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Meet Maria Lewis Kussmaul, CFA
Maria Lewis Kussmaul, CFA
Co-Founder and Partner - Boston
Mobile / Comms
Maria Lewis Kussmaul, CFA LinkedIn Profile
Maria, a Co-Founder and Partner at AGC Partners, leads the firm’s investment banking efforts in the IT security sector. A recognized domain expert, Maria is a frequent contributor to industry events, panelist/presenter at the RSA Conference, Security Innovation Network (SINET) Advisory Board Member, Naval War College Roundtable Participant and has facilitated numerous “Blue Sky” strategic planning sessions with leading security teams. Prior to co-founding AGC, Maria was a co-founder, general and venture partner of Castile Ventures, a seed and early stage venture capital firm. Maria’s early Wall Street career spanned three firms – Smith Barney, Shearson Lehman and Cowen & Co., culminating as global head of Cowen’s data networks & Internet investment banking activities. Working for more than 30 years as a sell-side equity analyst, venture capitalist and investment banker, Maria has advised on hundreds of telecom equipment, networking, internet and security transactions. Previously, she was named to the Institutional Investor All-American Research Team for 13 consecutive years. Maria holds a B.A. in Economics from Rutgers University, an M.B.A. from Wharton School of Business and a Chartered Financial Analyst designation. She was the 2013 recipient of the Boston Joseph Wharton Award.
Maria's Featured
Maria is a Trustee of the Museum of Science (MoS) in Boston, MA, and chair of the Museum’s Discoverers’ Committee. She is also an Overseer with Boston Baroque. A former marathoner, Maria now restricts her running to shorter distances and has adopted the annual Washburn Climb of Mt. Washington, New Hampshire’s highest peak, as her chief fundraiser for MoS. Maria and her husband Wes are empty nesters and reside in Boston, MA.
“Maria and her team at AGC served as BreakingPoint’s trusted advisor through a comprehensive and highly efficient process that culminated with the successful sale to Ixia. Through every step of the way, including complex final negotiations, AGC led BreakingPoint with professionalism and a deep commitment to our shareholders. My team and our investors couldn’t be more pleased with the results, and we look forward to working with AGC again in the future.”
— Des Wilson, CEO of BreakingPoint
(AGC Partners acted as sole financial advisor to BreakingPoint)
"We are very pleased with Maria, Russ and the team at AGC, who worked diligently with us from start to finish and secured the best outcome for our shareholders. Maria's extensive knowledge of the industry and personal guidance throughout the entire term of our engagement was invaluable, and I would welcome the opportunity to work with Maria and her team again."
— Mike Dager, CEO of Arxan
(AGC Partners served as sole financial advisor to Arxan Technologies in September, 2013)
"AGC did a fantastic job advising Xceedium during the M&A process. The management team, Board, and shareholders were all thoroughly impressed by Maria’s deep industry knowledge and close relationships with the major security players. The entire AGC team served as a trusted advisor and helped make this transaction a success. We look forward to working with Maria and her team again in the future."
Glenn Hazard, CEO of Xceedium
(AGC Partners acted as sole financial advisor to Xceedium in August 2015)
Security Flash Report – April 2019
Security Orchestration & Automation
Cyber Risk Insurance
Connected Car Security
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By Zoe Conville on August 8th, 2016 - comments
Adam Peaty, coached by Lincolnshire’s Mel Marshall, is an Olympic swimming champion.
Early this morning Team GB swimmer Adam Peaty broke his own world record to take the gold medal in the 100m breaststroke at the Olympics Aquatic Stadium in Rio.
Peaty, who had already broken a world record in the heats with a time of 57.55 seconds, swam even faster in the final, finishing 1.5 seconds ahead of the rest of the field with a time of 57.13 seconds.
Peaty is the first British man to win an Olympic gold medal in swimming since the Seoul 1998 games when Adrian Moorhouse won gold in the same event.
Adam’s coach, former GB swimmer Melanie Marshall, who was born in Boston, has been recognised for her impeccable coaching skills since she retired at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.
Mel has been honoured with the British Swimming Coaches Association Coach of the Year Award in 2015 and 2016, was named Swimming World magazine International Coach of the Year and was also nominated for the Coach of the Year at the prestigious BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards.
Just minutes after Adam secured gold, Jazz Carlin from Wales took second place in the 400m freestyle final, doubling Great Britain’s medal tally with an impressive swim time of 4:01.23.
Earlier in the day fencer Richard Kruse came close to a medalling in the Men’s Foil competition, narrowly losing to out to Russian Timur Safin – the final score was 13 – 15.
Lizzie Armitstead looked strong in the Women’s Road Race too, but dropped off in the final stages, coming 5th overall.
Despite a strong start for Wimbledon champ Andy Murray in the Men’s tennis singles, he and brother Jamie were beaten in the first round of the doubles competition.
Day three of the Olympic Games gets underway later, and with Team GBs women in the Rugby sevens final, and Tom Daley and Dan Goodfellow, chances of Team GB increasing its medal tally look promising.
Find a schedule of all of today’s sports on the BBC website.
Alford golfer Ashton Turner selected for Olympic youth squad
Fri, 14th December, 2012 - 13:00
Thu, 11th August, 2016 - 11:42
Lincolnshire Hockey Quartet Set for Rio Olympics
Casey Stoney
Lizzie Simmonds
Team GB Hockey Women Reach Olympic Final
How much did the Rio Olympics cost you?
Mon, 22nd August, 2016 - 15:45
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Renaissance Schaumburg Convention
Center Hotel in Chicago, Illinois
Grand Prize
The Baking Academy
Demonstration Schedule
Hands-on Class Schedule
Chef Bios
Chef Joel Reno
Joel Reno is a Chef Instructor at The French Pastry School who teaches in L’Art de la Pâtisserie, the 24-week Professional Baking and Pastry Program. As a chef instructor at The French Pastry School, Reno brings years of experience within many types of establishments in the pastry world: from yachts in the Caribbean; to four-star restaurants in Chicago; to small, artisan bakeries in Southern California. He believes that a pastry chef’s biggest responsibility is to give customers the best experience they can possibly have and that experience is dependent on the chef’s willingness to continuously challenge themselves to become better. “Pastry is a beautiful craft and I love getting people excited about it,” Reno explained. “When students of pastry get equally as excited about learning the process and science behind making the recipes, magic can happen.”
Friday November 11
10:00am-11:00am: Chocolate Marshmallows
11:30am-12:30pm: Cupcakes
1:00pm-2:00pm: Chocolate Brownie
2:30pm-3:30pm: Honey and Lemon Madeleine
4:00pm-5:00pm: Chocolate Caramels
Sally McKenney
Sally McKenney, of Sally's Baking Addiction, has made the internet a sweeter place! She is a full-time blogger, cookbook author, photographer, and baking addict sharing her favorite recipes with over 8 million monthly blog readers. Sally also blogs for People magazine's website and has a massive social media following. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband, Kevin, and their dog, Jude.
4:00pm-6:30pm: Cookie Baking and Tips with Sally
Saturday November 12
10:00am-12:30pm: Perfecting Pie Crust from Scratch
Rushion McDonald
Rushion McDonald is an Emmy Award-winning television producer, motivational speaker, businessman and philanthropist. He’s also an avid and award-winning home baker and ambassador for the Perfect Bake smart scale + interactive recipe app. After discovering his love of baking through his work as Executive Producer of “The Steve Harvey Talk Show,” Rushion teamed up with Perfect Bake to share his recipes and show people how to “Bake Like a Man.” He specializes in Southern-inspired dishes like Baked Banana Pudding and Brown Sugared Monkey Bread. When he’s not baking, Rushion is known for his work as Executive Producer on television shows like “The Steve Harvey Talk Show,” “Steve Harvey’s Big Time,” and as Consulting Producer for the syndicated game show “Family Feud.” He also Executive Produced the hit movies “Think Like A Man” and “Think Like A Man Too.” He currently runs a successful marketing and media company, 3815 Media, which produces television shows, large scale events, promotional campaigns, trade shows and corporate exhibits.
Sunday November 13
10:00am-12:30pm: Thanksgiving Treats Made Easy with Rushion Macdonald and Perfect Bake
SARAH OWENS grew up in Clinton, Tennessee, and is the owner of BK17 Bakery, an artisan microbakery that began in Brooklyn, New York. After receiving a certificate from the New York Botanical Garden’s School of Professional Horticulture, she spent six years as curator of the historic Cranford Rose Garden and the Rose Arc Pool at Brooklyn Botanic Garden. She lives in Louisville, Kentucky. Learn more at BK17bakery.com.
10:00 am-11:00 am: Sour Dough Rough Puff Pastry
1:00 pm-3:30pm: Introduction to Sourdough Breads
11:30 am-12:30 pm: Apple Hand Pies in a Sourdough Cheddar Cheese Crust
Shauna Sever
Shauna Sever is a home baking expert, television host, and the author of three cookbooks on baking (Marshmallow Madness!, Pure Vanilla and Real Sweet), and is also the voice behind the award-winning baking blog Piece of Cake. Shauna is an regular contributor to the Today show and NPR's The Splendid Table. Her writing and recipes have been featured in O, The Oprah Magazine, Food and Wine, Bon Appetit, Fine Cooking, Family Circle, USA Weekend, and many more. She lives with her husband and two children in Chicago.
11:30am-12:30pm: Home Made Marshmallows
Annie Overboe
Annie Overboe is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Hyde Park, New York, winning the school’s prestigious “Outstanding Baker” award. As a newly minted pastry chef she baked for Dan Leader at Bread Alone Café in Boiceville, New York, and crafted desserts for the 25th anniversary of the Woodstock Festival. Following a sweet trail of success led Annie to the Windy City, where she baked artisan desserts in Lincoln Park and cafes in the suburban Chicago area. As a Daily Herald food columnist and correspondent since August 2000, she shares her culinary knowledge and experiences with readers across Chicagoland, including dessert and food presentations at festivals, events and demonstrations. Annie lives in Oak Brook Terrace Illinois, with husband Michael.
2:30pm-3:30pm: Secrets to Succesful Holiday Cookies
4:00pm-5pm: Great Tasting Gluten Free Baking
2:30pm-3:30pm: Bake Like a Pastry Chef
Erin Barden
Erin Barden is the owner and creator of Leighara Cake Company LLC which produces Simply Fondant, a line of certified organic ready-to-use fondant varieties. Erin has been creating edible works of art years and has also worked as a registered nurse for over 12 years; receiving her graduate degree in nursing in 2009. The desire to pursue organic, cleaner eating and lifestyle habits coupled with her love of all things sweet, stemmed the creation of her certified organic company. Her company’s mission is to leave our planet a little cleaner and sweeter that we found it. Erin resides in central Wisconsin with her three children and husband, Nick.
1:00pm-2:00pm: How to create a Stunning Ruffle Cake with Fondant
Sunday, November13
10:00am-11:00am: How to Create Marble Effects with Fondant and Trends for Winter 2016
Tina Selga
Tina Selga is the owner of My Sweet Kake. It's a cake, cupcake, coffee shop located in Schaumburg, IL. She's always had a "thing" for beautiful and delicious cakes. Her childhood favorite is chocolate cake with marshmallow icing, yum! She's self-taught and started making cakes at home while on maternity leave in 2009. It make her happy and enjoys every minute of it. She was inspired to open up a storefront in August 2013 with her loving husband's help. "I fly for the friendly skies and I'm a mother of four. My Sweet Kake is named after my four sweet children. KAKE is my children's middle initial from youngest to eldest. Katherine, Allen, Kay and Elizabeth. It's just the perfect name". The company's logo represent her 4 kids.
2:30pm-3:30pm: Decorate an Ombre Rosette Cake
4:00pm-5:00pm: How to make French Macarons
Andrea Nickels
Andrea Nickels is an adjunct Chef Instructor at The Illinois Institute of Art in Chicago and Robert Morris University. She teaches Intro to Baking and Pastry, Breads, Cake Decorating, Chocolates, European-Style Tortes, and Plated Desserts. With over 20 years in the Hospitality Industry, she worked as Pastry Chef for 12 years at the award-winning Piece-A-Cake Bakery in East Dundee, IL, and continues to work as a freelance decorator at Wilton Brands Inc. in Woodridge, IL for the past 6 years. Her work has been featured on the PBS show Bake, Decorate, Celebrate, the Home Shopping Network, and packaging and signage for stores such as Wal-Mart, Target, and Michael’s. Andrea Nickels inspires others by delighting the senses, “I’m always following trends and continuing my own education and professional development. I am always learning and hope that my excitement about a project will inspire others to learn and grow in their craft of baking and decorating.”
10:00am-12:30pm: Teapot Cake
1:00pm-3:30pm: Confectionary Flowers
4:00pm-6:30pm: Piping Skills on Cupcakes
1:00pm-3:30pm: Sugar Cookie Decorating
4:00pm-6:30pm: Mirror Glaze on Individual Entremet
Explore. Discover. Shop
Elise Strachan
Malika Ameen
Chef Nicolas Jordan
@BakingSweetsUSA
Main Stage Schedule
Home-Baking Recipe Competition
Home Baking Rules and Regulations
Adult Cake Competitions
Adult Cake Rules & Regulations
Peter Pan Theme Cake--Junior Division
Adventure Marketing Group
©2019 AdVenture Marketing Group Reproduction without explicit permission is prohibited. All Rights Reserved.
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Architecture of Dublin City &
Lost Buildings of Ireland
1910 – Woolworth’s, Grafton St., Dublin
1837 – St Paul’s Church, Arran Quay, Dublin
Architect: O’Callaghan & Webb
The first F. W. Woolworth store in Ireland opened in 1914 on Grafton Street in Dublin. Eventually spread over three adjacent commercial units. The southernmost was No.67, a solid redbrick building was by Charles H. Asworth. Nos.69 and 71 were part of an elaborate terrace, designed by O’Callaghan & Webb with oriel windows on two levels with large lunette windows and balconies above. All finished in red brick with a fine balustrade at roof level.
Frank W. Woolworth was one of a number of executives at the New York headquarters who claimed Irish ancestry. They were particularly proud of this opening, along with another in Belfast which opened on 6 November 1915.
Redeveloped in the late 1960 meant the demolition of all three buildings including the fine street-level facade. No.71 stands today as a reminder of the fine Edwardian commercial buildings lost creating a visual hole in the Edwardian streetscape of this part of Grafton Street.
Tags: 1910, Charles Ashworth, Dublin, F.W. Woolworth, Grafton Street Dublin, O'Callaghan & Webb
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Sleds & sleighs (1)
This footage features the 1929 Fairbanks Ice Carnival Queen contest, a flight with Ed Young, a film shot by Dan Lhamon, Howard Hughes in Fairbanks in August 1938 during his 1938 Around the World Flight in a Lockheed Super Electra, a Pan American airplane, a Pacific Alaska Airways airplane, a Wien Alaska Airlines airplane, and the 1948 Ice Carnival sled dog races. According to George Lounsbury, approximately the first five minutes of footage is a Lounsbury family film, and it contains images of George's mother in the late 1920s. Scenes of Howard Hughes were from a film obtained from Earl Pilgrim. Scenes of Russian airplanes, Juneau, and Nome were films from Dan Lhamon and Rod Wolff. The remainder is film George Lounsbury received from his brother, but the origin is unknown, and the Lounsbury family does not appear in that part of the film.
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Hill's legacy still running strong | News
Hill's legacy still running strong
Submitted by WUSA9 Web Staff
Friday, October 25th, 2013, 11:30pm
Topics: News
WASHINGTON (WUSA9) -- Darryl Hill is the first African American athlete to play football for a major university and take the field in the Deep South.
Now Maryland's Athletic Director, Kevin Anderson and Hill will witness history this weekend as they watch the Terps take on the Clemson Tigers - likely for the last time. The final match up marks a historic event 50-years ago when Hill broke new ground on the field in College Park.
Derek McGinty has more in tonight's cover story.
Some men are destined to make history whether they volunteer for the job or not. Darryl Hill is one such man. A half century ago he became the first black football player at the University of Maryland, the first in the whole ACC. But as you will see, while Hill was certainly a pioneer, he did not walk alone.
"And I just right off the bat said 'I'm not trying to be Jackie Robinson. I'd like to go to college. Have a normal college life."
He laughs about it now but after graduating from Gonzaga High as a star wide receiver in 1961 Darryl Hill's college life would never be normal. First, Hill's mom talked him into the Naval academy, where he was the first black player ever.
"There were kids on the team from the south who weren't all that happy about my being on the team."
But did I mention he was the quarterback on that team?
"I said 'hey, boy, you can really throw. What's your name?' He said 'my name is Roger.' I said 'Roger - what's your last name?' He said 'Staubach'. (laughs). I said 'well man, you're pretty good'."
The two hit it off.
"And so he said 'Look Darryl. You catch; I throw. We got this.' Pretty much, the heat was off because Roger and I were leading the team."
But only for one season. Turns the Navy was more momma's dream then Daryl's, so he looked to transfer and that's when her heard from Lee Corso who was then a coach at University of Maryland.
"I said 'Coach, you've forgotten which conference you play in, right?' He said 'that's just the point. we'd like you to come and become the first African American to play in the Atlantic coast conference.'"
But Darryl wasn't sure he really wanted to be a pioneer again.
"I just want to have some fun and go to some frat parties and drink some beer. ."
But Corso challenged him. You can have fun or you can make history.
"But most important reason is that if you don't come, there may be some years before we step up to take this step again. You were carefully gleaned out to do this. We gotta have the right guy just like Jackie Robison was the right guy."
So instead of frat parties and beer, Daryl was treated to assasination threats at the first away game, North Carolina state.
"I thought this was a prank and trying to frighten me. The opening kickoff I'm glancing up there and I dropped it."
At Wake Forest, it was even worse.
"They had organized cheers using the n word and so forth. Get the dirty so and so off the field."
But then a courageous act from a man who would later be famous for his courage.
"Wake Forest had a player who was the biggest hero ever. He came up to me during the warm-ups and apologized. He apologized for the way my fans are put his hand on my shoulder. All the crap stopped. He said you go out there and do your thing. It was Brian Piccolo. From the movie brian's song. What you saw about Piccolo and Gail Sayers was real because he did it with me."
Which brings us to the Clemson game. Back then the South Carolina school had only just admitted its first black students. The football coach Frank Howard, an avowed racist was drawing the line.
"He said they may make us integrate our school, but i'll never integrate our football athletic programs. And the name of the stadium death valley, he said a black man will never set a foot on this field."
But on November 16, 1963, one did.
"It was a circus. There were people walking around with confederate flags. People with kuklux klan hats on, organized cheers, negative cheers."
Add to all that, while warming up, Hill got word his mother was outside with a ticket but they wouldn't let her in. The stadium was for whites only. That was too much. And Hill was about leave but when he got outside to his mom;
"The president of Clemson University Robert Edwards was standing with my mother and don't know how he knew. He said Darryl don't worry. I'm taking you mom to my suite. You go play the game."
Hill caught 10 passes that day despite being double and triple teamed. And he credits his teammates who stood by him that entire historic season, even when he didn't know it.
"I learned after I left Maryland they had a team meeting about accommodating at restaurants, and the team voted unanimously that if they wont take him, we wont stay."
Breaking barriers back then means a lot to him now."It means a lot more now, looking back on it because you think maybe you've done some good. It would have gotten there whether I did it or not, I think the only thing I can take pride in is that it happened a little sooner than it would have happened."
Today, at age 70, Hill has been a successful businessman and restauranteur. Today he is the Chairman of "Kids Play USA Foundation" whose mission is to remove the financial barriers from youth sports. He is also still a huge Terps fan.
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Home » Arts
Inside Joke: Moontower closes with Pete Holmes, Jim Gaffigan & more
Disco Drag
Priscilla Queen of the Desert parades into Austin this week
Late-night Lowdown
Host Devon Tincknell discusses the comedic spin on late-night talk show TNM Tonight
Host Devon Tincknell discusses late-night talk show TNM Tonight
By Ryan Lakich
Host of TNM Tonight Devon Tincknell delivering the show's opening monologue. Photo by Philip Leach
Host Devon Tincknell (right) interviews guest filmmakers Katie Graham and Andrew Matthews. Philip Leach
A revered cornerstone of American entertainment, Austin is long overdue to give The Late-Night Talk Show its own spin. Traditional talk shows have blended class, comedy and music since the dawn of television, and now, TNM Tonight seeks to bring its own brand of entertainment by filming in front of a live audience at the New Movement Theater and posting its episodes later on YouTube.
Hosted Devon Tincknell of Smut City and the Worst Tattoo in Austin Contest, TNM Tonight employs a fairly standard format featuring a musical guest, a stand-up comedian and an interview with a celebrity.
Tincknell took the time to sit down on the other side of the interview table and chat with CultureMap about the history and style of the show, as well as preview the next episode's lineup of comedian Katie Pengra, band Kay Leotard and "Attorney Who Rocks" David Komie.
CultureMap: How did this show get off the ground?
Devon Tincknell: It has been going on since November — our first pilot episode. It was still a regular episode, we just called it a pilot in case it went horribly awry. We could sort of say, “Oh, just testing. Now we’re on track.” That’s what pilots are for, because there’s so many moving parts to the show, we just had no idea if we were actually going to pull this off.
CM: So how did the idea of a late-night style talk show come about in the first place?
DT: The truth is that I was running a personal blog for a number of years and I decided that I hated blogging. I decided that I didn’t like doing something where you’re just throwing things into the abyss and hoping somebody out there reads them. Maybe you get a spam comment and that’s pretty much the interaction you get.
I wanted to try something else that is more — there’s more feedback. You know, there’s more like there’s a sense of accomplishment, so you can finish something that’s more collaborative. It’s not just me working on it.
And then in the beginning of the fall of 2012, Chris Trew, who is the co-founder and co-owner of the New Movement Theater, asked me to put together a show. He just said, “Put together something.” So I thought about it, and I thought about what could incorporate all of these elements I want, where we have a finished product that could live on, and I get to work with other people, and it brings in a variety of crowds. I didn’t want to just harass my own social circle on Facebook over and over.
So we came up with this idea… The idea came from that of looking at those little parts and how they fit together. And then I realized, “You know, with a late night talk show we’d get to have different comedians, different bands, and guests. They would all get to bring their friends. I’d get to work with a writers’ room. That’d be kind of cool. I like hosting stuff. I like that immediacy of making a joke and having laughter, instead of writing a joke, putting it out on the Internet, and four months later someone says ‘Oh, I read your blog!’”
CM: But you wouldn’t say that the show is centered on you, like traditional talk shows, correct? The focus is more on the guests you gather from the local Austin scene.
DT: Yeah, it’s this weird thing where I’m the focus of the show because I’m the host of the show, one of the head writers, one of the producers, but I’m just there to facilitate everything else. The funniest part of the show is probably when the comedian is up there. The most interesting part is when the guest is talking.
It’s cool, because it’s fun and my show and I’m really proud of it, but at the same time it’s not called “TNM Tonight with Devon Tincknell.” It’s much more a spotlight on the community than it is a chance for me to strut around and get pats on the back.
CM: What are some of the folks that you’ve previously had on the show?
DT: Every episode we have a comedian. So we have had Duncan Carson, who was our first, Kath Barbadoro, and we have had Ramin Nazer, who is the current “Funniest Person in Austin,” but is yet to be dethroned once the current contest finishes.
And then for guests, we have had two filmmakers, Katie Graham and Andrew Matthews, who did the film Zero Charisma, which just came out at SXSW. And then we had Chris Trew on for a special thing, because it was the anniversary of the theater. We did an interview with Johnny Mars last time, who is a local filmmaker.
CM: And who do you have on tap for the next episode?
DT: In this episode, we have Davie Komie, which is really exciting. And I’m really excited about that because I think everyone’s seen the billboards and just has this idea based on that. I mean he’s a real lawyer. He’s not an ambulance chaser. He’s a professional lawyer. … And this was kind of a fun campaign that he came up with. I think it’ll be interesting to sort of “get behind the billboard.”
CM: I guess it’s not just local celebrities that you want to get on the show, but people that you think will be fun and entertaining.
DT: Local celebrities are what we’re going for. As someone who has a background in journalism, I’ve done enough Q&A’s with bands to know that it’s better to have a band that’s fun to talk to than the band that everyone wants to hear from.
So we try to do a little bit of a vetting process to make sure that, when we have a guest, we’re going to get someone who is awesome, has good stories, and is fun to talk to. … I want to have someone who is going to tell some awesome stories and be engaging.
Tickets are still available to purchase for the live recording of TNM Tonight this Saturday, May 4 with special guests David Komie, comedian Katie Pengra, and band Kay Leotard. Doors open at 8:30 p.m. and the show begins promptly at 9 p.m. If you can’t make it in, be sure to catch TNM Tonight and all previous episodes and clips on its YouTube channel.
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Tag: All Progressive Congress (APC)
Oct32018 by Bigpenngr, RotterdamNo Comments
Ogboru’s Candidacy: APC Will Pay Dearly For It – Ochei Vows
NEWS, POLITICS
Former Delta House of Assembly Speaker and a gubernatorial aspirant of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Rt. Hon Victor Ochei has said that his party would pay dearly for undermining the feelings of Anioma people in the just concluded governorship primary. The election which was held at Federal College of Education (technical) produced Chief Great Ogboru, an Urhobo but the other three aspirants in the race had expressed displeasure over the outcome, saying that they were shut out of the contest. Ochei told Vanguard on the phone that: "I would certainly not work with Ogboru, adding: “everybody saw it, I will not, because an election was not held. If an election was held and after the election, a winner emerges from the process, it is fine, but you do not coerce people to work for y
Aug52018 by Bigpenngr, RotterdamNo Comments
APC NWC Recalls Senator Shehu Sani From Suspension
The National Working Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has lifted the suspension placed on Senator Shehu Sani by the Kaduna chapter of the party. The party has directed the chairman of the party in Tudun ward Kaduna and others to implement the directive with immediate effect. The directives was given to compliment the peace efforts being made by the national leadership of the party to bring back peace in the party in Kaduna State. This was contained in a statement by Acting National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Yekini Nabena on Sunday. The statement read: "The National Secretariat has received the news of the suspension of Senator Shehu Sani by the Tudun Wada ward Chairman and wish to clarify that the purported suspension of Distinguished Senator Shehu San...
APC NWC Annuls Cross River State Congress
The National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has cancelled the state congress earlier conducted in the Cross River State. The party's NWC says the conduct of the state congress was not in conformity with the party’s guideline and constitution. The NWC however upheld the conduct of the ward and Local Government Area Congresses in the state which was observed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). In resolution signed by the National Chairman of the APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and the National Secretary, Hon.Mai Mala Buni, shortly after a meeting of the NWC yesterday it said: “ the National Working Committee at its meeting of 1st August, 2018 has reviewed the conduct of the congresses in Cross River State. “Consequently, the
Aug12018 by philzNo Comments
BREAKING: Tambuwal Officially Announces Defection From APC To PDP
Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, has officially defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He announced his defection on Wednesday at a press conference in the Government House, Sokoto, North-West Nigeria. This is coming as amid hundreds of supporters who stormed the Government House to declare their support for him. Governor Tambuwal explained on the state government’s Twitter handle that he took the decision after a wide consultation with the people of the state who assured him of their support for his next political move. The announcement comes after weeks of speculation that the governor was planning to leave the ruling party and one day after he called on Nigerians to reject what he described as “prison-yard democ
‘Forces Within APC Imposed My Defection On Me’ – Saraki
I wish to inform Nigerians that, after extensive consultations, I have decided to take my leave of the All Progressives Congress (APC). This is not a decision that I have made lightly. If anything at all, I have tarried for so long and did all that was humanly possible, even in the face of great provocation, ridicule and flagrant persecution, to give opportunity for peace, reconciliation and harmonious existence. Perhaps, more significantly, I am mindful of the fact that I carry on my shoulder a great responsibility for thousands of my supporters, political associates and friends, who have trusted in my leadership and have attached their political fortunes to mine. However, it is after an extensive consultation with all the important stakeholders that we have come to this difficu...
Jul312018 by Bigpenngr, RotterdamNo Comments
JUST IN: APC NWC Queries Saraki Over Breach Of Party’s Constitution Despite Announcing His Defection
The National Working Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has queried the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, asking him to respond within 48 hours why disciplinary action ought not to be taken against him for breaching article 21 of the constitution of the party. The party in a resolution signed by the National Secretary of the party, Mai Maila Buni, said the senate president had allegedly flouted the laws of the party with his activities. Some of the allegations raised against him includes that “you encouraged and facilitated by providing an enabling environment for the defection of some senators who are members of the APC to the other opposition Parties. “That you have deliberately refused to screen nominees for appointments submitted by Mr President who are member
Bolaji Abdulllahi Says He Has Not Resigned As APC Spokesman
Mallam Bolaji Abdulllahi has dismissed report that he has resigned as spokesman of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Earlier reports say Abdullahi resigned from his position to join the Senate President who announced his defection from APC to the PDP today. Opposition party, PDP had in its Twitter handle celebrated the alleged resignation and defection. https://twitter.com/OfficialPDPNig/status/1024367341151416320 But Abdulllahi, an ally of Saraki said he did tell anybody that he was resigning his position, saying that he knew where the speculation of his reported resignation was coming from. “But I have not tendered my resignation,” Abdullahi told Premium Times by telephone Tuesday night. “And I did not tell anyone I have done so.” “It is not true that I have resi
Onowakpo’s Defection: The Imminent Death Knell Of PDP In Isoko Nation In Delta State
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may have literally shot itself dead in Isoko Federal Constituency in Delta state when they lost their big influencer to the opposition party, All Progressive Congress (APC). This are the views of Political watchers in the wake of the defection of Joel-Onowakpo Thomas, the former Delta State Board of Internal Revenue boss to the ruling party, APC. Pundits say Onowakpo’s defection to the APC was a great loss and set-back to the PDP which had held sway in the Isoko Federal Constituency for past 16 years. Onowakpo, who dumped the PDP, few days ago as reported by BigPen Online after resigning his membership of the party at his local Emede Ward 05 in Isoko South Local Government Area of the state, is a big fish to the APC. His joining
‘APC Still Meeting With Defected National Assembly Members’
Leadership of All Progressives Congress, is still meeting with some members of the National Assembly who defected from the APC to other opposition parties. National Chairman of the party, Comrade Adams Oshiohmole, who alluded to this, says many of the members of the NASS who left the party were 'victims of disinformation’. Oshiohmole stated this when he addressed State House correspondents at the end of a meeting between APC Senators and President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Wednesday night. The APC leader noted that the party had maintained its majority positions at both chambers of the National Assembly in spite the defections. He, however, warned that APC and the Buhari administration would not be intimidated or distracted from delivering on its
Jul232018 by Israel NwachukwuNo Comments
BREAKING: Oshiomhole Threatens To Expel Ngige, Sirika From APC
Adams Oshiomhole, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress has threatened to suspend from the party the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, and Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, for their failure to inaugurate boards of parastatals under their ministries. Oshiomhole said that if President Muhammadu Buhari can condone indiscipline by the Ministers, he will not allow them do the same to the party. He spoke with State House Correspondents against the backdrop of his recent directive to Ngige and Sirika to inaugurate Boards under their Ministries, saying when suspended, they will be booted out of the Federal Executive Council as rebels. Meeting with the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, Oshiomhole said: “If the minister refuses,
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For Some Critical Drugs, Low Prices Lead to Scarcity
Shortages of “supportive care” drugs, for chemotherapy-induced nausea or to protect the kidneys, can delay cancer treatments, said Yoram Unguru, a pediatric oncologist & bioethicist at Sinai and the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics. When he gets the hospital’s list of shortages, “I scream, I shout, I shake my head”
When Andrew Archuleta’s bladder cancer returned two years ago, his doctor prescribed periodic treatments of a powerful immunotherapy designed to stave off another recurrence. But the latest round, scheduled for May, was abruptly canceled because of a severe shortage of the drug.
“I keep calling the clinic and saying, ‘Is my treatment still canceled?’ and they say, ‘Yes,’ ” said the 65-year-old Colorado resident. Now he fears the cancer might come back in an even more aggressive form, endangering his bladder – or even his life, if the disease were to spread. With his anxiety and blood pressure rising, he temporarily took Prozac.
“My doctor says he feels really bad about it, but I keep wondering: How could this happen in this day and age?” he said.
Archuleta is one of tens of thousands of people across the country affected by a shortage of the gold-standard treatment, called BCG, for early-stage bladder cancer, with potentially life-changing consequences.
…continue reading ‘For some critical drugs, low prices lead to scarcity’
Move Over, Martin Shkreli
This Pharma Exec Is Accused Of Fixing Prices On 107 Drugs
In some ways, it was the corporate world equivalent of the infamous baptism scene in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, when, in a single 24 hours, the newly anointed don of the Corleone family executed a plan to simultaneously eliminate rivals in La Cosa Nostra.
In this case, however, the family was made up of generic-drug makers Teva Pharmaceuticals, Mylan, Actavis, Lupin, Novartis’ Sandoz, Taro Pharmaceuticals and others. On a single day, Friday, April 2014, the scheme hiked the price on 22 generic drugs—ranging from cephalexin, a bacterial infection antibiotic, which jumped 185%, to ketoconazole cream, used to combat athletes foot and jock itch, which jumped 110%, to diflunisal, an anti-inflammatory, up as much as 182%.
In annals of marketing, their concerted action was impressive. The move rubbed out price competition and profit erosion in an industry plagued by them—and created a windfall for those in on the game.
…continue reading ‘Move Over, Martin Shkreli’
Minorities Face More Obstacles to a Lifesaving Organ Transplant
Patients who experience organ failure need a transplant to improve their odds of survival and to achieve a better quality of life
However, getting an organ transplant is often accompanied by several challenges, many of which can be attributed to factors like the state of an individual’s living circumstances, their economic status and where they were born.
As a result, many racial and ethnic minorities, such as African Americans, Latinx individuals and Native Americans, must unjustly wait longer for a much-needed new organ – or never receive one at all because of these barriers to care.
Research shows that these disparities are avoidable, especially with changes at the institutional level.
…continue reading ‘Minorities Face More Obstacles to a Lifesaving Organ Transplant’
thumb image via Flickr Some rights reserved by theglobalpanorama
The War to Free Science
How librarians, pirates, and funders are liberating the world’s academic research from paywalls
The 27,500 scientists who work for the University of California generate 10 percent of all the academic research papers published in the United States.
Their university recently put them in a strange position: Sometime this year, these scientists will not be able to directly access much of the world’s published research they’re not involved in.
That’s because in February, the UC system — one of the country’s largest academic institutions, encompassing Berkeley, Los Angeles, Davis, and several other campuses — dropped its nearly $11 million annual subscription to Elsevier, the world’s largest publisher of academic journals.
…continue reading ‘The War to Free Science’
By art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina, Beao, and JakobVoss – http://www.plos.org/, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5069489
Save Our Food. Free the Seed. These Are the Seeds of a Revolution.
Just 50 years ago, some 1,000 small and family-owned seed companies were producing and distributing seeds in the United States; by 2009, there were fewer than 100. Thanks to a series of mergers and acquisitions over the last few years, four multinational agrochemical firms now control over 60 percent of global seed sales
…continue reading ‘Save Our Food. Free the Seed: These Are the Seeds of a Revolution’
Image via Flickr Some rights reserved by Oculator
Legal Promise Of Equal Mental Health Treatment Often Falls Short
Many patients like Bacon struggle to get insurance coverage for their mental health treatment, even though two federal laws were designed to bring parity between mental and physical health care coverage. Recent studies and a legal case suggest serious disparities remain
Amanda Bacon’s eating disorder was growing worse. She had lost 60% of her body weight and was consuming about 100 calories a day.
But that wasn’t sick enough for her Medicaid managed-care company to cover an inpatient treatment program. She was told in 2017 that she would have to weigh 10 pounds less — putting her at 5-foot-7 and 90 pounds — or be admitted to a psychiatric unit.
“I remember thinking, ‘I’m going to die,’” the Las Cruces, N.M., resident recalled recently.
Eventually, Bacon, now 35, switched to a plan that paid for treatment, although she said it was still tedious to get services approved.
…continue reading ‘Legal Promise Of Equal Mental Health Treatment Often Falls Short’
thumb image via KHN courtesy of Amanda Bacon
Nathan Yates: I have Spinal Muscular Atropy. Critis of the $2m New Gene Therapy Are Missing the Point
As someone who has lived with spinal muscular atrophy for all 30 years of my life, I was perplexed and disappointed that the recent approval of Novartis’ gene therapy Zolgensma was immediately overshadowed by outrage over the drug’s price: $2.125 million
Monday, June 3rd, 2019
The Food and Drug Administration’s decision was a pivotal day for those of us in the SMA community. Zolgensma, approved for children under 2, is the only one-dose treatment option for any category of SMA patients and has been highly effective in clinical testing so far.
Sure, it’s the world’s priciest drug. But instead of debating the level of financial profit that is appropriate for Novartis, let’s focus on the needs of patients. How are we going to get treatments for rare diseases if there’s not a financial incentive for doing it? Therapies are being developed because people think they can sell them for a profit. We don’t like to talk about it, but pharmaceutical companies exist to make money. Don’t we realize, though, that all of society profits from each disease we cure and each baby that is saved from SMA and other deadly diseases?
…continue reading ‘Nathan Yates: I have Spinal Muscular Atropy. Critis of the $2m New Gene Therapy Are Missing the Point’
Thumbimage via STAT courtesy of Nathan Yates
When ‘Right to Try’ Isn’t Enough
Congress wants a single ALS patient to get a therapy never tested in humans. A family in Iowa believes the Food and Drug Administration will decide whether their only surviving daughter lives or dies, and they’ve been on a monthslong crusade to break through its bureaucracy. And they’re succeeding
WASHINGTON — A family in Iowa believes the Food and Drug Administration will decide whether their only surviving daughter lives or dies, and they’ve been on a monthslong crusade to break through its bureaucracy. And they’re succeeding.
Just last week, the FDA gave Jaci Hermstad, a 25-year old Iowan who is dying from a rare form of ALS, an early sign that she will receive the first dose of an experimental drug never before tested in humans. The FDA’s move, which was confirmed to STAT by Jaci’s family and doctor, is a breakthrough for the Hermstads.
For months, the family has circulated petitions, tweeted at President Trump, and called on some of Washington’s most controversial and powerful politicians — including the speaker of the House and a Republican under fire for racist comments — all to convince the FDA to waive even the most basic of studies before the drug is injected into Jaci’s already fragile immune system.
…continue reading ‘When ‘Right to Try’ Isn’t Enough’
Thumbimage via STAT – Hilary Kollasch
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Money. That’s the name of the game, and the game is well underway for the U.S. Senate race in 2014. And an expensive game it will be.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu is seeking a fourth six-year term. Her main challenger thus far is Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Cassidy of Baton Rouge. Another GOP candidate, retired Air Force Colonel Rob Maness, has also entered the fray.
The Federal Election Commission has not yet posted the contributions candidates received in the second quarter (April, May, and June), but the political camps of Landrieu and Cassidy are already touting their successes.
With less that 16 months to go before the election, Landrieu, not surprisingly, continues to lead in the money game. She reported raising $1.67 million in the second quarter, bringing her war chest total to $4.86 million cash on hand.
Cassidy, meanwhile, revealed that his campaign raised $1.1 million in the second quarter to boost his total war chest to $3.26 million.
Maness, on the other hand, said he has raised about $40,000 in 40 days of campaigning. He realizes he has a big hill to climb to match the fundraising prowess of Landrieu and Cassidy, but is hoping his grass roots effort will take hold.
One thing is for sure. There is a long way to go and much more money will be flying into the campaign coffers of Landrieu and Cassidy.
How much will the race cost the combatants? In 2010, Republican U.S. Sen. David Vitter spent $12.7 million on his re-election bid. His main opponent, Democratic U.S. Rep. Charles Melancon spent $4.7 million.
Vitter won in the primary with 57% of the vote with Melancon coming in second with 38%. Ten other candidates received the rest of the vote.
When Landrieu last sought re-election in 2008, she spent $11.3 million to win in the primary with 52% of the vote. Republican state Treasurer John Kennedy received 46% of the vote after spending $4.8 million.
Nevertheless, the 2014 U.S. Senate race in Louisiana is expected to be the most expensive one in history for the state.
Democrats are determined to keep Landrieu’s seat in an effort to keep control of the U.S. Senate, while Republicans have targeted it as vulnerable and obtainable. To be sure, money will be no object for either candidate.
By the way, the job of a U.S. Senator, as well as a U.S. House member, pays $174,000 a year.
What’s Vitter up to?
Republican U.S. Sen. David Vitter’s name is tossed around a lot these days in political circles. Louisiana’s junior senator, who is serving his second six-year term, is not up for re-election until 2016.
But the buzz is over whether he will run for governor in 2015. Adding fuel to that rumor mill fire is the fact that a super PAC that supports Vitter has raised a whopping $750,000 in the past six months.
The super PAC, known as The Fund for Louisiana’s Future, was set up to help Vitter with his re-election to the U.S. Senate – or a gubernatorial bid.
Those funds are not part of Vitter’s regular campaign financing committee. As of March 31, 2013, Vitter had $819,000 in his campaign war chest. He has not yet reported how much money his campaign raised over the second quarter in April, May, and June.
Already declared as candidates for governor are Republican Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne and Democratic state Rep. John Bel Edwards of Amite.
Republican state Treasurer John Kennedy said on Tom Pace’s Talk of the Town radio show last week that he will take a look at the race as it gets closer to the Fall 2015 election date.
Also making noises about running is Republican state Sen. Gerald Long of Winnfield. New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s name is also in the mix.
A big question, of course, is who will loyalists of Gov. Bobby Jindal support if Vitter is in the race since Jindal and Vitter have vying factions within their party.
Campbell: Hard to beat
Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell, D-Bossier City, is the consummate politician, who is genuinely concerned about the people he represents. In other words, he is a rarity in politics these days.
He will be running for a third six-year term on the Louisiana Public Service Commission (LPSC) in 2014. He was elected to the District 5 seat on the five-person governmental body in the fall of 2002.
Prior to that, Campbell served for 26 years as the state senator from District 36. He is a lifelong Democrat and has no plans to change political parties.
Often referred to as a populist, a politician who works hard to represent the common people over the elites, Campbell regularly visits the parishes he represents to get input from his constituents.
So after 37 years in elected office, just how popular is Campbell? Florida pollster Jim Kitchens, had this to say: “He is not suffering from the anti-incumbent feeling among many voters toward their public officials.”
Kitchens conducted a poll in the 24 north Louisiana parishes represented by Campbell on the LPSC. The results: Campbell has a 91% favorable rating among voters 65 and older.
Among Democrats, his favorable rating is 59% compared with 13% unfavorable. Among African-American voters, his favorable is 60% with only 7% viewing him as unfavorable.
Among Republicans, Campbell received a 37% favorable and a 35% unfavorable. But voters who described themselves as conservatives gave him a 58% favorable and a 23% unfavorable rating.
Kitchens concluded: “Campbell has broad-based support across north Louisiana. His image is strong, and he is well-positioned to win re-election next year.”
No help for handicapped
At Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal’s urging, the Louisiana Legislature has voted not to return to Baton Rouge for a special session. The House had the votes for veto override session, but the Senate did not. Both bodies must agree.
Latest information reveals that 67 of 105 House members, a majority, voted for a special session, while only 13 of 39 senators did, defeating the effort.
Various legislators and organizations were pushing for the special session to restore line item vetoes by Jindal that struck more than $6 million from the budget that would have paid for services for the disabled.
Among the programs that felt Jindal’s veto knife were a program that provides at-home services to the developmentally disabled, domestic violence programs, and children’s health clinics.
Area House members who favored the veto session were state Reps. Roy Burrell (D), Thomas Carmody (R), Kenny Cox (D), Jim Morris (R), Barbara Norton (D), and Patrick Williams (D).
Voting against a special session were state Reps. Richie Burford (R), Henry Burns (R), Alan Seabaugh (R), and Jeff Thompson (R).
Area state Sens. Robert Adley (R), Barrow Peacock (R), and Greg Tarver (D) voted against having a special session.
Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal made a surprise visit to Nicholls State University this past Friday to take his son, Shaan, to the Manning Passing Academy.
And he came with a check in hand for $1.2 million for improvements to the 20-acre plot of land that holds 25 football fields the Academy uses.
“I am excited to be here not only at Nicholls, but to be here with Mannings,” Jindal said. He noted that the $1.2 million was needed to ensure the future of the Manning Passing Academy.
Former Saints quarterback Archie Manning hosts the camp with his sons Peyton (Denver Broncos), Eli (New York Giants), and Cooper.
To be sure, Shaan had to receive a lot of special attention from the Mannings and Nicholls officials.
The revelation of the money gift caused one political wag to speculate about why the Mannings did not make a monetary gift to Nicholls, which they surely could afford, which would have allowed the governor to use the taxpayers’ money for other needed purposes.
Lou Gehrig Burnett is a seasoned veteran of national and local politics. He publishes Fax-Net Update, a weekly political newsletter.
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Bratri orff ove
The Orff Brothers
The Orff Brothers - Alternative music in the Czech Republic
Their official website is at www.bratriorffove.cz
Previously, this website was about a electro-folk music band based in Czech called the Orff brothers. They abandoned the site years ago and the migrated to http://www.bratriorffove.cz/. I have decided to bring this website to life once more.
The Culture of Music
Music has a way into the heart of many people. In one time or another, you will find yourself listening to a particular song or working while you are still listening to music. There is a kind of therapy or encouragement that we get from music and this induces us to attend music festivals and show or just relax at home and listen to some cool music.
I have grown up listening to particular genres of music such as classical souls, hip hop and rock. However, my favorite music has always been country music. This could have been influence by my dad whose had several LP of the classical bands such as Alabama and particularly loved one of their singles – ‘Dixieland Delight’. He also loved John Conlee, Loretta Lynn, Reba McEntire and many other artistes. In the evening and in the weekends when he was not going out, he would spend the entire day listening to these classics in his old wooden stereo. Time may have gone too first, but the memories of these artistes never fade in my heart.
I’m going to sing a song, and I have really nice hair.
Clearly, I’m the drummer. I’m the only one who has a ponytail. I must be awesome.
Trumpet makes a nice addition to the band, don’t you think?
I fell in love with electric folk music in 2007 when I visited Czech Republic on a vacation. Being summer, it was the best period to stay outdoors and to partake in various outdoor activities. One such visit was to a night out that I went with some other tourist that I had met to Cloud 9 Sky Bar and Lounge in Prague for an evening dinner and probably a round of the finest cocktails of Europe. It was really an awesome experience as we tuned ourselves to adapt to the culture of Prague.
Emerging trend of Music Genres
Among the music playing that day was some electro-folk songs from the Orff Brothers and other renowned artistes like Gruff Rhys and Sorten Muld. Like I said, prior to that evening, I had never loved this genre of music, but by being in the company of friends and other revelers who were thrilled with the music my interest sprouted. We enjoyed the company and ended spending more time at the lounge than I had anticipated.
I’ll play extra keyboard and percussion, and my hair is making a statement, something about not having decided what to do with my hair.
Awwwe, look at you all playing Band Hero…. How cute.
Shhhhh.. This is serious!!!
Electric folk is a kind of music that developed from the folk rock music that pioneered in Europe a few decades ago, although it has lately undergone a series of revolutionary changes adopting the culture of European music genres. This has greatly improved its taste and appreciation among its diverse fan base across the globe with its popularity growing by the day. The aforementioned artistes have also claimed several musical awards and earned great recognition in the music industry.
Take the Orff brothers for instance. The group was founded in 2002 with Lukas Novotny, Matthew Godik and Ivan Gajdos who were all lovers of folk music as well as rock music decided to team up and do music together. Although today the band members have increased, the trio shot into limelight soon after the first release of their album. In their second album, Sero won the Apollo Award by Czech music critics for the best recording in 2013. They have also been receiving massive airplay for their songs as well as visiting most of the European countries to stage concerts.
The music scene may have changed greatly in recent times, but what happens today is that different genres of music intermarry to produce a new music culture. I expect that maybe one day electric music might join hand with polka or maybe hip hop and would love to hear the electrifying effects that may be produced by such collaborations.
As I remake this website, I will be seeking to detail more about the influence of various music genres in our lives and our culture. Already there are several posts that I’ve already published and can be assessed by clicking through the various topics below.
A Career in Music
A Dance Festival
My Love for Music
Hey Tyler, weren’t you in a band? Like…. Actually?
Yeaa…. Ohhhhh the good ol’ boy band days….
I decided to follow my grandfather’s footsteps, as he was the drummer in his band, called ‘The Knarks’. He used to be quite a big guy actually, until he followed this awesome diet called The Dukan Diet.And let me tell you, this diet WORKS! I have lost 15 pounds over the past five and a half months, and I feel great.
Anyways, back to topic. I miss hanging out with my grandfather, he was such an inspiration to me. He made me realize how important life really is, from when I was a little boy playing in my sand box, until now. He may not be around anymore, as he passed a few short months after he got diagnosed with Gynecomastia, but he is still, and always will be, my role model.
He used to do everything with me… bike riding, play at the playground, swimming, he taught me how to kick a ball, and shoot a puck. Every time I was at home with my parents, I wanted to just be with my grandfather. He was my best friend. Oh how I wish he was still around, he would have loved my music. It was a lot like his.
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You are here: Home » Church Security » Drexel Hill man charged with taking church’s money collection
Drexel Hill man charged with taking church’s money collection
CSI | March 5, 2010
UPPER DARBY — The man accused of stealing the money collection at St. Andrew the Apostle Church in Drexel Hill is in custody, police said.
James Joy, 22, who was picked up inside an apartment Wednesday morning on the 3400 block of Garrett Road, Drexel Hill, admitted taking the bag of cash and checks to support his heroin addiction, officials said.
“When we entered the apartment, he was sitting on the couch texting,” and taken into custody without incident, police Superintendent Michael Chitwood said.
The chief expressed his confidence there would be an arrest in the robbery the same day the incident was reported about 10 a.m. Feb. 28 at the church on School Lane.
“I was extremely confident we would make an arrest on this case from the get-go,” police Superintendent Michael Chitwood said. “We felt he was from the neighborhood since he was wearing a ski mask trying to hide his identity and knew the layout of the church and how they deliver the collection money to the rectory. He went to that church numerous times. And normally in these cases when there is a lot of media attention, we get a lot of calls and we did.
“Thanks to the tips from members of the community and the aggressive police work, it led to his arrest.”
According to Chitwood, Joy has been “flopping” at different apartments and houses of friends since the robbery and told police he got about $325 in cash out of the canvas collection bag and threw the checks away.
“After the robbery, he went to the Summit Motor Inn and stayed the night,” Chitwood said. “He said he discarded the checks in a trash can across the street from the hotel. He said he needed the money to support his drug habit.”
Chitwood commended Detective Capt. George Rhoades and detectives for getting Joy off the street and into custody.
Joy is facing charges of robbery, theft, receiving stolen property and simple assault.
“The brazenness of the robbery fits the pattern of someone addicted to drugs,” Chitwood said. “He’s a local hard-core drug addict who has to steal to survive. Drug addicts not only destroy themselves, they destroy the community because they don’t care who they steal from and don’t care who the victim is. He needed the money to buy heroin.”
Joy served jail time for previous criminal offenses for theft in 2006 from his own mother, a drug violation in 2007 and burglary and theft last year, Chitwood said. The defendant’s mother reported her son to police twice for allegedly taking $400 and $500 worth of household goods and using her credit card to charge $70 in 2006, and again the next year after finding suspected heroin and drug paraphernalia in his bedroom.
http://www.delcotimes.com/articles/2010/03/04/news/doc4b8f33a1cf938324306004.txt
Mount Pleasant Church Employee charged with taking money from church
Video: Mount Pleasant Church Employee charged with taking money from church.
Thieving church treasurer told to pay money back
Man charged with robbing women at church
Tags: Church, Financial Crime, theft
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Imprisoned Imperceptions: Inaccuracy in Incarceration Demographic Stereotypes
Unformatted Document Text: Incarceration Beliefs McCauley, C. R. (1995). Are stereotypes exaggerated? A sampling of racial, gender, academic, occupational, and political stereotypes. In Y.T. Lee, L. Jussim, and C.R. McCauley (eds), Stereotype accuracy: Towards appreciating group differences. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. Miller, D.T., & Turnbull, W. (1986). Expectancies and interpersonal processes. Annual Review of Psychology, 37, 233-256. Nisbett, R. E., & Ross, L. (1980). Human inference: Strategies and shortcomings of social judgment. Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice-Hall. Rosenthal, R. (1991). Meta-analytic procedures for social research (2 nd ed.). Newbury Park, CA: Sage. Ryan, C. (1996). Accuracy of Black and White college students’ in-group and out-group stereotypes. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 1114-1127. Ryan, C. S. (2002). Stereotype accuracy. European Review of Social Psychology, 13, 75-109. Schultz. P. W., & Oskamp, S. (2000). Social psychology: An applied perspective. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Skogan, W. (1986). Fear of crime and neighborhood change. Crime and Justice, 8, 203-229. Stangor, C. (1995). Content and application inaccuracy in social stereotyping. In Y. T. Lee, L. Jussim, & C. R. McCauley (Eds.), Stereotype accuracy (pp. 275-292). Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. Tajfel, H. (1981). Social identity and intergroup relations. London: Cambridge University Press. Tonry, M. (1999). Why are U.S. incarceration rates so high? Crime & Delinquency, 45(4), 419- 437. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics. (July 1999). Mental Health and 31
Authors: Ragusa, Laura.
Incarceration Beliefs
McCauley, C. R. (1995). Are stereotypes exaggerated? A sampling of racial, gender, academic,
occupational, and political stereotypes. In Y.T. Lee, L. Jussim, and C.R. McCauley (eds),
Stereotype accuracy: Towards appreciating group differences. Washington, D.C.: American
Psychological Association.
Miller, D.T., & Turnbull, W. (1986). Expectancies and interpersonal processes. Annual Review of
Nisbett, R. E., & Ross, L. (1980). Human inference: Strategies and shortcomings of social judgment.
Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice-Hall.
Rosenthal, R. (1991). Meta-analytic procedures for social research (2
ed.). Newbury Park, CA:
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Ryan, C. (1996). Accuracy of Black and White college students’ in-group and out-group
stereotypes. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 1114-1127.
Ryan, C. S. (2002). Stereotype accuracy. European Review of Social Psychology, 13, 75-109.
Schultz. P. W., & Oskamp, S. (2000). Social psychology: An applied perspective. Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Skogan, W. (1986). Fear of crime and neighborhood change. Crime and Justice, 8, 203-229.
Stangor, C. (1995). Content and application inaccuracy in social stereotyping. In Y. T. Lee, L.
Jussim, & C. R. McCauley (Eds.), Stereotype accuracy (pp. 275-292). Washington, D.C.:
Tajfel, H. (1981). Social identity and intergroup relations. London: Cambridge University Press.
Tonry, M. (1999). Why are U.S. incarceration rates so high? Crime & Delinquency, 45(4), 419-
U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics. (July 1999). Mental Health and
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'Frozen' Moves Into First Place with $31.6 Million; 'Catching Fire' Falls to Second with $26.2 Million
on December 09, 2013 by Daniel Garris
In its second weekend of wide release, Disney's Frozen moved into first place with $31.62 million. With the 3D computer animated blockbuster from Walt Disney Animation moving ahead of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire in the weekend rankings, this weekend played out similarly to the post-Thanksgiving weekend frame back in 2010 when Tangled moved ahead of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 in the rankings (albeit with significantly higher grosses this time around). Frozen fell a solid 53 percent from last weekend's three-day frame and continues to exceed its already lofty expectations with $134.25 million after twelve days of wide release. That places Frozen 39 percent ahead of the $96.57 million twelve-day start of Tangled, which fell 56 percent in its second weekend to gross $21.61 million. With strong word of mouth and a relatively limited amount of new competition for family audiences in December, Frozen is likely to hold up very well going forward.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire fell to second place with $26.19 million this weekend. Lionsgate's blockbuster sequel was down a hefty 65 percent fall from last weekend, which was understandable given the film's record breaking performance over Thanksgiving weekend. In comparison, Deathly Hallows: Part 1 fell 65 percent the weekend after Thanksgiving weekend to gross $17.02 million. With a 17-day start of $335.85 million, Catching Fire is running 37 percent ahead of the $244.52 million 17-day take of Deathly Hallows: Part 1 and 11 percent ahead of the $302.45 million 17-day gross of last year's The Hunger Games (which fell 43 percent in its third weekend to gross $33.11 million). It will be interesting to see whether or not Catching Fire is able to stabilize this coming weekend with the arrival of Warner's anticipated The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug in the marketplace on Friday.
Relativity's Out of the Furnace debuted in third place with a soft $5.22 million. Despite a strong ensemble cast headlined by Christian Bale and Woody Harrelson, moviegoers simply weren't interested in the film. The weekend after Thanksgiving weekend is a notoriously tough frame to open new films, as audiences typically need a break after Thanksgiving weekend and before Christmas season releases enter the marketplace. Out of the Furnace opened 23 percent softer than the the $6.81 million start of last year's Killing Them Softly. While Out of the Furnace may hold up a bit better than Killing Them Softly did, it likely won't hold up all that well going forward given the amount of new competition for adult moviegoers entering the marketplace throughout the rest of December and the lackluster C+ rating it received on CinemaScore.
Disney's Thor: The Dark World placed in fourth with $4.81 million. Marvel's blockbuster superhero sequel was down 57 percent from last weekend. With a 31-day take of $193.71 million, Thor: The Dark World is running 14.5 percent ahead of the $169.12 million 31-day gross of 2011's Thor and is currently $6.29 million away from reaching the $200 million domestic milestone.
On the platform front, CBS Films' Inside Llewyn Davis was off to a very impressive start this weekend with $405,411 from just 4 locations. That gave the awards season hopeful from The Coen Brothers a massive per-location average of $101,353 for the frame. Inside Llewyn Davis easily delivered the largest per-location average ever for a Coen Brothers film in platform release and opened 61 percent stronger than the $251,337 six-location launch of 2009's A Serious Man (which had a per-location average of $41,890). Inside Llewyn Davis will begin expanding into additional locations on December 20.
In other box office news, Paramount's Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa surpassed the $100 million domestic mark on Sunday after grossing $0.82 million this weekend. The domestic total for the Johnny Knoxville led comedy stands at $100.02 million through Sunday.
Tags: Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa, Inside Llewyn Davis, Thor: The Dark World, Out of the Furnace, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Frozen
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La luchapor la justicia global
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Casos y situaciones de la CPI
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You are hereHome #GlobalJustice Weekly - Syrian chemical attack | Escalating violence in DRC | South Africa ICC hearing
Countries and ICC cases
#GlobalJustice Weekly - Syrian chemical attack | Escalating violence in DRC | South Africa ICC hearing
A man carries the body of a dead child after a suspected gas attack in the town of Khan Sheikhoun in Syria © REUTERS/Ammar Abdullah
CICC
#JusticiaGlobal Semanal
Syrian chemical attack prompts calls for UN action
Syria’s rebel-held Idlib province has been hit by what appears to be a chemical attack, with estimates of between 70 and 99 people killed and over 550 injured overwhelming the region’s hospitals.
In the aftermath, the United States, Britain and France have blamed Syrian president Bashar al-Assad’s forces for the chemical attack, which is prohibited under international law. The three countries, backed by organizations such as Human Rights Watch, have called for an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting to decide on a resolution demanding an international investigation into the attack and monthly UN reports thereof.
“Targeting of civilians is inexcusable and a breach of international humanitarian law,” the International Rescue Committee (IRC), which has assisted over 1 million people in Syria since starting work there in 2012, has stated. “There must be accountability for attacks like this one.”
Meanwhile, the representatives of over 70 countries have gathered in Brussels this week for a conference discussing continued assistance to Syrians, as the war tears through its sixth year. However, this “post-agreement assistance”, with its focus on reconstruction before humanitarian recovery, has been heralded by some as “putting bricks before human beings”.
ICC Prosecutor: DRC violence may constitute war crimes
The top prosecutor at the ICC, Fatou Bensouda, has stated that the recent reports of escalating violence in parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) could amount to war crimes.
Her statement was made amidst news of the discovery of numerous mass graves, a total of 23 having now been found according to the UN Human Rights office in Kinshasa. This follows the discovery of the bodies of two UN experts and their Congolese interpreter who were investigating possible human rights abuses in the Kasai-Central region.
Within this area and the surrounding provinces, there have been escalating clashes between local militias and government forces, leading to large numbers of civilian deaths according to Bensouda, and she has urged the Congolese authorities to conduct a full investigation.
“I shall not hesitate to take action if acts constituting crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court are committed and to take all necessary measures to prosecute those responsible” she stated.
There has been growing pressure from Human Rights Watch and other international organisations for the ICC to investigate reports of human rights abuses in the region, amidst worsening tensions in the country ahead of upcoming elections next year.
South Africa prepares for ICC hearing
All eyes will be on The Hague this Friday, 7 April, for South Africa’s appearance before International Criminal Court (ICC) judges to explain the country’s failure to arrest Sudanese president and ICC suspect Omar al-Bashir while attending an African Union summit in June 2015.
The Court’s first ever public non-compliance hearing, at which civil society and Darfuri victims are expected to be present, reflects head-of-state immunity as a continued challenge to the efficacy of the Court and the means by which current leaders such as al-Bashir and Uhuru Kenyatta have escaped ICC custody.
“The case is critical for ensuring the effectiveness of the ICC as an institution. The only means the ICC has of enforcing its orders is through the cooperation of States” said Sam Zarifi, the Secretary General of the ICJ. “The failure to arrest President Bashir and the subsequent efforts to withdraw from the ICC Rome statute raise important questions about South Africa’s commitment to the fight against impunity in Africa and globally” added Zarifi.
ICC investigations
Sudan: Despite efforts by civil society organizations, Jordan failed to arrest Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir during his recent visit to Amman. A UN statement expressing regret that the ICC member state had broken its treaty obligations was met with strong criticism from Sudan that “the UN has no mandate to talk about the ICC” and accusations of the ICC as a “colonial tool” against Africa. Meanwhile, South Africa will appear at the ICC this week, also for allowing al-Bashir entry into the country in 2015.
Côte d'Ivoire: As the ICC trial of former Côte d'Ivoire politicians Laurent Gbagbo and Charles Blé Goudé resumed after a week’s suspension, witnesses were questioned on the security forces training they received.
Uganda: A key communication aide to LRA commander Joseph Kony has surrendered, whilst questions have been raised as to whether Dominic Ongwen’s own kidnapping as a young boy by the rebel group should mean that he is granted amnesty from his crimes.
ICC preliminary examinations
Nigeria: A desert highway in Niger is playing host to more than 130,000 refugees fleeing the violence caused by Boko Haram in neighbouring Nigeria. The isolated stretch of tarred road, built several years ago by a Chinese oil comapany, is seen as a safe haven due to its consistent use by the Niger military who patrol the highway.
Burundi: There is growing pressure for the ICC to open a full investigation into alleged human rights violations committed by Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza before the state withdraws from the Court later this year, as it has promised to do.
A senior Kenyan prosecutor has revealed the challenges of prosecuting sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). In the aftermath of the 2007 post-election violence in the east African country, 150 such cases were reported to police, but litigation thereof can be difficult due to the mishandling of both reluctant victims and of the DNA and scientific evidence critical for a conviction.
The president of the ICC has praised Japan for its commitment to the Court during a recent visit to northeast Asia, but expressed concern at the overall lack of ICC representation in the region, where just one-third of states are ICC members.
Thursday 30 March 2017 marked Land Day, a commemoration of the Palestinian citizens who protested in 1976 against Israeli settlements, resulting in six Palestinians being killed and a hundred more injured.
The Bangladeshi minister for law and justice, Anisul Huq, has stated that Bangladesh will take steps to bring back and try 195 Pakistani soldiers for war crimes committed during the 1971 War of Independence, a conflict that ended in a Pakistani defeat and Bangladeshi independence.
The loss of civilan life during the ongoing operation by the Iraqi army and their allies to liberate Mosul from Islamic State has been the focus of public outcry recently. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein has condemned the terror group’s strategy of using civilians as human shields whilst human rights lawyer, Amal Clooney, has spoken about the urgent need for international courts to punish the perpetrators.
The Trump administration may soon announce its withdrawal from the UN Human Rights Council, according to Amnesty International, a move that the organisation claims would be “ill-advised and badly timed.” The conlusion of the council’s 34th session in March produced resolutions that were all adopted unanimously, including one condeming civilian killings in Syria.
The Kosovo Specialist Chambers have taken a further step towards becoming operable after adopting the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. The move comes two months after the justices were appointed and now awaits a decision in the Constitutional Court of Kosovo to decide the legality of the adopted procedures.
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Deadmau5 Tour Dates & Concert Tickets
Deadmau5 Tour Dates and Concert Tickets
Dubstep / Trance / House
Deadmau5 (pronounced "dead mouse") is far and away one of the most popular and talented DJs and producers working in the business today. He's mastered a number of electronic styles, including dubstep, Neo-trance, and different varieties of house music. The outspoken DJ has not onl... read more
Deadmau5 Tickets
Jul 28 7.28 DEADMAU5 @ KAOS NIGHTCLUB FREE SHOW! TEXT 303.437.9559 FOR GUESTLIST Kaos Dayclub and Nightclub Las Vegas, Nevada
Aug 23 Creamfields Festival 2019 - Friday Daresbury Estate Daresbury, GBR
Sep 12 Deadmau5 The South Side Music Hall Dallas, Texas
Sep 13 deadmau5 / CUBE V3-2019 Tour The South Side Ballroom Dallas, Texas
Sep 19 Deadmau5 Austin City Limits Live @ Moody Theater Austin, Texas
Sep 25 Deadmau5 Hollywood Palladium Los Angeles, California
More About Deadmau5
Recommendations Similar to Deadmau5
Deadmau5 VIDEOS
MORE INFO ABOUT Deadmau5
Deadmau5 (pronounced "dead mouse") is far and away one of the most popular and talented DJs and producers working in the business today. He's mastered a number of electronic styles, including dubstep, Neo-trance, and different varieties of house music. The outspoken DJ has not only released a slew of solo albums, but also contributed to amazing collaborations with the genre's biggest names, including collaborations with vocalists on tour dates. He has been one of the top sellers on Beatport for the past few years, and fans have worked themselves into a frenzy deadmau5's epic, world renown concert dates. Deadmau5's concert dates feature stunning visual and auditory experiences that can only be seen to be believed. Fan's who haven't witnessed a deadmau5 show are in luck; he has a number of ongoing, international tour dates in 2011.
Deadmau5 (born Joel Zimmerman) became interested in electronic music in the mid-90's when he began making chip music (a form of music made using old computer chips). His moniker is derived from an incident that began when he was replacing his computer's video card, discovering a dead mouse in the tower. Zimmerman released his first EP, Project 56, in 2005, which featured fifty-six short demo tracks. Most of the tracks were short little bits of beats and none lasted more than three minutes; drastically different from deadmau5's current work. His second album, Get Scraped, was released in 2006 and showcased Zimmerman's talent in diverse styles. Deadmau5 followed up the success of the album later in the year with the release of Vexillology.
Deadmau5 released his first mixed album, Random Album Title, in 2008. The album featured the track "I Remember", the hit collaboration with Kaskade that reached #1 on Billboard's Hot Dance Airplay; it began a trend of deadmau5 collaborations reaching #1 on the chart. His 2009 album, For Lack of a Better Name, featured some of his most popular and lucrative tracks, including "Hi Friend!", "Strobe", and "Ghosts N Stuff". While the 2010 album, 4x4=12, featured popular hit songs, album sales suffered due to deadmau5 playing the unfinished tracks on tour dates, which were subsequently released onto the internet by fans.
That's why deadmau5 is keeping the development of his upcoming album under wraps. While deadmau5 has lost many an unfinished track while playing it live, it is these tour dates that have contributed so heavily to his success. Deadmau5 sells out tour dates at arenas and stadiums around the world, with thousands of people grooving and dancing along to incredible light shows. Without anything to go on, these same fans are anxiously awaiting the release of the album, which is rumored to drop before the end of 2011. Meanwhile, deadmau5 is lighting up European concert dates on his current tour. As of April 21, deadmau5 is in New Zealand before heading to Australia for tour dates until the end of April. On May 7, the DJ will be headed to Malaysia for tour dates before heading to South Korea and Taiwan; then off to Europe until the end of 2011 tour dates on July 10.
Categories: Music | Dance | Electronic
http://www.deadmau5.com/
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You Are Here: Fingal Open Data >> Blog >> July 2015
Open Data Strategy for Ireland & Open Data Technical Framework Submission
Posted by Dominic Byrne on Sat, 22 Aug 2015 22:02:56 BST
As part of the public consultation process in respect of an Open Data Strategy and Open Data Technical Framework for Ireland, Fingal County Council made a submission to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in July 2015.
The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform launched a public consultation on 15th June 2015 in respect of the following documents -
a Foundation Document for the development of Ireland’s Open Data Strategy; and
a Technical Framework to underpin the publication of datasets in open data format on the Government’s open data portal data.gov.ie
The following is Fingal County Council's submission in respect of this consultation -
Fingal County Council Submission to Open Data Strategy for Ireland & Open Data Technical Framework Consultation
Fingal County Council has been to the forefront of Open Government Data in Ireland. In 2010, the Council became the first Government body in Ireland to publish Open Data via the Fingal Open Data website http://data.fingal.ie There are now over 240 datasets published on Fingal Open Data in open, machine-readable formats under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
Fingal County Council has three main objectives for publishing Open Data -
Transparency - citizens can access the data that assists the Council and other public sector bodies in making decisions. Citizens can also use this data for additional social value.
Participation - citizens can increase their participation in the county of Fingal by using the data to analyse issues, to propose new ideas, to gain an insight into local government and to enrich their lives and their community.
Collaboration - citizens and businesses are encouraged to suggest ideas about additional data that could be published, what applications or services could be built using the data and how access to the data might be improved. Citizens and businesses are encouraged to turn this data into apps, websites or other useful products
Fingal County Council welcomes the publication of the Open Data Strategy foundation document and the Open Data Technical Framework by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. The Council made a submission in September 2014 as part of the public consultation process in respect of the development of a national Open Data Strategy for Ireland, which contained a number of recommendations. The Council is pleased to note progress in relation to these recommendations as follows -
1. Outline a Vision for Open Data in Ireland.
Progress:Vision Statement included in the Open Data Strategy foundation document
2. Develop the National Open Data portal (data.gov.ie) as a comprehensive Open Data catalogue for all public sector agencies including Local Government.
Progress:A new version of data.gov.ie was launched on 30th June 2015 incorporating Local Government Data including data from Fingal County Council
3. Develop a cross-public sector data infrastructure to enable a standardised and sustainable approach to data sharing by the public sector.
Progress:Unclear
4. Collect details of the datasets held by each public sector body through a standardised Data Audit procedure and publish the results of the audit output.
Progress:A Data Audit process has been included in the Open Data Strategy foundation document
5. The national Open Data strategy should be aligned with fulfilling Ireland’s obligations under the INSPIRE directive.
6. Agree an Open Data license to use for all Irish Open Data.
Progress:The Open Data Technical Framework document includes a recommendation that all data and metadata linked to data.gov.ie will be associated with the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) Licence, at a minimum
Strategy Recommendations
The following are Fingal County Council’s recommendations regarding the Open Data Strategy Foundation document -
1. The scope of Open Data covered by the Strategy should be extended to all sectors.
Section 3 specifies that the scope of the strategy in relation to the benefits of Open Data covers all sectors of society. However, the scope of Open Data to be published is restricted to Public Sector Open Data. While Government can only be responsible for the publication of Open Government Data, a national Open Data Strategy has the capacity to provide a framework to encourage and support the publication of data by other sectors including Business, Scientific, Culture, Charity and Not-for-Profit organisations. Similar to Open Government Data, the publication of Open Data from other sectors can also provide economic, social and democratic benefits, as outlined by the World Bank. There is also the potential to derive cumulative benefits from the combined reuse of Open Government Data and non-Government Open Data.
2. Establish a mechanism to identify and address issues arising from Open Data.
In Section 4, the aims of the Open Data Strategy should include a mechanism to address issues arising from publishing Open Data. The benefits of Open Data are frequently cited when advocating the publication of Open Data. However, the potential also exists for Open Data to give rise to privacy issues and to the emergence of a ‘Data Divide ... the gap between those who have access to and are able to use Open (Government) Data and those who are not so enabled’ (https://gurstein.wordpress.com/2011/07/11/a-data-divide-data-%E2%80%9Chaves%E2%80%9D-and-%E2%80%9Chave-nots%E2%80%9D-and-open-government-data/)
3. The lifecycle approach to publishing Open Data should include updating of datasets.
Section 4 outlines a lifecycle approach to Open Data, and Section 10 and 11 outline publication plans and standards. However, the updating of published datasets is not addressed. Once an Open Data dataset is published it is important that it is updated at a frequency appropriate to the dataset. The Strategy should include a requirement that Public Bodies put in place mechanisms to ensure that published datasets are regularly updated.
4. The Vision, Goals and Benefits for Open Data should include Community Development as an aim.
Sections 5 and 6 outline a Vision, Goals and Benefits for the Open Data Strategy - including economic and democratic objectives. Open Data can also play a key role in supporting community development and engagement. The “Putting People First” Action Programme for Effective Local Government sets out a comprehensive framework for supporting community development. The publishing of relevant Open Data by Local Authorities, public bodies and other service providers can support the community-led bottom-up approach to community development envisaged in “Putting People First”.
Suggested amendment to the Vision – “This Open Data Strategy aims to create an environment where, by opening up Government data, new opportunities for research, innovation, transparency, engagement, community development and greater efficiency are delivered and realised by public bodies, businesses, researchers and citizens.”
Suggested amendment to the Goals – “4. For Citizens and Civil Society to participate in the Open Data process and utilise datasets for transparency, democratic purposes and community development.”
Suggested amendment to the Benefits – add “Support community development” to the list of social and democratic benefits.
5. The Open Data strategy should be aligned with fulfilling Ireland’s obligations under the INSPIRE directive.
Under the EU INSPIRE directive, public sector bodies are required to participate in establishing a Europe-wide Spatial Data Infrastructure including data-sharing and metadata services for public service spatial data. The requirements in respect of the relevant datasets are similar to the requirements for publishing Open Data. Therefore it would be an efficient use of resources if each public sector body, when making their datasets available for INSPIRE, were to also publish them as Open Data.
Section 7 outlines how the Open Data Strategy is aligned with various other initiatives and legislative requirements. A paragraph on INSPIRE should be included in this section.
6. The scope of the Open Data Strategy should include Open Content and Open Access data types.
Section 10 includes a definition of a dataset for the purpose of the Open Data Strategy which is essentially restricted to tabular or geospatial data. This definition excludes Open Content including text documents, photographs, video and other media. It also excludes Open Access i.e. scientific information. There is wealth of Open Content and Open Access data held by public bodies which could realise great benefits if released as Open Data. The European Commission’s Communication on Open Data includes reference to these data types.
Technical Framework Recommendations
The following are Fingal County Council’s recommendations regarding the Open Data Technical Framework document -
1. Publishing Open Data should include updating of datasets.
The “Publishing Open Data” section of the document sets out a “planned and structured approach to the publication of datasets as Open Data”. However, the updating of published datasets is not addressed. Once an Open Data dataset is published it is important that it is updated at a frequency appropriate to the dataset. The Framework should include a requirement that Public Bodies put in place mechanisms to ensure that published datasets are regularly updated, and the Decision Process Map should incorporate update and review of datasets as part of the publication lifecycle.
2. The Open Data Checklist/Audit should incorporate INSPIRE.
Annex 2 sets out an Open Data Checklist. Additional item(s) should be added to this checklist to cover INSPIRE e.g. Is this dataset covered by the INSPIRE Directive? If so, (i) is INSPIRE metadata available for this dataset and (ii) has this dataset been published under the INSPIRE Directive?
Responses to Consultation Questions
The following are Fingal County Council’s response to the Consultation Questions in the Open Data Strategy foundation document -
The Council agrees with the use of the Open Knowledge definition of Open Data.
The principles itemised would be acceptable to the Council. The Council would suggest the inclusion of additional principles as follows -
The release of Open Data aims to improve governance, facilitate innovation and support community development
Open Data will be published to specified standards in respect of quality, completeness, consistency and persistency.
The Council welcomes the inclusion of auditing and publication approaches which will facilitate participation by public bodies. The training events referred to in Section 13.3 are also welcome, but these should be complemented by awareness briefings for all Public Servants including the benefits of Open Data and the responsibilities of public servants.
It is not clear from the document which COMSODE methodology is being referenced or if this is related to the Open Data Checklist in the Technical Framework document.
The Council would suggest prioritising the various elements of the Technical Framework in the following order -
Audits and Publication Process
Metadata Schema
Unique Resource Identifiers
Any dataset published on data.gov.ie should comply with minimum standards. However, it may also be appropriate to publish a version of the dataset in a non-Open format for the purpose of providing context (e.g. a CSV file of data and the corresponding PDF document with the formatted version of the data), but only if an Open version of the dataset is also published.
The datasets included in the following should be prioritised -
High value datasets itemised in Section 4 of the foundation document
High value data listed in the G8 Open Data Charter
Datasets associated with the strategic priorities of Government, Local Authorities and Public Bodies
Datasets requested by citizens or businesses via the various Open Data Portals including Fingal Open Data, Dublinked and data.gov.ie
The datasets included in the following should also be considered for prioritised publishing -
Datasets listed in the Open Knowledge Global and Local Census
Datasets identified by the Open Knowledge Ireland community
The appropriate formats are outlined in Section 4.2 of the Technical Framework
The Council would strongly encourage the use of Pilot Projects and Use Cases in relation to Open Data. Fingal Open Data includes examples of Open Data reuse on its Apps page at http://data.fingal.ie/Apps/
Yes, Fingal County Council would be happy to participate in any outreach or dissemination activities organised to promote the Open Data Strategy and would also be happy to contribute to the identification and planning of such activities. The Council has previously organised such activities and is also involved in on-going Open Data activities through the Dublinked partnership.
The Council would be interested in the following activities -
Public Sector Awareness
Business Awareness
Local Community Awareness
Challenges and Competitions
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Vulnerable Native Breeds Launch - Crufts 2005
On the 10th - 13th March 2005 the Kennel Club will be staging the "Greatest Dog Show in the World" - Crufts, at the NEC Birmingham.
At the Birmingham Press Launch of Crufts at the NEC at 10.30am on Tuesday 8 March 2005, the Kennel Club will be featuring vulnerable breeds, which in turn will be promoting themselves, proving what a joy they are to own and demonstrating their many skills and talents.
There are 28 British or Irish breeds that are in decline for various reasons such as an influx of new breeds from overseas and breeders not continuing their bloodlines. To redress the balance and to protect and promote these breeds, a Working Group has been formed and various initiatives are underway such as promotion and education to prospective owners and a parade of vulnerable breeds throughout the four days at Crufts.
Said Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club Secretary: "These vulnerable native breeds are a very important issue for the Kennel Club and we feel dog lovers themselves hold the key to arresting the decline by giving serious thought to owning one of them and instigating a new era for British Breeds at their best. With over 200 breeds available to UK dog owners and nearly 180 breeds appearing at Crufts, dog lovers really are spoilt for choice, but we should not forget these well established breeds, as it would be a travesty if they became extinct from our shores."
Crufts 2005 will welcome over 24,000 dogs and 120,000 visitors from all over the world, where the best dogs on the planet will be competing for the prestigious title - Best in Show. They will be accompanied by other top pedigree and crossbreed dogs striving to gain awards in disciplines such as Obedience, Agility and Flyball.
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Qld Labor Govt feared IBM payroll backlash
news New cabinet documents released by the Queensland Labor Party pertaining to the payroll systems disaster at Queensland Health have revealed the then-Labor administration in 2010 feared that IBM would pursue its own lawsuit if the State Government terminated its contract over the botched IT systems overhaul.
The project was first kicked off in late 2007, when Queensland Health determined there was a need to look at a new payroll platform to replace the previous platform, based on Lattice and ESP software, which had been progressively implemented from 1996. However, the project, implemented by prime contractor IBM, Queensland Health itself and government shared services provider Corptech — quickly went off the rails as poor governance and the complexity of Queensland Health’s award system kicked in, with the result that many of Queensland Health’s 85,000 workers have gone without pay, or were overpaid, at various periods from early 2010, when the system went live. The issue was raised repeatedly during the recent Queensland State Government election, which the LNP won in a landslide, virtually obliterating Labor in the polls.
An Auditor-General’s report filed in 2010 found that all concerned in the implementation — prime contractor IBM, Queensland Health and CorpTech — significantly underestimated the necessary scope of the project. IBM had initially told the Government that a “relatively small” amount of functionality would be required to implement a similar new payroll system at Queenland Health as a previous build at Queensland Housing — despite the fact that the Housing rollout only catered for 1200-1300 staff, compared with Health’s then-78,000. IBM had initially prepared a statement of scope for the replacement of the project, providing an estimate of $6.13 million to replace the previous LATTICE system. The latest estimates into the cost of the project show that it will cost a further $836.9 million for the project to be overhauled over the next five years, adding to a total of $416.6 million which has already been spent on it since 2010.
The current LNP administration in Queensland has been examining whether to pursue legal action against IBM over the debacle, however it has claimed that it been hampered in its examination of the situation by the fact that the previous Bligh Labor administration has not released legal advice provided to the then-Cabinet over the situation.
After what she said was “a great deal of soul-searching and deliberation” (PDF transcription here), late last week Queensland Labor Opposition Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk tabled the 2010 legal advice received by the then-Labor administration in parliament, defying long-standing Queensland Government convention to do so, “for the benefit of all Queenslanders”.
The documents (available in full online in PDF format) contain several sets of legal advice provided to the then-Bligh Labor administration in 2010 with respect to the payroll disaster at Queensland Health and IBM’s role in it. Law firm Mallesons Stephen Jacques advised the Government that it had at that time four possible courses of action with respect to IBM’s contract in the matter. It could terminate the contract, suspend it, negotiate a settlement, or continue with the contract.
Although IBM’s arguments at the time that it wasn’t in breach of its contract were “vague” and Big Blue “provided no supporting evidence” for its claims, Mallesons wrote, if the contract was terminated and it was found later that IBM had not breached the contract, then Queensland might face a claim from IBM for wrongful termination. A similar but smaller risk would be entailed if the contract were merely suspended.
Crown Law, a division of the Department of Justice and the Attorney-General, also provided legal advice to Queensland regarding the IBM contract. It wrote that if Queensland began proceedings against IBM for breach of contract, it would be “almost inevitable” that IBM would bring counterclaims against the state for breach of contract and unpaid fees.
“If such counterclaims were successful,” Crown Law wrote, “the amounts claimed would be set off against any amounts successfully claimed by the State. The possibility remains that the outcome of any litigation would be a payment in favour of IBM. Care should be taken to detect and investigate any claims that IBM may make, particularly as foreshadowed in correspondence between the parties.”
There were also other risks if Queensland got involved in legal action against IBM. For example, there would still be the need to find a third party to rectify the defects in Queensland Health’s payroll system, which IBM was still working on; and even that if the contract continued while the legal action was ongoing, that IBM might “cease cooperating” with Queensland on issues where it had no contractual obligation to do so.
Despite all of this, Crown Law told the Government that it was “reasonably confident” that IBM’s response to the Government’s initial notice of remedy issued to IBM were not sustainable, and that IBM did indeed remain in breach of its contract to work on Queensland Health’s new payroll system. In fact, Crown Law suggested that the Government seek to obtain further information from IBM as to why Big Blue believed it had not breached its contract, with a view to allowing the Government to feel “comfortable with its decision to terminate”.
“A failure by IBM to provide information might also be used to support the conclusion that IBM has failed to show reasonable cause,” Crown Law wrote. And it noted that even if IBM’s contract was terminated, the Government would still retain some rights under the contract to require IBM to continue to provide some services, even in that case.
Ultimately the Labor Queensland Cabinet opted to sign a supplemental contract with IBM with relation to the issue; although the future of the relationship with Big Blue has yet to be fully explored under the current LNP administration, which is still keeping its legal options open with respect to the company.
Development and maintenance work on the Queensland Health payroll systems implementation is still under way. A report in June found that at that stage, the platform required just over 1,000 staff performing some 200,000 manual processes on an average of 92,000 forms to make sure Queensland Health’s staff are paid the approximately $250 million they are owed each fortnight.
IBM wrote to the LNP Queensland administration in early September this year, claiming it “successfully delivered” against milestones agreed with the previous Labor administration with respect to the project.
However, the LNP may not agree with this stance. With respect to the milestones which IBM said it had delivered against, Queensland Health Minister Lawrence Springborg told the Parliament in mid-October that he imagined “they must have been pretty ripper milestones”. “IBM is actually indicating to us that it consistently delivered against the scope of the contract,” he asid. “What sort of a dodgy contract allows something to blow out by 20,000 per cent? I would have thought there would be a whole lot of benchmarks and processes along the way that were not actually met.”
LNP parliamentarian Stephen Davies told the parliament at the time that from his perspective, having been involved in the corporate sector before his career in politics, it was “extraordinary – in fact, it is beyond the pale” that it could be said that the disastrous payroll implementation could be said to have achieved its milestones as agreed. “It is just bananas. It still does not even pay people,” he said.
“IBM itself is now saying that they met all of their benchmarks,” Springborg added. “If you signed a building contract like that, if you signed an insurance contract like that, if you signed any other contract like that, would you be happy if you had such dodgy benchmarks, such dodgy wording in your contract, whatever it may have been?”’
A spokesperson from IBM has not yet responded to an invitation for the company to respond to the release of the legal advice last week; any response the company gives will be added into this article.
Weaving between the lines of the legal advice provided to the Queensland Government in 2010 about the Queensland Health payroll systems disaster is the unwritten question of who should ultimately be held responsible for it. Should it be IBM? Queensland Health itself? The Labor political administration? Shared services provider CorpTech? The list goes on. At that stage, it seems clear, the Labor administration was still attempting to come to grips with a disaster of epic proportions which had suddenly blown up in its face, and it wasn’t sure whose fault it was.
Thankfully, we do now know whose fault it was. Numerous audit reports published since that time have found that all concerned in the implementation can share some blame for significantly underestimating the necessary scope of the Queensland Health payroll overhaul project.
With this in mind, and considering the legal advice which it received in 2010, I feel strongly that the Bligh Labor administration took the best path available to it at the time with respect to the project. Firing IBM would not have been the best option; put simply, this might have (counterintuitively) cost the Government money rather than saving it, thanks to the prospect of an IBM counterclaim, and it would not have resolved the underlying issue of the project not being delivered. Likely the Government would have struggled to find new partners that could achieve a better outcome for the troubled project than the one IBM was already working on.
Reading through the legal advice provided to it, it seems apparent that Bligh’s Labor Cabinet of 2010 didn’t have any good choices with respect to the project; only bad ones. To my mind, in finding a middle ground with IBM that allowed it to continue working on the project and avoid lawsuits, the Government probably made a good decision. By that stage the project was already about as off the rails as it was going to get.
However, one does also have to admit that even this path didn’t end up with a satisfactory resolution for anyone. The project is still a disaster; it’s still not fully functioning; and it is still costing more and more money to deliver. This, perhaps, poses some troubling questions for the current LNP administration in Queensland. After all, the choices it faces with the Queensland Health payroll systems project today are not so different from the ones Labor faced two years ago in 2010. One wonders whether the LNP, as it is often wont to do in Queensland, will choose a radically different path from Labor with respect to the project and IBM’s role in it, and whether that approach will be a better one.
Image credit: IBM Australia. The photo above is of former IBM Australia managing director Glen Boreham, who led the company locally from 2006 through 2010.
Qld Health payroll: The lawsuit may be back on
‘It’s not our fault’:
IBM blames Govt for payroll disaster
Payroll disaster: Queensland sues IBM
IBM says it “successfully delivered”
Qld Health payroll
Qld may hold Royal Commission into payroll bungle
payroll disaster
jingo 05/11/2012 at 7:34 pm
I wasn’t aware of the exact figures and sheer scale of the blowout… wow…
Rainier Wolfcastle 06/11/2012 at 8:11 am
How did they let things get so out of hand? Surely they could see some of these issues building up.
Flat Earther 06/11/2012 at 8:17 am
Renai, this is an interesting summary and I agree that the government had no choice but to settle with IBM. (Their other choice was to lose). But there is a much bigger story that explains (but does not excuse) what went on.
Ask your self this. Why would IBM estimate $6M for something that the current government says will cost $800M? Because those numbers are for completely different things.
Having seen what went on at CorpTech in the immediate aftermath of the go-live and in the subsequent projects to try and make it work, I think the major causes were
1. The QH decision to completely change their work processes around rostering and time sheet collection (including centralising all the related manual processing in Brisbane). Under the old system the rostering and time sheeting was done on the ground in every hospital and health centre by people who new how staff really worked.
This led to a number of outcomes. The huge staff cost of manually adjusting pays that makes up the majority of the $800M got worse due to the loss of knowledge and on the ground experience and the cost became exposed. Previously much of this cost was hidden by those same on-the-ground staff. Remember the old payroll system was even more inaccurate that the new one, but everyone had got used to it.
2. The decision to incorporate Rostering/TIme sheeting into the new system. A lower cost and lower risk alternative would have been to simply replace the payroll function without blowing out the scope with lots of new functionality.
3. Deciding to integrate WorkBrain and SAP when nobody had done it before. This caused huge technical problems and led to a lot of functionality being implemented in both systems. It also led to the need to purchase a huge amount of additional processing capacity as both systems were inefficiently implemented
4. Persisting with the payroll arrangements where staff were paid in advance for work they were scheduled to do and then having to adjust the pays after the fact for work they actually did. This is the cause of most of the incorrect pays since the time window for adjustment was so small. (Note they’ve recently changed this, but three years too late).
5. Underestimating the sheer complexity of the awards including the hundreds of different types of allowances leading to much greater development effort. This also resulted in inadequate testing since there were so many possible combinations.
6. Poor contract. IBM ran rings around them. IBM probably did do what they promised. Trouble is they didn’t promise very much (in contractual terms, anyway).
7. Poor communications, training and management of change. QH and Corptech just handled it badly. Staff were not told what to expect, so their expectations were not met.
Overall poor management, not heeding the lesson of a multitude of failed software projects, over reaching on scope and attempting something beyond their capabilities.
Northern Blue 06/11/2012 at 8:50 am
I’d add to that hiring an international Accounting Firm to audit the disaster with clearly little IT project experience or will to take on the government. The solutions proposed focussed a significant part on hiring even more staff to be able to answer phonecalls from concerned employees worried about their pay and gave less focus on actually trying to fix the underlying problem with good directional advice. Their efforts effectvely just pushed the problem back another 2 years and blew a heap more money.
Thateus 07/11/2012 at 11:35 pm
The wonders of 20/20 hindsight – I’m sure the same auditors would also have won the Oz Lotto 100M too (albeit a year later).
Oh yes -where’s the Ovum cloud guy to tell us how the cloud would have prevented this project disaster? (and delivered the entire thing for 20 cents).
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KGK Group Recognised as the Outstanding Enterprise of the Year-India at JNA Awards 2018
The KGK Group had been nominated under the three categories competing amongst the record-breaking entries of 127 submissions from 16 countries.
Sep 19 2018 5:36PM
KGK Group, one of the few conglomerates covering the entire spectrum of mining, sourcing, manufacturing and distributing coloured stones, diamonds and jewellery was recognised as the Outstanding Enterprise of the Year, India Award at the seventh annual JNA Awards that was held alongside the September Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair on Monday, 17 September.
Delighted on this occasion, Sanjay Kothari, Vice Chairman of KGK Group, remarked, “We would like to express our gratitude to the respected jury who acknowledged us with the Outstanding Enterprise of the Year-India Award. It was truly an honour to receive this award amongst industry’s elite and eminent personalities, recognizing KGK’s exemplary business practices & standards. With years of hard work and fore-vision, I am proud to dedicate this award to the persistence diligence and dedication of KGKians”.
The KGK Group had been nominated under the three categories competing amongst the record-breaking entries of 127 submissions from 16 countries – Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the Philippines, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and Vietnam. Established more than a century by the Kothari family of Jaipur (India), the KGK Group, now in its fourth generation, operates a vertically integrated portfolio spreading from mines to brands, with a global presence across 17 countries spanning Asia, Australia, North and South America, Europe and Africa.
The glittering gala event, which honoured industry forerunners and ground-breakers is one of the most prestigious award programmes in the international jewellery and gemstone industry, has been declared a spectacular success. Organised by UBM Asia, the JNA Awards were dedicated to the promotion and enhancement of excellence, leadership, innovation and best business practices in the field of jewellery and gemstone.
44 Honourees or finalists across 12 award categories that made exceptional contributions to the industry were acknowledged at the grand celebration. The occasion witnessed an independent judging panel of industry experts and the presence of many prominent industry leaders and influencers.
Letitia Chow, Chairperson of the JNA Awards, Founder of JNA, and Director of Business Development – Jewellery Group at UBM Asia, said, “Our industry is facing some challenging times, but we should not be discouraged. Instead, this is the time to be innovative. This is the time to seek business opportunities with a different light and angle, and form alliances and collaborations to create win-win situations. Our Honouree companies and individuals embrace this mindset to drive their businesses forward. Once again, I would like to express my deep appreciation and sincere congratulations to all companies and individuals who took part in this year’s Awards. Together, we can make this industry flourish.”
In addition to Headline Partners Chow Tai Fook, SDE and DANAT, the JNA Awards is supported by Honoured Partners KGK Group, Guangdong Gems & Jade Exchange, and Guangdong Land Holdings Limited (GDLAND).
KGK, Kiran Gems Wins at JNA Awards 2018
SYNTHdetect Wins Industry Innovation of the Year at JNA Awards
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Tag Archives: computer
Geek Alert — The Computer History Museum
We visited our Kiwi friends Alistair and Dallas in Mountain View, California. Located in the heart of the Silicon Valley near the Googleplex, their comfortable home has fruit trees and chickens in the back yard, and our motorhome just fit in their driveway. They were gracious hosts, even though they learned of our arrival on short notice through this blog.
Is all Kiwi beer this size?
On our way out of town we went to the Computer History Museum. My career was (past tense?) in computer consulting and outsourcing, so I was excited to check it out. Diane, not so much.
The Computer History Museum explores the history of computing and its ongoing impact on society. It has the largest collection of computing artifacts in the world (over 90,000) including hardware, software, documentation, photographs, and video.
The museum has had various incarnations over the last 20 years, but settled in to its current building (previously occupied by Silicon Graphics) in 2003.
A very cool exhibit at the museum is The Babbage Engine. In 1834, Charles Babbage designed Difference Engine No. 2, an automatic computing engine, but failed to build it. It was designed to tabulate polynomial functions based on the method of divided differences, which Diane demonstrates here:
Babbage died insisting future generations would prove his idea was sound. His difference engine was faithfully built to plan in 1991, and during a demonstration in the museum, we saw it function exactly as Babbage predicted.
Much bigger than an iPad!
A current special exhibit at the museum is Going Places: Google Maps with Street View. You can get up close to the mobile devices they use to capture Street View images.
A Google Maps Street View Camera Car
A Google Maps Street View Camera Bicycle
The museum’s main exhibit is Revolution: The First 2000 Years of Computing. It covers the history of computing in 20 galleries, from the abacus to the Internet, with informative and interesting displays. Leveraging their subject matter, the entire exhibit is also available online.
Some highlights for me included:
A Cray-1 Supercomputer with convenient built-in bench seat
At 135 MFLOPS the Cray-1 was the best known and most powerful computer in the world when I began tinkering with personal computers in 1981.
A $10,000 cutting board
Neiman Marcus introduced a kitchen computer based on the Honeywell 316 in 1969 as part of a continuing series of extravagant gift ideas. It stood on a pedestal and had a built-in cutting board. Entering recipes would have required a 2-week course to learn to use the device, using only toggle switch input and binary light output. At a cost of $10,600 each, none were sold.
The Apple I, signed by Woz
One of only 40 to 50 Apple I computers in existence, now worth about $50,000 each. This one is signed by Steve Wozniak, the co-founder of Apple Computers.
The first mouse?
I owned a Merlin
The first personal computer
The Altair 8800 is considered by many to be the first personal computer.
An early acoustic coupling modem
Do you remember the Radio Shack TRS-80 nicknamed “Trash 80’?
My visit rekindled the excitement I felt in my youth, when I first got my hands on an Apple II computer at my high school (thanks Mr. Sutcliffe) and wrote my first program, a text-based adventure game called “Prince Pat” – lame, I know.
The Apple II — the first computer I programmed
After reading this ode to tech, you may think that I’m a nerd, but if you’re in the San Jose area, I would still recommend a visit to the Computer History Museum.
This entry was posted in North America, Travel and tagged Altair, Apple, Babbage, California, computer, Computer HIstory Museum, Computing, Cray, Google, history, Mountain View, museum, Palo Alto, Revolution, San Jose, Street View, travel, United States on March 5, 2013 by dreambigliveboldly.
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How close was the Moon to the Earth when it formed? (Intermediate)
Answered by Matija Cuk
Given the fact that the Moon is moving away from the Earth, could you please tell me how close the moon was when it was at it's closest to Earth, presumably when it formed? I am curious to know how big the moon would have looked at that time. Also, do you know if the rate of departure has ALWAYS been constant?
The Moon is thought to have formed when an object roughly the size of Mars hit the Earth. The impact was so violent that it threw large amounts of the Earth's mantle into orbit. This material evenually coalesced and formed the Moon.
It is not easy to estimate how far away from the Earth the Moon was when it formed, but simulations suggest is was about 3-5 times the radius of the Earth, or about 20 to 30 thousand kilometers. (The Moon is currently about 384,000 km or 60 Earth radii away from Earth, which is about fifteen times further away than it was when it first formed.) The Moon probably couldn't have formed closer than 3 Earth radii because tidal forces from the Earth would just pull it apart again, and it is unlikely that the impact could have ejected material further than 5 Earth radii. It's not a totally easy questions to answer though as it depends a lot on the (unknown) details of the impact and how the hot material behaved in space.
The exact rate of the Moon's movement away from Earth has varied a lot over time. It depends both on the distance between the Earth and the Moon, and the exact shape of the Earth. The details of continents and oceans moving around on Earth actually change the rate, which make it a very hard thing to estimate. The rate is currently slowing down slightly, and it is estimated that in about 15 billion years the Moon's orbit will stop increasing in size.
This page was last updated on July 18, 2015.
Matija Cuk
Matija works on the orbital dynamics of the lesser moons of Jupiter and Saturn. He graduated with his PhD from Cornell in November 2004 and is now working at the University of British Columbia in Canada.
Why does the Earth have only one moon? (Intermediate)
What happens to the Earth as the moon gets farther away and will it ever go away entirely? (Intermediate)
Will we ever stop having solar eclipses because of the moon's motion away from the Earth? (Intermediate)
Why do some eclipses take longer than others? (Intermediate)
Was the Sun made in a supernova? (Intermediate)
Non-baryonic Matter Camera Eclipses The Universe Momentum Saturn Angular Momentum Acceleration Jets Leonids Gravity Local Supercluster Day Spacecraft End of the World Habitable Planets MACHOs Tides Refraction Galactic Center
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help transcription
The editor of the Abingdon Democrat judged that in the election of delegates to the Virginia Convention on February 4, 1861, "The immediate secession candidates have been badly whipped—in fact, have been almost annihilated."
Convention of 1861 (Richmond) , Elections and Politics , Southwest region
« Return to Election of Delegates
"The immediate secession candidates have been badly whipped"
Editorial in the Abingdon Democrat, February 8, 1861.
The editor of the Abingdon Democrat judged that in the election of delegates to the Virginia Convention on February 4, 1861, "The immediate secession candidates have been badly whipped—in fact, have been almost annihilated,—and the gentlemen representing the 'wait-a-bit' ticket triumphantly elected." John Arthur Campbell and Robert E. Grant, who were elected to the convention from Washington County, both opposed secession at that time. The editor had anticipated that Washington County and the other southwestern counties would have elected more supporters of secession than they did, but his characterization of the victorious candidates accurately represented the attitudes of a majority of all of the delegates elected on that day. He took heart, though, that opponents of secession were not inclined to submit without objection to what he and supporters of secession believed would be the intolerable policies of Abraham Lincoln and the Republicans.
Election on Monday.
As will be seen by the return from this county, the immediate secession candidates have been badly whipped—in fact, have been almost annihilated,—and the gentlemen representing the "wait-a-bit" ticket triumphantly elected. We were, at first, rather down in the mouth, and felt as though the State had deserted the cause of the South and tacked herself on to the doctrine of unconditional submission; and we honestly believe that such will be the verdict of all men of both extremes of the Union. But, from conversations with many voters who opposed our doctrine of instant separation, and favored the plea of procrastination, we are bound to believe, and now assert, that unconditional submission was an idea entertained by but very few. We were told by many—among whom were large slave-owners—that they were willing, nay anxious, to exhaust every argument, and to wait any reasonable length of time which might be demanded by Northern sentiment, before consenting to resort to an appeal to arms for the settlement of the question.
Another cause for the recent vote may be found in the fact that the people were unprepared for the question. The time for its decision was too short, and the opportunities for a full understanding of all the issues involved had not been sufficient to reach a large mass of the voters; and thus, it ought not to have been expected that they would willingly hazard so much as to vote for what they considered an entire dissolution of the present state of government for any cause less than a direct invasion of our soil by an armed body of soldiers.
But an important step has been taken, and an important truth brought out. No single ultra submissionist has dared yet to offer himself as a candidate for a seat in the Convention; nor could one have been successful if he had done so.— Some few, it is true, asserted, that they were for the Union on any terms, and would fight for it "as long as there was a square yard left,"—but they were men who had but a slight and imperfect knowledge of the duty they owed to their State, or of the claims of honor by which all are bound to stand up for the rights and interests of their fellow citizens and countrymen. The position of the successful candidates in our county, (secession, if necessary,) has been indorsed by a heavy majority, and a large vote given for secession, now.
Let the North ponder this truth well, and let her take heed therefore how she attempts the use of coercion. "Tories" and "traitors" in the South of Virginia will be "very few and far between," after "the argument has been exhausted," and the advocates of abject submission not sufficient in number to form a corporal's guard.
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Friday Flash: Shooting Stars
by Eric J. Krause
Timothy and Abby lay on the soft grass of Towerbell Hill, ready for the start of nature's firework show. Tonight was the night of the Quinn-Baines Meteor Shower, a once in a lifetime event. There were other meteor showers that could be tracked, but this one took the scientific community by surprise. Once it was determined that the rocks would burn up in the atmosphere, the event captured the population's imagination. Everyone wanted to view the spectacle. All around the half of the world where it was night, even in major metropolitans, the shower would be visible. And for the other half of the world, or if there were clouds in the area? The Internet, of course, had viewing options.
As luck would have it, Timothy and Abby both had the evening off, him from his job at Milton's Burgers 'N Ice Cream, and her from school. She technically had class until ten, but her professor knew he'd get no sort of attention out of his students, if they even bothered to show, so he canceled. They agreed that he wanted to watch the show, too. And it certainly was a spectacular night for it. Not a cloud in the sky, and their town, not large, but large enough to pollute the sky with its multitude of man-made lights, made way for the special night by turning off as many non-essential lights as possible. That brought out more stars than either could remember seeing since their senior class trip to the mountains three years ago.
"What time is it?" Abby asked, and Timothy held out his phone for her to see. A quarter after nine. The sun had set, and the stars were in full bloom. According to the media, the show would begin right about now. It would be a few trickles here and there, and then by 9:30, the meteor shower would begin in earnest.
Timothy pointed up. "Did you see it? A short one, but that was the first."
"Yeah, cool. Did you make a wish?"
He kissed her neck, murmured that he had, and squeezed her breast. She giggled and knocked his hand away in case anyone could see. Not that everyone wasn't focused skyward, but a girl couldn't be too prudent.
As the minutes ticked away, dozens upon dozens of shooting stars flashed across the dark night sky, some at the same time, previewing the awesome show to come. The ooh's and ahh's came from all over the hill, and Abby couldn't help but smile. The crowd reaction reminded her of a Fourth of July Fireworks Extravaganza. And, truth be told, this would likely blow any man-made show away.
More and more shooting stars streaked across the night sky, but then Timothy's arms stiffened around her. "What?" she whispered back to him.
"One of them changed directions," he said. "And I don't mean like a light bend. It turned a hard right."
"Maybe two collided. Or it hit something else."
"Another one did it," he said, fear in his voice. Why would that upset him? She noticed others around the hill shared his worried tone, though she couldn't hear their conversations.
She stared up, determined to see one change directions with her own eyes. She didn't have to wait long, nor did she have to concentrate hard. A half-dozen of the shooting stars turned, as if on cue, a hard 90 degrees to their right. The crowd on the hill now raised a ruckus.
"It's on the news," someone shouted. "They aren't just falling rocks."
"What does that mean?" someone else yelled. "What are they?"
Before the first man could answer, the shooting stars stopped and hovered in the sky. All hell broke loose.
Posted by Eric J. Krause at 3:15 PM
Labels: #fridayflash, Friday Flash, science fiction, speculative fiction
Set Goals and Reward Yourself
You have plenty of ideas about what you want to write, how much you plan to write each day, and other tasks that will further your writing career. But how often does the day slip away? All of your good intentions to write are easily erased by other things that pop up in your day, both important and trivial. This is why you need to set goals. And not only set them, but write them down where you'll see them. That way they'll seem official to your mind, something not to be missed or ignored.
Personally, I write down my goals in a notebook that I keep by my desk. That way when I see it, I know I have writing to do. And inside, I've written down exactly what that writing entails. I have my weekly time goal (which, at the moment, is 25 hours dedicated to writing type stuff), my daily word goal (which is 500 words, though that usually turns into over 1000), a reminder of which blog posts I want to publish that week, a reminder to read at least a chapter in a book each day, and a reminder to publish something fun on my Facebook author page each day, and other such things. You can see not all of these are pure writing, but marketing of sorts, too. In my 25 weekly hours, for example, I allow myself to count my time on Twitter provided I'm clicking on links, commenting on posts or links when I have something to add to the discussion, retweeting, and generally marketing myself as a writer. Since using social media is a part of being a writer nowadays, I have no problem counting this time as part of my weekly hours.
As you can see, goals don't have to be overly specific - I don't break down how I spend each of those 25 hours, and as long as I'm writing some type of fiction, be it a full piece of flash fiction or a part of a longer story, I don't worry about tracking those words. I also called some of my goals reminders. Anything to make the writing day and week productive. Try it yourself. Start small so you simply get in the routine of not only setting goals, but following through on them.
And speaking of following through on goals, the best way to keep yourself honest is to offer yourself a small reward if you complete them. Pick something that will motivate you. Personally, if I finish all of my goals (note I said all - if I get my 25 hours, but haven't finished my words, I didn't earn my reward), I download an episode of a television show on Amazon. I've been doing this for a month, and so far I've earned the first three episodes from Season One of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. For me, I figure I can afford to spend $1.99 for a week of completing all of my writing goals. You may do something like this, or you might choose to allow yourself to watch a completely frivolous movie on Netflix or DVD or whatnot. You may treat yourself to a movie in the theater, a new book download, a decadent cupcake from a local bakery, or whatever else you can think of. As long as it motivates you to complete your daily, weekly, or monthly goals.
Set goals. It'll help you accomplish more. And reward yourself, even if it's just something small. But don't cheat, either on your goals or your rewards. The main point is to become a better author. So good luck, and get started!
Posted by Eric J. Krause at 11:22 AM
Labels: rewards, writing goals
Writing Prompt #130
Here is this week's speculative fiction prompt. I'm not labeling it this week, so take it whatever direction you choose. Have fun with it!
Your new running shoes have a special feature which allows you to run further and faster, but it comes with a unique price.
Labels: speculative fiction, writing prompt
Here is this week's speculative fiction prompt. I'm labeling it as science fiction this week, but, as always, take it whatever direction you choose. Have fun with it!
A strange new social movement was actually started by space aliens (or time travelers).
Labels: science fiction, speculative fiction, writing prompt
Chapter 4 Part 3: Dragon Guard
Click here to read Chapter 4 Part 2
Dragon Guard
"I'm a dragon, and so is my dad," Andi blurted out. "Don't hate me."
"If he hated you, or was even frightened by you, he'd be long gone," Mr. Thomas said. "Not sitting here sharing an afternoon snack. As meager as it is."
"Yes, Lee, I'm well aware you want me to go to the grocery store," Mrs. Thomas said as she rolled her eyes. "I'll do it tomorrow."
Ben and Andi's eyes met, and she gave him a shy smile before concentrating on her soda can. What Mr. Thomas said was true, though. Andi being a dragon, whatever that meant, didn't frighten him one bit. And he certainly didn't hate her. Quite the opposite. But it did confuse him to no end.
"Besides," Mr. Thomas said, "he's your guard. He's programmed to not hate you, and you him." He gave Ben a hard stare. "But just because I acknowledge it doesn't mean I condone you putting your hands all over my daughter."
"Daddy!"
"Lee!"
Ben could only sit there and wonder what was going on. He hadn't even been close to putting his hands all over her. They'd almost kissed, sure, but she started that, not him. And what did he mean that Ben was her guard? None of this made any sense.
"What?" Mr. Thomas said to his wife. "I'm stating my feelings. I thought you liked it when I displayed them."
"I also know you understand the concept of tact, but you're choosing not to show any of that at the moment."
"Excuse me," Ben said, hoping he spoke loud enough to be heard. He had, as all three looked at him. "Uh, well, I mean…" He took a deep breath, and though Mr. Thomas kept his sour expression trained on him, smiles on the faces of both Mrs. Thomas, and more importantly, Andi urged him on. "What do you mean I'm her guard?"
"It's fate, dear," Mrs. Thomas said. "You're destined to be Alexandria's Dragon Guard."
Click here to return to the Preview Hub
Labels: Dragon Guard, fantasy, preview, sample chapter, speculative fiction
When he did, Mr. Thomas frowned, looking every bit as menacing as he had yesterday morning. "You again? Are you spying on us?"
Ben shook his head and tried to say he'd come to warn them, but he couldn't get the words out. He glanced at Andi. Her face held an expression that was both horrified and embarrassed, and he couldn't blame her. If he was some sort of monster and she found out, he'd feel the same way. But she didn't need to. For reasons he couldn't figure out, he didn't care. He still felt the same about her as when she almost kissed him a few minutes ago. How in the world was he not more freaked out about this? About any of this?
"You know darn well he's not spying on us, Lee," Mrs. Thomas said. "And you know why he's here, too. Even if he doesn't." She flashed a warm smile his way which made him feel a lot better.
"Fine," Mr. Thomas said. He growled something under his breath, and then barked, "Andi, lighter fluid. The damn things are moving closer."
And they were. The body parts had been strewn across the backyard in heaps, but now looked like they'd been carefully placed for future reattachment. Ben guessed burning them was the only way to actually kill them. Had Mr. Thomas torched the ones from yesterday?
Andi came out with the lighter fluid, but wouldn't meet Ben's eyes. Did she think he wouldn't like her after what he saw? Or did she not like him anymore? He wanted to say something, but didn't dare in front of her parents, especially her dad. They were all silent until the zombies were well on their way to becoming ash.
Mr. Thomas spoke first, his voice calmer than Ben had yet heard it. "Zombies burn easily. It's one of the few ways to ultimately stop them." Ben realized it was directed at him, so he nodded to show he understood. In fact, even though he had no business knowing, he could have told them that. And he didn't think that knowledge came from watching zombie movies and playing video games.
"Since you haven't run off," Mrs. Thomas said, "you're obviously who we think you are."
He glanced over to Andi, saw her blush, and then back to Mrs. Thomas. "What do you mean? Who am I?"
"Let's discuss it in the house where it's not as smelly." She wrinkled her nose and looked at the burning bodies to emphasize her point. "I know Andi and Lee will agree with that."
Once inside, everyone sat around the kitchen table. Ben sat next to Andi and across from her mother's chair, while she sat opposite her dad. Mrs. Thomas placed a basket of potato chips in the middle. "What would you like to drink, Ben? I'm afraid all we have is soda, milk, and tap water. I haven't had much of a chance to grocery shop yet."
"Doesn't matter. I'll have what Andi's having." He cringed inside when he said it and wished he'd just made a decision. Mrs. Thomas hid a smile, Andi blushed and again refused to meet his eyes, while Mr. Thomas frowned.
She pulled four cans of soda out of the refrigerator and set them down in front of everyone. They each popped the tops and took sips, no one saying anything for a few beats. Mrs. Thomas broke the silence. "There's no need to hide anything, Ben, but I'm curious as to what you think you saw."
He grabbed a chip to give himself a few extra seconds to think. Should he go with the truth, or would they hold that against him? They were a different sort, that was for sure, and they might cover it up at any cost, including burying him in the backyard. No, he'd seen too many movies and cop procedurals. Whatever Andi was, and he honestly had no clue, she was a good…person or whatever. Her mom, too. He glanced at Mr. Thomas as he swallowed his chip; the jury was still out on him, though he couldn't imagine he'd be evil when Andi and her mom were so nice.
"I, uh, felt the zombies, and when I turned, I saw four at the front of your house, moving to the side gate."
"You felt them?" Mr. Thomas said.
"Yeah, like pins and needles on the back of my neck. Just like yesterday morning."
Mr. Thomas started to say something else, but Mrs. Thomas jumped in. "Lee, let him finish. What next?"
"I figured I should warn you guys, so I followed them into the backyard to see what they were up to. But you were already there, waiting."
"I noticed them right after I got in the house," Andi said. She finally looked at him, and they shared a smile.
Mrs. Thomas prompted him to continue. "And you saw us…"
"I saw you chop two up with a couple of swords, just like yesterday morning, and I saw…"
"Say it, boy," Mr. Thomas said. It sounded like a dare.
"I saw you and Andi turn into…" He almost said monsters, but caught himself. "…something."
Mr. Thomas flashed a wicked grin that proved he knew what Ben almost said.
Click to read Chapter 3 Part 3
"You didn't," Andi said, her hand pressed to her mouth. They'd walked home together and were almost to her house.
"Yeah. He all but asked for it by being an ass. So Randy and Vince filled a lunch sack with dog doo, and Jay borrowed one of his dad's lighters. I rang the doorbell as soon as Jay had the bag lit, and we ran like hell. We couldn't see from our hiding spot, but by the way he cursed, we knew he stamped it out. Hopefully with his indoor slippers."
"Oh no," Andi said, this time not successfully holding back the laughter. "I've made friends with a hooligan. Not doing homework yesterday, and telling me about lighting dog poop on fire today."
He winked at her. "Yeah, you better watch out. I'm dangerous."
She lost it even more and gave him a half-hug to keep from toppling over as she laughed. Ben took a deep breath and held it, but he didn't think she noticed. Good.
They walked a little ways further, and she wiped away some tears that had spilled out. By the time she regained control, they were in front of her house. "Thanks for walking me home," she said. "It's nice to have company."
"Glad to. You're fun to be around." And nice to look at, he thought, but didn't dare say it aloud. She dressed like most girls at school, with jeans and a tight white shirt, but he had to admit he liked the way she looked in the clothes better than any other girl.
"I don't know about that." She nudged his arm. "I've never even thought about leaving a flaming bag of poop on a doorstep."
He nudged her back. "I'm guessing you have some secrets you haven't told me yet."
"Maybe. You'll have to wait and see if I share."
Had she hesitated and looked nervous before she said that? No, he was being silly and reading too much into everything. "I can be patient," he said.
"We'll see." She turned towards her house, but before she moved, she looked back at him. "Hey, since you walk this way anyway, would you mind if I joined you on the way to school?"
His breath caught in his throat, but he managed to nod and choke out, "I'd like that."
"Me too." She moved her face close to his, then stopped, blushed, and hurried up to her house. Whoa, she almost kissed him. Too bad she stopped. That would have been cool.
He started towards home, not sure his feet were even touching the ground. He hadn't felt this good the time he and Melissa had made out, and Andi's lips hadn't even touched his. Weird. And she was so easy to talk to. He always ran out of stuff to say to Melissa, but with Andi he felt like he could talk for hours without repeating anything. And it was even better that they could be silly together. Melissa didn't tolerate that. They spent half of lunch today coming up with new ways to shorten different names after she said she went by Andi because no one expected Alexandria to be shortened like that. Everyone, predictably, tried to call her Alex.
Before he lost himself in more thoughts, he spun back towards her house. That strange tingling sensation assaulted his neck again, just like yesterday morning. No, that was impossible. All of that seemed like such a dream. How could the zombies be back now?
There were four shuffling around the house. Like people, each had different features and such, but all shared the same limping stride and pale bluish-green skin tone, just like the two yesterday. This group moved around the front porch and pushed through the side gate to the backyard. Ben dropped his backpack on the front lawn and followed at a safe distance. He'd see what they were up to and then ring the doorbell to warn Andi.
A quick peek into the backyard showed Andi and her parents already waiting for the zombies. Her mom had the same two short swords she used yesterday morning, but neither Andi nor her dad had any weapons at all. As the zombies lumbered forward, none of the Thomas's looked frightened. But that was okay because Ben's heart beat fast enough for everyone put together.
Without warning, Mrs. Thomas leapt, skewering a zombie's torso with one sword, while decapitating it with the other. In the same motion, she lunged at a second. While that was going on, something happened to Andi and her father. Their necks stretched, his about ten feet, hers not quite as long, and their heads morphed into some sort of blue reptile. No way. He was hallucinating again. But that wasn't true, and he knew it.
As her mother decimated the second zombie, Andi and her father each bit the remaining two in half. When all four lay in still wiggling pieces, Andi and her dad reverted back to normal. Ben blinked hard to see if all of this had really just happened.
"Andi, the lighter fluid is in the garage," her dad said. "It's next to the box marked BBQ. Go grab it before they start to regenerate."
"Wait," Mrs. Thomas said. She looked towards Ben, and Andi and her dad tensed, ready to jump back into action. Ben pulled his head back and hoped she hadn't seen him. He thought about running, but before he moved, she said, "It's okay, Ben. Come on out."
Click to return to the Preview Hub
Friday Flash: Russian Roulette
Ryan took a deep breath and tried to remain invisible. He'd already revealed that he asked Hannah Bailey, the prettiest girl in school, out on a date. She'd been polite about it, but still turned him down faster than a rocket accelerating out of the Earth's atmosphere. He'd never told anyone, not even James, his best friend, and now everyone at the party knew. No doubt that would equate to the entire school. Why had he come tonight? He'd have been much happier mining and blacksmithing in World of Warcraft while watching a MythBusters marathon. But, no, he had to be stupid and show up in the hopes that a girl would somehow notice him. He should wait for college when girls actually took brains into account when judging guys. At least that's what Brandon, his big brother, and maybe the only person he knew who was smarter than him, said.
Now he just had to stay hidden in the background and hope no one noticed. It worked well at school, and since these were his classmates, there was no reason it shouldn't work here. He hoped. After all, in this game of Truth or Dare, if someone didn't answer a truth or perform a dare, they'd be held down, pummeled, and who knows what else. From the stories he heard, the last part was scariest.
Diana Samson scanned the room and found Tyler Huxley. "Tyler, Truth or Dare?"
Tyler flipped his hair and flashed a smile that made the girls swoon. Ryan didn't get it, as Tyler was a slacker who did nothing with his life but smoke pot, drink booze, and skateboard. What sort of future was that setting up? He probably wasn't even going to college, which Ryan had planned for himself since the second grade.
"Dare, baby," Tyler said. "And I hope it involves you."
Diana giggled, blushed, and looked at her friends, who giggled back and nodded. "Yeah," she said. "I dare you to go into one of the empty bedrooms with me."
Tyler shrugged and stood. "Accepted." The two headed for the back of the house amid cheers and cat-calls. If Ryan could be assured of a dare like that, especially with a hottie like Diana Samson, he'd try to be noticed.
"Okay," Henry Rogers said, "we're not going to wait for them to come back, so I'll choose the next person." No one objected. "How about you, Ryan? Want to tell us about more girls who were out of your league?"
Ryan's face ignited as all eyes turned to him. He looked to James for support, but found him staring at his shoes. Thanks for the support, bro.
"What's it gonna be, lover-boy? Truth or Dare?"
Everyone expected him to choose Truth, but there was nothing safe about that. By the twinkle in Henry's eyes, the question wouldn't be comfortable, and maybe a bit dangerous. Besides, since Henry, who was quite popular, teased him about girls, maybe he'd pick one of his lady friends to do something with Ryan. And if not, Henry had the imagination of toast and would probably come up with a lame dare on the spur of the moment. Ryan wasn't a gambler, but this bet was worth taking.
"Dare." He again glanced to James, and this time his friend stared back, but his expression didn't exactly send Ryan's confidence soaring.
"Wow, didn't think you had the balls, Egghead. But let's see what you're really made of. If you do this, Hannah Bailey might even go out with you." Henry reached into the backpack lying at his feet and pulled out a pistol. The room gasped and went silent. "This is a six-shooter with one bullet loaded. You ever hear of Russian Roulette?"
Ryan nodded, his mouth too dry and his throat clenched too tight to answer.
"Good. I dare you to play. Just one time. Spin the chamber, put the barrel to your head, and pull the trigger. That's it."
"No, come on, that's stupid," James said, leaping to his feet. "Where'd you even get the gun, Rogers?"
"What does that matter? He doesn't have to play. But, remember, there are consequences."
"No, Ryan, don't do it" James said. "It's better to get beat up than risk your life. C'mon, man, you got MIT waiting for you. Take the black eye, and we'll get out of here."
Ryan almost agreed, but then he looked around the room. Some of the girls had lust in their eyes. If he did this, it might mean a date before high school was over. Maybe more than a date. Sure, the one in six odds were bad, but still. Five out of six were safe.
He strode over to Henry. "Fine. Give it here." Ryan had been smart his entire life, and he'd received great grades and entry into a pristine university because of it. But right now he wanted a girl. A hot girl. And this was his best bet.
Henry popped out the chamber, showed him that there was indeed only a single shot loaded, and spun it before popping it back in. Ryan couldn't tell where the bullet went. He took the gun and saw the fear in Henry's eyes despite a desperate attempt to remain cool. No doubt he'd expected Ryan to not only decline but to try to run to get out of the punishment. It wasn't too late, and now he had the gun in his hands. No one would grab him while he held a gun.
Another quick peek around at the girls drove him to continue this stupidity. He'd be a legend, right? And girls loved legends. James again tried to talk him out of it, but Ryan ignored his buddy. Henry gave him a shrug which said, "Whenever you're ready," and Ryan put the gun to his right temple. Sweat beaded up on his forehead, but he barely felt it. He cocked the hammer back, took a deep breath, and pulled the trigger.
Labels: #fridayflash, flash fiction, Friday Flash, short story
One of the books in the library glows.
Final #NaNoReMo Post for 2013
It's a week into March, and I'm just now calling National Novel Reading Month done for me. Yes, it took an extra week than it should have, and since I finished one book (see here if you're interested) in the allotted time, I feel I'm well within my rights to extend the reading month a bit. If you disagree, I guess you can always call the Literature Police on me, eh?
Anyway, last night I finished Gaston Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera. I enjoyed the heck out of it. You can visit my review at Goodreads, or you can simply read here what I said about the book:
"Really enjoyed this one. I had no idea what to expect from it; yes, I know all about the movies and the big Broadway musical (which I saw many, many years ago in LA), but I honestly knew nothing about the original book. I thought it was a very smooth, fast read. The characters were fun, and the phantom was an excellent villain, well worth being an iconic horror figure (though for different reasons than I first thought). I found the main story enthralling - the love triangle between Raul, Christine, and the Phantom - while the portion of the Phantom vs. the Opera House managers to be quite funny. I read that portion as more comic relief than anything. Even if you don't like to read classics, give this one a shot. I highly recommend it!"
So I view this year's National Novel Reading Month a success, even if I did add a week to it. I don't know if I ever would have gotten to the two books I did if it hadn't been for this kick in the pants. And I enjoyed both reads immensely. I've already planned on reading The Picture of Dorian Gray next year (unless I get to it sooner, though it is unlikely). If you also participated, I hope you got as much out of the experience as I did!
Quick update on A Princess of Mars: I said I had put John Carter, the big budget movie from a couple of years ago based on the book, at the top of my Netflix queue. That is true, and the movie is even now here at my house. I haven't had a chance to watch it yet, but I plan to soon. (I also have the movie based on the Broadway musical based on The Phantom of the Opera here, too.) I doubt I'll blog about my experience watching it, but if you're interested in my views, feel free to ask me in the comments of this post or contact me on Twitter or Facebook. I did watch a movie called Princess of Mars on the SyFy Channel last week, which was loosely based on the book - it was a present day retelling where John Carter went to a planet called Mars in a distant galaxy, not our solar system's Mars. Both the acting and the story were awful. Though many pieces of the movie were taken from the book, the overall story was changed. If it had been done well, that might have been okay, but it wasn't. I don't recommend that particular flick to anyone.
Labels: #NaNoReMo, A Princess of Mars, classics, Phantom of the Opera
Here is this week's speculative fiction prompt. I'm labeling it as horror this week, but, as always, take it whatever direction you choose. Have fun with it!
A mummy's curse falls over an entire town.
Labels: horror, speculative fiction, writing prompt
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Home > Research > Give Us a Fake
Give Us a Fake
How ABC News Fabricated One Lab Study and Distorted Another To Debunk Organic Food
View and download the full report here: Give Us A Fake
On Friday, February 4, 2000, ABC News’ highly rated magazine program 20/20 broadcast a devastating investigation that created uproar in the rapidly growing, $6 billion organic food industry.
“The Food You Eat—Organic Foods May Not Be As Healthy As You Think,” as the segment was entitled, was introduced by ABC News Anchor Barbara Walters as a “special and surprising report” by correspondent John Stossel, a departure from his trademark ‘Give Me A Break’ contrarian commentaries that are a fixture on 20/20.1
Based on the evidence presented, the millions who watched the original broadcast might well have answered Walters’ questions in the affirmative. After viewing the segment, Walters said she might “cry.” The ABC News investigation seemed to offer compelling proof that millions of consumers were very wrong, indeed, about the benefits of organic food. Even more consumers saw the program when ABC News re-aired Stossel’s investigation on 20/20 on July 7, or in the somewhat condensed form the news division distributed July 11 for use by its affiliates, through ABC World News Now.
Taken on its face, Stossel’s hard-hitting story showed that organic food, far from being safer or healthier, was no different with respect to pesticide contamination than regular food, because neither one had any pesticide residues. Buying organic to avoid pesticides, the show conveyed, was a waste of money.
And when it came to the bacteria that cause food poisoning, 20/20 viewers might have been shocked to hear the show report that organic food is actually more dangerous than “regular” food. At the story’s dramatic high point, Stossel held up a bag of organic lettuce and confronted the head of the organic industry’s trade association: “Shouldn’t we do a warning that says this stuff could kill you and buying organic could kill you?” he demanded.
In contrast to Stossel’s scornful treatment of the organic industry representative, 20/20 featured on-camera interviews with Dennis Avery, a conservative writer whose controversial alarms about organic food formed the framework of the story, and two university-affiliated scientists in the field of food safety: Dr. Michael Doyle of the University of Georgia, and Dr. Lester Crawford of Georgetown University. Brief “man on the street” style interviews with enthusiastic organic food shoppers were woven throughout the piece. The shoppers expressed views about the health and safety of organic food that Stossel or his experts then roundly debunked. To bolster the shopper interviews, Stossel announced that 20/20 “did a poll on organic foods” to further contrast popularly held views with the contrarian facts and expertise he marshaled.2 The dire health risks posed by organic food were underscored by a brief but poignant recounting of the tragic food poisoning of a three-year-old girl, Haley Bernstein. The cause, Stossel said, was organic lettuce.3
What gave “The Food You Eat” its exceptional investigative heft, however, were the original laboratory tests that Stossel reported early in the broadcast. Specially commissioned and paid for by ABC News to compare the safety of organic and conventional food, the tests lent powerful scientific authority to a story that otherwise might have been just another televised duel between opposing experts.
ABC News’ own studies showed that neither organic nor regular produce had pesticide residues, Stossel reported. Likewise, the network’s lab studies turned up “the real bad news for organic consumers” that Stossel emphasized in the program: the risk of serious, even fatal food poisoning from bacteria-contaminated organic produce.
What made the ABC News lab studies even more significant and more central to his reporting was Stossel’s explanation that they were the first of their kind. “We searched the records and found there have been no tests done that actually compare bacteria counts in organic vs. normal food,” Stossel told 20/20 viewers. “So we did our own laboratory testing.”
In fact, the pesticide tests that Stossel claimed were conducted for ABC News to examine pesticides on produce—the results of which he reported on 20/20––were never conducted at all, according to the scientists the network hired to perform laboratory studies for Stossel’s investigation. ABC News broadcast the fabricated results four times in the course of airing Stossel’s investigation on three separate dates.
Laboratory analyses for bacterial contamination were conducted for ABC News. But according to the scientists who conducted and evaluated them for ABC News, those tests were incapable of proving the food safety problems Stossel attributed to the results. Moreover, 20/ 20’s Executive Director Victor Neufeld was informed of this crucial shortcoming, and Stossel’s serious distortion of the test results, three months in advance of the original broadcast.
In this document, we review the use of ABC News’ laboratory evidence in the 20/20 report on organic food (See “EWG’s Investigation of 20/20”). Our investigation makes clear that the distinguished scientists hired by the network for the 20/20 story are in no way to blame for ABC News’ abuse of their work. From everything we have learned, Dr. Doyle of the University of Georgia and Dr. Crawford of Georgetown University conducted and communicated their work for ABC News in an accurate and straightforward manner. Moreover, they have been forthright in describing the tests they performed for ABC News and the limitations of those tests. For the lab analyses that actually were conducted on E. coli bacteria, both Dr. Doyle and Dr. Crawford have made clear that their interpretation of the findings differs dramatically from the very strong conclusions that ABC News reached and broadcast about the dangers of organic food. Their professionalism as scientists is in stark contrast to Stossel’s practice of journalism in this episode.
The Environmental Working Group is on record in support of organic food and farming as a means of reducing pesticide residues on food, a goal the U.S. government has embraced since the enactment of the landmark Food Quality Protection act of 1996. Nevertheless, organic agriculture surely deserves a greater measure of scrutiny than it has received to date from scientists, the government, public interest groups, and journalists, particularly now that organic production methods are beginning to play a more important role in the U.S. food system.4 In a sense, the ABC News investigation was a missed opportunity to examine some very legitimate issues about organic food.
When the journalistic abuses 20/20 committed are taken into account, however, almost nothing of substance remains of ABC News’ sweeping indictment of the health and safety of organic food.
What does remain is a stunning example of journalistic fraud. Left uncorrected, the 20/20 story has the potential to do significant and lasting damage to the organic food industry, which depends on the integrity of its production claims to maintain its appeals to consumers. The fabrication and distortion of laboratory studies constitute impermissible violations of journalistic ethics and conduct on behalf of John Stossel and ABC News. Those abuses, the focus of this review, deserve a full public airing, and justify strong corrective actions on the part of ABC News.
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High level navigation
Evaluation of Environmental Noise Directive
Directive 2002/49/EC relating to the assessment and management of environmental noise (the Environmental Noise Directive) has been in place for more than 10 years. Recently, the Commission identified it as one of the Directives "to be evaluated with a focus on regulatory fitness" in the context of the Regulatory Fitness and Performance initiative (REFIT) and the Better Regulation programme of the European Commission.
This evaluation took place in 2015 and 2016 and addressed questions relating to effectiveness, efficiency, coherence, relevance and EU added value. The results are summarised in a Staff Working Document with and Executive Summary in English, French and German.
Summary of the evaluation
The Directive remains highly relevant for EU policy-making as noise pollution still constitutes a major environmental health problem in Europe. A common approach to the noise management and harmonised data provide a high-quality evidence base for understanding the issue and further developing EU noise-at-source legislation.
The Directive is coherent in itself and with other relevant EU legislation (environmental and noise-at-source legislation).
Regarding effectiveness, some progress has been made towards a common approach throughout the EU, but effects materialised only partially due to the delays in adopting common assessment methodologies. Noise population exposure data was so far not used for legislation on noise at source. The Directive is however increasingly drawing attention to the significance of the harmful effects of noise on health.
The administrative costs are low (€0.15 for noise maps and €0.03 for action plans per citizen, every 5 years). Cost-benefit analysis showed that where action plans - including measures for noise management - have been implemented, the Directive was efficient with a favourable cost-benefit ratio of 1:29.
The Directive can generate EU added value by providing a level playing field across the EU in which transport infrastructure operators can compete, and by better informing EU policy-making. As a result of delays in implementation, the Directive has not yet delivered all its potential EU added value.
The evaluation is based:
on a study prepared by a consortium led by the Centre for Strategy and Evaluation Services (CSES). This study with all Annexes as well as Country Reports providing more details regarding the implementation of the Directive can be downloaded from the EU Bookshop. The study, its Executive Summary in English and French, its Annexes as well as the Country Fiches can also be accessed directly.
on a public consultation (available in 23 official EU languages), which was opened from 21.12.2015 to 28.03.2016.
The conclusions of this evaluation also provided important evidence which has been considered for the Commission's 2nd implementation report on this Directive. The report, which is required at least every five years as provided for in Article 11 of the Environmental Noise Directive, has been submitted to the European Parliament and Council in March 2017. The first implementation report was published in 2011, summarising progress in implementing the Directive and outlining possible improvements to enhance its effectiveness.
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Os voy a contar mi vida
Esther Ferrer
SPAIN/FRANCE | 40 MIN
February 7 | 18 hours
SALA 2. GAIÁS CENTRE MUSEUM
16 people take part in the action Os voy a contar mi vida, 8 of which are deaf or master sign language, and another 8 speak each one in their own language. The performance combines the visual and sonic aspect of language and rounds up into a chorus of gestures and voices in which different languages, cultures and sensitivities interact in a single visual and sound ensemble. An action with which Esther Ferrer endeavours to contribute to the visibility of sign language and to celebrate the diversity of ways of thinking, of expressing oneself and of communicating proper to each language.
From the beginning of her career at the end of the 1960s, Esther Ferrer (Donostia-San Sebastian, 1937) has developed her lines of thought through a wide variety of forms and materials, becoming a pioneer artist in performance, a genre that she defines as “an art that combines time and space with the presence of an audience that is not a mere spectator, but, if it wishes, it may take part in the action.”
The artist values, above all, the freedom of the viewer, so she does not offer any conclusions, but questions and doubts so that, independently, audiences will generate their own personal interpretations.
In 1967, Esther Ferrer started to take part in the activities of the group Zaj, making action art her main means of expression ever since. As of 1970, she retook the realization of visual works through intervention photographs, installations, paintings and drawings, based on the series of prime numbers, objects and sound pieces. Her work with ZAJ continued with very direct actions until 1996, when the group dissolved after a retrospective exhibition at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía. In 1999, she represented Spain at the Venice Biennale; and she has been awarded the National Prize for Visual Arts and the Velázquez Prize.
COOPERATION: Federación de Asociacións de Persoas Xordas de Galicia
Poor theatre, radical poetry.
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e-Leadership - Digital Skills for SMEs: There is a job to do! – Latest figures and results from the European initiative
Innovative e-leadership positions in Europe are estimated to be around 620,000 in 2015. Demand is estimated to reach 776,000 in 2020. Europe requires up to 200,000 e-leaders by 2020, i.e. 40,000 per year. Without further action Europe will not be in a position to create this number. There is a job to do!
According to the e-leadership scoreboard which correlates closely with GDP data as well as the NRI (Networked Readiness Index) countries like Ireland, Belgium and the UK perform better on e-leadership maturity than indicated by economic and technology maturity. Policy makers in the other EU member states may want to learn about how different policies may affect e-leadership practice.
There is growing recognition in digital skills and e-leadership skills policies prompted by the e-Skills Agenda and subsequent e-leadership skills initiatives of the European Commission. Member states have started to engage in public debates and develop appropriate responses.
Development of multi-stakeholder partnerships in the e-leadership field requires key stakeholders to agree on action, help promote awareness of the topic and boost training. Today, only eight member states have taken decisive initiatives on e-leadership education and training. Elsewhere the extent and consistency of policy-making is still limited and most countries lack a master strategy and continuous attention to e-leadership in policy-making.
Policy recommendations address the topics: research and training, stakeholder coordination, monitoring and benchmarking and policy commitment.
These are some of the results from the European Commission initiative ‘e-Leadership Skills for SMEs’ which has (November 2015) released the final report and the brochure summarising these.
Brochure and Final Report: e-Leadership - Digital Skills for SMES available for download here.
A service contract has been awarded in December 2013 by the European Commission to a consortium led by empirica to undertake this work.
The event is supported by the EC in the scope of the service contract to promote e-leadership in Europe (LEAD)
© 2015 empirica GmbH
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Mr Tuyen Nguyen
Mr Tuyen Nguyen is the Chairman of the Board and the founder of EMASI schools. He owns the vision and the strategic development plan of the group of schools. His belief is that education changes life, and every child deserves equal opportunity for quality education which enables the student to reach his / her full potential. Having successfully founded and developed the Renaissance International School Saigon since 2007, Mr Tuyen Nguyen has continued to research, invest and develop a unique and affordable school education concept for Vietnamese children, called EMASI International Bilingual Schools that will help them to develop critical skills for the modern world and become fluent in English.
Mr Tuyen Nguyen has significant and diverse industry experience in both Vietnam and international market. Tuyen was the Chairman, CEO and founder of Saigon Gas Holdings Corporation, established in 1998, one of the largest gas distribution company in Vietnam. In 2008, he made a successful exit by an M&A transaction with Total Oil and Gas, the world giant in oil and gas industry. He is a board member of a few other companies including Chairman of Viet Huong J.S.C., a leading flavor and fragrance company in Vietnam established in 1995, co-founder and Director of Rivermark Development Company from 2012, a property development business in Houston, Texas, U.S.A.
Mr Tuyen Nguyen was graduated from the University of Hochiminh City and currently lives in Houston, Texas, U.S.A with his wife Ms Quynh Nguyen, founder of the Nguyen Art Foundation, and their 4 children. Tuyen’s favourite quote is the one from Margaret Thatcher: “Plan your work for today and every day, then work your plan”.
Ms Quynh Nguyen
The Board Treasurer
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West Country English
(Redirected from West Country dialects)
Variety of the English language
South West England official region, approximately co-extensive with areas where "West Country" dialects are spoken
West Country English is a group of English language varieties and accents used by much of the native population of South West England, the area sometimes popularly known as the West Country.[1]
The West Country is often defined as encompassing the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire, the City of Bristol, and Gloucestershire. However, the northern and eastern boundaries of the area are hard to define. In the adjacent counties of Berkshire, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight and Oxfordshire it is possible to encounter similar accents and, indeed, much the same distinct dialect but with some similarities to others in neighbouring regions. Although natives of such locations, especially in rural parts, can still have West Country influences in their speech, the increased mobility and urbanisation of the population have meant that in Berkshire, Hampshire (including the Isle of Wight), and Oxfordshire the dialect itself, as opposed to various local accents, is becoming increasingly rare.
Academically the regional variations are considered to be dialectal forms. The Survey of English Dialects captured manners of speech across the South West region that were just as different from Standard English as any from the far North of England. There is some influence from the Welsh and Cornish languages depending on the specific location.
1 In literature
1.1 Early period
1.2 17th century
2 History and origins
2.1 Celtic language influence
3.1 Phonology
3.2 Vocabulary
3.3 Grammar
4 Social stigma and future of West Country dialect
In literature[edit]
In literary contexts, most of the usage has been in either poetry or dialogue, to add "local colour". It has rarely been used for serious prose in recent times, but was used much more extensively up until the 19th century. West Country dialects are commonly represented as "Mummerset", a kind of catchall southern rural accent invented for broadcasting.
Early period[edit]
The Late West Saxon dialect was the standard literary language of later Anglo-Saxon England, and consequently the majority of Anglo-Saxon literature, including the epic poem Beowulf and the poetic Biblical paraphrase Judith, is preserved in West Saxon dialect, though not all of it was originally written in West Saxon.
In the medieval period Sumer is icumen in (13th century) is a notable example of a work in the dialect.
The Cornish language (and Breton) descended from the ancient British language (Brythonic/Brittonic) that was spoken all over what is now the West Country until the West Saxons conquered and settled most of the area. The Cornish language throughout much of the High Middle Ages was not just the vernacular but the prestigious language in Cornwall among all classes, but was also spoken in large areas of Devon well after the Norman conquest. Cornish began to decline after the Late Middle Ages with English expanding westwards, and after the Prayer Book Rebellion, suffered terminal decline, dying out in the 18th century. (Its existence today is a revival).
17th century[edit]
In King Lear, Edgar speaks in the West Country dialect, as one of his various personae.
Both Sir Francis Drake and Sir Walter Raleigh were noted at the Court of Queen Elizabeth for their strong Devon accents.
Tom Jones (1749) by Henry Fielding, set in Somerset, again mainly dialogue. Considered one of the first true English novels.[2]
William Barnes' Dorset dialect poetry (1801–1886).
Walter Hawken Tregellas (1831–1894), author of many stories written in the local dialect of the county of Cornwall and a number of other works.
Anthony Trollope's (1815–1882) series of books Chronicles of Barsetshire (1855–1867) also use some in dialogue.
The novels of Thomas Hardy (1840–1928) often use the dialect in dialogue, notably Tess of the D'Urbervilles (1891).
Wiltshire Rhymes and Tales in the Wiltshire Dialect (1894) and other works by Edward Slow.[3]
The Gilbert and Sullivan operetta The Sorcerer is set in the fictional village of Ploverleigh in Somerset. Some dialogue and song lyrics, especially for the chorus, are a phonetic approximation of West Country speech. The Pirates of Penzance and Ruddigore are also set in Cornwall.
John Davey a farmer from Zennor, records the native Cornish language Cranken Rhyme.
R. D. Blackmore's Lorna Doone. According to Blackmore, he relied on a "phonogogic" style for his characters' speech, emphasizing their accents and word formation.[4] He expended great effort, in all of his novels, on his characters' dialogues and dialects, striving to recount realistically not only the ways, but also the tones and accents, in which thoughts and utterances were formed by the various sorts of people who lived in the Exmoor district.
Several pages of 'Folk-Speech of Zummerzet' in The Somerset Coast (1909) by George Harper, pp168-171 .
A Glastonbury Romance (1933) by John Cowper Powys (1872–1963) ISBN 0-87951-282-2 / ISBN 0-87951-681-X contains dialogue written in imitation of the local Somerset dialect.
Albert John Coles, (1876-1965), writing as Jan Stewer, wrote 3,000 short stories in the Devonshire dialect for local Devon newspapers, and published collections of them, as well as performing them widely on stage, film, and broadcast.
Laurie Lee's (1914–1997) works such as Cider with Rosie (1959) portray a somewhat idealised Gloucestershire childhood in the Five Valleys area.
John Fowles's Daniel Martin, which features the title character's girlfriend's dialect, and which has sometimes been criticised for being too stereotypical.
Dennis Potter's Blue Remembered Hills is a television play about children in the Forest of Dean during the Second World War. The dialogue is written in the style of the Forest dialect.
The songs of Adge Cutler (from Nailsea, died 1974) were famous for their West Country dialect, sung in a strong Somerset accent. His legacy lives on in the present day Wurzels and other so-called "Scrumpy and Western" artists.
The folk group The Yetties perform songs composed in the dialect of Dorset (they originate from Yetminster).
Andy Partridge, lead singer with the group XTC, has a pronounced Wiltshire accent. Although more noticeable in his speech, his accent may also be heard in some of his singing.
J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter fantasy novels feature Hagrid, a character who has a West Country accent similar to that of the Forest of Dean.[5]
History and origins[edit]
Until the 19th century, the West Country and its dialects were largely protected from outside influences, due to its relative geographical isolation. While standard English derives from the Old English Mercian dialects, the West Country dialects derive from the West Saxon dialect, which formed the earliest English language standard. Thomas Spencer Baynes claimed in 1856 that, due to its position at the heart of the Kingdom of Wessex, the relics of Anglo-Saxon accent, idiom and vocabulary were best preserved in the Somerset dialect.[6]
Example of a West Country accent (Bristol)
Voice of native Bristolian Julie Burchill from the BBC programme Desert Island Discs, 10 February 2013.[7]
Problems playing this file? See media help.
The dialects have their origins in the expansion of Anglo-Saxon into the west of modern-day England, where the kingdom of Wessex (West-Saxons) had been founded in the 6th century. As the Kings of Wessex became more powerful they enlarged their kingdom westwards and north-westwards by taking territory from the British kingdoms in those districts. From Wessex, the Anglo-Saxons spread into the Celtic regions of present-day Devon, Somerset and Gloucestershire, bringing their language with them. At a later period Cornwall came under Wessex influence, which appears to become more extensive after the time of Athelstan in the 10th century. However the spread of the English language took much longer here than elsewhere.
Outside Cornwall, it is believed that the various local dialects reflect the territories of various West Saxon tribes, who had their own dialects[8] which fused together into a national language in the later Anglo-Saxon period.[9]
As Lt-Col. J. A. Garton observed in 1971,[10] traditional Somerset English has a venerable and respectable origin, and is not a mere "debasement" of Standard English:
The dialect is not, as some people suppose, English spoken in a slovenly and ignorant way. It is the remains of a language—the court language of King Alfred. Many words, thought to be wrongly pronounced by the countryman, are actually correct, and it is the accepted pronunciation which is wrong. English pronounces W-A-R-M worm, and W-O-R-M wyrm; in the dialect W-A-R-M is pronounced as it is spelt, Anglo-Saxon W-E-A-R-M. The Anglo-Saxon for worm is W-Y-R-M. Polite English pronounces W-A-S-P wosp; the Anglo-Saxon word is W-O-P-S and a Somerset man still says WOPSE. The verb To Be is used in the old form, I be, Thee bist, He be, We be, Thee 'rt, They be. 'Had I known I wouldn't have gone', is 'If I'd a-know'd I 'ooden never a-went'; 'A' is the old way of denoting the past participle, and went is from the verb to wend (Anglo-Saxon wendan).
In some cases, many of these forms are closer to modern Saxon (commonly called Low German/Low Saxon) than Standard British English is, e.g.
Low German Somerset Standard British English
Ik bün I be/A be I am
Du büst Thee bist You are (archaic "Thou art")
He is He be He is
The use of masculine and sometimes feminine, rather than neuter, pronouns with non-animate referents also parallels Low German, which unlike English retains grammatical genders. The pronunciation of "s" as "z" is also similar to Low German. However, recent research proposes that some syntactical features of English, including the unique forms of the verb to be, originate rather with the Brythonic languages. (See Celtic Language Influence below.)
In more recent times, West Country dialects have been treated with some derision, which has led many local speakers to abandon them or water them down.[11] In particular it is British comedy which has brought them to the fore outside their native regions, and paradoxically groups such as The Wurzels, a comic North Somerset/Bristol band from whom the term Scrumpy and Western music originated, have both popularised and made fun of them simultaneously. In an unusual regional breakout, the Wurzels' song "The Combine Harvester" reached the top of the UK charts in 1976, where it did nothing to dispel the "simple farmer" stereotype of Somerset and West Country folk. It and all their songs are sung entirely in a local version of the dialect, which is somewhat exaggerated and distorted.[12] Some words used aren't even typical of the local dialect. For instance, the word "nowt" is used in the song "Threshing Machine". This word is generally used in more northern parts of England, with the West Country equivalent being "nawt".
Celtic language influence[edit]
See also: Cornish dialect and Brittonicisms in English
The shifting of the linguistic boundary in Cornwall 1300–1750
Although the English language gradually spread into Cornwall after approximately the 13th century, a complete language shift to English took centuries more. The linguistic boundary, between English in the east and Cornish in the west, shifted markedly in the county between 1300 and 1750 (see figure). This is not to be thought of as a sharp boundary and it should not be inferred that there were no Cornish speakers to the east of a line, and no English speakers to the west. Nor should it be inferred that the boundary suddenly moved a great distance every 50 years.
During the Prayer Book Rebellion of 1549, which centred on Devon and Cornwall, many of the Cornish objected to the Book of Common Prayer, on the basis that many Cornish could not speak English. Cornish probably ceased to be spoken as a community language sometime around 1780, with the last monoglot Cornish speaker believed to be Chesten Marchant, who died in 1676 at Gwithian (Dolly Pentreath was bilingual). However, some people retained a fragmented knowledge and some words were adopted by dialect(s) in Cornwall.
In recent years, the traffic has reversed, with the revived Cornish language reclaiming Cornish words that had been preserved in the local dialect into its lexicon, and also (especially "Revived Late Cornish") borrowing other dialect words. However, there has been some controversy over whether all of these words are of native origin, as opposed to imported from parts of England, or the Welsh Marches. Some modern day revived Cornish speakers have been known to use Cornish words within an English sentence, and even those who are not speakers of the language sometimes use words from the language in names.[13]
Brythonic languages have also had a long-term influence on the West Country dialects beyond Cornwall, both as a substrate (certain West Country dialect words and possibly grammatical features) and languages of contact. Recent research[14] on the roots of English proposes that the extent of Brythonic syntactic influence on Old English and Middle English may have been underestimated, and specifically cites the preponderance of the forms of the verbs to be and to do in the southwestern region and their grammatical similarity to Welsh and Cornish in opposition to the Germanic languages.
Bos: Cornish verb to be
Present Tense (short form) Present tense (subjunctive) Standard British English
Ov Biv I am [ dialect: I be ]
Os Bi You are (dialect: "(Th)ee be")
Yw Bo He/she/it is
On Byn We are
Owgh Bowgh You are (plural)
Yns Bons They are
The Cornish dialect, or Anglo-Cornish (to avoid confusion with the Cornish language), has the most substantial Celtic language influence, because many western parts were non-English speaking, even into the early modern period. In places such as Mousehole, Newlyn and St Ives, fragments of Cornish survived in English even into the 20th century, e.g. some numerals (especially for counting fish) and the Lord's Prayer were noted by W. D. Watson in 1925,[15] Edwin Norris collected the Creed in 1860,[15] and J. H. Nankivel also recorded numerals in 1865.[15] The dialect of West Penwith is particularly distinctive, especially in terms of grammar.[vague] This is most likely due to the late decay of the Cornish language in this area. In Cornwall the following places were included in the Survey of English Dialects: Altarnun, Egloshayle, Gwinear, Kilkhampton, Mullion, St Buryan, and St Ewe.
In other areas, Celtic vocabulary is less common, but it is notable that "coombe", cognate with Welsh cwm, was borrowed from Brythonic into Old English and is common in placenames east of the Tamar, especially Devon, and also in northern Somerset around Bath and the examples Hazeley Combe and Combley Great Wood (despite spelling difference, both are pronounced 'coombe') are to be found as far away as the Isle of Wight. Some possible examples of Brythonic words surviving in Devon dialect include:
Goco — A bluebell
Jonnick — Pleasant, agreeable
Characteristics[edit]
Phonology[edit]
This section contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA.
West Country accents are rhotic like most North American and Irish accents, meaning that the historical loss of non-syllable-final /r/ did not take place, in contrast to non-rhotic accents like Received Pronunciation. Often, this /r/ is specifically realised as the retroflex approximant [ɻ],[16] which is typically lengthened at the ends of words. Rhoticity appears to be declining in both real and apparent time in some areas of the West Country, for example Dorset.[17]
/aɪ/, as in guide or life, more precisely approaches [ɒɪ], [ɑɪ], or [əɪ].[18][16]
/aʊ/, as in house or cow, more precisely approaches [æy] or [ɐʏ~ɐʊ],[16] with even very front and unrounded variants such as [ɛɪ].[18]
Word-final "-ing" /ɪŋ/ in polysyllabic words is typically realised as [ɪn].
/æ/, as in trap or cat, is often open [æ~a], the more open variant fairly common in urban areas but especially common in rural areas.[18]
The TRAP–BATH split associated with London English may not exist for some speakers, or may exist marginally on the basis of simply a length difference. In other words, some may not have any contrast between /æ/ and /ɑː/, for example making palm and Pam homophones (though some pronounce the /l/ in palm).[19] For some West Country speakers, the vowel is even the same in the TRAP, BATH, PALM, and START word sets: [a].[18] The split's "bath" vowel (appearing as the letter "a" in such other words as grass, ask, path, etc.) can also be represented by the sounds [æː] or [aː] in different parts of the West Country (RP has [ɑː] in such words); the isoglosses in the Linguistic Atlas of England are not straightforward cases of clear borders. Short vowels have also been reported, e.g., [a].[18][20]
h-dropping: initial /h/ can often be omitted so "hair" and "air" become homophones. This is common in working-class speech in most parts of England.
t-glottalisation: use of the glottal stop [ʔ] as an allophone of /t/, generally when in any syllable-final position.
The word-final letter "y" is pronounced [ei] or [ɪi];[16] for example: party [ˈpʰäɻʔei], silly [ˈsɪlei] etc.
The Survey of English Dialects found that Cornwall retained some older features of speech that are now considered "Northern" in England. For example, a close /ʊ/ in suck, but, cup, etc. and sometimes a short /a/ in words such as aunt.
Initial fricative consonants can be voiced, particularly in more traditional and older speakers, so that "s" is pronounced as Standard English "z" and "f" as Standard English "v".[16] This feature is now exceedingly rare.[18]
In words containing "r" before a vowel, there is frequent metathesis – "gurt" (great), "Burdgwater" (Bridgwater) and "chillurn" (children)
In many words with the letter "l" near the end, such as gold or cold, the "l" is often not pronounced, so "an old gold bowl" would sound like "an ode goad bow".
In Bristol, a terminal "a" can be realised as the sound [ɔː] – e.g. cinema as "cinemaw" and America as "Americaw" – which is often perceived by non-Bristolians to be an intrusive "l". Hence the old joke about the three Bristolian sisters Evil, Idle and Normal – i.e.: Eva, Ida, and Norma. The name Bristol itself (originally Bridgestowe or Bristow) is believed to have originated from this local pronunciation.
Vocabulary[edit]
Some of the vocabulary used relates to English words of a bygone era, e.g. the verb "to hark" (as in "'ark a'ee"), "thee" (often abbreviated to "'ee") etc., the increased use of the infinitive form of the verb "to be" etc.
"Dreckly" on souvenir clocks in Cornwall
Some of these terms are obsolete, but some are in current use.
acker (North Somerset, Hampshire, Isle of Wight) friend
afear'd (Dorset) to be afraid, e.g. Dorset's official motto, "Who's afear'd".
Alaska (North Somerset) I will ask her
Allernbatch (Devon) old sore
Alright me Ansum? (Cornwall & Devon) How are you, my friend?
Alright me Babber? (Somerset), Gloucestershire and Bristol Similar to "Alright me ansum".
Alright my Luvver? (just as with the phrase "alright mate", when said by a person from the West Country, it has no carnal connotations, it is merely a greeting. Commonly used across the West Country)
anywhen (Hampshire, Isle of Wight) at any time
'appen (Devon) perhaps, possibly
Appleknocker (Isle of Wight) a resident of the Isle of Wight.[21]
arable (Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire and the Isle of Wight) (from "horrible"), often used for a road surface, as in "Thic road be arable"
Bad Lot (North Somerset) e.g. "They'm a bad lot, mind"
baint (Dorset) am not e.g. "I baint afear'd o' thic wopsy".
bauy, bay, bey (Exeter) boy
Beached Whale (Cornwall) many meanings, most commonly used to mean a gurt emmet
Benny (Bristol) to lose your temper (from a character in Crossroads)
Billy Baker (Yeovil) woodlouse
blige (Bristol) blimey
Boris (Exeter) daddy longlegs
Bunny (West Hampshire/East Dorset) steep wooded valley
Caulkhead (Isle of Wight) a long-standing island resident, usually a descendant of a family living there. This refers to the island's heavy involvement in the production of rope and caulk.
cheers (Dorset/Wiltshire/Gloucestershire) Goodbye or see you later, e.g. Bob: I've got to get going now, Bar. Bar: Ah? Cheers then, Bob.
cheerzen/Cheers'en (Somerset, Bristol) Thank you (from Cheers, then)
chinny reckon (North Somerset) I do not believe you in the slightest (from older West Country English ich ne reckon 'I don't reckon/calculate')
chine (East Dorset/Isle of Wight) steep wooded valley
chuggy pig (North Somerset) woodlouse
chump (North Somerset) log (for the fire)
chuting (North Somerset) (pronounced "shooting") guttering
comical (North Somerset, Isle of Wight) peculiar, e.g. 'e were proper comical
combe (Devon,Somerset,Wiltshire, Isle of Wight) (pronounced 'coombe') steep wooded valley
coombe (Devon, North Somerset, Dorset) steep wooded valley. Combe/Coombe is the second most common placename element in Devon and is equivalent to the Welsh cwm.
coupie/croupie (North Somerset,Wiltshire, Dorset, Isle of Wight & Bristol) crouch, as in the phrase coupie down
crowst (Cornwall) a picnic lunch, crib
cuzzel (Cornwall) soft
daddy granfer (North Somerset) woodlouse
daps (Bristol, Wiltshire, Dorset, Somerset, Gloucestershire) sportshoes (plimsolls or trainers) (also used widely in South Wales)
Diddykai, Diddycoy, Diddy (Isle of Wight, Hampshire, Somerset, Wiltshire) Gypsy, Traveller
dimpsy (Devon) describing the state of twilight as in its getting a bit dimpsy
dizzibles (Isle of Wight) state of undress (from French deshabille)
doughboy (Dorset, Somerset) dumpling
Dreckley (Cornwall, Devon, Somerset & Isle of Wight) soon, like mañana, but less urgent (from directly once in common English usage for straight away or directly) I be wiv 'ee dreckley or ee looked me dreckly in the eyes.
drive (Bristol, Gloucestershire, Somerset & Wiltshire) any driver of a taxi or bus. The usual gesture when disembarking from a bus is cheers drive
Emmet (Cornwall and North Somerset) tourist or visitor (derogatory)
et (North Somerset) that, e.g. Giss et peak (Give me that pitchfork)
facety/facetie (Glos.) stuck up, entitled, snobbish e.g. She's a right facety one (she is very snobbish)
gallybagger (Isle of Wight) scarecrow
Geddon alt; geddy on (Crediton, Devon) Get on, e.g. geddon chap! enthusiastic encouragement or delight
gert lush (Bristol) very good
gleanie (North Somerset) guinea fowl
gockey (Cornwall) idiot
gramersow (Cornwall) woodlouse
granfer grandfather
granfergrig (Wiltshire) woodlouse
grockle (Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire,west Hampshire and the Isle of Wight) tourist, visitor or gypsy (derogatory)
grockle shell (Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire and the Isle of Wight) caravan or motor home (derogatory)
grockle can (Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire and the Isle of Wight) a bus or a coach carrying tourists (derogatory)
gurt (Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Bristol,Wiltshire, South Glos and the Isle of Wight) big or great, used to express a large size often as extra emphasis That's a gurt big tractor!.
haling (North Somerset) coughing
(h)ang' about (Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Hampshire & the Isle of Wight) Wait or Pause but often exclaimed when a sudden thought occurs.
hark at he (Dorset, Wiltshire, Somerset, Hampshire, Isle of Wight) (pronounced 'ark a' 'ee) listen to him, often sarcastic.
headlights (Cornwall) light-headedness, giddiness
hilts and gilts (North Somerset) female and male piglets, respectively.
hinkypunk Will o' the wisp
hucky duck (Somerset, particularly Radstock) Aqueduct (Aqueduct was a rather new-fangled word for the Somerset colliers of the time and got corrupted to 'Hucky Duck'.)
huppenstop (North Somerset) raised stone platform where milk churns are left for collection — no longer used but many still exist outside farms.
ideal (Bristol,North Somerset) idea; In Bristol there is a propensity for local speakers to add an l to words ending with a
In any case
Janner (Devon, esp. Plymouth) a term with various meanings, normally associated with Devon. An old term for someone who makes their living off of the sea. Plymothians are often generally referred to as Janners, and supporters of the city's football team Plymouth Argyle are sometimes also referred to thus. In Wiltshire, a similar word ' jidder ' is used — possible relation to 'gypsy'.
Janny Reckon (Cornwall and Devon) Derived from Chinny Reckon and Janner, and is often used in response to a wildly exaggerated fisherman's tale.
Jasper a Devon, Wiltshire(also west Hampshire) word for wasp.
keendle teening (Cornwall) candle lighting
Kimberlin (Portland) someone from Weymouth or further away — not a Portlander
Love, My Love, Luvver Terms of endearment when used on their own. Can also be joined to a greeting and used towards strangers, e.g. "Good morning my luvver" may be said by a shop keeper to a customer. See also "Alright my Luvver?".
Ling (Cornwall) to throw Ling 'ee 'ere — Throw it here
Madderdo'ee (Cornwall) Does it matter?
maid (Dorset, Devon) girl
maggoty (Dorset) fanciful
mackey (Bristol) massive or large, often to benefit
mallyshag (Isle of Wight) caterpillar
mang (Devon) to mix
mush (Dorset, south Hampshire) friendly greeting as in mate
nipper (Isle of Wight/Gloucestershire) a young boy, also a term of endearment between heterosexual men used in the same way as 'mate'.
Now we're farming. (Somerset) Term to describe when something is proceeding nicely or as planned.
old butt (Gloucestershire, Forest of Dean) friend
Ooh Arr (Devon) multiple meanings, including Oh Yes. Popularised by the Wurzels, this phrase has become stereotypical, and is used often to mock speakers of West Country dialects. In the modern day Ooh Ah is commonly used as the correct phrase though mostly avoided due to stereotypes.
Ort/Ought Nort/Nought (Devon) Something / Nothing I a'en got ought for'ee=I have nothing for you 'Er did'n give I nought He gave me nothing
Overner (Isle of Wight) not from the Island, a mainland person. Extremely common usage
Overlander (Isle of Wight) a non-resident of the Island, an outsider. Overner (see above) is the abbreviated form of this word, and 'Overlander' is also used in parts of Australia.
Parcel of ol' Crams (Devon) a phrase by which the natives sum up and dismiss things (a) they cannot comprehend, (b) do not believe, (c) have no patience with, or (d) may be entertained by but unwilling to praise.
piggy widden (Cornwall) phrase used to calm babies
pitching (Bristol,Somerset, Wiltshire) settling on the ground (of snow)
plim up, plimmed (North Somerset,west Hampshire) swell up, swollen
poached, -ing up (North Somerset but also recently heard on The Archers) cutting up, of a field, as in the ground's poaching up, we'll have to bring the cattle indoors for the winter.
proper job (Devon, Cornwall, Dorset, Somerset, Isle of Wight) Something done well or a general expression of satisfaction.
pummy (Dorset) Apple pumace from the cider-wring (either from pumace or French pomme meaning apple)
scag (North Somerset) to tear or catch ("I've scagged me jeans on thacky barbed wire. I've scagged me 'ook up 'round down 'by Swyre 'ed")
scrage a scratch or scrape usually on a limb BBC Voices Project
scrope (Dorset) to move awkwardly or clumsily through overgrowth or vegetation.
skew-whiff (Dorset & Devon) crooked, slanting, awry.
slit pigs (North Somerset) male piglets that have been castrated
smooth (Bristol & Somerset) to stroke (e.g. cat or dog)
Sound (Devon & North Gloucestershire) many meanings, but mainly to communicate gratitude, appreciation and/or mutual respect.
somewhen (Dorset, Isle of Wight) At some time (still very commonly used)(compare German irgendwann)
sprieve (Wiltshire) Dry after a bath, shower or swim by evaporation.
spuddler (Devon) Somebody attempting to stir up trouble. e.g. That's not true, you spuddlin' bugger!
thic (Dorset, North Somerset) that — said knowingly, i.e. to make dialect deliberately stronger. E.g. Get in thic bed!
thic/thac/they thiccy/thaccy/they (Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire) This, that, those. e.g. Put'n in thic yer box. Put it in this box here. Whad'v'ee done wi' thaccy pile o'dashels? What have you done with that pile of thistles
tinklebob (Dorset) an icicle.
wambling (Dorset) wandering, aimless (see A Pair of Blue Eyes by Thomas Hardy)
wuzzer/wazzin (Exeter) Was she?/Was he?
Where's it to? (Cornwall, Dorset, Devon, Somerset, Wiltshire) Where is it? e.g. Dorchester, where's it to? It's in Dorset.
wopsy (Devon & Dorset) a wasp.
young'un any young person "Ow be young un?" or "Where bist goin' youngun?"
zat (Devon) soft
Some dialect words now appear mainly, or solely, in place names, such as "batch" (North Somerset, = hill but more commonly applied to Coalmine spoil heaps e.g. Camerton batch, Farrington batch, Braysdown batch), "tyning", "hoe" (a bay). These are not to be confused with fossilised Brythonic or Cornish language terms, for example, "-coombe" is quite a common suffix in West Country place names (not so much in Cornwall), and means a "valley".
Grammar[edit]
The second person singular thee (or ye) and thou forms used, thee often contracted to 'ee.
Bist may be used instead of are for the second person, e.g.: how bist? ("how are you?") This has its origins in the Old English – or Anglo-Saxon – language; compare the modern German "Wie bist du?" (a literal translation of "How are you?", not used as a greeting).
Use of masculine (rather than neuter) pronouns with non-animate referents, e.g.: put'ee over there ("put it over there") and 'e's a nice scarf ("That's a nice scarf").
An a- prefix may be used to denote the past participle; a-went ("gone").
Use of they in conjunction with plural nouns, where Standard English demands those e.g.: They shoes are mine ("Those shoes are mine" / "They are mine"). This is also used in Modern Scots but differentiated thae[22] meaning those and thay the plural of he, she and it, both from the Anglo-Saxon ðà/þà 'they/those', the plural form of se 'he/that', seo 'she/that' and ðæt/þæt 'it/that'.
In other areas, be may be used exclusively in the present tense, often in the present continuous; Where you be going to? ("Where are you going?")
The use of to to denote location. Where's that to? ("Where's that?"). This is something that can still be heard often, unlike many other characteristics. This former usage is common to Newfoundland English, where many of the island's modern-day descendants have West Country origins — particularly Bristol — as a result of the 17th–19th century migratory fishery.
Use of the past tense "writ" where Standard English uses "wrote". e.g.: I writ a letter ("I wrote a letter").
Nominative pronouns as indirect objects. For instance, Don't tell I, tell'ee! ("Don't tell me, tell him!"), "'ey give I fifty quid and I zay no, giv'ee to charity inztead" ("They gave me £50 and I said no, give it to charity instead"). When in casual Standard English the oblique case is used, in the West Country dialect the object of many a verb takes the nominative case. In most Germanic languages it is nominative pronouns (I, he, she) which follow the verb to be, e.g.: It is I, It is he, These are they and not It is me, It is him, These are them.
Social stigma and future of West Country dialect[edit]
Owing to the West Country's agricultural history, the sound of the West Country accent has for centuries been associated with farming, and consequently with a lack of education and rustic simplicity. This can be seen in literature as early as the 18th century in Richard Brinsley Sheridan's play The Rivals, set in the Somerset city of Bath.
As more and more of the English population moved into towns and cities during the 20th century, non-regional, Standard English accents increasingly became a marker of personal social mobility. Universal primary education was also an important factor as it made it possible for some to move out of their rural environments into situations where other modes of speech were current.
A West Country accent continues to be a reason for denigration and stereotype:[23]
The people of the South West have long endured the cultural stereotype of 'ooh arr'ing carrot-crunching yokels, and Bristol in particular has fought hard to shake this image off
— Anonymous editorial, Bristol Post, 7 August 2008
There is a popular prejudice that stereotypes speakers as unsophisticated and even backward, due possibly to the deliberate and lengthened nature of the accent. This can work to the West Country speaker's advantage, however: recent studies of how trustworthy Britons find their fellows based on their regional accents put the West Country accent high up, under southern Scottish English but a long way above Cockney and Scouse. Recent polls put the West Country accent as third and fifth most attractive in the British Isles respectively.[24][25]
The West Country accent is probably most identified in film as "pirate speech" – cartoon-like "Ooh arr, me 'earties! Sploice the mainbrace!" talk is very similar.[26] This may be a result of the strong seafaring and fisherman tradition of the West Country, both legal and outlaw. Edward Teach (Blackbeard) was a native of Bristol, and privateer and English hero Sir Francis Drake hailed from Tavistock in Devon. Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta The Pirates of Penzance may also have added to the association. West Country native Robert Newton's performance in the 1950 Disney film Treasure Island is credited with popularizing the stereotypical West Country "pirate voice".[26][27] Newton's strong West Country accent also featured in Blackbeard the Pirate (1952).[26]
Anglo-Cornish
Bristolian dialect
Late West Saxon
List of Cornish dialect words
Mummerset
Newfoundland English
^ The Southwest of England (Varieties of English around the world T5) Archived 12 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine
^ Yardley, Jonathan (9 December 2003). "'Tom Jones,' as Fresh as Ever". Washington Post. pp. C1. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 31 December 2006.
^ "Wiltshire — About Wiltshire – 'Vizes excizemen on tha scent'". BBC. Archived from the original on 3 July 2010. Retrieved 18 April 2010.
^ Buckler, William E. (1956) "Blackmore's Novels before Lorna Doone" in: Nineteenth-Century Fiction, vol. 10 (1956), p. 183
^ "Goring, Rosemary. "Harry's Fame," Scotland on Sunday, 17 January 1999". 1999: Accio Quote. 1999: Accio Quote. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
^ The Somersetshire dialect: its pronunciation, 2 papers (1861) Thomas Spencer Baynes, first published 1855 & 1856
^ "Julie Burchill". Desert Island Discs. 10 February 2013. BBC Radio 4. Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2014.
^ Origin of the Anglo-Saxon race : a study of the settlement of England and the tribal origin of the Old English people; Author: William Thomas Shore; Editors TW and LE Shore; Publisher: Elliot Stock; published 1906 esp. p. 3, 357, 367, 370, 389, 392
^ Origin of the Anglo-Saxon race : a study of the settlement of England and the tribal origin of the Old English people; Author: William Thomas Shore; Editors TW and LE Shore; Publisher: Elliot Stock; published 1906 p. 393
^ Garton, J.A. (1971). "A Somerset Dialect". Archived from the original on 26 April 2006. Retrieved 25 January 2013.
^ Sullock, Jason (2012). Oo do ee think ee are?. Lulu. p. 3. ISBN 9781291148411.
^ Milligan, Daniel (17 February 2014). "Ten words and phrases that prove you're Somerset born and bred". This is the Westcountry. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
^ "Cussel an Tavaz Kernuak". The Cornish Language Council. Archived from the original on 17 May 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
^ Tristram, Hildegard (2004), "Diglossia in Anglo-Saxon England, or what was spoken Old English like?", In Studia Anglica Posnaniensia 40 pp 87–110
^ a b c "Cornish Language Study" (PDF). Cornwall County Council. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
^ a b c d e Heggarty, Paul; et al., eds. (2013). "Accents of English from Around the World". University of Edinburgh. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016.
^ Piercy, Caroline (2012) "A Transatlantic Cross-Dialectal Comparison of Non-Prevocalic /r/," University of Pennsylvania Working Papers in Linguistics: Vol. 18 : Iss. 2 , Article 10. Available at: http://repository.upenn.edu/pwpl/vol18/iss2/10.
^ a b c d e f Wells, J.C. (1982). Accents of English 2: The British Isles. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 343-345. Print.
^ Hughes, Arthur, Peter Trudgill, and Dominic Watt. English Accents and Dialects. 5th ed. Croydon: Hodder Education, 2012, p. 62. Print
^ Collins, Beverley; Mees, Inger M. (2013) [First published 2003], Practical Phonetics and Phonology: A Resource Book for Students (3rd ed.), Routledge, p. 171, ISBN 978-0-415-50650-2
^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2015. CS1 maint: Archived copy as title (link)
^ "SND: thae". Dsl.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 9 March 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
^ "This is Bristol; real life drama". Thisisbristol.co.uk. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
^ "West Country accent 3rd sexiest in Britain". bristolpost.co.uk. Archived from the original on 5 July 2015.
^ "West Country accent YouGov poll". northdevonjournal.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 March 2015.
^ a b c Angus Konstam (2008) Piracy: The Complete History P.313, Osprey Publishing, Retrieved 11 October 2011
^ "A.Word.A.Day – buccaneer". Wordsmith.org. 7 September 2006. Archived from the original on 1 April 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
M. A. Courtney; T. Q. Couch: Glossary of Words in Use in Cornwall. West Cornwall, by M. A. Courtney; East Cornwall, by T. Q. Couch. London: published for the English Dialect Society, by Trübner & Co., 1880
John Kjederqvist: "The Dialect of Pewsey (Wiltshire)", Transactions of the Philological Society 1903–1906
Etsko Kruisinga: A Grammar of the Dialect of West Somerset, Bonn, 1905
Clement Marten: The Devonshire Dialect, Exeter, 1974
Clement Marten: Flibberts and Skriddicks: Stories and Poems in the Devon Dialect, Exeter, 1983
Mary Palmer: A Dialogue in the Devonshire Dialect (in three parts) by A Lady to which is added a Glossary by J.F. Palmer, London & Exeter, 1837
Norman Rogers: Wessex Dialect, Bradford-on-Avon, 1979
Bertil Widén: Studies in the Dorset Dialect, Lund, 1949
Sounds Familiar? – Listen to examples of regional accents and dialects from across the UK on the British Library's 'Sounds Familiar' website
Bristol Dialect/Glossary
Cornish Dialect Dictionary
Cornish Provincial Words, by "Uncle Jan Trenoodle", 1845?
A Devon Dialect Vocabulary
BBC Devon: Dialect (with pronunciation)
"A Somerset Dialect". Archived from the original on 26 April 2006.
Somerset voices
Wadham Pigott Williams, A Glossary of Provincial Words & Phrases in use in Somersetshire, Longmans, Green, Reader & Dyer, 1873
1902 Wessex Dialect Glossary
Dialect Syntax in the South West of England (pdf)
Retrieved from "http://en.turkcewiki.org/w/index.php?title=West_Country_English&oldid=906360008"
English language in England
Languages of the United Kingdom
Use British English from December 2014
All Wikipedia articles needing clarification
Wikipedia articles needing clarification from June 2018
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Sustainability Science: Linking Research-Based Knowledge with Action
By David Rosenbaum
People don’t have to be like microbes in a Petri dish, says William Clark, Harvard Kennedy School’s Brooks professor of inter-national science, public policy, and human development. In a Petri dish, microbes gobble up all the food available to them and grow fat while sinking under their own waste until —oops—they’re dead. But unlike microbes, Clark says, “Humans have the potential to know what’s going on, and to act on that knowledge.”
Understanding “what’s going on” in the Petri dish called Earth is at the core of sustainability science, a relatively new, multi-disciplinary ap-proach that sits at the crossroads of the natu-ral and social sciences, medicine and engi-neering, and the knowledge of practice. Right now, Clark, among others, is in the process of describing, defining, broadly disseminating, and bringing scientific rigor to the structures and processes of sustainability science. He is a contributing editor of Sustainability Science: A Reader, intended for teachers. That soon will be followed by the publication of Sustainability Science: An Introduction, a textbook being written by Clark and others under the auspices of the Sustainability Science Program that he co-directs at the Kennedy School.
Linking research-based knowledge with action is one hallmark of sustainability science. Says Clark, it is a “value-and-policy-based” discipline. Its point is not only to analyze the complex web of interactions between humans and their environment, cataloging the depredations that result; it is also to help peo-ple articulate desired outcomes and suggest ways to achieve such outcomes in a world that “meets the needs of the current generation without jeopardizing the future.”
This mission often places Clark between a rock and a hard place: ecological fundamen-talists see sustainability science’s willingness to accept trade-offs between environmental preservation and economic development as a betrayal of the environment, he says, while the “Chamber of Commerce-types” see the erec-tion of any barriers to untrammeled growth as a species of radical environmentalism. Caught in the middle, and faced with the continual, increasing degradation of the environment due to climate change and other pollution, as well as the fast-moving economic globaliza-tion that is leaving too many people behind, Clark manages to keep his head up.
“I prefer a hopeful attitude that gets you up in the morning because there’s so much work to be done,” he says. “The good news,” Clark continues, “is that relative to when I was in college, there’s a growing understanding—except, of course in the denialist recesses of the U.S. Congress—that you can use the environment in ways that are good for us and our grandchildren. There’s a growing sense of moral responsibility that since it is within our ken to understand what we’re doing, we owe it to ourselves to change our behavior.”
Unlike those microbes.
This article originally appeared in the Fall/Winter 2011 issue of Environment@Harvard.
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The Greatest Euro Matches: West Germany-Belgium (1980)
1980 was the year when the European championship changed structure. A final round of eight teams was introduced, to be preceded by a qualification. The eight teams would be divided into two groups where the winners would go directly to the final and the runner-ups would be playing for third place. Italy was selected as host, qualifying automatically as such.
After losing the 1976 final West Germany had undergone a generation shift from the World Cup side of 1974. Legends such as Franz Beckenbauer, Sepp Maier, Berti Vogts or Uli Hoeness had retired, but had been replaced by another generation players. The side was much more varied in terms of clubs as Bayern Munich's and Borussia Monchengladbach's stars had faded, but the players were not less talented and would leave a mark on German football.
On goal was FC Cologne's Harald Schumacher, a hugely talented but controversial goalkeeper. The captain of the team was the MSV Duisburg defender Bernard Dietz, complemented by Real Madrid's Uli Stielike, VFB Stutgart's Karl-Heinz Forster, as wel as the Hamburg SV legend Manfred Kaltz. The soon to be FC Barcelona player Bernd Schuster played in midfield with Kaiserslautern's Hans Peter Briegel and Bayern Munich's Karl-Heinz Rummennigge, with FC Cologne's Klaus Allofs. Just before the tournament the bicycle-kick expert from Schalke 04 was injured and was replaced by Hamburg SV's Horst Hrubesch. Hrubesh, a sturdy attacker who had only made it to the national team at the age of 28 was not immediately seen as the best replacement for Fischer, but would go into the history books.
West Germany, runner-ups in 1976, were paired in group A with the defending champions of Czechoslovakia and in the opening match of the tournament the Germans got revenge for their defeat four years before by winning 1-0 on a goal by Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who would go on to be the European player of the year of 1980 (ahead of his teammate Bernd Schuster). In their second match against the Netherlands West Germany won 3-2 with three goals by Klaus Allofs, and 0-0 in their last match against Greece was enough to take them to the final.
Belgium had not been a great footballing power in Europe, but by 1980 the team had developed one of its most talented generations under the most legendary of Belgian coaches, Guy Thys.
On goal was Beveren's Jean-Marie Pfaff, behind Standard Liege's Eric Gerets and Michel Renquin in defense. The team captain was Beerschot VAC's Julien Cools, complemented in midfield by Club Brugge's Rene Vandereycken and the K.Beringen veteran Wilfried Van Moer. Up front Anderlecht's Francois Van der Elst and Club Brugge's Jan Ceulemans formed the attacking duo. Belgium had qualified the tournament ahead of Austria, Portugal and Scotland, but were not considered as prime contenders in a group with England, Spain, and the home side of Italy. But after opening with 1-1 against England, Belgium defeated Spain 2-1, and a 0-0 in their last match against Italy was enough to put them in their first international final ever.
But there was no doubt that West Germany were the favourites against little Belgium, and when the game started the Germans were ready to take up their role as favourites, and put strong pressure on the Belgians. Bernd Schuster had a good attempt from long-range that was well saved by Pfaff, and in the 10th minute the Barcelona player lifted the ball above a Belgian defender to Horst Hrubesch at the edge of the Belgian area. Hrubesch, who had been criticized for his lack of goals in the tournament, in one movement took the ball down with his breast and hammered to the ball with his right foot, scoring a great opener for West Germany. Rummenigge, Schuster & Co continued pressuring for the remainder of the first half and should perhaps have been ahead by more than 1-0 by the time the second half started.
But it was then Belgium, who until then had been mere spectators, showed why they had made it to the final. Led by the veteran Van Moer, the Belgians fought themselves back into the match and neutralized the powerful German midfield. In the 75th minute they were rewarded: on an excellent pass by Jan Ceulemans Francois Van er Elst got through alone against Schumacher, but an onrushing Uli Stielike tackled and committed a clear penalty (today Stielike would undoubtedly have been given a red card). Rene Vandereycken converted the penalty and made it 1-1.
Most spectators, except the Germans, were now supporting the Belgians, who seemed to have the ipper hand. But in the 86th minute Karl-Heinz Rummennigge took a corner kick. It went to the central part of the Belgian area where Horst Hrubesch rose above a shaky-looking Jean-Marie Pfaff, and headed the ball into goal.
Horst Hrubesch, the substitute striker from Hamburg had become the hero of the day.
This was enough for West Germany, who after a few years of a bit of decline were back at the top of European football with a team that would remain at the top of world football during the 1980s. Belgium, the major surprise of the tournament would also remain a powerful player in world football, culminating with a semi-final spot at the 1986 World Cup.
Rome, 22nd June 1980 Stadio Olimpico
Referee: Nicolae Rainea (Romania)
West Germany-Belgium 2-1
West Germany: Harald Schumacher; Uli Stielike, Manfred Kaltz, Bernard Dietz (c) , Karlheinz Förster, Bernd Schuster, Hans-Peter Briegel (Bernhard Cullmann, 55), Hansi Müller, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge , Horst Hrubesch, Klaus Allofs. Coach: Jupp Derwall
Belgium: Jean-Marie Pfaff; Eric Gerets, Luc Millecamps, Walter Meeuws, Michel Renquin, Julien Cools (c), René Vandereycken, Wilfried Van Moer, Raymond Mommens, François Van Der Elst, Jan Ceulemans. Coach: Guy Thys
1-0 Hrubesch (8)
1-1 Vandereycken (75) (pen)
2-1 Hrubesch (86)
Labels: Belgium, Euro 1980, Euro 1980 final, European championship history, football history, history, Horst Hrubesch, Italy 1980, Rene Vandereycken, West Germany, West Germany-Belgium
Sid Lowe- "Fear and Loathing in La Liga"
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Hawaiian Hostage… Hawaiian Clothing
In honor of Queen Lili'uokalani
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Ka La Kuokoa
In the Kingdom of Hawaii, November 28 was an official holiday called Ka La Kuokoa, or Independence Day. This was the day in 1843 when England and France formally recognized Hawaii’s independence.
Faced with the problem of foreign encroachment of Hawaiian territory, His Hawaiian Majesty King Kamehameha III deemed it prudent and necessary to dispatch a Hawaiian delegation to the United States and then to Europe with the power to settle alleged difficulties with nations, negotiate treaties and to ultimately secure the recognition of Hawaiian Independence by the major powers of the world. In accordance with this view, Timoteo Ha’alilio, William Richards and Sir George Simpson were commissioned as joint Ministers Plenipotentiary on April 8, 1842. Sir George Simpson, shortly thereafter, left for England, via Alaska and Siberia, while Mr. Ha’alilio and Mr. Richards departed for the United States, via Mexico, on July 8, 1842.
The Hawaiian delegation, while in the United States of America, secured the assurance of U.S. President Tyler on December 19, 1842 of its recognition of Hawaiian independence, and then proceeded to meet Sir George Simpson in Europe and secure formal recognition by Great Britain and France. On March 17, 1843, King Louis-Phillipe of France recognizes Hawaiian independence at the urging of King Leopold of Belgium, and on April 1, 1843, Lord Aberdeen on behalf of Her Britannic Majesty Queen Victoria, assured the Hawaiian delegation that:
“Her Majesty’s Government was willing and had determined to recognize the independence of the Sandwich Islands under their present sovereign.”
On November 28, 1843, at the Court of London, the British and French Governments entered into a formal agreement of the recognition of Hawaiian independence, with what is called the Anglo-Franco proclamation:
Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and His Majesty the King of the French, taking into consideration the existence in the Sandwich Islands (Hawaiian Islands) of a government capable of providing for the regularity of its relations with foreign nations, have thought it right to engage, reciprocally, to consider the Sandwich Islands as an Independent State, and never to take possession, neither directly or under the title of Protectorate, or under any other form, of any part of the territory of which they are composed.
November 28 was thereafter established as an official national holiday to celebrate the recognition of Hawaii’s independence.
As a result of this recognition, the Hawaiian Kingdom entered into treaties with the major nations of the world and had established over ninety legations and consulates in multiple seaports and cities.
This excerpt is taken from UNPO
You can find more information about Hawaiian Independence day here and here.
About HawaiianHostage
View all posts by HawaiianHostage →
Summer Line 2014
Winter Line 2014
I Am Haloa
Chapter XLVI
Hawaiian Hostage and T&C Surf Designs
Queen Liliuokalani’s arrest
Hawaiian Hostage © 2013. All Rights Reserved.
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'Dao' or Tao translates as 'the path' or 'the way'. Daoists believe that there is a power that surrounds and flows through the living and non-living, which regulates natural processes, creates balance in the Universe, and exemplifies the harmony of opposites. The Daoist philosophy is highly important for the understanding of Chinese art since shapes, colors and decorations are very often made to harmonize with this. Among the motifs are several symbols for "long life" such as the crane, pine tree, deer and the lingzhi fungus closely related to clouds and the ruyi scepter head.
Lao Zi (Lao-Tse) or the "Old Master" is believed to have lived 604-531 BC and to be the founder of Daoism. He was a contemporary of Confucius and his quest was to find a way to avoid the constant feudal warfare and conflicts that made society chaotic during his lifetime. His ongoing search caused him to author the "Book of the Way and its Power" Daode jing (Tao-te-Ching). In answer to the question "What is the nature of the natural world-" Lao Zi replied that it is the visible manifestation of the Dao, the Way that contains within itself the matter and form of every physical phenomenon. The central teaching of Daoism is that one must live in intuitive harmony with the Dao. It was not until the Han dynasty that the teachings of Lao Zi were incorporated into a religious movement in which elaborate rituals and sacred writings were developed. Daoism became the third great religion of China, the other two being Buddhism and Confucianism.
Historians now think that Daode jing was compiled by a group of scholars in the third century BC and that "Laozi" was developed to provide an author for the book. The text is actually a compilation of various writings collected over the course of generations. It may have assumed its current form by the third or fourth century BC. The Classic of the Way and Its Power includes poetic passages, sayings, fragments of political texts, and passages intended for recitation. It served as the foundation for both philosophical and religious Daoism. During the Han dynasty, "Laozi" was in either case deified and remains one of the most important deities in religious Daoism.
When the Qing dynasty ended in 1911 the state support for Daoism also ended, and a great deal of the heritage surrounding the religion was destroyed during the years of warlordism that consumed the country of China. In 1949 with the Communists victory Taoist monks were forced into manual labor and temples were confiscated by the government. By 1960 the number of Daoist monks had been reduced from several million to about fifty thousand. The Cultural Revolution that started in 1966 and lasted ten years destroyed much of what remained.
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Show Recordings
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An haute couture fashion designer reveals God’s beauty
November 02, 2017 by Ed Melick
In the early 90s, a young haute couture fashion designer named Aleona Isakova became a finalist in the prestigious Nina Ricci fashion competition in Moscow. She also became the public face and designer for a Russian company, and she appeared to be on top of the world. But she soon found herself thinking, “Is this all there is, simply living and designing clothes?” She would eventually have a vision of a collection of haute couture dresses that represent the story of the Bible, and a businessman she barely knew would give her a half-million dollars to bring her vision to life. Her Beauty by God collection has since been shown in London, Jerusalem, Moscow, Australia, and America. Aleona and her husband now live in the United States and she recently launched the Leonard Charitable Foundation, Inc. in honor of the gentlemen who so graciously funded her collection. Aleona joins us to talk about her experiences in Russia, her personal transformation, and a fashion design competition her foundation is sponsoring to motivate talented fashion designers to create God-inspired designs to be revealed at DC Fashion Week in Washington in September 2018. We’re also joined by Annabel Foery, the foundation’s Treasurer.
November 02, 2017 /Ed Melick
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New Principal Investigator Dr. Eric Griffis arrives in Dundee
The Wellcome Trust Centre for Gene Regulation and Expression is delighted to announce the arrival of its new Principal Investigator, Dr Eric Griffis. Dr. Griffis, recipient of a Wellcome Trust Research Career Development Fellowships worth £700,000 earlier this year, arrived in Dundee with his family from California last week.
Previously at the University of California, San Francisco, the Wellcome Fellowship has enabled Dr. Griffis to move to the the Wellcome Trust Centre for Gene Regulation and Expression to continue his studies on the regulation of the localisation and dynamics of non-muscle myosin II during cell division and cell migration. The Fellowship is one of four providing funding for salaries, equipment, and consumables at the College of Life Sciences over five years.
Eric Griffis grew up near Atlanta, Georgia, USA and studied at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, and Emory University in Atlanta before moving to the University of California, San Francisco in 2004. His graduate research focused on the dynamics of the nuclear pore complex (NPC) and how it may be regulated by events within the nucleus.
His first informal visit to Dundee was in 2006 and in May 2009 he chose to move here, to the College of Life Sciences, despite counter-offers from other universities in the UK and US. He says, ‘I felt that Dundee offered the best combination of colleagues, facilities, and infrastructure.’
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Connected car data proposals could threaten fleets’ SMR choice
British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) chief executive Gerry Keaney has labelled proposals for car manufacturers to collect and store data from connected vehicles in their servers, and release it only to third parties if there is an agreement, “very dangerous”.
The proposals, known as the Extended Vehicle Concept, could restrict choice over where a vehicle is repaired and could “curtail innovation” in the independent repair sector, in Keaney’s view, affecting those leasing companies and fleet managers that use independents to reduce service, maintenance and repair (SMR) costs.
Under the current draft proposals only the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) has access to real-time data, potentially giving them an “unfair advantage”, Keaney said.
“If our members own an asset it is up to them where they get that asset repaired or serviced and if they choose to go to an independent repairer they should be fully enabled to do that, and the independent repairer should be fully enabled to make the level of repairs that needs to be done to that vehicle,” he told delegates at the International Auto Finance Network (IAFN) spring conference.
However, car manufacturers have expressed concerns about safety and security issues if third parties are given direct access to vehicle data.
They believe it is neither feasible nor reasonable for them to test, validate and approve all third party applications, devices and services available on the market.
They also believe that data consent rests with the company car driver and not the registered keeper (typically the leasing company).
Who should have access to data has been an ongoing dispute, resulting in some company car drivers taking delivery of vehicles without access to connected services after leasing companies refused to agree to manufacturers’ terms and conditions.
Keaney pointed out that access to vehicle data has been discussed in the EU for more than a year with no agreement, resulting in OEM trade associations, including the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), “stepping into that void”.
The SMMT’s recent Connected and Autonomous Vehicles Position Paper states that unless vehicle manufacturers have entered into a specific legal agreement with each of the registered keepers and/or have a contractual obligation to do so, the vehicle user data i.e. personal data is only ever used or shared with the express and prior consent of the vehicle user not the registered keeper. It states vehicle manufacturers do not, by default, have an obligation to provide vehicle data to registered keepers.
It believes that the company car driver registering for the connected vehicle services, and agreeing to the terms and conditions associated with these, “must be put at the heart of any data consent process”.
Keaney said that some OEMs “are much more willing” to discuss data sharing and to “find workarounds to satisfy the needs of our sector”.
“I think some OEMs will be prepared to negotiate, they are prepared to recognise the value chain that is the fleet sector and is a core part of the business in the UK market,” he said.
Factors outside car manufacturers’ control may also mean connected vehicle data is shared in the future. “I would forecast with some degree of confidence that anybody that wants to drive a vehicle into the centre of London, certainly in the next 10 years, and into any other major European city in the next 10 years, will only be allowed to drive that vehicle into the city if they are prepared to share data on that car in terms of its location, its route and its planning,” Keaney said.
Autonomous vehicles will “depend upon data being made available”, he added.
For those reasons, Keaney believes manufacturers will ultimately release the connected data.
Author IAAFPosted on June 16, 2017 Categories eB w/e 16 June 17
Cricketers required!!! BEN Cricket Day – 22 June 2017 – Dorridge Cricket Club
Due to a few last minute cancellations, SJ Events have put out an appeal to fill the spaces now available.
So calling out to all you budding cricketers – why not come along and join what will be a fantastic day of cricket and networking with fellow industry members whilst enjoying lots of food and the odd drink or two!
If you are interested in supporting this event, please feel free to contact emma@sjevents.co.uk for further details.
Thank you in advance for your support and we look forward to seeing you on the day!
Author IAAFPosted on June 16, 2017 June 16, 2017 Categories eB w/e 16 June 17
RHA launches funded legal action against the truck cartel
The Road Haulage Association (RHA) is now giving UK haulage and logistics firms (whether or not they are RHA members) the chance to sign up to its legal action for compensation against truck manufacturers found guilty of illegal price fixing. In July last year the European Commission fined MAN, Volvo Group (which includes Volvo Trucks and Renault Truck) Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler, Iveco and DAF close to €3 billion (£2.6 billion) for price fixing and other cartel activities between 1997 and 2011. The compensation claim will be brought before the Competition Appeals Tribunal. If successful, haulage and logistics companies will get money back for vehicles sold or leased to them at inflated prices because of the cartel, if they sign up to the claim.
This is the first fully funded group claim against the truck manufacturers on behalf of affected hauliers. All UK truck owners can join the group legal action at www.truckcartellegalaction.com. There will be no cost for hauliers to be part of the group claim.
Early indications are that compensation could be in the region of £6,000 per truck on average. Companies that have purchased or leased new or second-hand trucks direct from manufacturers (including Scania) or dealers from 1997 onwards are eligible to join the claim. During the period the cartel operated we believe around 650,000 new trucks were sold. Although this legal action is being spearheaded by the RHA, non-RHA members are able to join.
RHA chief executive Richard Burnett said: “UK truck owners affected by the truck cartel have potentially paid too much for their lorries over a 14 year period and we’re determined to get a fair deal for them. This is a chance to get their compensation with no risk to their business or finances. As the representative body with sole responsibility for UK road freight operators, we are duty-bound to act on behalf of our members’ wishes. They have made it clear that they feel angry about the truck pricing cartel and want us to represent them. Our legal team at Backhouse Jones, Exchange Chambers and Brick Court will seek the best compensation deal that we can on behalf of our members and other UK victims of this cartel. To ensure that as many affected hauliers are able to join the claim, we have secured funding from Therium Capital Management Limited and the largest tranche of After The Event insurance that’s ever been underwritten so there’s no cost to joining the claim, or any other risks if the claim is unsuccessful.”
Backhouse Jones, solicitors, and barristers from Exchange Chambers and Brick Court will lead the claim. The group legal action is being funded by litigation funder Therium Capital Management Limited, who will cover the costs, including significant insurance cover. The RHA has therefore carefully organised the claim so as to avoid any cost or risk to hauliers joining the legal action.
On behalf of the legal team, David Went of Exchange Chambers said: “We are taking this case to the Competition Appeal Tribunal as it is the specialist court in the UK that deals with these types of claims and is an effective way to see redress for operators. The initial stage involves asking the Tribunal to authorise the RHA to act as industry representative and to set out the basis on which operators can opt into the claim. The first hearing is expected to be later this year.”
Midwest Motor Factors bids farewell to Paul Yardley
Paul Yardley of Midwest Motor Factors has bid farewell to staff, customers and suppliers following the successful transition of the business to independent dealership group Arnold Clark.
Midwest Motor Factors started in 1980 by Ray and Maureen Bennett and Paul and Carol Yardley. After being acquired by Arnold Clark in 2015, Yardley stayed on to ensure a smooth transition while continuing to achieve business growth throughout its five branches.
Yardley said: “We feel the time is right for us to move on and leave Arnold Clark to drive the business forward. We’d like to thank all customers and suppliers for the help given to our staff over the past 37 years, as it has played a pivotal part in enabling us to build a strong company.”
Craig McCracken, Arnold Clark’s group factor manager, added: “It has been a real pleasure working with Paul these past few years. Going forward, we will carry on the good work at Midwest Motor Factors to ensure it continues to dominate parts supply in the West Midlands.”
Starting in Willenhall, West Midlands, Midwest Motor Factors employs 80 staff and has more than 40 vans operating out of a number of branches across the West Midlands alongside the award-winning Monmore Auto Parts branch, which is based in Wolverhampton.
Changes to EU roaming charges for mobiles
DuoCall, the IAAF service member, has advised that as of Thursday 15 June 2017 EU roaming charges were abolished, which means that British traveller to EU countries will no longer have to pay higher rates when making calls, sending texts and using data abroad.
The change will only occur within EU countries, although some suppliers may include other countries. The change will allow mobile users to use their UK minutes, texts and data when travelling abroad.
By eradicating EU roaming charges current roaming plans such as Vodafone’s EuroTraveller, Three’s Feel at Home (for European countries) and O2’s O2 Travel (European bolt-on) will no longer be necessary. However, it should be noted that these changes do not apply when making a call from the UK to someone in a European Union country.
ReMaTec 2017, RAI, Amsterdam, 18-20 June
Over one million product solutions and technical innovations will be on display at the show when it opens on Sunday 18 June, with more than one fifth of exhibitors showing at ReMaTec for the first time.
Automotive products and services remain at the heart of ReMaTec. Whether you’re interested in parts cleaning, turbocharger balancing, alternator testing, electronic steering diagnosis or cylinder honing – it will all be there. There will also be parts and components from heavy commercial, agricultural, non-road and other industries; on the show floor and in the speaker program at the ReMaTec Theatre there are a number of representatives from remanufacturing in sectors such as aviation, medical devices and marine.
A new feature of ReMaTec 2017 is the Guided Tours and Discovery. ReMaTec 2017 is introducing four tours to highlight the following topics: ‘Introduction to the remanufacturing industry’, ‘Remanufacturing in the maritime industry’, ‘Remanufacturing equipment’ and ‘Remanufactured turbochargers’.
Also new are the Meet the Expert Sessions. A team of reman industry veterans will be available for informal chats in comfortable surroundings one the problems and solutions facing remanufacturers. Their areas of expertise include succession planning, core return, reverse logistics and reman finance.
Anyone interested can register for free at www.ReMaTec.com/register and save €40.00 on the on-site entrance fee.
A legendary brand at an historical event
Lucas, the globally recognised brand is back on the world stage this month as it teams up with James Winslow and GRAFF Racing to tackle this year’s gruelling Le Man 24-hour race in the team’s brand new Gibson V8 powered ORECA 07 LMP2 racer.
Although this is the second occasion that ECOBAT Battery Technologies (EBT) – the European custodian of the Lucas battery brand – has stepped forward to support James in the 24-hour race, 2017 is the first with GRAFF Racing and follows last year’s encouraging showing in the Race Performance Megatron ORECA 03 Judd LMP2.
Commenting on the association, EBT’s Steve Sheppard said: “Since the formal consolidation of our various battery businesses spread throughout Europe, which was completed last year, we have been looking for an opportunity to promote the pan-European nature of EBT.
“Le Mans is a truly global event and therefore provides us with just such a platform, while also providing the opportunity to raise awareness of the Lucas battery brand to both our many trade customers and the wider motoring public.
“James is clearly a driver with considerable talent and a track record of success in a multitude of series’ from his formative years, when he was a five-time British karting champion, through success in a number of Formula 3 championships and other outings in various series in the States and Australia, to his current sportscar endeavours.
“This multi-discipline ability also sits well with the multi-category nature of the Lucas battery range, which caters for everything from the familiar automotive and commercial vehicle applications, to include the motorcycle, leisure, marine and mobility sectors.
“When it comes to the aftermarket, Lucas is a highly regarded brand, which is why we have invested in the range to ensure it is able to provide our customers with the ideal solution to their needs, whether that be for a standard lead-acid battery for a low demand application, to the latest Start-Stop enabled vehicle with regenerative braking.
“Back to Le Mans and we naturally wish all the competitors well as they set off in anger at 14:00 UK time on Saturday 17th June, but clearly our focus will be on James, his fellow drivers and the team, as we look forward to great result at the conclusion of the toughest or tough events.”
Wendy Williamson offers aftermarket insight at Automechanika
At Automechanika Birmingham 2017 Wendy Williamson, chief executive of the Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation (IAAF), provided an overview of the latest challenges facing the industry in 2017 and how the aftermarket is responding to these issues.
In a keynote speech, Williamson discussed a variety of topics, following up on recent developments and a changing political landscape that have captivated interest since last year’s event.
Wendy Williamson addressing a packed Aftermarket Pavilion
The impact of new Type Approval legislation was highlighted and Williamson expressed IAAF’s active role to ensure the industry gets the best deal.
Over the last year, the IAAF has hosted several meetings with Dan Dalton, MEP for the West Midlands, and the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (IMCO) who are drafting the report, and as a result of this it has been successful in pushing through a number of key amendments, including keeping the OBD port alive for RMI information and ensuring that information continues to be made available in an electronic form.
The threat of the connected car was also discussed as Williamson conveyed that the aftermarket could potentially lose all unmonitored access to the vehicle with the extended vehicle and become solely reliant on vehicle manufacturers (VMs) for information.
The IAAF believes current proposals do not offer consumers a level playing field and with the growing number of vehicles now being connected, IAAF told visitors that it is currently raising its concerns to the legislators in both the EU and the UK.
Next on the agenda was the proposed MOT changes from 3-1-1 to 4-1-1 and the dangers this could cause. Williamson argued that although great technological progress has been made in modern vehicles, the main causes of MOT failures are still wear and tear items such as tyres, brakes and lamps, all of which would go unchecked for a further year on newer vehicles.
An insight into the automotive industry’s future was also provided including the topic of the inevitable autonomous vehicle and the challenges surrounding it, as well as air pollution with Williamson calling for a co-ordinated response across all sectors instead of just targeting older diesel cars.
Finally, the seminar ended on a positive note promoting the relaunch of ‘Your Car, Your Choice’ as Williamson urged the aftermarket to get behind the campaign and raise awareness of motorists’ rights concerning block exemption legislation.
Author IAAFPosted on June 9, 2017 June 9, 2017 Categories eB w/e 9 June 2017
IAAF launches Your Car, Your Choice campaign
The Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation (IAAF) is raising awareness of motorists’ rights by launching the ‘Your Car, Your Choice’ campaign, supporting key legislation providing motorists with freedom to choose where to service, maintain and repair their vehicle.
The campaign, formally called Right2Choose, has been relaunched by IAAF to reflect developments in the digital age and to refocus the industry’s attention on the importance of choice in regards to vehicle maintenance and repair work.
Under Block Exemption legislation, consumers have the right to use any repair workshop for non-warranty work during the warranty period.
The aftermarket can utilise the rebranded promotional support and materials available, including an easy-to-navigate website, merchandise, literature explaining key legislation and information, and a social media campaign.
Wendy Williamson, IAAF chief executive said: “Many motorists are unaware of this legislation and it’s our duty as an industry to inform the general public and give them the opportunity to choose the best option for their own requirements.
“We will now work alongside the aftermarket to tackle misconceptions within the industry and beyond. This message is incredibly important, not just for motorists but for the future of the independent aftermarket and we encourage the sector to get behind and spread the word.”
BEN Cricket Day – 22 June 2017 – Dorridge Cricket Club
Stop the Press………Teams are now full for this year’s BEN Cricket Day, and SJ Events are delighted to confirm that they will be welcoming back some familiar faces, along with several new budding cricketers and cricket fans! As previously mentioned the event is again being kindly sponsored by FPS Distribution, and supported by many other companies; a huge thank you to you all.
It is always a fantastic day, with lots of food, drink, laughter and of course, games of cricket; so why not come along and show your support for your fellow industry colleagues, whilst supporting a great charity.
It is only £30.00 per person to come along for the day; and this includes welcome tea or coffee with biccies, tasty buffet lunch, afternoon tea with homemade scones, cream and jam, and a hot meal at the end of the day – not bad hey!!
The date of the event is Thursday 22nd June 2017, and the venue is Dorridge Cricket Club.
If you are interested in supporting this event, please feel free to contact emma@sjevents.co.uk for further details!
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Physical stimulations and their osteogenesis-inducing mechanisms
VIEWS - 2010 (Abstract) 262 (PDF)
Cijun Shuai, Wenjing Yang, Shuping Peng, Chengde Gao, Wang Guo, Yuxiao Lai, Pei Feng
Physical stimulations such as magnetic, electric and mechanical stimulation could enhance cell activity and promote bone formation in bone repair process via activating signal pathways, modulating ion channels, regulating bone-related gene expressions, etc. In this paper, bioeffects of physical stimulations on cell activity, tissue growth and bone healing were systematically summarized, which especially focused on their osteogenesis-inducing mechanisms. Detailedly, magnetic stimulation could produce Hall effect which improved the permeability of cell membrane and promoted the migration of ions, especially accelerating the extracellular calcium ions to pass through cell membrane. Electric stimulation could induce inverse piezoelectric effect which generated electric signals, accordingly up-regulating intracellular calcium levels and growth factor synthesis. And mechanical stimulation could produce mechanical signals which were converted into corresponding biochemical signals, thus activating various signaling pathways on cell membrane and inducing a series of gene expressions. Besides, the equipments of physical stimulation system were discussed. The opportunities and challenges of physical stimulations were also presented from the perspective of bone repair.
physical stimulations; cell activity; osteogenesis-inducing mechanisms; bone repair
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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18063/ijb.v4i2.138
Copyright (c) 2018 Cijun Shuai, Wenjing Yang, Shuping Peng, Chengde Gao, Wang Guo, Yuxiao Lai, Pei Feng
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URBANIZATION AND DEMOGRAPHICS COULD SKEW CHINA'S ECONOMIC REBALANCING / STRATFOR GLOBAL INTELLIGENCE
Urbanization and Demographics Could Skew China's Economic Rebalancing
SEPTEMBER 3, 2014 | 0415
China's urban population may grow by as many as 230 million people in the next 15 years. But most growth will take place not in metropolises like Beijing, Shanghai and Chongqing but in the myriad small- and medium-sized satellite cities around them. And as residents flock to these cities, China's working-age population will begin to decline, and its elderly population will grow dramatically.
Together, these processes will underpin major changes not only in China's overall economic structure, but also in the financial, fiscal and political relationship between central and local government. The added burdens facing small- and medium-sized cities, especially those located deep inside China that are sequestered from mainstream global trade, will be substantial and perhaps socially and politically destabilizing.
In July, the Chinese government announced that a revision to the one-child policy had been implemented throughout the country's provinces and regions. The announcement of the revision, which allows couples in which either partner is an only child to have up to two children, heralded the end of the controversial policy. More relaxed family planning measures have long been in place for rural and ethnic minority communities, and most urban Chinese of childbearing age now were the only children in their families, so the revision dramatically narrows the portion of China's population to which the original one-child policy still applies.
The purpose of the one-child policy -- limiting the population shaping demographic trends -- was superseded many years ago by the far more fundamental forces of industrialization and urbanization. Two decades ago, China's fertility rate fell below 2.1, the generally accepted population replacement rate. Since then, it has dropped to roughly 1.5 or, by some measures, as low as 1.4. These are comparable to fertility rates in Russia and Italy but well below those of the United States, Australia, the Netherlands and many other more advanced economies.
It is a coincidence, but a symbolically loaded one, that China's fertility rate fell below the population replacement rate in the same year that the Chinese government enacted new fiscal policies and other measures that would necessitate and drive the housing construction booms of the 1990s, early 2000s and post-global financial crisis era. The almost continuous two-decade property boom cycle underpinned rapid growth in the portion of China's population living in cities -- from less than 30 percent in the early 1990s to the current 54 percent. In doing so, it introduced hundreds of millions more Chinese to urban life, with all its associated costs. Far more than the one-child policy, these costs have shaped family planning practices in China in recent years, as have rising education levels and the transition from an agriculture-based economy to one based on manufacturing and construction.
The urbanization of the past two decades has altered the country's demographic balance rapidly and profoundly. The change has hastened the decline in fertility and population growth rates, particularly those of China's working-age population, as the size of the country's elderly population has risen.
In the next two decades, these trends will only grow as the Chinese government attempts to push the country's urbanization rate above 70 percent, thus bringing the proportion of China's rural and urban populations more in line with those of advanced industrial economies with robust domestic consumer bases. If the government achieves its target, China's urban population will grow by more than 230 million between now and 2030, reaching approximately 975 million.
One-Way Street
For China's leaders, further urbanization on a significant scale is not optional: It is imperative. China is in the early stages of an effort to rebalance toward an economic model grounded in robust domestic consumption and characterized by greater economic integration between, and equality across, its diverse regions. Because of its large population, China has one of the world's largest domestic consumer markets, but relative to the country's economy as a whole, private consumption remains weak. In 2013, China's household consumption was equivalent to only 34 percent of its gross domestic product, compared with 70 percent in the United States, 61 percent in Japan, 57 percent in Germany and 52 percent in South Korea. Even if private consumption is somewhat stronger than official statistics show, it is nonetheless far from enough to support China's current rates of growth. As a result, too rapid a drop-off in housing construction activity before domestic consumption has had time to grow would likely cause a dramatic decline in China's overall economic activity and employment.
Moreover, private consumption is highly concentrated geographically and socially in more heavily urbanized coastal provinces and in a handful of major inland urban centers. Much of China's population, not only in rural regions but also in the hundreds of small cities that dot China's interior, does not participate meaningfully in the country's consumer economy.
The Chinese government wants to change this. It is experimenting with several reforms and tools to boost domestic consumption, including financial liberalization, expansion and modernization of the country's logistics industry (to more efficiently transport goods from the coast to the interior and back), and expansion of social security and health insurance programs. These measures are intimately tied to urbanization: Their success will depend on the progress Beijing makes with efforts to urbanize and integrate the country's interior, along with less developed parts of coastal provinces, into its more developed and largely coastal urban industrial economy.
Whatever form it takes, continued urbanization will have important implications for China's overall demographic balance and its political and economic structure for the next two decades. But how it affects Chinese demography, and how this in turn plays into major underlying issues in Chinese political economy, will depend very much on how China urbanizes.
After three decades of focusing on coastal urban development to suit the needs of China's heavily export-oriented economy, Beijing has redirected its attention to the interior in the past five to seven years. Now, with major inland metropolises like Chengdu, Chongqing and Wuhan approaching levels of development and population comparable with top-tier coastal cities, the government's attention appears to be shifting once again, this time to smaller cities in the interior and, to a lesser extent, along the coast. These cities are satellites of larger metropolises, once-forgotten river towns along the Yangtze and its tributaries, and other minor outposts on the rail and highway trunk lines that connect China's north and south and its coastal and interior regions.
It is these smaller cities that Beijing expects to drive future urbanization in China -- to house, employ, care for and educate most of the new urbanites China hopes to create by 2030. In the government's vision, these cities will serve not only as manufacturing bases and lower-end service providers for consumers in China's wealthier top-tier cities, but also as sources of marginal but rising consumer demand.
The government has made clear its intent to limit immigration into top-tier coastal cities, and it will continue to use tools like the household registration (hukou) system to make it harder for all but the most established non-resident workers to live and raise families in these cities. Meanwhile, it will use those same tools -- relaxed hukou restrictions, programs to bring rural laborers into small- and medium-sized inland cities, greater job availability and other social and economic incentives -- to encourage laborers from the interior to migrate or re-migrate to these cities.
Sal-Town Demographics
In under a decade more than a quarter of China's population will be over the age of 60, compared with slightly less than 15 percent today. In that time, the portion of China's population too young or too old to work will rise from approximately 38 percent to 46 percent, with the balance of China's dependent population shifting substantially from young to old.
decade more than a quarter of China's population will be over the age of 60, compared with slightly less than 15 percent today. In that time, the portion of China's population too young or too old to work will rise from approximately 38 percent to 46 percent, with the balance of China's dependent population shifting substantially from young to old.
At the same time, with China's working-age population (defined here as ages 20-59) set to decline by as much as 80 million people between 2015 and 2030, China will need to increase worker productivity significantly to sustain growth rates even remotely close to present levels. For example, for China to sustain 5 percent average annual growth between now and 2020 and then 2 percent between 2020 and 2030, worker productivity must almost double. Given China's low productivity levels, some gains will come naturally as Chinese industry gradually moves up the value chain and incorporates more advanced machinery. But those gains will also require less tangible improvements in education levels and skills, increased market competition, greater freedom of movement for labor and increased financial support to small businesses, which account for most of the employment and manufacturing output in China.
As China's workforce shrinks and its elderly population grows, pressure will mount to raise wages and expand the social services necessary to help that workforce manage the social and financial pressures of caring for the elderly while continuing to spend more. This pressure will translate to significantly higher fiscal expenditures for local governments, which are responsible for almost 90 percent of total government spending, and in turn will necessitate significant expansion of local governments' ability to raise capital by means other than land sales.
All of this will take place against a backdrop of massive and, except for the past two decades in China, unprecedented urbanization. Urban growth will not be primarily in the major cities with the greatest concentrations of wealth and greatest capacity to raise capital through municipal bonds or hefty taxes on high value-added manufacturing and high-end services industries. Rather, it will be borne by the small- and medium-sized satellite cities or even very small rural townships. Most of these cities and towns are in the interior and separated by distance and often unforgiving geography from overseas markets. Their prospects as manufacturing hubs are questionable at best, and their avenues for raising capital, whether through taxes or bond sales, are more limited.
Known Unknowns
A number of variables will further shape this process. Some, such as the progress and direction of agricultural modernization, could aggravate the challenges and constraints facing China's plan to urbanize small- and medium-sized cities. For example, if the Chinese government's vision for agricultural modernization involves clearing large tracts of land for use in industrial-scale agriculture in existing agricultural basins, the local governments that absorb the farming populations could find themselves caring for the parents and children of migrant laborers previously left behind to tend the now-defunct family farm. (With the exception of Jiangsu, the provinces with the top five dependent-to-working population ratios are inland.) Urbanization that results in the transfer of unproductive demographic groups to small- and medium-sized cities will only add to those local governments' financial, fiscal and social burdens.
Other factors could mitigate the financial and fiscal constraints on local governments in small- and medium-sized cities. A notable example is rural land reform, which aims to strengthen rural land ownership rights, thus giving rural landholders means to generate capital while giving local governments a new market with which to trade and generate revenues. However, rural land reform faces numerous complications, not least of which is the potential tension between expanding rural land markets and the government's imperative to maintain a base level of arable land. How exactly rural land reform plays out in context of broader urbanization and agricultural modernization efforts without infringing on Beijing's goals for either is unclear.
There is the more distant problem that rapid urbanization over the next 15 years will most likely exacerbate current demographic trends. As more people move from the countryside to cities, China's fertility rate will likely decline further, leaving future generations of Chinese urbanites even more constrained in their efforts to care for elderly and child populations and remain active consumers than those coming of age in the 2020s.
Finally, there is the question of how the Chinese government will manage the social stresses created by decades of uneven demographic growth between male and female populations driven at least in part by the one-child policy in its early years. In the next decade, this imbalance will come to a head as tens of millions of Chinese men, especially from rural regions where male children have traditionally been prized above female, come of age with little to no prospect for finding partners and forming families. This demographic will be of particular concern for Beijing as the low value-added manufacturing and construction industries best suited to absorb it decline further.
CENTRIPETAL AND CENTRIFUGAL FORCES AT WORK IN THE NATION STATE / STRATFOR GLOBAL INTELLIGENCE
Centripetal and Centrifugal Forces at Work in the Nation-State
By Zhixing Zhang
"Here begins our tale: The empire, long divided, must unite; long united, must divide. Thus it has ever been." This opening adage of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, China's classic novel of war and strategy, best captures the essential dynamism of Chinese geopolitics. At its heart is the millennia-long struggle by China's would-be rulers to unite and govern the all-but-ungovernable geographic mass of China. It is a story of centrifugal forces and of insurmountable divisions rooted in geography and history -- but also, and perhaps more fundamentally, of centripetal forces toward eventual unity.
This dynamism is not limited to China. The Scottish referendum and waves of secession movements -- from Spain's Catalonia to Turkey and Iraq's ethnic Kurds -- are working in different directions. More than half a century after World War II triggered a wave of post-colonial nationalism that changed the map of the world, buried nationalism and ethnic identity movements of various forms are challenging the modern idea of the inviolable unity of the nation-state.
Yet even as these sentiments pull on the loose threads of nations, in China, one of the most intractable issues in the struggle for unity -- the status of Tibet -- is poised for a possible reversal, or at least a major adjustment. The long-running but frequently unnoticed negotiations have raised the possibility that the Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader, may be nearing a deal that would enable him to return to his Tibetan homeland. If it happens, it would end the Dalai Lama's exile in Dharamsala, India -- an exile that began after the Tibetan uprising in 1959, nine years after the People's Republic of China annexed Tibet. More important, a settlement between Beijing and the Dalai Lama could be a major step in lessening the physical and psychological estrangement between the Chinese heartland and the Tibetan Plateau.
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Tibet, the Dalai Lama and Self-Determination
The very existence of the Tibetan issue bespeaks several overlapping themes of Chinese geopolitics. Most fundamentally, it must be understood in the context of China's struggle to integrate and extend control over the often impassable but strategically significant borderlands militarily and demographically. These borderlands, stretching from northeast to the southwest -- Manchuria, Mongolian Plateau, Xinjiang, Tibet and the Yunnan Plateau -- form a shield, both containing and protecting a unified Han core from overland invasion. In attempting to integrate these regions, however, China confronts the very nature of geographic disintegration and the ethnic identities in these restive borderlands, which have sought to resist, separate or drift away from China at times when weak central power has diminished the coherence of China's interior.
Tibet in many ways represents the extreme edge of this pattern. Indeed, while the formidable geography of the Tibetan Plateau (its altitude averages 4.5 kilometers, or almost 2.8 miles, above sea level) largely inured it from most frontier threats to the Han core compared with the more accessible Manchuria, Mongolian Plateau or Xinjiang. Perhaps no borderland is as fraught with as much consequence as Tibet under China's contemporary geopolitical circumstances. The Tibetan Plateau and its environs constitute roughly one-quarter of the Chinese landmass and are a major source of freshwater for China, the Indian subcontinent and mainland Southeast Asia. The high mountains of the Himalayas make a natural buffer for the Chinese heartland and shape the complex geopolitical relationship between China and India.
Historically, China's engagement with the Tibetan Plateau has been lacking and not characterized by national unity. Starting in the 7th century, China made sporadic attempts to extend its reach into the Tibetan Plateau, but it wasn't until the Qing dynasty that the empire made a substantial effort to gain authority over Tibetan cultural and social structures through control of Tibetan Buddhist institutions. The weakening of China after the Qing dynasty led peripheral states, including Tibet, to slip from Chinese central rule.
Since the People's Republic of China began ruling over Tibet in 1950, the perennial struggle manifested as political, religious and psychological estrangement between political power in Beijing and the Dalai Lama, the charismatic political and spiritual symbol of the Tibetan self-determination movement, who consistently has resisted China's full domination over Tibet. Here, the nominally impersonal process of geopolitics confronts the rare individual who has a lasting impact. The Dalai Lama has concentrated the Tibetan cause into himself and his image. It is the Dalai Lama who represents the Tibetan identity in foreign capitals and holds a fractious Tibetan movement together, holding sway over both indigenous Tibetans in the homeland and the old and new generations of Tibetan exiles.
Perennial Struggle and Contemporary Moves
Under the People's Republic, China has some of the clearest physical control and central authority over one of the largest and most secure states in China's dynastic history. However, the ancient compulsion to secure the Chinese periphery did not go unaddressed by China's Communist leadership.
Over the years, the central government has pushed aggressively to bolster Han Chinese economic and demographic dominance over the borderland while attempting to overcome the physical barriers of distance through grandiose infrastructure projects, including road and rail links. And yet, the estrangement with the Dalai Lama has left Beijing dealing with the perception that its control over the Tibetan Plateau is partial and of questionable legitimacy. Meanwhile, the Dalai Lama's international prestige exposed the central power in Beijing to numerous international critics. Moreover, it offered New Delhi an opportunity to exploit Beijing's concerns by hosting the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government-in-exile.
Beijing sees no space to allow the autonomy demanded by the Tibetan exile movement; it is a short path from robust autonomy to direct challenge. Beijing's strategy has been to try to undermine the Dalai Lama's international prestige, constrain interaction between the exile community and Tibetans at home and hope that when the spiritual leader dies, the absence of his strong personality will leave the Tibetan movement without a center and without someone who can draw the international attention the Dalai Lama does. Central to Beijing's calculation is interference in the succession process whereby Beijing claims the right to designate the Dalai Lama's religious successor and, in doing so, exploit sectarian and factional divisions within Tibetan Buddhism. Beijing insists the reincarnation process must follow the Tibetan religious tradition since the Qing dynasty, meaning that it must occur within Tibetan territory and with the central government's endorsement, a process that highlights Tibet's position as a part of China, not an independent entity.
Beijing's plan could work, but the cost would be high. Without recognition from the Dalai Lama, Beijing's appointed successor -- and by extension, Beijing's authority in Tibet -- can hardly be accepted by the wider Tibetan community. To resist Beijing's attempt at interference, the Dalai Lama has in recent years made various statements signaling that the ancient traditions of the succession process could break. In particular, the Dalai Lama has discussed the potential for succession through emanation rather than reincarnation. This would place his knowledge and authority in several individuals, each with a part of his spiritual legacy, but none as the single heir. Emanation can occur while the Dalai Lama is alive, thus giving him the ability to manage a transition. He has also mentioned the possibility that no successor will be named -- that the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama will end, leaving his legacy as the lasting focus for Tibetans.
More concretely, the Dalai Lama has split the role of spiritual and political leadership of the Tibetan movement, nominally giving up the latter while retaining the former. In doing so, he is attempting to create a sense of continuity to the Tibetan movement even though his spiritual successor has not been identified. However, it also separates the Dalai Lama from any Tibetan political movement, theoretically making it easier for the spiritual leader and Beijing to come to an accord about his possible return as a spiritual -- but not political -- leader. But the maneuvering by the Dalai Lama reflects a deeper reality. The Tibetan movement is not homogenous. Tibetan Buddhism has several schools that remain in fragile coordination out of respect for the Dalai Lama. The Tibetan political movement is also fragmented, with the younger foreign-born Tibetans often more strongly pressing for independence for Tibet, while the older exiles take a more moderate tone and call for more autonomy. The peaceful path promoted by the Dalai Lama is respected, but not guaranteed forever, by the younger and more radical elements of the Tibetan movement, which have only temporarily renounced the use of violence to achieve their political goals.
The future of the Tibetan movement after the Dalai Lama's death is uncertain. At a minimum, the spiritual leader's fame means no successor will be able to exercise the same degree of influence or maintain internal coherence as he has done. Just as the Dalai Lama was concerned that an extremist wing of the new Tibetan generation would undermine his moderate ideology and dilute the movement's legitimacy, Beijing fears that the post-Dalai Lama era would enable multiple radical, separatist or even militant movements to proliferate, leaving Beijing in a much more difficult position and potentially facing a greater security threat.
Beijing and the Dalai Lama have shown a willingness to reach a political settlement in the past, but their attempts failed. As uncertainties loom for both sides amid concerns about the spiritual leader's age and the changing domestic dynamics facing China's new president, Xi Jinping, both sides could see a departure from previous hostilities as a reasonable step toward a low-cost settlement. In other words, both Beijing and the Dalai Lama -- and by extension his mainstream followers -- understand how little time they have and how, without a resolution, the uncertainties surrounding the Tibet issue could become permanent after the spiritual leader's death.
Optimism Now, but Caution Ahead
The report of the Dalai Lama's possible return to Tibet comes as Beijing has resumed talks with representatives of the spiritual leader. This round of negotiations comes after nine rounds of failed talks over the past decade and four years after the last attempt. Nonetheless, the mood appears at least somewhat optimistic on both sides. In recent weeks, the Dalai Lama has offered conciliatory comments about Xi and intimated that he could be open to returning to Tibet, a longstanding desire of the 79-year-old spiritual leader. For its part, Beijing has released some Tibetan political prisoners and reportedly allowed the Dalai Lama's image and words to be used in certain Tibetan regions after years of prohibition.
Of course, many uncertainties surround the return of the Dalai Lama; it is even uncertain whether it could happen at all. Indeed, overcoming 55 years of hostile relations takes enormous effort, and even if the Dalai Lama is allowed to return to Tibet, it is only one of several steps in much broader negotiations between Beijing and the Tibetan exile community over how to reach a resolution, including the possible resettlement of 200,000 Tibetans in exile, the status of the government-in-exile, the authority of the Dalai Lama and, ultimately, the succession process for the spiritual leader.
Over the years, the Dalai Lama repeatedly has expressed a strong desire to return to the Tibetan homeland, seeing it as an end goal in his longstanding efforts to gain Tibetan autonomy. Although Beijing had always left the option open, it repeatedly emphasized that any dialogue with the Dalai Lama would be confined to the scope of an arrangement for the spiritual leader and would carry no political implications. In other words, any agreement will be based on the premise that expanded Tibetan autonomy is not an option and that Beijing's authority over Tibetan regions -- and by extension, the borderland in Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia -- will remain intact. Similarly, the Dalai Lama will not accept a weakening of his spiritual authority among the Tibetan community or of his role in choosing successors. Nonetheless, with Beijing's concern over the proliferation of radical wings of the Tibetan movement abroad, allowing the Dalai Lama to return to Tibet could mitigate some of the tension and give Beijing a way to divide and weaken the Tibetan movement.
In moving toward an agreement, both sides would have to prepare for some political risk. For Beijing, the foremost concern would be managing the enormous religious influence of the Dalai Lama at home, where he is seen as a challenger to the Communist Party's political leadership. For the Dalai Lama, the main concerns would be managing the role of the Tibetan political leadership overseas and the potential repercussions within the exile movement from the developing settlement's contrast with their goal for Tibetan autonomy.
Perhaps more important, even if there were signs of a resolution developing, the succession issue is likely to be a roadblock. Beijing is unlikely to give any concession in its authority to appoint a reincarnated spiritual leader, and the Dalai Lama shows little intention of allowing Beijing's unilateral move.
Confronting a Geopolitical Curse
Despite various uncertainties, questions and risks, the potential ramifications of even the slim possibility of rapprochement illustrate China's ancient geopolitical dynamism at work.
Again illustrating how an individual can play a role in geopolitics, the potential for reconciliation between Beijing and the Dalai Lama could affect the balance between China and India. China has long viewed India's decision to host the Tibetan government-in-exile as a hostile gesture. However, India's ability to exploit China's concerns about Tibet has diminished along with the government-in-exile's influence and claim to represent Tibet as a legitimate entity. Already, New Delhi has shown waning enthusiasm for accepting Tibetan refugees and greater concern that the internal fragmentation of the Tibetan community will make hosting the exile community more of a liability than a benefit. However, a settlement would not eliminate the underlying geopolitical rivalry between India and China on other fronts -- from their 4,000-kilometer land border to the maritime competitions in the Indian Ocean and South China Sea and their competition for energy and other resources.
Even if a settlement on the Tibet issue emerges in the distant future, it does not mean the end of the China-Tibet struggle. Indeed, since 2009 there have been many Tibetan self-immolations, and Beijing's economic developments in many parts of the ethnic borderlands widely are perceived as flawed or incomplete. Quite likely, a detente with the Dalai Lama will result in radicalized and more extremist elements emerging overseas, seeking self-determination and, like many of their counterparts around the world -- from Scotland to the Kurds in the Middle East -- challenging the centripetal forces of nation-states.
Historically, when Han China is strong, so is its control over these buffer regions. Control of the buffer regions, in turn, is a key precondition for a strong and secure Han China. This arrangement will become crucial as Beijing grapples with the potential challenges in the social, economic and political transformation in the Han core in the coming years. Therefore, despite the flux mentioned in the aphorism from Romance of the Three Kingdoms, for Beijing the ultimate goal is to confront an ancient geopolitical curse by cementing its control over its borderlands and uniting China permanently and irreversibly, however unrealistic this goal might be.
Editor's Note: Writing in George Friedman's stead this week is Stratfor Asia-Pacific Analyst Zhixing Zhang.
THE RECOVERY THAT LEFT OUT ALMOST EVERYBODY / THE WALL STREET JOURNAL OP EDITORIAL
| Etiquetas: U.S. Economic And Political
The Recovery That Left Out Almost Everybody
America's economy has not worked for average families since the Clinton administration ended.
If they were judging the economy by the monthly jobs report, working Americans would be popping champagne corks. Total employment has risen every month for more than four years. According to the Current Population Survey, more than eight million jobs have been created since the trough, while the number of unemployed has been cut by nearly six million. The unemployment rate has declined to 6.1% from 10%, and the number of Americans enduring long-term unemployment (27 weeks or more) has fallen to three million from 4.3 million in the past 12 months.
Yet average Americans remain gloomy about the current economy and anxious about its future. According to a Pew Research Center report released this month, only 21% rate current conditions as excellent or good, versus 79% fair or poor. Only 33% say that jobs are readily available in their communities; when asked about good jobs, that figure falls to 26%. Only 22% believe the economy will be better a year from now; 22% think it will be worse, while fully 54% think it will be the same.
More than five years after the official end of the recession, the Public Religion Research Institute finds, only 21% of Americans believe the recession has ended.
Two recent reports help explain the disconnect between the official jobs numbers and the economic experience of most Americans. Every fall, the U.S. Commerce Department issues a detailed analysis of trends in income, poverty and health insurance. Although economists have some technical quibbles with the Commerce data, the broad trends are unmistakable.
This year's report found that median household income was $51,939 in 2013, 8% lower than in 2007, the last year before the recession. Households in the middle of the income distribution earned about $4,500 less last year than they had six years earlier. No wonder 56% of Americans told the Pew Research Center that their incomes were falling behind the cost of living.
The Federal Reserve's triennial Survey of Consumer Finances confirms these findings. Between 2010 and 2013, the Fed reports, median family income fell by 5%, even though average family income rose by 4%. This is, note the authors, "consistent with increasing income concentration during this period." Only families in the top 10%, with annual incomes averaging nearly $400,000, saw gains during these three years. Families headed by college graduates eked out a gain of 1%, while those with a high-school diploma or less saw declines of about 7%. Those in the middle—with some postsecondary education—did the worst: From 2010 to 2013, their annual incomes declined to less than $41,000 from $46,000—an 11% plunge. Families headed by workers under age 35 have done especially badly—even when the heads of those young families have college degrees. The economic struggles of the millennials are more than anecdotal.
What's going on? The Census report offers a clue. The median earnings for Americans working full-time year round haven't changed much since 2007. But more than five years into the recovery, there are fewer such workers than before the recession. In 2007, 108.6 million Americans were working full time, year-round; in 2013 only 105.9 million were doing so. Although jobs are being created, too many of them are part-time to maintain growth in household incomes.
This is not by choice. About the same number of Americans were employed last month as in December 2007. But during that period, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of Americans working part time who wanted a full-time job jumped to 7.2 million from 4.6 million. Not only are hourly wages stagnating; America's families want more hours of work than the economy is providing.
Although the Great Recession was the most severe since World War II, in many ways it underscored trends that have been under way for decades. Adjusted for inflation, median earnings of men working full time, year-round are no higher than they were in 1980. Median household income is almost $5,000 lower than it was in 1999, and no higher than it was it 1989.
The modest income increases of the past two generations have occurred because women have surged into the paid workforce—and because their real wages have grown at a compound annual rate of 0.8%. But both these trends peaked in 2000. Not surprisingly, the years after the 2001 recession witnessed the only postwar recovery in which median incomes failed to regain their previous peak.
The American economy hasn't worked for average families since the end of the Clinton administration. A recovery that leaves them out is no recovery at all, and they know it. This simple fact goes a long way toward explaining the tone of our current politics and the temper of our society. It will not change for the better unless we can recreate an economy in which work is rewarded and family incomes rise. That is the great task of the next decade—and must be the prime focus of the next presidential election.
PUTIN LEAVES GERMANY' S FACTORIES IN A WORSE STATE THAN ANYONE IMAGINED/ THE TELEGRAPH
| Etiquetas: Germany, Russia, Vladimir Putin
Putin leaves Germany’s factories in a worse state than anyone imagined
Surveys of the German manufacturing sector have slumped to their weakest levels since June 2013, as tensions over Russia and Ukraine
Key gauges of Germany manufacturing slumped in September, falling to a 15-month low as ongoing tensions over Ukraine weighed on the sector.
Markit’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the sector dropped to 50.3, from 51.4 a month earlier. The reading is barely above 50, implying that the sector is expanding, but slowly.
No analyst polled by Reuters expected a number this bad.
The most pessimistic expert forecast that the PMI figure would fall to 51, while the average analyst believed Germany’s PMI would drop to 51.2.
Germany’s factories are particularly exposed to any conflict between Russia and its neighbours, as well as the tit-for-tat sanctions exchanged between Russia and the EU.
Measures of new orders also slipped for a fourth consecutive month, pointing to a further slowdown ahead.
“Weak manufacturing data have become one of the most conspicuous features of the fragility of a broad-based recovery”, said Oliver Kolodseike, economist at Markit.
Germany’s dominant service sector will be increasingly relied upon to deliver growth. The sector’s PMI reading rose to 55.4 in September, a rise of 0.5 points on the previous month.
“September’s flash PMI results paint a mixed picture of the health of the German economy at the end of the third quarter”, said Mr Kolodseike. Markit expects German GDP to rise by just 0.4pc in the quarter.
Meanwhile, incoming minimum wage legislation, scheduled for January 2015 has “weighed on service sector sentiment, with business expectations the lowest in nearly two years”, Mr Kolodseike said.
Equivalent PMI numbers for France showed both its manufacturing and services sectors in contractionary territory - at 48.8 and 49.4 respectively.
The data suggest that the nation’s zero growth trend could continue. INSEE today confirmed that France’s economy managed no growth at all in the second quarter of the year.
“Anaemic demand continues to hold back the private sector”, said Jack Kennedy, senior economist at Markit, “with further price cutting insufficient to prevent new orders from falling”.
The continued weakness saw employment fall at its sharpest rate since February.
PMI for the euro area as a whole dropped to 52.3, down by 0.2 points since August.
The fall "adds to signs that the region's economy barely expanded in the third quarter after the second quarter's stagnation", said Jennifer McKeown, senior European economists at Capital Economics.
"This survey does nothing to alter the picture of a struggling eurozone economy, intensifying the pressure on governments and the European Central Bank to provide more policy support".
URBANIZATION AND DEMOGRAPHICS COULD SKEW CHINA'S E...
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ANALYSTS STRUGGLE TO MAKE ACCURATE LONG-TERM MARKET FORECASTS / THE ECONOMIST BUTTONWOOD COLUMN
| Etiquetas: Forecasting, Investment Strategies
Analysts struggle to make accurate long-term market forecasts
Historically high valuations for equities complicate the task
WHAT is the right way to invest for the long term? Too many people rely on past performance, picking fund managers with a “hot” reputation or backing those asset classes that have recently done well. Just as fund managers cannot be relied on to be consistent, returns from asset classes are highly variable. The higher the initial valuation of the asset, the lower the future returns are likely to be.
That is pretty clear with government bonds. Anyone buying a bond with a yield of 2% and holding it until maturity can expect, at best, that level of return (before inflation) and no more. (There is a small chance the government might default.) With equities, the calculations are not quite so hard-and-fast. Nevertheless, it is a good rule-of-thumb that buying shares with a low dividend yield, or on a high multiple of profits, is likely to lead to lower-than-normal returns.
So a sensible approach to long-term investing would assess the potential returns from asset classes, given their valuations and the fundamentals, and allocate assets accordingly. That is what GMO, a fund-management company, has been trying to do for decades. It has made some common-sense assumptions about the fundamental drivers of returns and then assumed that valuations would return to average levels over a seven-year period.
In one sense, this process has been a success. The assets that GMO thought would perform well have offered relatively high returns; the assets it thought would perform badly have offered low ones (see top chart). But if the ranking has been correct, the level of return has not been. Assets that GMO thought would yield a negative return of -10% to -8%, for instance, have in fact suffered average losses of only -2.8%.
GMO’s forecasts have been pretty accurate for asset classes such as emerging-market bonds and international (non-American) shares; annual returns have been within 1.5 percentage points of its forecasts. But for American equities, GMO was too gloomy, underestimating returns by around four percentage points a year.
The reason for this error is pretty clear. Equity valuations have not returned to the mean, as GMO thought they would, but have stayed consistently above their historical levels. GMO was fairly accurate in its forecast for dividend growth, but its erroneous estimation of valuation accounted for all the forecast error.
There are two possible conclusions. One is that GMO is simply wrong about mean reversion.
Equities have moved to a new, higher valuation level. This sounds uncomfortably like the famous quote from Irving Fisher, an economist, before the 1929 crash, that stocks had reached a “permanently high plateau”. But there is some justification for a valuation shift: American profits have been high, relative to GDP, for a long period of time. This may be a result of monopoly power in some industries, or perhaps of the reduced bargaining power of workers in an age of globalisation.
A more obvious argument is that, with yields on cash and government bonds so low, investors are willing to pay a high price for equities because they represent their only hope for decent returns. But given the low level of dividend yields and the sluggish rate of economic growth, profits will have to keep rising as a proportion of GDP to allow high equity returns to continue.
That seems unlikely.
Either there will be a political reaction—governments will clamp down on firms in response to public unrest—or, more prosaically, tighter labour markets mean that wage growth will start to erode profits.
Either way, it is understandable that GMO does not want to give up on the idea of mean reversion just yet. Its latest forecasts are pretty downbeat (see bottom chart). The real returns from most asset classes are expected to be negative; only emerging-market equities offer a decent return. Investors who disbelieve those forecasts are in essence betting that things will be “different this time”. That is certainly possible but it requires a lot of faith.
BARBARIANS AT THE MONETARY GATE / PROJECT SYNDICATE
| Etiquetas: Central Banking, Cryptocurrencies, Economics, Fiat Money, Financial Markets, Monetary Policy, World Economic And Political
Barbarians at the Monetary Gate
Andrew Sheng, Xiao Geng
HONG KONG – Financial markets today are thriving. The Dow Jones industrial average, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq composite index have all reached record highs lately, with emerging-economy financial markets also performing strongly, as investors search for stability amid widespread uncertainty. But, because this performance is not based on market fundamentals, it is unsustainable – and very risky.
According to Mohamed El-Erian, the lost lesson of the 2007 financial crisis is that current economic-growth models are “overly reliant on liquidity and leverage – from private financial institutions, and then from central banks.” And, indeed, a key driver of financial markets’ performance today is the expectation of continued central-bank liquidity.
After the US Federal Reserved revealed its decision last month to leave interest rates unchanged, the Dow Jones industrial average set intraday and closing records; the Nasdaq, too, reached all-time highs. Now, financial markets are waiting for signals from this year’s meeting of the world’s major central bankers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
But there is another factor that could further destabilize an already-tenuous leverage- and liquidity-based system: digital currencies. And, on this front, policymakers and regulators have far less control.
The concept of private cryptocurrencies was born of mistrust of official money. In 2008, Satoshi Nakamoto – the mysterious creator of bitcoin, the first decentralized digital currency – described it as a “purely peer-to-peer version of electronic cash,” which “would allow online payments to be sent directly from one party to another without going through a financial institution.”
A 2016 working paper by the International Monetary Fund distinguished digital currency (legal tender that could be digitized) from virtual currency (non-legal tender). Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency, or a kind of virtual currency that uses cryptography and distributed ledgers (the blockchain) to keep transactions both public and fully anonymous.
However you slice it, the fact is that, nine years after Nakamoto introduced bitcoin, the concept of private electronic money is poised to transform the financial-market landscape. This month, the value of bitcoin reached $4,483, with a market cap of $74.5 billion, more than five times larger than at the beginning of 2017. Whether this is a bubble, destined to collapse, or a sign of a more radical shift in the concept of money, the implications for central banking and financial stability will be profound.
At first, central bankers and regulators were rather supportive of the innovation represented by bitcoin and the blockchain that underpins it. It is difficult to argue that people should not be allowed to use a privately created asset to settle transactions without the involvement of the state.
But national authorities were wary of potential illegal uses of such assets, reflected in the bitcoin-enabled, dark-web marketplace called Silk Road, a clearinghouse for, among other things, illicit drugs. Silk Road was shut down in 2013, but more such marketplaces have sprung up. When the bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox failed in 2014, some central banks, such as the People’s Bank of China, started discouraging the use of bitcoin. By November 2015, the Bank for International Settlements’ Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures, made up of ten major central banks, launched an in-depth examination of digital currencies.
But the danger of cryptocurrencies extends beyond facilitation of illegal activities. Like conventional currencies, cryptocurrencies have no intrinsic value. But, unlike official money, they also have no corresponding liability, meaning that there is no institution like a central bank with a vested interest in sustaining their value.
Instead, cryptocurrencies function based on the willingness of people engaged in transactions to treat them as valuable. With the value of the proposition depending on attracting more and more users, cryptocurrencies take on the quality of a Ponzi scheme.
As the scale of cryptocurrency usage expands, so do the potential consequences of a collapse.
Already, the market capitalization of cryptocurrencies amounts to nearly one tenth the value of the physical stock of official gold, with the capability to handle significantly larger payment operations, owing to low transaction costs. That means that cryptocurrencies are already systemic in scale.
There is no telling how far this trend will go. Technically, the supply of cryptocurrencies is infinite: bitcoin is capped at 21 million units, but this can be increased if a majority of “miners” (who add transaction records to the public ledger) agree. Demand is related to mistrust of conventional stores of value. If people fear that excessive taxation, regulation, or social or financial instability places their assets at risk, they will increasingly turn to cryptocurrencies.
Last year’s IMF report indicated that cryptocurrencies have already been used to circumvent exchange and capital controls in China, Cyprus, Greece, and Venezuela. For countries subject to political uncertainty or social unrest, cryptocurrencies offer an attractive mechanism of capital flight, exacerbating the difficulties of maintaining domestic financial stability.
Moreover, while the state has no role in managing cryptocurrencies, it will be responsible for cleaning up any mess left by a burst bubble. And, depending on where and when a bubble bursts, the mess could be substantial. In advanced economies with reserve currencies, central banks may be able to mitigate the damage. The same may not be true for emerging economies.
An invasive new species does not pose an immediate threat to the largest trees in the forest. But it doesn’t take long for less-developed systems – the saplings on the forest floor – to feel the effects.
Cryptocurrencies are not merely new species to watch with interest; central banks must act now to rein in the very real threats they pose.
http://prosyn.org/XVgV44t
SELL THE SWISS FRANC IF YOU THINK THE WORLD IS A BETTER PLACE / THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
| Etiquetas: Central Banking, Europe Economic and Political, Investment Strategies, Swiss Franc, Switzerland, Systemic Risk
Sell the Swiss Franc if You Think the World Is a Better Place
Swiss franc proved slow to react to the brighter picture for the eurozone economy
By Richard Barley
SAFETY TRADE
How many euros one Swiss franc buys
For all of the controversy around aggressive monetary policy, there is little dispute that central bankers have succeeded in moving the values of stocks, bonds and currencies. The exception that proves the rule is the Swiss franc.
The Swiss National Bank has tried hard to battle the strength of its currency but where other central banks had big impacts, the Swiss franc has refused to fall. The central bank has gone deep into negative-interest-rate territory, taking its target rate to minus 0.75%. For four years it put an outright cap on appreciation against the euro, printing francs and buying foreign assets in a campaign that has taken its balance sheet to more than 100% of Switzerland’s gross domestic product.
The SNB’s cap did temporarily turn the Swiss franc around, but the chaos sparked by its January 2015 decision to abandon that policy still hasn’t fully reversed. On a trade-weighted basis and adjusted for inflation, the Swiss franc is still some 12% higher than its precrisis average, SNB data show. Against the euro, the franc has fallen 6% this year but is still stronger than the level the SNB targeted before January 2015.
The SNB’s efforts to weaken the franc have been overwhelmed by the actions of its much bigger neighbor, the European Central Bank. But now the ECB is gradually moving away from quantitative easing as the eurozone economy picks up.
On the Swiss side, extremely low inflation means the central bank has absolutely no reason to shift its policy. Annual inflation has only been above zero in 12 of the 67 months since the start of 2012 and has often been below that of Japan. The SNB forecasts inflation at 0.3% in 2018 and 1% in 2019.
The combination of weak inflation and loose monetary policy in Switzerland and stronger growth and less quantitative easing in Europe argues for the franc to weaken versus the euro.
The other factor pushing for a weaker franc is the improving prospects for the eurozone. Fear of the currency bloc breaking up benefits the franc. Swiss outward investment flows, much of which traditionally landed in the eurozone, have collapsed since the crisis. As those fears fade, so should the franc. The first time the Swiss franc showed signs of weakening this year was in the wake of the French elections, won by the staunchly pro-Europe Emmanuel Macron. A resumption of Swiss investment flows—which means investors sell francs and buy euros—could be a key factor in the franc’s path.
Swiss residents net investments in foreign securities
EVEN LOWER, EVEN LONGER
Change in consumer prices from a year earlier
The Swiss franc won’t stop being a haven. When risk aversion rises, investors seem hard-wired to embrace it. Italian elections next year could be a flashpoint. But unless there is a specific threat to eurozone cohesion, such reversals shouldn’t prove too disruptive.
Put together, that makes the Swiss franc a sell against the euro. Even if the franc falls from its current €0.875 to €0.83, a big move in currencies, it would only be at the highest level that the Swiss central bank allowed it to go in 2015. A further decline would make those bankers happier. Investors should go along for the ride.
ECONOMIC FORECAST: THEORIES BEHIND THE NUMBERS / SEEKING ALPHA
| Etiquetas: Economics, Forecasting
Economic Forecast: Theories Behind The Numbers
by: Dr. Bill Conerly
What's the theory behind my economic forecast? In simple language, it's complicated. My forecast is judgmental rather than coming from an econometric model. I begin with a "bottoms-up" prediction of major sectors, followed by a top-down reality-check. This article will explain my basic economic thought process.
The classical economists are in the back of my mind. They viewed the economy as self-regulating. The Pigou effect is one part of the process, but not the only one. I certainly believe we would have business cycles even in the absence of bad government policy, but I think the classicals were right that if the government took their hands off the levers of policy, the economy would come back to full employment. My judgment is that the speed of adjustment would be fairly rapid, but the slow-adjustment argument is worth considering.
Dr. Bill Conerly with data from Bureau of Economic Analysis
Economic Growth and Contraction
I read John Maynard Keynes' General Theory as a skeptical undergraduate, but I really took to it after reading Axel Leijonhufvud's splendid On Keynesian Economics and the Economics of Keynes. He said that textbook Keynesian economics had become mechanical, losing some key points. I took away two lessons. The first is that the basis for many spending decisions is soft.
We can teach MBA students how to find the optimum capital expenditure, but the calculations are based on a host of unknowns: future prices and future costs and future interest rates. The second lesson is that in an environment of unknowns, decision-makers often take on a herd mentality, leading to swings of optimism and pessimism. When forecasting business decisions, I look at the fundamental factors that should be driving capital spending, but I also recognize the possibility of these mood swings.
The monetarism of Milton Friedman and others heavily influenced me early in my career. I'm less a monetarist now, partly because it's so hard to find a measure of money supply for which demand is fairly stable. Nonetheless, I take monetary policy to be powerful, but not completely determinative for the economy.
"Real business cycle" theory shows that swings in new technology development can trigger booms and busts. For their work on this, Finn Kydland and Edward Prescott were awarded the Nobel prize in economics. Read the prize description for more about their work at the layman's level. When the tech sector develops new business models, there can certainly be a boost to capital spending - so long as the technology does not reduce the need for capital in total. I keep this in mind, but most of my effort focuses on other areas.
The dominant macroeconomic theory today is "new Keynesian," which emphasizes the business cycle consequences of market imperfections, such as wages and prices that adjust to new circumstances only gradually. I take this seriously, though with the proviso that when it is profitable to change wages and prices more quickly, that will happen.
That idea brings us to rational expectations, the notion that people make decisions using all of the information available to them. The idea is frequently criticized, even to the point of being laughed at, but let's state it a different way: You can't fool all the people all the time. Robert Lucas argues that economic policy which depended on tricking people would not long work.
Think of government spending to stimulate the economy. The stimulus comes only if people do not boost their savings so that they can pay a future tax bill. As more and more people worry about the federal debt burden, I think that policy is less effective.
I'm often asked about Austrian business cycle theory, which I studied both as an undergraduate and in my Ph.D. program at Duke. The simplistic version of this theory is that easy money policy from the Federal Reserve (or other central bank) causes more capital spending and more roundabout production processes than is warranted by the underlying productivity of capital and consumer time preference. Eventually, the misallocation of resources is corrected, resulting in a recession or depression. The downturn is necessary to correct the errors of the past. Although there are many insights from the Austrian school that I use regularly, I find the specifics of the business cycle theory less useful.
I also find a good bit of overlap between the economics of Keynes, with its emphasis on decision-making under uncertainty, and the Austrian view. This seems odd to those who see Keynesians as proponents of activist government and Austrians as opponents. The two schools are united in their emphasis on decision-making under uncertainty. (Although Hayek and Keynes are sometimes portrayed as antagonists, they were cordial colleagues. During World War II they walked the streets of Cambridge together as air wardens, checking that blackout curtains were in place.)
My economic theory is a mongrel, using a variety of insights developed by different theorists.
The most important basis is old-fashioned supply and demand, applied to different sectors of the economy. For instance, when I look at consumer spending on durables goods such as cars, I examine incomes and whether there might be pent-up demand. When business spending is surging, I'm concerned about supply-chain limitations.
In practice, forecasting is heavily judgmental. Some folks have computer models that they let run on autopilot. But each model is based on judgements about what factors to include and what to ignore.
The world is too complicated - and data too limited - to utilize all possible explanatory factors, so economists pick and choose. Whether with a computer model or a purely judgmental process, the economist makes his best guess in an atmosphere of uncertainty.
ANALYSTS STRUGGLE TO MAKE ACCURATE LONG-TERM MARKE...
BARBARIANS AT THE MONETARY GATE / PROJECT SYNDICAT...
SELL THE SWISS FRANC IF YOU THINK THE WORLD IS A B...
ECONOMIC FORECAST: THEORIES BEHIND THE NUMBERS / S...
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It's only rock'n'roll
VA – Muscle Shoals: Small Town, Big Sound (2018)
Posted by Green on November 7, 2018
in blues, country, rock, soul
as Various Artists
320 kbps | 171 MB | LINKS
The terrific must-see Muscle Shoals documentary from 2013 kick-started a revival of sorts for the music that emerged, perhaps exploded is more appropriate, from this sleepy Alabama town. That set the stage for a musical follow-up tribute which finds 17 diverse roots acts offering their own interpretations to a variety of songs recorded there.
Not surprisingly, the result of trying to be a little of everything to everyone ends up as an inconsistent yet certainly heartfelt set that might get a few more folks interested in the Muscle Shoals sound who were previously unaware of how rich and varied it was. It’s easy to forget that the Stones went there to record “Brown Sugar” and “Wild Horses” (appearing here in versions by Stephen Tyler and Alan Jackson respectively), Dylan waxed “Gotta Serve Somebody” (a cool quartet of Willie Nelson, Chris Stapleton, Lee Ann Womack and Jamey Johnson tackles that one) and even Bob Seger (the hopelessly schlocky “We’ve Got Tonight” by Glee’s Chord Overstreet) all washed their music in that special Muscle Shoals Southern sauce.
There’s country (a lovely version of Gregg Allman’s “Come and Go Blues,” by Alison Krauss, a song that has no direct connection to the city), blues (Grace Potter giving it her best shot on Etta James’ “I’d Rather Go Blind”), gospel (“Respect Yourself” is a natural for Mike Farris and The Blind Boys of Alabama), soul (Eli “Paperboy” Reed testifying on the great “Steal Away”) and rock and roll (Shinedown’s Brently Stephen Smith doesn’t do much of interest with “Mustang Sally”). Most of the tracks are from the ’60s and ’70s, the heyday of the Muscle Shoals sound. But soul veteran Candi Staton (with John Paul White and Alabama-born Jason Isbell) reprises her “I Ain’t Easy to Love,” recorded on last year’s album.
There are a few miscues. Bringing in Kid Rock to reprise Clarence Carter’s classic “Snatchin’ It Back” seems like a desperate attempt to get his audience on board since he doesn’t add anything to the song. Aloe Blacc isn’t particularly inspired with his by-the-numbers take on the Staple Singers’ “I’ll Take You There,” and even though it’s fun to hear Delbert McClinton reprise his “Giving It Up For Your Love,” along with Doobie Brothers’ frontman Tom Johnston, there’s nothing going on we didn’t hear the first time around.
None of these are horrible, just unnecessary at worst. While it would be impossible to include music from even a fraction of the artists that chronicled timeless music in Muscle Shoals, ignoring the great Arthur Alexander, who recorded “You Better Move On” (the first record at the city’s fabled FAME studios), is a substantial miss. Still, there is plenty here to enjoy. And if this exposes a new audience to the incredible songs that emerged from this town (and they are inspired to go back to hear the originals that even at their best these covers can’t touch) it has done its job.
... other posts by Green
Kath Attar on Fairport Convention – Farewell Farewell [40th Anniversary Edition] (2019)
Theresa.Greene on Mahavishnu Orchestra – The Complete Columbia Albums Collection [5CD Remastered Box Set] (2011)
Celesta Gaylord on Jerry Garcia & Merl Saunders – Live at the Record Plant (2018)
BestMaurice on Grateful Dead – Capitol Theatre, Passaic, Nj. November 24th, 1978 (2017)
Henry on The Allman Brothers Band – Idlewild South [45th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition] (2015)
Copyright © 2011-2019 It's only rock'n'roll All rights reserved.
Made with the Ground Floor theme (v2.4) from BuyNowShop.com.
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Germany: It's good to be the king
Meet the former video store owner who claims to be a monarch.
GlobalPost - January 6, 2014
LUTHERSTADT-WITTENBERG, Germany — The leader of the Fourth Reich is in trouble with the law. Again.
Meet Peter Fitzek, the 48-year-old self-proclaimed monarch of the so-called Königsreich Deutschland, or kingdom of Germany.
Dressed in tight-fitting black pants and a black fitted shirt with the Königsreich coat of arms on its breast pocket, with his shoulder-length hair combed straight back in a pony tail, Fitzek looks more like a nightclub impresario than polo-playing royalty.
He has no hereditary claim to royalty and little hope of getting his kingdom to secede from the federal republic.
But with his own currency, “state-run” health care scheme, some 3,500 subjects and even a driving license issued by the Königsreich, he's become a notorious nuisance for the authorities.
That's just the way he likes it.
More hippie than Nazi, Fitzek's ideology is hard to pin down.
He chose to use “reich” not out of any enthusiasm for Fascism, he says, but to inspire Germans to question why they can never be allowed to forget the past.
His kingdom — a 22 acre plot where his purported 3,500 subjects reside rent-free — in the former East Germany is more like a commune.
“I've purposefully driven over the speed limit — radically over the speed limit — so someone will finally take me to court,” he says.
“The court must decide whether I have this authority or not.”
Fitzek has been nabbed for moving violations as many as 24 times and written up for driving without a license eight times before a judge in Lower Saxony sentenced him to three monthsin prison in October.
“You have built a fantasy world with a fanciful political worldview,” Judge Thorsten Steufert told the self-proclaimed monarch.
Germany's Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has ruled that his Reichsbank and health fund violate the law and repeatedly ordered him to repay all depositors.
“BaFin has prohibited Peter Fitzek several activities in insurance business as well as his unauthorized banking business,” BaFin spokesman Ben Fischer said in an email.
It would also be very surprising if the king avoids a run in with the Federal Central Tax Office, given his attitude toward that institution.
“I don't pay taxes just like I don't pay speeding tickets,” he says.
Fitzek has vowed to fight his legal cases all the way to the Supreme Court in a bid to force the nation to recognize his sovereignty.
Although he may be just having a lark, he says he’s starting an alternative to the financial system that plunged Europe into its ongoing economic crisis.
“Collapses of the monetary system have always been accompanied by conflict," he says. "Then they start building the same system all over again."
“It's important there be an alternative.”
Citing Germany's Basic Law and the 1933 Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, Fitzek carved out a territory outside the medieval city of Wittenberg and declared it a sovereign state last year.
Previously, the commune operated under the name “Neudeutschland,” or “New Germany.”
The king argues that under Montevideo, the only requirements for his claim are a permanent population, a defined territory, a government and the capacity to enter into relations with the other states. But he's gone further than that.
Working with a company Fitzek says also supplies paper to the mint, the Königsreich launched its own currency, the “Engel,” or Angel, complete with invisible fluorescent markings that appear only under a black light. On the downside, it's not freely convertible to euros and can be used only for goods and services sold by other Königsreich subjects.
More recently, the kingdom launched inflation-proof silver coins named Neue Deutsch Marks.
“How many wish for the good old Deutschmark back?” reads an announcement on the kingdom's website.
In September, Fitzek launched the Königsliche Reichbank, a central bank that also offers free customer accounts. Promising refuge from a possible collapse of the euro and investment returns of 2 to 9 percent, it's purportedly “safer than any other bank” because it’s not required to conform to any European Union or German law.
But its claim to legal status — to which German regulators continue to object — depends on aclause that says it's not obligated to give depositors’ money back when they want it.
Fitzek says a similar clause means the kingdom's alternative health scheme, which was launched in 2009 and took in more than $40,000 per month in premiums in 2012, is also immune to regulatory interference from BaFin.
Called the Health Checkout, it's a “holistic alternative to the health insurance system” that doesn’t actually guarantee its members the right to any benefits.
It does offer seminars on healthy lifestyles to help members beat ailments that are “90 percent psychosomatic.”
“The authorities don't appreciate that we've been able to heal a lot of people,” Fitzek says. “We haven't had a single incident of cancer since the health system was set up among more than 200 members.”
Whether Fitzek is a visionary, fantasist or conman, it’s hard not to enjoy the show.
In the tomb-silent lobby of the Reichsbank — an ordinary-looking bank branch on one of Wittenberg's cobblestone streets — the fast-talking Fitzek reels off his grievances with the authorities.
Citing legal cases he claims to have memorized with the aid of a photographic memory, he says Hitler’s Third Reich was never officially dissolved after World War II. Therefore, Germany has no constitution and no legitimate authority over its citizens.
At least two post-war elections have violated the government's own regulations, he says.
“This indicates it's only criminals who are in power, and they are not obeying their own laws,” Fitzek says.
Born in the former East Germany before the fall of the Iron Curtain, he belongs to the “lost” generation of Germans whose upbringing in the communist east left them ill-prepared for life after reunification.
Many of his peers never adjusted. A 2010 poll conducted by Stern magazine, for instance, found that two-thirds of Germans from the former East felt they were still isolated from the “unified” country.
More than two decades after the Berlin Wall came down, unemployment remains about a third higher in the east than in the west despite a mass exodus following reunification.
Fitzek, who wanted to be a teacher, never got the education he wanted. Trained as a cook, he worked in various restaurants and hotels before opening a video store then a bar — without finding a way to fit in.
With the Königsreich, he's finally found an answer of sorts. As long as he has the energy to keep all the balls he's juggling in the air, apparently so have his followers.
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/germany/131223/germany-king-peter-fitzek-wittenberg
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In Like A Lion, Out Like A Lamb: Lovedrug’s Wild Blood
by Charissa Lock
Keys jingle as you turn the ignition, windows squeak as they slide down, sunglasses are placed on the bridge of your nose and the moment is completed as the guitar melody begins and the drums sets the beat for Lovedrug’s title track “Wild Blood.” Spring has arrived and so has Lovedrug’s fourth full-length album, which is quite a perfect match. An indie rock album, with a perfect balance of guitar and synth is overdue, as is budding trees and the storage of winter coats. We’re not ready for shorts and tank-tops (a necessary public statement for deranged New Englanders), nor are we ready for a barrage of cheery happy go-lucky songs. A crisp, comfortable sound is what we need and Wild Blood delivers.
Lovedrug, a quintet from Ohio have been in the music industry for over ten years. Their latest album has these great guitar solos, catchy melodies, respectable instrumentation. Michael Shepard’s vocals are a tinge different but not enough to result in a love/hate scenario, the lyrics are thoughtful and involved, and the essential emotional piece is present.
I instantly compared them to a relaxed (tranquilized animal kind of relaxed) Manchester Orchestra with their arrangements and way Shepard uses his vocals. The song I get this most from is “Ladders,” which is quite impressive (serious Manchester Orchestra fan over here…) and reminds me of “I’ve Got Friends” (melodies, emotional build-up, etc.). For me, this comparison causes an awareness of the detailed nature in the creation of Wild Blood. It took me a first few listens to hear this and gain that sense of respect that I had overlooked at the beginning. It may be blurred at first, but it’s worth listening a few times to get a pure focus and later gain appreciation for Lovedrug’s composition.
There are a lot of great tracks on this album, and I find myself enjoying moments in songs more than saying “this is my favorite song.” This may be the first album I have ever done this with, and it doesn’t necessarily mean that I don’t “like” any songs. Rather, it’s me picking up on exclusive moments in time that Lovedrug has constructed, as opposed to “liking” and “disliking” entire pieces. The close-to-a-minute intro in “Anodyne” and first chorus, the guitar solo in “Dinosaurs,” “Wild Bloods” piece-by-piece instrument introduction, the repeated and harmonized emotional ending in “Girl” as well as the beautiful lyrics, “We Were Owls” choruses and the list goes on. With a band like Lovedrug, it is almost necessary to see the live version of the album because it carries so many great moments with a vocal and instrumental emotion that would be best seen created before your eyes.
Watching flowers just about to bloom, slipping on your flip-flops for the first time that year, the first run you take outside where you can take a warm, deep breath in; these are the moments we love, but often overlook. Wild Blood is much the same. Focus on these beautiful moments that Lovedrug has worked so hard on crafting for you and let yourself be taken to that cherished place of living in the moment.
TAGS: Birmingham Symphony, Bands that make you cry, subtext, pak my wicket cah, one of the great bands to tour with
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‘Fair fishing’ manifesto calls for greater quota share for smaller boats
Alliance of environmentalists and fishermen advocates granting small boats priority access to cod, hake and monkfish
Hundreds of small British fishing businesses are facing financial ruin, according to campaigners who are calling for radical reform of European fishing rules. They say their case revolves around one key statistic: that although small fishing boats account for 77% of the UK’s fishing fleet and 65% of full-time employment in the industry, they are allowed access to only 4% of the fishing quota.
The result of this apparent imbalance, says a new alliance of environmental activists and fishermen, is that the viability of boats under 10 metres long – and thereby classed by the EU as “inshore” operators – is increasingly under threat. Big fishing interests not only dominate the industry, but are also threatening fish stocks. This, they say, threatens the existence of fishing communities that go back centuries.
In Hastings on the south coast, a fleet of 29 small fishing boats still operates from the beach known as the Stade, mainly catching cod, plaice and sole. The town’s fishing industry is part of the south-east region, in which 339 small boats have access to a defined pool representing about 30% of the regional quota, while nine larger vessels control 70%.
Local fishermen say that until 2006, they were effectively left to fish as they saw fit, but the introduction of a European register of buyers and sellers in 2006 marked the arrival of a much more stringent regime.
Paul Joy, a local fisherman and co-chair of Nutfa (the New Under Ten Fishermen’s Association), spoke to the Guardian for a film made as part of the Anywhere But Westminster series. In January, he says, he was monitored by a police helicopter while at sea, before his catch of cod was weighed and found to be slightly above his catch limit. Having already been fined £7,500 for exceeding his limit, he is waiting to hear whether he will be prosecuted.
“If we were drug smugglers we’d understand it,” he told the Guardian. “But we’re just fishermen trying to earn a living, and with the quotas as they are, we can’t.”
At the height of the cod season, in early winter, each boat’s catch limit has been set at about 1.4kg a day, which represents less than a half a fish. “What we’re allowed to catch doesn’t even pay for the fuel to go out there and catch it,” said Joy.
“We’ve lost five or six weeks this summer because of the weather,” said local fisherman John Griffin, 52. “You can’t run a business like this. It’d be nice to tick over – but for the last few years, we’ve been on a deficit. Eventually, something’s got to give.”
“We’ve got enough car parks and amusement arcades in Hastings,” he said. “This fishery’s been here for thousands of years and generations of people. To lose it would be crazy.”
This year sees a sweeping review of the EU’s common fisheries policy (CFP), already the focus of campaigning by groups and individuals including Friends of the Earth, the WWF and the cook and Guardian writer Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.
Now, the small fishing interests represented by Nutfa have united with Greenpeace to produce a Manifesto for Fair Fisheries, published today. It advocates granting “priority access” to such fish as cod, hake and monkfish to small fishermen, and allocating the quota “in a way which rewards sustainable fishing methods and protects coastal communities”.
Campaigners say the share of the quota given to small boats should be about 20%, but acknowledge the impossibility of such a change. The UK government has proposed reallocating unused quota, amounting to about 3% of the total, to small boats but the UK Association of Fish Producer Organisations – dominated by large-scale fishing interests – has applied for a judicial review.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said it was working with Nutfa on improving the way the quota is managed for smaller fishermen. Defra said the proposed reforms of the common fisheries policy would help small operators, because they should allow member states to take over management of their own quota, which would enable some of the interests of the smaller fleet to be prioritised.
The European commission said it was also looking to the interests of smaller fleets, for instance by helping them gain access to more of the funds for improving vessels: the bigger a country’s small fleet, the more financial assistance that member state would be allocated. A spokeswoman added: “The commission has also proposed that fishermen should be able to trade quotas between themselves so that the quotas can be used efficiently and flexibly. In such a system, the smaller vessels could be protected by having a part of the quota set aside for them.”
The CFP reforms were passed by member state ministers in June, but they must pass the European parliament too, and many MEPs of various countries have links with the big, industrialised fishing industries, so there are fears that the proposals may face a mauling. The fisheries commissioner, Maria Damanaki, has urged members of the public to make their views known, as public pressure has proved key to the passage of proposals to ban the wasteful practice of throwing edible fish back into the sea, dead.
But thanks to compromises made to get the reform accepted, a full ban on discards of cod, haddock, plaice and sole will not be in place until 2018. Some of the fishermen represented by Nutfa claim they are mystified as to what they will then be intended to do with fish that are caught beyond their quota.
Fiona Harvey
This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 8th, 2012 at 3:07 pm and is filed under Guardian RSS. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. « Who gets a fair share of Britain’s fishing quota? Not the small boats – video | The Beastie Boy who really is a role model – to rock stars | John Harris »
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Bridgelux Taps LED Industry Veteran Mark Swoboda as CEO
Sunnyvale, California, USA – July 1, 2007 – Bridgelux, Inc., a leading supplier of energy saving LED chips to high-volume solid state lighting markets, today announced that LED industry veteran Mark Swoboda has joined Bridgelux as its new Chief Executive Officer. Swoboda brings with him 24 years of semiconductor sales, marketing and senior management experience, with the last 8 years focused in the LED market.
Dr. Robert C. Walker, who served as CEO since July of 2005, will continue on the Board, and as a member of the senior management team, leading strategic business development initiatives for the company. “Mark brings with him an incredible portfolio of development, market and branding experience that will be key to positioning the company for its next phase of growth,” said Dr. Walker. “With lighting-class LED products having reached volume production, Mark’s vision will enable Bridgelux to brand itself as a key supplier to companies pursuing some of the most exciting emerging markets.”
Mr. Swoboda most recently served as Executive Vice President of Philips Lumileds Lighting Company, where he led the sales, marketing, applications, and custom product development teams. During his tenure at Lumileds, the company pioneered the power LED product class and established a strong brand recognition strategy which proved key to developing high growth markets and applications in solid state lighting including general lighting, mobile phone camera flash, LED backlighting, and automotive forward lighting. Prior to joining Philips Lumileds, Mr. Swoboda spent 17 years with the Hewlett-Packard Semiconductor Products Group in various sales, marketing, and channel management positions.
“Bridgelux has assembled one of the strongest research and development teams in the industry, and has shown great results with its technology,” commented Swoboda. “It’s an exciting prospect to lead a team of this caliber into a market that is so ripe for explosive growth and at the same time is simply important for the world..” LED-based solid state lighting offers the promise of greatly reduced energy consumption along with enhancing the quality of life worldwide by delivering better light, often where no light was available before. “Bridgelux is a company that can make a difference and I’m proud to be part of that effort,” concluded Swoboda.
About Bridgelux, Inc.
Founded in 2003, Bridgelux is a leading supplier of cost-effective, energy saving LED chips to high-volume market segments. The company developed and introduced the industry’s first high volume ITO/InGaN (Indium Tin Oxide / Indium Gallium Nitride) power light emitting diode (LED) chip and is currently delivering millions of chips every month to customers worldwide. Customers use Bridgelux LED chips to replace traditional bulb technologies with solid state products that provide a powerful and energy-efficient source of blue, green, or white light. Bridgelux chips are currently found in mobile appliances, signage, automotive, and various general lighting applications.
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Home » In defence of free speech
In defence of free speech
Andy Duncan
So, there I was, at Speakers’ Corner, in Hyde Park, at 3pm, on Sunday the 18th of March, 2018. So what was I doing there? Attempting, in my own small way, to defend that most sacrosanct of English monuments to civilisation, peace, truth, freedom, and property, the concept of freedom of speech, that’s to say, the ability of an individual to say what some other person or group of people may wish to remain unsaid.
The other group of people who usually wish to suppress free speech are, of course, a group who like to call themselves ‘the government’, or even better than that, ‘the authorities’. Where they get this oft-claimed ‘authority’ is one of those things that they would prefer the rest of us never to think about, I suppose.
I personally prefer to call these people, who I regard as nothing more than a jumped-up tenacious mafia gang, ‘the state’.
And I regard that as a short-hand for Professor Hoppe’s words: The state is … “an institution run by gangs of murderers, plunderers and thieves, surrounded by willing executioners, propagandists, sycophants, crooks, liars, clowns, charlatans, dupes and useful idiots – an institution that dirties and taints everything it touches.”
These people, despite their own beliefs about themselves, are nothing special, other than usually being despicable, the kind of people you hated at school for being so selfish, slimy, and degenerate. They’re just people, like you and me. Indeed, in some ways, they are lesser than us, because we can easily survive without them and would probably thrive without them. It is impossible for them to survive, without us. Most of them are parasites and tax-eaters who do nothing but consume the produce of others, usually taken via theft, which they call taxation, or via ‘managing the money supply’, which even they themselves call ‘counterfeiting’ if anyone else engages in it.
Most of them would be useless in a free society. Which is probably why they become parasites.
But they like this special position that they currently enjoy within society, where most of us are prepared to put up with this ridiculous situation, for reasons far too long and complicated to get into here.
But their situation is always precarious. The reality in my view, that they are completely unnecessary and in fact hinder and damage society, is always out there, especially held by people like me and people like us. Hence, they become terrified of tiny blobs of ink on paper and puny vibrations of air said out loud.
Why would they be so terrified if their position was stable and actually beneficial to the rest of us? A strong lithe tree with deep roots can easily endure a few gusts of wind, even a few hurricanes. A dead tree with hollow limbs will often fall in the mildest of cloudbursts.
It is therefore the mark of a fearful tyrannical state that it severely punishes people for reading, writing, or saying things it does not like, whether this is Hitler’s national socialist state, Stalin’s soviet socialist state, or Mao’s communist socialist state.
Books are burned and free speech is suppressed, ultimately, as Mao would have put it, at the end of a gun barrel.
However, the English have a different tradition. Many battles have been fought by the English to ensure that we have retained the rights of freeborn men and women, since time immemorial. To my mind, this goes at least back to the Battle of Teutoberg Forest, in which the early Germanic English were probably involved.
(I also like to think that early Englishmen were at the ‘Battle of Marathon’, and even wrote a novel where I actually placed one there, but that, in the words of Richard Blake, is another story.)
Yes, there was that terrible reverse at Hastings, when the Norman-French successfully invaded our Sceptred Isle to create the British state, and we’ve been living with that terrible military disaster ever since. But even the Normans (who were intrinsically a mixture of Norsemen and Frankish Germans) blended eventually into the English fold.
And since then, the English have almost religiously guarded their hard-won freedoms from all subsequent attacks, whether from Napoleon or any other would-be pan-European tyrants.
Alas, however, we’ve suffered from the socialist enemy within, chief amongst them, in the last fifty years, that loathsome snake Tony Blair, who never saw an English freedom or noble tradition that he didn’t want to poison or destroy.
But I do not restrict my ire for this particular disgusting wretch of a man. He was aided and abetted by many other contemptible statists, including Margaret Thatcher, John Major, David Cameron, and now that leaf-in-the-wind Theresa May, and her fascist Home Secretary, Amber Rudd, who recently threatened to lock people up for 15 years for ‘viewing’ any materials online that she personally considers against the state’s interest.
No doubt she allows herself and her minions the ‘right’ to view such materials, being as they consider themselves so special and so much better than us.
Again, we have that stigmata of the tyrant state. Use force to prevent people reading, writing, or speaking any words that threaten their power.
And so earlier this month, Amber Rudd decided to deport the Viennese activist, Martin Sellner, who’d brought a speech here to England from the Misesian heartland of Austria, which he’d planned to deliver at Speakers’ Corner, in Hyde Park.
He’d probably wanted to bring it here because he thought we were the home of free speech.
Tommy Robinson, who I’m sure needs no introduction here, decided to deliver this speech himself. He tried a few days before March the 18th, but the police prevented him speaking in Hyde Park. I’m sure they would have deported him too, if they could have, but that’s tricky when he holds a British state passport.
So he organised another attempt, to which he invited all believers in freedom, in the UK, and their attendance. I felt honour-bound to do so, once I knew about this, and so found myself standing there with a few thousand others, defending his right to make Martin Sellner’s speech.
I would like to make it clear at this point that I offer no explicit support for any of Mr Robinson’s other views, whatever they may be. But I do support his right to have them and to speak them.
Now, we’d had a whole two inches of snow overnight, where I live in Oxfordshire, so you can imagine the transport chaos that this created, because in England one inch of snow is a torment. Two inches of snow is a global disaster and probably marks the beginning of the next Ice Age glaciation!
But I made it.
It got quite ugly at times, with various groups which the state has encouraged to oppose free speech, trying to prevent Mr Robinson’s short speech. The police, to be fair to them, this time did not prevent the delivery of Martin Sellner’s words, but instead put themselves between ‘our group’ of believers in free speech, and those other groups, who wish to suppress it.
So in the end, the speech got delivered. However, I fail to believe it would have done, if so many of us had failed to show up. I’m glad I was there for my one small physical part in what I’m now going to eternally call the shield wall of freedom. (Come on, you’ve got to let me poeticise a little. The fish I caught was three yards long! )
I also think that at least one of us there would’ve read this speech, if somehow Tommy Robinson had been prevented from doing so. I like to believe I was ready to do it myself, if the hundred ahead of me had failed to pick up the baton. Perhaps the Home Office realised this too, so let it all go ahead. But one still gets the feeling that they’d probably tried to think of a way of stopping it, but in the end realised that they couldn’t without locking all of us up in quite a large military operation. Though I bet they didn’t rule that out in the planning stages.
Well, what can I say about the speech? I was about twenty-five feet from Mr Robinson when he spoke, in an outer core, surrounded by a further deep mantle of people, fenced off on one side by a police cordon, who tried to control incursions by various bodies of free speech opponents, who at several points became physically violent.
It did get a little hectic at times, but I did not want to be a gentlemen a-bed in England, on that Sunday, to think myself accurs’d that I had not been there.
I just caught the odd glimpse of Mr Robinson’s face behind his inner core of about a hundred supporters. And I only heard the odd word, mostly delivered to his live-stream camera, before he lost most of his voice. A bigger step-ladder and and a megaphone would have really helped.
But that wasn’t really the point. The point was that he got there, he delivered the speech, and then he left, without having to see the inside of a police van sent by the detestable Amber Rudd.
(Is she really a ‘conservative’? Does that really mean anything at all, any more?)
So freedom of speech just about survived on Sunday. Let us pray that it does not come to this again, and that the proto-tyrant May and her appalling incubus, Rudd, are soon slung onto the ash-heap of history, to be replaced by people much more worthy of England’s glorious heritage of freedom.
We few, we happy few, can but hope.
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Monday Mentions: The Worst Yankees Weekend
I want to pretend that I didn’t spend all of Sunday night wondering if the Blue Jays are going to prevent me from watching the Yankees in the postseason. I want to pretend that the Yankees’ unwillingness to trade for David Price isn’t going to be difference between going straight to the ALDS or having to worry about winning a one-game wild-card playoff. I want to pretend like the Blue Jays haven’t gone from eight games back in the AL East to 1 1/2 games back in 12 days.
Here is another installment of “Monday Mentions” focused on questions and comments from Twitter about the Yankees’ disastrous weekend against the Blue Jays.
@NeilKeefe I wonder if joe Girardi will care about today and try and lose the game
— Yankees Baseball (@arodislegend) August 9, 2015
It’s hard to win games when you don’t score. The Yankees scored one run, ONE, in their biggest series of the season and the biggest series they have played since the end of 2012 and let the Blue Jays get within 1 1/2 games of them after a Stadium sweep. The Yankees needed to win one game this weekend to keep the Blue Jays five back in the loss column and prevent the weekend from being a complete disaster, but they couldn’t do that. Their best chance to win a game this weekend was on Friday, which is the only game they scored a run, but before they could score a second run, Joe Girardi lost the game.
I have written an unhealthy amount of words on set innings for relievers and how absurd it is, but Girardi is a big believer in having a seventh-inning guy and an eighth-inning guy and a ninth-inning guy and no matter the situation, he’s going to stick with it.
On Friday night, the Yankees and Blue Jays were tied 1-1 in the seventh inning. Nathan Eovaldi was still pitching and after a Mark Teixeira error and a Chase Headley bobble, the Blue Jays had runners on first and second with one out. Girardi called on Justin Wilson to relieve Eovaldi and he struck out Ben Revere on four pitches. Then Girardi called on Dellin Betances to relieve Wilson and he walked Troy Tulowitzki on four pitches and then got Josh Donaldson to ground out.
Betances returned in the eighth inning and after a Jose Bautista leadoff single, he retied Edwin Encarnacion, Justin Smoak and Russell Martin to end the inning.
Girardi called on Andrew Miller to relieve Betances in the ninth and he needed just six pitches to get through the inning against the Blue Jays’ 7-8-9-1 hitters.
The Yankees were unable to score in the bottom of the ninth, so the game went to 10th, and Girardi relieved Miller with rookie Branden Pinder to face the middle of the Blue Jays’ order: Josh Donaldson, Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion. This would have been a frustrating but understandable move if it were the 14th or 15th inning, but it was the 10th inning. But it wasn’t the 14th or 15th, it was the 10th, and it was irresponsible for two reasons.
1. Miller had thrown SIX pitches in the ninth inning. SIX. Miller had thrown five pitches on Sunday against the White Sox and 17 pitches on Thursday against the Red Sox. So after Friday’s ninth inning, he had thrown 28 pitches in six days or 4.7 pitches per day for the week. Is 28 pitches over the course of a week too much? Was the nine pitches it took to retire the Yankees in the bottom of the ninth too much of a layoff between innings for Miller to return for the 10th?
2. Wilson, Betances and Miller had been used. So let’s pretend like Miller really couldn’t go a second inning after throwing SIX pitches and that Girardi had to go to the bullpen. Chasen Shreve and Adam Warren were both still in the bullpen yet Girardi decided that rookie Branden Pinder and his 14 2/3 career innings was the best choice to get through the heart of the order of the best team in Major League Baseball in as close to a playoff game in the regular season as there can be on Aug. 7.
I’m not going to get into Girardi’s bullpen decisions on Saturday and Sunday, which were also incredibly questionable, because the team didn’t score a run in either game. The Yankees are going to have a hard enough time keeping the Blue Jays from overtaking them in the AL East, they don’t need Joe Girardi managing them to losses.
@NeilKeefe Girardi hates Warren. No other explanation.
— Ace (@_EduVL) August 8, 2015
I really don’t understand what Adam Warren’s role is with the team. After being the most consistent starter for the first half of the season, the Yankees put him in the bullpen and left CC Sabathia in the rotation because of money and now Warren is randomly used. Sometimes he pitches with a lead, sometimes he pitches to hold a deficit, sometimes he pitches in the sixth inning, sometimes he pitches in the eighth innings, sometimes he faces on batter, sometimes he pitches multiple innings.
I have no idea when Warren will come into a game or how long he will stay in one. I have no idea what the long-term plan for him is because I have no idea what the current and short-term plan is for him. He went from most reliable starter to being put behind Andrew Miller, Dellin Betances, Justin Wilson and Chasen Shreve on the bullpen pecking order. I would say the Yankees’ handling of him has been very odd, but then again, this is exactly how the Yankees handle pitchers.
August 5th 2015 and Stephen Drew is still in the major leagues. @NeilKeefe
— BIZZO (@craigmiller) August 6, 2015
That tweet was from last Wednesday and five days ago. After that tweet, Drew went 0-for-9 in three games to watch his batting average drop back down to .192 after having gotten it up to a season-high(!) .199 on Sunday in Chicago. Drew has never seen .200 this season. Not on Opening Day. Not in the first week of the season when averages change hundreds of points with each hit and out. Never.
Today is Aug. 10. Stephen Drew is still a Yankee. How that is possible hurts my head to even think about. Drew has started 79 games this season and has gone hitless in 37 of them. So in 47 percent of Drew’s starts, he hasn’t gotten a hit.
The Yankees clearly don’t like Rob Refsnyder as a player and don’t want to give him a chance to become the everyday second baseman. Maybe he does have an attitude problem, which has been rumored, but who cares? If he can hit, I don’t care if one person on the team likes him. If the Yankees aren’t willing to give him a chance right now, what makes anyone think they are going to give him one in September when rosters expand? Just because they won’t have to DFA anyone to have him in the majors at that point doesn’t mean he will playing and not riding the bench, especially if the team is fighting for a postseason spot.
@NeilKeefe martin prado ;(
— jorge nunez (@righteousjorge) August 9, 2015
The Yankees chose not to improve the roster at the trade deadline while the Blue Jays and Orioles made big moves to make a run at the division and wild card, while the Royals, Astros, Angels and Rangers all made moves to improve their teams to contend. The Marlins were willing to trade Dan Haren to the Cubs with the Dodgers still paying all of Haren’s $10 million, so I’m pretty sure the Marlins would have been willing to trade Martin Prado back to the Yankees, considering the Yankees were already paying $3 million of his $11 million salary this season and next.
The Yankees traded for Dustin Ackley, designated Garrett Jones for assignment, put Michael Pineda on the DL, called up Luis Severino, put Ackley on the DL and re-signed Jones. Those were the Yankees’ trade deadline moves. Essentially, they did nothing. Ackley would have been the same or worse than Jones, Drew and Brendan Ryan and Severino replaces Pineda, so basically, everything cancels each other out.
@NeilKeefe Where your stats on if the Yankees play .500 ball?
— Tim Hughes (@Timbo367) August 9, 2015
On July 31, the Yankees had a six-game lead in the AL East. Today, that lead is 1 1/2 games. In the span of nine games, the Yankees managed to blow 75 percent of their lead and now they are a bad road trip in Cleveland and Toronto from being in second place in the division and suddenly in the wild-card game.
But since I was asked … If the Yankees play .500 baseball the rest of the season and go 26-26, here is what the rest of the AL East would have to do just to tie them: Toronto 26-23, Baltimore 31-21, Tampa Bay 31-19, Boston 37-13. That closed quickly.
There is this rhetoric that even after the weekend and even after going 1-4 in their last five games that the Yankees are still in first place. That’s nice, but like I said in that tweet, it’s like being up $1,000 at a casino and giving $950 back and still technically being “up”. The Yankees still have a lead in the division, but from where it was a week ago, or even three days ago, it doesn’t feel like they do.
Adam Warren, Andrew Miller, Brendan Ryan, CC Sabathia, Chasen Shreve, David Price, Dustin Ackley, Edwin Encarnacion, Garrett Jones, Joe Girardi, Jose Bautista, Josh Donaldson, Luis Severino, Martin Prado, Michael Pineda, Nathan Eovaldi, Rob Refsnyder, Russell Martin, Stephen Drew, Troy Tulowitzki
Monday Mentions: The Worst Yankees Weekend added by Neil Keefe on Aug 10, 2015
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Israeli authorities transfer political prisoner Marwan Barghouti to undisclosed location
May 26, 2016 3:47 P.M. (Updated: May 26, 2016 8:28 P.M.)
JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli prison authorities transferred detained prominent Palestinian parliament member Marwan Barghouti from Israel's Ramon prison to an unidentified location on Thursday, according to Palestinian sources.
Barghouti, a member of Fatah’s central committee, was transferred to Israel’s Ramon prison five days before the most recent transfer to an undisclosed location, according to a statement by the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners' Affairs.
While Barghouti was held in Ramon, he was reportedly prevented from moving between sections of the prison or communicating with other prisoners.
The committee stated Israeli Prison Services were responsible for arbitrary violations and abuses against the imprisoned politician.
Barghouti, a leading politician in the Fatah party, entered the 15th year of his prison sentence this year.
A spokesperson for the Israeli prison service was not immediately available for comment.
After being detained in 2002, Barghouti was later handed five consecutive life sentences after Israeli authorities charged him with the founding of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade, a group Israel designates as a “terrorist” organization, and being involved in several murders during the Second Intifada, charges he has consistently denied.
The imprisoned parliament member was politically active for several decades before being elected to parliament in 1996. However, he ascended to prominence as a powerful leader against Israeli military occupation amid the political upheaval of the Second Intifada.
He has remained politically active from behind bars, including assisting in the drafting of the Mecca agreement in 2007, which paved the way for a unity government aimed at ending internal political conflict in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Barghouti remains one of the most popular politicians in Palestine, receiving a wide range of support among various political factions. Many see him as an indispensable component of hope for the possibilities of obtaining a viable peace process and a renewed unification throughout the Palestinian political landscape.
Barghouti also received a PhD in Political Science while imprisoned and has most recently received three nominations for the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize, including a nomination from leading members of Belgium’s parliament.
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« Back to Calendar
An Evening of Music, Comedy and Gun Sense
Fun Lovers Unite!
feat. Yo La Tengo, John Hodgman, Janeane Garofalo, Tammy Faye Starlite, Jeanne Darst, Bambi Kino, Josh Gondelman, Jon Glaser, Dolly Wells & Emily Mortimer of HBO's Doll & Em
Showtime @ 8:00 PM
Doors open @ 7:00 PM
Tickets $20 - $150
ABOUT LIBERTY UNITED Liberty United transforms illegal guns and ammunition provided by police into handcrafted jewelry. Every purchase that you make of a Liberty United product helps to protect an at-risk child from gun violence.
What is quickly becoming one of New York City’s most highly anticipated shows of the year, Fun Lovers Unite! An Evening of Music, Comedy, and Gun Sense announced today a second round of performers for their May 11 show at the Highline Ballroom. Headliners Yo La Tengo he stars of HBO’s acclaimed series Doll & Em, Emily Mortimer and Dolly Wells, as well as comedians Janeane Garofalo and Jon Glaser join an all-star line up of comedians and musicians.
The new acts will take the stage alongside previously announced performers including comedians John Hodgman, Jeanne Darst, and Josh Gondelman and musicians Bambi Kino and Tammy Faye Starlite.
Fun Lovers Unite! benefits the Manhattan Chapter of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. The Manhattan chapter develops and implements extensive public health and safety programs and utilizes the courts to reduce gun violence.
“Like the rest of the American people, I’ve just had enough of the gun violence that devastates our communities every day,” said performer Tammy Faye. “So for me, it was clear cut and an honor when presented with the opportunity to perform at this event. There is so much each of us, in our own way, can do to fight for sensible solutions and for the 90 people killed by gun violence each day.”
The event is produced by friends Joshua Mills of Los Angeles and Brooklyn’s Maccabee Montandon, both fathers to young children, who have had enough of the epidemic of gun violence in America. Montandon’s brother, Asher, was shot and killed during an attempted robbery in 1992.
About Fun Lovers Unite! is the second live music and comedy event dedicated to raising awareness and action for common-sense gun violence prevention efforts and the elected officials who stand up for the safety of our communities. The first event in Los Angeles featured Kurt Braunohler, Neil Hamburger, Tim Heidecker, Jenny Lewis, Sarah Silverman, Mike Watt & The Secondmen and many more. The event is being produced by friends Joshua Mills in Los Angeles and Maccabee Montandon in Brooklyn; they are both dads of young children who want to do more to prevent gun violence in America. Josh felt sickened and then galvanized following the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy in 2012. Mac’s brother, Asher, was murdered with a gun during an attempted robbery in Los Angeles in 1992.
About Brady Center To Prevent Gun Violence
The Brady Campaign and Center, united with the Million Mom March, is a national network of over 90 grassroots chapter affiliates mobilized to prevent gun violence at the community level. The network has played a vital role in expanding Brady background checks in the six states that have passed legislation since the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut and produced the largest national protest of gun violence in U.S. history - The Million Mom March, Mother’s Day 2000.
Fun Lovers Unite! @ Facebook »
Fun Lovers Unite! @ Twitter »
VIP Reserved Seating
* $150
* Exact Seating First Come, First Seated
* Purchasers of VIP tickets will receive a Liberty United Grip Cuff as part of their purchase price.
General Admission - Standing Room
* $20 w/ Student ID (Available @ Box Office Only)
* $65 Advance / $75 Day of Show
* Limited Seating Available First Come, First Served
* Full Dinner Menu Available
* $10 Minimum Per Person, For All Tables
* Review Our FAQ @ highlineballroom.com/faq
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Date(s) - Sunday, Feb 17, 2019
The word liturgy means common work or common action. The Divine Liturgy is the common work of the Orthodox Church. It is the official action of the Church formally gathered together as the chosen People of God. The word church, as we remember, means a gathering or assembly of people specifically chosen and called apart to perform a particular task.
The Divine Liturgy is the common action of Orthodox Christians officially gathered to constitute the Orthodox Church. It is the action of the Church assembled by God in order to be together in one community to worship, to pray, to sing, to hear God’s Word, to be instructed in God’s commandments, to offer itself with thanksgiving in Christ to God the Father, and to have the living experience of God’s eternal kingdom through communion with the same Christ Who is present in his people by the Holy Spirit.
The Divine Liturgy is always done by Orthodox Christians on the Lord’s Day which is Sunday, the “day after Sabbath” which is symbolic of the first day of creation and the last day—or as it is called in Holy Tradition, the eighth day—of the Kingdom of God. This is the day of Christ’s resurrection from the dead, the day of God’s judgment and victory predicted by the prophets, the Day of the Lord which inaugurates the presence and the power of the “kingdom to come” already now within the life of this present world.
The Divine Liturgy is also celebrated by the Church on special feast days. It is usually celebrated daily in monasteries, and in some large cathedrals and parish churches, with the exception of the week days of Great Lent when it is not served because of its paschal character.
As the common action of the People of God, the Divine Liturgy may be celebrated only once on any given day in an Orthodox Christian community. All of the members of the Church must be gathered together with their pastor in one place at one time. This includes even small children and infants who participate fully in the communion of the liturgy from the day of their entrance into the Church through baptism and chrismation. Always everyone, always together. This is the traditional expression of the Orthodox Church about the Divine Liturgy.
Because of its common character, the Divine Liturgy may never be celebrated privately by the clergy alone. It may never be served just for some and not for others, but for all. It may never be served merely for some private purposes or some specific or exclusive intentions. Thus there may be, and usually are, special petitions at the Divine Liturgy for the sick or the departed, or for some very particular purposes or projects, but there is never a Divine Liturgy which is done exclusively for private individuals or specific isolated purposes or intentions. The Divine Liturgy is always “on behalf of all and for all.”
Because the Divine Liturgy exists for no other reason than to be the official all-inclusive act of prayer, worship, teaching, and communion of the entire Church in heaven and on earth, it may not be considered merely as one devotion among many, not even the highest or the greatest. The Divine Liturgy is not an act of personal piety. It is not a prayer service. It is not merely one of the sacraments. The Divine Liturgy is the one common sacrament of the very being of the Church itself. It is the one sacramental manifestation of the essence of the Church as the Community of God in heaven and on earth. It is the one unique sacramental revelation of the Church as the mystical Body and Bride of Christ.
As the central mystical action of the whole church, the Divine Liturgy is always resurrectional in spirit. It is always the manifestation to his people of the Risen Christ. It is always an outpouring of the life-creating Spirit. It is always communion with God the Father. The Divine Liturgy, therefore, is never mournful or penitential. It is never the expression of the darkness and death of this world. It is always the expression and the experience of the eternal life of the Kingdom of the Blessed Trinity.
The Divine Liturgy celebrated by the Orthodox Church is called the Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom. It is a shorter liturgy than the so-called Liturgy of Saint Basil the Great that is used only ten times during the Church Year. These two liturgies probably received their present form after the ninth century. It is not the case that they were written exactly as they now stand by the saints whose names they carry. It is quite certain, however, that the eucharistic prayers of each of these liturgies were formulated as early as the fourth and fifth centuries when these saints lived and worked in the Church.
Saint Basil the Great
In the New Testament Church Jesus Christ is the Living Word of God, and it is the Christian gospels and apostolic writings which are proclaimed and meditated at the first part of the Divine Liturgy. And in the New Testament Church, the central saving event is the one perfect, eternal and all-sufficient sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the one great High Priest who is also the Lamb of God slain for the salvation of the world, the New Passover. At the Divine Liturgy the faithful Christians participate in the voluntary self-offering of Christ to the Father, accomplished once and for all upon the Cross by the power of the Holy Spirit. In and through this unique sacrifice of Christ, the faithful Christians receive Holy Communion with God.The Divine Liturgy has two main parts. The first part is the gathering, called the synaxis. It has its origin in the synagogue gatherings of the Old Testament, and is centered in the proclamation and meditation of the Word of God. The second part of the Divine Liturgy is the eucharistic sacrifice. It has its origin in the Old Testament temple worship, the priestly sacrifices of the People of God; and in the central saving event of the Old Testament, the Passover (Pascha).
For centuries it was the practice of the Church to admit all persons to the first part of the Divine Liturgy, while reserving the second part strictly for those who were formally committed to Christ through baptism and chrismation in the Church. Non-baptized persons were not permitted even to witness the offering and receiving of Holy Communion by the faithful Christians. Thus the first part of the Divine Liturgy came to be called the Liturgy of the Catechumens, that is, the liturgy of those who were receiving instructions in the Christian Faith in order to become members of the Church through baptism and chrismation. It also came to be called, for obvious reasons, the Liturgy of the Word. The second part of the Divine Liturgy came to be called the Liturgy of the Faithful.
Although it is generally the practice in the Orthodox Church today to allow non-Orthodox Christians, and even non-Christians, to witness the Liturgy of the Faithful, it is still the practice to reserve actual participation in the sacrament of Holy Communion only to members of the Orthodox Church who are fully committed to the life and teachings of the Orthodox Faith as preserved, proclaimed and practiced by the Church throughout its history.
In the commentary on the Divine Liturgy which follows, we will concentrate our attention on what happens to the Church at its “common action.” By doing this we will attempt to penetrate the fundamental and essential meaning of the liturgy for man, his life and his world. This will be a definite departure from the interpretation of the Divine Liturgy which treats the service as if it were a drama enacted by the clergy and “attended” by the people, in which each part stands for some aspect of Christ’s life and work (e.g., the prothesis stands for Christ’s birth, the small entrance for the beginning of his public ministry, the gospel for his preaching, the great entrance for Palm Sunday, etc.). This latter type of interpretation of the Divine Liturgy is an invention, which, although perhaps interesting and inspiring for some, is nevertheless completely alien to the genuine meaning and purpose of the Divine Liturgy in the Orthodox Church.
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Local Students Receive Academic Achievements
by Journal Staff • July 5, 2019 • 0 Comments
Boston College High School Third Quarter Honors
The following student has been named to the Third Quarter Honor Roll at Boston College High School.
For High Honors a Soph., Jr.,Sr. must have at least a 3.80 quality point average and all grades ‘”C+” or higher. Freshmen need a 3.6 quality point average and all grades ‘”C+” or higher.
For Honors a Soph., Jr.,Sr. must have at least a 3.20 quality point average and all grades ‘”C-” or higher. Freshmen need a 3.165 quality point average and all grades ‘”C-” or higher.
Richard Rowe 2021 of Lynn achieved Honors.
Boston College High School is a Jesuit, Catholic, college-preparatory school for young men founded in 1863. The school enrolls approximately 1,500 students from more than 100 communities in eastern Massachusetts.
Lynn Students Named to Dean’s List at Boston University
Six Lynn residents have recently been named to the Dean’s
List at Boston University for the Spring semester.
Students recognized for this honor include: Patricia C. Asuncion Santana, Mariana P. Chacon, Patrick S. Donnelly, Christina M. Hallisey, Kaylee M. Maher, and Brandon T. Von.
Each school and college at Boston University has their own criterion for the Dean’s List, but students generally must attain a 3.5 grade point average (on a 4.0 scale), or be in the top 30 percent of their class, as well as a full course load as a full time student.
Briana A. Collins-Lee Named to Highly Selective Dean’s List at Colby College
Briana A. Collins-Lee of Lynn was recently named to the highly selective Dean’s List at Colby College in Waterville, Maine, for outstanding academic achievement during the spring semester of the 2018-19 academic year. Collins-Lee is one of 443 Colby students-or 23 percent of the qualified student body-to have earned a spot on the Dean’s List last semester.
Collins-Lee, a member of the Class of 2019, attended KIPP Academy Lynn Collegiate High School and is the daughter of Christina Collins-Lee of Lynn, Mass. Collins-Lee earned a semester grade point average of 3.78 or higher this spring to be included on Colby’s Dean’s List.
Spring 2019 Dean’s List at Dean College
Dean College is pleased to announce the local students that have earned a place on the Dean’s List for the Spring 2019 semester.
Emily Bucklin of Lynn
Daniel Lilja of Lynn
Leanna Peralta of Lynn
Founded in 1865, Dean College is a private, residential college located in Franklin, Massachusetts, 45 minutes from Boston, Massachusetts, and Providence, Rhode Island. Dean College offers baccalaureate degrees, associate degree programs, as well as a robust schedule of part-time continuing and professional education credit and certificate programs throughout the calendar year.
Emmanuel College Names Local Students to Spring 2019 Dean’s List
In honor of their outstanding academic achievement, Emmanuel College has named more than 700 students to the Dean’s List for the Spring 2019 semester. To earn a spot on the Dean’s List, Emmanuel students must achieve a grade point average of 3.5 or higher for a 16-credit semester. The following local students were awarded:
John Carroll of Lynn
Osarumen Edosomwan of Lynn
Sarah Haferman of Lynn
Kevin Lux Ven of Lynn
Luz Matul of Lynn
Melissa Ordonez of Lynn
Emmanuel College is a co-educational, residential institution with a 17-acre campus in the heart of Boston’s educational, scientific, cultural and medical communities. Enrolling more than 2,200 undergraduate and graduate students, the College provides boundless opportunities for students to expand their worldview through rigorous coursework, significant internship and career opportunities throughout the Boston area and beyond, collaborations with distinguished and dedicated faculty, and participation in a dynamic campus community. Emmanuel’s more than 60 programs in the sciences, liberal arts, business, nursing, and education foster spirited discourse and substantive learning experiences that honor the College’s Catholic educational mission to educate the whole person and provide an ethical and relevant 21st-century education.
Barnard Named to Dean’s List at Stonehill College
Paige Barnard, of Lynn, a member of the Class of 2020, has been named to the Spring 2019 Dean’s List at Stonehill College.
To qualify for the Dean’s List, students must have a semester grade point average of 3.50 or better and must have completed successfully all courses for which they were registered.
Stonehill is a Catholic college located near Boston on a beautiful 384-acre campus in Easton, Massachusetts. With a student-faculty ratio of 12:1, the College engages over 2,500 students in 80+ rigorous academic programs in the liberal arts, sciences, and pre-professional fields. The Stonehill community helps students to develop the knowledge, skills, and character to meet their professional goals and to live lives of purpose and integrity.
Dean’s List Honors Announced at Tufts University
Tufts University recently announced the dean’s list for the Spring 2019 semester.
Among students from Lynn earning dean’s list honors are:
Omar Badr (Sophomore)
Jailene Ho (Sophomore)
Xavier Mojica (Freshman)
Dean’s list honors at Tufts University require a semester grade point average of 3.4 or greater.
Tufts University, located on campuses in Boston, Medford/Somerville and Grafton, Massachusetts, and in Talloires, France, is recognized among the premier research universities in the United States. Tufts enjoys a global reputation for academic excellence and for the preparation of students as leaders in a wide range of professions. A growing number of innovative teaching and research initiatives span all Tufts campuses, and collaboration among the faculty and students in the undergraduate, graduate and professional programs across the university’s schools is widely encouraged.
Ong Graduates From Tufts University
Anthony Ong of Lynn graduated from Tufts University on May 19, with a degree in Computer Science (BSCS), Magna Cum Laude during a university-wide commencement ceremony that featured an address by award-winning actress and activist Alfre Woodard.
University of New Hampshire Announces May 2019 Graduates
The following students graduated from the University of New Hampshire in May 2019. Students who received the honor of summa cum laude graduated with a GPA of 3.85-4.0; students who received the honor of magna cum laude graduated with a GPA of 3.65-3.84; and students who received the honor of cum laude graduated with a GPA of 3.50-3.64. Students are only graduated after the Registrar’s Office has certified that all degree requirements have been successfully completed. Participating in the commencement ceremony is the act of honoring and celebrating academic achievement.
Brendan Morrison of Lynn graduated with a BS degree in BusAdm:Accounting
Frances Serwicki of Lynn graduated with a BA degree in English
Kelsey Ballard of Lynn graduated with a AAS degree in Applied Animal Science
Christopher McDonald of Lynn graduated with a BS degree in BusAdm:Accounting
University of New Hampshire’s Dean’s List for the Spring 2019 Semester
The following students have been named to the Dean’s List at the University of New Hampshire for the spring 2019 semester.
Matthew Woodward of Lynn earning Highest Honors
Frances Serwicki of Lynn earning High Honors
Kosta Triantafillakos of Lynn earning High Honors
Megan Dolan of Lynn earning Honors
Ashley McCoy of Lynn earning High Honors
Students named to the Dean’s List at the University of New Hampshire are students who have earned recognition through their superior scholastic performance during a semester enrolled in a full-time course load (12 or more graded credits). Highest honors are awarded to students who earn a semester grade point average of 3.85 or better out of a possible 4.0. Students with a 3.65 to 3.84 average are awarded high honors and students whose grade point average is 3.5 through 3.64 are awarded honors.
Grandel Graduates From Union College
Victoria Grandel, of Lynn graduated from Union College.
Grandel, a member of the Class of 2019 majoring in Political Science and Chinese, graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree .
Union’s Commencement speaker Susan Zirinsky, president and senior executive producer of CBS News, offered a series of life lessons to the nearly 500 members of the Class of 2019 at Union’s 225th Commencement in Memorial Fieldhouse Sunday.
University of Rhode Island Dean’s List for the Spring 2019 Semester
The University of Rhode Island is pleased to announce the Spring 2019 Dean’s List. The students represent nearly all of Rhode Island’s cities and towns, all six New England states, New York and New Jersey, and many other states and countries.
To be included on the Dean’s List, full-time students must have completed 12 or more credits for letter grades during a semester and achieved at least a 3.30 quality point average. Part-time students qualify with the accumulation of 12 or more credits for letter grades earning at least a 3.30 quality point average.
Hieu Bui of Lynn
Victoria Grant of Lynn
Yaheysi Leon-Lopez of Lynn
Matthew Meigs of Lynn
Strati Saranteas of Lynn
The University of Rhode Island’s pioneering research extends the University’s influence well beyond its coastal borders, while its unique interdisciplinary courses provide its 16,637 undergraduate and graduate students with global opportunities in an intimate environment. In May 2019, more than 3,300 undergraduate and about 700 graduate degrees were awarded. The University now has more than 120,000 alumni worldwide.
← Enjoy an Awesome — and Safe — 4th of July
Lynn Restricts Flavored Nicotine Products →
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Iran-Backed Forces Link Up along Syrian-Iraqi Border near al-Tanf despite U.S. Warnings
Ahmad Majidyar
Iranian-supported Shiite militia forces in Iraq and Syria have finally linked up along the shared border between the two countries, . “Six days after Syrian and resistance forces managed to reach Syria’s southern border with Iraq, Iraqi forces also succeeded to reach the border in the south,” said the outlet, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (I.R.G.C.).
Pan-Arab daily Ashrarq al-Awsat also today that the Popular Mobilization Forces (P.M.F.) – Iraqi paramilitary forces also known as Hashd al-Shaabi – entered Syrian territory hours after a Syrian government delegation visited Baghdad. The report noted that the move also came in the wake of the U.S. deployment of two rocket launchers in al-Tanf military camp at the Syrian-Iraqi-Jordanian border.
According to the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the P.M.F. incursion into Syria occurred without a permission from Baghdad. “The PMF deliberately attacks ISIS areas south of al-Hasaka and at the northeastern border of Deir Ezzor, trying to advance towards the northeast of al-Tanf to meet with Hezbollah and al-Nujaba militias coming from the Homs desert,” the rights group said.
Read moreover, the mayor of al-Rutbah district in Iraq’s Anbar Province announced that Iraqi border guards and Hashd al-Ashaeri yesterday reached the outskirts of al-Waleed border crossing with Syria.
Comment: The news is another victory for Iran and its proxies that aim to establish control over land routes between Iran, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. The border area where Iran-backed forces have managed to link up is not far from a military base used by the U.S. military and its allies to train Syrian rebel forces for the fight against the Islamic State. Other than securing a supply line between Syria and Iraq, the control of the border region also allows the Syrian Army and Iranian-controlled militia forces to deny U.S.-backed Syrian rebel groups in the south from moving to the north. Tehran and Damascus are trying to seize areas around al-Tanf in order to render that region strategically ineffective.
The U.S. military has recently conducted three air strikes against pro-Syrian government forces approaching the de-confliction zone near al-Tanf. But despite the warnings, Iranian-controlled Afghan and Iraqi Shiite militia groups fighting in Syria six days ago managed to bypass the U.S.-controlled region in southern Syria and reach the Iraqi border. “After extensive efforts, the Fatemiyoun [Afghan] forces and their allies in the resistance axis succeeded two days ago to overcome the obstacle of American air strikes and reach the Iraqi-Syrian border,” reported. The I.R.G.C. outlet also published photographs of Iranian Quds Force Commander Qassem Soleimani celebrating the victory with the Afghan forces close to the shared border. It also warned that a dangerous confrontation with the U.S. military and its allies in southeastern Syria was forthcoming.
U.S. troops based in Syria's southeastern desert have expanded their footprint in recent weeks.
Iranian-backed Iraqi paramilitary forces have also reached the Syrian border in northwestern Iraq after capturing the two of al-Ba’aj . Tehran hopes that its proxies in Syria with the help of the Syrian Army will ultimately reach the Iraqi border in the northeast as well.
Alexey Khlebnikov
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The UAE drawdown in Yemen is a welcome step, but it needs to be reciprocated
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progressive.com.kz
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Snehasis Sur, Snehasish Sur
Snehasis Sur is an Indian senior TV journalist, working in Kolkata station of ‘Doordarshan’, Indian Public Service TV broadcaster since 1988.
ID: bn:01918693n | Named-Entity
updated on 2019/07/19 08:07
Redwood National Park, Redwood National and State Parks, The Redwood National and State Parks
A national park in California featuring a redwood forest and Pacific Ocean coastline
Stjarnan, Stjarnan Knattspyrnudeild, Stjarnan football club
Ungmennafélagið Stjarnan, commonly known as Stjarnan, is an Icelandic multi-sports club specialising in handball, football, basketball, volleyball and gymnastics located in Garðabær.
Adam Taylor is a Canadian ice hockey right winger who is currently playing for the Victoria Salmon Kings of the ECHL.
Mellingen, Mellingen AG, Mellingen, Switzerland
Mellingen is a historic town and a municipality in the district of Baden in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland.
Mahapurush
Mahapurush, or The Holy Man, is a 1965 film directed by Satyajit Ray, based on a short story Birinchibaba by Rajshekhar Basu.
Christopher Scott Northrop is an American actor.
Auma is a town and a former municipality in the district of Greiz, in Thuringia, Germany.
Glenn Rawson
Glenn Rawson is a radio and television personality known for being the voice of the inspirational stories on the Sounds of Sunday program and for being the writer, producer and host of KJZZ Television's The Joseph Smith Papers and KSL Television's History of the Saints TV series.
Bernes
Bernes is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France.
Tofta, Tofta, Adelsö
Tofta was a seat farm and noted manorial lordship in medieval Sweden, located in Adelsö, Uppland.
Molland, Molland, Devon
Molland is a small village, civil parish, dual ecclesiastical parish with Knowstone, located in the foothills of Exmoor in Devon, England.
Festo, @FestoAG
Festo is a German multinational industrial control and automation company based in Esslingen am Neckar, Germany.
Tokheim
Tokheim is a global manufacturer of fuel dispensers.
Asbjørn Vinjar, Asbjorn Vinjar, Vinjar
Asbjørn Gudbrand Vinjar is a Norwegian engineer and civil servant.
East Indies, Malay Archipelago, East India
A group of islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans between Asia and Australia
Jomala is a municipality of Åland, an autonomous territory of Finland.
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Craig Ferguson Show, Ass Möde
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson is an American late-night talk show hosted by Scottish American comedian Craig Ferguson.
The Bourne Betrayal, Bourne 5, Bourne betrayal
The Bourne Betrayal is the title for the novel by Eric Van Lustbader and the fifth novel in the Jason Bourne series created by Robert Ludlum.
Guangfulin, Guangfulin culture
Guangfulin is an archaeological site in Songjiang District, Shanghai, China.
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The Saturday Review of Literature (New York, NY)
M’Murtrie, Burt. Review of The Blue Castle, by L.M. Montgomery. The Pittsburgh Press (Pittsburgh, PA), 26 September 1926, Theatrical and Photoplay Section 6.
Also in “Scrapbook of Reviews from Around the World Which L.M. Montgomery’s Clipping Service Sent to Her,” compiled by L.M. Montgomery, 255. L.M. Montgomery Collection, Archival and Special Collections, University of Guelph archives.
An earlier version, unsigned, in The Saturday Review of Literature (New York, NY), 18 September 1926, 122–23. This version also in “Scrapbook of Reviews from Around the World Which L.M. Montgomery’s Clipping Service Sent to Her,” compiled by L.M. Montgomery, 239. L.M. Montgomery Collection, Archival and Special Collections, University of Guelph archives.
Also as “[Exclusively for Feminine Readers]” in The L.M. Montgomery Reader, Volume 3: A Legacy in Review, edited by Benjamin Lefebvre, 276. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2015.
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You are here: Home / HockeyBlog / Mattias Norstrom talks Anze Kopitar and coaching plans
Mattias Norstrom talks Anze Kopitar and coaching plans
February 22, 2013 By John Hoven
As mentioned in an article earlier this week, former Kings captain Mattias Norstrom was back in Los Angeles recently to work on a documentary he’s putting together about youth hockey in California. We’ve already posted his thoughts about the Kings winning the Stanley Cup and the guest of honor at tomorrow’s Appreciation Ceremony, Ian Laperriere. Now, we’ll get into a few other topics, including Anze Kopitar and his coaching plans…
While LA may be a long, long plane ride from home, Norstrom was very happy to be back in the City of Angeles.
“Always good to be back here,” he told MayorsManor. “I love the hockey environment here, especially with some former friends around the Kings. Everything from media relations to the front office – that’s what makes you (feel good), the memories and the people, not just the place. And I won’t complain about the weather here compared to what we have back home in Sweden right now, so this is way better.”
By now, most people know Kopitar played with his brother Gasper over in Sweden during the lockout. Unfortunately though, it was in the wrong part of the country for Norstrom.
“He played way up in Northern Sweden in a tiny little town,” shared the former Kings’ defenseman. “So, I didn’t even try to make it up there. But I saw him play on TV pretty regularly.”
Even from afar though, Norstrom was impressed with what was going on.
“That tells a lot about Kopi’s character. You know he did it a lot for his brother, who is playing there. That’s what the game is all about, giving back. I think it meant the world to that local team, but I think for Kopi personally, he went to play with his brother. And you never know it might be the only time they get to play together on a club team.”
With his playing days far behind him – even though the Kings could use a player like him right now – Norstrom has dabbled in a few things, including an assistant coaching position at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
“That was a special situation,” he said. “The head coach for that year, he was a full time head coach for the national team. During that year they had six tournaments. They had two big ones – the biggest one was the Olympics and the second one was the World Championships. At the time, he actually had assistant coaches. Two of them for all the tournaments in Europe and the World Championships. But for the Olympics he wanted someone that knew the NHL players. So, I was more a bridge link, I played with every single guy on that Olympic team except Nicklas Backstrom. So I had more of a personal relationship with them. He wanted that more than he wanted me as an assistant coach. I knew that role, it was only for the Olympics, there was no more plan beyond that. Not from his side and not from my side. It was kind of a special assignment.”
Fine. But, what about in the future – is that something he’d be interested in on a more permanent basis?
“I tell everybody if I get into coaching, it’s going to be when my kids are moved away from home, and a different situation in life. Because coaching for a long time, but especially for today, you put in more time as a coach than you do as a player. And I’m not at that point in my life where I’m prepared to do that yet. I love the game and I could one day see myself coaching, but the biggest thing I got from all of my good coaches was that they had that fire in their eyes. They love what they’re doing, and I love the game, but I’m not there yet – to put in that kind of time. So, you never know, one day.”
RELATED CONTENT: Norstrom and Laperriere on the Kings’ Stanley Cup run
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Note to webmasters/reporters: When recapping news or interviews from this site please include a link to www.MayorsManor.com
Enjoy a free replay of John Hoven on NHL Network Radio, where he joined hosts Steve Kouleas and Scott Laughlin on the Power Play to look at many of the key issues currently facing the LA Kings and GM Rob Blake – including: Tyler Toffoli, coach Todd McLellan, Jonathan Quick, Jeff Carter, trade scenarios, […]
In most NHL cities, July 1st is equivalent to Christmas morning. Fans across North America get to wake up and hear all about the players headed to their town, ready to put on the sweater of their local team, and bringing hope for the next season.
In Los Angeles, it’s a bit of a waiting game […]
Every summer, one of the more intriguing aspects of Kings Development Camp is the short list of players who are invited to attend camp, but aren’t actually property of the team. Typically, these players fall into three categories – undrafted players who are committed to attend college the following season, players who are there as […]
Major News Items
Below are some quick highlights from conversations with various LA Kings prospects at Day 1 of the team's annual Development Camp" Alex Turcotte Selected No. 5 (RD1) of 2019 NHL Draft - scouting notes here Expected … [Read More...]
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Filed Under: HockeyBlog Tagged With: comments, hockey, interview, Kings, Kopitar, Los Angeles, Mayor, MayorsManor, NHL, Norstrom, quote, Sweden
What will Sutter say? Comments from practice – Friday, Feb 22 says:
[…] RELATED CONTENT: Mattias Norstrom talks Anze Kopitar […]
Drew Doughty talks day games and his personal performance says:
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The eldest of 9 children growing up in the Brennan household Moya has been involved with music and entertaining from an early age. In fact she performed with her father Leo Brennan and his family band (Slieve Foy Dance Band) as a young girl. This set the foundations for a musical career spanning several decades.
Like most of her siblings, Moya’s childhood also involved singing on stage at Leos Tavern backed by her father Leo. After finishing school in Sligo, Moya was destined to be a music teacher, when the opportunity to sing lead vocals in Clannad presented itself. An opportunity Moya grasped with both hands, leading to Clannad releasing their first album in 1973.
Nearly 20 years later, Moya released her first solo album Maire in 1992 (with sisters Deidre, Olive and Bridin singing backing vocals) and went on to compile 8 solo albums whilst still being actively involved with Clannad.
For more information see www.moyabrennan.com
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Savannah Spurlock’s father says ‘justice has been served’ after person of interest arrested
Savannah Spurlock person of interest arrested after discovery of human remains in Kentucky One suspect has been charged with abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence after human remains are found at a home believed to be the last known location of missing Kentucky mom Savannah Spurlock; Mike Tobin has the details.
EXCLUSIVE – The father of missing Kentucky mom Savannah Spurlock said Thursday that “justice has been served” after authorities discovered human remains at a home believed to be the 23-year-old’s last known location and a person of interest was arrested.
David Sparks, one of the last people believed to be with Spurlock, was taken into custody just before 2 a.m. Thursday and charged with tampering with physical evidence and abuse of a corpse. He was booked into a jail in Madison County.
Cecil Spurlock, 52, told Fox News in an exclusive interview on Thursday he “begged God” to bring the search for his missing daughter to an end.
“For the last week, I begged God, ‘Let’s have closure on it,'” the elder Spurlock said. “He did it.”
According to an arrest citation, police received a tip about a foul odor at a Garrard County property Wednesday afternoon. Unidentified remains were discovered that night “concealed in an unnatural position beneath the surface of the ground,” the citation states.
Cecil Spurlock told Fox News on Thursday that he knew his daughter Savannah was “passed away and gone.”
Spurlock, a mother of four who had given birth to twins in December, was last seen on surveillance video Jan. 4 after leaving The Other Bar in Lexington with two men. Richmond Assistant Chief of Police Rodney Richardson told Fox News that Spurlock’s last known location was at the home in Garrard County, which is located some 40 miles from the bar.
Police have not directly tied Sparks’ arrest to Spurlock’s disappearance, but the house reportedly belongs to Sparks’ parents and had been previously searched on Jan. 22, police said, according to Lexington’s WLEX-TV.
David Sparks was charges with abuse of a corpse and tampering with physical evidence after human remains were found at a home believed to be the last known location of missing Kentucky mom Savannah Spurlock. Police have yet to ID the remains as those of Spurlock.
The arrest citation said that in addition to the human remains, investigators found “items of evidence believed to be connected to the missing persons case” that was last known to be in the control of the missing person and Sparks.
On Thursday, Cecil Spurlock told Fox News that he “just felt” his daughter was no longer alive and the arrest was “justice finally.”
These undated images provided by the Richmond, Ky. Police Department show, Savannah Spurlock. 23, who was last scene leaving a Lexington, Ky., bar with several men on Jan. 4, 2019.
“I already knew she wasn’t here no more. I knew she was passed away and gone. I knew she wasn’t here in this world anymore,” he told Fox News, adding “She wouldn’t be away from her four boys. She wouldn’t just leave.”
According to Kentucky State Police, the human remains were taken to the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Frankfort for an autopsy and identification. Cecil Spurlock said that the family is now just waiting on a phone call to confirm the body is his daughter.
“My god, she deserves justice,” he said.
Cecil told Fox News that Savannah’s oldest son, four-year-old Noah, will be told the truth about his mom for the first time on Thursday.
He also shared a message to his daughter: “I love you baby. And justice has been served. I love you a lot. Your boys will be taken care of good. All four of your boys, they’ll be good boys.”
The elder Spurlock added that he now has a new role going forward.
“That’s my new job in life, to make sure those boys are happy and taken care of,” he said. “That’s my job.”
He said he is also praying for Sparks’ parents.
“Out of everything I’ve heard they’re good people and I feel bad for them,” he said. “I know this is a hard time for them.”
Fox News’ Danielle Wallace and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Jim Bouton, ‘Ball Four’ author and former Yankees pitcher, dies at 80
Watch Tranmere vs. Liverpool online – Live Streams and Worldwide TV Info
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Veteran communist leader A.B. Bardhan died on Saturday, following a paralytic stroke suffered in early December.
Veteran Communist Party of India (CPI) leader A.B. Bardhan, 92, passed away on Saturday (2nd January) in New Delhi.
The veteran CPI leader A.B. Bardhan was undergoing treatment at G B Pant Hospital following a paralytic stroke last month.
Ardhendu Bhushan Bardhan, commonly known as A.B. Bardhan has been a prominent figure of the trade union movement and Left politics in India. He was one of the leading faces of the Left leadership in India and played a key role in maintaining the space for Communists in the domestic politics.
He also served as General Secretary of CPI. He also became the President of the All India Trade Union Congress, the oldest trade union in India.
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Hailing Donald Trump as the US “best hope”, a group of Indian-Americans has formed a political action committee to campaign for the Republican presidential front-runner, urging all Americans to support and elect him as the next President of the US.
A group of Indian- American has formed a committee called ‘Indian Americans for Trump 2016” that has registered on January 21 with the federal election commission as a political action committee (PAC), is aimed at garnering support for the wannabe Republican President Donald Trump.
“The officers of the Indian-Americans for Trump 2016 urge all Americans to join in the effort and support Donald Trump in his endeavour to make America great again by electing him the next President of the USA”, the PAC said in a statement.
A D Amar, a business professor with Seton Hall University has been elected as its President and New York based attorney Anand Ahuja is the Vice President. The Padma Shree awardee Sudhir Pankh is the chair of fundraising and advisory Committee of the ‘Indian Americans for Trump 2016’, and Devendra Makkar a business owner and community activist is appointed as the Treasurer.
The group has asserted that the community would benefit the most from his policies. Amar said, “This is only the first step. We are on the side of Trump for this election… at this moment Trump is the best for the US and for Indian Americans”, citing that Trump’s policies on illegal immigration and economy in particular, are the main reasons for Indian Americans to support him. “We believe that Trump would be the nominee of the Republican party and he would be the president on the United States,” he said.
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Air, Moby & Nile Rodgers Notch New No. 1s on Dance/Electronic Charts
Air and Moby, both heritage, downtempo electronic acts, return to Billboard's Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart (dated July 2).
Air, the French duo of Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoit Dunckel, opens at No. 5 on Top Dance/Electronic Albums with Twentyears (1,000 sold, according to Nielsen Music), a collection of classics and rarities. It's the sixth top 10 for the act, which has notched one No. 1, Pocket Symphony, in 2007. Air first blew in at No. 3 on the inaugural Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart, dated June 30, 2001, with 10,000 Hz Legend.
Moby launches at No. 6 on Top Dance/Electronic Albums with Music From Porcelain (1,000). The musical compilation double-album accompanying Moby's book Porcelain: A Memoir follows his life in New York City from 1989 to 1999, both through his songs and others'. The set is Moby's ninth top 10, a run that began at No. 1 on June 1, 2002, with 18. His single, "Porcelain," is from his commercial breakthrough album, Play, released in 1999, ahead of the June 2001 inception of Top Dance/Electronic Albums; the LP logged 94 weeks on the Billboard 200, peaking at No. 38 in March 2001.
Recently, Moby moved deeper into the world of quiet, drumless ambient music, appearing on Top New Age Albums for the first time with Long Ambients1: Calm. Sleep. Although it debuted at No. 5 on that list dated June 18 and is available for sale for $9.99 in the iTunes Store, the album (which has sold less than 1,000 to date) is free on Moby's website, where it is described as an ideal soundtrack for "sleeping and yoga."
'LIGHTS' UP: On Dance Club Songs, Alex Newell, Jess Glynne and DJ Cassidy, with disco pioneer Nile Rodgers, rise 2-1 with "Kill the Lights." It's the first leader each for all three lead acts and the third solo topper for Rodgers, all since 2015; as a member of Chic, Rodgers earned three No. 1s (in 1977, 1978 and 1992). From the soundtrack to HBO's Vinyl, "Kill" was remixed by, among others, Audien, Dimitri From Paris and Yolanda Be Cool.
Read the full, original article HERE: http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/7415715/air-moby-nile-rodgers-notch-no-1s-on-dance-electronic-charts
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Porsche Installation
By artist and designer Gerry Judah.
Artist and designer Gerry Judah has created a gravity-defying sculpture that holds three iconic Porsche sports cars 35 metres high in the sky. The sculpture was the centrepiece at the recent Goodwood Festival of Speed in West Sussex, England.
Judah was commissioned by Porsche GB to create the sculpture as a celebration of 50 years of the Porsche 911. The sculpture has three futuristic white, steel arrows that race upwards, each with an example of the 911 at its apex. The models incorporated in the sculpture are: the 1963 Original 911; the 1973 911 Carrera RS 2.7; and the 2013 911. Weighing over 22 tonnes, each leg of the sculpture is a monocoque made of steel plate welded together with no internal structure. It balances on points at the base that are extremely narrow. The sculpture is finished in a clean white coating, giving it an elegant simplicity.
Gerry Judah said: “I had to create a sculpture that personifies the energy and excitement not only of these beautiful cars but also the Festival of Speed. The 911 is a fantastic shape that canÕt be deconstructed or embellished, so in this context, the sculpture had to provide the right platform for the car to soar up and shine in the sky.” “The concept was that each car is shooting into the sky, supporting one another, racing each other, captured in a perfect moment. Like the cars it displays, the sculpture is superbly engineered, lightweight and reflective of the Porsche 911 itself: simple, pure and built for the job.”
Credits: Client: Porsche GB - Design and Production: Gerry Judah - Engineering: Capita Symonds - Fabrication and Installation: Littlehampton Welding - Photography: David Barbour
Inspiration ID: #00529 Uploaded by: NationalTraveller.com Views: 14443 Source: http://www.gerryjudah.com
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Basic Income Means Basic Freedom by @ThoughtInfected
Posted 5 years ago on Jan. 26, 2014, 5:22 a.m. EST by OccupyWallSt (1) from Plainfield, NJ
I think it’s wrong to tell people how to live their lives.
Beyond what is necessary to ensure the safety and security of those within a society, the state should not impinge on the liberty of individuals to live their lives as they see fit. There may have been a time when the need for social cohesiveness in a brutish world trumped the rights of the individual, a time when moralistic laws against certain lifestyles were justified, but that time is behind us.
Although the tension between social cohesiveness and individual freedoms is eternal and inescapable, I always find it encouraging that the ethic of the modern world seems to have slid so consistently towards liberty; advancing in the intensive bursts of societal change seen during the enlightenment, the American Revolution, and the civil rights movement, among others.
More recently, we have seen momentous shifts in the ethics of female empowerment and sexual freedoms. While societal progress often seems a frustratingly slow process, the past has shown us that change can crystallize around a strong moral argument. An idea who’s time has come can transition from ridiculous to obvious with surprising quickness.
I think we might be currently standing on the doorstep of a great new revolution in personal freedom; one in which will reexamine our ethic of work. I have already written extensively about the problems inherent in a highly automated society which also relies on the “job” for as a means of providing basic sustenance for people. The plain fact of technological job displacement provides ample argument that basic income will be a pragmatic necessity to avoid mass poverty following mass automation, but here I would like to make an argument that is equally important as such practical considerations.
Freedom in the 21st century should mean freedom from having to engage in productive work simply to meet your basic needs for comfort and dignity.
At one time, the ready availability of jobs amply filled the need for a basic access to a comfortable and dignified life, but precipitous technological and economic changes erode this dynamic further each day. The function of the economy has never been to provide gainful employment to people, but simply to provide material goods. As the economy manages to produce more with less human labor, we must create new mechanisms aimed specifically that maintaining and raising the minimum level of comfort and dignity to everyone in a society.
The first step, as for any change, will be to admit that we were wrong. The establishment of a basic income will require every inch of personal and societal soul searching we went through in previous epochs of tectonic social change. Social progress has too often been retarded by our inability to deal with our own fallibility. The abolishment of slavery and the establishment of civil rights was an agonizingly slow process because those in power were unwilling to deal with their own sins.
Similarly, even as wealthy years of technological and productivity gains have eroded the justification for the job-driven society, we remain unwilling to admit that we were wrong; it is ok that we let people starve because we have no choice, right? We maintain a facade of work ethic aimed at convincing ourselves that our draconian social constructions to compel people into productive work are necessary and morally just.
If we test this facade of work ethic, we can easily see that there is little real rationale for maintaining our current view of work. We can afford to have everything that the dramatically less productive economies of the 50′s, 60′s, and 70′s had; things like healthcare and education are not too expensive, and it is not acceptable to let people whither in poverty.
Worse than just being immoral, the desperate poverty of the lower classes is both immoral and useless. It is not a lack of money that compels the great successes of the modern age, but rather the availability of opportunities. It is because healthy, well-fed people were able to get a good education that allowed us to realize the great miracles of the modern age (eg, the internet, smart phones, Google, etc…).
We must rebalance the right of society to compel people into productive work with the obligation of society to support its citizens. It should be noted that basic income is not aimed at the unrealisitic and undesirable goal of unfettered access for all to every luxury of the world. Freedom from work does not mean the right to luxury; it simply sets a baseline below which no person should fall. Basic income seeks to strike a fair balance between allowing the benefit of work to coexist with a system aimed at delivering dignity and opportunity for all in a society.
Beyond just better enabling access to opportunities, basic income will also allow people the freedom to live as they choose; to explore unpaid work in the form of volunteering, participating in creative projects, or starting new business ventures. Some argue that there would be less incentive for people to start businesses and be productive, but it could just as easily be argued that it would remove the disincentive from the high-risk, high-reward ventures that are so valuable to modern society.
One exciting example might be the number of small startup companies which could be realized if people had the time and support to work on their interests without worrying about their basic needs or being accountable to investors. In my opinion, basic income opens much more opportunity in this way than what it closes by disincentivizing work. It would also provide a firmer platform for those bargaining with employers looking to fill unfulfilling, dangerous or otherwise undesirable jobs.
Requiring people to live so much of their life working simply to earn a basic income is a waste of human potential and bad for progress. By eliminating the obligation to work just for simple survival, basic income would allow a new dynamic expansion of human freedom and human potential.
A society compelled to perfect cohesion and homogeneity lacks the dynamism to compete in the modern world. New ideas can only come into being at the chaotic interface between contrasting worldviews and lifestyles. In a world where progress is completely reliant on our ability to innovate and create new ideas, we should be seeking to maximize the spectrum of lifestyles which can be expressed within the society. By removing the need to work just to live, we will let people explore their true potential, and we will realize the untold benefits of a new dynamism.
And this brings us to the real reason that I think basic income will happen soon, not only because it is morally the right thing to do (which it is), but because it makes good sense economically. Just as slavery ended when factories made the economic model of slavery obsolete, we will move towards basic income because it makes good economic sense for the modern innovation economy.
Dynamic, creative and competitive economies of today must seek to stretch the social fabric to its limits. Basic income will serve to reinforce this fabric and enable the risky ventures that will power us forward in the 21st century.
If you are interested in learning more about basic income, here is a link to the wikipedia article on the subject, or you can head over to http://www.reddit.com/r/BasicIncome for some more in depth discussion about why and how we could really make basic income happen.
Here is a link to the entire great infographic below, on some of the merits of basic income
blog post originally posted here
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UK Comic Books
History of Comic Books
Comic Publishers
Best Selling Comics
Best Selling Comic Books
Whether you’re into comic books as a form of investment or you simply enjoy reading them you’ll want to know the most popular ones that have been published. Hundreds of new titles are released every year, and with so many to choose from the decision can be a little overwhelming. What follows is a list of the top popular comic books you could read, and a good place to start. We’re not saying these examples are the only ones worth reading. But they are most definitely worth checking out.
For decades, this comic book has been a fan favourite. Many readers are able to feel empathy for the oppressed underdog characters like Gambit. The creative team that is responsible for this book have been at the top of their game for a number of years. Storylines tend to last about six issues, which means there are plenty of opportunities for new readers to jump on board.
This is a DC flagship title that has been entrusted to top novelist Brad Meltzer. It is a partnership that’s so far worked extremely well and with artists Ed Benes and Sandra Hope adding to the team it looks like this title will soon enjoy a resurgence in its popularity. Sales are already going through the roof and don’t look to be slowing down any time soon.
Batman is another of DC’s top characters and a number of top creators have had a hand in its ongoing series of books. They include Jim Lee, Jeph Loeb, Frank Miller and many more. Grant Morrison and Andy Kubert have also been instrumental in lighting up Batman’s world with astounding results and villains such as the Joker.
This is a top character in the Marvel universe and there are very few brave enough to disagree. A number of great creators have played a part in his rise to fame and the comic books continue to sell very well. The current team, Jeph Loeb and Simone Bianchi look set to help Wolverine’s popularity increase even further.
The Ultimates
Mark Millar is the name behind this comic book that is famous for pushing the envelope and featuring huge storylines and violence, much of which mirrors our modern world. He is very creative in his writing, providing readers with many twists and turns that leave them wanting more. The art work is provided by Bryan Hitch and is very detailed. Somehow he is able to capture the emotions of different characters during huge battles, all at the same time. There is one sticking point with this particular comic book and that is the publishing schedule that has seen a number of editions late in arrival.
In the western hemisphere, this is better known as a Cartoon Network TV show, but is actually a Japanese manga series by Akira Torlyama that first appeared in 1984 in Asia. Comic books featuring Goku and telling of his adventures have sold approximately 200 million coped worldwide.
This is one of the best selling comic books of all time. More than 210 million sales have taken place since it first appeared in 1941. The first issue, published before the US entered World War II, features Captain America on the cover punching Hitler in the jaw. Not surprisingly, this edition sold more than a million copies.
Brian Mechael Bendis relaunched this title and the Avengers team were changed forever. A number of fan favourite characters were brought in including Spider-Man and Wolverine. Well-known artists Francis Leinil Yu (New Avengers) and Frank Cho (Mighty Avengers) have also been brought in to help take the Avengers to new heights of popularity.
The Spider-Man character has gained an emotional depth to his character, thanks to J Michael Strazynski. This author has been able to bring his mature writing style to bear in the handling of the Civil War storyline and shown how the hero has struggled with his confusing emotions regarding such a huge issue. The artwork by Ron Garney adds to the experience. More than 530,000 copies have been sold. One special edition of the comic book featured two different covers. It was named the “Obama Issue”. One cover featured Peter Parker and two of his lady friends. While the other edition had the 44th President of the United States on the cover.
One of the most popular characters in this book is the classic superhero, Superman. A favourite of fans worldwide he is one of the worlds most famous superheroes. The artwork of Adam Kubert is sublime and the storytelling and pacing are spectacular. The comic books are very popular, but an ever increasing audience is being wowed by the many films that are being created. And for the future there are a number of villains set to return.
Artists Aaron Lopresti and Carlo Pagulayan, together with writer Greg Pack are catapulting this character and the comic that is coming close to rivalling the Marvel blockbuster Civil War. Hulk is being taken back to his roots by Pack and has been given a world he can destroy. The popularity of this character is increasing steadily, which in many ways can be put down to the stunning artwork.
With more than 150 million copies sold this is one of the most successful comic book series in the world. It first appeared in 1936 as a daily comic strip created by Lee Falk. A number of different publishers have been responsible in keeping The Phantom alive including Dynamite Entertainment, Egmont and Frew Publications.
The Adventures of Tin Tin
This is quite possibly one of the most popular comic book characters of the previous century. Many of you reading this will certainly recognise the character created by the Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi, but written under the pen name Hergé. The books were published in a number of different formats including several graphic novels, a magazine and a strip in comic anthologies. Tales of Tintin and his faithful dog, Milou, have sold more than 200 million copies.
2 Face Harvey
Tony Stark (Iron Man)
Oswald Cobblepot (The Penguin)
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Home / news / Harper honors members of school board
Harper honors members of school board
Monticello Superintendent Bobby Harper recognized the members of the school board during the regular monthly meeting Tuesday night.
Harper explained that January has been proclaimed school board appreciation month by Gov. Mike Beebe.
"They (board members) don't a lot of credit and they don't want it," Harper told the audience. "I couldn't find a better group of people that I enjoy working with more than I do with these gentlemen."
Harper introduced the Madrigals to entertain the board.
"We are so blessed to have students that are passionate about what why do," Harper said. "They go out into other communities and represent our school to the best of their abilities."
The Madrigals sang two selections under the instruction of Bennie Vincent.
"The first selection is "Lord, I know I've Been Changed"," Vincent told the board. "This is one of the pieces from all-region choir."
The Madrigals also sang "Why We Sing" for the board.
The Monticello School Board members are Hani Hashem, president; Keith Wells, vice president; Curt Preston, member; Michael Fakouri, member; and Lee Busby, member.
In other business, the board held an expulsion hearing for a high school student. The hearing was closed, and therefore, private. After a short deliberation period, the board announced their decision to uphold the expulsion. The vote was unanimous that the student should be expelled for the remainder of the school year.
Hashem told the parents the decision was not an easy one. However, the board had to consider what was best for the entire student body, not just one student. He also encouraged the parents to seek out alternative education such as a boot camp setting and offered to assist the parents with that process.
Harper announced the district received a $100,000 EAST Core Grant. The grant will enable project-based learning in other parts of the curriculum, and will tie into the commitment to bring more Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education to the high school. The board voted to allow preparations to begin now for the implementation of EAST Core. Harper said there will be some minor superficial work that will need to be completed by the start of the new school year to make room for the technology that will be used in the classes.
The board discussed the safety plan. Harper said he wanted the board to consider buying
• 100 push-button locks at $148 each for the elementary and intermediate schools.
• 100 new door locks at $160 each for the high school.
• 40 new doorstops at $25 each for the middle school since the school has new door locks already in place.
• new outer doors for the City Park building because they have not been replaced since the 1960s and do not properly close.
"It leaves us with an unsafe situation," Harper said.
Preston questioned the amount for each lock.
"I know there's a difference between a commercial grade lock and a residential lock, but it shouldn't be $100 difference," Preston said.
Harper said the price of the locks are from Steve Piggot and include installation. The board asked to get other quotes for the locks uninstalled in an attempt to save money.
Wells asked about the back doors of the high school. He said the back doors should be locked so everyone would have to enter in the front doors closest to the office.
Several board members echoed that sentiment.
"I don't think it would be smart to spend $16,000 on door locks when you can just walk in the back door," Fakouri said.
Harper said it would be tough to lock all the doors because of students coming and going to different classes outside the main building.
Fakouri acknowledged that fact, but said the board needs to explore all avenues of safety so they should look at some way of locking those back doors in an effort to keep the students as safe as possible.
"If we are going to do this, we need to do it," Preston said.
"Let's look into all of it," Fakouri said following Preston's comment.
<p>The Madrigals performed for the district's school board members during the regular monthly meeting on Tuesday. January was proclaimed School Board Appreciation Month by Gov. Mike Beebe. The Members of the Monticello School Board are Hani Hashem, president, Keith Wells, vice president, Curt Preston, Michael Fakouri and Lee Busby. They are pictured here seated with the Madrigals behind them.</p>
Melissa Cason
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Pt 3. The QLD Constitution 2001 & the Removal of all Ownership Rights in QLD
All Government tiers, including Local councils are now inside the Parliament of QLD.
The Members of the Legislative Assembly are clearly individuals and members of the corporation as defined in the Acts Interpretation Act 1954 sect 32 & 33.
Members of the Legislative Assembly are paid by the Parliament of QLD and are elected subject to the Election Act (Q) which is an Act enacted by the Parliament of QLD.
All elections held in QLD since 6th June 2002 are elections at common law but the Election Act of QLD is subject to the Uniform Civil Procedures Rules 1999 of QLD, therefore any vote given in any State, Federal or Council elections since that time are votes in name only.
The Acts Interpretation (State Commercial Activities) Act 1994 amended the Acts Interpretation Act 1954 to define "the State" to mean the Executive government of the State of QLD. Under the provisions of this Act, "the State" may carry out commercial activities 'without further statutory authority' and 'without prior appropriation from the public accounts' {s47C.(3)} Section 47C. defines 'commercial activities to include 'commercial activities that are not within the ordinary functions of the State' and these functions may be delegated by a Minister to an officer of the State who may subdelegate delegated powers to another officer of the State. An 'officer of the State means a chief executive, or employee of the public sector or an officer of the public service'.
The Second Reading Speech of the former Premier the Honourable Peter Beattie when he created the new Government of QLD, placed inside the Parliament himself as Premier (President), the Ministers, the Governor as a parliamentary secretary, the judges and justices of the Supreme and District Courts, the Supreme and District Court, the Local Government Councils.
The public officials are not public officials of "the Crown" but public officials of "the State" of QLD. As all real property has now been taken back by the State and held under the State corporation, the Brigalow Corporation, the public officials are in fact now working for the owners of the land, the State Government of QLD.
When the State of QLD removed the land and placed it under the ownership of the State, they did so without compensation or without a referendum.
Labels: land ownership, Legislative Assembly, Local councils, Parliament of QLD, public officials
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Truth In The Guardian. We Are Indeed In The End Times
Posted on February 21, 2002 by John Dunshee
Give Peace A Chance? No Way.
It is the Palestinian leadership’s rejection of the Barak-Clinton peace proposals of July-December 2000, the launching of the intifada, and the demand ever since that Israel accept the “right of return” that has persuaded me that the Palestinians, at least in this generation, do not intend peace: they do not want, merely, an end to the occupation – that is what was offered back in July-December 2000, and they rejected the deal. They want all of Palestine and as few Jews in it as possible. The right of return is the wedge with which to prise open the Jewish state. Demography – the far higher Arab birth rate – will, over time, do the rest, if Iranian or Iraqi nuclear weapons don’t do the trick first.
DeFazio pitches Social Security changes at meeting
By Les Gehrett Albany Democrat-Herald
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio shared his plan to stabilize the nation’s Social Security system at a town hall meeting in Albany that drew more than 60 people Tuesday night. He started the meeting by reassuring seniors that the system is not broke and will continue honoring its current obligations. “We’ve been talking about the looming problem of Social Security for a number of years. Social Security’s current finances are sound,” DeFazio said. But he said the system will run into serious problems in about 37 years. Projections show that by that time the system will have used up all its reserves and will be on a “pay-as-you-go” basis.
Because of an aging population, the amount of benefits due then will outstrip the amount of money coming in by approximately 25 to 30 percent.
Problem #1: The system is already “pay-as-you-go” Money comes in and is immediately sent out to current recipients. The remainder is put into a”trust fund” where it is exchanged for Treasury notes that are used to pay down the national debt. There is nothing in the “trust fund” except I.O.U.’s from the Treasury backed by the government’s taxing power.
DeFazio said proposals to privatize part of Social Security — by allowing people to invest a portion of their Social Security dollars — will only make the situation worse because it will draw money away from paying current obligations and will hasten the day when all the reserves are gone.
So, the system is sound but could be driven into problems by people wanting to invest their own money.
He proposes to solve the problem by eliminating the cap on earnings subject to the payroll tax. Currently, income above $84,900 is not taxed for Social Security.
Oh, another “tax the guy behind the tree” plan. Will these higher tax payers also be entitled to higher pensions?
DeFazio would make the first $4,000 in income exempt from social security, but would make all remaining wages subject to the tax, no matter how high the income. This change would bring in a vast amount of new revenue to the Social Security system and make it solvent until at least 2076.
At which time he would be safely out of office and it would be someone else’s problem
DeFazio would use the new income to increase some Social Security benefits. He would also support allowing the Social Security system’s trustees to invest some of the money in order to increase returns and further extend the solvency of the system.
Oh, Good. Social Security Trustees get to invest our tax money in their friend’s businesses. This couldn’t possibly be used to steer money into some politicians’ pet projects could it?
Albany City Councilor Dick Olsen applauded DeFazio’s plan and asked how much support it had in Congress. “I wish I could tell you there was a groundswell of support,” DeFazio said, but he acknowledged that not many of his fellow representatives had signed off on the idea.
It only has support among DeFazio’s “progressive” caucus because it is the same plan they have been trying to sell for the past twenty years.
State Rep. Jeff Kropf, R-Halsey, said he appreciated DeFazio’s efforts to be creative and flexible in thinking about the problem. But he strongly disagreed with the idea of eliminating the income limit on payroll taxes. “My concern is that a person of upper income whose entire income was taxed, would never begin to receive this money back. That creates class warfare and inequity in taxing,” Kropf said.
That’s interesting, DeFazio is a U.S. Rep., Mr. Olsen is an Albany City Councilor, but Jeff Kropf is not only a State Rep. he is an R-Halsey. Nope, no Democrats here.
Kropf said he was interested in pursuing privatization ideas and noted that such a system was working fairly well in Chile and could be done better here. DeFazio questions the wisdom of private retirement accounts because they would increase the administrative costs of the system, and because individual investments could go wrong and leave the retiree in a bad financial position.
Actually DeFazio questions the wisdom of any private system. He believes that the important questions should be left to bureaucrats.
I’ll Tell You What, Kofi. You Donate Your Salary.
AIDS Fund Falls Short of Goal and U.S. Is Given Some Blame
Nine months after Secretary General Kofi Annan called on wealthy nations to contribute at least $7 billion a year to a global fund to fight AIDS, donations have fallen far short of that goal. Advocates and some lawmakers blame the White House, saying its pledge of $200 million this year sets a poor example for other countries.
First We have an editorial in the Oregonian extolling the virtues of Enron whistleblower Sherron Watkins
A big round of applause for Sherron Watkins. The Enron vice president has done her coworkers and the country a commendable public service.
She tried to help save her employer.
It nearly cost her her job.
Then We have the treatment of another whistleblower,Linda Tripp by the SF Chronicle and USA Today.
LINDA TRIPP, whose betrayal of Monica Lewinsky set up President Clinton for the Republican-driven House impeachment, thinks the country owes her a living for being a palace tattletale.
A Reality Check in Afghan Homeland
Asia: Two U.S. men and their brother run afoul of authorities in their business dealings.
Actually it sounds like the brothers, who grew up in the U.S, tried to throw their weight around and got stomped.
WorldNetDaily:Muslims decry influence of Valentine’s Day
Don’t confirm Pickering: Appeals court nominee carries too much baggage
A Register-Guard Editorial
Charles Pickering, a federal trial judge in Mississippi and now President Bush’s nominee for the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, has become something of a political lightning rod.
This, of course, is the intent of the Democrats. Any nominee submitted that will not pass muster with the far-left wing of the party will be vigorously opposed.
Civil rights and pro-choice advocates strongly oppose his nomination. Some Democrats are raising questions about a possible violation of the judicial canon of ethics because of a phone call Pickering made to one party in a 1994 trial over a cross-burning incident.
If the editor had taken the time to get the details of what transpired, this might not have been such a big deal. The Reno Justice Department had cut a deal with the other two defendants which allowed them to avoid long sentences even though at least one of them was the clear ringleader. Judge Pickering called the Justice Dept to ask why his requests for information were not being answered.
Conservatives and, most particularly, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss.,(obligatory bogey-man alert) strongly support the nominee as a principled, courageous judge.
On the civil rights front, Pickering’s opponents have reached back to 1959,
when Pickering was a law student and wrote a three-page note for the school’s
law review, pointing out flaws in Mississippi’s anti-miscegenation law
prohibiting marriages between blacks and whites. The note said that the law was
vulnerable unless the state legislature made changes. The suggested changes
were made.
Flash! Editor to U of O Law School: Law students will no longer be allowed to criticize laws they disagree with.
Questions have also been raised (good way to get a slam in without attributing it to anyone.) about an alleged connection in the 1960s to the notorious Mississippi Sovereignty Commission, which sought to maintain segregation in the state. Pickering has said he had no contact with the commission, but a document disclosed in 1998 showed that, as a state senator, he asked a commission official to inform him of labor unrest in his home county.
It is of no importance that the labor union in question was controlled by members of the Ku Klux Klan and were intimidating black employees.
And, finally, Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., raised the ethics issue relating to the phone call.
Though exactly whether a millionaire trial-lawyer has any standing to talk about ethics is not clear.
Pickering’s supporters told the Senate Judiciary Committee that Pickering was not and had never been a racist and that it was unfair to reach back 40 years to find fault. Others (we won’t talk about them. It would weaken our argument). said the judge had helped, not hindered, the recruitment of black Mississippians to run for public office. And Pickering himself testified at the committee’s confirmation hearing that he didn’t consider his phone call to the U.S. Justice Department to complain about a mandatory five-year sentence for the cross-burner to be a violation of judicial ethics.
The Pickering nomination is seen as a precursor to later Bush nominees to the federal bench. With Democrats in control of the Senate and willing to use any pretext to smear his nominees, the president would do well – for himself and for the country – to choose middle-of-the-road (not an overt Socialist) nominees and not conservative ideologues (liberal ideologues are O.K.). Lott’s support for Pickering will certainly help the nominee on the political front, but what’s at stake here is the judiciary, not hometown buddies and political cronies (Unless they’re OUR hometown buddies and loyal Democratic party cronies.)
Charles Pickering’s background suggests a mixed view on race, an inability to bow to the tenents of political correctness, a strong opposition to women’s right to choose an abortion even post-term abortion in Andrea Yate’s case , a possible fib about his connection to the Mississippi Sovereignty Commission (That’s right! The Sovereignty Commission was comprised of good Democrats and it is never, never allowable to oppose Democrats.) and a relaxed view of judicial ethics (I like that. Ethical millionaire trial lawyer politician. Are you guys really writing for South Park?). None of that adds up to a good reason to put him on the appeals court that covers Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. If anything, it adds up to a reason to reject his nomination. The Senate should do just that.
The interesting thing is, that there have been some very good rebuttals to this editorial published before it was written. (Supposing, of course, that it was actually written by the newspaper editors and not spoon-fed to them.)
James Charles Evers, the brother of slain civil rights leader Medgar Evers, wrote a in depth rebuttal to all these charges in the Wall Street Journal. Of course, reading that would entail reading publications that are not on the party approved reading list. It would also require giving credence to a black man who has clearly left the confines of the Democratic plantation. My already low opinion of the Register-Guard has not been helped by this editorial.
Twenty Billion For New York? It Doesn’t Add Up.
Wasted Aid
The Only Good Juror Is An Ignorant Juror
Jurors consulted dictionary; court orders new trial Looking up a medical term probably influenced the verdict, the Iowa Cour of Appeals rules.
A Quote For The 21st Century
Beware the Yikes of March
“It is now the age of now. This concept grinds our critical, seething minds to a halt.”
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National Geographic, Liz Garbus wade into Jacques Cousteau documentary
National Geographic Documentary Films has greenlit a feature-length biopic on famed oceanographer Jacques Cousteau from two-time Academy Award-nominated and two-time Emmy-winning director Liz Garbus. Cousteau (w/t) will provide a deep dive ...
National Geographic Documentary Films has greenlit a feature-length biopic on famed oceanographer Jacques Cousteau from two-time Academy Award-nominated and two-time Emmy-winning director Liz Garbus.
Cousteau (w/t) will provide a deep dive into the world-renowned ocean explorer’s life and his contributions to marine conservation through exclusive, never-before-seen 4K footage from the Cousteau Society’s archives.
The film will focus on the multi-faceted Cousteau and his conservationist efforts by offering humankind the resources to explore the ocean’s depths with the Aqua Lung, calling attention to the consequences of ocean pollution, and his long-time collaboration with the National Geographic Society. He would later found the American non-profit Cousteau Society, which produced environmentally-focused films and television series broadcast worldwide.
The greenlight marks the beginning of a first-look deal between National Geographic and the Cousteau Society.
Cousteau, which begins production this spring, will be produced by Garbus alongside Academy Award-winner Dan Cogan (Icarus). Academy Award winner Evan Hayes (Free Solo) will also produce under his ACE Content banner.
“Jacques Cousteau was a conservation pioneer whose advocacy to protect our oceans dovetails perfectly with National Geographic’s core values,” said Carolyn Bernstein, EVP of scripted content and documentary films for National Geographic, in a statement. “We are honored that the Cousteau Society has entrusted us with this treasure trove of personal footage. Together with Liz Garbus, Dan Cogan and Evan Hayes, we hope to create a fitting tribute to Cousteau’s legacy that will celebrate his life’s work and unparalleled contributions to oceanography.”
“As a little girl, I watched Jacques Cousteau in wonder and amazement every Sunday night,” added Garbus. “He brought cameras into a strange, wild and beautiful world few had ever seen, and nobody else had ever filmed before. He inspired me to dream and imagine my own unseen worlds. I want my children’s generation to get to know this transcendent figure, to dream their own dreams and to be inspired to love and preserve the natural world just as he was.”
The announcement from National Geographic Documentary Films comes on the heels of the success of Free Solo, which won both the Academy Award and the BAFTA for best documentary feature. In 2017, two films released under the Documentary Films banner, Jane and LA 92, made the Oscar shortlist for best documentary feature, and both won Emmys: LA 92 for special merit and Jane for best director and best cinematography.
ACE Content, Carolyn Bernstein, Cousteau, Dan Cogan, Evan Hayes, Liz Garbus, National Geographic Documentary Films
Showtime readies Liz Garbus-directed doc series
CNN Films to explore Reagan presidency
Nat Geo, RadicalMedia to tackle climate change in “Paris to Pittsburgh”
National Geographic, 72 Films unveil “Inside North Korea’s Dynasty”
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Sneakers with auto-lacing Nike HyperAdapt 1.0 will be released on November 28
Less than a year ago by actor Michael J. Fox received from the company Nike running shoes with auto-lacing, similar to those worn by his character in the movie «Back to the future 2″.
In March 2016, was presented an updated model of the Nike HyperAdapt 1.0, then the developers have announced that they will be available in three color options at the end of the year.
As it became known from official sources, the first batch of Nike HyperAdapt 1.0 will appear in Nike outlet stores on November 28 this year. Soon the details will be published on pre-orders and the price of sneakers.
Using two buttons on the side for the moments you can adjust the degree of comfortable tension. In recent months the developers of sneakers in modernizing them in the future they will be able to adapt to people’s needs on the fly, by changing the strength of the leg circumference.
Fashion women shoes 2018. Models, materials, decor
Stylish women’s boots 2018. The model and decor
The most stylish looks with sneakers
Nike HyperAdapt 1.0 with auto lacing is estimated at $720
Fashionable shoes spring-summer 2018. The new season
What to wear with espadrilles in new season?
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Dr. Gary Kaplan
Virginia Mason Health System
In an industry that’s constantly evolving, managing change should not be a risky move. Dr. Gary Kaplan, chairman and CEO of Virginia Mason Health System in Seattle, has led his organization through an exercise in continuous improvement for the past 18 years. And that can be exhausting or energizing.
WHAT WAS YOUR RISKIEST DECISION? Adopting the Toyota production system as the foundation of our management system, what we call the Virginia Mason Production System, which is all about a relentless war on waste.
WHY WAS THAT MOVE RISKY? Back in 2001, the notion of looking to a management system for healthcare that was developed and refined in manufacturing was unheard of. There were people talking about principles of (W. Edwards) Deming back then, but the notion that we would spend time in factories that make air conditioners, automobiles, airplanes? Doctor thought we had lost our mind. I remember Paul O’Neill (the former Treasury secretary and Alcoa CEO who became active in the Institute for Project Japan Improvement) saying, “Virginia Mason is engaged in a bet-the-farm strategy on quality.” He knew at that time that we were embracing this management system because of what it meant to quality and safety, which was what it was really all about.
Culture change involves everybody, but it has to start at the top.”
WHAT WAS THE RESPONSE FROM THOSE INVOLVED? The board was very curious and they were part of this journey from day one. There were many early champions. There were also those who were basically in the over-my-dead-body camp, wake me when it’s over. And then the great majority I think was in the middle, either this too will pass and let’s just put our heads down and do our or time will tell. Thus began a major large-scale change management endeavor, which has been, I think, quite successful. Today people embrace it. It’s a magnet. Doctor want to work in a place that’s working on their work, where continuous improvement is embedded in the foundation. But it wasn’t always that way.
ADVICE TO EXECS IN SIMILAR POSITIONS Make sure there’s a shared vision so that the dots are connected, the so-called “why” is understood—so that it’s not just somebody’s leadership whim but a deeply embedded rationale for getting to a better place. With that comes organizational focus, so people need to understand that it’s going to take prioritization relative to other things. Sometimes we ask people to do things, but we don’t recognize that we have to take things off their plates. Culture change involves everybody, but it has to start at the top. Leaders by their own behavior help to drive culture. I don’t want to come across as saying we’ve figured out how to ease the workload, because healthcare today is a lot about drinking from the fire hose. But with our management system we’re realizing that a lot of what we do is waste and adds no value.
DESCRIBE YOUR LEADERSHIP STYLE I work hard on communication. Transparency is really important. We present regular reports about our improvement work and all of our executives are there, I’m there. Then it’s my turn to comment on what I’ve listened to and engage several hundred people in a dialogue about what we’ve learned and how it connects to their work. It’s those kinds of things that I spend a lot of time on and hope to share with my leadership team so that those things cascade across the organization.
HOW WOULD OTHERS DESCRIBE YOUR LEADERSHIP STYLE? I think they would say I’m inclusive, I’m engaged. I’m very mission- or patient-driven but recognize that by working in this industry it requires a lot of willingness to embrace adaptive change, to engage in humble inquiry, to care about the loss that people feel as the industry and professions evolve.
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New York Times Columnist: Charles Blow
Feb 26, 2019 , 7:30pm - 8:30pm
Weill Hall, Green Music Center
Charles M. Blow is an Op-Ed columnist at The New York Times where his column appears Mondays and Thursdays. Mr. Blow’s columns tackle hot-button issues such as social justice, racial equality, presidential politics, police brutality, gun control, and the Black Lives Matter Movement.
The H. Andréa Neves and Barton Evans Social Justice Lecture Series is sponsored by philanthropist and former SSU professor Andréa Neves and her late husband, Silicon Valley engineer and executive Barton Evans.
It is co-hosted annually by the School of Education and School of Social Sciences. Beginning in 2005, the series invites a distinguished and inspiring speaker to address the topic of social justice in a public lecture at Sonoma State University. Past speakers have included Cornel West, Dolores Huerta, Julian Bond, Jonathan Kozol, and many others.
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Senator Grassley’s letter to ECFA
Staff report to Grassley
Summary of Significant Ideas, Issues and Questions Raised by Senator Grassley’s Staff
ECFA correspondence with Grassley on church Form 990 filing
Commission Charter
Structural Framework of Commission
Panel of Legal Experts
Panel of Religious Sector Representatives
Panel of Nonprofit Sector Representatives
Legal Counsel to the Commission
View position papers by issue
View recent activity
Latest Commission Press Release
Commission Report #2 Press Release (8/14/13)
Senator Grassley’s Press Releases
Senator Grassley’s press release (1/6/11)
Senator Grassley’s memorandum (4/13/11)
ECFA’s Press Releases
ECFA’s press release (1/7/11)
Briefing on Senator Grassley's report (1/14/11)
ECFA’s press release (4/13/11)
ECFA’s press release (12/8/11)
Commission Reports
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Cash Contributions for the Commission
About ECFA
In January 2011, ECFA’s board established the Commission on Accountability and Policy for Religious Organizations ("the Commission").
The purpose of the Commission is to facilitate responses to Senator Charles Grassley, member of the Senate Finance Committee, on issues related to accountability and policy for religious organizations.
Three panels were named to work with the Commission and provide input and proposals on the issues.
The Panel of Nonprofit Sector Representatives is composed of leaders who represent large segments of the nonprofit sector.
Ms. Linda Czipo is executive director of the Center for Non-Profits, New Jersey’s state association of nonprofits, which strengthens the state’s nonprofit community through advocacy, public education, legal and management assistance, and member services. Her nonprofit sector experience spans over 25 years. Ms. Czipo is a public policy committee member and past board treasurer of the National Council of Nonprofits and a member of the New Jersey Commission on National and Community Service.
Mr. David Evans is U.S. president and global executive officer of the international relief and development organization Food for the Hungry (FH). He is based in FH’s Washington, D.C. office. In this role, he serves on a four-person global executive leadership team that oversees and directs FH’s worldwide operations. His specific areas of responsibility include oversight for all international programs implemented by FH, grant funding from the United States and other northern governments, private resource development in the United States and abroad, and U.S. strategic partnerships.
Mr. Renny Fagan joined the Colorado Nonprofit Association in Denver in March 2009. The Colorado Nonprofit Association provides capacity building resources and technical assistance to almost 1,400 members and advocates on behalf of the entire nonprofit sector. Previously, Mr. Fagan served as the state director for U.S. Senator Ken Salazar, a Colorado Deputy Attorney General, Director of the Colorado Department of Revenue, and began his public service as a state legislator. He earned degrees from Northwestern University School of Law and the University of Chicago.
Mr. Matthew Hamill oversees the National Association of College and University Business Officers’ (NACUBO) policy, research, government, and public relations activities from their Washington, DC office. Before joining NACUBO, he held positions at a variety of nonprofit organizations, including The Institute for Higher Education Policy, Independent Sector, and the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. Mr. Hamill served as district representative for Rep. Matthew F. McHugh (NY) and as legislative director for Rep. Robert T. Matsui (CA).
Mr. Kyle H. Hybl currently serves as trustee, senior vice president and general counsel for El Pomar Foundation in Colorado Springs. He is also past chairman of the Board of Regents of the University of Colorado System. Mr. Hybl serves as chairman of the Police Foundation of Colorado Springs and is on the board of directors for the Air Force Academy Foundation, Goodwill Industries Foundation, and Colorado Springs World Arena. He also serves on the Board of Regents of The Fund for American Studies and the Alliance for Charitable Reform steering group. Mr. Hybl is a former Air Force Captain and Judge Advocate. He is a graduate of the University of Colorado, Boulder, where he received both his Bachelor of Arts and Juris Doctor degrees.
Ms. Margaret Linnane is the executive director of the Rollins College Philanthropy & Nonprofit Leadership Center located in Winter Park, Florida. She has full administrative responsibility for the college’s multi-purpose resource center dedicated to providing a broad range of education programs, seminars, and services for volunteer and staff leadership of nonprofit organizations. Prior to joining the Philanthropy Center in 2004, Ms. Linnane served as executive director of the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida in Orlando for 18 years.
Dr. William C. McGinly has 35 years of nonprofit management experience and is president and CEO of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP), representing 5,000 executives raising funds for nonprofit health care providers. Dr. McGinly, who has been named for the past 13 consecutive years in the NonProfit Times Power & Influence Top 50, is a former board member for the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University Indianapolis, a past chairman of the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives (GWSAE), an active member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), an I/D/E/A/ Fellow, a Certified Association Executive (CAE), and received his doctorate in administration from American University.
Mr. Chuck McLean is responsible for conducting research for GuideStar, Williamsburg, Virginia, and customers interested in nonprofit sector data. He also works to identify new data sources and ways to present data effectively to GuideStar users. He has 15 years of experience as a teacher and researcher in various institutions of higher education. A graduate of Christopher Newport University, Mr. McLean also received an M.S. degree in mathematics from the College of William and Mary.
Mr. Justin Pollock is principal and founder of OrgForward, a nonprofit consultancy working with nonprofit agencies and capacity builders to develop strategies that encourage organizational sustainability. His practice focuses on strengthening the confluence of organizational leadership, programming, finance, and infrastructure. Prior to launching OrgForward, Justin served as COO for Maryland Nonprofits where he was responsible for the overall programming, finance, human resources, and membership activities. He brings a diverse set of experiences to his presentations as an educator and organizational consultant. He has more than 20 years of experience in the education and nonprofit fields with an extensive background in the areas of leadership development, organizational management, group process facilitation, curriculum development, teambuilding, and adult education. Justin holds a dual B.A. in Organizational Theory and Environmental Studies from Pitzer College and an M.Ed. in curriculum and teacher education from Stanford University.
Ms. Pat Read works with nonprofits and foundations in developing and implementing policy advocacy strategies, fundraising and earned income programs, and board governance. Ms. Read has over 25 years of experience in the nonprofit and philanthropic community, having served as senior vice president for public policy at Independent Sector, project director of the Panel on the Nonprofit Sector, executive director of the Colorado Nonprofit Association, and vice president for program services at The Foundation Center.
Dr. Patrick M. Rooney is Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Research at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy in Indianapolis and a nationally recognized expert and speaker on philanthropy. He is frequently quoted by national news media and has served on several national advisory committees. As the Center’s director of research, he built it into one of the nation’s premier research organizations, leading research projects for organizations such as Giving USA Foundation, Bank of America, American Express, Google, and United Way Worldwide.
Mr. William A. Schambra is the director of the Hudson Institute’s Bradley Center for Philanthropy and Civic Renewal in Washington, DC. Prior to joining the Hudson Institute in January of 2003, he was director of programs at the Bradley Foundation in Milwaukee. Before joining Bradley in 1992, Mr. Schambra served as a senior advisor to and chief speechwriter for Attorney General Edwin Meese III, Director of the Office of Personnel Management for Constance Horner, and Secretary of Health and Human Services for Louis Sullivan. He was also director of Social Policy Programs for the American Enterprise Institute, and co-director of AEI’s “A Decade of Study of the Constitution.” He was appointed by President Reagan to the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, and by President George W. Bush to the board of directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service. Mr. Schambra has written extensively on the Constitution, the theory and practice of civic revitalization, and civil society.
Ms. Kelly Shipp Simone is the deputy general counsel at the Council on Foundations in Arlington, Virginia, a membership organization that supports grant-makers in various aspects of foundation management. She provides legal information to private foundations and public charities. Ms. Simone has authored several publications for foundations including “Top 10 Ways Private Foundations Can Influence Public Policy.” She also works closely with the Community Foundations National Standards Board on issues related to the National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations™ accreditation program.
Ms. Sandra Swirski is an attorney with more than two decades of experience in public policy. Ms. Swirski has advised two senior U.S. Senators, was an executive at a Fortune 10 company, has advised multinational clients at a premier professional services company and has founded two public policy/government affairs firms in Washington, DC, including Urban Swirski & Associates. Currently her practice focuses on advising Fortune 500 executives and leaders of nonprofit organizations on public policy and government affairs issues.
Ms. Christy L. Tharp is the chief financial officer for Feed The Children (FTC), Oklahoma City, one of the 10 largest international charities in the U.S. She is responsible for the financial reporting and management and serves as a key management leader providing professional and ethical guidance to maintain integrity and uphold the expectations of regulatory agencies and donors. Ms. Tharp also has eight years’ experience with the international public accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche, LLP where she was an audit manager, serving many different industries including a large client base of nonprofit organizations.
Mr. David L. Thompson is the vice president of public policy at the National Council of Nonprofits in Washington, DC, the nation’s largest nonprofit network representing over 25,000 charitable nonprofit organizations through their state associations. He previously served as director of government affairs at Independent Sector and as senior counsel and policy director to the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. Mr. Thompson began his career in private law practice, specializing in labor and employment law. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Emory University and a law degree from the University of Georgia.
Ms. Anne Wallestad is the president & CEO of DC-based BoardSource, the only national organization focused exclusively on strengthening nonprofit governance and inspiring board service. Prior to joining BoardSource’s leadership team in 2008, Ms. Wallestad served in leadership roles with a number of local and national nonprofits, including the Human Rights Campaign, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Iowa, and the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund and Leadership Institute. She is also an experienced trainer, and has worked with boards and volunteer networks to strengthen volunteer management, fundraising, and events planning skills. Ms. Wallestad holds a B.A. in English and Sociology from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, and currently serves as a member of the university’s regional advisory board for the Washington, DC metro area.
Mr. Robert Zachritz is the senior director at World Vision U.S. for Advocacy and Government Relations. Prior to joining World Vision in 2003, Mr. Zachritz worked for almost 15 years within the U.S. Congress for both Republican and Democratic Members of Congress. He received a bachelor of arts in international relations from Michigan State University and a master of arts in international trade/business from George Mason University. He has studied overseas at Cambridge University in England and in Moscow, Russia. Mr. Zachritz has traveled to nearly 40 countries – mostly on humanitarian business in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.
Commission on Accountability and Policy for Religious Organizations • Copyright © 2019
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2 soldiers wounded in Davao clash with leftist rebels
From the Philippine Star (May 17): 2 soldiers wounded in Davao clash with leftist rebels
Two soldiers were wounded in a clash with the leftist New People's Army (NPA) this morning in Davao, the military said.
The encounter occurred along a village road in Paquibato District, Davao City, at around 5:30 a.m. while the government troops were preparing the route for the culmination of a 3-day peace building summit by the local government, different line government agencies, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police, said AFP's 10th Infantry Division spokesperson Ernest Carolina.
Prior to the incident, a team of soldiers from the 69th Infantry Battalion were sent to patrol along the road after receiving information about a landmine said to have been planted by the NPA in the said route.
The team encountered some seven rebels along the route, and a firefight erupted and last for about 10 minutes, Carolina said.
Two soldiers were wounded by shrapnel from the landmine blast during the clash, while the NPA casualties remained undetermined, he said, adding that the soldiers recovered a 100-meter long blasting wire in the area.
The government troops launched a pursuit operation against the fleeing rebels.
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2014/05/17/1324544/2-soldiers-wounded-davao-clash-leftist-rebels
No confirmed location yet of Sayyaf, foreign captives
From the Philippine Star: No confirmed location yet of Sayyaf, foreign captives
Police and military intelligence units that have been tracking for several weeks now the Abu Sayyaf group that abducted foreigner have yet to find the bandits and their captives.
Capt. Ma. Rowena Muyuela, spokesperson of Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom), saidtheir military intelligence unit have been conducting intelligence tracking operation parallel to the efforts of the provincial police office of Sulu.
Muyuela said the verification operation came following unofficial information that German nationals Stefan Viktor Okonek, 71, and her female companion, Herike Diesen, 55, who went missing from their yacht off Palawan and were reportedly seized and brought by the Abu Sayyaf to the Sulu province.
“So far the result of the intelligence tracking operation yielded no confirmation yet. The military operation is just to back up the police authority which is taking the primary responsibility over the kidnapping case,” Muyuela said.
2Lt. Orchelyn Bobis, acting public affairs chief of 2nd Marine Brigade, said the absence of the positive information prompted them to consider the information as hearsay. However, she said troops continue to monitor and coordinate with the police authorities.
Reports also confirmed that the Abu Sayyaf group is also holding captive Chinese national Gao Hua Yuan and Malaysian-Chinese Yang Zai Lin, who were separately abducted from Sabah in April.
Gao, 29, a Shanghai native, was abducted along with Filipina resort worker Marcelita Dayawan, 40, on April 1 from a resort off Semporna while Yang, 34, and a companion identified as Konar Resowan, were taken on May 6.
Prof. Octavio Dinampo, a peace advocate member and professor of Mindanao State University (MSU) of Sulu, said the military and police have been moving forces to track down the possible locations of the victims.
Dinampo said his “informants” and information from the ground disclosed that the two Germans have been brought to Sulu in April and taken to the area in Patikul where senior Abu Sayyaf leader Radulan Sahiron is holding camp.
He said there were unconfirmed reports that the two German nationals have been merged with the two other European captives Elwold Horn of Holland and Swiss Lorenzo Vinceguerre, both abducted in February 2012 from Tawi-Tawi and brought to Sulu.
He said it was also confirmed that Gao and Yang were held in two separate places by the Abu Sayyaf.
http://www.philstar.com/nation/2014/05/16/1323837/no-confirmed-location-yet-sayyaf-foreign-captives
25th ID troops practice jungle survival at Balikatan
From Hawaii Army Weekly (May 16): 25th ID troops practice jungle survival at Balikatan
Gen. Vincent Brooks, commander, U.S. Army-Pacific, dons protective gear in preparation to observe a live-fire drill, May 7, conducted by Philippine and U.S. Soldiers during Balikatan 2014.
FORT MAGSAYSAY, Phillipines — The cobra hissed and flailed violently as Tech. Sgt. Riden A. Dumalig, an instructor with the Philippine Army Special Forces, demonstrated to American Soldiers how to prepare it for nourishing themselves in a jungle environment should the need arise.
This lesson was just one of the many learned by more than 60 Soldiers with 3rd Battalion, 7th Artillery Regiment; 2nd Bn., 27th Inf. Regt.; and 3rd Bn., 4th Cavalry Regt., 25th Infantry Division, as they participated in a jungle survival training course as part of Exercise Balikatan 2014, May 4.
Units with the 25th ID conducted bilateral training exercises with their Philippine counterparts, May 5-15.
Instructors from Philippine Army Special Forces taught the Soldiers jungle survival fundamentals, such as trapping, foraging, nutrition, and preparing animals and plants for consumption. Among the resources used for survival were coconuts, herbs, wild goats, fish, chickens and even snakes.
“It’s important that Soldiers are able to survive off the land, sustain themselves, especially in environments where there’s not much opportunities for resupply,” said 1st Lt. Nicholas Risher, 3-4th Cav. Regt. “If we can feed ourselves out there, then we can last longer and fight harder.”
The unique training provided the Soldiers with valuable knowledge and skills from subject matter experts who have had decades of experience in their field.
“For me, the hands-on instruction we’re getting from the Philippine Special Forces is the best part of the training,” said Risher, of Cincinatti, Ohio. “This is valuable training that we can’t get anywhere else. This is especially valuable at a time when we’re moving out of Iraq and Afghanistan, into other environments, and it allows us to be more prepared for conflicts in the Pacific or anywhere there’s a jungle environment.”
Furthermore, the event provided the U.S. Soldiers with opportunities to build rapport and camaraderie with the Philippine Special Forces instructors, as they shared not only food, but also stories and experiences from Afghanistan to the Southern Philippines.
“I like training and interacting with the American Soldiers,” said Dumalig. “It’s a good learning experience for both parties, and I feel that we are teaching them valuable knowledge that will help them when they conduct operations in the jungle.”
Balikatan 2014
Balikatan is an annual joint-exercise between the U.S. and the Philippines, designed to foster cooperation and interoperability between the two nations’ armed forces through training, as well as humanitarian aid and disaster relief projects.
http://www.hawaiiarmyweekly.com/2014/05/16/25th-id-troops-practice-jungle-survival-at-balikatan/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=25th-id-troops-practice-jungle-survival-at-balikatan
CPP/NDF: On the baseless allegations and malicious innuendoes hurled at me by the AFP and their patrons
Anti-AFP propaganda statement posted to the CPP Website (May 14): On the baseless allegations and malicious innuendoes hurled at me by the AFP and their patrons
Roy Erecre
NDFP for the Visayas
NDFP Consultant ND978243 under the assumed name Vide Alguna
Bohol District Jail (BDJ) in Cabawan
District, Tagbilaran City
Let me convey my gratitude for the opportunity to respond to baseless allegations and malicious innuendoes hurled at me by the AFP and their patrons.
Immediately after abducting me in my hometown, this government has kept me incommunicado by transferring me from one detention cell to another across the seas until finally jailing me in Bohol where I once studied and then learned the necessity and worked for the realization of a systemic revolution. In the crucial time following my abduction, government agents denied me the right to counsel, as they interrogated and threatened and manhandled me. While locked up from public scrutiny, I was accused of trumped-up charges and misrepresented as guilty felon through trial by publicity.
I didn’t know then that having medical treatment with one’s family physician translates to “island-resort hopping” of sorts in military mind, and that either constitutes a crime. I and my aide were just surprised that morning of May 7, 2014, when intelligence operatives pounced on us while on our way for my follow-up check up for diabetes.
During my arrest, I was robbed of my personal belongings. Until now, my phone, journal, and flash drives haven’t been returned.
All these because of my being a consultant to the peace panel of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) in its peace negotiations with this government. It is a role I have taken since Cory Aquino opened peace overtures after the EDSA Revolt. Then and now, the duplicity of this government at feigning negotiations in order to gather intelligence information against its perceived enemies has reached scandalous heights.
Instead of respecting the agreements it signed with the NDFP, this government is instead preoccupied in emasculating each one, especially the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) and the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG). In fact, there are now 169 victims of extra-judicial killings nationwide since the beginning of Aquino’s presidency, as documented by KARAPATAN. This year alone, 19 human rights defenders were executed by government agents, including veteran people’s lawyer and comrade Noel Archival. There has also been continued crackdown on those involved in the NDFP’s peace panel. Just weeks before, a similar, bare-faced attack on fellow NDFP peace consultants Benito and Wilma Tiamzon was carried out in Cebu.
This travesty justice and its own due processes, however, serves only as this government’s own undoing. It only exposes the hopeless rottenness of the system this government represents and protects. It merely enflames the people’s revolutionary anger and collective desire for holistic change. It just pushes the people to be more determined in breaking free from the structures of oppression and exploitation.
This government may have succeeded in imprisoning me for now, but it can never be triumphant in containing the surging people’s wrath.
http://www.philippinerevolution.net/statements/20140514_on-the-baseless-allegations-and-malicious-innuendoes-hurled-at-me-by-the-afp-and-their-patrons
CPP/Sison: The new democratic revolution through protracted people’s war
Sison lecture posted to the CPP Website (May 15): The new democratic revolution through protracted people’s war
Lecture at the Forum for Liberation Theology
Centre for Liberation Theologies
Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
I thank the Centre for Liberation Theologies for inviting me to this Forum for Liberation Theology to speak on the new democratic revolution through protracted people’s war. It is an honor and pleasure for me to interface and dialogue with theologians and others who are seriously interested in knowing the nature and development of the Philippine revolution, and the relationship of Christians with the Filipino people’s struggle for national and social liberation.
I wish to present my subject by using the following outline: 1. the old democratic revolution against Spanish colonialism and feudalism; 2. the new democratic revolution against the semi-colonial and semi-feudal ruling system; 3. the Christians for National Liberation; 4. the continuance of the new democratic revolution to the present.
I. Old Democratic Revolution
Spain was motivated by mercantilism and the desire to spread the Catholic Christian faith in imposing colonialism by force of arms on the people of the Philippine archipelago, effectively starting in 1565 after the expedition of Magellan in 1521. It used the sword and the cross to pacify the people. The conquistadores brutally suppressed those who resisted. The missionaries worked persuasively to bring the people under the bells of the Catholic church.
The Spanish colonialists could apply the divide and rule policy on a people that generally had pre-feudal autonomous small communities. The Islamic sultanates covered a small part of the archipelago, particularly in southwest Mindanao. The Muslims traded in other parts and began to spread their faith. But the success of Spanish colonialism cut them off from most of the archipelago.
The Spanish king rewarded the conquistadores by granting to them the encomiendas, large areas of land which they were supposed to administer to make sure that the natives got their Christian catechism and paid tribute. The encomienda system, which involved slavery and all its brutal features previously denounced by Bartolome de las Casas in the Americas, would last for almost a century, and morphed into the system of feudal ownership of land by the friars and the native principales.
Spanish colonialism succeeded in maintaining a colonial system of government centralized in the walled city of Manila. It was enough to control entire municipalities with the use of Spanish friars in charge of the parishes and the Spanish military officer in charge of the civil guards. However, the people were never a totally conquered and pacified. The Moros in the south, Igorots in the north, and many hill tribes resisted subjugation until the end of Spanish colonialism. More than 200 revolts of varying scopes and intensity occurred in supposedly pacified provinces in more than 300 years preceding the Philippine revolution of 1896.
In the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade which lasted until 1815, the Spanish religious orders had a share of the boletas, cargo spaces in the ship, which the friars rented out to merchants. The income was supposedly for obras pias (pious works) but was large enough to capitalize the establishment of a bank, the Monte de Piedad. The galleon trade was basically trade between Chinese porcelain and silk, and Mexican silver, with the Chinese buying Philippine rice and cotton.
When the Suez Canal was opened in 1869, the direct trade between the Philippines and Europe accelerated and expanded. The Spanish religious orders expanded their landholdings arbitrarily, especially in the Tagalog areas of Luzon, in order to produce export crops, including sugar, copra, cocoa, tobacco, and hemp. Landholdings of native landlords for the production of staple food crops also expanded. The dispossessed peasants nationwide became restless.
Since the middle of the 19th century, a big number of native secular priests had been produced by the seminaries. They eventually demanded that they take over the parishes from the foreign missionaries, and that the latter stay in the convents of their religious orders. What arose as a secularization movement among secular priests was condemned by the Spanish regular orders and the colonial government. A theocracy practically existed in the Philippines, with the church often more powerful than the governor generals who came and went in rapid succession.
When the Cavite Mutiny of 1872 occurred in a Spanish naval stockyard, the colonial and religious officials framed up and tried as instigators of the mutiny the known leaders of the secularization movement, secular priests Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora. They were sentenced to death by garrote and were executed in 1872. Their martyrdom galvanized for the first time the national sentiment of the Filipino people against the Spanish colonial authorities and the Spanish religious orders.
Before the 1880s, Filipino students in various professional courses (medical, legal, engineering, etc.) increased. Some of them who resented the authoritarian system in the Catholic schools left for Spain. They imbibed the influences of the French revolution and the Spanish enlightenment. They formed in Madrid the Propaganda Movement in the 1880s advocatng such reforms as making the Philippines a regular province of Spain and letting the people enjoy democratic rights.
La Liga Filipina was established in Manila in 1892 to pursue the reforms advocated by the Propaganda Movement. The Spanish authorities arrested and exiled the leader Dr. Jose Rizal. The crackdown on La Liga Filipina inspired the formation of the Katipunan which vowed to rise up in arms for national independence from Spain. The Katipunan, led by Andres Bonifacio, launched a series of armed uprisings in Manila and its environs in 1896. Thus the Philippine democratic revolution started.
The guiding ideology was bourgeois liberal democratic. It called for national independence from Spanish colonialism and the end of feudalism, especially the dissolution of the friar estates. It was espoused by patriots and progressives among the workers, peasants, and the university-educated youth. They were strongly anti-clerical and were most averse to the friars of the religious orders and to the colonial officials. But they generally considered themselves Christians and called for a Filipino church. It may be said therefore that the Christians were on the opposing sides of revolution and counterrevolution.
The old democratic revolution of 1896 achieved national independence from Spanish colonialism in 1898. The Malolos Constitution of 1899 followed the template of the liberal democratic constitution. It provided for the separation of Church and State. But national independence was short-lived as US imperialism intervened and launched a war of aggression on 4 February 1899. The Constitutional provision on Church-State separation was then suspended for the duration of the war by the cabinet of the revolutionary government on the argument that the Filipino priests of the Catholic church were the most effective collectors of financial and other material resources for the revolution.
The revolutionary government had its own vicar general Rev. Gregorio Aglipay. He had been sent by the Spanish Bishop Nozaleda to offer a peace settlement to the revolutionary government. But instead he declared loyalty to the Philippine revolution and was appointed the vicar general. He considered the Philippine revolution a just war against colonial oppression and social injustice. He led a guerrilla force in his home province of Ilocos Norte to assault the US military garrison in Laoag. All Filipino secular priests in areas governed by the revolutionary forces declared their independence from the Spanish religious authorities, and of course from the colonial government.
As soon as they conquered the Philippines, the US colonial authorities moved to persuade the Catholic Church and the religious orders to replace the Spanish friars with Filipino secular priests in parishes, and to phase out gradually the Spanish friars in religious orders and schools with American or Irish priests. The Catholic church has remained dominant, with 85 per cent of the population baptized by it.
The priests who followed the leadership of Aglipay established the Philippine Independent Church in 1902. This covers some four percent of the population. To this day, it is the largest Christian church outside of the Roman Catholic church. The US colonial period opened the way to the entry of various Protestant denominations that share among them some five percent of the population.
II. New Democratic Revolution
The US imperialists defeated the old democratic revolution mainly with the use of superior arms and extreme brutality. They massacred 10 percent or 700,000 of the Philippine population during the Filipino-American War which formally ended in 1902. They continued to inflict on the Filipino people another 800,000 death casualties up to 1915.
US imperialism had also a high capacity for deception. In the course of its war of aggression, it proclaimed a policy of benevolent assimilation to the revolutionary leaders and the people. It declared that it had no other aim but to further civilize and Christianize the people, and to teach them democracy for the purpose of self-rule. It used the language of bourgeois liberalism to coopt the leadership of the revolution.
The US established a colonial rule different from the old style colonialism of Spain involving sheer plunder. It represented a new kind of colonialism involving the extraction of superprofits through investments. It had the resources and the needs of monopoly capitalism. It expanded the plantations for export crops, opened the mines, and engaged in a limited amount of manufacturing. It established the public school system and improved the infrastructure for expanding domestic and foreign trade.
It has developed a semi-feudal economic system among the natives since the first decade of the 20th century. The urban-based big compradors and the rural-based landlords have served as the ruling classes. They comprise fractions of one percent of the population. The size of the middle bourgeoisie has stagnated as a fraction of one percent and the urban petty bourgeoisie has grown to eight percent. The industrial proletariat has risen from a small percentage to some 16-17 percent. The peasantry has gone down from a high of 90 percent to 75 percent.
The growth of the proletariat and the trade union movement paved the way for the establishment of the Communist Party of the Philippine Islands under the guidance of Marxism-Leninism in 1930. The US colonial regime tried to suppress this party as soon as it was established by imprisoning and exiling the leaders. But the Great Depression and the ever worsening social conditions goaded the workers and peasants to undertake strikes and mass protests.
After World War II broke out, the merger party of the Communist and Socialist parties and the mass movement built a people’s army and local organs of political power, carried out land reform, and fought the Japanese invaders. After the war, the US and the local exploiting classes unleashed violent actions against the communists, the people’s army, and the people, compelling them to fight back and declare an armed revolution.
In 1946, the US gave up direct colonial rule, granted nominal independence to the Philippines, and passed on functions of national administration to the politicians of competing factions of the local ruling classes of big compradors and landlords. Thus, the Philippines became a semi-colony, with the US retaining its military bases, the property rights of its citizens and corporations, and its strategic dominance over the Philippine state, its economy, politics, culture, defense, and international relations.
The semi-feudal economy persisted characterized by the exploitation of the toiling masses of workers and peasants, production of raw materials for export and import of manufactures mainly for consumption. Politics remained a revolving game for factions of the local exploiting classes. The dominant culture was a mixture and compromise of cultural imperialism and Christianity of the reactionary kind. The Philippine military continued its dependence on US indoctrination, planning, intelligence, and supply of war materiel. The Philippine government robotically followed US policy.
In the 1960s, the crisis of the Philippine ruling system worsened, with the exhaustion of the land frontier for peasant resettlement and the lack of industrial development causing mass unemployment and widespread poverty. The broad masses of the people called for fundamental social change to lift them from poverty and misery. The anti-imperialist and anti-feudal mass movement grew. The Marcos regime became more violent in suppressing the mass movement and saw the crisis conditions opportune for a fascist dictatorship.
The proletarian revolutionaries recognized the worsening social conditions and the need for an armed revolution. They separated from the old merger party of the Communist and Socialist parties in April 1966. They criticized, repudiated, and rectified the errors of this party. They reestablished the Communist Party of the Philippines on 26 December 1968 under the theoretical guidance of Marxism-Leninism-Mao Zedong Thought. They proclaimed the Program for a People’s Democratic Revolution. They organized the New People’s Army on 29 March 1969 with the aim of overthrowing the big comprador-landlord government, and replacing it with a people’s democratic government.
The Communist Party of the Philippines constituted itself as the advanced detachment of the proletariat – the leading class in the new democratic revolution and the consequent socialist revolution. It recruited its cadres and members from the ranks of workers and progressive youth activists who wished to remould themselves as proletarian revolutionaries. It deployed the proletarian revolutionaries to the countryside to arouse, organize and mobilize the peasantry as the main force of the revolution and as the inexhaustible support for the people’s war. It regarded the urban petty bourgeoisie a basic revolutionary force but no longer as the leading force as in the old democratic revolution. It also sought to win over the middle bourgeoisie on grounds of patriotism, despite the latter´s distrust for the toiling masses.
The program of the new democratic revolution holds US imperialism and the local exploiting classes of big compradors and landlords as responsible for the semi-colonial and semi-feudal character of Philippine society. In the political field, it demands national independence and democratic rights, including respect for civil liberties, the solution of the land problem, and the empowerment of the workers and peasants. In the economic field, it demands social justice and economic development through land reform and national industrialization. In the cultural field, it demands a patriotic, scientific, and pro-people system of education and culture. In foreign relations, it seeks solidarity and cooperation with all peoples and countries for peace and development.
All the demands in the program of the new democratic revolution uphold, defend and promote the national and democratic rights and interests of the entire Filipino people, especially the toiling masses of workers and peasants, irrespective of their religious beliefs, their ethno-linguistic affinity, ancestry, color of skin, and gender. For emphasis, let me state that Christians and other religious believers, have the fundamental right to freedom of thought and belief. This right is clearly enshrined in the revolutionary constitution, the Guide to Establishing the People’s Democratic Government.
The strategic line of protracted people’s war, which involves encircling the cities by the revolutionary forces in the countryside, and accumulating strength here until conditions are ripe for seizing the cities, has been adopted by the CPP and the NPA for two reasons. First, it gives full play to the role of the peasants as main force of the democratic revolution. Second, it is the way to enable the people’s army to grow from small to big and from weak to strong, and avoid being decisively destroyed in one uprising or one battle by a far superior enemy military force.
All forces of the new democratic revolution, including the Communist Party of the Philippines, the New People’s Army, the National Democratic Front, the revolutionary mass organizations, and the organs of democratic power, recognize that more than 90 percent of the population are Christians, and that the new democratic revolution cannot be won without the participation and support of the Christians. Thus, the Christians for National Liberation has been initiated to engage the Christians as such, and give full play to their participation and support in the Philippine revolution.
The CNL has played a highly significant role in promoting ecumenism by uniting within the revolutionary movement the faithfuls of the Roman Catholic Church, the Philippine Independent Church, and various Protestant denominations; by developing mutual understanding between Christians and Muslims; by opposing Christian chauvinism so-called and other un-Christian phenomena engendered by colonial history and continuing bigotry; and by realizing the dialogue and cooperation between religious believers and nonbelievers.
While guided by dialectical and historical materialism in their revolutionary practice, the communists in the Philippines respect the faith and theology of the Christians.They uphold the freedom of conscience and do not impose their ideology on others. When others differ from them in opinion, they prefer to listen and learn first, and then patiently explain their side for the purpose of mutual understanding and cooperation.
They avoid deflection of the issues of national and social liberation towards a heated debate of religious issues above the social needs and demands of the people. But they happily welcome and agree with any attempt to develop the dialogue and cooperation between them and the Christians in their obedience to the second great commandment to love and serve the people in consonance with their love of God above all.
III. Christians for National Liberation
The Christians for National Liberation (CNL) was founded at the worship room of the Sampaloc University Center in Manila on 17 February, 1972 on the anniversary of the martyrdom of Fathers Gomez, Burgos and Zamora. Seventy-two revolutionary disciples of Christ gathered to bear the “cross of sacrifice” and raise the “red banner of revolution”. They described themselves as a revolutionary organization of church people who had been challenged by social realities and their Christian faith to take part in the new democratic revolution under the leadership of the Communist Party of the Philippines and in accordance with the Program for a People’s Democratic Revolution. They adopted the battle cry, “Love your neighbor. Serve the people.”
The founding process extended to the general assembly that was held at the Assumption Convent in Herran, Manila on 19-20 August 1972, a full month before the Marcos regime declared martial law and imposed a fascist dictatorship on the Filipino people. The nearly 250 delegates included priests, nuns, pastors, seminarians, novices, and church militants involved in social action projects in urban and rural communities. They elected the National Executive Board of the CNL.
The CNL officers and members arose from and developed in the anti-imperialist and anti-feudal or national democratic movement from the late 1960s to 1972. They were motivated by a high sense of patriotism sharpened by renewed studies of the Philippine revolution of 1896, the current dismal conditions, and the urgent need for continuing the Philippine revolution. They wanted to end the semi-colonial and semi-feudal conditions. They wanted national and social liberation from the evils of foreign domination, domestic feudalism, and bureaucrat capitalism. Like the rest of Filipino patriots and progressives, they were also inspired by the revolutionary resistance of the Vietnamese and other Indochinese people against the US war of aggression.
They were appalled and challenged by the ever worsening social crisis, the increasing violence of the Marcos regime towards mass protests, and apparent scheme of the regime to impose a fascist dictatorship on the people. They deemed it necessary to fight for democracy not only in the sense of upholding civil and political liberties but also in realizing the substance of democracy though land reform for the benefit of the peasant majority of the people. They desired the end of the conditions of underdevelopment and the start of genuine development through land reform and national industrialization.
The Catholics, the members of the Philippine Independent Church, and the Protestants all used the Bible as the source of inspiration. They had their respective theological authorities to support their commitment to the cause of national and social liberation. Certainly, the Catholics found wider new ground in the documents of the Second Vatican Council. The book Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paolo Freire became available in English translation in 1970, and influenced those who became members of the CNL. It was well ahead of the book A Theology of Liberation by Gustavo Gutierrez which was published in English by Orbis only in 1973. The book Rules for Radicals of Saul Alinsky also influenced those Christians who engaged in community work. The Filipino Redemptorist, Fr. Luis Hechanova advocated the Theology of Struggle and wrote a pamphlet on this.
The CNL departed from the conservative tradition and position of the institutional church and hierarchy. It called for the church of the people, especially for the poor, deprived, and oppressed. It propagated conscientization and preferential option for the poor. The lower clergy joined the CNL and consciously distanced themselves from the mindset and actuations of an institutional church that owns substantial land and stocks in major corporations, and that provides services mainly to the exploiting classes. In the shift from the Spanish to the US colonial period, the Catholic Church retained their property rights and gained capital for corporate investments from the sale of friar estates which came under the US-instituted land reform program.
The religious and church workers that comprised the CNL also differentiated themselves from the reformist tradition cultivated by the American Jesuits since the 1930s to propagate the social encyclicals of the church, advocate social reforms, and carry out social action with the objective of improving upon and preserving the ruling system, and preventing the communists from winning the people and taking power.
The American Jesuit, Fr. Walter Hogan became prominent in the Philippines for establishing the Institute of Social Order which trained the organizers of the Federation of Free Workers and the Federation of Free Farmers starting in the 1950s, in order to seize the initiative as the state cracked down on the suspected communist organizations of workers and peasants. They also pushed for the enactment of the Anti-Subversion Law to target suspected communists.
Special mention must made of the Student Christian Movement of the Philippines, based in the state-owned University of the Philippines, in the university belt in Manila and the Protestant colleges and universities. It studied and published articles against US domination and the unjust social system in the Philippines. The Khi Rho, a militant Catholic youth and student organization, declared itself a national democratic organization. It promoted the line of the new democratic revolution not only in the Catholic schools and the National Union of Students of the Philippines but also worked to win over to the line such organizations as the Federation of Free Workers and Federation of Free Farmers. It actively opposed the rabid anti-communist line of Fr. Jose Blanco, S.J.
The officers and members of the CNL studied the documents of the Communist Party of the Philippines, especially the Program for a People’s Democratic Revolution and Amado Guerrero’s Philippine Society and Revolution, and engaged the communists in dialogues for mutual understanding and cooperation in the social, economic, political, and cultural fields. The Christian side did not oblige the Communists to study Christian theology. Neither did the Communists oblige the Christians to study Marxism-Leninism. But certainly in the course of ever continuing dialogue, each side took interest in studying the principles of the other side, in appreciating the desire of the other side to join the cause of national and social liberation, and in creating the bridge of cooperation.
The Communists learned more deeply than ever about the faith and good works of the Christians. They distinguished the good Christians from the bad ones among the exploiting classes, who used religion as an opium to delude themselves and the people. On the other hand, the Christians learned to appreciate materialist dialectics and class analysis as tools for understanding and solving social problems and for changing society. Many do so without having to give up their religious faith. Some priest friends of mine also said that they accepted historical materialism but not dialectical materialism.
When Marcos declared martial law on 21 September 1972, the CNL played an important role in opposing the fascist dictatorship and in providing refuge and facilities to many people, especially the activists, who were targeted for arrest and detention. They also helped families in asking the military for the whereabouts of people arrested and detained, and in providing humanitarian aid and legal counsel to those in need. They did so even as then Cardinal Rufino Santos supported the proclamation of martial law and declared that it be given a chance to carry out reforms.
The CNL joined the National Democratic Front of the Philippines when it was established on 24 April 1973 as a united front of patriotic and progressive forces committed to work for the unity of the broad masses of the Filipino people in fighting the US-directed Marcos fascist dictatorship. It cooperated with the organizations that sought its help. It deployed CNL members to strengthen the urban underground. It played a key role in encouraging and supporting the La Tondeña workers’ strike in 1975, and the consequent nationwide wave of workers’ strikes in 300 workplaces that extended up to 1976.
It authorized CNL members to work in the countryside in order to do religious work and mass work, or join the New People’s Army and become spokespersons or communicators to the people. Many priests, nuns, pastors and seminarians became communists and even joined the NPA in the course of working with communists and Red fighters in serving the people and fighting the enemy. There is a long list of martyrs and heroes who were religious and chose to become revolutionary fighters. There is also long list of religious who became political prisoners.
In the broad united front of the religious promoted by the CNL, the secular priests in the Philippine Priests Incorporated and the Association of Major Religious Superiors made significant contributions to the people’s struggle against the Marcos fascist dictatorship. Many social action centers of the Catholic Church adopted the national democratic orientation and enjoyed the support of Bishop Julio X. Labayen and Fr. Luis Hechanova, head and executive director of the National Secretariat of Social Action (NASSA). Bishop Labayen inspired and supported the Basic Christian Communities-Community Organizing which became targets of propaganda and physical attacks by the military minions of the fascist dictatorship.
Archbishop Jaime Sin took over the archdiocese of Manila when Cardinal Santos died in 1973. By then, human rights violations had become rampant and more bloody, with forced disappearances, torture, and extrajudicial killings victimizing oppositionists, trade unionists, and peasant leaders, who were affiliated with the church and who were not at all connected to the revolutionary movement. The CNL played a significant role in persuading Cardinal Sin and the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines to criticize the fascist regime and demand justice for the victims of human rights violations.
However, Cardinal Sin would only proclaim a policy of critical collaboration towards the Marcos fascist regime. This policy would come to an end only on 13 February 1986 when the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines issued a pastoral letter declaring the regime illegitimate and immoral after the farcical snap presidential election of 1986.
In accordance with their own respective reasons, the Catholic and other Christian churches, the conservative opposition forces, the Communist Party of the Philippines, the US, sections of the reactionary armed forces, the chambers of commerce and industry, and other forces, converged on the decision to overthrow the Marcos regime. The broad masses of the people carried out gigantic mass actions in the national capital region and in the provinces to put the fascist dictatorship to an end.
IV. Continuance of the New Democratic Revolution and People’s War
The downfall of the Marcos dictatorship did not result in the national and social liberation of the Filipino people. The ruling system of big compradors and landlords under US hegemony remained intact. From the monopoly of political power and bureaucratic loot, there was a swing back with a vengeance to the oligarchy of factions competing for power and wealth, and masquerading as democracy.
Every post-Marcos regime has been characterized by puppetry to US imperialism, collaboration with foreign and local exploiters, bureaucratic corruption, brutality, and gross human rights violations. It is therefore not surprising that the Filipino people and the revolutionary forces have persevered in the new democratic revolution through protracted people’s war, and that every post-Marcos regime has failed to destroy the armed revolutionary movement.
In the course of the struggle against the Marcos fascist dictatorship, a broad range of opposition forces had an understanding that, immediately after the overthrow of Marcos, there would be a peace agreement between the Manila government and the revolutionary forces represented by the National Democratic Front of the Philippines. In accordance with such understanding, the revolutionary forces represented by the National Democratic Front of the Philippines discreetly reminded President Corazon Aquino of their willingness to negotiate an agreement for a just and lasting peace.
But Aquino was interested merely in a ceasefire agreement to allow her to consolidate her power. She had no interest in an agreement to address the roots of the armed conflict through basic social, economic, and political reforms. At any rate, the NDFP agreed with the Aquino regime in November 1986 to have a 60-day ceasefire to work out the agenda for substantive peace negotiations. Before the ceasefire agreement ran out, Aquino allowed her security forces to massacre peasant demonstrators in front of her palace on 23 January 1987, and then, in her own words, “unsheathed the sword of war” against the revolutionary forces on 22 March 1987, instead of investigating and finding out which military officers were culpable for the massacre.
When hard pressed by the mutinous military group called Reform the Armed Forces of the Philippines and by the worsening social and political crisis in the Philippines in 1989, she sent a series of emissaries to the NDFP to express her desire for peace negotiations. But she relented in December 1990 from exploratory talks. It would be her presidential successor Gen. Fidel Ramos who would seek peace negotiations more seriously in 1992.
The Manila government and the NDFP signed The Hague Joint Declaration on 01 September 1992 as the framework agreement for conducting the peace negotiations. This stipulates that the roots of the armed conflict are to be addressed by basic reforms in order to lay the basis for just and lasting peace; that national sovereignty, democracy, and social justice are the mutually acceptable principles guiding the negotiations; and that no side shall make any precondition that negate the character and purpose of negotiations. It sets forth the substantive agenda to be negotiated in sequence, namely: 1. respect for human rights and international humanitarian law; 2. social and economic reforms; 3. political and constitutional reforms; and 4. end of hostilities and disposition of forces. The Hague Joint Declaration also lays down the method of forging the comprehensive agreements through the formation of reciprocal working committees.
Before the end of the Ramos regime, the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) was signed by the Negotiating Panels on 16 March 1998. The NDFP principal, Comrade Mariano Orosa, immediately approved it on 10 April 1998, while Ramos hesitated to approve it. It was his presidential successor Joseph Estrada who approved the agreement on 7 August 1998. However, since then, the Estrada and succeeding regimes continuously put up obstacles in violation of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) and CARHRIHL in order to prevent the negotiation on social and economic reforms.
The Christians for National Liberation and the broad masses of Christians have strongly supported the new democratic revolution through protracted people’s war, the legal and peaceful democratic mass movement, and the campaign for a just and lasting peace. Bishops of the Catholic Church, the Philippine Independent Church, the Protestant denominations, and the lower clergy outside of the CNL have been calling for upholding national sovereignty and the national patrimony, social justice, respect for human rights, protection of the environment, and a just and lasting peace. During every regime of the Manila government, bishops have used their conferences and special bodies, like the Ecumenical Bishops Forum, Pilgrims for Peace and Philippine Ecumenical Peace Platform, to call for peace negotiations and to serve as bridge between the Manila government and NDFP.
The revolutionary forces and people represented by the NDFP are ever ready for serious peace negotiations to forge agreements with the Manila government for a just and lasting peace. But because this government refuses to address the roots of the civil war through peace negotiations, the revolutionary forces are justified to wage the new democratic revolution through protracted people’s war. Along this general line, the revolutionary forces are currently pursuing their strategic plan of advancing from the stage of strategic defensive to that of the strategic stalemate.
The Communist Party of the Philippines, the New People’s Army, the revolutionary mass organizations of workers, peasants, youth, women, children, and cultural activists, and the organs of democratic power are strengthening themselves. In the course of the people´s war, they are carrying out programs and campaigns to improve the social conditions and lives of the people through self-organization, public education, health care, land reform, economic production, self-defense, arbitration of people’s disputes, cultural upliftment, gender equality, and environmental protection.
Agoncillio, Teodoro A. & Guerrero, Milagros, History of the Filipino People, 5th ed. (Quezon City: R. P. Garcia Publishing House, 1983)
Christians for National Liberation, Schism and Apostasy in CNL, Pilipinas, special issue, November 1994.
Ditto, 6th National Congress documents, Pilipinas, jan. 1995.
Ditto, ¨Hail the 28th anniversary of the Christians for National Liberation, firmly grasp revolutionary principles¨, Pilipinas, special issue, Feb. 2000.
Ditto, 7th National Congress documents, Pilipinas, February 2004.
Corpuz, O. D., An Economic History of the Philippines (Quezon City: University of the Philippines Press, 1997)
Guerrrero, Amado, Philippine Society and Revolution, 5th ed. (Philippines: Aklat ng Bayan, 2006)
McCoy, Alfred W. & de Jesus, Ed C., Social History of the Philippines (Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2001)
National Democratic Front of the Philippines, Declaration of Undertaking to Apply the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Protocol I of 1977 (Quezon City: NDFP-Nominated Section to the Joint Secretariat of the GRP-NDFPJoint Monitoring Committee, 2005)
Ditto, The GRP-NDFP Peace Negotiations: Major Written Agreements and Outstanding Issues (Quezon City: NDFP-Nominated Section to the Joint Secretariat of the GRP-NDFPJoint Monitoring Committee, 2006)
Sison, Jose Maria, Building Strength through Struggle (Netherlands & Philippines: International Network for Philippine Studies and Aklat ng Bayan, 2014).
Ditto, Crisis of Imperialism and People’s Resistance (Philippines: Aklat ng Bayan, 2009)
Ditto, Foundation for Resuming the Philippine Revolution (Netherlands & Philippines: International Network for Philippine Studies and Aklat ng Bayan, 2013).
Ditto, People’s Struggle Against Imperialist Plunder and War (Philippines: Aklat ng Bayan, 2009)
Ditto, The People’s Struggle for a Just Peace (Netherlands: International Network for Philippine Studies, 1991)
Sison, Jose Maria & de Lima, Julieta, Philippine Economy and Politics (Philippines: Aklat ng Bayan, 2001)
Veneracion, Jaime, Philippine Agriculture during the Spanish Regime (Quezon City: College of Social Sciences and Philosophy Research and Publications, 2001)
Youngblood, Robert L., Marcos Against the Church (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1990)
http://www.philippinerevolution.net/statements/20140515_the-new-democratic-revolution-through-protracted-people-s-war
CPP: Condemn the AFP’s war of suppression and widespread abuses in Mindanao! ....
Anti-AFP propaganda statement posted to the CPP Website (May 16): Condemn the AFP’s war of suppression and widespread abuses in Mindanao! Wage widespread guerrilla warfare in Mindanao and across the country to defend the people!
The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) condemns in the strongest terms possible the heightened operations of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) against peasant and minority or Lumad communities, as well as against the Moro people, across the different regions in Mindanao. The aim is to suppress the people’s resistance, both their democratic mass struggles and their revolutionary armed movement, in order to pave the way for the entry of big foreign mining, logging and plantation operations in various parts of Mindanao.
The so-called “peace and development” operations of the AFP under its Oplan Bayanihan war against the people have brought nothing but terror and hardship to the hundreds of thousands of peasants and minorities. Combat troops of the AFP have committed widespread abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law as they militarize entire communities, drop bombs and fire mortar shells which destroy farms and the natural environment. Operating troops of the AFP unjustly suppress civilian communities in their desperate effort to wage counter-guerrilla warfare against the New People’s Army (NPA), the people’s militias as well as against the revolutionary armed Moro fighters.
Since the start of 2014, the AFP has mobilized at least 30 combat maneuver battalions against the NPA forces in the South, Far South, Northeast and North Central Mindanao. The AFP’s Eastern Mindanao Command has been beefed up with additional troops from Luzon and the Visayas, including the deployment of at least three Scout Ranger battalions. These forces have been further augmented with forces of the Philippine Navy and Philippine Air Force, the AFP Engineering Brigade, Tactical Operations Group, Regional Community Defense Group and military intelligence battalions. At least one battalion under the 6th ID in the Moro areas in Maguindanao has been transferred to the 10th ID and deployed in Compostela Valley.
Such a major military campaign is likely coordinated with the US military, particularly the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines (JSOTF-P) based in Zamboanga City. During previous major campaigns in Southern Mindanao, US soldiers set up tactical coordinating centers with field commands to provide combat assistance in the form of real-time satellite or drone intelligence, join combat operations and provide logistical support (including aerial support for dropping smart bombs or for medical evacuation).
The number of operating troops deployed by the AFP is unprecedented. We can conservatively estimate that the Aquino regime is spending at least P500 million a month to cover the costs of the daily field and intelligence operations of its combat units, fuel for its helicopter gunships, transport trucks and armed personnel carriers as well as the acquisition of bombs, artillery and bullets. The Aquino regime will likely be spending several billion pesos in the course of several months of counter-guerrilla operations in Mindanao.
The CPP joins the Filipino people in condemning the Aquino regime for squandering billions of pesos for its heightened military campaign in Mindanao while the majority of the people continue to wallow in poverty. At the same time, the Aquino regime adamantly refuses to heed the people’s demand for rehabilitation in the areas devastated by supertyphoon Pablo in December 2012. Aquino’s government has succeeded only in building 110 substandard houses out of an original target of 1,300. It has reneged on its promise of rice subsidies for the calamity victims. Worse, the Aquino regime has allowed mining and logging operations to continue in Baganga, Cateel and Boston, which were among the towns that suffered destructive mudflows resulting from widespread denudation.
The CPP also joins the widespread condemnation of the AFP’s campaigns of suppression against the people of Talaingod, Davao Oriental. Last April, at least 1,300 residents of Talaingod abandoned their homes and evacuated to Davao City in order to protest the presence of military troops in their communities and the transformation of their schools, day care centers and other village facilities into barracks for the operating troops of the 1003rd Brigade. They narrated how helicopter gunships fired bombs on their farms and how they were accused of being supporters of the NPA and forced to serve as guides for the soldiers in their operations. Earlier this month, the residents of Talaingod returned to their homes after successfully getting the AFP commander to order the withdrawal of troops from the community center. In the same breath, however, the AFP commander threatened to continue deploying soldiers in the area and declared that they would continue with their search and destroy operations in the area.
Over the past several months, the AFP has also conducted similar operations in the towns of Maco, Maragusan and Mabini, all in Compostela Valley; in Loreto, Butuan City and Cabadbaran in Agusan del Sur; and other areas. Cases of human rights abuses are rapidly increasing. These include the killing of Ricardo “Polon” Tuazon in Butuan last April 28, the abduction, torture and killing of Wilmar Bargas in Maco, the abduction of peasant leader Romeo “Ging-ging” Rivera in South Cotabato and others. The AFP have been conducting aerial bombing runs which have endangered civilian communities and caused grave trauma especially among children. Communities have been subjected to hamletting. AFP operating troops have imposed food and economic blockades resulting in grave hardships against the people. Invariably, AFP soldiers have systematically promoted gambling, drug use and other anti-social activities in order to cause divisions among the people. Cases of rape and sexual violations against young women are on the rise.
The people’s revolutionary movement is in complete solidarity with the demand to end the destructive and plunderous logging, mining and plantation operations that these abusive AFP military campaigns protect. The NPA continues to carry out the CPP’s directive to punish and drive away the biggest plunderers in order to make available land for land reform and preserve the ancestral lands of the Lumad. Recently, the NPA has succeeded in disabling large-scale mining equipment of Asia Alston in Agusan del Norte and the Apex Mining Company in Compostela Valley. It has carried out a campaign to put a stop to widespread logging operations in Compostela Valley being run by military officials and bureaucrat capitalists in collaboration with officials of the Aquino regime.
In light of the widespread abuses, grave violations of human rights and international humanitarian law and the vile aim of the AFP’s Oplan Bayanihan brutal campaign of suppression, the Communist Party of the Philippines calls on the Filipino people to unite and demand an immediate end to all offensive military operations and the withdrawal of all operating troops from civilian communities.
The CPP enjoins all peace-loving groups, human rights advocates, lawyers, church and religious workers, student organizations, media associations and progressive people’s groups across the Philippines to take up the cause of the people of Mindanao against the AFP’s intensified war of suppression. They should actively look into the situation in Mindanao and help expose the grave abuses and brutalities being committed by the AFP in the course of its war against the people.
The CPP calls on Filipinos abroad to organize and mobilize in order to come to the aid of the people of Mindanao. Solidarity groups of people who hail from Mindanao can be organized to spearhead an international campaign to expose the AFP’s war of suppression in their home towns and provinces. They can strive to draw international attention to the situation in Mindanao in order to expose the lies and illusions being peddled by the US-Aquino regime.
The CPP applauds the peasant organizations and Lumad groups, as well as the progressive organizations among the workers, students, urban poor, religious, teachers, environmental advocates, media, government employees and other democratic sectors in Mindanao, who have stood up and resisted the AFP’s all-out war of suppression. They have stood courageously in the face of harassment, threats, abductions and arrests carried out by the AFP against the people.
The CPP also urges the Moro forces to continue waging revolutionary armed resistance in order to frustrate the US-Aquino regime’s plan to allow foreign big mining companies to plunder the land and rob the Moro people of their rich natural resources.
The CPP applauds all Red commanders and fighters of the New People’s Army in Mindanao for continuing to seize the initiative in waging extensive and intensive guerrilla warfare. They have adeptly frustrated the AFP’s sustained and concentrated attacks by employing the tactics of shifting and concentration to avoid decisive engagements, luring the enemy deep and launching tactical offensives that they are sure of winning.
Despite the increased number of troops over the past month of operations, the AFP has yet to inflict a decisive blow against against any NPA unit. In fact, it is the AFP that continues to suffer casualties. Last May 5, a fascist trooper of the 67th IB was killed in an NPA sniping operation in Bgy. Pagsabangan, New Bataan. Earlier, the AFP also lost four soldiers in an NPA offensive last April 23 in Brgy Manurigao, New Bataan after conducting operations in Brgy. Pichon, Caraga town, Davao Oriental. On April 13 and 14, eight soldiers belonging to the Army Division Reconnaisance Company and three soldiers of the 9th IB were killed in successive NPA ambuscades in the Maragusan-Maco boundary area. On March 20, two soldiers were killed when an NPA unit ambushed a military truck transporting troops belonging to the 26th IB and the Scout Rangers in San Luis, Agusan del Sur. On March 12, five soldiers belonging to the 9th IB were killed in an NPA ambush in Panoraon, Maco, Compostela Valley. On March 10, the NPA successfully launched a raid against the PNP Headquarters in Matanao, Davao del Sur, killing three policemen and seizing 10 assorted firearms. On March 5, two soldiers belonging to the 58th IB were killed in an NPA harassment operation in Libertad, Gingoog City.
Hundreds of people’s militia units are rapidly being mobilized in order to pursue and harass all AFP operating troops. AFP units continue to punch the air and are fast growing tired and wary of the people’s army and the people’s militias. Their fear of the people and their army, in turn, makes them more desperate and brutal.
The CPP calls on the five regional commands of the New People’s Army across Mindanao to continue efforts to intensify the people’s war by launching ever more frequent and bigger tactical offensives against the enemy. The large-scale operations of the AFP open innumerable opportunities to carry out tactical offensives against the weak spots of the enemy. The NPA and units of the people’s militias can launch small unit operations without letup in order to take advantage of all opportunities to strike at the enemy and make it bleed from a thousand wounds. At the same time, NPA commanders at the regional and interregional level can plan out special operations to deal massive head blows with great political impact.
All units of the NPA in Luzon and Visayas continue to wage extensive and intensive guerrilla warfare in their respective regions and areas of operations. Tactical offensives have been carried out in various provinces over the past month, particularly in Northern Samar, Camarines Norte, Sorsogon, Masbate, Palawan, Batangas, Quezon, Ilocos Sur, Mountain Province and other places.
In the face of the large-scale and brutal war of suppression being waged by the AFP against the people in Mindanao, there is particular urgency to carry out a campaign to launch bigger and more frequent tactical offensives across the country. Such a campaign must be carried out to extend support to the NPA units in Mindanao who are now confronting one of the biggest and longest AFP campaigns of suppression. The New People’s Army must display its strength and unity against the brutalities and abuses being committed by the AFP in Mindanao.
All Party committees and NPA commands must help counter and derail the AFP’s all-out war of suppression in Mindanao. Every regional, subregional and front operations command of the NPA can contribute to this effort by launching ambushes, raids and other tactical offensives against the weak points of the enemy including police, army or CAFGU checkpoints, isolated detachments or police stations, detached supply teams and others. They can carry out the arrest of enemy officers accused of war crimes or notorious criminals in order to subject them to trial. They can target the destruction of enemy camps, military trucks, helicopters, fuel depots and other supply points through sapper operations and the proper deployment of command-detonated explosives or incendiary weapons. They can carry out punitive actions against the big plunderers of the environment such as mining, logging and plantation operations. All units of the people’s militias must also be mobilized in this effort.
By seizing the initiative in waging people’s war and launching bigger and more frequent tactical offensives, the NPA also directly contributes to the Filipino people’s campaign to put an end to the much-detested puppet, corrupt, brutal and mendacious Aquino regime.
In carrying out and intensifying extensive and intensive guerrilla warfare across the country, the New People’s Army is bound to frustrate the all-out war of suppression of the AFP and the Aquino regime in Mindanao and emerge stronger and more capable in waging and advancing the people’s war. With the people’s inexhaustible support, the NPA will prove itself unstoppable as it marches forward from the current stage of strategic defensive of the people’s war to the next stage of strategic stalemate.
http://www.philippinerevolution.net/statements/20140516_condemn-the-afp-s-war-of-suppression-and-widespread-abuses-in-mindanao-wage-widespread-guerrilla-warfare-in-mindanao-and-across-the-country-to-defend-the-people
Two soldiers hurt following encounter with NPAs in Davao City
From the Philippine News Agency (May 17): Two soldiers hurt following encounter with NPAs in Davao City
Two troopers of the 69th Infantry Battalion were wounded following an encounter with seven New People's Army (NPA) fighters in Paquibato District, Davao City Saturday morning.
These troopers were responding to civilian reports that the rebels were laying landmines along a road in Sitio Mangga, Barangay Malabog, of the above-mentioned locality, when the soldiers encountered seven heavily-armed NPA fighters around 5: 38 a.m.
This triggered a 10-minute firefight where the rebels detonated a landmine which wounded two soldiers.
The NPAs quickly fled taking with them an undetermined number of casualties. Pursuing troopers later recovered 100 meter blasting wire.
"This is again a deliberate attempt of the NPA to disturb the peace that we are slowly gaining here in Paquibato, but still the success of the peace building activity indicates that we are making progress," 69th Infantry Battalion commander Lt. Col. Rodney Intal said.
He also commended the community for the timely information on the landmine.
Sagada villagers search, dismantle NPA camps
From the Philippine News Agency (May 18): Sagada villagers search, dismantle NPA camps
Irked at the atrocities committed by New People's Army (NPA) fighters against civilians, Sagada villagers in the Mountain Province on Friday conducted their own search-and-dismantle missions against rebel lairs in their areas.
501st Infantry Brigade commander Brig. Gen. Roger Salvador said that this effort was done in response to the consensus reached by Sagada villagers last May 7.
The villagers resolved that no NPA camp or base will be allowed to be set up in their areas and search-and-dismantle missions will be conducted regularly to prevent rebels from taking foot in their communities.
Salvador said that the resolve of the Sagada villagers was in the wake of human rights violations committed by the NPA fighters in the locality which was previously declared as zone of peace effectively barring armed soldiers and rebels from entering the area.
“What is happening in Sagada is an excellent example of people fed up with violence who found the courage to unite and reject the NPA terrorists and allow peace to reign in their town,” he concluded.
Army to fete firefighting personnel injured in Fort Bonifacio fire, explosion
From the Philippine News Agency (May 18): Army to fete firefighting personnel injured in Fort Bonifacio fire, explosion
The Philippine Army (PA) will honor the members of the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and fire volunteers who were injured during the Explosive Ordnance Division building fire and explosion incident at the Army Support Command in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City last May 7.
The awarding ceremony will be conducted during the flag raising ceremony on Monday at Fort Bonifacio.
Lt. Col. Noel Detoyato, Army spokesperson, said 11 BFP personnel and 17 fire volunteers will be feted.
The incident wounded over 32 personnel. Of the injured military men, two died in the hospital later.
PHL-US 'Balikatan 2014' also a tool in improving countryside communities
From the Philippine News Agency (May 18): PHL-US 'Balikatan 2014' also a tool in improving countryside communities
Aside from improving the military capability of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the Philippines-United States "Balikatan 2014" exercises conducted from May 5 to 16 was also useful in improving the plight of countryside communities.
This was stressed by Lt. (SG) Annaleah P. Cazcarro, Combined Joint Information co-director of the 30th Balikatan, in a statement on Sunday.
She said that this was exemplified in the Bicol region where troops from the AFP Southern Luzon Command took the lead in the construction of a health center, two-room classroom building, water catchment system and concreting of sidewalk in Malobago Elementary School, Barangay Malobago and another one-room school building in Doña Mercedes Elementary School, all in Guinobatan, Albay.
"The installation of water storage tank and construction of a public rest room also benefitted the residents of Barangay Pawa, Legazpi City. The troops also repaired and renovated parts of Tamaoyan Elementary School in Barangay Tamaoyan, Legazpi City," she added.
Besides these projects, combined Army and Navy troops from AFP and U.S. Armed Forces likewise constructed and renovated school buildings, offered medical and veterinary services, and conducted medical symposia and training in Legazpi City and Guinobatan.
A total of 65 personnel from the AFP and 94 from joint U.S. and multinational forces participated in the events.
Cazcarro said the partnership between the AFP and U.S. Armed Forces continue to be healthy, dynamic and beneficial.
"It continues to highlight the unswerving commitment of both military forces towards a more secure Asia-Pacific region," she added.
“As we conclude this year’s Balikatan Exercises, we look forward to more joint bilateral military exercises and undertakings that will help the AFP in coping with our ever evolving security environment and achieve our goal of a minimum credible defense system,” Cazcarro stressed.
Bus firm garage bombed in Compostela Valley; cops see NPA extortion
From the Philippine Daily Inquirer (May 17): Bus firm garage bombed in Compostela Valley; cops see NPA extortion
TAGUM , Davao del Norte, Philippines – Suspected communist rebels lobbed a grenade towards the garage of a bus company in Compostela, Compostela Valley early on Friday, police on Saturday said.
No one was hurt but at least five units of the Golden Valley Bus Liner Inc. sustained minor damage following the pre-dawn explosion at Poblacion village, said Renato Nerves, the company’s operations manager.
Witnesses reported hearing a motorcycle speeding away immediately after the blast tore through the firm’s garage in Purok (Community) 3, Crossing Gabi around 12:25 a.m., according to Senior Inspector Dervy Hortelano, Compostela Valley police chief.
The explosion also broke the jalousie panes of a house within the garage compound, and responding policemen recovered the grenade’s lever and other explosive fragments at the crime scene.
“We’re looking at extortion by the New People’s Army as a possible motive since the company has received extortion demands in the past,”
Hortelano told the Philippine Daily Inquirer by mobile phone.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/602880/bus-firm-garage-bombed-in-compostela-valley-cops-see-npa-extortion
PH to spend P1B on new naval base
From the Philippine Daily Inquirer (May 17): PH to spend P1B on new naval base
The government will spend P1 billion of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ modernization fund to build a new naval operating base in this town, Mayor Jefferson Khonghun said on Wednesday.
Khonghun said the construction of a pier, warehouses and housing facilities for the naval base would start this month in a 500-hectare area in Barangay Cawag. The site of the proposed base is near the shipyard of the Korean-owned Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Co. Ltd. Philippines and the Subic Bay Freeport Zone.
“Local government officials are very supportive of this and we’re fortunate to have a naval base in our town,” Khonghun told the Inquirer.
He said the Subic town council on May 7 passed a resolution endorsing the project “without any objection.”
He said the proposed pier would be designed to accommodate “big and modern ships” of both the Philippine and American naval forces.
Khonghun said Philippine Navy officials had been coordinating with him about the construction of the naval base. The site was identified three weeks before the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement was signed by Philippine and American officials last month.
“We (local officials) were the last to know about the project because the AFP had to secure first the necessary approval of all concerned agencies,” Khonghun said.
He said members of the AFP’s engineering brigade were scheduled to visit the site this month for the initial preparation of the construction of facilities.
Before retiring last month, Vice Adm. Jose Luis Alano, Philippine Navy flag officer in command, wrote Khonghun to confirm that the Navy had identified an area in Barangay Cawag for the establishment of the naval operating base.
Alano’s April 14 letter said the new site was close to the Hanjin shipyard and would cover private property that the government would buy. The letter also sought coordination and support from the local government.
Strategic site
“The site for the new naval base is very strategic because there are passable roads leading to it. Besides, it is near Bajo de Masinloc (the disputed Panatag or Scarborough Shoal in the West Philippine Sea), so it will provide security to our local fishermen who were previously driven away by Chinese coast guard personnel,” Khonghun said.
He said Subic officials had met with Navy officials several times since April. Local officials, he said, supported the construction of the naval base “after considering national security and weighing the economic benefits” of the project.
A memorandum of agreement between the AFP and Subic officials would be signed next month for the construction of the base, Khonghun said.
Roberto Garcia, chair of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), earlier confirmed that a portion of the Subic Bay Freeport Zone would be used by the AFP as it establishes a base in the free port.
Garcia said the SBMA would allow the AFP to use sections of the former naval facilities of the United States, including three wharves and ports and a portion of the old US naval air station.
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/104602/ph-to-spend-p1b-on-new-naval-base
Two soldiers among three nabbed in drugs operation
From the Visayan Daily Star (May 17): Two soldiers among three nabbed in drugs operation
Two soldiers of the 11th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army, based in Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental, and a civilian were arrested in an anti-illegal drugs operation in Sitio Malapay, Barangay Bagawines in Vallehermoso, at around 5:50 p.m. Thursday.
Insp. Ryan Jay Orapa, chief of the Provincial Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Group of the Negros Oriental PNP, identified the suspects as Private First Class Marhlo Libo-on, Private First Class Rey Eco, and Teofilo Bayeta Osorio.
He said Osorio was nabbed when he sold suspected shabu, worth about P5,000, to an undercover agent. Orapa said the two soldiers were arrested for alleged violation of Section 15, Article II of Republic Act 9165, or the Dangerous Drugs Act, for drug use, after they allegedly bought “shabu” from Osorio before his arrest.
Brig. Gen. Francisco Patrimonio, commander of the 302nd Infantry Brigade of the Philippine Army, based in Tanjay City, Negros Oriental, said he had received a report about the arrest of the two soldiers who are assigned at the 11th IB.
He said he has directed Lt. Col. Paulito Idol, 11th IB commanding officer, to investigate the case of Libo-on and Eco, who are both assigned to the Bravo Company and were part of a Bayanihan Team, engaged in community activities in Barangay Binobohan, Guihulngan City.
An initial report to Patrimonio said the two soldiers were at a vulcanizing shop in the vicinity where Osorio was arrested.
He added that Libo-on and Eco were released yesterday afternoon after the drug tests conducted on them yielded negative results.
They have returned to the Bravo Company base in Barangay Buenavista, Guihulngan, Patrimonio added.
The drugs operation was jointly conducted by the PAIDSOTG, and the Vallehermoso police, led by its chief, Insp. Eric Errol Besario, in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency provincial office.
http://www.visayandailystar.com/2014/May/17/negor2.htm
NDFP hits apprehension of ‘consultant’
From the Visayan Daily Star (May 17): NDFP hits apprehension of ‘consultant’
The National Democratic Front of the Philippines condemned the arrest of its alleged consultant, Roy Erecre, who has been tagged by the military as the secretary of the Komiteng Rehiyonal Sentral Bisayas, in Davao City on May 7.
Former Negrense priest Luis Jalandoni, chairperson of the NDFP negotiating panel, said Erecre is one of their consultants in the peace talks with the government, as he holds an NDFP Document of Identification No. ND978243, under the assumed name of Vide Alguna.
In a statement he issued, Jalandoni accused the AFP and PNP of disregarding Erecre’s NDFP Document of Identification, which he had in his possession during what he calls his “illegal arrest”.
Erecre, with the aliases of Toto and Pasyong, has pending arrest warrants for robbery-in-band, and frustrated murder, the latter of which was issued by the San Carlos Regional Trial Court Judge Kathrine Go, who recommended P200,000 as bail.
Jalandoni said the NDFP holds the administration of President Benigno Aquino III for what he claimed to be the latest gross violation of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees.
In the same statement, Jalandoni said the continued violation of the rights of more than a dozen other NDFP consultants and JASIG-protected personnel, and refusal of the Aquino regime to comply with its obligations according to the JASIG and the Comprehensive Agreement of Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law are big obstacles to the holding of peace negotiations between the regime and the NDFP.
The KRSB allegedly headed by Erecre used to operate in Negros Oriental.
Here’s Your Pocket Guide to the South China Sea Tensions
From Defense One (May 15): Here’s Your Pocket Guide to the South China Sea Tensions
Territorial spats over the waters and islands of the South China Sea have roiled relations between China and countries like Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Brunei in recent years, and tensions continue to escalate in the wake of U.S. President Barack Obama’s announced “pivot” of focus to the region. A handful of islands comprise the epicenter of the territorial dispute, making up an area known as the “cow’s tongue” that spans roughly the entire South China Sea. The region is home to a wealth of natural resources, fisheries, trade routes, and military bases, all of which are at stake in the increasingly frequent diplomatic standoffs. China’s blanket claims to sovereignty across the region and its strong resistance to handling disputes in an international arena have mired attempts at resolving the crises and intensified nationalist postures in all countries involved, particularly Vietnam and the Philippines. Experts say the potential for an escalated conflict in the South China Sea—while seemingly distant for now—presents an ongoing crisis for the region, as well as for U.S. interests in the area.
What territories are involved and disputed?
The South China Sea comprises a stretch of roughly 1.4 million square miles in the Pacific Ocean that encompasses an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan, spanning west of the Philippines, north of Indonesia, and east of Vietnam. The South China Sea islands number in the hundreds, although the largest and most contentious territories include the Spratly Islands, Paracel Islands, Pratas Islands, Macclesfield Bank, and Scarborough Shoal, all of which the six major Southeast Asian nations lay various claims to. The islands are mostly uninhabited and have never had an indigenous population, making the issue of historical sovereignty a thorny one to resolve.
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The disputes aren’t limited to land, however; each country has an Exclusive Economic Zone, prescribed by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), over which it has special rights to marine resources and energy exploration and production. An EEZ spans outward 200 nautical miles from the coast of the each state’s territorial sea, and may include the continental shelf beyond the 200-mile limit. These zones come into play during disputes over sea territory, as displayed in China’s December 2012 spat with Vietnam (WSJ) over oil and fishing activity in the waters near the Paracel Islands.
What is the 9-Dash Line?
The 9-Dash line is a controversial demarcation line used by China for its claim to territories and waters in the South China Sea, most notably over the Scarborough Shoal and the Paracel and Spratly Islands—the two most important disputed island groups. The line, which is contested by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam, encompasses virtually the entire South China Sea region and caused immediate controversy when China submitted a map to the UN in 2009 that included the demarcation. Beijing’s issuance of a new passport (Reuters) in late 2012 containing a map of the disputed region based on the line drew fresh international criticism and backlash.
ASEAN countries have contested this boundary, but China has insisted on the historical legitimacy of the line based on survey expeditions, fishing activities, and naval patrols dating as far back as the fifteenth century, putting it at odds with the boundaries UNCLOS has enforced for the region since 1994.
What resources are at play in the region?
The immediate source of conflict in the region is competition over resources, says David Rosenberg, professor of political science at Middlebury College. There are roughly half a billion people who live within 100 miles of the South China Sea coastline, and the volume of shipping through its waters has skyrocketed as China and ASEAN nations increase international trade and oil imports. The need for resources, especially hydrocarbons and fisheries, also has intensified economic competition in the region, particularly given the rapid coastal urbanization of China. “Behind it all, it’s essentially the industrial revolution of Asia,” Rosenberg said. “And the South China Sea has become the hub of that.”
According to the World Bank, the South China Sea holds proven oil reserves of at least seven billion barrels and an estimated 900 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, which offer tremendous economic opportunity for smaller nations like Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam, and energy security for China’s large, growing economy. In December 2012, China’s National Energy Administration named the disputed waters as the main offshore site for natural gas production, and a major Chinese energy company has already begun drilling in deep water off the southern coast.
Competitive tensions escalated when India’s state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp announced it had partnered with PetroVietnam for developing oil in the disputed waters. In June 2011, Vietnam accused a Chinese fishing boat of cutting cables from an oil exploration vessel inside its EEZ. Hostilities resurfaced in May 2014, when Chinese vessels fired water cannons at a Vietnamese flotilla that allegedly approached a large Chinese drilling rig near the Paracel Islands. The row affected Vietnam’s stock markets, which plunged after the incident.
Smaller-scale fishing incidents have instead become the hub of maritime confrontation as declining fish stocks have driven fishermen farther into disputed areas to search for supply, as well as highly profitable illegal species. In the most recent clash, the Philippines’ naval forces intercepted eight Chinese fishing vessels in the Scarborough Shoal in April 2012, finding what they viewed as illegally fished marine life on board. The attempted arrest of the poachers led to a two-month standoff between the two countries.
Annual fishing bans and arrests of fishermen are a convenient proxy for sovereignty claims since they can be presented as legitimate attempts to enforce marine resources protection, according to a report by the International Crisis Group. “This is an issue that doesn’t make big headlines, but 1.5 billion people live there and rely heavily on fisheries for food and jobs,” Rosenberg said. “That’s where most of the conflict goes on, and most of these have been dealt with on a routine conflict management basis.”
How does the dispute affect trade routes in the sea?
As much as 50 percent of global oil tanker shipments pass through the South China Sea, which sees three times more tanker traffic than the Suez Canal and over five times that of the Panama Canal, making the waters one of the world’s busiest international sea lanes. More than half of the world’s top ten shipping ports are also located in and around the South China Sea, according to the International Association of Ports and Harbors. As intra-ASEAN trade has markedly increased—from 29 percent of total ASEAN trade in 1980 to 41 percent in 2009—maintaining freedom of navigation has become of paramount importance for the region.
“This is a very important issue, and has become the main concern of Japan, the United States and even right now the European Union,” said Dr. Yann-Huei Song, a fellow at Academia Sinica in Taiwan. However, Yann-Huei says China is unlikely to instigate an interruption in traffic because its business, exploration, and importation rely entirely on freedom of navigation as well. Experts argue that the mutual benefits from regional economic integration provide an extremely compelling incentive for cooperation on resources, conservation, and security movements, according to a Harvard Quarterly paper.
What are the military stakes?
The region has also seen increased militarization in response to China’s burgeoning power, raising the stakes of a potential armed conflict and making disputes more difficult to resolve. Vietnam and Malaysia have led regional military buildups and increased arms trade with countries like Russia and India, while the Philippines doubled its defense budget in 2011 and pledged five-year joint military exercises with the United States. The Philippines also embarked on a modernization program costing roughly $1 billion that will rely heavily on U.S. sales of cutters and potentially fighter jets. In April 2014, it signed a new ten-year military pact with the United States that would grant the U.S. military increased troop presence and base access in the country.
Ships are commonly involved in naval disputes, as exhibited in the Scarborough Shoal incident in April 2012 when the Philippines said its largest warship—acquired from the United States—had a standoff with Chinese surveillance vessels after the ship attempted to arrest Chinese fishermen but was blocked by the surveillance craft. The involvement of the navy made political compromise more difficult, says the ICG.
“There’s nothing like NATO in Asia, and that’s what’s worrisome,” Rosenberg said. “Unlike the U.S. and EU, which are engaged in other regions of the world, the Southeast Asian countries are compelled to spend more protecting their most immediate interests. It’s not the Cold War by any means, but they’re still not very open with each other about military modernization.”
What is being done to resolve the disputes?
One of the largest impasses to a resolution is China’s insistence on conducting most of its diplomacy on a bilateral basis, writes CFR’s Stewart Patrick. Nationalism has also fueled many of these stalemates. International tribunals, like the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, are available, but nations use it selectively in light of the potential domestic political ramifications of appearing conciliatory. China also has repeatedly rejected the mechanisms for arbitration provided by the UN.
A July 2012 ASEAN summit attempted to address ways to mitigate the conflict but ended without producing any communiqué, which some experts say highlights the difficultiesthe region of multilateral approaches.
ASEAN’s six-point statement in July made no reference to specific incidents, and only outlined an agreement to draft and implement a regional code of conduct, respect international law, and exercise self-restraint. CFR’s Josh Kurlantzick said in August 2012 that while ASEAN was an appropriate venue to mediate this dispute, the organization still has not yet found its footing in transitioning to a “more forceful, integrated organization that can provide leadership.” In a November 2012 IIGG working paper, Kurlantzick looks at how ASEAN can strengthen its role in the region to meet challenges such as the South China Sea.
Consequently, joint management of resources has been widely proposed by experts as the best way to ease current tensions, according to the ICG. China and Vietnam have managed to cooperate on a common fishery zone in the Tonkin Gulf, where the two countries have delineated claims and regulated fishing. However, oil development has remained a highly contentious issue, as both Vietnam and the Philippines have gone ahead with gas exploration projects (PDF) with foreign companies in disputed areas.
What does this mean for the United States’ pivot to Asia?
The U.S. pivot to the area, coupled with the region’s myriad conflicts, raises concerns about the future of U.S. interests in Southeast Asia. The Obama administration has not only worked to strengthen ties with ASEAN, but has also forged tighter relations with individual countries like Myanmar, where it has developed a new focus and strategy of engagement. The U.S. has also ramped up security cooperation with Vietnam, while Malaysia and Singapore have also signaled desire for increased security cooperation.
A 2012 Johns Hopkins paper notes that Southeast Asia has transformed in the last two decades to an area where Chinese power and strategic ambition confront an established U.S. military presence, and where a Chinese perception of the status of the South China Sea is fundamentally at odds with a long-settled consensus among major maritime states.
Experts say that the United States faces a dilemma and tough balancing act in the region, as some countries in ASEAN would like it to play a more forceful role to counter what they see as a greater Chinese assertiveness, while others want to see less U.S. involvement. The priority on all sides should be to avoid military conflict, according to Bonnie Glaser of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in this Contingency Planning Memorandum; even as China spars with its Southeast Asian neighbors, it is becoming the largest trading partner and one of the biggest direct investors of most Southeast Asian states since an ASEAN-China free trade area came into effect.
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Find out what the crew is really thinking while you're up in the air.
By Amanda Greene
When JetBlue flight attendant and made a dramatic exit down the aircraft's emergency slide in 2010, people were left to wonder what put him over the edge. Sure, every job is stressful, but does being a flight attendant come with a unique share of annoyances? We talked to flight attendants around the world to learn what goes on behind the scenes, what pushes their buttons and what passengers can do to make their jobs easier.
1. We don't give orders just to hear our own voices.
Getting you to your destination safely is the number-one priority of flight attendants. "People find rules annoying but they don't understand that there's a reason behind every rule—which is to keep you safe," says Sara Keagle, who's been a flight attendant for 18 years and blogs about it at . Ellen,* a former flight attendant for United Airlines, wishes "that passengers would understand that we're required by the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) to ensure safety at all times. We've seen what can happen when a flight hits unexpected turbulence, so we need you to sit down so that you don't hurt yourself."
2. We don't enjoy delayed flights any more than you do.
Sitting on the tarmac is stressful for passengers and flight attendants alike. "We're usually on the plane an hour before the passengers to prepare for the flight, we've been at the airport for a few hours before that," says Fanny Delaunay, a former flight attendant for Air France. And if you're tired, multiply that by three to understand how tired your flight attendant is. "It's likely that we're on the third or fourth day of a multiday trip. We're tired and want to see our families too," says Ellen.
3. Give each other a hand during boarding.
According to Teresa,* a former flight attendant with Delta Air Lines, the hardest part of a flight is boarding, because properly stowing baggage can be tricky. "If passengers worked together and stopped only thinking about themselves it would make our job a lot easier, as well as help the flight get out on time." So be considerate of other passengers by leaving them some space when you place your suitcase in the overhead bin, and assist someone who's struggling to stow their suitcase.
4. An airplane is a mode of transportation, not a flying restaurant.
Keep in mind that the main function of flying is not to provide you with a fine dining experience. According to Ellen, "we usually don't board 100 percent of any one food option, so passengers should be prepared not to get their first choice." As Gary, a flight attendant with United Airlines, puts it, "You're on board a 747, not a 7-Eleven. We will do everything we can to make your flight enjoyable, but sometimes we just don't have everything that you want."
5. A simple "please" and "thank you" goes a long way.
As do good manners. "It meant the most to me when people would say 'good morning' in return as I greeted them when they got on the plane," says flight attendant Lisa Lent. According to Teresa, sometimes passengers would bring the crew little gifts, like candy. "We also loved it when someone would offer us their magazine after they were through with it. It's always those little things that made a big difference."
6. Many passengers don't realize how much more drunk they get at 35,000 feet.
"Due to the high altitude, alcohol is more powerful when you're on a flight," says Fanny. If you're noticeably drunk or getting unruly, it's the flight attendant's responsibility to control the situation. "Sometimes if we think you've had too much to drink, we'll serve you, but not serve the whole mini-bottle of booze," confesses Ellen. "We may just dip the rim of the glass in enough vodka or gin and fill the rest with mixer."
7. And serving you those drinks is not the primary reason we're on board.
Flight attendants are there to ensure your safety, not cater to your every need. They go through rigorous training, including medical emergency training, CPR and training to evacuate an aircraft. "Because—fortunately—most flights do not encounter safety problems, some people believe that we're just luggage handlers and beverage servers, and don't recognize that flight attendants are highly trained for the safety and comfort of the passengers," says Agnes Huff, PhD, a former flight attendant for US Airways and Pacific Southwest Airlines. Sara explains that because the pilots can't see the back of the aircraft, flight attendants are depended upon to be the eyes and ears at the back of the plane. It's up to them to be aware of what's going on with the aircraft and alert the pilot to any emergency situations.
8. We're a very tight bunch.
Despite sometimes having met only minutes earlier, "once the crew is on board for a flight, something miraculous happens," says Gary. "We suddenly become one another's best friends, as if we've known one another for years. I guess the trust comes from knowing that we really do have one another's back in an emergency." According to him, the most intimate conversations take place during taxi, takeoff and landing. Those bonding moments are referred to as "jump seat news."
9. We wish you'd time your bathroom trips better.
Disregarding the "fasten seatbelt" sign and jumping up to visit the lavatory whenever you need to can add to delays. "There's a sequence to taxiing and getting in line for takeoff," says Sara. "If somebody gets up to use the restroom, we have to tell the cockpit, and they have to stop the plane and wait until the person is back in his or her seat and buckled up. During that time we could lose our spot in line." Plus, says Ellen: "Moving the 300-pound drink cart back to the galley against gravity after you've pulled it all the way to the front because one passenger needs to use the restroom is the most annoying thing ever."
10. Meeting passengers can be the best part about being a flight attendant.
"One of my favorite parts of the job was having meaningful conversations with interesting people," says Fanny. "Maybe it's an underlying fear of flying, or just the magic of being in the air, but people tend to open up and talk about themselves a lot. You can learn so much."
*Names have been changed.
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http://designedby3d.com
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Your Move Participant's Guide with DVD: Four Questions to Ask When You
Your Move Participant's Guide with DVD: Four Questions to Ask When You Don’t Know What to Do
DVD and Trade Paper
Your Move Participant's Guide with DVD - DVD and Trade Paper
In this four-session small group Bible study, Andy Stanley unpacks four questions that will help you make sound decisions with God’s help.
Throughout our lives, we’re confronted with decisions we never anticipated having to make – relational, career, financial, parenting – the list goes on and on. The complicate matters further the timeframe for making a decision is often short and our options limited. But regardless, a decision needs to be made.
So what do you do when it’s your move and you aren’t sure what to do?
Follow Andy as he teaches how every decision and its outcome become a permanent part of your story, what to do when you feel the need to pause before taking action, and how to make more of this life by making sound decisions.
This Participant Guide includes discussion questions, video overview, space for taking notes, and a helpful Leader’s Guide. When used with the companion Your Move DVD (sold separately) it works as a powerful catalyst for spiritual growth.
The Story of Your Life
Pay Attention to the Tension
Passing It On
This pack contains one guide and one DVD.
Contributor(s)Andy Stanley
About the Contributor(s) Andy StanleyCommunicator, author, and pastor Andy Stanley founded Atlanta-based North Point Ministries in 1995. Today, NPM consists of six churches... Andy Stanley
Communicator, author, and pastor Andy Stanley founded Atlanta-based North Point Ministries in 1995. Today, NPM consists of six churches in the Atlanta area and a network of more than 70 churches around the globe that collectively serve nearly 118,000 people weekly.
As host of Your Move with Andy Stanley, which delivers over seven million messages each month through television and podcasts, and author of more than 20 books, including The New Rules for Love, Sex & Dating; Ask It; How to Be Rich; Deep & Wide; Visioneering; and Next Generation Leader, he is considered one of the most influential pastors in America.
Andy and his wife, Sandra, have three grown children and live near Atlanta.
PublisherZondervan
Format DVD and Trade Paper
Case Weight (lbs)11.53 lb
Dimensions 9.0(h) x 6.0(w) x 0.75(d) inches
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All in the spirit of sport
HONG KONG (SE): A taekwondo exhibition put on by Elena Lomboy and Sharon Villanueva at the annual SportsFest organised by the Simbayanan-KAMMPI on February 10 at the Young Christian Workers Wu Kai Sha Youth Village, not only showed off their martial arts skills, but the true spirit of sportsmanship promoted by the organisers.
Lomboy, the muse from St. Francis parish, faced off against Sharon Villanueva in a demonstration of warding off a physical attack. In a few deft moves, black-belt Lomboy had red-belt Villanueva on the ground nursing a bit of pain from her heavy fall.
But in the spirit of the oath of sportsmanship that the president of the KAMMPI, Rosario Araquil, invited all to take at a Mass celebrated earlier in the day at St. Francis in Ma On Shan, Villanueva took the fall with dignity and Lomboy quickly tended to the injury suffered by her opponent with some basic first aid.
Villanueva thanked her opponent for the contest, saying that pain is a part of every practice session and that she soon began to feel better.
The two taekwondo proponents spoke enthusiastically about their sport and Lomboy demonstrated how to break a wooden board with one kick, although sometimes it turned out it can take two!
In introducing herself to the gathering, the black belt-holder said her motto is, “Learning is a gift even though pain is the teacher.” She said she got her black belt after two years’ training at the Ma On Shan branch of the United Taekwondo Academy.
Lomboy explained that taekwondo is something she had longed to learn since high school, but the fees in The Philippines are expensive, so she is delighted to have the opportunity in Hong Kong.
She is now an instructor at the club and believes that some self-defence skills are necessary in The Philippines, because of the high crime rate.
Mary Rose Prieto, the muse from St. Jude Filipino Catholic Group, demonstrated her martial arts skills in the traditional Filipino kali, which uses two strong sticks as an extension of the hands.
She said she practices at KEAT Filipino Martial Art Club every Sunday, as the exercise helps her to build up her strength. She encouraged everyone to have a go.
But overall, the hardy souls who turned out to compete in the series of games and events, including track and field, volleyball, sack races, tugs of war, volleyball and aerobics, as well as a muse and cheer dancing competitions, said they found it a great opportunity to develop their self-confidence, while contributing to the overall community spirit and having fun at the same time.
Father Mechelle Reginio said at the opening Mass that while it is normal for people to want recognition from others, it becomes excessive when the desire for recognition extends to everything they do.
He also reminded the gathering that the spirit of fasting during Lent is not depriving ourselves of good food. “We try to think of the needs of the hungry people, feel what they feel and give what we saved to the needy,” he said.
The organisations that entered teams for the day were the Sunday Group at the Diocesan Pastoral Centre for Filipinos, St. Thomas the Apostle Church English-speaking Community, Apostleship of Prayer English-speaking Community, Mother of Good Counsel Saturday Group, Ss. Peter and Paul parish, St. Jude Filipino Catholic Group, St. Francis Filipino Community and Sacred Heart Canossian Prayer Group, as well as Holy Family Filipino Catholic Group.
After losing in volleyball, Maricel Alarcon, from the Apostleship of Prayer, together with the coach, Ramiro Cruz, showed the Sunday Examiner the bruises from their rigorous training sessions on their forearms.
Cruz chuckled, “I trained them hard and they lost really hard too. But they managed to smile even while losing and keep their team spirit up.”
Alarcon added that her group is only beginning at volleyball and she saw the competition mostly as a chance to get together and enjoy each other’s friendship.
Sister Basilides Superable, the spiritual director of the pastoral centre Sunday group, told the Sunday Examiner that it is good to see migrant workers taking part in the SportsFest every year, as the event can help migrant people, who may feel detached from their families and countries, to develop their sense of belonging to a community.
At the same time, sport can build self-esteem and dignity, and competition can teach how to deal with honour or defeat.
“In front of God, we are all nothing, winning or losing. We are all dust, but God loves us which gives us honour,” she said.
Previous: … and to dust you shall return
Next: To the least the last and the lost…
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Northerntruthseeker Rant For Sunday, March 31st, 2019
Sunday, and better late than never here comes my weekend rant...
First, I am glad to say that the worse of winter in these parts of central Canada is over, at least I can hope so... It has indeed been one heck of a brutal winter, and suffice to say that this is only the beginning of what will probably be more brutal winters to come for the next decade at least as the planet enters the grip of this new grand solar minimum.... And with so many people gullibly and stupidly stuck on the false notion of the global warming aka "climate change" bullshit, they are ill prepared for the actuality of a very long cold snap.....
Tomorrow is indeed April Fools Day, but the real joke will be on Canadians as the crooked Justin Trudeau Liberal regime in Ottawa forces their fraud "carbon tax" down our throats... Many in these parts will wake up on Monday morning with much HIGHER fuel charges imposed as part of that "carbon tax" and will be asking themselves "what the fuck just happened?".... I for one have tried my best to alert Canadians at this blog that they are about to be royally screwed thanks to this new "tax" that is nothing more than another grab by the criminals in power in this country...But of course most Canadians do not react to being screwed until it is too late.... Yes, Canada, we are indeed going to be royally fucked as the criminal Liberals raid our pocket books starting tomorrow!
And speaking of the criminals in power here in Canada, the former Liberal Attorney General, Jody Wilson-Raybould was finally vindicated the other day when a very long telephone conversation that was recorded by Jody between herself and that heinous Chief Clerk of the Privy Council, Michael Wernick, became public knowledge and showed definitively that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau did indeed interfere in the investigation into the criminality of SNC Lavalin to try to keep that criminal corporation from being indicted to protect jobs in the Province of Quebec... And honestly IMHO this shows definitive proof that Justin Trudeau is indeed unfit to continue as the Prime Minister of Canada and absolutely MUST resign as soon as possible or face criminal charges while under investigation by Canada's RCMP..... It only again proves that Justin Trudeau is absolutely NOT like his father, Pierre Eliot Trudeau, and has not the capabilities to run this nation as its PM.... However, I am not liking the alternative to having Justin Trudeau as the PM, for the Liberal Party of Canada may indeed be looking at replacing Justin with the most evil and diabolical Chrystia Freeland..... If Freeland is handed the reigns of power in this nation, I do fear for the Canadian people leading into this upcoming federal election this October and beyond....
Well, things are once again heating up in Venezuela as with criminal US President Donald Drumpf now no longer being saddled with the bullshit Russia Gate "scandal", he has turned his attention to that peaceful nation and wanting to have that "regime change" that would replace the popular President Nicolas Maduro with that heinous Juan "Random" Guaido...... BUT of course news came out these last few days showing that the Russians and even now the Chinese are saying a firm "NO" to the US attempts to overthrow the Venezuelan government.... The Russians of course have sent some 190 or so Military advisors and technicians to Venezuela to get Venezuela's S300 air defence systems in operation as well as to work with Venezuelan technicians to make sure that the US is unable to launch any more of their cyber attacks against Venezuela's power grid..... The technicians are of course racing to stop the US "stuxnet" virus that has continued to shut down Venezuela's electrical systems and to make sure the main generating power plants at the Giri hydroelectric station are all back up and running.... The latest news shows that the US attacks on the power grid are still continuing, but slowly but surely the Venezuelans and the Russians are now gaining the upper hand with power restoration happening much quicker...
And it is no wonder that the US is having a fit over the Russians sending their technicians into Venezuela by having the gall to demand that the Russians leave immediately... The Russian response to this American demand has been priceless, where they have come out and stated that they would gladly leave Venezuela once the Americans keep their promise to get the hell out of Syria in return! But of course the Americans are not going to leave Syria, as their announcement to the world that they would "withdraw" from that nation has turned out to be a massive lie.... And considering the fact that Venezuela is indeed an independent nation and has every right to ask the Russians to come in with their technical assistance to fix the problems the US has created, the American government has not a leg to stand on here, and the Russians can indeed tell those bastards to "pound sand"!
I would say that the window of opportunity for the US to get their regime change via trying to sell the Venezuelans the lie that their power and infrastructure problems are due to the "incompetence of the Maduro regime" are now long gone, with the Venezuelan people now realizing that their problems are absolutely due to American interference.... They are also turning away from Juan "Random" Guaido in droves and throwing their full support behind President Maduro... And with that, the Americans are now going to be gearing up for what may be an invasion of Venezuela itself... The Dutch government last week very quietly and without much Jew spew media coverage gave the US Government the "green light" to use their island of Curacao, just off the north coast of Venezuela itself, as a staging area for a US invasion force to be used against Venezuela..... I can now see the US begin flying in and shipping in troops and weapons to Curacao and very soon launch a false flag operation against Venezuela that will result with the US invading Venezuela under the false pretext of trying to "save Venezuela" as a result of their false flag attack!
Meanwhile, the US government has indeed sold its soul to the devil itself, by handing over the Golan Heights that rightfully and legally belongs to the nation of Syria to the criminal and psychotic state of Israel.... This action will absolutely create even more turmoil in the Middle East, as NO other nation other than the US itself has agreed to this criminal action.... The Golan Heights were never Israel's land to begin with as they seized the territory during their war of expansion aka the "Six Day War" in 1967, and then had the gall to formally annex the Golan Heights in 1981....The United Nations itself has passed many resolutions demanding that the criminal Israelis surrender the Golan Heights rightfully back to the Syrian nation since 1967 and these resolutions stand to this day.....In fact, last week the Syrian envoy to the United Nations went up to the podium and asked the entire world what justification the US has in giving some of Syria's territory over to the Israelis...That envoy also asked correctly the question that if the US is so much obliging to hand over the Golan Heights to the criminal state of Israel, then why does not the US government hand the Israelis the states of North and South Carolina as well to those criminals? And the Syrian envoy is absolutely right! I for one would surely love to see the reaction of the American public if their own government suddenly announced that several US states are now under the jurisdiction of the psychotic state of Israel....
Basically, the criminal action of the US giving the Israelis illegally the Golan Heights has not only handed that heinous arch criminal and murderous mentally deranged Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Miliekowsky his re-election as Prime Minister coming this week, but has given that bastard the green light to very possibly annex the entire occupied West Bank next! Miliekowsky knows that the Jews do indeed control America, and the crooked and criminal US government would indeed support the Israelis if and when they ever decide to go ahead and basically state that Palestine is ALL theirs, with no room at all for the Palestinian people and these peoples' own wish for their own state.....The Israelis have always wanted it all, and they absolutely want not only ALL of Palestine, but they want other territory as well as they do indeed continue their push for their "Greater Israel" project.... Giving these psychos the Golan Heights is only the beginning!
And of course yesterday marked the one year anniversary of the "March of Return" where once again this year the Palestinian people are marching well within the Gaza Strip and away from the Israeli "border" in protest against Israel's continuing occupation and brutal suppression of their rights.....This march is once again a peaceful protest against the Israelis, but this year once again has been marked with some Israeli psychos shooting unarmed protestors claiming that the protestors are or were about to "rush the separation fence" between Israel and Gaza.... On top of all that, we now have reports where once again Israeli Mossad agents have chucked a few of their "bottle rockets" from Gaza back into Israeli territory, where the rockets never seem to hit anything but open space as usual. The psychotic Israeli government has of course used these "rocket attacks" in the past as their excuse to plaster Gaza and kill dozens of innocent people and apparently are gearing up for another such attack that could happen very shortly.... It is no coincidence that the Israelis are indeed gearing up for a massive assault on Gaza that is being timed with these peaceful protests by the Palestinians living in Gaza itself and are using these new "rocket attacks" as their long proven excuse to launch their assault... I honestly do not like what may happen over these next few days, as we get reports of dozens or even hundreds of peaceful protestors killed by the criminal IDF in "retaliation" for Israeli launched rocket attacks!
Meanwhile, I had to laugh this last week when I saw the reports that the US Senate decided to have a vote on the insane Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's (AOC) most idiotic "New Green Deal" and the vote was an unanimous 57-0 against that fraud "deal"...... I then laughed even louder at the reaction of the most stupid AOC's supposed reaction to the massive defeat of her "deal" where she went on a tirade stating that the failure to pass that vote means that the "planet is doomed".... Honestly, this AOC character is probably one of the most stupid women on planet Earth, as this moron does NOT even understand one thing about "climate change" and how her plan was indeed doomed from the start.... I also did some real research into AOC and her background and honestly I do wonder how in the hell that foul creature ever got to be a Congresswoman, as she has NO background in Politics, has NO background in science or Physics at all in trying to push the fraud "New Green Deal", but was actually in her previous life before being in Congress was a bartender! I am not going to hold any punches here in stating that this MORON has no place in politics at all, and will only continue to damage her own reputation and make a fool of herself if she continues with pushing this horrific "New Green Deal".. Suffice to say, it would be better for America for her to disappear from any headlines and media, and that she be voted out of office come 2020.
Meanwhile, I am being proven right when I said that the US's criminal and illegal position in southern Syria around the village of Al Tanf is absolutely being used as a forward offensive operations base for potential future offensive operations against the nation of Syria itself... From the strategic position of Al Tanf, the US could indeed launch forces deep into Syrian territory to cut off the important supply route between Damascus through Palmyra all the way to Deir ez-Zor, which is the whole reason why the US government will NOT surrender that base to the Syrian nation any time soon..... Last week we found proof through several alternative media reports that the US has also been using their Al Tanf position as a "staging area" for their criminal and fraudulent "ISIS" forces for "terrorist" 'attacks against Syria as well! AND we cannot forget that the US has continued to maintain their concentration camp centred on the Rukban "refugee camp" outside of Al Tanf, where many refugees are indeed now living in nothing more than squaller and filth while starving to death, as their insidious means of using the inmates of that camp as "human shields" against any possible action by the Syrian government forces to seize Al Tanf itself! This indeed shows proof for everybody to see how truly diabolic and evil the US has become as they are still pushing for their "regime change" in Syria...
If anyone still has some belief that the Christchurch "shooting" was real and not a fraud, all they have to see is how the criminal New Zealand government has now used that "shooting" as their excuse to basically remove the rights and freedoms of the people of New Zealand through their actions since that "shooting" took place over two weeks ago..... The first act of the criminal government in Wellington was to pass "laws" demanding that the people of New Zealand surrender all of their guns, and has now been enforcing that "law" through strong armed tactics of the New Zealand police by showing up unannounced at private New Zealand citizens' homes to demand guns be handed over to them, "peacefully"... And when those citizens refuse, there has been reports that the police has been using strong armed tactics and has been seizing those weapons for private citizens' defence by force! Yes, New Zealand apparently is being used as a 'test ground' by the criminal Jewish elite in charge to see how a nation will react to enforced "gun laws", and this does show further proof that there is and always has been something terribly wrong with the entire Christchurch 'shooting'! I have stood my ground in stating that the Christchurch "shooting" was indeed an operation to bring down brutal gun control legislation in New Zealand and to enforce a form of "martial law" on that nation, and apparently by the actions of the criminals in charge in Wellington since that "attack" I am being proven right!
Yes, there apparently is indeed an "election" about to happen in the US controlled puppet nation of Ukraine tomorrow, and suffice to say the entire election "process" has turned into a big joke with a real comedian actually ahead in all polls so far..... Apparently, and it should be obvious, that the Ukrainian people have indeed had enough of the corruption of the US run regime in Kiev and are showing their absolute distrust of any US "selected" candidate to replace the heinous Poroshenko, by voting for a Ukrainian comedian instead tomorrow..... I will guarantee that this does not sit well with the US criminals in charge as the people of Ukraine have turned them into a complete laughing stock! Suffice to say, I seriously doubt if that comedian will continue to be ahead as the voting commences on Monday, and the ballots will be as fixed as the crooked ballots in American "elections" and one of the US's own puppets will be magically anointed to be the next Ukrainian Prime Minister...
And one last thingy about Ukraine... Last week a former Ukrainian Security representative, who was lucky enough to get the hell out of Ukraine and is now living in exile in Russia, Vasily Prozorov, came out and stated what I and others in the REAL truth movement have been saying for the last 4+ years, in that Ukraine did indeed shoot down the ill fated Malaysian flight MH17 as it flew over Ukrainian territory on its way to Malaysia, on July 17th, 2014..... I always knew that the MH17 was absolutely a vain attempt by the US and their puppet regime in Kiev, to frame Russia for this shoot down and that all evidence clearly showed that the Ukrainian military did the shoot down! This revelation last week should have been on every Jew spew media outlet world wide, but instead of course those liars and criminals were continuing with their ridiculous "Russia Gate" instead! Sadly, many people did indeed miss that key and most important report coming out of Ukraine, and I do feel so vindicated once again...However, I do wish that people would use some critical thinking and take the next step beyond this Ukrainian shoot down of MH17, and realize that MH17 was in fact the last flight of the long missing MH370 flight that magically "disappeared" over the Indian Ocean shortly after its take off from Kuala Lumpur back on March 8th, 2014......Basically MH17 was a planned attack to dispose of all existing evidence from the MH370 seizure by the United States... I have long stated that MH17= MH370, and I have yet to find any evidence otherwise to this day....
Well, I guess that is enough for the moment... And yes, I have tried to avoid any statements on that Russia Gate fiasco, for I have always said that it was done purposely as fluff and to cloud American minds for years now to make sure the gullible American people are not focused in on the criminal actions of their own government elsewhere. But now that Russia Gate is over, will the American people finally open up their minds to how the Drumpf regime is escalating American wars for Israel around the planet? We can only hope so......
OK, enough of the ranting... Onto my last minute tidbits...... I knew there was a reason why the Kim - Drumpf talks in Vietnam broke down, and there was a report just the other day stating that Drumpf thrust a note to Kim saying that there could be a North Korea US "deal" if Kim basically surrendered his nuclear weapons to the US immediately! Kim rightfully realized the American game, and will never give up his defensive nuclear weapons to the criminals in the US, and therefore the "talks" did indeed go nowhere........One other thing happened that came from the US handing over the Golan Heights to Israel; The nation of Lebanon now sees what is happening with the US and is now firmly allying themselves with both Russia and Syria. I say good for the Lebanese, as they realize that the US is and has never been a honest broker in the Middle East, and that they can not trust criminals.....The Yellow Vests Protests are now into their 20th week in France, and luckily there has not been any "confrontations" yet between the peaceful protestors and the criminal Macron run military. But things could change in a heartbeat, and I will bet anything that Macron is working with his criminal Jewish elite in getting a false flag going to conveniently blame on the protestors and have the army "crack down" and end the protests all together!....... I see that more female athletes have FINALLY come forward and have been vocally opposing the sickness of having transgender freaks of nature compete as "females" in athletic competitions. I do hope that common sense comes out of this, as transgender freaks of nature have NO rights, period, in competing in sports as females. Women are women, and men are men. Freaks have no place here.......Did I mention how much I hate every aspect of the bullshit known as "political correctness"? I for one have always spoke my mind and will never hold anything back due to the falsehood of being politically incorrect. For those who get "offended" by this, they can go fuck themselves or pound sand!........ I do feel sad when I see reports coming out about children dying shortly after receiving horrific vaccinations in the United States, and I do wonder why there is not more outrage in allowing this to continue to happen? When will people everywhere finally understand that vaccines do NOT work and do horrific harm to our immune systems. And to see children as young as a few months of age getting administered an outrageous amount of vaccine into their small bodies, and then dying as a result, does indeed make me one angry NTS!........OK, now that the fraud of "Russia Gate" is basically over, when the fuck will the criminal US President, Donald Drumpf, finally go forward and get that wall built across the American-Mexican border? That wall is needed NOW to stop the sewer rats from invading the US from Mexico, and for those who do not like my stance on this bullshit of open borders, they can also go and pound sand!......... Did I also mention that Canada has continued to allow sewer rats to invade this nation crossing over from the US unabated? There is NO where for these "immigrants" to go in this nation, as the vast majority have no skills and are nothing but a detriment to our society. I will not waver on my statements that these sewer rats should all be packed up and shipped back to the shit holes they originated from and immediately!.......Someone asked me about US potential Presidential candidate Joe Biden and his lust for younger women, especially his wanting to fondle them. To me, this creature is a freak, and sadly in spite of his sick approach to women, is a better candidate for the Democratic party in the US when you consider the alternative is that freak of nature, Killary Clinton. America, you are basically screwed....... I was at a local store the other day, and I watched in amazement as a young millennial struggled at a cash register trying to figure out proper change for a customer due to an error on the cash register. To me, when college aged children can no longer do basic mathematics, then we as a society are indeed doomed........About that Jussie Smollett fiasco? Why should anyone be surprised that prick gets off almost scot free, when the main prosecutor, Kim Foxx, is controlled by none other than Dr Evil himself, George Schwartz aka Soros! How anyone missed the fact that Foxx herself received some $400000+ from Soros and then did as her master demanded by getting Smollett off without any charges is beyond me!........I again am amazed by the US announcement that they are "returning" to the moon within 5 years, when they have yet to send men anywhere near the moon to start with! But again, this is nothing but political theatre and propaganda, for the US has yet to solve the massive radiation problems in outer space, and until then mankind is stuck on good ol' planet Earth......... Arsenal plays Newcastle tomorrow, and with Tottenham losing to Liverpool earlier today, a Gunner victory will have them into third place as of tomorrow afternoon! I had thought this was going to be a rebuilding season for the Gunners, but they are indeed vying for a Champions League berth, which to me is a major accomplishment...... And finally, I am amazed that tonight marks the beginning of the 16th season of "keeping up with the Kardashians" for the simple fact that these creatures have lasted over 15 years now and not melted the minds of even the most stupid Americans that continue to watch their crap! I honestly cannot watch 3 minutes of their crap without my head exploding, and they are into their 16th season? My gawd, how American society has indeed fallen when most people pay attention to the antics of these foul misfits and trollops!
Posted by Northerntruthseeker at 4:04 PM 4 comments:
Remember The Sandy Hook Shooting Hoax? Interesting Image May Indeed Show Some Of The Young Girls "Killed" At That Shooting Very Much Alive Today!
I have been out and about today taking care of some family business.... I also went and visited my aging mother, who is still quite well in case anyone is asking..... I honestly did not want to post any new material today, but instead get some rest and relaxation this evening and work on my weekend rant tomorrow... However, an astute reader sent me a link to a most interesting picture, and he asked me to do an article about it for the fact that it definitely blows massive holes in the Sandy Hook fraud shooting of almost 6 and 1/2 years ago... I figured I would oblige...
Most people remember that fake shooting at "Sandy Hook Elementary School" from December 14th, 2012, where we were told in "official" reports that some 26 students and teachers, and the "shooter" by the name of "Adam Lanza" were all killed..... It was hammered into gullible peoples' minds almost incessantly for years now after that event that it was REAL, but luckily I and others that have spent years now tearing the "official" story apart know otherwise..... And what I was sent by that commentator does indeed make people stop and say "Hmmmmmm.."..... I therefore want to post up the following picture that shows what apparently are the female "victims" of that fake shooting at Sandy Hook from 2012 gathered together for a photo "op" recently and which shows definitely that they are all very much alive and well... Here is that image:
I also was informed that many "social media" sites as well as the criminals behind Google and other platforms are now working as hard as possible to have that image destroyed.... It makes sense, due to the fact that the image does indeed show the alleged female "victims" from that alleged shooting very much alive and well! This action alone means that this picture is most probably authentic and once again proves that everyone was indeed treated as SUCKERS for stupidly believing the Sandy Hook shootings to be real!
I for one do NOT want to see this image destroyed, and want to request as many people as possible to copy and save this image for posterity..... For IF it indeed does show these young women very much alive and well and not "killed at Sandy Hook" then someone, especially the crooked US government, has some serious explaining to do....
I must state that I questioned Sandy Hook from the very beginning and within a few days called this one a massive fraud and a fake shooting.... I have stood my ground for years now, and with this new image coming forward, I and others are once again vindicated.........
*Update: No shock to me that as of today, the image is strangely no longer loading properly! Obviously this image hit a nerve with the criminals and they are now doing their utmost to have it no longer load anywhere... If an astute reader of this blog has the image downloaded and available, I am asking them to please send me the link so that I can reload the image here at this blog....
Important Health News: Shocking Report States Pesticide Chemicals Found In 70% Of Fresh Produce Sold In US Grocery Stores - Are You Eating Poison?
I decided decades ago to try to take better care of my body and eat more 'healthy' foods.... I have been following that rule now for years, and every day I try my best to eat fresh fruits and vegetables as well as taking vitamins and minerals into my diet as much as possible..... I have always hoped that the "fresh" produce that I pick up at the local supermarket is actually "fresh" and free of a lot of the carcinogenic chemicals that we now know about, especially Glyphosate....But what I found in a new startling report does indeed beg even me to ask the question: Are We All Eating Poison?
I want to share the following very important report that comes courtesy of author Vicki Batts, through Mike Adams' Natural News website at www.naturalnews.com..... This article is entitled: "Pesticide Chemicals Found In 70% Of Fresh Produce In US Grocery Stores... Are You Eating Poison?" and is a must read by everyone... I have it right here in its entirety, and I do have my own thoughts and comments to follow:
Pesticide chemicals found in 70% of fresh produce sold in U.S. grocery stores… are you eating poison?
(Natural News) A shocking new report from the Environmental Working Group confirms that an overwhelming majority of conventionally grown produce is covered in pesticides. About 70 percent of U.S. produce contains pesticides — even after it has been washed. This is highly disturbing news for the millions of Americans who buy fresh produce, believing that it is healthy for them and their families.
Kale, one of the most beloved leafy greens in the U.S., clocks in as one of the worst offenders. Some 92 percent of samples tested were contaminated with residue from at least two different pesticides. Across the board, roughly 70 percent of the fruits and vegetables sold in the U.S. have traces of pesticides, according to the report from Environmental Working Group (EWG).
The prevalence of chemical pesticide residues found in produce is highly concerning.
Despite industry assurances of safety, modern pesticides are nothing more than toxic chemicals designed to kill — and they should have no place in our food supply.
Pesticides in produce
Conventionally farmed produce is once again under fire for high levels of pesticide contamination. Kale, arguably one of the trendiest “health” foods on the market, was ranked as one of the most “dirty” foods. One sample of conventionally grown kale could be tainted with has many as 18 different pesticide residues. Sixty percent of kale samples tested positive for Dacthal — a chemical that is banned in Europe and is also a suspected carcinogen.
According to the EWG’s report, Dacthal (also known as DCPA) was the most commonly found pesticide overall. Even the EPA has ackowledged that Dacthal is a “possible human carcinogen,” and has labeled it as such since 1995. Yet, this product remains in widespread use.
EWG’s analysis of test data from the USDA names a bevy of other popular fruits and veggies among the most contaminated. Strawberries, spinach, apples, grapes, tomatoes and celery are all featured on the EWG’s Dirty Dozen for 2019, part of their 2019 Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce.
Alexis Temkin, a toxicologist working with the EWG, said of the report, “We definitely acknowledge and support that everybody should be eating healthy fruits and vegetables as part of their diet regardless of if they’re conventional or organic.”
“But what we try to highlight with the Shopper’s Guide to Produce is building on a body of evidence that shows mixtures of pesticides can have adverse effects,” Temkin added.
The problem with pesticides
Despite the agrichemical industry’s assurances of safety, scientists agree that it is hard to gauge just how many pesticides people are exposed to in everyday life, and in what quantities. Further, there is very little research on how pesticides interact with each other, and what effects those interactions will have on the human body (and the environment).
To sum it up nicely, there is shockingly little data or research on the effects pesticides will have in real life. This alone should give consumers pause — never mind all of the otherglaring problems afflicting the pesticide industry and the pesticide regulation process.
A recent study from France found that people who eat organic have a drastically lower risk of cancer. On average, there was a 25 percent reduction in cancer frequency among organic consumers.
At the time, nutrition experts from Harvard cautioned against the study’s findings, stating, “[T]he health consequences of consuming pesticide residues from conventionally grown foods are unknown, as are the effects of choosing organic foods or conventionally grown foods known to have fewer pesticide residues.”
The idea that organic, pesticide-free produce wouldn’t be healthier is pretty hard to imagine.
But the fact that no one actually knows how bad pesticides really are for you raises substantial questions as to how these products have made it to the market and our food supply in the first place.
So-called safety testing is inadequate
Across the board, pesticide “safety studies” have major holes in risk assessment. Currently, the federal government only requires safety testing on the “active ingredient,” even though most pesticide makers rely on other “inactive” ingredients to enhance their products.
Research has already shown that pesticide mixtures are harmful to wildlife, and that pesticides are capable of acting in synergy. What this means is that when two or more pesticides interact, their toxic effects become amplified. A paper published in 2004 further describes pesticides’ ability to act in synergy with other common chemicals and even pharmaceuticals.
“Synergistic effects between multiple pesticides and/or other chemicals represent one of the greatest gaps in EPA’s ability to protect the public from the adverse health effects associated with pesticide use and exposure,” the author posits.
Exposure to multiple pesticides has been identified as a glaring safety issue for decades, yet these toxins and other harmful substances continue to contaminate the food supply. That’s why the Health Ranger Store has its own in-house lab for lot-by-lot testing and analysis. As Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, explains, “Using multiple mass spec instruments (ICP-MS, LC-MS, LC-MS-MS, LC-MS-TOF), we conduct exhaustive analytical testing of heavy metals, microbiology, glyphosate and an increasing number of agricultural chemical pesticides.”
See more coverage of stories like this and learn more about what you’re eating at Food.news.
EWG.org
NWFSC.NOAA.gov
NTS Notes: WHY am I not in the least bit shocked at all by the findings in this report? I have been stating for years now that one of the WORSE carcinogenic poisons imaginable, Glyphosate, is in almost EVERYTHING that we consume on a daily basis and will continue to be used by our Agricultural industries, even up here in Canada, until our governments do the right thing and BAN it out of existence....
It is indeed a fact that the grains that we produce in both Canada and the United States go through a shocking process where after the grain is taken from the fields, it goes through a "post ripening" phase where the grain itself is sprayed with Glyphosate! It does also make one wonder if all of the reports we have these days of people getting sick due to "Gluten intolerance" or people suddenly coming down with "Celiac's Disease" from eating our daily bread may actually be resulting from Glyphosate poisoning?
I have been doing salads on a near daily basis over these last few months, and have switched from lettuce to actually using Kale as a substitute.... Little did I even know about how badly Kale is riddled with possible carcinogenic poisons! I do wonder what I am to use therefore as a substitute until this problem is somehow, if ever, "rectified"?
I do agree that eating "organic" is a better way to go in terms of cutting down on the amounts of pesticides consumed... However, I have also been reading reports about so called "organic" foods, and the fact that they themselves are not as 'FREE' as everyone believes from pesticides during their production..... I therefore do wonder what foods are actually safe these days from these poisons?
I for one will continue to try to eat healthy.... But it does madden me that supposedly "healthy foods" are so riddled with possible carcinogens, that I too may be eating poison!
This Is Interesting: Criminal US President Drumpf Has Just Announced US Lunar-Mars Space Program - US About To Fake Manned Lunar Landings Again?
Criminal US President Donald Drumpf appears to be on a "roll" so to speak these last few days...Fresh off of his victory against those who falsely tried to have his Presidency come into question due to the fraud "Russia Gate" fiasco, and his apparent giving the entire world the "middle finger" in regards to allowing his Jewish masters to steal the Golan Heights from Syria, he has been coming out these last few days with some interesting statements and announcements, with one in particular that caught my eye in regards to America's "reviving" their space program.....
I found the following report most interesting about Drumpf's announcement of America's revival of their manned space program that I do want to share with my readers here.... This one comes from the Fort Russ website, at www.fort-russ.com, and is entitled: "President Trump Announces Lunar-Mars Program"..... I have it right here for everyone to see for themselves, and I absolutely do have my own thoughts and comments about this "announcement" to follow:
On March 26th President Trump, now relieved of the burden of the RussiaGate investigation holding down his administration, has made the important strategic announcement that America will be reviving the John F. Kennedy space program to bring humanity back to the Moon with the intention to leap onwards to Mars.
UNITED STATESCHINAHEADLINE NEWS
President Trump Announces Lunar-Mars Program
Precursor to a New Paradigm in Russia-China-USA Cooperation?
By Matthew Ehret Last updated Mar 29, 2019
The White House Press release read:
“The United States will seek to land on the Moon’s South Pole by 2024, establish a sustainable human presence on the Moon by 2028, and chart a future path for Mars exploration.”
The release went on to document the creation of a Moon-to-Mars Directorate which will begin with an “Exploration Mission-1” as a “foundational unswerving mission around the Moon” by 2020 which will precede the manned landing.
The point should be made that since its inception by John F. Kennedy in 1961, the Apollo program was systematically attacked by neo-Malthusian technocrats today identified as the “Deep State”. These technocrats despised the fact that the very existence of the space program’s existence not only refuted the notion that there exist fixed limits to humanity’s existence, but more positively inspired a cultural optimism centered on the belief in the power of human ingenuity and scientific progress. This ennobled concept of a creative mankind ripe with boundless potential is antagonistic to a docile slave society of consumers who live only for the pursuit of banal pleasure and the avoidance of pain.
Although the argument to cancel the program was based largely on the idea that “money would be best spent on Earth where it is needed rather than on useless endeavors in space”, it is too easily forgotten that many of the most prized technologies that drive our modern society, from cell phones, GPS, and the internet all arose as offshoots of the space program. These breakthroughs also included invaluable technologies in medicine, chemical engineering, nuclear science and electronics which have improved the potential for human wellbeing in ways that money could never measure.
The Killing of the Space Program
By 1965, only two years after the British/Deep State-directed assassination of John F. Kennedy, the funding for NASA was already being undermined and it was a miracle that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin managed to land on July 29, 1969. By 1973, several other landings had occurred and just as hope for Mars Missions and nuclear propulsion were being discussed as near term goals, the entire Apollo program was cancelled. It is no coincidence that cancellation occurred just as Nixon had pulled the plug on the Bretton Woods fixed exchange rate system thus ushering in a new age of monetarism, speculation and consumerism dubbed the “post-industrial society”.
Today, the only way for Americans to break out of Earth’s orbit is to hitch a ride on one of Russia’s aging Soyuz capsules.
China and Russia’s Leadership in Space
Trump’s March 26th announcement also calls for“NASA to lead an innovative space program with commercial and international partners.” This statement is incredibly important as it overthrows the popular slander that trump is an isolationist promoting global (and interplanetary) unilateralism as many neo-cons within his government would otherwise like.
The White House space initiative dovetails similar programs announced by Russia and China who have taken incredible leaps into advanced nuclear physics, aerospace technology, and deep space exploration. All three domains providing wonderful platforms for cooperation with nations too long trapped under the London-Wall Street cage of monetarism and geopolitics.
What I am referring to?
On November 29, Russia’s space agency stated that it would establish a lunar colony by 2040 as a multi-phase project beginning with Russia’s first manned mission arriving in 2025 followed by a permanent base constructed between 2034 and 2040. Inspired by China, Russia also announced a telescope on the Far side of the moon to gather data from deep space un-impeded by the radio and electromagnetic disturbance of the Earth.
While China was expelled from the International Space Station as an effect of America’s 2011 ban on China-USA space cooperation, China’s space scientists have been forced to build an incredible sovereign science and technology capacity with the Chang-e program for deep space exploration which has resulted in the Tiangong (“Heavenly Palace”) space stationwhich will be assembled by 2022 and in their milestone January 3, 2019 landing of a rover on the far side of the Moon. This lunar landing is one small component of a much broader space program which some of China’s leading scientists have pointed out is tied to a lunar colony, orbiting space station and most interestingly lunar mining program.
It is noteworthy that the success of China’s lunar landing was made possible through cooperation with an American lunar orbiter which relayed data to the Chinese lander breaking the fatal Obama-era space cooperation ban.
With the Belt and Road Initiative challenging the foundations of the zombie corpse of the post-Apollo western alliance now sitting atop a rotten husk of 50 years of de-industrialization and trillions of dollars of fictitious capital, a new hope for a serious re-organization of the system has been created. Were nations to immediately convene an emergency Bretton Woods conference as had occurred after WWII, in order to re-organize the bankrupt financial system while unleashing credit for International Belt and Road projects both on earth and in our interplanetary environment, then the age of oligarchism can finally come to an end and a new era of cooperation and creativity can be unleashed for the benefit of future generations.
NTS Notes: OK, First of all, where have we heard this one before? Oh yes, we have had President's Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush the idiot junior, and even Barry Soetoro, all come out with this type of announcement about America's "return to space" during their own administrations, and in each case there was a lot of fanfare that eventually fizzled out with the reality that the US still has no long term plans for space exploration simply because they still have NOT figured out how to get human beings beyond Low Earth Orbit....
What of course is missing in this author's arguments about NASA's supposed "manned space missions" is the fact that the entire Apollo manned lunar missions of 1968-1972 were and always were a fraud.... That was nothing more than a propaganda exercise sold to the public as being authentic at a time when the US was deeply embroiled in the criminal Vietnam War and American support of their criminal government was fading.... That stunt worked wonders in creating the illusion of "American greatness" and yet was a complete fraud....
I will state it here that if Drumpf gets this new "space program" going, then due to the insurmountable problems of radiation in space, the next manned missions to the moon will be as FAKE as the last ones with Project Apollo....And considering the advancements these days in terms of CGI, the world could be sold on this being a real moon mission with very few able to see the fakery for themselves...
I am also not yet sold on what the Russians and the Chinese manned space programs are going to do in regards to their attempts to put a 'man on the moon' as well... The Russians especially have long been aware of the problems of radiation in space which of course hindered their own "race to the moon" between themselves and the Americans back in the 1960's... And the Russians were indeed well aware of America's fraud space program but they themselves were lying about their own "exploits" in outer space..... It will therefore be interesting to see if the lies continue with both the Russians and Chinese unable to solve the problems with getting their own men out and beyond Low Earth Orbit as well.....
Yes, the problems of the economic woes of what remains of the so called Western economic system are tremendous, and the Belt and Road Initiative is a serious threat to our present world economic order..... But the facts do remain that a new space initiative, especially the drive to put men "back" on the moon, is full of so many technological and scientific problems that are still insurmountable to this very day..... Until the radiation problem is solved to allow mankind to actually survive such a journey into interstellar space and to the moon and to Mars, all we have here is rhetoric and wishful thinking...
IMHO... President Drumpf is basically blowing smoke out of his ass with this type of announcement... The US has never sent men to the moon, and they still cannot until they can come up with a real solution to the massive radiation problems in space that has kept mankind locked on this planet and a maximum of around 200 miles in low Earth orbit.... Until then, this statement is just hype and propaganda...
Posted by Northerntruthseeker at 3:58 PM No comments:
Syria's Rukban Camp At Al Tanf Is Now Little More Than A US-Controlled Concentration Camp - And The US Pentagon Will Not Let Refugees Leave!
I have in a lot of my recent weekend rants zeroed in on the ILLEGAL US forward offensive position at Al Tanf in southern Syria, noting that the US maintains that illegal position simply because it is a strategic position from which the US could potentially launch major offensive operations right across southern Syria itself..... It is no wonder that the Syrian government and their Russian allies have called again and again for the US to get the hell out of this base!
However, little news has been paid towards the truly humanitarian disaster that is at that illegal US Al Tanf base.... There is presently a very large "refugee" camp located just outside of the illegal US base called the Rukban refugee camp, that is presently one of the worse refugee camps on planet earth where the refugees are living in open squaller and filth.... The facts are now being hidden that the Rukban camp is indeed a humanitarian disaster, and in much need of international aid....
There was an attempt just a few weeks by by the Russians and the Syrians to deliver much needed humanitarian and medical aid to this camp to prevent people from dying due to starvation and disease, but those attempts were squashed by the US military that refused to let any aid convoys approach the camp! To me, this shows how truly evil the US is in that they have allowed this disaster to take place and right under their very noses... But it gets even worse.....
I want to present the following very important report that comes from Whitney Webb, through the Mint Press News website, at www.mintpressnews.com.... The article is entitled: "Syria's Rukban Now Little More Than A US-Controlled Concentration Camp - And The Pentagon Won't Let Refugees Leave", and shows some very startling information about the truth about how truly bad the situation has become at this camp.... I have that article right here for everyone to see for themselves, and I do have my own thoughts and comments to follow:
SYRIA’S RUKBAN NOW LITTLE MORE THAN A US-CONTROLLED CONCENTRATION CAMP – AND THE PENTAGON WON’T LET REFUGEES LEAVE
Written by Whitney Webb; Originally appeared Mint Press
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a concentration camp is defined as “a place where large numbers of people are kept as prisoners in extremely bad conditions, especially for political reasons.” It is undeniable that the Rukban camp fits this definition to the letter.
The unofficial Rukban camp for displaced Syrians, between the Jordan and Syria borders, Feb. 14, 2017. Raad Adayleh | AP
The United States military has rejected offers to resolve the growing humanitarian crisis in the Rukban refugee camp in Syria, which sits inside a 55 km zone occupied by the U.S. along the Syria-Jordan border. The U.S. has also refused to let any of the estimated 40,000 refugees — the majority of which are women and children — leave the camp voluntarily, even though children are dying in droves from lack of food, adequate shelter and medical care. The U.S. has also not provided humanitarian aid to the camp even though a U.S. military base is located just 20 km (12.4 miles) away.
The growing desperation inside the Rukban camp has received sparse media coverage, likely because of the U.S.’ control over the area in which the camp is located. The U.S. has been accused of refusing to let civilians leave the area — even though nearly all have expressed a desire to either return to Syrian government-held territory or seek refuge in neighboring countries such as Turkey — because the camp’s presence helps to justify the U.S.’ illegal occupation of the area.
Though the U.S. has long justified its presence in al-Tanf as necessary to defeat Daesh (ISIS), the U.S. government has also acknowledged that al-Tanf’s true strategic importance lies in U.S. efforts to “contain” Iran by blocking a connection from Iran to Syria through Iraq. Al-Tanf lies near the area where the borders of Syria, Iraq and Jordan meet. Thus, in the U.S.’ game of brinkmanship with Iran, Rukban’s estimated 40,000 inhabitants have become pawns whose basic needs are ignored by their occupiers.
U.S. shows no interest in meeting
On Tuesday, delegations from Russia, Syria, the UN, and the Rukban refugee camp met to discuss the fate of the camp’s inhabitants after a UN survey found that 95 percent of the camp’s inhabitants wanted to leave the camp, while 83 percent wanted to return to their hometowns in areas of Syria now under Syrian government control.
However, the U.S. military and State Department officials in nearby Jordan rejected an invitation to Tuesday’s meeting. The U.S. military also prohibited a Syrian-Russian delegation from entering the Rukban camp on Tuesday. The delegation had sought to assess conditions in the camp, which have become increasingly desperate according to reports from a variety of outlets, including U.S. government-funded outlets like Voice of America.
The U.S.’ refusal to attend the meeting or allow the delegation passage comes less than a month after the U.S. military blocked the entry of evacuation buses overseen by Russian and Syrian forces that would have allowed refugees to leave the camp.
The buses would have entered through the “humanitarian corridors” that were recently opened on the Syrian-controlled side of the U.S.-occupied enclave. While camp inhabitants can, in theory, leave the camp through the corridors on foot, the barren area’s remoteness makes such evacuations unfeasible without vehicle transport. Although some families have left this way, the lack of record keeping within the camp has made it impossible to know how many have tried leaving this way since the corridors were opened last month.
An aeriel photo of Rukban, between the Jordan and Syria borders, Feb. 14, 2017. Photo | AP
An often overlooked problem that has prevented them from leaving is that U.S.-backed and U.S.-trained “moderate rebel” groups have been known to blockcamp inhabitants from leaving, demanding large payments in U.S. dollars to leave the area. The U.S. military took control of Al-Tanf alongside “moderate” rebel forces in 2014 after wresting the area from Daesh. Many of those opposition groups have since been revealed to have ties and sympathies to terrorist groups, including Daesh.
The U.S. has not given a reason for its rejection of Tuesday’s meeting and had previously said that its rejection of the evacuation buses was based on its view that the buses did not meet the U.S.’ “protection standards.”
Horrific conditions and a U.S. shrug
While the U.S. has claimed that it has blocked refugees from leaving on Russian-Syrian buses are under U.S. “protection,” it has done little to abet the suffering of the tens of thousands of civilians in Rukban, even though the area is under complete U.S. military control and a U.S. military base is just a few miles away. Indeed, the extent of U.S. “aid” to the Rukban camp has been medical training of the handful of nurses in the camp, who work in conditions they describe as being like “the Stone Age” owing to the chronic lack of basic medications and doctors.
While medical care is decidedly lacking, the most pressing problem is the access to food, as starvation has become a real threat for those living in Rukban. Last October the opposition-aligned news service, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), reported that the Rukban camp had been without food or essential supplies for months. Only two aid deliveries, managed jointly by the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) and the UN, were able to enter the camp.
One of those shipments, however, almost didn’t happen after the UN delayed the aid “for logistical and security reasons.” While the UN did not specify which “security reasons” had prompted the delay, it was apparently not the Syrian government, as the UN also said in the same statement that the convoy had received approval from Damascus. This suggests that the “security” concerns were related to U.S.-backed militants in the U.S.-controlled area surrounding al-Tanf. Notably, Russian and Syrian sources have claimed that these same militants often “plunder” the aid intended for the camp’s inhabitants for themselves.
Children look for food scraps in a pile of trash in the Rukban camp in Syria, Nov, 2018. Photo | SNHR
Since then, the situation inside the camp has continued to deteriorate. Indeed, things have gotten so desperate that, in January, a mother attempted to set herself and her three children on fire after she couldn’t find food for three straight days and preferred to give her children a quick death rather than watch them starve. Others in the camp rescued the family, though the mother and her infant were seriously injured. Recently aid from the UN and SARC arrived in early February, the first aid shipment in over three months.
The lack of food combined with the lack of medical care has been responsible for scores of deaths in the camp — the majority of which are of children under the age of two, who often die from malnutrition and preventable diseases. Others have died from freezing weather owing to a lack of adequate shelter, with eight children dying in January for that very reason. Satellite images taken of the camp in early March showed the recent creation of a mass grave containing an estimated 300 bodies adjacent to the camp.
Despite the desperate conditions less than 13 miles from its military base, the U.S. has declined to send food, doctors, medical supplies or other forms of aid to Rukban’s inhabitants, while also preventing them from leaving. However, the U.S. has been providing militant groups in the same area with military and logistical support.
Rukban provides a pretext
In addition to presiding over the squalid and starvation conditions in the Rukban camp, the U.S. has also given militant groups present in the area it controls — including Daesh terrorists who have “embedded” themselves in the camp on the U.S.’ watch — free rein to terrorize the camp’s refugees. These militant groups not only control the flow of food and aid in the camp but terrorize its most vulnerable inhabitants, forcing women and children into sex slavery and engaging in human trafficking. All of this is taking place in a “deconfliction zone” controlled by the U.S. military.
These extremist groups, including Daesh, are well-armed, according to Jordanian Brigadier General Sami Kafawin, who told NBC News in 2017 that these groups “have whole weapons systems … small arms, RPGs, anti-aircraft.”
The official reason for the U.S. base in al-Tanf has long been counterterrorism operations that ostensibly target Daesh. However, very few attacks against the terror group have been launched from this base and a UN report released last August found that Daesh had been given “breathing space” in U.S.-occupied areas of Syria, including al-Tanf. The U.S. has stated that it uses the al-Tanf base to train Syrian opposition fighters who then control the area around the base, including Rukban.
Unidentified Syrian rebels surround a piece of US weaponry during training by an American special forces member in Tanf. Photo | Hammurabi’s Justice News
NTS Notes: I am NOT shocked at all by the findings of this report... What I really find disgusting is how the Jew spew media has constantly tried to portray life under the Bashar al-Assad government in Syria as being terrible for Syrian civilians, and yet these bastards purposely refuse to report at all on the inhuman conditions of this Rukban camp that is under the control of the US military!
Yes, the facts are that the US does not give a damn about these refugees, as they are indeed using them as their convenient shield to prevent the Syrians from marching right in and taking out their base at Al Tanf.... If the Syrians attempted such an operation, then the Jew spew media and the US government would suddenly state that this humanitarian crisis was caused by Bashar al-Assad and his operations to liberate the camp!
And of course the US is indeed trying to push the lie that they are "protecting" these refugees from the "evil Assad forces" when in reality they are indeed not letting these refugees escape their imprisonment to the freedom of Syria itself.....
I do hope that the world does eventually wake up to the truth here about how the US is indeed conducting their illegal operations in Syria, while not giving a flying fuck about the civilians and refugees in Syria, especially about their humanitarian needs....
Posted by Northerntruthseeker at 4:09 PM 1 comment:
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The NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore is presenting for the first time in Southeast Asia the pioneering and visionary work of the artist, Tomás Saraceno in the exhibition Arachnid Orchestra. Jam Sessions.
PRESS RELEASE: The NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore is presenting for the first time in Southeast Asia the pioneering and visionary work of the artist, Tomás Saraceno in the exhibition Arachnid Orchestra. Jam Sessions. This new production, which marks the second anniversary of NTU CCA Singapore, is an interactive sound and visual installation bringing Saraceno’s long-term research on spider webs into the realm of sound. Arachnid Orchestra. Jam Sessions is a process-driven laboratory for experimentation that pushes the boundaries of interspecies communication, developed collaboratively with arachnologists, musicians and sound engineers based in Singapore and abroad.
Situated at the intersection between art, architecture and science, Saraceno’s artistic research is an invitation to conceive alternative ways of knowledge, experience and interaction with others. By employing the incredible structural properties of spider’s silk and the spider’s sophisticated mode of communication through vibrations, Saraceno amplifies these vibrations and web plucking – not perceivable to human ears – into acoustic rhythms. Such endeavour is predicated on hypotheses of play and creativity that ask for a more complex understanding of the animal world. Various musicians and sonic artists based in Singapore including Bani Haykal, Brian O’Reilly, and Joyce Beetuan Koh were invited to respond to the spiders’ vibrational communication in three live performances (jam sessions) throughout the duration of the exhibition, creating a collective and immersive interspecies musical composition.
Preparations for Arachnid Orchestra. Jam Sessions began a year ago with spider field trips across Singapore. Spider species such as the Singapore Psechrus, the Golden Orb Weaver, the Twig-Like Feather-Legged, and the St. Andrews Cross worked collaboratively and collectively in a special laboratory at NTU CCA Singapore to weave several spider webs exhibited as installations within the space. As an extension of the exhibition, a dedicated website (www.arachnidorchestra.org) will operate as a research platform and playful hypertext of musical tuning.
Saraceno’s multidisciplinary artistic practice takes inspiration from a variety of sources, including architecture, space exploration, science fiction, and geometries found in the biological sciences. In the range of these fields of knowledge, Saraceno has included arachnology as an alternative tool for the investigation of the cosmos and embarked on a long-term artistic research dedicated to spider webs. One of his most spectacular arachnid inspired installations, Galaxy Forming along Filaments, Like Droplets along the Strands of a Spider’s Web was exhibited at the Italian Pavilion for the 53rd Venice Biennale in 2009. Saraceno further expanded on this work, in collaboration with world leading arachnologists and researchers from MIT, among others, by being the first to scan, analyse, and reconstruct a three-dimensional spider web subsequently presented at Bonniers Konsthall, Sweden in the following year. This project was embraced by scientists worldwide, prompting Saraceno to further pursue his research at the European Space Agency (ESA) with his proposal to send spiders into space, testing the conditions of micro-gravity and its impact upon spiders’ sociability, web building and the spider web itself.
Saraceno’s work defies traditional notions of space, time, gravity, consciousness and perception through architectural, social and communitarian means. Presented on the roof of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York in 2012 among other numerous venues, one of his most celebrated series Cloud Cities speculated on aerial structures and proposed a future form of dwelling. In his work, there is no clear border between disciplines and fields of knowledge, rather the artist opens up a world of possibilities driven forward by a sense of wonder on how the world was created.
Curated by Ute Meta Bauer, Founding Director and Anca Rujoiu, Curator, Exhibitions.
PRESS RELEASE: NTU CCA Singapore Residencies hosts artists, curators, critics and scholars. At its core is a studio programme for…
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BIG AG SQUELCHING RESEARCH SHOWING RNAI GMOS MAY BE DANGEROUS
SUMMARY: "After nearly 30 years studying how plants use their genes to defend against viruses, Vicki Vance, a professor at the University of South Carolina, doesn’t see genetically modifying plants as a malevolent or arrogantly God-like endeavor."
After nearly 30 years studying how plants use their genes to defend against viruses, Vicki Vance, a professor at the University of South Carolina, doesn’t see genetically modifying plants as a malevolent or arrogantly God-like endeavor.
“There’s DNA in the world and it gets passed from one organism to another and it’s the natural thing. If that’s the problem you have with transgenic plants, that’s not a good reason to be against them,” Vance says.
She does, however, have a problem with mega corporations allegedly using their money and power to hide the risks of new forms of genetic technology.
“I didn’t use to be an anti-GMO person and I didn’t use to have strong feelings about Monsanto, but …,” she says, her voice trailing off.
But that was before the Chinese research, before the calls from Monsanto, before she couldn’t get funding for work that she feels could change the way we treat cancer and other diseases. Her research put her at odds with one of the most powerful corporations in the world.
Vance isn’t a nobody in the world of RNA research. At a June 2011 conference hosted by the nonprofit International Life Science Institute (ILSI), a group of academics, regulatory professionals from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Agriculture’s Environmental Risk Analysis Program and members of the biotech industry gathered in Washington D.C. They came to evaluate the environmental risks of a promising new technique to protect crops against pestilent insects — a gene-regulating process called RNA interference.
Vance wasn’t just an attendee at the conference; she provided the introduction for the event. She’s studied small interfering ribonucleic acid molecules, siRNA, in plants for most of her career. Her name appears often in academic papers and conference proceedings on the topic of gene silencing, the main function of so-called RNAi technology.
At that time, views of Vance and the other attendees was relatively positive: “No plausible risk hypotheses were identified that can be considered unique to RNAi mechanisms when compared to other genetically engineered plants with similar traits.”
“At the time I was like, ‘Hell yes it’s safe — how is this gonna be dangerous?’” says Vance. “The corn rootworm will take up these siRNAs, which turn off production of essential proteins in pests. Apparently it works really well. Otherwise you’d have to use pesticides, chemicals that are toxic.”
But her stance on RNAi as a pesticide would change shortly after the conference.
Controversial research
RNAi has applications in both the medical world and in agriculture. But these two worlds are not after the same thing when it comes to RNA. While the medical community is trying to perfect processes that will cause the human body to accept modified RNA strands, agriculture corporations working in the GMO field are busy trying to prove that their RNA strands can’t be assimilated by the human body at all.
For example, some microRNAs interfere with cell division and block cancer. These tumor suppressor RNAs are missing in cancer patients. If they can be replaced — an experimental treatment known as microRNA replacement therapy — then doctors could theoretically stop the proliferation of cancer cells. But in agriculture where RNA is being engineered as a pesticide designed to kill insects that feed on crops — such as Monsanto’s RNA efforts aimed at the Western corn rootworm, the most economically destructive pest in corn production — it is paramount that the RNA in and/or on the corn that is later eaten by humans doesn’t subsequently infiltrate our cells causing who knows what kind of unintended consequences.
In short, the medical world needs the genetically modified RNA to be assimilated by our bodies and the agricultural world needs the opposite to occur.
In September of 2011, three months after Vance gave her presentation on RNAi at the ILSI conference, a team lead by Chen-Yu Zhang of Nanjing University in China published a paper in the journal Cell Research claiming that mammals (mice, in the case of their study) take up small RNAs when they eat plants, and those plant RNAs regulate expression of mammalian genes — something the science world refers to as trans-kingdom gene regulation.
The team reported finding small RNA molecules in the bloodstream and tissue of mice and humans. They found that one particular molecule of RNA from rice could inhibit a protein that supports removal of low-density lipoprotein, or “bad” cholesterol from the blood. If such a finding proved to also be true for humans, it would potentially indicate that eating foods contain ing modified RNA could have major implications for heart disease and other health issues tied to cholesterol.
“That had never been reported before. Nobody had thought about that,” says Vance. “What the hell, I mean, you’re eating a plant and taking in plant RNAs and they are regulating the expression of your genes? I think that has to be considered. … There’s been a lot of resistance to that paper. When something really unexpected like that comes up, there’s always a lot of resistance.”
Resistance was apparent even before the Chinese study was published. The team’s manuscript was rejected by wellknown journals Science, Cell and Molecular Cell. Zhang told The Scientist Magazine it was because their discovery was “too extraordinary.”
“Most of the people [who speculate about our work] just don’t believe it because the concept right now, I have to say, is broken by my results,” Zhang told Boulder Weekly in a recent interview from Nanjing. “They don’t want to believe until I have new data or the other groups reproduce some of our data. And of course some other people, for whatever reason I don’t want to say … I don’t want to even touch … they are just against our discovery no matter what it is.”
The work was so controversial that another preeminent journal, Nature Biotechnology, made a rather unusual move: They published a letter from a team detailing negative findings. In other words, it was a study that presents no new conclusions, only an unsuccessful attempt to recreate Zhang’s findings.
“[T]he new report, resulting from a collaboration between miRagen Therapeutics and Monsanto, clarifies what were controversial findings in [the Zhang study]. The latter study … sparked vigorous debate because it reported the presence of plant microR- NA in human blood plasma and suggested that one in particular, miRNA 168a, from ingested rice could traverse into the circulation of mice resulting in the modulation of miRNA target genes in the animal.”
The editorial goes on to say that the miRagen/ Monsanto study which used three different groups of mice for control and comparison, found no evidence of miRNA 168a in the plasma and liver tissue of mice fed a rice diet, and they attributed altered LDL levels in the animal blood to differences in the nutrition available to mice in different groups.
“One of the issues with eating rice alone without out any sort of protein source is you can get effects on metabolism that really have to do with lack of a balanced diet instead of the transit of microRNA and trans-kingdom gene expression,” says William Marshall, president and chief executive officer for the Boulder-based miRagen (pronounce mir-a-gin) Therapeutics. miRagen is a company researching RNA use in treating cardiovascular disease, metabolic disease and fibrosis.
Marshall says he thinks it’s important that Nature Biotechnology broke tradition and published the miRagen/ Monsanto study.
“One general issue in science publications is that negative studies are not often published. It’s like the finding never gets reported because science journals want to report on innovations and successes,” he says. “But there’s this whole reproducibility initiative that Nature Biotechnology is part of to really attempt to highlight these results, because if you don’t report that, there are questions about the validity of the study, then the study becomes sort of de facto the truth. That’s how scientific literature works. And I think it’s important that we rethink this old system, and it’s becoming a really important theme in science today.
Beyond that, however, Marshall says he was disappointed that the team was unable to recreate Zhang’s results.
“[miRagen] got excited about this from the strict perspective of being able to develop microRNA drugs,” Marshall says. “The unfortunate outcome was that we could not observe that particular microRNA [miRNA 168a] was actually able to transit [from the gut and blood stream into cells]. From our perspective it was disappointing, because we saw this as a real opportunity to expand the horizon for all nucleic acid based drugs. This was going to be ground breaking and so far we’ve not been able to reproduce it. And in the absence of really showing a robust effect here, it’s very difficult contemplating taking it further.”
Monsanto and miRagen weren’t the only team unable to reproduce the results from Zhang’s study. In May of 2012, researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston were unable to detect levels of plant miR- NAs in the blood of healthy athletes who were fed RNA-laden fruit. The team also failed to find RNA traces in mice or bees.
“We conclude that horizontal delivery of microRNAs via typical dietary ingestion is neither a robust nor a frequent mechanism,” wrote the authors.
In June, a research team from Johns Hopkins University published a piece in RNA Biology saying that Zhang’s results were likely a false positive resulting from the technique his group used.
In the Monsanto/miRagen study, the team suggested that Zhang’s results were skewed by environmental contamination of the sequencing equipment they used to detect plant microRNAs in humans.
“That particular plant microR- NA had been used in the past to normalize these studies and so the issue is that it could have been a common contaminate that was used in a lab to do deep sequencing,” says Marshall.
But the fact that miRagen collaborated with Monsanto on this report gives rise to legitimate questions about credibility — the agricultural powerhouse clearly has much to gain from using a genetic technology that will kill the costliest parasite to the world’s most produced grain, but what about miRagen?
Some scientists, such as Kevin M. Folta, an associate professor in the horticultural sciences department at the University of Florida, believe miRagen had nothing to gain by discrediting the Zhang study.
“[MiRagen has] a vested interest in identifying mechanisms to orally administer miRNA and detect physiological outcomes,” Folta wrote in a blog piece in November 2013.
“If [miRagen] repeated Zhang et al.’s work it would have been a positive finding for their company, as I’m sure they get plenty of criticism for the viability of their potential therapies,” Folta concluded.
The Monsanto/miRagen study clearly states that Monsanto asked the Colorado-based therapeutics company to participate in the reproducibility study. Marshall says miRagen was in contact with Monsanto even before the study because of the ag company’s interest in RNAi technology — which included their interest in preventing trans-kingdom gene regulation.
“So this [study] was a win-win scenario for both of us because essentially we would learn why this particular microRNA was able to transit and be orally bioavailable, and at the same time we would work with Monsanto to understand the rules for the ones that don’t,” Marshall adds. “And the idea was if you would want to engineer plants and prohibit any sort of transkingdom gene regulation then we would understand the rules behind that.”
Vance is less convinced in the innocence of the partnership.
“I think Monsanto was trying to get some legitimacy by bringing in these people from [miRagen] because they have some, what I would consider, establishment animal microRNA people — there are some highly thought of people on their scientific advisory boards,” she says.
“But it’s Monsanto who’s spearheading this thing, and they have this company as first author and last author, whereas they’re all in the middle. That’s another thing that’s saying, ‘This isn’t really Monsanto. Pay no attention to the Monsanto people. First author and last author, that’s the important thing,’ and that is the important thing,” Vance says. “First author, that’s typically the one that did the most work. Last author, in [the microbiology] field, is the person usually who is the communicating author, the one who takes responsibility for the work. But is Monsanto driving this from behind?”
Vance believes both companies have a financial interest in discrediting the Chinese paper.
“On the other hand, I think [miRagen] has some interest in discrediting this Chinese paper. They are trying to use microRNAs therapeutically, and it’s hard to get them [through the blood stream to the cell], and so there’s all sorts of things you have to do to make them work and those things are expensive and they have their downsides. And so what this Chinese paper says is, “Well, you don’t have to do any of that stuff, all you have to do is make it in plants and then eat it. All you have to do is ingest it.”
Such a finding would have major implications on drug industry research and development which desires to create expensive, profitable medicines that can be sold as opposed to developing foods that could fight certain diseases simply by being ingested.
While Zhang declined to comment directly on Monsanto steering any research, he did say he felt slighted by Nature Biotechnology.
Zhang published a response to the correspondence from Monsanto/miRagen critiquing Zhang’s study, and while Nature Biotechnology published the response immediately following the critique, Zhang says he’s disappointed that the journal didn’t mention his response in the editorial about the importance of reproducibility.
“They did not mention at all our reply, they just said, ‘Well, somebody reproduced this study and they couldn’t reproduce our data.’ I cannot believe — it’s really unbelievable — that such a decent scientific journal had such unfair and unprofessional behavior,” says Zhang.
“I just want to say,” he adds, “obviously something is going on. It’s not pure science. I just think something is maybe behind them.”
He pauses, then adds quickly, “I don’t want to say anymore.” Zhang seems uncomfortable saying the word Monsanto, often calling it “the company.”
“I don’t want to attach to them,” he says. “[When the paper came out] they contacted me, the Chinese office. I don’t want to have any relationship to them. Even right now I don’t want to say anything about transgenic or GM food.”
Knock, knock? Who’s there? It’s Monsanto. Now show us your research.
After the Zhang paper was published, Vance was so intrigued that she led her lab, without external funding, to design similar but distinctive experiments to test whether they could detect plant small RNA in animals simply by feeding them the plants.
“We designed plants that make a cocktail of three human tumor suppressor RNAs and then fed those plants to mice,” says Vance. “We fed that to the mice once a day for 28 days. The tumor burden was significantly suppressed in the mice. We’re very excited about that. Seems like there’s huge potential here and our work suggests the Chinese paper was right.”
“There’s no toxicity,” she says. “At least in our studies there’s no toxicity, it just has these amazing therapeutic effects.”
But Vance found that scientific journals weren’t as enthusiastic about her research as she is.
“We still can’t get it funded. I don’t know what I’m going to do. Reviewers always say the same things: it stems from work that can’t be replicated, how can you prove the plant small RNAs get in, the Chinese paper is controversial, no one believes it,” she says.
Zhang also dealt with questions about proving that plant RNA was present in human blood and tissue. Skeptical researchers questioned how to differentiate between plant RNA and animal RNA. As miRNA are very short, only about 22 nucleotides long (in comparison to the millions found in DNA), there could be matching sequences between animal and plant.
Despite skepticism from both the public and scientific community, Vance and Zhang continued with their work.
Vance says it was about a year after the ILSI conference when Andrew Roberts, deputy director for ILSI’s Center for Environmental Risk Assessment, called her up to ask if she would be the last author — essentially a point-of-contact for inquiries — on a white paper about the conference’s conclusions.
“That was when I said — the Zhang paper had come out by then — I said I didn’t want my name on the paper,” says Vance. “That’s when Monsanto started to call me.”
A quick fall
Prior to the release of the Zhang paper and Vance’s refusal to be listed on ILSI’s risk assessment paper, Monsanto had invited Vance to give a talk at the International Symposium of Biosafety of GMO Plants, a biennial international meeting organized by the International Society for Biosafety Research.
The meeting was, perhaps oddly enough, held in St. Louis that year, where the agricultural behemoth Monsanto is headquartered. According to Vance, Monsanto was in charge of the session on the safety of RNAi plants.
“They asked me to give the same overview of RNAi that I had given at the [ILSI] meeting. They had already paid my way, made my hotel reservations, I had an abstract, I was listed on the schedule and everything. Then this fuss came up over the [Zhang] paper,” Vance says. “They called me and asked, was I going to talk about [the Zhang paper] at the symposium and I said, ‘Well yeah, that’s part of the story, it has to be discussed.’”
Vance says Monsanto was adamant that she not mention the Zhang paper in her overview. Her insistence on bringing it up only made the situation more complicated.
“I had to participate in a conference call and [Monsanto] had lawyers present. They eventually called me back and uninvited me from the [International Symposium of Biosafety of GMO Plants],” she says.
But the calls didn’t end.
“They kept calling me because I’d said [my lab] had data consistent with the Zhang paper, and they wanted to ‘help me with experiments’ because I had results that were in conflict with their results. They said they wanted to make sure I was doing the right controls on my experiments. I said, ‘I’ve been a scientist for 30 years, I think I know what I’m doing and when I publish the paper you can comment on it.’
According to Vance, Monsanto representatives told her, “We were hoping to get to it before that happens.”
After another series of phone calls in which Monsanto asked if they could send only two scientists instead of a team to Vance’s lab, Vance told them they were simply not invited.
“I was really surprised that Monsanto took the time and effort to try to squash my research because it’s such a contrast — I’m a little old lady running a little lab in South Carolina,” Vance says.
“Maybe I’m being paranoid,” offers Vance, “but I feel there’s an effort from a large company with a lot of money toward discrediting the work of this other group and keeping people from publishing their work.”
She eventually received another call from Andrew Roberts, deputy director of ILSI’s Center for Environmental Research Assessment, who had invited Vance to present at the 2011 conference on RNAi environmental risks. She told Roberts about the recent experience with Monsanto. According to Vance, Roberts called Monsanto and asked them to stop contacting her — and she says the calls did stop.
When BW called Roberts, he declined to comment on Monsanto’s possible interference with Vance’s work. When asked whether he requested that the company back off of the South Carolina researcher he said, “No comment — but I will say this falls in the ‘no good deed goes unpunished’ category.”
More evidence
Vance and Zhang aren’t the only researchers who claim to have promising results that indicate trans-kingdom gene regulation is possible. Eric Lam, a professor in the department of plant biology and pathology at Rutgers University, has been researching the transit of plant small RNA to animal cells for more than a decade.
“The idea is to see if we can actually express small RNAs, which we call silencing RNAs or siRNAs, that target human pathogenic viruses, like the flu virus. Why we have to take flu shots is because viruses such as influenza have a very high neurogenic rate, meaning they can easily evolve new amino acid residues that allow them to escape new vaccines that [are] create[d] every year,” Lam says.
His longest running project produces transgenic tomato plants that express RNA targeted at viruses such as influenza and Hepatitis C.
But reviewers weren’t convinced in the reliability of Lam’s preliminary study, saying it wasn’t clear that the team’s sequencing methods — the process of determining the precise order of nucleotides of the RNA molecules — were actually detecting plant small RNAs in their rabbit test subjects.
“These are small RNAs — they are like 21 base nucleotides long. That’s very small in terms of sequencing. You have to have many copies of those to be such that it’s not just a fluke, just an artifact of the sequencing,” Lam says.
Lam says this is the same argument that the Monsanto/miRagen study made about Zhang’s work.
“The problem that came out, the controversy, is if you only see a couple of variants of one small RNA, how much could be just error of sequencing?” Lam explains. “The argument is whether these are sequencing errors or whether these are bonafide transport of the plant microRNA into the animal system. That’s really the crux of the issue that I saw in [the Monsanto/miRagen studied that was published in] Nature Biotech.”
Lam says his group has been able to produce a tomato plant that contains a 400 base pair fragment of the influenza virus.
“We know which 21 base fragments are present. Now we’re doing the rabbit blood RNA sample to try to find out whether multiple siRNA that are now in food should appear in the blood if this is true. Not a single one, but multiple ones,” Lam says. “Because of this, I believe we have the potential system to resolve this controversy.”
Lam doesn’t feel slighted that his research has come under scrutiny.
“I accept the [preliminary] review — extraordinary claims need extraordinary data to back it up. This is how science is done in the States anyway,” Lam says, no trace of frustration in his voice. “I fully realize there could be a lot of controversy and discussion if this proves to be true, and it could potentially really change the way we do medicine and also understand how we interact with our food. So it is an important finding that needs really tight scrutiny.”
Jonathan Lundgren, a research entomologist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s North Central Agriculture Research Laboratory, Lundgren agrees that RNAi needs more scrutiny, especially when used as a pesticide.
“Most of our experiences with RNAi and the risks that it poses have been done in a petri dish or on a sick person. With pesticidal RNA, the scale that we’re talking about, in terms of deployment …” he pauses to collect his thoughts. “Genetically modified crops are planted on 9 percent of the terrestrial land surface of our country. That scale elevates the importance of understanding the risks that are imposed by RNAi technology. It may be safe, it may not, but we should understand that before large deployment is realized,” he says.
Vance still believes in the potential of transgenic plants. Unlike many people, she doesn’t see genetic modification of plants as “playing God,” and in fact sees the process as natural.
“A lot of good things can come from transgenic plants, but I do take objection that [Monsanto] are doing things I can see have a potential risk when they could avoid it. I’m a scientist and I make transgenic plants and I don’t feel like I’m playing God. If it’s a useful thing, we should do it. If a new risk comes up you shouldn’t fight it — if new data shows this is a possible risk, address it.”
A simple step, in Vance’s opinion, would be to engineer corn plants to only express specific RNA in the roots of the plant where the corn rootworm will feed, avoiding consumption by humans.
“Why do they have to express their RNAi in corn seeds? They don’t have to. They could just put it in the roots – it wouldn’t be hard to do. Why don’t they just fix their freaking plants so they won’t be dangerous to people? Even if there’s some small chance it’s dangerous,” Vance pauses as she has many times during conversations about Monsanto, clearly frustrated.
“I just don’t understand the mindset,” she sighs.
AUTHOR: Caitlin Rocket
URL: http://www.boulderweekly.com/article-12640-you-are-confused-cs.html
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Keio 6 vs Waseda 4 (Tokyo Big 6 University Championship) - May 31, 2010
This past weekend saw the final games of the spring semester of Tokyo's Big 6 University League. As is tradition, these games featured Keio and Waseda, two of Japan's most prestigious universities, who have fought a fierce baseball rivalry since 1903. Known as Soukeisen (combining the alternate reading for the Wa character in Waseda (Sou), the Kei from Keio, and Sen which means battle), this weekend's games had some additional intrigue: the winner would also take home the championship.
If you remember last fall when I saw a couple of games, I wrote that each team plays a best-of-3 series against each other team over an 8-week period. The winner of the most series is the champion. This season, both Keio and Waseda had won 3 of their first 4 series while the other schools had completed their schedule with no more than 3 wins. So the winner of the Soukeisen set would be the league champion for Spring 2010.
Saturday's game saw Keio win 2-1 but Waseda responded with a 4-2 victory on Sunday. This meant that they would need a game on Monday to determine the champion. With nothing else to do and the weather warm and clear, I headed down to Jingu for the afternoon affair.
The weekend games were pretty much sold out so I expected a large crowd despite it being a Monday. I got there an hour before game time and was able to get a seat in the first row of the second deck, which is nicely shaded and offers a good view of the field (below).
The starters were the same two who pitched on Saturday: Yuki Saitoh for Waseda and Daisuke Takeuchi for Keio. Rubber arms are often required for team aces as most squads only have two starters, and there's the occasional 3-game series as today. Although Saitoh started strongly, he lost his control in the 2nd inning. After Hayata Itoh led off with a single and was sacrificed to second, Kazuma Takeuchi lined a Saitoh offering to the right field fence to score Itoh with the first run of the game. But Takeuchi was thrown out trying for what seemed like the easy double; the ball was hit so hard that rightfielder Shohei Habu was able to throw a rocket to get Takeuchi at second.
With two out and the bases empty, it seemed like the threat was over, but Saitoh proceeded to walk the next two hitters to bring up the pitcher Takeuchi. A wild pitch moved the runners to second and third, and then with the count 3-0, Saitoh unleashed another wild one that allowed one run to score. But Masahiro Nagasaki, running from second, thought he could score as well. He was quite wrong in that assessment and Waseda's catcher Shota Sugiyama tossed the ball to Saitoh who chased Nagasaki for the third out. Bad baserunning by Keio limited them to just two runs.
Saitoh (above) struggled in the third inning, giving up two singles but escaping unscathed. Nonetheless was pulled for a pinch hitter when Waseda batted in the bottom half. He was clearly tired and couldn't hit his spots, throwing 52 pitches but only 27 for strikes.
Yuya Fukui replaced Saitoh and promptly gave up a lead-off triple to Kazuma Takeuchi. Ren Yamasaki then came up and I thought he telegraphed the squeeze play as he subconsciously gripped the bat in a bunting style while digging in. Perhaps Waseda thought this too as Fukui threw outside,Takeuchi broke for home, and Yamasaki missed the pitch. Takeuchi was out in the good old 2-5-1-6 rundown. Another mental error for Keio and I wondered if Waseda would make them pay.
In the 5th, Naoki Yamaguchi hit a 2-run shot off Fukui to make it 4-0, but Waseda got those runs back on a 2-run single by Hiroki Matsunaga in the bottom half, which was Takeuchi's last inning.
In the top of the 6th, Waseda brought in Tatsuya Ohishi to pitch. He's normally very strong, but he gave up a two out single and walk that brought pinch-hitter Ryuta Iba to the plate. Iba singled to center and it looked like we would have a play at the plate, but centerfielder Kouki Sasaki let the ball get under his glove and both runners scored for a 6-2 Keio lead.
Kouji Fukutani (above) took over the mound duties and pitched well, but had some big help from his defense. In the 7th, with two out and runners on first and second, Habu belted one to center (below) that Itoh misjudged initially and then had to run back on to make the catch. It was a game-saving play no doubt.
In the 8th, Waseda's Koji Udaka belted a 2-run homer to make it interesting, but that was all that Fukutani would allow in 3 2/3 innings of relief. He was replaced by Hironori Tanaka who induced Sugiyama to ground out to end the game (below) and give Keio the championship with the 6-4 win.
It was Keio's first pennant in 11 seasons (there are two seasons per year, one in the spring and one in the fall) and the players celebrated with a quick piling on before decorum was restored in time for the post-game interviews.
Every sporting event of this nature in Japan finishes with a formal closing ceremony. First the umpires, administrators, and managers walk out. Then the players all march, team by team, in order of finish as a small band plays. That's Keio below marching out as the managers of each team watch.
Somebody gives a speech, the championship team gets a a few trophies, and the top batter and pitcher are given awards. The national anthem is played and then everybody marches off. It's really pretty neat and a good way to end the tournament in style.
Keio's captain Tatsushi Yumoto accepts the championship cup
All innings that had runs had exactly 2 runs. Also, each pitcher that gave up a run gave up exactly 2 runs (although 1 of Ohishi's was unearned).
Attendance was 26,000. I don't know why the minor leagues here fail to draw serious numbers during their weekday games. I guess that most people are not true sports fans, just fans of a team or group. College ball appeals to those who went to those particular schools, but they are not baseball fans as a whole and would therefore not have interest in a minor league game in the suburbs of Tokyo.
UCLA beat Waseda back in March. I missed this entirely, but it would have been interesting to watch.
Last year I saw 4 university games and mentioned a few players, thinking that they might be drafted. They weren't. But just following up on a couple, they are now in the industrial leagues. Ken Togame, who I noted in this post on the Tohto League, is now pitching for JR East, while Nobuaki Nakabayashi from Keio is with JFE Steel. They might still make the big leagues here as these industrial teams sometimes act as a bridge for players who aren't quite good enough to be drafted straight out of school.
With the industrial league tournaments getting started, I'll try to find out how these teams do and if these guys are performing well. But in general, it's quite tough to follow these leagues as they don't have a good website. In the States, minor league baseball keeps tabs on every player in affiliated ball on their website, but here in Japan, there's no organization like that. Really, there's just not enough baseball played here; Keio won this tournament with a 9-4 record. Thirteen league games over 8 weeks is not enough game action; I know they play other exhibition matches but an NCAA team would have somewhere between 24 and 32 games during that period.
Anyway, that's it for now. Check back for some industrial league posts in the next week or so.
Labels: Jingu Stadium, Keio University, Tokyo Big 6 League, Waseda University
July Trip to Minnesota and Iowa Set!
I'm back in Japan and already itching to return to the States for more baseball. Fortunately, the Minnesota Twins have opened a new stadium this season and I am compelled to make a pilgrimage. I've chosen a weekend series against the White Sox from July 16-18 which turns out to be a nice coincidence as fellow sports road trippers Gary Herman and Mike "The King" Casiano from New York and Andrew Kulyk and Peter Farrell from Buffalo will be there.
Gary maintains his own blog called Royalty Tours which details his adventures, and he has a lot of them. Both he and the King see around 400 sporting events a year while holding full-time jobs. I met them back in 2003 and have seen games with them nearly every year since then.
Andrew and Peter completed the Ultimate Sports Road Trip (all 121 venues in the big 4 sports) back in 2002 and continue to catch each new stadium when it opens. They are also sportswriters for a local newspaper and keep a blog about their travels and other sports issues. I first encountered them in 2001 and we have met on occasion when I visit New York or Ontario, but this will be our first meeting on the road. It will also be the first time the five of us attend a game together and I am very much looking forward to it.
Qantas miles to Chicago
As usual, planning the trip has been a lot of fun and seen a lot of changes. I originally had a 3-week journey that started in Minneapolis and finished with the Blue Jays in Kansas City, along with 10 days watching the minor leagues in Iowa. But I had to shorten this jaunt after my unexpected trip to LA last month, so I cut it down to two weeks. The White Sox-Twins and Jays-Royals series were a must, so the next step was to figure out which other games to see. I still wanted to check out the 5 minor league parks in Iowa and all those teams are home in the week beginning July 10th. As well, the Iowa Cubs would be home on July 22nd with Casey Blake bobblehead night, so that made a good stop on the way back from KC.
So I thought I had the trip set. But then I received an e-mail from the friendly folks at Qantas. Turns out that my frequent flyer miles are expiring at the end of June. When I was working, I had several business trips to Australia and had accumulated a good number of miles. But having stopped working two years ago, I hadn't had the chance to earn any more miles. Without any activity for 3 years, the existing miles expire.
Since I don't have enough miles to fly internationally, I first tried finding domestic flights in Japan, but there didn't seem to be a way to do that. I then realized that I could probably book a flight between Minneapolis and somewhere in the US during the July trip and add a couple of games. After much searching of baseball schedules and available flights, I determined that Chicago was the best bet. Even better, it was cheaper to fly from Tokyo to Chicago rather than Minneapolis, so I would save a few bucks in the process.
I'll arrive in Chicago on July 9th, a bit too late to catch the White Sox game and then fly to Minneapolis the next morning. From there, I'll drive down to Des Moines to watch the evening game between New Orleans and the Iowa Cubs. The next day is the World Cup Final, but that should be over in time for a game in Davenport, where the Quad Cities River Bandits play. The next few days will be spent watching more Midwest League games in Iowa before I return to Minneapolis for the weekend. In Kansas City, I found an independent league team which has a night game the same day the Jays and Royals play an afternoon affair. And when I fly back to Chicago, I'll see a Cardinals-Cubs matchup in Wrigley and then drive up to Milwaukee for the Nationals and Brewers on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon before driving back to Chicago and flying home on Monday.
The full schedule is as follows:
Jul 10 New Orleans Zephyrs at Iowa Cubs 7:05 (PCL)
Jul 11 Beloit Snappers at Quad City River Bandits 5:00 (MWL)
Jul 12 Peoria Chiefs at Cedar Rapids Kernels 12:05 (MWL)
Jul 14 Bowling Green Hot Rods at Burlington Bees 6:30 (MWL)
Jul 15 West Michigan Whitecaps at Clinton LumberKings 7:00 (MWL)
Jul 16 Chicago White Sox at Minnesota Twins 7:10
Jul 19 Toronto Blue Jays at Kansas City Royals 7:10
Jul 21 Schaumburg Flyers at Kansas City T-Bones 7:00 (Northern League)
Jul 22 Oklahoma City Redhawks at Iowa Cubs 7:05 (PCL)
Jul 24 St. Louis Cardinals at Chicago Cubs 12:05
Jul 24 Washington Nationals at Milwaukee Brewers 6:10
Seventeen games in 16 days! Should be a blast.
Between now and then though, there won't be much going on here. The World Cup starts in just 12 days and that will take up most evenings for the month of June. The J League also halts its season while the tournament is held, so there won't be any soccer here. A third of the Japanese baseball season has been completed and both leagues have neatly separated into 3 good teams and 3 bad ones. Since 3 teams make the playoffs in each league, this year is even duller than usual, so I won't be seeing any games in Tokyo for now. That leaves minor league baseball, and I'll try to catch a few games as the weather should be nice.
There's also the industrial league tournaments which are taking place around the area. Last year I saw the championship game between Toyota and Honda. It was like baseball on speed and I want to see some of the regional games too. Each prefecture has its own tournament; Kanagawa (where Yokohama is) has games this week and next, while Tokyo has tournaments in early and late June. These are often day games, so I'll probably watch a few of them just to see what it is like. It'll be a relatively quiet month after the recent trips, but check back regularly, I'm sure to be watching something!
Labels: 2010 Midwest Trip, Chicago Cubs, Midwest League, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Target Field
Hamamatsu Wins the bj League
While I was on my recent trip, the bj League held its playoffs over a two-week period. The quarterfinals took place on the weekend of May 15th with the top team in each conference hosting the 4th-place finisher while the 2-seed welcomed the third-place team for a two-game series.
What is interesting about this format is that if the teams split these two games, a 10-minute "mini-game" is held to determine which team advances. In three cases, this wasn't required as the home team won both games. The Tokyo Apache, who finished fourth, were summarily dismissed by the Hamamatsu Higashimikawa Phoenix while Ryukyu and Osaka won in the West. Only Sendai did not manage the sweep, splitting with Niigata, who went on to win the mini-game and send the 89ers home early.
I'd just like to say what a stupid system. This league plays 52 games and allows a team to be eliminated based on one quarter of play? How about a best-of-three, with the first game on Friday night? Bah, it doesn't really matter, but the Sendai fans got ripped off with this system, which renders the regular season almost pointless. Then again, so do most playoff schemes if you think about it.
Anyway, the Final Four took place in Tokyo on May 22nd and 23rd with one-game championships in each conference and then a consolation game and final on Sunday. Sadly, none of the games were competitive, so I didn't regret missing it. In the East, Hamamatsu beat Niigata by 27 while white-hot Osaka (who finished 16-2 to finish first in the West) beat Ryukyu by 19 points.
This set up a final between the top team in each conference, but it was not even close. Hamamatsu won 84-56 to take their first league title with a combined 45-11 record. The good news is that over 8,500 fans saw the game, so perhaps the league can continue to expand in the years to come. I'll still try to see some games in other locations and will keep you all posted as usual.
Labels: bj League
Final Playoff Thoughts
Both the NBA and NHL seasons are nearing completion. Yet again the mindless media talks incessantly about the NBA, which saw 3 sweeps in their conference semi-finals and what looked to be a couple of boring semi-final series before Phoenix won the last two over the Lakers and Orlando found a heart. Still, a rather dull playoffs overall but the American media yaks on and on about LeBron and he's not even playing!
The NHL, on the other hand, has put on a great show to almost no fanfare. Philadelphia's comeback over Boston, Halak's performance in the first two rounds to knock off Washington and Pittsburgh, and the young Hawks reaching their potential are just some of the compelling stories.
In the NHL, it was interesting that the East and West were polar opposites in each round: there were 3 upsets in the East in round 1 but only one in the West (an upset is when the lower seeded team advances and yes, I am counting Detroit over Phoenix as one), then two more upsets in the East semis while the West favourites advanced. If the trend continued, either a Chicago-Philly or Montreal-San Jose final would result and we got the former. Should be a good series as neither team has won for a few decades, so at least one long-suffering fan base will be rewarded. If Chicago wins, then Toronto will be the team to have gone longest without a Cup. Lovely. (It happened.)
When the season ended, I wrote a post detailing how the Bruins, Flyers, and Habs were not deserving playoff teams. Naturally, all 3 teams won their first-round series and the Flyers are in the finals. I still feel that 16 teams out of 30 in the playoffs is too many, but clearly those teams deserved their berth. I stand corrected.
Another intriguing note that I've not seen anywhere else is how the first round of the playoffs actually followed the regular season series in all 8 cases. Simply put, the team that won the regular-season series won the playoff series. If the teams split the season series, then OT wins should be discounted and SO wins even further as they don't happen in the playoffs. For example, Montreal and Washington split their 4 regular season games. But one of Washington's wins was in a shootout while Montreal had one overtime win. Therefore Montreal "won" the season series and went on to win the playoff series as well.
If the teams split the regular season and there were no OT or SO wins, then the team with home advantage would be expected to win. This only applied to Pittsburgh over Ottawa, and the Penguins won that. In the other six series, the team who had a better head-to-head record in the regular season won the series. A great betting tip for next season perhaps?
For completeness, the next round did not see this trend continue as only Chicago's win over Vancouver would have been predicted using this method. The semi-finals though did see both "expected" winners emerge. So out of 14 series, 11 could have been correctly predicted using this formula.
For those of you who wish to bet on the finals, Philadelphia defeated the Blackhawks in their only meeting on March 13th, 3-2 in Philly, when Chris Pronger scored with 2.1 seconds left. It marked the 8th straight loss for Chicago in Philadelphia, so based solely on this little tidbit, I'll wager that Philly will upset Chicago and bring Lord Stanley back to Broad Street. (Well, they didn't).
If the NHL final goes 7 games, it will finish on June 11th. That's the first day of the World Cup! When that ends on July 11th, NHL teams should be opening training camp for the 2010-11 season. Well, not really, but it won't be that far off. It sure is tiring being a sports fan!
Labels: NBA, NHL
Looking Around Los Angeles
I like to post a little about each city that I visit. Perhaps an attraction that might not get much notice, or an area of town that is worth a visit. Everyone knows about Disneyland and Universal Studios in LA, but many people spend their entire time in LA outside of the downtown area, which has a few things that might be intriguing.
There is an area in downtown LA known as Little Tokyo which is historically where Japanese Americans lived in the early part of the 20th century. There are lots of Japanese restaurants stores, and temples in the neighbourhood, but the prime attraction is the Japanese American National Museum on First Street, just south of Union Station. Opened in 1992, the museum contains a detailed history of the Japanese American experience. It's not a long history as Japanese immigrants didn't start arriving until the 1880's, and much of the display is dedicated to the internment that affected the Japanese population in 1942, one of the United States' most embarrassing acts. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, all Japanese Americans were forcibly removed from their homes and placed in relocation camps for over two years until the Supreme Court ruled against the government. Because there are so many personal artifacts, the displays on this period are quite interesting and powerful.
There are some displays on baseball, and a great picture of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig who played a Japanese American team during a barnstorming tour. Another interesting topic was how Arizona had the most drastic anti-Japanese law on the books in 1935. Just 75 years later and now the boogeymen are Mexicans. The more things change...
The museum also has changing exhibitions which are detailed on their website. For anyone who has lived in Japan, this is a good place to see how those who left here over 100 years ago dealt with the problems of assimilating in the USA.
Next door to the museum is the Geffen Contemporary Museum of Art, but it was closed when I was there. Across the courtyard from the museum is the Nishi Hongwanji Buddhist Temple, which is pictured below.
Downtown LA is not known for its tourist-friendly attractions, but rather as a place to be avoided. Historically this may have been true, but recent redevelopments make it worth your while to walk around if you have time before a game at Staples Center. City Hall (pictured at the top of the post) is here, as is Angels Flight, a small funicular railway that has just reopened in March after a 9-year hiatus due to a fatal accident.
As you walk southwest from Union Station to the Staples Center, you will pass through several neighbourhoods, including Little Tokyo, Civic Center, Bunker Hill, and South Park. Each has its own history and distinct feeling. There are some parks such as Pershing Square, and unique museums such as one dedicated to Neon Art.
Just to the northwest of Union Station are the El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historic Monument and Chinatown.
There is really a lot to see here, so take your time to do some research and try to catch some of the lesser-known sights. You'll avoid the crowds who are all in Hollywood and maybe learn something as well.
The Miracle Mile refers to Wilshire Boulevard between Fairfax and LaBrea Avenues in western LA. From a roadtrippers perspective, this is an historic area as it is where the first dedicated left-turn lanes were introduced as well as timed traffic lights and parking lots for shops. All of these innovations were the brainchild of developer A.W. Ross who wanted to create a commericial area to rival downtown. He succeeded in a manner that was unimaginable, hence the area was named "Miracle Mile" and the model became the de facto standard for commercial districts across the country.
If you are going out to UCLA to catch a game, you can try the slow route along Wilshire. Museum Row is located here as well. The LaBrea Tar Pits (shown below) and Page Museum, LACMA, and the Petersen Automotive Museum are all within a few minutes of each other and you can easily spend a day going between them.
I did spend an afternoon at LACMA and was particularly impressed with their Japanese pavilion. It contains a number of screens and prints from all periods of Japanese history. My favourite display was the coloured woodblock prints by Utagawa Hiroshige, one of which showed the area in which I now live. It's amazing how much things have changed here in the intervening 150 years, especially after visiting London which has many of the same buildings from 500 years ago.
LACMA is not cheap, with parking and admission totaling $19, but it is "Pay What You Wish" after 5 pm. It's a huge complex and an art fan can spend hours here browsing a wide variety of works.
In-N-Out by LAX
OK, enough culture, let's talk about food! Before flying out of LAX, I make it a rule to have a Double Double at the In-N-Out on Sepulveda Blvd just north of the airport. It is the most famous location of the venerable chain as it is right next to one of the runways, so there are planes landing every couple of minutes. As I sat down to eat my burger yesterday, SQ12 from Tokyo arrived - this would be the same plane I would take back home a few hours later. The burger as always was superb but I was rather hungry so I finished it before I remembered to take a picture. Below is the iconic sign as a US Airways plane lands behind.
I can hardly wait to get back there.
Labels: 2010 London/LA Trip, Los Angeles, Tourism
Toronto Blue Jays 6 at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 0 - May 25, 2010
After a busy sports Sunday in Phoenix, I woke early Monday morning and spent 6 hours along I--10 driving to Anaheim. It was a good drive with no traffic jams and I arrived around noon, in plenty of time to see the Jays taking on the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the first of a 3-game set.
I arrived quite early at the ballpark and approached a ticket window. I noticed that the lady had a sign indicating that she spoke Japanese. With Hideki Matsui joining the Angels in the off-season, the Angels could expect an influx of Japanese tourists, so I asked her if she was hired for her Japanese ability. She laughed and acknowledged that may have been an important reason, then asked me if I could speak. I said that I live in Japan and so we started conversing in Japanese, which was a bit odd. A Japanese film crew started filming the transaction, so if you see a show with a short guy with bad hair and worse Japanese buying tickets in Anaheim, it just might be me.
I have to say that there are too many ticket options. The first row in many field-level sections is slightly more expensive than the rest of the seats in the section, and overall I counted 31 choices. Tickets are not cheap here either, with the lower level seats between the bases priced at $85. I ended up in section 221 and was happy with that seat because it wasn't blocked by people coming and going during the action (other than the morons in front of me who spent half the game getting up and down to buy beer).
I'd say you are better off waiting outside and seeing if someone has extra tickets as season tickets are cheaper and you can probably save money that way. I wanted to get in and walk around though, so I bought my ticket and went in.
Angel Stadium of Anaheim
What is it with all the "of Anaheim" things going on here. First the team changed their named from the Anaheim Angels to LA Angels of Anaheim, and the stadium followed suit when Edison International exited their naming rights agreement in 2003. But locals refer to the ballpark as "The Big A" and nobody actually uses the "of Anaheim" part of either the team or stadium name.
Opened in 1966, the stadium is the 4th oldest in the majors. It hosted the LA Rams of the NFL from 1981-95 but after they moved to St. Louis and Disney took over the team, the stadium underwent a significant renovation period that finished in 1998. The most noticeable changes were a terraced bullpen (below) in left field, and the "California Spectacular" in center, in which a stream courses down artificial rocks surrounded by real trees.
The stadium is located across the street from the Honda Center, with $8 parking off Katella Avenue to the North or Orangewood Avenue to the south. You will notice the Big A scoreboard pictured below as you drive by on the 57 freeway.
When you enter, there is a display commemorating the Angels' World Championship season of 2002, including the trophy below.
There are three decks, but the middle deck is a club level which requires ticketed access. The first deck is divided into two levels: field level (100) and terrace level (200) but there is just a walkway between them. The 200 level seats are cheaper and might offer better value as they are covered and there are TV's where you can watch the replay.
From section 540
There are two scoreboards, one in left field above the bullpens, the other in right. They were showing the Boston-Tampa Bay game while batting practice was on, which is something I always appreciate.
Angel Stadium was my favourite for food options back in 2001 and still offers a good variety. Panda Express is quite popular as you can get decent Chinese fast food for a reasonable price, while the Katella Grill offers a California Chicken Cheese Steak that I found quite tasty. This restaurant has a branch nearby at Main at Katella and if you have a game ticket you can enjoy a 2-for-1 offer before or after the game. There's also a Ruby's diner that offers milkshakes. For those of you with a real thirst, I noticed an all-you-can-drink soda option for only $11.25. Yikes.
The other thing I like about the ballpark is that the staff is quite friendly. They have instituted a rule though that prevents you from going into the first level above the dugout without a ticket, but the ushers are very kind in enforcing it.
Behind the California Spectacular
It's been a long time since I've seen a stadium with old style ramps that you switch back on to get to the upper deck. Of course, there are escalators and stairs, but it was a bit of nostalgia as I hiked up to the top.
Overall, Angel Stadium is an excellent place to see a game but it can be expensive. Still, for me it's a bit of a look back to the stadiums I grew up with. I hope it stays as is for a long time to come.
Joe Saunders started for LA against fellow lefty Brett Cecil (above). Fred Lewis led off the game with a triple to right and scored on a sacrifice fly by Adam Lind. The Jays had the lead and Cecil was sharp, giving up only a single to Jeff Frandsen through 3 innings. Torii Hunter was called out on this check swing below.
In the fourth, Alex Gonzalez singled for Toronto and after Jose Bautista drew his first of 3 walks on the evening, John Buck singled home Gonzalez to double the lead. Cecil kept dealing though, keeping the Angels' hitters off-balance, giving up a walk in the 5th but nothing else.
Edwin Encarnacion grounds to third
The Jays broke the game open in the 7th, scoring 4 runs, highlighted by an Adam Lind double. The last run was unearned as shortstop Erick Aybar muffed a line drive with the bases loaded. That's Encarnacion scoring on Lind's double as Aaron Hill gets back to third.
Cecil finally tired in the 8th, giving up a single to Matsui (shown below) and walking Mike Napoli. Jason Frasor came in to get the next two outs and preserve Cecil's scoreless game, and Scott Downs pitched the 9th as the Jays won easily 6-0. Great way to end the trip!
The game took 2:53 due to all the walks (8 by the Angels, 2 by Toronto) but the story was Cecil's pitching. 7 1/3 innings and only 4 baserunners with only one of them reaching third base. When the game started, LA were the only team to have not been shutout this season, but that is no longer the case.
It was a great game for me, and nice to see Toronto work the count for a change. They are an aggressive team at the plate, but Saunders struggled with his control and the Jays were able to capitalize. They had only 6 hits themselves, but those 8 walks helped out. Here's hoping that those two losses in Arizona were the anomaly and Toronto can be in the race this season.
As I walked to the front of the stadium to take the picture at the top of the page, I noticed a few bees buzzing around. Strange I thought, why would bees be here. Well, I turned around and was surprised to see that a whole swarm had congregated on some poor fellow's car. I guess there was something tasty for them there, but I didn't stick around to investigate.
While I was enjoying my pre-game meal, they were playing the radio broadcast which included a brief interview with Jays' manager Cito Gaston. He talked about the unfair aspect of having pitchers hit in NL parks during interleague play and suggested that the DH be used in all interleague games. Not a bad idea actually, although the Jays' pitchers did manage a couple of hits in the series. But there have been some high-profile injuries in recent years, so perhaps it's worth a look to see if using the DH makes sense. At the least, NL fans would see some AL-type games.
Gaston also spoke about Toronto's future. This is his last season as manager but he felt like the Jays have a lot of good young talent and he was looking forward to seeing how things develop. It certainly made me optimistic listening to him speak, so who knows, maybe Toronto can contend sooner than we expect.
In the 8th, Frandsen was at the plate when Frasor's pitch was a bit wild and went behind Frandsen's head. But the ball hit his bat and bounced back in front of him, rolling just foul. It was kind of amusing to see and even Frandsen was smiling, but he wouldn't have been so happy if it was a fair ball as he would have been thrown out.
Trip is over
Well, the 1-month jaunt to California, Arizona, and England has come to a close. Back to Japan now where I'll take it easy before the final trip of the year to Minnesota to see the new Target Field. I also plan to see the Jays in Kansas City and a few days in Iowa to check out their minor league teams. I'll post the final schedule shortly, so check back in a while for that and some other thoughts on LA, the playoffs, and other updates.
Labels: 2010 London/LA Trip, Angel Stadium, Los Angeles Angels, MLB, Toronto Blue Jays
Los Angeles Lakers 109 at Phoenix Suns 118 (Western Conference Finals Game 3) - May 23, 2010
Jump ball
When the Phoenix Suns defeated San Antonio in round 2 of the NBA playoffs, I knew that they would be playing sometime around the time I would be visiting the city. But the NBA initially scheduled only the first two games that were to be played in LA. I worried that they might set games 3 and 4 in conflict with the Jays games that I was planning to see, but NBA commish David Stern is a regular reader I guess as he kindly set game 3 for Sunday evening at 5:30, about an hour after the Jays game would probably end. So after Toronto hammered Arizona 12-4, I walked over to the US Airways Center to see if there were tickets available.
My friend Sharpy had purchased a single from a scalper that morning but I wanted to wait until closer to game time for a couple of reasons. First, if the baseball game went long, I didn't want to leave early, and secondly, I wanted to check the box office so I could avoid a trip to the ATM. It's just a couple of minutes from Chase Field to US Airways Center, and the ticket windows were surprisingly empty. After being searched, I made my way to the Advance Ticket Window, where there was nobody waiting. I asked if they were selling for tonight's game and was happy to hear that there was a single in 4th row of the upper deck in a corner. Not the best seat but as it turned out, not that bad at all, especially for a last minute purchase.
US Airways Center
It was a drastic sensory change leaving the red and black clad fans of the Diamondbacks and walking a couple of blocks to where the Suns fans in their bright orange colours waited outside the outside of the arena, with liberal sprinklings of Laker fans sporting their trademark purple and gold. Upon entering the seating bowl, we were subject to an even more colourful display as every seat was covered with an orange T-shirt, courtesy of a local grocery store.
Yeah, free T-shirts! The Suns' playoff theme is "WE R ORNG" as it would be texted, so everybody had to wear the shirts. Of course, Laker fans were happy to throw their shirts away, so some fans got two or three shirts. Christmas presents for the family!
Anyway, I didn't have much time to wander around but can say that the upper concourse is far too narrow for a sold-out game. It took about 10 minutes during halftime to make the walk around and the lineups for the concessions and facilities were quite long. I'd recommend purchasing your food before the game.
The good thing is that the upper deck is actually quite close to the floor. The arena, opened in 1992, was designed for basketball and the suite level is quite small, so the upper bowl seats are good value. With only 14 rows up here, even the nosebleeds are more than acceptable.
There was an out-of-town scoreboard that showed the MLB and WNBA scores, but neglected to tell us the Chicago-San Jose result in the NHL. This doesn't bode well for the future of the Coyotes, who once called this arena home. But it is really much better for basketball, the design fits the smaller hardcourt properly, unlike a typical hockey arena where the corner and end seats are just too far away from the action.
The Lakers had won the first two games of the series, so this was a must-win for Phoenix. Both teams came out on offense but Phoenix was driving to the basket and drawing fouls while LA was kept to the outside by the Suns' defense. At one point the Suns were 18/20 from the free throw line while LA was 0/1 and both Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom were in foul trouble. But the Lakers were making most of their shots while the Suns missed some easy ones. At the end of the first, the Lakers led 32-29 with Kobe Bryant netting 15 points.
Bryant grabs a rebound
In the second though, Phoenix went to a zone defense and LA couldn't adapt. The last five minutes saw the Suns go on a 15-2 run to lead 54-47 at the half.
Steve Nash looks to pass
The third quarter saw the Suns' Amar'e Stoudamire explode for 20 points but the Lakers were solid shooters and actually won the quarter by 5 points to head to the final stanza down 86-84.
Pau Gasol shoots over Stoudamire while Derek Fisher tries a three below
The fourth quarter was back-and-forth for the first few minutes and with 7:35 to go, the Suns held a 93-92 lead. But after Stoudamire drained two free throws, Ron Artest made a bad pass and the Suns quickly broke down the floor. Steve Nash found Jason Richardson in the corner and Richardson sank a 3 that brought the crowd to its feet. After a Laker timeout, Bryant missed a 3 and Stoudamire knocked down a two-pointer to make it 100-92. Bryant added 4 free throws to narrow the deficit to 4, but Stoudamire continued his dominance, driving to the basket for two more. Lamar Odom then fouled out and after Robin Lopez made both shots, Nash added a jumper to make it 102-92 with just 2:48 left. The fans were delirious and although the Lakers got within 6, Phoenix held on for the 118-109 win.
Stoudamire finished with 42 points and 11 boards and has perhaps given pause to his critics. It was a great performance and with Lopez adding 20, the Suns have served notice that the series is not yet over. Bryant added 36 points but many of those were after the game was decided.
Robin Lopez muscles to the basket
Overall, this was a great game, lots of scoring and 12 lead changes. The NBA playoffs have been terribly dull, but perhaps this is a chance for a great series. Game 4 is set for Tuesday night in Phoenix and if the Suns can keep it up, we should be on for a great finish to see who gets to play Boston in the final.
Nash gets 15 assists (and only 1 turnover)
I'm in Anaheim right now and just about to head over to the Jays-Angels game, for which I will add a post in a couple of days. Tomorrow I fly back to Japan (hence missing game 4) where I'll be taking it easy for the Stanley Cup Finals and the World Cup. I'll add some posts on LA and some other sports happenings in the meantime, so check back in a few days for lots of new stuff.
Labels: 2010 London/LA Trip, Los Angeles Lakers, NBA, Phoenix Suns, US Airways Center
Blue Jays take 1 of 3 in Phoenix
From section 300, row 32, seat 1 - farthest seat from home plate
Interleague play began this weekend and the Blue Jays were in Arizona to visit the Diamondbacks. I had circled these 3 games when the schedule came out late last year as it combined my favourite baseball team and favourite baseball destination. I've posted plenty on Phoenix, so will just talk briefly about each game here as detailed recaps are available in about a million places on the web.
Friday - Arizona 8 Toronto 6
My friend Sharpy joined me for the weekend and was interested in sitting in the Friday's restaurant section above left field. For $30 you get a partial view of the field and a food and drink credit of $30. So essentially the game is free. But you are very far away. It's worth trying once if you are here for a series and want a different experience, but not for just one game.
Dan Haren (above, taken from Friday's) started for the D-backs and promptly gave up a leadoff homer to Fred Lewis. The Jays led 1-0 but things went downhill from there. Arizona scored 2 in the second and 4 more in the fourth, highlighted by a 2-run double from Haren. Edwin Encarnacion hit a homer for Toronto in the 5th, but Haren doubled in another run in the 6th. Encarnacion hit another shot in the 7th, but Arizona's Chris Young replied with a shot of his own in the bottom half to make it 8-3. In the 8th, Jose Bautista homered for Toronto. Haren left after 8 decent innings, walking none and striking out 8. In the 9th, Juan Gutierrez gave up two more solo dingers, including Encarnacion's 3rd of the game. Gutierrez was pulled and Chad Qualls came in to get the final out for the second night in a row.
I've intentionally recapped the game as above because that's how it felt. Runs kept coming without a break. There was scoring in all but one inning (the 3rd), the Jays hit 6 solo homers, only the second time that's happened in MLB history, and Arizona had 8 extra base hits themselves. It was a very entertaining game, but not so enjoyable as the Jays were down early and never really threatened, although they did have the tying run at the plate in the 9th. It was surreal being far away though, especially when home run balls sailed below you - a view I had never seen before.
Saturday - Arizona 8 Toronto 5
More of the same as Jays' starter Dana Eveland gives up 8 runs in 1 1/3 irritating innings (that's him leaving above) and the Jays struggle until the late going, when an Encarnacion 3-run dinger and Aaron Hill solo shot make it 8-5. The score might be slightly respectable but it is much closer than the game was. One of the least enjoyable sporting events I've seen and let's leave it at that.
Dave LaRoche
The good news is that Sharpy got a foul ball off the bat of Lyle Overbay. It bounced off the facing of the second deck, the person behind us yelled heads up, Sharpy ducked but the ball was juggled by the group of fans behind us and rolled down next to Sharpy, who just reached over to pick it up.
Adam Lind above, Mark Reynolds below
It was also 70's night at the ballpark. The cheerleaders were all attired in clothes from that era and disco tunes were played. Unfortunately food prices were still at 2010 levels but it was still as nice idea. Several fans played along too; even the Jays pretended like they were the 1977 team!
Sunday - Toronto 12 Arizona 4
Arizona scored again in the first as Justin Upton drove home Tony Abreu (below) and it looked like another long day at the ballpark.
But the Blue Jays offense finally got on track as Encarnacion hit his 5th homer of the series (a 2-run shot that landed just below Friday's, an absolute monster home run) and Jose Bautista had 4 RBIs to chase Billy Buckner. Shawn Marcum completed 5 serviceable innings and the bullpen was solid as the Jays salvaged the series with the win.
Bautista fouls one back while Encarnacion drives one
Aaron Hill
All-in-all, not a very good set of games, regardless of the outcome. No doubt Friday's big-fly fest was memorable, but the weekend tilts were blowouts that were decided early.
It was a bit of a disappointment after anticipating this series for so long. But that's sports, you never know what's going to happen. For example, you might be in a city watching baseball when another league schedules a playoff game on the same day. That's what happened in Phoenix as game 3 of the conference finals series was set for Sunday evening, just over an hour after the ball game ended. Naturally I went to that too, and will post on that next.
Labels: 2010 London/LA Trip, Arizona Diamondbacks, Chase Field, MLB, Toronto Blue Jays
San Francisco Giants 7 at Arizona Diamondbacks 8 - May 20, 2010
I'm back in Phoenix for the 3rd time in 3 years. I love the hot desert weather, the In-N-Out burgers, and the scenic drives nearby. Of course, right now Arizona is going through some problems with their new immigration law that permits police to stop those they suspect of being illegal immigrants. As a foreigner in Japan, that sort of treatment is something we are also subject to. It's never happened to me, but friends have reported the occasional encounter with the authorities. I won't get all political here, but I am not boycotting Arizona when there's baseball to be seen.
Friday's Front Row
I posted on Chase Field last year, but there is one thing that I didn't try that I'd like so mention. It's the Friday's Front Row restaurant that is located well above the left field fence. You can eat here before the game and catch batting practice before the gates are opened. If you want to sit there during the game, there are a variety of options, with the most reasonable being the Upper Deck Tables at $30 per person with the entire ticket price being credited to food and drink. As you can see below, you are far away, but it might be worth trying once, and the food wasn't that bad.
With that said, let's get to the game. I was fortunate that 2-time defending Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum (above) was scheduled to start for the visiting Giants. He leads the majors in strikeouts while the D-backs lead all teams in times fanned, failing to make contact on nearly 25% of plate appearances! So I expected a K-fest tonight.
Just before the game started, the roof opened as it was a perfect 92 degrees outside. Beats the crappy cold cricket I sat through in London last week.
Rodrigo Lopez took the hill for the Diamondbacks and gave up a run in the first on a Pedro Sandoval double (below) that scored Freddy Sanchez, who was just activated off the DL.
Though staked to the early lead, Lincecum was not sharp. It was immediately noticeable as he walked Conor Jackson with one out and then gave up a monster fly ball to Stephen Drew. Chase Field is 413 feet to center and I'd say this ball went 412. But it was just a loud out and Justin Upton struck out to end the first.
Lincecum walked another in the second and then gave a free pass to Lopez in the third. A lead-off double by Adam LaRoche in the fourth went nowhere but it was obvious that Lincecum was struggling, missing with a lot of his pitches and looking frustrated on the mound.
With the Giants up 2-0 in the fifth, Lincecum gave up a 1-out single to Kelly Johnson and then walked Jackson for the second time. Drew then drove the ball down the right-field line that rolled around in the corner, resulting in a 2-run triple. A sacrifice fly by Upton gave the D-backs a 3-2 lead. After a walk to LaRoche, strikeout king Mark Reynolds, who had already K'd twice, crushed a fastball to deep left and Arizona were up by 3. Lincecum finished the inning but his night was over. He had a most interesting line though:
IP H R ER BB K NP BF
5 5 5 5 5 6 100 25
Twenty pitches per inning - certainly his worst start of the season and one that put him in line for his first loss. But Lopez couldn't hold it, giving up back-to-back jacks to Jose Uribe and John Bowker to start the 6th. After a walk and single, Lopez was gone but Sergio Romo was not much help, giving up a sacrifice fly to Sanchez and then intentionally walking Sandoval before Aubrey Huff doubled home two more runs to make it 7-5 Giants. That's back-to-back 5-run innings, an uncommon sight.
In the 7th, Arizona fought back on doubles by LaRoche, Reynolds, and pinch-hitter Chris Young that tied the game at 7. Jeremy Affeldt was on in the 8th and gave up a leadoff double to Jackson, who moved to third on a botched double-play ball off the bat of LaRoche (below).
If Uribe handled the toss at short, the inning would have ended, but he bobbled it and LaRoche was safe. With Reynolds batting, Affeldt tossed one in the dirt that bounced away from former Ottawa Lynx Eli Whiteside. Jackson gambled and took off for home. Whiteside couldn't pick up the ball and Jackson crossed safely with the go-ahead run.
Aaron Heilman continued in the 9th after pitching a perfect 8th, but he was pulled after a 2-out walk. Chad Qualls came in and struck out Uribe on 3 pitches for the save and Arizona had the 2-game sweep with an 8-7 win. Giants' manager Bruce Bochy was ejected (above) arguing the first called strike, but Uribe missed the next two by so much (below) that I don't think it made much difference.
This was not a particularly good game with the Giants walking 9 batters in just 8 innings and blowing two 2-run leads, but it was interesting. Lots of extra-base hits, some monster homers, and the home team winning in their last at-bat is entertaining at least, even at 3:14. Let's hope that's all the winning the Diamondbacks do this weekend.
The scoreboard here is incredible. The player's season stats, day's performance are shown for each appearance, and for one appearance his entire career stats are shown baseball-card style. The inning summary is also available, as well as the updated pitching line. Lots of interesting stories for each player too. Definitely the most informative scoreboard I've seen.
The Giants had an off-day last week but didn't skip their fifth starter. Lincecum pitched last week on 6-days rest and said he felt uncomfortable. I wonder if the simple decision to give him an extra day threw off his rhythm as he has walked 5 two games in a row.
With the Jays in town for the weekend, I won't do a daily posting of each game, but just a summary of the series. Also hoping to get a Suns-Lakers ticket for Sunday night. Check back early next week for all the details.
Labels: 2010 London/LA Trip, Arizona Diamondbacks, Chase Field, MLB, San Francisco Giants
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Order of the Polar Star for Christopher O’Neill
Surely it will not be necessary for me to write an account of the wedding of Princess Madeleine and Christopher O’Neill tonight, but one aspect which might be worth commenting on is that the groom was made a Commander of the Order of the Polar Star (second class) by King Carl Gustaf on 6 June.
The Vasa Order and the Sword Order are now dormant, meaning that the Order of the Polar Star is now the second highest ranking Swedish order. Since the introduction of the new Constitution in 1975 the King has been forbidden to give orders to Swedish citizens, while orders may still be given to foreigners.
That meant that King Carl Gustaf in 1976 gave the Order of the Seraphim to his fiancée Silvia Sommerlath before the wedding, when she was still a German citizen, and likewise gave the Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star to Lilian Craig before she married Prince Bertil and thereby relinquished her British citizenship.
It was only in 1995 that an exception was made for members of the royal house, making it possible for the King to invest his three children with the Order of the Seraphim on their eighteenth birthdays in 1995, 1997 and 2000 and to give it to Princess Lilian on her eightieth birthday in 1995.
This exception also meant that it was only on his way out of the Cathedral after having married Crown Princess Victoria and thus become a prince and a member of the royal house that Prince Daniel was given the Order of the Seraphim.
As Christopher O’Neill did not become a member of the royal house and is a foreign citizen no such restrictions applied in his case. But the fact that he did not become a member of the royal house obviously also made it more natural to give him the Order of the Polar Star rather than the highest-ranking order.
This also has a precedence, as three of King Carl Gustaf’s brothers-in-law - John Ambler, Baron Niclas Silfverschiöld and Tord Magnuson - were made Commanders of the Vasa Order when they married princesses Margaretha, Désirée and Christina in, respectively, 1964, 1964 and 1974.
On the other hand, Prince Johann Georg of Hohenzollern was, apparently much to his own surprise, given the Order of the Seraphim by King Gustaf VI Adolf when he married Princess Birgitta in 1961. At the same time the Order of the Seraphim was also awarded to his elder brother, Friedrich Wilhelm, while their father, who had been given the Seraphim as early as 1936, received the collar of the order. The reason for this was obviously that Princess Birgitta, unlike her sisters, married a prince and thus herself remained a Royal Highness and a member of the royal house.
Labels: Bernadotte, decorations, Hohenzollern, royalty, Sweden
E 9 June 2013 at 15:17
Trond, do you know the reason why the king made Christopher a commander instead of a knight grand cross? I have also wondered why Prince Carl Philip but not Prince Daniel received the collar of the Seraphim from him.
I hope you had a wonderful time commentating on the wedding!
Trond Norén Isaksen 9 June 2013 at 19:36
Thank you. Personally I found commander suitable and it was also what I expected given that he would not become a member of the royal house and thus has the same status as the King's brothers-in-law, of whom the three commoners were made commanders of the Vasa Order. So Christopher O'Neill is treated equally with them.
The collar of the Seraphim is not given to everyone (and rarely to women, except some female heads of state). So I suppose it is an honour Prince Daniel will have to "earn" - possibly not until the next reign.
I appreciate your response. I concur that it is logical to treat Chris on par with other untitled royal consorts, but I wondered whether there was a particular reason that he and the king's brothers-in-law were granted that class of the order. I have no knowledge of what is typical, but I take it from your response that it is.
Concerning the Seraphim, I have a difficult time perceiving what Prince Carl Philip has done to earn the collar which his sisters and brother-in-law have not done, but I suppose the king hasn't proffered an official explanation.
Trond Norén Isaksen 10 June 2013 at 01:01
I would think that the kings settled for commanders because grand crosses would be "too much" for someone married to a princess.
Concerning the collar things are a bit illogical. Swedish princes have always been awarded the collar, whereas women are normally not given the collar unless they are heads of state. And this has for some reason not really changed after the introduction of gender-neutral succession. Crown Princess Victoria has the collar, while Queen Silvia has not, and Prince Carl Philip has it while Princess Madeleine does not.
E 1 July 2013 at 21:36
Trond, might you know whether Chris O'Neill became a member of the Swedish Royal Family (albeit not of the Royal House) upon his marriage, as did the wives of the former princes of Sweden, but not the husbands of the Haga princesses?
One might infer from his omission from the royal court's Kungafamiljen webpage that he did not. However, as even the husbands of the Haga princesses are named therein, it is more probable that the court simply has not updated it.
As several weeks have passed without clarification from the court, I thought I might ask you whether you have received any information from them.
Trond Norén Isaksen 2 July 2013 at 12:37
Your guess is as good a mine, I am afraid... I have always found it odd that the wives and widows of former princes who had lost their succession rights should count as members of the royal family while the husbands of princesses without succession rights should not, but on the other hand I have sometimes wondered if it is just an odd phrasing at the royal website that makes it seem that these husbands are not members of the royal family (if they are not, they need not have been mentioned at all). But then again, the website is not always up to date - it took days for Prince Daniel to be added in 2010, Sonja Bernadotte appeared on the list for weeks after her death and it also took several days for Princess Madeleine's marriage to be recorded in her biography. And if you go to the English version, there is no mention of the former princes' widows at all, nor of any of the King's sisters except for Princess Birgitta, who is said to be a member of the Swedish Royal Court (sic!). So who knows...
E 30 August 2013 at 01:23
To answer my own question, the court's website has (finally) been updated to indicate that Chris O'Neill is not a member of the Swedish royal family.
I find it peculiar that the husband of a member of the Royal House, who himself has been treated as a de facto royal at, e.g., National Day festivities, is not a member of the royal family at the same time that an individual such as Princess Kristine Bernadotte, who is the widow of a former prince who had forfeited his royal title, and who rarely partakes in royal life, is a member.
Trond Norén Isaksen 5 September 2013 at 00:40
To me it is not quite clear that this is how the website should be interpreted - the phrase "gift med" ("married to") can also be interpreted as meaning that the spouse is also a member of the royal family (otherwise they might as well not have mentioned the spouses, and it does indeed seem strange that husbands of princesses are not included, while widows of ex-princes are).
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The more I get to know Ari Shaffir the more I like him. He is one of the most pleasant human beings walking this earth. Every time I see him he puts a smile on my face. I have never seen him with a dark cloud of emotions hanging over him.
Several years ago he started doing story telling shows and now that concept...
Carl LaBove
I was a fan of Carl LaBove before I ever even met him. When I was 17 I went to see Sam Kinison in Orlando and Carl LaBove was the opening act. Carl blew me away that night with his ferocious comedy cyclone, Kinison was wasted and I left the Bob Carr auditorium thinking Carl LaBove was a name to remember.
Years later I...
Rick Shapiro
I first saw Rick Shapiro perform when I lived in New York City 1998 - 1999. He wasn't playing in comedy clubs then he had a regular Wednesday night stint at a bar in Lower Manhattan. A musician friend of mine took me to see him and the musician friend told me "This guy does more than comedy. He does raw naked truth"....
Sananda Maitreya
I believe this episode is among the very best that I have yet been a part of because of the time, love and preparation that went into making it.
Sananda Maitreya was once known by a former name that I will not speak because I get the feeling that person no longer exists and that is the way Mr. Maitreya wants it. I...
Dara Faizi
This episode is a heartbreaker. I was shocked and saddened to learn that Dara Faizi died on September 30, 2013 at the tender young age of 25.
I became friends with Dara when he was first starting out as a comedian in Holland.
He was a young master of comedy even when he just started. He had confidence as a story teller...
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Scientists have managed to engineer fruit to taste like candy
In a world with spray-on cheese, we should hardly be surprised when scientists come up with something that sounds simultaneously impossible and slightly disgusting. Supermarket shelves everywhere are stacked with lurid produce warped about as far away from its natural form as it’s possible to be. Today, I ate a bag of lamb and mint flavoured crisps. I can’t decide whether it’s more or less appetising to think that the makers put a lamb and some mint in a giant blender and dusted the result on some potatoes, or if the whole lot is just a collection of vaguely sheepy chemicals. Both possibilities are pretty horrible.
Our obsession with changing the way things taste is not limited to the artificial elements of our diet. One of the most controversial topics in modern food focuses around the genetic modification of crops and livestock. The theory goes that by looking to control physical plant and animal characteristics, farmers can create produce that is more efficient, more resistant to disease and produces a higher yield than naturally grown alternatives. This type of engineering has been used at every layer of the food chain since the 1980s, and has been a contentious issue ever since.
The sheer amount of rumour and fake news thrown around about GMO farming has helped make many people extremely sceptical of the whole concept of food engineering. In a recent survey, it was revealed that as many as 40 per cent of Americans believe that genetically modified foods are bad for your health, despite very few people being able to explain why. The result is that many things that seem unnatural or too good to be true are regarded with a good deal of suspicion by an increasingly scornful customer base.
Well aware of this hostile atmosphere, one farm in California has set about proving to the world that incredible, mind-bending produce can be created without the need for weird science. Based in Bakersfield, The Grapery is an independent company dedicated to the perfection of one of nature’s most popular fruits - the humble grape.
Established in 1996, the business’ founding fathers were tired of the bland, flavourless fruits available at most American supermarkets. As one Grapery grower explained back in 2013, despite the apparent variety of choices available to consumers, years of breeding and engineering focused on durability rather than taste have produced an extremely hardy but ultimately flavourless product. This was a tragedy for grape enthusiasts everywhere. It was time to take the power back.
Looking to emulate the success of the apple industry, who have managed to provide customers with a wealth of different, distinct breeds that all offer something unique, The Grapery set about using natural breeding techniques to put grapes back on the map. They would not have to wait long for success. Within a few years, The Grapery were able to tear up the fruit growers rulebook and unveil a grape that tasted like cotton candy.
Since first launching in 2011, the cotton candy grapes have gone on to generate a worldwide buzz. Chef Spencer Gray described the flavour as “amazingly sweet”, before adding that: “It's like there's nothing to stop the sweetness. It just lingers on your tongue.” Before long, the grapes were starring on Buzzfeed blogs and on celebrity radio shows - wowing audiences everywhere with their unique taste. Within three years, production had increased from a two-acre plot to over 100 acres in order to keep up with demand. The future of fruit was finally here.
Though it might seem impossible that a fruit can naturally taste like candy floss, there is no chemical witchcraft at play. The Grapery insist that their star product is the result of a careful cross-breeding process between two different subspecies of grape. Expert horticulturist David Cain, who first stumbled upon the cotton candy flavour, revealed that plants were first grown in a lab before being transferred to a field when in the embryonic stage of development. In order to get the desired balance of flavour right without the assistance of artificial additives or engineering, the process can take up to 15 years of careful monitoring and experimentation. Despite the patience needed, the reviews speak for themselves.
After establishing themselves with their cotton candy speciality, The Grapery has since expanded their repertoire to include other sweet shop staples. Today, the business sells gum drop and moon drop flavours and has announced plans to recreate gummy bears and skittles in future breeds. All the while, they are committed to continuing to use techniques that are 100 per cent natural.
In many ways, genetic modification and chemical additives can make our lives infinitely easier. Because of their natural growing process, the cotton candy grapes are only available for a few months each year. However, The Grapery have also proved that by relying on technology to provide our food, we’re missing out on a whole heap of opportunities that nature can offer. They may be more expensive, take longer and be harder to find, but when it comes to flavour, The Grapery prove that au natural is the only way to go.
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Click here to listen to the podcast
I have decided that the book of Acts might be my favorite thing to preach. The Old Testament is just weird. With the gospels there's a lot of pressure to explain everything Jesus said and people always want to argue about whether it's true. When you preach the letters in the rest of the New Testament you have to do a lot of theology. But the book of Acts? It's a lot of crazy stories that just are what they are and we get to decide what to make of them. And this morning's story is in my opinion the best one in the whole book of Acts. The context is that this happens after Pentecost, which we will celebrate in a few weeks. As the gospel begins to spread beyond the Jewish people, both geographically and culturally, the question of "who is in?" becomes more and more significant. Jesus' original disciples have been commissioned by him to go into all the world and make disciples, teaching those new disciples to obey everything that Jesus commanded. But up to this point, the Jesus movement was exclusively Jewish, and the Jewish people had a lot of specific cultural practices. Jesus was a devout Jew and followed all of the law, and encouraged his followers to do the same. So as the message spreads, followers of Jesus have to figure out what is essentially the gospel and what is cultural custom. What are the markers of a faithful life? "So let us listen know in the reading of scripture for the word and the wisdom of God." - Iona Community Worship Book
Scripture Reading - Acts 10
Narrator: At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said,
Angel: “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Peter.
Narrator: When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier who was one of his attendants. He told them everything that had happened and sent them to Joppa.
About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. Then a voice told him,
Spirit: “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.”
Peter: “Surely not, Lord! have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”
Narrator: The voice spoke to him a second time,
Spirit: “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”
Narrator: This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven. While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him,
Spirit: “Simon, three men are looking for you. So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.”
Narrator: When Peter and the others arrived in Caesarea, Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. But Peter made him get up saying:.
Peter: “Stand up, I am only a man myself.”
Narrator: While talking with him, Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. He said to them:
Peter: “You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. May I ask why you sent for me, Cornelius?”
Cornelius: “Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me and said, ‘Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, who lives by the sea.’ So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us, Peter.”
Peter: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears God and does what is right. You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
Narrator: While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles, for they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God. Then Peter said:
Peter: “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.”
Narrator: So Peter ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
The highlight of our worship this morning is coming together at the table of the Lord. As we sang a few minutes ago, at this table, no one is a stranger and everyone belongs. This table is a foretaste of what we will experience someday when God gathers all people together and we finally realize that our differences are not strong enough to separate us.
That's a hard lesson to learn. We all like to think of ourselves as open-minded. And yet, we all have someone that we do NOT want to be at the table with. We are still allowing our differences to keep us separate. African-American pastor Dr. Howard Thurman said in the 50s that the problem in America is a spirit of separation. And spiritual problems require spiritual solutions. (Legislation, yes. But not legislation only. Our spirits need to be healed.)
That's the lesson that Peter learns in today's story. The separation between people that he assumed was natural, even sanctioned by God in the Old Testament, that separation was healed forever by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. It was a huge lesson for Peter to learn, and changed the course of the church.
And we need to pay careful attention to how the process works. It starts with prayer. Peter is making time to connect with the divine. And while he does, he's hungry. Which most of us can relate to. Usually when I'm feeling distracted during prayer, I feel ashamed of that. But in this story, that moment of distraction is exactly what God uses to speak to Peter. No shame, just remaining open.
The lesson also comes in stages, giving him time to absorb the change. First he's invited to eat an unclean animal, which no devout Jew would ever do. Why? Not just because it's a cultural tradition. Because it's in their sacred text. It's in the Old Testament. Peter doesn't eat unclean animals because to the best of his understanding, God has told him not to! Why would God say no to something in the past but say yes to it now? Because God is still speaking. There are principles of love that transcend rules of culture.
God confirms this lesson for Peter by telling him three times, not just once. If God is leading you to a new understanding, especially if it's something challenging for you, you can expect that God will confirm it.
And since the lesson comes in stages, the first lesson might not be the final lesson. Peter's first lesson was about food, but his final lesson is about people. As the lesson about WHAT is clean works its way through Peter's heart and mind, he realizes that this is not a lesson about WHAT is clean, but about WHO is clean. Although the voice told Peter that he should not call anyTHING unclean if God has made IT clean, when Peter repeats the lesson to the people at Cornelius's house, he says God has told him not to call anyONE impure or unclean. Everyone IS clean. Period. There is no one from whom Peter needs to keep himself separate. The categories that we want to use to keep ourselves separate from other people, those categories are gone. No human is unclean. No one is unworthy of being included in God's Kingdom. Already. Not when they change to agree with our politics or our theology, not when they get out jail, not when they get into recovery, not when they prove they're really sorry, but right now. No one is unclean.
As an Open and Affirming church, we need this story. As a church who believes God is still speaking, we need this story. As people honestly seeking to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God, we need this story.
And so beloved ones, let us meet Christ again here at this glorious table. Because as our ancestors in the faith have insisted for hundreds of years, this is the joyful feast of the people of God. People of all genders, all ages, and all races—people with every type of body—come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and gather about Christ’s table.
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Armenian News... A Topalian...Armenian and Azerbaijani forces clash on border
Attacks are a sign that international efforts to mediate conflict have stalled
An Armenian serviceman guarding an area near the village of Movses, close to the border with Azerbaijan in February. Armenia and Azerbaijan said at least three soldiers were killed in a clash on their border on Thursday © AFP
by: Kathrin Hille in Moscow
Armenia and Azerbaijan said at least three soldiers were killed in a clash on their border on Thursday, in a sign that international efforts to mediate one of the longest-running conflicts between former Soviet republics have stalled.
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Yerevan and Baku accused each other of an incursion at the border far north of Nagorno-Karabakh, the territory at the heart of the two South Caucasus countries’ bitter dispute.
The Armenian defence ministry said its army had repelled a “sabotage attack” from Azerbaijani forces at the border south-east of the village of Chinari. It said an Armenian officer and two soldiers were killed. A ministry spokesman claimed that seven Azerbaijani soldiers also died in the attack.
“The military-political leadership of Azerbaijan carries the responsibility for the provocation,” the ministry said in a statement.
Azerbaijan rebuffed the Armenian version of events. It said an Armenian military reconnaissance group crossed the border and was then ambushed by Azerbaijan’s army.
“The adversary was forced to retreat with big losses as a result of the subsequent gun battle,” Azerbaijan’s defence ministry said.
Their accounts could not be independently verified. The conflict is monitored by observers under an arrangement set up by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, an international body. But the monitoring process has been criticised as toothless because it does not allow for unannounced missions.
Observers said they were alarmed by the clash on a section of the border that has long been quiet, despite heavy fighting in erupting in Nagorno-Karabakh in April.
The territory’s population is predominantly Armenian, but Nagorno-Karabakh is internationally recognised as being a part of Azerbaijan. The dispute has poisoned the two republics’ relations ever since Nagorno-Karabakh’s Armenians sought to break away from Azerbaijan in the last days of the Soviet Union.
“This incident is really very strange and surprising,” said Olesya Vartanyan, South Caucasus analyst at the International Crisis Group. “Although tension is always high along the border, there have been very few incidents outside Nagorno-Karabakh this year.”
The fighting by Armenia and Azerbaijan forces in Nagorno-Karabakh in April was the worst escalation of the conflict since a 1994 ceasefire. But violence has been concentrated in that territory. The last time the region around Chinari was hit by clashes was in 2014, according to a database curated by Saferworld, the non-governmental group.
Since April, Russia, several other countries and the OSCE have been trying to reduce tensions by hosting the two countries’ presidents for talks. But their efforts have produced few results. Most recently, bilateral talks about a potential international monitoring mission on the border ended in failure.
“It is notable how Armenia is publicising this. It may be related to the negotiations earlier this month where the Armenians pushed very hard for a deal to deploy international monitors along the border but failed,” said Ms Vartanyan.
arka.am
CSTO calls Azerbaijani diversionary incursion against Armenia ‘provocation’
December 29.
The Russia-controlled Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) expressed today its deepest concern over an armed incident reported near the Armenian village of Chinari on the border with Azerbaijan today morning.
CSTO Secretary General Nikolai Bordyuzha said in a statement that the organization considers these actions on the territory of a CSTO member state as a provocation, especially against the background of an unprecedented upsurge of violence in Nagorno-Karabakh in April when heavy weapons and armored vehicles were used.
According to the CSTO Secretary General, it seemed, given the efforts that have been made on both sides, as well as by the leaders of a number of states, that the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process would finally gather momentum.
"However, the reports from the region about regular violations of the ceasefire, and especially the incident on 29th of December, resulting in death of servicemen, are causing serious concern," – the statement said.
Armenian defense ministry reported earlier today that Azerbaijani troops attempted a diversionary incursion in the early hours of December 29 southeast of the village of Chinari in Tavush province. It said Armenian armed forces neutralized the aggressive action of Azerbaijani troops, driving them back into Azerbaijani territory.
According to Artsrun Hovhannisyan, a spokesman for Armenian defense ministry, Azerbaijan’s casualties amounted to seven servicemen. During the fighting, three Armenian soldiers were also killed.
The Azerbaijani attempted attack made Armenia’s foreign ministry call on the international community asking it to condemn Azerbaijan's military adventure.
‘We condemn in the strongest terms today’s the diversionary incursion attempt by Azerbaijan on the state border with Armenia, which resulted in human loses. We express our deepest condolences to the relatives and fellow servicemen of the fallen soldiers,’ the statement reads.
‘While the most serious damage caused to the settlement process in the result of the Azerbaijani aggression against Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) this April has not been overcome yet, Baku embarks on a new adventurism grossly violating the agreements reached at the Vienna and St. Petersburg summits and the commitment to settle the issue through peaceful means. This is how Baku responds to the Foreign Ministers of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries who urged in Hamburg to adhere strictly to the 1994/95 ceasefire agreements.
On numerous occasions the international community, via the Co-Chairs, has called to maintain the ceasefire, especially during the holidays. By undertaking military diversionary incursion on the Christmas and New Year’s Eve, Baku acts against the universal human values.
The international community, first and foremost the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries should take immediate steps to sober up the Azerbaijani leadership, who has lost the sense of reality, ignores and opposes with defiance to their calls and demands,’ the statement says.
A recommendation from Christopher Walker
Edessa/Urfa
The best book on the history of Edessa is J.B. Segal's Edessa: 'The Blessed City' , 1970 and reprints. Segal was so highly regarded as a scholar that in 1979, despite his being Jewish, he was appointed visiting professor at Ain Shams university, Cairo. He was also given the freedom of the city of Urfa in 1973, though what he would have made of the present situation, goodness knows.
RFE/RL Report
More Armenians Said To Leave Syria
More ethnic Armenian citizens of Syria have decided to relocate to Armenia soon, a Yerevan-based charity assisting in their resettlement said on Tuesday.
The Initiatives for Development of Armenia (IDeA) foundation, which was set up by the Russian-Armenian philanthropist Ruben Vardanyan, allocated in October $250,000 to support Syrian Armenians gravely affected by the bloody conflict in the Middle Eastern state.
The funding is aimed, among other things, at helping them settle and find employment in Armenia through three local non-governmental organizations. One of those NGOs called Halep (Aleppo) unites Syrian Armenians living in their ancestral homeland.
In a statement, IDeA said 37 Armenians from Aleppo have already moved to Armenia thanks to its project. Eighteen others have told Halep representatives that they want to follow suit, it said.
The announcement follows the capture by Syrian government troops of all districts in Aleppo remaining under rebel control. The city was home to the majority of an estimated 80,000 Armenians who lived in Syria before the civil war.
According to Armenian government estimates, only about 7,000 ethnic Armenians remain Aleppo at present. Virtually all of them live in the city's western government-controlled districts that were for years shelled by rebel forces.
Up to 20,000 Syrian Armenians are thought to have fled to Armenia in the last five years. Many of them have been struggling to find jobs in a country that has long suffered from high unemployment.
IDeA said that starting from next month another Yerevan-based NGO, Mission Armenia, will use its funding to cover housing expenditures of some of those migrants.
The charity hoped to also obtain funding from other organizations and individuals in Armenia and its worldwide Diaspora when it launched the aid scheme two months ago. It has raised only about $22,000 so far.
How Ancient Volcanoes Created Armenia’s Pink City
In the capital city of Yerevan, volcanic rock flows pink
By Jennifer Billock
As you approach the Armenian capital of Yerevan, you can look up and see Mount Ararat towering in the distance, casting its shadow on a city shrouded in pink. Yerevan has come to be known as Armenia’s Pink City for exactly this view: its Soviet-era buildings constructed out of pink stones from the surrounding landscape. The color is brightest at sunrise and sunset , and changes throughout the day based on where the sun hits it.
Yerevan itself its one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world , though it’s been known by many other names over the years. It was founded in 782 B.C.E. by Urartian King Argishti I, who named it Erebuni, though the territory had been settled and was actually in use since the 4th century B.C.E. . From that time, 11 cities have come and gone on the same spot, evolving into present day Yerevan, the 12th capital of Armenia.
In November 1920 , the Soviet regime made its way to Armenia. Yerevan then became the capital of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic, one of 15 member states of the Soviet Union. Under Soviet leadership, the city was transformed from a small town to a modern metropolis of more than one million people. Russian-born architect Alexander Tamanian rebuilt the city in a circular layout, destroying many of the old buildings and replacing them with contemporary Soviet-style buildings made from the same local pink stone. The stone was abundant in the region and created a uniform and symmetric appearance that differed in shade from the grays seen in most Soviet cities. Ultimately the Soviet Union fell in 1991, at which point Yerevan took its place as capital of the Independent Republic of Armenia—its pink buildings intact.
Yerevan’s unique building stone is actually lava rock, though not the typical black hue found in far-flung destinations like Iceland and Hawaii; rather, this lava rock bears various shades of pink, ranging from light pastels to bright with a hint of orange. Scientifically, it’s known as tuff, a rock made of compacted volcanic ash that was ejected from a vent during an eruption. Though a similar rock type can be found in pockets in Turkey and parts of the U.S. southwest, pink tuff is rare outside of the region and Yerevan is the only major city built out of this stone.
Jack Lockwood , a volcanology consultant and author who was an exchange scientist in the USSR, said the difference in color is due to both the speed of the lava flow, where it ends up, and the oxidation. “Pink rock is oxidized ignimbrite, or welded tuff, from the upper portion of thick pyroclastic flows widely present in this part of Armenia,” he told Smithsonian.com.
That means the original flow from the volcano was dense and destructive, an explosion of hot ash, gases, and lava fragments that poured downslope very quickly. “Pink is the original oxidation color, formed as the pyroclastic flows cooled. But it's not the quick emplacement that counts [for the color]. It's the building up into a thick deposit on flat terrain, sometimes far from volcanic source.”
By contrast, Lockwood said the black lava rocks found throughout the world are basalt , or hard crystalline volcanic lava, resulting from a slow flow and a mixture of plagioclase and pyroxene minerals .
Despite its widespread use throughout Yerevan, Lockwood points out that the welded tuff is not very strong by nature, and it cannot support immense structural loads. So instead, basalt was commonly used on the lower floors, and the pink tuff—which has an even texture and can be easily cut into blocks and carved—was relegated to the upper two or three floors.
In recent years, new construction materials have begun to vary, breaking up the uniform pink tones, but stroll through the Republic Square at sunset to bath in the city's unique rosy glow.
Martyrdom of the Armenians
KATIA M. PELTEKIAN
Dec 14, 1916 The Times, UK
The Blue-book published today upon the treatment of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire tells the story of the tragic destruction of an inoffensive and intelligent race during the year 1915. The documents form a long catalogue of horrors for which hardly any parallel can be found in ancient or modern history. There were perhaps 1,800,000 Armenians dwelling within the Turkish Empire at the beginning of 1915. A process of "deportation" was inaugurated, and the Armenians in Asiatic Turkey were torn from their homes. It is estimated that about 600,000 are still alive, though under wretched conditions, in exile within Turkish territory; 600,000 were either forcibly converted to Islam, or are hiding in the mountains, or have escaped beyond the Turkish frontier, and about 600,000 have been done to death under circumstances of almost inconceivable brutality. The Blue-book, which is terrible reading, teems with examples of the awful treatment meted out to the Armenian women and girls.
One fact alone will suffice to show the callous thoroughness with which the dispersal and partial extirpation of the Armenians was conducted. Last year there were about 580,000 Armenians in the vilayets of Erzrum, Bitlis, and Van. When these areas passed into Russian hands only 12,100 Armenians were found alive. The rest were dead or driven forth.
The massacres were systematic and deliberate. They were planned far in advance at Constantinople. District after district was dealt with in turn, until throughout Asiatic Turkey the Armenian quarters in towns and villages had been depopulated. The gendarmerie and local administrators, the Kurds and other tribesmen who wrought the worst crimes, were all culpable; but the guilt rests primarily upon the leaders of the Young Turks. The Turkish Government conceived the scheme, yet the guilt does not end in Constantinople. "The Times History of the War", in its chapter on these atrocities, declared that Germany "signified in the clearest manner that the Young Turks' attempt to exterminate their Armenian subjects was right in German eyes." No protest has gone forth from Berlin. Herself stained with innumerable barbarities, Germany has found in the authors of these massacres comrades entirely to her liking.
Armenian News... A Topalian... Former minister dismisses arguments
Former minister dismisses arguments suggesting Armenia’s development hampered by Karabakh conflict
Armenian former Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan, who days ago announced his decision to participate in the forthcoming parliamentary elections in 2017, has issued a lengthy statement, presenting his views on regional security issues, specifically the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement, which he sees as “crucial issue in itself for the Armenian people and the state”.
Ohanyan says Armenia should find a dignified peace formula to co-exist with its neighbors, including Azerbaijan, with all the state and people’s resources to be used for that end.
The former minister suggests a new formula of the country’s development and dignified peace in the view of the factors such as the permanent external threats, global and regional developments, various interests of the global power centers and the possibility of collision of those interest, as well as approaches of the regional states over joining different security systems.
“The Artsakh issues is not an impediment on the road of having a developing and a secure Armenia statehood, quite the opposite. The argument that Armenia may not develop without swift settlement of the Karabakh conflict is fundamentally erroneous and a consequence of genuine misperception. Not only is it far from the reality (in the course of the unresolved conflict, Armenia recorded double-digit economic growth and immigration), but also weakens Armenia’s posture in the settlement process,” reads a part of the statement.
Ohanyan sees the country’s rapid development as a crucial precondition to resolve the Artsakh issue and reach a lasting peace, saying “unilateral concessions or hastily made compromises may not bring peace, rather increase the risk of renewal of the war”.
And while the former minister acknowledges the valuable mediation efforts by the Co-Chairing states of the Minsk Group, he views the key to the [Karabakh] settlement to stay in Yerevan and Stepanakert, that should find a settlement option with Baku. “The Nagorno Karabakh Republic is a full-fledged party to the conflict and should reach international recognition,” insists Ohanyan.
He next suggests Armenia should exist ‘the current trap of economic relations’ to ensure sustainable development with an atmosphere of tolerance and just competitiveness, true progress in all spheres of life to be established.
Seyran Ohanyan expresses his confidence that the Karabakh conflict can be solved through negotiations and peaceful means. “We can achieve mutual understanding with Azerbaijan and should work toward that end. It remains quite difficult to record tangible progress in the settlement process unless a mutual trust between the conflicting parties is established,” continued the former minister, adding mutual understanding may contain certain compromises based on solely military analysis and expert assessments of the military sphere.
“The scenarios of mutual concessions that are being considered today are illogical and unacceptable, especially when official Baku never speaks of compromises with its current aggressive stance, representing a threat to us,” said the former minister.
Ohanyan argues that mutual understanding will be possible once Azerbaijan refuses its aggressive expansionist ambitions, acknowledges the right of self-determination of the Artsakh Armenians and the existence of the Artsakh statehood.
armenpress.am
Turkish police arrest reporters, call them “Armenian scums”
Turkey continues jailing reporters in Istanbul and Diyarbakir, Agos reports.
The Police arrested Diken’s editor Tunca Öğreten, Dihaber’s editor Ömer Çelik and journalist Metin Yoksu, Yolculuk newspaper representative Eray Sargın, BirGun newspaper worker Mahir Kanaat on charges of being “members of terrorist group”.
Dihaber’s editor Ömer Çelik was arrested in his house. The police forces entered his house and cursed him by saying you are “Armenian scums”.
armenews.com
Armenian tenor Hovhannes Georgiyan nicknamed "Russian Pavarotti", among the 92 victims of the Tupolev-154 Russian crash in the Black Sea
Krikor Amirzayan
Armenian tenor Hovhannès Georgiyan is one of 92 victims of the crash of the Russian plane Tupolev-154 which crashed on Sunday December 25 in the Black Sea off Sochi (Russia). The majority of the victims were members of the Alexandrov Choir of the Red Army. Hovhannès Georguiyan was a well-known singer in Russia and in the world, in tenor he was the star of the opera "The Phantom of the Opera".
H. Georgiyan was born on 9 February 1967 in Lugansk (Ukraine). A mechanical engineer by training, his love of song had led him to music. In 1994 he finished his studies at the SS Prokofiev Institute of the school of music of Donetsk (Ukraine). After settling in Moscow, he worked with many theaters. At the "Serenade" in Moscow, he met Tatiana, his future wife. He then became the soloist of the Moscow Academy of Music. He had inherited the prestigious nickname of "Russian Pavarotti."
Lake Sevan level up 30 centimeters in 2016 – environment minister
The level of Lake Sevan has climbed 30 centimeters since the beginning of this year to 1 900 meters and 48 centimeters, Artsvik Minasyan, Armenian environment minister, said Tuesday at a news conference.
Water has been taken from the lake over a period between June 7 and September 12 for irrigation.
In his words, 167.135 million cubic meters have been used instead of the 170 million allowed by the law.
“This is less than in 2015 by 0.608 million cubic meters,” he said.
Sevan is one of the largest mountainous lakes in Europe and Asia. It sits in the middle of Armenian
Highland at an altitude of 1914 meters. The lake’s water surface is 1,500 square kilometers.
Sevan is the main resource of drinking water in the region.
Narek Hakhnazaryan plays on the musical instrument of Giuseppe Guarneri made in 1707
Armenian world-famous cellist, the winner of the gold medal for cello at the 2011 International Tchaikovsky Competition Narek Hakhnazaryan has been playing on the historical musical instrument for a year and half made by Giuseppe Guarneri, a member of the famed Guarneri instrument-making family of Cremona, Italy.
Hakhnazaryan has acquired the instrument from a Canadian-based Chinese, who is one Hakhnazaryan’s music lover and gifted the cello to the musician by a contract for three years’ initial term.
“This appears to have been a great event in my life. It is a dream for each musician to have such an instrument, legendary, fantastic one. And I am honored to perform on this instrument,” Hakhnazaryan told reporters, adding he has been looking for funds and sponsors over the recent years to obtain such an instrument.
“I have played on a modern, average instrument for three years. It is quite difficult if you want to convey your musical thought to the audience, yet the instrument does not sound at its best. Guarneri’s instrument offers endless opportunities and horizons,” the cellist described his experience of producing music on the cello.
Speaking of the upcoming concerts, Hakhnazaryan informed about his scheduled concert in Amsterdam in January, then in famous concert halls of Berlin. The Armenian, however, stressed that concerts are planned to be held in Yerevan throughout the year as well.
Narek continued that he books a separate flight ticket for the cello while travelling from state to state: “My instrument is my friend, a close person,” the cellist explained.
From a UK National Newspaper:
'Suffering Moyes stung by an Armenian Scorpion'
'Phenomenal Mkhitaryan getting better and better, says Mourinho'
'The Armenian, returning from injury, brought the house down with a stunning piece of improvisation....'
armradio.am
Mkhitaryan scores stunning goal as Man United beats Sunderland - Video
Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored an acrobatic back flick to wrap up Manchester United’s 3-1 win over Sunderland in the English Premier League on Saturday, ensuring a miserable return to Old Trafford for former United manager David Moyes, according to the Associated Press.
On as a second-half substitute, Mkhitaryan met Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s right-wing cross with a flicked finish with the heel of his right foot that flew into the corner in the 86th minute.
Mkhitaryan was in an offside position but it didn’t stop home fans at Old Trafford saluting a player who is growing in importance in his first season at United.
Ibrahimovic also set up the opening goal for Daley Blind in the 39th before scoring his 16th goal of the season in the 82nd after being played through by Paul Pogba.
Sunderland’s consolation was scored by Fabio Borini in stoppage time.
It was Moyes’ first game at Old Trafford since he was fired by United in April 2014, 10 months into his ill-fated tenure as Alex Ferguson’s hand-picked replacement.
United has won its last four league games to power back into contention for the Champions League qualification places.
https://youtu.be/79Cv-LElW2Y
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rdhJn88G_I
ages.com
Armenians of Diyarbakir longing for Surp Giragos
Varduhi Balyan
The discrimination that Stephan Yepremyan has been subjected for trying to maintain his culture and the torments that Hangül Özbey went through because of her Kurdish and Armenian identity reveal the suffering caused by being an Armenian of Diyarbakir.
With the restoration of Surp Giragos Church in Diyarbakir, the Armenian population in the city was revived. Being forced to conceal their identities for years, Armenian locals of Diyarbakir had the opportunity to come together, maintain their culture and perform their religious rituals. Because of the clashes in Sur province of Diyarbakir, destruction of Sur and Surp Giragos' being out of reach, Armenians of Diyarbakir once again “retired into their shells like turtles”, as they put it.
The discrimination that Stephan Yepremyan has been subjected for trying to maintain his culture and the torments that Hangül Özbey went through because of her Kurdish and Armenian identities reveal the suffering caused by being Armenian of Diyarbakir. I just want to let them speak for themselves.
Stephan Yepremyan begins to tell about his story: “My family is from Adıyaman. They still live there. My father is Armenian and my mother is Syriac. I was born in Kahta as the youngest child of a family with 7 children.
“I came to Diyarbakir after I completed my secondary education and I still live here. I am a mechanical engineer. I knew that I am Armenian all my life. Like any other Armenian, I didn't have the chance not to know it. Even in elementary school, people keep reminding you who you are.” “ I have always been isolated”
For years, Stephan Yepremyan has been living in Diyarbakir that he loves so much. He says that preserving Armenian identity and living as Armenian is a kind of struggle: “For me, living like a human is more important than living like Armenian or Christian. However, being isolated or insulted because of being Armenian is of vital importance. My humble struggle has always been about this. I don't know why we came to call it a struggle. Why would you call living like yourself a struggle? I have never considered identity or belief as a tool; I have never promoted it, but made it visible. And I will keep doing it. I have always been isolated because I chose to do it. There were times even my relatives or Islamized friends felt ashamed of me. They pushed me away, wrote me off their lives, unfriended me on social media.” “ It wouldn't be counted as good deed, if he is Armenian”
Defining his experiences of isolation as “funny”, Yepremyan tells about some anecdotes from his life: “Actually, we don't know each other, though we are living together. I don't know what to call it; it might be called unrecognition, hatred or ignorance. Regardless of what you call it, this fact sometimes leads to funny situations without bad intentions. For instance, an intern from the office went to his village and brought some food that his grandmother had cooked. I thanked him and his grandmother and he said: “There is a problem, brother. It turned out that we cannot do a good deed for you. I told my grandmother that I will give the foods to an Armenian and she said, 'I wouldn't be counted as good deed, if he is Armenian, but give them anyway. Let God decide, maybe he will accept it.'”
And one day, a friend visited me at home. He said to my mother, 'This son of yours is so indifferent. He never inquires after us and visit us at home. How come you never call someone you see as a brother, you cruel, giaour man?”
“ I owe to my mother”
“Even in elementary school, I heard the word 'giaour' many times,” says Yepremyan. “They called me giaour in school, because I didn't fast. That evening, I asked my father what it means. I guess, that was when I started to think about identity. Even if you don't know who you are, people would remind it. They even keep questioning the ones who are converted to Islam. I have relatives who are very devoted Muslims. There were some people who don't perform namaz with them; they were saying, “What good could come from namaz that this giaour makes us perform?” Putting aside the ones who converted to Islam voluntarily, they even call the ones whom they forced to convert to Islam giaour. This is how I learned to refuse anything imposed on me. I mean, I became myself. I owe it to my family, especially to my mother. They managed to preserve their life style and traditions and they chose to transfer the past instead of erasing it.” “ Better insulted than dead”
Saying that he wants people to accept him as he is, Yepremyan talks about his feelings: “Every insult I have heard so far came with 'Armenian'. Some people even say, 'So what? Better insulted than dead.' When they see that you wear a cross, they say, 'No need for such things. We are all brothers and sisters. Just hide it.' That is exactly the problem: if I hide it, if I live the way they see me, if I talk and pray like them, then we would be the same. I don't need them to call me brother; what is important is to call me brother after you accept me as I am.”
Preserving Armenian culture with his songs, Yepremyan wrote a song for Surp Giragos. Stating that Surp Giragos has a significant role in his life, Yepremyan says that Armenians of Diyarbakir grew apart because it is forbidden to enter the church: “We are unable to contact each other.” He says that he couldn't have entered the region called “Giaour neighborhood”, where Surp Giragos is located, for 8 months. He says that it is agonizing to see the current situation of the neighborhood.
A life from Vartanuş to Hangül
Hangül Özbey's story is similar to the stories of many people who found out their Armenian identity later. She was born in Silvan to a family with 8 children. “When I was a child, I didn't know that my father's mother is Armenian. I was defining myself as Kurdish. My grandmother told us that she is Armenian in '80s. My grandfather is Kurdish. My grandmother was one of those Armenians who were forced to convert to Islam.” Özbey lives in Diyarbakir since 1997.
She introduces herself as Hangül. It is the second name of her grandmother's aunt Vartanuş. “I took my name after my grandmother's aunt. Her name was Vartanuş, but then they started to call her Hangül. They did it because they were afraid that soldiers might kill her. Vartanuş's husband was killed by aghas during the genocide. It was a time when people were encouraged to kill Armenians by making them believe that a person who kills 7 Armenians will go to heaven. Vartanuş was left alone with her 2 children and became Hangül. Since she was so beautiful and had lots of gold, everybody wanted to have her. Refusing the marriage proposal for a long time, Hangül finally decided to marry with a man who would accept her children as well. When a man accepted it, she jumped from the bridge over River Murat with her children and golds. The other aunt of my grandmother went blind, because she cried so much during the genocide. She was the one who wanted me to have this name. My grandmother used to tell me, 'If you have a daughter, name her Vartanuş.'”
“ We found out who we are by researching”
Saying that people in Silvan don't isolate her because she is Armenian, Hangül says: “There were many Armenians living in Silvan in the past. Everybody knows it. There is a church and many people who were saved by locals during the genocide. We didn't have the chance to know the Armenian culture. We learned about it by researching and started to get to know ourselves. We had always defined ourselves as Kurdish. This may be the reason why we want to establish stronger ties between peoples. Being Armenian and Kurd at the same time gave us an internationalist perspective.”
Hangül says that they were subjected to serious violence in Silvan during '90s: “During '90s, we were subjected to violence by the groups organized in guise of religion. When I was in high school, I was attacked with sticks and guns. I was in coma for 13 days. Then, my family moved to Adana, where I was detained just because I am Kurdish. I was tortured. I was so injured that I still suffer. After a police officer said that I am Armenian, they started torturing me even more heavily. Then, my family moved to Antalya for financial reasons. I couldn't find a job there. During the interviews, they were asking where I am from after they heard my accent. I escaped from lynching attempts for several times. Once, I was working as a nurse in a neighborhood where the funeral of a solider died in Şırnak was held and people shouted 'Here is a Kurd' as I walked by. They tried to attack me, but then a few people intervened and said, 'She gave an injection to us. She is nice.' That was what saved me.”
“ Now, it is worse that '90s”
Living in Diyarbakir, Hangül says that oppression started again and it is even worse than '90s: “Lately, we have been living under serious oppression. For instance, when a police vehicle is raked, they break in a house randomly to search for weapons or guerrillas. Something like this happened to us in August. One day, around midnight, our house was raided. 14 special operation officers with masks tried to enter the house by breaking the door down. When we opened the door, they pointed guns at us, made us lie on the ground face-down and told us not to move. They said that they are searching for terrorists. You feel like they would kill you right there, if you move. They searched through the house for about an hour. I cannot even tell how I felt. It is even worse than '90s.”
“ They took away our right”
Saying that Surp Giragos Church is a place where Armenians live their culture, Hangül Özbey says that this right is taken away from them: “With the restoration of Surp Giragos, the people who are the same but grew apart had the chance to come together again. I was really enjoying our gatherings. 2 years ago, a great mass was held in Surp Giragos with participation of Aram Ateşyan. It was a whole new experience. I felt like we will live peacefully together in this land once again. During the so-called peace negotiations, people were feeling hopeful. I know many Armenians who were afraid to tell that they are Armenian; they also started to talk about their identity.”
Hangül also talks about her testimony to the recent events and her deep sorrow: “Curfew was imposed after clashes started in Sur. I hadn't been going to Surp Giragos for a long time. I tried to go there once or twice, but there were walls around it. Surp Giragos was Armenians' place for gathering, performing their religious rituals and maintaining their culture. Now, we cannot get close to the church. We are not able to come together anymore. It is not easy to contact those people. Especially the ones who moved from the neighborhood are having difficulties. They took away our tradition to learn and teach Armenian and right to know each other and ourselves.”
Armenian Church News - Latest E-Newsletter Volume 2, Issue 35 27 December 2016
Dear E-Newsletter subscriber, please find volume 2, issue 35 of the Armenian Church News of the Diocese via the link below.Some subscribers have reported that they have not been receiving our newsletters - firstly, please check your spam folders as sometimes emailing systems erroneously put emails in there. Also in Gmail accounts, check your "Promotions" tab and transfer the newsletter that may be in there into the "Primary" inbox. If someone still cannot find their newsletters, please forward this email on to them so that they can read these instructions.
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The Primate's Greetings on the Occasion of New Year and Christmas!
Dear faithful,
I congratulate you wholeheartedly on the upcoming feasts of New Year and Christmas. Our joyous festivities started with the celebration of western Christmas with our fellow brothers and sisters on 25th December. Our celebrations will conclude with the festivities of Sourb Dznound on 6th January.
2016 passed very quickly. We celebrated the 25th Anniversary of the Independence of Armenia. We worked hard and have had several great community events, which strengthened our bonds as a united and cohesive community. There were also precious losses for us as we lost many beloved brothers and sisters in Artsakh and in the Middle East, Syria and Iraq as a result of ongoing conflicts.
When Jesus was born in the city of Bethlehem three wise men visited him from the East. The Magi gave Him gifts; gold, myrrh and frankincense. Second century church fathers originally said that they brought him “gold, as to a king; myrrh, as to one who was mortal; and incense, as to the God.” Jesus is the King and God, but became one of us and mortal, even vulnerable in the manger of Bethlehem. There is one message. It shows the life of Jesus who is a king and who suffered, and at the end triumphed with His resurrection. Pain and suffering do not have a place in God's ultimate plans. The triumph will come and human suffering will end as we embrace the journey of hope, faith and love.
Christmas is an invitation to renew ourselves with this message and to follow the way He showed us. It is an invitation to remember His commandments, the greatest of which is taught by our Lord Himself: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: love your neighbour as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.”
Charles Dickens in his famous novel on Christmas, wrote “that man must be a misanthrope indeed in whose breast something like a jovial feeling is not roused - in whose mind some pleasant associations are not awakened - by the recurrence of Christmas.” Indeed, our spirits are filled with the joy of merriments and there is no one who cannot share in this joy.
We have a jovial spirit and do believe strongly that 2017 will be a year of peace and of great achievements. With this festive spirit let us welcome the New Year and Christmas. I wish you and your loved ones a Happy New Year and a merry and blessed Christmas!
Christ is born and revealed amongst us!
Good tidings to you all!
Bishop Hovakim Manukyan
International Armenian Youth Conference
The Armenian Church Youth Organisation held an International Conference in London in December. To view a video about this event, click below:
ACYO London Conference
Christmas Carol Service
ACYO (London Chapter) held their Annual Christmas Carols at St. Yeghiche. To view a video about this event, click below:
Upcoming Events over Christmas and New Year:
New Year's Eve and Blessing of Pomegranates
Saturday, 31st December in St. Sarkis Church at midnight
His Grace Bishop Hovakim Manukyan will preside over a prayer service and blessing of pomegranates.
New Year's Day and Blessing of Pomegranates
Sunday, 1st January 2017, Divine Liturgy starts at 11:30am in St. Yeghiche Church
Thursday, 5th January 2017 at 5:30pm in St. Sarkis and St. Yeghiche Churches
Friday, 6th January 2017 at 11am in Holy Trinity Church, Manchester, St. Sarkis and St. Yeghiche Churches
Pilgrimage to Jerusalem, May 2017
Please join us on our pilgrimage to the Holy Land, 2nd - 9th May 2017.
The cost is £1250 per person for a twin room, the single room supplement is £300.
Link to further information
The Primate's Office
c/o The Armenian Vicarage
Iverna Gardens
London W8 6TP
primatesoffice@armenianchurch.co.uk
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Armenian News... A Topalian... Armenian economy growing by 5%
Web India 123
Bite into history with spicy Armenian Christmas cake
Fruitless Christmas cakes anyone? Try the spicy Armenian variety, a savoury reminder of the community that has made the city home since the 17th century.
Third generation Armenian Brunnel Arathoon has put her oven mitts on to churn out these tasty Christmas delights for her maiden, home-based, bake-to-order initiative, with the hope that people will get to know about the Armenians history and legacy in Kolkata.
"My motivation was to let everybody know that we as a community are still there and lot of people don't know about Armenians and our Christmas celebrations," Arathoon told IANS.
Proud to showcase her roots in the Eurasian nation through food, Arathoon said the uniqueness of the traditional Armenian Christmas cakes lies in the absence of candied fruits.
"They are fruitless. They are made with almonds, walnuts nutmeg and cinnamon. The cake comes out to be spicy and sweet and not extremely sweet that you normally get. So when you open the box you can smell it," she explained.
In a week since she began making them, Arathoon has sold 75 pieces and the demand is growing and along with the buzz comes a newfound recognition and respect for the community.
Kolkata has been home to the Armenian Christians since the 17th century and as many as 30 Armenian families continue to be an integral, yet quiet, part of the bustling metropolis. They celebrate Christmas on January 6.
"We are close to 5000 (that have Armenian bloodline) but not baptized in the Armenian Church. So a lot of us tend to go as Anglo-Indians," she said.
A pivotal aspect of their culture is the nearly-300-year-old Holy Church of Nazareth, located in Burrabazar in the central part of the city.
All in all, there are five magnificent churches across the state and several splendid edifices erected by them, including Stephen's Court in Park Street.
Government Defends More Foreign Borrowing
Hovannes Movsisian
The government played down Armenia's rising sovereign debt on Thursday as it sought parliamentary approval of $180 million in fresh loans allocated to it by international lending institutions.
Deputy Finance Minister Armen Hayrapetian insisted that Armenia will not become a heavily indebted country even though its combined debt will soon be equivalent to about 55 percent of Gross DomesticProduct.
"At the end of the year, Armenia's entire debt will stand at
approximately $5.9 billion," Hayrapetian told the National
Assembly. He said $4.85 billion of the sum is owed to foreign
creditors by the government and the Central Bank of Armenia.
Hayrapetian argued that the government has to continue to resort
to foreign borrowing in order to finance its budget deficit and essential capital spending.
Opposition lawmakers rejected this explanation, saying that the
government is increasing the country's debt burden instead of
improving tax collection and pursuing more sustainable economic
policies.
"We just cannot repay this debt," claimed Aram Manukian of the
Armenian National Congress (HAK).
"Do we know where we are headed?" said Naira Zohrabian, the
chairperson of the Prosperous Armenia Party. "Does this government
know what it is going to do?"
"Believe me, each of us is concerned about the rising debt,”
insisted Hayrapetian. He dismissed opposition claims that the government could eventually default on its debt repayments.
The public debt stood at less than $2 billion before the 2008-2009
global financial crisis plunged Armenia into a severe recession.
The government has since borrowed heavily from the World Bank, the
International Monetary Fund and other external sources to prevent
massive spending cuts and finance infrastructure projects.
Economic growth in Armenia has been sluggish in the last few years, translating into shortfalls in tax revenue and bigger budget deficits.
Prime Minister Karen Karapetian's cabinet is due to cut its
expenditures next year in line with the state budget passed by the
parliament last month. Finance Minister Vartan Aramian said in
September that the spending cuts will not only reduce the budget
deficit but also help the government keep the debt under control.
"We should be [fiscally] more conservative in the coming years to
prevent further growth of the debt," said Aramian.
David Lipton, the IMF's first deputy managing director, said
earlier this month that the Armenian authorities intend to "ensure that debt remains below 60 percent of GDP over the medium term."
Armenian economy in 2016 grows by 0.5 percent
YEREVAN, December 23. /ARKA/. Armenia’s economy has grown this year by 0.5%, down from the 2.2% growth projected by the government, finance minister Vardan Aramyan told the final news conference in the outgoing year.
According to him, the pricing environment throughout the year has been quite modest and therefore ‘ we will close this year with a lower price environment and almost zero deflator.’
"We expect the gross GDP growth to be about 2%, however, the real GDP is expected to be around 0.5%," - Aramyan said.
The minister blamed agriculture for the decline in the major economic indicators, as other sectors have seen growth. More precisely, the industrial output has grown by 6.2% year-on-year and services have grown by 4.4%.
"We projected a positive growth in the agriculture, however, given the recent developments we expect it to decline. However, we believe that the reason is not economic, but has to do with accounting. This is evidenced by the market prices, which have not changed. Actually, prices are the first to respond to the economic recession", - said Aramyan. --0--
Four Men Sentenced Over Yerevan Unrest
Ruzanna Gishian
Two men were sentenced to three years in prison and two others
received suspended jail terms on Thursday for their alleged role
in this summer's clashes between riot police and supporters of
opposition gunmen occupying a police station in Yerevan.
Hundreds of radical opposition supporters fought pitched battles
with the police near the besieged police compound late on July 20. The angry crowd tried to break through a police cordon, hitting
security forces and throwing stones at them. The police officers
clad in riot gear pushed back and dispersed it, using shields, truncheons and stun grenades.
The police said that 46 officers were injured in the clashes that
broke out three days after armed members of the Founding
Parliament opposition movement seized the compound. The gunmen
demanded President Serzh Sarkisian's resignation and the release
of their jailed leader, Zhirayr Sefilian.
The police detained dozens of people in the following hours. Some of them were subsequently prosecuted on charges of participating
in “mass disturbances" and assaulting policemen.
The four young men convicted on Thursday denied the charges at the
start of their trial. But they later pleaded guilty. Only two of
them were set free as a result, with a Yerevan court giving them
three-year suspended prison sentences.
The father of Hayk Hovannisian, one of the defendants who will
remain behind bars, condemned the verdict, saying that it was
ordered by Armenia's political leadership. "The court only
executes orders,” he told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am).
According to Ara Papikian, a defense lawyer, many of the other men
prosecuted in connection with the July 20 have also decided
to plead guilty to the accusations in court in hopes of getting
milder punishments. "We must understand the young men who have
been in jail for months and want to regain their freedom as soon
as possible, even through a suspended sentence or probation," said Papikian.
Matenadaran branch to be established at Gandzasar Monastery in Artsakh
22 Dec 2016 17:34:53 +0000
Society 20:09 22/12/2016 Armenia
The Cabinet has adopted a decision on establishing a branch of Matenadaran Scientific Research Institute of Ancient Manuscript named after Mesrop Mashtots at Gandzasar Monastery in Artsakh. The justification for the decision reads that hundreds of unique manuscripts and archival documents are kept at Matenadaran that were created in Artsakh and spread light on the spiritual and cultural heritage of the historical Armenian land.
The decision is aimed at popularization of those values and encouraging research, considering also the fact that in 2015 an exhibition was opened in the monastery that presented over 100 Artsakhi manuscripts dating from early Middle Ages to modern times, unique originals and copies of the documents related to the history of Artsakh, as well as ancient books.
According to the decision, the branch will operate in the seminary of the monastery with its own charter and in line with the Nagorno Karabakh Republic legislation.
Armenia placed 86th in FIFA World Rankin
Armenia is ranked 86th (up from 87th last month) in FIFA World Ranking released today. Armenia’s 3-2 win against Montenegro helped the team jump the largest number of places in the ranking table last month.
Argentina will end the year on top of the world, leading the way in the final FIFA World Ranking of 2016 from neighbors Brazil in second.
armenianweekly.cpm
Turkey: Historic Urfa Church Given to Islamic School Foundation
By Uzay Bulu
Yet another example of intolerance has taken place in the southeastern Turkish city of Sanliurfa (Urfa)—the historic Assyrian Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in the city is now being used as a municipality-owned cultural center and the foundation of the Islamic school of Harran University.
The interior of the historic Assyrian Church of St. Peter and St. Paul (Photo: urfa63.net)
According to sources, the church was used actively until 1924, when Assyrians (Syriac Christians) left for Aleppo.
Locals call the church “the Regie Church”, because Tekel, the Turkish tobacco and alcoholic beverage company, had once used it as a tobacco factory. This tobacco factory had been known as the Regie Tobacco Company in Ottoman times, and was nationalized in 1925.
It was also used as a grape storehouse for decades. After its restoration in 1998, it hosted a carpet-making class. In 2002, it became the “Kemalettin Gazezoglu Cultural Center,” named after the governor of the city. Today, a part of it has been given to a foundation that runs the Islamic school at the city’s university.
Turkey has used the historic church for many different purposes—except for its intended purpose: a church.
The courtyard of the historic Assyrian Church of St. Peter and St. Paul (Photo: urfa63.net)
Called Edessa in ancient times, Urfa has been inhabited since prehistoric times. The modern city was founded in 304 B.C by Seleucus I Nicator.
In the late 2nd century, as the Seleucid dynasty disintegrated, it successively became a Parthian, Armenian, and Roman state, and eventually an Eastern Roman (Byzantine) province. It was frequently conquered during periods when the Byzantine central government was weak, due to its location on the eastern frontier of the Empire. It fell to the Muslim conquest in 639 but was briefly retaken by Byzantium in 1031. It then fell to the Turkic Zengid dynasty in 1144, and was eventually absorbed by the Ottoman Empire in 1517.
Edessa was an important early center of Syriac Christianity. For Armenians, too, the city is significant since it is believed that the Armenian alphabet was invented there.
The writing on the wall of the church reads “Provincial Special Administration -Governor Kemalettin Gazezoglu Culture and Art Center May 24, 2002 (Photo: urfa63.net)
But the traces of Assyrian, Armenian, and Greek Christians have been systematically erased from the city by Muslim governments and residents throughout centuries.
Scholar Ian Wilson describes the current absence of the Christian heritage in his proposal for an archaeological survey of the city as follows:
“For any Christian… Urfa appears to offer nothing of Christian interest even when you get there. To the best of my knowledge there is not a single Christian church, and certainly not an ancient one, the Moslem minaret being all-pervading…Yet if we could turn the clock back just over a thousand years, say to 943 AD, what a different picture of Edessa/Urfa we would find! Despite the city even then having fallen under Moslem control (though Arab rather than Turkish), we would find a full-blooded city, as distinct from a town, almost literally bristling with Christian churches and monasteries, numbering more than three hundred, according to one Arab geographer. At least three different rival denominations were represented, and the Christian pilgrim and tourist trade was then already at least six centuries old.”
All this is history now. Urfa today is an all-Muslim city. Christians were exposed to mass murders several times
ever since Turks arrived from the Central Asia in Anatolia and Mesopotamia in the 11th century.
Between 1894 and 1896, for example, a series of massacres spread through nearly every major Armenian-inhabited town of the Ottoman Empire.
The massacres culminated in the single worst atrocity “with the burning of the Armenian cathedral of Urfa within whose walls some 3,000 Armenians had taken refuge during the siege of their neighborhood,” according to the Armenian National Institute.
Assyrian Christians too were targeted in the massacres. “In October 1895 the Turkish army and Hamidian troops entered Urfa and killed 13 thousand Assyrians,” writes Dr. Anahit Khosroyeva in her article “A History of the Assyrian Genocide.”
But the gravest attack that exterminated the majority of Assyrian Christians in the region happened in the 1915.
Historian Paul R. Bartrop writes in his book Encountering Genocide: Personal Accounts from Victims, Perpetrators, and Witnesses:
“The Assyrian genocide… took place alongside those of the Armenians and the Pontic and Anatolian Greeks, during and after World War 1. At the start of the twentieth century, the Assyrian population in the Ottoman Empire numbered about one million, and was concentrated largely in what are now Iran, Iraq, and Turkey. As with the Armenian genocide, a large proportion of the Assyrian deaths occurred as a result of death marches into the Syrian Desert. Most of those who died were the victims of heat, starvation and thirst, exposure, and incessant brutality… The Assyrian population throughout the Empire was subjected to massacre, deportation, dismemberment, torture, and other atrocities. Whole cities were depopulated, and, when not killed outright, the inhabitants were sent on the aforementioned death marches.”
The Ottoman Turkish party the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP) was the planner and organizer of the genocide. According to many scholars, including Professor Bartrop, the major motivations of the perpetrators were the Turkification and Islamization of the region.
“One of the major factors contributing to the Turkish campaign against Christian minorities was the pre-war commitment to the Turkification of the empire. Accompanying this was an Islamic incentive, whereby the Turkish national dimension could be wedded to an Islamic revival for the caliphate… Accordingly, on Oct. 11, 1914, Sultan Mehmet V declared jihad (holy war) against all the Christians living in the Empire. The call to holy war was reaffirmed on Nov. 14, 1914, by the Sheikh al-Islam, the most senior Islamic cleric in the Ottoman Empire. It was directed toward all Christians, hitting particularly hard for those of Armenian, Assyrian and Greek descent,” Bartrop writes
What followed was the confiscation, plunder, and seizure of Christian properties.
“The state-orchestrated plunder of Armenian property immediately impoverished its victims,” according to scholar Umit Kurt, in his article “The Plunder of Wealth through Abandoned Properties Laws in the Armenian Genocide.”
“This was simultaneously a condition for and a consequence of the genocide. The seizure of the Armenian property was not just a byproduct of the CUP’s genocidal policies, but an integral part of the murder process, reinforcing and accelerating the intended destruction. The expropriation and plunder of deported Armenians’ movable and immovable properties was an essential component of the destruction process of Armenians… Genocide does not only mean physical annihilation,” according to Kurt. “What is important is the complete erasure of the traces of the Armenians from their ancient homeland.”
This attempt to erase the traces of the genocide victims has been applied to Anatolian Greeks and Assyrians, as well.
The homes, businesses, churches, monasteries, and other economic, religious and cultural sites of Assyrians were systematically seized by government officials or Muslim locals. Churches and monasteries were either destroyed or used for sacrilegious purposes, such as stables or storehouses.
Turkey today has a smaller Christian percentage of its population than all of its neighbors including Syria, Iraq and Iran. Only less than 0.2% of Turkey’s population is now Christian.
Though the constitution is officially secular, Christianity as well as other non-Muslim faiths are under the constant pressure and attacks at the hands of the Turkish government. Persecution stemming from this destructive worldview has turned the indigenous and once flourishing Christian community into an almost-extinct, second class minority that are still not allowed to live as equal citizens who can freely practice their faith on their native lands.
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home > occupations > life, physical, and social science > political scientists
Occupation Profile for Political Scientists
Study the origin, development, and operation of political systems. Research a wide range of subjects, such as relations between the United States and foreign countries, the beliefs and institutions of foreign nations, or the politics of small towns or a major metropolis. May study topics, such as public opinion, political decision making, and ideology. May analyze the structure and operation of governments, as well as various political entities. May conduct public opinion surveys, analyze election results, or analyze public documents.
About 41 percent of these workers are employed by governments, mostly by the Federal Government.
The educational attainment of social scientists is among the highest of all occupations, with most positions requiring a master’s or Ph.D. degree.
Overall employment is projected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations, but varies by specialty.
Job seekers may face competition, and those with higher educational attainment will have the best prospects.
$90,140.00 Median Annual Wage 0 Average Job Openings Per Year
3.7 Average Unemployment Percentage 0.0 Percentage That Completed High School
5,000 Employment Numbers in 2006 10.2 Percentage That Had Some College
5,000 Employment Numbers in 2016 (est.) 89.8 Percentage That Went Beyond College Degree
International Affairs Vice President
Political Advisor
Political Aide
Political Science Professor
State-Federal Relations Deputy Director
Strategist
These occupations often involve coordinating, training, supervising, or managing the activities of others to accomplish goals. Very advanced communication and organizational skills are required. Examples include librarians, lawyers, aerospace engineers, physicists, school psychologists, and surgeons.
A bachelor's degree is the minimum formal education required for these occupations. However, many also require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.
Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.
Education and training. Graduates with master’s degrees in applied specialties usually are qualified for positions outside of colleges and universities, although requirements vary by field. A Ph.D. degree may be required for higher-level positions. Bachelor’s degree holders have limited opportunities and do not qualify for most of the occupations discussed above. A bachelor’s degree does, however, provide a suitable background for many different kinds of entry-level jobs in related occupations, such as research assistant, writer, management trainee, or market analyst.
Training in statistics and mathematics is essential for many social scientists Geographers, political scientists, and those in other fields increasingly use mathematical and quantitative research methods. The ability to use computers for research purposes is mandatory in most disciplines. Social scientists also must keep up-to date on the latest technological advances that affect their discipline and research. For example, most geographers use GIS technology extensively, and GIS is also becoming more commonly used by archaeologists, sociologists, and other workers.
Many social science students also benefit from internships or field experience. Numerous local museums, historical societies, government agencies, non-profit and other organizations offer internships or volunteer research opportunities. Archaeological field schools instruct future anthropologists, archaeologists, and historians in how to excavate, record, and interpret historical sites.
Other qualifications. Social scientists need excellent written and oral communication skills to report research findings and to collaborate on research. Successful social scientists also need intellectual curiosity and creativity because they constantly seek new information about people, things, and ideas. The ability to think logically and methodically is also essential to analyze complicated issues, such as the relative merits of various forms of government. Objectivity, an open mind, and systematic work habits are important in all kinds of social science research. Perseverance, too, is often necessary, as when an anthropologist spends years studying artifacts from an ancient civilization before making a final analysis and interpretation.
Advancement. Some social scientists advance to top-level research and administrative positions. Advancement often depends on the number and quality of reports that social scientists publish or their ability to design studies.
Many social scientists choose to teach in their field, often while pursuing their own research. These workers are usually classified as postsecondary teachers. The minimum requirement for most positions in colleges and universities is a Ph.D. degree. Graduates with a master’s degree in a social science may qualify for teaching positions in community colleges. Social science graduates with sufficient education courses can qualify for teaching positions in secondary and elementary schools.
The major social science occupations covered in this statement are anthropologists, archaeologists, geographers, historians, political scientists, and sociologists. (Economists, market and survey researchers, psychologists, and urban and regional planners are covered elsewhere in the Handbook.)
Social scientists study all aspects of societyfrom past events and achievements to human behavior and relationships among groups. Their research provides insights into the different ways individuals, groups, and institutions make decisions, exercise power, and respond to change. Through their studies and analyses, social scientists suggest solutions to social, business, personal, governmental, and environmental problems. In fact, many work as policy analysts for government or private organizations.
Research is a major activity of many social scientists, who use a variety of methods to assemble facts and construct theories. Applied research usually is designed to produce information that will enable people to make better decisions or manage their affairs more effectively. Social scientists often begin by collecting existing information. Collecting information takes many forms, including conducting interviews and questionnaires to gather demographic and opinion data, living and working among the population being studied, performing other field investigations, and experimenting with human or animal subjects in a laboratory. Social scientists also look at data in detail, such as studying the data they’ve collected, reanalyzing already existing data, analyzing historical records and documents, and interpreting maps and the effect of location on culture and other aspects of society. Following are several major types of social scientists. Specialists in one field may find that their research overlaps work being conducted in another discipline.
Anthropologists study the origin and the physical, social, and cultural development and behavior of humans. They may examine the way of life, archaeological remains, language, or physical characteristics of people in various parts of the world. Some compare the customs, values, and social patterns of different cultures. Anthropologists usually concentrate in sociocultural anthropology, linguistics, biophysical, or physical anthropology. Sociocultural anthropologists study the customs, cultures, and social lives of groups in settings that range from unindustrialized societies to modern urban centers. Linguistic anthropologists investigate the role of, and changes to, language over time in various cultures. Biophysical anthropologists research the evolution of the human body, look for the earliest evidences of human life, and analyze how culture and biology influence one another. Physical anthropologists examine human remains found at archaeological sites in order to understand population demographics and factors, such as nutrition and disease, which affected these populations. Archaeologists examine and recover material evidence including the ruins of buildings, tools, pottery, and other objects remaining from past human cultures in order to determine the history, customs, and living habits of earlier civilizations. With continued technological advances making it increasingly possible to detect the presence of underground anomalies without digging archaeologists will be able to better target excavation sites. Another technological advancement is the use of geographic information systems (GIS) for tasks such as analyzing how environmental factors near a site may have affected the development of a society. Most anthropologists and archaeologists specialize in a particular region of the world.
Political scientists study the origin, development, and operation of political systems and public policy. They conduct research on a wide range of subjects, such as relations between the United States and other countries, the institutions and political life of nations, the politics of small towns or major metropolises, and the decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court. Studying topics such as public opinion, political decision making, ideology, and public policy, they analyze the structure and operation of governments, as well as various political entities. Depending on the topic, a political scientist might conduct a public-opinion survey, analyze election results or public documents, or interview public officials.
Sociologists study society and social behavior by examining the groups, cultures, organizations, and social institutions people form. They also study the activities in which people participate, including social, religious, political, economic, and business organizations. They study the behavior of, and interaction among, groups, organizations, institutions, and nations and how they react to phenomena such as the spread of technology, health epidemics, crime, and social movements. They also trace the origin and growth of these groups and interactions. Sociologists analyze how social influences affect different individuals. They also are concerned with the ways organizations and institutions affect the daily lives of individuals and groups. To analyze social patterns, sociologists design research projects that use a variety of methods, including historical analysis, comparative analysis, and quantitative and qualitative techniques. The results of sociological research aid educators, lawmakers, administrators, and others who are interested in resolving social problems and formulating public policy. Most sociologists work in one or more specialties, such as social organization, stratification, and mobility; racial and ethnic relations; education; the family; social psychology; urban, rural, political, and comparative sociology; gender relations; demography; gerontology; criminology; and sociological practice.
Geographers analyze distributions of physical and cultural phenomena on local, regional, continental, and global scales. Economic geographers study the distribution of resources and economic activities. Political geographers are concerned with the relationship of geography to political phenomena, and cultural geographers study the geography of cultural phenomena. Physical geographers examine variations in climate, vegetation, soil, and landforms and their implications for human activity. Urban and transportation geographers study cities and metropolitan areas. Regional geographers study the physical, economic, political, and cultural characteristics of regions ranging in size from a congressional district to entire continents. Medical geographers investigate health care delivery systems, epidemiology (the study of the causes and control of epidemics), and the effect of the environment on health. Most geographers use GIS technology to assist with their work. For example, they may use GIS to create computerized maps that can track information such as population growth, traffic patterns, environmental hazards, natural resources, and weather patterns, after which they use the information to advise governments on the development of houses, roads, or landfills. Many of the people who study geography and work with GIS technology are classified in other occupations, such as surveyors, cartographers, photogrammetrists, and survey technicians (who develop maps and other location-based information), urban and regional planners (who help to decide on and evaluate the locations of building and roads and other aspects of physical society), and geoscientists (who study earthquakes and other physical aspects of the Earth). (These occupations are described elsewhere in the Handbook.)
Historians research, analyze, and interpret the past. They use many sources of information in their research, including government and institutional records, newspapers and other periodicals, photographs, interviews, films, and unpublished manuscripts such as personal diaries and letters. Historians usually specialize in a country or region, a particular period, or a particular field, such as social, intellectual, cultural, political, or diplomatic history. Other historians help study and preserve archival materials, artifacts, and historic buildings and sites.
Work environment. Most social scientists have regular hours. Generally working behind a desk, either alone or in collaboration with other social scientists, they read and write research articles or reports. Many experience the pressures of writing and publishing, as well as those associated with deadlines and tight schedules. Sometimes they must work overtime, for which they usually are not compensated. Social scientists often work as an integral part of a research team. Travel may be necessary to collect information or attend meetings. Social scientists on foreign assignment must adjust to unfamiliar cultures, climates, and languages.
Some social scientists do fieldwork. For example, anthropologists, archaeologists, and geographers may travel to remote areas, live among the people they study, learn their languages, and stay for long periods at the site of their investigations. They may work under rugged conditions, and their work may involve strenuous physical exertion.
Social scientists employed by colleges and universities usually have flexible work schedules, often dividing their time among teaching, research, writing, consulting, and administrative responsibilities. Those who teach in these settings are classified as postsecondary teachers.
In May 2006, anthropologists and archaeologists had median annual wage-and-salary earnings of $49,930; geographers, $62,990; historians, $48,520; political scientists, $90,140; and sociologists, $60,290.
In the Federal Government, social scientists with a bachelor’s degree and no experience often started at a yearly salary of $28,862 or $35,572 in 2007, depending on their college records. Those with a master’s degree could start at $43,731, and those with a Ph.D. degree could begin at $52,912, while some individuals with experience and an advanced degree could start at $63,417. Beginning salaries were higher in selected areas of the country where the prevailing local pay level was higher.
Overall employment is projected to grow about as fast as average, but varies by detailed occupation. Job seekers may face competition, and those with higher educational attainment will have the best prospects.
Employment change. Overall employment of social scientists is expected to grow 10 percent from 2006 to 2016, about as fast as the average for all occupations. However, projected growth rates vary by specialty. Anthropologists and archaeologists, sociologists, and historians are projected to grow about as fast as average. Employment of geographers and political scientists is projected to grow more slowly than average, reflecting the relatively few opportunities outside of the Federal Government. Employment is projected to decline slowly in the Federal Government, a key employer of social scientists.
The following tabulation shows projected percent change in employment, by social science specialty.
Anthropologists and archeologists 15
Sociologists 10
Historians 8
Geographers 6
Political scientists 5
Anthropologists and archaeologists will experience the majority of their job growth in the management, scientific, and technical consulting services industry. Anthropologists who work as consultants apply anthropological knowledge and methods to problems ranging from economic development issues to forensics. As construction projects increase, more archaeologists also will be needed to monitor the work, ensuring that historical sites and artifacts are preserved.
Political scientists, sociologists, and historians will mainly find jobs in policy or research. Demand for political science research is growing because of increasing interest about politics and foreign affairs, including social and environmental policy issues and immigration. Political scientists will use their knowledge of political institutions to further the interests of nonprofit, political lobbying, and social organizations. Likewise, the incorporation of sociology into research in other fields will continue to increase the need for sociologists. They may find work conducting policy research for consulting firms and nonprofit organizations, and their knowledge of society and social behavior may be used by a variety of companies in product development, marketing, and advertising. Historians may find opportunities with historic preservation societies or working as a consultant as public interest in preserving and restoring historical sites increases.
Geographers will work advising government, real estate developers, utilities, and telecommunications firms on where to build new roads, buildings, power plants, and cable lines. Geographers also will advise on environmental matters, such as where to build a landfill or preserve wetland habitats. Geographers with a background in GIS will find numerous job opportunities applying GIS technology in nontraditional areas, such as emergency assistance, where GIS can track locations of ambulances, police, and fire rescue units and their proximity to the emergency. Workers in these jobs may not necessarily be called "geographers," but instead may be referred to by a different title, such as "GIS analyst" or "GIS specialist."
Job prospects. In addition to opportunities from employment growth, some job openings for social scientists will come from the need to replace those who retire, enter teaching or other occupations, or leave their social science occupation for other reasons.
People seeking social science positions may face competition for jobs, and those with higher educational attainment will have the best prospects. Many jobs in policy, research, or marketing for which social scientists qualify are not advertised exclusively as social scientist positions. Because of the wide range of skills and knowledge possessed by these social scientists, many compete for jobs with other workers, such as market and survey researchers, psychologists, engineers, urban and regional planners, and statisticians.
Some people with social science degrees will find opportunities as university faculty rather than as applied social scientists. Although there will be keen competition for tenured positions, the number of faculty expected to retire over the decade and the increasing number of part-time or short-term faculty positions will lead to better opportunities in colleges and universities than in the past. The growing importance and popularity of social science subjects in secondary schools also is strengthening the demand for social science teachers at that level.
Social scientists held about 18,000 jobs in 2006. Many worked as researchers, administrators, and counselors for a wide range of employers. About 41 percent worked for Federal, State, and local governments, mostly for the Federal Government. Other employers included scientific research and development services; management, scientific, and technical consulting services; business, professional, labor, political, and similar organizations; and architectural, engineering, and related firms.
Many individuals with training in a social science discipline teach in colleges and universities and in secondary and elementary schools. (For more information, see teacherspostsecondary and teacherspreschool, kindergarten, elementary, middle, and secondary elsewhere in the Handbook.) The proportion of social scientists who teach varies by specialty. For example, graduates in history are more likely to teach than are graduates in most other social science fields.
The following tabulation shows employment, by social science specialty.
Anthropologists and archeologists 5,500
Political scientists 4,700
Sociologists 3,700
Historians 3,400
Geographers 1,100
Core — Develop and test theories, using information from interviews, newspapers, periodicals, case law, historical papers, polls, and/or statistical sources.
Core — Collect, analyze, and interpret data such as election results and public opinion surveys; report on findings, recommendations, and conclusions.
Core — Maintain current knowledge of government policy decisions.
Core — Interpret and analyze policies, public issues, legislation, and/or the operations of governments, businesses, and organizations.
Core — Evaluate programs and policies, and make related recommendations to institutions and organizations.
International/Global Studies.
American Government and Politics (United States).
Canadian Government and Politics.
2386800 Political Scientist Jobs Found
Part Time Associate Banker - Chicago South Shore Market - South Canal, Hyde Park, Englewood Plaza...
JP Morgan Chase - Chicago, IL, USA - posted 9 days ago ago
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270 Park
No Comments on 270 Park2019年6月17日
Paydirt: JPMorgan HQ, Anbang gets a chaperone other industry news you need to start your week
Jamie Dimon, Wu Xiaohui, Michael Dell and Masa Son (Credit: Getty Images)
Meet the new address, same as the old address: “It is the ambition of the New Yorker to live upon Fifth Avenue, to take his airings in the [Central] Park, and to sleep with his fathers in Green-Wood,” the New York Times wrote in 1866. I新上海贵族宝贝论坛
would suggest an addendum: “It is also the ambition of the New Yorker to have his offices upon Park Avenue – or maybe in Hudson Yards.”
After Related and Brookfield managed to teleport many of the city’s most prestigious companies over to the West Side (think Amazon, Skadden Arps, KKR, Wells Fargo, BlackRock) , Park Avenue last上海贵族宝贝交流区
week scored a major win when JPMorgan announced it would demolish its current HQ at 270 Park and build a new 70-story tower in its place. The bank, the country’s richest, will add an additional 1 million square feet to its footprint at the property, with the redevelopment taking place under the recently-passed Midtown East rezoning. Tishman Speyer is reportedly the front-runner to handle the 2.5 million-square-foot job.
The decision, however, wasn’t made out of any particular loyalty to the East Side. JPMorgan, too, had been looking to relocate to Hudson Yards, with plans for a two-tower, $6.5 billion headquarters on Related-owned sites. Those plans, however, fell through after the city rejected the bank’s request for a further $1 billion in tax breaks and money.
Show and Dell: There’s a fun scene in “Billions” in which Damian Lewis’ character Bobby Axelrod throws down a cool $100 million to get naming rights for Eads Hall, an event venue for the city’s glitterati and business elite. It’s illustrative of the extent to which finance types run this town, and compete with each other for the totems of extreme wealth.
But for now, o上海夜网论坛
ne of the city’s ultimate status symbols – owning its priciest home – belongs not to a hedge funder or a private equity mogul – but to a techie. Michael Dell was just 上海千花网论坛
revealed as the mystery buyer behind the city’s only nine-figure closed sale, the $100.5 million penthouse at Extell’s One57. Dell, whose net worth is pegged at $23 billion, has made somewhat of a habit of owning the fanciest home in several spots across the U.S., including Hawaii and Boston.
While Dell has the condo record, the record for the priciest townhouse buy is shared by a very different sort of billionaire: Len Blavatnik, who closed this month on 19 East 64th Street, a property he’s coveted for years. Blavatnik paid $90 million for the asset, with sources saying he’s planning some sort of megacompound on the block (he already owned 15 East 64th Street next door.)
And the bragging rights are expected to go back to Big Finance when closings at 220 Central Park South begin. A penthouse at the Vornado project is reportedly in contract to hedge funder Ken Griffin for over $200 million. Take that, PC nerds.
Chaperone for former prom queen: Anbang is coming under adult supervision, after a three-year run of heady, multibillion-dollar deals that saw the Chinese insurer take control of some of New York’s most notable assets and mull an investment in the Kushner Companies’ albatross, 666 Fifth Avenue.
On Thursday, China’s top insurance regulator announced that it was taking over Anbang and all of its assets for at least a year amid fraud allegations against the company. Wu Xiaohui, Anbang’s former chairman, has been indicted on charges of fraudulent fundraising and abusing his position, according to the Wall Street Journal, and many of the company’s prized assets are expected to hit the market – though since Anbang was thought to have overpaid for many of them, pricing could be tricky.
The move to put Anbang under the stewardship of the China Insurance Regulatory Commission shows that Beijing is serious about its efforts to deal with its gray rhinos, companies that went on a debt-fueled spending spree to pick up a big overseas 爱上海同城
property portfolio. HNA must be watching closely.
Witkoff, Lorber co. cash out big at Times Square Marriott Edition: Never fear, Masa Son is here! After facing several delays at their Times Square Marriott Edition project, Steve Witkoff, Ian Schrager, Winthrop Realty Trust, Howard Lorber and other partners look to have made a tidy sum from selling their stakes to a joint venture between Softbank-owned Fortress and Maefield Development. As my colleagues Mark Maurer and Christian Bautista reported last week, Witkoff and co. are expected to stay on and get the job done on behalf of the new owners. They bought the site for just $430 million in 2012, so even accounting for all their construction and associated costs over the past five years, this is a solid payday – the deal is said to value the property at $1.5 billion.
There’s been plenty of talk about how Masa Son’s Softbank is distorting numbers in the real estate technology space, with both Compass and WeWork beneficiaries of his venture dollars at incredibly high valuations. But there should be more discussion of how the same might be happening in the real estate investment world: Is Fortress going to throw money around with the same abandon that Softbank’s Vision Fund has been?
(Paydirt is a weekly column that riffs on the biggest NYC real estate news of the moment, providing analysis and historical context on the deals and players that make this town tick. Read more from Paydirt here.)
Tags: anbang, Commercial Real Estate, Development, JPMorgan Chase, Residential Real Estate
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Timeline Iran: thru 2004
Iran news: http://www.payvand.com/news/
CyberIran: http://www.CyberIran.com
Wikipedia: http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Iran
Sogdiana was a province of ancient Persia between the Oxus and Jaxartes Rivers, later known as Uzbekistan. The extinct Iranian language of Sogdiana was spoken there.
(WUD, 1994, p.1264,1353)
See also Persia
40Mil BC The entire Tibetan Plateau underwent major uplifting. Vast ranges rose from the Himalayas on the east to Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush and Iran’s Elburz mountains on the west.
(SFC, 5/19/06, p.B7)
2200BC A statue of the Sumerian king Entemena of Lagash was made about this time. The head was later lost and in 2003 the remaining body was looted after the fall of Baghdad. In 2006 it was returned to Iraq’s National Museum.
(SFC, 7/26/06, p.A3)
1792BC-1750BC Hammurabi, king of Babylon, established a code of laws during this period that became known as the Code of Hammurabi. They were inscribed on a basalt column, later found at Susa, Iran. One of the laws was that if a married woman was caught lying with another man, both should be bound and thrown into the river.
(WH, 1994, p.13)(SFEC, 10/20/96, Z1 p.2)(Econ, 4/12/08, p.91)
247BC - 224AD The Parthian Empire, also known as the Arsacid Empire was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthian_Empire)
116 Hatra, a fortified city of the Parthian Empire and later part of Iraq, withstood a Roman invasion due to its high and thick walls. The Parthian Empire (247 BC – 224 AD), also known as the Arsacid Empire was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran.
(SSFC, 4/5/15, p.A7)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthian_Empire)
198 Hatra, a fortified city of the Parthian Empire, withstood a second Roman invasion due to its high and thick walls.
(SSFC, 4/5/15, p.A7)
c226CE In Iran Zoroastrianism was revitalized as a state religion under the Sassanians.
(WSJ, 2/2/00, p.A24)
224-641CE The Sassanid Dynasty ruled over Persia.
(ATC, p.32)
227-261CE The Sassanids (A.D. 227-651), ruled the Persian Empire despite attempts by the Roman Empire (27 B.C.-A.D. 476) and later the Byzantine (or Eastern Roman) Empire to conquer it. Bam was founded during the Sassanian Period along one of the East-West trade routes collectively known as the Silk Road.
(HNQ, 12/22/00)(SFC, 12/27/03, p.A12)
451 Apr 13, A Persian Army of 300,000 men under Mushkan Nusalavurd arrived at a place between Her and Zarevand (now Khoy and Salmast in Iran) to face the Armenian forces.
(MH, 12/96)
614 Christian Palestine was invaded by the Persians. The 5th century monastery of St. Theodosius east of Beit Sahour near Bethlehem was destroyed by the Persians.
(SFEC, 12/22/96, p.T3)(WSJ, 4/5/02, p.W12)
632-661 The Rashidun Caliphate, also known as the Rightly Guided Caliphate, comprising the first four caliphs in Islam's history, was founded after Muhammad's death. At its height, the Caliphate extended from the Arabian Peninsula, to the Levant, Caucasus and North Africa in the west, to the Iranian highlands and Central Asia in the east. It was the one of the largest empires in history up until that time.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashidun_Caliphate)
633 Gen Khalid ibn al-Walid sent a letter to the Persian emperor that said: “Submit to our authority and we shall leave you and your land and go against others. If not, you will be conquered against your will by men who love death as you love life."
(WSJ, 10/19/01, p.W19)
c633 Nikbanou, a 7th century Persian Zoroastrian princess, fled to a mountain refuge at Chak Chak to escape Arab horsemen planting the green pennants of Islam in Iranian soil.
(AP, 7/15/04)
651 Yazdegird III, the last Sassanian king, was murdered.
700-800 According to Iraqis Muslim forces “liberated" Iraq from the Persians in the 8th century qadissiyah battle.
(SFC, 2/1/02, p.A18)
781 Yakib ben Laith, a Saffarid prince from an eastern Iranian dynasty, stripped the sanctuaries of Bamiyan, Afghanistan, of their metal idols.
(WSJ, 12/20/01, p.A13)
814 Abu-Nuwas al-Hasan ben Hani al-Hakami (b.756), one of the greatest of classical Arabic poets, died. He also composed in Persian on occasion. Born in the city of Ahvaz in Persia, of an Arab father and a Persian mother, he became a master of all the contemporary genres of Arabic poetry. Abu Nuwas has entered the folkloric tradition, and he appears several times in The Book of One Thousand and One Nights. His witty and humorous poetry, which dealt not with the traditional desert themes, but with urban life and the joys of wine and drinking (khamriyyat - khamriyaat), and ribald humor (mujuniyyat).
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Nuwas)(Econ, 12/20/03, p.68)(Econ, 8/18/12, p.55)
818 Imam Reza, a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad, died. Shiites later believed that he was fed poisonous grapes by a Sunni leader of the Muslim world. Reza was buried in Sanabad, which later became known as Mashad, “place of martyrdom." A major shrine grew at the site and by 2007 the Imam Reza Shrine Foundation was the largest (bonyad) in Iran and accounted for 7.1% of the country’s GDP.
838 Jan 4, Babak, Persian social and religious reformer, was martyred.
(MC, 1/4/02)
967 Dec 7, Abu Sa'id ibn Aboa al-Chair, Persian mystic, was born.
(MC, 12/7/01)
1010 Abolqasem Firdawsi (Ferdowsi), a Persian poet, completed the “Shanameh," or “Book of Kings." It is an epic of more than 50,000 rhyming couplets weaving the history of ancient shahs with myth and legend. One might call it the Iliad of Persia. Over the centuries shahs have had the poem copied and illustrated by the best artists of the day. In 2006 Dick Harris made an abridged translation to English in prose.
(WSJ, Amy Gamerman, p. A-18, 10-13-94)(WSJ, 3/7/06, p.D8)
1094 The Islamic terrorist organization Nizari Ismailiyun, a Shiite politico-religious sect, was founded by Hasan-e Sabah. He and his followers captured the hill fortress of Almaut in northern Iran, which became their base of operations.
(www.jihadwatch.org/dhimmiwatch/archives/006664.php)
1162-1227 Genghis Khan was born in the Hentiyn Nuruu mountains north of Ulan Bator. His given name was Temujin, “the ironsmith." He seized control over 5 million square miles that covered China, Iran, Iraq, Burma, Vietnam, and most of Korea and Russia. "In Search of Genghis Khan" is a book by Tim Severin. He was succeeded by his son Ogedai, who was succeeded by Guyuk. Ogedai ignored numerous pleas from his brother Chaghatai to cut down on his drinking and died of alcoholism as did Guyuk.
(SFC, 4/14/96, T-10)(WUD, 1994, p. 591)(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R6)
1177 Lal Shahbaz Qalandar (d.1274) was born as Seyyed Shah Hussain Marandi in Marand (near the city of Tabriz) in Azerbaijan (at this time a part of Iran). He is also known as Shaikh Hussain Marandi. He migrated to Sindh and settled in Sehwan and was buried there. He was a Sufi in the regions that lie in the Sindh province of Pakistan.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahbaz_Qalander)
c1200 Rashid al-Din, statesman and historian, lived in Persia.
1207-1273 Jalal ud-din Rumi (Jelaluddin Rumi), Persian poet and mystic. He was born in Balkh, Afghanistan, and later fled the Mongol invasions with his family to Konya (Iconium), Anatolia. His work “Mathwani" (Spiritual Couplets) filled 6 volumes and had a great impact on Islamic civilization. He founded the Mevlevi order of Sufis, later known as the “whirling dervishes." In 1998 a film was made about the Sufi poet’s influence on the 20th century. In 1998 Kabir Helminski edited “The Rumi Collection" with translation by Robert Bly and others. His work also included the “Shams I-Tabriz" in which he dismissed the terminology of Jew, Christian and Muslim as “false distinctions." The poet Rumi was also known as Mowlana.
(WUD, 1994, p.762)(SFC, 7/9/96, p.B5)(SFEC, 9/20/98, DB p.50)(SFEC, 10/25/98, BR p.6)(WSJ, 9/7/01, p.A14)
1244 Aug 23, Khwarezmian Turks expelled the crusaders under Frederick II from Jerusalem. Jerusalem’s citadel, the Tower of David, surrendered. The Turks ruthlessly decimated the population, leaving only 2,000 people, Christians and Muslims, still living in the city. This attack triggered the Europeans to respond with the Seventh Crusade.
(HN, 8/23/98)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khwarezmian_Empire)
1292 Dec 9, Sa'di, great Persian poet (Orchard, Rose Garden), died.
1371 Ubaid Zakani, Persian writer, died. His work included “Mush va Gorbeh" (Mouse and Cat), a match for Rabelais when it comes to mocking religion.
(WSJ, 2/8/06, p.A16)(www.britannica.com/eb/article-13737)
1389-1390 Hafez (Khwaja Shams ud-Din Hafiz) (b.1325/26), Persian poet, died about this time.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hafez)(SSFC, 10/23/05, p.E3)(www.thesongsofhafiz.com/)
1571 Jan 27, Shah Abbas, King of the Safavid dynasty in Persia (1587-1629), was born. He established a monopoly on the production and sale of silk and used the wealth to develop the city of Isfahan. Fearful of assassination he turned on his own family, executed one son, and blinded 2 sons, his father and his brothers.
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R8)(http://4dw.net/royalark/Persia/safawi3.htm)
1587 Abbas I (16) became Shah of Persia following the forced abdication of his father, Shah Muhammad Khodabandeh. A revolt by Qizilbash leaders finally removed Khodabandeh from power and installed his son Abbas as shah.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safavid_Dynasty)(www.bartleby.com/67/813.html)
1587 Mohammad Khodabandeh, Shah of Persia, died.
(PC, 1992 ed, p.203)
1598 Iranian emperor Shah Abbas (1571-1629) moved his capital to Isfahan. English brothers Anthony and Robert Shirley (~1581-1628) soon arrived in Iran with 26 followers and joined the Persian service under Abbas and remaining for a number of years.
(Econ, 2/21/09, p.86)(http://tinyurl.com/cbrsb9)
1612 The square of Esfahan, Persia, was built.
(SSFC, 1/14/07, p.G5)
1650 The Khaju bridge in Esfahan, Persia (Iran), was built over the Zayandeh Rood river.
1723 Border treaties or notes between Iran and Russia were signed in this year and followed again in 1725, 1732, 1813, 1828, 1881, 1893, 1954, 1957 and 1962.
(WSJ, 8/3/01, p.A2)
1826 Sep 26, The Persian cavalry was routed by the Russians at the Battle of Ganja in the Russian Caucasus.
(HN, 9/26/99)
1829 Feb 11, Alexander Griboyedov (b.1795), Russian diplomat, playwright and composer, was beheaded by a mob attack on the Russian embassy in Tehran. Griboyedov was protecting an Armenian eunuch, who had escaped from the harem of the Persian shah along with 2 Armenian girls. The Russians let the incident pass after an Iranian apology. They were already at war with the Turks and in regional competition with the British.
(WSJ, 2/10/96, p.A18)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandr_Griboyedov)
1839 Jews in Mashad, Iran, were forcibly converted to Shiite Islam following a pogrom.
(SFC, 10/20/01, p.A10)
1850 Jul 9, Bb, Bahi prophet, was executed in Tabriz, Iran.
1852 In Iran Mirza Hoseyn 'Ali Nuri (Baha' Ullah, b.1817), founder of the Baha’i Faith, became aware of his mission as a messenger of God while in the notorious Teheran prison known as the Black Pit for involvement in the unsuccessful attempt in 1852 on the life the shah of Persia, Naser od-Din. Released and exiled to Baghdad in 1853, Baha’ Allah revived the Babi faith that had sprung from Shi’ah Islam in the 1840s. He went on to found the Baha’i movement that subsequently spread throughout the world.
(HNQ, 4/6/99)(HN, 11/12/00)
1863 In Iran the Baha’i faith was founded by Hussain Ali (b. Nov 12, 1817). It reflected the attitudes of the Shiah sect with an emphasis on tolerance. Among its principles are full equality between the sexes, universal education and the establishment of a world of a world federal system. The Baha'i Faith was founded in Iran by a man named Baha'u'llah, which literally means "The Glory of God".
(WUD, 1994, p.111)(SFC, 10/30/98, p.A20)
1879 The Cyrus Cylinder was discovered by the Assyro-British archaeologist Hormuzd Rassam in the foundations of the Esagila, the main temple of Babylon, and was later placed in the British Museum in London. The cylinder was created following the Persian conquest of Babylon in 539 BC, when Cyrus overthrew the Babylonian king Nabonidus and replaced him as ruler, ending the Neo-Babylonian Empire. It was later considered as the world's first declaration of human rights.
(http://tinyurl.com/lma678)(AFP, 2/7/10)
1900 May 17, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (d.1989), Iran's spiritual and revolutionary leader (1979-89), was born.
(HN, 5/17/98)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruhollah_Khomeini)
1901 English millionaire William Knox D’Arcy arranged to pay £40,000 in cash and company stock to the Shah of Tehran, Muzaffar al-Din, for the right to drill for oil in western Persia. The deal included a pledge, should commercial production begin, to pay the Persian government 16% of annual profits until 1961.
(ON, 8/08, p.1)
1904 Jan 19, A team of oil drillers led by George Reynolds and funded by English millionaire William Knox D’Arcy, struck oil at Chiah Surkh, Persia, but by March the volume dwindled to an unprofitable trickle.
1905-1911 Iran’s Constitutional Revolution took place. The revolution led to the establishment of a parliament in Persia (Iran).
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Baskerville)
1906 A coalition of clerical grandees, progressive intellectuals and bazaar traders forced the shah of Iran to promulgate Iran’s first constitution and establish a parliament.
(Econ, 6/10/06, p.85)
1907 Britain and Russia carved Iran into spheres of influence.
1908 May 26, The first major oil strike in the Middle East took place as engineers working for British entrepreneur William Knox D'Arcy and led by George B. Reynolds hit a gusher more than 1,100 feet below ground in Masjid-i-Suleiman, Persia (Iran). The Concessions Syndicate Limited, later the Anglo-Persian Oil Co., included the Burmah Oil Company of Glasgow, Scotland, and the Persian oil project of William Knox D'Arcy.
(WSJ, 9/13/99, p.R4)(WSJ, 4/2/07, p.A6)(AP, 5/26/08)
1908 Jun 26, Shah Muhammad Ali’s forces squelched the reform elements of Parliament in Persia.
1909 Apr 19, In Persia Howard Baskerville (b.1885), an American Presbyterian preacher, was shot dead while trying to break the siege of Tabriz as a defender of the new Iranian constitution.
(Econ, 7/17/10, p.87)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Baskerville)
1910 Jan 21, A British-Russian military intervention took place in Persia.
(MC, 1/21/02)
1911 May, Morgan Shuster (1877-1960), an American lawyer, began serving as treasurer-general of the Persian empire. In December under Russian and British pressure, the vice-regent of Persia expelled Shuster from office against the will of the Persian parliament.
1912 Morgan Shuster, American financial expert, authored “The Strangling of Persia." He describes his failed efforts to introduce virtuous financial practices in Iran in the face of British and Russian barriers.
(WSJ, 10/6/07, p.W8)
1919 Oct 26, Mohammed Riza Pahlevi, the Shah of Iran (1941-79). He was overthrown in 1979 and died in the United States, was born.
(HN, 10/26/98)(MC, 10/26/01)
1921 Feb 20, Riza Khan Pahlevi seized control of Iran. Pahlevi marched into Tehran with 2,500 soldiers and took over the government. Britain helped topple the Qajar dynasty and replaced it with Reza Shah Pahlavi, a former military officer. Five years later he was crowned Shah and placed the crown upon his head with his own hands, as did Napoleon.
(NG, Sept. 1939, p.330)(WSJ, 4/2/07, p.A6)
1921 The Soviet Union and Iran signed agreements concerning the Caspian Sea.
1925 Khuzestan, an autonomous Arab emirate once known as Arabistan, was annexed by the British-backed shah of Iran. The area, inhabited by the Ahwazi Arabs, was rich in oil and by 2006 produced about 90% of Iran’s oil.
(SSFC, 11/5/06, p.A16)
1925 The documentary film "Grass" was made by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest Schoedsack. It was about the migration of a tribe of Persian nomads.
(SFC,11/21/97, p.C17)
1926 Apr 25, In Iran, Reza Kahn was crowned Shah and chose the name "Pehlevi".
1926 Aug 20, There was an uprising against Reza Shah Pahlavi in Persia.
1932 Reza Shah revoked the Anglo-Persian Co. oil monopoly.
1933 Antoin Sevruguin (b. late1830s), photographer, died. He was the son of a Russian diplomat posted to Tehran. Sevruguin worked in Tehran and captured on film the last decades under the rule of the Qajar dynasty.
1934 Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was born.
(WP, 6/29/96, p.A20)
1935 Mar 22, Reza Shah Pahlavi renamed Persia to Iran, which in Farsi means Aryan. It reflected the shah’s identification with Hitler’s Third Reich.
(SFC,11/19/97, Z1 p.7)(HN, 3/22/97)(SSFC, 1/8/06, p.D1)
1935 Jul 13, In Iran worshippers at the Shrine of Imam Reza in Mashad protested a dress code that demanded Western-style brimmed hats. A riot broke out as troops opened fire.
(WSJ, 6/2/07, p.A12)(www.imamreza.net/eng/imamreza.php?id=4388)
1937 Oct, Amin al-Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, was exiled from Palestine. He sought fled to Iraq and in 1941 sought refuge in Iran.
(www.ccc.nps.navy.mil/si/dec02/middleEast.asp)
1940 Jul 26, In Iran the Shah's police squad unexpectedly arrived at the residence of opposition politician Mohammad Mossadegh (1888-1967), searching and ransacking his house. Although no incriminating evidence against him was found, he was taken to the central prison in Tehran nonetheless. Mossadegh was released in November, but was kept under house arrest until 1941 when Mohammad Reza, ascended to the throne.
(www.mohammadmossadegh.com/biography/)
1940 The Soviet Union and Iran signed more agreements concerning the Caspian Sea.
1941 Aug 25, British and Soviet forces entered Iran, opening up a route to supply the Soviet Union.
1941 Aug 27, The Shah of Iran abdicated the throne to his son Reza Pahlavi. Britain forced Reza Shah to abdicate and installed his son Mohammed.
(www.indiana.edu/~league/1941.htm)(WSJ, 4/2/07, p.A6)
1941 Oct, British, USSR and other allied forces invaded Iran to break up the Iran-Nazi alliance. Amin al-Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, left the country under disguise with the Italian delegation and relocated to Germany.
(SSFC, 1/8/06, p.D8)
1943 Nov 28, President Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin met in Tehran, Iran, to map out strategy during World War II.
(AP, 11/28/97)(DT internet 11/28/97)(HN, 11/28/98)
1943 Dec 1, President Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin concluded their Tehran conference and agreed to Operation Overlord (D-Day).
(AP, 12/1/00)
1945 Sep 13, Iran demanded the withdrawal of Allied forces.
1945 The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) was founded by Mullah Mustafa Barzani (1903-1979). He played a major role in establishing the short-lived Kurdish Republic of Mehabad (Mahabad), “Red" Kurdistan, in Iran. It lasted for just ten months. In the 30s and 40s he had organized “Pesh merga" guerrillas from clans in the Zagros region.
(SFC, 9/4/96, p.A7)(WSJ, 12/20/02, p.A14)(Econ., 2/21/15, p.14)
1946 Jan 19, The first complaint heard by the United Nations Security Council was made by Iran and directed against the Soviet Union. Iran alleged Soviet interference in its internal affairs and the refusal to remove Soviet troops from Iranian territory. The very first session of the UN had begun just days earlier, on January 10, 1946, in London. The issue was resolved without UN intervention.
(HNQ, 6/2/00)
1946 Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi separated from his Egyptian wife, Queen Fawzieh. He took up with Parvin Ghaffari in a 3-year affair later documented by Ghaffari in the 1997 book “Until Darkness."
(SFC, 7/12/97, p.C1)
1949 The Univ. of Michigan, despite great protest among the student body, bestowed an honorary degree to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran.
(LSA, Fall, 2007, p.24)
1951 Feb 12, Shah Pahlavi married Princess Soraya Esfandiari Bakhtiari (d.2001 at 69). They divorced in 1958. In 1991 Soraya authored her autobiography “Le Palais des Solitudes" (The Palace of Solitudes).
(SFC, 10/26/01, p.D7)
1951 Mar 7, Shah Ali Razmara of Iran was assassinated.
1951 Mar 15, The Iranian parliament (the Majlis) voted to nationalize the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC) and its holdings, and shortly thereafter elected a widely respected statesman and champion of nationalization, Mohammed Mossadegh as Prime Minister.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abadan_Crisis_timeline)
1951 Jun 24, Persian army took over nationalized oil installations.
1951 Sep 27, Persian troops occupied oil refinery at Abadan.
1951 There was a struggle to nationalize Iranian oil.
(SFEC, 4/13/97, BR p.4)
1952 Nov, Kermit Roosevelt, a CIA operative, was approached by the British Foreign Office about organizing the overthrow of Prime Minister Mossadegh, who had presided over the nationalization of British-owned oil operations.
(SFEC, 6/11/00, p.D6)
c1952 Hossein Ali Montazeri (30) became a “marja," one of the top religious sources for consultation by Shiite Muslims.
(WSJ, 1/13/98, p.A19)
1953 Mar, The US CIA’s Tehran station reported that an Iranian general had approached the US embassy for support in an army-led coup. Based on this information Allen Dulles, director of the CIA, approved $1 million to be used to help bring about the fall of Prime Minister Mossadegh. Pres. Eisenhower gave the CIA the ok to overthrow the elected government of PM Mohammad Mossadegh. Mossadegh had nationalized the Anglo-Iranian Oil Co. after Britain refused to compromise and split profits 50-50. In 2003 Stephen Kinzer authored "All the Shah's Men: An American Coup and the Roots of the Middle East Terror."
(SFEC, 4/16/00, p.A18)(SSFC, 8/24/03, p.M6)
1953 Aug 15, In Iran a CIA plot, masterminded by Kermit Roosevelt, to unseat PM Mossadeq failed. A 2nd attempt succeeded on August 19.
1953 Aug 16, Shah Pahlavi of Persia and princess Soraya fled to Baghdad and then Rome.
1953 Aug 19, Gen'l. Zahedi ousted PM Mossadegh and became the Premier of Iran in a bloody coup that left 300 dead. Britain and the US CIA under Allen Dulles planned a secret mission to overthrow the government. PM Mossadeq had sought to nationalize the Anglo-Persian Oil Co. The US government made a formal apology for the coup in 2000. A 1954 CIA description of the coup was made public in 2000. In 1979 Kermit Roosevelt (d.2000) published “Countercoup: The Struggle for the Control of Iran," an account of his role in the coup. In 2010 Darioush Bayandor authored “Iran and the CIA: The Fall of Mossadeq Revisited."
(SFC, 11/20/53, p.A1)(SFC, 11/15/99, p.E6)(SFC, 5/29/97, p.A4)(WSJ, 3/20/00, p.A1)(SFEC, 4/16/00, p.A18)(SFEC, 6/11/00, p.D6)(WSJ, 4/2/07, p.A6)(Econ, 5/15/10, p.91)
1953 Aug 20, Iran’s PM Mossadeq was arrested. He was soon tried for treason, and sentenced to three years in prison.
(www.associatepublisher.com/e/m/mo/mohammad_reza_pahlavi.htm)
1953 Aug 21, US CIA officials funneled $5 million to Iran to help the coup leaders consolidate power.
(SFEC, 4/16/00, p.A18)
1953 Aug 22, Shah of Persia returned to Teheran.
1953 Sep 5, US gave Persian premier Zahedi $45 million aid.
1954 Mar, A history of the CIA sponsored 1953 coup in Iran was written by Donald N. Wilbur (1908-1997), an expert in Persian architecture and one of the "leading planners" of the operation "TP-Ajax."
(SFEC, 4/16/00, p.A18)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Wilber)
1954 An agreement with the Shah gave American and British companies control of 80% of Iran’s oil interests.
1954 The Soviet Union and Iran negotiated the Astara-Hosseingholi line to mark their boundary on the Caspian Sea.
1955 Dec 25, In Iran Navvab Safavi (b.1923), a firebrand cleric, was tried and executed. He was responsible for founding of the Fadayan-e Islam group and with them the assassination of several leading Iranians.
(Econ, 5/4/13, p.52)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navvab_Safavi)
1955 Iraq joined with Britain, Turkey, Iran and Pakistan in the Baghdad Pact, a loose alliance intended to check soviet influence in the region. The Baghdad Pact was formed at the prompting of the U.S. in an effort to block Soviet pressures on the northern tier of Middle Eastern states. The U.S. provided military and economic aid to the pact members.
(HNQ, 7/28/98)(SFC, 9/24/02, p.A10)
1959 Imam Moussa al-Sadr, born in the Iranian holy city of Qom, came to Lebanon to work for the rights of Shiites in the southern city of Tyre. In 1974, a year before Lebanon's 15-year civil war broke out, he founded the Movement of the Deprived, attracting thousands of followers.
(AP, 3/2/11)
1960 Sep 14, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela formed OPEC. Fuad Rouhani (1907-2004) of Iran served as its 1st secretary-general. In 1964 he was succeeded by Abdul Rahman Bazzaz of Iraq.
(HN, 9/14/98)(WSJ, 7/28/03, p.A8)
1960s The Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK), a militant Iranian political organization, was formed in Tehran.
(http://complete911timeline.org/entity.jsp?entity=mujahedeen-e_khalq)
1962 Jun, A police attack on the Faizieh Theological School in Qom started Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's rebellion against the Shah.
(WSJ, 8/11/99, p.A1)
1962 Aug 18, In Iran brothers, Ahmad and Mahmoud Khayami founded "Iran National" to manufacture cars. After the 1979 Islamic Revolution it became known as Iran Khodro. Their later Paykan design was based on the 1967 Hillman Hunter, which was originally designed and manufactured by the British Rootes Group. Mahmoud Khayami is also known for starting the Kourosh Department Stores: the first large retail chain stores of Iran, not unlike their American counterparts Sears and Kmart.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahmoud_Khayami)
1962 Sep 1, Some 10,000 died in an earthquake in western Iran.
(SC, 9/1/02)
1962 Jalal Al-e-Ahmad, Iranian writer, authored “Occidentosis: A Plague from the West." Here he coined the term “Westoxification" to describe the loss of Iranian cultural identity through the adoption and imitation of Western models and Western criteria in education, the arts, and culture.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gharbzadegi)(Econ, 11/1/14, SR p.4)
1963 Jun 5, A state of siege was proclaimed in Iran and Ayatollah Khomeini was arrested.
1963 Left leaning students sympathetic to Iran’s former PM Mohammed Mossadeq, deposed in 1953, founded Mujahedin e-Kalq (People’s Mujahedin of Iran).
1965 The People’s Mujahedeen of Iran (PMOI) was founded as a youthful underground opposition to the Shah. The group was also known as the Mujahedeen-d Khalq Organization (MEK of MKO). Its leader Massoud Rajavi fled to France in 1981 and then relocated with his followers to Iraq in 1986, where Saddam Hussein gave them a big base at Camp Ashraf.
1967 Mar 5, Mohammed H. Mosaddeq (b.1882), former prime minister of Iran (1951-53), died in Iran following a period of house arrest. He had been ousted in a military coup organized by the CIA and British intelligence.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammad_Mossadegh)
1967 Oct 26, The Shah of Iran crowned himself and his Queen after 26 years on the Peacock Throne.
(AP, 10/26/97)
1968 Aug 31, In northeast Iran some 7-12 thousand people died in the 7.8 Dasht-e Bayaz earthquake, which also destroyed 60,000 buildings.
(WUD, 1994, p.1687)(www.bssaonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/59/5/1751)
1969 The New Wave in Iranian film was begun by Dariush Mehrjui with “The Cow." It was about a poor village that loses its only cow.
(SFEC, 4/23/00, DB p.52)
1969-1972 Douglas MacArthur II (d.1997 at 88) served as US ambassador to Iran. He escaped a kidnap attempt in 1970.
(SFC,11/17/97, p.A23)
1970 In Iran velayet el-faqih, the idea of guardianship as rule, was advanced by the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in a series of lectures and later formed the basis of the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
(Econ, 3/21/09, p.46)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guardianship_of_the_Islamic_Jurists)
1970 Iran dropped its territorial claims on Bahrain.
1971 Feb 2, The Ramsar Convention, officially titled “The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, especially as Waterfowl Habitat," was developed and adopted by participating nations at a meeting in Ramsar, Iran. It came into force on December 21, 1975. The US ratified the Ramsar agreement in 1986.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramsar_Convention)(NH, 5/01, p.35)
1971 The Shah of Iran seized the tiny island of Abu Musa as Britain abandoned its former possession in the Persian Gulf and the United Arab Emirates was being set up. The UAR later contested Iran’s claims to the island and two barely inhabited chunks of rock nearby.
(Econ, 5/5/12, p.46)
1972 Apr 10, A 6.9 earthquake in the Iranian province of Fars killed over 5,000 people.
(http://bssa.geoscienceworld.org/cgi/content/abstract/63/6-1/2071)
1975 Mar 6, OPEC held a meeting in Algiers attended for the first time by its members’ top leaders. Here the Algiers Accord between Baghdad and Teheran put an end to their border dispute and brought all Iranian help to the Kurdish rebellion to a halt. The United States abruptly withdrew its support for the Kurds and the rebellion collapsed. Many thousands of Kurdish fighters and their families were forced to flee to Iran to escape the pursuing Iraqi army.
(http://mondediplo.com/2002/10/06timeline)(SFC, 11/19/07, p.A11)
1975 Future film director Mohsen Makhmalbaf was imprisoned at 17 for protesting against the Shah. He was spared execution due to his youth.
(SFC, 5/14/97, p.E6)
1977 Nov 15, Pres. Jimmy Carter welcomed the Shah of Iran to Washington, DC.
(http://tinyurl.com/2rhmfk)(www.kipnotes.com/James%20E.%20Carter.htm)
1977 In Iran the Museum of Contemporary Art opened in Tehran.
1978 Aug 19, The Cinema Rex in Abadan, Iran, was set ablaze, killing over 400 individuals. The ruling government of Iran reported that Islamic militants set the fire, while the anti-Shah protesters blamed the intelligence service of the nation, SAVAK for setting the fire. Later it was disclosed that Islamic militants set the Cinema Rex fire.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinema_Rex_fire)
1978 Sep 8, The Shah's troops opened fire on protesters in Tehran, killing several hundred demonstrators.
(http://tinyurl.com/hc3fc)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Revolution)
1978 Nov 4, In Iran the worst anti-Shah demonstrations occurred. PM Sharif-Emami (d.1998 at 87 in NYC), handed in his resignation after 2 months in office. Shah Pahlavi then appointed Gholam Riza Azhari and tried a military approach as the nation erupted in revolt.
(SFC, 6/24/98, p.C2)( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_Iranian_Islamic_revolution)
1978 Nov 4, US National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski called the Shah of Iran to tell him that the US would "back him to the hilt."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Revolution)
1978 Nov 6, Muhammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran, appointed a military government. In a nationwide television address, he admitted to the past mistakes and told the nation he had heard the sound of their revolution.
(WUD, 1994, p.1691)(http://bss.sfsu.edu/behrooz/Hist-Revolution.htm)
1978 Nov 26, Muslim religious leaders and politicians seeking to topple Shah of Iran called a general strike that virtually paralyzed the country.
1978 Dec 2, Anti-Shah protesters poured through Tehran chanting "Allah is great."
(http://tinyurl.com/3aaywr)
1978 Dec 11, Massive demonstrations took place in Tehran against the Shah. In Isfahan, Iran, 40 people were killed and 60 wounded during riots against the Shah.
(WUD, 1994, p.1691)(HN, 12/11/98)
1978 Sep 16, In northeast Iran a magnitude 7.7 earthquake killed 25,000 people.
(WUD, 1994, p.1691)(AP, 6/22/02)
1978 Nov 5, In Iran the worst anti-Shah demonstrations occurred.
(WUD, 1994, p.1691)
1978 Nov 6, Muhammad Reza Pahlav, the Shah of Iran, appointed a military government. In a nationwide television address, he admitted to the past mistakes and told the nation he had heard the sound of their revolution.
1978 Nov, Sharif-Emami (d.1998 at 87 in NYC), prime minister, handed in his resignation after 2 months in office. Shah Pahlavi then appointed Gholam Riza Azhari and tried a military approach as the nation erupted in revolt.
1978 Dec 11, In Isfahan, Iran, 40 people were killed and 60 wounded during riots against the Shah.
1978 Hedayat Eslaminia and his family fled Iran. He was a minister of the Shah and reportedly fled with a fortune. In Jul, 1984, he was kidnapped and slain by his son Reza in California.
(SFC, 5/1/98, p.D7)
1979 Jan 8, The US advised the Shah to get out of Iran.
(HN, 1/8/99)
1979 Jan 16, Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi fled Iran for Egypt as millions united with Ayatollah Khomeini calling for his death. The Shah of Iran was overthrown in a revolution led from exile by the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who established a Muslim Theocracy. Iran was overwhelmingly Shiite, which believes that authority is invested only in descendants of Muhammad’s son-in-law, Ali, who is buried in An Najaf, Iraq. The Shah of Iran fled and the Ayatollah Khomeini took charge.
(NG, 5/88, p.653)(TMC, 1994, p.1979)(HN, 1/16/99)(AP, 1/16/05)
1979 Jan 30, The civilian government of Iran announced it had decided to allow Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who'd been living in exile in France, to return.
1979 Feb 1, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini received a tumultuous welcome in Tehran as he ended nearly 15 years of exile.
1979 Feb 11, Followers of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini seized power in Iran, nine days after the religious leader returned to his home country following 15 years of exile. Premier Bakhtiar resigned.
1979 Feb 14, Armed guerrillas attacked the U.S. embassy in Tehran.
1979 Feb 16, Nematollah Nassiri (b.1911), Iranian general and head of the Savak intelligence agency during the rule of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, was executed.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nematollah_Nassiri)
1979 Mar 1, Molla Mustafa Barzani (75), Iranian Kurd leader (KDP), died in Washington, DC.
(www.kdp.pp.se/old/barzani.html)
1979 Mar 18, Iranian authorities detained American feminist Kate Millett, a day before deporting her and a companion for what were termed "provocations."
1979 Apr 1, Iran proclaimed to be an Islamic Republic after the fall of the Shah.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran)
1979 May 13, In Tehran, Iran, the Shah and his family, who had fled in January, were sentenced to death.
(http://openweb.tvnews.vanderbilt.edu/1979-5/1979-05-13-ABC-8.html)
1979 Aug 8, In Iran the revolutionary prosecutor banned the leading left-wing newspaper, Ayandegan. 5 days later hezbollahis broke up a Tehran rally called by the National Democratic Front, a newly organized left-of-center political movement, to protest the Ayandegan closing.
(http://tinyurl.com/3cssq4)
1979 Aug 18, Iran Ayatollah Khomeini sent the army to attack and occupy Paveh, Sanandaj and Saghez. Having defeated the Kurds in the cities, he appointed Khalkhali, as head of security for Kurdistan, who proceeded with a series of summary trials and executions.
(www.sarbazan.com/Massacre.asp)
1979 Aug 23, Iranian troops entered Iraqi Kurdish territory.
(www.jamestown.org/terrorism/news/article.php?articleid=2373658&printthis=1)
1979 Aug 27, In Sanandaj, Iran, 11 Kurdish prisoners were executed by a firing squad following a 30 minute trial under Shiite cleric Sadegh Khalkhali. Jahangir Razmi, a photographer for Iran’s independent Ettela’at newspaper, captured the execution on film. Within hours an anonymous photo of the execution ran across 6 columns of the paper. On Sep 8 the newspaper was seized by the Foundation for the Disinherited, a state-owned holding company. On April 14, 1980, the photo won a Pulitzer Prize. In 2006 Razmi made public 27 images from the execution that he had kept hidden.
(WSJ, 12/2/06, p.A1)
1979 Oct 22, The US government allowed the deposed Shah of Iran to travel to New York for medical treatment. This decision precipitated the Iran hostage crisis.
1979 Nov 4, The US Embassy was taken over by Iranian students and a hostage crisis began. 90 people, including 63 Americans, were taken hostage at the American embassy in Teheran, Iran, by militant student followers of Ayatollah Khomeini who demanded the return of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi to Iran for trial. He was undergoing medical treatment in New York City. The students held 52 American hostages for 444 days, and were released on the day of the inauguration President Ronald Reagan, January 20, 1981. In 2005 David Harris authored “The Crisis: The President, the Prophet and the Shah – 1979 and the coming of Militant Islam." In 2006 Mark Bowden authored “Guests of the Ayatollah: The First Battle in America’s War With Militant Islam."
(WSJ, 11/19/96, p.A1)(AP, 11/4/97)(HN, 11/4/98)(SSFC, 4/3/05, p.F4)(WSJ, 4/29/06, p.P10)
1979 Nov 5, Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini declared US "The Great Satan."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Satan)
1979 Nov 6, In Iran PM Bazargan resigned as Ayatollah Khomeini (1902-1989) supported the student seizure of the US embassy.
(www.britannica.com/eb/topic-272687/Iran-hostage-crisis)
1979 Nov 8, ABC-TV aired "Iran Crisis: American Held Hostage" with Frank Reynolds 4 days after the beginning of the Iran hostage crisis. The late-night news program evolved into “Nightline" on March 24, 1980. Ted Koppel (b.1940) soon became the anchor of nightly news on Iranian Hostages (ABC).
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nightline)
1979 Nov 12, President Carter announced an immediate halt to all imports of Iranian oil and freezes Iranian assets in US. Executive Order 12170 halted oil imports from Iran.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_hostage_crisis)
1979 Nov 17, Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini ordered the release of 13 female and black American hostages being held at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.
1979 Nov 18, Ayatollah Khomeini said the rest of the US hostages may be tried as spies if the Shah is not released.
(http://openweb.tvnews.vanderbilt.edu/1979-11/1979-11-18-ABC-2.html)
1979 Dec 15, The deposed Shah of Iran left the United States for Panama, the same day the International Court of Justice in The Hague ruled that Iran should release all its American hostages.
1979 An Islamic Revolution took over Iran. A ban on fax machines, video recorders, and video tapes soon followed.
(SFEC, 4/13/97, BR p.4)(Econ, 7/19/14, p.43)
1979 The government of Iran began fighting the Kurdish Democratic Party.
1979 Iran’s Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini cut diplomatic ties with Egypt.
1979 Germany began to build a 1,000-megawatt light-water nuclear reactor at Bushehr. Germany later abandoned the project and it was given over to Russia.
(SFC, 3/7/98, p.A7)
1979 In Iran the population was estimated at 34 million and the government urged the populace to breed an Islamic generation.
(SFC, 5/15/98, p.D2)
1980 Jan 25, Abolhassan Bani-Sadr was elected as Iran's first president since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Though he won an overwhelming majority of the popular vote, he did not have the support of the predominantly fundamentalist parliament.
(http://www.80s.com/Icons/Bios/abolhassan_bani_sadr.html)
1980 Jan 28, Six US diplomats who had avoided being taken hostage at their embassy in Tehran flew out of Iran with the help of Canadian diplomats.
1980 Feb 4, Abolhassan Bani-Sadr was installed as president of Iran by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
1980 Mar 6, Islamic militants in Tehran said that they would turn over the American hostages to the Revolutionary Council.
1980 Mar 10, Iran's leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, lent his support to the militants holding the American hostages in Tehran.
1980 Mar 19, The US appealed to the International Court of Justice on hostages in Iran.
(http://tinyurl.com/3xp87b)
1980 Mar 23, The deposed Shah of Iran arrived in Egypt.
(http://openweb.tvnews.vanderbilt.edu/1980-3/1980-03-23-CBS-2.html)
1980 Apr 1, The pro-Iranian Dawah Party claims responsibility for an attack on Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz (b.1936), at Mustansiriyah University, Baghdad.
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/737483.stm)
1980 Apr 7, The US broke relations with Iran during the hostage crises. Pres. Carter ordered all Iranian diplomats expelled from the US and prohibited any further exports to the nation. Pres. Carter signed Executive Order 12205 for economic sanctions against Iran.
(HN, 4/7/97)(www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=33235)
1980 Apr 23, Albert Hakim, a wealthy arms merchant, unexpectedly skipped town the day before a US rescue mission. The Iranian exile and CIA informant worked for the CIA near the Turkish boarder handling the logistics of the rescue mission in Tehran. Hakim had purchased trucks and vans and rented a warehouse on the edge of Tehran to hide them in until they were needed for the operation. In July, 1981, Hakim approached the CIA with a plan to gain favor with the Iranian government by selling it arms.
(www.donhopkins.com/drupal/node/104)
1980 Apr 24, An American assault team held 44 Iranians hostage for about 3 hours when their bus stumbled upon the remote desert site. The failed operation was commanded by Colonel Charles Beckwith, founder of the US Delta Force. The mission resulted in the deaths of 8 US servicemen. The US hostage rescue failed when a plane collided with a helicopter in Iran. The 1996 Iranian film: "Sandstorm" depicting the event was set for release in Feb, 1997.
(WSJ, 11/19/96, p.A1)(AP, 4/24/97)(HN, 4/24/98)
1980 Apr 30, Terrorists seized the Iranian Embassy in London. Only after the incident was over did it become known that Iraq had trained and armed the gunmen in order to try to embarrass Iran.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Embassy_Siege)
1980 May 5, A siege at the Iranian embassy in London ended as British commandos and police stormed the building. 19 hostages were rescued; two others had already been killed by their captors; four of the five hostage-takers also were killed. John McAleese (d.2022), special forces soldier, led the dramatic raid. The only gunman to survive served 27 years in jail.
(AP, 5/5/00)(AP, 8/28/11)
1980 May 24, Iran rejected a call by the World Court in The Hague to release the American hostages.
1980 Jul 11, American hostage Richard I. Queen, freed by Iran after eight months of captivity because of poor health, left Tehran for Switzerland.
(PGA, 12/9/98)(AP, 7/11/01)
1980 Jul 27, On day 267 of the Iranian hostage crisis, the deposed Shah of Iran (1941-1979) died at a military hospital outside Cairo, Egypt, at age 60.
1980 Sep 22, Iraq under Saddam Hussein invaded Iran following border skirmishes and a dispute over the Shatt al-Arab waterway. This marked the beginning of a war that would last eight years. Iraq invaded Iran striking refineries and an oil-loading terminal on Kharg Island. The Iraqis used the political instability in Iran to try to capture long-disputed territory. They attacked across the Shatt al Arab River, a trunk of the great Tigris-Euphrates river system.
(http://tinyurl.com/2n5z2f)(AP, 9/22/97)(NG, 5/88, p.653,663)
1980 Dec 21, Iran requested $24 billion in US guarantees to free hostages.
(http://rescueattempt.tripod.com/id12.html)
1980 Dec 26, Iranian television footage was broadcast in the United States, showing a dozen of the American hostages sending messages to their families.
1980 US Sec. of State Alexander Haig reported in a 1981 memo uncovered by the October Surprise Task Force that leaders of several friendly countries in the Middle East told him on a trip in 1981 that Jimmy Carter had given Iraq’s Saddam Hussein the green light to invade Iran in 1980.
(WSJ, 8/9/96, p.A11)(www.consortiumnews.com/archive/xfile5.html)
1980-1988 Iran and Iraq engaged in war. The number of casualties was estimated at well over a million. The US provided covert battle planning assistance to Iraq.
(V.D.-H.K.p.312)(SFC, 2/24/98, p.A9)(SSFC, 8/18/02, p.A1)
1980-1988 Labor union independence in Iran was destroyed during its war with Iraq.
1981 Jan 19, The United States and Iran signed an agreement paving the way for the release of 52 Americans held hostage for more than 14 months. Iran signed after accepting a US offer for the return of $7.9 billion in frozen assets.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-United_States_Claims_Tribunal)(AP, 1/19/98)
1981 Jan 20, Iran released 52 Americans held hostage for 444 days, minutes after the presidency had passed from Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan.
1981 Feb 26, Three British Anglican missionaries, detained in Iran since August 1980, were released.
(www.cedmagic.com/museum/press/ced-timeline.html#02-1981)
1981 Jun 11, Earthquake in southeast Iran killed at least 1,500 people.
(SFC, 3/21/98, p.A9)(AP, 6/11/03)
1981 Jun 22, In Iran Abolhassan Bani-Sadr was dismissed from the presidency by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Shortly thereafter he fled to Paris, where he had lived in exile during the reign of the Shah.
(www.80s.com/Icons/Bios/abolhassan_bani_sadr.html)
1981 Jun 28, In Tehran, Iran, a powerful bomb exploded at the headquarters of the IRP while a meeting of party leaders was in progress. 73 persons were killed, including the chief justice and party secretary general Mohammad Beheshti, four cabinet ministers and 27 Majlis deputies. The Mujahedin e-Kalq carried out the bombing. Those killed included Premier Mohammad-Javad Bahonar and Pres. Mohammad-Ali Rajaei.
(www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-6395.html)(WSJ, 5/8/08, p.A10)
1981 Jul, In Iran members of the Union of Communists tried to seize control of the Caspian town of Amol. At least seventy guerrillas and Pasdaran members were killed before the uprising was put down.
(www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-6395.html)
1981 Aug 30, Mohammad Javad Bahonar, prime minister of Iran, was assassinated by a bomb.
1981 Aug, Oliver North (b.1943) was assigned to White House duty as Chief Middle East arms-sales adviser to Secretary of Defense Casper W. Weinberger. He was fired on November 25, 1986, for selling arms to Iran, and diverting Iran arms sales proceeds to the contras.
(www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/walsh/chap_02.htm)
1981 Sep 27, In Iran the Mojahedin used machine guns and rocket-propelled grenade launchers against units of the Pasdaran. Smaller left-wing opposition groups, including the Fadayan, attempted similar guerrilla activities.
1981 Sep, In Iran a Supreme Judicial Council circular to the revolutionary courts permitting death sentences for "active members" of guerrilla groups. Fifty executions a day became routine; there were days when more than 100 persons were executed.
1981 Oct 2, In Iran Hojjatoleslam Ali Khamenehi was elected president.
1981 Oct 28, In Iran the Majlis elected Mir-Hosain Musavi, a protégé of the late Mohammad Beheshti, as prime minister.
1981 The Iranian regime executed some 2,946 people this year.
1981 In Iran Ayatollah Khomeini declared the celebration of “Al-Quds Day," the Arabic name for Jerusalem Day, to be held on the last day of Ramadan as an annual denunciation of Israeli control of the holy city.
(WSJ,2/13/97, p.A18)(www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15343184/)
1981-1983 Up to 25,000 suspected opponents to clerical rule were executed in Iran during this period according to estimates by Amnesty Int'l.
(SFC, 2/11/04, p.A10)
1982 Apr 7, Sadegh Ghotbzadeh (b.1936), Iran’s minister of foreign affairs, was arrested. He was convicted of plotting against the government and executed on Sep 15.
(www.cedmagic.com/home/ced-digest/ced-digest-vol-07/ced-digest0714.html)
1982 May 25, Iranian troops reconquered Khorramshahr.
(SC, 5/25/02)
1982 Jul 4, Four Iranians, charge d'affaires Mohsen Musavi, diplomat Ahmad Motovasselian, photographer Kazem Akhavan and driver Mohammad Taqi Rastgar Moghaddam, were seized at a Lebanese Forces checkpoint north of Beirut. In 2006 Samir Geagea, former head of the disbanded Lebanese Forces, said that they were killed by Christian militiamen.
1982 Jul 14, Iran launched a "Ramadan-offensive" in Iraq.
(http://tinyurl.com/3xp9jz)
1982 Sep 15, Iran's former foreign minister, Sadegh Ghotbzadeh, was executed after he was convicted of plotting against the government.
1982 Oct 2, A truck bomb in Tehran killed 60 and injured 700. Authorities blamed ''American mercenaries.''
(http://tinyurl.com/2j23lb)
1982 Nov 17, In Iraq the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) was created to increase Iranian control over Iraqi opposition groups belonging to the same Shiite faith as most Iranians. In 1999 it had 4-8000 fighters in southern Iraq.
(USAT, 3/24/99, p.18A)(http://jamestown.org/terrorism/news/article.php?articleid=2373425)
1982 Iran’s Islamic Azad University was founded. An endowment, or vaqf in Farsi, was set up by the university board in 2009, shortly after national elections, to keep it independent in the face of the rising power of hardliners.
1983 Feb 7, Iran opened an invasion in the southeast of Iraq.
1983 Oct 23, A truck filled with explosives, driven by a Moslem suicide terrorist, crashed into the US Marine barracks near the Beirut International Airport in Lebanon. The bomb killed 241 Marines and sailors and injured 80. Almost simultaneously, a similar incident occurred at French military headquarters, where 58 died and 15 were injured. Hezbollah leader Imad Mughniyah was suspected of involvement. In 2007 under a law allowing foreign governments to be sued in US courts, US federal judge Royce Lamberth ordered Iran to pay $2.65 billion to victims' families.
(WSJ, 8/1/96/p.B1)(AP, 10/23/97)(WSJ, 9/19/01, p.A14)(AFP, 7/6/12)
1983 Dec 12, A truck bomb exploded at the US Embassy in Kuwait. Shiite Muslims backed by Iran drove bomb-laden trucks into six targets. The most deadly of these struck the US Embassy, killing five persons and wounding 62. Other trucks destroyed the French embassy and several Kuwaiti installations (www.danielpipes.org/article/173).
1983 In Iran the Fajr Int'l. Film Festival began. In 2004 the 22nd festival established its own web site (www.fajrfilmfest.com).
1984 Feb 1, Iraq launched a new series of air attacks on Iran’s shipping.
(www.iranchamber.com/history/iran_iraq_war/iran_iraq_war2.php)
1984 Feb 22-1984 Mar 16, Iran’s offensive Operation Kheibar captured the Iraqi Majnoon Islands in the Haur al-Hawizeh marshes. Britain and the US sent warships to the Persian Gulf following an Iranian offensive against Iraq.
(HN, 2/22/98)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-Iraq_War)
1984 Feb 29-1984 Mar 1, In one of the largest battles of the Iran-Iraq war, the two armies clashed and inflicted more than 25,000 fatalities on each other.
1984 Mar 5, The US accused Iraq of using poison gas against Iran. Iraq had used tabun against Iran. This was the first use ever of a nerve agent in war.
(http://tinyurl.com/2jd895)(www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/cw/program.htm)
1984 Mar 17, Iraq used tabun against Iran. This was the first use ever of a nerve agent in a conventional battle.
(www.fas.org/irp/gulf/cia/970409/970409_cia_95224_95224_01.html)
1984 Aug 12, In San Francisco a driver on an apparent suicide mission smashed head-on into a packed cable car climbing the Hyde Street hill. The driver, an Iranian alien, was killed and at least 23 people were injured.
(SSFC, 8/2/09, DB p.42)
1984 Dec 4, A five-day hijack drama began as four armed men seized a Kuwaiti airliner en route to Pakistan and forced it to land in Tehran, where the hijackers killed American passenger Charles Hegna.
1984 Dec 9, In Iran a five-day hijack drama ended when Iranian commandos captured the Kuwaiti plane. 4 armed men had seized a Kuwaiti airliner en route to Pakistan and forced it to land in Tehran, where the hijackers killed American passenger Charles Hegna.
1985 Aug 15, Iraq launched its first air raid on Iran’s Kharg oil-island.
(www.eia.doe.gov/cabs/iraqchron.html)
1985 Nov 17, Olaf Palme stopped an illegal shipment of 80 HAWK missiles through Sweden from Israel to Teheran, as he mediated an end of the Iran-Iraq war for the UN.
(http://www.skog.de/writers/e040831.htm)
1985 Iran began research in a secret uranium enrichment program. From 1985 to 1997 China was Iran’s most important nuclear partner.
(SFC, 11/28/03, p.A3)(SFC, 9/18/06, p.A1)
1986 Jan 17, President Reagan approved a finding that authorized the sale of weapons to Iran through third parties.
(www.thedubyareport.com/family.html)
1986 Aug 19, A car bomb killed 20 in Tehran, Iran.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Car_bomb)
1986 Oct 21, Pro-Iranian kidnappers in Lebanon claimed to have abducted American Edward Tracy. He was released in August 1991.
1986 Nov 3, "Ash-Shiraa," a pro-Syrian Lebanese magazine, broke the story of U.S. arms sales to Iran, a revelation that escalated into the Iran-Contra affair.
1986 Nov 6, The Iran arms-for-hostages deal was revealed and damaged the Reagan administration.
(HN, 11/6/99)
1986 Nov 10, President Ronald Reagan refused to reveal details of the Iran arms sale.
(HN, 11/10/98)
1986 Nov 13, President Reagan publicly acknowledged that the US had sent "defensive weapons and spare parts" to Iran in an attempt to improve relations, but denied the shipments were part of a deal aimed at freeing hostages in Lebanon.
1986 Nov 21, The US Justice Department began the inquiry into the National Security Council in what became known as the Iran-Contra scandal; Lt. Col. Oliver North shredded important documents. Albert Hakim (d.2003) was the financial person behind the arms-for-hostages deal.
(HN, 11/21/01)(SFC, 4/29/03, A21)
1986 Iraq’s Saddam Hussein allowed the People's Mujahedeen, known as the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, to establish a base, Camp Ashraf , to launch raids into Iran.
1987 Jan 7, The US House of Representatives, by House Resolution 12, established the Select Committee to Investigate Covert Arms Transactions with Iran. The US Senate passed a similar resolution a day earlier. The two Chambers instructed their respective Committees to work together and charged them with investigating, among other things, any activity of any officer or entity of the United States Government relating to the Iran initiative.
(www.pinknoiz.com/covert/weinberger.html)
1987 Jan 17, A Reagan Administration official who initiated the arms shipments to Iran, acknowledged that the US had virtually no independent intelligence to support its policy.
(http://tinyurl.com/py89w)
1987 Mar 4, President Reagan addressed the nation on the Iran-Contra affair. He took full responsibility for the affair acknowledging his overtures to Iran had "deteriorated" into an arms-for-hostages deal. Michael Ledeen, Pentagon employee, later authored "Perilous Statecraft: An Insider's Account of the Iran-Contra Affair."
(AP, 3/4/98)(HN, 3/4/98)(SFC, 5/14/03, p.A19)
1987 Jul 31, Iranian pilgrims and riot police clashed in the Muslim holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government blamed Iranians for the resulting 400 deaths.
1987 Aug 1, Iranians attacked the Saudi Arabian and Kuwaiti embassies in Tehran as word spread of rioting in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, a day earlier that claimed some 400 lives, most of them Iranian pilgrims.
1987 Aug 2, More than a million people gathered in Tehran, calling for the overthrow of the sheiks of Saudi Arabia, where hundreds of Iranian pilgrims had died in rioting in the Muslim holy city of Mecca.
1987 Aug 8, In the Persian Gulf, a US Navy F-14 "Tomcat" fighter fired two missiles at an Iranian jet approaching an unarmed U.S. scout plane. Both missiles missed their target and the Iranian plane flew off.
1987 Aug 25, Saudi Arabia denounced Iran's government as a "group of terrorists," and said its forces would deal firmly with any Iranian attempts to attack the Saudis' Muslim holy places or vast oil fields.
1987 Aug, Mehdi Hashemi, Iranian aid of Ayatollah Khomeini, was tried for being “at enmity with God" and “corrupt on earth." Hashemi was sentenced to death and executed in September.
(http://tinyurl.com/hra7a)
1987 Sep 28, Mehdi Hashemi, Iranian aid of Ayatollah Khomeini, was shot for treason.
1987 Oct 8, US helicopter gunships in the Persian Gulf sank three Iranian patrol boats after an American observation helicopter was fired on. Two of six Iranian crewmen taken from the water later died.
1987 Oct 16, In the Persian Gulf, an Iranian missile hit a re-flagged Kuwaiti ship in the first direct attack on the tanker fleet guarded by the U.S.
1987 Oct 18, President Reagan summoned congressional leaders to the White House to announce he had decided on what action to take in response to an Iranian missile attack on a US-flagged tanker off Kuwait two days earlier. The next day, US destroyers bombarded an Iranian offshore oil rig.
1987 Oct 19, US Navy warships disabled the 1st of 3 Iranian oil platforms in the Persian Gulf in retaliation for an Iranian missile attack on a U.S.-flagged tanker off Kuwait. [see Apr 18, 1988]
(AP, 10/19/97)(HN, 10/19/02)
1987 Oct 22, The US Navy acknowledged that it had deployed 5 dolphins to the Persian Gulf to search for Iranian mines.
(http://tinyurl.com/g9o9d)
1987 Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Iranian director, made his film "The Peddler," described by Film Comment as the strongest hell-on-earth film since “Taxi driver."
1987 The film “Where Is the Friend’s Home" was directed by Abbas Kiarostami.
1987 The Baha’i Institute of Higher Education began following the virtual banning of Bahais from Iranian universities after the Islamic revolution of 1979.
1987 Iran acquired centrifuge designs for a uranium enrichment program that was similar to technology used in Pakistan.
(SFC, 11/28/03, p.A3)
1988 Feb 11, Iran launched a campaign to retake the Fao Peninsula from Iraq with US planning assistance. Chemical weapons were used in the attack.
(SSFC, 8/18/02, p.A12)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Faw_Peninsula)
1988 Mar 1, Iraq said it had fired 16 missiles into Tehran in the first long-range rocket attack on the Iranian capital since the Iran-Iraq war began.
1988 Mar 16-1988 Mar 17, Iraqi jets dropped a variety of chemical weapons on the Kurdish town of Halabja and some 5-7,000 residents were killed immediately. The Kurdish city of Halabja, held by Iranian troops and Iraqi Kurdish guerrillas allied with Tehran, was bombed by Iraq. Estimates of casualties varied from several hundred to several thousand.
(SFC, 7/1/02, p.A6)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halabja_poison_gas_attack)
1988 Apr 5 A 15-day hijacking ordeal began as gunmen forced a Kuwait Airways jumbo jet to land in Iran.
1988 Apr 17, The newly-restructured Iraqi Army began a major operation named "Ramadan Mubarak" aimed to clear the Iranians out of the peninsula. The Iranians were expelled from the peninsula within 35 hours, with much of their equipment captured intact.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Faw_Peninsula)
1988 Apr 18, The United States destroyed two more Iraqi oil platforms, after a mine in the Persian Gulf injured 10 crewmen aboard a U.S. frigate. In 2003 a World Court in a 14-2 decision ruled the US was wrong but doesn't need to pay damages.
1988 Jul 3, The US Navy USS Vincennes shot down an Iranian Airbus A-300 in the Persian Gulf from the cruiser ship Vincennes shortly after it took off from Bandar Abbas for Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. All 290 people aboard were killed after the crew of the Vincennes misidentified the plane as an Iranian F-14 fighter. In 1996 the US paid $131.8 million in compensation of which half would go directly to the families of the people killed. Iran filed suit in World Court in 1989 and settled out of court in Feb, 1996.
(WSJ, 2/23/96, p.A-1)(SFC, 4/26/96, p.A-14)(AP 7/3/97)(AP, 7/03/10)
1988 Jul 8, Iran's parliamentary speaker, Hashemi Rafsanjani, said his nation would not seek revenge against the United States for shooting down an Iranian jetliner over the Persian Gulf, killing 290 people.
1988 Jul 14, Speaking before the U.N. Security Council, Iran's foreign minister, Ali-Akbar Velayati, denounced the U.S. downing of an Iranian jetliner as "a barbaric massacre." Vice President Bush replied that the U.S.S. Vincennes had fired in self-defense.
1988 Jul 22, Iran and Iraq said they would send their foreign ministers to New York to meet with U.N. Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar, after Iran said it would accept a U.N. cease-fire resolution.
1988 Jul 23, Iran accused Iraq of pushing deep into Iranian territory and using chemical weapons. The March 16 Iraqi chemical attack at Halabja killed thousands and in 1999 was still causing genetic damage and deaths.
(AP, 7/23/97)(USAT, 3/24/99, p.18A)
1988 Jul 26, U.N. Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar met twice with Iran's foreign minister in the first formal talks about a cease-fire for the eight-year war between Iran and Iraq.
1988 Jul 27, U.N. Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar held separate peace talks with the foreign ministers of Iraq and Iran on a cease-fire in the eight-year-old Persian Gulf war.
1988 Aug 1, Iran said it would honor an immediate cease-fire in its eight-year-old war with Iraq.
1988 Aug 7, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati signaled his government's acceptance of Iraq's modified peace proposal aimed at bringing about a cease-fire in the Persian Gulf.
1988 Aug 8, U.N. Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar announced a cease-fire between Iran and Iraq. This became an Iraqi national holiday until it was abolished in 2003.
(SFC, 2/24/9, p.A9)(AP, 8/8/98)(AP, 7/13/03)
1988 Aug 20, A cease fire between Iran and Iraq took effect after 8 years of war.
(www.un.org/Depts/dpko/dpko/co_mission/uniimogbackgr.html)
1988 Aug 25, Iran and Iraq began talks to end their 8 year war.
1988 Nov 26, Kazem Sami, leader of a liberal Islamic movement, was murdered.
(SFC, 12/10/98, p.C2)
1988 The film “The Cyclist" was directed by Mohsen Makhmalbaf. It was about an Afghani refugee who raises money for his dying wife by riding a bicycle for 7 days as people bet on him.
1988 Iran began paying unrelated living donors for their kidneys. After 11 years it had eliminated its kidney transplant waiting list.
(Econ, 10/11/08, p.81)
1989 Feb 14, Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini called on Muslims to kill Salman Rushdie, author of "The Satanic Verses," a novel condemned as blasphemous. Several translators of the book were later killed or wounded.
(TMC, 1994, p.1989)(SFEC, 8/31/97, p.A2)(AP, 2/14/99)
1989 Feb 17, Iran's President Ali Khamenei said Salman Rushdie, author of "The Satanic Verses," could save himself from a death sentence pronounced by Ayatollah Khomeini if he were to apologize for his book, which was regarded as blasphemous.
1989 Feb 19, Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini rejected the apology of "Satanic Verses" author Salman Rushdie, exhorting Muslims to "send him to hell" for committing blasphemy.
1989 Feb 20, Members of the European Economic Community decided to withdraw their top diplomats from Iran to protest Ayatollah Khomeini's order for Muslims to kill author Salman Rushdie.
1989 Feb 21, President Bush called Ayatollah Khomeini's death warrant against "Satanic Verses" author Salman Rushdie "deeply offensive to the norms of civilized behavior."
1989 Feb 22, Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini, who had sentenced author Salman Rushdie to death, said economic sanctions would not change his stance, and that publication of Rushdie's "The Satanic Verses" was a sign from God that Iran should not reach out to the West.
1989 Feb 24, Writer Salman Rushdie was sentenced to death by the Iranian government for writing Satanic Verses.
1989 Mar 7, Britain dropped diplomatic relations with Iran over Salmon Rushdie's book.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Satanic_Verses_(novel))
1989 Jun 3, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (89), Iran's spiritual and supreme leader, died.
(AP, 6/3/97)(SFC, 8/15/97, p.A15)
1989 Jun 20, Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev greeted the speaker of Iran's parliament, Hashemi Rafsanjani, who was visiting Moscow.
1989 Jul 13, Abdul Rahman Qassemlu, Kurd leader in Iran, was murdered.
(http://tinyurl.com/ecm98)
1989 Aug 3, Hashemi Rafsanjani was sworn in as president of Iran.
1989 Aug 4, Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani offered to help end the hostage crisis in Lebanon, prompting President Bush to say he was "encouraged."
1989 Nov 3, A Lebanese magazine reported that the United States had been secretly selling arms to Iran in the hope of securing the release of American hostages held by pro-Iranian groups in Lebanon. This was the start of the Iran Contra Scandal.
1989 Nov 4, Iran marked the 10th anniversary of the seizure of the U.S. Embassy.
1989 Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri protested the execution of thousands of political prisoners. This frustrated Ayatollah Khomeini and caused him to dump Montazeri as heir apparent.
1990 Mar 15, Iraq executed London-based journalist Farzad Bazoft, claiming he was a spy.
1990 Jun 21, An estimated 50,000 Iranians were killed in a magnitude 7.3 to 7.7 earthquake. The earthquake killed some 35,000 people in Gilan and neighboring Zanjan province.
(SFC, 3/1/97, p.C1)(AP, 6/21/00)(AP, 6/22/02)
1990 Jun 27, Salman Rushdie, condemned to death by Iran, contributed $8600 to help their earthquake victims.
1990 Sep 10, Iran agreed to resume full diplomatic ties with onetime enemy Iraq.
1990 Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Iranian director, made his film "Time of Love," a depiction of adultery in three segments.
1990 The Fertility Regulation Council was established.
1990 Kazem Rajavi, exiled Iranian opposition leader, was shot to death in Geneva.
1991 Jan 28, The US military reported that more than 60 Iraqi fighter-bombers had taken refuge in Iran, where they were impounded by the Iranian government.
1991 Apr 1, Iran released British hostage Roger Cooper after 5 years.
(OTD)
1991 Aug 6, Former Iranian PM Shahpour Bakhtiar and his chief of staff were killed in Bakhtiar’s residence outside Paris. Their bodies were found 2 days later. In 1994 Ali Vakili Rad was arrested in Switzerland and sentenced to life in prison for stabbing Shapour Bakhtiar to death. In 2010 France issued a deportation order to send Rad back to Iran shortly after Tehran freed a young French academic accused of spying.
1991 Oct 7, Former assistant secretary of state Elliott Abrams pleaded guilty to withholding information from Congress in the Iran-Contra scandal.
(www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/walsh/summpros.htm)
1991 Dec 13, Iran’s Pres. Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani visited Sudan with some 157 officials. He signed agreements to train Sudan’s Popular Defense Forces, a version of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, and agreed to pay China $300 million for weapons ordered for Sudan.
(Econ, 4/4/09, p.50)(http://tinyurl.com/d6ruxp)
1991 In Iran Majid Majidi directed his film “Baduk." It was about children kidnapped by a slave trader.
1991 The Iranian film "The Legend of Sigh" was directed by Tamineh Milani.
(SFEC, 11/28/99, DB p.57)
1991 Iran’s government began fighting elements of the Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK).
1991 142 aircraft were flown to Iran from Iraq to escape destruction at the outset of the Gulf War. Tehran repainted the planes and used them for its own forces. In 1997 Iraq appealed to the UN for help in getting the planes back.
1991 Iran’s first nuclear reactor was supplied by China.
1992 Apr, The Iranian Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK), a militant opposition group, attacked Iranian assets in 13 countries simultaneously.
(WSJ, 7/11/96, p.A10)(http://complete911timeline.org/entity.jsp?entity=mujahedeen-e_khalq)
1992 Sep, In Germany Sadiq Sarafkindi and three other exiled Iranian Kurdish dissidents were slain at the Mykonos restaurant in Berlin. In 1997 a German court concluded that the murders were sponsored by the top political leadership of Iran and orchestrated by a secretive “Committee for special Operations," and carried out by the Iranian Vevak security service.
1992 Nov 4, Iran's Islamic Republic News Agency announced the arrest of American businessman Milton Meier, who had lived in Iran for 17 years, on charges of illegal business dealings and espionage.
1992 Nov 23, Iran added a Russian-built submarine to its navy, becoming the first Gulf nation to field a submarine.
1993 Mar 16, Mohammed Hussein Nagdi, Iran diplomat, resistance fighter, was murdered in Rome, Italy.
(http://farrid.20m.com/sr.html)
1993 New laws withdrew food coupons and subsidized health insurance from families after the birth of a 3rd child.
1994 Jul 18, In Buenos Aires a terrorist attack killed 85 people at the city’s Jewish Center, the Argentine Israelite Mutual Aid Society (AMIA). Some 300 people were injured. In 1996 three senior policemen and a retired officer were charged in connection to the bombing. Iran denied any role. Police inspector, Juan Jose Ribelli, accepted a $2.5 million several days before the attack for providing the car in which the bomb exploded. It was later revealed that he and his colleagues sold protection to car thieves in return for stolen goods. In 2000 Ahmad Behbahani (32) told a 60 Minutes journalist from a refugee camp in Turkey that Iran was behind the 1994 bombing in Argentina. In 2002 it was reported that Iran paid Pres. Menem $10 million to cover up Iran’s involvement. In 2004 a federal court acquitted 5 men of being accessories to the bombing. [see Nov 9, 2005] In 2009 a court ruled that Carlos Alberto Telledin, accused of loading the van with explosives, should be tried again for his participation in the bombing. In 2015 ex-President Carlos Menem, a former top judge and several other officials went on trial for allegedly derailing the investigation.
(WSJ, 8/1/96 p.A1)(WSJ, 11/24/97, p.A1)(SFC,12/9/97, p.B10)(HN, 7/18/98)(SFC, 6/6/00, p.A10)(SFC, 7/22/02, p.A1)(SFC, 9/3/04, p.A18)(NYT, 10/8/04, p.A12)(SSFC, 12/20/09, p.A31)(AP, 8/6/15)
1994 A 2-hr pre-nuptial class was made mandatory for all couples planning marriage.
1995 Mar 15, President Clinton issued an executive order formally blocking a $1 billion contract between Conoco and Iran to develop a huge offshore oil tract in the Persian Gulf.
1995 Apr 30, President Clinton announced he would end U.S. trade and investment with Iran, denouncing the Tehran government as "inspiration and paymaster to terrorists."
1995 May 4, An Iranian nuclear official said spent fuel from Iran's Russian-made reactors, potential raw material for nuclear bombs, would be returned to Russia for safeguarding.
1995 The Iranian film "Pari" was produced. It was directed by Dariush Mehrjui and adopted from J.D. Salinger’s “Franny and Zooey." UD showing was barred in 1998 due to copyright.
(SFC, 11/23/98, p.E2)
1995 The film “The Snowman" was directed by Davoud Mirbaqeri. It was about an Iranian man who dresses as a woman in order to obtain an American visa.
1995 Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Iranian director, made his film “Salaam Cinema." He used a documentary technique to make his film on auditioning actors.
1995 The film "The White Balloon" was directed by Jafar Panahi of Iran.
(SFC, 1/30/98, p.E17)
1995 Iran awarded a $1 billion contract to the American oil firm Conoco, but US Pres. Clinton scuttled the deal and subsequently banned US companies from most forms of trading with Iran. He accused Tehran of continued support for international terrorism. Iran then awarded the oil contract to the French firm Total.
(SFC, 4/14/96, p.A-14)
1995 The Taliban regained Herat and Tajik commander Ismail Khan fled for exile in Iran. Khan returned in 1997 and was captured by the Taliban and imprisoned for nearly 3 years.
1995 Alireza Azmandian, US educated engineer, returned to Iran to teach at Tehran Univ. and opened a private office to promote positive thinking and self-help. By 2008 he had published 2 self-help books and his business, The Center for Technology of Thought, occupied an entire floor of a commercial building.
1996 Jan 30, Iran tested a Chinese missile designed to attack ships by flying under their radar and could be fired from boats with a range of miles.
(WSJ, 1/30/96, p.A-12)
1996 Apr 27, The southern Iranian town of Baft, 350 miles Southeast of Tehran, was invaded by millions of cockroaches, locusts, and grasshoppers.
(SFC, 4/27/96, p.A-7)
1996 May 14, Turkmenistan and Iran opened a rail link.
(WSJ, 5/14/96, p.A-1)
1996 Jul 9, "The Iranians: Persia, Islam and the Soul of a Nation" by Sandra Mackey was reviewed and panned by Abbas Milani, author of "Tales of Two Cities: A Persian Memoir."
(SFC, 7/9/96, p.B4)
1996 Jul 13, Tehran, Iran, has been invaded by thousands of lizards and snakes over the past three months. Military exercises nearby or rising levels of groundwater have been cited as possible reasons.
1996 Aug 12, Iran and Turkey agreed to connect their power networks.
1996 Sep 24, Iran expected delivery of its 3rd Russian-made submarine within 6 months, as part of its navy buildup in the Persian Gulf.
1996 Sep, Iran delivered at least $500,000 to Bosnian Pres. Alija Izetbegovic for his campaign.
1996 Nov 5, Government officials announced that a gas pipeline would begin to be built in March to carry gas from Iran to Turkey.
(SFC, 11/6/96, p.A25)
1996 Dec 5, The Parliament passed legislation that banned the use of foreign words and names in the country. Only Farsi language names would be allowed.
(WSJ, 12/6/96, p.A12)
1996 The US passed the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act (ILSA). It barred US and foreign investments of more than $40 million in the development of Iran’s energy sector.
1997 Feb 1, In Iran 5 people were killed and 44 injured when worshipers stampeded at the entrance to a mosque in Kermanshah.
(SFC, 2/3/97, p.C3)
1997 Feb 4, In northeastern Iran 2 earthquakes with aftershocks killed at least 72 people. Some 43 villages were damaged. Another quake followed the next day.
(SFC, 2/5/97, p.A9)(SFC, 2/6/97, p.A1)
1997 Feb 28, A 6.1 earthquake at Ardebil in northwest Iran struck at 4:27 p.m. local time. The quake damaged 83 villages and killed at least 500 people.
(SFC, 3/1/97, p.C1)(SFEC, 3/2/97, p.A15)
1997 Mar 1, Rescue teams fought snow, high winds and wild dogs as they tried to bring help to an earthquake-devastated region in northwest Iran, where the death toll was estimated at 3,000.
1997 Mar 14, A C-130 military cargo plane crashed near Mashad in northeastern Iran and all 86 people aboard were believed killed.
1997 May 10, A 7.1 earthquake hit in northeastern Iraq centered on the town of Qaen. More than 2,400 people were reported killed. The death toll was reduced to 1,560 with 60,000 left homeless.
(SFEC, 5/11/97, p.A1)(WSJ, 5/12/97, p.A1)(SFC, 5/14/97, p.A10)
1997 May 23, In Iran presidential elections put conservative speaker Ali Akbar Nateq Nouri against left-leaning cleric Mohammad Khatami (54). Former Culture Minister Mohammad Khatemi won in a landslide over hard-liners in the ruling Muslim clergy.
(WSJ, 3/20/97, p.A12)(AP, 5/23/98)(SFEC, 5/25/97, p.1)
1997 Jun 22, Iran and Iraq opened their border after 17 years and asked the UN for an inspection post there, giving Iraq a 4th exit point for its goods.
1997 Jun 27, A Tajikistan formal peace accord was signed in Moscow that was brokered by Russia and Iran. A power sharing arrangement was foreseen between Pres. Emomali Rakhmanov and opposition leader Said Abdullo. The opposition led by the Islamic Renaissance Party (IRPT) was guaranteed 30% of government positions. Up to 150,000 people had been killed in the 5-year civil war.
(WSJ, 6/30/97, p.A11)(SFC, 11/3/00, p.D2)(Econ, 11/11/06, p.50)(Econ., 3/14/15, p.42)
1997 Aug 13, In Tehran Ali Reza Khoshruy Kuran Kordiyeh (“the vampire") was flogged and hung for the rape, murder and burning of 9 women in a crime spree that began in March.
1997 Aug 23, Pres. Khatami appointed the first woman vice-president, Masoumeh Ebtekar, and ended an 18-year ban on commercial flights to Saudi Arabia.
(WSJ, 8/25/97, p.A1)(SFC, 5/28/98, p.A8)
1997 Sep 29, Iranian warplanes bombed anti-Tehran rebel bases inside Iraq.
1997 Sep 29, Turkish planes attacked Kurdish rebel positions in northern Iraq and drove the guerrillas toward the Iran border.
1997 Oct 3, US Defense Sec. William Cohen ordered the Nimitz Carrier Battle Group to the Persian Gulf as a warning to Iran and Iraq to stop incursions into the US-enforced “no-fly" zone in southern Iraq.
(SFC, 10/4/97, p.A8)
1997 Nov, Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri criticized the hard-line religious leadership. The authorities shut him off from contact with supporters.
1997 Dec 8, In Iran leaders of the 55-member Organization of the Islamic Conference gathered to overcome historic divisions and promote Islamic solidarity.
(SFC,12/9/97, p.B3)
1997 Dec 11, The 55-member Organization of the Islamic conference ended their meeting in Iran with the declaration that “the killing of innocents is strictly forbidden in Islam." The group also called for full respect for the dignity and rights of Muslim women and criticized Israel for “state terrorism."
(SFC,12/12/97, p.B2)
1997 Dec 14, Iran's new president, Mohammad Khatami, called for a dialogue with the people of the United States -- a nation reviled by his predecessors as "The Great Satan."
1997 Dec 29, Turkmenistan and Iran activated a key 125 mile gas pipeline. Plans were to make it part of a network to Europe but for now the gas was only bound to northeastern Iran.
1997 The film "Gabbeh" by Mohsen Makhmalbaf was in Farsi and set in southeastern Iran.
1997 The Iranian film "A Moment of Innocence" was shown at the SF Film Festival. It was based on a 1974 incident where the director, Mohsen Makmalbaf, tried to disarm one of the Shah’s police.
1997 The film “Taste of Cherry" was directed by Abbas Kiarostami. It was about a man looking for someone to bury him.
1997 The US State Dept. designated the Iranian National Liberation Army (NLA), the armed wing of the Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK), a terrorist organization.
1997 Iran carried out 199 executions in this year.
1998 Jan 7, Pres. Mohhamad Khatami endorsed cultural relations with the US but no political ties in a preliminary effort to “crack the wall" of hostility between the two countries.
1998 Feb 17, An Iranian crowd cheered as U.S. wrestlers carried the Stars and Stripes into an international meet in Tehran.
1998 Feb, Iran began to close down shipments of illicit Iraqi oil.
1998 Mar 14, In Iran a 6.4 earthquake hit in the southeast and at least 5 people were killed and thousands left homeless.
(SFEC, 3/15/98, p.A22)(AP, 3/14/99)
1998 Apr 2, Iran and Iraq began a war prisoner exchange involving nearly 6000 men, mostly Iraqis.
1998 Apr 4,Gholamhossein Karbaschi, the mayor of Tehran, was arrested by the judiciary on charges of corruption. He was convicted and began a 2 year sentence in May 1999.
(SFC, 4/798, p.A12)(WSJ, 5/7/99, p.A1)
1998 Apr 5, Iran and Iraq exchanged 1,589 prisoners of war, bringing the number to over 4,000. Up to 30,000 prisoners were thought to be held by both sides.
1998 Apr 10, An earthquake in the northeast killed 12 people and left 1,500 homeless in the Khorasan province.
1998 Apr 14, The Clinton administration agreed to create a Persian-language radio service to transmit anti-government propaganda into Iran. $1 million was also pledged to Voice of America for non-propaganda Persian-language programming. Radio Azadi (Radio Liberty) initially broadcast for 3 hours daily from Prague, Czechoslovakia. In 2002 the name was changed to Radio Farda and programming increased to a 24-hour cycle.
(SFC, 4/15/98, p.A12)(WSJ, 6/13/08, p.A10)
1998 Apr 15, Mayor Karbaschi of Tehran was freed from prison on bail.
1998 Apr 22, The UN Commission on Human Rights called on Iran to halt torture, amputations and stonings.
1998 May 15, The population was estimated at 63 million.
1998 Jun 17, In Israel Nahum Manbar, an Israeli businessman, was convicted of endangering security through the sale of $16 million in information and chemical weapons components to Iran. Manbar was sentenced to 16 years in July 1998 for selling materials to make nerve and mustard gas to Iran but insisted he acted with the approval of the Israeli authorities. He had been arrested in March the previous year. He was released from jail in 2011.
(SFC, 6/18/98, p.A20)(AFP, 10/31/11)
1998 Jun 20, Iran reversed its opposition to a UN plan, passed the previous day, permitting Iraq to spend $300 million of revenues from the oil-for-food program to buy spare parts to rebuild its oil industry.
1998 Jun 21, In the soccer World Cup Iran knocked out the US team 2-1.
1998 Jul 11, Mayor Karbaschi gave a 4-hour defense statement at the close of his trial in Tehran. He was accused of misappropriating public funds.
1998 Jul 22, Iran conducted a successful Shahab 3 missile test with a medium-range of 800 miles.
(SFC, 7/23/98, p.A1)(SFEC, 11/1/98, p.A23)
1998 Jul 23, Tehran’s Mayor Karbaschi was convicted and sentenced to 5 years in prison for corruption.
1998 Jul 27, It was reported that Russia and Iran were supporting The Northern Alliance of rebel groups fighting against the Taliban.
1998 Jul, Iraq and Iran agreed to allow 12,000 Iranians to visit shrines in Iraq each month.
1998 Aug 8, The first daily newspaper dedicated to women’s issues, the daily Zan, was launched by Faezeh Hashemi. She was the daughter of former Pres. Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.
(SFEC, 8/9/98, p.A16)
1998 Aug 8, In Afghanistan the Taliban overran Mazar-i-Sharif and killed 9 of 11 diplomats from Iran. 8 of the dead were diplomats, the 9th was a journalist.
(SFC, 9/11/98, p.D4)(SFC, 9/18/98, p.D8)
1998 Sep 2, Iran began war games with 70,000 soldiers near the Afghanistan border.
1998 Sep 10, US wrestler Sam Henson took first place in the World Wrestling Championships in Iran. He defeated Namik Abdullavev of Azerbaijan. Iranians stood for the US anthem for the first time in 19 years.
1998 Sep 22, In NYC Mohammad Khatami, Pres. of Iran, said that the 10-year fatwa (religious edict for the death of Rushdie) dispute over author Salman Rushdie is “completely finished."
(SFC, 9/23/98, p.A11)(SFC, 9/25/98, p.A13)
1998 Sep 28, Two senior Iranian clerics claimed that the $2.5 million reward for Rushdie’s death was a fatwa that must be enforced.
1998 Sep 29, In Iran security officials raided homes and offices of members of the Baha’i faith. It was an effort to shut down the Bahai Institute of Higher Education.
1998 Oct 5, In Iran the Islamic authorities told a group of writers to give up efforts to reactivate an independent association of authors.
1998 Oct 7, It was reported that Mehdi Mozaffari, an Iranian scholar at the Univ. of Aarhus in Denmark, had published “Fatwa: Violence and Discourtesy." He made the case that there was never a true fatwa (religious edict) issued by Ayatollah Khomeini against Salman Rushdie.
1998 Oct 7, The 12-member Guardian Council published the list of candidates eligible to run for the Assembly of Experts. The experts select Iran’s spiritual leader. 126 were approved of 396 who applied for the Oct 23 elections.
(SFC, 10/8/98, p.C16)
1998 Oct 8, Iran border troops claimed a victory and said it inflicted heavy casualties over Taliban militia. The Taliban denied any fighting.
(USAT, 10/9/98, p.14A)
1998 Oct 12, In Iran the Khordad Foundation raised its reward for the killing of Salman Rushdie to $2.8 million.
1998 Oct 23, Voters selected the 86-member Assembly of Experts, who in turn will select the supreme leader of the country. Candidates for the Assembly were tested and graded on Islamic law by the 12-member Council of Guardians, who were in turn appointed by the supreme leader. The turnout was low and Conservatives won at least 54 of the 86 seats.
(WSJ, 10/22/98, p.A1)(SFC, 10/24/98, p.A14)(SFC, 10/26/98, p.A7)
1998 Nov 13, A village was leveled in Fars province and 5 people were killed after 5 strong earthquakes hit the area.
1998 Nov 22, Dariush Forouhar and his wife Parvenah were found stabbed to death in their home in Tehran. He was the leader of the nationalist Iran Nation Party and they were outspoken critics of the Islamic government. In 2000 former agents of the Intelligence Ministry confessed to playing roles in the 1998 killings of 4 writers and dissidents.
(SFC, 11/24/98, p.A14)(SFC, 1/3/01, p.A12)
1998 Dec 7, Pres. Clinton announced the removal of Iran from the list of drug problem countries due to an energetic campaign to eliminate opium poppies.
1998 Dec 9, In Iran the body of Mohammed Mokhtari, a prominent writer missing for a week, was found. It appeared that he was murdered by strangulation. Shortly later Mohammad Jafar Pouyandeh (45), another dissident writer, was reported missing. Pouyandeh was later found murdered.
(SFC, 12/10/98, p.C2)(SFC, 12/11/98, p.A22)(SFC, 12/15/98, p.A14)
1998 Dec 14, Authorities arrested several suspects in the recent string of murders of opposition figures. Pirouz Davani, leader of the United Left, and Rostami Hamedani, an activist with Davani, were reported missing.
1998 Dec 17, US and British forces launched more missiles on the 2nd day of attacks against Iraq. The strikes included some 100 cruise missiles with 2,000 pound warheads. At least 25 people were killed and 75 injured over 2 days. Pres. Boris Yeltsin withdrew the Russian ambassador from Washington and demanded an immediate end to military action. France and Italy expressed strong opposition while Germany rallied to support the US and Britain. A stray US missile hit Khorramshahr, Iran. The US later apologized.
(SFC, 12/18/98, p.A1,3)(SFC, 12/21/98, p.A20)
1998 Dec 21, The World Association of Newspapers awarded the 1999 Golden Pen of Freedom award to exiled Iranian writer Faraj Sarkuhi, former editor of the cultural journal Adineh.
1998 The Iranian film "Children of Heaven" starred Mir Farrokh Hashemian and was directed by Majid Majidi and was nominated for an Oscar
(WSJ, 1/22/99, p.W3)(SFC, 2/5/99, p.C3)(SFEC, 11/28/99, DB p.56)
1998 The Iranian film "The Mirror" starred Mina Mohammad-Khani and was directed by Jafar Panahi. It was about a young girl lost on the streets of Tehran.
1998 The Iranian film "Two Women" was directed by Tahmineh Milani.
1998 Christiane Bird, writer for the NY Daily News, spent 3 months in Iran and in 2001 authored her travelogue “"Neither East Nor West."
(WSJ, 4/27/01, p.W12)
1999 Jan 3, Some 327,000 registered as candidates to the 200,000 local posts for the Feb 26 elections, the first since the 1979 revolution.
1999 Jan 5, In Iran the Intelligence Ministry said that rogue intelligence officers were responsible for 5 killings last year of government critics.
1999 Feb 9, In Iran the head of the intelligence ministry, Qorbanali Dorri-Najafabadi, resigned along with 3 deputies due to last year's killings of dissident writers and politicians.
1999 Feb 11, Pres. Khatami marked the 20th anniversary of the revolution that toppled the shah and called for reduction of tensions with the outside world.
1999 Feb 24, In Iran 3 Kurds died while fighting police during a protest over the capture of Ocalan.
1999 Feb 25, In Iran Pres. Khatami supported 50 candidates that hard-liners attempted to disqualify from local elections.
1999 Feb 26, Elections were planned for cities, towns and village councils. These were the first elections since the 1979 revolution.
(WSJ, 12/29/98, p.A1)
1999 Mar 11, Pope John Paul II met with Mohammad Khatami of Iran.
1999 Apr 10, In Iran Gen'l. Ali Sayyad Shirazi, deputy chief of the joint staff command of the Iranian armed forces, was gunned down in front of his home in Tehran by men dressed as city cleaners. The murder was attributed to terrorists, a euphemism for the opposition Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK). In 2007 French judicial authorities said they have the authority to investigate the case because the political wing of the People's Mujahedeen is based in Auvers-Sur-Oise, north of Paris.
1999 Apr 22, The Parliament began proceedings to impeach culture minister Ayatollah Mohajerani for excessive media freedom.
1999 Apr 28, The US announced that it would allow US firms to sell food and medicine to Iran, Sudan and Libya.
1999 Apr, 13 members of the Jewish community in Fars province were detained on charges of spying for the US and Israel.
1999 May 7, A series of earthquakes hit southern Iran and at least 26 people were killed in Fars province.
(SFC, 5/8/99, p.C14)
1999 May 12, Pres. Khatami began a tour of the Arab world with a visit to Syria.
1999 May 14, Pres. Khatami arrived in Saudi Arabia. He was the first Iranian leader to visit there since 1979.
1999 May 17, In Iran the judiciary set a $20,000 legal limit on the diyeh (blood money), the amount a killer can pay to a victim's family to avoid execution.
(SFC, 5/18/99, p.C12)
1999 May 18, Britain and Iran agreed to exchange ambassadors for the 1st time in 20 years.
1999 May 26, It was reported that the Iranian Parliament had earlier this year reauthorized Pres. Khatami's $100 million annual budget to support radical groups opposed to the Middle East peace process.
1999 Jun 10, In Iraq a truck bomb killed 6 members of an Iraq-based Iranian opposition group, the Mujahadeen-e Khalq (MEK), which recently claimed to have killed a top general in Tehran.
1999 Jun 11, Iraq accused Iran of firing 3 Scud-B missiles on the Ashraf camp of the Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK) guerrilla group, located 50 miles from the Iranian border.
1999 Jun 11, Ayatollah Mohammad Yazi told worshipers that the world should pay him heed as the highest justice official in Iran and that 13 Iranian Jews would be tried under Islamic law for treason.
1999 Jun 21, It was reported that Saeed Ememi, a central suspect in a series of murders of Iranian intellectuals and dissidents, had committed suicide in jail.
1999 Jun 23, Iran announced that it had set up a $128 million fund for compensations to dispossessed owners of large plants seized in 1979. Property of the former royal Pahlavi family and 50 others was not included.
1999 Jul 7, In Iran the parliament approved general outlines for new press restrictions.
1999 Jul 9, In Iran police and vigilantes attacked a student rally protesting a ban of the daily Salam in Tehran.
1999 Jul 10, In Iran some 25,000 gather to protest against Ayatollah Ali Khomenei in Tehran.
1999 Jul 11, In Iran some 10,000 students demonstrated in Tehran with protests in other major cities. Two security chiefs responsible for the raid on a student dormitory, that prompted the demonstrations, were fired.
1999 Jul 12, In Iran student protests spread to 18 cities across the country. In Tehran security forces and fundamentalist vigilantes emptied Tehran Univ. in a campaign to crush the demonstrations.
1999 Jul 13, In Tehran police fired tear gas at thousands of protesters as street battles spread across the city. Tens of thousands of security forces countered the protesters.
1999 Jul 14, Iranian hard-liners answered a week of pro-democracy rallies with one of their own, sending 100,000 people into the streets of Tehran.
1999 Jul 17, In Iran the Select Council of Sit-In Students called off student protests and faxed a communiqué to news organizations calling for meetings with government leaders.
1999 Jul 17, The front page of the Economist featured a photograph of Ahmad Batebi (21), an Iranian student, holding aloft a T-shirt bespattered with the blood of a fellow protester. He was soon arrested and told “you have signed your death warrant." A global outcry reduced his sentence to 15 years. In 2008 he escaped to Iraq and then moved to America.
1999 Jul 18, British ambassador Nick Browne presented his credentials to Pres. Khatami following a decade-long break in relations.
(SFC, 7/19/99, p.A12)(SFC, 2/9/02, p.A9)
1999 Jul 19, In Iran the secret police alleged that student leader Manouchehr Mohammadi had confessed to serving US-based "spies and Zionists."
1999 Jul 22, In Iran The Culture and Islamic Guidance Ministry moved against 3 newspapers for printing a secret letter from the Revolutionary Guards warning that their patience with "insults against the system" was running out.
1999 Jul 27, The US eased sanctions against Iran, Libya and Sudan to allow the sale of food, medicine and medical equipment.
1999 Aug 4, In Iran the daily Salam newspaper was banned for 5 years and publisher Mousavi-Khoeiniha was barred from journalism.
1999 Aug 13, Iran agreed under pressure to join Turkey for simultaneous military operations against the PKK.
1999 Oct 7, In Iran the Asr-e Azadegan began publishing. It replaced the Neshat, which was closed by conservative clerics after 149 editions.
(SFEC, 10/10/99, p.A26)
1999 Nov 2, In southeastern Iraq a missile hit the Habib camp of the dissident Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK) near the border. At least 5 people were killed and Iran was blamed for the attack.
1999 Nov 4, Some ten-thousand Iranian students rallied outside the former US Embassy in Tehran to mark the 20th anniversary of its seizure by Islamic militants.
1999 Nov 12, A clerical jury found Abdollah Nouri, a former interior minister and director of the Khordad newspaper, guilty on 15 counts of sacrilegious articles and insulting the government.
1999 Nov 21, Afghanistan and Iran resumed trade following recently imposed UN restrictions on Afghanistan.
1999 Nov 27, In Iran Muslim reform cleric Abdollah Nouri was sentenced to 5 years in jail and 5 years banishment from political activity due to his demands for an end to authoritarian rule by the religious hierarchy. His Khordad newspaper was also ordered closed.
1999 Dec 13, Morteza Amini Moqadam (17) stabbed to death Hadi Mohebbi (22) in a quarrel about smoking in public. Moqadam was convicted of murder and sentenced to be hanged Jan 2, but Mohebbi's father told authorities to spare his life just before the execution.
1999 Dec 26, In Iran members of the opposition Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK) crossed from Iraq and attacked Republican Guard barracks in Khuzestan.
1999 Dec 31, In Iran Supreme Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called for the destruction of Israel during demonstrations for "Al-Quds Day." Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem.
1999 The Iranian film "The Apple" was directed by Samira Makhmalbaf (18). It was about twin sisters confined to their home since birth.
(SFC, 3/26/99, p.C6)(SFEC, 4/23/00, DB p.52)
1999 The documentary film "Divorce Iranian Style" was directed by Kim Longinotto and Ziba Mir-Hosseini. It was filmed in a Tehran family court.
(SFC, 5/24/99, p.D3)(SFC, 5/28/99, p.C6)
1999 The documentary film "Friendly Persuasion" was about Iranian film.
1999 The Iranian film "Leila" starred Leila Hatami and Ali Mosaffa. It was directed by Dariush Mehrjui. It was about domestic life in contemporary Tehran.
(SFC, 12/17/99, p.C14)
1999 The Iranian film "Sweet Agony" was a comedy about a camera crew filming a dysfunctional family and premiered at the Fajr Film Festival.
2000 Jan 11, Britain and Iran signed a joint declaration to fight terrorism and drug trafficking, promote trade and strengthen ties.
2000 Feb 5, In Iran a mortar attack struck the Golbang publishing house in Tehran near government offices. One person was killed and at least 4 injured. The attack was presumed to be the work of the Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK).
2000 Feb 18, In Iran parliamentary elections were scheduled. Voters elected reform candidates to at least 60% of the 290-member Majlis (parliament).
(SFC, 2/16/00, p.A8)(SFEC, 2/20/00, p.A24)
2000 Mar 12, In Iran Saeed Hajjarian, a member of the municipal council of Tehran and a supporter of Pres. Khatami, was shot and wounded by gunmen on a motorcycle.
2000 Mar 24, A US federal judge ordered Iran to pay Terry Anderson $341 million for his seven years of captivity.
2000 Mar 29, Iran joined the OPEC oil increase to keep its market share.
2000 Apr 22, Iran arrested reporter Akbar Ganji and charged him with spreading propaganda against the Islamic system. He is author of the best-selling book “Dungeon of Ghosts," a collection of his newspaper articles published in early 2000, in which he implicated the former president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, and other leading conservative figures in the "serial murders" of five writers and intellectuals in 1998.
(SSFC, 10/23/05, p.E3)
2000 Apr 23, In Iran 5 liberal publications were shut down and Latif Safari, director of the banned Neshat daily, was jailed.
2000 Apr 27, In Iran Islamic hard-liners closed 3 more newspapers, including the daily run by the brother of Pres. Khatami.
2000 May 1, In Iran Hamid Tefileen, one of 13 Jewish men arrested for espionage, was displayed on TV and admitted to being paid $500 a month by Israeli intelligence, Mossad.
2000 May 3, In Iran 2 more Iranian Jews admitted, while on trial, that they had spied for Israel.
2000 May 5, Parliamentary runoff elections were held.
2000 May 8, Two more Iranian Jews confessed to spying for Israel.
2000 May 16, In Iran the Hammihan daily, a major reformist newspaper, was shut down on 17 counts of press law violations.
2000 May 18, The World Bank approved 2 loans for Iran totaling $232 million.
2000 May 20, The 12-member Council of Guardians declared that 26 reformers were winners in the Feb elections along with 2 nonreformers.
(SFEC, 5/21/00, p.B11)
2000 May, The Iranian embassy in Vienna granted refuge to Holocaust denier Wolfgang Frohlich.
(www.adl.org/presrele/holocaustdenial_83/3756_83.asp)
2000 Jun 5, Houshang Golshiri (63), writer and free speech advocate, died. His novels included “Prince Ehtejab" and “King of the Benighted." His work was not allowed to be published from 1982-1997.
(SFC, 6/13/00, p.F3)
2000 Jun 11, A former hard-liner who has recently favored democratic reforms was elected as the speaker of Iran's first reformist-dominated parliament in more than 20 years.
2000 Jun 17, Thousands of dead fish were reported to be spread over 5,400 acres of the dried up Arjang Lagoon, near the city of Shiraz, due to a 2-year drought.
2000 Jul 1, In Iran a justice officials said 3 of 13 Jews tried on charges for spying were acquitted and that 10 were sentenced to fines, lashes and jail terms from 4 to 13 years. An appeals court later annulled 2 of the 3 convictions against the defendants and reduce their jail terms.
(SFC, 7/1/00, p.A13)(SFEC, 7/2/00, p.A7)(SFC, 9/22/00, p.A17)
2000 Jul 8, A student march to mark a bloody rally one year ago turned violent as police charged thousands of students in Tehran.
(SFEC, 7/9/00, p.C11)
2000 Jul 15, Iran test-fired an upgraded version of its 800-mil range, Shabab-3 missile.
(SFEC, 7/16/00, p.B9)
2000 Jul 23, Ahmad Shamlou, playwright, journalist and poet, died at age 74.
2000 Aug 5, It was reported that at least 1000 dogs were reported killed in Tehran over the last month. Islam regarded dogs as impure.
2000 Aug 7, The daily Bahar newspaper was closed by the hard-line judiciary for “disturbing public opinion."
2000 Aug 12, Ebrahim Nabavi was jailed by judge Saeed Mortazavi of the hard-line press court, as he was being honored as a top satirist.
2000 Aug 13, Mohammad Ghoochani, political writer, was jailed one day after receiving honors as the best political writer.
2000 Aug 27, Fighting between students and hard-liners in Khorramabad left a police officer dead.
(SFC, 8/30/00, p.B10)
2000 Sep 21, An Iranian appeals court reduced the prison terms for 10 Jews convicted of “cooperating" with Israel, in a case that had drawn international criticism.
2000 Nov 17, Jurgen Graf, prominent Swiss revisionist author, arrived in Iran. He fled his homeland rather than serve a 15-month prison sentence for "Holocaust denial."
(www.ihr.org/conference/beirutconf/background.html)
2000 Dec 28, Iran and Russia announced an expanded military and security partnership.
2000 Gelareh Asayesh authored "Saffron Sky: A Life Between Iran and America."
2000 Persis M. Karin and Mohammad Mehdi Khorrami edited "A World Between: Poems, Short Stories, and Essays by Iranian-Americans.
2000 Zia Atabay founded National Iranian Television in Los Angeles (NITV). He targeted 75 million Iranians world-wide, including an estimated 25 million households with satellite dishes in Iran.
2000 US legislation called the Iran Nonproliferation Act went into effect. By 2005 it impacted the Int’l. Space Station project due to Russian weapons trade with Iran.
2001 Jan 27, The Iran Republic news Agency reported that 3 intelligence agents were sentenced to death and 12 others to life in prison for their roles in murdering dissident writers and intellectuals.
(SSFC, 1/28/01, p.A22)
2001 Mar 12, Russia and Iran signed agreements in Moscow to increase their military and economic cooperation.
2001 Mar 18, The judiciary banned the nation’s only real opposition group and closed down 4 pro-reform newspapers.
2001 Mar 20, Now-Ruz, the traditional Afghan New Year, passed without fanfare. The holiday is also observed in Iran.
2001 Apr 7, In Tehran 40-42 people were arrested including members of the opposition Freedom Movement. The Revolutionary Court said some were linked to the Iraq-based Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK).
2001 Apr 16, Iran and Saudi Arabia signed a pact to fight terrorism and drug trafficking.
2001 Apr 18, Iran launched 56 Scud missiles against an Iraq-based opposition group. At least 3 People’s Mujahedeen- Khalq (MEK) camps were hit.
2001 May 6, In Sari, Iran, the Mottaqi stadium grandstand collapsed and killed several people with hundreds injured.
2001 May 17, A plane crashed in Khorasan province and at least 29 people were killed. The dead included Rahman Dadman, the transport minister, and 7 members of parliament.
2001 May 20, A power failure by Tavanir, the state-owned utility, left almost the whole country without electricity for several hours.
2001 May 20, In Tehran a woman was stoned to death after her conviction for acting in pornographic films was upheld by the Supreme Court.
2001 Jun 8, In Iran Pres. Khatami was elected to a 2nd term with nearly 77% of the vote.
(SFC, 6/9/01, p.A8)(SFC, 6/11/01, p.A10)
2001 Jul 23, In Iran a 19th woman was reported strangled in Mashad.
(DFP, 7/24/01, p.3A)
2001 Aug 2, Pres. Khatami was confirmed for a 2nd 4-year term.
(SSFC, 8/5/01, p.A14)
2001 Aug 8, Pres. Khatami was sworn in as president. Political in-fighting with conservatives delayed the ceremony by 3 days.
2001 Aug 12, Flash floods followed heavy rains and at least 181 people were killed. Kalaleh in Golestan province was the hardest hit.
(SFC, 8/13/01, p.A12)(WSJ, 8/14/01, p.A1)
2001 Aug 30, Riots left 2 people dead in Sabzevar after the town failed to win provincial-capital status.
(WSJ, 8/31/01, p.)
2001 Aug 26, Film director Tahmineh Milani was arrested on charges of supporting counterrevolutionary and armed opposition groups. A relative said it was due to her stand on the clerical oppression of women.
(WSJ, 8/31/01, p.A1)(SFC, 9/1/01, p.A10)
2001 Sep 15, Iran ordered its security forces to seal off its 560-mile border with Afghanistan due to terrorist attacks in the US.
(SSFC, 9/16/01, p.A7)
2001 Sep 21-Oct 2, In Tehran Iran’s Revolutionary Guards opened the First Universal Exhibition of Sacred Culture and Defense with a theme of Islamic revolution and holy war. It commemorated the 21st anniversary of the war with Iraq.
2001 Oct 2, In Russia Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov signed a weapons framework agreement with Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani for as much as $300 million.
2001 Oct 12, Iran defeated Iraq 1-0 in a soccer match. Demonstrations erupted after the game against the Shiite theocracy and continued following successive soccer matches. At least 2 thousand young people were arrested over the next 2 weeks.
2001 Dec 16, Abdullah Ramezanzadeh, a Cabinet Secretary, was sentenced to 6 months in jail for “spreading lies" against the conservative Guardian council.
(SFC, 12/18/01, p.A7)(WSJ, 12/17/01, p.A1)
2001 Dec 25, Hossein Loqmanian, was jailed for 10 months for “insulting the judiciary." He was freed Jan 15 following a walkout by the legislature.
2001 Reza Pahlavi, son of the late Shah, launched a campaign for secular democracy via satellite from NITV in Los Angeles.
2002 Jan 8, Iran’s Revolutionary Court began the closed door trial of 15 men charged with plotting to overthrow the Islamic system
2002 Jan 27, Iran’s Pres. Khatami met with Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri in Tehran as part of an effort to restore ties.
2002 Jan 29, Pres. Bush made his 1st State of the Union address and declared that the “war against terror is only beginning." Bush singled out Iran, Iraq and North Korea as an “axis of evil."
(SFC, 1/30/02, p.A1)(SFC, 1/31/02, p.A1)
2002 Feb 4, Israeli PM Peres said Iran had put elite forces into Lebanon and had supplied Hezbollah with 10,000 rockets with ranges of 13-44 miles.
2002 Feb 12, An Iran Air Tours Tupelov Tu-154 crashed into the Sefid Kouh mountains near Khorramabad killing all 119 on board.
(SFC, 2/13/02, p.A12)(AP, 2/11/03)
2002 Apr 5, Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei urged Islamic oil-producing countries to suspend oil exports for a month to countries supporting Israel.
2002 Apr, The UN voted to remove Iran from the list of countries assigned to a special investigator to watch on human rights abuses.
2002 May 21, The US State Dept issued its annual report on terrorism: “Patterns of Global Terrorism 2001." Iran was branded as the most active supporter of terrorism due to increased support for Palestinian militants.
2002 Jun 22, A powerful earthquake in northern Iran killed at least 500 people and injured 1,500, razing dozens of mountain villages whose mud-brick homes crumbled to dust.
(Reuters, 6/22/02)(Reuters, 6/23/02)(AP, 6/22/03)
2002 Jun, Iran transferred 16 al Qaeda suspects to Saudi Arabia.
2002 Jul 19, Tens of thousands of Iranians took to the streets of the capital condemning President Bush for criticizing their government with calls of "Death to America" and "Death to Bush."
2002 Jul 27, In Iran a hard-line court outlawed the leading reform-minded opposition party, the Freedom Movement, and gave its leaders jail terms of up to 10 years and fines of more than $6,000. The court said Freedom Movement leaders acted against national security with the intention of "overthrowing the establishment."
2002 Aug 1, In Iran the Education Ministry relaxed dress codes for girls in all-female schools for the 1st time in 23 years.
2002 Aug 12, In northeastern Iran torrential rains began and at least 35 people were drowned in flash floods that washed away roads and swamped farm land.
2002 Aug 25, Iran's parliament approved a bill giving women the right to sue for divorce, a similar right already guaranteed for men.
2002 Sep 1, Some 600 Russian specialists began work on a key phase of an $800 million project to build a nuclear reactor at Bushehr, Iran.
2002 Sep 6, Iran reported the successful test fire of a Fateh 110 A ballistic missile.
2002 Nov 6, In Iran University professor Hashem Aghajari, was sentenced to death on charges of insulting Islam's prophet and questioning the hard-line clergy's interpretation of Islam. He was also was sentenced to 74 lashes, banned from teaching for 10 years and exiled to three remote Iranian cities for 8 years. The death sentence was overturned in 2003 and reimposed May 3, 2004. The 2nd death sentence was again overturned. Aghajari was released on bail July 31, 2004.
(AP, 11/7/02)(WSJ, 5/5/04, p.A1)(AP, 7/3/04)(SSFC, 8/1/04, p.A16)
2002 Nov 12, Thousands of Iranian students ignored official warnings and demonstrated for the fourth day running against a dissident's death sentence and to demand freedom of speech and political reform.
(Reuters, 11/12/02)
2002 Dec 23, In central Iran a Ukrainian An-140 aircraft, carrying Ukrainian and Russian aerospace scientists from Turkey, flew into a mountainside while preparing to land killing all 46 people on board. Airport officials said pilot "carelessness" caused the plane to crash.
2002 Dec 30, A fire broke out in an Iranian prison, killing 27 prisoners and injuring 50 others.
2002 Majid Majidi released his film “Baran" in the US. It portrayed Afghan refugees in Iran.
2002 In Iran Shahla Jahed, who had become what is known as a "temporary wife" of former soccer star Nasser Mohammad Khani, was charged with stabbing his wife, Laleh Saharkhizan, to death and convicted of murder in 2004 and again in 2009, after her appeal was denied. She was hanged on Dec 1, 2010.
2003 Jan 4, In southern Iran a bus carrying university students overturned on a rain-slick road, killing 15 people and injuring 18 others.
2003 Jan 14, In northeastern Iran 2 buses collided in bad weather, killing 22 passengers and injuring 40. Transportation Ministry figures show that more than 19,000 people were killed in road accidents in 2001.
2003 Feb 9, Iran reported the discovery of uranium reserves and planned production facilities for peaceful use of nuclear energy.
2003 Feb 19, An Iranian military plane carrying 275 members of the elite Revolutionary Guards crashed in southeastern Iran, killing all on board.
(WSJ, 2/20/03, p.A1)(AP, 2/19/08)
2003 Mar 4, Iran called for UN-supervised elections in neighboring Iraq and urged the divided Iraqi opposition to reconcile with Pres. Saddam Hussein as part of a plan aimed at averting a US-led war on Iraq.
2003 Mar 8, An Argentine judge asked Interpol to arrest four Iranian diplomats, accusing them of responsibility in a deadly terrorist attack that destroyed a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires in 1994.
2003 Mar 31, In Tehran, Iran, a pickup truck with extra fuel crashed into the British Embassy in an apparent suicide attack. Police called it an accident.
2003 Mar, In 2007 British media reported that Iran had offered to cut off aid and support for the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah and the Palestinian group Hamas, and promised full transparency on its nuclear program in a secret letter to the US soon after the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Iran also offered to use its influence to support stabilization in Iraq, and in return asked for a halt in hostile American behaviour, an abolition of all sanctions, and the pursuit and repatriation of members of the Mujahedeen Khalq (People's Mujahedeen MKO). Lawrence Wilkerson, former chief of staff to Colin Powell, said: “As soon as it got to the Vice-President's (Dick Cheney) office, the old mantra of 'we don't talk to evil' ... reasserted itself."
(AFP, 1/18/07)
2003 Apr 8, A US errant rocket struck in Iran near the Iraqi border and killed a 13-year-old boy.
2003 Apr 11, Amnesty International said at least 1,526 people were executed worldwide last year, with 80 percent of all known executions carried out in China (1,060), Iran (113) and the United States (71).
(Reuters, 4/11/03)
2003 May 24, In Iran some 130 reformist lawmakers called on Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to accept democratic reforms for the ruling establishment to survive.
2003 Jun 10, In Iran riot police and hard-line vigilantes clashed with teenage demonstrators who denounced supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
2003 Jun 13, In Iran anti-government demonstrations took place for the third night in Tehran.
2003 Jun 14, Iran's hard-line judiciary arrested "scores" of pro-clergy militants, including a vigilante leader, over attacks on a Tehran student dormitory sparked by attacks on pro-reform supporters.
2003 Jun 19, In France more Iranians set themselves on fire to protest a crackdown on an Iraq-based anti-Tehran group. Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the People's Mujahedeen Organization of Iran, was among 150 people detained in a sweep of their European headquarters in suburban Paris by hundreds of masked police this month. Most of those detained were let go. In 2011 French investigators dropped terror charges against 24 members of the group.
2003 Jun 20, In Iran student protests against Ayatollah Ali Khamenei spread to at least 8 other cities.
2003 Jun 23, In Iran Zahra Kazemi (54), a Montreal-based journalist, was detained after taking pictures of Tehran's notorious Evin prison. She died Jul 11 of brain hemorrhage from inflicted blows. Iran later admitted that she was murdered while under police custody. Her family sought $14 million in damages, but a 1985 Canadian law held that foreign states are immune from the jurisdiction of Canadian courts.
(AP, 7/13/03)(SFC, 7/17/03, p.A7)(WSJ, 7/31/03, p.A1)(SSFC, 12/6/09, p.A26)
2003 Jul 8, Ladan and Laleh Bijani (29), Iranian twin sisters, joined at the head, died within 90 minutes of each other as neurosurgeons in Singapore worked into a 3rd day to separate them.
(AP, 7/7/03)(AP, 7/8/03)
2003 Jul 11, In Iran Zahra Kazemi (54), a Montreal-based journalist, died of brain hemorrhage from inflicted blows. [see Jun 23] Iran later admitted that she was murdered while under police custody. In 2004 a closed trial was held for a secret agent charged with the murder. Mohammad Reza Aghdam Ahmadi pleaded innocent on July 17 and the trial was abruptly ended the next day. The Tehran court acquitted Ahmadi.
(AP, 7/13/03)(SFC, 7/17/03, p.A7)(WSJ, 7/31/03, p.A1)(SFC, 7/19/04, p.A8)(AP, 7/25/04)
2003 Jul 23, Iran acknowledged that it was holding senior al Qaeda figures, but would not identify them.
2003 cAug 17, Iranians in Semirom clashed with police over consolidation of the central city with less-affluent Shahreza. 8 people were left dead.
2003 Sep 17, Iran's leading dissident cleric, Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, criticized the country's hard-line Islamic leaders, saying they should submit to elections and allow the country's young people to choose their future.
2003 Sep 27, In western Iran a bus plunged from a mountain road into a river, killing 21 passengers and injuring 11.
2003 Oct 10, Human rights activist Shirin Ebadi (56) won the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize. It was the first peace prize for an Iranian, and first for a Muslim woman.
2003 Oct 18, In Iran 6 Islamic vigilantes were sentenced to death for killing five people for allegedly having illicit sexual relationships. Judge Abdolreza Parvizi said he ordered the men to be hanged in public for the 2002 deaths of three men and two women in the city of Kerman.
2003 Oct 21, Iran agreed to snap UN inspections of its nuclear sites and to freeze uranium enrichment.
(AP, 10/21/03)(SFC, 10/22/03, p.A3)
2003 Nov 9, In central Iran a crowded bus collided with a truck and a second truck then smashed into the wreckage of the two vehicles, killing 36 people and wounding 7 others.
2003 Nov 10, A top Iranian official said that his country had suspended its enrichment of uranium and sent a letter to the IAEA accepting additional inspections of its nuclear facilities.
2003 Nov 26, The UN nuclear watchdog agency, IAEA, condemned Iran over an 18-year cover-up of its nuclear energy program and said future violations of non-proliferation obligations would not be tolerated.
2003 Nov 26, Ayatollah Sadeq Khalkhali (77), a judge known for sentencing hundreds of people to death following Iran's revolution, died.
(AP, 11/27/03)(Econ, 12/13/03, p.86)
2003 Dec 5, Hard-line vigilantes attacked a close aide to Iran's president as he was about to give a speech, repeatedly punching and kicking him, his wife.
2003 Dec 8, Three tourists were kidnapped in southeastern Iran while cycling from the historical city of Bam to Zahedan. Drug smugglers demanded $6 million in ransom.
2003 Dec 10, The presidents of Egypt and Iran met for the 1st time since 1979. Iran's rulers authorized the signing of a UN nuclear deal.
2003 Dec 10, The Nobel Prize awards ceremony were held in Sweden and Norway. Iranian democracy activist Shirin Ebadi, the first Muslim woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, accepted the award in Oslo, Norway.
(AP, 12/10/03)(AP, 12/10/08)
2003 Dec 18, Iran signed a key accord opening its nuclear facilities to unfettered and unannounced inspections.
2003 Dec 26, A 6.6 earthquake devastated the southeastern Iranian city of Bam, 630 miles southeast of the capital Tehran. It leveled more than half the city's houses and its historic mud-brick fortress. Some 31,000 people were killed and over 10,000 injured. Iran appealed for international help and promised to waive visas for foreign relief workers.
(AP, 12/27/03)(SFC, 12/30/03, p.A3)(AP, 1/2/04)(AP, 12/26/04)(AFP, 8/12/12)
2003 Dec 27, Governments around the world rushed medical experts, rescue teams, water-purification systems and tea to the earthquake-ravaged Iranian city of Bam.
2003 Geneive Abdo and Jonathan Lyons authored “Answering Only to God: Faith and Freedom in Twenty-First Century Iran."
(SSFC, 3/16/03, p.M4)
2004 Jan 1, Iranian officials welcomed America's temporary lifting of sanctions against the Persian state following the country's earthquake, and the foreign minister said the embargo should end permanently.
2004 Jan 3, In Iran rescuers pulled Sharbanou Mazandarani (97) from the rubble at Ban, 9 days following the earthquake, as the death toll rose to about 35,000.
2004 Jan 6, Egypt and Iran agreed to restore diplomatic ties sundered in 1979.
2004 Jan 7, In Iran a 57-year-old man was pulled from the rubble of Ban's earthquake, barely conscious but still alive because he had a source of water during the 13 days he was buried. He died 4 days later.
2004 Jan 11, In Iran the 12-member Guardian Council, which comprises conservatives picked by Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, disqualified about 900 of the 1,700 people who wanted to contest seats in Tehran have been disqualified. About 90 lawmakers began gathering in the lobby of the legislature for five hours daily in a sit-in demonstration after the Guardian Council barred the candidates from the Feb. 20 elections.
(AP, 1/12/04)(AP, 1/14/04)
2004 Jan 20, In Iran Hard-line authorities said they were reinstating 200 candidates barred from running in next month's legislative elections and will reconsider the cases of thousands more after fierce opposition from reformists who threatened to boycott the vote.
2004 Jan 21, Most of Iran's ministers and vice presidents submitted resignations to protest the barring of thousands of would-be candidates from upcoming elections. The Guardian Council had just reinstated 200 of the disqualified candidates and said it would reconsider the rest.
2004 Jan 27, In Malaysia an Iranian asylum seeker set himself on fire in an apparent suicide attempt outside the Kuala Lumpus headquarters of the UN refugee agency.
2004 Jan 30, Iran's hard-line Guardian Council reinstated a third of the candidates it had disqualified from next month's legislative elections.
2004 Feb 1, More than a third of the Iranian parliament resigned and the speaker delivered a stinging rebuke to the hard-line Guardian Council for its disqualification of hundreds of liberal candidates in upcoming elections.
2004 Feb 18, In Neyshabur, northeastern Iran, a 51-car train, carrying fuel, fertilizer and industrial chemicals, derailed and exploded. It rolled out of a switchyard and eventually reach a speed of more than 90 mph before it derailed, caught fire and exploded. The explosions destroyed five villages killing at least 200 people and injuring hundreds more.
2004 Feb 19, A Japanese consortium announced it will develop an Iranian oil field with reserves of up to 26 billion barrels. The deal was opposed by the United States because of fears the money could go to nuclear proliferation.
2004 Feb 20, In Iran Islamic hard-liners and reformers dueled during parliamentary elections.
2004 Feb 21, Iran's hard-line Islamic rulers claimed that voters dealt reformers a decisive blow with a strong turnout in disputed parliament elections, but partial returns suggested the pro-reform boycott had an impact.
2004 Feb 22, In Iran hard-line Islamic candidates appeared likely to take control in the liberal stronghold of Tehran and held a wide lead nationwide after parliamentary elections from which hundreds of liberal candidates were barred.
2004 Feb 23, In Iran conservatives formally reclaimed control of parliament after disputed elections that were boycotted by reformists who called the vote a "historical fiasco" without free choice.
2004 Mar 13 Iran froze inspections of its nuclear facilities after the U.N. atomic agency censured Tehran for hiding suspect activities. Tehran relented two days later.
2004 Mar 15, Iran relented and decided to allow a visit at the end of this month, after temporarily freezing out international nuclear inspectors.
2004 Apr 5, In northeastern Iran an oil tanker truck and a passenger bus collided, killing 30 people and injuring 27.
2004 Apr 15, Gunmen killed a high-ranking Iranian diplomat in Baghdad.
2004 Apr 21, The Iranian film “Marmulak" (Lizard) premiered. It was a comedy about a fugitive criminal disguised as a mullah.
2004 Apr 28, Iran's Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi ordered a ban on the use of torture for obtaining confessions.
2004 May 28, An earthquake damaged homes in northern Iran. The toll from a 6.2 earthquake reached 36 dead with 250 people injured.
2004 May 29, In Iran the Gov. Masoud Emami of Qazvin province was killed along with 7 others when their helicopter crashed while surveying earthquake damage.
2004 May, The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) closed down the new Tehran airport to protest a government decision to ask a consortium of foreigners (Turks) to run it.
2004 Jun 5, Iranian officials said police had killed at least 58 drug smugglers and confiscated more than 50 tons of narcotics in the past two months.
2004 Jun 12, Iran said it would reject international restrictions on its nuclear program and challenged the world to accept Tehran as a member of the "nuclear club."
2004 Jun 18, The U.N. atomic watchdog agency censured Iran for past cover-ups in its nuclear program in a resolution, warning Tehran to be more forthcoming.
2004 Jun 21, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, known as Pasdaran, confiscated three British military vessels and arrested eight armed crew members in the Shatt al-Arab waterway. The men were released 2 days later.
(AP, 6/21/04)(SFC, 6/24/04, p.A12)(Econ, 4/7/07, p.24)
2004 Jun 24, In southern Iran a tanker truck carrying gasoline crashed into packed buses and erupted in flames, killing 71 people. 108 people were injured, many suffering severe burns.
2004 Jun 28, Iran’s Deputy Interior Minister Ali Asghar Ahmadi said two Iranian soldiers and eight rebels were killed in clashes with Kurds. A pro-Kurdish news agency said 16 soldiers and four rebels died.
2004 Jul 8, Iranian troops killed two Turkish Kurdish rebels in clashes close to the Iraqi border, amid reports of a major offensive by Tehran on Ankara's behalf.
2004 Jul 13, A confidant of Osama bin Laden (Khaled bin Ouda bin Mohammed al-Harby) surrendered to Saudi diplomats in Iran and was flown to Saudi Arabia.
2004 Jul 14, Canada pulled its ambassador from Iran, which refused to admit observers to the trial of a policeman over a Canadian journalist’s fatal beating.
2004 Jul 20, In Iran a prominent history professor twice condemned to death on blasphemy charges was informed of a three year jail sentence for insulting Islamic sacred beliefs.
2004 Jul 24, A Tehran court acquitted the sole defendant in the July 10, 2003, murder of an Iranian-Canadian photojournalist. Mohammad Reza Aghdam Ahmadi had pleaded innocent on July 17 and the trial was abruptly ended the next day.
2004 Jul 28, Iran's judiciary claimed that an Iranian-Canadian photojournalist died (Jul 10, 2003) in custody from a fall after her blood pressure dropped during a hunger strike.
2004 Aug 17, Iran said it would destroy Israel's Dimona nuclear reactor if the Jewish state were to attack Iran's nuclear facilities.
2004 Aug, In Khoramabad, Iran, 2 men were hanged for adultery. In 2005 the National Council of Resistance of Iran showed video footage of the event in England. It was shot by an opponent of the government.
2004 Sep 1, The U.N. atomic watchdog agency said Iran has announced plans to turn tons of uranium into a substance that can be used to make nuclear weapons.
2004 Sep 18, The UN atomic watchdog agency demanded Iran suspend all uranium enrichment activities and set a November timetable for compliance.
2004 Sep 21, Iran revealed that it started converting tons of raw uranium as part of a process that could be used to make nuclear arms.
2004 Oct 4, Iranian President Mohammad Khatami arrived in Khartoum to start a three-day visit to Sudan.
2004 Oct 5, Iran said its missiles now have a range of more than 1,200 miles, a substantial extension of their previously declared range.
2004 Oct 12, Iranian vice president Mohammad Ali Abtahi, who was a close ally of reformist President Mohammad Khatami, resigned, saying he could not work with the conservative-dominated parliament.
2004 Oct 28, China and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding for an oil and gas agreement worth tens of billions of dollars.
2004 Oct 31, Iran's parliament unanimously approved the outline of a bill that would require the government to resume uranium enrichment.
2004 Oct, In Iran Muhammad Bijeh was sentenced to death for the rape and murder of some 20 boys, mostly rural migrants and Afghan refugees.
2004 Nov 1, UN nuclear agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei urged Iran to suspend uranium enrichment and called on North Korea to dismantle its weapons program.
2004 Nov 2, State-run Indian Oil Corp (IOC), the country's largest refiner, said it had signed an agreement with Iran's Petropars to bid for a $3 billion project to develop a gas field and set up a liquefaction plant in Iran.
2004 Nov 7, Iran and European nations reached a preliminary agreement about Iran's nuclear program at talks hoped to avoid a U.N. showdown. The UK, France and Germany persuaded Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment program.
(AP, 11/7/04)(WSJ, 2/8/05, p.A1)
2004 Nov 15, The UN atomic watchdog agency gave its support to Iran's agreement to suspend all uranium enrichment activities.
2004 Dec 19, The Iranian Red Crescent Society said heavy rains have caused flash floods that killed at least 34 people and injured 43 others in southern Iran.
2004 In Iraq 850 US troops were killed during this year.
2004 The Iranian government seized some $200 million in assets from the Khoi Foundation, named after the late Grand Ayatollah Abol-Qassem Mussavi Khoi. This accelerated a growing trend for Shiite religious funds to move their assets out to Iraq.
Go to Iran 2005
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Subject = Iran
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Tag: soul
April 26, 2019 / Jeff Leon
Eric B. & Rakim – “I Know You Got Soul”
Sometimes I sit back and wonder if the rapper Rakim was an English major in a past life…you know, without the pretentiousness, the laziness, or the bullshit (oh, how we bullshit!).
Noname (feat. Cam O’bi and Raury) – “Diddy Bop”
Damn man, Noname played not one, but two doggone shows in D.C. this month and both sold out before I could get in.
October 18, 2018 / Jeff Leon
Sade – “The Sweetest Taboo”
I’m just here to say y’all need to put some respect on Sade‘s name!
Sade (pronounced, Sha-DAY) is one group that earns their praise but one whom I find are somewhat overlooked when it comes to discussion of top-tier R&B acts.
September 7, 2018 / Jeff Leon
Beastie Boys – “Egg Man”
Now here’s a gem.
Alright, so backstory. In 1986 hip-hop was transitioning from a fad into a cultural and commercial juggernaut, and the Beastie Boys were there to push it over the edge.
August 10, 2018 / Jeff Leon
The Cannonball Adderley Quintet – “Capricorn”
I’m a Libra myself, but whatever…
Saxophonist Cannonball Adderley left an indelible mark on the world of jazz, playing with legends such as Ray Charles and Miles Davis (even playing on Davis’s legendary Kind of Blue and Milestones albums), teaching jazz at Dillard High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida (I lived near that school for a time), and later on as a bandleader in The Cannonball Adderley Quintet, which featured his brother, trumpeter Nat Adderley and other jazz heavyweights which included Yusef Lateef, Joe Zawinul, and Barry Harris.
August 4, 2017 / Jeff Leon
Lando Chill – “Black Boy Run”
The Boy Who Spoke to The Wind is the second album from the Chicago-born, Arizona-based artist Lando Chill, and it stands out as one of 2017’s most fascinating listens.
June 8, 2017 / Jeff Leon
Menahan Street Band – “The Contender”
Bring the funk.
The Menahan Street Band, named after a street in Bushwick, Brooklyn where founder Thomas Brenneck lived at the time, is a funk band composed of Brenneck and musicians from other notable funk / soul outfits like the Budos Band and Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings.
May 26, 2017 / Jeff Leon
Res – “They-Say Vision”
Damn, how could people sleep on Res, man?
Philly songstress Res (rhymes with “peace”) definitely had a solid debut in her 2001 record How I Do, a tremendously underrated work which, to this day, still boggles my mind that it didn’t get her a bit more shine.
December 9, 2016 / Jeff Leon
Pete Rock (feat. Loose Ends) – “Take Your Time”
I’m young, stupid, and damn impatient. Leave it up to Pete Rock to set me straight.
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HBO Europe and HBO Nordic began streaming all 10 episodes of the first season on June 1, 2017, in Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Macedonia, Poland, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland, while India's Zee Entertainment Enterprises took exclusive pay-TV rights to The Good Fight for its English-language general entertainment channel Zee Café, which was also the Indian home of The Good Wife.[37]
During an actual fight, you will be under a tremendous amount of stress. This often causes many people to tense up and actually hold their breath as they are fighting. Breathing is one of the most important and often neglected aspects of real street fighting training. Proper breathing promotes muscular relaxation and increases the speed and efficiency of your compound attack. The rate at which you breath will also determine how quickly your cardiorespiratory system can recover from a real street fight encounter. NOTE: Remember to always exhale when executing a striking tool or technique in a real street fighting situation.
Adrian becomes a minor celebrity once he begins appearing as a pundit on a local talk show, but his tenure on air is short lived. Lucca officially informs the partners of her pregnancy, and insists it will not impact her work in any way. Lucca and Colin argue over the start date for a trial after Colin moves for a continuance to the week of Lucca's due date.
Systems Training Centers serve Southern California, from Hawthorne in the South Bay to Encino in San Fernando Valley and everything in between. In addition to offering classes to the local community, Systems Training Centers also specialize in personal training, private training groups and corporate accounts. Systems Training Center have corporate accounts with companies such as Space-X; school contracts with schools such as Crossroads in Santa Monica; and collaborations with law enforcement such as Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, UCLA PD, Santa Monica PD and much more!
They say that boxing is dead and MMA is holding the smoking gun pointed towards it. While the “sweet science of pugilism” has certainly seen better days and it’s cage fighting brother sport has made major strides in the last decade, boxing is far from gone and certainly not forgotten. And it has had a boost in popularity due to a new organization, BKB, in which the fighters have to be in top shape due to the size – or lack thereof – of the fighting arena.
What? Self defence is for everyone no matter the gender and size or height. I have experienced bullying in shape and form even domestic violence. I do four styles of mma and I train with men in my dojo and I am respected and treated as an equal because I can fight. It won’t matter where anyone moves to. Trouble and danger is everywhere. Offenders attack those who can’t defend themselves and don’t matter what area you’re from or visiting.
Bruce is learning mixed martial arts, the fast-growing combat sport popularized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship. In the UFC, two fighters square off inside a cage, attempting to harm each other with a mix of Brazilian jiu-jitsu, wrestling, boxing and other fighting styles. Victory is often decided by a brutal knockout or a suffocating chokehold.
How to: Begin in a standing position with feet shoulder-width apart. Lower down into a squat and place your palms on the ground so that the elbows are positioned just inside the knees. Kick your feet back into a plank, then lower the hips and arch your back, so your body resembles a more active cobra pose. Reverse the exercise, jump the feet forward, and explode back up to the starting position.
To wrap up the workout, set one final timer. Then, do 10 forward rolls, 10 backward rolls, 100 sit-ups, 10 ground n’ pounds (place a heavy bag on the floor, mount, and strike it; this is what’s pictured), and 15 pushups. For the remainder of your timer—yeah, we know, you get it by now—jump rope. Slate this workout into your routine and you’ll be fighting fit in no time.
If you don’t have access to a heavy bag, or if you need a workout you can do from a hotel room or small space, don’t worry, there’s a solution. In fact, according to Matt Marsden, a fitness instructor at Beacon College in Leesburg, Florida, who has a training and coaching background in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, Boxing, Muay Thai, and Tae Kwon Do, this type of workout is pretty common for MMA fighters because they travel so frequently and sometimes have to train outside of the typical gym setting.
Even with this seamless integration of styles, members can still focus on what they want by attending Standing Fighting Days for an emphasis on Kickboxing, Clinching & Takedowns, or Ground Fighting for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu & Ground Fighting techniques. Of course, real fighting includes both standing and ground fighting, so both are essential for those who want a complete system of fighting without major weaknesses.
However, in the same period of time, America has seen alarming spikes in registered hate groups across the board, especially racially divisive hate groups, such as white nationalist and separatist groups. 2015 was dubbed “The Year of Enormous Rage” by the Washington Post. The values of fascism have been increasingly validated in the public and political spheres.
10) Chicks dig fighters. Women love violence. They will say things like “I hate violence. I hate those meathead guys that fight all the time.” The women who say things like this have one thing in common: they're lying. Women absolutely love men who handle violent confrontation and come up the winner. It's in their nature, it's in their DNA. Something you won't read in a newspaper: Ghetto thugs who often beat up weak people are rewarded with sex by their ghetto mistresses. You're smarter than fighting all the time – but simply being able to handle violent confrontation (having the Eye of the Tiger) is enough to get them wet.
Much has been said about McGregor’s prowess in the cage, but the UFC featherweight champion claims his competitive edge isn’t just the product of freak talent or gruelling hours spent walloping a heavy bag. Rather, McGregor attributes much of his recent form to movement training – a regimen that champions free-flowing bodily rhythm and a merging of the mental and physical aspects of fighting.
The ALACTIC system (aka the phosphagen or phosphocreatine system) is the energy system capable of producing the most energy within the shortest amount of time. A fight-ending flurry or combination uses this energy system. The alactic system is different to the aerobic and anaerobic system in that it produces energy by directly breaking down the ATP molecule, bypassing the conversion of fats, carbohydrates or protein into ATP. However, our body has limited stores of ATP, therefore the alactic system is the quickest to fatigue and can only produce large bursts of energy for up to 10 seconds. Fully restoring phosphocreatine and ATP stores takes around 5-8 minutes; this restoration time can be influenced by strength & conditioning training, as well as the level of development of the aerobic and anaerobic system.
The best MMA training programs cover a range of skills. Gone are the days where one-dimensional grapplers submitted strikers with no knowledge of the ground game. While fighters will normally favor one area of fighting, a well-rounded fighter needs to be able to survive in every area of the game or face being overwhelmed outside his comfort zone. Furthermore, he will need to be able to put the separate aspects of the game together in actual MMA sessions.
We did think the impeachment story would make a good episode. We were only worried that the story would come across like preaching to the choir. That's when (we) hit on the idea that the firm, in pursuing all the avenues toward impeachment, became more and more like the worst aspects of the president they wanted to throw out of office. That felt like a concept that could sustain a story.
If you’ve been working out for any length of time, it’s a safe bet that you’ve used interval training as a part of your conditioning and/or overall fitness regimen. Countless articles have been written over the last several years touting the benefits that can be seen with their use – many citing supporting various pieces of research to back up their claims.
Whilst training and assessing I look at the load, technique, the number of repetitions, and the speed at which the weight is moved, which is very important. All of the above are always logged for the future information. For example, let’s say that Richie deadlifts 80% of his 1RM x 5, but the bar moves slowly. He struggles with the last 2 reps but manages to complete them with correct technique. I have made a note in his training log, “1x 5 @ 80% 1RM DL.” A couple of sessions later, he repeats exactly the same drill, but this time the bar moves quickly. He doesn’t struggle and there is no decrease in the speed at which he moves the bar. Does it mean he got stronger? Yes, but if I only make a note “[email protected]% 1RM DL” it doesn't tell me that there has been an improvement. I must also note the speed of the bar.
What is it? The term kickboxing has become kind of a blanket term to cover anything that involves punching and kicking, but Muay Thai has a few distinct features. It’s a centuries-old practice that comes, predictably, from Thailand. In addition to fists and feet, it also involves knee and elbow strikes as well as a form of stand-up grappling called clinch.
I can say with confidence that 99 percent of us don't have the same schedule as a professional athlete. Instead of a 10 a.m. marketing meeting, professional fighters start their morning with the first of two daily training sessions. Their afternoon may consist of interviews, an appointment with the physical therapist, lunch, a nap, and then they're back in the gym for their second training session.
But the Chicago Tribune noted in 1987 that Horowitz waged successful campaigns to remove life-threatening sulfites from salad bars and to require automakers to install rear window collision-avoidance lights. He was honored by consumer groups and in 1981 became the first newsman to receive the Chief U.S. Postal Inspector’s Award for uncovering mail fraud, the Tribune reported.
“The second important part is the high-intensity element. When boxing, I work either hitting a heavy bag or speed bag for three minutes and then rest for one minute. As a result, my heart rate spikes for a short time and then I rest. Heavy bag work also strengthens my upper body and gives my legs a run for their money. This is my 10-round workout, which I do three days on and one day off.”
FITQUEST combines weightlifting, sprinting, and gymnastics with MMA training movements such as heavy bag training, ground & pound dummy training. FITQUEST says that proficiency is required in each of ten fitness domains: cardiovascular/respiratory endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, speed, agility, balance, coordination, and accuracy. It defines fitness as increased work capacity across all these domains and says its program achieves this by provoking neurologic and hormonal adaptations across all metabolic pathways.
Camron, thanks for the message. I would say that the number one priority would be skill development. Drilling, learning the technical aspects of striking and grappling. The S&C simply compliments the skill development, so 2-3 workouts per week is plenty. Stick to learning the basics of squatting, hinging, pushing, pulling and carrying heavy loads. Your success will come from lng term consistency, not short term intensity, so be patient, don’t overdo it and over time you will improve.
“To me the Warriors Cove is much more than a martial arts school. I came to the Warriors Cove 4 years ago. I was very out of shape and weak. I struggled at first against bigger and stronger opponents. But I fell in love with the game, and stuck with it. MMA, for me is the only physical activity that has ever been able to hold my interest. I know if it wasn’t for finding the Warriors Cove, I would still be weak and out of shape.”
Scenario training involves setting up a situation that mirrors a real assault. It's done in real environments with regular clothing and includes role playing so there is a designated attacker and designated victim. Although it is set up, if and when things get physical it should be live and "unlimited". Scenario training is a drill for the integration phase. Ideally, scenario training should involve at least 3 people. An instructor needs to design and set up the scenario and he or someone else should monitor how it goes down. There should be at least one attacker and one victim, and ideally a bystander or two that can be worked into the scenario.
What is it? The literal Hebrew translation of Krav Maga is “battle contact” and we can’t think of a better description. It was developed by the Israeli Defense Force to be used in real-life combat situations. In addition to punches, kicks and throws, it teaches real-life scenarios like how to disarm an attacker. Rubber knives and guns will make appearances.
The Combat Fitness classes at Team Quest MMA in Portland are a cardio blitz designed to give people of all fitness levels a great workout. This class utilizes components of kickboxing, boxing & MMA skills and dynamic conditioning drills using combat principles. This class is perfect for beginners or those looking to shake out the ring rust and get back into fighting shape.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) came to international prominence in the martial arts community in the early 1990s, when BJJ expert Royce Gracie won the first, second and fourth Ultimate Fighting Championships, which at the time were single-elimination martial arts tournaments. Royce often fought against much larger opponents who practiced other styles, including boxing, wrestling, shoot-fighting, karate and taekwondo. It has since become a staple art and key component for many MMA fighters. BJJ and jujutsu are largely credited for bringing widespread attention to the importance of ground fighting. BJJ is primarily a ground-based fighting style that emphasizes joint locks and chokeholds, whereas jujutsu is a method of close combat that utilizes different forms of grappling techniques such as throws, holds and joint locks. As jujutsu may also involve the use of a short weapon, it cannot be used to its full potential in mixed martial arts. Current fighters who are known for their BJJ skills include Ronaldo Souza, Demian Maia, Fabrício Werdum and Brian Ortega.
Because each training method we use has a weakness, it's important to use a mix of methods so that every necessary element is trained. We can't strike our partners with full force, so we include pad drills to work on speed and power. It's unsafe to train defense against random attacks at full speed and power, so we use prearranged or scenario training to do that. The important thing is to identify the weak point in each training method and be sure you've got another that compensates for it.
3) Training MMA is an excellent physical workout. Sparring (Boxing practice during training) or grappling (wrestling or ground-fighting practice) for 3-5 minute rounds is absolutely brutal cardio, which is why fighters are usually in top notch physical condition. There is no treadmill or stair-master in the world that can beat the benefits of practice fighting.
For MMA training, what you are doing looks lovely good. You must be equipped to perform difficult and explosively at height level for brief durations of time. If you are training for beginner MMA, you will have to be training for three minute rounds with a 1 minute relaxation in between, 5 minute rounds for professional. It usually is good to do some ordinary strolling, anything round three miles (half of hour) three days per week to get your baseline cardio up and maintain lung and heart operate healthful. As a comparison, i am 6'three" and 185, so the whole thing I do i've 35lbs much less to move round doing it. With the interval training you are already doing, if you are gassing out in coaching i'd look to dietary changes. Are you consuming heavy dairy earlier than figuring out? Are you consuming lots of simple sugars and white flour? Are you drinking power drinks as an alternative of good ol' water? I suspect getting interested by the fuel you take into your body often is the next discipline to focus on. You need an particularly LEAN (low fat), high-protein diety with lots of elaborate carbs, now not simple carbs. Vegetable fats are just right (nuts, avacados, coconut milk), animal fat are bad (fatty cuts of meet, dairy, eggs). Taking fish oil i shealthy for cardio-pulmanary, and likewise helps your physique metabolize fat effeciently. And lot of spring water. Do not drink distilled water, as it is going to actually leach vitamins and minerals out of your body. Highest admire
You may be attacked by more than one opponent, thus you need to train for that possibility. While it's extremely difficult to fight multiple opponents with sport based rules, it can be done in a no rules environment, especially where weapons are allowed. A hard finger jab to the eye of one attacker, for example, can put him out of commission while you deal with the second. Training methods where you practice blasting through multiple opponents in order to run or get a better position are also a necessity.
There has been a growing awareness of women in mixed martial arts due to popular female fighters and personalities such as Megumi Fujii, Miesha Tate, Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos, Ronda Rousey, Joanna Jędrzejczyk, Holly Holm and Gina Carano among others. Carano became known as "the face of women's MMA" after appearing in a number of EliteXC events. This was furthered by her appearances on MGM Television's 2008 revival of their game show American Gladiators.[citation needed]
Work out at least four days a week, but no more than five. To get into optimal shape, and stay there, you should work out at least four days a week, alternating so you work out for two or three days and rest one. I don’t think you should ever work out for four and rest for three days. Your body needs a day of rest after a couple of hard days training. However resting two or three days routinely will derail the momentum of your training. If you workout too many days in a row without a break, you will do more harm than good, because the hard training you are doing is breaking down your body, and it needs adequate time to rest.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu emphasizes taking an opponent to the ground and utilizing ground fighting techniques and submission holds involving joint-locks and choke holds also found in numerous other arts with or without ground fighting emphasis. The premise is that most of the advantage of a larger, stronger opponent comes from superior reach and more powerful strikes, both of which are somewhat negated when grappling on the ground.
The HawaiianMiles rewards program is ideal for those traveling from the United States, Asia and the South Pacific to the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiian Airlines serves more than 25 domestic and international destinations and provides nonstop daily service to Hawaii from multiple U.S. cities. The HawaiianMiles program offers a variety of ways to earn miles, from booking flights and hotels to shopping at Hawaiian Airlines partner vendors. Earn more miles on everyday purchases by signing up and using the Hawaiian Airlines World Elite Mastercard from Barclays. You can redeem your miles for future hotel stays, car rentals and flights on Hawaiian Airlines and its airline partners, which include JetBlue and Korean Air.
Repetitive explosive power is largely a function of the nervous system’s ability to rapidly recruit muscle fibers, the percentage of these fibers that are fast-twitch, and specific elastic properties of the muscles themselves. If you think of muscles as somewhat like rubber bands in their ability to stretch and contract, this last quality refers to how fast the muscles recoil when they are stretched and this is a quality that can be enhanced through training.
If you find you are overtraining, then cut back on your workouts, starting first with the sprint portions of the cardio, and then with some of the strength training if need be, or take the day off altogether. Once you have recovered begin adding back exercises slowly to find your limit. You may find that your resting heart rate drops over the twelve weeks. This is good, and it’s a sign that your cardio is improving.
Strikes, takedowns, grappling, submissions. A wide variety of physical capabilities and a diverse range of martial arts skills are required to excel in the sport of MMA. Don't forget the power and the endurance needed to pull off fight-finishing techniques or to last the whole duration of the fight. We are capable of all these movements thanks to our 3 energy systems: aerobic system, anaerobic system and alactic/phosphogen system. The intensity and duration of our movements is what dictates which energy systems are used, and which substrates are used to fuel that energy system. Each energy system takes a different substrate (fuel) to create energy molecules called ATP (energy currency of our body) that is then used to contract our muscles so we can move. As you can imagine, the energy demands of a sprinter and marathoner have completely different energy demands.
The Good Fight is an American legal and political drama web television series produced for CBS's streaming service CBS All Access. It is CBS All Access's first original scripted series.[1] The series—created by Robert King, Michelle King, and Phil Alden Robinson—is a spin-off and sequel to The Good Wife, which was created by the Kings. The first season contains 10 episodes,[2] and premiered on February 19, 2017, with the first episode airing on CBS and the following nine episodes on CBS All Access.[1] The series was initially planned to air in May 2017, but was moved up after production delays forced CBS to postpone the premiere of the new series Star Trek: Discovery.[3]
In his instructional book, Anderson Silva admitted the influence of taekwondo in the formation of his unique style. In each of my fights, I tried to utilize techniques from all the various styles I had studied. I threw taekwondo kicks. I threw Muay Thai knees and elbows, and I used my knowledge of Brazilian jiu-jitsu on the ground.[117] Anthony Pettis has also stated that he is definitely a traditional martial artist first and a mixed martial artist second,[115] as well as his style of attacking is different [because of his] taekwondo background.[118]
May See Xiong of Burnsville said her son Lucas, 10, used to take taekwondo lessons but switched to MMA and hasn’t looked back. Her other son, Lex, 7, has joined him in classes at two local gyms. Xiong and her husband enjoy watching UFC fights at home on TV. The action piqued the interest of her boys: “My son said, ‘Well, I want to learn how to do that, too,’ ” she said.
Training methods that either create an adrenal response or mimic one will help a great deal in learning to operate in this state, and to show you what you can and can't do during one. While sport style training and competition can do this, there are particular drills, from scenario training to those that bring you to total exhaustion, that should be a part of self defense training.
Proper weight distribution is another important factor. When squared off with your opponent, always try to maintain a fifty percent weight distribution. This non committal weight distribution will provide you with the ability to move in any direction quickly and efficiently. At the same time, it will provide you with the necessary stability to withstand and defend against various
As boxing continues to evolve in mixed martial arts (MMA), so do the training methods employed. Absent from many MMA gyms is one of the most fundamental techniques used in boxing for more than a century–shadow boxing. If you are a fighter and you want to bring your boxing to the next level quickly, you must consistently incorporate shadow boxing into your training regimen. Below we will provide the rationale along with some basic strategies for getting the most out of your shadow boxing. If you shadow box regularly under the watchful eye of an expert boxing coach, you may want to stop reading here. If not, keep reading!
Every combat sport athlete knows just how grueling training in the gym day in and day out can be. Because of this, it’s often important to use training methods that can improve conditioning without putting any additional wear and tear on your body. Made popular by the late Charlie Francis, tempo intervals fit this bill perfectly and are one of the best ways to build aerobic fitness and work capacity at the same time without the added risk of injury and stress that comes along with some of the higher intensity interval methods.
Seems pretty obvious, but how often do you see trainers who have an ambition to make their fighters the best deadlifters, best sprinters, marathon runners, or even Olympic lifters. The goal is the goal. I know only one example where the gym became a sport and that is CrossFit. If you want to be good in the CrossFit Games, CrossFit training is the way to go, but it doesn’t mean it is a good way to train a fighter. Quite the opposite. To give another example, what works for a powerlifter will not necessarily work for a fighter. Work on the programs with the goal in mind, remember to test and assess your athletes. If you find out that poor mobility is what stops your athlete from increasing strength, address the mobility first before putting more weight on the bar.
Training for a sport isn’t the same as logging a sweat session at the gym. “If you’re boxing, it’s not about burning calories or fat—it’s about getting good at the movements and building a skill,” says Ortiz. “It brings you back to when you were a kid, when you wanted to be a baseball player or a ballerina.” With that in mind, add some or all of these exercises to your next workout routine for an added punch. Complete 8-10 reps of each.
The truth is this: if you really put your mind to it, went back to school and graduated with an honors degree in exercise science, trained dozens of fighters in person and hundreds of fighters around the world while receiving feedback and tweaking the program to make it better and better, in about 10 years or so you could probably develop, perhaps, an equally effective strength and conditioning program for MMA yourself, just like I did with the Ultimate MM Strength and Conditioning Program.
best mma training program
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Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) To Add More Samsung Products To Patent Lawsuit
Apple Inc.(NASDAQ:AAPL) has reportedly asked a federal court to include 6 more products to its patent violation case against Samsung Electronics Co. the 6 products includes Galaxy Note II.
The lawsuit is among the two patent infringement cases that are pending in the US District Court in San Jose that were filed by Apple against Samsung. A previous lawsuit by Apple associated with several patents had led to a jury verdict amounting to $1.05 billion against Samsung on 24th August of 2012.
Apple is also planning to include the Samsung Galaxy S III that runs on the latest Android Jelly Bean OS, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1, the Samsung Galaxy S III Mini, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 Wi-Fi and the Samsung Rugby Pro to the litigation, as per a court petition on Friday.
The company has mentioned in the filing that Apple has acted promptly and thoroughly to decide that the recently launched products do violate many of the similar claims that are already asserted by Apple.
Representatives of Samsung did not reply to requests for comment right away.
Apple has filed another case in the month of February, accusing Samsung that it has infringed as many as 8 of its patents in Samsung smartphone and tablet products.
Apple’s motion emphasizes that all of the aforementioned Samsung products or upgrades were introduced after the 5th generation iPod touch, which Samsung wishes to add to the lawsuit. This is likely to make it difficult for Samsung to add the 5th generation iPod touch while refusing Apple’s recent-most proposed additions as inappropriate.
Samsung, however, has denied patent infringement and has filed a cross-complaint accusing that Apple’s iPad and iPhone have infringed its patents.
On 15th Novemeber, a US judge gas let Samsung to proceed with its accusations that the iPhone 5 also infringes its patents.
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Reviews for the films that lie on the outside edges of the mainstream.
Swoon (1992): Avant-garding the past
Swoon (1992)
dir: Tom Kalin
In the late '80s and early 1990s, there was a cinematic movement of sorts that came to be dubbed New Queer Cinema. This was marked by an outburst of films that were made by queers for queers, whether they were gays, lesbians, trans, bi, fluid, or any of the other letters in the LGBTQ alphabet soup of inclusion (though mostly gay men). Two directors came from the scene and into the mainstream: Todd Haynes, who started with Poison and would go on to make Far From Heaven and I'm Not Here (and was also an uncredited script polisher on Office Killer), and Gus Van Sant, who made Mala Noche, but would go on to make Good Will Hunting and Milk. Other films included Gregg Araki's The Living End, Rose Troche's Go Fish, and Jennie Livingston's Paris is Burning.
New Queer Cinema was simultaneously rebellious and demanding of acceptance. It was about the explicit rejection of cultural norms, while wanting to be embraced by the mainstream as normal. The Living End, for instance, concerned a pair of HIV+ gay men who decide to go on a murderous criminal rampage in a fit of rage against their position in the system. Poison was inspired by the works of Jean Genet who expressed gay themes through lurid subjects like horror and the murder of parents. Paris is Burning documents the drag and transgendered balls in Harlem and the illicit behavior that is required to sustain such a lifestyle in New York at that time.
Swoon retells the true story of Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, two gay socialites in the 1920s who would become lovers and commit a series of escalating crimes, culminating in the murder of an 11-year-old boy. The Leopold and Loeb murder was most famously the inspiration for Hitchcock's Rope, about two implicitly gay men who murder a friend of theirs and throw a party while the friend rotted in the trunk in the living room. The Leopold and Loeb murder was sensationalist because it was committed by homosexuals, it had significant power dynamics, it was particularly gruesome (they used hydrochloric acid to try to dissolve identifying parts of the body), and it was essentially a thrill kill.
With Swoon, Tom Kalin takes a second look at the murder and subsequent trial with a modern set of eyes. Throughout the first half of the movie, Kalin deconstructs the relationship between Leopold and Loeb and reconstructs it with modern sensibilities. In the second half, he does the same with the ensuing trial. Kalin reconstructs the whole story in a way that is reminiscent of the foreign art house directors of the late 60s and 70s. French New Wave like Godard and Truffaut, and Fellini can be seen in the stylistic edges and artier-than-thou acting and direction.
Kalin is removing the artifice of reality in an attempt to force people to realize that what they know about the crime is false, and what they are watching about the case is also an artificial re-enactment that is not getting at the heart of the crime, but at the themes of the crime. Those themes being homosexuality in society, rebellion, and bored socialites.
Throughout the first half of Swoon, we watch Nathan and Richard manipulate each other into doing as the other wants. Sometimes it's for money. Sometimes, it's for sex. Sometimes for love, and sometimes for the thrill. At one point, Nathan tells his psychologist that he fantasizes himself a king, and Richard as his slave. At another point, Richard offers himself as payment for Nathan's participation in a crime. They write kidnapping letters on a typewriter at a party. They exchange rings. They're intrinsically tied to each other, and they are both as responsible for the crime as each other is.
The trial of Swoon gets even more stylized as the court recounts the immorality of the homosexual relationship. At one point, in the middle of the trial, Nathan and Richard are making out on a bed put in the middle of the courtroom as the lawyers talk about their devious sexual acts. Even though they both turn on each other blaming each other for the crime (so romantic), they're both still tied to each other.
Swoon is challenging what we know about the trial because everything we do know was colored through the biases and judgments of the era. They were biased against homosexuals, so the homosexuality was really up for trial. The murder is never shown as being false, however. Kalin never suggests that it never happened. Kalin never suggests that they were railroaded for that crime. He mainly is making the challenge that everything we know is colored by the biases that the era held.
By association, Kalin is also suggesting that the biases that we have now also color how we view the events of the modern era. As such, morality is relative. Sure the murder is brutal and despicable, but what we think about it is colored by who we are and who we were. Any crimes that we hold judgement on are inherently colored by the way we judge the people involved in the crime. If we inherently don't like somebody, we will rule against them, and if we do like somebody we rule in favor of them. This type of emotional response is manipulated by the lawyers all the time.
Swoon, while full of fascinating morality and an interesting take on a lurid and compelling crime, is not a great movie. It is too artsy by a factor of at least 10. The acting and direction is reminiscent of what Dr. Caligari was mocking in 1989. While it sees everybody else with a distinct view of irony and derision, it has no such views of itself. It's technique is super serious and Kalin almost thinks what he is doing is as serious as it is humorous. There is no winking. There is no easy way out.
If you can take the technique, then I can recommend the movie. If you can't, than I can't...even if I do find the movie completely compelling in its ideas.
Posted by Julius Kassendorf at 9:00 AM No comments:
Labels: 1992, Drama, Independent Film, LGBTQ, New Queer Cinema, Reviews, Swoon, The Other Films, Tom Kalin
Office Killer (1997): Social satire, horror, and surrealism...not always a good mix
dir: Cindy Sherman
You'll have to indulge me (as if you haven't been indulging me already). An office-based horror comedy that came recommended courtesy of Netflix's Max (the PS3 interactive recommendation engine) based in the category "Goofy." It stars Molly Ringwald, Carol Kane, and Jeanne Tripplehorn. It was directed by a woman. The script was written by two women, and two men who were part of the New Queer Cinema movement in the early '90s. One of those men (who is actually uncredited in the film) is Todd Haynes, writer director of Far From Heaven, I'm Not There, and the HBO remake of Mildred Pierce. He also created a strong female role with [Safe] for Julianne Moore. Of course I'm going to watch this movie.
It isn't good.
Office Killer is set in the offices of some magazine (Constant Consumer, if you're curious) that is on the downfall. Constant Consumer, under the rule of Virginia Wingate (who seems to be some sort of Ariana Huffington caricature), is downsizing many of its employees and reducing much of the staff from full-time hires to freelancers who have to work from home. One of the victims is the quiet office worker bee Dorine Douglas, played mousily by Carol Kane. The responsibility for the downsizing is credited to Norah Reed (Tripplehorn), who is also close friends with the hip office worker Kim (Ringwald).
Dorine, who has gone crazy due to killing her molesty father and crippling her mother in a car accident when she was a teenager, now has to work at home with her crippled mother (Alice Drummond). The result of this change in atmosphere is that Dorine goes a bit crazy. Just a bit. She accidentally kills serial harasser Gary, then proceeds to start killing everybody else in the office, and keeps their bodies in the basement. And, for some completely unapparent-to-me reason she also kills a pair of girl scouts and steals their cookies.
And that's the whole of the plot. The movie tries for some sort of social commentary on downsizing and toxic office politics. It suggests that downsizing is due to Norah's embezzlement from the company rather than greed from the owners/executives or a downturn in readership.
It also goes on a bit about sexual harassment, but its strange in that it almost seems like everybody doesn't mind being harassed or harassing each other, demonstrated by the rampant passing around Gary's cold through kissing. Given that the movie completely sympathizes with Dorine (even letting her live in the end), obviously it is saying that office romances are icky. There is also the bit about Dorine's molesty father, and how she killed him. But, it doesn't dwell too long on that side topic of incestuous molestation.
The best thing this movie has going for it is the level of surrealistic gross-out that the movie attains in Dorine's basement with her collection of dead bodies. Dorine cuts off hands, cuts open cavities, and pulls off fingernails. She sprays down a rotting corpse with Windex and uses packing tape to patch up his body. She uses fingers on her clocks, and a hand as a paperweight. It's straight out of a much better horror movie, like a homespun Texas Chainsaw Massacre or a Crispin Glover indie film.
The tonality of the film feels like a lesser version of the Steve Martin vehicle Novocaine, where it doesn't quite know what it is, and ends up muddled in some lost tonality between comedy, tragedy, horror, and surreal. It might be considered goofy, but it definitely isn't goofball. It might be considered horror, but its not really tense or scary. It might be considered comedy, but it isn't that funny. It might be considered tragedy, but we are rooting for the murderess. Recommended only for the extremely curious. EXTREMELY CURIOUS.
Posted by Julius Kassendorf at 9:00 AM 1 comment:
Labels: 1997, black comedy, Cindy Sherman, Female Director, horror, horror comedy, Office Killer, Review, The Other Films
The Brass Teapot (2012): How far will you go?
The Brass Teapot (2012)
dir: Ramaa Mosely
America's financial crisis is still affecting America's youth. The upcoming Cheap Thrills forces us to take a look at the form of our financial system, under the guise of asking how far would you go for financial security. The Brass Teapot asks us directly how far we would go for a couple dollars, and who would you hurt along the way. It also gives the Gen Y argument for bowing out of the rat race.
The Brass Teapot centers around a couple of Gen Y college graduates, John and Alice, who are married but poor. Alice just finished getting a bachelor's degree in Art History. John is working as an underpaid and overworked computer insurance salesman/telemarketer. Alice is trying to break into management, but can't get a job, and so the money woes keep rolling in. Then, Alice steals a teapot.
The titular brass teapot is an ancient teapot that gives you money for pain and suffering. In a striking fit of racism, the teapot is adorned with the Star of David on both sides, and had previously rescued from a Nazi concentration camp. You know, because, Jewish people are the foundations of greed and will do anything to get money. The reason it was in a concentration camp was Hitler was trying to find the teapot, but the Jews wouldn't let him find the source of their money. Alice steals the teapot from an old Hasedic Jewish woman who causes car accidents to get money. And, throughout the movie both Alice and John are continually beaten and robbed by the Hasidic sons of the old woman.
Leaving aside that troubling racism, John and Alice bring the teapot home, where Alice, by accidentally burning herself with a curling iron, figures out that she can get money from the teapot. John loses his job, and so they resort to hurting each other for money. A lot of money, actually. They buy a nice house in a nice neighborhood. They get nicer clothes. They go to decent restaurants. They start hobnobbing with the friends who became successful after high school. They start ignoring the friends they had when they were poorer (one of whom is working a second job at the mall to make ends meet).
In trying to learn the origins of the teapot on Antiques Roadshow, they attract the attention of somebody who knows the origins of the teapot. In yet another, less troubling, fit of racism, we're introduced to the one Asian character in the film. This is the Asian mystic who knows the origins of the teapot and is coming to save John and Alice from its powers through his benevolence. The only other minority character in the movie is Alia Shawkat, the half-Iraqi actress best known for playing Maeby Funke, the daughter of two white folks on Arrested Development.
The Asian mystic tracks down John and Alice, and tells them that the teapot will ruin their lives, which they summarily dismiss because they have money and they can control themselves. Meanwhile, the Hasidic descendents of the old lady track down John and Alice and start taking the money, which they say was supposed to be their inheritance. They also warn of the dangers of the teapot, but John and Alice dismiss them too. And they keep hurting each other to get money.
But, the teapot gives less and less. And, Alice discovers that the teapot actually responds to emotional damage. So, they first start out by inflicting emotional damage on each other. Revealing affairs, lust for other people, magnifying each other's faults, etc etc. But, soon, they get greedy...again...and then inflict their damage on other people. They reveal other people's affairs and other such things. And, as such, the stakes for greed get higher and higher.
In the end, they give up the teapot, sell their belongings, give their money to their poor friends, get pregnant and move to Mexico on nothing more than their love.
Wait...what? Oh, right. It's an allegorical ending. John and Alice, horrified by the greed which they display, decide to give up everything consumerist and reject the American Dream. Aside from the still completely troubling anti-semitism of the origins of the pot, the movie is only filled with white folk because that is still representative of "mainstream" America. Even on television and in movies, it is hard to get a minority character who isn't playing a servant, a victim, or a criminal. But, some at least acknowledge that stereotyping actually exists even as it is doing it (see Breaking Bad and its character Hugo).
As a critique on the current state of the American Dream, The Brass Teapot stands with Cheap Thrills in trying to get society to re-examine how it gets its riches. It is off their own pain and suffering? Could it be from the pain and suffering of others? Perhaps even their death? The Brass Teapot isn't concerned as much with the classism concerns of Cheap Thrills. It is mainly trying to articulate the Gen Y's growing dissatisfaction with the inability to get ahead by hard work alone.
Now, for a movie about pain and suffering and inflicting it on others, The Brass Teapot takes a bright effervescent tone compared to Cheap Thrills' down and dirty shock techniques. Where Cheap Thrills goes for the jugular, The Brass Teapot goes for a refined, almost twee, tonality that runs counter to the actual content of the movie. It's kind of like how Third Eye Blind's Semi-Charmed Life was a poppy upbeat song about the depraved roller coaster of being a methhead. Yeah, it's exactly like that, except for occasional downturns where John and Alice check in with their morality until they realize they're OK with what they're doing and then we're back to bouncy!
If you like your comedies dark but peppy, The Brass Teapot is really entertaining, if a bit long. At 101 minutes, it is a little flabby on the sides and could use a bit of trimming. But, then there's the troubling racism and white privilege that completely pervades the film (and I haven't even gotten to the weird classist portion of how John and Alice's first landlord is a trailer trash ex-classmate who also has a bitching and expensive new 4x4 truck). And, if it wasn't for that anti-semitism and the rest of the white middle-class privilege, this film would be a knock out. As it is, you have to take the good with the bad, maybe?
Labels: 2012, black comedy, comedy, Ramaa Mosely, Reviews, The Brass Teapot, The Other Films
One Nation Under God (1993): Foundations of the Gay Agenda
One Nation Under God (1993)
dir: Teodoro Maniaci, Francine Rzeznik
"And we'll hear about Burton's slip into temptation as he was misled by the unrelenting homosexual cabal." - Mr. Show
Exodus International, a 37-year-old coalition of Christian communities who promoted the "ex-gay" movement was "dissolved" this year. Some have said that it dissolved in order to continue its work under different names, others said that it was to escape financial troubles. Indeed, a group called Exodus Global Alliance, which was initially derived from Exodus International, still exists even though Exodus International was formally shuttered in 2013 by Alan Chambers, then President. Alan Chambers made the official announcement at the conference, and also made an "apologetic" show with Oprah on OWN. Regardless of the current status of Exodus International, it did a lot of damage, and will remain one of the more...um...notorious chapters in Christianity's history books.
Exodus International was founded in 1976 by a group of ministries who believed in the ex-gay movement. What is ex-gay? Ex-gay is a movement in the christian community where homosexuals are trained, or bullied, into changing their orientation from gay to straight. Many ministries still practice this belief today. In fact, U.S. Representative Michele Bachmann's husband, Marcus Bachmann, still runs a psychiatry business where at least part of their practice is ex-gay therapy (last verified in 2012).
In 1979, two founders of Exodus International, Michael Bussee and Gary Cooper, left the coalition in order to live together as lovers. In 1982, they exchanged rings and vows. One Nation Under God explores their relationship, the work of Exodus International and its various sub-ministries, as well as briefly touching on the histories of homosexual oppression (going back through the Nazis), and the various methods of ex-gay therapy that America has gone through.
One Nation Under God is now 20 years old. When it came out, it was a relatively fringe-y documentary that aired on PBS. Now, One Nation provides an imperfect time capsule into the state of gay relations in 1992. The film opens with the documentarians interviewing people off the street in New York City whether they thought homosexuality was a sin. Even in the liberal New York City, there was still a decent percentage who would say, on camera, that homosexuality was a sin and that the gays needed to repent. And, if NYC was thinking this...well, let's just say that the rest of America wasn't as pleasant back then.
The early '90s were an interesting point in gay rights activism. AIDS drugs were coming online in the late 80s. Reagan started acknowledging AIDS as a need in 1987. ACT UP was still going strong. It's impossible to understate just how big of a disruption AIDS was in the gay political progress. In the documentary about Rev Troy Perry, Call Me Troy, Rev Perry acknowledges how key to the gay movement the lesbians were as the gay movement had been devastated by the AIDS crisis.
In the 80s, there was a military ban on gays, which had challenges to the ban in 1990 and 1991. In 1993, Clinton signed the first compromise of Don't Ask Don't Tell, which was actually a compromise from the outright ban that had previously been occurring.
In 1989, the gay marriage debate was really coming online. Denmark had OK'd same-sex marriage. New York's highest court said that two same sex members counted as a family unit for rent control purposes. Andrew Sullivan had written a piece called Here Comes the Groom, about the coming divide in the gay community between the need to rebel and the need to belong. In 1990, Baehr vs Miike was initiated. This was the lawsuit arguing for same-sex rights that would win rights in Hawaii and ultimately lead to 1996's DOMA.
Against this political backdrop, the ex-gay movement was gaining strength, and the religious right was also gaining strength in the Republican party. In 1990, Orson Scott Card, long before he would serve on the board of NOM, wrote an article titled "The Hypocrites of Homosexuality" that called for states to not repeal sodomy laws, which had been used to persecute homosexuals at the time. His view was not uncommon in that time period as the fight for keeping the government out of the bedroom was kicking into high gear, and would continue well into the '00s (and, indeed, is still continuing with politicians still trying to put anti-sodomy laws on the books).
Right in the midst of all this comes One Nation Under God. A political time capsule that shows a pivotal era where the gay rights movements were gaining strength and the religious right was also still, gaining power, marking the a great check-in point for the current era where certain states have ratified gay marriage, the federal government has started recognizing same-sex marriage for tax purposes, and some states have even begun banning ex-gay therapy.
One Nation Under God spends most of its time in the debate around the ex-gay movement. It interviews leaders of the movement such as Sy Young (a former transsexual and homosexual who has a history of sexual trauma, and was President of Exodus International), Joe Dallas, and Elizabeth Moberly. It also interviews and features Michael Bussee and Gary Cooper and their relationship. We hear from Christian leaders and psychiatrists who fall on both sides of the debate. We also hear from ex-gays and former ex-gays. And, both sides are given equal credence. That's where we were in 1993.
As a documentary, One Nation Under God could use an editor. It is trying to cram in way too much in 82 minutes. Because it wants to focus on the ex-gay movement, and surreptitiously be a document of the gay rights movement, the structure of One Nation Under God is scattershot and random. We jump from topic to topic in an almost stream-of-consciousness format where we're flitting over the history of gay rights for 6 minutes here, then ex-gay movement for 4 minutes, then back to gay rights for 5 minutes then to gay history then to ex-gay then to...and we keep bouncing for the whole movie. It almost fears that if it stays on topic for longer than a few minutes, it will be labeled incorrectly.
As a time capsule, though, One Nation Under God is AMAZING and required viewing. Even though its structure and form leave something to be desired, it is astounding to see where gay rights were in 1993, and to compare that to today. And, since many of the topics being broached in One Nation Under God are just now coming to fruition in today's political world, it becomes a document that should be essential to historians.
I will leave you, after the jump, with the best satire of the ex-gay movement from 1995. Mr Show with Bob and David, in their 2nd episode, did a moment of Good News featuring an ex-gay member and his continual slips into homosinuality.
Labels: 1993, Documentary, Francine Rzeznik, LGBTQ, One Nation Under God, Reviews, Teodoro Maniaci, The Other Films
American Mary (2012): Feminism through Independence
American Mary (2012)
dir: Jen and Sylvia Soska
Last month, we had a variety of rape-revenge movies directed by men. There was The Woman by Lucky McKee, I Spit On Your Grave by Mier Zarchi, and Ticked-Off Trannies With Knives by Israel Luna. Ticked-Off Trannies had men either in drag or identifying as women getting raped, but the other two are women getting raped. We explored the differences between them, and how the point of view of The Woman makes it much more problematic than I Spit On Your Grave, even if it shies away from the actual acts.
In 2012, Jen and Sylvia Soska made their second horror movie, American Mary, a rape-revenge horror movie they combined with the body horror genre, the Giallo genre, and the coming of age genre. While the end result of this genre mashing isn't disturbing, scary or intense, it is moody, gothy, tense at times, and wholly fascinating.
American Mary refers to Mary Mason, a young medical student studying to be a surgeon of some kind. She has financial difficulties, and is targeted by her professor for various minor indiscretions, such as a phone ringing in class or missing a lecture. While the audience may think that some sort of reprimand is justified (letting your phone ring in class is just plain rude), Dr Grant seems to take special delight in making the reprimand seem personal and harsh.
In order to make ends meet, Mary applies to become a stripper, but due to a last minute circumstance, ends up performing surgery on a guy who has been tortured for whatever reason. The motivations of a strip club owner torturing guys and removing their eyeballs is never made completely clear, but the owner says "no questions" and the movie just lets it flow.
Following this surgery, she is contacted by a stripper named Beatress, who has been getting plastic surgery to make her look like Betty Boop (if you squint your eyes). Beatress has a friend, Ruby, who wants to be turned into a doll. And, by "turned into a doll," Ruby wants to have her nipples and labia removed, and her vagina closed up as much as possible. This is because Ruby wants to be idealized and not sexualized.
Meanwhile, at her residency, Mary is noted for her professional bedside manner, and is invited to a late-night after-hours party by Dr. Walsh...where she is drugged and raped (onscreen, briefly, but clothed) by Dr. Grant. For whatever reason, she doesn't go to the cops, but drops out of med school, and decides to go into underground body modification surgery, where she eventually develops a good reputation under the name Bloody Mary.
But, first, she must exact revenge on Dr. Grant by performing her first BME surgeries (without anesthetic), including teeth filing, genital mutilation, tongue splitting, and amputation. Weirdly, this series of surgeries happens offscreen, with a flourish of a body-mod hand drawing.
Bloody Mary becomes a bigger and bigger success in the BME community as time goes by. She earns a reputation, and puts together a website, as well as does a series of surgeries on a pair of twins who run an influential website, or something. The cops come snooping around the missing Dr. Grant. But, they find nothing.
At some point, the movie mildly treads water in a reverse CSI mode, where we think the cops keep getting closer. When the movie has padded it's running time enough, it decides to kick in the finale. Finally, after all this time (which seems like weeks, if not months...especially since her reputation needed to develop), Ruby's husband sees the surgery she had, and kills Ruby, beats Beatress, and then attacks Mary, stabbing her. But, Mary sews herself up to die of internal bleeding. Yeah, it is a bit out of the blue.
Outside of the completely left field ending, the movie is well executed and just plain moody. It may be disturbing to people not into BME, but to those used to it, it is mainly just a picture about a girl who does surgery for awhile, with some detectives following her. It's almost Giallo-esque, but it doesn't have the blood and gore scenes to back that up. It's very body horror, but it rarely gets close to the surgeries to be in that horrific. But, what it is is political.
In interviews, the Soska sisters have said that they started out as actresses where they would end up with bit parts that sounded like a Vivid resume. Hooker #2 this, or Call Girl that. And, they wrote Dead Hooker in a Trunk to mock that. Then, they wrote American Mary as a response to the idea that there really was no big named horror villain that was a female. There was no real female equivalent of Jason or Freddy. And, in the vein of American Psycho, they chose to make the whole movie about the villain.
As such, they've made a movie about rape, rape culture, and feminine power in the face of it all. While there are 5 speaking male characters, 3 are rather rapey (Billy Barker, Dr Grant and Dr Walsh) while 2 are rather nice. And, Mary's only 2 "victims" are Dr. Grant and a security guard who comes across her and her post-surgery Dr. Grant. Mary isn't a psychotic serial killer. She just does body mods, and she is doing things her way.
The movie is also notable for its female point of view. Some of the strippers who are at the club want to be strippers. Beatress, looking like Betty Boop, seems to be making shittons of money stripping. She is able to just randomly throw thousands of dollars on her friend's surgery ($12,200 to be exact) and provide some cocaine on top of it. How? I dunno! And, the camera looks at female bodies, but is only lingering when a man is in the room.
It is all about the female perspective.
Labels: 2012, American Mary, Body Horror, Drama, Female Director, Giallo, horror, Jen Soska, Rape, rape-revenge, Sexual Politics, Sylvia Soska
Gravity (2013): Video Games as cinema
dir: Alfonso Cuaron
Why would The Other Films review a movie that has an $80m budget, and stars both Sandra Bullock and George Clooney? Well, this movie is science fiction (we have a certain love for that), and it is, weirdly, a big budget movie that is slated to be released in the no man's land of October. Unfortunately, though not entirely unexpectedly, I hope this movie stays delegated to remaining outside the mainstream. Because Gravity, while having a lot of style, panache, and technical achievement, is essentially an empty-headed video game of a movie.
In the '90s, there was a series of adventure games that were point and click adventure games that really were interactive movies, or interactive movies that really were adventure games. Among these games are The 7th Guest and The 11th Hour, the Tex Murphy series, and the Phantasmagoria series. Most notoriously was Tex Murphy: Overseer (the 5th in his series) where he retold the story of Mean Streets (the first in the series) and reformatted it as a pre-destined movie in which you had to solve a bunch of puzzles, but ultimately your character couldn't die nor have any conclusion outside of the foregone ending. Sometimes you had to answer a series of action trees to get out of danger, and get to the conclusion.
Gravity feels like that. Worse, it feels like you're watching somebody else, namely Alfonso Cuaron, play that video game. The challenges are all pre-determined. You need to make sure you grab that fire extinguisher to try to battle the upcoming fire. Make sure you press that series of buttons. And, don't forget to release the chute. You have a feeling that you're going to be watching these characters for the length of the movie. And, the tension starts to stagnate by the end.
What makes it more lifeless is that it is a bottle movie, with 1.5 characters. At certain points in the film Sandra Bullock and George Clooney are separated, and Ms Bullock is left to carry a movie on her own, which she, thus far, has not been able to do. Even in the highly overrated The Blind Side, Ms Bullock couldn't carry the movie. Unfortunately for Ms Bullock, Mr Cuaron, and the audience, Sandy has to pretty much carry this movie all by herself. To carry this movie, Ms Bullock utilized her usual array of high pitched hyperventilating and histrionics that I think she trademarked in Speed.
The story of Gravity is a bunch of space degree from the Russians shooting a satellite careens around the planet, and destroys everything it its path. In its path are a bunch of satellites, including some station that people are getting data from, the ISS and some Chinese station. Apparently, all of these are in geo-synchronous orbit, and all on the same linear path. And, apparently, all of the space debris is only going in one direction along one path. But, leaving those physics out of it, the space debris is The Ticking Clock. You have to get out of its path before it comes back again, in 90 minutes (keep in mind that the 90 minutes in the film is not 90 minutes of the film).
Anyways, this Russian debris takes out the first satellite where George Clooney and Sandra Bullock are working. And, Bullock goes careening off into space, hyperventilating on cue. Clooney has to rescue her and they have to get to the ISS and then to the Chinese station in order to fly the escape pod down to earth.
That's the whole movie. There are minor character details that could trigger something deeper. An early conversation shows Bullock having lost her son, and the movie is empty enough that it could be about the stages of grief. Or, the debris was caused by a rash action by the Russians, and wham its a political allegory. But, ultimately, the movie is none of these. It's a simplistic vacuous video game about trying to get from place to place and trying to rescue your avatar.
Is it well made? Yes. It has some really fine cinematography. There is a 13 minute opening shot that is spectacular. The visuals are far more sumptuous and fulfilling than anything else in this bobblehead of a movie. However, the score is god-awful and in your face, and very intrusive to the movie during the action scenes. In the pre-film requisite literary reference card, the soundtrack starts quiet, and amps up to deafening volumes before it cuts out completely into silence. This motif is repeated over and over and over and over. It's more annoying than tense. It's more self-aware than invisible. You're aware this is a movie score, and dammit...it will be heard! And it will be silent!
Gravity is ultimately lacking that extra something that makes it worth seeing. It's not deep, or interesting, or even all that new. It isn't being released in the summer as a good movie for escaping from the oppressive heat into the coolness of space for some vacuous enjoyment. It is an October release, and its very vacuous even for that. And, though the visuals are grandiose, the movie is ultimately a loss due to a terrible score and a dull as dishwater script. Skip it.
Labels: 2013, Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity, Reviews, Science Fiction, The Other Films
Rashomon (1950) and Vertigo (1958): Using and abusing the first person narrative
dir: Akira Kurosawa
dir: Alfred Hitchcock
There are two movies whose long long shadows have been looming over this week's posts, which I have been completely avoiding to wrap it into this post. Both have had many articles written about them, and even specifically about the issue of perspective that all of the movies this week have utilized in their own way. One has an effect specifically named after it, and the other was used in a feminist article about cinema coining a separate term which became influential, even as it was wrong.
The first is Rashomon, which has had The Rashomon Effect named after it.
The second is Vertigo, which Laura Mulvey used as an major example of The Male Gaze, a concept she developed in her essay Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.
Each of the preceding four movies rolled around, toyed with, and otherwise came face to face with both of these concepts, which I think are worth diving into here.
Even this image is a lie
Rashomon is a major work of Japanese cinema, and the first film of Akira Kurosawa to gain attention around the globe. In 1950, Rashomon won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, amongst other film festival awards. That it was more poorly received in Japan itself is of interest.
Rashomon is based on the short story In A Grove by Ryunosuke Akutagawa, first published in 1922. Both the short story and the film concern a thief spotting a samurai and his wife, and then the thief having his way with the wife and the husband ending up dead. Both media tell the story of what happened through four completely contradicting stories with 5 plot points remaining consistent:
1) A thief spotted a samaurai and his wife
2) The thief rapes the wife
3) The husband dies
4) The thief and the wife depart separately
5) A valuable dagger from the scene is missing
Everything between those plot points is negligible and up for debate in the trial. There are four witnesses in the trial - The Thief, The Wife, The Dead Husband (through a medium), and A Woodcutter - and all of their stories are completely different with matters of ego and plainly coloring their tale. In the end, there is no truth other than the five undeniable facts.
The thief told the story that he fought the husband for the right to have the wife, then the wife tried fighting the thief and lost. And, in his finale, the wife begged him to fight the husband, as only one person could know her shame. And, the winner could keep her.
The wife told the story that the thief tied up her husband, and had his way and left. But, then the husband judged her, even as she begged him not to. Then she took the dagger, and fainted...and somehow the husband was stabbed.
The husband told the story that, after the rape, his wife told the thief to kill her husband. The thief then asked the husband if he wanted the wife dead. The thief released the husband, left the grove, and the wife leaves. The husband then kills himself.
The woodcutter told the story that, after the rape, the thief begged the wife for marriage. But, she refused. The thief then freed the husband, who sulked because his wife was now spoiled. The wife, enraged, then calls the husband and the thief not real men and they should fight for her love. In the end, the thief wins the fight by accident, and flees.
The trial is then RETOLD by the woodsman and a priest to a commoner while they are taking shelter in the city gate called Rashomon. Meanwhile, they're tearing down the city gate for warmth and survival to create a fire to dry out while waiting for the torrential downpour to stop.
The idea of using four unreliable narrators to tell the same story over and over again is called The Rashomon Effect. It obviously was developed before 1950, as it was used in the 1922 short story. It was a technique developed by modernist authors in the 20s and 30s, at minimum. Notable literary examples of unreliable narrators include Faulkner's As I Lay Dying and The Sound and the Fury.
In cinema, The Rashomon Effect is relatively rare, though not altogether unheard of, with one of my favorite examples being the deconstructionist method of it in Reservoir Dogs and One Night at McCool's. It is far more used in television, having been used in a wide array of sitcoms and dramas from All in the Family to The Simpsons. The use of a single unreliable narrator is slightly more common in cinema, with two key recent popular movies being The Usual Suspects and Memento.
The audience as Scotty looking at Madeline who is
making sure that she is performing and that
Scotty (and, thusly, the audience) is watching.
Vertigo is about one of Hitchcock's favorite subjects: voyeurism. In 1954, Hitch directed Rear Window, a movie about the assembling of a story which you are only given one perspective on. In Rear Window, we're given the story of L.B. Jefferies, who is busy assembling a story of backyard detective work where he suspects a neighbor killed his wife.
Vertigo is considerably more complex. It is two completely different movies that are experienced completely differently from the first viewing to the subsequent viewings.
The first viewing: In Vertigo, John "Scottie" Ferguson is an out-of work officer following an accident where he fell from a roof. He is hired to follow Madeline, an old friend's wife, whom the friend has claimed to be haunted. Madeline and Scottie fall closer together, but Madeline then kills herself off a roof. Scotty falls into a depression, and is hospitalized for awhile. When Scotty gets out, he meets a woman, Judy, who reminds Scotty of the long lost love, Madeline. He makes up Judy to look like Madeline to ease his soul. In the end, Scotty figures out that Judy was the woman he had been following, and had set him up to fake the suicide of Madeline.
The second viewing: The second viewing, if you're watching more holistically (against the first person perspectives), Judy is hired to pose as a man's wife to set up Scotty. Judy is hired to wander around San Francisco as Madeline, and pose in various spots related to Madeline's story. Judy as Madeline falls in love with Scotty, but must finish the ruse and fake Madeline's suicide, because Madeline has already been murdered. Much later, Judy changes her appearance, and runs into Scotty again. Still feeling in love, and feeling pity for his loss, Judy deigns to have Scotty dress her up as the lost wife again, until he figures the story out. And, she dies.
The beauty of Vertigo, and what makes it a masterpiece, is that these two separate movies exist through the one perspective of Scotty. Every time you watch Vertigo, after the first, you can transpose between the two movies and have to marry together the two realities. The audience watches Scotty watch somebody who is watching Scotty watch her.
The Male Gaze, as Laura Mulvey wrote about it, regards the protagonist of the film as being male and the director being male as well, which was the vast majority of the movies in her time, and is still the vast majority of the films being made now. The theory says that the audience is forced to watch the stories trough the eyes of both the male director and the male protagonist, and we are thus defaulted to male, even if the viewer is a female. The theory also sets the woman as usually a fetishistic object of the director and the protagonist.
Laura Mulvey then expounds on Vertigo as though she had only seen the movie once. She later admitted that she was wrong about her interpretation of the movie, but her misinterpretation of Vertigo is fairly fascinating as it is the interpretation we are told to watch on the surface. Mulvey writes about Judy only performing for Scotty's pleasure in the second half of the movie when Scotty is recreating Judy in Madeline's image. And, she draws a parallel from that scenario to actresses performing for the scopophilic voyeuristic pleasure of the audience. Mulvey has, in turn, missed half of the movie, in which Judy is actively working to gain Scotty's attention, and actively working to get Scotty to look at her in order to manipulate Scotty. For good reason, as that is the movie that is told in a post-modernist way by telling it at the end or through the sides.
The Effects
Obviously, the four movies discussed earlier this week have ways of manipulating the first person narrative nature of cinema. Schizopolis, Triple Fisher, Bibliotheque Pascal and Tucker and Dale Vs Evil are all related, in theory, to the narrative manipulations that were encapsulated by Rashomon and Vertigo. This may be to varying results and with varying techniques, but I think its interesting to at least see how they relate to these two earlier classics.
Schizopolis used a Rashomon like effect by telling the story of the same day from three different perspectives. Rashomon was completely all about lies, even as Kurosawa refused to tell the actors and actresses what the true account was because he was exploring the nature of multiple realities. Schizopolis, however, accomplishes the result that Kurosawa was trying to accomplish by having multiple realities overlapping in sequential order. Schizopolis' effect was having every one of its narrators telling the truth, but it is their version of the truth. And, in turn, this makes it a stronger concept for differing perceptions and overlapping realities.
Schizopolis also makes the Vertigo used of multiple layers plain and visible. Much like Judy's story of being hired as a Madeline look-alike completely affects Scotty's story, Mrs. Munson's affair with the dentist is totally affecting her perspective of Mr. Munson's story, and how that whole story is working out. Unlike Vertigo, Schizopolis lays that second and third layer out explicitly, even though it isn't overlapping the original story. Whether it makes it easier or harder to figure out what exactly Soderburgh is trying to accomplish is determined on how dedicated you are to Schizopolis, but its usage is reminiscent of Vertigo.
Triple Fisher, like Rashomon, is a story told by multiple narrators, all of whom are lying. The main difference is Triple Fisher's used of montage compared to the retelling of the narrative from each different narrator as Rashomon did. Some people accuse Rashomon of trying to get at a deeper truth that can't be told with a single camera, but Rashomon is full of liars and unreliable narrators. Triple Fisher, however, is trying to balance three unreliable narrators who may or may not believe that what they are telling is the truth. Or it might just be sensationalist lies. Either way, Triple Fisher and Rashomon are intrinsically tied through technique. And, yes, Amy Fisher, Joey Buttafuoco and Akira Kurosawa are now in the same damn article. You're welcome. Please don't haunt me Mr. Kurosawa. Quick research shows I'm not the first to make this connection, which makes me happy to no end.
Bibliotheque Pascal is also directly related to Rashomon, but only in so far as it has an unreliable narrator. Both Rashomon and Bibliotheque Pascal have constructed whole movies out of lies and fabrications from the characters. Both movies were also constructed out of stories told out of ego and the urge to save face. All of the stories in Rashomon are told because the storytellers had something to hide, or wanted to be proud of something. Bibliotheque Pascal's narrator tells her story because she wants to disguise her past into something more than what it was. And, Vertigo's influence can be seen in the knowledge that there is a second movie underlying the first. But, where Vertigo's film is from a different character, Pascal's other film is just a boring film that needn't be told, again.
Tucker and Dale vs Evil is Vertigo ineloquently reused. Vertigo hammered two movies into one movie, but was able to make it slick enough to tell it through the one narrative. Tucker and Dale has the two movies but explicitly tells the two movies by splicing them together. Much like the later horror comedy, Cabin in the Woods, Tucker and Dale intercuts between the two movies to chop at each other's roots. But, Vertigo slickly and slyly told you that one was an incomplete story without showing it as incomplete in an explicit manner. Tucker and Dale, to its credit, is a b-movie that its creators may have thought it was lucky to be watched once, and was trying to tell you everything in the first viewing. It is a b-movie, after all.
With this week's look at the manipulation of narrative in the modern indie, foreign, and b-movie, I hope to show how sometimes the movies that may seem to be trashy or stupid might have something more going behind its wheels. It isn't all surface for some of these b-movies and they shouldn't be dismissed straight off. Are they classics like Rashomon and Vertigo. Probably not. Only Schizopolis and Triple Fisher is pushing the elements of what cinema actually is, but Triple Fisher is probably inessential viewing. The classics are casting shadows on the modern b-movie, and this is why even a b-movie lover should be watching and educating themselves on the classics.
Labels: 1950, 1958, Akira Kurosawa, Alfred Hitchcock, Drama, Foreign, Japanese, Rashomon, Reviews, The Other Films
Tucker and Dale vs Evil (2010): Inversion of Other Demonization
Tucker and Dale vs Evil (2010)
dir: Eli Craig
"It doesn't matter what happened. It only matters what looks like what happened." - Tucker
There is a whole sub-genre called Hicksploitation (or Hixploitation), in which there is demonization of the hick or the hillbilly by city folk. It's all about being on the wrong side of the tracks, and how the horror movie wants you to be on the right side of the track. Significant examples include The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Last House on the Left, Deliverance, The Hills Have Eyes, Wolf Creek, House of 1,000 Corpses, Redneck Zombies, 2000 Maniacs, Wrong Turn. That list is not complete. Every single one of those movies cashes in on the target audience of middle-class big city white people, mostly teenagers or college kids, who end up in a hellscape created by the poorer backwoods folks. In those movies, the hick is generally posed as purely evil demons who only want to kill.
Tucker and Dale vs Evil uses those classist expectations and tropes, and uses them to turn it all on its head through the use of perspective. Tucker and Dale are the hillbilly title characters on vacation who come into contact with a bevvy of college kids who are going camping in the woods. Tucker has just bought a rundown cabin in the woods, and is planning on cleaning the place up by sawing down trees, cleaning, and making everything pretty, but at first it is one of those cabins that horror movies present as creepy murder cabins. Meanwhile, the college kids are freaked out by Dale due to his ineptly trying to hit on the college kids at the beginning of the movie while holding a scythe.
The first half of the movie is presented with the two different perspectives as two different movies flowing between each other. When Tucker and Dale are night fishing, one of the college girls slips on a rock out of view from the other students and falls unconscious into the water. However, what the college kids see is Tucker and Dale hoisting an unconscious friend into their rowboat and shouting "We got your friend!"
The movie continues as the college kids try to "rescue" Allison and end up killing themselves in increasingly horrific ways. Meanwhile, Tucker and Dale are trying to do work on their house, and protect Allison, and also inform the kids that they need to come get their friend. And then the kids start dying all around Tucker and Dale.
When Tucker and Dale's split fades away as both movies start to confront each other, and comes out as an all out war, the movie loses half of the tension it had in the first half of the movie. Even though it becomes a horror movie with the college kids as the antagonists, and it retains its comedic sensibilities, the tension between the warring perspectives evaporates and we're left with a little more straightforward of a movie.
As Tucker observes in the middle of the movie. "It doesn't matter what happened. It only matters what looks like what happened." Where this movie differs from most horror comedies, is it doesn't just lampoon or abuse tropes, it turns them inside out. It shows how certain events could be mis-perceived as something completely different based on expectations and tropes. Effectively, you're watching the movie as a buddy comedy, who keep getting invaded by a hixploitative horror movie with college kids.
Tucker and Dale is heavily political as well. While it is upending cliches through the dual perspective, it is also confronting the classism that hixploitation movies perpetuate through using the hillbilly as the "other" in the horror movie. In today's America, there is a split of the cultures that has been accomplished through the Republican's Southern Strategy in the 1960s. In the 1960s, the Republicans were losing ground as the Democrats were embracing the racial progresses that were happening through the Civil War. In order to regain power, the Republicans sold out their party to better represent the values of the Southern conservative values. In the 50 or so years since the southern strategy, the Republicans have not abandoned their southern strategy, and most voting maps are split between rural and big city, and north/west and south.
Frequently, the northern media has depicted the southern conservatives as hicks and others, and have labeled some of the states as "flyover" states. These states, for the most part, were part of the confederacy of the Civil War. And, as such, the south is demonized as being stupid hicks unworthy of having political opinions because they're racist and full of ultra-religious beliefs which should not be allowed due to separation of church and state. Its like they're yokels.
Kevin Smith further added to this discussion in 2011's horror movie Red State, where he depicted two teenage boys picked up by a church about to use these sinners as part of some sort of sacrificial ritual. It demonizes the religious as an "other" worthy of being villainized. The religious were a more specific reference to Westboro Baptist Church, the group who goes and protests various funerals and protests in order to spread its message of whatever.
Tucker and Dale is basically saying that everybody has the potential to be demonized. The college kids are the "other" to Tucker and Dale. This is shown by them frequently calling out "college kids" in order to get their attention. The antagonists in this movie are educated, young, mostly white, and middle class. As such, the message of Tucker and Dale is that everybody deserves to be heard, and that your side may not be right just because it "sounds" right.
In any case, Tucker and Dale is actually a hilarious movie that deserves to be found by more. It's violent and gruesome enough to satisfy the gorehounds, and hilarious enough to entertain everybody else. While the movie loses steam in the second half, it's first half more than makes up for that loss of momentum.
Labels: 2010, black comedy, comedy, Eli Craig, Hicksploitation, Hixploitation, horror, horror comedy, Review, The Other Films, Tucker and Dale Vs Evil
Bibliothèque Pascal (2010): Storytelling as Survival
Bibliothèque Pascal (2010)
dir: Szabolcs Hajdu
Bibliothèque Pascal would not be possible without Terry Gilliam. Terry Gilliam is a consummate storyteller fascinated by the concept of storytelling. While he even had a Trilogy of Imagination - Time Bandits, Brazil, and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen - many of his films deal with charletans, storytellers, liars, flights of fantasy, dreams, and downright delusions. From The Fisher King's medieval fancy to Tideland's fantasies of escape to The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus' incredible machine of generating storytelling, Gilliam has always been fascinated with stories where we're dealing primarily with the imagination of one main character.
Certainly, other movies made by people other than Gilliam have dealt with the imaginations of a single character. Recent notable examples of these other movies include Pan's Labyrinth, The Fall, and The Cell. All of these movies include flights of fancy, and the former two are fantasies to escape the reality of the world in which they live. The Fall even concerns a storyteller weaving a fantasy in order to entertain a little girl to entice her to get him drugs. But, they all owe a great deal of debt to Gilliam, who, in turn, also owed a debt to Fellini though definitely not nearly as overtly.
Like all of these movies, Bibliothèque Pascal is all about storytelling. (Warning: full plot breakdown ahead, including spoilers) The movie opens with a young woman, Mona, in Romanian child protective services office trying to win custody of her child who has been taken away from her. Mona had left her daughter with her aunt to take care of while Mona was away. Subsequently, her child was seen performing for money, and subsequently was taken away from Mona's aunt. Mona, back in Romania, is now trying to win her child back with this interview. The CPS agent asks Mona what happened, and we're launched into a technicolor fantasy of her creation for the majority of the movie.
Years ago, Mona, who seems to be a Romanian gypsy or wanderer of sorts, leaves her cheating and jealous boyfriend to a different city, with a beach. While on the beach, she is taken hostage by a wanted criminal who has recently murdered a man solely for being gay and kissing another man in public. This criminal is also a dream projector, in which he projects his most vivid dreams onto other people. During the kidnapping, he projects a love dream onto Mona, who is so enthralled she has sex with him before he gets assassinated the next morning.
Fast forward and Mona has a daughter. She is making a living telling stories with puppets at fairs. The story shown is an allegorical retelling of her history so far, with the above criminal being represented by a scorpion. With it, we learn that her mother died when she was young.
At the fair, she meets up with her father, who is shown hanging around the fair. Her father is a prostitute dealer, and needs to replace a girl he was going to sellt. He is first shown being rejected by a one of the hookeriest hookers you could imagine because London trade is rough. When he meets with Mona, he tricks Mona into being the replacement by feigning an illness and the need to see a doctor in Germany. And, so she is sold to human traffickers who, in turn, sells her to Pascal, an affable chap who runs a swanky nightclub and brothel, Bibliothèque Pascal.
Inside the brothel, the sex workers (3 women, a man, and a boy) act out different literary scenes for their clients. There is a Lolita, a Pinocchio, a Dorian Gray, a Desdemona, and Mona's first story: Joan of Arc. As Joan of Arc, she has to act out the scene of penance with a subsequently forced sex scene acted out. She is drugged between acts, and bites the tongue of Pascal when he tries to kiss her, causing her to be placed as Desdemona, in a rubber suit, to get suffocated and raped.
But, she is rescued by the dream projection of her daughter, which is the street performance her daughter was doing. Her daughter was sleeping, and dreamed of creating a marching band, led by Mona's father, to rescue Mona from the library. And, scene.
When the CPS guy doesn't believe her (for obvious reasons), she recants and tearfully tells her real story in short sentences. She met the father on the street, but doesn't know who he is. He gave a false name and job. She had the kid anyways. She had to work odd, menial, jobs to survive. She thought she could make more money and a better living as a prostitute in Britain, and left her child with her aunt promising to pay her from her wages. But, she couldn't make a living in London, and couldn't send her aunt any money. Thus, to cover costs, her aunt made the child perform. And, that gets her her child back.
The film closes with her and her daughter having a fantasy dinner, and her daughter happily eating and drinking air in a gorgeous technicolor kitchen. And, Mona subsequently puts her daughter to bed, where she tells a story about how all the princes and princesses in fairy tales had disappeared, and now they had to deal with reality instead of being allowed to live in their fantasies which added color and zest to their life. And, we pull back to discover that this touching scene is actually in a model setup in a department store.
And, so, Hajdu has created a movie about a woman weaving and embellishing, or entirely fabricating, her life story in order to escape the mundanities of reality. It is a movie that isn't even ambiguous between whether or not it is lying, but instead asks you if you'd rather hear another sad tale about single mothers and sex trafficking and sex work, or if you'd like this fantasy story where the good people are good, and the bad people are bad. The sex work is horrible, but the brothel is fantastic (in terms of fantasy, not in terms of good).
In the flights of fancy, the sex work is brutal and abusive. In the flight of fancy, Desdemona is suffocated to the point of unconsciousness or death before she is fucked by two strange men in rubber suits. In the flight of fancy, there is also the auction of women of sorts for the johns to buy and sell. And, in the reality, Mona says that the work was lousy, the wages were pathetic, the rent was high, and the pimp took way too much of a cut of the profit, rendering it unsustainable.
The one thing it might get wrong is that it suggests it was easy for Mona to leave the pimp and the sex work when she was frustrated by it. She just ups and leaves to return to her daughter. Considering that she went to sex work willingly, this might be one type of reality, but it also ignores the reality of sex workers who are trafficked from foreign countries and forced into sexual slavery.
It also is an interesting painting of a woman's story as told by a man. Hajdu's wife is the star of Bibliothèque Pascal, and much of the inspiration came from her sitting in a Hungarian jail cell, on a vehicle registration charge, with a prostitute who would spend her time spinning bizarre yarns about prostituting in London. These are the worlds we create in order to survive. These are the worlds we create to escape how humdrum the struggle for life for some actually is.
The main problem people will have is the sex work, and the sexual violence are all in the fantasy. Unlike, say, Pan's Labyrinth, Mona isn't escaping a violent fantasy world which is marked by war and murder. Mona is embellishing to make her life seem less pathetic. And, as such, it is presented pretty unabashedly.
It also is a tad rapey, and I can't get around that. Even though the whole story was a flight of fancy in order to get away from rehashing another boring, pathetic life, the story was also meant as an embellishment to create sympathy from the CPS agent. No, my daughter wasn't performing just for money. Her performance was also a dream projection meant to rescue me from this horrible brothel where I was raped in the worst way possible! This wasn't just any brothel, this was the most fantastic brothel you could imagine, with the most horrible rapey sex ever, including rubber sex. Can you imagine? The movie never portrays the rape in a good light, and it almost always portrays it from a third party camera view in the first person storytelling. But, it is rapey...and it is almost rapey as a throwaway device, which is, ultimately, kind of a fault of the movie.
This is a sultry movie which goes through its paces of fast and slow. It's like the jazz music that populates the movie. Sometimes its slow, and almost lulling you to sleep, then it can be eclectic, and sometimes it can be zippy or bombastic. It is also visually stunning, owing much to Tarsem's The Cell and The Fall. Bibliothèque Pascal is a gorgeous work, immaculately framed and conceived. It's borderline messy in its plotting, but aren't all flights of fancy?
Labels: 2010, Bibliotheque Pascal, Drama, Fantasy, Review, Sexual Politics, Szabolcs Hajdu, The Other Films
Triple Fisher: The Lethal Lolitas of Long Island (2012): "Based" on a true story...the supercut
Drew Barrymore, Noelle Parker, and Alyssa Milano
as Amy Fisher
Triple Fisher: The Lethal Lolitas of Long Island (2012)
dir: Dan Kapelovitz
"Only they know what happened." - Disclaimer at the beginning of Amy Fisher: My Story.
In 1996, Schizopolis presented a world where everybody's point of view was considered to be valid and just part of the story. It was educating the world in the lesson of "there are three sides to every story" using just one single movie. But, right around the new year of 1993, American audiences were given their own crash course in viewpoints through three movies of the week.
Starting on December 28, 1992, television networks released a series of movies based on the notorious yet relatively inconsequential story of Amy Fisher and Joey Buttafuoco. For those who may not know, Amy Fisher was a 16-year-old girl who started having an affair with a married, much older man, Joey Buttafuoco. When she was 17, she went to Buttafuoco's home, and shot Joey Buttafuoco's wife in the head. While those are the basic facts to the story, there are many different ways to tell the story, and tell them they did.
The first movie to come out was NBC's Amy Fisher: My Story (eventually retitled Lethal Lolita) on December 28, 1992. Starring Noelle Parker as Amy Fisher, and Ed Marinaro as Joey Buttafuoco, My Story focused on Fisher's point of view, showing her as a minorly rebellious but altogether more innocent character involved in the shooting.
The second and third movies both came out the next Sunday. One was The Amy Fisher Story, airing on ABC, starring Drew Barrymore and Anthony Dennison. The final movie was CBS' Casualties of Love: The Long Island Lolita Story, starring Alyssa Milano and Jack Scalia. The Amy Fisher Story was supposed to be a third party retelling based on both sides, while Casualties of Love was completely out of the Buttafuoco's side of the story.
Just to reiterate: Noelle Parker (with punky hair) was from Amy Fisher's side. Drew Barrymore was the "neutral" side, and Alyssa Milano was the Buttafuoco's story.
In My Story, Amy Fisher was an innocent but damaged and rebellious girl who fell head over heels in love with a Joey Buttafuoco who was just as infatuated with her. In The Amy Fisher Story, Amy was a sleazy girl who was having a sleazy affair with a down-and-dirty sleazy Joey Buttafuoco who may or may not be taking advantage of her. In Casualties of Love, Joey Buttafuoco was an innocent man who was rampantly seduced by a wanton selfish slut named Amy Fisher, even though he resisted the whole time.
When American audiences were watching this all fall down around them on national television, they were given the choice of whose view they wanted to watch. And, at least with the neutral and Buttafuoco movies, American audiences were able to flip between channels and get different takes on the exact same events. Where Schizopolis was cramming it all sequentially, many American families were doing the same thing with their remotes.
20 years later, Dan Kapelovitz, still obsessed with the Amy Fisher movies, if not the whole Fisher/Buttafuoco saga, assembled all three movies into one tight supercut. It presents the three movies intercutting and weaving between each other in order to capture all of the events, and to try to get closer to the global truth, while also commenting on the ways that value changes can effect the way a movie is made.
An example of how the three can show the same scene in a completely different waw is in the shirt where Amy attains a t-shirt from the Buttafuoco auto repair shop. In one, Buttafuoco gives Amy a shirt in a passionate manner. In another, Amy hounds Joey to give it to her until he gives in. But, all three versions are presented to let the audience decide how it might have gone down. Some scenes are intercut as they go. Some movies had scenes that weren't in others. Many scenes were deleted altogether.
Triple Fisher does also blows the lid off the world of "based on a true story" that used to be the hallmark of movies of the week, and are now the calling card of oscar bait and horror films. Everything nowadays seems to be based on a true story. A butler version of Forrest Gump? True story, they cry! A movie about a girl with a demon? True Story!! A homeless man who is a violin prodigy? True story, they say. A seal dressed up in beach clothes? Truth! They can get away with claiming truth by hiding behind "based on" or "inspired by." And, the words become completely meaningless and trite.
Triple Fisher pulls back the curtain on these disclaimers, showing that "based on a true story" is one-sided at best, and a complete fabrication at worst. It shows that everybody could come up with a different way of telling the same story without having the same take on it. Giving the characters different implications and motivations, each movie causes the viewer to have a different perspective.
This year, we are getting at least two major Steve Jobs movies: jOBS and a currently untitled Aaron Sorkin movie (presumably where Steve Jobs stands in for Aaron Sorkin as a monomaniacal asshole who talks and talks and talks). They won't depict the same events, as of now. They will have different perspectives. But, they have to deal with the same person, and will be different takes on the character. Triple Fisher prepares us for these competitors, and entertains us at the same time.
Labels: 1992, 1993, 2012, Amy Fisher, Dan Kapelovitz, Drama, Long Island Lolita, Review, Supercut, The Lethal Lolitas of Long Island, The Other Films, Triple Fisher
Schizopolis (1996): Going Backwards to Re-educate
Schizopolis (1996)
dir: Steven Soderbergh
I introduced myself to Schizopolis in quite possibly the best way possible. I was doing a sleep study drug test for research, and had to stay in a psych ward for 72 hours. I didn't socialize much at the psych ward, and was the only person there for "research." So, I watched movies and tv on DVD all day. Schizopolis was one of those movies. And, in my mind, there is no other way to experience this movie, which is quite possibly the closest experience anybody could ever have of a nervous breakdown without actually having one themselves. And, yet, this is only the surface of the movie.
I'm sure you all know Steven Soderbergh. This was a man who came on strong with his first movie, Sex, Lies and Videotape, but got sucked into indie Hollywood hell of a string of rather uninspired crappy non-movies for 7 years. Then, after he divorced his wife, he came out with Schizopolis, which is simultaneously a student film by a then-not-so-major director, a clarion call for help, and a learning process. After this movie, his career rejuvenated and he started making popular and/or award-winning movies, and has continued to do so to this day.
Schizopolis is the story of three nights and days in the life of three characters told from different points of view. The first two characters are Fletcher Munson (Steven Soderbergh) and his wife, Mrs Munson (real-life ex-wife Betsy Brantley). After the death of Munson's co-worker, Fletcher is assigned to write a speech for his boss, a pseudo-L. Ron Hubbard type for the book Eventualism, but struggles with it. His wife, however, has been having an affair with our third character Dr Jeffrey Korchek (Steven Soderbergh, again)...who is also trying to seduce Attractive Woman #2 (Betsy Brantley, again). As the days go by, and the speech gets finished, and the affair is totaled, Schizopolis finally gives us a fake fantasy ending of happiness that it doesn't share with the real life couple.
Intertwined in this are two separate tales, whose tales move linearly out of sync with the Soderbergh stories. The first is that of Elmo Oxygen, a pest control agent who goes door to door to seduce women, and is hired by a reality TV show team to assault people. The second is that of Nameless Numberhead Man who is unhappily married to Attractive Woman #1, because she used to be fat but has lost all of her weight. So, while she's having affairs with the likes of Elmo and possibly Dr. Korchek, he's seducing an insurance agent who is much larger in size.
Soderbergh structures Schizopolis in 3 acts, each act telling the same set of days from a different perspective. It's very Go before Go. But, it is post Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction. The first act is told strictly from Munson's point of view, in which he is so bored with his usual marriage that he doesn't even hear their conversations in real sentences. All he hears is "Generic Greeting" and "Generic Greeting returned". Basically, the framework of all our routine conversation to maintain our lives, even though it seems inconsequential. Meanwhile, he has to suffer through work by masturbating in the bathroom, while writing shitty speeches and getting phone calls offering him money to be a mole. He doesn't even notice that his wife is obviously cheating on him. And, he barely notices that she left him on the second evening. Also, in this first section, we first see Elmo seducing women using a Burroughs-esque cut-up nonsensical language. And, we learn that Nameless Numberhead Man is depressed by his wife.
The second act is told from Dr. Korchek's point of view, which is fairly mundane and straightforward but observatory in ways that Munson's story isn't. He also acknowledges that this may be the same character but a completely different personality. At one point, he remarks "I'm having an affair with my wife." In this section, we learn that Korchek is in love with Mrs. Munson and asks her to move in with him. But, when she does move in with him, he rejects her out of the possibility that he has fallen in love with Attractive Woman #2. The second act also has Elmo, now hired by a different reality tv crew, assaulting random people for his show. And, we watch NNM seduce the rather large secretary as he mildly belittles Attractive Woman #1 for losing weight, telling her to eat something.
The third act is told from Mrs. Munson's point of view, who only hears herself in English. She hears all the men in different, unsubtitled, foreign languages. She hears Fletcher in Japanese, Korchek in Italian, and when she reconciles with Fletcher post-Korchek rejection, he is now in French. The new information presented is that she actually leaves Fletcher. And, after she is rejected by Korchek, Fletcher comes and rescues her from a coffee shop and they go home together. They have sex, the speech is finished, and everybody is talking in normal English once again. The third act is missing Elmo until he shows up in the epilogue. And, Mrs Munson finds a video tape meant for NNM which is really large women who are having sex with small men.
So, in reality, this is a screaming reality check by Soderbergh for himself. He started shooting with no script, and this is the movie that came straight out of his head. It may seem like it is a psychotic movie about personalities and points of views that is further confused and obfuscated by Soderbergh playing two parts and Brantley playing two parts. It may seem like the whole point of the film is story as therapy. Especially when you add in that the speech sections came straight out of notes from executives on Soderbergh's scripts. But, really, I don't think that was the purpose of this movie at all.
Schizopolis reminds me of Man Bites Dog, in that this was a movie that really wasn't about its subject. Man Bites Dog was a movie about the making of movies. Sure, it happened to be a movie about the making of a movie about a serial killer. But, it was intended to be a movie about making movies. It just had a sick sense of humor. Likewise, Schizopolis is mainly a training ground for Soderbergh to experiment on the effect of cinematic points of view, and in turn, to teach the audience on how to watch movies. That it is also a bit of masturbation on affairs and marriage, just after he divorced his ex-wife, is incidental mind-fuckery.
Soderbergh was teaching himself what a point of view was in a film, and how the different ways you tell a story can have different effects on the story itself. Since we don't follow Mrs. Munson at all in the first act, we don't really know that she's having an affair, even though the audience suspects it. We see how following this character affects what the audience knows about the story, and then when we follow Dr Korchek, we learn more about the affair. And, when we follow Mrs. Munson, we get the final pieces.
In the process, the audience learns that the language to the scene is incidental, even though the language used is far from incidental. While one character is hearing things as a generic script filled with replacement place holders, the other is hearing the same conversation in two completely different languages. Teaching us that we may not actually be hearing each other even if we think we're listening. Also, teaching the audience that the words in plays and movies barely even need to exist as long as we learn the various attitudes of the characters through their dialogue.
Where the A-story is mainly an experiment in structure and form, the B-stories (that of Elmo Oxygen and NNM) are an experiment in style. Elmo jumps from genre to genre. From weird detective movie to sexpot movie to 60s drug out movie to reality tv show to, eventually, assassination thriller. NNM is a straight up generic romance. Each different style is showcasing how every movie structures their camera shots, lighting, and editing to achieve a different feel for every scene.
Schizopolis played at Cannes to a legendarily bad reception. Nobody knew what to make of it. It played as a "surprise" film, and had no credits. The title is presented as a word on the shirt of a bottomless man, and ends with a single frame blip of a copyright. The movie, moving extremely fast with its overly complicated plot, operates at a pace where it is years ahead of its first-time audience at every scene. Just as an audience thinks it may have caught up, wham its a different movie. People were still catching up on the timeline experimentation that was Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction. Variety had a particularly scathing and clueless review, saying "No narrative is developed on a comprehensible level, nor is any single idea fleshed out to meaningful dimensions."
As I said, though, Schizopolis is a training ground for both Soderbergh and for audiences alike (even though nobody saw Schizopolis). In 1997, Tarantino would reuse this type of multiple viewpoint narration for his movie Jackie Brown, and Soderbergh would totally fuck timelines up with Out of Sight in 1998. In fact, five of his next six movies would deal with points of view or timeline fuckery that Soderbergh developed here in Schizopolis. Those movies: Out of Sight, The Limey, Traffic, Ocean's Eleven, and Full Frontal. They also dealt with genre styling in a way that Soderbergh developed in Schizopolis.
There are a lot (a lot) of valid criticisms of Schizopolis. It's intentionally confusing. It's too fast to keep up with. It's too compressed with too many ideas. It's pretentious and self-indulgent as all get out. It's amateurish. It feels like a student film thesis project. It's disconnected. It's obvious. It's obtuse. In a sense, this movie doesn't work for a lot of people not willing to put time or energy into a film. On the other hand, it is a blisteringly funny take on relationships, communication, and how to watch movies in general without feeling lecture-y about any of it. This is one of The Other Films' Required Viewings.
Labels: 1996, comedy, Independent Film, Required Viewing, Review, Schizopolis, Steven Soderbergh, The Other Films
Popatopolis (2009): The state of the B-movie through behind-the-scenes
Popatopolis (2009)
dir: Clay Westervelt
"To do a low budget movie would take three weeks or a month. Then, it became two weeks. And then they started shooting them in...a week..." - Monique Parent
Jim Wynorski. A name which would live in infamy, if only he didn't have so many damn pseudonyms. This is a man who has directed a minimum of 94 movies in 30 years. He started out doing amazing schlock like yesterday's Chopping Mall, and The Lost Empire (a Ninja/Woman In Prison/Cop/Sci-fi/Killer Ape movie) and went through a decent B-movie phase noted by Dinosaur Island where a lost tribe of women worship a dinosaur. Finally, he ended up in ultra-low-budget z-movie hell doing soft-core Skinemax porno the better part of the '00s. The b-movie market had bottomed out, there was no money, and so Wynorski, with his love of the breasts, found himself doing the late night movies like The Bare Wench Project series, or The Breastford Wives.
In 2005, Jim had accepted a deal to make a movie in 3 days. This movie would be The Witches of Breastwick, another softcore porno of negligable quality, mainly so due to budget and time constraints. See, in Wynorski's ultra-low-budget hell, there is only time for minimum crew, minimum auditions and casting, minimum script writing, minimum equipment, and even sets. This movie was filmed in 3 days around one house which did not have food or towels, and was out of range for cell service.
Popatopolis takes us behind the scenes of The Witches of Breastwick to show us that...making a softcore porno movie in three days with no towels and food really really sucks. Jim Wynorski doesn't care about this movie. He cares about getting it done. The movie is just a product, or a challenge, to him. Which is a vast difference from when he used to care about his movies. Or, at least when they seemed like he cared. In 1994, he started making and releasing movies in bulk. First four a year, then 6 a year. His last movie not released among 2-4 others of his year was 1997's Against the Law starring Richard Greico and Kelly LeBrock.
Due to the time constraints, Wynorski is a short-tempered agitated, quippy man. He is like a less tempered, but more rigid version of low-budget director Lloyd Kaufman of Troma fame (if you've ever watched one of those behind-the-scenes). Unlike Kaufman, Wynorski knows where to direct his frustration, and how to finish a movie.
There are significantly memorable scenes in Popatopolis, such as the opening scene of Wynorski getting frustrated at an actress being late, and then going on a misogynistic rant about late actresses. Or, Julie K Smith not getting her lines dead on, and Wynorski not pausing to let her learn her line, but feeding it to her and then filming immediately. He would repeat this for a very uncomfortable long period of time until she landed the line.
The whole process is a painful low budget excursion that really made for a not-memorable film. But, it shows the state of b-movies in the mid '00s. There was no channel for b-movies for awhile. The home video market had dried up, and Netflix schlock hadn't picked up yet. Syfy (then Sci-Fi) was just starting to come on board with their brand of schlock that has become infamous now with Sharknado. B-movies were in dire straits.
After The Witches of Breastwick, Julie K. Smith would retire for a couple of years. Wynorski would eventually go on to direct Cleavagefield (a particular favorite of mine, particularly for the song Pussy Pussy Bang Bang), Dinocroc vs Supergator, and Pirahnaconda.
If you want to see what happens when a man loses his taste for his passion but still has to do his job, this is the movie for you.
But, there's another aspect to Popatopolis that I have been slightly touching on but not delving into. The undercurrent of misogyny and sexism that regularly occurs in porn, soft-core and hardcore. At one point, while reading the script, Julie K Smith comments, "Whoever wrote this has a real problem with women." That comment actually has four layers to it: the viewpoint that The Witches of Eastwick is about women who are witches and need a man to survive, that soft-core and hardcore porno regularly objectifies and reduces women and men to sex objects, that Jim Wynorski is actually a misogynist, and that Ms Smith may be projecting part her frustrations with Wynorski onto the script.
In watching Popatopolis, one gets the idea that Wynorski can be a misanthrope when he's working. He hates anybody who is pissing him off, either actively or not. He screams at women and men constantly. He has negative things to say about everybody. But, he does have a tendency to also attack women with female-specific targets. He objectifies women as part of his job on a soft-core porn set, but he also objectifies women in real life too. It doesn't seem like he was always like this, though. He used to have movies that contained strong women than didn't go around bewitching, drugging, and raping completely unrelated men for no reason.
The Witches of Breastwick has a plot consisting of a guy (played by Joe Souza) who is haunted by nightmares of three big breasted women who want to have sex with him. He eventually goes to confront them, and they drug him and his wife before banging them. possibly against their will. Which has almost nothing to do with The Witches of Eastwick, in which three divorcees share a man, whom they think may be the devil until he marries somebody else and they give her cancer. Really, the book is truly problematic.
The Witches of Breastwick also has the side problem of being a soft-core porno made by a guy's guy aimed at guys. It is meant to be a male fantasy aimed at reinforcing male fantasies about women. In this case, a fantasy about three women who are so needy they will haunt your nightmares and then drug you to have sex with you. Which leads credence to Julie K Smith's comment's that the writers have real problems with women. In part, it isn't a healthy movie because it is a completely male point of view, with nothing to withhold the maleness, and even an incentive to maximize the maleness of the movie.
In the end, the movie, like any good documentary, is working on a bunch of different levels. At the surface its a behind the scenes of The Witches of Breastwick. Then its a character study of Jim Wynorski, and a review of his career. Below that is a lament for the state of the b-movie. And, worked in the edges is the sexual politics that comes with working as a female in soft-core pornography.
It's highly recommended, especially if you're fascinated by behind the scenes and movie making in general.
Labels: 2009, Clay Westervelt, Documentary, Jim Wynorski, Popatopolis, Review, Sexual Politics, State of Cinema, The Other Films, The Witches of Breastwick
Chopping Mall (1986): Robots vs Teenagers
dir: Jim Wynorski
"I'm just not used to being chased around a mall in the middle of the night by killer robots." - Linda
Here at The Other Films, we have a long love affair with Mary Woronov. From her start as a Factory Girl, with a part in Chelsea Girls, to her career with the Cormans, following up with her long pairing with Paul Bartel (whom we also love), and her late career moves in throwback films The House of the Devil and The Devil's Rejects, Woronov has always lit up the screen and elevated a b-movie above its current state.
Her best movie has always been Eating Raoul, where she and Paul Bartel play the Blands, a couple who seduces and murders swingers in order to attempt to fund their restaurant. Less known, however, is that the Blands make a cameo in the beginning of Chopping Mall, a B-movie about a bunch of teenagers getting killed by security guard robots after hours in a mall. The Blands' cameo adds up to little more than harassing the presenter of the killer security guard robots, but it is a nice addition. It also gives you the fantasy of a sequel that has killer robots roaming around a small country cottage restaurant, which, let's face it, we'd all watch the hell out of.
While this is a great example of cheesy 80s drive-in fare at its finest, Chopping Mall is most infamous for being one of the strongest examples of great 80s poster art that promised far more than it delivered. Look at the example on the right. With a name like Chopping Mall, with its bloody slasher logo treatment, and a severed pseudo-robotic hand with a bag full body parts that has a head peeking out of the bag, one might be inclined to think that there was some actual chopping to be done at this mall, perhaps by sexy lady cyborgs with long fingernails. But, instead of lady cyborgs with long fingernails, the robots are something like a Dalek had sex with Johnny 5, and then stole Geordi LaForge's glasses. And they don't chop, they shoot darts, electrocute, and sometimes make people's heads explode.
Originally, Chopping Mall was titled Killbots, with completely different art that featured the actual robot, and looked more like an action science-fiction movie. This art is more upfront about what the movie is, but if you saw that movie when you discover that the robots are essentially stand-ins for the slasher in your generic 80's horror movie stalking them through a mall, you'd probably be disappointed as well. At least, with the Chopping Mall art, you know you're probably being lied to. Roger Corman suspected that the Killbots poster made the movie look like it was tied to Transformers and was actually a kid-friendly movie. But, it was an R-rated sci-fi horror comedy, and the advertising didn't communicate that.
Chopping Mall is the usual fare of robots stalking and killing teenagers who hang get the keys to a mall department store to drink and have sex after hours. There's nudity, sex, and explosions, and exploding heads, plus the Blands, all packed into 77 minutes.
There really isn't much to say about Chopping Mall beyond HOW AWESOME IT IS. The virgins survive, everybody else dies, and really, Chopping Mall knows its delivering schlock on a high level. Every fan of cheesy sci-fi horror should watch this movie now. I'm actively not commenting on anything because...why spoil the fun? But, there is an interesting note here. The director of this piece of awesome is Jim Wynorski, who is known to B-Movie aficionados for being a hugely prolific dealer of schlock containing frequent large exposed breasts. In Chopping Mall there are large breasts on display, but there is also beefcake on display, sometimes past the point where it would seem the guy should put a shirt on. So, Wynorski is an equal opportunity exploiter in this movie, which is more than you can say for some other films.
Jim Wynorski would go on do The Return of Swamp Thing, Dinosaur Island, and Munchies before the budgets for B-movies would dry up, and he would resort to doing soft-core Skinemax porno on the dirt cheap. But, you'll find more about Jim Wynorski in tomorrow's review of Popatopolis, aka The Making of The Witches of Breastwick. Meanwhile, go watch this pure piece of cheesetastic goodness that I'm purposely trying not to say anything about beyond robots killing teenagers in a mall. Go watch.
Labels: 1986, Chopping Mall, horror, Jim Wynorski, Killbots, Review, sci-fi, The Other Films
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Come Out Of Machiavellian Politics
Yuba Nath Lamsal
There is no dearth of political analysts both in the western and oriental societies, who advocate liberal democracy. They often tend to equate democracy with capitalism. The importunity with which these pundits pursue their treatise on democracy and capitalism sometimes creates confusion in the understanding of democracy. Capitalism and democracy are two different sets of ideas, which represent two different fields. Capitalism is an economic system in which market is the ruler and profit counts more than anything else. Democracy is a political system that is supposed to be more welfare-oriented, which is in stark contrast to the basic tenets of capitalism.
Proponents are of the view that capitalism is not merely economics but also a political and social system, which defends individual rights and freedom of citizens in all fronts and sectors. However, capitalism has to do more with the economics based on market authoritarianism and a little to do with the social face. Capitalism seeks a weak government to be easily manipulated and dictated by the market where capitalists and a few rich will be the masters.
Democracy is the political system wherein people’s representatives are chosen to govern through adult franchise. Democratic polity, in principle, ensures rule of the majority for the common good of all and seeks to protect the rights of the minorities. The political system we have adopted is the liberal democracy, which is in vogue in the world at present. In this system, elections are held in such a manner that the winner takes it all and the loser has virtually no say. This is the ‘first-past-the post’ or majoritarian system. A person or political group gets elected when one gets the most votes among the competitors. In such a case, a person or political group gets elected even when one does not get support of minimum 50 per cent voters. There are cases in the world that the candidates or political parties having secured less than 30 percent of the total votes have been declared elected.
In some western democracies, people’s apathy towards the system is so huge and high that they do not trust the system, parties and even the representatives, which is evident by miserably low voters’ turn out. The voters’ turn out is, sometimes, as low as 30 per cent. When only 30 per cent voters have participated in the election, how a political party or candidate can claim to have represented all people on the basis that one has secured more votes among many contenders out of the votes cast. Herein lies the fundamental flaw in the electoral system.
Proportionate representation is relatively better than the majoritarian one as it ensures representation of wider sectors because representatives are chosen on the basis of the number of votes the political parties get. This, too, is not the perfect electoral system but just better. Perhaps, this is the reason why some countries have adopted the proportionate election system. As many as 93 countries in the world have adopted the proportionate electoral system, of which majority countries have fully proportionate representation system, whereas the rest have semi-proportionate or mixed system. Nepal is in the second category as it has adopted the mixed system in which representatives are chosen on the basis of both ‘ first-past the post’ and proportionate electoral system.
Unfortunately, though, some countries which follow the ‘ first-past-the post’ system champion to be the best model of democracy and often teach others the tenets of democracy and preach their model in the world. What can be a bigger irony than this? This is a new Machiavellian democracy wherein the society’s biggest political hegemonies in the disguise of political parties or leaders compete through electoral struggle to have bigger say in the governance and political decision-making but not the marginalised and secluded ones. In this system, one is either complete winner or total loser and there is no middle way.
Its proponents call the proportionate system as the bane of democracy. According to them, proportionate electoral system fosters political instability as such election often produces a ‘hung’ parliament that always gives room for political crooks to play dirty game, both overtly and covertly, in the formation and pulling down of the governments as no single party secures a clear-cut majority to form the government. Nepal is taken as an obnoxious example of how the proportionate electoral system is awfully unsuitable for a young democracy. They cite the example of how the first Constituent Assembly failed and the second Constituent Assembly, too, reached near failure but was saved in the last hours due to some new circumstances that emerged out of the blue. The other example they cite is the record change of governments over the last eight years since the newly adopted proportionate electoral system was put into function or dysfunction.
However, the electoral system itself is not flawed and what is defective is the behaviour and attitude of the political players. Despite its virtue, the electoral system was misused by our political parties and their leaders for their petty personal and partisan interests, owing to which the political crooks, power brokers and corrupt breeds took hostage of the political system turning it into vicious mode with money and muscle power. As a result, politics was criminalised and crimes politicised, blaming the proportionate electoral system as the key culprit.
The fundamental intent of the proportionate electoral system is to ensure due representation of all political ideologies, interest groups and communities in tune with genuine pluralist idea. However, the apologists of capitalism advocate the ‘ first-past-the post’ and malign the proportionate system with full of malafide intention just because the former gives them more room to maintain their hold on power by buying votes, rigging and manipulating elections.
The election is only a part of political system. But real debate should start on the model of democracy itself. Is the model we have adopted is suitable for Nepal? Can the capitalist democracy solve the myriad of crises we are facing? Certainly not. Niccolo Machiavelli, the political theorist and philosopher of the Italian Renaissance period, has said, “An effective leader can harness the weaker traits of humanity in his people to great effect, in the same way that a sheepdog can manipulate a herd of sheep”. The similar syndrome may afflict our democracy if we do not seek answer to these questions and adopt the political system accordingly. Democracy is a must and there can be no alternative to democracy. But the crux of the question is: What type of democracy we are seeking for? We need democracy in which the people should not be treated as subordinate but masters of their own destiny.
Against this background, the political parties need to come out of ideological inconsistency and answer these questions. In principle, all key political parties agree that capitalist democracy cannot solve our problems for which a mixed model has been suggested. The Nepali Congress right from the Sixties of the 20th century has been propagating, at least in principle, the mixed model or democratic socialism, which incorporates tenets of western liberal democracy in political front whereas the Marxist or socialist approach in economic sector. The communists, too, have given up their old traditional dogma and come to embrace the mixed model. Even our constitution has stipulated the necessity of socialist approach. But the discrepancy between principle and practice continues to exist in our political parties from which the parties are required to decisively depart and begin afresh to translate their stated principles and ideals into actions of leaders and party functionaries.
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Tag: king kong
Episode 685: Catching Up with Ben and Matt
Tagged as: 2001: A Space Odyssey, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, An American in Paris, Aquaman, Austin Powers, avengers: infinity war, Back to the Future, Big, Blue Like Jazz, Casablanca, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, chuck, Citizen Kane, Creed, Creed II, Daredevil, Easter Parade, Ender's Game, Ender’s Shadow, Endymion, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Firefly, For Me and My Gal, Gigi, Good Place, Heavyweights, Holmes and Watson, In the Good Old Summertime, In Time, Incredibles 2, journey to the center of the earth, Jurassic Park, Jurassic Park III, Jurassic World, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, king kong, Lincoln, Magnolia, Manifest, Meet Me in St. Louis, Modern Family, Mrs. Miniver, planet of the apes, Punisher, pushing daisies, ready player one, Rear Window, Rise of the Guardians, Serenity, Sherlock Holmes, Singin’ In the Rain, Speaker for the Dead, Summer Stock, Superstore, That Thing You Do!, The Band Wagon, The Chronicles of Amber, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Day After Tomorrow, The Day the Earth Stood Still, The Godfather, The Godfather: Part 2, The Godfather: Part 3, The Grinch, The Harvey Girls, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, The Lego Ninjago Movie, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, The Majestic, The Matrix Reloaded, The Polar Express, the prisoner, The Terror, The Wheel of Time, Timeless, Top Gun, Vertigo, WarGames
Featuring Matt Anderson and Ben De Bono We didn’t have time to prepare an episode topic this week, so enjoy us chitchatting for one hour.
Tagged as: 2001: Space Odyssey, A Ghost Story, Ant-Man and Wasp, Aquaman, At World's End, avengers: infinity war, Dishonored 2, Ed Wood, Endymion, Fawlty Towers, Field of Dreams, Forbidden Planet, Gone Whalin, Infamous second Son, Jeremy Thatcher Dragon Hatcher, Killing of Sacred Deer, King Arthur, king kong, kong: skull island, Le Morte d'Arthur, Legion, Lost Soul, Magic Shop, Mission: Impossible - Fallout, My Best Fiend, Of Mice and Men, Once and Future King, Pete's Dragon, Revenger, Rise of Endymion, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Split, Supergods, Susperia, Tale of Tales, The Amber Chronicles, the cell, The Dodo Experiment, The fog, The Good Place, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, the Holy Mountain, The Little Prince, The Naked Gun, The Old Man and the Sea, The Phantom Carriage, The Punisher, The Terror, The Turin Horse, Time after time, Trollhunters, We Are Legion (We Are Bob), What We Do In the Shadows, Wings, X-Men: Dark Phoenix
Featuring Matt Anderson and Ben De Bono For the fifth year in a row, Ben and Matt have developed a list of 25 things that they plan to experience in the next year.
Episode 622: What If The Last Jedi was a Dream and Some Feedback
Tagged as: Bright, king kong, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Star Trek, star wars, Star Wars: Episode IX, star wars: the force awakens, Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Featuring Matt Anderson and Ben De Bono It’s Sci-Fi News and Feedback! Combined again! For now…
Episode 426: Behind the Scenes 2015: Part 2
Tagged as: A Song of Ice and Fire, Back to the Future, Choose Your Own Adventure, dante, Dune, Godzilla, Hyperion, king kong, mary poppins, stanley kubrick, Star Trek, the winds of winter, the x-files
Featuring Matt Anderson and Ben De Bono You’ve been waiting for Part 2 of our 2015 behind the scenes outtakes, and they have finally arrived!
Episode 395: Hoppin’ With Mary Poppins
Tagged as: 20000 Leagues Under the Sea, blue beetle, Booster Gold, Bryan Singer, dante, dante's inferno, Doctor Who, Gambit, game of thrones, Godzilla, godzilla 2, Inception, king kong, kong vs. godzilla, kong: skull island, limbo, netflix, Pacific Rim 2, Peter Parker, simon kinberg, Spider-Man, star trek beyond, star wars, Taken, Tyrion Lannister
Featuring Matt Anderson and Ben De Bono Sci-Fi News about Mary Poppins, Game of Thrones, Star Wars, Gambit, Doctor Who, and more!
Episode 393: Who’s the King of the Monsters and Other News
Tagged as: akira, arnold schwarzenegger, Christopher Nolan, Doctor Strange, doug liman, drew goddard, fantastic four, game of thrones, Godzilla, king kong, mark hamill, marvel, simon kinberg, Sinister Six, Spider-Man, star wars, star wars: the force awakens, Tom Cruise, war of the planet of the apes
Featuring Matt Anderson and Ben De Bono King Kong vs. Godzilla! Plus, Ben has a surprise for Matt!
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These Terms of Use (“Terms of Use”) are between you and The Spokane Shop and its corporate affiliates (collectively “the Company”), for the use of the The Spokane Shop website and other related sites owned and operated by the Company (collectively referred to as “the “The Spokane Shop Sites”). The terms and conditions set forth in these Terms of Use, as well as our Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between the Company, by and on behalf of its subsidiaries and affiliates, and users and members of the The Spokane Shop Sites. By using the The Spokane Shop Sites, you signify that you have read, understand and agree to be bound by these Terms of Use. We reserve the right, at our sole discretion, to change, modify, add, or delete portions of these Terms of Use at any time without further notice. If we do this, we will post the changes to these Terms of Use on this page and will indicate at the top of this page the Terms of Use’s effective date. Your continued use of The Spokane Shop Sites after any such changes constitutes your acceptance of the new Terms of Use. If you do not agree to abide by these or any future Terms of Use, please do not use or access The Spokane Shop Sites. It is your responsibility to regularly review these Terms of Use.
You agree to use the The Spokane Shop Sites only for purposes that are permitted by these terms and any applicable law, regulation or generally accepted practices or guidelines in the relevant jurisdictions (including any laws regarding the export of data or software to and from the United States or other relevant countries). Subject to your performance of all of the provisions of these Terms of Use, the Company hereby grants you a limited, terminable, non-transferable, personal, non-exclusive license to access and use the The Spokane Shop Sites and the Services solely as provided herein. You may download material displayed on the The Spokane Shop Sites for non-commercial, personal use only, provided you also retain all copyright and other proprietary notices contained on the materials. You may not, however, distribute, modify, broadcast, publicly perform, transmit, reuse, re-post, or use the content of the The Spokane Shop Sites for public or commercial purposes, including the text, images, audio, and video without the Company’s prior written permission. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, all rights not specifically granted in the license set forth above shall be reserved and remain always with the Company. Your right to use the The Spokane Shop Sites is not transferable. You acquire no rights or licenses in or to the The Spokane Shop Sites and materials contained therein other than the limited right to access and utilize the The Spokane Shop Sites in accordance with these Terms of Use.
User Representations and Warranties
By using the The Spokane Shop Sites, you represent, warrant and covenant that you: (i) have the power and authority to enter into and be bound by the Terms of Use; (ii) shall not use any rights granted hereunder for any unlawful purpose; (iii) shall use the The Spokane Shop Sites only as set forth in these Terms of Use; and (iv) are thirteen years of age or older. If you are under the age of 13, you are not allowed to use the The Spokane Shop Sites.
You agree not to access (or attempt to access) any of the services available on the The Spokane Shop Sites (the “Services”) by any means other than through the interface that we provide, unless you have been specifically allowed to do so in a separate agreement with us. You specifically agree not to access (or attempt to access) any of the Services through any automated means (including, without limitation, use of scripts or web crawlers) and shall ensure that you comply with the instructions set out in any robots.txt file present on the Services.
You acknowledge that the The Spokane Shop Sites have been developed, compiled, prepared, revised, selected and arranged by the Company and others through the expenditure of substantial time, effort and money and constitutes valuable intellectual property and trade secrets of the Company and others. It is our policy to enforce our intellectual property rights to the fullest extent permitted under law. The trademarks, logos and service marks (“Marks”) displayed on the The Spokane Shop Sites are the property of the Company or third parties and cannot be used without the written permission of the Company or the third party that owns the Marks. The Site is also protected as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other foreign and domestic laws and treaties. Users are prohibited from using (except as expressly set forth herein), transferring, disposing of, modifying, copying, distributing, transmitting, broadcasting, publicly performing, displaying, publishing, selling, licensing, or creating derivative works of any content on the The Spokane Shop Sites for commercial or public purposes. Nothing contained herein shall be construed by implication, estoppel or otherwise as granting to the user an ownership interest in any copyright, trademark, patent or other intellectual property right of the Company or any third party.
The Company exclusively owns all worldwide right, title and interest in and to all documentation, software, contents, graphics, designs, data, computer codes, ideas, know-how, “look and feel,” compilations, magnetic translations, digital conversions and other materials included within the The Spokane Shop Sites and related to the The Spokane Shop Sites and all modifications and derivative works thereof, and all intellectual property rights related thereto.
The Company respects the rights of all copyright holders and in this regard, the Company has adopted and implemented a policy that provides for the termination in appropriate circumstances of users who infringe the rights of copyright holders. If you believe that your work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please provide the Company’s Copyright Agent the following information: A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed; a description of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site; a description of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the material; your address, telephone number, and email address; a written statement that the complaining party has a good-faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and a statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed. The Company’s Copyright Agent for notice of claims of copyright infringement can be reached as follows: P.O. Box 2748, Redondo Beach, CA 90278; Attn: Copyright Agent. The Company will remove the infringing posting(s), subject to the procedures outlined in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
You agree that you will not engage in any activity that interferes with or disrupts the The Spokane Shop Sites or the Services (or the servers and networks which are connected to the Services) or use any service to manipulate your CPU to gain distinct advantage on any of our programs.
Unless you have been specifically permitted to do so in a separate agreement with us, you agree that you will not reproduce, duplicate, copy, sell, trade or resell the Services for any purpose.
Please note that at any time, we may, in our sole discretion, terminate our legal agreement with you and deny you use of our Services if:
(A) you have breached any provision of these terms (or have acted in manner which clearly shows that you do not intend to, or are unable to comply with the provisions of these terms); or
(B) we are required to do so by law (for example, where the provision of our services to you is, or becomes, unlawful); or
(C) the partner with whom we offered the Services to you has terminated its relationship with us or ceased to offer their services to you; or
(D) we are transitioning to no longer providing the Services to users in the country in which you are resident or from which you use the Services; or
(E) the provision of the Services to you is, in our opinion, no longer commercially viable.
You further agree that your use of the Services shall be lawful and that you will comply with the usage rules. In furtherance of the foregoing, and as an example and not as a limitation, you agree not to use the Service in order to:
• post, upload, transmit or otherwise disseminate information that is obscene, indecent, vulgar, pornographic, sexual, hateful or otherwise objectionable
• post spam links, and/or personal referral links in an aggressive, wanton, or otherwise inappropriate fashion both on The Spokane Shop or on any other public site on the web
• defame, libel, ridicule, mock, stalk, threaten, harass, intimidate or abuse anyone, hatefully, racially, ethnically or, in a reasonable person’s view, otherwise offensive or objectionable
• upload or transmit (or attempt to upload or transmit) files that contain viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time bombs, cancelbots, corrupted files or data, or any other similar software or programs that may damage the operation of the Service, other users’ computers, or the access to or functionality of the The Spokane Shop Sites
• violate the contractual, personal, intellectual property or other rights of any party including using, uploading, transmitting, distributing, or otherwise making available any information made available through the Service in any manner that infringes any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, or other right of any party (including rights of privacy or publicity)
• attempt to obtain passwords or other private information from other members
• improperly use support channels or complaint buttons to make false reports to the Company
• develop, distribute, or publicly inform other members of “auto” software programs, “macro” software programs or other “cheat utility” software program or applications in violation of the applicable License Agreements
• exploit, distribute or publicly inform other members of any error, miscue or bug that gives an unintended advantage
• violate any applicable laws or regulations, or promote or encourage any illegal activity including, but not limited to, hacking, cracking or distribution of counterfeit software, or cheats or hacks for the Services
Accounts that have not been logged into for six months or more are deemed inactive and The Spokane Shop earned in these accounts are null and void. “The Spokane Shop” are non-transferable and are void if a transfer is attempted. “The Spokane Shop” and/or rewards may not be bartered or sold. The Spokane Shop and/or The Spokane Shop accounts are not transferable upon death or as part of a domestic relations matter or otherwise by operation of law.
If you violate the Terms, the Company reserves the right in its sole discretion to issue you a warning regarding the violation or immediately terminate or suspend any or all accounts you have created using the Services. You agree that the Company need not provide you notice before terminating or suspending your account(s), but it may do so at any time. Any account or accounts that are terminated shall be deemed null and void and any and all information relating to such account(s) shall revert to or become the sole property of the Company, including but not limited to The Spokane Shop™ virtual currency or any points, prizes, awards or credits, regardless of monetary value, except to the extent prohibited by applicable law.
The Spokane Shop reserves the right to refuse access to the Services without notice for any reason, including, but not limited to, a violation of the Terms. You agree that The Spokane Shop may discontinue the Service or change the content of the Service at any time, for any reason, with or without notice to you, without liability.
Communications Channels
The Services may include communication channels such as forums, communities, or chat areas (“Communication Channels”) designed to enable you to communicate with other Service users. The Company has no obligation to monitor these communication channels but it may do so in its sole discretion and reserves the right to review materials posted to the Communication Channels and to remove any materials, at any time, with or without notice for any reason, at its sole discretion. The Company may also terminate or suspend your access to any Communication Channels at any time, without notice, for any reason. You acknowledge that chats, postings, or materials posted by users on the Communication Channels are neither endorsed nor controlled by the Company, and these communications should not be considered reviewed or approved by the Company. The Company will not under any circumstances by liable for any activity within Communication Channels.
You agree that all your communications with the Communication Channels are public, and thus you have no expectation of privacy regarding your use of the Communication Channels. The Company is not responsible for information that you choose to share on the Communication Channels, or for the actions of other users.
Disclaimer of Warranties; Limitation of Liability; Indemnification
You agree that your use of the Services shall be at your sole risk. Subject to you rights under any Consumer Law referred to below and to the maximum extent permitted by law and unless restricted or prohibited by law, the Company, its officers, managers, directors, employees, and agents disclaim all guarantees, warranties and conditions, express or implied, in connection with the Services, the The Spokane Shop Sites and your use thereof including implied guarantees or warranties of title, merchantability or acceptable quality, fitness for a particular purpose or non-infringement, accuracy, authority, completeness, usefulness, and timeliness. Subject to you rights under any Consumer Law referred to below and to the fullest extent permitted by law, the Company makes no warranties, conditions or representations about the accuracy or completeness of the content of the Services of the content of any sites linked to the Services and assumes no liability or responsibility for any (i) errors, mistakes, or inaccuracies of content, (ii) personal injury (including death) or property damage, of any nature whatsoever, resulting from your access to and use of the Services, (iii) any unauthorized access to or use of our secure servers and/or any and all personal information and/or financial information stored therein, (iv) any interruption or cessation of transmission to or from the Services, (v) any bugs, viruses, trojan horses, or the like which may be transmitted to or through the Services by any third party, and/or (vi) any errors or omissions in any content or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any content posted, emailed, transmitted, or otherwise made available via the Services.
Subject to your rights under any Consumer Law referred to below and to the maximum extent permitted by law, and unless restricted or prohibited by law, in no event will the Company, its directors, managers, officers, agents, contractors, partners and employees, be liable to you or any third person for any special, direct, indirect, incidental, special, punitive, or consequential damages whatsoever including any lost profits or lost data arising from your use of the The Spokane Shop Sites, the Services or other materials or content on, accessed through or downloaded from the Services, whether based on warranty, contract, tort (including without limitation negligence), or any other legal theory, and whether or not the Company has been advised of the possibility of these damages. The foregoing limitation of liability shall apply to the fullest extent permitted by law in the applicable jurisdiction. You specifically acknowledge that the Company shall not be liable for user submissions or the defamatory, offensive, or illegal conduct of any third party and that the risk of harm or damage from the foregoing rests entirely with you.
You agree to indemnify and hold the Company, and each of its directors, managers, officers, agents, contractors, partners and employees, harmless from and against any loss, liability, claim, action, cause of action, application, demand, damages, costs and expenses, including reasonable attorney’s fees, arising out of or in connection with (i) your use of and access to the The Spokane Shop Sites and the Services; (ii) your violation of any term of these Terms of Use; (iii) your violation of any third party right, including without limitation any copyright, property, or privacy right; (iv) any claim that one of your user submissions caused damage to a third party; or (v) any content you post or share on or through the Service.
The Company will not be liable for the termination of the The Spokane Shop program on any account whatsoever including (without limitation) any awards, points, prizes or credits in a member’s favor at the time of termination.
Sometimes when you use our Services, you may use a service or download a piece of software, or purchase goods, provided by another person or company. Your use of these other services, software or goods may be subject to separate terms between you and the company or person concerned. If so, these terms do not affect your legal relationship with these other companies or individuals.
You agree that we are not responsible for the loss of The Spokane Shop™ virtual currency or any points, prizes, awards or credits, regardless of monetary value, in the event there is any data or server error, computer and/or network system error or failure, criminal act, vandalism, cyber attack or other events which make it commercially unreasonable for us to determine the value of any account or accounts.
All guarantees, conditions and warranties whether expressed or applied, as to the condition, suitability, quality, fitness or safety of any goods and services supplied under the The Spokane Shop program, other than those implied or imposed by statute, are excluded to the extent permitted by law. All guarantees and warranties implied or imposed by statute are excluded to the extent expressly permitted by statute.
Any liability the Company may have to a member under any such guarantees or warranties implied or imposed by statute which cannot be excluded is limited, where the Company is expressly permitted by statute to limit your remedy for a breach of that guarantee or warranty, to supplying or paying the cost of supplying, the goods (or equivalent goods) or services again or repairing or paying the cost of repairing, the goods, at the Company’s sole option.
By visiting or using the Service, you agree that the laws of the United States and the State of California, without regard to principles of conflict of laws and regardless of your location, will govern these Terms of Use and any dispute of any sort that might arise between you and the Company. Any claim or dispute between you and the Company that arises in whole or in part from your use of the Service shall be decided exclusively by a court of competent jurisdiction located in Los Angeles County, California, and you hereby consent to, and waive all defenses of lack of personal jurisdiction and forum non conveniens with respect to venue and jurisdiction in the state and federal courts of California. TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, YOU AND THE COMPANY AGREE THAT ANY CAUSE OF ACTION ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THE SERVICE MUST COMMENCE WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR AFTER THE CAUSE.
Despite any other provision of these Terms of Use, if any legislation affects your rights under these Terms of Use (a “Consumer Law”), then to the extent that any term or provision contained in these Terms of Use:
(A) becomes void or unenforceable for any reason; or
(B) would be unfair under the applicable consumer law if applied or relied upon in a particular way,
that term or provision will be severed such that all remaining terms and provisions of these Terms of Use will continue to be in full force and effect and be unaffected by the severance of any other term or provision.
No provision of these Terms of Use limits, excludes or modifies any right or remedy, or any guarantee, warranty or other term or condition implied or imposed by any Consumer Law which cannot lawfully be excluded, limited or modified.
The The Spokane Shop Sites are controlled, operated, and administered by the Company from its offices within the United States of America. The Company makes no representation that materials on the The Spokane Shop Sites are appropriate or available for use at other locations outside of the United States and access to them from territories where the contents or products available through the The Spokane Shop Sites are illegal is prohibited. You may not use the The Spokane Shop Sites or export the content or products in violation of U.S. export laws and regulations. If you access The Spokane Shop Sites from a location outside of the United States, you are responsible for compliance with all local laws.
Software downloaded from The Spokane Shop Sites is further subject to United States Export Controls. No software from The Spokane Shop Sites may be downloaded or exported (i) into (or to a national or resident of) Cuba, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Iran, Syria, or any other country to which the United States has embargoed goods; or (ii) anyone on the United States Treasury Department’s list of Specially Designated Nationals or the U.S. Commerce Department’s Table of Deny Orders. By downloading or using the software, you represent and warrant that you are not located in, under the control of, or a national or resident of any such country or on any such list.
The Company’s failure to exercise or enforce any right or provision of these Terms will not be deemed to be a waiver of such right or provision. If any provision of these Terms is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavor to give effect to the parties’ intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of these Terms remain in full force and effect.
The parties hereto confirm that it is their wish that these Terms and Conditions, as well as all other documents relating hereto have been and shall be drawn up in the English language only.
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Back to story index
UniSA geoscientist ‘rocks it’ as a top researcher under 40
Dr Tom Raimondo in Norway examining weakened rocks.
UniSA’s Tom Raimondo is aiming to use the opportunity of being named in ABC Radio National’s 2017 Top 5 researchers under 40 years old, to spread the word about the fascination and usefulness of geology – a science sometimes seen as an “oldie”, but one he believes is still very much a “goodie”.
In between studying the significance of hot rocks under the Antarctic ice sheets and scaling rock faces shaped by deep earthquakes in Norway, Dr Raimondo also visits primary schools, hoping to get more kids interested in the environment through the wonders of geoscience.
“It is a bit of a tragedy that all the interest in fossils, dinosaurs, rocks and minerals that is really heightened in young kids, somehow dissipates in high school – geology just isn’t a key subject anymore,” Dr Raimondo says.
“There is also this stereotype that if you study geology you end up being in the mining industry, working a fly-in, fly-out lifestyle, in completely remote areas, to dig things out of the ground.
“But there is just so much more you can do, there are a range of different jobs out there for people with geoscientific skills, and much of what we are researching and learning about the geological evolution of the planet is extremely important for its future survival.”
Drilling into the Antarctic subsurface to determine global risk
One of his current projects is to explore the impact of hot rocks on the stability of the east Antarctic ice sheet.
Many rocks produce heat as part of the slow, natural breakdown of small minerals enriched in elements such as thorium (Th), uranium (U) and potassium (K).
Understanding at what point these rocks at the base of glaciers may affect the stability of the ice above is important because there may be a tipping point where the sheets are lubricated enough to accelerate their movement and become unstable.
“Dramatic instability of the largest ice sheet in east Antarctica has the potential to raise global sea level by 3.5 m if it were to completely melt,” Dr Raimondo says.
“Conducting this kind of research is never going to be easy because getting a measure of the temperature of the earth, represented by the hot rocks below, means having to drill down hundreds of metres into the subsurface – no mean feat in the Antarctic.
“To date it has only been achieved six times in this region. But here is where past scientists and our geological knowledge comes into play.
“Rocks brought back from the Antarctic by the famous South Australian explorer, Sir Douglas Mawson, on his first expedition in 1911, along with additional samples that have been brought back by other expeditions since this time, form a collection of thousands of specimens that we can use to measure their U, Th and K content and calculate how much heat energy they release.
“But as well as those samples, by looking back in time and reconstructing the jigsaw puzzle of the Earth’s tectonic plates, we know Australia and the Antarctic were once joined. So we have found that rocks in the Nullarbor share the same geological history as those in the Antarctic.
“Right now one of my PhD students, Alicia Pollett, is working on a drill rig on the Nullarbor Plain, running a very long thermometer down drill holes to take the temperature of the Earth.
“What we have found is that these particular rocks have heat flow values about twice the global continental average and this is vital information in predicting the stability of the Totten Glacier in east Antarctica.”
Dr Raimondo says this is just one of the significant and fascinating projects geoscientists are working on.
The geology on our door step is internationally important
“I think we really undervalue the sites we have in Australia that are of global geological significance,” he says.
“Geologists around the world know about Hallett Cove because 600 million years of Earth’s geological history can be found carved into this landscape, including a key period when it was covered by a major glaciation.
“Likewise, the Flinders Ranges are home to shattered rocks that witnessed a huge meteorite impact, sedimentary layers that tell of a time when the whole planet was covered in ice, and some amazingly well-preserved Ediacaran fossils, the oldest complex organisms found anywhere in the world – in a general sense we don’t celebrate this as much as we should.
“Everything we can learn about the geology of the past will help us navigate the environmental challenges of the future."
Radio National’s Top 5 Under 40 are selected each year through a national search for early-career researchers who have a flair and passion for communicating their work. The five winners become Scientists in Residence across ABC RN, communicating their research and learning more about the media and broadcasting.
SA’s first biofilm test facility to help fight chronic infections more
New health clinic to open in the West End more
Latest content revision:Monday, 19 June 2017
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Minnie Mouse is a slow maze learner.
Semi-random thoughts on graphical programming
I recently purchased a copy of Microsoft Visio. It's a nifty tool that lets you make very sharp-looking diagrams. But I bought it because it does more than just let you make diagrams. It also lets you associate custom properties with everything, and access the whole diagram programmatically. When I worked at Trustium Corp., we used Visio to create state machine diagrams representing transactions involved in buying and selling real estate. Each state machine had the various actors and the steps they'd have to go through to complete the various tasks, documents they'd need to sign, etc. Much of the state machine was conditional in a typical task, depending on who was involved, the values entered into online CAR contracts, etc, and those conditionals would affect the contents and layout of further documents and the paths taken through other tasks. It was a very powerful system. That, combined with the online forms, digital signatures, process tracking, and non-repudiation system, was our core product. It never really took off though, because we spent so much time building things for other people just to pay our expenses that we never had the opportunity to really market our own product.
Anyway, the massively complicated state machines involved were created as simple diagrams in Visio. We created some custom shapes, which were really just some of the built-in Visio shapes with custom coloring and naming, and some custom properties applied. After creating or editing a diagram, we'd just click a button inside Visio to translate the diagram into a state machine stored in a SQL database. The button was powered by a bit of code that we wrote to walk through the diagram and convert the nodes to rows in the database. It was so simple and intuitive that anyone in the office could use it, and was just so damned cool. Ever since then, I've been enchanted with the idea of reducing complex data and processes to simple diagrams in Visio.
Trying to think of what I could do with my new toy, my thoughts naturally turned to the projects I've been working on recently -- compilers and a dynamic language runtime. I had sexy fantasies of creating a slick graphical programming language. But I was somewhat sobered by the knowledge that very smart people have been working on that problem for a long time, and they haven't produced anything even remotely useable yet. I figured I'd doodle on some graph paper, but I quickly remembered that I'm no good at that. So I figured I'd doodle inside WordPad instead, and then I figured I might as well throw it up on my blog. So here it is: my doodling!
Graphical programming can be done fairly easily by emulating the LISP language. The entire LISP language can be built from the ground up on only a few small primitives, and this idea can be extended into the graphical programming space. I can easily imagine building up code the way you would LISP. Graphical objects would represent nodes in a kind of virtual parse tree, and the primitives would be provided as predefined nodes that you can use. All other nodes could be built from the primitives. Each node would have defined connection points, which correspond to inputs and outputs.
For instance, you could use the lambda primitive node to construct a variable binding (ie, "let") node. Then, whenever you needed to bind a variable, you'd simply drop a "let" node into the program. You might then construct an iterator, like common LISP's "do" construct. You could then build a simpler "for" loop on top of that, or a loop that specifically loops over a list. Each of these nodes would be constructed and stored as new shapes that could be dropped into the program. The next time you need to iterate through a list, you just drag a list iterator into the program, hook up the input list, the body node, etc, and there you go.
It sounds simple, effective, and elegant. And it is. Unfortunately, that doesn't cut it in the programming world, because it's already simpler and more effective to just type the equivalent code into a text editor. Had a graphical programming environment like the one I just described existed 25 years ago, it would have still been outclassed by the machines running simple text editors and LISP interpreters. It'd have been pretty, a cool toy, and perhaps even a good learning environment, but not productive.
Another way the graphical programming environment I described is inferior to a text editor is that it's very wasteful with screen space. The equivalent code in a text editor has a much higher information density, so screen space is put to better use. Graphical programming takes longer to create basic elements (nodes), since you have to drag them with a mouse and hook up their inputs and outputs. That, combined with the fact that fewer basic elements can fit on the screen, means that each basic element would have to do a lot more to compete with textual programming. Creating a higher-level language where each node represents a significant chunk of code would certainly make this possible, but very high level programming languages tend to have a rather restricted set of expressible programs, meaning that they're not practical for real-world use.
So in order for it to be both very high level and still very powerful, it would have to be intelligent. Wouter van Oortmerssen (http://wouter.fov120.com/) has done a substantial amount of work in this area. One idea he implements is "programming by example", where you show the computer a single recursion of a specific instance of a quicksort, say, and it extrapolates to get the general idea. You can see both the quicksort and "succ" algorithms implemented in a programming by example style on his Aardappel page. It's a very cool and powerful idea for algorithm design, but I'm not sure if it's applicable to real-world programming tasks, which are much less algorithmic and can't be so easily deduced from formulas, I think.
One idea I had is to merge the design and development steps. A program could be designed in a graphical tool like Microsoft Visio, breaking it logically into modules, say, and you could zoom in on a module to see it broken into classes, and zoom in further to see classes broken into functions. Then, you could implement the functions using graphical programming techniques. The whole graphical design could be decorated with annotations, flowcharts, bug reports, UML diagrams, data flow graphs, user feedback, threat models, and other non-executable diagrams and documents. Those could be populated from a database, too, with the bugs coming from a bug database and the user feedback coming from the QA team, etc, with realtime updates in the background, creating little bug icons and user feedback balloons attached to bits of your code. Those data sources could all be linked together, making it a very powerful environment, with everything you need to build the program available at once from within the same user interface. It's too bad that the actual construction work, where you do the down-and-dirty coding, is so difficult to do in a graphical manner. Perhaps a compromise could be reached that combines an integrated design environment with textual code editing, where you'd double click on a leaf in the tree, like a function, to edit its associated code in text form.
So I didn't actually get any good ideas for a graphical programming language. The graphical LISP idea came almost immediately, but it's so inferior to textual programming that it's not really worth implementing, except as a toy. But hot damn, I do like that integrated design environment idea.
Graphics language for KPL? 2006-03-14 08:56AM
Maybe instead of using functional language you can use Kids Programming Language (http://www.kidsprogramminglanguage.com/).
So maye graphical programming for kids will be some good point to your's tool?
Kind regards from Poland
an anonymous Mateusz Kierepka
thanks 2006-03-20 05:53AM
Thanks Mateusz.
I took a look at KPL and it probably could be implemented as a graphical language. But the purpose seems to be to prepare kids to "graduate" to more fully-featured programming languages and environments like Visual Studio, so it's probably best to not make it too different. :-)
But yeah, children seem to be the primary audience for graphical programming environments at the moment. If I was to make graphical programming language, it would definitely be for kids, because they'd probably be satisfied with just a very high level language. Too bad I have such a dislike of UI programming, or else I'd do it.
-- Adam
Adam Milazzo
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Ismail Bin Ibrahim
Posted on July 23, 2014. Filed under Executive Moves. Be the first to comment.
Ismail Bin Ibrahim, Chief Executive, Iskandar Regional Development Authority.
MUAR-born Datuk Ismail Bin Ibrahim received his early education at the Malay College Kuala Kangsar and went on to study town planning at the Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland.
He is registered with the Board of Town Planners Malaysia and started his career in the civil service in 1983 as a town planning officer attached to the Federal Department of Town and Country Planning, Ministry of Housing and Local Government. In 1990 he was awarded the British Council Fellowship to specialise in Planning Law in Newcastle University, England.
In April 2003, he was appointed as Penang State Town and Country Planning Department Director. In February 2006, he was seconded as Khazanah Nasional’s Senior Vice President of Special Projects to oversee the planning of the southern economic region in Johor, known
today as Iskandar Malaysia.
In January 2009, Ismail was appointed as Director of Physical Planning Division, Town and Country Planning Department at its headquarters in Kuala Lumpur. There, he was tasked to manage the preparation and revision of the National Physical Plan. That document served as a key input for the 10th Malaysian Plan. He also served as Secretariat to the National Physical Planning Council chaired by the Prime Minister.
Effective 1 January 2010, Ismail was appointed as the Chief Executive of Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA). His main responsibility is to advise the Prime Minister and Menteri Besar Johor as co-chairmen of the Board of IRDA in planning and implementing the economic, physical and social development strategies to meet the vision of realising the Iskandar Development Region as a Strong and Sustainable Metropolis of International Standing.
Amongst his many achievements in IRDA include securing a total cumulative investment worth RM138 billion for the period 2006 to April 2014 and the successful execution of public infrastructure projects worth RM7 billion for Iskandar Malaysia. He was responsible for coordinating and facilitating public private cooperation to develop Iskandar Malaysia through various programmes such as human capital and entrepreneurship, safety and security, public transportation, housing and the environment.
Ismail had previously served as part time lecturer in University of Malaya (UM), International Islamic University (UIA), Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) between 1993 and 2002. He is currently a Board Member of the Malaysia Town Planners Board, past Vice President of the Malaysia Institute of Planners (MIP), President of MCOBA Southern Chapter and a Harvard Business School Alumni. He sits in the Malaysia – Singapore Business Council and a member of the National Bio Technology Council. He was conferred Adjunct Professor with the Faculty of Built Environment, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia in 2013 until today.
He is married to Datin Rohana Ismail who serves under the Ministry of Education and they are blessed with three daughters. They live in Kampung Sungai Ramal in Selangor.
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Overseas country of France
(Redirected from Overseas country)
divisions of France
Communauté urbaine
Associated communes
Municipal arrondissements
Overseas France
Overseas departments and regions
Overseas collectivities
Sui generis collectivity
Overseas country
Overseas territory
Overseas country (French: Pays d'outre-mer) is the designation for the overseas collectivity of French Polynesia. French Polynesia was an overseas territory until the constitutional reform on 28 March 2003 created the overseas collectivities. Then, on 27 February 2004 a law was passed giving French Polynesia the particular designation of overseas country while recalling that it belongs to the category of overseas collectivities. However, the Constitutional Council of France ruled that this description was merely a designation and not a legal status, as that would have been unconstitutional.
The territory's new status meant a certain autonomy for French Polynesia in the Pacific region. This translated into the transfer of new areas of legal responsibility (civil law, commercial law, labour law) while protecting existing autonomy in the fields of health, development and town planning and the environment. In addition, French Polynesia gained the power to oppose the application of laws voted by the French Parliament that do not respect these areas of responsibility. Furthermore, it established French Polynesian citizenship based on permanent residency - a requirement for the right to vote in regional elections. However, France maintains control over justice, security and public order, currency, defence, and foreign policy.
New Caledonia, which has the unique status of a sui generis collectivity, is also sometimes incorrectly referred to as an overseas country. The people of New Caledonia voted against becoming an overseas country and chose to remain part of France in the 2018 New Caledonian independence referendum, although the legislature may choose to hold another referendum in 2020 or 2022.
Pays (France)
Frédéric Monera, L'idée de République et la jurisprudence du Conseil constitutionnel - Paris : L.G.D.J., 2004 [1]-[2];
‹See Tfd›(in French) Official website
‹See Tfd›(in French) past and current developments of France's overseas administrative divisions like pays d'outre-mer
Inhabited areas
Overseas regions1
Mayotte2
Overseas collectivities
Sui generis collectivity
Uninhabited areas
Overseas territory (French Southernand Antarctic Lands)
Île Amsterdam
Île Saint-Paul
Crozet Islands
Kerguelen Islands
Adélie Land
Scattered islands in the Indian Ocean
Bassas da India3
Europa Island3
Glorioso Islands2, 3
Juan de Nova Island3
Tromelin Island4
1 Also known as overseas departments
2 Claimed by Comoros
3 Claimed by Madagascar
4 Claimed by Mauritius
This article about government in France is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
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Overseas collectivities of France
European government stubs
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Oslo Roundtable collaborating with Future Insights 2030
May 11, 2018 By Oddgeir Tveiten Leave a Comment
On June 12th 2018, Future Learning Lab will be collaborating on stage with the Future Insights 20134 conference. This is a really big step for us, and we are happy that we could deliver the kind of workshop in January in Silicon Valley that convinced the organizers we are worth taking on board.
On stage will be Keith Devlin from Stanford University, Karl Mehta from EdCast and Oddgeir Tveiten, chair of the Future learning Lab.
A few pointers as to who Oddgeir Tveiten is:
As co-host to the Oslo Roundtable, Oddgeir Tveiten brings with him the backgrounds and experiences from annual conferences and workshops at the Future Learning Lab since 2010. Future Learning Lab is both a research center at the University of Agder and the international network behind the World Learning Summit – WLS. A conference drawing between 200-300 attendees annually, WLS has hosted speakers like Google´s chief scientist Peter Norvig, Sir John Daniel from The Commonwealth of Learning and Cathy Casserly – the former head of Creative Commons. Check out our website for the wide range of speakers to have been on our stages.
This year, WLS is split in two events, one being the main summit in Kristiansand September 19th. – 21st. and the other being the Oslo Roundtable. Both are creations of the Future Learning Lab, co-developed by a dedicated, international team over many years on professor Tveiten´s initiative.
Tveiten is a professor of media studies at the University of Agder and a professor of journalism studies at the NLA university college with head offices in Bergen. As co-chair and host of both WLS events, his engagement reflects a long-term interest in the ways and means by which media technologies transform societal processes, for instance learning. Having taught extensively in Norway, Uganda and Ethiopia over the last few years, his engagement also reflect a North-South development perspective and a critique of global media empires, including giant conglomerates like Apple, Amazon, Google and others who fundamentally impacts on learning and education.
Tveiten has hosted a number of workshops for nordic scholars and innovators in Silicon Valley, in part through the Future Learning Lab and in part on invitations form organizations like Open Innovation ab of Norway. Together with Cathy Casserly, he was also the main architect behind the 2015 Future Learning 2020 conference, at Stanford University, where about 35 high recognized education technology speakers were on stage during one full day. He has been visiting scholar at Stanford twice, the Future Learning Lab activities in many ways reflecting that engagement. He is currently starting up a project on uses of interactive video-making in higher education coursework’s on social science subjects.
Filed Under: OR '18 Speakers, WLS 2018, WLS team Tagged With: Oddgeir Tveiten, OR, OR Speakers '18, Tveiten
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S. Korea, US Working for Swift Launch of Joint Working Group
South Korea and the U.S. are known to be working for an early launch of a joint working group to discuss North Korea’s denuclearization and inter-Korean ties.
An official of Seoul's Foreign Ministry told reporters on Thursday that specifics of the agreed plan to create the new consultation body are currently under an internal review. The speculation is that the working group to be co-led by South Korean and American envoys on the North, Lee Do-hoon and Stephen Biegun, will be launched within this month.
Meanwhile, Seoul says it is urging Tokyo to refrain from making hard-line remarks over the South Korean top court’s ruling that a Japanese corporation must compensate Korean victims of forced labor during Japan's colonial rule.
The Foreign Ministry’s deputy spokesman Kim Deuk-hwan told a regular media briefing that the South Korean government is emphasizing that Japan’s excessive response to the Supreme Court’s decision will negatively affect bilateral relations.
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