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__label__wiki	0.917493	0.917493	<< Previous: College Football 201... \| Next: College Football 201... >> College Football 2018 Week 7 Preview Saturday, 2018 October 13 - 12:07 pm Michigan faces a test against Wisconsin; N.C. State has a bye; Penn State plays an important game against Michigan State. Michigan vs. Wisconsin, 7:30 PM ABC. Right off the bat I'm calling this the Game of the Week despite some other marquee matchups on the schedule, partly because I am a shameless homer, but also because ESPN is having GameDay in Ann Arbor and ABC has this as their prime-time night game. It's a key game in the Big Ten for both teams' Big Ten championship ambitions, and it figures to be an elimination game for the CFP. And for Michigan, it's the start of a grueling stretch of games, with Michigan State and Penn State on the path ahead. Michigan is undoubtedly playing well, but the level of competition has not been high since the opener. Meanwhile Wisconsin looks like their same-old behemoth-y selves, but their best win has come against a middling Iowa squad and they have a baffling loss to BYU in there too. Mostly to blame is the Wisconsin defense, which has been thinned by graduation and injuries this year, to the point where they're cobbling together walk-ons and underclassmen at DL and corner. They have a pair of thumping inside linebackers to lean on for their run defense, but their ability to cover receivers or generate a pass rush is very suspect. I'll be happy if we see a heavy dose of passing plays early in the game, with some play-action and counter run plays to punish their linebackers if they overreact. The Wisconsin offense should be sound, led by experienced junior quarterback Alex Hornibrook and a very talented sophomore tailback in Jonathan Taylor. This will be the Michigan defense's biggest test to date, particular with Michigan's injuries at the defensive tackle position. Bryan Mone's ability to hold up against Wisconsin's enormous offensive line, and to avoid exhaustion over the course of the day, will be key. So unlike the 10-7 type of slugfest we've seen in past years, this year's game could feature some explosive offensive plays on both sides. Don't be surprised if Jonathan Taylor breaks a long run, or if Shea Patterson finds Donovan Peoples-Jones on a deep post route. But then also don't be surprised if both teams try to grind out 15-play drives four yards at a time on the ground. Prediction: Michigan 27, Wisconsin 19. N.C. State: Bye State prepares for its monster game against Clemson next week. Penn State vs. Michigan State, 3:30 PM BTN Look, Michigan State is not a bad team. But they're not a good team either. This more looks like the bad-Sparty team we've known over the years, where offensive inconsistency proves to be ruinous instead of just mildly demoralizing. Michigan State has the country's #1 rushing defense, but this has come versus teams like Utah State (who scored 31 points despite rushing for only 25 yards) and Central Michigan (who is averaging just 120 yards per game rushing anyway). True, Northwestern only managed to rush for eight yards on 20 attempts, so it's not all smoke and mirrors. But I think the Spartans will be severely tested by both Miles Sanders and Trace McSorley on the ground; Penn State is averaging 261 yards per game rushing and that's not for nothing. The rest of MSU, meanwhile, has been pretty sad. The pass defense has been woeful. Look for McSorley to beat up on the MSU secondary with passes to KJ Hamler, who's averaging 23.7 yards per reception. Penn State has already had two 90-yard touchdown passes this season. State is near dead-bottom in rushing offense. (Remember when I said CMU only averages 120 YPG? MSU is averaging 123.) And Brian Lewerke has thrown for six interceptions on the year, against six touchdowns. MSU always has given PSU a good game, and they'll certainly be emotionally up for the game. But PSU will have a chip on its shoulder and something to prove after the loss to OSU. If this game goes PSU's way early, it could turn into a rout. Prediction: Penn State 44, Michigan State 12. Games to Watch on TV At noon... uh, go buy beer and wings? Not many compelling games in the early slate. I suppose you can watch Ohio State murder Minnesota on FS1, or see if Nebraska remains winless playing at Northwestern on ABC. At 3:30, Michigan State plays #8 Penn State on BTN. Plus, the almost-Game-of-the-Week is #2 Georgia at #13 LSU on CBS. LSU just lost to Florida and Georgia is undefeated, but this is game at The Swamp, and LSU has a much more impressive list of opponents to date that Georgia does. This could be entertaining. Meanwhile #7 Washington plays #17 Oregon on ABC/ESPN2, and a decent Baylor team plays #9 Texas on ESPN. So keep that remote control handy. At 7:30, you've got your #12 Michigan vs #15 Wisconsin game on ABC. There's a good late game as #19 Colorado will try to stay undefeated against USC. That's at 10:30 on FS1. Posted by Ken in: sports	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line408
__label__wiki	0.796055	0.796055	Doomstead Diner Daily » Doomstead Diner Daily Author Topic: Doomstead Diner Daily (Read 7961 times) Surly1 Re: That Syria move by Trumpy is not going to go as Trumpy and his Wrecking Crew hope Quote from: AGelbert on October 07, 2019, 05:30:55 pm Quote from: Surly1 on October 07, 2019, 06:42:00 am US to let Turkish forces move into Syria, dumping Kurdish allies read more: Doomstead Diner Daily 10/7 That Syria move by Trumpy is not going to go as Trumpy and his Wrecking Crew hope (i.e. distract from the Impeachment while strengthening Trump's election chances). Sure, the Fox News Spin Machine will try to celebrate "our troops coming home". So what happens now? It's a bit complicated but the end result of Turkey's (rather desperate, by the way) bellicose action is that the Kurds will actually gain more terrain, popularity and strength while Turkey's Trump clone legitimacy will be simultaneously severely eroded. Erdogan might even be replaced, but while that may happen within a year, I don't think it will happen during this latest Turkish attempt to engage in the genocide of the Kurds. What happens within turkey (Kurdistan?) remain s to be seen. But what the Syria/turkey announcement did is push this story off the front pages, and the corporate press eagerly complied. Except for Doc Maddow. Rachel Maddow just nailed it Bill Palmer \| 12:10 am EDT October 8, 2019 Palmer Report » Analysis Facebook ShareTwitter ShareEmail this articlePrint Article On Sunday night, the AP broke arguably the most important story in Donald Trump’s whistleblower scandal to date, when it reported that Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and Rick Perry were abusing their government positions to extort a Ukraine gas company into funneling money into the pockets of their allies. It was poised to dominate Monday’s news cycle and change the course of the impeachment narrative, until… well, Trump did something even worse. After Donald Trump announced that he was immediately and disastrously pulling all U.S. troops out of northern Syria, Palmer Report said this: “This Syria-Turkey stunt is to distract from last night’s AP bombshell that he and Rudy were trying to extort money out of a Ukrainian gas company. And it’s working – no one is covering this crucial story.” Sure enough, during the course of the day on Monday, the media (somewhat understandably) allowed the Ukraine gas company story to all but completely get lost in the shuffle. If Trump really did announce this stunt late last night in order to make sure the Ukraine bombshell got flushed out of the news cycle, it sure worked well. But then came Rachel Maddow. During her Monday evening show, she made a point of covering the Ukraine gas company story. She made it important, and she spelled out how Donald Trump is trying to redefine the word “corruption” so that it loses its meaning, even as he falsely accuses his adversaries of doing precisely what he and his camp are doing. Maddow nailed it. Hopefully, as the dust settles on Tuesday, the rest of the media will decide to make the Ukraine gas scandal important. TPTB cannot let go of those biosphere destroying ☠️ "high energy density" Hydrocarbons We'll see. Anything that has to do with hydrocarbon industry corruption fun and games is generally off limits to the U.S. media. The fossil fuel Government has some unwritten media coverage "rules" that must be obeyed... This Ukraine bit of 🦖Trump and 🦕Rudy Hydrocarbon Hellspawn corruption provides further evidence that Hydrocarbon LOVE is at the root of at least 90% of the ROT in the U.S. government. They just cannot let go of those biosphere destroying ☠️ "high energy density" Hydrocarbons. Is 👹 Jordan Peterson in rehab❓ Is Jordan Peterson in rehab? Mike Jones 👍 Mike Jones, Worked in technology for over 30 years. Answered Sep 21 Based on what I’ve read this morning, he is in some form of rehab to deal with an addiction to clonazepam, which he was prescribed after his wife was diagnosed with cancer. I wish Peterson the best, and sincerely hope that this experience will cause him to revisit some of his earlier work on how to deal with addiction, which was glib and judgmental. Well said. Let us hope Mr. (closet fascist apologist) Jordan Peterson gets off his high "pecking order top position justifies WHATEVAH BECAUSE YOU CAN" horse. Doomstead Diner Daily 10/11 I had to be out of the house by 5 every day this week, leaving no time for assemblymen bing a paper. Here's a late Friday edition. News digest brought to you by the Doomstead Diner. THE DAILY SCRUM KLEPTOCRACY Friday, Oct. 11, 2019 Ousted ambassador Marie Yovanovitch tells Congress Trump pressured State Dept. to remove her www.washingtonpost.com - By John Hudson , John Hudson National security reporter focusing on the State Department and diplomacy. Email Bio Follow Karoun Demirjian and Karoun Demirjian Congressional reporter focusing on natio… PG&E was once part of the climate-denial machine that helped fuel California's blackout crisis www.motherjones.com - The Camp Fire in Paradise, California in 2018.Neal Waters, ZUMA Rather than take the chance that its downed power lines would spark another blaze like last year’s Camp Fire, Pacific Gas and Electric … Trump Lawyer Rudy Giuliani Under Criminal Investigation nymag.com - The role of a defense lawyer is to help the client minimize or avoid legal jeopardy. Generally speaking, you do not want your lawyer himself to be the subject of a criminal investigation. Yet that is… Trump’s Betrayal of the Kurds May Be the Dumbest Move of His Presidency nymag.com - A few long years ago, Donald Trump overcame 16 other Republican candidates — and the unified opposition of the GOP Establishment — to win his party’s nomination. He then overcame the most well-funded… Trump Bored by His Own Speech, Just Wants to Talk About TV Shows nymag.com - Roughly half an hour into his rally in Minneapolis last night, President Trump was reciting his prepared remarks about the evil political establishment shipping jobs overseas and flooding your commun… Why Is William Barr Meeting With Rupert Murdoch? www.vanityfair.com - Donald Trump might not be president were it not for Fox News, the right-wing network that for years gave the blustery game show host a political platform and in 2016 promoted his long-shot candidacy.… Dark money is pouring in to protect the "worst energy policy in the country" www.motherjones.com - This summer, Ohio’s beleaguered nuclear and coal plants got a major gift in the promise of a big bailout. Now, the fight over that promise has escalated into one of the most dramatic and bizarre show… “Stand Down”: Ronan Farrow’s Producer on How NBC Killed Its Weinstein Story www.vanityfair.com - The next morning, after NBC put Ronan on the Today show to discuss our Weinstein reporting, we exchanged texts. “They’re panicked,” he told me. “I was on the phone w [NBC spokesman Mark] Kornblau and… Who's the secret Russian in the indictment of Giuliani's pals? We found some clues. www.motherjones.com - Booking photos of Lev Parnas, left, and Igor Fruman./AP When the US attorney for the Southern District of New York charged two associates of Rudy Giuliani and two other men on Wednesday with campaign… We found the corruption: Giuliani pals making shady donations to pro-Trump GOPers for Ukrainians www.motherjones.com - As Rudy Giuliani and Donald Trump squawk that the president’s quid-pro-quo-ish call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was only prompted by Trump’s heartfelt desire to address “corruption” i… The Actual Laws Trump Has Broken Amount to 10 Years in Prison theintercept.com - They are, however, indictable. A variety of felony criminal statutes plainly implicate Trump’s behavior, and come with lengthy prison sentences — the types of sentences doled out for high crimes, to … The average US worker would need 10 times the lengt qz.com - There are more people with a billion dollars today than at any other time in history. And there are more people with multiple billions of dollars too. A billion dollars sounds like a lot. But only wh… Court Ruling Shows How FBI Abused NSA Mass Surveillance theintercept.com - The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court found that the FBI may have violated the rights of potentially millions of Americans — including its own agents and informants — by improperly searching th… Study Predicts 'Frightening Future' for North American Birds, With Two-Thirds of Species Extinct by 2100 If Earth Warms More Than 1.5 Degrees www.commondreams.org - In a new study published Thursday by the National Audubon Society, scientists say that saving hundreds of bird species from extinction by the end of this century is entirely possible—but that without… Bloodied clothes and body bags: Kurds mourn dead in Syria www.theguardian.com - In a wooden hut at the back of a hospital, a woman cradled the head of a dead man and dabbed away grime and blood with a sponge. A blanket covered the man’s mutilated lower half. His blood-soaked mil… Some in Hong Kong Feel Frustrated, as their City is Losing to Mainland China www.unz.com - Hong Kong is losing to Mainland China. Its poverty rates are high, it suffers from corruption and savage capitalism. It is now the most expensive city on earth. People are frustrated, but paradoxical… Rethinking cities, from the ground up medium.com - Cities begin in the mind — or so thought Elias Canetti.¹ Ancient hunter-gatherers must have pondered the existence of collectives much larger than the ones they actually lived in. Proof, he felt, was… 13 stunning images that amplify the impacts of climate change www.mnn.com - From dirty drinking water and deforestation to plastic pollution and poaching, the environmental impacts of humans on the planet are often devastating. This year's winners and shortlisted finalists i… $1m a minute: the farming subsidies destroying the world - report www.theguardian.com - The public is providing more than $1m per minute in global farm subsidies, much of which is driving the climate crisis and destruction of wildlife, according to a new report. Just 1% of the $700bn (£… This Is What Adapting to Climate Change Looks Like www.theatlantic.com - Read: The simple reason that humans can’t control wildfires That is in part because blackouts—while not as deadly or terrifying as wildfires—are nonetheless expensive in their own right. Outages this… This bike lane is covered in solar panels. (It's also in the middle of a highway) www.mnn.com - Right in the middle of a highway is interesting placement for a bicycle lane. In South Korea, there's a solar bike path that shields riders from the sun while at the same time generating power from i… What Made Me Reconsider the Anthropocene www.theatlantic.com - Where, in my essay, I emphasized the potential transience of civilization, Wing and colleagues on the Anthropocene Working Group emphasize the eternal mark left on the biosphere, whether our civiliza… The Doomstead Diner is a hub for discussion and information pertaining to the ongoing Economic Collapse of the Industrial Economy. The Diner is the result of many years of discussion and debate on many other forums. At Doomstead Diner, our goal is to collate much of the information we can to assist in planning for the world to come. Doomstead Diner Daily 0/12 Saturday, Oct. 12, 2019 Turkey’s invasion of Syria puts Islamic State fight on hold at a critical time www.washingtonpost.com - By Liz Sly and Liz Sly Beirut bureau chief, covering Lebanon, Syria and the wider region Email Bio Follow Missy Ryan Missy Ryan Reporter covering the Pentagon, military issues and national security E… Trump says he is replacing McAleenan as acting homeland security secretary www.washingtonpost.com - Acting homeland security secretary Kevin McAleenan listens as President Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting in the White House on July 16. The president announced Friday that McAleenan is leaving t… How the War Against ISIS Was Won, Before It Was Lost www.theatlantic.com - If you ask an Istanbullu where to find plant food or pesticide, you will be directed to a shopping arcade in an underpass beside the Galata Bridge, in the neighborhood of Karaköy, where these items a… ‘‘The Public Is Clearly on the Side of Net Neutrality’ fair.org - Janine Jackson interviewed Free Press’s Craig Aaron about the net neutrality setback for the October 4, 2019, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript. Janine Jackson: A federal ap… Britain’s Pro-Brexit Press: When in Doubt, Blame the Irish fair.org - The Daily Express (10/4/19) defies the reality that Brexit has a great deal to do with Ireland. The deadline for Britain to come up with a deal under which it would exit from the European Union is le… An Unfaithful Servant of Imperialism: Why Trump Is Facing Impeachment www.mintpressnews.com - The United States has spent EIGHT TRILLION DOLLARS fighting and policing in the Middle East. Thousands of our Great Soldiers have died or been badly wounded. Millions of people have died on the other… Look who met 3 weeks ago to discuss and make plans for Syria – Putin, Erdogan, and Rouhani www.dailykos.com - Erdogan Iran Isis Kurds Recommended Russia Syria trump Turkey VladimirPutin HassanRouhani Tag History Syria created by Mark Lippman at 10/10/2019 07:03 AM Kurds Syria created by Mark Lippman at 10/10… Why Shep Smith finally walked out of Fox News for good www.cnn.com - Executives at the network leaned on him to stay, but to no avail. On Friday afternoon he announced his departure on the air, then exited the building immediately, clearly emotional about saying goodb… American brands are trying to play both sides of the Hong Kong-China conflict www.vox.com - Hong Kong’s massive anti-government demonstrations began in June, when protesters rallied against an extradition bill that could bring Hong Kong residents into mainland China’s legal system. Since th… Houthis Vow Retaliation As Saudi Naval Blockade Sparks Fresh Humanitarian Crisis in Yemen www.mintpressnews.com - SANA’A, YEMEN — Recent political developments have offered a glimmer of hope to some that the end of the humanitarian crisis in Yemen may be near. But a new report by the United Nations Development P… Indigenous-Led Protests Over Moreno's IMF Austerity Cuts Rock Ecuador www.mintpressnews.com - QUITO, ECUADOR — “We don’t have a state! We don’t have any state!” The lady’s voice projects through a loudspeaker amid the crowd. She’s not having it. Nor is the groundswell of hundreds, if not thou… Opinion \| U.S. foreign policy is for sale. Who else is buying? www.washingtonpost.com - By Anne Applebaum Anne Applebaum Columnist focusing on national politics and foreign policy Email Bio Follow Columnist October 11 at 4:08 PM Whether you are a Democrat or Republican, a pro-Trumper or… Mike Elk on GM Strike, Trinity Tran on Public Banking fair.org - This week on CounterSpin: One of the ways corporate media coverage of the now more than three-week-old GM strike is like coverage of every strike is the use, so common as to be invisible, of construc… ‘Dump Trump’ Protests to Counter Trump Rally in Minneapolis unicornriot.ninja - Minneapolis, MN – Large protests are expected today as Donald Trump is due to arrive at the downtown Target Center for a campaign rally promoting his 2020 presidential campaign. Many liberal, leftist… The Public Interest in Climate Change Reaches and All-Time High. Greta Thunberg Conquers the Memesphere cassandralegacy.blogspot.com - The Public Interest in Climate Change Reaches and All-Time High. Greta Thunberg Conquers the Memesphere Greta Thunberg is having a phenomenal success as climate messenger. Good targeting, flawless pe… Post-Capitalists Must Understand the Role of Migration in Global Capitalism \| naked capitalism www.nakedcapitalism.com - This is Naked Capitalism fundraising week. 1633 donors have already invested in our efforts to combat corruption and predatory conduct, particularly in the financial realm. Please join us and partici… ✨ More Proof that California knows what needs to be done and is doing it. swag (25,384 posts) Sat Oct 12, 2019, 12:27 AM California to end its use of 😈 private, 💵🎩 for-profit prisons by: DON THOMPSON and AMY TAXIN, Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California will ban the use of for-profit, private detention facilities, including those under contract to the federal government to hold immigrants awaiting deportation hearings, under a bill that Gov. Gavin Newsom said Friday that he had signed. The Democratic governor said the measure helps fulfill a promise he made to end private prison use, which he said contributes to over-incarceration and does “not reflect our values.” The state’s prison system was already phasing them out, despite having to comply with an inmate population cap imposed by federal judges. Immigrant advocates have praised the bill authored by Democratic Assemblyman Rob Bonta, which they said would put an end to almost all immigration detention in California in the next year. Read more: https://www.koin.com/news/national/california-to-end-its-use-of-private-for-profit-prisons/ https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142380323 Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 Can Extinction Rebellion Build a U.S. Climate Movement Big Enough to Save the Earth? theintercept.com - A crowd of about 200 black-clad members of the climate activist group Extinction Rebellion gathered Monday morning at the southern end of New York City’s financial district. Some held banners painted… U.S. forces say Turkey was deliberately ‘bracketing’ American troops with artillery fire in Syria www.washingtonpost.com - This picture taken Saturday near the Syrian border town of Kobane shows a U.S. observation post where the Pentagon said U.S. troops came under Turkish artillery fire on Friday. (Ozan Kose/Afp Via Get… Kurdish politician among nine civilians shot dead by pro-Turkey forces in Syria www.theguardian.com - Turkish-backed proxies leading a ground offensive on Kurdish-held border towns in north-eastern Syria have killed nine civilians including a female politician, a human rights monitor has claimed. The… Trump’s envoy to testify that ‘no quid pro quo’ came from Trump www.washingtonpost.com - By Aaron C. Davis and Aaron C. Davis Investigative reporter Email Bio Follow John Hudson John Hudson National security reporter focusing on the State Department and diplomacy. Email Bio Follow Octobe… PG&E Spent Billions on Lobbyists and PR Instead of Upgrades theintercept.com - Power shutoffs affecting more than 1 million residents, scheduled by PG&E this week throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and Northern California, have sparked a massive backlash, with many community… The Impeachment Loophole No One's Talking About \| Washingtonian (DC) www.washingtonian.com - A nugget of political arithmetic is suddenly everywhere: “Two-thirds majority.” This is the share of votes required to convict President Trump in an impeachment trial in the United States Senate. Tha… How two Soviet-born emigres made it into elite Trump circles — and the center of the impeachment storm www.washingtonpost.com - By Rosalind S. Helderman , Rosalind S. Helderman Reporter focusing on political enterprise stories and investigations Email Bio Follow Josh Dawsey , Josh Dawsey Reporter covering the White House Emai… www.washingtonpost.com - By Anne Applebaum Anne Applebaum Columnist focusing on national politics and foreign policy Email Bio Follow Columnist October 11 Whether you are a Democrat or Republican, a pro-Trumper or a never-Tr… Ex-Deutsche Bank exec says bank may have ‘destroyed’ copies of Trump’s tax returns www.rawstory.com - A former Deutsche Bank executive suggested that the financial firm may have “destroyed” physical copies of President Trump’s tax returns after the bank told a court that it no longer had them. Trump … The Cipollone Letter: Trouble in the White House Counsel’s Office www.lawfareblog.com - White House Counsel Pat Cipollone’s letter to the House leadership, declaring that the president will not cooperate in any impeachment inquiry, is an extraordinary document in more than one respect. … www.nytimes.com - Now that’s all changed. As The New York Times reported, after Trump recalled the U.S. ambassador, Lutsenko gloated to the head of AntAC that he had “eliminated your roof,” using Russian mafia slang f… BFP Exclusive: Syria- Secret US-NATO Training & Support Camp to Oust Current Syrian President www.newsbud.com - I have been closely following the situation and events in Syria as they unfold. In doing so I totally bypass what’s being misreported by the US mainstream media-Washington Post, New York Times, and t… Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Christopher Wylie: the cognitive segregation of America bigthink.com - I don't even know where to begin with this one. You've probably heard of Cambridge Analytica. Maybe you know they're a company that did some nefarious things involving facebook and the 2016 US presid… Haiti and the failed promise of US aid www.theguardian.com - When Bill and Hillary Clinton travelled to the Caribbean nation of Haiti as newlyweds in 1975, they were enchanted. Bill had recently lost a race for Congress back home in Arkansas, but by the time t… Billions face food, water shortages over next 30 years as nature fails www.nationalgeographic.com - A huge automated irrigation machine moves slowly over a potato plantation on reclaimed desert land in Egypt. A new model shows which areas of the world will be hit hardest by the changes to nature th… We’re About to Become People Fighting Desperately Fighting For Survival on a Dying Planet, and It’s Not Going to Be Pretty eand.co - You’d be forgiven, these days, for feeling a sense of near perpetual anxiety about a future melting away like an Antarctic glacier. Your anxiety is trying to prepare you for something. It’s going to … The mystery of the missing Leonardo: where is Da Vinci’s $450m Jesus? www.theguardian.com - Will it or won’t it appear? This is the question being asked across the art world about the Salvator Mundi - the first Leonardo to be discovered for more than a century - as the Louvre prepares for i… Google Is Funding Climate Change Denialism earther.gizmodo.com - Despite all it’s evidently performative public-facing climate change initiatives, Google is forking over “substantial” contributions to denier organizations and events. A report from the Guardian pub… International Rebellion - Extinction Rebellion rebellion.earth - Something is happening. You know it is, you can feel it. You are called on to be part of it. Because time is running out. We’re almost at the point of no return. The governments are doing nothing. Bu… World’s Biggest Pork Producer Warns of Bacon Shortage www.bloomberg.com - It’s scary news for bacon fans: The U.S. could see tight supplies, or even some shortages of pork bellies along with ham next year as the spread of a pig-killing disease in China ripples through the … Trump Country Begs for Clean Water \| DCReport.org www.dcreport.org - A rural water district in a northern Nebraska county that voted for Trump in the 2016 presidential election had to resort to setting up a gofundme account when a flood wiped out running water to half… Army deployed in Ecuador as protests descend into violence www.theguardian.com - President Lenín Moreno ordered the army on to the streets of Ecuador’s capital Quito after a week and a half of protests over fuel prices devolved into violent incidents, with masked protesters attac… Those Foreign Business Ties? The Trump Sons Have Plenty Too www.nytimes.com - Both sons have operated and promoted the Trump family business overseas during their father’s presidency, even as he retains ownership. And while the Trump and Biden father-son relationships differ i… An 8-year-old girl climbed an 18-foot replica of Donald Trump's 'un-climbable' border wall in seconds www.independent.co.uk - An 18-foot replica of Donald Trump's border wall has been scaled in a matter of seconds by novice climbers, an eight-year-old girl, and a man who returned for another attempt while juggling with one … The 10 countries with the most endangered species in the world energyskeptic.com - I don’t know whether to go to these countries to see these beautiful creatures before they’re extinct, or to spend my money on countries like Costa Rica and Tanzania that have set aside a quarter or … 18 killed, dozens injured as Typhoon Hagibis batters Japan \| Japan News www.aljazeera.com - At least 18 people have been killed and more than a dozen missing after the most powerful typhoon to hit Japan in decades paralysed the capital, Tokyo, and surrounding areas, causing rivers to overfl… The False Balance Between Fascists and Antifascists fair.org - Right-wing terror is a feature of daily life in present-day America. Ostensibly spontaneous violence incubates in the same ideological ecosystem as organized reactionary political associations. Tribu… Retired Marine Gen. John Allen: 'There is blood on Trump's hands for abandoning our Kurdish allies' www.cnn.com - Prior to Turkey's offensive last week, as a confidence building measure with the country, the US convinced the Syrian Kurds to dismantle their defensive fortifications along the border and pull their… Syrian army begins to move troops to 'confront' Turkey in northern Syria: state media - Reuters www.reuters.com - AMMAN (Reuters) - The Syrian army has begun deploying its troops to northern Syria battlefronts to “confront a Turkish aggression” on Syrian territory, state media said on Sunday. State media did not… The Trump-Blessed War in Northeastern Syria Is Already a Complete Disaster nymag.com - Less than a week after President Trump gave Turkey the green light to attack the U.S.-allied, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in northeastern Syria, the conflict in the border region has already… Macabre Video of Fake Trump Shooting Media and Critics Is Shown at His Resort www.nytimes.com - A spokesman for Mr. Trump’s campaign said he knew nothing about the video. “That video was not produced by the campaign, and we do not condone violence,” said Tim Murtaugh, the spokesman. A DeSantis … Opinion \| Trumpism’s Infinite Vulgarities www.nytimes.com - And many Southerners despised Northern liberals for seeming to encourage the ascendance of black people in the South. So, Southern states, beginning with Mississippi, called constitutional convention… Trump threatens to sue top Democrats Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi amid impeachment inquiry www.cnn.com - Washington(CNN) President Donald Trump threatened on Saturday night to sue top congressional Democrats Rep. Adam Schiff and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi amid the House impeachment inquiry into the Pres… Fact-Checking 5 Claims About the Impeachment Inquiry www.nytimes.com - “There’s no requirement in the Constitution that the House do anything specific, in any order, prior to voting to approve articles of impeachment,” said Stephen Vladek, a constitutional law professor… Joe Biden Is Right About The New York Times newrepublic.com - There’s no clear way out of this dynamic and it’s not obvious that it’s fully a problem. We value journalism, in part, because we hope, perhaps naively, that the material journalists put into the wor… The Myth of Judeo-Christian Values www.stonekettle.com - The ultimate value of life depends upon awareness and the power of contemplation rather than upon mere survival. -- Aristotle The ultimate value of life depends upon awareness and the power of contem… Trump’s former top Russia adviser to testify in House impeachment probe www.washingtonpost.com - By Karoun Demirjian Karoun Demirjian Congressional reporter focusing on national security Email Bio Follow October 14 at 7:58 AM Fiona Hill, the White House’s former top Russia adviser, is expected t… Spanish Supreme Court sentences Catalan separatists to prison, sparking protests www.washingtonpost.com - By Pamela Rolfe and James McAuley James McAuley Foreign correspondent focusing on French and European politics and culture Email Bio Follow October 14 at 6:23 AM MADRID — Spain’s Supreme Court senten… Firms ignoring climate crisis will go bankrupt, says Mark Carney www.theguardian.com - Companies and industries that are not moving towards zero-carbon emissions will be punished by investors and go bankrupt, the governor of the Bank of England has warned. Mark Carney also told the Gua… Homemade Bomb Detonated for First Time in Hong Kong Protests www.nytimes.com - Protesters have deplored the officers’ use of pepper spray and tear gas as excessive since the early days of the protests, but last week an 18-year-old high school student was shot in the chest by a … Crises in Iraq and Haiti expose the failure of militarized neoliberalism www.intrepidreport.com - This season could be called the Autumn of Discontent, as people from the Middle East to Latin America and the Caribbean have been rising up against corrupt neoliberal governments. 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Clearly sensitive about the critique that he was abandoning a longtime ally, he wrote that “anyone who wants to assist Syria in protecting the … Hikers, Trump, and the Capitalist Conspiracy to Ruin Public Lands theintercept.com - Last week, the Bureau of Land Management announced that it was transferring five parcels of federally owned land along the U.S.-Mexico border to the control of the U.S. Army so that it could be used … Kremlin Confident Turkey Will Soon Halt Syria Incursion www.voanews.com - MOSCOW - Russian officials say they expect Turkey to start halting soon its cross-border incursion in north-eastern Syria. They say Syria’s Kurds have agreed to shelve their plans for a self-governin… March to Protect The Sacred on Indigenous People’s Day 2019 unicornriot.ninja - Clearbrook, MN – On Indigenous People’s Day 2019, a coalition of climate activists will march to the Enbridge tar sands pipeline terminal located in Clearbrook, Minnesota. 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Another student want… Warren faces first sustained attack in debate that begins with unified condemnation of Trump www.washingtonpost.com - By Toluse Olorunnipa, close Toluse Olorunnipa White House reporter Email EmailBio BioFollow Follow Chelsea Janes and close Chelsea Janes Reporter covering the 2020 presidential campaign Email EmailBi… Giuliani pressed Trump to eject Muslim cleric from U.S., a top priority of Turkish president, former officials say www.washingtonpost.com - Rudolph W. Giuliani has said he does not need to register as a foreign lobbyist. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post) By Carol D. Leonnig, close Carol D. Leonnig National investigative reporter focus… Bernie Sanders’s Campaign Is Alive and Well nymag.com - Two weeks ago, Bernie Sanders’s 2020 campaign looked seriously unwell — and then, so did Bernie Sanders. As of October 1, the Vermont senator’s support in national polls had been stagnating for month… Warren Really Doesn’t Want to Talk About Middle-Class Tax Hikes nymag.com - You didn’t have to be clairvoyant to think that high-flying candidate Elizabeth Warren might have a bullseye on her back in the fourth round of Democratic presidential candidate debates in Ohio Tuesd… White House directed ‘three amigos’ to run Ukraine policy, senior State department official tells House investigators www.washingtonpost.com - By Paul Kane, close Paul Kane Senior congressional correspondent and columnist Email EmailBio BioFollow Follow Karoun Demirjian and close Karoun Demirjian Congressional reporter focusing on national … How Turkey’s Invasion of Syria Backfired on Erdogan www.counterpunch.org - Turkey’s Syrian venture is rapidly turning sour from President Erdogan’s point of view. 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General Assembly, and a large Ukrai… Trump’s Syria Exit Complicates Democrats’ Anti-War Stance theintercept.com - The Pentagon announced on Monday that the U.S. was pulling all of its troops out of northeastern Syria at President Donald Trump’s direction, completing a withdrawal he had started by Twitter declara… White House Is Said to Open Internal Review of Ukraine Call www.nytimes.com - Mr. Mulvaney’s role has also come under increased scrutiny. Ms. Hill testified that she and the former national security adviser John R. Bolton believed that Mr. Mulvaney and the ambassador to the Eu… Once Trump is gone, the U.S. must completely reform the presidency www.thelondoneconomic.com - However Donald Trump leaves the White House, whether through impeachment, defeat at the polls or (God forbid) after a second term, there will be a reckoning in U.S. politics. For nearly three years n… The Trump Administration Is Using the Full Power of the U.S. Surveillance State Against Whistleblowers theintercept.com - Government whistleblowers are increasingly being charged under laws such as the Espionage Act, but they aren’t spies. They’re ordinary Americans and, like most of us, they carry smartphones that auto… ‘This water belongs to our farmers’: Modi vows not a single drop of Indian water will flow to Pakistan www.rt.com - “For the last 70 years, the waters that belonged to India and farmers of Haryana were going to Pakistan. Modi will stop it and bring it to your households,” the PM promised during a rally at Charkhi … Republican Tax Law Has Cost Home Owners $1 Trillion \| DCReport.org www.dcreport.org - The 2017 Trump-Republican tax rewrite has cost home owners $1 trillion, reports noted financial journalist Alan Sloan for ProPublica and Fortune magazine. That massive number is the reduction in home… www.cnn.com - "NASA concluded that the LR had found a substance mimicking life, but not life," said Levin in his article. "Inexplicably, over the 43 years since Viking, none of NASA's subsequent Mars landers has c… Erdoğan’s calamitous Syrian blunder has finally broken his spell over Turkey \| Simon Tisdall www.theguardian.com - If Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey’s belligerent president, were a true patriot with his country’s security and wellbeing at heart, he would resign immediately. He has made an appalling hash of things. … Hong Kong is exporting its protest techniques around the world qz.com - The “Be Water” nature of Hong Kong’s protests—fluid, flexible, and fast-moving—has taken on a new form half way across the world in Catalonia: as a tsunami. After a Spanish court on Monday (Oct. 14) … ‘Upside-down rivers’ speed polar ice loss \| Climate News Network climatenewsnetwork.net - Researchers move closer to understanding the invisible dynamics that drive the loss of polar ice shelves – but what it means for global warming is still uncertain. LONDON, October 16, 2019 – Scientis… Panama Papers law firm Mossack Fonseca sues Netflix over The Laundromat www.theguardian.com - The partners of the offshore law firm whose confidential files were exposed in the Panama Papers leak, Mossack Fonseca, have launched defamation action against Netflix over a movie about the scandal … London Bans Extinction Rebellion Protests After Blackrock Offices Targeted www.zerohedge.com - London has become the first city in the world to ban environmental alarmist group Extinction Rebellion just one day after reports that they were targeting Blackrock offices in the progressive city. A… This Oil Spill Has Been Leaking Into The Gulf For 14 Years www.npr.org - The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement are using Ian MacDonald's data to estimate the amount of oil being spilled at the Taylor Ene… Re: Doomstead Diner Daily Read more October 16, 2019 Doomstead Diner Daily Good for Bernie Sanders! « Last Edit: October 16, 2019, 06:21:43 pm by AGelbert » AOC is endorsing him! Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019 US nuclear bombs at Turkish airbase complicate rift over Syria invasion www.theguardian.com- An estimated 50 nuclear bombs stored at a US airbase in Turkey have become potential bargaining chips in the tense relationship between Washington and Ankara in the wake of the Turkish offensive into… Furious commuters drag Extinction Rebellion protesters from top of Tube news.sky.com - Angry commuters have pulled Extinction Rebellion protesters from the top of a Tube as activists disrupted services across London. 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They are used to rapid fluctuations in the S&… Newly uncovered tax documents show Trump kept '2 sets of books' and may have committed financial fraud www.businessinsider.com - Newly uncovered tax documents from President Donald Trump contain several discrepancies that real-estate experts said could point to financial fraud, ProPublica reported on Wednesday. The documents o… Ancient Assyrian Tablets Seem to Contain References to a Massive Solar Storm gizmodo.com - Scientists report that they may have found the earliest written record of a solar storm in ancient Assyrian tablets. Recent analyses have found evidence of an extreme solar storm that left energetic … Climate Data Is Being Privatized. Will the Public Lose Out? undark.org - People watch a wildfire in the town of Rafina, near Athens, Greece on July 23, 2018. Extreme weather events are expected to become more common as the climate changes. 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It seems my rant yest… 'It's a crisis, not a change': the six Guardian language changes on climate matters www.theguardian.com - In addition to providing updated guidelines on which images our editors should use to illustrate the climate emergency, we have updated our style guide to introduce terms that more accurately describ… Michael Cohen’s testimony about Trump’s shady business practices just got strong corroboration www.vox.com - A new ProPublica investigation lends credence to a remarkable claim made by Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s former longtime personal lawyer and fixer, during his congressional testimony earli… Graham on Syria: 'could create bigger disaster than Obama leaving Iraq' - Middle East - Jerusalem Post www.jpost.com - Lindsey Graham . (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM) WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump on Wednesday played down the crisis in Syria touched off by Turkey's incursion against U.S.-allied Kurdish forc… The Real Reason Mahmoud Abbas Called for Palestinian Elections www.mintpressnews.com - On September 26, Abbas took on the world’s most important political platform, the United Nations General Assembly, to call for “general elections in Palestine – in the West Bank, including East Jerus… October: Growing preference for SUVs challenges emissions reductions in passenger car mark www.iea.org - A dramatic shift towards bigger and heavier cars has led to a doubling of the share of SUVs over the last decade (Photograph: Shutterstock) This commentary is derived from analysis that will be publi… LeBron Turns Out to Be Just Another Employee nymag.com - LeBron James is not a politician. This feels like a weird thing to have to say, even though, as I’ve argued in the past, maybe someday he should become one. But he’s going to be treated like one from… Re: Of Two Minds - Economic Decay Leads to Social and Political Decay By Charles Hugh Smith If you don't change the way "money" is created and distributed, you change nothing. Did the thousands of pages of financial regulations passed after the 2008-09 debacle reverse wealth and income inequality? The answer is no, wealth inequality is rising even faster after all the feel-good "reforms." The net result of the "reforms" is the costs of compliance for banks went up substantially, and that regulatory moat simply pushed risky lending outside the banking system. In other words, the sources of systemic instability and wealth inequality weren't even touched by the "reforms." If the financial system were actually stable, why was the Federal Reserve only able to "normalize" interest rates and its bloated balance sheet for a few months after a decade of "growth"? Why is the Fed reverting to "emergency measures" again after a few brief months of "normalizing"? If all these "reforms" were worth more than a bucket of spit, why isn't wealth inequality reversing? Here's the way our "money" system works: banks borrow trillions of dollars into existence and loan it to debt serfs at high rates of interest. Central banks create "money" out of thin air and distribute it to the very top of the wealth-power pyramid: banks, financiers and corporations. The only way to change this corrupt, exploitive system that generates inequality as its only possible output is to eliminate central banks and fractional reserve banking, and ban the aggregation of "too big to fail" entities: a system of 1,000 small banks is structurally far less vulnerable than five mega-banks that are tightly bound to virtually every risk-on asset in the entire system. if you don't change the way "money" is created and distributed, you change nothing. Since we're incapable of changing the sources of financial instability, fragility and inequality (because it would destabilize those benefiting from the status quo), we're doomed to watch our social and political systems decay and implode. True. It won't be long now.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line411
__label__wiki	0.559681	0.559681	Ebb’s Nook It’s a liminal place, this promontory. Existing at the point where the sky meets the land, the bay meets the open sea and — with the outline of the tiny 12th Century chapel walls still just visible under the soft turf — the past meets the present. Halfway along the spit, where the grasses meet the stones, it’s possible to see the two castles. To the north, Bamburgh: squat, solid, postcard-friendly but – whisper it if within earshot of the tourist board – much of it a Victorian replica; to the south, Dunstanburgh: leggy, wind-gnarled, broken, authentic. It was at this exact spot, some twelve years ago, that I proposed to my wife. (A point also then, perhaps, between youth and adulthood, between the single life and the married.) The sea here is ferocious, honing the knife blade-shaped rock more and more each year. From time to time, the erosion charms ancient objects up from the ground – in recent years, the 400 year old bones of children. The way to access the Nook is not obvious. Perhaps deliberately so. Unless you are approaching by sea — as it is said St Cuthbert himself did from the Farnes: a formidable journey by rowing boat— there are only two ways in: one through an opening next to a permanently locked wooden gate, the other, by way of a narrow twisting alleyway behind the lime kilns at Beadnell harbour. The kilns draw far more attention from visitors. By climbing up on the rises you can see long stretches in all directions, but I recommend rather you step down into the small hollow where the chapel once stood, and sit or lie on the soft, springy grass. Here, the wind drops away instantly and in the soporific warmth of a summer’s day, you can almost forget your proximity to the wild North Sea, just feet away. I have been here in all seasons, in all weathers. I nod to the occasional fisherman who stands heron-like at the water’s edge and greet the walker whose spaniel goes scurrying in and out of the tussocks in search of dog treasure. My wife is no longer able to come with me here. But sometimes when I stand halfway along, at the point where everything converges — even life and death — I meet her once again. Originally from Manchester, Tim Craig now lives in Hackney in east London. In 2018 he won The Bridport Prize for Flash Fiction and placed third in the Bath Flash Fiction Award. His story, ‘Northern Lights’ was recently selected for inclusion in the Best Microfictions Anthology 2019 and also the BIFFY50. Steven John – Features & Fiction Editor Place: Jan Turk Petrie	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line415
__label__wiki	0.683059	0.683059	Natural Sciences - Research article Chemical constituents of the ethyl acetate extract from the leaf of mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris L.) Truong Van Nguyen Thien Thien Tai Phan Tung Thanh Phan Lien Kim Thi Tran Nhu Tiet Thi Tran Phu Hoang Dang Linh Phi Nguyen Quang That Ton Issue: Vol 22 No 4 (2019) Page No.: 352-355 Section: Natural Sciences - Research article DOI: https://doi.org/10.32508/stdj.v22i4.1744 Introduction: Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris L.) is a familiar herbal medicine and also a daily vegetable. It is one of the ingredients in the famous remedy "Cao ích mẫu" specializing in menstrual disorders or the omelet with mugwort that helps save blood flow to the brain to treat headaches. In both traditional medicine and the new drugs, diseases are usually treated by mugwort as diabetes, epilepsy combination for psychoneurosis, depression, irritability, insomnia, anxiety, and stress. To demonstrate the medicinal uses, the chemical constituents of this herbal were continually studied. Methods: The leaves of mugwort were collected in Ba Ria - Vung Tau province, Vietnam. The plant was identified by the late pharmacist and botanist Binh Duc Phan. A voucher specimen (AV001) was deposited in the herbarium of the Department of Organic Chemistry, VNUHCM–University of Science. Dried leaf powder of A. vulgaris (11 kg) was extracted with methanol and evaporated under reduced pressure to give a methanol extract (910 g), which was dissolved in methanol-water (1:9) and then successively partitioned with petroleum ether, chloroform, and ethyl acetate. From the previously researched ethyl acetate fraction, nine compounds were isolated: six known phenolic compounds (luteolin, 6-methoxyluteolin, eupatilin, o-coumaric acid, vanillic acid, and protocatechuic acid), sinapyl alcohol diisovalerate, vulgarin, and one new compound (artanoic acid). Results: In this research, ethyl acetate fraction was also studied. From subfraction EA4, six compounds were isolated by three skeletons: phenolic compounds (5,4′ -dihydroxyflavone and 4-hydroxyphenyl acetate), phenyl propanoid (methyl 2-O-b -D-glucopyranosylcoumarate and 2-O-b -D-glucopyranosylcoumaric acid) and uracil (5-methyluracil and uridine). The structure of the isolated compounds was determined to base on 1D, 2D NMR spectra, HR-ESI-MS, and comparison with published data. Conclusion: Particularly, four compounds (methyl 2-O-b -D-glucopyranosylcoumarate, 2-O-b -D-glucopyranosylcoumaric acid, 5-methyluracil, and uridine) were known for the first time from this species. Keywords: mugwort Artemisia vulgaris L. flavone coumarin uracil Artemisia vulgaris L., a familiar herbal species in Viet Nam, is used in both traditional medicine and new drugs. Diseases are usually treated by mugwort as diabetes, epilepsy combination for psychoneurosis, depression, irritability, insomnia, anxiety, and stress 1 . The primary responsibility for these activities are constituents, such as flavonoids, coumarins, sesquiterpene lactones, volatile oils, inulin, and traces of alkaloids 2 . In the previous research of my group, three flavonoids (luteolin, 6-methoxyluteolin, and eupatilin), four phenolic compounds (o-coumaric acid, vanillic acid, protocatechuic acid, and sinapyl alcohol diisovalerate), and two sesquiterpene lactones (vulgarin and artanoic acid) are isolated from the ethyl acetate fraction 3 . In this study, the ethyl acetate fraction is continuously researched and six compounds are isolated, including methyl 2-O-β-D-glucopyranosylcoumarate (1), 2-O-β-D-glucopyranosylcoumaric acid (2), 5-methyluracil (3), uridine (4), 5,4′-dihydroxyflavone (5), and 4-hydroxyphenyl acetate (6). General experimental procedures The NMR spectra were acquired on a Bruker Avance III 500 MHz spectrometer with tetramethylsilane (TMS) as an internal standard, with chemical shifts expressed in d (ppm) values. The HR-ESI-MS were determined with a MicrOTOF QII mass spectrometer (Bruker Daltonics). Analytical and preparative thin-layer chromatography (TLC) were performed on precoated Merck Kieselgel 60 F 254 or RP-18 F 254 plates (0.25 mm or 0.5 mm thickness). The leaves of Artemisia vulgaris L. were collected at Lang Dai, Dat Do, Ba Ria - Vung Tau province, Vietnam on May 2011. The plant was identified by the late pharmacist and botanist Binh Duc Phan. A voucher specimen (AV001) was deposited in the herbarium of the Department of Organic Chemistry, VNUHCM–University of Science. Extraction and isolation From the ethyl acetate fraction in the previous research 3 , fraction EA4 (6.14 g) was subjected to silica gel column chromatography eluting with petroleum ether –ethyl acetate, followed by ethyl acetate –methanol with increasing polarity to yield six fractions (EA4.1 – 6). Fraction EA4.3 (300.6 mg) was separated over a silica gel column eluted with chloroform-methanol (from 9.5:0.5 to 0:10), as well as preparative TLC, eluted with petroleum ether–acetone (4:6) to afford 1 (6.0 mg), 2 (5.5 mg), and 6 (8.2 mg). Fraction EA4.4 (207.5 mg) was subjected to Sephadex LH-20 column eluted with methanol, and further fractionated by silica gel column chromatography eluted with chloroform– ethyl acetate (from 9:1 to 3:7) to obtain 3 (6.3 mg), 4 (4.0 mg), and 5 (4.5 mg). Six compounds ( 1 – 6 ) were isolated from the ethyl acetate fraction of the leaves of Artemisia vulgaris L. Compound 1 was obtained as a white amorphous powder, and its molecular formula was determined as C 16 H 20 O 8 by HR-ESI-MS analysis at m/z 341.1161 [M+H] + . The 1 H-NMR spectrum of 1 showed four signals of four aromatic protons at δ H 7.02 (1H, dd , 7.5, 7.5 Hz, H-5), δ H 7.19 (1H, d , 8.5 Hz, H-3), δ H 7.37 (1H, ddd , 8.5, 7.5, 1.5 Hz, H-4), δ H 7.71 (1H, dd , 7.5, 1.5 Hz, H-6). Furthermore, the 13 C-NMR and HSQC spectra showed aromatic carbon signals at δ C 115.5 (C-3), 122.3 (C-5), 128.7 (C-6), 132.1 (C-4), and two signals of quartet carbon at δ C 123.4 (C-1), δ C 156.1 (C-2). It demonstrated that 1 had a 1,2-di substituted benzene. There were two signals of two olefin protons, (E) configuration, at δ H 7.95 (1H, d , 16.0 Hz, H-7), and δ H 6.64 (1H, d , 16.5 Hz, H-8) with carbon signals at δ C 139.8 (C-7), δ C 118.7 (C-8); and a carboxyl group at δ C 167.3 (C-9). HMBC correlations between H-7/C-2, C-8, C-9; H-8/C-9 showed that 1 had the 2-h ydroxycinnamoyl skeleton. The signals of a methoxy group at δ H 3.70 (3H, s , H-10) and δ C 51.7 (C-10), correlated with C-9 in the HMBC spectrum ( Figure 1 ). Therefore, the methoxy group linked to the carboxyl group of the cinnamoyl skeleton. Figure 1 . Significant HMBC (→) correlations of 2-hydroxycinnamoyl skeleton. [Download figure] 1 H-NMR and 13 C-NMR spectra showed an anomer proton at δ H 5.00 (1H, d , 8.5 Hz, H-1′) and δ C 100.4 (C-1′). The HMBC correlation between H-1′/C-2, C-3′ showed that the sugar moiety linked to cinnamoyl skeleton at C-2. The above data compared with the published one indicated that 1 was methyl 2-O-β-D-glucopyranosylcoumarate 4 . Compound 2 was obtained as a white amorphous powder, and its molecular formula was determined as C 15 H 18 O 8 by HR-ESI-MS analysis at m/z 326.1033 [M] + , calcd 326.1002. The 1 H-NMR, 13 C-NMR spectra of 2 were similar to those of compound 1 . However, the lack of the methoxy group in compound 2 showed that it was a carboxylic acid. The comparison of the above data with the one in the literature 5 assigned 2 as O -coumarico glucosidase acid. Compound 3 was obtained as a white amorphous powder and its molecular formula was determined as C 5 H 6 N 2 O 2 by HR-ESI-MS analysis at m/z 127.0451 [M+H] + . The 1 H-NMR spectrum displayed four signals including two amide protons at δ H 10.56 ( b r), and δ H 10.97 ( b r), a methyl group at δ H 1.71 (3H, d , 1.0 Hz, H-7), and an olefin proton signal at 7.23 (1H, s ). The 13 C-NMR and HSQC spectra showed two signals of two carbonyl carbons at δ C 165.2 (C-2) and 151.7 (C-4), two olefin signals at δ C 108.2 (C-5) and 138.2 (C-6) and a methyl group at δ C 12.2 (C-7). The above information showed an uracil skeleton in compound 3. The HMBC correlations between H-7/C-5, C-6 confirmed the position of the methyl group on the C-5 of the uracil skeleton ( Figure 2 ). Figure 2 . Significant HMBC (→) correlations of uracil skeleton. Based on the above discussions and the comparison with the published ones 5 , the structure of 3 was 5-methyluracil. Compound 4 was obtained as a white amorphous powder and its molecular formula was determined as C 9 H 12 N 2 O 6 by HR-ESI-MS analysis at m/z 267.0628 [M+Na] + and m/z 245.0825 [M+H] + . 1 H-NMR, 13 C -NMR, HSQC spectra showed that compound 4 had the uracil skeleton as in compound 3. The 1 H-NMR spectrum showed an amide proton at δ H 11.29 ( b r), two olefin protons with the (Z) configuration at δ H 7.88 (1H, d , 8.0 Hz, H-6), 5.64 (1H, d , 8.0 Hz, H-5). The 13 C-NMR spectrum showed two olefin carbons at δ C 102.2 (C-5) and δ C 141.2 (C-6); two carbonyl groups at δ C 163.6 (C-2) and δ C 151.2 (C-4). In addition, there was an anomer proton at δ H 5.77 (1H, d , 5.5 Hz, H-1′) and five oxymethine proton of a sugar moiety at δ H 3.53–5.36 in the 1 H-NMR spectrum. The 13 C-NMR spectrum showed an anomer carbon at δ C 88.1 (C-1′), and four oxynated carbons at δ C 85.4 (C-4 ′), 73.8 (C-2 ′), 70.3 (C-3 ′) and 61.2 (C-5 ′). It demonstrated a sugar moiety in compound 4 . The HMBC correlations between proton H-6/C-2, C-4, C-5 and C-1′, proton H-5/C-2, C-6, C-1′, and the anomer proton H-1′/C-2, C-5, C-6, C-2′, C-3′, C-4′ showed that the sugar moiety linked to the first nitrogen of the uracil skeleton ( Figure 3 ). Figure 3 . Significant HMBC (→) correlations of compound 4 . The above data compared with the published one indicated that 4 was uridine 6 . Compound 5 was obtained as a yellow amorphous powder and its molecular formula was determined as C 15 H 10 O 4 by HR-ESI-MS analysis at m/z 254.0593 [M] + , calcd 254.0579. The 1 H-NMR spectrum displayed two signals of four aromatic protons of a 1,4-disubstituted benzene at δ H 7.91 (2 H, d , J= 8.5 Hz, H-2′ and H-6′) and 6.91 Hz (2H, d, J = 8.5 Hz, H-3′ and H-5′). Moreover, there were three signals of three aromatic protons of a 1,2,3-trisubstituted benzene at δ H 7.32 (1H, s , J = 2.5 Hz, H-8); 7.53 (2H, d, J = 7.5 Hz, H-6 and H-7) and an olefin proton at δ H 7.08 (1H, s , J = 2.5 Hz, H-3). The 13 C-NMR spectrum showed fifteen carbons: seven aromatic quaternary carbons (δ C 182.9, 167.4, 162.4, 158.3, 149.8, 120.7, 109.9), eight aromatic methine carbons (δ C 115.9 (C-3′, C-5′), 132.7 (C-2′, C-6′), 110.8, 130.2, 107.1 and 102.5). Based on the above discussions and the comparison with the published one 7 , the structure of 5 was 5,4 ′ -dihydroxyflavone. Compound 6 was obtained as a white amorphous powder, and its molecular formula was determined as C 8 H 8 O 3 by HR-ESI-MS analysis at m/z 175.0377 [M+Na] + , calcd 175.0371. The 1 H-NMR spectrum showed two signals of four aromatic protons of a 1,4-disubstituted benzene at δ H 7.44 (2H, d, J = 9.0 Hz) and 6.74 (2H, d, J = 9.0 Hz), one methyl group at δ H 2.01 (3H, s ), and one hydroxyl at δ H 8.93 (1H, s ). The 13 C-NMR spectrum showed four signals of six aromatic carbons (δ C 154.2, 121.7, 121.6, 115.8), one methyl group (δ C 24.0), and one carboxyl group (δ C 171.4). On the basis of the above discussions and the comparison with the published one 8 , the structure of 6 was 4-hydroxyphenyl acetate. From the leaves of Artemisia vulgaris L. collected at Ba Ria - Vung Tau province, six compounds were isolated, including methyl 2-O-β-D-glucopyranosylcoumarate ( 1 ), 2-O-β-D-glucopyranosylcoumaric acid ( 2 ), 5-methyluracil ( 3 ), uridine ( 4 ), 5,4′-dihydroxyflavone ( 5 ), and 4-hydroxyphenyl acetate ( 6 ). Compounds 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 were known for the first time from this species. 1D NMR : One-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance; 2D NMR : Two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance; 13 C-NMR : Carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance; 1 H-NMR : Proton nuclear magnetic resonance; HR-ESI-MS : High-resolution electrospray ionization mass; TMS : Tetramethylsilane; TLC : Thin-layer chromatography; EA : Ethyl acetate; HMBC : Heteronuclear Multiple Quantum Coherence. The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest. Truong Van Nguyen Thien, Thien Tai Phan, Tung Thanh Phan, Kim Lien Tran Thi, Nhu Tiet Thi Tran, and Phu Hoang Dang have contributed in conducting experiments, getting hold of data and writing the manuscript. Linh Phi Nguyen, Quang Ton That have contributed significantly explanation of data and revising the manuscript. Walter H L, Memory P F, Elvin L. Medical Botany, 2nd Ed.. . 2003;345:. Google Scholar Bamoniri A, Mirjalili BBF, Mazoochi A, Batooli H J. Chemical composition of Artemisia Vulgaris L. from Kashan area isolated by nano scale injection. Iranian Journal of Organic Chemistry. 2010;2:533-536. Google Scholar Thien T V Nguyen, Tran LTK, Tran NTT, Duc T P, Do LTM, Tu D D, Kim P P Nguyen, That QT. A new eudesmane-type sesquiterpene from the leaves of Artemisia vulgaris. Chemistry of Natural Compounds. 2018;54:66-68. Google Scholar Purohit M C, Rauat MSM, Pant G, Nautiyal A K, Sakakibara Kaiya T. A methyl ester of melilotoside from the sapwood of Prunus cornuta. Phytochemistry. 1993;32:431-432. Google Scholar Kan S, Chen G, Han C, Chen Z, Sibirium X. Chemical consituent from the roots of Xanthium sibirium. Natural Product Research: Formerly natural product letters. 2011;25:1243-1249. Google Scholar Zhang X, Wang J, Xu Y W. Systematic assignment of NMR spectra of 5-substituted-4-thiopyrimidine nucleosides. Magnetic Resonance in Chemistry. 2013;51:523-529. Google Scholar Ibrahim A R, Abul-Hajj YJ. Aromatic Hydroxylation and Sulfation of 5-Hydroxyflavone by Streptomyces fulvissimus. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 1989;55:3140-3142. Google Scholar Cepanec I, Litvić M. Simple and efficient synthesis of arbutin. Arkivoc. 2008;:19-24. Google Scholar Author's Affiliation Faculty of Chemistry, University of Science, VNU-HCM Email I'd for correspondance: ngttvan@hcmus.edu.vn Google Scholar Pubmed aculty of Chemistry, University of Science, VNU-HCM Central Laboratory for Analysis, University of Science, VNU-HCM Copyright: The Authors. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License CC-BY 4.0., which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Nguyen Thien, T. V., Phan, T., Phan, T., Kim Thi Tran, L., Tiet Thi Tran, N., Hoang Dang, P., Nguyen, L., & Ton, Q. (2019). Chemical constituents of the ethyl acetate extract from the leaf of mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris L.). Science and Technology Development Journal, 22(4), 352-355. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.32508/stdj.v22i4.1744 Article level Metrics by Paperbuzz/Impactstory Article level Metrics by Altmetrics HTML = 249 times Download PDF = 43 times View Article = 0 times Total = 43 times	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line418
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__label__wiki	0.954976	0.954976	Turning away evil an ordeal EDITORIAL 05/14/2011 Turning away evil an ordeal The Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) presents a quandary for every new administration. The agency’s obsolescence is so palpable that many has sought its abolition, which is also among the pledge that helped put Noynoy, of his “straight path” crusade, in Malacañang. Then comes the day Noynoy is president and suddenly the PCGG abolition is under review again. Lately, the Palace has issued an executive order directing the PCGG to order its nominees, who are presumably holdovers from the previous administration, to vacate their positions among sequestered firms. They will be replaced by new appointees, all allies of Noynoy. That is what is usually called political patronage as well the spoils from the victor distributed as rewards to his allies..... MORE Weder-weder lang yan FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 05/14/2011 Weder-weder lang yan Malacañang’s logic truly escapes me. Just the other day, still reacting to the plea bargain deal entered into between the Ombudsman and retired Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia which was approved by the Sandiganbayan, Noynoy’s mouthpiece Edwin Lacierda was quoted as saying that the plea bargain must be scrapped, even after the Sandiganbayan approved it, and despite the fact that the principle of double jeopardy stands in the way. But the Palace insists on this being scrapped because it sends a wrong signal to government officials to steal, since they can always plead guilty to a lesser offense of graft, by forging a plea bargain deal with the Ombudsman. But Noynoy and his boys, claiming that they are outraged at the anti-graft justices’ decision to uphold the plea deal, continue to make it a big issue. Lacierda said Noynoy finds the Sandiganbayan resolution totally “unacceptable” and “legally wrong” because it would encourage more government officials to steal big time since they now have the option to forge a plea bargain deal with the Office of the Ombudsman and insisting that the Sandiganbayan ruling “should be reversed.”.... MORE Women speak in support of reproductive health bill MANILA – Editha Balolong is just 28 years old and yet she already has six children. She gave birth to her sixth child at Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital last May 3. She was supposed to have a tubal ligation after giving birth but she was advised to come back on June 14th instead because of bleeding. “I worried over our bill. I already had two blood transfusions,” Balolong lamented. The two bags of blood she was given amounted to at least P1,000 ($23). Editha Balolong, 28 with her newborn son. (Photo by Anne Marxze D. Umil / bulatlat.com) Balolong had to stay in the hospital from May 3 to May 7. Her husband is “just a pedicab driver earning P250 a day($5.81).” They have five other children to feed; two to send to school. Balolong is a housewife. “No one would look after the kids if I go off to work,” Balolong told Bulatlat.com. She and other mothers from the marginalized sectors are in need of accessible and affordable reproductive health services. House Bill 4244 or the Responsible Parenthood Bill, also called the Comprehensive Reproductive Health Bill, the bill so maligned by the influential Catholic Church and pro-life advocates, would have provided funds for implementing health service programs if passed. It will make available what mothers like Balolong sorely needed. To help mothers like Balolong, the Gabriela Women’s Party (GWP) provided medical assistance to 100 mothers who gave birth during Mother’s Day last May 7 and 8 at Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital. The P1,000 ($23) medical assistance came from GWP’s Priority Development Assistance Fund. According to GWP, for the year 2011 the government budget on health services allocated P351 ($8) for every woman or a meager P0.96 per day. With 11 mothers dying everyday due to complications arising from pregnancy and giving birth, GWP has vowed to steadfastly campaign for enacting HB 4244. But so did its opponents. The anti-RH Bill advocates have been conducting prayer rallies against the passage of the RH bill. On May 9, the Catholic Church conducted a National Day of Prayer outside the House of Representatives “to invoke divine intervention and guidance for legislators to reject a birth control measure.” The Catholic Church can instead help mothers Recently the Catholic Church has ended its talks with Malacañang saying President Benigno S. Aquino III has decided that he will support the passage of the RH Bill. GWP Rep. Luz Ilagan and Rep. Emmi De Jesus visit new mothers at Dr. Fabella Memorial Hospital, May 7. (Photos by Anne Marxze D. Umil / bulatlat.com) GWP Rep. Luz Ilagan, on the other hand, said that instead of turning its back on dialoguesthe Catholic Church should review their hard-line stance and take a closer look at the needs of their flock. “The Catholic Church leadership has long admitted that there are some among their ranks who favor the RH Bill. This is largely because priests and lay people who are grounded and closely working with the poorest communities are aware of the urgency of having a national policy that will ensure the delivery of health services to many Filipino women and their children. They know that the absence of an RH policy endangers the lives of women and their children especially during pregnancy and childbirth,” said Gabriela Rep. Ilagan. Ilagan added that Catholic community can contribute in crafting a Reproductive Health policy that is genuinely pro-poor and responsive to the needs of marginalized women and their children. She encourages the Catholic community to join the plenary debate over the RH Bill. “We urge the Catholic community to actively participate in crafting a national policy on women’s reproductive health on the framework that full access to healthcare services is a universally recognized right and that population control is never to blame for and should not be a panacea to the country’s worsening poverty.”.... MORE URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/ A first hand experience with Oplan Bayanihan The solidarity mission went to Pantabangan to document the conditions of the Igorot community who are being displaced from the land they have been tilling. The team did not expect that they would experience what the Igorots have to put up with in their struggle for land. Sidebar: For two Igorot women, a constant struggle to survive Sidebar: Imprisoned for refusing to leave their land PANTABANGAN, Nueva Ecija — Early morning of May 2, I rode a bus to Cabanatuan City to join a solidarity mission organized by Alyansa ng Magbubukid sa Gitnang Luson (AMGL). The mission aims to conduct an investigation on the conditions of an Igorot community being displaced by projects under a public-private partnership project. On board two jeepneys from Cabanatuan City, the team, composed of some 30 individuals from peasants, indigenous peoples, human rights groups and church-based organizations, went straight to Pantabangan Municipal Hall in Nueva Ecija for a courtesy call with the local mayor. After waiting for more than an hour for a certification from the mayor, we travelled for more than an hour and reached Lower Tuli subvillage, Villarica village shortly before dark. Two local radio journalists, both women, joined us. We saw a group of local folk standing outside their nipa huts. When we stepped out of the vehicles, we saw a dozen men, wearing shirts and shorts, hammering pieces of wood. One was wearing a black sleeveless shirt printed with the word “Army.” Hanging in one of the huts was a banner with the words: “Welcome, Bayanihan Program. Mamulat, Makiisa at Makialam para sa Mapayapa at Maunlad na Lipunan.” On another hut was a banner of the Spartans of the 81st Infantry Battalion of the 7th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army based in Sto. Nino 2, San Jose City, Nueva Ecija. Joseph Canlas, AMGL chairman and Sr. Cecille Ruiz, chairwoman of Karapatan-Central Luzon and Antonio Flores of Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) approached the men who introduced themselves as soldiers of the 81st IBPA. Canlas asked for the commanding officer. 2nd Lt. Titus Eleven Canedo presented himself, saying he is in charge of the project. When asked, Canedo said they have been staying in the area for five days and that they are building a multipurpose hall. He instructed another soldier to take photos of the “visitors.” At that moment, I was holding a camera, taking photos. Canedo looked at me and asked for my identification. He held my press card and read my name aloud. He asked what Bulatlat is and I answered. Canlas said I am not the only journalist in the group and that we were invited to cover the solidarity mission. Not long, a man wearing a cap and a shirt with the words “I Heart Peace” joined us. He introduced himself as Capt. Elmar Salvador, commanding officer of the Spartans team. Immediately, he patted the back of one of the male members of the delegation and told him: “I heard what you said to Tatang (old man) earlier. Your words were striking.” Later on, I would learn that the delegate told the old man that there is no change under the new administration. Canlas, speaking to Ruiz, said that during our arrival, Salvador merged himself with the local residents. Defensive, Salvador said he was only talking with the people. Then he suddenly touched his shirt and said,“This is our shirt.” Canlas went on explaining that the mission wanted to interview the residents regarding their land problem. “Go on. I will not meddle with you,” Salvador said. Salvador said they are there for the Bayanihan program initiated by the chief executive. “We want to experience how to live as normal Filipino citizens, that we also belong to society,” he said. He went on saying that they are there to organize the community. The conversation lasted for a while until the leaders of the solidarity team ended it. Soldiers of the 81st Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army build multipurpose hall in a far-flung village in Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija.(Photo by Ronalyn V. Olea / bulatlat.com) Before dusk, I and two other members of the team saw two soldiers in full battle gear, brandishing long firearms, roaming around the community of less than 50 households. Another member of the team, the driver of one of the jeepneys, said he saw at least 30 soldiers, also in full battle gear, not far away from the center of the community. The solidarity mission team decided to stay for the night. The road back to the town proper is dangerous. We occupied the small wooden church of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP), a few meters away from where the soldiers were staying. There is no electricity. We lit a bonfire and had dinner, rice and mongo with sardines and squash. The laughter of children playing failed to ease the tension in the air. It took time before residents came near the church to talk to the members of the solidarity team. We knew that some of the soldiers in civilian clothes were listening to the discussions about the problems of the community..... MORE URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/05/13/a-first-hand-experience-with-oplan-bayanihan/ Removal of Sandiganbayan justices in Garcia plea bargain pushed “It sends the message that it is okay to steal the people’s money for as long as you admit your crime when caught and just return a small amount from what you stole.” – Pagbabago By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL and INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO MANILA – The immoral and unpatriotic act of the Sandiganbayan justices must be condemned. This was the reaction of Pagbabago! People’s Movement for Change spokesman Fr. Joe Dizon, to the approval by the Sandiganbayan of the plea bargain agreement with retired AFP comptroller Major General Carlos Garcia last Monday, May 9. The Sandiganbayan Second Division approved Garcia’s plea bargain, saying that the evidence against him was weak. And that Garcia had “complied with its conditions –pleading guilty to lesser offenses of direct bribery and facilitating money laundering, and transferring P135.433 million ($3.14 million) of his and his family’s assets to the state.” It will be remembered that Garcia and former Ombudsman Ma. Merceditas Navarro-Gutierrez struck a plea bargain agreement wherein the government commits to withdraw plunder charges in exchange for a guilty plea for the lesser offense of direct bribery. Because of the deal submitted to the Sandiganbayan for approval, Garcia was allowed to walk out of his Camp Crame detention cell after posting a bail of P60,000 ($1,395) on December 18 last year, two days after he pleaded guilty to direct bribery during his re-arraignment for that lesser offense. Lawmakers actively involved in the congressional investigations into Garcia’s case are also vehement in their protest against the Sandigabayan decision. They said that the Sandiganbayan violated its Constitutional mandate. “The Constitution mandated the Sandiganbayan to give life to the fundamental principle that public office is a public trust, through the prosecution of civil and criminal cases involving graft and corrupt practices and other offenses committed by public officers. Sandiganbayan Second Division unanimously, but suspiciously and hastily, approved the plea bargain agreement. It previously denied Garcia’s petition for bail on the charge of plunder, thereby declaring that the evidence of guilt was strong. In a turn-around, however, it justified its latest decision to approve the plea bargain by declaring that the prosecution’s evidence was weak. This decision is prejudicial to the interest of the Filipino people,” Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casino said. Progressive lawmakers condemn the Sandiganbayan decision upholding the plea bargain agreement with Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia.(Photo by Ina Alleco R. Silverio / bulatlat.com) Casino and other lawmakers in the progressive bloc of the Makabayan Coalition — Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares, Anakpawis Rep. Rafael Mariano, the two Gabriela Reps. Luz Ilagan and Emmi de Jesus, Kabataan Rep. Raymond Palatino, and Alliance of Concerned Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio — are calling for the resignation of Sandiganbayan justices. namely Presiding Justice Edilberto Sandoval, Justice Teresita Diaz Baldoz and Justice Samuel Martirez. ‘Sandiganbayan justices should resign’ “The Sandiganbayan justices have betrayed their mandate to give life and meaning to the constitutional precept that a public office is a public trust and to impress upon public officers and employees that they are at all times accountable to the people with their duty to serve with the highest degree of responsibility, integrity, loyalty and efficiency,” the lawmakers said..... MORE URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/05/13/groups-call-for-removal-of-sandiganbayan-justices-who-approved-plea-bargain-with-garcia/ Proposed Department of Housing promotes homelessness, privatization of public housing “Like its predecessors, the Aquino government is abandoning its responsibility to provide social services to its poor constituents … By partnering with the private sector in building public housing, it can be expected that the government will confine its function to that of an enabler which is limited to policy formulation and program monitoring.” MANILA — Employees of the National Housing Authority (NHA) are against plans of the Benigno Aquino III government to privatize housing services and to create a Department of Housing and Urban Development. They were joined by residents from urban poor communities in Quezon City and Metro Manila in a protest last May 8 in front of the House of Representatives. Rosalinda Nartates, president of the the Consolidated Union of Employees-NHA is adamant in protesting against the proposed agency, saying that it is all part of a privatization scheme. Public housing under the proposed DHUD, she said, will become more profit-oriented than it already is. NHA employees and urban poor organizations under the Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay) have been fighting against moves to privatize public housing and legislative proposals on the same since the year 2000 and since the 9th Congress. Nartates also said that their stand against the DHUD also had to do with the proposed reorganization of the seven key shelter agencies. In the line of fire are the jobs of at least 5,000 employees. Priority measure The proposed DHUD is among President Aquino’s 12 priority bills that he presented to the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) in its February meeting. Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr said that the bill is among the four “Human developments bills” the Aquino administration is determined to have passed into law. Employees of the National Housing Authority led by their union Consolidated Union of Employees-NHA lead protests against the privatization of public housing and proposals for the creation of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. (Photo by Ina Alleco R. Silverio / bulatlat.com) To be merged are the Key Shelter Agencies (KSA)—Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC), Mutual Fund Development Corporation (PAG-IBIG fund), Home Guarantee Corporation, Housing and Urban Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB), National Home Mortgage and Finance Corporation and the NHA.The NHA is the government’s lead agency and corporation engaged in direct shelter provision. Former president and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her sons Mikey and Dato are behind the first DHUD bill, HB384, which they filed on the very first day of the 15th Congress. It calls for the creation of the DHUD and the consolidation and coordination of five key shelter agencies. HB 1231 by Quezon City Rep. Winnie Castelo and HB 2216 by Mindoro Rep.Rodolfo Valencia also aim for the creation of DHUD..... MORE URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/05/13/proposed-department-of-housing-promotes-homelessness-privatization-of-public-housing/ Aquino’s ‘universal health care’ a sham — health workers “The number one threat to Filipino health and job security is the US-Aquino Regime,” whose PPPs “result in privatization, in the abandonment of health as a right of the people, and in denying health workers decent wages and jobs.” – Health Alliance for Democracy. MANILA— “Other people including graduates of ‘mere four-year-courses’ are earning higher salaries than me,” said a trained surgeon working for years now at a district hospital in a province north of Manila. He said that lack of doctors in their hospital has also forced him to work on “all kinds of cases and not just on an operating table.” Today, he admitted that he is applying for a job abroad. As a surgeon, he thought his career is also in danger here as a new regulation is “being cooked up” by the PRC (Professional Regulations Commission) in Manila requiring people like him to become member of a certain society of surgeons first, before he can renew his license. Still, this doctor went to Manila and braved the scorching summer heat to join his colleagues from different hospitals and practices in commemorating the National Health Workers’ Day last May 7. The Health Workers’ Day main program peaked at high noon at the Mendiola Bridge. Almost a year into Aquino’s presidency, health workers complained they “still suffer from low salaries, inadequate benefits and understaffing,” a plight some of them had thought would change under President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. In his election campaign, Aquino was reputedly the only candidate who had promised to take care of public health. But today, a year into his presidency, a bigger allocation of the public purse has been going to militarization and debt servicing rather than public services such as health, said the health workers’ groups. (Photo by Marya Salamat / bulatlat.com) To finance health, Aquino increasingly turns to PPPs (public-private partnerships), which, the health workers’ groups said, are treating health services as “profitable” ventures rather than public services. They said the PPPs make health services available but costly to average Filipinos. An elderly public hospital employee who went on leave to join her fellow health workers in their nationwide protest told Bulatlat.com they had “really believed things would be different with Aquino. But here we are again,” she said, “asking for the same things.” In commemorating the National Health Workers’ Day last May 7, health workers held a protest caravan from the Lung Center of the Philippines, early morning, stopped for a brief program in front of the University of Sto.Tomas in España, then proceeded by midday to their main program at the Mendiola Bridge near Malacañang. The health workers are demanding a salary increase of P6,000 ($139.75) per month. The Alliance of Health Workers (AHW) said they conducted the Health Workers Day protest also to “continue the fight for jobs, rights and health of the people.” Health services for profit, low salaries for health workers “If President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III had really wanted to substantially increase the government employees’ wages, why doesn’t he just give the wage hike in its entirety under the Salary Standardization 3 (SSL-3)?” asked Jossel Ebesate, nurse at the Philippine General Hospital and new national president of the Alliance of Health Workers (AHW)..... MORE URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/05/12/aquinos-universal-health-care-a-sham-%E2%80%93-health-workers/ Noy threatens sedition; Bishops recall Marcos By Aytch de la Cruz 05/14/2011 AMID THREAT OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE BY PRO-LIFE GROUPS Noy threatens sedition; Bishops recall Marcos By Aytch de la Cruz 05/14/2011 President Aquino and leaders of the Catholic Church appeared to have burned their bridges over the Reproductive Health (RH) bill debate after Aquino threatened to file sedition charges against the Church-backed critics of the bill who will call for civil disobedience while bishops welcomed the threat and described Aquino as sounding like former President Ferdinand Marcos, the political nemesis of his mother former President Corazon Aquino. Aquino said anybody who plans to join pro-life non-government organizations’ (NGOs’) reported bid to launch a civil disobedience campaign by refusing to pay their taxes once the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) bill is enacted by Congress may face sedition charges. Aquino told reporters during a visit to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) that anyone who threatens not to honor tax liabilities constitutes a very serious offense which is punishable under the law. “I think sedition would be the charge that will be filed for your not doing your civic obligation,” he said..... MORE AI: Rights abuses persist under Aquino 05/14/2011 AI: Rights abuses persist under Aquino Human rights abuses persist under the administration of President Aquino while hundreds of cases of rights violations committed under the previous administration remain unresolved, London-based Amnesty International (AI) said in its latest Report 2011. Amnesty International Philippines director Aurora Parong said extrajudicial executions by security forces and armed groups belonging to political clans continue with impunity. She added almost no perpetrators of more than 200 cases of disappearances and at least 305 extrajudicial killings during the term of former President Arroyo have been brought to justice. The report noted that at least 305 cases of extrajudicial execution (with some estimates ranging as high as 1,200) also remain unresolved..... MORE Phivolcs records 11 volcanic quakes around Taal, Mayon By Jason Faustino 05/14/2011 Phivolcs records 11 volcanic quakes around Taal, Mayon State seismologists recorded at least 11 volcanic quakes around Taal Volcano in Batangas and Mayon Volcano in Albay in the last 24 hours. According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), both the alert level at Taal and Mayon volcanos remain the same at “2” and “1,” respectively. “Taal Volcano’s seismic network recorded 11 volcanic earthquakes during the past 24 hours,” Phivolcs said in its Friday update for Taal. It said the alert level remains at “2,” meaning magma has been intruding toward the surface as manifested by the continuing high emission rate of carbon dioxide being released in the Main Crater Lake and sustained seismic activity..... MORE ‘Bebeng’ kills 31, destroys P300-M infrastructure, agricultural products By Mario J. Mallari 05/14/2011 ‘Bebeng’ kills 31, destroys P300-M infrastructure, agricultural products The death toll brought about by tropical storm “Bebeng” has reached 31 while more than P300 million in infrastructures and agricultural products were destroyed and nearly 500,000 people were affected by the havoc in several regions. Reports from the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) yesterday showed that Region V or Bicol Region suffered the highest number of fatalities with 24 and 16 came from Camarines Sur; six in Albay, and one each in Catanduanes and Masbate. Regions III, VII and the National Capital Region (NCR) recorded one fatality each while Region VIII accounted four deaths. Nine persons were also reported injured while three remained missing. A total of 84,587 families, composed of 422,456 individuals, were affected by Bebeng which battered six regions with heavy rains and strong winds from Monday to Wednesday when the tropical storm left the country. A total of 66 municipalities and five cities were affected by flooding and landslides..... MORE ‘Gas subsidy to benefit oil firms only’ 05/14/2011 ‘Gas subsidy to benefit oil firms only’ The gas subsidy is benefiting oil companies more than the jeepney and tricycle drivers for which the program is intended. According to Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño, the gas subsidy had better be given to the drivers in cash to be spent for the needs of their families rather than an augmentation for their fuel consumption. “On the overhyped ‘additional’ P50 increase in Pantawid Pasada smart cards — Mabuti pang ibigay na lang ng gobyerno ang cash direkta sa drayber para makapahinga sila ng isang araw habang may pambili ng pagkain para sa kanilang pamilya,” Casiño said yesterday. Casiño explained under the current program, the Aquino government, is giving oil companies more opportunity to earn more as the whole amount of the subsidy amounting to P134.4 million will end up with the oil companies..... MORE It’s final: Comelec recount confirms Lim won over Atienza 05/14/2011 It’s final: Comelec recount confirms Lim won over Atienza It’s final. The Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday confirmed Mayor Alfredo Lim won over former Environment Secretary Lito Atienza by an unprecedented margin during the May 2010 mayoral fight in Manila. This was announced yesterday by Lim’s chief of staff and media bureau chief Ric de Guzman who said based on the ballots from the total number of clustered precincts reported, which is 200, Lim garnered 65,375 votes while Atienza got a measly 20,340.a The remaining 12,427 votes were spread over the other candidates. In terms of percentage, De Guzman said 66.61 percent of the ballots recounted went to Lim while Atienza garnered 20.73 percent only, slightly bigger than the 12.66 percent that went to other candidates..... MORE Weder-weder lang yan FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivare... Women speak in support of reproductive health bill... Removal of Sandiganbayan justices in Garcia plea b... Proposed Department of Housing promotes homelessne... Aquino’s ‘universal health care’ a sham — health w... Noy threatens sedition; Bishops recall Marcos By A... AI: Rights abuses persist under Aquino 05/14/2011... Phivolcs records 11 volcanic quakes around Taal, M... ‘Bebeng’ kills 31, destroys P300-M infrastructure,... ‘Gas subsidy to benefit oil firms only’ 05/14/201... It’s final: Comelec recount confirms Lim won over ...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line432
__label__wiki	0.851397	0.851397	From bad to worse EDITORIAL 05/22/2011 The Palace line on damaging survey results seems to have not changed since the days of Gloria. Confronted with a poll outcome showing a slide in the rating would then be met by “the data used were outdated” in Gloria’s watch now it is “expect an improvement next year.” The style was slightly different but the gist stays which was that the figures in the survey were not reflective of the true worth of the current administration. Also the focus would be on some obscure figures that show something positive or a limited portion of the survey that provides a positive data..... MORE Fishy is, as fishy does FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 05/22/2011 Fishy is, as fishy does It was suspicious enough that Dinky Soliman’s budget for the conditional cash transfer (CCT) was increased to an exorbitant P21 billion for the year, amid claims that the number of beneficiaries from the poorest of the poor would be increased to 2.3 million. Now however, Dinky, aided by Budget Secretary Butch Abad, says that P2 billion more is needed for the program, despite admission that the number of beneficiaries remained the same, plus the fact that only 1.9 million families have been identified as beneficiaries, along with the report that some 1,500 families have been delisted, as they were claimed to be well-off. Two things are crystal clear: One is that the CCT program is not being implemented well and there is a highly questionable and non-transparent way in the disbursement of the cash grants. As things stand, only about 1.7 million families reportedly have received the CCT funds, which raises the question of where the rest of the money went, since more billions are needed, apart from which, not all the 2.3 million family-beneficiaries have been identified..... MORE Spain’s ‘youth without a future’ take to the streets focus 05/22/2011 Spain’s ‘youth without a future’ take to the streets MADRID — They call themselves “youth without a future” — young Spaniards frustrated by their inability to start a career, earn a steady wage and move out of their parents’ homes. And for the past week they have fuelled nightly demonstrations in Madrid and dozens of other towns and cities as part of a grass-roots protest movement organized on the Internet that has tapped into long-simmering grievances which have worsened with Spain’s economic crisis. The demonstrations ahead of local elections on Sunday have drawn tens of thousands, including unemployed of all ages and pensioners angry over the government’s economic policies. But young people make up the vast majority. Paula Mendez Sena, a 24-year-old architect by training, said she was taking part because she has been unemployed since graduating. Her 25-year-old partner who has an engineering degree is also out of work..... MORE Mediocrity, incompetence, disability VIEWPOINTS Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz 05/22/2011 Mediocrity, incompetence, disability In all human ventures — especially those affecting the good and welfare of others — there are basically three qualifying degrees pointing out the performance rating of one behind the said human agenda. In their descending order, they are thus customarily known: Mediocrity. Incompetence. Disability. They are readily relevant and applicable to anybody heading a family, to somebody managing a business, and especially so to someone having a leadership position in a community and other human endeavors — with bigger or lesser social impact on others. It can be thus also said that as a matter of course, the respective opposites of the said negative traits are excellence, proficiency, adeptness. Mediocrity is what characterizes leadership with but barely a passing mark. It is leadership that is neither here nor there, that is neither all good nor all bad. It barely delivers what is desired in the same way that it barely stops what is unwanted. Following are some of the words commonly used to describe the reality: Passable. Pedestrian. Inconsequential..... MORE Man returns to desolate Argentina town after flood FEATURE 05/22/2011 Man returns to desolate Argentina town after flood VILLA EPECUEN — In a town all but destroyed when its salt lake overflowed over three decades ago, the desolation is surreal: From silvery-white empty houses and hotels to trees, stark and dead; and one lonely man who calls this home. Once a lake country spa town south of Buenos Aires, Epecuen is a lagoon with a salinity level only topped by the Dead Sea. For decades, tourists visited to take its waters believing they were good for one’s health. Everything came crashing down in 1985 when a long period of heavy rains sent the lagoon bursting over its banks, and it swept over a busy small town. “I had a bunch of cats and dogs, and they ran away a couple days before the flood and I never saw them again,” Norma Berg, 48, told AFP, recalling her childhood spent here, until the flood..... MORE La Vista cat killer BLURBAL THRUSTS Louie Logarta 05/22/2011 La Vista cat killer The last “summer extravaganza” for Senate press corps members (there are supposed to be around 100 of them coming from the various print, radio and television outlets) that was held in the Liquid Pool and Lounge at the Manila Ocean Park, Luneta is said to have been one great, big flop. Despite the great amount of time and effort expended by the media relations officers of some senators to ensure its success, the so-called press outing — which was originally designed to promote camaraderie and bonding among the numerous newsmen assigned to cover the Senate beat and thank them for their work during the previous session and also entice them to write more compassionate stories about the senators in the future — fizzled out because there were only about 15 reporters and photographers who turned up for the affair last May 6, a Friday. The said outing was scheduled only at the Luneta Ocean Park due to the assumption that the Merci Gutierrez impeachment trial would be pushing through, thus an out-of-town gimmick was ill-advised. As told to us by some insiders, the latest bash, which lasted all of six interminable hours, totally paled in comparison to past summer outings that were usually overnight affairs organized by the staff of individual senators, where the Senate reporters could eat, drink and carouse to their hearts content, as if it were the last day of the world..... MORE Roxas has Chief of Staff post in bag, says Palace By Aytch S. de la Cruz 05/22/2011 Roxas has Chief of Staff post in bag, says Palace Former Sen. Manuel Roxas II has the Chief of Staff post in the bag and he is expected to assume his position holding an office inside Malacañang by the first week of June, deputy presidential spokesman Abigail Valte told reporters yesterday. Valte said President Aquino will sign and release the Administrative Order (AO) restoring the defunct Office of the Presidential Chief of Staff to accommodate his losing running mate within two weeks. The posting of Roxas as Chief of Staff has come under intense attack from both critics and allies of Aquino, saying the position is clearly a political accommodation since the current political setup makes the position redundant and that it is expected to heighten the friction among the different factions within the Palace. Aquino met with Roxas last Friday but neither Valte nor presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda was able to provide reporters substantial details on what transpired during the meeting since it was private..... MORE Palace remains evasive on calls to oust Diokno 05/22/2011 Palace remains evasive on calls to oust Diokno Malacañang remained ambiguous on the sanctions that may be imposed on Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Director Ernesto Diokno despite mounting calls for his resignation over the reported special treatment extended by jail authorities to homicide convict and former Batangas Gov. Jose Antonio Leviste. Deputy presidential spokesman Abigail Valte said Justice Secretary Leila de Lima is expected to submit her recommendations to President Aquino in the coming days and she advised the public and other government officials concerned to just wait until that document reaches Malacañang. Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada called on BuCor director, retired Chief Supt. Ernesto Diokno, to immediately resign from his post amid the Leviste incident. He also sought a full investigation of the so-called “VIP (very important person) treatment” at the National Bilibid Prisons..... MORE Migrant group pushes probe of Labor execs in Mideast 05/22/2011 Migrant group pushes probe of Labor execs in Mideast An alliance of overseas Filipino migrants group yesterday asked Congress to conduct an investigation into the alleged involvement of some members of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in the Middle East in human smuggling. “These reports must be investigated, after gathering (pieces of) evidence, we hope it will lead to filing of appropriate charges against these erring overseas Labor officials,” John Leonard Monterona, Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator, in a statement, said. The group urged Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz to file an administrative and appropriate criminal case against erring officials in Kuwait who are accused of accepting bribe from recruitment agents..... MORE Bill seeks retraining, fixed salaries for bus drivers By Charlie V. Manalo 05/22/2011 Bill seeks retraining, fixed salaries for bus drivers In the wake of the spate of vehicular accidents in some of the country’s main thoroughfares involving buses, more lawmakers are proposing that bus drivers undergo retraining programs and be given a fixed monthly salary. Yesterday, PBA Rep. Mark Aeron Sambar joined the list of lawmakers clamoring for the twin proposals as he filed House Bill 4459, saying the government should adopt urgent measures to prevent the unabated road accidents involving buses. Under the bill to be known as the Competence Accreditation Program and Minimum Wage for Bus Drivers Act of 2011, drivers will get proper training and will be subjected to an accreditation program before being allowed to ply the streets. “Bus drivers are notorious for reckless driving habits of swerving their way through busy traffic or careening through open highways,” Sambar said..... MORE Binay: Businesses should take care of workers 05/22/2011 Binay: Businesses should take care of workers Vice President Jejomar Binay last Friday urged businessmen to take care of their workers by ensuring compliance with accepted wage and other labor standards. “You must take care of your labor force. Labor is the creator of capital. Without labor, there will be no capital,” Binay said in a speech during the induction of officers and trustees of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry at the Marco Polo Hotel in Cebu City. “Within President Aquino’s Labor Agenda, the issues of minimum wage, social protection, workplace safety, compliance of labor standards and security of tenure stand as concrete considerations. It is here where I ask that you consider devoting your efforts,” he said..... MORE Lawmakers buck move banning tricycles, pedicabs from highways, major thoroughfares By Charlie V. Manalo 05/22/2011 Lawmakers buck move banning tricycles, pedicabs from highways, major thoroughfares Lawmakers yesterday called on the government to conduct studies and public consultation with the people, stakeholders and the local government units (LGUs) before initiating a ban on tricycles and pedicabs on highways and major thoroughfares to prevent road accidents. ACT Rep. Dante Antonio Tinio said the move will dislocate thousands of tricycle and pedicab drivers who rely solely on plying the street as their source of income. Tinio was reacting to the statement of Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo calling on local chief executives and members of the local legislative councils to ban tricycles and pedicabs from national roads..... MORE BI set to deport American wanted in Brazil for investment scam 05/22/2011 BI set to deport American wanted in Brazil for investment scam The Bureau of Immigration (BI) is set to deport next week an American wanted by Brazilian authorities for defrauding investors of millions of dollars in stock investment scam. Immigration Commissioner Ricardo David Jr. instructed the bureau’s legal and investigation division to expedite the summary deportation proceedings against the suspect identified as William Preston Strong, 54. Strong was arrested by operatives of BI Interpol Unit headed by Bernard Cruzata in a Boracay resort in Malay, Aklan last May 6. He is presently detained at the bureau’s detention facility in Bicutan, Taguig City pending issuance of a deportation order by the BI Board of Commissioners..... MORE Fishy is, as fishy does FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Oliv... Spain’s ‘youth without a future’ take to the stree... Mediocrity, incompetence, disability VIEWPOINTS Ar... Man returns to desolate Argentina town after flood... La Vista cat killer BLURBAL THRUSTS Louie Logarta ... Roxas has Chief of Staff post in bag, says Palace ... Palace remains evasive on calls to oust Diokno 05... Migrant group pushes probe of Labor execs in Midea... Bill seeks retraining, fixed salaries for bus driv... Binay: Businesses should take care of workers 05/... Lawmakers buck move banning tricycles, pedicabs fr... BI set to deport American wanted in Brazil for inv...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line433
__label__wiki	0.691607	0.691607	Syndicated hypocrisy CROSSROADS Jonathan De la Cruz 06/04/2012 Syndicated hypocrisy Syndicated hypocrisy. This is all that we can say after the President’s men hemmed and hewed and mouthed all those evasive non-sequiturs when challenged by the press to do a Corona, i.e., fully disclose their SALns for the past five years and issue an unconditional waiver on the opening of their bank accounts for proper public scrutiny. It is regrettable if not laughable that these honorable men and ladies should be issuing out almost the same arguments to evade the issue, leading some observers to note that just as they practiced syndicated relegation of the Rule of Law in their anti-Corona campaign they have now morphed into syndicated hypocrites unworthy of public servants. “We are not the ones on trial here,” lead House prosecutor and Iloilo Rep. Niel Tupas Jr. said adding that anyway his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net worth (SALn) has been deposited with the House secretary general acting as custodian of all such documents for the members. When told that the secretariat needed his approval of such a disclosure he just walked away as if hearing nothing at all. Why, the guy even had the temerity to insist that he and his colleagues would not “dignify” Corona’s challenge and dismissed it as “grandstanding.” Is that not hypocrisy of the highest order? Which is precisely what his colleague, Kabataan party-list Rep. Raymond Palatino said after releasing his own SALn and signing an unconditional waiver on his bank records..... MORE After the big show DIE HARD III Herman Tiu Laurel ... Clashing figures EDITORIAL 06/04/2012 Willful violation of the Charter FRONTLINE Ninez C... Joining voices and efforts for the dissolution of ... U.S. behind the crash of Russian plane Syndicated hypocrisy CROSSROADS Jonathan De la Cru... Defense pact up in senior RP military, civilian of... Shortages woes, K+12 to greet school opening By Ja... Fight for transparency only just begun — Corona By... Palace admits waiver clause in SALn ‘not unconditi... Estrada seeks cuts to labor chief’s power over dis... BI adopts stricter rules in registering, issuing v... Cops, troops deployed on opening of classes By Mar...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line434
__label__wiki	0.791491	0.791491	Posted by Russell Warne \| Jun 16, 2018 \| Reviews, Utah County \| 0 OREM — My biggest worry as I write about Hale Center Theater Orem’s Annie is that I will run out of synonyms for “good” as I describe this production. Perhaps because I had never seen the show on stage before, I was unprepared for the barrage of delightful scenes, entertaining dances, and superb performances in this production. Show closes August 11, 2018. Annie tells the story of an eternally optimistic orphan girl who spends Christmas with the wealthy billionaire Oliver Warbucks. After she spends a week in his home, Warbucks decides to adopt Annie, but not before searching for her birth parents. David Morgan‘s direction of this production was absolute perfection. Whether it was the grittiness of Hooverville, or the organized chaos of busy New York City streets, Morgan was excellent at establishing the right mood for every scene. His staging for the radio station scene was full of little bits of stage business that added layers of humor and character, even when the actors weren’t speaking. Indeed, I cannot imagine any way to improve upon Morgan’s directing in any scene. Morgan had the help of a top-notch design team that created the entire range of the American socioeconomic scale in the 1930’s. Most instrumental to this were Kris Hansen-Call‘s costume designs. From the tattered and patched orphan girls’ nightgowns in the opening scene, to the opulent suits and stylish dresses of Warbucks and his secretary, every costume was pleasing to look at while also conveying important information about each character. The Hooverville costumes were grimy and added a bit of drab realism to the otherwise bright, cheery story. And the matching servants’ costumes in Warbucks’s mansion were smart and elegant. The projections (probably created by technical director Cole McClure) were another asset to the play, especially in “N.Y.C.” and in Warbucks’s house, scenes where the projections created the illusion of space on the small Hale stage. Madilyn Terry as Annie. Photo by Suzy Oliveria. Madilyn Terry played Annie with nonstop appeal. In her first scene, she sang “Maybe” with confidence, and—despite her age—seemed completely comfortable performing on the stage. Terry’s performance only improved from there, and the emotional connection she made with Oliver Warbucks (played by Benjamin J. Henderson) ensured that the heart of the story was readily accessible. Henderson, for his part, was ideal for the role of Oliver Warbucks. His confident bearing and take-charge attitude made him convincing as a billionaire tycoon. Henderson infused life and realism into his character. This was especially apparent in the second act, where Henderson showed his character’s heart open up, which made the following scenes where he connects with Annie much more believable. I also appreciated how Henderson’s rendition of “N.Y.C.” sounded like a love letter to the city. Another memorable performer in the cast was Bonnie Wilson Whitlock as Miss Hannigan. Her lanky frame and expressive face made her dancing in “Easy Street” and “Little Girls” visually appealing. Like Henderson, Whitlock also avoided playing a caricature, and it was nice that Whitlock made Miss Hannigan’s alcoholism a legitimate coping mechanism, instead of a cheap laugh. The Annie ensemble and other supporting actors were all splendid, and I apologize now for not naming every cast member who impressed me. Jessica Pearce (as Grace Farrell) and Wade Robert Johnson (as Rooster) were fun to watch as they plotted to defraud Warbucks of his money, and their brassy performance of “Easy Street” (with Whitlock) was so wonderful that I started hoping that these devious antagonists would succeed in their scheme. The adult ensemble all played multiple roles, and every actors moved in and out of their different roles with ease. JD Ramey was a funny as Bert Healy, the smarmy and radio announcer that could turn off and on his on-air persona at will. The quiet performance of Shawn Lynn as Drake (the head butler) was formal and yet whimsical, and I couldn’t get enough of his daffy mannerisms. But the real charmers of this production were the children’s ensemble, which consisted of six young female actresses playing the orphans. Their passion during “Hard Knock Life” injected vigor and life into the show and provided for a strong opening for the production, thanks to the precision with which they executed Ashley Gardner Carlson‘s choreography. Finally, Kelsey Plewe (playing Molly) frequently stole the scene because she was so cute and because she could match the talent of her fellow actors, despite being the youngest actor in the show. It’s embarrassing how much a hardened 30-something-year-old critic could enjoy the Orem Hale’s production of Annie. This show is brimming with so much optimistic that it disarmed my cynicism and filled me with hope for “Tomorrow,” even during these turbulent times. Annie is the ideal family outing, but also the perfect antidote for adult cynicism. Annie plays nightly (except Sundays and July 4) at 7:30 PM and Saturdays at 3 PM through August 11, with 11 AM Saturday matinees starting July 7 at Hale Center Theater (225 West 400 North, Orem). Tickets are $14-24. For more information, visit www.haletheater.org. Donate to Utah Theatre Bloggers Association today and help support theatre criticism in Utah. Our staff work hard to be an independent voice in our arts community. Currently, our goal is to pay our reviewers and editors. UTBA is a non-profit organization, and your donation is fully tax deductible. Tags: adaptation, annie, ashley gardner carlson, benjamin j. henderson, Bonnie Wilson Whitlock, charles strouse, cole mcclure, comedy, david morgan, hale center theater orem, JD Ramey, jessica pearce, Kelsey Plewe, Kris Hansen-Call, Madilyn Terry, Martin Charnin, musical, Thomas Meehan, Utah County, Wade Robert Johnson PreviousNothing revolting about Tuacahn’s MATILDA NextDon’t neglect THE WHO’S TOMMY at the Ziegfeld Russell Warne Russell Warne is the president of Utah Theatre Bloggers Association. Before reviewing theatre he was a performer, music director, and technical crew member on many productions. He has been a member of the American Theatre Critics Association since 2012. He is a psychologist in his day job. Finding connections in Wasatch Theatre Co’s A BRIGHT NEW BOISE The tragedy of LADY MACBETH Find hilarious Christmas cheer in HOW THE GROUCH STOLE CHRISTMAS “Act with speed” to see ELECTRA	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line450
__label__cc	0.577839	0.422161	New Reads 6 Recent Book Releases We’re Excited About Inventive Chinese-American recipes, cocktails you prep in advance, books on creativity and design, and more. Raj Eiamworakul In the course of writing about all the awesome items we come across here on T&T, we often find out about great books months before their release. While we have more than enough entertainment options to keep us happy in the meantime, the anticipation for each upcoming book is always there, buzzing in the back of our minds. Here are half a dozen such books that have finally seen the light of day, and we think you’ll be just as into them as we are. (Note: As it happens, none of these are fiction stories, but there’s a pretty good mix otherwise.) A Velocity of Being by Maria Popova and Claudia Bedrick. A Velocity of Being » Released just a few months ago on New Year’s Eve 2018, A Velocity of Being: Letters to a Young Reader by Maria Popova (of Brain Pickings fame) and Claudia Bedrick (of indie publisher Enchanted Lion Books) is a lovely project with a wonderful message that was eight years in the making. The pair reached out to a number of interesting and inspiring people — from writers to artists to scientists to entrepreneurs to philosophers and beyond — inviting each to write a short letter to the young readers of today and tomorrow about the power of books and what they do for the human spirit. These luminaries include the likes of Jane Goodall, Neil Gaiman, Ursula K. Le Guin, Rebecca Solnit, Yo-Yo Ma, Judy Blume, Debbie Millman, David Byrne, and many more. Artwork by Sophie Blackall (left) and Oliver Jeffers (right) Each of the 121 letters that made it into the book are accompanied by a piece of original artwork, with contributions from illustrators, cartoonists, and graphic designers like Sophie Blackall, Oliver Jeffers, Isabelle Arsenault, Sean Qualls, Jon Klassen, Shaun Tan, Olivier Tallec, Tomi Ungerer, Christian Robinson, Marianne Dubuc, Chris Ware, Lisa Brown, Liniers, Carson Ellis, Mo Willems, Peter Brown, Maira Kalman, and Art Spiegelman. Artwork by Kenard Pak (left) and the Fan Brothers (right) In a blog post about the book, Popova writes: Because this project was born of a deep concern for the future of books and a love of literature as a pillar of democratic society, we are donating 100% of proceeds from the book to the New York public library system in gratitude for their noble work in stewarding literature and democratizing access to the written record of human experience. I invite you to enjoy A Velocity of Being: Letters to a Young Reader and gift it to every reader in your life, young and grown, knowing that each copy will contribute to the thriving of the public library system that ensures equal access to books for all, and that the letters and art on these pages will — I hope, I trust — long outlive us all, delighting and inspiring generations to come. Get the book in just one format: Hardcover ($23) Double Awesome Chinese Food: Irresistible and Totally Achievable Recipes from Our Chinese-American Kitchen by Margaret, Irene, and Andrew Li. Double Awesome Chinese Food » I got to look through (and cook from!) an advance copy a few months ago and it’s as awesomely delicious, smart, and inspiring-yet-down-to-earth as the restaurant is (I.E. double awesome). Strong recommend. —J. Kenji López-Alt Margaret, Irene, and Andrew Li are the exuberant sibling trio behind the acclaimed Boston-based Chinese restaurant and food truck catering business, Mei Mei. After several years of success in the restaurant world, the three of them have decided to publish a cookbook full of inventive Chinese-American recipes you can feel comfortable making at home, and have fun doing it: Take the Double Awesome: flaky scallion pancakes stuffed with two oozy eggs, sharp cheddar, and garlicky pesto; could there be anything better? Ridiculously delicious and unexpected dishes like Cranberry Sweet and Sour Stir-fried Pork and Red Curry Frito Pie will become new staples for your cooking lineup. Throw a hands-on dumpling-making party and let your friends decide whether to serve them chewy and pan-seared or crackly and deep-fried. Packed with pro-cooking tips, sauces to amp up any meal, sustainable sourcing advice, and over 100 delicious recipes, this book is your ticket to making the Chinese food of your dreams any night of the week. As quoted above, J. Kenji of Serious Eats fame — not to mention author of the stupendous The Food Lab — has already given it his seal of approval, which is all the evidence one should need before adding it to their cookbook collection. The Human Body Book, 3rd Edition by Richard Walker. The Human Body Book, 3rd Edition » Know somebody studying for medical school, or simply a science-fascinated young pupil with a deep interest in human biology? They are gonna love the third edition of Richard Walker’s The Human Body Book, released only a month ago. This classic reference book has been updated to reflect the latest medical information: The opening chapter, Integrated Body, explains how the parts of the body work together at various levels of size and hierarchy to produce the living whole. It also contains an overview of the major body systems, enlivened by real-life 3D medical scans of the entire body. The chapters that follow provide coverage of the body function by function, system by system. Eleven main body systems are covered in turn, with each section ending on common injuries, diseases, and disorders afflicting that system. The book concludes with a chapter on Growth and Development which looks in detail at how the body changes over the course of a human lifespan. My own son can attest to the awesomeness of this book. It’s got waaay more detail about…well, the human body than you thought you’d ever need to know. Excellent stuff. Colormorphia coloring book by Kerby Rosanes. Colormorphia » Kerby Rosanes is an illustrator from Manila known for his best-selling Morphia coloring book series, which feature dazzling illustrations of fantastical creatures, mythological figures, and stunning landscapes that practically explode with intricate details for you to color to your heart’s content. Animorphia Imagimorphia Mythomorphia Fantomorphia Geomorphia Some selections from the Morphia series, both finished and unfinished. Released a month ago, Rosanes latest in the series, Colormorphia, is a compilation of the most striking images from the books above. If you’ve never gotten the chance to buy one of the Morphia books, this is a great way to try them all at once. From the book description (all bold emphasis mine): Colormorphia is a selection of Kerby Rosanes’s most remarkable artwork, featuring a stunning, full-color sixteen-page section at the beginning of the book that displays some of the most accomplished completed artworks produced by Kerby’s fans. These demonstrate the range of approaches colorists can experiment with when coloring. Kerby comments on the styles and the results, describing why they work so well. The artworks displayed in the color section are included in the black-and-white section of the book, too, giving the reader the opportunity to duplicate the approach should they wish. In addition, there are a variety of images to color featuring the very best from Kerby’s Morphia portfolio. These include show-stopping spreads, such as the tiger from Animorphia and the camel from Imagimorphia, among others, plus a section of single-sided pages that can be removed, once colored, for display. Paperback ($11) Batch Cocktails by Maggie Hoffman. Batch Cocktails » You may already know the joys of advance meal prep, but have you considered applying that idea to making cocktails? Food writer and “Queen of Cocktails” Maggie Hoffman has a new book called Batch Cocktails: Make-Ahead Pitcher Drinks for Every Occasion that wants you to put away the cocktail shaker and break out the pitcher instead. The book contains 65 libations (including a few nonalcoholic ones) for a stress-free cocktail hour. They can be made days or even weeks in advance, so you can spend more time with your guests rather than mixing drinks at the last minute. From the book’s introduction: As anyone who has hosted a cocktail hour knows, there’s nothing worse than scrambling at the last minute, trying to mix drinks as your guests walk through the door. It’s hard to hold a conversation while searching for lost bitters, knocking over the jigger on the counter, and rattling a shaker full of ice (let alone trying to get the damn thing open). And without fail, just when you’re finally about to sit down, your friends are ready for a second round. This is why I’ve gathered together recipes of make-ahead drinks created by some of my favorite bartenders around the country: to set up that moment of calm. With this book in hand, you can make a bunch of cocktails all at once, in advance, and serve them without breaking a sweat. In true mixology fashion, many of the cocktails within have wonderful little names like “Double Down”, “Bitter Ex”, “All She Wrote”, “Bone Machine”, and “Poolside”. Get the book in these formats: Kindle ($12) Apple Books ($12) Ruined by Design by Mike Monteiro. Ruined by Design » Six years ago at Webstock 2013, Mike Monteiro of Mule Design gave a talk about how designers destroyed the world by working on projects without giving any thought or consideration to the impact their work would have on…well, everything. Now he’s got a book on that same topic: It’s called Ruined by Design: How Designers Destroyed the World, and What We Can Do to Fix It. In true Monteiro style, this book is highly political, divisive, and sweary, which is — wait for it — by design. It’s like a more bad-tempered update to Victor Papanek’s 1971 classic, Design for the Real World. If nothing else, it’s a call-to-action for designers to be more selective about the clients and projects they take on, because Mike is right: Design is a profession with a great burden of responsibility, and it’s time it gets treated as such. Apple’s “Designed by Apple in California” Photo Book ‘Modernist Bread’ — An Encyclopedia of Bread-Making Letters of Note: The Book	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line457
__label__wiki	0.740459	0.740459	New Notices LOSS OF GOOGLE AUTHENTICATION 2017-10-13 Regarding CIG Coin Trading 2017-10-12 Regarding ATB Coin Trading 2017-10-11 Regarding BGC,YTC, ETH, LTC Coin Trading 2017-10-12 Regarding MVT Token coin Trading 2017-10-11 关于TOPBTC（topbtc.com)开放注册充币的公告 2017-10-10 The Race Is On to Replace Ethereum’s Most Centralized Layer - CoinDesk “If we don’t stop relying on Infura, the vision of ethereum failed.” That’s how Afri Schoedon, release manager for the Parity Ethereum client, described one of ethereum’s most popular – and controversial – technologies on Twitter in October. Infura handles around 13 billion code request per day and provides a way for developers to connect to ethereum without having to run a full node. And while the exact usage stats aren’t public, by creating a simpler method for interfacing with the network, it’s said to underpin the majority of decentralized applications in the ethereum ecosystem. But here’s the thing: Infura is operated by a single provider – the ethereum development studio ConsenSys – and relies on cloud servers hosted by Amazon. As such, concerns exist that the service represents a single point of failure for the entire network. “If every single dapp in the world is pointed to Infura, and we decided to turn that off, then we could, and the dapps would stop working. That’s the concern and that’s a valid concern,” Michael Wuehler, the co-founder of Infura, told CoinDesk in an interview. While many of the projects recognize the importance of Infura’s contribution to ethereum – referring to the service as a pillar that holds up the developer community today – many, like Schoedon, feel that steps must be taken to seek a decentralized alternative. “There is no point in having dapps connecting through Metamask to a blockchain hosted by someone else,” Schoedon tweeted. And Schoedon isn’t alone in his interpretation. Rather, he’s met by a host of new efforts to dethrone Infura as the go-to connection point for developers linking their decentralized applications to ethereum. For example, new full node incentivizations schemes like VIP node, Dappnode and DeNode seek to provide different kinds of alternatives. Equally, infrastructure minimizing efforts such as light clients are gaining traction, as well as experimental software restructuring like Turbo Geth. And according to developers, what’s at stake is the very decentralization of the ethereum ecosystem itself. “One of the issues that we’re facing in the space today is that decentralized application development is happening through centralized services,” Yalor Mewn, communications officer for Dappnode, a node incentivization scheme, told CoinDesk, adding: “We are building all of this infrastructure on top of a bottleneck.” An imperfect tool Currently, there’s a total of 11,803 ethereum full nodes according to available data. Speaking to CoinDesk, Wuehler said Infura accounts for somewhere between 5 and 10 percent of the nodes. Yet because the Infura nodes are highly reliable – under 24 hour maintenance – they’re accounting for a disproportionate amount of traffic. “[We’re] effectively supporting the entire ethereum dapp ecosystem with the RPC traffic,” Wuehler said. And that’s partially because, as of the time of writing, a full archive node is said to take over 1 terabyte of data – beyond what a conventional laptop can store. For developers, as well as users, this means that the storage requirements are frequently outsourced to companies that have the means to manage that kind of infrastructure. “The way Infura works is they host their own full nodes and they open up an [interface] to allow you to easily access those full nodes,” Aidan Hyman, CEO and co-founder of ethereum research and development startup Chainsafe, told CoinDesk. For example, developers frequently opt for Infura as a way to focus their efforts on software, while users are often drawn to in-browser tool Metamask to hold their cryptocurrency. And both route through the ConsenSys full nodes. “Any dapp that uses Metamask also inherently depends on Infura (knowingly, or not). In that sense, nearly all dapps potentially depend on Infura,” Wuehler told CoinDesk. The impact of this is that developers and users are less likely to run full nodes, meaning that the number of full nodes supporting the network decline. As the risk that Infura might become a single point of failure, there are other repercussions to a lack of full nodes as well. Running a full node, for example, allows users and developers to keep much of their sensitive activity local, while Infura accumulates combinations of data from its users such as wallet address and IP locations. “Privacy is an issue,” ‘Dapplion,’ the pseudonymous developer behind Infura replacement project Dappnode, told CoinDesk, adding: “And Infura is hosted on Amazon. So what if Amazon says ‘You know what? Infura no more, just fuck off.’ Most of the dapps would be unusable.” True decentralization As such, several efforts are trying to find a viable and usable alternative. For example, Parity Technologies has released a new code library for light client development, dubbed LightJS. Parity hopes that it will encourage developers to build light clients rather than relying on Infura as a service. And that’s because, while they promise to be much less hardware and storage intensive, light clients are intended to maintain the same degree as decentralization as running a full node. “Ideally, what we will see is less and less dapps connecting to Infura, and they will use a light client instead to achieve true decentralization,” Parity developer Amaury Martiny told CoinDesk. The Turbo Geth project by Alexey Akhunov also seeks to completely restructure how ethereum software clients handle storage. In the latest version of the software rewrite, he’s decreased the storage requirements down to a fifth of its current size. And several projects, such as Dappnode, Denode, and VIP node, target the underlying incentive layer to encourage more people to run a full node. And that’s because currently, unlike the miners that secure transactions on ethereum, full nodes are not rewarded in any way. But VIP node, working on a grant that has been given by the Ethereum Foundation, uses the identifier with which full nodes connect to ethereum to dole out rewards to nodes that are online, that are paid through a subscription from developers wishing to use the service. Another project, named DeNode, also creates a market between developers and node operators, but tries to decentralize the economic relationship between those actors as well. To do this, DeNode uses a decentralized autonomous organization, or DAO. An initiative by Toronto-based startup Chainsafe, Denode was conceived in May at ethereum hackathon ETH Buenos Aires and is funded through a grant by the Ethereum Community Fund. “The idea that we can build these structures in a decentralized way that allows for the democratization of power dynamics in economic systems,” said Hyman. Finally, Dappnode, founded by blockchain developer Jordi Baylina, takes a different approach by allowing developers to set up a local network that is designed in such the way that it is easy to engage in dapp deployment. “Someone sets it up the Dappnode and gives access to his family, his friends, a trusted circle of person-to-person connections that you have a trust bond. And then just with a couple clicks, as hard as it is to connect to Infura, you will connect to Dappnode,” leading developer Dapplion told CoinDesk. Several of these projects – such as VIP node and Turbo Geth – also receive funding from Infura itself. One of ethereum’s largest startups – the company behind Infura – Consensys is also funding a project, named Incubator, by which is trying to reduce Metamask dependance on Infura on its gateway to ethereum. Infura itself is also trying to diversify the number of cloud providers it relies on, so that it’s not purely reliant on Amazon, according to Wuehler. “Our efforts are mainly about continually trying to push more and more decentralization into the way that our technology stack is delivered,” he told CoinDesk. According to Wuehler, Infura’s popularity is due to a quirk inside the ethereum platform itself. And that’s because, by combining the functionality of bitcoin’s blockchain with a virtual machine that can execute decentralized applications, ethereum generates a wider range of data than simply transactions. For example, as well as relying on a blockchain, ethereum stores what is known as the “state,” which is the sum of all computation on the platform. And as the quantity of ethereum users continue to grow, the size of the state keeps expanding as well. The end result of this is that, as hardware gets increasingly more expensive and complex to operate – and due to ethereum’s underlying design – incentives aren’t in place to encourage people to do this. “We didn’t create the problem, we are just a Band-Aid on the problem. We are just providing a solution that is needed,” Wuehler said. Looking ahead, there’s work being done by ethereum researchers such as founder Vitalik Buterin to find a way to rewrite the underlying incentives so that full nodes can be rewarded for storing data, or what is commonly referred to as “rent.” Such a change is now being considered for inclusion in a proposed upgrade named “ethereum 1x.” Currently targeted for 2019, in the interim, developers are focused on finding solutions that can be deployed immediately. As Hyman from Denode told CoinDesk: “Though we are working as a community on these long term goals we also have to be pragmatic and focus on the present. This is a problem that exists right now and has persisted in the space.”	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line458
__label__cc	0.577018	0.422982	Equal Dignity in the Eyes of the Law From Justice Anthony Kennedy's majority opinion The Court now holds that same-sex couples may exercise the fundamental right to marry. No longer may this liberty be denied to them. No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death. It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization's oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right. The Constitution promises liberty to all within its reach, a liberty that includes certain specific rights that allow persons, within a lawful realm, to define and express their identity. The petitioners in these cases seek to find that liberty by marrying someone of the same sex and having their marriages deemed lawful on the same terms and conditions as marriages between persons of the opposite sex. Far from seeking to devalue marriage, the petitioners seek it for themselves because of their respect—and need—for its privileges and responsibilities. And their immutable nature dictates that same-sex marriage is their only real path to this profound commitment. posted by JimK at 3:09 PM 449 comments White Terrorists There is a cynical but accurate American saying: "The Constitution guarantees freedom of the press for those who have one." While the Internet may have theoretically democratized the spread of information, a small number of media sources still have an overwhelming influence on public opinion. Those commercial media stay alive by satisfying their advertisers, who are interested in selling a product. Truth in broadcasting is one of many techniques for attracting and keeping an audience for the ads. In that light, it is pleasing to see the New York Times Magazine's recent editorial about white terrorists. The piece is too long to quote in its entirety, but I recommend the whole thing. The author, Brit Bennett, starts with some personal musings on the Klan, the Confederacy, and the history of white terrorism, that is, terrorism perpetrated by white people. To read the papers, you'd think this was an oxymoron, or an impossibility, white terrorism. In the news, white terrorists are "troubled," "mentally ill," "alienated," they are referred to as "gunmen" or "shooters." Because they are one of "us," we differentiate their motives, their past, their thoughts and emotions; but when terrorists are foreign or dark-skinned they are easily depicted without empathy, their motives are characterized as evil or hateful, and we are done with it. White people have freedom of the press, because they have one. Ms. Bennett says it better than me -- I am jumping into the middle of her magnificent essay. This is the privilege of whiteness: While a terrorist may be white, his violence is never based in his whiteness. A white terrorist has unique, complicated motives that we will never comprehend. He can be a disturbed loner or a monster. He is either mentally ill or pure evil. The white terrorist exists solely as a dyad of extremes: Either he is humanized to the point of sympathy or he is so monstrous that he almost becomes mythological. Either way, he is never indicative of anything larger about whiteness, nor is he ever a garden-variety racist. He represents nothing but himself. A white terrorist is anything that frames him as an anomaly and separates him from the long, storied history of white terrorism. I’m always struck by this hesitance not only to name white terrorism but to name whiteness itself during acts of racial violence. In a recent New York Times article on the history of lynching, the victims are repeatedly described as black. Not once, however, are the violent actors described as they are: white. Instead, the white lynch mobs are simply described as “a group of men” or “a mob.” In an article about racial violence, this erasure of whiteness is absurd. The race of the victims is relevant, but somehow the race of the killers is incidental. If we’re willing to admit that race is a reason blacks were lynched, why are we unwilling to admit that race is a reason whites lynched them? In his remarks following the Charleston shooting, President Obama mentioned whiteness only once — in a quotation from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. intended to encourage interracial harmony. Obama vaguely acknowledged that “this is not the first time that black churches have been attacked” but declined to state who has attacked these churches. His passive language echoes this strange vagueness, a reluctance to even name white terrorism, as if black churches have been attacked by some disembodied force, not real people motivated by a racist ideology whose roots stretch past the founding of this country. White Terrorism Is as Old as America The recent killings in South Carolina were so reprehensible that no one can ignore them. A white man murdered innocent black people while they were praying, out of hatred for their race. Yet somehow white society is blameless. Bennett's analysis of the tacit bias in reporting of terrorist acts perpetrated by whites is articulate and she makes an excellent point. When a black or Muslim person commits an act of violence, the media report their race as an explanatory fact and the criminal's group absorbs some of the blame for his act. But when a white person does it, we focus on the race of the victims as an explanatory fact. posted by JimK at 1:53 PM 83 comments info@teachthefacts.org Join our Discussion Group TeachTheFacts Elitism and Education Anti-Gay Therapy Leader Is Gay Dumbest ever? The National Cathedral On Decency Great Web Sites MCPS Health Education materials Grade 8 Revised curriculum Grade 10 Revised curricululm Exgaywatch.com Shelby Knox	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line466
__label__cc	0.58679	0.41321	Birmingham for the Young Adult Alabama Adventures: Kayaking with the Birmingham Canoe Club Club President Helen Todd kayaks a lake at Oak Mountain State Park. By Sydney Cromwell When life is feeling stale and you need a break in your routine, the Magic City delivers. From 14,000 feet in the air to hundreds of feet under ground, we found the best adventures in the Birmingham area. This is part four in a six-part series. Birmingham Canoe Club Meets the first Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. Homewood Library, 1721 Oxmoor Road Dues: $20 per family annually birminghamcanoeclub.org Pick up a paddle and take on the rush of whitewater or the sweet calm of a placid river. The Birmingham Canoe Club organizes canoe and kayak trips for paddlers of every skill level. Helen Todd, the club president, said the Canoe Club started in 1971 to “provide a community for people who want to learn more about paddle sports in general.” She started kayaking 16 years ago and is now one of over 120 active members. “It’s a great hobby; it’s exciting. You meet new friends. It’s a different kind of way to get out and get outside,” Todd said. The club adjusts its paddling locations with the seasons. Winter rains bring whitewater to Birmingham-area rivers, including club-owned property on the Mulberry River. In the summer, Todd said the club travels to south Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee to seek naturally occurring rapids. There are classes in the summer to teach new paddlers about safety and technique, as well as February and March races on the Mulberry and Locust Fork rivers. Todd said the club is also able to rent out boats to people who do not have them. Some members work their way up to kayaking on whitewater, while others stay quite happily on lakes and smoother rivers. The Canoe Club is all about simply enjoying a day on the water. “If you’re comfortable in the water and you like being outdoors and you don’t mind camping, this would be a fun sport for you,” Todd said. Posted in: Explore \| Tagged: Alabama Adventures, Canoe, Kayak, slider Quinlan Castle: A castle located in the heart of Magic City	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line467
__label__cc	0.512182	0.487818	Spotlight on: Nottingham's Radical and Alternative News Media This time we are putting our spotlight on some of the many independent local newspapers, bulletins, etc. that were produced in Nottingham over the last five decades. UPDATED 19/12/2019. This is a list of all materials featured in our Nottingham Prints exhibition, kindly hosted by the Nottingham Zine Library and the Nottingham Contemporary September 27-29 2019, providing us with the other first draft of history. Please also see our timeline of Nottingham news media (1971-2015 - a work in progress!), the display boards and the kindly contributed personal stories and recollections (re Citywise, LGBTQ+ papers, NAFA and Nottingham CND). Please note that: 1) during the exhibition we can only display a fraction of the materials featured below, so if you want more, you are in the right place! 2) This is not a comprehensive account of all local materials held in our collections. We hold many more local leaflets, pamphlets, etc. (the exhibition only focussed on papers, bulletins and suchlike), as well as quite a few more materials from earlier periods (the exhibition features materials from 1970s). There are also materials in our vaults that could not be digitised, such as That Paper, which is simply too large to be handled with our current equipment. 3) For more detailed information on the LGBTQ+ materials listed below, please see the Spotlight on: … feature dedicated to those materials, featuring contextual information etc. In the Nottingham Prints exhibition, we celebrate our rich local heritage of alternative and independent news media. Nottingham’s turbulent history is full of people taking matters into their own hands. Persons of all genders, backgrounds and ages have for centuries organised and fought fierce social struggles to improve and defend their lives. Issues regarding the access to and control of information lay frequently at the heart of these struggles. Over the last couple of centuries many groups and individuals took the production and distribution of news media into their own hands: Susannah Wright defending her Goose Gate bookshop against riled up bigots in 1826, the Working Class run Operatives Libraries in the mid-19th century, and not least the abundance of radical papers, zines, etc. were crucial in establishing proud local traditions of independent thought and direct action. Although hard copies of publications like the Queer Bulletin and Left Lion continue to be circulated, and groups like the Notts Zine Library are still creating printed materials, most independent content producers have now moved online. Until very recently however, Nottingham was home to a very active scene of radical and alternative printed news media. The materials featured below are examples of these titles from the 1970s to the 2010s. Persons who were at best marginalised and usually vilified by most media and wider society could use these radical and alternative publications to express and organise themselves. Often a new title came out of a specific struggle, such as a strike at the Nottingham Post, which led to the publication of Grassroots and Nottingham Voice. Others were started to inform about long term struggles such as Women’s Liberation or nuclear disarmament. In the days before the internet these zines and papers filled niches which today feature social media and other online content, providing information, event listings, contact opportunities etc. Although many publications had a specific focus, almost all covered a wide range of subjects, providing us with invaluable, fascinating, moving, sometimes infuriating, often hilarious and always inspiring records, covering numerous subjects, such as: The longevity and high frequency of many titles exemplifies the devotion and commitment of the content creators, even more so given the technological restrictions of the time, and as almost all of these publications had to be run on a shoe-string budget. Please note that this is far from a comprehensive representation of local radical and independent materials. Due to the focus of our work at the Sparrows’ Nest, and the background and age group of many persons who donate materials to us, we have a clear bias towards anti-authoritarian materials from the 1980s. These materials can only give you a glimpse into this often neglected side of our local heritage. We hope to: 1. (re)introduce these fantastic materials to local audiences, to 2. (re)connect with people involved in the production and distribution of these titles as well as with their original audiences, and to 3. learn from your specialist knowledge. Please help us and others to learn more about the materials and their context, and to further explore the echoes of struggles past, also to help fight the struggles of today. Were you involved in the production or distribution of local papers? Would you like to share your stories? Do you have a box or a folder of awesome materials and would consider to either donate or loan them to us for digitisation? Please share your information with us! A New Age Anarchist Times/Nottingham Agitator Burnt Flag CIA (Cartoons Included Also) Citywise Doledrums East Midlands Metro Gay East of the City Forest Fields Peace Group Newsletter G.E.M. (Gay East Midlands) Gay Nottingham Grass Roots/Nottingham Voice Green Network News If you Don't... I’m Free Lookout! NAFA (Notts Anti Fascist Alliance) Newsletter Ned Ludd's News Newsletter of the Nottingham Animal Liberation Front No Alternative NOGSOG (Nottingham Gay Social Group) News Nott FIN (Free Information Network) Nottingham & Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum Newsletter Nottingham Anarchist News Nottingham Bulletin Nottingham CND (Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament) Bulletin Nottingham Defy-ID Nottingham Extra Nottingham for Nuclear Disarmament Bulletin Nottingham Hunt Sabs Nottingham Lesbian and Gay Community Centre Nottingham Quarterly Nottingham Resurgence Nottingham Women's Diary Notts Indypendent Overall - There is a Smell of Fried Onions Poll-Axe Sneinton Voice The Forest Fields Fire The Nottingham Sparrow The Other Paper Women and Medikill Practise Newsletter Women's Newsletter Various titles Please note: most titles were reporting on a wide range of issues, the labels below are merely a rough categorisation. A New Age #01 (late 1980s/early 1990s) Nottingham News; Poll Tax Anarchist Times #01 Nottingham Agitator #02 (1988) Burnt Flag #01 (2010) Anti-War; Anti-Militarism; Civil Liberties; Peace Protests Ceasefire (First Series?) #01 (2002) Ceasefire (Second Series?) #03 (2004) Ceasefire (Third Series?) #04 (2005) Ceasefire 2008/05 (2008) Ceasefire 2008/Spring (2008) LGBTQ+ liberation Chimaera (1980) Comics; Poll Tax CIA (Cartoons Included Also) #04 (1989) Nottingham News; Peace Protests; Anti-War Citywise #01 (1983) Diversion #01 (1986) Doledrums #02 Anarcho-Feminism; Anarcha-Feminism Dragons #01 (1985) East Midlands Metro Gay #01 (1987) East of the City #01 (1999) Poll Tax Fight Back! (1989) Fight Back! #01 (1989) Analysis and debate Flux #01 (1990) Anti-War; Anti-Militarism; Peace Protests; Nuclear Weapons Forest Fields Peace Group Newsletter 1983/02 Forest Fields Peace Group Newsletter 1983/04a Forest Fields Peace Group Newsletter 1983/04b Forest Fields Peace Group Newsletter Vol:03 #01 (1983) Forest Fields Peace Group Newsletter 1989 G.E.M./GEM #01 (1983) Gay Nottingham #01 (1985) Nottingham News; Housing; City Council Grass Roots #03 (1974) Nottingham Voice #14 (1975) Nottingham Voice #58 - Special Supplement (1977) Green Network News #44 (1995) Hard Times #01 (1982) If You Don't… #01 (1975) I'm Free! #01 (2003) Lookout! #01 - Information for Lesbians in Nottinghamshire (1996) Lookout! #06 - Out and About - Information for Lesbians in Nottinghamshire (1997) Lookout! #15 - Out and About (2000) Lookout! #16 (2000) Unity NAFA #01 (1993) NAFA Newsletter 1993/11-12 NAFA Newsletter 1994/02 Ned Ludd's News #06.1 (1998) Ned Ludd's News #07 (1998) Immigration; Multi-Culturalism New Citizens 1985/Summer (1985) New Citizens 1986/01-02) (1986) Newsletter of the Nottingham Animal Liberation Front #?? (1985) Newsletter of the Nottingham Animal Liberation Front #03 (1985) Music; Fanzine No Alternative #01 (1981) NOSOG News 1982/06-07 NOSOG News 1982/08 Environmentalism; Repression; Direct Action Nott FIN #01 (1992) Immigration; Refugee Solidarity Nottingham & Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum #03 (2001) Nottingham Anarchist News #01 (1985) Nottingham Bulletin 1979/04 #01 (1979) Nottingham Bulletin 1980/01-02 #05 (1980) Nottingham Bulletin 1980/12 #?? (1980) Nottingham Bulletin 1981/Summer #?? (1981) Nottingham CND Bulletin 1982/06 Repression; Civil Liberties Nottingham Defy-ID #05 (2007) Nottingham Extra #01 (1985) Nottingham for Nuclear Disarmament Bulletin 1980/11 Nottingham Hunt Sabs #01 (Nottingham Hunt Sab Times) Nottingham Hunt Sabs #02 Nottingham Hunt Sabs #03 (1988) Nottingham Lesbian and Gay Community Centre #03 (1986) Nottingham Quarterly #01 (1978) Nottingham Resurgence #01 (1986) Feminism; Women’s Liberation Nottingham Women's Diary #01 (1981) Notts Indypendent 2010/05 #?? Outright #01 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Feb 1990) Outright #02 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Mar 1990) Outright #03 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Apr 1990) Outright #04 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (May 1990) Outright #05 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Jun 1990) Outright #06 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Jul 1990) Outright #07 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Sep 1990) Outright #08 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Oct 1990) Outright #09 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Dec 1990) Outright #16 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Aug 1991) Outright #18 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Nov 1991) Outright #21 Gay Freesheet for the East Midlands (Jan 1992) Outright #31 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Nov 1992) Outright #32 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Dec 1992) Outright #33 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Jan 1993) Outright #34 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Feb 1993) Outright #35 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Mar 1993) Outright #36 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Apr 1993) Outright #37 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (May 1993) Outright #38 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Jun 1993) Outright #39 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Jul 1993) Outright #40 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Aug 1993) Outright #41 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Sep 1993) Outright #42 For Gays and Lesbians in Central England (Oct 1993) Outright #43 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Nov 1993) Outright #44 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Dec 1993) Outright #45 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Jan 1994) Outright #46 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Feb 1994) Outright #47 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Mar 1994) Outright #48 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Apr 1994) Outright #49 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (May 1994) Outright #50 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Jun 1994) Outright #51 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Jul 1994) Outright #52 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Aug 1994) Outright #53 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Sep 1994) Outright #54 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals in Central England (Oct 1994) Outright #65 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Sep 1995) Outright #66 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Oct 1995) Outright #67 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Nov 1995) Outright #68 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Dec 1995) Outright #69 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Jan 1996) Outright #70 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Feb 1996) Outright #71 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Mar 1996) Outright #72 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Apr 1996) Outright #73 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (May 1996) Outright #74 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Jun 1996) Outright #75 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Jul 1996) Outright #76 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Aug 1996) Outright #86 For Gays Lesbians and Bisexuals (Jun-Jul 1997) Overall There Is A Smell Of Fried Onions Vol:01 #12 (1992) Overall There Is A Smell Of Fried Onions #43 (1996) Sneinton Voice #06 (1981) Poll-Axe #01 (1989) Poll-Axe Special Issue (1991) Nottingham News; Repression The Forest Fields Fire #01 (2012) The Hood #01 (1974) The Nottingham Sparrow #01 (2007) The Other Paper #01 (1984) Feminism; Women’s Health Women and Medikill Practise Newsletter #01 Women Now Vol:?? #?? (1975) Women Now Vol:?? #?? Women Now Vol:01 #06) Feminism; Anti-War; Anti-Militarism; Peace Protests; Nuclear Weapons Women's Newsletter (1986) Y #02 Various subjects, including several local Fan Zines ACNA News #01 (1980) Awaaz - Asian Youth Magazine (1992) Beeston Anti-Nuclear Group #10 Blasphemy (1982) Bulletin of the Nottingham Group of the Anarchist-Communist Federation #01 CUTS #06 (1978) Dead Lemming #01 Death or Glory #01 (1981) Dispute #01 Dissent #01 (1986) Downers! (1984) Flypaper #10 (1988) Forest Forever #02 (1992) Gay Freeby #02 (1984) Housing Action #04 (1978) Individuals Anonymous #01 Inner City Direct Line 1985/11 Modder aan ja handen #01 (2005) NDVF (Nottinghamshire Domestic Violence Forum) News! #01 (2001) Nott Skan #01 (1979) Nott Uncut Newsletter #03 2011) Nottingham Working Women's Charter Bulletin #?? Nottinghamshire Jobs Not JSA #07 (1997) Notts Newark #12 (1979) Notts-Inside #01 Police News #121984 (1984) Rebel #?? (1977) Reclaim the Media 2006/01 Rotten to the Core #03 Satra Newsletter #04 (1982) Sneinton Community Newspaper #?? (1993) St. Anns News #02 (1985) Tear it down (1984) That Paper #05 (1980) The Out House Project Newsletter (1995) Total Lyric #04 (1981) Trotwatch Vol:01 #01 (1992) Up Against the Wall #01 Voice Nottingham #01 (1985) Yaricose Yeins #05 (1978) Youth Against the Missiles Magazine #02 (1981)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line470
__label__cc	0.724658	0.275342	FFBC: Welcome to the club, Swept Away (Sixteenth Summer) by Michelle Dalton Swept Away (Sixteenth Summer) by Michelle Dalton Beachfront love blossoms in this refreshing summer romance, in the tradition of Sixteenth Summer and Seventeenth Summer. Mandy Sullivan isn’t exactly looking forward to the summer months as tourists invade her seaside hometown on the coast of Maine. Her best friend, Cynthia, has abandoned her for camp and her older brother just announced he’ll be staying at college taking classes for the summer, leaving Mandy with nothing to do and no one to hang out with. Hoping to keep herself busy, Mandy takes a volunteer job at the Rocky Pointe Lighthouse. On her very first day, Oliver Farmingham asks for a private tour. A new—and incredibly cute—face in Rocky Pointe, Oliver seems more interested in Mandy than the lighthouse and its history. Without her best friend at her side, Mandy is scrambling to act the right way and say the right things when Oliver is around. Cynthia—not Mandy—has always been the confident, flirtatious girl that everyone wanted to be around. As Mandy and Oliver spend more time together exploring the coast, biking through the woods, and attending the local summer festivals, their budding friendship becomes much more. But with Mandy’s insecurities creeping to the surface, can she open her heart to someone who will only be in town for three months? How can I choose just one?!?!?!! Some I’ve loved that I read (or reread) recently are David Levithan’s Two Boys Kissing; Peter Carey’s Parrot and Olivier in America; Room by Emma Donoghue; Zone One by Colin Whitehead. They couldn’t be more different from each other, but all pretty intense in one way or another. Of all time? Buffy the Vampire Slayer – which I still watch, thanks to the cable universe. Currently – The Big Bang Theory and Modern Family. Again, no fair making me pick!!!! I’m woefully behind in my movies. I just watched District 9 (I told you I’m behind!) and thought it was really great. I enjoyed Big Hero Six, and if I want to cry, all I have to do is channel surf and find Kathy’s death scene in Wuthuring Heights with Laurence Olivier. At the moment, an oldie-but-goodie, “Short Skirt/Long Jacket” by Cake. I’m also listening to a lot of Ed Sheeran and Vance Joy. Though I have to confess I sometimes break out singing “Everything is Awesome” from The Legos Movie. Sweet potato fries. I’m a native New Yorker and can’t imagine EVER moving out of the city. So I think what I’d really like is to have a Tardis so I can visit places in different times and different universes, but only temporarily. First stop: Rocky Point, Maine, of course! Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which is probably TMI about me! And not a guy I’d ever recommend to my readers… Leap and the net will appear. To be totally honest – I don’t have a Fangirl gene. I like stuff, I even love stuff, but I’m not a “completist” like Oliver, don’t see movies multiple times, and have no need to be the first to own, see, or experience something. Living: I’d love to meet Emma Donoghue who wrote Room to discuss her amazing book. It’s quite a writing achievement. Dead: Jane Austen. I think she’d be smart and funny, and we could people-watch and make up stories together about everyone who walks by. As a fellow Book Addict myself, I say, surrender to your addiction! Hello Michelle/Carla! We are super excited to have you in our FFBC tours. It’s the story of a romance that develops between Mandy, a sixteen-year-old girl living in the small town of Rocky Point, Maine, and Oliver, who is visiting from California. Mandy is expecting to have a boring summer, with her best friend away and a job her mom insisted on, but because of Oliver, things turn out very differently. The best thing about them also makes them a good couple: they share a love of stories, and although for Oliver those stories come from history and Mandy’s from her own imagination, they complement one another. And they have such good hearts. Of course, they aren’t perfect -- who is? Oliver can definitely be stubborn, a bit on the obsessive side, and has trouble compromising. Mandy’s insecurity leads her to hide her real feelings, which results in arguments. They’re a perfect YA couple because it’s by falling in love that they learn about themselves and these flaws begin to be addressed. In some ways, that’s what love is all about – a way to discover yourself. The one I had… :) A few things percolated in my mind that seemed to go together. I’d been thinking about my time in Stonington, Maine (hoping to make a return trip!) and how the tiny fishing community expanded because of summer visitors. It occurred to me that some residents would find their little town too small, and others love it. Then I had houseguests who had never been to New York City. Their visit made me see my own city differently, the way Oliver changes Mandy’s perception of Rocky Point. I think the most romantic is also kinda the most heartbreaking – a note Oliver writes to Mandy. But I won’t tell you what it says – that’d be a spoiler! The contest Mandy and Oliver have trying to top each other with the best stories about the lighthouse exhibits. I got to mix crazy stories with quirky facts! Firework by Katy Perry Get in a hammock with your fried clams, your potato chips, and a tall glass of lemonade – but none for me! I share Mandy’s complete aversion to seafood. So what I’d have is iced coffee and a blueberry muffin. Set your music to shuffle -- let yourself be surprised! I just finished writing a really fun “choose-your-own-adventure” style book for Disney, based on an upcoming movie, which I’m not allowed to talk about yet! And I’m about to go back to writing a YA fantasy I’ve had in mind for a long time that I’m dying to finish. It’s based on an old Scottish folktale, so I get to combine my love of history and research with contemporary YA issues! Thank you so much for everything, Michelle/Carla! Follow the Swept Away by Michelle Dalton Blog Tour and don't miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule. Michelle Dalton is one of the many names Carla Jablonski uses when writing. Her two YAs written as Carla Jablonski (published by Razorbill/Penguin), Thicker than Water and Silent Echoes, were included on the NYPL Books for the Teen Age list, and her graphic novel trilogy Resistance (illustrated by Leland Purvis, published by :01 Books) has won several awards, including the Sydney Taylor Silver Medal. In addition to writing novels she is an actor, playwright, and former trapeze artist. A native New Yorker, she is eternally grateful to her friends who invite her to their beach houses. Etiquetas: a, AWAY, blog, dalton, fantastic flying book club, FFBC, giveaway, interview, michelle, novel, simon pulse, sixteenth, summer, swept, tour, young adult	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line472
__label__wiki	0.985419	0.985419	time to change the way we view music and the arts Bands / Artists Planet of Sound Hardware / Gear “Dice Digs” Track Promotion The Get Up Kids’ “Satellite” locks onto social struggle with visual storytelling By Kira Grunenberg, March 8, 2019 “Satellite” is the lead single from forthcoming new album, “Problems,” by The Get Up Kids. Video directed and edited by Kerstin Ebert Kansas City’s The Get Up Kids may have gotten back together in 2008 but as far as full length releases go, the reunion hadn’t led to more than a single album, There Are Rules (Quality Hill Records, 2010) in that time. That is until now, with the announcement of imminent sixth album, Problems (Polyvinyl, 2019) due out on 10 May 2019. In the meantime, along with the celebration worthy news for all fans of the iconic 90s originating, alternative rock-emo hybrid band, The Get Up Kids presented the pubic with the lead single, “Satellite,” and a music video to match. Image coutesy of artist \| Photo credit: Dalton Paley The Get Up Kids are: Matt Pryor (Vocals, Guitar) Jim Suptic (Guitar) James Dewees (Keyboards) Rob Pope (Bass) Ryan Pope (Drums) Beyond the basic structural facts of who worked on what, and why a cardboard figure named Hank is important to the symbolism and intent to show contrast for this audio-visual release, “Satellite” is interesting to digest for other reasons not quite as promotionally obvious. While Hank is certainly apparent enough of a creative element alone, the idea to develop a video that not only offsets the anxious and uncomfortable emotional place from which Pryor writes but also lays it out in a way that caters far more naturally to the narrative based sequences of videos from The Get Up Kids early days in the 90s, shows just how much subtlety and artistically indirect thought went into this first re-emergence for the band. And though the song has an openly stated “pop-minded song structure,” there’s much of The Get Up Kids’ original, fundamental sound and just overall emotional vibe, coming through. Acoustically driven verses and pre-chorus lines flourishing into thickly amplified but brightly harmonized and catchy choruses being coming together to be paired with a video channeling just as much classically structured storytelling, is a charming nod for not just older fans of the band but older music fans in general who still remember the significance of video storyboarding because of platforms like MTV’s TRL. By myself I don’t think anybody else even cares You’re only thinking of yourself It’s a long way down It’s a long way down for me – Lyrics from “Satellite” Peeling back the layers even further, even though “Satellite” is barely three minutes long and does indeed follow a pretty standard “verse, verse, pre-chorus, chorus” format, the very aesthetic of its sound leaves plenty to be reflected upon. Not even a full minute into the song, at the very first entrance of the repeated pre-chorus phrase (“It’s a long way down,”) The Get Up Kids show even more of their emo styled colors. A fleeting moment of clipping in the vocals that would almost be unnoticed if one has no idea what they are looking for or a lack of familiarity with what they’re hearing when it’s pointed out falls right in the line of lyrics, and at the longest held word to boot. This observation isn’t meant as a dig at Katis, who is undoubtedly a professional and an expert behind a mixing board and with a Pro Tools session. If anything, because it’s a detail that there is more than enough technology to detect and eliminate, the sparingly retained amount of crackle in the vocal track is an artistic choice and it absolutely fits with the aesthetic of imperfection and mild instability of indie emo bands like The Get Up Kids and sonically similar and long running peers like Saves the Day. Perhaps a little ironically – as The Get Up Kids are known for having an impact on and greatly influencing bands whose music would follow theirs in later years – the rhythmic foundation in both the drums and guitars that holds up “Satellite’s” chorus, is something that seems to align that band with thoughts of a song written by a pop punk successor of sorts: “The Anthem” by Good Charlotte. Granted, the compositional comfort zones for genres like pop punk and emo aren’t don’t tend to be overly elaborate but it’s always at least a little amusing when one can easily hum the chorus of one song over the band support of another and have either swap in seamlessly. (And no, that doesn’t mean The Get Up Kids ripped off Good Charlotte; drum fills and syncopation patterns aren’t something that can be copyright protected in a pop song.) The funniest thing about “Satellite” however, might not even be related to its musical attributes at all. Rather, it’s the realization that despite emo music and its stereotyped stylistic qualities often being reduced to crowds of teens who would come to be accordingly labeled “emo kids” in social circles, fast forward 25 years and though the song has plenty of emo themes at play, the feelings and the situations Pryor is contemplating that evoke those feelings, are hardly niche emotional concepts anymore. It’s revealing, to say the least, that what used to be the kind of song saved for those especially hard days or the occasional rough patch in someone’s life, is now wholly relatable across age groups, races, economic brackets, and yes, political parties. “Satellite” somewhat painfully is a slice of art highlighting what could be considered the general state of life for many at present and while that makes for a heck of wide appeal bonus for a record label and a band, it’s likely The Get Up Kids don’t wish this song and video that was created to provide some humorous respite, hit so close to society’s home. “Satellite” is available now on Bandcamp. Find it streaming on Spotify, SoundCloud, and Apple Music. Problems, produced by Peter Katis (producer of Honeyblood’s sophomore album, Babes Never Die),arrives 10 May 2019 via Polyvinyl Records. Pre-orders are open HERE. Keep up with The Get Up Kids through their official website and these social media outlets: Twitter (@thegetupkids) Secoué shake off the pain of serious struggle with their debut EP City Mouth’s new EP “Hollows” has plenty to say Take some “April Rain” with you into May (Video Feature) Categories: Bands / Artists, Reviews, Songs Tagged: 90s, classic, emo, Kerstin Ebert, music video, new album, polyvinyl records, problems, Satellite, The Get Up Kids Welcome the fun and friendliness of Foreign Ghost’s debut single There’s not one “Odd Thing” about the love in Cloud Caverns’ new single Developed by Kurt Trowbridge \| Logo designed by Nick Lopergalo Copyright Throw the Dice and Play Nice 2010. All rights reserved.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line474
__label__cc	0.743937	0.256063	New Jack Almanac I'm Mita. I've been blogging since 1999. It's time to work on stuff that matters. A new blog to replace The New Jack Almanac It has finally come to pass that that I need to shutter New Jack Almanac as I've been having a terrible time composing long posts using Blogger. Besides, the platform's days are likely numbered. Rather than migrate the site to someplace new, I've opted to keep the New Jack Almanac as it is for the time being, and to start a brand new, self-hosted Wordpress blog. It's called The Magnetic North. Posted by Mita at 8:57 PM 0 comments Advice for 2016 or the some of the things that I learned in 2015 It’s one of my theories that when people give advice, they’re really just talking to themselves in the past. - Austin Kleon January is named after Janus, the two headed Roman god of beginnings and transitions, of gateways and of doors and of passageways. It is the first day of January. You can read the following looking forward as advice or looking back as some things that have been learned. Always make note of the clouds when you outside. Always. Posted by Mita at 10:52 AM 0 comments In 2007 - now 8 years ago - I played an alternative reality game called WorldWithoutOil. It wasn’t what most people would consider a game. It was closer to being "a massively collaborative imagining of the first 32 weeks of a global oil crisis" that was spearheaded by Ken Eklund (Game Designer, Creative Director and Producer) and Jane McGonigal (Participation Architect). I can’t find evidence of it now, but one of the first acts of creation I took on as a participant of WWO was a Livejournal quiz that asked the question,“Which Science Fiction writer Are You?” I remember sharing my response online somewhere with ‘Ew, I’m a man with a beard.’ After carefully considering my responses, the quiz had determined that I was Frank Herbert, author of the 1965 science fiction classic, Dune. While I read a tremendous amount of Ray Bradbury in my youth, I never had much affection for science fiction. Other than the Hitchhiker Guide to the Galaxy series, I don’t recall reading much else in the genre (unless you count Vonnegut). I do remember trying to read “Stranger in a Strange Land” and being disgusted with the vacuous Bond Girls in the book and thinking, "well if this is the best of science fiction then I want nothing more to do with this". But over the years I kept stumbling upon references to Dune. Friends would drop references to the book. So I decided that I would read it during my first week of summer holidays. By the time I reached the second or third chapter, I realized that Dune was a work of fiction about politics as much as it was about anything else “science”. In spite of having to learn the hallmarks of multiple civilizations in a widely expanded universe, I found Dune was especially good in developing political intrigue. I’m just over a third into the book at this point and things are starting to get trippy. Before I move on, I just wanted to get down my thoughts about Dune and politics before Frank Herbert possibly takes me elsewhere. The setting of Dune is the planet Arrakis, which is the only source of the "spice" melange, the most important and valuable substance in the universe. But the planet is barely inhabitable on account of its scarcity of water. As such, the culture, customs, technology, and power of those who live on Arrakis are framed around this scarcity and constant mindfulness of our dependence on water. The water conservation culture of Arrakis sounds so very foreign and exotic and the politics so very brutal. And then you think about the world that we live that has built on oil. Our fuel. Our transportation. Our food. Everything made of plastic that surrounds us. Is oil. I would argue that at every level of politics in our world, you can find the politics of oil. The nations that control the world’s oil set the stage for the world’s political dramas. The states and provinces that depend on industry for employment and tax revenue become beholden to keep energy prices low. And municipal politics seems to exist to feed the insatiable appetites of road maintenance and traffic congestion relief, leaving every other social service a beggar. After I read Dune (I have not decided yet to take on the Trilogy), I am planning to read the other science fiction work that, again, friends have told me is a remarkable work of political thinking: The Dispossessed by Ursula Le Guin. Like Herbert and Dune, I keep stumbling upon Le Guin in my readings, like this passage here from the article Why Climate Change Is Not Inevitable from Rebecca Solnit, It was the most thrilling bureaucratic document I’ve ever seen for just one reason: it was dated the twent-first day of the month of Thermidor in the Year Six. Written in sepia ink on heavy paper, it recorded an ordinary land auction in France in what we would call the late summer of 1798. But the extraordinary date signaled that it was created when the French Revolution was still the overarching reality of everyday life and such fundamentals as the distribution of power and the nature of government had been reborn in astonishing ways. The new calendar that renamed 1792 as Year One had, after all, been created to start society all over again. In that little junk shop on a quiet street in San Francisco, I held a relic from one of the great upheavals of the last millennium. It made me think of a remarkable statement the great feminist fantasy writer Ursula K. Le Guin had made only a few weeks earlier. In the course of a speech she gave while accepting a book award she noted, “We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable. So did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings.” Posted by Mita at 10:11 PM 0 comments For whom that tolls the bell Last year, for our family summer vacation, we travelled from Southwestern Ontario to the Eastern seaboard of the United States. Because we have small children, we broke up the 10 hour drive over two days and opted to stay at a chain hotel that was perched at the exit of a turnpike. The hotel was surrounded by gas stations and fast food restaurants. Our stay was unremarkable except for breakfast - which was free with our stay at the hotel. The free food itself was unremarkable. It was a serve-yourself buffet of single serving boxes of dry cereal, packages of quick oatmeal, toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, pancakes, donuts and pastries, milk, juice and serviceable coffee. What struck me is that it only took a single person to staff the large breakfast room. That's because all the containers and cutlery were disposable and the 'fresh food' was pre-mixed and cooked in either in the microwave or in the custom ovens, like the one for eggs that I spied in the back 'kitchen'. I remember trying to figure out what it meant to live in a world where the best paid jobs in a business are dedicated to those who ensure that the are as few poorly paid jobs as possible. I'm writing this about a year later. We've made the same trip but we've altered our route. We also decided not to stay in a chain hotel this time and picked a quaint family owned hotel in Pennsylvania, right in the hear of Amish Country. In spite of this, it too offered the same buffet of free, disposable, single serving breakfast. Is this what we mean by post-scarcity? It's difficult to argue with most people about the free market. One reason why it's difficult is because proponents of capitalism don't see much the point of arguing. To them, trying to make a case to curb the insatiable need for profit over labour is not unlike trying to argue against gravity. And yet isn't being unemployed not unlike to lose one's gravity that moors you to society at large? When it is cool enough to have the windows open, we can hear churchbells if the wind cooperates. I hear them now at the top of the hour, sad low bells that mark another hour passed. But there are no churchbells. There is only a recording of churchbells. I've walked past the nearby church and noticed that openings of the church steeple are covered with white-painted speakers. Am I really suggesting that someone should be employed to ring the church bells on the hour? Yes. Well, no. To be honest, I'm not sure where to draw the line. A printed newspaper gives you yesterday's news in order to make better sense of today. What's not as well recognized is that you can read the same paper like tea leaves to see what you can make out of the shape of the future. Today's paper had a couple of letters to the editor in response to a story of an opera that is planned to be staged with a recording of an orchestra. The letters both ask, then why not replace the singer with a lip-syncher. Why stop there? Why not replace the artist with a hologram? Other than that first breakfast buffet, we haven't gone out for breakfast during our weeklong vacation. There's a pancake place nearby but the locals have warned us that too easy for a hungry family to rack up a bill over $100 there. In Southwestern Ontario, as well the parts of Michigan that I know, the most reliable place for a cheap but hearty breakfast, are Greek restaurants. The coffee is usually not that good, but for less than five dollars, you can get your fill of a couple of eggs, toast, and potatoes to get your day started. Unlike last year's roadtrip, this year we have eaten out so much better. Last year, we tried to find local diners to fuel our travels, but every one of those we tried offered pre-frozen and processed foods. But this year, we somehow lucked out. We found a small bar by a soccer field where we watched the world cup and wondered why our food was taking sooooo long but decided the wait was worth it once we realized that the food eventually presented was fresh and flavourful. Later in the week we had great pizza and yesterday we went to a lovely and loud family restaurant with short menu of delicious fare. In retrospect I realized that whenever we had eaten out, we had eaten in Italian restaurants. Every night this week I have been reading my kids 'Percy Jackson and the Lightning Bolt Thief'. It's like Harry Potter, but instead of Wizards, you have Greek gods, and instead of Hogwarts, you have 'Half-Blood Camp'. But the story doesn't take place in Greece. Olympus has moved to the new centre of Western Civilization: the United States, and more precisely, to New York City. I think about the future a great deal and I worry about it too. I keep wondering that if people have no place in businesses anymore, perhaps we need to build new institutions that are human-centred. Or if we can't sustain organizations anymore, perhaps we should encourage new forms of just-in-time arts events to ease the pain of what they've replaced. But sometimes I think that it might be more fruitful to look to the cultures that seem to resist change. And to resist the free breakfast buffets. Odysseus brings not one man to shore with him. Yet he sleeps sound beside Calypso This year I have also taken up the practice of yoga. I go twice a week and I have made a deal with myself that if I go to yoga then I don't have to mediate, since yoga itself is its own form of mindfulness training. It's difficult to think of anything else as one transitions from Cobra to Downward Facing Dog to Warrior A. And yet some weeks ago, before class had started, as most of us were enjoying our last moments before we would start our contortions, there was a buzz of conversation floating among the room. Everyone was passing along the same story: at that moment there was an airplane that kept circling the local airport and it kept circling because its landing gear would not come down. "Just imagine what those poor passengers must be feeling right now" spoke a woman sitting on a mat behind me. And then class began and it was difficult not to think of anguish of the passengers high above us despite the complaints of my limbs. My worry for the passengers during that class lasted longer than the ordeal that they themselves were put through. After 20 minutes of circling, the plane landed without incident. The whole incident brought back a childhood memory. I remember being struck by this particular passage from Watership Down: There are skylights at the yoga studio. I let myself get distracted by looking though them into the blue or watching the clouds. Sometimes I see airplanes pass before my line of sight. Sometimes I see vultures. Day 1: Do you really want to do this? I am on sabbatical. And I am going to share an important thing I have learned from this precious period of research and reflection: my sabbatical has laid waste to my illusion that what was holding me back on my various dream projects was a lack of a time. It's a good lesson to learn. Of course, this is one of those lessons that most of us have to experience rather than hear second-hand in order for us to really understand the gravity of its meaning. At least that was the case for me. I've heard this lesson a number of times before. In fact, I'm pretty sure I remember the first I had heard this warning, because I reacted quite badly to it. It wasn't Randy Pasuch's The Last Lecture that hit me hard, but his lecture on time management, oddly enough, and in particular, this slide: I recognized that I was guilty of trying to clear off all the not-important stuff (3,4) before getting to the important but not due stuff (2). I did so with the excuse that I was clearing up 'future time' to get the work that needs to be done. If there is important work that you need to do in your life - writing that novel or learning to code or whathaveyou, you need to do that work everyday. That's what all the time management for creative people books (The Creative Habit, Do The Work are such ones I've read) will tell you. You write. You finish what you write. And it's come to a point that I feel that while I'm not great at this, I'm not that bad at it either. What I am grappling right now is the question that we all have universally grappled with: what is the important work that needs doing and how much of one's rest of one's life is worth sacrificing to do that work. In other words, what is the good life? For the first half of my sabbatical, I have spent many, many hours doing volunteer work. Over the last six months, I've volunteered my time for the King Edward Home and School group, for Hackforge - a community minded hacker and maker space. On Saturday, I volunteered my morning at a local karate tournament but had to return home early so my husband could get to his volunteer soccer coaching. I love volunteer work and I've learned so much from it. I'm fascinated how systems of a gift economy are built and sustained. Now that being said, I have also worked hard on my sabbatical work. That's not today's confession: There were a lot of things that I thought I wanted to do with my freed time during my sabbatical that I find myself not willing to do even though I have the time for it. For example, I thought I wanted to write more. I'm beginning to think that I'm not avoiding the creative work that I should be doing when I volunteer. I'm starting to think that I'm gravitating the work that I can do well, to the work that I enjoy, to the work that gives meaning, to the work that helps others, and that I think needs to be done. My 6 year old daughter found my Hipster Habit App and wanted to fill it in. She has committed herself to play every day. I tried to explain to her that this paper was for habits of things that we have difficulty doing and she should pick something else because she already plays every day. She looked at me like I was making no sense to her all. And suddenly, it all started making sense to me. Your dominant leg This year I've taken up karate. During my last karate class, we were practising a particular type of kick. My sensei said, 'Everyone has one good leg, and one bad leg' and then stopped himself mid-lecture to ask us, 'Why is that? Why do we have one good leg and one not so good'?' The class offered answers. One student said that every soccer player had a dominant leg for kicking. But then stopped himself when he realized that soccer playing would not explain why everyone seemed to have a dominant leg. Another student suggested it was driving that caused the discrepancy in our leg strength, but our under 16 years olds among us disproved that theory as well. We did not dwell on it any longer. We resumed our practice. But I did dwell on it. Why was one leg always stronger than the other? So I went home and I did some research and it was embarrassing to learn that the answer was so obvious. A 'dominant leg' is likely the result of the the simple preference of how we walk everyday. "Bone mineral density is higher in the “non-dominant” leg, which specializes in balance and propulsion in walking; muscle mass is greater in the “dominant.” I was hoping that the dominant leg theory explains why we tend to walk in circles when we have no visible landmarks to guide us, but the sadly facts don't bear out this potentially beautiful metaphor. So instead I will attempt to draw out a more poetic ending to this writing with two further observations. First, my sensai has conditioned his left leg to become the better of the two by doing twice as many of his exercises on his left side. And secondly, today is Laurie Anderson's birthday. Day Eleven : Jump Lola, Jump! (As part of the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge, I'm trying to design a game with the theme of light and darkness by August 31st. This day 11 of the fourteen day challenge). I'm guilty of being a person who has read more books on game design than you know, actually designing games. And every book on game design has told me that the first step in designing games is .. to design games. I think game design is something everyone can do. It's just like singing, drawing, and writing. Everyone can do it . But to do it well requires a lot of work and sustained concentrated effort to do it well. Mind you, I have no aspirations of becoming a professional game designer. I'm designing games because I enjoy learning more about games and there's nothing like trying a craft yourself to really appreciate the art and the science that goes into it all. I was telling a friend that I see my particular role in the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge as the person that lowers the bar and in doing so, hopefully lowers the threshold of what others might think is the minimum amount of effort and time in order to participate in game design. What I am unable to commit to quality, I have endeavored to make up in quantity. I've already created a street game. I've started on a Twine game - but I might not finish it because, oddly enough, I find that in order to be an entirely text based narrative game, there is a considerable amount of work that must go into the story in order to make the decisions presented to the player, as meaningful choices. It was much easier to create my first video game, using MIT's Scratch: Labels: HackforgeGames13 Day Ten : A Work in Progress (As part of the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge, I'm trying to design a game with the theme of light and darkness by August 31st. This day ten of the fourteen day challenge). It's a work in progress. Day 9 : Being a Student of Games (As part of the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge, I'm trying to design a game with the theme of light and darkness by August 31st. This day nine of the fourteen day challenge). I'm came back from vacation late this afternoon and so this evening I did mountains of laundry and other chores while listening to various game-related talks to keep me in the spirit of game-design. I follow Jane McGonigal on Twitter and yesterday she retweeted this recommendation: Man, this talk by @danctheduck is so incredibly good. http://t.co/7ojfUPclcD(and-Stop — Adriaan de Jongh (@AdriaandeJongh) August 24, 2013 And I watched it - it being "Create New Genres" by Daniel Cook (no, not that Daniel Cook! The Daniel Cook who wrote that awesome essay about games as a life-long hobby). I almost didn't because I was underwhelmed by the beginning of this Game Developers talk from last year but I'm glad I stuck with it. In fact, it gives a nice context to the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge. Cook believes that there are three levels of game designers : apprentice (who copy), journeyman (who copy but extend and polish) and true game masters who invent. (This makes me feel better about my largely derivative attempts at game design. I'm a student! This is how I am learning). Anyways, Cook forgives students who copy games but he has no love for those companies ("clone factories) that simply grab another designers game mechanic and add different artwork. (This only seems to apply to video games. Around the 54 minute mark, Cook points out that board games have mostly unique mechanics that are rarely copied). I didn't realize this, but this practice occurs because games aren't really covered by patents because they are not 'useful inventions'. I'm hoping to eventually spend some time working through the idea of games becoming the economy of the post-scarcity age but it must wait. I was hoping to end this post with some related insights from the video that personally set me on the path of exploring the world-saving potential of games: Jane McGongial's 2008 talk at the New Yorker Festival of the Future. Unfortunately, that video is not working for me now. So I will download Twine instead. Day Eight: Cha (As part of the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge, I'm trying to design a game with the theme of light and darkness by August 31st. This day eight of the fourteen day challenge). Day Seven : Half-Moon (As part of the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge, I'm trying to design a game with the theme of light and darkness by August 31st. This day seven of the fourteen day challenge). I did find some time to work on my project today and I have three pages of sketches in my notebook to prove it. The thing is, I have some ideas I'd like to work through in a narrative type game that really can't be well conveyed with any of the crude mechanics I might be able to manage to figure out in a video game platform (keeping in mind that I only have about a hour a day to spend on this project). So I've decided that I have two goals for this project that probably should be split into two different games. I'm going to make a moon themed story game using Twine. And I'm going to try to make a very simple mechanical video game just for the sake of doing one. I've been looking at the HTML5 game engines but haven't picked one out yet but I admit it's tempting to go with the platform that already has a community that's clearly interested in the same story I am. Day Six : Rabbit Rabbit (As part of the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge, I'm trying to design a game with the theme of light and darkness by August 31st. This day five of the fourteen day challenge). Hopefully, I will find some time to sketch out some design mechanics and investigate html5 game engines tonight. Before I do so, though, I thought I write down some more moon-related ideas so I can get my self-imposed daily game design blogging challenge over with... RABBIT RABBIT In the West, we sometimes make mention of a Man in the Moon, but really it's just something that people say and doesn't carry much resonance. Same thing with the whole idea of 'the moon is made of cheese.' Other than being a comical premise in kids cartoon shows, again, it's not something that carries much cultural weight. In Japan, Korea and China, it's understood that there's a rabbit in the moon instead. I have no idea to what extent this story has sway over Asian cultures, but I do know that this why Sailor Moon has a cat companion named Luna and has a nickname of Bunny. At the beginning of the month, I like to say 'rabbit rabbit' but evidently this has nothing to do with the rabbit in the moon. According to the Farmer's Almanac, the native peoples of North America generally named the full moons of the year as follows: January : Wolf Moon February : Snow Moon March : Worm Moon April : Pink Moon May : Flower Moon June : Strawberry Moon July : Buck Moon August : Sturgeon Moon September : Harvest Moon October: Hunter's Moon November : Beaver Moon December : Cold Moon And at one time, I meant to make my own moon names, but I never got beyond March, which I renamed, Pothole Moon. Day Five: Gone Home to Make Games I have to admit, what I really want to do is not work on my game(s) tonight. What I really want to do is download Gone Home and play it all through the night. I so very want to do this because I recently read this essay called Grunge, Grrrls and Video Games: Turning the dial for a more meaningful culture that personally resonated with me and well, this The Gone Home video promo is the most riot grrrl style now video game I have ever seen. Add to the fact that I'm currently writing this from the bedroom of my parents house and feeling the effects of that sort of time-travel sickness that you get when you go back the home of your childhood, and well, I think you can see why I'd be all over this game right now. But I'm not. I started looking at possible game engines I could use to make a game and it's clear to me that I've got a lot of work ahead of me if I want to make even a simple video game. I will most likely work out some ideas on paper first and only then, try to make them come alive on screen. I had mentioned previously that I was thinking about a moon-influenced mechanic. On a lark, I looked up tide charts online which eventually led me to this lovely animation that illustrates how the earth's waters rise and fall based on the alignment of the moon and sun. I'm sure it's possible to plug in the necessary equations to mimic this affect in a game engine is possible (like this lovely video that highlights the force of gravity) but it's probably not going to happen for me. Not at this rate. Day Four : Star of the Wars or the Tiny Games People Play So it's day Four of my two week 'Pretend to be a game designer' challenge and I haven't made much progress today because I spent most of my hours packing and driving most of my family up to see the grandparents. I'm having difficulty finding the time to make that epic game. So today I will concentrate on a Tiny Game. My kids have no trouble at all making little games to play. One of their favourite games they love to play is played over a meal at the dinner table is this: BROKEN OR NOT BROKEN Player One bites/pretends to bite a cucumber or carrot or other piece of food and then shows it to Player Two and asks 'Broken or Not Broken'. Player Two guesses whether the food is whole or has been bitten in two. Player One reveals outcome. Repeat. And repeat. And while I have had trouble getting started in my game design ambitions, my daughter has no trouble designing games out of anything in front of her: But it isn't just little kids who delight in these Tiny Games. Bigger kids do too. My sister's good friend went to Camp every summer and she seemed to know a million games for a million situations. Here's one of the games I remember her telling me about. (Um, it's another game that's played at the dinner table. Also: don't tell my kids about this game!) Whenever someone at the dinner table yells COLOURS, everyone has to stick their tongue out. The person with the most different colours of food on their tongue wins. And even bigger kids love these silly tiny games. In fact, even adults. For example, I am just one of 1226 adults who backed the Tiny Games Kickstarter because I just love the idea of "an app that gets you playing the perfect game with your friends: wherever you are, whoever you're with, whatever you're doing." Before the lights are out, I will make a Tiny Game. Day Three. There`s a moon in the sky called the moon (As part of the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge, I'm trying to design a game with the theme of light and darkness by August 31st. This day three of the two week challenge). So we went to the zoo today instead of designing games. It's night now. The day is almost over. In fact, it's really dark outside now and it's way past my bedtime. And tomorrow is the full moon. There are eight phases of the moon in Western culture: Waxing / Young / Crescent Moon Waxing / Gibbous Moon Waning / Gibbous Moon Third / Last Quarter Moon Waning / Old / Crescent Moon I want to make a specialized deck of cards that involves waxing and waning shadows over the moon. If just to make a game that provides the opportunity to have moves such as TURN AROUND BRIGHT EYES and for someone to throw down their cards and shout 'TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART!' Also. I would nice to the moon as a sort of clock in a game. Or in the game, each player has their own moon clock and there would be some dynamic that would allow players to have their moon clocks in sync with each other. And I admit, when I first thought of this, I was thinking all about women's cycles but now I think it could be a neat power-up dynamic. When moons are in sync, they would have more ... pull I suspect there are lots of games with moon-related mechanics (even excluding the obvious ones that involve werewolves). But I know of two games that make use of a moon dynamic. Sword & Sworcery :: certain events can only occur when the moon is in a certain phase Kingdom of Loathing :: the two moons named Ronald and Grimace affect gameplay I think this quotation explains why I want to make a game involving the moon so much... “The moon does not fight. It attacks no one. It does not worry. It does not try to crush others. It keeps to its course, but by its very nature, it gently influences. What other body could pull an entire ocean from shore to shore? The moon is faithful to its nature and its power is never diminished.” ― Deng Ming-Dao, Everyday Tao: Living with Balance and Harmony Lumos! A Wizard Battle Game (As part of the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge, I'm trying to design a game with the theme of light and darkness by August 31st. This day two of the two week challenge). In my neighbourhood of my childhood, there was a strange abundance of kids the same age of myself. From as long as I can remember right until grade six, we all played epic games of a variation of 'hide and go seek' called Buzz Off on the combined front and backyards of my house and of Matthew, my neighbour. Playing games of tag and hide and go seek and their variations make up some of my happiest memories as a kid. They contained moments of pure joy. No wonder I long to one day take part in the Come Out And Play Festival. So, I've been meaning to create a "street game" for some time now. And since this is the two weeks to put vague dreams into action, this morning, I set aside some time put down something in words. By mixing up some of the elements of games that already exist, I think I've got something to start with. I have had for some time now, an interest in making some sort of Harry Potter wizard battle-like game. I think a group full of people, running around, pointing wands, and screaming spells and counter-spells at each other seems like delicious fun. That's the experience I want folks to have. But how to pull the mechanics together? My breakthrough came when I was working through possibilities of games with the theme of light and darkness. My line of thinking was very simple :: light --> flashlight --> flashlight tag! Yes! - running around in the dark and yelling spells and counter-spells at each other would make for an even more dangerously fun and spooky game. Now how to work out the mechanics of the game? Well, the biggest problem I would see with a spell-casting game is the issue of 'Han shot first'. We don't want players arguing who yelled their spell before the other, and so we need to have to rely on something else other than speed to decide the winner of a battle. Here, I take my inspiration from the game Cruel 2 B Kind, designed by Jane McGonigal and Ian Bogost. It's a game of 'benevolent assassination'. Its rules are: At the beginning of the game, you are assigned three secret weapons. To onlookers, they will seem like random acts of kindness. But to other players, the seemingly benevolent gestures are deadly maneuvers that will bring them to their knees. Some players will be slain by a serenade. Others will be killed by a compliment. You and your partner might be taken down by an innocent group cheer. You will be given no information about your targets. No names, no photos, nothing but the guarantee that they will remain within the outdoor game boundaries during the designated playing time. Anyone you encounter could be your target. The only way to find out is to attack them with your secret weapon. Watch out: The hunter is also the hunted. Other players have been assigned the same secret weapons, and they're coming to get you. Anything out of the ordinary you do to assassinate YOUR targets may reveal your own secret identity to the other players who want you dead. As targets are successfully assassinated, the dead players join forces with their killers to continue stalking the surviving players. The teams grow bigger and bigger until two final mobs of benevolent assassins descend upon each other for a spectacular, climactic kill. Will innocents be caught in the cross-fire? Oh, yes. But when your secret weapon is a random act of kindness, it’s only cruel to be kind to other players... Cruel 2 B Kind makes use of RSP - the Rock Scissors Paper mechanic. One of the great things about the 'Rock-Scissors-Paper mechanic is that it's something that everyone already knows. And its used in places where you may not expect it. For example, the video-game Halo uses three layered RSP systems in its game (which is spoofed in this simple Scratch animation). Using this dynamic, one player can beat another if they clearly got in the attack first. If the attacks are at the same time, then the rock scissors dynamic comes into play. So for my game, I might have three spells, all of which can defeat one other spell and be defeated with another: Lumos : can be beaten by Nox ; beats Stupefy Nox : can be beaten by Stupify ; beats Lumos Stupefy : can be beaten by Lumos ; beats Nox In Cruel 2 B Kind, if both players tie, they need to separate and cannot attack again for 30 seconds. In my house, my kids have a habit of counting too fast, so would make a rule that players need to count like this: ONE Salvio Hexa TWO Salvio Hexa THREE Salvio Hexa... Personally, I'm tempted to make things a little bit more complicated and bring in a Rock-paper-scissors-lizard-spock dynamic. Whether this admitted complication works or not probably will become clear with actual playtesting. Anyone interested? Homenum Revelio! The Hackforge Summer Games Challenge :: Day One :: The Unbearable Lightness of Designing For the next two weeks, I'm going to occupy my time trying to design games as I'm taking part in the Hackforge Summer Games. The game may be of any medium - video, paper, street - but it must be created between between today and August 31st and it should somehow involve the theme : light and darkness. I'm really too tired to make a proper start on the challenge tonight. But I did come up with these design concepts just before I had dinner (and that glass of wine that did me in). As an added bonus, I've added links to my inspirations. GAME CONCEPTS I THOUGHT UP WHILE I WATCHED MY SON PLAY SOCCER AT THE FORD FIELD TEST TRACK AFTER SPENDING THE MORNING AT HACKFORGE AND THE WINDSOR PUBLIC LIBRARY The screen begins as completely white. Then slowly, it starts to resemble a photo that was overexposed by too much flash. As time pases, the an image from this photo begins to take shape. If this image is of a door or other means of escape, you should click on it. But if the image is one of a horrible a monster, and you click on it before you realize this, it will eat you. Wait too long before clicking and you will be eaten by an monster. In other words, there's no way to escape the monster. YOU BRIGHT AND RISEN ANGELS There is a bright and beckoning light bulb that pulls you, a bug, toward it like gravity. But once you are too close you become completely under it's pull and are set towards a collision with death. You must gather a swarm of others to become so large that the swarm itself will block out its light, but in doing so, you must keep yourself and others far enough away so as not fall under the light's deadly attraction. IN PRAISE OF DARKNESS You are in a bleak land without night. The glare of the sun (or is it a camera? An unblinking eye?) is relentless. Can you escape its gaze? You travel far and wide and try to escape the ever watching eye. Eventually you learn to distract it with spectacle / riot, and take advantage of its overwhelmed state to throw yourself into an unknown, abyss that leads to an underground passage. You are enveloped in dark and by gentle earthly sounds. You are finally able to sleep and dream the game to an end. Adventures in Art Time! Sometimes, when I would like my kids to do something, I don't ask them to do it. I do it myself. This morning, I sat down and drew this sketch that I copied from this totally rhombus cover: Then I left the table, with my pen and paper behind, and did something else on that lazy Sunday morning. And later that morning, I found this: This trick doesn't always work. But it works many times when asking, offering or cajoling doesn't. Sometimes my meme seeding doesn't work on the first pass. Sometimes it takes time. (I made this last week. My son made this a week later.) And many times this trick doesn't work at all. But it works much more often than you might have guessed. It is a lesson that I find myself learning and re-learning over and over again: parenting is not lecturing. Here is my lecture on fanart and fanfic. A couple of weeks ago I was returning home from Toronto by train, and for four hours I was able to watch the screen of the laptop of a passenger that was sitting in front of me, just across the aisle. I had my own laptop screen to entertain me, but I have to admit that on more than one occasion I stole glances at what my fellow passenger was doing on her computer. Because beside doing normal young adult things like looking at Facebook and reading web comics online - she was doing awesome things. She made her own version of a Japanese wave pattern with a graphics program. She used a wacom tablet to take a photo of a woman and transform it into a surreal dark illustration of some sort of half-woman, half crow). She made beautiful things. I watched her. And then I realized that I wanted to do the same. I didn't grow up with an affection for comics books, role-playing games, or science fiction and I don't really have a strong affection for those things now. I have never been to a con and I have never engaged in cosplay. I still feel a tinge weird when I go into a comic book shop. It's just not my tribe. But - I am jealous of those communities. I am jealous that these 'interests and hobbies' have become large and strong enough to support its own ecosystem of economies and local businesses; large enough for media coverage and to have their own TV shows on local and national levels; and large enough to have an entire conference circuit that wraps around the world. And I admire these communities. And in particular, I admire how they lay a path for fans to become to move from being a consumer to conference organizer or from a fan to an artist. Here's an example. Adventure Time is a cartoon on The Cartoon Network that I am currently in love with. Adventure Time is well known for it’s open relationship between staff and the fans. The official Adventure Time blog [6] shares official artwork, early drafts and storyboards before new episodes air. Some of the writers and animators are open to fan questions about the show, its development and its universe. They often reply to fans via Formspring accounts. [Knowyourmeme] I love that these shows respond to fan art work with mutual admiration and even love. I love that the artists and the other creators who work on these shows are visible and public as themselves as artists. And it's really really interesting when the interactions between artists and the fanart changes the art altogether: In 2010, just months after the premiere of Adventure Time on Cartoon Network, character designer Natasha Allegri designed gender-swapped versions of Finn and Jake called Fiona (now renamed Fionna) and Cake, a cat. (See also: Rule 63) These versions of the protagonist resulted quite popular that many fans wanted more and made fanart that proved that. On December 29th, 2010, Natasha Allegri confirmed on her Tumblr[11] that an episode of Adventure Time starring Fionna and Cake was on the works. On September 5th, the episode titled “Fionna & Cake” premiered on Cartoon Network[12] scoring a total of 3.3 million viewers[13]. [Knowyourmeme] There is a lot of Adventure Time fan art. I suspect that cartoonists don't mind young aspiring cartoonists trying to copy their work because that's probably how they started themselves as young artists. It's understood to many that when you start out as an artist that you learn the rules of your genre by copying your favourite things and making homages to your favourite heroes. You copy the art that you love because you don't know how to make it. Then, in time, you make DeviantArt as you stretch your own skills and ideas as you try to make your own contributions of work. In doing so, you develop your own style. I'm not there yet myself. I'm still in the copying stage. Political interference is hazardous to your health On Monday, Windsor City Council will be holding a special meeting that will discuss whether the city should continue fluoridating Windsor's water supply. I'm pleased to read that the Windsor Star's Saturday editorial board takes this stand on the matter: We can only hope council makes an educated decision; one that considers the mountains of research done by trained professionals in this field. It must not be swayed by those who have neither the credentials nor the research to back up their argument. I was pleasantly surprised by this editorial because I've been troubled at how many of the city's reporters had been adopting the language of our local anti-fluoride lobby group. Here's one simple example: the first line of "Despite WUC recommendation, fluoridation of water continues" Almost a year after the Windsor Utilities Commission’s board voted to end fluoridation of the city’s drinking water, the additive long used to combat rotten teeth in kids — but described by critics as toxic — is still being mixed in with local tap water. Well, not quite. Water fluoridation is done to prevent cavities in kids and adults. It's worth taking the time to understand that poor dental health damages the health and economic well being of the working poor far beyond what we in the middle class might remember as just the temporary annoyance of a cavity in a baby tooth. “Almost every time we asked interviewees what their first priority would be if the president established universal health coverage tomorrow,” Sered and Fernandopulle write, “the immediate answer was ‘my teeth.’ ” A third of the population of Windsor does not have dental insurance. Also, the use of the word "toxic" is used by fluoride critics to discredit the practice. And yes, fluoride has a degree of toxicity. And so does caffeine. Drinking 80 cups of coffee can kill you. You need to drink more than a bathtub of water for the fluoride in Windsor's water supply just to have an effect. I'm not a toxicologist but I would go so far as to suggest that the amount of caffeine in our pee is more toxic than the fluoride in our water. Word association is the modus operandi of the anti-fluoride lobbyists. They have crafted their message very carefully over the years and they have a small stockpile of phrases designed to generate maximum doubt to the listener. But scratch under the surface of their words and you see that their evidence is scant when compared to the overwhelming amount of research that supports the practice. Unfortunately, it's an exhausting process because arguing against fluoride seems to be a full-time job of this small but uncompromising lobby group. Who has the time to do the research against their tidal wave of counterfactuals? And this is why we have health officials who work for us and for our public health. They have the expertise and the ability to read and understand the research to measure the pros and cons to this practice. They need to do their job as free from political interference as possible. It's troubling to know that Eddie Francis, the mayor of city, as well as city councillors Bill Marra and Alan Halberstadt have already publicly stated that they are going against the advice of the Windsor-Essex Public Health Unit and will vote in favour of the removal of fluoride from our water. One has to wonder if the the vote has been influenced by already established bad feelings over the fact the Windsor-Essex Public Health Unit went against the City's wishes and budgeted for a 7% increase this year: Francis, who is still seething over the health unit's failure to back the city's passionate position on issues like heart and lung disease during the border infrastructure fight with the province... I'm hoping for the best on Monday but it would not surprise me if reason and cooler heads will not prevail in the theatre of politics. And that worries me because I have a conspiracy theory of my own. The same zealous anti-fluoride activists who are working around our Public Health agencies actually have a larger mission in mind. This is the just first offensive of a local anti-vaccination brigade. DeYong said the trend across North America has been municipal authorities recognizing that “they can’t play doctor and continue to give us medication without our consent." I wish that these individuals were as committed to removing CO2 from our atmosphere as they are from something relatively harmless from our water. [editorial note: I will not be accepting arguments for or against fluoridation in this post's comments. thanks] Get a real coffee maker It's Christmas time and as I have small children, talk of gifts received (from Mom and Dad) and gifts to come (which will be opened once the aunt and uncle join us late tonight) falls steadily through the air, like the snow outside. Well, that's an exaggeration. My children are excited, but it's to be expected. They generally only get new toys at Christmas and on their birthdays, so it would be odd if they weren't happy about the excuse for presents. But for us adults, the matter of presents is more complicated. Most of us don't wait for birthdays and holidays to treat ourselves to the things we covet. And this makes the act of giving gifts an almost absurd exercise. We either need to guess what our loved ones want but don't know they want or purchase an something deemed too extravagant to buy for one's self. This modern day dilemma is so pressing that I think there are entire products lines that exist just to fill this need. How else can we explain the sudden ubiquity of single-serving coffee makers. Or as someone I follow on Twitter calls them, #landfill. My husband owns a food store that grew out of a coffee stall and he has sold a great deal of coffee beans over the last ten years, and so, by osmosis alone, I do know a little bit about coffee brewing. I know enough to know that the notion of better brewing by barcode is a pile of hooey. This 3 minute video from America's Test Kitchen demonstrates why: the feature that contributes most to good coffee is a good heating element, and all the bells and whistles of most coffee makers feature are distractions from the fact that they all use the same tepid heating element. So if you want to make good coffee at home, you can - like we did - invest in a Technivorm Moccamaster or - if you have more time than money, watch and learn how to make amazing coffee without a coffee maker at all. But a caveat: we imagine our future selves blissed out of our minds each morning from Irish Cream barcode blended coffee (or the robost and complex Technivorm brewed coffee), but this is because we always forget (and this forgetting seems to take a year suspiciously enough) that material pleasure is something that we quickly acclimatize to. I love my morning coffee but I will never love it as much as the first week with our new coffee maker. I am coming round to a line of thinking that I was first introduced to by either Kevin Kelly or Bruce Sterling. The problem at hand is not we care too much about material things - the problem in this disposable age is that we don't care enough about the things we buy. There is no doubt in my mind that once those fragile single server coffee makers break, that those who were gifted them will not spend a dime to repair their machine - no matter how much love accompanied it - and, instead, they will bury it underground and wait for next Christmas to come around. And that's an opportunity lost because something interesting and good happens when you start a long-term relationship with your everyday tools. When our coffee maker suddenly started misbehaving, we took it to Windsor's Appliance Medic (whom I would recommend doing business with) and he marvelled at how easy it was to take apart, and how simple it was to diagnose and correct our problem (a sticky internal switch that came about because we had neglected to descale our coffee maker). It gave me the confidence to consider trying to fix the machine myself if we run into trouble again. Christmas (for most of us) is over and thoughts of the New Year have begun. So let's end this post with a resolution as suggested by Bruce Sterling: Now, you can argue that you should economize and just buy cheap things, or try and de-materialize. Not be materialistic, and content yourself with things that are very cheap or very organic. That’s not the way forward. Economizing is not social. When you economize, you’re starving somebody else. Really. If you don’t give them money, they don’t have any money. And if they don’t offer you any money, you don’t get any money. That’s not a social flow, or even a sociable relationship. What you need to do is re-assess the objects in your space and time. And I’m going to explain to you how to do this. The king of objects, the monarch among objects are not fancy objects. They’re not high-tech objects, they’re not organic objects, they’re not biological objects, they’re everyday objects. Things that you’re with every day. Whatever is in your time most, what’s taking up most of your time, or in your space most. The stuff that’s closest to your skin, on your skin, inside your skin, in intimate areas. Space and time. That’s what’s going on, that’s where it’s at. That’s where it’s happening. Common everyday objects. You need to have the best possible common everyday objects. Number one, a bed. You’re spending a third of your life in the thing. You never take it seriously. Rich people have great beds. You should go out and get the best bed you can get. Money is no object. On a per hour rental basis, beds, super important. The sheets, the pillows, pretty high up there too. Every morning when you wake up you will thank me for this. I know you’re resisting it. It’s like: “Why? Why am I buying a fancy bed? It’s bad for me, I’m being taken outside of my comfort zone.” You live in the thing! Get rid of the wedding china! Get rid of the tuxedos! The exercise equipment you never use! The things you never touch! The heaps of things, the heaps of material objects in your closet and, God help you, your storage locker. Sell them all, buy a bed. Get a real bed. Get a chair. I shouldn’t have to tell people who work with computers to get a chair. No, they’d rather whine about their wrists blowing out, their spines blowing out. They wouldn’t come up with a chair that would cost them maybe fifteen cents an hour over the first amortizable period. The world is full of beautifully designed ergonomic chairs. Get a real damn chair! Sell the other chairs, the fancy chairs, the couch, the over-stuffed thing, your grandmother’s chair. Get rid of your grandmother’s chair, it was never properly built to begin with. Get rid of it. Get rid of it, if you don’t use it! If you haven’t touched it in a year, get rid of it immediately. Sell it, buy real things you really use. I agree. Get rid of the presents you don't use and get a real coffee maker. We need to talk about politics Death count in CT school shooting up to 27 now, including kids. No politics right now. Let's just mourn. — Dalson Chen (@WinStarChen) December 14, 2012 I didn't watch the news yesterday. I watched the after-shocks of yesterday's horrific shooting in Newton, Connecticut in the reflections and reverberations from my circle of friends and of other people I follow online. There was an outpouring of grief - people were sick with grief - and then there came the anger and the fury - and it still comes in waves - the grief, the sickness, and the anger. And between the grief, the sick, and the anger there too was politics. For myself, the only one - of whom I follow online - who asked for "no politics right now" was the local journalist, above - but I know it was a more common refrain for others. Politics doesn't have a place in the media's blueprint for covering mass shootings. I have to agree with Roger Ebert: if we want look past the complicated issues of gun control and mental illness and instead turn a tragedy into an absurd Rorschach ink-blot test then I'm going to choose mainstream news programming for my scapegoat. But I'm not really interested in scapegoats. I'm interested in making sure that this tragedy never happens again. That's why I think the time to politicize the matter of lack of gun control is right now. Politicizing events is the norm. It's just not very well distributed across the political spectrum: One guy tries to use a shoe bomb = Everyone at the airport takes their shoes off. 31 school shootings since Columbine = no changes. — Joshua DeRosa (@bonafidechicken) December 14, 2012 To conservatives: Both voting and gun ownership are our rights. Can you demand the same high bar for gun buying that you want for voting? — Anil Dash (@anildash) December 14, 2012 Norms change. Many Americans are now challenging the belief that gun ownership in the United States will be forever immune from the aftershocks of shooting rampages. But whether that this belief can be turned into better legislation will take more than a petition - it will take organization, effort and time. But it is possible. Here's a remarkable story that shows us how: In 1971, over 400 children died in cycling accidents in the Netherlands. This was a time - as explained in this short video and blog post - before the bike-friendly infrastructure was in place in Holland. And this continuing 'child-murder' drove the Dutch to the streets to protest the horrible situation and to 'Stop de kindermoord'. And it was these protests that helped the Dutch get organized and politicized and positioned to develop their coveted safe for children cycling infrastructure. A child's death is an tragedy. A preventable child's death is an outrage. Preventing others from trying to save children's lives in order to preserve an intangible historical construct is the worst kind of politics. The time to tighten gun control and to extend mental health support to everyone is now. As Canadian looking as possible (under the circumstances) Are you kidding, Canada? Image of "Asian-looking" woman purged from new $100 bills after focus groups complained bit.ly/R6Ciy6 — Denise Balkissoon (@balkissoon) August 17, 2012 "The Bank of Canada said its policies are to avoid depicting any specific ethnic group in such designs." - Globe and Mail, August 17, 2012 My responses to this story came in waves that were short and choppy and just piled on to each other: The notion that "whiteness is neutral" is a form of racism but it's largely not recognized as such because there's no 'hate' involved. The flip side of 'whiteness is normal' is that non-white is other. To say that someone who "looks Asian" does not "look Canadian" is blatantly racist. Most Canadians know this and so they rationalize their racism in other ways. I wonder if those focus group participants who felt that having an Asian woman in a lab coat was problematic because it was stereotypical were concern trolls Women are still are not a numbers that they should be in science, technology and engineering. So, for me, I think of the Asian female scientist as an aspirational image and not a stereotypical one Most Asian women I know are not scientists Still, I find stereotypical images more honest than anti-sterotypical images I'm bewildered by people who seem to make no categorical difference between those who have recently immigrated to Canada and those who are the children and the children's children of immigrants to Canada. Yes, we look the same. But we are not the same. The erased Asian woman could have been a third generation Canadian. Can a visible minority ever "represent" the majority? If a visible minority can never represent the majority, they will be invisible. Forever. In Toronto, the Asian woman was seen positively because those citizens feel their identity is multicultural and so they saw themselves in that Asian woman. I love you Toronto. I'm very glad that this story came to light because it allows us to have conversations about national identity and race. These stories are few and far between because Canadian don't tend to be open and honest about our ideas and feelings around race. The last story that I can remember that came closest was from a couple years ago was the story from Maclean's about how some universities (well, namely the University of Toronto) are seen as "too Asian." The story came to light because the Canadian Press filed an Access to Information request. If the Queen of England - a living, breathing, symbol unto herself, can be represented by Adrienne Clarkson, then I see no reason why a Canadian scientist can't be represented by an "Asian-looking" woman. (Also, Queen Elizabeth? Not Canadian!) While I understand why the Bank of Canada held focus groups to get an understanding if their designs would be widely enjoyed by the Canadian public, I am disturbed that it chose to respond the way they did. Currency is, in essence, symbolism. Why would the Bank of Canada outsource the rationale to set a design standard to random Canadians? And when these random Canadians said racist things, why didn't they just ignore them? When I read the comment from the person from Fredricton ("The person on it appears to be of Asian descent which doesn’t rep(resent) Canada. It is fairly ugly.”), I immediately thought of this passage from a book I'm reading by Richard Sennett called Together: "For much of my sociological life I've studied what our trade calls ressentiment, the feeling of ordinary people that the elite does not know much about their own problems first-hand, even though presuming to speak on their behalf. In the families of white, working-class Americans I studied in Boston, ressentiment appeared to cross class with race. The liberal elite identified with poor blacks but not with these white workers, many of whom were indeed racially prejudiced at the time.... in Europe, ressentiment appears particularly in attitudes of native workers to Islamic immigrants The elite seems on the side of the oppressed, but not on the side of the ordinary." We will never know the real reason why the design was changed. If I was a conspiracy theorist, I would start ranting that the government is committed not to offend Quebec between and during Federal elections. Since I'm not, I will opt for the more boring theory that the Bank of Canada simply went with the most boring and least controversial design on hand. That's what focus groups are for: to create bland and inoffensive designs To be Canadian is to be boring That's why I'm glad I look like an Asian woman LEGO Girl-FRIEND, let's talk So LEGO's Friends - their new line of toys for girls continues to generate criticism from those shocked and dismayed that LEGO could engage in such stereotypical gendered play. The definitive response to the matter, I think, is Thinking Brickly's The LEGO Gender Gap: A Historical Perspective who convinced me that LEGO Friends isn't the first or the worst way LEGO has tried to appeal to girls. Still, the debate seems to be missing some important considerations... which is why I am writing this. LEGO Friends have breasts. Just like girls. Much of the original uproar about the LEGO Friends line is that the mini-figures have breasts. To be honest, I didn't even notice that they have breasts because the LEGO figures are supposed to look like older girls and, as such, they have as normal-looking breasts as you can expect LEGO minifigures to be. We're not talking about Barbie-like endowments, here, we're talking about normal breasts. And breasts are normal. I'd have a lot more respect from those who are outraged that LEGO Friends have breasts if these same folks were also upset that Superheroes are ridiculously muscle-y creatures designed to act as male power fantasies. Children's play is already gendered It doesn't happen to all kids and it doesn't happen at all ages, but there are phases in a child's development when kids are completely caught up in "gendered play" (otherwise known as the 'I'm not playing with that! That's a girl's toy!" phase). For example, earlier this morning my 4 year old daughter and I played a game of I can do that! and she refused to play cards featuring Nick and would only play cards featuring Sally (or The Cat in the Hat instead). I suspect that this pre-school developmental stage might be less about gender and more about self-identity and group identity. But what is quite obvious is that this phase is very much being exploited by companies that are trying to sell a small spectrum of toys to a large population. That being said, there are still some very strong societal pressures that re-enforce the idea to boys that the worse thing that you can be in the world is a girl which sucks - no argument, there. The girls are alright. Let them play I'm a little disturbed by the line of thinking that says it's okay for girls to play with "boy's toys" but it's not okay for girls to play with "girls toys". Case in point, the cover story of the June 2012 issue of WIRED is "How to be a Geek Dad" with a sub-heading of "How to NOT raise a princess". If boys are allowed to play in un-realistic fantasy worlds of comic book heroes, ninjas, star wars, cowboys or what-have you, why can't girls play in the fantasy worlds that they would like to inhabit? In other words, why can't girls be princesses? Personally, I don't encourage princess play with my daughter (she's gets enough of it through her friends at daycare) But I don't discourage it either. What I do instead is try to expose her to lots of different storyworlds that she can imagine herself in and see what she takes to. Besides, I suspect that playing Princess and playing Barbie is just a very specific form of dress-up for girls. At least it seems to be for my four year old: Me: What's your favourite part about playing princesses? Anna: It's just the clothes. Me: Do you play with princes? With dragons? Girls that imagine themselves - through dolls or other toys - older and in beautiful dresses and high-heels - are just imagining themselves in a more powerful state (although in my more cynical moments, I wonder if the reason why so many girls wish to be princesses because it's the only female job that has status). As a woman who personally feels vulnerable when wearing high heels and dresses, I'm actually quite sympathetic to this kind of play. I'd hope my daughter feels more confident than I did as a girl. LEGO, to its credit, knew better to stay away from Princesses for it's LEGO Friends line and designed sets in "reality". A reality that girls might like: a beauty salon, pet grooming, fashion design, and musical stage (yes, there's also a invention workshop but this set is clearly an example of overcompensation as a means to achieve gender equity and racial harmony). Still, the princesses are coming to LEGO and unfortunately, they are coming to the DUPLO line - the one place where LEGO had less-emphasised gender play done right and this news makes me more angry and disappointed in LEGO than their Friends line. There are differences in the genders but they are small and should be made smaller All the other LEGO sets (Star Wars, ninjas, underwater explorers, pirates, space aliens) are marketed as boy's toys and it's really very unfortunate that the mini-figs in these sets are almost all male. I'm not saying all of this because I'm ultimately concerned that girls and their poor numbers in science and technology (that's another series of posts which boils down to this idea: the worlds of science and technology has to change more than girls have to change). I'm saying all of this this because I'm ultimately concerned with the failure to imagine a world where women and men find ways to work and play together and this is a massive failure of imagination from a company that is supposed to be at the forefront of imagination. Don't tell me it can't be done. I just watched three seasons of a kids show that had lots of strong females who kick butt and smooch strong males. So where is my LEGO Appa? If you don't have the time and effort to read the entirety of Thinking Brickly's lengthy history of gender and LEGO, just skip to the end to read his recommendations. This mom got it right and I'm going to follow her lead. Why I bought LEGO Friends for my daughter My daughter has an older brother and we already have a lot of LEGO in the house that she sometimes plays with and I didn't see much harm in buying Friends. Now all the pieces of her two sets are integrated with the larger mass of LEGOs in our house. I like LEGO because it's open ended play. Sometimes my son plays with his LEGO Star Wars sets and re-enacts those stories. Sometimes he makes up his own stories. Sometimes he takes apart the sets and builds things. Sometimes his sister does it too and sometimes they even build together. I don't expect toy companies to build the toys we need - just the toys that a large market will buy. And I've been to enough girl birthday parties to see that girls aren't getting a wide spectrum of experiences through their toys. They get princess coloring books and sticker books and sets that allow them to make their own jewellery. I've noticed that the girls never get games as gifts and that's where I've decided to try to influence their worlds. I'm somewhat hopeful that forces like Kickstarter and small-production lines can bring about new lines of toys that are better for girls and boys. But I'm not too wrapped up in toys to be honest. Toys are traditionally scaled down and safer version of real-world tools. Kids mimic the world around them and I think the best way that I can prepare them for a world that I can scarcely imagine is to have them see me and work with me in building a better future with the tools and the toys we have. Posted by Mita at 9:11 AM 4 comments A statement of belief towards a future way of life that is sustainable Our current way of life is not sustainable. We know this. What we don't know - or perhaps more accurately - what we can't agree on - is what should be the shape of the future we should be working for. I'm not a utopian but I think that without a vision of an alternative future that we want to fight for, it will be difficult to determine whether we are getting closer to it or closer to the looming Dark Mountain. The only sustainable country in the world is Cuba. For human rights and geopolitical reasons, we can't hold Cuba as a model to us to emulate and follow. That's why Costa Rica is generally held up as a viable vision instead. But I think that the average Canadian is still going to have a hard time understanding what a more 'Costa Rican' future would look like. At best, I think Canadians associate Costa Rica with ecotourism - and that's about it. I think there is another model future that Canadians can understand and it's one that will not only emulate - it's one that they can emulate with enthusiasm. I know this because many Canadians already do this two weeks a year. It became clear to me a couple years ago. Friends of ours had won a charity auction for a time-share of a large cottage in Northern Michigan and they invited my family and another to spend time with them for a better part of a week. It was an ideal cottage experience. Surrounded by trees and bird-song. Visits to beaches and nature reserves. Board and card games. Reading and radio. Conversation. Trips to farmer's markets and roadside stands. Communal meals. Beer with lunch. Wine with dinner. Friends and family. Let me be clear that I don't think that actual cottage life is sustainable. Evidence overwhelming backs up the once controversial statement that "the city is the most environmentally benign form of human settlement." But the cottage lifestyle is worth pursing - as is the cottage aesthetic. At the cottage, ordinary people have no problem buying biodegradable soap and taking care so as not to upset the capacity of the septic tank. Second-hand unmatched furniture is the norm. Family photographs and local crafts line the wall. Bookshelves of books that are worn from sharing. Houses have names. Places have history. Urban cottage living would be an understandably Canadian response to our global problems. So please join with me in my new battle cry: "In the cul de sac, a lake!" Aedile Works New Jack Librarian 4-0-Wonderland twitter: @copystar twitter: @newjackalmanac New Jack Search Engine It's Christmas time and as I have small children, talk of gifts received (from Mom and Dad) and gifts to come (which will be opened once... (As part of the Hackforge Summer Games Challenge , I'm trying to design a game with the theme of light and darkness by August 31st. This... On Monday, Windsor City Council will be holding a special meeting that will discuss whether the city should continue fluoridating Windsor&... Are you kidding, Canada? Image of "Asian-looking" woman purged from new $100 bills after focus groups complained bit.ly/R6Ciy6 —... So LEGO's Friends - their new line of toys for girls continues to generate criticism from those shocked and dismayed that LEGO could e... This work by Mita Williams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line476
__label__wiki	0.854569	0.854569	Difference between revisions of "Metroid" [[Category: Platformer]] [[Category: Adventure]] [[Category: Run and Gun]] [[Category: Video Game Genre - Platform Shooter]] [[Category: Metroidvania]] [[Category: Games I've Beaten]] North American box art. Metroid is a platform adventure action game with a science fiction theme released by Nintendo on the Famicom Disk System on 1986-08-06 and ported to the NES in 1987. It's the first game in the Metroid series. You play a bounty hunter trying to stop Mother Brain from making an army of Metroids, a terrible organism which can suck the life out of all living things. Metroid is a pioneer of the Metroidvania genre, which is one of my favorite types of games. Unfortunately, like many pioneers, it suffers from several serious flaws that prevents it from being accessible to modern gamers. Thankfully, Nintendo remade it as Metroid: Zero Mission, which I suggest as the starting point for anyone wanting to get into the series. Metroid is also the sister project of Kid Icarus: Angel Land Story, and they share similar game engines. A lot of awesome sequels have been made, some with a similar 2D platform style, others with a first-person 3D format. I first saw Metroid in The Official Nintendo Player's Guide. The game looked really cool, but I didn't own it. I must have borrowed it from a friend, because I remember playing it while I was still quite young. I didn't get very far on my initial run and died as I was ascending the first vertical shaft! I was a bit shocked to find that you only got one life, which gives you an idea of how popular the 3-life arcade style of game was at the time. Later, my step-brother brought the game over, and, with a lot of help from The Official Nintendo Player's Guide I watched them beat the game. I still remember wasting hours trying to fill up energy at an enemy spawn site. In the 1990s, I remember using the Justin Baily code to get invincibility and beating the game. In my 30s I decided to try and beat the game again, just from my memory. I did pretty good (only needed to consult a map a couple times), and got a better ending because I did it all in one sitting. 3.1 Box Art 3.3 Maps 3.4 Screenshots 4 Game Design 4.1 Title 4.2 Ending I own this game on the NES and have beaten it and seen the ashamed ending and helmet reveal ending. Best Version: 58% — This section contains spoilers! — The graphics are great for the time. Each zone has its own feel and ambience. Areas like Norfair have a hellish inferno feel, Kraid's hideout is alive and creepy, while Ridley's hideout is desolate and dangerous. Hirokazu Tanaka's score adds so much to the feel of the game from the motivational Brinstar theme, to the loneliness of Norfair, the power of Kraid's hideout, and the insidiousness of Ridley's hideout and Tourain. The title and ending themes are fantastic and even the quietness of the item rooms and the game start and get item jingles are very hummable. While the game has the typical platformer power-ups (high jump, longer range shot, better armor, etc.), Metroid pioneered a lot of interesting ideas like the ability to morph into a ball and drop bombs, the screw attack, and the ice beam turning enemies into platforms. There are a lot of bonus items to find if you keep at it long enough. Having Samus be a female was quite progressive of the game creators, and I like that it was possibly to play her as an obvious female. This is one of the very first games to feature a new game plus mechanic. The game is very difficult, too much of which comes from the poor player control. You can't shoot at angles or down, you can't duck, you slide while walking, getting hit throws you around erratically, etc. Thankfully, these problems were fixed in subsequent Metroid games. Without a basic map or quest log, it is pretty much a given that you're going to get lost a lot and spend much of your time back-tracking. You have to draw your own map, but this is difficult due to the scrolling nature of the screens. Several sections of the map are pointless (especially in Ridley's lair) and serve only to waste your time. While there are a lot of bonus items, many of them are really hard to find, and, due the difficulty of the game, they're more mandatory than optional (like the screw attack and varia). Rewarding players by having Samus take more of her clothes the better they do is not only inappropriate for a kid's game, but also makes the game insulting to female players. Refilling energy and missiles is a very tedious process, and you're forced to do it every time you restart a game with a password, killing any chance at getting the best ending. While the FDS version records your time and displays it to you at the character selection screen, the cartridge versions do not, which is disappointing, and instead requires a long complicated password. Since the maps must reuse rooms, several places have what appear to be hidden passages, only to turn into a dead-end. Most of the secret items are hidden without any visible hints, which makes you end up trying to bomb the floor, ceiling, and walls of nearly every room to find them. The fake Ice Beam room in Brinstar is really obnoxious and punishes you for exploring. The battle with Kraid is hard, getting his secret energy tank is torturous, and getting back up the long tower from his hideout is stupid frustrating. The game was originally released on the Famicom Disk System in Japan which would let you save your character on disk. All other regions got a regular cart with a password system. Two versions were created for the Game Boy Advance, one could be unlocked in Metroid Fusion. Unfortunately, the GBA's height resolution isn't as tall as the NES, so all the graphics are squished making them look terrible. There are four different versions of box art. Japanese box art for original Famicom Disk System release. Definitely my favorite. The North American box art. My least favorite for obvious reasons. The designer must have gotten faulty advice, because zoomers don't float in the air, a rippers don't skid along the ground. However, if they were switched, Samus would be shooting at an invincible ripper. Square box art for Asia and some European markets. I rather enjoy this art. North American box art: Re-release. Huge improvement, and quite nice to look at, but it uses Samus's Varia suit from Metroid 2, which isn't actually used in this game. Manual, USA. Manual, USA - Revision. Manual, USA - Revision, Digital. Manual, Japan. Metroid: Hissho Tekunikku Kan Peki-ban (Translated). Hisshou Kouryakuhou Guide: Book FT84. Hisshou Kouryakuhou Guide: Book FT84 (cover detail). Hisshoubon, Series 5, Book Famicom 59. The Official Nintendo Player's Guide, part 1. The Official Nintendo Player's Guide, blurb. Nintendo Power, power-up Maps. Nintendo Fun Club, 1987-Q2 - Blurb. Nintendo Fun Club, 1988-06 - Tricks. Japanese ad. This is the full art seen on the European and Asian boxes. The complete map with spoilers. The start of the game. Art by Zac Gorman. 30 Year Anniversary art by Deimon-Remus. Retro Samus fan art by Deimon-Remus. Jumpsuit Samus fan art by Deimon-Remus. Honest title. CGA mockup. youtube.com/watch?v=Q6GV9pSs4TQ - How Metroid creates dread. youtube.com/watch?v=VYilGy1wYEA - NES Works review, part 1. youtube.com/watch?v=6KeXq1OpssM - NES Works review, part 2. youtube.com/watch?v=3HqBRt7PGSU - Son of a Glitch. youtube.com/watch?v=qFCF4I09Avc - Progression of world record speed runs. youtube.com/watch?v=Ly1PUEmxyyQ - Longplay, 100% items, best ending. Graphically, Metroid's introduction is pretty typical of a 1986 NES game. The game's title logo is displayed, music plays, there are minor graphical changes, and the there is a single-screen message in Engrish to provide backstory. The great thing about it though is the music. It has a nice long and imposing tune. Metroid has a pretty great ending sequence for 1986. The music is amazing, there are multiple scenes based on how quickly you can beat the game, and a really fast game changed the next play through. The ending begins with a message in Engrish displayed above Samus standing on the desolate surface of Zebes. After a short delay, Samus begins to flash and, depending on how quickly the player has beaten the game, one of five things can happen. If the player takes over 10 hours (or five hours while suitless), Samus will turn away in shame. From 10-5 hours, she will raise a hand in victory. From three to five hours, she will remove the helmet of her powersuit, and her long brown hair identifies her as a woman. If they player is able to beat the game in one to three hours, Samus will remove her powersuit entirely and waves to the player while wearing a leotard. If the player can beat the game in under an hour, Samus strips down to just her underwear and waves to the player. After that, the credits roll. If the player beats the game in less than three hours, they can restart the game and replay the game with Samus in her leotard. I don't approve of the "women as reward" trope in a children's game. I have nothing against provocative imagery in games, but I wasn't the only kid who hear rumors of Samus taking all her clothes off for an exceptionally fast play through. This is a collection of Editors, utilities, and technical documents for Metroid, including disassembled source code. Download (Info) Executive Producer Hiroshi Yamauchi Producer Gunpei Yokoi Chief Director Satoru Okada Director Yoshio Sakamoto Writer Makoto Kanoh Character Designers Hiroji Kiyotake, Hirofumi Matsuoka, Yoshio Sakamoto Main Programmers Hiroyuki Yukami, Yase Sobajima, Toshio Sengoku, N. Shiotani, M. Houdai Audio Programmer, Composer, Sound Effects Hirokazu Tanaka Assistant Makoto Kanoh NES Port Toru Narihiro Special Thanks Ken Zuri, Sumi, Toru Osawa, Kacho, Hyakkan, Goyake, Takahiro Harada, Penpen English Metroid Japanese メトロイド Metoroido Metroid Retrieved from "http://thealmightyguru.com/Wiki/index.php?title=Metroid&oldid=24688" Video Game Rank - 5 Video Game Graphics Rank - 5 Video Game Sound Rank - 8 Links to NESHacker Links to TCRF Famicom Disk System Games PlayChoice-10 Games Video Game Genre - Platform Shooter Games I've Beaten Strong Female Character Playable Female Character Game Mechanic - New Game Plus	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line477
__label__cc	0.701577	0.298423	Tag: Non-human Companions How to help a dog who is grieving the loss of a loved one We ask the experts for their advice By Lisa Walden For dogs, the loss of a human or another pet can have a traumatic impact on their lives. Much like humans, dogs grieve the absence of someone they love so it’s important we know how to help them. Dogs experiencing a loss can show signs of confusion, fear or depression. If it’s the loss of their owner, you may notice dogs trying to figure out where that person has gone. If it’s another pet who has died, your dog may spend more time in their bed or favourite space, often with the hope that their friend may return. A recent news story highlighted this sad truth when a dog owner shared heartbreaking images of her dog regularly returning to the bed where his best canine friend once slept. The dog left the same space for his deceased friend to sleep in night after night, despite him passing away a year before. Tugging on the heart strings of many, it created a discussion around how dogs grieve. Claire Stallard, Behaviour and Training Manager at the Blue Cross tells Country Living: “The loss of a person or another pet may have a huge impact on your existing pet’s behaviour. “Not only might they experience grief themselves due to the absence of a family member, they are also likely to pick up on the subtle changes in your behaviour too during this difficult time.” What are the signs your dog is grieving? Some dogs may show visible signs of grief, while others may completely withdraw and mourn quietly. “Dogs’ ability to form strong social attachments with us and each other means they can have difficulty coping when they are suddenly separated from their companions. If their owner is grieving, the change in their behaviour and their normal routine can also have an impact,” Lisa Hens, RSPCA dog welfare expert tells Country Living. “This varies greatly depending on the individual dog, and some owners report that, when one dog dies, the remaining dog seems very affected and may stop eating, for example. While others report that the remaining dog seems unaffected,” Lisa says. Some of the signs that will indicate a change in your pet’s behaviour include… Losing their appetite They might cry a lot or be searching in areas where they expect the deceased family member to be They might be wanting your attention more than usual More time sleeping Changes in apetite Loss of interest in going for walks How do I know if my dog has separation anxiety? “Sadly, many dogs simply don’t know how to cope when their owner isn’t at home. Some dogs will bark or destroy things to show their feelings. While, others will simply sit there quietly, feeling worried,” Lisa from the RSPCA tells Country Living. “This can happen on a day to day basis, not just after loss, and research suggests that 8 out of 10 dogs find it hard to cope when left alone, and worryingly half of these won’t show any signs, which means you may not always know if there’s a problem.” What can you do to help your dog? “Try not to worry too much about your pet’s behaviour during this time and try to stick to their familiar routine as much as possible. Losing a family member can be a difficult time for everyone, our pets included, but grieving is a natural behaviour. Like us, they can recover and move on in time with the support and care of their loving owners,” Claire says. Remember, always talk to your vet if you are overly worried about your pet’s health and behaviour. Some of the practical ways you can help include… Be observant for any change in their behaviour Try to keep to their normal routine as much as you can Be patient, as it will take time for them to adjust to their new situation They may need more quality time with you Should you get another dog? If it’s a family dog who has died, it can be tempting to get another one quickly so that your surviving pet has a companion. “Try not to rush into this decision too quickly, and if you do decide to get another pet, take things slowly, making sure the introductions are carried out carefully,” Claire explains. Meet the former mortician who runs an at-home pet euthanasia business By Ace Tilton Ratcliff Derek and I stand in the driveway, hands clasped together. “May we end Jetson’s pain easily and quickly, and bring peace to the family,” I murmur. Derek squeezes my hand in amen, our rings rubbing metal against metal in our grip. I don’t believe in heaven or hell, but praying feels comforting. If there’s an afterlife where you get everything good your heart desires, surely dogs and cats have earned that reward. “Let’s go do some good,” Derek says, his warm breath puffing clouds in the frigid nighttime cool. “Let’s take care of this family,” I say at the same time. The bare skin of my shaved head chills as we laugh at our outburst. Jill opens the door almost immediately after I knock. We’ve been friends online for years, but this is the first time we’ve ever met. Each plagued by rare chronic illnesses, our friendship was born on social media as we commiserated over being trapped in mutinous bodies. It fostered an intimacy that neither of us shares with many others. We hug on the front porch, while Porkchop and Jetson, Boston terriers with big ears and even bigger personalities, weave between our legs in excitement. I know them from what feels like a million exchanged videos and photos. Porkchop is brindle and white, his gigantic ears pulling his eyebrows into a perpetual mask of concern. He’s always wearing a bow tie on his collar: always the gentleman. He’s also obsessed with balls in all forms: thrown, tossed, rolled, and — his very favorite — utterly destroyed. Jetson’s abdomen has been invaded by cancer — “multicentric neoplasia,” in clinical vernacular. Jill and her parents have invited Derek and me here to euthanize him. Derek and I co-own and operate an in-home pet euthanasia, hospice, and palliative care practice that serves Northern California’s Bay Area. Most of our work focuses specifically on euthanasia and the subsequent disposition of pets’ bodies. We also have a few patients we see to manage end-of-life care — making sure they’ve got the good drugs to stay comfortable when osteoarthritis has set in. Derek’s a veterinarian and I’m a mortician who has shifted from human death care to pets. We started the practice two years ago after euthanizing our own dog, Harper, in our living room, though we’d assisted friends and family members through the deaths of their pets for at least a year prior to that. After having cared for Harper since puppyhood, I didn’t want to entrust her body to strangers, and we realized that the work was a calling after that experience. Harper’s Promise isn’t a full-time job for us yet; the work is too variable and the cost of living here is astronomical. Some weeks pass with no calls, but occasionally we’ll pull back-to-back-to-back appointments with only enough time to stop for fast food in between. Derek still works shifts at a brick-and-mortar veterinary practice, and I’m perpetually freelance hustling as a writer and artist, to make sure rent gets paid. We dream of a future where this work occupies all of our focus. The cost of in-home services are slightly more expensive than visiting a veterinary office, but not by much. I’m haunted by years spent working for a corporate funeral home, where I had to meet a quota on my contracts or face a pink slip. The idea of fleecing people who are addled with grief-brain makes me feel ill. In-home euthanasia consultations cost $375. Communal cremation with the remains scattered in the mountains runs $115, while individual cremation with a cedar urn and a metal plaque is $225. We’ve euthanized animals ranging from a tiny guinea pig to a full-grown, 200-pound domestic pig. Inevitably, every few months, a client will pursue a unique form of memorialization; taxidermy is popular. Once, we helped ship a dog to be cryogenically preserved, his owner desperate for a future where they could be reunited. We don’t judge what the heart wants when overwhelmed by grief; we simply work to make it happen. At the house, we enter the dim back bedroom, dominated by a bed draped with a white comforter, contrasted with a startlingly red towel spread flat. On the dresser beside the bed, a digital screen scrolls through photos of Jetson. My memory is jarred — back to the mortuary and the ubiquitous slideshows that have become a routine part of directing funerals. The simultaneous experience of now and then is disorienting, but working in death care necessitates compartmentalization. I tuck that feeling into a box in my heart and focus on the work to come. Jill’s mother, Kathryn, is also chronically ill. Jetson is her service dog, and at only 9 years old, his death strikes an unexpectedly early blow. The average Boston terrier lives to about 13. Jill and Kathryn seem resigned to the grim reality of their decision. They’ve done the research, spent hours on the phone with us, exhausted their vet visits and medical options. It is unfair, but there is a breeze of relief in the fact that dogs seem to have no concept of the impossible decision their humans have to make. They just want to lick your face and be loved by you. As Derek prepares the first injection, a mix of sedatives, opiates, and antianxiety medications intended to relax Jetson into near-sleep, the family shares stories about adopting him. The medications usually take between two and 15 minutes to fully kick in, pets slipping into sedation as easily as they doze off in a sunbeam. Clients will often use this time to ply their pets with snacks as they share stories with us. One dog devoured an entire rotisserie chicken, bones and all, before succumbing to sedation. Big Macs are also a popular choice. While Kathryn and her husband, Bryan, tell stories about their beloved dog, Derek slips the sharp end of the needle between Jetson’s shoulder blades, depressing the plunger and emptying the syringe. Jetson doesn’t even flinch. Jetson wobbles when the meds make him sleepy. We move him on top of the red towel, and his head lolls, his big tongue floppy and loose. He gazes around the room, making direct eye contact with each of us. Bryan cries, cupping his hands around Jetson’s head and leaning against his muzzle. Jetson licks my hand when I reach out. It feels as though he’s looking straight into my soul. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt the specific, quiet intensity of grief, an emotion that imbues funeral homes like spritzed perfume. Jetson breathes steadily into the sedation. Jill sits on the bed beside him, Porkchop bundled beneath the covers and leaning against her. Derek holds my hand as we lapse into silence. My other hand rests lightly on Jill’s back as she touches Jetson and holds Kathryn’s hand; Kathryn holds Jetson, her fingers overlapping with Bryan’s. It feels sacred, existing in this veil between the worlds of the living and the dead, all of us connected as Jetson’s heartbeat slows. When the medication makes Jetson’s eyes close, Kathryn reaches over to her bedside table and lifts up a small jar. “I saved the very last of the hand lotion I wear all the time,” she explains to Derek and me, unscrewing the cap and using one finger to scoop. She spreads the lotion across her hands with a deft, practiced motion. “I wanted it to be the last thing he smells.” She gently runs her hands over Jetson’s face and body, suffusing him with her scent as he lays relaxed. She lowers her voice, and though we can all hear her in the small room, the words are only for him. “Don’t forget this smell, Jetson. Don’t forget to find me.” When the part of Jetson’s brain that recognizes us and responds to stimulus has gone quiet, I circle my right hand around Jetson’s thigh, watching the vein cast a shadow as it rises. Derek places the needle of the broad barrel of viscous pink euthanasia solution in the raised vein. The flashback of blood in the syringe is short and small. The headlamp encircling Derek’s forehead illuminates a full-moon halo against Jetson’s fur. Because he’s so sick, his blood pressure is low. The vein blows; we waltz smoothly into new positions, shifting to Jetson’s front legs. Derek’s movements are efficient. This time, as the needle slides into Jetson’s flesh, the flashback of blood is a bright firework. The overdose of anesthesia slides in without resistance. Jetson is gone before Derek is finished, his heartbeat stopping beneath our collective palms. When we are done, a tiny slip of pink tongue shows between Jetson’s lips. His body twitches and dances beneath Jill’s steady hand, a tarantella of nerves spasming with the last offshoots of his body’s electricity, even though his spirit is no longer there. I look up and see a photo of Jetson emblazoned above the bedside table: proud and handsome on a sand dune, his mouth open in a wide, happy pant. We step outside of the room to let them sit with Jetson’s body. My hands shake as I trim roses from their stems to tuck around Jetson’s body before we leave with him. I can’t help but think of Harper again. She was the beginning of our mission, the connection we forged in that sacrosanct act, as we took the life that was already slipping away from her. Harper had screamed a dramatic overreaction through the snap-pop first injection, as though we were killing her — which we were, but we didn’t want it to hurt. She took the sedation like a tank, eyes open and flickering long after she should have been peacefully whisked away in a hydrocodone dream. Waiting for the meds to kick in, I ran my hand over her flank while she panted, murmuring song lyrics to the top of her head because they say hearing is the last sense to go. After the final injection, I knew she was gone, even though her body was still warm beneath my hands and her tongue was twitching between her canines. She fought to the very end, and I was grateful to finally grant her peace and relief. At first, euthanizing her felt like stealing something from her, like we should have let her body make the decision. But her broken heart was pumping harder than it should have to keep her alive, and the overexertion was eating away at her muscles. The meaty hocks I always swore teasingly I’d eat in an apocalypse had become easy for me to wrap my fingers around. Her hacking cough, her exhaustion, the image of white fur flopped on the cool tile. Her body told us it was either euthanasia or an inevitable, slow, painful collapse. That day is divided into two sections: Harper’s death, and everything that came after. After six years as a mortician, I was comfortable with the paperwork, with carefully winding our way between the gravestones that interrupted long stretches of grass at the pet cemetery, and with Derek asking if the smell of burning meat coming from the crematory was Harper’s body. (It was.) I knew what the door of the crematory would look like as it trundled up, how her limp body would flop when I lay her gently inside the retort, how her fragile bones would crumble into dust beneath the bristles of the broom sweeping her out after we returned an hour later. But I was still surprised when my heart lurched in my chest as we got home and saw there were two leashes hanging beside our front door and only one dog to walk. The same tiny earthquake wound a hairline fracture through my heart at seeing two white bowls stacked for dinner but only one mouth to feed. Harper was half of the furry brigade that undertook the hard work of keeping me afloat in the years after I was forced out of the mortuary industry because of my Ehlers-Danlos syndrome diagnosis. A rare connective tissue disorder, the disease causes my body to create collagen incorrectly. Collagen serves as the brick and mortar of the body. Symptoms are unique to each patient, but I deal with a myriad of issues, including unexpected joint dislocations; dysautonomia, which causes me to faint from standing for too long; and endometriosis, which invaded my abdomen and necessitated a hysterectomy. I’ve had at least a surgery a year since I was 26, and since the disease is degenerative, it’s only going to get worse. Frightened I might injure myself, frightened of the lawsuit that would surely follow, and frustrated by the time I needed to take for doctor appointments and surgeries, my managers illegally limited my responsibilities and cut my hours. My last paycheck dipped below $1,000, barely enough to pay rent and definitely not enough to cover my copious medical bills. Becoming a mortician had been my childhood dream; I read books about ancient Egypt and mummification. In my early 20s, I’d fought through an abusive marriage and the pain of my undiagnosed disease to graduate from mortuary college and complete a grueling two-year apprenticeship. I became a licensed funeral director, embalmer and crematory operator, and I was damn good at the work. I loved being able to make someone’s worst day ever at least a little bit easier. I’d expected to make a lifelong career working in the funeral industry, not to be forced into retirement well before I turned 30. The death of my career had neatly followed divorcing my abuser. Losing it all in one fell swoop left me wild with grief, my bereavement all bared fangs and sharpened claws. I was plagued by debilitating panic attacks and existential terror about my own death. I was afraid my ex would show up unexpectedly, battering down the front door, his hands around my neck. But Harper made me feel safe. The length of her furry form was always pressed tight along my thigh, her long, pink tongue licking away my tears. Tangling my fingers in her white fur brought me back to myself when I was spinning out. The necessary routine of feeding and walking her kept me grounded. By the time I eventually met Derek, my life had become more balanced. Sure, I wasn’t doing what I loved anymore, but at least I hadn’t been swallowed into the black hole of my hurt. One day, Derek brought home his stethoscope so I could hear the comforting drumbeat pulse of Harper’s heart. I couldn’t identify the subtle lub-swoosh, lub-swoosh as a portent of congestive heart failure, but Derek could. Harper’s illness was terminal; death was not a matter of if, merely when. The idea of bringing her to a clinic for euthanasia, giving her over to someone we didn’t know, never occurred to either of us. Before the euthanasia, we had a new tag made for her collar, one with Derek’s last name on it too. She was part of our family. We took her out for a burger and a cup filled with whipped cream, and snapped photos of her with the redwoods as a backdrop before she was exhausted. When she was gone, we arranged her body in a cremation casket, white fur bold against a pink towel. Beneath her paw, I slipped a bouquet of pink roses, white Peruvian lilies, and a bone. Later, after driving back from the crematory, as I cradled a small wooden box in my lap instead of my dog, we parked outside our apartment. Sunshine streamed in through the windshield and the sky was so blue it almost hurt my eyes. Derek cut the engine, and we sat in silence for only a moment before I turned to him and we spoke. “I don’t know why we never thought about this before …” he started, glancing at me. “We have to do this for other people,” I finished. “This was the best way for the worst thing ever to happen.” “At home, in our arms, surrounded by familiar scents and sounds? Yeah, that’s how I wanna go.” He nodded, and from the promise that a dignified death is an important part of a good life, our practice, Harper’s Promise, was born. Jill and I sit together on the bed, swaddling Jetson’s body with the red towel and moving him over into a small basket Derek and I brought. We tuck the trimmed blooms of yellow roses around him, the color of friendship. Kathryn steps inside the bathroom to sob and collect herself, but her face lights up when she returns. She slips outside to collect rosemary and lavender from the yard in a small, fragrant bundle that she places beneath Jetson’s paw. On the way out, Jill hands me a brown bag with a white envelope stapled to it, a thank-you card and home-baked dog treats for our pooches. Reading it out loud as we pull away from their neighborhood, I burst into tears. Derek holds my hand, and again we are connected — in this moment of service, this kindness, in Jetson’s death. After the long drive home, Derek lifts the basket out of the back seat where we have it buckled in. Looking down at Jetson’s body, Derek’s eyes crinkle, clouding with tears. I love that even though he has carried a syringe full of Euthasol for an uncountable number of pets, he’s crying in our front yard over Jetson. I am more used to being there in the seconds after the grim reaper has left the room, curtains still wafting from his exit. It’s so strange that now the reaper comes in the form of this beneficent man I sleep next to at night. Heading inside, I notice a text from Jill to both of us. “This is the first time I haven’t heard my parents bawling since we got the news about Jetson’s diagnosis.” I feel the acrid sting of tears rise again. I have missed the way it feels to shepherd a family through the tumultuous experience of death. There is nothing quite like being the guiding light through this storm, basking in the deep sense of contentment combined with the adrenaline rush of success. When I left the mortuary, I had regretfully accepted the hurt of knowing I wouldn’t do this work again, yet here I am. I feel like I have stepped back onto the ferry, wrapped my hands around the rowing oar and felt the gentle waves of the river Styx lapping against the hull. Apes and Monkeys Have an Awareness of Death Performing Grieving Rituals and Mourning the Deceased, Study Suggests By Hannah Osborne Researchers say non-human primates exhibit an awareness of death. Non-human primates like monkeys and apes appear to have an awareness of death in the same way humans do, scientists have said. After analyzing over 200 years worth of research into how primates deal with death, they found common behaviors emerged—including carrying their dead, defending the deceased from threats and exhibiting a grief-like response. There are many stories about apes and monkeys grieving for their dead. For example, a BBC documentary in 2017 appeared to show a group of langur monkeys grieving for what they believe is a dead baby—even though it was actually just a robotic spy monkey. The same year, scientists observed a chimpanzee using tools to clean the body of a deceased group member. A female sat down with the dead male and used a firm stem of grass to clean his teeth. The practice, researchers say, suggests chimps may have a more sophisticated response to death than we currently know. Andre Gonçalves from Japan’s Kyoto University and Susana Carvalho from the University of Oxford in the U.K. say there is a huge amount of anecdotal evidence relating to they way non-human primates deal with death—but a review of the literature to find specific characteristics and behaviors has been lacking. “For the past two centuries, non-human primates have been reported to inspect, protect, retrieve, carry or drag the dead bodies of their conspecifics and, for nearly the same amount of time, sparse scientific attention has been paid to such behaviours,” they wrote in a study published in Biological Reviews. In their analysis of 240 reports, Gonçalves and Carvalho showed that specific responses emerge among different non-human primate species. Often this involves carrying the dead around—especially mothers and their dead babies. Species that are unable to grasp objects—such as lemurs and tamarins—are observed trying to carry their dead even though they lack the ability. A chimp cleaning the teeth of a deceased group member. They also found that group members defend the bodies of the deceased and returning to the body or site of death: “Such places may hold residual information about the event which can arouse curiosity or emotional distress,” they wrote. This behavior tended to happen when an adult died, rather than a juvenile. The researchers speculate this could relate to attachments, with members needing to re-categorize from living to dead—a behavior they say is essential to the grieving process. In one anecdote about a family of chimpanzees studied by Jane Goodall, a mother named Flo died before her son Flint had become fully independent. After her death, Flint would stare at the nest they shared and returned to the site of her death. He exhibited signs of clinical depression and stopped eating and interacting with other group members. Eventually his immune system became too weak and he also died. In another case, an adult male howler monkey was observed staying close to the corpse of a female for five days after her death, “suggesting close proximity between these individuals in life.” “Considering all these findings and given their cognitive abilities, we argue that non-human primates are capable of an implicit awareness of death,” Gonçalves and Carvalho wrote. They say more research will be needed to confirm whether non-human primates are aware of death—and to what extent they are. “It’s not an all-or-nothing ability,” Gonçalves said in a statement. “Awareness of death includes things such as animate/inanimate distinction, or the sensory and contextual discrimination of living/dead. The concept of death is something we humans acquire between ages three to 10. We can infer that non-human primates have some aspects of death awareness but, thus far, only humans conceptualize it at a higher order.” The researchers also say further investigation could help shed light on the evolution of our own funeral practices: “Given that there exists a considerable gap in the fossil and archaeological record concerning how early hominins might have interacted with their dead, extant primates may provide valuable insight into how and in which contexts thanatological behaviours would have occurred.” The gifts our dying dog gave to my sons The author’s sons, Donovan, left, and Tate, with Krypto. By Mike Mikula Every poem about dogs ends in tears. Our boy Krypto’s 18-year-long poem ended early this month. He was on our porch on the nicest of Atlanta days, with just enough of a breeze to carry spring in for his last breaths. Our sons, Donovan and Tate, ages 13 and 11, whispered weepy gratitude into his ears as he slipped away. A good death for a good boy — a working dog, and his work, as they say, was done. Much of that work involved needing an ultramarathoner’s worth of exercise, but that kept the IPAs from adding territory to my gut. Krypto also herded other animals and sometimes people, did some occasional protection detail and set the stage for us becoming a family. The other great work of his life was teaching. He taught my wife and me how to be parents, and he taught our sons the joys of unstructured play and the art of observation. Like Albus Dumbledore, he did his greatest educating in old age, showing our family how to live with infirmities and without self-pity, and in the end, how dying and dead are different things. My wife, Sarah, and I believed that Krypto was the first great thing we did as a couple. The rescue outfit described the Australian cattle dog-mix puppy as “not much to look at and getting picked on by the other dogs because he was kind of a jerk.” And he was indeed a hammerhead, early on escaping our yard and chasing a high school cross-country team until he caught the slowest kid. But he quickly responded to training and copious exercise. Krypto explored the north Georgia woods with us and was a witness to our engagement on the Benton MacKaye Trail. His squared-away self convinced us that we were qualified to repeat the experiment; this time with very small humans. The pee on the pregnancy-test stick wasn’t dry before Krypto relocated his sleeping spot from the dog bed by my nightstand to the floor next to Sarah. He did the same thing when Donovan’s brother, Tate, came around two years later. The books about dogs and babies urged us to bring a blanket home from the hospital so Krypto could familiarize himself with Donovan’s scent, followed by Donovan. Krypto was unimpressed. Although Krypto was outwardly ambivalent, each time Sarah got up to nurse, he followed, sitting at her feet and facing the door, acutely keyed in to her vulnerability. He did so again with colicky Tate 2½ years later. The dog was working harder than ever but the boys moved him down in the pack order, just by virtue of being humans. The transition from stinky, furious blobs to menacing, pokey toddlers to boys who just wanted to throw a ball or Frisbee all day long took dozens of dog years. Along the way, Krypto took down a prowler who came into the house while Sarah was upstairs reading to the boys. The perp was begging for mercy when I got to him, but Krypto greedily held his ankle. Good boy. Not long after Donovan and Tate became full partners with Krypto, his interest in athletics began to wane. Cattle dogs tend to slow down around age 13 or so. We had a soft old couch that he’d made his own, and the boys liked to bounce on it and wake him for belly rubs or ear scratches. One day their protector snapped hard at them. He was sleeping more deeply and waking up anxious. It shook us up, but the boys were made aware that not everything in life can go at their speed. A little Prozac in Krypto’s kibble helped, too. Krypto’s decline was the one we’re all hoping for: small increments over an extended period preceding a rapid crash, followed by permanent sleep. My sons received regular lessons in patience. Walks took a while so we had to leave earlier for school. Smell became more important to Krypto than locomotion, so the boys came to understand that a walk often meant standing around while he sniffed the world. Krypto died with the lab work of a puppy; neurological failings were his undoing. Eventually, his front and back halves had trouble communicating, and he moved like a firetruck tiller with no one driving the back end. He needed help down the three steps to get outside. Cue my sons. They listened for Krypto by the door and were always ready to help him outside and wait patiently for him to find just the right spot before assisting him back up the stairs. There were the requisite indignities and accidents. The boys helped him up and fetched the paper towels. “Krypto never seems to feel sorry for himself,” Tate said one day while doing exactly that over a pile of crap in the hallway. My sons were paying attention to these lessons. In his last week, Krypto’s mobility cratered and his anxiety resisted the strongest tranquilizers. He kept us up half the night telling us it was time to let him go. I wanted him to die on his own terms but his mighty heart would not quit. Donovan and Tate heard their father blubber his way through explaining what would be our last measure of devotion. (The surreal experience of watching one’s father cry uncontrollably has been compared to the first time you see Grandma in a bathing suit.) Krypto taught my boys to accept decline and mortality, so they had no questions for our vet when she arrived with full eyes. The boys were with Krypto on the porch as the vet eased him from his mortal coil. They are different kids and handled the intense emotions in their own ways, but they were present, holding that dog as he left us, telling him how much he’d be missed. They fell in love with a dog and, as the contract states, they had their hearts broken. They are better people for knowing him, loving him and losing him. And in the end, my young men carried Krypto from the house for the last time. I have never been sadder or prouder. ‘Natural death may not be kind, easy or peaceful for pets’ Cruel to be kind: animal hospice gives pets better way to die To help pet owners make decisions about end-of-life care, Villalobos developed a decision tool based on seven indicators. The scale is often called the HHHHHMM scale. By Tara Parker-Pope Nearly 14 years ago, my daughter and I were grieving the death of my mother, and it seemed nothing could lift our spirits. Then we got Fluffy, a bouncing bundle of gray and white puppy, and everything changed. Fluffy kept us busy with pee pads and squeaky toys. She made us laugh in spite of our sadness, and the gray clouds of grief began to recede Over the years, our 10lb fluff ball was a constant in our lives. We dressed her up in holiday sweaters, celebrated her birthdays and scolded her for sneaking food from the cat’s dish. But in recent weeks, as our walks slowed down and her naps grew longer, it became clear that our time together was limited. I hoped that in the end, Fluffy would have a natural death, drifting off to sleep for good on her favorite pillow A natural death is what many of us hope for with our pets. They are members of our family, deeply enmeshed in our lives, and for many of us, thoughts of euthanasia seem unfathomable, so we cling to the notion that a natural death is desirable. In most cases, a natural death, she said, means prolonged suffering But my veterinarian said that my end-of-life scenario for my dog wasn’t realistic. In most cases, a natural death, she said, means prolonged suffering that we don’t always see, because dogs and cats are far more stoic than humans when it comes to pain. Dr Alice Villalobos, an oncology veterinarian in California, said that many pet owners idealise a natural death without thinking about what a “natural” death really means. A frail animal, she noted, doesn’t linger very long in nature. “When animals were domesticated, they gave up that freedom to go under a bush and wait to die,” Villalobos said. “They become very quickly part of mother nature’s plan due to predators or the elements. And yet in our homes we protect them from everything so they can live a long time – and sometimes too long.” I had reached out to two at-home vet services that both offered compassionate guidance and confirmed my fears that no treatments were available to improve her condition Villalobos has dedicated her career to helping pet owners navigate end-of-life issues. She created an animal hospice program she calls “pawspice.” She coined the name because she doesn’t want to confuse end-of-life care for animals with the choices we make for human hospice. Her program is focused on extending a pet’s quality of life. That might mean treating a cancer “in kind and gentle ways,” she said. It can mean supportive care like giving fluids, oxygen or pain medication. In some cases, it might mean hand-feeding for frail pets or carrying an animal to a water dish or litter box. And finally, she said, it means a “well death.” Villalobos has advocated what she calls “bond-centered euthanasia,” which allows the pet owner to be present and play a comforting role during the procedure. She has also championed sedation-first euthanasia, putting the animal into a gentle sleep before administering a lethal drug. To help pet owners make decisions about end-of-life care, Villalobos developed a decision tool based on seven indicators. The scale is often called the HHHHHMM scale, based on the first letter of each indicator. On a scale of zero to 10, with zero being very poor and 10 being best, a pet owner is asked to rate the following: HURT Is the pet’s pain successfully managed? Is it breathing with ease or distress? HUNGER Is the pet eating enough? Does hand-feeding help? HYDRATION Is the patient dehydrated? HYGIENE Is the pet able to stay clean? Is it suffering from bed sores? HAPPINESS Does the pet express joy and interest? MOBILITY Can the patient get up without assistance? Is it stumbling? MORE Does your pet have more good days than bad? Is a healthy human-animal bond still possible? Villalobos said pet owners should talk to their vet about the ways they can improve a pet’s life in each category. When pet owners approach end of life this way, they are often surprised at how much they can do to improve a pet’s quality of life, she said. By revisiting the scale frequently, pet owners can better assess the quality of the pet’s hospice care and gauge an animal’s decline. The goal should be to keep the total at 35 or higher. And as the numbers begin to decline below 35, the scale can be used to help a pet owner make a final decision about euthanasia. “Natural death, as much as many people wish it would happen, may not be kind and may not be easy and may not be peaceful,” Villalobos said. “Most people would prefer to assure a peaceful passing. You’re just helping the pet separate from the pack just as he would have done in nature.” 8 Ways To Help Your Grieving Pet Do Pets Grieve? The loss of a beloved family pet can overwhelm everyone in the household. Your remaining pets can also be deeply affected by the loss of a companion animal. They may show immediate signs of depression or other behavioral changes. Some pets become so despondent, they die soon after their companion of what seems like a broken heart. Although it is not intentional, […] By Karen Anderson Do Pets Grieve? The loss of a beloved family pet can overwhelm everyone in the household. Your remaining pets can also be deeply affected by the loss of a companion animal. They may show immediate signs of depression or other behavioral changes. Some pets become so despondent, they die soon after their companion of what seems like a broken heart. Although it is not intentional, their needs are often overlooked as you struggle through your own painful feelings of grief. With just a few simple steps you can help your remaining pets understand what happened to their best friend so you can all move through your grief and into healing. What are the signs of pet grief? After a pet dies, the hierarchy within the home shifts as the remaining pets adjust to the loss. Some pets will react immediately to the loss of a companion animal while others carry on as if nothing happened. Some pets will suddenly lose interest in food or treats while others will hide or sulk around in a sorrowful way. Many grieving pets will whine, meow, or yowl as they search the house looking for their companion who suddenly disappeared. If the pet that died was more dominant or self-confident the remaining pet can become fearful of things that never bothered them before. If your pets were together for a long time their grief may be more pronounced lasting for days, months, or longer. There are many signs of grief but listed below are a few of the most common behavioral changes. Signs your pet may be grieving: – Loss of appetite – Lethargic or no interest in toys – Vocalizations – yowling, crying or whining – Neediness – Avoidance – Changes in normal sleeping patterns – Inappropriate elimination or marking – Destructive behavior – Aggression/dominance – Sudden fearfulness/anxiety How to help your pets understand the loss of a companion animal Our remaining pets are often excluded from the final moments of another pet’s passing. Many become confused about what happened to their companion as they are not able to see the body after death. In the wild, animals inspect the body of their companion which provides closure and an understanding that the life force of the animal is gone. But what happens if you are not able to let them inspect the body? What else can you do? The best way to help your pet understand what happened is to talk about it. When you communicate openly with your pet, images will flash across your mind as you speak. Those images play like a mini-movie in your head and your pets will be able to intercept those images. Hearing your voice and watching the images will give them a better sense of the changes that have taken place. Speak slowly and softly as you would to a child of about nine or ten years of age. Another option is to allow the remaining pet to inspect a towel or blanket with the deceased pet’s scent on it. Ideally, try to give your remaining pet the opportunity to sense their companion has died. Would it help to get another pet? Every situation is different so decide wisely before bringing a new pet into your home. Some pets are very excited about a new companion while others are not. If the resident pet is older, weaker, or not in the best of health then it may be best to leave well enough alone and not add any new pets to the household. However, a new pet can breathe new life and laughter into a depressed situation and draw some pets out of their grief. Be mindful that a new pet will change the energy within the household and care should be taken to make sure the new pet is a good match for your family. Trust your intuition and if it feels right then it will likely be okay. If it doesn’t feel right, then wait for a better time. Openly express your feelings The best way to help your remaining pet is to openly share your feelings. If you are sad and missing your other pet, tell them exactly how you feel. They may not understand all the details about what happened but hearing your words will ease their mind and help them heal faster. Although it is a painful and difficult time, honor your grief and allow yourself to feel all of your emotions. As you move through your grief into healing your pets will likely do so too. They can absorb your emotions like a sponge and will naturally feel more balanced when you do. Watch your pet closely and consult with a trusted veterinarian if their condition continues or worsens. Embrace every precious moment When you are ready, celebrate your memories of the pet you lost and remember to make their life more important than their death. Your remaining pet will feel the love in your heart and know that their beloved companion has left this life with dignity and peace. The 8 steps to help your grieving pet heal faster 1. Spend more time with them and focus on their needs with extra love and TLC 2. Talk openly about the pet you lost and share all of your favorite memories 3. Bring home a new toy, cat tree, or a new, cushy bed 4. Take more walks or engage in playful activities to help them release pent up emotions 5. Do not leave them alone for long periods of time after the loss of a companion pet 6. Tell them you will grieve together and you will move into healing together too 7. Picture the outcome you desire such as all of you being happy, healthy, and living life to the fullest 8. Keep their routine as normal as possible and avoid any trips, changes in diet, or other disruptions to their schedule Knowing the Right Time to Say Goodbye to a Pet End-of-life decisions for animals are difficult. A veterinarian has developed a scale to help clear up the confusion. Fluffy kept us busy with pee pads and squeaky toys. She made us laugh in spite of our sadness, and the gray clouds of grief began to recede. Over the years, our 10-pound fluff ball was a constant in our lives. We dressed her up in holiday sweaters, celebrated her birthdays and scolded her for sneaking food from the cat’s dish. But in recent weeks, as our walks slowed down and her naps grew longer, it became clear that our time together was limited. I hoped that in the end, Fluffy would have a natural death, drifting off to sleep for good on her favorite soft pillow. But my veterinarian advised me that my end-of-life scenario for my dog wasn’t realistic. In most cases, a natural death, she told me, means prolonged suffering that we don’t always see, because dogs and cats are far more stoic than humans when it comes to pain. Dr. Alice Villalobos, a nationally recognized oncology veterinarian based in Hermosa Beach, Calif., said that many pet owners idealize a natural death without thinking about what a “natural” death really means. A frail animal, she noted, doesn’t linger very long in nature. “When animals were domesticated they gave up that freedom to go under a bush and wait to die,” said Dr. Villalobos. “They become very quickly part of mother nature’s plan due to predators or the elements. And yet in our homes we protect them from everything so they can live a long time — and sometimes too long.” Dr. Villalobos has dedicated her career to helping pet owners navigate end-of-life issues. She created an animal hospice program she calls “pawspice.” She coined the name because she doesn’t want to confuse end-of-life care for animals with the choices we make for human hospice. Dr. Villalobos has advocated what she calls “bond-centered euthanasia,” which allows the pet owner to be present and play a comforting role during the procedure. She has also championed sedation-first euthanasia, putting the animal into a gentle sleep before administering a lethal drug. To help pet owners make decisions about end-of-life care, Dr. Villalobos developed a decision tool based on seven indicators. The scale is often called the HHHHHMM scale, based on the first letter of each indicator. On a scale of zero to 10, with zero being very poor and 10 being best, a pet owner is asked to rate the following: Hurt: Is the pet’s pain successfully managed? Is it breathing with ease or distress? Hunger: Is the pet eating enough? Does hand-feeding help? Hydration: Is the patient dehydrated? Hygiene: Is the pet able to stay clean? Is it suffering from bed sores? Happiness: Does the pet express joy and interest? Mobility: Can the patient get up without assistance? Is it stumbling? More: Does your pet have more good days than bad? Is a healthy human-animal bond still possible? Dr. Villalobos says pet owners should talk to their vet about the ways they can improve a pet’s life in each category. When pet owners approach end of life this way, they often are surprised at how much they can do to improve a pet’s quality of life, she said. “Natural death, as much as many people wish it would happen, may not be kind and may not be easy and may not be peaceful,” Dr. Villalobos said. “Most people would prefer to assure a peaceful passing. You’re just helping the pet separate from the pack just as he would have done in nature.” I discovered Dr. Villalobos’s scale as I was searching for answers for Fluffy in her final weeks. When she did get up, she often stumbled and seemed confused. Sometimes at night, I heard her whimper. I had reached out to two at-home vet services, VettedPetCare.com and Instavet.com, that both offered compassionate guidance and confirmed my fears that no treatments were available to improve her condition. Fluffy was a very old dog, and they suspected her decline was a result of some combination of kidney and liver failure, but discouraged extensive testing since the physical symptoms were obvious. One visiting vet gave Fluffy subcutaneous fluids to help with dehydration and make her more comfortable and advised me to spend a final happy day with my dog before calling her for a final visit to end her suffering. I trusted her judgment, but my tears and the fact that Fluffy still ate a little and wagged her tail when I stroked her clouded my thinking. I turned to the end-of-life scale and was able to see how poorly she was doing, despite the tail wag. I took my vet’s advice and spent a quiet day with Fluffy, giving her the cat food treats she so loved, without any scolding. I revisited the scale several times, just to remind myself that I was doing the right thing. The scale allowed me to make a more detached assessment of Fluffy, and it was a tremendous source of comfort during a very difficult time. It wasn’t an easy decision or a pleasant one. But it was the right decision. And in the end Fluffy did drift away on her favorite soft pillow, just as I had hoped.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line478
__label__wiki	0.993461	0.993461	HC/SG Thematic Reports and General Debate - 28th Meeting 25th Regular Session of Human Rights Council 14 Mar 2014 - Presentation of the thematic reports of the Secretary-General and High Commissioner for Human Rights, followed by general debate A/HRC/25/20, A/HRC/25/22, A/HRC/25/24, A/HRC/25/24/Corr.1, A/HRC/25/25, A/HRC/25/27, A/HRC/25/28, A/HRC/25/29, A/HRC/25/29/Corr.1, A/HRC/25/30 (not Submitted), A/HRC/25/31, A/HRC/25/32, A/HRC/25/32/Corr.1, A/HRC/25/33, A/HRC/25/34 (not Submitted), A/HRC/25/35, A/HRC/25/35/Add.1, A/HRC/25/36, Item 2: Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General Item 3: Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development Ms. Flavia Pansieri, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights (Presentation of Report) Ethiopia (cross regional statement), Mr. Minelik Alemu Getahun Greece (on behalf of EU), Ms. Constantina Athanasiadou Turkey (cross regional statement), Mr. Mehmet Ferden Çarikçi Iran (Islamic Republic of) (on behalf of NAM), Mr. Abbas Bagherpour Egypt (cross regional statement), Mr. Walid Abdelnasser Pakistan (on behalf of OIC), Mr. Bilal Akram Shah Namibia (cross regional statement), Mr. Absalom Nghifitikeko Philippines (on behalf of ASEAN), Ms. Cecilia B. Rebong Chile (cross regional statement), Mr. José Luis Balmaceda Montenegro, Ms. Zorica Maric Djordjevic United States of America, Ms. Paula G. Schriefer Venezuela (point of order), Mr. Edgardo Toro Careño Cuba (point of order), Mr. Abelardo Moreno Fernández Egypt (point of order), Mr. Walid Abdelnasser Pakistan (point of order), Mr. Afaq Ahmad Ireland, Mr. Cathal Loughney Morocco, Mr. Saïd Ahouga South Africa, Ms. Notutela Nlumisa Russian Federation, Mr. Alexander Popov Costa Rica, Mr. Mario Vega Italy, Mr. Paolo Cuculi The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Mr. Dusko Uzunovski Mr. Maurizio Enrico Serra, Vice President of the Human Right Council Germany, Mr. Hanns Harald Schumacher Romania, Mr. Räzvan Rotundu Republic of Korea, Mr. CHOI Seok-young Pakistan, Mr. Bilal Akram Shah Iraq, Mr. Yahya Alobaid Spain, Mr. Luis Angelo Redondo Gómez Iran (Islamic Republic of), Mr. Mohsen Ghanei Australia, Ms. Emily Hill Republic of Moldova, Mr. Victor Moraru Council of Europe, Mr. Petru Dumitriu OIC IPHRC, Mr. Muhammed Kawu Ibrahim El Salvador, Ms. Victoria Marina Velasquez de Avilez Sudan, Ms. Aksharief Omaima Qatar, Mr. Jassim Al Maawda Netherlands, Ms. Lila Del Colle Egypt, Mr. Walid Abdelnasser Myanmar, Mr. Maung Wai Ms. Flavia Pansieri, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights (Presentation of Report) 00:00:52 Ethiopia (cross regional statement), Mr. Minelik Alemu Getahun 00:17:09 Greece (on behalf of EU), Ms. Constantina Athanasiadou 00:20:44 Turkey (cross regional statement), Mr. Mehmet Ferden Çarikçi 00:25:52 Iran (Islamic Republic of) (on behalf of NAM), Mr. Abbas Bagherpour 00:29:37 Egypt (cross regional statement), Mr. Walid Abdelnasser 00:32:38 Pakistan (on behalf of OIC), Mr. Bilal Akram Shah 00:37:02 Namibia (cross regional statement), Mr. Absalom Nghifitikeko 00:38:51 Philippines (on behalf of ASEAN), Ms. Cecilia B. Rebong 00:42:10 Chile (cross regional statement), Mr. José Luis Balmaceda 00:45:32 Montenegro, Ms. Zorica Maric Djordjevic 00:49:32 United States of America, Ms. Paula G. Schriefer (point of order) 00:51:49 Ireland, Mr. Cathal Loughney 00:59:41 Morocco, Mr. Saïd Ahouga 01:02:16 South Africa, Ms. Notutela Nlumisa 01:05:24 Russian Federation, Mr. Alexander Popov 01:08:06 Costa Rica, Mr. Mario Vega 01:11:46 Italy, Mr. Paolo Cuculi 01:14:56 The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Mr. Dusko Uzunovski 01:16:41 Germany, Mr. Hanns Harald Schumacher 01:19:18 Romania, Mr. Räzvan Rotundu 01:23:19 Republic of Korea, Mr. CHOI Seok-young 01:25:46 Pakistan, Mr. Bilal Akram Shah 01:29:05 Iraq, Mr. Yahya Alobaid 01:33:15 Spain, Mr. Luis Angelo Redondo Gómez 01:35:59 Iran (Islamic Republic of), Mr. Mohsen Ghanei 01:38:17 Australia, Ms. Emily Hill 01:40:24 Republic of Moldova, Mr. Victor Moraru 01:42:28 Council of Europe, Mr. Petru Dumitriu 01:44:26 OIC IPHRC, Mr. Muhammed Kawu Ibrahim 01:47:05 El Salvador, Ms. Victoria Marina Velasquez de Avilez 01:49:23 Sudan, Ms. Aksharief Omaima 01:51:37 Qatar, Mr. Jassim Al Maawda 01:53:50 Netherlands, Ms. Lila Del Colle 01:56:16 Egypt, Mr. Walid Abdelnasser 01:58:25 Myanmar, Mr. Maung Wai 02:03:24 Ghana 02:05:42 HC/SG Thematic Reports and General Debate (Cont'd) - 29th Meeting 25th Regular... Costa Rica (HRET), Thematic Reports & General Debate - Item: 3, 11th Meeting... HC/SG Thematic Reports and General Debate - 17th Meeting 23rd Regular Session... HC/SG Thematic Reports and General Debate (Cont'd) - 18th Meeting 23rd Regular... English 20 Jun 2016 HC/SG Thematic Reports and Item:3 General Debate - 18th Meeting 32nd Regular...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line489
__label__cc	0.603962	0.396038	Transcript Ordering Campus Sale Information Wentworth Military Academy History NetClassroom Login Wentworth Military Academy & College Awarded Business of the Year Award November 17, 2014 / CPT Matt Rorvig / 135th Corps of Cadets, Advancement, Alumni, College, Community College, High School, International Students, Lexington, President, Summer Camp, Wentworth, WeWo Wentworth Military Academy & College was recently honored at the annual Chamber of Commerce membership dinner by being awarded the Business of the Year for 2014. The following statement was read by the Executive Director of the Chamber, Penny Grosso: Wentworth Military Academy and College has been a huge part of Lexington since 1880, […] Former Congressman and Wentworth Alumnus Ike Skelton Passes Away at 81 October 29, 2013 / MAJ Kevin Farley / Advancement, Alumni, Board of Trustees, College, High School, International Students, Lexington, President, Wentworth, WeWo Wentworth President’s Statement Former Democratic Representative and Wentworth Alumnus, Congressman Ike Skelton passed away yesterday at the age of 81. “The Wentworth family has lost a dear friend and a great alumnus,” said Colonel Mike Lierman, President of Wentworth Military Academy and College, in an official statement on behalf of the 134-year old institution. “Congressman […] Mike Lierman, ’71, Steps Up to Serve as Interim President September 4, 2013 / CPT Matt Rorvig / Advancement, Alumni, President When Bill Sellers resigned as President of Wentworth, the choice for Interim President was obvious. Robert Heath, the Chaiman of the Board of Trustees, observed, “We are indeed fortunate to have someone like Col. Lierman, who has served as the chief operations officer for 9 different presidents during his long tenure at Wentworth. He has great […] 135th Corps of Cadets U.S. Army SROTC 135th Corps of Cadets (18) Advancement (19) Alumni Events (7) Battalion Staff (2) Color Guard (2) Community College (14) International Students (12) Lexington (15) National Honor Society (3) U.S. Army SROTC (2) WeWo (17) Wentworth Military Academy & College 1016 Main St. Lexington, MO 64067	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line493
__label__cc	0.649051	0.350949	The Drive Home With Jayson Shermack Message 3:00PM - 7:00PM Now Chris Lane I Don't Know About You Emily Kerr Bio Hey, I’m Emily Kerr! I’m from Airdrie, but my family moved to Carstairs when I was in grade 5. My fascination for radio started as a kid pretending to be a radio announcer with my toy cassette recorder. I graduated from SAIT’s radio broadcasting program in 2015, did weekends on-air in Red Deer for a year and now I’m here in Leduc! My family back in Carstairs has a golden retriever, two cats, a bunny and two birds, so it’s safe to say I love animals. The only one that moved with me is my fish. I do enduro (dirt biking) and snowboarding, but my favourite sports involve water. You’ll hear me on-air weekdays 10:30 till 3! I look forward to hearing from or meeting you while I explore Leduc. Got a song request for the All Request Lunch Hour? Give me a call 780 769 9310 or email me at emily@onefm.ca 15:17 Chris Lane I Don't Know About You 15:13 George Strait She Let Herself Go 15:11 Kelsea Ballerini Homecoming Queen Bi	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line499
__label__wiki	0.658911	0.658911	Memories Sharpen in Video Game Study VIDEO+ARTICLE Scientists at UC San Francisco are reporting that they have found a way to reverse some of the negative effects of aging on the brain, using a video game designed to improve cognitive control. The findings, published in the journal, Nature, show that a specially designed 3-D video game can improve cognitive performance in healthy older adults, they said. The researchers said the study provides a measure of scientific support to the burgeoning field of brain fitness, which has been criticized for lacking evidence that such training can induce lasting and meaningful changes. The ability to multitask – or switch rapidly between tasks – declines rapidly over the adult lifespan, something that researchers refer to as “multitasking cost.” But after just one month of training on the NeuroRacer game, researchers found significant improvement in study participants. Click graph to download PDF version. In the game, which was developed by the UCSF researchers, participants race a car around a winding track while a variety of road signs pop up. Drivers are instructed to keep an eye out for a specific type of sign, while ignoring all the rest, and to press a button whenever that particular sign appears. The need to switch rapidly from driving to responding to the signs – i.e. multitasking – generates interference in the brain that undermines performance. The researchers found that this interference increases dramatically across the adult lifespan. But after receiving just 12 hours of training on the game, spread over a month, the 60- to 85-year-old study participants improved their performance until it surpassed that of 20-somethings who played the game for the first time. The training also improved the participants’ performance in two other important cognitive areas: working memory and sustained attention. And participants maintained their skills at the video game six months after the training had ended. “The finding is a powerful example of how plastic the older brain is,” said Adam Gazzaley, MD, PhD, UCSF associate professor of neurology, physiology and psychiatry and director of the Neuroscience Imaging Center. Gazzaley co-founded the company, Akili Interactive Labs, which is developing the next generation of the video game. Gazzaley, who has made a career out of studying how distraction affects cognitive performance, said his game, NeuroRacer, does more than any ordinary game – be it bridge, a crossword puzzle, or an off-the-shelf video game – to condition the brain. Like a good teacher, he said, NeuroRacer undermines people’s natural tendency to go on automatic pilot once they’ve mastered a skill, and pushes them further than they think they can go. “Normally, when you get better at something, it gets easier,” he said. But with this game, “when you get better, it gets harder.” Brain Training Reverses Age-Related Decline Evidence that the adult brain is capable of learning has been accumulating for more than a dozen years. A study of London taxi drivers, for example, found that their brains had changed as they learned to navigate the city’s notoriously complicated streets. Nevertheless, Gazzaley said the brain’s function often erodes steadily over time in many areas, with some exceptions, like wisdom. Study participant Ann Linsley plays the NeuroRacer game, designed to train the brain by enhancing cognitive control and reversing the negative effects of aging. Given this, Gazzaley said it’s encouraging that even a small amount of brain training can reverse some of the age-related decline. Gazzaley’s group found evidence of a possible brain mechanism that may explain the improvements he saw in his older subjects, and why these gains transferred to other cognitive areas. Electroencephalograph (EEG) recordings point to changes in a neural network involved in cognitive control, which is necessary to pursue goals. The scientists measured midline frontal theta – or low frequency oscillations – in the prefrontal cortex, as well as the coherence in these waves between frontal and posterior regions of the brain. As the older “drivers” became more adept at the multitasking challenges of NeuroRacer, their brains modulated this key neural network and its activity began to resemble that of young adults. Both of these measures – midline frontal theta and theta coherence – are well established neural markers of cognitive control that have been associated with many of the processes that enable people to pursue their goals. "We see this as evidence that the training may have improved our study participants’ ability to stay in an engaged, active state for a longer period of time,” said Joaquin A. Anguera, the paper’s first author and a post-doctoral fellow in Gazzaley’s lab. Indeed, the researchers found that the training-induced changes in this neural network predicted how well participants would do on a different test, called the Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA), which measures sustained attention. “The amount that midline frontal theta went up was related to something that was untrained, this other measure, the TOVA,” Anguera said. “It implies there’s something that changed that was common to the training and to the task we tested afterwards.” Wider Applications for Cognitive Control Gazzaley said these findings point toward a common neural basis of cognitive control that is enhanced by the challenging and high-interference conditions of the video game, and this might explain how racing a car in 3-D could improve something as seemingly unrelated as memory. This graphic shows increased brain activity for older adults who underwent multi-tasking training (bottom left) versus those who only did single-task training (bottom center) or no training at all (bottom right). Credit: Joaquin A. Anguera/UCSF If the finding holds, it could have wide application. Other brain disorders like ADHD, depression and dementia are also associated with deficits in cognitive control. “Follow up studies using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging and transcranial electrical stimulation are still needed to better understand exactly how this network is involved in the performance changes,” Gazzaley said. Other authors of the article, “Video game training enhances cognitive control in older adults,” include Jacqueline Boccanfuso, Jean Rintoul, Omar Al-Hashimi, Farshid Faraji, Jacki Janowich, Erwin Kong, Yudy Larraburo, Cammie Rolle and Eric Johnston. Gazzaley is co-founder and chief science advisor of Akili Interactive Labs, which is developing cognitive video game software as diagnostic and therapeutic tools, and has a patent pending on a game-based cognitive intervention he developed from the research presented in the paper. The study was funded under Health Games Research, a program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and by the National Institute on Aging. Anguera is also supported by a UCSF Institutional Research and Career Development Award. Photos by Susan Merrell • Prevention • Therapy Jackie Sun Sep 22, 06:25:00 PM EDT Is the video game available to buy? My husband has dementia. Flower Sun Sep 22, 08:58:00 PM EDT This may NOT be beneficial to those with Alzheimer's. Of course this is only one study, but perhaps it warrants more research. There are videos out there made specifically to engage folks with Alzheimer's, but so far nothing suggests anything can regain lost cognitive function in those with Alzheimer's. http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2010/09/07/new-alzheimers-study-uncovers-a-surprising-twist/ Charles Mon Sep 23, 12:32:00 PM EDT can I buy this game I have dementia? Unknown Tue Jan 07, 08:29:00 AM EST Madeline C. Duncan Tue Feb 14, 04:17:00 AM EST Gamedesire Tue Feb 14, 04:45:00 AM EST On the off chance that you are keen on a profession in computer game outline, you are in fortunes in light of the fact that there are video game plan universities that work in this. Video configuration programs have been made prevalent by the expanded enthusiasm for video games. Mia Wed Jun 13, 08:00:00 AM EDT These are video or PC games that reproduce certifiable circumstances under diversion settings.https://unblockedgames76.weebly.com/ Luck City Tue Jul 17, 06:19:00 AM EDT What a fantabulous post this has been. 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In the event that it's where you can make a gathering that is welcome just, you'd simply welcome your companions or family. Unblocked Games 333 Andrew Phillips Fri Dec 06, 12:52:00 PM EST Ninjakiwi has established a loyal fan base with their range being published across hundreds of medium to large sized gaming portals.먹튀폴리스 Andrew Phillips Sat Dec 07, 04:22:00 AM EST Cooperative games - Multiplayer games are a great option, but cooperative games are a little less stressful, and are generally played with mellow moods. These kinds of games will be ideal for the grandparents of the house, who wish to bond with their grandkids.kyodai spielen	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line501
__label__wiki	0.88549	0.88549	::: Home Site Map Web Sources Registration Blog Login Chinese Department of Cell Biology & Anatomy National Cheng Kung University, Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy The Anatomy Department was founded in 1983, as a division of the Department of Medicine in the NCKU Medical College. The first head of the institute was Prof. Ching-LiangShen (沈清良). From 1994 to 1997, Prof. Shi-Yuan Yang (楊西苑) was the head of the institute. From 1997 to 2000 Prof. Students Info. Department of Cell Biology & Anatomy© All RIGHTS RESERVED, Please see Terms of use Phone：886-6-2353535 Ext.5291 Fax：886-6-2093007 Address：1 Ta Hsueh Road, Tainan, Taiwan 701 E-Mail：em75291@email.ncku.edu.tw	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line502
__label__wiki	0.677696	0.677696	← GARRETTS, OCCUPY DETROIT, MORATORIUM NOW, BAMN STOP EVICTION AFSCME LOCAL 207 URGES CITY WORKERS TO REJECT CONTRACT CONCESSIONS → AIYANA’S DAD FACES TRIAL FOR MURDER, BASED ON “JAIL-HOUSE SNITCH” JAY SCHLENKERMAN’S TESTIMONY “Jail-house snitch” Jay Schlenkerman testifies against Charles Jones as 36th District Court Judge E. Lynise Bryant-Weekes listens VOD EDITOR: THIS STORY AS UPDATED FEB. 18, 2012 CONTAINS A RETRACTION/CORRECTION REGARDING MR. PETER VALENTE’S BUSINESS STATUS, AND OTHER CHANGES REQUESTED BY THE ATTORNEY FOR CRW, INC. THERE IS ADDITIONALLY UPDATED INFORMATION ON UPCOMING COURT DATES FOR CHARLES JONES. By Diane Bukowski Aiyana Stanley-Jones with little brother prior to her killing by police (Family photo) DETROIT – Thirty-Sixth District Court Judge E. Lynise Bryant-Weekes bound Charles Jones, father of Aiyana Stanley-Jones, over to Wayne County Third Circuit Court on first-degree murder, felony firearms and perjury charges Jan. 26, based largely on the testimony of Jay Allen Schlenkerman. Jones’ attorney characterized Schlenkerman as a “jail-house snitch” during a previous court hearing. Schlenkerman claimed Chauncey Owens, also charged with first-degree murder, told him that Jones gave him the gun used to kill Je’rean Blake May 14, 2010, two days before Detroit police conducted a brutal raid on Jones’ home May 16, 2010. Detroit officer Joseph Weekley shot 7-year-old Aiyana to death during the raid. Jones' attorney Leon Weiss argues against admission of Schlenkerman's testimony; asst. prosecutor Robert Moran in front “I love my brother,” Aiyana’s aunt LaKrystal Sanders called out twice after Bryant-Weekes’ ruling, only to be admonished by the judge. Aiyana’s grandmother Mertilla Jones wept. Court officers and Detroit police then chased at least ten members of Jones’ family out of the court and onto the elevators before they could talk to his attorney, Leon Weiss of the law firm of Fieger, Fieger, Kenney, Giroux & Danzig. Bryant-Weekes first noted the testimony of two eyewitnesses, Sylvester Bell and Amber Holloway. Neither said they knew or saw that Jones gave Owens the gun. Bell only identified Owens as the shooter. Holloway testified that she was a passenger in the car with Blake and others, and that Jones was in the SUV from which Owens, Jones and others exited prior to the shooting. She said she did not see the shooting, but that she saw Blake “hike up his pants as if he was about to fight.” Bryant-Weekes then described Schlenkerman’s testimony. “Jay Schlenkerman testified that he had a conversation with Chauncey Owens who said he had shot the young man, then had a conversation with Charles Jones at his house,” she said. “Then the two individuals returned to the store [where Blake was shot]. The witness testified that Mr. Owens testified that Charles Jones gave him the gun.” Schlenkerman also said under oath during the hearing that he himself has been convicted of only one felony, a third offense of drunk driving, when in fact court records show he has been convicted of seven felonies. (See box at left.) Weiss had moved unsuccessfully to exclude Schlenkerman’s testimony, saying it did not fall within the parameters of Michigan Rule of Evidence 804(b), which allows “hearsay” testimony under some circumstances. Prominent, long-time criminal defense and appeals attorney John Royal told VOD Schlenkerman’s testimony as it related to Jones should not have been admitted. “That was an improper interpretation of the court rule,” Royal said. “To the extent that Owens’ statement said he himself did something wrong, it was admissible. But to the extent he says someone else did something wrong, it is not admissible.” Royal also said the admission violated a 2004 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the case of Crawford v. Washington, which made hearsay statements inadmissible if the defendant is not able to cross-examine the maker of the statement. In this case, Owens earlier refused several times to testify at Jones’ preliminary exam. Royal said Bryant-Weekes’ admission of Schlenkerman’s statement is not binding on the Wayne County Circuit Court judge who hears the case. Jones’ arraignment on the information was held Feb. 2 according to court records. His case is scheduled to be heard, along with that of Owens, in front of Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Richard Skutt. A motion hearing is set for April 20 at 9 a.m. A final conference is scheduled for April 27, and a jury trial date was set for June 20, 2012. Debbie C. sustained these injuries to her eyes and mouth, among others, from Schlenkerman beating her across the face with his belt; photo from court files Schlenkerman was incarcerated in the Wayne County Dickerson facility, where Owens was also being held, from July 1 to Nov. 16, 2011, for “aggravated domestic violence.” Sanders said Owens told her that Schlenkerman told other prisoners that he himself was in jail for a “bar fight.” According to a previous statement from Owens’ attorney David Cripps, and court records, both were held in segregation at various times. It is unclear at which points Schlenkerman came into contact with Owens. Schlenkerman claimed Owens made unusually detailed statements to him about his case in October and November. In response to a question from Weiss, he said he had told a “little bit” about those statements to Peter Valente. Court records from the 33rd District show that Schlenkerman currently resides at 219 Windward Court in Detroit’s Harbortown complex, which is also Valente’s address, according to Wayne County Register of Deeds records and publicy available listings. Valente is the CEO of Sales for CRW, Inc., a ceramic tile wholesaler in Detroit, according to a Detroit business website. Schlenkerman does tile installation work, but according to CRW, Inc.’s attorney J. Peter Hauser, is not employed by or a contractor for CRW, Inc. Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Richard Skutt (Facebook photo) Despite the detailed nature of his testimony, Schlenkerman said he had never written down any notes after talking with Owens. He said the only written record he made was the statement he gave to Assistant Prosecutor James Bivins Nov. 26. “He [Owens] told me he was there for the murder of Je’Rean Blake,” Schlenkerman testified impassively. “He told me he and his younger brother Chinaman rode their white scooters up to the party store. Chauncey Owens asked Je’Rean Blake if he had anything for him. The kid blew him off and shrugged, then Owens told him, ‘I’ve got something for you.’” Je'Rean Blake Throughout his testimony, Schlenkerman, a white man who has spent most of his life in majority-white communities including various downriver suburbs as well as Adrian, referred to Charles Jones as “C.J.,” and his brother Sherrod Heard as “Chinaman,” as if he knew them. He variously identified the SUV involved as a white or silver Suburban. “They rode their scooters back to the house, and had a conversation with his brother-in-law C.J.,” Schlenkerman said. “C.J. told Chinaman to ditch the scooters, and they drove in a silver Suburban back to the party store. He didn’t say what they talked about. C.J. gave Chauncey Owens a gun. Chauncey Owens got out of the Suburban. Je’Rean Blake seen him and started running across the parking lot. Then he got back into the Suburban and they drove him back to the abandoned house where Chinaman ditched the white scooters. They picked Chinaman up and drove back to their house. C.J. told Chinaman, ‘We took care of business, this is the way you do it.’” Aiyana Jones' father Charles Jones is comforted by her great aunt Joann Robinson as he sits on couch where she died the morning of her killing, and below window shattered by grenade; Ms. Robinson has passed away since Aiyana was killed. During her ruling, Bryant-Weekes said Schlenkerman’s testimony was that Jones said “we took care of someone.” Schlenkerman said he went to the prosecutor’s office several days after he was released, “because I felt bad for the kid. I have kids myself. It could have been my daughter.” According to various court records, Schlenkerman owes many thousands of dollars in child support for several different children. He said he had not been offered a deal, and that his testimony was “110 percent the truth.” Court records show that in October, the prosecutor’s office dropped five of eight counts of violating a personal protection order against Schlenkerman. The order was issued by Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Richard Halloran and involved numerous attempts to contact Debbie C., the victim of the domestic violence, while he was in jail. Asst. Prosecutor Opolla Brown Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Opolla Brown earlier reduced the original felony charge of “kidnapping” cited by Brownstown Township police, to a misdemeanor, “aggravated domestic violence.” (to read details of victim’s account of the brutal beating, rape, and bestial acts that Schlenkerman performed on her May 25-28, 2011, click on http://voiceofdetroit.net/2012/01/10/schlenkerman-brutally-abused-women-lied-served-mdoc-time-for-repeat-dui%e2%80%99s-but-is-%e2%80%98jail-house-snitch%e2%80%99-in-jones-case/.) On cross-examination, Schlenkerman claimed he did not know anything about the police killing of Jones’ daughter Aiyana, although he testified that he watched Fox 2 News with Chauncey Owens repeatedly and wondered why Owens kept watching that channel. Most news reports on Owens’ case have given details of Aiyana’s death. Schlenkerman told Weiss that Owens never told him he had already pled guilty to second-degree murder in Blake’s death. “You’re telling the court he told you each and every detail except that he pled guilty?” Weiss asked him rhetorically. Despite the fact that Wayne County Pre-trial Services recommended that Jones be given a $100,000 bond, 10 percent cash, Bryant-Weekes remanded him back to jail without bond. 6 Responses to AIYANA’S DAD FACES TRIAL FOR MURDER, BASED ON “JAIL-HOUSE SNITCH” JAY SCHLENKERMAN’S TESTIMONY LYVONNE says: MS.BUKOWSKI I SEE YOU DID FORGOT ABOUT MY SON JEREAN LET ME TELL YOU IT’S SO HARD FOR ME GO IN HIS BEDROOM WITHOUT CRY I SLEEP IN HIS BEDROOM WAITING FOR HIM TO COME HOME AND SAY MOM WHY YOU IN MY ROOM DO YOU KNOW MY HEART BROKEN IN 1.5 MILLION PIECES ABOUT MY SON JEREAN DID YOU KNOW I TOOK HIM TO HOSPITAL DO YOU KNOW HE CALL ME MAY 14,2010 AT 2:42 P.M. ASK ME TO COME AND GET HIM WHEN I GOT THERE I SEE HIS FRIEND’S CARRY HIM TO HIS FRIEND CAR DO YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL NO YOU DON’T YOU DON’T FEEL MY PAIN I LOVE MY SON JEREAN AND YES I MISS HIM SO MUCH I WANT JUSTICE FOR MY SON JEREAN DO YOU KNOW GOD HOLDING MY HAND TIGHT AND HE WALK WITH ME THOUGH MY PAIN I DON’T SLEEP I BE WAIT FOR JEREAN TO COME HOME I SEE HE NOT I JUST WONDER IF YOU WERE IN MY SHOES HOW YOU FEEL I KNOW YOU WILL FIGHT JUSTICE FOR YOUR CHILD…… G.I.H.JEREAN WE LOVE YOU AND MISSING YOU SO MUCH SON GOD BLESS YOU MS.BUKOWSKI!!!!!!!!!!!!! Diane Bukowski says: Ms. Cargill, what justice will you get for your son by having the courts convict a man who did NOT shoot him and did NOT give the gun to Chauncey Owens, if in fact Owens DID shoot him? Transcripts in Owens’ file show that impartial witnesses standing at the bus stop near the store saw about FORTY people in the parking lot during the incident, and noted that there was much confusion about what was happening. NO EYEWITNESSES AT THE JONES HEARING SAID THEY SAW CHARLES GIVE CHAUNCEY THE GUN, only a jail-house snitch whose testimony should not have been allowed, at least as it pertained to Charles. I sympathize with your grief, and expressed my condolences to you when I met with you to do the story about the police breaking up your son’s birthday memorial party and shooting at one of the young men present. But I do NOT understand why YOU as a grieving mother cannot sympathize with the grief of Aiyana’s mother, grandmother and other relatives who saw her shot to death for the benefit of A&E cameras. Owens’ arrest could have been made earlier that day, calmly, when police saw him walk out of the house. Killer cop Joseph Weekley’s killing of Aiyana has NOTHING to do with JeRean’s killing. I am quite sure YOU have relatives that have police records–how would YOU like it if the police stormed THEIR homes and killed THEIR children? Ms. Cargill, my heart bleeds for EVERY young person killed in this city by others, because they do not understand who the REAL ENEMY is–the rich people who have impoverished Detroit and left no opportunity for its youth, the federal government and CIA who allow and enable drugs to be brought over this country’s borders to devastate our poor neighborhoods. In the 1960’s, the Black Panthers organized youth gangs into activist groups by educating them politically so that they understood who their REAL fight was against. Young people are killed practically every day in this city amidst the prevailing despair, but normally their deaths go unreported or get a couple of lines of print. The only reason your son’s killing received the publicity it got was because the police killed a 7-year-old girl and they want to cover up for it. You MUST stop allowing yourself to be USED to divide, instead of educate, people in Detroit. Ms. Cargill, join in sorrow as a grieving mother with Dominika Stanley, Mertilla Jones, and Aiyana’s other relatives, including her six little brothers. Again, Ms. Bukowski continues to slam someone who comes forward and reports what they heard. In this article she even went on to point out that “Schlenkerman, a white man who has spent most of his life in majority-white communities including various downriver suburbs as well as Adrian”. Does it matter if he is from the suburbs???? Or do we only want home grown snithces from the city who are black, asian, mexican, etc???? Maybe if he lived in Detroit the majority of his life, Ms. Bukowski could have something else to report on……or maybe he wouldn’t go out of her way to discredit this guy. Again, Ms. Bukowski continues to twist this story as she deems approprite. I had actually posted a comment on another aticle (similar to the above story)….and since she didn’t agree with my reply, she choose to delete my comment off the site. Just want we would expect from true reporter, right? Not sure who Ms. Bukowski is trying to BULLY or THREATEN above, but she can trace my IP address all she wants…..I’d be more than happy to inbox her my name, address and phone number if needed. I have chosen to allow this comment to remain, despite the specious allegations that I was bullying or threatening anyone. Sandy, whoever you are, you did not see the scurrilous lies posted about the individual in question, by a person who is basically illiterate and has personal hatred for that individual. On what authority do you say that Schlenkerman reported “what he heard?” Were you there when he allegedly talked to Chauncey Owens? The reality is that the vast majority of prisoners do not tell each other what they are in for, period, let alone describe in every single detail, including the color of the scooters and the car, the entire sequence of events involved. Comments on Mr. Owens’ race v. Schlenkerman’s race reflect the reality that inner-city Black residents are generally not going to trust suburban whites with their life story. As Attorney Royal said, Schlenkerman’s testimony about Jones should NOT have been allowed in, period. Schlenkerman is no hero certainly. How can you as a woman overlook his history of bestial brutality to other women, for which he HAS BEEN CONVICTED? A comment on this story has been eliminated due to slanderous, undocumented allegations made against one individual mentioned in the article. It is however, being saved by the editor for further reference. Such comments ARE NOT allowed on Voice of Detroit, as we have repeatedly notified our readers. Forgot to mention that although email addresses are not published, they are given to the editor of this paper, along with the IP addresses, by Word Press. Comments made on this site can be considered as published, so beware.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line510
__label__wiki	0.926524	0.926524	ABC Close menu Search ABC Bunch of grapes - Catherine McAloon 17 June, 2015 10:22AM AEST Latrobe Valley braves the cold for winter festival By Zoe Ferguson With markets, music, window shop performances and projection art, the Latrobe Valley Winter Night Festival is packed with entertainment, but it's only for two nights. 'Jesus' (Supplied: Hartmut Veit) 'Feet' (Supplied: Hartmut Veit ) 'The Gift' (Supplied: Hartmut Veit ) (Supplied: Dan Clancy) Artists Dan Clancy and Eloisa Tripod rugged up outside the Masonic Lodge (Supplied) In its inaugural year in 2013 the Winter Night Festival was just a night market in Morwell and Traralgon, but now it's being used as a platform to showcase broader local talent. Co-director of Reactivate Latrobe Valley who is behind the festival, Rosalea Monacella, says it highlights the strong community in the area. "It celebrates the community and intends to bring it together and bring light and festivity to the winter months," she said. Artist Hartmut Veit's work is being displayed in a pop up gallery, exploring the relationship and politics between people, place and coal. "One of the works is called The Gift and it's a neon work with coal. The neon word The interchanges with Das, and 'das gift' means 'poison' in German, so there are dual aspects of positive and negative," Hartmut said. "I've been working with coal as a material for a year-and-a-half now - I like working with the agency of the material, and the darkness of the material works well against the neon light." Having his artworks on display for just one night is somewhat allegorical for Hartmut, and draws attention to the opportunities for local artists. "Everything in the art world is very ephemeral, and having one night to offer artists to show their work is great but you're there and then you disappear," he said. "It's difficult to have these opportunities on an ongoing basis for local emerging artists. It's also allegorical of our human existence as well, we feel self-important about things, but really how important is everything we do." Interactive art It's the second year the festival will incorporate projection art, and creative producer Dan Clancey mapped the Masonic Lodge on Hazelwood Road, Morwell. "It's a beautiful 1927 building and we visually mapped it using our computer and mapping different sections of the building to colour in and turn into fire, or water," he said. Inspired by the Sydney light festival Vivid, Dan and his creative partner Eloisa Tripodi wanted to create something interactive. "It's not static like a movie - you're watching a projected image but you can control it as an audience by blowing kisses or bubbles and they appear on the building," he said. "The scope we have on a blank canvas on a building is exciting from an artistic point of view. "As a local artist it's important we keep our stories alive and share them with people we live and work with - it's an important part of this festival." Map Morwell 3840 Subscribe to ABC Gippsland Vic photos Subscribe to all ABC Local photos Topics: arts-and-entertainment, sculpture, entertainment-events, performance-art, installation Locations: morwell-3840, traralgon-3844 ABC Gippsland Vic All ABC Local Books Literature Kids Games And Links Dump of snow for Mt Baw Baw Dancing the night away at the Johnsonville Hall Gippsland's Cape Paterson has been covered in snow-like hail stones. Steady rain is forecast for most of Victoria Aerial footage shows the badly damaged plane in a ditch $8 billion off-shore wind farm plan floated for Gippsland ABC Gippsland reporter Rachael Lucas speaks with one of Australia's most prolific botanical artists Celia Rosser Victorian town of Morwell trying to stay positive despite job losses due to power station closure Latrobe Valley business owners to face tough operating conditions with closure of Hazelwood plant Hazelwood workers reflect on decades at the power station More from ABC Gippsland Vic Change to standard view	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line511
__label__cc	0.691932	0.308068	We don't know about you, but we can't keep up with all of the amazing books that are debuting every week. This week features something for just about everyone. Thank you, YALit.com for making these books easy to find. Read on for interviews, book descriptions, and scroll all the way down for a chance to win some of the books featured here! The Truth of the Matter (The Homelanders) by Andrew Klavan From Goodreads: Charlie is certain that if he could just regain his memory, the chaos around him would make sense. But the truth of the matter is even more incredible than he could imagine. Charlie West was an ordinary high school kid who went to bed one night and woke up in the clutches of terrorists and wanted by the police for murder. He also woke up with no memory of the events of the past year. Now Charlie has found the one person who knows what happened . . . and who can help him remember. But remembering is painful--as well as dangerous--and figuring out what to do with this new knowledge may be Charlie's toughest challenge yet. Well, The Truth of the Matter is part of a four book series, The Homelanders and I guess when I put it all together, I’ve been working on the whole thing close to three years. The work is almost over now and I’ll miss the hero, Charlie West. It’s been good to go through his adventures with him. The Homelanders books were purchased by Thomas Nelson before they were written. But back when I was first starting out, getting published was murder. I didn’t know what I was doing. I had no one to advise me. I stumbled along through more rejections than I could count before I finally got stuff published. I had to teach myself to write and then teach myself the business. It was a long road. Take your time. Learn your craft. Read the masters and learn from them. Don’t be in a hurry to get your book into print. Make it great first—then start thinking about publication. Writing is a slow process. I know good writers are ambitious and ambition can make you impatient, but go for quality first, success afterwards. I’ve been making my living as an author for a long time and the funny thing is: it always felt natural to me. I knew it was what I was supposed to do. When I first started to see my name in print, I wanted to think, “Wow!” But in fact I was thinking, more calmly, “Yes, that’s as it should be.” It wasn’t arrogance. It was just a sense of calling. I have it to this day. The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney From Goodreads: Some schools have honor codes. Others have handbooks. Themis Academy has the Mockingbirds. Themis Academy is a quiet boarding school with an exceptional student body that the administration trusts to always behave the honorable way--the Themis Way. So when Alex is date raped during her junior year, she has two options: stay silent and hope someone helps her, or enlist the Mockingbirds--a secret society of students dedicated to righting the wrongs of their fellow peers. In this honest, page-turning account of a teen girl's struggle to stand up for herself, debut author Daisy Whitney reminds readers that if you love something or someone--especially yourself--you fight for it. I wrote a “showable” version of the novel in about five months, then we submitted to publishers and then I spent another month or so revising it after Little Brown bought the book. It went through many, many drafts along the way though! I wrote three chick lit novels that were repped but never sold and between them accumulated at least 100 rejections between agents and editors. When I switched to writing for teens, I finally broke through and landed a book deal! But it was a long road paved with many thanks but no thanks and I have the stack of rejection letters and 300,000-plus unpublished words to prove it. Write every day and don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do it because with hard work and talent dreams have a funny way of coming true. You still have to do the laundry, change the litter and make the bed. Oh, but seriously, what has surprised me most is how much attention and care and LOVE a publishing house puts into a book. It’s not surprising in a way but it is lovely to see how much the people in the book business love what they do. Pegasus by Robin McKinley From Goodreads: Because of a thousand-year-old alliance between humans and pegasi, Princess Sylviianel is ceremonially bound to Ebon, her own pegasus, on her twelfth birthday. The two species coexist peacefully, despite the language barriers separating them. Humans and pegasi both rely on specially-trained Speaker magicians as the only means of real communication. But it’s different for Sylvi and Ebon. They can understand each other. They quickly grow close—so close that their bond becomes a threat to the status quo—and possibly to the future safety of their two nations. The Other Side of Dark by Sarah Smith From Goodreads: Since losing both of her parents, fifteen-year-old Katie can see and talk to ghosts, which makes her a loner until fellow student Law sees her drawing of a historic house and together they seek a treasure rumored to be hidden there by illegal slave-traders. Law Walker knew Katie Mullens before she was crazy. Before her mother died. Law knows Katie’s crazy now, but she’s always been talented. And she keeps filling sketch pads even though her drawings have gone a little crazy as well—dark, bloody. What Law doesn’t know is that these drawings are real. Or were real. Katie draws what she sees—and Katie sees dead people. People who have died—recently, and not so recently—in accidents, from suicide, even a boy who was trapped in a house that burned down more than 100 years ago. And it’s this boy who makes Law want to get to know Katie all over again. So what if his dad doesn’t want him dating a white girl? So what if people think Katie is dangerous? The ghost boy is hiding a secret that Law needs to know—and it’s much bigger, much more shocking than anyone ever expected. Virals by Cathy Reichs and Brendan Reichs From Goodreads: Tory Brennan, niece of acclaimed forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan (of the Bones novels and hit TV show), is the leader of a ragtag band of teenage "sci-philes" who live on a secluded island off the coast of South Carolina. When the group rescues a dog caged for medical testing on a nearby island, they are exposed to an experimental strain of canine parvovirus that changes their lives forever. As the friends discover their heightened senses and animal-quick reflexes, they must combine their scientific curiosity with their newfound physical gifts to solve a cold-case murder that has suddenly become very hot if they can stay alive long enough to catch the killer's scent. Fortunately, they are now more than friends they're a pack. They are Virals. Bartimaeus: The Ring of Solomon by Jonathan Stroud From Goodreads: Bartimaeus, everyone’s favorite (wise-cracking) djinni, is back in book four of this best-selling series. As alluded to in the footnotes throughout the series, Bartimaeus has served hundreds of magicians during his 5,010 year career. Now, for the first time, fans will go back in time with the djinni, to Jerusalem and the court of King Solomon in 950s BC. Only in this adventure, it seems the great Bartimaeus has finally met his match. He’ll have to contend with an unpleasant master and his sinister servant, and runs into just a “spot” of trouble with King Solomon’s magic ring…. The Daughters Break the Rules by Joanna Philbin From Goodreads: The only daughter of supermodel Katia Summers, witty and thoughtful Lizzie Summers likes to stick to the sidelines. The sole heir to Metronome Media and daughter of billionaire Karl Jurgensen, outspoken Carina Jurgensen would rather climb mountains than social ladders. Daughter of chart-topping pop icon Holla Jones, stylish and sensitive Hudson Jones is on the brink of her own music breakthrough. When New York City fourteen-year-old Carina impulsively reveals incriminating information about her multi-billionaire father, he replaces her unlimited funds with an antiquated cell phone, a Metrocard, and a twenty-dollar weekly allowance. You know what to do. Leave a comment on this post and fill out the form below. What's up for grabs? Andrew Klavan has generously offered all 3 books in his Homelanders series, including THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER!!! Contest runs through midnight on Wednesday, November 3rd and is open to US residents. So what are you waiting for? Go! S.A. Larsenッ November 1, 2010 at 6:31 AM More great selections. Don't know how you manage it, but thanks a ton! Buffy Andrews November 1, 2010 at 7:21 AM I look forward to this every Monday. Thanks so much girlfriends:) Natalie Aguirre November 1, 2010 at 7:24 AM Great interviews and new books to read. The Mockingbirds sounds great. I've heard good things about it already. Too bad we'll still have to do the laundry when we're published though. I thought we'd get a magic wand. Ha! Not only is The Mockingbirds on my TBR pile, it's been bumped to the top (just as soon as I get it!). Carol Riggs November 1, 2010 at 10:11 AM It's always fascinating to see what kinds of books are being published--a lot with strange new twists, usually paranormal/magical. Leah Odze Epstein November 1, 2010 at 11:14 AM So exciting--I've read the Mockingbirds, and I can tell you, it's a fantastic read! Great advice and inspiration. Lisa_Gibson November 1, 2010 at 12:38 PM Wow terrific choices for reading. What a great giveaway. :) Lisa ~ YA Literature Lover I'm amazed at all the great books that keep getting published! Then added to my TBR pile. Shannon O'Donnell November 1, 2010 at 4:06 PM Several of these are already on my wish list! You're right about this being a big week. Wow. :-) sally November 1, 2010 at 7:18 PM whew! another great bunch of books. I'm so excited about seeing what Bartimaeus is up to since I last saw him. Beth MacKinney November 1, 2010 at 7:52 PM Sound like some great books. Thanks for passing them on. Sherrie Petersen November 2, 2010 at 1:57 AM It is amazing to me how many good books come out each week. I can't keep up! I'm not sure how you manage to come up with so many books every week, either, but I'm certainly glad you do! Conference Round-Up: The Art of Pitching Who Won Charlie Price's Latest Book? Best Articles This Week for Writers 11/26/2010 WOW Weds: 7 Ways to Write When You Don't Have Time... Pacing: Racing vs. Spacing WOW Wednesday: Kat Zhang on Letting Go of Timeline... Writing Through the Doubt WOW Wednesday: Debbie Ridpath Ohi: 8 Ways to Survi... Deepening Your Novel with Imagery, Symbolism & Fig... Best Articles This Week for Writers 11/5/10 WOW Wednesday: Myra McEntire and Why You Gotta Bel... Conference Round-Up: Lisa Yee on Giving Yourself P...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line522
__label__cc	0.681105	0.318895	Forestry & environmental sciences peer-reviewed open access journal Open-Access Licence 1.596 (Impact Factor) 1.551 (5-Year Impact Factor) 1.860 (CiteScore) 0.941 (SNIP) 0.444 (SJR) Author Guidlines History: prior to Jan. 01, 2008 this journal was named Analele ICAS Genetic diversity and structure of Silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) at the south-eastern limit of its distribution range Maria Teodosiu, Georgeta Mihai, Barbara Fussi, Elena Ciocîrlan More... Foliar nutrient and carbohydrate in Aralia elata can be modified by understory light quality in forests with different structures at Northeast China Hongxu Wei, Xin Chen, Guoshuang Chen, Hengtian Zhao More... Phytosociological approach to scree and ravine forest vegetation in Slovakia Richard Hrivnák, Michal Slezák, Karol Ujházy, Františk Máliš, Drahoš Blanár, Mariana Ujházyová, Ján Kliment More... ISSN: 18448135, 20652445 Soil organic carbon storage varies with stand ages and soil depths following afforestation (pages 3-20) Guolong Hou, Claudio O. Delang, Xixi Lu, Lei Gao Online First: July 30, 2019 \| DOI: 10.15287/afr.2018.1294 Soil organic carbon storage varies with stand ages and soil depths following afforestation Soil organic carbon (SOC) is the largest component of the terrestrial biosphere carbon pool. Afforestation is an effective solution to mitigate Carbon (C) emission and sequester C into soils. However, how and to which extent afforestation influences SOC stock changes are not well understood. This study conducts a quantitative review that synthesizes 544 data points from 261 sites from 90 papers, to examine the impact of afforestation on SOC changes in three soil layers (0-20 cm, 20-40 cm and 40-60 cm). 212 data points are obtained by standardization and/or extrapolationwith high reliability. The results indicate that stand age has significant effects on the SOC stock dynamics under different conditions of previous land use types, plant functional types, temperature or precipitation. The effect is greatest at the topsoil layer of 0-20 cm. Previous land use types significantly influence SOC accumulations, but these effects are not significant in the first 10 years or after 30 years of afforestation. Besides, afforestation on grassland seems to sequester more SOC than that of cropland in the long term. Plant functional types also significantly affect SOC dynamics, with deciduous hardwood reporting a continuous increase of SOC contents at soil depth of 0-60 cm during the whole afforestation period. On the other hand, the accumulation of SOC in evergreen hardwood and evergreen softwood start from the third decades. Higher SOC accumulation rates are observed under evergreen hardwood but no significant differences were found between deciduous hardwood and evergreen softwood for the longer period after afforestation (>20 years). Mean annual temperature and precipitation negatively affect SOC accumulation in the first two decades of afforestation, however, the effects become positive in the later years.We also found that initial SOC stocks did not play a major role in SOC sequestration. In other words, lower SOC soils could also sequestrate a significant amount of SOC after reforestation. More ... \| PDF The water absorbability of beech (Fagus sylvatica l.) and fir (Abies alba mill.) organic matter in the forest floor (pages 21-32) Anna Ilek, Małgorzata Szostek, Jarosław Kucza, Jadwiga Stanek-Tarkowska, Wojciech Witek Online First: June 13, 2019 The water absorbability of beech (Fagus sylvatica l.) and fir (Abies alba mill.) organic matter in the forest floor The organic horizons of forest soils are characterised by double capillarity: between particles and inside them. It has been hypothesized that the time required to fill the internal capillarity of organic particles depends on their botanical origin and the degree of their decomposition. The aim of the present study is to determine the time of water absorption by organic matter that is part of the Ol and Ofh horizons of selected beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) and fir (Abies alba Mill.) stands. The present research on water absorbability lasted for 14 days and consisted in measuring the absorption time in organic particles from the moment of immersion of an air-dry sample in water until the particles soaked in water exceeded the density of 1.0 g·cm-3. It was found that in fir organic matter the time of water absorption decreases with the advancement of decomposition. In beech stands, progressing decomposition processes result in a longer water absorption time. The dynamics of water absorption of organic matter indicates that no single rainfall is able to entirely fill the internal capillarity of organic particles, whereby the organic horizons of forest soils can maintain the ability to retain water even in long-term rainfall. Inter-regional beta-diversity patterns of the woody flora of Greece (pages 33-50) Fotios Xystrakis, Dimitrios Mitsios-Antonakos, Eleni Eleftheriadou, Panayotis Dimopoulos, Konstantinos Theodoropoulos Online First: April 08, 2019 Inter-regional beta-diversity patterns of the woody flora of Greece This study aimed to estimate and explain the compositional differentiation and observed beta-diversity (partitioned as turnover and nestedness) patterns of woody species in Greece. Specifically, the 13 phytogeographical regions of Greece were compared at three taxonomic levels: family, genus, and (sub-) species. In Greece, 565 woody taxa have been identified, which are classified into 224 genera and 85 families. Phytogeographical regions were grouped according to their similarity in floristic composition using cluster analysis. Dominant beta diversity gradients were detected using Mantel directional correlation tests applied at the three taxonomic levels. The 13 phytogeographical regions formed three groups; namely, the northern, central, and southern (Aegean Islands) regions. The taxonomic variation among the phytogeographical regions at the species level was related to a gradient of richness of widespread taxa and Balkan endemic taxa. Analysis at the taxonomic levels of species and genus produced similar results, yet, at the family level, floristic differences were less pronounced, with phytogeographical regions being aggregated in two groups: the southernmost island regions versus all other regions. Beta diversity was higher along a northwestern to southeastern gradient, which was related to a dominant climatic gradient throughout Greece. The partitioning of beta diversity between neighboring phytogeographical regions showed that species turnover was the dominant component; yet, some phytogeographical regions (e.g., Kiklades) were characterized by high nestedness. In conclusion, analysis of woody taxa provides different insights regarding the floristic variation of phytogeographical regions. Transcriptome profiling in Camellia japonica var. decumbens for the discovery of genes involved in chilling tolerance under cold stress (pages 51-68) Yawen Wu, Markus Müller, Tian Bai, Shunyang Yao, Oliver Gailing, Zhen Liu Transcriptome profiling in Camellia japonica var. decumbens for the discovery of genes involved in chilling tolerance under cold stress Camellia japonica var. decumbens is a naturally occurring highly cold resistant variety of Camellia japonica which is suitable for snowy and cold regions. However, the underlying cold-adaptive mechanisms associated with gene regulation have been poorly investigated. We analyzed the transcriptomic changes caused by cold stress in a cold-tolerant accession. Samples were collected at the end of each temperature treatment (T1, T3, T5, T7 and T9 represent the temperatures 25°C, 0°C, -4°C, -8°C and -12°C, respectively). Sample T1 at 25°C was used as control. Based on transcriptome analysis, 2828, 2384, 3099 and 3075 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were up-regulated, and 3184, 2592, 2373 and 2615 DEGs were down-regulated by analyzing T3/T1, T5/T1, T7/T1 and T9/T1, respectively. A gene ontology (GO) analysis revealed an enrichment of GO terms such as response to stimulus, metabolic process, catalytic activity or binding. Out of the larger number of DEGs, 67 functional and regulatory DEGs stood out, since they were functionally characterized in other models. These genes are cold-responsive transcription factors (26) or involved in cold sensor or signal transduction (17) and in the stabilization of the plasma membrane and osmosensing response (24). These results suggest rapid and multiple molecular mechanisms of perception, transduction and responses to cold stress in cold acclimation of Camellia japonica var. decumbens. They could also serve as a valuable resource for relevant research on cold-tolerance and help to explore cold-related genes to foster the understanding of low-temperature tolerance and plant-environment interactions. Mapping forest aboveground biomass with a simulated ICESat-2 vegetation canopy product and Landsat data (pages 69-86) Lana Landra Narine, Sorin Popescu, Tan Zhou, Shruthi Srinivasan, Kaitlin Harbeck Online First: March 06, 2019 Mapping forest aboveground biomass with a simulated ICESat-2 vegetation canopy product and Landsat data The assessment of forest aboveground biomass (AGB) can contribute to reducing uncertainties associated with the amount and distribution of terrestrial carbon. The Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) was launched on September 15th, 2018 and will provide data which will offer the possibility of assessing AGB and forest carbon at multiple spatial scales. The primary goal of this study was to develop an approach for utilizing data similar to ICESat-2’s land-vegetation along track product (ATL08) to generate wall-to-wall AGB maps. Utilizing simulated daytime and nighttime ICESat-2 data from planned ICESat-2 tracks over vegetation conditions in south-east Texas, we investigated the integration of Landsat data and derived products for AGB model and map production. Linear regression models were first used to relate simulated photon-counting lidar (PCL) metrics for 100 m segments along ICESat-2 tracks to reference airborne lidar-estimated AGB over Sam Houston National Forest (SHNF) in south-east Texas. Random Forest (RF) was then used to create AGB maps from predicted AGB estimates and explanatory data consisting of spectral metrics derived from Landsat TM imagery and land cover and canopy cover data from the National Land Cover Database (NLCD). Using RF, AGB and AGB uncertainty maps produced at 30 m spatial resolution represented three data scenarios; (1) simulated ICESat-2 PCL vegetation product without the impact of noise (no noise scenario), (2) simulated ICESat-2 PCL vegetation product from data with noise levels associated with daytime operation of ICESat-2 (daytime scenario), and (3) simulated ICESat-2 PCL vegetation product from data with noise levels associated with nighttime operation of ICESat-2 (nighttime scenario). The RF models exhibited moderate accuracies (0.42 to 0.51) with RMSE values between 19 Mg/ha to 20 Mg/ha with a separate test set. The adoption of a combinatory approach of simulated ICESat-2 and Landsat data could be implemented at larger spatial scales and in doing so, ancillary data such as climatic and topographic variables may be examined for improving AGB predictions. Forest inventory sensitivity to UAS-based image processing algorithms (pages 87-108) Bonifasius Maturbongs, Michael G. Wing, Bogdan Strimbu, Jon Burnett Forest inventory sensitivity to UAS-based image processing algorithms Frequent and accurate estimation of forest structure parameters, such as number of trees per hectare or total height, are mandatory for sustainable forest management. Unmanned aircraft system (UAS) equipped with inexpensive sensors can be used to monitor and measure forest structure. The detailed information provided by the UAS allows tree level forest inventory. However, tree identification depends on a variety of parameters defining the image processing and tree segmentation algorithms. The objective of our study was to identify parameter combinations that accurately delineated trees and their heights. We evaluated the impact of different tree segmentation and point cloud generation algorithms on forest inventory from imagery collected with a UAS over a mature Douglas-fir plantation forest. We processed the images with two commonly used commercial software packages, Agisoft PhotoScan and Pix4Dmapper, both implementing image processing algorithms called Structure from Motion. For each software we generated photogrammetric point clouds by varying the parameters defining the implementation. We segmented individual trees and heights using three tree algorithms: Variable Window Filter, Graph-Theoretical, and Watershed Segmentation. We assessed the impact of image processing algorithms on forest inventory by comparing the estimated trees with trees manually identified from the point clouds. We found that the type of tree segmentation and image processing algorithms have a significant effect in accurately identifying trees. For tree height estimation, we found strong evidence that image processing algorithms had significant effects, whereas tree segmentation algorithms did not significantly affect tree height estimation.These findings may be of interest to others that are using high-resolution spatial imagery to estimate forest inventory parameters. Evaluating SAR-optical sensor fusion for aboveground biomass estimation in a Brazilian tropical forest (pages 109-122) Aline Bernarda Debastiani, Carlos Roberto Sanquetta, Ana Paula Dalla Corte, Naiara Sardinha Pinto, Franciel Eduardo Rex Evaluating SAR-optical sensor fusion for aboveground biomass estimation in a Brazilian tropical forest The aim of the present study is to evaluate the potential of C-band SAR data from the Sentinel-1/2 instruments and machine learning algorithms for the estimation of forest above ground forest biomass (AGB) in a high-biomass tropical ecosystem. This study was carried out in Jamari National Forest, located in the Brazilian Amazon. The response variable was AGB (Mg/ha) estimated from airborne laser surveys. The following treatments were considered as model predictors: 1) Sentinel-1 Sigma 0 at VV and VH polarizations; 2) (1) plus Sentinel-1 textural metrics; 3) (2) plus Sentinel-2 bands and derived vegetation indices (LAI, RVI, SAVI, NDVI).Our modeling design estimated the relative importance of SAR vs. optical variables in explaining AGB. The modeling was performed with twelve machine-learning algorithms including, neural network and regression tree. The addition of texture and optical data provided a noticeable improvement (3%) over models with SAR backscatter only. The best model performance was achieved with the Random Tree algorithm. Our results demonstrate the potential of freely-available SAR data and machine learning for mapping AGB in tropical ecosystems. Assessing the forest-wood chain at local level: A Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) based on the circular bioeconomy principles (pages 123-138) Elisa Pieratti, Alessandro Paletto, Isabella De Meo, Claudio Fagarazzi, Matteo Giovanni Rillo Migliorini Assessing the forest-wood chain at local level: A Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) based on the circular bioeconomy principles In the last years, the circular bioeconomy has been recognized as key approach to increase the competitiveness of enterprises and economic growth in the European Union (EU) member countries. In the circular bioeconomy context, forest-based sector can play a key role. The aim of the present study is to analyze the forest-wood chain at local level following the circular bioeconomy approach. In this study, a set of indicators to quantify the 4R ("Reduce", "Reuse", "Recycle", "Recover") of circular economy has been defined and tested in a study area in Italy (Monte Morello forest, Tuscany region). The indicators that have been identified are: improving production process efficiency; reuse and life-span of wood products; optimization of potential wood assortments and energy recover from the wood products. By means of the indicators and a Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA), the current forest management strategy applied in the study area has been compared with other possible forest management scenarios, to evaluate the optimum solution. The results showed that, up to now, current forest management strategy did not optimize the commercial wood assortments because the timber harvested is wholly allocated for bioenergy production. The economic side can be improved, and the life-span of wood products increased by means of the valorization of the timber collected. Anyway, the results showed a favorable balance with regard to the carbon dioxide (CO2) emission – considering the fossil fuel substitution effect – and for the energy enhancement of deadwood stock of the study area. Maria Teodosiu, Georgeta Mihai, Barbara Fussi, Elena Ciocîrlan Online First: November 26, 2019 In the Romanian Carpathians, Silver fir covers about 5% of the forest area and is the second most important conifer species. Although there are a number of genetic studies concerning the distribution of genetic diversity of Abies alba in Europe, populations from the south-eastern limit of the distribution range have been studied less. The aim of the present study was to assess the genetic diversity and differentiation in 36 silver fir populations along the Carpathian Mountains in Romania, using seven microsatellites loci. High levels of genetic diversity (He = 0.779 to 0.834 and AR = 11.61 to 14.93) were found in all populations. Eastern Carpathians populations show higher levels of diversity, both in allelic richness and expected heterozygosity and higher degrees of genetic differentiation compared to southern populations. Bayesian clustering analysis revealed the existence of two genetically distinct groups for silver fir populations, one larger cluster which comprises the Inner Eastern Carpathians, Curvature Carpathians, South Carpathians and the Banat Mountains and the second cluster contained most of the North and Outer Eastern Carpathians population. Both AMOVA and Barrier analysis supported genetic differentiation among geographical provenance regions. The high genetic diversity of silver fir populations from the eastern limit of its distribution provide high potential to mitigate the negative effects of climate warming being valuable genetic resources in the context of global change. The distribution pattern of genetic variation at local, regional and country scale could and should be considered for the preservation of the forest genetic resources. Hongxu Wei, Xin Chen, Guoshuang Chen, Hengtian Zhao Many non-wood forest product (NWFP) plants are shade-obligate species, but current understanding about their foliar response to understory spectrum is quite scarce. To monitor understory light condition at large scale faces significant obstacles from heavy canopy shade and high cost of sensors arrangement. Therefore, we employed a novel methodology to meter the relative light ratio between plots under canopy and in the open-air. In this study, a number of 34 plots of natural Aralia elata populations were investigated for forest structure across six types of forests at Northeast China. Light properties of relative intensity, photosynthetic photon flux rate (PPFD), spectra in red, green, and blue wavelengths, and relative ratio of red/green, red/blue, and green/blue were measured at the height of 1.3m. Leaves of A. elata were collected to determined concentrations of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), starch, and soluble sugars. We found that relative blue light ratio was different among forest-types, but it had little further effect on leaf traits in A. elata. Instead, higher ratios of relative green light and green/blue depressed leaf P concentration. Increases in PPFD and light intensity promoted leaf N and P concentrations, respectively. The red/green ratio had adverse relationships with leaf P and starch concentrations in A. elata. In conclusion, due to the variation understory light condition, sites with low canopy density would benefit leaf N concentration and those with larger canopies can promote leaf starch accumulation in A. elata. Richard Hrivnák, Michal Slezák, Karol Ujházy, Františk Máliš, Drahoš Blanár, Mariana Ujházyová, Ján Kliment The aim of the study was to perform phytosociological revision of the scree and ravine forest vegetation in Slovakia in order to identify i) basic vegetation units of vegetation according to their floristic composition, and ii) to find out the main environmental gradients affecting their compositional variability. Relevés originally assigned to broadly comprehended alliance Tilio platyphylli-Acerion (974 relevés) were used for the analyses. In order to select final dataset (527 relevés), formal criteria, such as tree layer cover >50%, relevé area of 200–500 m2 and presence at least two from six traditionally accepted diagnostic species of the alliance in Central Europe (Acer platanoides, Lunaria rediviva, Phyllitis scolopendrium, Polystichum aculeatum, Tilia platyphyllos and Ulmus glabra) were applied to the primal dataset. Altitude, aspect, slope, climatic characteristics (mean annual precipitation and air temperature), geological bedrock and Ellenberg indicator values (EIVs) were specified for each phytosociological relevé. We used modified TWINSPAN algorithm for classification, Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCA) for explanation of species composition-environmental relationships, and both ANOVA corrected using modified permutation test and Mann-Whitney U-test to test environmental differences at each step of division by numerical classification. Two alliances, Melico-Tilion platyphylli and Tilio platyphylli-Acerion were distinguished with three (Aceri platanoidis-Tilietum platyphylli, Scolopendrio-Fraxinetum and Seslerio heufleranae-Quercetum petraeae) and two (Mercuriali perennis-Fraxinetum excelsioris and Lunario redivivae-Aceretum pseudoplatani) associations, respectively. Besides the floristic composition, other important factors for differentiation of the associations were altitude and related climatic characteristics. The main environmental characteristics affecting the overall compositional variability of studied forests were EIVs for light, moisture, soil reaction and temperature. The complex syntaxonomical revision identified five floristically and ecologically clearly differentiated associations, what reduced the number to almost half of previously distinguished communities from the territory of Slovakia. Moreover, presented concept is at alliance level in accordance with recent European classification approach. Eroilor Avenue 128, 077190 Voluntari, Ilfov, Romania (+4) 021 350 32 41 marius.teodosiu [at] gmail.com Copyright © 2008-2020 by "Marin Drăcea" National Research-Development Institute in Forestry. Webdesign: Netlogiq Romania	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line524
__label__cc	0.531065	0.468935	You are viewing this article in the AnnArbor.com archives. For the latest breaking news and updates in Ann Arbor and the surrounding area, see MLive.com/ann-arbor Posted on Fri, Nov 9, 2012 : 1:27 p.m. Commuter rail cars between Ann Arbor and Detroit slated for test runs starting Monday By Ryan J. Stanton Ann Arbor officials are welcoming the news that commuter rail cars between Ann Arbor and Detroit are slated for testing starting Monday. The realization of commuter rail service in Southeast Michigan is something that local officials and many residents have been anticipating for years, and next week's testing of six newly refurbished, bi-level, stainless-steel commuter rail cars is an indication the initiative is making progress. The Michigan Department of Transportation said in a news release Friday the rail cars will be run all the way from Pontiac to Jackson. It's expected the cars, which were refurbished by Great Lakes Central Railroad in Owosso, eventually will be used by two proposed commuter rail services. MDOT said last year it already had this train for a commuter rail line running from Ann Arbor to Ypsilanti, Metro Airport, Dearborn and Detroit, where it would link with the new Woodward Line. Now it has six newly refurbished rail cars that are slated for test runs next week. Photo courtesy of MDOT That includes the east-west Ann Arbor-to-Detroit line and the north-south WALLY line linking Ann Arbor and Howell. Because it's strictly a test of the equipment, MDOT officials said the public is not invited to board the train at this time. Amtrak will operate the test train using its own locomotive, while Amtrak, Great Lakes Central Railroad, MDOT consultants, and the Federal Railroad Administration conduct the testing. According to MDOT, the new rail cars will be tested at normal operating speeds of up to 79 mph through Wednesday as they move from Pontiac to Jackson and back. Following successful testing, demonstrations of the commuter rail service could be used for special events in the future, MDOT officials said. At this time, a sustainable funding source for both commuter rail services is not yet programmed. The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments is working on the Ann Arbor-to-Detroit service, and the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority is working on the WALLY service. Carmine Palombo, SEMCOG's director of transportation programs, could not immediately be reached for comment on Friday. Palombo told AnnArbor.com earlier this year that SEMCOG and MDOT were working daily — along with the FRA, Federal Transit Administration, Amtrak and various contractors — and he believed demonstration trains could be up and running sometime within 2012. The rail cars were purchased from the Metra commuter rail system in northeast Illinois before being refurbished. The new seating inside was done by American Seating in Grand Rapids. MDOT said the cost to refurbish each car was about $310,000, with funding provided by state and federal sources. The promise of commuter rail service between Ann Arbor and Detroit, as well as high-speed passenger rail from Detroit to Chicago, are reasons why Ann Arbor officials have been working over the last several years toward the goal of building a new Amtrak station on Fuller Road. Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529. You also can follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters. Roger Kuhlman Mon, Nov 12, 2012 : 10:17 p.m. How much money is new commuter rail service scheduled to lose each year. What is Amtrak's average annual operating losses? Financial irresponsibility so that certain left-wing special interests and ideological projects can benefit. Corrupt! Christine Moellering Mon, Nov 12, 2012 : 5:01 p.m. I have been waiting and waiting for this to happen. I'm so happy! I can't wait until my husband can take it to work. We live in Ypsilanti and he works in Detroit. Sam S Smith Sat, Nov 10, 2012 : 8:37 p.m. $310,000 would translate into how many rides or fares to break even? Small wonder this is funded by state or federal sources (aka your taxes)! Any business wouldn't touch that with a ten foot pole! This is not an example of you get what you pay for but more taxes mean more taxes for less and rip off until the majority is broke! KoalaMasala Thrilling development! I do hope that local governments will provide ample funding for rider and station security, too. katmando A light rail system between Ann Arbor and Toledo would be a better idea. YpsiGirl4Ever Sat, Nov 10, 2012 : 10:45 p.m. In addition to a real S.E. Michigan based light rail transportation system, yes indeed! The one thing I dislike about Amtrak, you can't catch a train to Toledo from A2 or Ypsilanti, at all. So, let's say you're travelling from Kalamazoo to Pittsburgh, PA. Here is the Amtrak route....kid you not. Train from Kalamazoo to Ann Arbor. Bus from Ann Arbor to Toledo (What, there are no trains available? Nope). Get back on the train in Toledo for the ride to Pittsburgh, PA. Do this again coming back. Really, is this the best we can do? Yes, with time, I hope a Toledo route on a local light rail system is added. Personally, I love travelling by train (less stress, room to move around, enjoyable ride, meet nice people for the most part, no turbulence, on the ground instead of in the air...could go on with this list) over an airline anyday. Steven Taylor If you read about Washtenaw County Interurbans.. An investor back in the 1920's planned to build such a system from A2 to Toledo.. Even bought easements but ran out of funding.. You can see some of the bracing concrete culverts in Pittsfield township along Platt Road.. Particularly south of Bemis (one part is in the park on the SE Corner). Rail between Ann Aarbor and Detroit is just away to send money to Detroit. Detroiters will not come to Ann Arbor to spend money. With money as tight as it is, shouldn't we be asking many questions, researching the need without paying big bucks to some special interest group claiming to be neutral (why can't we send out a poll to see who would be using this and when), developing sound plans. I like trains and I am very interested in the future of transportation. But answer the questions. OK you get to Detroit by train then what? Take a bus? A taxi? What if the hours are not helpful? How many trains would be going to and from Detroit and Ann Arbor per day. What if the Tiger game runs late, you get out of work late, there's a traffic jam, a home emergency, a study session or meeting, etc. and you can't get back to the train station to catch a train. Or you miss the train for whatever reason. Then what? So rather than voting "no" on my questions or comments, please answer them instead. No answers? I still think that both Detroit and Ann Arbor have other pressing priorities than this. If you don't think that, please explain it. Detroit is essentially bankrupt. Ann Arbor has had two sad pedestrian fatalities. I'll wait for your reply. With some rare exceptions in a few major urban areas, rail transit systems for commuters run at very large financial losses. The riders will not pay high ticket prices that would actually support the real costs of the system, so public subsidies are needed to prevent bankruptcy. Where do the subsidies come from? Some of the money is diverted from fuel taxes paid by drivers who will very seldom or never use the rail because 1) the routes don't work for them and 2) worse yet, they live in parts of the state where the rail will never exist. What is the morality of taking some of the gas taxes from someone who lives in Sturgis, Gaylord or Marquette to pay for rail in Southeastern Michigan? The rest of the subsidies come from General Funds, monies paid in through various taxes by the vast majority of taxpayers that will very seldom or never ride the rail system. Again what is the morality of having non-riders subsidize systems they will never or virtually never use? Urban rail is almost always a boondoggle, a financial black hole, and an unsustainable business if it had to be private enterprise. At an absolute minimum, setting up urban rail systems that require taxpayer subsidies should be subject to a vote of all of the people that will have to pay for it - whether they would ever use the system, or not. James C. Walker, National Motorists Association, Ann Arbor, MI Great Lakes Lady "The rail cars were purchased from the Metra commuter rail system in northeast Illinois before being refurbished." Are they "green" non-polluting? Are they "fuel efficient"? Or did Chicago dump them due to outdated technology? How much did MDOT pay for purchases of rail cars?? Each car was 'refurbished' at the pricetag of 310K per car.. as mentioned in the article. Basic Bob Rail CARS use no fuel at all. Sat, Nov 10, 2012 : 4:13 a.m. And we can't forget the almost 1.9 million dollars spent on the 6 pieces of shiny choo-choo train... Since I've not found anything in the documents provided by either A2.com or SEMCOG. I'm running off what I can google in my spare time regarding costs since you proponents of the system think it's just so peachy keen. I'll provide citations here and hopefully my basic math holds up. Ok. First link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Hub_Network This says here, that waaay back in 2009, good old Stimulus package came in.. Funding in the amount of 244 Million for the corridor running Chicago-Detroit-Pontiac was allocated in the ARRA. Then in 2010 they got another 141 Million. Running tally is now 385 Million taxpayer dollars... Ok. So far so good. From Amtraks website.. The route from Chicago to Pontiac equals 304 miles. Ok... Next step. finding out estimated cost per mile... See this link here (Can't attest to it's validity but it was one of the first few links available regarding "Cost per mile for HSR(High Speed Rail)". http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/03/16/1074997/-The-ABCs-of-High-Speed-Rail.. Ok I'll use the conservative numbers provided in the link of 34 million per mile. (Now take into account, HSR which I'm sure is the ultimate goal will require extensive upgrades to the existing track beds/rails/electricity transmission/right of way and goodness knows what else, i'm not a railroad design engineer). Simple division of 385 Million at 34 million per mile equals a grand total of..... drum roll 9.3 miles of track.. You'd make to maybe Michigan City Indiana after the Chicago Transit authority transmission lines stop. Interesting aside, when I lived in Charlotte, NC from 2004/2008 they had just completed and opened up the LYNX light rail system.. A 9 mile boondoggle... Guess what the estimated final price tag for this bit of fiscal irresponsibility. 521 Million... Seems on par almost doesn't it.. Anyone care to correct my numbers or add more financing into this? I'd love supporters to tell me where the other funds if there are more will come from. Mrs. Armentrout, thank you so much for providing the white paper resource. Vivienne Armentrout One place to start is the white paper by People for A2 Parks. http://www.annarbor.com/PA2PWhite%20paper10-10-12.pdf This is not a pro- or anti- rail piece but it has a lot of facts and figures about the cost and likelihood of a commuter rail in our area. Thank you President Obama, I have a new way, to see the destruction of Detroit. Can't wait! From the rail map, getting to Pontiac takes you through downtown Detroit: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/MDOT_Official_Rail_130897_7.pdf Why not run a bus service through Plymouth, Farmington Hills, and Royal Oak? Wouldn't this connect communities with more commuters? bruno_uno Factual Copied Quote from Article: "Palombo told AnnArbor.com earlier this year that SEMCOG and MDOT were working daily — along with the FRA, Federal Transit Administration, Amtrak and various contractors — and he believed demonstration trains could be up and running sometime within 2012." Irresponsible Speculation Quote: "Demonstration destination centers with enough population and density from a mix use of commuters could be up and running sometime within 2050." hey city of ann arbor, lets get your mickey mouse ride to the airport on time and facility upgrades to handle multi modal transportation before you try something like rail ok? speaking from experience, very amusing. YAY!! This is a great idea. Hope it goes forward! Evidently a commuter bus in California with a $1 million price tag burned in a riot doesn't surprise anyone but $310k is a tragedy. For a daily commuter who spends on average 2+ hours a day in traffic along these routes may see this as a great solution. Good luck MDOT! two canoes woo hoo!!! Can't wait!!! I drive to Detroit for many enjoyable events. I can't wait for a good public system and I sure do not understand why Ann Arborites fight the plans. I travel to many metro cities that have public rail systems. They are heavily used by the public and very convenient. Give up your gas gusslers and parking permits and save your earth. Also why should we pay more taxes so you get a train ride for the enjoyable events? Must be nice where you're sitting. Some people have bills to pay and can't afford enjoyable events or travel. Not against it really. I just want to know how realistic is it. Is the train station by the enjoyable events you go to? Or would you have to take a bus or taxi to get where you need to go? Ron Granger Sat, Nov 10, 2012 : 12:57 a.m. Have they figured out why that recent train collision happened? That funny thing called infrastructure, possibly a buckle in the track. I still dunno what caused that derailment outside of Jackson about a year ago... Hell, it may have even been a penny.. we gotta rub those together these days... To bad there is not a stop at Metro Airport. This would probably generate more revenue than going into the city. OK let's say I take a train to Detroit. Then what? What if the train station is not near my job? Or the Tigers or Lions or a Detroit Museum or whatever. Oh you want me to wait at a bus stop in Detroit so I can be mugged? Or take multiple buses on Detroit to get to where I need to go? Makes good sense to me. What if my job hours are different than what the train schedule is? So I'd have to take a train 2-3 hours early then wait 2-3 hours after work to get home. That's a pretty long day. I wasn't aware that there are so many commuters going back and forth to Detroit and Ann Arbor to justify this. Why this sudden interest in linking Ann Arbor with Detroit. I like trains and I kind of like Detroit but this push is perplexing. Doesn't Detroit or Ann Arbor have bigger problems to deal with than this? Before I show you the money, show me the need and plan. I'm not against trains or the future of transportation. I am asking real questions. Perhaps rather than voting "no" on comments you deem worthy of this, you can answer my questions instead. I would work in Detroit if I didn't have to drive. That is out of the question. I'll reconsider when the train begins. BernieP Sat, Nov 10, 2012 : 1 a.m. On my daily commute I see more traffic heading into Ann Arbor than out of it. Then the really heavy traffic doesn't start again til either M14 or I94 head east past I275. Fri, Nov 9, 2012 : 10:18 p.m. All of you folks so in favor of this wonderfully novel idea. (I keep hearing the 'monorail' song from the Simpsons playing over and over in my head).. You all fail and haven't answered the simplest of questions that many commenters, myself included have asked. Where and HOW are you gonna pay for this when the system as it stands is about ready to go belly up? You can't get blood from turnips folks.. We just gonna keep asking the fed to print more money? Someone, anyone answer that simple question. Per person/Per mile cost.. Initial cost (Beyond the shiny 300K per unit traincar). Till then yer blowin' smoke. Give me something concrete other than.. "Well, roads is bad, stop expanding, or repairing them, force people to take the train." You force people to do something, they're gonna rebel, and ya'll ain't even laid the real infrastructure yet. Arborcomment Sun, Nov 11, 2012 : 1:13 a.m. Why Cash, you know the answer, we've been putting the war costs on the VISA/CHINA card - so now you propose upping the credit limit on that to pay for choo choos? How have we been paying for wars for the past 10 years??? Time for us to rebuild America instead of the Middle East. Obama is going to give it to us. After he borrows it from China. Michigan had excellent public transportation until the Big 3 car makers pushed to use public money to build roads so more people would buy their cars. Cars turned out to be ecologically unsound and certainly not cost efficient. Government used tax monies and built roads and people started buying more cars. The Interstate system of highways was originally devised and built for fast movement of our military in case Russia attacked us. That was back when we were encouraged to build fallout shelters and the schools had bomb attack drills, believing hiding in basements would protect us from the radiation that would clear up in a few days. it's time to start looking toward the future or we may not have one. The interstate road system followed the model of the German autobahn. There were national security implications but this was NOT the main reason they were built. Eisenhower quickly realized the trade and commerce rationale far outweighed the need to move away from one smoking hole in the ground to another. In the late 1930's plans were already underway for an interstate system and were delayed by the WW-II. During the late 30's to the early 40's, the simple drive from Detroit to Baltimore took four days by truck - no way to run an economy. Nice try on the military industrial complex though. Macabre Sunset Unless you live in an urban center, cars are quite efficient. We could make this argument about the nobility of urban living, but that's just not a reality for a population that's now quite spread out. Woman in Ypsilanti What is funny to me about this discussion is that I can remember that the Georgetown area in DC used a lot of similar arguments to keep the metro out of their part of town. They basically didn't want to be connected via mass transit to the poorer parts of town. Now, I think they are regretting that because it kind of sucks to get around if you live in Georgetown and now the city is a lot nicer. And Wash Metro is massively subsidized by the Federal Government. Even Dingell couldn't get that much play dough. @Ypsi, I suggest you check current real estate values for a house in Georgetown compared to one right next to the metro station in say, Anacostia. Georgetown residents are quite happy in their multi-million $$$ plus homes. Actually, the BRT routes proposed by Governor Snyder would probably be a better way for people to commute into Detroit from various areas in the metro area. But it might compromise local bus service I agree with you, the Washington Metro is wonderful. But it is serving a much larger population (5.6 million in the metro area) and arguably a more important city. Most of all, it is a modern rail system, not refurbished cars running on a freight line. Fat Bill Fri, Nov 9, 2012 : 9:59 p.m. One of the most effective ways to bring ridership up for mass transit systems is to quit expanding the freeways. People will eventually get used to the notion of catching the train to work; the railroad infrastructure is way cheaper to maintain than 8 lanes of asphalt. Portland, Oregon's light rail came about as an alternative to expanding the freeway system and slicing up the town. Integrated mass transit may still be a ways off, but you have to start somewhere. Dog Guy Here's to spending my federal and state tax dollars on a car-a-month-train-set subscription: Whooo! Whooo! Westfringe It is absolutely irresponsible that taxpayer money is being used to fix up rail cars before we have funding for the larger project. We can't afford an adequate police force for our city but we can waste money on junk like this? Maybe we can sell them for a profit. Woman in ypsilanti - You know that it does not work that way. If we can afford to waste our money on junk like foreign wars and the biggest military in the world, we should be able to afford a little mass transit. And police protection too now that I think about it. Ryan J. Stanton The schedule shows 11 stops next week: Pontiac Birmingham Royal Oak Detroit's New Center Dearborn Airport (Henry Ruff Road) Ypsilanti Ann Arbor Dexter Chelsea Jackson jns131 If I think of this correctly, you would have to be on Haggerty to connect with a train. There really is no way to get one of these trains from Canton. Canton has no direct rail access. Sad really. What time is it going to go thru Ypsilanti? I can't wait to see something like this. I'd love to see the neighbors off Beck or Sheldon have one built near their homes. Not. Sometimes I think when we lose a sense of place, we lose its history. The location at Henry Ruff Road is perhaps best known as Eloise. http://talesofeloise.com/history.html Thanks for this, it is what I was wondering, how many stops will there be and where? Also, does this mean if that system come to fruition, these will all be stops? What I see missing however is a stop in the Plymouth/Canton/Van Buren area where a lot of folks live who commute to Ann Arbor. Finally, how long is this going to take? That many stops mean the train will not reach high speeds (79?). It takes a train a long time to get up to speed and a long time to come to a stop. Last time I took a train was from Windsor to Toronto and I thought I was going to age a year or two because of all the stops and how long it took to stop. I had no idea that all of these locations had stations or platforms from which passengers can embark and debark trains. If every train stops at every station traveling to and from Ann Arbor to Detroit commuters will not save time over driving. If bus transportation is not coordinated with scheduled stops at the Airport station then few passengers will use the rail between Detroit and the airport and Ann Arbor and the airport. Who can afford to keep an extra car parked at the station? Thanks, this is helpful information. I see that Henry Ruff Street (not Road) in Romulus intersects with the railroad about 6 miles north of the main Delta terminal at DTW. Are there plans for a shuttle to the airport itself? Bob W I hope this works better than past attempts. I've lived in Ann Arbor for more than 40 years and way back there were commuter rail attempts. The first was just riding regularly scheduled trains in both directions, then there was the Budd Car, a single diesel/electric car that passed for streamlined back in the 40's I think. This article does not mention where the service terminates in Detroit. Back then, it stopped at the old Michigan Central station and required transferring to buses to get to the downtown area. This, combined with a stop in Dearborn made it a long and tedious trip under the best of circumstances. Another problem was the frequency of scheduled trains. Unless you had a job with fixed quiting times, good luck. I was a programmer then a manager and leaving work at any given time was a pipe dream. Our passes were accepted on a later passenger train, but even that was not late enough many times and I found myself walking to the Greyhound station just to get back to Ann Arbor. Like I said, hope it goes better for folks who might try this if it comes to fruition. Stephen Lange Ranzini It is my understanding that trains will stop at the Detroit Amtrak Station near Henry Ford Hospital. The new train being built down Woodward Avenue would give a quick and easy connection to all locations along Woodward Avenue in Detroit. talker Thanks for your post. It brings out many of the reasons the train service wasn't used then (around 1980?) and likely won't be used by most now. Elaine F. Owsley In the 60's when we lived in Ypsi, my husband took the commuter train from there to Detroit a couple of times a week. Having only one car at the time, it was a great help. I don't know why they dropped the service - seems they've been talking about replacing it for years. I remember my parents doing the same thing. Except we did it out of Ann Arbor. I do remember the Ypsilanti station being very active. Are they doing the same here? And will there be enough parking? Here's the latest update report on the A2-to-Detroit commuter rail effort provided to me by Eli Cooper from the city of Ann Arbor: http://a2docs.org/doc/311/ Thanks so much for getting this additional information, Ryan. I think I have in fact seen this on the SEMCOG site, but not in such a compact form. You'll note that most of it is about the cars. However, an intriguing statement that "funding has been identified" for station design needs more amplification. Identified and secured? From what source? What are the contingincies (matching funds, timelines, etc.) There are no studies that prove that crime goes up with the mass transit. http://www.uctc.net/papers/550.pdf However, there are studies that show that mass transit increases property values. If I were you, I would be looking into buying property now that will be in walking distance of the stations. http://www.houselogic.com/home-advice/green-living/public-transportation-adds-value-home/ Lawd bejeezus! The lack of a decent public transportation system in S.E. Michigan hasn't stopped crime in the burbs nor will a finally decent public transportation add to crime in the burbs. This type of "we have utopia crime free area in the burbs" grandiose thinking mentally is why our public transportation system look the same as it did 40 + years ago....minus a bus route or two here and there. Let's move FORWARD with this test project and on this one, I applaud Governor Snyder's MDOT along with Congressman Dingell work with planning what the FUTURE S.E. Michigan public transit should look like instead of living in the past. Talk to residents along the SMART bus route on Gratiot. The crime along this route is higher than inside the cities proper. How many of those studies involved Detroit? I think you people fail to realize how bad it really is in that shell of a city. I worked and went to school in Detroit for 12+ years, take the rose-colored glasses off. Jon Saalberg Amazing. Here in the U.S., public transit seems to be about as appealing as the flu, even though the rest of the world seems to make it work just fine. Oh, then there are cities such as Chicago, New York, Boston, etc., that have excellent transit systems. It's the arrogance of "I'll travel in my car wherever I want, whenever I want" that makes mass transit a hard sell. You'd think $4/gallon gas would make it more appealing, but apparently not. @ MS: Maybe the lack of mass transit is one of the reasons why Detroit's decline has been so much worse than other cities? In other urban areas the poor at least have decent mass transit to get to jobs in more affluent suburbs. In Detroit, where a high percent of households don't have a car, getting to the burbs for a job is a nightmare. Steve Bean MS, Detroit is simply the canary in the coal mine. No, it's Detroit that makes mass transit a hard sell. No city in the history of the world has experienced this type of decline. Townspeak LOVE IT. Very excited. Keep the rails coming..... getyourstorystraightfirst Fri, Nov 9, 2012 : 11 p.m. i'd love to have a train from ann arbor to detroit, considering that I have drove from ann arbor to detroit everyday for the last 3 years of my life for school...this would've been very convenient Please share information about how often you'd use the train service and how the maximum you are willing to pay for a round trip between Ann Arbor and Detroit? ItsTheTruth This is a terrible idea. We do not need to give dangerous criminals a ride to Ann Arbor from Detroit. When the buses started bringing them to Westland is when the crime went out of control and the city started to go down hill. Do we really want to do that to Ann Arbor? We pay a lot of money to live here and don't want this. Umm...what makes you think these "criminals" can't get in a car and do the same thing? Also, what makes you think Ann Arbor is crime free? Westland did not import criminals from Detroit. I know a few and they all grew up there. Ann Arbor also has its share of homegrown criminals. They didn't take the bus from Ypsilanti. Good grief!! They can take a Greyhound to Ann Arbor and a Taxi from there. They can get a ride in a stolen car. I don't think there's going to an invasion by train. Besides, we have our own criminals around here. Fordie The comment I wanted to make got blocked by the automatic filter on the site. It's a shame that I can't express how ignorant and rude I find you and your post to be. What is it with the extreme hostility toward mass transit in metro Detroit? So many major cities (NYC, Boston, DC) have great systems that make life easier for residents. Here the mere idea is treated like some fatal disease. "Look at California, though. On the verge of the largest bankruptcy the world has ever known. And yet they keep spending and spending (maybe because they expect the rest of the country to bail them out)." Here we go again....mixing two separate events that have nothing to do with one another. Quickly, let's cite why SOME of California cities are facing bankruptcy. Specifically, this is all about Proposition 13 of 1979, pushed by a Republican backer and assisted with launching then CA's Governor Ronnie Reagan into the U.S. White House. Proposition 13 requires a 2/3rd vote of California's Legislature to increase needed revenues (i.e. taxes). Since enacted, California's Education System -once the envy of the nation- has fell to the 40th percentile (out of 50th states) with meeting the needs of its public student population. The State Parks system is in disarray and cities are dying for shared revenue. Lucky for California, the People have finally seen the light and enacted another Proposition on Tuesday to add revenue back into public schools along with electing a Democratic Supermajority to its' State House and Senate. Amazingly enough, this is what GOP associated groups like Americans for Fiscal Responsibly tried to do in Michigan with Proposal 5 - the 2/3rd Tax Amendment but, the People soundly voted it down. Now back to Public Transportation in S.E. Michigan, please.... Northside, Not all of us think the way of the 1970's. Stuck in a decade that the best in public transportation was catching a ride in a gas-powered vehicle without the proper ventilation system smogging up our air and killing the environment surrounding us. Some of us our in envy of the robust transportation systems in Chicago, New York, Seattle and other places were driving a car is not a necessary to get around. Frankly I'm one of these people and believe me, a lot more of us are out there than the public transportation haters, as I like to call them. Personally, I LOVE to pieces Chicago where one can catch the L from Barrington Heights to Downtown Chicago,take a stroll on Lake Michigan beaches, visit the Lincoln Zoo, Navy Pier and Cheesecake Factory....then hop the L again to the Heights. Out-of-Towners don't understand why we "cling to our cars", enboden with the rush associated with being on the freeway in the morning and late afternoon. Heck, I don't blame them as these are valid question. Let's hope the naysayers (and they will keep saying no, because its easier than Yes...let's move forward) don't put the brakes on this awesome test project! And Chicago. Our daughter traveled by train to and from work in downtown Chicago every day for several years. In a lot of European areas you can get to the major work/business areas by train. Try it, you'll like it. Great comments @Northside and @Brad! @Brad: in addition to the problem you've outlined, there is a tendency for people to say without government backing we can't do x, even though x is viable without government support as a business. Also, I have seen many instances where people won't work collaboratively for the good of all, but instead work for their personal self interest (they are corrupt) even if that destroys an important project that would greatly benefit the region. They would rather the project fail, then to see someone else, and not them, benefit! One thing larger cities have to offer is density and more people going into the same central city, often with connecting bus service at one or both ends of the commuter routes. Other prompts to take public transportation in cities such as Boston, New York, and Chicago are (1) heavy road traffic and (2) expensive parking in central cities. This brings up the question of how much commuter trains can charge and retain passengers. If SE Michigan commuters were charged as high of percent of actual cost as commuters in those cities, even fewer would want to take the train between Ann Arbor and Detroit, especially when some of the commuters to Detroit work at the Wayne State area medical center, which is not near the train station. In Chicago, people who work at the Northwestern U. medical center in downtown Chicago can take shuttle buses that run amazingly frequent during the busiest hours. That part of infrastructure is missing in SE Michigan. The infrastructure has to be in place in Detroit and Dearborn, etc. in order for it to work, not just Ann Arbor. Cooperative, Michi-Vans are more flexible than rail service and even those aren't flexible enough for many who commute out of Ann Arbor. For many who commute, it comes down to carpooling or going solo. Look at California, though. On the verge of the largest bankruptcy the world has ever known. And yet they keep spending and spending (maybe because they expect the rest of the country to bail them out). We love children in part because they have wonderful imaginations with no limits. Somebody, though, has to be the parent and say "no" once in a while. This is one of those times when a simple "no" is appropriate. I'm not sure that attitude prevails everywhere in SE Mich.....there are some regressive people who can't envision growth and a youth movement in SE Mich. Maybe with this transit, all of our UM grads won't be taking the train home to Chicago when they graduate, but might decide our area is progressing to provide mass transit for the future. NYC, Boston, DC all have things to offer besides crime. This really seems to be the culture of Southeast Michigan. Do an experiment - find a bulletin board and post something with the title "Hey, I have a great business idea!" and see how long it takes for people to tell you that you are an idiot, that your idea is foolish, that it will never work, that you are a dreamer, etc. etc. Now post the same thing on a bulletin board anywhere near Silicon Valley and see that opposite reaction. We seem to have a "Yes, we can't" attitude. Erik L. I personally think something like this would be great. For anyone that says "who would want to go to Detroit?" Have some pride in your state! Detroit is a great city with lots of offer. Yes it is rough around the edges, but who in Michigan isnt? I think it would be great to have as an option for transport to Detroit. There are so many times I would like to go down there and have a few drinks at the micro brews, see a tigers game, the lions or whatever, but I worry about drinking too much and being over the limit. Being able to take the train would be an easy and safe alternative. I think the state should do everything it can to get more people to Detroit. But the rail between brighton and ann arbor seems pointless. The question isn't whether there's taxation for services in this country. The question (at least as how Erik presented it) is whether we should be asked to pay for a service that's primary function is entertainment. We have safety inspectors for amusement parks. But the parks are expected to pay for those inspections, and the parks that do not run a profit are quickly shuttered. Yes, a government provides services that we can't provide on our own. A train system would be appropriate under the right circumstances. I'm not against all trains. I'm against these trains, particularly WALLY. zeeba Maccabre - Actually, taxpayers do subsidize such a service. They're called taxis. And taxpayers pay for the roads they run on, as well as for the police and emergency services needed to keep those roads safe. They also pay for inspectors who try to make sure you don't get food poisoning from that plate of nachos with week-old ground beef you ordered at the club, but they're kind of short-staffed due to budget cuts these days, so let's hope you've got a cast-iron stomach. Yes, right now there may not be enough people traveling to Detroit to work to support an idea like this. The problem with people in Michigan is that they all live in the past and never look to the future. Detroit and Michigan has been in a rough spot for awhile, but there is a lot of growth and companies moving back to Detroit. It might not be the safest place in the world, but a lot of places arn't, I have never had any issues down in Detroit and now have a lot of friends making that choice to move down to areas like Mid-town, where a LOT of young people are moving. Why? because they have pride in Detroit and want to support its growth. I personally want to see Detroit to continue to grow, and in 5 years we may really need a mass transport system like this. If we don't look to the future and we don't make decisions to support our states future growth, its pretty simple.... we just won't grow. We already pay for some much crap as tax payers, I would love to actually have my money go towards something I would use. If your to Scared to go down to Detroit because of what you have heard thats fine, feel free to stay home and complain about how bad Michigan's economy. I'll be the one out there doing what I can to support Michigans local businesses and organizations. Ghost of Tom Joad in your infinite wisdom, where do you think this public investment is gonna come from. Non existent tax dollars? Unicorn farts? As Mrs Armentrout mentioned about it's fiscally irresponsible. Period, full stop. 2-3 trips a day... Amtrak already does that. poorly, but it already exists... and yet here we go trying to reinvent the wheel. I, too, would like a service that picks me up at my front door, and takes me to my favorite club, where I can drink all I want and watch an entertaining sporting event or a play or maybe even a car show. The difference between you and I is that I don't expect the taxpayers to subsidize my personal entertainment choices. The sole reason for backing mass transit should be to get massive numbers of people to their jobs. And the financial case for the commuter trains just isn't there. Detroit simply doesn't have the job density to make this a cost-effective plan. Eric, I think the old phrase is.. You can put lipstick on a pig and it's still a pig. I have pride in my state, but I also have a duty to myself and my children by not saddling myself and my children and my childrens children with what equates to an expensive "Feelgoodism" You say it's 'rough around the edges'.. I'm sorry, but it's worse than that.. It's downright dangerous and folly to think otherwise.. I had a discussion with city councilman Mr. Murdock of Ypsilanti via Facebook within the last hour and I cannot find one shred reason economically or otherwise that this is an even REMOTELY good idea. Ghost of Tom Joad it's easier for them to be curmudgeons and nay-sayers. anything that requires public investment is apparently anathema to civilized society. Why on earth would you want to connect to Detroit? No one I know even wants to drive through it! It is a dead city full of crime. How about you fix the roads before spending money on train cars we may never use! There are people who work in Detroit living out here - and apparently you haven't been to Detroit in a long, long time. It was convenient especially for those who worked downtown (like my husband at the Detroit News) because that's where the station was. @westfringe If you think that all of Detroit is horrible, it must be because you haven't been there lately. The city, and especially the downtown/midtown/newcenter areas are doing pretty well. I want Ypsilanti to be connected to Detroit because I enjoy going there. I see plays regularly and sometimes go to the opera when I can afford it. The live music can't be beat. One of the best used book stores in the entire country is there. Eastern Market is amazing as well. If I could get there without driving, it would be awesome. I would rather have this train than spend money expanding roads. How about we get this train going before spending money on roads we wouldnt need to use if the train was running? mr_annarbor I drive to and from Detroit all the time. If you don't take advantage of the good things that there are in Detroit, it's your loss. Greenradish Hey, I'm a corporate lawyer working in Downtown Detroit. I'd ride the heck out of the train if it ran early & often enough. And I'm willing to pay a fairly high price for internet access. I'd love to get some work done in the AM and a snooze in the PM. Thanks for the link Kyle. Looks like a very small group of people would use the service that we all would pay for. I fail to see how linking a prosperous city like A2 to dangerous crime ridden slum is beneficial in any way. I live in Washtenaw county because I don't want to be a part of metro Detroit. Fri, Nov 9, 2012 : 8 p.m. There are still jobs in Detroit; four or five of them, from what I've heard. Kyle Mattson Hi Westf- Just for reference, here is a story from this past winter about some individuals who currently use Amtrak to commute between the cities each day. http://bit.ly/aadc-deta2track The commuter rail project is a fantasy. It embodies the same sort of data-based, clear-eyed thinking that we experienced in the recent attempt at a county-wide transit plan. There is no funding and no organizational framework for either the East-West Rail or WALLY. There have been just enough events (grants secured through Mr. Dingell's intervention) to keep these projects "on track". If you look at progress reports on SEMCOG http://www.semcog.org/AADD.aspx almost the only thing that has happened is that MDOT has refurbished these cars at great expense. To be clear, Amtrak would not operate either one of these. They would require a whole new operating authority with a separate funding stream, and neither one has qualified for operational funds from Federal sources. One of the reasons that AATA was pushed into becoming a regional authority was to support this dream. (AATA became the "authority" for WALLY on the same night that they first considered how to be a 196 authority.) Unfortunately, we are seeing transit money wasted instead of used to create more transit. President Obama has always been a promoter of rail transportation and there will be money for rail, but this project will be in competition with all the rail systems in all the states that have them and most likely if your rail is not going to be used by high population numbers you are not going to get too much in subsidies. The reply I gave to Greenradish should be posted in the next section. Greenradish, the problem is the train won't go often enough, even if it goes early enough. A long time ago, commuter rail between Ann Arbor and Detroit failed because there were few people who could use the train when they might not be able to fit in with the time of a return trip. I may be wrong, but I think there were two trips in each direction. I don't remember if the second return trip was a commuter route train or if it was an Amtrak train going to Chicago that just happened to make the Detroit-Ann Arbor part of the trip at a time that was suitable for a return commuter trip for some. leaguebus, that money would need to be borrowed from someone in either case. The window of opportunity for big mass transit expansion (and many other things, road expansion included) has closed. The credit bubble is fully inflated and all the cheap, easily accessible fuels have been consumed. Economic growth--as widely promoted and imposed around the world--is over. leaguebus If we take the amount of money needed to expand 94 and 23 to 3 lanes each way and spend it on commuter rail service, we might have something. I'm just saying that there is no money for it. Everyone expects that someone else will pay for these dream systems. Any donors want to step forward? what a grump Vivienne, in your view are we just stuck with the current inefficient and heavily subsidized auto-based system? I see people constantly criticizing any attempt at public transit without any recognition as to how wasteful and unsustainable our auto-based system is. nickcarraweigh No public transit system in the world operates without heavy subsidies, but that's neither here nor there. The main thing is if they can keep the fare low enough, Ann Arbor can enjoy a role as a panhandlers' destination city. They can "ride the rails" for a satisfying day working the downtown sidewalks, or they can settle in for the season from anywhere in the Midwest and beyond. No more unsightly deposit bottles littering the Diag. Ignatz It's nice to see someone putting a positive spin on this! Snyder, please put the brakes on this project! What a waste of my money. notveryhappy Dude, that minimum wage of yours ain't making too much of a difference. Has anyone seen projected numbers of passengers expected to use the commuter trains? What will be the ticket rate from which any revenue shortfall relative to expenses can be calculated? If the commuter trains require subsidizing, how much will be needed and how will it be provided? When fully implemented, how many commuter trains will operate daily and at what times of the day? How will they be integrated with the Pontiac-to-Chicago passenger trains? If the WALLY does not get permission to use Ann Arbor Railroad tracks to enter Ann Arbor will an end-of-line station be constructed north of M14 and bus service be provided to bring passengers into Ann Arbor? Wouldn't such an arrangement be inconvenient and inefficient? The WALLY is predicted to carry only 1700 passengers each year and ticket revenue is expected to be short about $2.3 million required to pay for maintenance and operating expenses? Who will provide subsidies to cover the deficiencies? Thanks for elaborating. The 1,700 passengers is what they project if they improve the lines so that the trains can travel more than 30 mph in spaces. While the study indicated that a higher speed was necessary to generate that kind of ridership, those improvements won't be made. Yet the proponents continue to use the 1,700 figure. Why? I don't know. But it is a lie. The projections also make wild claims like those who commute using the Boondoggle Train will save money because they will be able to give up their cars. On what planet? The stations in Livingston County are in rural areas. Even if a system could be configured to get people to the stations from their homes (something extremely expensive like dial-a-ride), people will still need cars to get to grocery stores, to pretty much everything. The population density is very low. Finally, even if the planets align in never-never-land and this ridership of 1,700 materializes, the Boondoggle Train will still run at a 7-figure deficit per year, or at least a thousand dollars per rider. That's not a subsidy, that's robbery. rusty shackelford I'm sick of the kvetching that transportation isn't profitable. That's never been the point of public transit, including roads. It's a 'loss leader' that makes other economic activity possible in the area. Is that so hard to wrap one's head around? How much profit does the fire department turn? Rusty, you won the internet today. Your post should be a constant refrain whenever public transit gripes come up on the boards. Janet, most history books are full of mistruths. You may be interested in a book called Lies my Teacher Taught Me. It may help you realize propaganda starts at a young age. With that said - railroads originally were profitable but roads are not. It's why Michigan struggles to keep the road infrastructure up and why many states even struggle with toll roads. Stephen Landes Fine, Rusty. We'll have the public pick up the infrastructure cost, but all operating costs including the renovation and maintenance of the rolling stock have to be covered by riders. That would put trains on a more equal footing with personal transportation, air, and commercial trucks. Commuters will never shell out enough money to pay for their own transportation even on that basis. In addition to what rusty said, construction of the railroads involved large public subsidies. As for the airlines, who built and staffs Detroit Metro Airport? I love it when people claim businesses are profitable on their own when the buildings in which they operate are publicly funded. Also, re history: the story of the American railroad companies is perhaps (still!) the largest transfer of public wealth into private hands in modern history JN--I was referring to public transportation. Sorry if that wasn't clear. You're right that airlines are (barely, most of the time) profitable. One of the main reasons Amtrak is not is because it is politically required to run unprofitable routes and stop in every podunk town that no for-profit entity would. It's the same old story of rural America suckling off of cities while simultaneously trying to undermine everything that urban residents value. In other words, the 'government hands off my Medicare" syndrome. Of course you are correct. No one complains about the publicly funded roads. Whine, whine. Janet Neary Do you really believe that railroads and airlines were not created to be profitable? Your history books were certainly different from mine. And roads exist not because of buses but because people buy cars and are willing to pay road taxes to pay for them. Jeff Mausolf Let me get this straight, they spent $310,000 on EACH car to refurbish them, but they don't know if or when the funding will ever materialize to actually operate the service? Talk about putting the cart before the (iron) horse! It's criminal that people are still trying to push WALLY, the Boondoggle Train. If it meets projections, which would require substantial upgrades to the line, the backers of the project have said that it's Livingston County's responsibility to put in the infrastructure improvements required to support the ridership. Which, of course, no sane county would do unless necessary. So if it's successful, it will fail because it will create extraordinary problems on the roads near the stations. But they've had to lie just to keep up interest in the project. Projected ridership requires the line upgrades, which isn't happening. Sat, Dec 1, 2012 : 10:15 p.m. A little late to the party, but train cars emit no exhaust. The locomotives do all the pulling (or sometimes pushing). "The rail cars were purchased from the Metra commuter rail system in northeast Illinois before being refurbished." Are they "green" non-polluting? Are they "fuel efficient"? Or did Chicago dump them due to outdated technology? How much did MDOT pay for purchases of rail cars?? I haven't researched this, but I'm guessing they were purchased from an Obama bundler from 2008 campaign with our tax money. This is a tough call. Mac Sun brings up good points but commuter public transit is extremely important when gas prices hit high levels. With this past re-election, we can expect less domestic oil production and a whole bunch of money for mass transit. The problem is it is hard to predict the future. But if you build it and need it you very well may be glad you did. Cheaper, yes. But it would serve less than 1% of the population, even under ideal circumstances. Probably one tenth of that in its current incarnation. A train seems like it might be cheaper than a road expansion. Of course, the cheapest thing of all would be to do neither. Many times. I live near Brighton. A study was done by the proponents of this silly project, and what you suspect simply isn't true. Nowhere in the country has there been a demonstrated need for commuter rail along a highway that has only two lanes. Yes, 23 needs a third lane. It was planned, before Granholm canceled it (likely because Livingston County leans Republican). It still needs that third lane quite badly, though I oppose it because the Ann Arbor contingent would likely demand it be a carpool lane, which studies show is far less effective and thus not worth the enormous impact on traffic while it's being constructed. We need a commuter train like a fish needs a bicycle lane. Have you ever tried driving between Ann Arbor and Brighton at rush hour? I suspect there's going to be a lot of interest in this service once it starts running. Not only that, but it could delay the need to expand US-23 to six lanes by another decade or two. "At this time, a sustainable funding source for both commuter rail services is not yet programmed." Now wouldn't you think that before they spend money on refurbishing cars, running tests, buildings sidings, etc. they would have a plan as to how to fund this on an ongoing basis. Nah! Stop making sense Top Cat! There is no room for that in public planning! Rusty, at $310k per car for refurbishing for a project not known to be a go is too risky in this economy. With the purchase and refurbishing, it sounds like it is a go no matter what is approved so far. Not really that unreasonable. If you're starting a new venture, do you do 0 work until you gain capital? No. You work on all fronts to some degree and accelerate once you have funding. Having a demonstrable plan in place makes getting grants much easier. brimble Daily commuter rail service is a bit of a pipe dream, at least as a viable business case. Even systems in major metropolitan areas typically require public subsidy, and it is tough to imagine a different scenario here. Limited special event service for Lions football, 4th of July/Freedom celebrations, the auto show, Ann Arbor Art Fairs, Michigan football, and so on could work well, but even there, only with very careful planning and coordination. You're right. Such a pipe dream. Why anybody can read the paper, type up a document, and edit photos behind the wheel on I-94. No problem. Who needs that 2-extra hours of productivity? How do you think the roads get paved? Or airports built and maintained? With public subsidies. Why should this be any different? 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__label__cc	0.713851	0.286149	Do you like to swim fully clothed? by lovewetclothes 3 hours ago lovewetclothes bubblegum72 When I have to, yes. When I can, no. +5pts. =) who doesn't I do it all the day i do it all the time. I do it whenever i can not me ,i can not swim at all i am like a brick go straight to the bottom.+4 gradyjones No, I wouldn't be able to swim fully clothed. Rasher of Bacon including an 80 lb. pack against the current with boots Do you like to swim? Everyone wants to swim with Dolphins, but wouldn't you like to swim with Penguins ? How many people know how to swim? What is sexier to you, and why? A girl fully clothed with a skirt and panties, fully clothed with a skirt and no panties, in just panties, or naked? Do you like to swim in the ocean? Can you swim in the What does it feel like to swim in a pool wearing a wetsuit? Do you know how to swim What do you like to do for fun? What do you like to do on your day off?	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line526
__label__wiki	0.534275	0.534275	Antiquarianation A blog about history, travel, museums, art & antiques Commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the Historic 1936 Berlin Olympics A few weeks ago, NPR’s sports commentator Frank Deford delivered a characteristically fascinating report on the 1936 Berlin Olympics during which the ascendant Nazi state charmed the world, flexed its muscle and elevated Olympic pageantry to new heights. Listen to the podcast: Podcast: When Owens Beat Hitler Deford has written a novel on the subject entitled Bliss, Remembered: More info on Bliss, Remembered Copyright 2011 Antiquarianation All Rights Reserved Books Germany Olympics Bookseller profile: Honey & Wax A few weeks ago, while shopping at The Manhattan Vintage Book & Ephemera Fair (a.k.a. the Shadow Show), I came across a relatively new antiquarian bookseller -- Honey & Wax Booksellers -- and was blown away by their carefully curated booth and beautiful catalogue (which has already gotten some buzz, excuse the pun). Heather O'Donnell founded Honey & Wax Booksellers in 2011, after learning the business at the venerable Bauman Rare Books. Wanting to focus solely on literature, she started Honey & Wax in her Brooklyn dining room and has since carved out a unique niche for herself in the book world. As her website states, "Honey & Wax Booksellers offers great works of literature: rare first printings, beautiful and curious editions, copies with surprising stories of their own. We handle unique books, striking books, books with no downloadable equivalent." The name "Honey & Wax" is itself drawn from a nineteenth-century epigram: “… Sweden's Coffee Ban I recently quit coffee. And I love coffee. But I quit the bean to ease my migraines (working so far). Around the same time I tore through Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy and was struck with the sheer volume of coffee the girl with the dragon tattoo, Mikael Blomkvist and friends drank while seeking revenge and doing investigative journalism. It made me wonder... Do those long Scandinavian nights require insane amounts of coffee? Were all the coffee breaks taken by Lisbeth Salander a mere literary crutch? Rooney Mara as The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in David Fincher's 2011 film The answer to these questions can be found in the 18th century when Frederick I, the king of Sweden from 1720 to 1751, banned coffee in his kingdom. Coffee had first arrived in Sweden in the late 17th century, and by 1746 Fred decided he needed to tax the import. He taxed coffee paraphernalia and tea as well. Fredrick I c. 1730 According theThe World of Caffeine: The Science and Culture of the World… Downton Abbey, the Demise of English Country Houses and the Surprising Endurance of the Norman Conquest With the much anticipated season 3 of Downton Abbey, we see the reemergence of a theme from season 1 -- the precarious existence of English manor houses like Downton Abbey in postwar England, a very complex and interesting chapter in British history. Highclere Castle in Hampshire, the fictional Downton Abbey Although the strain of maintaining these grand country houses was already beginning to show prior to World War I, after the war, the ruin of such homes accelerated. The tremendous cost of the war, led to the United Kingdom dramatically raising taxes. “The question of who should bear the costs of the First World War was a central element in the aftermath of ‘profound disorder and turbulence’ which… formed a ‘critical period in the disciplining of change, in the survival and adaptation of political and economic elites, and in the twentieth-century capitalist order they dominated,” (“How to Pay for the War: State, Society and Taxation in Britain, 1917-24,” English Historical Review, M.… I am a researcher and writer for a rare manuscript dealer in New York City. I used to be a journalist. My love of history and my need to share the stories I discover in my work prompted me to start this blog. Go West, Young Mailman: Cartographic Video Correla... Baltimore's Poe House Faces Fiscal Difficulties wi... Frida Kahlo's Copy of "The Works of Edgar Allan Po... When America Was a Lady Commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the Historic... Art, Manuscripts Destroyed in 9/11 Attacks Accordi... salem witch trial Sweatshops	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line527
__label__cc	0.618197	0.381803	Posted on November 25, 2017 July 31, 2018 by Randy Williams WEEK TWELVE CRYSTAL BALL: GURU Gives Thanks for YOU My friends, THE GURU returns from Thanksgiving and thanks you, the reader. I thank you for faithfully following this column for the past 24 years and never being afraid to share your opinions. Besides my love of the sport and of writing, you’re the why I write The Ball every week (You’re in the top three!) and I can’t thank you enough. You’re every bit as wonderful as MRS BRAVE’S sausage stuffing I annihilated earlier this week, with none of the aftertaste. Thank you. The Thanksgiving record was 3-0 and the season mark is now 83-55 (.601). On to today’s games… Tampa Bay (4-6) at Atlanta (6-4). Matt Ryan and the Falcons are still thinking about that Super Bowl collapse. Every. Single. Day. FALCONS, 23-20… …Take Tennessee (6-4) at Indianapolis (3-7). But I do like Jacoby as a QB. Kid can sling the long ball… …Carolina (7-3) is upset by the homestanding New York Jets (4-6). Todd Bowles’ ability to coax four wins out of the Jets is every bit as impressive as THE FAIR CLAUDINE convincing THE TRE MAN to brush his teeth… …Chicago (3-7) puts up a fight but loses at Philadelphia (9-1). Beware, TOMMY BIRD, two of the Bears’ three wins are against the Steelers and Panthers so they can beat good teams. Also, buddy, watch out for that second plate of nachos today. Your insides ain’t prepared for it. Cleveland (0-10) at Cincinnati (4-6).The Browns are in that part of the season where they always seem to struggle. It’s called the regular season. But this could be the week. BROWNS, 3-2… …Buffalo (5-5) at Kansas City (6-4). A fascinating ballgame in KC with Bills coach McDermott facing off against his longtime boss, Andy Reid. The Chiefs are struggling but that home-cooked BBQ is always a magical elixir that lasts all night long. KC, 16-13… …Miami (4-6) at New England (8-2). At some point the Pats are due for a letdown but it probably won’t be against an unsightly pug like Miami, as much as I do like Matt Moore. PATS, 24-23. Seattle (6-4) at San Fran (1-9). The Seahawks are badly battered right now, like the overcooked three-piece meal at Bojangles. The 2017 Niners motto: “Playing for Pride!” NINERS, 16-14. New Orleans (8-2) at Los Angeles Rams (7-3). Who would’ve thought this would be the marquee matchup of Week Twelve? I LOVE the hosts in this team because a) Drew Brees is the worst QB in the league, statistically, when confronted with heavy pressure and b) the Rams focus on pressuring opposing signalcallers. Case in point: The Skins relentlessly went after Brees last week for the first 3 ½ quarters as he completed just 62% of his passes (vs his 71% average) and looked extremely ordinary. And I don’t think the Rams will make the Skins’ mistake of calling off the dogs in the last seven minutes of the game. RAMS, 33-30… …Jacksonville (7-3) at Arizona (4-6). Calais Campbell returns to Arizona and sees a far different team from the one-time contender he left last offseason. I still adore Arians, but the team’s quarterbacking woes are too big of a hurdle to overcome. JAGUARS, 24-20… …Denver (3-7) at Oakland (4-6). This is a proud rivalry but, then again, so is the battle between the two jomokes on your block, constantly trying to outdo one another with better cars or upgraded cable TV packages (I have DirecTV, FYI, and it is the best!!!). RAIDERS, 30-20. Green Bay (5-5) at Pittsburgh (8-2).Hundley is a gladiator in the lion’s den, an unprepared entrepreneur on “Shark Tank,” a chicken wing in the way of FATBACK as he takes down an entire buffet. STEELERS, 37-16. Houston (4-6) at Baltimore (5-5).The big question: which Harbaugh kid has had the worst year? I vote for Jedediah, the little-known third son of Jack Harbaugh. The poor guy gets 10 lashes of a wet licorice rope from pops every time John or Jim lose a game. RAVENS, 17-15. That’s it for today, folks. Enjoy the games, your family and God bless! THANKSGIVING CRYSTAL BALL: GURU Gives Thanks WEEK THIRTEEN (THURSDAY) CRYSTAL BALL: GURU Talks Eli, Prepares for Dallas	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line529
__label__wiki	0.819857	0.819857	The British-Yemeni Society News of the Society Chairman's Report Data Protection (GDPR) - B-YS Privacy Policy BYS Academic Grant BYS Annual Yemen Lecture BYS Book "Why Yemen Matters" Book Offer "Yemen: Land and People" Yemen SOAS Seminar 2014 Yemen: Challenges for the Future Conference Tours of Yemen & Soqotra Say'un Popular Arts in Llangollen The Enchanted Lake Children's Book Yemen Bibliography In the Wake of the Dhow: The Arabian Gulf and Oman by Dionisius Agius Ithaca Press, 2002. Pp. xx + 253. Illus. Maps. Append. Glossary. Bibliog. Index. Hb. £35. ISBN 0-86372-295-8. From the very beginning of Arabic literature the Arab writer has striven to crown his work with a catchy title, preferably rhyming and more or less relevant to its content. Dr Agius’ choice of title earns him a place alongside the masters: not only for its play on words but also for its suggestion that he is pursuing a fast vanishing quarry and is inevitably constrained to rely largely on archival sources for facts and images. He has responded, in the wake of a number of Arab chroniclers of the dhow, by supplementing a scrupulous trawl of almost the entire corpus of useful written material with observations and anecdotes meticulously gathered from more than two hundred interviews with Arab shipwrights, ship-owners, seamen, retired pearl-divers (including a Bahraini aged 114!) and fishermen; he has compressed a great deal of detail from a wide range of sources between the covers of a single book, while making material from Arabic sources available to readers unacquainted with the language. However, not everyone will share his confidence in some of his assertions or place the same weight on some of his findings. Meanwhile, the high quality of the book’s binding and printing is not reflected in its many black and white illustrations which lack lustre, and one struggles to understand why they were not indexed. The main focus of the book is on the nomenclature of different types of dhow and of their component parts. It represents the first part of a project (supported by the Leverhulme Trust, British Council and various bodies in the Gulf States) to establish an historical and linguistic link between today’s traditional seafaring craft and those characteristic of the 17th and succeeding centuries. The book omits all reference to sails, rigging, seamanship and navigational instruments, which are to be covered in a subsequent volume. Its structure is quite novel. Earlier writers tended to follow an alphabetical format or, like Hornell and then Shihab, the classification of hull types, distinguishing firstly between stitched and nailed ships; then subdividing the latter into double-ended types and those with transom sterns, describing the different ship types under their respective generic headings. But Agius has sought to classify by function, While this lends itself to a more catholic array of information, it does make the work vulnerable to the personal experiences and biases of the author’s informants. To be fair, Agius recognises the limitations of this approach, noting that ‘craft types and labels vary from region to region and identical terms may apply to different vessels while others may apply to structurally similar crafts’. So it is worth emphasising here that Arab seamen were essentially entrepreneurs, employing their ships wherever there was a stray dinar, dollar or rupee to be captured; thus one might find an ocean going boum smuggling gold to Pakistan, ‘tramping’ in the Gulf coastal trade, or engaged in pearl fishing during the pearling season, which coincided with adverse weather conditions off its regular trading centres on the Malabar coast. One unusual and commendable feature of the book is the chapter describing the planning and execution of Agius’ fieldwork and the measures taken to avoid the pitfalls of recording oral testimony. It is a model for anyone contemplating the field study of oral history This is followed by a useful geopolitical and economic overview of conditions in the Gulf region spanning the past four centuries, setting the author’s study in its historical context. The bibliography is excellent, and the author will have been pleased that since his book went to press two of the Arabic sources he lists have been published in English translation by The London Centre of Arab Studies (now ‘Arabian Publishing Ltd’): Ya’qub Yusufal-Hijji’s The Art of Dhow-building in Kuwait (2001), and Saif Marzooq al-Shamian’s Pearling in the Arabian Gulf: A Kuwaiti Memoir (2000). The glossary, however, displays a number of important omissions and inadequacies. The omissions include culturally significant ships such as the fulk (although this appears in the Arabic quotation at the head of p. 49) and jariyah of the Qur’an, the bus or busi of the poets Tarafa and al-A’sha, and the khaliya and ‘aduli or ‘aduliyah of Tarafa’s mu’allaqa. Among the inadequacies we find abubuz which Agius describes as a ‘fishing boat with similar features to a sanbuq except for its rounded stern’, whereas it is in tact modelled on the lines of a nineteenth- century clipper ship with a rounded stern and a characteristic concave bow, having a snout projection at the top, which probably gives the ship its name; for abubuz may be translated as ‘father of a snout’. Elsewhere, other characteristic features overlooked include the matting sail of the mtepe, the distinctive curtailment of the outer stem of the zaruq and that of the outer sternpost of the za’ima. Despite these minor blemishes, Agius’ book, with its collection of oral testimony enriching his glossary with new linguistic material, is an impressive achievement enhanced by the lucid and pleasing manner in which he writes. The publication of his book is also timely As the author laments, economic pressures and technological change are causing fibreglass to replace wood in dhow construction; tribal memories of traditional seafaring techniques and terminology are fast disappearing; the handsome wooden sanbuq is following the Kuwaiti boum and Omani badan on the long voyage to extinction. One must hope, therefore, that his detailed account of the region’s historic but dying maritime culture will be read widely by a younger generation born too late to have been part of it. Dionisius Agius The British Yemeni Society 85-101 Sankey Street Warrington WA1 1SR sec@b-ys.org.uk Site developed by Ugli 2015 : © The British-Yemeni Society, Registered Charity No. 1027531.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line531
__label__cc	0.722056	0.277944	Cabrera Capital Markets Cabrera Capital Partners Domestic Equity International Equity Preferred Stock Directed Brokerage Cabrera Newsroom Cabrera Capital Market LLC’s Business Continuity Plan Cabrera Capital Markets, LLC (“CCM”) has developed a Business Continuity Plan (the “Plan”) describing how we will respond to events that significantly disrupt our business. Since the timing and impact of disasters and disruptions is unpredictable, we will have to be flexible in responding to actual events as they occur. With that in mind, we are providing you with this information on our Plan. Contacting Us – If after a significant business disruption you cannot contact us as you usually do, you should go to our web site at http://www.cabreracapital.com. If you cannot access us through the web site, you should contact our clearing firm Broadcort at 646-743-0110 for instructions on how it may provide you with access to your funds and securities or otherwise service your account. Our Business Continuity Plan – We plan to attempt to quickly recover and resume business operations after a significant business disruption and respond by safeguarding our employees and property, making a financial and operational assessment, protecting the firm’s books and records, and allowing our customers to transact business. In short, our business continuity plan is designed to permit our firm to resume operations as quickly as possible, given the scope and severity of the significant business disruption. Our business continuity plan addresses: data back up and recovery; all mission critical systems; financial and operational assessments; alternative communications with customers, employees, and regulators; alternate physical location of employees; critical supplier, contractor, bank and counter-party impact; regulatory reporting; and assuring our customers prompt access to their funds and securities if we are unable to continue our business. Our clearing firm(s), backs up our important records in a geographically separate area. Nonetheless, your orders and requests for funds and securities could be delayed in the event of a significant business disruption. Varying Disruptions – Significant business disruptions can vary in their scope, such as only our firm, a single building housing our firm, the business district where our firm is located, the city where we are located, or the whole region. Within each of these areas, the severity of the disruption can also vary from minimal to severe. In a disruption to only our firm or a building housing our firm, we may transfer our operations to a local site when needed. In a disruption affecting our business district, city, or region, we may transfer our operations to a site outside of the affected area. In either situation, we plan to attempt to continue in business, transfer operations to our clearing firm if necessary, and notify you through our web site or through any other means that remain available to us, how you can contact us. If the significant business disruption is so severe that it prevents us from remaining in business, we will assure our customer’s prompt access to their funds and securities. For More Information – If you have questions about our business continuity planning, you can contact us at 312-236-8888 or at www.cabreracapital.com Cabrera Capital 10 South LaSalle Street info@cabreracapital.com SEC RULE 606 REPORT AML NOTICE WEBACCESS	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line541
__label__wiki	0.515103	0.515103	Campaign promotes female-run businesses The government has unveiled a new campaign to recruit inspirational female entrepreneurs to encourage other woman to follow in their footsteps. Industry minister Margaret Hodge announced the plans at a recent conference, explaining that each of the regional development agencies will aim to recruit 100 female entrepreneurs to lead the campaign. The recruits will provide practical advice, encouragement and support to women looking to start their own business. "We can't afford not to do this. There would be three quarters of a million more businesses in the UK if we matched US levels of female entrepreneurship. Successful women throughout the country can and must mentor and inspire many more women to think, 'Yes, I can do that' and take the confident plunge to start their own business," Ms Hodge said. "This will lead to a new women's movement that will push back gender barriers and give women the confidence and support they need to start a business," she added. A particular emphasis of the campaign will be on helping women who are at stages in their life that may discourage them from starting a business, such as just after having children or soon after their children leave home. Related categories: HR / Recruitment. » 31-07-2007: Employers 'failing to promote diversity' » 31-07-2007: Commuting 'adds to stress' » 31-07-2007: Career threat for social networking » 31-05-2007: Employers 'reacting slowly' to age laws » 31-03-2009: Top tips to avoid workplace stress	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line544
__label__wiki	0.811938	0.811938	Builders held to account over conduct This announcement is for: BuilderBuilding surveyorConsumerHome buyer / ownerLicence holdersPainterPermit authorityTradesperson Esperance builders FGS Contracting Pty Ltd (BC101335) and Ryan Wayne Franceschi (BP101345), who is the company’s sole director and nominated supervisor, have been fined $5,000 each and are no longer registered builders in Western Australia. The Building Services Board imposed the fines and accepted the requests of FGS Contracting and Mr Franceschi to cancel their builder registrations after it determined the company was negligent or incompetent in connection with a building service and that Mr Franceschi had provided false or misleading information to the Board to obtain a builder’s registration. “Mr Franceschi signed the declaration on the application form stating that all information provided was true and correct but at least one of his claims of experience and the accompanying verification were false,” Building Commissioner Ken Bowron said. “The Board’s April 2015 decision to grant Mr Franceschi’s building practitioner registration was based on the false information he provided.” “Making false or misleading statements to the Building Services Board or providing false or misleading information in a registration application are serious offences that, in addition to the cancellation of a builder’s registration, can result in penalties of up to $25,000.” The disciplinary action against building contractor FGS Contracting was for negligent or incompetent conduct in connection with the construction of a commercial-sized shed at a Grass Patch property in 2016. Mr Bowron said, “FGS Contracting failed to exercise the care and skill expected of a registered building contractor in the construction of the roof of the shed which appears to have caused or contributed to the injury of a worker.” <ENDS> Building and Energy media contacts (for journalists/producers only) Last modified: Monday, August 19, 2019 - 11:08	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line546
__label__wiki	0.562231	0.562231	Booknook Word Pricing Pricing from PDF Fixed-Format Pricing Our Feefo Reviews and Ratings Our AWEsome FAQ! Samples Showcase Fiction Books Showcase Showcase Cookbooks Showcase Non-Fiction Formatting Print Layout Showcase Complex Formatting Showcase Kids' Books Showcase Book Gallery eBooks Converted and Formatted By Us Want to see some of our work? Make sure that you're getting "the right stuff?" We have nothing to hide! Check out just some of the now-3,000 eBooks that we've converted, formatted for eBooks and Kindle and laid-out for print. You can also see some of our Samples in the Samples Showcase, or visit our FEEFO Testimonials and Rankings. Have questions? Call us in the US at 1-623-239-1660 or drop us an email via the Contact page. Santa Claus is Dead An Elf stumbles across Santa's body in the middle of the forest. A single set of footprints lead to the body and disappear. There is nothing else around for miles. 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Saved by an Alien at Windyville's Secret Pyramid Saved by an Alien is a must read Super Adventure and is set in a real location in Rural America. by Robert Howell Saved by an Alien is a must read Super Adventure and is set in a real location in Rural America. An Alien and a..... Scattered Lies Every once in a while a story teller emerges on the scene with the capacity to weave a web so entangled; you can actually see the characters, feel the warmth of their breath and experience their reality as if it was your own! by Madison Taylor Every once in a while a story teller emerges on the scene with the capacity to weave a web so entangled; you can..... Scattered Lies II Scattered Lies III Scholars With Autism Achieving Dreams This book is an anthology of eight inspiring autobiographical journeys about living on the spectrum of autism. All have achieved remarkable academic success despite their challenges, some already with a bestselling book. by Lars Perner In his Introduction Dr. Treffert states, “The message of hope in this book is a welcome and refreshing one..... Secrets to Die For by L.J. Sellers When social worker Raina Hughes visits the home of a young boy she’s been assigned to monitor, things..... by Don Treichler A suspenseful portrayal of Cold War combatants following the Cuban Missile Crisis; the struggle of superpowers and..... Shakespeare's Blood Mercedes Maxwell's vacation in Britain turns to a hunt for treasure when a crazed killer targets her. An old journal that makes outrageous claims about William Shakespeare and lost Spanish gold comes into Mercedes' hands. She is intrigued by its apparent by Peg Herring Mercedes Maxwell's vacation in Britain turns to a hunt for treasure when a crazed killer targets her. An old..... Sharon and Eleanor This is a story about two ducks, named Sharon and Eleanor, who live on a farm with one mean cat. They haven by Connie Pontious This is a story about two ducks, named Sharon and Eleanor, who live on a farm with one mean cat. They..... She Rode Alone by Paul Traverso “She Rode Alone is a western novel by Paul Traverso which follows the life of a young girl as she searches..... Silent Counsel Suppose the unimaginable: What if your child were killed in a hit-and-run? And the one person who knew the driver's identity - his lawyer - couldn't tell you his name because of a legal technicality? Silent Counsel is the story of just such a nightmare. by Ken Isaacson Suppose the unimaginable: What if your child were killed in a hit-and-run? And the one person who knew the..... Silverdale One All across rural America, hospitals volunteers and fire departments provide emergency medical services to residents and visitors. This is a story of one such service and their problems with greedhead corporations, dysfunctional hospital management and the by T Carlton, Ann Packard All across rural America, hospitals volunteers and fire departments provide emergency medical services to..... Sisters in Silence A medical thriller about a fertility counselor who goes on a killing spree of barren women in the warped belief that this "act of mercy" will save them - her "sisters" - from a life of suffering. by J.J. Lamb, Bette Golden Lamb A medical thriller about a fertility counselor who goes on a killing spree of barren women in the warped belief..... For a fee so big he can by Timothy Hallinan For a fee so big he can’t turn it down, LA private eye Simeon Grist is hired to watchdog the kind of guy..... His name is not really Skunk but that by John Frook His name is not really Skunk but that’s what everyone calls him. His mom and dad, his teacher, grandparents..... Slouching Towards Bellingham by Anneke Campbell It’s December 2010 when a pregnant girl named Mary waddles into the hearts of the people of Bellingham,..... Jason Bristol, ex prize-fighter and expert animal tracker, and part-time drunk, teams up with beautiful wildlife biologist Norah Phelps, as they pursue a man-eating predator that threatens to derail her father by Alan Nayes Jason Bristol, ex prize-fighter and expert animal tracker, and part-time drunk, teams up with beautiful wildlife..... Solo is the story of a mature, very-conservative 50-something widower (a father figure), thrown by fate into what seems an ocean of mid-twenties women and how they work out their generational differences on many subjects. by Carl A. Peters Solo is the story of a mature, very-conservative 50-something widower (a father figure), thrown by fate into what..... Somebody Doesn't Like Sarah Leigh When a long-time friendship dies, whose fault is it? Decades past junior high, Caroline Batzer finds herself snubbed more and more often by her best friend. At first confused, she is later stunned to learn that Sarah Leigh has betrayed her in a way she wo When a long-time friendship dies, whose fault is it? Decades past junior high, Caroline Batzer finds herself..... Soros the Drug Lord: Pricking the Bubble of American Supremacy by Roger Morgan Soros is a Hungarian Jew by birth, who was placed with a gentile family by his father when the Nazis were getting..... Spirit Song The vivid lyrical descriptions of Colorado by Mary Summer Rain The vivid lyrical descriptions of Colorado’s mountain seasons create a colorful backdrop for this widely..... Spirituality Simplified Spirituality Simplified provides a solid introduction to the topic of spirituality, and also serves as a virtual roadmap to other published works that include greater detail on the subjects readers find most interesting. by Jeff Maziarek Spirituality Simplified provides a solid introduction to the topic of spirituality, and also serves as a virtual..... Wondering what to do this weekend? Why not visit a National Park, meet other Park Visitors up close and personal... Wondering what to do this weekend? Why not visit a National Park, meet other Park Visitors..... Spy Family: Book 1 When thirteen year old twins, James and Elizabeth Ward, go on a summer vacation to Italy with their parents, it quickly turns into a job to help the CIA, by James Rahfaldt When thirteen year old twins, James and Elizabeth Ward, go on a summer vacation to Italy with their parents, it..... St. Teresa of Avila: 100 Themes on her Life and Work As the first woman to be given the title of doctor of the church, St. Teresa of Avila continues to exercise her teaching authority in the world today both within and outside the boundaries of the church. In the present group of 100 themes, Tom by Tomas Alvarez As the first woman to be given the title of doctor of the church, St. Teresa of Avila continues to exercise her..... St. Teresa of Avila: The Interior Castle Study Edition The Interior Castle is more than a book. It is a powerful image of the mystery of the human person. It is the soul of St. Teresa of Avila, who journeys through the castle from one dwelling place to another mapping out a feminine, yet warlike, program for by Kieran Kavanaugh, Carol Lisi, Otilio Rodgriguez The Interior Castle is more than a book. It is a powerful image of the mystery of the human person. It is the soul..... Stamp Album In this enchanting memoir, Terence Stamp takes readers with him on his unlikely journey from pre-war London by Terence Stamp In this enchanting memoir, Terence Stamp takes readers with him on his unlikely journey from pre-war..... Starting a Part-Time Food Business Everything You Need To Know To Turn Your Love For Food Into A Successful Business Without Necessarily Quitting Your Day Job by Jennifer Lewis Whether you're slaving away in a cubicle dreaming of turning your..... Steel Web Two sixteen-year-old boys break into a house looking for small change. Instead they find more money than they ever dreamed possible. Unfortunately, they also discover the blood-spattered body of an undercover cop. The kids make a big mistake. They take th by Ronald Tierney Two sixteen-year-old boys break into a house looking for small change. Instead they find more money than they ever..... Stone Veil The 69-year-old semi-retired private detective reluctantly takes the case of a Mrs. William B. Stone who seems to have lost track of her husband. Shanahan, who finds his once lonely life complicated by an attractive younger woman, nevertheless finds his c The 69-year-old semi-retired private detective reluctantly takes the case of a Mrs. William B. Stone who seems to..... One year after the death of his mother Jim McCracken by Jeffrey Caldwell One year after the death of his mother Jim McCracken’s life has come to a complete stand still. Haunted by..... Stop Sending E-Mail A compilation of humorous e-mails, political satire and other short stories to keep the reader smiling. by Sydney D. Gould A compilation of humorous e-mails, political satire and other short stories to keep the reader..... Stress Cure Now In this book on stress management, Dr. Sarfraz Zaidi, MD describes how to be free of stress without medications. by Sarfraz Zaidi In this book on stress management, Dr. Sarfraz Zaidi, MD describes how to be free of stress without medications...... Success! The Straight-A Guide Success! The Straight-A Guide teaches a seven-point process that by Michael G. Santos In his newest book written for at-risk youth, Michael Santos details his strategies for thriving through more than..... Successful Weight Loss with the Gastric Sleeve by Dr. Guillermo Alvarez “Successful Weight Loss with The Gastric Sleeve by Dr. Guillermo Alvarez provides information about surgical..... Sustain Me With Your Breath by Brian Heffron A review: “Sustain Me with Your Breath paints visions with words and offers a unique perspective on life,..... Sweat Therapy: A Guide to Greater Well-Being Sweat Therapy: A Guide to Greater Well-Being, educates people on the art of sweat rituals and provides guidance to, intelligently, make use of this ancient Traditional Medicine practice to improve well-being and prevent many long-term health problems. by Stephen Colmant Sweat Therapy: A Guide to Greater Well-Being, educates people on the art of sweat rituals and provides guidance..... Swimming Solo: A Daughter's Memoir of Her Parents, His Parents, and Alzheimer's Susan Rava's elderly parents are victims of Alzheimer's Disease. She becomes a caregiver for her family, and provides elder care. by Susan Rava Susan Rava's elderly parents are victims of Alzheimer's Disease. She becomes a caregiver for her family,..... Turns out God has a wicked sense of humor... Nurse Dayne Kuttner puts her soul on the line to bargain with God for amnesty for Hell's damned. But when God not only listens, but takes the deal she offers literally, her world turns upside-down. by Holly Lisle Turns out God has a wicked sense of humor... Nurse Dayne Kuttner puts her soul on the line to bargain with God for..... T4T: A Discipleship Revolution The story behind the world's fastest growing Church Planting Movement and how it can happen in your community! by Ying Kai, Steve Smith In T4T: A Discipleship Re-Revolution Steve Smith presents the story of Ying Kai's “Training for Trainers..... Tactical Management in the Secular Bear Market by Tahar Mjigal The author has included many interviews with fund managers, advisors, and professional traders in order to learn..... Tales of the Heart 12 short stories of love--old, new, and sometimes lost. by Camille Alexa, Victor J. Banis, Sally Bellerose, Venita Blackburn, Mort Castle, John R. Chabot, Sue Ellis, Gerri Leen, J.A. Tyler, Daniel Wallace Beautiful, Faithful Asian Ladies Seek..... Taming the Dragon The giant hydroelectric dam in the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River has been controversial since construction began in the early 1990s; but now, as it nears completion some two decades later, a warm winter and a diminished Himalayan snowpack have cut the by Dan Armstrong The giant hydroelectric dam in the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River has been controversial since construction..... Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu The Tao Te Ching, written by Lao Tzu, is the seminal text of Chinese Taoism, and its origins can be traced back to the late fourth or early third centuries BCE. Thousands of translations and interpretations of the Tao Te Ching have been undertaken over ti by David Burke The Tao Te Ching, written by Lao Tzu, is the seminal text of Chinese Taoism, and its origins can be traced back to..... Teaching Children Self-Discipline: At Home and At School Dr. Gordon addresses a major concern of both parents and teachers-disciplining children. He describes why traditional discipline doesn't work either at home or in the classroom. Drawing on published research findings as well as his own experience as a cli by Thomas Gordon Dr. Gordon addresses a major concern of both parents and teachers-disciplining children. He describes why..... Test Book Edited by Camille Alexa The Accidental Assassin by Anthony Serena Ten year old entrepreneur, Sean O’Casey, optimistic and anxious to conquer the world, witnesses the death of..... 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__label__cc	0.643634	0.356366	Home > winners > August Winner and Upcoming GRAND Event! August Winner and Upcoming GRAND Event! A hearty thanks to all the voters who turned out for this month's clash! The scores have been tallied and a winner chosen. But before the grand reveal, an announcement... Clash of the Titles is having a BIRTHDAY BASH! During the week of COTT will be conducting FOUR giveaways, one for each year we've been promoting Christian fiction. During these giveaways, TWENTY of our former champions will be donating 62 copies of their books! You read right--62 novels! (Distributed among four different winners.) Mark your calendars to return to COTT on September 15. You don't want miss this amazing event! And now, the winner of our August Clash... The Rose Ring by Lucie Ulrich Congratulations, Lucie! As you'll note from the comments (below) left during the voting, Lucie's fans simply adore her. Lucie, welcome to the family. With a will that reads like a piece of fiction, the return of his long-lost brother, and the possibility of losing the family ranch, Micah Cooper calls on high school friend, Sky Baxter, to bail him out of a bad situation. Though her brain tells her no, Sky’s heart says yes. She accepts Micah’s in-name-only proposal, knowing it’s unlikely anything permanent will come of it. She’s been in love with him since the ninth grade, and if he hasn’t figured it out by now, there’s little chance he ever will. When an unexpected kiss ignites a spark, giving Micah hope for a possible future with Sky, a tragic accident threatens to take it all away. Torn between following his heart, doing the right thing, and forgiving the past, Micah is lost in a whirlwind of pain and emotions. Will he make it through the next two years, or will a long-kept family secret be the undoing of them all? B& N Lucie Ulrich took her time becoming a writer. Not much of a reader as a child, writing was of no interest to her--until she joined a church drama team. The desire to write a skit, and not simply act out someone else's was so strong, that once she started, she couldn't seem to stop. That first skit led to her becoming the drama team director, then eventually, the performing arts director at a small Christian school. Lucie's first novel was penned under a tree in a field in Holland. Though her first, second, and third attempts never saw the light of day, parts of each of them became the foundation for "Broken Vessels," her first published work. No longer involved with the performing arts, Lucie enjoys going on photo shoots with her husband, and taking long (or short) road trips. She hopes to find inspiration as she and her husband explore the four corners of the United States. What COTT voters had to say: -Great job Lucie! -Lucie Ulrich, wonderful story-I really enjoyed it -Always enjoy reading books written by Lucie Ulrich...hard to put down! -Lucie Ulrich I can't wait for your next book! -I love, love, love Lucie Ulrich's work. Ms. Ulrich expertly weaves true-to-life stories that trap the reader in a web of heartache, absolution, forgiveness and acceptance. -Excellent story, Ms. Ulrich! I couldn't put it down and look forward to seeing a return of these characters in future stories! -Keep writing, Lucie! -Loved the book Lucie Ulrich! YG -Cindy Thompson is one of my favorite authors. She and I share the same passion--genealogy. I look forward to reading her Ellis Island series. -Way to go Lucie Ulrich. Your books are wonderful! -Lucie Ulrich is a wonderful author. I have read both of her books and absolutely loved them. -Lucie Ulrich's book THE ROSE RING is a must read. I didn't want to quit reading. I love it, Lucie!!! What Lucie's Readers Have to Say: "The Rose Ring is a story of wounded souls who find healing as they learn to lean on God and come to trust one another. Ulrich has a knack for creating complicated, compelling characters that readers can't help but fall in love with. What I liked best about this story was that it is woven around realistic family fractures, and that it has a real world ending." "Lucie Ulrich doesn't just tell us a story, she brings us into the story! I felt their pain and joy, their confusion and relief....It is a story about love and loss, tragedy and forgiveness, inspiration and faith. You’ll be teary-eyed many times throughout the story, so keep a box of tissues close by. And you'll become so attached to these characters that you'll be better for it! It is emotional, inspiring and unforgettable. This will be a book I will pick up again and again and will recommend it to everyone I can." Posted by April Gardner at 3:30 AM Unknown said... Friday, 05 September, 2014 Congrats, Luci, Good luck with your book. Item Reviewed: August Winner and Upcoming GRAND Event! Rating: 5 Reviewed By: April Gardner August New Releases Clash Birthday Goodies Go To... Birthday Bash Giveaway, Day 4! Annie's Stories, an Ellis Island novel	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line558
__label__cc	0.640436	0.359564	(white background) Kids Talk to Debbie Kids here is your chance to write to Debbie where Debbie and everyone else can read it! Press the "Post Your Message" button below. A new page will open with a form where you can post your message to Debbie. Inappropriate language will be deleted or blocked. She will answer you on "Debbie Talks." "Dear Debbie Dadey, I wish I could meet you, because I love your books. Especially, your Mermaid Tale books. My favorite sea creature is "mermaids". Love from Rachel" "you have great books I love you your the best have a great day." Emma sue "I LOVE YOUR BOOKS. YOU SHOULD MAKE MORE BOOKS FOR ME AND MY FRIENDS." "HEY! Debbie i love mermaid tales so much" 2 Grade "how do you publich bookls and i want to no if you can teech me how to publich boock " "Dear Debbie It is me again and i would like to know if you could mail some books from some of your series for the one and only book i have is swam monsters don not chase turkeys because my teacher from 1st grade had let us pick a random book so i just picked swamp monsters do not chase turkeys. BYE!" "i like the baley school becuase it has detael." "I love your books" "my birthday is on when you are coming" "i love your book" 3grad "i love all of your books like mermaid tales and the baliy school kids your the best kids ather ever " "write about cats. call it cat tales!" karlee r "Hi,I really really love your books!!!! And I love to read " "you1r books r ASOME" "hi,i cant wait to meet you" maddie p "DO U HAVE A DOG????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? PS YOU NEED TO RIGHT ABOUT CATS???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????/ " FMCDHJDFHDEGHDHDFBBNVFNV "HEY I LOVE YOUR BOOKS UNLIKE OTHER PEOPLE I DONT LICK YOUR BOOKS BC ITS NOT NICE TO BOOKS AND I CANT WAIT TO SEE AND MEET YOU AT OUR SCHOOL " JADICA "sup people " giyyy "i love your book and my nickname is bob" "how many seires of books do you have" "dear debbie, out of all the mermaid tales what is youre favriote. I have only read 1. But I liked it. I am ready for you come to our school! peace out love ya! " claira "hi debbie I like your books they are da cools books.You should make a SPONGEBOB BOOK THE OBSECION IS REL.You should write spongebob........ .#COBBLESTONE=LIF " "YOU NEED SOME MILK PS I LIKE YOUR BOOKS YOU NEED SOME MILK DO YOU KNOW WHAT MILK IS." "DEAR DEBBIE,I LOVE YOUR BOOKS MY FAVORITE BOOK IS TROLLS DONT RIDE ROLLAR COASTERS.I CANT WAIT TO MEET YOU AT OUR SCHOOL!!YOUR FRIEND MADELINE J " "Hi debbie i love your book mermaid tales deep of the sea i can'nt wait to see you on thursday bye,gracie byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye" "mi mame is peakone what ias you maame " peaton prek skoal " DO YOU NEED SOME MILK i like all your books ps ghost don`t eat chips " whats a grade ? "dear DADIE I HAVE READ ALL OF YOUR BOOKS" peyton l ON BUNKED "HEILLW I AM QKAYAES LOVE YOU DBOLA DUCKLA DOENT PLAYS KICKBALL WUHDNBYE JQII " KAYES L "HI IF I COULD I WOULD LICK YOUR BOOKS BUT IM NOT LIKE OTHER PEOPLE SO AND PLUS I LOVE YOUR BOOKS YOUR FRIEND JAY" "dear deby dady i love your books but i dont know you and you are coming to my school your, friend alaina" alaina m "Ilove your books they are so creative and fun" "i LOVE mermaid tails. I have read so many of them." "i like your books" "HI I LOVE YOUR BOOKS SO MUCH LIKE " " you are so funny to me lattetr dog??????????????:::::::: " "I can not wait to get to know you better." bellany "i lovvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvve you so much i love your mermaid tale books so much bye " "i like books spookay " "dear debbie, i love the bailey school kids books i am reading one.i cant wait for you to come to our school!if you saw a message from me that was claire not me.but this one is from me peace out love ya " maryevelyn "hi hi hi hi lol lol hi i like reading " "I LOVE YOU LIKE I LOVE NICKI MINAJ!!!!! Except I don't think you have a big booty like her . Bye " What's a grade "i love your books! ps can you please make a book on bailly school kids gouls play orgens!" "can you do gouls dont go camping please;0 ps i the baily school kids pps i love your books." "Hi my class talked to you it was fun meeting you" "I'm writing another story: Liza, Eddie, Melody, and Howie (the Bailey School kids) get rid of their third grade teacher Mrs. Deedee after only three weeks by putting shaving cream in her desk, then get a new teacher, Mrs. Jeepers. Mrs. Jeepers has a strange accent and wears an unusual green "magical" brooch. She lives in the haunted Clancy Estate and has a coffin-like box in her basement. Melody and Eddie snoop around in the basement and think someone is in the box, maybe a vampire! They think Mrs. Jeepers is a vampire, especially since she seems to "freeze" Eddie during a math game. She allows no horse play in her classroom!. Eddie can’t stand it and pushes Mrs. Jeepers too far. She says, "I have had enough!" and takes Eddie out in the hall. Will he come back? Or will he become a vampire, too???" "You said you got a little wacky during a school visit what happened" "i ilke your book called Frankenstein Doesn't Hit Hockey Pucks . " "hi i lkke your books i am from coury hights and my teacher is read king of koties i love the book by by by byb yb by by byb by by by bgy " <Prev \| 1 \| 2 \| 3 \| 4 \| 5 \| 6 \| 7 \| 8 \| 9 \| 10 \| 11 \| 12 \| 13 \| 14 \| 15 \| 16 \| 17 \| 18 \| 19 \| 20 \| 21 \| 22 \| 23 \| 24 \| 25 \| 26 \| 27 \| 28 \| 29 \| 30 \| 31 \| 32 \| 33 \| 34 \| 35 \| 36 \| 37 \| 38 \| 39 \| 40 \| 41 \| 42 \| 43 \| 44 \| 45 \| 46 \| 47 \| 48 \| 49 \| 50 \| 51 \| 52 \| 53 \| 54 \| 55 \| 56 \| 57 \| 58 \| 59 \| 60 \| 61 \| 62 \| 63 \| 64 \| 65 \| 66 \| 67 \| 68 \| 69 \| 70 \| 71 \| 72 \| 73 \| 74 \| 75 \| 76 \| 77 \| 78 \| 79 \| 80 \| 81 \| 82 \| 83 \| 84 \| 85 \| 86 \| 87 \| 88 \| 89 \| 90 \| 91 \| 92 \| 93 \| 94 \| 95 \| 96 \| 97 \| 98 \| 99 \| 100 \| 101 \| 102 \| 103 \| 104 \| 105 \| 106 \| 107 \| 108 \| 109 \| 110 \| 111 \| 112 \| 113 \| 114 \| 115 \| 116 \| 117 \| 118 \| 119 \| 120 \| 121 \| 122 \| 123 \| 124 \| 125 \| 126 \| 127 \| 128 \| 129 \| 130 \| 131 \| 132 \| 133 \| 134 \| 135 \| 136 \| 137 \| 138 \| 139 \| 140 \| 141 \| 142 \| 143 \| 144 \| 145 \| 146 \| 147 \| 148 \| 149 \| 150 \| 151 \| 152 \| 153 \| 154 \| 155 \| 156 \| 157 \| 158 \| 159 \| 160 \| 161 \| 162 \| 163 \| 164 \| 165 \| 166 \| 167 \| Next> This site uses javascript for dropdown links you see below. You should enable javascript in your browser for a much better user experience. Debbie Talks to Kids Kids Talk to Debbie Bridgett's Blog Powered by Fred's Used Websites	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line560
__label__cc	0.717817	0.282183	Build a Generic Histogram Generator for SQL Server Histograms help people analyze large amounts of data, whether you display them as tables or as charts. This article shows you how to do both. by Michael Sorens he histogram is a mathematical tool that is invaluable when analyzing large quantities of data. A histogram may be represented in a table of numbers or in a chart. Because databases tend to hold large quantities of data, it follows that a database interface that leverages histograms would be a useful tool to have in your analysis toolbox. That's exactly what you'll see here—how to generate complex histograms with a single line of T-SQL code. The T-SQL procedure provides tabular output within the confines of a DB query tool (e.g., SQL Server Management Studio or Query Analyzer). As just one example of a way to convert the tabular data to a graphical representation, you'll also see how to hook up the output of the stored procedure to the input of a chart within Excel. Wikipedia's histogram overview defines a histogram as "a mapping. . . that counts the number of observations that fall into various disjoint categories." The Wikipedia article provides both a tabular and a graphical representation of a simple example: measuring the commute time for US workers. Table 1 shows a subset of the Wikipedia table that is the most relevant portion for this discussion. The first column is the list of disjoint categories, also referred to as bins or buckets. The second column shows the count of the workers (in thousands) corresponding to each bucket. From census data, the article author determined that 4.18 million people had commute times of 5 minutes or less; 13.687 million had commute times between 5 and 10 minutes; 18.618 million had commute times between 10 and 15 minutes; and so forth. Table 1. Sample Histogram: A histogram showing the distribution of commute times for US workers in 5-minute buckets. Minutes Workers (in thousands) For this article, I want to produce a histogram to show the same data in a different way. Table 2 shows exactly the same data but with the X values transposed with the Y values, so each column defines a bucket instead of each row defining a bucket. This format has several advantages: Column-wise buckets visually map to a graphical representation more directly. Typically a histogram represented as a graph shows each bucket as a vertical bar in a bar chart. So each column in Table 2 corresponds directly to each bar in its corresponding graph. Column-wise buckets map to a single-row result set from a database query. This provides the flexibility to show either a summary histogram—which I define as a single-row result set—or a detail histogram containing more than one row. A detail histogram for this same data set might, for example, enumerate age groups of workers. Perhaps the first row would represent workers under age 20, the next row workers over 20 and under 30, etc. The header row shows ranges not single values. Each column header contains not just a single value but explicitly states the range contained in its bucket eliminating any ambiguity. With single values, does "10" mean "5-10" or "10-15" or even "7.5-12.5" ? Table 2. Transposed Histogram: This table shows a transposition of the histogram in Table 1, showing the same data in a form more conducive for the techniques discussed. Commute Time (minutes) 0-4 5-9 10-14 15-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-45 Number of Workers 4180 13687 18618 19634 17981 7190 16369 3212 4122 SQL Server 2000 or later SQL Server Query Analyzer, SQL Server Management Studio, or a similar tool for querying a database and receiving a result set Microsoft Excel 2003 for creating charts from result sets Installing the Sample Code To follow along, first download the zipped sample code that accompanies this article, and unzip the file. Next, run histogram.sql to install the histogram stored procedure and then run both BoundSmoothing.sql and GetDataTypeName.sql to install the necessary support functions. You will, of course, need sufficient database privileges to do this; talk to your DBA if you get an error when you try to install a procedure or function. Author's Note: This stored procedure makes use of dynamic SQL. Dynamic SQL, while sometimes necessary, and frequently useful, always presents a risk of abuse to your system. See The Curse and Blessings of Dynamic SQL by a noted SQL Server MVP, Erland Sommarskog. You also need the standard AdventureWorks database to replicate the specific examples discussed. If you don't have it, you can download it here, and install it before continuing. Finally, to generate connections between Excel and your SQL Server database you will need to install Microsoft Query from your Excel installation disk, because it is not installed by default with Excel. To determine whether you have it installed or not, simply follow the steps in the first Excel exercise and the program will tell you if Query is not loaded. 1234567 Next Page »	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line564
__label__wiki	0.57269	0.57269	AMAZON l POWELL'S INDIE BOUND l BARNES & NOBLE ORIGAMI BRIDGES At the heart of Origami Bridges is the delicate relationship of trust between analyst and patient, a relationship that grows out of the emotional give-and-take of the psychoanalytic process. In this collection, Diane Ackerman, with astonishing candor, lays bare her desires, anger, jealousy, fears, and anxiety, as she probes not only her present emotional landscape but also her past. And what gradually rises to the surface is an understanding of how the poet uses verse to purge her demons, express her delight, or confess secret longing, and through this process come to a better understanding of the self. "I know enough to know when I'm in the presence of a brilliant mind. Her acrobatic poems are full of fact and exuberance." — Maxine Kumin "Ackerman is extraordinarily attuned to the ceaseless vibrancy of nature, the life of the mind--the source of all that is human, from our sense of self and beauty to longing and pain--and paradox: that the vital green of summer conceals the red of autumn; that something as delicate as folded paper, as ephemeral as a poem, can serve as a bridge from dark to light. In her beguiling nature writing, Ackerman is superlatively descriptive and wonderfully present. In her poetry, Ackerman's love for and command of words are even more pronounced, more daring and whimsical, and she is positively incandescent here. Ackerman explains that these spirited poems ‘geysered up’ each day during “intense psychotherapy," and there is indeed an aura of oracular certainty about them, a unity and purity that seems drenched in the divine, and yet they're fully grounded in Ackerman's experiences: her Illinois girlhood; adventures in the wild and on the move flying, diving, and skiing; immersions in love, loss, and psychotherapy, a profoundly demanding dialogue that is at once intimate and ritualized. “Psychotherapy and lyrical poetry address many of the same issues,” Ackerman observes, but, oh, what a difference art makes." — Booklist "Ackerman's work in both poetry and prose is simply the best that I know. It is fresh and alive. And it is wise, grounded in experience. Her mastery of language is extraordinary, a rich pleasure to read." — May Swenson	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line565
__label__wiki	0.552745	0.552745	We take as a starting point Naples Garibaldi Square, home of the central railway station and bus terminal for most of the center. The tour ends in Victoria Square, a major bus station where you will find links to return to Piazza Garibaldi, or the different subway. So we start immediately immersing in the historical center of Naples, joined the list of World Heritage, a series so rich in monuments and works of art to be called Open Air Museum. From Piazza Garibaldi move towards the Corso Umberto, famous for being one of the landmarks of the Neapolitan shopping. Once in Piazza Nicola Amore turn towards reaching the Via Duomo cathedral or church of San Gennaro, which are the relics el'ampolla containing the blood of the saint and the underground basilica just opened to the public. Next to the cathedral we find the treasure of the Chapel of San Gennaro, where you can admire the treasures left by noble devotion to the Holy, Papi, famous people and ordinary people. After the first stage because of courts continue where we will find the churches of S. Lorenzo Maggiore, San Paolo Maggiore and San Gregorio Armeno with its monastery. This area is particularly famous for its Christmas markets among the most beautiful and interesting in the world. The shops are open all year and on the counters of pastors turns the classic characters of the nativity scene and the protagonists of politics and showbiz. If you have two hours available I recommend hiking the Naples underground passages in search of rich stories and legends. Continue because of the courts reaching Sansevero Chapel where you can admire one of the most beautiful and interesting works of the artistic world, the Veiled Christ by Giuseppe Sanmartino. The famous artist Antonio Canova, who declared that he was ready to give ten years of his life despite being the author of such a masterpiece. Gives us the idea of the extraordinary work. Leaving San Severo Chapel we head towards Via San Biagio dei Booksellers, also known as Spaccanapoli where you can admire the church of San Domenico Maggiore Church of Gesù Nuovo, where we find among other relics of St. Joseph Moscati, and the famous monastery Santa Clara. We continue our visit Spaccanapoli long until you cross Via Toledo, another landmark shopping Napoletano. We continue our walk in Toledo, perhaps catching a bit 'of energy in the famous pastry shops and pubs that are on the way to reach the Galleria Umberto, the famous shopping arcade built in Naples between 1887 and 1880. From the outputs of the Gallery you can reach Piazza Municipio and the Angevin, Via San Carlo, where is the namesake theater and Plebiscite Square headquarters of the most important shows held in the city. In this area there are two premises that have shaped the history of the Belle Epoque salon Margherita Napoletana, located in the Galleria Umberto and the Café Gambrinus. We continue our tour reaching Piazza del Plebiscite Royal Palace, built by the Spanish monarchs in 1600. The tour starts at the end, we continue to the famous Saint Lucia reaching the fishing village and Castel dell 'Ovo, after Castel Capuano, the oldest in the city of Naples and is one of the elements that stand out the most famous landscape in the Gulf. Can not miss dinner in the restaurant of a fishing village where you can admire the most beautiful view of the world. Before you reach Piazza Vittoria, where you can take public transportation to all destinations in the city, we recommend a walk along the famous Via Caracciolo. By plane: from Capodichino Airport take bus direction Piazza Garibaldi then by train or bus By train: Railway Circumvesuviana line Naples-Pompei-Poggiomarino (stop Pompei Santuario); Railway Ferrovie dello Stato - Line Napoli - Salerno (stop Pompei). By bus: From Naples: SITA (Naples-Pompeii) From Salerno: SITA (Salerno-Pompeii), CSTP # 4, CSTP Swift (highway) From Rome: Marozzi Bus (Rome-Pompeii) Take the A3 Naples-Pompeii-Salerno (exit Pompeii Ovest). Scrivi una recensione su B&B Dolcevita Presentato da TripAdvisor Bed and Breakfast per le vacanze Tour operator Italia turismo IHA: Affitti e vacanze breakfast e agriturismi Bed & Breakfast in Italia Bed and Breakfast in Italia segnalato su ProdottiTipici.com Bed and Breakfast Napoli Bed and Breakfast Ti e' piaciuto soggiornare da noi? Allora, aiutaci ad essere il migliore Hotel a/in Pompei! Raccomandaci a trivago! by elenco-alberghi.it Copyright © 2010 dolcevitapompei.com. Tutti i diritti riservati. Design & Sviluppo by XENALAB	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line575
__label__cc	0.50809	0.49191	Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park The Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park spreads solely within the Province of Belluno. Its surface amounts 31500 hectares. The park was instituted in 1990 and it encompasses a wide landscapes and mountains variety. In its lower portion there are populated zones and also old settlements. Its highest parts are characterized by savage regions that are difficult to reach, but that convey undisputed appeal. The territory of the park is very changeable and if offers nature images: it ranges from prairie to rocky mountains, from wood to screes and canyons. Several rare plant species that are endemic there. That part of the Dolomites was free from ice during the last Ice Age that lasted until 12000 years ago, and this is considered the cause of the occurrence of these rare species. The territory of Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park is located in the Southern Alps, and many of these mountains still belong to Dolomites, while parts of them belong to the UNESCO Belluno Dolomiti area. Grassy mountains like Monte Serva or Monte Pavione are inside the park area. But then, a long alpine chain from Vette Feltrine to Monte Schiara and beyond shows the appeal of the Dolomite rock. This wonderful natural park is characterized by impervious valleys, greens and moraines. Several mountain groups are well distinguished and they are well known by mountains enthusiasts, even if they are not the most famous mountains in Italy. Starting from 2100-2300 meters above sea level of Vette Feltrine (Feltre Peaks), they continue to Monte Pizzocco, Monti del Sole, Pramper and the Schiara Group. One of the most interesting facets of this park is the geological perspective. Because of the slow erosion of limestone, the Park includes several karst zones and within its borders 200 cavities have been surveyed. The “Piani Eterni” area is a large plateau at about 1700 meters above sea level. In its subsoil about 35 kilometers of galleries have been discovered. These galleries score two regional records for Veneto. The deepest gallery descends down to 1052 meters below land surface, while the longest excels at national level. The mines of Valle Imperina deserve to be mentioned. They already existed in roman age, and there copper and then silver were extracted. The ancient mining resort was closed in mid 1900s and today it is an industrial archeology museum. The power of water into the Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park It is not surprising that such plenitude of cavities is rich in waterways, streams, creeks, that sink in the ground and emerge back downstream. Water is also protagonist of another peculiarity of the Park: flora. Almost ¼ of flora of Italia territory is present also inside the Park. About 1400 species were surveyed there, ranging from forest trees to the smallest seedlings, including several rare species. The park encompasses also several climatic areas, because of its large surface and substantive altitude range, varying from few hundred meters to over 2000 meters above sea level of the peaks. Even if the Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park spreads within only one province, it covers a significant fraction of it. It touches the municipality of Pedavena, then Feltre, and then up in the Val Belluna until Agordino, and finally Val di Zoldo and Longarone. The Park foundation organizes environment education courses with annual programme, and it promotes several scientific research activities inside its area also for nature conservation. Return to Dolomiti Mountains Home Page Dolomites Restaurants Hotels in Dolomites Dolomites Hut Dolomites Map Dolomites Towns The Geology Climbing the Dolomites The Alpine Guides The Snowshoes Ski Holiday Cyclilg Dolomites Alta Via nr. 1 Food in Dolomites Dolomiti Links ...And More... The Bob	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line576
__label__cc	0.748496	0.251504	coolbrandz.com coolbranders it/fr/en/de join coolbrandz cool foods cool looks cool events beverage brand newsletter coolbrandz To receive the latest news, promotions, games, giveaways and contents from coolbrandz. 4 Places To Visit On Your 2020 Summer Vacation How to Decorate Your Vacation Rental Home Bepure Skincare: 3 TIPS for a smooth transition into autumn Celebrate the Eclipse Party in Zurich with Belvedere Vodka! Raise-your-Party N° 01: Wien Gin @ Das Heinz, Vienna Clarins News: Skin Illusion Loose Powder Foundation Propercorn, the healthy snack: lowcal, natural and utterly delicious BOS Ice Tea, un thé froid pas comme les autres Steve Wintercroft: des masques 3D à faire soi-même SmartWatcher safety watch – Swiss Design. Swiss Software. Posted on 15/11/2018 by Eileen Schuch Imagine being able to call for help by pressing a button on your watch. That is the basic premise of SmartWatcher. The Zurich based company created a discreet and elegant safety companion, that looks just like a watch. It has all the functionalities of a normal wristwatch but comes equipped with an interesting extra feature: a software-enabled alarm button that you can press should you feel the need. Pushing it instantly connects you with your helpers. They can speak to you through the loudspeaker and microphone built into the watch and can see your exact position thanks to the advanced geo-location system, which works even inside buildings. From a purely visual point of view, the devices cannot be distinguished from a normal watch. The solution behind it, however, is so sophisticated that even US TV stations reported it; a Swiss publication called it “A guardian angel for the wrist”. Carrying such an emergency call watch can make you feel safer and more confident in everyday life, at home as well as when you are out and about. And think not just of yourself but your family, your parents and grandparents… Would it not be nice to know them safe, especially if they are living by themselves and you are not always around? And because the watches are stylish and their alarm features discreet, your loved one will actually want to wear them! Sounds a lot like a gift that is useful? From 4th – 6th May, Smartwatcher will be present at Montreux Moda. Come by the coolbrandz stand and meet the brand! We have a limited number of free tickets available for the event. If you are interested and would like to be part of it, subscribe by clicking on the “CLICK & WIN” button below. We will reach out to everyone who subscribed in due time. The PEARL watch is analog and Bluetooth enabled and pairs with both Android and Apple mobile phones through the SmartWatcher App (free to download). When you press the button it activates the app, which sends an alert to all the Watchers you pre-registered (up to 12). They get a push notification that opens the app and shows your position on the map and then they can decide to call you or the emergency services. The watch is waterproof, has a medical stainless steel case, Swarovski Zirconia. Apart from the PEARL watch, there are these standalone devices: SENSE and CHRONO. They are totally independent solutions. They come with a built-in Swisscom SIM card, integrated microphone and loudspeaker, which allow 2-way voice communication. SENSE is very light, comfortable and looks pretty cool, CHRONO is slightly bigger but its battery is bigger also and can last up to 4 days. This device is IP67 water-resistant and can be worn during bath and shower. These standalone devices come with a Swisscom SIM card. To activate it, you will have to subscribe to an emergency plan (around CHF 10 per month). It is the perfect solution for seniors living alone or for people practising sports that need a higher level of safety. When you get the watches you register them on the SmartWatcher website and then choose whether you want to subscribe to the FRIENDS&FAMILY or PROFESSIONAL service. The FRIENDS&FAMILY service will send the alarm when you press the button to the helpers you pre-registered through the user portal (my.SmartWatcher.com, up to 12 helpers that, when you invite them through the portal, receive an SMS inviting them to download the app. Then they have to accept the invitation in the app.). The helpers will receive a push notification, which opens the app and shows the position on the map and then they can call the person directly from the app on their watch and talk to them to assess the situation and arrange proper help. In case you choose PROFESSIONAL, pushing the button sends the alert to a Swiss call center operating 24/7 where a professional will see the position of the caller on their portal and also their personal details which were collected during the registration process. There is an additional feature, which is part of the PROACTIVE CARE theme. It is perfect for people with initial dementia or other issues that might result in them being lost or go missing. Basically, through the user portal the care-giver (which can be a professional or a family member) can locate the watch wearer at any time, call them on their watch and get help if required. “Independence is something that seniors tend to value very highly”, explains Bruna Carvalho, SmartWatcher’s Marketing Director. “Maintaining it promotes a sense of achievement that for many people generates a great sense of self-worth and well-being.” Helping seniors stay safe, not only prolongs their independence, it also gives them a valuable sense of security and empowerment – whether they are aging at home or in an assisted environment. The watches are available in the online shop and in specialized stores all over Switzerland that are listed here, in the Storelocator >>>. About SmartWatcher Striving to become Europe’s leading brand for wearable security solutions, Smartwatcher Technologies AG was since the company was founded in 2015 based on the clear vision and belief that personal safety is such a fundamental need that it should be available to everyone. The Swiss team of innovative designers and engineers works relentlessly to develop easy-to-use and flexible solutions that let people feel safe at home and when out and about, knowing that should any kind of emergency arise, help will be summoned. Thousands of customers are already using the safety app that supports all leading smartwatches, smartphones and wearables platforms, offering unprecedented flexibility to make the device of your choice part of your personal safety solution. Introducing their own line of emergency watches with built-in 3G mobile connectivity, Smartwatcher offers simple and discrete solutions for people with special safety needs, elderly people, and people doing outdoor sports – and you can choose whether you prefer to have help from friends and family or if you prefer to have professional tele-assistance from our 24 hours emergency call centre. Whether at home or out and about, you are connected to your private circle of helpers, or to a professional telecare or protection service of choice. Smartwatcher makes professional safety available to everyone at the press of a button. The App can be downloaded on the AppStore or Google Play. For all the updates, follow SmartWatcher online: Facebook, Twitter, G+ Eileen Schuch Eileen is the founder of coolbrandz, the first Swiss Word-of-Mouth platform (since 2011), and founder of liferox llc., the influencer agency (since 2014). Curious by nature, she perpetually sources new stuff, loves to try out everything and meet cool people. Eileen loves brands and blogs about them in German, English and French. She can also be booked as a consultant, business coach, content producer and conference speaker. Contact: eileen.schuch@liferox.me Pingback: 6 years coolbrandz, CHF 6000 worth of gifts – Thank You! Jacqueline Virchow on 25/12/2017 at 8:02 pm said: Oh, ich würde sie behalten! 🙂 Nathalie Schaller on 25/12/2017 at 4:54 pm said: So cool !!! Catherine Rosat on 25/12/2017 at 12:30 am said: White very nice waow 🙂 thanks Jasmin Bosshart on 25/12/2017 at 12:11 am said: Mega schön , damit würde ich bestimmt nicht zuspät an meine Hochzeit kommen Cottier Alain on 24/12/2017 at 1:29 pm said: Très bien pour moi !! J’adorerais en recevoir une ……avec un peu de chance même si je ne crois plus au père Noël 😉 Ursula Grossmann on 24/12/2017 at 9:10 am said: Cool……would be fantastic !!! Jessica Germanà on 24/12/2017 at 8:37 am said: Très belle ! Merci coolbranders login about join us! © coolbrandz 2020 Install coolbrandz Install the coolbrandz webapp to your Home Screen.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line583
__label__wiki	0.60147	0.60147	Cotton Campaign Uzbekistan's Forced Labor Problem > Chronicle of Forced Labor Turkmenistan's Forced Labor Problem > Reports of Forced Labor in Turkmenistan's Cotton Sector Forced Labor Cotton in Other Countries Governments > What the Uzbek government can do What the Turkmen government can do What other governments can do International Organizations > What the World Bank and Asian Development Bank can do What the International Labor Organization can do Companies > What companies operating in Uzbekistan or Turkmenistan can do What companies that use cotton can do What investors can do Media, Human Rights Groups Call On Turkmenistan To Free Nepeskuliev This article originally appeared on Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty here. Thirteen media and human rights organizations have sent a joint letter to the President of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, calling for the release of freelance journalist Saparmamed Nepeskuliev. Nepeskuliev, who contributed to both RFE/RL's Turkmen Service and Alternative Turkmenistan News, has been kept in incommunicado detention since July 7, 2015, when he disappeared while visiting the Caspian Sea resort city of Avaza. Convicted in closed proceedings on fabricated charges of narcotics possession on August 31, 2015, nothing has been heard from or about Nepeskuliev since September 2015. The text of that letter follows: His Excellency Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow President of the Republic of Turkmenistan c/o H.E. Meret Orazov, Ambassador Embassy of the Republic of Turkmenistan in the U.S. Dear President Berdimuhamedow: July 7, 2016 marks one year since Saparmamed Nepeskuliev, a freelance journalist who contributed to RFE/RL’s Turkmen Service and Alternative Turkmenistan News, has been in custody. For much of that time he has been in incommunicado detention. We the undersigned, are writing to call for an end to his wrongful imprisonment and urge his prompt release. Prior to his disappearance, Mr. Nepeskuliev reported on economic development, infrastructure, social services, and education in Turkmenistan’s western regions with the aim of informing citizens about challenges facing their communities and of helping them to improve their lives. He went missing in Avaza on July 7, 2015 and, after three weeks, on July 28, his family learned that he was being detained in a prison in Akdash. On August 31, 2015, in closed proceedings, Mr. Nepeskuliev was convicted on fabricated charges of narcotics possession and sentenced to three years in prison by a Turkmenbashi city court. In light of concerns expressed by the UN Human Rights Committee about conditions in detention in Turkmenistan and the risk of ill-treatment including torture (See the Human Rights Committee, CCPR/C/TKM/CO/1, para. 9), we fear for Mr. Nepeskuliev’s health and safety. We have not been able to obtain any information about Mr. Nepeskuliev’s welfare since September 2015. Our concern for Mr. Nepeskuliev is intensified by our recollection of the fate of Ogulsapar Muradova, an RFE/RL contributor who died in a Turkmen prison under suspicious circumstances in September 2006. Mr. Nepeskuliev’s case has been reviewed by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, which in December 2015 designated his detention “arbitrary” because he “has been held incommunicado with no access to a legal representative; he was deprived of his right to legal assistance of his own choosing” and he “has been deprived of liberty for having peacefully exercised his right to freedom of expression as guaranteed by article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.” The Working Group called for his release and that he be compensated. Numerous rights groups and NGOs have protested Mr. Nepeskuliev’s detention, and called on EU officials to raise his case during the recent EU-Turkmenistan Human Rights Dialogue in May. As representatives of our respective organizations and leaders of the international NGO community, Mr.President, we are committed to promoting and protecting the same international conventions and standards guaranteeing international law and human rights that Turkmenistan has pledged to uphold. Mr.Nepeskuliev’s conviction on trumped-up charges and his incommunicado detention are violations of his rights as guaranteed by Turkmenistan’s constitution and its commitments under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Turkmenistan is a party. We call for his immediate release. Thomas Burr, President, National Press Club Ivar Dale, Senior Adviser, Norwegian Helsinki Committee Matthew Fischer-Daly, Coordinator, Cotton Campaign Judy Gearhart, Executive Director, International Labor Rights Forum Delphine Halgand, U.S. Director, Reporters Without Borders Robert Herman, PhD, Vice President for International Programs, Freedom House Ryota Jonen, Director, World Movement for Democracy Thomas Kent, President, RFE/RL, Inc. Denis Krivosheev, Deputy Director (Research), Europe and Central Asia Regional Office, Amnesty International Ruslan Myatiev, Editor, Alternative Turkmenistan News Nina Ognianova, Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator, Committee to Protect Journalists Kate Watters, Executive Director, Crude Accountability Hugh Williamson, Director, Europe and Central Asia Division, Human Rights Watch USG and ILO Reprimand Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan for Slave-Cotton This article originally appeared on Responsible Sourcing Network, here. As the country with the smallest population in Central Asia, Turkmenistan has rarely been in the spotlight on the global stage. This changed today, when the U.S. State Department downgraded Turkmenistan for using forced labor in its cotton sector in the annual Trafficking in Persons report. (RSN has written extensively about forced labor in the cotton sector of Uzbekistan, and over the last two years has worked in an increasing capacity with the Cotton Campaign to end forced labor in Turkmenistan, as well. Our partner Alternative Turkmenistan News (ATN) has documented the Turkmen government’s use of systematic forced labor throughout its cotton sector since the 2013 harvest. ATN’s reporting, conducted with a network of informants throughout Turkmenistan, details the state-orchestrated, forced mobilization of farmers and public and private sector workers. The mobilization is a remnant of the former Soviet Republic’s centralized command economy. Since the collapse of the USSR, the authoritarian Turkmen government has exacerbated the issue, orchestrating a system in which citizens are exploited to meet yearly cotton quotas. In ATN’s report, public-sector workers detailed being threatened by their superiors with dismissal, docked pay, or forced to pay a fee if they refused to participate in the harvest. This state system of forced labor violates the fundamental human and labor rights of tens of thousands of Turkmen citizens each year. After placing Turkmenistan on the Tier 2 Watch List for the fourth consecutive year in 2015, the State Department was forced to either upgrade or downgrade the country’s ranking in 2016. To our satisfaction, the State Department downgraded Turkmenistan from the Tier 2 Watch List to Tier 3. This downgrade allows the country to be sanctioned under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act for Tier 3 countries, which provides more incentive for the Turkmen government to take definitive action to end its use of forced labor in the cotton sector. Independently determined but aligned with the State Department’s position, earlier this month the ILO’s Committee on the Application of Standards urged the government of Turkmenistan to“take effective measures in law and in practice to ensure that no one, including farmers and public and private sector workers, is forced to work for the state sponsored cotton harvest.”The committee also stated that the Turkmen government should prosecute officials who participate in the forced mobilization of workers; seek the ILO’s assistance in applying international labor standards; and allow workers, employers, and civil society organizations to monitor the harvests without fear of repercussion. We were also pleased to see that the State Department downgraded Turkmenistan’s neighbor Uzbekistan from the Tier 2 Watch List to Tier 3 as well. In Tier 3, similar to Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan can now be subject to sanctions, which places more international pressure on the government to combat forced labor in its cotton sector. The decision is also in line with the ILO’s recommendations to the Uzbek government, to take measures that ensure the complete elimination of the use of forced labor and achieve concrete results. The State Department’s downgrade, in combination with the ILO’s recommendations, sends a strong message to global apparel and home goods brands that they should have rigorous processes to identify and eliminate Turkmen and Uzbek cotton from their value chains. Only by aligning trade practices with company commitments to fundamental labor conventions will we be able to end forced labor in Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan’s cotton sectors. If the international community builds on the pressure of the downgrades to Tier 3, the citizens of these Central Asian countries may have reason to hope for light at the end of the tunnel. State-led forced labour in the cotton industry This article originally appeared on Open Democracy, June 3, 2016, here. Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, both vital nodes in the textile industry's supply chain, compel citizens to pick cotton, prevent worker organisation, and suppress critics. Could the ILC 2016 change that? Cotton: we all wear it. Its trade has contributed to the evolution of the global economy, and abusive, exploitative, and unfree labour have plagued its production from the outset. This continues today in the cotton sectors of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. This is why we’re urging the governmental, employer, and worker members of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to discuss Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan during the 2016 International Labour Conference (ILC) session on decent work in global supply chains. While international businesses must be accountable to the workers in their supply chains, decent work also requires governments to apply core labour standards. These include freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining, along with the elimination of forced labour or discrimination at work. As the UN Principles on Business and Human Rights have highlighted, governments have a duty to protect their citizens from human rights violations, including violations of their labour rights. Yet for the 30 million citizens of Uzbekistan and the five million people of Turkmenistan, that remains a long way off. The governments of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan routinely use state-orchestrated systems of forced labour to produce cotton for global supply chains. Annually, the two governments force more than one million citizens and farmers to pick cotton and deliver production quotas, all under the threat of punishment. This practice violates national and international law, while the income it generates benefits only a small cadre of elite government officials in each country. During the 2015 harvest, for example, the Turkmen president publicly pressured officials to forcibly mobilise ever greater numbers in order to make up for the low yield. In Uzbekistan, under orders from the prime minister, officials confiscated the property of farmers who fell short of fulfilling their quotas. In both countries, people with the means to do so avoided harvest work only by hiring others to pick ‘their’ cotton quotas for them or by bribing their supervisors. Keeping workers isolated Neither the Turkmen nor Uzbek governments permit freedom of association, and both regularly threaten, detain, and imprison citizens who attempt to report on abuses. The Uzbek government has not ratified ILO Convention No. 87 concerning Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise, and it appoints the leadership of the national union federation itself. Unsurprisingly, that union consistently stands by the government, which has imprisoned and tortured a number of independent union organisers since 2014. In 2015, officials arrested, attacked, and detained independent labour monitors including Dmitry Tikhonov, Elena Urlaeva, and Uktam Pardaev. The Turkmen government also refuses to permit independent trade unions or civil society organisations. Prior to the 2015 cotton harvest, it intimidated many human rights monitors into silence through acts such as the arbitrary arrest and imprisonment of Saparmamed Nepeskuliev, a journalist for Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty and Alternative Turkmenistan News. He has reported on state corruption and human rights abuses, including in the cotton sector. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UN WGAD) concluded that his detention was arbitrary and in retaliation for exercising his right to freedom of expression. Important suppliers to global systems As members of the ILO, the governments of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan have committed to applying core labour standards, yet not only are they failing to fulfil their duties but they are actively violating the fundamental rights that the ILO exists to defend. This is especially relevant to the 2016 ILC, since the cotton that the two countries produce is traded through global supply chains. Eighty percent of Turkmenistan’s cotton exports go to Turkey, the second largest source of apparel for the European Union, while 66% of Uzbekistan’s cotton exports go to China and Bangladesh, two of the major supplier countries for the world’s apparel industry. Ending the use of labour abuses by the Turkmen and Uzbek governments is a fundamental step along the path to decent work in global supply chains. The governments, employers, and worker members of the ILO have a significant opportunity to influence these two governments during their discussion of supply chains at this year’s ILC. We want to see them look at effective enforcement and just prosecution of labour law violators, complaint systems that protect complainants and provide remediation, and respect for independent organising of trade unions and collective bargaining. The ILO member states, employers organisations, and trade unions should use their respective leverage to lead the Turkmen and Uzbek governments to practice these foundations of decent work. This would be a major step towards decent work in global supply chains. Принудительный труд в Туркменистане: Мировые бренды, инвесторы и правозащитники выразили Бердымухамедову свою озабоченность Мировые торговые марки, среди которых известные бренды “Adidas”, “Esprit”, “H&M” и другие, а также ряд инвесторов, бизнес сообществ, профсоюзов и правозащитных организаций обратились с письмом к президенту Туркменистана Гурбангулы Бердымухамедову, в котором выразили свою озабоченность по поводу сообщений об использовании принудительного труда в хлопковом секторе страны. Авторы письма призывают главу Туркменистана обратить внимание на данную проблему. «Репутация торговой марки является неотъемлемой частью успеха в конкурентной текстильной и швейной промышленности, — говорится в письме президенту. – Это подразумевает не только качество продукции, ее стиль и ценность, но также включает в себя социальные и экологические составляющие производства. Компании заинтересованы в том, чтобы продаваемая ими продукция была произведена в законных и гуманных условиях на протяжении всей цепочки поставок: от заготовки сырья до торговых прилавков». В письме говорится, что многие компании имеют регулятивные требования к отчетности, в которых компании обязаны сообщать о своей деятельности, во избежание материалов или продукции, произведенных с использованием принудительного труда, рабства или торговли людьми. «Компании просто не могут использовать материалы или продукцию, произведенные таким способом», — говорится в письме. Авторы письма ссылаются на многочисленные сообщения о том, что для выращивания и уборки хлопка власти Туркменистана насильно мобилизуют десятки тысяч госслужащих и дехкан. Они напоминают, что использование принудительного труда противоречит конвенциям №29 и №105 Международной Организации Труда (МОТ) об упразднении принудительного труда. В нынешнем году МОТ выразила «глубокую озабоченность» масштабностью использования принудительного труда, что негативно сказывается на дехканах, предпринимателях, работниках государственной и частной сфер, включая врачей и учителей. Все это делается под угрозой увольнения, урезания зарплаты, потери земли или внезапных проверок. Авторы письма главе Туркменистана также выражают глубокую обеспокоенность сообщениями о репрессиях в отношении людей, пытающихся задокументировать и сообщить случаи нарушения прав человека. В качестве примера они называют Сапармамеда Непескулиева – нештатного корреспондента проекта «Альтернативные новости Туркменистана» (АНТ) и Радио Свободы, арест и тюремное заключение которого признано ООН произвольным в качестве мести за реализацию Непескулиевым своего права на свободу самовыражения. С учетом всего этого, подписавшиеся под письмом 60 компаний и организаций, включая АНТ, призвали Г. Бердымухамедова принять безотлагательные меры, чтобы положить конец принудительному труду в хлопковом секторе Туркменистана. Авторы письма, в частности, предлагают следующие шаги: Обеспечить соблюдение национальных законов, запрещающих использование принудительного труда, а также провести инструктаж для чиновников всех уровней воздерживаться от принудительной практики при мобилизации граждан на хлопковые поля. Чиновники, не следующие данным инструкциям, должны нести наказание; Позволить гражданам свободно освещать вопросы соблюдения прав человека и использования принудительного труда, не опасаясь возмездия за свою деятельность; Позволить «Хлопковой Кампании» беспрепятственно проводить мониторинг использования принудительного труда посредством своих представителей в кампании по уборке хлопка 2016 года; Реформировать хлопковый сектор страны, в частности, прекратить применение обязательных квот по производству и сбору хлопка, не наказывать дехкан и жителей за невыполнение спущенных квот, обеспечить финансовую прозрачность доходов и расходов по хлопку, увеличить закупочные цены на сырец и в конечном счете отпустить их. В конце авторы письма заявляют о готовности вести диалог с правительством Туркменистана по данным вопросам. Оригинал письма на английском языке доступен на сайте «Хлопковой Кампании». CONTACT: Cotton Campaign Coordinator - c/o International Labor Rights Forum, 1634 I Street NW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20006. +1 202-347-4100, cottoncampaigncoordinator [at] gmail.com	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line586
__label__cc	0.74266	0.25734	Stay connected with us Facebook Twitter Google Plus RSS Drugs/Therapy Home > Physical Wellness Air Conditioners Found To Have Negative Effect On Sleep Minnow Blythe Update Date: Feb 20, 2017 09:00 AM EST Numerous studies have proven that sleep is important. However, people find it hard to sleep especially when temperatures are rising. Fortunately, due to the invention of air conditioners, people can sleep comfortably and coolly at night. But according to a recent study, although air conditioners help people sleep comfortably, it also has been found to have a negative effect on sleep. The study, conducted by researchers from the Toyohashi University of Technology, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, and Asahi Kasei Homes, investigated how air conditioner (AC) air flow affect sleep quality of people. In particular, the study examined what type of AC settings is best to ensure not only a comfortable rest but also ensure the quality of sleep of the people in the room with an AC. The researchers tested two types of AC settings. The first setting has an air velocity of 0.4 m/s or what was considered in the study as lower insensible airflow. The second setting has an air velocity of 0.14 m/s or the standard setting of common air conditioners. Both air conditioning units were set at a temperature of 26 °C. Ten healthy males participated in the study and their depth of sleep and body temperature were measured. An electroencephalogram (EEG) was used to get accurate measurements and subjective reports of the participants. Moreover, the study correlated the time the air conditioners started cooling the controlled room, the participants' body movements, heart rate, and sleep depth. The results of the study found that the study's participants reported to experiencing cooler temperatures with the higher air flow velocity or the second AC setting during wakefulness or before sleep. In fact, the researchers found no significant difference between the two AC settings before sleep in regards to the participants' body temperature, feelings of comfort, skin temperature, the length of the depth of sleep, rectal temperature or sense of coolness or warmth. Although the participants' reported feelings of comfort on both AC settings, participants experiencing the second AC setting were found to experience an increased heart rate, significantly more body movements, and higher frequency of waking up during sleep. This just proves that the common air conditioner settings have an effect on a person's sleep. Meaning the higher the air flow velocity of the air conditioner, the higher the negative impact it has on a person's sleep quality. In fact, the study recommends the proper configuration of air conditioners to ensure not only comfort and coolness during sleep but also the proper sleeping environment. The study is published in the journal Energy and Buildings and is the first one to investigate the relationship of air flow velocity of air conditioners and sleep quality. TagsAir conditioners, negative effect, Sleep, sleep quality, comfort, thermoregulation, air velocity, AC setting, airflow velocity See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare Stepping Up To The Plate? When Do Unmarried Men Claim Paternity Of A Child? Evolution Of Man: Aggressive Behavior Shaped Posture For Optimal Fighting Performance What Kind Of Man Do Women Really Want? Gene Therapy Cures Rare Disorder Affecting Dogs; Could Cure For Humans Be Next? Weight Loss Techniques: Eat Whole Grains To Boost Metabolism And Increase Loss Of Calories You have already subscribed. Thank you. Get the Most Popular Stories in a Weekly Newsletter © 2017 Counsel & Heal All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. NHS eNeds To Act On Patient Feedback, Say Sheffield Health Researchers Researchers from the University of Sheffield School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR) are today making a series of recommendations for NHS mental health trusts to change the way they collect and use patient feedback to improve the quality of care for inpatients. 1 How Arts Education Can Improve Student Writing 2 What to Do When a Spinal Injury Leaves You Unable to Walk 3 Concussion Injuries: What Medication Can You Take 4 Adults Who Mix Cannabis with Opioids for Pain Report Higher Anxiety, Depression 5 Study Finds Older Adults Less Distracted by Negative Information Army Bio-Inspired Theoretical Research May Make Robots More Effective On The Future Battlefield Graphene Substrate Improves The Conductivity Of Carbon Nanotube Network Threshold-Dependent Gene Drives In Wild Populations 3 Things You Should Do Following a Motorcycle Accident 4 Ways to Keep Teens Safe on the Road 3 Tips That Will Help Enhance Your Mental Health About us \| Privacy Policy \| Stay connected Facebook Twitter Google Plus RSS	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line587
__label__wiki	0.547532	0.547532	the crime segments ...the crime fiction & mystery portion of reading avidly dot com: a casual reader's journal The Wolf and the Watchman, by Niklas Natt och Dag Atria, 2019 originally published as 1793, 2017 translated by Ebba Segerberg Now I'm only two weeks behind; I finished this book some time ago and I have to say I hardly moved while reading it. Scandinavian crime novels are no strangers to my shelves. I've been reading them a very long time, well before they became all the rage at some point with the publication of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. They can be bleak, dark, and in the hands of some Scandinavian authors, downright disturbing (a la Jo Nesbø's serial killer novels like The Snowman). In more than one case Scandinavian crime writers have also taken their characters delving into the past to understand what is happening in the present, and The Wolf and The Watchman follows this pattern. As the back-cover blurb from Kirkus Reviews notes, it "examines the effects of a brutal murder on those who investigate it - and explores the psychological causes for the crime..." The story is set in 1793, which also places it into the category of historical crime novel. while there's more than just crime here, it's not at all pretty -- the author goes all-out grisly in the telling, which sort of detracts from more than one of the underlying themes the author tries to bring out. More on this soon. Set in Stockholm, the discovery of a corpse floating in what is known as "The Larder" (once a lake, now a dump for waste of every sort) brings watchman Mickel Cardell to the scene, and what he finds is that the body has been dismembered, with eyes and tongue gone as well. When the body is more closely examined, Cardell understands that this was no afterthought -- it seems that these mutilations have been done over a long period of time, while the poor victim, who has now been named "Karl Johan" because he was once a human being, was still alive. With only a couple of actual clues to go on, the chief of police asks attorney Cecil Winge to investigate, knowing that he will do so drawing on his "strength of mind." The problem is that Winge is suffering from a horrific case of consumption, and his time is ticking down. Along with Cardell, he starts by examining what little they have on the case, but some questions either get no answers or a door slammed in the face, as people in the know aren't talking. As Winge worries that the two have "encountered a dead end," the story takes a turn backwards, and the solution to the mystery unfolds slowly in two parts -- first in the account of a young would-be medical student who has come to the city to study but who instead gets caught up in the world of amusements and entertainments until he hits rock bottom, only to find that he hasn't even scratched its surface; the second told in the story of a young woman who ends up in a woman's workhouse, who faces her own horrors (and those of others), and thinks only of escape -- before returning to the present. Reading through this book, I couldn't help but notice that there are a number of similarities between the way 1793 Stockholm is portrayed and what's happening in our own modern times; it's certainly not hard to guess that the author had this comparison in mind while writing this story. There is also an underlying thread running through this book that looks at the clash between Enlightenment thought and the chaotic realities of life, both social and political. But reader beware -- while the ideas underpinning this book may offer the reader a lot to consider, their value is somewhat muted at times because it is hard to get beyond the gruesome events that happen in this book. I've actually seen this novel labeled as "horror," and in the case of one goodreads reader, "torture porn." EEK! Personally, I read a lot of horror but it's on the more cerebral side, meaning that I don't want to read about the gory details or go into any sort of suffering; I feel the same about crime reading. Having said that, though, I made my own focus on the search for the killer and the ideas here rather than the violence, reading through the more gross stuff very quickly; the story also has a plot that is not the usual predictable thing I can figure out long before I get to the ending, it's claustrophobic, atmospheric and to be honest, there are many moments where the excitement had me on the edge of my chair. Quite frankly, I couldn't help being sucked into this story, even while being repulsed by the grotesqueness of it all. I sort of get why it's being compared to The Alienist, but this book is definitely not that, so don't go there. This book is darker than dark, it's not cozy material, it's not murder light, there is no happiness or light shining through anywhere here, and it's not at all for the faint of heart. As far as a recommendation goes, some people seriously detested it while others really loved it. so it's one you'll have to judge on your own. Posted by NancyO at 1:20 PM No comments: Labels: 2019, historical crime fiction, Scandinavian crime fiction Dr. Mabuse, by Norbert Jacques -- pure, unadulterated pulpy goodness. Bruin Books, 2015 originally published 1921 as Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler translated by Lillian A. Clare (1923) On the deck of a ship traveling between his home and Lake Constance in Switzerland, the author, Norbert Jacques, happened to sit across from a man who, as David Kalat notes in his The Strange Case of Dr. Mabuse (2005), "never moved, never spoke," and caused Jacques to feel "anxious, afraid." There was just something about the man which "cut to the core of Jacques' being," that made him not only want to flee, but to also wonder "What was it about this man that exuded some power?" The journalist in Jacques made him scrutinize this man carefully, studying "his eyes, his forehead, his stature." It came down to one question for Jacques: "Was he a hero, or a villain?" According to Kalat, "In this mystery man, who sat motionless and silent all the while, Norbert Jacques read all that was wrong with modern-day Germany" and on his return home he sat down to "hammer out" Dr. Mabuse der Spieler in a mere fourteen days. It would sell 100,000 copies in its first year, and would go on to sell over a half million copies, making it one of the bestsellers of its day. (16) Kalat says about this book that it depicts "a criminal Führer who exploits social decay to his private advantage. Under a variety of disguises and assumed names, he has broken free of the traditional class divisions and invaded the previously insulated enclaves of the decadent upper class." (14) Despite the title, however, the central focus is on the character of the public prosecutor Wenk. Just as an FYI, Lillian Clare wrote in 1923 that Wenk's actual position was that of Staatsanwalt word for which it "is almost impossible to find an English rendering that conveys its full meaning," but for our purposes here we'll continue on with public prosecutor, or as he's also known, the state attorney. Jacques sets his story in his present-day Weimar Germany, a time during which Wenk believes the nation is "diseased and rotten." It is a time during which money "was a key that opened all doors, the wearing of a fur coat could conceal any calling, and a diamond scarf-pin shed luster on any character. A man could go into whatsoever company he desired." In fact, it is in a gambling club that the novel opens, with a game of vingt-et-un with unlimited stakes. It is also here that we meet Dr. Mabuse, who is a man of many disguises with seemingly unlimited powers of suggestion that can make his victims do pretty much anything he wishes. We first see him in action during this game, as one of the players, who is "not really a reckless player" begins to play badly and takes "unreasonable risks" that cause him to lose. Afterwards, he remembers very little of what had happened during the game, and can't even remember that he was the one who brought the man to whom he had lost to the club. Some two weeks later, "the circles to whom the life of the day is only a wearisome burden till the hour of play arrives" share stories about the stranger who "simply loaded himself with money wherever he chanced to play," drawing the attention of the public prosecutor, who believes that these are not isolated events, but part of a much a bigger pattern, even though people in the clubs could swear that no wrongdoing had taken place. He gets his own chance to play against "The Professor," aka Mabuse in yet another disguise, at which point Wenk gets his own taste of Mabuse's immense powers and a sense of just how dangerous this man is. However, when the public prosecutor is knocked out and his belongings are stolen, including his notebook with all of the information he's gathered about the case, the real game of cat-and-mouse between the two begins. While the pursuit is on, we learn much about Mabuse, including the fact that he plans to use his monetary gains from gambling, drug smuggling, human trafficking and other crimes to realize his dream of establishing an empire in "the primeval forests of Brazil," where he plans to be the absolute ruler of the Empire of Citopomar. He is "self-sufficing. What were men to him? He scattered them at will. Yonder, however, in the future, in Citopomar, there would be none who could oppose him." Wenk's efforts in trying to catch Mabuse take on a greater sense of urgency as people around him are murdered, but when Mabuse falls for and puts in his power a woman who happens to be the object of Wenk's own affection, the Countess Told, Wenk pulls out all the stops to find and stop him. As I've said to a few people, Mabuse's powers out-Svengali Svengali, but on some level he is quite aware of his true inner self. He tells the Countess at one point that he is a "werewolf," that he "sucks man's blood." As he says, "Every day my hatred burns up all the blood in my veins, and every night I fill them again by sucking the blood of some human being. If men caught me, they would tear me into little bits." Mabuse, however, has no intention of being caught. from the film by Fritz Lang, at Fandor While I wouldn't call Dr. Mabuse great literature, it is great fun, and it also gives a glimpse into the decadence the Weimar era is known for. The cat-and-mouse game isn't a simple one; Wenk will find himself beyond frustrated as he gets close but realizes that Mabuse seems to have all the luck. Then there are a couple of scenes that employ some crazy inventions that Ian Fleming would have been proud of. But it is best as a look at the "diseased and rotten" society Wenk speaks of. The gambling clubs are here the very seat of decadence -- in chapter seven, for example, Wenk and his companions find themselves at a gambling establishment known as the "Go-ahead Institute," where in case of a police raid, a black knob can be pushed that does away with gambling apparatus, turning instead into a decadent club complete with a "quartette of nude twelve-year-old children were to be seen dancing, upon a new stage, to the strains of fiddles and harps" with a "change of programme every week..." Yikes! Read at a time when I desperately needed fluff, the book kept me entertained for hours (I read it straight through, actually without putting it down), of course rooting for Wenk the entire time to take down Dr. Mabuse and save the Countess. This is the stuff of pure unadulterated pulp, but here with purpose. Even if you don't care about the Weimar era, it's still a good, fast-paced read that will keep you turning pages. I'd recommend it to serious pulp readers who aren't looking for fine literature but rather a good time. I can only imagine reading this book in its original serialized form -- my sweet pulpy goodness-loving self would have had a field day as each episode came to some sort of cliffhanger and I eagerly awaited the next installment. Labels: 1920s, 2019, German crime fiction, pulp fiction the crime fiction collection (so far) my crime-fiction shelf: thought of the day: The Overnight Kidnapper, by Andrea Camilleri Dr. Mabuse, by Norbert Jacques -- pure, unadulter... What I've read this year in crime fiction and mystery, a split off of my regular reading journal Hands down, crime fiction is my favorite genre. I am a wee bit picky, though, and I trend toward the darker side of crime. My focus in reading in this genre is to explore what makes people do what they do -- whether it's the bad guy or the good guy. I truly believe that the best crime fiction should explore human nature and how one's actions are determined by both outward and internal influences. The crime segments is part of my overall online book journal -- it's neither a literary nor expert take on crime fiction/mysteries, but rather a way to keep a record of my reading as I explore different authors, different subgenres and currently works from obscure writers. Have fun and do feel free to comment! back to the home blog the rest of the books for the year, if you're interested 1920s crime fiction and mysteries (4) 1930s crime fiction and mysteries (25) 19th century mystery/crime fiction (28) African crime fiction/mystery (3) Algeria crime fiction (1) American crime fiction (64) American crime fiction/mystery (8) Australia crime fiction (7) Austria crime fiction (8) Belgian crime fiction (3) Belgium crime fiction (3) Bitter Lemon Press (20) Black Curtain Press (1) Blue Rider Press (3) book reviews - British fiction (1) British fiction (2) British Library Crime Classics (8) British mysteries/UK crime fiction (99) Canadian crime fiction (1) Caribbean crime fiction (1) Cassava Republic Press (1) Chinese crime fiction (1) crime fiction from Mexico (1) crime fiction from Scotland (1) crime fiction reference (1) Crime Wave press (2) Czech crime fiction (1) dark fiction (3) Dean Street Press (2) Doubleday Crime Club (1) Dutch crime fiction (1) ecfp (1) Europa Editions (2) Feminist Press (1) Forgotten Books (3) French crime fiction (32) German crime fiction (7) German fiction (1) Glagoslav Publications (1) Greek crime fiction (1) Hersilia Press (1) Hesperus Press (3) Hesperus Worldwide (1) Hillman-Curl Clue Club (1) historical crime fiction (31) historical mystery series (1) historical true crime (11) history of mystery (27) House of Stratus (4) Hungarian crime fiction (1) in love with this book! (1) Irish crime fiction (7) Irish fiction (2) Israel crime fiction (1) Italian crime fiction (43) Japanese crime fiction/mysteries (13) just me talkin' (2) Korean crime fiction (1) Latin American crime fiction (9) Legend Press (1) Leonaur (2) locked-room/imossible crime (1) locked-room/impossible crime (1) MacLehose Press (12) Masterpiece Mystery (2) Mexico crime fiction (2) Millipede press (1) Minotaur Books (1) Molotov Editions (1) mystery series opener (31) New Zealand crime fiction (1) Nigerian crime fiction (1) NYRB books (4) NYRB Classics series (1) obscure women writers (12) obscure writer project (21) obscure writers (2) page to screen (18) Peepal Tree Press (1) Pegasus Crime (1) Penzler Publishers American Mystery Classics (1) Philippines - crime fiction (1) Poland crime fiction (6) Portuguese crime fiction (1) psychic detectives (1) Pushkin Vertigo (12) Quercus publishing (3) Rue Morgue Press (1) Russia crime fiction (1) Russia/USSR crime fiction (4) Scandinavian crime fiction (71) sci-fi edged crime (1) sensation fiction (1) Serpent's Tail Publishing (2) Seventh Street Books (2) sherlockian (1) Simenon (1) Soho Crime (13) Spanish Crime Fiction (7) spy fiction (1) Stark House (4) Stork Press (1) supernatural-tinged crime fiction (4) Switzerland crime fiction (1) thriller/suspense (22) Turkey crime fiction (1) UK fiction (2) Unnamed Press (1) Wildside books (4) woman detective (1)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line588
__label__cc	0.631923	0.368077	Benchwarmer Home Page Benchwarmer Bash Quarterfinal - Game 6 Silicon Valley at Brick Pos AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB HBP SB E Odubel Herrera OF 4 1 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 Mookie Betts OF 4 2 3 0 2 0 2 1 0 0 0 Manny Machado 3B 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 Jose Abreu 1B 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Max Kepler OF 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 Josh Bell DH 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 Elvis Andrus SS 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Yolmer Sanchez 2B 3 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Benchwarmer Catcher C 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 Slot IP K H BB ER S Gerrit Cole P1 6.0 11 3 3 0 0 Bullpen* 3.0 4 4 1 3 6 L (0-2) IP Short = 0.7 Thomas Pham OF 5 3 3 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 Jose Ramirez 3B 6 2 2 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 Daniel Palka (B1) DH 4 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 J.D. Martinez OF 5 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Eduardo Escobar SS 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 Eduardo Nunez OF 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Niko Goodrum 2B 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Carlos Santana 1B 4 1 1 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 0 Isiah Kiner-Falefa (B2) C 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 36 7 11 3 0 2 10 1 0 0 0 Justin Verlander P1 6.0 6 3 0 0 0 W (1-1) Bullpen 3.0 5 1 1 0 5 Team Batting Score Pitching Score Superior Pitching Home Team Total Silicon Valley 3.95 0.575 0 0 -0.367 Brick 8.26833 -2.684 -1 0.33 4.75167 BWB Score Formula - Final score is a combination of your batting score and your opponent's pitching score. Component Batting Scores Team RR ATB HR Score Silicon Valley 0.86667 7.03333 0 Brick 6.70333 7.83333 1 Component Pitching Scores Team Starter ER BP * BI K Score Sv Score HBB Score Err Score Silicon Valley 0 2.625 1.55 1.5 0 1 Brick 0 0 1.104 1.25 -0.33 0 Hitters scored using MLB Game 96 Starting pitching performance pulled from the closest start to MLB Game 96 (within 7 games) Bullpen scored using MLB Games 91 through 96	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line590
__label__cc	0.73402	0.26598	Forums Droid News & Site News Android News AT&T to Launch Mobile 5G in 2018 Discussion in 'Android News' started by danDroid, Jan 4, 2018. danDroid Administrator AT&T* expects to be the first U.S. company to introduce mobile 5G service in a dozen markets by late 2018. The promise of mobile 5G is seemingly endless and we’re moving fast to make that promise a reality. To reach this ambitious milestone, we’ve taken a different approach to transforming our network. AT&T 5G services will be based on industry standards for 5G. To make this happen, we were one of the key drivers for standards acceleration last year. Because of that acceleration, 3GPP, the international wireless standards body, completed key elements of 5G new radio (NR) standards last month. With these specifications now available, hardware, chipset and device manufacturers can start development. This allows us to provide mobile 5G services sooner. We’re confident this latest standards milestone will allow us to bring 5G to market faster without compromising its long-term vision. “5G will change the way we live, work and enjoy entertainment,” said Melissa Arnoldi, president, AT&T Technology and Operations. “We’re moving quickly to begin deploying mobile 5G this year and start unlocking the future of connectivity for consumers and businesses. With faster speeds and ultra-low latency, 5G will ultimately deliver and enhance experiences like virtual reality, future driverless cars, immersive 4K video and more.” In addition to plans for offering mobile 5G to consumers this year, we expect to trial 5G technology with businesses of all sizes across industries to help them to transform business operations and create more engaging experiences for their customers. Taking 5G to the edge As standards continue to develop, 5G will advance and won’t just be about faster speeds on your phone. It will also mean much lower latency, which will be enhanced by a new range of applications utilizing edge computing. A quick primer: latency refers to how long it takes for the network to recognize you’ve requested a chunk of data and to start sending you that data. For example, it’s the brief delay between the moment you press play on a streaming video app and the moment the video shows up on your screen. We expect future 5G technologies will eventually allow future driverless vehicles to make real-time decisions based on information that goes beyond the individual sensors onboard the vehicle itself. Vehicles will be able to “see” around corners, through other vehicles, and at longer distances. This will enable vehicles to quickly make sense of their environment and help guide safe operations on the road. That’s what we mean about 5G unlocking a new level of experiences beyond just speed. See the full press release @ AT&T to Launch Mobile 5G in 2018 #1 danDroid, Jan 4, 2018 only 12 cities in 2018???? I could have sworn there were more than 12 cities in the US I wonder what the prices will be... #2 me just sayin, Jan 4, 2018 RETG Active Member West of the Rockies, East of the Pacific From my perspective AT&T needs to expand their service areas in the western state to make them a viable alternative to Verizon. I tried AT&T two years ago for three months, and their coverage was terrible,. Had to switch back to Verizon to have any chance of coverage in the mountains. #3 RETG, Jan 6, 2018 shockracer Active Member Northern, CO Verizon has been doing 5GTF testing in 11 different cities for almost a year now. #4 shockracer, Jan 6, 2018 shockracer said: ↑ but is it real 5g azs t mobile 5g news	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line598
__label__wiki	0.649251	0.649251	Colonel De To Hold Fundraiser for Rabbit Hash Bash in New Fort ThomasHeadquarters Local Celebrity Chefs Will Join Spice Master, Colonel De Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices is moving its headquarters to the historic Hiland Building in Fort Thomas. But while the history behind that building, located at 18 N. Fort Thomas Avenue, is storied, it doesn't compare to the Rabbit Hash General Store, which was burned to the ground on February 14 this year. The fire that began inside the iconic general store was too much for the old, mostly-wooden structure. It burned throughout a nearly five-hour firefight in near-sub-zero temperatures and was destroyed. The store had been in continual operation since 1831, according to the Rabbit Hash Historical Society - a span in which 38 U.S. presidents took office. It was on the National Register of Historic Places and few items were salvaged. Firefighters said it was a complete loss. Local Spice Master, Colonel De Stewart announced a fundraiser that will help rebuild the store to it's original glory. "Like most of you, I’ve been a fan of Rabbit Hash for many years. I have so many fond memories of picnics and music in this community," said Stewart. "We all share in the sorrow for the loss of the General Store. Like all of my many friends that live in Rabbit Hash, I believe that the General Store will rise again. We are excited to be giving back to help rebuild a Kentucky Treasured Landmark." Stewart and other local celebrity chefs, including Jimmy Gibson of Jimmy G’s and David Miller from Crave and Don Lambert from The Colonel's Creamery, have come together to throw the first Rabbit Hash Bash complete with music, food and a silent auction. The event will be on Saturday, March 12 from noon to 6 p.m. It will be the first chance to see the facility, which had formerly been Marshall Granger's Jewelers and Jewels on the Avenue. The grand opening is slated for Friday, April 22 and will be the fourth shop for Stewart. Stewart, whose friend Don E. Clare is head of the Rabbit Hash Historical Society, has a natural affinity for small-town nostalgia, which is one of the reasons the Rabbit Hash Bash was hatched. Colonel De Gourmet Spices and Herbs boasts over 500 herbs, spices and blends. Colonel De even provides consulting and produces custom blends for over 50 chefs and/or restaurants. "We pride ourselves in having those hard to find spices," says Stewart in a previous FTM article. "With many of our more exotic products we are one of only a handful of vendors Nationwide that offer these products." RELATED: Colonel De Signs Lease for Hiland Building The herbs, spices and blends are sold by the ounce so patrons can purchase only the amount they need. The sauces are sold by the jar or bottle. Rabbit Hash Bash "patron" tickets are $50 in advance and $75 at the door. That ticket will include two drink tickets, music and food under a big, white tent located in parking lot behind the Colonel De Headquarters. Rabbit Hash Bash "VIP" tickets are $125, in advance only, and will include a private welcoming reception with local celebrity chefs, an open bar, music, swag bag of goodies, a private tour of the new headquarters and tickets to the Colonel De grand opening. All tickets to the Rabbit Hash Bash can be purchased on line by clicking here. All proceeds will benefit the rebuild of the Rabbit Hash General Store. A GoFundMe page that was set up is seeking $250,000 for the rebuild effort and has reached over $55,000. Labels: Colonel De, Hiland Building, The Historic Hiland Building	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line607
__label__wiki	0.961689	0.961689	News for 27 August 2013 Tuesday, 27 August 2013 09:21 \| All the news for Tuesday 27 August 2013 India also makes the semis after a 2-0 win over S. Korea IPOH: India sailed into the Asia Cup semi-finals after a dominant showing against South Korea in a Group B tie. The Indians defeated the Koreans 2-0 at the Azlan Shah Stadium yesterday. The Indians have always fared better against the Koreans in the Asia Cup. This meeting is the ninth encounter between the two teams and the tally is six wins for the Indians with one draw and two defeats. Overall both countries have played each other 69 times and the Indians have a record of 27 wins, 12 draws and 30 losses. Thus their matches have always been close and the encounter today was no different. V. R. Raghunath scored an early goal in the sixth minute off their first penalty corner. From then on it became a midfield battle with both sides not leaving much space for attacks. But when they broke through the goal on either was in danger of being breached. For most part of the first half it was the Indians who were in dominant form. The second half did not see increase in pace by either side as they kept to a cautious note. Skipper Sardara Singh, recovering from illness, was a prominent figure in the India midfield as he prodded his attacks in to action. But it would seem that the Koreans are happy to sit back and take in the attacks by India. The match was headed for a draw when the Indians snatched their second goal and seal the game in their favour. In came in the 65th minute off a long cross into the D by the Indians which was then well trapped by Mandeep Singh at the top of the semi-circle. He beat two Koreans players and beat goalkeeper Lee Myung-ho. It was the young striker’s fourth goal of the tournament. Indian goalkeeper P. R. Sreejesh was named man-of-the-match. Official Asian Cup site Oman wins 4-2 against Bangladesh IPOH: Oman clinched their first win of the Asia Cup when they defeated Bangladesh 4-2 in a Group B tie at the Azlan Shah Stadium. Oman is making their debut in the tournament and the win gives them a slim chance at making the last four. But they would have to beat South Korea by a big margin to qualify. Both teams had started the tournament with a defeat. The Bangladesh team was beaten 0-9 by South Korea while India had defeated Oman 8-0. The Omanis took the lead against the Bangladesh team through Hashim Ghani in the 28th minute. That was the only goal scored in the first half. The second half saw a much closer fight from both teams and more goals were scored. Oman struck in the 42 through Mohamed Ali Shar while Khatar Rejab added the other two in the 45th and 58th minutes. Muhammad Mamunur added a consolation goal for Bangladesh in the 69th minute. The teams will complete their group fixtures tomorrow with Oman playing South Korea while Bangladesh takes on India. Aiman Abdullah Ali Khathiri was named the man-of-the-match. Sreejesh, defenders do it for India S.Thyagarajan An exemplary display by the defenders and gallant goalkeeping by Sreejesh helped India cruise into the semifinals, defeating defending champion South Korea 2-0 in the Asia Cup hockey championship here on Monday. The Indians scored once in each half. Imagine a show with Korea unable to score off five penalty corners, all in the first half. Nothing disturbed the composure of Sreejesh, whose athleticism and alacrity under the bar stood pronounced. Even a cascade of sallies by the Koreans could not upset the rhythm and coordination of the defensive phalanx where Sardar Singh was conspicuous as ever. But a good measure of credit should also go to wing-half Bimal Lakra and the hard working Chinglensana whose interceptions were near-perfect, taking a heavy load off the rest of the defenders. Impeccable conversion India should consider itself lucky to survive the first half despite the tremendous pressure exerted by the Koreans. The early goal from an impeccable penalty corner conversion by Raghunath provided the needed confidence to hang on gamely. The forwardline, notwithstanding its flurry of moves, failed to make capital of quite a few openings in the second half. Though Malak Singh lost a good opportunity, Mandeep Singh obtained the second goal five minutes before the hooter after the move was initiated by Chenglensana, to put the issue beyond doubt. India coach Roelant Oltmans admitted that the team had luck on its side in the first half, but acknowledged the role played by Sreejesh. Gumption and rhythm There was something to celebrate for the Omanis after recording their win in Pool B. Playing for the first time at this level, Oman, trained by former German international Michael Kurtz, displayed the gumption and rhythm to overcome a more seasoned unit like Bangladesh 4-2. Initially, it looked as though Bangladesh would build up pressure gradually. But the defenders gave in to the more forthright approach of the Omani forwards who built up a sizeable 4-1 lead to the finish. Only a neat penalty corner drive by skipper Mamunur Rehman reduced the leeway. Oman has three points from two matches, while Bangladesh is yet to open its account. Bangladesh takes on India in its third match. Oman’s next opponent is Korea, on Wednesday. Spain makes the grade The FIH announced on Sunday that Spain, which finished fifth in the European championships at Boom (Belgium), will be the ninth qualifier for the next World Cup at The Hague. This induction leaves three more places to be filled from three continental championships — the Asia Cup now in progress, the African Games and the Oceania Championship. Malaysia is the third reserve followed by India. If any of the champion teams is in the already qualified list, the reserve team will go into the cluster of top 12 for the World Cup. The nine qualifiers now are: Germany, the Netherlands (host), Belgium, England, Spain (Europe), Australia, New Zealand (Oceania), Argentina (Americas) and Korea (Asia). Pool B: India 2 (V. Raghunath, Mandeep Singh) bt Korea 0. Oman 4 (Hashim Ramadhan, Sher Muhammad Hoobais, Rajab Basim 2) bt Bangladesh 2 (Muhammad Roman, Mamunur Rehman). Tuesday’s matches: Pakistan v Chinese Taipei (3.35 p.m.); Japan v Malaysia (5.35 p.m.). India thrash South Korea to enter semis NEW DELHI: P R Sreejesh produced a brilliant display under the bar as two-time champions India stunned title holders South Korea 2-0 in a Pool B match to breeze into the semifinals of the Asia Cup hockey tournament, on Monday. India's arch-rivals Pakistan have already made it to the last four stage from Pool A after beating hosts Malaysia 4-1. The Indians put up an inspired performance and scored a goal in each half through V R Raghunath (6th minute) and Mandeep Singh (65th) to pick up their second win in the eight-nation event. India, who need to win the tournament to qualify for next year's World Cup at The Hague, Netherlands, had thumped minnows Oman 8-0 in their tournament opener. The Indians started brightly and dominated the early exchanges. In the first half India played possession hockey and utilised both the flanks to build up their attacks. The Indians need to thank their goalkeeper Sreejesh as he made as many as six-seven clear saves to keep a clean slate for his team. He also earned the man-of-the-match award. The Indians stunned Korea early in the match taking the lead through Raghunath. The well built defender converted India's first penalty corner with a powerful low dragflick to the right corner of the Korean goal past, beating goalkeeper Lee Myung Ho. But thereafter, the Indians should consider themselves lucky not to have conceded a goal as Korea put the Indian defence under continuous pressure with repeated raids. The Koreans earned as many five penalty corners in the opening half but failed to convert a single one. While an onrushing Gurmail Singh blocked the Nam Hyun Woo's flick, an outstretched Sreejesh made one of his few brilliant saves from Korea's second short corner a few minutes later. Five minutes from the break, India had a golden chance to double their lead but an unmarked Malak Singh shot wide from close range. Towards the end of the opening half, the Indians unnecessarily invited pressure, conceding three more penalty corners. But a brilliant Sreejesh under the goal once again came to India's rescue to deny the Koreans. After the change of ends, the Koreans continued in the same vein and consistently put the Indian defence under pressure. But Sreejesh stood like rock between Korea and goal as he made an acrobatic save in the 51st minute to deny Kang Moon Kweon. If not for Sreejesh's efforts, India could have very well lost the match. The lanky custodian denied the Koreans on two to three occasions in the final 10 minutes to keep India afloat. Towards the end, it was India's turn to exert some pressure on the Korean defence and came very close to doubling their lead, but an unmarked Malak shot wide with only the onrushing Korean goalkeeper Lee to beat. But young Mandeep took the game away from Korea scoring India's second goal --- his fourth of the tournament - just five minutes from the hooter. Mandeep slotted home with a powerful shot from top of the circle after snatching the ball from a Korean defender, who was unable to control Chinglensana Singh's cross. India will play Bangladesh in their last pool match on Wednesday while Korea will be up against Oman. India avoid Pakistan in semis after win against Korea IPOH India rode on goals from Raghunath (6th minute) and Mandeep Singh (65th) to get the better of South Korea in an Asia Cup pool B league match in Ipoh on Monday evening. The 2-0 win takes India to the top of their group with six points from two matches. India had pumped in eight goals without reply in their first match against Oman on Saturday. Monday’s win guarantees India a berth in the semifinals. The two-time former champions are scheduled to play minnows Bangladesh on Wednesday and a victory will mean India will avoid a semifinal meeting with arch-rivals Pakistan, who became the first team to make the round of last-four after beating hosts Malaysia 4-1 on Sunday. India must win the Asia Cup to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in The Hague. With at least five top stars missing from their line-up, a young team under Dutch coach Roelant Oltmans is under pressure to deliver. At Ipoh’s Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium on Monday, India were lucky to come away with full points against a rampaging Korean side who did all but score. Goalkeeper Sreejesh had an outstanding day, making at least five wonderful saves to earn the Man of the Match award. India took an early lead in the sixth minute with Raghunath scoring from a penalty corner. It was the only short corner that came India’s way in the entire match. The Koreans wasted five short corners in the contest and all of them in the first half. India defended well with Rupinderpal Singh and Gurmail Singh spoiling the Korean rhythm with timely interceptions. Sreejesh, of course, stood like the Chinese Wall. In spite of territorial advantage and more ball possession, Korea failed to score. After having their backs to the wall, the Indians came out of their cocoon late in the second session. Mandeep struck with five minutes left for the hooter with a crisp shot from top of the circle after a diagonal Dharamvir pass split the Korean defence. South Korea are the only Asian team to have qualified for the World Cup. The defending Asian Cup champions got the monkey off their back after Argentina won the Pan American continental championship, which lifted the Koreans from among the first reserves to become the eighth team to qualify for the premier event. Oman registers first win in Asia Cup Hockey Oman clinched their first win of the Asia Cup hockey when they defeated Bangladesh 4—2 in a Group B tie at the Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh on Monday. Oman are making their debut in the tournament and the win gives them a slim chance at making the last four. But they would have to beat South Korea by a big margin to qualify. Aiman Abdullah Ali Khathiri was named the man-of-the-match. Oman struck in the 42nd minute through Mohamed Ali Shar while Khatar Rejab added the other two in the 45th and 58th minute. The teams will complete their group fixtures Tuesday with Oman playing South Korea while Bangladesh take on India. Oman stun Bangladesh 4-2 to stay in hunt IPOH (Malaysia): Debutants Oman sent higher-ranked Bangladesh out of the semifinal race while keeping their hopes alive with a stunning 4-2 win in a Pool B match of the ninth Asia Cup hockey tournament on Monday. By virtue of this victory, 36th ranked Oman avenged their 1-4 drubbing at the hands of the same opponents in the FIH World League Round 2 in New Delhi earlier this year. Oman were content playing the waiting game and the 31st-ranked Bangladesh looked out of sorts. Oman capitalised on Bangaldesh's fragile backline and scored through Hashim Ghanim Ramadan Al Shatri (29th), Mohammad Hoobais Al Shar (43rd), Rajab Bhasin Khatar (45th, 59th) to register the upset win and their first points in the tournament. For Bangaldesh, Mohammad Roman Sarkar (53rd) and captain Md Mamunur Rahman Chayan (69th) were the goal-getters. Bangladesh were undone by the poor work of their forwards who failed to utilise the opportunities that came their way. Oman were cautious in their approach but when scoring opportunities came their way they grabbed it with both hands. Oman took the lead from one such opportunity through a field goal from Hashim Ghanim Ramadan Al Shatri as Bangladesh defence was caught napping. Oman doubled their lead in the 43rd minute through Mohammad Hoobais Al Shar, who converted their first penalty corner. Two minutes later, Oman once again caught Bangladesh off-guard and increased their lead with a field goal through Rajab Bhasin Khatar. Bangladesh, however, managed to reduce the margin in the 53rd minute with a field goal from Mohammad Roman Sarkar. Oman earned back-to-back penalty corners in the 58th minute and Khatar converted one to score his second goal of the day and help his side restore the three-goal lead. Bangladesh pulled another back in the dying moments of the match through a penalty corner conversion by skipper Chayan, but it was not enough to save them from humiliation. Oman will next play defending champions Korea in the last pool engagement on Wednesday while Bangladesh will be up against two-time champions India. Chance for Oltmans to get Indian hockey back on track Krishna Kanta Chakraborty CHENNAI: With a young team at his disposal, Roelant Oltmans, high performance director of the Indian hockey team has a tough task at hand. But if he returns home with good results from the ongoing Asia Cup hockey, the confidence of the India's interim coach will get a huge boost. India have already won both the matches in the tournament and most importantly blanked defending champions South Korea 2-0 in their seconds match on Monday. India routed Oman 8-0 in their opening game. The Indian hockey team, which has had a poor run in the international arena for many years, now has to perform well to bring back old glory. With Aussie coach Michael Nobbs getting sacked two months ago, Oltmans was given the charge of the national team and the Dutchman believes that he has the ability to enhance India's performance and that may well begin with success in the Asia Cup. "I'll be responsible for the team's performance but at the same time I'm confident of a good show. We have prepared ourselves in the best possible manner in the short period of time we had. We can assure you all that we will give our cent percent every single minute and in every single game we play in the tournament. Of course, they are young. But that doesn't mean they are not good. They are good and they have showed that. There will be a lot of young faces," Oltmans had said before the tournament. India, who have already made all right moves towards semifinals berth, will take on Bangladesh. Sreejesh proved he is India's best goalkeeper: Oltmans IPOH: India's interim coach Roelant Oltmans values team effort than individual brilliance but the Dutchman was all praise for P R Sreejesh's sterling performance under the bar today and termed him the "best goalkeeper" in the country. Sreejesh produced a fine show under the bar to help two-time champions India stun title holders South Korea 2-0 in their second Pool B match and secure their place in the semifinals of the ninth Asia Cup hockey tournament here. Sreejesh made as many as six-seven clear saves, which included some acrobatic efforts, to keep a clean slate for India and also earn the man-of-the-match award. "There is only one man-of-the-match and I am happy that Sreejesh got it. But for me there is only one hero and that's my team. We don't have individuals, we are a team and we work as a team. We compete as a team and try to give our best performance as a team," Oltmans said after the match at the Sultan Azlan Shah stadium. "No doubt Sreejesh is by far the best goalkeeper in India and he has proved it yet again today," he added. The coach also had words of appreciation for captain Sardar Singh-led midfield and defence, which was considered as India's perennial problem. "I am happy that Sardar was able to play a little bit more again. He is slowly getting fitter and rising to the occasion. We need him later on in the tournament. But I am very happy with the performance of all the midfielders - S K Uthappa, Chinglensana (Singh), Manpreet (Singh). "Not only midfield but our defenders did very well. I am happy with the overall team performance. This is a huge experience for youngsters of our team," the coach said. Oltmans, however, said that India were lucky not to have conceded a goal in the opening half and felt his wards played better after the change of ends. "To be honest, we were lucky to be leading at halftime, especially after conceding five penalty corners in the first half. The Koreans were the better side in the first half. But in the second half after about 10 minutes we were able to turn the game," he observed. "All in all, we played quite well in this match and scored good goals. It was an interesting test for us. It was a serious test for the team for the first time. It gave us an idea where we were good and where will have to improve. We are trying to change our style during the course of the matches so that it doesn't become easy for opponents," he signed off. India eye big win over Bangladesh ahead of Asia Cup semis IPOH: Already through to the semifinals, an upbeat India would aim to keep their winning juggernaut rolling and end their pool engagements with a thumping victory over minnows Bangladesh in the Asia Cup hockey tournament on Wednesday. After back-to-back victories against Oman and defending champions South Korea, the Indians are brimming with confidence but they cannot afford to relax in the eight-nation tournament, which they desperately need to win to qualify for next year's World Cup at The Hague, Netherlands. India sealed their semifinal place after shocking title holders South Korea 2-0 in their second Pool B match at the Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium on Monday. A win against Bangladesh tomorrow would ensure India top Pool B which means they will most likely take on hosts Malaysia in the semifinals and avoid arch-rivals Pakistan till the final hurdle. Taming Bangladesh shouldn't be much of a problem for Roelant Oltmans' boys as the Tigers' would be morally down after consecutive defeats, especially after yesterday's 2-4 loss against Oman, a side which is five places below them in the world rankings. Bangladesh had earlier lost 0-9 to Korea in their opening tie. For both eight-time Olympic champions India and neighbours Pakistan, it is a do-or-die tournament as one of them faces the prospect of missing out on a World Cup berth for the first time since the launch of the tournament in 1971. But having impressed all and sundry with their game so far, the Indians would be hoping to carry on the momentum to crucial classification matches. The Indian midfield under inspirational captain Sardar Singh blossomed against the Koreans yesterday. Not only the mid-fielders, India's ever-fragile backline too dished out a fine show yesterday and stood tall to thwart Korea's relentless attacks. And Oltmans would hope for similar performances from his players in the remainder of the event. "I am very happy with the performance of all the mid-fielders - Sardar, S K Uthappa, Chinglensana (Singh), Manpreet (Singh). Our defenders also did very well. I am happy with the overall team performance. This is a huge experience for youngsters of our team," Oltmans said. It would not be fair to overlook the performance of India's young and inexperienced forward line which so far managed to live up to the expectations. In the absence of quartet of Danish Mujtaba, SV Sunil, Gurwinder Singh Chandi and Akashdeep Singh -- all out of the tournament due to injuries, India fielded a young, untested forward line for this tournament. But the likes of Mandeep Singh, Nithin Thimmaiah, Malak Singh, Ramandeep Singh and Nikin Thimmaiah managed to rise to the occasion and did not let anyone feel the vacuum created by the injuries to senior players. Young Mandeep, in particular, is in superb form and so far scored four goals in the tournament, including three against Oman the other day. On the goalkeeping front, P R Sreejesh is in rollicking form and against Korea he showed why he is considered as India's best goalkeeper. Against Korea, Sreejesh made as many as six-seven clear saves, which included some acrobatic efforts, to earn the man-of-the-match award and help India keep a slate clean. But India will have to do away with their habit of providing easy scoring chances to their opponents ahead of the important classification matches. Oltmans too admitted that India were lucky not have conceded a goal in the opening half against Korea. "To be honest we were lucky to be leading at halftime, especially after conceding five penalty corners in the first half," he said. Going by head-to-head record, the Indians are expected to steamroll the Bangladeshis tomorrow. India defeated Bangladesh 18 times out of 19 encounters between the two teams so far with one ending in a draw. Out of the 18 wins, six came in the Asia Cup. Defensive blues Kumar admits backline has not been impressive Malaysia’s Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin (centre) tries to get past a Pakistan player at the Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium on Sunday. Pic by Muhaizan Yahya GOALKEEPER S. Kumar holds the key to Malaysia making the Asia Cup semi-finals at the Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh today. But going by form, Kumar might allow the Japanese in instead. Voted the best goalkeeper in Asia in 2011, Kumar and his main defenders Razie Rahim and Baljit Singh have been guilty of letting in five goals in two matches in Ipoh, and a whopping 18 goals in six matches in the World Legue Semi-finals in Johor Baru. "Yes, five goals in two matches do look a bit too many, but I'm still focused on the task at hand which is to win the Asia Cup gold medal. "And I will give my best against Japan to achieve that target," said Kumar. Taiwan scored off their first shot at goal against Kumar, while Pakistan's shots were not that dangerous but the ball still slipped past the defenders and the goalkeeper. "We did not impress against Japan (1-1) in the World League, and had to win the shoot-out, but I have a feeling that my teammates are ready to beat Japan and play in the semi-finals," said Kumar. Another player who had a bad run in Johor Baru and is having the same in Ipoh is striker Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin, who started his career as a promising player in the 2005 Junior World Cup in Rotterdam. But he has been overtaken by younger strikers in the last two tournaments. "I played the feeder's role when playing Taiwan, and against Pakistan, the marking was too tight as at times five players surrounded me when I got the ball. "And many times when I ran with the ball, there was not enough Malaysian support in the semi-circle to turn the attack into goal. Yes, it has been a disappointing tournament for me, but I hope to deliver against Japan and make it memorable," said Tengku Ahmad. Pakistan are assured of the top spot in Group A as they play whipping boys Taiwan today, while Malaysia will need to beat or hold Japan to a draw to secure their semi-final slot. Pakistan to play out of their skins in semis. ISLAMABAD - Former Olympian Shahnaz Sheikh on Monday said that Pakistan players would have to play out of their skins against their opponents in the semi-final of Hockey Asia Cup. Pakistan got back-to-back convincing victories in their first Group A matches of 9th Asian Cup they have played so far defeating Japan 7-0 in the first game before eliminating hosts Malaysia 4-1 in their second fixture on Sunday. Pakistan, who have qualified for semi-final, are also expected to whip minnows Chinese Taipei when they take on them on today (Tuesday). The semi-final will be the first real test for our players ahead of final as they will be facing either arch-rivals India or quicksilver South Koreans. “The tournament is very important for Pakistan to qualify for the World Cup and everyone in our team will have to play out of skin,” said. Shahnaz lauded national team’s performance in first two matches but suggested forward line players to attack their opponents in the semi-final in pairs instead of focusing on individual attacks. “The best form of attack in hockey is a trio-attack. But I will suggest our players that if they can’t do that they should at least adopt pair attacks against their rivals in the semi-final,” he added. He said winning Asia Cup was vital for Pakistan as they would not only qualify for the 2014 World Cup at Hague, Netherlands and improve their rankings but would also become Asian Champions after 20 years. He said semi-final would be hell of a challenge for Pakistan. “For both Pakistan and India, the Asia Cup is a do-or-die tournament as one of them faces the prospect of missing out on a World Cup berth for the first time since its launch in 1971,” he said. “If Pakistan meets India in the semi-final, the latter will also be trying their best as they too desperately need to win the event to reserve a berth in the World Cup. And in case if it is a South Korea-Pakistan clash, then it will be even more challenging as after having already qualified for the World Cup, the South Koreans will be desperate to assert their supremacy in the eight-nation event by defending their title,” Shahnaz added. About Pakistan team’s defence, he said it was comprised of most aged trio of Wasim, Imran and Salman Akbar adding that the management should devise a plan for Wasim and Imran’s substitution during the game so that they could sustain the pressure. Shahnaz also asked the team management to teach the players art to get penalty corners purposely. National broadcaster urged to telecast Asia Cup ISLAMABAD - Pakistan hockey team is currently in Malaysia to participate in the ninth Asia Cup Hockey Tournament which is very significant for the green shirts as their future of participation in the Hockey World Cup 2014 depends on the outcome of this event. But to the utter disappointment of the millions of hockey followers of the country, the national broadcaster didn’t bother to telecast this highly-significant event, thus depriving masses of watching their stars in action. Hockey is our national game but it is getting step motherly treatment from the TV giants and also from the government. This game is fast losing its charm in the upcoming generation as cricket has long overtaken all the other sports. With none of the so-called champions of sports promoters in the private channels, who claim to be the first to open a separate channel for sports, bothered to telecast this event. It was the national and moral duty of the state run channel to make arrangements to telecast this prestigious event which has other priorities. They are free to telecast tennis, soccer and other international sports live, spending huge national exchequer in the process for a limited group of fans, but they don’t have the funds or means to broadcast our national game. People from different walks of life have resented national broadcasters’ attitude and demanded an immediate inquiry into this matter of national interest, as why and on what grounds, national TV has failed to make arrangements to telecast Hockey Asia Cup 2013. Talking to The Nation, former Pakistan hockey team captain and winner of 1994 Hockey World Cup legendry goalkeeper Mansoor Ahmed said: “I am very disappointed with the behaviour of the national TV. They have a separate sports channel, then what are the reasons they didn’t bother to make arrangements to telecast the Asia Cup. I along with other ex-Olympians request to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to look into this matter, as if our national game can’t be telecast on national TV, then what will be the future of this game?” “We will soon meet with Prime Minister and take up this issue and ensure these things will not be repeated in future,” Mansoor concluded. Now Pakistan hockey team have qualified for the semi-finals so the state run channel should make arrangements to telecast the semifinal and final of the event, so people may at least watch their favourite sons in action in the high-profile matches. Love for hockey keeps Bharat Chikara going IPOH: For any sportsperson who has earned fame and adulation, it is always difficult to digest neglect and oblivion and out-of-favour India hockey forward Bharat Chikara is no different. Chikara, who not long ago was vital a cog in the Indian hockey team's forward line and was a member of India's silver medal winning squad in 2010 Commonwealth Games, has been living a lonely life since losing his place in the national team after London Olympics qualifier. Like many other seniors, Chiakara's decision to play in the unauthorised World Series Hockey proved costly as he was labelled a rebel by the national federation and subsequently dropped from the London-bound squad. But Chikara, who was also part of India's bronze medal winning squad in Guangzhou Asian Games, is no mood to give up without a fight. At 29, he knows very well that age is not on his side but what keeps him going is his love for the game and faith in his stick work. Eying one last shot at a national comeback, Chikara is not even thinking about his monetary condition. He is spending money from his own pocket to travel to Ipoh, Malaysia to watch India's matches in the Asia Cup and get an idea about the team's changing trends in their style of play. "I came here a day before the tournament began and leaving after the final. It's my love for the game and determination to make a return to the national team that brought me here. No one sponsored my trip, I had to shell out money from my savings for this trip," Chikara said outside the Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium. "I am out of the team since the Olympic qualifiers. After the qualifiers I went to give my MBA exams at Panchkula and while returning I stayed in Chandigarh to play in the World Series Hockey. Since then I have never been called to the national camp although I have doing very well for Indian Oil Corporation in domestic tournaments," he said. But with Hockey India deciding to offer amnesty to rebel WSH players, thereby providing them an opportunity to be part of the mini players auction of Hockey India League to be held in October this year, Chikara is hoping for a new beginning. "I am very much hopeful of making a comeback (in the national team). If there is no hope, there is no way. Hockey India's decision to include WSH players in HIL auctions is a welcome step," he said. "I will be there in the auction pool. I am eager to play in next year's HIL but it remains to be seen whether any team picks me or not." Apart from the 2010 Commonwealth Games and Asian Games, Chikara also played in the 2010 FIH World Cup held in New Delhi. Seventh heaven for U21 Burras men Blake Govers nets a hat-trick in 7-1 win over Malaysia Match day two saw a much more clinical performance for the men’s U21s, the Burras, in Brisbane. Having narrowly edged Malaysia 1-0 on Sunday, Paul Gaudoin’s charges were looking for an improved performance on Monday evening. And they responded well to post a 7-1 victory including five second half goals. A tentative start suggested little of what was to occur as the game progressed but once Blake Govers (NSW) scored seven minutes before half time the flood gates opened. Aaron Kershaw (NSW) made it 2-0 just before the break and Aussie number 20 bagged his second penalty corner immediately after the restart to make it 3-0. In a whirlwind five minutes, Daniel Robertson (WA) got in on the action for 4-0 in the 39th minute and Aidan Rintala (QLD) hit Australia’s fifth moments later. The Burras were not done yet though. There was still plenty of time remaining and it proved to be time enough for Govers to go on to complete a hat-trick with a 44th minute goal from open play and a 59th minute penalty corner. The Malaysians grabbed an equaliser from a penalty corner seven minutes from the end but it did little to take the shine off Australia’s more clinical performance in the circle. Tweet about the series using #burrashockey and see your tweets on our social media hub. Remaining fixtures - Australia U21 Men v Malaysia U21 Men Queensland State Hockey Centre, Brisbane Wednesday 28 August – 2:00pm AEST Thursday 29 August – 3:30pm AEST Australia U21 Men’s Squad Ed Chittleborough (GK) (South Australia) Simon Borger (Queensland) Jeremy Hayward (Northern Territory) Robert Bell (Queensland) Aaron Kershaw (New South Wales) Casey Hammond (Victoria) Aidan Rintala (Queensland) Flynn Ogilvie (New South Wales) Frank Main (Western Australia) Blake Govers (New South Wales) Justin Douglas (Queensland) Subs Used Adam Luck (GK) (Northern Territory) Cameron Joyce (South Australia) Kane Posselt (Queensland) Daniel Beale (Queensland) Daniel Robertson (Western Australia) Dylan Wotherspoon (Queensland) Tyler Cowley (Victoria) Hockey Australia media release Free State run champs Southerns down to the wire on BDO Men's IPT day two JONATHAN COOK in Cape Town Day two of the BDO Men’s Interprovincial Hockey Tournament at Hartleyvale in Cape Town Monday brought a galaxy of goals and some very exciting matches. In the top-tier A Section, KZN Inland beat North West 6-1, KZN Raiders beat Western Province Peninsula 3-1, Southern Gauteng beat Free State 4-2; South Africa U21 demolished KZN Mynahs 15-0; Northern Blues drew 2-2 with Witwatersrand and Tuffy Western Province beat Fain Eastern Province 3-1. On the first day of B Section action, Border edged EP Settlers 2-1 and Western Province Disas beat a willing Namibia 5-2. While the day was punctuated by some big winning margins, there were also a number of close-run results and one of those matches was that between defending champions Southern Gauteng and rank underdogs Free State. Southerns, with a dozen players boasting national selection past and present, only led for the last five minutes of the match as a Free State side possessing massive self-belief and refusing go with the sway of accepted wisdom first established a 2-0 lead inside the first 17 minutes and then clung on tenaciously to that advantage until the last 10 minutes. This Free State team under the leadership of coach and Atlanta 96 Olympian Allistar Fredericks and underrated defender and captain Jaco Fourie got on the scoresheet in the fifth minute when Fourie converted a penalty corner. Nazo Mlakalaka made it 2-0 in the 17th minute when he followed up his initial shot and buried the rebound off SA goalkeeper and Southerns captain Rassie Pieterse’s pads. Make no mistake, Southerns dominated this match and won 16 penalty corners to Free State’s two from their multiple advances into the strike zone, but keeper Xander van Biljon was inspirational in the Bloemfontein-based side’s goalmouth, while his defenders were also heroic. The sheer volume of Southerns’ goalscoring opportunities from field play and set-pieces had to count for something in the end - and so it proved against a brave but played-out opponent, the Johannesburg lads bagging four goals in the last 15 minutes through Brandon Panther, Dean Symons, Ricky West and Miguel da Graca. SA U21, in the tournament under special dispensation in order to prepare for the Junior World cup in Delhi, India in December, had drag-flick wizard James Drummond in irresistible form against hapless KZN Mynahs, the hugely talented Capetonian nailing two penalty corners and the same number of field goals inside 13 minutes of first-half mayhem before adding a fifth after the changeover. The SA juniors played sublime one-touch hockey at times and one of the beneficiaries, with four goals, was Ignatius Malgraff. Patchy at times, the juniors put it together with effect six more times through a brace apiece by Grant Glutz and Matt Brown, and one apiece from Damien Kimfley and Chad Cairncross. In the late game, Tuffy Western Province withstood some early pressure from Fain Eastern Province before SA striker Lloyd Norris-Jones broke free in the 12th minute to set up national team-mate Pierre de Voux’s first-timer that flew high into the net. EP hit back through former SA forward Geowynne Gamiet before WP captain and double Olympian Andrew Cronje’s penalty stroke a minute before half-time gave the home crowd much to cheer about. Turning around 2-1 to the good against a highly competitive EP, the WP lads under national assistant coach Pierre le Roux scored one more goal for the deserved 3-1 final score when the red-hot Norris-Jones netted in the 53rd minute. KZN Inland deserved their 6-1 victory over North West, their goals going to Gavin Jelley (3), Zamo Cele, captain Justin Domleo and Satchi Reddy, while North West's goal came from Jardus Smith. KZN Raiders led 1-0 at half-time against WP Peninsula via a stunning penalty corner drag-flick from Greg Last. On-song Raiders captain Wade Paton bagged a brace in the second half while Vaughn Erasmus got on the scoresheet for Pens. Raiders coach Ryan Hack is managing his players well in what will be a marathon seven matches in seven days, taking key players off once he is sure the result is safe. The Northern Blues match against neighbours Witwatersrand was a hard-fought 2-2 draw, the goals going to Stephen Cant and Emile Odendaal for the Blues while Aiden Lotz scored a magnificent goal for Wits with team-mate Matthew Poval netting the equaliser from the penalty spot two minutes from the end. The semi-finals and cross-pool playoffs are on Friday with the gold medal and classification matches on Saturday. MONDAY RESULTS A Section: KZN Raiders 3 Western Province Peninsula 1; KZN Inland 6 North West 1; Southern Gauteng 4 Free State 2; South Africa U21 15 KZN Mynahs 0; Northern Blues 2 Witwatersrand 2; Tuffy Western Province 3 Fain Eastern Province 1. B Section: Border 2 EP Settlers 1; Western Province Disas 5 Namibia 2. TUESDAY FIXTURES A Section: SA U21 vs WP Pens (10 am); Fain EP vs Free State (12 pm); South Gauteng vs North West (2 pm); Northern Blues vs KZN Raiders (4 pm); Tuffy WP vs KZN Inland (6 pm). Pitch B A Section: Wits vs Mynahs (11 am). B Section: EP Settlers vs WP Disas (2 pm); SA Country Districts vs Namibia (4 pm). England look to a silver lining after By Graham Wilson Kate Walsh side scalped Olympic champions Holland 3-2 in the semi-final shoot-out BOTH England squads were licking their wounds after a stunning end to the TriFinance EuroHockey Championships in Boon, Belgium. But realistically, in this post-Olympic rebuilding phase, they should be proud of a show which helped provide the thrills and spills for the fans. To see Kate Walsh’s side scalp the Olympic champions Holland 3-2 in the semi-final shoot-out after a 1-1 draw was a rare sight – and one where Maddie Hinch earned her spurs as the goalkeeper of the tournament. But then a 4-4 final score against Germany, plus the drama of losing a shoot-out 2-0, was everything that the TV game needs. Lee said: “I feel optimistic as there’s lots of room for us to improve. The men came fourth but Belgium were superb in a 3-0 semi-final win. Again England fell short, losing 3-2 against Holland in the bronze play-off, but Olympic champions Germany still won 3-1 in the final. That prompted England coach Bobby Crutchley to say: “The challenge for us now is winning these big games.”	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line610
__label__wiki	0.583821	0.583821	Eduard Malkov Eduard Malkov's profile at Sherdog Eduard Malkov's profile at Tapology Association: N/A Pro Debut Date: 2017-09-10 Pro Record: 2-1-0 Win Finish %: 50.0% Quality Perf. %: 66.7% Last Ranked: 4/01/2019 #536 Welterweight Highest Quarterly Ranking: 4/01/2018 Last Loss Date: 5/19/2019 Last Loss: [NR] Arthur Malhasyan Quarterly Generated Historical Rankings Rating bar represents the fighter's standing relative to the top of the division at the time Date ↑ ↓ Rank Record Points 04/01/2019 17 #536 Welterweight 2-0-0 01/01/2019 8 #519 Welterweight 2-0-0 04/01/2018 NR #463 Welterweight 2-0-0 A fighter's rank (US) state is assigned based on the state that the fighter most frequently fought in professionally, within the past three years. If there is a tie, the most recent state is used. The Win-Loss-Draw record for the fighter in the "Big Leagues". The Big Leagues refer to the top organizations based on a statistical analysis we performed. Some organizations were counted as one, due to mergers, etc. A quality performance is a fight in which the fighter fought an acceptable opponent, and substantiated their current rating (at the time) based on the outcome. At it's most basic level, one can equate "combat age" to "dog years" in that it will mirror the basic human lifecycle. With this computation, we expect fighters to hit their respective "peak" in the years that your typical adult "peaks" in life, somewhere between 25 and 40. We will expect most fighters to start their descent at some point in their 40s and be far removed from their peak by 60. This is an experimental metric that attempts to reflect a fighter's recent opposition quality. The metric goes back 1,080 days, and looks at all the fighter's opponents' W-L-D records within a window of 540 days before, and 540 days after their respective bout(s) with the fighter. All of the records are added up and the cumulative win percentage is presented by this metric in a "strength of schedule" format. These ranking sets have been generated by a recent version of the software, using recent data and will not match previously published issues of the rankings, especially since a majority of these generated sets are for dates much earlier than the site’s inception. Mixed Martial Arts Fighter	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line611
__label__cc	0.704859	0.295141	Flashpoints’ features, articles, events, and productions PEOPLE NOT PLACES: MC Invincble tackles Zionism From the newly-launched Emergence Travel Agency: Please check out this docu-music video by Invincible (Ilana Weaver) about Zionism, Birthright Israel and the ongoing ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from their homeland. Nora Barrows-Friedman assisted in filming some of the interviews. Click Here! Then scroll down to the video under the “People Not Places” banner. People Not Places (Detroit, New York, Palestine, 12 min) Directed by Iqaa The Olivetone Score by Vaughan T (LABTECHS) Produced by EMERGENCE and Palestine Education Project This docu-music-video is based on the song of the same name by Invincible featuring Abeer and Suhell Nafar (DAM). Invincible plays two characters in the video: a Birthright Israel tour recruiter, styled as a used car salesman; and herself, subverting the recruiter’s mission by exposing the buried Palestinian significance of each location in the tour. Invincible exposes the process of historic and continued colonization of Palestine as being even deeper than land seizure and ethnic cleansing, but one that attempts to erase the indigenous language, culture, and memory of Palestinians. Intertwined with the music video are interviews that expose how Zionist claims to a Jewish “birthright” to Palestine have come at the expense of the Palestinian Right of Return to their indigenous land. These interviews show how the Right of Return of Palestinians is interconnected with the resistance of occupied and displaced refugee communities globally, from Turtle Island to Puerto Rico and beyond. People Not Places is featured on Invincible’s ShapeShifters album, available in the EMERGENCE Store. Read lyrics and explanations for People Not Places. Click “MORE” to view related interview videos. 3 to “Bulletins” sandra morey says: I want to be on your mailing list when you get it together. What has happened to Nora Barrows Friedman? I tuned in late today, 5/27/2010 and heard you say that the interview she did was the last. Has she quit? Been fired, laid off? What. I was going to pledge today yet again, but now I’m not sure. I always pledge a little during your time period. Flashpoints says: You can now sign up for our mailing list on the home page of our website at flashpoints.net (at the top of the page, near the middle). As for Nora, she has decided to move on with her work. She will be focusing on other things, especially writing. You can follow her at her blog and her soon-to-be podcast at http://norabf.wordpress.com. In terms of the show, We will definitely maintain a relationship with Nora and she won’t be a stranger to our audience. We hope to build from her 7+ year legacy of shaping Flashpoints and KPFA in incredible ways. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to work with her. Best of luck, Nora!!! Jeff Story says: Do you know another source for your program that has MP3 downloads that work? Unfortunately, the KPFA.org and your own webpage contain non-functioning MP3 downloads. I miss hearing your program and doubt I am the only one.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line614
__label__cc	0.732128	0.267872	Collaborative Governance Program Civil Society Support Nonprofit Management Courses CSO Support Public Policy Support University Assistance Nonprofit Management Resource Center at Kyrgyz National University named after J. Balasagyn Announcing a Position for a NPM Resource Center Assistant Announcing a Position for a NPM Resource Center Assistant In December 2013, the Kyrgyz National University named after J. Balasagyn (KNU) launched a Nonprofit Management (NPM) Resource Center that includes a library, work space, and central home for textbooks, publications, research and online resources that are shared by members of the Consortium of Universities on NPM and is available to students and faculty. KNU NPM Resource Center seeks a NPM Resource Center Assistant who will lead and manage the Center’s activities. The NPM Resource Center Assistant will support the Center’s Coordinator to: Lead the work for the successful implementation of the Center’s strategy and work plans; Serve as the focal point for the Consortium of Universities on NPM; Serve as the USAID Collaborative Governance Program’s (CGP) main counterpart at KNU in implementing CGP-supported activities, in compliance with the provisions of the grant agreement between CGP and KNU. More specifically, the NPM Resource Center Assistant will carry out the following responsibilities: Manage the Center’s activities on a day-to-day basis; meet and greet visitors’ to the Center and manage the use of its resources, starting with the Center’s library; Ensure that the Center’s Work Plans are implemented as planned and in due time; Be responsible for all logistical aspects of the Center’s activities, as well as of the activities of the Consortium of Universities on NPM that the Center supports, including the activities during the Annual Conference on NPM Studies in Kyrgyzstan; Document all the activities of the Center by: keeping accurate list of people that use Center’s services and resources, as well as the lists of participants in Center’s activities or in activities that take place elsewhere but are organized by the Center or the Consortium of Universities; collecting and archiving all documents related to the Center’s activities; as well as taking and archiving pictures related to the Center’s activities; Promote the Center’s activities through the Center’s public outreach activities and products and play an active role on reaching out to students and civil society organizations; Share resources with other Consortium members and update them on activities of interest to the Consortium’s work; In cooperation with the appropriate experts, develop, and maintain user-friendly interactive tools that serve to develop NPM studies in Kyrgyzstan’s universities, including the Center’s Facebook page, e-listserves, etc.; Collect and submit to CGP appropriate, accurate and timely M&E data related to Consortium’s and Center’s activities; Assist the Center’s Coordinator to provide quarterly narrative reports and submit these in a timely manner to the CGP; Prepare and maintain the Center’s furniture and supply inventory and ensures that the Center is operational and good conditions all the time; Other tasks as assigned by the Center’s Coordinator. II. Requirements Hold Higher education diploma International Relations, Communications/PR or other relevant fields; At least 3 years’ experience of working with universities, international organizations, USAID funded programs preferable; Deep understanding of Kyrgyz Higher Education system; Excellent language skills in English, Russian and Kyrgyz (written and oral); Strong team player and ability to work under pressure and independently; Be initiative and creative in developing a sustainability plan of the NPM Resource Center after the program ends; Ability to travel inside of the Kyrgyz Republic when required; and Ability to work full time. Please send your CV, cover letter and contact information of 2 references to info-cgp@ewmi-kg.orgno later than February 29, 2016 by 18:00. Only short listed candidates will be contacted. Grants Program Announcements Batken Oblast Level Request for Applications (RFA) for Legal Assistance Grants (LAG) Program on Increased Access to Legal Assistance for the Vulnerable Population on the Issues of Domestic Violence Issyk Kul Oblast Level Request for Applications (RFA) for Legal Assistance Grants (LAG) Program on Increased Access to Legal Assistance for the Vulnerable Population on the Issues of Domestic Violence Jalal Abad Oblast Level Request for Applications (RFA) for Legal Assistance Grants (LAG) Program on Increased Access to Legal Assistance for the Vulnerable Population on the Issues of Domestic Violence Naryn Oblast Level Request for Applications (RFA) for Legal Assistance Grants (LAG) Program on Increased Access to Legal Assistance for the Vulnerable Population on the Issues of Domestic Violence Osh Oblast Level Request for Applications (RFA) for Legal Assistance Grants (LAG) Program on Increased Access to Legal Assistance for the Vulnerable Population on the Issues of Domestic Violence Talas Oblast Level Request for Applications (RFA) for Legal Assistance Grants (LAG) Program on Increased Access to Legal Assistance for the Vulnerable Population on the Issues of Domestic Violence Chui Oblast Level Request for Applications (RFA) for Legal Assistance Grants (LAG) Program on Increased Access to Legal Assistance for the Vulnerable Population on the Issues of Domestic Violence CALL FOR PAPERS - 2nd NPM Annual Conference - Extending Submission of Papers Oblast Level Request for Applications (RFA) to Submit Full Grant Applications for Civic Engagement (CEG) Grants Program on Gender Equity and Women Empowerment Issues Our Address: EWMI, 4, Koenkozova Street, 720017, Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic Tel.: +(996 312) 986 707 E-mail: info-cgp@ewmi-kg.org This website, www.ewmi-cgp.org, is made possible by the support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents are the sole responsibility of the East-West Management Institute and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government. © 2020 USAID-funded Collaborative Governance Program is implemented by East-West Management Institute (EWMI)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line615
__label__wiki	0.974531	0.974531	Home NEWS Saraki speaks on ‘stepping down’ for Atiku Saraki speaks on ‘stepping down’ for Atiku FaithAdama October 05, 2018 NEWS, Senator Bukola Saraki who is said to be under pressure to step down for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has debunked the report. It was reported that there were speculations that Saraki is under pressure to withdraw from the race and support Atiku’s ambition ahead of PDP’s National Convention tomorrow. Yusuph Olaniyonu, the media aide to Senate President Bukola Saraki who rubbished the story, and told Daily Post’s correspondent; “Please, please, please.. what kind of story is that? “How can a leading candidate step down for somebody else? I have never heard of that before. “You can go to Port Harcourt and see for yourself, that Saraki is a top contender for the ticket,” Olaniyonu said. PDP’s Presidential Aspirants ahead of its convention include Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal; Sule Lamido, former Governor of Jigawa State and former Foreign Affairs Minister; David Mark, a former Senate President and Ibrahim Dankwambo, the outgoing Governor of Gombe State. PDP’s presidential primary is scheduled to hold on Saturday, September 6 to Sunday, September 7 in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital. We also reported that Senator Ben Bruce, who reacted to report of PDP leaders who are protesting over the outcome of the Osun election at INEC secretariat, alleged that shots were fired and tear gas was also sprayed on the PDP leaders. By FaithAdama at October 05, 2018	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line617
__label__wiki	0.925871	0.925871	Home News New laws to protect baby surrogates - 10,611 Total Views Published: December 9th, 2012 \| Written By: Esther Han Follow @familylawxpress AUSTRALIA should legalise commercial surrogacy to stop the exploitation of poor women and protect the children caught up in the booming overseas surrogacy trade, according to the chief federal magistrate. Under Chief Magistrate John Pascoe’s proposed a commercial surrogacy scheme, overseas surrogacy would remain banned, reducing the number of Australians using overseas clinics that, he says, often underpay and coerce poor women. ”We would know women here wouldn’t be forced or threatened to carry a child and that they will be paid more than a few hundred dollars and receive proper medical care,” said Mr Pascoe, who believes Australia’s ”completely unsatisfactory” surrogacy laws could be overhauled within two years. Altruistic surrogacy, where the woman carrying the child is not paid, is legal in all states, but commercial surrogacy is banned. Overseas commercial surrogacy has also been criminalised in NSW, Queensland and the ACT, but that has not stopped hundreds of prospective parents travelling to countries such as India where for less than $100,000 they can have a baby by a surrogate. The number of Australian babies born to overseas surrogate mothers leapt from 97 in 2009 to 296 last year, according to research by advocacy group Surrogacy Australia. More than 250 children have been born to overseas surrogates this year. Mr Pascoe said his proposal, which would require intending parents and the surrogate to enter into an equal contract that would protect rights of both parties, promotes the best interest of surrogate children. ”The status of the newly born child is therefore beyond doubt, and the law can provide provisions and benefits for the child as an Australian citizen,” he said. ”Right now, children of overseas surrogates face a very uncertain legal situation regarding parentage and nationality.” Many Australian couples have been stranded overseas and forced to live in third countries, unable to gain citizenship for their surrogate child because of the ”ambiguities about the definition of parent and child in the Citizenship Act”, Mr Pascoe said. Attorney-General Nicola Roxon has charged the Family Law Council with reviewing the Family Law Act and reporting back by December next year. Chairwoman of the council, Associate Professor Helen Rhoades, said the review was timely as parentage laws were not keeping pace with the rapid advancement of assisted reproduction technology. The council will call for public submissions this month. Sam Everingham, president of Surrogacy Australia, praised the proposal as an improvement of a system that had largely failed, but said it was naive of Mr Pascoe to think people would comply with the ban on overseas arrangements. ”Some states have already banned it and Australians are still going overseas. It’s hard to police and unworkable,” he said. ”I’m also worried about over-regulation, because it’s caused huge problems for parents who want to adopt children from overseas.” But Melbourne-based bioethicist Leslie Cannold opposes commercial surrogacy, insisting the same exploitative elements suffered by women in developing countries could exist in Australia under Mr Pascoe’s proposed system. ”We should not create a situation in which we coerce people economically. I think it’s an unfortunate outgrowth of the capitalist society,” she said. Kelly, 40, from New South Wales, gave birth to a surrogate child for an acquaintance in 2004, a time, she says, when laws were underdeveloped and confusing. No items found in feed URL: http://www.familylawexpress.com.au/family-law-judgments/category/surrogacy/feed/. You requested 15 items. Donor privacy should trump a need to know Gay dads eligible for paid parental leave Gay couple asked to prove they did not exploit surrogate Related Item More parents defy law with overseas surrogacy Categories: Birth Mother, Parental, Surrogacy Tags: Altruistic surrogacy, Associate Professor Helen Rhoades, Attorney-General Nicola Roxon, Australian citizen, chief federal magistrate, Chief Magistrate John Pascoe, Citizenship Act, commercial surrogacy, commercial surrogacy scheme, Family Law Council, Helen Rhoades, John Pascoe, Leslie Cannold, Nicola Roxon, Sam Everingham, Surrogacy Australia, surrogacy trade, surrogate children	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line618
__label__cc	0.711688	0.288312	Gerard Charles Wilson My articles & Essays Baby boomer books & references Cardinal Pell Cardinal Pell life Cardinal Pell works Cardinal Pell trial Cardinal Pell Appeal Chris S Friel The Pell Lynch mob Contact and donate Homosexual clergy The Code of Chivalry Paganism in Church The Amazon Synod Links social & political Links writing & literature Links Church and Religion My favourite youtubers Category Archives: Men Culture, Men, Western Civilization A Science-Based Case for Ending the Porn Epidemic December 20, 2019 gcw By Pascal -Emmanuel Goby. Ethics and Public Policy Centre They say the first step is admitting you have a problem. I think many readers of this article will respond with outrage, and many will see it says things they already knew to be true—and I think these two groups will largely overlap. The most powerful obstacle to confronting a destructive addiction is denial, and collectively we are in denial about pornography. Since it seems somehow relevant, let me state at the outset that I am French. Every fiber of my Latin, Catholic body recoils at puritanism of any sort, especially the bizarre, Anglo-Puritan kind so prevalent in America. I believe eroticism is one of God’s greatest gifts to humankind, prudishness a bizarre aberration, and not so long ago, hyperbolic warnings about the perils of pornography, whether from my Evangelical Christian or progressive feminist friends, had me rolling my eyes. Not anymore. I have become deadly serious. A few years ago, a friend—unsurprisingly, a female friend—mentioned that there was strong medical evidence for the proposition that online pornography is a lot more dangerous than most people suspect. Since I was skeptical, I looked into it. I became intrigued and kept following the evolving science, as well as online testimonies, off and on. It didn’t take me long to understand that my friend is right. In fact, the more I delved into the subject, the more alarmed I became. Culture, Literature, Men, Politics Review Michel Houellebecq’s ‘Serotonin’ November 12, 2019 gcw Lonely White Men: On Michel Houellebecq’s “Serotonin” By Louis Betty FRANCE’S MICHEL HOUELLEBECQ leads something of a double career. A novelist of Prix Goncourt–winning distinction, Houellebecq is also his country’s best-selling author abroad and, on many accounts, currently its best. He is also reliably a prophet of current events: his third novel, Platform, featured an Islamist attack on a Thai sex resort and was published just days before 9/11; a later novel, Submission, which imagined France’s election of a Muslim party president, appeared the day of the Charlie Hebdo attacks and seemed a novelistic auger of the gruesome wave of terrorism that roiled France during the next few years. Whatever, Houellebecq’s 1994 debut novel, turned out to be equally prescient, though it took more than two decades for its prophecies to take shape. A commentary on male sexual frustration, Whatever, as the author of a New York Times essay argued in 2018, is a psychological account of involuntary celibacy and the violence that erotic isolation breeds. Catholicism, Feminism, Media, Men, The Left ‘Confronting Toxic Femininity’ September 15, 2019 gcw Michael Voris of Church Militant does not mince words. He reminds me of those Franciscan friars who went around parishes giving missions. They were the fire and brimstone preachers of fifty years ago. In video his ‘Confronting Toxic Femininity‘, Voris focuses on the difference between men and women and their response to moral and social issues. Men, he says, have the inclination to assess the truth of the issue; women have the inclination to let their feelings rather than cool objective assessment govern their first reaction. Compassion and sympathy are the best qualities of the female. But, says, Voris, when women let just their feelings determine their reaction to social issues, they degenerate into toxic femininity where truth is abandoned. I must give a trigger warning about the verbal aggression that will disturb some in the watching. Watch it at your own risk. Michael Voris Media, Men, Politics, Radicalism The greens blow themselves up January 23, 2019 gcw Jason Ball gained some national notice when he staged his coming out in 2012 as the second Australian Rules player to do so. He maintained the continuity of this national action by throwing himself into the LGBTI cause. Wanting to do more to correct the attitudes of Australian society, he joined the Greens, putting himself forward as a candidate for the federal seat of Higgins traditionally a super-safe seat for the Liberals. In the 2016 federal election, he succeeded in eating into the margin of Liberal MP Kelly O’Dwyer, showing there had been a demographic change in the electorate favouring the left. Buoyed by the results, and full of confidence, Ball pushed on with preparations for the 2019 federal election. But, alas, Ball’s imprudent behaviour seems to have destroyed any chance he had. In July 2016, Ball, unable to control himself, had a bout of furious sweaty sex with a campaign volunteer in a toilet cubicle of a gay nightclub. This tawdry behaviour might have gone unnoticed except for the momentum of the #metoo movement. The Australian’s Chip Le Grand, supporting Ball with some euphemistic journalism, has favoured us with an account of the incident (23 Jan 2019). Continue reading The greens blow themselves up → Feminism, Men, Politics, The Left, Western Civilization Men are not marrying – why? November 3, 2018 gcw Karen Straughn is a popular youtuber who talks about men and their place in modern (feminist) society. An attempt in 2012 to explain why men are retreating from (feminized) society and avoiding marriage has drawn 1.9 million views and 33,000 comments. Her views are not what your average finger-wagging feminist wants to hear, and what should frighten the life out of the average young woman who wants it all, including marrying a reliable man and having children. Karen Straughn Writer … and still in the fifties Myths about Clerical Abuse The state of the Church Today My Status – Where I am up to Roger Scruton dies Roger Scruton's final diary of 2019 Linda Behan on Jacinta nampijinpa price – celebrate, don’t hate 19th Century authors Anti-white racism Australian Colony Family background The Edmund Burke Society	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line624
__label__cc	0.723529	0.276471	horizontalpitch About this blogzine Subscribe to Horizontalpitch via Email Blinking Lights 004: One Last Thing A Look Back and a Look Forward Modular Spaces pt.4: Focused Desks Chosen Waves 017: Lucid Grain Guides and howtos Modular Music Copyright © horizontalpitch. 2020 • All rights reserved. Cedar WordPress Theme by EckoThemes. Published with WordPress. The BMM Colour Palette, an Open Hardware Case Study Welcome to the fourth and last episode in our series on open source modules. This time we’re taking a look at how an open source project can grow beyond what the original maker had envisioned, to the point of becoming something quite different. Let me introduce: the Colour Palette! You’ve probably spotted it somewhere on the web in the last months. A black panel featuring a giant kraken emerging from the raging sea and three big coloured LEDs. The Black Market Colour Palette is a very peculiar Eurorack module: it’s basically a modular module, that lets you add small circuit boards, called colours, to a bigger host circuit called palette, so you can create your own, custom multi-effect processor (for lack of a better term). For example you could add WMD’s Wave Compiler (a wavefolder) colour, BMM’s own Woof lowpass VCF and a ZVEX Fuzzolo colour. Each of those has a VCA controlling the input level and 2 assignable CVs to control the parameters. The original idea for this device comes from a homonymous open source Series 500 module by a company called DIY Recording Equipment (DIYRE for short). For those not familiar with it, the Series 500 is a lunchbox system for studio outboard like EQs and compressors. DIYRE at one point had the idea to create a device that would let you add the “colour” of analogue circuits, without the need of putting the actual device in the effect chain. To add the flavour of a compressor, without compressing the signal so to say. This idea encountered the favour of many, among the DIY-inclined studio people, making the Colour Palette a pretty successful project. I admit it, I have a special relationship with the Colour Palette, since at the very beginning, when BMM started to think about making the Eurorack module, I was called on board to take care of its interface and graphic design, and later even redesigned the Series 500 module’s front panel. Still this story was fitting very well into my open source series, so I decided to put all my positive biases aside (as much as humanly possible) and give it a go. This said, let’s go back to the very dawn of the Colour Palette and read what DIYRE’s Peterson Goodwyn tells us about it. Interview with Peterson Goodwyn from DIYRE The DIYRE Colour Palette with 3 colours installed. Photo curtesy of DIYRE Horizontalpitch: Where did the idea for the Colour Palette come from and what’s the story of its creation? Peterson Goodwyn: When I was first getting into building my own gear, I was shocked to find out how simple (and cheap!) the audio circuitry of a lot of classic gear was. In most cases, what makes the gear big and expensive is the “housekeeping” stuff: chassis, power supply, jacks, knobs, etc. The Colour format attempts to remove all of that stuff, so that people can fill their studio with a bunch of analog colors for a fraction of the cost of buying a bunch of gear. HP: The Colour Palette system was released under a TAPR license (as all of your designs, if I’m not mistaken), why did you choose to release it under an open source license? PG: Nothing I’ve done with DIYRE over the last few years would have been possible without other people in the DIY community sharing their designs and knowledge for free. So it just feels right to give our designs back to the community. Going open source was also a way to make the Colour ecosystem friendlier to other designers. So that they can see exactly how the Palette works that their Colours will be going into, or so they can fork the format like Black Market did. HP: How did the open source aspect of the Colour Palette (and DIYRE in general) work for you until now? PG: It’s been completely positive. It’s primarily a way of communicating how we operate: no gimmicks, no “secret sauce” bs, etc. Most peoples’ fear is that someone will use our open schematics to “rip off” our designs and undercut us. This hasn’t happened so far, to my knowledge. But, to be honest, I think the point is moot. Anyone with the skills to clone our designs from a schematic would also be able to reverse-engineer them without a schematic. HP: How did the collaboration with Black Market Modular happen? PG: Eric of Black Market and I were both exhibitors at Potluck Con in 2015. At that point, I had already had a few customers suggest the idea of a Eurorack Palette. I mentioned this to Eric and I’m pretty sure we both knew right away he was the guy for the job. HP: What do you think about the Eurorack Colour Palette system? PG: It’s really gratifying to see Eric and William take Colour in a different direction. The addition of the CV pins was a brilliant stroke. Also, it’s not apparent to the user, but they went through some major design heroics to make the ColourCV completely compatible with the existing Colour modules. Well done! The Black Market Colour Palette Interview with Eric Fox from Black Market Modular The original concept of the Colour Palette was then developed further by Black Market, adding very modular-specific features like VCAs and CV inputs, one to control the volume of the audio going into each colour, the other to control the parameters of the installed effects. The device really turned into something else, from a convenient way to add a certain colour to your mixes/masters, to a customisable, somehow minimalistic CV-controlled multi-effect processor. While BMM’s take shows many, sometimes radical changes, when compared to the original, DIYRE’s idea with the plug-in cards, and all related standards, have been kept intact. We got in touch with Eric Fox from Black Market Modular to hear his part of the story. HP: Where did the idea originate from and how was your collaboration with DIYRE on this project? Eric Fox: I had met Peterson Goodwyn of DIYRE last year in 2014 at a pro-audio conference where our exhibitor booths were right next to each other. He was showing off his new Colour format in 500 series and my booth was showing off how to utilize a DAW like Ableton or ProTools to control modular synths. He was intrigued by my eurorack setup and I was fascinated by how clever his interchangeable sub-module system was. We started talking about how great it would be to do something using his open format, but with the ability for users to externally control parameters via cv. A month or so after our initial meeting and a few back-and-forth emails about how to bring such a device to the public, Peterson came to the conclusion that he didn’t have the time/resources and wasn’t really familiar with the modular synth world… yet he still loved the idea of this project happening. That’s when he asked me if I wanted to take the reigns and run with it while he stayed on as a consultant. Of course I jumped at the opportunity! I immediately contacted my good friend William Mathewson (WMD) who loved the idea and came on as lead engineer. […] * On a side note, Peterson Goodwyn has now hired Black Market to build and distribute his diy 500-Series Colour Palette and line of standard Colours. Until now, DIYRE Colour items were only sold in kit-form directly from his website. Built versions soon will be able to be purchased at various dealers around the world. HP: Is the BMM Colour Palette being made available with the same license as the DIYRE one? EF: The eurorack version of the Colour Palette itself isn’t as of right now… but all of the the Colours and 500-Series Palette are under the TAPR open hardware license. An exploded-view illustration of the Colour Palette by Papernoise HP: Would you say that the original Colour Palette having been released under an open hardware license, was an important factor in your choice to make the Eurorack version? EF: Definitely! Since I am involved in various behind-the-scenes areas of the modular world, I have been lucky enough to meet and become friends with some brilliant people over the past few years. The idea that someone else would invest their time and talent to make a component that works in my module is really exciting and flattering. I love the endless possibilities of what people could make from the awesome sounding ColourCV Wave Folder called VariFold [now renamed to Wave Compiler Ed.] being released by WMD to maybe someday a god-knows-what ColourCV that a designer like Olivier from Mutable Instruments could come up with (hint-hint). The other important group I really wanted to appeal to was the DIY community. Since we offer a pre-made perforated prototyping board complete with grounding, stand-offs, and a header for under $5, the DIY crowd can get all of the designing specs on our website and easily create unique electronic masterpieces that they can then take to market and keep 100% of the profits or share with others freely. I really am anxious to see what people do with this! Everyone else’s ColourCV designs make this one of the most versatile modules ever made. Without them I just have a really nice triple VCA. HP: We could say that the CP is an open platform by design. Having a nice triple VCA is nice, but the real potential only comes when you have a bunch of colours installed. How does that work from a licensing point of view? Do colour designers have to release their creations as open hardware? EF: When it comes to the Colours people can to do whatever they want. By no means do I want to restrict them to only making it open hardware. Heck, my first two ColourCVs (WOOF and TWEET) both are not open. The important thing is that designers are free to create and control the fate of their own products. HP: Do you plan on using open hardware/software licenses for other projects as well? EF: For now I have my hands full with the Colour Palette and related products. There are some ideas to expand the line that would definitely be open hardware, but first I just want to sit back and be a fan while watching what other people create for this format. If I have inspired others to come up with new products, then maybe I will be inspired to come up with more of my own! Despite the Colour Palette not being released as an open hardware project it still retains a certain degree of openness, freely offering all the specs and materials to make your own Colours. It can be used as a blank canvas to make your own module without having to mess with the power supply circuit or the interface and should be great for both circuit wizards and basement hobbyists alike. The Colour Palette can be seen as a hardware counterpart to software-based modules like the OWL (or a more “permanent” version of the ADDAC Open Heart Surgery) and shows how an open source project can evolve and mutate in many ways, even to the point of not being completely open source anymore. While this is an aspect that might create some discussion, it shows that open source can be an enrichment in a world with mixed open/closed licensing approaches. It should also be emphasised that the the module basically consists of a triple VCA, the power supply and 3 slots for colours, the latter is the really relevant and innovative part and is also the one covered by the open hardware license. So while it is true that parts of the module are proprietary, the most important part isn’t. We could still question BMM’s choice of not going fully open source with the Colour Palette, but then we would have to question many module makers who follow a proprietary licensing approach for their creations and often base their ideas on other people’s intellectual work, at least inspiration-wise. It’s certainly something worth discussing about, but also very difficult to judge, so for now, I’ll leave it at this. This closes our series on open source. Thanks to all of you, who have been reading, commenting and sharing these articles! Bonus interview Let’s get a bit deeper into the BMM Colour Palette, its features and technical specs. These parts were removed from the main article, since they focus more on the module itself than on the open source aspect, but I thought some of you might be interested in reading them anyway. HP: Let’s talk a little bit about the design of the Colour Palette and its features. For somebody who doesn’t know anything about the module, how does it work exactly? EF: The Colour Palette is a “host” system for up to three tiny sub-modules called Colours. There are two types of Colours. The first are standard Colours designed initially for the 500-Series Palette that only gives you control over the level of an incoming audio signal. The second is the ColourCV which does everything a standard Colour does but adds the ability for designers to add up to 4 extra CV controls over parameters of their choosing. Both are “plug-n-play” with no adapter needed in the eurorack version, however to use a ColourCV in a 500-Series unit you would need to use our ColourADPTR that lets you hard-set the CV controls using tiny trim-pots. The Colours simply “click” into place with no soldering or electrical knowledge involved. It’s takes mere seconds to change out. Without any Colours installed, the eurorack Colour Palette has three built in VCAs and acts as a nice three channel voltage controlled mixer that can run in series or parallel along with a summed output that can be normalled or not to the individual channels’ outs. […] Peterson really pushed us hard to make sure everything was cross-compatible with the 500-series Palette. I remember the biggest snag we hit was how to power “standard” Colours (used in the 500-series) that run at 16 volts in our eurorack version meant to use ColourCVs that run at only 12 volts. Peterson was insistent that ANY Colour (standard or CV) run at the proper voltage and act the way the designers intended them to. He was definitely right and I’m glad he pushed us. I’m happy to report that the euroack Colour Palette ended up having two independent sets of power rails to accommodate either version running 16 or 12 volt exactly the way they were designed! HP: Why did you choose to have only 4 CVs for 3 Colours? How does CV control on this module work? EF: Technically I guess there are actually seven CVs. 1/ea for the already built-in VCA that is running in front of each Colour (often this acts as an input gain depending on the Colour), and then four shared CV controls for ColourCVs labeled CTRL A through D. The reason for limiting it to four is that I wanted to keep it straightforward, yet powerful enough for designers and users to find useful. Funny enough, the first few ColourCVs being released each only are utilizing up to two extra CV jacks for parameter control. The CTRL A-D controls are shared across all three channels. For example if you have two ColourCVs installed that both use CTRL C in some way, both would be affected simultaneously when adjusting that control. If you had say the WMD WaveCompiler and Black Market TWEET! installed, then adjusting CTRL C would change the wave folder’s symmetry while changing the high-pass filter’s frequency. Could make for some interesting sounds! William Mathewson had the bright idea of installing on his ColourCV the ability to let the user choose an alternative CTRL for his parameter via a tiny switch. So you can send “symmetry” to either CTRL A or C to help prevent unwanted overlap. Of course I made sure we implemented that feature in my Black Market ColourCVs as well! I hope a lot of designers use this idea. A person could also use a ColourCV with the ColourADPTR and that would remove that specific ColourCV’s CTRL section from the Palette. The only downfall would be that you just need to hard-set the parameters on the ColourADPTR and you wouldn’t have access to change them from the front panel when installed….but it would work in a set-it-and-forget-it situation. Permalink: http://www.horizontalpitch.com/2015/11/the-bmm-colour-palette-an-open-hardware-case-study/ Graphic designer, illustrator and soundmangler. He makes music as kurodama and as part of the electronic music duo kvsu. Together with his wife Elizabeth he runs Papernoise, a small design studio located in northern Italy, specialised in graphic design for the world of music. Hannes Posted on 22nd November 2015 Previous Post Open Modules for Open Minds Pt... Next Post Ray Wilson of Music From Outer... This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, please read more about what cookies are being used here: Read More Accept	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line627
__label__wiki	0.770502	0.770502	JUSTIN SYMBOL – Fuckboi EP Music, Past Issue Reviews / By horns magazine Zoth Ommog As featured in Issue #3: Halloween Anniversary Edition Justin Symbol returns to spotlight with latest musical masterpiece Fuckboi. The seven-song EP illustrates Justin’s artistic progression into a genre-defying style of song composition. The Fuckboi EP cannot simply be described as industrial, or electronica, or dub-step, or hip-hop because it is all of these things, and it is neither of these things. It is a step into uncharted territory with Justin Symbol pioneering the way toward a brave new world free of labels. We begin our journey with “Look What You Made Me Do,” an angry reimagining of the Taylor Swift song complete with heavy guitar riffs and new vengeful lyrics. The acrimony of Justin Symbol’s words coupled with the viciousness of the guitar-work on this track make the emotional impact of this song liken to being beaten to a pulp and left for dead. Next is my personal favorite, “Warlock,” a smooth sounding song with copious keyboard layers and daedal drum tracks. Justin cleverly utilizes occult terms in his lyrics, proclaiming his mastery over envious individuals and distracting vices. Third is the title track, “Fuckboi,” which initially conveys the impression of being an anthem for male chauvinism, but in reality is Justin Symbol’s cautionary narrative exposing the mentality of shallow pick-up artists. Musically, this track emulates the crunk formula relying heavily on drums, bass, and its extremely catchy autotuned chorus. Subscribers to Justin Symbol’s YouTube channel should be pleasantly pleased with the risqué video promoting this track. Fourth is “Shade,” following suit with its laid-back drum beats and admonitory lyrics. There is a sense of continuity with these two tracks in particular, as though Justin is trying to educate the listener through the ordeals he has endured. Keeping with the hedonistic theme of the EP, the next two tracks are covers of popular dance songs with sexual overtones. “Thong Song” by Sisqo and “Kiss” by Prince () are dished out with Justin Symbol’s unique ability to take a composition and own it, not trying to copy the original but completely reinvent the delivery of the message. Finally, we come to the track entitled “A Drug Called Love,” an ominous account of the pain associated with love. The tempo is faster, the words are harsher, and the message is clearer; this entire EP is devoted to exposing the dangers of living a superficial existence. This new release not only demonstrates Justin Symbol’s maturity as a songwriter, but also as a human being. Bravo! 1 – Look What You Made Me Do 2 – Warlock 3 – Fuckboi 4 – Shade 5 – Thong Song 6 – Kiss 7 – A Drug Called Love For information on how to obtain your copy of the Fuckboi EP, go here Buy Issue #3	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line628
__label__cc	0.664373	0.335627	RSVP National Latino Enviro Advocacy Week 19 2019 GreenLatinos National Summit AZ On The Road Registration Latinx Orgs Ask EPA to Protect Methane Rule Latinos #SaveLWCF 4th Annual GreenLatinos Live! CorePriority Submission CORE PRIORITIES GreenLatinos Signature Events TAKE ACTION NOW! ECOMADRES Ecomadres Mission Join Ecomadres Ecomadres Team #Ecomadres En Acción CLOSE PUERTO RICO’S TOXIC LANDFILLS. URGE EPA TO END AN ENVIRONMENTAL INJUSTICE TO THE PEOPLE OF PUERTO RICO We call on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to fulfill its mandate in protecting public health in our communities and immediately close Puerto Rico’s most toxic and dangerous municipal landfills. People of color deserve equal protection from environmental and health hazards that are provided for by our environmental laws. For over 20 years, the government of Puerto Rico has been delegated the enforcement authority to regulate Puerto Rico’s municipal landfills. Over all this time, nearly all of these landfills have been in serious violation of basic environmental protection laws. This is by definition an environmental injustice. EPA has documented that more than two-thirds of Puerto Rico’s 27 landfills are not in compliance with federal and local environmental rules. Shutting down these landfills and building properly compliant landfills is the answer to fixing this problem. Nearly all these toxic landfills lack legally required controls on toxic liquids produced in landfills, known as “leachates”, which has allowed toxins to run into community soil and groundwater for decades. Many of these toxic sites have the potential of polluting drinking water sources on the island; several of the landfills in violation are located on top of the largest aquifer in Puerto Rico. The Puerto Rico government and the EPA have repeatedly documented the lack of controls on toxins at these sites and yet the landfills have been allowed to continue operating, continue accepting trash and solid waste, and continue poisoning communities. Most of the sites are also not properly covered, and have never had systems to monitor methane gas accumulation as required by law. With so many dangerous sites in so many communities in Puerto Rico for decades, the scale of this crisis places Puerto Rico at risk of being another public health emergency. The EPA knows the sites are dangerous and has yet to force their closure, potentially putting underrepresented communities in direct harm for generations. The harm faced by the families living near Puerto Rico’s landfills, in a U.S. territory facing an unprecedented economic and fiscal crisis, is an intolerable form of environmental injustice that cannot stand. We call upon the EPA to take immediate action, correct this injustice, protect the people of Puerto Rico, and close toxic municipal landfills that have been in violation of the law for years. of a 2,000 signature goal	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line637
__label__cc	0.669384	0.330616	All Categories: Most Recent Filtered by London Educational Psychologist \| Speech & Occupational Therapy in London Speech and Occupational Therapy Practice Life Drawing Society The Social Network in London for Life Drawing LSE Free School An experiment in education The LSE Free School is your opportunity to create an alternative education. All participants have an equal say in every aspect of their education from the topics of discussion to the structure and style of the school We not only fight back the cuts on ed Virtual Office London London NSA Encounters LondonTalesWIP An on-line platform for user-generated stories about London in the 21st Century; a community of writers. Pest Control London alexandra school alumni ALEXANDRA HIGH SCHOOL, AMRITSAR also known as AHS, and later named ALEXANDRA SCHOOL was founded by the REV. ROBERT CLARK of the CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY (CMS), London on 27 December, 1878. He projected the school to the forefront of everything in the lan EEFA. Easy Earning For All. Part Time Jobs, Internet Jobs, Home Based Jobs, Work From Home. Earn On Line, Work From Home. EEFA Is A community of like-minded people from around the world who join together for their online business. CAMPUS - DATABANK	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line638
__label__cc	0.571246	0.428754	A safe space for conversations, trusted information and resources on mental health in India Reporter’s Diary Mental Health Comics Contacts/Helplines India Helplines The Health Collective In the Press Sukoon: A Counselling Model for Family Courts across India? Articles Reporter's Diary Sukanya Sharma May 6, 2019 May 31, 2019 Health Collective4 Comments on Sukoon: A Counselling Model for Family Courts across India? By Sukanya Sharma “Itni shakti hume dena data man ka vishwas kamzor ho na hum chalen nek raste pe hamse bhoolkar bhi koi bhool ho na…” (Give us so much strength, O Lord, that the faith in our hearts never wavers. may we walk the path of goodness and we don’t make a mistake even accidentally…) Every day, before cases are heard at the Thane family court, judges gather all lawyers, litigants and those inside the court premises to sing a prayer in the morning, we are told. This is a practice that has been going on for years, and still continues till this day. ALSO READ: YOU CAN HEAL: A PSYCHOLOGIST’S MESSAGE But here’s a brand new initiative to build on the hope and a prayer. On May 2nd this year, the Bombay High Court inaugurated a first of its kind counselling service on its premises. A field action project of the School of Human Ecology, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, funded by the Mariwala Health Initiative, Sukoon provides counselling to litigants at family courts in Maharashtra free of cost. This builds on the initiative that has already been up and running in Family Cours of Bandra, Thane and the District and Sessions Court, Kalyan. Litigants — both individuals and couples in distress — are provided a confidential and safe space to share stories of distress, in close partnership with the family court system. Sukoon aims to “enhance the mental health of litigants dealing with interpersonal conflict and emotional distress” the team behind the initiative tells The Health Collective, adding that over the past 18 months they have benefitted over 500 litigants. The project has also ensured the training of more than 100 judges, advocates and marriage counsellors. So is this a scalable PPP and something other states can aim to replicate? Image by The Health Collective We spoke to psychotherapist and Sukoon Project Director Aparna Joshi (who is also Assistant Professor at the TISS Centre for Human Ecology) for more information, and did an e-interview with Rajvi Mariwala, Director, Mariwala Health Initiative, which currently funds all 4 counselling centres in operation. Excerpts of our interviews follow. ALSO READ: KNOW YOUR RIGHTS: MENTAL HEALTHCARE ACT 2017 Q: What is the thought and approach behind Sukoon? Aparna Joshi: I used to work with this organisation called Bapu Trust … and we had started a counselling centre for litigants who were coming to family courts for matrimonial issues. We ran this project and realised that there is a lot of stress these couples experience. The whole institution of marriage – getting married, remaining married – is such a norm in our society. It accords you status, or a sense of belonging, (and) there is a tremendous amount of pressure on people to fulfil these developmental milestones. Once this particular institution, which is given so much importance, does not work for you, it creates a lot of impact in terms of mental health and stress. Unlike the West, the conflicts are not just their (couple) conflicts, but there is also a familial dynamic or socio-cultural norm, gender, sexuality, caste politics… all of that. They go through their own mechanisms of seeking help, and perhaps these mechanisms do not work and then their marriage, which is such a private phenomenon, is brought into such a public space. After 5 years, this centre was shut down for funding reasons. My colleague from TISS, Amrita Joshi and I decided that there is a need to revive a service like this, so almost two and a half years back we revived this service under the name of Sukoon with this very objective: that people who come to legal structures for matrimonial issues, issues of separation or divorce, child custody, or even maintenance, nullity… or even violence require definite amount of support in resolving this conflict or amicably separating without damaging themselves or the other person. Two years ago we started this project in two family courts in Bandra and another in Thane (and) in the District and Sessions Court, Kalyan. We realised soon that women are also filing cases under the Domestic Violence Act 2005 and that this also is causing a huge mental health impact. We thought of expanding our work not just to matrimonial issues, but those concerning domestic violence as well. We will be starting another centre with the Bandra Legal Aid Society, where a lot of women come to address the issues of domestic violence. Q: How do you approach the people? Aparna Joshi: One strategy is to provide services directly to the litigants – direct intervention. These could be individual litigants or couples in distress. We provide counselling services to them. We also work with them by holding workshops on communication, or workshops on respectful conversations. We also have some innovative strategies for couples in order to improve their well-being and reduce their distress. We have art-based methods also. We have started some art corners within the court premises, where on their court date, while they are there waiting for the judgement or if they are feeling very distressed because of the judgement or seeing their partner, they can reduce their distress using art as a method. Our second strategy is to work with the system. We work with family court judges, marriage counsellors, we do workshops with them, sensitise them to the idea of mental health. We realised that there are many other court structures which are not as dedicated to matrimonial issues as family courts are. For example, civil courts too are entertaining matrimonial issues. The judge listens to many civil cases, and one of the cases will be a matrimonial issue. Family courts have marriage counsellors who are social workers who do the preliminary work of providing support to litigants, but a civil court does not have that provision. Q: When Family Courts already provide a marriage counsellor, how can we perceive Sukoon’s role? Aparna Joshi: We are very clear that we do not want to replicate what the system is doing. The counselling offered by marriage counsellors is mandatory. Which means that if you file a case you have to have at least one session with the marriage counsellor. Given the pendency rate, and the huge amount of case rate they have, it is difficult for them to spend so much time with people. Also, their objective is largely bound by the family court law. Immediacy of problem-solving is what they will look at. They are supposed to submit a report to the judges. They cannot take months to finish a report, there is a sense of immediacy. All of them have a background in social work…However, in certain cases dealing with the emotional distress of the litigants may be outside their scope of work due to constraints of time, type of cases, and the role expected from them by the system. When special psychological intervention is required, these counsellors then refer these litigants to us, for example, with cases of suicide (attempts), or self-harm, aggression, and such. ON TRAINING With Sukoon, the counsellors that sit with us have a minimum in Masters in Clinical Psychology, counselling … All of them have a training in working with relationship issues, working with a couple and family therapy format. They are also trained to … work with individuals. We are also very careful is our process of selection. A counsellor is required to work with the government’s system, but also someone who knows when to challenge the system. Language is also important. The counsellor has to understand Marathi because a lot of litigants speak Marathi. We have also signed an MoU with all these legal structures for maintaining confidentiality for all the work that we are doing. You refer them to us, we are accountable to you, but we will never divulge any of the information that they have given to us, and we will never submit a report. Q: Is it possible to tell if there are people from any particular demographic, or socio-economic background that come to you for help? Aparna Joshi: Anyone who comes to Bandra family court, it is assumed that they come from nearby areas – so the socio-economic background can vary. But the Domestic Violence (DV) cases that we are going to see, I suspect that they are those from lower, lower middle socio economic status. Not to say DV is not seen across social strata, but to see who is filing a case through legal aid — which is a free service. So therefore a particular social strata is reaching them. Q: Do… (they) understand the importance/need for mental health and self-care? How do you tackle this limitation/challenge? Aparna Joshi: We are also experimenting with different labels in articulating what we are doing. In family courts we call our centre a ‘Stress Management Centre’. This is done for two purposes – people understand ‘stress’, they don’t understand mental health. Mental health as a (phrase) is equated with mental illness and therefore leads to a lot of stigma. But stress is a part of our everyday language, so they may acknowledge that they are stressed, but they may not acknowledge that they have a mental health issue. In High Court we call it ‘Counselling Centre’. Because the High Court wanted to definitively highlight the counselling part of our work and they are fascinated by the concept that we are not working to settle the cases, or expedite the litigation process. Our simple objective is to reduce stress, and improve the individual’s well-being. This facilitates many things. People’s life trajectories are stuck when they are in the process of litigation. There’s a lot of blame, anger, conflict which affects their every part – their relationship, trust, safety, work – so we want to unfreeze these locked journeys and help people move on. Sometimes the cases are over a small issue and they are there for 9-10 years. If our process helps expedite the litigation process, then great, but that is not our objective. Our objective is to reduce distress of people who come from private conflict places to public spaces like the courts. Many people just come to talk to us. They may not understand mental health, but they understand that I can speak to this person, and feel good after talking to them. Q: How easy or difficult was it to approach a legal structure with an idea that is not ‘objective’ per say? Aparna Joshi: Family court understands the need for counsellors, because the law states so. Even High Court acknowledges the need for psychological services or well-being services , but they were referring people outside. So when we approached with this concept, we told them we are working as a value added service. We want the High Court to be seen as a legal entity which cares for its litigants’ well-being. A fantastic message to tell people. ALSO READ: AVOID STEREOTYPES, NAVIGATE YOUR WAY TO MENTAL HEALTH Q: Rajvi, what sparked the idea of opening this centre? Was there any research that the team surfaced, which led you to initiate this model? Can you share more information on that? Rajvi Mariwala: Research showed us that couples, especially women, accessing Family Courts were dealing with conflict, stress and dense emotional issues with mental health implications. Violence was reported as one of the major stressors experienced by women litigants, this included different forms of violence – physical, psychological, economic, sexual. However, when these women come to a family court setting, the court works towards either reconciliation or settlement through terms of consent in divorce. While these are the most viable options, in a legal setting, there is a need to also acknowledge the emotional upheaval that these women go through. There is also a lot of internalised stigma within such women regarding separation from a spouse, in tandem with larger social structure. In such cases, it becomes pertinent to have a safe space such as Sukoon’s stress management centre to work upon their mental health and help them deal with all the stigma. Research also showed us that despite the need for mental health care in a court setting, there weren’t trained or appointed mental health professionals available. Thus, Sukoon emerged to bridge this gap and provide accessible, quality, non-discriminatory and free mental health care to all those availing Family Court services — via trained, sensitised, mental health professionals. Q: Could you share some details of how this model works? Rajvi Mariwala: The model uses resources already available through the judicial system (for example, space within the court house) to access litigants that want to avail mental health care services such as counselling and art-based therapy. Counsellors use an approach that is gender sensitive, rights-based, non-pathologising, anthologising, and empowering. This service operates from a perspective that recognises, and helps couples negotiate, issues of gender and power. Q: As a pilot, what has the experience been so far — and how confident are you about this as a scalable or replicable model? Rajvi Mariwala: Sukoon is a successful model that uses existing infrastructure and resources, and can be scaled to Family Courts across the country. In just 18 months, over 500 litigants have been served and 100+ stakeholders within the Judicial ecosystem across four courts have been trained. Because the project works in partnership with the Judicial system, it is scalable and sustainable. We’re in the process of conducting a research study on interventions made through the project, with the hope to use these findings to enhance services being offered and build replicable models across all Family Courts in the country. Q: Any challenges to highlight as well? Can you share some of the cost implications? Rajvi Mariwala: Sukoon adopts a rights-based approach, prioritising a person’s agency throughout the mental health care process. This translates into letting the litigant decide if he or she wants to avail mental health care services, such as counselling, through the centers. However, the Family Court stakeholders (judges, staff) tend to push litigants towards receiving counselling, without inquiring about what the litigant actually wants. Thus, the project simultaneously must work to sensitise those wielding power and authority within the judicial system, to ensure that the rights and choice of the litigant is foremost. Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal. (This article has been amended to correct that the prayer is offered only in the Thane family court, not all family courts, and to incorporate amended quotes from the interviewees as well as to update the designation of Aparna Joshi.) Material on The Health Collective cannot substitute for expert advice from a trained professional. If you would like to share your story, do write to us here or tweet us @healthcollectif Feature Image: Siora Photography on Unsplash Tagged Bombay High Court Family Courts healing Long Read Mariwala Mental Health and Law Mental Health in India Mumbai Sukoon Unravel: Improv That Shows Us How to Listen Affirmations: I See Myself With Love Endometriosis: Steering Through Pain and Trauma July 27, 2018 July 27, 2018 Health Collective Your Story: Living With Bipolar Disorder August 15, 2016 May 6, 2018 Health Collective Wellness by any Name: Of Language and Expression August 9, 2019 August 9, 2019 Health Collective 4 thoughts on “Sukoon: A Counselling Model for Family Courts across India?” Neeloferr says: Hi! This is Ms.Neeloferr working as a marriage counsellor at Family court. I like to make a few comments on the article. Its a very good initiative taken up by Sukoon and I wish them my best wishes. Certain errors need to be be corrected to avoid misleading information. At first there are no prayers done in.the mornings at all family courts. This was started on a short period and at present many family courts do not practise so. Secondly, Sukoon has not had any training with marriage counsellors nor judges nor litigants so far. The department of Human Ecology of TISS had conducted one training for marriage counsellors in 2017. Thirdly, we as marriage counsellirs have an MSW degree and have had work experience in dealing with emotionally distress victims in difficult situations before joining as marriage counsellors. When the couples come to court they aren’t seeking marital counselling to strengthen their marriage.They have tried their best to work out their marital concerns in various informal ways before approaching the court. We help the litigants in many ways, one of them.is to see if there is any scope for reconciliation and an openness in working out their marital concerns. Such cases are very rare though. If so, then we do refer for long term psychotherapy or marital therapy if required or to Sukoon.Thus, its incorrect to state that we are not trained in addressing matrimonial distress. Yes, agree that all marriage counsellors may not be skilled enough to do marital therapy although we do.have few marriage counsellors who are skilled to do so. Cases seeking reconciliation are very rare. Lastly, we as counsellors at family courts definitely do not push women undergoing domestic violence to reconcile. We strongly convey a zero tolerance approach towards any kind of violence and this is stated incorrectly in the article. It would be good if corrections are thereby made so as to have accurate information sent across to our readers. Health Collective says: Thank you for your comment and mail Ms Neeloferr. Appreciate your feedback. The article has been amended to reflect some of the changes. Pingback: Ground Report: Pune’s Schizophrenia Awareness Association Centre – The Health Collective No training done by ‘Sukoon’ for marriage counsellors. No workshops done for litigants at Bandra Family court. Litigants who are emotionally distressed are definitely attended by us. Its our priority of work to do so inspite of time constraints. Its certainly not outside the scope of our work as mentioned. Cases where the emotional distress is extremely high where there may be a need for medication or person is suicidal/ self -injurious or daily life affected we then definitely refer them to psychiatrists / Sukoon /NGOs /psychotherapists. ”Family court understands the need for counsellors, because the law states so”. A brief history which led to this law come into effect… at first, a pilot project was initiated with help of MSW trained experienced counsellors. Their interventions proved highly successful at city civil court. This led to the framing of ‘The Family Court Act’, 1984. This led then to the establishment of the first family court in India with the appointment of qualified marriage counsellors. *Last point- as marriage counsellors, we certainly acknowledge the emotional upheaval that women undergone violence go through and help such women in varied ways, one of them being referrals. eleven − two = Where to Get Help: A Citywise List Stress Helplines Child Sex Abuse Call For Help Suicide Prevention Helplines The World Health Organization’s Fact Sheet on Depression The Samaritans MEDIA GUIDELINES for Reporting on Suicide National Crime Records Bureau report on Suicides in India Mental HealthCare Act 2017 The National Mental Health Survey © 2018 The Health Collective. Terms of Use The Health Collective is not in the business of nor intends to provide counselling service. The professionals, the website of the professionals and helpline numbers listed on the The Health Collective are not employed, associated or endorsed by The Health Collective. The professionals and the organisations behind the listed websites and helpline numbers, on The Health Collective website, are independent third parties and there is no relationship of principal-agent, employer-employee, partnership of any nature with The Health Collective. The Health Collective does not make any recommendation or guarantee service or quality of any professional or helpline number or website listed herein. The Health Collective does not make any representations, warranties or guarantees as to, and is in no manner responsible for, the services provided by the professionals or their websites or the helpline services. The stories and comics set out by The Health Collective are intended purely for reference purposes. Advice or stories set out herein are by no means intended to malign or defame any person, organisation, caste or community. Advice or stories set out herein are views of the concerned author only, The Health Collective does not claim copyright or endorse or recommend or represent on veracity of the advice contained in the articles or stories (including the comics) on this website. Additionally, the articles and stories set out herein should not in any manner be considered as substitute for professional help. All experiences are personal, hence advice and suggestions contained in the articles and stories may not apply to a reader’s specific facts or situations, and it is recommended that professional help is sought for such matters. The Health Collective disclaims all liability of all nature arising out of reliance placed on the advice set out in the articles and stories or arising out of meetings with professionals or calls with the professionals or helpline numbers mentioned on the website of The Health Collective.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line639
__label__cc	0.695443	0.304557	MD Notes Management and Support Team J&E Hall IMARS ISS VENDOR (MTU) HH Tech Engineering (M) Sdn Bhd is the marine air conditioning and refrigeration/HVAC systems authority dealer, agent and services company in Seri Manjung, Perak, Malaysia. Our commitment to customer service is priority one. We optimize the ship planning maintenance schedules to enable and continue to offer our customers the same level of prompt, efficient service, which they have come to rely on over the years. HH Tech Engineering (M) Sdn Bhd has been appointed as an authorized agent for J&E Hall products in the Marine Industry. We had also participated in supply of spare parts, conduct servicing and repairs, including contracts to re-fit or replace equipments that related with J&E Hall products. In addition, we are moving towards a Sole Agency type agreement with J&E Hall in the near future. Currently J&E Hall is working together with HH Tech Engineering in supplying chilled water plants to the RMN / Boustead Shipyard for new LCS ships that are being constructed in Lumut. Our Services & Works Maintenance, Repair and Overhauling (MRO) of Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration/HVAC Systems to the Maritime Industry agencies. Supplying of Air Conditioning and Refrigeration/HVAC Systems spare parts. Consultation, System Inspection and Audit, Installation and Commissioning, Planned Preventative Maintenance and Emergency Service for Air Conditioning and Refrigeration/HVAC Systems activities. 36, Kawasan Perindustrian Seri Manjung, 32040 Seri Manjung, Perak, Malaysia. hhengineering47@gmail.com http://www.hh2engineering.com © 2017 - 2020 HH Tech Engineering (M) Sdn Bhd (859902-T) Visitors: 93684	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line641
__label__cc	0.579893	0.420107	Exclusive Interview - Ava Smith During the Spring/Summer 2013 season, I intercepted American beauty Ava Smith as she exited Milk Studios following the Peter Som presentation. Twenty-four year old Smith is considered a veteran by industry standards having initially entered modelling's fray at the sprightly age of 15. Early editorial bookings for British Vogue, Wonderland, American Marie Claire, and Russian Vogue, and a United Colours of Benetton campaign lensed by David Sims, pointed towards Smith quickly ascending modelling's ranks. As is often the case though in the fickle world of fashion, the industry buzz surrounding Smith dissipated with the promising newcomer relegated to less prestigious commercial modelling gigs. Fast-forward to the Spring/Summer 2012 season and Smith reappeared like a bolt out of the blue in a smattering of shows including for DKNY, Helmut Lang, Thierry Mugler, and Peter Pilotto. This time Smith kept the momentum going, nabbing 64 and 40 show bookings respectively during the Spring/Summer 2013 and Fall/Winter 2013 collections. Smith's radiates a confidence and an aspirational type of beauty that is perceptible from the moment you meet her. Blessed with a diminutive yet powerful 177 cm frame, piercing cobalt blue eyes, and a striking jawline, there is no doubt that Smith has struck the genetic lottery. What sets Smith apart though from some of her runway contemporaries is her authentic nature, self-effacing humour, and a complete absence of ego that is often a glaring character trait amongst the bratty and the beautiful. Despite being caught up in the mad rush that is part and parcel of Fashion Week, Smith took the time to stop to pose for me outside Milk Studios and exuded a genuine warmth and interest in IMA. Smith's success is a testament to the power of perseverance, impeccable timing, and the resolute support of her management team at Wilhelmina Models, and above all else her strength of character. IMA caught up exclusively with the engaging and charismatic Smith to discuss the virtues of age and experience, staying true to yourself, and the secret to longevity. Photographer - Uncredited Source - vogue.it Inoubliable Model Army (IMA): Hi Ava, it's been almost a year since we met outside Milk Studios! Thank you for taking the time to chat with IMA and congrats on being the second top catwalker of the Spring/Summer 2013 season with 64 show bookings! You must have slept for a week when Fashion Week finally wrapped. Are you looking forward to the upcoming Spring/Summer 2014 shows and what do you hope to achieve this season? AS: I usually take things as they come, I'm happy if I do one show or a hundred - I'd be lying if I said I look forward to fashion week though... it's exhausting! IMA: Your backstory is quite fascinating given that you have been modelling since 2005. Can you fill us in on some of the gaps? AS: I'm from the south side of Chicago, and I have been living/working in New York since I started at age 15. My mom is Lithuanian and my dad is French, English, German, Irish, and Native American. I was scouted during a summer job on a beach near Chicago and signed with Factor Models (at the time it was still Elite) that Fall. That was 9 years ago... going on 10 because I'll be 25 this Fall! IMA: Fashion is an incredibly fickle industry. You initially burst onto the modelling scene in 2006 appearing in editorials for British Vogue shot by Paolo Roversi, Wonderland and Russian Vogue shot by Lee Bromfield, and in a Benetton campaign lensed by David Sims, before the interest gradually dissipated. Then bang, you remerge a few years later at the Spring/Summer 2012 collections with a renewed vigour. What do you feel have been the major contributing factors to the shift in your modelling trajectory? AS: I don't think there is an obvious answer for that. A lot of factors have to come together for your career to make a leap onto another level. I'm sure timing plays a big role, and a good, smart management team who believes in you. Prabal Gurung - F/W 2013 Photographer - Marcus Tondo Source - style.com Blumarine - F/W 2013 Hervé Léger by Max Azria - F/W 2013 Photographer - Yannis Vlamos IMA: Given your early start in modelling, do you feel better equipped to deal now with the pressures of modelling and your current success, and what are your personal views on the CFDA's ban on the use of models under the age of 16 on fashion's runways? AS: It's hard to say if I feel better equipped now because I am actually older or it's just that I'm more experienced. I think it's probably both. I'm more appreciative of the opportunities presented to me and able to recognise the amount of work it takes from multiple persons in order to maintain the high calibre of work we do. As a teenager who does relatively well right away, you don't know what it's like to be at the bottom and it's easy to develop an ego. You have a very limited perspective. I think I was mature enough to handle it then, but much more so now that I'm older. I agree with the CFDA's ban on underage girls because ultimately every girl is different and without some restrictions we could be putting our young girls in compromising positions they are not yet able to cope with. IMA: Modelling is an industry where so many factors which affect your career are beyond your control and every season brings on a new set of challenges. How do you steel yourself against constant physical scrutiny and the possible rejection that comes with the territory? AS: It's the same as in normal life, not everyone is going to love you - or even like you, so rejection is just a part you have to accept. The sooner you realise it the easier it will be for you. I keep an open mind and try to do the things that I know I will respect and be proud of. The moment you compromise what you believe is right whether it's your actions or your words, you lose your self-respect and that's when it becomes hard. As long as You like yourself, it doesn't matter what everyone else thinks. As for the physical part, I keep myself in excellent shape so I'd challenge anyone to try and test that. IMA: American girls appear to be making a major comeback in modelling, with yourself, Madison Headrick, Juliana Schurig, Mackenzie Drazan, Athena Wilson, Ondria Hardin, and Louise Parker helping to redefine concepts of American beauty. How does it feel to be part of this motley crew of amazing beauties and what is your personal definition of modern day American beauty? AS: It's great, I'm flattered to be included in such a lovely bunch of girls. We're all different in looks, personality, age, goals, and achievements but none of that matters... that's an American beauty to me. Natural, confident, and genuine, from the inside out. Exit Magazine - F/W 2012 Photographer - Benny Horne Source - fashiongonerogue.com Ava Smith, Rodrigo Braga & Cara Delevingne CR Fashion Book - F/W 2012 Photographer - Jean Baptiste Mondino Ava Smith & Bette Franke W Magazine - January 2013 Photographer - Roe Etheridge Source - models.com IMA: The casting process can be incredibly daunting with so many incredible girls striving to make their mark each season. What is your secret to making a favourable and lasting impression on casting directors and designers during the casting process? AS: Be yourself. It's so cliché but true. When you try to present something that isn't you it comes off as fake, which is never a favourable quality. And be professional, that presents you in a way where people want to work with you over and over again. IMA: On the runway, you exude a womanly confidence that is completely natural, unforced, and believable. Models including yourself, Drake Burnette, Julia Frauche, Saskia de Brauw, and Aymeline Valade are spearheading a trend amongst models hitting their stride professionally well into their 20s. What factors do you feel are contributing to this shift in the modelling paradigm? AS: I think you've just described it. A natural, unforced, believable confidence that only comes with getting a little older. I think people want that attitude associated with their clothing. Women want to look like that woman and be that woman. The modern woman has become such a force to be reckoned with in the world today. Now more than ever, we're holding positions in the family and workplace that once were designated only for men. Women are earning more money, attaining higher positions in major companies, and have a growing presence in our governing bodies. How could they relate to teenagers dressed up in expensive clothes? IMA: One of the most enjoyable aspects of show season is the backstage camaraderie between models. Who are your closest model buddies and did you take any newcomers under your wing this past season? AS: I like everyone, but I've also been around for quite some time so most of my "model" friends have moved onto other things. With such a short shelf life, it's hard to have lasting relationships within the modelling community because we all have different careers and bounce around a lot. I'm more than happy to offer the youngsters advice but as far as taking to one particular newcomer, I haven't. Flaunt - June 2013 Photographer - Alexander Neumann Source - the fashionspot.com Dazed & Confused - June 2012 Photographer - Daniel Jackson Spanish Vogue - May 2013 Photographer - Hasse Nielsen IMA: You've recently appeared in a smattering of editorials for Russh, CR Fashion Book, Dazed & Confused, Ponystep, French Numéro, and the Spanish, Japanese and Italian editions of Vogue. What do you most enjoy about the editorial component of modelling and are there any photographers whose aesthetic and way of interaction with his/her subjects you particularly admire? AS: I enjoy the freedom that the editorial aspect of modelling allows. There are still lines you have to stay within, especially in this day and age when there is so much advertising and branding going on, but you can still bring a diverse group of ideas together and compose a totally unique image. As a model there is more opportunity to bring something to the photo and collaborate with the team. I admire the photographers who still have their passion. It's so easy to become jaded and ambivalent towards your work because in a way you end up being subservient to a client, to magazine or an agency, and you lose most of the control of the image. I'm sure it can be very stifling. If they care too much they'll go crazy; but if they can find the happy balance between too much and too little, it makes for a wonderful environment for everyone involved. IMA: What do you love most about modelling and if there was one aspect of the industry you could change, what would that be? AS: I love that it is indefinable. Fashion and modelling are forever tied to the fact they are the product of people changing over time. Fashion is the change. The models and trends that were popular 20 years ago aren't as what is popular now. To me it's how the business has prevailed throughout depressions and recessions and economic booms and falls. IMA: What makes you "Inoubliable" (Unforgettable)? AS: That, in my opinion, is in the eye of the beholder. People choose for themselves why a person is memorable for them. True longevity to me can't be forced. French Revue de Modes - F/W 2013 Photographer - Thierry Le Goues Tush - May 2013 Photographer - Markus Jans Ava Smith, Kati Nescher & Thairine Garcia V Magazine - Issue 78 Photographer - Sebastian Faena Ponystep - S/S 2013 Photographer - Sebastian Mader Special thanks to Roman Young at Wilhelmina Models. For more information on Wilhelmina Model Management, please log onto www.wilhelmina.com Labels: Ava Smith, British Vogue, Dazed and Confused, Paolo Roversi, Peter Som, Ponystep, Roman Young, Wilhelmina Models Back to the Future - Malaika Firth Cavalli's Angels Prada's Red Alert Defining Lines - Ji Hye Park Body of Proof - Miranda Kerr Uncompromising Vision Breaking the Rules - Bambi Northwood-Blyth The Restless Years The Glam Factor Full Bloom - Andreea Diaconu Exclusive Interview - Tony Ward Wild At Heart - Marte Mei van Haaster Neon Lights - Jacquelyn Jablonski Reason to Celebrate! Exclusive Interview - Antonina Petkovic Beware the Wolf - Manon Leloup An Inspired Beauty	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line652
__label__cc	0.688022	0.311978	In today's disruptive era, many organisations are embracing the power of artificial intelligence (AI) applications in Customer Engagement (CRM) to revolutionize their digital transformation journey and of course, to harness What happens if someone copies that idea of yours and don’t even give you the credit. Of course it isn’t fair. It hurts so much because you’re the one who Gone are those days when a single attribute like intellectual competency of people managers put them on the iron throne. What is takes to lead a team in today's disruptive The update is 344 MB in size and notches up the version number of Oxygen OS to 9.08 in OnePlus 6 devices. This update brings in a host of OnePlus High Quality is the key factor for every business to remain competitive and profitable in the disruptive marketplace. As the face of business continues to transform, the establishment of an The software delivery life cycle of an application accelerates in a dynamic complexity. Manual testing in support of test automation becomes the primary driver in Quality Assurance (QA) process for the New OnePlus 5T Update Oxygen OS 9.0.8 Hits India on Aug 12, 2019: Good News for all OnePlus 5T smartphone users. OnePlus has recently pushed the incremental rollout of OxygenOS 9.0.8 in India for the OnePlus 5 and OnePlus 5T. The update is Boutique Institutions: The New Reality In Higher Education Landscape Chances are, the term "boutique institution" makes your mind oscillate in and out of confusion. Boutique is the new black now; it is emerging as a niche that is strongly The increasing need for manual testing has led to an increase in the utilization of F12 Developer Tools at various stages of the web development life cycle. Owing to their Windows 10 NEW Start Menu and Control Center Accidentally Released According to WindowsCentral, Microsoft today accidentally revealed Windows 10 internal build (18947) for its 32-bit systems with a new Start Menu and Control Center UI in its Insider Program due November 7, 2019 January 17, 2020 #Internet #Reviews #Technology In today’s disruptive era, many organisations are embracing the power of artificial intelligence (AI) applications in Customer Engagement (CRM) to revolutionize their digital transformation journey and of course, to harness the great potentials AI will #Internet #Reads What happens if someone copies that idea of yours and don’t even give you the credit. Of course it isn’t fair. It hurts so much because you’re the one who put in all your time, #Business #Reads Gone are those days when a single attribute like intellectual competency of people managers put them on the iron throne. What is takes to lead a team in today’s disruptive organisational culture is what it The update is 344 MB in size and notches up the version number of Oxygen OS to 9.08 in OnePlus 6 devices. This update brings in a host of OnePlus 7 features to OnePlus 6 #Upskills High Quality is the key factor for every business to remain competitive and profitable in the disruptive marketplace. As the face of business continues to transform, the establishment of an effective Quality Management system with The software delivery life cycle of an application accelerates in a dynamic complexity. Manual testing in support of test automation becomes the primary driver in Quality Assurance (QA) process for the success of software delivery. Luckily, Good News for all OnePlus 5T smartphone users. OnePlus has recently pushed the incremental rollout of OxygenOS 9.0.8 in India for the OnePlus 5 and OnePlus 5T. The update is 421 MB in size and Chances are, the term “boutique institution” makes your mind oscillate in and out of confusion. Boutique is the new black now; it is emerging as a niche that is strongly determining the prevailing trends. Believe #Internet #Technology The increasing need for manual testing has led to an increase in the utilization of F12 Developer Tools at various stages of the web development life cycle. Owing to their ability to identify errors, these According to WindowsCentral, Microsoft today accidentally revealed Windows 10 internal build (18947) for its 32-bit systems with a new Start Menu and Control Center UI in its Insider Program due to a glitch which was Reasons Why Vivo Z1 Pro Best Budget Smartphone in India: Expected Price, Specifications & Latest Updates Let’s face the truth: we can’t get enough of with our smartphones and we keep drooling for new-feature-packed handsets. Thankfully, mobile phone brands like Vivo is there to satisfy our hungry souls without burning a #Business #Upskills Must Read Quality Management Tips To Enhance Your Business Performance “The problem of quality management is not what people don’t know about it. The problem is what they think they do know” – correctly said by Philip Crosby. In the present scenario, many organisations badly	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line653
__label__wiki	0.710373	0.710373	Midair Collision: Piper PA-28R-201 Cherokee Arrow III, N1881H and Robinson R22 Beta, N404TB; accident occurred September 23, 2017 at Clearwater Airpark (KCLW), Pinellas County, Florida Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Tampa, Florida N1881H Aviation Accident Factual Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf N1881H Investigation Docket - National Transportation Safety Board: https://dms.ntsb.gov/pubdms http://registry.faa.gov/N1881H Location: Clearwater, FL Accident Number: ERA17LA332B Date & Time: 09/23/2017, 1702 EDT Registration: N1881H Aircraft: PIPER PA 28R-201 Defining Event: Midair collision Injuries: 1 Minor On September 23, 2017, about 1702 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-28R-201 airplane, N1881H, and a Robinson R22 helicopter, N404TB, were substantially damaged when they collided in mid-air over the runway at Clearwater Air Park (CLW), Clearwater, Florida. The private pilot aboard the airplane received minor injuries, and the flight instructor and a pilot-rated student aboard the helicopter also received minor injuries. Both aircraft were owned and operated by Tampa Bay Aviation. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. Both flights were operated under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91, and no flight plans had been filed. N404TB was an instructional flight that departed CLW at 1730 and N1881H was a personal flight that departed CLW at 1700. According to the flight instructor, the purpose of the flight was a flight review of the pilot-rated student. He indicated that he never flew with the student pilot prior to the accident and both of them were wearing headsets. The student pilot proceeded to the hover practice area and executed multiple practice maneuvers. All radio calls were made during every turn while in the airport traffic pattern. The instructor performed all radio calls at each leg of the airport traffic pattern during the first approach; while the pilot-rated student made the radio calls at each leg of the airport traffic pattern during the second takeoff and approach to the runway. In addition, prior to every turn, they scanned in all directions for traffic. While on a final approach, the instructor noticed a fixed-wing airplane on the base leg of the airport traffic pattern for runway 16, and he announced on the common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) that they were using runway 34. They heard the pilot of the fixed-wing airplane say something unintelligible and observed the airplane veer away, flying to the west. The instructor then allowed the student to continue the approach to runway 34, which terminated with a hover, touchdown, and liftoff. The flight returned to the airport traffic pattern for runway 34. When the flight was 1 mile from the runway, the student pilot turned onto final approach for runway 34 and executed a steep approach. The instructor told the student to extend the flight path to the segmented circle. The helicopter came to a hover over runway 34 about 15 ft, when he heard a loud sound, and felt the helicopter being pushed forward. The helicopter then began to spin and impacted the ground hard and came to rest upright. According to the pilot of the airplane, he was operating on the CLW common traffic advisory frequency and stated that between his first and second radio transmission he heard a heavy buzzing sound like a helicopter rotor with the words "34" barely distinguishable. The pilot scanned for air traffic and declared being on downwind via his radio. The pilot quickly turned to the base leg of the traffic pattern and decreased the engine power to descend. About that time, he quickly scanned of the airport environment, focusing on the taxiway to runway 34, the line of trees ahead, as well as the end of the runway and saw nothing unusual. He was confident his calls on the radio were heard. The pilot proceeded to land; about 2 seconds prior to the impact he saw the helicopter hovering "immobile," about 10 ft above the runway. He recalled the tail was pointed towards the airplane and absolutely stationary. The pilot tried to avoid the helicopter, then heard a loud sound followed by the airplane inverting and sliding on its canopy. After the airplane came to a stop the pilot exited the airplane. According to another pilot/witness that was approaching CLW, about 2 miles west of the airport, he heard the radio call from the helicopter when it was on a 1-mile final at 500 ft. He flew over CLW and saw the accident outcome. He indicated that he was monitoring the CLW CTAF and did not hear the pilot of the airplane announce his intentions. Due to the accident the witness diverted to another local airport. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector examined both aircraft at the accident site and discovered that both the helicopter and airplane sustained substantial damage. The airplane sustained damage to the fuselage and the left wing separated from the airframe. The helicopter's tubed airframe was buckled. Examination of the radio communication system in the airplane and helicopter did not reveal any anomalies. A review of a surveillance video showed the helicopter descending and slowing to stationary hover over the runway 34 threshold. Just as the helicopter had slowed to a hover, the airplane entered the frame of the video from the left, about 2 seconds before the collision. At that point the airplane's main landing gear appeared to be on, or just above the ground, and it then entered a slight climb as it continued down the runway. At this point the helicopter was oriented with its nose facing down the runway, while the airplane was approaching the helicopter from behind. Over the next 2 seconds, the airplane climb to roughly the height of the hovering helicopter before the airplane's left wing struck the aft side of the helicopter. The helicopter yawed to the left and descended to the ground, while the airplane rolled left and impacted the ground in an inverted attitude. See-and-Avoid Concept According to 14 CFR 91.113, "Right-of-Way Rules," "when weather conditions permit, regardless of whether an operation is conducted under instrument flight rules or visual flight rules, vigilance shall be maintained by each person operating an aircraft so as to see and avoid other aircraft." In addition, FAA AC 90-48D, "Pilots' Role in Collision Avoidance," which was in effect at the time of the accident, stated that the see-and-avoid concept requires vigilance at all times by each pilot, regardless of whether the flight is conducted under instrument flight rules or VFR. Certificate: Private Other Aircraft Rating(s): Helicopter Instrument Rating(s): Airplane Occupational Pilot: Yes Model/Series: PA 28R-201 201 Year of Manufacture: Serial Number: 28R-7737015 Landing Gear Type: Retractable - Tricycle Date/Type of Last Inspection: 06/13/2017, 100 Hour Time Since Last Inspection: 70 Hours Airframe Total Time: 5718 Hours as of last inspection ELT: C91 installed, not activated Engine Model/Series: IO-360-C1C6 Observation Facility, Elevation: CLW, 71 ft msl Observation Time: 1653 EDT Direction from Accident Site: 0° Turbulence Type Forecast/Actual: Turbulence Severity Forecast/Actual: Departure Point: Clearwater, FL (CLW) Destination: Clearwater, FL (CLW) Airport: CLEARWATER AIR PARK (CLW) Airport Elevation: 71 ft Runway Used: 34 Runway Length/Width: 4108 ft / 75 ft Crew Injuries: 1 Minor Total Injuries: 1 Minor N404TB Aviation Accident Factual Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf N404TB Investigation Docket - National Transportation Safety Board: https://dms.ntsb.gov/pubdms N1881H Aviation Accident Preliminary Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf http://registry.faa.gov/N404TB Accident Number: ERA17LA332A Registration: N404TB Aircraft: ROBINSON HELICOPTER R22 Flight Instructor Information Instrument Rating(s): Helicopter Second Pilot Present: Yes Instructor Rating(s): Helicopter Flight Time: 224 hours (Total, all aircraft), 224 hours (Total, this make and model), 30 hours (Last 90 days, all aircraft), 10 hours (Last 30 days, all aircraft), 2 hours (Last 24 hours, all aircraft) Instrument Rating(s):None Instructor Rating(s):None Flight Time: (Estimated) 5203 hours (Total, all aircraft) Aircraft Make: ROBINSON HELICOPTER Model/Series: R22 Beta Serial Number: 3747 Landing Gear Type: Skid; Time Since Last Inspection: 2 Hours Engine Model/Series: O-360-J2A Operator:On file Type of Airspace: VFR Approach/Landing: Stop and Go gretnabear Saturday, December 7, 2019 at 11:03:00 AM EST an accident, injuries, damages, an investigation, and all NTSB concludes is According to 14 CFR 91.113, "Right-of-Way Rules," and FAA AC 90-48D, "Pilots' Role in Collision Avoidance," thus all concerned were blamed? NO rules violated?? No enforcement actions? Unknown Saturday, December 7, 2019 at 8:07:00 PM EST No deaths on a midair with a rotor. That a grateful group of guys. Loss of Control in Flight: Piper PA-28R-201 Arro... Loss of Engine Power (Partial): Cessna 172S Sky... Collision During Landing: Stolp SA300 Starduster... Loss of Control on Ground: Robinson R44 Raven II... Fire In-Flight (Non-Impact): Cirrus SR22, N818G... Loss of Control in Flight: Cirrus SR22, N161DL;... Powerplant System/Component Malfunction/Failure: ... Loss of Control in Flight: Piper PA-32R-300 Lanc... Loss of Control in Flight: Progressive Aerodyne S... Loss of Control on Ground: Cessna T210N Turbo Ce... Loss of Control in Flight: RGJ Aviation LLC John... Loss of Control in Flight: Piper PA-23-250 Aztec... Loss of Control in Flight: Beechcraft King Air C... Loss of Visual Reference: Cessna 172R Skyhawk, ... Loss of Engine Power (Partial): Cirrus SR22T, N2... Midair Collision: Piper PA-28R-201 Cherokee Arro... Landing Gear Collapse: Piper PA-44-180 Seminol... Loss of Engine Power (Partial): Piper PA-32RT-300... Loss of Engine Power (Partial): Cessna 150F, N7...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line661
__label__cc	0.647456	0.352544	Criticism of domestic ethnopolitics by international organizations will always have a limited effect Florin2017-12-06T01:53:54+00:00 The system of minority protection in a wider European context goes hand in hand with the issue of ethnonationalism in the region. Being strongly connected by their nature, these two issues are detached from each other. Based on his significant practical experience, Vadim Poleshchuk, an expert in ethnic policies, citizenship and non-discrimination, discusses the approaches of international organizations towards the correlation between ethnonationalism and minority issues. Vadim Poleshchuk: ethnonationalism has become a distinctive feature of the Eastern European countries for several reasons. The “German” understanding of nationhood as “particularist, organic, differentialist, and Volk-centred” (Brubaker) dominates the region and therefore requires special mention. In addition, with the fall of the communist regimes, ethnic nationalism became a ready-to-use basis for political mobilization. In the Baltic countries and the republics of ex-Yugoslavia, this ideology was needed to substantiate the recognition of independent statehood. Paradoxically, an appeal to ethnic instincts went hand in hand with the popular demand for democratization and even Westernization of political life. This puts the main European institutions in a difficult situation. On the one hand, they were eager to support the transition towards a liberal democracy of the Western type. On the other hand, it meant cooperation with ethnonationalists, since the idea of a political nation (in the form of internationalism, class solidarity, Sovietness, etc.) was privatized by their political opponents. An example of the EU relations with today’s Ukraine shows that no solution to this contradiction has been found. One should also consider the great desire of the leadership of some “transit” countries to solve their problems with national minorities as harshly as it was done in Western Europe in the recent past – they considered themselves late for the ship of modernization because of the “damned Soviet domination.” Today it has a manifestation, for example, in amusing attempts to justify an aggressive anti-minority policy with references to the French republican model. In such circumstances, organizations like the Council of Europe or the OSCE (and also the European Union at the stage of the candidate countries accession) rely on certain standards for minority protection. This is perceived in the capitals throughout “New Europe” as a great injustice and as an example of double standards. At the same time, the criticism of ethnonationalism has never been too radical, since the line separating ethnic and political nationalism, especially in its outward manifestations, is subtle enough, and all European states (perhaps, except Russia and the Holy See) are nation states. This also applies to those countries which consider themselves beacons of human and minority rights. There is a well-founded opinion, once clearly stated by John Packer, that “the nationalist project of the “nation state” is incompatible with respect for human rights since it favors one cultural association (core nation) over all others: a regime of human rights virtually presumes one pluralist state.” Therefore, any criticism of the ethnopolitics of any nation state on the part of organizations created by nation states will have a limited effect. Certainly, the specific recommendations of international organizations may differ depending on whether they are made by politicians or experts. Criticism of excesses of ethnopolitics can also be based on different motives. In the logic of human rights, this is necessary to protect the dignity and human rights of persons belonging to minorities. In terms of Realpolitik, less pressure on minority groups is necessary to prevent internal and international conflicts. When ethnonationalism begins to spill over national boundaries (such as diaspora policies, etc.), it becomes a matter of international relations and regional or even international security. Sometimes the desire to extinguish the conflict can be so strong that it leads the international community to unprecedentedly progressive steps, such as the Ohrid Agreement (2001). Conflict situations involving the participation of large and important states do not always lead to the solution of the problems of minority groups, but in any case, they normally stay in the focus of international organizations’ attention. Numerous minority groups are deprived of this privilege. Tweets by @IC4ELDS The 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election: why did ethnic Hungarian candidates fail in Transcarpathia? August 12, 2019 The largest political prey of the Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania? July 31, 2019 ‘Justified’ police lawlessness against the Roma community: a recent case from Belarus July 30, 2019 Tag Widget Belarus Belarus diversity policies Belarus language policies Council of Europe diversity policies education education in Latvia education in Lithuania equality ethnic political parties European Parliament European Parliament election European Union Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities Hungarian minorities Hungarians in Ukraine Hungary Hungary-Ukraine relations Hungary kin-state policies hybrid wars Jews language policies language policies in Latvia languages in Latvia Latvia Lithuania minorities minorities in Belarus minorities in Latvia minorities in Lithuania minorities in Transcarpathia minorities in Ukraine minority education in Lithuania minority languages in Latvia non-discrimination Poles in Lithuania Polish minorities post-Soviet statehood Russia Russian foreign policy Russians in Lithuania territorial autonomy Ukraine Ukrainian Law on Education Venice Commission ICELDS Mezinárodní centrum pro studium etnické a jazykové rozmanitosti, z.s. Korunní 2569/108, 101 00 Praha 10, Czechia © ICELDS 2017-19. If not specified otherwise, all ICELDS Opinions can be republished by other media platforms only with the visible hyperlink to the original ICELDS publication.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line665
__label__cc	0.569544	0.430456	Africa, Armed Conflicts, Development & Aid, Environment, Featured, Headlines, Humanitarian Emergencies, IPS UN: Inside the Glasshouse, Migration & Refugees, TerraViva United Nations Forcing Displaced Nigerians May Worsen Humanitarian Crisis By Jan Egeland Reprint \| \| Print \| Jan Egeland is Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council and a former United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator. “Boko Haram came in the dark of night,” recalls Haja (17). “They killed my husband.” She fled with their young baby, Mommodu. Credit: Norwegian Refugee Council / Michelle Delaney Maiduguri City, Nigeria, Oct 13 2017 (IPS) - Haja grabbed her eight children and fled as Boko Haram set her home ablaze two years ago. Today we sit in her hut in a displacement camp, and she wonders how she is going to keep her children fed. I’ve spoken to many families in Nigeria’s north-eastern Monguno town. Their stories paint a horrifically detailed picture of the brutal violence these communities have endured over the past eight years. The Nigerian Armed Forces have been at war with the Islamic extremists Boko Haram since 2009, fighting a battle that has seen well over 20,000 people killed. Recent military gains have pushed the jihadists back. In response, Boko Haram has stepped up attacks on softer targets like marketplaces and camps sheltering displaced people. Civilians have become the preferred pawns in this senseless conflict. Borno State – the crisis’s epicentre – saw the highest number of attacks this year since 2013. Also on the rise is the appalling use of children as human bombs. We have seen four times as many so far this year, compared to the whole of last year. Here in northeast Nigeria, no place is sacred, no person is safe. Despite these dangers, many government officials are keen to see communities move back home. This is usually a cause we should all champion. But the unfortunate truth is that pushing people back now will have harmful consequences. Too scared to return In the largest report of its kind to date, the Norwegian Refugee Council surveyed over 3,400 households – representing 27,000 displaced people – in Borno State, to find out whether communities were ready to return home. The results were undisputable. Eighty-six per cent of people interviewed say they are too scared to return in the immediate future. Over 80 per cent of those cite insecurity as the main factor preventing them returning. An overwhelming majority tell us they feel safer in camps than where they were before. A startling statistic, considering camps are increasingly the target of suicide attacks. Even if the security situation improves, our Not Ready to Return report found that half of the displaced people interviewed say their homes were destroyed in the conflict. There’s nothing left waiting for them. Let them decide Communities who decide to return home must do so of their own free will. Reports of coercion to expedite people moving home are most concerning. Returns must be safe, voluntary and informed. Before displaced Nigerians return home, two key things must be done. Firstly, the overall security situation must improve. Communities must be, and feel, safe. This is the primary responsibility of the government and its armed forces. Secondly, resources must be channelled into rebuilding homes and re-establishing livelihoods. Families need a roof over their head and the prospect of making a living if they are to have any chance of starting anew. This is where the international community can support. We can provide them with the tools to do so – construction material, farming equipment, start-up capital and livestock. My organisation also counsels returnees on housing, property and legal rights. This is just a first step. A toxic mix Forced returns and new bouts of violence are just two ingredients adding to the danger that is stewing in the northeast. We managed to avert a famine striking Nigeria, for now. But let’s not forget that the food crisis persists. More than 5.2 million Nigerians do not have enough to eat. The violence, coupled with food insecurity and a push to move people home prematurely, will certainly create a toxic mix ideal for exasperating the humanitarian crisis in the northeast. Now is the time for long-term strategies, not short-term thinking – for Hajja’s sake and the 1.8 million other Nigerians anxiously waiting to return home.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line670
__label__wiki	0.696812	0.696812	Environment, Featured, Gender, Global, Headlines, Human Rights, TerraViva United Nations Women in Politics: Adornments and Witches By Jan Lundius Reprint \| \| Print \| STOCKHOLM / ROME, Sep 4 2019 (IPS) - Some world leaders try to prove their alpha male status by presenting attractive and submissive wives as tokens won in virile scrambles with other potent stags. A recent example of such puerile machismo was exposed in a twitter battle between the Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro and his French equivalent Emmanuel Macron. Since taking office in January, Mr Bolsonaro has railed against what he considered to be foreign meddling in Brazilian environmental politics. Wild fires raging in the Amazonian rain forest have generally been blamed on a rampant deforestation said to be endorsed by Bolsonaro´s regime. Emmanuel Macron tweeted a photo of burning Amazonian forestland with the comment: ”Our house is burning. Literally.” Bolsonaro reacted immediately and accused Macron of supporting an international alliance intending to take control over Amazonia while treating Brazil like a ”colony”. Bolsonaro twittered: We cannot accept French President Macron´s improper and wanton attacks on the Amazon, nor can we accept that he disguises his intentions. 1 Some days later, Bolsonaro expressed approval of a Facebook-posting by one of his supporters. It presented an unflattering photo of France´s First Lady, mocking her appearance and comparing her unfavourably to Brazil’s First Lady. The post declared: ”Now you understand why Macron is persecuting Bolsonaro” indicating that Brigitte Macron is not as attractive as Michelle Bolsonaro, who is 28 years younger than Brigitte. Emmanuel Macron is 24 years younger than his wife and in the opinion of chauvinist males this makes him less macho than Jair Bolsonaro who has a wife that is 27 years younger than him. Bolsonaro replied to his Facebook fan: ”Do not humilate the guy, ha, ha,” while Macron retorted by stating that Bolsonaro had been ”extremely disrespectful” to his wife, adding that: It’s sad, it’s sad first of all for him and for Brazilians. Brazilian women are probably feeling ashamed of their president. Since I have a lot of esteem and respect for the people of Brazil, I hope they will very soon have a president who is up to the job. 2 Unfortunately, I doubt that Bolsonaro´s fans had been offended by their president´s behaviour. It is common, not only in Brazil, that people confuse competent leadership with displays of masculinity. A macho man may in political propaganda be depicted as a guarantee for strength and security, while female leaders may, due to their gender, be presented as less determined and accordingly unfit for the presidency, defined as the most masculine institution of all. The recent U.S. presidential election was by many viewed as a battle between manhood and femininity, where opponents to Hillary either judged her as a proponent of ”feminine traits” making her weak and unfit for office, or as a menacing ”mannish”, maybe even lesbian lady who threatened male dominance and masculinity. The mix-up of masculinity with politics means that women candidates to influential positions often are forced to navigate an assumed ”masculine deficit” of strength and dedication by excessively exhibit willpower, vigour and toughness, displaying ”hawkish” attitudes, while downplaying their roles as mothers and/or wives, altering their vocabulary and lower the tone of their voices. This while female partners of male contenders are expected to display beauty and youthfulness, as well as an unquestionable loyalty to the virile men they ”belong” to. To perceive strong women leaders as imbued with ”manly” traits appears to be quite common. The future Israeli prime minister Golda Meir wrote in her memoris that when she in 1956 became foreign minister in Ben-Gurion´s government a story – which as far as I know, is all it was – went the rounds of Israel to the effect that Ben-Gurion described me as ‘the only man’ in his cabinet. What amused me about it was that obviously he (or whoever invented the story) thought that this was the greatest compliment that could be paid to a woman. I very much doubt that any man would have been flattered if I had said about him that he was the only woman in the government! 3 However, such statements did not mean that Meir was a feminist. In 1973, she told Oriana Fallaci: ”Those nuts that burn their bras and walk around all disheveled and hate men? They’re crazy. Crazy.” 4 Golda Meir was often called The Iron Lady, as the strong-willed and outspoken Otto von Bismarck, who in his lifetime was considered to be the epitome of Prussian manhood was called The Iron Chancellor. British prime minster Margaret Thatcher was also labelled The Iron Lady. She has been described as uniting a ”dual nature of masculine and feminine imagery” 5 radiating ”feminine” housekeeping qualities, combined with aspects of a hard, masculine warrior and leader. Contrary to what is generally the case of male leaders, women´s qualities tend to be connected with their dress and looks. Mrs. Thatcher kept her hair swept back from her face, giving her hairdo the impression of a helmet. She wore earrings and a necklace of pearls – not any frivolous diamonds, often wore gloves and almost always carried with her a black, square handbag, thus creating the image of a decisive and serious woman, not sexy or glamorous, but self-assured and effective. An appearance that occasionally created fear and insecurity among male opponents, like the French president Jaques Chirac who once famously exclaimed: ”What more does this housewife want from me? My balls on a tray?”, or Labour politician Tony Banks who in 1997 in a sexist manner described Thatcher as behaving ”with all the sensitivity of a sex-starved boa constrictor.” A woman who through her manner and dress does not emit feelings of control and self-assurance, but adaptability, submission and accessibility may not be taken seriously and thus not be accepted as a leader. This might be the reason to why several strong and influential women leaders seem to cultivate a persona that does not make them appear as excessively feminine or sexy. The powerful Indian prime minster Indira Gandhi once declared: I do not behave like a woman. The ”lack of sex” in me partly accounts for this. When I think of how other women behave, I realise that it is the lack of sex and with it a lack of woman’s wiles, on which most men base their views on me. 6 This reminds of the image Angela Merkel appears to cultivate – a political style transmitting a sharp sense of power, a scientist´s strict devotion to data projecting effectiveness and leadership qualities. Vogue has described the German chancellor as a short matronly woman […] wearing her signature black trousers and sensible walking shoes. 7 The same article characterised Merkel as a courageous and strong woman, for example by describing a meeting with Vladimir Putin in 2007 when the Russian president had allowed his huge Labrador to enter the room, well aware that the German chancellor since her early childhood is traumatized by dogs after having been severely mauled by one of them. Her aides were furious with the Russian, but she was not. ´I understand why he has to do this,´ she said, ´to prove he’s a man. He’s afraid of his own weakness.´ What Putin and other alpha-male politicians often miss is that Angela Merkel may be afraid of dogs, but she is not afraid of men. 8 It may be denied that male and female roles remain an important part of human power games, though I assume Merkel was right about Putin´s behaviour – it was based on fear. Fear of losing a mask of a virile masculinity, something which also is apparent in the ridiculous discourses of male leaders like Bolsonaro and Trump, who brag about their beautiful and submissive wives, whom they display as hunting trophies conquered in competition with other alpha males. At the same time they show contempt for female adversaries. Jair Bolsonero told a female congress woman: “I’m not going to rape you, because you’re very ugly”. Appalling misogynist language is also a trademark of Donald Trump who labels leaders like Nancy Pelosi, Hillary Clinton, Meghan Markle and Mette Fredriksen as ”nasty” women, calls his one-time aide Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth ”that dog”, the actress Rosie O´Donell a ”pig”, and famously stated that when Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly critizised him she had ”blood coming out of her wherever” and that the political commentator Mika Brzezinski was ”bleeding badly from a face lift”. Unfortunately, these are just a few examples of a misogynist stance that still is evident within a global political discourse that deny women the right of being respected as equals to men. Several world leaders present their female partners as adornments to their power display, at the same time as they fear and attack female opponents, accusing them of having transgressed traditional boundaries of ”womanhood” to become ”hags and witches” who constitute a threat to male dominance. 1 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-08-27/macron-hits-back-at-bolsonaro-over-post-about-his-wife/11451166 3 Quoted in Hall Jamieson, Kathleen (1995) Beyond the Double Bind: Women and Leadership. Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 128. 4 Fallaci, Oriana /1973) ”Golda Meir: On Being a Woman,” Ms.Magazine, April. 5 Webster, Wendy (1990) Not a Man to Match Her. London:The Women´s Press, p. 73. 6 Jayakar, Pupul (1992) Indira Gandhi: A biography. New Dehli: Penguin Books, p. 479. 7 Marton, Kati (2017) “How Angela Merkel Became the Most Powerful Woman in the World,” Vogue, July 18. Jan Lundius holds a PhD. on History of Religion from Lund University and has served as a development expert, researcher and advisor at SIDA, UNESCO, FAO and other international organisations.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line671
__label__cc	0.679642	0.320358	Narcissism, Consumerism And The End Of Growth The Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism now include narcissistic consumerism and definancialization. Today I’m going to tie together the major themes I have been discussing in the context of Japan being the bellwether of economic stagnation and social recession. The basic idea is that Japan offers a limited but still insightful experiment in what happens to advanced consumer-driven economies as definancialization hollows out the economy. What happens is that economic malaise leads to profound social recession that affects society, workplaces, families, individuals that then feeds back into the economic stagnation. Definancialization is the process in which excessive speculation, debt, leverage reverse, crushing the economy with malinvestment and legacy debt while the crony-capitalist Central State attempts to stem the resulting deflation with massive, sustained Keynesian stimulus (fiscal deficits). What we’re seeing in Japan is the confluence of three dynamics: definancialization, the demise of growth-positive demographics and the devolution of the consumerist model of endless “demand” and “growth.” Japan is the leading-edge of the crumbling model of advanced neoliberal capitalism: that consumerist excess creates wealth, prosperity and happiness. What consumerist excess actually creates is alienation, social atomization, narcissism, and a profound contradiction at the heart of the consumerist-dependent model of “growth”: the narcissism that powers consumerist lust and identity is at odds with the demands of the workplace that generates the income needed to consume. One theme that weaves together this week’s essays on Japan is the cultural/economic shift that is eroding the traditional Japanese corporate workplace. Japan and the Exhaustion of Consumerism The Hidden Cost of the “New Economy”: New-Type Depression The Future of America Is Japan: Stagnation The Future of America Is Japan: Runaway Deficits, Runaway Debts The younger generation of workers raised in a consumerist “paradise” are facing an economic stagnation that reduces opportunities to earn the high income needed to fulfill the consumerist demands for status symbols. Given the hopelessness of earning enough to afford the consumerist lifestyle, they have abandoned traditional status symbols such as luxury autos and taken up fashion and media as expressions of consumerism. But the narcissism bred by consumerism has nurtured a kind of emotional isolation and immaturity, what might be called permanent adolescence, which leaves many young people without the tools needed to handle criticism, collaboration and the pressures of the workplace. Narcissism is the result of the consumerist society’s relentless focus on the essential project of consumerism, which is “the only self that is real is the self that is purchased and projected.” Christopher Lasch (1932 – 1994) wrote The Culture of Narcissism: American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations in 1979. The book’s subtitle captured the angst of the 1970s; though rampant financialization and the Internet reinvigorated the U.S. economy in the 1980s and 90s, the subtitle accurately expresses the New Normal. While his analysis cannot be easily summarized, he zeroed in on the ontological essence of narcissism: a fear of the emptiness that lies at the very core of consumerism. Sociologist Daniel Bell’s 1988 book, The Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism brilliantly laid out the contradiction at the heart of all consumer-dependent cultures: This classic analysis of Western liberal capitalist society contends that capitalism– and the culture it creates–harbors the seeds of its own downfall by creating a need among successful people for personal gratification–a need that corrodes the work ethic that led to their success in the first place. In the modern iteration of the Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism, the narcissism that results from the focus on personal gratification via consumption cripples the person in the workplace. Ironically, the flattening of corporate management and the demands for higher interpersonal skillsets has eroded the security provided by the strict hierarchy of previous eras. Instead of working less and doing easier work–the implicit promise of “endless growth”– the work is becoming more challenging and insecure even as compensation declines. If there is any personality that is unsuited for the “New Normal” workplace, it is the narcissistic consumer–the very type of person that our consumption-dependent economy creates, nurtures and demands. That is the new Cultural Contradiction of Capitalism. “Personal gratification” is the driver of narcissism and consumerism, which are two sides of the same coin. Consumerist marketing glorifies the “projected self” as the “true self,” encouraging self-absorption even as it erodes authentic identity, self-esteem and the resilience which enables emotional growth–the essential characteristic of adulthood. Personal gratification is of a piece with self-absorption, fragile self-esteem and an identity that is overly dependent on consumerist signifiers and the approval of others. No wonder Japan’s “lost generations” are lost: not only are expectations of secure, high-income jobs diminished, the work is more demanding and the security and pay are too low to support the consumerist lifestyle that society has implicitly promised everyone who goes to college and works hard as a birthright. Jesse recently wrote a brilliant, insightful essay, Empire of the Exceptional: The Age of Narcissism As he observes, narcissism has been on the rise for 30 years in advanced neoliberal economies. In my analysis, this is the direct consequence of the supremacy of a consumerism that is dependent on financialization: an economy dependent on debt-fueled consumption to power its “endless growth” is one that will necessarily implode from its internal contradictions: debt and leverage eventually exceed the carrying capacity of the collateral and the national income, and the narcissism of consumerism leads to social recession, a crippling state of “suspended animation” adolescence and great personal frustration and unhappiness. The ultimate contradiction in this debt-consumption version of capitalism is this:how can an economy have “endless expansion and growth” when pay and opportunities for secure, high-paying jobs are both relentlessly declining? It cannot. Financialization, consumerist narcissism and the end of growth are inextricably linked. As I wrote yesterday, this leads to a dispiriting “no exit”: It’s as if there is a split in the road and no third way: some young people make it onto the traditional corporate or government career path, and everyone else is left in part-time suspended animation with few options for adult expression or development. We need a third way that offers people work, resilience and authentic meaning. In my view, that cannot come from the Central State or the global corporate workplace: it can only come from a relocalized economy in revitalized communities. Images: Flickr (licence attribution) Charles Hugh Smith writes the Of Two Minds blog (www.oftwominds.com/blog.html) which covers an eclectic range of timely topics: finance, housing, Asia, energy, longterm trends, social issues, health/diet/fitness and sustainability. From its humble beginnings in May 2005, Of Two Minds now attracts some 200,000 visits a month. Charles also contributes to AOL’s Daily Finance site (www.dailyfinance.com) and has written eight books, most recently “Survival+: Structuring Prosperity for Yourself and the Nation” (2009) which is available in a free version on his blog. 11 Economic Disaster Predictions From Experts Around… Stop Losses – Help or Hindrance? Free EWI Report: Gold and Silver To Drop Further The Real Fiscal Cliff	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line695
__label__wiki	0.840554	0.840554	Madness Hub Home / News / Scottish woman, 28, is being kicked out of the US after having sex with a 14-year-old boy who paid her $480 to take his virginity Scottish woman, 28, is being kicked out of the US after having sex with a 14-year-old boy who paid her $480 to take his virginity A British woman is being booted out of the US after having sex with a 14-year-old boy - who paid her to help him lose his virginity. Sarah McGill had been facing up to 15 years behind bars, but was instead given five years' probation and ordered to leave America immediately. The ruling came after she was found guilty of lewd or lascivious battery - - known as statutory rape in the UK. As the probation was terminated upon her leaving the US, her sentence was effectively deportation. The sweetheart deal with prosecutors means that the the 28-year-old hypnotherapist, from Galashiels, Selkirkshire, could be back in Scotland as soon as today, though her travel plans are unclear. McGill's case was unexpectedly resolved on Wednesday, three days after details of her police interviews were published in which she said she felt "terrible" the boy was underage. She had denied lewd or lascivious battery - which is similar to statutory rape in the UK - and was due to stand trial next month. But the prospect of a long jail term left her "scared", she said in a police interview, and prosecutors were apparently willing to cut her a deal. McGill had been due to appear before Judge Marc Lubet at the Orange County courthouse in Orlando, Florida, for a pre-trial conference on Wednesday but instead she was sentenced later that day. Julio Semino, court support manager for the Ninth Judicial Circuit, said in an email: "Ms. Mcgill received 5 years sex offender probation. She was adjudicated guilty as a sex offender. "Her passport was ordered to be returned to her and she was directed to immediately leave the country. Her probation is to terminate upon her leaving the US." Under Florida law, when a person is adjudicated guilty by a judge they are convicted of the crime. A note in the court calendar says: "Court designates the defendant a sex offender'. McGill had been arrested on April 6 after having sex with the 14-year-old in a Courtyard Marriott in Orlando. The victim had found her profile on Quora.com which listed her under the name ‘Sophie Belle’ and texted her to set up the liaison for which he paid her $480 (£340). The incident came to light when the boy's father found out what he had done and went back to the hotel where he called the police. It later emerged that the boy had lost his virginity to McGill when they slept together. The arrest shone a light on McGill's bizarre double life as she claimed to be a hypnotherapist with an office in Edinburgh. In her police interview McGill admitted she had been travelling alone across the US - visiting San Francisco, New Jersey, San Diego and Tampa before Orlando - but claimed she was sightseeing. When it was put to her that she is a prostitute who is paid hundreds of dollars an hour to sleep with men, she said "there is truth in that". McGill sobbed during the two hour interview and said that "I swear I didn't know" the boy was under 18. She said: "We didn't just talk. He wanted to touch me. We were talking and one thing led to another. That was it. I wish that I never took him upstairs. I feel like such an idiot." McGill added in her thick Scottish accent that she "didn't come here to do anything wrong". Through tears she said: "Whatever happened, I never had any ill intention. I'm just a very down-to-earth, normal person. "I've never been in handcuffs or anything like that so it's scary for me. I think I should leave the country and I think I should be told off. I don't want to go to jail. I'm really scared." In his police interview the victim said he felt "guilty" about sleeping with McGill and said that he only wanted to "spice up" his sex life because he was still a virgin and felt under peer pressure to do it. The boy said that he gave McGill the money as a "donation" and that he wore a condom. McGill avoided a jail term in the custody of the Florida Department of Corrections which is underfunded and in a permanent crisis. Florida has long been seen as one of the most dangerous prison systems in the US for inmate violence, use of force by staff and lack of healthcare. McGill’s lawyer Donald Lykkebak did not respond to requests for comment. 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__label__wiki	0.706039	0.706039	From Realtà Mapei International n° 64 - 07/11/2017 The ARC Campbelltown Fitness and Swimming Centre New ceramics have been installed in the sporting heart of a local council in the city of Adelaide. The public swimming pool in the City of Campbelltown – a city in South Australia just a few kilometres to the east of Adelaide – has reached a new standard following the upgrade of the ARC Fitness and Swimming Centre. A winning mix of creative design, a keen eye on the needs of users of the centre and comforts of the latest generation, have all enabled a centre to be created that provides a combination of welcoming surroundings, fun and excitement. Today’s ARC Swimming Centre is an aquatic centre with an indoor, heated 25 metre pool with eight lanes, a children’s pool, a sauna and a relaxation area. The complex also has a bar, a gymnasium, a fitness centre, an infants’ centre, five squash courts and multi-functional playing courts for basketball, netball and volleyball. A large-scale refurbishment with Mapei products playing a key role to waterproof surfaces and install new ceramics. REPAIR WORK AND PREPARATION OF THE CONCRETE Work on the installation of new tiles in the 25 metre indoor pool, the children’s pool and on the water features in the recreation area started with removal of the old tiles and cleaning of all the surfaces. KERAPOXY two-component, acid-resistant epoxy mortar was used to restore the expansion joints, while MAPEBAND TPE, a special tape in TPE, was used to form elastic, waterproof seals in the expansion joints and cracks subjected to movements. EPORIP two-component, solvent-free epoxy adhesive was also used for these operations to monolithically seal the cracks in the screeds and the second pours in the rigid, waterproof joints. The floors around the swimming pool were sealed with MAPEGROUT FAST-SET rapid-setting and drying, shrinkage-compensated, fibre-reinforced mortar for restoring concrete and sealing surface cracks. The surfaces used by swimmers were treated with PLANICRETE SP (available on the Australian market), which is used as an admixture to make highly adhesive, cementitious slurry. The same slurry was also used to form a bonding interface for the two successive layers of MAPELASTIC SMART two-component, high-elasticity cementitious mortar, which is used to waterproof balconies, terraces, bathrooms and swimming pools. PLANITOP FAST 330 rapid-setting, fibre-reinforced cementitious levelling mortar for internal and external surfaces, which can be used to integrate areas from 3 to 30 mm thick, was applied where required to level the reinforced concrete and make it suitable (after just 24 hours at +20 °C) for the successive application of the waterproofing product MAPELASTIC SMART. To guarantee the maximum integrity of the sides and bottom of the pool before installing the tiles, MAPETEX SEL, a special, non-woven, macro-perforated fabric used to reinforce waterproof membranes, was integrated into the MAPELASTIC SMART membrane. INSTALLATION OF THE NEW CERAMICS Non-slip tiles (119x244 mm x 9 mm thick) were installed on the surfaces around the swimming pool using KERABOND PLUS adhesive mixed with ISOLASTIC 50 elasticising latex for cementitious adhesives (available on the Australian market) which, when used instead of water, improves the characteristics of the adhesive. Other tiles specifically made for swimming pools were installed with KERABOND PLUS + ISOLASTIC 50, such as special shaped tiles to form a grip around the edges of the pool and on the surfaces of the grates on the wet platforms. The same adhesives were also used to bond the tiles on the walls, on the steps and on the skirting. The product chosen to grout the tiles in the swimming pool was ULTRACOLOR PLUS high-performance, anti-efflorescence, rapid-setting and drying, polymer-modified mortar with water-repellent DropEffect® and mould-resistant BioBlock® technology, which is used to fill grout lines from 2 to 20 mm wide. MAPESIL AC solvent-free, pure, mould-resistant, acetic silicone sealant was then used to form perfectly elastic seals in the expansion joints in the walls and floor. With more than 2,000 m2 of surfaces to be waterproofed and then used to install new tiles, 1,000 m2 of surfaces to be levelled, 440 m2 of concrete to be repaired, 1,060 m2 of cementitious screeds and 1,500 m of joints to seal with silicone, the key product for the final phase of installing the new tiles in the swimming pool was GRANIRAPID, a specific two-component, high-performance, rapid setting and hydrating deformable adhesive. Indeed, thanks to its high bond strength and rapid-drying property, GRANIRAPID is particularly suitable for quick refurbishments and for areas that need to be put back into service immediately. PERFECT INSTALLATION ALSO IN THE SERVICE AREAS The product chosen to install the new tiles in all the service areas was TIXOBOND FINE S1 deformable, non-slip cementitious adhesive with extended open time, which is available on the Australian market. The large format floor tiles in these areas were installed with white KERAFLEX MAXI S1 high-performance, deformable, non-slip cementitious adhesive with extended open time, Low Dust technology and very low emission of volatile organic compounds (VOC), particularly suitable for installing large format porcelain tiles and natural stone. Before installing the new ceramic, all the damp surfaces in the service areas were waterproofed with MAPEGUM WPS rapid-drying, elastic, liquid membrane, which is used to waterproof internal surfaces. The tiles in these areas were also grouted with ULTRACOLOR PLUS and the expansion joints were sealed with MAPESIL AC. Project data sheet inddor swimming-pools Opened in supplying products for waterproofing and installing ceramic tiles Start and finish date Installation of floor and wall coverings Campbelltown City Council Sarah Constructions Pty Ltd Installer companies Commercial Ceramics and G&G Tiling Design Inc. Designers (for works) MAPEI Coordination John Francis (Mapei Australia) Realtà Mapei Tags: #SwimmingPools #renovation #ceramics	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line703
__label__cc	0.661468	0.338532	Guest Post by Sophia Hobbs - Southern Gothic: The Best Horror Writers, Stories and Series from Darkest Dixie The illustrious Southern Writer Flannery O’Connor (more on her later) once said that “Anything that comes out of the South is going to be called grotesque by the northern reader, unless it is grotesque, in which case it is going to be called realistic.” Those of us down under the Mason/Dixon line may understand her sentiment better than our Northern counterparts. Maybe it’s the spare, endless austerity of the Chihuahuan Desert in West Texas that gives you chills or the Spanish moss-draped, darkly Victorian plantations and crumbling cemeteries of New Orleans- its watershed prone to giving up the bones of the dead. Whatever the particulars, you may have experienced a certain venerable-seeming eeriness that feels particularly southern; one perhaps pronounced around the Halloween season. After all, there is no literary genre for “Northern Gothic”. So here is a Halloween-jitters-guaranteed collection of work from southern writers all too familiar with the dark side of Dixie. Poppie Z. Brite; Calcutta: Lord of Nerves. Poppy Z. Brite is one of modern horror’s most skilled practitioners of putting the gory to legitimately scary use. Much of Brite’s gender-bending dark fiction takes place in her home city of New Orleans; although Calcutta: Lord of Nerves doesn’t. This Indian zombie-apocalypse tale is tinted darker by its comment on (in)human sexuality in its sometimes terrifying permutations. Truman Capote; Tree of Night. Truman Capote is an excellently appropriate post-Poppy Brite inclusion. Both are New Orleans natives; both famous for the employment of the identity crises, confusion and panic engendered by sexuality as themes in their writing and both craft legitimately frightening fare. Although better known for his true-terror best-seller In Cold Blood, Capote’s short story collection A Tree of Night is a great one for the self-scare. Master Misery, about a man that buys (steals) dreams, is excellent but the collection’s eponymous short story about a young woman encountering a freakish couple on a train (they make their living reenacting the death and resurrection of Lazarus) who finds her evening increasingly descending into a cold, dark slip from reality is the creepiest of the lot. Steve Dillon and Garth Ennis; The Preacher series. The Preacher graphic novel series by (the surprisingly) UK-stationed Ennis relays the journey of Jesse Custer- a Texas preacher unexpectedly possessed by a mad half-divine/half-diabolic entity which grants him a god-like power. Furious at the possession and state of the world, Custer sets out to scour the earth for God (Who’s fled heaven). The Preachers is accompanied by his reluctant hit-woman girlfriend and a hard-drinking, hard-brawling Irish vampire. They, in turn, are pursued by the Saint of Killers- the embodiment of vengeance- and The Grail, a secret society of immense power intent on both perpetuating the bloodline of Christ and concealing the fact that millennia of inbreeding have left Christ’s sole remaining descendent a developmentally-disabled sadist. A must read for fans of irreverent horror/humor. William Faulkner; Sanctuary. There’s a widely agreed-upon distinction made by writers of the macabre between terror and horror and their individual merits; terror being preferable to horror. One of those writers described terror as the stomach-knotting, palm-sweating, teeth-grinding anxiety one would feel when knowingly about to discover a corpse. Horror is finding it- anticipation vs. revelation. Faulkner’s Sanctuary, about a woman taken captive by a sadistic and brutal bootlegger, is not a light-hearted gore-reveal horror story. It’s a perusal of terror and human weakness punctuated by moments of horror. It’s also William Faulkner and therefore excellent. Charlaine Harris; The Southern Vampire Mystery Series; or the Sookie Stackhouse Novels; or their HBO adaptation True Blood. Of those in the list, Harris probably has the most public exposure and cachet at the moment because of HBO’s adaptation of her series about buxom, blonde psychic waitress Sookie Stackhouse. Harris follows Sookie’s (mis)adventures, romances and clashes with the vampiric, lycanthropic and magical denizens of (the mythical) Bon Temps, Louisiana. Fans of the show should read the books and vice versa. Joe R. Lansdale; Duck Hunt. Texas native, Joe Lansdale is another master of capturing the creepiness of the Southern milieu. And he’s never better than in the shocking study in male machismo, violence, coming-of-age and… duck hunting found in Duck Hunt. Excellent. Flannery O’Connor; A Good Man is Hard to Find. O’Connor ranks among the true masters of the Southern Gothic- Capote, Faulkner, Eudora Welty, Cormac McCarthy, Harper Lee and Tennessee Williams. That her fame is well-deserved is nowhere more apparent than in A Good Man is Hard to Find in which a selfish, judgmental grandmother dooms her family and herself upon encountering an escaped killer. Edgar Allen Poe; The Gold Bug. This tale of pirate treasure, possible insanity, cryptography and a gold bug is set on Sullivan Island in North Carolina and was written by Edgar Allen Poe. Enough said. Sophia Hobbs, who can often be found performing poetry and attempting to manage a little rugrat, all the while still maintaining her work with NewYork.Newsday.com and assisting her brother with his company which handles damage restoration in Dallas and Fortworth. Posted by Midnyte Reader at 1:45 PM Labels: Southern Gothic books. 2017.2.11xukaimin	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line708
__label__cc	0.652905	0.347095	Connect with us \| Contribute All ears! Good cheer! Snow way! Cookies for life Preventing kid colds Your little foodie Help: My child has anxiety! Is a device your vice? Don’t plead. Count to 3! Bourbon in the bath Life gives the Heisman A collection of tiny things Dinner solved! Loud, busy, messy, rich and full Staying healthy this season Travel solo! You: Not in control On babyhood Joy of holiday birthdays Good news for preemies A grateful 2020 Goat sleigh $7 Christmas bonnet Dr. Erin Stevens Signs of postpartum depression Bringing a new life into the world can be a joyous event for everyone involved. Sometimes, however, it can lead to significant emotional and mental changes for a new mother that make daily life difficult. Although celebrities like Serena Williams and Chrissy Teigen have recently brought peripartum mood disorders into the public eye, most people still don’t know a lot about them. Q What are peripartum mood disorders? A People who are pregnant or have recently delivered a baby can... more You’re pregnant! Now what? You might be equal parts thrilled and terrified, and will likely have a lot of questions when it comes to nutrition, activity, the latest dos and don’ts, and everything else surrounding pregnancy, labor and delivery — never mind parenting. We’re here to help with some of the top questions we see in our practice:Q What vitamins... more Should I try acupuncture? Q: What is it?A: Acupuncture is a healing art believed to have originated in China more than 2,500 years ago. It’s based on an understanding of health that’s somewhat different than that of Western (allopathic) medicine. Broadly, in acupuncture, if you’re a healthy person, you’ll have a healthy body.In Western medicine, if you... more Preeclampsia 101 Pregnancy is generally thought of as a wonderful, magical time. Although that certainly can be so, it’s also a time of great risk for a woman’s health. Women’s bodies change in many ways to accommodate pregnancy, but sometimes these changes lead to health conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, blood clots, excessive... more Serena Williams was about eight weeks pregnant when she won her 23rd Grand Slam tennis tournament. At least 18 women have participated in the Olympics while pregnant, including Kerri Walsh Jennings, who won her third gold medal in volleyball while five weeks along. Amy Keil of Minneapolis completed the Boston Marathon while 34 weeks... more Beyond wine and chocolate Chances are, you’re distracted while reading this. You’re running on a constant underlying level of anxiety while scanning through the never-ending to-do list in your head. I see women of all ages with a variety of life responsibilities every day in the office, and I’ve noted a common theme — we’re all stretched thin and stressed... more Yet another shot!? Q: Can we skip the HPV vaccine?A: Many parents find HPV vaccination to be a particularly challenging topic as they struggle with the idea of thier child receiving an injection related to sexual health.But the vaccine — which is given during elementary school — is recommended to prevent multiple types of cancer in adulthood for both... more	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line712
__label__cc	0.696124	0.303876	Best Western London Highbury 374 Seven Sisters Road N4 2PG London United Kingdom Area: Barnet With a stay at Best Western London Highbury in London (Hackney), you'll be 6 minutes by car from Emirates Stadium. This guesthouse is 4 mi (6.5 km) from University College London and 4.1 mi (6.6 km) from Museum of London. Stay in one of 45 guestrooms featuring flat-screen televisions. Complimentary wired and wireless Internet access keeps you connected, and cable programming provides entertainment. Private bathrooms with bathtubs or showers feature complimentary toiletries and hair dryers. Conveniences include safes and desks, and housekeeping is provided daily. Make use of convenient amenities, which include complimentary wireless Internet access and concierge services. Satisfy your appetite at the guesthouse's coffee shop/café. Quench your thirst with your favorite drink at the bar/lounge. Full breakfasts are available daily for a fee. Featured amenities include complimentary newspapers in the lobby, luggage storage, and laundry facilities. Self parking (subject to charges) is available onsite. Satisfy your appetite at the guesthouse's coffee shop/café. Quench your thirst with your favorite drink at the bar/lounge. Full breakfasts are available daily for a fee.Make use of convenient amenities, which include complimentary wireless Internet access and concierge services.Pets not allowed Check-in time starts at 2:00 PM Check-out time is 11:00 AMFeatured amenities include complimentary newspapers in the lobby, luggage storage, and laundry facilities. Self parking (subject to charges) is available onsite.Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy. Government-issued photo identification and a credit card or cash deposit are required at check-in for incidental charges. Select dates for the stay 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 20 21 Luggages store Entirely non-smoking hotel Private Parking extra charge View rooms details Tea & Coffee maker WiFi Wireless Internet Access	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line716
__label__cc	0.542099	0.457901	More TV, Please This Is Us 1.17: “What Now?” “It’s my fault. I’m the reason he’s dead.” We are in the final episode before the season finale and I don’t know what I’m feeling. Jack is not handling Rebecca’s assertion of independence well. Randall’s grieving the loss of another father and Kevin and Kate are a tiny bit adrift. Get things together Pearsons! My tear ducts can’t handle this. In fact, I have a habit of watching this show on public transportation (because I’m stupid) and I flat out cried openly this episode. In the past, we pick up with Jack and Rebecca where Rebecca is just about to go off on tour. Jack is late getting home (he’s at a retirement party for a colleague he doesn’t particularly like). Rebecca is mad that he didn’t leave when he said he would. It’s so painful to see the two of them at odds like this. We’re so used to them being strong and united. I don’t like them fighting. And neither does Kate. After Rebecca leaves (Jack only gives her a peck on the cheek), Kate admonishes him and he goes out to say a proper goodbye but she’s already gone. Then when he drops them off at a friend’s house for a party, she doesn’t get out of the car because she’s worried something is wrong with her parents. He tries to convince her that everything is fine and she should worry about being a teenage girl. But, at the after-party for the retirement party when his assistant hits on him, he realizes his daughter was right and he needs to be with his wife. But of course, he’s been drinking and that can’t lead anywhere good. In the present, we find the Pearson clan trying to figure out how to mourn William (I have to say I loved the bit of the acoustic version of the song from last week playing as Randall is looking around William’s room). Beth and Randall find a note from William to the girls, putting them in charge of his memorial service. Because the girls are so darn cute, they come up with celebrating his life by recreating his perfect day with the rest of the family in attendance (including Rebecca and Miguel). Rebecca is apprehensive about being there given her role in keeping William and Randall apart for so many years. But there’s breakfast to be had, until Beth kind of loses it in the kitchen with Randall. First, she’s upset because she looks in the cabinet and realizes she refilled all of William’s medications. And then, she laments that she didn’t even get to say goodbye to him like Randall did with the trip to Memphis or Jessie in private or the girls by planning the memorial. So when it comes time for the “toast” (eulogy), Randall hands the mic over to his wife. She gives a great speech which ends with noting that going forward; the family is going to remember things before William and after William. At this point, Kate kind of loses it. When Toby tries to comfort her, she just runs out of the house crying. Randall goes to console his sister and she admits that since the camp and the therapy, a lot of things have been coming to the surface for her emotionally, especially about Jack. She promises Toby as the family heads off on William’s afternoon walk that she will tell him after Kevin’s play that night. And as they continue to meander, Rebecca finally unloads on Randall all the feelings she’s been holding in. She had promised herself she would tell Randall when he was 15 (and then 16) because she knew it would hurt him, especially since William had been so poorly off when she first met him. She feels guilty for him not having enough time with William. But Randall counters that he had enough time with his father to know he was loved and that was good enough. On the Kevin front, he’s trying to get the New York Times critic to come to the second opening night of the play but he’s not having it. He alsow ants to share the fact he’s dating Sophie with his family but she’s not ready. She’ll be there but she’s not going to sit with them. The play goes off really well and the family has nothing but positive things to shower upon Kevin. Kevin even tells Sophie afterwards that he came to New York to win her back and he’s going to wait however long it takes for her to believe that. Cue them falling into bed together. And then Ron Howard calls. He was in the audience with his niece and he wants Kevin to be in a movie he’s shooting out in LA. Please dear God Kevin, don’t make the same mistake you made with Sophie before. Don’t put your career ahead of your love. Oh and in spectacular fashion, Randall swings by the office and confronts his boss for being such a heartless jerk this whole time. Randall helped build the company to what it is and all he got was a box of fruit he’s allergic to and a generic printed card? So he up and quits his job. Good for him! Go take some walks or turn the music up and roll through the neighborhood like William would have done. And as we end, we find Toby and Kate packing for LA and he reminds her of her promise to share things bout Jack’s death. We still don’t know how it happens but Kate does drop quite the bombshell on Toby and the rest of us. According to her, Jack’s death was her fault and she’s been holding onto that for so many years. This leads me to think something happens when Jack goes off to apologize to Rebecca on tour (since Kate pushed him to go and do just that). That is an awful weight to be carrying around for half your life, especially for a teenager. No kid should have to feel like their parent’s death was their fault. I really hope Kate can find a way to heal from these wounds because she deserves to be happy and not have to bear that burden anymore. Man, I’m so not ready for next week’s finale. Posted by SBiglow at 8:42 AM Labels: This Is Us MTVP on Facebook More TV Please The Latest Tweets Tweets by @MoreTVPlease Jen the TV Junkie SBiglow Once Upon a Time 6.14: “Page 23” Fresh off the Boat 3.13: "Neighbors With Attitude"... No Tomorrow 1.13: “No Sleep ‘Til Reykjavik” Once Upon a Time 6.13: “Ill-Boding Patterns” Fresh off the Boat 3.12: "Sisters Without Subtext"... This Is Us 1.18: “Moonshadow” Once Upon a Time 6.12: “Murder Most Foul” MTVP So Cal Summer: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend 1.15: "Jos... Fresh off the Boat 3.11: "Clean Slate" Once Upon a Time 6.11: “Tougher Than The Rest” MTVP Binges Out: "Atlanta" Season One The Long Road to Air: “Emerald City” Fresh off the Boat 3.10: "The Best of Orlando" 12 Monkeys (14) 2012 Pilot Preview (4) 3rd Rock from the Sun (1) Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 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__label__wiki	0.558466	0.558466	Oxley’s confimed by Senate Photo credit: Scarcini, Hollenbeck Former Monmouth County Sheriff Joe Oxley’s nomination to the Superior Court was confirmed by the State Senate this afternoon after having been unanimously approved by the New Jersey Senate Judiciary Committee earlier in the day. Four of the other nominees confirmed today will be joining Oxley on the Monmouth County bench. Angela White Dalton of Howell, a former Township Councilwoman, Katie A. Gummer of Rumson, Arnold L. Natali, Jr of Little Silver and Mara E. Zazzali-Hogan of Shrewsbury are each expected to be confirmed by the Senate today. Zazzali-Hogan is the daughter of former NJ Chief Justice James R. Zazzali. Zazzali was Chief Justice for seven months, October 2006 until his mandatory retirement in June of 2007, after being nominated for the top post by Governor Corzine. He became an Associate Justice in June of 2000. Monmouth County Assignment Judge Lawrence M. Lawson told MMM last December that the Court has been operating with six vacancies. Kathy Sheedy of Cream Ridge was nominated by Governor Christie on Monday to fill the final vacancy. Lawson was not available when MMM called this afternoon to ask what the assignments will be for the new judges. Monmouth County Senators Jennifer Beck and Joe Kyrillos issued the following statement praising the New Jersey Senate’s confirmation of five Monmouth County residents to be judges of the Superior Court: “Monmouth County, like counties across the state, has had a number of judicial vacancies that have caused backlogs in our court system. We are pleased that the New Jersey Senate has finally taken action to confirm qualified nominees. By filling judicial vacancies, we can ensure that all kinds of legal proceedings, from criminal trials to divorce proceedings, can be heard in court in a timely manner.” UPDATE and CORRECTION 2/8/13 Judge Lawson told MMM this afternoon that despite his Monmouth County residence, Natali will be assigned to the Middlesex County Vicinage. If Sheedy is confirmed by the Senate, the Monmouth Court will still have a vacancy. A second vacancy will occur if Judge David F. Bauman is confirmed as an Associate Justice of the State Supreme Court. Bauman and Board of Public Utilities President Robert Hanna were nominated to the Supreme Court by Governor Christie on December 10, 2012. Senate President Steve Sweeney said this week that he wouldn’t be rushed into holding confirmation hearings for the two Supreme Court nominations. Lawson said that the new Monmouth Judges will be assigned in either Family Court or Civil Court. He has yet to determine who will be assigned where. Posted: February 7th, 2013 \| Author: Art Gallagher \| Filed under: Joe Oxley, Monmouth County Court \| Tags: Angela White Dalton, Arnold L. Natali Jr, Chief Justice James R. Zazzali, Governor Chris Christie, Joe Oxley, Judge David F. Bauman, Judge Lawrence M. Lawson, Katie A Gummer, Mara E. Zazzali-Hogan, Middlesex County Vicinage, NJ Supreme Court, Seante President Steve Sweeney \| 6 Comments »	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line724
__label__cc	0.650278	0.349722	Rock Climbing and Scrambling Is there anything to love about bracken? If you are out and about in the Lake District at any time of the year, you cannot fail to notice one of the area's most common plants: bracken. In spring the bright green immature fronds, known as fiddleheads, curl up from under the earth and start to grow. In summer the large pale green fronds are borne on tall stems which can grow to over two metres in height. In autumn the fronds die off leaving great swathes of russet brown glowing in the sunlight. Bracken prefers acid, well drained soil so is often found growing on the sides of hills. Its root system is easily damaged by frost so it is restricted to lower altitudes, generally below six hundred metres. It often grows at the foot of a slope where soil and nutrients have been washed down and accumulated. Changes in farming methods have led to an increase in bracken in the Lake District: as the number of sheep on the fells has decreased the bracken has spread. Whilst it can look beautiful in autumn the spread of bracken is generally not popular with the local population. Its very vigorous growth excludes most other plants such as bilberry and heather that might otherwise be growing there. It is an ideal habitat for sheep ticks which are more than happy to latch on to a human or ovine host and potentially pass on Lyme's Disease. The tall mature fronds make it very difficult to walk across the fells whether for pleasure or to gather sheep and it can extend its area by as much as 3% per year which can cause major problems for land owners and managers. Despite its general unpopularity bracken is an amazing plant. It is one of the oldest ferns on earth, with fossil records dating back to over 55 million years ago. It grows on every continent on Earth, apart from Antartica. Although it can exclude other plants there are lots of invertebrates, including a number of moths and caterpillars, and animals that feed on bracken or use it as cover. Ground nesting species of moorland birds, such as skylarks and lapwings use deeper stands of bracken as food sites and skylarks often nest in bracken and use it for cover. Many cultures throughout the world have used the fiddleheads as a foodstuff and there are still places, such as Korea and Japan, where they are eaten today. (However the British Royal Horticultural Society recommends against consumption of bracken because it contains carcinogens linked with oesophageal and stomach cancer. ) Throughout England bracken was seen as a valuable commodity in the past: it was harvested from the land and used as bedding for livestock, as a mulch for root crops such as swedes or turnips, for thatching roofs, as fuel for ovens and as a packing material for fragile goods or fruit. It could also be burnt to create potash for making soap and glass. For many years bracken has been ignored or cursed but Dalefoot Farm, a small, traditional hill farm near Ullswater have started to harvest it again. They take the bracken and mix it with another once prized and now difficult to sell commodity: sheepswool. The potash content of the bracken and the water retention qualities and slow release nitrogen in the sheepswool combine to make the perfect peat-free garden compost. So next time you are walking in the Lake District fells and are having to fight through a large stand of bracken, take a moment to appreciate this tenacious plant but do watch out for ticks. How to choose the right rock climbing shoes for you. What is your winter mountaineering instructor thinking? How to plan a winter mountain day An Unlikely Adventure Who should be allowed on the hills? The best multi-pitch rock climbs in Langdale More than Mountains, 48 Devonshire Road, Ulverston, Cumbria, LA12 9AJ, UK Email: info@morethanmountains.co.uk Copyright © 2020 More than Mountains \| Website Design & Development By BREAK17	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line725
__label__wiki	0.805894	0.805894	NIAS Institute Search by country and topic At a Moment’s Notice: Indonesian Maids Write on Their Lives Abroad Yuan Shikai: A Reappraisal The Nagasaki Peace Discourse: City Hall and the Quest for a Nuclear Free World Politicized Society Taiwan’s Struggle with its One-Party Past Mikael Mattlin 434 pp., illustrated Governance in Asia # 1 Available from NIAS Press worldwide Hardback - 2018, Available ISBN 978-87-7694-212-0, £65.00 If you would like to hear from us when a particular book is published, please let us know by sending an e-mail to [email protected] with the words 'pub notice' in the subject line and listing in the main body of the e-mail the title(s) of the books(s) you would like to be told about. We will then e-mail you as soon as the book becomes available. Alternatively, you could join our mailing list and reveice quarterly updates on all new books, projects under way, conferences where our books can be seen, and other Press news. Paperback - 2018, Available • Updating and expansion of the acclaimed first edition with new research. • What lessons does Taiwan's protracted transformation of a one-party state hold for Mainland China? • Includes a foreword by Prof. Dan Slater, University of Michigan. This book addresses the problems of protracted democratic transitions that occur when a one-party state has been incompletely dismantled. In Taiwan, the transition from one-party authoritarianism to multi-party politics was initially smooth. Power has already changed hands through the ballot box three times since 2000. However, political and social practices established before the political transition continue to affect politics today. When an old dominant party like the Kuomintang still thrives after the end of one-party rule, the process of political liberalization contains within itself the seeds of structural politicization, the book argues. This updated and expanded second edition delves into key events and changes since the publication of the first edition in 2011. It contains a wealth of new material and research, including elite and expert interviews recently conducted in Taiwan. The second edition also more explicitly addresses the portability of the lessons from Taiwan’s political transition to the political future of the one-party system in Mainland China. The enduring value of the study lies in its deep, anthropologically inspired analysis of the phenomenon of politicization stemming from Taiwan’s one-party legacy, and its effects on the sustainability of democratic politics. Dr Mikael Mattlin is collegium researcher at the Turku Institute for Advanced Studies (TIAS) and adjunct professor at the University of Turku. He has specialized in the politics, foreign policy and political economy of Greater China since 1995. 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Marston Book Services PO Box 269, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4SD, UK E-mail: [email protected] (individuals, institutions and libraries) E-mail: [email protected] (trade customers only) Web: www.marston.co.uk NB: enquiries about special terms should be directed to [email protected] North America and Latin America University of Hawai‘i Press 2840 Kolowalu Street, Honolulu, HI 96822-1888, USA Fax: +1 (800) 650-7811 (North America only) Web: www.uhpress.hawaii.edu MHM Limited 1-1-13-4F, Kanda-Jonboucho, Thailand, Burma, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam Silkworm Books 430/58 M. 7, Soi Ratchaphruk, Mae Hia, Mueang, Chiang Mai 50100 Web: www.silkwormbooks.com APD Singapore Pte Ltd 52 Genting Lane, #06-05 Ruby Land Complex Block 1, Singapore 349560 Web: www.apdsing.com With our old distributor gone out of business and scholars prefering to buy online, this territory is currently an open market. NIAS Press is in the process of converting its titles to ebook format. At this point, the press has entered into distribution agreements with a number of library suppliers and we soon aim to make our books available for download onto ebook readers like the Kindle and iPad. Older titles NIAS Press aims to keep all our books in print indefinitely, but our distributors do not carry a full complement of the oldest titles. If you cannot source a NIAS title from your preferred bookshop or from the local NIAS Press distributor, please contact books(at)nias.ku.dk and we will do our best to help you. The prices in British pounds sterling (£) stated on this website will be applied to all orders in Europe. To the best of our ability, these prices are accurate, but are subject to change. For prices outside Europe, please contact or check the website of your local distributor (as listed above). Please note that orders may be subject to local taxes and shipping charges. Book shortlisted for EuroSEAS Prize Carol Ann Boshier's book 'Mapping Cultural Nationalism: The Scholars of the Burma Research Society,1910-1935' has been shortlisted for the EuroSEAS Humanities Book Prize 2019. Congratulations! See our latest catalogue of new books or click here to get information about the catalogue and how to get notification when a book is published. Tweets by @niaspress	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line726
__label__wiki	0.800221	0.800221	Chlorine gas explosion kills 8 in Jos; ...100 hospitalised Eight persons have been confirmed dead and over 100 hospitalised after a Chlorine cylinder explosion in Jos, the capital city of Plateau State in north-central Nigeria. The injured victims of the Chlorine cylinder explosion at the Plateau State Water Board treatment plant at Dogon Karfe in Jos South Local Government Area, are currently receiving treatment at various hospitals. The acting Chief Medical Director of Plateau State Specialist Hospital, Dr Philemon Golwa, explained that a leakage at the plant was responsible for the deaths, as residents around the water treatment plant inhaled the chemical. Mr Golwa said others persons affected were receiving treatment for irritation of respiratory tracks, cough, headache and body weakness. Having visited the scene of the incident, Zonal Director of the National Environmental Standards and Regulation Agency (NESRA), Dr William Arabs, advised residents to report to any hospital for check-up. The General Manager of the Plateau State Water Board, Lambart Gomzuk, said the quick response of his agency, the Water Resources and Rural Electrification Ministries, was responsible for early evacuation of victims to the hospitals where they are receiving treatment. He blamed the residents for encroaching into some sensitive areas such as the treatment plant. The State’s Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources, Hanatu Dantong, said the situation had been contained by government agencies. He assured residents that the contamination did not affect the water supply to the public through the main water pipes, stating that it was safe for human consumption. Mr Dantong added that efforts were being made to relocate people within such sensitive areas. Credit: Channels	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line728
__label__wiki	0.565157	0.565157	Dragonfly Shop MOTORCOACH Group tours: Note: click here For SCHOOL field trip information at the Southeast's Best Attraction/Best Museum in Mississippi! Bring your group, your imagination, and take a walk on the wild side! In addition to guided and self-guided tours, your group can experience behind-the-scenes tours, interact with a SCUBA diver, get up close and personal with alligators, turtles, snakes, and other living creatures, meet a researcher, and more! Call or email us today so that we can create a package designed specifically for your group's unique needs. Groups of all ages will enjoy the museum and a group of just ten visitors qualifies for our special group rate. Whether you have one hour or all day, we can help you create a fun, memorable experience that your group will be talking about for years! If you are a school group, click here for our School Field Trip information. Museum Overview The museum is located at I-55 and Lakeland Drive in Jackson, Mississippi, tucked within historic LeFleur's Bluff State Park - an ideal location for a museum whose mission is focused on the promotion and protection of Mississippi's natural landscape and its inhabitants. The museum's buildings and grounds feature a 73,000-square foot complex overlooking a 300-acre natural landscape, 2.5 miles of nature trails, and an open-air amphitheater. Indoor exhibits include a series of life-size displays of the state's diverse habitats, a 100,000-gallon aquarium network housing over 200 living species, and a 1,700-square foot greenhouse called "The Swamp." Our committed staff maintains over 30,000 square feet of permanent exhibits along with a gift shop and a 200-seat theater. Click here to learn more about the museum. The museum was named: "2014 Escape to the Southeast Travel Attraction of the Year": Southeast Tourism Society "2014 Best Museum" by the readers of Mississippi Magazine "Certified Hospitality Specialist Property of their Year" by the Jackson Convention & Visitors Bureau for our dedication to hospitality training for our staff Schedule a Tour & Download Your Planning Kit: 1. Please review the "Motorcoach Group Tour FAQ's" and "Motorcoach Group Tour Procedures" below. 2. Complete the "Motorcoach Group Tour Scheduling Request Form and Signature Page" below then save and email it to yolanda.hawkins@mmns.state.ms.us or call us at (601) 576-6000. 3. We will contact you to confirm your tour and will send you a free "Take a Walk on the Wild Side" DVD which includes a fun, eight minute museum overview video to show on the motor coach. Motorcoach Group Tour Frequently Asked Questions Motorcoach Group Tour Procedures Motorcoach Group Tour Scheduling Request Form and Signature Page Yolanda Hawkins MDWFP Museum of Natural Science Group Tour Program 2148 Riverside Drive • Jackson, MS 39202-1353	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line735
__label__cc	0.567708	0.432292	MUSEUM.HU » Déri Museum Déri Museum - Debrecen Address: 4026, Debrecen Déri tér 1. E-mail: deri@derimuzeum.hu Opening hours: Tue-Sun 10-18 Changes in the cityscape By the end of the 18th century, merchant families that controlled the economy also took roles in the leadership in the city. The new social elite was about to shape that regarded metropolitan bourgeoisie as their inspiration. In shaping the new cityscape builders who came from abroad played decisive roles. Debrecen Underground Dissemination of national trend to become pretty The Debrecen Casino first opened in 1833. Its objectives were pointed out in the first point of the Articles of Association: 'The aims of this Casino Association is dissemination of useful reading tastes and through better socialisation and the promotion of national diligence'. Fine Art Treasures God bless you on arrival and departure! The Mayor Dr. Emil Rotschnek, a pharmacist donated to the Free Royal City of Debrecen Museum the equipment and installations of the former Golden Unicorn Pharmacy. Greatcoat to Greatcoat, Dough to the Dough Guba (wool coat) making masters of Debrecen were known nationwide for their quality coats made of long black wool. The cloth dumps were made of long fur sheep held in the plains of the Hortobágy. Clusters were woven into the wool fabric during, making the coat look like as if it was fur. Heart gives to the heart gladly, accept from your heart and be happy! The above quote reads on one of the richly decorated red honey hearts displayed in the gingerbread workshop. Such gifts were to girls by boys in love they bought at fairs. I donate it to Debrecen I trust the people ... The visitors get to know more thoroughly the exhibition with items from the revolution related to DebrecenOn March 17, 1848, the city of Debrecen received reports by two emissaries which also included report about the Vienna revolution. I wanted to portray the God in human form Martial arts or Fighting and Arts Oh, I will have a quiet, friendly garden one day... The literary hall deals with changes in the cityscape by parallel presenting the life and cult of Mihály Csokonai Vitéz. The exhibition space consists of three interconnected locations related to Csokonai - the Botanical Garden, the Memorial Garden and the Graveyard - these are displayed as an imaginary garden, which serves as a places for sitting and contemplation. Pious Crafts In the 14th century, the ever growing number of handicraft artisans provided goods not only for their direct neighbourhood but also the region they lived in. To defend their valuables, they formed corporate bodies or guilds. Debrecen based goldsmiths and bookbinders were nationally famous. Tenants of the Starry Sky The life and work of Kálmán Thaly Kálmán Thaly was one of the most influential figures of late 19th century. He spent most of his life in Bratislava and Budapest. He was among the founders of The Hungarian Historical Society, and also the periodical Centuries. The resting place for the city dignitaries The Storage of Nature The Treasure of Knowledge In Debrecen the first museal collection, the Municipal Museum was opened quite late. It was founded in October 1902 when Arthur Löfkovits, at the meeting of the Debrecen Art Supporters Association offered the town his own collection of 2500 items. The truth is not counterfeited, the false id not adjusted In Debrecen the law of jurisdiction was held by the head judge and a twelve-member body, called the Senate. Civilians of Debrecen could only be judged by a Debrecen jury. The inhabitants of the city were demanded to live a sober and pious life. Wonder Pantry The wunderkammer (miracle chamber) evolved during the Renaissance from a collections consisting of former rarities and exotic objects. In addition, in a miracle chamber you could found minerals, unique plants, animals and valuable works of applied art, technological wonders, works of art, ethnic, religious and historical monuments, as well.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line737
__label__cc	0.623642	0.376358	Suggest a Top Ten List Invention and Discovery Home Facts Top 10 Most Intelligent People Ever Born on Earth Top 10 Most Intelligent People Ever Born on Earth 7 years ago by aayasha 0 Intelligence got no religion, no race, no country- it is boundless and limitless ! It is next to impossible to define it . When you say the most intelligent people the list will change from person to person because we all have our own way of defining it. Each remarkable individual who is immortal in history for the greatness of his thinking ability did not limit their intelligence to the country they were inhabiting nor the era in which they were living . They simply had one goal ; betterment of the human race ; and in which they succeeded completely. Mankind still remembers them with great respect . Lets check out the great scientists who lived ever in this world! 10. Galileo Galilei. Galileo was born in Italy in the year 1954 on the day of 15th February . He was not only a physicist and a mathematician but also a philosopher and an astronomer. He was the one who invented the telescope ! Geocentrism prevailed as a a firm belief at that time that said that Earth is the center of the universe . Galileo objected this and proposed that Earth was the revolving body around the sun like other planets and heavenly bodies. This was met with strong oppositions from the church and hence Galileo spend the rest of his life under house arrest but did not withdraw his theory . Galileo is called the father of modern astronomy. 9. Leonardo Da Vinci. I am sure that most of you will immediately think of “Mona Lisa ” after hearing Da Vinci . But there is more to this man than just being a marvelous painter of his time and the eras to come . His paintings spoke a lot about his thinking . What made them so intriguing were their scientific correctness to the human biology which were not established at that time. He belonged to the era of rennaisance and had the thinking and imaginative ability that was simply inhuman for his time . He was a technological genius and made blue prints for various machinery like the tank and the helicopter , a calculator etc. Most of the illustrations could not be framed in real at the time he lived but today they are being explored and even used . Leo used to write in mirror script and his journals are therefore a mystery to the historians but as they are being understood they are simply adding to the marvel of this man. 8. Charles Darwin. Charles Darwin was born on the 12th of February in the country of the Great Britain . He is very famously known for his theory on evolution which could be one of the most controversial in the history of scientists . He stated that all living being have arised from a common ancestor and the ones that move ahead to the next generation are through natural selection; profoundly the law of the jungle which says survival of the fittest . This common ancestral thesis and natural selection principal was literally and instantly rejected by the biologists of that time due to lack of evidence. But Darwin through his book “the origin of species” gave solid evidence and thus his theory was widely accepted not only by the biologists but also by the public and is still widely accepted. 7. Louis Pasteur. He was born in France in the year 1882 on the 27th December. He is known for his work in microbiology. He established ideology which was called the germ theory of diseases. He established treatment for some of the deadly diseases at that time, He coined the word pasteurization which is boiling the milk to kill its microbial load. This made the drinking milk safe and is still a day to day practice. He found cure for a very deadly disease “Anthrax” and “Rabies” on the basis of his theory. He used the weakened pathogens of the disease itself and injected in the patients which formed the basis for most of the treatments in medical science in practice even today. He completely redefined the field of microbiology. 6. Alexander Fleming. Sir Alexander Fleming was born in the year 1881 in Scotland . He is known for his contribution to the medical sciences which changed the face of human battle with the deadly bacterial infections. He isolated penicillin an anti-biotic agent which widely used even today. His discovery made it possible to evade syphilis and even tuberculosis. He was awarded the noble prize for this discovery. Penicillin is still the first line agent for most of the bacterial infections today. 5. Wilhelm Roentgen. What never heard of him?? But i bet you have heard ” X rays”. Yes he is the person behind them . X rays are also called roentgen rays. Use of x rays were a breakthrough in the pathological sciences. They had the unique ability to penetrate lighter substances but get obstructed by denser masses. This property was used in medicine to detect bone fractures and other abnormality with the skeletal structure, X rays are also used in industries and in the security areas , He got his noble prize in physics for this. 4. Watson and Crick. Watson (full name James d Watson ) and Crick ( full name Francis Crick) were a team of scientists that for the first time gave the structure of DNA (Di adenine nucleotide) . It is the core machinery behind every element in your body. It is now very well established that everything in the body is decided by the DNA sequence. It was on the basis of the double helical structure model given by them that the studies related to this important cell structure got a breakthrough. The same idea is used even today for the studies of DNA. It was an ultimate contribution to the field of biotechnology. 3. Sir Issac Newton. As rightfully stated by his “sir” denotion; he is one of the most dominating person in the field of maths and physics to have ever live . Newton as we all know established the effect of gravity. He studied the effect of gravitational pull on the various heavenly bodies and finally proved it that earth is not the center of the universe but is just another revolving body . His laws of motion are still forming the basis of planetary studies to find the orbital paths of planets and comets. He studied the colors of light and stated that white light is a mixture of colors which are observed when light beam is split. He also established the speed of sound . 2. Albert Einstein. There is probably no one around who has not heard of this name. He is considered as one of the greatest scientist in the world of physics to ever live . He is best known for his theory of relativity which gave the relation between speed and time . He stated that light has a constant speed no matter at what speed it is approached. He discovered the photoelectric effect ; proving the thermal nature of a light beam; which forms the basis of most of the diode systems and solar panels today. He stated the phenomenon of the bending of the light due to which astronomers were able to see on the other side of the sun on eclipses. He received the noble prize in the year 1921 for his contribution to physics. His isolated brain is still under study to find the biological reasons for the genius of this man. 1. Nikola Tesla. The reason I have included him in my list and given him the top position is his contribution the mankind . Tesla was the inventor of the alternating current (A.C) which was the basis for the electricity supply to the masses . No other scientist has made such an influential contribution as electricity. Just imagine the world without its current supply ; all those invention which used current in someway or the other- bet you can’t !! So many inventors would have not even been able to start their work if not for electricity. Although Edison is known for producing electricity it was Tesla who made it possible its long distance transmission and use as a power source. He invented the induction motors Which forms the basis for mechanical engineers. He can be called a forgotten hero but now the world has understood the worth of his discoveries and he has gained his prestige back. Tags: astronomer, betterment, blue prints, center of the universe, eras, father of modern astronomy, galilei galileo, galileo galilei, great scientists, heavenly bodies, house arrest, human biology, mathematician, mona lisa, oppositions, person to person, rennaisance, technological genius, who invented the telescope, year 1954 aayasha Top 10 Best Beers World 2012 Top 10 Reasons to Donate Blood Top 10 Children Who Changed the World, and made us Proud Top 10 Funny Ways to Break Up Top 10 Must Visit Places of Kolkata Can i buy Requip 2 mg without a prescription BitCoin payment Is Accepted Get a Zyvox 600 mg prescription online – Online Drug Shop – Free Shipping Buy Online Without Prescription – Can you get Avapro 300 mg without seeing a doctor Free Online Medical Consultations – Where i can purchase Caverta 100 mg online Best price for Nimotop 30 mg :: Worldwide Delivery (1-3 Days) Best Place To Order Accutane online / 24/7 Customer Support Service How Much 500 mg Zithromax cheap / Fast Delivery / We Accept BTC Xenical 120 mg online price – No Prescription Required – Worldwide Delivery (3-7 Days) Best Pharmacy To Buy Generic Drugs – generic Floxin Looking – Big Discounts Popular Posts By Comments In The Last 7 Days Top 10 Batsman To Look Out in T20 World Cup 20124 Top 10 Best Upcoming Mobile Phones 2012-20134 Top 10 Most Haunted Places of India that you should avoid Visiting4 Top 10 Reasons why Women Are Better Than Men3 10 Things about Area 51 That No One Knows3 Top 10 Cheapest Countries to live in the World 20122 Mark Wolf on Top 10 Best Upcoming Mobile Phones 2012-2013 Abhishek Ghosh on 10 Reasons why People are Single Peter Machedi on Top 10 Hottest Women to Date omgtoptens on Top 10 Countries with Largest Armies in the World 2012 The Graphics and Images on the Blog OMGTopTens.com is not our property and has been taken from various sources, if any of the image has your copyright just let us know and we would make sure that it gets removed within 24 hrs. E-mail : info@omgtoptens.com © 2019 OMG Top Tens List. All rights reserved. OMGTopTens.com · Intelligence got no religion, no race, no country- it is boundless and limitless ! It is next to impossible to define it . When you say the most intelligent people the list will change from person to person because we all have our own way of defining it. Each remarkable individual who is immortal in history for the greatness of his thinking a	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line747
__label__cc	0.697489	0.302511	Titan ready to roll on Pilbara expansion projects With new mines and expansion projects set to be developed across the Pilbara over the next few years, the outlook is positive for many service companies and equipment manufacturers. Titan Australia General Manager Western Australia Mark Piestrzeniewicz said original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) such as Caterpillar, Komatsu, Liebherr, Hitachi and others would be in line to supply new mining machine gleets for the projects, and while considerations for miners purchasing the equipment would include production performance, machine reliability, OEM product support and maintenance strategies, the machines were only as good as their wheels. “With all these new mining fleets being sourced, ensuring the fleets are fitted with the correct wheels, rims, components and continuous certification for product use is a key and critical factor,” he said. “It doesn’t matter how efficient a machine is, if it’s not able to run on securely fitted and maintained wheels, it will be no good to anyone.” Mr Piestrzeniewicz said Titan Australia had all the end-user requirements covered for the major OEM rubber-tyred makes and models. “We have options available from 25-inch to 63-inch wheels, rims and components for motor graders, wheel dozers, wheel loaders and dump trucks, including speed wheel fitment applications for the larger dump trucks and wheel loaders,” he said. “Our wheel and rim service and repair facility in Perth offers the ability to complete repair works and the full certification process for the end user’s wheel and rim requirements. Titan is your one-stop-shop for wheels, rims, components, service repair and certification.”	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line753
__label__wiki	0.695677	0.695677	Nauvoo Times "We are not measured by the trials we meet -- only by those we overcome." - - Spencer W. Kimball Nauvoo Times Columnists James B. Allen Heather Best Hannah Bird Sydney Bone Jenni Bowman Ami Chopine College Voices Erin Cowles Imo Eshiet Kathryn Grant Melanie Gunnell Sarah Hancock Joni Hilton Daryl Hoole Melissa Howell Lawrence Jeppson Emily S. Jorgensen Kathryn H. Kidd Andrew E. Lindsay Carolyn Nicolaysen Amy L. Stevenson Marian Stoddard Janae Stubbs Cyndie Swindlehurst Vickey Pahnke Taylor Dian Thomas Nauvoo Times Guest Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2: Leftovers by Andrew E. Lindsay I usually don’t have a problem eating leftovers. In fact, some things taste just as good the second day. Pasta, pizza, Chinese take-out; sometimes I don’t even heat them up. But then there are other things that just don’t work the day after: fried eggs, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and oatmeal all come to mind. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs was a pretty fun movie when it hit the big screen in 2009, inspired by a beloved children’s book. It was the sort of silly, animated movie you could safely watch with your kids, all about a young scientist, Flint Lockwood, who invents a machine that turns water into food, with some rather unexpected results. The most significant result is that the machine ends up, up in the atmosphere, where it evolves and starts affecting the weather. Much hilarity ensues as giant hamburgers and cupcakes and the like start raining down on their town. Together with his lab assistant monkey Steve, Flint joins forces with an attractive, young meteorologist named Sam Sparks to stop the madness and save the day. In the end, they all predictably live happily ever after and the movie is over. Except some movies are never over, even when they should be, which explains Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2. Flint is invited to work at The Live Corp Company, founded and run by his boyhood scientific idol, Chester V. After he arrives at the giant, scientific sweatshop, Flint begins working on a stream of new inventions in hopes of being selected as Inventor of the Year (or something like that) so he can have the opportunity to work with Chester V. Things don’t go as planned, and we quickly realize that Chester V. may not be the great guy Flint always imagined him to be. Shocking. But then Chester V. sends Flint on a top-secret mission back to his old hometown to help supervise the cleanup efforts from the food hurricane of the first movie. Flint is supposed to go alone, but ends up taking his friends and family along. This is important so that later he can betray them and side with his idol before his idol ultimately betrays him. Blah blah blah. Turns out Flint’s machine is still working, somehow having taken on a life of its own, and now the island is overrun with mutant-food-animal-hybrids, like apple pie-thons, tacodiles, shrimpanzees, cheesepiders, and giant, sentient pickles who eat sardines. Sort of a fast-food version of the second Jurassic Park movie. And then there’s a big guilt-trip, preachy part about how these walking marshmallows and sickeningly cute strawberry creatures are all living beings, and science is killing the environment because all humans do is screw things up. I’m paraphrasing. There were funny lines scattered throughout, but not enough to hold together the schizophrenic script or my attention. OK, so there were some spoilers in there, but honestly, I could smell them long before they were on screen. Some leftovers aren’t worth keeping in the fridge in the first place because you knew they wouldn’t be any good anyway. And these were spoiled before I even finished the film. Maybe your kids won’t know the difference, but anyone with a discerning palate will almost certainly prefer something fresh. Copyright © 2020 by Andrew E. Lindsay Shark Bite Theatre • Jaws: The Original Blockbuster Turns 40 - - September 04, 2015 • Max: Old Yeller meets The Red Badge of Courage - - July 17, 2015 • Inside Out: A Cerebral Cartoon • San Andreas: The Family Is At Fault - - June 26, 2015 • Jurassic World: Pleasantly Predictable Prehistoric Pleasure • Avengers: Age of Ultron: More Story, Please • Meet Me in St. Louis: Minnelli's Masterpiece - - December 12, 2014 • Guardians of the Galaxy: Ice Cream on The Silver Screen - - September 5, 2014 • Captain America: The Winter Soldier: The Growing Hero Shortage - - April 11, 2014 • Captain Phillips: Not Actually a Pirate Movie - - February 21, 2014 More by Andrew E. Lindsay About Andrew E. Lindsay Andy Lindsay can frequently be overheard engaged in conversations that consist entirely of repeating lines of dialogue from movies, a genetic disorder he has passed on to his four children and one which his wife tolerates but rarely understands. When Andy's not watching a movie he's probably talking about a movie or thinking about a movie. Or, because his family likes to eat on a somewhat regular basis, he just might be working on producing a TV commercial or a documentary or a corporate video or a short film. His production company is Barking Shark Creative, and you can check out his work here www.barkingshark.com. Andy grew up in Frederick, Maryland, but migrated south to North Carolina where he met his wife, Deborah, who wasn't his wife then but later agreed to take the job. Their children were all born and raised in Greensboro, but are in various stages of growing up and running away. Andy (or Anziano Lindsay, as he was known then) served a full-time mission for the Church in Italy, and today he teaches Sunday School, works with the Scouts, and is the Stake Video Historian. Copyright © Hatrack River Enterprise Inc. All Rights Reserved. Web Site Hosted and Designed by WebBoulevard.com	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line754
__label__wiki	0.65391	0.65391	drawingroomgallery_xfznin Ged Merino, TDR Projects Exhibit Run February 17 – May 19, 2019 Museo de Intramuros Arzobispado Street Intramuros, Manila “The place just fucking smelled of cockroaches. There’s no sewage system in Manila, and people have nothing there…no arms, no legs, no eyes, no teeth… Rats were everywhere… I was so afraid… I didn’t sleep the entire night.” – Claire Danes As its third offering, STEAM/Projects presents Studies on Dystopia: Manila featuring eight artists from different backgrounds whose works for the exhibition seek to either decode, describe, reassess, reconfigure or resolve the experiences embedded in the dystopian values of Megalopolis Manila. The participating artists’ respective approximations of these experiences range from the deeply-rooted infections to the multifaceted superficial scabs of the metropolis’ wound. STEAM/Projects is a series of art shows which focuses on art-science affinities through the emerging trajectory of the intersection of art with science, technology, engineering, architecture and mathematics (STEAM). The artists create works using traditional methods and new technologies such as digital technology and open knowledge sources. The new emphasis on the shifts of ways of creating took on metaphorical as well as material importance as the artists take advantage of advances in digital technology which has democratized creation to unimaginable heights. The convergence of art with STEAM presents an alternative window to scientific possibilities. With the premise that art has no definitive way of working, no prescribed approach, it opens up possibilities and develop new shifts and possibilities for science and technology to enrich itself. Art encourages to tap the unexplored facets of the hard sciences under the lens without expecting ?exactness or accuracy. Because art is highly philosophical, it has the potential to address questions and concerns beyond mere function or utility which is characteristic of science and technology. Art then becomes the human element. This is the principle that guide the artists of Studies on Dystopia: Manila as they put the metro as the focal point of their works. The capital region provides a fecund ground for inspiration. The multifarious faces of Manila give us shadows of its past and possible future. While the Manila of Hollywood actress Claire Danes—the “ghastly and weird” city infested with crawling insects, rodents and mutants—may not be truly reflective of the entire metro, one may argue that this acerbic description was not entirely fictional as many of its own inhabitants know how messed up the city is. But what does it mean to live in this inferno/paradise? Quoting Miguel Syjuco in Illustrado: “You can’t bring an unwritten place to life without losing something substantial. Manila is the cradle, the graveyard, the memory. The Mecca, the Cathedral, the bordello. The shopping mall, the urinal, the discotheque. I’m hardly speaking in metaphor. It’s the most impermeable of cities. How does one convey all that?” Living in Manila, with all her polarized horrors and delights, is as far from easy as trying to encapsulate the experience. Her perplexed inhabitants could only entrench themselves in this little world with a feel for the glittery pomps sans consciousness. It is easy to be lured into interpreting Manila with the sensibility for the cheap, gritty, kitschy, campy heavy metal revelry that it is. We sometimes forget that the eclectic metropolis and her polymorphic transformations are the continuing results of several painful memories gradually being diluted throughout time by a culture of impunity and revisionism, and of resilience and callousness. From her sublimation from being a glorious city caused by a war that was not hers to the benevolent assimilation of her culture to the rapacious plunder of her neighbor territories’ natural resources to the unwelcome brand of predatory foster parenting of her new white gods; she was an unwilling whore of imperialist masters. It is a hackneyed, collective trans-class wound that has not quite healed. – Richard Coronel Designer Mica Agregado a.k.a. Manila Automat used unconventional media consisting of conduit pipes, LED, tarpaulin and a plant for her sculpture entitled Plante. Manila Automat’s design borders on plastic-ridden, brick-heavy, pattern-frenzied kitsch vivid during the days of early modernity; through the achievement of ambiguity between class and chintz; corporations and singularity; and mass production and specialty. ? Time-based media artist Richard Coronel is mounting the single-channel video installation Realpolitik Urban Design: A Walkthrough featuring a collage video that is part of a semi-autobiographical series about his quest for sanity. Coronel studied Communication at De La Salle University Dasmarinas; and ?video and motion picture production at University of the Philippines Film Institute and Asia Pacific Film Institute. He has been self-producing and exhibiting time-based works since 2012. His works have been shown in the Netherlands, Croatia and Japan. Making videos has been helping him combat his nihilistic tendencies and technophobia. Multimedia artist and designer Clarissa Gonzalez‘s video installation entitled Tempest creates illusions and trajectories of dystopic quality. It depicts Manila as a hurricane, a spinning conglomeration of grit and light; constantly evolving through a mix of destruction and creation. Gonzales is a founding member of Mvltiverse, a digital practice collective that explores the new forms of the moving image. ? In Bang, artist Miguel Lope Inumerable shows prints from a computer program that explores the idea of how communication and miscommunication hinders or advances progress. Inumerable works in different mediums but mostly exploring the concept of drawing through traditional drawing and expanded drawing using sculpture, installation and new media. He also explores the use of science and technology particularly computer programming in his practice of art making. After working as a computer programmer for a few years, he took part in Metafora’s International Workshop for Studio Arts in Barcelona, Spain in 2013. He also took part in different art residency programs like Takt Kunstprojektraum, Berlin in 2013 and Shangyuan Art Museum, Beijing in 2014. He currently lives and works in Manila. He is also a member of 98B COLLABoratory based in Escolta, Manila. User interface designer and illustrator Patricia Lascano is interested in exploring the boundaries of visual art with technology. Her work Daily Sprawl is a laser engraving on plywood, a data visualization on commute direction searches from Sakay.ph. Starting with a design background and ending up in the tech field, Lascano hopes to meld her two passions: traditional painting and creative coding, into new cohesive forms of art. She studied at Ateneo de Manila University with a degree in Information Design and a minor in Interactive Multimedia. Currently, she designs and codes at By Implication and illustrates for children’s books from time to time. ? Multimedia artist and architect Jose Tong a.k.a. A.I. Hoseki presents Coordinates of Liberty, a 3D-printed plastic sculpture. His works explore consciousness, identity and phenomenological qualia. Through drawings, architectural works and site-specific installations which are made through a generative algorithm-based process, he investigates the ambiguity and contradictions of reality, emergent technologies, social constructs and their relationship with the human condition. ? Ateneo Art Awards 2015 finalist Derek Tumala‘s work Trash Paradise is a set of apocalyptic activewear and accessories intended to survive the worst catastrophes using everyday objects and electronics. He created things from daily objects and transformed it into a “useful” gear with DIY electronics, suggesting possible configurations of a survival kit. Tumala deviates his art practice by creating works that transcends the intangible. Taking cues from futurism, science and technology, his visual approaches and conceptual derivatives convey an account of exploration, a tangible experience and a sensory reflection. Among his noted participations are: Art Basel Hong Kong 2017, Formosa Art Fair Taipei 2016, and Wei-Ling Gallery Malaysia. He is also the founder of multimedia group Mvltiverse and art-tech collective STEAM/Projects, both based in Manila. ? The aural piece Echo Chamber by artist-designer Gabriel Villegas features clips from conversations and interviews of different people in Escolta, Manila about community. Villegas has participated in several exhibitions: domestiCITY (2013), On/Line (2015), and Zine Zone (2015). He is currently operations director of 98B COLLABoratory and Hub \| Make Lab. ?	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line755
__label__cc	0.71451	0.28549	Darkness Revealed Update 13 - Creating an Art Kit In the last update, we showed the beginning of our art production process for levels. We talked about how we start figuring out each level's visuals by doing a specific type of concept art called thumbnails - in our case, really low resolution art that helps us figure out colors, shapes and the level's overall atmosphere. It's highly recommended to take a look at it, to get a better context to our approach! It's explained and illustrated in these two small posts: Concepting Part 1 and Concepting Part 2. We also showed one "rendered" image and mentioned it as being not an actual level, but rather a level's Art Kit. Today we'll go a little deeper into what an Art Kit is. Let's get started! Graphics' Building Blocks Once we are satisfied with the thumbnail version of a level, we proceed into rendering it at a higher resolution. Then we start breaking down that concept art into useable parts. All of these parts come together to form an Art Kit. The Art Kit is the group of assets that are provided to the level designer so that he can decorate the levels according to a previously defined art direction. While the art direction is mostly in the realm of the artist, and the level topography and challenges are mostly in the realm of the level designer, the Art Kit itself stands somewhere in the middle of these two roles and also the programmer's. There is a lot of technical and artistic "negotiation" happening at this stage, specially when the first Art Kit is being built. This is so that the Art Kit ends up containing assets that will fit with that level, work in the game engine and ultimately produce levels that look good. For Last Dive's Art Kits, we had to decide things such as: should assets be exported with blur, or should they be blurred by the engine? Will the water surface be procedurally generated in realtime, or does it need an animated texture? Should each asset be exported as individual image files, or should they be grouped in spritesheets? Here's a simplified example of what the base ocean's art kit consists of. Important to mention that all of this is exported separately, we only grouped in this picture to show to you guys: That's it for now guys, next week we'll continue to talk about the creation of Art Kits for Last Dive, and we'll explain their structure! If you want more frequent updates be sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, by clicking the cows down here! Or if you want to receive these updates complete and not in parts, sign up for our Golden Chest. Cya next time!	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line758
__label__wiki	0.737384	0.737384	Rusoro Completes Acqusition Of Gold Field's Venezuelan Assets Vancouver, Canada - Rusoro Mining Ltd. ("Rusoro") is pleased to announce that it has completed the acquisition of Gold Fields' Venezuelan assets, including the producing Choco 10 mine. As announced on October 11, 2007, this strategic business combination provides Rusoro with immediate gold production and confirms Rusoro as a focused gold company with an exception growth profile. Pursuant to the terms of the acquisition, all release conditions having been satisfied and the subscription receipts having been exercised, the net proceeds of C$211.5 million plus accrued interest from the private placement of subscription receipts have been released from escrow. Pursuant to the acquisition, Rusoro issued 140,000,000 shares and paid cash of U.S.$180,000,000. Rusoro now has 381,835,106 common shares issued and outstanding. Rusoro's financial advisor is Endeavour Financial International Corporation and its legal advisor is Anfield Sujir Kennedy & Durno. Commenting on the transaction, Andre Agapov, CEO of Rusoro said, "This transaction launches Rusoro into the ranks of producers and we look forward to applying our in-country expertise to unlock value from these assets for the benefit of our shareholders and for the people of Venezuela." Rusoro President George Salamis stated that, "We are delighted to have formally closed this acquisition and we will be looking to fast track production at our Increible 6 project as we continue to grow our company in one of the world's most exciting gold districts." OF RUSORO MINING LTD. "George Salamis" George Salamis, President Tel: 604- 682-1545 Fax: 604-682-1514 Symbol: TSX-V:RML Email: info@rusoro.com Website: www.rusoro.com Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements involve a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company's plans to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date the statements were made, and readers are advised to consider such forward-looking statements in light of the risks set forth in the Company's Annual Information Form dated September 28, 2007 and the Company's Filing Statement dated November 28, 2007, a copy of each of which is available at www.sedar.com. The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the contents of this press release, which has been prepared by management. You can view the Next News Releases item: Mon Dec 10, 2007, Rusoro Gold Production Update: Choco 10 Mine You can view the Previous News Releases item: Thu Nov 29, 2007, Updated 43-101 Accepted for Filing; Rusoro Drills 21m of 8.44g/t at Increible 6	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line767
__label__wiki	0.561216	0.561216	Sander van Zanten Coded audio Born with a fascination for video games, Sander van Zanten was compelled to dedicate himself to game music composition by the Warcraft and Fable series. An acclaimed guitarist, pianist and digital composer, Sander draws players in and drives them to the heart of the game’s experience by blending intimate instrumentation with lush, swelling orchestral textures and roaring synthesizers. His latest work was written for KeokeN Interactive’s sci-fi epic Deliver Us The Moon, which takes players on an atmospheric and isolated voyage to the moon. Inspired by classics such as 2001: A Space Odyssey, Interstellar and Gravity, the soundtrack spans close to 4 hours of original music custom-tailored to the award-winning space adventure game. © 2020 Sander van Zanten Logo & humanoid designed by Raoul Rade Visual Design	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line768
__label__wiki	0.886131	0.886131	Rate The Tracks HOW TO RATE TRACKS SUBMIT YOUR TRACKS Welcome To Rate The Tracks We are interested in providing a home for artists that want to have their tracks evaluated by seasoned professionals in the music business and fans alike. If it's a demo or the finished product we want to hear your tracks! This is intended to be interactive between the artists and listeners. Providing feedback to the artists will assist them in developing their music. Chilean Prog Ensemble AISLES Release New Live EP “Live from Estudio del Sur”, a mini-album recorded live, is available on CD and digital platforms “Live from Estudio del Sur” is Aisles’ latest release. The EP was recorded at Estudio del Sur, and includes newly done versions of the songs “Clouds Motion”, “Shallow and Daft”, “Still Alive” and “Club Hawaii”. Germán Vergara, guitarist, describes it as “a blend between some of earliest and some of our newest compositions, all in the same set, with the current Aisles sound. 'Clouds Motion' is one of the first songs we recorded as a band. We also made a new version of 'Shallow and Daft, where we invited the singer Catalina Blanco from the band Téfiret. The last two tracks, 'Still Alive' and 'Club Hawaii', capture the hopeless atmosphere of our concept album 'Hawaii' and reflect what the band is doing nowadays. People will like the sound on the EP as the songs feel more organic and heavier that on the albums.” Also, these songs were a series of live sessions filmed by director Bernardo Quesney, who has also worked with Chilean artists Gepe, Javiera Mena and Colombina Parra, among others. “Live from Estudio del Sur” is available on a limited edition CD and on digital platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/6MB4FCGawPV1Mcem85gFvM YouTube: https://youtu.be/tWUDTQhdwxQ Bandcamp: https://aisles.bandcamp.com/album/live-from-estudio-del-sur Apple Music: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/artist/aisles/742364886 Amazon: http://a.co/7nNFvbC CD Baby: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/aisles9 Deezer: https://www.deezer.com/us/album/68798581 Aisles official store: https://www.aislesproject.com/product/live-from-estudio-del-sur-ep-cd/ “Clouds Motion” (Live from Estudio del Sur): “Shallow and Daft” (Live from Estudio del Sur): “Still Alive” (Live from Estudios del Sur): “Club Hawaii” (Live from Estudio del Sur): With four studio albums, Aisles have become South America’s most acclaimed prog act of the last decade. Their daring combination of rock, fusion, jazz and world music illustrates the band's uniquely eclectic approach. The group has played in the Americas and Europe, and their albums have been published in Europe, North and South America, and Japan. In 2009, their second album, “In Sudden Walks”, was nominated for Best Foreign Record in the Italian Prog Awards and the group was invited to open the 11th Progressive Rock Festival Crescendo in France. Their third album, “4:45 AM” (2013) was widely acclaimed worldwide and was chosen among the best albums of that year in a number of specialized publications. “Hawaii” (July, 2016), their fourth studio album was called a “masterpiece” and named one of the albums of the year by media outlets such as Prog (England), Neoprog (France), Raw Ramp (England) and Chile's premiere rock magazine, Rockaxis. The band also toured Europe, Mexico and the United States for the first time in their career. Currently, the band is working on their fifth studio album, to be released in 2019, which will include songs described as “charged with complex emotions and with a more modern sound”. AISLES are: Sebastián Vergara: lead vocals Germán Vergara: guitar, vocals Rodrigo Sepúlveda: guitar, vocals Daniel Concha: bass Juan Pablo Gaete: keyboards Felipe Candia: drums, percussion http://www.aislesproject.com http://www.facebook.com/aislesproject http://twitter.com/aislesproject http://www.youtube.com/aislesproject https://www.instagram.com/aislesproject/ https://play.spotify.com/artist/1aHj1tpKsDAUDDOMZXcjQg Glass Onyon PR glassonyonpr@gmail.com Posted by Glass Onyon PR Labels: Aisles, EP, Live Music, Live Recordings, Music Videos, New EP, New Releases, Prog Rock, Prog Videos, Progressive Rock, Rock, Videos THE FINAL ON VINYL PODCAST VISIT OUR NEWEST EDITION THE FINAL ON VINYL REVIEWS! Subscribe To RTT ROCK & POP CDs and LPs Featured Stream: Three Wise Monkeys-Panopticon Three Wise Monkeys are an interesting trio. They are bit of a mystery regarding how they came to be however it did not take long to ascert... Featured Track: Bunny Sigler - Angel Eyes Bunny Sigler's smooth vocal style is perfect for reaching back to times that have past. The days when jazz and lounge singers were most ... Track Evaluation: Michael Dulin-My Beloved Michael Dulin's new album My Beloved is set for release in January of 2015. The title track is most impressive and puts the album int... Featured Track-My Creative Laziness-Just Great My Creative Laziness (Ricardo Flores) sounds like he got some energy and put it to good use by recording a jumpy track called "Just G... Instrumental World Music Stream: James Asher/Sandeep Raval James Asher and Sandeep Raval produce a multitude of world beats and rhythms that have the ability to take you on a trip inside your mind&... Social Networking & Sites Support Independent Music FB MuzikMan Reviews MuzikMan.net MuzikMan You Tube Rate The Tracks Facebook Page Streaming Music Facebook Group Write A Music Review FB Fan Page New Age Music Reviews PROG ROCK MUSIC TALK Write A Music Review Music News: Emerging Artist Beekwilder Releases Ne... Light Freedom Revival Releases Second Album 'Truth... What Is Music To You? Rate The Tracks EST 2014. Powered by Blogger.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line771
__label__wiki	0.973217	0.973217	Bibliographical Resources Browse All Works Wilson Collections Wilson Collections Map Tercentenary Exhibition Themes and Media Portrait of Richard Wilson You searched for: "Tercentenary 2014" Is linked to these Works of Art 95 Items No items selected National Museum Wales, Cardiff Larger Image Select Item Email Link Print Feedback 1752 (undated) 33 5/16 x 29 5/8 in. National Museum Wales, Cardiff. To license image, click here. NMW A 113 Wilson Online Reference NWP1 Wlson is shown half-length from his proper right side, sitting before his easel with palette and brushes in his left hand. Richly but informally dressed in a brown flowered gown and turban, he has been working on a landscape. Exhibited Manchester 1857 (British Portrait Gallery, 311); Wrexham 1876 (298); Bangor 1925 (40); Iveagh Bequest, Kenwood House, London <i>Anton Raphael Mengs and his British Patrons</i>, 1993 (18); Cardiff, Manchester and London, 2003-4 (14); Tercentenary 2014 (1) Manchester 1857 (British Portrait Gallery, 311); Wrexham 1876 (298); Bangor 1925 (40); Iveagh Bequest, Kenwood House, London Anton Raphael Mengs and his British Patrons, 1993 (18); Cardiff, Manchester and London, 2003-4 (14); Tercentenary 2014 (1) Richard Wilson; Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 4th baronet; by descent to Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 8th baronet; Sotheby's 5 February 1947 (45), bt Renwick; presented by the National Art Collections Fund to the National Museum of Wales, 1947 Signature/inscription Unsigned; no inscription Techniques and materials Collectors' marks Verso inscriptions Mount inscriptions Related Drawings Edward Penny [?] after Mengs, <i>Portrait of Richard Wilson, RA </i>, The British Museum (1881,0611.201) Edward Penny [?] after Mengs, Portrait of Richard Wilson, RA , The British Museum (1881,0611.201) Related Prints [1] William Bromley after Mengs, oval, 1789 [2] William Bromley after Mengs, 1790 [3] William Bond after Taylor after Mengs, stipple engraving, 1812 [4] Charles Pye after Mengs, 1822 [5] William Bond after Mengs, 1824 [1] William Bromley after Mengs, oval, 1789 [2] William Bromley after Mengs, 1790 [3] William Bond after Taylor after Mengs, stipple engraving, 1812 [4] Charles Pye after Mengs, 1822 [5] William Bond after Mengs, 1824 P6 Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782), <i>Self-Portrait</i>, Private Collection, USA P6 Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782), Self-Portrait, Private Collection, USA Related Works by Other Artists Edward Penny, <i>Portrait of Richard Wilson</i>, National Portrait Gallery (NPG 1803) John Taylor (1739-1838) after Mengs, <i>Portrait of Richard Wilson</i>, location unknown Edward Penny, Portrait of Richard Wilson, National Portrait Gallery (NPG 1803) John Taylor (1739-1838) after Mengs, Portrait of Richard Wilson, location unknown This portrait, painted in Rome, shows Wilson in his late thirties at the outset of his career as a landscape painter. The painting on his easel may be intended as the one he is known to have given Mengs in exchange for this portrait. The present work is the only undisputed individual image of Wilson by another artist. It passed to his patron, Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn either at the sitter's death in 1782 or at about the tiime of the Wynnstay landscape commissions (P165 & P166) in 1770-71. According to Farington in 1801, Wilson's pupil Thomas Jones, told him that 'Mengs, the German Painter, who was in great repute at Rome, said that He never met with but 2 English artists of superior genius, they were R. Wilson - and Athenian Stuart.' Previous Cat/Ref Nos G.N. d'Azara, <i>Opere di Antonio Rafaello Mengs</i>, Rome 1787, xlii-xliii; Hodges 1790; Farington Diary, vol. 4, p. 1554 (27 May 1801); Edwards 1808, pp. 78-79; Wright 1824, p. 75 & frontispiece; Cunningham 1830, p. 198; Cooper 1948 1; WGC, pp. 67-8, 234, pl.1; S. Roettgen, <i>Mengs and his British Patrons</i>, 1993, pp. 12-13, 83-85; Ingamells 1997, p. 1007; Roettgen 1999, vol. 1, pp. 303-305, cat. 236; Sumner & Smith 2003, p. 124, repr.; Hernon 2013, p. 10, pl. 11; Wilson and Europe 2014, p. 206 G.N. d'Azara, Opere di Antonio Rafaello Mengs, Rome 1787, xlii-xliii; Hodges 1790; Farington Diary, vol. 4, p. 1554 (27 May 1801); Edwards 1808, pp. 78-79; Wright 1824, p. 75 & frontispiece; Cunningham 1830, p. 198; Cooper 1948 1; WGC, pp. 67-8, 234, pl.1; S. Roettgen, Mengs and his British Patrons, 1993, pp. 12-13, 83-85; Ingamells 1997, p. 1007; Roettgen 1999, vol. 1, pp. 303-305, cat. 236; Sumner & Smith 2003, p. 124, repr.; Hernon 2013, p. 10, pl. 11; Wilson and Europe 2014, p. 206 Link to WG Constable Archive Record Location featured in work The portrait was copied by Cooper and Constable and there are numerous derivations and graphic reproductions, testaments to Wilson's enduring fame as a leading British landscapist, which continued throughout the 19th century. Condition/Conservation Illustrations of the Work Updated by Compiler Ascribed to Wilson, View of Carlton House, with a Royal Party in the Grounds, Tate, London Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782), Self-Portrait, Private Collection, USA National Museum & Gallery, Cardiff, Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester and National Gallery, London, 21 May 2003 - 15 February 2004 Manchester, Exhibition Hall, 5 May - 17 October 1857 New Haven, Yale Center for British Art & Cardiff, Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales, 6 March - 29 October 2014 Wrexham, North Wales, UK, 15 July - 22 November 1876 Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 4th Bart, 1748-1789 William George Constable, Richard Wilson Martin Postle & Robin Simon, Richard Wilson and the Transformation of European Landscape Painting Douglas Cooper, 'The Iconography of Richard Wilson' Edward Edwards, Anecdotes of Painters who have resided or been born in England; with critical Remarks on their Productions Paul Hernon, Sir Watkin's Tours: Excursions to France, Italy and North Wales, 1768-71 John Ingamells, A Dictionary of English and Irish Travellers in Italy, 1701-1800 Steffi Roettgen, Anton Rafael Mengs (1728-1779) Ann Sumner & Greg Smith eds., Thomas Jones (1742-1803): An Artist rediscovered Allan Cunningham, The Lives of the most eminent British Painters, Sculptors and Architects Part of a sketchbook To view this image and see text below or to compare two images, click on 'larger image' icon for a moveable window. View Selected © Richard Wilson Online	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line773
__label__cc	0.526992	0.473008	incontinence 32 articles September 9, 2014 Jennifer Walker-Journey Pharmaceutical Federal jury hits Ethicon transvaginal mesh with $3.27 million verdict Jo Huskey had no idea the turn her life would take after having a 30-minute procedure to implant Ethicon’s transvaginal mesh device in her body to correct urinary incontinence. Plaintiffs attorneys and their witnesses painted a picture for jurors of how the defectively designed device could erode into tissue and puncture neighboring organs causing serious complications from excruciating pain and incontinence to bleeding and infections. The jury responded with a $3.27 million verdict against Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Ethicon, finding the bladder sling was defectively designed and the company failed to warn the public of the potential risks. The product ... Read More Another transvaginal mesh trial is underway in West Virginia Another trial is underway in Charleston, W.Va., alleging defectively designed transvaginal mesh products caused serious injuries. The federal lawsuit was filed by Jo Huskey and her husband Allen against Ethicon Inc. and Johnson & Johnson. Transvaginal mesh, also referred to as vaginal mesh or bladder sling, is a type of surgical mesh used to treat pelvic floor disorders including pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence. It is inserted through the vagina to hold up organs that have prolapsed out of place, putting pressure in the pelvic cavity and causing symptoms such as pain, discomfort and incontinence. The mesh has ... Read More July 18, 2014 Jennifer Walker-Journey Pharmaceutical Judge denies Ethicon’s request for new transvaginal mesh trial Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Ethicon has been denied a new trial that would have struck an $11.1 million verdict in the first bellwether trial over allegedly defective transvaginal mesh. “There was strong evidence presented and multiple sources of evidence that in fact there were many problems with this product,” Atlantic County Superior Court Judge Carol Higbee said in court. Despite the ruling, Ethicon spokesman Matthew Johnson said the company isn’t giving up. “We will be filing an appeal in this case as we believe the jury’s verdict and damage awards were not supported by the evidence presented at trial,” he ... Read More Physicians groups recommend six-step evaluation before women undergo bladder sling surgery Physicians do not need to perform preoperative urodynamic testing, or bladder test functioning, on patients with uncomplicated stress urinary incontinence (SUI) before having surgery to implant a bladder sling to treat symptoms because doing so does not improve surgical outcomes, according to first-time guidelines from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Urogynecologic Society. Instead, the two medical groups recommend that physicians perform a basic six-step evaluation on women with uncomplicated SUI. This is the first time guidelines have been established to provide consistency in the evaluation of uncomplicated SUI, setting standards for physicians before they operate ... Read More New Zealand woman demands inquiry into safety of transvaginal mesh Jen Branje, 45, is petitioning Parliament in New Zealand to investigate injuries caused by transvaginal mesh, claiming the mesh is dangerous and should be banned until an inquiry examines serious risks associated with the devices. Transvaginal mesh, also called vaginal mesh or bladder sling, is a type of surgical mesh used to treat pelvic floor disorders in women, such as pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence. Mounting reports of injuries associated with the devices prompted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct an investigation in which the agency found that complications with the device were not uncommon and ... Read More May 27, 2014 Jennifer Walker-Journey Pharmaceutical Maine woman sues makers of transvaginal mesh Dory Ames from Maine is one of the latest women to file a lawsuit against the makers of transvaginal mesh claiming the device caused serious injuries. Manufacturers of these bladder slings face tens of thousands of lawsuits alleging the companies marketed the devices knowing they were defective and could cause harm to women. Transvaginal mesh is a type of surgical mesh used to treat common pelvic floor disorders known as pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence. The mesh is inserted through the vagina to hold up organs that have dropped or protruded due to childbirth, age, weight gain, or ... Read More March 30, 2014 Jennifer Walker-Journey Pharmaceutical European authorities call for review of transvaginal mesh safety European drug and medical device regulators have asked a scientific committee to review the safety of transvaginal mesh devices and whether the risks outweigh the benefits. The European Commission charged its Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks to conduct the analysis on the surgical mesh products used to treat common pelvic floor disorders such as pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence. The request is based on mounting reports of injuries associated with the devices, which range in severity and include complications such as rejection, tissue erosion, mesh exposure and shrinkage resulting in symptoms such as chronic ... Read More Transvaginal mesh side effects likely caused by defective design Two women were told they could no longer have sexual intercourse with their partners after suffering complications related to their transvaginal mesh. “We’ve not got a sex life. It’s actually taken a toll on my marriage,” Linda, whose name was changed, told BBC. “I don’t even go to the doctor. I don’t even bother.” Both women were implanted with transvaginal mesh, a type of surgical mesh used to treat pelvic organ prolapse or stress urinary incontinence, common conditions that affect women due to childbirth, age or weight gain. Both women say they were injured by the devices and live in ... Read More February 14, 2014 Jennifer Walker-Journey Pharmaceutical Johnson and Johnson wants to conceal failure to preserve evidence in transvaginal mesh lawsuit Johnson & Johnson is asking a West Virginia federal judge not to allow the plaintiff in an upcoming bellwether trial in multidistrict litigation over injuries caused by its transvaginal mesh to tell jurors that the company failed to preserve evidence. Johnson & Johnson claims the issue is no longer relevant to the case. U.S. Magistrate Judge Cheryl Eifert found the consumer health care giant had lost potential evidence in the case and suggested that jurors may need to hear about circumstances such as when a plaintiff’s physician relied on evidence provided by a sales representative whose records were destroyed. The ... Read More October 11, 2013 Jennifer Walker-Journey Pharmaceutical Transvaginal mesh manufacturers face more than 30,000 lawsuits alleging defective design More than 10,000 lawsuits involving Ethicon Gynecare transvaginal mesh have been filed in the Southern District of West Virginia, all claiming the surgical mesh products were defectively designed and made, and that Ethicon failed to warn doctors and patients of the risks associated with the devices. Ethicon, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, is also facing an additional 4,400 transvaginal mesh lawsuits currently pending in multi-county litigation in New Jersey’s Atlantic County Superior Court. Ethicon is just one of six manufacturers of transvaginal mesh. There are more than 30,000 transvaginal mesh lawsuits currently pending in separate proceedings in just the ... Read More	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line774
__label__cc	0.56157	0.43843	Wisdom's Kiss Catherine Gilbert Murdock Home » Uncategorized » Wisdom's Kiss Jan 17, 2020 - 22:39 PM Catherine Gilbert Murdock 670 Uncategorized Wisdom s Kiss Princess Wisdom known as Dizzy longs for a life of adventure far beyond the staid old kingdom of Montagne Tips a soldier longs to keep his true life secret from his family Fortitude an orphaned m Title: Wisdom's Kiss Author: Catherine Gilbert Murdock Princess Wisdom, known as Dizzy, longs for a life of adventure far beyond the staid old kingdom of Montagne Tips, a soldier, longs to keep his true life secret from his family Fortitude, an orphaned maid, longs only for Tips These three passionate souls might just attain their dreams while preserving Montagne from certain destruction, if only they can tolerate each othePrincess Wisdom, known as Dizzy, longs for a life of adventure far beyond the staid old kingdom of Montagne Tips, a soldier, longs to keep his true life secret from his family Fortitude, an orphaned maid, longs only for Tips These three passionate souls might just attain their dreams while preserving Montagne from certain destruction, if only they can tolerate each other long enough to come up with a plan Tough to save the world when you can t even be in the same room together Magic, cunning, and one very special cat join forces in this hilarious, extraordinary tale by the author of Dairy Queen and Princess Ben An incredibly creative tale told with diaries, memoirs, encyclopedia entries, letters, biographies, even a stage play, all woven together into a grand adventure. [PDF] ✓ Unlimited ↠ Wisdom's Kiss : by Catherine Gilbert Murdock Ê Catherine Gilbert Murdock 464 Catherine Gilbert Murdock Title: [PDF] ✓ Unlimited ↠ Wisdom's Kiss : by Catherine Gilbert Murdock Ê Posted by:Catherine Gilbert Murdock I grew up in small town Connecticut, on a tiny farm with honeybees, two adventurous goats, and a mess of Christmas trees My sister claims we didn t have a television, but we did, sometimes only it was ancient, received exactly two channels, and had to be turned off after 45 minutes to cool down or else the screen would go all fuzzy Watching or rather, watching Alfred Hitchcock s The Birds was quite the experience, because it s hard to tell a flock of vicious crows from a field of very active static this might be why I still can t stand horror movies, to this day.My sister Liz, who is now a Very Famous Writer with a large stack of books, was my primary companion, even though she was extremely cautious she wouldn t even try to jump off the garage roof, which involved crouching right at the edge for ten minutes working up your nerve, and then checking each time you landed to see if you d broken anything and she learned early on that losing at games was easier in the long run than putting up with me losing Now, of course, she travels all over the world collecting stories and diseases, while I stay at home scowling over paint chips, and losing on purpose to my kids So the cycle continues Read an New York Times article by Catherine and Liz People sometimes ask if I played football in high school no I ran cross country and track, badly, but I have absolutely no skill whatsoever with ball or team sports Plus my high school didn t even have a football team Instead, I was part of the art clique taking extra art classes, spending my study halls and lunch periods working on my latest still life Please tell me this was not a unique experience I didn t do much writing my sister was the anointed writer but I read my little eyeballs out I was the queen of our library s YA section.In college I studied architectural history The formal name was Growth and Structure of Cities Program, but for me, it was all about buildings I ve always been fascinated with the built environment how spaces fit together, how streets work, how they read And curiously Warning Life Lesson approaching , it s paid off in the oddest ways For example, several of us in our neighborhood recently got quite upset about a enormous building going in across the street, and while everyone agreed that they didn t like the way it looked, I was the one who stood up at public meetings and used words like entablature and cornice line and fenestration all this architectural jargon I d learned back at Bryn Mawr and sounded like I knew what I was talking about And because of that, the building ended up getting redesigned, and in my humble opinion now will look much attractive and appropriate, which is nice because I ll be looking at it for the rest of my life So don t be afraid to study what you love, because you do not know now, and you may not know for twenty years, how amazingly it will pay off But it will Dairy Queen was my first stab at creative writing since high school, not counting several years as a struggling screenwriter which followed several years as a struggling scholar I unabashedly recommend screenwriting for mastering the art of storytelling just don t pin any hopes on seeing your work on the big screen But you ll learn so much in the process that this won t matter I also recommend, you know, living I ve been passionate about food pretty much my whole life first eating it, now preparing and then eating it And so it plays a pretty big role in my writing, and adds so much flavor not literally, of course, but the you can add that s true, whether it s emotion or geography or gardening that s me in the picture above , then the stronger that story is. Wisdom's Kiss is a children's fairy tale akin to Shannon Hale's and Jessica Day George's. There is a princess, magic, a scheming villain, a suspiciously smart cat, romance and a happy ending.What distinguishes this tale from others in the genre is the book's format. Wisdom's Kiss is an assemblage of letters, diaries, a play, memoirs, encyclopedic entries, etc. Generally, I am quite fond of such narrative, as long as all formats are essential to the story and do not create redundancy. Here, howev [...] Limonessa says: I'd like to start off by saying that this is the first book I've ever read by Catherine Gilbert Murdock. I have Dairy Queen on the way to my house, a book I ordered after reading more than enthusiastic reviews by fellow GoodReaders and which I know is YA. So when I saw Wisdom's Kiss on NetGalley, I decided to give it a try.I'm pretty sure I can tell you that this is nothing like Dairy Queen, because this is a children's book. And a really weird one at that.In the little town of Bacio lives Trudy [...] Clare Cannon says: I love Catherine Gilbert Murdock's writing because it is intelligent, highly unconventional and always makes me laugh. Wisdom's Kiss is even more unconventional than her other books, and I would highly recommend it for brave readers. The storytelling is unusual with each character narrating their part in 2-3 page chapters, alternating between the script of a stage play, letters from one character to another, diary entries and heirloom stories passed on to a younger generation. The characters are [...] Ita says: I love this author's contemp YA's so was eager to try her fantasy. I am very sorry to say this book drove me crazy. I'm 2/3 of the way through and it's been a constant struggle. The story is told in an epistolary form (one of my favorites) but there are too many POVs. EIGHT! And a lot of it is a redundant telling of the story, which makes a very thin, weak plot unnecessarily long. There was quite a bit of humor and wit in the story, but it didn't make up for the weakness of the story or the char [...] I wanted to love this book. It had a cute format, told through letters, autobiographies, encyclopedia entries, etc and each character had a unique voice. However, the format also served to distance me from the characters a little, and while the external plot was fairly sound, the characters themselves didn't seem to go through much transformation at all. I would recommend this book to people who are fans of diary-style fiction and lighthearted reads, but there's not too much substance here.Also? [...] Steph Su says: Overexcessive stylistic writing, a lack of plot movement, characters who seem to be more concerned with the number of curlicues they can insert in their writings than in being complex and likable It's a shame that the straightforward and heartfelt charm of her D.J. Schwenk novels has never translated into her fantasy forays. Tone down on the epistolary cuteness and focus more on giving readers a good and engrossing story! Deborah Andreasen says: Trudy is a young orphan with a gift for seeing the future. Tips is also an orphan, who struggles with the oppressive hate of his older brothers and the dismal future of running the family mill. They’ve been best friends since infancy, and Trudy hopes Tips is her future. When a man comes to take Tips as his apprentice to become a soldier, Trudy hates to see him go but knows it’s for the best.Six years later, when both are grown and waiting to be reunited, fate and politics intervene. Suddenly [...] Macklin says: I loved this book. Its gorgeous cover caught my eye, and then the way it was told, through letters, diaries, plays etc, was just enough to entice me to read it. It is such a cute story, and I enjoyed all the different perspectives of the same events. I found many parts funny and romantic. I had not read Princess Ben yet, but I did after reading this. I prefer this book. I just had such a blast reading it. Christina (A Reader of Fictions) says: Although not obviously apparent for most of the book, this is actually a reimagined fairy tale. The whole thing does read like a fairy tale, with princesses and betrayal and cats and magic. What makes this book really stand out is the method that Murdock uses to tell the story. Most of the plot unfolds through characters memoirs written ex post facto, diary entries or letters written to others. There are also little snippets of plays interspersed between the other formats. These generally depict [...] Orphaned Trudy and the miller's son Tips have long been friends when Tips is offered an opportunity to become a solider. He becomes an apprentice to Felis el Gato and spends years away from Trudy, communicating only by mail. Trudy, who has a gift of foresight (to a certain extent anyway), stays in their village, hoping for his return. When Princess Wisdom, on her way to her wedding, and her grandmother, Nonna Ben, stop at Trudy's inn, they enlist her to become a lady-in-waiting, as their ladies- [...] I'm surprised by Catherine Gilbert Murdock. This is completely different from her Dairy Queen series. It took a while to get into and understand all the people and introductions they had when it was their chapter. I got into it about a quarter or more of the way in. I thought it was a good story but there was too much confusion on my part by the way everything was layed out. I also didn't enjoy completely the way it was written but other times I did. Longer review to come. Michelle Liao says: Wonderful! The last three words (excluding the glossary) were a twist in itself! Lolly's Library says: Now this is what I call creative writing! Some people take issue with Murdock's use of multiple P.O.V.'s (eight in all!). However, as detailed in the author Q&A at the back of the book, Murdock did what a writer's supposed to: Tell the story. If the P.O.V. being used isn't serving the story, then change the P.O.V. or do as Murdock did and add new P.O.V.'s. Perhaps eight points of view seems excessive to some, but it works and what results is a richly layered and deeply nuanced tale. And even [...] Original review posted on The Book Smugglers HERE This is the true story of the event known as Wisdom’s Kiss in which: a Kingdom was saved, hearts were broken, a Circus flourished, magical shenanigans were deployed and true love was found.In the Kingdom of Montagne, Princess Wisdom wishes for a life of adventure but finds herself about to settle down and get married; Fortitude, an orphaned kitchen maid, awaits for her childhood sweetheart to return from his travels; Tips, a soldier, misses his [...] Judy & Marianne from Long and Short Reviews says: Originally posted at:longandshortreviews.cThe cover of this book has the words “A Thrilling and Romantic Adventure Incorporating Magic, Villainy and a Cat”. These words say it all. Princess Wisdom (Dizzy) becomes engaged to the man who has arrived to court her sister, Queen of Montagne. She travels with her grandmother (Ben - Queen Mother of Montagne) to her betrothed’s home. Crisis after crisis delays their arrival, eventually stranding them in an inn in Bacio with their ladies-in-waiting [...] Dlora says: Catherine Gilbert Murdock said that she "enjoyed Wisdom's Kiss more than anything [she'd] ever created." Of the five books of hers I have read, I have to admit it was my least favorite. I adored her modern-day teen Dairy Queen series. It's not that I don't like fantasy--I really do very much. It's that WisK (the author's shorthand title) was told from eight (EIGHT!) viewpoints, which, while allowing for varied perspectives and dramatic tension, made it a bit hard for me to keep track of what was [...] Had this book ended differently, it would have been a 4, maybe even 5 star book in terms of my personal enjoyment, but, it ended the way it did which added a level of frustration that marred my enjoyment.This book is basically a re-telling of Puss in Boots with a smattering of other fairy tale references thrown in, so I get why Tips ended up with the princess; that's what happens in the story. What was the point then, of having a love triangle which is not part of the original story? My frustrat [...] Ashley - Book Labyrinth says: 1.5 starsThis book had a lot of great potential, but it ended up falling flat in a lot of ways. It took me a while to get into it because of all the different characters and perspectives, but eventually the action picked up a bit and I was intrigued. Then something specific happened with two of the characters (which I can’t reveal without being spoiler-y) and I seriously began to resent this book. I kept hoping it might get better, but it really didn’t.My first major complaint is all the dif [...] Diana Ocegueda says: Wissdoms kiss By:catherine Gilbert MurdockDo you like fairytales? If you do like fairytales like I do this is the book for you. Wisdom kiss is a story that is romantic and like a fairytale. You might also like it if you really like fairytales.The setting in my story is old kingdom the old of Montagne. This is important in my story because it is where it all takes place. The main characters in my story are Princess Wisdom, known as Dizzy, a soldier Fortitude, a cat and an orphaned maid. The confl [...] Miss Clark says: 2.5 starsAdequate and occasionally charming in its language, the varying styles can be a bit jarring. It moves from the third-person memoirs of Trudy to history book entries on the places and characters to letters from Ben to her granddaughter Temperance. Temperance is at home while Ben and her other granddaughter Wisdom/Dizzy travel to Farina for Dizzy to eb wed to Duke Roger. Then there are Dizzy's own diary entries and excerpts from a play detailing the events by an anonymous author and the o [...] I liked this book enough to finish it and there were a number of things I thought Gilbert-Murdock did well. The plot was excellent as was the world building and the characterizations. The novel was, in essence, a screwball comedy of people falling in love with each others' boyfriends minus the jokes.What I didn't like was the style. The author told the story of (Wisdom? Trudy? Queen Ben? The Cat?) with 8 different POVs, one of which was written in screenplay form. (Note to the author: plays are [...] This was was entertaining to read. It is told from various viewpoints; diaries, letters, histories, some true, some perhaps embellished. I lilked the style of it with those various voices. Unfortunately, it didn't quite all add up to a great story. It seems that the sum of the parts are far less than the whole in this case. It feels as if without the literary gymnastics, which are fun so I'm not complaining, this wouldn't be much of a story. Maybe because of the various focuses, it didn't feel t [...] To be fair it warns you that it is written in many different voices. And most times I don't mind books written in differ POVs however, this became tedious.There are many different players and many different parts and the ending isn't at all as I hoped it would be. The main characters Trudy, Tips (Tomas) and Wisdom aka Dizzy. Not to mention Nonna Ben, Teddy, Felis and the list goes on.The book is largely clips from Trudy and Tips life from childhood to approximately 18 would be my guess. There is [...] Upon reading this book, I felt the same way I felt finishing Princess Ben--lukewarm. There is just something missing from Murdock's fantasies--I loved her realistic series (Dairy Queen, etc.)though. This new title is a mix of diary entries, encyclopedia articles, memoirs, and third person storytelling, in an attempt to tell the story of three young people whose destinies intersect. Trudy is a beautiful servant in a village inn; Tips is her adored friend, with whom she is in love, but he's off wi [...] Book Chatter-Cath says: Oh where to start?I really did not enjoy this book at all.No seriously, there is nothing about this book I can talk up.It was that bad.How many different points of view are too many?Three, four, five? Try eight.Yes EIGHT!!Once you take into account the diary entries, the encyclopedia entries, the letters, the play, the main characters, blah, blah, blah.FAR TOO MANY voices and often overlapping storytelling makes for very confusing and boring reading.It was a real CHORE to get through and to be h [...] I wanted to love this book. Catherine Gilbert Murdock's Dairy Queen series is fantastic, with one of my favorite heroines. She has such an authentic, realistic voice. Truly, I had great expectations when this book caught my eye last time I as at the library.And not that the writing is bad. I just couldn't get into it. Most likely it was the variety of formats that threw me off - I never felt as if I got invested in any one character because things constantly shifted as far as view point and meth [...] Faith Hough says: This is one of the best examples of "gutsy" writing I have ever seen. It is told from 8 different points of view--and it completely worksyou couldn't imagine it told any other way. The vocabulary is very sophisticated, the literary references are abundant and sometimes a little obscure, but I'd be surprised if either of these elements makes a single reader skip a beat. (Also, the author included a glossary which is almost as entertaining as the story.)I found the ending to be oh, so slightly uns [...] First, I have to say that I have really enjoyed other books by this author, so I was very much looking forward to reading this one. However, the style of writing, while clever at first, started to drag the story down. By the middle of the book, you are dealing with 8 POV, some through letters, some through diary entries and there is even a play in there. I found that I was just getting annoyed and that the writing style made it so that I was not invested in any of the characters or the story. This book was amazing! It was funny, intelligent--you know you're dealing with an educated author when you find yourself looking up words in the dictionary, clever, witty, and even suspenseful. The format of the book is fresh and different, and keeps the reader laughing all the way through.A definite recommend to anyone! I don't even know what I just read. That was not a book, or even a story. That was a bunch of random accounts thrown together. There was very little plot, and what exsited of it was developed very poorly. I hate to say it, but this book was a failed attempt at originality. The Squaw Man: A Novel by Julie Opp Faversham: Ada... Destiny and the Wild Horses History and Descriptive Details of Middleton's Por... Everyone Leads: How to Revitalize the Catholic Chu... Beware the Shill (Shill Trilogy Book 3) The Landing in the Dawn: Dissecting a Legend - The... Her Sister's Shoes The Ishbane Conspiracy Sleepy Hollow, Vol. 1 akanapi powered by WordPress \| Theme: akanapi by Catherine Gilbert Murdock	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line779
__label__wiki	0.937024	0.937024	Increasing attention to investor costs of obsolete systems for securities records For the court decisions and speech referenced in the article below, see February 15, 2017, In re Dole Food Co. Inc. Shareholder Litigation (Consolidated C.A. No. 8703-VCL): Memorandum Opinion (17 pages, 258 KB, in PDF format) [dysfunctional tracking of merger payments] September 29, 2016, J. Travis Laster of the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware, keynote speech to the Fall 2016 meeting of the Council of Institutional Investors: "The Block Chain Plunger: Using Technology to Clean Up Proxy Plumbing and Take Back the Vote" (24 pages, 284 KB, in PDF format) May 11, 2016, In Re: Appraisal of Dell, Inc. (Consol. C. A. No. 9322-VCL): Opinion Enforcing Dissenter Requirement (70 pages, 625 KB, in PDF format) [dysfunctional voting process] July 13, 2015 (as revised July 30, 2015 according to attached letter), In Re: Appraisal of Dell, Inc. (Consol. C. A. No. 9322-VCL): Memorandum Opinion (55 pages, 424 KB, in PDF format) [dysfunctional recording of stock ownership] Source: TheStreet, March 3, 2017 article Laster: Remove the Cobwebs From Stock Record-Keeping ■ Delaware judge takes up antiquated stock record-keeping and voting system in Dole case By David Marcus \| Mar 3, 2017 6:00 AM EST Travis Laster has become a forceful advocate for reform of the system for voting corporate stock and tracking share ownership, and in a Feb. 15 decision he confronted yet another drawback of that system. The Delaware vice chancellor presided over a case in which Dole Food Co. agreed to pay stockholders an additional $2.74 a share plus interest to settle claims that the controlling stockholder David Murdock violated his fiduciary duties to minority stockholders in buying Dole for $1.2 billion, or $13.50 a share, in 2013. There were 36.8 million shares eligible for the settlement, but claimants submitted "facially valid claims" for 49.2 million shares, a discrepancy that the settlement administrator and class counsel could not resolve because the Depository Trust Co. and Cede Co., which keep the stockholder ledger for public companies, did not receive information about trades made in the three trading days before the deal closed on Nov. 1, 2013, a period in which 32 million Dole shares changed hands. Nor could the DTC/Cede system track short sales made in those three days. There is no cost-effective way to determine who did own the shares at closing, Laster wrote. Instead, he held that the counsel for stockholders, who were led by Stuart Grant of Grant & Eisenhofer PA in Wilmington and Randall Baron of Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP should distribute the settlement consideration to Cede and thereby to the custodial banks and brokers whose clients are the economic owners of the shares and let those institutions sort the problem out. Laster wrote at the end of the opinion that the Dole case raises broader issues: "The problems raised by short sales and trades during the three days before closing appear endemic to the depository system and hence likely infect every claims process. Nothing about either factor was unique to Dole. The only difference was the magnitude of the discrepancy, which made the issues visible." The judge grappled with another drawback of the current depository system last year when he found that mutual funds sponsored by T. Rowe Price & Associates Inc. could not seek appraisal on the 27 million Dell Inc. shares they owned because the funds had inadvertently voted for the deal, thanks to a clerical error that ended up costing the mutual fund company's investors over $100 million. The error stemmed from the byzantine way in which stock is owned and voted-a "daisy chain," as Laster called it. He offered a way to untangle the daisy chain in "The Block Chain Plunger: Using Technology to Clean Up Proxy Plumbing and Take Back the Vote," a paper he delivered last fall to the Council of Institutional Investors. Like almost all shareholders, the T. Rowe funds did not own their Dell stock directly. Instead, they were beneficial owners, holding their shares through a custodial bank, State Street Bank & Trust Co., which in turn is a member of the Depository Trust Co., whose nominee Cede was the stockholder of record, as it is for most public companies. State Street in turn used Broadridge Financial Solutions Inc. to collect and implement voting instructions from account holders. Laster noted in his speech that Broadridge "controls over 98% of the U.S. market for proxy vote processing services." T. Rowe added yet another intermediary, since it uses Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. to notify its funds about upcoming votes, provide voting recommendations, collect voting instructions and deliver them to Broadridge. Laster argued in his speech that the contorted way in which shares are held and voted makes precise vote counting impossible. He noted that one prominent Wilmington lawyer estimated that in a corporate election closer than 55% to 45%, "There is no verifiable answer to the question, 'Who won?'" Many lawyers have also warned that the number of shares on which appraisal could be sought is theoretically infinite because of the oddities of the DTC/Cede system, but those fears had never been borne out until the Dole case, which gives Laster one more powerful example to argue for a much-needed reform of the system. © 1996-2017 TheStreet, Inc.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line783
__label__wiki	0.848301	0.848301	Early Review: Tempt Me with Diamonds by Jane Feather Three friends who met at an elite English boarding school take on the town—and the ton—one by one, in this sparkling new series about love, loss, and lustrous gemstones, from New York Times bestselling author Jane Feather... Diana Sommerville seems to have it all—beauty, brains, and vast wealth, thanks to her family's ownership of a diamond mine abroad. But when her beloved brother dies in battle and leaves a lion's share of his estate to his best friend, Diana finds herself in a situation that seems scripted for the stage: Sharing her family home with the man she used to love—and now loathes. Worse, her unfaithful former fiancé has already moved in. OR AN EXCELLENT FAKE? Rupert Lacey didn't expect Diana to take the news without a fight. Still, he didn't expect her to bring the battle directly to their newly shared doorstep—complete with a full set of trunks, and a full set of orders to the staff. Yet there she is, bold, regal...magnificent as ever. Now they would face a formidable challenge: to ignore each other—and the unanswered questions that stood between them. The only sure thing is their still blazing desire. But with a woman like Diana, it will take nothing less than a momentous misunderstanding, a missing prized mare, and a shocking revelation to restore a love that hasn't lost its shine. Tempt Me with Diamonds is an intriguing romance. Diana and Rupert have a vast history of shared pleasures, as well as mournful tragedies that marked their lives. After the death of her brother Diana returns home to find her plans will have to include Rupert, her ex-fiance. Her beloved brother has left his shares of the family diamond mine to the man who destroyed her heart. Rupert and Diana will find themselves in battle throughout this story. I felt Rupert's reasons for Diana not to ask questions ridiculous. There was so much misinformation and Diana just leaves it at that. No argument, no questions, just plain avoidance, and suffering. Overall it was a good story, I just wish Rupert had communicated more. I look forward to reading more in the series. Pub Date: Jan. 29, 2019 This Title was Accepted via death diamonds featured historical Jane Feather Kensingrton passion romance Tempt Me with Diamonds The London Jewels Trilogy	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line787
__label__cc	0.720693	0.279307	Michael Morley is a former TV producer and director. He has produced a number of documentaries, including Murder in Mind about Dennis Nilsen and scripted the interactive mystery game, Monkeys Skulls & Crosses. Spider is his first novel. Morley: Vulnerable and sentimental. Morley: Bob Dylan's Blood on the Tracks. Morley: Captain of the English soccer team (even the England women's soccer team would have been fine). Morley: The Collected Poems of WB Yeats (stolen from secondary school library). Morley: We'd all be ****ed! I am the most forgetful person there is and quite capable of misplacing the entire planet. Morley: One that everyone loved and that made me squillions of euros. Morley: Bad manners, especially people who don't say thank you if you hold the door open for them. Morley: Billy Connolly, Satan, Gordon Ramsay, Salvador Dali and the current Playmate of the Month. Morley: A garlic-eating claustrophobic with flatulence. Morley: A nun at my Catholic primary school with a big cane. Morley: Christmas in England, spring in New York, autumn in Rome and winter in LA. Morley: Pattersonesquely paced, Cornwellesquely plotted with a wicked final twist.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line793
__label__cc	0.696434	0.303566	revolution34 What I Use #Beerbods, the story so far Papa Sis was born sometime in the early 2000s, in a student accommodation living room in St Andrews. Ben, Mark and I were visiting Malcs, and a Hungover Tismey was sitting in an armchair, wrapped in a blanket, grumbling about how rubbish everything was. I don’t recall if it was Mark or Malcs who first coined Papa Sis to describe the curmudgeonly figure I cut, but it kind of stuck. Since then, it’s been recycled as a DJ and stage name, and I quite like it, so I’ve been planning some kind of self-portrait for Papa since starting this project in January. I’ve been thinking a lot about personal branding recently. In a recent episode of Back To Work, Merlin Mann was talking about this, and said something that really struck a chord with me: “You can have a fancy car without being ‘Fancy Car Guy’” This happened to coincide with a difficult period at work, and with the news of my impending fatherhood. If anything is going to prompt a reassessment of priorities and assumptions, then that’s going to be it. Unconsciously, over a period of a few months, I started to gradually unpick my makeup and consider which bits of Tismey and Papa Sis are useful, and which just get in the way of things a bit. I don’t have a fancy car, so I’m never going to be Fancy Car Guy, but I have plenty of other tics that could end up unwittingly becoming my Defining Feature for some people. I started to think more carefully about the motivations behind my actions, and about whether I’d be happy with each decision, each purchase, each offhand comment, being reflective of me. As the months have gone on, and things have changed around me, I think this re-examination was a useful process to go through. So, this ‘montage of stuff’ self-portait had been kicking around for a while. And then Artie came along and, just like everyone said, immediately the focus of my time and attention completely shifted, so it made total sense for the focus of the shot to change too. • Source	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line794
__label__cc	0.524635	0.475365	SINGING FOR OUR LIVES Red Leicester Liverpool Socialist Singers An insight on building social movements As an appetiser for the book launch in Leicester on Wednesday - with a soundtrack from the marvellous Red Leicester - we're posting this first draft of an essay. With it's exploration of assumptions about developing the Campaign Choirs Network, it may have relevance to wider social movements. Street Choirs: safe spaces or spaces of exclusion? Between 2014 and 2018 the Campaign Choirs Writing Collective, a small team of activists and para-academics, carried out more than forty oral history interviews with members of street choirs across the length and breadth of Britain. Street choirs in this context signifies radical campaigning or political choirs, predominantly socialist or peace choirs. The sobriquet ‘street’ is traceable to choirs’ involvement or, in some cases, origin in the British street bands movement. Not all of the choirs whom we interviewed actually sang on the street. Many do, however, at demonstrations and rallies as well as more regularly to raise awareness and/or money for campaigns and causes. Ultimately, our participatory action research project sought to address the question of how street choirs might develop their individual and collective potentials in ways that took into account their members’ everyday realities, hopes and dreams. Spatial tensions So, some of the questions we posed to street choir members were: What world do you want? What does your perfect society look like? To help them get to grips with such daunting utopian questions, we encouraged our interviewees to focus on their choir: What are you singing for? In your utopia, how would the choir change? One fascinating aspect of the research was the tension between a street choir as a safe space and that space being exclusionary. A safe space of shared experience and solidarity implies a simultaneous space disbarring difference and so precluding the development of new political relations, notably intersectional solidarities, typically an agonistic and so disruptive process. The tension between safe and exclusionary space extends to street choirs when considered together as a social movement. One issue that the evolving Campaign Choirs Network has explicitly recognised as problematic is the relationship between street choirs and community choirs. Community can denote manifold relations but in this case a shared experience of place is the most typical. Street and community choirs share an annual festival, named the Street Choirs Festival but increasingly inhabited by a community choirs majority. Contestation of festival space is quite evident in practice, exemplified by the songs that the massed choirs choose to learn and sing together. Street choirs generally demand explicitly political songs, while for community choirs the drive seems to be more the music than the message. One aspect of our research focussed on how the contestation of festival space might be rendered constructive rather than divisive. The evolving Campaign Choirs Network of street choirs inhabits a relational space that encompasses contradiction. While the movement actively extends a welcome to women-only and LGBT+ choirs, it is ambiguous about opening this political embrace to choirs as exclusionary spaces of community, youth, ethnicity or maleness. What, for instance, is the Campaign Choirs Network to make of the fairly recent advent of a new generation of men-only choirs such as Chaps Choir and Spooky Men's Chorale? The defining statement of the latter is the light-hearted: 'We can grow beards, if we want to’. Be it sexually straight, gay or otherwise, the identity politics of such safe spaces centres on the shared experience of a physically prescribed maleness. No room to presume In a recent article for The Conversation, Thomas Breeze proposes that traditional male-voice choirs, specifically those from traditionally working class communities, should admit female singers to counter declining participation[i]. A significant presupposition of our research was that, in order to develop their potentials, street choirs would need to grow and diversify their memberships, in particular via attracting younger and BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) people as well as more men. Although ours was not a quantitative survey, the Campaign Choirs Network, and thus our research population, is predominantly female, aged between 50 and 70, and white. As we’ve already mooted, however, diversifying the membership of a street choir is not straight-forward. How can existing spaces of shared experience and solidarity also be made spaces of welcome and safety for people from different life worlds and politics? One of our interviewees, Wendy Lewis of Côr Cochion Caerdydd (Cardiff Reds Choir), was clear that music alone cannot play such a role: “the people who have stuck with us are the people who didn’t think they could sing but were interested politically and then learned to sing. As opposed to the people, in the past, who had lovely voices but… Well, they’re not going to stick around if they don’t agree with the politics.” Just imagine that Asking our interviewees to imagine a utopian future served to illuminate the tensions and ambiguities of safe spaces and exclusion. Sean Maddison Brown of Sheffield choir Out Aloud recalls homophobia being rife in his city: “I can remember being in a gay pub only few hundred yard from here and them having to put shutters down because it was being pelted by yobs. That’s not very long ago.” Out Aloud became a safe space for the LGBT people in Sheffield and Sean recognizes the benefits of a diversity that arose from a politically necessitated solidarity: ‘What I’ve gained from it [being in Out Aloud] is meeting a lot of fabulous women, actually… who I would not have come across socially.” Noting an initial reluctance from both men and women to join, Sean told us that: “we feel it’s our strength now to have that mixed choir.” Imagining a utopian future raised some confusing political questions and Sean said: “A gay choir might not exist in the future. The need for it would disappear… The issue of gay should disappear, like the issue of women should disappear. The issue around women and women needing to come together, to be separate, to have support, to fight for their rights and so forth. In an ideal world we wouldn’t have any of that because we would be [equal].” Sean’s story illuminates that whether a street choir is a space of exclusion can be a matter of power relations shifting over time. In this regard, Thomas Breeze’s suggestion that male voice choirs could open up to female singers may hold good. As with Out Aloud, people of all genders (and none) could gain from the interaction; diversity could become their new choir’s political strength. On the other hand, in our current moment many BAME people may need any choir that they join to be an exclusionary space so that it is a safe space. The research findings we shared with the Campaign Choirs Network problematize the presupposition of developing street choirs by a seeking a blanket increase in their diversity. Some men, young people and BAME people will join existing street choirs, but others may need the support of the Campaign Choirs Network to form their own choirs. In some cases, exclusion can be a progressive politics. At least for the time being. [i] Breeze, Thomas (2018) “Male voice choirs are (from) the pits – here’s why they should welcome women.” The Conversation, April 6. Available at https://theconversation.com/male-voice-choirs-are-from-the-pits-heres-why-they-should-welcome-women-94589 (Accessed July 13, 2018). Singing for our lives is a Campaign Choirs network project	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line799
__label__cc	0.739145	0.260855	Port na Chro North Port na Chro South Coachman’s View Old Pumphouse Middle Seaview Skipness Around Skipness Seafood Cabin Skipness Castle There is an established network of walking trails in the local area – both around Skipness and on Arran. OS Explorer Maps: Arran – 361 North Kintyre – 357 South Kintyre – 356 The highest peak around is Goatfell on Arran, at 874m (2,866ft) it is just short of being a Munro, so falls into the next category of Scottish Hills – the Corbetts. The easiest route starts from Brodick Castle and follow a well maintained path until the final section which is a bit more of a scramble. After admiring the stunning views you can either follow the same path back down or take a left fork to Corrie. For the more adventurous there are three other Corbetts which can be claimed. WalkHighlands.co.uk – Goatfell, Arran Another popular route is the Kintyre Way – 161km (100miles) taking in the whole peninsula from Tarbert to Machrihanish. The first section heads up from Tarbert Castle and then drops down behind the Village Shop. The 9mile route is a mixture of forestry road and muddy path but is fairly easy going and well signposted. A good excursion is catching the local bus into Tarbert and then walking home! Kintyreway.co.uk [fawesome iclass=”fab fa-amazon-pay”] There are sandy bays for bathing and plenty of coves for rock pooling. There are endless opportunities for exploration and exciting expeditions. Ferries to the islands of Islay, Jura, Gigha and Arran mean there are many further areas to explore nearby. The Gulf Stream washes past the west coast of Scotland and its gentle nurturing accounts for the soft mild climate and the luxuriant and exotic species that are to be found in these parts. Seals, basking sharks, dolphins and porpoises are regularly seen in the waters around Skipness. Otters are becoming a common sight in Skipness especially at Port a Chro and on the coastal road to Skipness village. Just an hour’s drive from Skipness, a trip to the Scottish Beaver Trial in Knapdale Forest provides a fun family day out. The Beaver Detective Trail, a two hour (three mile) circular walk which follows the natural terrain around the Dubh Loch and Loch Collie Bharr, supplies the opportunity to be a beaver detective and spot the signs of beaver activity in one of the most stunning parts of Scotland. Dawn or dust trips give the best opportunity for Beaver spotting. http://scottishbeavers.org.uk/visit-knapdale/ The local flora and fauna is rich and diverse. It is possible to spot a number of marine animals such as dolphins, porpoises, otters, basking sharks and seals. In the woods there are several species of deer that can glimpsed including sika, roe and red. For botanists, the gardens at Crarea are spectacular as are the ones to be found on the island of Gigha and those at Brodick Castle on Arran. The Estate was once home to a number of illicit Whisky stills, well hidden from the view of the revenue men who patrolled the seas looking for the tell-tale whisps of smoke rising from the fires heating the stills. For those seeking to see how the process has moved on in recent times there are several distilleries that can be visited: Isle of Arran Whisky Distillery www.arranwhisky.com Campbeltown has 2 distilleries: Springbank www.springbankwhisky.com and Glen Scotia www.glenscotia.com Islay can be visited in a day trip from Skipness. This island has 8 distilleries (including Ardbeg, Bowmore and Laphroaig) producing some of the finest Malt Whiskies in the world. www.islayinfo.com Golf is available at the nine hole links in Tarbert, in Carradale and on the islands of Gigha and Arran, as well as the two eighteen hole rounds at the renowned Machrihanish courses. http://www.machgolf.com/ Fishing and sea tours Scotland has some of the best fishing the United Kingdom has to offer. The salmon and sea trout fishing is exceptional and the summer mackerel fishing can be extremely successful as well as being excellent to eat. There are a number of companies which offer marine wildlife tours. A number are based around Oban – the unofficial capital of Argyll – which is a scenic 1.5-2hour drive from Skipness. Sealife Adventures, Oban – www.sealife-adventures.com Seafari, Oban – www.seafari.co.uk/oban Mull of Kintyre Seatours, Campbelltown – www.mull-of-kintyre.co.uk Fishing Charters from Oban – http://www.argyll-seatours.co.uk/ One hours drive from Skipness in the beautiful port town of Ardfern. From here it is possible to book guided wildlife boat trips and private charters from Ardfern to the Corryvreckan Whirlpool (the third largest whirlpool in the world) and several other islands on the purpose built catamaran Sea Leopard II. http://www.whirlpool-scotland.co.uk/when.html www.craignishcruises.co.uk Argyll has passed through the hands of many ancient rulers. It is possible to see evidence from prehistoric occupation in the rich archaeological remains at Kilmartin Glen – with the accompanying museum providing further insight. Nearby by is the ancient hill fort of Dunadd which served as the capital of the Kingdom of Dalriada, dating from 500 AD. After a brief period in the hands of the Norse, it was the time of the Scottish Clans. There are a number of castles, both ruined and still standing, that are symbolic of the struggle to emerge as the “Lord of the Isles”. A more recent piece of Scottish history can be seen at Inveraray Jail which served Argyll for most of the 19th century. It has been well-maintained and it is possible to take tours of the original cells and courtroom. Surfing is available at Westport Beach near Campbeltown. www.liveontheedge.co.uk Boards can be hired and lessons available from qualified instructors. Arran Adventure offers a wide variety of activities including mountain biking, abseiling and kayaking. http://auchrannie.co.uk/pamper-play/adventure.html There is a wealth of information available both on the internet and in guidebooks such as the “Lonely Planet Guide to Scotland’s Highland and Islands” and the “Rough Guide to Argyll” Skipness is just over 100 miles from Glasgow, taking about 3 hours by car. The journey takes you alongside Loch Lomand, over ‘Rest and be Thankful’ mountain pass and down Loch Fyne; breathtaking Scottish scenery. *PETROL & DIESEL – We advise filling up your tank in Dumbarton or Lochgilpead – there is no longer a petrol station in Tarbert. The No. 926 coach service between Glasgow (Buchanan Station) and Campbeltown stops in Tarbert, where you can change for the local bus service No. 448 between Lochgilpead and Skipness, this drops you right in front of the Castle gates. Glasgow to Tarbert – Tickets and times Tarbert to Skipness – Times and Tickets By Ferry Skipness is within 30 mins drive of 4 ferry terminals (Cloanaig, Kennacraig, Tarbert, Tayinloan) linking Skipness to the Isle of Arran, Islay, Cowal peninsula and Isle of Gigha. From Glasgow there is an opportunity to island hop via Arran to Skipness (Ardrossan-Brodick, Lochranza-Claonaig). From Lochranza on Arran there is a 30min crossing to Cloanaig (Summer) or an 1h25min crossing to Tarbert (Winter). From Portavadie on Cowal there is a 25min crossing to Tarbert. From Port Ellen (2h) or Port Askaig (2h15min) on Islay there are crossings to Kennacraig. From Tayinloan (20min crossing) you can visit the Isle of Gigha. Caledonian Macbrayne (CalMac) run all the major ferry routes on the West Coast of Scotland. We recommend CalMac’s Hopscotch tickets for journeys using more than one ferry route. Calmac – Summer timetables Calmac – Winter timetables Calmac – Hopscotch Tickets Dairy Cottage	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line800
__label__cc	0.624369	0.375631	Browse: Home / Issue #03 / Me and Virgil Me and Virgil Kathy McVey (IIML, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand) Me and Virgil, we’re both 31, and he earns a hundred and fifty grand a year. Virgil’s a Flash animator and he gawks at a screen all day, making masterpieces from nothing but imagination and digital files. He’s real good at it too. But Virgil loves cars and car accessories more than his job, and more than me too I reckon, but I’ve never lost much sleep over that one. Virgil loves speed too. Yeah, the kind you get from driving a fast car, but also the kind you buy from drug dealers. I don’t get into drugs that much myself, not anymore. The future I’m planning means I need to stay healthy; I need to stay looking good. You see those 36-year-old girls who still drop E’s every Friday night and they don’t look that flash. Fast living takes its toll on you, I reckon. Virgil figures his love of speed is genetic – that’s when you’ve got it in your blood from your ancestors. His parents were these Seventies speed freaks who were way into that old Thunderbirds TV show. Maybe you guessed already from his name. I never heard about the Thunderbirds before I met Virgil but I Googled it, and the website said Virgil’s the most serious of the five Tracy brothers. My Virgil’s not, but he loves that shit, he’s always shouting out “Thunderbirds are go!” He cracks me up. Well, he used to. Virgil got disqualified from driving before I met him – I mean, he lost his license – cos he got caught speeding too many times. And so I get to drive his car. It’s blue and it’s some snazzy sort of a Mazda. RX-8 I think. I don’t use it that much, mainly for groceries and stuff, and a bit in the weekends if we’re out and about. Sometimes he gets me to drop him off places, but we live right in the city so we can walk pretty much everywhere we want to go. When Virgil first went to jail I’d been living at his place for four or five months and, so long as I did the housework and stuff, he was rapt to have me here. We were still in what you’d call the honeymoon phase I guess. We met in a totally corny way…yeah, in a bar one night. And I had to move out of my flat the next weekend cos I broke up with this other guy, so I just moved in here. Both of us are real cruisey and we don’t hassle each other, so it’s all good. His place is kind of upmarket and it’s two bedrooms, so there’s space for the computers and Playstation – I keep all my clothes and shoes in that room too – and I love how you can see the sea when you’re sitting on the balcony. Me and Virgil, we always have happy chats if we stay in and smoke a joint or watch a DVD, and we have a laugh if we go out clubbing or something. What I like about Virgil is he sleeps real close to me all night long. Sometimes he rolls over and grabs me and pulls me in closer to him without even waking up. That’s a precious thing for a guy to do, I reckon. I’ve been trying to get this TV presenter’s job, cos that’s what I know I’m going to be good at. I’ve done a few ads for TV already, but so far nothing that’s really a big deal. I’ve got a proper agent and I’m making a bit of money though. Also, I do two nights a week waitressing in an Italian place, so it’s not like Virgil has to pay for everything. I used to work in a media agency as a planner, but I like this heaps better. It’s more random. A few months ago I was in this ad for a Russian cigarette company. There were about 20 of us and all we had to do was dress up in designer clothes and dance around. I got to wear this floppy black hat made of felt, like Kate Moss wears out shopping all the time. You see her paparazzi-snapped in it, in New Idea and Women’s Day. And I wore this slinky black t-shirt with ribbons on the sleeves and a print of a woman wearing a floppy hat, same as the one on my head. The film company, they hired this big house in Herne Bay and pretty much filled up every room with clothes and a few laptops. I had to take my passport to prove I was over 30 and sign a legal document, like a disclaimer thing. There’s this rule in Russia about cigarette advertising, and maybe alcohol as well I think, where they’re only allowed to show ads with people older than 30. Trying on the clothes and signing the form only took like an hour, then the ad took a day to shoot – and I got two-and-a-half grand for it. I worked it out, that’s like nearly two hundred and eighty bucks an hour. If I can score a job like that every week, I’ll be sweet, even if Virgil’s not around. A lot of it was just hanging out and drinking coffee. I met some nice people too. There was one chick who had this insane counting thing going on. She couldn’t stop counting in her head. She talked to me about it, while she was counting the lights and the coffee cups and the teaspoons. That’s how we got onto it actually. I was sussing out the espresso machine and she stumped up, started tapping up the stack of cups with her fingernail. “Do you want a latte?” I asked her. “I can make you one.” But she kept checking out the china. “Thanks, but nah, I’m ok… seven, eight, nine, ten.” So I asked her: “Uh… what are you counting cups for?” And I was laughing at her even though I never met her before, but in a friendly way, you know. She had a smooth blonde bob and one of those peaceful faces, looked like she’s never got a fright in her life. “Oh God,” and she was laughing now too. “You just busted me so bad. I’ve got an obsession thing and I can’t help it – I keep counting everything. Probably some kind of anxiety problem, but hey,” she did this funny wiggle with her eyebrows. “I’m too anxious to go to the doctor.” “What are you like?!” I said. We were both nearly wetting our pants by then. She said she counts when she goes to new places – like the ad shoot – cos it makes her feel not so nervous. What a classic. I also caught up with this interesting guy called Jerry. He had seven facial piercings and the hugest watch on his wrist. He brought along this mint-condition copy of the original Golden Treasury. I love that old kids’ book so much – I’ve been looking in secondhand shops for years to find a copy. No joy. He said his Nan sent it from England for him, said he’s got a copy of Struwelpeter too, lucky bugger. It was hot as a sauna though. That was the thing I didn’t like about doing the Russian ad. Partly cos of the lights they have, partly cos we were crowded into the mezzanine floor at Antlers. You know it, the caf above that old-fashioned Japanese restaurant in High Street? They set it up like it was a crowded nightclub, amped up some weird Russian techno, and we all cut the rug while they rolled the cameras. Just after lunch the director asked everyone who smoked to light up these Russian cigarettes, and then we all danced some more with durries in our fingers. I don’t really smoke any more and they were horrible cigarettes too, but I got through three of them. Pretty lame idea for an ad I thought, hip young things smoking up a storm in a nightclub, but I guess it flogs fags a treat in Russia. We got to keep the clothes, which was very cool, so a few of us went up to Velocity for a wine when we wrapped. I asked the counting nutcase – Leah – to take a picture of me, all dolled up in the Kate Moss hat and make-up-artisted within an inch of my life. She snapped a goodie and I shoved the camera screen under Virgil’s nose as soon as I got home. “Babe, you’re the glam,” he said, patting my nose with his pinky finger. Then he gave me the end of his joint and kissed my cheek, “I gotta go babe, off to Jimmy’s with the boys from work. Sure you don’t want to come?” “Thanks hun, I’m knackered, but wake me up. We can have a talk late, ok?” I laxed out in the best-ever bath with bubbles and candles, the works. And there I was by about 10 o’clock, snuggled up in my dressing gown and ugg boots, crashed out on the couch. Except it’s not a couch exactly. It’s this old hospital bed that Virgil scored from a mate who’s a builder and he got this special padded cushion thing made for it, so it’s like a hospital-bed-couch. It’s a saffron colour, like a Buddhist monk’s robe, and it goes great with the industrial theme Virgil’s got going on. I was watching this documentary about Afghanistan and this one Kiwi soldier with a squishy face and the grossest zit on his chin, he was saying: “The main difficulties here are heat and wind. And the worst thing about it is there’s shit everywhere, and the shit gets ground up into dust and the wind whips all that shit-dust around. So basically, you’re always breathing shit.” Who’d be a soldier anyway? The TV beeped out the swearing every time he said shit and maybe I was still a bit stoned cos it seemed funny enough that I had a laugh out loud. But Virgil spoiled the happy buzz, I mean, he seriously bummed me out that night. He rocked on in just after midnight and I was stoked he was home so early. I licked my lips ready for kissing him, half got up to give him a squeeze. But as soon as he saw me he slumped way down on the carpet, with his back leaning up against the bed-couch so I couldn’t see his face very well. “Man…I’m off my head. And I’m dead, I am so dead,” he said. Just announced it straight off like that, lacing his fingers together and flapping the clasped pair up and down. “I’m so messed up babe and I just smacked into this lady, this walking lady… and you know I’m not even sposed to be driving?” When he twisted his neck to grin at me, I thought, Yep, you’re off your head. His pupils were lost. And he had this slick on his face like I get sometimes if I have a hot shower too soon after coming in from the gym. He started chewing the inside of his mouth. He didn’t look flash at all. But sometimes Virgil goes off on these tangents and I really had no idea where he was coming from. So I just hung out there, waiting for him to explain himself. I mean, I’d seen him in this sorry state mumbling about some drama – or not – more than a couple of times before. Eventually he did get out the details about what had happened, and I managed to get a cup of coffee into him and then I rang the cops. These two guys arrived to take him to the station, and there was a lesson in that for me. There’s always a lesson when you least expect it, I reckon. One of the cops was the bomb, about the same age as me, cute as a puppy but very staunch with it as well. Damn it that I’m in my dressing gown, that’s what rattled through my head as soon as I opened the door. You know, even now, I don’t know exactly why Virgil was taking a work vehicle to a party that had nothing to do with work, anyway. The cars at his office are supposed to only be for work trips like out to meetings with clients and stuff, but the guys reckoned they’d just swing past Joel’s place to pick up some weed before they went on to Jimmy’s that Friday night. Don’t ask me why Virgil was driving. I feel like I hardly know the guy. He got two years in jail for hitting this woman crossing the road, and lucky for him that she wasn’t killed stone cold dead, just her hip and leg all smashed up to hell. Maimed, that’s what she got, just walking quiet across the street. I know cos I saw her in court in a wheelchair. Poor thing. Probably it would have been twelve months except for the blood test they gave him, and for the way he zoomed off and left her on the black road. So the end thing is that Virgil got two years, and I get to look after his place while he’s gone – it’s all good for me, except for the sleeping by myself part. It doesn’t seem fab karma to have another guy staying when it’s his house. So, maybe I’ll still be here when he gets out and maybe not. I reckon I’ll be on a TV show by then. I’m just going with the flow and hoping for that. I’ve done three good ads since the cigarette thing so I’m feeling positive about it. And me and Virgil, we agreed no hard feelings either way. We agreed things change, they always change. Right now this wicked place to live, that’s what I’ve got. I’m grateful, you know? Kathy McVey is a writer based in sunny Gisborne, on the East Coast of New Zealand’s North Island. She has spent the past year pondering the mind-body connection as it relates to health and illness, and writing poetry about drugs and other obsessions for her MA in Creative Writing at Victoria University’s International Institute of Modern Letters.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0004.json.gz/line801

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