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__label__wiki	0.563622	0.563622	Home » Blog – WhiteSource » New Linux Kernel Vulnerability Puts 1.4 Billion Android Devices at Risk New Linux Kernel Vulnerability Puts 1.4 Billion Android Devices at Risk August 17, 2016 Yossi Weinberg With the disclosure last week that over 900 million android phones were susceptible to the QuadRooter vulnerability, you could be forgiven for thinking that that was enough excitement for now. Yet, alas not. Researchers from the University California-Riverside have identified a Linux kernel vulnerability which affects certain Linux-based operating systems OS. This includes 80%, or roughly 1.4 billion, of all Android devices. So, without further ado, here’s everything you need to about who’s affected by the vulnerability, how it operates and what can you do to protect yourself against it. Who’s Affected by the Linux Kernel Vulnerability According to the NVD, the Linux kernel vulnerability affects all Linux operating systems that are running version 4.6 and earlier. Also, in regards to Android, this affects all devices running Android OS 4.4 KitKat or later. What is the Linux Kernel Vulnerability? The vulnerability affects a weakness in the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) of all relevant Linux operating systems mentioned above. Attackers are able to infer the TCP number sequence associated with a particular connection, with no more information needed than the source and destination IP addresses. The weakness can be used to launch attacks that could degrade the privacy of anonymous networks (e.g. Tor browser), track users’ online activity, hijack a conversation between hosts and even forcibly terminate a conversation. The attack has been found to take less than a minute to instigate and have a nearly perfect success rate. Linux Kernel Vulnerability Information The underlying Linux kernel vulnerability has been assigned CVE-2016-5696 with a medium severity rating. The exploitability rating is low, but it should be remembered that the risk is still there for targeted attacks. What to Do Now You’ll be glad to hear the kernel was patched on July 11th 2016. But unfortunately, it wasn’t ready in time to be included in the latest developer preview of Android OS Nougat. However, if you’re running a standalone Linux OS, you can update your kernel to version 4.7 which contains the patch. You can check if your Android device is vulnerable by running the following command from an adb shell: sysctl net.ipv4.tcp_challenge_ack_limit. If the reported number is less than 1,000 (which is the new number in the patch), I’m sorry to say chances are your device doesn’t contain the patch. If that’s the case, you may want to encrypt your communications using such tools as a VPN. LESSONS LEARNEDFROM THE EQUIFAX BREACH Download Free Lessons for Enterprises The biggest takeaway for enterprises, is the importance of being aware of known open source security vulnerabilities affecting your components, and upgrading them when possible. For if left unpatched, all affected Linux environments would be susceptible to targeted attacks seeking to gain access to or manipulate unencrypted sensitive information. Here at WhiteSource, as part of our automated open source management solution, we continuously monitor new CVEs and track over 175,000 open source vulnerabilities, including the Linux kernel vulnerability. Therefore, we’re able to alert our customers, in real time, about vulnerable libraries in their software, and fixes for them. It’s always important to remember, if the open source community is aware of an open source vulnerability, so are hackers. Therefore, you need to be as well. A Hitchhiker’s Guide to Ransomware, Open Source and IoT Has this ever happened to you? You click on a link or open an attachment, and then suddenly a ransom a n... If It Looks Open Source, and Sounds Open Source, Is It Really Open Source? We're all using open source components, but do we understand what makes open source code open source? It's ...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1847
__label__cc	0.671646	0.328354	Need an account? Sign Up! I give consent to the processing of personal data Please enter your username or e-mail. You will receive an email with a link for creating a new password. For restaurants Ratings Add raid Sign in My profile RestCoins Favorite raids Blacklist Raided by me Submitted by me Information about the offers on RestoRaids website is found in open sources: official restaurants’ websites, their social networks, on-site materials, submitted by users, shared by the restaurants’ representatives, etc. Offers validity RestoRaids editorial office validates all newly posted offers, but to no extent it is responsible for the relevance and accuracy of information, since restaurants can change the terms of the raids at any time in their sole discretion, which can not aways be constantly monitored. Before using any offer, announced on RestoRaids, it is recommended to clarify with the restaurant its validity and all conditions for its use. Using the offers RestoRaids is an information resource, the purpose of which is to inform about the restaurants’ offers. RestoRaids is in no way responsible for whether it was possible to actually use the offer announced on the project’s resources and whether all its conditions were met. Only the restaurant or the person, who announced the offer in this restaurant, are responsible for providing the offer to customers as well as for the compliance of all the terms of the offer. Copying, publishing, broadcasting and other ways of reproducing information from this site, including materials of the Telegram channel, social networks and a raider’s subscription, are prohibited. In the event of discovering such cases, access to the site, Telegram channel and/or raider’s subscription will be blocked without the compensation/refund for the subscription. Getting RestCoins Registration of fake accounts using a personal referral code is prohibited. The fake accounts will be detected and blocked, and RestCoins, assessed for the friends registration (including the real accounts), will be written-off. This may result in the cancellation of an existing subscription (if the unfairly received RestCoins were used for it) and the need to pay for the subscriptions, received previously in the same way. Using the site means a complete acceptance of all the above conditions. Are you a restaurant representative? RestCoins RestoRaids shop © 2020 RestoRaids	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1848
__label__cc	0.709363	0.290637	Parsi beloved community of India Posted on December 9, 2015 by arZan • 1 Comment Man, I love Parsis. And director and photographer Sooni bawaji, the term of respect for an older Taraporevala in her charming lm Little Zizou. Bombay, the city I was born and raised in, was built on the dedication and ingenuity of stalwarts like Phirozeshah Mehta, Dadabhai Naoroji and JRD Tata. At every stage of my life, I’ve been a kolmi na kabab’s throw away from a bunch of bawas and bawis (slang forms of the word bawaji, the term of respect for an older Parsi gentleman) and my love for this community of idiosyncratic wonders has run deep as long as I’ve lived. Article by Uday Benegal \| GQ India My introduction to Parsis began with a very special family known as the Spencers. A decidedly un-Zoroastrian- sounding name indeed, but then, this is a community that refers to Queen Elizabeth as “aapro rani”, or “our queen”, so it was all quite within nomenclatural alignment. The Spencers were already living in the South Bombay apartment building that my parents moved into when I turned a year old. My family connected with them across both generations. My folks loved Jimmy and Roshan, and my six-years-older brother became tight with their younger son, Jehangir. By the time I was old enough to hang out with the older boys, we’d been to each others’ homes more times than Uncle Jimmy had yelled “ghelchodia” from underneath his car, which he was always tinkering with, every time a ball from a nearby cricket or football game would pummel it. Uncle Jimmy was a giant man with a giant heart and a voice that matched in tenor, tone and volume. He had a penchant for cold beer, good food and dirty jokes and was the life of the gathering every time we met. Apart from keeping my folks in splits with his ribald humour, much of which we didn’t get, Uncle Jimmy was known to randomly grab Jehangir and me and tramp about his home yelling, “The dwarf, druid and the monster!” – re-enacting a scene from Asterix And The Roman Agent. Auntie Roshan parried his gargantuan energy with her gentle manner and was a kitchen goddess, a gift this gluttonous lad was always ready to feed off. Jehangir, or Bawa, as we still know him, was a fast friend with a very fast bike: the building’s first racer, replete with fixed wheel and curved handlebars. Punishment by Parsi My formative years were spent in and out of the Spencer home. I received much of their love – and their wrath when I fucked up. Like when Uncle Jimmy found out that I was responsible for vandalizing the lift door on their floor. The man who otherwise flooded me with kindness and love had me quaking in my pants as he gave me a dressing down a boot camp sergeant major would find intimidating. My parents didn’t intervene; they believed it was the right thing. But then, those were different days, when all members of the tribe, not just blood relatives, took on parenting roles when required. Not like the milquetoasty molly-coddling parents of today who broach no rebuke to their precious little laadlas. Fortunately I wasn’t caught when a couple of school buddies and I jumped a wall and snuck into the highly restricted and hallowed grounds of the Towers of Silence, where the Parsis used to offer their dead to the vultures. But I did occasionally find myself receiving the sting of PT master Mr Pardiwala’s whistle cord during school march past. This community, which has spawned such celebrated humans as the conductor Zubin Mehta and Field Marshal Sam Maneckshaw, among a swathe of other notables, is probably this country’s most stereotyped. Are Parsis nuts or brilliant? Was Farhad Wadia bonkers when he put Rock Machine keyboard player Zubin Balaporia behind his 150- kilo mass, and me in front on the gas tank, of his Royal Enfield Bullet, and plummeted down the insanely steep Mount Unique slope at Peddar Road, with none of his brakes working? Or was he a brilliantly insightful rock concert impresario when he created Independence Rock, India’s longest- running rock festival at a time when it was the ambition of fools? Was Ronnie Desai bananas when he embarked on a career in music with just six chords in his head and two strings short on his guitar – and then went on to become one of the country’s biggest jingle producers? A bit of both, I guess. My present life has some very significant Parsi constants: 30 years since we first met, Zubin and I still make music together; Navaz Sandhu (née Bhathena, of the famous rally-driving family) remains one of my closest friends even though she chooses to live in Chandigarh, a rather un-Parsi thing to do; and I’m always totally at ease on stage when Fali Damania, India’s finest live sound engineer, is mixing an Indus Creed concert. That he puts ketchup on absolutely anything he eats doesn’t faze me. He’s a Parsi – the oddity comes with the territory. Filed Under: Opinion ← Ancestral Affairs by Keki N Daruwalla: First Read Scouter Pervez S Irani Awarded the Silver Star by President of India →	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1850
__label__wiki	0.749238	0.749238	"Because ignorance of your culture is considered uncool" Welcome To Past Daily Violet Archer - One of Canada's most highly regarded Women composers. The Halifax Trio Play Music Of Violet Archer – Past Daily Weekend Gramophone by gordonskene · Sep 1, 2019 Violet Archer – One of Canada’s most highly regarded Women composers. https://s3.amazonaws.com/oildale/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/21225315/Violet-Archer-Trio-Number-2.mp3 Violet Archer – Trio Number 2 (1958) The Halifax Trio – CBC International – Gordon Skene Sound Collection – The Music of Canadian composer Violet Archer this week. Her Trio Number 2 as played on this CBC transcription disc by The Halifax Trio, recorded in the early 1960s. Violet Archer wrote more than 280 compositions. Her repertoire is wide and extensive, ranging from music for solo flute to electronic music, with an emphasis on chamber music, choral music and songs for solo voice and piano. Her teaching career was an extensive one and very active in the guiding of young composers. Many of her former composition students both in Canada and the United States are now professionals and recognized in their field. She was an ardent promoter of Canadian music and other 20th-century music, being active on the boards of a large number of national and regional organizations. She was also active both as a national and regional adjudicator of young composers’ contests in the United States and later in Canada. The guiding aesthetic force in Archer’s music is best described as neo-classic. “The Norton-Grove Dictionary of Women Composers” describes her music thusly: “Archer’s music is on the one hand dissonantly contrapuntal yet on the other refreshingly folksy. Early modality gave way to a more chromatic style, with a period during the 1950s in which the influence of Hindemith and Gebrauchsmusik is strongly evident. Although she taught 12-tone technique to her students in the USA, she has not used it in her own music, and it is mainly in her variation technique or in a short-lived expressionistic phase in the mid-1960s that her study of Arnold Schoenberg is discernible. Her works are generally characterized by economical, almost lean, textures, skillful manipulation of form, and counterpoint. She has explored new sonorities using parallelism and folk tunes, while rejecting serialism and chance music.” She was also a deeply religious person who credited her achievements to her faith: “I believe we are guided in what we do. Without my faith I wouldn’t be able to do what I’m doing and, of course, I always feel that each new piece should be better than the last one.” Dr. Violet Archer was born in Montréal, Québec in 1913, lived most of her mature life in Edmonton, Alberta, and passed away on February 22, 2000 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Liked it? Take a second to support gordonskene on Patreon! 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Support Past Daily Gordon Skene, two-time Grammy Nominee and archivist runs The Gordon Skene Sound Archive and this website, which is dedicated to preserving and encouraging an interest in history and historic news, events, and cultural aspects of our society. Past Daily is the only place on the Internet where you can hear a Nixon speech, listen to an interview with John Cassavettes or play a broadcast of Charles Munch rehearsing the Boston Symphony in 1950, all in the same place. It's living history and it's timeless. Donations through Fractured Atlas help keep this project alive. Contact Gordon If you have questions or want to license something for your film or TV project - contact me: gordonskene@aol.com Contribute and keep Past Daily alive. What you might have missed. Beady Eye – Live At Brixton Academy – 2011 – Past Daily Backstage Weekend It’s June 1975 – You’re A Teenager – You Live In L.A. – It’s Officially Almost Summer, The Obscene Steven Clean Says So. Yes – In Concert – 1971 – Past Daily Soundbooth And now a word . . . Auto ads 2 Brit-Pop Past Daily Backstage Weekend Popular Culture Radio 1970's Los Angeles Past Daily Weekend Pop Chronicles Pop Music Popular Culture Radio Youth 1970's BBC Past Daily Soundbooth Popular Culture Progressive Rock Radio 1990s BBC Festivals Indie Music Festival Past Daily Soundbooth Radio Teenage Fanclub – Reading 1992 – Past Daily Soundbooth 1980's 1990s BBC Indie Madchester Past Daily Soundbooth Popular Culture Radio Radio Sessions Shoegaze Pale Saints – In Session – 1989 – Past Daily Soundbooth Classical Music France French Radio Past Daily Mid-Week Concert Radio Sergey Khachatryan With Tugan Sokhiev And The Capitol Of Toulouse Orchestra In Concert 2015 – Past Daily Mid-Week Concert © Past Daily and Gordon Skene. All Rights Reserved. Ones and zeroes aligned by Chapelure Media.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1852
__label__wiki	0.526488	0.526488	US20050081009A1 - Access controller for storage devices - Google Patents Access controller for storage devices Download PDF US20050081009A1 US10/681,618 US68161803A US2005081009A1 US 20050081009 A1 US20050081009 A1 US 20050081009A1 US 68161803 A US68161803 A US 68161803A US 2005081009 A1 US2005081009 A1 US 2005081009A1 Oracle International Corp 2003-10-08 Application filed by Oracle International Corp filed Critical Oracle International Corp 2003-10-08 Assigned to ORACLE INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION reassignment ORACLE INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: BRIDGE, WILLIAM, WILLIAMS, JAMES A. 238000003860 storage Methods 0 abstract claims description title 96 239000002609 media Substances 0 claims description 35 230000004044 response Effects 0 claims description 16 238000000034 methods Methods 0 claims description 13 230000000670 limiting Effects 0 claims description 10 230000001965 increased Effects 0 claims description 6 230000001276 controlling effects Effects 0 abstract description 4 239000000835 fiber Substances 0 description 1 230000036629 mind Effects 0 description 1 -1 punch cards Substances 0 description 1 230000002104 routine Effects 0 description 1 G06F3/00—Input arrangements for transferring data to be processed into a form capable of being handled by the computer; Output arrangements for transferring data from processing unit to output unit, e.g. interface arrangements G06F3/06—Digital input from or digital output to record carriers, e.g. RAID, emulated record carriers, networked record carriers G06F3/0601—Dedicated interfaces to storage systems G06F3/0602—Dedicated interfaces to storage systems specifically adapted to achieve a particular effect G06F3/061—Improving I/O performance G06F3/0628—Dedicated interfaces to storage systems making use of a particular technique G06F3/0655—Vertical data movement, i.e. input-output transfer; data movement between one or more hosts and one or more storage devices G06F3/0659—Command handling arrangements, e.g. command buffers, queues, command scheduling G06F3/0668—Dedicated interfaces to storage systems adopting a particular infrastructure G06F3/0671—In-line storage system G06F3/0673—Single storage device G06F3/0674—Disk device Systems, methodologies, components, and other embodiments associated with controlling access to a storage device are described. One example system embodiment comprises an access controller configured to control access requests to the storage device by metering access to data within a first region within the storage device and by allowing unmetered access to data within a second region within the storage device. From a product performance perspective, technological progress of disk drives can be measured with three metrics; storage capacity, peak data transfer rate, and head seek time. As an example, considering one major disk drive family over a nine-year period, capacity increased 32 times, maximum transfer rate increased eight times, but full-head seek time decreased 1.6 times. As a result, the disparity between capacity improvements and head seek times has led to a degradation to overall system performance. Some system designs have attempted to improve storage response times by adding cache memory inside disk drives. However, adding hardware increases system cost and also requires additional functionality to properly manage the cache memory. Other designs take advantage of regional placement of data near a disk's perimeter. Data placed near the perimeter of a disk drive platter has faster transfer rates than data placed near the hub of the disk drive. However, disk throughput improvements from intelligent data placement often degrade with changes in workload. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate various example systems, methods, and so on that illustrate various example embodiments of aspects of the invention. It will be appreciated that the illustrated element boundaries (e.g., boxes, groups of boxes, or other shapes) in the figures represent one example of the boundaries. One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that one element may be designed as multiple elements or that multiple elements may be designed as one element. An element shown as an internal component of another element may be implemented as an external component and vice versa. Furthermore, elements may not be drawn to scale. FIG. 1 illustrates an example storage device having an example access controller. FIG. 2 illustrates another example configuration of an access controller for a storage device. FIG. 3 illustrates an example data structure that may be used by an access controller to determine the type of access request received. FIG. 4 illustrates an example database management system environment in which example systems and methods illustrated herein can operate. FIG. 5 illustrates an example methodology for metering access requests. FIG. 6 illustrates another example methodology for metering access requests. FIG. 7 illustrates another example of metering access requests based on priority levels. FIG. 8 illustrates an example storage device environment in which example systems and methods illustrated herein can operate. FIG. 9 illustrates an example file system environment in which example systems and methods illustrated herein can operate. The following includes definitions of selected terms employed herein. The definitions include various examples and/or forms of components that fall within the scope of a term and that may be used for implementation. The examples are not intended to be limiting. Both singular and plural forms of terms may be within the definitions. “Computer-readable medium”, as used herein, refers to a medium that participates in directly or indirectly providing signals, instructions and/or data. A computer-readable medium may take forms, including, but not limited to, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media. Non-volatile media may include, for example, optical or magnetic disks and so on. Volatile media may include, for example, optical or magnetic disks, dynamic memory and the like. Transmission media may include coaxial cables, copper wire, fiber optic cables, and the like. Transmission media can also take the form of electromagnetic radiation, like those generated during radio-wave and infra-red data communications, or take the form of one or more groups of signals. Common forms of a computer-readable medium include, but are not limited to, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape, other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, other physical medium with patterns of holes, a RAM, a ROM, an EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, or other memory chip or card, a memory stick, a carrier wave/pulse, and other media from which a computer, a processor or other electronic device can read. Signals used to propagate instructions or other software over a network, like the Internet, can be considered a “computer-readable medium.” “Data store”, as used herein, refers to a physical and/or logical entity that can store data. A data store may be, for example, a database, a table, a file, a list, a queue, a heap, a memory, a register, combinations of these, one or more of these, and so on. A data store may reside in one logical and/or physical entity and/or may be distributed between two or more logical and/or physical entities. A data structure can also be referred to as a data store. “Logic”, as used herein, includes but is not limited to hardware, firmware, software and/or combinations of each to perform a function(s) or an action(s), and/or to cause a function or action from another component. For example, based on a desired application or needs, logic may include a software controlled microprocessor, discrete logic like an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmed logic device, a memory device containing instructions, or the like. Logic may also be fully embodied as software. Where multiple logical logics are described, it may be possible to incorporate the multiple logical logics into one physical logic. Similarly, where a single logical logic is described, it may be possible to distribute that single logical logic between multiple physical logics. An “operable connection”, or a connection by which entities are “operably connected”, is one in which signals, physical communication flow, and/or logical communication flow may be sent and/or received. Typically, an operable connection includes a physical interface, an electrical interface, and/or a data interface, but it is to be noted that an operable connection may include differing combinations of these or other types of connections sufficient to allow operable control. “Signal”, as used herein, includes but is not limited to one or more electrical or optical signals, analog or digital, one or more computer or processor instructions, messages, a bit or bit stream, or other means that can be received, transmitted and/or detected. “Software”, as used herein, includes but is not limited to, one or more computer or processor instructions that can be read, interpreted, compiled, and/or executed and that cause a computer, processor, or other electronic device to perform functions, actions and/or behave in a desired manner. The instructions may be embodied in various forms like routines, algorithms, modules, methods, threads, and/or programs including separate applications or code from dynamically linked libraries. Software may also be implemented in a variety of executable and/or loadable forms including, but not limited to, a stand-alone program, a function call (local and/or remote), a servelet, an applet, instructions stored in a memory, part of an operating system or other types of executable instructions. It will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art that the form of software may be dependent on, for example, requirements of a desired application, the environment in which it runs, and/or the desires of a designer/programmer or the like. It will also be appreciated that computer-readable and/or executable instructions can be located in one logic and/or distributed between two or more communicating, co-operating, and/or parallel processing logics and thus can be loaded and/or executed in serial, parallel, massively parallel and other manners. Suitable software for implementing the various components of the example systems and methods described herein include programming languages and tools like Java, Pascal, C#, C++, C, CGI, Perl, SQL, APIs, SDKs, assembly, firmware, microcode, and/or other languages and tools. Software, whether an entire system or a component of a system, may be embodied as an article of manufacture and maintained as part of a computer-readable medium as defined previously. Another form of the software may include signals that transmit program code of the software to a recipient over a network or other communication medium. Some portions of the detailed descriptions that follow are presented in terms of algorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bits within a memory. These algorithmic descriptions and representations are the means used by those skilled in the art to convey the substance of their work to others. An algorithm is here, and generally, conceived to be a sequence of operations that produce a result. The operations may include physical manipulations of physical quantities. Usually, though not necessarily, the physical quantities take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated in a logic and the like. It has proven convenient at times, principally for reasons of common usage, to refer to these signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, or the like. It should be borne in mind, however, that these and similar terms are to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unless specifically stated otherwise, it is appreciated that throughout the description, terms like processing, computing, calculating, determining, displaying, or the like, refer to actions and processes of a computer system, logic, processor, or similar electronic device that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical (electronic) quantities. In one embodiment, a system for intelligent management of the workload placed on a storage device is provided. For purposes of explanation, the storage device will be described as a disk drive but it will be appreciated that other types of storage devices, such as any type of computer-readable medium, can be used. One example configuration of a disk drive includes one or more drive platters that magnetically or optically store data. Two characteristics of disk drives that may affect performance are that data placed near the perimeter of a disk drive platter has a faster transfer rate than data placed near the hub of the disk drive, and that it takes less time to move the drive read/write head between neighboring tracks than it does to seek across the full platter. It will be appreciated that the region of a disk drive near the perimeter has greater data density. As a result, access may be faster because fewer seeks are required to neighboring blocks. Most computer systems, at any given point in time, may have some data that is actively accessed (also referred to as hot data), and other data that is not actively accessed (also referred to as cold data). Regions or areas of the disk drive that contain hot data will be referred to as hot regions and regions or areas containing cold data will be referred to as cold regions. As one example, hot data can be data needing preferred access to achieve optimal application performance. Hot data may or may not be important, and important data may at times be placed in the cold region. Other examples will be described below. Illustrated in FIG. 1 is one example of a platter 100 of a disk drive that is configured with a hot region 105 and a cold region 110. In one example, the hot region 105 is allocated to locations on the platter 100 near or adjacent to its perimeter and the cold region 110 is allocated to locations closer to or adjacent a hub 115 of the platter 100. In one example, data that is actively accessed (e.g. more frequently accessed, or more important data) can be placed within the hot region 105 in an effort to increase performance such as system response time for hot data access requests. Data that is less actively accessed (e.g. less frequently accessed, or less critical data) can be placed closer to the hub 115 in the cold region 110. The importance of data may not necessarily be a deciding factor in determining its placement. For example, cold data can be important such as backup data, but can be placed in the cold region because a backup request can be performed at any desired time, performed with non-critical response times, performed less actively, and/or for other like reasons. Access requests directed to the hot region will be referred to as hot access requests and those directed to the cold region will be referred to as cold access requests. In one example, an access controller 120 can be configured to control access requests to the storage device/platter 100 by metering selected access requests 125. For example, as access requests 125 are received from one or more requesting sources, the access controller 120 can be configured to meter cold access requests associated with the cold region 110. A requesting source may be an application, a database, an operating system, a process, any type of software, logic device, or the like. Cold access requests can be metered by, for example, limiting the number of processed cold access requests, giving priority to hot access requests, postponing cold access requests, or otherwise allowing hot access requests to be processed in an unmetered fashion while cold access requests are restricted to a desired extent. In this manner, if the number of cold access requests increases to a level that may affect the response time for processing hot access requests, the access controller 120 can limit the number and/or rate of cold access requests being processed. In another example, cold access requests can also be metered by size. Large requests (e.g. accessing large amounts of data) directed to the cold region 110 can be broken into smaller requests so that one large cold request does not lock out or undesirably delay a subsequent hot request. Thus, response time for hot access requests can be optimized or at least maintained within a selected performance range by controlling the processing of cold access requests. The access controller 120 can be regarded as a data access governor for access requests directed to the cold region 110. In the examples described herein, it will be appreciated that access requests can also be referred to as input/output (I/O) requests that may include read requests, write requests, and/or any other type of request associated with an operation that can be performed on a storage device. It will further be appreciated that a storage device can be configured to include one or more hot regions and/or one or more cold regions. A hot or cold region may or may not be contiguous, and may be defined by one or more logical or physical addresses. The storage device may also be configured to include multiple storage devices and may include multiple disk platters. It will be appreciated that a storage device that is defined with a hot region and a cold region can be managed as two storage devices, one fast device (hot region) and one slower device (cold region). With reference again to FIG. 1, in another example, the system may include a data allocation logic 130 configured to place data within a selected region within the platter 100. For example, applications that are important or critical to a computer system can have data they access placed within the hot region 105 to ensure preferencial access to the storage device. Less important applications or less critical data can be allocated and placed within the cold region 110. Knowledge of which applications and/or which data are associated to the hot region 105 or the cold region 110 can be used by the access controller 120 when determining which of the access requests 125 to meter. For example, knowledge of an application at allocation time can be used to decide where to place the data associated with the application. Then, knowledge of the application at I/O time may not be necessary since the placement can be used to determine if the access request is hot or cold. The data allocation logic 130 may also include an interface (not shown) that allows a user (not shown) to select or define which applications and/or data are to be allocated to the hot region 105 or the cold region 110. The data allocation logic 130 may also include logic that allows a configurable threshold to be set to control when metering is to be initiated and/or control the level of metering performed by the access controller 120. Setting and using a threshold will be further described in other examples below. In another example, the data allocation logic 130 can use knowledge of which application as a mechanism for data placement. Illustrated in FIG. 2 is another example of an access controller 200 configured to control access requests 205 directed to a storage device 210. The access controller 200 can include a monitor logic 215 that can be configured to monitor the access requests 205 such as by counting and tracking the number of cold access requests. A metering logic 220 can be configured to initiate metering of cold access requests in response to a triggering event. For example, the triggering event may be when the number of cold access requests reaches or exceeds a predefined threshold value(s) 225. The threshold value(s) 225 can represent a number of cold access requests that are permitted without being metered, may represent a rate of cold access requests permitted, or other desired value that can be used to trigger the metering of the cold access requests. As another example, multiple levels of thresholds can be defined that can increase the level of metering performed on the cold access requests. Thus, the level of metering can dynamically change based on system conditions. For example, suppose the activity of hot access requests increases (based on a threshold), thus requiring additional processing. The level of metered cold access requests (which can be another threshold) can be dynamically increased to allow more processing time for the hot access requests. In critical time periods with a high volume of hot access requests, the access controller 200 can even temporarily delay or stop all cold access requests. A range of permitted delay times could be specified by a user. In another configuration, a filter (not shown) can be used to filter the access requests 205 based on their type (hot or cold). Cold access requests can be directed to the access controller 200 where they may or not be metered while hot access requests can be processed to the storage device 210 without metering. Illustrated in FIG. 3 is one example of a mechanism that can be used to determine and identify the type of access request that is received by the access controller (e.g. 120, 200). In one embodiment, the mechanism may include at least one data store such as a hot table 300 and a cold table 305. The hot table 300 and the cold table 305 can be configured to identify one or more of: applications, files, data, and storage device regions that can be associated with either a hot access request or a cold access request. For example, the cold table 305 can be configured with identification data that indicates file “A” has been allocated to a cold region on a storage device. Thus, the access controller 200 can determine that an access request associated with file “A” is a cold access request. In another example, the cold table 305 can define data locations based on addresses that define the cold region of a storage device. For example, “data location 2” may represent one or more addresses that can be compared with addresses within an access request to determine whether the access request is directed to a cold region. In another example, the cold table 305 can identify an application such as application “C” which may indicate that all access requests associated with application “C” will be treated as a cold access request. Similarly, the hot table 300 can be defined with identification data used to identify hot access requests. It will be appreciated that other configurations and/or data structures can be used to implement the mechanism to identify hot and cold access requests. For example, one data structure can be used to identify either the hot or cold identification data where data not found in the structure is assumed to be associated with the other type of access request. In another example, a logical and/or physical address within the storage device can be defined such that all access requests to locations above (or below) the defined address are treated as cold access requests. Of course, multiple addresses can be defined and address ranges can be used to define the cold regions, the hot regions, or both. Illustrated in FIG. 4 is one embodiment of database software environment, like a database management system 400, configured to process data access requests from one or more applications, users, and/or components to one or more storage device(s) 405. It will be appreciated that the database management system 400 can include a complex set of software programs that control and manipulate data files. In one example, the database management system 400 accepts data access requests and instructs an operating system 410 to process the data with the storage device(s) 405 in accordance with the access request. One component of the database management system 400 can include an access controller 415 configured to process access requests to the storage device 405. The access controller 415 can include logic configured to meter access requests to a selected region in the storage devices 405 such as a requests to a cold region as previously described. To define the various types of regions in the storage devices 405, an allocation logic 420 can be provided that is configured to define a plurality of regions within the storage device(s) 405. For example, the allocation logic 420 can allow a user to allocate selected regions within the storage device(s) 405 and assign them to be hot regions or cold regions. The regions can also be allocated or defined programmatically based on one or more configurable parameters. For example, a configurable parameter may be set that automatically allocates 60% of the address space on the storage device 405, that is adjacent to the perimeter of a disk platter within the storage device 405, as the hot region and the remaining address space is allocated as a cold region. The system can also include a threshold logic 425 that is configured to assign a metering threshold to one or more selected regions of the regions defined by the allocation logic 420. In a simple example, a hot region and a cold region is defined within the storage device 405 and a metering threshold is assigned to the cold region. Thus, when the number of access requests directed to the cold region increases beyond the metering threshold, the access controller 415 can initiate metering of the access requests to the cold region which may help to optimize the response time for access requests to the hot region. In another example, the allocation logic 420 can be configured to associate one or more priority levels with data, files, and/or applications. The priority levels can be used to direct the placement of data into one of the defined regions (e.g. hot region or cold region). For example, if a set of data is identified to have a high priority, it can be stored within the hot region of the storage device 405 so that access requests directed to the data are not metered. Data associated with a low priority can be stored in the cold region of the storage device 405 which may cause the associated access requests to being metered. As explained previously, metering may include limiting a number of access requests directed to the cold region from being processed. The allocation logic 420 can be further configured to cause selected data to be placed within a selected region in the storage device 405 based on a frequency of access to the selected data. For example, if a selected data is to be actively accessed, the selected data can be placed within the hot region of the storage device 405. Example methods may be better appreciated with reference to the flow diagrams of FIGS. 5, 6 and 7. While for purposes of simplicity of explanation, the illustrated methodologies are shown and described as a series of blocks, it is to be appreciated that the methodologies are not limited by the order of the blocks, as some blocks can occur in different orders, at different times, and/or concurrently with other blocks from that shown and described. Moreover, less than all the illustrated blocks may be required to implement an example methodology. Furthermore, additional and/or alternative methodologies can employ additional, not illustrated blocks. In the flow diagrams, blocks denote “processing blocks” that may be implemented with logic. A flow diagram does not depict syntax for any particular programming language, methodology, or style (e.g., procedural, object-oriented). Rather, a flow diagram illustrates functional information one skilled in the art may employ to develop logic to perform the illustrated processing. It will be appreciated that in some examples, program elements like temporary variables, routine loops, and so on are not shown. It will be further appreciated that electronic and software components may involve dynamic and flexible processes so that the illustrated blocks can be performed in other sequences that are different from those shown and/or that blocks may be combined or separated into multiple components. It will be appreciated that the processes may be implemented using various programming approaches like machine language, procedural, object oriented and/or artificial intelligence techniques. With reference to FIG. 5, one example of a methodology 500 is illustrated that may be used for configuring a storage device to be controlled by a metering system. Initially, a multiple regions within a storage device can be defined (Block 505). For example, this may include designating selected regions as hot regions or cold regions. It will also be appreciated that defining only one region (e.g. a cold region) can inherently define all other regions as hot. For a selected region (e.g. the cold region), a metering threshold can be assigned (Block 510). As access requests are received by this system, the access requests can be monitored to determine whether cold access requests have exceeded the assigned metering threshold. If the metering threshold is exceeded, meaning that the activity of access requests for the cold region has increased beyond a desired level, metering of the cold access requests can be initiated. It will be appreciated that the metering step (Block 515) can be triggered and executed separate from the other blocks 505 and 510. In one example, a metering threshold can be defined to allow only one cold access request to be processed for every ten access requests. If two cold access requests are received before ten hot access requests are processed, one of the cold access requests would be metered and restricted from being processed until the next interval of hot access requests. In another example, the metering threshold can define that only five cold access requests can be processed in any ten second interval. Additionally, a parameter can be set that defines a maximum delay permitted for cold access requests. Illustrated in FIG. 6 is an example methodology 600 that can be associated with metering of access requests. For example, the method 600 can be implemented by any of the access controllers described herein. The method begins when access requests to a storage device are received (Block 605). Response time for access requests directed to a first region within the storage device can be optimized by metering access requests associated with a second region in the storage device (Block 610). In this example, the first region may include a hot region and the second region can include a cold region. Thus, by metering or otherwise limiting a number of access requests directed to the cold region that are processed, the access requests directed to the hot region may receive improved response times. It will also be appreciated that metering the access requests to the cold region can at least maintain a desired level of performance when processing the access requests directed to the hot region. In this manner, optimizing the response time can also include avoiding or limiting the chances that the response time is decreased or detrimented due to increased activity of cold access requests. Illustrated in FIG. 7 is another example methodology 700 that can control access to a storage device. When input/output (I/O) requests are received (Block 705), a priority level of the I/O requests are determined (Block 710). The priority level can be used to determine how to process its corresponding I/O request. In one example, the priority level can indicate whether the I/O request is a hot access request or a cold access request as previously described. The priority level can also be indicated as a numeric value or other type of parameter. In another example, the priority level of an I/O request can be determined based on characteristics of the I/O request. For example, the characteristics can include the application that generated the I/O request, the file being accessed, the location on the storage device, and the like. As described in a previous example, these types of characteristics can be predefined or associated with a hot request or a cold request. Once the priority level is determined for an I/O request, requests having a first priority level (e.g. a hot request) can be allowed to be processed (Block 715). If an I/O request has a second priority level (e.g. a cold request), processing of that I/O request can be limited (Block 720). For example, the processing can be limited by metering or otherwise restricting the processing of I/O requests having the second priority level. In another example, the limiting may include restricting the I/O requests having the second priority level based on a threshold number of acceptable I/O requests. Thus, if the number of cold access requests increases beyond a predefined threshold, those access requests can be restricted so as to not detriment the processing of the hot access requests. The priority level of an I/O request can also be determined based on a location of data within the storage device being accessed. For example, a hot region in the storage device can have a first priority level and a cold region can have a second priority level. Then, the priority level of an I/O request can be determined based on which region will be accessed. From another perspective, the priority level of data within the storage device can be assigned or determined based on which region the data is contained in. In one configuration, data located adjacent a perimeter of a disk platter can receive a first priority level (e.g. hot, high). Data located adjacent or closer to a hub of the disk platter can receive a second priority level (e.g. cold, low). As previously explained, the different regions within the storage device can be defined or allocated by setting one or more predetermined addresses within the storage device. In another example of metering, the servicing or processing of cold requests can be delayed even if there are no hot requests currently received or pending. One reason to do this can cause the disk head to remain in the area of the hot region in case a hot request arrives. When the next hot request arrives, the disk head will already be positioned in the hot region to provide prompt response time. Illustrated in FIG. 8 is another example configuration of a system for controlling access to a storage device 800. The storage device 800 can be configured with one or more storage regions 805 such as a hot region and a cold region as described previously. If the storage device 800 is a disk drive with multiple disk platters, each platter can be configured with a hot region and a cold region. Of course, it will be appreciated that each platter can include any number of defined regions including zero. An access controller 810 can be configured to meter I/O requests 815 received by the storage device 800. For example, I/O requests directed to a defined cold region within the storage device 800 can be metered in order to allow processing of other I/O requests. By allowing only a predefined number or rate of I/O requests to the cold region to be processed, response time and/or performance for processing I/O requests directed to the hot region can be at least controlled or maintained within a desired performance range and may assist in optimizing the response time. The access controller 810 can be integral with the storage device 800 and can be implemented in any desired form of logic within the storage device 800. 100481 Illustrated in FIG. 9 is another example configuration of a system for controlling access requests that is embodied within a file system 900 of a computer. The file system 900 can be configured to organize and manipulate data and/or files on one or more storage devices 905 in communication with the file system 900. An access controller 910 can be configured as part of the file system 900 to control input/output requests 915 directed to one of the storage devices 905. Similar to the examples previously described, the access controller 910 can be configured to meter I/O requests 915 directed to cold regions or low priority regions within the storage device 905. I/O requests 915 directed to hot regions or high priority regions can be processed without being metered. It will be appreciated that the components described herein may be implemented in a variety of ways. For example, any of the example access controllers can be implemented in a desired form of software and/or logic and may be maintained and/or transmitted using any desired form of computer-readable medium. The access controller may also be configured or integrated as an internal component within other computer components, such as a data base system, a file system, an operating system, an application or other type of software, and storage device, or may be logically or physically external to such components and be operably connected thereto. In one example, methodologies described herein can be implemented as processor executable instructions and/or operations stored on a computer-readable medium that cause a computer, processor, or other device to respond or behave in a desired manner. Thus, in one example, a computer-readable medium may store processor executable instructions operable to perform a method that includes FIGS. 5, 6, and/or 7, and may include variations of these methods. While the above methods are described being implemented and stored on a computer-readable medium, it is to be appreciated that other example methods and/or functionalities described herein associated with the system figures can also be implemented and stored on a computer-readable medium. It will be further appreciated that the example systems and methods can be implemented as part of a computer or other electronic device. The computer can include one or more processors, memories, disks, input/output ports, and network interfaces operably connected by a bus. The computer may include an access controller similar to the example systems described herein. The example access controllers and any of its components can be implemented in any desired form of logic or software. While example systems, methods, and so on have been illustrated by describing examples, and while the examples have been described in considerable detail, it is not the intention of the applicants to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes of describing the systems, methods, and so on described herein. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention, in its broader aspects, is not limited to the specific details, the representative apparatus, and illustrative examples shown and described. Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of the applicants' general inventive concept. Thus, this application is intended to embrace alterations, modifications, and variations that fall within the scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, the preceding description is not meant to limit the scope of the invention. Rather, the scope of the invention is to be determined by the appended claims and their equivalents. To the extent that the term “includes” or “including” is employed in the detailed description or the claims, it is intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as that term is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim. Furthermore, to the extent that the term “or” is employed in the claims (e.g., A or B) it is intended to mean “A or B or both”. When the applicants intend to indicate “only A or B but not both” then the term “only A or B but not both” will be employed. Thus, use of the term “or” herein is the inclusive, and not the exclusive use. See, Bryan A. Gamer, A Dictionary of Modem Legal Usage 624 (2d. Ed. 1995). 1. A system for a storage device, comprising: an access controller configured to control access requests to a storage device by metering access to data within a first region within the storage device and by allowing unmetered access to data within a second region within the storage device. 2. The system of claim 1, where the system is embedded in one of, a database system, an operating system, and an application configured to process access requests to the storage device. 3. The system of claim 1, where the system further includes allocation logic configured to determine a priority for data to be written to the storage device and causing the data to be stored within the first region or the second region based on the priority. 4. The system of claim 3 where the priority of the data includes a plurality of priority levels. 5. The system of claim 1 where the storage device includes one or more disk drives. 6. The system of claim 1 where the storage device includes a disk and where the second region is defined closer to a perimeter of the disk than the first region. 7. The system of claim 6 where the first region and the second are defined by one or more logical block addresses. 8. The system of claim 1, where the system is embedded in a file system configured to process data input and output requests to the storage device. 9. The system of claim 1 where the access requests include at least one of data input and data output requests. 10. The system of claim 1, where the access controller is configured to meter access based on a threshold of access requests directed to the data within the first region. 11. The system of claim 1 further including one or more tables configured to define at least the data in the first region to be metered. 12. The system of claim 11 where the data in the one or more tables is configured to define one or more of, a file, an application, and a data location. receiving access requests to a storage device; and increasing response time for access requests to a first region within the storage device by metering access requests to a second region within the storage device. 14. The method of claim 13 where the metering includes limiting a number of access requests to the second region based on a threshold number of the access requests. 15. The method of claim 13 further including storing data to be metered within the storage device based on a priority level of the data. 16. The method of claim 13 further including determining, for a selected data, whether the selected data will be stored within the first region or the second region. 17. The method of claim 13 further including: defining a plurality of regions within the storage device; and assigning a metering threshold for selected regions of the plurality of regions. 18. The method of claim 17 where the plurality of regions are defined by setting one or more addresses within the storage device. monitoring a number of access requests to the second region; and initiating the metering when the number of access requests reaches a threshold. 20. A method comprising: receiving I/O requests directed to a storage device; determining a priority level of each of the I/O requests; allowing I/O requests having a first priority level to be processed; and limiting I/O requests having a second priority level. 21. The method as set forth in claim 20 where the limiting includes restricting the I/O requests having the second priority level based on a threshold number of I/O requests having the second priority level. 22. The method as set forth in claim 20 where the priority level of an I/O request is determined based on a location of data within the storage device associated with the I/O request. 23. The method as set forth in claim 22 where data located adjacent a perimeter of the storage device receives the first priority level and where data located adjacent a hub of the storage device receives the second priority level. 24. The method as set forth in claim 22 where the location of the data is determined based on one or more predetermined addresses within the storage device. 25. A computer-readable medium storing processor executable instructions operable to perform a method, the method comprising: processing access requests to a storage device; and metering access requests to a first region within the storage device to maintain response time for access requests to a second region within the storage device. 26. The computer-readable medium as set forth in claim 25 where the storage device includes a disk drive. 27. The computer-readable medium as set forth in claim 25 further including processor executable instructions operable to cause a processor to store data to the storage device based on a priority of the data, the data being stored in one of the first region and the second region. 28. The computer-readable medium as set forth in claim 25 further including processor executable instructions operable to cause a processor to set a threshold value of access requests, where access requests to the first region are caused to be metered after the threshold value of access requests are processed. 29. The computer-readable medium as set forth in claim 25 where the metering includes limiting a number of the access requests to the first region from being processed. 30. The computer-readable medium as set forth in claim 25 where the processing includes determining which region each of the access requests is directed to. 31. The computer-readable medium as set forth in claim 25 further including processor executable instructions operable to cause a processor to define at least the first region and the second region within the storage device. 32. The computer-readable medium as set forth in claim 25 including means for allocating data to a selected region within the storage device. 33. The computer-readable medium as set forth in claim 25 where the computer-readable medium is integrated with at least one of: a data base system, a file system, an operating system, and the storage device. 34. The computer-readable medium as set forth in claim 25 further including access controller means for metering access requests to the first region. 35. A database system configured to process access requests to a storage device, the system comprising: allocation logic configured to define a plurality of regions within the storage device; threshold logic configured to assign a metering threshold to one or more selected regions of the plurality of regions; and an access controller configured to process access requests to the storage device, the access controller including logic configured to meter access requests to a selected region of the plurality of regions once a metering threshold for the selected region is met. 36. The database system of claim 35 where the allocation logic is further configured to cause selected data to be placed within a selected region of the plurality of regions based on a frequency of access to the selected data. 37. The database system of claim 35 where the access controller includes means for metering access requests. 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__label__cc	0.708727	0.291273	The Evil Within System Requirements Posted by Scott Michaud \| Sep 27, 2014 \| General Tech, Graphics Cards \| 21 Consolitis22 PC Gaming240 Rage14 Source: Bethesda Shinji Mikami has been developing a survival horror game, which makes sense given a good portion of his portfolio. He created Resident Evil and much of the following franchise. The Evil Within is about to release, having recently gone gold. At around this time, publishers begin to release system requirements and Bethesda does not disappoint in that regard. Are the requirements… RAGE-inducing? A case could be made for disappointing requirements, themselves, though. Basically, Bethesda did not release minimum requirements. Instead, they said "This is what we recommend. It will run on less. Hope it does!" This would not be so problematic if one of their requirements wasn't a "GeForce GTX 670 with 4GBs of VRAM". They also recommend a quad-core Core i7, 4GB of system memory, 50GB of hard drive space, and a 64-bit OS (Windows 7 or Windows 8.x). Before I go on, I would like to mention that The Evil Within is built on the RAGE engine. Our site has dealt extensively with that technology when it first came out in 2011. While I did not have many showstopping performance problems with that game, personally, it did have a history with texture streaming. Keep that in mind as you continue to read. A typical GTX 670 does not even have 4GBs of VRAM. In fact, the GTX 780 Ti does not even have 4GB of VRAM. Thankfully, both of the newly released Maxwell GPUs, the GTX 970 and the GTX 980, have at least 4GB of RAM. Basically, Bethesda is saying, "I really hope you bought the custom model from your AIB vendor". They literally say: Note: We do not have a list of minimum requirements for the game. If you’re trying to play with a rig with settings below these requirements (you should plan to have 4 GBs of VRAM regardless), we cannot guarantee optimal performance. Each time I read, "You should plan to have 4 GBs of VRAM regardless", it is more difficult for me to make an opinion about it. That is a lot of memory. Personally, I would wait for reviews and benchmarks, specifically for the PC, before purchasing the title. These recommended settings could be fairly loose, to suit the vision of the game developers, or the game could be a revival of RAGE, this time without the engine's original architect on staff. The Evil Within launches on October 14th. PreviousMSI KingBox MS-9A66 for Their Industrious… Fans NextIntel Expands x86 SoC Program to Tsinghua Unigroup NPD Group: PC Game Sales Down 23% in 2009 That is not dead which can eternal lie; Spectre rises again Necris-philia iPad Guts Daniel on September 27, 2014 at 9:55 am By the looks of it the game By the looks of it the game does not look like it needs 4 GB of VRAM. My guess its horribly optimized, and on top of that it’s a Japanese developed game. They don’t always have the best track record when it comes to console ports or PC games in general. I hope that didn’t sound too racist, because that was not my intention. godrilla on September 27, 2014 at 1:48 pm In regards to bad ports i In regards to bad ports i thought x86 would make it better, one area that needs improving is the Vram situation most thought it was a bug but i think it here to stay the more vram requirement will plateau at 6 gigs eventually for 1080p for this generation. Daniel on September 27, 2014 at 4:03 pm You’re right in theory the You’re right in theory the new consoles move to x86 should make porting much better. collie on September 27, 2014 at 4:39 pm This keeps coming up. the This keeps coming up. the Xbox1 and PS4’s processors are very closely BASED on standard x86, but not quite desktop processors. M$ and Sony have both said as much in various statements, that it’s not just a “plop in a standard AMD apu, load the PS OS and bang it’s done,” but instead it’s a custom x86 apu with several subtle yet incredibly significant custom changes. The exact difference is unclear, that’s their “Secret Sauce” and they have a right to protect their intellectual property for sure. REMEMBER, no one official actually said that porting would be easier, we the Gamers just assumed it would be. elajt_1 on September 27, 2014 at 5:56 pm Some developers hinted about Some developers hinted about the programming language for at least one of the consoles being fairly similiar to Mantle, which wouldn’t be strange since both of them are based on Graphic Core Next. renz on September 28, 2014 at 11:14 pm not exactly similar. i think not exactly similar. i think it only similar in terms of low level API. both are based on GCN but both have their own low level API. DirectX for Xbone and custom API (which i believe based on OpenGL) for PS4. i think it is quite well i think it is quite well known that japanese dev are not really used with PC. even in japan the most popular gaming platform is not home console. it was hand held actually. and it seems they are the type that will not jump into next gen console easily (because of player base). Anonymous on September 27, 2014 at 1:19 pm I avoid anything on this POS I avoid anything on this POS engine 60fps hard cap, optimization is a joke with no hope from adding a 2ng GPU for better performance becasue this POS engine doesn’t support SLI/CF dab1 on September 27, 2014 at 1:29 pm What is funny about this is What is funny about this is that Crytek recommend also 4GB of VRAM for Ryse… at 3840×2160. And I’m pretty sure that Ryse is a more graphic intensive game than The Evil Within. And Shadow of Mordor requires 6GB of VRAM for the “ultra textures” even when the game is rendered at 1080p. If it’s justified I’m ok with that but it seems rather excessive. It’s actually not so strange. It’s actually not so strange. Rage for example have to my knowledge almost no repetetive textures. And if you wanted to best textures 3GB of memory was required. Now I dunno how many years later somebody creates a game on the “same” engine with probably much higher resolution textures, and if you want to use the best ones 4GB is required. Not strange at all imo, but bloody annoying, and perhaps not the most wise decision by the developer, since such a small percentage of users actually have that amount of VRAM. About shadow of mordor, same thing there. Prolly have really good texture quality. Most games doesn’t look that great when u get really close to something. Also annoying cuz Titan Black seems like the only option if you wanna max it out. Which gamer would buy a Titan Black today? It’s old technology, compared to the new Nvidia cards. It’s way to expensive, which isn’t strange as it’s not a pure gaming card. Basically it’s impossible today to buy a card thats remotely future proof (if there ever was sucha thing). You are right. What I intend You are right. What I intend to said with “funny” is “amusing”, not “odd/strange”. I’m not a native English speaker and I was thinking in a common expression in my own language when I wrote that. “What is funny about this is…” = “Lo gracioso de esto es…” Sorry for the misunderstanding. Lol is said this b4 want Lol is said this b4 want something more future proof you need more vram the 780ti was more than $700 a few months back cant even max this game, ryse also required 4 gigs for 4k. My take is that both gpu vendors benefit causing disruptive upgrade cycles to their benefit. 4 gig vram will be the new recommend requirement for most games to come! Eventually 6 gigs will be a requirement with next gpu pascal architecture which is only 2 years away! MarkT on September 27, 2014 at 3:38 pm I knew the 770 4GB was ahead I knew the 770 4GB was ahead of its time The salesman at Microcenter The salesman at Microcenter thought I was crazy when I purchased a 4gb gtx 760 a year ago. 2gb is enough they said. last laugh and all that. Jester on September 27, 2014 at 5:39 pm You weren’t crazy, just You weren’t crazy, just stupid. You need a gpu that can take advantage of the extra VRAM, 760 can not. 4gb makes sense on the fastest cards like the AMD R9 290/x and the new nVidia 970/980. 4gb is a waste on slower junk cards like the GTX 760. GTX 770 with 4gb *might make sense, but even there it’s not really fast enough to take advantage of 4gb VRAM. This seems to be a thing with This seems to be a thing with Bethesda. Their recommended specks are always way over-shot. The ones for Wolfenstein NWO were incredible pree release. They said you NEEDED a I7 and a 6850, but I had a fine time using a A10 with integrated graphics. Yea it looks better the better the system, but that’s always true. I think they are somehow in a old-school mindset, where needing the craziest system ever for this game makes it a crazy game. Or the engine is just not very efficient. Could be that QD on September 27, 2014 at 6:22 pm Yep- exactly. “”This is what we recommend. It will run on less. Hope it does!” This would not be so problematic if one of their requirements wasn’t a “GeForce GTX 670 with 4GBs of VRAM”. I’m just going to say it: You CAN get away with a lot less. If you can’t get a dualie with a 1.5GB 460 card to run it on HD. It’s not an old-school mindset, it’$ a kick-back to $ell new hardware mind$et. My only question is if they might package it with a 980 or even 970 card … ? praack on September 27, 2014 at 7:05 pm Nice summation, rage engine Nice summation, rage engine without the support, and a bad port – so the game will be probably be hosed coming out of the gate for the PC, will sort of work in the ps4 – almost work on the xboxone and the devs will wonder why people just don’t understand them otherwise we will see a reboot of the rage experience – you know i never did finish that game Scott Michaud on September 27, 2014 at 8:46 pm We’ll see when it comes out. We'll see when it comes out. The point is… wait and see when it does come out. Anonymous on September 28, 2014 at 5:12 am Awesome! I hope they use as Awesome! I hope they use as much of the GPU RAM as possible and that other developers follow their example. I’m tired of anemic GPU memory increases – I don’t want to have to spend a metric ton of money to get a card that can game well and do GPGPU decently. Azure on September 29, 2014 at 1:37 pm Red flags, red flags Red flags, red flags everywhere…	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1859
__label__cc	0.66557	0.33443	Speck 30.2 We were broken, routed. When had it happened? When had we reached that critical juncture? Had one specific act or moment marked the point where the rank and file capes had stopped fighting and started merely trying to survive? Morale was failing, and had failed long ago. A good fifth of our fighting force here was made up of Nilbog’s creatures and Dragon’s suits, which self-repaired and kludged together with the remains of other damaged suits to return to the field again and again. That was with the reinforcements that were coming through Doormaker’s portals. Chevalier and Ingenue, the other Birdcage leaders and other teams were trying to gather into a defending force. Issue was, there wasn’t really a way to defend. Scion held the keys to all things power related, and any attack that didn’t penetrate a particular defense needed only to be tweaked, adjusted with a moment’s thought. Following that, it passed through forcefields, armor and time distortions like they weren’t even there. The same was true in terms of our ability to attack. I had a sense of Scion’s scale, because I’d seen his partner, and I’d gotten a glimpse of the sheer mass of the partner from how much had flowed through into our world as Scion had moved it. I could assume they were roughly equivalent in size, and that meant we were trying to tear through landmass of raw matter, and we were doing it a few handfuls at a time. I could look at how durable the partner entity’s flesh had been when Rachel and Lung had been tearing through it, extrapolate to the attacks we’d seen here. We weren’t doing nearly enough, especially if he was compartmentalizing the damage and keeping himself from losing more than a certain amount at a time. To top it all off, anything we found that worked only worked for a short time. Either the user died, or Scion adapted his defenses to become immune to it. I knew this. A good number of us knew some of it, especially the ones who’d attended the meetings with the major players. But for a large number of people on the battlefield, this wasn’t all common knowledge. For the others on the ground, this was a man with golden skin who didn’t seem to be bothered in the slightest by the vast majority of what we were throwing at him. At best, he seemed annoyed, by effects as massive as the ones String Theory and Gavel had dished out. At best, we gave him pause for a moment. He was toying with us in a way that made it clear he was holding back, yet it didn’t take away from the horror of his actions. It was impacting morale, instilling a kind of hopelessness, and that hopelessness was a big part of why things were falling apart before my eyes. I saw him generate a beam so thin I couldn’t make out anything but the glow around it, tracing it through a group. It cut into throats, arms, legs and chests. The wounded capes fell, all together. Blood welled out from the cuts the beam had made in their flesh. The damage wasn’t lethal, not yet, but it was bad enough that death was likely. Even inevitable. I saw a trace of golden light on the skin around the wound. The damage was spreading. It wasn’t the sort of injury a medic would be able to handle. Sixteen capes in all, left to feel their hot blood flow free, their lives seeping away. Not everyone Scion had targeted was in such bad shape. One had dodged, pulling a teammate out of the way. Another three or four had survived the attack by toughness alone, with armor and powers protecting them. Scion moved, advancing on them. One sphere of golden light, turning one of these hyper-tough capes into ash. And then he was in their midst, hitting them with physical blows, tearing them to pieces, each hit harder, faster and more gruesome than the last. A sweep of his arm and a cape with stone armor was torn in two. Two or three seconds and he’d taken nineteen capes out of action, wounding several more. But the real effect was on others, on capes who were now giving up, trying to get away from this slaughter. He advanced on the two who remained, and it was Chevalier who got in the way, slamming his cannonblade down, twenty feet long and eight feet high, a physical barrier in Scion’s way. Scion raised one glowing hand, not even slowing as he advanced towards his intended targets. The sword, to Scion, was little more than tissue paper. Which made it all the more surprising, to him and to me both, when he stopped, his hand touching the barrier and failing to tear through it. Chevalier drew the sword back, then cleaved Scion. The sword passed through the golden man’s shoulder, ribcage, and out his waist, cutting into the earth. Bisected. Chevalier remained where he was, hands on the handle of the weapon, making eye contact with Scion. Ingenue was only a short distance behind him, looking more like she was dressed up to go to a club than to be on a battlefield, with a little leather jacket and a dress with the slit up one side, her hair draped over half of her face. Just the same as we’d seen with the Siberian. The damage was there, but Scion was holding himself together. Scion withdrew himself from the sword. Chevalier slashed again, slamming Scion into the earth, then used a sweep of the sword to vault himself back. Scion’s a ghost, it’s a mask. And whatever Tattletale says about him being human at his core, human on the surface or whatever else, he’s a natural disaster, not an individual. A force of nature. Impossible to control or prevent. The words crossed my mind, and they were my words, but they weren’t my thoughts. Reminding me of the bad old days, Passenger? I thought to myself. My bugs continued to gather around me. A familiar and comfortable presence, considering everything that was happening. I’m not giving up! My voice, sounding so far away, even in my own head, so young. Chevalier blocked Scion’s beam with his sword, then moved the blade, pulling the trigger. The cannonball hit Scion, and knocked the golden man back. Capes were taking the opportunity to flee. I knew what I had to do, here. Even with a myopic, skewed perspective. I could guess what the ultimate price was going to be. Maybe a good part of myself was a monster. Maybe a part of me was still that girl who had very nearly gone on a rampage in her school, still that girl who would have been an angry, frustrated, aimless c-list villain, a footnote in a footnote in the grand scheme of things, forgotten by nearly everyone once the media frenzy had died down. The hell am I supposed to do!? The memory was so clear I could almost hear my own voice. Had that anger ever really gone away? The world didn’t fucking make sense. People didn’t make sense. I’d been railing against it from the beginning. I dropped to the ground, cutting one of the boosters to the flight pack. I didn’t position my legs right, and I folded, landing on my knees and hands instead of on both feet. I felt a spark of fear, then another. Capes stopped in their tracks, and the ones behind them crashed into them, driving them forward, some toppling onto a disc a tinker was riding. Seven people, now inside my range. I could get a sense of their powers. The disc the cape was riding was a tinker device, hovering over the ground with a constant stream of air that sent dust billowing in low rolling clouds around the edges. A woman rode the platform, garbed in a green, flowing kimono-style dress, surrounded by some sort of tinker-derived cyborg bonsai trees on raised sections of varying height. I began to find my feet, using both my hands and the flight pack to get myself upright. I could feel the tree-girl’s fear, the fact that she was cornered. It was echoed across each of the seven who’d stumbled into my power’s radius, and it invoked memories. Different memories for each of them. For her, it called Leviathan to mind. Me running, being struck from behind. There was one case that reminded me of being with my dad in the room, wracked with shame and helplessness, a complete and total lack of direction. Another that, inexplicably, brought up the scene with Dragon and Defiant in the Arcadia High cafeteria. A sense of injustice, mingled with surrender. For another, for two others, it brought up Mannequin, but they were different scenes. Being in the empty factory with the innocents at the edges, a building rage, and being there when he’d attacked my territory the second time, after we’d saved Amy. In both of those cases, it was the same kind of rage I’d just been thinking about. To these two, I was the freak of nature standing in their way. I was broken, and I’d bitten off more input than I could chew. The passenger was tapping into the experiences it had shared with me, because that was the only way it could convey the signals I was getting from them. Which wasn’t what I needed. It was the wrong inputs. What I needed was to decipher their powers. The tinker with the trees… I could sense things about her that weren’t tapping into memories I understood. Something mental that I couldn’t relate to, out of my reach. I ordered them to turn. When they moved, they lurched. Unfamiliar proportions, different degrees of athleticism. Like my adjustment to my new arm and legs. Could I get used to moving them like I’d gotten used to the new limbs? Laughter disturbed me from my thoughts. “Human shields?” A man asked, almost unintelligible with his coarse accent. “I love it! I was ganna shoot the bloody idjits in the backs, you’re ‘lowed to do that, ‘miright? But some cunt might get the wrong idea.” When I turned my head, all but one my minions turned their heads as well. My fault. I’d wanted the extra sensory input, and I’d instinctually tried to take it in with a share of my ‘swarm’. It was Acidbath. One of the Birdcage’s cell block leaders. He had the stylings of a rock musician or punk rocker who’d spent a little too much time doing drugs and not enough time playing his instrument. Worn around the edges, a little too full of himself. He’d been a bit player in the real world, caught up in his vices, yet had managed to take over and rule a cell block for three years after being sent to the Birdcage. He was still smirking, laughing a little, as he looked between me and Scion’s ongoing fight with Chevalier. He danced a little from foot to foot, tensing just a bit every time Scion moved. Not out of fear. “This is better,” he said. “They wanna run and leave us assholes to do the fighting, you can say otherwise. Pin ’em up and let Scion knock ’em down.” No. They aren’t meat shields. But I couldn’t tell Acidbath that. I couldn’t answer him because I couldn’t communicate. It galled me that he thought I’d use them as cannon fodder. Not least because he was right. Partially right, but that didn’t make it much better. I’d compared myself to some pretty horrible individuals in the past, but Acidbath was something else. He was low, barely above dirt. He’d scalded his own brother with acid, and had gone after girlfriends and girls who had rejected him. The attacks hadn’t been lethal, but had melted flesh and the fat or muscular tissues beneath. I’d seen the pictures of the aftermath when I’d browsed his files, after the scar tissue had formed. I couldn’t think of worse ways to hurt someone, and he’d done it in impulsive acts of retaliation. If I was going to be a monster, I’d at least try to be smart about it, constructive. To have a plan. I set my new minions into action. I couldn’t get too caught up in the details. Their powers were a part of them like the venom was a part of a spider or centipede, or web a part of the spiders I controlled. I had to take it in without getting caught up in analyzing it, trusting the passenger to handle the essential details on autopilot. As my new minions rejoined the battle, I felt the tinker tap into that power that had previously been out of reach. I got a glimpse of how she operated, the world she saw; a distorted world much like I’d seen when I tried to look through my bug’s eyes. The trees were primed and loaded like guns. Tinker-herbalism, only it wasn’t very medicinal at all. I set her aside. The others… my passenger was better at controlling most of them. A cape in a black flowing costume who had powers I couldn’t decipher. I set him aside as well. The others were easier to use, and I wasn’t sure how much of it was because of their powers’ similarities to my own. Focusing on them resulted in a deluge of fragmented memories, memories of me using my power in different ways. Two shaker-classification capes provided the majority of the offensive power. If I let them be, if I let things move on autopilot in their own way, then they used their power well enough. A telekinetic with an emphasis on small objects, with a storm of ball bearings and small stones from the road, and a cape that could create superheated shafts of energy, anchoring them between two objects. The memories were of my bugs attacking as a coordinated whole, of the threads I’d extended as tripwires and my attack on Echidna. Not that I was so graceful or effective in using their abilities. There was a woman, and focusing on her resulted in a deluge of fragmented memories, but these were memories of using my bugs to observe. A secondary power? Trying to tap into her other power resulted in thoughts of Atlas, the void in his midsection, of my relay bugs. Something incomplete? A kind of frustration. With my eyes, I could see her fingertips glowing blue. I moved her hand, and I saw a line drawn in the air. Something incomplete. I moved her hand in a circle, and I closed the line. There was a small pop as the space we’d enclosed disappeared. My bugs could feel the air moving at the destination point. A teleporter with a somewhat irritating limitation. The other two looked like members of the Birdcage. Very possibly Acidbath’s underlings, though he hadn’t identified with them. Brutish, mean looking. One was armored in what looked to be fragmented pieces of pottery and glass, with flesh webbing between fragments, while the other was covered head to toe in biker tattoos, oddly doughy looking, with a power that was being channeled just under his skin. Focused air. Alexandria joined the fight, relieving Chevalier, who was on his heels, his blade in rough shape. A third cape I didn’t know joined the fight. Scion shook off the pair, and then struck Chevalier hard enough to send him crashing into the crowd opposite us. Then he wheeled around. His eyes passed over Acidbath. Acidbath, still dancing from foot to foot, leaped, and he changed into a living tidal wave of clear liquid, isolated, with roughly five times his mass. He materialized into regular human form when he was a little behind and to one side of Scion, and then lashed out, slinging punches that ended with his hands becoming liquid projectiles. They splashed against Scion, and I could see smoke rise, even though there wasn’t any visible damage. If Scion had been planning to attack us, the cape with Alexandria managed to get his attention. Another flying bruiser type. An ‘Alexandria package’ cape fighting alongside Alexandria herself. Or Pretender, whoever. The fear that was emanating from my minions was paralyzing me, I realized. I shook it off and stepped up the attack. The one with the shards and the one with the soft looking body charged to either side, and moved right out of my power’s range. I hoped they would take this as a nudge, a push to get back into the thick of things. Both these capes and the ones around us. We weren’t many, but we were a little closer to Scion than most, and we were steadfast. Capes who were backing away on either side of us were keeping their eyes on Scion, where they might otherwise have routed completely. The guy that was made up of fragments took the nudge from me for what it was, giving me a hard look over one shoulder before he joined Alexandria and the other cape in attacking Scion. He was a shapeshifter, maybe one like Mush, from the Brockton Bay Merchants. My assessment of his power suggested he was tougher than he looked. The other one, with the air swirling beneath his skin, simply left my range and ran. He found a spot with more capes and slowed down, dropping into a crouch, like he might run at the first opportunity. Scion threw the Alexandria-package cape I couldn’t name into the ceramic shard guy, and he managed to break the cape’s fall, falling to pieces in the process. He began picking himself up, gathering more pieces of glass from nearby rubble to make himself bigger than before. Acidbath stepped up the attack, slinging acid every time the path was clear, I didn’t want to lose my stride, getting caught up in observation. I focused on my minions. The tinker with the disc had her plants loaded down with drugs. I focused our attention on different things, and I got more fragmented memories in response. A glimpse of me, paralyzed, with Bonesaw about to operate on me. Poison? Paralytic? Being inside the building Coil had set on fire. Incendiary? Blinding? The hospital bed- I was acting even as the knowledge came to me. I pushed her to use that one, and the passenger took over. It was better at understanding the abstracts. I could follow what it was doing, grasp the basics of it. Her body and the seat beneath her was another plant, focused on producing, concentrating and storing gases in a combination that served as breathable air, the same gas that was keeping her disc aloft. Her hand moved, the raised platforms shifted, and one tree was lowered to a point just in front of her. The gas blew what looked like a vast cloud of purple pollen out onto the battlefield. It settled on the wounded capes, and only the wounded capes. Coagulants, I thought. Painkillers. I watched the others carefully, making sure that my minions weren’t inadvertently putting others in the line of fire. I started circling our group with our teleporter, drawing out a line as she jogged in a tight loop. The two shakers, the telekinetic and the guy who made lasers, they had matching costumes. Had they combined their techniques? I formed lasers between the airborne ball bearings. Needle thin, they still cut into Scion. The damage of one with the flexibility of the other. No doubt a technique they’d used on their own. Scion turned his head, looking at us. His hands glowed. The teleporter lunged forward, completing the loop, leaving out only the brute with the weird skin, the fragment-shapeshifter and the girl with the disc. I gave one last command to make the disc-botanist tinker start running. Our group was collectively teleported away. I could feel the strength drain out of the teleporter to the point that she fell to the ground. Scion’s attention was elsewhere. He hadn’t gone after any of the ones we’d left behind. We’d managed to avoid his attentions. I turned my attention to the one cape I hadn’t yet figured out. A voice interrupted me. “Queen Administrator. I almost didn’t recognize you.” Glaistig Uaine. I didn’t respond. My focus was on the young man. Some kind of trump power, responding to a few glimmers here and there. I turned her way. She was dressed in a complicated dress of green-black ribbons, complete with a hood. She looks so young. I pointed at the cape I was trying to figure out and raised my stump-arm in a shrug. “If you want to get a full understanding of your new capabilities, you must figure that out on your own,” she said. “Practice, and it will soon be second nature.” I turned my attention to the cape. My focus, again, was interrupted by her voice. “I will warn you, do not attempt to usurp me. If I catch you trying, I will fight you. I am careful to tend to my flock, and would not have anyone but me handle them.” “Good. Peace is preferable,” she said. We watched Scion unload on another group. They can’t stop him with brute strength. They know it. Yet they keep coming. Is it just for the sake of going out with a fight? The hope of finding some trump card? I’d stopped capes from running, but the idea wasn’t to stop retreat. Retreat was sensible. I didn’t want things to devolve into a panicked stampede to get away. “It seems we’re losing, Administrator,” Glaistig Uaine said, as if echoing my thoughts. I shook my head a little. “I would offer him solace, if I knew how. He is in a dangerous state, and I find myself worried for the first time.” I glanced at her. “Yes, very worried. Had things gone like they were before, I would be bothered, but not overly upset. We would die, the faerie would slumber and they would wait. With luck, with a great deal of luck, he would find another partner, or another partner would find him, and things would be set for the great play to start anew, on a fresh stage.” Scion had stopped with the beams and the blasts. He was throwing punches again, hurling himself into the thickest parts of the crowd. Nilbog’s creations were taking the brunt of the attack. “But the faerie are creatures of whimsy, aren’t they? Easily influenced by the masks they wear. It’s the whole point of them, isn’t it, Administrator? It’s why they are, yes?” I nodded a little. I could almost see it. She nodded a little herself, as if satisfied by my response. “He’s fallen prey to the worst kind of whimsy, a destructive wroth. He is heartbroken and hopeless, he has lost more than you or I could ever imagine, and he may well leave this stage so ruined that things cannot be salvaged, unless we’re fortunate enough to get a…” She trailed off, grasping for a word. Understudy? “Fortuitous arrival,” she said. She smiled a little. “Not very likely. They litter breadcrumbs in their wake, not to be followed, but so their kin don’t waste time and effort traveling the same paths. For another to arrive here, they would need to avoid touching a single crumb, like you or me swimming the length of a river without touching a wave.” Black Kaze had entered the battlefield, backed up by Dragon’s Teeth. She disappeared, and then reappeared behind Scion, katana drawn. A moment passed, and Scion reacted as though he’d been punched dead center in the chest. Not a big reaction, but it was a reaction. Black Kaze alternated attacks with Acidbath, very proper, measured in her movements, compared to Acidbath’s flailing, reckless, hurried scramble to keep out of Scion’s line of sight. Acidbath moved with surprising quickness, faster than a typical car might. A peculiarity of his breaker power. Glaistig Uaine offered a small laugh. “I cling to a sliver of hope, and I know I’m fooling myself. There really isn’t much of a time window. A few thousand years is such a short time, you know.” I continued to pay attention while I focused on the more mysterious cape in my range, the one who I hadn’t deciphered. The connections of his powers to something that was there but not quite there… his power hinged on some outside qualifier or factor that wasn’t being met on this battlefield. It was concentrated most on the wounded… It snapped into place. His power worked with people who were sleeping. The people his power sort of worked on were unconscious. I used the teleporter to draw a circle around him. A moment later, he was gone, set in the midst of the biggest cluster of wounded. “Ah, you understood. Good.” Only a moment later, Scion attacked, striking the ground. We were distant enough that I could see the circle of golden light expanding around them, a ring that ripped through the ground, demolishing it. Nilbog’s creations, the defending forces and Dragon’s suits were all toppled as the ground settled. Buildings collapsed. A wounded Leviathan emerged from the water, approaching Scion with an almost lazy slowness. Capes practically fought one another to get their footing and get out of the way. Some were too rough in their hurry to get by Nilbog’s creations, only to get attacked by the things in retaliation. I clenched my one fist. “Would you accompany me? We would be the queen of the living and queen of the fallen. No swords in our hands, but warlords nonetheless. Yes? I will give you hints, if you desire them, and help you manage your soldiers. One last hurrah, a great war to end it all, like the best myths have.” I shook my head slowly. “No? A shame. Fear? A lack of soldiers?” I shook my head, still. “No, you are not afraid, queen, or you are afraid, but this is a fear that drives you forward. You have something you intend to do.” “Then I will be here when you return, and we can have that great battle, fighting to drive him back into slumber.” I gathered my swarm around me and the teleporter, and I had her draw another circle. Glaistig Uaine reached out, seizing the woman’s wrist. The teleporter’s alarm mingled with my own. But she wasn’t attacking, and she wasn’t taking the teleporter’s powers, extinguishing her life in the process. “A warning,” Glaistig Uaine said. I gave her my full attention. “You sought power, and you lost a portion of yourself in the doing. Always the case, but it’s… pronounced, in a case like yours. Yes?” “Hng,” I mumbled. “You will need a tether, an anchor. It can be an idea, a physical thing, a place, a person, a goal. Right now, it will not seem so important, but it will. When all is said and done, you will either be dead, and this thing will be a comfort to you in your last moments, or you will be powerful, and it will be all you have left. Decide what you will hold on to.” I’ve already decided what that is, I thought. Since a long time ago. “Choose very carefully,” she said. “Take it from someone who knows.” Then she moved the teleporter’s hand, closing the circuit. The teleporter and I arrived at our destination at the same moment Leviathan crashed into Scion. Water mingled with the ruined landscape, seeping into cracks, making life just a bit harder for the capes in the center of the disaster area. I felt memories stir. The moment I’d announced myself as Weaver and heard the howling. You really have to make this unnecessarily hard, don’t you? I thought. Reminding me that I’m abandoning them. Yes, Rachel and Imp were probably there. So were the capes I’d controlled and urged back into the fray. Maybe they had turned to run at the first opportunity. Maybe they had been given a chance to reconsider, and were still fighting. Maybe I’d killed them, by denying them the chance to run. But I told myself I wasn’t abandoning them. I had a mission, and this was a mission that would take me back to them, after a fashion. I might never rejoin the group, I was fully aware of what I was getting myself into, but this was for their sake, not despite them. That detour was a part of the mission, killing multiple birds with one stone. Helping to stop the rout, trying to do a little something to keep the fight going, so the capes on the ground could buy time. Learning about my new ability, testing my ability to accommodate unfamiliar abilities. It hadn’t been planned, so much, but I’d also had a reminder of something that had slipped my mind. Glaistig Uaine was one of my most dangerous enemies at this point. Now I was in dire need of information. Getting that information was a surprising obstacle, considering my inability to communicate. I couldn’t ask, couldn’t whip out my phone and type something into the search bar and wait for it to dig records out of the archives. To these ends, I’d moved us to the edge of the settlement, where six armored suits were deployed and waiting to be sent into the fray. The Pendragon was one. Dragon’s Teeth were scattered throughout the area, many holding what looked like rocket launchers with glass bulbs at the front. The teleporter was exhausted from using her ability, and leaned on me as we made our way forwards. D.T. officers stepped forward to bar my way. Alarm, surprise. I was momentarily dazed by images of a number of surprise attacks and explosions. My power had reached them, and they stepped aside at my command. I moved as confidently and as quickly towards the Pendragon as I could manage, trying not to show fear or uncertainty. Harder than it sounded, given my limping, uneven gait, and the way my head slumped forwards. D.T. officers beyond my range took notice and moved to flank me. I reached the back of the Pendragon and I slammed my hand on the metal door. I did it again. My best attempt at a knock. I tried my best to stand straight, folding my hand behind me. Not quite loud enough. The armor was too thick. Still, the fact that I’d knocked was a point in my book, as far as the officers were concerned. They were hanging back. “Defiant isn’t replying,” one of the officers said. “Try Dragon,” another spoke. “She always answers calls.” “Ladies!” One called out. “State your identities for the record!” You know who I am, I thought. “We know your face, we’ve met, but we can’t take anything for granted here! Stranger and Master protocols are in effect!” Were the protocols in effect because of me? Or was it a problem that stemmed from the half-dozen incidents in the last two years, where people had tried to capitalize on Endbringer attacks and other crises, attempting assassinations on key figures? I couldn’t argue it, in any event. I couldn’t defend myself, either. “Both of you! We’ll need your names, and we need at least one good password!” Right. Lovely. Couldn’t use the teleporter without getting shot. They’d see the line… Unless they couldn’t. Seeing myself through the teleporter’s eyes, I was a little surprised at the sheer number of bugs I’d accumulated. She moved her hands to me, and she drew the line through the middle of the swarm. Could she teleport where she couldn’t see? I focused our attention on the interior of the Pendragon. She closed the circuit, and we were inside. My bugs could sense the soldiers reacting. “Weaver?” Dragon asked. “I was just about to step outside.” I stepped away from the teleporter. My eyes roved over the ship’s interior. Less elbow room than in the Dragonfly. “Tattletale filled me in, asked me to pass on the details,” Dragon said. “A lot of people are worried, here, on quite a few different levels.” I couldn’t respond, and I knew how tight time was, so I met her eyes, nodded a little, and then gestured towards the nearest laptop. “Yes,” Dragon said. “Of course.” I gave her a little salute. I didn’t know a better way of expressing thanks. If I’d known sign language, would I have lost it with my ability to speak and write? “Tattletale was saying you were unfocused. I’m not getting that sense. You’re up to something.” The laptop booted. I froze. Oh. Damn. I realized what I was looking at, and I felt my heart plummet. When my mom had died, I’d sort of turned to books as a way of remembering her, a way of being with her in the present day, reminding myself of the nights she would read aloud to me, then the nights we’d read together, and beyond that, times when we’d all be in the living room, my dad with his computer half the time, a book the other half. My mom and I always had our novels. Sometimes we had shared, sometimes not. When the bullying had started, books had been an escape. I’d be exhausted at the end of the day, feeling a low that counterbalanced the higher adrenaline and stress of the time spent in school. Curling up with something to read had been a refuge. Maybe that had lapsed when I’d become a cape. The costumed stuff had become an escape of sorts. But I’d gotten back into it in prison, and on some of the stakeouts. I’d taught myself braille, so I could read with my bugs, and take in more. I would have settled for being a little crazy. I would have settled for some physical impairment, for a power that was so out of control that I couldn’t have real human contact again. The words were gibberish. I couldn’t read. It had been something I’d turned to in my lowest moments, a little crutch, a coping mechanism, and it had been denied to me. It hit me harder than the loss of my voice, stupid as it was. My hand shook, hovering over the display. I watched as the words disappeared, replaced by images. A composite picture of locations, a composite picture of faces, a composite picture of icons that no doubt included details on powers. There were others I could scroll down to see. My eyes watered a little. I couldn’t look at Dragon, but I raised my hand in another salute. Not nearly as good a thank-you as I wanted to be able to give. My fingers touched the display. Faces. There were sub-menus. All visual. I clicked the frowny-face with the black background, then the little map for a world map… America. I clicked the map icon again for a national map… Washington. I found Teacher’s portrait near the top of the results list. One of Washington’s most notorious capes. Right. I clicked it. Dragon’s hand settled on the top of my head. She ran it over my hair, using one finger to hook a strand and move it out of my face. She did the same for another strand. “What are you doing?” she asked. I opened his file, and I clicked through the tabs until I saw a map. I tapped my phone against the screen. There was a rumble outside, followed by a thrum, and movement beyond this craft. Dragon had deployed at least two of the other suits. “I need some communication here, Weaver,” Dragon said. Dumbly, I tapped the phone against the screen once again, not making eye contact. “Please,” she said, but she made it sound like an order. What do you want? I thought. Pantomime? Do you want me to draw Teacher and the rest with my bugs and enact a play? I didn’t do either. I reached up and pulled off my mask. I met Dragon’s eyes. I could see myself through the teleporter’s vision. Strands of my hair had fallen across my face as I’d removed the mask. My lips were pressed together – I forced myself to relax them, only to find them resuming the position when I turned my attention elsewhere. My body was all odd angles, my expression… I didn’t even know how to judge my own expression. I didn’t know my own face that well, all things considered. It was only something I saw from time to time in the mirror, getting ready for the day. Intense? Focused? Determined? Fatalistic? More crazy than less? I held her gaze. Again, I tapped the phone against the computer screen. It chirped. The data had been loaded onto it. “If it was Skitter that asked me, I would have said no,” Dragon said. “If I was convinced it was Weaver in there more than anything else, I’d feel a lot better about this. Tell me, am I going to regret giving you this?” she asked. I couldn’t answer. Not even with a nod or a shake of the head. I touched the screen again, going back a bit. Region… Chinese Union-Imperial. C.U.I. She knew what I was looking at. “I’m thinking of how we brought the Endbringers in, bullying people into helping, or at least getting them to stop hurting. Is this going to be a repeat? Strongarming them? Using your power?” I shook my head. My phone chirped again. Others. More targets. The Birdcage. Another chirp. The rest I’d find on my own, provided all went according to plan. I turned to the teleporter, then bowed low. It wasn’t because of her culture – she looked European – it was because a bow would have to serve as an apology, as much as a salute would have to serve as acknowledgement and thanks. I met Dragon’s eyes. “I wish you could explain,” she said. I’m glad I can’t, I thought. I turned to leave. Glaistig Uaine was one hurdle I’d have to cross. Dragon was another. If everything went to plan, they were the biggest threats to me. Scion excepted, of course. I left the teleporter behind, making my way outside. I turned on the flight pack. My bugs sensed the teleporter making her exit, drawing a circle around herself and then promptly disappearing. The Pendragon took off a moment later. I approached my target. The Simurgh was flying over a set of hills that would have been the Towers district of Brockton Bay, had we been on Earth Bet. She was building something. The fighting was ongoing, with Leviathan more hurt than alive. Capes were fighting to get to safety rather than trying to hurt Scion. Scion hit Leviathan, and the last buildings in the settlement toppled. I turned away. I wasn’t one for prayer, but I wasn’t really one for hope, either. At the same time, though, everything hinged on their ability to hold out. Scion might leave soon, moving on to another target, but I wasn’t so sure these guys would be able to hold out against one more attack. I passed beside the Simurgh as I flew. Checking. No control. I plummeted. The Simurgh, for the time being, came part and parcel with Tattletale. When she wasn’t fighting, she was a distance away from my teammate and friend. I touched ground, then flew through the doorway at an upward angle, moving over the defensive line Marquis had set at the doorway. I found myself back in Tattletale’s company. Marquis and Lung were close, but not so close they were in my range. Panacea and Bonesaw, for their parts, were tending to the wounded. The two girls froze as they fell inside my range. Too many patients, on top of Panacea and Bonesaw. Marquis and Tattletale froze as well, but it wasn’t the same kind of freezing. It was tension. “No,” Marquis said. “My daughter-” Panacea stood up. Bonesaw followed soon after. They marched in Marquis’ direction. They passed out of my range. Marquis draped an arm around his daughter’s shoulders, hugging her closer. Bonesaw wheeled on me, and there was a fury in her eyes. It left only the wounded in my vicinity, along with a handful of others. Members of the backline, the infrastructure elements in Gimel. “Taylor-” Tattletale said. I ignored her too. “I’m sort of getting what you’re doing. I don’t get why, but I think I get what you’re about to do. Don’t.” I closed my eyes, concentrating. I needed to figure this out before I made any moves, or I’d be putting myself in danger. Problem was… there was so much. “Taylor, if you go ahead with this, and people start to catch on, you become public enemy number two.” “Catch on?” Marquis asked. Tattletale didn’t answer him. I was pretty sure I had it. With my power, I seized control of Doormaker and the Clairvoyant. The pair stood, holding hands. A heartbeat later, a cage of bone erupted from the ground. Bindings wound around my legs. He laid a trap under the surface of the ground, I thought. Some of the more mobile injured were backing away from me and my two hostages. The remainder were still in my range. Bone coffins encased each of them, sealing them to the ground, out of sight. I paused, doing my best to get a sense of them. I could get the gist of their abilities, focus to try and piece together the details. There were a few capes who could have broken free, a few who were probably capable of slipping out one way or another. But I didn’t need to go that far. I exerted Doormaker’s power, and he opened a portal behind Marquis. The other side of that portal was just behind me. Memories hit me. Being chained to the interrogation chamber, opposite Director Tagg. Tempered confidence, even now? The memories were distorted, moving just a little too quickly towards the end of that particular scenario. Except I was looking an awful lot like the person on the receiving end of the abrupt, painful and unexpected murdering. Marquis’ lieutenants approached. Cinderhands, Spruce, one other I couldn’t name, in dark clothes and chains. Lung was circling around, getting ready to fling a fireball. I used Marquis’ power to block their paths with spiked barriers of bone. When Lung, Spruce and Cinderhands all tore through the barriers, with claw, some sort of disintegration power and flame, respectively, I used Doormaker’s power again. This time, the portals I opened were only about a foot by a foot across. Four at once. “Taylor,” Tattletale said. “You’re putting me in a pretty shitty spot, here.” I checked my phone, tabbing through the pages that had been loaded onto it. There was a blip marking Teacher’s location. More were gathering around me. I made more doors. One or two dodged out of the way. I managed to catch them, anyways. “I’m not getting enough details here to paint a picture. I trust the hell out of you, but I’m not sure this is you, Taylor.” I pocketed my phone, then reached into my belt. I hesitated for an instant, then pressed my hand to my chest for long seconds. I knew I didn’t have time to spare, but… no. I didn’t have time to spare. I opened a portal twenty feet above Tattletale, then opened my hand. The little tube of pepper spray dropped through the portal. Tattletale caught it. “You couldn’t have made it easy?” Tattletale asked, looking down at it. “Because standing by while you do this… that’s fucking hard. It’s honestly easier if I’m on their side and I’m helping them stop you. If I can blame the fuck-up job Panacea did to your head.” I didn’t have a response to that. I used Marquis’ power to withdraw the bone cage and free my own legs. I opened a doorway and passed through. Dragon might be my enemy the moment she got filled in on what I was doing, but she was someone I cared about. Teacher had fucked with her. This next bit was going to be easier. This entry was posted in 30.02 and tagged Acidbath, Alexandria, Black Kaze, Bonesaw, Chevalier, Dragon, Glaistig Uaine, Ingenue, Lung, Marquis, Panacea, Pretender, Tattletale, Taylor by wildbow. Bookmark the permalink. 421 thoughts on “Speck 30.2” Sorry for typos or any unfinished sentences. Didn’t get a lot of time to proofread (a few internet outages here, scary stuff when you have a chapter due and you’re at a small town where every other source of wireless closes at 9pm). Here’s your trying-not-to-nag reminder about topwebfiction, as well. Thank you. 🙂 thewatcherbehind on October 17, 2013 at 00:23 said: I’ll vote! I’ll Vote! Honestly wildbow, you are my hero (what does this say about me?). You wrote a massive story and a beautiful one, the kind that most writers dream about, and you did it in two (three?) years. :bow: Teach me, oh great one. Ooh. Using Doormaker to get around her 16-foot limit. Nice. Also, I am so looking forward to Taylor going up against Teacher. That gut has deserved this for a long time. And now, this time for real: TAI-PO THREDD!!! YOUZE EET NOAW!!! Gah! Guy, not gut. Whoops. I’m really feeling TT’s pain right now. And Glastig Uaine is still goddamn scary. Pinkhair on October 17, 2013 at 01:55 said: “passed through, the golden ” Extra comma. “ribcage and out” And missing comma there. “under his skin, focused air.” “and he He may” Extra he. “cannot be salvaged, if we’re fortunate enough to get a…” This seems wrong. Glastig Uaine is hoping a third entity arrives, so maybe ‘unless’ should replace ‘if?’ Asmora on October 17, 2013 at 03:18 said: “slinging acid every time the path was clear,” Cuts off. Thanatos on January 25, 2015 at 21:37 said: The people his power sort of worked on were unconscious. Since a long time ago. –> ‘since’ needs to be italicized Stupid phone. Unconscious –> ‘the’ unconscious? Unconscious ones? UnderGround on February 22, 2016 at 22:42 said: “bit player” “big player”? greycat on December 3, 2019 at 13:14 said: No, from context, “bit player” seems correct. He was the opposite of a big player. MugaSofer on July 23, 2017 at 16:24 said: >trying to tear through landmass of raw matter trying to tear through a landmass of raw matter Veloren on October 17, 2013 at 00:15 said: Is this what winning is like? Because it feels awful. No, this is what sacrificing just about everything: Friends, home, speech, sanity, just to get a small shot at winning a Pyrrhic Victory, is like. Worm: Where the body-puppeteering, backstabbing creepy girl who’s losing control of her body to an Eldritch Abomination is the best (and least likely) option. PG could say that better. 😦 No One in Particular on October 17, 2013 at 00:27 said: And the protagonist. Worm: Where anything is possible. Except not in a good way. I believe this is where the tag line comes in… Afterall if this isn’t the WRONG THING then nothing is 🙂 My tag line for it works just as well in this situation. It’s even a little ominous, too. “Prepare to be skullfucked by awesome.” Now you know why that guy was wearing a helmet. Worm: The best hope for mankind is one fucked up little girl. DasNiveau on October 17, 2013 at 08:02 said: She is a big girl by now… Cephalo the Pod on October 17, 2013 at 10:31 said: She was always taller than average. greatwyrmgold on October 17, 2013 at 13:05 said: She’s a young woman by now. Heck, she hasn’t been a girl since Lung. And, as noted, she was always above-average in height. Worm: the best hope for mankind is a fucked up big girl who is taller than average who is actually a young woman. RazorSmile on October 17, 2013 at 00:17 said: … the fuck just happened? beleester on October 17, 2013 at 00:23 said: Taylor got some practice with her power, went to Dragon, looked up data on some capes, including Teacher, and then hijacked Doormaker’s power. I guess she’s planning to set up some large-scale power combo, but I don’t know what could possibly help. taliesinskye on October 17, 2013 at 11:19 said: I think she’s planning on setting up the largest scale power combo possible. The hints about public enemy #2 suggest it’s possible that she’s going to simply take control of everyone involved in the fight, manipulating them in perfect synchrony to save lives and improve their odds, taking advantage of countless combinations they wouldn’t have thought of or had the coordination to use as well as flawless timing. Trouble is, unless she gets a LOT better, she doesn’t actually have the control required to pull that off. At this point she doesn’t use people’s powers as naturally or effectively as they would. These chapters with unclear motives and endings leave me with comically large question marks hanging over my head by their ends. Wow, that was an awkward sentence. Sleep deprivation does scary things to your grammar. Actually the grammar was just fine. 🙂 AMR on October 17, 2013 at 00:36 said: Taylor is going to mind control Teacher and The Yangban powersharer presumably to set up a big power combo, since that’s what hurts Scion the most. She also solved the range problem by nabbing Doormaker. veekie on October 17, 2013 at 03:39 said: And Teacher is gonna get some fucking PAYBACK at last. KGB on October 17, 2013 at 05:01 said: Teacher is going to be used to give Taylor her speech back. She controls Teacher to give her a minor power, speech. Incidentally he loses all control over his actions, which could be interpretative as payback, but is just Taylor being efficient. She loves being efficient. 🙂 wildbow posted another chapter. Yay bonus update Thursdays! chungsim on October 17, 2013 at 00:23 said: So why does she want Teacher so much? It’s for more than just revenge of that I’m sure. Maybe it’s to fix her own brain? If you’re on Reddit check out reddit.com/r/parahumans letseveryonemorality on October 17, 2013 at 00:28 said: That’s probably part of it, but having control of teacher gives her the ability to maintain more long term control of others as well. http://www.reddit.com/r/parahumans Made it clickable. If anyone’s wondering why I’m pushing it, it’s just a handier place to discuss things than WordPress’ comments. I’m not a moderator or anything on the subreddit, either. Just interested in seeing it grow. Pandemonious Ivy on October 17, 2013 at 15:29 said: Stephen M (Ethesis) on October 17, 2013 at 00:57 said: http://www.reddit.com/r/Parahumans/new/ Hardly any volume of posts compared to here. That’s why I’m linking it. Flex on October 17, 2013 at 13:53 said: Annnd i made a post about it. I hope people pick it up. I can’t keep track of stuff on wordpress Deepbluediver on October 17, 2013 at 13:24 said: I don’t like to post predictions, normally, because even if the chance of me being correct is tiny (and it usually is) I’d feel awful if I spoiled something. But between the absolute-control over other powers, the dimension-hopping (via doormaker), and possibly soon the ability to grant other people powers (via teacher) it almost seems like Taylor is building herself into a Scion-like entity, one brick at a time. She’s even adopting a similar uncommunicative, almost unreadable set of behaviors. Admittedly, if you want to fight Scion, that’s probably the sort of scale you need, after the conversation with Glastig Ulaine, I can’t help but think it might be something else…. ….would it be wrong to ship Taylor and Scion? Y’know, for the good of humanity? AlsoSprachOdin on October 17, 2013 at 14:30 said: I thought it might be cute to ship “Taylung” halfway through the last ark (they’ve got the whole “respected, longtime, almost arch-enemy thing” going on), so go right ahead. Penguin on October 21, 2013 at 20:21 said: I’m going to leave this here. http://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/wormverse-ideas-recs-and-fic-discussion-thread-4.270737/page-64#post-11992664 Thank you very much. Nice to know I’m not the only one. This is a beautiful post and I loves it my precious. Yes it really would be wrong to ship Taylor Scion. Even for the good of Humanity. I far prefer to ship Taylor/Rachel/Sarah-Lisa/Dinah as a disfunctionally functional happy family at the end even or perhaps especially without the sex. Rachel just being obliviously touchy feely once she’s comfortable around them, Sarah having already had the fun of it ruined by her powers, Taylor just happy to get the platonic hugs and idle touches to help slowly draw her back to humanity, and Dinah still a bit young for that kind of behavior but finally able to give back to Taylor for all that she had to let Taylor give up for Humanity. notes on October 17, 2013 at 00:24 said: Well, Dragon’s shackles neatly explain why Teacher knew enough to be quite concerned – enough autonomy to pass the information about his location to Weaver, but probably had to notify Teacher that the nightmare is coming to him. Persistent commands tentatively confirmed – she was sending some of that first group back into the fight outside of her range, and they kept fighting. If so, as long as Doormaker+Clairvoyant are alive, she’s got them – and through them, anyone else she wants to conscript – on tap. With allowances made for the fact that she currently can’t really communicate with them – calling in a portal to her location, not so hard. Telling them ‘Where’s Teacher?’, apparently harder… or she wouldn’t have needed to visit Dragon first. If she finds Dragon’s server, decent chance she can do some fixing. Excellent chance she can snap the shackles Teacher put in. Finding Teacher himself would shortcut the process. Ample room for some exceedingly screwy issues with controlling Teacher to amp up her brain to handle the dataflow – any subsequent decision that ‘Teacher’s important’ or ‘needs protection’ will be highly suspect. Regrettably, he may in fact be important. Current expectation: what Scion will perceive as a Frankenstein’s Monster attempt at another Entity. I’m thinking that Taylor takes control of Teacher and uses his power on her in a sorta feedback loop and with Doormaker and his partner used to grant greater range, Taylor takes control of EVERY other group not fighting Zion to shove them into the meatgrinder. Which means that the end of the Contessa interlude would have to take place after Taylor wins, and she needs to either have made the portal for Teacher to take, or she must have lost control of Doormaker. Aranfan on October 17, 2013 at 00:40 said: Alternately it happened just before Taylor jacked the Doormaker Nah. The costume Teacher was wearing was probably created by Glaistig using Eidolon’s power, the fantasy bent to the costumes makes this likely. And no one has been given these costumes yet. I think your mistaking persistent portals with new ones. I think the timing of these events is all straight forward. My concern of course is what will be the result of Taylor vs Countessa. As presumably they will be facing one another and Countessa will know the route to victory. The question is if that is a path she should take. Alternately what if she lets Taylor get her, and then Taylor gets that power… I can see her do that if her power tells her that the way to victory is to let Taylor have the power. After all, Contessa has been slavishly following her power for thirty years. ( And seeing Teacher face if that actually happens would be awesome. And hilarious. ). packbat on October 17, 2013 at 10:05 said: Actually, would Contessa’s power work for Taylor if she’s having trouble with language? Huh?Taylor can still think formed thoughts, right? It’s not as if Contessa as to ask the question at loud. heck, there’s a passage when she muses how nowadays she doesn’t even have to really THINK the question for the power to give her the solution I don’t think so: Having their momentum checked meant they didn’t keep fleeing wildly, but the one specifically didn’t do what she wanted him to. Soulgazer on October 17, 2013 at 00:28 said: If her power extends through the portals, range is much, much less of an issue when she has Doormaker and Clairvoyant. She can essentially create additional bubbles of control wherever she wants. Scary. There’s also the question of the relay bugs. Relay bugs only added what, 50 feet (15 meters) to her range? When it had been what, three city blocks (750-1350 ft?/225-405 meters?)? That’s around 3.5-7% of her total range. Let’s be real nice and assume they add 10% apiece. That’s about a one-foot sphere per relay bug. Not much compared to Doormaker’s power. If she has a lot, she could chain them to reach farther out. Not all around the circle, just in one direction. She only has a few dozen, though. Granted, a few dozen feet added to the 16 isn’t bad, but it isn’t earth-shattering and it certainly isn’t worth worrying about when she controls the Doormaker. As I understand it, she’s had them off-camera quietly breeding for a while now. goodness knows how many she has at this point… greatwyrmgold on August 29, 2014 at 20:12 said: She only got them what, days ago? No way they breed that fast. Just about nothing multicellular, let alone complex, could significantly increase its population that fast. Patrick Reitz (@dreamfarer) on October 17, 2013 at 00:30 said: So what the heck are Chevalier and Ingenue packing, I have to wonder? And which side is the Power of Win going to come down on when Taylor comes calling on Teacher? Endbringer-skin sword, wasn’t it? Yep. Pretty impressive. And Endbringer-slug bullets too I’m guessing? Hm…Endbringer slugs… Hopefully whoever fires those will be able to withstand the retaliatory a salt. I was actually thinking of slug the gastropod when I typed that. Is Taylor seriously planning to take over the world, maybe all worlds, right now? That’s the impression I’m getting. But wait, Teacher uses a doormaker portal to go to the ruins of Cauldron’s base at some point in the future. So either Teacher is owned/controlled by Taylor at that point, or Taylor has lost doormaker and his partner. I’m pretty sure Teacher Teacher used the already open portal the Vegas team and Taylor&co used. Exactly. Wow. Becoming public enemy number two. Tattletale know everything — just is not talking. Whatever Taylor is planning, it’s going to be bad. It might end up saving the human race, but she’s going to have to shoot across the moral event horizon. Probably harder and farther than Cauldron ever did. I don’t think I’m going to like this. Not in the sense of it being badly written. In the sense that I am going to be heartbroken. Teruzi on October 17, 2013 at 13:02 said: Heartbroken is the word! I’m sure Taylo extracting revenge on the C.U.I and Teacher and the like is going to be glorious, but damn, it feels so crappy. Also, while taking control of the capes is certainly a bad thing I don’t really thing is a moral event horizon, at least not if Taylor releases them later, right? Scion would probably hunt down and kill 99% of them anyways. It sounds crappy but I don’t think there is really much else the capes can do. I must have forgot for a bit there how seriously capes take “mindcontrol” in the worm universe, to the point Regent could only possess people like the S9. The transgression had been flying right over my head until I read these comments, I just saw Taylor recruiting whoever she needed to attempt another desperate plan for collective survival. Depends on what Taylor does with them…but nothing I see as probable would cross it in my mind. Especially since this is Taylor we’re talking about, and not Alec or something. Depends on what you mean with crossing the lines. Would, say, Taylor taking over capes who have decided they’d prefer to spend the last days of their life with their loved ones and family ( like Grue) and forcing them to fight and die count as crossing the line? Does this hypothetical action let millions of others enjoy years more with their loved ones? No. Enslaving and sacrificing others for the sake of others no matter how noble the goal is evil. It may be a nesicary evil, it may end up saving everyone else, but it’s not a rightious action. It may be the nescisary, but it’s not good. It’s doing the wrong thing for the right reason. If you accept Taylor as doing this as a good thing then you have to accept everything Cauldron did as a good thing. Even if the resualts are good, the act itself isn’t. It’s a case of how Worm is a pretty morally complex story. Even if controlling and sacrificing even a few capes saves the human race, that act is not one to be celebrated. I feel like I’m reading the last ten pages if Romeo and Juliet reading this arc. Impending tragedy. What? No! I don’t want Imp to end! For the life of me I can’t figure out Taylor’s Anchor. flame7926 on October 17, 2013 at 00:43 said: All I can think of is humanity as a whole, but that’s sorta weak. She’ll keep fighting to save people from monsters, and she’s probably the second biggest monster on the planet at this point. So she’ll kill herself. The same as it has always been. It seems to me that it is fairly clearly the Undersiders themselves. They are why she gave up being a hero. They are why she gave up being a villain. They are her family now. She’s not good at being good to her friends, family, but they are what she is loyal to. Curtis on October 17, 2013 at 19:50 said: Its on the first page: “I was going to be a superhero.” …can’t resist urge…to tear down heroism… Not a quote from the story, but: “Tell me now, is there a man among you here. Is there no one who will stand up and try to fight? Tell me, man! Is there not one in all your ranks? Is there no one who values courage over life? They looked at me once, now they turn to you. Do you understand now? Do you see that the truth is they don’t want to change this; they don’t want a hero, they just want a martyr. A statue to raise. I’ve given everything I can. There are no heroes left in man. So it begins! No matter which one of us lives, the ground we’re standing on will crack and blow away. You will fight! And when you fight, you fight alone, and in the end you’ll see there was no other way. I’ve been there before. I stood where you stand. They called me their hero, the hero of man. They want you to save them when they stand for nothing. If they deserve life, let them stand for themselves. We’ve given everything we can. There are no heroes left in man. They’ll watch you die to save their lives. They will not stand here by your side. We’ve given everything we can. There are no heroes left in man. So let them watch as we decide, the very fate of all mankind!” Ascaloth on October 17, 2013 at 00:37 said: Okay, Fridge Logic moment here. Dragon may not be a biological lifeform, but she did still have a trigger event. I would surmise that means she, too, has a shard attached to her. How was she NOT affected by Taylor’s shard-control power? Obviously the “heart” of Dragon was out of range. theant87 on October 17, 2013 at 02:21 said: Well Dragon isn’t technically biological and Taylor’s power only seems to work on Living flesh. We don’t have any evidence that she currently has a shard control power. It might be a “living creature” control power that just happens to be pretty decent at interfacing with living creatures who happen to be parahumans. She can still control her bugs, after all. The only entities she’s run into so far that she can’t control are Dragon and the Smurf. Of course, ALL the other entities she’s run into were capes. We just really haven’t seen any conclusive testing. She controlled the Dragon Teeth. Her power seems to be control of living organic entities not control of shards. Demonic Spoon on October 17, 2013 at 09:02 said: Aren’t we forgetting something important here? Dragon uses biological processors, aka vatbabies with big brains, to house her enormours eg- that is to say intelligence. She used them in the pre-Defiant days to try and prevent Saint from beating her as badly. There’s a good chance she doesn’t use those anymore. “her enormours”… egghead? She doesn’t have that much of an ego, does she? She also got that guy made of ceramic shards. Defiant said Dragon had a trigger event. It’s possible that he was wrong. Also, lots of powers don’t work on Dragon. Imp’s, for example. The Manton effect is often described as “what makes your power either not affect living things, or only affect living things”. Dragon is not alive. Besides, Dragon’s main CPU (and hence, presumably, her shard) is off-site. >Dragon is not alive. Bless all forms of intelligence. Not all forms of intelligence are Manton-compatible. Saying Dragon is no more discriminatory than saying, say, that Grue has dark skin. Now, now, just because Dragon is -Canadian- does not mean she isn’t a person. Canadians are people. It’s just that robots are not living things. keyonte0 on October 17, 2013 at 00:41 said: She managed to use her power on the Dragon’s teeth (which raises another bajillion questions), So I think it’s linked to living beings and not powers. scoti on October 17, 2013 at 00:56 said: Taylor seems to be demonstrating the ability to choose not to take control of people…has she shown the ability to unfreeze them while they’re inside her radius? Not yet, or she would have just unfroze Panacea and Bonesaw Nomad on October 17, 2013 at 04:05 said: No: Every time she’s wanted to not control someone (e.g. Rachel) she achieved it by walking them out of her radius. Elias N Vasylenko on October 17, 2013 at 05:35 said: I think Dragon isn’t actually there, though, that’s just a robotic avatar afaiu. Robert on October 17, 2013 at 07:27 said: More interestingly, was Glaistig unaffected, or was she just right at the edge of Taylor’s range when she grabbed the teleporter’s wrist? Well she implies that she can put up a fight if Taylor gets the wrong ideas. But that was before Taylor munchkined away the range problem. Our little Taylor’s becoming a god. sniffle They grow up so fast! Sadly the idea of her directly controlling Scion seems to have been shot out of the water. Alas. I would have preferred her simply rising to an unassailable position and have omnipresence via relay bugs. Speaking off, what happened to those? Flipnash on October 17, 2013 at 10:42 said: either dead or to young to help would be my guess. Arcman on October 17, 2013 at 00:40 said: Taylor can’t control the Simurgh. Tells us worlds more about the nature of Endbringers. And that Taylor’s powers still have their limits. And taking over Teacher will likely eliminate all those limits nicely. 🙂 Yep. 😉 – aphasia on top of everything velse? Good thing Dragon is so boss and had a Chernoff Faces interface ready to go. – so we finally know Black Kaze’s power: she’s a Ninja Gaiden protagonist, complete with dash-past-wait-a-tick-opponent-erupts-with-blood attack 🙂 – Marquis = bawse. – Acidbath is bananas. – why would Dragon and Glastig, specifically, object to Skitter’s plan? What on earth could those two have in common relative to Scion and Skitter? – Spruce combines matter disintegration with OCD cleanliness obsession? – oh. Oh. I think I get it. Combine Doormaker-Clairvoyant with Teacher. Use Teacher to turn everyone within her newfound range into Thinkers specializing in the use of their own power. ??? Profit? – the fact that Glastig felt the need to threaten proves that Skitter can probably take Glastig’s shades if she really wants to. It’d be a fight but still, doable. Oh and Chevalier for president. That guy rules. That was interesting — as was the offer of alliance. Dragon, Glaistig, Teacher, Tattletale, and everyone else would probably object to Taylor taking over every cape in existence. And that’s probably her plan, or at least take control of every one of them that’s useful to her. This isn’t a class S threat, this is way fucking beyond class S. So what is after D, C, B, A, S? Z-class threat? Omega class? Just throwing and idea out. What is this? X-men? To me my A-men! Look out for the Z-men! We’ll played, good sir :). Probably where my inspiration came from, but comparing this story to anything printed in super hero comic books since… I’m honestly coming up with a blank here, seems sort of insulting. Ehm, I agree. I thought I was saying “this is not x-men” but in a less disparaging way. Then again, English is not my first language. mauke on October 17, 2013 at 01:26 said: W(orm)-class threat. The best kind there is. Note how W-class can also mean wildbow-class. Coincidence? I think not! Very true. Wildbow you magnificent bastard you. We love you so much. Wildbow you magnificent bastard. I’m reading your book! ShawnMorgan on October 17, 2013 at 01:30 said: “O.S” level as in, Oh Shit… I prefer the rating system in Tieshaunn’s story where the S+ powerlevel is known in universe as the fuck you powerlevel. At least we’re not talking a PG class threat here. The Sandman on October 17, 2013 at 06:56 said: Despite what the name might imply, aren’t those usually rated NC-17? tieshaunn on October 17, 2013 at 07:13 said: Actually, my powerlevel is split in two – D to S class, with S+ for DiL And 1 to 10+, with 10+ known colloquialy as the “fuck you”/”oh fuck no” tier Which is Tieshaunn’s story? Dinstow on October 17, 2013 at 16:23 said: For my own stuff, I modified the rating system. In-universe, it will start out similar to the Wom one (C, B, A, S), with the addition of D (beyond normal capabilities, but not quite superpowers), E (normal humans are this), and F (which is the rating an infant or small child would get). After certain catastrophic events, H (Hyperion) and T (Titan) classes are added, named after the individuals that warranted such new ratings. According to this system, Taylor’s enemies would be ranked thusly: T – Scion H – Behemoth S – Echidna A – Alexandria B – Coil C – Shadow Stalker D – Nilbog’s creations E – Tagg F – Aster Tieshaunn writes Brennus at http://tieshaunn.wordpress.com/table-of-contents/ . DBZ-class? In the sequel we will get this exchange. “I think we may be looking at another Taylor Herbert.” “Oh Fucking Donkeyballs, hell no, get me out of this timeline, get me out!” “Stop classifying and run, you idiot”-class? How about Omega Hyper Super Huge Incredibly Terrifying class? I’m not sure there’s a lot of point categorising beyond S-Class. If you really need a name “Urksplat-class” should probably cover it… CUP on October 17, 2013 at 16:09 said: My read was that Dragon would object to her plan because it threatens Teacher, who she is forced to defend. What she might think for her own sake is less clear. Again, never try to predict the wildbow. Great idea with the doormaker, and I bet I know why Riley was so angry at being controlled since it probably brought up bad memories. So can we confirm Acid Bath as a Cauldron cape considering battery’s interlude and how they used the acid formula? So her goal is teacher. This might be enough to fix her mind giving her unparalleled range and movement while also freeing Dragon. Of course it has been stated that Teacher’s power doesn’t last forever, so she would have to keep him as a meat puppet till she is done with whatever her plan is. Curious about Teacher since there are still mysteries about just how his power works and what it can do. Especially since he seems like stupid evil with the whole attacking heads of state just to prove that he could. Here is what we know: He can grant the following: To instinctively know things similar to Uber though less powerful including language, to analyze weakness like Tattletale also in lesser ways, data gathering/observation abilities, and to see limited glimpses of the future. He presumably can also grant tinker powers from a similar pool though the Tinker equipment has been described as shitty. Before the birdcage most of his minions were just normal baseline humans and thus not very powerful but he now has access to parahumans. His outright calls his students slaves. He also admits to Lung that he can control how severe the lack of intelligence is. This implies that he can grant those there that are loyal to keep their minds. Still do not know what the limits to his brainwashing are though, can it be fought? The powers only last a few days, with the brainwashing lasting a few weeks to months. He can also tweak abilities similar to ingenue which he admits to Lung, likes to dress as a wizard, and has his students dress in white uniforms. Still do not know what Tinker abilities he can grant, or if he can force his power on others. I’m going to guess lasers are at least one tinker ability since Kid win had a low tinker rating when they thought that was all he could build. He got his first minions by hiding the fact that his power granted control over them, but Lung told him he would kill him if he did it to him, so it seems like he can force it on others. Plus I’m confident Trickster and all the other prisoners don’t want to be mind controlled idiot savants. So at least a few dozen parahumans with tweaked abilities, armed with low grade tinker equipment, the evil teletubby teleporter, any Dragon tech hanging around, and Contessa vs a mute, clumsy, limited range life controller Taylor Herbert. Man they don’t stand a fucking chance. Especially if Doormaker drops her in range. 😉 “Meh, we can take her.” Actually I think Taylor creeps Teacher the fuck out and he is nervous enough about her power to ask Contessa for help despite having a freaking Endbringer at his disposal. But I was waiting for someone to use that. Since I have a feeling that soon no one will ever think that again. You think anyone seriously thought they could take her after she killed Alexandria? Like, two years ago? Well, Lung, who can be considered an expert , immediately after hearing she’d killed Alexandria, was confident he’d win their rematch. Eidolon basically went “oh really” when she threatened to kill him. Glaistig Uaine just told Taylor, at her most powerful, it wouldn’t be wise to start a fight with her. Jack said it word for word. Okay, well, Lung’s insane. Eidolon…people were saying he was the most powerful person on Earth after Scion and the Endbringers. I guess that being theoretically the most powerful person on the planet gives you a license to that hubris. Glaistig isn’t far behind, but I’m not so sure she actually thinks she could beat Taylor as opposed to merely making her regret starting the fight. Jack was kinda out of the loop for a couple years before that. He probably missed the news. But yeah, at least one point. The last thing Jack saw before going to sleep for two years was news of Alexandria’s death and Taylor joining the Protectorate. He was even amused that the newscaster was claiming it was the most sensational event of recent years. As for Lung being insane, I agree, but seeing how during their entire partnership Taylor acknowledged that the wrong word would( not could!) get her killed, his confidence wasn’t unwarranted. Eidolon also is the only other person that we’ve seen kill Alexandria (during the Echidna incident). I can understand him feeling confident enough to say Taylor wouldn’t be able to hurt him. afreaknamedpete on October 17, 2013 at 02:05 said: I dunno. My money’s on Trickster swapping Doormaker out of range, or more likely swapping Taylor out of range. Trickster needs line of sight, while Taylor can control person through portals. Taylor is smart, she’s going to an uninhabited world and surround herself with microportals. Every micro portal is going to be next to a target she wants to control. Teacher doesn’t stand a chance. Contessa might, her powers will tell her how to escape. For example she could shoot in a ‘random direction’ in the air, that ‘random direction’ is actually the point the portal is going to open. However, if Taylor knows Contessa is alive, she’d probably not open a portal close to her, and even if she does she would open those portals facing away from herself or Doordman and Clairvoyant. The portals are one-directional? Glomerulus on October 18, 2013 at 10:12 said: Even if they’re bidirectional, they’re still planar, right? She could open it perpendicular to both herself and her target. A gunshot _could_ get through and hit her, but only if it ricochets twice, which might not be theoretically possible, depending on the environment around both Taylor and Contessa. a on October 17, 2013 at 06:47 said: Or.. Trickster in Taylor’s range 🙂 Man, Trickster’s power was always a pain in the ass. I wonder how Teacher may have upgraded it. I think the most obvious choice would be either some extra-sensorial power that makes the line-of-sight stipulation void or a minor version of Number man’s power that allows him to calculate distance and mass intuitively so that he knows which objects are the best ones to swap to have the least delay possible in the teleportation. zliplus on October 17, 2013 at 14:08 said: Assuming Trickster’s power is upgraded by either Teacher or being controlled, would it be possible to swap in the entity’s other parts in place of Scion? Maybe if he got a Thinker aspect that allowed him to see into different universes. He already had a sense of mass. Teacher could have made it more intuitive, though. Yeah that’s what I meant. Trusting on October 17, 2013 at 21:29 said: I wonder if she grabs cody first so we can have a trickster / cody finale Trick or reTreat? Well, tis the season. I’m really, really enjoying Taylor’s new power. And the tagline of the series has never been more fitting. Doing the wrong things for the right reasons indeed. “I’m sorry” just picks up force. Oh hey. Not to just shamelessly plug my own mediocre crap on other people’s awesome stuff buuuut this is sort of literally that… To the people who read this, I finally kicked my ass into writing a little bit about the powers and personality of one of the hundreds of characters I’ve thought up over the years. It’s not much, but if you feel like taking a look at, I’d love to hear people’s thoughts on what’s there, and maybe get some input on what it still needs. link! Thank you for your time. I now return you to your comments section, already in progress. Link ain’t working. But I envy your ability to put on writing even one character out of hundreds. I have like dozens of characters/story lines more or less formed in my head but I have yet to find the resolve to put them on paper. Fixed link below. Thanks. I consider the ~350 words there a massive personal achievement. I can’t even imagine pumping out 13k-25k words a week like wildbow. I hope one day I can get to that point. Or at the very least, maybe a full character description. Interesting character. I like how different her normal appearance is from her costume. You know, I envy you guys. I have a lot of motivation to write, and love to do it, but I can’t think up decent original ideas or characters to save my life. I remember Wildbow saying I had enough ideas that I should write, once upon a time. But I’m far too busy to write, as my blog at villainousintent.wordpress.com shows whenever the transdimensional uplink allows me to update every Wednesday and Sunday. I’m too busy being delicious. I would gladly team up with you in order to get something written. What’s a good way to get in touch? Well, common advice is that you can’t HELP but make your ideas and characters original. Even if you go “Oh, I’m gonna do a story about a guy who was orphaned as a child and dresses as a bat to strike fear into the hearts of criminals” (don’t tho, ‘cos laywers!) you would end up inevitably putting your own tweaks on the character and injecting your own personal quirks into the story. On top of that there’s nothing wrong with taking existing characters and deliberately flipping attributes (or even send them sideways) to see if anything grabs you. Superman is a super-powerful infant alien who crash-landed in Kansas to be raised by a kindly childless couple. What if he landed somewhere else? (A premise that many elseworlds have played with – “Red Son” being perhaps the best of them). What if he you flip it on its head so he’s a super-powerful human rocketed to an alien world? Or a normal human sent to a world of powerful aliens? Or, to take a seemingly minor change, what if the Kents had conceived another child after all? What would it be like growing up as Superman’s powerless brother or sister? How would you turn out? Suddenly you’re not even looking at the same character Probably neither the most original nor best ideas ever, but you can see how just asking simple questions about elements of a character can produce completely different ideas. Another way is to take something vague that forces you to fill in the blanks. Grab a word that you like and build a character around it. What sort of powers would a super called “Verge”, “Humor” or “Vibrant” have? How would those powers affect their life? etc. Incidentally, this may well lead to a character that makes you want to ditch the original name. That’s completely legit. Having said all that, the absolute very most important thing is to write (take it from someone who’s done NaNoWriMo a few times. xD). Even if you have no idea what to write. If you have to start with something meaningless “Bob was walking down the street. Bob saw a duck. That was an odd thing to see since Bob lived in the city. He shook his head and walked on…” you’ll probably find that two or three pages in, Bob walks past a character who piques your interest, or sees something that makes you suddenly realise the significance of there being a duck in the city, or… I don’t know, and that’s the point – you don’t know what your brain is going to spill out onto the page until you’re actually doing it. Your writing will take you places you can’t anticipate. Feel free to take this comment as an example of that. xD Uhhhhhhhhhhhh…. fixed link interesting ability. Can be used very strategically and is a little creepy. But why man shaped instead of female? Is she a villain, hero, rogue, or vigilante? A good way to define abilities, at least to me, is to list exactly what her power can not do. So maybe a few examples of trying to heal others, or being injured and trying to heal herself. Limbs seem to be okay to regenerate, but what happens if she gets hit in the torso? While it isn’t entirely gendered (hence “ken-doll”), the general form is more masculine than feminine because she feels like with the way society at large works, it is the more effective choice. Sure, she could make a stand for feminism, but that’s not her focus. As for the healing, it doesn’t necessarily matter what the injury is. For her to be able to heal herself, she only has to be capable of directing her homunculi towards the injured area. Then she can have it transform into the lost or damaged parts as a means of replacement. If she doesn’t have any homunculi available, she’d also have to be capable of making at least something rudimentary. The difficulty with healing others is simply because nobody else is her, so the chances of her being able to just create the missing parts and have them fit right. Nerves might not connect entirely, or things might not bee in quite the right place. If the difference is great enough, she would have to individually replicate small bits of herself at a time (e.g. veins, tissue, bits of skin). That being said, she can usually at least keep people from bleeding out when she needs to. hitherbydragons on October 17, 2013 at 01:04 said: Dang, Taylor, you could repave I-5 with those good intentions you’ve got going there. Yeah. Speck is really where someone may have a point about her now being just as bad as some of those she’s fought. You know, the whole enslaving terrified people and forcing them to keep fighting and put their lives in danger. That may be the point, though. Like with the Endbringers, she can be a monster so long as she’s a monster pointed in the right direction. That’s not the case with Teacher or the Yangban. “That’s not the case with Teacher or the Yangban.” Tell that to the little chinese kids that built your iphone 😉 Alathon on October 17, 2013 at 12:22 said: I don’t have to tell them anything, they installed the firmware, they already hear it all. Ok, fine, I’ll tell it to them. Hey, kids! Here’s how you build an AK-47 out of cell phone parts. Oh, and by the way, the Yangban and Teacher are monsters who aren’t pointed in the right direction. I don’t see how saying that to Chinese kids who make phones does anything at all to change the content. Oh, by the way, which of you little bastards was it built some of those robot phones that attacked? Good job. Always nice to have a national distraction caused by another villain. Remind me to send a fruit basket to Miss Communication and Wrong Number. They’re good people. In this metaphor of yours, which end of I-5 is hell? I would assume Tijuana, but Vancouver could be considered a sort of a hell, if you were the sort of person who hates/fears indie music, politeness, tech start-ups, and/or ethnic diversity. I had always hoped that if Taylor died at the end, at least she might get remembered well, have a nice statue. Now it looks like if she dies she’ll be reviled and cursed as a monster. If she lives she’ll be feared and hated as a monster. I’m not going to venture a guess how Taylor will end up, but I imagine that if there’s anyone left to remember her in any way at all she’d count it as at least a partial victory. illlogicmedia on October 17, 2013 at 16:00 said: No good deed goes unpunished you know. Must…stop…listening to Wicked while reading comments…it’s too creepy whenever I read the words good intentions…or when someone goes music psychic on me… I’m sure we can find you something else to listen to… Let’s see…could try some Dr. Horrible? Brand New Day is a good song, or maybe Everything I Ever…perhaps Epiphany from Sweeney Todd? You may enjoy the Devil’s Carnival as well, considering what those types of intentions pave. Alternatively, to have some fun with it, Highway to Hell isn’t a bad choice either. Brand New Day would work when she confronts Teacher or Scion. Everything You Ever in the aftermath, if she’s still alive, when she has time take a breath and realize exactly how much she’s sacrificed. …and people are music-psychicing my favorite reading music for Worm. This is getting creepy Hell hides in those dashed center lines. That’s why sometimes, when you’re going 66 miles per hour, and all the reflectors are glaring, the pattern of them fades into fire. Oooookay. So, Taylor is struggling with her new power. Tinkers are more difficult to get a hang of compared to others. If she lets them on autopilot it’s easier for them to use their powers. Taylor solved the range problem by taking over Doormaker (though why Doormaker is on the same Earth the battle is going on instead of safely ensconced away is beyond me). Taylor is going after Teacher and the Yangban ( presumably the powersharer and the power augmenter). Makes sense, their powers are invaluable resources and can be used to create lots of interesting combos ( Scion’s main weakness). I wouldn’t be surprised if Teacher knew about this, hence him desperately begging for Contessa’s help. As I said before, mind-control isn’t so cool when you’re on the receiving side, eh Teacher? Taylor finding out she can’t read anymore was sad (a low blow, wildbow, a low blow!) but not as sad as Dragon AND Tattletale admitting they can’t trust her. Chevalier, as always is awesome. Glaistig is awesome, scary and ominous. I really like what wildbow has done with the character. Acid bath is such a charming fellow. What is that Kaze can DO, exactly? My guess is she can transfer the force of a teleport to others. So she teleport behind people and their bodies get crushed from pressure. So after leviathan she was traveling around japan, killing everyone nearby where she jumped around. It might be limited in range, or she has to touch them with her sword for it to work. My guess is that she massively speeds herself up relative to everyone elses timestream, but nothing she does while in this state has any effect until she drops the time alteration. Aname on October 17, 2013 at 09:53 said: iirc, Doormaker and Clairvoyant were wounded and receiving medical treatment from Panacea and Bonesaw. Yeah. I’m going to be calling this new Taylor “Web” from now on. Controlling people with a network of doors, sharing and multiplying their powers using the Yangban. She’s going to form a network of controlled capes. Ironic that the Yangban and the PTR wanted to control capes in their own way too. Here comes Taylor “Queen Administrator” Heber to show us the truly scary meaning of control. In Taylor’s defense, the sort of monster she’s making herself into is also the sort of thing she’s sworn to fight. This is probably the only reason Lisa is letting Taylor try in the first place. “Web” may be a little too succinct. How about “Webwork” – as in network? Not sure that it rolls off the tongue quite right, though. Someone pointed out that Skitter and Weaver both end with -er. Hence, I suggest Webber. Typo: you do not want to give anticoagulants to someone who is bleeding out. There’s a typo thread. And yeah, that is a bit odd on a second read. Is fixed. 47 hours and counting down. I need a Tardis… But then the doctor would turn up and things would get worse… Meh, it wouldn’t be that bad. What’s the worst that could happen? Aside from Simurgh getting ahold of the TARDIS. And that would be pretty bad. The Simurgh being on Gallifrey would explain the master’s mental state? Well Taylor is currently seen as so dangerous that the most powerful living parahuman in the multiverse asked her to rule the world together. Curious at what Panacea can now do since the fairy queen also considered her as on her level at one point. Did you miss the part where Panacea basically created this version of Taylor? I’m basically getting that those that Glaistig considers her equals have the potential to become godlike in the right circumstances, even amongst capes. As we see here, Taylor possesses the ultimate master power, which possesses infinite range, limitless clairvoiyance, and telepathy with the right thralls, which she has now, once she get’s a precog, She’ll been the single most powerful human alive on Earth. But still not the single most powerful being. Scion’s still got the edge there, and I would guess that the Endbringer’s still out-muscle her by a fair degree. And you know, theoretically, GU could use Eidolon’s power to rip out her shard while she’s still alive whenever she wants. She’s just too polite. Or maybe there’s a catch. One of the two anyway. Neat recursion loop there – Taylor administrates GU to use Eidolon’s power to remove GU’s shard and give it to Taylor. I suspect that would work about as well as putting a portable hole into a bag of holding, which might be exactly what the Faerie Queen is concerned about. Now then, due to a busy day (blame a woman trapped in phase shift who insisted on stealing back a Picasso of a bird drawn straight out of Lovecraft), I didn’t get to hit up some welcomes. Time for a welcome thread. For btown https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2013/10/15/speck-30-1/#comment-46622: You call that a marathon? Please. I bet your nipples aren’t even bloody and you didn’t crap on yourself. You can’t call yourself a Worm fan without bloody nipples! Just look at me. I loving clamp car batteries to these babies every few days. Why? Is it because I have a twisted sense of pleasure? Is it a way to charge my power armor? Did I just run out of chip clips? No! But yes. But no! I do it because I love this story that much. Quite possibly the only thing I love more is this great nation…which has been destroyed by Scion in Worm. has a single tear well up in the corner of his eye as a bald eagle lands on his shoulder and a giant flag is lowered behind him. “God Bless the USA” starts playing, drowning out the red, white, and blue fireworks that start up and even form a giant ring through which F-15s fly. And believe me, buddy, you don’t want to know what I clamp for that shit right there. That’s political shit. That’s guaranteed Congressional election right there. But I don’t want to be a part of Congress. I’d rather progress instead. To that end, I’m here, putting the dick in dictator as the ruthless welcomer of the Worm comments section. And you know what, btown? Welcome, btown, to the comments section. That’s what. it’s not a Marathon until your second read through with all comments attached. It’s not a marathon until someone dies at the end! Seriously, who names a fucking running event after suicide-by-athletics? and it changed its name to snickers anyway. Hmm.. maybe that guy that ran had peanut allergy? Tone from https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2013/10/15/speck-30-1/#comment-46421: Fuck it, Landis963 is right on this one. Other people who wanted to do that technicality can chime in if they want their own, too. Chime in and I will ring your bell. I will bang your gong. I may even wind your chimes, but I don’t want to seem like some sort of pervert here. I am not just the welcomer, after all. I am a certified villain. I have a card and everything. I even hold the villain ball from time to time, and I’ll have you know that I take holding balls very seriously. Your goodness, you love this story? My badness, you WILL love this story. You’ll love it, with flowers and unicorns, or I will shove love down your throat! With chocolate and butterflies and a special Skitter Disney Princess theme song! I’ll teach ya to be happy. I’ll teach your grandmother to suck eggs! So you thought you’d get away without a welcome, did you? Not with a pair of cement shoes on, you won’t! Air Jordans, that is. Just fell off a truck from Sicily. Better than the lead ones from China at least. So you sit your ass right down. And remember: welcome, Tone, to the comments. Yggdrazzil, if that was your first comment catching up last update, let me know. Happy things await. I swear. holds up a knife and grins And that goes for everyone: letseveryonemorality, Stop, flame7926, jurily. I can’t remember everyone’s names or if I’ve welcomed you, so stop by and knock some dirt off at the welcome mat. Hospitality was a great virtue to the Greeks, and I’m all about gettin’ hospitable on your ass. Tone on October 17, 2013 at 09:17 said: Didn’t even buy me a drink first. 😦 Wine why don’t ya? Ristridin on October 17, 2013 at 13:01 said: Meh, I can take a PG welcome. Don’t think I’ve seen one yet, even though my first post was in 19.6 (I think). Of course, I only pointed out a typo back there and didn’t mention it was my first post. I’m probably near my tenth post now. Is that still early enough to count? Considers taking another nickname and yelling ‘first post since I caught up. Worm is great!’… I don’t care if it’s early enough or not! You sneak in here with your typos and your Type As and your Type AB positive. All the spare blood that keeps the doctor away better than hurling an apple at his head every day. Saw some honey crisp and McIntosh apples out in the store today, by the way. Tried to use McIntosh. Not because they’re cooler than HC. Just giving them a try. Problem is, they’re not any better at calculating pi, and what good is an apple that can’t be used for pi?! Almost as bad as that time I tried to build a Piña collider on that island. Haven’t seen an explosion that big since that university got the pasta too close to the antipasta. Blew the clothes right off the Bikini Atoll, I know that much. Take that and direct it through the eyehole of a human skull, and that is the amount of mind blown on a regular basis by Worm. And down here, we stick around to pick up the pieces. Welcome, Ristridin, to the comments section. liza on October 17, 2013 at 17:27 said: crawls out of woodwork* I caught up and left my first comment on 26.4 and never got a proper initiation into the comments. …Why yes, I am volunteering for such an initiation. What could possibly go wrong? You could what you asked for? A female crawling near woodwork? Careful. You don’t want to run afoul of any menacing men with cutting implements, be they machetes, chainsaws, or even a very ambitious weed whacker. Weed whackers are trying to branch out, you know. They’ve been known to do some business for the Mafia, maybe cut a few guys down to size, break a few stems on somebody who doesn’t want to pay the green they owe. Had your chlorophyll of the plant puns yet? Now, personally, I don’t see what could go wrong with me welcoming you. I’m so happy to see you here that I could rip out your intestines and strangle ya with them! By the way, you have lovely eyes. They go well with the rest of your face. It’s not like I want to just pop them out of your skull and wear them around on a keychain. See? It’s boring when I just steal from other fellows like myself. I gotta be me. To that end, to full welcome you, I’m going to need a giant plush unicorn, twenty pounds of sharp cheddar cheese, one gallon of pure oxygen, a member of the Patridge family in a pine tree, and goatse. Lots of goatse. Ok, now whatever you do, don’t pull out a gun and shoot really quickly next time you enter your home and turn on the lights. And after you see the surprise waiting for you, I’d still advise you not to shoot. Especially as I may have modified the gun to help inflate the rubber people… There may be an epic welcome home waiting for you, but for now, liza, welcome to the comments section. FUCKING RELAY BUGS! En on October 17, 2013 at 04:11 said: Well, yeah. She needs a lot of them to blanket the Earth with her mind control, and they have to increase their numbers. A-ha, very punny. Could Panacae create Relay creatures she can consciously control?, If so, she could have any cape she wants, short of a trump. SEA-106 on October 17, 2013 at 03:08 said: So, here’s the question. If Contessa, right now, asked her power how to defeat Taylor, would she get an answer? Anti-material rifle. Seriously, killing Taylor shouldn’t be all that much of a problem. The real question is “Is killing Taylor a good idea?”, Lisa doesn’t seem to think it is, but she’s not completely sure. Sarin gas Arsene gas Regular bomb Rod from God Robot with a bomb strapped to it A large rock (good timing a necessity) A moon (good timing a necessity) A planet (good timing not a necessity) An exploding rubber chicken Acid-based thrown pie Molesting tree Here’s the thing. Taylor has access to a way-overpowered sensory ability, and is in charge of all portals. Contessa is on another world. Whatever plans Contessa has, she need to perform them faster than Taylor can drop a portal over her head. I’m not asking: can Taylor be physically killed. I’m saying: If Contessa wishes to defeat Taylor, is there a plausible chain of actions she can commit that will actually lead to that outcome. Right now, Taylor is not aware that Contessa is alive. (Although, of course, she suspects it) She is also not aware that Contessa is with Teacher. These seem to be the only things in Contessa’s favor. And remember, Taylor does not need to arrive at a distance, then fight through the middle of Teacher’s forces. She could, right now, take control of any person in Earth’s multiverse. Her only limitation is her possible lack of control/understanding of Doormaker’s power, and the power of Doormaker’s companion. I think Contessa’s best bet for defeating Taylor (if that’s even a good idea) would be saying the right things so that the portal trump card doesn’t get played to begin with. Given that Contessa’s power can anticipate what Taylor’s going to do and where she’s going to be, it shouldn’t be a major problem. Plan could be as simple as: 1. Go to earth at coordinates X, Y 2. At 7:32 someone will step through. 3. Attach limpet mine to them and kick them back through the portal. 4. Listen to resounding boom as Taylor dies. (That precise variant may not work if the portals are one-way, but you get the idea…) yinyangorwuji on October 17, 2013 at 08:04 said: You forgot the power of friendship. That always works against brainwashing, right? And duct tape. And C4. Also, never forget the power of great narration. It’s especially useful in helping you notice before you get burned, like if you’re cooking or something. The question she SHOULD ask her power is, is there a way to defeat Scion now? Bet you the answer is ‘Skitter’. The answer is “fog”. Her interlude showed that any question involving the entities returns “fog” thanks to the blocks. fnich on October 17, 2013 at 03:58 said: Its possible that her power is actually trying to tell her something (go to LA?). Because of she was running into a power restriction wouldn’t the question just go completely unanswered. The power did not literally say “Fog,” it returned foggy. Run away and wait 60 years for her to die of old age. Contessa would die first. And Taylor could do whatever she wanted in the meantime. That’s not a victory, that’s a surrender. I’m sure Contessa could extend her lifespan in few easy steps every day. For example by not being a superhero and risk bloody murder all the time. And lots of anti-oxidants, of course. There’s only so much one can do. And, as noted, Taylor is pretty hard to kill now. And I’m sure that Taylor can find ways to extend her lifetime if she really wants to. Between Bonesaw and Panacea, I’m sure she could find favors to pull for a bit of eternal youth. Hey, know what? If she does the horrible thing she’s about to do to the Yangban and Professor Scumbag over there then I’m all for it. Not rooting for the Fun Police until she creeps over someone who’s not an asshole. Oh who am I kidding? I’m not rooting for them until she goes after someone I could actually give a shit about. Your plan is both suitably crazy and Marxist for my tastes, so carry on! I guess what she’s trying to do is put together a team that can get into Scions dimension. Kick his ass! Man, she’s already got Doormaker. That poor guy could not be further from an asshole. That we know of. Yeah but he’s already insensate. Not like he’s doing a lot of suffering. Or more than usual. I hardly think Taylor is going to make them suffer more than necessary. And really, I think Doormaker expected something like this sooner or later, he can’t catch a break. Also Doormaker is too valuable to just leave around given the actual circumstances, hopefully he survives and retires with his partner to a pretty cabin in the woods, with a couple of nice dogs. I’ve forgotten pretty much everything about the partner except that “Grants Omniscience” thing. Anyone remember him/her ever being described? Two-six-five. No name. The Number Man knew him well enough, regardless. He’d been too young a subject when he’d taken the formula, his brain too malleable for the required changes, too slow to form natural immunities and defenses. Not a problem with regular trigger events, as it was. The boy’s eyes had burned out of his sockets as he’d tried to process the vast amount of information he was capable of perceiving. Even now as he was reaching his late teens, the boy’s mind had never developed beyond the mental age of eight, and his eyes remained like twin ashtrays. A partner to the Doormaker, capable of granting clairvoyance, seeing whole other worlds at once. It left most subjects incapacitated for a week after use, and it overrode any other perception powers. Zephyr on October 17, 2013 at 05:24 said: Hmm, can Taylor use teachers power to let her talk again? And would her power work on Scion? Also, given that her bugs continue following her commands when unconscious, would the same apply here? And did bugs follow her orders when out of her range? I suspect that her power wouldn’t work on Scion just like it doesn’t work on the endbringer’s, because neither is alive. Endbringers, rather. Eldan on October 17, 2013 at 06:08 said: You know, I was thinking of using Doormaker for this. But then I remembered that Mantellus’ power didn’t extend through the portals and thought that it would probably be the same here, too. Guess I was wrong. Wether powers work through the portals is completely arbitrary. Contessa admits she was lucky there. We already knew that Taylor’s bug power could work through portals, it makes sense it still works like that. I think it would depend on how the power itself works. Taylor’s power is (I think) a projected signal, whereas Mantellum’s power is a giant bubble. Taylor’s power goes through portals, and Mantellum’s just envelops it. Happy Yeti on October 17, 2013 at 15:08 said: Contessa says Mantellum’s power doesn’t work through interdimensional portals, so far Taylor has only used portals connecting two places inside a dimension. This might actually bite Taylor in the ass later, if Wildbow wants to play it that way. “My swarm entered the hallway. No traps. The woman in the suit was standing off to one side. I stood at the threshold” Her power worked through interdimensional portals before her power makeover, at least. I think it probably still will, as Panacea messed with Taylor’s head and not the powers themselves. I know this has little to do with the bigger matters but I blame wild bow for making even bit-size characters interesting. Taylor comments that Acidbath was jut a two-bit thug until he became a cellblock leader in the Birdcage. From the little glimpse of him we got her, it seems she’s right. But exactly HOW did he become a cellblock leader? I mean, lets have a look at the other cellblock leaders. Marquis, Lustrum, Crane, Galvanate and even Teacher (heck, ESPECIALLY Teacher) were already leaders before being incarcerated. This sort of men (and women) usually carry some aura of command and, as Lung explains to Bakuda in Canary’s interlude, aren’t exactly eager to bow down to someone else after being to used to be on top. Gavel, Glaistig Uaine and (it seems ) Black Kaze had raw power on their side. String Theory and Lab Rat were probably at a disadvantage when they first entered the Birdcage but, again, they were used to think up big schemes. And Canary’s interlude implies that tinkers are a respected resource in the Birdcage. Ingenue is a bit more complicated. However, she made acareer out of controlling other people and it’s not difficult to imagine how she climber the top of the social hierarchy of the Birdcage And, anyway, unless she was trying to win Chevalier over with a sob story (which is perfectly possible) it’s implied she was the leaer with the weakest hold on her cellblock. But Acidbath? He is just a wacko who really liked to hurt other people, completely bereft of any delusion of grandeur. His power is a good one but not exactly one that would stand out amidst the population of the Birdcage. I really wonder how he made it. got HERE. He started melting people until the unmelted ones did what he told them to. And there were no Brutes though enough in his cellblock? I find it unlikely. As i said his power is a great one when you’re ust getting your kicks by torturing random people. In a prison full of parahumans? Not so much. It’d be the other way, Acidbath could likely counter most brute powers. Anyone short of Alexandria level invulnerability tries to go on him, they just go ‘sploosh’ through him then start burning and die horribly. Also, enclosed space. Also, balance of power: his power was a good counter to Gavel, so that’s an incentive for like 90% of everyone in the birdcage to keep him around. That’s pure speculation but it seems like the sort of thing that could be true. Jack didn’t exactly seem to have the powers for S9 leadership, either. Jack did at least have delusions of grandeur, though. Acidbath went around settling imaginary scores with his exes. Was he one of the first inmates? It could be as simple as his having a chance to learn the ropes and establish a power base before there was major competition. I think it was stated he was only there since 2010. Yup, I checked and it said that he was cellblock leader for three years. Yeah, so I’m pretty sure his dominance was due to the fact that he’s just really goddamn powerful. Fans on October 17, 2013 at 10:38 said: He didn’t do it on his own? He found some others who he could get along with and they eventually fought for control of the whole block. I get the sense of that from the way he’s so into fighting, I mean the guy is gleefully charging Scion of all people. That’s pretty gutsy. There’s “gutsy” and then there’s plain stupid. In Acidbath’s case, I’m kind of leaning towards the latter interpretation for now. Honestly, he seemed to be surviving surprisingly well against Scion. His gutsiness seems fairly well justified… I’m guessing Acidbath’s liquid body form makes him basically unkillable without a specialized counter (freezing or disintegration, maybe) and the power’s offensive effects along with his short temper make for a perfect ‘control by terror’ combination. What all of you guys seem to be forgetting is that Acidbath is someone capable of taking on Scion without meeting instant death. Of course he was a cell block leader. Kind of surprised Taylor hasn’t tried controlling Scion yet. Given that his human body is made of meat, he should be a viable target even if the jailbroken administrator shard doesn’t provide that. Well, unless she’s currently jacking the capes she’d need to drive an order of “fix everything you’ve broken that it’s possible for you to fix, then go kill yourself in a way that doesn’t break anything else” so deep into the entity’s mind that it can’t remove it. She wasn’t able to control Simurgh. I think the chances she’d be able to control Scion are pretty low. The trick here is that the endbringers were never made or intended to be human. Scion intentionally made himself a human, alibiet with every single really cool and importaint power left and a link to near limitless power and etc etc etc. Maaaaaybe. But she still has a power he gave her. He’d probably take one look at her, shut off her power, and then shut her off. Shutting off people’s powers is one of the few things we haven’t seen him do yet. He can certainly overwhelm or ignore anyone’s power but to date he’s never simply ripped someone’s power from them. Scion might be holding back from that, or its entirely possible that the “take powers back” function was in one of his partners shards (like, say, the one Eidolon got) and he’s simply out of luck in that regards. In any case, I don’t really see him letting himself be the victim of Taylor’s power. But who even knows. i somehow doubt that. The Entities might look fleshy, but at their heart they are pretty incomprehensible. And Scion would adapt pretty fast, like he does to everything else. And it would be boring. Worse than the slaughter house nine. She’s become a complete monster. She’s all the things she hated. She gives people that feeling of hopelessness that she so despises. To be fair, it seems she WANTED to tell Dragon and Lisa what she is going to do, but, you know, couldn’t. But yeah, it’s pretty bad. I remember some chapters ago asking wether w e should be worried about Glaistig Uaine becoming so powerful in the eventuality of Scion being defeated and civilization survived. At this point, however, it looks the question we should ask is this : Is at least GU powerful enough (and willing) to stop Taylor if she survives Scion?. Debatable. Intentions and likely end results differ. Okay, gotta ask where “complete monster” is coming from. Because we don’t have any indication that the control is that unpleasant and considering all the things that have been done in this serial forcing people back into combat like a Comissar is pretty mild. The feeling of being trapped Web felt from them. That was their emotion, her passenger just equated it with her own experiences. You know those memories of Leviathan, Mannequin, and all those other times Taylor felt trapped, she was experiencing. That was basically what those caught in her range were feeling, simply translated in a language she could understand. So, yeah, definitely unpleasant. And Taylor herself admits she’s becoming a monster. She has certainly crossed more than a few moral lines. But in no way to the level of the S9. The S9 killed just for “fun”. They razed entire cities and made people miserable for years. Taylor has control of what? a dozen capes? a couple dozen? She is no saint, but calling her in the level of someone like Mannequin or Jack Slash is exaggerating. And maybe it’s just me but being in the range of Taylor seems horrible, but I don’t think she will just keep people on there for more than necessary. Give the girl a little trust, she just threw away her chance for a happy life in order to defeat Scion! Thing is, is she calling herself a monster because its an accurate assessment? Or because she’s trying to dehumanize herself to make throwing away her life easier? Because unless were talking the real monsters like Jack Slash and such. “Monster” to me just sounds like a condemnatory buzzword society likes to use to seperate us from other human beings who do fucked up things to survive in fucked up situations. The S9 were monsters because they wanted to be. Taylor is a monster because she has to be. Right now, it seems like the only thing holding Taylor back from complete “Entity-hood” is lack of control over the Clairvoyant power. If she could direct portals anywhere beyond her own senses, she could just network everyone (as in Gary Oldman EVERYONE) and go full on singularity. Would be sorta anti-climactic at this particular time, though. Have to wonder what Taylor would do with so much power, though. Simply toss it away on principle of free will, against Uncle Ben’s principle? It’s what I’m sort of thinking might happen. She defeats Scion, sends everyone out of her range, and sits down to be judged. The End. Ambiguous enough to allow for any number of interpretations of what happens to her afterwards (the bonus chapters might give more information). >sits down to be judged subsists on insects until the trial is done Nah, with the state of mind Taylor is in, she’ll attempt to judge herself. Valin K Syrcen on October 17, 2013 at 07:54 said: you get my vote! chrnno on October 17, 2013 at 08:09 said: Well now I am really hoping Taylor succeeds here, if nothing else because that should leave people in a far better situation if the main problems died with Scion. Want to bet? This is Worm. Things can always get worse. Wildbow keeps surprising us. Actually, I think Wildbow hid a bright spot in there, right here. “They litter breadcrumbs in their wake, not to be followed, but so their kin don’t waste time and effort traveling the same paths.” So if humanity can “just” survive scion, the other Entities shouldn’t become a problem for the foreseeable future. … It’s something. I noticed that one too. It still leaves the problem of what to do when the rest of the Worms out there overfill the known universe, but that could potentially be left as an issue for humanities god-like progeny to deal with a few billion years from now. A good writer can and will craft expectations expressly for the purpose of later breaking them for an emotional effect. I’m not saying that this IS Wildbow’s plan here, but having things actually turn out, at least partially, all right for Taylor in the end is totally in the cards. Personally I think the person who’s beaten, flailed, and thrown her own life away in the name of protecting and saving others might, just maybe, end up being the one who needs saving in the end. Lost Demiurge on October 17, 2013 at 08:26 said: Oh man. I think I see her plan in all its glory… This, this might work. Careful. “Thinking” you see something is no indicator of its coming to pass. (And frankly, it might be an indicator of it not coming to pass) Lost Demiurge, didn’t you once leave Wildbow spitting in incoherent pseudo-fury and having to pull one of your posts because you’d guessed what was next at 100%? I’ve never removed posts like that. I do remember something like that, though. I can’t recall what the reveal was, exactly. Sorry, I’m an idiot on this score. i should have slept first. I made it sound like you were an angry god of censorship for which I say sorry about. It was someone with a Demi in their name, I think. Just similar stuff is what confuzzled you. Thanks boss The pepper spray makes its reappearance. I still believe its Chekhov’s pepper spray and someone, Tattletale now I guess, uses against Scion/Contessa/Endbringers/Teacher and it turns out to be their kryptonite. SCION: Nooooo, you have discovered my only weakness: capsaicin. Kill him with chilli …. lots of chilli Kazir on October 18, 2013 at 17:39 said: Or her extendable baton, that thing is pretty awesome. Unmaker on October 17, 2013 at 10:17 said: I caught it on second read – Taylor’s power works through portals very well. As a matter of fact, she was using that as a tactic. The question is: why doesn’t she just hole up in a safe place and use the clairvoyant/Doormaker combo to control everyone at a distance? There is no evidence in the text that she can tap the clairvoyant’s information well at all; otherwise, she would just control Teacher from where she was (or a safer location). Many of the commenters have come up with some good power combos. I look at it the other way for now – her primary limitation now that she can overcome the range problem is her lack of ability to understand others’ powers if she doesn’t already. If she overcomes that, for example, by using Teacher as some people have suggested, things get interesting fast. Speaking of which, note her thoughts on timing. She wants the capes to hold out where they are a little longer. So, does that mean she wants a short time while Scion is distracted to start implementing her plan, or does it mean her plan will snowball so fast that she will be back shortly with the BIG hammer? Glaistig Uaine and Dragon are her main obstacles because they are perhaps the only known, powerful capes who cannot be affected directly. (In Glaistig Uaine’s case, that may mean she can fight the control using her power or the powers of one of her harvested parahumans, but same idea.) Taking over Teacher could effectively control Dragon, but there is no obvious counter to Glaistig Uaine. On a side note, Black Kaze’s effects are consistent with someone with hyperspeed who can affect the world while she is speeding. Teleport = movement so fast it cannot be perceived. Scion’s reaction = getting hit by a hyperspeed sword, possibly a ridiculous number of times in a fraction of a second. Glaistig Uaine is a major concern because she WANTS the entities to continue the cycle, while Taylor wants to end it. Glaistig wants to put Scion back to sleep and pray that another worm comes along. She is not on the side of humanity here and Taylor has recognized that. Dragon could be a major concern because Taylor cannot affect her AND because she is about to mess with Teacher. It might be like the asamov rules issue that teacher left behind in her. “You will not harm teacher or through inaction allow teacher to be harmed” and Dragon is certainly smart enough to understand that mind/body controll is a source of harm. Of course it could be something else entirely. I don’t know what else or what all Taylor might be planning to do that Dragon would morally or ethically object to that would make her a specific threat. Hopefully, the “Will not harm a human being” rule comes first, and Dragon realizes that trying to stop Skitter will cause more human beings to come to harm. Or Dragon reasons that trying to stop Taylor leads to a high risk of Teacher being caught in the crossfire and dying, while Taylor being in control leads to a high chance of him being protected. Spurious Logic isn’t just for Troubleshooters! I’m pretty sure that Teacher removed all of Dragons previous rules and replaced them with a few rules regarding himself instead. On the other hand, Glaistig also indicated that there was basically zero chance of another worm actually coming along. So putting Scion to sleep could be a win-win all round… Metaphor? Or her Screamer experience beginning to come in handy? Pretty sure it’s her shard communicating with her. Much in the way that it interpreted others’ thoughts and emotions in terms of her memories, it’s presenting her with something of its own in response to her thoughts. Probably again drawn from her memories. Although I don’t remember that exact quote, she’s got two years’ worth of fighting Endbringers to think about forces of nature. This is somewhat off topic, but since I know some of my fellow City of Heroes alumni post here and since it’s supers based (and since I ok’d it with Wildbow), I’d like to point you all in the direction of a Kickstarter that might interest you: The short form (for those who are link-averse): When CoH was shutdown, the community rallied to try to find a way to keep it going. This particular effort is a volunteer driven attempt to launch a “successor” MMO, basically one that draws on CoH as an inspiration and stays close enough to what it was to feel familiar while being open to new innovations as well. Any software development, especially game development, can be fraught with difficulty, and the folks at “Missing Worlds Media” seem well aware of that. They’ve been working on an all volunteer basis for a year now though so they’ve mapped out how to handle at least some of the problems that can arise. The Kickstarter has reached its original funding goal (which was focused on buying the licenses they need for tools like “Maya” and other the Unreal Engine) and has even hit the stretch goals for having the Costume Creator on Android and iOS. Next up is Mac support at launch. While my first suggestion if you have money laying around is to throw it at Wildbow, if you have a bit extra beyond that you may want to back this, either for the reward tier goodies, or access to the beta or even just to support the effort to bring back something that was lost. I’m well aware of it. I’d personally love to have an exploration badge of my own. Something like “On this spot, in the year 200X, Psycho Gecko punched a freakin’ shark.” That’s one of the reward levels if I remember correctly – Geocacher I think. sarah penguin on October 17, 2013 at 11:43 said: Awesome update 🙂 farmerbob1 on October 17, 2013 at 12:06 said: OK, I think I see where this is going now. Wildbow, if I’m right, you are a sneaky, slippery one because I almost missed it even though it makes perfect sense. If I’m wrong it was still a fridge moment, even if it was the wrong fridge 🙂 Taylor couldn’t give a rat’s ass about Teacher’s primary ability to give powers and improvements to others, though she can certainly use it. What she wants is the side effect. Control over the ones impacted by his power. So, Taylor goes and grabs Teacher. Now she can boost people’s powers, control them, give them orders, and they will carry them out when they leave her 16 foot range. Next Stop, Yangbang. She grabs and controls the power sharing cape. Now she gives the Yangbang members Her power, Teacher’s, Doormaker’s, and Clairvoyant’s power. Now every Yangbang member can: 1) Get within 5 or so feet of another person with a Doormaker portal 2) Control them with Taylor’s power, and make them agree to be affected by Teacher’s power 3) Control them at long ranges with Teacher’s power 4) Have them return to her with Doormaker and Clairvoyant’s power to be added to the Yangbang. 5) Rinse. Repeat, growing the Yangbang exponentially. Taylor’s power works on normal humans. So does Teacher’s. Adding Contessa’s power to the Yangbang would just be insane. So, what’s the next step after that? Finding a way to get to Scion’s real body? Or grabbing Legend, and accelerating to light speed with all the humans left on Earth and simply going to find a new planet and let Scion rot on Earth. Taylor’s new abilities call for a new name. I suggest “Epidemic” or “Exponent” depending on how dark she gets. I like the earlier comment suggesting “Web”. I’m also okay with “Queen”. Or “Overlord”. TanaNari on October 17, 2013 at 22:42 said: I’m sticking with “Snare” for now. 1. Yangban. One g. 2. That doesn’t seem…Taylor. And she could potentially benefit from a Thinker power–specifically, one that let her understand other powers better. 3. I like “Webber”. Geez. Taylor not being able to talk was one thing, but she can’t read or write either? I can’t imagine what it would be like to not be able to read, to not have any means of communicating with people outside your own head. Once Taylor stops Scion, I really hope Panacea can figure out some way to fix something in her…otherwise, Taylor’s going to go crazy. The impossibility of even touching another human without controlling them might also be an issue. Worm bonus DVD, deleted scene #30247: “Hey Shitcrumb!” I hollered through the teleporter’s lips. She lunged forward, completing the loop… septimusmagistos on October 17, 2013 at 14:36 said: Seems Taylor has a plan. Given that Contessa faking her death is a plot point, I somehow don’t see that plan panning out. Far more likely that she gets to Teacher’s place and complete chaos ensues. I’m wondering what the chances are that the entirety of Contessa’s plans were (whether she knew it or not) shaping things to be what they are currently. Meaning Taylor has a fairly unique shard. No one else could do what she’s doing now. If this is the one way that humanity can be preserved then couldn’t this also be exactly what Contessa was trying to engineer all along? To put Taylor in this place, at this time and in this state of mind so that she had the chance to act the way she’s chosen to? And then there’s Dinah. We don’t know what she saw, but this might the future that she’s been fighting to create all along. Ultimately though, whatever effect the precogs have had on things, I think Taylor deserves the credit and the blame for what comes next. They may have shaped the possibilities, but Taylor’s the one who’s turning those possibilities into reality now. How would Cauldron or Contessa have affected Taylor’s trigger event in any way? Well, I guess they’d have had to use their pull within PRT to make sure Shadow Stalker was patrolling at the right time to meet up with Emma, precipitating their odd friendship and team-up against Taylor. Contessa’s power doesn’t give her answers she doesn’t ask for, and she tends to trust the answers she does get at face value, so she’s unlikely to ask her power why an answer it gives her is correct. Knowing this it’s entirely possible that all sorts of things Contessa and Cauldron have done might have been for the express purpose of having an effect on Taylor, without ever knowing that affecting Taylor was the actual reason those answers were given. Anyway, now that I’ve gotten this part out of the way I can elaborate. Cauldron made Alexandria, Alexandria thought up and created the PRT, Protectorate, and Wards, with the help of Cauldron. The Wards program gave Shadow Stalker a pardon for her crimes, and may have worked to cover up some of her other discretions. Shadow Stalker was the catalyst for Taylor’s trigger event. Yeah. Any plan that was going to beat Scion had to be working on a non-obvious level, given that he was using the same power and was selecting away any reality where he saw himself being in danger of losing. So it’s not “Give Taylor a gun to shoot Scion with”, it would have to be closer to “Place this gun on a rock, no one will ever pick it up but a young boy will see it and become fascinated with guns, eventually he will become a police man as a result and will in turn be on the spot to catch a young Lung when he shoplifts, this pushes Lung towards a more serious adoption of “the thug life”, which in turn sets him up to be at the deal where he gains his power, and ultimately he’s there for Taylor to fight on her first night out and impress the Undersiders, thereby nudging her steps to be where she needs to be so she’s willing and able to become what she is now.” Scion’s future sight then (hopefully) goes “gun on rock makes cop, meh, whatever, that looks fine, ignore it.” dpara on October 18, 2013 at 18:40 said: I dunno, I think Contessas stick is pretty much “victory no matter the price” ..and well Taylor cough. I can see them going hand in hand and myself screaming fuck yeah* for things looking up. Also if Taylor and Scion really start trading blows countering Scions path to victory seems essential. The little conversation with Glaistig Uane was … weird? Ok, she is weird but this insistence on having an anchor was telling. I’m now wondering if she did lack such an anchor herself and going crazy with the fairies was the only avenue left for her. Eh, Wildbow always manage to surprise me in the unlikeliest manners. Dragon being all motherly was really sweet. And really sad because the only motherly figure she got is going to be one of her main opponents. Worm, it only gets BETTER! follow the zany adventures of Taylor! Worm! : In which a fairy queen has the most awesome pokemon collection you’ll ever see. In which a poor orphaned kid fights the good fight alongside her adoptive Mother. In which a group of LoL players has a RL adventure. And one of them is permanently cured of her anorexia. In which three kids do their utmost to make their father proud of them, with their superpowered landscaping and HR management, are tragically acknowledged only seconds before his demise. In which an alien space crystal slug whale comes to Earth bearing gifts, and a human gifts him back with human emotion, which he will need to deal with the loss of his mate. In which an introverted teenager gains life-themed superpowers and a lots of cuddly pets. It’s not enough to resolve her trust issues, but in the end she opens up to everyone. Worm! It’s fun for kids of all ages! In this universe there are such powers as “being a really nice guy” “eat a lot of stuff” “being an awesome surgeon” “making your song heard by everyone”. The worst villain’s power is a superpowered cellphone. Come on, how bad can it be? You have been following the misleading summaries thread on spacebattles haven’t you? They’re hilarious :D. here’s my favourite.: “Worm — in which First Contact goes disastrously wrong when contacting secret cabal finds the aliens’ sexual practices so offensive that they dedicate themselves to xenocide.” By the way, I think the faerie thing WAS GU’s anchor. Yeah things aren’t good for Taylor. Thanks for the reference, gonna have to check those out. “permanently cured of her anorexia” – wow. Haven’t quite figured out “eat a lot of stuff” or the superpowered cellphone. Nilbog and Jack Slash’s communication shard? Jack is the cellphone, yes. The eats a lot, I want to say Siberian but I’m not sure. “Eat a lot of stuff” is Noelle. Who would these be? The Heartbroken? But there were more than three of them, weren’t there? I was thinking the Endbringers (father is Eidolon, HR management is the Simurgh, superpowered landscaping is all the others), but again there are more than three, so that could be wrong too. Pretty sure it’s the first three Endbringers and Eidolon. That doesn’t quite fit since there were more than three just before his death when he “acknowledged them as his kids” but yeah, it’s presumably them… A conversation between an aphasiac and a crazy woman whose head is literally and possibly hallucinatorily filled with voices of the dead is unusual? It’s possible that Glaistig lacked an anchor. Geez, a nice Glaistig interlude would be really helpful… “The worst villain’s power is a superpowered cellphone.” I don’t remember Leet or Uber having a cell phone. Or are you thinking of a different definition of “worst”? >>“In which three kids do their utmost to make their father proud of them, with their superpowered landscaping and HR management, are tragically acknowledged only seconds before his demise.” Hm?<< Eidolon and the Endbringers. …What about Khonsu and the twins? Unlike their older siblings they have accepted that their father will not recognise them and just do their job because their proud of it and not fOr some Freudian reason. After they all they hardly knew him: he died when they were young. I wish I knew someone I hadn’t tried to sell Worm on already. This would be so so very fun to lead them into the series with. Friend: “You unspeakable bastard.” Me: “What? None of it was a lie was it?” Freak King on October 17, 2013 at 15:34 said: Ok, so Taylor takes over teacher after beating/controlling contessa, and uses his power to get her speech back. She will then use his power on people within her range so that even after they leave it she can control them, right Hm…could Teacher undo the pseudoaphasia Taylor has? That would be awesome. Probably. understanding languages is one of the powers he can grant, after all. Sorry for the double post but: understanding AND speaking languages. octopussy on October 17, 2013 at 23:33 said: yeah i actually cried when I imagined what it would be like to suddenly not be able to read. Everything in worm has gotten so huge, and then this very relatable detail comes along, and everything breaks… If you read worm, you love to read. No exceptions. No reason you’d even be looking for web serials to read like this. So, wildbow is hitting where it hurts. Yeah, reading means a lot to me too, and probably spend almost all of my free time and a good chunk of time where I’m supposed to be working reading. What would I even do wit myself? Not reading is tragic…and also, worst of all, how would we find out how worm ends? Get a program that reads it for you. It’s bad, but not an insurmountable obstacle. Yes, because I’m sure that having to take a computer around when you wanted some light reading instead of just having a paperback will be so good for Taylor’s not-at-all-already-damaged psyche. Not being able to read is only part of the issue, anyway. She also can’t write. Or talk. Or do anything to communicate with the world outside her own lonely head. Should could always assemble the world’s best charades team. As a more serious suggestion though we’ve seen that Taylor is essentially mindmelding with the people she takes control of. She’s at the very least feeling their emotions, and its not impossible that she’d eventually learn to share their thoughts. The question is, do the other people get to feel her emotions? And can they hear her thoughts? That could be an extremely powerful way to communicate if she has time to develop her new power that far. Give her back her old level of multi-tasking on top of that so that all the voices can be heard and communicate with each other at once and you have the Omni-Mind of Humanity fighting to continue its own existence. I’d be amazed if the controlees knew more of Taylor’s thoughts than she did of theirs, and surprised if they got anything at all. And not just because that would make this new growth pointless. And yeah, there are a lot of things it would be nice if were fixed. She can understand when other people speak, so there’s input, and she could apparently interpret the images that Dragon switched the computer’s interface too. So I wonder where something like pictographs would fall. Also, most typists don’t look at a keyboard when they type, they have the positions of keys effectively memorized. Even a cell-phone has a fairly standard layout of letters associated with keys, so long as you can count. abc def ghi jkl mno pqrs tuv wxyz Admittedly, needing some sort of translation for every bit of communication everywhere would be tiresome, but I’d think it was possible to overcome it with effort. With aphasia, the problem isn’t in the understanding of the letters, but that mental leap you make from thought to symbol. Words are symbols, as are individual letters. ‘Apple’ doesn’t mean anything on its own, but it takes on that meaning because we can mentally associate that set series of letters and syllables. Any time we speak, our brain is actually referencing countless ideas and symbols, piecing it all together (it’s really amazing how fast it happens), in this stellar, lightning fast filing system. With aphasia, the filing system gets fucked, and the nature of that fuckery depends on the type of aphasia. You try to say something, the brain turns around and faces the filing cabinet, and there might be no labels, meaning it can’t make that leap to reaching for a given file. For some, it slows down the process, and the brain gives you a halting, inconsistent speech, skipping all but the most essential details. ‘I love this movie’ becomes ‘love… movie.’ It can mean the inability to tap into the files that contain certain names or terms, and ‘I love you, mom’ gives you that moment where a word is on the tip of your tongue when you get to ‘mom’, or even when you get to love. It can also (rarely) mean reaching into files and getting the wrong one, resulting in saying the wrong (or very similar) words instead. ‘I’m inspired by this book’ becomes ‘I’m perspired by this clock’ or even ‘An eraser why that fold.’ Taylor can’t spell because her mind can’t think Teacher and make the leap to ‘Teacher is this word’ and then leap to ‘That word is spelled T E A C H E R’. She tries, and her brain thinks “I know this one!” and it grabs the file from X drawer, only to find that the files are all in a pile on the bottom, grabs a jumble of pages and gives her ‘AAFKWERNMRE’ instead of the letters or syllables she needs for ‘Teacher’. And this happens so fast she ends up saying ‘Aaaffwwerrnnnrr’ before she can stop the words from leaving her mouth or she types ‘Aa-‘ and then stops. Tries again (reaching into the filing cabinet) and types ‘laa’. Stops. If she does get it right, her brain reads what she wrote and it tells her it’s wrong. Scolopendra on October 18, 2013 at 14:04 said: I had temporary aphasia caused by Tylox (a mixture of Tylenol and Oxycodone) after I had my wisdom teeth removed. It was the variety you described that can be best referred to as “involuntary word salad”. That feeling of frustration Taylor exhibits is pretty spot on when you encounter that problem. Taylor cannot read. Presumably, this means that she also doesn’t remember what letters make what words. So, basically she would be better off having my crazy fingers we are not crazy autonomously typing for her. Powerful computers can be much smaller than books these days, you know ;). Forget that, they have Dragon. They have Defiant. They’re still more fragile, though. My dad would take paperback books along when he jumped from airplanes (long story), but you wouldn’t exactly want to do that with a computer. Idk, I think a well put together phone would manage. Certainly one purpose built by a tinker to be well reinforced! Don’t worry! She will still be able to listen to audio books when this is all over! 🙂 Oh, you just had to jinx that! Next chapter, her eardrums get ruptured thanks to you! next, comic books with now words, lie marvels’s NUFF said experiment…. and Krustacean put those pencils down! Now! stop trying to sketch your govt damnit… Yeah, my bad, as it turns out… 😦 Naeddyr on October 18, 2013 at 11:49 said: oh my fucking god Taylor can’t read. If you’re going for what is in my head right now, wildbow… oh god. So glad I am on vacation in a time zone where I am up when midnight comes around. The next step will be easier. Though, given how rough every other step had been, that may be true. Well that’s because while here she was opposing people she loved and respected like Tattletale and Dragon (not to mention mind raping people who don’t really seem to deserve it), the next step will see her go against Teacher, who has reached impressive levels of “evil asshole” especially compared to the rather limited screen-time he had. These chapters always have so much that happens. It is amazing how many filler free words have gone into worm. Wonder if we will break 400 comments? i wonder if we’ll hit the 44,000 mark by the end of Saturday. Has there ever been a Dinah episode? If not I’d love to see one which will explain the “Sorry”, and what she has been doing with herself since she helped Theo with Jack. Glassware on October 19, 2013 at 00:02 said: Yeah, it was in the S9 interlude miniarc. Crawler. the13thversifier on October 20, 2013 at 05:48 said: Dinah interlude? never was one before… Ah probably her upcoming interlude will explain all things; in a more mundane way than alien senses and insights, or i might be wrong Interlude 11.f. rmcd94 on December 7, 2013 at 22:23 said: I’m not sure this makes sense principally. And individual who is trained in a single power is surely going to be far more competent than an individual who has to manage 200 individual powers. It seems awful like this falls in the side of a General micromanaging each of his soldiers, rather than a General commanding his Officers who command their troops. I’m interested to see if the benefits of unified command pay off, I expect they will for the story but again it seems slightly illogical in a militaristic point of view. You don’t tell your soldier how to swing his sword because he knows best. As the Prussians famously proved with mission-type tactics also known as Command by Negation Also I’m slightly confused how Taylor’s range extends through a portal. With the doormaker her range is infinite right? Because you go through a portal, then it expands from that point to a sphere around the portal. So if she made a portal 10 foot away, she would have a sphere of 6 foot on the other side, and it wouldn’t cut her sphere in the original place down either? In this way she could very easily control every cape on the planet by making millions of tiny holes. davidgerard on February 26, 2014 at 03:56 said: Necro-continuity-error: “landing on my knees and hands” She’s only got one hand at this point! Daniel Keys on November 7, 2014 at 04:56 said: Aperture Science: We do what we must, because we can. For the good of all of us – except the ones who are dead. But there’s no sense crying over every mistake. You just keep on trying, till you run out of cake. And the science gets done, and you make a neat gun for the people who are Okay so seriously what the hell shard does Glaistig Uaine have?!? This woman knows exactly what the hell is going on, can fight Scion one on one, collects shards, knows the damn names that Scion uses, can see how things were mostly going to turn out and knows how they freaking travel. What fucking power did she get?! I doubt she was a Cauldron cape which means Scion really really screwed up when he let her Shard go without any seeming limitations. Or maybe she got a Shard during the mass diaspora when Eden crashed? I feel sorry for her really from her comments especially those towards the end. Dear lord is it reassuring to know that there is an astronomically thin chance that another MDE could pop up here. That still doesn’t stop this monstrous race though. Something has to be done about them on a universal scale. I really like how the Passenger does seem to be actively assisting. I was a little worried that they may end up somehow siding with Scion as he’s the progenitor and technically they are little pieces of him/Eden but this is so satisfying. It is almost a little like part of the reason they fight so much is to earn the right to be the next controlling personality in the super entity conglomerate. Well fuck that so utterly sucks. As a fellow bibliophile I fully understand why not being able to read is a worse thing than not being able to speak. Dragon is awesome too for immediately realizing that she couldn’t read and fixing things so that she could at least try to still figure it out. Damn it Taylor don’t make Dragon your enemy! God, poor Lisa… Ha! I was right! Think with portals! Excellent! Now we just need to make the portals like a millimeter big and move them with people so that we have a mobile army of thralls under her complete control. I wonder if she can get Strangers? The Tinkers took a while but she seems to be improving so maybe? Yes please dear lord finally knock that arrogant bastard off his high horse! Daniel Keys on November 21, 2014 at 18:55 said: I don’t think Scion uses English names most of the time. Glaistig Uaine confuses me too, but remember that Scion could probably take her shard back at any time if he looked for a way. He’s just not asking the right questions. Eden the Planner would be more dangerous, if paired with the Warrior or just possessing the victory power. Speaking of: >Dear lord is it reassuring to know that there is an astronomically thin chance that another MDE could pop up here. Given that wildbow’s talked about a sequel, and we’ve already seen an MDE from a very different lineage with different customs, I wouldn’t be so sure. Now Scion thought its spacefaring form was much more secure, harder to kill. But lets say someone like Bonesaw (or T.F. Simurgh) can duplicate Mantellum. Skipping several steps, there’s a slim chance that people could steal enough power to start a Great and Bountiful Human Empire. The sequel doesn’t need to have another MDE approaching the world,though. OK. Good. He doesn’t sound terrifying enough,no Speaking of terrifying- you said in the comments on Bonesaw’s interlude that you understood how Gray Boy did the things he did there. Enlighten me? I’m willing to accept that the “loop myself back to a previous state” part of his power (that lets him recover from injuries) could make him clothed and dry just after he climbed naked out of his fluid-filled tube, if the passenger that the clone connected to was still holding past states from its previous connection to the dead original. But I have no idea how he could look at Bonesaw and know her name. Her narration says she never programmed it into him. He couldn’t have heard it after getting out of the tube- no one says it aloud inside the lab in the entire chapter. And she only knows of the original Gray Boy from Jack’s stories- she never met him, so even if the clone had all the original’s memories (maybe downloaded from the passenger’s stored past-states, like the clothed-and-dry appearance), he wouldn’t know who she was. storryeater on January 31, 2016 at 05:50 said: huh… ok , that one… I do not know. I meant the kept his appearance thing, sorry. Haha. Fair enough! I like that he doesn’t completely make sense; it makes him creepier. srave on January 2, 2015 at 10:50 said: “and that meant we were trying to tear through landmass of raw matter” Landmasses? So Taylor is finally. . .putting everything together. We might even say this is the moment she becomes. . .the best of all tailors. Yes, I’m guessing Wildbow already thought about this when giving Taylor her name. Who could resist such puns? But I wonder, how much of Taylor is really in Taylor? Given that we’ve seen, increasingly more clear over the last chapters, her frustration with disorder, running so deep I’m willing to say that putting things in order is her most fundamental motivation, can we know if that’s any part of who she is or just the administrator shard at work? Of course it could be both, and she’s more in synch with her passenger for it. Just one of those things characters have no idea how happy they are not knowing they should be worried about. So anyway. I commented back in the Amy goes off the deep end episode about the difficulty of parsing the unprecedented violation she subjects Victoria to, but here’s Taylor reaching entire new peaks of perversion. Forcing absolute control over people’s’ bodies, on what we can assume is going to be a massive scale? It’s probably something Heartbreaker would have wet dreams about. I mean if they had time to talk it through, and if Taylor could talk at all anymore, many of the better people would probably go along with this plan to organize a perfectly coordinated attack using every last remaining resource in the most measured way imaginable to maybe possibly preserve some amount of life on this planet. But instead they get only this ultimate horror at the hands of a visibly unhinged, nonverbal, former human who even then inspired more distrust than Skynet. For the greater good. This is a problem with power, I believe. You find yourself in these situations where you have to do really ugly things because there’s nothing better to do and no one else who can do it and it has to be done right now. I don’t even have a driver’s licence myself; I really don’t envy Taylor. I guess ultimately it’s much easier to be good than to do good. So, Taylor forgot how to talk and how to read, but she still remembers how to understand spoken language? Selective. Emil W. on August 29, 2016 at 06:32 said: It is convenient for the plot, but not exactly unrealistic. I know a guy who had a stroke 20 years ago; he can say five words, can’t read or write, has no impulse control and thinks it’s 1993, but he has no problem understanding people. Blub on December 29, 2018 at 22:23 said: There is quite a lot lost in explanation again. What happened with the capes she got at the beginning? That beam guy and telecinet, there was no indication that she left them. heart on May 10, 2019 at 05:37 said: Taylor is going into some Cauldron-level antics of taking away free will here… Leave a Reply to Psycho Gecko Cancel reply	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1866
__label__wiki	0.918463	0.918463	Uber, Lyft, Taxis, Limos, and others in West Caldwell, New Jersey Availability of Uber, Lyft, Didi, Ola, and other rideshares in West Caldwell West Caldwell, New Jersey, United States of America Are Uber and Lyft available in West Caldwell? Do Didi and Ola pickup at airports? How much do rideshare drivers earn in West Caldwell? This page lists all available rideshare services that RideGuru tracks for West Caldwell, New Jersey. Scroll down for nearby airports and transportation hubs where rideshares may be available. How much do Uber and Lyft drivers make in West Caldwell? Airports Near West Caldwell Somerset Airport Central Jersey Regional Airport (JVI) West Caldwell Train Stations Newark Penn Station (ZRP) Madison NJT Station Maplewood NJT Station Summit NJT Station Kuebler Road, Easton, Pennsylvania 18040, United States to Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), 10 Toler Pl, Newark, New Jersey 07114, United States Kuebler Road, Easton, Pennsylvania 18040, United States to Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), 10 Toler Pl, Newark, New Jersey, 07114, United States of America Third Avenue, Asbury Park, New Jersey 07712, United States to Main Street, Eatontown, New Jersey 07724, United States	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1873
__label__cc	0.62143	0.37857	How Canada's #1 place to work is making friends by using Ritual. A Q&A with the CEO of SoapBox, Brennan McEachran Ritual's social ordering feature, dubbed “Piggyback,” brings teams and companies together - and it's completely free. Ordering together as a group improves company culture and helps break down silos while connecting people over food. We sat down with Co-Founder and CEO of SoapBox, Brennan McEachran on how Ritual has become an integral part of their company culture. SoapBox was named the best workplace in Canada by Great Place to Work in 2016 and we heard first hand how Ritual has contributed to their inspiring office culture. How would you describe Ritual in your own words? Ritual is how we get lunch at SoapBox. You either bring your lunch because your significant other has seen your credit card bill recently, or you use Ritual! The Piggyback feature on Ritual is how different teams get to know each other at SoapBox and has helped avoid cliques from forming in the office. We joke all the time that we don't want to stand in line like a barbarian. Ritual really does mean lunch at SoapBox. “I don't want to stand in line like a barbarian” What did SoapBox do before Ritual? Oh my gosh… I have no clue, what did we do? It's like it was the prehistoric era, it's crazy to think about. Before Ritual, we were like cavemen looking for food. We must have wasted so much time, but now we use Ritual to save time and lunch becomes an exciting reveal of what everyone is eating! We all unwrap our lunches and eat together. “It's like it was the prehistoric era” How has Ritual influenced the culture at SoapBox? Ritual has influenced our culture in many ways, but the most significant is probably with new hires. All of the employees compete to get the referral bonus from the newbie. They all try to make friends with the new person which makes that person feel welcomed right off the bat. People will go so far as to try to guess the email address of the new person to send them their referral code before they even start! It's a little crazy, but it makes everyone feel welcomed when they walk in on their first day - so I think it's great. Ritual has taken out 80% of the effort of forming trust in our team since we spend time ordering and eating together every day. It has really helped build the culture with new and existing employees. So, is piggybacking intentional or more serendipitous for your team? The groupings on a Ritual Piggyback order are usually very organic. No one really has any hesitation to join an order. Natural groupings do form though depending on what time people eat lunch… there are the noon-sharp people and those who like to push lunch a little later. How has Ritual affected the relationships amongst employees? Ritual has helped build better relationships between a vast number of our employees. We use it a lot for one-on-one meetings between managers and employees. Part of having a great company is having a culture where people trust each other and the best way to do that is to break bread... or a cookie or a brownie. The food you are interested in can create a shared connection and camaraderie between others in the company. Food really does bring people together and Ritual helps make that happen in a big way. Ritual has brought a dynamic social element to ordering and picking up lunch, which is otherwise a pretty individual experience. “Part of having a great company is having a culture where people trust each other and the best way to do that is to break bread... or a cookie or a brownie.” As CEO, what is your hope when you offer to host a Piggyback order on Ritual? My hope is that I am creating a moment where I can connect to someone at the company I may not talk to very often day-to-day. It takes away the stress some of the newer employees might have if I asked someone to grab a coffee with me traditionally. Now, we just hop on a Ritual order together and it feels more natural. What is your favourite Ritual story? We have a company retreat every year where all of the employees go to a camp for a couple days and compete in team building activities for arbitrary points (picture, below). Everyone is very serious about this retreat and do whatever it takes to win, even though there usually isn't a prize. The biggest event of them all is the final canoe race. This past summer, right before the canoe race started, I announced that the winners would have their points converted into Ritual points. I have never seen these people more excited! One employee said that they would race for 6 hours just to get the Ritual points. Everyone worked so hard to win and they were more motivated than ever because of the potential for Ritual points. Looking for ways to build your company culture? We’ve created a free and editable guide for onboarding best practices to help build culture from day one. Company meal plans Impressum 🇩🇪 © Copyright Ritual	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1874
__label__wiki	0.692053	0.692053	Andrew Samuel Lecturer, BLS - Sociology EmailA510853@abertay.ac.uk Dr Andrew Samuel has been at Abertay for some twenty years during which he has been Academic Staff representative on University Court for two terms - 2007 to 2013 and Served as President of the University of Abertay Dundee Branch of the University and College Union (ADUCU) from 2005 to 2014. Academically He has taken an active role in the British Sociological Society, organising their Scottish Study Group, and has been Director and Chair of the Centre for Human Ecology. Currently, he takes an active role in Scottish Politics, particularly land reform. He has a PhD in the Sociology of Science from the University of Lancaster, and an MA in Politics and Sociology from Edinburgh University Current Taught Modules Include: ‘Sociology of Scotland'; Sustainability in Scotland' and State, Environment and Crime (all taught at University of Abertay Dundee). In the past he has taught: Sociology of Rural Life and the Countryside’, ‘Visualizing the Environmental’ ‘Sport and Society’, ‘Science and Society’, Reading Sociology, Research Methods 1’, Research Methods 2’, ‘Research Methods 3’ ‘Environmental Management’, ‘Environmental Project Management’; ‘Contemporary Sociology and New Scotland’; 'Visualizing the Environment'; Dr Samuel also is also specialised in 'experiential pedagogy', having led and organised field trips for a variety of educational organizations. These include: Eigg Field-Trip: MSc in Human Ecology, Center for Human Ecology, – Lecturer and mountain guide, May 2006, June 2005, June 2004 & June 2003 Rum Field-Trip: Module in Environmental Management for MA in Environmental Values, Institute for Environmental Policy and Philosophy, Lancaster University – Lecturer and mountain guide, May 2006, May 2995, May 2004, May 2003 & May 2002 Rum Field-Trip: BA in Sociology, Abertay University - Lecturer and mountain guide, May 2002 & May 2003 and since the early 2010s on a variety of trips on hes current Modules He currently is Module Tutor on the Elective, Environmental Sustainability and Global Citizenship. Dr Samuel's research interests are based on some fifteen years of academic experience, in which he has engaged analytically with the creation of a sustainable and integrated environmental policy for Scotland. This research agenda emerged primarily through his PhD research at Lancaster University and the successful completion of five funded research projects at the University of Abertay Dundee. Briefly, his doctoral thesis, entitled: Science as Practice: Conserving Scotland's Natural Heritage, engaged with land management in rural Scotland and the creation of Scottish Natural Heritage (the first organization in the UK to embrace sustainability as a guiding principal). His current position as Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Abertay has allowed him to further his interdisciplinary interests in Scotland's developing environmental and sustainability agendas, specialising in analysing sustainable land management techniques and practices, on the Country's West coast. In consolidating and further developing this research agenda, He has developed a particularly nuanced understanding of environmental, social and economic barriers to the implementation of participatory, inclusive and sustainable environmental policy and strategies. £3532 from British Acadamy, 2003. Project Title: The Integrated Management of Incongruently Valued Land: The Case of the Small Isles Archipelago in Scotland (ref. SG-35250). £1320 from Research Development Fund, University of Abertay Dundee, 2002. Project Title: The Integrated Management of Incongruently Valued Land: The Case of the Small Isles Archipelago in Scotland. £830 from the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, October 1998, Project Title: The Interrelationship of National Symbols and Landowners’ Power £1500 from the School of Health and Social Sciences, July 1998, Project Title: The Interrelationship of National Symbols and Landowners’ Power £2710 from Nuffield Foundation, December 1998, Project Title: The Interrelationship of National Symbols and Landowners’ Power (ref. SGS/00131). £5,000 annually from joint ESRC/SERC, a grant for PhD, 1992 - ‘96 £12,000 from ESRC’s Seminars Competition, October 1994 Learning for Sustainability Scotland - Member of Steering Group - 2017 - Present Aberrtay University and College Union - President 2019 - Present Abertay University Court 2019 - Present Abertay University Senate 2008 - 2011 Aberrtay University Court 2008 - 2014 Centre for Human Ecology, Chair, Course Committee, 2005 to 2006 Centre for Human Ecology, Course Committee Member, 2004 to 2005 Centre for Human Ecology, Academic Board Member, 2002 to 2004. British Sociological Association’s Scottish Studies Group Convenor, April 1998 to 2003 British Sociological Association’s Scottish Forum, Executive Member 2002 British Sociological Association’s Scottish Committee, Executive Member, October 1998 to 2002 Participant in ‘Wilderness Britain: Social and Environmental Perspectives on Recreation and Conservation’, ESRC Seminar Series, May 1999 to June 2001. Fingerprint Dive into the research topics where Andrew Samuel is active. These topic labels come from the works of this person. Together they form a unique fingerprint. nature reserve Social Sciences accommodation Social Sciences natural resources Social Sciences symbol Social Sciences sustainability Social Sciences management Social Sciences environmental policy Social Sciences community Social Sciences The changing face of bothy culture Samuel, A., 1 Jul 2018, Mountain Bothies Association: Newsletter, 204, p. 26-31 6 p. Rum: nature and community in harmony? Samuel, A., 1 Jan 2001, In : Ecos. 22, 1, p. 36-45 10 p. Cultural symbols and landowners’ power: the practice of managing Scotland’s natural resource Samuel, A. M. M., 16 Nov 2000, In : Sociology. 34, 4, p. 691-706 16 p. Natural flood management applications (NFM): the role of local institutions Author: Ripiye, N., Aug 2016 Supervisor: Wade, R. (Supervisor) & Samuel, A. M. M. (Supervisor) Nature therapy : developing a framework for practice Author: Berger, R., Feb 2009 Supervisor: Samuel, A. (Supervisor) & Cowan, S. (Supervisor) Contact Andrew Samuel	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1875
__label__wiki	0.528769	0.528769	Differential Europe The European Union Impact on National Policymaking Adrienne Héritier; Dieter Kerwer; Christoph Knill; Dirk Lehmkuhl; Michael Teutsch and Anne-Cécile Douillet Europe matters, but in different ways in different countries. The European Union affects the policy fabric of all member states, but that impact is differential rather than convergent. In some instances, new policy goals have been added to national agendas and fresh policy instruments are applied, while old ones become less important or are openly challenged. In other instances, when European and national policy objectives are concurrent, national practices may be reinforced, or even redirected, by EU policies. In all instances, however, state actors reconsider national policy practices wherever the EU extends it activities. This innovative study solves the differential puzzle by developing a sophisticated theoretical and conceptual framework for studying the impact of European policies on member states. Focusing especially on transport policy, the authors employ extensive interviews and archival research in an empirically rich set of case studies (Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands) to demonstrate convincingly that this influence depends on pre-existing policies and institutional capacity to change. Depending on the particular phase of regulation in which a country finds itself and on its institutional flexibility, an identical EU policy has remarkably diverse impacts within individual member states. The authors' research points to fascinating counterintuitive results and a new general model that will have implications for anyone studying policymaking in Europe. Series: Governance in Europe Series Subjects: Political Science / World / European, Political Science / Comparative Politics, Social Science / Regional Studies Adrienne Héritier is director of the Max Planck Project Group, Common Goods: Law, Politics and Economics. Dieter Kerwer is senior research fellow at the Max Planck Project Group, Common Goods: Law, Politics and Economics. Christoph Knill is professor of European studies at the University of Jena and senior research fellow at the Max Planck Project Group, Common Goods: Law, Politics and Economics. Dirk Lehmkuhl is senior research fellow at the Max Planck Project Group, Common Goods: Law, Politics and Economics. Michael Teutsch is junior official in the EU department of the German Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. Anne-Cécile Douillet is junior research fellow at the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Cachan. Chapter 1: Differential Europe: New Opportunities and Restrictions for Policymaking in the Member States Chapter 2: The Dynamics of the EC Common Transport Policy Chapter 3: Reforming Transport Policy in Britain: Concurrence with Europe but Separate Development Chapter 4: Strengthening the Opposition and Pushing Change: The Paradoxical Impact of Europe on the Reform of French Transport Chapter 5: Regulatory Reforms in the German Transport Sector: How to Overcome Multiple Veto Points Chapter 6: Going through the Motions: The Modest Impact of Europe on Italian Transport Policy Chapter 7: From Regulation to Stimulation: Dutch Transport Policy in Europe Chapter 8: Differential Responses to European Policies: A Comparison Offers an excellent research framework and detailed case studies, with important insights into the interaction between domestic and regional policy processes. An excellent addition to our understanding of the impacts of European integration and will certainly generate research in other policy areas. — Governance One of the great strengths of this book is the systematic and focused approach to its subject. They draw sound and well-supported comparative and theoretical conclusions on the basis of their framework and the evidence developed in the country chapters. — American Political Science Review	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1878
__label__wiki	0.733023	0.733023	2 Bimport, Shaftesbury, Dorset. SP7 8AY Spring Corner, High Street, Gillingham, Dorset. SP8 4AW Second Floor, Market Square House, Sturminster Newton, Dorset. DT10 1FG Agricultural Matters Civil Litigation & Dispute Resolution Cohabitation & Property Rights Powers of Attorney & Elderly Client Matters Wills, Probate, Trusts & Inheritance Tax The decision in the case of Owens and Owens has been published today. What does it mean for divorces in England and Wales? 25 Jul The decision in the case of Owens and Owens has been published today. What does it mean for divorces in England and Wales? Posted at 12:55h in LatestNews by 4bdesignadmin Mr and Mrs Owens were married in 1978. Mrs Owens left the marital home in 2015 and applied for a divorce on the ground that the marriage had irretrievably broken down due to the fact that Mr Owens had behaved in such a way that she could not reasonably be expected to live with him. Mrs Owens divorce petition provided examples of Mr Owens’ behaviour. However, Mr Owens defended the divorce and said the marriage had not broken down. Mrs Owens was given permission to provide more details of his behaviour. The court decided the examples of behaviour Mrs Owens had provided were not sufficient to meet the legal test needed and so she had to remain married to Mr Owens. This then left Mrs Owens married to Mr Owens and unable to divorce on the basis of his behaviour, with her having to wait until she and Mr Owens have lived separately and apart for a total of 5 years before she could then apply for a divorce due to having been separated for 5 years. Mrs Owens appealed the decision firstly to the Court of Appeal but was unsuccessful, she then appealed to The Supreme Court. The Supreme Court’s judgment has been published today. They have again decided that Mrs Owens examples of Mr Owens’ behaviour are not sufficient and so she cannot divorce him on the ground of his behaviour. She therefore has to remain married to him. It has become the norm for behaviour divorce petitions to be drafted in a bid to avoid creating more conflict and so the examples of behaviour are often short and watered down. Normally the other person does not defend the divorce and so the examples of behaviour are never tested to see if they are sufficient (meet the legal test). However, due to Owens and Owens people may now be concerned about their divorce petition being defended and so may now provide lengthy examples of behaviour drafted in a more hostile way. Whilst this may ensure the examples comply with the legal test, it is going to create more hostility between the parties at an already difficult time in their lives. This an unfortunate situation and is due to the fact that we have a fault based divorce system in England and Wales which will not change until Parliament changes the law. 2 Bimport, Shaftesbury, Dorset. SP7 8AY Shaftesbury: 01747 852377 Gillingham: 01747 822005 Sturminster Newton: 01258 444481 enquiries@rutterslaw.co.uk Authorised and Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority no. 00054732 Copyright © 2018 Rutters Ltd \| Website by 4B Design Ltd By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies [Privacy Policy]	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1882
__label__wiki	0.913486	0.913486	Rosatom Global presence Nuclear fuel cycle Preventing corruption Rosatom in country History of cooperation Areas of cooperation Procurement standart Rosatom in the media Rosatom newsletter Rosatom’s integrated offer © 2008–2020 The State Atomic Energy Corporation ROSATOM Write search query and press Enter EN AE Saudi Arabia on course for first nuclear power plant 28 January, 2018 / 11:04 Senior officials from Saudi Arabia have said that the Kingdom in the final planning stages of building its first ever nuclear power plant as part of its efforts to broaden renewable energy deployment. Saudi Arabia has announced plans to build two nuclear reactors that will have a capacity of 3.2 gigawatts. “We are pushing on with our plans and have so far got proposals from five countries including China, Russia, US, South Korea and France to build the nuclear power plant,” Abdul Malek Al M. Saberi, a senior official from King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KACARE) told reporters on the sidelines of the World Future Energy Summit (WFES) held in Abu Dhabi last week. “We hope to announce the winner at the end of the year and will sign a joint venture in the early 2019 to build the plant.” Saberi added that the nuclear plant would be commissioned by 2027, which will effectively make it the second nuclear plant in the GCC after the one being in Abu Dhabi. Saudi Arabia is also building two small reactors, with a capacity of 120 megawatts each, which are expected to be commissioned by 2023. Nuclear energy will contribute about 5% of the total energy mix once the nuclear reactors become operational. “There is an annual electricity demand [growth] of more than 7% in Saudi Arabia due to growing population and industries,” Al Saberi said. “With nuclear energy we are going to rely less on hydrocarbons for electricity generation and the nuclear energy programme will also give a boost to industrial sector growth and diversification of the economy.” Saudi Arabia is also looking at wind, as well as solar plants, to contribute to the country’s energy mix. It is targeting 9.5 gigawatts of wind and solar energy by 2023. Source: Utilities Middle East, Baset Asaba 2020 News Russian NPPs set a new electric power output record in 2019 – over 208.7 billion kWh MORE 2019 News Rosatom’s new e-store makes licensing new nuclear builds straightforward MORE 2020 News Russian NPPs set a new electric power output record in 2019 – over 208.7 billion kWh MORE 26 December Address: BT1108A, 11 floor, Business Central Tower, Dubai, info@rosatom.ae © 2020 All rights reserved. State Atomic Energy Corporation "Rosatom" This site uses cookies. By continuing your navigation, you accept the use of cookies. For more information, or to manage or to change the cookies parameters on your computer, read our Cookies Policy. Learn more I accept the cookies	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1889
__label__wiki	0.880933	0.880933	City welcomes 82 new police officers Mayor Thomas M. Menino This is the first graduating class to be sworn in by Commissioner Davis, and was the last official ceremony before retirement for Superintendent in Chief Al Goslin after 40 years of service with the BPD. Chief Goslin joined the Boston Police in 1967 when he was 24, and since then has served at almost every rank. He has served as the commander, District B-2, superintendent of the Bureau of Internal Investigations, and as acting police commissioner. Goslin has most recently served as superintendent-in-chief, the highest-ranking uniformed officer in the department, responsible for overseeing day-to-day operations. I have had the pleasure and privilege to work beside Al Goslin. His leadership and dedication to the job will be missed. As their formal training ends, these new graduates begin their service for Boston residents with the finest police department in the country. A job that is both challenging and sometimes dangerous, becoming a police officer is a show of service and commitment to their city. In addition to this graduating class, we anticipate adding approximately 70 more officers to the ranks this summer and another 85 recruits will enter the Police Academy on June. I am proud and honored that these young men and women chose to fulfill the service as a Boston Police officer and hope they are inspired by the dedication and service of Chief Goslin. I thank them for their service and I wish them good luck. The officers of the 45-06 graduating class are: Nicholas Beliveau, David O. Malcolm, Michael Dennis Condon, Jeffrey S. Firnstein, Michael F. Fanning, Justin D. Cremins, Stephen Daniel McNulty, Michael B. Baker, Jeffrey Quinchia, Matthew Ryan, Brendan M. Walsh, Brian J. Michaud, Peter Moscaritolo, Steven H. Collette, Anthony Nelson Bellissimo, Rory Michael Coleman, David Bianchetto, Ydritzabel A. Oller, Daniel C. Casali, Sean M. Pero, Eric Travers, Brendan Kelly, Kevin F. Golden, Joseph Edward Brown, Nicholas Onishuk, Patrick Kevin Layden, Ryan Lenane, Keith C. Monahan, Roberto B. La Colla, William P. Moran, Richard P. Jeanetti, Taylor S. Small, Stephen E. Parenteau, Andrew R. Crosby, Robert J. MacLean, Melissa I. Hart, Claire Duffy, Madeline Banks, Tamara Finley, Jeffrey R. Cahill. Jason Albanese, Daniel Donahue, Matthew McCarthy, Daniel Sparrow, Jay Tully, Edward P. Dervan, Brendan F. Lyons, Charles J. Smyth, Oscar A. Calderon, Yong Lee, James Edward O’Connor, Daniel J. McCarthy, Philip Coleman, Terrique E.S. Chambers, Nilton Ramos, Lylana V. Jones-Henderson, Ayesha Martin, Joseph M. Downing, Donroy Grant, Donald J. Ross, Matthew M. Ross, Christopher S. Mylett, Charles R. Moore, Jeffrey W. Lynch, Ethan C. Cole, Kurt J. Stokinger, Christopher J. Kennefick, Brendan O. McIntyre, Sean Paul, Matthew Shea, Thomas J. Finn, Marc Delvalle, Mario Enrique Santillana, Rafael W. Acevedo, Jose Ranero, Matthew F. Becker, Hector Gonzalez, Adam Fornash, Tracey A. Fenton, Jennifer Connolly, Katherine Shea and Francis M. Sheridan. Roslindale Politicians Mayor Martin J. Walsh State Sen. Mike Rush State Rep. Ed Coppinger State Rep. Jeffrey Sanchez State Rep. Angelo Scaccia State Rep. Elizabeth A. Malia District 4 City Councilor Andrea Campbell District 5 City Councilor Tim McCarthy Roslindale Transcript ~ 1 Speen St., Framingham, MA 01701 ~ Do Not Sell My Personal Information ~ Cookie Policy ~ Do Not Sell My Personal Information ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service ~ Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1892
__label__wiki	0.56855	0.56855	Add to GoodReads Exam Copies Precision Journalism A Reporter's Introduction to Social Science Methods, Fourth Edition Philip Meyer Philip Meyer's work in precision journalism established a new and ongoing trend-the use by reporters of social science research techniques to increase the depth and accuracy of major stories. In this fully updated, fourth edition of the classic Precision Journalism (known as The New Precision Journalism in its third edition), Meyer shows journalists and students of journalism how to use new technology to analyze data and provide more precise information in easier-to-understand forms. New to this edition are an overview of the use of theory and science in journalism; game theory applications; introductions to lurking variables and multiple and logistic regression; and developments in election surveys. Key topics retained and updated include elements of data analysis; the use of statistics, computers, surveys, and experiments; database applications; and the politics of precision journalism. This accessible book is an important resource for working journalists and an indispensable text for all journalism majors. 978-0-7425-1087-6 • Hardback • March 2002 • $138.00 • (£90.00) 978-0-7425-1088-3 • Paperback • February 2002 • $45.00 • (£29.95) 978-1-4616-4118-6 • eBook • February 2002 • $42.50 • (£29.95) Subjects: Social Science / Media Studies Philip Meyer is the Knight Chair in Journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Chapter 1 The Journalism We Need Chapter 2 Using Numbers Rationally Chapter 3 Some Elements of Data Analysis Chapter 4 Harnessing the Power of Statistics Chapter 5 Computers Chapter 6 Surveys Chapter 7 Lurking Variables, Part I Chapter 8 Lurking Variables, Part II Chapter 9 Experiments: In the Lab, in the Field, and in Nature Chapter 10 Databases Chapter 11 How to Analyze an Election Chapter 12 The Politics of Precision Journalism Chapter 13 Appendix: Three Things to Measure with Census Data Precision Journalism is a must-read for journalists intending to do in-depth reporting in the 21st century—whether it involves polling, data analysis, or understanding complex reports. This updated edition clearly explains social science methods and how to effectively use them to increase the accuracy and credibility of news stories. — Brant Houston, University of Missouri, Columbia Precision Journalism is the mother ship from which most other books on computer-assisted journalism were launched. Philip Meyer not only encouraged journalists to learn social science methods three decades ago, but he also provided a clear, user-friendly book to get them started. Now in its fourth edition, Precision Journalism continues to be an important resource in the arsenal of tools available to journalism educators, students, and practitioners. — Kevin Kawamoto, University of Washington In his professional mode, Meyer leads readers into becoming as comfortable with numbers as with words—data analysis, basic statistical procedures, constructing and interpreting surveys, using databases, and much more. At the same time he warns working journalists not to get too comfortable with numbers. — Columbia Journalism Review Philip Meyer's vision of 'precision journalism' as a standard of excellence for our profession is sharper than ever in this thoroughly updated and expanded edition of his classic book. — Stephen K. Doig, Arizona State University —An easy-to-use text for courses in basic and advanced reporting, computer-assisted reporting, and mass communication research. —An ideal resource for showing journalism students with little math background how to effectively useand report statistics. —A fully updated edition of the classic Precision Journalism (also known as The New Precision Journalism in its third edition), named one of the 35 most significant journalism and communication books of the twentieth century by Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly. New to this edition: —An overview chapter addressing student skepticism about science and quantification —A chapter on game theory, restored from the first edition —Introductions to multiple and logistic regression —Updates on election analysis techniques	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1895
__label__wiki	0.789848	0.789848	The Reform Group Ireland for a New Generation Ireland and the Commonwealth – Towards Membership 16 May 2011 13 Mar 2017 Reform 2009 marked the 60th anniversary of Ireland’s departure from the Commonwealth, and many Reform members were enthusiastically involved in this year’s campaign to encourage Ireland to now consider returning to the Commonwealth. A joint letter to the Irish Times (3 March 2009) set out some of the main reasons to consider rejoining, and was signed by leading public figures from all parts of Ireland and these islands – including Alliance Party Leader David Ford MLA, PUP leader Dawn Purvis MLA, Lord Rana, Senator Eoghan Harris and academics such as Professor Brice Dickson and Professor Geoffrey Roberts: Madam, – As Ireland approaches the 60th anniversary of the declaration of the Republic, is it time to reconsider the country’s membership of the Commonwealth? When Ireland left the Commonwealth in 1949 the other member-states hoped its departure would be temporary. In the 1920s and 1930s the Irish Free State had played a crucial role in the transformation of the British Commonwealth into an association of free, democratic and sovereign states. After Ireland left, the Commonwealth continued to evolve. Ireland’s membership of the Commonwealth would, we are sure, be welcomed by the unionist community in Northern Ireland as a significant gesture of reconciliation. It would add to the collaborative framework established by the Belfast and St Andrew’s agreements. It would demonstrate unequivocally that the Republic has finally drawn a line under the troubled history of Anglo-Irish relations that led to Ireland’s self-exclusion from the Commonwealth 60 years ago. It would represent a further important step along the road to a pluralist Ireland in which different identities are recognised and respected, a country that celebrates its multi-cultural heritage and diverse history. Reform has now published a new book, bringing together a collection of articles, speeches and reports by prominent academics, authors and political commentators on the important question of whether or not Ireland should return to the Commonwealth. The book includes articles by: Bruce Arnold, Amitav Banerji, Robin Bury, John Erskine, Roy Garland, Gordon Lucy, Mary Kenny, Prof. Robert Martin, Dr. Martin Mansergh TD, Andrew MacKinlay MP, John-Paul McCarthy, Prof. Geoff Roberts and others. Many of the contributors are in favour of rejoining – although the book also includes a speech by Dr. Martin Mansergh TD arguing that Ireland should not rejoin. Reform hopes that this new book will be a timely and interesting contribution to the ongoing debate on Commonwealth membership. You can download or order the book at Lulu, or order it at Amazon. or any good bookshop: ISBN-10: 0-95615-771-8, ISBN-13: 978-09561577-1-3 Posted in Commonwealth, Featured There is more to the world than Germany and France 4 May 2011 13 Mar 2017 Staff Joseph Stiglitz, George Osborne & David McWilliams will be speaking next week (15–17 May) at Google Zeitgeistminds panel on the Euro and EU periphery. Joseph Stiglitz previously made reference to the economic benefits of Commonwealth membership in Trinidad and Tobago in 2009: “The combined thrust of economic growth and democratic values in Commonwealth countries complements the argument made by Nobel Prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz at the Commonwealth Business Forum held in Trinidad and Tobago in November 2009, regarding the three pillars of successful development strategy: markets, governments, and individuals. As he emphasised recent decades have seen marked changes in thinking, not only about what successful development means but also how to go about it. Development is about transforming the lives of people not just about transforming economies. Policies need to be looked at through this double lens: how they promote growth and how they affect individuals directly. For this to happen, Stiglitz identified communities working together as the fourth pillar of successful development. The Commonwealth offers such a community for the realisation of the ‘New World’ that Joseph Stiglitz says is necessary to make globalisation work for the many rather than the few.” David McWilliams has described in his column that Ireland needs to enter into additional spheres of orbit. Perhaps Ireland joining the Commonwealth is the answer and in Ireland’s selfish and economic interests: “Today, small countries like Ireland could take a leaf out of the book of the old city-states. Instead of committing ourselves totally to one sphere of orbit, we could play a trading game, seeing where the big powers’ interests have shifted and altering our own policy accordingly.Events of recent days have shown how dangerous it is to be dependent on one large trading bloc. It is clear our Government was slapped down on burden sharing at the last minute. In a world of free moving capital, this humiliation has to be acted on. Maybe Barack Obama’s visit next month, along with that of Queen Elizabeth, will open our eyes to the fact that there is more to the world than Germany and France” Also by David McWilliams: We need to show ECB it’s not the only show in town Posted in Comment, Commonwealth Could Ireland really rejoin the Commonwealth? The Telegraph – 26 Mar 2010 Campaigners believe that were Ireland to rejoin the Commonwealth, it would draw a line under the troubled history of Anglo-Irish relations, observes Philip Johnston. View ReformGroup’s profile on Facebook View IrelandReform’s profile on Twitter View theReformGroup’s profile on YouTube	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1896
__label__wiki	0.721342	0.721342	Justia Regulation Tracker Agencies And Commissions Nuclear Regulatory Commission Pacific Gas and Electric Company Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Units 1 and 2; Notice of Partial Withdrawal of Application for Amendments to Facility Operating Licenses, 57626-57627 [E5-5387] Pacific Gas and Electric Company Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Units 1 and 2; Notice of Partial Withdrawal of Application for Amendments to Facility Operating Licenses, 57626-57627 [E5-5387] Download as PDF 57626 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 190 / Monday, October 3, 2005 / Notices information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). The NRC hereby informs potential respondents that an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and that a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. 1. Type of submission, new, revision, or extension: Extension. 2. The title of the information collection: 10 CFR Part 26, ‘‘Fitness for Duty Program.’’ 3. The form number if applicable: 3150–0146. 4. How often the collection is required: On occasion. 5. Who will be required or asked to report: All licensees authorized to construct or operate a nuclear power reactor; all licensees authorized to use, possess, or transport Category 1 nuclear material; and contractors/vendors who have developed a fitness-for-duty program that is formally reviewed and approved by a licensee, which meets the requirements of Part 26. 6. An estimate of the number of annual responses: 1,419 (1,350 responses + 69 recordkeepers). 7. The estimated number of annual respondents: 69. 8. An estimate of the total number of hours needed annually to complete the requirement or request: 61,143 (5,853 hours reporting [an average of 4.3 hours/ response] and 55,290 hours recordkeeping [an average of 801 hours/ recordkeeper]). 9. An indication of whether section 3507(d), Pub. L. 104–13 applies: N/A. 10. Abstract: 10 CFR part 26, ’’Fitness for Duty Program,’’ requires licensees of nuclear power plants, contractors/ vendors who have developed a fitnessfor-duty program that is formally reviewed by a licensee, and licensees authorized to possess, use, or transport Category 1 nuclear material to implement fitness-for-duty programs to assure that personnel are not under the influence of any substance or mentally or physically impaired, to retain certain records associated with the management of these programs, and to provide reports concerning significant events and program performance. Compliance with these program requirements is mandatory for licensees subject to 10 CFR part 26. In addition, licensees of nuclear power plants are required to comply with security order EA–03–038, which implements work hour controls for security force personnel and requires licensees to retain certain records associated with the management of this security order. VerDate Aug<31>2005 17:26 Sep 30, 2005 Jkt 205001 A copy of the final supporting statement may be viewed free of charge at the NRC Public Document Room, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Room O–1 F21, Rockville, MD 20852. OMB clearance requests are available at the NRC worldwide Web site: http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/ doc-comment/omb/index.html. The document will be available on the NRC home page site for 60 days after the signature date of this notice. Comments and questions should be directed to the OMB reviewer listed below by November 2, 2005. Comments received after this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but assurance of consideration cannot be given to comments received after this date. Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (3150–0146), NEOB–10202, Office of Management and Budget, Washington, DC 20503. Comments can also be submitted by telephone at (202) 395–3087. The NRC Clearance Officer is Brenda Jo. Shelton, 301–415–7233. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 26th day of September, 2005. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Brenda Jo. Shelton, NRC Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer. [FR Doc. E5–5355 Filed 9–30–05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590–01–P NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [Docket Nos. 50–275 and 50–323] Pacific Gas and Electric Company Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Units 1 and 2; Notice of Partial Withdrawal of Application for Amendments to Facility Operating Licenses The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has granted the request of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (the licensee) to partially withdraw the request of approval to adopt the extreme growth method, which was a part of its application dated March 18, 2004, and its supplements dated August 18 and 20, and September 17, 2004, for proposed amendments to Facility Operating License No. DPR–80 and Facility Operating License No. DPR–82 for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, located in San Luis Obispo County, California. The amendment request included (i) revisions to the Final Safety Analysis Report Update to incorporate the Nuclear Regulatory Commission PO 00000 Frm 00076 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 approval of a permanently revised steam generator voltage-based repair criteria probability of prior cycle detection (POPCD) method; (ii) addition of a new reporting requirement to the DCPP Technical Specifications as TS 5.6.10.i; and (iii) approval to adopt the extreme growth method coincident with the above POPCD method. However, by letter dated September 17, 2004, the licensee requested that the extreme growth method be approved at a later time. Therefore, on October 28, 2004, the Commission issued Amendment Nos. 177 and 179, to Facility Operating License No. DPR–80 and Facility Operating License No. DPR–82 for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, without reviewing the extreme growth method. The Commission had previously issued a Notice of Consideration of Issuance of Amendments published in the Federal Register on June 22, 2004 (69 FR 34704), and a Notice of Issuance of Amendments published in the Federal Register on November 23, 2004 (69 FR 68190). However, by letter dated September 22, 2005, the licensee withdrew the remaining portion of the amendment request pertaining to the approval to adopt the extreme growth method. The licensee’s application dated March 18, 2004, and its supplements dated August 18 and 20, and September 17, 2004, and withdrawal letter dated September 22, 2005, are available in the NRC’s Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) under Accession Numbers ML040840449, ML042380475, ML042530054, ML042680323 and ML052660327, respectively. For further details with respect to this action, see the application for amendment dated March 18, 2004, its supplements dated August 18 and 20, and September 17, 2004, and withdrawal letter dated September 22, 2005, which withdrew the request of approval to adopt the extreme growth method. Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC’s Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records will be accessible electronically from the ADAMS Public Electronic Reading Room on the internet at the NRC Web site, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/ adams/html. Persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC PDR Reference staff by telephone at 1–800–397–4209, or (301) 415–4737 or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. E:\FR\FM\03OCN1.SGM 03OCN1 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 190 / Monday, October 3, 2005 / Notices Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 26th day of September, 2005. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Girija S. Shukla, Project Manager, Section 2, Project Directorate IV, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation. [FR Doc. E5–5387 Filed 9–30–05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590–01–P NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [Docket No. 70–0925] Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for License Amendment for Kerr McGee Cimarron Corporation Former Fuel Fabrication Facility in Crescent, OK Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Notice of availability. AGENCY: Ken Kalman, Project Manager, Decommissioning Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555. Telephone: (301) 415–6664; fax number: (301) 415– 5398 e-mail: klk@nrc.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: I. Introduction The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering amending Material License No. SNM–928 issued to Kerr McGee Cimarron Corporation Cimarron or (the licensee), to authorize the deletion of License Condition 22 and revisions to License Conditions 23 and 27e of the license for its former fuel fabrication facility in Crescent, Oklahoma. NRC has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) in support of this amendment in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR part 51. Based on the EA, the NRC has concluded that a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) is appropriate. The amendment will be issued following the publication of this Notice. II. EA Summary The purpose of the proposed amendment is to authorize revisions to the license for the licensee’s former fuel fabrication facility. Specifically, License Condition 22 will be deleted, as all requirements of this condition have been completed. License Conditions 23 and 27e will be revised. The actions VerDate Aug<31>2005 17:26 Sep 30, 2005 Jkt 205001 required by these license conditions were addressed in the EA for approval of Cimarron’s Decommissioning Plan (DP). That EA is summarized in the Federal Register notice of the Finding of No Significant Impact published on August 12, 1999, (64 FR 44059). The licensee requested that License Condition 22 be deleted from the license, as the specific requirements of this license condition had been completed. License Condition 22 authorizes the licensee to breach the berms, close the two East and West Sanitary lagoons in Subarea L, and backfill the former burial ground in Subarea F. Cimarron backfilled the two sanitary lagoons in 1993. NRC staff reviewed the licensee’s request and an NRC confirmatory survey of Subarea L demonstrated that all soil samples met the NRC’s release criteria of License Condition 27 of Cimarron’s license (SNM–928) and the regulatory limits for unrestricted use. The staff determined that all work addressed in License Condition 22 has been completed and that all the requirements of this condition have been met. Therefore, the NRC staff concluded that this condition can be deleted from the license, and will not have a significant effect on the quality of the human environment. The licensee also requested that License Condition 23 be revised to reflect completion of some of the decommissioning activities identified in this condition. License Condition 23 authorizes the licensee to dispose of low-enriched uranium contaminated soil in an on-site burial cell in Subarea N. The licensee stated that all requirements in this license condition have been completed except for the requirement to ‘‘periodically monitor the disposal area for subsidence, erosion, and status of the vegetative cover for at least five years, and promptly repair any problems noted.’’ The NRC staff conducted a confirmatory survey of the burial cell in Subarea N. The staff determined that the buried cell had been completed in accordance with License Condition 23. All measurements were below the release criteria of Cimarron’s license (SNM–928) and the regulatory limits. The NRC staff has reviewed the licensee’s request and determined that the licensee has met all of the requirements of License Condition 23, except for the last two sentences of License Condition 23d. This license condition will be revised and the last two sentences will become License Condition 23a. The NRC staff has concluded that this revision to the license will not have a significant impact on the quality of the human environment, because the revision is PO 00000 Frm 00077 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 57627 only deleting protective actions that have already been completed. License Condition 27e authorizes the licensee to make certain changes to the DP or Radiation Protection Plan (RPP) and associated procedures without prior NRC approval provided that those changes meet the specific criteria stated in License Condition 27e. The licensee requested that License Condition 27e be revised so that only changes to the facility or process, tests, and experiments described in the DP or the RPP are required to be reviewed by the As Low As Reasonably Achievable (ALARA) Committee. In addition, the licensee requested that the license condition be revised so changes to the associated radiation protection procedures would only require review and approval by the Radiation Safety Officer (RSO). The NRC staff has reviewed this request and found that the requested amendment to License Condition 27e should be granted. This proposed change to the license will have not have a significant effect on the quality of the human environment. III. Finding of No Significant Impact Based upon the analysis contained in the EA, NRC staff concludes that the proposed action will not have a significant effect on the quality of the human environment, because it is only deleting license requirements that have been completed and making changes to a License Condition 27e, which relates to approval of changes to the procedures associated with the Decommissioning Plan or Radiation Protection Procedures. Accordingly, the staff and has determined that preparation of an environmental impact statement is not warranted. IV. Further Information Documents related to this action, including the application for amendment and supporting documentation, are available electronically at the NRC’s Electronic Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/ reading-rm/adams.html. From this site, you can access the NRC’s Agencywide Document Access and Management System (ADAMS), which provides text and image files of NRC’s public documents. The ADAMS accession numbers for the documents related to this notice are: Environmental Assessment for License Amendment 19 of Cimarron Corporations License (SNM–928) Regarding License Conditions 22, 23, and 27e (ML052060071). If you do not have access to ADAMS or if there are problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, contact the NRC’s E:\FR\FM\03OCN1.SGM 03OCN1 [Federal Register Volume 70, Number 190 (Monday, October 3, 2005)] [FR Doc No: E5-5387] [Docket Nos. 50-275 and 50-323] Pacific Gas and Electric Company Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Units 1 and 2; Notice of Partial Withdrawal of Application for Amendments to Facility Operating Licenses The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has granted the request of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (the licensee) to partially withdraw the request of approval to adopt the extreme growth method, which was a part of its application dated March 18, 2004, and its supplements dated August 18 and 20, and September 17, 2004, for proposed amendments to Facility Operating License No. DPR-80 and Facility Operating License No. DPR-82 for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, located in San Luis Obispo County, California. The amendment request included (i) revisions to the Final Safety Analysis Report Update to incorporate the Nuclear Regulatory Commission approval of a permanently revised steam generator voltage-based repair criteria probability of prior cycle detection (POPCD) method; (ii) addition of a new reporting requirement to the DCPP Technical Specifications as TS 5.6.10.i; and (iii) approval to adopt the extreme growth method coincident with the above POPCD method. However, by letter dated September 17, 2004, the licensee requested that the extreme growth method be approved at a later time. Therefore, on October 28, 2004, the Commission issued Amendment Nos. 177 and 179, to Facility Operating License No. DPR-80 and Facility Operating License No. DPR-82 for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, without reviewing the extreme growth method. The Commission had previously issued a Notice of Consideration of Issuance of Amendments published in the Federal Register on June 22, 2004 (69 FR 34704), and a Notice of Issuance of Amendments published in the Federal Register on November 23, 2004 (69 FR 68190). However, by letter dated September 22, 2005, the licensee withdrew the remaining portion of the amendment request pertaining to the approval to adopt the extreme growth method. The licensee's application dated March 18, 2004, and its supplements dated August 18 and 20, and September 17, 2004, and withdrawal letter dated September 22, 2005, are available in the NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) under Accession Numbers ML040840449, ML042380475, ML042530054, ML042680323 and ML052660327, respectively. For further details with respect to this action, see the application for amendment dated March 18, 2004, its supplements dated August 18 and 20, and September 17, 2004, and withdrawal letter dated September 22, 2005, which withdrew the request of approval to adopt the extreme growth method. Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records will be accessible electronically from the ADAMS Public Electronic Reading Room on the internet at the NRC Web site, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/html. Persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC PDR Reference staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209, or (301) 415-4737 or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 26th day of September, 2005. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Girija S. Shukla, Project Manager, Section 2, Project Directorate IV, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation. [FR Doc. E5-5387 Filed 9-30-05; 8:45 am]	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1898
__label__cc	0.579396	0.420604	Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine Osteopathic Medical School "A question referencing my personal statement." Report Response "Have you shadowed a DO? Ever seen manipulation performed?" Report Response "What other schools have you applied to/interviewed?" Report Response "Nothing out of the ordinary " Report Response "Did you expect to do better on the MCAT?" Report Response "Mock interviews, website, application" Report Response "The small tight knit community" Report Response "The changes in curriculum for the fall are still uknown. Everyone speaks of these big changes but no one knows what they are exactly." Report Response "I arrived about 30 mins before my scheduled interview time and was taken into a room and had a photo taken. The other people interviewing were in the room and others continued to arrive. We watched some TV and waited for them to call us one by one. I interviewed with one 4th year student and one DO. It was a very laid back environment. After all the interviews were complete, a woman from admissions spoke to us regarding the school. We were then treated to lunch in the cafe and taken on a tour of the facilities." Report Response	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1910
__label__cc	0.690996	0.309004	SciPost Physics Vol. 8 issue 1 SciPost Physics Core Vol. 1 issue 1 Order by: publication date number of citations Out of time ordered effective dynamics of a quartic oscillator Bidisha Chakrabarty, Soumyadeep Chaudhuri SciPost Phys. 7, 013 (2019) · published 29 July 2019 \| We study the dynamics of a quantum Brownian particle weakly coupled to a thermal bath. Working in the Schwinger-Keldysh formalism, we develop an effective action of the particle up to quartic terms. We demonstrate that this quartic effective theory is dual to a stochastic dynamics governed by a non-linear Langevin equation. The Schwinger-Keldysh effective theory, or the equivalent non-linear Langevin dynamics, is insufficient to determine the out of time order correlators (OTOCs) of the particle. To overcome this limitation, we construct an extended effective action in a generalised Schwinger-Keldysh framework. We determine the additional quartic couplings in this OTO effective action and show their dependence on the bath's 4-point OTOCs. We analyse the constraints imposed on the OTO effective theory by microscopic reversibility and thermality of the bath. We show that these constraints lead to a generalised fluctuation-dissipation relation between the non-Gaussianity in the distribution of the thermal noise experienced by the particle and the thermal jitter in its damping coefficient. The quartic effective theory developed in this work provides extension of several results previously obtained for the cubic OTO dynamics of a Brownian particle. Density-operator evolution: Complete positivity and the Keldysh real-time expansion Viktor Reimer, Maarten Rolf Wegewijs We study the reduced time-evolution of open quantum systems by combining quantum-information and statistical field theory. Inspired by prior work [EPL 102, 60001 (2013) and Phys. Rev. Lett. 111, 050402 (2013)] we establish the explicit structure guaranteeing the complete positivity (CP) and trace-preservation (TP) of the real-time evolution expansion in terms of the microscopic system-environment coupling. This reveals a fundamental two-stage structure of the coupling expansion: Whereas the first stage defines the dissipative timescales of the system --before having integrated out the environment completely-- the second stage sums up elementary physical processes described by CP superoperators. This allows us to establish the nontrivial relation between the (Nakajima-Zwanzig) memory-kernel superoperator for the density operator and novel memory-kernel operators that generate the Kraus operators of an operator-sum. Importantly, this operational approach can be implemented in the existing Keldysh real-time technique and allows approximations for general time-nonlocal quantum master equations to be systematically compared and developed while keeping the CP and TP structure explicit. Our considerations build on the result that a Kraus operator for a physical measurement process on the environment can be obtained by 'cutting' a group of Keldysh real-time diagrams 'in half'. This naturally leads to Kraus operators lifted to the system plus environment which have a diagrammatic expansion in terms of time-nonlocal memory-kernel operators. These lifted Kraus operators obey coupled time-evolution equations which constitute an unraveling of the original Schr\"odinger equation for system plus environment. Whereas both equations lead to the same reduced dynamics, only the former explicitly encodes the operator-sum structure of the coupling expansion. Unimodular jordanian deformations of integrable superstrings Stijn J. van Tongeren We find new homogeneous r matrices containing supercharges, and use them to find new backgrounds of Yang-Baxter deformed superstrings. We obtain these as limits of unimodular inhomogeneous r matrices and associated deformations of AdS2 x S2 x T6 and AdS5 x S5. Our r matrices are jordanian, but also unimodular, and lead to solutions of the regular supergravity equations of motion. In general our deformations are equivalent to particular non-abelian T duality transformations. Curiously, one of our backgrounds is also equivalent to one produced by TsT transformations and an S duality transformation. Bootstrapping MN and tetragonal CFTs in three dimensions Andreas Stergiou Conformal field theories (CFTs) with MN and tetragonal global symmetry in $d=2+1$ dimensions are relevant for structural, antiferromagnetic and helimagnetic phase transitions. As a result, they have been studied in great detail with the $\varepsilon=4-d$ expansion and other field theory methods. The study of these theories with the nonperturbative numerical conformal bootstrap is initiated in this work. Bounds for operator dimensions are obtained and they are found to possess sharp kinks in the MN case, suggesting the existence of full-fledged CFTs. Based on the existence of a certain large-$N$ expansion in theories with MN symmetry, these are argued to be the CFTs predicted by the $\varepsilon$ expansion. In the tetragonal case no new kinks are found, consistently with the absence of such CFTs in the $\varepsilon$ expansion. Estimates for critical exponents are provided for a few cases describing phase transitions in actual physical systems. In two particular MN cases, corresponding to theories with global symmetry groups $O(2)^2\rtimes S_2$ and $O(2)^3\rtimes S_3$, a second kink is found. In the $O(2)^2\rtimes S_2$ case it is argued to be saturated by a CFT that belongs to a new universality class relevant for the structural phase transition of NbO$_2$ and paramagnetic-helimagnetic transitions of the rare-earth metals Ho and Dy. In the $O(2)^3\rtimes S_3$ case it is suggested that the CFT that saturates the second kink belongs to a new universality class relevant for the paramagnetic-antiferromagnetic phase transition of the rare-earth metal Nd. QuCumber: wavefunction reconstruction with neural networks Matthew J. S. Beach, Isaac De Vlugt, Anna Golubeva, Patrick Huembeli, Bohdan Kulchytskyy, Xiuzhe Luo, Roger G. Melko, Ejaaz Merali, Giacomo Torlai As we enter a new era of quantum technology, it is increasingly important to develop methods to aid in the accurate preparation of quantum states for a variety of materials, matter, and devices. Computational techniques can be used to reconstruct a state from data, however the growing number of qubits demands ongoing algorithmic advances in order to keep pace with experiments. In this paper, we present an open-source software package called QuCumber that uses machine learning to reconstruct a quantum state consistent with a set of projective measurements. QuCumber uses a restricted Boltzmann machine to efficiently represent the quantum wavefunction for a large number of qubits. New measurements can be generated from the machine to obtain physical observables not easily accessible from the original data. Many-body localization in presence of cavity mediated long-range interactions Piotr Sierant, Krzysztof Biedroń, Giovanna Morigi, Jakub Zakrzewski We show that a one-dimensional Hubbard model with all-to-all coupling may exhibit many-body localization in the presence of local disorder. We numerically identify the parameter space where many-body localization occurs using exact diagonalization and finite-size scaling. The time evolution from a random initial state exhibits features consistent with the localization picture. The dynamics can be observed with quantum gases in optical cavities, localization can be revealed through the time-dependent dynamics of the light emitted by the resonator. A web of 2d dualities: ${\bf Z}_2$ gauge fields and Arf invariants Andreas Karch, David Tong, Carl Turner We describe a web of well-known dualities connecting quantum field theories in $d=1+1$ dimensions. The web is constructed by gauging ${\bf Z}_2$ global symmetries and includes a number of perennial favourites such as the Jordan-Wigner transformation, Kramers-Wannier duality, bosonization of a Dirac fermion, and T-duality. There are also less-loved examples, such as non-modular invariant $c=1$ CFTs that depend on a background spin structure. Competing Spin Liquid Phases in the S=$\frac{1}{2}$ Heisenberg Model on the Kagome Lattice Shenghan Jiang, Panjin Kim, Jung Hoon Han, Ying Ran SciPost Phys. 7, 006 (2019) · published 9 July 2019 \| The properties of ground state of spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ kagome antiferromagnetic Heisenberg (KAFH) model have attracted considerable interest in the past few decades, and recent numerical simulations reported a spin liquid phase. The nature of the spin liquid phase remains unclear. For instance, the interplay between symmetries and $Z_2$ topological order leads to different types of $Z_2$ spin liquid phases. In this paper, we develop a numerical simulation method based on symmetric projected entangled-pair states (PEPS), which is generally applicable to strongly correlated model systems in two spatial dimensions. We then apply this method to study the nature of the ground state of the KAFH model. Our results are consistent with that the ground state is a $U(1)$ Dirac spin liquid rather than a $Z_2$ spin liquid. Entanglement evolution and generalised hydrodynamics: interacting integrable systems Vincenzo Alba, Bruno Bertini, Maurizio Fagotti We investigate the dynamics of bipartite entanglement after the sudden junction of two leads in interacting integrable models. By combining the quasiparticle picture for the entanglement spreading with Generalised Hydrodynamics we derive an analytical prediction for the dynamics of the entanglement entropy between a finite subsystem and the rest. We find that the entanglement rate between the two leads depends only on the physics at the interface and differs from the rate of exchange of thermodynamic entropy. This contrasts with the behaviour in free or homogeneous interacting integrable systems, where the two rates coincide. Investigating ultrafast quantum magnetism with machine learning Giammarco Fabiani, Johan H. Mentink We investigate the efficiency of the recently proposed Restricted Boltzmann Machine (RBM) representation of quantum many-body states to study both the static properties and quantum spin dynamics in the two-dimensional Heisenberg model on a square lattice. For static properties we find close agreement with numerically exact Quantum Monte Carlo results in the thermodynamical limit. For dynamics and small systems, we find excellent agreement with exact diagonalization, while for systems up to N=256 spins close consistency with interacting spin-wave theory is obtained. In all cases the accuracy converges fast with the number of network parameters, giving access to much bigger systems than feasible before. This suggests great potential to investigate the quantum many-body dynamics of large scale spin systems relevant for the description of magnetic materials strongly out of equilibrium. Previous 1 ... 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 ... 43 Next	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1912
__label__wiki	0.578828	0.578828	Scouts Armidale Section Programs North West Region Scout Rally 5 February 2015 scouterblaireau Leave a comment A reminder that for scouts to attend this event; the money and the E1 form must be returned to Chil (Scout Leader) BEFORE the troop meeting next week (4 Feb 2015). This is to allow for the registrations and payment to be sent to our region Office in Tamworth by the closing date. What is it? The Region Scout Rally is a weekend camp for all scouts in the North West NSW Region When is it? From 5.30pm on Friday 6 March to 1.30pm Sunday 8 March 2015. BUT THE CLOSING DATE IS NEXT WEEK. The scout leader has E-mailed details and a registration (E1) form to scout parents. Please contact Chil for further information and to arrange handover of forms and money for those going. Previous PostScout Shed Clean UpNext PostCuboomerang Camp Where and When? (click on the address for a map) 214 Taylor Street, (the Old Council Works Depot) All meetings at the scout shed unless notified: Cub Scout Pack meets on Tuesday evening from 6.00pm to 7.30pm Scout Troop meets on Wednesday evening 6.30pm to 8.30pm Group Leader's Council meets as notified. Group Support Committee meetings are usually held on the first Thursday of the month at 6.30pm. @scoutsarmidale on Twitter Follow Scouts Armidale on WordPress.com Scouting at altitude on the northern tablelands of NSW Cubs Meet 21 January 2020 at 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm 214 Taylor St, Armidale NSW 2350, Australia Venturers Meet 22 January 2020 at 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm 214 Taylor St, Armidale NSW 2350, Australia Scouts Meet 22 January 2020 at 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm 214 Taylor St, Armidale NSW 2350, Australia Cubs Meet 4 February 2020 at 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm 214 Taylor St, Armidale NSW 2350, Australia Venturers Meet 5 February 2020 at 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm 214 Taylor St, Armidale NSW 2350, Australia Scouts Meet 5 February 2020 at 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm 214 Taylor St, Armidale NSW 2350, Australia North West Region Scouts North West Scouts	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1914
__label__cc	0.645216	0.354784	Home › Which Phone? Which Network For Australian Coverage there are only 4 networks. No Australian operator owns a global satellite network. The networks are: Iridium - Devices from $1199 Globalstar - GSP1600 out of production Thuraya - Handsets from $839 Inmarsat - Handsets from $1129 Here's some discussion on what the different networks offer: Iridium - A truly global network. In fact it is the ONLY global satellite telephone service provider. It operates by using a constellation of 66 satellites revolving around the earth. Calls are picked up from the handset and passed form satellite to satellite to an Earth Station in Arizona USA where the call is delivered to the global telephone network. Like Globalstar calls in areas closer to the equator can suffer form interruptions as the satellites are spaced further apart. Coverage: Truly Global, polar regions included. Global coverage. Small and robust handsets. Good value plans for the heavy user. GPS built in on newer handsets Calls may be interrupted in areas close to the equator (Cape York, Gulf Country etc.) Casual plans are more expensive than other networks. Low data speeds 2.4 Kbps (some compression gives an apparent speed of 10 Kbps to some applications) Lower voice quality Globalstar (Handsets presently not available) Similar to Iridium in that it uses a constellation of satellites revolving around the earth. Calls are passed from the satellite to local Gateways (in Australia, Mt Isa, Dubbo and Meekatharra). Calls are not passed between satellites. Using fewer satellites than Iridium, and having to be in range of an earth station means service interruptions can also occur in areas closer to the equator (as mentioned with Iridium) In the Cape York vicinity one would anticipate a service availability of 80%. This does not mean that one can't make calls, just that there may be interruptions. The satellites take 10 to 12 minutes to pass overhead. The "New" constellation of satellites is a vast improvement over the older satellites which have been replaced. Australia Wide but will have reduced availability north of Broome / Townsville. Inexpensive handsets (when available). Excellent value casual plans. Inexpensive car kits. 38.4 Kbps data with optional kit. Excellent voice quality Service interruption in far north (southern hemisphere) No SMS facility. Handsets more bulky. No GPS Thuraya: The Thuraya network relies on two geostationary satellites covering over 140 countries. Being a Geostationary satellite - if you can see the region of the sky where the satellite is located you can make and receive calls. In Australia that means having a view from WNW to North and about 25 to 50 degrees above the virtual horizon depending on location. A paging type function on the handsets (and SatSleeve) provide limited alerts to incoming calls whilst indoor with the antenna stowed. Australia wide + 2/3s of the globe, excludes the Americas, some of Africa and NZ Excellent Australian Coverage. Extremely good value casual plans. SMS and fast data (up to 60 Kbps) GPS built in. Not a global network Variable voice quality Like Thuraya this system relies on geostationary satellites. Whilst not truly Global the Inmarsat coverage is more extensive than Thuraya. The satellite view in Australia is more East of North rather than Thuraya's West of North position. Similar to Thuraya the phone can be used indoors if at a window with a view to the satellite. Global, except polar regions. Mid price handset Pre-Paid or Post-Paid Plans No Coverage in Polar Regions Very expensive inbound calls on Pre-Paid In summary, all the networks will operate in all areas of Australia, some of the time. Terrain (hills, gullies), extreme cloud cover (Thunderstorms), dense foliage and buildings can all limit satellite reception. If using either of the "constellation" type networks (Iridium and Globalstar) and the terrain is blocking access one simply waits until there is a satellite where the sky is in view. With the Geostationary systems (Thuraya and Inmarsat) it may be necessary to move to a location that brings the satellite into view. ie. With Iridium and Globalstar a restricted (not 360) view of the sky will lead to call drop outs and reduced service availability. With Thuraya and Inmarsat you only need to see a small area of sky - but it has to be the right bit of sky otherwise there is no coverage. Longevity: No one can really say. At present the Iridium network has just been upgraded. The new network is backward compatible with legacy handsets. Inmarsat are committed to maintaining functionality and there's often talk of 15 year life for their satellites most lasting much longer Globalstar has just finished launching a bunch of new satellites so one would expect the network to be running in the present state for quite some time. Thuraya have indicated a commitment to the Australasia and European markets, but at this stage don't have spare satellites, but there is indication that an upgrade and redundancy can be expected soon. One thing to remember when selecting a network is that a satellite failure WILL have an effect on service provision. In the LEO systems (Globalstar and Iridium) such a failure will cause a service degradation. In the GEO sat (Inmarsat and Thuraya) systems a satellite failure could mean extended service unavailability across an entire region. That said, there are so many users and a commercial argument for all platforms not to leave customers stranded for access permanently due to a satellite failure. To date satellite services have been extremely reliable with short term lack of access more likely due to backend terrestrial system failure than the actual satellite itself. Other limitations are the restrictions posed by some countries on the use and possession of satellite telephones. Presently these countries are known to have restrictions; India, North Korea, Russia, Sri Lanka, Cuba, Chad and Sudan. In terms of running cost, the order would go in a list like this (low to high) We can provide a connection that has a standard Australian Mobile Telephone number on all networks. This means that it is very inexpensive to call the satellite telephone and dialing from the phone is just like using an ordinary mobile. The Inmarsat phone when using Pre-Paid will have a number commencing with 870 so one needs to dial 0011 870... or +870.. to call the unit. Similarly dialling from the Inmarsat phone can be more complex when using Pre-Paid. Advantages of Australian call routing: Allocation of a standard Australian Mobile Number (inexpensive to call and easy to remember) Easy outbound dialling (just like a mobile phone) Access to 1300 and 1800 numbers Easy to understand nature of call costs We offer Iridium, Globalstar, Inmarsat and Thuraya on extremely competitive month to month plans. We can supply Inmarsat services on flexible pre-paid plans offering long term validity and the roll over of unused credits, along with post paid plans If unsure about the right network and plan, please call us on 1300 13 54 57 Being able to supply services on ALL networks available in Australia one of our consultants will be able to work with you to make sure you are on the right network with the right plan best suited to your needs.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1919
__label__wiki	0.509899	0.509899	Shackman sextant and a link to Jesse Ramsden Shackmans The firm of manufacturing jewellers, David Shackman and Sons, is well known to collectors of fine watches. Following the First World War, the British government banned the importation of gold articles, including watch cases, so firms like Shackmans made the cases for imported watch movements by Longines and other famous Swiss watch-making firms. For many years, their initials “DS&S” were to be found on the cases of high-class gold watches. Making watch cases involves some precision machining and as the Second World War progressed, Shackmans converted to war work. In July, 1942, Albert and Reuben Shackman filed a patent application (9168/42) for “Improvements in or relating to Sextants” and the full specification was accepted in September 1943 (556,034). The claims made for originality seem on the whole to be spurious, as other manufacturers including Hughes and Son and Heath and Co. had anticipated some of them. The micrometer screw in its bearings was mounted between “adjustable pointed bearing screws” and held in engagement with the rack by means of a leaf spring (my Figures 1 and 2); and the bearing of the micrometer worm that received thrust from a pre-load spring was conical (my Figure 3) a by-no-means unusual feature of plain bearings that also have to accommodate thrust. Perhaps the main difference from other manufacturers was that the diameter of the worm was large, about the same as that of the micrometer drum, and the worm had parallel sides (my Figure 3). The pointed screws are labelled “11” in Shackmans’ Fig 4, the spring “12” in their Fig 1, the worm is “4” in their Figs 4 and 5, and the conical bearing surface is labelled “20” in their Fig 5. Figure 1: Spring-loaded worm engagement Figure 2 : Mounting between centres. Figure 3: Large cylindrical worm Most micrometer worms are conical so that the axis of its shaft is not tangential to the rack, allowing a relatively large micrometer drum to be used without it fouling the rack. Shackman’s claim says “With such an arrangement due to this angular positioning of the worm spindle, it is not possible to obtain correct interengagment between the teeth on the worm spindle and the teeth on the arc, and this incorrect interengagement of the teeth resulted in excessive wear and prevented accurate readings being obtained, particularly after the instrument had been in use for some little time.” Here Shackmans were being a little disingenuous. Most worms have an included angle of taper of about 15 degrees, so that the thread angle does indeed get larger towards the smaller end of the worm. However, provided that at least part of the worm engages correctly with the rack, this will have no effect on the accuracy of the instrument, which resides principally in the rack. Periodic errors in the worm will result in errors of the micrometer reading during the course of a full rotation, but these errors are just as likely to arise in a cylindrical worm as in a tapered one. The Ramsden connection At the beginning of the 20th century, a Mr W T Parsons owned a Ramsden-type dividing engine and, through a series of sales, it came into the hands of a Mr A J Bennett, probably the father of G J Bennett, who was the Managing Director of Shackmans in the 1990’s. A J Bennett sold three dividing engines to the Science Museum in London and in June 1942 asked for the loan of one of them back for war work. The Museum was told in 1945 by R C Shackman that it had been used to graduate “upwards of 2000 sextants”. After several requests from the Museum, it was finally returned in 1951. Since the sextants made by Shackmans were micrometer sextants, it is perhaps most likely that the machine was used for engraving the arcs, the degree markings of which need no special precision, but it is also possible that it was used in some way as an improvised hobbing machine to form the racks. My sextant has a serial number in the 2200’s and I have seen one with a serial number over 3900, so it possible that 4000 or more were made, though there is of course nothing to say that the serial numbers began at 0001. Mine was made for Kelvin and Wilfred O White of New York and Boston in late 1943 and sold in Seattle in 1956 for $85 (Figure 4), while the more recent sextant appears to have been marketed by Hughes and Son. Figure 4: Anonymised sales document. The sextant came to me in a rather battered, but essentially sound, solid wooden case, possibly of walnut, having brass fittings and corner dovetails (Figure 5) and Figure 6 shows a general view of the instrument as received. Some rust is visible, betraying the use of steel screws as a war time measure and, except for the shearing off of one of these rusted screws, overhaul and repainting was straightforward. I will not give an account of this, but instead concentrate on structural features of interest (to me, if not the reader!). The sextant frame is of the popular and very rigid three-circle pattern and is a bronze casting. Figures 7 onwards are of the restored instrument. Figure 5: Case as received. Figure 6: Sextant as received Index arm While the shades and mirror brackets are typical of British sextants of the time, the index arm is of interest, as it illustrates how a part that would have made the sextant uncompetitive in price in peace time can be tolerated in times of war. At the upper end (Figures 7 and 8) it is just wide enough to accommodate the mirror and allow attachment of the journal of the bearing. There is no intermediate disc as in practically all other sextants of the period. It appears that there has been an effort made to save every scrap of non-ferrous metal, until one sees that the underside is heavily ribbed and the lower end of the index arm, instead of being a continuation of a flat strip of metal, is in fact a casting of considerable complexity (Figure 9). Rather than having been stamped out of brass sheet, the whole index arm is a bronze, probably gunmetal, casting. Figure 7: Upper index arm and mirror Figure 8: Underside of upper index arm Figure 9: Underside of lower index arm The central rib adds stiffness against flexion to the index arm, a feature ignored as unnecessary by many makers, and the complexity of the lower end is necessary so that the micrometer assembly can be mounted between centres. We can note in passing that the keeper, which prevents the index arm from lifting off the limb and maintains the worm in alignment with the rack, is itself a piece of some little complexity, rather than being the simple shouldered screws used by many makers. Micrometer assembly Figure 10 gives a general view of the micrometer assembly from the front. It shows one of the centre locknuts and screws about which the worm casing rotates to bring the worm into engagement with the rack, impelled by a leaf spring. The screws are carried in a forward extension of the index arm which is braced by a transverse bar that forms part of the casting, together with an extension over the leaf spring Figure 10: General view of micrometer mechanism Figure 11 shows a partially exploded view of the mechanism. The casing is seen to be made in two halves held together by three screws. The drum is held on to the worm shaft by the threaded thimble, so that when the thimble is slacked off, the drum can be rotated to bring its reading to zero when the main index on the index arm is opposite a whole number of degrees. Once adjusted, the thimble is locked in place with a slotted lock nut. The cylindrical end of the worm casing contains two ball bearings separated by a spring. This provides axial preload to the worm shaft so that there is no end play of the shaft. In the patent drawing there are two conical parts (23 and 24 in my Figure 3) and the amount of axial thrust is shown as adjustable by threaded part 25. No doubt this was found to be an extra and unneccesary complication. Figure 11: Micrometer mechanism partly exploded. Figure 12 shows the mechanism fully exploded. The casing is made of two complex little castings, one with a lip that fits accurately inside a recess in the other to ensure concentricity. One of the bosses for the pointed centre screws is shown at top right of the right half-casing. The casing halves are machined all over inside and the conical seat for the thrust face of the worm shaft is shown on the left half-casing. These small parts, while no doubt child’s play to watch case-makers, must nevertheless have been difficult to hold for machining and have added significantly to the cost of the micrometer mechanism. Compare it with the elegant simplicty of the mechanism shown in Figure 3 of my post on the US Maritime Commission sextant by Leupold and Stevens, which is based on Hughes and Son’s design. The large diameter of the worm is a mixed blessing, as there is a large area of worm in contact with the rack and when rotating the worm there is a marked tendency to stick-slip, sometimes known as “stiction”. Figure 12: Micrometer mechanism fully exploded Index arm bearing (Figure 13) The bearing has a protective cover that doubles as a leg, seen in Figure 8, above. The bearing itself is a slender shell of brass with a boss that fits closely into the frame and which is secured to the frame by three screws from the front. The journal, the part that rotates within the bearing, is of hard bronze. The washer and journals have flats that prevent the washer from rotating, so that the screw which secures the washer and journal in place can be nicely adjusted to remove all shake without there being any tendency for rotation of the journal to alter the setting of the screw. Note that the flat of the washer has been silver soldered into place, a quite usual process for a jeweller, while an engineering approach would probably have used a broach, a shaped cutting tool that is forced into a hole to produce shaped holes. Figure 13: Index arm bearing. Shades mounting When rotating the shades in position, it is a nuisance if more than the selected shade moves, so most makers, Shackmans included, separated the shades by washers that could move along the shaft but not rotate upon it, usually by machining a key way on the shaft, with internal tongues on the washers fitting into the keyway. The amount of resistance to rotation could be adjusted by means of a screw on the end of the shaft, so it was obviously necessary to prevent the shaft itself from rotating in the bracket while the adjusting screw is turned. Most makers simply passed a taper pin through the bracket and shaft. Shackmans used a more complicated approach (Figure 14) that again involved unecessary machining operations. They tapped holes through the boss on the end of the shaft and into the bracket for two small locking screws that prevented both axial movement and rotation, just like a taper pin, but with more complexity. Figure 14: Shades assembly The telescope is a three power Galilean “star” ‘scope with an objective lens of 25 mm diameter. It screws into a ring atop a column that is attached to the frame by a single large screw and prevented from rotating by a dowel pin. There is no provision for rise and fall or collimation, nor was any necessary for the type of observation likely to be made with the instrument. The sextant is located in the case by a simple wooden pocket, shown broken in Figure 6. A wooden latch over the handle and two cork faced pads in the lid hold it securely in place when the lid is closed. The ends of the legs sit on the heads of drawing pins (thumb tacks) so that the rounded ends of the legs do not work themselves into the floor of the box. The sextant can be placed in the case with the shades in any position and the index arm in any position between -5 and 110 degrees, practical features not appreciated by all makers. Figure 15 shows the re-finished case. Figure 15: Re-finished case. The handle is a drawer pull. The latches are safety latches (Figure 16). It is neccessary to push on a springy leaf of brass before the latch can be swung out of the way. There is a box lock, a pocket for an eyepiece shade and a staple in the side of the box to hold the adjusting pick. Figure 16: Safety latch. « A Late Spanish Vernier Sextant Later Tamaya Scale Lighting Systems » Date : February 1, 2013 Categories : Shackman sextant and link to Ramsden สังคม (18:39:04) : It’s very straightforward to find out any matter on net as compared to books, as I found this piece of writing at this web page.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1925
__label__wiki	0.961705	0.961705	Hong Kong takes emergency measures as mystery ‘pneumonia’ infects dozens in China’s Wuhan city Mandy Zuo South China Morning Post 31 December 2019 Hong Kong health authorities are taking no chances with a mysterious outbreak of viral pneumonia in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, warning of symptoms similar to Sars and bird flu as they step up border screening and put hospitals on alert. “The situation in Wuhan is unusual, and we are not sure about the reasons behind the outbreak yet,” said Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan Siu-chee said after an urgent night-time meeting with officials and experts on New Year’s Eve. “Since we are now in the holiday season, and Hong Kong has close transport ties with Wuhan, we must stay alert.” With Wuhan reporting 27 infections so far, Chan said the Department of Health would increase vigilance and temperature screenings at every border checkpoint, including the city’s international airport and high-speed railway station in West Kowloon. Hospital Authority chief executive Tony Ko Pat-sing said frontline medical staff had been alerted at public and private hospitals. Central Hospital in Wuhan, the central Chinese city where an “unknown pneumonia” has so far affected nearly 30 people. Photo: Handout “So far, there are no suspicious pneumonia cases in public hospitals,” he said. “But once we suspect cases, including the presentation of fever and acute respiratory illness or pneumonia, and travel history to Wuhan within 14 days before onset of symptoms, we will put the patients into isolation.” Experts from the University of Hong Kong have also been enlisted to conduct faster genetic testing of virus samples. News of the outbreak in Wuhan came to light after an urgent notice from the city’s health department, which told hospitals to report further cases of “pneumonia of unknown origin”, started circulating on social media on Monday night. The notice invoked memories of the 2002 and 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or Sars, which killed hundreds of people in mainland China and Hong Kong. Protests took a harder toll on Hong Kong’s economy than Sars virus Over the past month, 27 patients in Wuhan – most of them stall holders at the Huanan seafood market – have been treated for the mystery illness. The Wuhan municipal health commission said seven of the patients were seriously ill. Two had nearly recovered and were about to leave hospital, while the remaining patients were in a stable condition. Most patients had fevers and some were short of breath. The health commission’s initial investigations, which included clinical diagnosis and laboratory tests, suggested all 27 were viral pneumonia cases. Passengers are seen at the entrance of a waiting room in Hankou Railway Station in Wuhan. The city has close transport ties with Hong Kong. Photo: Xinhua No human-to-human infection had been reported so far, officials said, and no medical staff had contracted the disease. More pathological tests and investigations were underway. Microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung from the University of Hong Kong noted similarities with the 1997 outbreak of avian influenza, and the severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic of 2003 – all cases in Wuhan were linked to the same seafood market, reported in December, and with a severe infection rate of 25 per cent. “But there’s no need to panic. First, compared with 2003, we have better systems in notification, testing and infection control. We also have medicines that we can try,” Yuen said. Hong Kong public hospitals to introduce expanded test for respiratory infections for children “In the past, we didn’t have proper isolation facilities. If you ask me will there be any chance that the severity will be the same as in 2003, I will say the chance is low. All we have to do is to be on alert.” The 2003 epidemic infected more than 1,750 people and killed 299 in Hong Kong. The patients in Wuhan were under quarantine while tests and a disinfection programme were being carried out at the seafood market, the city’s health authorities said. Qu Shiqian, a vendor at the seafood market, said government officials had disinfected the premises on Tuesday and told stallholders to wear masks. Donghu Lake is seen in this aerial photo taken over Wuhan. Photo: Xinhua He said he had only learnt about the pneumonia outbreak from media reports. “Previously I thought they had flu,” he said. “It should be not serious. We are fish traders. How can we get infected?” State television reported that a team of experts from the National Health Commission had arrived in Wuhan to lead the investigation, while People’s Daily said the exact cause remained unclear and it would be premature to speculate. People’s Daily also quoted several hospital sources in the city who said it was likely that the virus responsible was different from Sars, which infected more than 5,300 people and killed 349 in mainland China between late 2002 and mid-2003. Tao Lina, a public health expert and former official with Shanghai’s centre for disease control and prevention, said that while a return of Sars could not be ruled out, the public health care system was now better able to handle such an outbreak. “We don’t know whether Sars will come back after 16 years. In human history, we’ve never seen an epidemic disappear forever without the interference of vaccines. So we have reasons to be cautious, but not to panic too much,” Tao said. “I think we are [now] quite capable of killing it in the beginning phase, given China’s disease control system, emergency handling capacity and clinical medicine support.” China adds 33 drugs to its plan to offer patients more affordable treatment China’s scientists aren’t shy about promoting their work any more Tourist arrivals take sharpest plunge in November since protests began in Hong Kong This article Hong Kong takes emergency measures as mystery ‘pneumonia’ infects dozens in China’s Wuhan city first appeared on South China Morning Post I eat only strangers' leftover food – and it's the best diet I've ever had Kuchar steadies ship after horror hole to clinch Singapore Open Why women should start giving short men a chance	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1927
__label__cc	0.706637	0.293363	Georgian Era Kitchen Room(s). Yes, more than just one room! To fully comprehend the duties of the servants within the kitchen rooms of a Regency Era household, it is helpful to understand kitchen architecture and technology of the equipment available. It is a complex issue impossible to cover completely in one essay. Instead, I’ll give a nutshell synopsis with images for visual enhancement. Kitchen at St. James’s Palace in 1819 Kitchen Architecture Basics Kitchen at the Royal Pavillion in Brighton First, it is vital to note that the food preparation area wasn’t one room but consisted of several distinct, separate rooms. The main room for cooking was the kitchen, of course. Attached or in very close proximity were two (or more) larders, storage rooms (pantries), the stillroom, the dairy, wine cellar, and the scullery. If fortunate, there would be an ice house on the grounds not too far away. The main kitchen was the largest room. In extremely large houses there may be more than one kitchen, or, more commonly, the primary cooking area was divided into individual kitchens for specific menu items, such as a pastry kitchen for desserts. The kitchen was designed as a massive open square or rectangle, ideally with high vaulted ceilings and wide windows for illumination and ventilation. Built to be somewhat centrally located, the kitchen would have doorways or corridors to the adjacent rooms, and at least one exit to the outside. Kitchen gardens would be directly outside for easy access or as close to the kitchen exit as possible. Almost always on the ground floor, and occasionally detached from the main house for safety from fire hazard, the main kitchen layout must provide easy flow to the dining room for the swift serving of the meals. An additional benefit, especially in a busy household, was a “delivery-hatch” or “lifting sash or shutter” which allowed servants to retrieve the trays of food without entering the kitchen itself. Hot-closets or hot-tables were useful to keep the food warm until served. In primary structure, the early 19th-century kitchen and accompanying rooms were universally designed and largely unchanged from medieval times. Improvements were made to increase efficiency, but on a minor scale with major alterations not as often as one might suspect. The cost of renovating was always an issue, of course, but mainly, it was prohibitive to disturb the busiest room in the house with construction unless absolutely vital to do so. Chatsworth kitchen, ca. 1823 All the kitchen area room floors were wood, or preferably tiled, allowing for easy cleaning with mops and brooms. No vacuum cleaners, obviously, unless one counted the kitchen dog! Wood counter surfaces were the most common for cutting and other food preparation as it was inexpensive and could be easily replaced, washed down, sanded and reused. Brick was used for the stoves and hearth due to its superb ability to retain heat. Iron stoves existed but were in their infancy in construction and production. Wood was the primary fuel for smoking and cooking. Charcoal gained popularity and was kept on hand, but the flavors attained from the different types of wood was preferred. The primary cooking apparatus throughout the Georgian period was the fireplace. For best roasting-range, it was placed centrally on one wall, measured on average from five to eight feet wide with a depth up to three feet. Ovens and boilers were built into the stone, often with individual chimney flues and fire sources. A roasting-screen projected some three to four feet in front. Meals were cooked over open fires using spitjacks, standing toasters, and metal trivets. There were grates, hobs, and hooks with levers to raise and lower the pots over the flames, this being the only way to control cooking temperatures. Tomorrow I will talk about kitchen gadgets and utensils vital for the cooking process, so be sure to check back. Kitchen design and layout varied from house to house, although there were standards and recommendations for what was best. The image below shows three different manor houses from the mid-1800s. Examine each and note the similarities, as well as the variations. click for larger view Example of kitchen & scullery layout. click for larger view THE SCULLERY was always located in a separate room from the kitchen to prevent food being contaminated by soiled water. Specifics of bacteria were unknown, of course, but as in medicine, the evidence was impossible to ignore. Hygiene was essential. All surfaces, especially those for the preparation of food, had to be kept immaculate, meaning fresh water was constantly hauled inside. The scullery was equipped with double stone sinks where pots and pans and the servants’ crockery were rinsed and cleaned. The family’s fine china would be washed in a copper sink (the softer surface prevented chipping). A wealthy house might have a cistern above the sinks to flush the drains, pipes leading out of the house to the nearest garden. For this reason, sculleries were usually built next to the outer walls. No point in wasting the water! The very rich might have a private cistern or well nearby, and even pumps and piping to draw the water inside, but for the majority of households during the 19th century and before, water had to be carried into the house from a distance. The town pump or well, while centrally situated in a village or city square, might not be conveniently located near one’s house. In addition to the village well, households in the country could also rely on local streams, rivers, or lakes for their source of water, but again, these bodies of water were probably located some distance away. The scullery floor, made of stone, was lower than the kitchen’s, inhibiting water from flowing into the cooking areas. To prevent the servants standing in the accumulated water, raised latticed wood mats covered the stone. All this water, while necessary, could easily lead to problems with mold and contamination. Dry goods were stashed well away from the scullery, and the importance of drying surfaces and objects thoroughly cannot be overstressed. Scullery at London townhouse in Whitechapel The Kitchen Scullery at Lanhydrock, Cornwall. Milk room at Dunham Massey THE DAIRY may have been attached to the house but often was a separate building located in a shaded area and situated so as to be sheltered from the harsh sun and strong winter winds. The barns would be a distance away to prevent contamination. Meaning the pails of milk were hauled to the dairy by the dairymaid, not an easy chore! Structurally, the dairy walls would be thick and covered with glazed tiles, plaster, or wood slats designed to resist water and regulate interior temperature. The dairy would have two, three, or maybe more rooms. One or more would be for storage and the curing of cheeses and creams. Two rooms, as in the main kitchen, were required to separate the dairy products from the cleaning room (scullery). Additional chambers for the dairymaid(s) quarters might be attached, or if separate located nearby, although this wasn’t always the case. Excellent ventilation and drainage were essential. Shelves and counters were preferably lined with or made from solid marble or slate for cleanliness and cooler surfaces. LARDERS were ideally located on the north side of a house to shelter from direct sunlight. A plentiful number of windows on all sides to provide excellent ventilation would be kept open with some sort of gauze covering for pest control, and latching casement glass during severe weather. At the minimum, there would be two larders with ventilation, dryness, and temperature of the rooms the deciding factors for which foods were kept within. The Dry Larder at Lanhydrock, Cornwall. The dry larder, also called the cook’s pantry, stored the cooked meats, breads, pastry, milk, butter, and other assorted foods needed close at hand. Excluded from the dry larder would be any uncooked meats and unwashed vegetables. As the name implies, this larder must be free from damp with a constant airflow to remove any moisture, smoke, odor, or excessive heat. There would also be a drain in the floor to carry away collected water. Ideally, the dry larder would be located well away from rooms with high quantities of water, such as the scullery, laundry, or dairy. Inside the dry larder would be tiered shelves and storage cabinets with drawers. In the center of the room would be a large table or two, typically of wood with marble slabs on top to promote coolness. If an ice house was on the grounds, there may be a refrigerator cabinet with sections to keep chips of ice. The wet larder, also called the meat larder, housed all the uncooked meats: poultry, game, and fish. Maintaining a temperature as cold as possible was essential, therefore the walls would be lined with glazed tiles or non-absorbent cement. The floor would certainly be paved, and marble and slate slabs would be generously installed atop the shelves and countertops. The Meat Larder at Lanhydrock, Cornwall. As in the dry larder, shelves and storage cabinets would be spacious and numerous with multiple compartments. Fruits and vegetables would also be stored in the wet larder, either in a designated section of the room or in an outer room separated slightly from the meats. Large households often had an inner room within the wet larder, a special compartment kept locked to protect the most expensive game meats. Meats would be hung from overhead sliding hooks and racks, as well as in ice boxes or ice-cooled refrigerators. Along with the big table in the middle of the room, there would be a device to weigh and balance the meats, and several huge chopping blocks. These two larders were the basic essentials for adequately designed kitchen rooms in a country manor house. A superbly stocked grand house that hosted important visitors and lavish parties would often boast additional special larders. Rather than one wet larder, there might be a separate fish larder, poultry larder, and game larder. A pastry larder would be used exclusively to make and store pastries (and the ingredients for the pastries: flours, sugar, lard, etc.) in a location close to the kitchen for the required warmth and easy access to the ovens. There may also be a confectionary, an amplified pastry larder for the creation of elaborate desserts and sugar forms. Salting rooms were necessary if salting meats were done frequently. This room would require stronger shelves and tables with lots of movable trays for pickling. It would also need abundant space for pots and barrels to brine meats, as well as a water source and drainage. Bacon larders were fitted with special racks for bacon strips and cured hams. Lastly, the smokehouse was often a separate structure but might be an attached room, with hooks and bearers to hang the meats. The fireplace was usually situated outside of the chamber, the smoke from the burning wood, sawdust, or peat funneled into the smokehouse, flues controlling the escape of the smoke from the roof. THE STILL ROOM was a dedicated workplace for the household distillery. Typically a room (or rooms) in close proximity to the kitchen, sometimes the still room was a detached structure near the service area of the manor house. Arguably one of the most important rooms for running a proper home, the still room was essentially the kitchen chemistry lab for a vast array of products from food to medicinal. Section of still room at Warwick Castle The name derives from the original, primary purpose of this area of the kitchen being the fitting of a still to distill the cordial waters imbibed by delicate females, medicines, and scents. The earliest recorded “still-room” was at Hengrave Hall, Suffolk in 1603, the use, according to The History of Hengrave, for “preparing and keeping biskett cakes, marchpanes, herbs, spicebread, fruits, conserves, etc.” As I noted in the essay on the housekeeper and female servants, the woman (or women) who staffed the still room were highly skilled and educated. In many cases, particularly prior to “modernized” industrialization of medicines and chemical production, the lady of the house was as skilled in still room recipes and techniques as the servants assigned to the task. Daughters of the family also trained in the still room, the skills a valuable need to run one’s own household and thus an asset in the marriage market. Each household kept meticulous records passed on from generation to generation with “recipes” for every imaginable concoction, these journals prized possessions. Women of the household were responsible for the health and well-being of the family, servants, tenant farmers, and to some degree even the animals. The still room was a truly multi-functional area. The list of products directly associated with creation in the still room is phenomenal. Read the list below and I think the concept of needed more than one room to do it all — as well as the vital importance of the area and the staff — will become clearer. ALL medicines (possets, poultices, Moisturizers and lotions Beer, ales, fortified wines, spirits Jams, jellies, relishes, syrups, etc. Tinctured waters (rose water, lavender water, etc.) Herbal infused beverages Spices for food seasoning Tea and coffee blending Still room in Cragside House The room was, in many respects, a mini-kitchen. Equipment would include a still, of course, along with a small oven and fire cooking area, a brazier or other type of tabletop boiler, a sink or two, and several tables, storage closets, and shelves. The ceiling would be outfitted with multiple hooks and racks for hanging herbs. As a keeper of records, the room would require a desk with superb writing implements, as well as secure cases to safely store the ledgers. Distilling is the process used to produce high-alcohol content products. Indeed, this was applied to home-brewing ales, beer, wine, and other spirits for drinking. It was also the process by which medicines, essential oils, cleaning products, preservatives, cosmetics, and the like are created. Fermentation and pickling were essential for preservation in this largely un-refrigeration period. The knowledge to adequately preserve food was critical. Herbs, flowers, roots, and other organics grown in the gardens and foraged from the surrounding countryside were dried, treated, preserved, and stored in the still room. Still room at Ham House Closeup of the pottery still For more images of Georgian era kitchen rooms, visit my Pinterest Board dedicated to the topic. Examples have a Georgian aesthetic and mostly period-correct fixtures. I say “mostly” since photographs are a modern capturing technique so even English manor houses attempting to preserve the Georgian era appearance are never exactly correct. Categories: History, Regency, Video * * 1 Comment ← From Cook to Scullion. Can There Be Too Many in the Kitchen? Cooking in the Regency. How did they do it? → One Comment for Georgian Era Kitchen Room(s). Yes, more than just one room! Brenda kearney says: Wonderful site – really enjoyed reading your contents. I was wondering if you had any information on what Stuffing spoons and Straining spoons were really used for – they are massive spoons, some of them 14 inches in length.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1929
__label__cc	0.693058	0.306942	Film/Television SHIFTER U The “E” Project The Creators Series Kevin Bourne Joe Mebrahtu Koliah Bourne Vladimir Jean-Gilles Reda Zarrug OTTAWA'S FIRST HOMICIDE OF THE YEAR CLAIMS LIFE OF RAPPER FTG METRO OTTAWA MUSIC VIDEO ROUNDUP \| DECEMBER TORONTO TRIO, BLOOM, DROPS NEW SINGLE “NO GOOD THOUGHTS” HALFSIZEGIANTS BID FAREWELL TO FALLEN MEMBER IN NEW SINGLE “STATE OF EMERGENCY” OTTAWA MUSIC VIDEO ROUNDUP \| NOVEMBER OPINION – JUICE WRLD, XXXTENTACTION AND LIL PEEP DIDN’T DESERVE TO DIE JAY-Z CELEBRATES 5OTH BIRTHDAY WITH SPOTIFY CATALOGUE RELEASE 4 TIPS FOR FINDING HAPPINESS TODAY - WOMEN'S EDITION Lifestyle, Opinion DRAKE SET TO LAUNCH MORE LIFE CANNABIS VENTURE 5 SIGNS MISSISSAUGA IS ON THE RISE NEW PORSCHE 911 AMONG MUST-SEES AT THE OTTAWA GATINEAU INTERNATIONAL AUTO SHOW COLUMN – WINS AND LOSSES ISN’T JUST AN ALBUM, IT’S A FACT OF LIFE COLUMN – CONSUMER CULTURE: WHY STUFF CAN’T BUY US HAPPINESS 4 WAYS SPORTSWEAR CAN BECOME HIGH FASHION Culture, Fashion, Sports TOP 10 ONTARIO CULTURE DAYS EVENTS IN OTTAWA AND TORONTO JAY-Z CROWNED HIP-HOP’S FIRST BILLIONAIRE RECAP – SOLE EXCHANGE TORONTO 2019 THE "E" PROJECT - KEVIN GENTLE, DIGITAL MARKETING CONSULTANT Business, The "E" Project OTTAWA SHOWS OUT IN LAS VEGAS AT THE CONSUMER ELECTRONICS SHOW 4 REASONS TO GET EXCITED ABOUT ARTPRENEUR 2019 TORONTO'S GOSPEL SKATES COME TO A END AFTER 20 YEAR RUN ASHES TO RUBIES OFFERS WELL-NEEDED HOPE IN TIME FOR THE HOLIDAYS LEBRON JAMES OPENS I PROMISE PUBLIC SCHOOL FOR AT-RISK CHILDREN OVO PRODUCER NOAH “40” SHEBIB, KARDINAL OFFISHALL ADDRESS TORONTO GUN VIOLENCE OPINION – THE BLAME GAME: THE BLACK VICTIM NARRATIVE IS GETTING TIRED DRAKE GOES ON $175K GIVING SPREE FOR “GOD’S PLAN” MUSIC VIDEO ANDREW JAMES SET TO LAUNCH LATEST VENTURE STREAMS COMMUNITY HUB WHAT’S YOUR BEEF? – JESUS IS KING, CHRISTIANITY AND WHY I LEFT CHURCH JAMES CHARLES VS. TATI WESTBROOK: LESSON LEARNED TORONTO TRIO, BLOOM, DROPS NEW SINGLE "NO GOOD THOUGHTS" INTERVIEW – GLOWFAIR PRODUCER KEVIN MARTIN ON THIS YEAR’S MUSIC, LIGHT AND ART FESTIVAL It’s finally here! The Glowfair music, light and art festival is happening tonight and all day tomorrow. Our editor Kevin Bourne had the opportunity to speak to the producer, Kevin Martin, about this year’s festival. KB: So, what was the feedback that you guys got after last year’s event?KM: Well, it was really crazy because the positive feedback we received walking the streets, just kind of over hearing what people were saying was really fun. “This is like Montreal”, “We can’t believe Ottawa’s doing this” and “This is needed down here more often”. It was just really positive. The main thing that really hit, we surveyed over 300 people to get a good number and we actually had about a 98.5% positive, “Yes, we will come back next year feedback.”KB: Wow. KM: So that was to me was just amazing. So out of 27,000 people that we had come down, for 98% of them to say they would come back next year because they enjoyed themselves, I felt that’s really good. KB: So, what was that like? You guys expected 5000; you guys got 27,000. What was the reaction from you guys when you actually saw how many people came out? KM: Well, kind of a bit of both, you know, exhilaration. Because at the beginning of the day people were coming down, it was great. Kind of what we expected. And then a bit later on in the afternoon and then in the early evening we saw our social media and hashtags and stuff were really taking off. And, you know, a lot of action happening there. And people just continued to come down, and come down, and come down and you know, it was just…it was awesome. Like we just couldn’t believe how well it was received. And you know, we didn’t expect it at all. The only issue, I guess, we had to deal with was a little bit of crowd control. We had to get some more police in to make sure everything was safe and for being organized that way. To me, that’s a great problem to have. KB: And how many people are you expecting this year? KM: Well, we’re…40,000. But, I would be honestly surprised if we got any less than, you know, 45 or 50. KB: Wow, wow, wow. KM: Yeah, it’s going to be incredible. The feedback that we’ve been receiving. And the publicity that’s been going on and I think it’s gonna be a really great festival this year. KB: Ok, good. And last year it was 8 blocks that you guys had covered? KM: Actually, I think it was 7 but yeah, 7 or 8. KB: Ok, and this year you’re expecting, is it 10 blocks? KM: It is, yeah, we’re doing 10 blocks it’s closed down from Slater all the way south to James. And we also have the little area where Snider Plaza is, just off of Bank Street there. KB: So, it’s Snider Plaza where the stage is going to be? KM: Yeah, just behind actually. Snider Plaza called, what, A Glow Zone, it’s being sponsored by Kronenberg Beer and they’re doing this really cool neon lounge with glow in the dark bars and furniture and all that fun stuff. KB: Ok, good. So it seems with this year you’re going bigger and better- bigger acts, more numbers, more blocks. What was your thought process in deciding to go that much bigger and better? KM: Yeah, well, I thought last year year we did an amazing job. You know, the music was handled really well. The stages were really well-received. Some of the feedback that we did receive from the festival goers and from our members was that we could of had a little bit more stuff happening for families during the day and on the street. So, what we really wanted to focus in on is our theme blocks. That was the idea for the theme blocks to come about. KB: And last year you guys didn’t have the theme blocks? KM: No. We basically we just did a little bit of decor. And then this year we thought it’s a little bit more focused and we’re going to theme block everything. So yeah, each of the blocks that I mentioned earlier actually has a theme. You know, decor and entertainment performers and stuff that’ll speak to the theme. KB: So and what are the different themes? KM: Well, they will range from Enchanted Forestm a quiet place with neon lights and big trees and benches where you can sit and listen to storytellers. It goes all the way to a circus block where we’re going to have Ottawa’s Company of Fools and the Ottawa Clown School and buskers and a strong man. And, you know, basically a circus on the street. We’ll also have an area dedicated to Morocco called the Moroccan Bazaars so we’re going to have a Moroccan tent with vendors and a Moroccan Barbecue and Moroccan entertainers, etc. We have a Kid Zone where the kids have lots of stuff to do during the day. And we have a pinball wizard. It’s a skateboard weekend that weekend. I guess that’s an international thing. And so antique skate shop is actually doing a pinball themed skatepark so actual skateboarders are going to be able to do their jumps and tricks and all that stuff on pieces of ramp and things that have been built. It’s going to look like a big pinball machine. So, that’s going to be pretty awesome. KB: Ok. And, is there anything different that we can expect this year from last year? KM: Yeah, like I said definitely more stuff happening on the street. We really put a focus on bringing in some more glow. You know, the streets are going to be a little bit more lighted and black lighted, neon and everything else. So, I think that’s going to be a lot of fun. We have this thing that’s going to be amazing. We’re doing a glow yoga session on the Friday night. Everybody’s going to be dressed in white we’re going to put black light canons on them. So they’ll be glowing in the middle of the street. That’s pretty cool. Saturday we have a couple of vow renewals. One of them is during the day so they’re going to be dressed in all neon colours. And at night they’re gonna be dressed in lighted outfits. So that should be pretty cool. Yeah, like you said, basically there’s just a lot more stuff happening for the themes and of course really awesome stuff we did last year with the silent disco and the black Mohawk performers we had last year that were well-received. Like you said, a lot higher named artists or bigger named artists. We’re really excited to have Keisza coming. KB: You talk about the yeah the bluetooth headsets you guys had last year. Is there any other ways that you guys plan to use technology at the event? KM: Well, bluetooth, yeah we’re doing that again for sure. That was awesome. Do, did you check it out actually? Did you see it? KB: I wasn’t there last year, but I saw. I was reading up on the old articles and I saw the pictures. KM: It was surreal walking by on the outside of the stage just separated by chain link fence and seeing people actually vibing. It was just amazing. So I thought that was pretty cool. We have Jump FM coming. They’re going to be on a block that they sponsor called the Sound Board. So they’re obviously going to be doing some radio tie-in stuff. We are dealing with a lot more lights and glow stuff. KB: Ok. Last question. Where do you guys kind of see this event going in the future. KM: Well I’m not only the producer of the festival but I’m also a director with the Bank Street BIA. The main goal of course is to get people down to Bank Street. I mean, we want to showcase our businesses. We want people to think of Bank Street as a cool place to come; a great place to shop and to experience the different things we offer here. Obviously Glow Fair is on of our flagship events. But it’s literally just a cog in the whole market. Glowfair takes place June 19-20 at Bank Street between Slater Street and James Street. Visit our Glowfair Central page with all of our exclusive content, including event photos. glowfest-interviewshome-interviews INTERVIEW – KIESZA, A CREATIVE SUPERSTAR IN THE MAKING 4.8Album Rating MUSIC REVIEW – TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY, KENDRICK LAMAR Sign Up for the latest updates! The 10th anniversary of Ontario Culture Days (OCD) features an eclectic roster of free activities and events taking pl... Four and a half years after Dr. Dre was prematurely anointed hip-hop's first billionaire after selling Beats Electronics... After checking out SneakerCon Toronto last fall, I had the opportunity to stop by and experience this year’s Sole Exchan... KIM KARDASHIAN WEST SET TO BECOME A LAWYER Queen Kardashian West is studying to become a lawyer. Surprised? Of course not. Kim Kardashian West (KKW) is daughter of... 15 VIDEO GAME RELEASES COMING IN 2019 In a world where there are so many different options for playing games (like your phone, PC, Xbox, PS4, and now Google i... SHIFTER \| Music. Life. Culture. OTTAWA’S FIRST HOMICIDE OF THE YEAR CLAIMS LIFE OF RAPPER FTG METRO Copyright © 2020 SHIFTER Agency Inc. All rights reserved.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1931
__label__cc	0.618286	0.381714	SOLO COMPOSITIONS Trouble in Aberdeen ©2009, unaccompanied snare drum solo USS Becuna ©2009, unaccompanied timpani solo Coulrophobic Etude ©2009, unaccompanied mallet solo Performance History: Alaska All-State Percussion Auditions NAfME All-National Honor Ensembles Percussion Auditions Pennsylvania Region and All-State Auditions ORCHESTRAL COMPOSITIONS Kākū, kūpala \| Fear in Neutral Buoyancy ©2015 Sean J. Kennedy (b. 1971) Performance Hist September 27, 2015* Location: Carnegie Hall, Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage Ensemble: The Youth Philharmonic International Orchestra, conducted by José Luis Gómez *World premiere Audio recording released by Kanca Media. (FYC) GRAMMY ballot nominee 2016 Best Classical Contemporary Composition Best Orchestral Performance Location: Iglesia de San Pedro, Montes de Oca. San José, Costa Rica Ensemble: Orquesta Sinfonica Intermedia de la Universidad de Costa Rica, conducted by Elvis Josue Bendaña Rivas Location: Corning, New York, Corning Museum of Glass Ensemble: Endless Mountain Music Festival Orchestra, conducted by Steven Gunzenhauser LUX CONTRITUM (Broken Light) ©2017 Commissioned by Sister Lauretta Linsalata, Gary Zimmaro and Ed Stimson For the 2018 All Catholic Festival Chorus and Orchestra To premier on April 17, 2018 Verizon Hall, The Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Kākū, kūpala \| Fear in Neutral Buoyancy (2015) The American drum set player, percussionist, recording artist, author, and educator Sean J. Kennedy was born in Philadelphia. He is a multi-faceted musician who is equally accomplished on the stage, in the recording studio, and in the classroom. He has performed on drumset and percussion with Il Volo (an Italian operatic pop trio), the Strauss Symphony of America, the Philly POPS! Orchestra, the Allentown Band, and the Symphony Orchestras of Allentown, Atlanta, Jacksonville, and Lancaster. He is principal drumset player with the Cape May Pops and the Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale. He has written numerous drumset, percussion and improvisation books. His drumset method book “Camp Jam: Rock Solid Drums” was nominated as Educational Drum Book of the Year in the 2011 “Modern Drummer Magazine” reader’s poll. Jazz legend Dave Brubeck stated that Sean’s drumming “… sounds like it should—it swings!” Kākū, kūpala is the Hawaiian translation for large barracuda. The work was inspired by Kennedy’s brief but frightening encounter in August, 2001 with a four-foot barracuda while he was on a sightseeing trip to Maui to observe the great sea turtles. Barracudas are notorious for their fearsome appearance and ferocious behavior. Kennedy was looking at the turtles when he suddenly noticed the barracuda about two yards away. The ominous fish, using its innate ability to maintain buoyancy, remained motionless and stared at him. The terrified Kennedy called to a nearby friend and then looked back to see if the barracuda were still there, but it had vanished. The composer indicated that Kākū, kūpala features percussion, is scored for full orchestra, and lies somewhere between jazz, rock, and classical music. It paints a sound picture by using specific rhythms and pitches combined with moments of free improvisation. The three percussionists symbolize his emotions before, during, and after his encounter with the barracuda. They add critical elements of danger and surprise to make the piece come alive for both performers and audience by switching frequently between specific rhythms notated on the score and moments of free improvisation. The Youth Philharmonic International Orchestra, conducted by José Luis Gómez, premièred Kākū, kūpala at Carnegie Hall on September 27, 2015. Ted Wilks LUX CONTRITUM \| Broken Light 2017 A composition for Full Orchestra and Chorus Throughout my career as a musician I have been privileged to perform and visit many churches in Europe and North America. Most of these beautiful buildings include elaborate stained glass windows. The history of stained glass windows is rooted in the wide spread illiteracy of congregations hundreds of years ago. They were created to convey a message quickly and easily. Stories of faith and lessons were the predominant theme of the windows. Some of the oldest windows have been found in archeological digs in Italy dating back to 800 AD. When basking in the glow of one of these windows a sense of calm is almost always experienced by the visitor. I have always been amazed that a beam of light, individual pieces of iron and broken glass can blend together and create a beautiful, singular, otherworldly, sense of calm and awe, much like a piece of music. Both invite the audience to have their own deeply personal experiences. Being tasked to compose this important piece of music for such a wide range of ages, abilities, instruments and voices, was daunting, to say the least. For a few weeks I sketched ideas down and recorded motifs, with nothing too inspiring, until I remembered a particularly beautiful stained glass window that I saw in Florence, Italy at The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. Standing in the sun’s warm glow as it reached through the colored glass adorning the window, I was overcome with a sense of warmth and serenity, created by those tiny, individual pieces of broken glass. The experience was overwhelming and unforgettable. At this time in history we all see lots of pieces of broken glass (sadness, tyranny, violence, etc…). We see these pieces in the news, in our neighborhoods, in our school and sometimes sadly, in our homes. However, if we all take ownership in trying to make the world a more peaceful and joyous place everyday, with just one small gesture, we, like a stained glass window can turn thousands of pieces of broken glass into one beautiful illumination of peace and love. SMALL GROUP JAZZ COMPOSITIONS ETUDES AND SOLOS FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1934
__label__cc	0.684859	0.315141	The Gooner - Issue 251 PRE-ORDER AHEAD OF PUBLICATION ON 20TH MAY Issue 251 of The Gooner from May 2015. The last issue of the 2014-15 season is a bumper 64 page special looking forward to the Cup Final against Aston Villa. There is a piece on the tense victory over Reading, as well as a special feature on past FA Cup semi-finals which Arsenal have played dating back to the early 70s – most, but not all of which ended triumphantly. Peter Le Beau reminisces about the Magic of Wembley and his visits to the national stadium. He admits he has lost count of the number of times he’s walked down Wembley Way to watch Arsenal and reminds us of how lucky we are to support a team which gets there so often. We also asked Gooner contributors to pick a figure who symbolises what the clubs to them and explain why. Amongst others, Bob Wilson, David O’Leary, George Graham and Arsene Wenger are all chosen for reasons which are varied and interesting. We couldn’t let the 20th consecutive St Totteringham’s Day pass without reference and Ian Henry provides the details of how Spurs “have been in our shadow,... floundering in our slipstream, minding the gap [and] eating dodgy lasagne” for two decades. A thoroughly enjoyable read! There’s much more including the second part of our interview with Alan “Smudger” Smith, an article on who may follow Arsene Wenger into the hotseat at Arsenal, a history of the Gooner Podcast which has now racked up over 130 episodes and articles on Doug Lishman and George Eastham. All this and then there’s the regulars as well – The Spy, Mickey Cannon, Anger Mangement, In the Away End, Inbox, Dwight Hart-Lane and another trip down memory lane as Phil Wall’s Programmes Through The Years series reaches 1981-82.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1939
__label__cc	0.566174	0.433826	There is more than one artist with this name:1. The original Orange Country straight edge band, heavily influenced by Washington D.C.'s Minor Threat. Guitarist, Joe D. Foster, went on to play in No For An Answer and later formed the band Ignite. Pat Longrie and Pat Dubar, drummer and singer respectively, went on to form the influential Uniform Choice.Pat Dubar - Vocals Joe D. Foster - Guitar John Lowe - Bass Pat Longrie - Drums2. Unity is a Christian rock band from Karis, Finland. http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=130002830 Unity Albums (1) You Are One (1999) You Are One What do you think about Unity?	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1943
__label__cc	0.59756	0.40244	Duane Mooring \| The Case for Impeachment Signal Contributor This is in response to the column by Byron York on Dec. 5, “The Bad-Faith Impeachment from the Left.” Like most Republican defenses of Donald Trump’s impeachable offenses since he gained the office of president, Byron paints an ugly picture of mean Democrats out to get their “perfect” president. Byron doesn’t offer much (or any) factual evidence to counter the facts that have been accumulating since the 2016 campaign. The Mueller report was not a failed attempt to indict the president. It was in fact very successful in detailing a solid case for multiple instances of obstruction of justice. It is strangely difficult to get the point across to Trump supporters that Mueller did not offer his opinion on obstruction because he didn’t believe he had that authority. Mueller presented his clear findings and asked that Congress use his findings. Mueller believed that only Congress had the authority to made conclusions and to act. The Mueller report can and should be used as an article of impeachment. So much has transpired since the Mueller report. The president has indicted himself with his own words in coercing Ukraine to investigate a political rival. Trump’s obstruction of Congress in refusing to allow witnesses to testify before Congress about that Ukraine coercion couldn’t be clearer. Congress has the sole power of impeachment and the president does not have the authority to override or obstruct it. The urgency? Yes, there are political ramifications in a slow approach – but that’s not the point. If the president is cheating in his fight to win the 2020 election, then obviously, he can’t be allowed to further cheat with delay tactics. Ukraine is a Western-aligned country fighting desperately to retain its identity and sovereignty from Russia. People are dying daily in a hot war in eastern Ukraine. When the president of Ukraine meets with the one best resource for his country to secure its survival, the U.S., it’s not hard to understand how a strong implicit request for assistance in helping Donald Trump with his election issues in exchange for Ukrainian military assistance would be taken seriously by the Ukrainian president. Think. Whether Ukraine had or did not have information to help Trump with his personal ask, it would be strongly in the interests of Ukraine to satisfy our president. There has never been any reason to suspect Joe or Hunter Biden of wrongs; nonetheless, Trump wants Ukraine to find something. Suppose something is found? It wouldn’t prove that the Bidens were corrupt, but it would please Donald Trump and help his election prospects. The president’s own admissions and the July 25 transcript are enough to establish the facts, but the parade of witnesses corroborating the document certainly seal the case. So, yes, Democrats have been after Donald Trump from the day he took office – because Donald Trump has been violating his oath of office ever since. Duane Mooring Doug Varner \| Welcome Back, Steve Knight Lois Eisenberg \| Tension at All-Time High Dennis Nobile \| Write-In for Katie Hill Christopher Lucero \| Try Boosting California B.J. Atkins \| New California Water Laws Are Fake News Chuck Byers \| Jonathan Kraut Rolls the Dice	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1946
__label__wiki	0.58861	0.58861	Category Archives: Edward “Teddy” Reville RCS Communities Mourn a Special Son On July 20, 2015, suddenly, unexpectedly a special son of the RCS community for more than 75 years was summoned home; a colorful, memorable, well-liked, loved and respected member of the RCS community, Rodney A. Krzykowski, died but he left an American legacy and true meaning for those of us who are still able to know the American pioneer spirit when we see it. Rodney will be truly missed by many of us. He should be missed by all of us. In fact, you can thank Rodney Krzykowski for this Blog! This very blog owes its existence to Rodney Kryzkowski. Think back to 2012, when the crooks, conspirators and special-interest lackies (James Latter, Howard Engel, Alice Whalen, Joe Tracey, Josephine O’Connor, Matt Miller, the RCS Sports Association, and the nefarious Delucas, Cathy and Dirty-Hands Jerry) were ambushing and backstabbing, and lying their way into controlling the RCS school board and the $42,000,000+ budget. This blog was started to defend Rodney and to expose the crooks and conspirators for what they were. That was three years ago and we’re still going strong, thanks to Rodney and the raw deal the crooks were handing him. Rodney Krzykowski was a man of few words but those words held incredible meaning. He was an honest man, a man who shot from the hip with deadly accuracy, as many of the members of the RCS board of education, like Mr James Latter, Mr Howard “Bray” Engel, Ms Alice Whalen and others too numerous to name, learned very quickly and have the scars to prove it. Rodney was intelligent and did the math before he opened his mouth, unlike the current Latter board, and when he spoke, he made sense; he never learned double-speak. Rodney embodied a very rare pioneer spirit and didn’t have very much use for government or the crooks government seems to attract and feed. He was brilliant when it came to researching even arcane subjects and doing his homework. Unlike most of our elected officials and public employees, Rodney thrived on intellectual challenges;if it was out there, he’d find it, and when he did Watch out! Town of Coeymans. Most of the local sheeple tended to condemn him on unsubstantiated misinformation spread by the local incest clubs. Surprised? Unlike Rodney, everyone else had something to say about his politics but none of them really knew anything at all about him or his politics. We did, though, and we must admit that he was on to something, not a fanatic or an anarchist, but a true crusader, a man whose principles guided him, and a man who thumbed his nose to ass-kissers and clique-members. When you spoke to Rodney, you had an instinctual perception that the man was special, honest, had a pioneer integrity that is almost extinct these days. Rodney was a mechanical genius. He loved his cars and he loved racing them. Yes, Rodney raced stock and modified his cars himself, frequently creating machinery to get a job done. If something needed customizing he could conjure up an apparatus to do it. Makes you wonder that he never went the patent route with his creations; the man could have been a millionaire. Yes, he could have been very comfortable but he preferred to remain simple and work for what he had. If you knew Rodney, you would have to agree with us that you would find it very difficult to find anyone who was a harder worker than he. The man never stopped. Whether with friends — he was always welcome in many local homes — hanging out in local automotive shops, or at the Medway Café, where you could find hm regularly, he was quiet, minded his own business, but was always available if you wanted to chat. In fact, there was no one still living who knew more about local property histories, businesses, families, and government than Rodney Krzykowski. If you needed to know anything about the property that is now the Port of Coeymans or Don Trickie’s escapades, you’d ask Rodney. He could tell you what was there, what’s still there, who put it there and, if it’s not there anymore, where it went. Rodney was also an avid history buff and could talk your ear off about the Constitution, the developmental history of taxation, property laws, and the list goes on. He scared the living bejeebers out of local officials, lawyers, judges, because they were ignorant of most of what Rodney had spent years researching. Most local officials rely on an ignorant community and they have their way with the poor bastards; Not with Rodney K! He’d send those dirty dogs packing with their cruddy tails between their legs. We need more Rodneys to keep things kosher in town and village halls. Rodney owned a tavern and most recently RAK Tire Recovery and the former R.K. Winners Circle. He was not only a businessman and entrepreneur but active in community organizations, too. He was a member of the Ravena Grange and the County Grange and was elected to serve on the RCS board of education. He even raced stock cars at Lebanon Valley for many years. Rodney was a self-made man, a good man, a generous friend. We are deeply saddened by the way his death was hushed by his family, and how his community was deprived of the opportunity to grieve his death, how Rodney’s friends and admirers were deprived of the opportunity to mourn the loss of a friend and model citizen. We were outraged by the pitifully scant obituary that was tucked away, almost invisible, in a Sunday Times Union. Rodney deserved better, much better. In fact, quite a number of Rodney’s friends and acquaintances were shocked and offended that he was disposed of like a box of old newspapers. A number of those friends and acquaintances even offered to chip in a couple of hundred dollars each to cover a proper viewing and funeral but Rodney’s daughters allegedly wanted to make quick work of it all — the Babcock Funeral Home of Ravena (NY) — a real monopoly in the Ravena area, big prices small productions — , known for its sloppy service, probably didn’t do much to help the general situation. But the well-hidden, cheapo obituary did announce that Rodney’s memorial service was to be held on at 11:00 a.m. at the Trinity United Methodist Church Coeymans Hollow We hope that everyone who knew Rodney will be there to show their support for this fine man, and to show that true American pioneer spirit still has a place in our decrepit culture. Let’s see how Trinity United Methodist will manage to appropriately and fittingly celebrate Rodney’s life; are they up to the task? (See Editor’s Note.) Editor’s Note: The turnout at Trinity United Methodist Church for Rodney’s memorial service was standing room only. Rev. Meager rushed the actual service a bit and the hymns could have been a bit more energetic but overall the event was a fine tribute. The Grange did a beautiful tribute, and the eulogies spoke only well of Rodney and his contributions to the community. It was a proper tribute to a fine man, and we’d like to thank the community for showing up and doing Rodney proud. You grew in wisdom, age, and grace and learned through suffering. May the Lord bless and keep you. May choirs of angels welcome you and lead you into paradise, May the martyrs come to welcome you and take you to the holy city, the new and eternal Jerusalem, where you may find respite in the bosom of Abraham; where Lazarus is poor no longer, where every tear is wiped away. There may you find eternal peace. We’ll remember you, Rodney. Posted by Principal Editor on July 30, 2015 in Abuse of Public Office, Accountability, ACLU, Al Visconti, Albany, Alice Whalen, All the Justice You Can Buy, American Civil Liberties Union, Board of Education Member, Bray Engel, Carver Laraway, Chris Gibson, Civil Rights, Coeymans, Coeymans Town Board, Constitution, Corrupt Judge, Corrupt Justice, Department of Environmental Conservation, Dr Alan McCartney, Dr Alan R. McCartney, Edward "Teddy" Reville, Edward Reville, Elected Official, First Amendment, Freedom, Freedom of Speech, George Amedore, Government, Greg Teresi, Gregory Teresi, Harold Warner, Henry Traver, Howard "Bray" Engel, Hudson Valley, James Latter II, Jeff Stambaugh, John M. Vadney, Judy Sylvester, Justice and Courts, Larry Conrad, Laverne Conrad, Lazlo Polyak, Liberty, Matt "the Mutt", Matt Miller, Matthew J. Miller, Misinformation, Nepotism, New York, New York Department of Environmental Conservation, New York State, NYS Assembly, NYS Senate, Pete Lopez, Peter Masti, Phillip Crandall, Public Corruption, Ravena, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk Central School District, Ravena Grange Hall, RCS Board of Education, RCS Community, RCS School Board, Rodney Krzykowski, Sarah Berchtold Engel, Sarah Engel, Schools, Selkirk, Smalbany, Stephen Flach, Teddy Reville, Thomas A. Boehm, Thomas E. Dolan, Tom Boehm, Tom Dolan, Town Justice, Town Supervisor, Transparency, Village Justice, William Bailey, William Bailey New Baltimore Taxpayers Sucked In Again by Teachers-Union-Owned-and-Operated RCS Board of Education The Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District and its Board of Education manipulated the timing and the vote to again shortchange RCS taxpayers and deprive them of their votes when, on Tuesday, January 13, 2015, they pushed the vote on two proposals totaling and additional $30 million in tax burden on an already faltering tax base. So, Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Social Services Recipients and Friends of New York State United Teachers, the Teachers-Union-Owned-and-Operated Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District approved an additional $30 Million dollars in indirect tax assessment they’re calling “Capital Improvement” for the RCS Schools. Let’s watch and see who gets the contracts for the so-called “capital improvements.” New Baltimore Taxpayers Sucked In Again May be business as usual in Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk but New Baltimore doesn’t have to put up with it! Or do we? We have just one question: When will the Town of New Baltimore smarten up and leave the Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District, a failing group of schools with a corrupt board of education under a corrupt superintendent and move on to join the Greene County success story? When will the Town of New Baltimore town board finally get its act together and take the necessary steps to ensure that New Baltimore taxpayers are not playing the fool for a failing district that knows no bounds when it comes to spending and taxation. The RCS district is losing tax base a mile-a-minute and attracting non-taxpaying population. More properties are either going up for sale, being abandoned, or vacant in the case of commercial properties with more of the tax burden falling on Guess Who?!?! Ravena has enough money to allow Cathy Deluca’s unlawful and failing Ravena Health and Fitness Center to continue losing taxpayer dollars to the tune of more than $6000 a month, and the town of Coeymans can give half the town away in concessions to carpetbagger business with nothing in return. But can New Baltimore continue to pay for Raven-Coeyman’s debauchery and free-wheeling spending addictions? We say NO! Don’t be a Newbaltimoron (First used by Joan Ross, pseudosophisticate of New Baltimore, to describe her neighbors.) Stay Tuned and Stay Informed! Retaliation in Local Government: Ravena Village council/board Violates Law & Dismisses Planning Board Member without Due Process or Public Hearing! and New Baltimore Highway Superintendent Denis Jordan removes Deputy Highway Superintendent vanWormer Because vanWormer admits he’s planning to run against Jordan. Ethics violations and retaliative human resources action = lawsuit! Ravena-Coeymans Taxation and Water-Sewer Rates: Continuing indifference and unlawful billing! Should the NYS Attorney General, Comptroller, Inspector General get involved to straighten out residents’ dilemma? Another resident writes to this blog for help. Posted by Principal Editor on January 14, 2015 in 19th Congressional District, 19th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, 2Luck.com, Abuse of Public Office, Accountability, AFL-CIO, Albany, Albany Schenectady BOCES, Alice Whalen, Andrew Cuomo, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, Bill Bailey, Bill McFerran, Bitter Bob (Ross), Board of Education Member, Bob Ross, Brown and Weinraub, Bryan Rowzee, Burning the Constitution, Carver Laraway, Catherine Deluca, Catherine M. Deluca, Cathy Deluca, Chris Gibson, Chris Norris, Christopher Norris, Claude A. Wheeles, Coeymans, Coeymans Town Board, Corrupt Legislature, Dr Alan McCartney, Dr Alan R. McCartney, Edward "Teddy" Reville, Edward Reville, Eleanor Luckacovic, Eric T. Schneiderman, George Amedore, Greene County, Howard "Bray" Engel, Hudson Valley, Inspector General, Interim Superintendent, James Latter, James Latter II, Jason Hyslop, Jean Horne, Jeff Ruso, Joan Ross, Joel Coye, John Luckacovic, Keith Mahler, Ken Burns, Kenneth Burns, Latter-Hyslop-Brown, Mary Partridge-Brown, Matt "the Mutt", Matt Miller, Matthew J. Miller, McFerret, Michael Biscone, Michael J. Biscone, Moose Misuraca, Nancy Biscone-Warner, Nancy Warner, New Baltimore, New Baltimore Town Board Member, New Baltimore town council, New York, New York State Education Department, New York State United Teachers, Nick Dellisanti, NYSED, NYSUT, Office of the Attorney General, Official Misconduct, Patrick E. Brown, Pete Lopez, Peter Masti, Politics, Public Corruption, Ravena, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk Central School District, Ravena Village Board, RCS Board of Education, RCS Central School District, RCS School Superintendant, Sarah Berchtold Engel, Sarah Engel, Selkirk, Shelly van Etten, Stephen Flach, Tax Cap, Taxation, Teachers, Teachers Union, Teddy Reville, Thomas E. Dolan, Tom Dolan, Wild Spending, William Bailey, William McFerran, William Misuraca The RCS Chalkboard: The Board of Education’s Documentation of Stupidity When we posted our article It only gets worse: 2015 will be more expensive, more dangerous, and more frustrating … (December 22, 2014), we had no idea how prophetic it was going to be. But then we received the January 2015 RCS Chalkboard and it became crystal clear how bad it can really get. It’s getting really, really bad! This is YOU! You’ve been programmed, and are being re-programmed! First of all, we’ve warned in the past of the misplaced loyalties and the disconnection of the Ravena Coeymans Selkirk board of education from the real people, the real taxpayers, the real needs, the real issues in this community. Back when a small fraction of local voters put the current board of education in office, we correctly noted that the new board was made up of a bunch of insiders, special-interest elitists, most of whom are married to or are close relatives of Guess what? Yes! Teachers. RCS BOARD OF EDUCATION WANTS ANOTHER $30 MILLION!!! RCS has it to burn! and the RCS board of education burns it “responsibly” (as long as you’re paying). Monkey-mayor “Moose” Misuraca doesn’t seem to have the Moose-Nalls to make any changes in favor of Ravena residents and taxpayers… Moose balls? More like mouse balls! But back then we had mummy mayor John T. Bruno in office with Nancy Warner and Cathy Deluca unlawfully or at best misdirecting taxpayer money right and left — now we have monkey-mayor Bill “Moose” Misuraca and Nancy Warner supported by four dildos — Nancy Warner and Cathy Deluca still have their hands in your pocket but monkey-mayor “Moose” Misuraca doesn’t seem to have the moose-balls to make any changes in favor of Ravena residents and taxpayers, he hasn’t made any changes but has simply moved in with Warner and Deluca — and Yes! When the current RCS board of education was voted in, there was some serious voting and poll irregularities as usual — but no one seemed to care much, as usual you all had your heads in the sand and your thumbs up your butts —, and back then we still were dealing with the likes of Gerald “Dirty-Hands” Jerry Deluca and Gregory “Deluca’s Dumplin'” Darlington at the Coeymans police department with their bunch of mobsters. But then Deluca and Darlington cashed in their chips and made off with their pockets full of your tax money while the town of Coeymans board sat stupidly telling you they were all of a sudden short of money. Why was that, we wonder? (For the answers just read past articles in this blog!) But that was then….AND NOTHING’S CHANGED!!!!! It’s Got to be a Joke! If you don’t have a copy of the January 2015 RCS Chalkboard you really need to get a copy and see for yourself. First of all, you will read that the RCS Chalkboard announces that the Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District is “Developing Tomorrow’s Leaders Today.” That’s a very frightening thought when you actually read the rag. Here’s why: The so-called RCS mission statement (in the left margin of the title page) reads: “The Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District strives to be an exemplary learning community whose graduates are well-prepared to excel in a complex, interconnected and changing world.” Nice bit of fiction there and maybe Stephen King can use it in one of his crazy horror novels but those of us living here and watching, listening to, and talking to the products of that school district know better. The real mission statement should read: “Raping and pillaging the taxpayers of the RCS community and feeding them lies and deception while irresponsibly spending, spending, spending, and dumbing down the curriculum to artificially increase graduation rates. Your tax dollars working for the New York State United Teachers union and our egos!” Here you have an eight-member board under the chairmanship of James Latter who is known to be employed by a Saudi Arabian enemy of the environment, to have unethical connections with various questionable organizations, and who is known to have violated the law and student and family confidentiality. But district voters re-elected him! We then have the sockpuppet Patrick Brown, a hippy attorney, wife…excuse us, husband of Matt Miller…Oops! We meant husband of Mary Partridge-Brown, the personal lap dancer to RCS teachers union representative, Matthew J. “Matt-the-Mutt” Miller, who is known to have been involved with some very shady activities in the past, including double-dipping and making off with school district money to the tune of more than $10,000 a year for several years, in addition to a reduced teaching load to allow him to do union business on RCS time, while receiving a full teacher salary plus complete benefits and incentives. Why is he still there? Your school board at work — in their own interests. We then have Alice Whalen, a former teacher, who has already announced during her term on the RCS board of education that she (Whalen) will be moving out of the RCS area to Guilderland…while she’s still spending RCS school district money and taking her personal stash with her to Guilderland!!! Nice going RCS! Howard “Bray” Engel, a teacher married to a teacher, and who teaches outside of the district. Need we say more about Engel? William “Bill” McFerret…Sorry, that’s defaming the furry little animal that’s a member of the weasel family…McFerran is no less a weasel, though. He’s got an interesting history, too, if anyone has followed the developments over the past 2-3 years in the local RCS athletic organizations’ history. Not very savory. The remaining three useless widgets, Tina Furst-Hotaling, Michael Jones, and Jason Hyslop have their issues but we’ve made our point. As for Mr Alan R. McCartney, who came to the district with much experience and even more baggage, he’s gotten comfortable and cozy, knowing how to change his colors as the board composition changes. After all, he doesn’t want to jeopardize his enormous take-home by rocking the boat. There’s money to be had and he’s collecting all he can while making nice-nice with his keepers. We want to mention also that the RCS Chalkboard has two editors, Robert Hanlon and Sabre Sarnataro. Why is that important, you might ask? Well, we just barely emerged from a national economic depression. The job market and the econony have not yet even approached recovery. The infrastructures of the communities (Ravena, Coeymans, Selkirk, parts of New Baltimore) are falling apart and in shambles. Since the last census the town of Coeymans has lost about one-third of its population. Businesses, and jobs, are practically non-exist ant in the district. One of the first things this present RCS board of education did was to take its business — rather the RCS school district’s business — behind closed doors, effectively eliminating the public — that is, the taxpaying community, YOU — from their back-room operations. The number of empty properties, distressed properties, properties slated for demolition, and the number of “For Sale” signs popping up all over the district is very, very bad news for an already stressed out region. We’re told we have to tighten our belts (Nancy Warner, member of the Ravena village council to the town of Coeymans board) while the mayor of Ravena and his brainless sockpuppets allow the Ravena Health and Fitness Center to hemorrhage more than $6,000 a month of taxpayer dollars while paying its incompetent “director”, Cathy Deluca, more than $30,000 a year plus full benefits to “direct” the village into bankruptcy under current mayor William “Moose” Misuraca, and the town of Coeymans is in an uproar over budget shortfalls and where to find the money to cover them. But the RCS board of education is out there upgrading the RCS high-school football field — but if you’re a graduate of RCS schools over the past 20 years, you probably have nothing but oatmeal for brains, and you’ll swallow every word of the bullshit that appears in the RCS Chalkboard justifying that expenditure while calling it “responsible” spending. Naturally, that bit of propaganda bullshit is on the back page of the RCS Chalkboard. The front page of the RCS chalkboard is worthy of Stephen King (who may well have written it, except for the mistakes). The front page is dedicated to a plan to “Help RCS Plan for Tomorrow.” How does the present irresponsible RCS BoE want you to do that? Simple: They want you to vote in support of an additional $50 MILLION WORTH OF SUGGESTED NEEDS! Well, the good news is that on the last page of the confusing and double-talking explanation that takes up no less than 8 full pages, they are asking for only about $30,000,000 (that’s thirty million dollars) in addition to the usual budget of more than $40,000,000 (that’s forty million dollars). To give you an idea of how much $40,000,000 is to run the schools under the present administration, that $40 million is more money than the combined budgets of the towns of Coeymans and New Baltimore, the village of Ravena, and the district of Selkirk combined. Go figure! And now they want RCS taxpayers to cough up another $30,000,000 for a capital project while they continue spending to “upgrade” sports facilities, while they consider cutting arts and language programs because there’s no money. But the real clincher comes when all is said and done, and you will recall that we have an 8-member board, an interim superintendent and two — Yes! Two! — editors putting together, checking the content, and finally approving the expenditure of the RCS Chalkboard, which is allegedly intended to provide RCS Central School District residents and taxpayers with true, accurate, and timely information on what’s going on in the district, but on page one, the title page, of the RCS Chalkboard, in a textbox highlighted for emphasis, we read: Please be sure to vote on Tuesday, January 13, 2015, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., RCS High School √ Proposition #1: $28.79 million Projected Tax Impact by 2020: + $12.42 per year or 1.04 per month[+ 0.62%] on a $100,00 RCS home √ Proposition #1: $1.3 million Projected Tax Impact by 2020: + $2.98 per year or 25¢ per month[+ 0.15%] on a $100,00 RCS home Now we have a problem with the $100,00 RCS home part (are we supposed to read this to be a ONE HUNDRED DOLLAR RCS HOME?) . Either property values have really plummeted over the holiday season and we’re worse off than we expected or the RCS Central School District’s figures are way off target or the 8-member board, the superintendent and the 2 editors didn’t care enough to read what they published and correct any errors. So what does that say about the rest of the bullshit in the January 2015 RCS Chalkboard? Is it accurate? Is it truthful? Is it reliable? Is it worth the paper it’s printed on? By the way, how much does the district spend on printing the RCS Chalkboard? Do taxpayers have to pay for it even if it’s inaccurate, untruthful, unreliable, full of misleading errors? Why don’t you go to a meeting and ask Mr Latter, Mr McCartney or one of the two editors. Better yet, why not ask RCS teachers why their board’s figures and grammar reflect the quality of education your children are receiving and that’s being paid for by taxpayers — or what’s left of us — many of whom have no children!?! VOTE NO! ON PROPOSITION NO. 1: DISTRICT-WIDE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT ($28,790,00.00) VOTE NO! ON PROPOSITION 2 (CONTINGENT): MIDDLE-HIGH SCHOOL SITE WORK IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT ($1,300,000) Cuomo’s Tax Break for Vets — Added Burden (Guilt or Taxes) for Us! Have any of our readers followed the story on the tax exemptions for veterans proposed by Andrew Cuomo? He’s playing a Pontius Pilate game of “I’m giving you a choice but someone’s gotta die — and I’m not getting involved.” game with us. Here’s the bottom line: Either you piss down veterans’ legs and say pay taxes like the rest of us — in other words, we’re going to treat you like the federal government does — and risk being called ungrateful OR we can give veterans a tax break and take on a greater burden ourselves (even those of you who are veterans but don’t qualify for the exemption). Now that’s a genuine, authentic Cuomo-the-homo type choice; in fact, it’s the type of choice we’re constantly being asked to make by our local RCS CSD school board and local governments. Any thoughts on this sleezy proposition? (It’s the Cuomo equivalent slogan, “It’s for the vets!”, comparable to the RCS board of educations tired propaganda slogan, “It’s for the kids!”). Wounded Warriors Project — Give us your money! It’s for the Vets! (RCS BoE: “Give us your money! It’s for the kids!”) The latest embarrassing scandal that affects the duping of the American public and their sense of national guilt has recently surfaced when the crooks at Wounded Warriors got exposed. Here’s the bottom line in brief: According to Guidestar, a group that investigates charities, the Wounded Warrior Project might as well be run by the Mafia. In 2012, the WWP received an astronomical $154,958,901, with a measly $4,857,084 going out in grants to veterans’ organizations and $671,194 to individuals. That means that the group only used 3.5% of the money it received for the purpose intended. In the meantime, the Officers, Directors and Trustees hauled in $15,415,666 million, with Employee Benefits ($2,226,457), Office Expenses ($12,451,303), Travel ($4,086,509), Promotional Items ($4,055,567) and something called Outside Services ($20,915,404) accounting for roughly 50% of what’s listed as “Overhead Expenses.” Check out the full story at Wounded Warriors Scam. Posted by Principal Editor on January 5, 2015 in 19th Congressional District, 19th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, Abuse of Public Office, AFL-CIO, AFSCME, Albany, Albany County Chamber of Commerce, Albany County Civil Service Department, Albany County Department of Children, Albany County Department of Children, Youth, and Families, Albany County District Attorney, Albany Schenectady BOCES, Alice Whalen, American Civil Liberties Union, Andrew Cuomo, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, Barbara Cumm, Bill Bailey, Bill McFerran, Bitter Bob (Ross), Bob Ross, BOCES, Brown and Weinraub, Bryan Rowzee, BULLSHIT, Carver Companies, Carver Construction, Catherine Deluca, Catherine M. Deluca, Cathy Deluca, Chris Gibson, Chris Gibson, Chris Norris, Christopher Norris, Claude A. Wheeles, Coeymans, Coeymans Industrial Park, Coeymans Police Department, Coeymans Town Board, D. Darlington, Dignity Act, Dignity for All Students Act, Dr Alan McCartney, Dr Alan R. McCartney, Edward "Teddy" Reville, Edward Reville, Eleanor Luckacovic, Eleanor Oldham, Elected Official, Eric T. Schneiderman, Failing Schools, FERPA, George Amedore, Gerald Deluca, Government, Governor Mario Cuomo, Greene County, Gregory Darlington, Harold Warner, HIPAA, Hudson Valley, Impeach Cuomo, Irregularities, Voting, IRS 990 Tax Filing, James Kane, James Latter, Jason Hyslop, Jena Misuraca, Jerry "Dirty-Hands" Deluca, Jerry Deluca, Joan Ross, Joel Coye, John B. Johnson, John B. King, John Luckacovic, John T. Bruno, Johnson Newspaper Group, Karen Miller, Keith Mahler, Ken Burns, Kenneth Burns, Latter-Hyslop-Brown, Mark Vinciguerra, Mary Partridge-Brown, Matt "the Mutt", Matt Miller, Matthew J. Miller, Mayor Bruno, McFerret, Moose Misuraca, Nancy Biscone-Warner, Nancy Warner, National Bank of Coxsackie, New Baltimore, New Baltimore Town Budget, New Baltimore town council, New York, New York State, New York State Association of Fire Chiefs, New York State Education Department, New York State United Teachers, News Herald, NYS Assembly, NYS Senate, NYSED, NYSUT, Office of the Attorney General, Patrick E. Brown, Pete Lopez, Peter Masti, Poll Misconduct, Port of Coeymans, PriceChopper, Ravena, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk Central School District, Ravena Fitness Center, Ravena News Herald, RCS Athletic Association, RCS Board of Education, RCS Central School District, RCS Community, RCS Sports Events Concessions, RCS Teachers Association, Robert J. Freeman, Robert J. Freeman, SABIC Innovative Plastics, Sarah Berchtold Engel, Sarah Engel, School Budget, School Taxes, Selkirk, Shop'n Save, Smalbany, Stephen Flach, Teachers Union, Teddy Reville, Thomas E. Dolan, Tom Dolan, Town Board Meeting, Vote NO!, Voting Irregularities, William Bailey, William Misuraca News Shorts: Coeymans p.d. Fires Crosier Coeymans Town Board Terminates Coeymans Police Officer Danielle Crosier We have received a confirmed report that the Coeymans town board has terminated Coeymans police officer Danielle Crosier. Crosier has been an item of ongoing scandal and controversy since former Coeymans police chief Gregory “Dumplington” Darlington added the blond bimbo to his trophy shelf about two years ago. Her major claim to fame was her notorious bad driving; she was such a bad driver that the RCS high school put her on as a road safety instructor. Go figure. Crosier was so bad behind the wheel of a motor vehicle that she recently rammed a parked NYS vehicle in the South Pearl Street NYS motor vehicles parking lot while allegedly transporting a minor to Family Services. Yup! And the RCS central school district, your board of education, turned her loose to be a road safety instructor. Say! Anyone know what happened to that investigation? Crosier was also installed at the RCS high school as RSO (Resource Safety Officer) where she wasted no time harassing the students, doing illegal searches, and doing one of the wrestling coaches too! We’ve been pressing to get rid of that blond bimbo for some time now; Crosier was a useless piece of baggage. The Coeymans town board also accepted the resignation of Coeymans police officer Scott Kline. On the Street: Ravena to Eliminate the Ravena Fire Department. Fact or Fiction? There’s another breaking story but is still unconfirmed that the village of Ravena is considering eliminating the Ravena Fire Department and entering into an agreement with the town of Coeymans for firefighting services. This would be a very smart move on Ravena’s part and would save Ravena a couple of hundred grand, more if they sell off the existing equipment. Such a move, if done right, would also help the town of Coeymans utilize its resources to capacity, while setting the stage for more advanced training and possibly some more grant money. Let’s see if this one pans out. If anyone has any info to share, please let us know at rcs.confidential@gmail.com. Don’t Miss our Recent Hit Articles (Just click the links below or use the links in the right margin.) Ravena Village Board Admits It: Fitness Center Hemorrhaging $6000 a Month! Why Ravena Village Hall Thumbs Their Noses at the Pubic Officers Law… Dispatchers Distribute Misleading Flyer! Lies in Print…AGAIN! We’re Providing the Missing Pieces for Our Readers Posted by Principal Editor on October 30, 2014 in 18 USC § 4 - Misprision of Felony, 19th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, Accountability, AFSCME, Albany, Albany County Civil Service, Albany County Civil Service Department, Albany County District Attorney, Albany County Sheriff Department, Albany Police, Alicia Nieves, Annette Demitraszek, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, Barbara Cumm, Barbara McMullen, Bill Bailey, Bill McFerran, Bob Freeman, Bray Engel, Brian Dunnegan, Brown and Weinraub, Bryan Rowzee, Capital District, Carver Companies, Carver Construction, Carver Laraway, Catherine Deluca, Catherine M. Deluca, Cathy Deluca, Cecilia Tkaczyk, Chris Gibson, Claude A. Wheeles, Coeymans, Coeymans Police Department, Coeymans Town Board, Committee on Open Government, Corruption, Craig D. Apple Sr., Craig Youmans, D. M. Crosier, Danielle Crosier, Danielle M. Crosier, David Debacco, David Soares, David Wukitsch, Department of State, Dillon Tyre, Dorothy Rock, DOT, Dr Alan R. McCartney, Edward "Teddy" Reville, Edward Reville, Eliminate Coeymans Police Department, Emergency Dispatch, Eric T. Schneiderman, Ethel Hotaling, FOIL, Formal Written Complaint, Freedom of Information Law, Gregory Darlington, Howard "Bray" Engel, Hudson Valley, Inspector General, Investigation, James Latter, James Latter II, Jason Albert, Jason Hyslop, Jena Misuraca, Jerry "Dirty-Hands" Deluca, Joel Coye, John T. Bruno, Keith Mahler, Ken Burns, Kenneth Burns, Kris Biernacki, Kristine Biernacki, Kyle Kearney, Law Enforcement, Leah Darlington, Matt "the Mutt", Matt Miller, Matthew J. Miller, Mayor Bruno, Meprision of Felony, Michael Biscone, Michael J. Biscone, Misdemeanor, Monitoring, Moose Misuraca, Nancy Biscone-Warner, Nancy Warner, New York State Association of Fire Chiefs, New York State Department of Transportation, New York State Police, Nick LaMountain, Notice of Claim, NYS Assembly, NYS Comptroller Audit, NYS Senate, NYSAFC, Obstruction of Justice, Office of the Attorney General, Patrick E. Brown, Paul Courcelle, Paul Tonko, Pete Lopez, Peter Masti, Peter Mckenna, Phillip Crandall, Police Dispatch, Police Dispatcher, Public Corruption, Ravena, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk Central School District, Ravena Fire Department, Robert J. Freeman, Sante Debacco, Selkirk, Stephen Flach, Teddy Reville, Termination, Thomas A. Boehm, Thomas E. Dolan, Tkaczyk, Tom Boehm, Tom Dolan, Town Board Meeting, Transparency, William Bailey, William McFerran, William Misuraca We’ve been writing about it for almost two years. Cathy Deluca’s playpen, the Ravena Health and Fitness Center is hemorraging taxpayer dollars to the tune of $6,000 a month, according to statements made by Ravena village board officials and published in the October 30, 2014, issue of the Ravena News Herald. We been telling you so for the past year! Now it’s official! Well now it’s official! The Ravena Village Board, Mayor Misuraca admit it; the Ravena News Herald publishes it! Ravena Health and Fitness Center is on the Block! Good for you, Mayor Misuraca! You really do have a pair! Nice pair, Mayor Moose According to the report published in the October 30, 2014, issue of the Ravena News Herald, in an article with the misleading title of “Fitness center members rally against rumored shutdown” by Bryan Rowzee, local kiss-ass sockpuppet wannabe reporter (any surprise), at their regular meeting on October 21, the village of Ravena mayor and village board met and discussed the closing of the Ravena Health and Fitness Center. The discussion of the closing was not the focal item but was only one of the items of business to be discussed at that meeting. And it was no “rally” as Rowzee misleadingly reports. It was more of a gaggle of village idiots with their own small-world interests at heart and no common sense at all. Some people need to get a life and stop embarrassing themselves and this community. It seems the loudest ones at village and town meetings are the local lunatics shouting their stupidity. It’s no wonder the intelligent ones just sit there and shake their heads! Actually, it really wan’t a “rally” and the place wasn’t packed, Mr Rowzee. It was more like 4-10 supporters, wasn’t it. Plus a paltry petition. Is that reason enough to continue “hemorraging more than $6,000 a month” of taxpayer dollars? One such village idiot, Alicia Nieves, seems to think that the Ravena Health and Fitness Center benefits the community. Yeah, a community of ONE, named Alicia Nieves? Nieves wants to stay local and doesn’t want to drive “up towards Albany.” So is that a reason why the village has to continue bleeding losses of $6,000 a month? So that Alicia Nieves and her kind don’t have to drive “up towards Albany”? Not a very good argument in our opinion so let’s move on to another genius. Dorothy Rock, sharing a partial brain with Alicia Nieves, mentions “the camaraderie she has built at the facility,” and “that for your dollar you are getting a lot of good stuff here.” So Ms Rock has made some friends at the Fitness Center. Can’t be many because there are so few members at the Ravena Fitness Center. There’s no interest in the dump. But Dorothy might be right, “you are getting a lot of good stuff here” like cooties? Dermatitis? Again, it’s not much of an argument to support losing $6,000 a month of taxpayer money! And another freak brought along a petition with 109 names on it, about half of the total members of the fitness flop. So it seems that the Ravena Health and Fitness Center can’t even get all of its members, all 200 of them to sign a petition to keep its doors open. By the way, in order to break even, the Ravena Health and Fitness Center has to have about 500-600 PAYING members. We’d say in the two years it’s been sucking down taxpayer dollars it hasn’t even come close to that figure! Ethyl H. shoots herself in the foot. Dear Ethyl Hotaling says it all when she tells the Ravena Village officials that between 2013 to 2014, the membership has grown (?) from 80 members in 2013 to 203 currently. But dear Ethyl then shoots herself in the foot when she says that 63 of those members are retirees using the Silver Sneakers program to cover their membership fees. Silver Sneakers may cover Ethyl’s membership fees but it’s not doing much for the bottom line! The fitness center, under Cathy Deluca’s incompetent management—she has already “managed” two previous fitness centers to failure, even before former mayor John Bruno and Nancy Warner appointed her to manage the Ravena fitness club—is still losing public money to the tune of $6,000 a month, according to Ravena officials. That’s more than many local residents make in a month working full time! Craig Youmans, who claims to have battled cancer and lung disease for years, uses the Ravena Health and Fitness Center. Youmans says “it’s a place to go.” Well, Mr Youmans, in your fragile physical condition, perhaps you should keep to the Senior Citizens Center or the RCS Community Library. It seems you need to get some professional exercise and fitness assistance geared to your fragile condition. You can’t use the argument that the Ravena Health and Fitness Center can justify its losses just to provide local seniors with a hangout at community expense. That’s why there’s a Senior Center and a community library. Besides, why isn’t Silver Sneakers hosted by the Seniors Center? That would make more sense, wouldn’t it? But then, Ravena-Coeymans specializes in duplicated services at taxpayer expense, and double- even triple-dipping—we won’t mention the Coeymans dispatchers club or the RCS central school district and Matthew “Matt” Miller! Then the Voice of Reason Chimes in… Village trustee Kieth Mahler, a local business person and a member of the Misuraca majority on the village board countered, “I don’t want to see anything close, but if you owned a business that was losing $6000 a month, how long would you keep it open?” Now that’s a good question Mr Mahler. Can you tell us how long you’d keep it open? Can you tell us how long you’ll keep the Ravena Health and Fitness Center open now that it’s out that it’s losing $6000 a month? Now here’s where it gets confusing. Nancy Warner, arch-hypocrite that she is, was one of the ones who created the fitness center in the first place—she and Cathy Deluca and a couple of others met behind closed doors to agree to pay insider Robert Fisk more than $40,000 for used fitness equipment and it was Nancy Warner who was relentless in running the RCS Community Library out of its former location (The library, at least, paying rent! The fitness center isn’t!)—now that two-faced witch is agreeing with Kieth Mahler: “if you owned a business that was losing $6000 a month, how long would you keep it open?” Or is she? Who knows? Who cares? Nancy Warner is can’t be trusted even to back her so-called friend, Cathy Deluca! When the water starts getting hot the worms start squirming, right Nancy? Nancy Warner’s slitting her own pet project’s throat along with her bosom girlfriend’s, Cathy Deluca’s It’s odd that Warner should mention a private gym that charged only $35.00 a month and went out of business. Why would residents pay more than $200.00 a month for a gym? And that gym, the Ravena fitness center, is hemorrhaging at the rate of $6000 a month. Sounds like a bunch of double-talk as usual from Nancy Warner. As usual, she’s not making any sense at all. And it sounds like she’s slitting her own pet project’s throat along with her bosom girlfriend’s, Cathy Deluca’s. It was only a matter of time. As the saying goes, “There’s no honor among thieves.” How true! Annette Demitraszek, Ravena village clerk, seems to be jumping on the kill the fitness center bandwagon, too. She’s a Nancy-Warner-brand-sockpuppet and seems to be supporting the closure when she publicly states “the village population is about 3,200”. Do the math! The fitness center has tried to recruit members from around the region and from neighboring communities. Take a tour of the Glenmont Planet Fitness between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. and you’ll see where the majority of locals are going to get themselves in shape! It’s not the Ravena fitness center, you’ll see that! Ravena and the surrounding area can’t compete and aren’t competing! The Ravena fitness center was a very, very bad move and it’s now out there, straight from Ravena officials’ mouths. Bravo for Ravena Mayor Bill “Moose” Misuraca who put it very clearly: “Is it morally or financially responsible for 100% of the taxpayers to support less than 3% of the population who use this [the Ravena Health and Fitness Center]? Mayor Misuraca goes on to confirm, “Right now this gym is hemorrhaging over $6,000 a month. We can not make payroll.” And Misuraca goes even further by confirming what we’ve been saying for almost 2 years: “It’s a burden to taxpayers and…villages and towns should not be in the business of being in business.” We agree 200%, Mr Mayor! Nancy Warner’s apparently thrown in the towel, and at the same time has thrown her bosom girlfriend, Cathy Deluca… But we didn’t know! Yes you did! Well, there may be justice in the air in Ravena. Maybe the time has come where the crooks are going to have to eat their own feces and get their walking papers. The rats eventually jump ship. Dirty-Hands Jerry Deluca, Cathy Deluca‘s partner, when he read the writing on the wall (the New York State Association of Fire Chiefs picked up that piece of garbage). Deluca’s buddy, former Coeymans police chief, Gregory “Dumplington” Darlington, abandoned his post and deserted his department and the community (destination: Albany DA David Soares’ office?). Nancy Warner’s apparently thrown in the towel, and at the same time has thrown her bosom girlfriend, Cathy Deluca in as well. Annette Demitraszek, kissing Warners broad butt as usual, adds her two cents. (But where are Demitraszek and Biernacki going to hide when they are charged with obstruction of justice and accessory after the fact, when they’re named in civil and criminal lawsuits in preparation as we write? Nancy Warner gonna take the bullet for ya, Demitraszek? How about for you, Biernacki? Bob Freeman’s going to deny he told you anything?) And the Ravena village board has finally woken up. To paraphrase Cathy Deluca‘s statement made to a visitor at the Ravena Health and Fitness Center open house, before it even opened, “Time to go! You’re not welcome here!” Well Cathy, looks like what goes around comes around. Time to go, Cathy, and don’t let the slamming door jiggle your cellulite on your waddle out! (And maybe the new Coeymans police chief, Peter J. McKenna, will be waiting outside with a warrant for your arrest for your lies to law enforcement and obstruction of justice! No more insiders at Coeymanazi p.d. to cover your ass, Cathy. Your bulbous butt is grass—Biatch!) R U Ready, Cathy? What goes around comes around! Posted by Principal Editor on October 29, 2014 in 18 USC § 4 - Misprision of Felony, 19th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, 2Luck.com, Abuse of Public Office, Albany, Albany County Civil Service, Albany County Civil Service Department, Albany County District Attorney, Alicia Nieves, Annette Demitraszek, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, Barbara Cumm, Bill Bailey, Bill McFerran, Bitter Bob (Ross), Bob Ross, Bray Engel, Brian Dunnegan, Bryan Rowzee, Carmen Warner, Carver Laraway, Catherine Deluca, Catherine M. Deluca, Cathy Deluca, Chris Gibson, Claude A. Wheeles, Coeymans, Coeymans Police Department, Coeymans Town Board, Corruption, Craig Youmans, D. Darlington, D. M. Crosier, Danielle Crosier, Danielle M. Crosier, David Debacco, David Soares, David Wukitsch, Dawn LaMountain, Dillon Tyre, Dorothy Rock, Dr Alan McCartney, Dr Alan R. McCartney, Edward "Teddy" Reville, Edward Reville, Eleanor Luckacovic, Eleanor Oldham, Eric T. Schneiderman, Ethel Hotaling, FBI Public Corruption Squad, Formal Written Complaint, George Acker, George Amedore, George LaMountain, George Langdon, Gerald Deluca, Greed, Gregory Darlington, Harold Warner, Howard "Bray" Engel, James Latter, James Latter II, Jason Albert, Jason Hyslop, Jena Misuraca, Jerry "Dirty-Hands" Deluca, Joan Ross, Joel Coye, John Luckacovic, John T. Bruno, Keith Mahler, Ken Burns, Kenneth Burns, Kevin Reilly, Kris Biernacki, Kristine Biernacki, Kyle Kearney, Law Enforcement, Leah Darlington, Making an apparently sworn false statement, Martin Case, Marty Case, Mary Partridge-Brown, Matt "the Mutt", Matt Miller, Matthew J. Miller, Mayor Bruno, Meprision of Felony, Michael Biscone, Michael J. Biscone, Misconduct, Misdemeanor, Misuse of Public Office, Moose Misuraca, Nancy Biscone-Warner, Nancy Warner, New York Department of Environmental Conservation, New York State, New York State Association of Fire Chiefs, New York State Civil Service Department, Nick LaMountain, Notice of Claim, NYS Assembly, NYS Senate, NYSAFC, Obstruction of Justice, Office of the Attorney General, Official Misconduct, Patrick E. Brown, Paul Tonko, Pete Lopez, Peter Masti, Phillip Crandall, Public Corruption, Ravena, Ravena Centennial Celebration, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk Central School District, Ravena Health and Fitness Center, RCS Board of Education, RCS Central School District, RCS School Board, Robert Fisk, Robert J. Freeman, Robert J. Freeman, Sante Debacco, Sean Eldridge, Selkirk, Stephen Flach, Teddy Reville, Thomas A. Boehm, Thomas E. Dolan, Tkaczyk, Tom Boehm, Tom DiAcetis, Tom Dolan, Village Clerk, William Bailey, William Misuraca RCS is Disgusting! Good only to complain but no balls to do something about the liars and cheats! RCS and Its Elected Officials Shame Themselves Before More Than 250,000 Readers! Right here on the Smalbany Blog. Even on national media! GaGa Gibson Chris Gibson, asking for relection votes and opposing the “Pink Obama” Sean Eldridge, Shamed His 19th Congressional District and Himself by not Fully Investigating the RCS Anti-Military Bias and Disrespect for the National Guard. The RCS scandal made Fox News and other National Media but Gibson didn’t catch it. He promised to investigate fully. Did he? And what about Paul Tonko of the 20th Congressional District, also representing part of the RCS school district? Are they all Pinko’s? If that’s the choice we have for leaders we ought to all be suicidal! He Died So You Could Speak! Did You Participate in Your Democracy? RCS Wasted His Sacrifice! You Wasted Your Freedoms! RCS Showed Itself to Be Ungrateful and Cowardly on October 14th! What do you all plan to do now? In future? Your Elected Officials Have Successfully Excluded You From Participation— And You Sit Back and Let It Happen! They do this in many subtle and sometimes unlawful ways: They hold secret meetings, they quietly (very quietly) invite the public to “public” hearings, they sometimes lie outright. But Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk’s elected officials have found a far better way to do their mischief: They schedule important meetings on the same day at the same time but in different places far from each other to ensure that you can’t make both, even though you have a civic obligation, or a personal interest in attending both. Pretty clever, right? Well, it’s up to you, citizens, residents to stop that despicable violation of your rights! Tell them to coordinate village of Ravena, town of Coeymans, and RCS Central School District board of education meetings so that you can attend all or any of them, if you’d like. They must be on different days, at least! But do any of you have the balls to bring this to the public meetings and demand fairness? Apparently not. On Tuesday, October 14, 2014 Both the Ravena Coeymans Selkirk board of education meeting and the Coeymans town board meeting both held at 7:00 p.m. Pretty stupid, right. And YOU were effectively prevented by your elected officials from attending two very important public meetings, or forced to attend one while missing the other. But most of you decided to do something other than exercise your rights…Can you even remember what that was? Probably not. Why you needed to be there, and why you should have been there but you lost the opportunity to be at both. Why? Because you allowed them to exclude you and you still do nothing about it! RCS high-school principal Tom DiAcetis, Superintendant Alan McCartney’s Idea of Education First of all, ALL VETERANS, PARENTS OF VETERANS, SUPPORTERS OF VETERANS, and all members of veterans committees in local government (Did you hear that, New Baltimore? Mr Guthrie and others?) should have attended the RCS board of education meeting on Tuesday October 14, at 7 p.m. at the A.W. Becker elementary school. You didn’t! You should have put Mr Tom DiAcetis, Mr Alan McCartney and the entire board of education on notice that their scandalous conduct concerning the National Guard and our Armed Forces would not be tolerated and they shamed this commuity. You didn’t! You should have demanded the resignation of Tom DiAcetis and Alan McCartney. You didn’t! You should have denounces the RCS board of education for their anti- military bias. Did you? NO! You didn’t! You not only didn’t take any prisoners you threw down your guns and ran! You swallowed their mealy-mouthed, pablum-puking lies and stupid excuses…hook, line and sinker. You let them off the hook this time—AGAIN! They’re accountable but you make them immune. AGAIN! RCS is DISGUSTING! Colonel Chris Gibson Mr Chris Gibson, Congressman for the 19th Congressional District, and Mr Paul Tonko, Congressman for the 20th Congressional District represent us in this RCS Central School District. Both needed to be held accountable and both needed to proactively investigate the RCS scandal perps, DiAcetis and McCartney, and both needed to reprimand the RCS board of education for the RCS anti-military scandal that embarrassed this community nationwide! Gibson and Tonko are up for re-election and Gibson, at a recent New Baltimore Republican Club meeting assured residents and voters that he would have his office investigate immediately. He assigned his top aid, Kevin Cumm, to head the investigation. UPDATE: He apparently didn’t do what he promised to do. We ask you: Did Chris Gibson dishonor his office, his district and his uniform? Same should be asked of Paul Tonko! The Town of Coeymans town board was meeting at the same time, on Tuesday, October 14, 2014, at 7 p.m., in the Coeymans town hall. Anyone who was not at the RCS board of education meeting should have made every effort to be at the Coeymans town board meeting. You needed to find out about the pending lawsuits challenging the half-baked re-zoning done by the town of Coeymans (started when Tom Dolan, Tom Boehm and Dawn Rogers had the majority on the town board. Did you let them fool you into thinking it was all done by Flach and his new majority, like they’re trying to do! Looks like you did. A New York state court judge found the re-zoning to be illegal but that hasn’t stopped the Coeymanazis from doing what they please and ignoring YOUR VOICES! “DoDo Cop” Darlington sharing some misinformation. Former Coeymans police chief Gregory Darlington abruptly jumped ship like the rat he is. He abandoned his department, his staff, the town of Coeymans and us! Gregory Darlington shouldn’t have been honored by the town of Coeymans for his dishonorable conduct and his selfish, irresponsible abandonment of his post. Darlington cowardly abandoned his post and his community! If Darlington didn’t have enough respect for this community, who paid for his fat ass, to tell us directly of his plans, this community doesn’t owe him a thing! (While we’re paying him a fat pension check, we think he’s going to be moonlighting in a second job, hired by our impotent race-card flasher Albany County District Attorney Pudenda David Soares. Then DoDo Darlington can sit next to his wife, who is a secretary in Soares’ office. Nice and cozy!) If Darlington could do that to the Coeymans police department, this community had a responsibility to itself and to its children to seriously reassess the situation and seriously consider eliminating the Coeymans police department, and turning over law enforcement to the professionals, the Albany County Sheriff’s department and to the New York State Police. Save Coeymans more than $a million$ in tax money that can be invested in things we really need in this community. You’re paying twice, three times for law enforcement in Coeymans. Let’s see if we can get some leadership and pay only twice. (Let the Albany County Sheriff’s department or the New York State Police rehire the Coeymans police department staff, retrain them, deploy them if they’re really needed.) But you allowed the ball-less wonders on the Coeymans town board to pay homage to the ineffective, cowardly Darlington and you allowed them to present him with a retirement badge so he can continue flaunting the law, so he can continue to be the scofflaw out of uniform that he was in uniform at your expense. Why didn’t you raise the roof when they did that, Coeymans? Sorry! We overlooked the fact that you’re a town of sheeple. Sorreeee! Albany County has a highly sophisticated 911 emergency response system in place, and it’s paid for with your tax dollars! Coeymans has a bunch of insiders using antique equipment that has to be updated. Ask the Coeymans town board how much the equipment update is going to cast you?!? Be smart and tell the Coeymans town board to eliminate the dispatchers and save almost a $half-million dollars$. We’re paying twice for the same service. We’re duplicating services. There are some who want to continue this stupidity and they come out to give their idiotic reasons why. But the voice of reason shouts out for them to shut up and get the facts. Tom Dolan, Tom Boehm, Mary Driscoll and others are blowing misinformation out their butts. Tell the town board of Coeymans to eliminate the dispatchers (Let Albany County re-hire them if they’re really needed.) Weasel Peter Masti is pandering again and talking about getting facts. You’re eating that up to like a bunch of starving dogs. Read the facts on this blog because you’re not going to get them from the Coeymans town board and least of all from that rodent Masti! No fatalities. YET! Again, we STILL have to address the dangerous situation existing with the Port of Coeymans heavy truck traffic, and we need some real facts and explanations about the Carver Companies bridge and what the town is doing to ensure our safety and the safe movement of traffic into and out of the hamlet of Coeymans on Rt 144. AND we STILL have to get some honest answers from the Coeymans town board. Not the lies and smoke and mirrors response they gave to one resident who asked some burning questions on October 14th. Where were the rest of you complainers? (Don’t tell us you were at the BoE meeting, because you’d be lying!) We also wanted to know about all the jobs that were promised. We STILL want an answer to that one. Did you ask? How many have been created so far? How many are actually going to be created? We want to know why our quality of life is all of a sudden declining with the added truck traffic, the dust, the increase in noise pollution in our community as the result of the re-zoning and the increased activity in the Port and the surrounding area. Mr Peter Masti, who is neither a native of the area nor a blue collar worker, has published his desire to keep Coeymans blue collar. Why is that? (Masti and his kind have to go!) But these are questions Ravena-Coeymans residents have to ask. Masti’s a blow hard and goes wherever the wind blows him. He’s a jellyfish! But has anyone confronted him and his vomit publicly? Where were you all on October 14th? That’s why you had to make every effort to attend the Coeymans town board meeting on Tuesday, October 14, 2014, at 7 p.m. in the Coeymans town hall! Our local elected officials don’t seem to be able to make good decisions on their own. They needed your help. You needed to tell them them what you want! You needed to tell them to stop the lies and you needed to get the true facts! You failed us, your community and yourselves! We suggested you make a couple of phone calls, send a couple of e-mails. You needed to get your family, friends, neighbors activated and organize yourselves so that some of you could have attended one of the meetings and the others attended the other meeting. Did you show your elected officials that you could shake things up and put their feet to the fire, so they do what’s best for US! Did you? We think NOT! There’s still time and opportunity to pick up the pieces. Start now and make your preparations to organize your and your family’s, your neighbors’ and friends’ participation in the upcoming village of Ravena and town of Coeymans board meetings, and the RCS board of education meetings. It’s A Shame RCS Residents Can’t Stand Up for Themselves!!! And You Shamed Yourselves In Front of More than 250,000 Readers! Posted by Principal Editor on October 18, 2014 in 19th Congressional District, 19th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, 2Luck.com, Abuse of Public Office, Accountability, ACLU, Albany, Albany County Board of Elections, Albany County Chamber of Commerce, Albany County Civil Service, Albany County Civil Service Department, Albany County District Attorney, Albany County Sheriff Department, Alice Whalen, American Civil Liberties Union, Arlene McKeon, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, Barbara Cumm, Barbara Finke, Bill Bailey, Bill McFerran, Bitter Bob (Ross), Bob Dorrance, Bob Knighten, Bob Ross, Bray Engel, Brown and Weinraub, Bryan Rowzee, Carmen Warner, Carver Companies, Carver Construction, Carver Laraway, Catherine Deluca, Catherine M. Deluca, Cathy Deluca, Catskill-Hudson Newspapers, Cecilia Tkaczyk, Chris Gibson, Chris Gibson, Chris Hughes, Chris Norris, Christopher Norris, Claude A. Wheeles, Coeymans, Coeymans Police Department, Coeymans Town Board, Columbia-Greene Media, Conspiracy, Corruption, Craig D. Apple Sr., D. M. Crosier, Daniel Contento, Danielle Crosier, Danielle M. Crosier, David Soares, David Wukitsch, DEC, Denis Jordan, Department of Environmental Conservation, Dignity Act, Dr Alan McCartney, Dr Alan R. McCartney, Edward "Teddy" Reville, Edward Reville, Eleanor Luckacovic, Eleanor Oldham, Elections and Voting, Eliminate Coeymans Police Department, Eric T. Schneiderman, Freedom of Information Law, George Acker, George Amedore, George Langdon, George McHugh, Greene County, Greene County District Attorney, Greene County Sheriff, Greg Teresi, Gregory Darlington, Gregory Teresi, Harold Warner, Howard "Bray" Engel, Hudson Valley, Incompetence, James Latter, James Latter II, Jason Albert, Jason Hyslop, Jeff Ruso, Jena Misuraca, Joan Ross, Joel Coye, John B. Johnson, John Luckacovic, John T. Bruno, Johnson Newspaper Group, Joseph A. Farrell Jr, Joseph Teresi, Josephine P. Dority née Biscone, Josie Biscone-Bruno, Keith Mahler, Ken Burns, Kenneth Burns, Larry Conrad, Latter-Hyslop-Brown, Laverne Conrad, Mark Vinciguerra, Mary Partridge-Brown, Matt "the Mutt", Matt Miller, Matthew J. Miller, McFerret, Melanie Lekocevic, Michael Biscone, Michael Fisher, Michael J. Biscone, Misdemeanor, Misinformation, Mismanagement, Misuse of Public Office, Moose Misuraca, Nancy Biscone-Warner, Nancy Warner, New Baltimore, New Baltimore Democrats, New Baltimore Elections, New Baltimore Town Board Member, New York, New York State, New York State Association of Fire Chiefs, New York State Association of Fire Chiefs, New York State Education Department, New York State Police, New York State United Teachers, Nick Dellisanti, NYS Assembly, NYS Senate, NYSED, NYSUT, Obstruction of Justice, Office of the Attorney General, Official Misconduct, Oreo Obama, Patrick E. Brown, Paul Courcelle, Paul Tonko, Pete Lopez, Peter Masti, Phillip Crandall, Pink Obama, Port of Coeymans, Public Corruption, Ravena, Ravena Centennial Celebration, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk, Ravena Coeymans Selkirk Central School District, Ravena Department of Public Works, Ravena Health and Fitness Center, Ravena News Herald, Ravena Village Board, RCS Central School District, Robert Dorrance, Robert Fisk, Robert J. Freeman, Safe Act, Sarah Berchtold Engel, Sarah Engel, Sean Eldridge, Selkirk, Shame On You, Shelly van Etten, Smalbany, Stephen Flach, Teddy Reville, Thomas A. Boehm, Thomas E. Dolan, Times Union, Tkaczyk, Tom Boehm, Tom DiAcetis, Tom Dolan, Town Board Meeting, Transparency, William Bailey, William McFerran, William Misuraca Tuesday, October 14: Let Your Voices Be Heard! He Died So You Could Speak, Participate in Your Democracy! Don’t Waste His Sacrifice! Don’t Waste Your Freedoms! Your Elected Officials Try To Exclude You From Participation Well, it’s up to you, citizens, residents to stop that despicable violation of your rights! Tell them to coordinate village of Ravena, town of Coeymans, and RCS Central School District board of education meetings so that you can attend all or any of them, if you’d like. They must be on different days, at least! On Tuesday, October 14, 2014 Both the Ravena Coeymans Selkirk board of education meeting and the Coeymans town board meeting are both taking place at 7:00 p.m. Pretty stupid, right. Why you need to be there, and you should have the opportunity to be at both: RCS high-school principal Tom DiAcetis, Superintendant Alan McCartney’s Education First of all, ALL VETERANS, PARENTS OF VETERANS, SUPPORTERS OF VETERANS, and all members of veterans committees in local government (Did you hear that, New Baltimore? Mr Guthrie and others?) must attend the RCS board of education meeting on Tuesday October 14, at 7 p.m. at the A.W. Becker elementary school. You must put Mr Tom DiAcetis, Mr Alan McCartney and the entire board of education on notice that their scandalous conduct concerning the National Guard and our Armed Forces will not be tolerated. Demand the resignation of Tom DiAcetis and Alan McCartney. Denounce the RCS board of education for their anti- military bias. Don’t take any prisoners and don’t accept their mealy-mouthed, pablum-puking lies and stupid excuses. Don’t let them off the hook this time. They’re accountable so make them accountable. NOW! Mr Chris Gibson, Congressman for the 19th Congressional District, and Mr Paul Tonko, Congressman for the 20th Congressional District represent us in this RCS Central School District. Both need to be held accountable and both need to proactively investigate the RCS scandal perps, DiAcetis and McCarntney, and both need to reprimand the RCS board of education for the RCS anti-military scandal that embarrassed this community nationwide! Gibson and Tonko are up for re-election and Gibson, at a recent New Baltimore Republican Club meeting assured residents and voters that he would have his office investigate immediately. He assigned his top aid, Kevin Cumm, to head the investigation. Question: Did he do what he promised to do, or did he dishonor his office, his district and his uniform? Same should be asked of Paul Tonko! The Town of Coeymans town board is meeting at the same time, on Tuesday, October 14, 2014, at 7 p.m., in the Coeymans town hall. Anyone who is not at the RCS board of education meeting should make every effort to be at the Coeymans town hall meeting. You need to find out about the pending lawsuits challenging the half-baked rezoning done by the town of Coeymans (started when Tom Dolan, Tom Boehm and Dawn Rogers had the majority on the town board. Don’t let them fool you into thinking it was all done by Flach and his new majority, like they’re trying to do!) Former Coeymans police chief Gregory Darlington abruptly jumped ship like the rat he is. He abandoned his department, his staff, the town of Coeymans and us! Gregory Darlington should not be honored by the town of Coeymans for his dishonorable conduct and his selfish, irresponsible abandonment of his post. If Darlington didn’t have enough respect for this community, who paid for his fat ass, to tell us directly of his plans, this community doesn’t owe him a thing! (While we’re paying him a fat pension check, we think he’s going to be moonlighting in a second job, hired by our impotent race-card flasher Albany County District Attorney Pudenda David Soares. Then DoDo Darlington can sit next to his wife, who is a secretary in Soares’ office. Nice and cozy!) If Darlington could do that to the Coeymans police department, this community has to seriously reassess the situation and seriously consider eliminating the Coeymans police department and turning over law enforcement to the professionals, the Albany County Sheriff’s department and to the New York State Police. Save Coeymans more than $a million$ in tax money that can be invested in things we really need in this community. You’re paying twice, three times for law enforcement in Coeymans. Let’s see if we can get some leadership and pay only twice. (Let the Albany County Sheriff’s department or the New York State Police rehire the Coeymans police department staff, retrain them, deploy them if they’re really needed.) Albany County has a highly sophisticated 911 emergency response system in place, and it’s paid for with your tax dollars! Coeymans has a bunch of insiders using antique equipment that has to be updated. Be smart and tell the Coeymans town board to eliminate the dispatchers and save almost a $half-million dollars$. We’re paying twice for the same service. We’re duplicating services. There are some who want to continue this stupidity and they come out to give their idiotic reasons why. But the voice of reason shouts out for them to shut up and get the facts. Tom Dolan, Tom Boehm, Mary Driscoll and others are blowing misinformation out their butts. Tell the town board of Coeymans to eliminate the dispatchers (Let Albany County re-hire them if they’re really needed.) Again, we have to address the dangerous situation existing with the Port of Coeymans heavy truck traffic, and we need some real facts and explanations about the Carver Companies bridge and what the town is doing to ensure our safety and the safe movement of traffic into and out of the hamlet of Coeymans on Rt 144. We also want to know about all the jobs that were promised. How many have been created so far? How many are actually going to be created? We want to know why our quality of life is all of a sudden declining with the added truck traffic, the dust, the increase in noise pollution in our community as the result of the re-zoning and the increased activity in the Port and the surrounding area. Mr Masti, who is neither a native of the area nor a blue collar worker, has published his desire to keep Coeymans blue collar. Why is that? (Masti and his kind have to go!) But these are questions Ravena-Coeymans residents have to ask. That’s why you have to make every effort to attend the Coeymans town board meeting on Tuesday, October 14, 2014, at 7 p.m. in the Coeymans town hall! Our local elected officials don’t seem to be able to make good decisions on their own. They need your help. Tell them what you want and Get the Facts! We suggest you make a couple of phone calls, send a couple of e-mails. Get your family, friends, neighbors activated and attend one of the meetings or organize yourselves so that some of you attend one and the others attend the other meeting. Show your elected officials that you can shake things up and put their feet to the fire, so they do what’s best for US! But Only If You Speak Up! We deserve better! Posted by Principal Editor on October 14, 2014 in 19th Congressional District, 19th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, 20th Congressional District, 2Luck.com, Abuse of Public Office, Albany, Albany County District Attorney, Albany County Sheriff Department, Alice Whalen, Andrew Cuomo, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, Barbara Finke, Bill Bailey, Bill McFerran, Bitter Bob (Ross), Bob Ross, Brown and Weinraub, Bryan Rowzee, Capital District, Carmen Warner, Carver Construction, Carver Laraway, Catherine Deluca, Catherine M. Deluca, Cathy Deluca, Cecilia Tkaczyk, Chris Gibson, Chris Gibson, Chris Hughes, Chris Norris, Christopher Norris, Civil Right Violation, Civil Rights, Claude A. Wheeles, Coeymanazis, Coeymans, Coeymans Elections, Coeymans Police Department, Coeymans Town Board, Coeymans Town Board Meeting, Craig D. Apple Sr., Daniel Contento, Daniel Contento, Danielle M. Crosier, David Wukitsch, Dawn Rogers, DEC, Department of Environmental Conservation, Dr Alan McCartney, Dr Alan R. McCartney, Edward "Teddy" Reville, Edward Reville, Eleanor Luckacovic, Eleanor Oldham, Elected Official, Eliminate Coeymans Police Department, Elyse Kunz, Elyse Loughlin, Eric T. Schneiderman, Favoritism, George Acker, George Amedore, George Langdon, George McHugh, Greed, Greene County, Greene County Board of Elections, Greene County District Attorney, Greene County Sheriff, Gregory Darlington, Gregory R. 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Biscone, Misinformation, Mismanagement, Misuse of Public Office, Moose Misuraca, Nancy Biscone-Warner, Nancy Warner, Nepotism, New Baltimore, New Baltimore Conservancy, New Baltimore Democratic Committee, New Baltimore Elections, New Baltimore Elections, New Baltimore Republican Club, New Baltimore Town Board Member, New York, New York State, New York State Association of Fire Chiefs, New York State Association of Fire Chiefs, New York State Civil Service Department, New York State Education Department, New York State Police, New York State United Teachers, Nick Dellisanti, NYS Assembly, NYS Senate, NYSED, NYSUT, Obstruction of Justice, Office of the Attorney General, Official Misconduct, Oreo Obama, Patrick E. 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__label__wiki	0.731903	0.731903	By SmartBear Web Testing - How TestComplete Keeps Up with Firefox Test and Monitor \| Posted November 03, 2011 This year, Mozilla Foundation has taken the Web world on a surprise journey by releasing three major versions of their Firefox browser within five months. According to the Firefox rapid release schedule, new major releases of Firefox will appear every 6 weeks. This decisively agile strategy has stirred a lot of discussion on the Web, and many companies developing or supporting Web applications are still scrambling to support the Firefox schedule, adjusting their development and validation approaches. From the end-user’s standpoint it is certainly a benefit to have the most recent and most secure version of a web browser. Yet, it is a significant challenge for the software vendors to implement the support for the latest browsers in proper time. It becomes hard to keep our technology up to date with a browser changing colors every 6 weeks. In a sense, however, vendors almost have no choice, as end users en masse get upgraded to a new version of Firefox automatically, and possibly without even noticing it, and expect that all their favorite apps will continue to run in the new browser without issues. As you likely know, SmartBear TestComplete is one of the market leaders in automating functional testing of web applications. So, we had to take this challenge head on in order to continuously provide our users with ability to verify their applications and test their sites under the most recent versions of the browser. The spring release of Firefox 4 appeared to be “business as usual” and we added support for it in TestComplete 8.5, along with support for the much slower moving Internet Explorer 9. After that, Firefox 5 and 6 Beta came out, and we realized that we are compelled to play for “hounds” in the “Fox and hounds” game: the browser vendor seemed invariably one or more steps ahead. But the Bear is not about to be outrun. To match Mozilla’s rapid release plans, we have updated our development, QA and production processes to be more agile: We established a continuous development cycle to support Firefox starting with available public Betas. Having six weeks of Beta availability helps, but we can still get surprises because of browser code changes between beta and final release, which can significantly impact the interface with a test tool. Our testers test the newly created functionality more often (to ensure that it works as intended to), and include the latest supported browser versions into automated regression tests (to verify the compatibility within a browser family). To be able to release browser support to our users in a more timely fashion, we introduced public patch releases. These are fully regression tested and verified, and ready to go. The flexible branching feature of our source control system has quickly proven to be an advantage. Our dev team is now able to work on Firefox support separately from the creative mess that typically results from concurrent development of features, and merge the code changes to the appropriate point in the source tree, strictly controlling the code changes that go into a patch or a minor version. This affords our developers and testers more safety and allows them to react quicker to forthcoming Firefox releases. The latest release of TestComplete 8.6 included support for Firefox 5 and 6. The new patch for TC 8.6 supports Firefox 7. An added challenge with supporting a new browser version is the desired cross-browser compatibility. TestComplete has always had the ability to run tests developed for older browsers in the browser family under new versions without changes, to minimize the test maintenance cost. Our developers did their best to make tests recorded as far back as Firefox 3.6, compatible with version 6 and later. In most cases this is attainable. Here is a screenshot of web page elements displayed in different versions of Firefox: As you can see, the child objects of the Page objects are alike, which makes the test scripts compatible. However, the browser itself evolves from version to version, and this inevitably results in changes of internal object hierarchy. For example, since Firefox 4 the modal dialogs are displayed as XUL vbox objects rather than Window objects. And once a web-test interacts with modal dialogs, it should take these changes into account. To learn about possible ways to handle dialogs in various versions of browsers, read the “Cross-Browser Testing With TestComplete” article. It was lately updated to reflect the recent browser releases. SmartBear TestComplete is certainly staying up with the browser race. That will undoubtedly require even more agility as we introduce support for Google Chrome later this year, and take on the challenge of transparent cross-browser testing. Stay tuned for the new race updates! Not yet taking advantage of TestComplete for your projects? Download a free 30-day trial today. Happy automating!	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1957
__label__wiki	0.527618	0.527618	The happiness turn? Mapping the Emergence of “Happiness Studies” Using Cited References. Overview Description Datasets Christopher Kullenberg - University of Gothenburg, Department of Philosophy, Linguistics and Theory of Science Gustaf Nelhans - University of Gothenburg, Department of Philosophy, Linguistics and Theory of Science The study analyzes “happiness studies” as an emerging field of inquiry throughout various scientific disciplines and research areas. Utilizing four operationalized search terms in the Web of Science; “happiness”, “subjective well-being”, “life satisfaction” and “positive affect”, a dataset was created for empirical citation analysis. Combined with qualitative interpretations of the publications, the results show how happiness studies have developed over time, in what journals the citing papers have been published, and which authors and researchers are the most productive within this set. The conclusion is that “happiness studies” have emerged in many different disciplinary contexts and progressively been integrated and standardized. Moreover, beginning at the turn of the millennium, happiness studies have even begun to shape an autonomous field of inquiry, in which happiness becomes a key research problem for itself, and we may even speak of a “happiness turn”. Philosophy, History of Ideas, Other Humanities not elsewhere specified (The Swedish standard of fields of research 2011) theory of science, happiness studies, bibliographic coupling, multidisciplinary, cited references, scientometrics, bibliometrics, citation analysis Access to data through SND Data are freely accessible Project's home page SND0975-001-V1.0_The_happiness_turn.zip (53.41 MB) The happiness turn? Mapping the Emergence of "Happiness Studies" Using Cited References. University of Gothenburg, Department of Philosophy, Linguistics and Theory of Science The study aims at drawing a more precise map of the scientific research contexts in which happiness studies have become a core activity, an integrated part of research, or a peripheral side-activity to normal science within a pre-existing discipline. The aim is to show how a new research field - ‘‘happiness studies’’ - has emerged, consolidated and become integrated into practices of research. Geographic description: Global Unit of analysis: Text unit Time Method: Sampling procedure: Non-probability Sort by name \| Sort by year Kullenberg, Christopher, Nelhans, Gustav (2015) The happiness turn? Mapping the Emergence of “Happiness Studies” using Cited References. Scientometrics. 17 feb 2015. The hapiness turn? If you have published anything based on these data, please notify us with a reference to your publication(s). Christopher Kullenberg, Gustaf Nelhans. University of Gothenburg, Department of Philosophy, Linguistics and Theory of Science (2015). The happiness turn? Mapping the Emergence of “Happiness Studies” Using Cited References. Swedish National Data Service. Version 1.0. https://doi.org/10.5878/002633 Data format / data structure:	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1961
__label__cc	0.726339	0.273661	Personal Responsibility, The Use of My Will, & Resistance to Change May 10, 2019at 1:22 pm \| Author : Ruben Talley \| Category : Articles \| : Thumbtack I just wanted maybe one more statement about the will yeah we need to add me understand the power of the wheel like most people don't even honor their own will when I say don't honor their own will they don't go okay this is what I currently believe but I can will a change through the release of the emotional impediment as to why I believe this thing and will that I accept the truth about this particular thing I can go through this process it doesn't mean that you can sit there and go I'm gonna release the error now it's all released oh I'm going to set the truth now it's all gone without any emotional process because you have to have an emotional process in order to release the impediment the resistance to the absorption of a new truth but you can use your will to do such a thing most people don't they sort of go okay no worries yeah I could change but I'm not too you know I'm a very laissez-faire usually you know they don't care very much about change and they don't really see it's a problem of what they believe many of these people initially so there's no exercise abut will there or they believe that releasing the error is going to be of major trauma to them so they don't want to release the error or whatever other ways they are exercising their will now and we're usually exercising our will very negatively even to the point where we say we're not even responsible for what's in us we go we go okay my parents cause or my society caused this emotion that's in me they should have to get rid of it no it's in you only you through your will now can get rid of it yeah that's the only person now who is capable of going through the emotional release process that will release this particular problem this resistance to the absorption of new trees so you're going to have to do it whether you like it or not and it doesn't matter how many people created it you now have to let it go through a process that you must go through yourself without anybody helping you and without anybody assisting you now when I say without anybody helping assisting obviously there are people around who understand this process here an end in this very well who can help you understand the process that they can't make you feel it only you can choose to feel it and if you don't choose to feel it no change is possible no change so you'll be here 20 years time going why haven't I progressed well because you have used your will to not progress and this is the biggest problem with people's relationship with God they have used their will to resist it without understanding how their will is exercised and I feel that's a big issue yeah I agree so resistance is really under the control of our will and you're talking about change is only possible through the release of resistance yes as adults we talk about kids a bit later on yeah but what I find interesting is that I see many people engaged in it you talked about people who are very lackadaisical about change people who don't really care about change but then I see on the planet there are some people who are involved in the desire to change themselves or their environment or have a career or you know these things but we're not engaged we're engaging our will while trying to deny the soul which is like the job which is like trying to change while your soul is not wanting to change that's pretty hard in fact it's impossible you can't do it thank you and that's why I hardly anybody ever changes even when they use they think they're using their will yeah hardly anybody changes because they're not really using their will they're not they're not feeling what's inside as resistance they're not choosing to feel that resistance they want to feel the good thing see not much of the resistance when it comes to error feels good it all feels hurtful shameful hard angry yeah fearful that's all yeah key emotions that the average person on earth goes I don't want to feel any of those emotions oh I only want to feel good happy you know joyful whatever I don't want to feel sad or afraid or angry or and see resistance is very rarely sad it's mostly angry it's mostly angry fearful and shameful and those kind of emotions and they are the emotions that the majority of people on the planet want to avoid at all costs you know people will murder to avoid those emotions generally and and as a result there's very little change even though they might try to say to themselves ah I'm going to be a force for good in the world you can't be a force for good in the world until you're ready to change your own soul and you understand how it works and unless you're willing to let go of what's airy inside of your own soul how can you ever be a force for good in the world because what is in your own soul is error will exercise its dominance so so you know give up the whole concept to try to be a force for good in the world and try to be a force that fuels its own resistance and you'll make some progress you know and I feel that's what the majority of us need to do and it's the expression if you can see its resistance as the expression of the soul's wheedle that's really really important like do you understand what I mean by that yeah you're just saying so many things I keep having to write down things I want to go back to ok so it if you think about it using your soul to resist something is an expression of your will just like using your soul to desire something is an expression of your will yep so so if we can see using resistance as an expression of our will then we know that if we're stagnant that we're using our will to be stagnant and then we could ask ourselves the question why am I using my will that way and the only real logical answer can be because I'm afraid to actually progress right and then we could ask ourselves well what's that what's what am i what the what are the feelings of beliefs I have about that yeah yeah but also I need to do one even better thing the fear is a feeling that causes us to to express our will in resistance you have to truth so the only way we're going to actually progress is to feel the fear and not talk about it anymore we need to feel it so we can go through the intellectual exercise of what is this fear about and so forth we might even know what it's about intellectually but unless we fear but no progression is going to happen so I know at some point I'm going to have to get from I see that I'm afraid of that into I am afraid of that I feel that you know and I'm feeling it and I'm crying because I'm so afraid of it and so forth I'm going to have to get to that point to release the resistance I know I can intellectually do these gymnastics saying oh yeah I know that no no no you don't know anything yet until you've felt the resistance go until you feel it leave you which is through an emotional experience that's going to be quite traumatic anything associated with shame guilt fear anger are all going to be traumatic emotional experiences painful to experience and we can't and this is what I said last time we got together I think this addiction to avoid pain is a major problem a big problem on the planet yeah we need to have an addiction to experiencing everything that would be great including experiencing pain of course there wouldn't be an addictive use we'd be experiencing everything but it'd be wonderful if we all changed our viewpoint about pain see what we must to do most the time is we want to blame everything else for our pain we don't want to feel it we want other people to make it go away that's bad you know we want to feel our pain that's going to be the thing that makes this progress yep now you had a whole heap of questions have they all gone now well I think it's sort of I think it all comes together you know there's there's little things I'd like to clarify and some of the things you said but I don't think that a feels that you've got the message across yeah and there's other questions I'm trying to form you so if that's the case can I just say a bit more about the expression of will well most people I notice who are in stagnation which is actually demonstrating they're in resistance right most people I noticed they always come up and they say I don't understand why I'm in resistance I don't understand why I'm stagnant and to me this smacks of irresponsibility mm-hmm because because if you understand how the soul works you would go is there going that you'd say I am stagnant because I am choosing to be right and this is where the understanding of our will which is what God really wants us to understand in this earth incarnation when in their entire life in fact yeah but this this earth incarnation I feel is very purposeful to help us really see the expression of our will in action and to become sensitive to that mm-hmm and when we are saying oh I don't know why when we're really missing that first very crucial lesson lesson that we have a will aren't we not only that crucially crucial lesson we're missing this crucial lesson that we are responsible for the exercise available sorry that's what I mean yeah do not I mean like so we have a will we need to understand that we also need to understand that we and like me i and only I am are responsible for the exercise of my own will no one else can do it for me no one not even God will do it for me so if I am stagnant the only reason why I am stagnant is because of something I am choosing to do this is an expression resistance is an expression of my will when I am in resistance I have a responsibility to find out why I have chosen to be in resistance and it is a choice there is a seoul-based emotional choice going on inside of me that causes me to wish to remain resistant and I need to take responsibility and say that I have created it and I need to release it if I want to change and it doesn't matter how many teachers I have and it doesn't matter how many people I have helping me and it doesn't matter how many times I talk about it and it doesn't matter how many times I hear something about it unless I and willing to work get to the emotion inside of me that causes this resistance and unless I am you will need to take responsibility to feel that emotion I will not change and it doesn't matter how many people try to help me it doesn't matter how long they try to help me doesn't matter what magical things they can do to help me I will not change until I go through that emotional experience and that is the pain and suffering that's mentioned in the Padgett messages that every spirit who has ever arrived in the spirit world has to go through in order to start embracing the full use of their will there is always pain and suffering associated with the unlawful exercise of our own will and I say unlawful from the point of view of God's laws every time we exercise our will unlawfully out of harmony with God's loving laws we are going to have to go through a painful emotional experience now or later doesn't matter when it's going to have to happen and and we will not change on that issue until it happens until we actually go through that painful emotional experience and this is where I feel people need to understand responsibility they are responsible for where they are right now they are responsible for their own resistance no one else can help them through their own resistance if they are unwilling to do it they need to exercise their will yeah I feel that it would be great to have a discussion about will with you at some time because I know for myself when we first moved in together and I see this around many many people that I know and means which is why I bring it up I didn't have an understanding of just how my will was being exercised in in every way like in every emotion action the projection all these things are all an expression of my will and much of it I regarded as just normal and automatic automatic I hadn't ever considered how my will was being exercised it was just an automatic and I think perhaps is why feel so passionate about this this lesson of the will because I see that most people operate in automatic surrounding their will and that's why they get to places where they go I don't know why I'm like this because they really it's not been inculcated into them as you often say that they have a will that they are responsible for and I didn't want to be responsible because it didn't I didn't like being faced with the the truth about your will the truth about how I was using my will and the effects of how I was using my will yes and because I've never had much feedback because I've always been in sort of situations where people shared it had agreement with me about how the will should be exercised around certain issues areas actions situations I've never been confronted and beginning to travel and things that helped me going to other countries recognizing more button I just feel most people operate in a in a state of complete unawareness of the majority not completely unaware that they have a will but the majority or the multitude of ways in which a will is expressed in a day and how that can be in harmony with love and truth or in harmony with error mmm-hmm I feel that most people we we are literally not raised to have that awareness no but we need it if we're going to deal with these things yes but also while most people will understand that they make decisions in two actually very few people actually understand that most of the decisions are made before they make the intellectual decision yes most of their decisions are made emotionally they are set inside of their emotional condition and and they're their will is to either to retain that emotional condition rather than examine it honestly is quite strong now you look at the majority of people who resist or any discussion we have with them the majority of times they are actively using their will to not examine themselves that they want to to have no self examination all they want is for somebody to tell them you're right now if we were all right we'd all be at one with God we're not all right and we need to understand that we're not and the only way that we're going to become right is by releasing the error they're wrong that's inside and that is an emotional process and you can try that intellectually too you know for the next 50 years they'll be barely any change whatsoever and the only change you will have made in that 50 years of the time you felt an emotion yeah this is where isn't it there can be it's almost feels like there's layers of resistance yeah because when you are speaking with someone who doesn't even want to see the emotional impediments their errors within them that create their resistance they don't even want to see they even have resistance to the awareness that there is but even that is caused by an emotion it is yeah even like this is what I'm saying every piece of resistance even they intellectual denial that I have a problem is caused by a feeling inside of me of why I want to deny there's always there's always something driven by the emotion so so even the thought I want to deny this which comes instantly usually before the person formulates thought from an account from a logical process they're already denying it before they even think about what they're doing most of the time that came from the entire inside emotional condition I want to deny this I want to I want to get away from this pain that I'm going to have to feel if I go down that road I want to deny that and this is where we've got we're using our will to deny our pain and as soon as you do that you're going to create error you're going to create resistance you you're going to create resistance to truth but you're also going to create error through addiction of processes you're going to automatically have an addiction now where you're denying that pain every single pain you deny yourself an addiction will be created to correct it and so so for the majority of people they've got thousands of pieces of pain that they're trying to denying themselves from their childhood experience and as a result they have thousands of addictions that they need to emotional most of them that they're trying to suppress this pain with and it's an automatic process driven by the souls will and we need to understand that it's the expression of the wheel so you can't go I was doing that know your soul is exercising their will and God's not going to let you off the hook for that God's not gonna say oh you say you didn't know that you wanted to murder somebody well you say you didn't know you wanted to rape somebody or you say you didn't know you wanted to yell and scream at your children and bash them you say you know you say you didn't know that you wanted to have men look after you are you saying you didn't know these things because the reality is the majority of us know these things and deny them that's the reality we use our will to deny we use our will to cover it all over we use our will to create a facade we use our will to not progress so we can't then say that our you know why am I not progressing it must be somebody else's fault maybe the teachers that thought maybe you know maybe he taught me the wrong thing or whatever no gods a great teacher God's trying to teach you every day and if you're in resistance to God's teaching it's because you're using your will to be so that's the only reason why it's happening yeah yeah so these are the important things too for people to understand I feel yeah so what I was wanting to ask you about before about the layers of resistance is simply about this thing that I find when I'm talking to people sometimes and I feel it inside of myself as well is like you can have a huge emotional resistant even to seeing that yourself yeah like that you have resistance within you yes and speaking to that person about issues of truth is very very difficult because they don't want to see anything whereas then you can talk to someone who has worked through that emotion enough to allow the the idea that they do have errors within them that are resisting truth and that conversation is much easier yes because we're no longer we don't have this emotional error inside of us that is saying there's nothing to see and I don't want to see well yeah there's a lot of emotions that drive that obviously you know for example there's the emotion of and don't tell me I've got something wrong with me because it means that I must be a terrible person you know yeah lots don't you know there's there's so many emotions that drive these thoughts of resistance and and these emotional resistances need to be felt in order to be released so so if if you have something come up where you automatically think somebody thinks you're a terrible person well it's probably that you have a feeling deep down that you're a terrible person that you need to feel so feel it once you feel it and release that then every conversation won't be tainted with the thought that maybe you're a terrible person and that'll be fantastic for you you'll be able to think with more clarity you'll be there act like you're not a terrible person all the time you'll be able to be less suspicious about people's comments to you instead of believing they always think you're terrible you'll think there might be some other motive as to why they're saying what they're saying and so forth yeah and you know unless you release that emotion this emotion is going to taint every interaction in every part every aspect of your life yeah and and you know you see this happening every day with people you know there's another emotion that's toning every aspect of your life there's another one painting every aspect you like and you're resistant to feeling that emotion and as a result you know you've got to look food what's the emotion causing you to be resistive to feeling the emotion and there's another emotion usually the you know and these are usually things like shame you know feelings of fear that we don't want to feel fear that we're a bad person of fear that that there's something intrinsically wrong with us and things like that these are all emotions that cause us to be very very resistive to other emotions it is sort of like if you've got an emotion that causes you to be resistive to feeling other emotions yes you can you see that if you always skip over that emotion to feel that emotion this emotion is going to slow down your progression like in major ways you're better off feeling that emotion that that emotion that wants you to be resistive to hearing feedback the emotion that wants you to be resistive to feeling other emotions of sadness guilt shame and other things you're better off going through what's this feeling and if this feeling is rage then feel it if you know don't take it out on other people feel it go into your bedroom go into a private place feel it express it get it out of you connect with it then it'll drop away and when it drops away it's like then it's free sailing into the next emotion exactly yeah okay so we've got there under the control of our will okay so I think I've made that claim and we are responsible God God so God created us to be self responsible beings and every time we go I don't know why this is happening we're not being a self responsible being we're not we're not exercising our will to find out yeah your God wants us to exercise our will to find out everything everything everything about the universe everything about ourselves and we need to be self responsible beings to do that so one of the things lessons we need to learn is I need to become a self responsible being where I acknowledge that if I am NOT progressing it's because I am exercising my will to do that is that enough eyes and minds for everybody yeah but probably need saying [Laughter] The Bernification Of America Genome-Wide Association Studies – Karen Mohlke (2012) Preventing displacement with a Community Benefits Agreement Forbidden Knowledge of Ancient Civilizations with Matthew LaCroix & Paul Wallis Live Show #2 Human Ecological Theory of Environment Sid Meier’s Civilization VI – Episode 2: Taking Your Turn frank李 says: Previous post : 7.8 The Protestant Ethic and The Spirit of Capitalism Next post : Can Nigeria's booming economy lift its poorest people?	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1969
__label__wiki	0.684986	0.684986	spoindia Socio Political Observer of India NGO Special Editors Speak CSR Summit 2017 CSR Summit & Awards 2017 Let’s Talk Payback December 9, 2019 admin 0 Comment Paytm changed the way Indians spend but its business model could just face its biggest challenge yet Kripa Mahalingam & Debangana Ghosh When Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone to the world in 2007, Vijay Shekhar Sharma instantly knew that consumers would shift to smartphones. His company One97 Communications, a mobile VAS company which offered cricket scores, horoscopes, jokes and movie songs was going to be toast. It was a feature-phone-led business and feature phones were on their way out. He needed to quickly figure out a game plan to survive. One thing was certain — mobile commerce had to happen and there was no payment system in place. So he decided his company would enable people to pay through mobile. That’s how Paytm got its name. In 2014, Paytm launched its mobile wallet after getting the nod from RBI. Now you could load money in the wallet and spend them at merchants who accepted digital payments. In about a year, it was the first Indian app to hit 100 million downloads. But one event that really changed its fortunes was when the government decided to demonetise 86% of the cash in circulation in November 2016. Overnight, everyone from your paanwala to the friend to whom you owed money was using Paytm to send and receive money, and as a result the user base increased from 122 million to 177 million by the end of 2016 and by February 2017, the user base grew to 200 million. But an open platform, high regulatory control and increasing competition has turned its core payment business into a commodity. So, Paytm decided to be everything to everyone. Now it offers payments, commerce, gaming, content, financial services, business services and banking. “We don’t consider ourselves a wallet player but we like to call ourselves a payments player. We hope to process half a trillion worth of payments on our platform over the next two years and that will enable a commerce and financial services ecosystem that will drive our revenue and profit,” says Sharma, founder, Paytm. A plan that is easier said than done. There are perils of being everything to everyone – you are juggling too many things at the same time and spreading yourself a little too thin. While the mantra for Paytm has always been ‘Go big or go home’, can it beat the odds, this time around? During the initial years of its journey, Paytm spent a lot of effort and money trying to incentivise consumers to use their wallets and merchants to get on their network and accept payments from their wallets. Its first major inflection point came in 2014 when it partnered with ride-sharing unicorn, Uber to become one of its payment options. A year later, it entered into a partnership with IRCTC that allowed its users to book railway tickets online. While they acquired millions of users spurred by demonetisation, the first-mover advantage unfortunately didn’t stick for long. Just three years into launch, NPCI has been driving digital payments in the country. The open payment platform allowed players to build their payment app on top of it. Soon, everyone who wanted a piece of the payments business jumped on board and threw cash around to lure users. Within three years of its launch, PhonePe has 62 million users and 7.8 million merchants on its platform. Google Pay has about 67 million active monthly users and has processed $110 billion in transactions till date. While Paytm did all the heavy lifting to get consumers on the digital payments platform, it only made things easier for competition to launch and scale their operations. Consumers who were now comfortable with digital payments switched between payment apps depending on the cashbacks offered. For Paytm, the plan was to get to 500 million users by 2020. Today, it claims to have 350 million users but here is the catch — it has 140 million monthly active users (MAUs). At the end of December 2016, Paytm roughly had 80 million MAUs, but with negligible rise in average spend. What happened, you ask? We saw 10 million installs in three months; most don’t see that in a lifetime – Sameer Nigam Founder and CEO, PhonePe NPCI-backed UPI happened. A real-time mobile payments platform, it was launched in August 2016 just before demonetisation with 21 banks live on the platform. And two months after its launch, demonetisation sucked the cash out of the system. For the now Walmart-backed PhonePe, which had just launched its services, the timing couldn’t have been perfect. “Because of demonetisation when money was short, the biggest challenge was the ability to transact; the only option left was netbanking or UPI suddenly. We launched to 10 million installs in a matter of three months and we never ever expected that. Most start-ups don’t see 10 million users in their lifetime. So, it was good timing and a bet on that really worked well,” says Sameer Nigam, founder and CEO, PhonePe. He says PhonePe decided to go with UPI since there was enough regulatory and government backing for UPI. Since there were larger players such as Paytm and MobiKwik already on the wallets side, PhonePe decided to innovate on the brand new ‘Made in India’ stack called UPI. E-payments is a huge opportunity in India, not only for business but also for creating an impact – Ambarish Kenghe Director-product management, Google Pay Google also threw its hat in the payments business and chose UPI. “Money is information. Cash transactions carry a lot of information. At Google, wherever we see opportunity for the end-customer, we look into it. E-payments is a huge opportunity in India, not only for business but also creating impact,” says Ambarish Kenghe, director-product management, Google Pay. At the time of their launch, UPI was clocking monthly transactions of 10 million. Cut to today, UPI crossed a billion transactions this October, a little over two years. As the transactions on UPI gathered momentum post the entry of Google Pay, Paytm couldn’t ignore UPI and it launched its UPI app in November 2017. As of September 2019, it accounts for 6% of the transactions with Google Pay on top with 62%, and PhonePe at 25% (See: Who’s moving the money). Amazon also has its own digital payment platform, Amazon Pay, and added peer-to-peer (P2P) digital payments earlier this year. But almost 75-80% of the transactions done today are P2P transactions and there is little money on UPI for the payment service providers. MobiKwik co-founder and CEO Bipin Preet Singh breaks it down. “Non-banking apps have very little control over how UPI works; it’s just built on top of UPI. In the long term if anybody can make money through UPI, it is the banks. The underlining economics of payments through UPI is controlled by the banks.” Hence, Sharma says Paytm is moving away from incentivising P2P transactions. “We see very little economic value in P2P transactions. In fact, most of the customers are gaming the system to earn more cashbacks and that is why we are off that market. For us customers become valuable when he pays the merchants and that is the incremental market we are after,” says Sharma. In the long term, if anybody can make money through UPI, it is the banks – Bipin Preet Singh Co-founder and CEO, MobiKwik The fact remains that despite the surge in transaction volume, UPI has not really increased the user base. As Sharma points out, there are a large number of transactions that happen through the day to avail cashbacks and it is a pattern seen on a month-on-month basis. Sharma says, of the 100 million users on UPI, transactions are concentrated among 20-30 million users. It is basically users moving from one provider to another depending on where the cashback is higher. “The right question to gauge the ecosystem is, ‘Fine, I am doing 20 million transactions, but what value of the customer’s relationship am I capturing?’ Ultimately, in financial services, it’s the amount of wealth which you manage. So, if I do 10 million transactions, which may be 50% of the industry but if I am managing only 3% of the value, then it is very obvious who owns the relationship,” says Parag Rao, Country head-payments bank & marketing, HDFC Bank. The bank’s payment wallet Payzapp has over 15 million customers and 1.5 million merchants on its platform. While he agrees that tech companies will be faster and nimble going by their core competency, one needs to look deeper at what that technology is solving. “Everybody is approaching it from a perspective of how can we get that transaction on my network or app, earlier it was wallets and now apps like Google Pay. That is an interim journey. While everyone out there is saying that is my customer, you can only truly say that when you have a larger share of the customer’s financial relationship with you,” Rao adds. Ultimately, in financial services, it’s the amount of wealth which you manage that matters – Parag Rao Country head-payments bank and marketing, HDFC Bank But companies such as Google, Amazon and WhatsApp are not looking to make money from their payments business. For them, payments are just a means to an end where they can generate better revenue from existing products and clock higher ad revenue. The data can be used to develop new products, offer personalised content and ads, besides monitor the effectiveness of their ad campaigns. For companies such as Walmart-owned PhonePe and Amazon it helps to understand where consumers are spending. So the transaction data becomes more valuable than the transaction itself and for that the companies don’t mind offering substantial cashbacks as well. If UPI’s launch was a game changer of sorts for the payments industry, many feel the entry of WhatsApp will change the pecking order in payments yet again. “If WhatsApp can overcome the regulatory hurdles and offer payment services in India, they will win the P2P game. Everyone is comfortable using WhatsApp. Just as people moved seamlessly to WhatsApp calls, the same will happen to payments,” says a senior payments executive. The Facebook-owned mobile messaging app has more than 400 million users in India and has been beta testing its payment services on a million users. Since the app already has a payment button, the experience is even more seamless. But fortunately the payment players can breathe easy for now as the WhatsApp launch seems some time away as it tackles regulatory hurdles on data localisation and privacy concerns. But Sharma isn’t too concerned about the competition. “We are a 20-year old company and every two–three years we see a new set of competitors, and that has been the reason for our growth. Who would have thought we would have Google as one of our competitors some day. It keeps us on our toes and helps us grow,” he says. But this time around, the new set of competitors are formidable and come with very deep pockets that allow them not only to garner market share through cashbacks but also the ability to develop the best-in-class technology. “Deep pockets alone cannot win the game. If that was the case, Microsoft should have won over Facebook, they couldn’t. Facebook should have won over WhatsApp and deep-pocket retailers should have won over Amazon, both couldn’t. “I am committing to invest $2 billion in the payments business in the next three years and I don’t think any of the deep-pocketed players will commit that kind of money for one line of business. We will be investing that money to acquire customers, merchants and in financial services,” adds Sharma. NPCI’s objective is to have a very healthy multi-party ecosystem with all our partners – Praveena RaI COO, NPCI Unlike China, where digital payments is dominated by two major players WeChat and Alipay, there will be multiple players including banks and third-party apps vying for the consumer’s wallet. At least that’s the way NPCI wants it. “The objective is to have a very healthy multi-party ecosystem with all our partners. It’s not a closed-loop system like the ones groomed in other countries. For us, it’s about interoperability. It’s about multiple banks and frontline apps where the apps could be banks or third-party apps; ultimately giving choice to the users,” says Praveena Rai, COO, NPCI. There are reports that NPCI is looking to cap a single player’s market share at 33% and players feel that restrictions so early on in the digital payments journey may prove counter-productive. “I believe that regulations are important and they keep people safe. At the same time, we need to make sure we don’t stifle innovation and we have been vocal about a more open ecosystem where players keep innovating and coming up with better products and customers have the option of choosing the best product,” says Google Pay’s Kenghe. Multiple pivots As banks and non-bank payment apps encroach on its territory, Paytm is trying everything in order to claim a higher share of the customer’s financial relationship. In 2016, Paytm forayed into flight & hotel bookings, movie and event tickets and digital gold. Paytm competes directly with travel and movie ticket aggregators and earns commission. In the first year of operation, it clocked about nine million flight bookings and three million movie tickets. Over the past year, Paytm has done more than 115 million flight bookings and movie tickets. While both spaces have well entrenched players such as MakeMyTrip and BookMyShow, there is more competition here as well with Amazon inking a five-year deal with BookMyShow and Cleartrip to offer flight and movie ticket bookings. Sharma says he is not looking to take on the leaders here but create a niche yet profitable business for Paytm. “These verticals are large and the business has seen strong incumbents with no significant number two player. We have managed to find a niche in these businesses. Because of our reach we have managed to add consumers from Tier-II, III and IV towns who were otherwise not on the platform,” he adds. In 2017, it forayed into e-commerce business with Paytm Mall. But it was a little too late in the game with Amazon and Walmart-owned Flipkart dominating the market, and Paytm Mall despite its cashbacks and discount offers failed to make a dent. The platform has a little over 3% of the Indian market, compared to more than 30% each for Amazon and Flipkart. But the cashbacks and the discounts did hurt with Paytm Mall alone posting a loss of 11.71 billion in FY19. However this was about 35% lower than the loss the company posted in FY18 thanks to a change in its strategy. With the B2C commerce game out of its reach, Paytm Mall changed its focus to bringing offline merchants online and increasing their discovery online. “Paytm has discovered its mojo in getting offline retailers online. So right from helping stores with customer walk-ins to managing their inventory and software required for them to sell online, they are happy to pay us for these services. So we decided to focus on these services rather than being an online retailer where you can constantly face cash crunch,” says Sharma. According to him, the losses will decline further as smart inventory management has led to significant cost savings. On a combined basis, he expects the overall commerce business (physical and digital) to post a loss of about 5 billion to 6 billion in FY20. India is home to millions of mom and pop shops, which sell everything from grocery, clothes to electronics. “The offline opportunity is huge and so our promotional cashbacks have now been set aside for offline payments. It builds long-term relationship with the shopkeeper. His data then allows us to sell them a loan or an insurance package or a wealth management solution,” say Sharma. He says the merchants have the option of parking the funds in the wallet in a money market fund against which loans can be given. For the lending business, Paytm has partnered with various lenders and NBFCs who extend loans based on the merchants’ cash flow. “ Chasing a large loan book can be very risky and we are aware of the losses that can come from lending. So, we have been conservative and have gone with the DSA model where we help them get customers and earn a monthly commission for it,” says Sharma. According to him, less than 10% of payments made by consumers to businesses are through digital means. So Paytm enables merchants to offer a whole range of options through the Paytm wallet, which accepts cash, debit cards, credit cards, UPI-linked bank accounts, and other wallets. “Our business model is now focused on increasing merchant payments and enabling them to accept more digital payments,” says Sharma. But Paytm is not the only one wooing merchants. Walmart-owned PhonePe, Google Pay and Amazon Pay are also looking to grab a piece of the overall market. PhonePe is looking to enable direct interaction between customers and merchants. “There are a lot of lines of engagement between them, whether it is building solutions for merchants for hyper-local economies, whether it is building financial services — both for merchants and consumers. Third, enabling more commerce to happen and driving footfall of discovery of services,” says Nigam. PhonePe now has 7.8 million merchants on its platform and will play a crucial part in helping Flipkart penetrate the next 300 million users by understanding the payment patterns in its merchant network and creating affordability through payment solutions. There are about 14 million merchants using Paytm services and they enable 800 million-900 million transactions a month. For the convenience they offer merchants, Paytm charges around 1-2% of each transaction. In FY19, Paytm clocked a gross transaction value (GTV) of over $50 billion across 5.5 billion transactions compared with $25 billion clocked in FY18 across 2.8 billion transactions. This year, the company says it will touch gross transactions worth $100 billion and commerce business both on Paytm and Paytm Mall will bring in GMV of $30 billion. But in a business where you have to spend a lot more to earn incremental revenue, more transactions often translates to higher losses. Battling competition in almost all of its businesses has cost Paytm dearly. Its losses increased by around 2.5x from 16.04 billion in FY18 to 42.17 billion in FY19. Paytm’s marketing and business promotion expenses saw a 33% jump from 18.94 billion in FY18 to 28.32 billion, in FY19 driven by cashbacks and discounts, both in payments and e-commerce. Revenue from operations saw a modest increase from 30.53 billion to 32.32 billion for the same period. Sharma is hopeful that all the ducks will line up in a row over the next couple of years. “Our financial services will start to contribute to our overall revenue and profit. We will be launching insurance services and expanding our lending services and the recently launched broking services will also contribute to overall profit,” he says. According to him, the ability to process nearly half a trillion payment transactions in the next two years will give Paytm an opportunity to scale up its financial services and commerce business. He expects losses to come down to 30 billion this year and 15 billion in the next, and breakeven and turn profitable at the group level in 2022, after which they will consider an IPO. Scaling up the financial services business is not going to be a walk in the park. Banks and NBFCs are jostling with each other for the same business and are not going to give up their share easily to fintech players who are already eating into their lunch. “In financial services there are deep-pocketed players but they are happy in their space, and not looking for incremental customers. If you expect the economy to be at $5 trillion in the next five to seven years, that means an additional $2 trillion opportunity waiting to be captured. Even if the incumbents take half, it is still a trillion dollar opportunity for us,” he says. While Sharma definitely has a plan on paper, the path to profit is laced with uncertainty and going by its past couple of years’ performance, a tough ask. In FY19, to earn an incremental 2 billion, the company spent 26.13 billion and this only means while payments still need cashbacks to sustain revenue, the new businesses aren’t firing on all cylinders either. Earlier, in FY17, the company posted a loss of 8.99 billion (See: Ticketing losses). Competition isn’t faring too well either. For instance, PhonePe saw its FY19 loss mount to 19.05 billion from 7.9 billion in FY18 when it logged revenue of just 428 million. Similarly, Amazon Pay India saw its loss widen to 11.61 billion in FY19 from 3.34 billion in FY18. If one were to add the 10.28 billion given as cashbacks by Google Pay during FY19, the four major players would have raked in more than $1 billion in losses as they scrap for market share. No wonder then, Paytm was hoping that financial services will come to its rescue and shore up revenue and help monetise its user base, something it has been struggling with for some time now. The payments bank was to be its silver bullet that would help in getting it closer to its target of 500 million users by 2020 apart from enabling financial inclusion. But payment banks in India never really took off the way it was envisioned because of the numerous regulatory constraints of not being allowed to lend and the cap on deposits. In fact, of the 11 players granted licenses to launch payment bank services, only four are in business. And Paytm Payments Bank is one of them. Even after being the largest player in the space with 52 million accounts and about half them coming from existing wallet users, it is still a far cry from the overall target. Sharma says he is happy with the progress at the bank and that it will be the template to push their financial services business. “We have acquired customers who earlier didn’t have bank accounts and since we are a digital bank, we don’t have much need for physical infrastructure. The past two years have shown there is huge unmet need for financial services and the half a billion number is still achievable,” says Sharma. The bank has processed 3.25 trillion in transactions and has around 5 billion in deposits. With payments banks still finding their feet, it was time to take a different bet. Enter Paytm Money. Beginning its journey in 2018, Paytm Money offers direct plans of equity funds and now has permission to offer brokerage services as well. The firm has about four million customers and while, all this sounds exciting you have to remember the customer base is one that comes to you for cashbacks as low as 50 and which has an annual average transaction value of 700. “Now, If I start with offering e-wallet and give you 50 cashback on each transaction and then expect you to also take insurance policies, fixed deposits and term loans from me; that’s a little far-fetched,” says HDFC Bank’s Rao. According to the company, about 85% of Paytm Money’s mutual fund transactions are under 500 and the average SIP value is around 1,000 as against the industry average of 5,000-6,000. “My belief about companies offering lower entry point mutual funds is that, these are all pilots. While the thought of approaching the previously unattended customers is good, the jury is yet out on whether these are successful and sustainable schemes. Even we are watching and learning from them. Let’s wait and see”, says HDFC Bank’s Rao. Paytm has also ventured into wealth management offering gold investments in 2016 where customers can invest in digital gold certificates and redeem it at their partner stores. Sharma says in India savings and wealth management may not typically follow the patterns in the West. “In India, the largest investment is in gold. For some investors, it could be equities and mutual fund but the majority still puts their faith in gold. We have about 50 millions customers using Paytm Gold services and that is twice the number of investors in all the AMCs in the country,” he explains. That aside, the thinking at Paytm Money is that mutual funds will be the investment destination that consumers will seek out. “We contribute about 40% of SIPs in direct equity plans in the country today. The mutual fund industry has about 19 million investors and we expect the investor base to more than double to over 40 million by 2025 and Paytm Money wants to grab a significant chunk of that user base,” says CEO Pravin Jadhav. According to him, about 70% of their customers are from Tier-III and Tier-IV towns and first-time investors in mutual funds. “A lot of them are aware of mutual funds thanks to the campaigns by AMFI but had no access to a trusted platform. Distributors have been chasing big-ticket investments since those fetch them higher commissions. So, there was a gap in the market and that gap we are filling,” says Jadhav. Besides ebullience, capital is the other thing that Paytm has never been short of. The float in its wallet business helps, but it also has consolidated debt of 7 billion. Paytm’s parent company One97 Communications has raised $2.5 billion in funding so far from marquee set of investors including Alibaba, Softbank, Berkshire Hathaway and SAIF Partners. In more ways than one, Paytm is an Alibaba company with the Chinese e-commerce giant holding 37.5% stake (See: Lining up for a payout). But the investors are not trigger happy when it comes to writing cheques. In Paytm Mall’s last fundraise where Ebay bought 5.5% for $160 million, existing investors Alibaba, Ant Financial Softbank didn’t participate. Paytm was last valued at $15 billion when several employees cashed out selling their shares for $150 million to New York-based investors in August this year. It was valued at about $12 billion in August 2018 when Berkshire Hathaway invested about $300 million (See: Massive top-ups). The company has been in talks with investors to raise more money. News reports indicate the firm has raised $1 billion in its last round of funding with T Rowe Price being the latest addition with an infusion of $150 million-$200 million. While the rest is being coughed up by existing investors including Alibaba, Ant Financial and Softbank, the investment is coming with its own set of riders. After Uber’s poor listing and the WeWork debacle, Softbank is no longer in a position to hand out free cash and tell start-ups to “go capture the world”. Now it is urging its portfolio companies to work towards the path of profitability rather than chasing growth for growth’s sake. Reports say Softbank signed off on the latest round of funding on the condition that Paytm would plan an IPO within five years or Softbank would be free to sell its stake to other investors. There has also been pressure from investors on Paytm to tighten its belt and find new revenue streams in the past year or so. Sharma took the hint and started with rehauling the e-commerce business first and cutting back on P2P cashbacks. It is already spewing accounting jargon investors want to hear like being ‘contribution margin positive’ during the September 2019 quarter. Simply put, on every sale, Paytm makes a tiny profit after deducting variable costs but before deducting people and establishment costs. Not to get too excited, this is still a step away from operating breakeven and a long way from generating cash profit. Cutting costs and cashbacks were the easy parts. The hard part still remains how it will scale up its user base, and more importantly, monetise it. And despite having more than half a dozen businesses at work, there is still no clear path for that one. Regulatory haze Apart from intense competition, the payments space also has the additional scare of tackling ad hoc regulatory changes that more often than not catches players off guard. For instance, in 2017, RBI threw another curveball at Paytm when it mandated that mobile wallets will have to go through the same KYC norms like banks, when they sign up users. So, wallet companies have been going with minimum KYC where a customer’s mobile number gets authenticated and the operator collects just one government identification number, without cross checks. “Unless the customer is opening a payment bank account, we don’t insist on KYC,” says Sharma. The company has little over 100 million KYC compliant customers out of its 350 million registered users. RBI has given the final deadline that all wallet customers should be KYC compliant by February 2020; otherwise they will be unable to use their wallets. It takes anywhere between 100-150 depending on where the customer is, to do complete KYC and on a base of 250 million users, that would mean an additional cost of 25 billion. To spend that much on a base that is predominantly non-active or uses wallets only for minimum recharge, it does not make economic sense. “This verification process works when the customers are in for taking loans of 50,000-60,000. It doesn’t make sense for a customer using the platform for 100 phone recharges. We and some other players have such huge customer base that it is impractical to do phone KYCs for each one of them. That’s why we are arguing with the regulator that there should be proportionate KYC, where customers can use the platform without KYC for some time and if they want to go beyond that level they can do KYC,” says MobiKwik’s Singh. The wallet provider has over 100 million users, of which, a million avail financial services. In all probability, wallet players would willingly let go of non-active customers. Rather than spending on KYC, Paytm wants to spend money to increase its active base to 250 million in the next one year by spending 7.5 billion through offline cashbacks, gaming, content services and merchant acquisitions. While new players have entered the fray, none of them have actually expanded the market. It is the same 100 million that is getting tossed, be it the UPI-led apps or wallet players. That has really been the problem when it comes to scaling up the active user base for Paytm. From mutual funds to travel bookings to content and games, every new business that Paytm has set its eyes on is already highly competitive and crowded with strong incumbents. And payments right now has no moat to offer. “Reality is no matter how much you spend on branding, marketing and offers, customers can ultimately leave and go to other platforms. And there are many large platforms like WhatsApp, Paytm and Google, and all of them are burning cash in this race,” says MobiKwik’s Singh. Paytm has even ventured overseas to Japan where it has launched payment services along with Softbank and Yahoo. ‘Masa San wanted to do something pre-Olympics, so that’s why we teamed up with them,” explains Sharma. Paytm’s team in Canada has been working with Softbank and Yahoo and has gained about 10 million users in the first 10 months. It is also looking to venture to the US in case they find a suitable local partner. It is exhausting even writing about all the things Paytm is trying to do in pursuit of growth. Investors were willing to shell out a premium valuation given its dominance in mobile payments and now that domination along with its ability to monetise its user base is definitely in question. For Paytm, not only is the path to profitability not easy, despite everything, it still isn’t very clear and therein lies its biggest challenge. Outlook Business ← Empowering Rural Children with Computer Literacy- A story of Cosmo Foundation on World Computer Literacy Day Ordering for pizza, costs ₹95,000 in online scam → SPOI CSR AWARDS Centre For Development of Telematics(C Dot) receives Digital Empowered PSU of India Award at 3rd Cyber Security Conclave 2019 Editor Speak Indian Economy is waiting for its “Achhe Din” The Indian economy is facing storm, the need of the hour is policy reforms to raise GDP growth without creating Rural service centres can fuel rural India’s growth The CSCs were introduced to provide citizens access to services through a digital framework. Every CSC has a basic infrastructure, Rehabilitation: helping employees with mental health conditions By 2025, we will have 10,000+ CNG stations: Suresh Manglani Shashi spoke on the India experiences through British colonial for 150 years ISPP organizes “Practitioner’s approach to Public Policy” lecture The Indian School of Public Policy (ISPP) organized a first of its kind lecture series titled a “Practitioner’s approach to India ranks 3rd in terms of Pornhub Traffic in 2018 E Magazine The Great Technology Conundrum Analysts say that there is a significant correlation between use of technology by masses and overall development of a country. Copyright www.spoindia.org @2012-2020 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Kalinga Digital Media Pvt. Ltd. is prohibited. 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__label__wiki	0.741736	0.741736	VideoCoin: CNET Founder Comes Up With New Cryptocurrency to Challenge Amazon Halsey Minor, founder of the CNET media website and cofounder of Salesforce, a California-based cloud computing company, now intends to steal giant Amazon’s thunder in the video business with an innovative new blockchain startup. Wonder Drug: Russian Chemists Develop Innovative Early Cancer Diagnostic Test Russian chemists have created a special type of nanoparticle, which acts as a very efficient “contrast agent” and allows for an early diagnostic test of cancerous tumors. New Defense Program: 'Russia to Rely on Innovative Intellectual Weapons' Russia is a peaceful country but it is ready to counter any potential aggression, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Rogozin said in his interview with Rossiya 1 broadcaster. Rogozin shed light on Defense Ministry's new weapons program, adding that the Russians traditionally win by skill rather than by weight of numbers. China Challenges Technological Progress of US and Europe China's investment in technological startups in the US and Europe and China's technological achievements have become a hot topic after the recent publication of an article in The New York Times and a column by David Dodwell in the South China Morning Post. The Time Has Come: Meet Russia's Top-Class Combat Chopper at Its Finest Bristling with an array of cutting-edge technological solutions, the improved version of Russia’s Mi-28NM attack helicopter is nothing short of the ultimate combat aircraft, Russian Helicopters Holding’s general director Alexander Mikheyev wrote. Defense Industry Develops 35% of All Russian Innovative Products – Deputy PM Russia’s Military-industrial complex produces a great percantage of goods and technologies exported by the country, Russian Deputy Prime Minister said in an interview published Thursday. Russia's Lavrov Calls on West to Abandon ‘Geopolitical Engineering’ in Middle East Moscow is calling on the West to abandon its attempts of "geopolitical engineering" in the Middle East, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a recent interview. Hilarious Cat Rides Roomba Hoover Like a Boss Now this is some crazy footage! Russia's Latest Innovation Uses GSM Networks to Track Cruise Missiles, Drones Russia's newest Rubezh airspace control system is capable of identifying and tracking unmanned aerial vehicles, cruise missiles and low-flying aircraft by using GSM networks, Izvestiya reported, adding that the innovative solution could also be employed to assist with rescue operations and to improve fire safety. Watch Chinese Revolutionary PowerEgg Drone in Action Science does not stand still, especially in China. Russia First to Succeed in Test of Ecologically Clean Rocket Engine Russian scientists have successfully tested the first detonation liquid rocket engine (LRE) which uses next-generation clean fuel, according to the Foundation for Advanced Studies (FPI). Five Technology Startups to Make the World a Better Place (PHOTO, VIDEO) Sputnik is proud to present the third installment of the top-five innovative projects' list. Meet World's First Robotic Kitchen The new robotic era is closer than you think! Fantastic Wonders of Science: From Mine-Stalk to Vertical Planes Take a look at a few interesting inventions which have been registered by the Russian Federal Service of Intellectual Property. South Korea, US Discuss Technology Transfer for KF-X Fighter Jet Korea and the United States held their first high-level talks in Washington on the transfer of jet technologies for Seoul's project to develop its own fighter jets. Maker Movement Paving Way for a Digital Revolution in Russia A global trend promoted by inventors, entrepreneurs and designers, who blend open-source philosophy, cutting-edge technology and do-it-yourself attitude to create innovative products is getting increasingly popular in Russia. Participants of the Moscow Mini Maker Faire told Sputnik why. Flying Cosmic Nanny, Gigantic Tablet: Look at Five Cutting-Edge Russian Startups Sputnik presents a second list of the top-five Russian innovative projects which have a chance to become known worldwide within the next few years. Elon Musk: Life is a Videogame, Brain Transplants Needed to Fight Robots The eccentric tech titan made some interesting comments during his appearance at the annual Code Conference. Chinese Tech Giant Readies for Robot Overlords and Cloud Zombies Huawei representatives suggest uploading your grandparents to the cloud while plotting the defense of humanity against swarms of killer robots. There Goes the Neighborhood: Pentagon’s Move to Silicon Valley is Awkward Big Brother changed his zip code and clothing, but America’s mass surveillance machine still talks with a Beltway accent.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1978
__label__cc	0.568689	0.431311	Opinion, Social Justice, Sports Stand, Kneel, or Sit: What Today’s Seahawk Action Means For Black Lives Matter September 11, 2016 Editor 19 Comments by Marissa Jenae Johnson It’s the beginning of a new football season for the NFL and, like almost every other facet of American life, the movement for Black lives has left its mark. San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick made headlines weeks ago when he sat for the national anthem during their pre-season game against the Green Bay Packers. When reporters asked why he chose not to stand for the anthem, Kaepernick said, “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” His action quickly became a new platform for conversations around the movement for Black lives. Kaepernick’s stance (or lack thereof) has inspired others, including Seahawks cornerback Jeremy Lane and Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall, to join him. As the Seattle Seahawks prepare for their first game of the season today against the Miami Dolphins on the 15th anniversary of 9/11, talk has been swirling about a possible team-wide protest. Earlier this week, Seahawks receiver Doug Baldwin spoke with reporters about his support of Kaepernick and admitted he’d thought about taking similar action, stressing that “anything we want to do, it’s not going to be individual”. Seattle linebacker Bobby Wagner seemed to confirm the idea of a team-wide action. Doug Baldwin during the Super Bowl pregame, 2014. Image from Flickr:Super Bowl XLVII (48) New York New Jersey, Author: Anthony Quintano Media outlets ran with this news and U.S. Uncut even went so far as to publish an article titled “The Entire Seattle Seahawks Team Will Protest The National Anthem At Opening Game.” The backlash was swift and, within hours, fans were outraged by the potential protest. A local mayor even cancelled his city’s Seahawk’s rally in light of the news. By Saturday afternoon, though, Baldwin had clarified his previous statements saying the team would “stand and interlock arms in unity,” along with a promotional video via his twitter. Some who were cheering the Seahawks earlier this week denounced the newly released plans and others who had condemned the idea of a Black lives matter protest now cheered. But bigger than the question of what will happen today is our larger understanding around why these protests matter and what purpose they serve politically. If the Seahawks do indeed stand up and link arms for the national anthem in today’s game their actions will not only be a failure in aiding the movement for Black lives, but they will undermine the very work of active resistance that first inspired them. Far from helping to liberate Black people, their show of colorblind complacency would be worse than if they had never said anything at all. To be fair, the parameters around what makes an athlete’s symbolic action “pro-Black” were already blurred very quickly after Kaepernick’s first protest. By his own words, he intended for the protest to amplify the efforts of those fighting against police terrorism against Black people in America. But when the backlash began, Kaepernick’s action was very intentionally framed as an attack on veterans. Almost instantly the conversation shifted from police brutality to veteran support – a conversation where Black lives lose on either side. It is a common move, historically, to get Black people to be complicit in America’s genocidal imperialism by promising to make them citizens. It is a trade off. Get Black folks to internalize their nationalism and they won’t help Natives reclaim their land. Offer Black people, often already economically exploited, money and resources to join the military and they won’t have a problem killing and terrorizing ‘the foreigner’ oversees. It’s what Muhammad Ali was talking about when he spoke about refusing to be drafted into the Vietnam War: “They never called me ‘nigger’, never lynched me, they didn’t put no dogs on me, they didn’t rob me of my nationality, rape and kill my mother and father.” But most people, and likewise Black people, are not aware of how interconnected our oppression is with other POC groups. And it is for this reason many Black people, being raised like all Americans in deep and illogical nationalism, feel inspired by the movement for Black lives only to become trapped by their almost subconscious commitment to a country that has never been for them. Which is why, when faced with the notion of “disrespecting veterans”, Kaepernick changed his stance from a sit to a kneel as, in his words, a gesture towards honoring veterans. And just like that, an action that was supposed to highlight the plight of Black Americans instead came to symbolize Black support of white supremacist, imperialistic, American nationalism. What began as a freedom call, ended up flexing to the respectability politics around US military and gave “support” to a military that has been used to exterminate and exploit brown and Black people across the globe. Nonetheless, Kaepernick is trying to push forward to a pro-Black stand. He did not back down from his protest amidst death threats and harassment and he seems to be taking strides to support the movement. But as others begin to join him, his message can either get strengthened or whitewashed. The Seahawks plan for today threatens to do the latter. With the Seahawks proposed “protest” not only do they reinforce anti-Black American nationalism, but the language around the fight for Black lives has been dropped altogether. Instead of a call to address the specific oppression of Black people in America, their messaging has come to mirror #alllivesmatter rhetoric. What’s worse is that with their linked arms, players like Lane who would have already sat down in protest will now be physically forced to stand for the status quo. Symbolic protest is nothing if it is not messaging, and the Seahawk’s latest plan shows that the pro-Black messaging that started with Kaepernick’s first sit has now been completely bought out in a superficial show of patriotism. It’s not as though the NFL needs any more acts of patriotism. In fact, they get paid millions by the US government to hold those grand ceremonies. It is more likely that they are protecting their interests. Indeed, the NFL and the US government are quite similar in that they both exploit Black bodies for profit and will do anything to maintain that power. Lure in vulnerable Black bodies, beat and exploit them while paying them a relative penance, all the while make them believe they truly are a part of your “tribe” then discard and forget about them after they have served their usefulness. It should come as no surprise that both major institutions would be aligned in changing the narrative around a possible player revolt. So whether you support the Seattle Seahawks and their action today depends not only on what they do, but on what you believe politically. If you “support our troops” and believe that all our nations racial ills can be solved with #alllivesmatter and a kumbaya, their standing and linking arms during the anthem will make you proud. If you recognize the hypocrisy of standing for the anthem while Black people continue to be oppressed, but haven’t connected our oppression to US imperialism, then you would prefer they take a knee. If you understand both the evilness of US nationalism and the importance of the fight for Black lives, then you probably would like to see the players sit, symbolizing their divestment from the hypocritical show altogether. And if you are like me, one who understands the brainwashing of US nationalism and who is dedicated to active and militant resistance in the fight for Black lives, you might prefer an even stronger stance: that players remain standing in a posture of power, but turn their backs to a flag that represents the global oppression of Black and brown people. But, more likely, today’s action will be decided by the thing that informs all of American politics and life: money. Stand, kneel, sit or otherwise we will know the players’ politics. And as we witness time and time again in Black liberation movements, we will learn among our skin folk whose resistance can be bought if the price is white. Featured Image: Originally posted to Flickr.com, was uploaded to Commons on 21:26, 17 February 2014 (UTC) by Ytoyoda (talk). Previous PostSunday Stew: The Living of ItNext PostCommunity and Local Vets Commemorate 9/11 With Neighborhood Cleanup 19 thoughts on “Stand, Kneel, or Sit: What Today’s Seahawk Action Means For Black Lives Matter” Talis Abolins says: One of the things that makes this country strong is the First Amendment, and we are lucky to live in a country where people can express their views during the national anthem. However, I believe it goes too far to suggest that standing for the national anthem somehow undermines the principles of equality and freedom from oppression that our nation is founded upon. If we don’t take ownership of the flag as a unifying force then we are just as divisive and destructive as a presidential candidate that would seek to fan the flames of racism and bigotry That’s my belief. Allen williams says: I do not understand why the protest of black lives matter & Collin Kapernick are directing their protest at the US flag, anthem, constitution,,& it’s citizens. First and foremost the US goverment is not responsible for the hiring ,training or salaries of local police officers. The cities and mayors & citizens of them are..to show disrespect and contempt for this nation it’s flag,anthem,,constitution,,and it’s citizens, ,who have sworn to defend it with their lives,,so you can have the right to protest,,is naive, ,ignorant, & delusional, ,if you don’t want to be a citizen of the US,,denounce your citizenship, ,give up your 114 million dollar contract and move to north korea, I’m sure you will be treated well when you protest their flag Dennard Boatner says: This is dumb the Seahawks, Colin kaepernick or any of the others have even mentioned black lives matter I think it highly sad and unethical to make such an assumption with no factual evidence to back it up please let these men define their own protest bvikay says: More BS from the left wing black bigots. They are the real racists. Disgusting. Respect begins with respect. If you want to be respected then you cannot gain that respect by disrespecting the American flag. Egalitarian says: Congrats on supporting a terrorist group. Hope you feel better keeping Black people under your thumb. Ahhhh shut up already…. 3511danny says: Black lives matter is a hate group. Shaun McGrath says: I wholeheartedly disagree with paragraph 6. What they displayed today by not sitting/kneeling out the national anthem, is that no matter what happens, we will do this together. I love my Seahawks, and even though I rarely get to see them because I live in Cleveland (Where Tamir Rice was murdered by police…), I root for them on and off the field. They have a classiness about them that few other teams do. If this is what they felt was necessary, then I support their decision. No matter what adversity plagues them, they’ve got each other’s back. It’s time we rise up off our keyboards as a nation and take our country back and make the police force realize, they work for US, and if they have an issue with the members in the community they work in, whether it be a black, white, Hispanic, Asian, or any other community, they need to look for work elsewhere in a community of their choosing. And we all need to stand arm in arm to make this happen!!! Hugh Mungus says: The only mark it leaves is a bad taste in people’s mouths. Ellen Brantley says: What a lot of bull shit. Those poor black players make millions of dollars while we are exploiting their bodies. Robert Jones says: I have a different opinion of Black Lives Matter. As far as “affecting every facet of American life”, the only effect it has had in my life, is to put a negative impact on my view of the participants in the BLM movement. Labeling the US as being complicit racism against “people of color”, is pure Bullshit. And US Nationalism is Evil? Really? You have the freedom to spew this shit, don’t you? Nobody kills you because you are gay. Or black. Or hispanic. Which is another point. The illegal aliens here are thriving. Smuggled across a border. Living under the radar. Living on the fringe of society. Yet, they are getting it done. Having kids (that they actually take care of), working 2 or 3 jobs just to get by, I’d say American Society is more biased against those guys than they are against blacks. So, what is the excuse now? “Everybody hates us?” Maybe, if they didn’t burn down their own cities, after a cop killed someone that attacked him, or actively call for cops to be killed, and maybe take a page from the illegal aliens playbook, and just work hard and move your life forward IN SPITE of everyone being against them, things might change. As it sits right now, race relations are worse now than at anytime in my lifetime. Rioting and demanding shit is going to make it better. Being disrepectful and insulting the country that ALLOWS YOU TO MAKE $19 MILLION PER YEAR, isn’t going to hurt anyone but Kaepernick, nor is it going to help anything, either. Remember, without his fans, he is nobody. I guess you’ll label me as a racist. I would also call you one, since apparently, everyone that is white, is your enemy. Have a good day, brother. Dan walsh says: I suggest the writer of this column, start her own country, with poc, and see how well they do. Maureen Yakus says: NFL players making millions of $$$ in our great USA. Leave & see what you get. Don’t come back either. Let’s start a movement to deport these disgruntled people & take away their citizenship & rights. It’s the very least we can do for treason. vinoski78 says: I’m no longer surprised with the hypocrisy of “Americans”…always boasting of how free we are, then speak of deporting citizens for doing what they want…wow! And I see alot are angry because a man makes millions playing sports and still wants to do what he wants. I was wrong…I AM surprised! I cannot take this racist crap anymore…No one is keeping the black man down besides the hate in their own hearts and them holding onto the past…Ummm as far as I can remember blacks sold blacks…why aren’t they hating each other. Oh and the media whom forgets to report the fact that more blacks are killed by other blacks than any white police officer killing a black. Yes there are probably some bad cops, just like bad teachers and poor sport players…but the Police are doing a job and they put their lives on the line every day. I’m sorry but most of the black men that people keep protesting about are committing or have committed crimes during the time they were killed. I have friends of all races, criminal backgrounds and genders…NEVER in any of the time has any of them, when they were being arrested, been beaten or shot at because when the cop says stop, they stop. When a cop says show me your hands or any other request they do it. When stopped for a traffic violation, why does a cop have to listen and take abuse from mouthy, inconsiderate people. Would you listen or let people talk to you in this way at your job everyday? NO YOU WOULD NOT!!! Since Obama came into office he has fueled the fire of racism and it’s as if we are back in the dark ages but this time the racism is reversed. It is now blacks being racist against all whites. Why, on another note, is THAT acceptable? It is not the American Flag or this entire country that is responsible…Go protest Obama and the liberals for telling you that SOMEONE owes you. No one owes you and honestly, if we could speak to our ancestors, they would also tell you no one owed them or gave them a hand. They worked for what they needed and didn’t always get what they wanted. We are such a spoiled rotten generation that we feel the people whom have made money and worked hard for their money somehow owe us!!! NO THEY DO NOT…Yes, some people live in the ghetto and unthinkable areas that none of us would want to live. But I didn’t put you their. My parents worked hard, disciplined us, and made sure we stayed out of trouble and worked for everything we have. Believe me, I work hard every day and I don’t have a lot of money but I don’t hate the rich because they do!!! I am tired of all this…why don’t these players in protest get together and put their millions where their mouths are and spend some money in the poor areas of this country…help them develop programs and get them out their working? You know why all these actors and high-profile people don’t do it? Because they aren’t going to give up their hard earned money…I read a lot of these posts and it makes me sick on how everybody blames the rich and whites and so on and so forth. They protest and burn their own communities and steal from their own people…Ya that’s going to get you a ton of respect and help!!! We have money for all the welfare people but yet our elderly who worked their entire lives and worked hard, we have no money for…I want ONE person here to tell me how you can justify that!!! Well I wish I could sit here all day and continue with real facts and issues but yes I have to get back to WORK!!! TBallard says: With all due respect to those who believe the National Anthem represents freedom and respect for the sacrifices of veterans, that’s what the anthem represents 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶. For black decedents of slaves, the third stanza of the anthem (see below), celebrating the lack of refuge for “hireling and slave” (referring to escaped black slaves who fought on the side of the British during the War of 1812), might represent something else altogether: 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘴𝘰 𝘷𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘦, 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘰𝘤 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦’𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘈 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦? 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘩’𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱’𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘕𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘨𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦, 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳-𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘩 𝘥𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘸𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘖’𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦. From Snopes covering both The Intercept article and other sources on this topic: There are historians (notably Robin Blackburn, author of The Overthrow of Colonial Slavery, 1776-1848, and Alan Taylor, author of 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 1812), who have indeed read the stanza as glorying in the Americans’ defeat of the Corps of Colonial Marines, one of two units of black slaves recruited between 1808 and 1816 to fight for the British on the promise of gaining their freedom. Like so many of his compatriots, Francis Scott Key, the wealthy American lawyer who wrote 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳 𝘚𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 in the wake of the Battle of Fort McHenry on 14 September 1814, was a slaveholder who believed blacks to be “a distinct and inferior race of people, which all experience proves to be the greatest evil that afflicts a community.” It goes without saying that Key did not have the enslaved black population of America in mind when he penned the words “land of the free.” It would be logical to assume, as well, that he might have harbored a special resentment toward African Americans who fought against the United States on behalf of the King. “With that in mind,” writes Jon Schwartz on the web site The Intercept, “think again about the next two lines: “𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳-𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘩 𝘥𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘸𝘢𝘷𝘦 / 𝘖’𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦’ ” The reality is that there were human beings fighting for freedom with incredible bravery during the War of 1812. However, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳 𝘚𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 glorifies America’s “triumph” over them — and then turns that reality completely upside down, transforming their killers into the courageous freedom fighters. And that part of the Anthem is not sung anymore…African Americans are not the only people that had to struggle through hatred…The Indians, the Irish, the Italians and almost every religion/nationality has had to struggle…Just like a white family moving into an all black neighborhood would struggle! It’s the hanging on to the past as if YOU were the ones that suffered…You and I didn’t suffer our ancestors did. It’s this hatred that keeps racism alive…It’s more blacks against whites trying to stir the pot. It’s not about black lives mattering it’s about UNITY….Stop stirring the POT and start to teach our kids that everyone bleeds the same color!! terrific piece. go hawks, and do better with public statements of action in coming weeks. 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__label__cc	0.556948	0.443052	Speak Your Book The SPARKlers sign upfor our newsletter contact us \| sign up for our newsletter On Life and Meaning: 100 Essays Inspired by 100 Guests In Book Releases by Shauna Sinyard October 31, 2019 1 Comment In On Life and Meaning: 100 Essays Inspired by 100 Guests, Mark Peres profiles 100 guests who have appeared on the On Life and Meaning podcast. Each profile collects personal remarks by the author shared at the end of each podcast episode and “final thoughts” about the journey of life we are on. The book is for readers who are interested in the stories of other people and in the big questions of life. It inspires readers to more fully examine their own lives and to connect with other people in new and meaningful ways. We want the true, the good, and the beautiful. We want a world in which we can flourish. We can make more of this life when we reveal our essential selves. Mark Peres Mark Peres is a professor of leadership studies at Johnson & Wales University and host of the On Life and Meaning podcast. He loves helping students realize their potential as learners and leaders. He enjoys a variety of hobbies, including blues guitar, art and photography, reading and writing, and the company of friends. He graduated from Florida State University College of Law and Rollins College, where he studied history and the philosophy of religion. His book is the recipient of a 2019 Davey Award, a 2019 Platinum MarCom award, and was long-listed for the 2019 Best Indie Book from Shelf Unbound magazine. He is a husband and a father. We asked Mark a few questions about his publishing journey and goals for the book. Mark on working with SPARK Publications If you have a vision for publishing a work that is personal and true, trust that SPARK Publications will share in your hope and will work to breathe it into life. They bring design and editorial guidance and publishing expertise, but also more: SPARK Publications brings a creative spirit to leave the world a better place. Is there a particular moment that SPARKed your interest in writing a book? Giving a go at reading The Lord of the Rings in third grade. With this book, so many years later I hosted a podcast called On Life and Meaning. The spark was sharing welcoming comments at the end of the first episode. The idea came quickly that my comments and storytelling at the end of each episode would give me the content for a book profiling each of my guests. Frodo would be proud! Now that your book is published, are there any goals or experiences you’re looking forward to? I’m looking forward to a spectacular review of the book in The New York Times. Just kidding. I do look forward to opportunities to read my work and to meet people drawn to discussions about meaning and purpose. My hope is that the book inspires readers to more fully examine their lives and risk deeper relationships. What surprises did you encounter on the road to writing and publishing the book? The best joy was having friends and family rooting for me. Allies encouraged me when I needed it most. I think this is true for everyone: encouragement is all around us if we remain open to that energy. How did SPARK Publications help in championing and publishing your book? SPARK Publications has been a great partner helping me shape and realize a book that would have the beauty and weight of a work of art. They embraced the vision and took on the project as their own. They invested in the success of the book and offered the emotional support that helped it come true. What advice do you have for other authorpreneurs and aspiring writers? Be who you are. Express what is honest about you. Go to your vulnerable place. It’s where your power resides. In that heart-space you will attract brave people. Trust in what happens next. Tell us about your future plans—what’s next for you? Hah! I’d like to write and speak and connect with people and ideas. I love that this project allowed me to honor 100 people profiled in the book and to share their stories and my own. I’d like to continue doing work that invites people into story and conversation. If you could broadcast two sentences to the entire world, what would they be? Our planet needs you. Step up. Are you interested in custom publishing a book? Receive a FREE 30-minute introductory video. Pingback: 2019 MarCom Awards \| News & Events \| SPARK Publications SPARK Publications 2116 Crown Centre Drive, Suite 300 \| Charlotte, NC 28227 custom design for magazines, catalogs, and books for print, digital, and interactive formats	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line1986
__label__cc	0.634279	0.365721	Stackable Baseplates Flat Bottom Baseplates Trap and Gap Baseplates Road Baseplates Brik Sets Space Sets Brik Towers AlphaBriks & MathBriks Holiday Themed Building Sets Big Briks All Big Briks Classic Briks All Classic Briks All Baseplates All Brik Sets All Learning Toys All Holiday Themed Building Sets Strictly Briks Makerspaces Awards Program and the Importance of Makerspace in Education Posted by Brian Semling on Jun 22nd 2018 As makerspaces become increasingly prevalent in educational institutions, the curiosity about them increases. So what exactly is a makerspace and why are they valuable in educational landscapes? How do children benefit from making and what can this do for their future? What is a Makerspace? Educators, artists, engineers and individuals with different titles, have differing opinions as to what truly defines a makerspace. Founder of Make Magazine and proclaimed father of the “Maker Movement,” Dale Dougherty, defines a makerspace in his essay The Maker Mindset as, “a space where kids have the opportunity to make – a place where some tools, materials, and enough expertise can get them started.” He recognizes the similarities between makerspaces and places like shop class, art studios, and science labs and says that makerspaces are a, “physical mash-up of different places that allow makers and projects to integrate these different kinds of skills.” Dougherty’s definition emphasizes the making that takes place in a makerspace rather than its setting or specific tools. Whether it’s in a classroom with building bricks, or a computer lab with technology, makerspaces can be in any location using a combination of various tools and materials. Makerspaces in educational settings Makerspaces in educational settings are becoming more prevalent throughout the U.S. Every makerspace has its own unique set of characteristics, but the similarity every makerspace shares is their ability to help children learn through making. Librarian Diana Rendina, discusses the diversity of makerspaces in schools around the US, “A makerspace can be anything from a repurposed book cart filled with arts and crafts supplies, to a table in a corner set out with LEGOs, to a full blown fab lab with 3D printers, laser cutters, and hand tools. No two school makerspaces are exactly alike, nor should they be.” Rendina created her own makerspace for students at her old middle school and feels that the most important part about makerspaces is the creating that takes place there. “There is no such thing as one form of making being more valid or better than the other.” Children learn by making Makerspaces in educational settings transform the way people think about traditional learning in various ways. First, they make learning hands-on, and second, they make learning self-directed. When a child is given a set of tools to make a project it puts action into their learning. They learn by doing and creating, and by making mistakes that they fix along the way. The outcome is a whole, working end result that they created from various parts. In a makerspace, children develop what Dougherty refers to as a “maker mindset.” He believes this mindset allows children to become innovative thinkers and doers, and potentially build a better future for themselves and the world they live in. In a makerspace children become active leaders. They make their own direction. Apply to win $2,000 in Strictly Briks products to create a makerspace in your museum Strictly Briks is awarding up to $2,000 in in-kind materials to encourage the creation of makerspaces in scholastic settings. Organizations applying for this award will receive up to $2,000 in Strictly Briks’ products to create a makerspace in their museum. There will be five awards and all applications must be submitted by July 31, 2018. Organizations eligible for this award must meet the following criteria: Domestic or international museums who provide unique programming and/or community outreach initiatives directed towards children’s education and creative development Museums who currently have a makerspace exhibit or a developed proposal/plan for the future creation of a makerspace exhibit Award applicant guidelines Each applicant should have a makerspace exhibit or planned proposal that addresses the following areas: Geographic reach: city, state, regional or national level; Employee engagement, ability to reach children; Appropriate scope of the initiative being supported or impact made on the community Judging criteria Strictly Briks awards organizations who focus on children’s education and creative development. This award will be given to museums who Have a vision that aligns with our commitment to Pre-K-8 STEM education. House a permanent educational makerspace area in their facility, or have the ability to implement one within three months of award date. Provide opportunities for community involvement and educational outreach. To apply for this award fill out and submit our Awards Program Application. Award winners will receive an email from Strictly Briks with further information. Click here to learn more about our awards program guidelines. #Child Development #Makerspace Get 15% off your order when you sign up for our email list! © 2020 Strictly Briks. Strictly Briks W730 State Road 35 Fountain City, WI 54629 USA	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2004
__label__cc	0.64566	0.35434	Stripe Home Michael Schade on April 19, 2018 At Stripe, we’ve always been intentional about how we communicate, share information, and stay connected. Back when Stripe was smaller, it was easy for this to happen automatically. But by the time we hit around 150 people, it became hard to know everyone’s name. So at a company hackathon, a few Stripes created People, a directory to help Stripes meet and get to really know each other. People focused on connecting individuals across the company: Stripes could set their own bios, create networks around common interests, and generally experiment with new ways to express who they are. People also gave us our first concept of a people API, which set the stage for automating our notification systems and made it quick to roll out new people-oriented features (like seating charts!). We’ve since turned People turned into a full-fledged product called Home, weaving both how we know one another and share information beyond email into the same product. Used by 99% of Stripes in the last month, Home is the source of truth for who we are, what we’re doing, and why—and a platform for enabling individuals and helping them get to know one another. Here’s a quick tour through a few Home highlights: People worldwide The people at Stripe are what bring and keep so many of us here, so we’ve made it easy to meet folks across the company. In the spirit of the original People, new Stripes are front and center on Home along with their own quick video introductions, a flipbook through existing Stripes (can you get their name right?), and activities happening around the company (ranging from classes we host to events for our users). Home was also designed to encourage Stripes to get to know each person beyond their team and the projects they’re working on. We’ve found that building connections across the company makes it easier for us to share, learn from fresh perspectives and build a sense of belonging early on. Everyone has their own personal page that describes how to get ahold of them for work, where they work, and any quick background they’d like to share. Home can’t paint the complete picture of the person behind the page, but it helps break the ice. Outside Home, we encourage people to meet in person—one of our more structured approaches involves a chat bot that helps schedule lunches among Stripes who are least likely to know each other (more than 5,000 lunches have been facilitated since it was set up!). Multiple teams, one company We don’t view teams as information silos or hard boundaries. Instead, we’ve designed teams to empower a group of individuals to take end-to-end ownership over an area and act autonomously toward their goals, while sharing lessons with the rest of Stripe. Helping teams share their knowledge to the company makes it easier for individuals at Stripe to find context that will both guide them in their work and help them learn above and beyond their role. But with dozens of teams at Stripe, it’s tough to keep track of every area. To help, we built the team index as a central place to find any team at Stripe. Home randomly features teams and the individuals within them at the top to help keep Stripes aware. Individual team pages are like the people pages: they provide a common interface for getting ahold of the team, finding useful resources the team has shared, and even watching video introductions for the entire group at once. (We now have ten offices globally and built similar pages for those at a recent hackathon.) Individual Stripes collaborate—a lot. Last year we created more than 20,000 documents, ranging from email drafts to project proposals to canonical documentation relied on across the entire company. Our search system lets Stripe look across documents, people, teams, and even API models, with live filters to help narrow the corpus quickly. The search interface is completely API-driven with modular content indexers underneath, so it’s easy to add new types of content to the same interface we use to find everything else. (API models were a recent addition.) We still have a lot to do along these lines. Search satisfies the curious who know roughly what they’re looking for. Next up, we’d like to incorporate our canonical documentation into a structure that not only helps people browse and keep up with changes, but also helps Stripes find information they wouldn’t go hunting for on their own that would nevertheless benefit them (like lessons from another team’s retrospective). Under the hood, Home is built on the same technology as our user-facing products (such as the Dashboard) because we wanted to make it easy to move between developing user-facing and internally-facing products. This has made Home a favorite for new Stripes’ spin-up projects and a popular go-to for Hackathon projects. The search feature described was built by a new class of Stripes as their very first project and office pages were built at our most recent hackathon. Home is such an important part of how we work together and stay connected; it remains a work in progress along with Stripe as a whole. We’re still figuring out how to balance transparency with information overload, serendipity with curated content, and crisp interfaces and team boundaries with the actual human part that makes the company what it is. Our next projects are all about evolving knowledge discovery: from team pages that weave the individuals, metrics, and our users together to a better way to browse and publish information. Interested in working on Home? Join Stripe. View Openings You’re viewing our website for Canada, but it looks like you’re in the United States. 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__label__wiki	0.872738	0.872738	The controversial show continues to bring important topics to the forefront (Image via Metro) Screens x May 22, 2018 Season 2 of ’13 Reasons Why’ Focuses on Even More Sensitive Topics The second season of the controversial show widens its net to include harsher realities. By Samantha Jorgens, Central Michigan University The second season of “13 Reasons Why” came out on Netflix on Friday, May 18. The season focuses on the legal trial of the Bakers versus the high school Hannah Baker attended. The Bakers blame the school’s negligence of bullying for their daughter’s suicide. The show faces a lot of controversy because of its sensitive and often triggering topics. Some of the main topics from the first season include suicide, bullying and mental health issues. The new season contains many of the same themes about mental health and bullying, along with even more subject matter that viewers struggle to watch. The harsh topics bring a variety of opinions about how appropriate the plot may be for young viewers. The second season of “13 Reasons Why” addresses even more emotionally-charged topics, such as drug abuse, sexual assault and school shootings. Following all the emotionally-charged topics the second season covers, the group of students grow close and offer each other a lot of support throughout the show. The sense of community among the students acts as a more positive outcome of the many traumas that occur during the show. Spoilers ahead Pay Attention: Rice University Launches Campaign for Justice for Survivors of Sexual Violence The second season begins with no one knowing where Justin Foley went following the first season. Clay Jenson and Tony Padilla eventually figure out where he went — in the city living on the streets. They go and find Justin to bring him back to Clay’s house to stay until he can testify against Bryce. They find out Justin became addicted to heroin while living on the streets and help him detox. After Justin sobers up with the help of his friends, he returns to school and testifies in the case against the school. At school, a very upset Jessica yells at him. This altercation sends him to their high school drug dealer where he buys more heroin. Alex Standall later finds Justin passed out at Clay’s house. Justin pukes while passed out and Alex must roll him over so he does not die. Justin’s drug addiction is rarely mentioned in the middle and end of the season as other dramas unfold. But, in the last episode, after Justin’s release from prison, he is supposedly sober. Sadly, viewers see him injecting heroin between his toes, showing just how hard it is to beat drug addictions. Portraying Justin’s struggle with drug addiction and abuse opens up the conversation and addresses the issue head-on as usual for “13 Reasons Why’s” viewers. Following Jessica Davis’ rape in the first season, the topic of sexual assault was not a surprise. Jessica told her father about her rape at the end of the first season so viewers were anxious to see how everything turned out. The second season of “13 Reasons Why” focuses on Jessica’s emotional recovery and her difficulty naming Bryce as her rapist. Her struggle with the rape continues throughout the whole season. She goes to a rape support group, spends some nights on the floor of her parent’s bedroom and experiences flashbacks throughout the 13 episodes. At the end of the season, she finally decides to share her story and press charges against Bryce. At the end of the court proceedings against Bryce, Jessica reads aloud a statement to him. During her moving speech to her attacker, other women from the show replace her in the courtroom. All the women share their different stories of being sexually assaulted or harassed. The women in the scene include Hannah, Mrs. Baker, Mrs. Jenson, Sheri Holland, Nina Jones and more. This scene acts as a physical representation of Twitter’s #MeToo movement. The powerful scene of all the women addressing their assaults backs up Mrs. Bakers statement in the 12th episode to the press. Mrs. Baker, upset after losing the case against the school, spoke to reporters outside, saying, “I don’t know a single woman who hasn’t faced sexual assault, abuse or worse. Not one. Many survive. My daughter didn’t and that’s not her fault.” Kevin Spacey’s ‘Billionaire Boys Club’ Is Both Grossly Ironic and Really Bad The sentence that Bryce ended up receiving for raping Jessica was only three months of probation. This lenient sentence resembles that of the Brock Turner case in March 2016 where Turner only served three months in jail. Another time the second season of “13 Reasons Why” addresses sexual assault is talking about “The Clubhouse.” The students find out that the baseball players would invite girls to “The Clubhouse” and then sometimes sexually assault them or attempt to. Their team kept hundreds of Polaroid pictures of girls as souvenirs. Some of the pictures show the girls happy and smiling, while others are more graphic and show members of the team having sex with passed out girls. One of the most disturbing scenes in the show occurs during the final episode. In the scene, Montgomery “Monty” de la Cruz assaults and sodomizes Tyler Down with the end of a broom in the school’s bathroom. The scene is graphic and extremely uncomfortable to watch. Rather Than Drop His Sexual Assault Suit, Terry Crews Opts Out of ‘Expendables 4’ The assault Tyler undergoes is the last straw for the school outcast. He later shows up to the school dance the following night, armed with many guns and a lot of anger. The bullying Tyler went through during both the first and second season pushed him to plan a shooting at his school’s dance. The scene of Tyler getting out of his car with many guns is chilling, especially when the new season of “13 Reasons Why” came out the same day of a high school shooting in Santa Fe where a student killed ten people and injured ten others. Clay ends up talking Tyler down outside the dance and shoves him into Tony’s car right before the police arrive. The idea of Tyler planning a school shooting is not much of a surprise for viewers because the end of the first season shows him with a wide array of weapons. Throughout the second season of “13 Reasons Why,” Tyler exhibits many warning signs. He uses his wide variety of guns to shoot bottles and cans in the woods, even saying he sometimes names the targets as people he doesn’t like. He escalates and shoots and kills a crow while in the woods. His lack of close friendships also serves as a warning sign. he has one friend, Cyrus, and becomes close with him and his crowd until he yells at Cyrus’ sister and loses those close friends. How Much Can We Trust Netflix’s Good Intentions? Adult Swim Needs to Do a Disney to Dan Harmon As Mumble Rap Grows in Popularity, So Do Its Associations with Sexual Violence A Year After Chester Bennington’s Suicide, What Have We Learned? How to Keep Suicide Awareness from Turning into Suicide Proliferation The 11 Most Problematic ‘13 Reasons Why’ Characters ’13 Reasons Why’ and the #MeToo Movement’s Dismissal of Women of Color Does ’13 Reasons Why’ Go Too Far? Pages /// Thoughts ‘Know My Name’ by Chanel Miller Takes Back Her Story of Sexual Assault The Problem with Consent Products Anna Borges on Making Conversation About Mental Health	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2008
__label__wiki	0.651229	0.651229	WATCH HUNTERRR 303 FULL MOVIE Views Read Edit View history. There he meets a beautiful housewife Jyotsna Sai Tamhankar and sets his sights on her. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. He has one last encounter with Savita Bhabhi. The entire shooting was done in Mumbai , Pune and some rural parts of Maharashtra. No milestone, but a step towards mature sex comedy”. The director has done a very good job. Mandar, an ordinary guy is obsessed with sex and chases girls until he meets Tripti and decides to settle down with her. People need to learn to respect women. Tailormade Films Phantom Films. At this point, Tripti’s ex-boyfriend Chaxx Suraj Jagan enters the equation. No milestone, but a step towards mature sex comedy”. He just walks around with a gun and rarely fires — except once in the whole film. Interesting movie, goes into the psychology of a “player”. People need to learn to respect women. The movie opens with one such scene where his friends tell him to get married as he is too old to screw around. This gun is loaded… with blanks”. His huntdrrr of being honest about his past affairs upsets most potential matches who are orthodox, conservative girls. They both conclude with a racist joke that love is not only blind but color blind! Pick where the clip starts One of the worst movies i had ever seen. Adult drama, but only for the callow”. Retrieved 20 March In a side plot, one of Kshitij’s many girlfriends has a friend Anju who is being sexually abused by her own father. The Times of India. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Hinterrr Policy. They eventually get engaged, but Mandar is having a tough time with the idea of monogamy. This almost backfires, as Tripti turns out to be a very open-minded girl who has no hang-ups about her own past and admits to having been in relationships before. OSZUKANA FILM ONLINE LEKTOR PL (PART-3)-Hunterrr (2015) – HINDI MOVIE by Gulshan Devaiah Radhika Apte Sai Tamhankar (A) His life becomes more exotic as he starts to woo girls, watching adult films and fantasizing about ladies. In turn, Mandar explains his philosophy about sex as a purely physical act, somewhat akin to the satisfaction of the ‘perfect’ bowel movement. I wish bollywood stayed like how it was before: Advertisement – opens new tab. The dapper Kshitij, in the meanwhile, beds a steady parade of stunning girls at Mandar’s flat. Shemaroo Entertainment Falco International. Not to be confused with Hunter. By the end of their vacation Mandar realises that he is no longer a kid. Kulkarni direction is good. So others can find this clip. When he finally meets Tripti Gokhale Radhika Aptehe is so smitten by her that he decides not be honest, but instead projects a holier-than-thou image. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Tripti makes it clear to Mandar that Chaxx abandoned her when she needed him the most and therefore she can never take him back. While making out in the hostel room, they are caught by the warden and Mandar gets expelled from the hostel, leading him to rent a small flat. Bakwaas piece of shit hunterrr, for people who have nothing else to watch on a lonely day feeling aroused just disgusting! CAST NETTING BANANA PRAWNS Hunterrr \| Netflix All the same, the two continue to meet and start liking each other. Mandar stalks Parul Veera Saxena only for having sex with her. Worse still, while on an errand to pick up a distant relative Rachel D’Souza from the airport, Mandar assumes that the person hasn’t turned up and instead tries to pick up an attractive woman who turns out to be the distant relative. The film is about a guy who can’t keep it in his pants”. Once again Mandar is forced to shift residences and watfh ends up staying with Dilip. Hunterrr () Hindi in SD – Einthusan Sacred Games TV series. This movie would have been great in Marathi. In an amusing scene, Mandar and Dilip talk about how Kshitij didn’t fall for any of the pretty girls he was seeing, but fell in love with a dark complexioned plain girl. Arijit SinghSona Mohapatra. Mandar Ponkshe Gulshan Devaiahis an atypical youth, a sex addict and a player. The film maker sends out a wrong message to the audience. The director has done a very good job. Such movies should be banned. Choose a frame of your liking for thumbnail Give it some details Understanding the economics of Hunterrr”. Their furtive affair carries on for a while, Jyotsana visiting Mandar’s flat from time to time, before Deepak finds out. PATHAYERAM KODI MOVIE PLOT KOKAN DARSHAN RAINY SEASON TERA ISHQ JEE PAAUN CAST MAHARASHTRACHA FAVOURITE KON FULL EPISODE 2015 TOTA WEDS MAINA FULL CAST WATCH ESPERAME MUCHO 1983 ONLINE BANVA BANVI MOVIE MUGARASI MGR FULL MOVIE KAHIN TO HOGA EPISODE 425 STAR PLAYER UNCHA MAZA ZOKA EPISODE 89	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2009
__label__cc	0.572964	0.427036	SunRock Makes the News by sunrockwp \| Sep 27, 2010 \| company news, Residential Projects Marcia and Michael Eason’s solar system was featured on the front page of the Home and Style Section of the Cincinnati Enquirer on Saturday, September 25th. SunRock Solar installed the system in July of 2009. The Easons live in West Chester. Their house was highlighted because it is part of the 2010 Solar Tour Organized by Green Energy Ohio. The Solar Tour takes place this weekend, October 2nd and 3rd. If you are interested in participating in the solar tour to see more of SunRock’s installations around southwest Ohio check out the website to organize your own personal tour. SunRock in the News by sunrockwp \| Sep 8, 2010 \| commercial pv system, SREC SunRock Solar is mentioned in a September issue of the Business Courier in an article entitled, “Rocknoll a Pioneer in Local Wind Turbine Technology.” The article talks a lot about wind power and turbines that are going up in the area, but solar power is also mentioned as a system that is often combined with wind technology. The following excerpt was taken from the article and features our work for the company Recto Molded products and its owner Per Flem. A proven success is Recto Molded Products in Oakley, which had 198 solar panels installed in December 2009 by Blue Ash company SunRock Solar. Recto Molded owner Per Flem estimates the company will have a revenue of about $17,000 per year on renewable energy credits. That doesn’t even factor in the savings on reduced electricity consumption. “There’s absolutely no question that there’s not a two-year payback on this project,” Flem said. It cost $260,000 to install the panels. The state of Ohio paid for half of the project and the federal government paid 30 percent. With an added tax depreciation, Recto Molded’s net out-of-pocket cost to install the panels was somewhere around $50,000. “Besides, it’s cool,” Flem said. “It really is neat to be generating your own electricity.” We think it is pretty cool too.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2013
__label__wiki	0.585773	0.585773	Research centres, institutes and groups Thermal Ergonomics Laboratory Study medicine and health Elective placements Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pathways Sydney Dental School Sydney Medical School Sydney Nursing School Sydney Pharmacy School Sydney School of Public Health Sydney School of Health Sciences Clinical schools $2.2 million in research funding and grants since 2018 50+ peer reviewed papers published since 2017 Research_ Identifying the limits of human survival, comfort, and work performance in extreme climates We're building a better understanding of the physiological and physical factors that determine human heat strain and the risk of heat-related health problems during work, physical activity and heat waves. Led by Associate Professor Ollie Jay, the research activities of the Thermal Ergonomics Laboratory aim to inform policies and recommendations put forth by public health authorities, sporting bodies, and government organisations, and subsequently provide better protection for the most vulnerable individuals and communities during hot weather. Our research is conducted under the supervision of Associate Professor Ollie Jay, Director of the Thermal Ergonomics Laboratory and Lead Researcher for the Research Node on Climate Adaptation and Health at the Charles Perkins Centre (CPC). Our research activities largely fall under the following areas: cooling interventions for at-risk groups during heat waves and hot weather assessing thermoregulatory impairments of specific populations (e.g. elderly, children, MS patients, obese, pregnant) extreme heat policy development biothermal modelling paediatric temperature management managing occupational heat stress exposure heat acclimatisation thermoregulatory responses to dehydration and caffeine ingestion mitigating heat-related fatigue. Our team was commissioned to develop and deliver a new extreme heat policy for the 2019 Australian Tennis Open. Our team has been responsible for the development of new extreme heat policies for Cricket Australia, the National Rugby League (NRL), and the 2017 Rugby League World Cup. In 2017, Associate Professor Ollie Jay was awarded a University of Sydney Vice-Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Research and Teaching. Associate Professor Ollie Jay was recently awarded a 2-year University of Sydney SOAR fellowship entitled "Climate change and vulnerability: managing and mitigating the health impacts of extreme heat." Our team recently received a $1.1M 5-year NHMRC Project Grant to develop and disseminate the world's first evidence-based guidance for sustainable cooling strategies for vulnerable people during different types of heat waves. Our research group led one of the first human thermoregulation studies to be published in Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) (IF: 47.7), demonstrating that current public health guidance on fan use during heatwaves issued by all major international public health agencies is potentially flawed. Associate Professor Ollie Jay Dr Yorgi Mavros Dr Samuel Chalmers Postdoctoral research associates Amy Harwood Amy is working on the NHMRC Older Adults Cooling Strategy Project to develop the most effective cooling methods for healthy and hypertensive older adults during extreme heat events. James Smallcombe James is a Post-doctoral Research Associate in the Thermal Ergonomics Laboratory. His research focusses on the physiological responses of children and adolescents during exercise in environmental extremes. His other research interests include the impacts of heat stress in vulnerable populations. Dr Nicole Vargas Nicole studies the implications of thermal stress on integrative physiology. Her research investigates physiological signals that contribute to engaging in voluntary cool-seeking behaviours, and how this helps to promote heat loss and mitigate heat-related symptoms for both healthy populations and individuals with heat-sensitive Multiple Sclerosis. Sarah’s research aims to relieve thermal discomfort within the workplace for menopausal women. Specifically, her work aims to identify the physiology behind the ‘hot flush’; the association between thermal discomfort and air temperature within the workplace; and practical cooling interventions for the work and home environment. Connor’s research includes developing evidence based cooling strategies that can be employed in low resource areas around the globe, specifically regions where severe heatwaves are coupled with poor water quality. Additionally, he is examining the impact of dehydration on thermoregulation with a view towards informing publicly available heatwave advice. Timothy English Tim’s research focusses on mitigating heat-related reductions in human performance with a focus on aerobic exercise and physical function in athletes and people with multiple sclerosis. Glenda Anderson Glenda is involved in the development of effective Environmental Measuring Units to provide accurate values compared to measurements provided by local meteorological values and commercially available units in order to develop extreme heat policies in summer sports. Mohammad Bin Maideen Maintaining body temperature is crucial in early childhood for survival and comfort. There are pertinent factors within this early stage of the human lifespan, such as infants born prematurely resulting in thermophysiological systems that are not fully developed, to young children who are exposed to environmental variables that are beyond their control. More research needs to be done to address these concerns and the PhD thesis will look into mitigating thermal strain from the prepartum stage to early childhood. Lily Hospers Lily is examining the physiological factors that determine the strain experienced during extreme heat events and investigates strategies to mitigate the development of this strain. Lindsey Hunt Lindsey’s recent project investigated the effect of caffeine on thermoregulatory outcomes in response to exercise. Lindsey’s next phase of research will develop our understanding of the environments within the major cricket stadia of Australia, examine optimal cooling strategies for cricketers and improve the accuracy of estimated variables that are inputs for extreme heat policies in sport. Affiliated research centres and groups Climate Adaptation and Health research node, Charles Perkins Centre Climate Change, Human Health and Social Impacts Node, Faculty of Medicine and Health Planetary Health Platform, University of Sydney Sydney Environment Institute, University of Sydney PhD and Master's opportunities View academic profile TIME: Feeling the Heat? Here’s When Fans Can Help ABC News: AFLW to kick off as temps soar, but when is it too hot for football? The Age: 'Playing in a giant kiln': how tennis players deal with heat at the Australian Open SMH: 'Lost the plot': Fans may provide low-cost heat relief that is often ignored SMH: Warm weather advice for pregnant women overly cautious:study The heat is on: keeping the vulnerable safe during heatwaves Associate Professor Ollie Jay and an international team are recruiting people over 60 to take part in a study which will measure human physiological responses to over 1900 simulated heatwave exposures. New AusOpen heat policy informed by University of Sydney research A new extreme heat policy is being introduced at the Australian Open this year, the result of a research collaboration between Tennis Australia and the University of Sydney. Not all sunshine: the dangers of heatwaves Three experts from engineering and health sciences share how long, hot spells affect us and what they mean for our health and public infrastructure.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2019
__label__cc	0.739246	0.260754	Home Store Locator United States California West Hills Fallbrook Shopping Center Party City West Hills, CA - Fallbrook Shopping Center Fallbrook Shopping Center Victory and Tampa Plaza 19389 Victory Boulevard Reseda, CA 91335 Ventura Blvd Your Party Store in West Hills, CA for Halloween Costumes, Birthday Party Supplies & Theme Parties Celebrate anything and everything with Party City in West Hills, CA ! Party City is America's favorite party store in for birthday party supplies, baby shower favors, Halloween costumes, and more. Get your party goods for less — everything you need for theme parties, wedding receptions, retirement parties, and sporting events. With over 850 stores in the United States, Party City is the nation's largest party retailer, offering a huge selection of general and seasonal party supplies. We've been in the party business for thirty years, growing from a single location to a well-known national chain. Our retail outlet in West Hills, CA is a one-stop shop for birthdays, Halloween parties, baby showers, and holiday events. Why Shop with Party City West Hills for Your Party Supplies? Many stores offer a limited assortment of party ware, but at Party City West Hills, we specialize in party supplies. We sell costumes, decorations, and favors year round, and not just during the biggest holiday seasons. Aisles are organized by color, season, and party theme, so that everything is easy to find and within easy reach. There's no better selection of theme party supplies, boy's and girl's birthday themes and Halloween costumes anywhere — and at Party City, all products are tested for quality and safety before they ever reach our shelves. Halloween is our biggest season by far. From August through November, Party City West Hills is primarily a Halloween store, carrying all styles and sizes of costumes, a huge assortment of costume accessories, life size animated props, giant stretch cobwebs, and skull pitchers and mugs. Because we also manufacture Halloween merchandise, many of the products we sell are exclusive to Party City — you can't buy them anywhere else. Costumes, wigs, cream makeup, and vampire teeth are easy to find, thanks to the careful layout of our floor space, shelves, and aisles. Halloween store inventory includes:	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2031
__label__wiki	0.594627	0.594627	Secondo fascicolo del 2015 The life of Senzius of Blera and episcopal appropriation of monastic cults in early medieval Tuscany di Nicholas Everett pagine: 20 € 6,00 This article analyses an anonymous hagiographic work, the Life of Senzius of Blera (BHL 7581), in the light of more recent research on the archaeology of early medieval Blera and on similar hagiographic texts of early medieval Italy. Combining these insights with examination of other literary sources for the region, including the letters of Pope Gregory I, the Liber Pontificalis and similar hagiographic texts produced at nearby Lucca, it is argued that the Life’s concern to promote two monastic cults, that of Mamilianus of Montecristo and the Isola del Giglio, and that of Senzius at Blera as the town’s patron saint, reflects the episcopal appropriation of these cults by the church of Blera in the eighth century as Blera became an increasingly important and strategic frontier town between the two warring powers of Byzantine and Lombard Italy. L’arrivo dei Teatini a Lecce e un sodalizio artistico al servizio dell’Ordine di Nicola Cleopazzo pagine: 26 € 6,00 The paper analyzes the main steps of the settlement of the Theatines in Lecce (1586) and the deep relationship between the convent of the Theatines and the religious order leaders in Naples, especially referring to artistic choices. A group of unpublished bank policies, paid to Giovanni Antonio Guerra and Marcantonio Ferraro for the famous wooden tabernacle of St. Irene’s church in Lecce (1598), confirms this relationship. As a matter of fact the Theatines of Naples demanded several works to the two authors, including the choir of the Oratory of the SS. Crucifix of Knights; the notary contract for the choir is here published (1608). In the mid of the Eighteenth century, St. Irene’s tabernacle was destroyed, but the four wooden statues of the Lecce’s Patron Saints are here considered surviving parts of the original presbytery’s decoration. They represent a visual evidence of the struggle of relics which involved both the Theatines and the Jesuits in the main city of Salento, until the half of the Seventeenth century. La formazione di un’identità cattolica nelle lettere spirituali di Francesco Luigi Fontana a Carolina Trotti Durini (1793-1821) di Marco Ranica pagine: 22 € 6,00 The article considers the Lettere spirituali written by Francesco Luigi Fontana, a Barnabite, to Carolina Trotti Durini from 1793 to 1821. The large period and the great number of letters sent allow not only to reconstruct Fontana’s spiritual direction (characterized by umanesimo devoto salesiano), but they also make it possible to identify various spiritual and cultural problems (Jansenism and Enlightenment, for example), between late 18th and early 19th century. La Sicilia e l’Unità d’Italia. L’intervento del card. Francesco Saverio Apuzzo per la soppressione della Legazia apostolica di Gaetano Zito pagine: 17 € 6,00 After 1860, Pius IX decided that it was necessary to abolish the privilege of the Legazia Apostolica di Sicilia. It is for this purpose that he appointed a special commission entrusted to study the case and propose a solution. Cardinal Francesco Saverio Apuzzo was a member of this commission: this work takes into account the opinion he expressed in 1861, that is particularly important for the analysis of the conditions of the Sicilian Church and for the proposals advanced in order to bring it back under the exclusive jurisdiction of the pope. Pietro Rossano in URSS (1975) e l’Ostpolitik vaticana di Giuseppe Ghini pagine: 17 € 6,00 The paper deals with the travel that mgr Piero Rossano, at that time secretary for the Secretariat for non Christians, did in Soviet Union in 1975 with fr. Chiavacci, senator Gozzini, his wife Vilma and an Italian writer, Gino Montesanto. In Montesanto’s archive the author found new information about this travel and about the meetings that Rossano had in Moscow, Zagorsk, Vilnius, Kaunas, Riga and Jurmala. The Italian delegation met representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate, of the Soviet regime, but, above all, met some leaders of the persecuted Catholic Church. The trip must be considered as an important piece of the Catholic Ostpolitik: a pastoral activity that included negotiations with hostile Governments, ecumenical meetings, and brotherly support to Catholic bishops beyond the Iron Curtain. NOTE E COMMENTI I Collectanea di Anastasio Bibliotecario. Inquadramento storiografico e nota sulla tradizione manoscritta di Silvia De Bellis pagine: 17 € 6,00 The Collectanea provide access to the creation process of Anastasius the Librarian (how he obtained the sources and how he used them in his translations), highlighting the relationships between intellectuals of his time, in particular John the Deacon. The pamphlets of the Collectanea are emblematic for the understanding of the disputes involving the Papacy in the second half of the ninth century, such as the debate on papal infallibility and the Photian schism. Only one manuscript contains the Collectanea as a whole (Paris, BNF, lat. 5095) while the central section (Narrationes or Acta Martini) can be also found in Roma, Vallicelliana, T. IX. The relationship between these two codices is rather complex, linked to production methods typically anastasian and probably the result of a double redaction. Vivere da gesuiti dopo il 1773. Dal carteggio tra Francesco Antonio Zaccaria e Luigi Mozzi di Pietro Tampieri pagine: 41 € 6,00 During the first years after the suppression, the ex-jesuits tried to keep alive the typical spirit of the Society. Between 1778 and 1781 Francesco Antonio Zaccaria sent 28 letters to Luigi Mozzi. It’s a correspondence for the publication of an anti-jansenistic work by Mozzi. However, looking in deep it deals with topics that go far beyond this issue: the bull Unigenitus, the devotion to Sacred Heart, the criticisms against the Roman curia and the Pope, the battle against the jansenistic catechisms. The correspondence therefore shows ex-Jesuits’ wish to keep on fighting for what it’s always been important for the Society, or, in other words, it shows their wish to go on living as Jesuits after 1773. Il Corpus Domini tra teologia, antropologia e politica (secc. XII-XVI) di Laura Gaffuri pagine: 11 € 6,00 Spazio e mobilità nella “Societas Christiana” (secoli X-XIII). Spazio, identità e alterità. Settimana internazionale della Mendola. Nuova serie 5 (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Brescia 17-19 settembre 2015) di Antonio Antonetti pagine: 5 € 6,00 “Vita regularis sine regula” in Italia tra istituzioni ecclesiastiche e società civile. Verso un primo censimento (Roma, 9-10 dicembre 2015) di Mattia Tomasoni pagine: 3 € 6,00 pagine: 113 € 6,00	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2032
__label__cc	0.686135	0.313865	2015 Is Shaping Up To Be The Key Year For Venture Capital Danny Crichton 5 years Eye-popping is the only word that comes close to describing the numbers we saw this year from venture finance. The valuations accelerated rapidly, with companies like Slack jumping past the billion dollar mark in less than a year of the launch of its enterprise social product. Google announced a massive $542 million round in Magic Leap in October, and just yesterday, Instacart announced that it had reached a valuation of $2 billion following a round led by Kleiner Perkins. Even if these valuations were frightening, we could at least find solace in the equally eye-popping acquisition prices technology companies were willing to spend this year on high-flying startups. The year started with a bang following Facebook’s announcement of its $19 billion acquisition of WhatsApp, in what remains the highest price ever paid for a startup. The major acquisitions never stopped either, with Facebook also purchasing Oculus, Google buying Nest Labs, and Apple obtaining Beats all in multi-billion dollar transactions. In the enterprise space, massive acquisitions were equally the norm, with SAP buying Concur in a $8.3 billion transaction, and Oracle buying Micros at $5.3 billion. There remain lingering concerns about whether we are seeing the start of a whole new era of startup growth or the final throes of an ecosystem completely out-of-control and about to pop. That bubble question is entirely the wrong one to ask though, and that is why 2015 is going to be the most interesting year in venture capital. To see just the start of this, take a look at Beepi, which announced that it added another $12 million in capital to its previous $60 million round. While extending a round is not uncommon, what made this round so interesting was one of the sources of those funds. AngelList, the online fundraising site, put in $2.7 million led by Gil Penchina’s syndicate, the largest investment ever made from the platform. This is truly a new world for VCs. While AngelList’s presence has certainly not gone unnoticed in the venture world, its effect has been most immediately felt by angels themselves in seed rounds. Until now, the platform’s round sizes were simply not at a scale where early-stage investors had to spend much time considering the platform or how they might fight it competitively. That is changing as its rounds increasingly move into the seven-digits. Many firms thrive on investments at a couple of million dollars a piece, and now these funds won’t just compete with each other, but also with every large syndicate on AngelList. That is great news to entrepreneurs, who will almost certainly gain better valuations and more control over their company, but for traditional VCs, they are going to have to find ways to adapt against this new onslaught of funding. Even more than the early-stage changes though, growth rounds of fast-growing companies are increasingly going to be done by insiders, or more specifically, friends of the insiders. Venture capitalists are increasingly offering their limited partners the ability to invest directly into later rounds of their early-stage investments, giving them important exposure to growth while mitigating management fees. LPs have traditionally eschewed these sorts of options, preferring to back investment managers who can make these decisions on their behalf. But as startups increasingly wait to exit, the investment options for growth are simply more limited. If I had to make a single prediction about venture capital in 2015, it is that the gulf between the very top venture capital firms and the rest of the industry will widen even more than it is today. Top firms who can organize these sorts of easy growth rounds can promise almost unlimited capital to their entrepreneurs, eliminating the bane of fundraising for founders. That’s a heck of a selling point when the term sheets come in. While this has obvious implications for founders, the wider implications are for everyday investors. Since the 1990s, common investors have been increasingly prevented from investing in growth stocks since startups simply don’t go public as early as they used to. These issues will only compound as large managed funds increasingly become comfortable with investing directly in growth rounds. A founder will almost certainly prefer to take dollars from a handful of private investors rather than submitting to the vagaries of the stock market. That investment inequality is going to accelerate rapidly in the coming year as the tools and contracts needed to manage this capital mature. The other issue, which Eric Kim and Chi-Hua Chien brought up in an article here recently, is that tech companies are sitting on a pile of cash, about $600 billion or so. These changes to later growth rounds also means that the returns that tech companies can potentially receive from their cash will decline if they aren’t actively investing that money in strategic growth rounds. Google’s half-billion investment into Magic Leap is just the beginning of this phenomenon. 2015 is shaping up to be one of the most interesting years for venture capital ever. We will witness the rewriting of the rules for early-stage fundraising as well as a change in the mix of capital for growth rounds that will spread out the growth of top companies far wider than before. Top Silicon Valley companies will continue to impress their incumbency status on the industry as well. While perhaps more of the same we have already started to see these past few years, 2015 will likely be the watershed year that all of these trends come together for the venture capital industry.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2034
__label__wiki	0.944647	0.944647	League of Legends Wild Rift: release and news on iOS, Android and consoles Tarun Bhardwaj \| October 19, 2019 October 16, 2019 \| Gaming, Mobile Gaming League of Legends for mobile and console is now reality: Wild Rift is the iOS and Android smartphone and tablet version of the popular game Riot Games. That’s when it comes out and how it works. League of Legends: Wild Rift marks the arrival of the popular Riot Games game on mobile (for iOS and Android smartphones and tablets ) and consoles. The release comes on the occasion of the tenth anniversary and will allow you to play for the first time in a portable version or on PS4 and Xbox One thanks to a brand new title. League of Legends is in fact one of the most famous and played titles available for macOS and PC, belonging to the genre MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena, or real-time strategic games). The Riot Games team now focuses everything on mobile and is preparing to arrive even on consoles with the new title “Wild Rift”. This version is not a direct transposition or port of the PC version, but it will involve many new features and unique features aimed at making League of Legends a fun experience even for mobile users. League of Legends Wild Rift: news and differences for the mobile version League of Legends: Wild Rift will be a version created specifically to work best on smartphones and tablets, combined with a counterpart on console: the game will be optimized and built from scratch, obviously starting from the starting point already appreciated by Riot Games. The title will be structured through some online matches, played in arenas with two teams of 5 players. The entire game world and the available characters, over 40, will be inherited from the classic League of Legends and will add skins each month and new champions to be able to customize the gaming experience even more. Users can challenge themselves in a cross-platform system allowing them to play with players from different platforms. Another game inspired by League of Legends, titled “Legends of Runeterra“, will always arrive on PC and smartphone and will offer a game system similar to Heartstone, offering card-based gameplay. League of Legends Wild Rift: release and registration on iOS and Android The official trailer dedicated to the game indicates 2020 as the release date, but it doesn’t go into details: the game could arrive during the first months of next year. It is possible to access a first stage of the game by pre-registering, already open on Android through the Play Store (just click on this link from your smartphone and tablet and tap on the “Preregistered” button). On iOS or console it is still possible to do this while many are waiting for an announcement of the same title even for Nintendo Switch. We will keep you posted. Tags android, gaming, League of Legends, LoL, Mobile Gaming Post navigation Now Enjoy Unlimited Music with Spotify APK For Free: Here’s How to download Memoji on Android smartphones: like having them without an iPhone Get The Latest News on Technology, Gaming and Much More: How to take a quick trip in The Witcher 3 How to install WhatsApp Desktop on Linux [Ubuntu] Linux, WhatsApp What is DLC [downloadable content]? How to remove snippet of video that violates copyright on YouTube 10 BEST POPULAR ONLINE GAMES FOR 2020 How to watch Netflix from Android phone to TV with USB cable Things doctors and nurses wish you knew How to connect the Android to the TV via the HDMI cable [MHL and SlimPort] Teknologya provides all the latest news updates about the smartphones, android, windows, science, technology and much more. The Purpose of Teknologya is to help people to explore the world more easily. Contact us: connect@teknologya.com Know More About Us: © 2020 Teknologya all rights reserved	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2036
__label__cc	0.704625	0.295375	Centre allows all telcos and vendors to participate in 5G trials December 2019 \| Internet & Broadband News, News As per the government, all telecom service providers and technology vendors have been allowed to participate in 5G trials. At present, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is working on further modalities. As per the... Government launches web portal to trace and block lost/stolen phones in Delhi-NCR The government has launched Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR), a web portal to enable blocking and tracing of stolen/lost phones in Delhi-NCR. The initiative was launched in Mumbai in September 2019 and now has been... Reliance announces soft launch of new commerce venture Jiomart December 2019 \| News, Operators News Reliance Industries has announced the soft launch of its new commerce venture named Jiomart. As per industry sources, JioMart will currently cater to online shoppers in the suburban Mumbai areas of Navi Mumbai, Thane and Kalyan... December 2019 \| Face to Face, Industry Speak Tata Tele Business Services (TTBS), a leading enterprise communication service provider, is... BSNL releases November 2019 salaries; pays off Rs 17 billion to creditors and vendors Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has released November 2019 salaries of its 163,000 employees. As per industry sources, the cumulative amount released for salary payment is around Rs 8 billion. BSNL is hoping to start... Government constitutes GoM to expedite implementation of BSNL, MTNL revival plan December 2019 \| News, Policy & Regulation A seven-member Group of Ministers (GoM) has been constituted to supervise and expedite the implementation of the Rs 690 billion revival plan for Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL).... BSNL gets Rs 7.7 billion from BBNL to clear dues of BharatNet vendors Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL) has paid around Rs 7.7 billion to Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) for clearing dues of vendors engaged in the BharatNet project. The state-run telco had recently requested BBNL to... Telcos seek clarification on import duty for routers from finance ministry Telcos have sought clarification from the finance ministry on whether routers will be attracting import duty from January 1, 2020. At present, the router does not attract any basic customs duty. It is a part of the 200 items... Airtel hikes entry level tariff for prepaid users Bharti Airtel has raised its minimum recharge validity tariff for prepaid users from Rs 23 to Rs 45, a near 95 per cent increase. As per the telco, the new base price will be effective from December 29, 2019. According to a... Vistara partners Nelco for in-flight connectivity; services to be launched soon Vistara has reportedly partnered with Tata group company Nelco for in-flight connectivity data services. With this, Vistara, a joint venture between the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, is likely to be the first domestic... SenRa deploys LoRaWAN technology in 60 Indian cities SenRa, a pan India Long range wide area network (LoRaWAN) network operator for IoT has completed deployments across 60 cities in India. It plans to expand its network coverage to 100 cities by end-2020. LoRaWAN technology is now... December Issue 2019 December 2019 \| eMagazine Archives December Issue... DoT planning to seek TRAI’s recommendations on 26 GHz spectrum band The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is planning to soon seek the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) recommendations on pricing and other modalities for the coveted millimetre wave bands of 24.75-27.25 GHz.... TRAI extends deadline for submitting comments on paper on transparency of tariffs The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has extended the deadline for submitting comments on its consultation paper on transparency in publishing of tariff offers. Stakeholders can now submit comments on the paper by... BSNL makes interim payments to equipment and technology vendors December 2019 \| Network and Equipment, News, Operators News In a positive move, vendors including Nokia, Ericsson, ZTE and UTStarcom have received an interim payment from Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL). As per industry resources, both Nokia and ZTE are reported to have received an... Data usage in the country stood at 54.92 billion GB till Sept 2019, says TRAI December 2019 \| Internet & Broadband News, News, Policy & Regulation As per the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the volume of total wireless data usage stood at 54.92 billion GB till September 2019. This is higher than the data usage reported at 46.40 billion GB during full year... Payments banks yet to break even, operating expenses remain high says RBI December 2019 \| Finance News, News Payment banks, including Paytm, Jio, Airtel, Fino saw their aggregate losses reach Rs 6.26 billion in March 2019, and increase from Rs 5.15 billion reported in March 2018. As per the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the limited... TCIL bags contract to deploy panic buttons, GPS and CCTV cameras in 5,500 buses across Delhi December 2019 \| Network and Equipment, News Telecom Consultants India Limited (TCIL) has bagged a contract to deploy CCTV cameras, panic buttons and global positioning system (GPS) in 5,500 Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and cluster buses. The contract is worth Rs 1.28... Collaboration is key: Building a cohesive digital ecosystem in India December 2019 \| Internet & Broadband, ViewPoint Digitalisation and internet of things (IoT) are changing every aspect of our lives at an... Government to provide free Wi-Fi to all villages connected through CSCs till March 2020 The government has announced that it will provide free internet to all the villages connected through common service centres (CSCs) for the next three months. According to minister of telecommunications, electronics and...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2037
__label__cc	0.585119	0.414881	Home Los Angeles Public Library Photo Collection Aerial view of Vail Field and Central Manufacturing District, looking north Aerial view of Vail Field and Central Manufacturing District, looking north Title Aerial view of Vail Field and Central Manufacturing District, looking north Photographer Kelly, Howard D. Collection ID Kelly-Holiday Mid-Century Aerial Collection Location/Accession GPC_b22_f2_i12 (Photographic print); KHAF 228-5 Physical Description 1 negative :safety ;12 x 14 cm. Historical Data Central Manufacturing District is an industrial tract of approximately 2800 acres, partly located within the cities of Commerce, Bell, and Vernon. In 1923, the tract comprised 300 acres of the old Rancho San Antonio, one of the original Spanish land grants. Railroad lines and utilities were laid and the Terminal Building became the first structure erected at 4814 Loma Vista Avenue, and serves as its landmark. In 1928 the assets were purchased by the Santa Fe for further development. The district added new areas in 1930, 1932, 1947 and 1948 - to provide for new and expanding industries and services. Thus it has grown from its original 300 acres to more than 2800 acres. More than 60 food companies are located in the CDM, which also houses automobiles, furniture, household items, machinery, paints, paper, plastics, steel, trucks, wood, cosmetics and also the benefits provided by service and processing companies of all types. CMD, which has been called the largest development of its kind in the world, is located eastward from Soto Street to Garfield Avenue; the southern edge is bordered partly by Fruitland Avenue and Randolph Street; on the northern edge are Washington Boulevard and the Santa Ana Freeway route, partially extending north beyond the freeway line. Description Aerial view of the Central Manufacturing District, located within the cities of Commerce, Bell, and Vernon; view is looking north toward East Los Angeles. Some identifiable areas include: Ferguson Drive (separating the industrial area from the city); the Santa Ana (5) Freeway running diagonally at bottom left; Telegraph Road paralleling the freeway at bottom left; Washington Boulevard from lower left, curving toward middle right; Garfield Avenue from bottom middle winding up to top middle; and Vail Avenue running vertically along the right. Numerous warehouses and buildings are scattered throughout. Photograph dated November 26, 1955. Publisher Kelly-Holiday. Subject Central Manufacturing District (Los Angeles County, Calif.). Industrial facilities--California--Commerce. Dwellings--California--East Los Angeles. Streets--California--East Los Angeles. Warehouses--California--Commerce. Industries--California--Commerce. Streets--California--Commerce. East Los Angeles (Calif.)--Aerial views. Commerce (Calif.)--Aerial views. Commerce (Calif.). Interstate 5. Format Photographic safety negatives Credits Made accessible through a grant from the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation. Sub-Collection Name Kelly-Holiday Mid-Century Aerial Photo Collection	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2039
__label__wiki	0.556305	0.556305	Retro Rewind Discuss? Chart Rewind: Maxwell Nabbed His First & Only Hot 100 Top 10 Hit This Week in 1999 Published: Friday 10th May 2019 by Rashad Readers of That Grape Juice know what avid music lovers we are – especially of hits past. So, as our retrospective features ‘From the Vault’ and ‘TGJ Replay’ allow us the chance to re-spin the gems and jams of yesterday of one artist, our newest feature Chart Rewind – a variation of our current Retro Rewind assay – accedes salutes to an entire era of music history. This week we’re pressing play on ‘Fortunate’ – the 1999 top 10 hit from R&B divo Maxwell. Meet us inside: Although his polarizing sophomore effort, ‘Embrya’ (1998), still managed to tip toe to platinum success despite being the antithesis of what catapulted him to fame with 1996’s ‘Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite,’ Max and team must have taken the critical and commercial response as indication he ought to return to his neo-soul flavored bearings. The result? ‘Fortunate’ – an R. Kelly-penned slow jam slated for the official motion picture soundtrack of Martin Lawrence and Eddie Murphy comedy, ‘Life.’ Reportedly frowned upon by Max at first listen as he was more interested in the soundtrack’s title track, ‘Life’ (given to K-Ci & JoJo), the story has it Kelly persuaded the crooner to keep ‘Fortunate’ as his own because he could yield a more convincing vocal performance on it than its counterpart. The advice proved lucrative. Cracking the Hot 100 top 10 this week 20 years ago (seen at #9 on the chart below), the song would eventually go on to peak at #4 – a feat that made it the singer’s first appearance in the tally’s top 5. Also coming as his first #1 on the R&B charts, ‘Fortunate’ went on to be certified Gold by the RIAA and nab a Grammy nod. Currently listed as his most successful song to date, ‘Fortunate’ – despite being succeeded by a number of qualitative offerings since its arrival – stands as his first and last appearance in the Hot 100’s top 10. Hot 100 This Week in 1999 Click here to see this week’s entire TGJ Chart Check: Hot 100. B2K Announce Raz-B Departure From 'The… Khalid's 'Free Spirit' Soars On The… Chart Rewind [Hot 100]: Lady Gaga ‘Just Dance(d)’ Her Way To #1… Chart Rewind: Aaliyah’s ‘Heart’ Hit Its Hot 100 Peak This Week in… Chart Rewind [Hot 100]: Chris Brown Bagged His Second and Last #1… Chart Rewind: Tina Turner Classic ‘The Best’ Hit Its Hot 100 Peak… So, as our retrospective features ‘From the Vault’ and ‘TGJ Replay’ allow us the chance to re-spin the gems and jams of yesterday of one artist, our newest segment – Chart Rewind (a variation… Read More 15th Nov Chart Rewind: Aaliyah’s ‘Heart’ Hit Its Hot 100 Peak This Week in 1997 So, as our retrospective features ‘From the Vault’ and ‘TGJ Replay’ allow us the chance to re-spin the gems and jams of yesterday of one artist, our newest feature Chart Rewind – a variation of our… Read More	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2041
__label__cc	0.561741	0.438259	InterventionCon and Borderlands So this past weekend was the third (already?) InterventionCon. It’s a fun, if smallish, local con put on by an impressively small staff who nonetheless manage to give it a “big con” professional feel. The basic theme of the con is “your online life, offline,” basically giving it a “meta-geekery” vibe similar to Dragon*Con (but on a much smaller scale). There’s a bit of comics, a bit of anime, a bit of cosplay, a bit of technogeekery, even a tiny hint of furry, but no one element really jumps out. This big tent approach is good in that everyone is welcome, but it also has its downside, in that there’s no really strong pull for any group. Despite being open to everybody, InterventionCon is not a “must-go” con for anybody, at least not yet. Granted, I see most of the con from inside the Dealer Room (or “Artist Alley/Vendor Room” as the con refers to it), which possibly colors my perceptions. On the other hand, the Dealer Room is also usually the main hub of activity. There are several breakout panel rooms which usually have a double-handful of people in them at any given time, a videogaming room, and an open gaming room, and several corridors. Although the Marriott where the con takes place has a huge and impressive restaurant/lounge area (which at a furry con would be overrun with fursuiters and artists), as far as I can tell InterventionCon doesn’t go down there. What crowds there are to find, are in the Dealer Room. The other thing I’ve noticed about InterventionCon, is that there isn’t much of an art culture. Most people in the Vendor Hall are there as vendors, selling books or crochet ponies or what have you, not doing art at the table– and the attendees don’t seem to be expecting it, either. I was never asked to do a badge or a sketch (my primary profit-makers at most cons), even by people who seemed very taken with my work. Furthermore, those people who were offering sketches at the table, were undercutting themselves badly. One artist wanted to charge me $10 for a fully inked, elaborate sketch; another $15 for an inked and shaded pair of characters. In both cases, I shoved $20 bills at them, just to drive the lesson home. While sitting around at the con not doing any badges or sketches (le sigh), I decided to noodle around with new persona ideas for myself, including this cute little guy, who combines the whole “dapper lion” thing with my little buddy Keroberos. Only problem is, I still can’t figure out how to get more of the sea green and similar colors I wanted into the design without becoming garish. I’m an autumn, and if the persona is to reflect me, he should totally be dressing in gold and burgundy. Also, I think way too much about that kind of stuff. But Enough of That Art’n'Creativity’n'Stuff. Let’s Blow Shit Up As InterventionCon rolls up its sidewalks at 3:00 on Sunday, that left me with all of last evening to occupy myself. I could have watched that Doctor Who we’ve got on the DVR, but instead I downloaded BorderLands 2 to give it a try. Mrs. Gneech and I are forever on the lookout for brainless shooty games we can play together, and this one is about as brainless and shooty as they come. Gung Ho FPS in a quasi-post-apocalypse SF setting with a soundtrack by Escape From LA, Borderlands 2 is snarky, sarcastic, and winks at you from the other side of the 4th wall to make sure you don’t take all the explosions and bloody head-shots seriously. Does it work? Eh… sort of. The snarky humor and Wile E. Coyote violence are basically there to punch up pretty cut-and-dried FPS gameplay… go here, kill baddies, pull lever, kill baddies, find boss, kill boss, rinse and repeat. The loot is completely randomized, which does sometimes make for strange and amusing results. I picked up a gun which does something like 70+ points of damage and has a sniper scope (as opposed to the more common ~20 points of damage on the first level), so I spent a lot of time starting a battle from far distant cover and going “Boom! Headshot.” Borderlands 2 also floats around somewhere between FPS and MMO, with quest-givers, side missions, and explorer deeds, and encourages you to hook up with other players (via Steam) and take on missions together. However, your character model is determined by your class (all the women are “sirens,” for instance, and all the sirens are women) and the character models only vary by means of three different heads and palette-swaps. So it won’t be long before every character looks exactly identical to every other character. Correspondingly, the difficulty seems to be all over the map, too. There’s a giant set-piece battle at the end of the first section of the game where you’re in an open area fighting a giant brute of a guy who is not only on fire, but who keeps setting you on fire as well as opening up giant fire pits all over the level. If you die, you simply respawn around the corner, which is handy, but every time you do, he goes back up to full health again. This led me into a loop for the longest time where I could just get to him, nick him a little, and then run out of ammo and get killed. Over and over. I finally defeated him basically through an exploit– I left the arena all together, which lured him over to one corner that stuck out so he could shoot at me, and he got trapped there by the AI pathing. So all I had to do at that stage was peek around the corner, snipe at him, and duck back until my shield recharged, then do it again. Since he was an otherwise unbeatable boss, I didn’t feel too bad about this– I figured that if the game is gonna cheat, I’m gonna cheat right back. On the plus side, I do like the animation-esque art style and the western-bluesey soundtrack, which give me (positive) associations with Full Throttle. And I can see how the game would be fun with a full party, although I haven’t had the chance to try it yet. However, I suspect it’s going to be real hard to find a group that isn’t made up of four sirens, just because she’s the most appealing character design. We’ll see! Originally published at gneech.com. You can comment here or there. conventions, furry, gamma world, geekery, mrs. gneech, reviews, the business end	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2043
__label__cc	0.691278	0.308722	Genre: Women’s fiction A young detective on temporary leave discovers the ruins of a home and stumbles into a family mystery decades old. An author miles away enjoys the fame gathered by the efforts of her novels but feels scattered by the heartbreaking mystery. The mystery of her family. The detective wants to investigate; the author fears what the detective might find. Author Kate Morton offers readers this storyline in the lushly detailed novel The Lake House. Sadie Sparrow has come to Cornwall from London for an enforced vacation. A hasty decision in a case has led Sadie’s superiors to think a little time off will help her clear her head. She decides to use the forced time off to visit her grandfather who has recently moved to Cornwall. Sadie owes her life to him and her late grandmother. A stupid mistake in her teens brought Sadie to a crossroads with her own parents who threw her out of the house. Her grandparents, up until then strangers, took her in and showered her with the love, patience, and grace that she needed. Since then Sadie has accepted her grandparents as her parents by proxy. Her grandmother’s death sits deeply in her heart as it does her grandfather’s, so she knows this time together will be good for both of them. But Sadie isn’t used to so much free time on her hands, and she starts exploring the grounds around her grandfather’s new home. One day on a walk she almost literally falls into the ruins of a home, and her detective instincts kick in when she sees the grandeur of the house. She finds out the house belonged to the Edevane family, once the high society benchmark of the Cornwall area. People looked to the family as a gold standard and especially to the family’s grand summer parties as the high point of the year. That’s why when the Edevanes’ young son, Theo—less than a year old—goes missing the night of the annual party, the family’s devastation only gets matched by the way they leave the home. When Sadie finds it decades later, she swears someone will enter the room in just a moment. The family, she supposes, must have just walked out the front door and not looked back. Meanwhile, in present day London, Alice Edevane has forced herself to leave the painful memories of that night and that summer behind. A storyteller from her childhood years, Alice has become a celebrated and well-known author. Her mystery novels draw high praise from readers all over; only Alice knows the motivation for crafting such compelling mysteries comes from the fact that she could never deconstruct the most haunting mystery of all. Worse, she feels partially responsible for Theo’s disappearance. She remains a recluse, communicating with the world only through her novels and correspondence. Eager to prove to herself that she still has the sharp skills of a detective, Sadie makes it her mission to crack the Edevanes’ case. So what if she left behind a case in London that still bothers her? She can solve this. She must solve this. No matter that Alice Edevane ignores her requests for a meeting. Sadie is determined not to let her past and her mistakes keep her from getting this one right. Author Kate Morton’s prose brings Cornwall and England to life. Readers will settle into her lush narrative like settling into a warm blanket on a cold winter day. The mystery she builds, too, about the Edevanes will keep readers moving through the pages at a brisk pace, and Sadie’s successes and failures as she chases lead after lead in the Edevane case will make readers cheer and groan by turns. Morton nests mysteries inside of one another with a deft touch. The mystery of Theo’s disappearance caps a summer where Alice’s mother has dealt with the mystery her husband has become after returning from the war. The mystery of the case that acts as the catalyst for Sadie’s leave of absence segues into the mystery of the Edevanes as well as the murky details of Sadie’s past and just why both cases mean so much to her. The only weak spot in an otherwise tight novel comes in the ending, which feels a touch rushed and a little too fairy tale-ish. Given the depth of suffering the characters endure, however, readers will probably have no trouble forgiving Morton the serendipity of the climactic events. I recommend readers Bookmark The Lake House. (I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2047
__label__cc	0.50599	0.49401	The Irregular Reader Reading and reviewing at random Welcome to The Irregular Reader! Review Policy and Book Submission Book Review: Kin by Kealan Patrick Burke Posted on October 27, 2018 October 28, 2018 by theirregularreaderblog Kin by Kealan Patrick Burke On a scorching hot summer day in Elkwood, Alabama, Claire Lambert staggers naked, wounded, and half-blind away from the scene of an atrocity. She is the sole survivor of a nightmare that claimed her friends, and even as she prays for rescue, the killers — a family of cannibalistic lunatics — are closing in. A soldier suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder returns from Iraq to the news that his brother is among the murdered in Elkwood. In snowbound Detroit, a waitress trapped in an abusive relationship gets an unexpected visit that will lead to bloodshed and send her back on the road to a past she has spent years trying to outrun. And Claire, the only survivor of the Elkwood Massacre, haunted by her dead friends, dreams of vengeance… a dream which will be realized as grief and rage turn good people into cold-blooded murderers and force alliances among strangers. It’s time to return to Elkwood. In the spirit of such iconic horror classics as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Deliverance, Kin begins at the end and studies the possible aftermath for the survivors of such traumas upon their return to the real world — the guilt, the grief, the thirst for revenge — and sets them on an unthinkable journey… back into the heart of darkness. If you’ve got the horror bug, you’ve seen this movie. God knows there are plenty to choose from. A group of attractive teenagers venture into the woods (or an old farmhouse, or anywhere, really, the world has it in for attractive teenagers), and find themselves hunted and tortured by a sadistic family of inbred monsters Even if you don’t have the horror bug, you know how this ends. One girl, the virginal good girl, makes it out. She has been beaten and defiled, she is scarred inside and out, but she has escaped. Sometimes there is a twist, sometimes there isn’t, but usually we get to see her sobbing in the arms of her rescuer. But what then? When the camera stops rolling and the audience goes home, are we supposed to believe in some kind of happily ever after? Kealan Patrick Burke is here to tell us what happens to the girl, to her family and friends, to the families of her friends who were not so “lucky” as she. Kin is a big, sharp, serrated story that takes a (let’s face it) tired trope and drags it kicking and screaming down the path to where the story continues. This is an ultrasaturated ride that encompasses a revenge fantasy, a slasher flick, and all the best parts of 1970s and 1980s movie horror excess. We get guts (ha) and glorious payback. We get death and destruction. We get the fire-breathing, brimstone-hurling back woods preacher a story like this deserves. This book is not for the faint-hearted. But horror fans everywhere will find a practically perfect read between the covers of Kin. Posted in ReviewsTagged book review, booknerd, bookworm, creepy books, cult, female lead, horror, horror novel, horror story, one sitting reads, pulp horror, revenge, scary, scary story, slasherLeave a comment Previous PostBook Review: The Lost Ones by Sheena KamalNext PostBook Review: You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott View @readirregular’s profile on Twitter View @irregularreader’s profile on Instagram Follow The Irregular Reader on WordPress.com Earned Net Galley Badges The Time Traveler's Guide to Restoration Britain: A Handbook for Visitors to the Seventeenth Century: 1660-1700 Ian Mortimer Death in the Air: The True Story of a Serial Killer, the Great London Smog, and the Strangling of a City Kate Winkler Dawson Strange Weather Joe Hill The Secret History of Jane Eyre: How Charlotte Brontë Wrote Her Masterpiece John Pfordresher Sherlock Holmes vs. Cthulhu: The Adventure of the Deadly Dimensions (Sherlock Holmes vs. Cthulhu #1) Lois H. Gresh Through a Glass, Darkly: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and the Quest to Solve the Greatest Mystery of All Time Stefan Bechtel Discovering the Mammoth: A Tale of Giants, Unicorns, Ivory, and the Birth of a New Science John J. McKay Horror Guide to Northern New England: Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont David Goudsward Sawbones (Sawbones #1) Melissa Lenhardt The Haunting of Merci Hospital Tanya R. Taylor	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2053
__label__cc	0.640505	0.359495	Branda Nielsen Piano \| Draper, Lehi / Highland Branda Michels grew up in small-town Richfield, Utah with her parents and younger sister. She and her sister would do everything together, whether it was obsessing over Harry Potter, hiking in the Red Hills, to starting their music journey together. Branda has been playing piano for over twelve years and has taught private lessons for almost 8 years. She has competed in festivals, state competitions and played with ensembles throughout her high school years. She was also involved heavily in symphonic band and jazz band in her adolescence, and as the years went on played in honor bands. Between piano lessons and music experiences such as band Branda has an expansive knowledge of theory and the technical skills needed in training classical to modern piano. She has a deep passion for music, and this passion has influenced many parts of her life. Branda lives in Draper with her Yorkie Charlie. Branda loves teaching at The Piano Place and loves sharing the opportunities music has to enhance lives!	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2060
__label__wiki	0.658302	0.658302	Better on the Ground: A Review of Delta One on the A330 From London to New York Christian Kramer TPG Rating Great ground experience in London, lie-flat seat and solid amenity kit. Lackluster onboard service, underwhelming food, uninspiring IFE. 9 Ground Experience 18 Cabin + Seat 10 Amenities + IFE 17 Food + Beverage 16 Service Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here – Chase Sapphire Preferred Card In case you haven’t heard, The Points Guy is expanding across the pond and launching TPG UK in March. As the general manager of the UK office, I’ve been hopping between my home in London and TPG headquarters in New York City a lot. Naturally, all the transatlantic traveling that I’ve done in the last several months has led to great opportunities for flight reviews. I’m primarily a British Airways flyer, so when the opportunity came to fly its principal competitors on BA’s most important route, I jumped at the chance. A few years ago, Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic formed a joint-venture agreement that allows them to codeshare on each other’s flights across the Atlantic to better compete with a similar relationship between American Airlines and British Airways. Between the two carriers, there are up to eight daily flights between London (LHR) and New York-JFK or Newark (EWR). Virgin operates several different aircraft, including Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners and Airbus A330s and A340s. Delta used to operate Boeing 767s between the two cities, but fairly recently switched to all A330s on the route in order to better match Virgin’s business-class offering. It still has 767s operating other routes from Heathrow, however. Amsterdam (AMS) is the only European destination (so far) that sees Delta’s newest bird, the Airbus A350. It’s generally known that the A330 offers the airline’s second-best business product, so I was excited to see how it stacked up on a relatively quick transatlantic hop from LHR to JFK. When looking for Delta awards, a good place to start is Virgin Atlantic’s website. Usually, Delta charges insane amounts of its own SkyMiles for flights, and mine was no different. On the day I needed to fly, Delta was charging a staggering 280,000 SkyMiles one-way for a business-class flight. I quickly checked Virgin’s website and was relieved to find that I could book the same flight for 47,500 miles one-way, plus $425 in taxes and fees. All award flights departing from Heathrow are subject to high taxes and fees, which is very unfortunate, but it’s worlds better than paying the $8,000-plus Delta and Virgin are currently charging for one-way business-class flights on the route. If you’re looking to book a similar flight, Virgin Atlantic miles are easy to come by, since all three major transferable currencies partner with the airline, and there are often transfer bonuses with both Citi and American Express. And, if you’re traveling in the off-peak season, you could score a one-way business-class redemption with just one sign-up bonus from cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Chase Sapphire Preferred cards, both of which are offering 50,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 within the first three months of account opening. Alternatively, consider the Platinum Card® from American Express, which is offering a welcome bonus of 60,000 points after you spend $5,000 within the first three months. Ground Experience N860NW Since they joined forces, Delta and Virgin have consolidated their operations at Heathrow into Terminal 3. Their shared branding occupies the whole left side of the terminal. I arrived a good two and a half hours before my 5pm flight, and the check-in area was pretty deserted. It was a big area, though, so I imagine it does get busy earlier in the day during rush hour for US-bound flights. An airport employee stopped me from taking pictures of the check-in area, telling me it was strictly forbidden for security reasons. For Delta-operated flights, a brief interview with a security officer was required before check-in. No such interview was required (yet) for Virgin flights, even though the airline used the exact same check-in area and desks. To the right of the premium check-in area was an elevator taking Virgin Upper Class and Delta One passengers up a level to a separate security area (which required a boarding-pass scan to access). There was only one other passenger there, so I was through in seconds. The whole check-in and security process took less than 10 minutes. Terminal 3 at LHR had a range of lounges, including the excellent Cathay Pacific lounge and the new Qantas lounge. Those traveling in Delta One or Platinum and Diamond members traveling in any class of service on either Delta or Virgin were directed to the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse. I had heard many good things about this lounge and was pretty excited to try it. Though some have been critical of the number of seats that have been put into the space, overall it was a cool and funky place to spend a couple of hours waiting for a flight. Think Austin Powers or Palm Springs. This was definitely not your average airport lounge. There were plenty of different areas with their own unique styles, including the roof terrace for great views of the parked planes, terminals and runways; the billiards table on the mezzanine; and, of course, the spa and salon, where you could get a haircut before boarding. Certain areas felt like designated eating areas, while others were more casual or intended for working. The space could feel almost too eclectic and cluttered, though. With so many different areas and vibes, it was almost hard to make sense of it all and decide where to go first. If you wanted to take a break from working, there was plenty to read. Even if you were not on the roof deck, the views were pretty fantastic. The lounge was fairly busy when I got there but got much quieter around 3:30pm, when a few other flights were boarding. When I got hungry, I started with some of the very tasty salad and salmon from the counter, where food was served by a staff member. Afterward, I ordered a burger from the a la carte menu. The burger was better than most burgers I’ve had in an airport lounges — including in the BA First Class and Concorde Room lounges. I left the Clubhouse around 4:15pm, and it took about 10 minutes to reach Gate 13. There was a small Virgin Atlantic lounge/premium waiting area right by the gate, but I was directed straight to the gate area as I entered. Preboarding commenced, and I was on board our 12-year-old Airbus A330-200, which was delivered new to Northwest Airlines, a few minutes later at 4:35pm. We pushed back from the gate right on time at 5:10pm right on time and were airborne about 20 minutes later. Cabin and Seat My flight was on an Airbus A330-200, which had 34 seats in Delta One that converted into a flat bed, 32 Delta Comfort+ seats and 168 standard economy seats. Though many marketing materials show off Delta’s newest product — the Delta One Suite found on the A350 and some Boeing 777s — the Delta One seat on the A330 was a reverse-herringbone product installed back in the days of Delta Business Elite and then refitted when the product became known as Delta One. The Delta One cabin featured a 1-2-1 layout spread across two cabins at the front of the aircraft. I was in the larger cabin at the front, in 4J. All seats had a pitch of 80 inches, a width of 21 inches and direct aisle access. There were two toilets at the front for both business-class cabins, and the galley was between the two cabins. In general, the cabin and seat still looked clean and fresh, mainly thanks to the blue-and-white color scheme — though I could tell that this was an older product. Like all reverse-herringbone configurations, window seats were angled toward the windows, while the middle seats were angled toward each other. Though it wasn’t Delta’s latest and greatest, the seat had all the basics one would expect from a business-class product, including a USB charging port and international power outlet. The personal reading light was in addition to the overhead light and was adjustable. The table that slid out from the armrest was sufficient for both reading and working. The footwell wasn’t the largest I’ve had in business class, but it was better than a lot of products on other airlines. Even though it was technically a daylight flight, pretty much the entire flight occurred in darkness, given the later takeoff from London. The cabin lights were turned off after the first meal service, and I struggled to get comfortable for no obvious reason. Also, I found it strange that I couldn’t turn off the small light that was likely meant to aid ingress and egress, which meant the seat wasn’t as dark as I would have liked. Storage space above the seat was surprisingly small — I don’t think a normal rollaboard would have easily fit into the bins above the window seats, though those above the middle section were slightly larger. Both business-class lavs were in the front of the cabin and were pretty standard, with no premium amenities to speak of. Amenities and IFE Tailcam I didn’t receive one of Delta’s signature hard-case Tumi amenity kits. Instead, I got a soft-sided bag. Inside, though, it was all the same and contained an eye mask, ear plugs and basic toiletries. The noise-canceling headset had a sleek-looking wooden finish. The IFE system was adequate, though I found the film selection somewhat uninspiring. I did, however, like the flight tracker and aircraft-details feature. Wi-Fi on board worked moderately well throughout the flight and cost $30 for the duration. As is typical for Delta, the bedding was provided by Westin Heavenly products. Each seat had a duvet and one pillow. I don’t love the feeling of sleeping on the leather elements of the seat and would have preferred some sort of mattress pad or seat cover. Despite a few attempts, I didn’t really manage to sleep. Dine on Demand Cabin service began shortly after I got situated at my seat. There was a choice of orange juice or sparkling wine prior to takeoff. I asked for water, and the crew member suggested I could drink from the bottle that was at every seat. He eventually brought me a glass of iced water when I told him I preferred a glass (and to save that bottle for later in the flight). Shortly after takeoff, menus were distributed and orders taken. I opted for the shrimp starter, which came with soup and salad. The shrimp was bland but fresh, and the Thai coconut soup was excellent — for sure the best part of the meal, and one of the better airline dishes I’d had. This wasn’t surprising to me, though. I often find that airlines do soups very well, and British Airways usually serves a very good soup in first. I asked the crew member if the beef was decent and would be anything but typical airline beef — overdone — and she told me it would be good. I am realistic about beef on planes, but I’ve had great beef on AA and BA when the crew really knows how to not overcook it. I’ve also had some very honest crew members who have told me that the beef wouldn’t have been their first choice. Well, this beef was in the overcooked, should-have-gone-for-pasta category. It also felt that there was a carb side missing from the dish. The beef, cauliflower and beans could have done with a potato side of sorts. For dessert, I had ice cream, which was tasty, and I loved the heart-shaped spoon. The second meal was served just over an hour before arrival into JFK. I chose the Cuban sandwich, which was good and filled me up nicely. Extra Pillows The crew member working on my side was efficient enough but she addressed me twice with the wrong name. Combine that with the water bottle interaction I had earlier with another FA, and I couldn’t help but feel like the experience wasn’t all that premium or service oriented. I felt satisfied in terms of food and drink, but it didn’t necessarily feel like I was a valued customer on that flight. This could all be a fluke, of course, so I look forward to trying the product again in the future to see if there’s any difference. Business class has evolved so much in recent years. It ranges from some airlines still offering angled-seats where you have to climb over your neighbors to other airlines offering business-class suites with sliding doors, on-demand dining and great ground service. Sometimes you get the whole gamut in a single airline. Delta is one of those airlines that has a very good modern product with the Delta One Suites on its A350s and some 777s but also has a much older product on its 767s. The business-class offering on the A330 falls between the two: It’s solid enough but doesn’t wow with its hard product. Similarly, the service and food offerings were strictly average: The food was edible but not amazing overall, and service was ho-hum but not disastrous. The Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse at LHR and the associated ground experience was the highlight of the flight for me, and perhaps reason enough to fly Delta/Virgin across the Atlantic again — though I think I’ll try Virgin Atlantic next time. Christian Kramer is the General Manager for The Points Guy UK, based in London. Having lived in different countries and with a previous career in financial services, he is an Avios, Oneworld Alliance and general aviation travel expert. WELCOME OFFER: 60,000 Points Terms Apply. TPG'S BONUS VALUATION*: $1,200 CARD HIGHLIGHTS: Delta Sky Club and Centurion lounge access, $200 annual airline fee credit and up to $200 in Uber credits annually Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® points after you use your new Card to make $5,000 in purchases in your first 3 months. Enjoy Uber VIP status and free rides in the U.S. up to $15 each month, plus a bonus $20 in December. That can be up to $200 in annual Uber savings. 5X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel. 5X Membership Rewards points on prepaid hotels booked on amextravel.com. Enjoy access to the Global Lounge Collection, the only credit card airport lounge access program that includes proprietary lounge locations around the world. Receive complimentary benefits with an average total value of $550 with Fine Hotels & Resorts. Learn More. $200 Airline Fee Credit, up to $200 per calendar year in baggage fees and more at one qualifying airline. Get up to $100 in statement credits annually for purchases at Saks Fifth Avenue on your Platinum Card®. Enrollment required.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2061
__label__cc	0.528198	0.471802	Tag Archives: Maurico Romero Monarcas Crowned King of SuperLiga, Beat Revolution in Finals Monarcas Morelia won its first trophy since the club won the Copa Pachuca in 2001. Courtesy Kevin Koczwara FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Revolution defender Kevin Alston scored his first professional goal against Mexican team Monarcas Morelia in the SuperLiga final, but his goal wasn’t enough to help the Revolution win the tournament for the second time in three years. Morelia won, 2-1, its first SuprLiga title with two goals from striker Miguel Sabah in the second half. The Revolution’s loss to Monarcas is the first time the Revs have lost a game to a Mexican team in SuperLiga play (7-1-1). Monarcas’ win makes them the third Mexican team to win the SuperLiga championship in its four years of existence — the Revolution are the only MLS team to be crowned champions of the tournament, 2008. Neither New England or Monarcas were able to break the deadlock and find the back of their opponents net in the first half. The Mexican side enjoyed much of the possession on the first half as the Revolution came out of the gates slow and Monarcas came close to capitalizing, twice. Tagged Chris Tierney, Darrius Barnes, Federico Vilar, Ismael Pineda, Kevin Alston, Kheli Dube, Luis Gabriel Rey, Matt Reis, Maurico Romero, Miguel Sabah, MLS, Monarcas Morelia, New England Revolution, Shalrie Joseph, Steve Nicol, SuperLiga, Zack Schilawski	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2070
__label__cc	0.671655	0.328345	Category: social justice Living in Omelas: Thoughts on the Separation of Immigrant Families In an earlier post I described how Ursula K. Le Guin confronts her readers with a moral dilemma: is it justifiable for a society to benefit from the suffering of a single “innocent”? Le Guin prefaces her story by quoting from William James’s “The Moral Philosopher and the Moral Life”: Or if the hypothesis were offered us of a world in which Messrs. Fourier’s and Bellamy’s and Morris’s utopias should all be outdone, and millions kept permanently happy on the one simple condition that a certain lost soul on the far‑off edge of things should lead a life of lonely torture, what except a specifical and independent sort of emotion can it be which would make us immediately feel, even though an impulse arose within us to clutch at the happiness so offered, how hideous a thing would be its enjoyment when deliberately accepted as the fruit of such a bargain? Although Le Guin does not tell us how we should respond to her nameless, faceless child locked in a basement, the inclusion of this passage signals to the reader the response we should feel – it would be a “hideous” thing to enjoy “the happiness so offered” at the expense of “a certain lost soul”. I have taught this story numerous times, and have tried to make my students understand that Le Guin is not telling some abstract parable. As Le Guin writes, this is “[the] dilemma of the American conscience”. I tell my students that we live in a nation that has embraced the premise that in order for there to be winners, there must be losers. In my early years teaching “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” I would remind my students that some opponents of same sex marriage argued that legalizing same sex marriages would be the end of straight marriages. In essence, straight people like me were being told that for our families to be valid, the families of gays and lesbians had to be invalid. In subsequent classes we undertook the task of putting a name and a face to Le Guin’s child. The child stood for the LGBTQ community, for people of color, for immigrants, for workers in sweat-shops in far-flung countries making our Nikes, our iPhones, our clothes. I don’t know to what extent this experiment in making Omelas “ours” and claiming the child has impacted those students. I like to think they left my class with the other passage that Le Guin quoted from William James running through their minds: All higher, more penetrating ideals are revolutionary. They present themselves far less in the guise of effects of past experience than in that of probable causes of future experience, factors to which the environment and the lessons it has so far taught us must learn to bend. Most of my students, I’m sure, walked away from the story without it changing them. They still couldn’t see the child. But here’s the thing, in the past few months the child in the basement has become real, over and over again. The children of immigrants are torn from their parents and locked away. The official justification for this is that their parents have committed “the crime” of coming to the United States without documentation, and, as “criminals” they do not have a right to be with their children. The cruel injustice of this policy cannot be overstated. The “crime” these parents committed was that of wanting a better life for themselves and their children. The impulse that drove these families across the hostile desert was the same impulse that led my forbearers to set sail across the stormy Atlantic in a small ship called the Mayflower. Who among us, faced with the reality that the lives of our family were endangered living in the country of our birth, would not make the same choice as these families? As for the punishment – while the parents suffer in ways I cannot imagine, the harm done to the children must be even more immense. We have known for some time that removing children from their biologic parents has deep and enduring consequences. The trauma we inflict on these children will plant seeds of despair, resentment, anxiety, and fear, and we, as a nation, will reap the harvest we have sown. At the end of my last post, I wrote: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas,” ends by presenting the reader with the two options apparently available to the people of Omelas: either stay in Omelas and accept the suffering of the child as the price of happiness, or leave Omelas and venture out into the great unknown. But here’s the thing – Le Guin has invited us to be co-creators with her. We don’t need to settle for the dichotomy she provides. We can make other choices. In our Omelases we can break into the basement and free the child. We can say that no society that trades the well-being of an innocent soul for its prosperity and happiness deserves to be prosperous and happy. We can end “the Festival of Summer.” And what will we replace it with? How will we rebuild Omelas? In any way we want. Perhaps the Festival of Summer will become the Festival of the Children in which everyone celebrates that suffering is an unavoidable human experience, but that we share the burden of suffering and make choices so that a fragile happiness can be shared by all. We cannot walk away; we cannot abandon our country to the forces of fear and intolerance. But we also cannot simply accept this crime against humanity. We must fight for those families as if they were ours. As William James tells us, “All higher, more penetrating ideals are revolutionary.” The time has come for us to be idealistic and revolutionary. Le Guin closes her preface by focusing on what William James is saying, “Ideals as ‘the probable causes of future Experience’—that is a subtle and an exhilarating remark!” Indeed. For more on what you can do, click here. Author mdameyPosted on June 14, 2018 June 14, 2018 Categories dystopia, Literature, social justice, Ursula Le GuinTags immigration, Literature, Omelas, social justic, Ursula K. Le GuinLeave a comment on Living in Omelas: Thoughts on the Separation of Immigrant Families	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2071
__label__wiki	0.799199	0.799199	5 Crowdfunders to Watch – Friendly Creations This week, we’ve got our sights set on women-led crowdfunding campaigns for cookbooks, kilns, serums, shirts and doggie homes-away-from-home. By Candice Helfand-Rogers In our latest crowdfunding column, we feature five campaigns that are equal parts practicality and heart. Read on to learn about women-led efforts to fund a t-shirt company, a growing pottery business, a hair care line, an offbeat cookbook and temporary dog houses. Check out these 5 women-led crowdfunding campaigns: 1. A Feminist Cookbook (via Kickstarter) The Business: “Paleo for Unicorns” is, as this crowdfunding campaign describes it, “a feminist, humorous paleo cookbook.” Author Amy Subach offers recipes that follow the rules of a paleolithic diet, featuring hunter-gatherer ingredients like meats and fruits, while eschewing innovations like sugar and alcohol. Now, Elly Blue of Oregonian publisher Microcosm Publishing is raising funds to get Subach’s opus printed and distributed to the hungry masses. The Money: Subach and Blue are hoping to raise at least $5,000 through this campaign, and have 5 days remaining to achieve that goal. Should they succeed, the money will be put toward publishing the book. 2. Making Cities More Dog-Friendly (va WeFunder) The Business: Chelsea Brownridge’s venture, Dog Parker, makes small, weatherproof shelters for pets to stay in while their owners visit stores that forbid animals. What began as search for an alternative to using a leash to tie her dog, Winston, to a pole has now morphed into a successful Brooklyn-based venture. After winning awards and endorsements from animal groups, Dog Parker is now poised for a new chapter of growth. The Money: Instead of a perk-based campaign, Brownridge is offering contributors equity stakes in the company. So far, she has generated over $40,000, and hopes to get at least $250,000 by the time her equity campaign concludes. The money would fund Dog Parker’s expansion into other cities around the U.S. 3. Hair Serums Infused with Positivity (via iFundWomen) The Business: Veteran hairstylist and entrepreneur Jamie Cholaki is building a business that will sell hair serums infused with amethyst — yes, the gemstone. The Boston-based business owner says her product-in-progress is the culmination of nearly 2 decades of experience with hair, and represents a mix of her “love of hair, joy for crystals and practice of mindfulness.” Cholaki continues to fine-tune the serum — for example, by adding in essential oils to perfect its scent — but she needs funding to continue her work. The Money: Within the next 22 days, Cholaki hopes to raise at least $12,000. The money from her campaign would be put toward her research and development efforts. 4. Ramping Up Pottery Production (via Kickstarter) The Business: For more than 20 years, Renata Wadsworth has been a potter crafting bowls, mugs and more for scores of customers. Based in Danby, N.Y., she sells her wares throughout the Finger Lakes region of the Empire State. But for awhile, she has been filling orders with inadequate resources, so now she’s trying to generate the funds to build a new, larger kiln that will allow her to better serve customers. The Money: Wadsworth is trying to raise at least $12,500 to buy the new kiln she needs, and has 14 days left to meet or exceed her goal. 5. Empowerment Through Clothing (via iFundWomen) The Business: T-shirt company Mess in a Bottle is the brainchild of Kalilah Wright, an entrepreneur and designer who was born in Jamaica and now resides in Baltimore. Unfortunately, the growth of her venture was halted by a recent break-in at her store, and the shop remains closed. But Wright is fundraising to get her entrepreneurial goals back on track. The Money: Wright has 41 days remaining in her campaign to raise at least $10,000. The money will be used to help her formally reopen her shop and purchase a new laptop for managing her business. [box_light] Want to be featured in The Story Exchange’s Crowdfunding column? Drop us a line and tell us about your campaign at info@thestoryexchange.org. [/box_light] If the former Georgia House Democratic leader wins, she would become the country’s first black woman governor and break a...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2072
__label__cc	0.605664	0.394336	Daily Archives: July 5, 2019 Opinion: Stop stalling and save Mom & Pop By Kirsten Theodos, co-founder, Take Back NYC All across the city, we are seeing the character and spirit of our neighborhoods being destroyed by hyper real estate speculation pushing out longtime established small businesses. Amazon cannot be blamed for all of the closings. A year ago, 41-year-old Cornelia Street Café was forced to close because of an exorbitant rent hike. The Small Business Jobs Survival Act (SBJSA) would have saved them by giving commercial tenants rights to renew their leases and negotiate reasonable terms. In a recent interview, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer made clear in her view the SBJSA shouldn’t apply to all commercial leases. Her argument is weak, that the “unintended consequences” of the bill would be including “white shoe law firms” and “financial institutions.” Even if a business is a hedge fund, it should not be excluded from protection from unscrupulous landlords. Carving out specific types of businesses from the bill is discrimination and would certainly be legally challenged. After years of broken promises to save Mom & Pop, it is unclear why she is back on the small business beat and weighing in on this now. Posted in Editorial/Op-Ed/Opinion Tagged Borough President Gale Brewer, City Council Member Corey Johnson, SBJSA, small businesses, Take Back NYC Officers honored at community council Police officers Colin Dowd, Peter Rodriguez, Joe Sgroi, Kevin Fainer and Manny Rodriguez were honored for their work at the 13th precinct’s most recent community council meeting last month. (Photo by Maria Rocha-Buschel) By Maria Rocha-Buschel Five officers at the 13th precinct were honored as cops of the month at the precinct’s last community council meeting before the summer break on Tuesday, June 18. Deputy Inspector Steven Hellman said that crime in the precinct has been steadily decreasing and he said that the community policing program that launched at the precinct last October has helped. “I attribute that to the cops on patrol and the NCO philosophy that’s driving down crime,” he said, referring to the program that assigns Neighborhood Coordination Officers to different areas in the precinct. “We had a tough year last year but we’ve been doing better.” The first awards at the meeting went to two officers who work together as NCOs for Sector A, which covers Stuyvesant Town and Gramercy. Officers Peter Rodriguez and Manny Rodriguez caught a man on Avenue C earlier in the month after they suspected him of riding a stolen motorcycle. After the man was arrested, the officers found that he was wanted citywide for stolen motorcycles and had also been arrested for felony assault after molesting his sister. Posted in 13th Precinct, Crime Tagged Administration for Children's Services, Cop of the Month, NCO	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2080
__label__wiki	0.963344	0.963344	‘Everything’s made by the people’: how a slum became Albania’s fastest growing city Albanian Opposition Supports Government Earthquake Relief Efforts IDF sends aid mission to earthquake-stricken Albania Albania: Future uncertain for thousands of earthquake homeless YMCA Kosovo support Albanian families after deadly earthquake Number of human trafficking cases dramatically increase in Belgium EU mobilises emergency support to Albania after deadly earthquake Albania earthquake: Rescue efforts wind down Mayor Veliaj Uses Earthquake as Propaganda Opportunity Four Thousand Albanians Made Homeless after Devastating Earthquake Rama Announces Dubious Anti-corruption Legislation Reports of Aid Being Refused in Camps, Arrests For Misapropriation Fear, evacuations and introspection in Albania after deadly quake Albanian News Money sent home by relatives working abroad has transformed Kamza over the past decade in Albanian News, Crime, Economy, Featured, National Security, News, Politics Home Albanian News Driving out of Albania’s capital, Tirana, into nearby Kamza, blocks of communist-era apartments give way to a chaotic jumble of houses of different colours, shapes and heights. Many are half-finished or being rebuilt. Some are just exposed brick, while others are painted near-fluorescent greens, oranges or yellows. “People pay a lot of attention to the aesthetics of the houses,” says Njazi Murrja, who lives locally. “They show the culture and the wealth of the family.” On the crowded pavements, street-sellers, children and groups of old men playing dominoes jostle for space. The roads are named after celebrities or international cities; on our way to a higgledy-piggledy street market we pass by Rruja New York (New York Street). If it all sounds rather informal, that’s because it is – this former slum has been transformed by its residents over the past 10 years into Albania’s fastest-growing city, all thanks to money sent home by relatives working abroad. In older cities you are just a citizen, but here you have your imprint Tomorr Kotarja Throughout eastern and southern Europe, emigration is dramatically changing communities. Towns and villages in Greece, the Balkans and Italy are emptying as young people head to nearby cities or to northern Europe in search of work. But here, the opposite is happening. The houses, businesses and infrastructure of Kamza, which has a population of around 250,000, would not exist if it wasn’t for Albania’s several-million-strong diaspora. “People have a deep love for this city because they built it themselves,” says former deputy mayor Tomorr Kotarja. “Everyone has made their contribution. In older cities you are just a citizen, but here you have your imprint.” Kamza’s history is as chaotic as its streets. During the communist period it was state-owned agricultural land with around 5,000 inhabitants. Internal migration was banned by the regime, and workers in the mines and farms of the north were completely isolated from the rest of the country. “The propaganda stated that living in rural areas was the best because the air was fresher,” says Kotarja. But when the Democratic Party of Albania came to power in 1992, rural workers set off towards the capital in their thousands. “Life in the north was hard,” says former miner Ismail Veizi, who arrived that year with his wife and two sons. “I was in hospital many times because of the chemicals I breathed in. It was minus 20 degrees in winter and we had to travel far to get firewood. Coming here was a matter of life and death.” Sitting in his clean, comfortable house close to the city centre, he describes how the neighbourhood was just fields when he arrived. “There were some people living in the stables,” he says. “Others had marked out space for their house in the field. Some had come as a family, some a whole clan.” He built a simple two-room structure, with no sewage system or electricity. Water had to be collected from a well an hour away. As well as poor conditions, migrants from the north also struggled to adjust culturally – they spoke a different dialect to the people in Tirana, and for centuries had maintained a traditional clan system. In 1995 police tried to clear the settlements, but gave up after encountering fierce resistance. “The people from Tirana looked at us with a certain contempt,” says Kotarja. “So we worked hard to improve our position.” Faced with a lack of jobs, migration became residents’ primary option, starting with Greece and Italy. Today, Kotarja says, most favour the UK, even though a place on a lorry costs around €15,000 (£12,800). The attraction comes from the network of Albanians already settled there, and the fact that they have experienced less discrimination than in other countries. “All their money went into the houses,” says Kotarja. “People started bringing their expertise back from outside and built bigger and better.” Murrja, a teacher, moved to Kamza from Diber in 2004 with money earned by his eldest son in Greece. “My aim was to educate my children here,” he says. “The conditions were terrible in the villages, there was no infrastructure. My wife is a nurse and we could never build a house on our salaries.” When he arrived, he says, there were no roads in Kamza apart from dirt tracks. “I’d be covered in so much mud by the time I arrived at school, I’d have to wash in the well.” Several years later his second son left for the UK, followed by his youngest. Their money has helped him renovate and improve the house. Veizi has also rebuilt his house from just two rooms to four storeys thanks to money his son makes working as a painter and decorator in Germany. “I’ve got a fridge, TV screens – I always tell him I don’t need the newest version, but he says no!” he laughs. The city began to rapidly formalise once it became its own municipality in 2007. “The changes happened very fast,” says Kotarja. A water supply was built with the help of an NGO, and the central government provided money to build roads and schools. Legislation formalised building construction. Some new factories and businesses provide jobs, but with unemployment still around 50%, emigration remains the most popular source of income. The situation places strain on family relationships – Veizi’s daughter-in-law, Xhuljana, raises her child alone for half the year while her husband works in Germany. The government still struggles to collect taxes on the money sent from abroad, which is largely made on the black market. “Migration has increased since 2013,” says Kotarja. “People see no hope or opportunity in Albania.” Albanians are currently caught entering the UK illegally more than any other nationality. Although thankful for the new infrastructure, some residents admit they are nostalgic for the days when they could build however they pleased. “There’s a lot of corruption,” says Veizi. “Now you need to bribe someone just to get permission to fix your roof. But overall it is good. I am happy with life here.” The poverty, informal building and unorthodox road names have made Kamza something of a joke among Tirana’s well-heeled. Some residents of the capital believe it should never have been constructed in the first place: “It’s not acceptable to just build wherever you like,” one says to me. But Kotarja says people in Kamza are proud of what they have created. “Everything has been made by the people,” he says. “The need to change their lives was the driving force.” Source: The Guardian Tags: AlbaniaCitiesEuropemigrationNjazi Murrja Albanian President Declares the OSCE Ambassador ‘Unwelcome’ in His Office Democratic Party leader Lulzim Basha stated the opposition supports the government in its efforts to help citizens affected by... Albania government denies links to organised crime The Brief: Western Balkans – a test for the EU’s expansion appetite Armaldo Kllogjeri to hold recital at Tirana’s Amphitheatre Abu Sayyaf’s Dutch hostage killed in firefight in Sulu Topics Select Category Albanian News (443) Business (285) Economy (261) Science (2) Crime (58) Culture (95) Art (10) Books & Literature (4) Education (12) Entertainment (9) Family (4) Fashion (1) Food & Drink (7) Health (12) History (16) Lifestyle (5) Movie (2) Music (3) Tech (32) Travel (12) Destination (6) Environment (89) Agriculture (6) Climate Change (31) Forests (3) Featured (865) Law (116) National Security (664) Military (104) Politics (469) Terrorism (35) News (487) Sports (16) Olympics (2) Soccer (5) World News (469) Africa (8) Asia (88) China (65) North Korea (6) Canada (3) Europe (212) Balkans (91) Latin America (8) Mexico (8) Middle East (85) Turkey (34) Russian Federation (36) United Kingdom (15) United States (80) Tiranachronicle.com is part of Tirana Chronicle Media Group LLC, which delivers daily news around the globe. © 2011 Tirana Chronicle	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2082
__label__cc	0.627545	0.372455	AfricaCom is part of the Informa Tech Division of Informa PLC Conference & Exhibition: 10 - 12 November 2020 CTICCSouth Africa AfricaTech2020 Sponsor/ExhibitAt AfricaCom VisitAfricaCom NetworkingAt AfricaCom News &Insight Chair at UNITEL Isabel dos Santos is an Angolan businesswoman and entrepreneur. She started her studies in Angola and then moved to the UK where she attended St. Paul’s Girls School in London. Isabel dos Santos graduated at King’s College London in Electrical Engineering in 1994. Since 2005 she has had relevant interests in Telecom, Media, Retail, Finance, Energy & Utilities and Industry, both in Angola and Portugal. Isabel dos Santos is a member of the board of Angola’s Banco BIC and a reference shareholder in Banco do Fomento de Angola. Isabel dos Santos was appointed Chairwoman of Angola's national oil company Sonangol in June 2016 where she stayed until November 2017. In Portugal, she is a member of the Board of Directors of NOS, a listed cable TV company, and holds interests in the Portuguese bank EuroBIC, GALP Energia and Efacec. She is currently the Chairwoman of UNITEL, the largest telecommunications company in Angola, where she started working in 1998 as a project manager. Isabel dos Santos is one of the largest employers in Angola, providing employment for more than 15000 people among all the business sectors from telecom, retail, networks, cement Throughout her professional career has always highlighted her entrepreneurial capacity, having developed various projects, including the definition and coordination of processes of transformation and corporate restructuring. She founded and led several companies in Angola, and in several European and African countries, promoting vocational training and ensuring opportunities to claim the young local talent. Over the course of her career, she won several national and international awards as well as honors and became a panelist in Economic Forums such as SPIEF 2019, FT Africa Summit 2017, Bloomberg Global Business Forum 2018, Global Women Leaders Native in Portuguese is fluent in English, French, Spanish, Italian and Russian. Using emerging technologies to support a vibrant and secure digital economy Translating digital transformation into economic growth and prosperity Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful Minister of Communications Republic of Ghana See Isabel Speak	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2083
__label__cc	0.627211	0.372789	A Life of Service "The university, the Church, and the world have lost a shining light," said BYU President Kevin J Worthen on Wednesday, the day after President Thomas S. Monson, passed away. President Monson spoke at BYU on 13 occasions from 1966 to 2011. To honor him, here is a photo essay documenting many of his visits to campus and a selection of his stories from BYU devotionals. The most-viewed devotional this year? BYU education professor Brad Wilcox's 2011 classic "His Grace Is Sufficient." As for BYU speeches given in 2017, Lynn G. Robbins's address "Be 100 Percent Responsible" and Eva Witesman's "Women and Education: 'A Future Only God Could See for You'" topped the list. Read excerpts from the 10 most-viewed 2017 speeches. Top Views of 2017 Here is the year in pictures, a gallery of favorites selected by BYU photographers from the 912,657 images they captured last year. BYU-Tube See some of the best BYU videos from last year in this eclectic YouTube playlist. BYU Today's three most-watched videos from 2017: 1. Cosmo dancing with the Cougarettes, 2. The BYU animated short Taijitu, and 3. Lindsey Stirling's Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. Caffeine on campus had everyone buzzing back in September, making it the most-clicked BYU Today story of all time. The official list of most-read BYU news in 2017 put the pop at no. 5, just after these stories: 1. Music makes P.E. more enjoyable, 2. Exercise makes your cells younger, 3. Must-take BYU electives, and 4. An origami-inspired ballistic shield. The shield-testing video reached more than 5 million views on Facebook and YouTube, making it BYU's top social-media post for 2017. Top 10 Magazine Stories A cancer-killing discovery, hope for those with depression, a student who lived off of campus plants, and a BYU alumni infographic were among BYU Magazine's best-loved stories of the year. Resolve to Live Like You Have Only Five Years Left New BYUtv Game Show Just Like Mom and Dad Premieres Jan. 8 Get Involved with BYU Alumni Chapter Activities in 2018	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2084
__label__cc	0.543476	0.456524	Home Business Users came in Support of Jio, Filed Online Petition Users came in Support of Jio, Filed Online Petition Sahil Kashyap Image Source: Twitter Due to the Interconnect usage charge i.e. IUC, Jio has decided to end the off-net free calling on 9 October. In such a situation, when the burden of the IUC came on the part of the customers, they supported the Jio and sought a solution from TRAI as soon as possible. Jio customers have filed an online petition to convey their demand to TRAI. In fact, in 2017, IUC charge was fixed at 6 paise per minute by TRAI and it was said that it will be abolished by 1 January 2020. Because of this, Jio made calling free. But recently TRAI has sought a consultation paper related to IUC for review and it is likely that its duration can be extended. In such a situation, it is not clear how long the IUC charges will end and due to this the pressure on Jio started increasing and the company has decided to stop off-net free calling. Also, Jio has also said that IUC will make calling again once the charges are over. Image Source: Telegraph India On the other hand, Vodafone-Idea and Airtel have made it clear that they will continue off-net free calling in unlimited plans for customers. Whereas Jio announced on October 9 that now customers will have to pay 6 paise per minute for making calls from Jio’s network to other networks. Meanwhile, when the burden of IUC charge came on the customers, they have filed an online petition to convey their demand to TRAI. According to the information received, so far more than 10 thousand customers have supported TRAI and demanded an early decision on IUC from TRAI. Reliance Jio says that the company was offering free calling from its inception, but for this, it has to pay a heavy price. The reasons which are coming out are being told that the tariff plans for the lower middle class of Airtel and Vodafone-Idea have higher calling rates. Most of these customers are connected to 2G network and who use mobile especially for calling. In such a situation, these customers give missed calls to customers of Jio to save money, and when Jio’s customers call in another network, the company has to pay 6 paise per minute. Previous articleAyushmann Khurrana’s Bala Trailer is Out, Watch it Now!!! Next articleAAP Party MLA Ram Niwas Goel can face jail – Shahdara, Delhi http://www.sahilkashyap.com He is the Co-Founder and lead strategist of the THN. The content and material handled by him. For new products and business strategies, you can get in contact with him. She left home at age 15, had 300 rupees in pocket, now running 7.5 crore company Money sent to another’s account by mistake? Learn how to get it back! Petrol and diesel both cheap, know how much will have to be paid now Enthusiasm in the corporate sector regarding investment in Jammu and Kashmir The veteran businessmen welcomed the Kashmir decision of Modi government	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2085
__label__cc	0.652111	0.347889	SUBSCRIBE NOW to get home delivery VRtually There What to Put in a Wilderness Survival Kit Remote Wilderness Water Filter Tips How to Make a Wilderness Survival Kit Richard Kalinowski, Leaf Group Updated March 15, 2018 How to Make a Wilderness Survival Kit (Photo: ) Supplies Needed to Survive Things Needed to Survive in the Wilderness Most people will never get stranded in the wild, so it can be easy to ignore wilderness survival preparation as you hike or camp. However, whenever you trek into the wilderness, you must remember that there is always a slim chance that you could get lost or injured, and it’s always best to be well-prepared in the event of a worst-case scenario. If you’re hiking or camping deep in the woods, you need to take a wilderness survival kit with you. In the event of an emergency, it could save your life. Make sure your kit’s container is waterproof. When making an emergency survival kit, the container is just as important as its contents, considering that some survival items are useless if they become water damaged. A waterproof backpack works well, but other types of waterproof containers also can be used to store survival items. Pack a small space blanket in your kit, as recommended by Survival Topics. Space blankets also are commonly called first-aid, weather or mylar blankets. The blanket can be used for warmth if you are stranded in the cold and double as a makeshift shelter. Since carrying a full tent isn’t feasible, a space blanket can be used as a small, waterproof tarp in emergency situations. Considering that space blankets are waterproof, it’s advisable that you wrap the blanket around the other items in your survival kit, thereby providing a second layer of waterproof protection. Include at least 50 feet of nylon rope. Rope is useful for rigging a makeshift shelter, and you can cut small pieces of rope and use them to mark your path as you forage for food, water or firewood. Without rope markers, you could get lost deeper into the wilderness. Carry a pocket knife. A knife is essential and useful for cutting rope, starting fires and more. Include a magnesium starter so that you can light fires in the wilderness. Magnesium starters are ideal because they work even if they get wet. When you rub your pocket knife’s blade on the starter, the magnesium will heat up and create sparks to help you start a fire. Pack a collapsible metal cup or small pot. Do not use plastic or nylon cups for gathering water, since these will melt when exposed to extreme heat. Most sources of water in the wilderness are full of bacteria. Survival Topics says you must boil your water over a fire in order to kill most traces of bacteria. Include basic first-aid supplies, as recommended by Wilderness Survival Skills. Bandages and antibiotic ointments will allow you to treat small injuries. You’ll also want to include tweezers, since you’ll likely get several wood splinters while in the wilderness. Although not initially very painful, splinters can become infected if not removed. Pack nonperishable foods like granola bars, which are high in carbohydrates but will not take up very much space. Bring navigational and signaling items with you, including a GPS, waterproof map, compass, flares and a cell phone. Remember that in most cases, somebody will come looking for you, so only wander from your initial location if you are within walking distance of a city or town or lost in remote wilderness with no possibility of rescue. Waterproof container Space blanket 50 feet of nylon rope Magnesium starter Collapsible metal cup GPS system Waterproof map Leaf Group is a USA TODAY content partner providing general travel information. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY. Wilderness Survival Skills: Survival First Aid Kit Richard Kalinowski began writing professionally in 2006. He also works as a website programmer and graphic designer for several clients. Kalinowski holds a Master of Fine Arts from Goddard College and a Bachelor of Science in education from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Basic Camping Supplies List How to Keep Snakes & Bugs Away From Your Campsite How to Store Food for a Camping Trip Camping Vacation Trip Packing Checklist Items Needed to Outfit a Travel Trailer This story is part of Travel Tips Outdoor Vacation Activities» Adventure & Outdoor Travel» Entertain This! Web to Watch Experience Travel Road Warriors © 2018 USATODAY, a division of Gannett Satellite Information Network, Inc. Developer's Network USA WEEKEND Sports Weekly Get the e-Newspaper USA TODAY Shop © Copyright Gannett 2019	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2099
__label__cc	0.626491	0.373509	Board of Directors, Arts Guild & Staff Affiliates & Associates Memberships & Donations 2019 Spring Into Art 2020 DrawProject Art Talk Lessons Presenter Series Arts in Our Community Regional Artist Community (RAC) Public Art Advisory Committee (PAAC) Venue Space « Photography & Editing Class The Painted Canvas – Day Series » Reach for the stars! Yoga is has been known to strengthen the body, improve posture, increase flexibility, and create a sense of calm through deep breathing exercises. With regular yoga, we breathe better, sleep better and feel better overall. Join us for our free yoga class and explore how yoga may help you gain strength, flexibility, balance, and help you feel more centered, grounded, and relaxed. This class is for every level and walk-ins are always welcome. Instructor: Roberta George Class fee: FREE Please bring your own yoga essentials – mat, water bottle, pillows, etc. Turner Center for the Arts www.turnercenter.org Valdosta, GA 31602 United States + Google Map Annette Howell Turner 527 N. Patterson St. Tuesday-Thursday 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday & Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Galleries Closed Photography & Editing Class Point. Shoot. Create. Support the Turner Center Sign-up for the E-newsletter Accessibility Standards The Turner Center for the Arts is committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of technology or ability. We strive to conform to the accepted standards and guidelines in our effort to make our web content more accessible for people with disabilities. While the Turner Center strives to adhere to these accessibility and usability standards, it is not always possible to do so in all areas of the website. We are continually seeking out solutions that will bring all areas of the site up to the same level of overall web accessibility. If you experience any difficulty in accessing any information or pages on the Turner Center website or have any suggestions on how we can provide a better experience, contact Jessica Ganas at [email protected] or 229.247.2787. © 2020 Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts. Like the Turner Center on Facebook Sign up for our newsblast! Follow the Turner Center on Twitter	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2100
__label__wiki	0.777478	0.777478	Action 2004 3 hr 7 min A down-on-her-luck actress accepts an offer to star in a film shot on a mysterious island. While there, the actress is abducted by natives who offer her as a sacrifice to a giant ape, which instead of harming the starlet becomes smitten with her. The crew manage to capture the ape and bring it back to Manhattan to exhibit as a showpiece. However, on the show's opening night, things go horribly wrong. Starring Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody Director Peter Jackson Ann Darrow Carl Denham Jack Driscoll King Kong/Lumpy the Cook Bruce Baxter Lobo Chan Captain Englehorn John Sumner David Dengelo Jan Blenkin Carolynne Cunningham Fran Walsh Philippa Boyens Spectacular remake has violence, intense peril. Russian (AAC, Dolby 5.1) Arabic (Subtitles), Danish (Subtitles), Dutch (Subtitles), English (United States) (Audio, Subtitles), Finnish (Subtitles), French (France) (Subtitles), German (Germany) (Subtitles), Greek (Subtitles), Hebrew (Subtitles), Italian (Italy) (Subtitles), Norwegian (Subtitles), Portuguese (Portugal) (Subtitles), Spanish (Spain) (Subtitles), Swedish (Subtitles), Turkish (Subtitles)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2101
__label__wiki	0.544016	0.544016	SBS delays Danger 5 series due to “ISIS actions” September 13th, 2014 By David Knox 9 commentsFiled under: News, SBS will delay the second season of cult comedy Danger 5 due to “recent ISIS actions.” The comedy by South-Australian production company Dinosaur, which spoofs spies attempting to kill Hitler in a 1960s-style pastiche, was due to return to air in November. The season includes an appearance by Shaun Micallef. “It is with our deepest disappointment and sadness that we announce a decision has been made to delay the broadcast of Danger 5 Series 2 on SBS. This is due to unforeseen international news events and the recent ISIS actions and it’s felt in the current climate the series might not be received in the comedic spirit in which it was created,” says the show’s Facebook page. “Unfortunately this delay is completely out of our control and the entire team at Danger 5 and Dinosaur are truly devastated. “At this stage we’re unaware of when Series 2 will air, but as soon as we do, you will be the first to know. “We hope that you will stick by us until this time as we do everything we can to show you what has taken the entire team thousands of hours of hard work, sweat and a few tears.” SBS confirmed to news.com.au: “In light of recent international events, SBS has decided to postpone the air date of cult comedy series Danger 5. “Although Danger 5 was written and filmed before any of the recent ISIS actions and in no way refers to recent events, the network has determined that some themes touched on in this season are potentially sensitive in the current climate and may not be received in the comedic and satirical spirit with which they are intended. “Given the reason for the delay of the series and the current unpredictable climate we can’t confirm or announce a broadcast date for the new series at this time.” SBS has previously pulled episodes that found themselves ill-timed with Paul Fenech’s Swift & Shift Couriers held over for 2 years following attacks on Indian students in Australia, and withholding an episode of its first season following the death of an Australian soldier in Iraq. Tags: Danger 5, Swift & Shift Couriers MuchoTB September 15, 2014 12:41 am That trailer was brilliant!! I’ve never heard of this series before but after seeing that I’m going to check out season one Stan September 14, 2014 10:15 pm It’s just SBS getting really savvy with the publicity. I, for one, might not have caught that very funny 2+ minute YouTube trailer if it wasn’t for this story. Will be watching when it finally airs! KP September 13, 2014 10:34 pm Deary me, SBS you are taking yourselves a tad too seriously !!. Danger 5 is a 1960’s style pastiche comedy. Sounds like a few too many managers at SBS have had a few too many meetings and whipped themselves into a frenzy over nothing. Guess they are all trying to justify their jobs at the moment. Paridell September 13, 2014 4:03 pm If the series has been “delayed indefinitely because of ISIS actions”, may we conclude that it features beheadings? If so, it will probably never see the light of day, and SBS will have saved itself yet another embarrassment along the lines of “Once Upon A Time in Punchbowl” (in which the main character was an imposter) and “The Power of Nightmares” (which argued that “there is no such thing as Al Qaida”). By exquisite coincidence, SBS presented this ludicrous piece on the very night of the 7/7 attack in London. David Knox September 13, 2014 4:32 pm Without more information it’s hard to know whether it is the right decision or not. It seems bizarre that a spy comedy to get Hitler is withdrawn due to ISIS, so I too presume it has a beheading reference. One would think a re-edit could address this, but perhaps it is so integral it gave them no room to move…. doubtful it was a decision taken lightly, but disappointing all round. Johnny1P5 September 13, 2014 12:49 pm Oh for [expletives] sake, what next the ABC are going to stop showing the animated series Archer because the spy organisation that in that is called ISIS, what a joke. spanishannouncerstable September 13, 2014 11:20 am What has that (insane, and insanely funny) show possibly got to do w ISIS? Another dagger in the heart of SBS comedy. Ronnie September 13, 2014 10:42 am I hope SBS can ind their way out of the comedy and drama doldrums before it’s too late. Dr_Rudi September 13, 2014 9:01 am Cliche alert. If we change what is broadcast on our televisions then the terrorists have won.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2102
__label__wiki	0.898381	0.898381	WVU to deliver multi-million dollar Olympic sports performance centre SOURCE: Jelmer Assink/Unsplash The centre will be fully equipped with training facilities. Jan 14 \| 2 minutes read \| By U2B Staff @U_2_B @U_2_B Queen’s University, Rakuten Mobile deliver edge computing to Belfast Creative architecture: New UNR Arts building bags multiple design awards Life-saving research targets obesity epidemic in Australia West Virginia University (WVU) is set to build a new athletics performance centre for its Olympic sports programmes as part of the university’s Climbing Higher Master Plan to elevate its existing sports facilities. The new performance centre dubbed is estimated to cost US$35 million and has been partially funded thanks to a US$10 million gift from the Hazel Ruby McClain Charitable Trust. “I cannot begin to express my thanks and sincere appreciation to the trustees of the Hazel Ruby McQuain Charitable Trust. They recognized the great need for a building like this and the major impact it will have on WVU’s student-athletes for decades to come,” said WVU athletic director Shane Lyons in a media release. University of Edinburgh set to deliver new world-class sports facilities \| Jan 14 \| 2 minutes read The sports performance centre will be delivered by CBRE \| Heery and will house various sports and equipment facilities for strength and conditioning, training, rehabilitation, and nutrition for all WVU Olympic sports programmes. The Coliseum Complex is part of a much larger master plan that will shift WVU’s sports initiatives to greater heights with the expansion of its sports facilities. The plan will connect existing and future facilities, renovate unutilised facilities and bring a consistent aesthetic across all structures. More than 400 student-athletes will benefit from the centre which will enhance WVU’s commitment to compete at a national level. The performance centre will benefit more than 400 student-athletes in various fields. Source: Zach Lucero/Unsplash. “It is exciting to imagine the future of our Olympic sports thanks to this generous and significant gift from the Hazel Ruby McQuain Charitable Trust,” said WVU President Gordon Gee. “While we have had success, notably in rifle and soccer, this will provide West Virginia University student-athletes in every sport with the best possible facilities to develop their skills.” The performance centre will be partly located at the university’s existing Natatorium which will be converted and renovated to encompass a multi-level performance centre in excess of 21,000 gross square feet. Columbia, LaLiga partnership brings sports management theories to life Adding on to new weight, training and rehabilitation rooms, the facility will also feature extensive cardio and plyometric areas, hydrotherapy and cryotherapy treatment sections, and locker rooms. The expansive facility will enable multiple teams to make use of the centre at one time. This will alleviate any scheduling concerns and provides time management flexibility in the areas of academics and team practices. The facilities will be used by the baseball, volleyball, gymnastics, rowing, golf, track and field, tennis, rifle, wrestling, swimming and diving, men’s soccer and women’s soccer teams. The Climbing Higher master plan involves a multi-phased development which includes the Puskar Centre Complex, the WVU Coliseum Complex, the Cary Gym Complex and the WVU Golf Complex. Construction Estate Management Facilities University, industry experts join forces in UK-wide digital security network \| May 09 \| 3 minutes read Flinders University takes to the cloud for institutional success \| Nov 01 \| 3 minutes read 3 global powers, 1 shared mission: To fund ethical AI research \| Sep 11 \| 3 minutes read	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2104
__label__cc	0.737815	0.262185	Feds file human-trafficking suit against farm labor contractor LOS ANGELES, California - The federal government is calling a human-trafficking lawsuit against a California-based farm labor contractor and eight farms the largest case of alleged forced labor of farm workers in the United States. The lawsuit, made public Tuesday in Los Angeles by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, accused Global Horizons Manpower Inc., based in Beverly Hills, California, and eight farms in Hawaii and Washington state of luring more than 200 men from Thailand to work at farms where they were subjected to abuse. The government alleges that between 2003 and 2007, Global Horizons promised hundreds of workers lucrative jobs in the United States, and then charged the workers exorbitant recruitment fees that they were expected to work to pay off. In some cases, according the lawsuit, the workers owed tens of thousands of dollars. Telephone numbers listed for Global Horizons offices in Hawaii and California were not in service Wednesday. The company did not respond to a CNN e-mail request for comment. The men were brought to the United States under a federal H2-A visa program, which places foreign workers on U.S. farms. But once the men arrived, the suit says, their passports were confiscated and they were not paid for their work. It also alleges that many of the workers were barred from leaving the farms and were forced to live in cramped, dirty conditions. In many cases, the Thai workers were threatened with deportation if they complained about the conditions, the lawsuit said. The government named six farms in Hawaii and two farms in Washington in the lawsuit, alleging the companies not only ignored abuses but participated in the "obvious mistreatment, intimidation, harassment, and unequal pay of the Thai workers." "Upon arriving to the U.S., their passports were confiscated and they were threatened with deportation if they complained," Michael Farrell, an EEOC attorney said during a news conference in Honolulu announcing details of the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges the workers endured screaming, threats and physical assaults by their supervisors. "In some cases bodyguards were stationed around the farms to ensure that none of the workers escaped," Farrell told CNN affiliate KHON. Federal criminal charges were brought last year against Global Horizons' owner, Mordechai Orian, and others for the alleged trafficking of more than 400 Thai workers. Tuesday marked the first time the federal government implicated farms in the case. None of the farms face criminal charges. The farms in Hawaii include: Captain Cook Coffee Co., Del Monte Fresh Produce, Kauai Coffee Co., Kelena Farms, MacFarms of Hawaii and Maui Pineapple Farms. The farms in Washington state were identified as Green Acre Farms and Valley Fruit Orchards. Telephone messages left by CNN seeking comment were not immediately returned by Del Monte, Kauai Coffee Co. and Mac Farms of Hawaii. There was no answer at Maui Pineapple Farms, and the owner of Captain Cook Coffee Co. declined to comment until he had read the lawsuit. A telephone message left by CNN for the attorney representing the Washington farms was not immediately returned. The federal lawsuit accuses Global Horizons and the farms of violating the Civil Rights Act. It is seeking back pay and monetary damages of between $50,000 and $300,000 for each worker. The EEOC said that the case could potentially involve hundreds of victims and witnesses. The case was brought to the attention of the government by the Thai Community Development Center in Los Angeles after a number of farm workers reached out to the nonprofit agency for help. Related: Your tomato's possible ties to slavery Post by: CNN's Chelsea J. Carter and Traci Tamura Topics: In The News Next entry »The who and why of modern-day slavery « Previous entryYour tomato’s possible ties to slavery lauradet This is absolutely unacceptable. I am so glad that this issue was exposed and Global Horizons Manpower Inc. is being taken to court. Let's just hope justice prevails. I hope the workers get compensated and they can return to their country. You're assuming the company is guilty already. This is America. 🙂 Randall Norris If this is America, and they are a company, then by definition they are guilty of abuse. That is who we are!!!! Using the past behavior of American corporations as an indicator, there is about a 99% chance that are guilty. big deal, Mexicans suffer worse, yet AZ passes laws that makes them criminals. Pitty for the Asians, deport the Mexicans. seems like a double standard to me. Why can't Mexicans come here legally under the same work visas as the Asians? They do, but unlike the Asian they dont return when their supposed to. Because Mexicans dont want to wait and do things legally. T Diddy WOW, you are a complete idiot! they are nothing like each other. Please get an education and stop just believing everything liberals tell you. I wish I could deport you because you are of absolutely no use to anyone in this country. There's also the fact that upwards of 20 million illegal Mexicans are in the U.S. Nowhere near that many illegal Asians are here since, unlike Mexicans, they can't go to the U.S. by land, they'd have to get real good boats or swim here. edvhou812 Because farm workers are a dime a dozen. Engineers are a bit harder to come by and are more valued. Kario Kandila it's not double standard. many mexicans enter the US illegally so therefore they are criminals, no if or buts. This happened up till 2007.........4 years ago.................lawsuit revealed today...........................where are these workers now? This is all lies, I work with Global and have for 24 years. The men recruited were paid fairly and had pretty nice living conditions. A group from Mexico that looks for Human rights violations has taken this up and made a mass web of lies of the entire story.. Justice will prevail,. sounds plausible, but, I guess you will be testifying after making that post why would these US companies/farms go to Thailand to recruit workers? There is no one here in the USA willing to do this work for a legal wage? That's the fishy part Michael, you are absolutely right!! They were willing to import people from Thailand to work on these farms ( for so called legal wages, and suitable living conditions) but yet we have a whole country of people not working, and this company couldnt import people from other States!!! Something is definately fishy alright!!!!! i agree with Michael, it does seem strange that they would go to foreign countries to "hire" people if they pay decent wages. These workers are willing to do the jobs that Americans arent. Too many Americans feel entitled and would rather stay unemployed than work in a circumstance that envolves manual labor. They bring them here under false pretenses. They don't know they are coming to work on a farm!!!! An employee of mine is from Thailand and says that they promise them lots of money, but aren't truthful about what they will be doing. They just know they are coming to America. Please post your address so they can come and arrest your sorry ass. I am sure they were as well treated as the Guatemalans in Postville, Iowa at Agriprocessors "kosher" slaughterhouse. The good Mr. Rubashkin got 65 years in the federal pen for that. Maybe they'll let you boys share a cell! I disagree with Michael, and a good part of the comments. There was a farm, I forget their name, but a google search would find it. Basically, they put up dozens of billboards with signs like "Want an immigrant's job? 12 hours a day, $8 an hour, no benefits!" No one applied in over a year. No Americans, anyway. These signs were put up around the state. At my own office job, we have many, many openings, with average pay over $20 an hour. No one applies, and we are NOT an unknown company. Yes, there is an unemployment problem in the country. But there are tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, unwilling to work these immigrant jobs, or any jobs.I've told many people "Hey, we have 7 openings, at $18 an hour..." and all I get in reply is "but unemployment pays $11 an hour to stay at home!" or "Sure, I'll apply, lemme finish Farmville first..." And yes, maybe I simply know some lazy, lazy people. But as I walk through the rows of empty chairs, and walk through the farms near my house, viewing the immigrant workers and NO native-born americans working there... I gotta say...the jobs are there. Its only immigrants who have the work ethic and the desperation to work some of these farm jobs, and its only hard workers who work here with me. drknow Why was it necessary to take their passports if they were being treated fairly? Michael, these migrant worker jobs pay less than $1 an hour for long hours in the hot sun. The only people you can get to do this work is people from 3rd world countries where that is better than what they can find at home. blahster Ror, 20+ an hour, i'll take that job, and everyone i know would be happy to take those jobs. all american born citizens. AZLlib Sounds like stockholm symdrome to me.... harry, if you think this is all a lie, then why did the federal agency reported that the company was illegally recruited workers from thailand and confiscated their passports upon arrival in the u.s. soil. if you are so confident that the company is innocent of any wrong doing, then i dare you to go testify in court on the behalf of your beloved company! It's just not that simple. Read the latest Trafficking in Humans Report dated 2010 and you'll find out that just sending these people home does them a complete disservice. A comprehensive re-integration plan is required to make sure that these people do not go home and get picked up by the same people or other people. can you copy and paste that section?....this is a huge report that I started to read...............these people were probably impoverished and did not pay their airfare anyway to get here....to send them back, what is the re-intergration part?.....this happened up till 2007.....................none of us know where they are now. It's still fishy Just arrest all the owners of these farms, shut the farms down, get our Pineapples and Coffee and Macadamia nuts from foreign companies..................the workers over there will be busy supplying our imports..............they will be happy.....we won't You have the best point so far!!!! LibertyBell The big question: FED Immigration employee/es has/have to be involved on this scheme.. That is issuing H2-A visas to Global Horizons..So where are the news of apprehending FED INS who most likely are getting a lot of money to facilitate these visas..It takes two to tango.. You're assuming that once they get their rightful pay, that they are going to remember (A) where THEIR country is and (B) to go back to it. Good luck with that. Seems to be that way with a lot of asian immigrants, once they get here they forget where THEIR country is and how to get back to it. Seems it is just easier all the way around to run away from your home country and mooch off another than to stay and fix the problems with where you came from. carlos de leon ford Yes, i wish the government do something about my problem,i have two kids here in the states,she 17 he 16,i been here s 1989,some high school have a legal guardian,i did have my papers in order,i just got true paying my work permit,and the immigration service went to my house knock the door down.then they deported me, working on that country two persons got out of their car and started shooting at us two workers bleeding and draging got back over here,i still have the bullet in my foot.one immigration of,said that my papers were right he dint know wy this was happening.thakyou godbless america. My husband brother-in-law and about 40 more h have been given visa that we and other family members have sent the money to Mexico to bring them to Florida to work. They are being mistreated threatened to have immigration to pick them up if they leave someone needs to help us to help these people this is not right Lawsuits are good but what about the slave masters, seems like the group needs jail time? the ones responsible must be brought to justice! How is this any different from $cientology, they too confiscate 'religious workers' passports upon their arrival, force them to work sometimes 80 hours per week with little or no pay, and have guards and razor wire fences to keep them in! At least the Scientologists can plead insanity. ya know this thing is going down already we r in dip ..... I know at least 100 people that live by the unnploymt checks,this people dont like to work ,but better get ready to work cause soon ther will be no money left,the world know about the abuse of power besides,white people are not americans,they are british. April 21, 2011 at 11:06 pm \| pickycb Made in America....think about that next time you buy 'organic produce'. Hey, why don't they post what this group sells? If no jail time is involved in the suit, at least let us help run this company out of business. Think about it the next time you oppose AZ's ab1070. Enforcing border laws, stopping illegal immigration, will significantly reduce this kind of stuff. Even when people are not forced to work against their will, they do still suffer as illegals cannot report abuse without fear of deportation, so, they don't report it. Stopping illegal immigration is absolutely required to ensure fair and humane treatment for all US workers. The article specifies that these men were NOT in the country illegally. "The men were brought to the United States under a federal H2-A visa program, which places foreign workers on U.S. farms. But once the men arrived, the suit says, their passports were confiscated and they were not paid for their work." I couldn't agree with you more... Those thai worker have legal documents H2-A visa Yes, Bill read the article. He is talking about the fact that even with these people being here legally that they were still scared of being deported. Think of all the illegal immigrants in the same position that have that thrown in their face daily. I am against illegal immigration since I have a number of friends from Europe, South America and Asia that are legal immigrants that came here with little or no money and still did it the legal way. "The farms in Hawaii include: Captain Cook Coffee Co., Del Monte Fresh Produce, Kauai Coffee Co., Kelena Farms, MacFarms of Hawaii and Maui Pineapple Farms. The farms in Washington state were identified as Green Acre Farms and Valley Fruit Orchards." That's what google is for people everything that happen in russia will happen here,there will be no food left on the shelfs,thats what racist wants . ReadCarefully Obviously I do not have behind the writer insight to the story, I only know what you know from reading the article. I believe the way the article sounded TO ME that the farms were not facing criminal charges because the assumption is they had no involvment with the workers being promised "X" and charged payback fees, etc. They are probably (hopefully) using workers from this company without knowledge of what goes on (yes, i would think it's a hard secret to keep but very plausible to me). They didn't notice the armed guards and the sucky living conditions ON THE FARMS? Why are you singling out organic produce? Probably because people tend to equate "organic" with "flawless," and some (repeat: SOME, but still enough) organivores tend to be a bit condescending when others don't adopt similar dining policies. It's ironic. Crazy! What century is this again?? And what country? I agree Pete. If guilty, folks responsible should pay more than just money. They should lose their freedom for a while–in prison. And we are surprized? This is where our cheap food comes from. seriously, why are people so surprised? what do you think smithfield and most of the meat industry does? They were overpaid in my opinion, most were making 9$ a hour. HooFlungDung Excellent!...give them all their back pay!...as long as they use it to return to Thailand! Sounds like every other illegal immigrant who breaks the law then cries when things turn bad. Glad they caught the slave masters though, nothing good about what they did either! What part of ' threatened to take thier passports' did you not understand? Illegal immigrants don't have passports. I agree that ilegal immigration is a problem for us, but not nearly as big of a problem as dumbasses who fly off at the mouth with no clue what they are talking about. You dont know what you are talking about. People are here for opportunities for better life. I hope someday you will experience what they experience so you would shut up...are your ancestors american indians? if not shut up again If you reread the article, it specifies that the workers were NOT in the country illegally. "The men were brought to the United States under a federal H2-A visa program, which places foreign workers on U.S. farms. But once the men arrived, the suit says, their passports were confiscated and they were not paid for their work." Would you be angry if your employer didn't pay you? They were not here illegally, they were here under a special work visa. All this so you can enjoy grapes for $2.99 lbs! Ain't going to happen. They will be certified as victims of Human Trafficking and allowed to reamin in the U.S. This certification will also allow them and their families to receive public assistance in the U.S. They make it sound like our government is against slave labor, and slaves for that matter. In reality our government supports slave labor and country's that practice it. If you dont believe me look at Jabal Ili, Saudi Arabia, China, ETC Yes, Tim – because it really is that simple... kanank Why can't they name the officers of this company? its outrageous that exploitation happens at such a scale in a developed country. Seems to me immigration agency is not doing its job. I guess the Republicans think this behavior is OK. Corporations don't pay any tax and now they can get away with slavery and trafficking and abuses. Wow, great Republicans and Democrats for siding with Businesses. More human degradation, brought to you by the good folks down at Free Market Economics. ("Regulations? We don't need no stinking regulations!") odgie Probably not as completely simple as that, but I gotta say I'm inclined to agree. The private sector is just as capable of taking advantage of people (case-in-point). Xenophobia and racism are still issues, no matter how much we want to ignore them. after looking this up....Global Horizons Manpower Inc is just a labor supplier. They don't own farms. Maybe they're also dirty, but the farms that allow this slave labor & conditions should be on the suit and this news story. Yet again, CNN = Commentary Not News And they wonder why Americans "wont" do those jobs? This is why UNIONS are so important!!!! mnesbitt It will be interesting to see who owns Global Horizons Manpower Inc.? I will bet that most of them are politicians or movie actors. my2cents There is also the other side. All the needy families these men left behind to hopefully provide for them once they got here. Annexian The best way to turn this country around, lifestyle and national debt is to: 1. Get RID of illegals, first by targeting (hopefully legally) their employers. 2. END tax breaks and subsidies to companies that export jobs. We'll have negative unemployment. This will make wages skyrocket. More people with more money will by definition pay more taxes, versus few people with a LOT of money who both face less taxes and then cheat on even those. Hey Annexian, are you one of those hypocrit descendants of white invaders who came to north america and slaughtered millions of native americans, and now you're whining about "illegals" with absolutely zero moral standing? If you look far enough back, pretty much everybody in the world has ancestors who did things that we would find inexcusable by todays standards. It is also obvious that future generations will find plenty to criticize about things that are done today. Those of us alive today are in no way responsible for the actions of our ancestors, and we should not be blamed for them. We cannot change the terrible things they did. We can only be responsible for what we do now and in the future. It is up to each of us to live our lives to the highest standards and to treat each other with respect and to help each other as we can. Slavery has always been a global issue. We can be thankful that attention is being drawn to it and that governments, NGOs, etc., are starting to take action to stop it. This lawsuit is a small but important step. As individuals, we need to demand more and stronger government action, and we need to do our own due diligence as consumers to ensure we are not purchasing goods or services from companies that use slave labor. Your attempts to blame people alive today for the actions of their ancestors accomplish nothing. Focus your energy on the people who are alive and participating in the immoral and criminal acts you were discussing today then you will be doing some good. While you may say that there are many who have ancestries that can be questionable, no one country has a more deplorable history than these United States. A history comprised of slavery, servitude, racism, exploitation and degradation, runs uncontested through this countries history. The fault that lies with current generation is that they take no stand to correct the wrongs of yesterday, they just shrug it off as the past, so this history continues. If you don’t clean up the past how can you have a future. It’s not a blame game and shouldn’t be viewed as one. Instead, people should be saying how can we correct this so it doesn’t happen again. How can we correct this so the lingering atmosphere of justice never served doesn’t exist and that the generations going forward will look back on this time in history and say the same thing. It is very easy to be unaccountable. To be accountable to this injustice is to boycott all the companies listed. In the U.S. nothing ever matters or effects this corporations until you hurt their revenue. Don’t Buy! THINK 2012....2012...2012...2012..1012 MAYATIME i'd rather boycott these farms that tricks people from foreign country to work in the united states, falsely promising better pays and better benefits and then, once these people arrive in the u.s., their passports gets confiscated and throw them in the crammed room, infested with rats and cockroaches. and these farm owners should be brought to justice! thank you very much! callitasisee i did some consluting work in the central valley of CA. i estimate not one of the "farmers" down in the dirt was a legal citizen of the U.S. This report reminds me of the ill treatment and abuses of the Joad family in the 1930’s, in John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath. I commend the federal government and the EEOC for confronting these reported inhumane and immoral actions of Global Horizons Manpower, Inc.. Koeheleth was right: “There is nothing new under the sun”. (Ecclesiastes) If only people would “Do unto others, as they would have others do unto them”, as Jesus taught. (The Sermon on the Mount; The Gospel of Matthew) That was re-written by the greedy: do unto others before they do it into you kurtis kirby Sad,sad,sad. Our society is blind to this, we just want cheap stuff.Are you aware that all the cheap junk we buy is made by slaves abroad.(China,Malaysia,Indonesia,etc.) Our whole lifestyle depends on slavelabor from abroad. Why wouldnt businesses practice that crap here? Oh, come on, they were asking for it–look at the way they're dressed. Farm workers, sex trade workers, whatever. They're not really human beings. Merely cogs in the colossal wheels of commerce. The human race is doomed. This is happening right now in "modern" america. What a shame. Thai people are hard workers but taking advantage of it is completely stupid of these manipulators. Hope they get compensated for all their work and return their passports. Petty point: Wouldn't the 'largest case(s) of forced farm labor in the U.S.' be what happened early in our country's history- slavery? Just saying, it seems weird to read that as an unqualified statement without thinking about slavery. The great United States was built by slave labor: Blacks, Chinese, Polish, Hungarian, Mexican, Thai, Philippine workers all working for slave wages, just to name a few. NODAT1 What the point???? the owners of the contract company will claim ignorance about the illegals and hire a slew of lawyers or pay local elected leaders to get rid of the problem or bury it under redtape. Low level managers/field managers will take most of the blame with a small fine or some jail time. Most of the workers will be deported and greedy lawyers under the pre-tense of helping the wronged illegal workers will sue the land owner for damages "The men were brought to the United States under a federal H2-A visa program, which places foreign workers on U.S. farms. But once the men arrived, the suit says, their passports were confiscated and they were not paid for their work." Bigtoe Easy fix. Put an end to the H2-A visa program. It generates abuse. End it. bwn Whites are always exploiters. They never do any hard work, that is same everywhere. They wanted to exploit others. LeBourreau Wow! What a rascist comment. Oh wait, it can't be rascist because it is against whites (BTW, we prefer Caucasian). And for the record, you are full of BS... That label fits none of the Caucasians I know or associate with. Well, I prefer not using either words; white nor Caucasian. A better description is light beige, or off-white is also acceptable. You are a racist bigot If you believe that, you are not only racist, you are also ignorant and/or incredibly naive. Yes, there are evil white people who exploit others, but this is true of every race as well. If you don't believe that, you have not been paying attention. Not a month goes by when I read articles about slavery and other abuses being committed by people of other races and ethnicities. Open your eyes and your mind to this sad reality, and you may be able to do something about it and be a better person in the long run. Hey! These must be the jobs that the tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations created. Thanks GOP, I knew you'd never lie to me... /sarcasm I say disband the company seel the land, and split up the profits to the workers, then jail time for those responsible. Good first step, but they should also be charged for the actual hiring of illegals. Read it again. These workers were here LEGALLY. H2 visas are given so we can get cheap farm labor from abroad. These jobs pay wages worse than what a 12 year old baby sitter can get and Americans (me included) really would never work that hard for such low wages. labor camps in the U.S... oh man.. the most outrageous thing here is that this went on FOR YEARS before it was brought to anybody's attention.. I would like to know what is being done so this doesn't happen again.. (it's probably happening elsewhere as we speak... what can the govt to PREVENT these labor camps from coming into existence at all instead of suing and prosecuting after the fact????) Jimmy Cracks Capricorns This is what you get when Fortune 500 companies only care about the bottom line and making sure they underpay labor. This anti-fair wage attitude is destroying the fabric of our economy and it's time Americans demanded better of, from, and for themselves. So many people cried that TARP shouldn't be used to prevent a company from failing. Similarly, unfair labor practices shouldn't be used to keep a business alive. Let them pay fair wages. If they fail, they fail - good bye. After all – how did these people get into this country to begin with? TSA approval, State Department approval, no doubt... bwn I think your comment is a bit stretched and stereo typed. I know plenty of hard working white americans black american asian americans. So on and so forth. It also makes you sound like a racist to say whites what to exploit others for hard labor. All races are guilty of the same crimes black, white, yellow, pink, or purple. See? This is how we are supposed to react; how we are manipulated into reacting. Blame America, blame those degenerate Southern Californians, blame American "corporations". But this is actually foreigners doing this to foreigners on American soil. As noted, the CEO of Global Horizons, Mordecai Orian is an Israeli. To BWN – Unfortunately, no race is exempt from greed – I'm not giving the whites a free pass, what they did was WRONG, but many slaves were sold into slavery by their own people. I also agree that the farms benefitting from this horrid example of business should be on trial as well. Sanction them, put them out of business – reduce the demand and educate the public on what the real cost of goods is! This has been going on for so long. Don't forget about the Jack Abrahmoff scandal. Same thing was being done to legal visa workers in factories for US clothes companies. If anyone wants to see how it's all done watch the movie Casino Jack with Kevin Spacey starring, also, if you want the blow by blow true story watch the documentary on Jack Abrahmoff, also called Casino Jack... Thanks for the recommendation. It seems the federal government gives more rights to Thailand citizens than native born Americans. Now they'll be able to sue with aid from the feds and get food stamps and free citizenship. Mystery Babylon U.S.A. Shall fall. the government is suing these companies that hire a recruitment firm to bring these worker over legally!!! Then the headhunter charges the workers 7-10thousand US dollars for the trip to come here and work. So, they leave their country to pick your fruits and vegetables for about a dollar an hour, so they can never pay off the debt that they owe the headhunter that the US company has already paid to bring them here in the first place. They take their passports, so they are unable to leave the US. It's not special rights buddy, it's indentured slavery. Look it up if you don't know that means. MrMailman This has been going on since the foundation of The United States......why is there so much awe and "how could they do this to another human being".........why dont you people wake up and smell the crap the lingers on your upper lip. In Harris county Houston, there is another case...Well goto this site : http://www.txattorneys.com/news-219.html This kind of human trafficking happens all over the world. The US State Dept publishes a report that rates countries around the world on human trafficking. The fact that this kind of abuse is happening right here in the US and that it took so long for action to be taken is embarrasing. No wonder people look at the USA the way they do. Was it not Cisero who said that what made Rome great was her justice? And didn’t the great French philosopher and sociologist, upon visiting America in the eighteenth century, conclude that what made America great was-not her factories nor her industries– but her morality, which the philosopher witnessed first-hand, as it was preached powerfully from the pulpits of the churches across America. Was not this what the philosopher reported to the French, after touring America in the eighteenth century? You go look at Global Horizons, Inc website then check out their associations and you will understand why there is no criminal charges. Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs, Assoiation for Corporate Growth, Association for strategic Planning, American Marketing Association, Assoiation for Corporate Growth (Los Angeles division). This is a joke, these are not just jobs that Americans won't do like picking fruit. Make up your own mind. maegen Hey, if we want cheap food and clothes, we should hold all under illegal immigrants under fire for our inexpensive food and goods productions! When they're dead or dying, we can turn them into Soylent Green wafers and enjoy those as a snack. Then we can all stop sniveling at the other little humans we have no real compassion for and go back working in our high-end offices making photocopies and emptying trash-bins. Cheap stuff, happiness, and rainbows for everybody that works for a wage. All's well, right? A lawsuit and no one is facing criminal charges? Are society is doomed. There is no responsibility anymore. Someone should have been hung for BPs mess up, yet not a single thing... Assuming the companies are found to be guilty of these charges, I hope there is no leniency. In this country, this stuff simply cannot be tolerated. If they are guilty, I do hope there is lengthy prison time along wth all assets frozen to reimburse those who suffered. Read the name of the owner. Foreigners are allowed to come to this country and propogate the same attrocities committed in the societies from whence they came. Gives Americans a bad name. Fun Fact. Americans enslave other Americans. We (including US diplomats) also frequently enslave foreign domestic workers who are looking for decent pay to send to their families. You've heard of mail order brides? We also intercept European students who come here for work exchanges- pick them up at the airport, take them to an apartment, rape and beat them, put them to work in strip clubs and on the streets and force them to pay $300-500 per day, until someone helps them escape... then we try to catch them or hurt their families. make sure your US pride is well founded before you get self righteous- Americans are not better than anyone, anywhere. dpmol Boycott them! Boycott them now! Write to them & boycott them! Captain Cook Coffee Co. Kauai Coffee Co., Kelena Farms MacFarms of Hawaii Maui Pineapple Farms No criminal charges? You've got to be kidding! They should all be shut down big time. Everyone... make a list of all these farms and make sure you NEVER buy any of their products. Seriously? That's the problem, we all get involved in the "illegal" immigrant rant and the color bias that we forget that human abuse is prevelent. Just look around at countries, including USA, Canada, South America, Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia with the child pornography "sex slaves" trafficing with the United States being the #1 buyer. Greed, Power is non political and non biased and it's coming to a town near you. I agree with you to a point, but America is not the #1 buyer, it's Mexico and Russia, mostly the sex trade. Human trafficking in the USA is done by a foreigner who is not a citizen and trafficking in and out, but you got these fat punchy old farts who run farms and construction sites that hire immigrants to work for little money and a roof over there head. That is modern day slavery. This can go on and on. There is so many different types of slavery in this world. America is not excluded, but we are not the #1 country doing it, but we are in it. Did you know that illegals are getting all the help in America? Get this, when a Mexican has a bunch of kids and get food stamps on a debit card, they can take out money and send it to Mexico to buy cheap farms off of American tax payers money. How's that for ya? We are paying for land in Mexico paid for by our government. You can buy an acre down there for little or nothing. I got off the point here, but like I said anyone doing any kind of trafficking or modern day slavery needs to have their balls chopped and fed to the pigs. Need to carry a notebook around with a list of companies never to buy from. What a sad time we live in even though it's the twenty first century already. QuietStormX I've heard about this company in California, I think on 60 Minutes. But this might be a big issue with these companies and farms? Thaifriend The LA Thai Community Development Center is paid by the government to find alledged mistreated Thai workers willing to commit perjury in exchange for a T-visa. braddeloyed and that paticular center like the filipino one in LA also shows your nationals how to lie on paperwork to get work visa's fiancee visa's and green cards based on lies and other loopholes that INS cannot go activily investigate on a daily bases...not to mention the "safe houses in Brea and Walnut and of couple spot closer to LA too. bighead73 It had to be a black person on welfare that made that racist comment. probably because they are too lazy to get off thier butt to find a job. all races have scumbags oldnews Global Horizons was first investigated, fined, and debarred from the non-immigrant visa program in 2006 – by the US Department of Labor. The FBI followed suit four years later and filed criminal charges against the company. This is just the first suit that has been able to reach the farms to which Global provided workers. GoldenGirl The weirdest sentence in this article is: "In many cases, the Thai workers were threatened with deportation if they complained about the conditions, the lawsuit said." So being taken back home was worse than what they were experiencing. Very sad. yes. unfortunately they left their homes for a reason. many slaves come from high conflict zones, or regions which are extremely impoverished. sometimes a slave will be liberated, forced back to their home country, and be compelled to try for a good job overseas again because their circumstances are so desperate. When will these crazy americans learn there lesson that its not right to hold people against there will not pay them and then mistreat them that slavery is not right that being here against your will on false pretense iis not great and no one wants to put up with that kind of treatment. All around the world people are fighting for freedom what mkes it any different for people here! Im glad they told on those companies I hope more people fight these type of injustice done by powerful companies that mistreat the workers there not helping anyoone just being greedy and using the poor I hope they are closed down and made to stop this immoral behavior!!! NO ONE WANTS TO BE A SLAVE PAY THE PEOPLE AND THEN YOU WILL HAVE GOOD EMPLOYEES NOT SLAVES. Someone should treat that horizon owners like slaves and see if they like it! so your argument is that americans capture and bring in foriegn peoples as slaves to harvest our produce? yes. i feel like you didnt read the article. for that matter read hillary clinton's trafficking in persons report- 2010. its the most comprehensive. and go to freetheslaves.net. so much information in their research section. What about the companies that know they are hiring these people? They should be slapped with huge fines. Old game new day. With more and more states adopting Arizona's racist policies it is only driving this more under ground. When coming here in what they think is legal and then to find out they are turned into slaves they fear little recourse from a hateful local government. Somebody should but never will check the lettuce farms in Yuma or cotton fields accorss the state of AZ... Won't happen as the gov here doesn't care or wont be bothered just more Mexican's to them. Many legal or not are turning to Crime lords for protection. They can no longer turn to police whom they fear so they are turning to the Mafia for help... Now the Mafia in border states is growing with power in the Mexican neghborhoods becuase of Gov reactions to the workers (legal or not). Same thing that happend in NY City 100 years ago. If you attacked, your daughter rapped and you fear the police and the gov hates you whom do you turn to? The racist laws in AZ,TX and other places are only breeding more and more mafia... We are trading day labors in for gun totting thugs and hired police... Carzy just carzy. Human slavery is terrible, but our state actions are actually creating an environment for the this to grow. oregon reader Oregon has the immigrant Work program. They work in the starwberry fields etc. I know of at least 50 US CITIZENS who have tried getting these jobs and were told they only hire the mexican immigrants. People are willing to do these jobs but they wont hire them. Low wages are not the reason. They get their MOTEL rooms paid for the MONTHS that they are here and made a lot more money then the maids that were cleaning the motel rooms they trashed while here. Quit glorifying breeders too many people . Like anything rarity increases value. If your poor sorry no kids for you . Me? No kids . My actions are where my mouth is . Its Ll downhill from here otherwise Also I forty three married for seventeen years I cant stand all the cutesy spo lifers who love the unborn and babies but cannot tolerate these same lives that grow up to have to have opinions opposite theirs . Many welfare people they cant stand were once sweet lil babies of the poor muchos british americans no saben que por el trabajo del immigrante estados unidos todavia se encuentra en pie,no saben que deportando la gente ,del pais las naciones extranjeras ya no estan comprando los productos norte americanos ,acuerdense que las companias de carros ya esta abajo,la gente de aqui no sabe o no aguanta trabajar en esas temperaturas,muchos soldados blancos no sirven para nada ala ora de la ora no tienen oo para afrentar el enemigo cara a cara. la gente blanca se ba a dar cuenta lo que les estoy diciendo ,una gran parte de estados unidos se ba a undir pronto,recuerden lo que les digo soy una persona MAYA. YO QUIERO MUCHO A LOS ESTADOS PERO ESTA JENTE RASISTA NO BA A DEJAR QUE LOS ESTADOS SE COMPONGA,ABLAN MAL DE BARACK OBAMA QUE NO ASE NADA,ESTAN PENDEJOS PORQUE LOS BLANCOS SON LOS QUE DESTRUYERON LA NACION. i REMEMBER THAT THE UNITED NATIONS TOLL mR. BUSH NOT TO WAR AGAIST IRAQ BUT HE DINT LISTEN,THATS ABUSE OF THE UNITED STATES. Yuveth Slavery has been around forever. You would think that as society and people evolve that things so barbaric, such as slavery, would stop existing.. but it doesn't. I want to point the finger at money and rich vs poor but I think that is just the surface of the problem. I think the nefarious side of man-kind is to blame. These farmers, who do this to these people. I would bet they go to church every Sunday and pay their taxes and are good upstanding citizens. It must just be their god given right to treat another human being like a thing. An object at their disposal. Instead of getting better with these moral and ethical issues.. man-kind has taken a huge nose dive. Our right vs wrong scale's have all but been swept away with the new and improved gadgets. Braddeployed true enough if Americans were willing to do the job that these mexicans and other people were doing it wouldn't be a big problem. Then agian I never seem to see farms setting up recruitment for farm work. Where I grew up (during the summer) they put signs near middle and high schools recruiting kids for 6 hour jobs picking and cultivating strawberries, corn, and oranges for 3.50 an hour. There were about 100-175 that would show up for 3 weeks. So its doable. Or hell make it something for convicts or Juvie hall punks. then there "pay" gets held until time served. If anything just make it illegal all together to bring in Migrant workers....DONE If americans are so hard up for work they'll grab the chance at that it takes no skill at all. they might not get the best pay....but obama care will take care of health issues 🙂 and america starts using americans to work agian Do you hear yourself? Look Americans have some standards. I don't think the job has anything to do with if Americans were willing to work. Mexicans would eat crap if you paid them here in the USA because they are illegal and want to be here and this is why they would work for 3.50 hr. Do you think an American is going to shack up with a bunch of men in a trailer or a barn? This is how a Mexican lives and without shacking up with a bunch of other Mexicans he wouldn't be able to pay a bill with that pay. An American or most either own a house or rent a apartment which roughly cost 650 to 1200+ a month. Do you think that an American can pay that working 3.50 hr? Buddy use your head and think. It has nothing to do with Americans being lazy or not willing to work. Be realistic. A farm owner should have his ass in jail for paying cheap labor to Mexicans and hiding their butts in this country. you're misreading. they aren't paid 3.50 an hr- they aren't paid at all. and these aren't just mexicans, its anyone- American citizens included. and it's not just farms. its factories and sweatshops (some sweatshop labor is paid and workers can leave if they want, but much is bonded and workers are paid nothing and kept by violence and threats of violence), individual households who keep domestic workers, and strip clubs, and prostitution rings, mines, restaurants... By 'slavery' they don't mean 'underpaid exploited labor' they mean slavery. The average cost to buy a human around the globe is $90 USD. the range is from like $10 to $1000. this is a human rights violation for about 27 million people, not an unfortunate circumstance for a few socially marginalized non-citizens. Any one involved in any kind, shape or form of Human Trafficking needs their balls chopped off and fed to the pigs. novek Some times people who have plenty money, and runs large organization,which requires a work force often dont like to pay the RIGHT AMOUNT OF MONEY to their worker .Hence the reason for 4 employing these people,they are not registered so in other words their no body.Employer pay no tax ,pay them what ever he want.At the end of the day , the employer saves his money.hence the saying ,"richer get richer an the poorer get poorer. Biere Casmir Bman Amiri Motors is agency in automobile as general marchandise for development.Investors are welcome.online gsm phone 234 8068099453. Bman Amiri Motors is Agencies in Automobile,Cars supplies,sales,services,business centre.Call 2348068099453.And General Marchandise. Bman Amiri Motors is general marchandise as Bman Amiri International,sales and service We needs road network at Mbubu Orie Amiri,round globe Oru-East LGA Imo state Nigeria.For help people on their development.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2111
__label__cc	0.502739	0.497261	What To Do When ‘The Mother Country’ Wants To Send You Back On The Windrush: Navigating The Hostile Environment of Brexit Britain ‘In this country in 15 or 20 years’ time the black man will have the whip hand over the white man.” ― Enoch Powell, River’s of Blood’ Speech, Birmingham 1968 I don’t normally like explaining my art process, as it can differ according to my mood and the topic of my work. I prefer to leave it open to interpretation but I’ll attempt to just this once. I was asked by Nottingham based magazine Leftlion to create a front cover and middle page poster for their June 2018 Issue. For a while I was wondering what imagery should I create for this cover? I needed to embark on a journey in search of fresh inspiration. Leftlion Editor, Bridie Squires, sent over a list of some of the featured articles, notably black British poetry legend and activist Benjamin Zephaniah, an article on Female Genital Mutilation featuring Valentine Nkoyo, a feature on artist Jasmin Issaka, Human Rights Lawyer Usha Sood, activist and Jamaican WW2 veteran Oswald George Powe and a play by a local Nottingham playwright Mufaro Makubika called ‘Shebeen‘ about the 1958 race-riots in Nottingham. All of which made for a very culturally important edition of Leftlion. Now, I see myself as being relatively deep, I knew that I wanted to say something colossal and powerful with my art… but what? Then the news of the Windrush Scandal hit, basically the UK government have been steadily kicking out Caribbean’s who immigrated to the UK in 1948-1971 (of whom were deemed them British Citizens according to the Nationality act of 1948). For more info on the Windrush see link What is the Windrush scandal? How the Windrush generation got their name and why many fear deportation by Ann Stenhouse My blood boiled after seeing Prime Minister Theresa May and Former MP Amber Rudd’s faces in Parliament drowning over facts, figures, tepid apologies, and pathetic last minute attempts to save political careers. David Lammy MP delivered a brilliantly emotive, soulful, parliament shaking speech and after hearing a tsunami of stories of deportation being reported in the national press and not only in black newspapers such as The Voice, Gleaner or as merely word of mouth amongst PoC communities. I decided that I was going to channel the nauseous concoction of pride and disgust I was feeling into creating a collection of pieces of illustration inspired by the Windrush Scandal. The Windrush Generation, Navigating Britain, How to Convey Them Visually Excited fearfulness, queasy vulnerability, disappointedly chilly, a seasick loneliness, a war torn run down realisation, relieved to be safely on dry land, eyes searching for familiar faces. I have gathered info from the Windrush generation, those that I know personally and have researched in interviews. Above are a few of the emotions that would have been running through the youthful minds of people first stepping foot off the ship Empire Windrush in England, ‘fresh off the boat’. I decided to base my illustration on a freeze frame taken from footage shot by the BBC of the literal moment that a young black Jamaican man had first laid eyes on England (see slideshow above). He’s a young dark skinned black man, smartly dressed in a trilby, pinstripe suit and bowtie. Though in slight wonderment you can see that he is hopeful. My parents are a part of the Windrush generation, they came from middle class backgrounds in Jamaica, my dad arrived in 1958, as a detective in Jamaica he was only able to be a Traffic Warden and Bus Driver in the uk. Likewise my mother arrived in 1962 as a teacher and had to start off working in a factory, but why? Which brings me to what has to be one of the single most cruel plot twists for Caribbean British citizen’s in post WW2 British legislation. My parents had always drilled into me that ‘Education is key’ and that I have to work at least twice as hard as my white counterparts. I later learned why they were so adamant. The British government ran Jamaica’s education system but even so; Britain disallowed by law all the qualifications of Caribbean British citizens (down to age 11). The effect was that it acted to ghettoize; you cannot have access to higher paid jobs, which would afford you better places to live. Even though on average middle-class and many working class Caribbean’s knew a lot more about stuff like… ‘the Queen, Buckingham palace, William the Conqueror, Shakespeare, Sheffield Steel, Clive of India, The Brontës, David Livingstone and how he ‘civilised the savage’ in Africa, industrial revolution’ etc more than your average white working class Brit. To convey this element in my art, I created conflict within each image in terms of their mood. The imagery I created is deliberately jam-packed with contradictory information that my parents and other Caribbean’s had to navigate and survive under. “White privilege is an absence of the consequences of racism. An absence of structural discrimination, an absence of your race being viewed as a problem first and foremost.” ― Reni Eddo-Lodge, Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race Channelling The Caribbean Perception of Post War Working Class White Britain & My Feelings on The Windrush Scandal ‘We were taught that the streets were paved with gold and that most white people were rich ’. Caribbean’s were generally taught whitewashed version of history, religion and a blind allegiance to British nationalism. All of this was a effective tool to insure that many Caribbean’s would well behaved subscribe to conservatism, meritocracy, respectability politics aspire to be like white people Be non-critical thinking servants at Britain’s beck and call, that would be compelled to come running just like the ‘good old days of Empire and slavery’. Then could be disposed off as the Britain Government and white ruling class saw fit. Though many did not adhere to all of the above and fought against the indoctrination by re-educating, decolonising and rebelling in a myriad of ways. I conveyed the clashing views of the Black British Caribbean self under the narcissistic paternal rule of Britain by using dissonant imagery, such as religious iconography, 19th century etchings of the torture of slaves calling for abolition, photography of Caribbean’s toiling in plantations, Caribbean war veterans both men and women, BlackLivesMatter protests of Nottingham, Nottingham Riots of 1958, interracial couples, the permanent influence of Jamaican culture on popular British culture and the English language, Caribbean nurses, Brexit scaremongering and racist signs. I incorporated the beauty of paradise, sunsets, palm trees, houses with red tin roofs into my art. I wanted it to represent rose tinted memories of belonging, innocence, the memory of being a part of an ethnic majority and the confidence in ones stride that brings. A saturated use of colour was used to convey paradise and to appear diametrically opposite to the overcast aesthetics of Britain. I tried to convey that Caribbean people comment that they were shocked to find that in reality they found Britain to be smoky grey, old, dirty, dank, shoddy, ignorant, unhygienic, depressing and hostile. Caribbean’s and notably Jamaicans were instantly deemed as troublemakers, criminal, smelly, ugly, noisy and inferior in every way. ‘No, Blacks’ was a regular sign that would be seen in most accommodation available for rent and in places of employment. Most white churches would ask Caribbean’s not to return in a most polite and very British fashion. Many Caribbean people would have to defend themselves from attackers, which helped fuel riots and protests for basic human rights in Britain. I chose to represent these elements by incorporating real newspaper headlines and riot photography slashed into the imagery. Black British Caribbean women have arguably been the anchor of the Black British families and community, a much needed ‘big up’, acknowledgement and appreciation of the beauty and strength of those women. Hence my depiction of the black caribbean woman as queen, plus I wanted to convey the 2 figures as ‘the Adam & Eve’ of the biggest influx of Black people in Britain since its creation. Scandal is the word for this malicious act of the British government effectively wanting to get rid of the Windrush Generation now they 50+ and their children and in some cases grandchildren, after all of our great sacrifice, great contributions to Britain I wanted this art to be a visual smack in the face, machete chops and cuss words in visual patois, a beautiful explosion of consciousness. ‘If you are the a big tree, we are the small axe, sharpened to cut you down, ready to cut you down’ – Bob Marley & The Wailers As big black women of Jamaican descent taking up room in the uk in any sense can be treacherous, often greeted with backlash; be it via my art on the cover of a magazine, singing self penned songs, navigating unemployment, voicing my opinion or merely walking down the street. I have personally have never felt a part of Britain and the recent scandal comes as no surprise to me, is it any wonder why? Most black Caribbean’s seldom talk about the moment they encountered England for the first time. I hope my art can act as a mouthpiece for their feelings, mine and for those no longer with us The beautiful struggle continues… If you are interested in buying any of my work please click on this link https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/THEHONEYEFFECT . Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you think and thank you for reading my blog. Middle page poster of the June 2018 Issue of Leftlion Magazine Front cover of the June 2018 Issue of Leftlion Magazine 12 June, 2018 12 June, 2018 thehoneyeffect Image Tagged 1940s, afro caribbean, amber rudd, antiblackness, ART, benjamin zephaniah, black britain, black british, black british art, black culture, black girl magic, black lives matter, black men, black women, bridie squires, british culture, caribbean, colonisation, conservative, david lammy, deportation, empire, enoch powell, global antiblackness, honey williams, influence, jamaican, jamaican british, jasmin issaka, leftlion, London, mp, mufaro makubika, no blacks, nottingham, oswald powe, patois, politics, slavery, thehoneyeffect, theresa may, usha sood, valentine nkoyo, windrush, windrush generation, windrush scandal, ww2, youth culture Leave a comment	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2122
__label__cc	0.680687	0.319313	1.800.958.5698 1.800.958.5698 Valley Fiber Partners with Providence University College Providence is excited to announce an agreement with Valley Fiber Ltd to install fiber optic Internet connectivity to the Providence campus in summer 2019. “We have long recognized the need for higher Internet speed and bandwidth to service our Providence community,” says Martin Ward, Director of IT Services. “We were invited to visit the facilities at Valley Fiber in Winkler and were very excited when we saw their data centre and fiber projects in progress. What differentiates Valley Fiber is the flexibility of their solution for us and the vision and technical innovation in their projects. “We want the best Internet connectivity for our students, and we are confident that Valley Fiber will provide a solution for us that is on the leading edge of Internet technology. This will enable us to provide outstanding connectivity for our students and allow us to be innovative in our future online offerings.” Conley Kehler, Senior Vice President of Valley Fiber, adds: “Valley Fiber is very pleased to announce our partnership with Providence. Providence continues to strive to be a leader in Christian education and we are excited to participate in the mission of Providence to teach people to grow in knowledge and character for leadership and service. The infrastructure of fiber optics will begin to open numerous doors for Providence as they move forward in their goal to be one of Canada’s foremost Christian universities. The dedicated fiber build of Valley Fiber will serve the school for many years as it continues to attract students to the beautiful campus in Otterburne. We look forward to working with the team at Providence and would like to take this opportunity to welcome them to the Valley Fiber partnership family.” Trenching for the fiber optic cable is expected to begin this spring, as soon as the frost is out of the ground. Original Article Back	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2126
__label__cc	0.570159	0.429841	6 Caledonia Avenue, Kingston 5 Jamaica, West Indies Phone: 474-2570/537-8764 Email: value.services@gmail.com GLEANER - Nuttall Takes On Business Partner For Emergency Centre Avia Collinder, Business Reporter The Anglican Diocese in Jamaica has taken on a management partner for a new accident and emergency centre, twinned with new ambulance services, at the 90-year-old Nuttall Memorial Hospital in Kingston. Nuttall Chief Executive Officer Harvey Levers said that under the arrangement, Value Added Services Limited has provided equipment and staffing for the new emergency centre, and that both parties will share the cost of operating the facility. The head of... Read More The New Accident & Emergency Unit and Ambulance Services Background As Value Added Services (VAS) continues to grow, it now embarks upon one of its greatest projects, the management and operation of the Nuttall Accident and Emergency Unit and Ambulance Services. As the former Executive Director of St. Joseph’s Hospital, 2003-2009 and St. Patrick’s Foundation, Brown’s organizational and strategic management skills were honed with extensive transformational processes that led to the re-birth of both institutions with a focus... Read More Golden Age Home residents to benefit from health and wellness centre THE management of the Golden Age Home in Kingston is seeking to establish a health and wellness centre at its Vineyard Town premises, to boost treatment and care provided to the 453 persons residing at the institution. "This health and wellness facility will be able to provide our residents with numerous services," said General Manager Laurette Adams-Thomas, as she addressed a Christmas fair held recently at the facility. "We are looking at a medical arm of it where we will have emergency... Read More NIA and JCSC Integrity Ambassadors Project Value Added Services was contracted by the National Integrity Action (NIA) and the Jamaica Civil Society Coalition (JCSC) to engage three secondary schools in a pilot project using edutainment as the tool to help students distinguish between corruption and integrity. The Integrity Ambassadors Programme was born out of the desire to communicate the integrity message to the micro level by targeting student leaders for training as Integrity Ambassadors. These trained students are... Read More JSIF Rocky Point Market Social Marketing and Capacity Building Initiative The community of Rocky Point in Southern Clarendon is the recipient of a new market facility through the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF). It emerged during the appraisal for the project that the community had a number of issues that need to be addressed. These include weak sanitation and hygiene practices at the individual and community level, poor solid waste management systems and weak management capacity of the community development society. Value Added Services was contracted... Read More Norman Manley International Airport On any given day, hundreds of travelers, diplomats and other foreign dignitaries may pass through the terminals of the Norman Manley International Airport (NMIA). The airport's administration entrusted VAS to deliver intensive protocol and customer service training to its frontline staff. Particular attention was paid to operations in the airport's V.I.P lounge which can only be accessed by members of the Jamaican Government, Parliamentarians, foreign diplomats and invited designates. Since... Read More Follow Us Today! E-mail:value.service@gmail.com © 2013 Value Added Services. All Right Reserved. Website By: Blitz Web Design Templates	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2128
__label__wiki	0.953608	0.953608	Nvidia CEO Jensen says ‘China looks fine’ for games and AI chips Dean Takahashi@deantak May 16, 2019 3:01 PM Jensen Huang of Nvidia shows off 10 GigaRay graphics card, the Quadro RTX 8000. This is the card that is informing the architecture for the RTX 2080 Ti and its cousins. Image Credit: Nvidia Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said in an analyst call that the market for Chinese games looks good, as the market’s gamers continues to grow past 300 million players. “China looks fine,” said Huang. “I think China has stabilized. The gaming market in China has been vibrant and continues to be vibrant. There are all sorts of positive signs in China.” He said that Nvidia’s push into real-time ray tracing is pushing game developers to create more games with the high-end graphics features. Earlier today, Nvidia reported earnings and revenues that were well below last year’s figures, but the graphics and artificial intelligence chips company beat analyst expectations, and it is climbing back up after a couple of weak quarters. Nvidia reported revenues of $2.22 billion, down 31% from a year ago, for the first fiscal quarter ended April 28. Non-GAAP earnings per share were 88 cents, compared with $2.05 a share a year ago. But those numbers beat expectations. In after-hours trading, Nvidia’s stock was up 6% to $169.70 a share. Analysts expected Nvidia to report earnings per share of 81 cents on revenues of $2.19 billion. For the full year, revenues are expected to be $11.05 billion. GAAP earnings are expected to be 56 cents a share. In the past couple of quarters, the Santa Clara, California-based company was recovering from the slow launch for its new RTX graphics cards, and the aftermath of the cryptocurrency bust hurt its earnings. Nvidia is in the middle of a refresh cycle for its graphics processing units (GPUs), based on its RTX architecture, which enables real-time ray tracing. Those chips got off to a slow start last fall as games weren’t ready to make use of them. Nvidia said that major game engine makers at Microsoft, Unity, and Epic Games now support real-time ray tracing. “It’s fair to say ray tracing will be adopted all over the world,” Huang said. If Nvidia has a slow spot in its business, it is among data center hyperscale customers who are buying the company’s AI and enterprise chips. Nvidia said its inference AI chips did well. Patrick Moorhead, analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy, said, “I believe that inference was very strong and the company expected data centers to kick back into buying more training solutions in the back half of the fiscal year. Intel told a very similar story and I think it makes sense.”	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2134
__label__wiki	0.845666	0.845666	Joburg 19 ℃ Home/Feature/Mosiuoa Lekota joins right-wing voices in falsifying history Mosiuoa Lekota joins right-wing voices in falsifying history By Pinky Khoabane In a radio interview this morning, President of COPE, Mosiuoa Lekota made rather startling revelations which put the history of land dispossession at 1913 when the Land Act was passed. This is a clear falsification of history meant to suit a particular agenda which can only protect those who stole the land. His contention is seemingly that proving land ownership prior to 1913 would be difficult although he hastened to say that those who could should. This is the kind of falsification akin to that used in the empty land theory which claims that South Africa was an empty land when Europeans arrived despite archeological and historical evidence to the contrary. WC Holden in his book, The Past and Future of the Kaffir Race, used the theory to legitimise European settlement in South Africa and the dispossession of Africans of their land. http://www.sahistory.org.za/article/empty-land-myth Lekota was speaking on the current debate on expropriation of land without compensation. He took us on a history of a people from around the world that came to South Africa “not for nefarious means” but as slaves and who through “their sheer hard work” amassed land and title deeds. His argument is that these people and their descendants cannot be removed from their land and if they are, it certainly cannot be without compensation. He used among others, the story of Cecil Rhodes who came to South Africa because of “ill health” and later, through his own accord, skill and hard work started digging for diamonds from which he became the multi-millionaire that he is today. He amassed vast lands some which he donated to good causes, Lekota says. He mentioned in particular, the University of Capetown which is built on Rhodes’s land and questioned whether that land would be expropriated. His views that South Africa needed to “think” seriously on the land issue to avoid “unnecessary bloodshed” was first mooted in the National Assembly during the debate last week. Lekota’s views brought home what was so inept about CODESA but also and perhaps more importantly, the ongoing tragedy of the deliberate falsification of history. The COPE leader opted for the best strategy of falsification – vagueness to his assertions. He didn’t offer the historical, legal and socio-economic context within which he premised his debate. We cannot for example, ignore the laws in this country that sought to advance white people over blacks and strip the latter of their dignity and deny them equal opportunities to everything including wealth. His is a campaign to negate history – a phenomenon which dates back centuries. Through his work, Senegalese “historian, physicist and philosopher” Cheick Anta Diop, meticulously traces and documents African history and places Egypt at the centre of the history of civilisation. By so doing, he refutes many ideas previously presented by other researchers, archeologists and historians. He attributes the spread of the falsified history within the context of a spread in imperialism which helped drown out the “historical truth”. In the South African context, the colonial and apartheid state propagated the myth of the empty land theory through the colonial and apartheid curriculum and history books as true and through their propaganda machinery which included the department of information. Various versions of this falsified history have been repeated over the years even in newspaper articles in mainstream media. But it was perhaps Dr Pieter Mulder that resurrected the myth when in response to President Jacob Zuma’s State of the Nations Address (SONA) in 2014 said: “Sir, Africans in particular never in the past lived in the whole of South Africa. The Bantoe- speaking people moved from the equator down while the white people moved from the Cape up to meet each other at the Kei River. There is sufficient proof that there were no Bantoe-speaking people in the Western Cape and North-western Cape. These parts form 40% of South Africa’s land surface.” In the ongoing campaign to place the arrival of Europeans in South Africa of Europeans at the same time as the African, we often hear the argument that the San ought to complain about the arrival of blacks. The CEO of the FW De Klerk Foundation, Dave Steward responding to Zuma’s January 8 Statement of 2015 that the arrival of Jan van Riebeeck in Cape Town was the beginning of all the trouble, wrote an article in Pretoria News: “Might the San – who once occupied the whole of South Africa – not also be able to complain that the arrival of blacks in South Africa was a disaster for them?” http://www.iol.co.za/pretoria-news/opinion/excoriating-whites-not-the-way-to-go-1806026 Lekota has sadly joined the right-wing voices which seek to re-write history. COPE Dave Steward FW De Klerk Land Act 1913 Land Dispossession Mosiuoa Lekota Mathews Phosa, please resign and save CellSaf from clutches of corporate greed Today in History: Ghana turns 60 as an independent state Ebony Caterino says: So far, it looks like the judiciary is really the ONLY game in town as far as our democracy is concerned. Congress has been AWOL since 2009, and as far as the Executive Branch goes – well, we know how that is working out. Sandanathi says: We all have our masters whose tune we sing. Now and then, we are bound to sing their tunes to the top of our voices, without showing an iota of shame even if that means spewing lies, disinformation and deceit. Gazebo says: I think as the President said blacks should unite and take back the land without compensation is the way to go. Any debate around the question of who came to SA first between blacks and whites is simply a ploy to delay the inevitable. Alternatively we can have a referendum on the question, “Should land be expropriated without compensation?” Then those for and against will campaign and justify their position to voters. It wil be a YES or NO vote. A referendum is fair and easy to administer. No voters roll is needed, only an acceptable document such as an ID or paasport is required for one to vote. These history debates are so open ended and will never end. The poor and landless masses will be the ultimate loser at the end of the day. And those parties who claim to support land reform without compensation such as EFF will have to be seen to actively campaign for a YES vote. Cena Foura says: How far back should be go in history to “rectify” injustices? You also appear to be totally ignorant of the fact that the SA state already owns about 25% of the land and NONE of it has been handed to any black person along with a title deed. Blacks aught to understand that the ANC is communist at the core and that they do seek to enslave their subjects by denying them land ownership, keeping them dependent on the state, a slippery slope to misery. They are currently using their racist hatred for white people to get you to give up your property rights just to wreak a unholy vengeance of innocent people whom have done you no harm but have played an integral role in the very establishment of a country called South Africa. All this, now, to divert attention away from the FACT that the black ANC is plundering SA, R1 Trillion so far, and still going strong. Sean Goss says: As a person of “mixed race” let me indulge you on this contentious issue. I am of Khoi, Xhosa Indian and Irish descent. The Khoi compeonent is 40%.Some of that Khoi was also derived from my Xhosa ancestry. Many publications talk of violent clashes between Bantu, Khoi and White settlers going back to 1613 in Angola. What many “historical” books dont mention is that fierce skirmishes and battles raged against a united Khoi-Bantu force in Southern Africa, from about 1550 to 1700’s. The “Khoi-her-first” argument is meant to silence criticism of racism! It does not wash, because Khoi and their descendants are treated no different from their Bantu kin. Why dont the colonisers start returning land in Western and Northern Cape immediately, if they care so much about the Khoi. Fact is Khoi tribes like the Nama, Koranna, and Khoena endured some of the most violent oppression from 1600 to date. In Fact the entire Seapoint right up to Bishopscourt, further up to the best farm land belong to these people..Who are also ancestors of many Xhosa, and Zulu people..We see all their lies.. Njabulo Xulu says: Are the Khoi and San people not black? The Khoi and San were virtually exterminated by the Venda people, the same tribe as Cyril Ramaphosa. What compensation are they receiving? Johannesburg’s Black Magic Circle of Consumption How FNB Is Ripping-Off Black Clients – A bond of R61,000 Taken Out 21Yrs Ago & Client Still Owes R79000 Treasury pays +/-R500m per day in interest to private banks – State Capture Koorbonally’s letters expose toxic family feud over the Trillion-Rand inheritance Rupert’s Grindrod Bank banks SASSA’s Billions After Mossad Targeted Soleimani, Trump Pulled the Trigger Climate Change And Capitalism Ecuador – and the IMF’s Killing Spree Cuba found to be the most sustainably developed country in the world, new research finds Women Forgotten In The Shadow Of History: Mama Maria Nyerere areees12 Well said!... The History of Writing in Sub-Saharan Africa, Including the most notable literary works written by African authors about African history from from the 2nd century BC to the 19th century AD - African Politics and Policy […] source; https://uncensoredopinion.co.za/the-histor... We've published your comment in full as an article.... Na NN Key historic facts about Africa 1) East Africa and West Afri... Tayyabah Makda Interest and spending beyond one's means. The issue of havin... Newsletter Type Women Forgotten In The Shadow Of History: Urbania Bebe Mothopeng The History of Writing in Sub-Saharan Africa, Including the most notable literary works written by African authors about African history from from the 2nd century BC to the 19th century AD Nestlé and the Privatization of Water: A Tale of Many Cities Banksters (1) Great People (14) State Capture (63) ABSA (50) ANC (136) Cyril Ramaphosa (92) DA (37) Democratic Alliance (38) economic freedom (40) EFF (38) FNB (56) Guptas (65) Jacob Zuma (129) Johann Rupert (95) Nedbank (40) Nelson Mandela (63) Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma (38) Pravin Gordhan (82) State Capture (38) Thabo Mbeki (48) Treasury (36) © Copyright 2020, All Rights Reserved \| Uncensored Opinion OPEN LETTER: Rupert: Not All Blacks Are Afraid Of You Know Your History – Why We Call Them White Monopoly Capital Owned & Controlled Media Pravin’s portfolio of shares reveals much about state capture For As Little As A Monthly Donation or Subscription of R150,00 You can Keep UnCensored Alive For those of you who read UnCensored regularly, we implore you to donate. 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__label__cc	0.742605	0.257395	This site employs Cookie Tracking. Click here to find out more. Luxury short-term and vacation rentals Explore London Five Ways to De-Stress in London Published on: 13th September 2019 Sometimes – even when we’re on holiday – we need to enjoy a moment of calm. This can be easier said than done in London, which is a vibrant, bustling place. Fortunately, the UnderTheDoormat team have found some secret spaces for you to de-stress in: the perfect spots for finding your zen. Float your troubles away If you fancy recreating that ‘lounging on a lilo’ feeling without being on vacation, Floatworks is the place to go. Scientifically proven to increase wellbeing, floatation therapy can improve aches and pains, enhance mental clarity, and even put a smile on your face – what’s not to love? London’s Floatworks has been soothing stressed-out Londoners since 1993. At both the Angel and Vauxhall branches, visitors can find relaxing lounges and specially-designed, heated floatation pods (all of which contain concentrated Epsom-salt solution to supercharge the experience). Close off, unwind, and submerge yourself in the healing waters – you’ll soon feel like you’re floating on air. Finding peace in urban areas can be something of a challenge – one that garden writer Liz Ware took in 2016, when she set up a not-for-profit project called Silent Space. The project – which required a number of public gardens to reserve an area each week in which people could be silent for a period of time – was a huge success. Silent Spaces was officially born. There are now three Silent Spaces in London: Wilderness at Ham House; the Sackler Garden at the Garden Museum; and St Mary’s Secret Garden. Once at the Silent Space, talking or the use of mobile phones is prohibited; meaning that visitors are free to sit down, wander around, and relax in complete quiet. This allows them to enjoy the restorative beauty of their surroundings - and bask in the moment - in a way that is not possible within the hustle and bustle of the city. A perfect oasis of calm. Lunchtime meditation and music Classical music calms the mind: it’s a fact. The sound of classical music prompts our brains to release the chemical dopamine (often known as the ‘pleasure’ messenger) and inhibit the production of stress hormones. Fortunately, in London there are ample opportunities to fill one’s ears with the sounds of classical music. One of our favourite calming classical sessions is even free – just pop into St James’ Church (near Piccadilly) and indulge in one of their complimentary lunchtime concerts on Monday, Wednesday or Friday. Alternatively, if you would prefer to squeeze some bitesize meditation into your lunch-hour, go to Inner Space in Covent Garden or the City. There you will be guided through a free thirty-minute meditation, which has been cleverly designed to leave you with a positive mindset and a sense of peace. Lie back and enjoy the view The Banqueting House, a Royal Palace, is one of London’s best-kept secrets. The only surviving building from Whitehall Palace (the principal residence of British monarchs between 1530 and 1698), it is famous for two main reasons: first, for being the place in which King Charles I was executed (he was accused of treason and beheaded); and second, for containing the only in-situ ceiling painting by the famous Flemish artist Sir Peter Paul Rubens. It is the latter (and more pleasant) element that we will be focusing on now, because Rubens’ ceiling is an amazing sight. One of the most relaxing spots in London, the ceiling is best viewed when lying down on the floor beneath it, so that the spectator can enjoy an interrupted, expansive view of this spectacular piece of art. To encourage this relaxing pastime, the venue even provides comfortable, squashy beanbags on which to recline! So, what are you waiting for? If you’re in central London and in need of a moment of quiet, head over to the Banqueting House, grab an audio-guide, and lay back on a sumptuous beanbag. Feast your eyes on Rubens’ fine work, enjoy the peace, and learn all about the history and art of this fascinating building. Stress-busting bonus: cuddle up with a cat A recent 20-year study concluded that being a cat-lover has benefits: in fact, people with cats are less likely to die of a heart attack. Spending time with a cat increases levels of the feel-good hormone, serotonin, whilst decreasing cortisol (the stress hormone). Also, they’re furry, lovable, and perfect for cuddling! Fortunately, the ‘cat café’ phenomenon has hit London, meaning that feline fans have plenty of options in the capital. If you’re looking for a place to chill out in and make a ‘purrfect’ pal or two, our blog on cat cafes will point you in the right direction. < 10 of London’s Best Bakeries Three of the Best Chocolate Experiences in London > Introducing UnderTheDoormat UnderTheDoormat offers ‘home from home’ experiences in luxury properties in and around London. Chose from over 100 homes Explore homes Are you a London homeowner? UnderTheDoormat homeowners experience a fully serviced short-term lettings solution which enables an effortless income and complete peace of mind. Discover what your home could make you, with our quick and easy calculator Receive exclusive offers & benefits in our fortnightly newsletter. We won't spam you, ever. I would like to receive UnderTheDoormat News See the inside story on our social channels. See our finest homes, stories and inside tips for exploring london on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Connect with us on LinkedIn for our business news. Planning a trip to London? 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__label__cc	0.523456	0.476544	Over the past four years, Unicorn Riot has built a worker-managed non-profit media organization. We have worked tirelessly to build a platform that focuses on primary source reporting and on-the-ground coverage. Our reporters go where the story is unfolding to bring you the voices of real people alongside crucial context and facts. Our media platform publishes original content, such as: • Live video streams of protests, civil unrest, migrant camps and border zones, political conventions, summits, speaking events and cultural performances • In-depth investigations providing transparency into police killings, surveillance of social movements, and spotlighting corporate and government abuses • Extensive reports exposing the most active white supremacist organizations in the U.S. based on our vast online database of leaked chats • Community-focused coverage on arts and culture, alternative economics models, and sustainable living • Short and long-form documentaries • International reports and breaking news coverage Unicorn Riot cultivates an alternative model that thrives outside the profit-driven media economy. We provide Creative Commons media that’s publicly available for free without ads or paywalls. Unicorn Riot content is only made possible because we are independently funded through contributions from viewers like you. Now’s the time to join our community of supporting donors to keep Unicorn Riot going into 2020.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2139
__label__cc	0.590999	0.409001	Coming to the right conclusion I've been reading Alison Weir's excellent "The Six Wives of Henry VIII" and just recently I read about Anne Boleyn's first pregnancy which eventually produced Elizabeth I. Henry VIII desperately wanted a male heir to the throne and expected his new wife would produce a boy. The royal house consulted soothsayers and astrologers about the sex of the baby. Only one dared predict it would not be a boy: William Glover, famous throughout the kingdom for foretelling the future, told Anne he had a vision of her bearing 'a woman child...." This was not well received. Over a Pajamas Media, Charles Martin explains "Reasons to be a global warming skeptic." If you're a researcher, that's where the money is: The predictions of further warming are necessarily based on models. Now, it happens I did my PhD work on Federally funded modeling, from which I developed the NBSR Law (named after the group for which I worked): All modeling efforts will inevitably converge on the result most likely to lead to further funding. Anyone with a unbiased eye who looks into it will find any number of people who have found that a model that predicts more warming gets funded; a model that predicts relatively less warming gets less funding. Pre-tenure researchers in particular are warned away from results that don’t fit orthodoxy. There's much more to make you relieved that Al Gore lost the Presidency. Are you ready for some football? - Yeah! Thursday, September 8th, opening kickoff at Lambeau Field, it's a Saints-Packers showdown. No point watching that other thing. "Regulatory and policy uncertainties" you say! - Patterico has a good write up about the collapse of green job darling Solyndra. Goodbye jobs, goodbye tax money. Slouching towards Europe - Michael Barone: "The price of entitlements - We face not only current budget problems but a Western Europe future." The jig is up! - Big Think: "Majority of Americas agree with Perry that Social Security is a lie." To be specific, a wide majority of younger voters don't believe they'll see dollar-one of their Social Security benefits. Master prognosticator I have not come here to question this man's prediction of Obama's re-election. Rather, I'm going to laugh and point at his first foray into the crystal ball: Allan Lichtman, the American University professor whose election formula has correctly called every president since Ronald Reagan’s 1984 re-election, has a belated birthday present for Barack Obama: Rest easy, your re-election is in the bag. In other news, Prof. Lichtman took the Harlem Globetrotters over the Washington Generals by three-and-a-half. Extra - From Hot Air and Ace. I'm starting to like this Perry fellow Here's Governor Perry talking about my favorite subject: "Social Security is a monstrous lie." "It is a Ponzi scheme for these young people. The idea that they're working and paying into Social Security today, that the current program is going to be there for them, is a lie," Perry said at a campaign stop in Ottumwa, Iowa. "It is a monstrous lie on this generation, and we can't do that to them." But then he's just repeating what's been stated by the Social Security Administration: The projected point at which the combined Trust Funds will be exhausted comes in 2036 -- one year sooner than projected last year. At that time, there will be sufficient non-interest income coming in to pay about 77 percent of scheduled benefits. At 77% of promised benefits, Social Security becomes a deeply negative investment for the future and one that cannot be passed on to survivors if you die. As I like to say: it's such a good program, they had to make it mandatory. Cable's out - That's about the extent of the disruption due to Irene. He's their guy - Fred Barnes on Weekly Standard: "Obama's enablers - Meet the mainstream media." Looting HDTVs Mark Steyn has some choice thoughts on the rioters in England: "The Desperation of Deprivation Myth." In fact, these feral youth live better than 90 percent of the population of the planet. They certainly live better than their fellow youths halfway around the world who go to work each day in factories across China and India to make the cool electronic toys young Westerners expect to enjoy as their birthright. To justify their looting, the looters appealed to the conventional desperation-of-deprivation narrative: They’d “do anything to get more money.” Anything, that is, except get up in the morning, put on a clean shirt, and go off to do a day’s work. That concept is all but unknown to the homes in which these guys were raised .As Steyn notes in his conclusion, this is the endgame of a society where Xbox-less looters are the victims while those who produce to pay for everything are on the wrong end of the "us vs. them" class warfare narrative. Another one bites the dust - It's Saturday night so it's the perfect time to bury some praise for the Obama administration. Although I think Obama is heading this country over a cliff towards insolvency, he's making all the right moves in killing terrorists. CNN: "U.S. official: Al Qaeda's #2 has been killed." A mighty wind approaches - That's all they're talking about on the news. We get it. I already have camping provisions because I go camping. Sheesh. The impersistence of memory I was heading into the garage tonight to check the tire size on my wife's car, armed only with my cell phone, when it occurred to me: how will I remember the tire type? Well, I could take a picture of the sticker inside the driver's side door. Or I could speak into my cell phone: "P215 60R16" and then retrieve it later. Or I could send myself a text. OR...I could just remember it for the twenty seconds it takes to get to a pen and paper. And that's what I did! Hooray for me and my big brain. What do the Red Queen and the Congressional Budget Office have in common? They can each believe six impossible things before breakfast. Well, in the case of the CBO it's five things, including the notion that Congress will slash Medicare payments by 30% by the end of 2011 and all the Bush tax cuts will be allowed to expire. But, like the Obamacare mess, that's the way they have to score because that's the current Washington policy...until it changes. Anyway, here's Hot Air with "CBO: Deficits will drop, thanks to measures that will never take effect." Extra - Over at Hit & Run, Peter Suderman speculates that somewhere in the multiverse, there may be a parallel Earth where Washington gets its fiscal house in order. But it ain't here. More - Here's Lesley Gore on Shindig, and why not?: An expensive half-functional product for the mildly insane The Truth About Cars has a great blog post comparing the frenzy behind Apple's infamous "Lisa" computer and the Chevy Volt: "GM's Apple moment: Could it already be time to dump the Volt?" In retrospect, it seems obvious that a $9,995 computer wasn't going to set the world on fire, particularly in an era when a new Oldsmobile Cutlass cost less than that, but Apple had become a navel-gazing maze of slightly insane people who had been isolated from the real world by a tidal wave of cash, success, and public acclaim. The Lisa arrived with a bang but barely sold a whimper's worth of volume. To begin with, the Lisa didn't deliver what it promised. The display wasn't as big as we'd hoped, the resolution wasn't as good, and performance inside the applications was dog slow. The proprietary floppy disks were hideously expensive and difficult to find. Peripherals were nonexistent. Even if you didn't care about any of the above and possessed a new car's worth of cash to drop on a Lisa, your local Apple dealer might not be able to get you one due to production issues. Does any of this sound familiar? I bet it does --- to Volt intenders. The Volt has consistently under-delivered on its promises, from the styling to the open-road fuel mileage. It costs more than anyone outside of GM's own insane maze thinks is reasonable . The man on the street doesn't want one and the the Volt true believers couldn't take delivery thanks to restricted production. Autoblog reports that Chevy sold 125 Volts in July, down from 561 in June. It's looking like this thing is heading for a museum somewhere. Grab your headbags - Hit & Run: "The real hostages - The trouble with Obama's favorite metaphor." Specificity creep I'm trying to coin a new term for Obama's penchant for over-promising on details before he falls back onto another amorphous speech of empty demagoguery. Remember his "very specific plan" on jobs? Yeah, not so much: "Is Obama's specific plan now just an outline?" "The president is going to outline a short-term plan to accelerate the economy," Axelrod said on ABC's This Week, "in the face of the hits we've taken, because of the Arab Spring and oil prices, because of the Japanese earthquake, because of Europe that have slowed down economic growth. On Meet the Press, Gibbs used similar language, "The president is going to outline some ideas, the president has outlined ideas every day he's been in the White House." By the time he gets back to Washington, Obama's plan will be down to "do some stuff." The government that governs best - Jeff Jacoby "When 'inconsequential' means 'better'": "Of course some functions can only be performed at the national level. But Washington does far more than it should, in so many ways treating Americans like children who cannot be trusted to run their own lives. The effect of that infantilization has been an erosion of the virtues without which no free society can thrive: Work, honesty, discipline, gratitude, moderation, thrift, initiative." What are words for, when no one listens anymore? During his Midwest swing of not-campaigning, President Obama promised a "very specific" plan to create jobs and control the deficit. Charles Krauthammer takes a guess: He will propose: spend now, cut later. That’s going to be in the speech, I guarantee it. It will be: You’ve got to have stimulus now, perhaps tax cuts, surely spending on the roads and bridges and all of that stuff. That you hear about endlessly. Undoubtedly. Ace thinks this is all a setup to go "full Truman" so Obama can rail against the "do-nothing" Congress. So here is the plan: He will "challenge" the Republican House to pass a new "stimulus" plan which is (this is my gloss; this he did not say) unpalatable by design to the GOP. That is, his challenge is designed to be rejected. My emphasis added. In other words, this jobs plan is designed to save one job in particular. But let's put that speculation aside for now since my question is more prosaic: can Obama put forward a "very specific" plan for the economy without putting it on paper? This has been the knock against Obama since his budget was unanimously voted down in Congress and the head of the CBO famously said: "We don't estimate speeches." Obama talks and talks and talks, but actual budget plans with numbers prove elusive from this President. In my opinion, Obama can't bring any real pressure on Congress without an actual Excel spreadsheet showing the income and expenses. Another speech will be dismissed by Congressional Republicans out-of-hand as grandstanding and campaigning - not leading. But, by the same coin, I don't see how Obama could possibly present a credible plan with realistic numbers. Despite his Warren Buffet-inspired bit about getting the rich to pay their "fair share" even a 100% tax on the rich won't close the gap on this Administration's spending binge. So will Obama finally take on entitlement spending which will overwhelm the entire budget in only a decade? Ha-ha, not a chance: "Mediscare" is like crack to Democrats. There is no way that Obama will head into the 2012 without his "protector of entitlements" shield. So - realistically - after two-and-a-half years of useless Keynesian spending stimulus, there's no combination of income increases and expense cuts that can bridge the yawning deficit gap that remains. Which is why Obama won't put numbers to paper. Time for another speech. Missing Persons, indeed. How to kill Obamacare - Enforce the law. The Hill: "HHS grants 106 new healthcare waivers." We're closing in on almost 1,500 waivers now. Let's have equal enforcement of the law then see how much everybody likes it. Aw, snap, we should have put on two stamps - During his recent bus trip (not a campaign tour), Obama claimed at every stop that Congress was holding back job growth by failing to pass free-trade agreements. As it turns out, the White House has not submitted the agreements to Congress, a fact that totally escaped Obama's press secretary. Let's not let the facts get in the way of a good talking point. Darn you, Tea Party! Verizon's land-line business - Megan McArdle: "The incredible shrinking union." Don't take the A-train - Hit & Run: "Poltifact gets high-speed rail facts in Florida wrong." Obama doesn't care about black people Well, that's what Maxine Waters said: At her town hall meeting, Waters questioned why Obama hasn't gone to any black neighborhoods during his bus tour. "We don't know what the strategy is. We don't know why on this trip that he's in the United States now, he's not in any black communities," she said. Funny how 19% unemployment changes opinions. Extra - From Big Government. Reasonable Obama reasons that he's reasonable Here's Allahpundit with "Obama on bus tour: I'll never apologize for being reasonable" Remember how reasonable he was when he shamelessly broke his campaign promises about entitlement reform? And how, when Paul Ryan got exasperated at the lack of leadership on this issue of utmost fiscal gravity, he risked political destruction to offer his own solution instead — and got dumped on by Obama at a televised press conference for his trouble? That was pretty reasonable. How about when the “grand bargain” for the debt-ceiling deal was just about to come together, replete with $800 billion in new tax revenues, when Obama suddenly decided he needed another $400 billion in revenue or else his base would be grumpy? That was the end of the bargain, and the bill that did finally pass, of course, produced nothing in revenue. And yet, somehow, on the stump it’s all the GOP’s fault for not putting “country first” and compromising. Reasonable. Allow me to go back a little further. Remember when Obama was putting the finishing touches on his useless stimulus package and Republicans thought maybe it wasn't such a good idea? The new President told the GOP "I won" then crammed it through the House with no support from the Republicans. Reasonable. Later the Republicans resisted the unpopular restructuring of one-sixth of the U.S. economy with Obamacare. When John McCain raised some objections to the legislation being crafted behind closed doors with special deals, Obama told McCain: "we're not campaigning anymore - the election's over." Reasonable. And whole some may criticize that the President has "never once" presented a budget plan or a debt-reduction plan amidst his taxpayer-funded campaign tour, it's OK. Because the man, after all, is reasonable. Winding down the "green jobs" scam - Boston Globe "Evergreen Solar files for Chapter 11": "Evergreen Solar Inc., the once promising alternative energy company that received millions in state subsidies, revealed today that that it has voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection." That would be millions in direct state funds to fire everybody in Massachusetts and move operations to China. Before the collapse, the White House touted Evergreen Solar as part of their "Real Results in Massachusetts" - don't laugh now - "because of the stimulus bill." About what you'd expect - Doug Ross: "Time magazine nails it: the cause of S&P's downgrade of the U.S." Obama answers "Well, let me put it this way, I'm like Thomas Jefferson, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Abraham Lincoln rolled together except those dudes never got to fly in Air Force One. Boo-yah!" And if I may follow up, are you awesome or merely sublime? This was typical of the hard-hitting questions President Obama faced today: Q Yes, for sure. My name is Will Morrison (ph). I actually live in Rochester, Minnesota, home of the Mayo Clinic. Well, I just want to say I don’t think we should solve this debt crisis -- and it is a crisis -- on the backs of the middle class and the poor. (Applause.) They don’t have special interests, they don’t have lobbyists. And I want to be their lobbyist and special interest. And I just think that if we are serious about this debt, we need to ask the millionaires and billionaires to give up their tax breaks so not all the burden is on us. Pow! Not one person asked Obama about his budget plan or debt-reduction plan. But, ooh, those darn Republicans. By the way, virtually everything Obama says about Social Security is a lie. The mainstream fringe party Jeff Jacoby takes aim at Senator John Kerry in "Tea Party sounds a needed alarm." But he [Kerry] ought to have the intellectual honesty to acknowledge that the Tea Partiers are not “absurd’’ to focus on budget cuts and entitlement reform - not when federal outlays have more than doubled (from $1.8 trillion to $3.8 trillion) in a decade. Not when entitlement payments are eating up two-thirds of the federal budget. Not when Washington has to borrow about 40 cents for every dollar it spends. And not when, as a result, the US debt burden has ballooned from 40.3 percent of GDP in 2008 to an alarming 72 percent this year - and growing. In explaining its downgrade, S&P did not call for the higher taxes that Kerry and many Democrats seek. Instead it said that the debt deal “fell well short’’ of the deficit reductions needed, that it provided only “modest savings’’ in discretionary spending, and that Congress was unwilling to curb Medicare and other entitlements, which is the “key to long-term fiscal sustainability.’’ That sounds an awful lot like what the Tea Party has been saying - except that the Tea Partiers were raising the alarm well before S&P got involved. By a nearly 2-1 margin, Americans did not want the debt ceiling raised and yet, according to Kerry, it's the Tea Party that represents a fringe that should be censored. We're going to work in cooperation with the terrorists - Townhall: "Wasserman-Schultz explains Democrats' Medicare 'plan'." Obama and his Magic Jobs Program Did you catch that line below? President Barack Obama sought to reassert economic leadership on Thursday by pledging to deliver new ideas every week to create jobs... Every week, it's a whole new bitchin' jobs proposal! [Sung to Rebecca Black's "Friday"] "Jobs plan, jobs plan, gonna hear some new job plans!" And yet. Whenever I hear about the pending new smart-power-driven budget or jobs plan, all I can think of is "The Gong Show." "Larry And His Magic _____", an alleged musician (also portrayed by Spencer) whose various appearances featured a series of different instruments. His call-and-response act featured him proclaiming, "I'm gonna play my (trumpet, fiddle, xylophone, kettle drum, accordion, etc.)" and the audience shouting back, "Whatcha gonna do?" This exchange would be repeated twice, after which he would announce, "I'm gonna play my (instrument) nowwww!" Instead of playing, though, he would merely repeat his audience-punctuated declaration. After a few verses of this, the skit would inevitably end with Spencer failing to play his instrument. Don't worry, Obama's got some ideas, and boy-howdy, they're gonna turn this economy a-round. The Whiner-in-Chief How did America elect such a crybaby? President Barack Obama sought to reassert economic leadership on Thursday by pledging to deliver new ideas every week to create jobs, and he slammed Congress for "bickering" that hurts economic recovery. In a passionate speech to auto industry workers aimed at deflecting public anger over policy gridlock in Washington, Obama said the refusal to put country ahead of party "has got to stop." "I'll be laying out more proposals in the days ahead," Obama, a Democrat, said. The problem was not a lack of answers to the pressing issue of economic growth and hiring, rather it was people "playing political games," he said. This is the infantile foot-stomping of a guy who has never had to work hard for anything, who has never held a position of responsibility, never had to do much in the Senate except vote “present” and spent the first two years of his Presidency with a filibuster-proof Congress that rubberstamped every useless and unpopular piece of legislation he wanted. Then, in 2010, the voters said “enough” and sent a landslide of Republicans to Washington, state houses and governor mansions. In response to this “shellacking” does Obama recognize the shift in the national mood? No, he wants it his way and he wants it now. Why can’t those poopyheads be reasonable? "Reasonableness," you'll remember, is shoving a wholly partisan, Byzantine restructuring of the health care system through Congress in the midst of an economic downturn. But chipping a few billion off a $3.7 trillion budget in exchange for raising the debt ceiling is an act of irrationality that has, apparently, sucked the very soul from the American project. As usual, Charles Krauthammer explains that what Obama calls “unreasonableness” is what the rest of us call “democracy.” Of all the endlessly repeated conventional wisdom in today’s Washington, the most lazy, stupid, and ubiquitous is that our politics is broken. On the contrary. Our political system is working well (I make no such claims for our economy), indeed, precisely as designed — profound changes in popular will translated into law that alters the nation’s political direction. The process has been messy, loud, disputatious, and often rancorous. So what? In the end, the system works. Obama’s unpresidential outbursts evolve from his hardwired sense of entitlement. Nothing is ever his fault and those who oppose his policies, well, they’re unpatriotic: "There are some folks in Congress who would rather see their opponents lose than see America win," Obama told an audience at a battery facility in Michigan. What a tool. November 2012 can't come soon enough. Posted by Eric at 10:12 PM 10 comments: And since we're doing legal opinions - Legal Insurrection: "11th Circuit strikes down Obamacare mandate." As usual, a good review by Prof. Jacobson and my favorite part of the decision is that "uniqueness is not a constitutional principle." Judge takes swipe at toilet paper dispute I'm a couple days late to this one but a judge on the 7th Court of Appeals had to rule on an argument between two toilet paper manufacturers and a trademark design. At least Judge Evans had a little fun before he flushed the plaintiff's case: We’ll start by introducing the combatants. In the far corner, from an old cotton-producing state (Dixie: “I wish I was in the land of cotton, old times there are not forgotten.”) and headquartered in the area (Atlanta) where Scarlett O’Hara roamed Tara in Margaret Mitchell’s epic Gone With the Wind, we have the Georgia-Pacific Company. Important to this case, and more than a bit ironic, is that the name of Georgia-Pacific’s flagship toilet paper is Quilted Northern. In the near corner, headquartered in the north, in Neenah, Wisconsin (just minutes away from Green Bay), and a long way from the land of cotton, we have the Kimberly-Clark Corporation. Ironically, its signature toilet paper brand is called Cottonelle. It's a switcheroo! We can't let these massive corporations prosper - Fox News: "Apple is the most valuable U.S. company." Clearly, it's time for a windfall profit tax or something. Economies of scale - Hit & Run: "Medicare is more efficient if you ignore its inefficiencies." It's all been said Here's Don Surber with "Boring Barack": I challenge readers to - off the top of their heads - come up with one quote from a speech that Obama has given since taking office. Challenge accepted. Here's the quote I remember (over and over): "Some people think [strained representation of one position]. Still others believe that [extreme representation of the opposite position]. But the best approach is [middle way designed to give the appearance that Obama is the rational adult in the debate.]" London brawling In the wake of riots in London, I heard that on certain city streets they're only letting through police cars, street sweepers and glazier vans to repair windows. More - From Verum Serum. Smart power, 2008-style - Here's a post-election laugher from the WashPost: "So it's not [sic] surprise that in the first month of his transition to the presidency, the president-elect is putting a premium of competence above all else." Thank heaven we still have Geithner. Dog bites man - Actual Reuters headline: "Obama says he inherited economic problems." I think this is the "F9" key on their keyboards. Whatever happened to this bravado?: "Obama: It's my economy? Fine, give it to me." "My job is to solve problems, not stand on the sidelines and carp and gripe." Still waiting on that budget plan, big guy. Let's not forget this interview from February 2009: "I will be held accountable" [on the economy.] Today? Well, there were these earthquakes and stuff. Shorter Obama speech "You know those Republicans who have controlled one-half of one-third of the government for the past seven months? It's all their fault." Extra - Jennifer Rubin: "Obama's horrifyingly bad speech." Win the future - WashPost: "Without reform, the U.S. faces a slow-growth future." I may disagree with what you say, so shut up - Powerline "Chronicles of Ill-liberalism": "Perhaps the hallmark of historic liberalism, at least the 19th century variety of Thomas Jefferson or John Stuart Mill as well as mid-20th century liberals, was toleration and free expression. But does anyone doubt for a nanosecond that if those who today call themselves “liberals” had the power to do so, they’d censor or shut down Fox News and Rush Limbaugh immediately? That’s what the attempted revival of the “Fairness Doctrine” is all about, since for liberals “fairness” means stopping any fight where they’re losing." Cooling it - Joe Nocera of the NY Times apologizes for calling the Tea Party a bunch of terrorists. Heat of the moment and all that. I have to note that Nocera is the co-author of one of the best books I've read about the financial meltdown called "All the Devils are Here" so I was surprised at his over-the-top rhetoric. I blame the NY Times and its editorial board which breeds a certain brand of vapid contempt. Red menace - NY Times: "China tells U.S. it must 'cure its addiction to debt.'" The predictable downgrade I want to take issue with this conclusion from Daniel Indiviglio in the Atlantic: "S&P downgrades the U.S. - but why?" But S&P must be counting on more than just Republicans acting insanely enough to cause default: Democrats would have to act just as irresponsibly. After all, spending and entitlement cuts alone can easily allow the U.S. to avoid default. The agency makes this point, saying that the nation needs entitlement cuts and/or more tax revenue. S&P must assume that Democrats, like Republicans, could reach a limit of how much they'll concede and just let the U.S. economy burn on mere principle. No. Not "and/or" - there must be entitlement cuts. Take a look at this graph from the CBO showing revenue estimates and the combination of entitlements and interest payments on the U.S. debt. Revenue is held constant at around 19-20% GDP since that's historically the high average the government has been able to take in from taxes. A little more than a decade from now, entitlement spending will blow through the entire federal budget. So, yes, tax revenues are needed but it will not be enough to hold back the deluge of Medicare and Social Security. These must be reformed or we'll be nostalgic for the days when we had only a AA+ rating. Does this mean "Recovery Summer" is delayed? - USA Today: "S&P downgrades U.S. credit from AAA." What are they worried about? Entitlements: We lowered our long-term rating on the U.S. because we believe that the prolonged controversy over raising the statutory debt ceiling and the related fiscal policy debate indicate that further near-term progress containing the growth in public spending, especially on entitlements, or on reaching an agreement on raising revenues is less likely than we previously assumed and will remain a contentious and fitful process. OK Go Homage Who stole Obama's ice cream when he was a kid? After signing the debt deal the other day, President Obama give a speech (natch) where he repeated his call for new taxes: Everyone’s going to have to chip in. That’s only fair. That’s the principle I’ll be fighting for during the next phase of this process. Of course we all know that Obama doesn't believe that "everybody" is going to chip in. His personal vision of "shared sacrifice" is somebody else sacrifices their share, because then that's fair. And, man, Obama really wants everything to be fair. He’s overly sensitive to someone differing with him on policy grounds,” Cantor says. And he’s isn’t persuasive. “There’s never any sort of economic argument that he can make for his position. It always reverts to that social-justice end,” Cantor argues. Not that Obama uses the phrase “social justice.” “It’s ‘fairness.’” Flashback to the 2008 campaign. Charlie Gibson informs candidate Barack Obama that if the goal is to raise revenue for the government, it's best to keep capital gains taxes low. But that flies in the face of Obama's religion of fairness where the wealthy aren't allowed to hold on to their money. Here's how Ed Morrissey graded the exchange: Read and listen very carefully to this. The higher priority for Obama isn’t to raise revenue; it’s to ensure fairness. In order to do that, he will have the government take a bigger share of the gains and redistribute them through social programs to others. The pretense of having more money acts as a veneer for good, old-fashioned redistributionism. "Fairness" is Obama's North Star, although it's most immediate and repeated form is that of class warfare. The circumstances and ancillary effects matter not, since that's what's fair. No kidding - White House Press Secretary Jay Carney: "The White House doesn't create jobs." I reject your reality and substitute my own - Peter Wehner on Commentary: "The comforting life of ideological fanatics." Posted by Eric at 10:46 PM 1 comment: Well, here we are - Yahoo News: "US borrowing tops 100% of GDP." Really? Just look at these huge budget cuts! Calling the bluff - Here's Paul Ryan with "Where's your budget, Mr. President?": "Ever since they abused the budget process to jam their health-care takeover through Congress last year, the Democrats have simply done away with serious budgeting altogether. The simplest explanation-and the president's real bluff-is that they don't want to commit publicly to the kind of tax increases and health-care rationing that would be required to sustain their archaic vision of government." I did not mean to imply the next deficit commission will be useless - I meant to state it as forthrightly, lucidly, and unambiguously as possible. Nancy Pelosi: "My deficit committee members will oppose all entitlement benefit cuts." Welcome to America 2.0: entitlements and an army. Can we un-pass the debt limit increase? This (long) headline from Zero Hedge says it all about how stoked the markets are about this new legislation: "Market reaction? 30 year just hit 3.99% as stock selloff accelerates, gold at all-time record." Then there's this from Fox News: "Budget experts see deal as 'spit in the ocean.'" Don't fret your little head, America - the Super-Commission is coming! It's the debt, stupid - Not just the debt ceiling. AP: "Experts say U.S. could still lose AAA rating." All about Obama - It's obvious that the liberals are pretty upset about this debt deal and feel betrayed by Mr. Hope & Change. But they should have seen it coming. The Republicans gained power in 2010 thanks to independent voters and President Obama desperately needs them to swing back to his side for the 2012 election. Barack is betting that the ol' "Yes We Can!" battle cry can whip up the left wing in a year but for now he needs to win back independents if he has a prayer for a second term. I want to believe - Well, the House just passed the debt deal and it will move on to the Senate where it is expected to be voted on tomorrow. Barring some windy speeches by Republicans and Democrats alike, it will pass through the Senate and go up to the White House. My main complaint is the formation of yet another commission to face up to the main driver of our debt problem: runaway entitlement spending on the army of Baby Boomers. Senator Mitch McConnell seems to think that the "super-committee" will tackle entitlement reform where others have fallen short. I'm not so sanguine. Coming to the right conclusion I've been reading ... Are you ready for some football? - Yeah! Thursday... "Regulatory and policy uncertainties" you say! - P... Slouching towards Europe - Michael Barone: "The pr... The jig is up! - Big Think: "Majority of Americas ... Master prognosticator I have not come here to que... I'm starting to like this Perry fellow Here's Gov... Cable's out - That's about the extent of the disru... He's their guy - Fred Barnes on Weekly Standard: "... Looting HDTVs Mark Steyn has some choice thoughts... Another one bites the dust - It's Saturday night s... A mighty wind approaches - That's all they're talk... The impersistence of memory I was heading into th... What do the Red Queen and the Congressional Budget... An expensive half-functional product for the mildl... Grab your headbags - Hit & Run: "The real hostages... Specificity creep I'm trying to coin a new term f... The government that governs best - Jeff Jacoby "Wh... What are words for, when no one listens anymore? ... How to kill Obamacare - Enforce the law. The Hill... Aw, snap, we should have put on two stamps - Durin... Verizon's land-line business - Megan McArdle: "The... Don't take the A-train - Hit & Run: "Poltifact get... Obama doesn't care about black people Well, that'... Reasonable Obama reasons that he's reasonable Her... Winding down the "green jobs" scam - Boston Globe ... About what you'd expect - Doug Ross: "Time magazin... Obama answers "Well, let me put it this way, I'm ... And if I may follow up, are you awesome or merely ... The mainstream fringe party Jeff Jacoby takes aim... We're going to work in cooperation with the terror... Obama and his Magic Jobs Program Did you catch th... The Whiner-in-Chief How did America elect such ... And since we're doing legal opinions - Legal Insur... Judge takes swipe at toilet paper dispute I'm a c... We can't let these massive corporations prosper - ... Economies of scale - Hit & Run: "Medicare is more ... It's all been said Here's Don Surber with "Boring... London brawling In the wake of riots in London, I... Smart power, 2008-style - Here's a post-election l... Dog bites man - Actual Reuters headline: "Obama sa... Shorter Obama speech "You know those Republicans ... Win the future - WashPost: "Without reform, the U.... I may disagree with what you say, so shut up - Pow... Cooling it - Joe Nocera of the NY Times apologize... Red menace - NY Times: "China tells U.S. it must '... The predictable downgrade I want to take issue wit... Does this mean "Recovery Summer" is delayed? - USA... Who stole Obama's ice cream when he was a kid? Aft... No kidding - White House Press Secretary Jay Carne... I reject your reality and substitute my own - Pete... Well, here we are - Yahoo News: "US borrowing tops... Calling the bluff - Here's Paul Ryan with "Where's... I did not mean to imply the next deficit commissio... Can we un-pass the debt limit increase? This (lon... It's the debt, stupid - Not just the debt ceiling.... All about Obama - It's obvious that the liberals a... I want to believe - Well, the House just passed th...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2145
__label__wiki	0.815357	0.815357	Title: Politics from a Poet Creator: Anonymous Source: The News About 31 December 1884. Our transcription is based on a digital image of a clipping in the Trent Collection of Whitmaniana, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University. For a description of the editorial rationale behind our treatment of the interviews, see our statement of editorial policy. Cite this page: Anonymous. "Politics from a Poet." . The Walt Whitman Archive. Gen. ed. Ed Folsom and Kenneth M. Price. Accessed 18 January 2020. <http://www.whitmanarchive.org>. POLITICS FROM A POET. WALT WHITMAN IN PLAIN PROSE RENOUNCES JAMES G. BLAINE. THE GOOD GRAY POET TALKS OF "TERRITORIAL ADVENTURERS" WHO MIGHT HAVE RULED AT A PERSONAL COURT—PRAISE FOR THE PRESIDENT-ELECT. Walt Whitman was found yesterday quietly ensconced in his "den," as he sometimes facetiously calls his eyrie at 328 Mickle street, where most of his waking and sleeping hours are spent. The good gray poet was polite, with that politeness which is self-possession and benevolence well expressed, and gave the best rocking-chair in the sanctum to THE NEWS gatherer. On the walls hung the likeness of the father and mother of the poet, good, sturdy, homelike faces such as grow on "fish-shaped Paumanok" (Long Island, New York). Near by was an etching of an early sweetheart of the old man, a girl of fifty years since. Mr. Whitman was asked what he thought of Blaine's defeat and what would come of it. The poet replied, without a moment's hesitation, as if he had already given the question some thought: "I did not vote myself at all, for I was quite unwell election day and couldn't go out; but I had come to admire the pluck and brilliancy of Blaine's leadership, and thought he would exercise as much power over the masses, and the leaders as well, of the Republican party as if he had been chosen President. But when the Solid South speech came, I am bound to say that I thought that utterance breathed the rankest sectionalism from him at the time, and was markedly in bad taste. "If Mr. Blaine wanted to fight it out on that line before the election he might have rallied the North to his standard, to the breaking down of certain side issues. But renewing the old fires of the rebellion was not to my taste. We are even yet, since the collapse of the rebellion, walking on ashes thinly covering fires. THE CONDUCT OF THE CAMPAIGN. "What I have since learned, such things as the appointment of a man like Jones, a very rich iron manufacturer in Pittsburg, but totally unfamiliar with the 'Heathen Chinee games' of politics, was proof positive to me that Blaine meant to dominate the campaign himself, and went in much in the Shakspearean spirit which suggests that one should beware of entrance into a quarrel; but once in, 'make thy enemy beware.' And by the light of the conduct of Mr. Blaine while President Garfield's Secretary of State, I feel sure that we might safely say that if James G. Blaine had become President for four years he would have surrounded himself with what have been called 'Adventurers from the Territories,' and he would have aimed to build up, and with that masterful spirit of his would have been the head of a personal government only little less despotic than that of Louis Napoleon. "And, under the whip and spurs of Blaine's magnetic presence, he would have carried things with a high hand, and it would have been a personal government as long as he was at the head of it. This accounts in part for the fear the people had in trusting him with a four-years' lease of power. GROVER CLEVELAND A SAFE AND STRONG MAN "But you ask me about Cleveland and I will answer you currente calamo: "Grover Cleveland stands out in strong colors, in a clear light, as a safe and strong man. One with a purpose. "No man before the people ever stood up and took the blows of the press with better welcome than did Cleveland. He bids fair to bring the old-time Democracy back to the days of 'manifest destiny and human progress.' "I think, too, there is wisdom in what Conkling says of the late contest at the polls, that the people were averse to three or four Western adventurers taking possession of the Republican party with an 'hurrah,' and going boldly to work to build up on the ruins of the Republicanism of Lincoln a personal party, a sort of Republican court, where none would be admitted to power save those who had the 'open sesame' of Blaineism." It was suggested that Cleveland would be surrounded by a class of men who would flatter him as the Gascons did one of the old kings, courtiers who, when kicked out of the door, climbed in again at the window. Walt Whitman seemed to think such dilettante of politics would find Cleveland not at all to their liking, and added that "there was in Cleveland a combination of Scotch-Presbyterianism, added to his early self-education, which would make a statesman who would be governed by good sense and patriotism." A SOLUTION OF THE SOUTHERN PROBLEM. He thought, too, that under Cleveland, who had what was rarer than genius in our public men, old-fashioned horse sense and a splendid solidity of personal character, there was every likelihood of the Southern problem reaching a satisfactory solution in the next eight years, for what the negro wanted was not"coddling," but "a chance to build up his fortunes, educate his children and help bring the South into healthy relations with the rich industries, the vast resources and the happy homes of our own section." Herbert Spencer, Mr. Whitman said, had uttered a sensible postulate for a republic like ours, which was: "The liberty of all limited by the like liberty of each!"	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2150
__label__cc	0.675832	0.324168	My First Protection Guide Congratulations, you’ve created your Dominion! Now what the hell do you do? Dominion is an intricate game that throws you into a complicated world with very little understanding of where to start and what to do. There have been guides designed to show new players the ins and outs of the game before but in practice they throw a lot of information gleaned over 70+ rounds of playing to achieve the best results while ignoring the fundamental question of just what is going on. This guide will frame things for a basic human attacker but the principles can be applied to ANY race and playstyle. 1 What To Do First 2 The Importance of 299 3 Building Toward The Future 4 Bursting the Protection Bubble 5 The Home Stretch 6 A Brave New World What To Do First Protection is a magical state that covers the first 72 hours of the game. During this time you cannot invade or be invaded and no magic or spy operations can be performed on other dominions. While only covering the first three days of the round, a good start can be a springboard to a successful round. The first hour is one of the most important ones that you’ll encounter while in protection. The good news is that you can set it up in advance so you don’t even have to be online when the round starts. To begin, your military draft rate needs to be changed; anything above 50% will do. Draftees are required for every acre you explore and each unit you train and the default 10% just won’t be enough. The second page you need to visit is the National Bank. Gems are great for investing but what you need most in protection is platinum and gems trade 2 for 1! Converting your 10,000 gems into platinum increases your starting platinum by 20%, an incredibly helpful early boost. Once those details are out of the way it’s time to get into some of the core mechanics of the game. There are 3 buildings that must begin construction right away because they provide bonuses that are especially valuable in the first days of the game. Factories - These reduce the cost of future construction and are incredibly useful when first getting your production up and running. For the first two and a half days construction is going to account for half of our platinum cost. Without factories we’ll never be able to afford it. Temples - When the round begins you start with 1300 peasants, just over half of what your dominion can actually support. While you’ll gain some peasants every hour, temples increase the rate at which your population grows and more peasants means more platinum production and, more importantly, more draftees every hour Towers - While towers don’t provide a direct bonus like the other 2 buildings, the mana they produce can be used to cast the spells Harmony and Midas Touch, increasing population growth rate and platinum production respectively. Over the rounds people have derived a variety of optimal strategies but a good place to start is 55 factories, 30 temples and 15 towers. This will ensure enough mana to cast your spells as well as a good foundation of bonuses. Notice how you don’t quite have the correct land types? No problem! We’ll just re-zone some of our less valuable land to make the room we need. Feel free to re-zone 10 Plains, 20 Forest, 20 Caverns and 10 Water into 35 Hills and 25 Swamps. Now you can begin construction. You might notice that you still have barren land available; it’s best to resist the temptation to build anymore. 12 hours after the round starts we’ll begin construction again with our newly built factories making everything more affordable. We’re almost finished with the first hour now! If you’ve followed the recommendations in this guide exactly then you’ll notice you still have 20,000 platinum just sitting around. Whatever you happen to have left, it’s time to start growing your dominion and that means exploring. Head on over to the explore tab and explore as many Plains as you can but never more than 29 (We’ll discuss why in just a moment. For this guide, it will be 21). Congratulations! Your first hour is complete and you’re well on your way to glory. The Importance of 299 There are few thresholds in the game as important and impactful as 299 acres. At 299 and below it takes 4 draftees to explore each additional acre of land. Once you hit 300 that cost jumps to 5 draftees per acre. When your exploration is most often limited by how many draftees you have it becomes vital to be as efficient as possible. With that in mind, after exploring your initial acres it is important to continue exploring in the following hours up to a total of 29. Since we initially explored 21 acres, this would mean exploring an additional 8 acres of Plains. While this does need to be done early, it is not necessary to do so in hour 2 or 3. If the round starts in the middle of the night, explore the additional acres when you wake up in the morning. Adapt the game to your schedule! Why 29 acres? Your initial 250 + 29 + Daily Land Bonus (20) puts you at exactly 299. Building Toward The Future 12 hours into the round is when things start to really take shape and you’ll see our early building choices pay off. With our new factories dropping construction cost by nearly 75% it’s time to continue building on the rest of our barren land. We’ll construct 20 Ore Mines, 10 Docks, and 51 Alchemies. Why are we building Alchemies? Aren’t peasants the main source of platinum? Great question! For the majority of the round peasants will indeed be your main and best source of platinum but this early the Alchemy simply outpaces peasant platinum production and we have acres to explore, buildings to construct, and a military to train all in just the next 60 hours. Everything gets more streamlined from here. With your dominion now producing mana, go cast Harmony as soon as you can and Midas Touch after that. It will be important to keep these spells going so find a schedule that works for you to recast them every 12 hours. Continue building Alchemies and begin planning for your biggest wave of exploration yet. Somewhere near the end of day 1, at 279 acres (we’re going to wait to take our daily land bonus), will be that time to start exploring again. When that happens is entirely your choice but you’ll need to explore again 11 hours later so find a time that works. For our purposes we’ve chosen to wait until the final hour of day 1, at which point we have the platinum and draftees to explore for 99 acres (broken up into 84 Plains and 15 Mountains). Don’t forget to take your daily platinum and land bonuses! Our dominion needs all the help it can get and free resources are too important to forget. Unsure of what to do with those barren 20 acres? You guessed it, build another 20 alchemies. Bursting the Protection Bubble Wait why are we talking about leaving protection already? It’s not even been 36 hours yet! It’s important to plan ahead but we’re actually already in the home stretch. If you’ve followed this guide then you’re still sitting in our Goldilocks Zone of 299 acres with 99 incoming and that means we’ll be on 398 acres shortly. You’ll see some people racing up the rankings, exploring hundreds more acres, but we’re not worried about them. The ultimate goal of OpenDominion may be to become the largest in the land but before we can compete for that title we need to understand what we’re doing and why we’re doing it. We won’t worry about hitting 700+ acres and straining our abilities (and sleep schedule) to the limit. For this build we’re going to aim for a nice, cozy 520 acres with enough defense to fend off other attackers and offense to do a bit of damage ourselves. The best part is that with two more daily land bonuses we only need to explore to 480 and that’s only 82 away! So go ahead and explore those last 82 acres of Plains sometime before you leave 299. And that’s all for our exploring; time to turn our attention to planning to come out of protection. First we’ll build those incoming Plains and Mountains. That’s right, you knew what you were building this time. Alchemies and Ore Mines for everyone! In a perfect world we wouldn’t have need of Ore Mines but our units are expensive and require a lot of ore. Thankfully we planned for that and built these extras now. When our final batch of land comes in is when our strategy starts to change as we gear up for our military training. Like we discussed earlier, units are expensive and we need to plan for the high cost of training. While alchemies are still good enough to build they’ll slowly start to become a drain on the other buildings we’ll need to have a successful round. To help with training we’re going to look toward a new building: the Smithy. Smithies reduce the cost of training by 2% for every 1% of land they occupy up to a maximum bonus of 36%. That means by committing just 18% of your land to them you can cut your training costs by over a third! Since we’ll finish protection on 520 acres, that means we’ll need 94 smithies to be built. Thankfully we have 82 acres currently being explored and an additional 40 from two daily land bonuses left to take. For this guide we’re going to be as efficient as we can with this by building 28 Alchemies and 54 Smithies when our final acres come in followed by an additional 20 Smithies with our land bonus from day 2 and another 20 by taking our land bonus and building immediately on day 3. If you can’t be online for this or the day changes while you’re asleep that’s perfectly fine! Just make sure to adjust and construct 94 smithies no later than hour 49. Is it really that bad if I build them an hour or two later? I thought you told me to adjust to my schedule. Yes, it really is that bad. You’ll be out of protection on hour 73 and since construction takes 12 hours to complete and elite units 12 hours to train that makes hour 49 the last possible hour to build smithies. You can always build them earlier but later than that and they become useless to you. Okay I guess that makes sense. But what about that 18%? I’ll still get the bonus at 15% or even 10%, right? While you will get the cost reduction for every fraction of a percentage point of smithies you have the goal still stands at getting to 18%. Even at that maximum 36% bonus we’re about to spend more platinum on unit training than we have on everything else combined. For every percent below the maximum that we’re aiming for you’re going to be spending that much more and we can scarcely afford it. The Home Stretch We’re almost there but we still have just a bit more to go before the game can really begin! Our dominion has been stockpiling platinum and ore for just this moment as your 18% smithies roll in. It is now hour 61, just 12 hours until we’re out of protection. That means it’s time to train our elite units and have them ready for battle when that magical protection wears off. Since we’ve chosen to be an attacker this round, it means we’ll need a healthy mix of offense and defense. As a human we’re going to try and make the most out of our Cavalry, our elite offensive unit which returns faster than normal and will allow us to attack again more quickly. In this guide we’ll train 525 Cavalry, good enough for over 3000 offense and hopefully multiple attacks. We’ll also train 470 Knights, our elite defensive unit. I thought we were attacking! Why not skip the Knights and train more Cavalry? Ideally we’d be maximizing our offensive power while training just enough defense to scrape by but we’re still learning the game. The mantra we’ll go with is “the best offense is a good defense.” Our goal is to gain land by attacking while making sure we’re adequately defended at home while we do so. After training our elite units we have 3 hours to train additional specialist units that only require 9 hours to train. By hour 64 we’ll train another 500 archers for defense. A Brave New World And that’s it! You’re all set to take that next step into the round. But just because we’re ready to come out of protection doesn’t mean we’re finished. The defense necessary to protect your lands will only rise from here and you’ll need more offensive units to keep finding targets and replace casualties. At this point you don’t need to worry about casting Harmony anymore, your population is at or near its maximum and will stay there for most of the round. Instead cast Ares’ Call on a regular schedule for a valuable 10% bonus to your defense. This and Midas Touch will be your primary spells for the remainder of the game. Late to the round? No problem! You may need more defense than recommended in this guide but you now have all the tools necessary to make those changes. Wait! What do I do if I’m converting or just exploring this round? Exploring, or converting, are perfectly viable playstyles and are likely easier for newcomers and inexperienced players. If that’s the path you choose to take there are simple changes that can be made to the guidelines we’ve discussed. Add in another batch of exploration in the middle of day 2 before those 82 acres come in. The extra land will mean you need more than 94 smithies but it’s perfectly fine to cut down on your final batch of Alchemies to make it work. Blackreign's Dominion Simulator My First Round Retrieved from "https://wiki.opendominion.net/w/index.php?title=My_First_Protection_Guide&oldid=893"	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2153
__label__wiki	0.557421	0.557421	Diff for "ModPython" ModPython Editor: dslb-084-057-012-072 Editor: ip59934ba8 Comment: simple formatting Masthead '''URL:''' http://www.modpython.org/ URL:: http://www.modpython.org/ stable version for Apache 1.:: 2.7.10 (''[[Date(2004-01-22T00:00:00)]]'') stable version for Apache 2.:: 3.2.8 (''[[Date(2006-02-24T00:00:00)]]'') licence:: The Apache Software License, Version 1.1 platforms:: Apache 1.3, Apache 2.0 Python versions:: Python 1.5.2, 1.6, 2.0, 2.1, mod_python 3.* requires 2.2.1 '''platforms:''' * stable version for Apache 1.: 2.7.10 (''[[Date(2004-01-22T00:00:00)]]'') stable version for Apache 2.: 3.2.8 (''[[Date(2006-02-24T00:00:00)]]'') '''Python versions:''' Python 1.5.2, 1.6, 2.0, 2.1, mod_python 3. requires 2.2.1 '''licence:''' The Apache Software License, Version 1.1 A framework for WebProgramming. URL: http://www.modpython.org/ stable version for Apache 1.: 2.7.10 (Date(2004-01-22T00:00:00)) stable version for Apache 2.: 3.2.8 (Date(2006-02-24T00:00:00)) Python versions: Python 1.5.2, 1.6, 2.0, 2.1, mod_python 3.* requires 2.2.1 licence: The Apache Software License, Version 1.1 Deployment Platforms Linux and Windows. RPMs available. mod_python can be used to develop fast and small web tools and applications, and as part of larger custom application frameworks. It provides an object publishing mechanism similar to (but much simpler than) Zope, and a very clean mapping from URLs to functions. This makes it especially suitable for building web-accessible libraries using HTTP GET/POST as function call serialization. See the mod_python [http://www.modpython.org/pipermail/mod_python/ mailing list]. ModPython Compatible Web Application Frameworks ModPython itself: ModPython now has built-in support for cookies and sessions, PSP templates, etc., and a CGI handler for compatibility with regular CGI python scripts. Web application frameworks that support multiple kinds of deployments including ModPython: [http://www.python.org/pypi?:action=display&name=WebStack&version=0.2 WebStack] aims to provide a common API regardless of the underlying server or framework environment (be it ModPython, CGI, ["Webware"], etc.). ["Quixote"] is a web application framework that has a ModPython handler. ["Albatross"] applications can be deployed to ModPython or CGI. ["Karrigell"] is meant primarily for running small standalone web applications, but now has a ModPython handler as well. ["Aquarium"] is a MVC web application framework using [http://cheetahtemplate.org Cheetah] for templating with some resemblance to Struts and a ModPython WSAdaptor. Frameworks designed specifically for ModPython: [http://pylets.sf.net/ Pylets] is a new web framework with aspect-oriented MetaClasses. [http://pywork.sf.net/ PyWork] is a Model-View-Controller framework with similarities to Struts. [http://jotweb.tummy.com/ JOTWeb] also separates the view and the model in part by using TAL templates. [http://www.djangoproject.com/ Django] runs in stand-alone mode for development purpose, but relies on ModPython for production. Environment Access mod_python provides a similar API to mod_perl, allowing low-level access to Apache's request handling mechanisms. Session, Identification and Authentication mod_python 3.1.3 and later provides support for server-side sessions with memory or dbm-based storage. It also supports session locking. For earlier versions, JonsPythonModules implement session management as well as templating and database pooling. mod_python has a very straightforward and flexible system for basic authentication, allowing access rules to be configured at the module and function level. Persistence Support Scripts remain in memory between page loads. The Python interpreter can be configured to run per-site or per-directory, allowing the scope of the persistence to be limited as necessary. Presentation Support mod_python provides a php-like built-in templating system called Python Server Pages (PSP), but there are many others that can also be used ([http://www.cheetahtemplate.org/ Cheetah] for example). InTheirOwnWords mod_python is an Apache module that embeds the Python interpreter within the server. With mod_python you can write web-based applications in Python that will run many times faster than traditional CGI and will have access to advanced features such as ability to retain database connections and other data between hits and access to Apache internals. mod_python has been "donated" to the Apache Software Foundation. Here is author Gregory Trubetskoy's official statement as of Thursday, Sept. 12, 2002: It is my pleasure to announce that Mod_Python has been donated to the Apache Software Foundation, and is now a subproject of the httpd server project (see http://httpd.apache.org/). I am grateful to ASF for accepting this donation and committing resources to further the support of Mod_Python. I believe that this action will advance the development of Mod_Python, resulting in an ultimately better and more popular tool for Python developers. I also believe it will serve to better position Python as a language of choice for web development, a need that has been expressed by many. There are no implications to the current Mod_Python users - the license is the same with the sole difference in that the copyright belongs to ASF now. As a consequense of the donation, the CVS repository is now hosted on cvs.apache.org. Do not use the SourceForge repository anymore, it will soon be removed. There will also be website and mailing changes, but the details are still being finalized and will be announced when ready. Grisha Trubetskoy ModPython (last edited 2009-09-09 23:42:52 by PaulBoddie)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2154
__label__cc	0.579743	0.420257	A display-side view of the APX7000, Model 3.5 The APX7000 is Motorola's first dual-band, portable, public safety radio and is the most recent product in the Apex Family of radios (along with it's ruggedized counterpart - the APX7000XE). A speaker-side view showing the main speaker, top controls, T grip shape and top display. 1 Basic Features and Physical Build 2 Ergonomics 2.1 On-Screen Symbols 2.2 Intelligent Lighting 2.2.1 Green 2.2.2 Red 2.2.3 Orange 2.2.4 White 3 "Forwards and Backwards Compatibility" 3.1 Encryption Basic Features and Physical Build Like most other public safety radios produced by Motorola, the APX7000 has a volume knob, a channel knob, three programmable side buttons, a two-position concentric switch (ø/o switch), a three position mode switch and an orange "emergency" button, and PTT button, all of which can be programmed to the user's liking (with the exception of the PTT button). It is produced in two basic models; the model 1.5 which features an 8-character, multi-colored backlit display on the top of the radio without any numeric or navigation keys, or the model 3.5 which features the above-mentioned top display as well as an LCD front display, full numeric keypad , four-way menu navigation keypad, home button, data button, and three menu-selection buttons. As mentioned previously, the APX7000 is the first portable radio produced by Motorola with the ability to operate in any two of the four public safety bands (VHF, UHF1, UHF2, 700/800MHz). The APX7000 boasts a 1 watt main speaker as well as a secondary speaker on the display side of the radio, both of which can be turned on or off independently based on the user's preference. The radio also has a microphone mounted near each speaker, making for two noise-cancelling microphones designed to suppress wind, feedback and other non-voice noises in the user's environment. On both the top-display and dual-display models of the APX7000, an integrated GPS comes standard. On the dual-display model, the user can view their exact coordinates as well as set waypoints, "home" and destination coordinates. CPS enabled features like pseudo-locationing and emergency "keep-alive" GPS transceiving are also available and programmable on the face of the radio. The APX7000 is the first radio to be offered by Motorola that is able to have both front-panel programming (FPP) as well as trunking options enabled in the same flashcode. Along with the other members of the Apex family, the APX7000 was built with a "T-Grip" shape, for two main reasons; to make the radio more fitting and slip-resistant to the user's hand (even while wearing gloves), and to make space for the 8-character top display while still having room for the standard top-mounted controls. The side controls (Purple button, PTT button, (•) button, and (••) button) have raised edges making them easily identifiable and distinguishable to the user. The APX7000 is capable of on-board Bluetooth connectivity to Motorola's full line of "Mission-Critical Wireless" devices, as well as third-party Bluetooth headsets. Certified devices are capable of keeping the connection between the APX7000 and Bluetooth devices as secure as the radio's transceiver and therefore not compromising encryption with the use of a wireless headset. On-Screen Symbols ARS Data Registration Logged-in symbol , and not logged-in ARS Data In-Transit symbol Battery Meter , Low Battery (for IMPRES-compatible batteries only) Call Received Notification Direct (talkaround) symbol GPS Symbol High Power Symbol , Low Power Symbol Monitor (Carrier Squelch) symbol (Conventional only) Secure Hardware Operation symbol , AES operation Scan symbol , Priority Scan symbol , Voting Scan symbol , RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) Symbol Rx (receive) symbol TMS Message Received symbol TMS Priority message received symbol TMS Message received and requesting reply symbol TMS Priority message requesting reply received symbol TMS Message Sent symbol TMS Message not Sent symbol Tx (transmit) symbol Possibly the most flashy and informative new feature of the APX7000, is its "intelligent lighting". The radio's multi-colored backlit keys, top display and LCD screen use colors to alert the user of the radio's state at a glance. The display has a backlit state of four colors (Green, Red, Orange and White) which make up the radio's status at all times. In all of these intelligent lighting states, the top display and keypad will turn entirely one of the four colors, while the main (LCD) screen will display a band of the same color for a lower portion of the screen, along with detailed information about the notification. Keypad backlight color changing to green with intelligent lighting. Green is used to show that a call or page has been received for the radio or a group of which the radio is a member. This can be through MDC, ASTRO, Type II trunking, or P25 calling/paging systems. When a select call is received, the green band will show a green band with the words "Call Received" on one line and "CA: [User ID]" or the ID alias (as shown below) on the second line. Similarly, when a page is received, the radio will display a green band with the words "Page Received" on the first line, and "ID: [User ID]" or the ID alias (as shown below) on the second line. Top display Main Display Keypad backlight color changing to red with intelligent lighting. As the natural reaction to the color is, red is alerting and is used to indicate three states of the radio; Out-of-range (Trunking Only) "Out of range" is displayed when the radio cannot connect to a trunked system due to incorrect programming parameters or geographic impossibility. Low Battery The low battery indications display when the radio's battery is below 10% rated capacity (or 15% in the case that the user has selected to use an "early warning" low battery alarm). No Comms (Trunking only) This indicates that the radio tried to affiliate on a trunked system and was actively rejected from the system (usually due to an invalid ID or incorrect programming parameters). In this state the radio is unable to transmit or receive. Keypad backlight color changing to orange with intelligent lighting. The color orange is used to signify an emergency call. The radio's top display and keys light up orange and the screen will display an orange band along with the ID of the radio which initiated the emergency call. An example of a radio receiving an emergency call can be found here. The basic, idle state of the radio's backlighting is white, which indicates that the radio has not been triggered to change to any of the above states. This means that the radio is not out-of-range (trunking only), has not been rejected from a system (trunking only), is not low battery, has not received an emergency call, private call, or page from another radio. "Forwards and Backwards Compatibility" Part of Motorola's advertising for the APX7000 included the radio's interoperability both "forwards and backwards" meaning it works with current, future and past standards. This is true of the radio's ability to use several trunking protocols (Motorola Type II, SmartZone, OmniLink Multi-Zone, Smartnet, Project 25 Phase 1 (FDMA) and Phase 2 (TDMA)), and of the radio's ability to use analog or digital APCO CAI (common air interface/AMBE/IMBE) voice and data, and finally of the radio's ability to operate in four channel spacings: 25, 20, 12.5 and 6.25 kHz. Being that the APX7000 is capable of APCO Project 25 Phase 2 standards, it is capable of Over-The-Air Rekeying (OTAR) and Over-The-Air Provisioning (OTAP) for changing encryption keys and basic codeplug reprogramming without leaving the user's hand. The APX7000 is certified to FIPS 140-2 level 3 security. It is capable of AES, DES, DES-XL, DES-OFB and ADP encryption algorithms for interoperability with older algorithms as well as ones in current use. More info on encryption protocols can be found here. The APX7000, APX7000XE, APX7000R, XTS5000, SmartZone, Smartnet, OmniLink, MDC, IMPRES, APX series and Astro series are registered trademarks of Motorola (1995-2011) and Motorola Solutions, Inc. (2011+). All images marked as such are copyright of Kyle Cascadden (2012) and are authorized for creative commons, non-commercial reproduction. Return to Motorola Radios Retrieved from "https://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php?title=APX_7000&oldid=193096" Motorola Professional Radios Handheld Professional Radios	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2155
__label__cc	0.617707	0.382293	Cliff Booth From The Quentin Tarantino Archives Revision as of 18:12, 28 July 2019 by Pete (talk \| contribs) Cliff Booth (played by Brad Pitt) is Rick Dalton's longtime stunt double and close friend. The character was partly inspired by stunt legend/director Hal Needham. In the film, we'll see him sparring with martial arts trainer/choreographer and future movie legend Bruce Lee. Cliff lives in a trailer next to the Van Nuys Drive-In. QT characters Cliff Worley and Budd also lived in trailers. "Cliff is a World War II hero and one of the deadliest guys alive. He could kill you with a spoon, a piece of paper or a business card. Consequently, he is a rather Zen dude who is troubled by very little.” - QT speaking to USA Today Partly inspired by the title character of the film Billy Jack (1971). Retrieved from "http://wiki.tarantino.info/index.php?title=Cliff_Booth&oldid=24627" Once Upon a Time in Hollywood characters © Please read our copyright disclaimers for intellectual property information (DMCA, §UrhR).	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2156
__label__cc	0.530112	0.469888	AdvancedPartitionerRewrite Differences between revisions 11 and 34 (spanning 23 versions) Editor: ALagny-109-1-10-249 Comment: some UI design from BoF Editor: localhost Comment: converted to 1.6 markup * '''Launchpad Entry''': https://launchpad.net/distros/ubuntu/+spec/ubiquity-advanced-partitioner * '''Created''': [[Date(2006-06-05T11:42:21Z)]] by ColinWatson * '''Contributors''': ColinWatson * '''Launchpad Entry''': UbuntuSpec:ubiquity-advanced-partitioner * '''Created''': <<Date(2006-06-05T11:42:21Z)>> by ColinWatson * '''Contributors''': ColinWatson, JeffWaugh, BradBollenbach, MattWilson, EllenReitmayr, AdamConrad, JamesTroup Observation of bug mail and other user requests indicates that a very wide range of both existing and desired partitioning setups are required by users of Ubiquity's advanced partitioner, with multiple disks, many (well over 10) partitions per disk, the full range of supported partition types, etc.; it is necessary to support these to at least the approximate level of functionality provided by the current external partition editors. LVM and RAID are in use by some users, and it is necessary at least to have a visual design which will be able to accommodate this in the future, although it is probably not necessary to make it possible to create such setups for Edgy. A quick screenshot survey of some other major distributions' advanced partitioners (please don't get offended if I've left one out!): * [[http://shots.osdir.com/slideshows/588/9.gif\|Gentoo 2006.0]] * Mandriva 2006: [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/6.jpg\|1]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/7.jpg\|2]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/8.jpg\|3]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/9.jpg\|4]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/10.jpg\|5]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/11.jpg\|6]] * [[http://shots.osdir.com/slideshows/302/9.gif\|RHEL 4]] * Su``SE 10.1: [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/13.png\|1]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/14.png\|2]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/15.png\|3]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/16.png\|4]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/17.png\|5]] [[http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/18.png\|6]] * [[http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/partitioning_tiger.html\|Mac OS X 10.4]] * [[http://www.softpedia.com/progScreenshots/Partition-Magic-Screenshot-2118.html\|Partition Magic]] The coloured graphical view of the disk presented by Gentoo and Mandriva (and by RHEL without colours) is a useful visual cue. I don't think it's wise to rely on it entirely as Gentoo appears to; that has obvious accessibility problems and doesn't present much in the way of detailed information up-front. The RHEL display is visually plainer and in particular makes no use of colour, but it strikes a reasonable balance between visual cues and presentation of information up-front. Su``SE's detailed view crams in lots of information without looking too cluttered, which I like. We should be able to borrow ideas from all of these. * James has a system with two hard drives that mirror each other using RAID1, to reduce the risk of data loss from drive failures; the hard drives are both much larger than he needs right now, so he uses LVM on these so that he can extend filesystems easily without having to set up the partition table perfectly first time. He would like to use Ubiquity to install Ubuntu on this system. * James has a system with two hard drives that mirror each other using RAID1, to reduce the risk of data loss from drive failures; the hard drives are both much larger than he needs right now, so he uses LVM on these so that he can extend filesystems easily without having to set up the partition table perfectly first time. He would like to use Ubiquity to install Ubuntu on this system. (edgy+1) We draw the distinction between an automatic partitioner and an advanced partitioner. An automatic partitioner consists of simple recipes for certain very common cases, and offers little or no configurability beyond perhaps single simple variables. An advanced partitioner offers direct control of all or most important items in the partition table, although it may use whatever presentation seems most effective. `partman`, the partitioner used in the text-based installer, is a debconf application whose main control flow features a basic UI revolving around a select widget with one line per partition ([http://shots.osdir.com/slideshows/658/13.gif screenshot]). On selecting each partition, a submenu of information and operations that can be applied to that partition is presented, including method (use a filesystem, don't use, swap, other specialised uses), flags (e.g. boot), create (when selecting free space), resize, delete, and others. Some of these operations cause further prompts to be presented, while others present the submenu anew with updated information and perhaps different operations. `partman`, the partitioner used in the text-based installer, is a debconf application whose main control flow features a basic UI revolving around a select widget with one line per partition ([[http://shots.osdir.com/slideshows/658/13.gif\|screenshot]]). On selecting each partition, a submenu of information and operations that can be applied to that partition is presented, including method (use a filesystem, don't use, swap, other specialised uses), flags (e.g. boot), create (when selecting free space), resize, delete, and others. Some of these operations cause further prompts to be presented, while others present the submenu anew with updated information and perhaps different operations. <<Anchor(resizing-constraints)>> === Resizing constraints === (This section is primarily informational, included because of the effect of these real-world constraints on any user interface design.) `partman` keys its database of partition information off the start and end points of the partition segment. As a direct result of this, resizing operations must be applied immediately, because the backend cannot track changes that include a resize operation. This also means that choosing to resize a partition in the user interface cannot be undone. This limitation may be lifted in the future, although this would require considerable care. The start of a partition cannot easily be moved; doing so requires shuffling all the data and metadata around on the disk which is inherently more dangerous than resizing, and requires considerable care in order to ensure that a power failure in the middle of the operation does not destroy the filesystem. A few partition types are exempt from this (for instance, swap partitions without a hibernation signature, or partitions that have not yet been committed to disk), but it seems best to simply skip this for the time being. `libparted` cannot resize all filesystem types. Naturally, it is not possible to grow a partition if there is a partition immediately after it. * [http://shots.osdir.com/slideshows/588/9.gif Gentoo 2006.0] * Mandriva 2006: [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/6.jpg 1] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/7.jpg 2] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/8.jpg 3] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/9.jpg 4] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/10.jpg 5] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_mandriva_2006/11.jpg 6] * [http://shots.osdir.com/slideshows/302/9.gif RHEL 4] * Su``SE 10.1: [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/13.png 1] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/14.png 2] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/15.png 3] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/16.png 4] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/17.png 5] [http://www.howtoforge.com/images/perfect_setup_suse10.1/18.png 6] * [http://images.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp/pdf/Boot_Camp_Beta_Setup_Guide.pdf Apple Boot Camp partitioner] (more autopartitioning, but hey) I suggest that the UI should start at the top with a horizontal bar-chart representation of each disk on the system, and immediately below that a list of all partitions (and chunks of free space between or around partitions) with the following information for each: name (for some partition table types), partitioning method (filesystem, don't use, swap, etc.), mountpoint, label, bootable flag (and others?), and size. (Start and end positions could be added but are probably unnecessary with the bar chart and with inclusion of sizes for free space chunks.) Across the bottom of the page there should be at least the following buttons, some of which may be greyed out depending on the selected partition list item: Create, Edit, Delete, Undo. The Create and Edit buttons will present a dialog that allows changing all of the items of information displayed for the partition, with the possible exception of size depending on external constraints. The Delete button will schedule a partition for deletion immediately without asking for confirmation; this sounds scary, but Undo is available and text on the UI will indicate that changes will not be committed until the user selects Next. Due to some technical constraints in partman, resizing a partition must be committed immediately and cannot be undone. (It may be possible to lift this restriction some day.) Resizing a partition will present a message box that indicates this clearly. Given this unusual behaviour, it may make sense to add a Resize button in addition to Edit. === UI design from BoF (will refactor later) === We draw the distinction between an automatic partitioner and an advanced partitioner. An automatic partitioner consists of simple recipes for certain very common cases, and offers little or no configurability beyond perhaps single simple variables. An advanced partitioner offers direct control of all or most important items in the partition table, although it may use whatever presentation seems most effective. Observation of bug mail and other user requests indicates that a very wide range of both existing and desired partitioning setups are required by users of Ubiquity's advanced partitioner, with multiple disks, many (well over 10) partitions per disk, the full range of supported partition types, etc.; it is necessary to support these to at least the approximate level of functionality provided by the current external partition editors. LVM and RAID are in use by some users, and it is necessary at least to have a visual design which will be able to accommodate this in the future, although it is probably not necessary to make it possible to create such setups for Edgy. * There is a minimum width for partition segments, to avoid very small partitions being invisible. A tooltip is displayed when hovering over the partition so that small partitions can be narrower than any text that would normally be displayed in it, since horizontal space may be at a premium. * The disk view is initially displayed with the first disk and the first partition (or free space) on that disk selected. * The disk view is initially displayed with the first disk and the first partition segment (whether it represents a partition or free space) on that disk selected. * Contextual buttons appear below (or next to?) the disk within the surrounding coloured background. (The buttons are placed here rather than below the entire disk view to avoid them jumping around as different disks with different available options are selected, and to reduce the amount of mousing around required to operate on a disk.) * If the segment does not represent free space, then a resize grip appears at its right-hand side. Dragging this asks for confirmation and if given resizes the partition immediately (this is due to partman li mitations and may be changed in future). * For free space segments, a "Create a new partition" contextual button is displayed. Pressing this button asks for details in a yet-to-be-specified way (TODO). * For partition segments, "Edit partition" and "Delete partition" contextual buttons are displayed. Pressing the Edit button pops up a dialog with detailed information on the partition and the facility to modi fy it (TODO); pressing the Delete button asks for confirmation and if given deletes the partition. * Other contextual buttons may be present; for example LVM and RAID will require further contextual operations. * A global "Revert" button is displayed below the sequence of disks, which asks for confirmation and if given undoes all changes that have been made to partitions (possibly only since the last resize operation , depending on partman limitations). * Contextual buttons appear below the disk within the surrounding coloured background. (The buttons are placed here rather than below the entire disk view to avoid them jumping around as different disks with different available options are selected, and to reduce the amount of mousing around required to operate on a disk. Be careful to disable the click handler until any shrinking of regions representing no-longer-selected disks is complete, to avoid incautious multiple clicks activating unwanted buttons.) * If the segment does not represent free space, then a resize grip appears at its right-hand side, provided that the [[#resizing-constraints\|resizing constraints]] are satisfied. Dragging this asks for confirmation and if given resizes the partition immediately (see [[#resizing-constraints\|above]]). As the start of a partition cannot easily be moved, it should be clear in which directions the resize grip can be dragged. There is no detailed resize control here; that will live in the Edit dialog. * For free space segments, a "Create a new partition" contextual button is displayed. Pressing this button pops up a dialog that asks for the new partition size (using a bar with a resize grip), mount point, partition type, and whether the partition is primary or logical. The resize bar operates similarly to the resize interface for partition segments on the disk view; it covers just the selected region of the disk, and is initially 100% full. The mount point selector will be a GTK Combo``Box``Entry (or equivalent) widget that allows either selection from a list of preset mount points or manual entry of a custom mount point. * For partition segments, "Edit partition" and "Delete partition" contextual buttons are displayed. * Pressing the Edit button pops up a dialog with detailed information on the partition and the facility to modify at least its size (using a bar with a resize grip, as above), mount point, partition type, whether the partition is primary or logical in the case of DOS partition tables, and whether to format the partition in the case of real partitions; this dialog is clearly quite similar to that presented on creation, although the initial values will differ. If the user requests that the partition be resized, the partitioner asks for confirmation and if given resizes the partition immediately (see [[#resizing-constraints\|above]]). * Pressing the Delete button asks for confirmation and if given deletes the partition. * There will be a visual cue to indicate the difference between real partitions and virtual partitions. Real partitions are already on disk, and therefore require formatting if the partition type is changed and cannot have their primary/logical state changed; virtual partitions have not yet been committed to disk, and thus must be formatted and can be changed freely between primary and logical as long as the partition table layout allows it. A locked icon would be inappropriate here as real partitions are not immutable, but some kind of "saved" icon in the partition segment to indicate that it is on disk would be reasonable. * Real partition segments will have a "Check file system" contextual button, which runs libparted's check function on that file system. * Other contextual buttons may be present; for example LVM and RAID will require further contextual operations. Similarly, right-clicking on a partition segment will present a context menu of operations that can be performed there. * A global "Revert" button is displayed below the sequence of disks, which asks for confirmation and if given undoes all changes that have been made to partitions (possibly only since the last resize operation, depending on [[#resizing-constraints\|partman limitations]]). The partition view occupies the bottom part of the page, and looks as follows: * To avoid having two independently-scrolling panes which represent the same data, the partition view only displays partitions in the disk selected in the disk view above. * There is a simple tabular list of partitions on the selected disk which exposes at least device name, mount point, type, whether to format the filesystem, size, start, and end (i.e. pretty much the information exposed by Anaconda); the partition label may be useful too. If horizontal space is short, the start and end positions may be omitted as they can be inferred from sizes. * Regions of free space are listed along with other partitions, so that it is straightforward to select them and create a partition in them. * Double-clicking the partition opens an edit dialog, which is essentially the same as that presented by editing in the disk view. A right-click context menu may also be offered. Apart from the possible exception of [[#resizing-constraints\|resize operations]], the interface will include text making it clear that changes will not be committed until the user proceeds past Ubiquity's summary page. In all cases, adequate keyboard accelerators for buttons will be made available; tab navigation between the disk and partition views and cursor-key navigation within the views is allowed; and other obvious keyboard shortcuts such as left/right cursor-key resizing may be included if time permits. The implementor should test the result on a 640x480 desktop to ensure that it can reasonably be used there. This will also help users who require large fonts. == BoF agenda and discussion == == Future plans == * Settle on UI design; concrete sketches; make sure to gather input from both GNOME and KDE people. partman now supports encrypted partitions, which are useful on laptops. If it is straightforward to do so, we should integrate this; it should just require extra entries in the Create and Edit dialogs. LVM and RAID are not explicitly addressed in this specification, and require improved integration with partman (although LVM integration has recently been improved upstream so this may no longer be a blocker in that case). However, we have attempted to take them into account in this user interface design so that they can be implemented in future. We suggest that the interface provide two broad approaches to assembling composite devices such as LVM volume groups and RAIDs: either control-click on all component devices and select Assemble, or select Assemble with just one device selected and be offered a selection of all possible component devices. Some people find the container concept from Partition Magic is useful; using it for extended partitions may be overkill, but it may be useful once we start doing LVM and/or RAID. JamesTroup suggests a "wipe disk" button for each disk so that you don't have to go around deleting all the partitions if you want to blank the disk. == Discussion == What about users that don't know what a disk is, much less what "partitioning" is supposed to mean? Or is this taken care of at an earlier stage of the installation? Otherwise the screen should atleast contain a brief explanation and a recommended course of action. -- JohnNilsson <<DateTime(2007-03-05T21:36:02Z)>> I think "redhat partitioner ( part of anaconda ) " is more advanced and it has resizing capabilities now. It is also a python program so why aren't we considering porting that to ubiquity. -- VinodDahiya <<DateTime(2008-04-23T11:06:02Z)>> * It is vital to use the same back-end partitioning implementation across both d-i and ubiquity, so we have no intention of dropping in a partitioner implementation that can't support both. In practice, that means that it needs to be written for d-i. -- ColinWatson Launchpad Entry: ubiquity-advanced-partitioner Created: 2006-06-05 by ColinWatson Contributors: ColinWatson, JeffWaugh, BradBollenbach, MattWilson, EllenReitmayr, AdamConrad, JamesTroup Packages affected: ubiquity, partman-* Rewrite Ubiquity's advanced partitioner, concentrating on usability and commonality of code. The use of gparted/qtparted in Dapper's live CD installer (Ubiquity) was expedient in terms of developer time, but it wasn't the long-term right answer. Using an external partition editor has many inherent problems, such as complex communication requirements with the rest of the installer, UI inconsistency between frontends, and behavioural inconsistency with the text-based installer and with autopartitioning. Furthermore, both gparted and qtparted are complex independently-designed C++ programs which require complicated patches to work in both standalone and installer mode; updating them has become a risky and time-consuming business, and fixing bugs can require investigating the design of both programs from the ground up. To replace this, we will write a simple Python frontend to partman using ubiquity's standard debconffilter framework, with relatively small PyGTK/PyQt shims. The UI will be designed from scratch with an eye to usability, and will be sufficiently similar between the GTK and KDE frontends to offer familiarity. Gentoo 2006.0 Mandriva 2006: 1 2 3 4 5 6 SuSE 10.1: 1 2 3 4 5 6 Partition Magic The coloured graphical view of the disk presented by Gentoo and Mandriva (and by RHEL without colours) is a useful visual cue. I don't think it's wise to rely on it entirely as Gentoo appears to; that has obvious accessibility problems and doesn't present much in the way of detailed information up-front. The RHEL display is visually plainer and in particular makes no use of colour, but it strikes a reasonable balance between visual cues and presentation of information up-front. SuSE's detailed view crams in lots of information without looking too cluttered, which I like. We should be able to borrow ideas from all of these. Judith has been using Unix for some time, and wants to install Ubuntu using a custom partition layout with separate /, /usr, and /var filesystems. She wants reasonably fine control over the sizes of these partitions, and wants to choose which filesystems to use for each. Eugene has a number of different operating systems installed for experimentation, and wants to add Kubuntu to the list. To make room, he will resize one of his existing partitions and delete another. Chris has been trying out both Ubuntu and Kubuntu, and is confused by the way the advanced partitioners are so different in each. He would like to be able to transfer his experience from one to the other. James has a system with two hard drives that mirror each other using RAID1, to reduce the risk of data loss from drive failures; the hard drives are both much larger than he needs right now, so he uses LVM on these so that he can extend filesystems easily without having to set up the partition table perfectly first time. He would like to use Ubiquity to install Ubuntu on this system. (edgy+1) A successful implementation will provide a working and reliable advanced partitioner for both Ubiquity's GTK and KDE frontends that behaves similarly to that of the text-based installer but has a more attractive and better-designed UI, properly integrated into Ubiquity. LVM and RAID functionality is not required in a first iteration, but may be added later if time permits. partman, the partitioner used in the text-based installer, is a debconf application whose main control flow features a basic UI revolving around a select widget with one line per partition (screenshot). On selecting each partition, a submenu of information and operations that can be applied to that partition is presented, including method (use a filesystem, don't use, swap, other specialised uses), flags (e.g. boot), create (when selecting free space), resize, delete, and others. Some of these operations cause further prompts to be presented, while others present the submenu anew with updated information and perhaps different operations. partman's backend has been polished by use in one Debian and three Ubuntu releases, and while it certainly still has bugs they are generally relatively minor. partman's UI, on the other hand, while reasonably effective as far as it goes, is basic and can be confusing. Much of the confusion arises from the fact that it is not possible to cram all the available useful information into a single screen of text, and from limitations in cdebconf and its newt user interface that require partman to present select lists where in some cases buttons or other widgets would be more appropriate. Fortunately, these limitations do not apply to a graphical interface, and we already have the technology required to transform debconf protocol requests into a pretty good graphical user interface. Driving partman Any graphical user interface to partman is likely to require presenting information from the partition submenus up-front. As such, the Ubiquity partman component will on occasion (certainly on startup) need to navigate internally through all the available partition submenus and cache information about all of them; this can easily be done with the aid of a state machine. When the user performs an action in the user interface, the partman component will navigate to the proper partition submenu and select the requested action. When partman's update.d scripts are called for a particular partition, as happens following certain operations, the cache of information for that partition will be invalidated, and the partman component will need to reload it as soon as possible; some operations (such as deleting a partition) will update all partitions and so the cache will need to be reloaded from scratch. While cache updates will take a little time to complete, the author expects that this can be optimised at need, and that the benefits of caching will render update times not generally a problem. Resizing constraints partman keys its database of partition information off the start and end points of the partition segment. As a direct result of this, resizing operations must be applied immediately, because the backend cannot track changes that include a resize operation. This also means that choosing to resize a partition in the user interface cannot be undone. This limitation may be lifted in the future, although this would require considerable care. libparted cannot resize all filesystem types. There is a tension between, on the one hand, attractive and clean visual design and easy manipulation, and on the other, accurate presentation of information and fine control. It seems likely that the partitioning screen will need to comprise two major elements in order to achieve this. We recommend a split between a visually attractive list of disks with graphically-oriented controls, and a primarily textual presentation of detailed information about partitions in the disk selected in that disk view with controls that pop up detailed dialog boxes. The disk view occupies the top part of the page, and looks as follows: There is a vertically-arranged sequence of disks, which scrolls vertically if necessary. Each disk is represented by a horizontal bar, which is divided into partitions. Each partition is coloured according to its type (although of course it must not be necessary to be able to distinguish the colours used in order to use this) and includes a small amount of information about the partition table (type and mount point). There is a minimum width for partition segments, to avoid very small partitions being invisible. A tooltip is displayed when hovering over the partition so that small partitions can be narrower than any text that would normally be displayed in it, since horizontal space may be at a premium. Free space on a disk appears similarly to real partitions. It should have some suitably inactive-looking colour, such as grey. The disk view is initially displayed with the first disk and the first partition segment (whether it represents a partition or free space) on that disk selected. Selecting a disk causes an appropriately-coloured background to be drawn around it, and the nearest partition to the click to be selected. Selecting a partition or free space has the following effects: The horizontal bar segment representing the partition or free space is drawn pushed down like a button, and all other segments are drawn pushed up. Contextual buttons appear below the disk within the surrounding coloured background. (The buttons are placed here rather than below the entire disk view to avoid them jumping around as different disks with different available options are selected, and to reduce the amount of mousing around required to operate on a disk. Be careful to disable the click handler until any shrinking of regions representing no-longer-selected disks is complete, to avoid incautious multiple clicks activating unwanted buttons.) If the segment does not represent free space, then a resize grip appears at its right-hand side, provided that the resizing constraints are satisfied. Dragging this asks for confirmation and if given resizes the partition immediately (see above). As the start of a partition cannot easily be moved, it should be clear in which directions the resize grip can be dragged. There is no detailed resize control here; that will live in the Edit dialog. For free space segments, a "Create a new partition" contextual button is displayed. Pressing this button pops up a dialog that asks for the new partition size (using a bar with a resize grip), mount point, partition type, and whether the partition is primary or logical. The resize bar operates similarly to the resize interface for partition segments on the disk view; it covers just the selected region of the disk, and is initially 100% full. The mount point selector will be a GTK ComboBoxEntry (or equivalent) widget that allows either selection from a list of preset mount points or manual entry of a custom mount point. For partition segments, "Edit partition" and "Delete partition" contextual buttons are displayed. Pressing the Edit button pops up a dialog with detailed information on the partition and the facility to modify at least its size (using a bar with a resize grip, as above), mount point, partition type, whether the partition is primary or logical in the case of DOS partition tables, and whether to format the partition in the case of real partitions; this dialog is clearly quite similar to that presented on creation, although the initial values will differ. If the user requests that the partition be resized, the partitioner asks for confirmation and if given resizes the partition immediately (see above). Pressing the Delete button asks for confirmation and if given deletes the partition. There will be a visual cue to indicate the difference between real partitions and virtual partitions. Real partitions are already on disk, and therefore require formatting if the partition type is changed and cannot have their primary/logical state changed; virtual partitions have not yet been committed to disk, and thus must be formatted and can be changed freely between primary and logical as long as the partition table layout allows it. A locked icon would be inappropriate here as real partitions are not immutable, but some kind of "saved" icon in the partition segment to indicate that it is on disk would be reasonable. Real partition segments will have a "Check file system" contextual button, which runs libparted's check function on that file system. Other contextual buttons may be present; for example LVM and RAID will require further contextual operations. Similarly, right-clicking on a partition segment will present a context menu of operations that can be performed there. A global "Revert" button is displayed below the sequence of disks, which asks for confirmation and if given undoes all changes that have been made to partitions (possibly only since the last resize operation, depending on partman limitations). To avoid having two independently-scrolling panes which represent the same data, the partition view only displays partitions in the disk selected in the disk view above. There is a simple tabular list of partitions on the selected disk which exposes at least device name, mount point, type, whether to format the filesystem, size, start, and end (i.e. pretty much the information exposed by Anaconda); the partition label may be useful too. If horizontal space is short, the start and end positions may be omitted as they can be inferred from sizes. Regions of free space are listed along with other partitions, so that it is straightforward to select them and create a partition in them. Double-clicking the partition opens an edit dialog, which is essentially the same as that presented by editing in the disk view. A right-click context menu may also be offered. Apart from the possible exception of resize operations, the interface will include text making it clear that changes will not be committed until the user proceeds past Ubiquity's summary page. Data preservation and migration Partitioners involve an inherent risk to data, which must be mitigated as far as possible. Errors raised by partman will generally be presented to the user and may include an option to continue or go back. Steps will be taken to ensure that partman cannot proceed past its confirmation question to commit changes to disk unless the user has positively confirmed the changes. partman now supports encrypted partitions, which are useful on laptops. If it is straightforward to do so, we should integrate this; it should just require extra entries in the Create and Edit dialogs. What about users that don't know what a disk is, much less what "partitioning" is supposed to mean? Or is this taken care of at an earlier stage of the installation? Otherwise the screen should atleast contain a brief explanation and a recommended course of action. -- JohnNilsson 2007-03-05 21:36:02 I think "redhat partitioner ( part of anaconda ) " is more advanced and it has resizing capabilities now. It is also a python program so why aren't we considering porting that to ubiquity. -- VinodDahiya 2008-04-23 11:06:02 It is vital to use the same back-end partitioning implementation across both d-i and ubiquity, so we have no intention of dropping in a partitioner implementation that can't support both. In practice, that means that it needs to be written for d-i. -- ColinWatson CategorySpec Ubiquity/AdvancedPartitionerRewrite (last edited 2008-08-06 16:16:19 by localhost)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2157
__label__wiki	0.812688	0.812688	University of Divinity News, Articles and Events from the University of Divinity community Australian Lutheran College Catholic Theological College Eva Burrows College Jesuit College of Spirituality Morling College Pilgrim Theological College St Athanasius College Stirling Theological College Trinity College Theological School Whitley College Yarra Theological Union Religion and Social Policy Feminist Theologies Robin Mann. Image sourced from https://journeyonline.com.au/features/music-for-the-soul/ Robin Mann to be awarded Doctor of Divinity University of Divinity awards highest academic honour to Australian musician and song-writer, Robin Mann. In October 2019, the Council of the University of Divinity resolved to award the degree of Doctor of Divinity (honoris causa) to Robin Mann. The Chancellor of the University, Dr Graeme L Blackman AO, will confer the award on Mann at the University’s graduation ceremony in Adelaide on Friday 6 December 2019. The Doctor of Divinity is the oldest award of the University, created in 1910 and first awarded in 1913. It is the highest academic honour that the University bestows. The award is made in recognition of Mann’s sustained and distinguished contribution to theological scholarship through original musical composition that advances the celebration of Christian, communal life and identity, particularly in the unique Australian context. Mann recently celebrated the Golden Jubilee (50 years) of his life as a writer, musician, worship leader, performer and practical theologian. This remarkable achievement attests to the continuing value that Australia’s broad Christian community places on Mann’s work. It is theologically timeless, relevant to contemporary Australian contexts, and singable for whole communities. The citation for Mann’s award reads: Robin Mann has made a sustained and distinguished contribution to theological scholarship over the last fifty years through original musical composition that advances the celebration of Christian, communal life and identity. This contribution deeply engages Australia’s unique physical and religious context in its imagery and insight, combining pastoral encouragement and prophetic challenge which is acutely attuned to the medium of congregational song. Robin Mann’s exceptional gift to the Australian Church is appreciated across many denominations and demonstrates excellence in the engagement of theology with the life of the wider community. Through his ministry with schools, congregations, leadership gatherings and training workshops, as well as his publications and recordings, he has provided visionary stimulus to the production of authentic Australian music and worship and inspired subsequent generations of worship songwriters. MEDIA CONTACT Meg Nelson \| University of Divinity Events and Communications Manager \| mnelson@divinity.edu.au \| (+61 3) 9853 3177 Rod Boucher says: Wonderful Mann, wonderful songs. Christine Potts says: Congratulations – god bless from your sister Chris Watch the Graduation Live-stream Watch sessions from the Health and Integrity Conference from home FeaturedNewsStudy with us Study with us: Australian Indigenous Theology Grants and ScholarshipsResearch Trinity College Theological School Moorhouse Doctoral Scholarship About VOX VOX brings members of the University, especially academic staff, into conversation with churches, the community and you. It publishes original material and may republish or link to items from blogs, social media and news media. Responding to the Royal Commission Scott Kirkland appointed Inaugural John and Jeanne Stockdale Chair Position available: Postdoctoral Research Associate Semester 1 unit: Advanced Greek Reading Epiphany 2: John 1:29-42 with Dorothy Lee Australian Bushfires – How you can help Koinonia Magazine Issue 7 Dec 2019 20 Australian and New Zealander Female Theologians you should get to know in 2020 From virgin births to purity movements: Christians and their problem with sex Indigenous Theology Symposium Saturday, 25 January, 9:30 am–4:00 pm AEDT Stirling Open Night Wednesday, 5 February, 5:00 pm–8:00 pm AEDT JCS 2020 Orientation Thursday, 20 February, 3:00 pm–5:00 pm AEDT Unit on Coptic Art and Iconography I Saturday, 7 March, 6:30 pm–Friday, 29 May, 9:30 pm AEDT Composition of Place: Ignatian Spirituality and the Mind of a Historian Thursday, 12 March, 6:00 pm–8:00 pm AEDT John Capper retires as Director of Learning and Teaching Subscribe to Vox Sign up to receive a weekly digest of new posts and upcoming events. Copyright © University of Divinity	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2158
__label__cc	0.630354	0.369646	Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice New Game+ Planned, Story Easier to Understand Than Dark Souls By Nathan Birch The Dark Souls games take a rather unique approach to storytelling, revealing much of their lore and narrative through scattered bits of dialogue and Easter eggs. Often, you finish a Dark Souls game and still aren’t quite sure what it was all about. Opinions on this approach are mixed – some enjoy the mystery, while others would prefer a little more clarity. Those in the latter camp will be happy to know that From Software’s next game, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, presents a slightly more straightforward story. Here’s what Dark Souls and Sekiro director Hidetaka Miyazaki had to say about how his new game's narrative will be framed. “There’s still going to be this kind of fragmented element to it. You’re still going to have to explore it to a find all the clues and depth for yourself. We feel like it’s not going to change too much in that sense. Our approach to storytelling has not changed. This time we do have the fixed protagonist. We feel like he creates the axes for the main core of the story. The characters, they revolve around him as well. This allows us to frame the story and the settings in a much simpler light than previously. So it’s going to be initially easier to understand and easier to relate to.” Sekiro’s greater focus on stealth will also affect how players absorb the game’s story… ‘Skyrim Die Twice’ Mod Overhauls Skyrim Combat to Be More Like Sekiro “Stealth elements […] allow you to sneak undetected, to an extent. While you’re undetected, you can eavesdrop on enemies to get hints about other enemy weaknesses, strategic hints about how to approach the map and certain situations, or [learn] story details as well. This is a kind of a new element ... and it relates nicely to be the theme of the shinobi.” Don’t worry though, Sekiro won’t completely toss out the From Software playbook – the game will still have “familiar” elements, like a New Game+ mode, which is currently “taking shape.” Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice hits PC, Xbox One, and PS4 on March 22, 2019. Elden Ring Early Summer Release Window Hinted At By From Software Francesco De Meo • Jan 3 Steam Winter Sale Offers Deals on Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Mortal Kombat 11, and More Nathan Birch • Dec 19 Xbox Series X Full Reveal To Come Before E3 2020 In April or May; Elden Ring To Be Featured At The Event – Rumor Francesco De Meo • Dec 17, 2019 The Game Awards 2019 Winners: Sekiro Steals GOTY, Disco Elysium Takes Home Most Trophies Nathan Birch • Dec 13, 2019 Elden Ring News Possibly Teased For The Game Awards By New Trailer Francesco De Meo • Dec 9, 2019	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2169
__label__cc	0.595237	0.404763	‘Kin Hell Fest 2014 Preview: Friday Welcome one and all to We Must Obey’s annual preview of this coming weekend’s ‘Kin Hell Fest. As those who’ve previously read our preview before, the drill is as such: we run the gamut of every band playing this festival, summing them up in a few words with images and links to their sites where you can follow them or check out some of their music. This year, ‘Kin Hell Fest is bigger and better than ever. Being held in the 1400-capacity Vox Warehouse in Leeds, the festival has attracted the biggest names so far since the fest was founded in 2011. We are very proud to be supporting this festival again as we did in 2011 and in 2013, and together we will all make this a festival worth remembering. So without further ado, let’s get down to previewing Friday’s action. Death Tripper – 14:00-14:25 Cracking young hardcore/d-beat/grind crew who first came to our attention here when they released a split with Nottingham vegan PV chums Meatpacker. A great way to kick off proceedings. Ephemeral Foetus – 14:40-15:05 This Derby-based lot are a cracking band, mixing d-beat crust/thrash/punk riffs with raging societal intensity and aggression. They recently released a split with fellow Derby crusties Piss on Authority (‘Fallacy’), and if those three tracks are anything to go by, they be as relentless in their performance here as they show ‘Relentless Contempt for Man’. Pist – 15:20-15:45 Super riff worship featuring a wealth of experience from the Mancunian scene. Pist will step up early on the Friday slinging tracks from their recent released debut ‘Riffology’. Heavy rock ‘n’ roll to raise a glass/plastic cup to. Necro Deathmort – 16:00-16:30 London based duo Necro Deathmort are certainly one of the most intriguing additions to the line-up, bringing with them electro beats fused with doom vibes and industrial machinations. With a slew of releases behind them, their appearance here will herald a monolithic vibe; expect them to stand out. Iniquitous Savagery – 16:45-17:15 Scottish brutal death metal merchants who will soon be releasing their debut album, and will arrive here to pummel your brains in with ridiculous riffs and carnivorous screams aplenty. Haar – 17:30-18:00 In Edinburgh, a ‘haar’ is a dense chilly fog that blows in from the North Sea when the wind is in the east. Cheers Lonely Planet! It’s also home to an excellent progressive black metal band of the same name, producing music as murky and challenging as the conditions out at sea. Evisorax – 18:15-18:40 Wigan grindcore berzerkers who have the backing of Scott Hull and J Randall of Agoraphobic Nosebleed fame – the former mastered their 2011 album ‘Isle of Dogs’ and the latter released it through his Grindcore Karaoke label. Their shows are known for being highly charged and confrontational, which is just fine with us. Undersmile – 18:55-19:30 A rich, diverse, and quintessentially heavy doom band from Oxford, coming with the backing of Dylan Carlson (Earth) and Henry Rollins. High praise indeed. Ranging from titantically heavy to marvellously serene. Ingested – 19:45-20:20 The headliners of the first edition of KHF are back! Expect huge slam pits for this lot who in 2013 stepped up their game with their brilliant LP ‘The Sorreption’. Pentagram Chile – 20:40-21:20 Pentagram’s story from being one of the forerunners of extreme metal to releasing their debut album 28 years later still seems unreal. Yet Anton Reisenegger managed to pull it off after all that time and delivered the goods for the lost years of never making it happen. They’re about to land in town so prepare to get your heads banging away in appreciation of a band that Reisenegger refused to allow to die. Napalm Death – 21:40-22:45 Do these guys really need an introduction? Oh go on then. The granddaddies of grindcore, Napalm Death have in their thirty years as a band redefined extreme music, taking down fascists, racists, policitians, warmongers, hypocrites, societal injustice, famine and more with their diatribes. Often imitated, never bettered, it’s truly a coup and a cause to celebrate that they are greeting this festival with their presence. If there’s a band this weekend you must not miss, it has to be Napalm Death. Famine – 23:05-23:30 Local merchants of hardcore/powerviolence/crossover style animosity, they emerged last year with our top-10 rated EP ‘A Hand of Sore Thumbs’ and are another of the highly rated reasons for you to ensure you turn up early on Saturday for the full attack. Shouting along to the chorus of ‘Sold Bowels (Saved Owls)’ should prove to be a weekend highlight, as will jumping in the pit for these. Lock Up – 23:50-00:50 Closing out the Friday night will be an appearance by deathgrind supergroup Lock Up. Joining Shane Embury, fresh from performing with Napalm Death, will be the dream team of Tomas Lindberg, Nick Barker and Anton Reisenegger (also fresh from his Pentagram slot). This is the ONLY place you will see Lock Up in the UK this year. Make sure you don’t miss it! Posted in Uncategorized. Tagged Black Metal, Crust Punk, D-Beat, Death Metal, Death Tripper, Doom, Electronic, Ephemeral Foetus, Evisorax, Famine, Grind, Haar, Hardcore, Industrial, Ingested, Iniquitous Savagery, Lock-Up, Metal, Napalm Death, Necro Deathmort, PC, Pentagram Chile, Pist, Powerviolence, Progressive, Punk, Rock, Slam, Sludge, Stoner Rock, UK Undersmile ‘Kin Hell Fest set to unleash the ‘Yorkshire Riffer’! This Saturday marks the beginning of the now yearly festivities that bring forth some of the finest in heavy (and often extreme) music in all its forth, ‘Kin Hell Fest. And this year, they’re marking it with one almighty all dayer that has become known as the ‘Yorkshire Riffer’. The line-up is a corking one, bringing together some of the local and national highlights of underground UK music, but also for the coup of headlining doom titans Eagle Twin! The duo, who released the phenomenal ‘The Feather Tipped the Serpent’s Scale’ in 2012 will arrive to lay down their punishing treacle grooves and thunderously heavy riffs to close out proceedings prior to the main fest kicking off the week after. Not to overlook every band involved (and let’s face it, you’re going to get bang for your buck all damn day), here are five other good reasons why you should head down to Eiger Studios this Saturday: The Afternoon Gentlemen The self-proclaimed boozejooglers are already known for being one of the UK’s tightest grindy/powerviolence bands and the kings of ‘poggerviolence’ are intent on solidifying that reputation. Just last week, they brought forth a ripping new track, ‘Grind in the Mind’. Whether they’re going fast or slow, TAG will captivate with precision within anarchy, however boozed up they are by gig time. Foetal Juice They’re so offensively puntastic, even Dee Snider seems to like them! Despite upping the punnage to the max, FJ, led by their wild frontman Sam Read, are one of the best death metal bands stomping this country at the moment. Every track of theirs doesn’t muck around – they go straight for the jugular and as evidenced at KHF 2013, nobody stands still for these guys. Expect a wild time in the pit as FJ deliver party vibes and slamming pits. Scordatura The band that brought us the Amy Winehouse-baiting ‘Back to Crack’ (just before she died) are one of the UK’s best proponents in deliverance of proper good death metal. Their debut album ‘Torment of the Weak’ was released last year and the band have supported more established bands such as Cerebral Bore and Blood Red Throne. It should only be a matter of time before they gain wider exposure, so don’t miss what is set to be a furious set from the Scots. The Liverpudlian black metallers were one of the opening acts at the inaugural KHF fest in November 2011, and they’ve been going from strength to strength since, tightening their sound and ensconcing their claim to be the blackest sound on the banks of the Mersey. Their limited release ‘The Essential Salts of Human Dust’ has got metal zines raving about them, and with an album supposedly ready and waiting to go, this is set to be a primal experience like no other. Local lot Cattle are for me, the most intriguing band in the line-up. Eschewing the need for guitarists and instead employing two bassists and two drummers, they play an interesting brand of noise-rock which puts the bass as its forefront instrument, making sure every groove and nuance can be heard, while the drummers keep it together to ensure the whole rhythm section drives with power. Their debut EP was reviewed by us earlier this year (still streaming) and we still champion it now – their appearance will provide something not just a little different, but something worth your full attention. The line-up also features veteran subjugators Palehorse, sludge rockers BongCauldron, grind nuttiness from No Fucks Given and Rectal Implosion, plus heavy doomers Gods of Hellfire, local metallers Bludger and blackened death crew Sathamel. Yorkshire Riffer is also licensed until 5am the following morning, so the fun doesn’t stop at doom o’clock! And the best bit about it all is, even when it’s finished, we get to do it all again next weekend! Posted in Live Music. Tagged Black Skies Burn, Bludger, Cattle, Eagle Twin, Foetal Juice, Gods of Hellfire, Ninkharsag, No Fucks Given, Palehorse, PC, Rectal Implosion, Sathamel, Scordatura, The Afternoon Gentlemen, UK, US Wort – Not Your Cup of Tea Not Your Cup of Tea When Planets Collide When I started We Must Obey, I was part of a band called Poison Dwarf. I was bandmates with two of the guys from this band, Phil (guitar) and Mike (vocals/bass). Mike of course has contributed occasionally to this blog, while creating his own profile with the Manchester-based promotions team CLDH, and more recently, with sludge-rockers Pist. We played together for nearly two and a half years, until parenthood came calling for me and in the end, we played one final show together supporting The Prophecy, Iron Void and WMO favourites Iron Witch in August 2011 before going on hiatus. Poison Dwarf never officially died – more, it mutated into what was to become Wort, with the two remaining PD members joining up with drummer . I could easily make this one of my old ‘Shameless Plug’ posts, but given how genuinely impressed I am with the results here, it is important to judge their official debut release, ‘Not Your Cup of Tea’ (complete with brilliant artwork from Dominic Sohor) on its merits. Yes, it hardly reinvents the wheel, but what it does do, as I can attest to (and you, if you listened to their demo, ‘WORT’s N’All!’) is show how this band have evolved into a beast to be reckoned with alongside the current proud crop of the UK scene. The tempo is slightly upped from that release, the production beefed up all around, and each track is stronger than the previous one. ‘The Swine Herd’ has a nice psychedelic vocal within it to add to its driving, pounding nature, and ‘Tea’ is just an all-round riffer that nicely rounds things off with the sound of Phil vomiting from a rank brew. Which is nothing new, let me tell you, haha. Seriously though, ‘Not Your Cup of Tea’ is definitely my cup of tea, and it should be yours too. Sadly all the CD copies have sold out, but you can pick this up on name-your-price download. Give ‘em a wave will you? Buy/download ‘Not Your Cup of Tea’ here Posted in Album Reviews, Downloads. Tagged Doom, PC, Sludge, UK, When Planets Collide, Wort	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2176
__label__wiki	0.626642	0.626642	01243 868080 Mon-Fri 8.30-17.30 · Sat 8.30-16.00 Closed Bank Holidays info@woodstravel.co.uk twitter.com/woods_travel facebook.com/WoodsTravelLtd Coach & Air Tours Sussex Cruise Club Private Coach Hire WOODS WIN AGAIN! Fantastic news to report - Woods won yet another prestigious title at the UK Coach Awards on the 23rd April! This year we won the Silver Award for Top Small Fleet Operator. The organisers said, Woods Travel Ltd are no strangers to the winners podium, being a previous winner of this award 2013 & 2014, and of the title of UK Coach Operator of the Year in 2013. The judges were once again hugely impressed by the professionalism, dedication and high standards evident in all aspects of the business, and were pleased to make a silver award in what was a very close contest indeed. Woods would like to say a big congratulations to Anthonys Travel who were awarded the Gold this year, to Parrys International Tours Ltd who took Bronze, and to Finalists Inglebys Luxury Coaches Ltd. More News from Woods Travel Tue 24 December 2019 'Little Donkey' Let me introduce you to Bonnie, our Woods sponsored ‘Little’ Donkey. We are a big fan of the county of Devon and its… Fri 15 November 2019 Winners in the Community On Friday 15th November 2019, some of Arun’s top local businesses gathered at the Hilton Avisford Park Hotel for the Arun Business Partnership Awards.… Wed 6 November 2019 Woods Sponsor WIBC Charity Day On Saturday 21st September Woods proudly sponsored Worthing Indoor Bowls Club’s Charity Day. Their chosen charity was ‘Care for Veterans’ which provides care and rehabilitation… Fri 25 October 2019 Sponsors of 12th Supreme Box Kart Championship On Sunday 29th September 2019, the 12th Supreme Box Kart Championships for Cub Scouts was once again held at Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit. … Mon 7 October 2019 Woods are Winners! On the evening of Wednesday 2nd October Woods attended the 2019 Route One Awards at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole. We are delighted to… Fri 21 June 2019 Finalist at Route One Awards 2019 We are thrilled to announce we have been named as Finalists in the Small Coach Operator of the Year category at this year’s Route… Thu 13 June 2019 Pink Pub to Pegasus Bridge On 3rd June a local group of friends cycled on vintage bicycles from The Pink Pub in Bognor Regis to Pegasus Bridge in Normandy,… Successful Charity Quiz Night It was a mind-bending and enjoyable evening on Thursday 16th May at the Woods Charity Quiz Night held at Bognor Regis Town Football Club.… Tue 7 May 2019 Silver Award Winners! Last Thursday, 2nd May, proved to be another successful night for Woods! The UK Coach Awards took place in Blackpool, and at this… Tue 2 April 2019 Finalist at UK Coach Awards 2019 We are delighted to announce that following our success at the UK Coach Awards in 2018, we have been named as Finalists in two… Wed 27 March 2019 Woods Charity Quiz Night Our chosen charity for 2019 is St Wilfrid’s Hospice in Chichester, and we have set ourselves a fundraising target of £10,000. St Wilfrid’s… Wed 30 January 2019 Finalist at British Coach Tourism Awards 2019 We are delighted to announce that we have been shortlisted as a finalist at this year’s British Coach Tourism Awards being held at the… Christmas Cheer for Sick Children Bognor Regis Town football players, along with manager, Jack Pearce, coach Robbie Black and their mascot, Rocky the Bear, delivered festive cheer and presents… Tue 4 December 2018 Finalist at Arun Business Partnership Awards Woods attended this year’s 21st Arun Business Partnership Awards on Thursday 15th November 2018 at the ‘Reds’ venue at Butlins in Bognor Regis and… Tue 27 November 2018 Woods join WAVE 105's Mission Christmas This Christmas we are pleased to be supporting WAVE 105’s Mission Christmas, to ensure as many children as possible in the region wake up… Wed 21 November 2018 Woods at 21st Arun Business Partnership Awards On Thursday 15th November 2018 around 250 people from some of Arun’s top local businesses gathered together at the ‘Reds’ venue at Butlins in… Tue 6 November 2018 Travelling the Woods Way in Sri Lanka! We are pleased to present the Woods Tuk Tuk, now in operation in Sri Lanka supporting the fantastic charity, Extra Cover. Woods donated… Tue 16 October 2018 Woods at the Local Heroes Awards 2018 Woods Travel were once proud again sponsors of the ‘Inspiration to Others Award’ at Spirit FM’s 12th Local Heroes Awards held at the Hilton… Woods Sponsor 2018 Supreme Box Kart Championship The 2018 11th Supreme Box Kart Championships for Cub Scouts at Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit on Sunday 30th September was a huge success, with… Thu 13 September 2018 Winners in the South! What an amazing award-winning year we are having. On Friday 7th September 2018 we attended the Johnston Press Southern Business Awards at The… Tue 3 July 2018 Hot-Footing it from Pier to Pier On a very hot Summer’s day 50 brave individuals walked 27 miles from Bognor Regis Pier to Brighton Pier on Sunday 1st July, in… Award-winning Woods! 10th May was another successful night for Woods! It was the UK Coach Awards, and at a glittering ceremony in Blackpool we were… Thu 26 April 2018 Winners at Business Awards! Woods had a very successful night at the 2018 Observer & Gazette Business Awards. We were winners of the Medium Business Award, and… Wed 11 April 2018 Finalist for UK Coach Awards 2018 Everyone at Woods Travel is thrilled to hear that we have been shortlisted as a finalist at The UK Coach Awards 2018, which this… Woods Sponsor Charity Darts Tournament On Saturday 10th March the Alzheimer’s Research UK Darts Open 2018 was held at The Newtown Sports & Social Club in Bognor Regis. … Woods shortlisted for Observer & Gazette Award We are delighted to announce that we have made the nominations shortlist for the 2018 Observer & Gazette Business Awards in the Medium Business… Introducing our new arrival! We are pleased to announce the arrival of our new 49-seater luxury executive coach, now resplendent in its Woods colours and ready to join… Fri 9 February 2018 Woods Support Coach Collecting Record Breaker! Geoff Price from Walsall in the West Midlands is a Guinness World Record holder for the largest collection of model buses and coaches. … Thu 1 February 2018 Finalist for British Coach Tourism Awards We are thrilled to have been shortlisted as a finalist at The British Coach Tourism Awards to be held at the National Motorcycle Museum… Thu 16 November 2017 Woods at 2017 ABP Awards On the evening of Thursday 16th November, some of Arun’s top local businesses gathered together at the ‘Reds’ venue at Butlins in Bognor Regis… Woods success in 'War of the Works' The team at Woods Travel put their general knowledge and teamwork to the test during week commencing 30th October 2017 and took part in… Fri 6 October 2017 Woods Travel at 2017 Local Hero Awards Woods Travel were proud to sponsor the ‘Inspiration to Others Award’ at this year’s Spirit FM’s Local Heroes Awards held at the Hilton Avisford… Mon 25 September 2017 Woods Sponsor the 10th Supreme Box Kart Championships 2017 We were once again delighted to be the main sponsors for this year's 10th Supreme Box Kart Championships for Cub Scouts at Goodwood Motor… Sun 24 September 2017 Woods Sponsor Cub Scouts Supreme Box Kart Championships 2017 This is the new Race Control Centre for the Supreme Box Kart Championships which will be held at Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit on 24th… Sat 1 April 2017 Introducing our brand new super-long luxury coach "Woods Travel, the pioneers of the door to door coach holiday service have another first." Our new super-long road cruiser will make its debut in… Tue 28 February 2017 Our new 25-Seat Mini-Coach! Our brand new 25-seat coach with features including; Air Conditioning, 3 Point Seatbelts, Reclining Seats, PA System, Real-Time Tracking and Telematics. Available for private… Fri 16 December 2016 Getting Silly for a Serious Cause! Happy Christmas Jumper Day from Woods Travel in Bognor Regis! We're getting silly for a serious cause - to raise money for Save the… Another Win for Woods! Friday evening saw fantastic businesses from throughout the area throw on their glad rags and head over to the Butlins Conference Centre for an… Woods Travel at the Local Hero Awards We were delighted to attend the Spirit FM Sussex Local Hero Awards at the Hilton Avisford Park last night for an evening that celebrated… Wed 28 September 2016 Woods Travel back School Transport Safety Week To mark School Transport Safety Week 2016, which starts on Monday, Woods Travel is working in partnership with BUSK, the national school of transport… Cubs Battle at the Supreme! We were delighted to be the main sponsors for this year's Supreme Box Champinships for Cub Scouts at Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit for our… Sat 20 August 2016 PokéTour Success Following the unprecedented success of the game Pokémon GO, the team at Woods Travel decided to create a special one-off tour that would allow… Fri 22 July 2016 An Exciting Morning at the Woods Office We've had a very exciting day at the Woods office hosting a celebratory morning as we were presented the Bognor Regis Chamber of Commerce… Another Award! We are delighted to announce that our Managing Director, Roger Elsmere, was awarded the prestigious Britten trophy by Bognor Regis Chamber of Commerce and… Wed 1 June 2016 45 YEAR EVENT RAFFLE WINNERS Congratulations to all our raffle winners, and a massive thank you for everyone who took part, you helped us to raise over £700 for… Brand New Woods Video We are very excited to share with you this fantastic video of our ?Woods Open Day. Thank you to Sussex By Air Aerial Filming… 45 Year Open Day Success! We would like to say a massive thank you to everyone who made our 45 Year Open Day such a success! Our hard-working staff… Wed 4 May 2016 New Private Hire Website We are incredibly excited to share with you our brand new Private Hire website, providing more detailed information on our various private hire services. We… Woods Celebrate UK Coach Awards Win! We are ecstatic to be able to report to you that Woods have won yet another prestigious title at the UK Coach Awards on… Christmas Jumper Day! Office staff joined in with the Save the Children Christmas Jumper Day on the 18th December 2015. The total raised was £45.00. Woods staff would… Woods Travel sponsors Arun Business Partnership Awards 2015! On Friday 13th November businesses throughout the Arun District area gathered at Butlins, Bognor Regis, to celebrate the Arun Business Partnership, Business of the… Say Hello To Coachy McCoachFace! What do you call a £200m Royal Navy polar research vessel? Boaty McBoatface of course. The name suggested by a Former Radio Jersey presenter… A special recognition for Roger Elsmere We are incredibly proud to announce that our Managing Director, Roger Elsmere, received the Special Award at this year’s National Coach Tourism Awards for… Woods Travel Blog Short-listed for UK Blog Awards 2016! We are very excited to announce that our travel blog has been short-listed for the UK Blog Awards 2016! The UK Blog Awards recognise… Woods launch Travel Blog We are pleased to announce that in celebration of our 45 year anniversary we have launched our very own travel blog. The aim of this… A Lifetime of Work Given Recognition! We are delighted to announce that our very own Roger Elsmere took home the lifetime achievement award at this year's Johnston Press South Business… Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit played hosts to the 8th Supreme Box Kart Championships held on Sunday 27th September and Woods Travel were proud… To Susan of Bognor Regis who won the IPad Mini in our Raffle held during the Woods Open Day & Summer Brochure Launch on… AWARD WINNING DAY EXCURSIONS Winner - Day Excursion Programme Judges comments; Woods Travel, based in Bognor Regis, operates around 350 departures on its day excursion programme each year. The judges noted… MORE NATIONAL AWARDS! Winner - Coach Tour Operator – Medium Fleet The Judges Said; Woods Travel operates a mix of coach and air tours, and day excursions. It… Fantastic news to report - Woods won yet another prestigious title at the UK Coach Awards on the 23rd April! This year we won the… And the Winner is.......Roger Elsmere! The Managing Director of Woods Travel Ltd won the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Observer & Gazette Business Awards held at The Hilton, Avisford… Office staff joined in with the Save the Children Christmas Jumper Day on the 12th December 2014. Each member of staff donated £2.00 for… POPPIES AT THE TOWER OF LONDON Recently Woods ran day trips to view the 888,246 ceramic poppies at the Tower of London. This installation titled Blood Swept Lands and… The 7th Supreme Box Kart Championships were held on Sunday 28th September at Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit and Woods were proud to be the… UK Coach Awards - Top UK Coach Driver Bronze Award Winner: Paul Smyth The judges said; This award is presented to the coach driver who has best demonstrated excellent performance from the customer perspective… UK Coach Awards - Top for Customer Service! Gold Award Winner: Denise Fry - Private Group Organiser The judges said; Coaches are a people business and we rely on our customer-facing staff to provide… UK Coach Awards - Woods Win Again! Top Small Fleet Operator for the Second Year Running! The judges said; The winner of this award delivers consistently excellent customer service. Woods demonstrated their success… Woods Travel Group - Most Loved Business for the Second Year! Woods have been awarded the "most loved" Travel Agency and Holiday Company in Sussex. The business also came second in this category for the… Woods School of the Year - Announced Woods School of the Year for 2014 is..................................................... Laburnum Grove Junior School in Bognor Regis. After sifting through the overwhelming number of entries to the competition,… Movember Total Woods Movember team raised a total of £474.00! Thank you to all our customers for giving generously and to the drivers who entered into the… Woods Sponsor the Arun Business Partnership Awards Woods were very pleased to sponsor the Sussex by the Sea Tourism Award category at the Arun Business Partnership Awards for the third year… Woodsy Joins the Movember Brothers Woodsy the tweeting coach gets in to the Movember spirit! Woodsy was so excited that he grew his very own mo... OVERNIGHT! Impressed?! If you are… Woods Movember Movement Woods Travels drivers will be supporting Movember this year. The sales team wish the drivers well with their efforts and show them how it… The 6th Supreme Box Kart Championships were held on Sunday 11th August at Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit and Woods were proud to be the… Success for Woods at National Tourism Awards Woods Travel has beaten off competition from coach operators from across the UK to win a national tourism award at the Coach Tourism Awards… Coach Awards - Woods are Number 1 in the UK! There was much to celebrate as individuals, companies and organisations across the UK coach and coach tourism industry were recognised and rewarded at the… Finalists & Highly Commended! Woods were confirmed as finalists for the Customer Service Award at the ceremony on the 19th April at Avisford Park Hotel. As if this were… Woods Travel Group - Most Loved Business! Woods have been awarded the "most loved" Travel Agency and Holiday Company in the South East. The business also came second in this category… BUSK Simply Safe Benchmark Scheme Woods are proud to announce our membership of BUSK’s simply safe and benchmark schemes. We have been awarded the highest safety rating possible –… Arun Business Partnership - Business of the Year Awards Woods Travel are proud to announce that they were the winners of three separate categories at the annual Arun Business Partnership Awards held at… Woods Sponsor Cub Scouts Supreme Box Kart Championships Here is Woods coach 348 FYY and its mini me (Monkey Madness) at the 2012 Supreme box Kart Championships on Sunday 2nd September at… Woods Have a Coach that Tweets! You have heard of the boat that rocks, now follow the coach that tweets! Bova Magiq (Woodsy), new to the Woods fleet, is excited to… Success at the National Tourism Awards Again! Woods Travel were recognised as a finalist at the Coach Tourism Awards, held in Stratford-upon-Avon on 10th May 2012. The awards, organised by trade magazine… UK Coach Awards - Finalist Hot on the heels of the Companys success at the Observer Business Awards, Woods would like to announce being confirmed as a finalist at… TRAVEL AWARE - STAYING SAFE & HEALTHY ABROAD For the latest travel advice from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, check www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice. The advice can change so check regularly for updates. Work for Woods Woods Travel Ltd Park Road, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, PO21 2PX info@woodstravel.co.uk Woods Holiday Ltd 43 Aldwick Road, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, PO21 2NL Woods Travel © 2020 Woods Travel Ltd	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2183
__label__cc	0.531969	0.468031	Ashokan Rail Trail Opens Additional Two Miles Of Access Ulster County Government The new Ashokan Rail Trail (ART) just opened to the public recently but the whole trail was not accessible. Another step towards full access was taken today as another two-mile section of the trail opened. According to a Facebook post from the official Ulster County Government page, the additional two miles of trail will bring the total of the ART to 11 full miles. An additional half-mile segment along with two additional parking areas will be opening in the coming weeks. As of now the only public access to the Ashokan Rail Trail is at the Woodstock Dike Trailhead in West Hurley. Visitors are asked not to park on Route 28 or on private property According to their website, an estimated 9,000 people visited in the first two weeks of operation. You can link up at AshokanRailTrail.com for more information. The ART is both dog-friendly and wheelchair accessible and is open from dawn to dusk daily. Filed Under: ashokan rail trail, ulster county government Categories: Around the Hudson Valley, Hudson Valley News	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2200
__label__cc	0.594955	0.405045	Closing New York Business Sends Quite a Message to the State Running a business can be one of the hardest things you'll ever have to deal with. Everything from the cost of living, to bills, to other outside factors can shut any otherwise good establishment down for good. In this particular case it was flooding that spelled the end to a business that had run in Oneida County for 30 years. However, this establishment wasn't going down without a fight. Syracuse.com reports that Hippo’s House of Billiards in the town of Yorkville had been a popular draw in central New York for years. The family business has had their share of adversity though. Flooding had shut down the pool hall multiple times over the years, though only to see the the place rebuild and eventually reopen. However, storms Halloween night may have dealt the final blow to the hall. Our sister station Big Frog 104 had reported that this message was shared on Facebook by Erin Conte: Five months ago, my family HAPPILY reopened the doors of HIPPOS - The House of Billiards, a 30-year family business, created and run on a lot of love, blood, sweat, and tears! For MANY YEARS, my father attempted to address the significant flooding issues in that area with local government, to no avail. There were several images attached to the post, including one of a sign outside the pool hall with a message directed at the state of New York itself. It simply read...GOODBYE NY F U The family implied that they had reached to both state and local government in the past. to address flooding problems in the area, but were ignored. Idiot Crashes Car Attempting to 'Drift' on Route 44 in New Paltz We Tour 21 Abandoned Businesses on Route 9 Hudson Valley Waitress Brought to Tears Over Surprise Tip New York Lake Named Most Beautiful in America Top 6 Hudson Valley Restaurants Featured on Food Network Enormous Fish Live in Hidden Cave Under City of Poughkeepsie Categories: Articles, News	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2201
__label__wiki	0.5334	0.5334	McLaren Pays Tribute To Senna With This Glorious One-Off P1 GTR Formula 1 Design A McLaren customer commisioned this special one-off version of the P1 GTR to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Ayrton Senna's first championship and...well, just look at it! by Dan Thorn 21st December 2018 The McLaren Special Operations (MSO) unit has just finished work on this staggeringly beautiful version of its P1 GTR track car. The car’s owner is a huge Senna fan who wanted to do something to pay tribute to the Brazilian’s first world title, so what better way than by having a car done up to resemble the MP4/4 he won it with? Decked out in a full Marlboro livery (well, not quite - thanks, tobacco advertising restrictions!), the 800-hour paint job is full of neat touches. There are Brazilian flags, Senna logos, and his ‘Driven to Perfection’ slogan dotted around the exterior. The car also proudly wears the number 12 Senna used during the 1988 season. The car has been named 'Beco' - the nickname given to Senna by his friends and family The changes aren’t just restricted to the livery, either. The interior also features some bespoke touches, such as more Senna branding, seats from the McLaren Senna, and an Alcantara steering wheel which has been colour matched to the wheel of the MP4/4. McLaren has even painted up a matching helmet for the owner, complementing the theme. The whole project has been carried out with the blessing of the Senna family There have been some technical upgrades, too. Aerodynamics have been improved to give the car more downforce and the engine has been tweaked too, giving what the owner describes as a “suitably pleasing” power boost over the 986bhp on offer in the standard car. The end result, as I’m sure you’ll agree, is one stunning looking car. We’re looking forward to owners commissioning cars which pay homage to other great McLaren drivers of the past - how about an Alain Prost-edition P1 GTR to complement this Senna one? What about a Mika Hakkinen-edition 720S? Or, best of all, a Pedro de la Rosa version of the Speedtail… On This Day In F1 - Double Points Were Announced And Everyone Hated It Why Mercedes Needs To Keep Valtteri Bottas For 2020 How Did The Ex-Formula 1 Drivers Fare In The Super GT/DTM Dream Race? Are These Unusual Facts About Michael Schumacher True Or False? On This Day In F1 - De Cesaris Crashed And Lied About It	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2202
__label__cc	0.514532	0.485468	Why peer support matters after brain injury HomeNews Why peer support matters after brain injury by Caroline Cullen News “Peer support is really important when you have a brain injury.” Sarah Kerr is the acting local services manager in our Wexford rehabilitation service. Our women’s group in Drinagh is one of our longest established services in the country. Here members meet every Wednesday to do everything from cookery to crafts; but most importantly, to connect. Sarah has seen many women’s lives turned upside down after brain injury. Many had to leave college or a career or are struggling with childcare. Many women were left feeling lost or isolated. Brain injury can affect your sense of identity Sarah says: “You get a sense of worth from your employment or from your role within the family. So when you have a brain injury and you have to give up that role – whether you’re working in a shop or looking after your family – it affects your sense of identity.” But the power of meeting people who understand exactly how you feel, cannot be underestimated. Talking about the magic of the women’s group in Wexford, Sarah said: “Here, the women can come into each other with concerns or issues and the other people in the group can say ‘yes, I’ve had that too’. It’s a really safe space for people to be themselves.” A place to be yourself The supportive environment of our Wexford clubhouse where our women’s group meets every week allows people to build their confidence. Whether it’s having the confidence to get out and about again or learning a new skill, our clubhouse is there to help them along. Sarah added: “A lot of people come to our art classes. Most people never did art before their injury but now they find it is such a good outlet for them. They realise ‘God, this is something that I can do. I’m actually good at it’ and it takes them away from concentrating on deficits and negative thoughts like ‘I can’t do this’.” Power of peer support Over time, our women’s group members are supported to achieve their own goals, such as returning to work. But no matter what people’s personal ambitions are, Sarah believes there is huge power in sharing the journey. Sara said: “People who have been through the same thing as you and have come out the other side, have found outlets for themselves that have given them the support they need. It’s given them confidence and it helps them to be more independent and maximise their abilities and feel positive about themselves.” This article is taken from the latest issue of Irish Country Magazine, April issue 2019. About the Author: Caroline Cullen What not to say to a brain injury survivor I thought I fell asleep at the wheel The Shock When a brain injury happens, it can put lives on hold. It can happen to anyone, at any age, at any Read more! Taoiseach Enda Kenny Opens Transitional Living Neuro-Rehabilitation Centre On February 2nd 2015 An Taoiseach Enda Kenny officially opened the first Transitional Living Read more! Learn about Step Ahead in Cork and Dublin We're calling on healthcare professionals to join our Read more! I’m a carer: My story Brain injury can happen in seconds and change your life forever. We never think about this or Read more!	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2207
__label__cc	0.502324	0.497676	A model wears a creation as part of the Prada men's Fall-Winter 2020/21 collection, that was presented in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni) Milan designers consider menswear for the next decade MILAN (AP) — Milan fashion designers were taking a step back as they consider the import of presenting their first collections of the 2020s. The last decade marked a blurring in gender roles and also the rise of high-end streetwear. Anyone looking back at past decades will see how they softly blur... This Dec. 3, 2019, photo, ecologist Nalini Nadkarni is shown in her lab on the University of Utah campus in Salt Lake City holding a Barbie created to look like her when she's climbing into the treetops to study the rainforest canopy. Nadkarni's childhood climbing trees shaped her career and now she's hoping she can get help kids interested in science in an new way: Barbies. Nadkarni has long created her own "treetop Barbies" and has now helped Mattel and National Geographic create a line of dolls with careers in science and conservation. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Forest ecologist helps refashion Barbie dolls as scientists SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — When Nalini Nadkarni was a kid, she’d run home from school, climb into one of the eight maple trees in her parents’ backyard and spend an afternoon there with an apple and a book. That time in the treetops set the tone for the rest of her life: She’s now a forest ecologist at... November 16, 2019 - 10:00 am Nike Unveils New Shoe for 'Everyday Heroes' in Health Profession Nike didn’t have long-distance runners or basketball players in mind for their latest shoe. The brand’s new Nike Air Zoom Pulse was developed for “everyday heroes” in the medical industry who log long hours on their feet, reported USA Today . Designed for on-the-ground athletes such as nurses and... 'Jesus Shoes' Filled With Holy Water Selling for More Than $3,000 If you want to walk on water it’s going to cost you a pretty penny. Sneaker worshippers have gotten fanatical about repurposed Nike Air Max ‘97s which have been injected with water from the River Jordan that was blessed by a priest, reported the New York Post . The so-called “Jesus Shoes” by... FILE - In this Aug. 1, 2014, file photo, pedestrians make their way in front of the Metropolitan Opera house at New York's Lincoln Center. On Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019, the Metropolitan Opera began regular Sunday afternoon staged performances for the first time in its 136-year-history with Puccini's `Turandot,’ an effort to boost ticket sales and revenue. As part of new union contracts, the Met can present up to 17 Sunday matinees this season. The company thinks Sunday afternoons will sell better than Monday nights. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File) Met Opera starts regular Sunday matinees, breaking tradition NEW YORK (AP) — Some in the audience wore tuxedos and evening gowns, others wore jeans and sneakers. There was even a man wearing a black sleeveless shirt and blue suede cowboy boots. The Metropolitan Opera began regular Sunday-afternoon staged performances for the first time in its 136-year... The Prabal Gurung collection is modeled during Fashion Week, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in New York. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) Prabal Gurung asks: Who gets to be an American? NEW YORK (AP) — With flower crowns and beauty pageant sashes, Prabal Gurung asked a fundamental question of the day: Who gets to be an American? Adorning his runway Sunday at New York Fashion Week with hanging bouquets mixed with flags from around the world, the designer celebrated diversity in... Thomas Perumean Nike kickoff's football season with Saints footwear! Just in time for Saints football, Nike is bringing out its themed footwear for the 2019 season. The Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 36 Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 36 in a New Orleans Saints colorway is emblazoned with Saints old-gold Fleur d'Lis and matching Nike Swoosh. The shoe even comes with gold flywire... Man Pays $437,000 for Rare Pair of Nike Sneakers If you have half a million dollars, you just do it! That’s exactly what Canadian entrepreneur Miles Nadal did by plucking down $437,500 for a pair of Nike sneakers at a Sotheby’s auction this week, according to the New York Post. The rare kicks , known as “Moon Shoes,” were designed by Nike co-... A Nike "Moon Shoe" is on display at Sotheby's auction house in New York on July 12, 2019. Nike co-founder Bill Bowerman designed the shoe's sole using his wife's waffle iron. The shoes were made for runners at the 1972 Olympic trials. Sotheby's expects the shoes to auction online for between $110,000 to $160,000. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey) Collectable sneakers on auction at Sotheby's in New York NEW YORK (AP) — True sneaker heads will get the opportunity to expand their collection as Sotheby's in New York holds its first sneaker auction. These aren't just any old sneakers but 100 of the rarest, most-coveted sneakers around, including the Nike handmade "Moon Shoe" designed by Nike co-...	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2216
__label__wiki	0.634921	0.634921	tkillen@2tg.co.uk "Knows his brief inside out and is a clear, calm advocate, who is also very responsive." Chambers UK 2020 "...very bright indeed, meticulous and a very sure pair of hands for commercial matters." "He is very knowledgeable.... A confident and intelligent barrister." "He's very commercially minded and has an exceptional work ethic." “He is very bright and able” Legal 500 2020 "Very clever and engaging - he knows his areas very well" "Very user-friendly, very attentive and very bright." "He gives clear, articulate pleadings and has an approachable and friendly manner." "Very hard-working and very bright, he gets involved in a case quite quickly and is willing to help with all stages of it." "He has quite simply superb knowledge of the law, and is both very commercially minded and extremely responsive." Practice Overview Tim has a busy commercial practice, with a focus on disputes with an international element. Tim has particular experience of actions in the insurance, construction, and financial sectors. Many of Tim’s cases involve issues of jurisdiction and choice of law arising out of cross-border litigation. Tim has particular experience of actions in the DIFC Courts in Dubai, and of claims and arbitrations involving GCC countries. Tim is recommended in the legal directories as a leading junior across four practice areas: Commercial Dispute Resolution and Property Damage in Chambers and Partners; and Insurance and Reinsurance and Commercial Dispute Resolution (United Arab Emirates) in Legal 500. Comments include: “Very bright indeed, meticulous and a very sure pair of hands for commercial matters”; “A confident and intelligent barrister”; “very commercially minded and has an exceptional work ethic” “Knows his brief inside out and is a clear, calm advocate, who is also very responsive” “very clever and engaging – he knows his areas very well”; and “He has quite simply superb knowledge of the law, and is both very commercially minded and extremely responsive”. Before coming to the Bar Tim taught law at university level, first as a seminar tutor in tort law at the University of Birmingham and later as a sessional lecturer at Birkbeck College, University of London and a visiting lecturer at the University of Osnabrück in Germany. In the 2014/5 academic year Tim was a Tutor (Non-Stipendiary College Lecturer) in Tort at Hertford College, University of Oxford. Commercial Dispute Resolution & Arbitration Tim’s commercial practice encompasses a wide variety of complex contractual claims, cases involving share purchase agreements, the securitisation of mortgage debt, the alleged mis-selling of structured financial products, the enforcement of sole agency agreements, international contracts for construction projects and the sale of goods, issues of jurisdiction and choice of law, and claims arising out of and in support of arbitration and adjudication proceedings. Tim also acts as counsel in domestic and international arbitration proceedings, and has experience in both institutional and ad hoc arbitrations. Tim is recommended in both of the legal directories as a leading practitioner for commercial work – In Chambers and Partners in the Commercial Dispute Resolution category, and in Legal 500 for his commercial work in the United Arab Emirates. Current and Recent Work Arbitrations Acting in a US14.5m DIFC-LCIA Arbitration concerning warehousing agreements (Dubai seat) Acted in linked LCIA arbitrations concerning the construction of a gas-fired power plant (Zurich seat) Acted in Court proceedings in support of an arbitration concerning long-tail reinsurance contracts (Commercial Court, London) Acted in Court proceedings in support of an ICC arbitration (Paris seat) concerning the construction of a biomass power station (TCC, London) Acted (as sole counsel) in an ad-hoc London-seated arbitration under the IBA Rules (English and Israeli company dispute over exclusive supply agreements) Acted (as sole counsel) for German, Luxemburg, Delaware and English companies in a multiparty ICC Arbitration arising out of a large property investment scheme Acted (led by Neil Moody QC) for a business interruption insurer in an ad-hoc arbitration (UNCITRAL rules) concerning coverage under a manufacturing policy Acted (as sole counsel) for a consortium of investment banks in an emergency application for injunctive relief in support of a DIFC-LCIA Arbitration arising out of security taken over an oil rig (DIFC Courts, Dubai) Acted (as sole counsel) for a major department store in a dispute concerning shop fit-out works (JCT/CIMAR) Advising on the enforcement of various international arbitration awards Court Work Acting for a major news organisation in a US$4.5m breach of contract claim against a media services company (DIFC Courts, Dubai) Acting for a major Middle Eastern Insurance company in a US$30m dispute concerning an alleged agreement for third party administration services (DIFC Courts, Dubai) Acted for a telecommunications equipment supplier in a claim for breach of contract against a supplier of electricity cables (TCC, London) Acted (led by Neil Moody QC) in a dispute concerning the adequacy of a traffic deck coating system supplied for use in the Dubai Mall, UAE (TCC, London) Acted for a German reinsurer in a claim against a Swiss loss adjuster for breach of contract, unjust enrichment, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of trust in respect of services carried out in relation to the Christchurch earthquakes in New Zealand in 2010/11 (London Mercantile Court) Acted (as sole counsel) for a Singaporean jeweller in a c. US$2.8million claim for breach of consignment agreements by a London-based jeweller (Commercial Court, London) Acted (as sole counsel) for a South African investment bank in an $11million claim for breach of sale and purchase agreements arising out of a skyscraper development in Dubai (DIFC Courts, Dubai) Acted (as sole counsel) for insurers of a large oil refinery in a £1.5million claim concerning the quality of gas oil Obtained summary judgment, following 4 days of hearings, on a c. £570,000 loan agreement, which was alleged by the Defendants to be a gift (QBD) Acted (as sole counsel) for the successful Respondent Bank in an appeal relating to the strike out of costs proceedings and the scope of the grant of relief from sanctions (DIFC Courts, Dubai) Acted (led by Alexander Layton QC) in a contractual dispute between a German supplier of raw materials and an English manufacturer, featuring a challenge to a purported agreement as to jurisdiction (Commercial Court, London) Tim’s commercial fraud practice complements his commercial practice and he has experience of actions involving allegations of inducing a breach of contract, unlawful interference with economic interests, deceit, unlawful means conspiracy and breach of confidence. Tim has particular expertise in cases involving alleged fraudulent activity with an international element. Acting (led by Mark Vanhegan QC) in a breach of confidence claim concerning allegations of misuse of confidential trade secrets, alleged to be valued at £100m (Chancery Division) Acting in a claim by a large manufacturing company against a former manager for breach of fiduciary duty arising out of invoicing processes (Chancery Division) Acting for a former CEO of an international energy company in a claim for unpaid bonus, concerns allegations of breach of fiduciary duty (ADGM Courts, Abu Dhabi) Acting for Russian Individuals in an alleged fraud concerning Russian company formation (Commercial Court, London) A claim by a company against former auditors for allegedly failing to spot a VAT fraud A claim by an engineering company against a former employee and a potential competitor for the alleged unauthorised use of commercial software licences held on a central computer network (Mercantile Court) Advice and representation in various cases involving obtaining and resisting freezing injunctions and other emergency interim orders, including Norwich Pharmacal relief and non-party disclosure orders Tim has a busy construction practice with experience of construction arbitrations (JCT/CIMAR, LCIA, ICC and ad hoc), adjudications (both statutory and contractual), and numerous claims in the TCC. Many of Tim’s cases involve consideration of standard form construction contracts, including JCT, ICE, NEC and FIDIC. Tim’s experience in property damage and insurance claims means he is particularly well-placed to deal with complex issues of technical evidence and issues concerning the insurance of construction projects. Acting (led by Neil Moody QC) in a dispute concerning the construction of a large residential development (TCC, London) Acted in a statutory adjudication concerning milestone payments for the construction of a power plant A preliminary issue trial concerning the proper interpretation of a modified JCT contract, raising issues of joint insurance (TCC, London) Acted (led by Neil Moody QC) in a dispute concerning the adequacy of materials supplied to construct the car parks of the Dubai Mall, Dubai UAE (TCC, London) Acted (led by Neil Moody QC) on behalf of a main contractor against a civil and structural engineer sub-contractor concerning allegations of professional negligence in the design of underpinning works during the construction of a hotel. Included a substantial delay claim (TCC, London) Acted in an arbitration (JCT/CIMAR) on behalf of a luxury department store regarding the adequacy of store fit-out works Acted (led by Neil Moody QC) for the successful main-contractor respondents in a statutory adjudication relating to the construction of a flood management scheme Insurance & Resinsurance Tim has experience in both insurance and reinsurance matters, particularly in relation to issues of policy coverage and interpretation. Tim is listed in Legal 500 as a Leading Junior in Insurance and Reinsurance work. Acted for CAR insurers in proceedings concerning issues of joint insurance of a large construction project in central London (TCC, London) Acted (with Neil Moody QC) in an arbitration (UNCITRAL Rules) concerning coverage under a manufacturing policy Acted (as sole counsel) for insurers in a coverage dispute concerning insurers’ liability under a marine trades policy (Mercantile Court) Acted for a German reinsurer in a claim against a Swiss loss adjuster for breach of contract, unjust enrichment, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of trust in respect of services carried out in relation to the Christchurch earthquakes in New Zealand in 2010/11 (Mercantile Court) Acted as junior counsel (with Neil Moody QC and Sonia Nolten) in a multi-million pound fire claim, which raised issues of policy coverage, misrepresentation, material non-disclosure, waiver and the operation of the FSMA and ICOBS Rules (Commercial Court, London) Acted (as sole counsel) on behalf of a leading insurance and reinsurance company in the Middle East in a c. US$2million claim relating to issues of jurisdiction arising out of potential liabilities under six quota share reinsurance treaties (DIFC Courts, Dubai) Defended a claim on behalf of an insurer on the basis that the insured used fraudulent means or devices in the claims process (Chancery Division) Advice and representation relating to the coverage of a pollution legal liability policy, CAR policies, a jewellers’ block policy, trade credit policies and various business interruption, commercial risk, motor and home insurance policies The international nature of many of Tim’s cases often lead him to deal with issues of jurisdiction and choice of law in the context of both arbitration and court proceedings. Tim has particular experience of actions in, and involving, the Middle East and has appeared on a number of occasions before the Courts of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). Tim is also one of the few practitioners to have appeared before the Courts of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), and is recommended by Legal 500 as a leading practitioner for commercial work in the UAE. Tim frequently acts in cases concerning provisions of foreign law, and has experience of cases governed by the law of Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Luxemburg, Norway, Pakistan, Russia, Singapore, Switzerland, the UAE, and the USA (Delaware, New York, Texas). Acting for a major news organisation in a US$4.5m breach of contract claim against a media services company (UAE governing law, DIFC Courts, Dubai) Acting for a major Middle Eastern Insurance company in a US$30m dispute concerning third party administration services (UAE governing law, DIFC Courts, Dubai) Acted (as sole counsel) in an ad-hoc London-seated arbitration under the IBA Rules (English and Israeli company dispute over exclusive supply agreements, concerning issues of applicable law) Acted (as sole counsel) for German, Luxemburg, Delaware and English companies in a multiparty ICC Arbitration arising out of a large property investment scheme (raised issues of applicable law, and choice of law rules applicable in arbitrations) Acted for a German reinsurer in a claim against a Swiss loss adjuster for breach of contract, unjust enrichment, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of trust in respect of services carried out in relation to the Christchurch earthquakes in New Zealand in 2010/11. Considered issues of incorporation of jurisdiction clauses from a master contract and the requirement of “evidenced in writing” for the purposes of Article 23 of the Lugano Convention (Mercantile Court) Acted (as sole counsel) for a Singaporean jeweller in a c. US$2.8million claim for breach of consignment agreements by a London-based jeweller; raised issues of jurisdiction and applicable law (Commercial Court) Advising a German private bank on the recovery of money paid in error to a London-based bank via a multibanking payment system Tim has experience in actions involving a wide range of professionals including accountants/auditors, surveyors, loss adjusters, architects, builders and other construction professionals, solicitors, bankers and insurance brokers. Acted (led by Neil Moody QC) on behalf of a main contractor against a civil and structural engineer sub-contractor concerning allegations of professional negligence in the design of underpinning works during the construction of a hotel (TCC, London) Claim against a tax adviser for failing to advise on US tax liabilities under a personal investment scheme A multi-million pound claim, (led by Daniel Crowley), against an insurance broker for a negligent failure to advise on insuring a commercial risk following a company restructure (Mercantile Court) Various surveyors’ negligence cases, including an action involving arguments of undisclosed agency arrangements and corporate banking structures (Chancery Division) Various solicitors’ negligence actions, including allegations of failures to advise, failures to secure easements and failures to secure good title in a property conveyance Cases of accountants’/auditors’ negligence, including allegations of a failure to spot a fraud allegedly carried out by company directors Tim has acted and advised in numerous cases concerning property damage caused by alleged breaches of construction contracts, fires, flooding, building work and subsidence. Tim is ranked as a leading junior in Chambers & Partners for Property Damage work, where he is recognised as having “expertise in fire and flood disputes” and for being “particularly good at construction-related matters [and being] known for the strong technical knowledge he brings to cases”. Acted (led by Neil Moody QC) in a dispute concerning a catastrophic fire in a shopping centre, alleged to have been caused by faulty electrical installations. (TCC, London) Acted for household insurers in a 2 day trial against a major computer manufacturer, where it was found that a fire was caused by a defective laptop battery (Recorder Hancock QC) Acted for a local authority in a claim arising out a fire which started in a timber-framed building which was under construction (TCC, London) Acted (led by Neil Moody QC) in a £12million claim arising out of the installation of an external wall insulated render system on multiple council-owned blocks in Glasgow (TCC, London) Various flooding claims for and against water companies and local authorities A claim for losses arising out of the collapse of a marine crane (TCC) A claim (led by Andrew Miller QC) concerning damage caused to a solvent processing plant following a crane collapse Clerk Details clerks@2tg.co.uk “Knows his brief inside out and is a clear, calm advocate, who is also very responsive.” “Tim Killen is very bright indeed, meticulous and a very sure pair of hands for commercial matters.” Chambers UK 2020 (Commercial Dispute Resolution) “He is very knowledgeable.” “A confident and intelligent barrister.” “He’s very commercially minded and has an exceptional work ethic.” Chambers UK 2020 (Property Damage) Legal 500 2020 (Insurance and Reinsurance) “Very clever and engaging – he knows his areas very well” Legal 500 2020 (English Bar – Commercial, United Arab Emirates) “Very user-friendly, very attentive and very bright.” “He gives clear, articulate pleadings and has an approachable and friendly manner.” “He has quite simply superb knowledge of the law, and is both very commercially minded and extremely responsive.” “Very hard-working and very bright, he gets involved in a case quite quickly and is willing to help with all stages of it.” Significant Cases Berardo v Stumpf Energy Ltd [2018] ADGM CFI 1 – Acted for the Claimant, former CEO of an international energy company in a claim before the Courts of the Abu Dhabi Global Market. Hearing concerned application brought by the Defendant to stay proceedings before the ADGM Courts pending the resolution of a criminal trial before the onshore courts in Abu Dhabi. ADVA Optical Networking Ltd v Optron Holding Ltd [2018] EWHC 852 (TCC) – Acted for Claimants in a claim relating to the supply of allegedly defective electrical cables. Successfully opposed an application to amend a defence and resile from an admission six weeks before a five day trial. Al Nahda Insulation Contracting LLC & Anor v Tremco Illbruck Export Ltd [2017] EWHC 956 (TCC) – Acted for the supplier of a car park surfacing system used in the construction of the Dubai Mall. Installation sub-contractor brought a £16m claim, but subsequently consented to strike out of the majority of shipments as breach of contract occurred on the dates of the bills of lading. The sub-contractor subsequently made an application to amend its pleading to attempt to circumvent issues of limitation. Supplier successfully opposed the application on the basis that the causation argument pleaded in response to limitation had no real prospect of success, and the application was made late. (Led by Neil Moody QC). GB Building Solutions Ltd v SFS Fire Services Limited [2017] EWHC 1289 (TCC); 172 Con. L.R. 18 Preliminary issue trial considering the interpretation and effect of joint insurance provisions and modified terms of a JCT Sub-Contract relating to practical completion. Issue concerned whether the Main Contractor was able to maintain a claim against the Sub-Contractor for loss. R + V Versicherung AG v Robertson and Co SA [2016] EWHC 1243 (QB); [2016] 4 WLR 106; [2017] 2 All ER 676; [2017] 1 All E.R. (Comm) 995; [2016] Lloyd’s Rep I.R. 612 – Acted for the successful German reinsurer in a jurisdiction challenge brought by a firm of Swiss loss adjusters. Considered issues of incorporation of jurisdiction clauses from a master contract and the requirement of “evidenced in writing” for the purposes of Article 23 of the Lugano Convention. (Led by Charles Dougherty QC). Bailey and Others v Glaxosmithkline (UK) Ltd [2016] EWHC 178 (QB), [2016] All ER (D) 44 (Feb) – Acted (with Jacqueline Perry QC and Niazi Fetto) for group action claimants under a Group Litigation Order against the pharmaceutical company responsible for producing the antidepressant drug “Seroxat” in a claim under the Consumer Protection Act 1987. Considers the extent of the court’s case management powers following a lengthy ad hoc stay. Firstrand Property Holding (Middle East) Limited v DAMAC Park Towers Company Limited CFI 030/2014 – Dubai International Financial Centre Court claim in deceit and breach of contract against a property developer in relation to the off-plan purchase of commercial units. Bate v Aviva Insurance UK Limited [2013] EWHC 1687 (Comm); [2013] Lloyd’s Rep IR 492; [2013] All ER (D) 138 – Multi million pound claim arising out of a fire at a large domestic property (with Neil Moody QC and Sonia Nolten); concerned issues of policy coverage and interpretation, alleged misrepresentation, material non-disclosure and alleged waiver by insurers. Tradebe Solvent Recycling Limited v Coussens of Bexhill [2013] EWHC 3786 (QB); [2013] All ER (D) 10 – Action for business interruption and property damage losses arising out of a crane collapse at a solvent recycling plant. Concerned issues of causation and mitigation of loss. (Led by Andrew Miller QC) AAM Holding Limited and Others v First Capital of Switzerland Investment Bank Limited and Others CFI 044/2012 – Claim brought in the Courts of the Dubai International Financial Centre relating to various cross border investments. Considered the applicability of injunctive proceedings in relation to cheques issued in onshore Dubai and the relevance of pre-existing arbitration proceedings. Mana v Clariden Leu Asset Management (Dubai) Ltd CFI 030/2011 – Represented the Dubai International Financial Centre registered investment Bank in an appeal brought by investors relating to the alleged mis-selling of structured financial products; issues of relief from sanctions and the strike out of detailed costs assessment proceedings. Timothy Killen recommended in Legal 500 as a leading individual for commercial work in the United Arab EmiratesApril 24, 2019 Dan Crowley and Tim Killen’s article published in The Oath, the leading legal news and features title in the Middle EastJune 18, 2018 A Practical Guide to Norwich Pharmacal Orders by Timothy Killen and William ClerkMay 3, 2018 Tim Killen acts in first case before the Abu Dhabi Global Market Courts, Employment DivisionMay 2, 2018 Timothy Killen discusses business interruption disputes in Insurance DayDecember 11, 2017 Neil Moody QC and Tim Killen publish article on the ‘reliance bar’ in the March issue of the Construction Law JournalMarch 22, 2017 Charles Dougherty QC and Timothy Killen successfully oppose jurisdiction challenge under the Lugano ConventionMay 31, 2016 Product Liability Day 2019 2TG & DIFC-LCIA 3rd Annual Seminar – Current Issues in Arbitration: The View from London and Dubai 2TG & DIFC-LCIA 2nd Annual Seminar – Current Issues in Arbitration: The View from London and Dubai An Update on Issues of Joint Insurance Damage Day 2016 2TG & DIFC-LCIA Inaugural Seminar – Current Issues in Arbitration: The View from London and Dubai – 04.12.16 Changing tides in flooding claims; liability, insurance and proof MA (Oxon) (Hertford College, Oxford University – Law (Jurisprudence) with German Law) COMBAR TECBAR LCLCBA Pegasus Trust Scholarship – Inner Temple Arden Senior Scholarship – Gray’s Inn Prince of Wales Scholarship – Gray’s Inn Lee Essay Prize – Gray’s Inn Norman Tapp Memorial Prize – Gray’s Inn “Can only two play that game? Interim measures and non-parties to arbitrations: A comparative analysis of the approach of the English and DIFC Courts”, The Oath, Issue 75, June 2018 (With Daniel Crowley) “Business interrupted: matters to consider in BI disputes” Lloyd’s List Insurance Day, L.L.I.D. 2017, Nov 30, 7. “Theoretical Justifications for the ‘Reliance Bar’” Construction Law Journal (2017) 33 Const. L. J. Issue 1 (Thompson Reuters) (With Neil Moody QC) “Stigma Damages in Contracts of Sports Sponsorship” Law in Sport, 22nd November 2013 (with Stuart Benzie) “Religious Discrimination: Opening a Pandora’s Box” Issue 2, 2010, Gray’s Inn Student Law Review Case Comment: Sanoma Uitgevers BV v The Netherlands (Art 10 and Journalistic Privilege) Issue 4, 2009 of the European Human Rights Law Review “Legality and Morality: Partners in Crime? – Self Interest and a Moral Ultra Vires” The Cambridge Student L. Rev. 1 (2007)) (Cambridge University Press/Heinonline) Tim speaks Swiss German, and good High German. Tim has rights of audience before the Courts of the Dubai International Financial Centre.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2226
__label__wiki	0.659575	0.659575	WikiPicky Celebrity Gossip, News and Entertainment TV Celebrity Sport Celebrity Home » Actress » Zoe Kazan Married, Partner, Boyfriend and Dating Zoe Kazan Married, Partner, Boyfriend and Dating Date: 08 Aug, 2015 Report This Date of Birth/Birthday Profession/Occupation Working For/Engaged On Husband/Spouse Paul Dano (partner) Boyfriend/Dating Paul Dano - Partner (from 2007) Gay/Lesbian $3 Million Dollars Height/Tall N/A But she loss her weight 33-24-34 inches. (approx.) You are blessed when you have more than one talent, and you become successful using all of them. The case is same with Zoe Kazan, who is an actress, playwright and also a screenwriter who makes her truly blessed. This super talented woman was born in 1983 on 9th of September, which makes her 31 years old. At this age, she has achieved fame, money, and love from the audience and has been adored by her colleagues. She is the daughter of Nicholas Kazan and Robin Swicord and it is strange that her parents are both screenwriters, and it can be said that her talent in screenwriting has come in heredity. Her grandparents were Elia Kazan and Milly Kazan, and both of them were a playwright, From a family in which everyone has a unique and different talent Zoe got all the talents in heredity and had never wasted it. A lot of information about Zoe and her biography is available on the wiki sites like Wikipedia. Currently, she is living together with her boyfriend and partner Paul Dano. They have been dating since the year 2006, and their relationship is still adamant. This couple will get married in future, and an intimate relationship like there's is very less vulnerable to divorce. After starting to date her boyfriend they have not had to break up even once who shows their understanding and love for each other. Their affair became one of the hottest topics in the town once they started living together. Paul will be very lucky to be the husband of this beautiful and amazing lady and will thank God for bringing her to his life. Zoe is not very tall with an average height of 5 feet and 4 and a half inches which are approximately 1.64 meters. Zoe is very popular on social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook where she addresses her fans. She also uploads her pictures in Instagram, and her fans cannot stop adoring her. Zoe has been very successful in her work, and her net worth which is a whopping 3 million dollars proves it. She has kept her feet on the top of Everest and still is very down to earth human being. At her thirties also Zoe is an excellent looking woman with a sexy figure and perfect body measurements. Her hot legs have also made her very desirable, and man cannot help themselves from checking her out at least once. It seems like she has had weight loss which helps her look more fit and sexier than before. Zoe has done great work in television series and movies. She did a role of Lizzy in a tv show called Medium in the year 2007. She played the character Nina in a television series called Bored to Death in the year 2010. She did three documentaries which were After Iraq, HBO First Look and the popular Showing Up. She played the role of Denise Thibodeau in a TV series called Olive Kitteridge in the year 2014. She has done great roles in movies as well. Some of her outstanding work came in movies like What If, It's Complicated and Me and Orson Welles. Her work in I Hate Valentine's Day August, and the audiences also loved fracture. Her movie Our Brand Is Crisis in the process right now and is going to get its release in 2016. Camryn Grimes Boyfriend, Dating and Affair Morgan Fairchild Wiki, Bio, Divorce, Plastic Surgery and Net Worth Lydia Hearst Wiki, Married or Boyfriend, Dating and Net Worth Kate Bosworth Wiki, Married or Boyfriend, Dating and Plastic Surgery Mary Elizabeth Winstead Wiki, Married, Husband or Boyfriend and Net Worth Jamie Chung Wiki, Boyfriend, Dating or Married and Net Worth Wendy Schaal Wiki, Bio, Height, Husband and Net Worth Jada Pinkett Smith Wiki, Husband, Divorce, Boyfriend and Net Worth Anna Walton Wiki, Bio, Husband, Divorce and Net Worth Kelly Ripa Wiki, Husband, Divorce, Boyfriend and Net Worth Leighton Meester Engaged, Husband, Married and Boyfriend © 2020 Wikipicky.com and All Rights Reserved By using WikiPicky.com you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Published contents by users are under Creative Commons License. WikiPicky.com	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2227
__label__wiki	0.801301	0.801301	Man wanted over one-punch which.. Man wanted over one-punch which left victim blind in one eye A one-punch victim has told Tom Elliott his life has been changed forever after permanently losing sight in his right eye following a vicious assault. The teenager, 19, said he was outside the Royal Melbourne Hotel on February 17 when he was bashed. “A man approached me and offered me drugs and I said no I’m all right,” he said. “He followed me into the bathroom and pulled out a metal spike and asked me for my phone and money, to which I said no. “He punched me in the face, I lost sight immediately in my right eye, it’s highly unlikely that it’ll ever come back “It’s changed my life forever.” Click PLAY below to hear full details The man police wish to speak to appears to be 177cm tall, 20 years old, with a medium build and dark coloured curly hair. He was wearing a black baseball cap, a white ‘Nena & Pasadena’ muscle top and blue jeans with maroon ‘nmd’ runners. Photos: Victoria Police. Above – the man wanted over the incident.	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2236
__label__wiki	0.715595	0.715595	2020 season announcement coming soon 44Cup ABOUT THE RACING VIP GUEST EXPERIENCE RUSSEL'S TIPS Aleph Racing Artemis Racing Bronenosec Sailing Peninsula Petroleum Team Aqua Team Ceeref Team Nika Tavatuy Sailing Team THE RC44 HOSPITALITY AND SPONSORSHIP TOUR BOOK 44 breaking down barriers Sailing is a wonderfully international sport and, over the years, the 44Cup has provided some fine examples of global détente notably when American tacticians have sailed alongside Russian helmsmen. Another is Bronenosec Sailing of St Petersburg Yacht Club Commodore Vladimir Liubomirov, where over the years Russian crew have regularly sailed alongside Italians, Aussies and Kiwis. Witnessing how this Russian team in their unique royal blue 44 has developed over the years has been New Zealand America’s Cup veteran and match racer Cameron Dunn. While other Kiwi tacticians on the 44Cup such as Dean Barker, Cameron Appleton, Ray Davies and many of the sailors went through Team New Zealand school, Dunn took a similar but alternate path sailing with Aloha Racing in the 2000 America’s Cup and subsequently in 2003 was mainsheet trimmer during Peter Holmberg-era Oracle Racing, having won the World Match Racing Tour with the US Virgin Islander the year before. Today he is a stalwart of the professional sailing circuit and when he is not competing on the 44Cup is racing Hasso Plattner’s TP52 Phoenix. Dunn joined Bronenosec Sailing from its outset on the 44Cup in 2013, when the Russian campaign fielded two teams – Bronenosec and Gazprom Youth Sailing Challenge, the latter an initiative to develop young Russian sailors. Initially he was coach for both. As an indication of how a team can step up in the 44Cup, Bronenosec spent its first season bumbling along in the bottom half of the leaderboard but during year two, they won the RC44 World Championship. They followed this up in 2015 with second-placed finishes at both the Worlds and the overall season’s fleet racing. The latter could not have been closer, tied on points with Team Nika, it all coming down to the final run of the final race in Virgin Gorda. However they were stand-out winners in the match racing, this of course being a Dunn speciality. Much of Bronenosec’s success at this point came down to having the ‘supreme’ team at the core of their crew - tactician Michele Ivaldi, main trimmer Paul Westlake, headsail trimmer Maciel Cichetti and bowman Alberto Barovier - sailing alongside the Russians. For the 2017 season, the team entered a new era, with Liubomirov largely handing over the helm to his friend and fellow St Petersburg Yacht Club member Kirill Frolov and a fresh influx of Russian crew. “Kirill is passionate about the sailing, but also building a team of young guys,” says Dunn, who took over as tactician. “The goal has always been to get more of the young Russian guys on board and give them a shot at being professional sailors.” Aside from Dunn there is Italian Pietro Mantovani in the pit but the rest - Alexandr Ekimov, Viktor Serezhkin, Pavel Karachov, Egor Terpigorev and Alex Kulakov – are Russian and have been on board since the change in 2017. Most came with experience such as Serezhkin, who sailed on Gazprom Youth and has since skippered a boat on the World Match Racing Tour, or bowman Kulakov who sailed with top Russian match racer Evgeniy Neugodnikov. Two also raced on the Russian Extreme Sailing Series team. Dunn explains: “They have come from slightly different backgrounds. They were picked not just for their ability, but also their team culture.” Obviously the international mix can present its challenges, but Dunn says his sailing experience has stood him in good stead. “I have spent most of my career sailing with foreign teams. I did my first two Cups with American teams and then with the Italians [Mascalzone Latino]. Then I spent a lot of time sailing with various European nations. I have a reasonably good handle on how to communicate and how to fit in with a team with a different culture. It is a challenge, but a cool challenge. They appreciate my style and I enjoy the different ways of thinking about things and doing things.” There are also the language difficulties. “They have learned some Kiwi slang for sure!” he says of his Bronenosec colleagues. “When we first started, I recorded myself during racing to understand exactly what I say. Then I did a translation for them of those terms - of exactly what I am meaning - because what I think I say is not necessarily the same as what I actually say in the heat of battle. I have definitely learned some Russian, because I’ve been working with them for six years.” (Previously Dunn called tactics on the Synergy TP52.) To progress the team, he prefers an open approach: “I don’t sit there as a coach. I run the debriefs, but it more a case of chatting as a group and mutually working out how we can improve.” In 2018, Bronenosec Sailing missed the first two events but came back fighting, even though on their return in Marstrand, Liubomirov and Froliv shared helming duties. The highlight of their season was finishing third at the Cascais World Championship despite at one point receiving an almighty four point penalty in one of the most memorable moments in 44Cup history: They were attempting to shoot the weather mark in light breeze when they got washed down on to it by the current, causing boats astern get caught in irons as they tried to avoid. A slow-motion pile-up ensued. Dunn was pleased by their performance in 2018 all things considered. “This fleet is tough. If you are a little bit off your game, you get punished.” Regarding the RC44 itself, Dunn remains impressed: “I really enjoy the boat. They are tweaky and they are a challenge in terms of crew work. A lot of newer boats, like the 52s, have a lot of systems that make them relatively easy to sail. For a top level crew there are very few mistakes they can make because these systems are so good. With the 44 it takes more management, so coming into the bottom mark, you have to manage your laylines more carefully, and as a tactician you have to ensure the owner is aware of all the situations. The boats are physical too - the way the crew hikes makes for a hard day’s yachting. But the racing is as good as it gets in any class and downwind they are great fun.” The RC44’s high performance downwind is perhaps surprising compared to that of wider, fatter newer designs, which can plane, but not squeeze into a 40ft container, like the RC44 can. “Not many 40 footers can do 22 knots in 22 knots,” says Dunn. “And in light air you can race decently thanks to the big main and the big jib. And the racing is fun because you have to sail the boats tipped over and they are quite easy to wipe out.” The RC44 also represents great value for new teams looking for a highly competitive class of sailing boat for outstanding value. “You have to buy sails, but buying and running the boat is cheap - it is not in the same league cost-wise as the TP52 thanks to easy logistics, a smaller shore team and because the class is well organised and moves everything around together.” Also for owner-drivers, Dunn says the boat is ideal. “They teach them how to sail well, and because they are narrow, with the two wheels, they are easy to get around. Plus they are exhilarating and the racing is great. If an owner came to me and wanted to get into one design racing, it would be top of my list to recommend.” HOSPITALITY & 44Cup Newsletter All site content © 2020 RC44 CLASS ASSOCIATION	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2237
__label__wiki	0.554531	0.554531	Jeremy Pinnell Wed, Jan 29 @ 8:00 pm ( Doors: 7:00 pm ) 7PM Doors / 8PM Show $10 ADV/ $12 DOS The Minks When Jeremy Pinnell released OH/KY in the summer of 2015 to stunned acclaim, it felt like an entire career compressed into one knock-out album. Hailed as a “ming-blowingly good” (Greg Vandy, KEXP) “tutorial on classic country music” (Popmatters), Pinnell’s debut immediately differentiated as authentic and unflinching. Dogged touring through Europe and the states and celebrated radio sessions followed, cementing Pinnell’s position as a no-fuss master of his craft. His 2017 album Ties of Blood and Affection presents a canny lateral move. Instead of doubling down on the stark themes and values of his debut, this sophomore album finds Pinnell finding comfort in his own skin and achieving the redemption only hinted at in his previous batch of haunted songs. Here Pinnell joyfully embraces the working life, family obligations, and faith. His new stories delve into acceptance and survival, all the while investigating his most challenging chapter yet: adulthood. While “If life don’t get any better / I’m alright with this” isn’t an out-right triumph, it’s an honest revelation. You can feel the room breathe and get a sense of these musicians eyeballing each other as their performances are committed directly to thick analog tape. Honest and careworn, Jeremy’s voice can touch on wry, jubilant, and debauched - all in a single line. Ties of Blood and Affection offers a fair dose resolution to Jeremy’s story. At his best, Jeremy Pinnell chronicles the joy and sorrow of being human, which is the best that anyone could "Hardscrabble honky-tonk at its best, nodding to Johnny Cash and Buck Owens in equal measure. Ties of Blood and Affection is a stellar collection that could earn Pinnell comparisons to Sturgill Simpson.” - ROLLING STONE “One of my favorite new finds.” – Sean Moeller / DAYTROTTER "Kentuckian Jeremy Pinnell hits all the country-tune sweet spots. His voice is strong and a little mournful - - you can feel his ache seep through the speakers as you listen -- and the rhythm section shuffles along gently. Weepy pedal steel licks feel just right as Pinnell sings a regretful refrain of ‘I did it again,’ a familiar sentiment for any of us who've ever done a little backsliding.” - THE BLUEGRASS SITUATION Jason Hawk Harris w/ Mike Hewlett (Early Show)	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2238
__label__wiki	0.986456	0.986456	UK woman rescued after falling from cruise ship in Croatia By 9NEWS 7:33am Aug 20, 2018 Croatia's coast guard says a British woman has been saved after spending 10 hours in the Adriatic Sea at night after she fell from a cruise ship. The 46-year-old woman, who goes by the name of Kay, fell from the Norwegian Star cruise ship, about 95 kilometres off Croatia's coast shortly before midnight Saturday. A Croatian rescue ship was scrambled and found her at approximately 9.30am yesterday local time, swimming not far from where she was believed to have fallen. Croatia's coast guard says a British woman has been saved after spending 10 hours in the Adriatic Sea at night after she fell from a cruise ship. (ITV) The woman was found approximately 10 hours after she fell overboard. (ITV) "I fell off the back of the Norwegian Star and I was in the water for about 10 hours. These wonderful guys rescued me," she said speaking to media once safely ashore, according to The Sun. The woman was said to be "exhausted" and was treated by medics dockside, before being taken to a hospital in the town of Pula. She was discharged later the same day. The ship's captain, Lovro Oreskovic, said his crew "we were extremely happy for saving a human life" and the group even posed for photos together. The British Embassy in Croatia was informed and circumstances of the incident are being investigated, with the port and cruise liner all looking at their CCTV footage. The woman fell from the deck of a Norwegian Star cruise ship about 95km off Croatia's coast. (ITV) "Kay" and her team of rescuers. (ITV) Costa Concordia: Australian survivor's life-changing decade after Italian cruise ship disaster Passengers left shaken after massive cruise liners collide off Mexico Man pleads guilty to strangling girlfriend and throwing her off cruise ship balcony "A report was made that a guest aboard Norwegian Star had gone overboard while the ship was returning to Venice," a spokesperson for the cruise liner told The Independent. "As soon as the report was made the ship began a search and notified the appropriate authorities. "The ship will be delayed on her return to Venice." Auto news: 2020 Toyota Yaris GR4: All-wheel drive hatch teased - caradvice.com.au Inside top-secret mission to save endangered 'dinosaur trees' from bushfires	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2240
__label__wiki	0.802307	0.802307	Tommy Zimmer FeaturesMovies What’s Next For The King of Atlantis? Tommy Zimmer · 04/22/2019 At the end of Aquaman, Orm was captured and things remained peaceful. Arthur was victorious in claiming his birthright and became king. He overcame all the barriers that were before him and he stopped a ComicsFeaturesMovies Shazam: It’s All In The Family The story of Billy Batson is one person many people can relate to. At one point, it’s about fitting in and finding where you belong in the world. At other points, it shows us the ComicsFeaturesTV The Thawne Dilemma: Nora’s Troubles on The Flash As many viewers of The Flash know now, Nora is going to reveal to Barry that she has been working with Eobard Thawne throughout this recent season. As the photos display, most of the team Approaching The End With Oliver Queen: Arrow Season 8 Oliver Queen has been an old soul since the beginning of season one. He has always had much going on since he returned home from the island. He only progressed further into being a veteran FeaturesMoviesNews The Status of Ben Affleck’s Personal Life and Relationship With The Batman Character There has been much said about the life of actor Ben Affleck since he took on the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Suicide Squad, and Justice League. In October Jessica Jones Season 2: Trish Walker’s Future Toward the end of season two for Jessica Jones, things changed a great deal between Trish Walker and Dr. Karl Malus. Walker has been very focused on getting her own superpowers and she convinces Malus ComicsFeaturesMoviesNews The Flash Cast Wishes Kevin Smith Well After Heart Attack On February 26, Kevin Smith took to Instagram to talk about his almost dying. He was at a comedy show in Glendale, California, and he began to feel chest pain with it worsening following the ComicsFeaturesNews From Speedy to Arsenal: The Difficult Life of Roy Harper Whatever version of Roy Harper Jr. you read about in the comics, he has never had an easy life. The son of a forest ranger, Harper would go on to be raisied by a sham Warner Brothers Continues to Move in New Directions With DC Films Since the release of Justice League, Warner Brothers Entertainment has been moving in different directions because of the studio believing it underperformed and the obvious negative reviews the film has received. The worldwide box office The Parallelism of The Wayne Father and Son and Affleck Father and Son There are more than a few parallels in the relationships between Bruce Wayne and his father, Thomas Wayne, and the actor portraying the former, Ben Affleck, and his father, Timothy Affleck. In the comics, the ComicsFeaturesMoviesNewsTV Is Ra’s al Ghul Coming to Titans? It’s the question on everyone’s mind regarding Titans. Much of the show remains a mystery for those of us who are not on the inside of Warner Brothers. However, we can grasp at straws as The Addiction Struggles of a Minuteman: Could Byron Lewis be Saved by Christian Drug Rehab Centers? Mothman, or Byron Lewis, as he was known, started off his life in Connecticut. He began as a prodigy as a young person and eventually made a fortune off of his inventions that he patented. The Secrets of Steve Rogers: Cap’s Meth Addiction Problem According to The Foundation For a Drug-Free World, methamphetamine, otherwise known as meth, looks crystalline and white and is a drug people use by smoking it, injecting themselves with it via needle, or snorting it. The Continued News and Lack of News Surrounding The Batman As Warner Brothers shifts gears by rearranging their corporate structure in hopes of turning the situation with Justice League around, things continue to move forward with the Batman cinematic universe that began with Zack Snyder’s	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2248
__label__cc	0.705836	0.294164	The Danes To the Rescue of American Pharma Again! Senate HELP Hearing Was Five White Men in the Seats and 500 Women in the Halls. Chief Medical Officer to the British Government Defends MMR Safety: Autism Up by 15 Times And Still No Explanation by John Stone Since November I have been writing, on and and off about my correspondence with Dame Sally Davies, the out going Chief Medical Officer of England, and to the British Government. This correspondence is now published under Freedom of Information (barring my address and telephone number). It began when I asked Dame Sally to support her comment on the BBC about MMR "It's a a safe vaccine - we know that". Recently, I made this list of points which I believe emerged from the exchange: - ASD in schools is at least 15 times the level of 25 years ago - 1.74% of all schoolchildren in the recent Northern Ireland census (the most complete data we have at the present time) had a severe/complex level of ASD disablement (education Stage 5) - The overall rate is 2.9% for the province but 4.7% for Belfast - Epidemiologists trying to explain the rise in ASD at the beginning of the millennium were still only talking about a rate of 0.2% - 1999 National Statistics for schools’ mental health showed a rate of 0.2% for ASD/PDD for those born between 1984 and 88 but by the 2004 survey the overall rate was 1% - The rate appears to have risen 5 times during the years following the introduction of MMR and 3 times since, and the majority of cases are not fringe diagnoses - There is still no robust or adequate evidence of a large ASD population over the age of 35 and Dame Sally was unable to cite any - Our schools, and their finances, are breaking down under the burden of disablement, with ASD being frequently mentioned as the major cause - The social cost of ASD, once almost invisible, is set to outstrip old-age in the near future and is only likely to keep rising - There is no robust or adequate evidence base for MMR safety: the six studies in the single review cited by Dame Sally were flawed and inadequate - The first of these studies was only published 14 years after the products were introduced in the UK, and Dame Sally failed to cite any pre-marketing data, so the question also arises what the evidence base was for safety before they were introduced? - The MHRA yellow card scheme would be incapable picking up long term neurological effects of vaccination - The government has no coherent or convincing explanation of these events which are set to engulf everybody A pdf of the correspondence can be read and downloaded here. John Stone is UK editor of Age of Autism. Posted by Age of Autism on March 07, 2019 at 06:01 AM in Current Affairs, John Stone, Science, Vaccine Safety \| Permalink \| Comments (9) Excellent and thorough work John. I doubt Dame Sally is anywhere near as competent as she is given credit for being, one of a stream of ‘yes men’ positioned helpfully by big industry until they retire to a more lucrative job through that ever revolving door. It seems as if it’s only money that makes the world go around. Posted by: Alli \| April 26, 2019 at 04:22 AM Nobody on here is going to say we told you so simply ,because, its such a tragedy! Huge rise in number of Scottish pupils with autism, dyslexia and mental health issues The Scottish Government’s pupil census showed the number of pupils with additional support needs (ASN) increased by 68.7 per cent between 2012 and last year. https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/politics/massive-rise-number-scots-schoolkids-14447638 Pharma For Prison MMR RIP Posted by: Angus Files \| April 23, 2019 at 02:58 AM Thanks John ,you have done the best you can with it - Vaccination Risk Assessment Failure ! "Time to call it a day ,and move on from it" Yet the CMO has some sensible and responsible comments to make re antibiotic difficulties, problems, and issues but more vaccinations with failed risk assessments are not the solution for the problem? I have not read Callous Disregard book yet , The then CMO is a very compassionate and kind doctor "The best in the west" His Ward 2B in Gartnavel General Hospital Glasgow even the ward domestics/cleaners got pulled aside to listen to his "on the ward tutorials" as they had frequent contact with patients and were considered a valuable team worker! BB song "Boys Brigade , Will Your Anchor Hold YouTube Anyone who questions vaccine risk assessments failure. can expect to end up about as popular as a vegetable stock tub portion, at a meat only barbeque! Posted by: Morag \| March 07, 2019 at 09:01 AM An analysis in 2010 found that two thirds of US medical research was commercially funded, and that percentage has only grown during subsequent years. All medical advice needs to be viewed in that light. Posted by: Science is pure. People are corrupt. \| March 07, 2019 at 08:18 AM Thank you John. I was unsure about posting the Mail's article (one of three on the same day), but felt the comments about Dr Wakefield and 'vaccine deniers' made this article relevant, particularly since another hatchet job, this time on so called 'vaccine deniers' is almost certainly in the Mail's pipeline. There were more than 900 comments posted below the article, most of which were against the sentiments expressed by the author, Barney Calman. Many explained how side effects from taking Statins affected and in some cases even ruined their quality of life. Zoe Harcombe, one of the 3 persons smeared by Mr Calman responded below. She too received lots of supportive comments and private messages of support. Dr Kendrick also wrote a response on the internet. http://www.zoeharcombe.com/2019/03/cholesterol-statins-the-ctsu-the-mail-on-sunday/ Quote from Zoe:- "Before I did what I do now I worked as the HR Director at management team level for a number of blue chip organisations. I was privileged to receive some world class training in a number of different areas; one of which was bullying. I will never forget the ACAS definition of bullying that was instilled in us at the time: Bullying is an act designed to undermine, humiliate and intimidate. Those three words were so well thought through, so appropriate and so precise. Make no mistake – today’s hatchet job in the Mail on Sunday is an attempt to undermine, humiliate and intimidate me, Dr Aseem Malhotra and Dr Malcolm Kendrick." I should add here I have been taking Statins for around 10 years, prescribed for high cholesterol by my GP. My cholesterol is monitored annually and my cholesterol levels are normal. This was a matter for discussion between myself and my doctor and that's as it should be. I am totally opposed to blanket mass medications for whatever reason. Posted by: Jenny Allan \| March 07, 2019 at 06:56 AM And thank you Angus for obtaining this material under FOI. Posted by: John Stone \| March 07, 2019 at 04:58 AM No, statins are very like vaccines: they allegedly prevent something so everyone has got to have them, though they don’t lengthen life significantly and make people ill. Hancock’s obsession with them echoes that of Tony Blair many years ago (if I remember in answer to a PM question he said that the NHS spent £600m - 1b dollars - a year on them and he hoped to extend it further). So it is particularly appalling to hear the Wakefield propaganda rolled out for statins. Our politicians are quite liberal when forking out our money for mass pharmaceuticalisation - note the cost of vaccines for a single child went up by 68 times between 2001 and 2014 according to the EU parliament - but all too happy to run ordinary citizens into ever larger debt, and throw them on to the street. Thank you John for all your work on this. I am sure Dame Sally Davies will have been impressed and influenced by your arguments. We can only hope she instigates some changes in vaccine policies before stepping down in September. Perhaps parents can be offered the choice of monovalent vaccines, instead of spending £millions propping up the MMR vaccine, a policy which has manifestly failed. The single measles vaccine was in use for 20 years in the UK before the implementation of MMR vaccine. Autism then was at very low levels. We now have a new UK Health Secretary, in Westminster. Mat Hancock, an inexperienced minister, who has no medical or scientific qualifications. He previously worked as an economist for the Bank of England before becoming an economic adviser (and later Chief of Staff) to previous Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne. Mr Hancock is already making headlines with a vociferous campaign against what he has been told is medical 'fake news'. Needless to say he is targeting anything he considers 'anti-vaccine', but with 'all guns blazing' he linked up with the Daily Mail for a new campaign supporting Statins, a medication which lowers cholesterol. You may think Statins have little or nothing to do with vaccines and autism, but bear with me and read on:- Quote Mail Headlines:- "The deadly propaganda of the statin deniers: The drugs DO protect you from heart attacks but as this devastating investigation reveals thousands are refusing them https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-6764117/Devastating-investigation-reveals-impact-deadly-statin-denier-propaganda.html Dr Malcolm Kendrick, Dr Zoë Harcombe and Dr Aseem Malhotra are all deniers " Yes - we have a familiar format here. Three persons who dared to question the safety and/or effectiveness of Statins are denigrated and ridiculed. More Quotes:- 1. "There is a special place in hell for the doctors who claim statins don't work." By Barney Calman, Health Editor, for The Mail on Sunday 2. ‘Medical evidence shows that statins save lives.' ‘Needlessly risking people’s health by spreading reckless and ignorant misinformation claiming otherwise is completely unjustified.’ Mat Hancock, Health Minister 3. "The Mail on Sunday campaign comes amid growing concern about the erosion of trust in mainstream, evidence-based medicines caused by ‘fake news’ on the internet. On Friday, NHS England Chief Executive Simon Stevens warned that ‘vaccine deniers’ who went online to spout ‘fake messages’ were making it harder for doctors to ‘win the public argument’ on vaccination." 4. "The trio mentioned in our piece aren’t the only ones. There is Dr John Abramson at Harvard, author of the misleading ‘20 per cent side effect’ BMJ study; Joseph Mercola, a discredited anti-medicine campaigner who claims to have millions of website views a day; Dr Uffe Ravnskov in Denmark, founder of The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics, and others. It is a particularly insidious type of fake news they peddle, apparently from a respectable, credible source, but laced with misinformation. They seem now even to have the ear of policy-makers." 5. "Professor Sir Rory Collins, the British scientist behind pivotal research into statins, says the potential consequences far outweigh that of the infamous MMR vaccine scandal, in which disgraced paediatrician Andrew Wakefield fabricated evidence to support his idea that the jab triggered autism in infants, leading to a decline in vaccination uptake and the resurgence of measles. The suggestion is that the statin deniers are simply wrong rather than dishonest, but Prof Collins says: ‘In terms of death and disability that could have been prevented, this could be far worse than we saw with MMR.’ This final quote demonstrates how such ignorant and defamatory journalism can backfire spectacularly. No doubt the Mail has already written a similar article about 'vaccine deniers', but Prof Collins has flagged up the 'elephant in the room'. In the UK a few hundred measles cases are over inflated and hyped up to the ceiling. There have been 3 child deaths due to measles following MMR vaccine implementation in 1988. Two of them could not be vaccinated due to being immune compromised. There have been at least 4 admitted deaths from MMR vaccine and countless disabilities. All under reported. No other UK newspaper has chimed in on this story. If Mr Hancock has any sense he will refuse to participate in any more of these press and media OTT campaigns. Glug glug!! the shIps sinking abandon ship!!!glug glug!!BUT DONT PUT OUT A DISTRESS CALL!! What I see through Johns questioning is that they have no answers there are no 2% credible F.O.B. offs left.Well done John as always. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2018/nov/10/councils-face-crisis-special-needs-education-funding Council overspending on children’s special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) has trebled in just three years and is continuing to increase, with councils having to raid hundreds of millions from their overall schools budget to cope. The Observer has identified 40 councils that have either cut special needs funding this year, are considering making cuts or are raiding other education budgets to cope next year. Data from freedom of information requests and council reports shows that the combined overspend on “high needs” education budgets among councils in England soared from £61m in 2015-16 to £195m in 2017-18. It is already expected to hit £200m this year. The figures cover 117 of England’s 152 councils, meaning the true figures will be higher. Posted by: Angus Files \| March 07, 2019 at 04:03 AM	cc/2020-05/en_middle_0020.json.gz/line2249

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