachers loses a job. In mid-August, 50 to 60 were still looking, according to school officials.
Phillip Hansen, the board’s chief accountability officer, says Chicago’s revised approach to failing schools, along with a new teacher contract, likely will be in place by the end of 1998.
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Violence watch: A few years back, President...
Violence watch: A few years back, President Clinton took on Joe Camel and tobacco advertisers to see if they targeted their ads at kids. Now he has ordered a similar government investigation into the entertainment industry. The $1 million study will look into whether companies are targeting children when they sell violent videos, movies or compact discs. At a White House event last Tuesday, Clinton blasted several video-game ads, including one that pictured a gun and promised, "More fun than shooting your neighbor's cat." But despite the president's tough talk, it's unclear what the government can do to regulate the entertainment industry -even if the study finds that companies do market violent products to kids. Two years ago, the Federal Trade Commission ruled that R.J. Reynolds' Joe Camel ad campaign was an "unfair trade practice" because it was aimed at children. But selling cigarettes to kids is against the law; it's not illegal to sell violent entertainment to children.
Back on the scene: Usually cleaning out lockers for summer break is a happy event for students. But for Columbine High School students, it was a time of mixed emotions. Six weeks after a blaze of bullets shut down their school, students were allowed back inside to retrieve backpacks and other belongings. "We are in shock again," student Charise W., 16, said. The school has been off limits to students since April 20, when gunmen Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed 12 students and a teacher before shooting themselves. Many students said they were glad to get their personal belongings; others said the first trip back was a sad reminder of the shooting. Broken glass, missing ceiling panels and damaged lockers still need repair.
Mapping out a win: David B., 13, of Saluda, S.C., recently became the first home-schooled student to win the National Geography Bee. David's secret? "I had lots of time to study," he said. "My schedule is more flexible than some other schools'." David has been taught at home since kindergarten. To win the national geography contest, he answered that La Nina is the Spanish name for a weather condition that's characterized
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Pedestrian killed on U.S. 601
Pageland man held for deadly hit and run
Updated: June 22, 2019, 4:48 p.m.
A Lugoff woman died after being struck by a vehicle while walking on U.S. 601 in Lugoff on Thursday morning.
Kershaw County Chief Deputy Coroner Phil McLeod identified the victim as 37-year-old Wendy Thompson.
“Thompson was walking north on Highway 601 near Exchange Drive around 5 a.m. when she was struck by a pickup truck traveling south on Highway 601. She was pronounced dead at the scene,” McLeod said.
The S.C. Highway Patrol, which is investigating the accident, had no information on its media hotline at press time.
After the C-I went to press for Friday's print edition, troopers announced they had arrested Randy Carroll Johnson, 68, of Pageland, and charged him with hit and run accident with death. A magistrate judge denied bond.
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The Kate Hurd-Mead Lecture: Dr. John Langdon Down, Prenatal Diagnosis, and Disability Advocacy
Dr. Jan Goplerud, Kate Campbell Hurd-Mead
The College of Physicians of Philadelphia, The Section on Medical History of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia and the Legacy Center of Drexel University College of Medicine (DUCOM)
Monday, March 18, 2019 - 6:30pm
The College of Physicians of Philadelphia
19 South 22nd Street
When public institutions for the mentally disabled opened in England in the mid-1800’s, need-specific residential care and education was an “enlightened” approach to a societal problem. Dr. John Langdon Down, the first medical superintendent of the Earlswood Asylum for Idiots, noted a striking physical resemblance of some patients and published their description in 1866 – a characterization now known as Down Syndrome.
Since Dr. Down's observations, the features and genetic origin of trisomy 21 have the prenatal diagnosis of trisomy 21 from maternal blood sampling. In the same 150 years, the concept of institutionalizing the mentally disabled has fallen out of favor and disability advocates lobby to restrict or ban abortion of fetuses diagnosed with Down Syndrome. With universal prenatal diagnosis a reality, the medical team is challenged to balance its duty to society, individual families, and the unborn.
About Dr. Jan Goplerud:
Dr. Jan Goplerud is a neonatologist in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the area, including Hahnemann University Hospital and St. Christopher's Hospital for Children. She received her medical degree from Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and has been in practice for more than 20 years.
About Kate Campbell Hurd-Mead:
An 1888 graduate of the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania, Kate Campbell Hurd-Mead was a successful physician, leader and organizer of medical women, medical writer, lecturer and supporter of the work of women doctors everywhere. Following her internship in Boston, studies at Johns Hopkins University and in Europe, she served as medical director at the Bryn Mawr School for Girls in Baltimore, where she also helped establish a dispensary for working women.
She entered private practice in Middletown, Connecticut and attended at the town’s hospital. But it was her determination to tell the whole story of women’s place in medicine, resulting in the incomparable History of Women in Medicine from the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Nineteenth-Century (1938) that became her legacy. Dr. Hurd-Mead completed the manuscript of Volume 2, updating the pioneers of the entire eastern hemisphere from Australia to Ireland and a third volume, covering the western hemisphere was underway at her death.
Expedition member taking readings 1884. Image courtesy of the University of Toronto.
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Official Admiralty Second World War photo of General Bernard Law Montgomery and Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser on the Flagship HMS Duke of York, signed and annotated by Montgomery as Commander in Chief of the British Group of Armies one month before the Normandy landings
H.M.S. Duke of York: British Admiralty Press Division, 1944. This striking Second World War photograph is remarkable for location, time, subject, and signature. General Bernard Law Montgomery and Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser are captured striding on the deck of the Flagship H.M.S. Duke of York on 6 May 1944, one..... More about Official Admiralty Second World War photo of General Bernard Law Montgomery and Admiral Sir Bruce...
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Original, unpublished photographic negatives of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill, Canadian Prime Minister MacKenzie King, and others on 18 August 1943 at the 'Quadrant' conference in Quebec
Quebec City: unpublished. photographic negatives. This is a set of original negatives of apparently unpublished images of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill taken on 18 August 1943 at the Second World War ‘Quadrant’ conference in Quebec City. Churchill and Roosevelt are prominent in seven of..... More about Original, unpublished photographic negatives of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British...
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A sailor's Second World War photo album including eight original, unpublished photographs of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill in Iceland during his return from meeting with President Roosevelt in Placentia Bay and just days after their announcement of the Atlantic Charter
Iceland: 1941. Stiff wraps. This Second World War Royal Navy Sailor’s album contains eight previously unseen, unpublished photos of Winston Churchill’s visit to Iceland on 16 August 1941, just two days after the historic Atlantic Charter was issued. The 6.25 x 9.5 inch (15.7 x 23.8 cm) album contains thirty... More about A sailor's Second World War photo album including eight original, unpublished photographs of...
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Three original photographic negatives of Winston S. Churchill with Thomas E. Dewey delivering a speech at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York on 15 March 1946, staunchly defending his controversial “Iron Curtain” speech delivered ten days prior in Fulton, Missouri
New York City: Unknown, Unknown. Photograph. This is a set of three photographic negatives of Winston S. Churchill at the Waldorf Astoria on 15 March 1946 staunchly defending the content of his “Iron Curtain” speech delivered ten days earlier. Churchill is pictured with New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey, who... More about Three original photographic negatives of Winston S. Churchill with Thomas E. Dewey delivering a...
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Second World War Air Ministry photograph of King George VI and Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill taken at a British Royal Air Force station on 25 June 1943
England: British Air Ministry, 1943. Photograph. This striking, wartime British Air Ministry photograph of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and His Majesty King George VI was taken on 25 June 1943 at a British Royal Air Force station upon the King's return from a tour of Malta and North Africa... More about Second World War Air Ministry photograph of King George VI and Prime Minister Winston S....
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A wartime British Official War Office press photograph of Winston S. Churchill descending the gangplank of Lord Nelson's HMS Victory during a January 1941 tour of the bomb-damaged Portsmouth docks
London: The British War Office, printed by Keystone Press Agency Ltd., 1941. Photograph. This is an original, War Office press photo of Winston Churchill (1874-1965) descending the gangplank of the HMS Victory taken in Portsmouth on 31 January 1941. The photo measures 4.75 x 6.75 inches (12 x 17 cm)... More about A wartime British Official War Office press photograph of Winston S. Churchill descending the...
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An original wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill, accompanied by his wife, Clementine, in his Woodford constituency on 26 May 1945 giving his first speech of the 1945 General Election that would end his wartime premiership two months later on 26 July 1945
London: Pictorial Press Ltd., 1945. Photograph. This original press photograph captures Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill accompanied by his wife, Clementine, in his Woodford constituency on 26 May 1945 giving his first speech of the 1945 General Election that would end his wartime premiership two months later on 26 July... More about An original wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill, accompanied by his...
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An original press photo of then-New York Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt with his wife, Eleanor, and son, James, at whose New Hampshire home this photograph was taken on 18 June 1932, weeks before FDR's historic nomination as the 1932 Democratic Presidential Candidate and less than five months before he became president
New Hampshire: International News Photos, Inc, 18 June 1932. Photograph. This is an original press photo of Franklin Delano Roosevelt as Governor of New York with members of his family at the home of his son, James, on 18 June 1932, weeks before he received the Democratic presidential nomination and... More about An original press photo of then-New York Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt with his wife,...
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An original press photo of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt on 8 June 1936 at the White House preparing speeches for his 1936 Dust Bowl trip during his first presidential term
International News Photos, Inc., 10 June 1936. Photograph. This is an original press photograph of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt on 8 June 1936 at the White House preparing speeches for his Dust Bowl trip of 1936 during his first term as president. This press photo once belonged to The Cleveland News’... More about An original press photo of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt on 8 June 1936 at the White House...
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An original press photograph of Winston S. Churchill dressed for a fox hunt with the Old Surrey and Burstow Hunt at Chartwell Farm, the home of his daughter and son-in-law, on 27 November 1948
London: The 'Topical' Press Agency, 29 November 1948. Photograph. This original press photo captures Winston S. Churchill dressed in his fox hunt kit on 27 November 1948. The image, measuring 10.25 x 8 in (26 x 20.3 cm), is a gelatin silver print on glossy photo paper. Condition is very... More about An original press photograph of Winston S. Churchill dressed for a fox hunt with the Old Surrey...
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An original press copy of the official campaign portrait of Franklin Delano Roosevelt for his final presidential campaign taken by Leon Perskie at Hyde Park on 21 August 1944
Leon Perskie
Associated Press Photos, 8 May 1945. Photograph. This is an original press photograph of a portrait of FDR taken by his official 1944 campaign portrait photographer, Leon A. Perskie, at Hyde Park on 21 August 1944. This image, measuring 9 x 7.125 in (22.8 x 18.1 cm), is a silver... More about An original press copy of the official campaign portrait of Franklin Delano Roosevelt for his...
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An original wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill on 3 July 1945, delivering his final campaign speech of the General Election that ended his wartime premiership on 26 July 1945
London: Keystone Press Agency, 3 July 1945. Photograph. This original press photograph captures Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill on 3 July 1945 delivering his final campaign speech of the 1945 General Election. Churchill is depicted here with a borrowed hat befitting his borrowed time; his wartime premiership ended weeks later... More about An original wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill on 3 July 1945,...
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A wartime press photograph from The Associated Press German Picture Service of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill during the Battle of Britain in 1940, a cigar in hand and wearing a steel helmet for protection during air raids, his trademark bowler on the table in the foreground
Berlin: Associated Press, 1940. Photograph. This wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill (1874-1965) belonged to the Associated Press German Picture Service, an American news agency on German soil that symbolized the imperfect struggle to maintain free press operations in Nazi Germany. The photo measures 5.125 x 7.25... More about A wartime press photograph from The Associated Press German Picture Service of Prime Minister...
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A wartime press photograph from The Associated Press German Picture Service of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill on 28 August 1940 touring Luftwaffe air raid damage in Ramsgate
Berlin: Associated Press, 1940. Photograph. This wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill (1874-1965) belonged to the Associated Press German Picture Service, an American news agency on German soil that symbolized the imperfect struggle to maintain free press operations in Nazi Germany. The photo measures 5.25 x 7.25... More about A wartime press photograph from The Associated Press German Picture Service of Prime Minister...
An original press photo of Sir Winston S. Churchill giving the his V sign on 6 October 1959 while campaigning during his last general election for what was to be his final term as a Member of Parliament
London: P.A. Reuters Photos Ltd., October 1959. Photograph. This is an original press photograph of Sir Winston S. Churchill giving his V sign on 6 October 1959 while on campaign for his last general election and what was to be his final term in Parliament. This image measures 10 x.... More about An original press photo of Sir Winston S. Churchill giving the his V sign on 6 October 1959 while...
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An original wartime press photograph of First Lord of the Admiralty Winston S. Churchill touring the RAF Headquarters in France on 7 January 1940, less than half a year before Churchill's ascension to the premiership, the Dunkirk evacuation, and the fall of France
London: Fox Photos, 11 January 1940. Photograph. This original press photo captures First Lord of the Admiralty Winston S. Churchill touring the Royal Air Force Headquarters in France on 7 January 1940, less than half a year before his ascension to wartime premier, the evacuation of Dunkirk, and the fall... More about An original wartime press photograph of First Lord of the Admiralty Winston S. Churchill touring...
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An original Associated Press German Photo Service wartime photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill inspecting British defense preparations early in his wartime premiership
Berlin: Associated Press German Picture Service, 1940. Photograph. This is an original, wartime press photo of Winston Churchill (1874-1965) originating from the Associated Press German Picture Service, an American news agency on German soil that symbolized the imperfect struggle to maintain free press operations in Nazi Germany. The photo measures... More about An original Associated Press German Photo Service wartime photograph of Prime Minister Winston S....
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An original press photograph of Sir Winston S. Churchill flashing his famous V sign while being driven through Istanbul by Aristotle Onassis on 10 August 1959 - a deliciously ironic and improbable convergence of history and symbols
London: Sport & General Press Agency, 11 August 1959. Photograph. There is a deliciously ironic, and even improbable, convergence of history and symbols in this original press photograph of Sir Winston S. Churchill being driven through Istanbul by Aristotle Onassis on 10 August 1959. This image measures 7.25 x 10... More about An original press photograph of Sir Winston S. Churchill flashing his famous V sign while being...
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An original press photograph of Winston S. Churchill at the ceremony for his installation as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports on 14 August 1946
London: Fox Photos, 14 August 1946. Photograph. This original press photograph captures Winston S. Churchill dressed in his regalia for his installation as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports on 14 August 1946. The image, measuring 8 x 5 in (20.3 x 12.7 cm), is a gelatin silver print on... More about An original press photograph of Winston S. Churchill at the ceremony for his installation as Lord...
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An original wartime press photograph from The Associated Press German Picture Service of Winston S. Churchill and dockworkers on 1 August 1940
Berlin: Associated Press, 1940. Photograph. This wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill (1874-1965) belonged to the Associated Press German Picture Service, an American news agency on German soil that symbolized the imperfect struggle to maintain free press operations in Nazi Germany. The photo measures 5.25 x 7.25... More about An original wartime press photograph from The Associated Press German Picture Service of Winston...
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An original wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill and his family in a horse-drawn carriage after receiving the Honorary Freedom of the City of London on 30 June 1943
London: Daily Telegraph, 30 June 1943. Photograph. This original press photograph captures Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill and his family in a horse-drawn carriage in front of The Daily Telegraph building following the ceremony at which Churchill was given the Honorary Freedom of the City of London on 30 June... More about An original wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill and his family in a...
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A wartime press photograph from The Associated Press German Picture Service of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill, the German caption stating that Churchill is depicted on his way to examine the Luftwaffe damage at the London docks on 11 October 1940
Berlin: Associated Press German Picture Service, 1940. Photograph. This wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill (1874-1965) belonged to the Associated Press German Picture Service, an American news agency on German soil that symbolized the imperfect struggle to maintain free press operations in Nazi Germany. The photo measures... More about A wartime press photograph from The Associated Press German Picture Service of Prime Minister...
An original press photo of Lady Clementine Churchill taken by Lord Snowdon, the husband of Princess Margaret, on 1 April 1974 at the home of Lady Churchill to both commemorate her birthday and launch the Churchill Centenary Trust
London: Camera Press Ltd., 1 April 1974. Photograph. This is an original press photograph copy of a portrait of Lady Clementine Churchill taken at her home by Lord Snowdon on 1 April 1974 for the twin occasions of Lady Churchill’s 89th birthday and the launch of the Churchill Centenary Trust... More about An original press photo of Lady Clementine Churchill taken by Lord Snowdon, the husband of...
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An original wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill giving a campaign speech using an improvised microphone stand during an election tour on 2 July 1945, 24 days before his Conservatives lost the General Election to Labour and Churchill relinquished his wartime premiership
London: Keystone Press Agency, 1945. Photograph. This original press photograph captures Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill standing before an improvised microphone stand on 2 July 1945 while campaigning for the General Election, which his Conservatives would lose to Labour, ousting Churchill from his wartime premiership on 26 July 1945. The... More about An original wartime press photograph of Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill giving a campaign...
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An original press photo of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt at a Washington D.C. Justice building dedication ceremony on 25 October 1934
Washington, D.C. Associated Press, 25 October 1934. Photograph. This is an original press photo of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt taken during the first of the President’s eventual four terms in office, at a Washington D.C. Justice building dedication ceremony on 25 October 1934. This image, measuring 7 x 9 in... More about An original press photo of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt at a Washington D.C. Justice...
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About Churchill (42)
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I write a book the way they built the Canadian Pacific Railway. First I lay the track from coast to coast, and then I put in all the stations.
(Remarks of 1946)
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Our Catalog Fairy Tales, Folk Tales & Myths
The Lady and the Lion: A Brothers Grimm Tale
The Lady and the Lion: A Brothers Grimm Tale by Dial at Cmc Schools. Hurry! Limited time offer. Offer valid only while supplies last. An epic novel of love, courage, and honor follows a young woman, who, after facing a ferocious lion to save her father, discovers that the lion is actually a kind prince under the spell of an evil enchantress, and as love blossoms between them, she must embark on a seven-year quest to save him..
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An epic novel of love, courage, and honor follows a young woman, who, after facing a ferocious lion to save her father, discovers that the lion is actually a kind prince under the spell of an evil enchantress, and as love blossoms between them, she must embark on a seven-year quest to save him..
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Hans Christian Andersen's Complete Fairy Tales (Leather-bound Classics)
By Canterbury Classics
mpn: 937052, ean: 9781626860995, isbn: 1626860998,
Classic tales of fairies and princesses, ducklings and dancing shoes from the master storyteller Hans Christian Andersen.All the best-loved fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen, including “The Ugly Duckling,” “Thumbelina,” “The Red Shoes,” “The Princess on the Pea,” and “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” fill the pages of this beautiful leather-bound collector’s edition. Also included is “The Tallow Candle”—one of the earliest stories written by Andersen, just
The Third Door (Three Doors Trilogy)
By Scholastic Press
Internationally bestselling author Emily Rodda's brilliant finale to the trilogy inspired by the world of Deltora.Three magic Doors are the only way in and out of the walled city of Weld. The golden Door is grand and majestic -- a Door for heroes. The silver Door hints at mystery and knowledge -- a door for schemers. But the plain wooden Door has always held the most appeal for Rye and his friend Sonia. And now, at last, they have the chance to open it.The city of Weld is under attack by
Frederick's Fables : A Treasury of 16 Favorite Leo Lionni Stories
By Knopf Books for Young Readers
In honor of the 30th anniversary of the publication of Frederick, Knopf is pleased to issue an expanded collector's edition of Leo Lionni's timeless tales that celebrate the power of imagination and the human spirit. With the addition of three new titles--Matthew's Dream, An Extraordinary Egg, and Six Crows--this magnificent treasury now contains 16 unabridged stories, including three Caldecott Honor books and Lionni's inimitable full-color artwork gracing every page. Add a striking new cover
The Lady of Guadalupe
By Holiday House
Retells the traditional Mexican story about the country's patron saint, the Lady of Guadalupe, who appeared to a poor Indian named Juan Diego in 1531.
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This Saudi activist is driving across America to raise awareness of the women still in prison in her country, detained for wanting to drive
By Melissa Mahtani, CNN
Updated 8:42 PM ET, Wed April 24, 2019
Manal al-Sharif on her "Drive For Freedom" across the United States.
(CNN) Manal al-Sharif, the Saudi woman who dared to drive, is once again taking to the open road to shine a global spotlight on what she views as the injustice taking place in Saudi Arabia.
Sharif is driving across America, in partnership with the Human Rights Foundation, to raise awareness of her fellow female activists who are still detained for wanting to be able to drive. She started her trip in San Francisco on April 12, and will cover some 3,000 miles to Washington, DC, as she calls on the staunchly conservative Saudi kingdom to end it's "war on women."
"It really concerns me that the world doesn't see the violations of human rights and women's rights in my country," she tells CNN.
"It's really heavy on my heart that my friends who fought with me are all in jail today and being tortured. My hope is that this campaign will help in their release."
Sharif shot to global fame in 2011 when she recorded a video of herself driving in Saudi Arabia and uploaded it to YouTube. The act got her arrested and imprisoned but also captured the world's attention and condemnation. She was released 10 days later and continued to campaign for women to have the right to drive in the only country on Earth where it was deemed a felony.
"One of the major obstacles for women to get economic independence and find jobs was mobility. In a country with no public transportation, no pedestrian cities, where you can't even ride bikes, driving was the only means for women to get to their jobs. If you can drive your own car, you can drive your own life," she explains.
On June 24, 2018, women in Saudi Arabia were finally granted the right to drive in what global rights groups hailed as a victory. However, the euphoria was short lived. Women remain in prison and on trial for their activism in campaigning for that right, with widespread reports of abuse and torture, allegations the Saudi government has denied.
"When Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman came to power, we were all fooled that he was a reformer," Sharif says.
"We were desperate for change and wanted to believe."
She says the first year of his rule seemed great. Then in the second year, there was the start of the war in Yemen, which many Saudis found troubling. Sharif says the prince "brought the war home" to within Saudi Arabia.
"The first wave of arrests was in September 2017. All the people who were vocal on Twitter were arrested. Clerics, scholars, academics and business men," she says.
"This was followed by a wave of arrests of women's rights activists in May 2018. Women were quietly taken from their homes and put in secret prisons. They have been held in solitary confinement and their families have confirmed they have been tortured," she says, adding, "All the real reformers remain behind bars."
As a result of the crackdown, Sharif has spent the past four years living in self-imposed exile in Australia with her husband and her youngest son. Her eldest son and his father remain in Saudi Arabia.
Why drive across America?
She chose to drive across America to highlight the close relationship between Washington and Riyadh despite the kingdom's abuse of human rights.
"I lost hope" after Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi's death at the hands of the Saudi government last October, she says.
"They confessed they did it and they got away with it. Why would I even fight a system that received no consequences for murder?"
Initially, she felt like she had to stay silent and stopped using all her social media accounts. Then in January, she saw the case of Rahaf Mohammed Mutlaq Alqunun, an 18-year-old Saudi girl who barricaded herself in a Bangkok hotel room as she fought to seek asylum in Australia. That's when Sharif decided she could no longer stay quiet. She started planning her drive for freedom across the United States.
On the fifth day of her road trip she received a tweet from the spokesperson for the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington asking her to meet with the kingdom's new ambassador. The tweet read: "The Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington notes the US tour of Ms. Manal Al-Sharif and welcomes the opportunity for her to meet the new ambassador, HRH Princess Reema bint Bandar, once she takes her post."
The Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington notes the US tour of Ms. Manal Al-Sharif and welcomes the opportunity for her to meet the new ambassador, HRH Princess Reema bint Bandar, once she takes her post.
— Fahad Nazer فهد ناظر (@KSAEmbassySpox) April 17, 2019
Her response was swift.
"I'm happy to meet her and this is really a good sign. My demands are simple: The immediate, unconditional release of the women's rights activists in jail, all the prisoners of conscience, lifting the travel ban on family members and my last demand is I'll meet her outside."
The embassy has not yet replied, but it's doubtful her demands will be met. CNN has reached out to the Saudi government for comment on Sharif's drive and is awaiting a response.
This week, Saudi Arabia executed 37 men convicted of terror-related crimes. One of the convicts was crucified, according to an Interior Ministry statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency. The executions have drawn widespread condemnation. UN Human Rights Chief Michelle Bachelet called the move "shocking" and "abhorrent." Amnesty International dismissed the legal proceedings that led to the convictions as "sham trials that violated international fair trial standards which relied on confessions extracted through torture." While individual members of Congress have expressed outrage at these executions, the US State Department has so far declined to specifically condemn them.
Sharif's trip will end Friday with a protest outside the Saudi Embassy in DC as she celebrates her 40th birthday. "I will be 40 but due to Saudi's strict guardianship laws, when my 13-year-old son turns 18, he will legally be my guardian. He has to give me permission to do basic things like go to school or to the hospital," she says.
"My hope from this drive is to not only raise awareness about the women's rights activists in my country but it's also to revisit all the women's rights activists throughout history that have been forgotten."
"It's very important to know it's not a destination, they're just milestones. The journey goes on and generation after generation, women before us, we stood on their shoulders and generations after us, women will stand on our shoulders."
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Ethnography & Evaluation Research
Ethnography & Evaluation Research
E&ER in the News
Home Research Areas Women in Science ADVANCE Partnerships for Adaptation, Implementation and Dissemination (PAID)
ADVANCE Partnerships for Adaptation, Implementation and Dissemination (PAID)
E&ER has worked with several projects supported by NSF ADVANCE PAID grants that seek to foster women's advancement in the sciences. These projects have focused on career development in the form of workshops, networking and mentoring.
Career Development Workshops for Women Faculty
E&ER served as program evaluator for the Atmospheric Science Collaborations and Enriching NeTworks (ASCENT) program for women in atmospheric science or meteorology. ASCENT offers an annual three-day networking workshop for junior and senior women scientists, with follow-up reunions at major national meetings. The workshops aim to encourage positive mentoring relationships, to educate participants about the obstacles faced by women in science, and to provide women with resources for overcoming these obstacles.
Hallar, A.G., Avallone, L.M., Thiry, H., & Edwards, L.M. (2015). ASCENT: A discipline-specific model to support the retention and advancement of women in science. Ch. 13 in M.A. Holmes, S. O’Connell & K. Dutt (Eds.), Women in the geosciences: Practical, positive practices toward parity, AGU Special Publications 70, Washington, DC, & Hoboken, NJ: American Geophysical Union & John Wiley & Sons; pp. 135-148.
Avallone, L., Hallar, A.G., Thiry, H. & Edwards, L. (2013). Supporting the retention and advancement of women in the atmospheric sciences: What women are saying. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 94(9), 1313-1316
Thiry, H. (2011). Developing networks of women scientists: Outcomes from the Atmospheric Science Collaborations and Enriching NeTworks workshop, 2009-2011. Final report, Year 3. (Report to ASCENT). Boulder, CO: University of Colorado at Boulder, Ethnography & Evaluation Research.
Thiry, H. (2011). Long-term outcomes of the Atmospheric Science Collaborations and Enriching NeTworks (ASCENT) workshop: Comparison of results from longitudinal surveys of 2009 and 2010 ASCENT participants. (Report prepared for ASCENT). Boulder, CO: Ethnography & Evaluation Research, University of Colorado Boulder.
Thiry, H. (2010). Evaluation of the Atmospheric Science Collaborations and Enriching NeTworks (ASCENT) conference, July 14-16, 2010. Annual Report, Year 2. Report to ASCENT. Boulder, CO: University of Colorado at Boulder, Ethnography & Evaluation Research.
Thiry, H. (2009). Evaluation of the Atmospheric Science Collaborations and Enriching NeTworks (ASCENT) conference, June 15-17, 2009. Annual report, Year 1. (Report to ASCENT) Boulder, CO: University of Colorado at Boulder, Ethnography & Evaluation Research.
This work was supported by the National Science Foundation under award HRD-0820214. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in these reports are those of the researchers, and do not necessarily represent the official views, opinions, or policy of the National Science Foundation.
Supportive Networks for Early-Career Scientists
The Earth Science Women's Network is a grassroots network formed to support early-career women geoscientists. As evaluators for ESWN, we gathered data to understand the issues that ESWN members face and to explore the outcomes of the network's in-person and online professional development offerings.
Archie, T., Kogan, M., & Laursen, S. L. (2015). Do labmates matter? The relative importance of workplace climate and work-life satisfaction in women scientists’ job satisfaction. International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology 7(3), 343-368. [Open access]
Archie, T., & Laursen, S. (2013). Summative Report on the Earth Science Women’s Network (ESWN) NSF ADVANCE PAID Collaborative Award (2009-2013). [Report to ESWN] Ethnography & Evaluation Research, Boulder, CO.
Executive summary only.
Full report with executive summary and methods appendix.
Archie, T., & Laursen, S. (2013, July). Evaluation Report: 2013 Career Development Workshop from the Earth Science Women’s Network “Building Leadership and Management Skills for Success,” June 10-11, 2013, Providence, RI. [Report to ESWN] Ethnography & Evaluation Research, University of Colorado Boulder.
Archie, T., Kogan, M., & Laursen, S. (2012, July). Evaluation Report: 2012 Career Development Workshop from the Earth Science Women’s Network “Skills for Networking and Communication,” June 4-6, 2012, Madison, Wisconsin. [Report prepared for ESWN]. Boulder, CO: Ethnography & Evaluation Research, University of Colorado Boulder.
Archie, T., Laursen, S., & Kogan, M. (2012). A balancing act: A quantitative analysis of the influence of work/life balance and work atmosphere on personal and professional success of women scientists. Abstract ED13A-0767 presented at 2012 Fall Meeting, American Geophysical Union, San Francisco, CA, December 3-7.
Kogan, M., & Laursen, S. (2011). Collaborative research: Facilitating career advancement for women in the geosciences through the Earth Science Women’s Network (ESWN). Evaluation Report: 2011 Professional Development Workshop.[Report prepared for ESWN] Boulder, CO: Ethnography & Evaluation Research, University of Colorado Boulder.
Kogan, M., & Laursen, S. L. (2011). Obstacles in advancement of young female geoscientists: Research results from the Earth Science Women’s Network (ESWN). Abstract ED23B-0617 presented at 2011 Fall Meeting, AGU, San Francisco, CA, December 5-9, 2011.
Kogan, M., & Laursen, S. L. (2010). Evaluating career development resources: Lessons from the Earth Science Women’s Network (ESWN). Abstract ED13A-0600 presented at 2010 Fall Meeting, AGU, San Francisco, Calif., 13-17 Dec.
Peer Mentoring for Women Faculty
The Horizontal Mentoring Alliances project is designed to facilitate the advancement of senior women chemistry faculty members at liberal arts institutions to the highest ranks of academic leadership by achieving four linked objectives:
helping senior women faculty articulate short- and long-range career goals and then formulate action plans to attain them;
helping senior women faculty achieve professional recognition or leadership roles in their departments, institutions, and professional organizations;
identifying and/or creating resources that address career development issues for senior women at liberal arts institutions; and
disseminating best practices on mentoring strategies for academic women.
The external evaluation sought to document progress toward these objectives, assess the relative effectiveness of each of the project’s strategies, and explore what issues may differ for women at liberal arts colleges as compared to those at Ph.D.-granting institutions—and which therefore may require different strategies to solve.
Hunter, A.-B. (2014). Summative Findings of the NSF PAID ADVANCE Horizontal Mentoring Alliances Initiative External Evaluation: Final Report. [Report to project PIs] Ethnography & Evaluation Research, University of Colorado Boulder.
Executive summary only
Hunter, A.-B. (2009). Qualitative Findings of the In-Depth Baseline Interviews and Written Responses to the Interview Protocol of Participants of the Horizontal Mentoring Alliances [Report to project PIs] Ethnography & Evaluation Research, University of Colorado Boulder.
StratEGIC Toolkit
ADVANCE Institutional Transformation
Underrepresentation in the Sciences
Student-Centered STEM Education
Out-of-School-Time Science Learning
UCB 580
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