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ABOUT WMO
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Samuel Avital
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Samuel Ben-Or Avital is a professionally trained mime artist, teacher of mime, kinesthetic awareness, and Kabbalah.
Samuel Avital was born Shmuel Abitbol in 1932,[1] in the small town of Sefrou,[2] near Fez, in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. At the age of 14, Avital left his home in Sefrou to travel (via Algiers and France) to the newly established state of Israel.[3] There he spent the next ten years living in a kibbutz and studying physics, agronomy, theology, and theatre.[4]
In 1958, he traveled to Paris, France, to study dance and drama at the Sorbonne, as well as to study mime with the French masters, Etienne Decroux, Jean-Louis Barrault, and Marcel Marceau.[5] Avital later performed with the Compagnie de Mime under the direction of Decroux' son, Maximilien Decroux.[6]
In 1964, Avital joined his friend (and a fellow student of Etienne Decroux), Moni Yakim, in New York, performing with him in his Pantomime Theatre of New York. At the same time, he also performed off-Broadway, and later began to tour throughout North and South America.[7] In 1969, in was invited to teach in the Theater Department at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. In 1971, he moved to Boulder, Colorado and founded Le Centre Du Silence Mime School, which has held an annual International Summer Mime Workshop ever since.[4] As an extension of this work, Avital has also developed a unique method of bodywork called, BodySpeak, for cultivating kinesthetic awareness.[8]
In recent years, Avital has begun teaching Kabbalah publicly in a series of seminars called, Gathering the Sparks, in Boulder, Colorado. Though less well known as a teacher of Kabbalah than as a mime artist, Avital was steeped in the Jewish mystical tradition from his youth and has taught a number of students privately through the years.[5] Avital is descended from of a long line of distinguished Moroccan rabbis, jurists, and poets, nearly all of whom were also learned in the secret teachings of the Kabbalah.[9]
In addition to numerous articles, Avital is the author of several books, including the classic: Le Centre Du Silence Mime Work (1975), followed by a German edition entitled, Mimenspiel (1985), Mime and Beyond: The Silent Outcry (1985), The Conception Mandala: Creative Techniques for Inviting a Child into Your Life (1992, co-authored with Mark Olsen), The BodySpeak Manual: Moving Mind and Body (2001), and The Invisible Stairway: Kabbalistic Meditations on the Hebrew Letters (2003).
^ Avital, Samuel Ben-Or. The Invisible Stairway: Kabbalistic Meditations on the Hebrew Letters. Boulder: Kol-Emeth Publishers, 2003: 258-260.
^ Rocky Mountain News, Denver, CO, Sunday, September 26, 1971, "Avital, Elfin Apostle of Silence" by William Gallo
^ The National Jewish Monthly, February 1976, "Space, Silence and Kabbala" by Myra Sklarew
^ a b The Denver Post, Denver, CO, Wednesday, November 20, 1985, "Boulder Mime Invites Audience Truly to Get Into the Act" by Arlynn Nellhaus
^ a b Rocky Mountain News, Denver, CO, Friday, December 30, 1983, "Mime’s Silent World Enhances Creativity, Increases Honesty" by Larry Brown
^ Avital, Samuel. "Mime and Beyond: The Silent Outcry" Prescott Valley, AZ: HOHM Press, 1985: 171
^ Avital, Samuel. "Mime and Beyond: The Silent Outcry" Prescott Valley, AZ: HOHM Press, 1985: 172.
^ Avital, Samuel. The BodySpeak Manual: Moving Mind and Body. Boulder: 1st Books Library, 2001.
Le Centre Du Silence Official Site
Kabbalah Now Website Including Gathering of the Sparks
Bodyspeak Manual Book
Books by Samuel Avital
Original source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Avital
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of use for details.
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ABOUT WMD
World Mime Day should belong to humanity but history should also remember the three initiators of this idea Marko Stojanović (Serbia) More...
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Home / Sunday Edition / Sunday Sports
Les Bleus on the ropes after 2-0 shock loss
By Reuters in Kiev (China Daily)
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Ukraine poised to make second Cup appearance following home victory
Lackluster France faces the embarrassing prospect of missing out on a major tournament for the first time in 20 years after it lost 2-0 away to Ukraine in the first leg of its World Cup playoff tie on Friday.
Each team picked up a red card as Les Bleus, who last missed a major competition when they failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup finals, succumbed to Roman Zozulya's goal shortly after the hour and Andriy Yarmolenko's 82nd minute penalty.
France's Laurent Koscielny and the home side's Oleksandr Kucher were sent off in injury time ahead of the return leg at the Stade de France on Tuesday when Ukraine will start as favorite to secure its second World Cup appearance.
France - World Cup winner in 1998 - barely had a chance apart from a Samir Nasri effort and was shaken throughout by a bold Ukraine side, which reached the Cup quarterfinals in 2006.
"Opening the scoring gave them more strength and we made a mistake on the penalty," France coach Didier Deschamps said.
"It is obviously a very bad result. We have to believe (we can go through) but Ukraine are the team in the best position to qualify," he said.
"We still have 90 minutes at home."
Deschamps, on the pitch when the red-faced Les Bleus failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup after a 2-1 last-minute defeat against Bulgaria in 1993, had opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation with Olivier Giroud up front and Karim Benzema on the bench.
The visitors tried to keep possession but Ukraine was the more dangerous side and France goalkeeper, Hugo Lloris, who started the game 12 days after suffering a concussion, made his first block from Yarmolenko's crossed shot in the seventh minute.
Ukraine also came close on the half hour when Edmar's diving header from Ruslan Rotan's cross went wide after another nice move from the host.
FIFA Ballon d'Or hopeful Franck Ribery was closely marked as Les Bleus failed to create clear-cut chances and at the back their weak spot was the left side with centerhalf Eric Abidal and fullback Patrice Evra struggling to cope with Yarmolenko's pace.
In the 61st minute, Zozulya squeezed his shot just under Hugo Lloris from Edmar's touch to put the home side ahead.
Four minutes later, France almost hit back, but Nasri, in a perfect position, shot straight at Andriy Pyatov. Olivier Giroud, who failed to muster a chance, was substituted for Karim Benzema 20 minutes from time.
But it was Ukraine which scored again when Yarmolenko converted a penalty after Koscielny fouled Zozula in the box.
Instead of playing conservatively in the closing stages, Mykhailo Fomenko's side continued to push hard and that resulted in Koscielny's misdemeanor in added time as the Arsenal centerback slapped Kucher in the face.
He was shown a straight red card and will miss the return leg, with Liverpool's Mamadou Sakho set to be paired with Abidal at the Stade de France as Raphael Varane has been nursing a knee injury all week.
Ukraine will be without Kucher, who was sent off after picking up a second yellow card five minutes into stoppage time for a foul on Ribery.
Fellow defender Artem Fedetskiy will also miss Tuesday's game in Paris after being booked in the second half.
Ukraine's Roman Zozulya (front) celebrates his goal with teammates during their World Cup qualifying first leg playoff match against France at the Olympic stadium in Kiev on Friday. Konstantin Chernichkin / Reuters
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AMODAL SUSPENSION Relational Architecture 8
help+FAQ
Where can I find this site in Japanese?
Please go to www.amodal.net and choose the "Japanese" link (your operating system must have support for Japanese characters).
How do I send a message from the Internet?
Log on to the “participate” section. Type your message in the space provided. Fill in your name and location. Please enter your email address if you would like to be notified when your message has been read. If you would like to send the message to somebody in particular please enter their name, location and email address (if you leave the fields blank the message will be sent to the sky without a recipient). Press the “send” button.
How do I catch a message using the Internet?
In the “participate” section, you select the catch tool, which is below the 3D window and on the right. Place the tool over the ray of light that you want to catch and click on it. The message will be revealed to you as a flying card and then it will be removed from the sky and added to the archive. Please note: the catch tool is disabled after you catch one message. To enable it again you must send a message.
How do I catch a message that was sent to me in particular?
If you received a notification email telling you that there is a message waiting for you, write down the message ID number that is in the email. Go on the net and log on to the “participate” section. In the bottom of the window you will see a list of all the messages that are currently in the sky in Yamaguchi, with ID numbers. As the numbers are sequential, this will let you estimate the time when your message will appear. As you move your mouse so that the cursor is over a lightbeam you can see who the sender is for each message in a yellow tooltip. Find your message and click on it with the catch tool (but do it fast or someone else could intercept it!).
The web interface showed a real-time simulation of what was happening in Yamaguchi at any given time. Participants would send and receive messages using this program, which could be found on the participate page.
How do I send a message from a cell phone?
Log on to the address www.amodal.net. The cell phone browser will automatically detect that you are on a cell phone and give you the phone interface. Select the “Send message” option. Enter your message and name, optionally you can enter your email address for notification, and name, location and email address if you want to specify a particular recipient. Press the “release” button.
How do I catch a message using a cell-phone?
Log on to the address www.amodal.net. Select the “Catch message” option. Enter your name and location. Select a number from 1 to 20 corresponding to the searchlight tower that is currently relaying the desired message. Press the catch button and the system will reveal to you the message that is going through the specified tower.
When will my message appear in the sky?
The time that it takes to send a message to the sky depends on how many people are ahead of you in the queue and how many people are catching messages at any given time. For this reason it is impossible to predict exactly when your message will appear, although when you send a message the system makes an estimate based on typical average times. In general, messages sent from cell phones and from Access Pods get priority over messages sent over the Internet, but all of them eventually will make it!
What happens to a message once it is caught and read?
It is shown briefly in a large screen at the YCAM center and all participating Access Pods and then it is added to the archive. You can search through all the messages and see them in the 3D window. You may also enter the ID code in the search field to see the web page of the message.
How is a message encoded?
The encoding is done with a statistical distribution of frequency of characters in the English and Japanese languages. The more frequent a character the brighter the lightbeam is. Spaces between words are dark. For more information visit the technology section.
Can I send messages in any language?
You can send messages in any language that uses roman (western) characters or Japanese characters. However, the automatic translation only works between Japanese and English.
What does the message "speed" control do?
You can specify whether you would like your message to scan the sky slowly or quickly, this may help in identifying it if there are many simultaneous messages in the sky at any given moment.
Are messages private?
No, all messages sent through this system are public and may be caught and read by any visitor. In addition, messages are stored in a permanent public archive so please do not send confidential or private information.
Why do you ask for my email address? Will I get spam?
The email addresses are needed in order to notify senders when a message has been caught. Even though all messages are public the email address is NEVER revealed to anyone. You can ensure that we will not reveal your address to any spammers.
How can I make sure I never get an email from this project?
If you receive an email from this project it is because someone entered it while they were sending you a message. Please write to jennifer@antimodular.com if you do not want to receive messages from anybody and we will ensure that no message is ever sent to you.
What are the terms of service?
Please review our terms of service here.
What is an Access Pod?
Several art centers all over the world have set-up an installation to give their visitors access to Amodal Suspension. These Access Pods have documentation and a special large-screen projection with statistics, 3D simulations and message display. Here is a list of all the available Access Pods.
What will happen after November 24, when the piece is finished?
The piece will remain operative and people will still be able to send and receive messages, visit the 3D archive and so on. However, the searchlights will not be operating and the webcam video will show prerecorded sequences.
Will the project happen again?
Hopefully! As the project is set-up again in different cities the interface will still be through the address www.amodal.net so please bookmark the page.
The programs do not load
All the programs in this site are written with Java. Make sure that Java is installed in your browser and enabled in the preferences. All operating systems except Windows XP have built-in support for Java. You may download a free copy of the software for any operating system at www.java.com
I see garbled text in some pages
If you have loaded a Japanese Applet and do not have support for Japanese characters in the operating system you will see garbled text. To solve this you may download Japanese character support from your operating system disks.
The video loads very slowly
The video from the eight webcams should update around once a second in high-bandwidth connections (cable, adsl, etc). This update rate decreases if there is less bandwidth available.
My message did not appear in the sky
Depending on the number of messages sent before your submission and the number of people catching messages, your message may take a longer time to appear in the sky as it was estimated by the system. Also, sometimes the message IDs are not always presented in sequential order and this is because the system may give more priority to messages sent by cell phone or because it is playing back messages that have been left in the reserve queue. If your message did not appear and the night is over in Yamaguchi the system will save it and show it the next night.
The 3D view is sloooooow!
All the programs on this site are made to be compatible with Java 1.1, which is not a very fast release but is compatible with most browsers. Things that affect the performance of your computer include: the processor speed, the connection speed (especially as the programs load textures), the video card and the kind of Java installed. We have seen most performance with Sun Java on Windows.
The programs load partially and then freeze
Sometimes the Java applets fail to load completely into memory. First try to reload the program by clicking on the "refresh" button of your browser. If that doesn't work try emptying the cache (the temporary memory that the browser uses to store frequently accessed documents). To do this visit the "preferences" or "options" settings in your browser and "delete or empty the cache", which is also called "delete temporary internet files". Once you have done this quit the browser and open it up again...fresh copies of the programs should reload and work perfectly
What operating systems and browsers are supported?
We have tested the applets in Windows 95, 98, NT and XP with Sun and MS Java in Explorer and Netscape. MacOSX runs fine in Explorer, Netscape, Mozilla and Safari (although Safari does not scale font size). MacOS9 is supported in Explorer and Netscape but please increase the memory allocation of the browser (in the "get info" window of the application in the finder). Netscape under Linux is great.
The phone interface was a simple form triggered when a participant logged on www.amodal.net with any phone that could access the internet.
TOP | Information | Participate | Live video | Archive
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Tania dan Jari nya..
by Nike Dwi V - September 29, 2008
Tags : Tania
Blog Archive January (1) December (1) November (2) October (1) September (4) August (1) July (1) May (3) April (3) March (2) February (3) January (1) December (6) November (1) October (2) September (3) August (3) July (3) June (1) May (2) April (6) March (2) February (4) January (5) December (4) November (4) October (3) September (3) August (4) July (4) June (3) May (4) April (3) March (5) February (3) January (6) December (3) November (9) October (3) September (7) August (6) July (4) June (4) May (2) April (1) March (1) February (8) December (6) November (1) October (1) September (6) August (3) July (4) June (5) May (7) April (1) March (4) February (6) January (4) December (5) November (6) October (3) September (5) August (7) July (3) June (2) May (4) April (6) March (7) February (7) January (4) December (8) November (8) October (5) September (5) August (2) July (6) June (6) May (8) April (6) March (6) February (4) January (6) December (8) November (12) October (8) September (11) August (7) July (12) June (7) May (14) April (11) March (11) February (8) January (11) December (15) November (11) October (10) September (5) August (6) July (7) June (8) May (4) April (7) March (8) February (3) January (2) December (6) November (4) September (2) August (4) July (5) June (2) May (1) February (1) January (6) December (2) November (3) October (2) September (4) August (6) July (3) June (6) May (6) April (6) March (4) February (4) January (3) December (5) November (7) October (14) September (10) August (4) July (1) June (6) May (3) April (4) February (2) January (2)
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Download article in PDF
Adisa Avdić-Küsmüş
Human Rights in Romania? The Scent of Hypocrisy
Amid growing security concerns and an unfolding migrant crisis, developing adequate mechanisms for human rights development has tumbled down the priority list in Romania--a country that lacks strong democratic traditions and continues to carry the heavy burden of its communist past. This is producing a generation of policy makers hostile to the anchors of European values. Consider that earlier this year Romanian Justice Minister, Raluca Pruna, suggested that human rights are a 'theoretical luxury' in a state weakened by state-level corruption. There is a striking similarity in perceiving human rights as a 'theoretical luxury' and the Marxist view that human rights were 'bourgeois freedoms' that serve to protect the rich. Understanding human rights as a luxury reserved only for times of prosperity or only for certain social groups undermines the very idea of universality and inviolability of human rights.
Similar to other countries in Central and Eastern Europe, the Roma communities in Romania have been easy targets and subject to harassment and social marginalization, suggesting that European human rights norms are not as internalized as the enduring prejudice and discrimination. In this way, human rights are indeed a theoretical luxury for hundreds of thousands of Roma citizens who are systematically denied proper housing, medical care and equal education and employment opportunities in Romania.
Human rights organizations have repeatedly and continuously called on Romanian authorities to stop forced evictions of Roma populations and the forcible placing of Roma into racially-segregated container settlements that lack basic housing conditions. Numerous cases of police brutality and violence against Roma remain investigated but go unpunished.
In contrast to other countries in the region, far right parties in Romania have kept a low profile but this is mostly because the far-right rhetoric and values are already reflected in the mainstream political discourse that casually discusses the sterilization of Roma women and building walls around Roma settlements.
It is exactly the political elite that holds primary responsibility for encouraging the social stigma against Roma--using them as a scapegoat to distract public attention from widespread corruption, economic decline and nepotism. Much of the Romanian media is openly hostile towards Roma and steers public opinion against them. They promote the image of Roma as uncivilized, as criminals that cannot be educated. The reality, in sharp contrast, is that because of the social stigma, most of the educated and successful Roma choose to hide their background for fear of compromising their careers and future prospects. Roma choose to hide who they are!
Surely, some in the Roma community are involved in crime (or forcibly trafficked into crime or pushed there by poverty) but the deflection to ethnic reasoning is absurd and dogs proper social development in Romania. Government officials may continue to pretend to care about minority rights - while promoting genetics as the culprit instead of centuries of abuse, social exclusion and raw oppression - but they cannot hide the policies of division that target the Roma in Romania--this is, after all, a technological age.
There are solutions to changing Romania's approach to its minorities but these would take political courage--a rare commodity on a Romanian political scene where scoring a handful of political points by ignoring or contributing to the problem is easier, the rewards instant and the costs low...for now.
So Romania's government officials can continue to pretend to care about minority rights while the European Union and many within it will continue pretending to believe them. They receive money from the EU to change their discriminating ways and they promise reform, but on the ground nothing is different. And this is what keeps the cycle of discrimination, poverty and humiliation running at fever pitch--the sense of hopelessness among Romania's minorities and the sense of impunity by its leaders. Without a political class that actually believes in the equal treatment of all citizens and who perceive human rights not as a constraint but as a crucial moral compass for political action, it will be difficult - if not impossible- to break this cycle and start treating Roma and all minorities as equal European citizens, which they indeed are.
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World press news release from top investment companies.
Igor September 8, 2015
Five Moye White Attorneys Listed in The Best Lawyers in America 2016: Rebecca DeCook Named to 2016 “Lawyers of the Year”
Denver law firm Moye White LLP announced that five of its attorneys have been named to the list of The Best Lawyers in America 2016. Partner Rebecca DeCook was also listed as one of Best Lawyers’ 2016 “Lawyers of the Year” for her Communications Law practice.
Denver, CO, August 19, 2015 –(PR.com)– Denver law firm, Moye White LLP, announced today that five of its partners have been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2016®.
In addition, partner Rebecca DeCook was named to Best Lawyers’ 2016 “Lawyers of the Year” for her Communications Law practice.
The selected attorneys and the practice areas for which they are being recognized are:
J. David Arkell (Construction Law, Litigation – Construction);
Rebecca B. DeCook (Communications Law);
Charles F. Luce, Jr. (Copyright Law);
John E. Moye (Banking & Finance Law, Corporate Governance Law, Corporate Compliance Law, Corporate Law, Mergers and Acquisitions Law);
Edward D. White (Corporate Law, Leveraged Buyouts and Private Equity Law, Mergers and Acquisitions Law)
All of the attorneys have been named to the prestigious Best Lawyers list multiple times.
About Best Lawyers
Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers® has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey. More than 79,000 leading attorneys are eligible to vote, and Best Lawyers received more than 6.2 million votes on the legal abilities of other lawyers in their practice areas. Lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed, therefore inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor. Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers “the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice.”
About Moye White LLP
Moye White LLP is a business law firm serving clients throughout Colorado, North Dakota, the Rocky Mountain West, nationally and internationally. With approximately 50 attorneys, Moye White provides legal representation across a wide variety of transactional and litigation matters. The firm’s attorneys offer strategic, team-oriented counsel to public, private and governmental clients in complex business and real estate transactions and disputes. As a Certified B Corporation, Moye White meets rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability. Moye White is a member of the International Alliance of Law Firms, providing its clients with a reliable network of corporate law firms around the world. For more information, please visit www.moyewhite.com or contact Managing Partner Thomas List, at 303-292-2900 or tom.list@moyewhite.com
Moye White
Andrew Laing
moyewhite.com
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Home > Persecution > Torture > Physical Torture Methods
CCP Torture Methods: Steaming and Roasting
October 24, 2014 | By Yun Jian
(Minghui.org) “Steaming” in this article refers to a torture method used by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), where the victim is locked in a sealed off, hot room for long periods of time. “Roasting” refers to a torture method where the victim's body is exposed to fire, various heat sources, or the scorching sun for extended periods of time.
These two torture methods are different from burning with a hot iron, boiling water, and cigarettes in that they are usually applied for long periods of time, ranging from several hours to several days at a time.
Steaming and roasting don't inflict wounds as severe as the aforementioned torture methods, but the victims' suffering is still tremendous. In some cases, inmates ordered by guards to inflict the torture on Falun Gong practitioners succumbed to the extreme heat themselves.
Torture re-enactment: Bright lights in the eyes
The following excerpts from Falun Gong practitioners' eyewitness reports published on Minghui shed light on the darkest corners of the Chinese regime's prisons, labor camps, and brainwashing centers.
“The air was stifling...it felt like fire. My clothes were soaked in sweat. I gradually lost consciousness...”
“On the hottest summer days, I was locked in a cell for five days straight with all the doors and windows shut.”
“On a summer day when it was 38 degrees Celsius, all the doors and windows were shut. I was forced to wear the winter clothes I had on at the time of my arrest.”
“A 2,000-watt light bulb was placed about a foot away from my face. After a while, I was sweating profusely. The pain was unbearable.”
“I was forced to sit facing a 200-watt light bulb. My eyelids were parched and couldn't close properly.”
“I was pushed toward the boiler's opening. After my front was roasted, I was turned...”
“I was lifted and grilled over a fire until my back was blistered all over.”
“I was locked in a sealed cell on a hot day. Four heaters were turned on to roast me.”
“I was rolled up in a thick military blanket and left on the pavement under the scorching sun.”
2. Torture Methods
Based on victims' personal accounts, steaming and roasting, as part of the CCP's brutal torture methods, can be categorized as follows:
A. Steaming in Sealed Rooms
On June 14, 2012, practitioner Wang Fafeng was taken to Linyi City Brainwashing Center. To force her to give up her practice of Falun Gong, guards put her in a cell with the door and windows shut for five days straight.
In 2005, practitioner Liu Guifu was detained in Beijing Women's Labor Camp. On a hot summer day with temperatures reaching 38C, guards and inmates closed the door and shut the windows. She was forced to wear her winter clothes. Many of the inmates, who were ordered to torture her, suffered heatstroke.
B. Light Bulbs
This category includes using high wattage light bulbs to heat the victim's head, soles and buttocks. Bright lights are also placed in front of the victim's face and eyes, while their metal chairs are heated from below.
Practitioners detained in a labor camp in Renhuai, Guizhou Province were locked in solitary confinement and forced to sit in front of 200-watt light bulbs until their eyelids were parched and could not close properly.
Jilin City police officers cuffed and shackled practitioners to metal chairs and put 2,000-watt light bulbs a foot away from their faces. After a long time, practitioners' faces would sweat profusely, and the burning pain was unbearable.
Torture Re-enactment: Light bulb burning the face
Authorities at the No. 3 Detention Center in Shuangyang District of Changchun tied practitioners to metal chairs and placed 2,000-watt electric heaters below, which made the chairs unbearably hot. At the same time, they put a bright light bulb on each side of practitioners' heads. This torture went on for a minimum of two hours.
C. Burning with Open Flame
This category includes burning the chin with candle flames, grilling over a fire, roasting in front of a furnace; burning with lit ropes for hours, burning the eyes with cigarettes, roasting at the kiln, etc.
In 2000, a practitioner who went to Tiananmen Square to protest the persecution of Falun Gong was arrested and detained at Mafang Police Station in Pinggu District. Officers pushed the practitioner toward a furnace. As the practitioner tried to back away from the flames, an officer punched the practitioner from behind. The police turned the practitioner over to burn the other side. The practitioner began vomiting as a result of the extreme heat, but had to hold it back to avoid a severe beating.
Gaoyang Labor Camp in Hebei Province put practitioners on a rack directly over a fire. Practitioner Song Guixian and others were tortured this way, which resulted in blisters all over their backs.
D. Electric Heaters
This category includes using an electric heater to burn the buttocks until the skin breaks, burning the victim's face and soles, using fans to blow hot air at the victim for extended periods of time, using infrared light to burn the buttocks, etc.
In February 2002, Mr. and Mrs. Tian Xiaofei from Benxi District of Liaoning Province were arrested by Pingshan Police. They were hung on a wall with their legs spread and a high power electric heater placed between their legs. The temperature was so high that their pants were emitting smoke.
In February 2008, Huludao City Police and other government agencies arrested thirteen practitioners. Among the arrested practitioners, Mr. Yang Jiangwei and Ms. Li Xiaoming had married a month prior. The authorities used all kinds of means in their attempts to force Mr. Yang to give up his practice of Falun Gong, including sleep deprivation for three days and using electric heaters to burn his buttocks until the skin was charred.
In June 2012, staff at the No. 1 Shenyang Prison, under the direct leadership of warden Wang Bin, political instructor Liu Guoshan and deputy warden Qiu Guobin used electric heaters to burn practitioners all over their bodies.
E. Scorching Sun
On hot summer days, Falun Gong practitioners were forced to stand under the sun for extended periods of time. Details can be found in the article Prolonged Exposure to the Scorching Sun: a Form of Torture Employed by the Chinese Communist Party.
3. Two Example Cases
A. Practitioner Wang Yujie Locked in Furnace Room for 12 Hours
Practitioner Wang Yujie
Practitioner Wang Yujie from Xiantao, Hubei Province was arrested by Manchun Police on March 11, 2010 and taken to Jianghan District's Erdaopeng Brainwashing Center. She was sentenced to one year of forced labor and assigned to the No. 6 Team at Hewan Labor Camp in Wuhan.
In order to force her to give up her practice, the labor camp authorities instigated inmates to torture her. They forced her to squat for six consecutive days, deprived her of sleep, beat her with electric batons, and forced her to do hard labor. On hot summer days, guard Hu Fang dragged Ms. Wang to the furnace room and locked her there for 12.5 hours. The high temperature caused her to sweat profusely and lose consciousness.
On September 3, 2011, Ms. Wang Yujie passed away at the age of 24.
B. Practitioner Shen Xiadu Exposed to 80 Degrees Celsius Heat in Kiln
Mr. Shen Xiaodu is the grandson of the late Shen Junru, the founder of the China Democratic League. He was arrested and detained in the No. 6 Team in Xinhua Labor Camp in Mianyang, Sichuan Province. In August 2002, he was listed as a key target by the camp authorities.
One day, guards took him to the brick baking kiln in his underwear and forced him through the “cold gate” (a chamber held at around 40C), a “medium gate” (60C), and eventually the “fire gate” (80C). The guards ordered each inmate to hold a red-hot brick on Mr. Shen's body to burn him in the furnace chamber.
Normally, a worker must wear thick cotton clothes to insulate him from the extreme heat when he went into the chamber to pick up bricks. In addition, workers are limited to two minutes in the chamber per shift. However, Mr. Shen, in his 50s, was forced to suffer the extreme heat in his underwear. When the guards went to torture him in the same way the next day, they found severe blisters all over his body.
Category: Physical Torture Methods
“Young Man Arrested and His Family Denied Visitation”
“Dalian Intermediate Court Denies Woman's Appeal Before Lower Court Officially Issues Original Verdict”
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Console Classix
TurboGrafx-16 (PCE)
Home Brew Games
Battle Blaze 1993 By: American Sammy Corporation
Virg, which rests in the middle of the Great World, has remained a tranquil land for many centuries. Here, all beings live in peace, under the secure hold of a powerful Warrior-King. These Kings are chosen in a contest of champions, in which warriors from every corner of the land compete.
But something is about to disturb the harmony of Virg. A netherworlder by the name of Autarch has sent forth spirits to possess the high warriors of the land. With the best warriors of Virg under the command of Autarch, the tournament of champions, and the fate of Virg, are in dire jeopardy.
--From the SNES Battle Blaze instruction manual.
All copies are in use - 2 copies are available for full accounts.
Play Battle Blaze Now!
Controls and Hints
This fighter was a pretty bad game. The only thing that was good were the graphics and music. The graphics were drawn well and used bright colors. The music sounded good and wasn't repetitive, but the sound effects weren't good at all. The story sounded regurgitated, it's almost exactly like Mortal Kombat.
The biggest drawback was the controls. If there is one thing fighting games are known for it's a ton of special moves to preform. This game had one button that you used to attack out of a total of six. There were a few special attacks, but nowhere near enough. There also weren't enough different characters to choose from. If you play one player mode, you have to be Kerrel. If you play two player mode, there are only six different people to choose from. This fighter just didn't bring enough to the table to feed most gamers' needs.
If you play the two player mode, all you have to do is pick your fighter and try to beat up your opponent by tapping the Y button. If you play one player, you will have to defeat all the other five characters and Lord Autarch, by pressing the Y button as fast as you can.
The six characters are: Kerrel- a human barbarian; Snouser- a half-man / half-dog thing (a mog?); Adrick- a human swordsman; Land- twin brother of Kerrel; Tesya- a woman trained to be deadly with two daggers; and Lord Gustoff- a half-orc with a morningstar.
During battle you will have two life bars, one yellow and one red. Both will have to be depleted to die. You will have to be killed twice to lose the fight. There are a few special moves to learn, but not many. Most of them are initiated by pressing forward or back twice. There are no power-ups or items to collect, just fight your way through.
Y Button Strike
B Button Jump
Down + Y Button Low strike
Down + B Button Low kick
Infinite Credits
Enter the following code at the Title Screen:
Hold Select then Hold Start, release Select.
Then at the Options Screen Hold L and Press Up + X - Left + Y - Down + B - Right + A then release L.
Copyright © ConsoleClassix.com - ">Site Map -
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Russia 2018: Who has qualified for finals?
FIFA World Cup Nov 16, 2017 ESPN staff
FIFA ban former OFC secretary Tai Nicholas
Blog - FIFA May 29, 2019 Associated Press
New Zealand Football elects first female president
FIFA Women's World Cup Apr 1, 2019 Reuters
Team Wellington wins OFC Champions League
OFC Champions League May 20, 2018 AAP
New Zealand to pay women same as men
New Zealand May 8, 2018 Associated Press
Oceania to probe 'potential wrongdoing'
Blog - FIFA Apr 9, 2018 Associated Press
FIFA vice pres. Chung quits for 'personal reasons'
Chris Wood reflects on gruelling travel schedule
FIFA World Cup Qualifying - OFC Nov 9, 2017
Quiz: How well do you know the history of WC qualifiers?
FIFA World Cup Nov 9, 2017 ESPN Staff
'Global Nations League' proposed with FIFA
Blog - FIFA Nov 3, 2017 Associated Press
New Zealand vs. Peru playoff dates set
World Cup Qualifying Oct 16, 2017 AAP
Intercontinental World Cup playoff guide
FIFA World Cup Qualifying - AFC Oct 12, 2017 Dale Johnson
World Cup hopes of major nations on line
World Cup qualifying preview Oct 4, 2017 ESPN staff
Argentina hold no fear for NZ - Wood
Exclusive Oct 3, 2017 Mark Ogden
A-League begins Oct. 6 despite WCQ clash
A-League Jun 27, 2017 AAP
Qualifying, one year out: Where things stand
World Cup qualifying Jun 14, 2017 ESPN staff
By ESPN
2018 World Cup: Who has qualified for the finals in Russia next year
With 32 teams having qualified, the field for the 2018 World Cup in Russia is set.
Qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, which began on March 12, 2015, is over with the final 32 teams now known. The seeded draw pots can be seen in full here.
Qualified nations: Russia (hosts), Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Denmark, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Iceland, Iran, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, Panama, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, Uruguay.
UEFA PLAYOFFS...
Tai Nicholas was found guilty of misappropriating FIFA funds linked to the construction of a new headquarters for the OFC in Auckland.
FIFA has banned former Oceania Football Confederation general secretary Tai Nicholas from the game for eight years for financial misconduct.
The adjudicatory chamber of the ethics committee imposed the punishment after finding Nicholas guilty of misappropriating FIFA funds linked to the construction of a new headquarters for the OFC in Auckland, New Zealand and for accepting benefits in violation of the ethics code.
Nicholas was also fined 50,000 Swiss francs in the latest punishment for financial...
Blog - FIFA
FIFA World Cup Qualifying - OFC
Powered by ESPNW
New Zealand Football elects first female president Johanna Wood
A hat-trick from David Williams dented the Newcastle Jets' A-League finals hopes as Wellington Phoenix run out 4-1 winners.
Wellington Phoenix scored first against the run of play before a Keisuke Honda penalty meant the two sides would share the points.
New Zealand Football continued overhauling its governance after a tumultuous 2018 by electing Johanna Wood as its first female president at their annual congress in Auckland on Tuesday.
Wood, who was elected to NZF's executive committee last year for a four-year term, replaces acting president Phil Barry, who resigned last week.
Barry himself replaced Deryck Shaw, who resigned in October after an independent review found the executive committee had adopted a "hands off approach" to governance following...
Team Wellington defeats Lautoka to win OCL, book Club World Cup spot
Team Wellington will compete at the FIFA Club World Cup after dispatching Lautoka in the two-leg OFC Champions League final.
The Kiwi outfit won the second leg 4-3 in Fiji on Sunday, a week after all-but deciding the two-leg tie with a 6-0 victory in Wellington.
Croatian midfielder Mario Ilich scored twice in the first half at Churchill Park in Lautoka for Team Wellington to ensure there would be no surprises.
The game opened up after the break, with Lautoka adding some respectability to the scoreboard.
Team...
New Zealand confirms pay parity between Football Ferns, All Whites
Sarah Gregorius, right, played a key role in ensuring pay parity between New Zealand's women's and men's footballers.
Leading women's players have hailed a deal with New Zealand Football which adds travel benefits to previous moves toward equality with their male counterparts.
NZF announced on Tuesday a three-year collective agreement with professional players which gives women pay parity, an equal share of prize money and equal payment for image rights for those selected in national teams.
Those elements had previously been in place but the new deal also provides for business class travel on long haul flights...
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City, University of London is an independent member institution of the University of London. Established by Royal Charter in 1836, the University of London consists of 18 independent member institutions with outstanding global reputations and several prestigious central academic bodies
City, University of London, Northampton Square London
SchoolScreener: Simple Paediatric Vision, Hearing and BMI Screening Platform
EU-Japan Technology Transfer Helpdesk / Technologies
DESCRIPTION | BENEFITS | LIMITATIONS | APPLICATIONS | MATERIALS | STATUS |
managed by City, University of London
TECHNOLOGY DESCRIPTION
In many schools where screening of vision, hearing and BMI takes place the processes are often manual and may involve significant resource in transferring data and managing the results of the screening process.
This technology makes use of a laptop to deliver the screening and requires minimal skills to supervise in order to screen a large number of children efficiently and quickly. The system is an integrated solution with a sophisticated back end cloud server that manages the screening processes and delivers the results in order to ensure children needing further interventions receive it and that the data can be analysed by healthcare providers. The system is now undergoing further development to add modules for monitoring and administering immunisation.
Further details can be found on the International website: https://www.schoolscreener.com/
and the UK website: https://www.schoolscreener.co.uk/
SchoolScreener is currently used in many UK trust hospitals and has a proven track record for effectiveness, reducing administration, improving data analysis and reducing screening costs.
no limitations that we are aware of
The company has also developed two variants. One is used in over 3,000 UK schools by teachers, support staff and volunteers to check whether poor vision may be affecting educational progress. The other is designed for Occupational Health markets. It is used by many healthcare providers across the UK and is being trialled in selected overseas territories.
Readiness Level (TRL)
actual system proven in operational environment(The pie chart refers to the entire portfolio contained in the database of the helpdesk)
Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) are a method of estimating technology maturity of Critical Technology Elements (CTE) of a program during the acquisition process. The use of TRLs enables consistent, uniform, discussions of technical maturity across different types of technology.
Patent Grading Report
The Grading Patents Report evaluates and grades US patents
Sample Buy from Wisdomain
bmichildrenhealth screeninghearingschoolsscreeningsoftwarevision
Software and know how
Value added resellers, distributors, collaborators, licensees
INVENTOR / TEAM
Professor David Thomson
LICENSING REQUEST
Case manager: Dr Carol David Daniel
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Brit Wacher: art in the abstract
FAJO spots The Queen at the Royal Ascot 2014
Home » In Focus »
Rent A Shoe: if the shoe fits, rent it!
It all started with a pair of Manolo Blahniks, or rather the lack thereof. When Sally De Rosa, president and ...
It all started with a pair of Manolo Blahniks, or rather the lack thereof. When Sally De Rosa, president and CEO of Rent A Shoe, got married, she wanted to wear a pair of satin Manolos. They were about $800. Unwilling to pay the full price, she wore a pair of no-name shoes.
Two years later, with the help and inspiration from her friends, Sally has now opened Rent A Shoe, an online shop that gives everyday fashionistas the option to rent designer shoes for a fraction of the retail price. Launched May 2014, the Canadian company offers over 20 designers, including Gucci, Christian Louboutin and Jimmy Choo.
The shop’s first transaction was perfect: a bride found herself in Sally’s shoes, yearning for a pair of designer heels she could not afford. Since Rent A Shoe did not have them in stock, the bride used the site’s Request A Shoe function and her request was met within 24 hours. “We were able to make a bride’s shoe story happen,” says Sally.
Sally De Rosa, president and CEO of Rent A Shoe.
Revising their product line quarterly, Rent A Shoe keeps its customers up-to-date with fashion trends.
When a shopper orders a shoe, it’s polished, UVC sanitized and delivered in a carefully wrapped pink bag. When they are ready to return the pair, customers simply ship the product back using a prepaid packing slip. Currently, the company ships within Canada, but has plans to expand into the U.S.
By shopping at Rent A Shoe, customers save money, reduce their closet clutter and support great causes, with a portion of the profits going to the Canadian Women’s Foundation as well as Plan Canada’s Because I am a Girl project.
“For me it was always important to make [it] a social enterprise, so part of the profits went to a charity. The first thing that came to mind was Because I am a Girl, because I support it personally,” Sally continues. “But not everyone who wants to donate money wants it to go outside the country and with Because I am a Girl we’re sponsoring a specific girl in Ethiopia. So, by bringing in the Canadian Women’s Foundation we re-localized the charity.” For Sally, part of shopping at Rent A Shoe means, “You’re giving back to the community while wearing some stylish shoes.”
Sally says that giving back to charity is an important part of the company’s concept.
“Being lifted by a really great pair of shoes makes you look classy and feel feminine,” she adds. So go ahead and take some fabulous heels for a spin!
Exclusive to FAJO readers is a 50% discount on all rentals or purchases at Rent A Shoe. Simply enter code “FAJOMAG″ when making a purchase. Happy shopping!
Connect with Rent A Shoe via web, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest.
Check us out in FAJOMAG! - Rent a Shoe said:
[…] Rent A Shoe featured in FAJOMAG! Check it out here! […]
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Danville Things To Do
Things to do in Danville
You will find many fun and exciting things to do in Danville, California. This charming town has a great community feel with a lovely downtown area that is ideal for a casual stroll. Danville has many good recreational activities all year long that everyone from families to couples can participate in.
A big draw in the local Danville area is the numerous outdoor activities you can enjoy here – all year long! Danville is located in the San Ramon Valley of Northern California in Contra Costa County. The San Ramon Valley is home to Mount Diablo State Park, which is famous for its peak that rises 3,849 feet above its surrounding areas. If you are a climber or hiker, go to the top of Mount Diablo where you will get amazing views of the entire Bay Area from the peak.
Other things to do in town are shopping and dining in Danville’s historic downtown. Visit the Clock Tower square in downtown Danville. Shops here range from boutiques, jewelry, shoes, and other specialty retail stores. You’ll find spas and salons in downtown. The Museum of the San Ramon Valley which is at the old railroad station along the Iron Horse Trail is also located here. During the summer, Hot Summer Nights, a car show is held on the third Thursday of July and August on Hartz Avenue.
Downtown Danville has several places where you can stop and relax at from bookstores to cafes. Highly anticipated annual events in downtown include the Art & Wine Stroll, the Heartland Danville Antique & Art Faire, Spirit of Danville, Doggie Night, and Simply Delicious Danville.
For a different kind of shopping, there’s a wonderful farmer’s market in town every Saturday. Here you’ll find amazing locally grown foods and crafted products -- from fruit to nuts to cheese to bread.
Danville also runs along the Iron Horse Regional Trail, which was the old railroad serving the area. The Iron Horse Regional Trail has since become a great trail for walking, hiking and biking.
This community in Danville is very family-focused and as a result there are many great things for kids to do here. For example, the Blackhawk Automotive Museum has a Discovery Room with hands-on activities that kids will enjoy exploring . The museum showcases a large collection of cars that fascinates children – and adults. There’s a playground nearby with a fountain that will keep the kids entertained if they like to play outdoors.
Danville has several community parks spanning nearly 170 acres. The parks are always a pleasant place for a walk or a picnic. The play areas in the parks are also a great place for the children to tinker around or burn some energy. You’ll find that Danville has great places to explore and enjoy. From the natural beauty of the area parks to the gourmet dining choices, there’s a lot for adults and kids to choose from. That small town ambience that Danville is known for is both charming and welcoming.
Museum Of San Ramon Valley
Railroad and Prospect Avenues Danville, CA 94526
The Museum of the San Ramon Valley was founded as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization in 1985. The Museum is housed in the restored 1891 Southern...
Role Player Ensemble Theatre
233 Front St Danville, CA 94526
Diablo Vista Park
1000 Tassajara Ranch Drive Danville, CA 94526
This 20-acre park is known for the mosaic water-snake that winds down a hillside. The park has a children's play area, sand volleyball court...
Oak Hill Park
3005 Stone Valley Road Danville, CA 94526
Oak Hill Park offers a quiet country setting with a spectacular Mt. Diablo backdrop, an idyllic location for family picnics, weddings, and other...
The Village Theatre and Art Gallery
233 Front Street Danville, CA 94526
Built in 1873 for use as a farmer's lodge, the Village Theatre has been used as a Grange Hall, movie theatre, and church. Recognized as a historic...
3700 Blackhawk Plaza Circle Danville, CA 94506
Eugene O'Neill National Historic Site
1000 Kuss Road Danville, CA 94526
Destino Wines
9000 Crow Canyon Rd Danville, CA 94506
Runaway Tours
732 Trent Ter Danville, CA 94506
Odisea Wine Co LLC
963 Redwood Dr Danville, CA 94506
599 Blackhawk Club Dr Danville, CA 94506
Blackhawk Art Gallery
3628 Blackhawk Plaza Cir Danville, CA 94506
Cinemark- Century Blackhawk Plaza
Tassajara Symphony Orchestra
45 Trish Ct Danville, CA 94506
Blackhawk Collection
1092 Eagle Nest Pl Danville, CA 94506
C & C Innovations
505 Harper Ln Danville, CA 94526
Sunset Cinema Inc.
383 Diablo Rd Ste 214 Danville, CA 94526
Corks Wine Store
411 Hartz Ave Ste Gg Danville, CA 94526
Gymtastic
1901 Camino Ramon Ste D Danville, CA 94526
Queen Of Arts Creative Studio
155 Railroad Ave Danville, CA 94526
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Mad Cat’s The Flick Will Intrigue Some, Leave Others Unenthused
Posted on May 31, 2016 by Bill Hirschman
David Nail, Chevii Hill and Jessica Farr as employees taking a breather while cleaning up an old movie theater in The Flick at Mad Cat Theatre Company / Photos by George Schiavone
Sometimes critics use the words “ambitious” and “intriguing” as backhanded compliments or cowardly faint praise, but Mad Cat Theatre Company’s production of the Pulitzer-winning The Flick earns both adjectives as unironic compliments.
Now to say that this three-hour slice-of-life will not be to everyone’s taste is a supreme understatement. It can be argued honorably whether this theatrical Continental Divide is worth the effort. Some will find it stimulating, engaging and worth the investment, we certainly did. Many others will deem it self-consciously precious and uninvolving. To be brutally fair, the play doesn’t really catch fire until, no kidding, the 83-minute mark.
But if you meet the work way more than halfway, if you can slip yourself into the groove that playwright Annie Baker and director Paul Tei have carved out, there are rewards for the audience in this challenging work.
Any description of the show may be off-putting; it’s something that has to be experienced to be fairly judged because while there is a plot of sorts and relationships of sorts (the selling points for a potential audience), they’re pretty mundane. But that’s kind of the point. It’s a theatrical cinema-verite documentary of people who rarely get a moment in an artistic spotlight. It’s a testament to Tei’s deft direction and three winning performances that inexplicably keep a willing audience engaged and returning from the one intermission. Doubtless, few other companies than Mad Cat would have the courage to attempt nor have the skill to succeed with this work.
The Flick charts a few weeks in the world of two ushers with mops and brooms plus a projectionist, all doing menial drudgery at one of the last remaining single-auditorium movie theaters in Massachusetts still operating a 35mm projector. The year is 2012 and technology is taking over these decaying holdouts.
Sam (David Nail) is probably a bit past 30 years old, a solid stolid employee with no prospects other than this. He was recently passed over for the more prestigious projectionist job in favor of his slightly gothy colleague, the twenty-something Rose (Jessica Farr).
The play opens as Sam is training a newbie, Avery (Chevi Marquise Hill), a 20-year-old African American taking a semester off from college and – unlike his colleagues – a rabid film freak who can beat Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon from memory including drawing the line between Pauly Shore and Ian Holm. He loves celluloid, but many classic films like Goodfellas he has seen only on his computer screen.
It’s indicative of much of the play that the first 15 minutes or so is watching these two guys clean up the theater aisle by aisle with silences broken up tidbits of technical advice, grunts upon finding odd detritus left behind, a few shards of humorous banter and sharing sparingly few bits of personal information. They argue whether it’s more insulting to sweep up snacks brought in by the patrons or food these employees sold the patrons. It’s a bit of blue-collar Chekhov.
Only over time do we learn snatches of who they are, what their backgrounds are. Avery’s vocabulary betrays a solid education but a nerdish inability to cope with the harsh aspects of people. Sam has a native intelligence but has been beaten down. Rose is deeply troubled but knows the reality of the world around her.
Banked tensions bubble far below the surface. It is unstated but slips out to the audience that Sam has a serious crush on Rose. She in turn has a problem committing and would rather flirt with Avery who has no interest in her for unclear reasons. There’s also tension about some minor in-house graft as well as the specter of the theater being sold to be turned into a digital multiplex.
The strains eventually develop into conflicts and there are a few scenes of plot and character development, but they rattle around in this intentionally loose depiction of the real world of work – told not in artistic naturalism but dangerously faithful realism.
Keeping in mind that four people will have six different opinions, we’ll contend that this did not have to be a three-hour script to make its points or even establish the atmosphere it seeks. And frankly, while Baker has delivered four or five accomplished stretches of dialogue and/or dramaturgical constructions, it’s baffling how it won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 2014. While every moment including the silent stretches is defensible (much praise is due Tei for making them all land credibly and seem organic to the journey), it still has the feel of a slightly self-indulgent experiment.
The most fascinating aspect is where the production is physically situated. Mad Cat has been a resident at the Miami Theater Center in Miami Shores since 2013, usually using its smaller adjacent Sandbox black box theater. But for this, Mad Cat moves into the main house, an Art Deco-style movie theater dating back to 1946. The action takes place in the 333-seat auditorium while the audience sits on risers on the stage. The opening moments have the searchlight-like projector shining a film directly into the eyes of the audience while the sound system blares out Bernard Hermann’s fanfare overture to The Naked and the Dead.
This creates both virtues and shortcomings. Obviously, the verisimilitude is priceless. But more importantly, Tei has skillfully used the cavernous space, especially separating characters around the auditorium to silently enhance the sense of their being disconnected and isolated. Yet, he moves them around the entire space. In one monologue, Avery is on the telephone sitting in a seat dead center and then continues the long conversation while circumnavigating the back half of the auditorium before ending where he began.
But having actors range over that expanse and rightfully playing many scenes in its center or further back means it’s a little hard sometimes to see the facial expressions of the actors as they let emotions flit briefly across their faces. The loneliness vibe might be lost in a smaller venue, but some of the nuances that the actors are excavating might be more accessible.
Baker, Tei and company have a host of goals in mind: a from-the-inside look at “real” young people many theatergoers have little connection with, issues about the world of blue-collar work, the fading impact of art on everyday people, the dehumanization that technology wreaks on venerable art genres, the difficulty of forging lasting relationships in this century, on and on.
Especially resonating is the idea of dead-end jobs with no future in a faltering economy for a generation implicitly promised a bright future. Among Baker’s insightful dialogue comes when Avery asks jokingly, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” and Sam answers with no humor at all. “I am grown up.” Although they have been raised on the fairy tales of the movies, they and this play know that life is nothing like the movies, if only in its prosaic nature.
All three actors (plus Erik Fabregat in two cameos) immerse themselves so deeply in the parts that they don’t seem to be acting, just being. Farr speaks with such sad wonder when Rose says, “Sometimes I think something is really, really wrong with me, but I’ll never know what it is.”
But it’s Nail who, in a rare local outing, is a marvel as the kind of guy you don’t deign to notice walking by him on the street, but who provides the working cogs of society’s machinery that we take for granted. He embodies Thoreau’s “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them.” When his controlled exterior cracks in the second act, the eruption of anger and pain is completely credible.
Some technical notes: While the sound is enhanced by a handful of stationary microphones to pick up the sound of dragged trash barrels and the like, the reverse acoustics of the theater are astounding. The actors are not miked, yet they can be heard on stage most of the time no matter where they are in the vast auditorium.
Even more impressive is the moody chiaroscuro lighting of Melissa Santiago that effectively highlights action and keeps the mood shifting throughout the long haul. Minor spoiler alert: Once the corporation takes over the theater and turns it into another digital venue, Santiago amps up the lighting uniformly across the space, making it a soulless factory floor, robbing the old house of its dramatic light and shadow. This marks Santiago’s 19th show for Mad Cat and the magic she works with limited budgets and hardware is always praiseworthy.
So, you have to be willing to invest yourself if you have any hope of getting something out of this production, and even then a lot of people are going to prefer something different. But Mad Cat deserves props for undertaking and, for our money, making the most out of a problematic but thought-provoking piece of theater.
The Flick from Mad Cat Theatre Company runs through June 12 at the Miami Theater Center, 9816 NE 2nd Ave., Miami Shores. Shows 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday. Tickets $30 general admission; students, industry and seniors $15. Visit www.madcattheatre.org for tickets.
To read a feature story about the production, click here.
This entry was posted in Performances, Reviews and tagged Annie Baker, Chevi Hill, David Nail, Jessica Farr, Mad Cat Theatre Company, The Flick. Bookmark the permalink.
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Open/Close Menu To know Jesus Christ and to make Him known
Fordham Church
Eight Ash Green Church
John Owen Barn
Harvest Thanksgiving Weekend.
Eight Ash Green
The Parable of the Talents (Luke 19:11-27)
Duncan Brisk, 2nd April 2017
Part of the Sermon series, preached at a Fordham Sunday Service service
http://www.fordhamchurch.org.uk/sermons/?show&file_name=Duncan%20Brisk%2C%20Luke%2019%2C11-27%2C%20F10am%2C%2002.04.17.mp3 Download
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Bible Quote
19:11 While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once.
19:12 He said: "A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return.
19:13 So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. 'Put this money to work,' he said, 'until I come back.'
19:14 "But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, 'We don't want this man to be our king.'
19:15 "He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it.
19:16 "The first one came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned ten more.'
19:17 " 'Well done, my good servant!' his master replied. 'Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.'
19:18 "The second came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned five more.'
19:19 "His master answered, 'You take charge of five cities.'
19:20 "Then another servant came and said, 'Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth.
19:21 I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.'
19:22 "His master replied, 'I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow?
19:23 Why then didn't you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?'
19:24 "Then he said to those standing by, 'Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.'
19:25 " 'Sir,' they said, 'he already has ten!'
19:26 "He replied, 'I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away.
19:27 But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them--bring them here and kill them in front of me.' "
We are committed to Safeguarding Children, Young People, Victims/perpetrators of Domestic Abuse and Vulnerable Adults. The PCC has adopted the Church of England's policies and best practice on safeguarding which may be found on the Church of England's website https://www.churchofengland.org/more/safeguarding. Our Parish Safeguarding Officer is Linda Stenner, who may be contacted at the church office or by email linda.stenner@fordhamchurch.org.uk
© 2020 Fordham Church.
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Reaches over 1 million viewers per week
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Source: OzTam National Panel. MCN Foxtel Channels. Period:Wc 06.11.16 - Wc 27.11.16. DayParts: (Sun-Sat 0200-0159). Reach. Total People. Consolidated data as at 07.12.16
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In the Flesh, Season 2, Episode 4
Amy starts her day with an attempt at breakfast – which is a little odd since the PDS don’t eat and she spits the bar she eats into the sink.
Phillip, by his dreams, is still obsessed with Amy – and he comes downstairs to find his mum, the awesome Shirley, talking to Henry’s mum and they’re pretty upset that absolutely no-one cares about Henry’s disappearance. That also includes Phillip
Which brings us to Maxine who also doesn’t care – since she’s poring over her records to find the first risen; so much so she threatens the PDS with being listed as non-compliant for not listing their times of rising (which, since most of them don’t know, is likely to just get everyone to make it up). While she does this, Dean leads the “give back” PDS on how not to alarm living people (which is every bit as awful as you can imagine). Simon is missing and Kieren notices, so is Amy.
Back at the Walker household, Jem tells her mum, Sue, that she’s going on patrol again and everything is totally fine while Sue worries massively about her daughter (and for pretty good reason).
Kieren comes home and his dad is still all positive and upbeat about the whole give-back scheme while Kieren can see exactly how useful Dean’s guide to civilised humanity actually is and it’s little more than ritual humiliation (showing sufficient cynicism to remind us that Steve is a northerner even if he is upbeat, he points out that that’s the work place). He also wants to go out, probably to spend some time looking for Simon, though his parents are pushing him for family time. Ahhh even as a PDS, the old dramas remain – a little normality to contrast wrenchingly with everything else.
Phillip delays his meeting, drawn to the PDS brothel again (unknown to him, a nosy neighbour is making note of everyone going in and out), studiously avoiding the eyes of the other patrons to meet with fake-Amy-sex-worker which, in a show about zombies, still manages to be the creepiest thing. While he sleeps it off, Maxine notices his absence. Phillip wakes in the brothel and realises he is late – but as he hurries off he is confronted by the nosy neighbour who rants at him and spits on him
Kieren does go to Simon’s, all dressed up – only to find Amy and a whole room full of PDS congregants. Awkward. Simon continues to talk some very good sense though – about PDS not being ashamed of who they are, not trying to hide who they are etc; but Amy doesn’t here because she has to hurry away with a nosebleed. Simon greets Kieren as a congregant and Kieren, after the kiss last episode, is not impressed. He warns Simon that all his followers (who he calls brainwashed) are going to get into trouble for not complying and gets irritated with Simon for not being a “normal person” for 2 seconds – I think this is more related to his recruitment pitches than failure to conform though. Amy interrupts to stop them all arguing while both of them jump – because Amy still has a crush on Simon. She’s also showing signs of confusion, trying to do a task she’s clearly already done.
When she leaves, Simon tries to kiss Kieren but he stops him – Amy’s right out there and she deserves to be told rather than her continue to desperately crush on Simon.
To the town meeting – which Phillip is missing – starting with the founding of the RPS (Roarton Protection Service) which is basically an anti-PDS police; people point out that it’s blatantly the old HVF, even with the same members. When people start complaining about PDS not wearing makeup, Maxine takes over – and is shocked and disgusted to learn about the PDS brothel “the living and those things?” Maxine has a full on rant, inciting the crowd; and Henry’s mother snaps. She stands up and refuses to speak or listen to Maxine, calling her a liar – she shames her neighbours for completely ignoring his disappearance, pretending he was never there.
Phillip finally appears after the meeting is over and Maxine accuses him of missing it so he could avoid having to speak about the missing Henry. She’s angry that Henry’s mother won’t “accept the facts” and how it basically derailed her whole incitement rant. She wants Phillip to lie to Henry’s mother and claim a reliable source saw Henry at a ULA training camp – but Phillip keeps asking what the source is. She threatens his career and future when he keeps being reluctant and expects him to have an answer for her in 5 hours – when they go to protest the brothel. Phillip looks awfully stressed.
Gary is happy to see Jem back in a soldier’s uniform - and they kiss – before heading out. They split up, at Jem’s insistence, and when she’s alone she starts panicking – she hallucinates Henry’s dead body and runs through the woods until she reaches Gary. They move on to the pub – and someone’s buying their drinks for them, like back in the day when the HVF got free booze. Fear of PDS is growing again. Gary’s advice to Jem is to, basically, be strong, ignore it and move on.
Amy goes to see Shirley about her symptoms (she doesn’t want to see the doctor) and Shirley proposes using a new form of the medicine they use since the documentation says it’s helpful. They’re both present to see Phillip’s little freak out over the toaster. Meanwhile, Simon agrees to get to know Kieren – which means going out wearing cover-up make up and contacts. In the street Kieren kisses him – which is when Amy runs into them. They don’t see her, but she’s clearly very upset. Poor Amy.
Kieren takes Simon home with him to meet his parents which is very awkward, especially since Kieren’s parents still insist on inviting PDS to eat meals with them. Jem arrives and she’s invited Gary for lunch (both of them a little tipsy from the pub) – and Steve catches them kissing on the front doorstep. This may be the most awkward lunch in the history of family dinners. Especially since Jem doesn’t see why they should change out of their new uniform and Maxine’s plan to commemorate the rising is raised and Gary rather tastelessly brings up war stories at the table while Steve and Sue desperately try to stop it and even Jem looking really uncomfortable. Kieren breaks and decides to tell his own little story of rising from the dead – sure, it’s not funny but nor was Gary’s – Steve and Sue again try to keep the polite dinner going.
What is worth noting among this is that Kieren remembers everything of his own rising (including his time of rising – midnight) – something both Simon and Maxine have been looking for. Simon is very very interested, especially when Kieren is clear that no-one else was around. He was alone when he rose. Yes, Kieren is the First Risen (was there any doubt?). Simon tries to focus on that but Kieren is trying to tell his own story – the fear that always plagued him when he was alive was now gone. Steve finally cracks and tells him to stop – and Kieren loses his temper – Gary is laughing and joking about killing PDS and that’s fine dinner conversation?
Kieren storms out, Simon following.
Phillip goes to beg the woman with the video camera – and he spends a lot of time fixating on her fire-irons to ominous music (though he’s put off by her Jesus statues). We later see him leaving – with the video. But he hasn’t killed her – he’s convinced her he’s doing religious outreach; which Mrs. Lamb then goes on to praise Shirley for raising such a good and pious young man. Shirley goes home and sees Mrs. Lamb’s video in the bin – she doesn’t mention it, but she does talk to Phillip about doing right by Henry’s mother.
But Phillip may not be out of the woods – Maxine’s landlord has borrowed a video from nosy-neighbour-Mrs. Lamb and it turns out to be one of her CCTV tapes
Two of Simon’s followers break into the doctor’s office to free the rabid PDS to prove to him how dedicated they are (ah, the problems of a cult – can you really control what your followers will do to try and impress you?). They paint ULA graffiti around and open the PDS cage, but when the rabid PDS don’t instantly leave the cage (they’re kept sedated), they both leave before anyone comes to the alarm.
The receptionist, the unsympathetic Denise, arrives to turn off the alarm – and is attacked by the free rabid PDS
Phillip goes to Maxine’s meeting – and find Maxine has the tape of him visiting the brothel. And yes, she’s using it for blackmail to force Phillip to lie about Henry.
The brothel protest begins – Maxine calling everyone in and the new RPS, led by Gary, prepares to raid the building while Maxine makes her little speech to the small crowd. Inside they gather everyone up, prostitutes and clients, Gary throwing out one of the women’s property. Amy watches from the back of the crowd, horrified. Gary hounds the people out in front of the crowd
Phillip goes to see Henry’s mother and she talks about knowing Phillip as a child, how she trusts him, how she desperately needs some truth. We see him leave later, looking determined – he goes to the protest where the people inside are being forced to show their faces to the crowd – and takes Maxine’s microphone and tells the crowd to stop, that they’re no better than the prostitutes and clients, none of them are “pure” – they jeer and shout at him while he talks about accepting their real selves and not being ashamed. Seeing he’s being ignored he drops the mic – and goes to stand with the other clients who are being publicly shamed
He drinks in a bus shelter afterwards and Amy arrives – somehow managing to joke about his reputation and necrophilia and not make it mocking or cruel but a shared joke. And he awkwardly confesses that he doesn’t have a PDS fetish, he just likes one person with PDS – Amy. They go to bed together and continue to make jokes.
Kieren, at Simon’s house, removes his contacts and wipes off his makeup and Simon’s. Simon makes a call to someone to say he’s found the First Risen – and he’s beautiful.
Maxine goes to the graveyard to tell a grave “don’t worry, not long now” and brushes away a tear. Is Maxine looking for the second rising?
There is a wonderful ongoing analysis into so many elements of prejudice and discrimination with the treatment of the PDS. The whole thing is really excellently done to show all of these in a very real fashion – there’s just one big glaring hole in the middle: PDS are dangerous. PDS are one dose away from eating people which makes them an inherently problematic comparator to actual marginalised groups – as the fate of Denise makes clear
Kieren and Simon are also interesting complicated. Kieren wants a human connection with Simon, but Simon is almost an embodiment of his cause. He doesn’t talk like a “normal person” – he makes speeches, he tells sermons. He never turns off and is just Simon; and here’s Kieren trying to pursue a relationship with a man who alternates between treating him as a congregant, a constituent and a potential activist. At the same time, is Kieren pursuing a relationship but also adding in fine print that Simon needs to drop his beliefs and activism? After all, Kieren was the one who came in with his lectures of conformity. And Simon ends up having to go out wearing the cover-up make up; Kieren asking Simon to be “normal” also requires him to abandon his beliefs and “conform” for the sake of Kieren’s comfort.
But then Kieren is becoming complex – all the conformity is slowly shattering and his temper frays. Again – a lot of complexity and nuance there, different angles and progression and growth
Jem and Gary continue to be creepy and not just from the sexual standpoint – Gary is dealing with Jem’s trauma and PTSD by being in complete denial about it – putting Jem back into a soldier role, into being badass warrior so he can pretend her pain and conflict and confusion isn’t there. And Jem herself – she’s also almost playing the role – if she can be the cold, hard soldier she was then she doesn’t have to be afraid or guilty any more. Gary is pushing what so many mentally ill people face – ignore it, pretend it isn’t a problem and hope it goes away.
And Phillip? There’s a lot of complexity there – shame and courage, flaws and failings and, yes, creepiness and confusion
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Saturday, September 14, 2019 / 04:00 pm
A personal and romantic documentary portrait of the relationship between musician and writer Leonard Cohen and his muse, Marianne Ihlen.
The documentary starts on the Greek island of Hydra in 1960, where Leonard Cohen, then a struggling and unknown fiction writer, and Marianne Ihlen, a single mother with a young son, became part of community of expat artists, writers and musicians. It was a time that left a lasting imprint on both Marianne and Leonard, whose friendship would last another fifty years before their deaths in 2016.
Director: Nick Broomfield
Principal Cast: Leonard Cohen, Judy Collins, Ron Cornelius
This film is rated R (for some drug material, sexual references and brief nudity).
Genre: Documentary, Music
View the official "Marianne and Leonard: Words of Love" website and movie trailer.
Marianne and Leonard: Words of Love complete list of shows this week:
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Features, Opinions & Critics
Religion Section
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Home General News School Feeding: Caterers Accuse MCE Of Replacing Them With Cronies
School Feeding: Caterers Accuse MCE Of Replacing Them With Cronies
3 HOURS AGO EDUCATION
Some angry caterers of the School Feeding Programme in the Wa Municipality of the Upper West Region are up in arms against the Municipal Chief Executive of the area, Isahaku Moomin Tahiru, for allegedly abrogating their contracts without recourse to the managers of the programme.
At a press conference in Wa on Wednesday, the group accused the MCE of allegedly replacing them with his cronies.
The about 150 caterers, who are mostly supporters of the New Patriotic Party, massed up at the Wa Central Constituency office of the party, with the letters terminating their contracts to demand an immediate reversal of the decision by the Assembly.
Addressing the media, a former NPP Deputy Constituency Women’s Organizer, Ibrahim Hanatu, who is the Vice-Chairperson for the Wa Municipal School Feeding Caterers Association, explained that majority of their members were awarded the contracts because of their roles in the fortunes of the NPP in the Wa Municipality, and that any attempt to disengage them will spell doom for the party in the next general election.
Madam Hanatu called on the leadership of the NPP and the Ghana School Feeding Programme to intervene.
“When they gave us our appointment letters, they never indicated that it was a two-year contract. There is no date in any of the appointment letters. There is nothing like two years contract in our letters. Recently they called us to the assembly. We thought they were to talk about something different but when we got there, they issued us some letters. It was in these letters that they mentioned that they gave us a two-year contract and that we should stop working. Meaning that, if schools resume and we go to prepare food for the kids, we will not be paid. That came to us as a disappointment. That is why we want to tell the leadership of the party and the School Feeding Secretariat that we are in an election year and that this is likely to affect our fortunes in the upcoming elections.”
“We want to plead. We have been promised that they have jobs for us but we want to state that the school feeding has helped us and our families. We are able to educate our children. Don’t let us be discouraged because that can lead to our defeat. Give back our contracts so we can feel appreciated. We are so sad about this development. Let it be communicated to the leadership from regional to national that if the feeding programme is taken from us, it will cost them a possible defeat,” Madam Hanatu warned.
Citi News sighted a copy of the letter issued on the 27th of July, and signed by the acting Wa Municipal Coordinator, Amadu Zure, for the MCE, notifying the caterers that their contracts have been terminated.
The Wa Municipal Chief Executive, Isahaku Mumeen Tahiru, confirmed the letter’s authenticity but said it was to avoid procurement breaches between the assembly and the caterers.
“We haven’t terminated contracts. As an assembly, we don’t have the mandate to award feeding contracts. That is the prerogative of the Ghana School Feeding Programme and the Ministry of Gender. However, we only wrote to notify the caterers of the expiration of the two-year contracts they had with the programme so that at least they will be aware that when they go to prepare food, that will be under a new contract. If any cost comes out of that, the assembly won’t be liable”.
Meanwhile, a letter issued on the 6th of August and signed by the National Coordinator of the Ghana School Feeding Programme, Gertrude Quashigah, has directed all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies not to appoint new caterers or terminate the contracts of existing ones.
It says “the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection together with the School Feeding Programme secretariat will collaborate with MMDAs to re-engage and appoint caterers for the 2019/2020 academic year”.
—citinewsroom
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Stunning comeback
The 27th Bahrain Ladies Open Golf Championship at Awali Golf Club witnessed a stunning display of playing prowess.
Starting day two in fourth place, Lynn St Lawrence, helped by a seven shot improvement compared to day one, came home as the overall winner, two shots clear of Susan Scott, who finished runner-up.
Greeting the players on day one at the first tee was not only the usual referee, announcer and spectators but also winds gusting towards 30 knots.
With the less than pleasant playing conditions remaining all day, scores were noticeably higher than in previous years. Sarah Hobday (gross 94), Scott (94) and Ariette Paul (98) went into day two as the lead group.
Meanwhile, St Lawrence (gross 98) was in the second group, together with Danielle Sheppard and Jo Pawson.
Banter in the clubhouse at the time centred on which of the lead group would turn out to be victorious.
Hobday, under the weather for the whole weekend and sounding as though she should have been in bed with a hot water bottle (as did her caddy Peter Rogers) never regained her true form and faded from contention as the day progressed, finishing with 103.
Scott fared better and provided the crowd waiting at the clubhouse with a glorious 3-wood onto the green from 140 yards out to finish with a par. However, a 4-putt on the 17th was where her chance of entering a play-off possibly slipped from her grasp and she finished day two with 97 to be runner-up, two shots adrift of the winner.
St Lawrence, seemingly relaxed and playing in her normal competitive style, managed to navigate day two with no train-wreck holes. Additionally, she was a little unlucky on the 11th, her tee shot was seen to sail away slightly left.
Looking for the ball near the left fairway line for the requisite time, none of the players or caddies could find it. Back to the tee then for a second tee shot. With the new ball in play, Lynn discovered her first ball near the centre of the fairway as she returned to catch up on her fellow players, the ball having struck a small tree.
Prizes were presented by Dr Pete Bartlett, CEO of the platinum sponsor, Bapco.
Club Captain Abdul Elah Fakhroo thanked the ladies for their participation and perseverance in light of the difficult conditions as well as the Opens Organising Committee and tournament director Bill Scarth. He also thanked those players who travelled to Bahrain from Dukhan Golf Club, Qatar: Jane Tomley and Lianne West.
Dr Bartlett praised the ‘spirit of community’ amongst the competitors and their desire to keep the tradition of the competition alive.
Danielle Sheppard, Yoy Young and Joan Martin were picked randomly from the players who were not in any of the main prizes, which were also given for best net on each day, best net and runner-up over both days and for the top six gross scores.
St Lawrence thanked the organisers and sponsors while highlighting that her playing partners contributed to her success. Beaming with delight, she received a deafening cheer as she concluded her speech with: “And, I did all this without a caddy!”
Results – Champion: Lynn St Lawrence (189: 98/91), runner-up Susan Scott (191: 94/97), 3rd Sarah Hobday (197: 94/103), 4th Ariette Paul (198: 98/100), 5th Jo Pawson (201: 101/100), 6th Nicky Bailey (204: 105/99). Net both days: winner: Debbie Lane (163), runner-up Kerry Diaper (164). Best net Day-1: Nicky Park (81), best net Day-2: Roshni Khanna (79).
A buffet and raffle draw was held in aid of the Captain’s Charity. Sunshine Tours, AJM Kooheji, Al Hawaj, Ritz-Carlton Bahrain, Hotel & Spa, Gulf Hotel, Movenpick Hotel, Awal Sport International, InterContinental Regency, Diplomat Radisson Blu Hotel, Swiss Food Specialites and Jasmi’s Corporation (La Chocolat) provided the raffle prizes.
AGC is looking forward to hosting this weekend’s 52nd Bahrain Open Golf Championship.
More on Golf News
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Vietnam Typical Tours is one of the leading travel agencies and tour operators in Vietnam
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Child 1a
What to know and do in Hoan Kiem lake, Hanoi?
Vietnam’s capital city of Hanoi attracts thousands of tourists for its elegant combination of modernity and history. One place in particular attracts tourists and locals alike. Known for its peaceful atmosphere and gigantic turtles, Hoan Kiem Lake is more than just a place to relax: it’s the site of an old legend involving an emperor and a magical sword.
Photo by Jorge Láscar
Lying in the centre of Hanoi‘s historic district, Hoan Kiem Lake is a lovely, peaceful place with a fascinating history. In 1428, legend has it that Emperor Le Loi obtained a magical sword from the Dragon King to fight against Chinese oppressors. The sword, as you may have guessed, came from Hoan Kiem lake.
After the successful battle against the Chinese invaders, Emperor Le Loi visited the beautiful lake. He was boating through the still waters when an enormous golden turtle surfaced. The turtle explained that he was sent by his master, the Dragon King, to retrieve the sword from Le Loi. Loi returned the sword to the turtle, who swam back beneath the jade waters. Loi then named the area Hoan Kiem lake, meaning “Lake of the Returned Sword” to commemorate the spectacular event.
Photo by Rolf Müller
Turtle Tower lies on an island in the middle of the lake. After the gigantic turtle reclaimed the sword for its master, turtles began to be revered around Hoan Kiem lake. There was one turtle living in the water that was thought to be the incarnation of the mythical turtle Le Loi met in 1428. Affectionately named Cu Rua, the massive turtle was thought to be one of four Yangtze giant soft-shell turtles in the entire world. Sadly, she was discovered dead in early 2016 and the entire country mourned her death. She was embalmed and put on display at Vietnam’s National Museum of Natural History.
Photo by Own work
Hoan Kiem lake remains a very popular place for locals and tourists. Flocks of people gather here for exercise in the morning and for relaxing siestas in the afternoon.
Hoan Kiem Lake is a perfect place to sit and observe the Hanoian pace of life. The site is a source of pride for those living in the city, and once you pay this beautiful place a visit, you will see why.
Hoan Kiem Lake is centrally located in Hanoi and is only minutes away from the Old Quarter, close to hotels and restaurants. Take Yen Phu Road to reach the Old Quarter and head east to Hoan Kiem Lake to see the special place where an ancient emperor once received a magical sword from the Dragon King.
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Posted by heartlessgamer at 11:55 PM View Comments
Tags: Green Bay Packers, Real Life
Posted by heartlessgamer at 1:00 AM View Comments
Tags: Real Life
Out with a whimper
Warhammer Online is no more. I have mixed emotions and debated over the end of this week what to post. There is no game that I have ever invested so much time in prior to it's release only to give up playing it a short few months after release. I never felt ripped off by WAR. My money was well spent for the experiences I had. However, the game just never lived up to any of it's potential.
In reflection I look back on my first level 40 ding from WAR:
Tags: Warhammer Online
Solforge grumblings
Look, I really like Solforge. No, I really do. So you should probably just ignore this post.
But in the interest of typing out my thoughts: Solforge is utterly broken and imbalanced. There is a two deck meta. It is Steelforged Avatar decks or Nekrium/Tempys burn decks. I'm not even sure if these are the best titles for the decks.
In the case of N/T burn decks the power comes from the Flameshaper Savant and it's ability to toss out ridiculous amounts of direct damage from every card that gets played. Throw in cards like Master of Elements and Spark that allow for extra cards to be played each turn and it's trivial, at best, to win a long string of games against any other decks.
Well, except for Steelforged Avatar decks which are powered by, yep you guessed it, Steelforged Avatar. The Avatar cycle is very simple: X Avatar gains plus health and attack equal to the number of same-faction cards in hand. This is perfectly acceptable until you take into consideration that the Steelforged Avatar is the Alloyin faction's avatar. The same Alloyin faction that happens to feature Ghox, Metamind Paragon and the free to play after level 2 Energy Surge which means you can roll out 30/30 bad asses for the same cost paid by any other deck for a horribly, not even fucking close, equivalent cost in cards and investment over the course of the game.
Throw in Alloyin's dominant control cards like Energy Prison and Metasculpt or even more insane, the out of play card leveling cards such as Technosmith and you very quickly can see how insane a Steelforged Avatar deck can get with just the Alloyin cards. Throw in a splash of Chrogias and BOOM.
So whats at the root of the problem here? Is it deck synergy winning out in a small card pool? This would make sense as both Steelforged Avatar and Flameshaper Savants are part of their respective cycles and happen to be the only avatar and savant that gel perfectly with the current cards in game. Yet, I can't really seem to convince myself this is the case. It just feels like something else is amiss.
Tonight I think I've hit on the underlying issue. It's actually mechanics combined with the way these cards are built. Solforge does not have resources such as lands in Magic the Gathering or mana in Hearthstone. Regardless of the power level of the cards being played, a Solforge player gets to play two cards per turn. This means the cards that are chosen to be played need to always be high-value, best of cards because there is no "cost difference" between playing a level 1 Swampmoss Lurker and a level 3 Chrogias. With the limitation for playing cards being only the number of cards that get played, then it is only obvious that the few cards that give "extra" plays are thus going to be the most powerful and empower the most powerful combos.
Steelforged Avatar doesn't break Solforge, but the likes of Ghox and Energy Surge do. Both give draw advantage in a game where the player's deck infinitely recycles itself with stronger and stronger versions of cards. Steelforged Avatars almost always have the right card to play and a hell of a bomb to drop at any time in the Steelforged Avatar that benefits from Alloyin cards in hand.
Flameshaper Savant doesn't break Solforge, but the likes of Master of Elements and Spark do. Both give additional plays which in turn trigger additional direct damage hits from Flameshaper. Since Flameshaper's ability can hit the player it only takes a couple in play to quickly burn down any opponent.
So the question and debate that needs to be had for Solforge is whether or not cards that give power through extra plays can exist in the game without fundamentally breaking the game by being the dominant strategy. Right now, I can't even tell you the last time I faced a Uterra deck, let alone the last time I played a game that didn't feature Steelforged Avatar or Flameshaper. This is not good to have such a stale metagame this early in the game's life, especially one that feels like it is stale because of flawed mechanics which can only get worse the more and more cards that are released to be abused by these flaws.
Tags: Solforge
Black Friday Gaming Deals 2013
Amazon.com video game deals (limited quantity, new deals cycling on all day/weekend)
Some of my personal picks:
EVE Online The Second Decade collector's edition (price reduced starting at 4:10p PST today)
Starcraft 2 Heart of the Swarm (price reduced starting at 8:10p PST today)
For those of you with Skylander-obsessed kids: buy 2, get 1 free Skylanders SWAP force characters
Steam Autumn Sale
General Steam sale rules:
1. Don't buy a game until the last day of the sale unless it is on a daily sale
2. Flash sales are often repeated
3. Don't hesitate to buy a daily deal as the available keys can run out
4. The best deals are usually repeated the last day of the sale
Board Game Deals
Amazon.com still has their buy one, get one half off deal for board games. See my previous post on the sales and my recommendations.
Target also has buy one, get one half off on their board games (slightly different selection than Amazon).
Cool Stuff Inc is running some good deals on board, card, and miniature games.\
Miniature Market started their sale yesterday and had some really great deals (like Netrunner data packs for $7), but it appears a ton of their stock is sold out already.
Tags: Black Friday, Board Games, EVE Online, Netrunner, Starcraft 2
Let the shopping commence.
Android: Netrunner is an amazing game
I am a huge fan of card games (one of my favorites of all time being The Spoils TCG). I've played Magic the Gathering on and off since the 1990s in both physical and digital forms. I've tended to prefer board games with cards more than those with dice. There is just something soothing about holding a hand of cards and battling wits with an opponent. Android: Netrunner itches all the recesses of my mind and is one of the most amazing card games I have ever played.
First, this is not your 1990s Netrunner; I am here to talk about Fantasy Flight Games re-release and reworking of Netrunner under the title Android: Netrunner. Aside from theme, borrowed names, and a few core mechanics (corp vs runner), the two games can be separated from each other. For all intents and purposes when I am referring to Netrunner, I am referring to Android: Netrunner.
The core of Netrunner themed by a runner hacking the servers of a big corporation. This is brought to the game mat through asymmetrical game play where one player plays the role of runner and the other player plays the role of corporation. The corporation figures out ways of protecting their valuable servers via cards known as ICE while the runner figures out ways to break through that ICE (via icebreakers) to loot and plunder the wonderful rewards within. Alongside the main icebreaker vs ICE there is a slew of card types that have immediate or triggered effects. Cards are played through the use of "clicks" and paid for via the payment of "credits". The end goal is to collect 7 agenda points; which are scored after being advanced by the corporation or stolen by the runner via various means. An alternate victory condition is for the corporation to be run out of cards or for the runner to be dealt more damage than they have cards in hand (known as flat-lining).
What really sets Netrunner apart, in my opinion, is the play of the corporation. The corporation primarily plays their cards face down to the game table. Playing a card is know as installing. ICE is installed face down in front of servers to protect them from "runs" (aka hacking attempts). Agendas, assets, and upgrades are installed face down in the servers themselves. The cards remain face down, generally, until the runner attempts to access them (either through a run or card effect). ICE and most assets and upgrades have a "rez" cost that the corporation must pay to flip the card face up and reap its benefits.
The corporation is not forced into "rezzing" a card leading to a critical aspect of the game: bluffing. The potential for the corporation to bluff a runner is there and many a Netrunner game has been lost to a bad decision. At the same time, just like in Poker, a bluff is still only hiding an end result that can be broken down to a mathematical probability. A good runner is going to be able to look at their cards in hand and in play and know when the odds are in their favor. Between experienced players, bluffing does not play as big of a role as it does for new players learning the game, but the simple fact of having a bluff as a physical representation (face down cards) on the board is an amazing piece of the puzzle for this game.
By description it would seem that the game is tilted towards the corporation player, but that is anything but the truth. The game, in my experience, slightly favors the runner as the idea of playing offensively is more natural and the defensive nature of the corporation is something harder to learn and execute. The runner could always stumble into victory while the corporation will only find victory through appropriate planning.
The runner also has advantages in their favor, first being that they receive 4 clicks per turn to the 3 clicks of the corporation's turn (the corporation is allowed to draw a card for free every turn though as a compromise). Clicks are actions that can be taken during a turn. Secondly, the runner can "trash" corporation cards for a set cost after accessing them which allows the runner to really negatively impact the corporations play. Lastly, the runner does not need to spend actions each turn advancing agendas to score the related points. The runner simply needs to access an agenda played by the corporation to steal it and thus receive it's allocated agenda points towards their victory total (7 are needed to win).
The one big drawback to the runner is that their hand of cards is their life total in the game. Run out of cards and take one more damage and the game is over, victory going to the corporation regardless of the state of agenda points scored. This is a great mechanic which forces the runner to hold back cards and again opens up the bluff mechanic between the two sides. Could the corporation player be holding a card that will do one meat damage and thus bring the game to an end if the runner chooses to end the turn with zero cards in hand?
To further cement Netrunner as an amazing game it also allows deckbuilding via a living card game (LCG) model. LCGs, contrary to booster-pack games such as MtG, release sets of cards on a regular basis. In each set is a complete play set of every card in that release. There is no rarity or chase cards to worry about. If a player wants to play a deck, all they need to do is buy the appropriate "data packs" that contain the cards they want. Gone are the days of having 50 copies of that single common card while having only 1 of the rare. In Netrunner all a player will ever need is sold in each data pack release. Data packs average in cost about $10 to $15 and are released about every 3 months. There is phenomenal value in the LCG model and at the end of the day the core set is plenty to start out with and try some of the deckbuilding without having to invest anything else.
Now there are a couple areas I think the game could improve. First of all, the card layout and use of symbols needs work. It is hard, at first, to differentiate cards or determine values such as influence for use in deckbuilding. The card design appears to be artistic in nature more than driven by the need to present information. This makes for some stunning visuals on cards, but can lead to some agonizing card pile searches looking for a card of a certain faction or value that is not easily visible. Secondly, some of the terms used to describe aspects of the game are a bit hard to grasp at first. For example: the runner's hand is known as their grip, but the corporations hand is known as the HQ. While players adjust to these terms after playing the game, I am not sure what, if anything, is gained by calling a players hand (just one example) by another name.
Over all, Netrunner is a phenomenal game and quickly is rocketing up my chart of favorite card games. It is not for everyone, but for the core gamer out there seeking a challenging and competitive card game there is nothing finer than Netrunner currently. Add in the LCG model and it is friendly to the wallet. If you are interested in the game, the core set is currently on sale for $29 on Amazon.
Posted by heartlessgamer at 12:07 AM View Comments
Tags: Board Games, Netrunner
Board Games: Buy one, get one 50% off
Amazon.com is running an amazing pre-Black Friday deal on dozens of popular board games: buy one and get one half off.
There are some great games on sale. Here are a few of my picks for games worth getting.
The Settlers of Catan
Dixit Journey
There are also some add on packs (aka DLC of the board game world) for some popular games:
Munchkin Zombies 2 Armed and Dangerous
Munchkin 7 Cheat With Both Hands
Munchkin Clerical Errors
Battles Of Westeros: Wardens Of The North
Tannhauser Single Figure Packs: Gorgei
Tags: Board Games, Tips
Solforge:OREIAN JUSTICAR incoming to shake up the meta
The meta in Solforge currently is centered on the Savant cycle cards (Flamehaper, Darkshaper, Lifeshaper, Steelshaper), but a nerf was already incoming for the cycle in the next patch. Beyond the Savants, the meta was looking to be shaped by powerful cards such as Zimus the Undying and Everflame Phoenix who rely heavily on being able to come back on the battlefield. They both are very hard cards to deal with, especially Zimus which has very few reliable counters that can keep it off the board. Queue the Oreian Justicar; a beefy Aloyin card that causes any creature entering the field to lose massive amounts of attack power if they were not played from your opponents hand. Have a 14/7 level 3 Zimus coming back on the field? It is now a 4/7 with a level 3 Justicar in play.
This is a great for Solforge and indicates that developer Stoneblade Entertainment (SBE) is on the right path for balance. This is very much a "counter the overpowered with a direct counter" instead of an outright nerf (though there are still situations like the Savant cycle which clearly scream the need for NERF, but thats OK for a pre-release product). The Justicar is an exciting card and I think will push the Steelforged Avatar decks up a notch to the cream of the crop of meta decks. However, Justicar can be splashed in many different decks to be effective and can even be used in a deck it is specifically meant to counter which offers players wielding powerful Zombie themed decks that rely on reappearing creatures an excellent counter in a mirror match.
Well done SBE, well done.
Judged: Guild Wars 2
Better late than never. Right? Right? Tap tap… is this thing on. Ok, there we go.
After a few restarts, I’ve reached level 80 in Guild Wars 2. (pause for applause)
This push was with an Asuran Guardian and in less than 40 hours /played I was level 80. (pause for applause)
I enjoyed my trip to 80. Leveling in GW2 is a simple process. Every action a player takes, from harvesting to crafting to killing to exploring, results in experience that contributes towards leveling. Each zone is broken down into “hearts” and dynamic events that also result in experience bonuses when completed. Zones scale players to the level of zone allowing players to play in any level zone they choose. In combination this makes leveling in Guild Wars 2 very easy and players can feel rewarded, experience-wise, for everything they do no matter where they do it.
However, with the ease of leveling and being rewarded based on their actual level in any zone, the system erodes the motivation to explore the world. Once I hit Kessex Hills and Harathi Highlands I was completing events in chains and gaining 3-4 levels per play session. Plus the current live event, Tower of Nightmares, was centered in Kessex Hills which meant that the frequency with which the events in the zone completed was increased exponentially. At one point I was literally just running from spot to spot and collecting enough experience for 25% of a single level. It seemed crazy at the time that I would move away from that gravy train of experience since the leveling curve in GW2 is flat.
I leveled to 70+ by playing in the aforementioned zones which are meant only for level 15-35 players. In terms of world completion I only hit 19%. This is all possible because of the level down mechanic which balances the player’s level (and thus reduces their inherent strength) to match the content in the zone, but it continues to provide rewards consistent with the player’s actual level as the content is evenly matched by the downgraded player level. This was a refreshing mechanic considering how most MMOGs like GW2 are designed the complete opposite and aim to punish players that don’t play in the zones that are on the cutting edge of their level range.
Yet, even though I was generously rewarded for doing what I wanted, I found myself feeling cheated once I hit 80 and I started exploring many of the zones I had not visited during leveling. There were so many events and story lines I had missed and at level 80 the progression goes from vertical to horizontal so there was little incentive for me to go and visit.
Experience is still worth gaining as each level of experience after 80 generates a skill point (which in turn can be turned into skill unlocks or converted to other rewards). However, experience gain is not a driving force at level 80 and outside of gaining karma from unfinished hearts or going for world completion I found nothing to push me towards investigating the 80% of the world I had yet to visit.
And looking further into the horizontal progression model of level 80 GW2 I quickly realized that the “path of least resistance” was the dominant theme. This pushed me further away from visiting the higher level zones as I found out about min/max things such as the Queensland champion trains. Basically, one of the most efficient gold and karma gaining methods is for level 80 players to just repeatedly complete the event chains in the level 1-15 zone (this is possible because, again, the level down mechanic balances power levels while maintaining the level appropriate rewards regardless of zone level). This simply was not appealing to me even though I’ve been known now and again to get my farm on in many an MMOG.
Some experienced GW2 players may try to point out that it is actually dungeons where the real “time vs reward” battle is won and I would probably not argue with them. However, for my tastes, I found the dungeons in GW2 to be Boring with a capital B. For the most part dungeons come down to one mechanic and one mechanic only: damage per second. DPS is king in GW2. Group healing and tanking are replaced by individual player mechanics. Every class has its own self-heal and group-based heals are weak and ineffective in dungeons. Tanking is non-existent as damage mitigation is all reliant on dodging by each player individually.
On top of this the damage-focused combat, the dungeons have been min/maxed to the extreme and outside of the occasional group looking to complete the story modes, players are looking at speed runs aimed at knocking the dungeons out quickly for maximum gain. That means even further min/max to the damage per second making everyone, regardless of class, shooting for the same exact berserker based equipment. It is just a terrible model and depletes dungeons of any sense of awe or adventure. They are simply a numbers game.
Unfortunately the poor dungeons just highlight the underlying problem with GW2: the combat system. It is fun when playing solo and makes complete sense one on one versus a creature or another player. In fact, avoiding other players for the majority of my leveling (outside of the Kessex Hills events), was the key to me lasting until level 80 this time around because once more than a couple players show up the combat breaks down and becomes devoid of feedback to the players. The sheer number of times I’ve randomly died in a group of players without a single clue as to what was about to or actually hit me is insane. Throw in champion boss enemies that are all just about standing around and beating on them and you may as well just throw the action combat out the window because it’s pointless in a game meant for players to play together. I didn’t even bother to mention the completely insane over use of area of effect skills and spells.
Fortunately World vs World vs World saves everything. Right? The Wuv d Wuv, the WuvWuv, the WvWvW, the promise of Guild Wars 2! Wrong. It’s crap. It’s so crap that I hate to even waste time typing about it. The combat problems from PvE are simply multiplied out tenfold as even more players are crowded into even smaller areas where even more AoE can be dropped. Defense? Impossible. WvW is all about zerging from point A to B to C and hoping your zerg doesn’t meet a bigger zerg that will wipe it out. It’s more efficient to let a capture point be lost than it is to attempt and defend it. Even if a good defense is put up, the doors to the keep are going to fall in a couple minutes and the keep’s champion even faster. There is no hope for a smaller defensive force to prevail. If you aren’t in the zerg you are just wasting your time.
Now I’m just angry as I type about the aspects I don’t like about Guild Wars 2. I could continue on and break down the Trading Post that makes ZERO logical sense related to the game or I could bash the completely one-dimensional crafting system but that would just grind my gears even further. In conclusion the same things that caused me to stop playing GW2 the first few times around are the same reasons that I’ve stopped playing it again after finally reaching level 80 with a character. The “action combat” makes combat feel floaty and unpredictable. Horizontal progression is just a clever way of saying grind. The use of AoE is completely out of control.
The game is absolutely gorgeous from a world design perspective, but it does nothing to encourage the exploration of or use of that world on a regular basis. Over all, the concepts of GW2 are great on paper but they are all poor in execution. I would love, and would pay handsomely, to play the game that GW2 was on paper before it launched.
Posted by heartlessgamer at 3:56 PM View Comments
Tags: Guild Wars 2
The 3 MMOs you should NOT have paid attention to and the 2 NEW games TO pay attention to
In a follow up to my post from May 2012, I wanted to point out the three MMOs that you probably really didn't need to pay any attention to.
First up there was Dominus which actually had shuttered its doors prior to me even posting it's name in my 2012 post. This was clearly a game that didn't need any attention paid to it.
The next was Salem which closed its doors in June of 2013 before ever getting to a launch phase. Amazing ideas wrapped up in a pretty terrible game. Please look the other way.
Lastly there was The Otherlands based on Tad Williams' novels of the same name. This is still kicking around in Closed Beta and still has all the premise that it had last year. However, Wildstar has pretty much come along to promise almost all the same features in a much more promising package. I still am interested in The Otherlands, but doubt it will swing many heads it's direction when (and if) it ever launches.
Basically I suck at picking niche games that will make it big (though I still maintain I was an early adopter and fan of Minecraft before it exploded). Instead I should probably focus my time on games that have broken out of that initial phase of skepticism and have begun proving themselves on the market. So I present to you faithful reader the two games you should probably get up to speed on if you are not already.
Heroes of the Storm and Hearthstone
If you have followed the gaming media over the past couple of weeks it would have been hard to miss the news coming out of BlizzCon 2013. Not only was another World of Warcraft expansion announced, but Blizzard also put on display two of it's more niche titles: Heroes of the Storm and Hearthstone.
Hearthstone is a digital card game that has exploded exponentially since it's initial announcement. The BlizzCon tournament was streamed to more than 100,000 peak concurrent watchers. The game is only in early beta and is taking the digital card game scene by storm. It absolutely puts to shame the focus on digital card games such as Solforge and Hex that were the Kickstarter darlings of this genre. Hearthstone is poised to dominate and dominate quickly. The Blizzard polish is present and the "easy to play, hard to master" mantra is on target.
Heroes of the Storm (HotS) is Blizzard's take on the MOBA genre. They went back into the hopper with Blizzard DotA and out comes HotS which at first glance looks to be an amazing overhaul of a genre that has been, in my opinion, completely stale and unwilling to change. League of Legends took a tiny step forward out of the hardcore insanity of what the original Defense of the Ancients was while DOTA2 from Valve copied it wholesale. HotS is a giant leap from both.
The immediate draw to HotS is that it destroys the "learning wall" that is present in other MOBA games. The game looks immediately approachable and understandable for the casual gamer. Matches are on smaller maps with clear goals. Different maps offer different ways to victory with some pretty neat graphical displays such as a ghost ship firing it's cannons to down one of the two sides defenses.
However, just as with Hearthstone, there is a very clear "easy to play, hard to master" vibe going on. The Heroes all seemed simple enough to play without deep concerns about certain Heroes serving no purpose in a casual game. At the same time there appears to be higher-level tactical decisions to be made. Items and shops are gone in favor of decision trees after leveling up.
The presentation of the game also looks to be friendly and has the classic Blizzard polish. The game is not even in a true beta form and it is being displayed and shoutcast live at BlizzCon. This is classic Blizzard. This is why their games are amazing and leaders in their respective genres. I've often said that World of Warcraft has spoiled me. I have not played a game outside Minecraft, let alone an MMO, since World of Warcraft that can grab me within minutes. I suspect both Hearthstone and HotS will be immediately familiar once my fingers set down on WASD.
Tags: Hearthstone, Heroes of the Storm, Prime, Salem
WAR, finally free 2 play
WAR is finally going free 2 play. Unfortunately it is only until the game will be shutdown come December.
"To give Warhammer Online a proper sendoff we are opening the game to anyone free of charge that has or had an account in good standing starting October 31st, 2013," said the Warhammer team in an announcement on Friday.
I don't have much to comment on at this point. I will probably have more to say once the game shuts it's doors for the final time.
Obligatory October Post
I am alive.
It's Halloween.
Valve stole executed on my idea. In November 2007 I had a healthy conversation with Jeff Freeman (may he rest in peace) about an operating system (OS) completely dedicated to gaming. At the time Fedora Core 8 was launching with it's derivative "re-spin" idea with the goal to allow anyone to use the core Linux technology to build their own OS geared for their needs. A lot of people agreed that it was a good idea but that is sort of where the idea fizzled out as far as the core gaming scene is concerned. Since then the Linux gaming scene has progressed slowly until today where it has now taken a step over the edge when Valve announced their Linux-derived SteamOS.
SteamOS is the first foray for Valve into the operating system realm, but it should come as no surprise considering the leaps that their flagship digital distribution platform, Steam, has taken over the years. Steam has grown to a dominant place in the market and has continued to evolve. Everything from community hub pages to an active marketplace is included in Steam. It was growing into far more than a simple software platform and it now only seems logical that an operating system was the next step.
And here we are. SteamOS is real. Core gaming via Linux is here (and has been here to a degree for a couple years now). This is an exciting time for the PC gaming market. It marks the first shot fired in a war for not only the foundation of PC gaming, but for the concept of video gaming in its entirety. Valve is gunning for the living room where a PC makes just as much sense as an Xbox One. PC gaming is a concept more than it is a platform and it is one that the gaming market was well past due to recognize. SteamOS will proudly carry the banner into the trenches.
Tags: Linux, Steam, SteamOS, Valve
My pants are wet and no, I did not spill my coffee. Everquest Next was announced and shown at SOE Live 2013. To say SOE blew many pundits away is an understatement. SOE single-handedly re-invigorated the core MMO community. Everquest Next is everything a next-generation MMO should be. It is a game changer. Everquest Next, if executed to the presentation and glimpses given, will redefine the MMO genre for the forseeable future.
It is hard, really hard, for me to congratulate SOE on anything. After all, they still have my heart locked up in some backroom safe and only bring it out every once and a while to tread over it while wearing Star Wars Galaxies promo shirts. SOE has a track record of playing second fiddle to the rest of the market. Everquest 2 was destroyed by WoW. Planetside 2, while an OK game, is a game for five years ago. Star Wars Galaxies was shelved when The Old Republic was released. SOE seemed content with simply making sequels that didn’t advance anything other than the bottom line.
With Everquest Next, SOE is looking to shed the persona of comfortable. Everquest Next does not simply feature a single game changing idea; it features several. Every pillar of what makes modern MMOs is being touched.
Everquest Next starts with the very fundamentals with a game changing voxel-based engine which allows the entire world to be torn apart and remolded on the fly. This engine is not simply a gimmick. Alongside the voxel engine being used to generate the game world, SOE is launching a tool called Landmark which will allow players to build their own pieces of the world. Objects and buildings and are all possible. To top it off, player’s can sell their creations to fellow players and earn a profit. Crafting is now an entirely new ballgame.
The best voxel-based engine still does not make for a great game. Sure it’s great that a player can dig a hole to the middle of the earth or erect their own private castle, but what drives players to explore? What pulls players together? What makes this an actual MMOG and not just a giant box of legos? The answer is again in SOE’s willingness to step outside of the norm.
The first item is the Rallying Calls which are an evolution of Public Quests from other MMOs such as WAR and Guild Wars 2. With the voxel-based engine these can take on an entire new meaning. The world can be permanently changed on the fly by the developers or the players or the AI. These changes can be different across multiple groups of players and a player starting today is going to have a completely different experience than one that started a year ago. There will be real story telling and world building at the hands of the players.
Next is emergent AI. Gone are the monster camps of dumb monsters standing around waiting to be killed and in their place are actual functioning groups of enemies with a purpose and goal. Bandits may realize a town is not frequented by players so makes the perfect place to raid and plunder. As time goes on the Bandits build up their camp nearby and take over the town until players come and kick them out. During rallying calls the players may be building a city and goblins may start appearing in the woods. If the players don’t take care of the goblins they may raid the fledgling city and set it back or destroy it outright.
There is a danger though. These ideas have been tried before. Ultima Online tried emergent AI over a decade ago and it didn’t work due to players simply killing everything in sight and it has not been tried since. The infamous “time until penis” phenomenon has plagued any and all user-generated content games. The MMO genre is famous for promises that fall flat in the face of yet another WoW-clone launching. The disappointment I have met in the MMO genre is epic and SOE was at one point the center of that disappointment. If there is any MMO developer that can fuck a good thing up it is SOE.
However, with that said, SOE has clearly listened and paid attention to the gaming scene (not just the MMO scene). They have taken innovative ideas from Team Fortress 2 (players selling assets to each other) and Minecraft (voxel-based engine and world) and brought them to a genre that no one expected to see them in: MMOs.
SOE is not making a WoW-killer with Everquest Next and I don’t get the feeling that massive success is on their mind. They are making a true MMOG with a living and breathing world aimed at the core gamers that have stuck with them as a company over the past 14+ years. This is a game that they as developers and gamers actually want to play. This is a game that I want to play. I am excited beyond words to see what Everquest Next can accomplish. I applaud SOE for taking a bold step into the minefield that is new ideas.
Tags: Everquest Next
First Look: Solforge
I jumped into the early access for Solforge recently on Steam. I followed it’s kickstarter campaign but did not donate to the project (I’m kind of silly like that… wanting something for the money I spend). Solforge is a digital collectible card game (CCG) that takes advantage of the digital form via cards that level as the game is played (a mechanic that would be difficult to pull off in paper form). Cards are played onto a field that contains five different lanes (sections of play that allow a creature to attack a player). Opposing players take asynchronous turns battling each other until the first player is reduced from a life total of 100 to 0. Players can play spells which impact play or other cards in various ways or they can play creatures which occupy a lane and then can attack the other player directly or end up doing battle with the opponents creature that occupies the same lane.
Solforge is unique in that it features both deck building (think Magic the Gathering) and a “build your deck as you play” mechanic (think Dominion). Solforge decks consist of 30 pre-chosen cards to start. Decks can be built from the card pools of two of the four factions (Utteran, Nekrium, Tempys, and Alloyin). As cards are played during a game they are leveled up (levels 1 thru 3). When the card is played the higher level version (or a clone if it’s already level 3) is added to the player’s discard pile. Leveled up versions of cards are more powerful. As the game progresses, the player then levels up (aka player levels referred to as P1, P2, P3, etc.) and their discard pile is shuffled into their draw deck allowing them to potentially draw the next higher level cards. This leads to big moments on turns every 4th round as the next level of cards may come into play.
The leveling system is key to Solforge and ensures that games escalate towards a conclusion. There is always a mounting sense of destruction looming over each game and when the level 3 versions of cards start hitting the board the real fireworks start going off. The leveling system also ensures that the most powerful cards are not played until after turn 8 (when P3 is reached). This allows even weak cards to have a purpose in the game during the early turns and some of those weak cards turn into much stronger level 2 and 3 versions.
Overall I really enjoy Solforge even though it has a very limited card pool currently (~60 cards) and there are some balance issues (I’m looking at you Packmaster and Hellion!). Also currently we have access to all of the cards so can build any deck as needed. In the future, cards will have to be purchased via digital booster packs or traded for from other players (both of those features are not yet in the game). Over the next week the game will see the release of the first full set of cards (most likely to be named the Alpha set). It is expected to be over 200 cards. This will significantly increase the variety the game has to offer to the early access testers.
If you are looking for a solid online CCG that will is multi-platform then Solforge is an excellent choice. Due to its asynchronous nature it makes a perfect mobile game that can be played a turn at a time and games can be stretched over a long period of time (I have games that took over a week to complete). Solforge is currently only available on PC via the Steam early access, but it will be released on iOS and Android in the future.
Solforge deck building guide
I've played a lot of Solforge over the past few days. Solforge is an online collectible card game that is currently in it's early access phase via Steam. The game is a combination of build your deck as you play games such as Dominion and traditional deck building as seen in Magic the Gathering. It features asynchronous play in turns between two players who can play spells or creatures each turn while battling it out in five "lanes" on the playing board. Inside the industry this type of game is often referred to as a "laner". Solforge is a good game and I want to take a minute to help out any interested new players.
Currently. there is a limited number of cards in early access and there are two well known, completely broken decks that dominate a lot of games. However, what I'm about to talk about should apply later down the line when more cards are available to shake up the scene.
The first thought when building a deck is to decide on two factions as you can only pool cards from a max of two of the four factions in the game: Tempys, Utteran, Nekrium, and Alloyin. To compare them to Magic the Gathering colors and play styles:
Tempys = red = quick and direct damage and DRAGON
Utteran = green = lots of big meanies
Nekrium = black = lots of creature removal
Alloyin = white/artifacts = defense, defense, and buffs
This is just a general outline, but it holds pretty true for the set of cards we have as of today.
Popular combinations currently are Nekrium/Utteran, Tempys/Nekrium, Alloyin/Utteran, Tempys/Utteran.
The next step is to decide whether you want the deck to be more spell heavy or creature heavy. While it may be possible to go all spells, it is not recommended. At some point, creatures will be needed on the board. Really only the Nekrium/Tempys combination can get away with heavy spell usage.
Once a balance is decided between spells and creatures, the next step is to look at the three different versions of each card. Each comes in a level 1,2, and 3 version. Cards level up everytime they are played. Example: player A plays a level 1 Death Seeker. A level 2 Death Seeker is added to his discard pile. When he levels up to level 2 as a player after turn 4, the player now has a chance to draw the level 2 cards that they have leveled. Its an odd concept but it boils down to this: the cards you play determine your deck later on.
With this knowledge in hand, it is wise to look for combos that can be followed through the various levels. Some cards may not have an ability at level 1, but their level 2 version does. Some cards are not useful by themselves, but when combined with other cards they become key to victory. And really the combos are where the game is won so keep your eyes out for synergistic cards. A good example combo is Corpse Crawler and Death Seeker. Corpse Crawler comes into play and Death Seeker is sacrificed to pay for Corpse Crawler. This in turn triggers Death Seekers ability to return a 5/5 creature to the board in it's place. Add this into the Grimgaunt Devourer who receives + to attack and defense anytime a creature dies and a player can quickly build up a combo engine to dominate the field.
The end goal is build a deck around a solid combo engine. The over all deck size is 30 cards. At 30 cards total, it is very likely that in the first few turns the required cards for the combo engine will come up together. After that engine is established it is all about support and escalation.
Due to the nature of the leveling of cards, Solforge matches quickly escalate into slug fests which brings games to a finish relatively quickly compared to other card games where stall tactics can be used to drag games out. With this tidbit to mull over, players need to consider what exterior cards from their core combo engine benefit the most from that engine as well as provide the late game strength needed to push for a victory. If a player finds themselves losing right as level 3 cards start to appear in hand, then chances are the deck lacks sufficient level 2 strength. If the deck ends up in a level 3 slug fest with multiple rounds of level 3 cards facing off, then chances are the deck lacks a finisher.
Play testing is key. There is no easy tip to give when a deck fails to even get to the level 3 cards. Evaluating how a deck played and where it struggled in the flow of the game is critical. Sometimes looking back on a game log shows where a wrong play was made or maybe where a creature was left on the board at 1 life and a slight deck adjustment may mean next time that creature won't be hanging around with 1 life. There are a lot of variables to consider so play a lot of games. Bad decks will generally fail at the same phase of play.
With all of this said, here is what I have been playtesting for over 7 hours of Solforge gameplay:
3x Cull the weak
3x Lightning Spark
3x Death Seeker
3x Ashuran Mystic
3x Uranti Bolt
3x Corpse Crawler
3x Magma Hound
3x Epidemic
3x Firestorm
3x Grimgaunt Devourer
The theme is control and the main combo engine is centered on feeding Grimgaunt Devourer plenty of deaths; both your own troops and your opponents. Complimenting this are plenty of removal cards that help keep the lanes clear for beefed up Grimgaunt's later in the game. I've also bred in some balance to handle a few unique situations that are popular in the current meta game. The deck so far is at about a 40% win rate (keep in mind, there are just flat out broken decks currently because of the limited card pool and they get played all.. the... freaking...time). Against the hard AI, I enjoy more around a 75% win rate (again losing to the problematic decks).
EDIT: Corrected guide to reflect that deck size remains at 30 throughout the game.
About damn time: DOTA2 officially launched
DOTA 2 is now officially launched.
Tags: DOTA 2, Valve
Games Made Me: IDOCs
There are certain games and gaming moments that made me who I am as a gamer. One of the most critical to my development as an online gamer was Ultima Online (UO). It was an amazing game that was truly a virtual world (not just whack-a-mole). There was real consequence to action and there was an equal and opposite reaction to almost everything. UO ushered in a golden era of MMORPGs; an era we will never see again. One of the most critical elements to that virtual world excellence was the idea of habitable player housing that existed in the game world. It is something that has not been equally matched since and remains one of UO's strongest features (yes, the game is still chugging along all these years later). To top it off, player housing wasn't permanent. There was a real possibility to losing your housing in the early days by losing your house key to a thief or player-killer. Later on after that was changed, players only lost their housing after their account subscription expired. Then it was a countdown to one of the greatest phenomena in my online gaming memory: IDOC (in danger of collapse).
A crowd of hopeful IDOC campers.
The premise behind an IDOC was that the player-placed structure was about to disappear from the game world leaving behind all of it's now unlocked items. Anything in the house was available for the taking from the bookshelves to the rarest of rare items from Ultima Online's past. Player's would camp out for days at IDOC houses (and the term houses is used loosely as sometimes they were actually massive castles). In the case of houses in the Felucca realm where open world PvP was allowed it was a blood bath as the time ticked nearer and nearer (and Felucca being the oldest realm in UO, it's collapsing houses offered the chance for the rarest loot).
After the loot was scooped up the real prize was yet to be had: one lucky person would get to place a new structure. This may seem insignificant in today's MMOs where there is an endless supply of special housing areas, but in Ultima Online's case there was literally not a single bit of land left to build on. There was far more players wanting to place a house than there were spots to place one. Placing a house after an IDOC was cleared out was a feat for the history books, especially when it was done in Felucca where there was a very real chance that the player would be killed and have their "house deed" stolen (which for a lot of players was a very expensive item to lose).
I can't claim to have ever "won" an IDOC. I was more of the opportunist when it came to IDOCs. I would take the time to make runes so players could portal/warp to the IDOC location. Becoming well known for finding IDOCs and not selling bogus runes to players meant good income. Then to opportune even more with the situation if the house was in Felucca it was time to bring out my sneak thief and pick pocket any of the campers visiting. Or if I was up to the task I could unstable an entire army of tamed dragons on my tamer and let them loose upon the camping crowds.
The IDOC is something I truly miss in today's MMOs. The idea of actually losing something; of the world actually changing. This is deep thought stuff that developers stand up on grand stages and get voracious applause for before they turn around and build another WoWClone in the background. MMOs will never return to their golden age, but the memories I formed in that time will never stop me from dreaming about them.
Tags: GamesMadeMe, Ultima Online
Where does time go?
I don't honestly know, but when I find out I'll let ya'll know. Just a post to say I'm still here and I do plan to post some more at some point. I've been on a self-imposed break for video games. Aside from a little dabbling here and there I have not played much of anything lately on the PC.
I have gotten back into weekly board game night and may share some of that goodness at some point. I have a burning desire to write a review about Small World, but I fear the backlash when I finally admit that it is actually not all that great.
Wildstar: MMO Housing done right
Long time, no post. But had to share because Wildstar is really starting to impress me. Their latest entry is player housing.
Tags: Wildstar
Oh, is it 2013 already?
Long time, no blog post. More on that some other time.
2012 is gone, the world is still here (as predicted by yours truly) and 2013 is rolling on through the neighborhood. It's about damn time I take a look at my oh so bold predictions for the year that was.
First, head on back in the way-back machine and read "2012, the first post".
First prediction: The world will not end.
Verdict: You are reading this right?
Second prediction: I will post more than I did in 2011.
Verdict: Horribly inaccurate. I posted only 36 times in 2012, less than once per week. I posted 100 times in 2011, about twice a week.
Third prediction: "the game that shall not be named" will have a tough year, but will survive. The argument to take the game Free 2 Play will begin around July.
Verdict: 100% accurate, down to the month. It was July when Star Wars: The Old Republic announced its Free 2 Play future.
Fourth prediction: Warhammer Online will be shut down this year
Verdict: I had to Google whether this game was still even running, so to me that is as good as being shutdown. However, it pulled at my heart strings to look back on WAR again as I still see the glimmer of promise that is still housed in the game.
Fifth prediction: DOTA2 will launch, but fail to make much more than a drip into the MOBA scene.
Verdict: Horribly inaccurate. DOTA2 didn't "launch" technically, but Valve is pulling a GMail beta with DOTA2 currently. Secondly, DOTA2 is immensely popular, easily reaching the most played game on Steam in it's beta form. I'm still not sold on DOTA2 long term as I feel the game still shows too many hold overs from a game restricted by a game engine that wasn't built to support the game.
Sixth prediction: League of Legends will hit 50 million players and still be flying under the radar in the online gaming market
Verdict: Close call. League of Legends hit 32 million players in 2012. LoL is the biggest game on the planet between all consoles and PC games, but you would be hard pressed to know that visiting any gaming website or reading through any gaming magazines.
Seventh prediction: A major game will "surprise launch" this year with little to no notice and possibly be Free 2 Play
Verdict: All in the eye of the beholder. Some would consider DOTA2 as having surprised launched in 2012 with its beta-thats-not-really-a-beta-because-they-are-cashing-in-on-it.
Eight prediction: Indie games will continue to creep into the spotlight and we will see another Minecraft-level indie break out this year
Verdict: Day Z
Ninth and final prediction: At least 4 of these predictions will be right
Verdict: Winner, winner, chicken dinner.
Solforge:OREIAN JUSTICAR incoming to shake up the ...
The 3 MMOs you should NOT have paid attention to a...
Heartlessgamer.com
Theros Beyond Death is here (not beyond death).... let's brew! - Murdered titles aside; Magic the Gathering's latest set, Theros Beyond Death, is here and available on Arena. With a new set comes new deck brews. I will...
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More Mt. Cardigan Trail Reports
Mount Cardigan via West Ridge Trail
Mountain: Mt. Cardigan (3155')
Trail: West Ridge Trail
Region: NH - Central West
Cardigan State Park
Location: Orange, NH
Features: Summit, views, fire tower
Hike Date: 04/26/1998 (Sunday)
Weather: About 50 degrees (at top, wind chill factor made it seem much colder)
Author: Webmaster
Companion: Fred
Follow the orange-blazed West Ridge Trail all the way to the summit and go back down the same way.
From the parking lot, start up West Ridge Trail.
After 0.5 mile veer left to stay on West Ridge Trail (South Ridge Trail goes to the right).
Walk for about another 0.6 mile then bear left to avoid a right-hand turn to the Skyland Trail.
Veer left again after 0.1 mile to avoid the Ranger-Cabin Trail.
Keep ascending West Ridge Trail. On the open rock it is marked by a combination of cairns, paint on rocks, and blaze boards.
Return the same way. Since there are many trails leaving the summit, be sure to follow the correct one: look for the cairns and blaze boards.
West Ridge Trailhead (1930') 0.0 0.0 0:00 0:00
Mt. Cardigan summit (3155') 1.5 1.5 1:00 1:00
This was a steady but easy climb. The trail is well marked with orange blazes. It's a great rest/warm-up trail.
Starting out on the trail there were many deciduous trees - many blown down by ice storm of 1/98 - yet the trail was mostly cleared of the fallen trees. It was muddy in spots for about the first half-mile. For a little while, a babbling brook runs along the trail. We saw cool icicles and mini-waterfalls (1 or 2 feet tall). We crossed "Cliff's bridge": a skinny wooden bridge with railings - then that was the last of the trail alongside the brook.
Then there was a mixture of rock face and shorter conifers. As soon as the woods open up a bit, you start getting great views.
Then there was all open rock. Gray rock with stripes of white rock - looked like somebody had painted white lines to draw some kind of boundaries (BIG squares). I started to feel the wind in rock/confier area and then the wind steadily increased until it was really strong at the top, which was totally exposed.
There was a small fire tower at the top (locked up). This tower was visible as we were driving up the road, immediately after turning off of Rt. 118. The summit is completely bald. There were small ice/slush "ponds" in the rock depressions at the top.
There was small amounts of snow along the upper part of the trail before getting to the all-rock section. We had a mini-snowball fight.
The summit gives a fantastic 360-degree view. We could see the Presidentials and they were still covered in snow.
We enjoyed the view from the top without freezing by ducking down just a few feet from the dome-shaped top so we were shielded from the wind.
From I-89, take exit 17 (Rt. 4).
Follow Rt. 4 east for 12 miles.
Bear left to get onto Rt. 118.
Turn right at a Cardigan State Park sign and follow the signs to the summit. (Bear right 2.7 miles from Rt. 118; at 3.4 miles bear left; at 4.1 miles you'll be in the parking area.)
There are outhouses at the end of the parking area farthest from the entrance road.
Mt. Cardigan, South Peak, Orange Mtn., Rimrock on 6/21/2008
Mt. Cardigan and Firescrew and Meteor Showers on 8/13/1999 and 8/14/1999
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Inspire Community Celebrate Diversity Unite Los Angeles
AUDACITY of SOUND
PLAZA AMENITIES
L'Orchestre Afrisa International with special guest Ricardo Lemvo
Add to My Calendar 2017-07-15 8:00 PM 2017-07-15 20:00:00 America/Los_Angeles L'Orchestre Afrisa International with special guest Ricardo Lemvo Root yourself in the rich soil of silvery guitar riffs and deep polyrhythms as the band’s thirty-year history comes alive. Embodying the Afro-Latin Diaspora, Lemvo blends his Afro-Cuban rhythms with pan-African styles (soukous, Angolan semba and kizomba) to create an amazing package of music with L’Orchestre Afrisa International. This performance is supported by Director's Council Members Jon Neustadter and Victoria Kirsch & Michael Alexander and by Jewel Members Paul Tepper & Nancy Berlin 350 S. Grand Ave. Ste A-4 Los Angeles, CA 90071 Grand Performances
BECOME A MEMBER TO RESERVE SEATS
Saturday, July 15, 2017 | 8:00 PM
Root yourself in the rich soil of silvery guitar riffs and deep polyrhythms as the band’s thirty-year history comes alive. Embodying the Afro-Latin Diaspora, Lemvo blends his Afro-Cuban rhythms with pan-African styles (soukous, Angolan semba and kizomba) to create an amazing package of music with L’Orchestre Afrisa International.
This performance is supported by Director's Council Members Jon Neustadter and Victoria Kirsch & Michael Alexander and by Jewel Members Paul Tepper & Nancy Berlin
Cornerstone Theater Company - Magic Fruit
350 South Grand Avenue, Suite A-4
Copyright ©2018 Grand Performances. All rights reserved.
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Lindsey Hascher
Opening Night Film Premiere Highlights
June 10, 2017Lindsey HascherFounders
The Greenwich International Film Festival was thrilled to present BENDING THE ARC as our 2017 Opening Night Film, sponsored by WMC Health Network. This empowering documentary represents everything the Festival believes in and demonstrates how to Make An Impact in small communities to solve a much bigger problem. Directed by Kief Davidson & Pedro Kos, this...
#GIFF2017 Panels – Exciting, Engaging, & Educational
June 9, 2017Lindsey HascherFounders
For our third annual festival, we were honored to host four exceptional panel discussions that covered a variety of topics. Thank you to all of our panel participants and attendees. Special thanks to J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. for sponsoring the Women Driving ROI Panel, to First Republic for sponsoring the Live From Connecticut panel....
2017 Opening Night Party Highlights
After months of preparation and anticipation, the Greenwich International Film Festival celebrated the 2017 Opening Night Party on Friday, June 2nd at the Boys & Girls Club of Greenwich. After the Opening Night Film Premiere of BENDING THE ARC, and enlightening discussion about the status of Global Health, festival guests arrived at the party via...
2017 Changemaker Honoree Gala Highlights
On June 1st, the Greenwich International Film Festival hosted the Third Annual Changemaker Honoree Gala. This year, we were honored to present humanitarians Renée Zellweger and Christy Turlington Burns with the Changemaker Award, as well as the first ever Community Changemaker Award to Andrew Niblock, local community hero and Head of the Greenwich Country Day...
See What’s Inside Our 2017 GIFFt Bags!
Check out the awesome products that are featured in our 2017 gift bags! From gift cards to jewelry, our VIP Passholder gift bags have a lot of spectacular items. Thank you to our 2017 Festival Sponsor Hospital for Special Surgery for providing beautiful tote bags to hold all of these items. An extra special thank...
Spotlight On: Quinn Shephard & her new film BLAME
May 27, 2017Lindsey HascherFounders
Quinn Shephard can do it all – director, producer, screenwriter, editor, and actress. In her directorial debut BLAME, Quinn Shephard has proved that she belongs in the film world. Fresh off making a splash at the Tribeca Film Festival, we asked her what inspires her passion and what it was like making BLAME. Did we...
GIFF Back at The Avon!
The Greenwich International Film Festival is very excited to be returning to The Avon Theatre for three events during the 2017 Festival. GIFF will be kicking off our 4 days of parties, panels and film screenings on Wednesday, May 31st with a screening of HELL ON EARTH: THE FALL OF SYRIA AND FALL OF ISIS...
GIFF 2017 – Film Highlights
The 2017 Festival line-up features 54 documentary and narrative films, both short and feature length, from 16 countries. We are so proud to share with you this incredible schedule of films, that highlights everything from the global health crisis to gender rights to animal conservation. Learn more about some of these incredible films below, or...
GIFF 2017 Box Office
We’re excited to announce that the 2017 Festival Box Office is officially open! This year the GIFF Box Office is located just a couple stores down from the Bow Tie Cinemas Theater and the Greenwich Train Station at 22 Railroad Avenue. Located near the Bow Tie Cinemas Theater, we are ready to take care of...
2017 Program Announcement Party
May 8, 2017Lindsey HascherIn The News
Months of hard work have finally paid off. Last week, GIFF announced our entire lineup of films and events for the 2017 Festival during the Greenwich Arts Council’s Art to the Avenue on Thursday, May 4th. Less than a month out from the festival, GIFF was proud to announce the 2017 Program in front of...
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Home>Legal Disclaimer & Privacy Notice
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – Aug 18, 2014
Last week’s economic news brought little housing-related content, but several economic reports in other sectors contributed to overall perceptions of the economy.
In a speech given in Sweden, Fed Vice President Stanley Fischer noted that the economy might be in a period of “secular stagnation.” This condition is expected to keep interest rates low for longer than expected.
A survey of small business owners showed that confidence increased by 0.70 in July. Job openings for June increased from 4.60 million to 4.70 million. Readings for several reports fell shy of expectations and new jobless claims were higher than expected.
Economic Readings Lower Than Expected, Weekly Jobless Claims Rise
Retail sales for July were flat and fell shy of June’s reading of 0.20 percent, which was also the expected reading for July. Retail sales except autos were also lower in July with a reading of 0.10 percent against the expected reading and June’s reading of 0.40 percent.
Weekly jobless claims were reported at 311,000 against expectations of 300,000 new claims and the prior week’s reading of 290,000 new jobless claims. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, this was the highest reading since June.
New jobless claims were close to pre-recession levels which suggested a slower pace of layoffs. The four-week average of new jobless claims, which presents a less volatile reading than for weekly reports, rose by 2000 new jobless claims to a reading of 285,750.
Mortgage Rates Lower
Freddie Mac’s weekly survey reported lower mortgage rates last week. Average rates were as follows: 30-year fixed rate mortgages had a rate of 4.12 percent and were two basis points lower than the previous week.
Discount points averaged 0.60 percent against the prior week’s reading of 0.70 percent. The average rate for a 15-year fixed rate mortgage was 3.24 percent as compared to the prior week’s reading of 3.27 percent. Discount points were unchanged at 0.60 percent.
The average rate for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage dropped by one basis point to 2.97 percent with discount points unchanged at 0.50 percent.
A couple of good news bytes from last week included an increase in small business sentiment in July. The National Federation of Independent Business Index for July increased from June’s reading of 95.00 points to 95.70 points.
The federal government also reported that job openings increased from 4.60 million in May to 4.70 million in June.
What’s Ahead
Several housing-related reports are set for release this week. The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) will release its Home Builder Index for August, which measures builder confidence in market conditions for newly built homes.
The Department of Commerce will release Housing Starts for July, and the National Association of REALTORS® will release its Existing Home Sales report for July. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) of the Federal Reserve will release the minutes of its most recent meeting on Wednesday; this could provide details concerning the Fed’s recent monetary policy decisions, which include the wind-down of asset purchases under the current quantitative easing program.
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Gun Control Roundup
Part three of a series on gun control in the USA, this is a roundup of some of the interesting and important articles I have read since Thursday's Oregon College shooting.
While Kids Continue to Die, All We Are Doing Is Teaching Them To Hide Heidi Stevens, Chicago Tribune (Link)
"Our door isn't soundproof this year," my (9 year old) daughter tells me. "So we have to be silent, so the gunman can't hear us."
Not a single morning goes by that I don't drop my son and daughter at school and wonder for a split second — that's all I allow myself — whether they will be murdered by a gunman that day.
I know I'm not the only parent who does that.
We have become like the sea turtles who entwine pollutants into their nests — accepting and weaving deadly trash into the most sacred parts of our lives.
Gun nuts, the ultimate thought police: Shutting down an open debate after yet another mass shooting Gary Legum, Salon (Link)
For all the caterwauling of gun control advocates, it seems clear to me that they have lost the fight. Contrary to the right-wing paranoia, the Second Amendment is in no danger of being repealed. It is nearly impossible to push even the mildest gun control measures through legislatures at either the federal or state level. The Senate took months to confirm our current surgeon general because he’d had the temerity to suggest research on the causes of gun violence might help us find solutions to reduce it. Gun nuts: You’ve won! It’s all over but the shooting shouting!
The Geography of Gun Deaths Richard Florida, The Atlantic (Link)
Let's start by looking at factors that are sometimes assumed to be associated with gun violence but statistically are not.
It is commonly assumed that mental illness or stress levels trigger gun violence. But that's not borne out at the state level. We found no statistical association between gun deaths and mental illness or stress levels. We also found no association between gun violence and the proportion of neurotic personalities.
Images of drug-crazed gunmen are a commonplace: Guns and drug abuse are presumed to go together. But, again, that was not the case in our state-level analysis. We found no association between illegal drug use and death from gun violence at the state level.
US Gun Control Jim Jefferies, Comic
Armed vet destroys gun nuts’ argument on mass shooters by explaining why he didn’t attack Oregon killer Tom Boggioni, Raw Story (Link)
“Luckily we made the choice not to get involved,” he explained. “We were quite a distance away from the building where this was happening. And we could have opened ourselves up to be potential targets ourselves, and not knowing where SWAT was, their response time, they wouldn’t know who we were. And if we had our guns ready to shoot, they could think that we were bad guys.”
Spare me this sanctimonious Australian self-congratulation after US gun massacres Jason Wilson, The Guardian (Link)
More immediately , it glosses over the fundamental reason that Australia was able to introduce strict gun control where the United States was not. It was not that the nation “grew up” – whatever that could possibly mean. It’s that there were fewer structural impediments to introducing the necessary laws at an opportune moment, a process which was almost entirely top-down.
Four Pro-gun arguments we are sick of hearing Amanda Marcotte, Rolling Stone (Link)
While victims are being rushed to the hospital, many right-wing pundits and politicians are no doubt readying their talking points to explain why the 264th mass shooting of the year does not mean the United States should tighten up access to deadly firearms.
Well, guys, I hate to break it to you, but we heard you the first time. And the second time. And the hundreds of times since that our country has grappled with an individual eager to take out as many lives as possible with a firearm. We can recite your arguments in our sleep, and they haven't grown better through repetition.
4chan and the Oregon shooter: What the suspicious thread says about a horrifying subculture of young male rage Mary Elizabeth Williams, Salon (Link)
It may have been a direct warning. It may have been just a coincidence. And regardless of which scenario is true, the fact we can’t yet be sure should tell you plenty already about the horrifying subculture of murderously angry young men out there.
How To Make A Mass Shooter Dr Andrew Smiler, The Good Men Project (Link)
Teach him that revenge is a good way to deal with anger, that vengeful acts have no scale, and that all hurts and pain are equivalent. This way, he’ll believe that overwhelming force is an acceptable response to any hurt he experiences
Many School Shooters, One Common Factor - A warped View of Masculinity Stacey Tiecher Khadaroo & Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor (Link)
While mass shooters are often seen as “outliers or oddballs ... we should actually think of them as conformists,” says Tristan Bridges, a sociologist at The College at Brockport, State University of New York, citing research on masculinity by expert Michael Kimmel. “They’re over-conforming to masculinity, because they perceive themselves, in some way or another, as emasculated.... It’s a terrible statement about American masculinity, to say that when you’re emasculated, one way to respond is to open fire.”
Kilmartin of the University of Mary Washington says that while there’s some discussion of masculinity, mental health, and violence (both mass shootings and interpersonal violence such as rape), he encounters resistance when he raises these issues. “I get hate mail, as if I’m betraying men,” he says. On the contrary, he says, he’s motivated by the belief that “we as men can do better.”
It's not about mental illness, The big lie that always follows mass shooting by white males Athur Chu, Salon (Link)
I get really really tired of hearing the phrase “mental illness” thrown around as a way to avoid saying other terms like “toxic masculinity,” “white supremacy,” “misogyny” or “racism.”
What I hear from people who bleat on about “The real issue is mental illness,” when pressed for specific suggestions on how to deal with said “real issue,” is terrifying nonsense designed to throw the mentally ill under the bus.
Everyone Blames Mental Illness, But what if They're Wrong? German Lopez, VOX (Link)
Jonathan Metzl, a professor of psychiatry, sociology, and medicine, health, and society at Vanderbilt University, argues that mental illness is often a scapegoat that lets policymakers and the public ignore bigger, more complicated contributors to gun violence.
Killing strangers seems so far outside the bounds of civilized society and sanity that looking to insanity is understandable.
Turning Murderous Prats into Nihillistic Pin Ups, SCOUT Magazine (link) (The comments are worth reading)
Will news networks and newspapers ever take it upon themselves to heed the words of the experts, or does the need to sensationalize for ratings and hits make larger societal considerations laughably quaint?
We're Better At Killing Americans Than Our Enemies Are Michael Shermer, The LA Times (Link)
Consider this finding from a 1998 study published in the Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery: "Every time a gun in the home was used in a self-defense or legally justifiable shooting, there were four unintentional shootings, seven criminal assaults or homicides, and 11 attempted or completed suicides."
Yes, people can kill one another and themselves with knives, ropes, lead pipes, wrenches and candlestick holders, but the data match the growing national intuition that guns are a major problem.
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Book Club: Emma Gannon 'Ctrl Alt Delete'
by Jenessa Williams - Thursday, August 10, 2017
When I think back to a time where blogging had first really blown up, one of the first names I think of is Emma Gannon. Having followed her blog 'Girl Lost In The City' for an age, she was a writer I delighted in following the success of - creative, motivated and honest, she was proof that blogging wasn't just about owning an expensive camera and hobnobbing round events. For Emma, words really mattered, and as someone who was used to describing myself as a 'journalist' rather than a 'blogger'*, she made me feel as if there was a space in this community for people whose first love was wordplay. Due to her chatty nature, watching her grow and flourish became like watching a friend succeed - I'd never met this person, and yet I was so, so chuffed to watch them reach their goals.
One such goal was writing a book. 'Ctrl Alt Delete' is nearly a year old now, but having finally gotten my act together and picked up a copy, it's everything you could want from Emma's blogging voice and more. Tracking her experiences of growing up online, I'm in total agreement with her that our generation were SO lucky to know an adolescence that existed before instagram. Changing your MSN display name to impress a boy, trusting people with your innermost thoughts before you'd even figured out what they properly were - it's all here in brave and wincing detail, boldly expressing it's own flaws with the same confidence that made HBO's Girls so loveable.
It's not all cringey moments though- if the first half sparks concerns about how teens of the present and future are handling growing up in this all-access world, the latter half of the book is dedicated to the internet as an adult, and the joy that social media can bring - the friends, the conversations, the fact that there is space for everyone. There's a really powerful moment in chapter eleven about trolling where Emma admit that's writers make mistakes and it's okay to change your mind on something - something we so easily forget when we call people out for a poorly-phrased tweet or contradictory quote from their past.
In the best possible way, Ctrl Alt Delete doesn't feel like something only Emma could have written - it's topic is something that most late 80s/ early 90s born bloggers know well and may have even written a post about. But Emma's not just every other blogger. The power here is in her humorous expression, her passion for her subject and her willingness to laugh at her past. For all of these reasons and more, 'Ctrl Alt Delete' is the logical extension of all the things that are great about the internet - the opportunities to carve out your own space and tell your story, safe in the knowledge that somebody out there will probably see something of themselves in your anecdotes.
Tags : books
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Еврейские роды
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Aaron Jay Kernis - Biography
Aaron Jay Kernis (born January 15, 1960) is an American composer and professor at the Yale School of Music.
Aaron Jay Kernis is Jewish, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and studied at the Manhattan School of Music, the San Francisco Conservatory, and Yale University (under John Adams, Jacob Druckman, Morton Subotnick, and Charles Wuorinen).,[1]
Notable works include the New Era Dance, his second string quartet musica instrumentalis (which won the 1998 Pulitzer Prize for Music), Colored Field for English horn and orchestra (winner of the 2002 Grawemeyer Award in Music Composition, and later arranged for cello), Superstar Etude for piano, and Symphony in Waves.
He began his musical career studying the violin and then piano before deciding at age 13 to take up composition; this influence can be seen in his frequent and skillful use of strings in orchestral works and as solo instruments. At age 16 he won the first of three BMI Foundation Student Composer Awards, one of the most prestigious prizes for young composers. His use of instrumental color in general is notable, as is his integration of a variety of musical, literary, and social influences into his work. Kernis is an active composer in high demand by such groups as the New York Philharmonic and the San Francisco Symphony; he currently also serves as Composer Institute Director for the Minnesota Orchestra and on the Artistic Advisory Panel of the BMI Foundation.
Schirmer Publishing biography of Kernis
Minnesota Orchestra artist page
Hymn recorded by Guy Klucevsek
Interview with Aaron Jay Kernis by Bruce Duffie, November 15, 2002
Aaron Jay Kernis interview from American Mavericks site
Tucker, Katy Aaron Jay Kernis Biography, Schirmer website, October 2009
Grawemeyer Foundation Award Listing, Grawemeyer Foundation website, 2002
Источник статьи: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Jay_Kernis
В статье упоминаются люди: Аhарон Джей Кернис
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Home About Journal AHEAD OF PRINT Current Issue Back Issues Instructions Submission Search Subscribe Blog
Online since Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Musculoskeletal oncology: Finding its place in the sun! p. 1
DOI:10.4103/ortho.IJOrtho_674_17 PMID:29416162
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SYMPOSIUM - MUSCULOSKELETAL ONCOLOGY
Fibulectomy for primary proximal fibular bone tumors: A functional and clinical outcome in 46 patients p. 3
Zile Singh Kundu, Milind Tanwar, Parveen Rana, Rajeev Sen
Background: Primary benign and malignant tumors of the proximal fibula are not very common. Upper fibula being an expendable bone; the majority of the primary bone tumors at this site are usually treated with en bloc proximal fibulectomy. There is scarce literature on functional results, difficulties faced during dissection when to preserve or sacrifice common peroneal nerve and importance of lateral collateral ligament repair after proximal fibulectomy. The present study attempts at assessing these variables. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study included 46 patients; 30 males and 16 females with age ranging from 12 to 44 years (average: 26 years) operated between 2003 and 2014. There were 34 benign and 12 malignant tumors. All were treated with proximal en bloc fibulectomy as indicated and decided by the operating surgeon keeping in view its extent on magnetic resonance imaging. Peroneal nerve sacrifice or preservation was decided as per the type (benign/malignant), its involvement by the tumor and the extent of the tumor. In 14 (for 12 malignant and two benign giant cell tumors [GCTs]) patients, the peroneal nerve required resection for the margins. Partial upper tibial resection was performed in cases of malignant tumors and three GCTs. The followup ranged between 24 and 120 months (median: 48 months). Results: Patients with peroneal nerve resection had inferior functional outcome than those without peroneal nerve resection. There was no higher risk of tibia fracture in patients with partial tibial resection. Lateral collateral reconstruction yielded better results and should be performed in all cases. Functional outcome was significantly better in patients with benign tumors than in patients with malignant tumors as these required neither resection of the peroneal nerve nor large amount of muscle excision. The functional results were evaluated using Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) score, and clinical outcomes were evaluated using knee and ankle movements and stability. The overall average MSTS score was 26.50. Conclusions: With good reconstruction of lateral ligament we can achieve good results after proximal fibulectomy for benign as well as malignant tumor without much instability. With partial upper tibial resection (i.e., the extra-articular resection of proximal tibiofibular joint) adequate margins are feasible even in malignant tumors.
Retrospective analysis of giant cell tumor lower end radius treated with En bloc excision and translocation of ulna p. 10
Amit Vyas, Purnima Patni, Narender Saini, Rahul Sharma, Vinit Arora, SP Gupta
Background: Distal end of radius is third most common site for GCT of long bones and 1% of these metastasize mostly to lungs. Reconstruction methods commonly used are fibula (vascularized and nonvascularized), centralization of ulna, translocation of ulna, and endoprosthetic replacement. We report the outcome of series of twenty cases where we did en bloc excision of tumor with translocation of ulna. Materials and Methods: Twenty cases of giant cell tumor (GCT) of lower end of radius were included in this retrospective study. The mean age of patients was 33.15 years (range 21-55 years). We had 14 of Campanacci Grade III and 6 of Grade II. Preoperative radiographs and magnetic resonance imaging of the involved wrist and forearm were done. Results: Of all twenty patients, 14 were males and 6 were females. Mean followup duration was 3.9 years (range 1.5–17 years). Mean grip strength of involved side as a percentage of normal side was 71% (range 42%–86%) and the actual mean value for operated side was 29 kg as compared to 40 kg for normal side. The average range of forearm movement was supination 80.25° (60°–90°) and pronation 77.5° (70°–90°). No patient was dissatisfied as far as cosmesis was concerned. Discussion: In our opinion considering the propensity to recur with more aggressiveness after recurrence, en bloc excision with translocation of ulna has become a standard treatment option for GCT of lower end of radius, with advantages of better functional outcomes, retained vascularity, and elimination of risk of donor site morbidity.
Distal medullary canal decompression in long stem hip replacement in long bone metastasis: Does it reduce cardiopulmonary complications? p. 15
Vivek Ajit Singh, Siamak Sarrafan, Ramesh Singh Veriah
Background: The femur is the most common long bone affected by metastatic bone disease, with 25% involving the proximal third of the femur. Long stem cemented hip replacement (LHR) is an important option for cases of impending fracture. Pulmonary embolism is a critical complication that can occur. This study evaluates the effectiveness of distal femoral canal decompression in reducing the risk of cardiopulmonary events. Materials and Methods: Thirty two patients with metastatic bone disease of the proximal femur undergoing LHR were recruited and randomized. Conventional technique was used in 16 cases and distal decompression of the medullary canal was carried out for the other 16 patients. The decompression was carried out through a trocar inserted into the distal medullary canal, connected to a vacuum suction. Quantity of emboli was detected through A4 chambers transesophageal echocardiography; the blood pressure and oxygen saturation readings were also recorded. Results: The decompression group experienced significantly lower Grade 2 and Grade 3 embolic events compared to the conventional group (11 vs. 26), and the duration of the embolic phenomena was shorter. Insertion of the stem and relocating the hip gave the highest amount embolic events. There was a significant drop in systolic blood pressure (SBP) in 12 out of 16 patients (75.0%) in the conventional group and 5 out of 16 patients in the decompression group (31.3%). This is statically significant (P = 0.0124). The average drop in SBP for the conventional group is 45.8 mmHg and the decompression group was 32.9 mmHg. Oxygen saturation remained at above 96% in the decompression group. However, in the conventional group, 25% of the patients had their oxygen saturation drop to below 96% during the insertion of stem and relocation of hip joint. Conclusion: Distal femoral canal decompression is an effective method in reducing the risk of cardiopulmonary embolic events associated with LHR.
Navigation in musculoskeletal oncology: An overview p. 22
Guy Vernon Morris, Jonathan D Stevenson, Scott Evans, Michael C Parry, Lee Jeys
Navigation in surgery has increasingly become more commonplace. The use of this technological advancement has enabled ever more complex and detailed surgery to be performed to the benefit of surgeons and patients alike. This is particularly so when applying the use of navigation within the field of orthopedic oncology. The developments in computer processing power coupled with the improvements in scanning technologies have permitted the incorporation of navigational procedures into day-to-day practice. A comprehensive search of PubMed using the search terms “navigation”, “orthopaedic” and “oncology” yielded 97 results. After filtering for English language papers, excluding spinal surgery and review articles, this resulted in 38 clinical studies and case reports. These were analyzed in detail by the authors (GM and JS) and the most relevant papers reviewed. We have sought to provide an overview of the main types of navigation systems currently available within orthopedic oncology and to assess some of the evidence behind its use.
The values of receptor activator nuclear Kappa-B ligand expression in stage III giant cell tumor of the bone p. 31
Sabrina Abdul Ghani, Wan Faisham Wan Ismail, Md Salzihan Md. Salleh, Sahran Yahaya, Zawawi Muhamad Syahrul Fitri
Background: Giant cell tumor (GCT) of bone is a benign locally aggressive primary bone tumor which is risky for local recurrences and pulmonary metastasis. Till date, there are still many uncertainties in predicting the aggressiveness of GCT. We aim to investigate whether receptor activator nuclear kappa-B ligand (RANKL) expression may determine the prognosis of the lesion. Materials and Methods: We examined RANKL expression in 39 patients (21 males, 18 females) by immunohistochemistry. Four patients (10%) were presented with tumor recurrence, eight patients (20%) were complicated with lung metastasis, and two patients (5%) were presented with both recurrence and lung metastasis. Positive RANKL expression was assessed according to a scoring system evaluating the percentage of the immunostained epithelial area and the staining intensity. The cumulative score was calculated to determine the final score value. Data were analyzed using PASW version 18.0 and independent t-test between nonrecurrence/recurrence groups, and nonlung metastasis/lung metastasis groups. Significance was set at P < 0.05. Results: Thirty-two patients (82%) scored 3 in RANKL-staining percentage from whole stromal cell population (>75%), 6 patients scored 2, and 1 patient scored 1. Nine patients (23%) scored 3 in RANKL-staining intensity (most intense), 19 patients (48%) scored 2, and 11 patients (29%) scored 1. Twenty six patients (67%) had strong RANKL expression (total score of 5–6), 12 patients (31%) showed moderate score (3–4) whereas only 1 patient (2%) showed weak RANKL expression. Together, the mean value of RANKL-staining percentage was 2.79, intensity 1.95 and the total score 4.77. The mean RANKL-staining percentage between recurrence and nonrecurrence groups was statistically significant (P = 0.009). There was no significant difference in the mean staining intensity and total score between nonrecurrence and recurrence groups, and staining percentage staining intensity and a total cumulative score of RANKL expression between lung metastasis and nonlung metastasis groups. Conclusion: RANKL expression is generally high in Stage III GCT and is a reliable prognostic marker in predicting the risk of local recurrence however not in lung metastasis.
Soft-tissue sarcomas p. 35
Domagoj Ante Vodanovich, Peter F M Choong
This article discusses the epidemiology, diagnosis, and management of primary soft-tissue sarcomas (STS). These musculoskeletal tumors are a rare and heterogeneous group of malignancies, which are best managed by multidisciplinary teams in specialist sarcoma referral centers. Historically, the standard for local control of these tumors has been amputation. Evolutions in multimodality treatment have seen a shift toward preservation of the limb. Advances in limb-sparing surgery have seen the quality of life in sarcoma patients to improve drastically; however, unplanned surgical excision of STS remains a major treatment dilemma in the control of local disease.
Effect of intravenous zoledronic acid on histopathology and recurrence after extended curettage in giant cell tumors of bone: A comparative prospective study p. 45
Zile Singh Kundu, Rajeev Sen, Ankur Dhiman, Pankaj Sharma, Ramchander Siwach, Parveen Rana
Background: Giant cell tumor (GCT) of the bone is known for its locally aggressive behavior and tendency to recur. It is an admixture of rounded or spindle-shaped mononuclear neoplastic stromal cells and multinucleated osteoclast-like giant cells with their proportionate dispersion among the former. Zoledronic acid (a bisphosphonate) is being used in various cancers such as myelomas and metastasis, for osteoporosis with an aim to reduce the resorption of bone, and as an adjuvant treatment for the management of GCT of bone for reduction of local recurrence. We have carried out a prospective comparative study to assess the effect of intravenous infusion of zoledronic acid on histopathology and recurrence of GCT of bone. Materials and Methods: The study was carried out in the biopsy proven GCTs in 37 patients; 15 males and 22 females, in the age range from 17 to 55 years. They were treated with extended curettage. Of these 37 patients, 18 were given three doses of 4 mg zoledronic acid infusion at 3-week intervals and extended curettage was performed 2 weeks after the last infusion whereas the other 19 were treated with extended curettage without zoledronic infusion. The post infusion histopathology of the curetted material was compared with the histopathology of initial biopsy. All the patients were evaluated at 3-month intervals for the first 2 years and then six monthly thereafter, for local recurrence and functional outcome of limb using the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) score. Results: In postzoledronic infusion cases, the histopathology of samples showed abnormal stromal cells secreting matrix leading to fibrosis and calcification. The type of fibrosis and calcification was different from pathological calcification and fibrosis what is usually observed. There was a good marginalization and solidification of tumors which made surgical curettage easier in six cases in the study group. There was noticeable reduction in the number of giant cells and alteration in morphology of stromal cells to the fibroblastic-fibrocytic series type in comparison to preinfusion histopathology. Recurrence occurred in one case out of 18 patients in infusion group whereas in four cases among 19 patients in control group. The functional results were assessed, and the overall average MSTS score was 27.50 (range 24–30) and 27.00 (range 23.50–30) in the study and control groups, respectively. Conclusions: We observed that bisphosphonates reduce osteoclast activity and affects stromal cells in GCT, resulting in the reduction of their numbers and noticeable apoptosis. This results in better marginalization of the lesions and reduced recurrence. Extended curettage of friable GCT became easier and adequate which otherwise might not have been possible.
Benign aggressive lesions of femoral head and neck: Is salvage possible? p. 51
Yogesh Panchwagh, Sujit K Joshi, Parag K Sancheti
Background: Benign aggressive bone lesions of the femoral head and neck are mostly seen in young adults and warrant treatment for pain, impending fracture or established fracture, and disease clearance. It becomes challenging to treat them effectively while attempting salvage of the femoral head and yet achieving long term disease control with minimum complications. We describe our technique and experience in dealing with these lesions which can achieve the above-mentioned goals and can be easily replicated. Materials and Methods: We analyzed 15 cases of surgically treated, biopsy-proven benign, locally aggressive lesions affecting the femoral head and neck in skeletally mature individuals. All cases were treated with extended curettage through anterolateral modified Smith–Petersen approach along with tricortical iliac crest bone graft (combined with fibular graft in some cases) reconstruction with or without suitable internal fixation. Results: All, except one, patients were available for follow up. The age ranged from 18 to 43 years and the follow up ranged between 24 and 124 months (average 78 months). These included aneurysmal bone cysts (9), giant cell tumors (4), and fibrous dysplasia (2). The indication was pain (8), with impending (2) or established pathological neck femur fracture (5). In all cases, there was satisfactory healing of lesion and timely rehabilitation. Nonunion, avascular necrosis or local recurrences were not seen. The MSTS functional score was good or excellent in all (range 26–29, average 28). Conclusion: Benign aggressive lesions affecting femoral head and neck in young and middle-aged adults pose a treatment challenge. A sturdy, lasting reconstruct with acceptable functional outcome and minimal recurrence rate can be achieved by salvaging the femoral head and neck using curettage and reconstruction, obviating the need for replacement at such an early age.
Methotrexate free chemotherapy and limb salvage surgery for paediatric osteosarcoma in India p. 58
Reghu Kesavapillai Sukumaran, Binitha Rajeshwari, Subin Sugath, S Guruprasad Chellappan, Priyakumari Thankamony, Kusumakumary Parukuttyamma
Background: Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary malignant tumor of bone. The survival of OS patients has steadily improved from <20% in the early 20th century to around 70% with current treatment. There are very few studies in pediatric OS from India analyzing various aspects of the disease. This study focuses on the clinical profile, treatment options, and their complications and survival outcomes in pediatric osteosarcoma (OS) patients. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective observational study which included pediatric patients <14 years of age, with newly diagnosed OS confirmed by histological diagnosis. Medical records of all patients were reviewed for clinical profile, treatment data, surgical management, and treatment complications. Patients alive at the end of treatment were followed up and overall (OAS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were analyzed. Results: Sixty-two patients were diagnosed with OS during the study of whom 55 opted for treatment. Cisplatin, adriamycin, and ifosfamide (PAI) was offered as chemotherapy and was completed as planned in the majority of patients. Limb salvage surgery was performed in most patients (87%, n = 40). The local recurrence occurred in 7 patients. The 3 years overall survival for the cohort was 54.6% ± 7.8% and DFS was 43.4% ± 7.9%, with females and those with the localized disease having a significantly better DFS. Conclusions: High dose methotrexate free chemotherapy can give good OAS in localized disease and LSS is feasible in most of the pediatric OS patients. However the modest DFS even for localized disease with PAI chemotherapy and extremely poor outcomes in the metastatic OS, demand further research and innovations in systemic therapy to improve outcomes.
Gait analysis in patients with wide resection and endoprosthesis replacement around the knee p. 65
Vivek Ajit Singh, Chan Wei Heng, Nor Faissal Yasin
Background: Limb salvage surgery with endoprosthesis for bone tumor around the knee is reported to have good functional and oncological outcomes. However, the functional assessment using musculoskeletal tumor society (MSTS) and Toronto extremity scoring system remains subjective. We performed gait analysis as an objective assessment of their functional outcome. Materials and Methods: Gait analysis was performed in 20 patients with endoprosthesis replacement around the knee. The temporal parameters assessed during gait analysis were walking velocity, stride length, duration of stance, and goniometry of the knee. These parameters were compared with the functional outcome score of the MSTS. Results: The mean free-paced walking velocity was 0.91 m/s (normal is 1.33 m/s), which was 68% lower than normal gait. The stride length and stance phase were shorter for the affected limb compared to normal (P < 0.05). However, the gait was symmetrical with no difference in stride length (P = 0.148), velocity (P = 0.918), knee flexion (P = 0.465), and knee extension (P = 0.321) between the affected and unaffected limbs. Sixteen patients demonstrated stiff knee gait, two had a flexed knee gait, and only two patients had normal gait during the stance phase. The mean MSTS score was 21. There was significant correlation between overall MSTS scores (P = 0.023), function (P = 0.039), and walking scores (P = 0.007). Conclusion: Limb salvage surgery with endoprosthesis reconstruction around the knee gives good functional outcome, both objectively and subjectively, as evidenced by the symmetrical gait pattern and significant correlation with MSTS score. Despite decreased walking velocity, stride length, and stance phase of the operated limb, the patient still has a symmetrical gait.
Does radiotherapy after surgery affect outcomes in Ewing's sarcoma of the pelvis? p. 73
Ajay Puri, Ashish Gulia, Saniya Crasto, Tushar Vora, Nehal Khanna, Siddharth Laskar
Background: The impact of postoperative radiotherapy (PORT) on outcomes has been a matter of debate after adequate resection in Ewing's sarcoma of the pelvis. We evaluated our cases after surgical excision in pelvic Ewing's sarcoma and assessed local control and overall survival (OS) with respect to PORT and chemotherapy-induced percentage necrosis. Materials and Methods: Forty four surgically operated patients (June 2002–November 2014) of localized Ewing's sarcoma were retrospectively reviewed. There were 31 males and 13 females. Age ranged from 2 to 53 years. All patients received institutional chemotherapy protocol. No patient received preoperative radiotherapy. Specimen was analyzed for margins and chemotherapy-induced percentage necrosis. PORT was offered to patients on case-by-case basis. Presence of a large preoperative soft-tissue component, margin evaluation, and percentage necrosis were factors considered. At time of the last followup, 29 patients were alive, 11 died, and 4 were lost to followup. Survivors had a minimum followup of 2 years (range: 31–118 months, mean = 69 months). Results: One of twenty (5%) patients with PORT had a local recurrence as against 2 of 24 (8%) without PORT. OS of all patients was 76% at 5 years. Twelve patients with <90% necrosis had OS of 56% and 32 with >90% necrosis had OS of 83% (P = 0.040). OS of patients with PORT was 74%, without PORT was 78% (P = 0.629). Conclusions: The decision to offer PORT after surgical excision in pelvic Ewing's sarcoma is multifactorial; the absence of PORT in selected cases is not detrimental to local control. Poor responders to chemotherapy had poorer survival while PORT did not impact on outcomes.
Considerations for the long term treatment of pediatric sarcoma survivors p. 77
Kurt R Weiss, Melissa N Zimel
Sarcomas are primary malignancies of the connective tissues. They are exceedingly rare in adults, but much more common in children. The historically recent advent of cytotoxic chemotherapy for pediatric sarcomas has revolutionized the treatment of these diseases and dramatically improved their prognoses. There is thus a population of pediatric sarcoma survivors that are “coming of age” as adults. However, this progress is not without consequences. Due to aggressive treatment protocols that include various combinations of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy, pediatric sarcoma survivors are at risk of myriad physical, medical, and psychological difficulties as they enter adulthood. These include but are not limited to physical disabilities, chemotherapy-induced cardiac issues, second malignancies, and anxiety. These patients pose unique challenges to their adult primary care physicians. One possible solution to these challenges is multidisciplinary sarcoma survivorship clinics. By paying greater attention to the unique issues of pediatric sarcoma survivors, involved physicians can maximize the physical and emotional health of pediatric sarcoma survivors.
Could routine magnetic resonance imaging detect local recurrence of musculoskeletal sarcomas earlier? A cost-effectiveness study p. 81
Andrew George, Robert J Grimer, Steven L J James
Background: Current practice in our unit is to perform clinical assessment and plain film radiographs at regular intervals following treatment of a bone or soft tissue sarcoma (STS). Cross-sectional imaging is used in cases with a clinical suspicion of recurrence. We aimed to investigate the effectiveness of this protocol to determine if earlier detection may have been possible had more intensive imaging been undertaken, and whether this may have affected outcome. Materials and Methods: We reviewed clinical records and imaging of all patients with diagnosed local recurrence (LR) in the previous 5 years to investigate: how it was diagnosed, the site and size of recurrence, and management. A value judgment was then made as to whether earlier diagnosis may have altered treatment and/or outcome. Results: 161 patients with LR were identified: 87 with a STS and 74 with bone sarcoma. Median time from diagnosis to LR was 17.8 months for STS and 20.1 months for bone sarcoma. One hundred and fifteen cases (71%) were identified by the patient, 28 by routine imaging (17%), 13 by a doctor (8%), and five diagnosed by other methods. Median size of LR was 5.5 cm for STS and 5 cm for bone sarcomas. Seventy nine of the patients (49%) could have had their LR diagnosed earlier with routine imaging. Of these, 53 would have received the same treatment, but 26 (33%) could have had different treatment. Conclusion: Earlier diagnosis could have led to altered management in one-third of those patients with the potential to have their LR diagnosed earlier. If all patients had regular magnetic resonance imaging, it would cost £6987 per recurrence where management was altered in imaging costs alone. We suggest a stratified approach whereby patients at highest risk of LR and those in whom early detection of LR may be easily treatable are prioritised for more intensive followup.
Spontaneous conventional osteosarcoma transformation of a chondroblastoma: A case report and literature review p. 87
Prashant Narhari, Amber Haseeb, Serene Lee, Vivek Ajit Singh
Chondroblastomas are a primary benign cartilaginous tumor that accounts for approximately 1% of all benign bone tumors. Primarily they are treated by curettage. The patient presented 4 years after a successfully treated chondroblastoma (curettage and Bone cement). Wide resection of the proximal tibia with endoprosthesis replacement was done. Lung CT showed multiple lung metastasis and despite starting chemotherapy, he succumbed to the disease. We discuss regarding the possibilities of “aggressive” chondroblastoma and more recently termed chondroblastoma-like osteosarcoma which is a separate entity from chondroblastoma. Aggressiveness in chondroblastoma can be 1 of 3 types as follows: 1. benign chondroblastoma with lung metastasis. 2. malignant chondroblastoma. 3. subsequent malignant transformation of benign chondroblastoma. We have attempted to review the literature and describe the “aggressive” chondroblastoma and chondroblastoma-like osteosarcoma in this report.
Complex primary total knee arthroplasty p. 91
Shekhar Agarwal, Rakesh John
DOI:10.4103/ortho.IJOrtho_623_17
Legends of Indian Orthopedics: Puliyur Krishnaswamy Duraiswami p. 92
Bhavuk Garg, SM Tuli
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All posts by Ivy Hill
Ivy Hill at A-Day
May 22, 2015 Ivy Hill
Ivy Hill Therapeutic Equestrian Center attended A-Day weekend this past April 24, 25 & 26 at Delaware Valley University, spreading the word about Ivy Hill’s mission and programs for children and adults with special needs.
The booth w as manned by staff and volunteers, who handed out informational brochures, flyers, bracelets and balloons, and sold over 40 raffle tickets for our Yamaha Grizzly 350 4 x 4, 60 “ LED TV, and $500 cash prize.
Special thanks goes to Glenn and Amy Herrmann, Rick Carlson, Hillary Woronik, Ashley Dufrane, Tori Roberts, Megan, Ed and Alek Hance, Janna, Tim and Colton Pitak, and Debbie Knouse for manning the table, educating the public about our riders and horses, and proudly representing the Ivy Hill family.
AHA Makes Ivy Hill Donation
PERKASIE: Rick Leonetti, Sr. and Don G. Lugg, President and Vice-President of Athletes Helping Athletes, Inc. presented Ivy Hill Foundation with a check for $5000 to support its equestrian programs for special needs children and adults on Wednesday, March 25th, at its new equestrian center located at 1811 Mill Road.
“It is our pleasure to make our donation every year to help support Ivy Hill and the wonderful program they run,” said Leonetti.
“Don and I were blown away by the size and structure of your beautiful new facility. It was incredible even on such a dreary, rainy, and cold day,” Leonetti said.
Athletes Helping Athletes Inc. exists to provide both financial support through fund-raising for Special Olympics and Special Needs Programs throughout Bucks County and the surrounding area.
“For all of us that put or heart and soul into Ivy Hill’s mission, I want to thank Rick, Don and everyone involved with AHA for their continuing support,” said Ivy Hill Foundation President Chris Brockett.
“AHA is great example of the passion that it takes to change attitudes and, ultimately, the world in which we live. We hope we contribute to that enlightenment,” Brockett said.
The mission of Athletes Helping Athletes, Inc. is to connect local special needs athletes with mainstream student-athletes in a spirit of friendship for their mutual benefit and inspiration. To make a donation, or for more information, contact Rick Leonetti at info@aha-inc.com.
Pictured: Megan Hance, Ivy Hill Program Director; Ivy Hill Equestrian rider; Don G. Lugg, AHA Vice-President; Chris Brockett, Ivy Hill President; Hillary Woronik, Ivy Hill Instructor.
Reed Technologies Volunteers!
Brian Simpson and his crew from Reed Technologies descended on Ivy Hill Therapeutic Equestrian Center on a volunteer mission to sweep, clean, muck, haul and do whatever was needed to spruce up our barn and grounds.
Rocks were moved, fence pieces hauled, windows sparkled and horse stalls were mucked to perfection.
Full of enthusiasm for Ivy Hill’s riders and horses, Simpson and the crew expressed their love of the program and the new barn.
“We love coming to Ivy Hill,” said Simpson.
“This place is amazing – we all want to come back again this summer,” he added.
Reed Technology and Information Services Inc. (Reed Tech), based in Horsham, PA, is a leader in data capture, conversion and content management. The company encourages volunteerism and community involvement by giving employees the opportunity to donate hours of service to local non-profit organizations.
Maureen Arnold Named 2015 Volunteer of the Year
Maureen Arnold was honored for her services to Ivy Hill at the 3rd Annual Volunteer Recognition Event hosted by Bucks County YMCA on April 16, 2015 at the Warrington Country Club.
Arnold joined volunteers selected from 9 Bucks County non-profits, including the YMCA, NOVA, Doylestown Hospital and the United Way of Bucks County.
Maureen starting volunteering with us in July of 2014. After retiring from teaching she wanted to help volunteer with an organization to combine her love for animals and children. Since July she has spent 3 mornings a week volunteering with lessons at the barn. She has volunteered over 300 hours since starting her work with us, and we look forward to many more mornings with her.
“We thank Maureen for all of her hard work and dedication to the Ivy Hill community,” said Donna Carlson, Development Director.
Lisa is a member of the Special Olympics Team USA Equestrian!!
Lisa will be headed to the Special Olympics World Games Los Angeles 2015! To say that Lisa is excited to be a member of Special Olympics Team USA is an understatement. She says, “World Games is the most incredible experience of my life!” Being a member of the team has given Lisa an opportunity to learn more about horses and ride them in shows. Congratulations, Lisa!
Foundations Community Partnership Grant
Foundations Community Partnership Presents Grant to Ivy Hill
PERKASIE – Ron Bernstein, Executive Director, and Caroline Sinton, Associate Director of Foundations Community Partnership, presented the Ivy Hill Foundation with a capital grant for $10,000 on December 22 at its new facility under construction at 1811 Mill Road.
The grant will be used to fund the construction of the equestrian center’s new Tack Room, a central part of the facility and the therapeutic learning experience.
“Completely accessible and with the capacity to serve multiple riders, the Tack Room will serve as a unique, natural-setting classroom that will enhance the critical thinking skills, physical strength, ability and independence of riders of all ages and abilities,” said Ivy Hill Foundation President Chris Brockett.
“We are so grateful for this grant.”
Foundations Community Partnership (FCP) is a nonprofit foundation formed to improve the quality of life for special needs children, youth and families in Bucks County, by establishing collaborative partnerships linking public agencies, nonprofit organizations, businesses, colleges and young adults within our community, and providing grants and technical assistance to non-profit organizations.
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Home Blog EXCLUSIVE: Swachh Bharat Abhiyan not as clean as Modi govt claims. There’s...
Interviews/Exclusives
EXCLUSIVE: Swachh Bharat Abhiyan not as clean as Modi govt claims. There’s whiff of scam here
Ravi Nair
Last week we reported that how the Centre’s Narendra Modi government had conceded for the first time that it had merely renamed the old UPA schemes and re-launched them amidst huge publicity as new schemes.
In my first part of expose, I was able to establish that the three repackaged schemes by the Modi government were performing worse than how they did under their old avatar during the Manmohan Singh government.
Let’s now look at the fourth scheme that two BJP strategists sought to highlight in their exhaustive piece for The Wire, published on 13 September. This was rather a very interesting topic – a comparison of Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan (during UPA) with Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. Authors Mohit Kumar Daga and Parag Mohanty cites another reply from Lok Sabha to give the numbers of household toilets constructed in the last two years.
According to them the numbers of toilets built during the UPA time were 9,535,436 and they claim to have obtained the numbers from here. The link will take you the official website of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’s dashboard where you get daily live update just like cricket match scorecard. According to this dashboard, 45,581,550 toilets were constructed till 3 August this year. That number current stands at 4,88, 49,170. Again, they have taken last two years of UPA to compare first three year of Modi government, which is illogical and manipulative.
Let us check the actual numbers to know more. This government data shows that contrary to the claims made by BJP strategists, the exact number of toilets/latrines constructed in the first three years of UPA 2 (2009-10 to 2011-12) was 62,476,819. This clearly shows Modi government’s achievement of 45,581,550 is in fact 16,895,269 less than UPA 2’s achievement. When the authors claim, 9,535,436 toilets constructed in last two years of UPA, it was a deliberate attempt to mislead the readers with a wrong comparison. The comparison below will explain the difference more easily.
It very clearly shows that except 3rd year, UPA government’s numbers were much higher than that of the current regime. It is thus easy to understand that the selective use of data will be very misleading and provide totally different picture which will be far away from the truth.
Also, since we are discussing Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, let us check few more important points pertaining to this particular scheme’s claimed success. SBA Guidelines mandate an yearly independent third party verification of the progress of the scheme because the scheme is funded by the world bank – $1.5 billion loan for a period of 18 years with a initial five year moratorium on repayment.
This disbursement letter mentions first tranche of $147.5 million will be disbursed by April 2016. This report of World Bank dated 5 February 2017 says the progress of the work is “moderately unsatisfactory”. If the government is implementing the project at this breakneck speed with precision, why should the World Bank find it moderately unsatisfactory?
There are two interesting things here. 1) World Bank is yet to disburse the two trances due in 2016 and 2017 because of the non submission of independent third party verification report and government of India is paying a commitment fee of 0.5%. The terms & conditions in loan agreement clearly state that the disbursal is based on third party verification report submitted and that will be an yearly affair till 2022. This ET report from January, 2017 details the complete timeline of this loan, disbursals and the “commitment fee” India is paying.
2) After several articles like this and this appeared on news portals, the government was forced to issue this press release to clarify that an independent third party assessment and verification of the implementation success of the programme was already in place. But, that wouldn’t satisfy the World Bank as the criteria they were asking will not fit in with what government is doing – using government agencies for the survey.
If Modi government is so certain about the success and transparency, why wouldn’t they do an yearly survey as mandated in the loan agreement?
Curiously, government is spending only 1%, 7% less than the mandated 8% on the Information, Education and Awareness campaign, as pointed out by this CPR study. As per National Family Health Survey 4, only 48.4% of the households in India is using improved sanitation facilities. If one takes only rural numbers, it further comes down to 36.7%. That means, only 36.7% of the toilets constructed under SBA is used as toilets / latrines. There is another C P R Survey covering 5 states and 7500 families which points out the scope and scale of corruption in the implementation. The screenshots below will explain it in simple detail.
The study, in no uncertain terms, clarifies the kind of corruption already taking place by duplication of data, fictional inhabitation in villages and the number of villages don’t match with local government directories or census data.
The same study discovered only 24% of the households who constructed toilets since 2014 received government grants. The SBA(G) guidelines inform us the amount is Rs 12,000 per household in rural areas. And the same CPR study found out only 24% of the surveyed households, who constructed toilets after April 2014 received any government grants. 29% of the households in the achievement list did not have a toilet!
Is this what the authors, the BJP strategists, meant as “better implementation” by Modi government? If anything, this is an unfolding of a scam at monumental proportions.
Fifth point in the article is Swavalambhan scheme which became Atal Pension Yojana. Authors of the article in The Wire quoting from PFRDA Annual Report mentions Swavalambhan scheme had 41.46 lakh subscribers from 2010 to 2015 and while quoting this answer from the Lok Sabha, they state that Atal Pension Yojana has 58 lakh subscribers from 2015 to 2017.
Before going in to further details, we have to understand that it really is a name change. For a name change, this scheme was neither in the name of someone from Nehru-Gandhi family or any political personality, which is the usual reason thrown by the BJP to defend the Modi government’s decision to justify their decision on changing the name of schemes.
So, nobody knows what was the necessity of such a name change. This government press release says “the scheme is open to bank account holders in the prescribed age group, the central government would also co-contribute 50% of the total contribution or Rs. 1,000 per annum, whichever is lower, for a period of 5 years for those joining the scheme before 31 December, 2015 and are not members of any statutory social security scheme and are not income tax payers.”
In this context, let us check what Swavalambhan Scheme was.
The most simple explanation is given by the Department of Financial Services here. So, what is the major difference between Swavalambhan Scheme and APY if both were self contributory, meant for anyone who are “not part of a statutory pension / provident scheme”? It says that Modi government decided to launch a “new scheme” because the pension benefit at 60 years of age was not clear in Swavalambhan scheme.
These two press releases on Swavalambhan Scheme and APY will explain both the schemes have same terms and conditions. But, Swavalambhan scheme had an option to exit at the age of 50 or a minimum tenure of 20 years (whichever is later), it provided “with 40% minimum annuitisation of pension wealth. Exit before the age 50 or tenure less than 20 years, is possible with 80% minimum annuitisation of pension wealth.” That means, the claim of lack of clarity is not true because both schemes are under National Pension Scheme and follows the same principles and regulations.
But, there are certain differences. Most important of them is the upper age limit of joining the scheme. In Swavalambhan Scheme it was for anyone up to 50 years or after paying 20 years and for APY joining age has been limited to 40 years. But, the most important difference most people failed to note of is the government contribution part.
In the former scheme, government was contributing Rs 1000 per year for anyone joining the scheme till 2012-13. For 2013-14 and subsequent joiners till 2016-17, the government contribution was meant for three years.
But Modi government gave the same 5 year Rs 1000 support for joiners who joined till 31 December 2015 in APY and once APY launched all Swavalambhan scheme accounts migrated to APY. Voluntary withdrawal before 60 years of age was not permitted in APY. So the question would arise as to what the APY really achieved except the name change and the reduction in upper age limit of joining and reduction in minimum contribution from Rs 500? Nothing, but a mode to fill the government coffers and another “new scheme inauguration” opportunity for Prime Minister.
6th point in the article is a hotly discussed topic – Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY). Scores of articles are published both praising and criticising government claims. Citing the RBI Annul Report of 2013-14, authors support the claimed numbers of the predecessor of PMJDY – No Frills Accounts (later BSBDA – Basic Saving Bank Deposit Account) as 24.3 crore from 2005 to 2014. But, there is a small problem with this number. This number is only up to March 31, 2014; not till the date PMJDY started. And the authors quoted from PMJDY website the figure of nearly 30 crore accounts since the inception of the scheme.
Here too, just like in Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, let us not question the claim of number of accounts because we have to trust the data once it is out from the RBI. But there are certain things which we have to seek the answer for. Just like in BSBDA, PMJDY accounts have the same zero balance facility, a debit card and a cheque book facility, certain number of free ATM withdrawals and net banking and phone banking facilities etc.
First of all, PMJDY account is not a new concept introduced by this government. That credit goes to UPA 1 and that started from here. In 2012, the scope of the policy has been widened through this RBI notification when the earlier name changed to BSBDA.
When a lot of discussions happened on Jan Dhan Accounts, no body seriously discussed how PMJDY is different from BSBDA? Answer lies in this and in this. These are FAQ explanations for both BSBDA & PMJDY and the reader can find out the differences if there is any.
Many experts tried their best to do so, without any success. To put it in a more simple way, Jan Dhan Accounts comes under BSBDA as a sub-sect in every RBI document shows it is a BSBDA. And FAQ explanations in PMJDY portal itself says PMJDY accounts are certainly BSBDA. Many BJP supporters and office bearers like the authors of the article argued that PMJDY offers a free insurance scheme for PMJDY account holders. What they never reveal in open is, that proposal is there on paper since PM announced the scheme and it continues to remain on paper.
If that is the case, why Jan Dhan Accounts? We have to assume, Mr. Modi did not have any other option to publicise himself with his photographs across the country for a financial product because he couldn’t have changed the terminology of BSBDA, which was under RBI domain. Answer is as simple as that. After PMJDY and the zero balance small savings bank accounts, “Pradhan Mantri” ventured into small loans and PMMY started. Next was insurance with PMJJBY, PMSBY and PMVVY. Thus, with savings, loan and insurance, finance portfolio is complete!!
We are yet to find out the total amount of money spent on advertising the PMJDY since its inception. There is a very important aspect to most of the so-called “New Schemes” launched by Modi government – One in every five schemes is a “Pradhan Mantri” scheme or One in every five schemes is a self marketing opportunity for the Prime Minister. You can check the entire list of schemes here.
Let us come back to the topic of PMJDY. There are certain points the ruling party supporters highlight when they speak about the scheme and one of them is the reach of banking facilities to every corner of the country after the current government came to power. And they often attribute that to the “roaring success” of the scheme.
Let us check that too as these two are inter-connected. This is quoted from the RBI publication: “In order to provide door step banking facilities in all the unbanked villages in the country, a phase wise approach has been adopted. During Phase-I (2010-13), all unbanked villages with population more than 2,000 were identified and allotted to various banks (public sector banks, private sector banks and regional rural banks) through State Level Bankers’ Committees (SLBCs) for coverage through various modes – Branch or BC or other modes such as ATMs, mobile vans, etc.
“During Phase-I, as reported by SLBCs, banking outlets have been opened in 74,414 unbanked villages with population more than 2,000. Such newly opened banking outlets comprised of 69,589 outlets opened through BCs and 2,332 by other modes, apart from 2,493 branches”.
It continues, “After the completion of the first phase of the roadmap, the second phase (2013-16) to provide banking services in unbanked villages with populations less than 2000 was rolled out. About 4,90,298 unbanked villages with population less than 2000 have been identified and allotted to various banks (public sector banks, private sector banks and regional rural banks) through SLBCs across the country for coverage in a time bound manner.”
So, it is clear that this expansion of banking facilities to every village in the country was an ongoing programme since long and is not a new initiative by this government. But the latest RBI data shows a negative growth in the number of rural branches of scheduled commercial banks. Even if we take the rationalisation of branches (which is yet to come in to effect) in to consideration, a 3.47% negative growth (YoY) is yet to be explained. Similarly, the growth in urban branches of Scheduled Commercial Banks dropped to the lowest in more than 12 years to 0.73%.
In the case of exact numbers, we don’t have any avenue in public domain which mentions exact number of zero balance accounts, total number of dormant accounts, total number of BSBDA small accounts and how many corporate accounts (salary accounts) are opened under PMJDY.
We also don’t know how many accounts have been closed down and how many of them are upgraded from zero balance to minimum balance required accounts in last three years and why BSBDA growth became stagnant and only PMJDY accounts are growing. There’s also ambiguity on whether banks are asked to open only PMJDY accounts and given specific targets or if reports of banks being asked to deposit Rs 1 to Rs 10 in PMJDY accounts to reduce the number of zero balance accounts are true or not.
Without proper answer to these questions, claiming the success of the scheme just based on the number of accounts opened will be very inappropriate and premature just like the number of toilets constructed under Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and total usage is less than 47.5% because of the inadequacy of water and the smaller size of pits.
(The author of this article is a well-known data analyst. He can be reached on Twitter via @t_d_h_nair )
Repackaged schemes
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Awas Yojan July 12, 2018 at 5:26 PM
This scheme is mainly focus for poor people , Women , SC ST of villages whose income is not sufficient to afford own home. Without own home nodody feels secure in India.
“Is Amitabh Bachchan an opportunist par excellence?”
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TASTE OF SOUL’S CHILDREN’S WORLD; Fun-Filled Activities & Musical Entertainment for Kids All Day
Written by E. Mesiyah McGinnis
By E. Mesiyah McGinnis
With the Taste of Soul Food and Family Festival being famous for showcasing primarily adult -themed entertainment, the festival organizers also curate Children’s World, a special safe place for children to explore fun activities and be entertained on the Children’s World Stage by up-and coming young artists, excited about living their dreams at Taste of Soul in front of adoring young fans.
“My mission in this year’s Taste of Soul is to bring the best variety of talented young artists, from ages 6-20, to the Children’s World Stage,” says Randy Hankins, who says he is honored to curate the Children's World Stage for a 5th year. “It gives me a great sense of pleasure knowing I’ve provided the Taste of Soul community with an amazing group of dancers, singers, and rappers, and providing the audiences with the possibility of seeing future stars. And we do this with clean age-appropriate music that is both entertaining and uplifting.”
For the last five years, Hankins has provided all the entertainment and sound/ DJ equipment for the youth-showcase. “It's a wonderful feeling to be a part of Taste of Soul, especially on historic Crenshaw Blvd. in inner city L.A. We feel right at home since we already interact with many the local students from all grade levels. Hankins is the head of The School Tour, a music tour that performs age-appropriate entertainment to all school grade levels on a weekly basis and says he sees many of the students at Taste of Soul.
“This year’s talent is exceptional and the Children’s Stage is going to be fire with emerging artists such as, The Compton Divas dance crew; R&B group, High Key; Six-year-old dynamo singer, Lil Ivan, KnsRocStar; and artists, Ashley Brinton, Ty Hibbet and more exciting acts throughout the day, Hankins says.
In addition to the stage, other Children’s World’s highlights will include Bank of America’s "Paint & Sip," where kids paint while enjoying their favorite juice beverage; PCL Construction will host cool activities for children; and MRKT Films will show their movies “Jumanji; Next Level,” “Disney’s Frozen II” and Paramount ‘s “Playing with Fire.”
“Pam and Danny Bakewell and the Taste of Soul nation, thank you for the amazing opportunity to expose such talent and showmanship in young artists to such a receptive and supportive audience” said Hankins.
“Every year, we look forward to providing youth and their parents with fun alternatives that are child-friendly, safe and fun,” said festival founder, Danny J. Bakewell, Sr.
Children’s World is located on the corner of Crenshaw and Coliseum.
For more information on Taste of Soul visit www.tasteofsoul.org and download the Taste of Soul mobile app for the latest updates.
Category: Community
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Legacy Home
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Shooting Victims
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Shooting Victims Obituary
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Memorial for Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting victims (Getty Images)
Seventeen people are dead, including at least 14 students, after a gunman opened fire Wed., Feb. 14, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, according to the Miami Herald and the Sun-Sentinel.
“It’s a day that you pray every day when you get up that you will never have to see,” Broward County Public Schools superintendent Robert Runcie told WSVN Channel 7. “I ask the community for prayers and their support for the children and their families.”
Profiles of the victims have been published at the Sun-Sentinel and the Miami Herald. They are:
Alyssa Alhadeff, a 15-year-old freshman
Scott Beigel, a geography teacher
Martin Duque, a 14-year-old freshman
Nicholas Dworet, a 17-year-old senior swim team captain
Aaron Feis, an assistant football coach
Jaime Guttenberg, a 14-year-old dancer
Chris Hixon, the school's athletic director
Luke Hoyer, a 15-year-old student
Cara Loughran, a 14-year-old student
Gina Montalto, a 14-year-old freshman member of the school's winter guard team
Joaquin Oliver, a 17-year-old student
Alaina Petty, a 14-year-old JROTC student
Meadow Pollack, an 18-year-old senior
Helena Ramsey, a 17-year-old senior
Alex Schachter, a 14-year-old freshman trombone player
Carmen Schentrup, a 16-year-old National Merit Scholar semifinalist
Peter Wang, 15-year-old ROTC member
People around the nation voiced their grief and condolences.
"It’s sad that these tragedies happen in our country," said Parkland Mayor Christine Hunschofsky. "We have many, many parents out here."
“As a former student of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School,” tweeted Philadelphia Flyers hockey player Shayne Gostisbehere, “I am extremely saddened by the horrific news from yesterday and with a heavy heart, my thoughts and prayers go out to everyone affected.”
Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo, also a Stoneman Douglas alum, tweeted: “I hope in this darkest of times back home… we can find love. You’re all in my prayers.”
President Donald Trump addressed the nation’s children from the White House Thursday: “If you need help, turn to a teacher, a family member, a local police officer or a faith leader. Answer hate with love. Answer cruelty with kindness.”
We invite you to share condolences for the victims in our Guest Book.
Additional coverage from the Sun-Sentinel:
Religious services, vigils for Stoneman Douglas students, parents, staff
Emotional Chicago Cubs star Anthony Rizzo: 'I grew up in Stoneman Douglas'
Full coverage of the Stoneman Douglas Shooting
Additional coverage from the Miami Herald:
The victims of the Douglas High mass shooting
Stoneman Douglas football coach ‘died a hero’ protecting students during shooting
Latest on the Parkland School Shooting: A community mourns; calls for mental health funding
You may also want to read:
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Coping with Sudden Death
Read Full Obituary for Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Shooting Victims
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"This uncalled for and cannot be forgotten death of innocent people ,may the God of comfort comfort their families and friends in this saddest time, no matter what year ,we will always will keep you in prayer"
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Fighting in the USHL article; USHL commish takes a jab at the Stars
Skip Prince
I ran across an article this morning from my buddy Ryan S. Clark, reporter for "The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead." Ryan is also author of the "Slightly Chilled" USHL blog. Even though his primary coverage is the hometown Fargo Force, Ryan does a great job of covering the entire USHL and is a great resource for hockey nerds like myself..
Anyway, Ryan posted this article today in which he tackles the debate on fighting, and if it should be allowed at the USHL level. The intent of my blog article is not to argue either side. What I found interesting were a couple of quotes made by USHL commissioner Skip Prince.
First off, there is this gem from Skip (direct quote from the article linked above in blue):
So far, it appears the USHL is doing its best to accomplish the goal. Fighting is down in the USHL this season.
The Lincoln Stars, who led the league with 70 fights last season, have 24 fights this year and are on pace for 48 fights.
“Well, how did they do last year?” Prince asked of the Stars, who were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. “I don’t think fighting wins you hockey games.”
Really? This is the commissioner of the USHL stating this? I thought the Stars lost to the Fargo Force in the playoffs last season because Fargo was simply the better team. Also add in the fact that both games were in Fargo's barn. But no, I guess the real reason the season ended for Lincoln the way it did was because they led the league in fighting majors.
In those two playoff games in Fargo in which the Stars lost, both teams combined for one fight. One. Zach Aston-Reese vs. Keaton Thompson. To be honest, that may have been Zach's first fight of the season.
Also, what about the Green Bay Gamblers teams of 2008-10? John Cooper, the head coach of the Gamblers at the time, was notorious for coaching a very physical, in your face style of hockey. They didn't shy away from dropping the mitts at all. In his two seasons in the USHL at the helm of the Gamblers, Cooper's teams combined for a record of 84-27-9. His 2009-10 team racked up 1394 penalty minutes (3rd most in the league), and his 2008-09 team racked up 1363 penalty minutes (3rd most in the league). His teams won back-to-back Anderson Cups (regular season champion), and in 2009-10, they also won the Clark Cup (playoff champion). Not too shabby, eh?
How many penalty minutes did the Stars have last season? 1323. Less than both seasons in Green Bay under Jon Cooper. Where is Cooper today? He's the head coach of the AHL Norfolk Admirals, and is rumored to be the next head coach of the NHL Tampa Bay Lightning. Playing that rough and tumble style obviously didn't work out for Cooper (sarcasm). Oh, but the USHL is quick to praise him with articles chronicling his meteoric rise up the coaching ranks.
Here's a quote from Skip Prince made back in April of 2010 in which he lauds Cooper after he was named USHL Head Coach and General Manager of the Year:
“The USHL gives out separate awards for the League’s top General Manager, and its top Head Coach for good reason – the demands of each position are separate, unique, and extraordinarily challenging,” said USHL Commissioner Skip Prince. “It’s a tribute to Jon’s extraordinary talents that he has managed to excel in both, managing the overall hockey operations of a superb Green Bay Gamblers organization while coaching a team that has now won two consecutive Anderson Cups and is preparing for the Clark Cup Finals. These are well-deserved awards for an impressive performance in all facets this year.”
Ask anyone who has any knowledge of Cooper's style and they'll tell you his teams were plain nasty to play against. They'd beat you up on the ice and on the scoreboard. That quote was from less than two years ago. Where was Prince when Cooper's teams were steamrolling opponents back then?
I don't want to ramble on, but Prince's statement is flat out ignorant and stupid in my opinion. If you want to argue that fighting doesn't belong at this level....fine. Make your point and move on. To throw the Stars under the bus and state that they lose games because they play a certain style of hockey is dumb. How is it working for the Stars this season? In first place for most of the season? Bueller? Yeah, I thought so.
Finally, here's another nugget of wisdom from the commissioner of the USHL:
For now, there are rules in place to cut down on fighting.
Players are no longer allowed to remove their helmets to start a fight, unlike last season. Prince said if a helmet was to fall off, referees will break up the fight immediately.
Uhh....what? When was the last time Skip watched a USHL game? Players remove their helmets all the time before a fight. And from what I've seen, they are not penalized for removing their helmets. The only additional penalties handed out other than the five-minute major have been misconducts when the players dance around and take too much time before throwing punches.
Also, his statement about referees breaking up fights immediately if a helmet falls off? Laughable. Not to argue semantics, but linesmen break up fights, not referees. Anyway, if this is what the rules are supposed to be, Prince may want to watch the occasional USHL game and see what really happens. An example from just last weekend:
Just about every fight I've seen so far this season, both players took their helmets off in front of the linesmen and referee before throwing punches. You don't see any linesmen interrupting the fight when the helmets come off.
Yes, the Stars play a rugged style of hockey. Some of the players aren't afraid to drop the gloves to defend a teammate, or fire their team up. However, there are no "enforcers" in the Lincoln lineup. You can easily look at any other USHL roster and find a player with zero points and a ton of penalty minutes. Players like Mike McKee, Brent Tate, Markus McCrea, and Dax Lauwers all contribute with points and quality minutes on the ice. I can point out other USHL players who are fourth-liners, who get maybe 5 shifts a game, and rack up fighting majors like it's going out of style.
Sorry for the rant, but the statements from Skip Prince really rubbed me the wrong way. I'd love to hear what you think. Please leave a comment below. Thanks for reading.
Posted by Yeti at 12:05 PM
Total lack of class on his part. You know the commissioner is in tight with all the officials...makes you wonder what they all talk about behind closed doors when they've got their feet up and the beers flowing.
starsfan said...
I understand the fighting as long as there is a legitimate reason (cheap shot or running the goalie). I think the league is trying to cut down on the fighting because of the injuries-and Lincoln has sustained quite a few missed games due to fighting. With all of the talk of outlawing it at the NHL level it was just a matter of time before it filtered down to the USHL. Not many NHL players take their helmets off anymore to eliminate concussions due to fighting. If a fan goes to the game just to see the fights he's not a true fan of the sport. Seems like we all like to see a fight now and then though-must be the caveman in us lol.
I think the context is in play here. I'll play devil's advocate and say Lincoln was the example simply as the team with the highest number of fights last season. If it were another team - then he'd say them.
But - there's no correlation between less fighting and greater success either.
That said, in light of Green Bay's performances the commish's comments are hypocritical and he's jumping on the bandwagon now that head injuries and its relation to fighting are on the front burner.
I think fighting is a necessary evil, and grudgingly accept it, though I do not like the employment of 'enforcers.' Skill guys will knock the crap off if they know THEY have to drop the gloves. Would it be nice to see it gone? Maybe - but I'm not going on a debate. That's for another time.
I don't have a problem with the fighting as long as there is a reason (cheap shot or running the goalie). I think the league is trying to cut down on some of the injuries sustained during fighting (concussions, broken hands, etc.). It was just a matter or time before this filtered down from the NHL level. Not many pros take their helmets off to fight anymore to avoid injury. Lincoln has certainly lost their share of game time to injuries obtained while fighting. But hey-who doesn't like to watch a fight now and then-must be the caveman in us lol. I did think that we got the anti-Lincoln sentiment out of the league when Gino left but guess that's not the case.
Layla said...
Other than Hanson, I can't off the top of my head think of many players who have lost significant time due to injuries sustained in a fight. Most of the injuries from what I can tell I believe happened during a "legal" play or a hit during the course of the game or possibly practice. The league is trying to crack down on concussions, but eliminating fighting is not the only way to go about it. Crosby's concussion was not caused by a fight, it was caused by getting hit with his head down. The NHL is cracking down on hits to the head, I'm not sure where the USHL stands on this policy, but I think that there are more things the league needs to do to eliminate concussions and other injuries.
nopuckluck said...
Hey Skippy????
Which team has lead the league in attendance 9 out of the last 10 seasons????
when I was up in Sioux City for the Fall Classic, the discussion on fighting came up. from what I was told, the league would like the players to keep their helmets on for the purpose of preventing concussions but there is no penalty for taking them off. but they don't want any "dancing around" before the fighting actually starts. so if the helmet comes off, the fight must begin quickly. and considering all the players have at the very least the half shield, it would make fighting with the helmet on a bit awkward. and a full cage would be even more of a hindrance to punching one's opponent in the jaw. this of course is fine as long as both players are courteous enough to allow your opponent to take off his helmet before engaging him. at the Classic, in the game between Muskegon and Green Bay, Dakota Mermis got ambushed by the kid from Muskegon before he could get his helmet (with full cage) fully off.
also I think Coach Johnson does not really like having the players fight but is not so naive to know that sometimes it is necessary. I think we all would expect someone to come running to Teichrob's or Williams' defense if a player from the other team charged the net too aggressively. also I would expect them to defend their teammates in the case of a questionable/dirty play along the boards.
Congrats to Matt Friese!
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ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF THE EXPANSION OF SERRES MUNICIPALITY WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT (WWTP), SERRES PREFECTURE
Client: Municipal Water Wastewater Utility of Serres
The purpose of the project was the renewal – alteration of the Environmental Permit with respect to the expansion of the existing WWTP of Municipality of Serres. The WWTP is located 3km south of the city of Serres.
SOLUTION WWTP View
The construction of the sewerage network in the city of Serres and the integration of new Municipal Districts to Serres Municipality in conjunction with the decision of the adjacent Municipalities of Skoutari, Lefkona and Mitrousi to transfer their wastewater to the existing WWTP of Serres, resulted in an increase to the population equivalent from 88.000 to 105.000 for the year 2015.
The WWTP was designed to treat incoming untreated wastewater adopting the treatment process of activated sludge with extended aeration and includes the following modules and subsystems:
influent manhole
initial elevation pumping station
sand, grit and grease removal
oxidation – nitrification – denitrification tanks
sedimentation tanks
disinfection unit with ultraviolet radiation (U.V.)
flow measurement unit in the exit
gravity thickener
drying beds
leachate network – bypass pipelines
buildings (administration building, warehouse, substation, etc)
fencing - landscaping
The design of the facility’s expansion was based on the following data:
Parameter Measurement Unit Value
Population persons 105.000
Average Flow m3/d 15.750
Peak Flow m3/h 1.740
The proposed expansion project included:
construction of a primary sedimentation unit upstream the biological treatment stage and an anaerobic sludge stabilization unit with parallel electricity production of approximately 200 kW from the exploitation of biogas.
construction of an additional biological reactor with the relevant electrical and mechanical equipment (diffusers, blowers, mixers etc) and installation of two additional oxygen meters in the aeration tanks.
construction of four tanks in the refining unit for the accommodation of filters.
construction of an additional sludge gravity thickener – sludge dewatering system.
installation of deodorization system in the wastewater and septage reception pretreatment units.
expansion of auxiliary networks and infrastructure to accommodate the new units.
In the accounted study the exact locations of the arrangements were identified, while the existing natural and human environmental conditions were investigated. In addition information on the feasibility of the project was provided, accompanied by a detailed technical description. Finally, the extent and magnitude of the environmental impacts emanating from the construction and operation of the project were identified and alternative solutions were proposed.
The project was submitted to the public agency responsible for the renewal – alteration of the Environmental Permit and the relative decision was issued.
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Category: Cam Newton Jersey
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Harley-Davidson motorcycles
Location: Milwaukee, USA
Website: www.harley-davidson.com
Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG, formerly HDI), often abbreviated H-D or Harley, is an American motorcycle manufacturer. Founded in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, during the first decade of the 20th century, it was one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression. Harley-Davidson also survived a period of poor quality control and competition with Japanese manufacturers.
The company sells heavyweight (over 750 cc) motorcycles designed for cruising on the highway. Harley-Davidson motorcycles (popularly known as "Harleys") have a distinctive design and exhaust note. They are especially noted for the tradition of heavy customization that gave rise to the chopper-style of motorcycle. Except for the modern VRSC model family, current Harley-Davidson motorcycles reflect the styles of classic Harley designs. Harley-Davidson's attempts to establish itself in the light motorcycle market have met with limited success and have largely been abandoned since the 1978 sale of its Italian Aermacchi subsidiary.
Harley-Davidson sustains a loyal brand community which keeps active through clubs, events, and a museum. Licensing of the Harley-Davidson logo accounts for almost 5% of the company's net revenue.
Model designations
Harley model designations are a sequence of letters and numbers, combined in limited ways. The sequences can be long, as in the 2006 model designation FLHTCUSE.
The first letter may be one of the following:
K ('50s flathead small twin), E, F (1936-* single cam OHV big twin), U, V (1930-48 four cam flathead big twin), D, G, R, W (flathead small twin), X (Sportster OHV), or V (VRSC) since 1984 only F (Big Twin), X (Sportster) and V (V_ROD) have been used regularly.
Letters are appended singly or in pairs, as follows:
B (BLACKED OUT ie Street Bob, Night Train, and Cross Bones models), C (Classic or Custom), CW (Custom Wide (2008 Softail Rocker)) D (Dyna chasis or Softail Deuce), E (Electric start), F (Fat Boy (1990–present); Fat Bob (2008–present) or Foot-shift (1972 and prior)), H (HANDLE BAR/ FRONT END MOUNTED FAIRING. ie bat wing fairing/quick release windsheild.), I (Fuel injection), L (Low Rider)), N {(Nostalgia as in Softail Deluxe/Nostalgia/Special) and Nightster in Sportster family} P (Police), R (Race, Road King, or Rubber-mount), S (Sport, Springer), ST (Softail), T (FRAME MOUNTED FAIRING), WG (Wide Glide), SE (Screamin’ Eagle), U (Ultra) X (FLHX Street Glide), sport in Dyna models, and Street Glide in Touring models.) XT (T-Sport Dyna Model).
Custom Vehicle Operations models can also have a number (2,3,4) added.
Note that these conventions for model designations are broken regularly by the company.
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1951 Harley-Davidson Servi-Car
Air cooled, 736cc, 45° V-twin, Flat head
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Harley-Davidson reveals 2016 model lineup
Watch the world’s fastest Harley-Davidson Road Glide hitting 165mph – video
You are here: Mbike.com > Catalogue > Brands > 1951 Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Photos and Specs
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To Fix Transit, Baker Aims to Get Business World on Board
Jul 26, 2019 | Boston Globe
By Jon Chesto, July 25, 2019
Solving our transportation mess will inevitably require help from the private sector. State government won’t be able to do it alone.
Now, the Baker administration is proposing ways that could make so-called public private partnerships happen more quickly, more easily, and more frequently. 7/26/2019.
But you know what really piqued the interest of business leaders? Proposed policy changes in the back of the bill. Among them: measures that would expedite how the Department of Transportation and Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority work with private-sector partners. There are measures to streamline the procurement process and to better integrate design work with construction.
The Legislature passed a law in 2009 to encourage public-private partnerships, but it has barely been used. This legislation represents another attempt at getting it right, to draw more companies in the door.
Most notably, the bill contains language aimed at avoiding what went down in Quincy last year: A development at the MBTA’s North Quincy Station ground to a halt after Attorney General Maura Healey ruled the T broke the law by not bidding out work for a parking garage that would be built there. A private developer was going to build the garage, but it would have ultimately been owned by the T.
Baker’s bill would avoid another such situation by relaxing procurement rules to allow developers to move forward on a wide array of public transportation infrastructure — from staircases to stations — that would be part of their projects but deeded to the state or the MBTA. This element, in particular, drew kudos from the real estate trade group NAIOP Massachusetts, the Massachusetts High Technology Council, and the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce.
NAIOP Massachusetts’ chief executive, Tamara Small, praised the creative approaches in the bill. She pointed to the success of train-station projects built with developer financing such as Boston Landing on the Framingham/Worcester Line in Brighton and Governor Charlie Baker submitted a bond bill to the Legislature Thursday that would authorize $18 billion in transportation spending over 10 years. The package includes the usual Christmas list. Here’s a sampling of the items Baker wants under his tree: road improvements near the Cape Cod Canal bridges, more money for long-awaited projects such as the South Coast rail extension and the South Station expansion, and improved rail service from Worcester to Springfield. To fix transit, Baker aims to get business world on board, such as Boston Landing on the Framingham/Worcester Line in Brighton and Assembly Row on the Orange Line in Somerville.
Transit-oriented developments, she said, depend on a functioning transit system, and this bill can help ensure these kinds of projects are expedited.
Sometimes, for companies doing business with the state, waiting on the slow-grinding transportation bureaucracy can seem like taking the T at rush hour: Surely, this creaky machine can move faster than this. If the Legislature adopts Baker’s changes, maybe it will.
Jim Rooney, chief executive of the Greater Boston Chamber, said the bill indicates the administration is listening to business leaders as well as to everyday riders who complain that MBTA projects often move too slowly to address the system’s pressing needs. Baker’s bond bill represents an important opening salvo in the Great Transportation Debate on Beacon Hill. House Speaker Robert DeLeo has vowed to tackle the issue this fall; the need has only become more urgent since the Red Line derailment and other MBTA snafus this summer.
Representative Bill Straus, DeLeo’s point person on transportation, said he’s interested in exploring ways to improve public-private partnerships and is keenly interested in what Baker has to say on the matter.
Rooney hopes to present recommendations to the Legislature from discussions being held by a variety of chambers and other business groups. The left-leaning Alliance for Business Leadership has also been hosting brainstorming sessions and will offer suggestions to lawmakers.
Yes, many executives want to see more revenue devoted to transportation. But there’s widespread agreement more revenue — maybe from higher gas taxes, additional tolls, or increased fees on Uber and Lyft rides — won’t be enough. Reforms are needed, too.
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Facebook to Become More Official with ‘Facebook at Work’
In a bid to become an integral part of office life, the social networking site Facebook is reportedly working on a new version of its service to make your working hours more productive, said reports.
The new service called "Facebook at Work" will allow employees to have work-friendly chats, connect with business partners, document collaboration and increase storage facilities.
It will look like Facebook with news feeds but will offer work and personal pages, the Financial Times reported. Workers at Facebook have already been using the work-focused site for a while, the report said.
The free enterprise version of its service will become a major rival to Google, Microsoft and LinkedIn, who are already into this domain.
"Facebook is secretly working on a new website called ‘Facebook at Work’" that would allow users to "chat with colleagues, connect with professional contacts and collaborate over documents", FT report said.
Facebook, which has 1.35 billion monthly active users worldwide is embarking upon a major overhaul to include long-term projects.
"We are going to continue preparing for the future by investing aggressively, connecting everyone, understanding the world, and building the next-generation in computing platforms," Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said recently. "We have a long journey ahead," he said.
Facebook, which has reported doubling of profits to $802 million in the last quarter, has been seeking to broaden its offerings and one of the applications is for office people to chat anonymously in virtual "rooms," similar to the chat rooms in IM days of the Internet.
Facebook facebook at work ft report new App new feature office chat room rival linked in zuckerberg 2014-11-17
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NO TAKERS FOR BROKE AIRZIM : 11 MONTHS LATER
Friday, October 11, 2019 NewsdzeZimbabwe 0
INSOLVENT flag carrier Air Zimbabwe is failing to attract an investor, 11 months after government invited bids from potential suitors to take over the embattled entity, the Zimbabwe Independent can report.
Grant Thornton, the administrator tasked with overseeing the process of returning the debt-ridden Air Zimbabwe to profitability, confirmed that no progress had been made in getting a new partner for the airline.
Moreover, government has also failed to regularise Air Zimbabwe’s US$381 million debt assumption plan which continues to weaken the airline’s chances of courting new partners.
“I do not have an update. I have no progress to tell you. If there is something, we will tell you,” assistant administrator Tinashe Mawere this week told the Independent
“I do not want to comment any further on this in case I say things that might result in another story.”
President Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed Patrick Chinamasa as AirZim board chairperson in June. Government is yet to appoint a board, months after former Transport minister Joram Gumbo fired the Chipo Dyanda-led board.
The airline attracted 10 potential investors this year, but they have been spooked by the company’s legacy debts.
Grant Thornton has previously insisted that debt assumption would boost the company’s turnaround strategy as most investors were demanding a clean balance sheet.
The airline has been engaging the Ministry of Finance to finalise the debt assumption process which has stalled the process of finding a new partner.
Air Zimbabwe administrator Reggie Saruchera in June said the airline’s debt takeover had been approved by cabinet long back, although there was no movement in that regard.
“The debt issue had already been approved in 2012, but nothing has happened since then. We have gone back to government and said, ‘cabinet, please approve the debt takeover so that the reconstruction process can begin in earnest’,” Saruchera said then.
In November last year, AirZim urged interested parties to invest in the moribund airline before a crunch meeting with creditors who demanded prompt payment. Before the company was placed under reconstruction last year, creditors including former employees, airlines, insurance companies and other service providers had been pushing for legal action against the airline.
Reconstruction cushions the troubled airline from litigious creditors seeking to attach property. AirZim has is in the past indicated that its defunct aircraft will be auctioned to service part of the debt.
Of the US$381 million debt, US$30 million is owed to foreign creditors, while US$292 million is government-to-government debt. Zimbabwe Independent
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Tuesday, 17 March 2015 — 5:17am | Film, Literary theory, Literature, Music
For the conscious mind can be set aside and subdued by the emotions, but in a dream world all is logic.
— Mervyn Peake, Gormenghast
One can hardly reproach a reader entranced by the stories of David Mitchell, sold on his aesthetic games and primed for every fresh display of his metafictional tricks, for failing to suppress a squeal of delight on cashing in a ticket for the oldest of loyalty rewards: the recognition of a familiar face. Or in Mitchell’s case, notorious as he is for threading his characters along a washing line of transmigration, not a face but a dislocated name, a clue to a persistent mind and memory. “Fifteen pages into The Bone Clocks,” Kathryn Schulz says of his latest novel (which begins in 1984), “I sat up so fast I clocked my own bones—skull against ceiling, in the low nook where I was reading. [The protagonist Holly Sykes] had just mentioned that, as a child, she had been cured of the strange voices in her head by a visit to one Dr Marinus. Mitchell fans will recall that Marinus is also the name of the doctor in The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet. When we meet him in that book, it is 1799.”
The recurrence of characters across a writer’s oeuvre is nothing new; Schulz acknowledges Shakespeare’s Falstaff as a precedent, and we could say the same for Pistol, Bardolph, and Nym, the other patrons of the Boar’s Head, whose encounter with the titular king of Henry V is all the more reverberant if you recall from earlier plays their rapport with the young Prince Hal. But Mitchell’s signature devices, the transmigration of souls and the porousness of the border separating narrative from lived reality, dramatically expand the range and flexibility with which a character occurring in one story can be thought of as identical to a character in another, joined by a continuous sense of self.
This is a trick he plays both within his novels and across them. Often our only clue is a name, but as with the early Soviet cinema, the meaning is in the cut: we are ever only who we are in the instant we are living now, and our past or future selves are not the same embodiments of drives and experience, yet we find it intuitive to think of them as part of the same coherent personhood, its growth implicit in the abruptness of difference from one discrete stage to another.
How did you get from there to here? This is what Mitchell entices us to wonder about his players at every turn, and when Neal Brose, the neurotic financial lawyer in Ghostwritten, shows up a school-aged popularity racketeer in Black Swan Green, where we first meet the avatar of adolescent peer pressure Hugo Lamb, who returns in The Bone Clocks as a sociopath making his way up the Cambridge elite and is soon recruited into a secret society of predatory immortals by Elijah D’Arnoq, a rifler from the Chatham Islands implied to be the descendant of a churchman in Cloud Atlas who meets with the crew of the Prophetess, whose first mate Boerhaave sails into Nagasaki as a young midshipman in The Thousand Autumns aboard the Profetes—presumably the same vessel, though you will have to ask the staff of the museum ship preserved in a Californian harbour espied in Cloud Atlas by Luisa Rey, the crime writer who calls into Ghostwritten’s Bat Segundo Show (not to be confused with the literary podcast by Edward Champion where Mitchell has appeared as a guest several times)—you see his method at work, lapping waveforms on top of each other in search of an emergent resonance, a drone. The people, the families, the sailing ships—they are the same, yet not the same, and we read into their histories from not only what we see but what we don’t.
Friday, 16 September 2011 — 12:26am | Adventures, Board games
On Saturday I attended the London Chessboxing Championship, which was more or less what it said on the tin. For those unfamiliar with the emergent hybrid sport, there is chess, and there is boxing. Every bout alternates between successive rounds of speed chess and boxing until one of the contenders secures a checkmate on the board or a knockout in the ring (along with the usual victory conditions for resignation or time).
It should be no surprise that chessboxing’s promoters sell it as a perfect biathlon of mind and body. Chess has an ancient mystique of intellect about it even among those who barely know the game, and boxing is far and away the most story-rich of sports. Both activities stand as cultural paragons of some indefinite struggle of individual mastery. And the combination is hardly arbitrary: the boxing forces the chess to be played under conditions of high adrenaline and extreme physical fatigue, imposing a test of mental stamina quite unlike any other.
Not so clear is whether the chess takes a toll on the boxing. Andrea Kuszewski has argued that the most cognitively taxing part of the game is the rapid task-switching, which demands superb emotional control; indeed, chessboxing may prove to be exceptionally well suited to training one’s aggression management. In theory, a good chessboxer has to box with the ability to play chess very shortly in mind. (In practice, as we will see, this is not necessarily the case.)
The London event at the Scala was reportedly the world’s biggest night of chessboxing to date, with five bouts on the card drawing a capacity crowd of 1000. Before the first match, my own estimate was 400-500 spectators on the floor with many more in the balcony and VIP lounge, but the audience swelled as the night wore on and the official count became more plausible. One of the organizers called it the largest live audience on record for a game of chess, though I believe Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky drew similar numbers in the Piatigorsky Cup (Santa Monica, 1966), and that’s only the record in the United States.
Nevertheless, the sport shows signs of rapid expansion, filling a former cinema palace kitty-corner to King’s Cross that doubled the capacity of its previous venue in Tufnell Park. There are rumblings that talks have begun to bring chessboxing to Royal Albert Hall next year, presumably to catch some of the Olympic spillover, but I’ll believe it when I see it.
Friday, 2 September 2011 — 8:36am | Animation, Canadiana, Film
Over the past week I’ve been attending a number of sessions at the London International Animation Festival. The LIAF has been around since 2003, but this is its first year in the Barbican Centre, where it comes at the tail end of a summer celebrating the art of animation.
July at the Barbican saw a retrospective of Studio Ghibli’s films, which I was shocked to discover never made it to British shores until 2001. Being a kid who remembers precisely two films from his toddlerhood, one being the Cantonese dub of My Neighbour Totoro (the other was The Land Before Time), it continues to astonish me that the childhoods of my peers were Miyazaki-free until Spirited Away. Also running at the Barbican Art Gallery until 11 September is Watch Me Move: The Animation Show, a gallery exhibition spanning 150 years of global animation history that I’ll have to write about another time. My readers in Canada will be happy to note that the exhibition’s next destination is the Glenbow Museum in Calgary, where Watch Me Move will run from 8 October through Christmas Eve.
All digressions aside, I really must commend the LIAF’s outstanding curation. In the out-of-competition programmes alone I’ve found some classics I had hitherto missed like the Russian masterwork Hedgehog in the Fog, which grounded a session dedicated to cut-out animation past and present, and discovered some new and instant favourites. Two that stood out for me, both selections from last year’s SIGGRAPH conference: Mobile by Verena Fels, a crowd-pleasing shuffle of animals on wires reminiscent of Pixar’s For the Birds; and The Wonder Hospital by Shimbe (Beomsik Shim), a surreal descent into what I’d best describe as a funhouse of cosmetic surgery.
The piece that I want to draw attention to here, however, is Les journaux de Lipsett (Lipsett Diaries). It was presented as the fulcrum of a session dedicated to the oeuvres of its director, Theodore Ushev, and its subject, the 1960s Canadian filmmaker Arthur Lipsett. Ushev himself was in attendance as one of the LIAF’s featured guests this year and told the audience of the many coincidences behind his latest project. Here’s one: when Ushev moved from Bulgaria to Montreal, where he has been based since 1999, he stayed in the same building that housed Lipsett for most of his life—until the latter committed suicide in 1986, aged 49.
Saturday, 23 July 2011 — 10:12am | Classical, Computing, Music, Pianism
I’ve been aware of the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard for a long time, but only in the past few days have I decided to try the layout for myself. Like any cognitive realignment pushing against the momentum of a lifelong habit, the initial adjustment process has been slow and occasionally punishing. When you are acccustomed to the fluidity of the keyboard as an invisible extension of the mind, it’s terrifying to find it amputated and clumsily reattached. I expect this overwhelming self-consciousness to be the norm someday when future generations willingly trade in their limbs for more dynamic cyborg substitutes.
Up to now, the closest I’ve come to this awkward stumbling was when I attempted to train my left-hand dexterity on Charlie Parker melodies I would normally play with my right. A kind of impotence, really: I was willing myself to do things that I was used to executing at dizzying velocities with ease, but my body just wouldn’t respond. The trick, I discovered, is to force yourself to slow down, clean up the suddenly naked particulars, and not rely so much on your established ‘chunks’ of muscle memory. My left hand is still a shambles, mind you, but as the lesser automaton it invents the more colourful passages.
That’s why I’m still plugging away in Dvorak. It may be slow-going at first—this post you are reading now is taking an eternity to punch in—but within minutes of playing with it, you begin to perceive all sorts of qualitative pleasures that simply don’t exist in QWERTY-land. It’s like switching to an Apple Macintosh, complete with the moment of epiphany where the cultishness of the already indoctrinated looks reasonable all of a sudden. (Or so I’ve heard. Having been a Mac user on and off since the age of five, I can’t really say.)
Wednesday, 1 June 2011 — 5:29pm | Comics, Literature, Television
There’s a passage in Generosity: An Enchancement, Richard Powers’ novel about genetics and creative writing, that transports us to a prominent talk show from Chicago:
It’s less a show than a sovereign multinational charter. And its host is, by any measure, the most influential woman in the world. Her own story is a remarkable mix of motifs from American creative fiction, from Alger to Zelazny. Say only that she has grown from an impoverished, abused child into an adult who gives away more money than most industrialized nations. She has the power to create instant celebrities, sell hundreds of millions of books, make or break entire consumer industries, expose frauds, marshal mammoth relief efforts, and change the spoken language. All this by being tough, warm, vulnerable, and empathetic enough to get almost any other human being to disclose the most personal secrets on international television. If she didn’t exist, allegory would have to invent her.
Powers calls his daytime doyenne Oona, but we all know he’s talking about Oprah. Here we find our scientific-literary novelist in the fine, familiar predicament of engaging with an outside world where corporate global brands are king. Allegories of real folks are tacky things, but when you pen a Chicago novel about finding the genetic basis of happiness in the anaesthetized age of mass media, there’s no detour around the Oprah problem: you’re writing her into your damned book.
(I’m not sure how well it goes. Generosity is eminently likable, and its Clarke Award nomination earlier this year is one of many reasons why you should pay attention to the Clarke Awards, but there’s an overall sense of Richard Powers for Beginners about it next to the depth of his earlier work.)
Here in the telly-impervious literary fortress of Nick’s Café Canadien, we don’t pay much attention to Ms Winfrey. My impression of Oprah has never been terribly positive: as a consumerist behemoth that uncritically promotes junk science and bad medicine while throwing its financial weight behind the overweening cult of self-help, it has often come off to me as a malignant alien presence from another world. I’m reliably informed, however, that as of last week the twenty-five-year gravity well of The Oprah Winfrey Show has finally pocketed itself into its own precious singularity.
Days earlier, Jonathan Franzen delivered a commencement address at Kenyon College that has since appeared in The New York Times (best read alongside Edward Champion’s notes on the abridgment), the latest variation on Literary Man’s perpetual anxiety over technology’s commodification of human passions. Franzen’s argument—that the casual comforts of the Facebook “like” and the easy requital of our device relationships have inoculated us from experiencing true and hurtful love—came bundled with the delicious irony that we’ve come to expect from everything involving the reluctant superstar of American letters. Scarcely a month ago, The New Yorker ran a magisterial essay of his about scattering the ashes of David Foster Wallace on the island of Robinson Crusoe only to hold it hostage behind the paywall. “Like” The New Yorker on Facebook, said the ransom note—or else.
The timing may be coincidental, but the parallel—rather, the perpendicularity—isn’t lost on those of us who absorbed everything about the Winfrey-Franzen feud of 2001 with unhealthy fascination. Here’s the story: ten years ago, Oprah Winfrey selected Franzen’s outstanding novel The Corrections for the Book Club segment of her programme, something that even her most bitter critics have to admit has been a marvel for moving volumes of contemporary fiction. Shortly after, Franzen voiced his discomfort with being marketed under the Oprah sticker, leading Winfrey to rescind the book selection along with Franzen’s invitation to the show.
You can imagine the media frenzy. High-profile literary scuffles are like classical music riots: we don’t see enough of them these days, and when we do, it’s comical yet reassuring to discover that other people care about this stuff. And here we had, in one corner, an inspirational figure of tremendous accomplishment and national renown; in the other corner—well, Oprah Winfrey.
A Link to the Past (older posts) »
Every Frame a Painting
Jonathan Crowe
OnFiction
Practically Marzipan
The Spider's House
Through the Dark Labyrinth
Flash of Steel
GameSpite.net
Physics and Philately
Ether Wave Propaganda
Gödel's Lost Letter
Shtetl-Optimized
The Dispersal of Darwin
The Renaissance Mathematicus
The Space Review
Whewell's Ghost
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Home > Vol 6, No 15 > Han
miR-497 and miR-34a retard lung cancer growth by co-inhibiting cyclin E1 (CCNE1)
Zhiyuan Han, Yanbin Zhang, Qiaoyuan Yang, Binbin Liu, Jianjun Wu, Yajie Zhang, Chengfeng Yang and Yiguo Jiang _
Zhiyuan Han1, Yanbin Zhang2, Qiaoyuan Yang1, Binbin Liu1, Jianjun Wu1, Yajie Zhang3, Chengfeng Yang4 and Yiguo Jiang1
1 State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Institute for Chemical Carcinogenesis, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, P.R. China
2 Department of Pulmonary Tuberculosis, Guangzhou Chest Hospital, Guangzhou, P.R. China
3 Department of Pathology, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, P.R. China
4 Department of Physiology and Center for Integrative Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
Yiguo Jiang, email:
Keywords: CCNE1, lung cancer, miR-34a, miR-497
Received: January 05, 2015 Accepted: March 02, 2015 Published: March 29, 2015
Cyclin E1, encoded by the CCNE1 gene, promotes G1/S transition, chromosome instability, and oncogenesis. Here, we show that miR-497 and miR-34a target the 3′-UTR of CCNE1. miR-497 and miR-34a are downregulated in cancer cells and their ectopic expression inhibited cell proliferation and colony formation in vitro, and inhibited tumor growth in a xenograft model. The effect of simultaneous overexpression of miR-497 and miR-34a on the inhibition of cell proliferation, colony formation, and tumor growth, and the downregulation of cyclin E1 was stronger than the effect of each miRNA alone. The synergistic actions of miR-497 and miR-34a partly correlated with cyclin E1 levels. When cells stably expressing CCNE1 were transfected with the Hi-miR-497/34a plasmid, there was no effect on colony formation, compared with that of cells transfected with either Hi-miR497 or Hi-miR34a. These results indicate cyclin E1 is downregulated by both miR-497 and miR-34a, which synergistically retard the growth of human lung cancer cells.
002851R1.html
Cancer is a complex disease caused by the progressive accumulation of genetic and epigenetic alterations in cells, which allow the cells to evade normal and environmental controls. Much progress has been made in the treatment of lung cancer in the last 10 years. Nonetheless, lung cancer is currently the most common cause of cancer-related death throughout the world, and therefore remains an unresolved medical issue. An understanding of the processes and pathogenesis of cancer at the systemic, cellular, and molecular levels is one of the most ambitious goals of cancer research. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are epigenetic regulators that play a pivotal role in the acquisition of tumorigenic properties by cells.
miRNAs are a class of endogenous noncoding RNAs of approximately 22 nucleotides (nt) that regulate mRNA stability and translation [1-3]. A wide range of biological functions are controlled by miRNAs, including cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis [4-6]. There is strong evidence that miRNAs can act as oncogenes or tumor suppressors, with key roles in cancer initiation, progression, and therapy. In an attempt to understand the mechanisms underlying cancer, an increasing number of studies have reported that individual miRNAs exert their functions in specific cancers. Many recent studies reported that some miRNAs cooperatively control a variety of biological processes, including cell development and differentiation, apoptosis, and the cell cycle [7-10]. When an mRNA or several different mRNAs involved in a specific biological process are targeted by several miRNAs, the miRNAs act cooperatively. Recent studies have demonstrated that miRNAs encoded in miRNA clusters function synergistically in cancer, e.g., the miR-17-92 cluster [11-13] and the miR-15a-16-1 cluster [14, 15]. Ventura et al. reported that miR-17-92 and miR-106b-25 double-knockout mice have a more severe phenotype than miR-17-92 single-knockout mice [16].
In our previous study [17], we profiled miRNA expression in lung cancer cells treated with resveratrol, a potential cancer chemopreventive agent. We found nine miRNAs (miR-622, -512-5p, -504, -497, -34a, -302d, -302b*, -29c, -20b) upregulated in the cells. Only miR-622, -497, and -34a inhibited the proliferation of lung cancer cells, whereas the remaining six miRNAs had no effect on cell proliferation in our preliminary experiments. miR-497 and -34a have a similar seed sequence, indicating that they might share similar functions; therefore, in the present study, these miRNAs were selected for the identification of potential targets and to explore their roles in lung cancer. Bioinformatics analysis suggested that both miRNAs target the CCNE1 gene, which encodes Cyclin E1. Cyclin E1, a member of the conserved cyclin E family, activates CDK2 [18] and regulates the transition of mammalian cells from quiescence to S phase. Transgenic cyclin E1 triggers dysplasia and multiple pulmonary adenocarcinomas [19, 20], and the overexpression of cyclin E1 was suggested to contribute to cancer development or tumorigenesis in various types of cancer, including breast, colon, and lung cancers [21]. Increased expression of cyclin E1 is a useful marker of poor prognosis in lung cancer [22]. These data suggest that cyclin E1 is a potential target for the treatment of lung cancer. Based on previous data, we designed a study to test the hypothesis that cyclin E1 expression is coregulated by miR-497 and miR-34a in lung cancer.
miR-497 and miR-34a inhibit the proliferation of human lung cancer cells
miR-34a is downregulated in lung cancer tissues and cells [23, 24]; however, few reports have examined the expression of miR-497 in lung cancer. Although miR-497 is downregulated in lung cancer [25, 26], its specific role remains to be determined. Analysis of the expression of miR-497 and miR-34a in lung cancer cells showed that the levels of miR-497 and miR-34a (Figure 1a) were reduced by 24.29 ± 2.50% and 9.43 ± 2.96% in A549, 16.11 ± 5.20% and 4.51 ± 0.34% in H460, 53.55 ± 9.28% and 18.25 ± 2.14% in H1299, 43.00 ± 15.46% and 87.01 ± 27.73% in H446, and 42.17 ± 4.26% and 32.04 ± 4.58% in QG56 lung cancer cells, respectively, compared to those in normal bronchial epithelial 16HBE cells.
The cell viability of A549, H460, and H1299 lung cancer cells was decreased by 66.71 ± 1.65% , 46.36 ± 1.96% and 72.10 ± 4.02 %, respectively, in response to miR-34a overexpression, and by 60.71 ± 4.63% , 74.94 ± 3.58%, and 73.71 ± 6.50%, respectively, in response to miR-497 overexpression (Figure 1b). Downregulation of the expression of miR-34a (Figure S1a) or miR-497 (Figure S1b) with inhibitors had no effect on the growth of A549, H460, and H1299 cells (Figure S1c) because the endogenous levels of these miRNAs in these cells are low. To identify the phase of the cell cycle at which the miRNAs exert their proliferation-inhibitory effect, cell-cycle distribution was analyzed by flow cytometry. Transfection with miR-497 or miR-34a mimics caused cell-cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase in A549, H1299, and H460 lung cancer cells (Figure 1c). Typical histograms of the cell-cycle arrest induced by miR-497 or miR-34a in A549 cells are shown in Figure 1d.
Figure 1: Elevated levels of miR-497 or miR-34a inhibit cell proliferation. (a) The relative levels of miR-497 and miR-34a were determined with the TaqMan® MicroRNA Assay and are expressed as fold change after normalization to the internal control, U6BsnRNA. Mean ± SEM, n = 3 (*P < 0.05, #P < 0.01, all vs. 16HBE cells). (b) A549, H460, and H1299 cells were transfected as described in Methods, and cell growth was monitored at 48 h using the CCK-8 assay. Mean ± SD, n = 3 (#P < 0.01 vs. NC mimic). (c) A549, H460, and H1299 cells were transfected, harvested at 48 h, and stained for cell cycle analysis on a FACSCalibur flow cytometer. Mean ± SD, n = 3 (*P < 0.05, #P < 0.01, all vs. NC mimic). (d) Representative histograms show the elevated levels of miR-497 and miR-34a that induced G0/G1 cell-cycle arrest in A549 cells; the percentages of cells in G0/G1 phase and S phase are shown.
miR-497 and miR-34a suppress colony formation and tumorigenesis
The effect of miR-497 and miR-34a on the colony forming ability of A549 cells was assessed. Cells transfected with miR-497 or miR-34a mimics showed fewer (31.33 ± 2.44 and 21.00 ± 4.00 colonies per well, respectively) and smaller colonies than those observed in the control groups (71.00 ± 9.33 colonies per well) (Figure 2a).
The effect of miR-497 or miR-34a on tumorigenicity was examined in vivo. The bilateral inguino-abdominal flanks of nude mice were inoculated subcutaneously (s.c.) with A549 cells transfected with normal control (NC) (left flank) or miR-497 (right flank) mimics or with NC (left flank) or miR-34a (right flank) mimics. At 5 weeks, the average volumes (588.39 ± 117.34 mm3) and weights (308.57 ± 26.53 mg) of tumors in groups of seven mice injected with cells transfected with miR-497 mimics were lower than those (1293.16 ± 198.57 mm3 and 427.14 ± 365.31 mg) in the control group injected with the NC mimic (Figure 2b), while the average volumes (190.25 ± 67.79 mm3) and weights (72.86 ± 31.84 mg) of tumors in mice injected with cells transfected with miR-34a mimics were lower than those (913.14 ± 455.23 mm3 and 287.20 ± 131.09 mg) in the control group injected with the NC mimic (Figure 2c). This evidence collectively suggests that miR-497 and miR-34a inhibit cell growth and might function as tumor suppressors.
Figure 2: Elevated levels of miR-497 and miR-34a retard cell growth in vitro and in vivo. (a) Colony formation by A549 cells transfected with the miR-497 mimic or the miR-34a mimic was examined in soft agar. The number of colonies per well (≥50 cells per colony) in triplicate wells is shown in the left column. Mean ± SD (#P < 0.01 vs. NC mimic). A representative result of the colony-formation assay is shown in the right column (original magnification, ×40). The effects of miR-497 (b) or miR-34a (c) on tumor formation were examined in a nude mouse xenograft model. The bilateral inguinoabdominal flanks of nude mice were injected s.c. with NC-mimic-transfected A549 cells (left flank) and miR-497-mimic-transfected A549 cells (right flank), or with NC-mimic transfected A549 cells (left flank) and miR-34a-mimic-transfected A549 cells (right flank). The miR-497-mimic-transfected or miR-34a-mimic-transfected cells generated tumors with smaller volumes and lower weights, as determined at necropsy, than those of tumors generated with NC-mimic-transfected cells in the contralateral flanks. Mean ± SD, n = 7 (#P < 0.01, all vs. NC mimic). Photographs illustrating the features of tumor growth at necropsy are shown at the bottom of Fig. 2b and 3c.
CCNE1 is a putative target of miR-497 and miR-34a
Three bioinformatics algorithms (Targetscan 5.0, RNAhybrid 2.1, and RNA22) predicted that miR-497 and miR-34a target CCNE1, which encodes the cyclin E1 protein. The 535-nt 3′ untranslated region (UTR) of CCNE1 was screened for complementarity to the seed sequences of miR-497 and miR-34a. Two predicted target sequences for miR-497 were identified at nt 223–254 and nt 467–492 (Figure S2a). The putative secondary RNA hybrids, with minimum free energy (ΔG), are shown in Figure S2b. All ΔG values were approximately –20.0 kcal/mol, which is considered authentic for miRNA targets. The miR-497 target sequences at nt 223–254 and nt 467–492 of the CCNE1 3-UTR are highly conserved among nine species (Figure S2c). One predicted target sequence for miR-34a was found at nt 226–255 (Figure S2d). Figure S2e shows the putative secondary RNA hybrid, with its ΔG. The miR-34a target sequence at nt 226–255 of the 3′-UTR is highly conserved among nine species (Figure S2f). Although the sequence of the miR-34a seed region pairs with G:U complementarity at nt 247, 248, and 253 of the UTR, the seed regions of miR-497 (5′-AGCAGCA-3′) and miR-34a (5′-GGCAGUG-3′) are complementary to the same sequence at nt 247–253 (5′-UGCUGCU-3′) in the UTR. Therefore, miR-497 and miR-34a share one binding site (nt 247–253) in the 3′-UTR of CCNE1.
CCNE1 is a direct target of miR-497 and miR-34a
To confirm that CCNE1 is targeted by miR-497 and miR-34a, we investigated the effects of miR-497 and miR-34a on cyclin E1 levels by immunoblotting. Overexpression of miR-497 or miR-34a in A549, H460, and H1299 lung cancer cells by transfection with miR-497 or miR-34a mimics (Figure S3a and S3b) markedly reduced the levels of cyclin E1 protein (Figure 3a). However, real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (real-time qPCR) showed no changes in CCNE1 mRNA levels in response to miR-497 or miR-34a upregulation (Figure S3c). This indicates that the negative correlation between cyclin E1 expression and miR-497 or miR-34a levels is due to post-transcriptional modulation of cyclin E1 expression.
The wild-type CCNE1 3′-UTR and a mutant CCNE1 3′-UTR were subcloned downstream from the Renilla luciferase gene in the psiCHECK2 vector to determine whether they bound directly to seed regions of the miRNAs. In Figure 3b, the wild-type sequence (α, wt-CCNE), mutant sequences at nt 247–253 (β, mt-CCNEβ) or nt 485–491 (γ, mt-CCNEγ), and mutant sequences at both binding sites (δ, mt-CCNEδ) in the CCNE1 3′-UTR were inserted individually into the vector, generating four plasmids as follows: wt-CCNE, mt-CCNEβ, mt-CCNEγ, and mt-CCNEδ. The binding sites between miR-34a and the wild-type or mutant CCNE1 were examined (Figure 3c). When the wt-CCNE plasmid was cotransfected with the miR-34a mimic, the luciferase activity of A549 cells was markedly reduced by 34.56 ± 1.13% (Figure 3d). When the mt-CCNEβ plasmid was cotransfected with the miR-34a mimic or an inhibitor, the luciferase activity did not differ from that of the control. These data confirm that miR-34a directly targets CCNE1. To examine the interaction between miR-497 and CCNE1, the binding sites in CCNE1 were completely mutated, or mutated individually at each nucleotide (Figure 3e). When the wt-CCNE plasmid was cotransfected with the miR-497 mimic, the luciferase activity was markedly reduced by 40.09 ± 1.99% (Figure 3f). Moreover, when either plasmid (mt-CCNEβ or mt-CCNEγ) with only one mutant site was cotransfected with the miR-497 mimic, the luciferase activity was slightly reduced, whereas cotransfection of the mt-CCNEδ plasmid, which contained two completely mutated binding sites, with the miR-497 mimic reversed the miR-497 induced reduction of luciferase activity (Figure 3f). However, because the endogenous levels of miR-34a and miR-497 are low in A549 cells, transfection with miR-497 and miR-34a inhibitors did not affect the levels of luciferase activity (Figures 3d and 1f).
Figure 3: CCNE1 is a direct target of miR-497 and miR-34a. (a) The expression levels of the cyclin E1 protein were measured by immunoblotting using GAPDH as the loading control. Experiments were performed in triplicate, with results similar to those shown. (b) Diagram of the psiCHECK2 vector used for the luciferase reporter activity assay. The arrow indicates the transcription start site. The magnified panel shows the location of the wild-type CCNE1 3′-UTR (α, wt-CCNE) or mutant CCNE1 3′-UTR at nt 247–253 (β, mt-CCNEβ), at nt 483–490 (γ, mt-CCNEγ), and at both (δ, mt-CCNEδ), which were subcloned into the psiCHECK2 vector. Thus, four individual plasmids were generated: wt-CCNE, mt-CCNEβ, mt-CCNEγ, and mt-CCNEδ. (c) Diagram of the wt-CCNE and mt-CCNEβ reporter constructs. mt-CCNEβ contains a seven-base mutation in the miR- 34a target region, abolishing its binding to miR-34a. (d) Firefly luciferase reporter activity assay. The relative luciferase activity was normalized to the Renilla luciferase activity and compared with that in the no-transfection control. Mean ± SD, n = 3 (#P < 0.01 vs. NC mimic). (e) Outline of the wt-CCNE, mt-CCNEβ, mt-CCNEγ, and mt-CCNEδ reporter constructs. mt-CCNEβ and mt-CCNEγ each contain one seven-base mutation in the miR-497 target region (at nt 247–253 or nt 483–490, respectively, in the CCNE1 3′-UTR), partly abolishing their binding to miR-497. mt-CCNEδ contains two seven-base mutations in the miR-497 target regions (at nt 247–253 and nt 483–490 of the CCNE1 3′-UTR), completely abolishing its binding to miR-497. (f) Firefly luciferase reporter activity assay. Relative luciferase activity was normalized to the Renilla luciferase activity and compared with that in the no-transfection control. Mean ± SD, n =3 (#P < 0.01, all vs. NC mimic).
Cyclin E1 mediates the effects of miR-497 or miR-34a on cell growth
Because CCNE1 was identified as a direct target of miR-497 and miR-34a, we investigated whether the effects of miR-497 and miR-34a on cell proliferation were mediated by the modulation of CCNE1 expression. Cell proliferation and cell-cycle distribution were examined in A549 cells after CCNE1 knockdown and overexpression of the miRNAs. The efficiency of RNA interference was confirmed by real-time qPCR (Figure 4a, upper panel) and immunoblotting (Figure 4a, lower panel). Knockdown of CCNE1 significantly inhibited cell viability and G0/G1 arrest in A549 cells, whereas miR-497 or miR-34a overexpression did not enhance the effect of CCNE1 knockdown (Figure 4b and 4c). A typical histogram of the cell cycle is shown in Figure 4c. These results support the assumption that the effects of miR-497 and miR-34a on cell growth are mediated by its modulation of CCNE1 expression.
Figure 4: CCNE1 knockdown affected the miR-497 and miR-34a induced inhibition of proliferation. (a) Validation of siRNA-mediated CCNE1 silencing in A549 cells. The relative CCNE1 mRNA levels, as determined by real-time qPCR, are expressed as fold changes after normalization to the internal control (18S rRNA) (upper row). Mean ± SEM, n = 3 (#P < 0.01 vs. control siRNA). GAPDH was used as the loading control for immunoblotting to determine the cyclin E1 protein levels. A representative result from three independent experiments is shown (bottom row). (b) Cell growth was monitored in A549 cells using the CCK-8 assay. Mean ± SD, n = 3 (#P < 0.01, CCNE1 siRNA vs. control siRNA, control siRNA + miR-497 mimic vs. control siRNA + NC mimic, control siRNA + miR-34a mimic vs. control siRNA + NC mimic). (c) Cell-cycle distribution of G0/G1 phase in A549 cells was analyzed with a FACSCalibur flow cytometer. Representative histograms show the percentages of cells in the G0/G1 and S phases.
Synergistic effects of miR-497 and miR-34a on tumor growth retardation
Because CCNE1 is a cotarget of miR-497 and miR-34a, we examined whether the two miRNAs exert synergistic effects on cell growth. First, expression plasmids transiently expressing miR-497 (Hi-miR497), miR-34a (Hi-miR-34a), and a plasmid coexpressing miR-497 and miR-34a (Hi-miR497/34a) were constructed and verified by DNA sequencing and a TaqMan® MicroRNA Assay (Figure S4). The viability of cells transiently transfected with Hi-miR497, Hi-miR-34a, or Hi-miR497/34a was reduced at 48, 72, and 96 h. At 72 h, cell viability decreased from 2.28 ± 0.17 in the mock group to 1.73 ± 0.17, 1.58 ± 0.09, or 1.0 ± 0.02 in cells transfected with Hi-miR497, Hi-miR-34a, or Hi-miR497/34a, respectively, indicating that the Hi-miR497/34a plasmid caused a more marked reduction in cell viability than the Hi-miR497 or Hi-miR-34a plasmids (Figure 5a). The proliferation inhibition rate of Hi-miR497/34a (55.99%) was almost the same as the total inhibition rate (54.82%) of Hi-miR497 and Hi-miR-34a at 72 h. The colony formation rate of cells transiently transfected with Hi-miR497, Hi-miR-34a, or Hi-miR497/34a decreased by 36.84 ± 7.02%, 41.23 ± 4.09%, or 64.04 ± 2.92% (Figure 5b). Cells transfected with miR-497/miR-34a formed fewer and smaller colonies than cells transfected with Hi-miR-34a or Hi-miR497 alone. A549 cells transiently transfected with mock (empty plasmid), Hi-miR497, Hi-miR34a, or Hi-miR497/34a were inoculated s.c. into the bilateral inguino-abdominal flanks of nude mice. The average volume of tumors expressing Hi-miR497 (149.40 ± 17.84 mm3), Hi-miR-34a (190.80 ± 19.36 mm3), or Hi-miR497/34a (39.60 ± 14.32 mm3) was lower than that of the mock group (458.20 ± 30.64 mm3) (Figure 5c). The average weight of tumors expressing Hi-miR497 (456.00 ± 27.20 mg), Hi-miR-34a (554.00 ± 28.80 mg), or Hi-miR497/34a (184.00 ± 28.80) was lower than that of the mock group (750.00 ± 40.00 mg) after 5 weeks (Figure 5d). This indicated that the average volume and average weight of tumors transfected with Hi-miR497/34a were lower than those in the other groups after 5 weeks. Figure 5e illustrates the features of tumor growth. The tumor weight inhibition rate of Hi-miR497/34a (75.47%) was greater than the total inhibition rate (65.33%) induced by Hi-miR497 and Hi-miR-34a, whereas the tumor volume inhibition rate of Hi-miR497/34a was comparable to the total inhibition rate of Hi-miR497 and Hi-miR-34a. Taken together, these data indicate that miR-497 and miR-34a cooperate in inhibiting tumor growth.
Figure 5: miR-497 and miR-34a synergistically retard cell growth. (a) The cell-growth curves for A549 cells transfected with Hi-miR497, Hi-miR-34a, or Hi-miR497/34a at 24, 48, 72, and 96 h. Means ± SD, n = 3 (*P < 0.05, at 48 h, Hi-miR497/34a vs. Hi-miR497;#P < 0.01, at 72 and 96 h, Hi-miR497/34a vs. Hi-miR497 or Hi-miR34a). (b) A549 cells were transfected with Hi-miR497, Hi-miR34a, or Hi-miR497/34a. Colony formation was examined in soft agar. Numbers of colonies per well (≥50 cells per colony) in triplicate wells are shown. Mean ± SD (#P < 0.01, Hi-miR497/34a vs. Hi-miR497, Hi-miR497/34a vs. Hi-miR34a). The cooperative effects of miR-497 and miR-34a on tumor formation were examined in a nude mouse xenograft model. Hi-miR497/34a-transfected A549 cells were injected s.c. into the right inguino-abdominal flanks of nude mice. The Hi-miR497/34a-transfected cell treatment generated tumors with smaller volumes (c) and lower tumor weights (d), as determined at necropsy, than those of tumors generated with mock-transfected cells. Mean ± SD, n = 5 (#P < 0.01, Hi-miR497/34a vs. Hi-miR497, Hi-miR497/34a vs. Hi-miR34a). (e) Images show the features of tumor growth at necropsy.
Synergistic effects of miR-497 and miR-34a on cotargeting CCNE1
A549 cells stably expressing cyclin E1 (designated Hi-CCNE1a) were generated (Figure S5). Hi-CCNE1-a cells transfected with Hi-miR497/34a expressed lower levels of cyclin E1 protein than those transfected with Hi-miR497 or Hi-miR34a (Figure 6a). This suggests that the coexpression of miR-497 and miR-34a enhanced the effect of each individual miRNA on the modulation of cyclin E1 expression. A reporter gene activity assay was used to test this hypothesis in A549 cells. Cotransfection of the wt-CCNE plasmid with Hi-miR497/34a reduced luciferase activity to a greater extent than cotransfection of wt-CCNE with Hi-miR497 or Hi-miR34a alone (Figure 6b). However, when the mt-CCNEδ plasmid was cotransfected with Hi-miR497/34a, the luciferase activity did not differ from that of cells cotransfected with either Hi-miR497 or Hi-miR34a alone (Figure 6b). This suggests that the synergistic effects of miR-497 and miR-34a are correlated with the levels of cyclin E1. Transfection of Hi-CCNE1a cells with Hi-miR-497/34a did not affect colony formation (Figure 6c) compared with that of cells transfected with either Hi-miR497 or Hi-miR34a, as shown in Figure 6d. Therefore, overexpression of CCNE1 abolished the growth retardation induced by miR497 and miR34a in A549 cells, and CCNE1 mediates the synergistic effects of miR-497 and miR-34a.
Figure 6: miR-497 and miR-34a act synergistically by cotargeting CCNE1. (a) Cyclin E1 protein levels in individually transfected A549 cells. Cyclin E1 protein levels were determined by immunoblotting using GAPDH as the loading control. A representative result of three independent experiments is shown. (b) Firefly luciferase reporter activity assay. A549 cells were transfected with Hi-miR497, Hi-miR34a, Hi-miR497/34a, or inhibitors. The relative luciferase activity was normalized to the Renilla luciferase activity and compared with that of the untransfected control. Mean ± SD, n = 3 (#P < 0.01 Hi-miR497/34a vs. Hi-miR497 or Hi-miR34a). (c) Hi-CCNE1a cells were transfected with empty vector or Hi-miR497/34a. Colony formation was examined in soft agar. (d) A representative result of the colony formation assay is shown (original magnification, ×40).
The major finding of our study is that miR-497 and miR-34a synergistically inhibit the expression of the same gene, CCNE1, and the function of its encoded protein, cyclin E1, thereby impeding the growth of lung cancer cells. Several studies have demonstrated that miR-34a retards lung cancer cell growth or induces apoptosis by targeting TGFβR2 [23], Axl [27], Notch-1 [28], or HDM4 [29], whereas miR-497 does so by targeting HDGF [26] in lung cancer. Our study extends the results of others by showing that miR-34a and miR-497 cotarget CCNE1 in lung cancer cells. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate the cooperative effect of miR-497 and miR-34a, which belong to different miRNA families, on inhibiting cancer cell growth.
In our previous study [17], we reported that an antitumor agent, resveratrol, upregulates the expression of several miRNAs (including miR-497 and miR-34a), and thus might inhibit the proliferation of lung cancer cells. This prompted us to investigate whether these two miRNAs function as antitumor agents. Some miRNAs that are downregulated in cancer are found in regions with frequent loss of heterozygosity [30]. miRNA-497 and miRNA-34a are located on chromosomes 17p13.1 and 1p36, respectively. The loss or deletion of chromosome 17p13.1 or 1p36 has been reported in various types of cancer, including lung cancer [31, 32], suggesting that the downregulation of miRNA-497 or miRNA-34a in these cancers arises from genomic DNA loss or deletion. miR-34a, located at 1p36, has been extensively studied as a microtumor suppressor [33, 34], and miR-497, located at 17p13.1, is deleted in 93% of small-cell lung cancers [35]. Son et al. reported that miR-497 is downregulated in lung cancer [25]; however, its role in lung cancer remains unclear. Here, we studied the function of miR-497 in lung cancer cells, and showed that miR-497 and miR-34a inhibit cell growth in vitro and in vivo, supporting our hypothesis that the two miRNAs function as tumor suppressors. Several studies have reported that miR-497 and miR-34a are potential anticancer agents based on their ability to target oncogenes [24, 25, 36, 37]. In the present study, we found that they cotarget CCNE1, repressing the expression of cyclin E1.
Cyclin E1 is an essential regulator of cell cycle G1 progression and entry into S phase. It is a nuclear protein that was first identified by its ability to complement the proliferative defects of cyclin-deficient yeast cells. It is overexpressed in various cancers, including lung, breast, and gastrointestinal tract tumors [38-40]. Several mechanisms regulate its expression in tumors. Although gene amplification might be involved, the expression of cyclin E1 is also modulated post-transcriptionally by miRNAs. Cyclin E1 (or cyclin E) is repressed by miR-15b, miR-16, miR-34c, and miR-145 [41, 42] in other cancer cells. In the present study, we showed for the first time that both miR-34a and miR-497 bind to the 3′-UTR region of CCNE1, as confirmed by immunoblotting and luciferase activity assays. Previous studies showed that miR-34a targets the oncogenes CDK4, CDK6, CCND1, MET, and BCL2 [36, 43, 44], whereas miR-497 targets the oncogenes CCND2 and BCL2 [37, 45] in various types of cancer. These and our results, together with the strong possibility that more miR-497 or miR-34a targets will be discovered soon, suggest that these two miRNAs regulate proliferation-related mRNAs (including CCNE1), and thus function as tumor suppressors.
The protein encoded by CCNE1, a newly identified cotarget for miR-34a and miR-497, plays a key role in regulating the growth of lung cancer cells, and its effect is mediated by the cooperative action of the two miRNAs. Several studies have focused on the effects of the miRNA family axis on cancer because many miRNAs contain the same 7-nt or 8-nt seed sequence. Most single miRNA mutations do not markedly affect the corresponding phenotype, whereas knocking out multiple or all miRNA family members can affect several phenotypes in insects [46, 47]. This phenomenon, which reflects the complexity of miRNAs and especially the miRNA–miRNA network, allows them to perform many biological functions. Here, we found that two miRNAs from different families synergistically inhibit the growth of lung cancer cells, which indicates that the two miRNA families share similar biological functions. Biochemical and bioinformatics studies showed that the 5′ ends of miRNAs, designated as “seed sequences”, play critical roles in target recognition and posttranscriptional repression [3, 48, 49]. The recognition is based on the complementary base paring between the seed sequence and the target mRNA. Studies have shown that G:U base pairing is tolerated in seed complementarity [3, 50]. Therefore, miR-497 and miR-34a, with seed sequences 5′-AGCAGCA-3′ and 5′-GGCAGUG-3′, respectively, can bind to the same sequence (3′-UCGUCGU-5′) in the 3′ UTR of CCNE1; however, there are three-base variations between their seed regions. This was verified in our luciferase activity assay. Our results indicated that miR-497 and miR-34a synergistically inhibit cell proliferation, predominantly by repressing the expression of their cotarget, CCNE1. However, the relationship between miR-497 and miR-34a is complex and requires further research.
Activation of cyclin E:Cdk2 results in retinoblastoma tumor-suppressor gene (RB) inactivation by hyper-phosphorylation, induction of E2F target gene transcription, and cell cycle G1/S transition [18]. Cell cycle dysregulation (including the overexpression of cyclins) occurs frequently in neoplasia or cancer. Multiple reports suggested that cyclin E is a promising therapeutic target in lung [20, 51], ovarian [52], and breast cancers [53, 54]. Li et al [53] showed that cyclin E siRNA delivered by intratumoral injection effectively inhibits cyclin E expression in vivo and results in tumor suppression. However, there are limitations to the therapeutic application of siRNAs, such as their stability, off-target side effects, and interferon responses to foreign nucleic acids. Unlike siRNAs targeting a single molecule, the miRNA approach might have a greater potential as cancer therapeutics because of the endogenous nature of miRNAs and their capacity to simultaneously regulate many different oncogenes across multiple pathways. Furthermore, evidence indicates that a combination of two tumor-suppressive miRNAs is superior to single miRNAs for the repression of oncogene expression, the inhibition of proliferation and invasion of cancer cells in culture, and the inhibition of tumor proliferation in vivo. Our data indicated that the tumor-suppressive miR-34a and miR-497 could co-inhibit cyclin E1, suggesting that cyclin E1 is a key target mediating the anti-tumor effect of miR-34a and miR-497 in lung cancer. Both miRNAs modulate other oncogenic genes that may mediate their tumor suppressor function. Chek1 (putative target of miR-497 identified by the algorithm DIANA miRPath v.2.0), cdc25a (miR-497) [55], and cdk6 (miR-497and miR-34a) [55, 56] are involved in the indirect or direct regulation of the cyclin E1 downstream genes cdk2, RB and E2f3 (target for miR-34a, [33, 57]). Therefore, the combination of miR-34a and miR-497 could be superior to each individual miRNA in its ability to retard lung cancer cell growth to some extent.
In conclusion, we showed that miR-497 and miR-34a act cooperatively to regulate certain aspects of tumorigenesis, including the growth of lung cancer cell lines, especially through their cooperative effect on the downregulation of cyclin E1 expression.
Cell culture and reagents
The lung cancer cell lines A549, H1299, H460, H446, and QG56, purchased from the Chinese Academy of Sciences Cell Bank of Type Culture Collection (Shanghai, China), were cultured in RPMI-1640 medium (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS; Sijiqing Co., Ltd, Hangzhou, China). Normal human bronchial epithelial cells (16HBE), kindly provided by Dr. Xujun from the Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Diseases, were maintained in minimum essential medium supplemented with 10% FBS (Sijiqing Co., Ltd). All cells were incubated at 37°C in a humidified atmosphere of 5% CO2. Antibody directed against cyclin E1 (Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Santa Cruz, CA), Alexa-Fluor-680-conjugated goat anti-mouse IgG antibody (Molecular Probes, Invitrogen), and IRDye 800-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody (Li-Cor, Lincoln, NE) were purchased for immunoblotting.
Transient transfection of miRNAs or small interfering RNA (siRNA) oligonucleotides
The oligonucleotides including miRNA mimics, inhibitors, and their negative control oligos were purchased from GenePharma (Shanghai, China). Cells were transiently transfected with 50 nM miR-497 mimic, miR-34a mimic, miR-497 inhibitor, miR-34a inhibitor, CCNE1 siRNA (Qiagen, Germany), or siRNA negative control (NC siRNA; Qiagen) using Lipofectamine 2000 (Invitrogen).
RNA extraction and real-time qPCR
Total RNA was extracted with the TRIzol Reagent (Invitrogen). miRNA expression was analyzed using the TaqMan® MicroRNA Assay (Ambion, Austin, TX), which detects mature miRNAs, on the ABI 7500 Real-Time PCR System (Applied Biosystems, Foster City, CA), according to the manufacturer’s protocol. Real-time qPCR was used to confirm the expression levels of mRNAs. cDNA was produced according to the protocol for PrimeScript™ RT Reagent (TaKaRa, Japan), and real-time qPCR was performed as described in the method for SYBR® Premix Ex Taq™ II (TaKaRa) with the Rotor-Gene 6000™ (Corbett Research), supplied with analytical software. 18S rRNA was used for normalization. The oligonucleotides used as PCR primers were as follows: CCNE1 (forward) 5′-CGTGGCCTCTAAGATGAAGG-3′, CCNE1 (reverse) 5′-CTGGCATTTTGGAGAGGAAG-3′; 18S rRNA (forward) 5′-TCAGTGGTGGACCTGACCTG-3′, 18S rRNA (reverse) 5′-TGCTGTAGCCAAATTCGTTG-3′.
Immunoblotting analysis
Total cell lysates were prepared with cell lysis buffer (CST, Beverly, MA) containing proteinase inhibitors (1% cocktail and 1 mmol/L PMSF, both from Kangcheng, China). Cell proteins (50 μg) were separated by 12% SDS–PAGE and transferred to PVDF membranes (Millipore, Bedford, MA). The membranes were blocked, incubated with anti-cyclin E1 or anti-glyceraldehyde phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) antibody, and then with secondary antibodies. Immunoblotting analyses were performed with the Odyssey Infrared Imaging System (Li-Cor).
The sequences of the CCNE1 3′-UTR and the CCNE1 3-UTRs in which the putative binding sites had been mutated were amplified with specific primers (listed in Table S1), and verified by DNA sequencing. These gene fragments were then subcloned downstream from the Renilla luciferase gene in the psiCHECK2 vector (Promega, Madison, WI) to generate the wild-type CCNE1 plasmid (wt-CCNE), the partial mutant CCNE1 plasmids (mt-CCNEβ and mt-CCNEγ), and the complete mutant CCNE1 plasmid (mt-CCNEδ). For luciferase assays, A549 cells were transfected with wt-CCNE, mt-CCNEβ, mt-CCNEγ, or mt-CCNEδ in 24-well plates using Lipofectamine 2000 (Invitrogen). The transfection mixtures contained 100 ng of plasmid and 50 nM synthetic mimic, inhibitor, Hi-miR497, Hi-miR34a, or Hi-miR497/34a. A549 cells were also transfected with the psiCHECK-2 vector as the normalization control. The cells were collected 48 h after transfection, and the luciferase activity was measured with the Dual-Luciferase Reporter Assay System (Promega).
Cell viability and cell-cycle assays
For the cell viability assay, cells were incubated in 10% Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8; Dojindo, Japan), diluted in normal culture medium, at 37°C for 2 h and the absorbance at 490 nm/absorbance at 650 nm (A490/650) ratio was calculated. For cell-cycle analysis, cells were washed twice with PBS, collected, fixed, stained with propidium iodide (Sigma, St Louis, MO), and analyzed with fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) on a FACSCalibur flow cytometer (Becton Dickinson, Mountain View, CA). Cell viability and cell-cycle distribution were determined 48 h after transfection.
Soft-agar colony formation
Transfected cells were propagated on soft agar. A base layer (1.5 mL) of agar (Amresco, Solon, OH) (0.6% agar in RPMI-1640 with 10% FBS) was allowed to solidify in a six-well flat-bottomed plate before the addition of 2 mL of a cell suspension containing 2000 cells in 0.3% agar in RPMI-1640 with 10% FBS. The colonies were allowed to grow for 28 days at 37°C under 5% CO2 and visualized with an inverted microscope (Olympus IX71, Olympus, Tokyo, Japan).
Tumor xenograft model
Five-week-old male nude mice (BALB/c nu/nu), purchased from the Medical Animal Experimental Center of Guangdong Province, were used to examine the tumorigenicity of the transfected cells. The animal protocol was approved by the Animal Care and Use Committee. The transfected cells were propagated and 5 × 106 cells were inoculated s.c. into the dorsal flanks of the mice. Tumor size was measured weekly and tumor volume was estimated as described in our previous report [17]. Tumors were removed and weighed 5 weeks after the injection of tumor cells.
Expression vector construction
The sequences of the miR-497 precursor (MIR497) and the miR-34a precursor (MIR34A) were amplified with oligonucleotide primers synthesized by Invitrogen (Figure S4). MIR497 and MIR34A were then inserted individually into the pcDNA™6.2-GW/EmGFPmiR vector (Invitrogen) using the BLOCK-iT™ Pol II miR RNAi Expression Vector Kit (Invitrogen), to generate the expression constructs Hi-miR497 and Hi-miR34a, respectively. These were verified by DNA sequencing with the primer 5′- CTCTAGATCAACCACTTTGT-3′ in an ABI Prism 373 Genetic Analyzer (Applied Biosystems). The empty pcDNA™6.2-GW/EmGFPmiR vector was used as the negative control (mock). To investigate the cooperative activities of miR-497 and miR-34a, we used the isocaudomers BamHI (NEB, Beverly, MA) and BglII (NEB) to ligate both MIR497 and MIR34A into the vector to generate the expression construct Hi-miR497/34a, which was confirmed by DNA sequencing.
A clone of the green fluorescent protein (GFP)-tagged cDNA [including complete 3-UTR encoding human CCNE1 (NM_001238.2)], was bought from Origene (Rockville, MD) as transfection-ready plasmid DNA. The neomycin-resistance gene is expressed downstream from the SV40 promoter in the same vector, which permits the positive selection of transfected cells. To construct cells stably expressing CCNE1, A549 cells were transfected with the plasmid DNA and selected with neomycin (0.5 mg/mL).
All assays were performed in triplicate in three independent experiments, and all data are expressed as the mean ± SD. Statistical differences between two groups were evaluated with the two-tailed Student’s t test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used for multiple comparisons. In all cases, P < 0.05 was considered significant. All statistical tests were performed with the statistical analysis software IBM SPSS Statistics 20 for Mac (International Business Machines Corporation, New York, NY).
We thank Chengjie Liang from the Experimental Animal Center of Guangzhou Medical University for raising the nude mice used as the animal model in this study.
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81172633, 30972443, 30771780 to J.Y.; 81202235 to H.Z.), Research Fund for Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China (20114423110002 to J.Y.), University Talent Program of Guangdong (2013-164 to J.Y.), Bureau of Science and Information Technology of Guangzhou Municipality (2013J4100034 to H.Z.) and Innovation Team Grant of Guangzhou Municipal Education Department (13C06 to Z.Y.).
miRNA, microRNA; 3′-UTR, 3′-untranslated region; FBS, fetal bovine serum; siRNA, small interfering RNA; CCK-8, cell counting kit-8; NC inhibitor, miRNA inhibitor negative control; NC mimic, miRNA mimic negative control; qRT-PCR, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction; RT, reverse transcription; SD, standard deviation.
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Orient Victory Travel Group Company Limited (00265.HK)
TodayIR Home | 繁體 | 简体
Listed Date 04 Sep 2014
Address 7th floor, Winbase Centre, 208 Queen's Road Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong
Telephone (852) 3590-6280
Facsimile (852) 3590-6290
Email ovchina@orientvictory.com.cn
HSCI 11,120.3 150.2
HKSPLC25 37,597.7 348.9
HKSPGEM 81.2 0.1
HSCEI 11,120.3 150.2
HSCCI 4,504.0 66.5
HSFML25 9,775.8 124.9
H-FIN 16,932.4 157.2
Announcements and Notices - NOTICE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING
Monthly Return of Equity Issuer on Movements in Securities
Announcements and Notices - DELAY IN DESPATCH OF CIRCULAR
Announcements and Notices - CONTINUING CONNECTED TRANSACTIONS UNDER THE EVENT PLANNING FRAMEWORK AGREEMEN ... Announcements and Notices - CONTINUING CONNECTED TRANSACTIONS UNDER THE EVENT PLANNING FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT
Announcements and Notices - SHARE TRANSACTIONIN RELATION TOCOOPERATION AGREEMENT INVOLVING ALLOTMENTAND I ... Announcements and Notices - SHARE TRANSACTIONIN RELATION TOCOOPERATION AGREEMENT INVOLVING ALLOTMENTAND ISSUE OF NEW SHARES
Proxy Form for use at the Extraordinary General Meeting to be held on Friday, 31 January 2020 or any adjo ... Proxy Form for use at the Extraordinary General Meeting to be held on Friday, 31 January 2020 or any adjournment thereof
Circulars - CONTINUING CONNECTED TRANSACTIONS UNDER THE EVENT PLANNING FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT AND NOTICE OF ... Circulars - CONTINUING CONNECTED TRANSACTIONS UNDER THE EVENT PLANNING FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT AND NOTICE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING
Circulars - (1) General Mandates to Issue and Repurchase Shares; (2) Re-election of Retiring Directors; a ... Circulars - (1) General Mandates to Issue and Repurchase Shares; (2) Re-election of Retiring Directors; and (3) Notice of Annual General Meeting
Proxy Form for Use at the Annual General Meeting to be Held on Friday, 28 June 2019 Or Any Adjournment Th ... Proxy Form for Use at the Annual General Meeting to be Held on Friday, 28 June 2019 Or Any Adjournment Thereof
Circulars - Discloseable and Connected Transactions in Relation to the Acquisitions of 40% Equity Interes ... Circulars - Discloseable and Connected Transactions in Relation to the Acquisitions of 40% Equity Interest in Each of the Target Companies and Notice of Extraordinary General Meeting
Proxy Form for Use at the Extraordinary General Meeting to be Held on Tuesday, 30 October 2018 Or Any Adj ... Proxy Form for Use at the Extraordinary General Meeting to be Held on Tuesday, 30 October 2018 Or Any Adjournment Thereof
Proxy Form for Use at the Annual General Meeting to be Held on Monday, 25 June 2018 Or Any Adjournment Th ... Proxy Form for Use at the Annual General Meeting to be Held on Monday, 25 June 2018 Or Any Adjournment Thereof
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FINANCIAL REPORTSmore
2019 (IR)
2018 (ESG)
2018 (AR)
Orient Victory China’s Annual Report 2015 Won Platinum at Vision Awards from LACP - “Platinum Award” in t ... Orient Victory China’s Annual Report 2015 Won Platinum at Vision Awards from LACP - “Platinum Award” in the 2015 Vision Awards” “Top 80 Annual Reports in the Asia-Pacific Region” “Top 50 Chinese Annual Reports of 2015”
《公司業績》東勝旅遊(00265.HK)中期虧損收窄至1,776萬元
《公司業績》東瀛遊(06882.HK)中期純利3,031萬 派息2仙
香港中旅(00308.HK)作價3,817萬人民幣轉售寧夏附屬5%
颱風襲澳門致當地兩碼頭受損 部份賭場水浸
永耀集團(08022.HK)公墓業務擬引入戰略夥伴
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CORP. GOVERNANCE
ORIENT VICTORY is the integrator, investor, developer and operator of high quality resources of great tourism and great health whole industry. It covers cultural tourism, city update, financial asset. It owns a company that is listed on the main board of Hong Kong. It is an important shareholder of the president status of China Comfortable Travel Group. And it is the major contributor of the investment fund of China Cultural Tourism Industry. It has the first level real estate development qualification of the nation. The invested projects mainly locate in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei. For continuously three years, it has ranked top 100 of China’s real estate enterprises.
Since its founding, Orient Victory regards the nation’s large policies as its direction for development, regards meeting people’s need for beautiful lives as its responsibility and regards promoting economic development and social harmony as its goal. It aims for the highest, strives to become better, and overcomes all obstacles and difficulties, realizing the innovative, healthy and leap-type development of the industry.
Becoming the practitioner of the beautiful Chinese dream is the core value of Orient Victory Group, and is the essential development concept of workers of Orient Victory. For a long term, Mr. Shi Baodong, president of Orient Victory Group, has been leading his elite teams and employees in the practice of beautiful Chinese dream. He has been combining enterprise development with the future and destiny of the Party and the nation, the pursuit of happiness of people and the benefits of the group employees, using love, wisdom and sweat to practice the beautiful Chinese dream step by step.
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Mr. Suei Feng-jih (隋風致)
Independent Non-Executive Director
Mr. He Qi (何琦)
Mr. Dong Xiaojie (東小杰)
Ms. Song Sining (宋思凝)
Mr. Zhao Huining (趙會寧)
Mr. Mo Yueming (莫躍明)
Mr. Shi Baodong (石保棟)
Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director
Mr. Shi Baodong (石保棟) - Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director
Mr. Shi, aged 49, was appointed as our Chairman and executive Director in September 2014, Mr. Shi is the chairman of the nomination committee of the Company (the “Nomination Committee”) and a member of the remuneration committee of the Company (the “Remuneration Committee”) of the Company. Mr. Shi graduated from the Hebei University of Architecture in 1989. He has over 18 years of experience in property development and he is a qualified engineer in the PRC. Mr. Shi is the director of Orient Victory Group HK Holdings Limited* (東勝集團香港控股有限公司) and the founder, shareholder and chairman of Orient Victory Cultural & Tourism Group Company Limited* (東勝文化旅遊集團有限公司) (formerly known as Shijiazhuang Orient Victory Investments Group Limited* (石家莊市東勝投資集團有限公 司)) (“OVCT”), which is principally engaged in property development, including the development of residential properties, commercial properties, properties and ancillary facilities for the elderly, as well as an ecological park and a culture park in the PRC. In October 2015, Mr. Shi was appointed as president of China Comfort, an associate of the Group, and is responsible for the overall management of China Comfort.
Mr. Shi is the vice chairman of the China Real Estate Industry Association and a consultant of its Special Committee for China Urban Development, Special Committee for Elderly Residential Area and Special Committee for China Small Town Development. At the same time, Mr. Shi is the standing vice president of Hebei Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong and the vice president of Chinese Rowing Association.
Mr. Shi is the sole director and sole beneficial owner of Orient Victory Real Estate Group Holdings Limited, which holds 9,900,620,661 shares of the Company which include 2,062,717,781 units of 2016 October PCS giving rise to an interest of 2,062,717,781 shares of the Company, representing approximately 77.66% of the total issued capital of the Company.
Beside, Mr. Shi personally holds 130,239,145 ordinary shares of the Company, representing approximately 1.02% of the total issued capital of the Company.
Ms. Song Sining (宋思凝) - Non-Executive Director
Ms. Song, aged 40, was appointed as our non-executive Director with effect from 16 June 2017. Ms. Song is also a member of the audit committee of the Company (the “Audit Committee”). She graduated from the Philosophy Department (哲學系) of Hebei University in Public Relation (公關專業) in 1997 and graduated from the Correspondence College of the Central School of Communist Party of China (中央黨校函授學院) in 2000, majoring in economic management (經濟管理專業). She completed a practical training course in real estate (實戰型房地產研修班) provided by Peking University in 2015. Ms. Song served as a senior management in other real estate companies for more than 15 years. She is currently a vice president of Orient Victory Real Estate Development Group Limited (東勝房地產開發集團有限公司), a company indirectly wholly-owned by Mr. Shi.
Mr. Zhao Huining (趙會寧) - Executive Director
Mr. Zhao, aged 50, was appointed as our executive Director and chief executive officer with effect from 16 June 2017 and 15 July 2017, respectively. Mr. Zhao is also a member of our Remuneration Committee and Nomination Committee. Mr. Zhao graduated from the Transportation Management and Engineering Department (運輸管理工程系) of Northern Jiaotong University (北方交通大學), majoring in traffic and transportation (交通運輸專業) in 1990. In 2004, Mr. Zhao obtained a master degree of Arts from Flinders University of South Australia in International Relations in Economy and Trade which were jointly offered by Nankai University (南開大學) and Flinders University of South Australia and graduated from Yanshan University (燕山大學) with a doctoral degree in management science and engineering (管理科學與工程) in 2014. Mr. Zhao was conferred the title of senior economist qualification in the PRC in 2002.
Mr. Zhao has extensive working experiences, including working as a staff member in Project Evaluation Division of Mechanical and Electrical Equipment Tendering Bureau of Hebei Province (河北省機電設備招標局項目評估處) from 1990 to 1992; staff member and senior staff member of the Traffic, Post and Telecommunications Division of Hebei Provincial Economic and Trade Commission (河北省經貿委交通郵電處) from 1992 to 1997; deputy director of Beijing office of Hebei Provincial Economic and Trade Commission (河北省經貿委北京辦事處) from 1997 to 1998; deputy director of Foreign Economic Relations Division of Hebei Provincial Economic and Trade Commission (河北省經貿委外經處) (“HPETC”) from 1998 to 2000; deputy director of the office of HPETC and director of Beijing office of HPETC from 2000 to 2001 successively; legal representative, executive director and general manager of Hebei Economic and Trade Investment Co., Ltd. (河北省經濟貿易投資有限公司) from 2001 to 2005 successively; legal representative, executive director, general manager and secretary of Party Committee of Hebei Information Industry Investment Co., Ltd. (河北省信息產業投資有限公司) from 2005 to 2009 successively. He was elected as the vice chairman of the tenth session of the committee of Hebei Youth League (河北省青年聯合會) in December 2009. From 2009 to 2014, Mr. Zhao worked in Hebei Construction & Investment Group Co., Ltd (河北建設投資集團有限責任公司) with last position as chairman and secretary for the Party Committee. He was also the chairman and president of Gaokang Capital Investment Management Co., Ltd (高康資本投資管理有限公司), a subsidiary of China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group (中國節能環保集團) from 2014 to 2016. Mr. Zhao is currently a director and the president of China Culture Industry Investment Fund Management Co., Ltd (中國旅遊文化產業投資基金管理公司), a subsidiary of the Group. Mr. Zhao was a non-executive director of China Suntien Green Energy Corporation Limited, a company listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the “Stock Exchange”) (Stock Code: 00956), during the period from February 2010 to August 2014.
Mr. Dong Xiaojie (東小杰) - Independent Non-Executive Director
Mr. Dong, aged 55, was appointed as our independent non-executive Director in September 2014. Mr. Dong is the chairman of Remuneration Committee. Mr. Dong graduated from the Hebei Normal University, majoring in mathematics in 1984. He has been a principal partner of Shengyuan Investment Risk Consulting Management Co., Ltd. since 2011 and was appointed as a director of Robyn Hode Capital Limited in April 2015.
Mr. He Qi (何琦) - Independent Non-Executive Director
Mr. He, aged 62, was appointed as our independent non-executive Director in September 2014, Mr. He is a member of our Audit Committee and Nomination Committee. Mr. He has been an independent non-executive director of China Merchants Land Limited, a company listed on the Stock Exchange (stock code: 978), since 2013. He has also been an independent non-executive director of Evergrande Real Estate Group Limited, a company listed on the Stock Exchange (stock code: 3333), since 2009. Mr. He was the deputy secretary of China Real Estate Association for the period from 2006 to 2016. Mr. He is currently a secretary of Distribution Services Committee of China Real Estate Association.
Mr. Suei Feng-jih (隋風致), Chairman
Mr. Dong Xiaojie (東小杰), Chairman
Mr. Shi Baodong (石保棟), Chairman
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OV GROUP WEBSITE
www.orientvictory.com.cn
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Latest: Soprano Naděžda Kniplová died
Classical Music Opera
Brno Music Friendly City
The acclaimed soprano Naděžda Kniplová died at the age of 87. Former soloist of the National Theatre and the State Opera in Prague, she also performed in the Brno Opera between 1959 and 1964. more
The National Theatre Ballet will celebrate 100 years of its existence
10 January 2020, 1:00
Classical Music Dance
The ballet ensemble of the National Theatre Brno celebrates 100 years since its foundation this season. On the occasion of this anniversary, the ensemble is preparing a gala concert at the Janáček Theatre, featuring dancers from major European ballet companies, as well as soloists of national theatres from Prague, Bratislava and Brno. Among the guest artists there are stars such as Diana Kosyreva, Natascha Mair, Philipp Stepin, Cesar Corrales and many others. more
A new cycle of concerts of the Janáček Quartet is starting
In 2020, the Janáček Quartet launches a brand new cycle of chamber concerts, in which it also welcomes guests from the ranks of chamber ensembles and soloists. Four concerts of this cycle are planned to take place in the newly reconstructed Janáček Hall of the Brno Conservatory. The opening concert of the cycle is dedicated to the founding member of the quartet Jiří Kratochvíl, who died on 3 January 2020. more
Láska opravdivá will celebrate Pavel Křížkovský's 200th anniversary of birth with a concert
Classical Music Other
Leoš Janáček's teacher Pavel Křížkovský would celebrate his 200th birthday this year. The male choir Láska opravdivá [Truthful Love] will commemorate his anniversary by a concert at the composer's statue at the foot of the Špilberk hill. We will hear male choral pieces by P. Křížkovský and L. Janáček. more
NdB will present the last two performances of the opera Three Fragments from Juliette / The Human Voice
David Radok's opera production Three fragments from Juliette / The Human Voice is in for its last performance. You can see it only two more times at the Janáček Theatre. more
Latest: Jiří Kratochvíl, founder of the Janáček Quartet, deceased
Janáček Quartet announced today that Jiří Kratochvíl, founder and long-time member of the ensemble, died on 3 January 2020. He was 95 years old. more
NdB Ballet is looking for new dancers for the upcoming season
31 December 2019, 1:00
The ballet company of the National Theatre Brno announces audition for dancers, both male and female (soloists and chorus) to be cast in the season 2020/21. The audition is announced to take place in April 2020. more
The New Year's Concert of the Brno Philharmonic returns to the Janáček Theatre
The New Year's Concert of the Brno Philharmonic is coming back to the Janáček Theatre after almost three years, and for the first time it will be led by the Chief Conductor Dennis Russell Davies. In 2020, the ensemble will richly celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of composer Ludwig van Beethoven, whose 9th symphony will be heard at the concert. The solo parts will be accompanied by soprano Kateřina Kněžíková, alto Jana Hrochová, tenor Richard Samek and bass Roman Janál, accompanied by the Brno Philharmonic and the Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno. more
In an Old Photo: Today's premiere of the ÚstaF-voiceband.cz ensemble
8 November 2019, 1:00
Brno's ÚstaF-voiceband.cz is the only ensemble of its kind in the Czech Republic. It devotes itself to the interpretation of poetry on theatre stages. Today, Friday 8 November, it will present the premiere of its performance In an Old Photo, which will also be one of the first theatrical pieces in the newly created Brno field of performing arts called Terrain. The premiere deals with the work of Pernambuco by Ivan Wernisch. more
Janáček Opera will close the Czech Culture Year in Leipzig with Janáček's Jenufa
Classical Music Opera Other
The Czech Culture Year was launched in October 2018 by the Ball at the Leipzig Opera and culminated with a guest appearance at the Leipzig Book Fair in March 2019. It will also finish at the Leipzig Opera, featuring the National Theatre Brno with its production of Jenufa by Leoš Janáček. more
New Year in the sign of celebration and return
Dominika Volfová
With the return to the Janáček Theatre after three years and with the first foreshadowing of the upcoming celebrations of the 250th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven's birth, the Brno Philharmonic entered the new year with its traditional, already the 65th New Year concert in history. For this occasion, it chose a programme truly magnificent and appropriate, crowned by the European-famous Ode to Joy. The whole gala evening took place under the baton of Chief Conductor Dennis Russell Davies. more
Chamber Spiritual Martinů Voices
Eva Křižková
In the premises of the neo-Gothic Czech Brethren Evangelical Church of J. A. Comenius, on the fifth evening of the Moravian Autumn festival, a performance of sacred music for choir and organ took place. In addition to the choir of the same name, Martinů Voices was also dominated by the organist Linda Sítková and a four-member ensemble of French horns. All this under the direction of choirmaster Lukáš Vasilek. more
Gide and Martinů on stage together for the first time and with embarrassment
The third event of this year's Moravian Autumn festival was transferred to a theatre stage. The event was made happen by Terén, which is a platform acting as a third stage of the Centre of Experimental Theatre, right after the Goose on a String and HaDivadlo theatres. And it was on this particular stage of the Goose on a String where the world premiere of a stage production of Oedipus by André Gide took place yesterday. Composer Bohuslav Martinů stands behind its equally important incidental music. more
Brussels Einstein at the Moravian Autumn in Brno
Lukáš Pavlica
The jubilee 50th Moravian Autumn music festival started yesterday at Bobycentrum in Brno with a concert performance of the minimalist opera Einstein on the Beach by composer Philip Glass and director Robert Wilson. The concert version was created by collaboration of visual artist Germaine Kruip, Suzanne Vega and Ictus Ensemble and Collegium Vocale Gent. Although only the music remained from the previously stage show, the length of the concert itself was comparable with the opera work. Hence, the evening lasted almost four hours. more
David Fligg: Gideon Klein would grow up to become a Bernstein-like personality
Classical Music Jazz Other
Doctor Fligg talked to us about one of the most talented composers and musicians of the first half of the twentieth century – Gideon Klein. He is at the same time one of the organizers of the project Gido‘s coming home, which commemorates a flat one hundred years from the composer’s birth. more
A promise fulfilled: The Tales of Hoffmann
The National Theatre Brno started its new season yesterday by staging The Tales of Hoffmann, an opéra fantastique by French composer Jacques Offenbach with French libretto written by poet Jules Barbier. Directing was undertaken by the recognized artistic tandem SKUTR, consisting of Martin Kukučka and Lukáš Trpišovský. The title role was presented by Luciano Mastro, his faithful companion Nicklausse (and also the figure of the Muse at the end of the show) was performed by Markéta Cukrová. The roles of Hoffmann's sweethearts Olympia, Antonia, Giulietta and Stella have were performed by Martina Masaryková, Pavla Vykopalová, Daniela Straková-Šedrlová and Andrea Široká. The character of Hoffmann's eternal rival (Lindorf/Coppélius/Miracle/ Dappertutto) was interpreted by Ondrej Mráz. The orchestra was led by Ondrej Olos, the choir by Klára Složilová Roztočilová. more
Brno Philharmonic has opened the season
The Brno Philharmonic launched its 64th season yesterday, which is also the second season of its current Chief Conductor and Artistic Director Dennis Russell Davies. Beside him, the leading Russian pianist Elisabeth Leonskaja also stood on the stage of the Brno Stadium. Brahms' Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Bartók's Piano Concerto No. 3 in E major and the Czech premiere of the composition DA.MA.SHI.E by the Japanese composer Joe Hisaishi's, connected with animated films of director Hayao Miyazaki, were chosen for the ceremonial start. more
The Czech Philharmonic Choir of Brno has started the season
The fourteenth season of the Subscription Concert Cycle was launched yesterday evening by the Czech Philharmonic Choir of Brno with captivating music. A jubilant, almost festive programme was played in the Besední dům, following a performance at the St. Wenceslas Music Festival in Ostrava the previous evening. However, there were faithful and long-time spectators in Brno without whom the entire cycle would lose its meaning. more
Opening of the season in National Theatre Brno with a good end
Classical Music Opera Dance For kids Other
Yesterday evening at the piazzetta of the Janáček Theatre was marked by a concert to commence the 2019/2020 season of the National Theatre Brno (NdB). Promotion of the event ensured the most important thing for this music evening – hundreds of spectators who filled up the whole place. We should not forget the really wide age range, which is so much needed for future culture, especially at its lower limit (still in strollers). more
Josef Klíč and the smile of his scarred heart
Only rarely one single song is the main topic for an interview. In the case of the cellist Josef Klíč, the concert master of the National Theatre in Brno, this was offered. It does not happen every day that a Czech composer and his song reach the finals of a worldwide competition. However, there were more reasons for our talk – memories of the late Jaroslav Erik Frič, Josef's contract at the Janáček Theatre and the upcoming new album. more
4 Elements: Hidden Order/ Gnawa / Falling Angels / Sarabande
22/01/20, 11:00 / Mahen Theatre
Vocal concert / Jakub Pustina, Robin Červinek – vocals
22/01/20, 19:30 / Koncertní sál HF JAMU v Brně (Cancert Hall of the Faculty of Music, JAMU Brno)
Students' concert
Bach and Mansurian
23/01/20, 19:30 / Besední dům Concert Hall
Final performance / Gabriela Viktorová-Eibenová – historical singing
The Mozart Effect
The Knight of the Rose
26/01/20, 17:00 / Janáčkovo divadlo (Janáček Theatre)
Students' concert / Tereza Volfová – clarinet
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Project Inclusion
Legal Submissions
Data Visualizations
Legal Referral Information
SCS and OPS in Canada Map
Why feminism must include the fight for sex workers’ rights
(Photo credit: Peter Kim, Red Umbrella March, 2017)
Fueled by male transgressions and the unrelenting harms issuing from the White House by an oppressive US president, the 2018 Women’s March once again boasted an inspiring show of force last weekend. Millions attended marches across North America, defiantly calling out the injustices, oppression, and patriarchal systems underpinning them.
(Photo credit: Vox, Women’s Marches across the US, 2018)
But what was markedly different this year in many cities was the focus on intersectionality and a recognition of the need to centre the most marginalized voices to truly represent the diversity and inclusion this movement seeks to embrace. In Vancouver, a local trans sex worker, Hailey Heartless, underscored the need to include sex workers and the trans community as integral parts of the women’s movement.
(Photo credit: @PaceSociety; Hailey Heartless at Vancouver Women’s March; January 20, 2018)
We could not agree more, and believe that for feminism to truly embody the spirit of empowerment and liberation it must not only include, but also work to amplify the voices of sex workers and those fighting to make the profession safe.
Feminism requires listening to women and empower them to name their experiences on their own terms. It means respecting their views with regard to the policies and positions that have direct bearing on their health and safety. The majority of sex workers, and research, agrees that decriminalization would improve the health outcomes of those in the profession.
At its core, feminism is about supporting women's choices and control over their bodies. If feminism supports women's reproductive choices, and their choice to have sex (or not) with whoever they choose, an exchange of money should have no bearing on this.
READ MORE: Evaluating Canada's Sex Work Laws: The Case for Repeal
Sex workers are experts at negotiating sexual consent, however, their ability to do so is seriously compromised by criminalization of their work and work places. Criminalization of the purchase of sex has led to rushed transactions on the street, as clients fear detection by law enforcement. This limits the ability of sex workers to properly screen clients and therefore increases their vulnerability to violence or exploitation. Criminalization of advertising and communication has also made negotiating with clients and screening more difficult.
Rights not rescue
Yes, you can send me relevant email and newsletters
Sex Worker Exclusionary Radical Feminism (SWERF) pushes a reductive and oppressive view of sex work that wrongly suggests that all sex workers are women and all clients are men. These same feminists also advance a narrative that sex work is a form of violence against women in and of itself, regardless of the circumstances in which it takes place, what the sex worker says about their own experience, and whether sex workers’ identify violence or exploitation taking place.
SWERFs reject the voices of actual sex workers who attempt to provide a more nuanced picture of their own. They do not create space for sex workers to define their own experience, especially if it doesn't fit within the narrow parameters defined by this particular feminist worldview. This silencing of voices is contrary to fundamental feminist principles of empowerment and agency. With ironically patriarchal arrogance, these radical feminists are saying they know better than the individuals actually living the experience of sex work.
READ MORE: My Work Should Not Cost Me My Life
They are the ones pushing criminalization in the form of the Nordic Model which purports to "decriminalize" the selling of sexual services while criminalizing clients who purchase it. But an overwhelming volume of evidence shows that criminalization at both ends of the transaction is harmful to sex workers. Proponents of the Nordic Model fail to provide evidence to support their claims and instead rely on lurid, voyeuristic testimony from individuals who were trafficked or were exploited as youth—in other words, those who could never be characterized as having engaged in sex work.
SWERFs deliberately conflate sex work with human trafficking, arguing that decriminalization would increase trafficking despite evidence to the contrary. Sex workers actually wish to be allies in the fight against trafficking and the exploitation of youth in commercial sex, and they are best positioned to do this; however, sex workers who support decriminalization are not seen as advancing one of the key anti-trafficking solutions, which they are.
Sex work is work, and must be seen as a valid income generating activity; but in a criminalized context, the industry and those within it have no recourse to labour protections, including unionization, WCB, and employment standards. Surely SWERFs can get behind the idea that all workers, including sex workers, deserve employment protections and equality—one of the earliest goals of the feminist movement of the 60s and 70s.
Criminalization pushes sex workers away from services and supports and creates a hostile relationship with police, leading to a massive under-reporting of violence. This emboldens predators to continue to victimize with impunity and should be of great concern to true feminists. Criminalization makes police and law enforcement the regulators of the sex industry, despite a long history of violence and exploitation of women, particularly Indigenous, who are over-represented in street-based sex work and in our prison and criminal justice system.
In the context of #MeToo, #TimesUp and the difficulties women find in seeking justice through our police and courts, imagine the challenges sex workers must face. The narrative which sets sex workers apart from other women, in combination with all the ways in which sex workers are painted as helpless victims, is a direct invitation to predators to harm sex workers. Sex workers are often left asking radical feminists, are we not women?
by Kerry Porth
sex_workers_rights
Pivot Legal Society is located on stolen lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples. We are grateful to Indigenous Peoples for their continuous relationship with their lands and are committed to learning to work in solidarity as accomplices in shifting the colonial default.
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Game of the Year 2018: Liam's Personal Picks
Crofty
by Liam Croft Fri 21st Dec 2018
The annual Push Square Towers tradition is back, as we sit down our scribes and pester them once more for their five favourite PlayStation games of the year. With such a strong assortment of software in 2018, it’s always tough deciding upon the cream of the crop. We threatened to take away Liam's lasagne before he sent us his list.
Fifth Choice: The Missing: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories
If there's one thing you take away from my personal list, its that you absolutely need to play The Missing: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories. Not only does it introduce new gory and inventive mechanics to the 2D side-scrolling genre, it also tells a deeply personal and meaningful story. It's ending is personally one of my favourite moments in games this year, and it's also one that brings so much clarity to the experience you've just had. If self-harm and LGBTQA are subjects you think should be discussed in games, this is an essential playthrough.
Fourth Choice: Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
Had you told me that a Call of Duty game would make it into my top five at the beginning of the year, I'd still be chuckling about it six months later. But then Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 arrived, and with it, Blackout. Treyarch's attempt at Battle Royale mode has been my go-to source of entertainment for two and a half months now, and I still can't get enough of it. It's by far the most polished and fun attempt at 1 v 100, with a huge variety of weaponry to pick up and master, and items and mechanics that differentiate it from anything else. Playing the game in Duos and Quads with fellow Push Square scribes and readers has been an absolute delight. Oh yeah, the multiplayer is pretty great, too.
Third Choice: Marvel's Spider-Man
I grew up reading Spider-Man comic books, so to say I was anticipating the PS4 version of everyone's favourite superhero would be a bit of an understatement. And to my utter delight, the game absolutely delivered. The web-swinging felt just right, the story was both surprising and thoroughly enjoyable, and once you had your head wrapped around the intricate combat system, taking out bad guys almost became an art form. The open world was a slight disappointment, as it fell into the typical trappings of the genre, but that wasn't enough to stop me from having the most wonderful time swinging across New York City.
Second Choice: Red Dead Redemption 2
I have so, so many thoughts and feelings I need to unpack about Red Dead Redemption 2. It manages to be one of the most incredible games I've ever played, but also the most exhausting. I look back on my time with the game and I recall numerous amazing moments, but I continue to question if I actually enjoyed the act of playing much of it. Leading character Arthur Morgan is difficult to control, the fast travel system frustrated me, entire mechanics fall by the wayside halfway through, shooting is a chore, and it's far, far too long. And despite all that, it's my second favourite game of 2018.
First Choice: God of War
God of War spoke to me like no other game did in 2018. The introduction of the Leviathan Axe and the switch to a more cinematic camera angle were revelations for combat, while Atreus brought with him so many new dynamics to the franchise. The plot never lets up either, with utterly phenomenal boss fights that act as cornerstones for Kratos' journey to the highest peak of the nine realms. God of War sets the standard for the action adventure genre going forward, but it's one that I don't think will be bettered until a sequel comes along. It's a game that made me feel just as powerful as the menacing Kratos on-screen, a true titan of the industry.
Perhaps the biggest surprise in Liam's list is The Missing, but has he convinced you to give it a go? Get lost in the comments section below.
About Liam Croft
On any given day, Liam is most likely playing the latest PS4 release or hunting for a Platinum Trophy. Outside of video games, he can be found tirelessly supporting Derby County, unfortunately.
RenanKJ
Fri 21st Dec 2018
The Missing sounds nice, but unfortunately it's not available in PlayStation Store from Brazil...
And I have to agree on God of War. i've been playing it for the past two days and it's really amazing! =)
playstation1995
god of awards.god of g.o.a.t.best PlayStation franchise ever.word up son
JoeBlogs
I have the same top 3 (but I suppose that's going to be the case for a lot of people).
PSfanboy1992
GoW hands down the best game of 2018 period .
Rudy_Manchego
Great list and enjoyed the reviews from Liam this year! Thanks!
Hi Liam, there is a typo in the GoW segment. "Lethiathan"
Quintumply
@Neolit Not any more there ain't! (Thanks!)
tameshiyaku
Perfectly describes my feelings towards red dead 2. Why is there no fast travel to camp? Why does it skip the riding on just some missions? That game has absolutely no respect for the players time, which is scarce if you're not a teenager living with mom and dad.
get2sammyb
@tameshiyaku Embeds you in its world, though.
Simon_Fitzgerald
@LiamCroft Great list Liam! Our Blackout evenings have been great fun, definitely got to get a few more games in over Christmas.
@tameshiyaku you can upgrade your camp to be able to fast travel can't you? I have anyway.
I must be the only person on the planet that didnt think that much to RDR2. Still completed the single player but it was a struggle to do so.
Agree with God of war and spidey was also amazing.
LiamCroft
@Simon_Fitzgerald Cheers man! We shall indeed 😊
dark_knightmare2
@get2sammyb not enough to overlook its many flaws especially its gameplay though
@dark_knightmare2 Disagree. It's just different; nothing wrong with that.
@get2sammyb If you had to take a dump every 30 minutes, that would be realistic too, it wouldn't be fun though.
@Octane But you don't have to do that in Red Dead?
@Octane Also, if you're taking a dump every 30 minutes, you may need to go to the doctors.
Agree with the list. I think reviewers overlook Red Dead 2's problems. I felt the same as Liam described - the world is very impressive, many incredible moments and vistas, but actually not all the content is that interesting and the gameplay is too frustrating. Also, they supposedly created a realistic game in which you have to eat / sleep / take a long ride from place to place, yet you can get shot 10 times and continue as if nothing happened, and take out by yourself an army of 30 men. Very realistic indeed. They should've taken The Last Of Us' approach if they wanted to go in the realistic path all the way. I don't think this game deserves GOTY despite all the impressive figures and moments. GOW easily deserves that, and to be honest maybe also games such as Dead Cell.
Rob_230
@oatmealwarrior92 tempted to go a step further and say the best game this generation. Its wonderful!!
steventonysmith
This seems like a repeat of 2015, I feel like I am taking crazy pills. How in God's (Pun intended) name is everyone giving God of War game of the year?
Just like when people were giving Metal Gear Solid 5 game of the year I was upset and confused. God of War took the intense fast paced action and slowed it up, repeated boss fights very quickly and made the whole things pretty but shallow. Just like Metal Gear Solid 5, who literally had you repeat the opening and several missions because it ran out of stuff for you to do.
However Insomniac took a tired franchise like Spider-Man and made a truly remarkable game that had a great story with a few gut punches at the end. Not only is it a great looking game, but it embodies it's characters and throws in a few truck loads of fan service to boot.
God of War soft rebooted the series with Norse Mythology but literally showed off almost none of it, apparently Norse Mythology is just a handful of trolls and a couple of Gods. The slower gameplay, and new camera angle killed the game for any long time fans of the series. Think if they took Devil May Cry and stripped out the fun combo heavy fast combat and instead you guided an older Dante and his young son around and had a heavy weapon to kill a couple enemies that showed up on the screen at a time.
In no way am I saying God of War deserves a 0/10 but a solid 7/10 Buy it recommendation, but not Game of the Year
TheArt
@steventonysmith Well I'll be buying GoW on the January Sale and I think I will love it, to me I got tired of the hack&slash to the finish line like the DMCs etc after GOW3, I love the new Uncharted slow-paced direction. That said though, I don't think I'll pick it as my GOTY over RDR2 why? Like I always say, I'll choose open world over linear any day, no matter how great the latter is. I mean I repeat, GTAV is still selling, The Last of Us was spectacular but that's it, when you're done you're done, you move on. RDR2 will still be selling come 2019, that to me makes it GOTY. And yeah MGSV is the MOST OVERRATED game this gen. It's like an 85 game not that misleading 93 it has on Metacritic.
Tasuki
@steventonysmith As per community rules
Do not use profanity; Use of unsavoury language including profanity and swearing is not acceptable, please remember that this website has users of all ages.
So let's watch the language, ok.
legalstep
Red Dead suffers from Rockstarism where they give you choices that don't matter and in the main story all your freedom is removed.
lacerz
@get2sammyb
I'm enjoying RDR2, but coming straight off of Fallout 4, the travel is killing me. One of my earliest perks in Fallout was fast travel when overburdened. Yes, I missed out on the country side and random adventures, but I still managed to put in 100 hours or so. Without fast travel, that would have been 400 hours easily...and I wouldn't be done yet.
Again, I'm enjoying RDR2, it's just an adjustment.
Jaz007
I think with Red Dead, it's only actual "chore" is bathing after a while. You want to be able to pay more to take a quicker bath. I don't have an issue with the way Arthur moves; I think it's well done and makes sense for the game. A certain sense is of adventure is achieved by the lack of fast travel, and the world is smaller to accommodate that. The world is fantastic, but doesn't feel "gigantic." It doesn't need to either. It never takes too long to ride somewhere, or the nearest fast-travel station. I think shooting is also fun and works pretty well for the game. It makes sense for the era's weapons and gives the game enough difficulty. I've been taking some time to just enjoy the world and not progress in the story, and I've been very impressed.
A small "chore" feeling can come over the game, but it's completely overridden by how masterfully the game is made. The benefits of the paced gameplay end up being better than the "chore" issue.
@get2sammyb Other games manage to be "immersive" without sacrificing player conveniences. Btw... thanks for the controlls setup, sure helped!
@tomassi I used fast travel at camp, but if a mission ends in the boonies, you still have no choice but to ride back to camp. Taking the train or stagecoach will only take you to the nearest town. It's all fantastically gorgeous and fun to play in its sluggish way, but everything just takes too damn long.
@get2sammyb are you really going to say rdr 2 as good gameplay or that’s its pacing for the story isnt bad?
@dark_knightmare2 Yes he's really going to say it, you can't force him to say otherwise. RDR2 is just amazingly beautiful, deal with it.
Gremio108
@Octane Imagine having to take a dump every thirty minutes AND trying to complete Red Dead 2
@get2sammyb Once or twice a day, or how long does an in-game day last in RDR2? Don't tell me it's 24 hours...
@TheArt nobody said it wasn’t beautiful so chill out. The fact is the gameplay is horribly mediocre which is why you see tons of people across the web talking about it,the story pacing is pretty bad,it’s selective realism is annoying,it’s mission template is stale after over a decade of rockstar using it ,it’s enemy variety is non existent and it’s mts infected mp is a disgrace. The good of it is It’s world which is beautiful,the level of interaction with it is second to none and Arthur is a great character but that’s not enough to offset its problems especially its gameplay which is the most important thing in a game.
@dark_knightmare2 And there are megatons out there who don't find them to be problems. You're going on like you want everybody to acknowledge problems exist at all cost. And enemy variety? Come on every game isn't fantasy, I don't know which enemy types you want from 1899.
JJ2
I see a lot of people being harsh with RDR2 flaws. Of course it has flaws like every game including GOW. I.m not fond of critcizing games I don't really like but look at The Witcher 3. Praises everywhere and yet the combat is awful. I get people just feel the overall experience is worth it. That's the way I feel with RDR2 but in addition That the flaws are actually meant to be as the devs vision. Hey some people even say only one first pers mode in CP 77 s just their vision rather than a lack of option.
I say RDR2 offer a overall fantastic game incredibly well done considering the scale.
@TheArt we’re the human freaking race there is tons different from faces to body size so that isn’t an excuse for their bad enemy variety. I never said people that don’t have problems with it don’t exist but that just means I can’t really trust their opinion. When a game in 2018 with the size and budget of rdr 2 controls and plays like a game from last gen that if not made by rockstar would get so much crap that’s a problem for me and when you’re doing a variation of the exact same thing for the first four chapters before the game jumps the shark in the first half of chapter 5 and drops you into an uncharted game before going to chapter 6 and just spins it’s wheels till the last like two or three missions that’s a problem. The epilogue has no business being as long as it was its hours of mundane filler before the last mission where something of substance actually happens even though you know who being there at that exact moment was such a contrivance. I love gaming so I want games to be the best they can be so I’m not going to ignore faults and just focus on positives because I want rockstar to change their outdated mission template and gameplay while fixing their pacing problems in their stories.
@dark_knightmare2 Face? Body size? Dude what are you talking about? Yo I'm done.
ApostateMage
Fast travelling in an open world game as beautiful as RDR2's is a crime.
@TheArt you said what could they have done for enemy variety and I said have different faces,body sizes etc. not the same like four or five outfits,faces and skinny body size
Sat 22nd Dec 2018
Ahh Red Dead Redemption 2 the game with the quite stunning open world with a great story and fantastic voice acting coupled with the most restrictive mission structure imaginable where all freedom is completely removed. Missions such as robbing a bank but you can only leave when told, then you're told to get out of town but have to go down the exact street the game wants you to, in fact any deviation or creativity is pretty much with mission failed. A mission structure which I kid you not has a mission where from camp, you are told to rob a coach and take to a location for a train robbery half way across the map. You do so and put it in the spot, the next mission is to ride all the way back to camp to tell them you've done it, the next mission is to ride all the way back to where you left it to start the robbery part!!! A world where police magically know the exact moment you rob a train out in the wilderness and appear almost immediately, a world where you are instructed to hide a stagecoach in a secluded spot providing it's in the yellow circle marked on the map. A world where you may strangle a stranger getting instead of getting on your horse because it's the same button, a world where your weapons are constantly removed from you because you were on your horse too long in a game which requires you to be on your horse too long. A game where you can fast travel out of camp when upgraded for player convenience but can never fast travel back, oh and most missions start in camp and end well outside of it, oh and in camp forget about running because you're not allowed to. A game which needs a guide to make it's sluggish controls almost bearable but never actually good, this is compounded by having to loot everything individually by holding a button and opening every drawer by holding a button and watching the animation for all of this adding to the slow pace.
Sorry if this post feels like it's wasting your time but that is my point, this game constantly wastes your time with all of these animations and little details and having to ride everywhere, for the first few hours it's fantastic but after that watching him lift every body to loot it or open every cupboard or skin every animal is just boring. They've gone too far and the immersion gets in the way of the gameplay so so often,
I adore the original Red Dead Redemption and it's my favourite game on the PS3 yet despite it's age that game plays better than this one because it doesn't have all of the lavish animations or silly gun removing mechanics. There is a 10/10 game buried under a pile of glorious but overused animations, a sluggish and convoluted control scheme and a mission structure that is 10 years out of date but as is it's the biggest disappointment of this generation for me. A good game but not a great one
Macver1ck
Its year 2018, Rdr2 living in the era where cod black ops4 was the boom, for me rdr2 is aiming for older player that strive for quality and high art on video games platform.. i dont say black ops & gow is a childs play, its just not aiming as high comparing rdr2. I think rockstar doesnt need the award, with or without it they always go beyond other games in terms of technical and accomplishment in the end product.. and by the selling numbers it also show without the award rdr2 is people champions
I can see Liam has a great taste in gaming with that number one choice, but I never even heard of that fifth game it would be cool to get it as a PSplus game I guess
Solid list, Liam. No pun intended but I must've missed 'The Missing'. Might check that out.
PSfan4Life22
God of War is the correct choice. RDR2's controls and mission structure are so outdated at this point it's pathetic. It's why God of War is topping it for so many GOTY awards. I don't care how great your world looks if it's a damn chore to play through it. Calling it different doesn't excuse its problems.
"but I continue to question if I actually enjoyed the act of playing much of it"
Exactly how I feel about RDR2. Technically it's brilliant. I'm just not having much fun playing it. It's actually the biggest gaming disappointment this year for me.
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Reality Refracted
Rants, Ramblings, and Essays on Gaming and RPGs
Also on Game and Story Design
Guest Star Aftermath - How It Went
Last Friday I had a player in my game who was only going to be there for one session. I decided to use the session as an opportunity and wrote up a special character for the player to play. The idea would be that the character would show up and be like a Guest Star character in a serialized TV show. Someone who could maybe show up again later on - if the fans demanded it - and who would, in the TV show, be played by a visiting/guest celebrity. The end result worked out fairly well, but as I had some requests to go over it in more detail I figured I'd share those details today.
A Familiar Face
Before I go in to the set up for the character and game that I think helped this work out I feel I should point out this out of character factoid: the player in question is not a stranger to the group or the game. In fact, the person in question was a part of htis game up until recently when he moved out of the area. As such, while still counting as a guest star, it was more like when an actor who used to be a main hand in the show comes back for a one or two off. A bit weirder here as he was playing a totally different character, but still a factor. I mention this because even with everything else going right a strange person to the game could still make things weird.
The OOC note out of the way, the main part that helped this work was the setup. The session was planned and set up to have a heavy focus on this character. I exploited several of the setting's rules to help out with this, and relied on my players to do the rest. For one thing, the guest star character was an Imperial of a higher status than the players and with a job that answered to a higher authority. Now this is a recipe for the character to run roughshod over the other players and be in charge (part of the point, but still needs mitigation.) That fact is mitigated by the character being in the PCs' backyard and not knowing the area.
So what we end up with is essentially a Federal agent ending up in a city they don't know and being assigned a group of local cops to help with their investigation. The Fed is the focus for this, they get to be present, in charge, and feel self-important but they are effectively powerless without the local cop support simply because part of what they need involves knowing the area, which they just don't know. This also sets up a power dynamic (and struggle) between the characters. The Guest Star gets to be important. The normal PCs get to see how they fit into the world as a whole and what power they may hold that isn't always present. I'm not sure how well that came across in the game, but it was part of the idea.
Preparing For The Game
With the plan in place what we then need is to prepare for it. First, foremost, and most importantly I talked about the character with the person who was going to be playing them. I talked to them about who the character was, where the character was coming from, and - most importantly - what I needed from the character.
This discussion about expectations is important. I can't emphasize that enough. Why? Because the Guest Star player isn't a normal player in the game. they're not going to be here all the time. In fact, they may never be around again. They get special perks (being an Imperial, status, higher power level) that comes with the job, they get a session dedicated around keeping them entertained, but they also need to help out with the game as well. In effect, they become a super glorified NPC. Just like in the Guest Star TV shows the purpose is to help show some element of the world that hasn't been present, or to show a different angle of the characters. This conversation lets you get on the same page with the player and talk about what you need, what you want, and what they would like to do. It also gives the player a chance to be a mini-GM for a bit, and for you to bounce ideas off of them to see what works and what doesn't.
Even with the set up and the preparation you have to understand that no plan survives contact with the enemy. Not that your players are the enemy but they are going to mess up your plans. The player of the guest star can also have interesting interpretations of how to do things. Stay on your feet, stay ready to react, but let the game flow. Trust the guest star to do their job. trust the players to play along. Try to relax. A lot of times these type of sessions are so focused on interaction between the characters that the GM gets a bit of an easier day. Enjoy that, but don't relax too much. You're still GMing a game, and there is one more player than normal.
Posted by A.L. at 12:00 AM
Labels: Advice, GM
Great post. I'm starting a new Dark Heresy campaign the end of this month, been thinking about this very "Guest Player" (GP) concept & even have a friend in mind that would love to play but can't be a regular.
I've had many similar thoughts to the ones you shared but it's the last paragraph that I think I'm going to have to get used to - with the campaign in general & the GP concept more specifically. That is, put things in place and then let the game flow. It's ok! Yah, you had in your mind's eye that things would go like "this" and the players caused them to go like "that". Roll with it, stay on your feet, never let them see you sweat & let it flow.
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I write tales. I run games. I analyze characters. I'm a story enthusiast no matter the medium, and spend far too much time breaking down the hows, whys, and mechanic & actions that let the real stories flow out.
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This is my personal blog through which I share observations about my creative passions — and everything in between.
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Land of the Canoe
Apr 8th, 2016 Armchair Fly Angler Last modified 4 years ago
I haven’t done as much canoeing as I would have liked over my six and a half decades on the planet. For example, I’ve never gone wilderness-tripping. However, I have canoed since camping as a youngster. My partner Lois canoed growing up during summers at her family cottage on Lake of Bays. For a couple of years she owned a yellow canoe. As an avid fly angler, I like fishing from a canoe on a lake almost as much as wading rivers. I also enjoy the canoe through books, music and the visual arts. In my imagination, the canoe is connected to my deep love of fresh water — streams, rivers and lakes.
My interest in both the canoe and canoeing has made the annual KW Canoe Symposium a must-attend event every spring since its inception five years ago.
It’s impossible to imagine Canada without the canoe. It’s not an exaggeration to refer to this vast country of ours as Land of the Canoe.
The canoe is more than an effective means of transportation — a harmonious blend of form and function, history and geography, design and craft — ideally adapted to the landscape. It played a critical role in nation building by shaping the country through exploration and settlement, trade and commerce, war and recreation, sport and art. It’s a link between First Nations people and European pioneers. As image, metaphor and symbol it finds expression through story, poetry and song, drawing, painting and sculpture.
Lois with her yellow canoe
Waterloo elementary school teacher and avid canoeist David Blain is the founder of the canoe symposium which returns to Waterloo’s Princess Twin on April 16. As in the previous four years, it’s sold out.
Blain’s objective is as simple and elegant as the canoe’s design: ‘To raise awareness about something with deep cultural roots in this country that has remained a central element in our identity,’ he once told me in an interview.
To serve that end, the symposium is a forum for canoeists ‘to share their love of the rich cultural heritage’ and rewarding wilderness experience canoeing provides. ‘The canoe is in danger of becoming a curiosity in our fast-paced 21st century,’ Blain cautions on his website. ‘Yet those who share a passion for wilderness know that the best way to truly experience what is left of Canada’s once endless wilderness is under your own power. . . by canoe.’ He adds ‘the event [offers] an opportunity to celebrate this unique craft and its continuing relevance to modern Canadians.’
Blain has no desire to exploit the growing popularity of so-called paddlesports, encompassing such ‘extreme’ activities as white-water rafting and sea kayaking. The same goes for high-tech gear. Rather, he compares the symposium to ‘a few hours spent in an outfitters store, sitting around a wood-burning stove and swapping tales of wilderness adventure.’ He takes comfort in the fact that, even after the symposium runs its course, ‘canoeists will gather to share stories. Get two canoeists together and they will always have plenty to talk about.’
The symposium’s success isn’t surprising.
The Grand River played a crucial role in the history and development of Waterloo Region. The designated Canadian Heritage River remains the aorta of water recreation and sport in the region, supporting hiking, canoeing, kayaking, fishing and birdwatching.
The historic watershed is home to outfitters, fishing and fly shops, custom canoe builders, paddle carvers and personal flotation manufacturers, not to mention organizations such as the Waterloo Wellington Canoe & Kayak Club, Old Salts Seniors Canoe Club and Ancient Mariners Canoe Club. There’s even an annual film festival devoted to paddlesports (The Reel Padding Festival) presented by the Princess Cinemas.
Blain has had no problems attracting a range of Ontario’s most interesting outdoor and canoe enthusiasts including Hap Wilson, ‘Passionate Paddler’ David Lee, David Hadfield, Jim and Sue Waddington, Mike Ormsby and ‘Uncle’ Phil Cotton. I was privileged to speak a couple of years ago about canoeing and fly fishing with my fly angling buddy Dan Kennaley. Following is a list of this year’s speakers and topics:
1) For Love of the Canoe
Discover how Evan Holt’s love of canoeing turned into sharing his passion with others while learning about the Canadian Canoe Museum in Peterborough, Ontario. Holt, who is creative projects manager at the canoe museum, shares his enjoyment of the outdoors through his website www.traversing.ca.
2) Women on Water
Since breaking out of her corporate office, Kate Ming-Sun has flourished from time spent in nature and on the water. A guide with Wild Women Expeditions, she maintains her Write-In-The-Rain blog.
3) Canoe-To-Do List
Gary Johnston shares some of the interesting sights to be found in the local Grand River watershed. Like the well-known Bucket List, Johnson’s Canoe-To-Do List is a goal-setting method to motivate paddling. Johnston is a member of the Waterloo Wellington Canoe & Kayak Club.
4) Schrodinger’s Paddler: Alone in a Crowd
It’s difficult to share the richness of solo canoeing. It’s easy to communicate the technical details, swap stories and talk gear. But to capture the spirit, you have to experience it firsthand — or there’s Ian Hanna’s Schrodinger’s Paddler. Hanna has been solo canoe tripping for four decades.
5) Wolves of Algonquin Park
Humans have a long history with wolves, but sadly wolves have suffered. Research in Algonquin Park not only provides insight into the ecology of wolves, but offers an opportunity to appreciate wolves. David LeGros, the Natural Heritage Education Specialist for the provincial park, is in charge of leading a team of naturalists who conduct educational programs. He has also led a number of wolf howls in the park.
6) Off the Beaten Path
Brad Jennings and Leah Schmidt embark on a journey to regions seldom paddled. They highlight the challenges and rewards of venturing off the beaten path and exploring uncharted backcountry.
An avid paddler and adventure racer, Jennings has parlayed his passion for the outdoors into studying for his masters degree in environmental science and biogeochemistry at Trent University.
Schmidt has been paddling for ten years, but her most adventurous tripping experiences have been within the last three.
Doors open at 9:30 am. Speakers start at 10 am and continue to 3:30 pm with an hour lunch break. Lobby displays include Handcrafted Canoes, See Sawyer Run and Canadian Canoe Museum.
Info is available at www.kwcanoesymposium.ca
Me casting for bass from a canoe on a Muskoka lake
For those who enjoy reading about the canoe and rivers, I’d like to suggest some favourite Canadian titles from my personal library:
•Canoe Country by Roy MacGregor
•The Canoe by Jim Poling, Sr
•Fire in the Bones and Bark, Skin & Cedar by James Raffan
•Canexus: The Canoe in Canadian Culture, edited by Raffan & Bert Horwood
•Idleness, Water & a Canoe by Jamie Benidickson
•Nastawgan: The Canadian North by Canoe & Snowshoe, edited by Bruce Hodgins & Margaret Hobbs
•The Canoe in Canadian Cultures, edited by Hodgins, John Jennings & Doreen Small
•The Complete Anglers, John D. Robins
•The Cabin by Hap Wilson
•The Lonely Land by Sigurd Olson
•The River by Helen Humphreys
•Houseboat Chronicles by Jake MacDonald
•Weekend Wilderness Adventures and Dazed But Not Confused by Kevin Callan
•River-Places, poems by Bruce Lumsden and serigraphs by David Hunsberger, published by Stonegarden Studios
•The Grand River: Dundalk to Lake Erie, text by Marianne Brandis and wood engravings by Gerard Brender a Brandis
For those who would enjoy music related to the canoe and rivers, I’d like to suggest some favourites by Canadian singer/songwriters:
•Wilderness Waltz and Northern Breeze by Dave Hadfield
•On the Grand: The Story of a River by Tamarack
•This Canoe Runs on Water by James Gordon
•Through the Years by Ian Tamblyn
(featured image is Algonquin – Homage to Tom Thomson by Ken Danby)
Wild Speck: A Poem
A Cinematic River Runs Through Waterloo
Where Trout Rivers Flow Both Ways
Tom’s Top 10 or Reluctant Recommendations from a...
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Exit Fate
Made by: SCF
Website: http://site.scfworks.com/?page_id=3
More info: -
Original art is brilliant
Immersive story & characters
Highly polished production
May recognise some soundtracks
1545. The Kirgard kingdom has been at peace with the State Union of Zelmony for several years now. However, a long disputed island between the two nations is about to play a pivotal role in the upcoming war. For the pacifist protagonist Colonel Daniel Vineyard, a series of political - military crises will soon erupt, ironically placing him at the lead.
In an era of kings and kinsmen, borders change as differing civilisations wage war on one another periodically. Kirgard is a country bordered by many enemies; from the west, the eastern mountain tribes and across the southern seas. On the other hand, Zelmony is giant nation plagued by a sluggish governmental system that tirelessly tries to co-ordinate each of the states it comprises. Like an aged oak tree, externally it appears strong, while really it is rotten at the core. At this point in history Kirgard's army are very powerful, having well used the years since they were last invaded to recover. Once again they decide to reclaim Helman Island; this time though, in order to stratigically position themselves for a full offensive assult on Zelmony mainland, thinking to take advantage of the latter's current weakness.
It requires a certain willing suspension of disbelief to venture into one of these particular type of games. Every genre has clichés and pitfalls, JRPG's faults commonly hitting on uninspired and uninteresting plot/ gameplay mechanics i.e. saving the world while spending many hours thrashing the same monsters over and over again until your fingers bleed. In this case, though, almost the opposite is true.
Enter SCF. Taking many of the best features from this category of games, avoiding the worst through some ingenious solutions and generally treating the product to his usual high standards of storytelling, SCF manages to succeed in producing yet another classic hit game.
Exit Fate builds on and improves everything from its predecessor. Once again we are introduced to strong characterisations accompanied by equally impressive art to flesh them out. This time the designer's drawing ability has improved exponentially and the game boasts over 75 large character portraits to demonstrate this. I felt his writing was excellent, both in qualitative and quantitative terms. Always appropriate for the particular character that is speaking, I could often "hear" their voice even as they said their first lines (thanks in part to the wonderful illustration next to the text).
And of course SCF continues to extend his generosity as regards interactions between characters via his delicious cutscenes. These cinematically pleasing events are interspersed regularly throughout and serve to entice and reward one continuously. I actually laughed at quite a few of his character’s lines, which really is a testament to SCF's sense of humour. Even so, this game’s underlying themes are the consequences of war, the stability of nations and the price of peace. Anyone who has tried Last Scenario knows how well the creator can twist the plot around like a whirlwind; giving you a ride where you might vaguely guess at the destination but not the means of getting there. Here the adventure is just as exciting as well, with the usual multi layered plotlines, timely revealed, for the ultimate satisfaction.
One of the wonderful things about this world is as much what you are not shown and are only told of, as what you can see where you do go. There is a lot of name dropping in this respect with places like the Holy Empire of Roccaine in another continent mentioned sometimes and the Fairwind Republic further south. It's a nice touch to help us feel the story's world is more real and add colour to it, even if we never travel to any of these lands. This world itself is in a state of transition as evinced in a number of ways. Clothing styles are ranging, suitably depicting the characters whilst providing only a hint of the time period. An intelligent, young and very smartly dressed scientist adjusts his spectacles as he researches the field of magic at a renowned university; his stylish white suit with matching blue shirt underneath would hardly look out of place in a modern day casino. Whereas elsewhere, an elderly mage be-robed in traditional old brown cloth spends his retirement as a hermit on a small. peaceful island. Inventions that are seen (watch out for Deke's mechanical golem) and heard of (the recently manufactured "gun" in Cayeska - which seemed to sound like a wild west setting though we won't vist it for ourselves) and, naturally, the constant sense of a revolution being born, make this an interesting time to live in.
Much of the tile sets appear to come from some Suidoken game or another with features like the menus and battle system greatly influenced by that series too. Unfortunately most of the music has been taken from other rpgs and so you may be surprised to hear some more or less memorable soundtracks (depending on how many of these sort of games you have played) now and then. Personally none of this bothered me as I hadn't played any Suidokens' before and thus had no unnecessary judgements about a game that clearly stands up on its own merits; which some fans of the former series also seem to have agreed. Additionally, there is a hidden advantage in SCF using these resources; not only does he tastefully decide where to insert them in order to create the right atmosphere, but the music is superb anyway and so it should be easy to look past that odd FF7 tune whistling off here and there.
Last but not least, concerning user interface in menus, shops, battling and so forth; the game author's two year effort with this project more than makes up for anything borrowed elsewhere. With Exit Fate the programming has broken through a higher level than usually ever witnessed in RPGMaker games. All the statistics that you need are easily referenced for and between characters making it relatively simple to choose which 6 - 8 of your eventual 75 recruits you want to take with you at any given moment. Note: you'll need as many characters as you can recruit in order to stand a chance later when you enjoy the simple yet strategically challenging war campaigns as the game continues. Don't worry about accumulating a burden of useless items or wondering what weapon to buy for whom; neither is an issue when items are less important/ more limited in variety here and each character keeps a default weapon which they can merely upgrade at a blacksmith to improve stats.
Battles do not result in a simplistic set up that requires you to grind in order to level up. Instead these are fast paced with an attractive strip at the bottom of the screen where a person's turn is represented by their face. You can pick 6 people as your main party, who you can assign to three rows, and 2 extras as your "entourage" which you can also swap in battle if one or two of the main party are badly wounded. Exit Fate is the only game I've played where magic points are increased as the battle goes on rather than constantly depleted. Every character has an innate element which gives them an advantage against the opposite element - Fire vs. Ice, Lighting vs. Water etc. Plus there is another incentive to keep a well balanced group because each character uses less mp on a spell corresponding with their element. For example, if that Dark member casts Eclipse, he gets a 10mp reduction for that spell since it's Dark magic. Spells are bought, won or found, by the way. Anyone can cast them from the list except that, obviously, if a character has weak Magic power his/her damage from that spell will be significantly weaker than, for instance, a more mage like character. Any spells not used at the end of the battle, like a curative spell, will automatically be cast if there's enough mp. One last bonus comes in the form of varying stat boosts for characters with a relation to any KO'd comrades.
If you need to grind at all then you'll find this problem has been reduced to a minimum since the game ensures you are well rewarded in experience points for beating enemies with high levels (or if you defeat multiple enemies). This conveniently means that you can bring any character along with you, even if you've never used them before, and after a just a few battles together they've already caught up fairly close to your level. Finally, if you don't want to fight and can afford it, a nifty bribery system allows you to quickly bribe off enemies just before they appear by pressing x when the warning pops up. Did I mention that all characters, enemies and backgrounds in battle are drawn by hand too?
At the end of the day, Exit Fate is a well finished title which easily matches up with any commercial games out there. Thus, if you are willing to suspend your disbelief a little bit, fear not. SCF can and will take you by the hand into another world for you to enjoy; the only question you have to ask yourself is, "Why am I still reading this instead of playing a 40 hour+ epic?"
Review by: Aillusionoftime
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Why I will not be speaking at Southeast TESOL next week
I will not be speaking at the Southeast TESOL Association Meeting to be held in Myrtle Beach next week, because of a disagreement about my keynote topic. I learned only recently that the conference theme was supporting the common core, that it was "dedicated entirely to providing teachers with strategies for working with common core and all of the states in attendance have adopted it."
I therefore changed my topic to "The case against the common core." This was rejected by the SETESOL Executive Committee. I was told that "this topic cannot be presented to this group of attendees. "
I cannot in good conscience speak at a conference dedicated to the common core without presenting what I know about it. I offered to present on my original topic as an extra talk, but this was rejected because of lack of space and time.
Eating the Golden Goose, or Corporate Consumption of Higher Ed
If the plutocrats at the corporate foundations can impose their loser strategies on higher education as they have on K12, the demise of the greatest university system in the world will then be assured. Published at Alternet today.
at 12:45 PM No comments:
Labels: corporate education reform, corporate foundations, Gates, higher education, losers, plutocrats
TFA's PR Machine Lights It Up in Memphis with Front Page Stories of "Enchantment" and "Allure"
CorpEd bought Memphis City Schools with a 90 million dollar Gates Foundation grant in late 2009, and early in 2010 the TN Department of Education was gobbled up by a $501 million bribe from the Gates controlled US Dept. of Education's RTTT. Thus began the slashing and burning of Memphis public schools in favor of corporate charters and the "surplussing," "excessing," and firing of teachers in favor of Teach for America's post-adolescent-and-white-privileged corporate missionaries.
On Monday CorpEd's dependable lackey reporter at the Commercial Appeal, Michael Kelley, did a glowing front page story on the growing TFA presence (thanks to the Walton Foundation) in Memphis, where over 42 percent of children live poverty and where black unemployment is almost 20 percent.
To offer an example of Kelley's inaccurate reporting, there's this just under the fold:
Critics have long contended that TFA, which trains its teachers for the classroom in less than a year, is doing students a disservice when many of its teachers choose to move on after getting a taste of chalk.
Really, less than a year? How technically true can one reporter get!, for certainly the 5 weeks that TFA recruits prepare is less than a year. And of that 5 weeks, less than 20 days is practice teaching.
And no, Michael Kelley, critics of TFA are not crying so much about these white privileged girls leaving after their two year stint. Please leave. We are screaming about the fact that the corporate reform losers running Memphis Schools are insisting on hiring them in the first place, particularly in schools that need most desperately the kind of mature, caring, and competent teachers that TFA can never provide, regardless of these eager youngsters' "enchantment" with teaching.
So Michael Kelley, please do read this article from a TFA member, Olivia Blanchard, who wasn't so enchanted or allured by her complete lack of preparation for teaching 20 very needy children whose needs are not being met by well-intentioned missionaries who are being fed a thick sheaf of lies produced in the corporate think tanks. Here are the intro paragraphs from The Atlantic:
I am sitting in a comfortable gold folding chair inside one of the many ballrooms at the Georgia International Convention Center. The atmosphere is festive, with a three-course dinner being served and children playing a big-band number. The kids are students at a KIPP academy in Atlanta, and they are serenading future teachers on the first night of a four-day-long series of workshops that will introduce us to the complicated language, rituals, and doctrines we will need to adopt as Teach for America "Corps Members."
The phrase closing the achievement gap is the cornerstone of TFA's general philosophy, public-relations messaging, and training sessions. As a member of the 2011 corps, I was told immediately and often that 1) the achievement gap is a pervasive example of inequality in America, and 2) it is our personal responsibility to close the achievement gap within our classrooms, which are microcosms of America's educational inequality.
These are laudable goals. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, white fourth-graders performed better than their black peers on 2007 standardized mathematics exams in all 46 states where results were available. In 2004, there was a 23-point gap in mathematics scale scores between white and black 9-year-olds, with the gap growing to 26 points for 13-year-olds.
But between these two messages lies the unspoken logic that current, non-TFA teachers and schools are failing at the task of closing the achievement gap, through some combination of apathy or incompetence. Although TFA seminars and presentations never explicitly accuse educators of either, the implication is strong within the program's very structure: recruit high-achieving college students, train them over the summer, and send them into America's lowest-performing schools to make things right. The subtext is clear: Only you can fix what others have screwed up. It was an implication I noticed when an e-mail I received during Institute, the five-week training program, referring to “a system of students who have simply not been taught.” The e-mail explained, “That’s really what the achievement gap is—for all of the external factors that may or may not add challenges to our students’ lives—mostly it is that they really and truly have not been taught and are therefore years behind where they need to be.”
Labels: Memphis Schools, TFA
The Facts, Not the Spin, about Washington D.C.'s IMPACT Evaluation System
As U.C.L.A. School of Management Professor Samuel Culbert explained, a performance evaluation is as much of, "an expression of the evaluator's self-interests as it is a subordinate's attributes." Culbert argued that the institution of professional performance reviews is, "as destructive and fraudulent as it is ubiquitous." It is not just in educational evaluations where "almost every person and every person reviewing it knows it is bogus." Throughout the business world, there are plenty of people who believe that improved performance evaluations can improve productivity, but it is also hard to deny that evaluations are often about ego, control, intimidation, cronyism, and just enduring something that is a part of the job.
My experiences in with performance evaluations are consistent with Culbert’s analysis. Even so, economists who have no teaching experience often assume that better evaluations can drive school improvement.
The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) working paper, National Bureau of Economic Research James Wyckoff’s and Thomas Dee’s “Incentives, Selection, and Teacher Performance” has been spun as evidence supporting Washington D.C.’s teacher evaluation system, IMPACT. Even though the paper provides no evidence in that IMPACT has benefited students, the authors’ narrative and statements to the press make it clear that they are hoping that IMPACT will succeed. They seem to argue that carrots and sticks are a good management tool and IMPACT is doing what carrots and sticks, especially sticks, are supposed to do.(Given the quality of their work, it is no criticism of the authors to say that they would like IMPACT to be successful; Clearly, they are objective scholars.)
I don’t deny that I also have a perspective, but here’s a “thought experiment” about Wyckoff’s and Dee’s study. What if an objective reader read the evidence presented by Wyckoff and Dee? Wouldn’t an impartial reader conclude that they buried the lede? Does their evidence not indicate that IMPACT is failing even according to its own terms?
Two things jump out of their Table Three. Firstly, among “Minimally Effective” teachers, 19% were teachers (known as Group 1) whose value-added counted as 50% of their evaluations. Only 15% of Highly Effective teachers were Group 1. In other words, if you teach a tested subject and are thus subjected to value-added, you are more likely to have your career threatened and less likely to gain rewards for being highly effective.
Secondly, the table reports the IMPACT results for two samples of teachers. The first includes the 14% of teachers who were categorized as Highly Effective and more than 1700 teachers who were deemed Effective. The other sample Includes those same Effective teachers with about 300 (also about 14%) of teachers who were rated Minimally Effective. Since the whole point of value-added is that it is supposed to differentiate more precisely the effectiveness of teachers, shouldn't the sample that includes Highly Effective teachers produce a higher value-added than the sample with about the same number of Minimally Effective teachers? In fact, the less effective teachers had a lower value-added (by a statistically insignificant amount.)
None of the differences in IMPACT’s quantitative results, to this historian at least, seem be significant. Educators had to generate some evaluation metrics for the sake of having evaluation metrics. They can include homemade quantitative rubrics for the individual teacher (TAS) or for the school (CSC.) From this outsider’s perspective, they sound like busy work, and I bet a lot of D.C. teachers feel the same way. The less effective sample received a mean score of 2.98 on the TAS, in contrast to 3.10 for the highly effective sample. On the CSC, the less effective sample supposedly earned a 3.25 in comparison to the highly effective mean score of 3.30. The metric that should be more reliable, the TLF teacher observation, determined that the less effective teachers have a mean score that was only .11 lower.
The only differences that seem to be significant were produced by the Core Professionalism segment, which holds teachers accountable for the attendance and their professional conduct. Common sense says that that should be the most reliable metric and, sure enough, its mean difference was .37 or three times as great as the observation’s mean differences. That raises the question of whether a more modest approach would have been preferable. Rather than harass all teachers in an effort to root out bad teachers, would it not have been smarter to hold teachers accountable for their behavior, and terminate those who were not doing their jobs? Would it not have been smarter to have focused on what teachers actually do and hold teachers accountable for actually teaching, as opposed to creating such a divisive and stressful experiment?
The part of IMPACT that most impressed Wyckoff and Dee is that it imposes stress on teachers who are lower-rated. For argument's sake, however, let’s say that all of the 14% of the district’s teachers who were judged to be “Minimally Effective” were accurately placed in that category. Wyckoff and Dee proclaim IMPACT a success because about 20% just above the threshold for “Effective” left the school system at the end of a year while about 30% of teachers just below that threshold quit. Was it a good bargain for the D.C. schools to impose all of the stress and the other negative byproducts of IMPACT in order to speed the exit of such a small number?
The economists brag that a teacher who received a low rating is more likely to leave the district. But, wouldn’t a good teacher who received an unfair value-added rating be equally or more likely to leave? Since value-added models are systematically biased against teachers with classes of English language learned, special education students, and poor students, it seems likely that IMPACT will help drive teaching talent from schools where it is harder to raise test scores.
Common sense indicates that IMPACT and other value-added evaluations will soon result in a predictable behavior. Systems will have to play statistical games to inflate parts of teachers’ evaluations so they do not have to fire all the teachers who, fairly and unfairly, receive low rating on test score growth. As the authors acknowledge, D.C. has had much more money and thus a larger pool of replacement teachers. Even D.C., however, may already see the need to start playing those games so that they don’t lose irreplaceable teachers. The study includes a footnote which says:
In 2009-10 and 2010-11, the mean teacher value-added was equated to an IVA score of 2.5 with relatively few teachers receiving either a 1.0 or a 4.0. In 2011-12 the mean teacher value-added score was equated to an IVA score of 3.0 and the relatively more teachers were assigned to 1 and 4. This had the net effect of increasing average IVA scores by 0.25 in 2011-12. Because of these adjustments, we avoid any year-to-year comparisons for IMPACT scores or their components.
In other words, D.C. quietly reduced the short-term impact of the value-added component of IMPACT. In doing so, D.C. also talked tough about the rigor of future evaluations. But, talk is just talk. Or, at least, economists haven't started to quantify reformers' spin as they back away growling.
The bottom line for value-added evaluations is that they cannot determine whether a teacher’s failure to meet his growth target is due to his own ineffectiveness or the school’s ineffectiveness, peer pressure, or other factors. The bottom line for IMPACT is that it imposes a great deal of anguish, it is bound to increase teachers’ IMPACT scores, but there is no way of determining whether those numbers reflect any real improvements in instruction. Before long, I expect the overwhelming consensus of observers will recognize that the facts are the opposite of the reformers’ spin.
Chief for Change, Janet Barresi, Doubles Down on Meaningless School Grading System
Chief Barresi
What if the scientific community reveals that a state school policy produces meaningless and misleading results that conceal deep inequalities and mask others? If you are one of Jeb Bush's Chiefs, you smile, ignore the facts, and proceed as if nothing happened:
News9.com - Oklahoma City, OK - News, Weather, Video and Sports |
Labels: Barresi, Chiefs for Change, Oklahoma schools, school report cards
Terry Grier Makes Houston Schools Awful Enough to Win the Broad Prize
The picture above is of Arne Duncan and Eli Broad having a swell time at Barack Obama's inauguration party in 2008. The picture below is Arne and Eli in 2013, this time accompanied by the poster boy for CorpEd's model of segregated urban reform schools, Terry Grier. With his systemwide No Excuses model in place in Houston, Grier has made life so miserable for teachers and students alike that it has earned him this year's Broad Prize for Urban Education. Last year 700 teachers had quit by January, which, of course, brings in more white corporate missionaries from TFA to replace real teachers. These new positive psychology-induced Corp Members will fall on their clipboards for the Corporate Cause until they are discarded for a new crop.
The letter excerpted below was posted by Diane Ravitch at her blog in June. It is from a Houston teacher who has witnessed what is happening to teachers and children in Houston's public schools.
. . . .This letter is about a teacher awakening to the grim political reality of what is deceptively called “education reform.” Her letter should go viral.
She writes:
“This is the sick process education reform has created in big city districts. They just churn through teachers, especially new ones, as fast as they can with no regard to the person’s life, skill set, or qualifications. The harm they do to the students by destabilizing their neighborhood schools cannot be measured. They don’t care if you are a blazing success in the classroom; your teaching certificate is basically meaningless to the administration.
She goes on to add:
” In the student’s mind, a standard classroom teacher is a disposable throwaway. They see no reason to follow the rules, do their homework, or take the exams seriously. They know the teacher will probably get fired, possibly in the middle of the year. They have no respect for their teacher, and no reason to believe their teacher has any ability to discipline or instruct.
“This is the message inner city students have been receiving for over a decade. This is the message reformers convey to the students, the parents, and the taxpayer.
“At new teacher orientation you are led to believe something much different; at the job fair, and in the media, you are told that working for HISD is wonderful, with a fair evaluation system, great pay, and fabulous bonuses.
“Working at HISD is the biggest mistake I have ever made.
“I was warned about education reform. I was told not to do this, and I didn’t listen.
“Honestly, I didn’t even know what “education reform” meant…I thought it was a bunch of talented people swapping ideas about how to best educate the children of poverty. I thought it would be fun, challenging, and engaging. In my ridiculous mind, I could see a group of teachers sharing ideas, lesson plans, and stories. I really believed I was going to learn something positive about public school. I didn’t know it was a scam engineered to deprofessionalize the teaching business, and hand the jobs off to cash strapped ivy leaguers that couldn’t find positions in their fields of study.
“Now I know that people like Michelle Rhee made millions off the backs of the teachers she fired. I know that most of these people have cheated, including some in my own Apollo program. The Atlanta Journal Constitution even did a nationwide study, and can prove mathematically that these districts have failed to educate these students in spite of their “so-called” reforms. This wrong-to-right erasure math is indisputable…
“As for me, I don’t need a study; I can tell everyone about the chaos, the achievement gap, the poverty, the filth, the lies, and the smokescreen.
“It is funny that Arne Duncan (Obama’s Secretary of Education #erasetothetop) came out here and toured Lee HS with my SIO, and he listened to a few talented students, and the police cracked down on the school before his arrival, and they managed to sign up all of the students to some kind of college (mostly 2 year institutions) and convince Arnie that it is a “turnaround success.” But you only have to look at him closely to see he is a Walmart kind of guy. And now we have the privatization of the public trust…we have the Walton Foundation, The Broad Foundation, The Gates Foundation, and countless other vultures, and venture capitalists, including Pearson (the great testing empire), all throwing money to this “teacher witch hunt” fully engaged in the age-old philosophy of “you gotta spend a buck to make a buck.” So, they are making the bucks off of me and my students, and I am helpless to stop them.”
Labels: Arne Duncan, Broad Prize, Eli Broad, Terry Grier
Happy Halloween Ken Derstine PA Education Crisis Highlights
And this is just Philadelphia, scary stuff, I'm spooked
Pennsylvania Education Crisis Highlights - October 29th, 2013
Pennsylvania Education Crisis Highlights is available online at http://www.defendpubliceducation.net/
Blue text is a link to the full article.
Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America’s Public Schools | Save our Schools NJ
Monday, November 4, 2013, 4 - 5:20 pm
Princeton High School Auditorium, 151 Moore Street, Princeton NJ
From 3:30 to 4 pm Dr. Ravitch will sign books which will be available for purchase at the event.
Save Our Schools NJ, Labyrinth Books, and Princeton Public Schools invite you to hear Dr. Diane Ravitch speak about her new book: Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America's Public Schools. Ravitch, a former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Education, is leading a national battle to save public education. She will put forth a plan for what we can do to protect and improve public schools, including here in NJ.
Another event will be held a Princeton University at 8:00 pm on November 4th.
Diane Ravitch will be on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart on Wednesday, October 30th.
Our Schools Are Not For Sale on Vimeo | NPE News Briefs
Our Schools Are Not For Sale | The Nation
The video from Media Mobilizing Project and the Alliance for Public Schools goes national on the Network for Public Education website. It is on the Most Popular Posts list.
Short Changing Students: How the Ten Year Tax Abatement Underwrites Luxury Developments and Starves Schools | Philadelphia Coaltion Advocating for Public Schools
The PCAPS study of the 10-year abatement for real estate taxes.
PCAPS in the News: Full Funding Friday Press Coverage | Philadelphia Coalition Advocating for Public School
Local coverage of Full Funding Friday Seven 10/25/13
In latest fallout from Phila. school budget crisis, scores of teachers reassigned | Philadelphia Inquirer
The fallout from the Philadelphia School District's budget crisis continues: As of Monday, 139 teachers had been moved to new schools - seven weeks into the term, and shortly before students' first report card grades are due.
"Leveling" - moving teachers based on schools' enrollment - occurs every year.
But it has been particularly painful this year, with fiscal concerns spurring more changes than usual as schools aim to keep class sizes at or under their maximums, 30 for the lower grades and 33 in higher grades.
According to data released by the district Monday, the 139 teachers shuffled represents a 70 percent increase in transfers. The district also added 29 teachers, down from 42 last year. The number of classrooms split between two grades was reduced to 50 from 100.
After 'leveling,' Philly's split-grade classes reduced by half | Philadelphia Public School Notebook
The Philadelphia School District has been "leveled."
As a result, the District has reduced the number of its controversial split-grade classrooms, made up of students in different grades, from about 100 to 50.
With leveling, the District aligns staffing projections made in the summer with enrollment realities in the fall.
If more students show up at a school than the District had projected, and fewer students show up at another school, the District shuffles faculty from one to the other in an attempt to keep student-to-teacher ratios within the contracted maximums.
The District's contract with the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers stipulates that kindergarten through 3rd-grade teachers should have no more than 30 students, and teachers in grades 4 through 12 should have no more than 33.
This year – in the wake of layoffs and turnover, which have reduced the District's staff by about 3,000 – students, parents and faculty at schools across the District expressed grievances over a host of academic issues, including split-grade classrooms and class sizes that have far exceeded contractual maximums.
PFT President Jerry Jordan Reemphasizes Call to Restore All Laid Off School Employees | Philadelphia Federation of Teachers
"As the district prepares to allocate the $45 million recently released by Governor Corbett to Philadelphia schools, the PFT is calling for the restoration of every school employee that was laid off in June.
"Even before the layoffs, our schools were not operating with sufficient staff to provide instruction, programs and services to our children. Every student needs equal access to teachers, counselors, secretaries, school nurses and non-instructional support personnel. Every dime of that money should go toward making this happen.
"We cannot say we are doing everything we can to provide a quality public education until these positions are restored.
City charters without signed agreements get revocation threat | Philadelphia Inquirer
(Read the comments.)
In the midst of its continuing financial crisis, the School District of Philadelphia has lowered the boom on charter schools in the city.
Using new powers unleashed by the School Reform Commission's recent decision to suspend part of the state school code, the district is threatening to begin revocation proceedings against schools that have refused to sign their charters because they include enrollment caps. The district has also warned charters not to seek payment for extra students from the state.
"The SRC . . . has the responsibility to act in a fiscally responsible manner in reviewing and approving charter school enrollment growth," Deputy Superintendent Paul Kihn wrote in Oct. 16 letters to charter officials. "Such growth can be responsibly managed only in accordance with a planning process that gives the SRC and the School District the ability to avoid financial disaster, which is a certainty in the absence of managed enrollment growth.”
Philly schools' hidden riches: Millions in artwork | Philadelphia Inquirer
It is a curious asset for a nearly broke school system: more than 1,000 paintings and other works of art worth millions, with the priciest pieces hidden away for the last decade in an undisclosed location.
Some have wanted the works sold to help a Philadelphia School District financial situation so dire many schools lack full-time counselors, nurses, and other essentials.
But retired teacher Marilyn Krupnick has made it her business to get the art out of storage and into a venue where students can appreciate it.
"Selling the artwork cannot cure the ills of the Philadelphia School District," Krupnick told the School Reform Commission last week. The replacement value of the work is about $8 million, but the district thought it could get much less - about $600,000 - for a select group of paintings.
But the bottom line is not about dollars and cents, said Arlene Holtz, a former district principal who had supported the quest to get the work out of storage and back in front of students.
"Art matters," Holtz said.
School Directors unanimously passed a resolution opposing the Keystone Exams as a graduation requirement at its Oct. 22 meeting.
Radnor Township School District School Board Passes Resolution Opposing Keystone Exams as High School Graduation Requirement
Taking a stand against "regulations or legislation that usurp the authority of local school districts to determine whether their students have earned high school diplomas," the Radnor Township School District Board of According to the resolution: “The Keystone Exams graduation requirement will cause an increase in remediation courses which will have economic impact on districts operating under Act 1 fiscal constraints and on taxpayers across the Commonwealth, and these required expenditures have no proof of cost effectiveness and represent an unfunded mandate.” Should the requirement be enacted, it will first affect the Class of 2017.
The resolution also states that the necessity for remediation courses reduces a student’s ability to select elective courses, which conflicts with the district’s board-approved mission of empowering students to pursue their individual passions with knowledge and confidence to shape the future.
The resolution calls on other school boards, local legislators and members of the Senate and House Education Committees to petition the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC) to amend Chapter 4, which specifies the mandate and has already been advanced by the State Board of Education. The IRRC is set to review the regulation on Thurs., Nov. 21.
Northampton schools chief frets over cost of new state standards | The Morning Call
New state evaluation standards for students, teachers and schools might have districts scrambling to figure out how to set their budgets next year.
That's the fear Joseph Kovalchik, superintendent of the Northampton Area School District, relayed to the school board Monday during a presentation of the new standards being passed down from the state Department of Education.
With Adequate Yearly Progress measurements being replaced by the School Performance Profile system, students must now take remedial classes if they don't receive a passing grade in assessment testing such as the PSSA and Keystone exams.
That amounts to a need for more teachers and classroom space, Kovalchik said.
Currently the district has a contingency fund of $200,000 to allow wiggle room for any additional staff that may be required. Kovalchik said that amount will probably have to increase when the 2014-15 budget is finalized next year.
"Staff drives your budget," he said.
The changes are intended to rate teachers' effectiveness with respect to planning and preparation, classroom environment, professional responsibilities and instruction. They are also designed to provide parents with performance measurements for the schools within their district, and to compare how their schools are performing in relation to other districts.
The measurements are then used to set goals, plan curriculums and determine how resources are allocated.
Don’t Let Property Tax Plan Derail PA Schools | Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center
The future of Pennsylvania schools — and the quality of education every child receives — is at stake in the latest property tax proposal in Harrisburg.
The plan to swap property taxes for higher state levies will drain billions from Pennsylvania classrooms within a few years. Over time, it increases funding inequities across districts and makes it harder for future graduates to compete in a 21st century job market.
There is a better way. Watch our new whiteboard video to see how we can strengthen our schools, make funding more equitable, and address property tax concerns.
Pension inaction hurts midstate taxpayers, teachers: Nathan A. Benefield | Harrisburg Patriot-News
Is your family ready for a tax increase of nearly $900 per year? Are you prepared to see 33,000 public school teachers in Pennsylvania—nearly one out of every three—lose their jobs? Those are the realities facing taxpayers and educators if we don’t get a handle on our public pension costs.
The state's two pension systems—for state government workers (SERS) and public school employees (PSERS)—together have more than $47 billion in debt.
It's a shortfall that taxpayers must cover. Recent legislation delayed the day of reckoning, giving lawmakers time to find a real solution, but the bill is quickly coming due.
Current projections show that state and school district contributions will increase from $2.5 billion in 2012-13 to $6.2 billion in 2016-17, representing $877 per Pennsylvania household or the salary of 33,000 teachers (based on average statewide salary). We can’t afford to simply sit by and do nothing.
Study: Deep poverty on the rise in Delaware and Camden Counties | Philadelphia Inquirer
Deep poverty - income of 50 percent of the federal poverty level or below - appears to have grown 19 percent in Camden County and 5 percent in Delaware County between 2011 and 2012, according to data from the U.S. Census' American Community Survey (ACS), released last month.
As an example, families of five making $27,570 a year or less are living in poverty. Same-size families making half that or less are in deep poverty.
Overall, deep poverty appeared to rise 17 percent in South Jersey - the counties of Camden, Gloucester, and Burlington combined, while it fell 3 percent in the Pennsylvania suburbs. In Philadelphia, numbers suggest that deep poverty dipped 6 percent.
Experts on both sides of the river were at a loss to explain such widely divergent data, and they caution that margins of error in the numbers can render the percentages less than precise.
Still, the data are considered the best available, and ACS trends depicting increases in deep poverty dovetail with what those who help the poor see every day.
UPDATED: The Wheels Come Off In Montclair While a Broadie Superintendent Is Driving | Jersey Jazzman
Just like over in reformy John King's New York, MacCormack is setting up an expectation that scores in Montclair are going to drop like a stone. Why? To justify a radical change in schooling that has no evidence to back it up, nor any support from the community.
What I wouldn't give to be able to see one of these "assessments." Something tells me that if the public in Montclair ever gets a look at the testing regime their kids are being put through, the parents will take up pitchforks and torches.
Selected national links related to corporate education reform and the fight against it.
Click here for the full schedule of Diane Ravitch’s book tour for Reign of Error.
Links Are Working on All Three Segments of Melissa Harris-Perry Show on Poverty and Privatization | Diane Ravitch’s blog - All three segments of this important interview about Obama’s education speech on Friday, which were down for three days, are now working.
Obama comes to Brooklyn. Warns students, 'the Chinese, Indians, Russians... are coming.’ | Mike Klonsky’s SmallTalk Blog - More details about Brookly P-Tech were Obama made Friday’s education speech.
Political Cowardice Is Political Courage | @ The Chalk Face - Paul Thomas examines Obama’s Friday speech.
Sarah Darer Littman among renowned authors to call out Obama on failure of corporate education reform laws | Wait What? - A statement from one of the authors who sent a letter to President Obama about the inappropriate use of standardized testing and the failings of the corporate education reform movement.
Steve Perry’s “Big Lie” about Capital Prep Magnet School | Wait What? - Connecticut is considering giving Steve Perry another charter school despite his record.
Steve Perry…People get fired or worse for the illegal things you are doing… | Wait What? - An examination of Steve Perry record even as he attacks teachers and public education.
NEA and AFT Offer Appeasements; Locals Prefer Democratic Response | @ The Chalk Face - Kris Nielsen questions why the leadership of the AFT and NEA are supporting high-stakes testing and the Common Core.
Is This Why AFT Leadership Sold Its Members Up The Common Core River? | @ The Chalk Face - Educationalcemy looks closer at why the AFT leadership may be selling out the rank and file.
Ed Reform Bill: Walton Foundation and NEA are BFF’s? NJ Left Behind - A NJ blog which supports corporate ed reform reports on NEA and AFT leaders support of corporate education reform in Colorado.
The BATS and the Teachers Unions | With A Brooklyn Accent - Mark Naison clarifies the position of BAT when it disagrees with the teachers’ union leadership.
Bullying by Numbers: Value-Added Measures | @ The Chalk Face - Kris Nielsen examines why the focus of corporate education reform has moved from students to the teachers and the schools.
New York Principals: Why the Common Core Tests Failed Our Students and Your Children | Diane Ravitch’s blog - New York principals speak out against Common Core.
Top state education official criticizes city’s school networks | Gotham Schools - NYC’s network system of schools is even being criticized by supporters of corporate education reform.
The doubts of a school choice supporter | The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post - Author Sam Chaltain, a corporate education supporter, has increasing reservations.
The Charlotte Danielson Who Is Getting Rich on the Misuse of Her Intellectual Property | Schools Matter - A reprint of an article about the fraud that is the Danielson teacher evaluations.
Robbing the Suburbs to Pay for Memphis Apartheid Corporate Charter Schools
Today's story in the Commercial Appeal makes it clear that Shelby County Schools (SCS) are in a big hurry to close the deal to keep large numbers of County students from going to the municipal boutique districts that sprang into existence when the threat of consolidation made it clear that they, otherwise, would have been in the same school system as all the poor black kids in Memphis.
Hanging on to large numbers of the poorer County students that, otherwise, would end up in the municipal districts serves SCS in two ways: 1) it helps to cover the $212 million loss ofthe thousands of students to apartheid corporate charter reform schools in Memphis, without acknowledging the loss, and 2) it provides future targets for corporate segregation schools beyond the urban core. With the State's bottom five percent of schools targeted for turnover each year, you only have to be in the lower half of test performers to get charterized within the next ten years.
Labels: apartheid, charter schools, memphis, school consolidation, Shelby County School Board
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Board index » Railway Preservation News » Railfanning
Looking for information on Maine Central class X locomotives
Moderators: tomgears, Rick Rowlands, steaminfo, wilkinsd
Howard P.
Post subject: Re: Looking for information on Maine Central class X locomot
Location: Thomaston & White Plains
He used a fish finder, not a steam locomotive finder.
Seriously, the old story of a locomotive in a quarry, river, deep lake, mud bog, abandoned tunnel, collapsed tunnel, old coal mine, or bricked-up factory, is invariably bogus.
Yes, there are some exceptions; they are well-known (work train loco in the collapsed Richmond tunnel, B&M 3666 in the river in NH, 4-4-0 in the Florida swamp, CPR loco in a deep Canadian lake, etc.) or they are a tiny contractor's 0-4-0T abandoned in place (or in a quarry).
The major railroads (MEC among them) accounted for all their locomotives, and the chance of a 2-6-6-2 being left in a river, with no record of such, is as likely as me having a date with Cindy Crawford this evening.
"I'm a railroad man, not a prophet."
Richard Glueck
Why would any railroad dump that much saleable scrap into a river? Why would there be no public record? Why would it be found for the first time using a fish finder? Why would it remain intact (especially in a New England river) after ninety years?
Somebody has superimposed the outline of something the shape of one of the articulated onto a screen of colored lines.
"It's only impossible until it's done." -Nelson Mandela
While it seems unlikely there is a 2-6-6-2 at the bottom of that lake it is not impossible. What was scrap worth in 1935? Please keep us posted on the hunt.
Tom Davidson
I don't have a horse in this race. The image seems to show the loco and tender in perfect front-to-back alignment, almost as if it were still on the rails. If the engine was wrecked, this seems highly unlikely. Looks suspiciously like a hoax to me. Let us know what your dive turns up.
Now I'm off to the Seven Mountains of Pennsylvania to look for the lost Bebelheimer Shay.
Last edited by Tom Davidson on Sat Jan 21, 2017 9:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Ron Travis
There are lost locomotive stories that are credible. The ones that are fallacious are usually wishful thinking about the prospect of acquiring a “free” locomotive for operation. Most of the wishful thinking losses involve the superpower era because those are the most desired locomotives. That is why they often seem so preposterous; like a perfectly preserved “Big Boy” hidden in a tunnel and forgotten. Actually, most lost locomotives date from the pioneering era. They may be documented or only the subject of verbal legend.
This one purported to be in the river seems highly unlikely. First of all, railroads seldom, if ever, “dumped” locomotives to get rid of them. Instead, they lost them because they fell into deep water or mud, and the cost of recovery exceeded their value. In any case, there needs to be an explanation of how a lost locomotive became lost.
If all the evidence for the lost Class x 2-6-6-2 is the fish finder image, one should first consider the location of a railroad in relation to that site. Is this beneath a railroad bridge over the river? Also, what is the scale of that image? Does it match the size of the suspected locomotive? How wide and deep is the river there? Also, if you remove the yellow outline that has been drawn around the image, is the image sufficiently convincing to be a locomotive?
The era of the supposed loss of this Class x is relatively recent. So there should be historical documentation in the newspapers. If the locomotive disposition records are available, losing the engine due to a wreck would most likely be noted. In any case, if the records show all Class x engines to have been scrapped, it disproves the theory of one being lost in the river. These types of records are often inconclusive from the pioneering era, but they should be quite clear in the relatively recent period of this supposed loss.
Steel City,
Can you explain how this image data you posted on the previous page was gathered by the use of a fish finder? I assume all of that patchwork pattern is part of the data, and it appears to cover quite a large area. If this was gathered from a boat on the water, how was it added to the Google photograph? And what explains the patchwork imagery shown throughout the photo? Why is it all organized in pattern that seems entirely based on two dimensional X and Y coordinates?
Steel City wrote:
Tom, do you mean this locomotive?
http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/2013/09/shay-remains-left-in-woods.html
No. That's a nice find, but a different engine. The Bebelheimer Shay is something of a legend in Central Pennsylvania. Ben Kline told the story better than I can in his "Pitch Pine and Prop Timber", Vol. 1 of the Logging Railroad Era of Lumbering in Pennsylvania series. Daniel Bebelheimer had a small 42" gauge logging railroad operating out of the Milroy, PA area about 100 years ago, using a single second-hand Shay. The operation ended when the engine became disabed somewhere in the woods, and was abandoned in place. Realistically, it is likely that the engine was taken out in pieces for WWII scrap (if not before) by persons unknown. But this was never documented, so there are visions of its being dicovered some day, covered up in a Laurel thicket. It's a landlubber's Flying Dutchman.
Many years ago, I joined the hunt with my own cursory tour of the Bebelheimer line's route, to no avail. But it's rugged country, and I would never claim I turned over every leaf to find her. You're welcome to try yourself!
Thanks for posting that link above to the History Channel coverage of the two locomotives off the coast of New Jersey. I have followed that story off and on for quite a while, but never had seen that coverage in the link. That is quite informative and detailed in describing their research. For a while, it seemed like the discovery was going to be abandoned with no conclusion. But after watching the coverage in the link, it seems like there is a good chance of recovering and preserving those locomotives as historical artifacts. They have really made a lot of progress in unraveling the mystery.
As far as lost locomotives go, that discovery ranks extremely high in the quality and antiquity of the artifact. It is interesting that the two locomotives match each other as well as the one preserved 2-2-2 locomotive named PIONEER, and yet they are much larger than the preserved PIONEER.
I have considered the theories that are offered for as to how the two locomotives ended up side by side and perfectly upright on the ocean floor. The idea that they were being towed on a barge that sunk in a storm makes sense and explains final resting position of the locomotives if they went down while fastened down the deck of the barge. But apparently, they have conclude that no barge is there.
If they were not on a barge, but rather, slid off or were jettisoned from the ship deck in a storm, it is hard to imagine them landing in such an orderly fashion on the bottom.
I would like to know more about that crate of "lollypops" they found nearby.
philip.marshall
Posted: Sun Jan 22, 2017 4:00 am
Location: Boston, MA, but formerly Port Jefferson, NY (LIRR MP 57.5)
I'm fascinated by these two Seth Wilmarth(?) 2-2-2Ts sunken off New Jersey and think the topic is significant and important enough to deserve a thread of its own.
According to Taber's Antebellum American Railroads: 1830-1860, the Cumberland Valley RR had at least three other 2-2-2Ts in addition to the Pioneer, namely the Jenny Lind (1851), the Boston (1855), and the Enterprise (also 1855), all with 54" drivers and presumably all built by Seth Wilmarth. Could they have ordered two more in the period between 1851 and 1855 that didn't make it? (Are there any surviving records of the Cumberland Valley that might shed light on this, perhaps in the RMPA archives?)
The "lollipops" look kind of like eccentric rods to me.
Do we know the current status of this project? I'd love to see these engines raised and conserved.
-Philip Marshall
EDIT: I see now that these locomotives have already been discussed numerous times on this board going back more than a decade, though with no recent updates.
Last edited by philip.marshall on Sun Jan 22, 2017 11:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.
All of the Youtube clips are well known items. The Delaware River site is either from an abandoned wreck or were freight cars placed there as flood control items. As a child, I remember Lehigh Valley hoppers being run into a flood raging river to help slow it down (1950's). The two little steamers in the Atlantic, were either thrown overboard or washed off a deck. WW2 ships with locomotives are well documented. "News" clips or television segments are edited to entice your imagination. How you would try to move a 2-6-6-2 across a New Hampshire lake, or why you would want to do it, is a bit less clear. How you would keep the whole business "murky" until 2017, would be the story!
Air bags, the same way we bring ships to the surface.
Something makes me think you don't want this steam locomotive to be found. Maybe because it might take the light off of Maine Central #470?
Ummmmmm.jpg [ 6 KiB | Viewed 3715 times ]
That must be what it is!
Location: Bowie, MD
We'll find out in late May or early June when My two son's and I take a dip.
A posting after a positive or negative find will be most welcome. Those of us who have been on this board for a long time (years) tend to be skeptical because sunken engine stories pop up every couple of years, usually with a promise of a spring/summer dive, with the original posters never to be heard from again.
And then if you are around long enough, we get to hear it all over again when a couple of years later some newbie bounces the original thread asking if there has been an update. :-)
So please pardon us old-timers if we are skeptical and somewhat grumpy. Starting to get personal with a veteran of the trade who has nuts, bolts, political, and fund raising cred doesn't endear. Conversing while understanding this environment, asking good, intelligent questions, seeking help digging through newspaper and other archives, answering technical questions directed to you, and even getting an expert to tag along on your trip would gain cred.
So how deep is the water there? And can you post your Google Earth image with a distance scale please? And perhaps highlight near by current and historical tracks?
Location: southeastern USA
Actually..... Steel City has nothing to prove, he's just asking for information. the odds are not good, but every now and again a long shot comes in - think of the developments of last Friday, for example. Cut him some slack and let's see what he finds during his dive - at the worst, he'll have a nice day doing some interesting poking around. Best, there's something of interest down there. It costs us nothing to watch and wish him well and a safe dive.
Santayana: "He who does not remember the past is condemned to repeat it."
Corollary: "He who does is doomed to watch those who don't repeat it anyway."
Here's some help for anyone still paying attention.
The "aerial view" posted earlier is likely to confuse some, as it's looking SOUTH down the Connecticut River towards Wilder Dam, with Vermont on the right and New Hampshire on the left. The parking lot seen at the lower right is for the Montshire Museum of Science, in Vermont across the river from Hanover, NH. The former Boston & Maine branch from White River Junction to Wells River hugs the shore of the Vermont side. Last I remember, that was a Pan Am Railways line, with excursions operated on it by Vermont Rail Systems as part of the annual RR festival at WRJ.
Using my edition of Google Earth Pro, matching up everything as closely as I can, I'm coming up with a length for this purported image of tender and locomotive of approximately 200 feet (and that's being conservative--the first couple times were 250 and 220 feet). This is for a purported locomotive and tender that was 77 feet long as built.
And this does not entertain any discussion of how a Maine Central articulated ended up on the B&M line, how it wrecked, or how it managed to end up perpendicular to the rail line before coming to rest on the bottom when the adjacent rail line is mere feet from the river bank at this location--approximately 25 feet above the water level.
As anyone looking at Facebook or purported "news" websites must observe:
"Claims require proof. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof."
I wish you lots of fun on your dive junket.
RyPN's Resident Skeptical Curmudgeon
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News & Discussion: Never Builts
#1 Post by Will » Fri Oct 03, 2008 1:57 pm
I have been collecting development related material since the late 1990s and have participated in development forums since 2002. As such I have seen many of the projects in Adelade throughout their entire development process; from the moment when the application was lodged with the council up to the final stage when the building is ready for human habitation. However not all projects eventuate. This forum is dedicated to those developments which for varying reasons never managed to grace our city.
Re: #Official - Never Builts
I'll start of with 2 buildings which due to their sites are quite relevant for discussion.
The first one was proposed back in 2002 for the site now intended for the Hills World HQ. The development was for a 9 level building rising to a height of 29m. The building was purely residential with the exception of the ground floor which included some retail tenancies. This project actually came before council in 2003, where if memory serves me correctly was rejected because it contained to many apartments for the size of the building. The developers behind it never lodged a revised application.
The second never built was intended for the former Repco site ae 374-400 KWS. Prior to the current project there were 3 previous proposals which all failed to get off the ground, with this one either the first or second proposal. This project was known as 'Queens Apartments'. Pre-selling for these apartments was rather underwhelming leading to this projects axing.
Shuz
Location: Glandore
#3 Post by Shuz » Fri Oct 03, 2008 10:07 pm
I'm very glad neither of these went ahead, they would have further stymied the potential for high-rise development as is occuring now, and would've gave further precedent for the city council to retain the height limitations as it was in this area.
#4 Post by Omicron » Sat Oct 04, 2008 9:29 pm
Shuz wrote: I'm very glad neither of these went ahead, they would have further stymied the potential for high-rise development as is occuring now, and would've gave further precedent for the city council to retain the height limitations as it was in this area.
I'm glad neither went ahead because they're abominable dross.
#5 Post by crawf » Tue Oct 14, 2008 1:23 am
The Repco proposal could of looked good..
Xaragmata
Location: Adelaide / West
Contact Xaragmata
#6 Post by Xaragmata » Tue Oct 14, 2008 2:03 am
Multi-Function Polis (MFP) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multifunction_Polis
#7 Post by Will » Sat Oct 25, 2008 3:07 pm
Now that I have a bit of thime here are a few more:
Maximo Apartments - 261-269 Pulteney Street
This building was proposed back in 2002. It was an 8 level residential apartment building containing 33 apartments including top floor penthouses. One can see how extreme the jump in property prices have been in the last few years, because the ad that I have for this project states that apartments are priced from $199 000 ranging to the 242sqm2 top floor penthouse with rooftop terrace at $699 000. The building would have featured ground floor retail and an underground carpark. The building would have also featured a lap pool, gym and sauna for exclusive use of the residents. Construction was slated to begin in early 2003; in fact the developers had even constructed a display apartment on the site. However lack of interest killed off this building.
Centro Apartments - 266-274 Pulteney Street
Located almost opposite Maximo Apartments above, this project was also proposed around the same era. It was for a 6 level building containing 23 apartments. However unlike Maximo, 5 apartments in this complex were actually sold. Despite this, it never eventuated. The building would have also featured ground level retail and an exclsuive gym and lap pool for residents.
#8 Post by Will » Mon Mar 09, 2009 1:55 pm
I thought I might revive this thread with another building which never came to fruition:
It is Fresh at Glenelg. It was proposed by Urban Construct in 2004 on the back of the hugely succesful Libert Towers and Platinum, both of which sold out in a couple of days. However the problem was that many of the apartments in the 2 aforementioned buildings had been bought by investors hoping to make a quick profit by buying cheaper off the plan and then selling once the building was complete. Many investors did this causing an oversupply of apartments at Glenelg. Seeing this, and the subsequent price correction, sales became very sluggish on this building and it was withdrawn by Urban Construct. However, a sales centre was built for it, the remnants of which can still be seen in the building at the corner of Anzac Highway and Sussex Street. Fresh was to be a 5 level building containing 182 apartments. It would ahve contained a rooftop health club with gym, pool, spa and sauna as well as its own private cinema. Urban Constrcut reported that it had received over 900 registrations of interest in the project, of which very few actually became sales.
#9 Post by Shuz » Mon Mar 09, 2009 2:13 pm
Fresh sits on a very good site for another high-rise proposal to come forth - much like Liberty Towers, which I hope happens. At first I had hoped to see it go ahead, but now I think we're better off without it - as it holds greater development promise.
The biggest N/B would have been the MATS plan; although that was largely an 'urban planning' project, than a specific development itself.
As for 'buildings' wasn't there a former proposal for the Liberty Towers site, occupying only about half the block as it does now? And Platinum at Glenelg was supposed to be 15 levels high, not the 9 level - which I'd rather as it is actually.
There was another proposal for a 70m tower to squeeze in between Waymouth Exchange and Rendevous Allegra, which was to be Australia's thinnest skyscraper and like 8m width I think?
Also suprised no-ones mentioned Capital City Observation Tower Project?
#10 Post by Will » Mon Mar 09, 2009 2:16 pm
Shuz wrote: Fresh sits on a very good site for another high-rise proposal to come forth - much like Liberty Towers, which I hope happens. At first I had hoped to see it go ahead, but now I think we're better off without it - as it holds greater development promise.
Patience Shuz. In time I will post some information on all those projects that you have mentioned plus more!.
Ok then, 1 more for today:
The project is Pinnacle and it was proposed by the Mattioli Group, (the same developer behind the Rendeszvous Allegra re-development) back in 2003. At 72m tall and only 6m wide it would have been the building with the largest difference in plot to height ratio; 12:1!
The building was to be located at 63 Waymouth Street between the Rendeszvous Allegra Hotel and the Waymouth Exchange, in the space currently occupied by a 2 level building.
The building was to be 21 levels high, with each floor offering 180sqm2 of office space. In fact the entire building only had a NLA of 3570sqm2. Each floor was to be serviced by 2 lifts and it would ahve had internal access to the Rendeszvous Allegra.
The building was marketed using a similar strategy as the Aurora on Pirie development in that each floor was individually offered for sale to 'owner occupiers'.
I suspect that this project failed because it is not fashionable to occupy such small floor plates, but nevertheless it is a bit of a shame that this development never eventuated as it would have become a quirky addition to our skyline.
The architects for it were Pruszisnki Architects:
#12 Post by Shuz » Mon Mar 09, 2009 3:46 pm
Sorry Will for rushing through!
I hope the Pinnacle can be ressurected in some form one day; if not - at least wait until the Telstra Exchange goes up for demolition and merge the two land titles!
#13 Post by Norman » Mon Mar 09, 2009 5:22 pm
Funny that actiually, the site for Fresh is actually a motel I stayed in while holidaying in Adelaide, back in 1997.
#14 Post by Omicron » Tue Mar 10, 2009 11:13 pm
The Atlantic Tower at Glenelg was just one of a proposed series of cylindrical towers running from Anzac Highway through to Jetty Rd. I'm sure I've come across a photo of a model of the proposal, but I'll be damned if I can find it now that I want to use it.
#15 Post by Will » Wed Mar 11, 2009 6:47 pm
Omicron wrote: The Atlantic Tower at Glenelg was just one of a proposed series of cylindrical towers running from Anzac Highway through to Jetty Rd. I'm sure I've come across a photo of a model of the proposal, but I'll be damned if I can find it now that I want to use it.
The Atlantic Tower was actually the smallest of the 4 proposed cylindrical towers. The other were proposed at 16 levels, 18 levels and 24 levels if memory serves me correct. It was envisaged that each building in the complex would have a helipad on its roof with the complex having its private fleet of helicopters to fly its inhabitants to work in the morning and flying them back in the evening.
Mid way through construction, the developer went broke, leaving the Atlantic Tower as an empty shell for 8 years until it was bought by a local developer who finally had it completed in 1980.
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Homestay and Rural Tourism Travel Meet
Kerala Homestay and Tourism Society is organizing 2017 Home Stay and Rural Tourism Travel Meet in Kochi from September 15 to 17 at Bolgatty Palace. Tourism minister, Mr. Kadakampally Surendran, will inaugurate the function on September 15th at 5 p.m. and K.V. Thomas, MP, will preside over the function.
Mr. Bala Kiran, Tourism Director of Kerala, said the function is expected to participate 1500 guests from various countries like Malaysia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and from Indian states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab and Kashmir.
Several meetings, seminars and cultural shows have been planned for the event and about 130 stalls have been booked by various sellers to showcase their products and services.
Akkulam-Veli boating resumed
Navarathri Sangeetholsavam 2017
New Scania buses for KSRTC
April 22, 2016 shiningk 0
Sabarimala Temple opened for Vishu
Kerala tiger parks bagged awards
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North Korea Accidentally Hit Their OWN CITY With A Missile
In the ongoing quest to become a nuclear superpower, North Korea has been making some impressive strides, worrying analysts. But one of their tests failed by all measures less than a year ago, as one of their first targets may have been themselves.
On April 28, 2017, a North Korean ballistic missile crashed and hit the urban city of Tokchon, roughly 40 miles north of Pyongyang, The Diplomat reported. This ballistic missile test that went horribly wrong was not previously known, but likely resulted in at least some casualties and considerable damage to buildings.
North Korea launched a single Hwasong-12/KN17 intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) from Pukchang Airfield in South Pyongan Province (the Korean People’s Army’s Air and Anti-Air Force Unit 447 in Ryongak-dong, Sunchon City, to be more precise). That missile failed shortly after launch causing it to strike in the Chongsin-dong.
According to a U.S. government source with knowledge of North Korea’s weapons programs who spoke to The Diplomat, the missile’s first stage engines failed after approximately one minute of powered flight, resulting in catastrophic failure. The missile never flew higher than approximately 70 kilometers. The location of the missile’s eventual impact was revealed exclusively to The Diplomat and evidence of the incident can be independently corroborated in commercially available satellite imagery from April and May 2017. –The Diplomat
In April, most of the reports of the circumstances of this particular failed launch were sparse. Most noted only that North Korea launched a single missile that failed in flight. U.S. Pacific Command stated that the missile was launched from “near” Pukchang Airfield, a previously unused launch site for North Korean ballistic missile testing. As The Diplomat reported in June, contrary to other reports at the time, the three missiles tested in April were not anti-ship ballistic missiles, but a new type of intermediate-range ballistic missile.
The Diplomat cross-referenced the failed missile’s approximate landing site with Google Earth and other satellite imaging to find that the suspected landing area did indeed seem to show signs of “considerable damage to a complex of industrial or agricultural buildings.” Several structures appeared damaged in satellite images, reportedly by debris from the failed launch.
An image from Google earth of the complex show ground disturbances in an area that previously contained a building with fencing, also showing that a portion of the seasonal greenhouse had been damaged near the side of the complex where the debris fell. Using Planet Labs’ high-frequency satellite images of this site, we can narrow down the date which this change occurred, which was sometime between the 26th and the 29th, or the two-day window in which the test is known to have occurred.
Kim’s button didn’t work too well huh?
Any missile named Dong will not work well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8zCdw22g0k
JS< I hope you're right and especially if it's DING DONG, LOL!
OK who forgot to fill up the gas tank before we took off ????
Maybe he has pre mature jubilation
Nailbanger, sounds like Porky is a premature dickhead, LOL.
der-uh which way did it go? duh, which way did it go?
MWK says:
Rocketman might be his own worst enemy. Do it again rocketman! do it again!
Sounds like made in North Korea s WORSE than made in China.
Wonder how you say “Oh Shit!” or “My Bad” in gook?
rrrr says:
The same problem that many of our western nations are having: Mistakenly destroying themselves and each another.
Communists countries are too problematic since they do not care about thier economies and starving citizens of thier own but they like persuing wars and other useless things.
The worlds people are held hostage by psychotic madmen who could never pass for human beings. A disgusting bunch of murderous pricks.
Godsoldier says:
Wish there was a video that included the look on his face at that precise moment he realized he just fooked himself. I find it sum what amusing when you see that precise moment look on peoples faces dumb ass
GETTING REAL says:
You bet someone is going to be on the receiving end of a 4 barreled machine gun. ha ha ha
Twarn’t no accident… Un heard that there was a defector there and just got a wee bit carried away is all. Happened to be the starving dogs’ day off.
I wonder if any Officials are going to end up like this ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?vJBAsD6gFpDk
Daddys MAD
Better them than US.
Now I’m worried about this Dip Shit launching one and it hits something that it isn’t suppose to. Like Japan or S.K.
Hey Sarge just wanted to set the facts straight that I WAS NOT responding to your post regarding the Rasmussen /DHS article. My post was purely aimed at Rasmussen himself for his stance. I have the utmost respect for you and the job you do. Just wanted to set the record straight.
I highly doubt this ever happened.
Story claims this happened last Spring.
Why report about it now?
There is clearly nothing to hide here.
Our Media would of jumped all over this story if it were true when it “claimed” to happen.
Anyhoo – it’s part of the process of testing rockets – failure eventually meets success … and we have all seen that their rockets do work … question is … are they able to hit their proper target(s)?
Depends on their guidance systems, most likely are using Chinese tech, so some yes, some no,
If it stays in the atmosphere its more likely, anything that leaves the atmosphere gets tricky, angles, velocity, etc etc, then theres the heat issues, can the alloy used or system or insulating panels used survive extreme heat, can it insulate the payload and electronics. Eventually im sure they will succeed, right now though, i would bet its more like shooting off oversized fireworks,
halfmile says:
“our media” is not reporting the protests going on in Iran either……….who do they work for now that Barry is out?
Nailbanger, agreed. The NKs have some old Soviet-era Scuds and I think some newer Chinese missiles in the mix. I still question the quality of Chinese technology despite the fact that Clinton gave away so much of it to the chinks back in the 90s. Oversized fireworks sounds right to me.
Too bad it didn’t hit Whon Phat Phuck’s imperial mansion and take him out. That would have been something to celebrate.
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Tag Archives: Henry
Men In Black: International – or Men in Pink and Women in Black?
June 19, 2019 Laf Ebesi Leave a comment
Based on comics by Lowell Cunningham (1990), and written by Art Marcum and Matt Holloway, F. Gary Gray’s Men In Black (MIB): International is the fourth of MIB film series (1997-2012) and released under Columbia pictures label which is a Sony company.
Moving internationally – by which it actually gets its title – from Paris to New York, London, and Marakesh, it opens in Paris 2016 where MIB agents high T (Liam Neeson) and agent H (Chris Hemsworth) fight an attack from Hive, the evil alien, at the Eiffel Tower.. And in Brooklyn 20 years earlier, we see a little girl, Molly (Tessa Thompson, becoming agent M after these 20 years), reading Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time in her bedroom where she meets an unlicensed unauthorized Tarantian unexpectedly. While her parents are after this creature in the downstairs, their door knocks and MIB agents show up to talk. Following this talk, they erase the parents’ memories via a cool-looking, blue light neuralyzer when they understand that the parents are aware of such a creature. Molly witnesses all from her bedroom window at the upstairs, and with her memory intact…
Molly grows up and so does her enthusiasm to become one of these MIBs to find the truth of the universe… She applies to FBI and CIA. After her several unsuccessful (!) interviews which lay out the intelligent quotient of any such “big” denotated institutions (please see “up” confusion responsibly😆 – accounting department on the “up”), she finally gets a chance to join the team only if she can prove herself. The recruiter boss makes a cameo as agent O (Emma Thompson) who is the chief of “M”IB and a lady herself. Yet, agent M’s adventure in MIB team starts. That is also where MIB: International goes ahead! No more spoilers after that part regarding the plot 😉
Before moving in-depth, if anyone is expecting a stylish blockbuster sci-fi for its unique effects or visual aspects, it may be good to step back a bit. What one will watch is quite a better story than can be assumed, and a less sophisticated cinematography (Stuart Dryburgh) and visual work. Heavy and messy use of CGI outweighed the practical boldly; and many of the scenes looked tiring, unproportional and blurry. Eventually from the user-end, watching MIB: International on IMAX will be of no help as a proactive hint to the potential audience who would like to see it on IMAX (only 3D can be deemed sufficient). There was also some kind of a divergence between creature costumes and make-up, either one of them too vivid or the other one too numb.
Not having Barry Sonenfeld (former director), or Will Smith or Tommy Lee Jones (former actors) did not affect this reboot in a negative way. Directing obviously reveals that F. Gary Gray has no broad experience or educational background in film directing, e.g., we feel no detailed instructions for actors to adjust their gestures or mime which might have been set more delicately; or we feel no sense of compiling practical effects versus digital. However, the overall effort for direction is warmly remarkable, and also ample to have all at once fly smoothly in one direction.
The script, though not being flawless, is acceptable for a mediocre audience. For example, it would strengthen the whole impression if Vungus’ words, “he has changed. I can feel it. Something happened to him”, would have been placed in another sequence so that the final happening could have been emphasized more strikingly. But as been told above, it is more than welcome for the target audience who think that agent M means the accounting department on the up 😄 😄
Actors (and actresses😊) can be assessed per their own performances given the reason above regarding the direction, also depending on their varied experiences in the industry. If there is an above-average performance, that should be noted as Tessa Thompson. French dancers, les Twins, are also worth mentioning for their perfect body languages in all scenes, even only walking. I found Neeson’s acting a bit exaggerated, most probably due to the aforementioned directing gap. On the contrary, Rafe Spall as the nerd agent H was more expressionless or emotionless than this character should be indeed. Hemsworth’s acting was unrecognizable unfortunately (no beating performance rather than that classical physical appearance of an American small eyed, narrow foreheaded, arrogant character).
To highlight several points that are sprinkled in a well-thought way were some kind of a glass ceiling referral – gender discrimination against women (unforgettable and untold conversation between agents M and O regarding “men” in black term; or agent H wearing pink pants while agent M fits perfectly in black suits). Other bright recall to think on comes from the agents for Vungus “we were once protecting the World from the scum of the universe, now we are protecting the scum”… Anyway, who can tell that the World is not going to save itself when there is a huge population who is not able to discriminate between “up” and “up” or not able to understand what is being described simply?…
MIB: International topped the charts during the weekend of 15th and 16th after its release in US by 14th of June 2019. Maybe truth of the universe that agent M seeks is that the universe has a way of leading one to where one is supposed to be, at the moment one is supposed to be there as high T says… Maybe it will keep being the franchise low of $28.5 million; but I may still recommend anyone to see this action comedy for its consistent story-telling and unboring fast-moving flow.
14Jun2019Agent HAgent MAgent OArt MarcumBarry SonenfeldChris HemsworthColumbia picturesEmma ThompsonF. Gary GrayFrenchHenryHiveHoratioles TwinsLiam Neesonlowell CunninghamMatt Hollowaymen in black: internationalMIBMollyRafe SpallsonyTessa ThompsonThorTOMMY lEE jONESVungusWill Smith
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Online since Saturday, October 11, 2014
Melatonin p. 133
Abdulaziz A Al-Quorain
DOI:10.4103/1658-631X.142494
The uses of melatonin in anesthesia and surgery p. 134
Hany A Mowafi, Salah A Ismail
Melatonin is a hormone secreted by the pineal gland. It is available as a dietary supplement, taken primarily for the relief of insomnia. Increasing evidence from human and animal studies suggests that melatonin may be efficacious as a preoperative anxiolytic, a postoperative analgesic, and a preventative for postoperative delirium. It has also been reported to decrease intraocular pressure. Melatonin's high efficacy, wide safety profile in terms of dose, and virtual lack of toxicity make it of interest in anesthetic and surgical practice. This review examines clinical trial data describing the efficacy and safety of melatonin in the perioperative anesthetic and surgical settings. We shall, also, focus attention on animal and human experimental studies that concern these issues.
Prevalence, severity, and secular trends of dental caries among various saudi populations: A literature review p. 142
Asim A Al-Ansari
The prevalence of dental caries is increasing across different nations around the globe. A review of the literature shows that dental caries is adversely affecting the oral health of children, adolescents, adults and elderly populations in Saudi Arabia. The objective of this review is to report the prevalence, severity, and progression of dental caries in different age groups of Saudi communities. Digital databases such as PubMed, Medline, Google scholar, and the Saudi Dental and Medical Journals were searched to retrieve the published articles and reports on dental caries in Saudi Arabia. Search strategy included key words such as "dental caries," dental decay, decayed missing filled teeth (dmft/DMFT), and oral health. Cross-sectional, retrospective and cohort studies (from 1982 to 2012) reporting the prevalence, incidence and severity of caries among children, adults and older individuals were included in the review. In children with primary dentition ages 3-7 years, the highest caries prevalence was almost 95% and maximum estimate of dmft was 7.34 during the last decade. Approximately, 91% was the highest caries prevalence and greatest DMFT value was 7.35 among the children/adolescents ages 12-19 years. The adults with a mean age between 30 and 45 years had maximum caries prevalence of 98% and DMFT of 14.53 while older individuals had greatest DMFT score of 24.3. Children, adults, and elderly populations demonstrate a higher prevalence and greater severity of caries, and secular trends also show a striking increase in dmft/DMFT and caries prevalence rates over the past few decades in Saudi Arabia.
Infants of diabetic mothers: 4 years analysis of neonatal care unit in a teaching hospital, Saudi Arabia p. 151
Mohammad H Al-Qahtani
Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) in pregnant ladies has consequences during the perinatal period, affecting the mothers' gestation and their mode of delivery. The infants of diabetic mothers (IDM) are also prone to spectrum of morbidity. This study aimed to evaluate the outcome of diabetic mothers, of both types; pregestational and gestational, and to determine the spectrum of morbidity pattern among their infants. Materials and Methods: This study is a retrospective analysis of 4 years period May 2008 to April 2012 at King Fahd Hospital of the University, Al-Khobar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. All the diabetic pregnant mothers admitted to the hospital and their babies within that period were included into the study. Results: The diabetic mothers constitute 2.9% of all the pregnant ladies. Multiparity was found in the majority of our diabetic mothers regardless of their type of diabetes. Around 70% of the IDM were born to mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), while 26% were born to mothers with type 2 DM, and only 4.5% type 1 DM. Full term babies were 163 (92.0%), preterm were only 14 (8.0%). The most common IDM morbidities were Hypomagnesaemia, followed by macrosomia, which was found higher in infant of GDM. The least common complications were polycythemia and acute respiratory distress syndrome. A low percentage of asymptomatic hypoglycemia and hypocalcemia were found. There was no mortality among the IDM during the study period. Conclusions: As proven in this study Gestational DM continues as health care problem with risks for both the mothers and their offspring. It is recommended to follow the international guidelines for early detection, proper diagnosis and management of the gestational diabetic mothers to improve the outcome and limit the complications.
A comparison between estimates of glomerular filtration rate using technetium-99m-diethylene-triamine-pentaacetic acid clearance and modification of diet in renal disease equation p. 157
Amrah Javaid, Iqbal Munir, Saghir A Jaffri, Muhammad H Qazi, Muhammad K Nawaz
Background: More than half of cancer patients have unrecognized renal insufficiency, which is a reduced glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and is a disease complication factor. Aims and Objectives: The objective of the present study is to compare the accuracy of GFR with two methods, i.e., GFR by Gates' method (gamma camera uptake method with technetium-99m-diethylene-triamine-pentaacetic acid (Tc-99m-DTPA) and GFR by modification of diet in renal disease (MDRD) equation in cancer patients. Materials and Methods: A total of 50 cancer patients with abnormal serum creatinine were included in the study. 50 age matched cancer patients with normal creatinine, blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and serum albumin were taken as controls. History of patients including site of cancer, chemotherapy regime and dose of chemotherapy was recorded. Serum creatinine was estimated by auto analyzer using Jaffe's method. Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was calculated using camera based modified gates method with (99mTc-DPTA) and MDRD equation. Results: Mean age of patients was 50 year. Level of serum creatinine and BUN were significantly increased (P < 0.001) in patients when compared to controls. Level of serum albumin was non-significantly (P > 0.05) decreased in cancer patients and body surface area also increased, but differences were non-significant (P > 0.05) in cancer patients when compared to controls. Mean GFR was estimated by camera based modified gates method which increased in cancer patients as compared to GFR by MDRD equation but differences were not significant (P > 0.05). Cost, time duration and time for reagent preparation was very high using Renogram (Gate's method) as compared to the cost and other factors involved in estimation of GFR by MDRD equation. Conclusion: It is concluded that the MDRD equation is more suitable, economical and time saving for the estimation of GFR as compared to Renogram using Tc-99m-DPTA. However future prospective studies are required to the estimation of GFR in those tumors, which may cause kidney damage such as cisplatin or carboplatin, methotrexate.
The use of transcranial doppler pulsatility index to guide intracranial pressure monitoring in intoxicated traumatic brain injury patients p. 162
Hosam Al-Jehani
Introduction: Management of intracranial pressure (ICP) represents a cornerstone in the care of traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients. On occasions, intoxicated TBI represent a clinical challenge since their initial imaging is not significantly correlating with elevated ICP yet their neurological exam concerns toward that possibility. Materials and Methods: We present an initial series of intoxicated TBI patients in which the trans-cranial Doppler (TCD) were conducted to noninvasively judge the ICP and correlate those with the clinical findings. Results: A total of four patients is reported in this series. About 50% of the patients had evidence of elevated ICP based on TCD parameters confirmed by ICP monitors. Conclusion: From our series, TCD screening examinations were helpful in expediting an objective guided decision for intracranial pressure monitoring.
Students evaluating teaching effectiveness process in saudi arabian medical colleges: A comparative study of students' and faculty members perception* p. 166
Ahmed A Al-Kuwaiti
Introduction: Students evaluating teaching effectiveness (SETE) is highly topical world-wide, including Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The literature review highlighted the focus of this study, namely, students' and instructors' perception of the SETE process, not SETE data as such. Setting: Medical colleges in seven Governmental universities in KSA. A group of randomly drawn final year students and a group of their teaching faculties were studied. Materials and Methods: A researcher-constructed 26 items questionnaire on 5-point Likert- type scale was used to generate data. Proportion test and Mann-Whitney U-test were used to compare the differences between the perceptions of the two groups. Results: A total of 600 completed questionnaires were retrieved and analyzed. There were statistically significant differences between instructors' and students' perception of SETE. Whereas, students registered disapproval in three of the four areas studied, the pattern of instructors' response was a mirror image of the students'. It showed disapproval in one of four areas. Conclusion: Sample size was satisfactorily fair as compared with other articles with similar research focus. Evidence of objectivity and data authenticity was demonstrated. The differences and similarities between the opinions in the two groups, as well as in the literature, were identified. It can be safely concluded that the findings in this study agreed broadly with others. Future research was also signposted.
Major indications for keratoplasty in the eastern province, Saudi Arabia p. 173
Khalid Arfaj, Reem Abdulqader
Purpose: To determine the leading indications for keratoplasty in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) over a 5 years period (2005-2010) and to compare these indications with previously published studies. Materials and Methods: Records of all patients who underwent keratoplasty at different eye specialized hospitals at Eastern Province, KSA between January 1, 2005 and March 31, 2010 were reviewed retrospectively. For each case, the primary surgical indication was identified. Results: A total of 244 keratoplasties was performed, including 126 penetrating keratoplasties, 73 deep lamellar keratoplasties, 27 triple procedures, 6 descemet's stripping automated endothelial keratoplasties and 4 Boston keratoprosthesis implantations. Of the 244 procedures, 222 were primary and 22 repeat keratoplasties. The leading indication for keratoplasty was keratoconus, performed in 121 eyes (49.6%), followed by bullous keratopathy (13.1%), stromal dystrophies (10.7%), regrafts (8.6%), stromal scarring and Fuchs' endothelial dystrophy (4.5% each), microbial keratitis (3.3%), trauma (1.6%), and herpetic keratitis or undetermined scar etiology (4.1%). Conclusion: In this series, the leading indications for keratoplasty were keratoconus, bullous keratopathy, stromal dystrophies and regrafts. Other less frequent indications include stromal scarring, Fuchs' dystrophy, ulcer-related microbial keratitis, trauma and herpetic keratitis. This study was held to draw the attention of Ophthalmologist to commonest indication for keratoplasty in Saudi Arabia.
Study of environmental noise pollution in the university of dammam campus p. 178
Mahmoud F El-Sharkawy, Ali Alsubaie
Context: Noise pollution has been well-recognized as one of the major trepidations that can adversely affect public health and quality-of-life in urban areas across the globe. Community noise, or environmental noise, includes the primary sources of road, rail and air traffic, industries, and public works. Aims: The main aim of this study is to assess the noise level inside the University of Dammam (UD) campus. Settings and Design: Three different locations were selected for measuring noise levels during this study; outside walls, the internal streets, and inside several buildings of the UD campus. Materials and Methods: Levels of the environmental noise pollution were measured at three different periods of the academic year 2011-2012; during study days, final exams and the holiday periods. Statistical Analysis Used: Results of this research were statistically analyzed by the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences SPSS program. Results: Levels of noise outside walls of the UD campus were higher than those inside the campus walls at all periods. Inside the UD campus, levels of noise were the highest at locations that are characterized by the high traffic movement. In addition, the highest level of noise was recorded during the studying period, while the lowest level was obtained during the holiday period. Levels of the indoor noise inside buildings of the campus were nearly the same or very slightly higher than those of the outdoor levels which indicate that the effect of human activity inside university buildings on noise pollution can be neglected comparing with the outdoor sources. Conclusion: Both levels of noise inside and outside buildings were higher than their guideline values. These high noise levels require effective environmental control strategies and increasing awareness between all staff members inside universities camps.
Three decades of anesthesiology research at King Fahd Hospital of the university: Bibliometric analysis of volume and visibility p. 185
Abdulmohsen A Al-Ghamdi, Hany A Mowafi
Context: The quantity and quality of publications by an institution is an indicator of its contribution towards the development of science. Aims: To examine the volume and visibility of publications by the anesthesia department of King Fahd Hospital of the University (KFHU), Dammam, Saudi Arabia, in the last 30 years. Settings and Design: Publications by members of the anesthesia department in the last three decades were retrieved from the databases of PubMed and Scopus. Materials and Methods: For each article retrieved, the journal and time of publication, the type of the article and the authors were analyzed. The visibility of KFHU publications in leading anesthesia journals is related to the number of citations each article received. Since websites publish only citation reports for the years 1999 to 2011, we analyzed visibility for the years 1998 to 2008. The visibility was compared to the general Saudi anesthesia publications and those of some other Arab countries. It was also related to global indices. Statistical Analysis Used: Two visibility indices were used in the present study. The first relates the average citations per articles in the years following publication to the average global citations per anesthesia articles. The second relates the average citations per article in the 3 years following publication to the impact of the journal of publication. The h-index was used as a measure of both volume and visibility. Results: Anesthesiologists from KFHU published 151 documents in the years 1983-2013, with a marked increase in the last 6 years. The articles published from the year 1998-2008 received citations similar to the journals where it was published with visibility index of one. The average citations per article were 11.75 which are close to the global anesthesia citations per article (12.2). Conclusions: KFHU anesthesia publications have increased recently. Its impact and visibility are similar to global indices.
Physicians' override of computerized alerts for contraindicated medications in patients hospitalized with chronic kidney disease p. 190
Hana Alharthi, Adel Youssef
Objectives: To determine the effectiveness of a clinical decision support system (CDSS) as indicated by a lower proportion of receiving contraindicated medications by patients with severe chronic kidney disease (CKD) compared with patients with less severe CKD. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of inpatients with CKD (ICD9-CM 585.xx) admitted to a major tertiary hospital in Saudi Arabia and receiving one of the medications that were documented in the knowledge base of the hospital CDSS to be renally cleared and/or nephrotoxic. Using the Chi square test, the proportion of receiving contraindicated medication was compared between patients with severe CKD and patients with mild/moderate CKD. Multivariate logistic regression was then used to examine the adjusted risk of receiving contraindicated medications among patients with severe CKD despite the presence of guided medication by CDSS. Results: The final analysis was conducted on 346 patients who received prescriptions that were renally cleared and/or nephrotoxic. Of these patients, 17% (n = 58) had severe CKD and 83% (n = 288) had mild/moderate CKD. Among patients with severe CKD, 51.7% (n = 30) received contraindicated medications compared with patients with mild/moderate CKD, 4.9% (n = 14), P < 0.01. Multivariate logistic regression showed that the likelihood of receiving contraindicated medications was several folds higher among patients with severe CKD compared with patients with mild/moderate CKD (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Patients with severe CKD continued to receive contraindicated medications despite the availability of medication guidance by the CDSS to prescribing physicians. Improved compliance by physicians to CDSS alerts and better understanding of reasons for non-compliance is still needed, particularly for patients with severe CKD.
Anatomic and anaesthetic considerations of greater palatine nerve block in Indian population p. 197
Nidhi Sharma, Rohit Varshney, Sudhakar Ray
Background: Greater palatine nerve block holds its importance for anaesthesia and analgesia in different maxillofacial surgical procedures. Accuracy in localization of greater palatine foramen is required for its successful implication in regional block, although racial variations exist in various population groups. Aims: To study the morphometry of greater palatine foramen and its location with nearby anatomical landmarks in Indian population. Material and Methods: A total of one hundred dry skulls (60 males and 40 females) were collected and observed for the study. Various parameters were noted from greater palatine foramen on both sides, together with its location with respect to maxillary molar tooth. Along with that the angle between midline maxillary suture and Incisive foramen-Greater palatine foramen is measured. Results: 198 sides were measured and the most common location of greater palatine foramen was found to be medial to third molar tooth (71.21%). The mean distance from greater palatine foramen to midline maxillary suture on right and left sides were 14.82 ± 1.34 mm and 14.79 ± 1.57 mm, statistically insignificant. The angle between midline maxillary suture and incisive foramen-greater palatine foramen was 20.81° ± 2.47°on right side and 20.58° ± 2.69°on left side.The direction of the opening of greater palatine canal onto the hard palate was observed to be antero-medial in 60.10% of cases. Conclusions: Our study reveals the importance of usage of various anatomical parameters for precise location of greater palatine foramen, establishment of specific measurements in each population group and thereby applying such measurements for successful greater palatine nerve block.
Flexural strength of dental porcelains with thermocycling and different firing protocols p. 202
Aws S. A. ArRejaie
Objectives: This is an in vitro study comparing the flexural strength of two dental porcelain after thermocycling, repetitive multiple firings and peak firing temperature (PFT) modifications. Materials and Methods: Two types of dental porcelains were used in this study: Cercon® Cream Love and Cercon® Cream Kiss (DeguDent, Hanau-Wolfgang/Germany). A total of 50 specimens per porcelain were divided into five groups with ten specimens per group. The first group was fired following the manufacturer's recommendations (control). The second group was fired 10 times repetitively, and the third group was fired and then exposed to 3000 episodes of thermocycling. The fourth group was fired with the PFT modified by + 10°C. The last group was fired with the PFT modified by −10°C. All specimens were tested for flexural strength with the three-point bending test using a universal testing machine (Instron) with a crosshead speed of 0.5 mm/min. Results: The flexural strength, mean (standard deviation [SD]) MPa, of Cercon® Ceram Kiss were: Control, 59.6 (7.82); 10 firings, 82.37 (26.32); thermocycling, 68.93 (9.55); PFT (+10°C), 75.28 (5.63); and PFT (−10°C), 75.94 (2.85). The results for the flexural strength, mean (SD), of Cercon® Ceram Love were: Control, 59.33 (9.9); 10 firings, 106.07 (28.43); thermocycling, 69.87 (11.17); PFT (+10°C), 65.7 (10.46); and PFT (−10°C), 51.1 (16.56). Conclusion: There was no difference in the flexural strength between the two veneering porcelains. In addition, repetitive firings significantly improved the flexural strength of both porcelains. Thermocycling significantly increased the flexural strength of both porcelains. There were no significant differences in the flexural strength when changing the PFT for Cercon® Ceram Love. Increasing and decreasing the PFT significantly increased the flexural strength of Cercon® Ceram Kiss.
Axillary fibroadenoma: Case report and review of literature p. 207
Suryapratap Singh, Anuj Bhargava
Fibroadenoma of breast and ectopic breast tissue is common pathology. Sometimes, it may be associated with hormonal imbalance. However, the presence of fibroadenoma in the axilla without ectopic breast tissue and hormonal imbalance is a rare presentation. We are presenting a rare case report of fibroadenoma developing in the right axilla in a 28-year-old woman. Clinical examination of both breasts revealed no abnormalities and no lymph nodes or supernumerary breasts were detected in the axilla or the neck. No associated urologic or cardiovascular abnormalities were found and the histopathological examination of the excisional biopsy samples showed a well-defined, capsulated type of fibroadenoma similar to that of ectopic mammary tissue.
Bilateral cervical chondro-cutaneous remnants p. 210
Sameer A.H. Ansari, Sushma N Ramraje, Shalini R Gupta, Nitin S Deore
Cervical chondro-cutaneous brachial remnant (CCBR) is a developmental anomaly presenting at birth and are usually seen on the lateral aspect of neck, anterior to sternocleidomastoid muscle. Bilateral appearance of this lesion is extremely uncommon. These lesions are painless and lack any inflammation or discharge. Since there is no connection with underlying deeper structures, complete surgical excision is the standard treatment in such cases. It is associated with several other congenital anomalies in 70-80% of cases. Hence, thorough evaluation of patients (clinical and investigation) becomes mandatory in such cases to detect any additional anomaly. We report a case of a 6-year-old female with bilateral cervical chondro-cutaneous remnant located at the lower third of lateral aspect of neck, anterior to sternocleidomastoid muscle, and discuss the embryologic and diagnostic aspects considering the common differential for this lesion at this site.
Eosinophilic gastroenteritis: A case report with review of the literature p. 213
Abdulla I Al-Musa, Muhammed M Pallippath, Anas M Hussameddin, Abdulaziz A Al-Quorain
Eosinophilic gastroenteritis (EG) is a heterogenous disorder affecting adults, and is characterized by the presence of eosinophilic infiltration in the gastrointestinal tract. The clinical features of EG are related to the layers and extent of bowel involved from the esophagus to the colon. The diagnosis is typically confirmed by biopsy, which should reveal 20-25 eosinophils per high-power field on microscopic examination. We report a 38-year-old man who presented with a 2-month history of dyspeptic symptoms. On examination, he was found to have only moderate ascites. The investigations revealed peripheral eosinophilia with markedly elevated eosinophils (95%) in the ascitic fluid. The imaging studies showed diffuse concentric bowel wall thickening involving the entire small bowel. The diagnosis was confirmed by biopsy from the antrum of the stomach. The patient was managed with steroids.
Using etanercept to maintain remission of psoriatic arthritis during pregnancy p. 216
Ibrahim A Al-Homood, Mansour Somaily
In recent years, biological drugs have been widely administered to treat rheumatic diseases including psoriatic arthritis (PsA). However, the safety of these drugs has not been adequately established in pregnancy. We report a case of a pregnant PsA patient treated with etanercept, an anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) agent. She continued to receive etanercept treatment during pregnancy without any complications, finally giving successful birth to a baby girl at 39 weeks. This suggests that etanercept may be selected to treat PsA patients with active arthritis who desire pregnancy with lower risks.
Primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the kidney: case report in a 13 year-old boy p. 219
Hamed M El-Darawany
A 13-year-old boy presented with acute right loin pain. Computed tomography scan showed a huge mass originating from the upper pole of the right kidney. Right radical nephrectomy was performed. Histopathological examination revealed a neuroectodermal tumor of the kidney. There was local and lymph node invasion as well as distant metastasis to the lungs, liver and bone. The patient died 18 months from the time of initial diagnosis. Nearly 94% of primitive neuroectodermal tumor shows the complete response to combined surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. However, in the presence of metastases, the 5-year survival drops to 29%.
Superior mesenteric artery syndrome and nutcracker phenomenon p. 223
Awwad Alenezy, Al Dhafeeri Obaid, Abeer Al Qattan, Ahmed Hamad
The superior mesenteric artery (SMA) syndrome is a rare cause of proximal intestinal obstruction in which the third part of the duodenum is compressed between SMA and the aorta due to narrowing in aortomesenteric angle. High index of suspicion, in the presence of known risk factors, is the key to early diagnosis. We describe a case of SMA syndrome in a 17-year-old boy who admitted with a long history of abdominal pain and intermittent vomiting. The computed tomography (CT) features were diagnostic of SMA syndrome. The CT also showed partial compression of the left renal vein by SMA with more proximal dilatation (nutcracker phenomenon). He received conservative medical treatment, with a favorable outcome. Our case is unique in that two rare syndromes which rarely coexist found together in our patient.
Using proportional assist ventilation to wean a prolonged mechanically ventilated patient with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease p. 226
Ghazi A Alotaibi, Hassan Gazwi, Malak H Al-Basha, Leila H Al-Jarodi
Long-term mechanical ventilation (MV) increases heath care cost. Difficult-to-wean patients represent a challenge to health care providers and patient's family. Patient with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPDs) are usually difficult to wean off mechanical ventilators for many pathophysiological reasons. Modes of ventilation used in MV weaning have produced variable results. The main shortcoming of currently available modes of weaning is inability to meet patient's changing ventilator demand. Proportional assist ventilation (PAV) is a new mode of ventilation designed to keep up with patient's breathing demand and unload work of breathing. In this case report, we have shown that PAV was able to wean off a patient with COPD who had been on the ventilator for 37 days.
Complete heart block with ventricular tachycardia in a patient with hemochromatosis p. 229
Sajeer Kalathingathodika, Ranjith P Mangalachulli, Muneer Kader, Sajeev G Chakanalil
Hereditary hemochromatosis is an inherited condition of dysregulated iron absorption, and usually presents with clinical features of hepatic dysfunction. Cardiac involvement as the presenting manifestation of hereditary hemochromatosis is rare. We report a young male who presented with complete heart block and ventricular tachycardia and was subsequently diagnosed as hemochromatosis. He was managed with permanent pacemaker implantation, oral antiarrhythmic and chelation therapy.
Concept of "Teaching Hospital" p. 232
Shyam K Parashar
Should Mylohyoid Muscle be Considered a True Partition Between the Sublingual and Submandibular Fossae? p. 234
Srinivasa R Sirasanagnadla, Satheesha B Nayak
An unusual cause of pancytopenia in early age p. 235
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By Nick Pinkerton | November 14, 2019
Eternal Return
by Nick Pinkerton
Dir. Mati Diop, France/Senegal, Netflix
On a coastal building site in a suburb of Dakar, Senegal, a great curtain of glass and steel rises, a luxury high-rise, conspicuously out of context, alien and monolithic. Its forbidding image opens and looms over Atlantics—the image of luxe ultramodern verticality overlooking the horizontal cityscape, evoking more the planning of a skyscraper in Jean Rouch’s slyly sinister satire Little by Little (1969) than the Afrofuturist affirmation of the Wakanda skyline. Atlantics director Mati Diop created the image of the tower based on an aborted project initiated by former Senegalese president Abdoulaye Wade and Muammar Gaddafi, a building that was to be the tallest in Africa, and shot the worksite in the pre-planned city of Diamniadio, under construction outside of Dakar. It appears sometimes like a beacon, sometimes like a weapon.
Great edifices can be erected in the Dakar of Atlantics, but for the rank and file these ambitious projects make little difference in daily life. The work on the building is nearly done, but the workmen are agitated, on the brink of rebellion in the front office, where they plead for three months of undelivered back pay, only to be turned away with more excuses, excuses, excuses. Among these workers is Souleiman (Ibrahima Traoré), who seems to take the rejection harder than his co-workers; as they sing and joke in the back of the truck taking them to and from the site, he remains brooding, aloof. Souleiman has other things on his mind. He is, we learn, in love with Ada (Mama Sané), with whom he meets clandestinely—their encounters must remain a secret, for Ada is arranged to be married to the wealthy, arrogant Omar (Babacar Sylla), and though she truly loves Souleiman, she follows decorum in rebuffing his pleading attempts on her maidenhead, and he departs her with his desires unsatisfied.
Up to this point, Atlantics seems to be establishing Souleiman as our principal character, then takes a turn, handing the film to Ada, who, later that same night, sneaks out of her family home to meet Souleiman at a beachside bar. He misses the rendezvous, as do the boyfriends of the other young women assembled there. The men have, it is obtained, taken to sea, pointing the prow of a boat towards Spain in hopes of better prospects than those offered at home. They will be swallowed by the ocean, not to return—not, at least, in corporeal form.
Strange goings-on follow this mass disappearance. A freak fire mars Ada and Omar’s immaculate, blindingly white bedroom set on the eve of their wedding—it seems like an act of pyrokinesis by the recalcitrant Ada, but a witness claims to have seen the absent Souleiman on the scene. A curious phenomenon begins to affect the women that the would-be émigrés left behind, as by night they sink into a spell and, as though obeying unheard commands, take to the streets together, breaking en masse into the home of the unscrupulous developer (Diankou Sembene) who’d shafted their men on the construction site where, with sightless, unblinking, milky eyes, they demand delivery of the deferred payment. The various baton passes of the narrative—from Souleiman to Ada, and later between Ada and the detective, Issa (Amadou Mbow), assigned to the case of alleged wedding night arson—match the film’s tale of transference: in their rapt trance, the women are possessed by the souls of their absent men, departed and never to return.
There is an almost elemental enticement at play in these zombified outings which bring the women out from their beds, and Diop returns repeatedly to images of the ocean and of the setting sun which, along with the film’s title, convey a sense of tidal pull and lunar sway. Along with revenge, the forces of erotic and romantic attraction are seen imposing their invisible magnetism, on earth and from the undiscovered country beyond. The film’s surfeit of nocturnal scenes, its marked melancholy, and its introduction of horror-fantasy elements to plotlines revolving around very real class conflicts all suggest that Diop may have been thinking about the films of Val Lewton’s RKO B-horror unit, in particular those handled by Jacques Tourneur—also a key point of reference for Serge Bozon’s Mrs. Hyde, seen at 2017’s NYFF. Whatever the case, as in Lewton, the admixture of genre tropes and awareness of current events is here achieved organically, with none of the portentousness that has sunk efforts in the risibly labeled “social thriller” line.
In addition to such spiritual antecedents, Diop, here making her first feature, has more immediate cinematic forebears. She is the daughter of musician and composer Wasis Diop, and the niece of Senegalese director Djibril Diop Mambéty, filmmaker of the pioneering Touki Bouki (1973), whose belated follow-up feature, 1992’s Hyenas, was scored by her father. It is perhaps to be expected then that she is particularly sensitive to the aural element of her film, and here has commissioned an eclectic, insinuating, expansive score courtesy of the Kuwaiti artist Fatima Al Qadiri, an amalgam of electro and analog elements, including Middle Eastern and African instrumentation, that at once recalls John Carpenter in its spartan lushness and resembles nothing else I can remember, creating oceanic and extraterrestrial soundscapes.
As in Hyenas, extravagantly costumed by designer Oumou Sy, Diop, working with Salimata Ndiaye and Rachel Raoult, extensively explores the pictorial and dramatic possibilities of Senegalese women’s wear—see for reference the riot of colors in the wedding party costumes. Elsewhere, the counterposing between tradition-minded, concealing garb and more revealing club clothes highlights Ada’s liminal position, teetering as she is between not only youth and adulthood, but also between the influence of two social groups, that of the conservatively inclined, hijab-wearing Mariama (Mariama Gassama), who urges her to tow the line and go through with her arranged marriage, and two employees of the beachfront bar, Fanta (Aminata Kane) and Dior (Nicole Sougou), who prefer to flaunt their feminine wiles and find their own men. In this community, however, scanty dress is very much associated with spiritual endangerment; one young woman recalls being inhabited by a spirit that “got into me through my belly button.” Neither the traditionalists nor the self-consciously modern girls, it should be mentioned, come in for ridicule or reproach; they are, simply, seen to speak convincingly for themselves, in their own words.
Diop is an accomplished actress as well as filmmaker—she is most recognizable from her large role in Claire Denis’s 35 Shots of Rum (2008)—and whatever she has learned along the way allows her to do wonders with a cast of nonprofessionals recruited from around Senegal, many from backgrounds proximate to those of their characters: Traoré was plucked from a construction site; Sougou discovered behind the bar at a nightclub in Saly. Diop’s directorial work to date consists of a passel of artist videos and shorts, including 2009’s Atlantiques, which provides the kernel of her feature, and 2013’s 45-minute moyen métrage film Mille soleils, a kind of companion piece to Touki Bouki that follows the earlier film’s star, Magaye Niang, on the evening of an anniversary screening of his claim-to-fame work in Dakar.
Where Diop has in the past frequently employed low-grade video for a slightly offhand, homemade effect—the short Atlantiques was shot on mini-DV, while Mille soleils combines 35mm and scumbled, rough-and-ready digital—her feature is a high-finish affair, shot by Claire Mathon, who’d previously worked with Alain Guiraudie on Stranger by the Lake. Nocturnal photography, accomplished with a Panasonic VariCam 35, extracts uncannily well-articulated images from profoundly black night; while if the influence of Denis is to be found anywhere, it’s in Diop and Mathon’s favoring of extremely long lenses, resulting in a markedly shallow depth of field and an almost caressing quality to the slightest focus shifts. This new degree of polish notwithstanding, Diop retains a knack for creating lyric accents that seem to have been casually captured rather than sweated over: glowing smartphone screens and lasers casting particulate patterns in the beachfront bar; the soft billow of the curtain blowing into Ada’s room; or an atomic orange sunset, closely recalling a shot from Mille soleils.
It suggests an ancient tale told by fisherman’s wives—the sunken dead come home from the ocean’s bottom—but the haunting of Dakar in Atlantics extends beyond the film’s supernatural storyline, encompassing something more comprehensive and more unsettling in the strangeness of the 21st-century cityscape like that springing up over the suburbs, the tension between an imposed (and imposing) environment and humble human needs. Souleiman and Ada will have a final consummation, and the matter of unpaid debts will be addressed in a cemetery rendezvous between the possessed women and the corrupt developer, but there is little sense of justice being truly done. The high-rise, by night, seems almost sepulchral—the word was used by Conrad to describe colonial Brussels—as though it might be built of human bone.
35 Shots of Rum By Adam Nayman | July 14, 2009
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Edgemont Capital Partners, L.P.
AWC/2011025721201/December 2011
The Firm contracted with a third-party vendor for purposes of email retention, but did not implement an audit system regarding such email storage and was therefore not aware that the third-party vendor did not adequately retain certain emails, which resulted in the firm’s failure to maintain certain emails.
Edgemont Capital Partners, L.P.: Censured; Fined $30,000
Tags: Email Third Party Vendor | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Institutional Capital Management, Inc. and Daniel Lee Ritz Jr.(Principal)
The Firm permitted registered persons assigned to a branch office to utilize outside email accounts to conduct firm business, even though the firm did not have a system or procedure in place to capture, preserve and monitor those emails. As a result, the firm failed to preserve all firm-related email communications of registered persons assigned to that branch as required.
The firm failed to perform any supervisory review of email communications of registered persons assigned to that branch, and that Ritz permitted a firm registered representative to engage in investment advisory activity through the representative’s state-registered investment advisor (RIA) and failed to supervise that activity. Ritz was the principal responsible for supervising the representative, but failed to supervise any facet of his investment advisory business and was generally unaware of what it entailed. As a result of Ritz’ lack of supervision, the representative was able to engage in extensive selling-away misconduct without the firm’s detection, raising more than $5 million from investors through sales of promissory notes without the firm’s knowledge. The firm failed to obtain all required information for some customers who purchased securities through the firm in private placement offerings.
Institutional Capital Management, Inc.: Fined $65,000
Daniel Lee Ritz Jr.: In light of financial status, no fine; Suspended in Principal capacity only for 4 months
Tags: Private Placement Email Supervision Promissory Notes | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Jared Robert Lynch
Lynch improperly created an answer key for a state long term care (LTC) insurance CE examination and distributed the answer keys to an employee of the member firm. Lynch sent an email to a registered representative at the firm and attached the study guide for an eight-hour required course and exam, consisting of 50 multiple choice questions and a blank answer sheet; a third-party educational testing company appeared to have created all the materials. In the email, Lynch stated he would have the answers soon and later provided the registered representative with a copy of the blank answer sheet with the answers to the 50 questions circled by hand and the words “master copy” written on the top of the page.
Jared Robert Lynch: FIned $5,000; Suspended 60 days
Tags: Testing Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Jeffrey Alan Smith (Principal)
Smith failed to enforce his member firm’s WSPs and failed to effectively supervise the activities of the firm’s associated persons over whom he had supervisory responsibility to ensure that they were complying with FINRA rules and federal securities laws and regulations.
Smith failed to
enforce the firm’s WSPs regarding the handling of PPM, subscription documents, and investor funds for private placement offerings sold by the firm;
effectively supervise the associated persons’ handling of such documents so that he did not prevent the associated persons from sending subscription documents directly to the private placement issuer, precluding the firm from conducting adequate oversight or review of the transactions and from retaining transaction-related documents;
review the firm’s private placement sales for suitability, and typically did not review or approve private placement transactions effected by the associated persons he supervised; and
enforce the firm’s WSPs and failed to effectively supervise their use of non-firm email for securities business.
Smith was aware of, and did not prevent, the associated persons from using personal email accounts to conduct securities business. The use of non-firm email accounts prevented the firm’s compliance staff from reviewing the associated persons’ customer communications, and the firm was unable to retain securities-related communications.
Jeffrey Alan Smith (Principal): In light of financial status, no fine; Suspended in Principal capacity only for 20 business days
Tags: WSPs Private Placement Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Kenneth William Gneuhs (Principal)
Gneuhs failed to enforce his member firm’s WSPs and failed to effectively supervise the activities of firm associated persons over whom he had supervisory responsibility.
Gneuhs failed to enforce the firm’s WSPs regarding the handling of PPM, subscription documents and investor funds for private placement offerings his firm sold, and failed to effectively supervise the associated persons’ handling of such documents. Gneuhs did not prevent the associated persons from sending subscription documents directly to the private placement issuer, which precluded the firm from conducting adequate oversight or review of the transactions and from retaining transaction-related documents. Gneuhs failed to review the firm’s private placement sales for suitability, and typically did not review or approve private placement transactions effected by the associated persons he supervised.
Gneuhs failed to enforce the firm’s WSPs and failed to effectively supervise the associated persons’ use of non-firm email for securities business. Gneuhs was aware of, and did not prevent, the associated persons from using personal email accounts to conduct securities business. The use of non-firm email accounts prevented the firm’s compliance staff from reviewing the associated persons’ customer communications, and the firm was unable to retain securities-related communications.
Kenneth William Gneuhs (Principal): In light of Gneuhs' financial status, no fine; Suspended in Principal capacity only for 20 business days.
Tags: WSPs Supervision Private Placement Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Richard Scott From aka Richard Scott Winther (Principal)
From made misrepresentations in emails to individuals representing entities with whom he had done past investment banking business or hoped to conduct future investment banking business. At that time, From and his member firm were not actively engaged in any securities business due to the firm’s failure to maintain minimum required net capital.
In emails, From stated that he was currently calling investors to recommend investments in some companies but, in fact, he never made any such calls. From merely claimed he was doing so in order to receive payment for his past investment banking business with one of the companies.
In an email, From described the terms of a reverse merger that he claimed he had recently completed when, in fact, he did not participate in the reverse merger at all, but was instead describing a deal a different broker-dealer he knew conducted. From’s purpose in making the false claim was to generate future investment banking business with the company.
In another email to an individual representing another company, From represented that he had already obtained indications of interest from potential investors for an offering of securities the company contemplated, although he had not spoken to any potential investors but merely claimed he had done so for the purpose of generating future investment banking business with the company.
Richard Scott From aka Richard Scott Winther (Principal): Fined $5,000; Suspended 30 business days
Tags: Email Net Capital | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Bill Singer's Comment
One of those oddball cases in which someone got into trouble not so much for what he did as for what he didn't do (but was claiming to have done).
Euro Pacific Capital, Inc.
AWC/2009016300801/November 2011
Euro Pacific failed to timely report quarterly statistical information concerning most of the customer complaints it received to FINRA’s then 3070 System.
The firm failed to maintain complete complaint files and did not enforce its WSPs pertaining to customer complaint reporting, and the Uniform Applications for Securities Industry Registration or Transfer (Forms U4) for those representatives who were the subject of the complaints were not timely updated.
The firm failed to enforce its written supervisory control policies and procedures that would test and verify that the firm’s supervisory procedures were reasonably designed with respect to the firm’s activities to achieve compliance with applicable securities laws, regulations and self-regulatory organization (SRO) rules; the firm’s annual NASD Rule 3012 report for one year did not comport with these procedures, and the firm failed to implement its supervisory control procedures to review its producing managers’ customer account activity.
The firm prepared a deficient NASD Rule 3013 certification as it did not document the firm’s processes for establishing, maintaining, reviewing, testing and modifying compliance policies reasonably designed to achieve compliance with applicable securities laws, regulations and SRO rules. The firm failed to timely file a Financial and Operational Combined Uniform Single (FOCUS) Report and Schedule I Reports.
The firm failed to preserve, in an easily accessible place, electronic emails for one of its representatives for almost a year.
The firm offered and sold precious metal-related products through an entity, but failed to develop, implement and enforce adequate AML procedures related to the business; the firm did not establish and implement policies and procedures reasonably designed to identify, monitor for and, where appropriate, file suspicious activity reports (SARs) for its business processed through its k(2)(i) account. Moreover, the firm failed to implement and enforce its AML procedures and policies related to its fully disclosed business through its then-clearing firm; aspects of its AML program that the firm failed to implement and enforce included monitoring accounts for suspicious activity, monitoring employee conduct and accounts, red flags and control/restricted securities. Furthermore, the firm’s procedures provided that monitoring would be conducted by means of exception reports for unusual size, volume, pattern or type of transactions; the firm did not consistently utilize exception reports made available by its then-clearing firm, and the firm did not evidence its review of the reports and did not note findings and appropriate follow-up actions, if any, that were taken. When notified by its clearing firm of possible suspect activity, on at least several occasions, the firm did not promptly and/or fully respond to the clearing firm’s inquiries. Such review was required by the procedures for employee accounts, but the firm did not maintain any evidence that such inquiries for employee accounts were conducted. The firm’s procedures contained a non-exclusive list of numerous possible red flags that could signal possible money laundering, but the firm did not take consistent steps to ensure the review of red flags in accounts.
The firm’s AML procedures reference that SAR-SF filings are required under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) for any account activity involving $5,000 or more when the firm knows, suspects, or has reason to suspect that the transaction involves illegal activity or is designed to evade BSA regulation requirements or involves the use of the firm to facilitate criminal activity; because the firm was not consistently reviewing exception reports or red flags, it could not consistently identify and evaluate circumstances that might warrant a SAR-SF filing.
The firm failed to establish and implement risk-based customer identification program (CIP) procedures appropriate to the firm’s size and type of business; and the firm failed to provide ongoing training to appropriate personnel regarding the use of its internal monitoring tools as AML program required.
In addition, certain pages of the firm’s website contained statements that did not comport with standards in NASD Rule 2210; FINRA previously identified these Web pages as being in violation of NASD Rule 2210, but the firm failed to remove such pages from its website.
Euro Pacific Capital, Inc.: Censured; Fined $150,000
Tags: Producing Manager FOCUS Email Futures AML CIP SAR | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Nathaniel Aaron Finkin
Finkin's customer submitted an application to the firm for a mortgage, term loan, and line of credit, and as part of the application process, the firm retained an outside law firm to engage in negotiations on the term of the loans with the customer’s counsel. Finkin sent fabricated emails to various individuals involved in the negotiations, including the customer’s counsel, and each of the emails instructed the recipients to contact Finkin with any questions or concerns; Finkin sent the emails from his personal email account in a way that made the messages appear to the recipient to be from a paralegal at the outside law firm, and not Finkin.
Finkin failed to comply with a FINRA request for a document.
Nathaniel Aaron Finkin: Barred
Tags: Banks Email Impersonation Mortgage | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Frost Brokerage Services, Inc.
AWC/2008014620601/October 2011
The Firm did not retain internal emails firm registered representatives sent or received for three years, and did not retain emails in a non-erasable, non-rewritable format.
The Firm used an internally created email retention system that retained email between firm registered representatives and individuals outside the firm, but did not retain internal email; instead, the firm retained internal email through the use of backup tapes, which the firm archived for less than the required three year period.
The firm implemented a new email retention system an outside vendor created to retain registered representatives’ emails, and for an unknown number of emails, there was a difference in the time the firm registered representative sent or received the email and the timestamp on the email as saved in the archive of the new email retention system; in some instances, the difference was a matter of seconds, and as a result, the timestamps on an unknown number of emails in the archive of the new email retention system differed from the times firm registered representatives sent or received those emails.
While attempting to gather emails in response to a FINRA investigation, the firm discovered that, due to a problem with the new email retention system, certain emails were being held in a database of the new system and were not moving to the archive portion of the system.The Firm performed certain upgrades to the new email retention system in an attempt to move those emails from the database to the archiving portion of the system; prior to performing the upgrade, the firm did not copy the contents of the database where the emails were being held. During the upgrade, a default configuration superseded the customized server configuration that the outside vendor had originally utilized for the system, which resulted in a loss of certain header information when those emails were moved from the database to the archiving portion of the system.
In addition, in a statement submitted to FINRA, the firm reported the problem that resulted in email being ingested in the new email retention system without certain header information. Moreover, the new system also malfunctioned during parts of a year, which led to gaps in its email retention and the loss of emails responsive to FINRA’s investigation; neither the firm nor the outside vendor was able to determine the cause of the malfunction or the total number of emails lost as a result of the malfunction.
Furthermore, the Firm did not retain or review emails firm registered representatives sent from firm-issued electronic devices to individuals outside the firm.
The Firm did not establish and maintain a supervisory system, including WSPs, reasonably designed to retain emails firm registered representatives sent or received for the required three-year period, to retain emails firm registered representatives sent from firm-issued electronic devices to individuals outside the firm, and to review electronic communications. The Firm did not establish a supervisory system, including WSPs, reasonably designed to detect and prevent malfunctions in the new email retention system.
Frost Brokerage Services, Inc.: Censured; Fined $200,000; Required to certify to FINRA in writing within 120 days of acceptance of the AWC that it currently has in place systems and procedures reasonably designed to achieve compliance with the requirements of Section 17(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Rule 17a-4 thereunder and NASD Rule 3110 concerning the preservation of electronic communications.
Tags: Third Party Vendor Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Ummm . . . and all this email stuff adds up to a whopping $200,000 in fines? Sorry but a lot of these problems seem inadvertent miscues and similar to the problems that bedevil everyone online or using a computer. Which is not to say that FINRA didn't have some valid points but, hey, here's a novel idea: How about having the firm use its funds to upgrade its systems rather than pay a fine to FINRA, which, come to think of it, just where does all that money go to anyway?
Patrick Francis Harte Jr. (Principal)
2006004666601/October 2011
Harte participated in the sale of unregistered securities, in violation of Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933.
Harte and a registered representative at his member firm sold millions of shares of a thinly traded penny stock, resulting in proceeds exceeding $9.3 million for firm customers; the total commissions generated were $481,398.
Harte failed to conduct any due diligence prior to the stock sales; the circumstances surrounding the stock and the firm’s customers presented numerous red flags of a possible unlawful stock distribution.
Harte did not determine if a registration statement was in effect with respect to the shares or if there was an applicable exemption; Harte relied on transfer agents and clearing firms to determine the tradability of the stock. Harte failed to undertake adequate efforts to ensure that the registered representative ascertained the information necessary to determine whether the customers’ unregistered shares could be sold in compliance with Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933. Also, he did not consider the determination of the free-trading status of shares to be within his supervisory responsibilities.
Harte failed to follow up on red flags; he was on notice of the inconsistencies between customers’ trading experience and activity in their firm accounts but took no action.
In addition, Harte received customer emails which evidenced a greater level of market sophistication than reflected in their account forms but failed to investigate these discrepancies.
Patrick Francis Harte Jr. (Principal): Barred
Tags: Unregistered Securities Due Diligence Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
The email comment is fascinating -- at what point are brokers supposed to initiate a spot quiz of their clients to determine who is pretending to be more sophisticated and who is pretending to be less sophisticated?
Ayre Investments, Inc. and Timothy Tilton Ayre (Principal)
OS/2009016252601/September 2011
Acting through Ayre, its CCO, Ayre Investments failed to establish and maintain a supervisory system and establish, maintain and enforce WSPs to supervise the activities of each registered person that were reasonably designed to achieve compliance with the applicable rules and regulations related to
CRD pre-registration checks,
exception report maintenance and review,
supervisory branch office inspections,
approval of transactions by a registered securities principal,
annual compliance meeting,
financial and operations principal (FINOP) review of checks received and disbursements blotter,
NASD Rule 3012 annual report to senior management,
review and retention of correspondence, Regulation S-P and outsourcing arrangements.
The Firm's WSPs were purchased from a third-party vendor and were intended to meet the needs of any broker-dealer, regardless of the firm’s size or business. Acting through Ayre, the Firm failed to tailor the template WSPs to address the firm’s particular business activities. With respect to the areas identified above, the firm’s WSPs failed to describe with reasonable specificity the identity of the person who would perform the relevant supervisory reviews and how and when those reviews would be conducted; and with respect to the maintenance of electronic communications, the firm completely failed to establish, maintain and enforce any supervisory system and/or WSPs reasonably designed to ensure that all business-related emails were retained.
Acting through Ayre, the Firm violated the terms of a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) by failing to file a required written certification with FINRA regarding the firm’s WSPs within 90 days of the issuance of the AWC. Despite being given multiple reminders and opportunities by FINRA staff during a routine examination to file the certification, the firm and Ayre have yet to file the certification the AWC required.
The Firm only had one registered options principal (ROP) who was required to review and approve all of the firm’s option trades; for more than half a year, however, the ROP resided in another state and did not work in the firm’s main office. Furthermore, the firm’s WSPs did not address or explain how the ROP, given his remote location, was to accomplish and document the contemporaneous review and approval of all options trades firm customers placed; the firm executed approximately 450 options transactions, none of which the ROP approved.
The firm failed to maintain and preserve all of its business-related electronic communications, and therefore willfully violated Securities Exchange Act Rule 17a-4.
The Firm permitted its registered representatives to use email to conduct business when the firm did not have a system for email surveillance or archiving. Each firm representative maintained electronic communications on his or her personal computer or arranged for the retention of electronic communications in some other fashion, and the firm relied on representatives to forward or copy their businessrelated emails to the firm’s home office for retention. Not all of the representatives’ business-related emails were forwarded to the home office, and the firm did not retain the electronic communications that were not forwarded or copied to the firm’s home office; as a result, the firm failed to maintain and preserve at least 10,000 business-related electronic communications representatives sent to or received.
Ayre Investments, Inc.: Censured; Fined $10,000 (note: FINRA states that it imposed a lower fine against the firm after it considered, among other things, the firm’s revenues and financial resources); Undertakes to review its supervisory systems and WSPs for compliance with FINRA rules and federal securities laws and regulations, including those laws, regulations and rules concerning the preservation of electronic mail communications, and certify in writing to FINRA, within 90 days, that the firm has in place systems and procedures to achieve compliance with those rules, laws and regulations.
Timothy Tilton Ayre: Fined $10,000; Suspended 2 months in Principal capacity only.
Tags: Email Electronic Communications Annual Compliance Meeting FINOP Regulation S-P Options | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
A well-presented and well-documented FINRA report -- compliments on that! The alleged violations clearly indicate lapses and the issue of the failed follow-up on the AWC is as inexcusable a compliance miscue as there is.
The one quibble I have is with the WSP, and it's an old issue for me. When a firm is admitted to FINRA membership, it must submit its proposed WSP for approval. It absolutely drives me nuts when a specific WSP was approved as part of the firm's initial membership or a continued membership application and then, miraculously, a year or so later that same document is suddenly deemed to be non-compliant. I would argue that it is incumbent upon FINRA to meaningful eyeball a member's WSP and to put the firm on prompt notice of any deficiencies -- in contrast to playing gotcha after no examiner cited any shortcomings during a prior review. Whether these circumstance apply in this case, I do not know -- nonetheless, I will argue until my last breath that regulators need to play fair with this issue.
David John Klecka Jr. (Principal)
Klecka created a non-genuine email purporting to be from the Arizona Department of Insurance (AZ DOI) regarding the agency’s investigation into Klecka’s activities at his former firm, and then provided a copy of the email to the member firm with which he was associated.
Klecka’s firm commenced an internal investigation of Klecka concerning questionable business activities related to his sale of life insurance policies. During the course of the firm’s review, it was learned that Klecka was the subject of an investigation being conducted by the state regarding activities that occurred while Klecka was associated with another member firm.
Klecka forwarded an email from his personal email address to his managing director at the firm --the forwarded email was purportedly from the state insurance department, which contained a timeline documenting Klecka’s contact with the agency, and the email bore what appeared to be the typed signature of an investigator with the AZ DOI. However, Klecka subsequently admitted that he was not truthful on the dates and fabricated the email to lead his firm to believe that the state investigation was more recent than it actually was. The forged document provided an explanation for Klecka’s failure to disclose the investigation to the firm earlier than he did.
The firm subsequently terminated Klecka for, among other reasons, creating a non-genuine email purporting to be from the AZ DOI regarding its investigation into Klecka’s activities at his former firm. In addition, Klecka failed to appear for a FINRA on-the-record interview.
David John Klecka Jr. (Principal): Barred
Tags: Forgery Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
H. Beck, Inc.
AWC/2009016150001/September 2011
H. Beck Inc. failed to maintain and preserve certain of its business-related electronic and written communications.
Most of the firm’s registered representatives are independent contractors operating from “one-man” branch office locations throughout the country; the firm’s representatives were allowed to maintain written correspondence at their branch offices; and the firm permitted representatives to send emails from their personal computers. The firm did not have an electronic system to capture emails, but instead required representatives to print and make copies of their emails, which along with their written correspondence were reviewed during annual branch inspections; representatives were required to send emails and written correspondence involving the solicitation of products to compliance for pre-approval. The firm did not have prior system or procedures in place to retain all other emails and written correspondence after the representatives terminated from the firm. and, as a result, the firm did not subsequently retain most of the emails and written correspondence for representatives who terminated from the firm.
Also, the firm did not establish and implement policies and procedures that could be reasonably expected to detect and cause the reporting of suspicious transactions. In addition, the firm’s WSPs relating to the reporting of suspicious activity failed to provide reasonable detail, such as the specific reports and documents to be reviewed, the timing and frequency of such reviews, the specific persons to conduct the reviews, and a description of how the reviews would be conducted and evidenced. Moreover, the firm’s supervisory procedures did not provide adequate guidelines regarding the reporting of suspicious activity, including when a suspicious activity report should be filed and what documentation should be maintained. Furthermore, although the firm had 140,000 active accounts, it used only a minimal number of exception reports, relying instead on its clearing firms to assist in the review of suspicious activity. The firm failed to conduct adequate independent tests of its AML compliance program (AMLCP), failed to sufficiently test topics and failed to adequately memorialize what was reviewed. The findings also included that with respect to a sample of corporate bond transactions and municipal securities transactions the firm executed, it failed to accurately disclose the receipt time on the majority of the order tickets.
H. Beck, Inc. : Censured; Fined $150,000; Firm's President required to certify to FINRA in writing within 30 days of the issuance of the AWC that the firm currently has in place systems and procedures reasonably designed to achieve compliance with the laws, regulations and rules concerning the preservation of electronic mail communications.
Tags: AML SAR Electronic Communications Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Nanes, Delorme Capital Management LLC
The Firm failed to preserve, for a period of not less than three years, the first two years in an easily accessible form, all email correspondence relating to the firm’s business.
The emails involving research and emails viewed by the firm as administrative or technical were deleted, emails were not indexed and were not easily located; consequently, the firm was not able to locate various emails sent or received in one year in response to FINRA requests. The firm failed to preserve all emails relating to the firm’s securities business exclusively in a non-rewritable, non-erasable format as required by SEC 13 September 2011 Rule 17a-4(f)(2)(ii)(A). Not only were individual emails users able to delete emails, in which case, they would not be stored, the medium that the firm used to back-up and store emails was rewritable and erasable. FINRA found that the electronic storage media the firm used did not automatically verify the quality and accuracy of the storage media process, and the firm did not have in place an audit system providing for accountability regarding inputting of records required to be maintained and preserved by electronic storage media. FINRA also found that the firm failed to engage at least one third party who has access to, and the ability to, download information from the firm’s electronic storage media to another acceptable medium, and who undertakes to promptly furnish to FINRA information necessary for downloading information from the firm’s electronic storage system and provide access to information contained on its storage system. In addition, FINRA determined that the firm failed to retain records evidencing supervisory review of email correspondence of registered representatives relating to the firm’s securities business. Moreover, FINRA found that the firm failed to report transactions in TRACE-eligible securities to TRACE that it was required to report, and failed to report the correct price for transactions in TRACE-eligible securities to TRACE. Furthermore, FINRA found that in connection with corporate bond transactions, the firm failed to prepare brokerage order memoranda, in that order memoranda did not show the account for which the order was entered, the time the order was received, the order entry time, the execution time and the identity of each associated person responsible for the account. (FINRA Case #)
Nanes, Delorme Capital Management LLC : Censured; Fined $15,000 (FINRA imposed a lower fine in this case after it considered, among other things, the firm’s revenues and financial resources)
Tags: Electronic Storage Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Two major no-no's. One, you can't allow individuals to delete emails from the archival system. Two, using rewritable/erasable formats defeats the purpose of a compliance-based protocol.
Nicholas C. Dito
Dito obtained possession of a computer flash drive that contained non-public customer account information and mined out selected excerpts for his own use by emailing the information, on separate occasions, to his member firm email address. Among other things, the flash drive contained approximately 350 account statements of customers from a FINRA member firm -- each of the customer account statements contained in the flash drive displayed non-public financial information including customer names, addresses, account numbers, financial positions, broker identification numbers and account values. Subsequent to reviewing the contents of the flash drive, Dito copied customer account information from the non-public customer account information contained in the flash drive.
The first email he sent to his firm email address contained the names and addresses of approximately 300 customers, which Dito had copied directly from FINRA member firm customer account statements contained in the flash drive. Dito intended to use the customer account information contained on the first email to cold-call prospective customers.
The second email Dito sent to his firm email address consisted of a listing of financial positions on the flash drive that were for a FINRA member firm securities account a customer owned that showed the customer’s equity stock holdings and their total net value.
Dito failed to fully cooperate with FINRA and answer all of FINRA’s questions at an on-the-record examination.
Nicholas C. Dito : Barred
Tags: Email Computers Electronic Storage | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
I'm sort of understanding this case but only to the extent that FINRA's alleging that Dito apparently intended to misuse confidential customer information. As to the issue involving his copying of a customer's holdings and valuation, I'm not fully understanding the charge. Based upon FINRA's monthly report, it appears that Dito simply copied the data on the flash drive and sent it to his email address. I get that and understand the concerns inherent solely in that act; however, it seems a bit of a double-dip to additionally complain that not only did Dito copy all the data on a flash drive but that he also copied a specific sub-set (here, the customer's positions).
Searle & Co. and Robert Southworth Searle (Principal)
Although the Firm sought and received permission to conduct its private placement activity, it failed to timely amend its Application for Broker-Dealer Registration (Form BD), as it did not identify this business on its Form BD until years later.
Acting through Searle, the Firm’s president and CCO failed to establish, maintain and enforce an adequate system and written procedures reasonably designed to supervise its placement business; and failed to adequately supervise the placement business conducted by a former registered representative who conducted firm business at an unregistered office. The Firm failed to adequately ensure that its ledgers or other records accurately reflected all of the firm’s assets, liabilities, income and expenses. The Firm impermissibly “netted” the commission revenue it received, failing to reflect the gross amount of commission the firm received and the amount paid to the registered representative who placed the business, thus understating gross revenues and expenses. As a result, the Firm filed inaccurate Financial and Operational Combined Uniform Single (FOCUS) Reports and inaccurate annual audits.
The Firm failed to establish, maintain and enforce adequate WSPs regarding the use of outside emails for firm business and the review and retention of emails; the firm permitted associated persons to use personal email accounts to send and receive emails related to the firm’s securities business without capturing, reviewing or retaining them.
In addition, the Firm paid fees and commissions totaling $21 million to non-registered limited liability company (LLC) entities of which the firm’s registered representatives were the sole members. Moreover, the Firm improperly paid the non-registered entities rather than paying the commissions and fees directly to the registered representatives who owned the non-registered entities. The suspension was in effect from August 15, 2011, through August 26, 2011. (FINRA Case #)
Searle & Co.: Censured; Fined $47,500 ($10,000 was jointly and severally with Searle)
Robert Southworth Searle: Fined $10,000 joint/several with Searle & Co.; Suspended 10 business days in Principal capacity
Tags: Membership Agreement Material Change Of Business FOCUS Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Geez, another well written disciplinary action squib -- maybe things are truly changing for the better at FINRA? Is that possible? Wow!!
In any event, two key takeaways. One, make sure to update your Form BD to reflect all new business lines. Two, don't pay transactional compensation to unregistered entities/persons.
If I have one quibble with the case, it's this: If FINRA knew that this member firm had asked for and been granted approval to engage in a new business, then how come it took "years later" for the regulator to notice that the Form BD was not updated? After all, assuming that FINRA (or NASD's) Staff was conducting an annual or at least a regulator examination fo the firm, didn't any examiner notice that the firm was engaged in a line of business for which it had been approved but for which it had not updated the Form BD. I mean isn't that sort of regulatory examination 101?
Veritrust Financial, LLC
The Firm failed to establish and maintain a supervisory system or WSPs reasonably designed to detect and prevent the charging of excessive commissions on mutual fund liquidation transactions.
The Firm failed to put in place any supervisory systems or procedures to ensure that customers were not inadvertently charged commissions, in addition to the various fees disclosed in the mutual fund prospectus, on their mutual fund liquidation transactions. The firm’s failure to take such action resulted in commissions being charged on transactions in customer accounts that generated approximately $64,110 in commissions for the firm.
The firm had inadequate supervisory systems and procedures to ensure that a firm principal reviewed, and the firm retained, all email correspondence for the requisite time period; the firm failed to review and retain securities-related email correspondence sent and received on at least one registered representative’s outside email account, and the firm did not have a system or procedures in place to prevent or detect non-compliance.
The firm failed to conduct an annual inspection of all of its Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJ) branch offices.
The Firm failed to comply with various FINRA advertising provisions in connection with certain public communications, including websites, one billboard and one newsletter, in that a registered principal had not approved websites prior to use; websites did not contain a hyperlink to FINRA’s or Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC)’s website; one website, the billboard and the newsletter failed to maintain a copy of the communication beginning on the first date of use; and sections of websites that concerned registered investment companies were either not filed, or timely filed, with FINRA’s Advertising Regulation Department. In addition, websites contained information that was not fair and balanced, did not provide a sound basis for evaluating the facts represented, or omitted material facts regarding equity indexed annuities, fixed annuities and variable annuities. Moreover, websites contained false, exaggerated, unwarranted or misleading statements concerning mutual B shares; the firm’s websites and the billboard did not prominently disclose the firm’s name, and a website, in connection with a discussion of mutual funds, failed to disclose standardized performance data, failed to disclose the maximum sales charge or maximum deferred sales charge and failed to identify the total annual fund operating expense ratio, and a website, in a comparison between exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds failed to disclose all material differences between the two products.
Furthermore,the firm failed to report, or to timely report, certain customer complaints as required; the firm also failed to timely update a registered representative’s Uniform Termination Notice for Securities Industry Registration (Form U5) to disclose required information. The firm failed to create and maintain a record of a customer complaint and related records that included the complainant’s name, address, account number, date the complaint was received, name of each associated person identified in the complaint, description of the nature of the complaint, disposition of the complaint or, alternatively, failed to maintain a separate file that contained this information.
The firm failed to ensure that all covered persons, including the firm’s president and CEO, completed the Firm Element of Continuing Education (CE). The firm’s 3012 and 3013 reports were inadequate, in that the 3012 report for one year was inadequate because it failed to provide a rationale for the areas that would be tested, failed to detail the manner and method for testing and verifying that the firm’s system of supervisory policies and procedures were designed to achieve compliance with applicable rules and laws, did not provide a summary of the test results and gaps found, failed to detect repeat violations including failure to conduct annual OSJ branch office inspections, advertising violations, customer complaint reporting, and ensuring that all covered persons participated in the Firm Element of CE. FINRA also found that the firm’s 3013 report for that year did not document the processes for establishing, maintaining, reviewing, testing and modifying compliance policies to achieve compliance with applicable NASD rules, MSRB rules and federal securities laws, and the manner and frequency with which the processes are administered. In addition, the firm also failed to enforce its 3013 procedures regarding notification from customers regarding address changes.
Veritrust Financial, LLC : Censured; Fined $90,000; Ordered pay $34,105.40, plus interest, in restitution to customers
Tags: Email WSPs Commissions Annual Compliance Certification OSJ | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
If this case were a pinball machine, I think it likely would have hit the all-time highest score. The scope of these violations are impressive.
Indiana Merchant Banking and Brokerage Co., Inc.
AWC/2009016067901/August 2011
The Firm failed to evidence any review of incoming or outgoing written and electronic correspondence; failed to review the incoming and outgoing electronic correspondence of its CCO’s personal email account that he used to conduct securities related business, and the CCO had business cards with his personal email address included.
The firm failed to maintain its electronic correspondence (email) and electronic internal communications (email) for almost two years, and failed to maintain the incoming and outgoing electronic communications of an individual’s personal email account used to conduct business. The firm failed to notify FINRA prior to employing electronic storage media.
The Firm failed to file an attestation by at least one third party who has access and the ability to download information from its electronic storage media to an acceptable media for such records that are exclusively stored electronically. The firm’s electronic storage media failed to have in place an audit system providing for accountability regarding inputting of records required to be maintained and preserved, and inputting of any changes to every original and duplicate record maintained and preserved.
The firm failed to evidence the disclosure of its privacy notice upon account opening and annually thereafter; although the firm produced a privacy policy and procedures, it failed to provide initial, annual and revised privacy notices.
Indiana Merchant Banking and Brokerage Co., Inc. : Censured; Fined $20,000. FINRA imposed a lower fine after it considered, among other things, the firm’s size, revenues and financial resources.
Tags: Electronic Communications Email Electronic Storage Third Party Vendor | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Paul Tao Jan
Jan attempted to arrange an outside third-party business loan for a prospective client without obtaining written authorization or otherwise notifying his member firm; if successful, Jan would have received a referral fee. The potential client agreed and Jan, using his personal email account on his home computer, sent the prospective client a detailed client information sheet from an outside lender; the document Jan sent required the prospective client to provide numerous pieces of information relating to the potential loan, including a passport number, business tax ID number and bank account information. Jan requested a copy of the potential client’s passport and a copy of a bank guarantee or standby letter of credit for review and acceptance. Although Jan used his personal email account, his signature block identified him as a financial consultant with his firm.
Jan engaged in business outside the scope of his relationship with his firm without providing prompt written notice to his firm, and Jan’s conduct was contrary to his firm’s written policies and procedures. Along with conducting outside business with a prospective client through his personal email account, Jan admitted to attempting to solicit business from an unspecified number of other customers using his personal email account. In addition, at times, Jan communicated with a customer who had firm accounts through his home email account about details relating to an asset that was to be deposited in one of the customer’s accounts. Moreover, Jan knew that his firm’s procedures required approval of his email and he thereby circumvented his firm’s supervisory procedures and compromised the firm’s ability to supervise and monitor his communications with the public.
Paul Tao Jan: FIned $5,000; Suspended 30 days
Tags: Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Trustmont Financial Group, Inc. and Peter Daniel Dochinez (Principal)
The Firm failed to develop and enforce written procedures reasonably designed to achieve compliance with NASD® Rule 3010(d)(2) regarding the review of electronic correspondence. Although the firm had certain relevant procedures in place, it did not have a satisfactory system for providing designated principals with access to such correspondence for review; instead, the firm relied on registered representatives to forward any emails involving customers to a central email address, which was accessible to the firm’s president and chief compliance officer (CCO), for review.
The firm did not have effective procedures to monitor its representatives’ compliance with the email forwarding requirement; instead the firm relied on branch inspections to monitor compliance, but, because the firm’s branch offices were non-Office of Supervisory Jurisdiction’s (OSJs), they were inspected infrequently—once every three years.
During the infrequent branch office inspections, the firm generally failed to conduct adequate reviews of representatives’ personal computers to determine if they were complying with the email forwarding requirement; other than some very limited reviews during the inspections, the firm failed to provide for surveillance and follow-up to ensure that email correspondence review procedures were implemented and adhered to.
The firm failed to enforce its written procedures requiring a designated principal to conduct a daily review of business-related electronic correspondence and to evidence that review by initialing the correspondence.
Acting through Dochinez, the firm’s president, chief executive officer (CEO) and a firm principal, failed to establish, maintain and enforce an adequate system of supervisory control policies and procedures that tested and verified that its supervisory procedures were reasonably designed with respect to the activities of the firm, its registered representatives and associated persons to achieve compliance with applicable securities laws and regulations, and created additional or amended supervisory procedures where the need was identified by such testing and verification. In addition, The firm’s supervisory control policies and procedures failed to address the requirements of designating a principal responsible for the firm’s supervisory control policies and procedures; testing and verification to ensure reasonably-designed supervisory procedures; updating the firm’s written supervisory procedures (WSPs) to address deficiencies noted during testing; designating a principal responsible for the annual report to senior management on the firm’s system of supervisory controls procedures, summary of test results, significant identified exceptions, and any additional or amended procedures; identifying producing managers and assigning qualified principals to supervise such managers; using the “limited size and resources” exception for producing managers’ supervision, including documenting the factors relied on in determining that the exception is necessary; electronically notifying FINRA of its reliance on the limited size and resources exception; reviewing and monitoring all transmittals of customer funds and securities; reviewing, monitoring and validating customer changes of address and customer changes of investment objectives; and providing heightened supervision over each producing manager’s activities. Moreover,acting through Dochinez, the firm failed to conduct independent tests of its AMLCP.
Trustmont Financial Group, Inc.: Censured; Fined $10,000 joint/several; Fined additional $20,000
Peter Daniel Dochinez: Censured; Fined $10,000 joint/several
Tags: Electronic Communications Email Inspections OSJ | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
A growing area of focus for FINRA is the diligence of a member's policies/procedures for reviewing electronic communications -- and if you're relying upon the honor system, the regulator is just not going to be happy.
Brown Associates, Inc.
AWC/2009016207701/July 2011
The Firm failed to properly archive its business-related electronic communications for individual users in some of its Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs).
The Firm stored these emails on stand-alone servers or individual machines only, which theoretically permitted individual users to delete incoming or outgoing emails, and thereby failed to properly preserve its business-related electronic correspondence.
The firm failed to
review business-related electronic communications for the individuals and an additional user;
evidence its review of individuals’ business-related electronic communications as the firm’s WSPs required; and
provide notification and third–party attestation to FINRA regarding the use of electronic storage media 90 days prior to employing such media.
Brown Associates, Inc. : Censure; Fined $50,000; Required to certify to FINRA in writing within 90 days of issuance of the AWC that the firm currently has in place systems and procedures reasonably designed to achieve compliance with the laws, regulations and rules concerning the preservation of electronic correspondence.
Tags: Email Electronic Storage Electronic Communications | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Nice tight case and well presented by FINRA. Two separate issues that you should consider.
First, email archiving is not accomplished in accordance with FINRA's rules if you simply store the data on a standalone server or on some PC/laptop in the office. That's not the back-up and retention contemplated by the rules. Such a protocol does little to deter or prevent someone from simply logging on to a given machine and wiping clean any troubling communications.
Second, you need to undertake prior notice when retaining a third-party storage system.
Edward Philip Gelb (Principal)
Gelb solicited individuals, including customers at his member firm, to invest in entities that were purportedly engaged in the export and import business with a manufacturer based in China.
Gelb raised approximately $1.8 million from investors and received approximately $79,500 from the entities as compensation derived from his solicitation of, and directing investors to, the entities.
Gelb was aware of his firm’s policies and procedures, which specifically prohibited its registered representatives from participating in any manner in the solicitation of any securities transaction outside the regular scope of their employment without approval. Gelb signed annual certifications attesting to this knowledge and failed to notify his firm about his solicitation of investors for the entities because he did not expect the firm’s approval of the product.
Gelb failed to obtain adequate information about the investment and instead relied upon unfounded representations, including guarantees that the investors’ principal would be protected despite the fact that, at no time, had Gelb seen any financial documentation for the entities. The information available on the Internet about the entities was limited to the companies’ own website.
FINRA determined that despite the highly risky nature of the investment, Gelb led the customers to believe that the investment he was recommending was a safe and secure investment and, in some cases, Gelb was aware that customers were taking out home equity lines of credit on their homes to fund their investments in the entities. Customers who invested in the entities Gelb recommended had low risk tolerances and had investment objectives of growth and/or income, and Gelb did not have a reasonable basis for recommending the entities to the customers.
Outside email
Gelb utilized an outside email account, without his firm’s knowledge or consent, to conduct securities business.Although the firm was aware of the outside email account, Gelb had not been approved to utilize that email address to conduct securitiesrelated business and by operating an outside email account for securities-related business without the firm’s knowledge and consent, Gelb prevented his firm from reviewing his emails pursuant to NASD Rule 3010(d).
Edward Philip Gelb (Principal): Barred
Tags: Email Annual Compliance Certification Due Diligence | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
UBS Securities LLC
UBS failed to update the company codes in the client-based database after the individual responsible for that task left the firm.
The emails indicating that the company codes had been added were not sent to the firm’s Client Management Team (CMT) by another group at the firm, the Core Client Data Services Group (CCDS).
UBS employed Client Data Strategist (CDS), a senior officer in CMT. The CDS was in charge of producing a business object report that combined the research and revenue information for each client to create required non-investment banking disclosures in equity research reports. Unfortunately, the CDS continued to produce the business object report without confirming that the company codes were updated -- because the CDS continued to produce the reports, a file was created and uploaded in the firm’s central disclosure database, even though it contained incomplete information.
Since the reports were completed, email alerts were not triggered at the end of the process, and as a result of the failures during the update process, equity research reports the firm published failed to include one or more required non-investment banking disclosures (non-investment banking compensation, non-investment banking securitiesrelated services and non-securities services). As a result of certain information contained in the firm’s central disclosure database not being updated due to the update process failure, research analysts creating and sending information about the impacted subject companies to media outlets in connection with public appearances failed to disclose the firm’s non-investment banking related compensation and the types of services (non-investment banking securities-related services and non-securities services) it provided during the prior 12 months.
Moreover, the firm failed to adequately implement its supervisory procedures concerning compliance with NASD Rule 2711(h), and the firm failed to conduct follow-up and review to ensure that its employees were performing their assigned responsibilities of collecting and updating data to generate accurate disclosures, and to have a verification process to confirm that each group was performing its task to ensure the flow of updated information at each stage had accurate disclosures. The firm failed to adequately implement its written procedures that provided for step-by-step guidance for updating the required disclosures in the relevant databases in order to reasonably ensure that they were disclosed in the research reports and in public appearances.
UBS Securities LLC : Censured; Fined $300,000
Tags: Email Research | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Ya wanna know why Wall Street can't regulate itself properly and why the three layers of self, state, and federal regulators are often ineffective? Okay, simple -- tell me what the hell all this nonsense means?
Client Management Team (CMT)
Core Client Data Services Group (CCDS)
Client Data Strategist (CDS)
Business Object Report
Daniel Scott Sheedy
OS/2008015180901/June 2011
Sheedy engaged in private securities transactions without providing written notice to, or obtaining written approval from, his member firm.
Sheedy facilitated two firm customers’ investments in securities issued by an entity in the form of investment agreements.Sccording to the investment agreements the entity issued, the company invested in and brokered life settlement contracts. Sheedy participated in the customers’ investments by reviewing the customers’ investment agreements, providing the customers with wiring instructions for the issuer, providing status updates to the customers regarding their investments and telling the customers to call him if they had any questions about their investments.
Sheedy utilized an unapproved personal email account to communicate with the customers.
The customers invested a total of $350,000, and pursuant to the terms of the customers’ investment agreements, the customers were to receive return of their principals plus a total of $42,000 within five days of the end of their investment period for which certain life settlement contracts were invested. Neither of the customers received the return of their investment principal or the promised investment returns. All of their funds were lost all of their funds were lost.
Daniel Scott Sheedy: Fined $25,000; Suspended 2 years
Tags: Email Life Insurance | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Eric Lichtenstein (Principal)
AWC/2009018339703/June 2011
Lichtenstein intentionally provided false testimony during a FINRA on-the-record interview regarding his knowledge of, and participation in, private securities transactions involving solicitation and sale of private placements within the branch for which he was employed as the branch manager.
Lichtenstein participated in the sale of private securities in the total amount of $234,303.68 to customers without his member firm’s prior written approval.
Lichtenstein failed to reasonably supervise a branch office for which he acted as a branch manager. In response to a request to sell private placements at the branch, which Lichtenstein’s firm had specifically denied, stating that no one at the branch had approval to sell any private placements and Lichtenstein was aware of this prohibition, he learned of other private placements being sold by a branch registered representative and failed to inform the firm’s compliance department of the sales.
Because Lichtenstein was responsible for the review of electronic mail at the branch, he knew, or should have known through email review, of red flags indicating the sale of additional private placements but did not conduct additional investigation and did not inform the firm’s compliance department of the red flags.
Eric Lichtenstein (Principal): Barred
Tags: Email Private Placement | In: Private Securities Transactions
Geoffrey Richards Securities Corp.
The Firm failed to preserve all of its business-related electronic communications. The Firm attempted to preserve such communications by burning them to a non-rewriteable, non-erasable disc on a monthly basis, but the process was deficient because it did not result in all such communications being saved to the disc. The Firm did not identify this deficiency in its audit of its electronic communications preservation system.
In contravention of its written supervisory procedures, permitted registered representatives to use outside or non-firm-sponsored email accounts to send and receive securities business-related emails. The firm’s preservation process did not capture these emails that were sent to or from those accounts; therefore, the firm did not retain and review them.
The firm relied exclusively on electronic storage media to preserve its business-related electronic communications but did not retain a third party who had the access or ability to download information from its electronic storage media.
Geoffrey Richards Securities Corp.: Censured; Fined $25,000
Tags: Electronic Communications Email Electronic Storage | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
While I appreciate FINRA's concern, $25,000 strikes me as a bit steep for a fine that involves a Firm attempting to archive emails but largely doing so in what turned out to be an incomplete manner. It's not as if the Firm failed to undertake good-faith efforts here. The use of outside email accounts is an entirely different consideration and must be supervised in a more aggressive manner.
Jon Tadd Roberts
Roberts sent unapproved emails from his personal email address to his member firm’s customers and a potential investor that consisted of emails with attached documents containing misrepresentations and misleading statements that he created on his home computer that were written on his firm’s letterhead.
Roberts misrepresented that his firm would approve the issuance of a line of credit of up to $10 billion to a firm customer and a potential investor if certain conditions were met. Roberts attached another document concerning the issuance of a multi-billion dollar line of credit to additional emails he sent to a firm customer.
Roberts did not provide copies of the documents for review and approval to his firm. By attaching documents that contained misrepresentations and misleading statements to emails sent to a firm customer and a potential investor, Roberts exposed his firm to significant potential liability. Roberts sent an unapproved email from his personal email to another firm customer and attached a letter on firm letterhead with wire transfer instructions in connection with certificates of deposit. In addition, Roberts forwarded the unapproved correspondence from his home computer, thereby bypassing the firm’s surveillance systems and preventing the firm’s review and approval.
Jon Tadd Roberts : Barred
Tags: Email Communications Computers Correspondence | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Hey, if you're going to get yourself barred from the industry for sending unapproved emails, you might as well go big time -- $10 Billion. Wow, nice, large, round number.
Portfolio Advisors Alliance, Inc. and Marcelle Long (Principal)
Respondents failed to put any heightened supervisory measures in place for a branch manager or to follow up on “red flags.” Notwithstanding the branch manager’s remote location, prior disciplinary history, outside business disclosures or his disclosure that he was potentially under financial stress and unable to meet financial obligations, the Firm and Long failed to put any heightened supervisory measures in place or to follow up on the red flags after he disclosed information on a compliance questionnaire, for which the affirmative answer required that he attach a separate sheet providing complete details about the disclosed activities, which Long did not complete or enforce. Also, the firm’s and Long’s heightened supervision of the branch manager was inadequate in that it consisted only of inspecting his office annually and speaking on the phone on a fairly regular basis. Long inspected the branch manager’s branch office, and although she was aware that the manager was involved in certain outside business activities, based on the disclosures that he made on his Uniform Application for Securities Industry Registration or Transfer (Form U4), she admitted that she did not inspect any files or financial records associated with his disclosed outside business activities and did not detect any undisclosed outside business activities or private securities transactions.During a subsequent inspection, Long again did not review documentation regarding the branch manager’s disclosed outside business activities and did not detect any undisclosed outside business activities or private securities transactions.
Additionally, the branch manager had participated in private securities transactions wherein he had raised more than $1.5 million from investors, many of whom were firm customers.
In addition, the firm and Long failed to review or retain email communications on the branch manager’s outside email account, and Long did not review his outside email account during her inspections of his branch office. Moreover, FINRA found that the firm did not have any supervisory procedures regarding the review and retention of email communications on outside email accounts.
Portfolio Advisors Alliance, Inc.: Censured; Fined $35,000
Marcelle Long: Fined $7,500; Suspended in Principal/Supervisory capacity only for 30 days
Tags: Supervision Private Securities Transaction Outside Business Activities Electronic Communications Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
At first blush, the sanctions appear a bit harsh but after it all sinks in -- nah, FINRA seems to have had the punishment about right. Given the history of the subject branch manager and the apparent supervisory lapses, the Principal is lucky that she got off with only a 30-day Principal/Supervisory suspension. The sanctions against her could have been far worse and, frankly, with some justification.
Either I'm getting mellow in my old age or FINRA is starting to get some things right. Whoa -- did I really write that?
Pyramid Financial Corp. and John Hsu a/k/a Juan Hsu (Principal)
2008011600501/May 2011
The Firm and Hsu failed to preserve electronic communications related to the firm’s business when Hsu and another registered representative of the firm sent and received electronic communications related to the firm’s business using personal email accounts that were not linked to the firm’s email preservation system; the firm’s failure to preserve electronic communications was considered willful.
Hsu and the firm failed to comply with AML rules and regulations in that they failed to access the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FINCEN) and review records, failed to develop and implement a written AML program reasonably designed to achieve compliance with the BSA and implementing regulations, and failed to properly conduct annual independent tests of its AML program for several years. Hsu signed and submitted certifications to FINRA that contained inaccurate information regarding preservation of emails in compliance with SEC Rule 17a-4. Hsu willfully failed to amend his Form U4, to disclose material information.
Pyramid Financial Corp.: Fined $55,000 jointly and severally with Hsu
John Hsu a/k/a Juan Hsu (Principal): Fined $55,000 jointly and severally with Pyramid; Fined an additional $10,000; Suspended 45 business days in all capacities; Barred as a Principal only.
Tags: Electronic Communications Email Willfully AML | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Can't remember seeing a FINRA finding that the failure to preserve emails was "willful," so this must have struck the regulator as a particularly egregious case.
Canaccord Genuity Inc. fka Canaccord Adams, Inc.
AWC/2008012243901/March 2011
As an active participant in the U.S. Private Investment in Private Equity (PIPE) market, Canaccord failed to have in place reasonable information barrier procedures with respect to its PIPE business. The firm failed to have a reasonable system in place to track employees who were brought “over the wall” on specific PIPE transactions, and while the firm had a procedure in place requiring the maintenance of a “wall-crossing log,” it did not maintain such a log. The firm stored information about over-the-wall employees in a computer file that was not readily accessible to persons with responsibilities to monitor trading and review emails of employees brought over the wall on investment banking matters.
The firm failed to maintain a specific log of employee transactions in securities on the firm’s grey list and/or restricted list, and the firm was unable to provide documentation evidencing that it had investigated employee trading in grey list securities to determine whether employees had misused material, non-public information.
The Firm failed to have a reasonable system in place to monitor the flow of information concerning PIPE transactions to potential investors, and while the firm’s procedures required sales persons to obtain verbal agreements from potential investors to keep information concerning PIPE transactions confidential and refrain from trading on such information, the firm did not reasonably ensure that the procedure was followed or document that such verbal agreements were obtained. The information that was maintained concerning the disclosure of information on PIPE transactions was not used for supervisory or compliance purposes.
In addition, the firm’s system for review of email correspondence was unreasonable; while the firm’s procedures required the review of a sample of email communications, the sample included mail boxes for users no longer employed at the firm and permitted Compliance Department employees, at their discretion, to mark emails as reviewed based solely on a review of the sender’s name, recipient’s name and subject line of an email; stated differently, the firm permitted “bulk review” of emails without any written guidelines informing compliance staff of the parameters for such review.
Moreover, the Firm also utilized an Internet chat room system that allowed members of its business units, including but not limited to, the investment banking and research departments, to communicate and/or review each other’s communications. Furthermore, the firm did not have in place any written procedures relevant to monitoring internal communications between its business units on the internal chat room system and could not document that it actively monitored such communication.
Canaccord Genuity Inc. fka Canaccord Adams, Inc. : Censured; Fined $40,000
Tags: PIPE Electronic Communications Email Internet | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
An interesting case on a few levels. First, my long antagonism to PIPEs is noted -- I tend to absolutely hate these transactions as among the most pernicious evils of Wall Street that are often little more than battering rams used against smaller issuers.
The bulk review aspect of this case warrants attention. The apparent failure to age-out the database and to include within samples inactive mail accounts is a practice that compliance departments should now note is within FINRA's cross-hairs. Similarly, if your firm provides an internal chat facility, make sure that you have documented procedures for monitoring that communication system.
Donna Marlene DiMaggio
In connection with customers’ purchases of a private placement offering, DiMaggio falsely represented to each of the customers that she had personally invested funds with the issuer. Based on DiMaggio’s representation and recommendation, each of the customers invested $60,000 in the offering.
DiMaggio settled and/or attempted to settle potential customer complaints regarding undisclosed fees, failing to add a living benefit rider to a variable annuity and making unsuitable investment recommendations, without her member firm’s knowledge or approval.
DiMaggio exchanged business-related emails with customers using an unapproved email account, thereby causing her firm to violate its recordkeeping requirements. (FINRA Case #)
Donna Marlene DiMaggio : Barred
Tags: Private Placement Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
LPL Financial Corporation nka LPL Financial LLC
LPL failed to enforce its supervisory system and written supervisory procedures relating to the review of electronic communications in certain branch locations. Approximately 3 million emails firm financial advisors transmitted and received from numerous bank branch locations related to one bank program were not processed through the Office of Supervisory Jurisdiction Review Tool (ORT) due to a technology problem concerning the interface between one bank program’s email system and the firm’s ORT; therefore, those emails were not subject to supervisory review by firm managers and principals. The firm’s ORT flagged for supervisory review emails financial advisors in a branch office transmitted and received, but a branch manager or principal never reviewed them.
LPL Financial Corporation nka LPL Financial LLC : Censured; Fined $100,000
Tags: Electronic Communications Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Wow! Three million unprocessed emails. That's a load. On top of it, flagged emails were sent and received by the Firm's review program but inexplicably never reviewed by a manager/principal -- which sort of rendered the whole flagging thing sort of useless.
Puritan Securities Inc. aka First Union Securities, Inc.
The Firm entered into an agreement with an entity to sell a private placement for which the firm’s brokers sold $1,415,940 of the private placement interests to customers, and the firm failed to create and maintain a reasonable supervisory system to detect and prevent sales practice violations in these transactions. The firm did not collect financial and other relevant information for the customers who purchased the private placement, and did not review these transactions to determine if the recommendations for the purchases were suitable for these customers.
Also, the firm failed to implement a supervisory system reasonably designed to review and retain electronic correspondence. The firm did not establish an email retention system that captured all of its brokers’ emails. The firm’s brokers were allowed to use email addresses using external domains, and the firm did not have the capability to review, capture and retain these emails.
Puritan Securities Inc. aka First Union Securities, Inc.: Censured; Fined $10,000 (in light of the firm's revenues and financial resources, a "lower fine" was imposed)
Tags: Private Placement Suitability Due Diligence Electronic Communications Email | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
As I've noted over the years, permitting registered persons to use email addresses that are off the firm's platform poses significant supervisory issues. Here, brokers were permitted to use external domains but the firm did not have the ability to review, capture, and retain the subject communications. That's going to be a problem for FINRA.
Mark Peter Erlich
AWC/2008012634701/February 2011
Erlich failed to disclose to his member firm that he personally possessed stock certificates belonging to prospective firm customers and details concerning such shares. By failing to disclose, Erlich prevented his firm from complying with SEC Rule 15c3-3 in that the firm, without knowing of the securities he possessed, failed to bring the securities under possession or control as required, and compute and maintain sufficient cash and/or qualified securities in its reserve bank account, as required; and prevented the firm from complying with books and records rules, which required that firms record the receipt of securities.
Erlich used a personal email account to send business-related correspondence. Although Erlich courtesy-copied his firm email address on a few of the emails he sent from his personal email account, he failed to copy or forward any of these emails to his firm managers. Erlich’s firm did not permit the use of non-firm email accounts for communications related to firm business, and that by using his personal email account for firm-related business and not copying or forwarding such emails to his firm, Erlich prevented his firm from discharging its supervisory obligations.
Mark Peter Erlich: Fined $15,000; Suspended 7 months
MBSC Securities Corporation, BNY Mellon Capital Markets LLC and BNY Mellon Securities LLC
The Firms failed to ensure that emails were retained and timely reviewed.
The Firms, all subsidiaries of the same parent company, implemented a new, third party system for email archiving and review. In order for the emails to be archived consistent with the requirements of SEC Rule 17a-4 and NASD Rule 3110, the firms relied on their personnel to properly code new and existing email accounts to ensure that emails were journaled from users’ email accounts in the new system, and when email accounts were incorrectly coded, the affected users’ emails were not retained consistent with SEC and NASD rules. Instead, both sent and received emails were retained for 30 days, unless an individual employee double-deleted the email (in which case it would not have been retained at all); after 30 days, any emails remaining in an individual employee’s email inbox or outbox would be retained for an additional 30 days; and all emails would be deleted from the new system after 60 days (unless the auto-delete function was disabled), and additionally, would not have appeared in the new system for compliance department reviews, unless an email user whose account was properly coded sent or received the email message.
The Firms did not properly code certain email accounts and did not have written guidance to ensure that all email accounts for associated persons of each firm were properly recorded, nor did the firms have evidence that they conducted any testing of the new system to ensure that email accounts were being set up properly to capture emails for compliance with SEC Rule 17a-4 and NASD Rule 3110. As a result of the failure to retain emails, the firms also failed to timely review emails of affected users. In addition, FINRA determined that the failure to properly archive and review emails was discovered after a MBSC Securities Corporation compliance department employee searched for an electronic copy of an email he knew to have existed, and failed to locate it; prior to that event, the firms did not know that they were failing to properly archive and review emails.
Moreover, following the discovery of the retention and review problem at the firms, the firms’ parent company retained an outside consultant to assess the scope of the retention failure, and the outside consultant determined that there were 725 affected users between the three firms, for whom emails were not retained consistent with SEC and NASD rules. Furthermore, the outside consultant estimated that the three firms may have lost as many as 4 million emails through the failure to properly code email accounts for journaling to the new system.
In determining the appropriate sanctions in this matter, FINRA took into consideration that the firms self-reported to FINRA their failure to review and retain certain emails and the steps the firms took to remedy those deficiencies.
MBSC Securities Corporation, BNY Mellon Capital Markets LLC and BNY Mellon Securities LLC: Censured; Fined $300,000 joint/several
Michael Douglas Hanke
Hanke sent unapproved personal emails to customers guaranteeing them against future loss in their securities portfolio, although he later sent the customers an email withdrawing the guarantee.
Michael Douglas Hanke : Fined $2,500; Suspended 10 business days
Tags: Email Guaranteeing Against Losses | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
Janney Montgomery Scott, LLC
establish certain elements of an adequate AML program reasonably designed to achieve and monitor its compliance with the requirements of the Bank Secrecy Act and implementing regulations promulgated by the Department of Treasury;
establish policies and procedures reasonably expected to detect and cause the reporting of transactions required under 31 USC 5318(g) by failing to provide branch office managers with reports that contained adequate information to monitor for potential money-laundering and red flag activity; and for the firm’s compliance department to perform periodic reviews of wire transfer activity, require either branch managers or the AML compliance officers to document reviews of AML alerts in accordance with firm procedures, identify the beneficial owners and/or agents for service of process for some foreign correspondent banks accounts, and establish adequate written policies and procedures that provided guidelines for suspicious activity that would require the filing of a Form SAR-SF;
establish policies and procedures that required ongoing AML training of appropriate personnel related to margin issues, entering new account information, verifying physical securities and handling wire activity;
ensure that its third-party vendor verified new customers’ identities by using credit and other database cross-references, and after the firm determined that the vendor’s lapse was resolved, it failed to retroactively verify customer information not previously subjected to the verification process;
establish procedures reasonably expected to detect and cause the reporting of suspicious transactions required under 31 USC 5318(g), in that it failed to include in its AML review the activity in retail accounts institutional account registered representatives serviced;
review accounts that a producing branch office manager serviced under joint production numbers;
evidence in certain instances timely review of letters of authorization, correspondence, account designation changes, trade blotters, branch manager weekly review forms and branch manager monthly reviews; failed to follow procedures intended to prevent producing branch office managers from approving their own errors;
follow procedures intended to prevent a branch office operations manager from approving transactions in her own account and an assistant branch office manager from reviewing transactions in accounts he serviced;
establish procedures for the approval and supervision related to employee use of personal computers and, during one year, permitted certain employees to use personal computers the firm did not approve or supervise,
include a question on thefirm’s annual acknowledgement form for one year that required its registered representatives to disclose outside securities accounts and the firm could not determine how many remained unreported due to the supervisory lapse;
follow policies and procedures requiring the pre-approval and review of the content of employees’ radio broadcasts, television appearances, seminars and dinners, and materials distributed at the seminars and dinners; representatives conducted seminars that were not pre-approved by the firm’s advertising principal as required by its written procedures; the firm failed to maintain in a separate file all advertisements, sales literature and independently prepared reprints for three years from date of last use; and a branch office manager failed to review a registered representative’s radio broadcast. A branch office manager failed to maintain a log of a registered representative’s radio broadcasts and failed to tape and/or maintain a transcript of the broadcasts and there was no evidence a qualified principal reviewed or approved the registered representative’s statements. Branch office managers did not retain documents reflecting the nature of seminars, materials distributed to attendees or supervisory pre-approval of the seminars; retain transcripts of a representative’s local radio program and TV appearances or document supervisory review or approval of materials used; and retain documents reflecting the nature of a dinner or seminar conducted by representatives or materials distributed;
record the identity of the person who accepted each customer order because it failed to update its order ticket form to reflect the identity of the person who accepted the order; and
to review Bloomberg emails and some firm employees’ instant messages
The Firm distributed a document, Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options, that was not current, and the firm lacked procedures for advising customers with respect to changes to the document and failed to document the date on which it was sent to certain customers who had recently opened options accounts. Also, the firm’s compliance registered options principal did not document weekly reviews of trading in discretionary options accounts.
Janney Montgomery Scott, LLC : Censured; Fined $175,000
Tags: Annual Compliance Certification Email Instant Messaging SAR AML Bank Third Party Vendor Away Accounts Broadcast Producing Manager | In: Cases of Note : FINRA
What can I say -- even I'm impressed!
Legacy Trading Co., LLC and Mark Alan Uselton (Principal)
2005000879302/January 2011
The NAC imposed the sanctions following appeal of an OHO decision.
The sanctions were based on findings that acting through Uselton, the Firm
made false statements to FINRA; and
failed to make and annotate affirmative determinations prior to effecting short sales.
The firm and Uselton
failed to maintain the required records necessary to rely upon the exemption in Exchange Act Rule 15c2-11(f)(2),
failed to maintain the firm’s email records for at least three years, and
failed to establish, maintain, and enforce an adequate supervisory system and written supervisory procedures,
Uselton also provided false information and failed to provide testimony at a FINRA on-the-record interview, and he failed to timely update his Uniform Application for Securities Industry Registration or Transfer (Form U4) with material facts.
Legacy Trading Co., LLC: Expelled; jointly and severally fined $907,035.01, plus interest.
Mark Alan Uselton: Barred; jointly and severally fined $907,035.01, plus interest.
Tags: affirmative determination Email | In: U4, U5, RE-3, Rule 3070
See Amended 2009 NAC Decision at http://www.finra.org/web/groups/industry/@ip/@enf/@adj/documents/ohodecisions/p118871.pdf
NAC 2010 Decision http://www.finra.org/web/groups/industry/@ip/@enf/@adj/documents/nacdecisions/p122244.pdf
U.S Financial Investments, Inc.
OS/2009016309701/January 2011
After the Firm became aware of deficiencies in its system for maintaining and preserving emails, and after approval of an AWC arising from the firm’s failure to maintain an adequate system for retaining emails, the firm’s response to correct the deficiencies was inadequate. The firm retained a vendor to provide services with respect to its email system, including, ostensibly, to provide email retention services; however, the firm never took steps, including after it executed the AWC, to test or ascertain whether or not the vendor had implemented a system to store email in a non-erasable, non-rewritable format. The firm did not store emails in a non-erasable, non-rewritable format; instead, the firm’s vendor merely established a “compliance folder” on the firm’s computer network where emails were automatically forwarded, and the vendor apparently maintained “spam” emails the firm received in a separate folder. This system permitted firm employees to delete emails from the “compliance folder.”
During the course of a cycle examination, the staff requested that the firm produce certain emails of a firm registered representative and, in response to the request, the firm was able to provide only “spam” emails the firm retained. The firm discovered its email retention deficiencies only after FINRA staff brought them to the firm’s attention. In addition, the firm intended to employ electronic storage media for its email retention but it failed to provide the required Member’s Notice to FINRA pursuant to SEC Rule 17a-4(f)(2)(i); failed to ensure that its third-party vendor provided the undertakings required by SEC Rule 17a-4(f)(3)(vii); and failed to file the required notice, and its third-party vendor did not provide an undertaking until FINRA staff brought the failures to the firm’s attention.
U.S Financial Investments, Inc.: Censured; Fined $25,000
As I have noted in the past, your email retention system must be carved in stone. If your reps can come in an simply delete an supposedly archived document, that's a major flaw.
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SportPark at Loughborough University
About SportPark
Loughborough University takes possession of SportPark
Loughborough University has officially taken possession of SportPark, a bespoke sports administration hub which provides the gateway to the Loughborough Science and Enterprise Park.
The £15m landmark building at the west entrance of the University campus will be home to sports organisations including British Swimming, the Amateur Swimming Association, Volleyball England, the Great Britain Wheelchair Basketball Association, UK Sport and the Youth Sports Trust, with more organisations set to sign up in the new year.
Employees will move in as early as January 2010 and will work side-by-side in an innovative environment that encourages partnership working, shared best practice and collaboration.
As well as working more closely together, these sports bodies will be able to access expertise and knowledge from across the University campus including the world-renowned School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences and SportPark’s close neighbours the Sports Technology Institute.
Developed by Loughborough University, and part-funded by emda, Sport England, Charnwood Borough Council and Leicestershire County Council, SportPark is designed to support sports organisations as they strive to raise their game in achieving excellence across performance and participation within sport.
SportPark will become a key national hub for sports development and a centre for sharing, innovation and creative working.
And staff will benefit too. Not only can they access University sports facilities, fitness classes and healthy living expertise, but some of the latest active lifestyle facilities and hi tech gadgetry has been incorporated into the design of SportPark and its parkland surroundings, giving employees the opportunity to reach their own fitness goals and to lead the nation by example.
Loughborough University deputy director of sport (operations) Tim Garfield has acted as project manager for the SportPark development and welcomes this important step in the project’s development.
“We are delighted to officially take possession of SportPark,” he said. “Today marks the culmination of a huge amount of preparation work, not only in terms of construction of the building, but also the extensive consultation with our sport partners.
“Together we aim to create an atmosphere and ambition that will further cement our relationships for the shared aim of driving sport in the UK forward towards Olympic success in 2012 and getting the nation fitter and healthier through promoting sport and physical activity.”
SportPark has been designed and built by Baggaley Construction who officially got the work underway following a sod cutting ceremony last October.
← View all news
Thousands of jobs forecast for expanding University Science and Enterprise Park
Past and present Olympians open landmark building for sport
SportPark opening
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Copyright © 2010 SportPark +44 (0)1509 222820 sportpark@lboro.ac.uk
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"Harry Shearer and Judith Owen's Christmas Without Tears (Does This Tree Make Me Look Fat?)" - Totally Brilliant
By Judd Hollander
By Arkanjel Productions
Husband and wife Harry Shearer and Judith Owen offer a perfect way to ring in the 2016 holiday season with their annual party, Christmas Without Tears (Does this Tree Make me Look Fat?). The festivities held at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Howard Gillman Opera House on December 1st and then proceeding on a brief tour.
What originally started out as a simple Christmas gathering in the couple's Santa Monica home has grown exponentially over the years, becoming a public performance for the first in 2005, with a portion of proceeds from ticket sales going to charitable organizations. This year's beneficiary being the Elton John AIDS Foundation. A particularly apropos choice especially in light of the fact that December 1st is World AIDS Day. The press materials describing the show as "a guilt-free way of having fun and giving back".
Owen was the de facto host for most of the evening, often combining her words with a tongue and cheek air of depression. She putting it down to the fact that since she's Welsh, she was in fact born depressed. Her mood in actuality helping to set the stage for some of the more poignant moments in the piece. Such as the song "(I'll Sing) Silent Night For You", honoring those friends who are no longer with us; and "The Best Things", about the joy of having a loved one close by for Christmas. Both of the numbers sung beautifully by Owen. Also quite touching was a sequence where she comes out holding a stuffed toy, and, after dissolving into tears while noting how childhood dreams and fantasies just don't come true, a life-size version of that selfsame toy (played by Godfrey Daniels) appeared and proceeded to enchant the audience via a series of silent movements and interplay with a large red ball.
Shearer meanwhile nicely injected some political humor into the evening with his song "Christmas a'la Trump". Something The Donald would probably have liked were he in the audience. Shearer also revealing one of Christmas' biggest kept secrets via the tune "Jesus was a Dreidel Spinner". "Spinner" being one of several not-strictly-Christmas songs presented. The number was a nod to Shearer's heritage, something Owen says she first became aware of about five years into their marriage. Shearer also at one point talked about global warming while noting his people have "been burning oil for a long time".
The entire performance was a very enjoyable mixture of the heartfelt and the hilarious, with the various "party guests" performing a number or two, or a comedy bit, and then basically becoming happy onlookers at the party itself. Those not actively participating at the moment, sitting near the fireplace, watching the goings on and talking amongst themselves. Owen and Shearer at times circulating the stage like the genial hosts they are. These actions creating the impression of being in the living room of some old friends and just having an enjoyable time. Which exactly what a Christmas party should be.
Also running throughout the evening was the continual feeling that all of the performances presented were totally off the cuff and completely unrehearsed. This was especially evident in the "Jingle Bell Rock" duet by Shearer and Paul Shaffer. Shaffer, probably best known for his 33-year tenure as David Letterman's musical director, also getting in some good licks in the piano during the song. Another similarly rousing number was the raucous "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus" sung by Doña Oxford, and which quite rightly brought the house down while closing the first act of what Owen called a "ten hour" show - actually three hours and fifteen minutes. Shearer and Owen definitely believing in giving the audience their money's worth.
By Alex Kluft
Other highlights included a virtuoso performance by banjo player Bèla Fleck, who offered up some fascinating riffs on various Christmas carols, including "the First Noel" and "Joy to the World; all the while moving seamlessly from one song to the next. Another standout was Keith Nelson of the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus performing a vaudeville routine which included multiple bowl spinning and spoon flipping. The latter effort in particular being harder than it sounds. Also of note was actor Fred Willard's recitation of what he called the "true story of Christmas", which reduced the entire audience to fits of laugher. Willard's talk delivered in a perfectly deadpan manner. In the same comical vein, one of the definite highpoints of the show was a performance by actor Mario Cantone and his biting deconstruction of the classic television special "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer". Cantone giving his personal take on what that special was really talking about with it's continual reference to "misfits" and those people that just don't fit in.
There was also the chance to pick up some interesting trivia which could used at one's own Christmas party. When singer/musician Peter Asher of the 1960s music group "Peter and Gordon" performed their hit "I Don't Want to Live in a World Without Love", he pointed out the song was originally written by Paul McCartney for the Beatles, who rejected it. McCartney later finishing the tune and giving it Peter and Gordon to record. One also learned the meaning of the expression "the steamy" as it applies to Glasgow terminology. Performer Alan Cumming elaborating on a bit of Scottish slang before going on to sing a song of his own.
The evening also included some audience participation, the crowd performing a rather unique rendition of "The Twelve Days of Christmas". They being urged on in their efforts by Owen and the rest of those on stage, with prizes handed out when it was over for the most outrageous participants.
Further helping to add to the overall yuletide feeling was a stage nicely festooned with Christmas trees, a menorah, holiday wreaths, and the afore-mentioned fireplace - adorned with hanging stockings of course. Christmas Without Tears is exactly what a Christmas party should be about. A chance to connect with some old friends and meeting some new ones in the process. One could easily imagine sitting with these folks and sipping hot chocolate or drinking eggnog while singing Christmas carols, swapping stories or just catching up on the latest news and gossip - which is what friends do. Well done indeed!
Harry Shearer and Judith Owen's Christmas Without Tears
(Does this Tree Make me Look Fat?)
Harry Shearer, Judith Owen, Alan Cumming, Mario Cantone, Alfie Boe, Paul Shaffer, Bèla Fleck, Peter Asher, Davell Crawford, Godfrey Daniels, Jerry Dixon, Amy Engelhardt, The Gregory Brothers, Keith Nelson, Doña Oxford, The Songbirds, Fred Willard
Choral Singers:
Amy Engelhardt, Director
Mick Bleyer, Emily Goglia, Kristi Holden, Tim Kodres, Austin Ku, Jen Malenke. Mark Bradley Miller, Anne Fraser Thomas
CJ Vanston
CJ Vanston (Piano), Leland Sklar (Bass), Oz Noy (Guitar), Jim Hines (Drums)
Set Designers:
Steven Hillyer, Tim Marback, Judith Owen, Harry Gaveras
Set Decoration:
Pam Halstead
Production Assistant:
Hair and Makeup:
M'Shane Alsondo, Deja Smith, Dee TrannyBear
Tour Manager:
Mark Botting
Tour Stage Manager:
Jennifer Hellman
Steven Hillyer, Tim Marback, Judith Owen
Judith Owen, Tim Marback, Steve Hillyer
Performed at the BAM Howard Gilman Opera House on December 1, 2015
Christmas Without Tears Tour Information: http://christmaswithouttears.com/
"Dear Elizabeth" - The Enduring Power of Friendship
Finding a kindred soul can be a wonderful thing. Someone to tell your personal thoughts, feelings and hopes without fear of condemnation or dismissal. Such was the case with the poets Elizabeth Bishop and Robert Lowell, their story told in Sarah Ruhl's Dear Elizabeth, now being presented by the Women's Project Theater with a rotating cast. J. Smith-Cameron and John Douglas Thompson assuming the roles the week I saw the show. Ruhl taking her inspiration from the book "Words in Air: The Complete Correspondence between Elizabeth Bishop and Robert Lowell", and using the poets' own words - as well as a selection of their poetry - to help bring these two individuals to life.
The relationship between the two begins in 1947 when Bishop first sends Lowell a letter. Lowell, familiar with Bishop's work, responds in kind, noting that Elizabeth is the only "real" person he's had a chance to talk to in his recent travels. As time passes, their friendship deepens, as evidenced by their increasingly familiar and intimate written salutations to one another. The two talking not only about their respective poems and projects, but also about what's going on in their lives at the moment, as well as the hope they will have a chance to meet.
Through their words, the audience soon begins to get an idea of just who these people are. Elizabeth for her part, coming across as a rather shy, introverted woman. Telling Robert at one point that when he writes her epitaph, "you must say that I was the loneliest person who ever lived". Robert on the other hand, is much more of an outgoing fellow, with a seeming lust for life and all that it has to offer. Kind of like Ernest Hemmingway in that approach. Hemmingway being one of Bishop's and Lowell's contemporaries and one of the many literary names mentioned in passing via their correspondence. Ezra Pound, Dylan Thomas, Tennessee Williams and Flannery O'Conner, being among the others. The names serving as indicators of the circles in which Lowell and Bishop moved and the times in which they lived.
Eventually, a sort of shorthand develops between the two. One evidenced as much by what wasn't put down on paper as what actually was. This is especially true when either questions the other's work. There's an initial hesitancy from the one making the query, while couching their point in open admiration and gentle teasing. In the same vein, the one on the receiving end of this advice accepts it with an air of rueful acknowledgment. They not really wanting to have their work criticized in the first place, but ultimately accepting it; knowing the comment to be valid.
This shorthand manner in their communications is also visible when the two talk about their more personal situations. Such as Bishop's problems with asthma and her struggle with alcohol, and Lowell's various episodes of Manic Depression and his various hospital stays. Many of these situations are described almost in a passing manner. The two knowing each other well enough by now and not needing to really elaborate, or to ask questions; other than offering help to the other if needed.
Thompson does a great job with Lowell, showing him to be a man who embraces life, while looking for the "real" things in it, whatever they happen to be at the moment. The actor also nicely conveys Lowell's great joy at becoming a first time father. A moment rather ironic when one remembers Lowell's previous comments regarding children he happened to come across. Smith-Cameron's silent response here is also quite telling. According to Ruhl, in her very involving and informative program notes, one of Bishop's great regrets was never having a child.
Smith-Cameron does an excellent turn as Bishop, making her a much more ethereal creature than Lowell. One, if not afraid of life, then certainly not embracing it in the same head-on terms Lowell seems to do. We also see traces of wistfulness in her, she at times wondering how her life would have turned out had things been different. Bishop and Lowell never being at the same relationship stage in their lives at the same time, which may have been a reason why nothing more personal ever seriously developed between the two. Yet even when that possibility is presented to her, be it Lowell's proposal of marriage or an address to write to him where he wife wouldn't be aware, Bishop declines the offer.
Kate Whoriskey's direction is letter perfect, giving the actors enough leeway to move about the stage and bring life to the words they're speaking. Rather than keeping them seated at a pair of writing desks throughout the show. In a nice twist, the actors never specifically acknowledge each other while writing their respective letters, but do so at times when listening to the other speak. The glances and gestures adding an extra emotional layer to the words being spoken.
Scenic design by Antej Ellermann fits the story nicely, the space projecting a semi-cramped feel while filled with bric-a-brac and various materials that writers of Bishop's and Lowell's time would have used. Lighting by Mary Louse Geiger helped to give a subtle emphasis to the work when either of the actors recited (and performed) some of Bishop's and Lowell's poetry.
Part acting exercise, part biographical piece and a well-told story throughout, Dear Elizabeth offers a touching glimpse into two people who found joy both in the world and in each other. It's a play well worth seeing and their story is well worth knowing.
Also in the cast is Polly Noonan.
Featuring: Polly Noonan (Stage Manager), J. Smith-Cameron (Elizabeth Bishop), John Douglas Thompson (Robert Lowell).
Dear Elizabeth
by Sarah Ruhl
Scenic Design: Antje Ellermann
Costume Design: Anita Yavich
Lighting Design: Mary Louise Geiger
Sound Design: Jill Bc Du Boff, Emily Auciello
Production Stage Managers: C. Renee Alexander, Bernita Robinson
Production Manager: Steve Rosenberg
Casting: Kelly Gillespie
Press Representatives: Vivacity Media Group, Leslie Baden Papa, Whitney Holden Gore
Directed by Kate Whoriskey
Presented by Women's Project Theater
McGinn/Cazale Theatre
2162 Broadway (at 76th Street)
Closed: December 5, 2015
Radio City Christmas Spectacular - The Perfect Way to Ring in the Holiday Season
Photo by MSG Entertainment
As constant as the changing of the seasons is the annual appearance of the Christmas Spectacular at New York's Radio City Musical Hall, which has been bringing delight to audiences for more than 85 years. Seamlessly combining the secular and the religious, and newer musical numbers with old favorites, the show is an unabashed treat for all ages. The production offering snow, Santa Claus, Christmas carols and of course, those high kicking, toe tapping Radio City Rockettes.
The entire show is basically a combination Christmas pageant/immersive experience. It starting the moment one enters the massive Music Hall performance space to be greeted by a cacophony of snowflakes projected on the ceiling and walls. No two of them seeming to be alike (and yes, I looked). Just as each snowflake is different from the next, a perfect Christmas gift for one person will not be a perfect fit for someone else. Something eight year-old Ben and his older brother Patrick find out while looking for such a present for their sister. The brothers getting some help with their quest from the big guy in the red suit. A process which also reintroduces the magic of Christmas to the rather cynical Patrick. A magic which, as a song makes clear, is "closer than you know".
Santa also serves as the unofficial narrator/guide through most of the proceedings. Coming out at the beginning and interacting with the crowd before taking them on an eye popping sleigh ride from his North Pole workshop straight to Radio City. Said journey accomplished though some enjoyable projections, the use of 3-D glasses previously distributed to the audience and some fantastical sets that are guaranteed to thrill every child present, while also stirring the youngster that dwells in every adult's heart. Though to be honest, I couldn't help thinking how some of the huge snowflakes, which at one point descend on wires from the top of the stage, and the method in which Santa took Ben and Patrick on a trip to his workshop would make for a great episode of Doctor Who.
In an extremely well-done number, Santa answers a question children have pondered down through the generations - and one which parents have continually struggled to answer. Namely, how can every person dressed in a Santa suit - be they in a department store or ringing a bell on a street corner - actually be the one and only? The answer, one which eventually involves a stage full of dancing Kris Kringles, is wonderfully executed and choreographed. The early moments of the numbers containing just a bit of otherworldliness to call to mind the classic "Elephants on Parade" number from Dumbo.
When Santa wasn't involved in the various goings on, or serving as a bridge to the different scenes and songs, it was the Rockettes' turn to shine; and shine they did. Be they dressed up as rag dolls (in a number that had its genesis in the 1940 Christmas show), reindeer, Christmas ornaments, or NYC tourists - complete with matching sweaters for the latter - their dancing was always in perfect synchronization and magnificent to watch. Some of their more enjoyable numbers included a wonderful rendition of "The Twelve Days of Christmas"; a song about Christmas in New York City - and featuring a double-decker bus; and the absolutely show-stopping "March of the Wooden Soldiers" sequence, which has to be seen to be believed. The "Soldiers" number was first introduced in 1933 and there's a reason it's become a perennial favorite. The chorographic work is superb, with the entire line of Rockettes/soldiers moving in a way so it appears the performers seem almost flat as they turn, break apart and come back together. This all leading to a most fantastic finish.
Another particularly striking sequence that also had its roots in the past was a scene from "The Nutcracker", featuring a little girl named Clara and some rather large dancing bears. The bears being of the Russian, Panda and Teddy varieties.
One thing evident throughout was how transfixed the children in the audience were with what was happening on stage. The "Wooden Soldiers" and "Rag Doll" numbers being two of their particular favorites. Unfortunately some of the adults were far too intent on capturing moments of the show on their various hand held devices to really enjoy the experience as it was unfolding.
The evening's crowning moment, notable for its relative simplicity after all that had come before, was the quiet beauty the of "The Living Nativity" sequence. The scene including camels, sheep and, like everything else, brought off without a hitch and to great effect.
The technical credits were excellent down the line. Each one showing the care going into the production to make it all seem fresh and new, no matter how many years prior some of the sequences presented, or variations thereof, had actually been done before.
Whether you've seen The Radio City Christmas Spectacular many times previously or if this is your first go round, one thing is clear. The show is a heart-warming treat which should be on all Yuletide lover's "must-see" lists each and every Christmas season.
Featuring: Charles Edward Hall (Santa Claus), Alexandra Hoffman, Kayla Mak, Rachel Quiner (Clara), Jack Broderick, Jack Mastrianni, Sawyer Nunes (Patrick), Jad Grey, Avery Noble, Jorge Vega (Ben), John Paul Almon (Santa Standby), Annie Fitch, AnnMarie Powers (Mrs. Claus), Kasey J. Hughes (Santa Understudy)
Skaters: Maxim Fomin & Svetlana Butova, Andrey Baka & Victoriya Glichenko.
Elves:
Ronald Lee Clark, Bradley Glenn Galey, Misty Irwin, Jonathan M. Kim, Zachary Blu Miller, Sebastian Saraceno, Josh Walker, Kristin Xettlemoyer
Swings:
Jordanna H. James, Jason Justin Perez
Rockettes:
Jackie Aitken, Nicole Baker, Lori Barber, Samantha Beary Burns, Samantha Berger, Danielle Betscher, Tiffany Billings, Bethany Blanchard, Torrie Bogda, Rachel Borgman, Bailey Callahan, Mary Cavett, Jennifer Calvin, Sierra Ring Collins, Jessie Crouch, Jessica Molly Davison, Tara Donleavy, Teneise Ellis, Alyssa Epstein, Melinda Farrell, Katelyn Gaffney, Eleni Gavalas, Lauren Gibbs, Kari Gregg, Tiffany Griffin, Sarah Grooms, Katie Hamrah, Christina Hedrick, Nikki Hester, Danni Heverin, Melissa Hillmer, Sara Michelle Hoenes, Sophie Rose Holloway, Lindsay Howe, Candace Jablonski, Laura Jakowenko, Alison Jantzie, Kristin Jantzie, Lisa Jantzie, Sarah Lin Johnson, Ashley Kasunich, Allyson Kelly, Heather Langham, Alissa LaVergne, Maranda LeBar, Alyssa Lemons, Megan Levinson, Alicia Lundgren, Amanda McCormick, Mindy Moeller, Danielle Morgan, Kimberly Petros Nassif, Jessica Palu, Stacy Paydo, Phoebe Pearl, Thrersa Pelicata, Elizabeth Peterson, Logan Reginato Prince, Natalie Madison Reid, Lauren Ella Renck, Traci Reszetylo, Joanna Richardson, Karen Ritchie, Sagan Rose, Courtney Rottenberger, Tori Schelling, Nicole Schuman, Taylor Shimko, Hannah Sides, Christine Sienicki, Alina Silver, Kristen Grace Smith, Brittany Paige Snyder, Elizabeth Sousek, Audrey Thelemann, Katie Elizabeth Walker, Sarah Staker Wenstrom, Brittany Werthmann, Corey Whalen, Raley Zofko.
Rockettes Swings:
Jennifer Calvin, Jessie Crouch, Melinda Farrell, Stacy Paydo, Traci Reszetylo, Nichole Schuman, Hannah Sides, Katie Elizabeth Walker.
The Dancers:
Alex Aquilino, Jennifer Abuin, Devin Aubin, Brittany Bean, Karolina Blonski-Heflin, Bella Calafiua, Ron Christopher, Adam DiLoreto, Lindsey Fletcher, Drew Heflin, Haley Hellman-Genry, Nina Hudson, Sonia Jean, Justin Keats, Tanner Lane, Stephanie Lo, Chase Madigan, Amanda Mondoro, Antuan Raimone, Olivia Sharber, Demetrius K. Shields, Kelli Shimada, Brian Slaman, Shane Sitely, Paul Vicars, Jessica Walker, Matthew Winnegge, Camille Workman.
Lauren Cannon, Daniela Filippone, Marqui Jenn, Michael McArthur, Dylan Pearce, Cody D. Smith, Tyler Stickel, Samantha Zuidema-Wilhem.
The Singers:
Breanna Bartley, Eddie Egan, Alexandra Fassler, Annie Fitch, April Holloway, Joey Khoury, Thaddeus Pearson, AnnMarie Powers, Nathan Andrew Riley, Clinton Roane, Andrew Van Allsburg, Amy Lynn Zanetto.
Chris Gleim, Clarissa Grace, Kasey J. Hughes, Andrea Rodriguez.
Lighting Designer: David Agrees
Scenic Designer: Patrick Fahey, 8 hangs High Inc.
Sound Designer: SCK Sound Design
Christmas Production Manager: Beth Zitzman
Costume Design: Gregg Barnes, Frank Krenz, Martin Pakledinaz
Production Stage Manager: Kathy J. Hoovler
Production Managers: Julie Mason Groob. Michael Donaghy
Director, Rockettes Creative: Karen Keeler
Assistant Choreographers: Marqui Jenn, Traci Reszetylo, Hannah Sides, Samantha Zuidema-Wilhelm
Associate Conductors: Edward G. Robinson, Ethyl Will
Associate Costume Designer: Erin Elizabeth Murphy
Santa Flies to New York 3D: Synthespian Studios
Technical Director: Larry Morley
Musical Director and Principal Choreographer: Kevin Stites
Writer/Lyricist: Mark Waldrop
LED Video and Projection Mapping Design: Batwin & Robin Productions
Director and Chorographer: Julie Barman
1260 Avenue of the Americas (between 50th and 51st Streets)
Tickets: 1-866-858-0007 or www.RadioCityChristmas.com
Closes: January 3, 2016
"Perfect Arrangement" - Not so perfect for those involved
Photo by James Leynse
Most everyone has a public persona they show to the outside world. One stripped off only in the comfort of one's own home and only to those to whom you are the closest. But when even the slightest slip of the mask can lead to the loss of everything you're worked for, how far would you go to make sure that shield stays securely on? Such is the scenario playwright Topher Payne offers with Perfect Arrangement. Presented by Primary Stages. the show is having its New York premiere at the Duke on 42nd Street.
1950, Washington, D.C. The Cold War is in full swing and the United States Government is rooting out anyone who may have Communist leanings. Among those involved in this process are State Department employees Bob Martindale (Robert Eli) and his associate Norma (Julia Coffey). Bob is married to homemaker Millie (Mikaela Feely-Lehmann), while Norma's spouse is schoolteacher Jim Baxter (Christopher J. Hanke). The two couples are long time best friends and next door neighbors. However both marriages are shames, or in actuality, covers. For it is Bob and Jim who are in love with one another; as are Norma and Millie. The group coming up with this arrangement four years earlier as way to live together in secret while maintaining a public facade that would allow them to continue their careers in a society that by and large condemns them. Their true relationships hidden from prying eyes via a specially built closet that allows them to move from one apartment to the other without anyone outside their circle being the wiser.
Things change when Bob's superior, Theodore Sunderson (Kevin O'Rourke). explains that their new mission is to remove anyone in government whose actions could make them a target of blackmail. In particular anyone doing something of an unusual or "deviant" nature (i.e. homosexuality). While Bob is okay with this new protocol, Norma is somewhat less so. This leading to the first of many cracks in the four's once impervious shield.
More trouble comes the quartet's way in the form of Barbara Grant (Kelly McAndrew), a translator at the State Department, who's now on the chopping block thanks to her "easy" reputation. Though it quickly becomes obvious Barbara is not someone to sit still when threatened. Barbara noting one can't be blackmailed if you don't care who knows your secrets. That attitude being something Bob and the others feel they cannot afford. The irony here is that Bob is the one who created the system by which the State Department roots out its undesirables. Thus throwing other people under the proverbial bus and becoming a rising star in his job, all the while ensuring his own secrets remain secure and not caring about those outside his immediate circle. The question of whose rights are more important in such a situation being the play's ultimate message.
Payne and set designer Neil Patel have done a good job in recreating 1950s mores. The set of Norma and Millie's apartment looking like something you would find in a television series from that era. Nice, neat and with everything in its place. In a way the setting acts as a metaphor for these character's lives. Perfect and calm on the outside; but underneath far more messy, far more fraught with issues and dramatically, far more interesting. The ladies dresses in particular are perfectly divine - good work by costume designer Jennifer Caprio.
Interestingly, it's the dramatic moments that come across far better than the comedic ones. Part of this has to do with the show's underlying message, the two couples being too constrained by their own fears to come across as even unintentionally funny. Other problems occur because of Michael Barakiva's sometimes unfocused direction, which does not allow the characters to get enough into the specific moments to make any of the comic situations as amusing as they could be. Such misfires occur when Millie recognizes Barbara as someone from her past and tries desperately to disguise herself so she won't be recognized. Other moments at levity, such as Bob trying to fake a cold, or just about anything involving Kitty Sunderson (Jennifer Van Dyck), the wife of Bob's boss, all feel somewhat flat. Kitty in particular coming off as more of a parody than anything remotely resembling flesh and blood, at least in the beginning. The play could easily be done as a farce - the groundwork for it is certainly there - if that was the way Payne wanted to go. But the way the work is structured now, the too-real seriousness of the issues presented works against any attempts at levity.
Another problem is the show's ultimate ending. One where both couples must decide whether or not to take the first tentative steps outside the closet - and not the one connecting the two apartments. This particular (and pivotal) sequence begins well enough, but winds up offering what comes off as three separate endings. The final one stacking things a bit too far in one particular direction. Especially considering the time in which this story takes place and the attitude and feelings of the characters up to that point.
The cast is quite good, with Eli the standout as Bob. The one person most desperately trying to keep his personal status quo unchanged, less the gigantic house of cards he has built come crashing down. Coffey works well as Norma, a woman who eventually finds she can't keep being part of a process she despises. Feely-Lehmann is good as Millie, a person who initially finds herself totally appalled by Kitty and all that she represents. Yet in the end finds herself bonding with her in a moment of crises. O'Rourke is fine as Sunderson, a career bureaucrat with a seemingly easygoing manner, yet someone who can also become quite the son of a bitch when necessary. McAndrew is a nice surprise as Barbara. Someone who, like many of the others, keeps her professional and private lives completely separate. But who in reality may be the most honest of all.
One very telling line, used almost as a throwaway here, can be heard when Jim notes that he'd never be able to get a teaching job if his homosexuality became public knowledge. Those words indicating a reality that lasted far past the red and lavender scares of the 1950s, and even long after the gay rights movement burst into full bloom more than a decade later. It's here the power of the play is truly felt as it shows the almost desperate lengths homosexuals would go in order to appear "normal" to the world at large. The alternative being ostracism, unemployment or far worse.
Offering quite the thought provoking story, Perfect Arrangement doesn't quite reach its full potential, but still packs an emotional punch. One powerful enough to leaving a lasting impression.
Featuring: Robert Eli (Bob Martindale), Mikaela Feely-Lehmann (Mille Martindale), Julia Coffey (Norma Baxter), Christopher J. Hanke (Jim Baxter), Kevin O'Rourke (Theodore Sunderson), Jennifer Van Dyck (Kitty Sunderson), Kelly McAndrew (Barbara Grant).
Prefect Arrangement
Written by Topher Payne
Set Design: Neil Patel
Costume Design: Jennifer Caprio
Lighting Design: Traci Klainer Polimeni
Sound Design: Ryan Rumery
Wig & Makeup Design: J. Jared Janas
Props Supervisor: Carrie Mossman
Production Stage Manager: Richard A. Hodge
Directed by: Michael Barakiva
Presented by Primary Stages Company
The Duke at 42nd Street
Closed: November 6, 2015
"Old Times" - A tantalizing journey
Memory can be highly selective. The way one recalls a given event with absolute certainty may not at all be the way it actually happened. Such is the case in Harold Pinter's 1971 work Old Times, which is currently enjoying a sterling Broadway revival as presented by the Roundabout Theatre Company at the American Airlines Theatre.
Filmmaker Deeley (Clive Owen) and his wife Kate (Kelley Reilly), who live in a converted farmhouse somewhere near the English coast, are awaiting the arrival of Kate's old friend Anna (Eve Best), who is arriving from Sicily for a visit. Anna and Kate shared a London flat together when there were young women recently out of school. Though curiously, Kate has never before mentioned this woman from her past.
While Deeley seems eager quite to meet Anna, and thus perhaps get a peek into his wife's life in the time before he knew her, the more introverted Kate is far less enthusiastic. Perhaps preferring to let those heady days of youth and the escapades thereof - all occurring at a time when the future was completely open to her - remain safely buried and forgotten.
Not long after Anna arrives, a not-so-subtle disconnect begins to occur. Deeley and Anna taking up most of the conversations, be they reminiscing, questions, or swapping song lyrics; with Kate becoming a sort of third wheel. Kate at one point remarking how Anna keeps talking at her as if she's dead, even though she's right in front of them. This feeling of exclusion existing not only in terms of the conversations going on, but also in Kate's relationship with her husband. Deeley traveling all over the globe for his work, while Kate seems to prefer the solitude of her present environment. She often taking walks alone, with her only constant companion her thoughts. It's as if she's continually erecting a safe haven for herself. One with ever taller walls.
It also becomes apparent that Anna and Deeley had a significant, albeit non-verbal encounter during those long-ago London days. Though each has their own interpretation of what may have happened during that meeting. Just as Kate and Anna each have their own interpretation of that time; especially how things finally ended between the two women. This then brings the story back to the idea of selective memories. Where people chose to remember the same instance(s) in different ways. Preferring to recall things they way they wanted them to happen, rather than how they truly did.
Playing hand and hand into premise this is director Douglas Hodge's excellent staging. His firm yet delicate pacing helping to keep the audience fixated on the unfolding story, as well as the slowly increasing sexual tension, as they wait for the explosion, surprise or other clues to solve the mystery of these three people, as well as Anna's ultimate purpose in showing up after all these years. Though those wanting straight answers or a complete linear progression have come to the wrong play; for there are no quick fixes or the neatly tying up of all that has been presented. Rather, Pinter leaves it to each person in the audience to digest and make sense of what they've seen. It's also interesting to note that throughout the play Kate and Anna are often positioned in such a way that they appear to be almost mirrored images of one another. This then begs the question which of them is image and which is real. Or perhaps the question should be which is more image and which is more real?
Also present is an almost desperate need by Deeley and Kate to maintain their own personal status quos. Deeley continuously trying to keep control of the situation by one-upping Anna during their conversations, while Kate tries not to revisit the past by seemingly ignoring it. Or at least playing it down for as long as she can. Yet in the end, both are threatened with losing the security and stability they desperately covet. For by the end it is Deeley who finds himself being pushed aside, while it's Kate, who has been relatively quiet for most the show, who ultimately finds her voice and seizes control of the narrative.
Acting by the trio is excellent. Especially when one realizes that none of the characters are quite fully formed. Rather they're more bits and pieces of experiences and memories. Yet the material the actors do have to work with and the possibilities therein make the characters completely fascinating to watch. Owen, making his Broadway debut here, cuts an interesting figure as Deeley. Someone a little too self-assured, with a constant need to be in control and wanting to learn as much as he can from Anna. But who in the end, learns that a little knowledge can be very dangerous. Reilly, also making her Broadway debut, is good as Kate. A quiet soul with an almost mousy sort of attitude at points, who eventually shows herself to be the strongest person of all. Best, as Anna has perhaps the more difficult of the three roles. A sort of cipher inside this cipher of a play, as the woman whose presence stirs up things the other two had long forgotten, or at least conveniently suppressed. That is, if any of the memories in question are actually true to begin with.
Christine Jones' set, like the characters, is deliberately incomplete, but comfortable. In another interesting point, the front door almost resembles a huge block of ice. Perhaps indicating how each of the characters is frozen in time in their own way. Or, since if you look through a sheet of ice, everything looks like it's in a million pieces, it could be another reference to the fragmentation of memories distorted by time and distance. Special mention going to the haunting sound design of Clive Goodwin. Its ominous and enveloping mantra fitting perfectly into this story.
Running a brisk 70 minutes, you still feel as if you've been through an emotional marathon by the time the play is finished. Old Times is a gut-wrenching yet at times almost gentle look at the power of memories. All the while showing that if the truth doesn't always set one free, it can certainly mark those who are able to remember it accurately.
Featuring: Clive Owen (Deeley), Kelly Reilly (Kate), Eve Best, (Anna).
by Harold Pinter
Set Design: Christine Jones
Costume Design: Constance Hoffman
Lighting Design: Japhy Weideman
Sound Design: Clive Goodwin
Music: Thom Yorke
Hair Design: Amanda Miller
Dialect Coach: Kate Wilson
Production Stage Manager: Nevin Hedley
Stage Manager: Janet Takami
Directed by Douglas Hodge
Presented by the Roundabout Theatre Company
American Airlines Theatre
Tickets: 212-719-1300 or www.roundabouttheatre.org
Closes: November 29, 2015
"Antigone" - Where compromise is sadly not an option
Photo by Stephanie Berger
Branches which bend under the force of a raging storm are often able to survive, while those that hold fast and try to resist the oncoming onslaught are eventually snapped off and torn away. It is this premise of being unable to bend in the face of immense outside pressure that sets in motion the ultimate fate of the two main characters in Sophokles' drama Antigone. A production of which, using a new translation by Anne Carson and under the very capable directorial hands of Ivo van Hove, is about to finish a run at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
In ancient Thebes, Kreon (Patrick O'Kane), who has recently come to power after a bloody siege of the city, has decreed that the body of the traitor Polyneikes (Nathanial Jackson), who perished in the afore-mentioned struggle, be left above ground to rot. This edict being Kreon’s way of issuing a grisly warning to any who may not be loyal to him. It is also a warning that Polyneikes’ sister Antigone (Juliette Binoche), is resolved to ignore. This despite the desperate pleas from her sister Ismene (Kirsty Bushell) not to disobey Kreon’s commands. Not surprisingly, Kreon does not take the defying of his orders lightly, and it’s not long before Antigone is brought before him to face his wraith. All to the great relief of a Guard (Obi Abili), who was one of those charged with watching the body of Polyneikes in order to make sure Kreon’s orders were being followed. The scenes dealing with the Guard's predicament containing just about the only comedic moments in the entire production.
The events described above basically serve as the set up for the play's ultimate message as the outcome of Kreon’s inflexibility and Antigone’s determination - or is it Kreon’s determination and Antigone’s inflexibility - become evident. The two characters' positions being diametrically opposed, yet born of the same circumstances, and with each person possessing a similar and unyielding resolve. Things becoming even more complicated when one takes into account the familial connections involved. Antigone being Kreon’s niece as well as a daughter of Odipous; she also having lost two brothers in the battle for Thebes, while Kreon lost a son in the same conflict.
Despite Antigone being the title role, the show in actuality centers around the actions of Kreon. Something which becomes evident when he makes clear his position shortly after assuming power. At first offering a sort of conciliatory approach to those who may have opposed him in the past, as a way to attempt to bring together the different factions he now presides over. Yet despite the outwardly initial calm he projects, for him the entire matter has become far too personal. Kreon having not only lost a son during the siege, but also having to face the fact that some of his own family fought against him during the battle. Thus he is resolute in his decision regarding Polyneikes and anyone who dares try to bury him.
Director Ivo van Hove, who has reimagined more than one classic work over the years, (I particularly remember a version of Hedda Gabler he directed at the New York Theatre Workshop in 2004), goes the subtle route here to get his point across. Or at least as subtle as you can get considering the circumstances involved. The piece presented as a sort of warning against being too unyielding, no matter the position you take. At the same time, the story, for all of its dramatic punch, has a sort of detached feeling to it. One finding oneself applauding the strong characterizations, yet at the same time observing the entire production with more a spectator’s eye rather than the feeling of being right in the middle of the action. The audience thus also becoming in a way, a part of the chorus who ultimately passes judgment on what is unfolding before their eyes.
It’s also interesting to note how the issues surrounding the events presented, although not the events themselves, could easily be translated into numerous aspects of modern life. Kreon’s assuming control of the city could easily be re-imagined as a corporate takeover, with his initial encounter with some of the city's citizens easily taking place in a corporate boardroom of just about any Fortune 500 company. An effect helped in no small part by the cast being clad in modern dress for this production. The show also makes good use of various projections and images to give the impression that there are other elements involved than those physically seen on stage, and that we’re all part of something bigger than what we actually may see and understand.
As Kreon, O'Kane turns in a very strong and commanding performance. Whether the character makes a proclamation, threat or simple comment, there's no doubt he means exactly what he says. The actor presenting a firm and controlled presence with Kreon's movements, one often pressing down on a torrent of emotions he holds inside. This attitude thus making the character itself, as well as his ultimate fate, all the more believable. Ironically, Kreon is also the one person who learns the most during the course of the play. Though this knowledge comes with a heavy price.
Binoche does very well as Antigone. A person whom, even when she is off-stage, is talked about throughout. The character does come off as a little off-putting at first. This mainly because her first scene, where she forcefully declares her intentions to her sister, sets up everything that is to follow and with Antigone basically pushing herself right into audience's collective face. Despite all this early posturing, it is Binoche's later scenes which carry far more emotional weight. Including where she faces off against Kreon, as well as another pivotal sequence - which contains no actual dialogue.
Carlson's translation comes off as surprisingly clean and simple as these things go, the text quite neatly putting the underlying message front and center. Carson's words going hand in hand with van Hove’s directorial efforts, both of which achieve their desired results without any flourishes or eccentricities. Just a story nicely told. The result is one quite fulfilling, both intellectually and emotionally.
Also in the cast are Samuel Edward-Cook, Finbar Lynch and Kathryn Pogson.
Featuring: Juliette Binoche (Antigone), Obi Abili (Guard/Chorus), Kirsty Bushell (Ismene/Chorus), Samuel Edward-Cook (Haimon/Chorus), Finbar Lynch (Teiresias/Chorus), Patrick O'Kane (Kreon), Kathryn Pogson (Eurydike/Chorus), Nathanial Jackson (Body of Polyneikes/Boy).
By Sophokles
In a new translation by Anne Carson
Barbican and Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg
Set Design and Lighting: Jan Versweyveld
Costume Design: An d'Huys
Video Design: Tal Yarden
Dramaturgy by Peter van Kraaij
Composition and Sound Design: Daniel Freitag
Directed by Ivo van Hove
BAM Harvey Theatre
Closed: October 4, 2014
"A Murder Mystery Karaoke Show" - I Know What You Sang Last Summer
I will admit that I really enjoy karaoke. I also really enjoy watching self-absorbed teenagers get picked off one by one in a good slasher movie. It never occurred to me, however, that you could combine the two.
Luckily, it did occur to John Paolillo, the creator and director of "A Murder Mystery Karaoke Show," currently playing every Thursday night in October at the Stonewall Inn's upstairs stage. The result is less Miss Marple and more Scooby Doo. Less slasher and more Thriller (Paolillo is a choreographer, after all, so moves get busted). Less Freddy Krueger and more Rocky Horror. Less Cabin in the Woods and more Miss Scarlet in the library with a lead pipe.
Well, you get the picture.
"Murder Mystery" uses familiar tropes - an unexpected invitation, a night to be spent in a creepy house on Asylum Island, a prize to whomever can spend the night, a mysterious benefactor, and of course, lots of murders. The characters are, unsurprisingly, a cross-section of every teen movie ever - jock (Trevor Livingston), cheerleader (Andrea Levinsky), gay boy (Danni Vitorino), goth chick (Rachel Hering), overenthusiastic nerds (Kristen D.J. Robinson and Molly Heller), and the black guy (Gavin Juckette) that everyone expects to be killed next (the fact that this particular black guy is white and somehow keeps surviving is a running joke throughout the show).
The hows and whys of the murders, the unmasking of the killer (who no doubt would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for those meddling kids…), the surprise twist ending, the other surprise twist ending… well, really it's all just window dressing. The show is meant to be lighthearted, silly fun. It's a chance to go out with some friends, grab some drinks, and sing along (loudly, and in different keys) with some great karaoke music, all while watching good-looking teens get gruesomely murdered. Is there a better way to spend a Thursday night? I don't think so.
So a few things to know. As an audience member, you are a ghost on or around Asylum Island. You will have things that you are supposed to say (and sing). If you sit close to the stage, chances are good that you will be a featured singer (the night I saw it, two of the folks in the first row were called onstage to sing - both of them reveled in their spotlight moments, with surprising and delightful results). Even if you don't sit near the stage, chances are you will have a microphone put in front of your face at some point. But don't worry if you don't sing well, at least you won't end up dead like the rest of the cast.
And speaking of the cast, they are a lot of fun and each actor gets a moment to shine (either in song, or in a really fun death scene - often both - or creatively trying to get a microphone back from an audience member). Standout moments include Levinsky's death scene, sung to probably the most ironic of the night's karaoke numbers, Hering's offstage death scene and the bits of her that make it back onstage, and a great costume reveal (which I won't spoil) by Vitorino at the climax of the play.
So if you like karaoke, murder and drinking, you may have found the show you didn't even know you've been waiting for.
"A Murder Mystery Karaoke Show"
Written and directed by John Paolillo
Lights, music and special effects by Chauncey Dandridge
Produced by Nancy Jane Productions
Featuring: Trevor Livingston, Andrea Levinsky, Danni Vitorino, Rachel Hering, Kristen D.J. Robinson, Molly Heller and Gavin Juckette.
Stonewall Inn
Thursday nights in October
Doors open at 8:00 PM; show starts at 8:30 PM
$15, plus 2-drink minimum
Tales Told Way Out of School - Verna Gillis' "Tales From Geriassic Park: On the Verge of Extinction"
Verna Gillis
It's generally agreed that there is a shortage of good roles for women, especially those of a certain age. If only everyone could meet that challenge by writing a piece as funny and moving as Verna Gillis' "Tales From Geriassic Park: On the Verge of Extinction." This autobiographical, solo show (winner of last year's United Solo Theater Festival Best Comedic Script Award) is built on a lifetime of work, some of it pleasant, some of it hard, all of it interesting.
"I don’t have enough time left to spend it reflecting on how it was; how it is is much more compelling and requires all the attention I can give it."
Gillis is a wordsmith, and an ethnomusicologist, as well, so it is no surprise that her script and her performance style has a musicality and an innate sense of rhythm about it. As she talks of such diverse subjects as managing not to pee before her pants are down, a grandmother lost to the Holocaust, her immigrant parents who met in the States, finding and losing love, the difficulties of living with another person, cancer, eating disorders, and of course, old age, she softly spins her words like a quiet slam poet, drawing the audience in with vivid images and sprightly, comedic wordplay.
Sadly, "Tales" had a one-night only run at this year's United Solo Theater Festival, so you may not have another chance to see it for a while. But hopefully the show, and Gillis, will keep coming back.
"Tales From Geriassic Park: On the Verge of Extinction"
Written and performed by Verna Gillis
Stage and lighting technician: Timothy Soyk
Associate Producer: Sarah Taylor
United Solo Theater Festival
Sunday, September 27th
"The Christians" - Whose faith is it anyway?
Reviewed by Judd Hollander
Photos by Joan Marcus
Preaching the world of God is a great responsibility. For what you say in that respect affects not only how you see yourself, but how you are seen by the very people you hope to reach. It's a point strongly brought home in Lucas Hnath's very powerful and compelling drama The Christians, now playing off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons.
Paul (Andrew Garman) is a well respected pastor who has, over the last twenty years seen his church grow from services in a storefront to a thriving mega-complex. Yet of late his soul is deeply troubled. A story he heard at a religious conference affecting him so deeply, he's announced his intention of taking the church in a new direction. One with the idea that all are saved through Christ, even those who do not believe in him, and which also abandons the concepts of Satan and Hell.
Paul's decision, which he announces during one of his sermons, immediately causes a division in both the church hierarchy and its membership. The first to publicly say that he cannot agree with this new perspective is Associate Pastor Joshua (Larry Powell). Joshua quickly departs his position, and takes about 50 members of the congregation with him.
As time goes on, Paul finds his decision repeatedly questioned. This despite his continual explanations and reasoning, all of which seem perfectly clear to him. (Kind of like Hilary Clinton and her email troubles.) Paul's wife (Linda Powell), for example wants to know why he didn't talk to her first before making his feelings public; while others, such as Jenny (Emily Donahoe), a member of the congregation, wondering why Paul waited until the church celebrated finally being free from years of debt before taking this stand. A debt which was paid in no small part by the church members themselves. Paul's response to this last query being particularly telling. Not that it takes anything away from his belief in what he is doing, but it does serve to point out how in religion, just like in politics, timing can be everything. In the end Paul finds his decision may cost him more than he ever thought possible.
The Christians takes a hard look at the power of faith and what happens when people with differing viewpoints, each of whom firmly believe they are in the right, are unable to accept the other's position. One such confrontation played out with Paul and Joshua via dueling bible verses, though Paul does have the advantage here. He having prepared himself for this situation beforehand. Yet while the playwright has provided a religious framework for the story (and a quite convincing one at that), it could easily be translated to many other situations. Just as it is said the how the Devil can quote the scriptures for his own ends, focusing on specific writings to buttress a certain argument is quite common in all walks of life, regardless of whatever the subject of dispute happens to be. Indeed, many decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court have fallen into this category. The Justices charged with interpreting the law, with many of their decisions turning on the meaning of particular word or phrase or intent thereof.
To his credit, Hnath pulls no punches with his tale, never questioning Paul's convictions, nor the viewpoints of those who disagree with him. The story refreshingly avoiding any stereotypical or cliché-like dialogue, with characters feeling fully three-dimensional and completely real.
Scenic designer Dane Laffrey has done an excellent job here, creating a set which calls to mind a Sunday morning religious television program. Complete with a very enthusiastic 20-person choir. A particularly nice touch were the projected messages about refraining from texting during the program. It's also interesting to note how the atmosphere the show projected took hold even before the play began. Often when people are in a church they involuntary talk in whispers, which was also the case here. The normal pre-show chatter of the audience as they were getting settled being markedly absent.
Garman comes off well as a genial, middle of the road sort of pastor. One whose belief in what he is doing never alters, despite all that happens around him. Kudos must also go to Linda Powell, who basically does nothing for most of the play, other than looking supportive and wincing when Paul mentions the pants suit she was wearing when they first met 22 years earlier. That is, until a pivotal scene where she reveals to her husband her own personal beliefs and just how important they are to her. Also doing a particularly nice job is Philip Kerr as Jay, a church elder and one of those responsible for the financial health of the church. Jay being someone who strives to find a middle ground where everyone can exist. Something that is not always an option when it comes to matters of belief.
As The Christians clearly shows, faith can be a demanding mistress. Especially when it threatens to take away everything you hold dear. For while it may indeed be able to move mountains, it can also point to a path where you find yourself walking completely alone.
Featuring: Andrew Garman (Paul, a pastor), Linda Powell (Elizabeth, his wife), Larry Powell (Joshua, the associate pastor), Philip Kerr (Jay, a church elder), Emily Donahoe (Jenny, a church congregant).
Written by Lucas Hnath
Scenic Design: Dane Laffrey
Costume Design: Connie Furr Soloman
Lighting Design: Ben Stanton
Sound Design: Jake Rodriguez
Production Stage Manager: Marisa Levy
Assistant Stage Managers: Erin Gioia Albrecht; Joseph Fernandez, Jr.
Music Supervisor: David Dabbon
Music Director/Pianist: Karen Dryer
Directed by Les Waters
Tickets: 212-279-4200 or www.ticketcentral.com
Closes: October 25
"Mercury Fur" - Where Denial is Not a River in Egypt
Photos by Monique Carboni
In 1988 there was an off-Broadway show that featured, as one of its segments, two actors in a talk show setting discussing how to deal with issues plaguing the world at the time. The solution: to pretend that everything is happening somewhere far away and not in their own back yard. But denial only goes so far and when one is forced to come face to face with the reality they're been desperately avoiding, it's an altogether different story. Such is the case in Philip Ridley's very sobering drama Mercury Fur, presented by the New Group at the Pershing Square Signature Center.
Jack DiFalco and Zane Pais
Ridley sets his story in a dystopian New York City, one not that far removed from the present day. Riots and crime have become commonplace, while weather patterns have gone crazy - bringing with them sand from the dessert and a strange breed of hallucinogenic butterflies, the current drug of choice. Those on the fringes of what's left of society surviving by their wits and on the back and bodies of those less fortunate than themselves.
Doing a brisk business in the butterfly trade, along with other questionable activities is Elliot (Zane Pais), a no-nonsense sort who, with his mentally-challenged brother Darren (Jack DiFalco), has commandeered an apartment in an supposedly abandoned building for a very special party. They getting help some unexpected aid in this endeavor from Naz (Tony Revolori), a squatter from down the hall.
However this is not simply a party with liquor and drugs. Rather, what is being set up is a scene where the soon-to-arrive Party Guest (Peter Mark Kendall) will be acting out a rather dark fantasy. One where he will be in complete control over a person's life and death. Said person, the Party Piece (Bradley Fong), in actuality a young boy kidnapped by Elliot's crew sometime earlier and kept in a drugged stupor in preparation for this moment. Other members of the team including Spinx (Sea McHale), the liaison between Elliot and the Party Guest, and Elliot's lover Lola (Paul Iacono). This fantasy being one the group has apparently set up many times before.
Running hand in hand with the bleakness that’s everywhere one turns - thanks to a great set by Derek McLane - is the ever-present feeling on denial where no one wants to admit what they're actually doing. Lola, for example has no intention being present at the party under any circumstances; and also doesn't want the Party Favor awake enough to speak during the party preparations. Preparations which include Lola making up the Party Piece properly for the scene which is to follow. Additionally, the Party Favor is referred to in this manner because the others don't want to think of him as an actual human being. Something made abundantly clear when Elliot cuts off any attempt by Naz to learn the Party Favor's real name.
While it's easier for most people to play down things that aren't happening right in front of them, it's something else entirely when they're forced to confront evidence of such a situation, either virtually or in actuality. The uproar following the release of the Abu Ghraib photographs being one such example. It's the same reason why, if most meat eaters knew how their meat was slaughtered, a good portion of them would become vegetarians. There being numerous things society, as a whole, simply does not want to know about or be reminded of.
Elliot and Darren find themselves forced into their own reality confrontation with the sudden appearance of the Duchess (Emily Cass McDonnell), whose presence brings up memories both brothers have tried desperately to forget, or at least severely compartmentalize. Though giving too much information in regard to this character turns out to be one of the few weak spots in the play. The author spoon feeding the audience answers when it's better to let them draw their own conclusions. Eventually when this particular party starts to deviate from the planned script, Elliott and the rest of his family, which is basically what the group has become, find themselves forced to switch from dispassionate observers to active participants. And in doing so, must take a stand on the right and wrong of what they've set in motion.
Zane Pais, Jack DiFalco
Bradley Fong, Tony Revolori
Acting is very good, the various characters often taking on the role of symbols in the world the playwright has created. The Party Guest, for example representing both money and someone who's interested in his own pleasures rather than trying to make a difference. Ridley also has him working on Wall Street - a bit of a dig at the "one percenters" of the world. Elliot meanwhile, probably sees himself as a businessman supplying a need, doing what he has to in order for him and his family to survive, and who can't afford to worry about where he gets the materials he uses - such as the Party Favor - for his various ventures. Elliot is also dependant on those with connections, such as Spinx, to enable his business to continue. Direction by Scott Elliot is very strong, keeping the tension between the characters rising from one minute to the next, the audience never quite sure just who to root for in the scenarios presented. The aforementioned set by McLane makes the audience feel as if they were right in the middle of the action, with no way out for anybody involved.
Often hard to watch, Mercury Fur does an excellent job in showing just how adaptable human beings have become at hiding from the truth; and the not-so-pretty-sight that can follow when denial is no longer an option.
Featuring: Jack DiFalco (Darren), Bradley Fong (Party Piece), Paul Iacono (Lola), Peter Mark Kendall (Party Guest), Emily Cass McDonnell (Duchess), Sea McHale (Spinx), Zane Pais (Elliot) Tony Revolori (Naz)
Mercury Fur
by Philip Ridley
Scenic Design: Derek McLane
Costume Design: Susan Hilferty
Lighting Design: Jeff Croiter
Sound Design: M.L. Dogg
Sound Effects Design: Jeremy Chernick
Fight Direction: UnkleDave's Fight-House
Production Supervisor: PRF Productions
Production Stage Manager: Valerie A. Peterson
Director: Scott Elliott
The New Group at the Pershing Square Signature Center
Tickets: 212-279-4200 or www.thenewgroup.org
Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes no intermission
Closes: September 27
Isle of Klezbos
Photo by Angela Jimenez
One of the best things about going to downtown theatre venues (in this case, Dixon Place) is the opportunity to browse the postcards for upcoming shows and events.
Tonight, a postcard for Isle of Klezbos caught my eye. One, I love klezmer music. Two, it's a great name for a band.
They have a couple of performances coming up - September 1st at El Sol Brillante community garden, and the one I'm thinking of attending, September 25th at 54 Below.
Here is a little info about the band from their website.
"NYC-based ISLE of KLEZBOS approaches tradition with irreverence and respect. The soulful, fun-loving powerhouse all-women’s klezmer sextet has toured from Vienna to Vancouver since 1998. Band repertoire ranges from rambunctious to entrancing: neo-traditional folk dance, mystical melodies,Yiddish swing & retro tango, late Soviet-era Jewish drinking song, re-grooved standards, and genre-defying originals. ISLE of KLEZBOS concert footage has been broadcast internationally on CBS Sunday Morning, CNN World- Beat, and PBS In The Life, and the band’s live and studio recordings have also been heard on The L Word (Showtime), WFMU, Northeast Public Radio (Live at the Linda), and film soundtracks for Grace Paley: Collected Shorts, Esther Broner: A Weave of Women, and I Guess I’m Not Going to Get toVegas, among others. The band has also been commissioned to create a concert for artist Kiki Smith and studio recordings of Klezbos arrangements for multi-platinum, Grammy-nominated Scissor Sisters."
Has anyone checked out Isle of Klezbos? Let me know what you think of them.
Byrne Harrison at 11:59 PM 1 comment:
The Astoria Bookshop Storytelling Show
Although I have become a regular at this monthly event, it has been a while since I've written about The Astoria Bookshop Storytelling Show hosted by the talented David Lawson. I attended tonight's show, and as usual, had a great time.
Lawson's show is a great opportunity for local writers and performers to showcase their work, and for those who are particularly good extemporaneous speakers, just to get up and tell a story. Tonight's show was a jumbled bag of goodies. The first included a nightmare involving an ex-girlfriend (and an even more fascinating one, briefly mentioned, involving being eaten alive by the Wizard of Oz flying monkeys). This was followed by a tale of a crime spree used to finance dreams of becoming a public access star. Celebrities made appearances in stories involving bonding with Harold Ramis over Star Trek: Insurrection, sneaking into a lecture by Stephen Hawking and having a perfect Seinfeld moment with Seinfeld himself. Sex was included in pieces showcasing awkward matchmaking, awkward three-ways, and awkward (and painful) STD checks. Other topics included pyrophobia and a fireworks fail, pranking a foul-mouthed aunt, burying a grandmother at Walmart (no, really) or dealing with a mentally ill parent.
The Astoria Bookshop continues to be an amazing community resource, with events for adults and kids and a great selection of books. Lawson's Storytelling Show is an excellent showcase for the incredibly vibrant theatre and storytelling scene in Astoria.
The next Storytelling Show will be held August 11th from 7:00-8:00 PM at the Astoria Bookshop (31-29 31st Street in Astoria). There is no theme to the shows; performers can tell a 5 minute story based on something from their life. There is no fee (but be a mensch and buy a book or two from the shop). Names are chosen at random from a bowl, and usually most performers are called (but there are no guarantees if it is crowded).
Here are some photos from tonight's show.
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Outdoors 335886411
Official tally at the Big Sit: A lot of birds – and good times
Just who showed up to watch and listen at Coldwater Spring? Here is a look.
By Liz Rolfsmeier Special to the Star Tribune
October 23, 2015 — 9:49am
Numbers were up this year for both the winged and nonwinged at the second annual Big Sit birding event Oct. 17 at Coldwater Spring in the Mississippi National River & Recreation Area in Minneapolis.
More than 100 birders participated, compared to last year’s 60. They chatted over beers and kept watch on the oak savanna, where flocks of cedar waxwings whirled by and eastern bluebirds fed on grasshoppers.
“Birding can be fun,” said park ranger Sharon Stiteler, aka “Birdchick,” local birding enthusiast, author, blogger and podcaster. “And it can be a party.”
A core group of birders stayed most of the day, ducking out occasionally for food or beer runs.
The official goal of the Big Sit, a nationwide event, is to tally the different species spotted or heard from within a 17-foot diameter circle over a 24-hour period and submit results to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s eBird database.
Feed Loader
Alex Sundvall of St. Louis Park on his first Big Sit: “This is my kind of thing.” Sundvall is a wildlife biology major.
Many in attendance frequent the “Birds and Beers” events that Stiteler started in 2007, which members say have become almost too popular. (She hopes someone will start one in St. Paul to spread out the crowd.) They chat regularly on social networking. They fly to bird festivals together.
More concerned with fun than strict adherence to rules, Stiteler planned the Big Sit from dawn to dusk and encouraged groups of birders to trek outside the circle and down to the Mississippi River, where they scared up such birds as the hermit thrush, orange-crowned warbler and ruby-crowned kinglet. She brought devices for attaching phones to telescopes for digiscoping, and children checked out mallard and turkey vulture skulls.
Total bird count: 49 (compared to last year’s 37)
Some of this year’s birders:
Sue Keator, Edina
Age: 50s
Day job: Retired
Birding background: Birding since age 6, Keator said her family always kept field guides and binoculars on the table. She volunteers at the wildlife rehabilitation center in Roseville, where she feeds songbirds in the avian nursery, often orphaned because storms knocked down nests. “To see the birds up close in the hand, to hear the sounds they make, it helps you to be a better birder,” she said. When undergoing chemotherapy this spring slowed her down, she took to car birding.
Favorite birding locations: Car birding on Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge’s wildlife drive (Zimmerman, Minn.), where redheaded woodpeckers can be spotted in the restored oak savanna. Watching great blue herons and egrets on Melody Lake in her backyard in Edina. The old Cedar Avenue Bridge in the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, Westwood Hills Nature Center (St. Louis Park), and Veterans Memorial Park (Richfield).
Favorite bird(s): Chickadees. “They’re kind of overlooked. They’re inquisitive. They’re very tame. Anything that can live outside in the winter in Minnesota … They’re just so amazing.”
Big Sit experience: Second. “It’s more fun to watch with someone else,” she said. “Two sets of eyes are better.”
• • •
Alex Sundvall, St. Louis Park
Day job: Wildlife biology major who has done fieldwork with the state’s Department of Natural Resources.
Sue Keator of Edina has a long list of favorite birding locations.
Birding background: Since a kindergarten field trip at which they released a dark-eyed junco.
Big Sit experience: First. “This is basically my kind of thing,” he said.
Favorite birding locations: Westwood Hills Nature Center (St. Louis Park), Afton State Park, Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve.
Favorite bird(s): The bowerbird, found in Australia; the whooping crane.
Birding tips: Buy a “Birds of Minnesota” field guide.
Deb Nicholson, Edina
Age: Mid-60s
Craig Mullenbach
Day job: Retired pediatrician
Birding background: A professor talked her into taking his ornithology course when she was a biology major at Bowdin College. “Since then, I don’t go anyplace without my binoculars.”
Favorite birding locations: Wilkey Unit on the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge (MVNWR). Her cabin in Outing, Minn., where she can watch waves of migrating warblers in May and keep tabs on a nearby bald eagle nest. “They bring in squirrels and snakes and big fish to feed their babies,” she said.
Favorite bird(s): Red-breasted nuthatch
Big Sit experience: Second
Tony Lau, Otsego
Tony Lau has an affinity for purple martins.
Day job: Coborns Delivers
Birding background: A longtime backyard birder who has been actively birding for two years. Worked for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe doing DNR bird surveys. Built a housing system for purple martins in his backyard, where 75 pair live.
Favorite birding locations: Duluth, Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge.
Favorite bird(s): Clark’s nutcracker
Craig Mullenbach, Shoreview
Day job: In between jobs, which, he said, is nice during migration season, because he can get up early and take photos.
Birding background: His birding started when he got his camera a few years ago. “Birds are what live around here, so that’s what I photograph.”
Photos by Liz Rolfsmeier • Special to the Star Tribune
Pete Nichols.of Cottage Grove had this tip: Learn to identify birds by their singing and vocalizations. “You find so many more birds,” he said.
Favorite birding locations: His backyard in Shoreview, Crex Meadows Wildlife Refuge (Grantsburg, Wis.) for the migrating sandhill cranes; the Sax-Zim bog near Cotton, Minn., for boreal chickadees.
Favorite bird(s): Black-capped chickadee
Big Sit experience: First
Birding tips: “Learn how to sit still. You’ll be surprised at what will come up to you.”
Wendy Root, Forest Lake
Day job: Mother
Wendy Root started birding three years ago.
Birding background: Started birding three years ago. “I saw birds that were a different color than brown,” she said, “and I thought, I want to know what that is.”
Favorite bird(s): Sparrows and warblers.
Big Sit experience: First. She liked it because “more experienced ears and eyes pick up on things I would miss.”
Birding tips: Check out bird guides at the library. Join birding groups on Facebook.
Pete Nichols, Cottage Grove
Day job: Philosophy professor at the University of St. Thomas
Ranger Sharon Stiteler of the Mississippi River & Recreation Area park looks at a list of birds sighted during the Big Sit on Oct. 17.
Birding background: Was into birding as a child and got back into it in 2008. Operates Facebook groups for Minnesota Birding and Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union.
Favorite birding locations: Afton State Park, because it’s not as popular as some other places and there’s more chance to see rare varieties. Great Cloud Dunes, near Cottage Grove: “One of the best spots in the state for sparrows,” he said.
Favorite bird(s): Warblers
Birding tips: Learn the vocalizations. “You find so many more birds when you know what to listen for,” he said.
Sharon Stiteler, Minneapolis
Day job: Park ranger, writer, speaker
Birding background: At 7, saw a picture of a pileated woodpecker in “The Wonder of Birds,” and was hooked. (She later met one of the book’s authors at a bird festival, a 70-year-old ornithologist who designed her sandhill crane tattoo.) Her mother brought her on bird-watching trips if she got good grades. She admitted to once dating someone because his family had good bird-watching property.
Big Sit experience: “This has been my dream to run events like this. I like to help the birding community get to know each other.”
Favorite birding locations: Nationally, Rio Grande Valley in Texas, where migrating species from this area mix with Mexican species. In Minnesota, MVNWR and Coldwater Spring.
Favorite bird(s): Pileated woodpecker
Birding tips: Check out birding apps like the Merlin Bird ID. “Enjoy birds however you want to,” she said. Also, “if you have a choice between laundry and birds, it’s always birds.”
Liz Rolfsmeier is a Twin Cities-based freelance writer.
The Latest: Serena Williams into 3rd round in Australia
The Latest on the Australian Open (all times local):
Tennys, anyone? Sandgren, Paul stun Australian Open seeds
Tennys Sandgren was looking in great shape for a big upset at the Australian Open after building a massive lead against No. 8 seed Matteo Berrettini on Wednesday.
Following a stretch of seven games in 11 days, the New York Islanders don't play again until Feb. 1 The extended time off around the All-Star break will feel much better after a needed win against one of their biggest rivals.
Derek Jeter's election to the Hall of Fame marked the seventh straight year with at least one first-ballot honoree.
Update on the latest in sports:
MLB-NEWSDerek Jeter, Larry Walker elected to Hall of FameUNDATED (AP) — Derek Jeter and Larry Walker will be giving speeches in Cooperstown, New York, this…
BWCA permit reservation opens soon • Outdoors
Thursday: Lead found in donated venison at food shelves • Outdoors
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How to ... retrofit snowshoe bindings to cross-country skis • Outdoors
Where are Minnesota's secret hiking trails? Don't tell anyone • Outdoors
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State College, PA :: News :: Local News :: Read More
School Board Votes to Save $13.6 Million on High School Project
by Zach Berger on January 27, 2015 7:05 AM
Follow @@theZachBerger
File photo by Michael Garrett/StateCollege.com
The State College Are School District Board overwhelmingly voted to save taxpayers money during its Monday meeting.
The board decided on a debt financing plan that will bankroll the high school construction project, opting for a 25-year plan that costs $13.6 million less than the alternative 30-year plan.
The 25-year term will cost about $85 million that the district will borrow during a February to March window, funding the majority of the $115 million high school renovation, which residents approved in a referendum vote last year.
During initial discussion on the 30-year plan, board member Jim Pawelczyk moved to amend the motion to the 25-year plan.
“We have made a decision to triple the debt service of this school district. Now we are in a position of paying that,” he says. “The decision we make tonight is the single best way for us to reduce the overall cost to the taxpayers. I’m pretty sure that this notion of flexibility is not going to be shared with the school board of 2040 when they have an additional five years of payment that’s entirely unnecessary.”
When Pawelczyk mentioned flexibility, he was referring to board member Scott Fozard’s argument that the 30-year plan would allow the district “perceived and virtual flexibility” when it comes to repaying the loan.
“If we were just looking at one project, I would 100 percent agree and I would probably be pushing for 20 years, but because we have innumerable projects stacking up behind this, the 30-year term gives us the most flexibility in the actual funding of the district,” Fozard says.
The board members were markedly split when discussing the two options. Board president Amber Concepcion voiced support for the 25-year financing term, explaining that it saves taxpayers $15 per year.
“I’m pretty sure that this notion of flexibility is not going to be shared with the school board of 2040 when they have an additional five years of payment that’s entirely unnecessary,” Pawelczyk says.
Board member Ann McGlaughlin, who was admittedly neutral on the two plans originally, shared similar concerns when it came to the longer financing plan. She says that the additional cost that would come with an additional five years wasn’t worth it.
“The most compelling argument between the terms is that the five years of flexibility comes at a cost of $13.6 million,” she says. “To me, it sounds like we’re just trying to make room to raise taxes more in the future.”
The board voted 5-4 in favor of the amendment before voting 8-1 in favor of the 25-year plan, with Penni Fishbaine as the lone dissenter.
The board also heard a presentation from school district principal Scott DeShong on his recommendation to move to a block class scheduling system. The proposed system, which was devised by a 16-person committee led by DeShong, would consist of two alternating A and B class days, each consisting of four 90-minute classes. Among many reasons, DeShong emphasized the logistical benefits on curbing the number of times per day that students transition between the North and South Buildings.
The board continued discussing its proposed preliminary budget for the 2015-2016 academic year, which was approved 8-1 at a special meeting last Monday. There were no noteworthy changes or discussion items on the preliminary budget, which includes a 6.1 percent tax increase, 4.2 percent of which can be accounted for by the referendum payment on the high school project. With rising interest rates, the tax increase will likely top the 6.1 percent estimate.
The board amended a parking agreement for the Welch Community Swimming Pool and unanimously approved renovations of the former Panorama Elementary School. It also unanimously approved a bid by Sebesta Inc. to manage energy efficiency within the new high school.
At the start of the meeting before the important business got underway, the board allowed high school and middle school student leaders to speak as part of School Director Recognition Month. Student council presidents lauded the board before Penn State president and former district board member Eric Barron called in.
“Education is the business of the State College area, and none of us can be successful if you’re not successful, and all of us truly appreciate the fact that we have school board members who are willing to put out that time and energy,” Barron says.
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Zach Berger
Zach Berger is the managing editor of StateCollege.com. He graduated from Penn State University in 2014 with a degree in print journalism. Zach enjoys writing about a variety of topics ranging from football to government, music, and everything in between.
More articles by Zach Berger →
More Snow Possible Tuesday Morning, Roads Could be Slippery, Schools Closed Again
by Steve Bauer
The big winter storm that walloped State College on Monday continues to move north but we're not quite out of the woods yet.
Snow will continue to fall across our region Tuesday morning. "We still have some snow across the area, looking at radar, it's expected to continue at times through the day," says AccuWeather Meteorologist Mike Doll. "Untreated surfaces could pick up an additional inch of
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Spring Break Mixtape edition
Congress isn't the only deliberative body in recess; a bunch of state legislatures are taking a little spring break right now, too. And who knows? Maybe some lawmakers are rocking out to some groovy tunes as they head back to their home districts.
Double Vision: In Kentucky, the measure that would have let Sen. Rand Paul run for reelection and for president (or VP) simultaneously in 2016 languished in a House (54 D/46 R) committee as the legislative session ended this week. Current law will force Paul to choose between them; perhaps, as the House Speaker opined, "a man who can't decide which office he wants to run for ain't fit to hold either office." Sick burn, bro.
Bad Medicine: In Tennessee, obstetricians and medical groups are joining the call for Gov. Bill Haslam to veto a measure that would make criminals out of women who use narcotics while pregnant. The bill is obviously a whole bucketful of wrong, including (but in no way limited to) that it utterly fails to accommodate the realities of addiction, would discourage pregnant women from seeking prenatal care, and could even encourage abortions as a way to avoid criminal charges.
Gov. Haslam has until April 26 to veto the bill. If he signs it or takes no action, it becomes law. If he vetoes it, a simple majority can override him.
Baby, What a Big Surprise: Earlier this week, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed a bill into law that allows "state health authorities" to spring surprise inspections on unsuspecting and un-probable cause-ing abortion clinics. Because warrants and privacy are for suckers, amirite?
I'm sure a bill permitting surprise inspections for urology and erectile dysfunction clinics is sitting on Brewer's desk right now.
It Ain't Over 'til It's Over: In Missouri last week, a proposal to put a so-called "right to work" measure on the August primary ballot stalled out in the state House (52 D/108 R). But the fight isn't actually over yet. If GOP leaders pressure just four Republican "no" votes to flip, they'll conduct the vote again, and the proposal will move to the state Senate (9 D/24 R/1 vacancy).
Technically, the House has until mid-May to revisit the vote, but if we're being really, really real, the measure needs to move forward in the next couple of weeks (to give Senate Republicans enough time to wrangle votes -- RTW isn't the monolithically GOP-backed stance here that it is in a lot of other states).
People Are Strange: So Republicans in the Missouri House just endorsed measures that could allow early voting for nine days -- just not during the week before the election, and definitely not on Sunday (which just happens to be a super popular day for early voting in states that allow it, especially among African Americans).
You might be shocked to learn that this GOP move is actually a ploy to prevent early voting.
The scheme, in three movements.
The proposed amendment would, if passed, pretty much permanently enshrine these stringent limits on early voting in the state's Constitution, rendering any future efforts to expand early voting legislatively or via subsequent ballot measure moot (unless voters were to repeal the amendment someday).
The measure has been amended to clarify a super-handy loophole for any GOP legislators who may not feel like allowing early voting in a given year. The permitted early voting can only take place if the legislature deigns to provide funding for it.
A state advocacy group is already gathering signatures in an attempt to place a six-week early voting period -- without excepting Sundays and the week prior to the election -- on the November ballot.
It's Tricky: Minimum wage ballot measures have been fairly widely covered as possible Democratic turnout motivators in November, and they're sound policy, to boot. Voters tend to be big fans of such measures at the ballot box; since 1996, voters approved 13 of 15 ballot measures raising the wage in 11 states.
But in Alaska, statehouse Republicans are pulling some wicked crafty shenanigans. A statewide ballot initiative to raise the minimum wage is already headed to the August primary ballot, and yet on Sunday night, the GOP-controlled House passed a bill to, well, raise the minimum wage.
This may seem like a kumbaya moment, but Dems smell a rat. You see, laws passed by ballot measure have an automatic two-year waiting period for repeal, while laws passed by the legislature can be repealed at will -- which is exactly what Democrats think the Republicans plan to do.
Got Your Money: Minnesota House (73 D/61 R) Democrats are stomping their GOP counterparts in fundraising this cycle. The House DFL has outraised the Republican caucus almost three-to-one so far this year, and the Dems are sitting on more than $1 million in the bank. Republicans likely see the state House as an easier chamber to flip than the Senate (39 D/28 R), but things just don't look awesome for them right now.
God Only Knows: Mark your calendars: On April 21, Louisiana House (44 D/59 R/2 I) members will debate (and probably pass) a bill designating the Holy Bible as the official state book.
It's unofficially known as the Jews and Muslims and Everyone Else Can Go Suck An Egg bill. (No, it's not.)
Celebrity Skin: The Illinois legislature is considering banning products containing "microbeads." Similar proposals have surfaced in Ohio, New York, and Minnesota. Turns out these nifty little particles are super bad for fish and wildlife, but our cleansers may never be the same.
Hit Me With Your Best Shot: Hoping to address the epic scourge of loose-fisted youths marauding unchecked through our communities, the Connecticut legislature is moving a bill forward that would stiffen penalties for 16- and 17-year-olds who sucker-punch unsuspecting bystanders -- a phenomenon known as "The Knockout Game." Except this "Knockout Game" is basically an urban myth. Perhaps later this session state lawmakers will consider bills addressing kidney theft and prohibiting the consumption of soda and Pop Rocks simultaneously.
For the Week of April 16, 2014
The following 21 state legislatures are meeting actively this week: ALASKA, ARIZONA, CONNECTICUT, COLORADO, HAWAII, ILLINOIS, IOWA, KENTUCKY, LOUISIANA, MAINE, MASSACHUSETTS, MICHIGAN, MISSOURI, NEBRASKA, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NEW JERSEY, OKLAHOMA, RHODE ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA, TENNESSEE, and VERMONT.
Also meeting: DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, PUERTO RICO
The State Water Resources Control Board will hold a public workshop April 17 to discuss the groundwater work plan and sustainable groundwater management.
The Health, Insurance and Environment Committee met April 15 to discuss H.B. 1359, which requires health insurance carriers that provide prescription drug coverage to offer medication synchronization services.
The General Assembly recessed April 14.
The Senate Ways and Means Subcommittee met April 15 to discuss S.S.B. 3217, which increases the sales and use tax in the state.
The State Legislature reconvened April 14-15 to consider gubernatorial vetoes.
The State Legislature adjourned sine die April 15.
The State Legislature is scheduled to adjourn April 16.
The House Natural Resources Committee will meet April 17 to discuss H.B. 5400, H.B. 5401 and H.B. 5402, which address low-hazard industrial waste, the beneficial by-products which may be created from the waste and environmental protection.
The House Health Insurance Committee held a hearing April 15 to discuss H.B. 2243, which prohibits hospitals, health facilities and health professionals from owning, operating or having a financial interest in health insurance entities.
The Division of Fire Safety, Elevator Safety Unit will meet April 16 to discuss possible rule amendments to the state's elevator code.
The State Legislature is scheduled to adjourn sine die April 17.
The House Judiciary Committee will meet April 16 to discuss S.B. 303, which prohibits bad faith assertions of patent infringement.
The Austin City Council will meet April 17 to consider a resolution establishing the City's goal to provide an 11 dollar per hour minimum wage for all city employees.
via Stateside Associates, Project Vote.
Posted by cfidd at 11:54 PM
The Cruellest Month edition
The Winter Lawmaker edition
Fool Me Twice edition
cfidd
Questions? Complaints? Thoughts? Hopes? Dreams?
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by Stephan Kinsella on June 1, 2009
| ONLINE ARCHIVES | EDITOR/MODERATOR BOOKS | Forthcoming Books | Property, Freedom, and Society | Against Intellectual Property | ARTICLES | Rights Theory (What Libertarianism Is | What It Means to be an Anarcho-Capitalist) | Intellectual Property | Against Intellectual Property | Law, Economics, Libertarian Issues | Causation and Aggression | Reddit AMAs | General/Social | Review Essays/Book Reviews | Shorter Pieces/Other | College-era Columns and Letters-to-editor FICTION/UNPUBLISHED/MISCELLANY | SHORTER/BLOGS/UNPUBLISHED ESSAYS | UNPUBLISHED/DRAFT | LEGAL PUBLICATIONS | TRANSLATIONS |
Online Archives/Media
Mises Institute media
Mises Institute publications (including: Mises Daily, Journal of Libertarian Studies, Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics)
LewRockwell.com articles and blog posts
Kinsella posts on the Mises Blog
Kinsella posts on Against Monopoly blog
Editor/Moderator
Executive Editor and Founder, Libertarian Papers, 2009–2019 (Editor, 2009-2011; Executive Editor, 2012–2019)
Book Review Editor, Journal of Libertarian Studies, Summer 2000-Winter 2004
Property, Freedom, and Society: Essays in Honor of Hans-Hermann Hoppe, co-editor, with Jörg Guido Hülsmann (Mises Institute, 2009) (files/info)
Against Intellectual Property (Mises Institute, 2008)
Law in a Libertarian World: Legal Foundations of a Free Society (forthcoming within 12 months of the day people stop asking me when it’s coming out)
Copy This Book: The Case for Abolishing Intellectual Property (forthcoming 2020; publisher TBD)
The Anti-IP Reader: Free Market Perspectives on Intellectual Property (forthcoming; co-editor, with David Koepsell and Gary Chartier)
International Investment, Political Risk, and Dispute Resolution: A Practitioner’s Guide, co-Author (with Noah D. Rubins, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Paris) (Oxford University Press, 2005) (Book Reviews; Online Appendix XVII, “Online Resources”) (second edition forthcoming 2018, OUP)
Digest of Commercial Laws of the World, Editor (Oxford University Press, 1998-2011; West/Thomson Reuters 2011–2013)
World Online Business Law, Co-Editor (with Andrew Simpson, Hong Kong) (Oxford University Press, 2003-2011)
Online Contract Formation, Co-Editor (with Andrew Simpson, Hong Kong) (Oxford University Press, August 2004) (brochure)
Trademark Practice and Forms, Editor (Oxford University Press, 2001-2011; West/Thomson Reuters 2011-2013)
Protecting Foreign Investment Under International Law: Legal Aspects of Political Risk, Co-Author (with Paul E. Comeaux) (Dobbs Ferry, New York: Oceana Publications, 1997) (Book Reviews/Related Links)
Louisiana Civil Law Dictionary (Quid Pro Books, 2011; co-author: Gregory Rome)
Rights Theory/Libertarian Theory
“Dialogical Arguments for Libertarian Rights,” in The Dialectics of Liberty (Lexington Books, 2019)
“The Voluntaryist Constitution,” Mises Wire (10/24/2017).
“Foreword” to Chase Rachels, A Spontaneous Order: The Capitalist Case for a Stateless Society (2015).
“Stephan Kinsella on Libertarian Legal Theory, Self-Ownership and Drug Laws,” interview with Anthony Wile, The Daily Bell (July 20, 2014)
“Foreword,” in Hans-Hermann Hoppe, A Theory of Socialism and Capitalism (Laissez Faire Books ebook edition, 2013)
“Afterword,” in Hans-Hermann Hoppe, The Great Fiction: Property, Economy, Society, and the Politics of Decline (Laissez Faire Books, 2012)
“Stephan Kinsella on the Logic of Libertarianism and Why Intellectual Property Doesn’t Exist,” interview with Anthony Wile, The Daily Bell (March 18, 2012)
“Libertarian Controversies,” Mises Daily (Aug. 25, 2011), discussing my upcoming Mises Academy course, Libertarian Controversies
“What Libertarianism Is” (2009)
“Argumentation Ethics and Liberty: A Concise Guide,” Mises Daily (May 27, 2011) (includes “Discourse Ethics and Liberty: A Skeletal Ebook”)
“Intellectual Property and Libertarianism” (below)
What It Means To Be an Anarcho-Capitalist, LewRockwell.com (Jan. 20, 2004)
How We Come To Own Ourselves, Mises Daily (Sep. 7, 2006) (Mises.org blog discussion; audio version)
Causation and Aggression (co-authored with Patrick Tinsley), The Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics, vol. 7, no. 4 (winter 2004): 97-112 (based on “Reinach and the Property Libertarians on Causality in the Law,” by Stephan Kinsella, presented at Reinach and Rothbard: An International Symposium, Ludwig von Mises Institute, Auburn, Alabama, March 29-30, 2001)
Punishment and Proportionality: The Estoppel Approach, 12:1 Journal of Libertarian Studies 51 (Spring 1996).
Defending Argumentation Ethics: Reply to Murphy & Callahan, Anti-state.com (Sept. 19, 2002)
Inalienability and Punishment: A Reply to George Smith, Winter 1998-99, Journal of Libertarian Studies.
A Libertarian Theory of Punishment and Rights 30 Loy. L.A. L. Rev. 607-45 (1997) [text version, with italics and some formatting missing]
New Rationalist Directions in Libertarian Rights Theory, 12:2 Journal of Libertarian Studies: 313-26 (Fall 1996) [superseded by “Dialogical Arguments for Libertarian Rights,” in The Dialectics of Liberty (Lexington Books, 2019)]
Estoppel: A New Justification for Individual Rights, Reason Papers No. 17 (Fall 1992), p. 61 (evaluation by anonymous reviewer; audio version)
The Undeniable Morality of Capitalism (text version), 25 St. Mary’s Law Journal 1419 (1994) (review essay of Hans-Hermann Hoppe, The Economics and Ethics of Private Property (1993)).
Book Review (of Hans-Hermann Hoppe, The Economics and Ethics of Private Property (1993)), The Freeman: Ideas on Liberty, November 1994.
Intellectual Property-Primary
Against Intellectual Property, Laissez Faire Books (2012) (other versions, information, and links to files at http://c4sif.org/aip/)
Do Business Without Intellectual Property (Liberty.me, 2014) (PDF)
“Intellectual Property Is ‘Evil’—And Businesspeople Should Oppose It,” interview with Jack Criss, BAMSouth (Oct. 29, 2013)
“Law and Intellectual Property in a Stateless Society,” Libertarian Papers 5 (1) (2013): 1-44 [Lulu.com paper version]
Anna Zhang, “Creative Rights for Tomorrow,” Asia IP (December 2012-January 2013, quoted/interviewed)
Will Swaim, “Patently Evil: What if ‘intellectual property’ is bad for business?”, Global Trade (Nov. 2012, quoted/interviewed)
“The Case Against Intellectual Property,” in Handbook of the Philosophical Foundations of Business Ethics (Prof. Dr. Christoph Lütge, ed.; Springer, 2013) (chapter 68, in Part 18, “Property Rights: Material and Intellectual,” Robert McGee, section ed.)
“Why Intellectual Property is not Genuine Property,” edited transcript of speech delivered at 3rd Adam Smith Forum, Moscow, Russia (Nov. 12, 2011)
“Intellectual Property and Economic Development,” Mises University 2011 (July 27, 2011)
“The Great IP Debate of 1983,” Mises Daily (July 18, 2011)
“How Intellectual Property Hampers the Free Market,” The Freeman (June 2011), republished as “How to Slow Economic Progress,” Mises Daily (June 1, 2011) (discussed on Mises blog here) (based on my talk “How Intellectual Property Hampers Capitalism,” Mises Institute Supporters’ Summit 2010: “The Economic Recovery: Washington’s Big Lie” (Oct. 9 2010, Auburn Alabama))
“Rethinking IP,” Mises Daily (Feb. 10, 2011)
“Intellectual Freedom and Learning Versus Patent and Copyright,” Economic Notes No. 113 (Libertarian Alliance, Jan. 18, 2011) (also published as “Intellectual Freedom and Learning Versus Patent and Copyright,” The Libertarian Standard, Jan. 19, 2011)
“Ideas are Free: The Case Against Intellectual Property: or, How Libertarians Went Wrong,”Mises Daily (Nov. 23, 2010; transcript of “Ideas are Free: The Case Against Intellectual Property: or, How Libertarians Went Wrong,” 2010 Annual Meeting, Property and Freedom Society (June 6, 2010))
“Rethinking Intellectual Property: History, Theory, and Economics,” Mises Daily (Oct. 22, 2010)
“Understanding IP: An Interview with Stephan Kinsella,” Mises Daily (Oct. 21, 2010, with Jeffrey A. Tucker)
“How Intellectual Property Hampers Capitalism,” Mises Institute Supporters’ Summit 2010 (Oct. 8-9 2010, Auburn Alabama) (edited transcript of this speech) (published version: “How Intellectual Property Hampers the Free Market,” The Freeman (June 2011))
“Goods, Scarce and Nonscarce” (with Jeffrey A. Tucker), Mises Daily (Aug. 25, 2010)
“The Death Throes of Pro-IP Libertarianism,” Mises Daily (July 28, 2010) [Mises blog comments archived — some here, some here]
“Reducing the Cost of IP Law,” Mises Daily (Jan. 20, 2010) [archived Mises blog comments]
“Intellectual Property and Libertarianism,” Mises Daily (Nov. 17, 2009); earlier version (without endnotes) published as “Intellectual Property and Libertarianism” [local PDF; Liberty‘s online version], Liberty vol. 23, no. 11 (Dec. 2009), p. 27 [blog post]; based on speech at Mises University 2009 (July 30, 2009; audio; video); speech podcast on The Lew Rockwell Show, #131, as The Intellectual Property Racket (Aug. 19, 2009).
“Radical Patent Reform Is Not on the Way,” Mises Daily (Oct. 1, 2009)
“The Case Against IP: A Concise Guide,” Mises Daily (Sept. 4, 2009) (comments on Mises blog archived here)
“The Intellectual Property Quagmire, or, The Perils of Libertarian Creationism” (Powerpoint; PDF version), Austrian Scholars Conference 2008Rothbard Memorial Lecture (audio; video; Google Video version)
In Defense of Napster and Against the Second Homesteading Rule, September 4, 2000, LewRockwell.com
There’s No Such Thing as a Free Patent, Mises Daily (Mar. 7, 2005)
“The Forgotten Costs of the Patent System,” IP Law & Business (April 2005), vol. 3, p. 18
Intellectual Property-Other
“Introduction” and chapter “Conversation with Schulman about Logorights and Media-Carried Property” [both available here] in J. Neil Schulman, Origitent: Why Original Content is Property (Steve Heller Publishing, 2018)
Laserinterview med Stephan Kinsella (Interview/Chat Forum on IP topics), Danish libertarian site, Sept. 15, 2006 (local copy)
(Minor) Criticisms of Kinsella, by Bob Murphy; and my reply in the comments section
The Morality of Acquiring and Enforcing Patents, Stephan Kinsella, LewRockwell.com Blog
Letter to an Anonymous Patent Attorney, Jan. 25, 2002, LewRockwell.com.
Do patents and copyrights undermine private property?: Yes, Insight magazine, May 21, 2001 (local copy) (reading of and discussion of this piece by hosts at Free Talk Live, 8/31/07 show; audio is here [starts around 5:25]; also in my podcast feed)
Letter on Intellectual Property Rights, IOS Journal 5, no. 2 (June 1995), pp. 12-13 (including: David Kelley, “Response to Kinsella,” IOS Journal 5, no. 2 (June 1995), p. 13; and Murray I. Franck, “Intellectual and Personality Property,” IOS Journal 5, no. 3 September 1995), p. 7.
Is Intellectual Property Legitimate? (local copy), Pennsylvania Bar Association Intellectual Property Newsletter 1 (Winter 1998): 3; republished in the Federalist Society’s Intellectual Property Practice Group Newsletter, vol. 3, Issue 3 (Winter 2000)
| More IP Links and Resources |
Law, Economics, General Libertarian Issues
Erudite, Scholarly, and Unfailingly Polite: To Sean Gabb on the Occasion of his Sixtieth Birthday (4 Dec. 2019)
Beware the Trans-Pacific Partnership: It’s Not About Free Trade, BAMSouth (May 21, 2015)
Remembering Tibor Machan, Libertarian Mentor and Friend: Reflections on a Giant, FEE.org (April 18, 2016)
Interview by The Libertarian (Keir Martland), May 10, 2013
“Read Hoppe, Then Nothing Is the Same,” Mises Daily (June 10 2011)
“Montessori, Peace, and Libertarianism,” LewRockwell.com (April 28, 2011)
“Faculty Spotlight Interview: Stephan Kinsella,” Mises Economics Blog (Feb. 11, 2011) [archived]
“Teaching an Online Mises Academy Course,” Mises Daily (Jan. 10, 2011)
“Introduction to Libertarian Legal Theory,” Mises Daily (Jan. 3, 2011) (Mises blog discussion)
“Fifteen Minutes that Changed Libertarian Publishing,” Mises Daily (Jan. 12, 2010)
“Introduction,” with Jörg Guido Hülsmann, in Hülsmann & Kinsella, eds., Property, Freedom, and Society: Essays in Honor of Hans-Hermann Hoppe (Mises Institute, 2009) (published as “Essays in Honor of Hans-Hermann Hoppe,” Mises Daily, Aug. 7, 2009)
Tinsley, Patrick, Stephan Kinsella and Walter Block. “In Defense of Evidence and Against the Exclusionary Rule: A Libertarian Approach,” Southern University Law Review, Vol. 32.1 (2004), pp. 63-80
The Greatest Libertarian Books, LewRockwell.com, August 7, 2006 (wayback version)
The Trouble with Libertarian Activism, LewRockwell.com, January 26, 2006
A Simple Libertarian Argument Against Unrestricted Immigration and Open Borders, LewRockwell.com, September 1, 2005 (plus see followup comment here and the post here (No-Treason); and this one here (Raico and Hoppe on Switzerland); and the reply to Neverfox here)
A Libertarian Defense of Kelo and Limited Federal Power, LewRockwell.com, June 27, 2005 [the takings/fifth amendment/eminent domain case] (wayback version)
Federalism (with Walter Block), LewRockwell.com, May 25, 2005
Causation and Aggression (co-authored with Patrick Tinsley), The Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 7, no. 4 (winter 2004): 97-112 (based on “Reinach and the Property Libertarians on Causality in the Law,” by Stephan Kinsella, presented at “Reinach and Rothbard: An International Symposium, Ludwig von Mises Institute, Auburn, Alabama, March 29-30, 2001)
A Libertarian Theory of Contract: Title Transfer, Binding Promises, and Inalienability, Journal of Libertarian Studies 17, no. 2 (Spring 2003): 11-37 [based on paper presented at Law and Economics panel, Austrian Scholars Conference, Auburn, Alabama (April 17, 1999)]
Reply to Van Dun: Non-Aggression and Title Transfer, Journal of Libertarian Studies, Volume 18, no. 2 (Spring 2004) (summary of issue)
In Defense of Evidence: Against the Exclusionary Rule and Against Libertarian Centralism, with Patrick Tinsley, November 1, 2003, LewRockwell.com.
When Did the Trouble Start?, September 5, 2003, LewRockwell.com.
Sandefur and Federal Supremacy, July 5, 2003, LewRockwell.com.
Supreme Confusion, Or, A Libertarian Defense of Affirmative Action, July 4, 2003, LewRockwell.com.
Of Legal Fictions and Pro-Lincoln Libertarians: Reply to Sandefur, December 31, 2002, LewRockwell.com.
How I Became A Libertarian, December 18, 2002, LewRockwell.com
Fukuyama and Libertarianism, May 6, 2002, LewRockwell.com.
On Jonah Goldberg’s Youthful Phase, June 27, 2001, LewRockwell.com.
Knowledge, Calculation, Conflict, and Law (review essay of Randy E. Barnett, The Structure of Liberty), Winter 1999, Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics.
“The Second Paradox of Blackmail,” Business Ethics Quarterly 10, 3 (July 2000): 593-622 (co-authored with Walter Block and Hans-Hermann Hoppe).
Economic Calculation Under Socialism, Appendix I to Protecting Foreign Investment Under International Law: Legal Aspects of Political Risk (1997)
“Legislation and the Discovery of Law in a Free Society,” Journal of Libertarian Studies 11 (Summer 1995), p. 132. (Note: I have since changed my mind on the some of the issues regarding the Hayekian “knowledge problem” and Leoni’s work in this regard, as I have noted in subsequent articles, such as the Knowledge, Calculation, Conflict, and Law review above, footnote 5. Oh, that I had heeded Jeff Herbener’s comments on an earlier manuscript, but I either got these comments too late, or did not fully appreciate them at the time. More information on the calculation debate.)
The Duty to Defend Advertising Injuries Caused by Junk Faxes: An Analysis of Privacy, Spam, Detection and Blackmail, with Walter Block & Roy Whitehead, 27:4 Whittier Law Review: 925-49 (2006)
Book Review of Schulman, The Robert Heinlein Interview and Other Heinleiniana (1991)
Reddit “Ask Me Anything” (AMA)
I am Stephan Kinsella, libertarian theorist and practicing patent attorney. Ask Me Anything! (Anarcho-capitalism subreddit, Feb. 1, 2018)
I am Stephan Kinsella, libertarian theorist, opponent of intellectual property law, and practicing patent attorney. Ask Me Anything! (June 7, 2016) (Facebook thread) (announced here)
I am Stephan Kinsella, a patent attorney and Austrian economics and anarchist libertarian writer who thinks patent and copyright should be abolished. AMA (IAmA subreddit, Jan 22, 2013) (Facebook thread)
I am Stephan Kinsella, libertarian writer and patent attorney. Ask Me Anything! (Libertarian subreddit, Oct. 22, 2013) (secondary thread)
I am Stephan Kinsella, anarcho-libertarian writer and patent attorney. Ask Me Anything! (Anarcho-capitalism subreddit, Jan. 16, 2014)
General/Social
Extreme Prefixes, Jan. 15, 2002, LewRockwell.com.
New Israel: A Win-Win-Win Proposal, October 1, 2001, LewRockwell.com (related)
In Defense of Gary Condit, August 31, 2001, LewRockwell.com.
Let Kids Smoke, July 25, 2000, LewRockwell.com.
Libertarians & the Religious Right: an Interview with Stephan Kinsella (wayback version), by Alberto Mingardi, Laissez Faire City Times, v. 2.39
Review Essays/Book Reviews
Eat This Book: Review of Brad Edmonds’s There’s a Government in Your Soup: Why There’s Too Much Government in Your Kitchen, and What You Can Do About It, July 24, 2004, LewRockwell.com
Book Review of Anthony de Jasay, Against Politics: On Government, Anarchy, and Order, The Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics, Vol. 1, No. 3 (Fall 1998): 85-93.
Taking the Ninth Amendment Seriously: A Review of Calvin R. Massey’s Silent Rights: The Ninth Amendment and the Constitution’s Unenumerated Rights [1995], 24 Hastings Const. L. Q. 757 (1997) [text version] (abstract)
Book Review of Patrick Burke, No Harm: Ethical Principles for a Free Market (1994), Reason Papers No. 20 (Fall 1995), p. 135.
Book Review of Rosalyn Higgins, Problems and Process: International Law and How We Use It (1994), Reason Papers No. 20 (Fall 1995), p. 147.
Book Review (of Hans-Hermann Hoppe, The Economics and Ethics of Private Property (1993)), The Freeman: Ideas on Liberty, vol. 44, p. 640 (Nov. 1994)
Shorter Pieces/Other
“Legislation and Law in a Free Society,” Mises Daily (Feb. 25, 2010)
The Ordeal of Hoppe (with Jeffrey Tucker), The Free Market, Volume 25, Number 4 (April 2005) (related: Hoppe Victory Blog)
Perspective: Pride and the Nanny State, 46 The Freeman 194 (April 1996)
Legislation and Law in a Free Society,” 45 The Freeman 561 (September 1995)
(Selected) College-era (1987-91) Columns, Letters-to-Editor
On the Fourth Amendment, letter to Chronicles (March 1996), regarding Larry Pratt’s comments on the exclusionary rule
Column: Israel: Victim of Bloodlust in Middle East?, LSU Daily Reveille, June 21, 1988 (Note: written when I was young and in college; I do not now agree with everything in this column, in part because of my move from Randian minarchism to anarcho-capitalism.)
Sales tax may be savior of future, LSU Daily Reveille, April 15, 1988
Minimum Wage Wrong, LSU Daily Reveille, Mar. 23, 1988
Minimum Wage Completely, Morally Wrong, Letter to the Editor, The Morning Advocate, Aprl 22, 1988
Column: Movie Review of Roger Rabbit, LSU Daily Reveille, July 28, 1988
The Cult of Modern Ugliness, The Wonderland Times (underground LSU student newspaper), vol. 1, no. 8, July 24, 1989 (Note: Written in a more Randian “Objectivist” phase.)
Freedom and Government, The Wonderland Times (underground LSU student newspaper), vol. 1, no. 6, July 5, 1989 (Note: Written in my Randian minarchist phase; nowadays I would agree with Fig. 2, not Fig. 1.)
Ticket Me, Goddamnit!, The Wonderland Times (underground LSU student newspaper), Oct. 23, 1989
Poem Rebuttal, letter to the editor, LSU Daily Reveille, September (?), 1985 (?) (defense of Leona Helmsley)
Fiction/Unpublished/Miscellany
The Subjectivist’s Lament (short story; draft; 1980s?)
Shorter Pieces in Blogs; Self-Published Essays
Significant Blog Posts
The Superiority of the Roman Law: Scarcity, Property, Locke and Libertarianism (Mises, Aug. 17, 2010) (archived version with comments)
Hoppe: Marx was “Essentially Correct”
Extreme Praxeology, Mises, Jan. 19, 2007
The Other Fields of Praxeology: War, Games, Voting… and Ethics?, Mises, Aug. 5 2006
The Division of Labor as the Source of Grundnorms and Rights; Empathy and the Source of Rights
Revisiting Argumentation Ethics, Mises, March 13, 2009
IP and Aggression as Limits on Property Rights: How They Differ, The Non-Aggression Principle as a Limit on Action, Not on Property Rights, and Objectivist Greg Perkins on Intellectual Property, text at n.6
State Antitrust (anti-monopoly) law versus state IP (pro-monopoly) law (re Rothbard and “big business”)
Justice and Property Rights: Rothbard on Scarcity, Property, Contracts…
Don’t Bet on China; Don’t Bet on China: Redux
Intellectual Property Imperialism
Mises Academy etc.: “Teaching an Online Mises Academy Course”; “Fifteen Minutes that Changed Libertarian Publishing“; Doug French, “The Intellectual Revolution Is in Process“; Jeffrey Tucker, “A Theory of Open” and “up with iTunes U“; Gary North, “A Free Week-Long Economics Seminar”.
Corporations: Rothbard on Corporations and Limited Liability for Tort; Legitimizing the Corporation and Other Posts; Defending Corporations: Block and Huebert; Pilon on Corporations: A Discussion with Kevin Carson; Corporations and Limited Liability for Torts; In Defense of the Corporation;
The Libertarian Approach to Negligence, Tort, and Strict Liability: Wergeld and Partial Wergeld; Fraud, Restitution, and Retaliation: The Libertarian Approach; The Problem with “Fraud”: Fraud, Threat, and Contract Breach as Types of Aggression; Trademark and Fraud
Locke on IP; Mises, Rothbard, and Rand on Creation, Production, and “Rearranging”; Libertarian Creationism; Rand on IP, Owning “Values”, and “Rearrangement Rights”; Locke, Smith, Marx and the Labor Theory of Value; this comment to “Trademark and Fraud”; Elaborations on Randian IP; Objectivists on IP
Hoppe on Liberal Economies and War
Hoppe on Covenant Communities and Advocates of Alternative Lifestyles
Hoppe Is Not A Monarchist
Hoppe on Falsificationism, Empiricism, and Apriorism and Protophysics
Hoppe on Property Rights in Physical Integrity vs Value
Spooner on Knaves, Dupes, and the Constitution; and the Highwayman vs. The State
IP posts: see C4SIF Resources page
Property Title Records and Insurance in a Free Society
The Appeal of States
California Gay Marriage Law Overturned: What Should Libertarians Think?; Is Gay Marriage a Constitutional Right?, McElroy and Peron on Gay Marriage, and The Libertarian Case for Gay Marriage.
A Critique of Mutualist Occupancy
The Nature of the State and Why Libertarians Hate It
Why Spam is Trespass; Spam as a Nuisance; Spyware and Trespass; Causation, Spam, and Worms
Another Problem with Legislation: James Carter v. the Field Codes
On the Danger of Metaphors in Scientific Discourse
Repudiate the Iraqi Debt! (Odious Debt doctrine)
Good and Bad Judicial Activism
On Former Lefties
Peculium
Heroic Google
“The” Libertarian View on Gay Marriage; On Gay Marriage
Future of Freedom Fund (Mises blog version) (Holdeen trusts & tax free government)
The Enlightened Bar (Texas Bar Journal affirmative action policy)
“Doctor” Lawyer?
A Conservative Argument for Abortion
WarLibertarians; More on Schulman v. Huebert; Stromberg on Liberventionists
Cool Footnote Policy (the Green Bag & goulash)
Nukes and International Law (Legality of Nuclear Weapons) (also The UN, International Law, and Nuclear Weapons and International Law and the Criminal Court)
Palmer on Hoppe, Coase, and Wealth-Maximization
Palmer on Patents (in Pilon on Patents)
License to Breed? (about Louisiana’s forced heirship law; positive obligations of parents to their children; whether a deadbeat dad ought to be prohibited from having more kids; Buck v. Bell–“three generations of imbeciles are enough”)
Libertarianism: Property, Rights, Aggression
Hate Crime–Intentional Action and Motivations
Thoughts on Intellectual Property, Scarcity, Labor-ownership, Metaphors, and Lockean Homesteading
The Essence of Libertarianism (“better title”, “first possession”, etc.)
Libertarian Advocates of Aggression (see links in last paragraph–discussions on Chronicles site etc. w/ Scott Richert, Ed Feser, et al. about willingness to admit one favors aggression)
Toward A Theory of Bullying (my reply to Kirkwood; Karen De Coster’s comment)
Yet More On Galambos (On engineers’ tendency to be anti-intellectual, cocky brute-force reinvent the wheel types on politics questions); further discussion here
On the incoherence of “would you push the button” Leonard Read type hypotheticals: On Pushing the Button–the problem with magic; also Defend Hoppe (comments); Push the Button? (comments); Stephan Kinsella Ought To Shut His Stupid Cake Hole; Big Government, Thy Name is Privatization (comments)
On “trespass” theory used for SPAM etc.: Spyware and Trespass; Spam, Spyware, Spiders and Trespass
Libertarian Cranks and Nuts
On Libertarian/Right-wing Cranks and Nutjobs
Intellectual Property Resources
The Growing Anti-IP Movement (extensive comment thread)
Bastiat’s Three Stages of Invention (see my comments, regarding whether patents are monopolies, and the problem with using Rothbard’s copyright idea to protect inventions; etc.)
Condemning Patents
French Book on The Economics of Patents and Copyrights (on out current ability to estimate the value of a patent system)
Patents and Utilitarian Thinking; also: Drug Patents & Welfare
Copyright and Video Games
Improving Copyright Law: Baby Steps
For Blackberry Users Out There… (extensive discussion in comments about patent law and utilitarianism)
Intellectual Property & Scarcity (recent blog post by Stephen Gordon of Hammer of Truth, discussing my views and those of Volokh; discussion on EconLog about my and Volokh’s IP views)
Cato Tugs Stray Back Onto Reservation (Cato flap about Doug Bandow opposing free trade in pharmaceuticals)
Legal Theory, International Law, Common Law, Private Law
Book Recommendations: Private, International, and Common Law; Legal Theory
Objectivism/Ayn Rand
Objectivism Schism Form Lettter
Mises and Rand (and Rothbard)
Objectivism and the Austrians (by Jeff Tucker, w/ replies)
Randian Hoppe(?), Austrian Rand(?)
Objectivists on the Bandow/Cato Scandal (see my extensive comments regarding Objectivists on anarchy, aggression, civilization, the silliness of Randians’ “breaking” with each other, etc.); related post: I Break For Randians and discussion on Rule of Reason blog, The Culture: Intolerant Tolerationists?; also Matthew McConaughey and Penelope Cruz are Objectivists!
Fourteenth Amendment, Constitutionalism, Decentralism, Extreme Federalism
More on Kelo and Federalism (Mises blog)
Fourteenth Amendment Resources (LRC Bloc)
Libertarian Centralists
Barnett and the Fourteenth Amendment
State and Religion (discussing Congregationalism and established religion in US colonies/13 original states)
Federalism and Libertarians on Eminent Domain (discussing Congregationalism etc.)
my “Kelo” article (discussing Congregationalism etc.)
Nuclear, Technology
Green Nukes
Nuclear Spring (only a matter of time before environmentalists start advocating nuclear power)
Nuke Me (on new technology to bury nuclear waste)
Nuclear Energy Links
Dam Nukes (safety of nuclear; danger of hydroelectric)
The Bottomless Well
Nuclear Spring — Thermal Depolymerization?
Unpublished/Draft Works
“Natural Law and Positive Law,” “Self Defense, Punishment, and Proportionality,” and “The Theory of Contracts,” Notes from presentations at the Rothbard Graduate Seminar, July 28–Aug. 2, 2002, Mises Institute, Auburn AL.
Available at KinsellaLaw.com
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2000 AD revives British comic history
Lost classic children’s British comics from the 1970s and ’80s are to be brought back to life by 2000 AD, following its acquisition of the Fleetway and IPC Youth group archive from Egmont UK last year.
Ben Smith, head of books and comic books at Rebellion Publishing, which owns 2000 AD, described it as a chance to restore “a vital but largely overlooked piece of British cultural history”.
The new Treasury of British Comics line will launch in June this year with John Wagner and John Cooper’s “part Dirty Harry, part Judge Dredd” One-Eyed Jack, first published in 1975.
This will be followed in July by the first collection of Mike Western and Eric Bradbury’s “British Spider-man” series The Leopard from Lime Street.
The Watership Down-style tale of a lone fox’s desperate struggle to survive against wicked humans, Marney the Fox, by writer M Scott Goodall and illustrator John Stokes, will be published in hardcover in September, followed by Gerry Finley-Day and Eric Bradbury’s Dracula Files from the pages of Scream!, which saw ‘red peril’ meet gothic horror as Dracula stalked 1980s Britain in one of the 1980s’ most popular comics.
November will see the second volume of the classic 1980s ‘horror comic for girls’ Misty, featuring two stories: “The Sentinels” and “End of the Line”.
And in December, a collection of Ken Reid’s legendary Faceache from Jet and Buster will be published in hardcover. One of the all-too-forgotten greats of British comics, Reid’s work has been cited by Alan Moore and Pat Mills as a major influence.
All titles will be distributed through Simon & Schuster, which already distributes 2000 AD’s bestselling imprint of graphic novels in the UK and North America.
Ben Smith said: “The wealth of story and art from past decades is woefully unexplored and our experience with the 40-year history of 2000 AD was that, if curated in the right way, this material has a large mainstream audience and that classic comics represent extraordinary opportunity not only to satisfy contemporary readers but also save and reinstate a vital but largely overlooked piece of British cultural history.
“It’s an incredible way for parents and grandparents to pass on their own childhood to new generations in the same way that sharing The Wind in the Willows or The Hobbit with children and young people forges and reinforces bonds across families.
“The reprographic work is extraordinarily involved. Most pages have to be sourced from the original printed comics, as the film and artwork has been lost long ago. We have over a decade’s experience with a full time reprographics team, and we expanded the head count to take on the extra workload.
“We’re balancing material we have found to be of exceptional quality, with stories that readers have begun clamouring for as lost classics and little known gems.”
Initial sketches for Chronic Planet
Announcing Chronic Planet
Games of interest this week (18-25th February)
Herne the Hunter for Romance of the Perilous Land
Random thieves guild generator
The Druid class for Romance of the Perilous Land
Converting B/X Vancian magic to Romance of the Per...
Someone is Kickstarting a map-making storygame
2000 AD: Celebrating 40 years of zarjaz comics
Monsters using magic - Romance of the Perilous Lan...
Unearthed Arcana releases mass combat rules
Mutant: Mechatron live on Kickstarter
Blast off with Astounding Interplanetary Adventure...
Checking out Plane Shift Kaladesh for D&D
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Demand rising for health-focused weight loss
Erin Ellis, Vancouver Sun 01.20.2016
Video: Weight-loss help for the overweight and obese
Lion’s Gate doctor contributes to brain scan study named one of top 100 stories of 2015
ShapedownBC focuses on kids with adult health problems
So your doctor ordered you to lose weight for your health. Now what?
Overweight patients can be paralyzed by choices including the latest fad diets, expensive personal trainers ormedically supervised programs, most of which come with a cost.
The only publicly funded weight-loss program in B.C. is Medical Weight Management in Coquitlam, plunked down amid big-box stores, next to a Wendy’s.
About 1,000 patients have joined the program created three years ago by Dr. Michael Lyon, an adjunct professor in University of British Columbia’s school of food, nutrition and health program. But 1,000 more are on the waiting list, about 30 a day referred by family doctors.
“We probably need about eight of these clinics in the Lower Mainland,” says Lyon, something that isn’t happening because it’s not particularly lucrative to treat the complexities of obesity under existing doctors’ billing codes. That’s why the clinic uses group sessions to deliver basic information.
People who need to lose 20 or 30 pounds to help prevent diabetes, heart disease and reduce cancer risks may quickly learn how to take in fewer calories and ramp up their activity to keep weight off, he says.
But people who are obese or super-obese — weighing twice as much as healthy person of the same height — face multiple obstacles and are mired in remorse. Telling these patients to lose weight without guidance is worse than counterproductive, he says.
“It simply magnifies the sense of defeat and moral failure that they deal with every day of their lives.”
For this group, exercise alone cannot work, Lyon says. They must change their eating habits for life, even if they have bariatric surgery that reduces their stomach size and creates hormonal changes that can quell appetite.
“It’s a lot trickier that you realize, so that’s why we use a comprehensive approach. We deal with every domain of their life. We have to teach people a lot of nutrition education ... calorie awareness, glycemic index, how to achieve a feeling of fullness with less food. Generally becoming mindful of what they’re eating — a lot of people have no idea. We have them keep food records and eat in a very regimented way,” Lyon explains.
“Then we have to work with people’s emotional relationship with food. That’s always the most important thing in the end.”Personal trainer Maxine Mikolay, fitness manager at the Goodlife Fitness chain’s Pitt Meadows location, says she often sees clients who have been told to shape up by their doctors. But without direction they try extreme diets first which can do more harm than good since rapid weight loss often results in a rebound of weight gain, something experts say creates more health problems than staying the same weight.
“We sit down and do a personal health profile and look at not only what their doctor has said, but also their health history, their family health history, what they’ve been doing up to now. Their doctor may have told them to lose weight, but our job is to explain to them how exercise is going to be part of the solution.”
Mikolay recommends one-on-one personal training three times a week for a year, which adds up to about $7,000. That includes basic nutritional advice, keeping a food diary, learning proper portion sizes and getting clients to eat at least seven servings of vegetables and fruit a day,
“Most people need six months to create a habit and a year to create a lifestyle change,” she says. “The majority of people who are coming in, doctor-driven, have a lot of weight to lose and have more issues that need to be addressed individually than in a group.”Sara Hodson has built a growing chain of private clinics based on delivering a customized exercise plan in a group setting. She came up with the idea of Live Well Medical and Exercise Clinics in 2011 after working in hospital-based cardiac rehabilitation. Live Well now has three locations: one in Vancouver and two in White Rock/South Surrey.
“People are left on their own,” says Hodson, who has a kinesiology degree and is certified as a clinical exercise physiologist, a field that looks at the science behind physical changes after exercise.
“There’s more awareness (about the need to lose weight), but society hasn’t given people a way to get there. We’re building a culture among physicians so they can prescribe exercise and have somewhere to send people.”
She says clients either find their way to Live Well on their own or are referred by one of about 200 Metro Vancouver doctors familiar with the private clinics. Clients pay $200 per month for three exercise sessions a week, nutritional advice and regular health monitoring — including blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar tests that can be reported back to the referring family doctor.
Some clients have claimed the fees as a medical expense on their income tax returns, and Revenue Canada confirmed that payments made to an authorized medical practitioner to treat obesity may be tax deductible.
Obesity specialist Dr. Ali Zentner is medical director of Live Well and cardiologist Dr. Jiao Yang oversees cardiac prevention and rehabilitation. Both helped design its programs.
With more than half of Canadians calling themselves overweight, the potential for growth has attracted Vancouver entrepreneur John DeHart, who has designed a national franchise plan for the clinics. DeHart co-founded Nurse Next Door home health care which now has more than 100 locations in North America.Joanne Pocock lost 80 pounds in her first year at Live Well and has kept it off for the second year.
“The biggest achievement is being able to maintain it,” says the 53-year old interior designer.
She joined gyms in the past and bought exercise equipment that gathered dust at home.
“I would say I just hadn’t implemented the ideas before. There’s no magic code,”
It took her doctor’s diagnosis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and a referral to an obesity specialist to force her to change.
“How do you want to spend the last years of your life, being on medication or living the life you want?”
She was one of 21 Live Well clients who travelled to Hawaii in December to walk the 26-mile Honolulu Marathon course.
Pocock worked her way up to that goal by exercising at the clinic for one hour a day, three times a week, walking wherever and whenever she could each day, plus weekend long-distance training.
Advance planning and preparation of six small, healthy daily meals with lots of vegetables has been the key to avoiding her Achilles heel — eating fast food on the run. She’s drinking more water and getting more sleep, too.
Pocock says monitoring vital signs like blood pressure and resting heart rate make it easier to see progress that’s not all about appearance.
“At a regular gym, I felt like I didn’t belong. Being overweight causes a lot of shame, but that’s completely gone here (at Live Well). We’re all here for our health.”Despite the undeniable value of exercise for overall health, even its biggest proponents say it’s not the single answer for weight loss.
Dr. Ron Wilson heads The Doctors of B.C. athletics and recreation committee and promotes prescribing exercise as a way to prevent, not to treat obesity.
“There’s no doubt that severely obese people are very difficult to manage and we don’t have adequate resources for that. For many, surgery is the main option, but there is a two-year waiting list,” says Wilson.
Lyon says governments are reluctant to promote more weight-loss clinics like his own — which he says could be replicated across B.C. — because of a blame-the-victim attitude fostered by “cruel” TV shows like the Biggest Loser.
“It’s the bigotry surrounding obesity. If we start treating obesity like the medical condition it is, we’ll never hear the end of it. People will say, ‘It’s their fault. Why should I pay for it? Why don’t they get off their sorry butts and stop eating at McDonald’s?
“Yet this the most expensive health care crisis in history. We need to assist willing people to undergoing a personal health revolution.”
Help with health
• Body mass index, or BMI, is the measurement typically used to determine whether adults is overweight or obese. A BMI higher than 25 is overweight and over 30 is considered obese. For example, a 5-foot-ten person weighing 210 pounds has a BMI of 30.
• Many hospitals offer programs for healthy hearts or diabetes prevention that include exercise and diet components. Check with your local health authority.
• Advice lines accessible anywhere in B.C. including Dial a Dietitian (811). For more information go to: healthlinkbc.ca/healthyeating/
• The Physical Activity line is also free: 604-241-2266 or toll free 1-877-725-1149. physicalactivityline.com
• Clinics in Metro Vancouver: Live Well Medical & Exercise Clinic, (livewellclinic.ca, 604-269-3705) and Medical Weight Management Centre (medweight.ca, 604-777-5500)
eellis@postmedia.com
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Short-term (2 to 4 weeks) "social work" project in Russia
1 project found from 1.1.2014 to 31.12.2014
Vols.
Russia Social Work - Work with elderly people 29.06.2014 07.07.2014 6 AYA 3
Make a granny smile
Partner Organisation: AYA Russia
Minor repairs in the rooms of the residents. Many of them haven't left their rooms for ages, and that is why the interior is very important for them. Volunteers will also take part in the maintenance of the adjacent territory, painting of the summerhouse and benches etc. Volunteers should be interested in spending time with the residents, taking them for a walk, listening to their stories, talking to them because grannies and grandpas do not get much of attention and miss the sympathy and interest of other people.
Accomodation & food:
In a building next to the retirement home. Showers and Russian sauna will be organised at least twice a week. Volunteers will cook themselves.
Location & leisure:
Excursions in the museums and churches of Vyazma, trip to Smolensk and Gagarin (hometown of Yuri Gagarin).
Vyazma
DME: Domodedovo (Moscow)
Train station:
yap-uk
2 to 4 weeks 1 to 6 months more than 6 months
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« I would recommend participating in a workcamp, especially with VAP, who ensured that I found a project to suit me and provided essential training for me in preparation for my trip. Being part of a workcamp really is a life-changing experience, oh, and it looks great on your CV! »
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Volunteer Abroad Overseas
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From UNL Wiki
Distribution or precedence refers to the study of the order of the syntactic constituents of a language. In the UNLarium framework, the distribution is informed in the grammar, if general, or in the dictionary, in case of exceptions or categories that do not follow a regular distributional pattern (such as English adverbs). Distribution is not informed in UNL.
1 Values
2 Dictionary
2.2 Observations
3 Grammar
In the UNLarium framework, distribution may assume the following values:
Distribution is to be included in the dictionary in two cases:
Exceptions to the general distribution rules, such as in some free order adjectives:
"it is the only solution possible" or "it is the only possible solution"
Categories with irregular distribution, such as adverbs:
Usually I get up early.
I often get headaches.
She speaks English well.
No distribution to be informed in the dictionary because, in English, articles are always premodifiers. The distribution of articles must be informed in the grammar.
No distribution to be informed in the dictionary because, in English, adjectives are normally premodifiers. The distribution of adjectives must be informed in the grammar. Only exceptions must be informed in the dictionary.
very = BEF
In English, the distribution of adverbs is quite variable, and must be informed in the dictionary. The intensifier "very" is a premodifier: He is very rich (He is rich very)
well = AFT
In English, the distribution of adverbs is quite variable, and must be informed in the dictionary. The adverb of manner "well" is a postmodifier: He speaks well (He well speaks)
yesterday = FRE
In English, the distribution of adverbs is quite variable, and must be informed in the dictionary. The adverb of time "yesterday" may come either before or after the modified: Now I go or I go now.
Middle position is used only for words to be inserted inside others (i.e., between the prefix and the root, or the root and the suffix).
Adverbs coming between auxiliaries and verbs must be defined as premodifiers.
In the grammar, distribution is defined through S-rules in the following format:
<SYNTACTIC ROLE>(+<DISTRIBUTION>);
<SYNTACTIC ROLE> is the syntactic role (VA, VC, VS, VH, etc) of the constituent in relation to the head; and
<DISTRIBUTION> is the position of the constituent in relation to the head. It may assume one of the distribution values indicated above ("FNT","BEF",">>",etc).
VS(+BEF);
the specifier must be generated to the left of the verb
VC(+AFT);
the complement must be generated to the right of the verb
Complex distribution
A single distribution rule may contain several distribution operations:
VS(+BEF)VC(+AFT); (the specifier will be generated to the left and the complement to the right of the head)
Conditional distribution
Conditional distribution may be stated by defining the left side of the s-rule and coindexing it to the right side:
VC(+AFT); (unconditional distribution: the complement will be always generated to the right of the verb);
VC(PPR):=VC(+BEF); (conditional distribution: the complement will be generated to the left of the verb if a personal pronoun (PPR);
Use of "+"
As rules are conservative (i.e., features are preserved unless explicitly deleted), the use of "+" is actually optional:
VC(AFT); is the same as VC(+AFT);
Reordering can be done in three different ways:
By L-rules, if the process involves neighbour constituents and affects only the surface structure of the phrase;
By attribute change (i.e., deleting and adding distribution features), such as in "VC(-AFT,+BEF);" (i.e.,delete the "after" attribute and add the "before" attribute), in case of neighbour constituents or neighbour projections
By movement, in case of more complex inversions and extraction of constituents
The symbol ^ is used for negation and to control infinite recursion
VC(^AFT):=VC(AFT); (assign the "after" attribute to the complement of the verb if it does not have it yet)
Retrieved from "http://www.unlweb.net/wiki/index.php?title=Distribution&oldid=2699"
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You are here: Home / In The News / SHERIFF’S RESPONSE TO EXPLOSION IN VIOLENT CRIME
SHERIFF’S RESPONSE TO EXPLOSION IN VIOLENT CRIME
Responding to an explosion in violent crime in Harnett County, North Carolina, Sheriff Larry Rollins told about 130 residents at a community meeting on Monday that they need to “be able to take care of business” until police arrive.
To put it bluntly, Rollins wants his residents to be armed and ready to protect themselves and their families.
“I do not go anywhere without a gun,” the sheriff told residents at Spring Hill Methodist Church in Lillington, North Carolina, on Monday.
Harnett County Sheriff Larry Rollins; Screengrab via WRAL-TV
“I want my deputies to be at your house just as fast as they possibly can when you have a problem,” he added. “But you better be able to take care of business before we get there if you need to protect your family.”
As WRAL-TV reports, a number of alarming violent crimes were addressed at the meeting:
• Raquan Shynell Hooker, 18, Maurice Shaquan Williams, 23, and Maurice Kollis Cox, 27, were shot outside a Kangaroo gas station on N.C. Highway 87 in Cameron Friday afternoon. No arrests were announced as of Monday.
• Hours later, Jeffrey George, 21, was seriously injured after crashing while fleeing from police. George led authorities on the vehicle pursuit after selling drugs to an undercover officer, officials said. He crashed on U.S. Highway 421 near Marners Road.
• The body of Eric Kentrall Staten, 18, was found behind dumpsters on Saturday at a business at 6761 Ray Road in Spring Lake. No arrests were announced as of Monday.
The spike in violent crime has left the community fearing for their safety, concerns that their sheriff is clearly taking seriously.
WTVD-TV has more!
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Home » Church History » Of Courtesans & Christianity
Of Courtesans & Christianity
July 30, 2015 / Church History, Gender / 0 comments
Some number of years ago, I viewed a film called Dangerous Beauty (1998), it having been recommended on a list of films every feminist should view. The film was a loose biography of Veronica Franco, a 16th century courtesan from Venice. It presents Franco as an adventurous, wild-hearted young woman faced with the choice of either becoming a courtesan or entering a convent because her family lacks the money to provide her with a decent dowry. She is initially repulsed by the proposal, but later accepts it as a Faustian bargain when she learns that becoming a courtesan would give her access to libraries, education, and study of the Renaissance arts. She comes to embrace and excel at her new profession, becoming both a hero to the people of Italy and the target of envious men, eventually leading to her being called before the Inquisition on charges of witchcraft.
The movie left me with a lot of questions about Franco and other courtesans like her whose profession allowed them, as women, access to education and engagement in the public sphere. I decided to do a paper on them for my Renaissance class at Trinity. Yes, that’s right, I thought writing a paper on people who f*** for a living would make for a fine and dandy topic at a conservative Christian school! Though, in retrospect, the subject matter was considerably cleaner than one of Mark Driscoll’s sermons.
I had a lot of questions as I embarked on my paper. Questions such as:
Why did a society supposedly entrenched in the Christian sexual ethos turn so readily and openly to the arms of these “fallen women”?
Why did courtesans enjoy a relative level of glamor, dignity, and success that transcended that of the prostitutes, their more common peers?
In what ways did the Reformation and Counter-Reformation remedy the problem of prostitution, and in what ways did they fall short?
Christianity & Prostitution
Throughout much of Christian history, Christians’ attitude towards prostitution was one of tolerance. The human sex drive, and the male sex drive in particular, was viewed as inevitable, but men from the middle and upper classes tended not to marry until their late 20s, when they had taken time to establish themselves. Between that and clerical vows of celibacy, sex within the bonds of marriage was out of reach for a number of young men, and masturbation was discouraged. It was believed that for men to abstain altogether from sex was outright unhealthy. So Christians—and yes, that included Christian leaders and theologians—looked to prostitution as a solution to the dilemma. They figured that it kept down on rape and adulterous liaisons with “honest” married women. Thomas Aquinas likened prostitution to the sewer system of a beautiful palace. Sure, it’s vile and it stinks, but without it, the palace itself would overflow with excrement.
It’s interesting that even though women were stereotyped as lusty and unable to control their passions, the female sex drive was not viewed as a significant cause of prostitution. They reasoned that women expel their bodily fluids and release their sexual tension in part through menstruation and lactation, while men need ejaculation for the same. And masturbation wasn’t good enough, because reasons, so the only solution for the poor men was a seedy underbelly of impoverished hookers.
By the time of the Renaissance, prostitution was not just tolerated but regulated as a valuable tax source. In 1559, the Bishop of Polignano was caught with a Jewish courtesan by the name of Porzia. The Bishop “was sentenced to perpetual imprisonment whilst Porzia was exiled from Rome, having been publicly whipped, had her goods confiscated and her house ransacked.” [1] The general public expressed astonishment, but not over the bishop’s punishment. He had technically broken his vow of celibacy, and Christians weren’t supposed to have sex with Jews, so he deserved it. But Porzia was a public courtesan who always paid her tribute and as such, in the eyes of the most Roman citizens, had done nothing wrong. Porzia and the Bishop just happened to be two of the earliest victims of the Counter-Reformation and its changing attitude towards prostitution.
More on that in the next post.
[1] Tessa Storey, Carnal Commerce in Counter-Reformation Rome (Cambridge: University of Cambridge Press, 2008), 1.
Tags: Christianity & Prostitution, Dangerous Beauty, Italian Courtesans, Margaret F. Rosenthal, Veronica Franco
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The GOD Project: If he’s real, how can he be real to you?
by Scott Ziegler
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by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
I have known the plot of this book and its creation background for forever, but have finally sat down and read it for the first time. It exceeded my expectations and no film adaptation does it justice.
100-books-to-read-before-you-die and horror
by Raymond Chandler
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100-books-to-read-before-you-die
A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World
by Paul E. Miller
This book was amazing. Miller actually tries to deal with difficult issues, as in his struggles with raising a severely autistic daughter. You might ask, "How can you believe in answer to prayer given your daughter’s condition?" Believe …
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Way To Go, Girl! Milestones, Winners and Firsts
Women riders doing amazing things
Lady in Blue, A First in Her City!
Way to go Amy Oetter for being the first female to saddle up and ride with the motorcycle police force in Omaha, Nebraska. Amy, a 9-year police veteran, recently completed the motorcycle officer's certification course making her the first female to achieve this in the state of Nebraska.
Officer Amy Oetter standing by her specially equipped Harley-Davidson police motorcycle.
"I think there are areas in law enforcement where women have proven they belong in that area and this is one area where women had not broken through" says Amy. "I'm thrilled and honored to have the opportunity to succeed in that area. Officer Oetter's final score was 92 percent placing her third out of 10 officers who took the course with her.
Way to go to Char Zack of Arizona for forming a non-profit group to raise funds to help build shelters around the country for battered women.
Char Zack founded RAW Advocates to help abused women.
Char is achieving this goal in a fun way by making the world's largest yearbook about women motorcyclists. This yearbook will be published in a hard copy version for sale at a later date and as a free work-in-progress version on the Internet. The yearbook will be dedicated to all women in the world who have served or are now serving in any military branch regardless of whether or not they are motorcyclists. Char needs your help to spread the word to solicit female motorcyclists, women motorcycle clubs and associations, individuals and businesses for donations of any kind. Visit RawAdvocates.org.
16-Year-Old Becomes First Woman to Win AMA Road Race
Congratulations to Elena Myers, the first woman to win an AMA Pro Racing professional motorcycle road race when she beat out all other competitors on May 15 at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California. She was racing against men.
Elena rides a Suzuki GSX-R600 as part of Team Hammer.
For the teenager from Discovery Bay, California, it was a long time coming, but all part of a plan put into effect when she was 12 years old. Even then, there was something about the youngster's maturity and confidence that caught the attention of Team Hammer co-founder John Ulrich, who has made a name for himself as a man with a keen eye for spotting racing talent. WRN interviewed Elena for an article on her amazing talent when she was just 13. Check it out here.
Ride of a Lifetime
Safe travels to Melinda Dennis as she embarks on a solo three-month whirlwind tour of 51 national parks in three months. Melinda is doing what many riders only dream about and that is getting on her motorcycle, a Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail, and riding most of the country including Alaska to visit 51 national parks. There are 58 national parks in total. Her ride will take her through 38 states and into Canada. Melinda will be camping along the way and says she will not be using a GPS. "I will be traveling the old fashion way with a standard road atlas."
Melinda leaves July 31 on her three-month ride of a lifetime.
Melinda will be updating her Web site, AmericanRider2010.com, with photos and a blog entry. She is also raising money for the National Wildlife Federation so if you want to donate visit her Web site. Godspeed Melinda on your monumental journey. All of us here in the WRN community wish you well.
The Ultimate Makeover!
Congratulations to David Barwell and Judy Reed, winner and runner-up respectively in the Garage-Girls / Carlisle Events 2010 Ultimate Biker Makeover. The two were chosen by public voting online after contestants had to share their story on why they are need of a biker makeover.
Garage-Girls winners, David Bardwell and Judy Reed, with some of their prizes.
Both winners will be getting hooked up with a new riding jacket and gloves from Z1R, a Vega helmet, Harley-Davidson boots, a cleaning kit from Wizards Products, a years subscription to IronWorks Magazine, a case of synthetic oil from Spectro Oils, a pair of riding glasses from 7 Eye, a T-shirt from VaVaVroom, and a technology case from Otterbox. David, the grand prize winner, will also be scoring parts for his motorcycle such as accessories from Kuryakyn, a set of AVON Tires, a Mustang motorcycle seat, and lots of other goodies. Way to go guys!
And the Winner of the National Garage Party Sweepstakes is...
Whoohoo to Deborah L. McEnteggart of Pinellas Park, Florida, for winning Harley-Davidson's National Garage Party Sweepstakes contest. Deborah, along with three friends, will be treated to a spa retreat weekend in Los Angeles, in addition to learning to ride during a Harley-Davidson Rider's Edge New Rider Course. The lucky winners will also meet TV wellness expert Jillian Michaels, and get some tips on leading a healthier life. Jillian is a Harley-Davidson rider and life-long motorcycle enthusiast who recently forged a partnership with the Motor Company to encourage more women to participate in the sport. Congrats Deborah!
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Wonder Discovery
As the name implies itself Wonder Discovery is the website that unveils the wonderful discoveries around the globe.
Interesting Facts about Japan: Probably You Didn’t Know About Japan
Janith July 28, 2019 August 2, 2019 World No Comments
Would you like to know some Interesting facts about Japan?
Japan, also known as“The land of the rising sun” being the 3rd top country for having the largest economy has 127 million people living in the country.
Considering the geographical facts, Japan’s more than 70% is mountainous territory with more than 200 volcanoes and Japan’s highest mountain is also an active volcano well known as Mt. Fuji.
Japan consist of 6 800 islands including the 4 main islands of Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku and Hokkaido. These main 4 islands cover 98% of land area in Japan.
About Japan’s population, 98% of them are ethnic Japanese with almost no immigrants and Japan has 100% literacy achieved. There were 18 Nobel prize winners so far from Japan. And Japan has a0.05 per 100, 000 people rate of a homicide rate being the second lowest. 23% of the population is aged people over 65 years.
Most of the Japanese companies consider about the health issues of their workers and in order to improve their fitness, they have morning exercise sessions in the working places.
Tokyo is the most urban city in the japan and it is also the second most expensive city in the world.
Photo: Sofia Terzoni
Japan chases whales behind the term of “research” and kills whales for meat.
If you see a raised floor in a house of Japan, that will be the boundary where you need to remove your shoes.
Sushi is famous in Japan and it is a street food. And most of the restaurants give moist towels and green tea before the meal.
The most expensive tuna can be found in Japan for $ 735,000 USD.
In Japan it is considered as inappropriate to blow your nose in public
In the winter, most of the countries play with snow and make snowmen with snow using 3 snow balls but Japanese people use only 2balls of snow to make a snowman.
Japan was the first ever country to had nuclear weapons and got attacked by atomic weapons.
Talking about Japanese literature, Haiku is well known as the shortest form of the poetry in the world which consist only 3 lines.
Ancient times, Samurais were the warriors of Japan and the art of Ninja was something that was given to world by Japan.
Japan’s national game is Sumo.
Japan is affected by more than minor 1 500 earthquakes each year.
World’s largest Amazon rainforest timber consumer is Japan.
“Geisha” is popular in Japan and the meaning of the word “Geisha” is “Performing Artist” and surprisingly first geishas were men.
Instead of the ATM machines at post office or 7-11, most of the ATM machines don’t accept foreign ATM cards in Japan.
Japan is the largest automobile producer in the world.
From world’s animation industry 60% of films and TV shows are animated in Japan. And maybe that’s why there are about 130 voice acting schools for anime voices.
Women might cut their hair after breaking up with a boyfriend.
25 Interesting facts about China
Nagoro: The Village of Dolls in Japan
Zao Fox Village: One of the best places in Japan to…
Eshima Ohashi Bridge: This Bridge In Japan Looks…
Bermuda Triangle Mystery - Facts, Secrets & Theories
Facts, Japan
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NASA Releases Time-Lapse Of The Disappearing Arctic Polar Ice Cap 9 views
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Planes Drop Thousands Of Kilograms Of Carrots For Starving Animals in Australia
Sydney Opera House was illuminated on Saturday night with firefighters
Fire in Australia kills nearly 1 billion animals, including 8,000 koalas
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As an added bonus, trade shows provide the kind of one on one, personal interaction that business owners can’t provide to their online clients. In our modern era, just about anyone can become a social media celebrity. Small business owners can and should target members of their fields who boast large social followings; for example, a Los Angeles clothing retailer might want to target LA based style icons who regularly tweet and Instagram about their top shops.
Ross isn’t just referring to the expectations of her own coalition, which acts as a clearinghouse for information, a provider of training and technical assistance and an advocate for affordable housing. Her group is one of 30 organizations known as the Sadowski Coalition which includes such industry and trade groups as the Florida Apartment Association, Florida Bankers Association, Florida Chamber of Commerce, Florida Home Builders Association, Florida Realtors and Florida Retail Federation as well as nonprofits representing veterans, the elderly and people with disabilities. All support leaving the Sadowski Trust Funds for their intended purpose..
Appel then placed real caterpillars on the leaves of the group to feed. After waiting a day or two for the plants to mount their defenses, she measured the chemistry of their leaves for insecticide like chemicals called glucosinolates the same substance that gives mustard its kick. If eaten in large doses, however, it becomes toxic..
When that happens, you sacrificing family, you sacrificing friends, you sacrificing everything else other than golf. He chuckled and said, wouldn mind seeing the divorce rate on No. 1 players in the world. Your phone is a wonderful invention you use it to call and text the people most important to you. And now with smartphones, you use it to surf the internet, watch movies and television, and play games. But did you know you can also use it to manage your expenses or invest in the stock market? There are a variety of money management app options, and investment apps have become a top option for new investors to get involved in the stock market.
Madeline CoxCyber criminals are using tricks to steal mobile numbers. They then move the number to another carrier to access bank accounts. Here are 3 tips to help protect your personal details install software updates when available, switch off your date of birth on social and keep your phone lockedYou just need to know if soccer finished on time but she’s not responding.
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Attend mobile phone conventions and do some networking. Many of the people who get work as cell phone testers get that work because they know someone who knows someone. Get in with the right people by networking at mobile phone events and then put the word out there among your network that you’re looking to work as a cell phone tester..
I 27 and gay, so I graduated from public high school in Australia in 2005. For our seniors ball it was specifically stated that you were not allowed to attend as a same sex couple. Two years later in my sisters graduating year there was an openly gay couple at school, one of whom I quite good friends with now.
“We don’t have time to go grocery shopping, so it’s cool to pick up vegetables from the farmers’ market, because we’re there for work. Then having staples that are pickled and fermented is important,” says Dumapit. Today that includes umeboshi plums Turner canned while at Odd Duck, jalape from Casper Fermentables, and daikon kimchi.
Such boldness can of course have its dangers (such as when writing Op Ed articles about delicate social issues) yet this has also helped them plow ahead in social media while other businesses their size waited cautiously in the background to see if it was “safe” or if these sites would gain in popularity. N nOf course, any time a company opens up and has a presence on a communication channel like Facebook or Twitter, users can use those sites to criticize as much as to praise. Dealing with negative feedback, however, is better than not having a presence at all.
Dads chaperoned junior high entourages and feigned Errol Morris with iPhones. Freshman girls resurrected the long lost art of shadow dancing. And Good Day Sacramento Mark S. Based on a method developed by Leybourne, Kim and Taylor (2007) for detecting multiple changes in persistence, we test for changes in persistence in the dividend price ratio of the NASDAQ stocks. The results confirm the existence of the so called Dotcom bubble around the last turn of the century and its start and end dates. Furthermore, we compare the results with a test for detecting and date stamping explosive unit root behaviour developed by Phillips, Wu and Yu’s (2011) also applied to the NASDAQ price and dividend indices.
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She spent most of 1983 on leave heading an education reform task force for her husband, and devoted large chunks of 1984 campaigning for his reelection. It was just after that period, in early 1985, that she became a senior lawyer, called a billing partner, in Rose Law Firm’s account with James McDougal and his Madison savings and loan. Since 1978, she and her husband had been partners with McDougal and his wife, Susan, in the Whitewater real estate venture..
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I believe Jodi Arias was assisted by her father, His Gun was stolen, so he had to be on high alert, Jodi was the thief, or he himself. Jodi might of confided in her father, and he insisted on helping her, to ensure she wasn over powered. Jodi said he could lift 500 lbs.
We already have the space for it, but we have put this project on hold for a while so that we can focus on production. Once we have our legs under us, we will refocus on this side once again. But you can definitely expect to see us out and about at community events and festivals this year.
According to detectives, an unknown male white subject described as 40 to 50 years old, approximately 5 tall, 200 to 215 lbs., shaved head and beard, wearing a long sleeve tan colored tee shirt and blue jeans entered the Red Bell Spa at 107 Newbridge Road and asked for a massage. The subject was instructed to respond to a room, undress and lie on a table covering himself with a blanket. When the female victim (age unknown) entered the room the subject was completely exposed.
Robert Bateman beat the No. 2 Holy Cross Crusaders 49 0 on Saturday, while Vernon downed the No. 3 John Barsby Bulldogs 44 0.. “We raised up everything,” said Susan Rath, who had returned to a home in south Houston where she and her husband, Jim, had tried to place valuables higher before evacuating. The water got higher still. They returned to soggy drywall, destroyed furniture and a closet full of blouses soaked up to the elbow.
Not in celebration, but in exhortation to rally the men in green and yellow as they inched towards a pivotal league win. There was no need for a repeat of the co ordinated pre match appeal, it was a wonderfully spontaneous expression of support when the final whistle could not come quickly enough for Hughton and his players. It was defiant and it was deafening as normal time gave way to five potentially torturous minutes of additional agony..
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Baseball players are also admirable in their ability to make mistakes in front of millions of people and shake it off. A pitcher may give up a home run and then has to get right to pitching to the next batter and hope that their nerves don’t get the best of them. A second baseman can miss a dive to stop a ground ball and keep runners from advancing on base, but they have to be ready to catch a fly ball on the next pitch if necessary..
After a two year absence to pursue an NFL opportunity and recover from a knee injury, Rogers rejoined the Stamps in training camp prior to the 2018 season. He played nine regular season games and made eight starts, recording 36 catches for 499 yards and five touchdowns. Rogers had a pair of 100 yard games against the host Toronto Argonauts in Week 2 and at home against the visiting Montreal Alouettes in Week 6 and he was second on the club with 21 receptions to convert second downs..
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She is a very good sales person (she cold called me to get my business) and has excellent interpersonal skills. She is a good listener, and even puts up with my annual whining during tax season. In other words, she understands the value of being the Unpaid Consultant.
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Though a number of factors are at play, experts say a big contributor to this trend is the increase in exposure to recreational noise, including loud music at venues like concerts, music festivals, and nightclubs. Attendees of these events can be exposed to music with sound pressure levels of about 100 to 110 dBA (a measure of decibels with low frequencies reduced) for several hours. Such exposure is known to cause at least temporary hearing loss..
B Burger and Beer Joint will host its grand opening party on Wednesday, April 22. This is the Miami based restaurant chain fourth restaurant in Florida. B serves gourmet burgers and craft beer. Sustainable fashion is the only way forward. According to Smriti Rao, a sociologist who works with local weavers, “If we don’t educate our children and inculcate in them a love for home grown textiles, nobody else will. With us and our mothers having worn handloom saris or at least clothing that involved some amount of labour by hand, millennials seem to be slowly encouraging local artisans today.
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In fact it was a learnable debacle that a lot of administrations have made and not a single thing was said or done to implament restrictions of ignorance. Google it! How about a Nice lied to congress Iraq war from Bush and his partner in crime the vice president who pulled all the strings on Bush???????? Oh I could go on. The fact is Snowden commited treason and exposed all of our safety to the rest of the world, who kill you if you speak bad about their government, you know Russia and China!!!! better think before you speak, euh!.
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“We know what it’s like to be told there isn’t a screen for you to be featured on, a stage for you to be featured on. We know what’s like to be beneath and not above. Sa premire cliente atteinte d’une dficience intellectuelle lgre est accuse d’avoir frapp son ex blonde. C’est son premier contact avec le systme judiciaire. Sa dfense ne lui cotera rien puisqu’elle est bnficiaire de l’aide sociale.
“No, Ted Cruz and I had a very, very nasty and tough campaign. It was a very competitive it was a very tough campaign. Once it ended and we got together and, by the way, very late into the campaign we lasted. Just remember they are trying to dick you over by getting you to pay them more than you have to. So being a little bit of a prick, is more defending yourself than being a prick. Be firm, and walking away can be the strongest weapon.
I was photographing in really remote villages because one of the reasons women die in childbirth is because they cannot get to a medical facility and there are no trained medical professionals around. So, a woman who is labor has to walk for 12 hours and try and give birth with a doctor or she has to get on the back of a donkey and try and make it to a clinic. I was in very remote areas and on the way back I saw these two women on the side of a mountain.
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Amid criticism from fellow Republicans about his tone and provocative statements, Trump suggested over the weekend that he would “just keep funding my own campaign” if GOPleaders did not rally behindhis candidacy. Butit is unclear whether he could access the hundreds of millions needed to finance a national campaign. He suggested in May that to do so, he would have to “sell a couple of buildings.”.
According to Dixit, PE investors have created new sets of opportunities for talented managers that wouldn’t have existed in the earlier environment. “Value creation has been happening in India for the last 50 years by talented professionals, but they were working for families and had no equity in the game,” he said. “What’s changing now is we have come into the game.
First off, you have to let go of the cheap option. Rented tuxedos may appeal to the average man who only goes to oneblack tie event every 10 years, but, as Grant Durell, head of design at Dobell, says: “It’s virtually impossible to rent a tuxedo that will fit you correctly in all the key areas. The fabric around the stomach should be close to your body but not tight and certainly never strained..
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Weapons trafficking is a threat to the public. And all of the derivative violence that is a result of those activities is a threat to the public. So anything we can do to mitigate that threat, we do, he said.. Budweiser’s name change is part of an advertising campaign featuring the slogan “America is in your hands.” The brewer says this will “remind people . To embrace the optimism upon which the country was first built.” So, between now and Nov. 8, whenever you belly up to a bar, do your patriot duty by ordering a foamy mug of America.
You can combine pull ups with squats. This will make sure that all muscles are being trained. This will enable you to get a good attractive body instead that will go with your strong and heavy arms. And that herstory is not just the story of white, straight, cisgender, wealthy women. It’s the story of working class women, black women, Latinx women, Asian women, queer women, trans women, women of faith, undocumented women, refugee women, immigrant women, women on the coasts and those in the middle of the country. It’s the lived experiences of allgroups of women and their multitude of intersections that truly make America the great nation it is, and the even greater nation it could be..
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S in the shade of people VS anticipation force solutions: slow, with good light Summer night, from the heat of the people in the outdoor everywhere, especially the effect of earthquake activity was recently, in the streets at night camped out of citizens enjoy the cool activities and even more noticeable than usual. Therefore, the owner in the night driving must be very careful in these passers by. Taxi driver LiuJianGuo reminds say, the owner when driving at night, as far as possible in closer and closer to the road.
I can’t decide if I want him to be the next Bachelor. On one hand, it would mean increased TV time and more T shirts with an “E” on them. On the other hand, I think Chris L. New Orleans brightest star, Trombone Shorty, along with his band Orleans Avenue followed. R legends Earth, Wind Fire got the crowd going in the late afternoon. Later that evening multi platinum selling rock band Incubus played a set of their hits..
Much like the business of any real news organization, Sorkin aims to educate as well as entertain. The series tackles the distressingly real threats to the modern news industry, from tabloidization to censorship, commercialization to credibility. Each episode concludes with a tidy answer to whatever moral dilemma our stalwart heroes face that episode..
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Make sure that you are not being to her. Just try to channel her aggression and energy. Get cat scratching post and trees for the feline to scratch and jump on it. Generals were soldiers. Reader, can you see the obvious here? People who are running the program more than likely haven done the job that they expect others to do: From what it sounds like, Corrections BC. Needs leaders, and it needs leadership.
I used mineral oil and sandpaper to clean the reed and lots of sandpaper lol. I settled on the 100 grit medium the paper seems to hold up and the sand itself seems gritty enough to do a good job. 150 grit wore out way too fast and the 60 grit was overkill.
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If Audrey Hepburn is your style icon, you might want to go with a mod 60s style wedding. Or if you like specific things from different eras, you can always mix things up and have a vintage wedding with no particular time period. Or for a glamorous twist, look for vintage Hollywood wedding stationery with stylish color and flair.
Of those books that were signed with the name of the scribe before the 12th century, less than 1 percent can be attributed to women, the researchers write in their report. But Beach says it’s just impossible to know how widespread women’s participation was, because many libraries of medieval books have been lost to history. What’s more, most of the surviving books from this period were produced by scribes who did not sign their work..
And as I’ve said once in a pregame show, I will never, ever, ever question an injury because that’s how my career ended and I was questioned by some people and it still bothers me. So I don’t get into stuff like that. I let other people question him if they want to, I don’t do it.
Dorvillier’s handouts provide a taxonomy for the ambitious endeavor. It lists movement sources, types, influences, spatial strategies, influences, and other factors (interesting to consider, not easy to fathom). Material created intuitively (rather than from a score) and/or “material which was generated relying on sensation or a certain interiority.” Also, possibly material that “contends with or carries traces of the choreographer’s desire or sexuality.”.
Ross said shell casings were found at the scene, as well as tire tracks and footprints. Ross would not release the caliber of the gun believed to have been used in the shooting. The girls had walked to a bridge along the dirt road, which is a popular gathering place for residents in the rural county, which is about 90 miles east of Oklahoma City..
This is FRESH AIR. I’m Terry Gross. The song “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson was one of the biggest hits of the year. Read the Entire ArticleMy wife is in soccer mom denial. She doesn’t seem to understand that her kid plays soccer; which makes her a soccer mom. I think she needs to face the facts and get a mini van, but she refuses.
Next to the chipset and cooling solution, you will find the front panel header and SATA ports. Most of the time you see the debug LEDs close to the chipset rather than the memory slots. The heat sink is rather large, and therefore doesn allow room for much else in this section of the motherboard..
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Danroy (DJ) Henry Jr. Was born Oct. 29, 1989. But there aren’t enough donor hearts to go around. And so for half a century, researchers have tried to create what many consider the holy grail of medicine, an artificial heart. Mimi Swartz tells the story of their many struggles and successes in her new book “Ticker: The Quest For An Artificial Heart (ph).” She joins us now from member station KUHF in Houston.
There’s a lot of snakes in Burma. Some leeches. Lots of leeches in the area. Left Aronimink with a new reality as well. Though he was the runner up at the FedEx Cup playoff event, he didn come up short in the world ranking. Rose moved to No. The center console that cascades down from the windshield interrupts a lone strip of silver plastic bisecting the instrument panel, while ridiculously large digital gauges for the battery voltage and oil pressure top the center stack. Below that, you’ll find a 6.5 inch LCD screen containing the user interface for the 11 speaker Blaupunkt stereo and HVAC system. At the bottom are the knobs and buttons that control those systems, and they don’t require a peek at the owner’s manual to use.
Dianna Gonzalez, did not execute a W 9 to allow for the distribution of grant funds. The W 9 containing her signature was signed by Mr. Files. For food grade hydrogen peroxide uses in the home include personal care, food and home cleaning. If 35 percent food grade peroxide cleaners are used in the home, they must be kept refrigerated (or in the freezer), be sure to take precautions so the product will not be mistaken for water and consumed. Due to the risk of accidental ingestion, high concentrations of food grade peroxide are not usually recommended for use in homes with young children.
Tesla this week said the first battery powered Model S sedans will be delivered in June, ahead of its initial July release date. That’s an early success among the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing loans the Obama administration awarded in 2009 to Tesla, Fisker Automotive Inc., Ford Motor Co. And Nissan Motor Co.
Not even an hour later, I got an automated email from YouTube saying that TuneCore rejected my reasoning and after an internal review my account would be banned for a fraudulent claim. Which it was, but the video got to stay on YouTube with TuneCore continuing to monetize it. However, there was an option to escalate the claim, but required me putting in all of my personal information, (name, address, phone) into some kind of legal form that was way more complicated than it should have been.
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I enjoy it a lot. That unfortunate. Think that just crazy, that it a small world, that we at the same restaurant, at the same moment, like, it crazy, said the female friend who spotted Hammar.. Know they have something to prove, and are willing to open the curtain to try to change the perception of their big franchise series. Given the context, it bears disclaiming that the visit was likely curated down to the thermostat setting, so any takeaways may be exactly what the studio wants them to be most notable being that the film tone appears to differ strikingly from that of the critically derided Batman v Superman, which TIME critic Stephanie Zacharek wrote is topheavy with false portent that it buckles under its own weight. That said, here are the most noteworthy observations from last week set visit:.
To put that into context, the 3 0 third round victory at Peterborough United in January 2013 was so comfortable it was achieved with the great Harry Kane as an unused substitute. Except he wasn’t the great Harry Kane then, he was an untried on loan youngster who was actually taken off at half time in round four as City stumbled out of the competition at Carrow Road to non league Luton Town. That’s where these five years of hurt, to paraphrase Baddiel and Skinner, began..
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TCHC is joining with ACH Child and Family Services, MHMR Paving the Way and CitySquare to focus more attention on youth homelessness, including ways to address it. On Oct. Following the film, director Rotimi Rainwater who was homeless as a youth himself will be on hand for a community conversation on the experiences of homeless youth.
How would you feel if someone judged you about your weight? Or how manly you are? It makes me sad to see how judgmental everyone is becoming. Just stop and think about if it was you in one of those pictures or your friend or brother/sister or parent. Would you be hurt by these comments? I know I for sure would be.
Corporations hold the key to cleaning up FIFA. American prosecutors accuse soccer officials and marketing executives of channelling cash from sponsorship and media rights deals into their own bank accounts. Big companies will always pay up to attach their brands to hugely popular global sporting events.
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Five new plays to be premiered as part of the Jump Start Performance Programme
Published Friday, 3rd March 2017
On Sunday March 12, five new pieces of work will be premiered at 7pm at The Hive.
These plays, which are all new works, have been chosen as part of the Jump Start Performance Programme to boost writers and performers. The five pieces that will be shown are a mixture of straight plays, performance art pieces and even a film. It promised to be an exciting and eclectic evening and it's free too. The pieces are:
Steve Wilson - ‘Looking for Zebras’
Mike Sheath - ‘Suffer The Children’
Amanda Bonnick - ‘Daneshift’
Georgina Bull - ‘About a Girl’
Zoo Indigo short film
University of Worcester students - ‘Bad Connection’
Jump Start is an initiative driven by the Worcestershire Arts Partnership to create new work for theatre by either new or established writers and theatre companies. It aims to provide support for the arts in Worcestershire by providing both a networking and showcasing opportunities for artists of all disciplines.
The Performance Programme is now well established and allows theatre companies and writers the chance to show new work to audiences to get feedback and to also develop the work further. Each piece is around 15 minutes in length and will either be an extract or a completed first draft.
In the past plays have gone on to be developed and be taken on tour and thus Jump Start plays an important role in that that journey. Jump Start is part of the Resilience Priority which forms part of 1000 Days, the County Arts Strategy.
Steve Wilson, County Arts Officer said: "I am really delighted that Jump Start is coming to the Hive for what I am sure will be a great night"
Lee Farley, Perfect Circle Theatre and University of Worcester, added: "Jump Start goes from strength to strength. It's a brilliant opportunity to try out your new text work or an idea for a project. We've had a great night every time, shared some fantastic exciting work and got some really useful feedback from audiences."
Admission is free and as well as the pieces themselves there will be a Question and Answer session for writers and audiences.
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home of distinction When Ken and Denise bought the home, it included a defunct dumbwaiter that proved to be one of the most interesting challenges of the renovation. The manufacturer had long gone out of business, so it couldn’t be repaired. It was replaced with a pneumatic vacuum eleva-tor from Port City Elevator that maintains the same footprint, preserving space while adding functionality. A pneumatic vacuum elevator uses air pressure to move the passenger cab up and down inside an airtight tube. In addition to taking up less space than a traditional elevator, it is energy-efficient and quiet. Catherine was able to find handrails that worked with both the modern feel of the elevator design and the relaxed, beachy aesthetic of the home’s redesign. The fireplace mantle is Denise’s favorite detail of the renovation. It was fashioned from a board salvaged from the old Crystal Pier, a place the whole family enjoyed on vacations as the children were growing up. Denise spotted a picture at Re-eco Design in Wilmington that had been made from salvaged wood from the pier and inquired about lumber that might be purchased for a modern hearth with a piece of Wrightsville Beach and family history. Replacing a defunct dumb-waiter, the pneumatic vacuum elevator saves space and adds convenience. 62 WBM january 2020
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XML Daily Newslink . Wednesday, 01 October 2008
A Cover Pages Publication http://xml.coverpages.org/
Provided by OASIS and Sponsor Members
Edited by Robin Cover
This issue of XML Daily Newslink is sponsored by:
Primeton http://www.primeton.com
Microsoft Prepping Preview of REST Support, App Server Improvements
OASIS Emergency Management TC Submits EDXL-RM and HAVE Specifications for Standardization
Netflix REST API Supports Atom and OAuth
Spring and Apache CXF: Create a RESTful Web Service
Apache Xerces Project Releases Xerces-C++ 3.0.0
Ajax Validation with Struts 2
Open-Source CodeSynthesis XSD Version 3.2.0 Released
John Fontana, Network World
Microsoft on Wednesday said it plans to significantly increase its support for REST as part of three technologies it will preview later this month that contribute to building a foundation for supporting Web 2.0 and composite applications. At its annual Professional Developers Conference Microsoft will hand out to attendees "community technology previews" (CTP) of Windows Workflow Foundation (WWF) 4.0, Windows Communication Foundation (WCF 4.0) and a set of technologies code-named Dublin that begin to turn Windows application server into a host for composite applications. REST is a way to build simple interfaces for services and is a lightweight alternative to the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) used in many Web services today. With Dublin, Microsoft is turning its Web application server into a platform to host those applications. Dublin will provide code as pre-built services including message-based correlation, message forwarding service, content-based message routing and compensation service for long-running transactions. Dublin also will work in conjunction with BizTalk Server and integrate with "Oslo," Microsoft's forthcoming modeling platform that is a highlight for PDC. Users building Oslo models will be able to deploy those on Dublin... One important step for developers is improved support for REST interfaces in WCF 4.0 and a REST Starter Kit. There is a running debate among developers comparing Microsoft's WS-* stack of Web services protocols, which are mostly based on SOAP, and REST, which is a more lightweight mechanism for lashing together services. The Starter Kit will ship with WCF in the .Net Framework 4.0 and provide Visual Studio project and item templates including: REST Singleton Service, REST Collection Service, ATOM Feed Service, Atom Publishing Protocol Service and HTTP Plain XML Service. WCF 4.0 also includes messaging enhancements around UDP and MQ transport technology, and protocols support for SOAP over UDP, WS-Discovery, and WS-BusinessActivity. Microsoft also plans to use XAML, its declarative XML-based language, to integrate WCF and WWF, giving developers the ability to build entire applications in XAML... [Note related information in Microsoft's 'Dublin' App Server Tied to .NET 4.0.]
See also: the Microsoft announcement
Sukumar Dwarkanath, Patti Aymond, Rex Brooks, (et al., eds), OASIS Committee Specifications
The OASIS Emergency Management Technical Committee (EMTC) has submitted two approved Committee Specifications for considered as an OASIS Standards. This TC was chartered to design, develop, and release XML-based standards that provide a framework for interoperability among diverse emergency information systems. The "Emergency Data Exchange Language Resource Messaging (EDXL-RM) 1.0" specification provides a set of standard formats for XML emergency response messages. The goal of the EDXL project is to facilitate emergency information sharing and data exchange across the local, state, tribal, national and non-governmental organizations of different professions that provide emergency response and management services. EDXL will accomplish this goal by focusing on the standardization of specific messages (messaging interfaces) to facilitate emergency communication and coordination particularly when more than one profession or governmental jurisdiction is involved. ED-XL Resource Messages are specifically designed as payloads of Emergency Data Exchange Language Distribution Element- (EDXL-DE)-routed messages. Together EDXL-DE and EDXL-RM are intended to expedite all activities associated with resources needed to respond and adapt to emergency incidents. The Distribution Element may be thought of as a "container". It provides the information to route "payload" message sets (such as Alerts or Resource Messages), by including key routing information such as distribution type, geography, incident, and sender/recipient IDs... The "Emergency Data Exchange Language (EDXL) Hospital AVailability Exchange (HAVE) Version 1.0" specification defines an XML document format that allows the communication of the status of a hospital, its services, and its resources. These include bed capacity and availability, emergency department status, available service coverage, and the status of a hospital's facility and operations. In a disaster or emergency situation, there is a need for hospitals to be able to communicate with each other, and with other members of the emergency response community. The ability to exchange data in regard to hospitals' bed availability, status, services, and capacity enables both hospitals and other emergency agencies to respond to emergencies and disaster situations with greater efficiency and speed. In particular, it will allow emergency dispatchers and managers to make sound logistics decisions - where to route victims, which hospitals have the ability to provide the needed service. Many hospitals have expressed the need for, and indeed are currently using, commercial or self-developed information technology that allows them to publish this information to other hospitals in a region, as well as EOCs, 9-1-1 centers, and EMS responders via a Web-based tool... [Note the announcements for EDXL-RM and EDXL-HAVE]
See also: HAVE
Michael Hart, Netflix API Developer Blog
"On behalf of the Netflix API team, I'm very excited to announce the release of the Netflix API and to launch this site for our developer community... The Netflix API includes a JavaScript API, REST API and ATOM feeds. Use of the API is free and we even allow commercial use. Web applications can use the JavaScript API to easily integrate basic Netflix service capabilities, such as allowing a subscriber to add a title to his queue without visiting the Netflix web site or start watching a title instantly. The REST API provides finer-grained access to a very wide range of Netflix service capabilities and lets your application control the user experience. If you can perform a function on the Netflix website, it's likely available via the REST API. Use this API to access rich metadata around our 100,000 title catalog, tap into rich user activity, manipulate DVD and instant queues and get title recommendations. The REST API uses standard OAuth authentication to allow applications to safely access the Netflix service on a subscriber's behalf without requesting his user name or password. A simpler subset of OAuth can be used to access REST API resources that do not require subscriber authorization, such as the catalog. The API also includes a variety of ATOM feeds that allow easier sharing of subscriber activity including queue usage, ratings, reviews and rental history. The feeds can be accessed programmatically using the REST API, which means your users no longer must cut-and-paste feed URLs or security tokens into your applications. While OAuth is required to access a subscriber's list of feeds, the feeds URLs themselves have embedded security tokens making them accessible to applications that don't support OAuth..."
See also: WebProNews
Rajeev Hathi and Naveen Balani, IBM developerWorks
This article explores the features and benefits of using the Representational State Transfer (REST) architecture and illustrates the use of the REST API in CXF to easily develop a RESTful service. CXF is an open source Web service framework that provides a simple API to conveniently build and develop a Web service. A Web service can be very complex because Web service development involves implementing various infrastructural components, such as Web Services Description Language (WSDL) and SOAP, which in turn bind to various other standards. Every Web server that offers a Web services solution has to invest a lot in terms of creating a robust Web service infrastructure model. From the point of view of developers, it becomes increasingly complex to learn the technology. But never fear! REST comes to the rescue. RESTful Web services are simply XML-over-HTTP services. Unlike a usual Web service, which has various contracts to be defined and negotiated between the provider and consumer, RESTful services encapsulate data in a simple XML form and transport it over HTTP just like a Web page request to the Web server. REST is more of an architecture than an implementation or a standard. The REST architecture style is related to a Web resource, which is a representation identified by a Uniform Resource Indicator (URI). The resource can be any persistent entity, including Order, Customer, Employee, and so on. The client queries or updates the resource through the URI and, therefore, influences a state change in its representation. In simple terms, a client program can access, update, add, or remove a Web resource through URI using various HTTP methods, thereby changing its representational state. HTTP methods include GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE... RESTful HTTP provides a unique concept to the way resources are accessed and manipulated and a completely new dimension to Web service development. With Web-based development becoming more popular and common, REST technology is only going to get better.
Staff, Apache News Online
Members of the Apache Xerces Project development team have announced the availability of Xerces-C++ Version 3.0.0. This release is available in source code and as pre-compiled libraries/examples for several platforms and architectures. Xerces-C++ is an open-source validating XML parser written in a portable subset of C++. It provides DOM (level 1, 2, and 3), SAX, and SAX2 APIs and supports validation of XML documents against DTD and XML Schema. Xerces-C++ makes it easy to give your application the ability to read and write XML data. A shared library is provided for parsing, generating, manipulating, and validating XML documents. The parser provides high performance, modularity, and scalability. Source code, samples and API documentation are provided with the parser. For portability, care has been taken to make minimal use of templates, no RTTI, and minimal use of #ifdefs. The parser is used for: building XML-savvy Web servers, building next generation of vertical applications that use XML as their data format, on-the-fly validation for creating XML editors, ensuring the integrity of e-business data expressed in XML, and building truly internationalized XML applications. Xerces-C++ Version 3.0.0 is interface-incompatible with Xerces-C++ 2.8.0 and contains a large number of improvements, bug fixes, and clean-ups. For example: (1) Autotools-based build system for the UNIX/Linux/Mac OS X platforms; (2) Project files for VC++ 9; (3) Support for the ICU transcoder in VC++ 7.1, 8, and 9 project files; (4) libcurl-based net accessor; (5) Support for XInclude in DOM; (6) Support for both XPath 1 and XPath 2 models in the DOM XPath interface; (7) Support for the XML Schema subset of XPath 1 in DOM; (8) Conformance to the final DOM Level 3 interface specification; (9) Ability to provide custom DOM memory manager as well as tune the global DOM heap parameters; (10) All public and widely used interfaces as well as a large portion of the implementation were converted to be 64-bit safe; (11) Various XML Schema fixes including the fix for the large maxOccurs and minOccurs bug as well as for the changed ##other interpretation; (12) Reviewed and cleaned up diagnostics messages; (13) Optimizations for SAX/SAX2 and DOM parsing as well as XML Schema validation.
See also: the Apache Xerces Project Charter
Oleg Mikheev, Java World
In this article the author looks under the hood of the Struts 2 validation mechanism and shows you how its Java, JavaScript, and Ajax support can take the pain out of Web-form validation. Web applications often require user input, which can range from simple username/password values to data entered into a complex form with dependent fields. The task of validating Web-form input is often more complex than implementing the logic to execute on the data after it's submitted. A validation framework can help simplify validation coding—and the more complex your validation rules, the more pain the framework can spare you. Apache Struts was one of the first Web application frameworks designed to automate Web forms processing, and it is the best-known. This article explores the powerful form-validation options offered by Struts' successor, Struts 2. The key component in XWork is Action. Action is basically a class that contains the code that you want to execute on a specific request originating from the browser. Another important XWork component is Interceptor. As its name suggests, Interceptor intercepts calls to Action to do more processing on them—a mechanism quite similar to the concept of aspect-oriented programming (AOP)... The validation framework looks for an XML validation configuration whose name is 'ActionClass-validation.xml', where ActionClass is the name of the related action class. The validation configuration must be located in the same package as the action class itself. Because a single action class can be used in different actions, is is possible to have a validation configuration for each of the actions, in which case the file should be named ActionClass-ActionName-validation.xml. Struts 2 supports object-oriented programming concepts and considers validation configurations for all classes that the action extends and all interfaces that it implements... The real power of the Struts 2 validation framework is unveiled when it comes to more-advanced validation use cases. In lots of situations a field value depends on another field value. For example, suppose you want a special age rule applied if name field's value is Joe. Struts 2 has a special validator capable of resolving Object Graph Navigation Language (OGNL) expressions. OGNL is a powerful expression language that lets you crawl Java object graphs...
See also: the Struts 2 web site
Boris Kolpackov, XML-DEV Posting
Developers have announced the release of CodeSynthesis XSD 3.2.0. CodeSynthesis XSD is an open-source (GPL2 + proprietary license), cross-platform W3C XML Schema to C++ data binding compiler. Provided with a schema, it generates C++ classes that represent the given vocabulary as well as parsing and serialization code. You can then access the data stored in XML using types and functions that semantically correspond to your application domain rather than dealing with elements, attributes, and text in a direct representation of XML such as DOM or SAX. CodeSynthesis XSD supports both in-memory and event-driven processing models by implementing two C++ mappings: C++/Tree and C++/Parser. The C++/Tree mapping represents the information stored in XML documents as a tree-like, in-memory object model. The C++/Parser mapping generates parser skeletons for data types defined in XML Schema. Using these parser skeletons you can build your own in-memory representations or perform immediate processing of XML data as it becomes available. CodeSynthesis XSD is available on IBM AIX, GNU/Linux, HP-UX, Mac OS X, Solaris, and Windows. Supported C++ compilers include: GNU g++, HP aCC, IBM XL C++, Intel C++, Sun C++, and MS Visual C++. Major new C++/Tree features in this release includes support for locating object model nodes with XPath queries, automatic assignment of namespace prefixes during serialization, polymorphism-aware object model comparison and printing, generation of non-copying constructors, and support for the fractionDigits/totalDigits facets during serialization. For the C++/Parser there is support for generation of the XML Schema namespace into a separate header file; reduced usage of virtual inheritance results in a much smaller object code size and faster C++ compilation.
See also: the project web site
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Document URI: http://xml.coverpages.org/newsletter/news2008-10-01.html — Legal stuff
Robin Cover, Editor: robin@oasis-open.org
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Plame retaliation
There is a good article by Peter Bergen on fruitcake Laurie Mylroie, the half of the Gruesome Twosome who is not currently in jail (Judy now has a use for her toothbrush shiv). One paragraph caught my eye:
"Mylroie has also recently taken on the role of defender of Ahmed Chalabi, the head of the Iraqi National Congress, who is accused of providing fraudulent information about Iraq's WMD programme and passing intelligence to Iran. In May, in the conservative newspaper the New York Sun, Mylroie described Chalabi as the victim of a 'longstanding grudge' by the CIA."
The fact that they are fighting the CIA has been a long-standing theme of the neocons. The battle between the Bush Administration and the CIA reached its peak when the CIA was officially excluded from National Security Council meetings, a mighty strange decision when you think about it.
Which leads me to three questions about the Plame Game:
Why did Judith Miller discuss the matter with someone in the White House, and then not write about it?
How does Novak continue to slide through this mess without facing any legal problems?
Why would the White House attempt to get revenge on Wilson by the rather clumsy, and potentially dangerous, dirty trick of outing Plame?
From an article in the Washington Post:
"Sources close to the investigation say there is evidence in some instances that some reporters may have told government officials - not the other way around - that Wilson was married to Plame, a CIA employee."
"It is a felony to knowingly identify a covert CIA operative. But lawyers for some media say they believe Fitzgerald has no evidence that a government official committed that crime."
The theory would be that somebody in the White House was complaining to Miller about the fact that Wilson had embarrassed the White House by raising the Niger matter after the attack on Iraq, and by chance, due to her knowledge of the proliferation beat, Miller then disclosed to this White House official that Wilson was married to an undercover CIA proliferation expert named Plame. The crime in question can only apply to someone "having or having had authorized access to classified information that identifies a covert agent", so Miller's gossip, not being 'authorized access', would not be enough to fit under the statute. It is a nice question whether you can fall back under the statute if you use the gossip to then seek out the kind of 'authorized access' referred to in the statute, but Fitzgerald probably doesn't want to press the point. If Fitzgerald lacks the basis for a prosecution under the statute, he'd have to be going after somebody for perjury (or even treason), and the vehemence with which he is attacking Miller suggests that he really needs Miller's evidence to back up Cooper's evidence in making a perjury charge. Cooper's source gave Cooper a specific waiver to keep Cooper out of jail, something the source could afford to do as long as Miller keeps quiet.
The Novak question is answered if Novak is a CIA asset.
Which leads to the final question. What if the White house was furious with the CIA for setting them up on the Niger matter? After all, it was the CIA which picked Wilson for the job. It was the CIA which complained about Bush's October 2002 speech and had reference to the Iraq-Niger connection removed, and it was the CIA which complained about the 2003 State of the Union speech when the Niger claim mysteriously reappeared. However, the CIA had seen a draft of the State of the Union speech and had said nothing about it. Then, at a time to cause maximum political embarrassment, after the attack on Iraq, Wilson raised the matter again. Is it little wonder that the paranoids in the White House saw this series of events as a CIA dirty trick? That explains the fact that the initial spin was that Plame herself had suggested Wilson. That is probably not true, but it is quite possible that Rove and the others believed it to be true, as part of a CIA plan to undermine the neocon case for an attack on Iraq. When that plan failed, the next step was to use Wilson to embarrass the White House as part of the ongoing war between the CIA and the neocons. Once the White House made its big mistake in going after the CIA through outing Plame, Novak's column, which covers all the elements of the criminal offence, represents the final stage of the CIA attack. By going after Plame, the White House wasn't just attacking Wilson, but making it clear to the CIA that it would not hesitate to attack CIA undercover operations as part of the battle between the neocons and the White House. Looked at this way, what the White House did was much closer to treason - intentional undermining of the 'war on terror' (which must fit into the Patriot Act somewhere) - than mere perjury.
Novak's column led to the discussion of whether a crime had been committed, and ultimately to Fitzgerald's investigation and the Grand Jury. It appears probable that somebody lied in testifying in order to cover up for the outing of Plame, which is funny if you consider that the outing of Plame may not have been a crime (it's always the cover-up that gets them!). The lesson in all this is that you don't ever want to get into a dirty tricks food fight with the CIA, or you might end up covered in pie.
Lawrence of Arabia on insurgency
The birth of the Shi'ite Empire
Bin Laden's escape from Tora Bora
Has anything said by the London police been true?
Appeasement and legitimate grievances
The more they tell us, the less we know
Don't shoot - I'm not Brazilian
Shoot-to-kill
Jean Charles de Menezes
The murder of an Asian man
London duds
Turki Bush
The Israelification of Britain
Hasib Hussain's magical pants
Who provided the London warning?
More headline wars
The reason for suicide bombers
Who are the British authorities trying to protect?...
The corn ethanol scam
Thomas Friedman, Zionist Liar
The Unified Theory of the Corruption of the Bush A...
Phony terrorists
A sandwich for Allah
London oddities
The insane war on terror
Yet more on the London bombs
Tony and George G-8 Comic
The birth of the London bomb Official Story
Right-wing bombing in London?
Peter Power's corporate wargames
Rove, Luskin and Cooper
The only practical response to the bombs
Peripheral London bomb matters
More on London bombs
London bombs
Marwan Al-Shehhi from 11 to 175
Everybody - except the Iranians - wants regime cha...
Garry Trudeau on blogging
The American Dream in Denmark
How will they get Rove off?
Top 50 essential Canadian songs
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Miracles Of Almighty Allah
Our anchor is the Quran, our Holy Book and the abundant knowledge and wisdom
on life, science, nature, etc within it.
If you wish to see a REAL miracle Read the Quran.
You are about to witness a miracle of Allah. Please look carefully.
RUKU PICTURE--- (Act of Bowing to Allah)
This is a recent Miracle discovered in the forest near Sydney (Australia). This tree is bowed in a posture of Mu slim's prayer. Moreover, the tree is bowed directly to the direction of Kaa'ba at Mecca (the Holy Mosque in Saudi Arabia). Closer sight shows Turban on head and even the shape of the hands touching the knees. Also Scientists noticed that there is not a sign of any artificial shaping of the tree. ALLAH-U-AKBAR!
KALMA PICTURE-----
The branches clearly say in Arabic that - there is no God but Allah, and Muhammad (P.B.U.H.)is the Messenger of Allah. This is said to be a scene on a piece of cultivated farmland in Germany. Many Germans have been said to have embraced Islam upon seeing this miraculous sight. The German government has put steel fences around that part of the farm to prevent people from visiting and witnessing this miraculous site.
SUBJECT : From Quran Surat Ar-Rahman Ayah 37 and the Hubble Telescope via NASA See the attached picture file, the RED ROSE NEBULA, see what Quran said at Surah 55 (Ar-Rahman), Ayah 37!We see it now in the years 1999/2000! and Quran mentioned it almost 1400 years ago. The picture is taken by the NASA Hubble Space Telescope of the "Cat's Eye Nebula." It is an exploding star 3,000 lightyears away. They should have called it the "Oily Red Rose Nebula." As the Quran states in Ar-Rahman, "When the sky is torn apart, so it was (like) a red rose, like ointment." Quran[Surah55:Ayah37]
THE FISH TESTIFIES FOR THE PROPHETS
The story of fish began when Mr. George Wehbi, a Christian lebanese was practising his fish hobby, in Dakar,(the Capital of West Africa). He caught many fish. When he went home his wife saw among them a strange fish about 50 cms in length, with some Arabic writing on it. he took it to Sheikh al-zein, who read clearly what was written in a natural way, that could not be done by a human being, but rather a Godly creation which the fish was born with. He read "God's servant" on its belly and "Muhammad" near its head, and "His Messenger" on its tail.
Mosque Still Stands Still after an Earthquake.
A Mosque still stands after an earthquake in Turkey. Even though all the buildings beside it have been destroyed. This earthquake took place in the western Turkish town of Golcuk, 60 miles from Istanbul, in August 19, 1999.
Kalma written in Lungs
This picture shows us
that LA ILAHA ILLALLAH
MUHAMMAD RASOOL
ALLAH is written in our lungs.
In 19 June 1999 Mr L. Storey from London, England attended a Transmission Meditation workshop led by Benjamin Crème in London. The following day he discovered a stone with Arabic writing on it, on a pile of clothes in his bedroom. It took him a while find someone to read it for him, when he did he was amazed to hear it read: "I bear witness there is only one God, and I bear witness Mohammed was his Prophet."
It is a honey comb found by a
bee keeper.
The name of allah is formed by the clouds as seen below.
ALLAH has always shown us Miracles but we always ignore them, but now it's time we get awake or else we will loose every thing. I hope it will strengthen our faith.
CHIEF MOALLIM & CHIEF GADDI NASHIN
CARE TAKER OF DARBAR SHARIF
SHAH SYED ZAKARIA GURDEZI
S/O SHAH SYED ADBUL GHANI GURDEZI
KHWAJA MAHAL GURDEZI HOUSE & BANGLADESH BARI
KHWAJA MAHAL STREET
AJMER-305001
E-MAIL:- zakariagurdezi@ziaratekhwaja.com
zakariagurdezi@gmail.com
Mobile: - 00+91+9829073492,
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Ed Sheeran “Remember the Name” With Eminem and 50 Cent: Listen to New Song
Tony M. Centeno
David M. Benett / Jeff Spicer / Dominik Bindl, Getty Images (3)
50 Cent and Eminem reunite on "Remember the Name," a new song from Ed Sheeran's Collaborations No. 6 album.
On "Remember the Name," which dropped in the U.S. on Friday (July 12), Sheeran does some light rapping on the track while 50 and Em come with some bars about their come up.
50 Cent has been telling his followers about his collab with Sheeran and Em since last year. Back in December 2018, the Power creator revealed that he recorded a new song with his former Shady Records boss and the pop singer.
"I recorded a song last night with Eminem & ED Sheeran, I had fun doing it we got some heat. #lecheminduroi #bellator," 50 Cent said about the collaboration in December 2018.
Then, last month, Sheeran revealed the star-studded tracklist for his upcoming No. 6 Collaborations, which features "Remember the Name" and other joint efforts with Cardi B, Chance The Rapper, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie and more.
This is Eminem's second record with the singer. In 2017, Sheeran appeared on Em's "River" from the Detroit rapper's Revival album.
Listen to "Remember the Name" below.
See 10 Rappers’ Purchases That Broke the Bank
Source: Ed Sheeran “Remember the Name” With Eminem and 50 Cent: Listen to New Song
Filed Under: 50 Cent, Bangers, ed sheeran, eminem
Categories: Music, News
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Tag Archives: American Volunteer Group
White House: Putin’s Inner Circle ‘Going to be Affected’ By New Sanctions
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/04/27/white-house-putins-inner-circle-going-to-be-affected-by-new-sanctions/
Rumor: Obama puts Putin on “Double-Secret Probation”
U.S. Beefs Up Military Options for China as Obama Reassures Allies in Asia
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304163604579528122105809740?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424052702304163604579528122105809740.html
Since Obama is cutting the Military back to “Pre-WW 2 levels”, does this mean we will see a new version of the American Volunteer Group ???
Today’s Islamic Extremism the Fault of Bush and Blair? Former PM Pushes Back Hard
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/04/27/todays-islamic-extremism-the-fault-of-bush-and-blair-former-pm-pushes-back-hard/
Sounds like the Obama-controled media is not only blaming George W. Bush for Obama’s problems, but now they are blaming the former British Prime Minister.
The Obama Administration must be desperate !!!
United Nations Elects Iran to Women’s Rights Commission
http://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2014/04/27/iran-wins-seat-on-un-body-that-presses-for-womens-rights-n1829437
Get the U.S. out of the U.N. & the U.N. out of the U.S. !!!
CAIR, Allies Campaign to Cleanse Truth From 9/11 Museum
http://www.clarionproject.org/analysis/cair-allies-campaign-cleanse-truth-911-museum
Al-Qaeda Declares ‘We Must Eliminate the Cross’
http://www.clarionproject.org/analysis/al-qaeda-declares-we-must-eliminate-cross
Britain is a ‘post-Christian’ country says former Archbishop
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-27177265
Sharia in America: Democrats and Muslim Legislators seek to criminalize free speech
Our free speech is threatened by Islamic supremacists and their Democrat lapdogs under the guise of “hate speech.”
http://powderedwigsociety.com/2014/04/28/hate-speech-liberal-unconstitutional-tyranny-first-amendment/
And the Islamists are pushing for a post-Christian America
L.A. Clippers Owner to GF: Don’t Bring Black People to My Games
http://www.tmz.com/2014/04/26/donald-sterling-clippers-owner-black-people-racist-audio-magic-johnson/#ixzz30BV9U26Z
In all the hubbub, I have not heard anyone mention this man’s First Amendment right of Freedom of Speech. If you disagree with what he said (and I think most do) you can refuse to patronize his business and you can refuse to work for him, BUT YOU CANNOT DENY HIM HIS FREEDOM OF SPEECH as GUARANTEED by the CONSTITUTION !!!
This is the EXACT REASON the First Amendment was added to the Constitution – TO ALLOW AMERICANS TO EXPRESS UNPOPULAR IDEAS without penalty !!!
GOP Leadership Plotting to Pass Amnesty in August, May Put Arizona, Texas in Play for Dummycrats
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/04/27/GOP-Leadership-Plotting-to-Pass-Amnesty-in-August-May-Put-AZ-TX-in-Play-for-Dems
GOP “leadership” is more interested in working for Democrats’ agenda than they are working for the good of America . . . Let’s forcefully retire them in November !
Immigration Overhaul for 2014: Decidedly Not Dead
http://www3.blogs.rollcall.com/218/immigration-overhaul-for-2014-decidedly-not-dead-says-diaz-balart/?dcz
ANOTHER PUSH FOR AMNESTY !!!
I believe the Dummycrats are so desperate that they want IMMEDIATE AMNESTY and a quick way to make ILLEGAL ALIENS into U.S. Citizens so they can vote for Dummycrats !
Report: Appeals court judges violated ethics laws
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_APPEALS_JUDGES_CONFLICTS_OF_INTEREST?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-04-28-00-05-22
The Holder Injustice System, best decisions money can buy
Obamacare deals blow to one-doctor medicine
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/apr/26/obamacare-deals-blow-to-one-doctor-medicine/
Welcome to the “joys” of Socialized Medicine !!!
New IRS bombshell: ‘Most audacious power play yet’
http://www.wnd.com/2014/04/new-irs-bombshell-greeted-with-near-silence/#51uiyjebpQoXsxXV.99
Recommitting to an America that Works
http://townhall.com/columnists/ricksantorum/2014/04/28/bemidji-woolen-mills-n1829458
Sarah Palin to GOP Establishment: ‘Get with It and Join Those Tea Party Patriots’
http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-TV/2014/04/27/Palin-to-GOP-Establishment-Get-with-It-and-Join-Those-Tea-Party-Patriots
In Maine, Rand Paul says GOP must grow to win
http://townhall.com/news/politics-elections/2014/04/26/rand-paul-confronts-gop-divide-in-maine-n1829801
Tea Party, Rand Paul Stomp Establishment in Maine GOP Convention Straw Poll
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/04/27/Tea-Party-Rand-Paul-stomp-establishment-in-Maine-GOP-convention-straw-poll
It’s Time For Congress to Take Back the Power to Make Laws
http://blog.heritage.org/2014/04/26/restoring-proper-balance/
How Affirmative Action Hurts Minorities
one of the highest Hispanics in the land argues that, without preference policies, minorities can’t hope to reach a proportionate participation in universities.
http://blog.heritage.org/2014/04/26/sotomayors-opinion-banning-racial-preference/
Where is the OUTRAGE? If a White man said, “without preference policies, minorities can’t hope to reach a proportionate participation in universities”, there would be HELL TO PAY !!! He would be saying that minorities are NOT EQUAL, that they are INCAPABLE of success without help, without “guidance” from Whites they can’t do anything on their own!
Since “one of the highest Hispanics in the land” has made that statement, does that mean it’s TRUE?
Remember: REPUBLICANS passed the Civil Rights Bill – the Democrats voted against it & TRIED TO BLOCK IT !!! Perhaps the headline should read:
“Supreme Court Justice says all minorities are helpless creatures – need help from Whites to survive”
Armed Agents.. Guns Pointed At American Citizens.. America’s New Normal..Read the rest of this Liberty Alliance article here: http://libertyalliance.com/2014/04/told-armed-agents-guns-pointed-american-citizens-americas-new-normal/#lvJgY4EQaijmY68s.99
Armed Agents.. Guns Pointed At American Citizens.. America’s New Normal..
Armed Federal Agents Pointing Guns at American Citizens, Over MONEY
A year ago… I told you our Department of Justice and the IRS were out of control… that our country was moving in the direction of a police state with these agencies using para military Gestapo tactics, raiding small businesses across the country and most importantly, pointing guns at innocent citizens accused of no crimes ….. pointing loaded guns at citizens whose bosses were accused of non violent white collar crimes… i.e. tax mistakes.
Since when is it okay for the IRS and Justice Department to point loaded guns at Americans over tax issues? JanMorganMedia.com
Obama’s new pardon chief funded ACORN
Steered money to litany of controversial, radical organizations
http://www.wnd.com/2014/04/obamas-new-pardon-chief-funded-acorn/#AlKB5aZHwjX5w4IB.99
The Climate Inquisitor
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/376574/climate-inquisitor-charles-c-w-cooke
Wayne LaPierre: Media Are ‘One of America’s Greatest Threats’
“Here’s how you know they’re lying: They still call themselves journalists,”
http://blog.heritage.org/2014/04/26/nra-leader-media-one-americas-greatest-threats/
Wayne LaPierre is RIGHT! The mainstream media is Obama’s Propaganda Ministry !!!
“Everyone is in favor of free speech; hardly a day passes without its being extolled. Some people’s idea of it is that they are free to say what they like, but if anyone else says anything back, that is an outrage.” – Sir Winston Churchill
This entry was posted in Uncategorized and tagged 9/11 Museum, ACORN, affirmative action, Affirmative Action Hurts Minorities, Al-Qaeda Declares, Allies Campaign, America, America’s New Normal, American Academy for Constitutional Education, American Volunteer Group, Appeals court judges, Arizona, Armed Agents, Armed Federal Agents, AVG, Barrack Obama, barrackObama, Benghazi, Britain is a 'post-Christian' country, British Prime Minister, CAIR, call themselves journalists, Central Intelligence Agency, CIA, civil rights, Civil Rights Bill, Climate Inquisitor, Common Core, Communist, Constitutional Convention, Convention of States, criminalize free speech, Democrats, Democrats and Muslim Legislators, Democrats' agenda, Department of Justice, Double-Secret Probation, Dummycrats, FBI, Federal Bureau of Investigation, First Amendment, Flying Tigers, former Archbishop, fourth amendment, free America, free speech, free speech is threatened by, free speech is threatened by Islamic supremacists, George W Bush, Glenn Beck, GOP establishment, GOP Leadership, guise of hate speech. Democrat lapdogs, Guns Pointed At American Citizens, Holder Injustice System, Hurts Minorities, illegal aliens, Immigration Overhaul, INCAPABLE of success, Iran, Iran to Women’s Rights Commission, IRS, IRS and Justice Department, IRS bombshell, Islam, Islamic Extremism, Islamic supremacists, Islamists, Israel, know they’re lying, lapdog media, law, law enforcement, lawsuits, legal, Liberals, Libertarian, Maine, Maine GOP Convention, Maine GOP Convention Straw Poll, Mainstream Media, Matt Bevin, Medicaid, Medicare, minorities are NOT EQUAL, minorities can’t hope, Most audacious power play yet, Nancy Pelosi, national security, new sanctions, news, Obama, Obama administration, Obama Reassures Allies, Obama's new pardon chief, Obama's Propaganda Ministry, Obama-controled media, Obamacare, Obamacare deals blow, One of America’s Greatest Threats, Options for China, para military Gestapo tactics, Patient Protection and Affordable Protection Act, patriot, patriotic, patriotism, Paul Revere, Paul Revere's Daily News Brief, Plotting to Pass Amnesty, Pointing Guns at American Citizens, police state, post-Christian America, pro-America, Progressives, Propaganda Ministry, PUSH FOR AMNESTY, Putin’s Inner Circle, radical organizations, raiding small businesses, Rand Paul, religion, religious persecution, religious rights, Republicans, Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin, schools, Sean Hannity, Second Amendment, Shane F. Krauser, Sharia in America, Sir Winston Churchill, Social and Economic, Socialist, socialized medicine, Straw Poll, Supreme Court, Take Back the Power, Tea Party, Tea Party Patriots, Ted Cruz, texas, U.N., U.S. Beefs Up Military, UN, United Nations, United Nations Elects, United States, violated ethics laws, Wayne LaPierre, We Must Eliminate the Cross, White House, without "guidance" from Whites, Women’s Rights Commission on April 28, 2014 by paulrevere1775.
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January 17, 2012 – The 2010 Presidentiables Blog reaches 1,000,000 hits
January 18, 2012 wawam Leave a comment
first post in this blog was in november 22, 2008. after 3 years and 3 months, 772 posts and 10,007 comments posted, the blog has reached 1 Million hits. that to us is a lot of zeroes and we are above ourselves that we got this far.
the blog had modest beginnings – just another blog talking about the upcoming presidential elections in 2010. the blog quickly got hits which we credit to the fact that this is one of the first blogs to use the term “presidentiables” as a blog name. it was a marketing decision. we thought getting a recognizable name and being first at it was going to be critical in getting readership. we thought it was natural for netizens to search for the word “presidentiables” to get information or news on the upcoming presidential elections.
the strategy worked.
1 Million hits was reached sometime in the evening of January 17, 2012
after the 2010 elections, we thought of closing down the blog. but then there were requests to continue it and thus we transformed the blog to talk about topics other than the election that was already concluded but also national issues in politics or governance. and those that concern the people.
we like to thank those who contributed to the 1 Million hits.
first post was in November, 2008
Categories: 2010 Presidentiables milestones, Celebrations Tags: 2010 Presidentiables, 2010 Presidentiables Blog, presidenitables, wawam blogs, WAWAM!
CoronaGate: day 1 Chief Justice Corona Impeachment Trial – opening statement for the defense by eduardo de los amheles
(Following is the full text of the opening statement of the defense, read by Atty. Eduardo De Los Angeles, in the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona at the Senate.)
Your Honors,
My Countrymen:
During the past few days, Prosecutors happily displayed pictures of the Bellagio and a list of some 45 properties, supposedly owned by the Chief Justice, to create the impression that he accumulated ill-gotten wealth. In fact, the Chief Justice owns only 5 real properties.
Yet, the Complaint, which contains 8 grounds for impeachment, does not accuse the Chief Justice of acquiring ill-gotten wealth. He is accused of graft and corruption only for refusing to account for the Judiciary Development Fund or JDF. Even with regard to his statements of assets, liabilities and networth or SALN, the issue is whether or not the alleged failure to disclose violates the principle of accountability.
The pictures of the Bellagio and the bloated list of titles are, therefore, irrelevant to this trial.
This impeachment finds its roots in President Aquino’s fight against corruption and his perception that the Supreme Court is a hindrance to his quest. He believes that the Supreme Court protects former President Gloria Arroyo. On the other hand, the defense believes that President Aquino is antagonistic to the Court because of its ruling in the Hacienda Luisita case.
The nobility of President Aquino’s fight against corruption cannot be questioned. It is respectfully submitted, however, that in his fight, the President and the Executive Department are duty-bound to scrupulously observe an abiding respect for the Constitutional rights of every one of us.
The 8 Articles of Impeachment can actually be classified into 2 categories. First, those that involve decisions of the Supreme Court (Articles I, III, IV, V, VI, VII). And, second, those that pertain to the non-disclosure of the SALN of the Chief Justice, and his alleged refusal to account for the JDF. (Articles II and VIII).
Let me first address the latter. Complainants accuse the Chief Justice of allegedly refusing to account for the JDF. The documentary evidence will prove the contrary. And, with respect to his SALN, the defense will establish that in accordance with law, the Chief Justice annually files his SALN with the Clerk of Court of the Supreme Court, who has legal custody of such documents. We shall show that the Clerk of Court is restricted from disclosing the SALNs by resolutions first issued during the term of Chief Justice Marcelo Fernan way back in 1989. In ligt of current developments, the Chief Justice has already caused these resolutions to be included in the agenda of the Supreme Court for re-evaluation.
With respect to the decisions, the complainants made a tally of selected cases to show that the Supreme Court was biased. This is not so. First, it is not fair to handpick decisions that supposedly favor the Arroyo administration; all the decisions of the Supreme Court must be considered. Second, there are several decisions against the former President and her administration. For example, in Islamic Da’wah Council of the Philippines v. Office of the Executive Secretary, the Chief Justice himself penned the decision declaring former President Arroyo’s Executive Order No. 46 null and void. Third, in any decision, the Supreme Court always bases its judgment on sound legal grounds.
Take the case of the Truth Commission. The defense will establish that the Supreme Court was not biased towards the Arroyo administration. Aming ipapakita na tama ang desisyon dito. Nilabag ng Executive Order No. 1 ang Equal Protection Clause dahil ang pag-imbestiga kay Ginang Arroyo ang tanging layunin ng Truth Commission. Moreover, the Supreme Court even suggested a cure for the defect by not limiting the probe to the Arroyo administration. But the Executive Department stubbornly refused to adopt such simple amendment.
The defense will also explain that when the Supreme Court issued a TRO enjoining Secretary Leila De Lima from enforcing her Watchlist Order, the Supreme Court acted in accordance with the Constitution and jurisprudence. Hukuman po lamang ang maaaring magbigay ng Hold Order kapag mayroon nang naisampang criminal case. Ngunit, noong panahong iyon, wala pang naisasampang criminal case si Secretary De Lima laban kay Ginang Arroyo kahit, bago pa dito, matagang nang naghain ng reklamo ang Akbayan for Plunder. Bakit naman po natin sinisisi si Chief Justice? Di po ba’t malinaw na ang Exective Department ang may pagkukulang sa kaso ni Ginang Arroyo?
I remember a Secretary of Justice who aimed to rid our country of corruption. His name is Jose W. Diokno. He secured several search warrants and raided the offices and homes of Harry Stonehill, a rich American businessman who was alleged to have bribed government officials. To set an example, Secretary Diokno sought to prosecute Mr. Stonehill. Using the search warrants, the raiding teams seizes truck-loads of incriminating documents, including a “blue-book” containing the names of the bribed government officials. Yet, after 3 days, the Supreme Court issued a TRO preventing Secretary Diokno from using all the seized documents. Tulad ng marami, nagtaka ako: paano ito nangyari? After I read the decision penned by Chief Justice Roberto Concepcion, I understood. The decision explained that the search warrants were void and the seized documents inadmissible in evidence because the warrants did not specify the things to be seized, as required by the Constitution.
The Stonehill case is strikingly similar to the crusade of President Aquino. In both, there are crusading officials who want to eliminate corruption. In both, the public overwhelmingly support these officials. In both, the officials unfortunately transgressed the Constitution. And in both, the Supreme Court stepped in and issued adverse and unpopular decisions because its task is to always uphold the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
The House also complains that the Chief Justice betrayed the public trust when the Supreme Court decided on the cityhood of 16 municipalities, the creation of a new district in Camarines Sur, and the conversion of the Dinagat Island into a province. Aba, nakakalimutan na yata nila na sila ang naglikha nitong mga batas na ito. Now that the Supreme Court has upheld what they did, sila pa ang nagagalit at nagmamadaling magsampa ng impeachment case laban kay Chief Justice. Ano bang kalokohan yan?
At eto pa po, sabi nila, this impeachment is not against the Supreme Court but aimed to make the Chief Justice accountable for his personal actions. All decisions are, however, rendered by the Supreme Court, never by the Chief Justice alone. Isa lamang po ang boto ng Chief Justice at hindi niya kontrolado ang ibang mga mahistrado. Each Justice votes according to his own opinion. Taliwas sa sinasabi nila Congressman Tupas, wala pong voting bloc dito.
Your Honors, in performing its responsibility under the Constitution, the Supreme Court as a co-equal branch of government is now being assaulted and criticized. It is our humble submission that in upholding the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice cannot be considered as obstacles to clean government or to the President’s vision to realize his “daang matuwid.” In upholding the Constitution and in safeguarding individual rights, the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice cannot be considered the enemies of the people. Precisely, they protect individual rights and therefore do not betray public trust.
Today, the House of Representatives and the Executive Department have joined all their might, power and resources to impeach the Chief Justice. This impeachment sends a chilling threat to the Supreme Court to withhold the exercise of its judicial power and just let the President have his way.
Unfortunately, his obsessive pursuit of his goal has, at times, resulted in the infringement of the law. It has also brought the branches of government into collision, and now it divides the nation. During this crucial moment in history, we fervently pray that you, our Honorable Senators will listen, consider the evidence and as your solemn oath declares, do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws of the Philippines.
May God Bless us all.
Categories: Chief Justice Renato Corona impeachment Tags: chief justice renato corona, corona impeachment trial, CoronaGate, eduardo de los angeles, renato corona
CoronaGate: Day 1 video of Chief Justice Renato Corona Impeachment Trial
Categories: Chief Justice Renato Corona impeachment Tags: chief justice renato corona, corona impeachment trial, CoronaGate, juan ponce enrile, philippine supreme court, renato corona
CoronaGate : Day 1 Chief Justice Corona Impeachment Trial – Rep Niel Tupas’ opening statement for the prosecution
January 17, 2012 wawam 1 comment
this is history being made at the senate in the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Corona. we will be posting the important speeches and developments in this blog.
Following is the full text of the opening statement for the prosecution, read by Iloilo Rep. Niel C. Tupas Jr., in the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona at the Senate
As public servants, we took an oath to uphold the people’s will at all times. All who hold positions in the government of our Republic are accountable for their actions. For the power of the sovereign Filipino people is a power that is higher than the Executive, the Legislative or even the Judiciary. And therefore, no matter how high and mighty one’s position may be, one can never, ever be beyond public accountability.
Today, we lay down before this impeachment tribunal the product of the collective voice of the people. Impeachment of Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona for betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, and for graft and corruption is the verdict in the House of Representatives. By issuing such verdict, we took the first step to accomplish our oath as the keepers of the people’s trust.
Let me be clear: We are not here to indict the Supreme Court as an institution, or to do battle with the judicial branch of government. We are here to search for the truth so as to restore the strength and independence of the judiciary. We are here because one man — Chief Justice Renato Corona — has bartered away for a pot of porridge the effectiveness, the independence, and the honor of the Supreme Court.
Mr. Senate President, your honors, one very important question before this honorable impeachment tribunal is, by what standards should Renato Corona be judged?
You only have to look at the Supreme Court itself to know the answer. As you climb its steps, you will see two statues. One of these statues is of Cayetano Arellano, the first Chief Justice, a man of absolute integrity, and of the deepest legal wisdom. The other is of Chief Justice Jose Abad Santos, who viewed his oath so sacred, and loved his country so deeply, he preferred to die at the hands of the Japanese rather than betray his country.
The Supreme Court itself, then, views the position of Chief Justice as beyond politics, beyond personal considerations, and always about putting honor and justice ahead of every other consideration. Pagkatao po ang ating pinag-uusapan dito. The Code of Judicial Conduct demands that a judge must be like Caesar’s wife — someone who must not only be pure but must be beyond suspicion at all times. Therefore, a Justice must be judged according to the highest standards. Against such standards, we then ask: Who is Chief Justice Corona? What kind of a man is he? Ano po ba ang pagkatao ni Renato Corona?
Chief Justice Renato Corona was a loyal servant to former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo from the time she became Vice-President in 1998 until she became President in 2001. Such loyalty had numerous rewards for the Chief Justice. Imagine, GMA paid for his back surgery. His wife was given plum positions in the John Hay Management Corporation. He was appointed Associate Justice, and the best reward of all, against all odds, he took a midnight oath as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
Corona’s appointment as Chief Justice also served an immoral purpose: that of shielding GMA from prosecution for her misdeeds during her presidency. The prosecution will show how Chief Justice Corona became the crowning glory of the cast of accomplices of former President Arroyo, and how he protected GMA’s interest in exchange for his position of prestige and power. This is at the heart of Article 1 of the Impeachment Complaint.
This unholy alliance between Chief Justice Corona and GMA, and Corona’s deep indebtedness to the former President culminated in the issuance of a temporary restraining order (TRO) to enable GMA and her husband to leave the country, and escape accountability. This is Article 7, Corona’s biggest favor yet to his benefactor. And in Article 4, we will show how the Chief Justice intervened in the impeachment case against former Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez also to protect GMA.
In Articles 3 and 5, we will show the lack of moral fitness of Chief Justice Renato Corona when he committed acts of impropriety involving parties with pending cases in the Supreme Court. His mockery of the disciplinary institutions of the Supreme Court in the plagiarism charge against a Supreme Court Associate Justice will be proven in Article 6. And in Article 8, we will show how he failed to account for the Judiciary Development Fund (JDF) and the Special Allowance for the Judiciary (SAJ), funds which are managed by the Chief Justice. Malinaw po: Kung gusto natin ng hustisya, hindi na dapat ipagkatiwala kay Chief Justice Corona ang pinakamataas na pwesto sa hudikatura.
And finally, we come to Article 2 where the prosecution will prove that Chief Justice Renato Corona amassed ill-gotten wealth after he was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2002. To give you an idea of this article, let me present to you some of the prized pieces of the Corona crown jewels:
Spanish Bay Tower, Bonifacio Ridge, acquired October 14, 2005, purchase price Php9,159,940;
McKinley Hill, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City, acquired October 21, 2008, purchase price Php6,196,575;
Bellagio I Tower, Taguig, acquired December 2009, purchase price of Php14,510,225;
The Columns, Ayala Avenue, Makati City, acquired in 2004;
One Burgundy Plaza – the building where Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo had a penthouse unit while she was Vice-President – acquired in 2003, purchase price Php2,758,000; and
Number 57 Maranao Street, La Vista, acquired in 2003, zonal valuation Php20.4 million, sold to his daughter for Php18 million.
The governing principle of our laws is clear: unexplained discrepancy between an official’s income and his assets, declared or undeclared, is prima facie evidence of ill-gotten wealth, and therefore, is an impeachable crime of graft and corruption.
The process of accountability is always a painful one. But the legislature is tasked by no less than the Constitution, the very expression of the people’s will, to undertake this sacred duty. And if at this instance, this is how we are called upon to be of service to our country, impeach we must. Mr. Senate President, your honors, we submit that Renato Corona, by his misdeeds, is unfit to remain Chief Justice.
In closing, the message of the House, as the representatives of the people, is the same as that given by Oliver Cromwell when he dismissed England’s Long Parliament on April 20 of 1653. Before God and country, we say: “It is high time for us to put an end to your sitting in that place, which you have dishonored by your contempt of all virtue, and defiled by your practice of every vice, you are an enemy to good government, as you have sold your country for a mess of pottage, and like Judas Escariot betrayed your God for a few pieces of gold. Depart I say, and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!”
Thank you and good afternoon.
Categories: Chief Justice Renato Corona impeachment Tags: chief justice renato corona, corona impeachment trial, CoronaGate, niel tupas, philippine senate
The 2010 Presidentiables Blog soon to reach 1 Million hits
it is just a few thousands more and this blog will reach an amazing 1 Million hits. it’s hard to imagine the number, how it looks or feels that netizens took to their computer to click to this log 1 million times. thank you to all the readers who made this possible.
Categories: Celebrations Tags: 2010 Presidentiables, wawam blogs, WAWAM!
“It’s More Fun In The Philippines” – new tourism slogan. pinoys will make the difference
January 6, 2012 xyz123 1 comment
the DOT, secretary mon jimenez in particular is explaining the new slogan for philippine tourism as you read this. live tweets from reporters in the venue have said this is the new international line : “It’s More Fun In The Philippines”.
we like the line. the power of the line rests on the key insight that tourists really want to have fun. it is the first and last goal of every tourist. filipinos too are fun to be with. we in fact can find humor in almost everything.
another core insight is what sec jimenez said – “It is the Filipino that completes the Philippine experience”. that could very well be the secret weapon of this new tourism campaign. the philippines do not have a monopoly of mountains, beaches and other tourists sites, every other country has one. but it is only in the philippines where filipinos are everywhere. it will be the filipinos themselves who will make a difference for tourists to enjoy themselves during their vacation.
a country can have the best beaches in the world, but a rude and an unpleasant encounter with the people will delete all that joy.
however, we have not seen the execution of the filipinos as key to the campaign in the ads so far. they are still about tourist spots. jimenez in his speech this morning and in other times have been talking about the importance of the contribution of pinoys to the success of the tourism campaign. we will need to see how this is executed in future ads.
the line is also a competitive line. it does not just say what the philippines is all about, it says the philippines is better than other countries in giving them what they want which is fun. in advertising terms, that is a powerful slant.
images from here : http://www.rappler.com/business/725-new-tourism-campaign-out-philippines-is-fun?utm_source=RapTwitter&utm_medium=Twitter&utm_campaign=SMTrack
but then again “#1forFUN” is included in the local line. this is not an original as it is in the amazon.com website.
first, we are unable to appreciate the need for a local line. this line, though simple is also in english. in twitter, singer and songwriter jim paredes of the APO said the tagalog translation of the international line also works very well – “Mas Masaya Sa Pinas” we agree with paredes. we think that is a great line for pinoys in the country.
we do not see any value in having two lines for the same thing. besides the line “#1forFUN” is not an original. we do not think it has any place in the slogan we want to use for the ocuntry.
so far pinoys seem to take to the line looking at the number of tweets it was able to get from everyone so much so that it was trending worldwide. practically all the tweets were positive with almost all giving their own example of why it is more fun in the philippines.
this is a far cry from the precious DOT chief who had to junk the line they developed where people were vjust divided plus the fact that there logo design was just too close to the the Poland tourism logo.
we will see how the ad agency will take this further if this line has legs.
the DOT also has a new website – http://www.itsmorefuninthephilippines.com/
~~a mindscape landmark~~
Categories: Celebrations, mindscape landmark, philippine advertising Tags: #1froFUN, carlo arvisu, department of tourism philippines, DOT, it''s more fun in the philippines, mindscape landmark, mon j jimenez, new philippine tourism slogan, philippine tourism
philippine department of tourism’s #1forFun – what is it? it is not original, plagiarized from amazon.com? again?
January 6, 2012 wawam Leave a comment
tonight, twitter was awash with “#1forFun” tweets that came from the country’s department of tourism (@DOTPhilippines) and re-tweeted by many pinoys. based on the tweets, the line seem to be the theme for the country’s new tourism ad campaign. these twitter activities is a teaser campaign for the launch of the country’s tourism ad campaign today at 10 am.
we could not figure out what the line is – is it a theme? a tagline? some branding? or just a hash tag for twitter? we wanted to find out, so we googled it and this is what we saw (click to see what we saw: http://bit.ly/xdX0Xr)
we went further and clicked the amazon.com link, and this is what is there (click: http://amzn.to/yh9VJS)
based on how we interpreted #1forFUN at amazon, it calls it a “storefront” or what we think means it is like a store within amazon that sell certain low priced “fun” items.
regardless of what it is in amazon, the line #1forFUN” is not an original. will the DOT run into trouble again with coming out a “copied” advertising component from another source? this already happened before, is it happening again?
let’s wait and see what the launch will be tomorrow.
plagiarism has been an issue with the DOT before, this one on the logo :
“Pilipinas Kay Ganda” logo plagiarized from Poland?
click here : http://bit.ly/y2AOR5
“Pilipinas Kay Ganda” fiasco – how to tie a rope around your neck and pull it
http://bit.ly/z8chAI
Categories: Kahindik-hindik, philippine advertising, philippine media Tags: #1forFUN, @DOTPhilippines, @MonJQuotes, department of tourism philippines, DOT, mon jimenez, monj jimenez, new philippine tourism ad campaign, philippine ad campaign, philippine branding, philippine tourism, philippine tourism ad campaign
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Posts Tagged ‘perlas for president’
May 15, 2010 shenbrood 10 comments
First of all, I would like to thank and congratulate 2010 Presidentiables Blog for giving me a chance to be part of this blog. There were heated exchanges during the campaign period but of course that is part of what election and politics is. Wawam had to be congratulated for his blog and I hope that in 2013 we will see another one of this kind. I also hope that this blog will continue and this time MONITOR THE PERFORMANCE OF THE WINNERS.
Now on with the article which I originally posted at The Delano Observer.
I would like to agree and borrow this quote from Carlo Angelo Vargas, “Nick is my cadidate but now Aquino is my president,” this statement calls for healing and seeing beyond the difference of election and serving for our country.
I would also like to say that I have the same view. With all honesty I do not like Noynoy Aquino. As I have said in my blog, “Pagod Ka Na Bang Maging si Juan?” he is not the best choice for president but the people have spoken and they choose him.
Noynoy Aquino has a very mediocre track record as a legislator and he fails compare to his parents but we should still give him the benefit of the doubt. We should not wait and ensure that we prove our suspicions true and that he commits every mistake possible.
What we should do is really find ways to help him as our new president. Let us remember that if he fails, it is not only him that will suffer but it is the whole country that will be affected.
Again I would like to quote Carlo, “Nick is my candidate but now, Aquino is my president. As my president, I will support him when he is right, and hold him accountable when he is wrong.”
I am a Filipino, I am Maharlika and I am for the best interest of our country and our people.
Categories: 2010 election results, 2010 philippine presidential election, Nicanor Perlas, noynoy aquino, presidentiables, The 2010 Presidentiables Blog Tags: 2010 philippine election, 2010 philippine presidential election, 2010 Presidentiables, Nicanor Perlas, nicanor perlas for president, Nick Perlas, nick perlas for president, noynoy aquino, perlas for president, Perlas ng Silangan, philippine 2010 presidentiables, philippine presidentiables, philippine presidential election, presidentiables
April 18, 2010 shenbrood 1 comment
Independent presidential candidate Nicanor Perlas on Wednesday urged the International Conservation Caucus Foundation (ICCF) to re-think its decision to grant a prestigious environmental award to President Gloria Arroyo.
In an open letter to the ICCF, Perlas said he was appalled by the decision to award Mrs. Arroyo with the prestigious Teddy Roosevelt International Conservation Award despite her checkered history in environmental conservation.
Perlas, a known environmentalist and president of the Partido ng Marangal na Sambayanan, said Mrs. Arroyo had previously stated that the pursuit of sustainable development and ecological balance “was anti-poor and should not be given emphasis.”
“The policies and programs of Arroyo’s presidency patently reveal that her administration has not given priority to the environment. She is reluctant to go against big corporations that cause environmental destruction because these companies’ commercial activities contribute to our GDP,” he said in the open letter.
The presidential candidate said that under the Arroyo presidency, fish pens thrived in Laguna de Bay, smoke-belchers continue to ply major thoroughfares and major environmental laws such as the Clean Air Act of 1999, the Clean Water Act of 2004 and Solid Waste Management of 2000 have not been implemented.
He also noted that the World Health Organization (WHO) has identified Metro Manila as the fourth most polluted city worldwide with a lead level that is more than three times the established safety limit.
Perlas said the ICCF could imperil its reputation if it confers the Conservation Award on Mrs. Arroyo.
“The award is given to those who have implemented conservation projects that safeguard biodiversity, protect habitats, and provide social benefits for communities. These accomplishments have clearly been neglected, even defied and defiled by Arroyo’s administration,” he said.
He added: “Honoring Mrs. Arroyo as an environmental steward is an affront to the Filipinos and the entire Philippine archipelago, which have borne the brunt of Ms. Arroyo’s venal, inequitable and destructive policies.”
Categories: 2010 philippine presidential election, Kahindik-hindik, Nicanor Perlas, opposition, politics in the philippines, The 2010 Presidentiables Blog Tags: 2010 philippine election, 2010 philippine presidential election, 2010 Presidentiables, Nicanor Perlas, nicanor perlas for president, nick perlas for president, perlas for president, Perlas ng Silangan, philippine 2010 presidentiables, philippine presidentiables, philippine presidential election, presidentiables
April 17, 2010 shenbrood 2 comments
If only there will be someone who can help us really inform people that A NEW PHILIPPINES IS POSSIBLE then more will know why we are voting and campaigning for Nick Perlas. Here is a video that could be the TV AD OF NICK PERLAS FOR PRESIDENT.
CLICK THIS LINK TO VIEW THE TV AD.
If you want to MAKE THIS TV AD POSSIBLE CONTACT US AT 09088-PERLAS (737527)
Categories: 2010 philippine presidential election, Nicanor Perlas, political ads, political tv ads, politics in the philippines, The 2010 Presidentiables Blog Tags: 2010 philippine election, 2010 philippine presidential election, 2010 Presidentiables, Nicanor Perlas, nicanor perlas for president, Nick Perlas, nick perlas for president, perlas for president, Perlas ng Silangan, philippine 2010 presidentiables, philippine advertising, philippine presidentiables, philippine presidential election, presidentiables
Presidential Aspirant Nicanor Perlas Calls for Election Postponement
Independent presidential candidate Nicanor Perlas and the Partido ng Marangal na Sambayanan (PANGMASA) called for a postponement of the national elections by three months during the presidential forum of Listen Mindanao at the Holy Cross University in Davao City this morning.
Perlas who warned the public of the strong possiblity of an ‘electronic Garci’ two months ago, said, “There is no way of determing the real winners of the automated election within 48 hours as the Comelec announced. The way things are being handled by the Comelec, the automated system will be the black hole of the election. Pushing through with the May 10 elections will just further plunge the country into chaos that is potentially violent.”
Nicanor Perlas cited the admission of the Comelec to glitches by an estimated 30% of the machines which will result in a manual count. He also mentioned that the Comelec admitted in a forum that the winners will not be known within 48 hours due to the sheer number of candidates. Moreover, he added, that absentee voting in Hongkong recently was marred by a malfunctioning machine that jammed and rejected ballots and that there is likewise a call for the review of the indelible ink contract and bidding process.
Section 5 of the Omnibus Election Code and Rule 26 of Comelec’s Rules of Procedure allow the postponement of election for serious causes that prevent the holding of a free, orderly, honest, peaceful and credible election.
“This election is suppose to resolve the legitimacy of the government that is under question due to the massive cheating and tampering of election results in 2004. But this is not going to happen the way Comelec’s preparations are going.The system is too complex. There are too many loopholes and too many changes even now with elections just three weeks away , that the electorate is not assured of a free, orderly and honest election.”, added Perlas.
Perlas in various presidential fora had earlier issued the warning of a repeat of the Garci scenario. “The probability is increasing every day for cheating facilitated by electronic devices. What will happen is that there may be an election but there will be failure of election.”, he stated. To avert such a failure, Perlas had proposed a manual count fall back option in a hybrid balloting, stating that even Germany and the Netherlands had scrapped automated elections after discovering that a high school student could hack the voting machines.
Nicanor Perlas is holding nationwide consultation and discussion with his supporters for possible actions in a failure of elections scenario.
Cecille Ferrer(Media)-02-6345058/09178997603/09155336185
Tammy Dinopol(Campaign)-09209064793
Dave D’Angelo (PANGMASA)-09165450452
Categories: 2010 philippine presidential election, filipino voters, Nicanor Perlas, opposition, presidentiables, presidentiables stand on issues, The 2010 Presidentiables Blog Tags: 2010 philippine election, 2010 philippine presidential election, 2010 Presidentiables, Nicanor Perlas, nicanor perlas for president, Nick Perlas, nick perlas for president, perlas for president, Perlas ng Silangan, philippine 2010 presidentiables, philippine presidentiables, philippine presidential election, presidentiables
GMA has more than one presidential bet – Perlas
Nicanor Perlas on an article published in “The Visayan Daily Star” revealed that Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has clearly more than one presidential bet. He based this revelation based on the current developments and his rival candidates body language.
Independent presidential candidate Nicanor Perlas yesterday warned voters to be careful about whom they vote for because President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo “has more than one horse in the presidential race.”
“She is a survivor, she wants to survive,” Perlas said at a press conference at the Business Inn in Bacolod City.
“The May 2010 elections is not going to be an ordinary election, it can plunge us back to a legal form of martial law or dictatorship,” he said, if the people are not careful about whom they elect for president.
There are a number of presidential candidates who are allies of Arroyo, it is not just administration candidate Gilbert Teodoro, and it is up to the public to figure out who they are, Perlas, who was campaigning in Bacolod City, said.
“It is so clear in the presidential forums, just see who avoid the questions on what they will do to GMA if they become president. It is very clear from the answers who are aligned with her,” he said.
He said if a pro-Arroyo president and a majority of her allies running for seats in the Lower House win, she will be able to become speaker of the House and move towards a parliamentary form of government.
Read full article here http://www.visayandailystar.com/2010/April/06/topstory4.htm
Categories: 2010 philippine presidential election, Nicanor Perlas, presidentiables, presidentiables stand on issues Tags: 2010 philippine election, 2010 philippine presidential election, 2010 Presidentiables, bagong Pilpinas, Nicanor Perlas, nicanor perlas for president, Nick Perlas, nick perlas for president, perlas for president, Perlas ng Silangan, philippine 2010 presidentiables, philippine presidentiables, philippine presidential election, presidentiables
Nicanor Perlas has topped all of the Green Surveys so far
April 9, 2010 shenbrood 3 comments
Nick Perlas the greenest candidate drives the E-Jeepney used in campaign sorties
Environmental advocacy groups EcoWaste Coalition and Greenpeace in the first 4 parts of its Green Electoral Initiative (GEI) survey about the environment has consistently ranked Nicanor Perlas as the greenest presidential candidate.
The latest survey released in time for “Araw ng Kagitingan” place Perlas on top garnering an average of 9.5 points. The latest results show their respective positions when it comes to energy development in the country.
While all of the survey participants want coal energy phased-out, and almost all of them are against the proposed re-commissioning of theBataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP), some of the candidates’ responses regarding the use of nuclear power and the disposal of nuclear wastes were non-committal. Exceptions to this are Nicanor Perlas and Senator Jamby Madrigal, who answered clearly that they are against nuclear power. Senator Richard Gordon, on the other hand, favors going nuclear.
Perlas pointed to energy efficiency (EE) andrenewable energy (RE) as solutions to the country’s energy challenges, instead of turning to nuclear power. “I am convinced that the Philippines does not need nuclear power and the massive social and environmental costs that go along with it. We can supply the country’s need for energy using energy efficiency and green energytechnologies.”
The full detail of the survey can be browsed at the official website of the EcoWaste Coalition by clicking here.
On previous surveys Perlas also ranked top on Clean Water, 8.7 points; Ban on Plastic Bags, 8.3 points; and Lead and Toxic Metal on Paints, 9.1 points.
Categories: 2010 philippine presidential election, Nicanor Perlas, presidentiables Tags: 2010 philippine election, 2010 philippine presidential election, 2010 Presidentiables, bagong Pilpinas, Nicanor Perlas, nicanor perlas for president, Nick Perlas, nick perlas for president, perlas for president, Perlas ng Silangan, philippine 2010 presidentiables, philippine presidentiables, philippine presidential election, presidentiables
Nicanor Perlas: Meaning of Easter
Philippine society is dying. The Filipino soul is sinking. There is massive corruption, poverty, conflict, joblessness, sickness and hopelessness all over the land. Millions are seeking and longing for a very different Philippines, one that is alive, dynamic, progressive, peaceful, just and moral. What is the new going to be based on? Where is the power to create the new going to come from?
This is where Easter comes in. Christ overcame the sting and horror of death, forever. With His victory, we now all have the capacity to overcome what is dead in ourselves, especially our doubts, fears and hatred. Only when we overcome these death forces inside can we have to power to resurrect and create the new outside, in ourselves and in our society. We cannot continue to be the victims of the death forces of the past. We have to access the resurrection forces of the future. Only this Resurrection power can allow us to build a new politics, a new Philippines. But we have to have the courage to die first so that the new can emerge and live. This is the meaning of Easter: the occasion not only to celebrate this power of resurrection within us, but also the occasion to make it real and effective in the world.
Categories: 2010 philippine presidential election, advocacies, Celebrations, Nicanor Perlas, presidentiables Tags: 2010 philippine election, 2010 philippine presidential election, 2010 Presidentiables, bagong Pilpinas, Nicanor Perlas, nicanor perlas for president, Nick Perlas, nick perlas for president, perlas for president, Perlas ng Silangan, philippine 2010 presidentiables, philippine presidentiables, philippine presidential election, presidentiables
Sen Bato De La Rosa’s visa cancelled! and Sen Manny Pacquiao’s???? twitter.com/ancalerts/stat… ... wawam tweeted 54 minutes ago
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Freddie Gibbs & Madlib Make Grand Return with ‘Bandana’ Album
blame it on Shake June 28, 2019
Freddie Gibbs and Madlib are officially back at it!!
Five years after Piñata took over our collective worlds, the emcee/producer duo have finally returned with their second collaborative album, Bandana–released through Keep Cool, a subsidiary of RCA and Sony Music, in tandem with ESGN and Madlib’s Invazion.
“This is what we’ve been waiting for and what we’ve been grinding for,” Gibbs said about the major label move. “This is an opportunity to compete with the best on the best level. I could run circles around these little independent n—as all day. I want to be up there with the top echelon rappers because that’s what the fuck I am.”
The second release of a planned trilogy (Montana is up next) that mirrors a Quentin Tarantino filmography where disconnected movies share key elements, Bandana finds Gibbs’ introspective, auto-fire raps feeling right at home over Lib’s dusty, exuberant production.
Showcasing the chemistry that’s only improved over the last half decade, the album wasn’t in need of any outside contributions, but with a guest like that includes Black Thought, Pusha T, Yaasin Bey, Anderson .Paak (“Giannis“) and Killer Mike, it’s hard to argue against it. And when you hear a verse like Pusha’s on “Palmolive,” you realize they’d be absolute fools to have them excluded. Good lawd, he smokes that!
Press play below and be sure to add Bandana on whatever streaming service you choose. The album is also available on vinyl.
Freddie Gibbs & Madlib Make Grand Return with ‘Bandana’ Album was last modified: June 28th, 2019 by Shake
Tags:2dope, freddie gibbs, madlib
Mustard Drops ‘Perfect Ten’ Album
Valee Updates ‘Runnin’ Rich’ Album With New Tracks, Features
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Spacemacs
— Alex Reinhart and Christopher Genovese
An editor is a general-purpose tool for editing files and many other tasks. An IDE, or Integrated Development Environment, provides an interface and tools for managing projects in a specific language or framework. Both have advantages as environments within which to construct your software, and in reality you will probably use some mixture of the two.
There is an enormous variety of editors and IDEs available. Some popular IDEs include RStudio (for R), PyCharm (Python), Eclipse (Java), Cursive (Clojure), IntelliJ (JVM languages), VisualStudio (C++), and WebStorm (JavaScript). Jupyter provides a notebook interface for Python and several other languages, with some IDE tools.
Text editors are more general. Here are a few to choose from, plus some tips and resources for each.
RStudio #
Available from RStudio.com. RStudio Desktop is free and open source and works on Mac, Windows and Linux.
(Okay, so this is an IDE, not just a text editor, but it’s important enough.)
An integrated development environment for R, featuring integrated help features, an R console, a plot viewer, and support for R Markdown. RStudio is the most widely used editor for R code; if you plan to use R a lot, you may want to give RStudio a try.
RStudio has support for Git, meaning you can use menus and buttons to run Git commands from inside RStudio. View the documentation for more details.
RStudio can show code diagnostics – like a grammar checker for your code, these diagnostics point out spacing problems, bad indentation, and other style issues. View the documentation to see how to turn them on.
Visual Studio Code #
Available from Microsoft. Free and open source, works on Mac, Windows, and Linux.
A fairly new, popular text editor for many programming languages. Supports extensions that add support for new languages (such as an R extension and a Python extension), and has built-in Git support.
To set Visual Studio Code to be default editor for Git, for editing commit messages, run this command:
If you use Visual Studio Code on Windows, we recommend the following settings:
"terminal.integrated.shell.windows": "C:\\Program Files\\Git\\bin\\bash.exe",
"r.rterm.windows": "C:\\Program Files\\R\\R-3.5.1\\bin\\x64\\R.exe"
Run the command R --version in Git Bash to get your R version (such as 3.5.1) and ensure the r.rterm.windows setting above matches that version number.
Atom #
Available from Atom.io; free and open source. Works on Mac, Windows, and Linux. Made by the same people who run GitHub.
Similar to Visual Studio Code in that it has plugins and integrated Git support (what else would you expect from the GitHub people?). Unfortunately the R plugin is not actively maintained, but many other languages have good plugins you can use.
Emacs #
Available from GNU for Windows, Linux, and macOS. A version built specially for macOS is available separately and preferred by some people. Can also be installed on macOS through homebrew. Free and open source.
Chris and Alex both use Emacs. It has a somewhat fanatical following, best explained by this quote from Neal Stephenson’s 1999 piece In the Beginning was the Command Line (also recommended reading):
I use Emacs, which might be thought of as a thermonuclear word processor. It was created by Richard Stallman; enough said. It is written in Lisp, which is the only computer language that is beautiful. It is colossal, and yet it only edits straight ASCII text files, which is to say, no fonts, no boldface, no underlining. In other words, the engineer-hours that, in the case of Microsoft Word, were devoted to features like mail merge, and the ability to embed feature-length motion pictures in corporate memoranda, were, in the case of Emacs, focused with maniacal intensity on the deceptively simple-seeming problem of editing text. If you are a professional writer – i.e., if someone else is getting paid to worry about how your words are formatted and printed – Emacs outshines all other editing software in approximately the same way that the noonday sun does the stars. It is not just bigger and brighter; it simply makes everything else vanish.
Emacs can be molded, through packages and custom code, to do just about anything. Emacs Speaks Statistics provides support for editing R and an interactive R console; Magit is probably the best Git interface ever integrated into a text editor; and there are packages for everything from editing Python to sending email to playing Tetris. Another killer feature is Org mode, the system we use to write lecture notes, and which is great for managing to-do lists, outlining ideas, and taking notes.
However, Emacs has been under development since the 1970s, and carries much of its history around. (The Emacs Git repository has history that stretches back over 30 years, before the invention of Git, and has more than 130,000 commits and 600 committers.) It predates standard keyboard shortcuts like Ctrl-S and has its own ideas about user interfaces. It takes a while to understand Emacs’s way of working and learn how to use it. You will be able to make it do anything you want, but you must be willing to put in some effort to learn how to do so. The effort will be repaid in the end.
Some resources:
Mastering Emacs is a book describing effective use of Emacs; its reading guide describes the best way to start learning.
Emacs Rocks! – a series of helpful emacs videos
The Emacs manuals are extensive and detailed.
Spacemacs is a fancy adaptation of Emacs to make it feel more modern and integrated.
The Emacs Prelude, a bundle of pre-configured packages and shortcuts to start your Emacs with.
better-defaults, a set of small tweaks and packages to make Emacs behave better out of the box.
We are, of course, happy to help you with any Emacs questions you have. But try not to get so caught up in customizing Emacs that you don’t get any actual work done.
Vim #
Available here, but likely already installed on your computer – it comes with Git Bash for Windows, is included on Mac OS X, and is included with most Linux distributions. Free and open source. It is notorious because most people can’t figure out how to even exit it.
Vim is minimal and simple, focusing on making motion through and manipulation of text fast and powerful. It supports extensions written in VimScript. By default it doesn’t have much fancy stuff, like an R console or diagnostics, but this can be added with plugins.
Vim users, accusing Emacs of being too large and complicated, accuse it of being “a great operating system, lacking only a decent text editor.” Vim claims to be the decent text editor needed.
Vim comes with a program called vimtutor, which guides you through a tutorial.
The Vim Tips Wiki is, well, a wiki full of tips.
Vim Adventures is a game which teaches you the basics of Vim.
Spacemacs #
Spacemacs is a pre-customized version of Emacs that integrates many of the best features of Emacs and Vim. It is easy to use, easier to learn, well designed. It remains fully customizable but offers a customization layer for typical users that makes it easier to add the functionality you want.
Sublime Text #
Available here. Proprietary software, costs roughly $70 for a license. A popular and nice looking editor with many slick features.
Statistical Computing
Lecture notes for CMU Statistics & Data Science’s course for Masters and PhD students.
Assignment Instructions
Programming Rubrics
Programming Language Resources
Writing Command-Line Programs
Documenting Your Code
Errors and Exceptions
Interpreters and Compilers
High-Dimensional Data
Graph Traversal
Simulation Methods
Database Fundamentals
Connecting to the Database
Using SQL from Code
Rcpp
reticulate and rpy2
Python Tips
© Alex Reinhart and Christopher R. Genovese, 2019. This site is generated using Hugo 0.55.6 + Onyx
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Mercedes-Benz and Uber Advice
Buford 1
Engine Control Module For Mercedes SL 500
in Mercedes-Benz
MERCEDES W208 CLK 430 ENGINE AIR BOX
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in Mercedes-Benz, Alternators
Buford, Georgia
Are Rideshare Services Like Uber Legal?
in Uber Advice
When one thinks of city travel, taxis and new ride-sharing apps like Uber and Lyft often come to mind. We use them to get just about anywhere in the city. But are these rideshare businesses even legal? And how have they affected the long dominant taxi services? Learn More: Lyft, Uber Red Lighted in Pittsburgh Following Court Order http://panampost.com/panam-staff/2014... Pennsylvania Utility Commission Claims Ride-Sharing a Threat to Public Safety WHY THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY IS TAKING AIM AT UBER AND LYFT http://www.fastcompany.com/3032165/mo... RIDE-SHARING COMPANIES ARE FACING INCREASED REGULATION--WHICH COULD MEAN HIGHER FARES FOR THEIR CUSTOMERS. Uber Gets a Green Light to Operate in London http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2... Traffic snarled streets from London to Paris as thousands of taxi drivers gathered to protest ride-sharing service Uber. _________________________ TestTube's new daily show is committed to answering the smart, inquisitive questions we have about life, society, politics and anything else happening in the news. It's a place where curiosity rules and together we'll get a clearer understanding of this crazy world we live in. Watch more TestTube: http://testtube.com/testtubedailyshow/ Subscribe now! http://www.youtube.com/subscription_c... TestTube on Twitter https://twitter.com/TestTube Tara Long on Twitter https://twitter.com/TaraLongest Trace Dominguez on Twitter https://twitter.com/TraceDominguez TestTube on Facebook https://facebook.com/testtubenetwork TestTube on Google+ http://gplus.to/TestTube Download the New TestTube iOS app! http://testu.be/1ndmmMq... See full Video
$600 in 5 days so simple for new drivers
For new drivers try this method. If you drive for Uber or lyft even food delivery apps. Make $60 morning $60 evening/night 5 days straight. This will help you build your foundation and get the hang of things. Sign on LYFT BONUS $$$$ - http://www.lyft.com/drivers/TERRY312861 Sign on UBER BONUS $$$ - https://partners.uber.com/i/rnc9b My day by day work ethnic to $800 - $1,000 http://www.rideshare7.com/800-1000-on... Join my facebook group to make $800 - $1,000 https://www.facebook.com/groups/12440...... See full Video
Why protest UBER?
Why protest UBER? ... See full Video
Driving for Uber: You have to have hustle
in Uber Stories, Uber Advice
If your intrested in becoming an uber driver use my refferal code https://partners.uber.com/i/clintw1301ue Music Site: www.lordgam.com Instagram: @gam_muzik Facebook: Clint Gambyno ... See full Video
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Rocket failure astronauts will go back into space: Russian official
October 13, 2018 TechnologyASTRONAUTS, RUSSIAN ROCKET, SPACE X, VALVE FAILUREAsdiq Rana
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Two astronauts who survived the mid-air failure of a Russian rocket will fly again and are provisionally set to travel to the International Space Station (ISS) in spring of next year, the head of Russia’s space agency said .
Dmitry Rogozin, the head of Russian space agency Roscosmos, was speaking a day after Russian cosmonaut Alexei Ovchinin and American Nick Hague made a dramatic emergency landing in Kazakhstan after the failure of the Soyuz rocket carrying them to the orbital ISS.
Thursday’s accident was the first serious launch problem experienced by a manned Soyuz space mission since 1983, when a crew narrowly escaped before a launch pad explosion.
Russia is now under pressure to prove its space program is safe and received a boost when NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said he had full confidence in Russian-made Soyuz rockets and expected US astronauts to fly on them again.
Bridenstine, speaking to reporters in Moscow, also said he was confident that a planned Soyuz launch in December, which is due to transport three people, including one American, to the $100 billion orbital research laboratory, would happen.
Still, Moscow has suspended all manned space launches until it confirms exactly what went wrong and why, and Rogozin has ordered a state commission to investigate. Russian investigators have also opened a criminal investigation.
Sergei Krikalev, a senior Roscosmos official, said that Russia may also delay a planned unmanned cargo shipment by a Progress spacecraft to the ISS. Unmanned cargo launches carry food and other supplies to the ISS and use the same rocket system as the Soyuz. Russia says there is enough food on board to last until April.
Three people are now aboard the space station: a German, a Russian and an American. They were due to return to Earth in December, but may now be stuck there longer.
VALVE FAILURE
Roscosmos chief Rogozin posted a picture on Twitter of himself seated next to the two astronauts involved in Thursday’s accident, saying they had arrived in Moscow. Both men escaped unscathed and feel fine, Roscosmos and NASA have said.
Rogozin said both would fly into space again, probably in the spring. NASA’s Bridenstine said Hague, the US astronaut, had told him he wanted to fly again and that NASA had huge confidence in him but that he didn’t know when he might fly.
Thursday’s mishap occurred as the first and second stages of the Russian rocket separated shortly after the launch from Kazakhstan’s Soviet-era Baikonur cosmodrome.
The Interfax news agency cited a source familiar with the Russian investigation as saying that an important valve had failed to open due to a faulty firing cartridge. That in turn had hindered the separation of the first stage of the rocket from its second stage.
NASA has relied on Russian rockets to ferry astronauts to the space station since the United States retired its Space Shuttle program in 2011. The agency is waiting for the tests early next year of two commercial rockets, by SpaceX and Boeing.
“I think that by the middle of next year we’ll be flying crews on those rockets,” said Bridenstine.
NASA’s top official said it was unlikely the Russian rocket failure would speed up development of those rockets because work on them was already flat out, but said it underlined the need for the world to have more than one way of getting to the ISS.
“I think this demonstrates how important it is … not be dependent on one system or another system. This is an inflection point,” he said.
Space is an area of cooperation between the United States and Russia at a time of fraught relations. Bridenstine told reporters he didn’t expect political differences to impinge.
“To keep space separate from the political environment has been our tradition and we want to keep that,” said Bridenstine.
SpaceX to try rocket failure test again after bad weather delay
Facebook sued in US federal court for alleged anticompetitive conduct
Trump criticizes Apple’s encryption stance on Pensacola phones
Musk nears $346 million payday as Tesla market value soars
First Lunar eclipse of 2020 start tonight in Pakistan
← Tesla makes 7,400 Model 3s so far in October: Electrek Croatia hold wasteful England in empty stadium →
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VegNews magazine listens to its readers and apologizes... finally
Posted at 4/19/2011 12:16:00 PM df
Last week, the vegan community came to a halt when it learned that VegNews was using stock images of meat—passing the photos off as vegan items—in its magazine and on VegNews.com. Once word of the deception hit the wires, VegNews issued a statement.
In a fantastic article on the situation titled, "VegNews scandal: Mag takes heat for meat deceit," TDIV writer Elizabeth Gordon explained the statement:
In response to the public outcry over its deceptive practices, VN has posted an open letter to its readers. In the letter, VegNews states that they are "deeply saddened"—not by their own misconduct, as one might expect, but by "the dialogue that has transpired" since their fraud was exposed.
The letter's first 3 paragraphs are a strange mix of self-congratulatory and woe-is-me prose. Readers are reminded that the "labor of love" known as VegNews has "won numerous major magazine awards" (impressed yet?), and that it's accomplished this with "no funding or investors" to help cover its "exorbitant costs" (get out your hankies).
Vegans and non-vegans alike agreed that the statement was not sufficient, ridiculous in fact. (Okay there was a small segment of people who defended VegNews, but coincidentally many of the apologists happen to be contributors for the magazine.)
Monday night, VegNews released another statement to its readers… a true apology. And, they finally got it right: “We screwed up.”
Yes, VegNews, you did. You screwed up. And by swallowing your pride, cutting out the “Woe is me, we got caught” crap, and admitting error, you probably just saved your magazine.
In addition to an apology, VegNews took things a step further by stating, “We assure you that we will never again use non-vegan photographs in VegNews.”
Hallelujah! A vegan magazine with vegan photographs!
Obviously the apology and plan-of-action should have been released immediately. That being said, it’s never too late to say, “I’m sorry.” We all make mistakes and we are all guilty of doing stupid things now and then. For the most part, people are forgiving, and I think that VegNews will see that this apology is exactly what the readers needed and deserved.
Daelyn Fortney | @daelyn | email
Daelyn is the co-founder and managing director of the animal rights and eco-friendly news source, This Dish Is Veg. In addition to her work at TDIV, Daelyn homeschools her three daughters.
Photo credit: VegNews screen capture
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Live & Photos: Rob Zombie @ London Brixton Academy – 16 February 2011
Thrash Hits » Reviews » Live » Live & Photos: Rob Zombie @ London Brixton Academy – 16 February 2011
Can you believe it’ s been twelve years since Rob Zombie last performed in the UK? Just think in that space of time Machine Head went a bit shit and got good again, nu-metal died and came back, and Gary Glitter got caught being naughty abroad. Songs like ‘Dragula’ and ‘Superbeast’ are now 13 years old. Gosh that makes us feel ancient. With Joey Jordison back behind the kit, we knew this sold-out show was going to be too good to miss.
Six things we learned when Rob Zombie came to London:
Skindred are one of the best main supports you can get right now. They have the remarkable ability of being able to get any crowd jumping with excitement within seconds. Even when the sound isn’t great, and the guitars are almost entirely engulfed by the mid-frequencies of the drums, you can’t help but feel this band drastically improved your evening.
Rob Zombie has more than enough hits for a one and a half hour set. It’s pretty much wall-to-wall party anthems and interestingly only two songs from his former band’s catalogue, which goes to show how credible his efforts have been as a solo artist. Musically, not one boring moment.
13 Years Ago? #FML
When it comes to stage shows, not many can rival the likes of Alice Cooper, Rammstein and Iron Maiden. Rob Zombie is one of very few that can. There’ s fire, biomechanical robots, skeletons, Frankensteins, Nazi costumes, bubblegum balloons and marching band monsters. Visually, not one boring moment.
Rob Zombie has always injected his warped sense of humour into all his projects from his art to his music to his films. Tonight, there is a screen behind the band with black and white B-movie footage, including excerpts from his directorial debut House Of 1000 Corpses. The comical faux-trailer for Werewolf Women Of The SS is shown during the song, and it seems the absurdity of Nicolas Cage playing the role of Fu Manchu will never get old.
John 5 is one of the most versatile session guitarists around. Having already played for Lita Ford, David Lee Roth and Halford, John 5 has now cemented his place as Rob Zombie’s right hand man and co-writer in the band. The strong chemistry between them is evident on stage, especially when John cheekily plays the ‘Sweet Dreams’ melody instead of ‘Thunder Kiss ’65’ and Zombie threateningly reminds him that he could be back playing with Marilyn Manson. It’ s quite unusual for a show like this to have over five minutes dedicated to a guitar solo, but John 5 captivates the entire room’s attention with his neo-classical arpeggios and signature country shred licks.
Tonight’ s show was faultless in every single way and will be a strong contender for gig of the year. Rob Zombie is still one of the most energetic entertainers in music, and the John 5/Joey Jordison/Piggy D supergroup was every bit as tight as we expected. If you were unlucky enough to miss out on tickets for this tour, make sure you don’t miss a second of Rob Zombie’s set at Download 2011.
It’s not all about London-London-London here at Thrash Hits – we sent Gary Wolstenholme, our premier snapper, up to Glasgow to capture Rob Zombie’s flaming horrorshow in all its close-up gory detail.
Rob Zombie @ Glasgow 02 Academy - 20 February 2011 by Gary Wolstenholme
All Hail Jesus Frankenstein? Quite.
Rob Zombie @ Brixton Academy setlist:
Intro (Sinners Inc. – Sawdust In The Blood – Call Of The Zombie)
Jesus Frankenstein
Scum of the Earth
Living Dead Girl
More Human Than Human (White Zombie)
Drum Solo (Joey Jordison)
Sick Bubble-Gum
Demon Speeding
Mars Needs Women
Pussy Liquor
Never Gonna Stop (The Red, Red Kroovy)
Thunder Kiss ’65 (White Zombie)
Guitar Solo (John 5)
Werewolf Women of the SS
Lords of Salem
Live: A Day To Remember @ Brixton Academy – 05 February 2011 Photos + Live: Lamb of God, Dimmu Borgir, Unearth & Five Finger Death Punch @ London Brixton Academy – 14 February 2009 Live: Lamb of God @ London Brixton Academy – Saturday, 13th February 2010
Bands Rob Zombie
Album: Glamour Of The Kill – The Summoning Next Post »
Smashing Pumpkins bassists just can’t seem to stay out of the news
Photos: Therapy? @ Brighton Conchorde 2 – 31 March 2015
Photos: The Answer @ Brighton Conchorde 2 – 25 March 2015
Photos: Amon Amarth @ Brighton Conchorde 2 – 16 January 2015
Photos: Crossfaith @ Brighton Conchorde 2 – 18 November 2014
Photos: A Day To Remember + Lower Than Atlantis @ Brighton Centre – 15 November 2014
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Tiger Feng
Discover and Save Creative Ideas
55 Classy Black Nail Art Designs
Black is a commonly used color in nail art designs. Many people have tried black nail art designs. Black can be used alone or in combination with any other color. Black can be used on nails of any shape. Black coffin nails and black Stiletto nails are very popular.
In this article, we have collected 55 Classy Black Nail Art Designs. Some of them are Black Coffin nails, and others are Black Stiletto nails or Black Square nails.
Source: @nails_by_veve
Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7, Page 8, Page 9, Page 10, Page 11, Page 12, Page 13, Page 14, Page 15, Page 16, Page 17, Page 18, Page 19, Page 20, Page 21, Page 22, Page 23, Page 24, Page 25, Page 26, Page 27, Page 28, Page 29, Page 30, Page 31, Page 32, Page 33, Page 34, Page 35, Page 36, Page 37, Page 38, Page 39, Page 40, Page 41, Page 42, Page 43, Page 44, Page 45, Page 46, Page 47, Page 48, Page 49, Page 50, Page 51, Page 52, Page 53, Page 54, Page 55
Author adminPosted on July 1, 2019 Categories NailTags Black Nails
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• Many times the word "irony" gets misused. This is not one of those times.
• Fan Graphs crunched some numbers on Kenny Powers' career stats and calculated his Wins Above Replacement despite the fact that he "f***ing hates computers, all kinds."
• I hope she asks for the kidney back.
• If your sibling is significantly better looking than you, don't appear in front of cameras while wearing the exact same clothes.
• I'll be co-hosting "Twins Wrap" on 1500-ESPN again tonight with Joe Anderson, starting 40 minutes after the last out.
• If you're into schadenfreude, click here.
• On a related note, Ozzie Guillen will be back with the White Sox next season.
• It's tough to blame a guy too much for having crazy goals when he's already dating Rihanna.
• In a "worlds colliding" discovery, Jin from Lost diagnosed Kramer with gonorrhea on Seinfeld:
Also in the scene: Brian Posehn.
• One of my favorite stand-up comedians, Greg Giraldo, died Wednesday. September was an awful month for the comedy world, with the great Robert Schimmel also passing away.
• After a Fred Lynn-like rookie season doing FSN's weather updates during Twins games, Kate Bilo has taken a new job in Philadelphia. She'll be missed.
• Pittsburgh fired ex-Twins catcher Matt Walbeck after he won Double-A manager of the year.
• More than 40 percent of AOL's revenue still comes from people using their service through a dial-up connection, which is the most shocking thing I've heard since ... well, since I stopped using AOL's dial-up service like 10 years ago.
• Doc Rivers' son Austin Rivers is the top-ranked high school basketball player in the country and yesterday he committed to Duke. It surely had nothing to do with this.
• Phew, good to know that whole thing is finally settled. We're cool again, Germany.
• MLB.com has a mesmerizing video showing all 54 of Jose Bautista's homers in two minutes.
• Here's something to think about next time you read an article quoting "an unnamed scout."
• If you're unfamiliar with the brilliance of Karl Pilkington, this video is a good place to start:
And there's more where that came from.
• My main man Drew Silva wrote a lengthy article about the Cy Young award and everything that comes with it this season.
• On one hand, this is pretty cool. On the other hand, I have 20 of the real thing in my garage.
• YoYo Donuts and Coffee Bar opened recently and has really good donuts, which is bad news for fatso baseball bloggers who live a couple blocks away. I'm already into the place for $9.
• Friend of AG.com Ted Berg wrote a very touching, personal piece about life and baseball that you should probably read.
• If you're a student and a blogger, you can get a $10,000 scholarship.
• Here are some highlights from my NBCSports.com blogging this week:
- The Big Three could start 17 of 19 playoff games for the Phillies
- Pirates clinch MLB's worst record and next year's No. 1 pick
- Mariners "not thinking about changing the general manager at all"
- Pedro Feliciano becomes fifth pitcher in MLB history to make 90 appearances
- Matt Murton threatening to break Ichiro Suzuki's hit record in Japan
- "Setup man of the decade" Scot Shields pondering retirement
- Japanese outfielder Hitoshi Tamura "exploring" move to MLB
- Elvis Andrus is doing Vince Coleman-like things
- Rickey Henderson wants to be on the A's coaching staff
• Finally, this week's AG.com-approved music video is Sara Bareilles performing a live version of "King of Anything" on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson:
Karl Pilkington
Kate Bilo
Matt Walbeck
• A new season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia begins next week and after reading this I'm really looking forward to the "Sweet Dee Gives Birth at a Phillies Game" episode. So realistic!
• In fairness, she's really, really good looking.
• You might think someone who graduated from medical school would recognize the difference between the legend of Santa Claus and the reality of basic masonry, but apparently not.
• My bid of a gazillion dollars was rejected, for some reason.
• In case you thought MLB teams only disliked dealing with bloggers, check out the anti-media e-mail Mariners boss Howard Lincoln sent to team employees (at least one of whom leaked it to the media).
• In theory this is an amazing idea, but I'm sure it'll just lead to more people running over kids.
• If you watch the Twins on FSN you might recognize Kate Bilo as the attractive meteorologist who gives weather reports during games. She has sort of a cult following among certain fans, so Ben Collin interviewed her about her job and effective weather-related pickup lines.
• Sure, the story about his getting arrested for stealing drugs is sad, but I'm most upset about the state of Jim Neidhart's once-spectacular facial hair.
• Official Fantasy Girl of AG.com candidate Kate Beckinsale looks good enough that I'm willing to ignore the stupid hat.
• I've never seen this happen in a baseball game before, at least not unintentionally.
• Someone to keep in mind in case the Twins need rotation help next season.
• My cousin, Amy Gallop, is one of six finalists for the National Scholastic Press Association's "story of the year" contest in the "feature story" category, which is sponsored by the American Society of News Editors. In related news, the first "Top 25 Writers in My Immediate Family" poll of the season just came out and I'm in the "others receiving votes" group.
• Kent Hrbek left his mark on Target Field while playing in the Twins' "legends game."
• I'm not really sure how to describe this video, but I'm definitely sure you should watch it:
I never realized hip hop had so many rules. Or such amazing uniforms.
• If you're a fan of Mad Men, photo-shopping, and crying ad executives it's your lucky day.
• For whatever reasons Robert Schimmel never quite reached the level of stardom his talent warranted before dying last week at age 60 following a car accident, but he ranks among my favorite stand-up comedians and was one of the greatest radio guests of all time.
• Not a single girl from my Hebrew school made this list. In related news, I worked yesterday.
• Tiffany Simons may or may not live in Craig Calcaterra's basement.
• All joking aside, I bet everyone did think it was fly when girls stopped by for the summer. For the summer.
• Tweets about Justin Bieber take up three percent of Twitter's servers. I'll assume the other 97 percent is for my tweets about Bert Blyleven's announcing and Delmon Young's defense.
• Crazy stat of the week: Zack Greinke has a 3.77 ERA over 165 career starts and the Royals are 68-97 in those games.
• On a related note, Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times explains why assuming a pitcher with a great record "knows how to win" is bullshit.
• Buck Showalter apparently likes lying a whole lot more than he likes Keith Olbermann.
• Livan Hernandez narrowly missed the cut for this list by Joe Posnanski, ranking 14,582nd.
• I once owned a Nick Van Exel jersey, so this makes me feel old and happy simultaneously.
• At this point, I'm looking forward to Kimbo Slice's inevitable fight with James Toney.
• MinnPost will soon be celebrating its third anniversary and I'm proud to be a very small part of what is a great website.
• Sidney Crosby can hit a little bit too.
• Alan Sepinwall put together a handy list of all the fall television premiere dates for new and old shows.
• Happy one-year blogiversary to On the road with ... Shawn Berg.
- Jim Thome ties Frank Robinson for eighth place with 586 homers
- Hells Bells: Trevor Hoffman notches 600th career save
- Chris Sale is thriving in the White Sox's bullpen three months after being drafted
- Domonic Brown isn't playing for the Phillies, so he'll likely play winter ball
- Cubs owner Todd Ricketts films "Undercover Boss" episode
- Jeremy Hellickson named Baseball America's minor league player of the year
- Shin-Soo Choo hoping to avoid military service by playing for South Korea in Asian Games
- Homefield advantage and drawn-out NLDS schedule would be huge for the Phillies
- Travis Hafner quietly having a good, healthy year in Cleveland
• Finally, this week's AG.com-approved music video (sort of) is Sam Cooke performing a cover version of "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" by Duke Ellington:
Kent Hrbek
Robert Schimmel
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'Delete your account': Hillary Clinton responds to Donald Trump's Twitter attack
NEW YORK -- Hillary Clinton is hitting another campaign milestone: Most retweeted tweet.
"Delete your account," her campaign wrote, in response to a message from Donald Trump mocking President Barack Obama's endorsement of the presumptive Democratic nominee on Thursday.
Obama just endorsed Crooked Hillary. He wants four more years of Obama—but nobody else does!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 9, 2016
Delete your account. https://t.co/Oa92sncRQY
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) June 9, 2016
The message quickly went viral, getting retweeted 130,000 times in about an hour. "Delete your account" is a typical joke used on the social media site, often deployed when someone has failed to be funny.
Trump, who's known for his brash voice on the site, has 8.76 million followers to Clinton's 6.6 million.
The exchange prompted reactions from across the political spectrum.
"If anyone knows how to use a delete key, it's you," replied Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, in a reference to the messages Clinton deleted from the private server she used for her correspondence at the State Department.
.@HillaryClinton If anyone knows how to use a delete key, it's you.
— Reince Priebus (@Reince) June 9, 2016
Former New York Rep. Anthony Weiner also weighed in, tweeting: "Too late to for some of us." Weiner resigned his seat in Congress after sexual messages he sent over the social media site became public.
Trump also responded, echoing Priebus' sentiment.
How long did it take your staff of 823 people to think that up--and where are your 33,000 emails that you deleted? https://t.co/gECLNtQizQ
politicsdonald trumptwitterhillary clinton
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White House whack at UK media well-timed but sure to be ignored
Posted by admin | May 30, 2009 | Articles, Media, Politics | 21 |
‘Joe Public’ is a mythical figure often used by journalists to indicate what is sometimes termed the ordinary man in the street. But I wonder what ‘Joe Journalist’ might be thinking of the whacking administered to the British press by White House press secretary Robert Gibbs.
I imagine, especially right now with the UK political class in retreat over the continuing onslaught over MPs’ expenses, that JJ’s little chest will have puffed up a little with pride that they can get under a skin even as perfect as that which coats Barack Obama.
For be in no doubt that Gibbs’s whack will not have been some kind of freelance spasm in response to the Daily Telegraph report that quoted a retired general describing photographs which allegedly showed US soldiers in Iraq raping and sexually abusing prisoners. It will have been a reflection of President Obama’s view, either directly expressed when Gibbs asked him what he should say if asked, or absorbed in meetings where he heard his views being expressed.
JJs on the Telegraph in particular will have felt the attack was further evidence of the roll they’re on, and the mini earthquakes it is causing. So cause for journalistic celebration.
Obama’s spokesman has thus far established a tone, much like his master, that is calm and authoritative, not prone to wild or excessively colourful outbursts. But his response to the Telegraph report was this … ‘If I wanted to read a write-up today of how Manchester United fared last night in the Champions League Cup (sic) I might open up a British newspaper. If I was looking for something that bordered on truthful news, I’m not sure it would be the first stack of clips I picked up.’
Later he said ‘I think if you do an even moderate Google search, you’re not going to find many of these newspapers and truth within, say, 25 words of each other. I hate to lend any more credibility to nonfactual reports.’
Meanwhile over at the Pentagon, a spokesman was saying ‘none of the photos in question depict the images that are described in the article.’
Joe Journalist will have scoffed into his cafe latte this morning, snorted that ‘they would say that wouldn’t they, and hey, we got the expenses story right, so we’ve probably got the abuse story right too. After all, we know there has been abuse before…’
But a little deeper thought might lead to a conclusion that reputationally, the British press is not in the healthy state it imagines itself to be when the spokesman for the most popular politician on earth, and the most powerful, feels able to be so dismissive of our newspapers, broadsheet and tabloid alike.
This is a view that will have formed long before the expenses volcano erupted. I know Obama was genuinely shocked at the way the British press covered Gordon Brown’s visit to the White House, when so much focus was given to the question of whether or not it was a snub that they did not have a bells and whistles joint press conference. And that he was shocked when shown examples of the ultra negativity against GB in our papers, again before expenses.
Nobody can dispute that the expenses situation is a real story, a genuine scoop for the Telegraph, and one with significant and lasting consequences. It was a purchase of information with a large cheque book in dubious circumstances. I’m not saying I would not have done the same when I was a journalist, had I had the chance, but let’s not pretend it was a victory for great investigative journalism.
Far from showing up the best in our media, in a way it has led to more evidence of the worst. Everything covered – broadsheet, tabloid, broadcast alike – at the level of frenzy, with headline point sizes normally reserved for the outbreak of war used to indicate another backbench MP fiddle; with no other political story at all getting a look in on the agenda; with no MPs other than those seen to have made mistakes or committed misdemeanours getting print or air time – unless they will slag off their colleagues, or say their party or their profession is finished.
I pointed out a while back how MPs expenses seemed to have cured swine flu – or at least the frenzy that it unleashed for a while. But now it is the global economic crisis that appears to have vanished too. Only it hasn’t, and if there was but a modicum of debate on it, people might see that decisions taken by UK policy makers were having an effect for the good.
But that doesn’t fit the agenda. The agenda is expenses, bad for Labour, bad for Brown, bad for politics, let’s tear it all up and start again, and let’s pump up only the stories that fit that agenda, right up to the local elections, which will be bad for Labour, bad for Brown, bad for politics, and we can keep on the expenses agenda right through to when all these inquiries are complete and the Commons finally get round to publishing everything. And that should take us nicely through to the conferences and then the pre-campaign for the election and we’ll have MPs bowing out left right and centre and a whole new set of faces to play with, and with luck we may be able to get away without doing anything about serious policy issues at all.
No wonder that Dave, despite all the embarrassment of his wisteria and his MPs, is smiling. He’d rather be on this than on policy.
PreviousElvis has a plan to make MPs King again
NextLet Diversity inspire a vote against the hate-filled BNP
Huge thanks to the BBC3 audience of mentally ill youngsters for re-igniting my passion
Cameron should announce wide-ranging press inquiry as soon as he gets to his feet
Is Nick Clegg already playing Prescott to Dave and George’s TB-GB?
Nick Booth on May 30, 2009 at 1:56 pm
The expenses story was a victory for journlaism and investigation, but not for our big institutions of news. The Telegraph didn’t stick its kneck out when the hard work needed doing, they just took a cheque book out when the glory needed getting.
Credit for the campaigning and the journalism ought to go to Heather Brooke and the people she shared the risk with.
http://www.yrtk.org/
Andrew Bell on May 30, 2009 at 1:57 pm
This exactly why we need you Alastair, GB’s lot are useless. Come on AC, any chance??
morph366 on May 30, 2009 at 1:58 pm
But that doesn’t fit the agenda. The agenda is expenses, bad for Labour, bad for Brown, bad for politics, let’s tear it all up and start again, and let’s pump up only the stories that fit that agenda,
You sound like the Clinton’s whining about the right wing out to get them in the early 90’s. Maybe it’s on the agenda because people have had enough of Brown and Labour.
Not that I give a hoot about Cameron’s lot either.
By the way who do you think is going to win Britain’s Got Talent?
Jason on May 30, 2009 at 1:58 pm
Now you see Alistair I’ve seen the exact opposite to what you’re suggesting. From papers which have slavishly devoted themselves to not questioning ID cards, ignoring police abuses against protest, buying the line about how free trade and high house prices will save us all, we’re now experiencing a realisation that that entire edifice was a fabrication. The last straw was the expenses scandal and it’s now the focus of just how discredited most (clearly not all) of the political class is. Gordo wasn’t responsible for the economic crisis? Yes he was. He wasn’t responsible for the expenses scandal? Yes he was. He hasn’t been responsible for the drive to illiberal politics of control? Yes he has. And his disinterest in fixing these things is underscored by his refusal to sack disreputable cabinet colleagues like Hazel Blears. That is a story which should very much be continued with and pursued to whatever the end point is.
To keep this in the public’s mind isn’t an irresponsible act by the papers – it’s one of the most responsible about faces they’ve attempted in a decade. Remember they tried to stop us finding out about this mess, so it really is quite moral that they reap the whirlwind now.
Des Currie on May 30, 2009 at 2:46 pm
My understanding of you is that you regard the average politicians as predominantly honourable people.
Toby D\'Olier on May 30, 2009 at 2:53 pm
I largely agree, its not so much a pro-Dave stance as an anti-policy stance that is hurting both democracy and newspapers alike. The fact the papers cant see this is pathetic really, but i dare say mainstream media is slowly fading away and they are throwing anything they can find at the public to try and stay alive.
I look forward in the future to explaining to any children I may have, that we used to travel to shops in order buy enormous lumps of paper filled with out of date info that was only occasional correct, they will laugh at me and no doubt tell their mates that their dad is really out-of-touch!
Cosimo Fettorini on May 30, 2009 at 3:06 pm
I have lived in Italy, Britain and the US. The British press are too trivial and excitable. the American press is dull, wheras in Italy it is a disgrace that the Prime Minister controls so much of the media. Maybe a balance between American serious and British lively would be best
K Hide (aka Mr J Public) on May 30, 2009 at 3:08 pm
I have long been ashamed of the great British press. Sensationalist rubbish, with the truth overblown and twisted almost beyond recognition, and fear thrust through the heart of the public at every opportunity (swine flu – we’re all going to die, knife crime – if you leave your house you will be stabbed, global warming – we’re all doomed, obesity – we’re all fat and it’s going to kill us… if the diabetes doesn’t get you the cancer will…)
Our press seem to be nothing more than a pack of professional witch hunters, and sensationalist scaremongers with no sense of moral servitude. And now it seems the rest of the world regards them with the open contempt they deserve. Joe Journalist should be ashamed.
Mr J Public
Brian Moylan on May 30, 2009 at 3:20 pm
Their agenda is “Labour are bad for politics.”
They didn’t like getting wound up for a General Election a few years ago. Dummies spat all over the shop.
Zelo Street on May 30, 2009 at 3:49 pm
Well, one thing you’ll find less bad about our press is that the Guardian has demonstrated that it is nobody’s house journal (which you could have told Young Dave), and has today rounded on him over his proposed new right of centre grouping in the European Parliament.
This grouping appears to cover a Polish party whose principals frequent a radio station that allows anti-semitic broadcasts, a Czech party whose head denies climate change, and potentially a Latvian one, some of whose members commemmorate the Waffen SS.
Mind you, they still have the odd double page spread on Expensegate, too …
Em on May 30, 2009 at 5:25 pm
If David Simon’s “Generation Kill” is accurate, in 2003, US armed forces officers stationed outside Iraq who were waiting to invade listened to the BBC rather than US command to inform them whether the invasion had started. I wonder whether Gibbs has better things to say about the American press.
Dave shouldn’t be smiling. It’s parties like the BNP making headway because of MPs expenses.
Em: Dave won’t mind fellow right-wingers the BNP appearing in the European Parliament; Dave’s Tories are just a sniff away from joining up with the “Law and Justice Party” of Poland, the Danish People’s Party, and Italy’s Northern League in the European Parliament.
See http://blogs.labour.org.uk/braindamage?Period=May2009#fascism for more info, if you hadn’t noticed this “development”.
Rita on May 30, 2009 at 6:25 pm
Frankly the state/morals/reputations of our bankers, our politicians and our journalists is dire and deservedly so. There is a symbiotic/parasitic relationship that exists between them that is deeply unhealthy.
It isn’t helped by 24 hour rolling news which is so tightly focussed on a small number of issues which are dealt with in a very shallow way and regurgitated every 15 mins!It feels like the newspaper equivalent of only reading the biggest headlines. Add to this a world in which , for most people, the appearance is more important than the reality and attention spans which would disgrace a gnat and we have a black hole of ignorance that swallows all rational debate! The constant repetition of the Sky ‘strap’or the Sun headline becomes the ‘truth’ on everyones’lips.
Deeply depressing! 🙁
For the better part of GW Bush’s reign at the Whitehouse the only really challenging journalism came from the comedian John Stewart!
Stronghold Barricades on May 30, 2009 at 7:11 pm
Forgive me, wasn’t it a certain spin doctor who eviscerated the BBC
Wasn’t it a certain spin doctor who spoon fed lobby journalists stories
Didn’t a certain spin doctor withdraw lobby privileges from a few journalists because they wouldn’t follow the “story” in the way the spin doctor wanted
Isn’t it the kind of people like McBride and the whole Labour Party’s expression of poison and patronage that has lead to this situation
I hope that you can take your turn in basking in the reflection
I’m sure that you can add an update about how you personally, whilst in a position of influence, increased the truth in the public domain
Alina Palimaru on May 30, 2009 at 7:30 pm
Alastair, I think yours is the first positive reaction to Robert Gibbs’ comments. The poor man was slashed and trashed all over the blogs. I like his style a lot, he is calm, careful and has a wonderful sense of humour. A bit verbose at times, but I like him a lot.
I see his point regarding the British press, although the Americans have their own black sheep to worry about too. The US scene appears in a better light due to the international prominence of the New York Times, the Washington Post, and magazines like The New Yorker. But as I said, other journalistic products are frightening.
I agree with Rita’s comments on Jon Stewart. In fact, at one point during the Bush presidency, the US media were considered so supine that his comedy show was thought of as the only decent source of a balanced view. And this is a fake-news show we’re talking about.
Rosie on May 30, 2009 at 8:10 pm
I have a polling card for the election of MEPs on Thursday. I listen to Radio 4, watch BBC news and Newsnight, follow various newspapers online and read many opinion pieces. So far I have about five party leaflets which have been posted through the door, have had no candidates or activists of any party on the doorstep, have seen no invitation to local public meetings, have caught a couple of party election broadcasts by parties I had not previously heard of, such as the Jury lot, and “Say no to EU, yes to democracy,” and that’s it! If I didn’t keep as up to date as possible, I would be almost totally ignorant of any party policy regarding Europe, the Lisbon Treaty, party groupings, trade, economic policy etc, etc. How to choose who to vote for?
Well, there’s always the expenses/allowances scandal to influence me. And whether or not I personally like Gordon Brown. And what the newspapers tell me to do. Or, maybe, I’ll just not bother voting.
Well, I will, and for my party. On the issues of Europe. But how many will?
pregethwr on May 30, 2009 at 11:30 pm
I suspect you have, but check exactly what Robert Gibb denied: he denied the context of the quote given to the telegraph, not the quote itself.
He denied that rape and sexual abuse was depicted in the photos the administration is trying to suppress.
He did not deny that rape and sexual abuse of prisoners was depicted in photos that the Government has: indeed the General specifically said that he had seen photos of rape of prisoners in US custody.
He also did not deny that rape and sexual abuse was of prisoners was authorised by previous presidential finding.
So yes the Telegraph wrongly insinuated that the Obama administration was trying to suppress photos of rape and sexual abuse of prisoners.
However without the Telegraph’s reporting we would not have learnt that such photos exist and the administration knows they exist.
The balance of public interest in that reporting is fairly clear to me.
Alan Quinn on May 30, 2009 at 11:40 pm
Ally, it is bad for us because people expect the tories to claim for cleaning moats and duck houses, they don’t expect our lot to do it.
It’s good for Dave because on policy he is piss poor but he’s driving the agenda on the expenses scandal whilst GB seems to dither. I don’t want to make you feel guilty but this wouldn’t have happened on your watch.
tracey on May 31, 2009 at 4:48 am
Little makes me more ashamed to be British than the collective scrabble by our laughable ‘leaders’ to crawl up the fundament of whoever is currently in power in the US. The press spokesman you so admire also said: “There’s nothing special about Britain. You’re just the same as the other 190 countries in the world. You shouldn’t expect special treatment.”
A fact I’m sure is appreciated by those soldiers who spilt their guts so Blair could pick up million pound cheques for public speaking in the USA, er sorry I mean save democracy.
Thomas Rossetti on May 31, 2009 at 5:42 pm
Gibbs’s comment was a monstrously stupid thing to say. Even if the Telegraph’s story wasn’t completely fair or accurate, it is a ridiculous slur to imply, as Gibbs did, that British journalists never tell the truth.
I agree with Tracey, below. British soldiers have lost their lives fighting America’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and Gibbs should be more careful about besmirching the entire profession of a key national ally.
(I have recently written to Robert Gibbs, actually, asking that he apologise. I’ll let you know if he replies.)
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"As a material witness and, in effect, an accuser of Justice Prosser, Justice Crooks cannot sit in judgment of Justice Prosser..."
Crooks was the one justice who wasn't there to witness the "chokehold" scene, but the ethics charge against Prosser also encompasses the "bitch" incident, which Crooks did witness.
Prosser earlier asked Abrahamson, Bradley and Justice Patience Roggensack to remove themselves from the case. None has said what she will do.
Prosser has said he will not participate in the case. If three others step aside, the ethics case cannot proceed. That's because four of the seven justices must participate to take any action.
It seems like the real question here is how (not whether) they will get to 4 recusals. Why did Prosser ask Abrahamson, Bradley and Justice Patience Roggensack first and then Crooks when he hasn't asked Ziegler and Gableman? It seems like a game designed to get to 4 using more liberal members of the court, with Ziegler and Gableman held in reserve and usable to get to 4 if the liberals won't recuse.
Tags: law, Wisconsin Supreme Court
If they don't recuse, do they open themselves to ethics charges?
Interestingly, Gableman recalled a version of events in the chamber no other justices did.
Also interesting, the WIGOP has not won a case this year without Gableman on the court. He's reliable that way.
I think they're looking for a way to kill this nonsense before they make any bigger fools of themselves.
"It seems like a game designed to get to 4 using more liberal members of the court, with Ziegler and Gableman held in reserve and usable to get to 4 if the liberals won't recuse."
Well, he started out by asking the three women to recuse, even though they were similarly situated with at least two of the men. So why not look at it through that lens instead? If you do, you might even be able to conjure up a way to stretch Batson to apply to it. Whoopie! Prosser using unconstitutional tactics in desperate attempt ... blah-blah-blah.
What a pathetic spectacle the WiSCt is making of itself.
I don't see how it will get to four. And even if it did, according to the post (if I understand it aright), he's said he won't participate. Trying to force a stall.
Prosser is strategizing. It's in his interest.
What's interesting to me is the position the Judicial Commission will find themselves in. If the WI Supreme Court can't impose discipline on itself--then who can?
Do the justices become immune from ethics complaint especially if they decide to behave badly in the presence of the group, rather than one-on-one?
All four conservative justices have had an ethics complaint filed against them.
Crunchy Frog said...
Filed by a liberal justice. What's your point? That the liberals piss and moan and file complaints when they don't get their way, while the conservatives are more mature than that?
That the liberals piss and moan and file complaints when they don't get their way, while the conservatives are more mature than that?
Ah, no. Gableman has been hit twice, for very good reasons. The last complaint was for receiving free legal help to deal with the first ethics complaint, and then ruling on cases (in favor) of the same firm that gave him the free legal help.
It seems like a game designed to get to 4 using more liberal members of the court, with Ziegler and Gableman held in reserve and usable to get to 4 if the liberals won't recuse.
Recusal by 'thousand cuts'
by your logic garage, the liberal justices who received union donations are guilty of ethics violations unless they always rule against the unions. I agree with you.
by your logic garage, the liberal justices who received union donations are guilty of ethics violations unless they always rule against the unions.
Except receiving free legal help, or gifts, is expressly forbidden in Wisconsin by the code of ethics. And receiving campaign contributions, is not.
OK. That makes it ethical.
My understanding of the “free legal help” that Justice Gableman received was that the law firm agreed to represent him on a contingency basis, i.e. if Gableman “won” the case, he would be eligible to have his legal fees paid for as the prevailing party but if he didn’t “win,” the attorneys would collect nothing other than their ordinary legal expenses (which I believe they said that Justice Gableman reimbursed them for).
I’m not aware that the Wisconsin Code of Judicial Conduct “expressly forbid[s]” a judge hiring an attorney on a contingency basis.
Thanks for the ethical framing of your remark garage.
That's ridiculous Thorley and I think you know it. Gableman ruled on 8 different cases where MB&F represented one of the parties. The reason Gableman didn't "win" is because the court deadlocked 3-3. 100k in never invoiced legal fees isn't a gift?
Shorter Garage: "Look====>_________"
"But one time, a conservative did ________!!"
Must still be smarting from how bad he looked on all of the Trayvon Martin threads.
But, he had his reasons. Partisan reasons, but reasons nonetheless.
Gableman was mentioned in the post. It's on topic. Trayvon Martin isn't.
And you couldn't come up with one example of me looking bad in those threads? Weak.
One example? Hard to choose, but let's go with your claim that Zimmerman hadn't been beaten, based upon the grainy, possibly edited video by ABC, coupled with your claim that he couldn't have had a broken nose, because you saw no blood. This, despite the publicly available police report in which the police stated otherwise.
You chose to believe it was a cover up. "I have my reasons " was the phrase you used. No evidence, just "reasons" that just happened to fit with your preconceived and ill conceived beliefs, as well as your partisan motives.
That looks pretty bad.
If you're to put words in my mouth, at least link it.
Suck it Garage, you looked like an ass on the Zimmerman affair. Own up to it.
With one verbal reprimand to show for it.
The Ziegler and Gableman-Best failure to recuse charges are at least understandable, though I don't know if they rise to the level of "ethics" charges any more than Kagan's decision not to recuse during the Obamacare trial. But the Gableman political ad charges and this charge against Prosser for a highly contentious accusation without poof are just petty name-calling and an attempt to un-democratically change election outcomes.
March 29 thread, "Robert Zimmerman Interview."
You wrote "There was nothing to indicate any of that happened to Zimmerman from those tapes. Certainly no broken nose as his father claimed. He's lying." that was your 12:57 bit of wisdom.
He, in this situation referring to Zimmerman's dad. You, from what, 1500 miles away, knew he was not just wrong, but lying. Nice.
Your "I have my reasons" comment came in later, at 4:14, as in "I think they are lying. I have my reasons, you are free to disagree."
Later, you enlightened us on your reasons, which were not reasons, but more assertions that they were lying. That was in your 7:16 post, in which, I will grant that you admitted you could be totally wrong.
You were.
I put no words in your mouth, Garage, I used your own.
I will also admit that you weren't the only one to look bad on the whole affair. Lots of people, on several blogs I read made lots of assertions about what "must have happened," and that "it couldn't have happened any other way." Starts with NBC and the New York Times.
There was nothing from the tapes that indicated his head was bashed on the concrete or had a broken nose. I think he IS lying. Big fucking whup. Deal with it. The prosecutors appear to agree with me. He is being charged with murder, no?
The police report, available at the time, and linked in that thread states you're wrong.
Of course, you "have your reasons." What you fail to understand is that those "reasons" are based on nothing other than your own preconceived ideas and biases. You think he is lying, but you have nothing on which to base that. Pictures at the scene show that Zimmerman was bloodied. The police report states that he was bloody. The EMT report states that he was bloody. Zimmerman's hospital records (of course this comes from Zimmerman's lawyer, so careful) state he was treated for a broken nose.
Your evidence to show he is lying:
What you fail to understand is that those "reasons" are based on nothing other than your own preconceived ideas and biases.
The prosecutor seems to agree with me.
And what are you, the Amazing Kreskin?
I'm not the one who decided Zimmerman was lying, and who still states he was lying about the injuries in the face of evidence to the contrary. With no evidence otherwise.
And you call me the Amazing Kreskin?
Projection.
The white lady prosecutor, Angela Corey, will be lucky to be Nifonged after what she's done to Marissa Alexander. But y'all agree so she's got that.
'm not the one who decided Zimmerman was lying, and who still states he was lying about the injuries in the face of evidence to the contrary. With no evidence otherwise.
When I wrote the comment, I saw zero evidence of the claim his nose was broken or his head being bashed into a sidewalk. If you have some official evidence that his nose was broken or his head being bashed onto a sidewalk, feel free to LINK to it.
SDN said...
No photos, Garage? Here you go.
But you still maintain he's lying, even after you know of the evidence.
On the March 29 thread, you were directed by Ken, at 10:39 to a report that Zimmerman had been treated by paramedics at the scene. At 2:57 in the same thread, Bender linked to the police reports. The reports have since been taken down, but Bender describes them earlier in the thread.
It must take quite a bit of effort to ignore all of the evidence that doesn't fit your theory that is based upon no evidence. Oh, except your "reasons."
Here you go, Garage, look at pg. 4, where the police officer notes that Zimmerman's back was wet and grass covered, and that he was bleeding from his nose and the back of his head.
The more we link, the worse it gets for you.
Nothing about a broken nose or his head being bashed into the concrete. Which were the claims made.
You presented no evidence. I hope you are not a lawyer.
Nobody is linking. Including you. LOL
Garage, care to address my link? Or will you continue to lie?
That's what I get for snark!
http://cnninsession.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/martinpolicreport.pdf
Presumably then, Zimmerman was bleeding from the back of his head and nose because....?
That's right, your "reasons."
SDN, the evidence has been out there for quite awhile, and Garage is well aware of it. He chooses to ignore it. He has his reasons, but my guess is that they will unnecessarily complicate his world view.q
SDN, the evidence has been out there for quite awhile, and Garage is well aware of it
As I said in the old thread, I think Zimmerman and his father are lying, in part, or in whole, on what happened that evening.
As I also said in that thread, you're free to disagree. Welcome to the internet.
Until we have a medical report describing the injuries at the scene or shortly thereafter by a qualified medical professional, and until we have the evidence taken from the crime scene injuries, we got jack shit.
It appears the the injuries were cleaned. STOOPID. They're part of the crime scene and the evidence. The police have a dead guy, shot. They have the shooter. Their first prioprity is to secure the scene, and that means the evidence on Z as well. It appears they didn't, that it got washed away. This pisses me off. It's either gross incompetence, or the unfortunate implication is that it's just another dead black kid. "We don't need no stinkin' evidence".
"Their first prioprity is to secure the scene, and that means the evidence on Z as well"
NO, actually the first priority is to administer first aid.
I assume you didn't see the photo linked by SDN? That is evidence. Eyewitness testimony from the paramedics and the police officers is also evidence.
Did you see the police report in the link? Statements from eyewitnesses? Eyewitness testimony from neighbors. Any documents or evidence tends to support Zimmerman. Rants and speculation from the left are all the left has to hold on to their precious dream that Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton remain relevant in this case.
Patrick, we could argue about this all night, but the first priority is to secure the scene so that it doesn't get worse. Once the scene is safe (and usually part of securing the scene is to secure any persons who might be dangerous, and weapons), then triage. If the injuries are not life threatening or do not require immediate medical intervention, you secure the evidence on scene. If the person has to go to the hospital, you secure the evidence at the hospital.
As far as I can tell, Z's injuries were treated, but not treated as evidence. Having evidence secured work's in Z's favor too, you know.
Garage and leslyn write grammatical sentences, They must have some intelligence. One senses that their private lives are not wastelands of malignity, yet there's this....Think of all the politically or racially charged trals we've had during the past fifty years. Look at the evidence that was demanded in order to convict in those trials. Look at the evidence they have against Zimmerman. Can anyone honestly say that there is more evidence against Zimmerman than there is against Mumia or Ray Lewis?
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altrockchick
Music reviews with a touch of erotica
Roads to Rock and Soul
Early Rock
Dad’s 45’s
Dad’s 45’s, Part 1, 1955-59
Dad’s 45’s, Part 4, 1966
The Beatles: Overview
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
Let It Be . . . Naked
Past Masters, Volume One
Past Masters, Volume Two
John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
The Stones: Overview
Out of Our Heads
December’s Children (And Everybody’s)
Aftermath (UK Version)
Between the Buttons (UK Version)
Their Satanic Majesties Request
Exile on Main Street
The Kinks: Overview
The Kinks Greatest Hits
The Kink Kontroversy
Lola Versus Powerman And The Moneygoround
The Kink Kronikles
Muswell Hillbillies
The Great Lost Kinks Album
Everybody’s in Show Biz
Preservation (Acts 1 and 2)
Schoolboys in Disgrace
Come Dancing
Other People’s Lives by Ray Davies
The Zombies: Odessey and Oracle
Psychedelic Series
Electric Music for the Mind and Body
Moby Grape
Axis: Bold as Love
Mr. Fantasy
The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter
Anthem of the Sun
The Doughnut in Granny’s Greenhouse
S. F. Sorrow
Stand!
The Who: Overview
The Who Sell Out
Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy
Who’s Next
The Moody Blues: Overview
Days of Future Passed
In Search of the Lost Chord
On the Threshold of a Dream
Every Good Boy Deserves Favour
To Our Children’s Children’s Children
Seventh Sojourn
A Question of Balance
Jethro Tull: Overview
This Was
Too Old to Rock ‘n’ Roll: Too Young to Die
The Broadsword and the Beast
David Bowie-Overview
The Clash: Overview
Give ‘Em Enough Rope
Streetcore
Richard Thompson-Overview
Liege and Lief by Fairport Convention
I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight
Shoot Out the Lights
Rumor and Sigh
Mirror Blue
Mock Tudor
Airs and Graces
Maddy Prior and June Tabor – Silly Sisters
Angel Tiger
Against the Streams
Britpop-Series Intro
Blur – Modern Life Is Rubbish
Blur – Parklife
Blur-The Great Escape
Blur – Blur – Classic Music Review
Oasis: Overview
The Masterplan
Familiar to Millions
Heathen Chemistry
Don’t Believe the Truth
Pulp-Different Class
Pulp – This Is Hardcore
Pulp – We Love Life
Suede (album)
Supergrass – I Should Coco
Supergrass – In It for the Money
Radiohead: Overview
OK Computer
Hail to the Thief
In Rainbows
The King of Limbs
Great Broads
Series Intro
Ani DiFranco – Out of Range
Aretha Franklin – Never Loved a Man
Aretha Franklin – Lady Soul
Billie Holiday – Lady Day
Edith Piaf – Vol. 4
Françoise Hardy La Question
Joni Mitchell – Clouds
Joni Mitchell – The Hissing of Summer Lawns
Joni Mitchell – Hejira
Neko Case – Fox Confessor
Nina Simone – The Essential Nina Simone
Patti Smith – Radio Ethiopia
PJ Harvey – 4-Track Demos
PJ Harvey – Is This Desire
PJ Harvey – Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea
Sade – Love Deluxe
Sinead O’Connor – I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got
Appendix: Early Girl Hits Part 1
About Jazz
Louis Armstrong: The Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings
Billie Holiday, Lady Day
Charlie Parker: Best of the Complete Savoy & Dial Studio Recordings
Miles Davis: Kind of Blue
John Coltrane: Giant Steps
Bill Evans Trio: Portrait in Jazz
Miles Davis: Sketches of Spain
Thelonious Monk: Monk’s Dream
Les McCann and Eddie Harris: Swiss Movement
Frank Sinatra: In the Wee Small Hours
The Blues: Overview
Robert Johnson: The Complete Recordings
Memphis Minnie – Essential Recordings
The Best of John Lee Hooker
Little Walter: His Best, The Chess 50th Anniversary Collection
Elmore James – Best of the Fire Sessions
Blues Breakers with Eric Clapton by John Mayall
The Electric Flag – A Long Time Comin’
Allman Brothers Band – At Fillmore East
Sonny Landreth – Grant Street
Ben Harper and Charlie Musselwhite – Get Up!
Soul: Overview
Bill Withers Live at Carnegie Hall
Aretha – Lady Soul
Dusty in Memphis
Otis Redding – Best Of
Patti Austin – That Secret Place
The Motown Series
Stevie Wonder – Innervisions
Chick Riffs
Update on Life, International Relations and the American Boycott
Taking a Rain Check
Desert Island Disks
Ma Fille (A Guest Post by My Mother)
My Daughter (A Guest Post by My Father)
The Truth About Beets
Last Trip to Dodge
About That Book . . .
Book Review: Sleeping with Patty Hearst by Mary Lambeth Moore
Tag Archives: Gary Giddins
Louis Armstrong – The Best of Louis Armstrong: The Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings – Classic Music Review
By altrockchick on May 15, 2014 | 5 Comments
Absolutely essential in so many ways. Click to buy.
How many of those who joined Benny Goodman’s swing caravan in the thirties or rocked to Chuck Berry in the fifties or savored the increased vibrato that became fashionable in the brass sections of symphony orchestras knew the extent to which they were living in a world created by the famous gravel-mouthed clown? How many appreciated what Miles Davis meant when he said, “You know you can’t play anything on the horn that Louis hasn’t played— I mean even modern,” or Bing Crosby, when he called Armstrong “the beginning and the end of music in America,” or Virgil Thompson, when he wrote that his “improvisation would seem to have combined the highest reaches of instrumental virtuosity with the most tensely disciplined melodic structure and the most spontaneous emotional expression, all of which in one man you must admit is pretty rare”?
Giddins, Gary (2009-03-05). Satchmo: The Genius of Louis Armstrong (Kindle Locations 196-202). Da Capo Press. Kindle Edition.
The only time I come close to believing in the existence of a higher power is when I listen to Louis Armstrong.
What I hear when he plays is the purest expression of the human spirit. Music historians rave about his tonal purity, but tend to downplay those aspects of music that cannot be discerned by the five senses. The feel Louis Armstrong gives to his music, combined with his exceptional technical gifts, is what gives his sound its spiritual essence. The only writer who ever captured the essence of Louis Armstrong was a man who had died a century before the Hot Five entered the recording studio, the English poet William Blake:
How do you know but ev’ry Bird that cuts the airy way,
Is an immense world of delight, clos’d by your senses five?
Had Blake been able to hear Louis Armstrong, he would have seized upon his music as evidence for his theory of human perception beyond the sensual. He would have experienced something very similar to how he described Isaiah’s experience of talking to god in The Marriage of Heaven and Hell: “I saw no God, nor heard any, in a finite organical perception; but my senses discover’d the infinite in every thing.”
When I hear Louis Armstrong, I hear an immense world of delight, the infinite in every thing.
Louis Armstrong influenced every form of modern popular music; he is the source for many features of music that we take for granted. Prior to Armstrong’s ascendancy, music was a highly structured and organized experience where accurate replication of a piece was all that mattered. Even early jazz sounds oddly confined within conventions. Musical excellence was defined as the ability to strictly follow a pattern, either in the form of a written score or trying to copy the song you heard played by the band at the bar down the street. Armstrong introduced the world of music to the value of improvisation, both instrumental and vocal. You can’t say he invented scat singing or the virtuoso solo, because any claim that one person invented any feature of music must be viewed with skepticism due to the fluidity of human contact and our limited ability to capture historical moments. It is more accurate to say that Louis Armstrong made improvisation a vital and viable aspect of music because he imbued his improvisations with technical brilliance and an irrepressible spirit that made the listening experience enjoyable and inspirational. Once Armstrong hit the scene, everybody wanted to play and sing like him. He gave musicians permission to do more than perform music, he gave them permission to play music—to explore, to break boundaries, to create, to have fun.
Gary Giddins’ brief biography—a good starting point for readers who want to understand Armstrong’s history and his influence—is primarily a defense of Louis Armstrong’s place in musical history. He takes on the snobs who dismiss Armstrong as an “entertainer,” people whose limited minds refuse to acknowledge the possibility that a true artist can have popular appeal. These elitists point to Armstrong’s mugging and clowning as evidence he is not to be taken seriously, and consider the sheer joy he could generate in the listening audience as damning evidence of a defect.
Since Shakespeare, Mozart, Dickens and The Beatles proved conclusively that on rare occasions popular taste and artistic excellence do coincide, it is ridiculous to condemn Armstrong simply because he appealed to audiences all over the world. On the contrary, Louis Armstrong’s enduring and widespread popularity should be celebrated as evidence that there’s still hope for the human race.
The Best of Louis Armstrong: The Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings are a sample from the complete collection widely available today. The recordings were made in various sessions that took place during the period from 1926 to 1928 when Armstrong called Chicago home. One of many things I love about the Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings is how well the music captures the tone of 1920’s America. You simply can’t find a more appropriate soundtrack for an era characterized by permissiveness and the fast buck: the music is often boozy, titillating and highly suggestive. Prohibition had made liquor even more appealing than ever, and those über-capitalists we refer to as gangsters emerged to meet burgeoning consumer demand for a good time. Women had a brief period of pseudo-liberation, getting the vote, showing off their legs, kicking their heels on the dance floor and daring to smoke in public. With alcohol going underground and women defying traditional morality, the music of the time simply had to come from those who were not part of the mainstream of American life: black musicians playing “the devil’s music.” The fact that they worked in the city of Al Capone and Bugs Moran makes their emergence even sweeter.
While the recordings are primitive, they are remarkable for the contrast between Louis Armstrong and the supporting cast of musicians. That supporting cast “seemed to be locked into an earlier style,” observed Michael Brooks in the liner notes, and despite Armstrong’s generosity in allowing those musicians to showcase themselves and his game attempts to play a supporting role, the simple fact is that Louis Armstrong was the superior musician, and his trumpet (or cornet) is distinctly noticeable even when he’s not front and center, especially in the Hot Five recordings. The clarity he achieves despite the limitations of 1920’s recording technology is stunning, especially when compared to the tones his bandmates produce. That contrast allows the listener to clearly identify the quantum leap that jazz is about to take into becoming a soloist’s art, leaving the ensemble style of jazz in the dust.
However, it’s the vocal on the opening track (“Heebie Jeebies”) that makes it a special moment, for after the typically extended musical introduction that characterized vocal performances through the Swing Era, Louis gives us a vocal display that was quite advanced for the time, borrowing on his experience working with Bessie Smith and singing the groove instead of the notes. His timing and phrasing defy meter, as he pauses and elongates his lines based on how he’s feeling it. When he moves into the scat section, his playful joy comes through as he captures the essence and spirit of early scat—that odd human impulse to attempt to replicate the sound of an instrument with our voices. When he finishes up with a return to the chorus, what happens next is truly remarkable: the first eight measures are played by the rest of the Hot Five to allow Louis to catch his breath, and when he comes in on the cornet for the next round, the clarity of his tone is like a brilliant sun breaking through the dark clouds.
“Muskrat Ramble” is further evidence of Armstrong’s exceptional musicianship, but I have to say that I find Kid Ory’s trombone work here pretty impressive as well. The trombone has become almost an afterthought in jazz over the years, and it’s quite refreshing to hear its unique capabilities here, during a time when the instrument was an essential part of a jazz combo. Armstrong’s work remains the centerpiece, though, floating effortlessly on one solo then spitting out the dissonant blue notes on the solo that follows Johnny Dodds’ clarinet piece. It’s a fun and captivating number that was Louis Armstrong’s first top 10 hit. It’s followed by “King of the Zulus,” most notable for Armstrong’s acting skills, as he responds with what sounds like genuine indignation when his mournful, bluesy solo is interrupted by a Caribbean voice demanding an order of chitlins. The “interruption” makes no difference, as Louis then proceeds to knock it out of the park with an extended solo marked by beautiful held notes perfectly suited for a New Orleans funeral or Mardi Gras parade. “Jazz Lips” is more of a running duet with Armstrong and Kid Ory, with some amazing call-and-response passages and first-class musicianship on the part of both men.
The disc then moves to some Hot Seven pieces, the first of which is “Willie the Weeper,” which Mr. Brooks says is “notable for a Johnny St. Cyr banjo solo.” Funny, what I notice most about the piece is Pete Briggs on the tuba, probably because it’s so unusual to hear a tuba in the 21st century. As for St. Cyr’s banjo, I’m thankful that he tuned it and played it like a guitar. Louis really doesn’t get warmed up until the final passage, where he soars like an eagle. He starts off strong in “Wild Man Blues” with the brief stop-time solo introduction, and continues to display his excellence as a bluesman throughout the piece, which features several longer stop-time solos designed to amaze you with their energy and command. Johnny Dodds also solos, and not only does his clarinet sound brighter, but some of the sinuous runs he produces are terribly sexy and much bolder than his Hot Five work. “Alligator Crawl” features Dodds’ fingers dancing over the bass line provided by the tuba, but Armstrong is the foundation of the piece, giving it a cohesion that overcomes the archaic-sounding banjo solo.
“Potato Head Blues” is quite deceptive in the sense that the opening sounds like early New Orleans ensemble, with everyone in on the act. Armstrong and Dodds trade solos, and I really don’t hear the angst and rage that Mr. Brooks claims to hear in Johnny Dodds’ clarinet; what I hear is a pretty smooth clarinet player swinging to the rhythm. The piece becomes truly memorable only after a blessedly brief banjo break, when Louis resumes the lead. Anyone who can listen to this solo and tell me that Louis Armstrong was not capable of art has to be certifiably deaf. Far, far ahead of its time, this extended, vibrato-enhanced stop-time solo features incredible tonal clarity and precious moments where his melody frees itself from the rhythm and the notes seem suspended in time—independent of the groove, but always resolved to the groove—a technique you do not hear too often until Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk enter the scene. Mr. Brooks remarks, “English critic and trumpeter John Chilton wrote that when this solo was transcribed to paper, musicians were enthralled, but no written record can capture the tonal beauty and expressive vibrato that distinguishes Louis’ rendition from all others.” Giddins commented, “That unique radiance heard in ‘Potato Head Blues’ now coursed through the man himself.” That is a very perceptive observation, for there are few musicians who achieved oneness with the music to the extent that Louis Armstrong did: the horn was the expressive extension of his soul.
“Weary Blues” hardly sounds weary, as all the Hot Seven get into act, driving it home like there’s no tomorrow. My god, there’s even a tuba solo! “Ory’s Creole Trombone” is a Hot Five number where Kid Ory once again displays the signature sounds of the slide trombone. Unfortunately for him, Armstrong steals the show with an exuberant display of cornet magic. This is one of his snappier solos, as the short notes and high register runs dominate until the finishing flourish. “Struttin’ with Some Barbecue” is the Hot Five number that Giddins considers their masterpiece, specifically pointing to Armstrong’s solo, “a showcase for the entertainer as artist, flaunting his brilliance with mercurial rips, dazzling triplets, a glissando that seems to swallow its own tail.” In addition to the stunning display of individual virtuosity, this is probably the Hot Five’s strongest ensemble piece, for even with his extraordinary capabilities, Louis Armstrong was an unfailingly generous musician.
The inexplicable “West End Blues” comes next—inexplicable because people are still wondering how Louis Armstrong pulled off the introduction. Giddins notes, “How can one explain the large number of violinists who can play Bach’s D-minor Chaconne when no trumpeter, in or out of jazz, has convincingly replicated Armstrong’s nine-measure intro?” Those twelve seconds are packed with evidence of superhuman dexterity—with fingers, tongue and lips working in ways that cannot be explained by human evolution. All I know is this: when I hear it, I want that mouth positioned on my sweet spot, because I am absolutely certain it will give me the orgasm to end all orgasms. The song itself is a pretty run-of-the-mill blues number, exquisitely arranged by a different Hot Five lineup featuring Jimmy Strong on clarinet and Earl Hines on piano. The duet between Jimmy Strong in the lower reaches of the clarinet and Armstrong singing soft, melodic scat is simply wonderful, and Hines’ subsequent piano solo, a combination of barroom and lounge, is exquisite. When the combo returns, Louis holds a single note firmly in place for four measures before belting out some blues licks that any modern blues guitarist would be proud to replicate.
Continuing with Hot Seven tracks, Earl Hines appropriately opens the cover of Fats Waller’s “Squeeze Me,” notable for Louis’ scat vocal that pretty much tracks his trumpet solo. Backed by the willowy vocal duet of Earl Hines and Mancy Cara, Armstrong is in total command of melody and phrasing. The track is also famous for the sound of a dropped drumstick, a delightful distraction reminding us that these records were put together on a shoestring and a prayer. “Basin Street Blues” follows, and I don’t think I can come up with a better description of the staging than what you can find in Michael Brooks’ liner notes: “Hines switches to celeste and its delicate strains conjure up quiet rainy afternoons in New Orleans brothel with the girls lounging around déshabillé waiting for a prince who never came.” Louis delivers another superb scat vocal, because a.) he was so good at it and b.) there were no lyrics to the song until three years later.
As tragic as it was that Americans had to bail out the French in WWI, it was even more tragic that the returning soldiers brought fragments of French with them, which they proceeded to shred, chop and dice. The only good thing that came out of it was “Beau Koo Jack,” a title that reflects 20’s slang for a lot of dough. The track features a slinky alto sax part via Don Redman, a frantic set of piano runs from Earl Hines and Louis going positively mad with repeated bursts of arpeggiated magic. “Muggles” is an early tribute one of Louis Armstrong’s lifelong companions: marijuana. An Armstrong-Hines composition performed at a slow tempo matching the mellow mood created by the green weed, the track gives everyone plenty of time to catch their breaths and savor the notes—until Armstrong switches to double-time for his solo, then makes an amazing caesura-free transition back to the original beat. The solo itself is remarkable for what it lacks: the ripping glissandi we’ve heard in the other solos on the record. Louis plays it simple and straight, pretty much sticking to clearly-enunciated notes to accentuate the rhythm (though, as Giddins notes, he does bounce between two pitches).
“St. James Infirmary” has been recorded by hundreds of musical artists in many genres, but this is my personal favorite and my favorite Armstrong vocal of them all. The basic story involves the death of one’s sweetheart, but Louis, playing the part of grieving lover, shuffles verses and changes lyrics to craft a defiant message concerning his own mortality, delivered with breathtaking bravado. What makes his insufferable arrogance so enduringly fascinating is his ability to place himself completely in the role: he sounds like the man’s man, the stud who is absolutely confident in his ability to deliver, the gambler who knows the score and would never go out a loser:
I went down to St. James infirmary, saw my baby there
Stretched out on a long white table,
So sweet, so cold and so fair
Let her go, let her go, God bless her
Wherever she may be
She can look this whole wide world over
She’ll never find a sweet man like me
When I die I want you to dress me in straight-laced shoes
Boxback coat and a Stetson hat
Put a twenty-dollar gold piece on my watch chain
So the boys’ll know I died standing pat
The backing arrangement is appropriately bluesy and funereal, with Louis playing in a suitably restrained and confident fashion: the epitome of the high-class gent his character believes he is.
Our journey through Armstrong’s early years ends with the blues-tinged “Tight Like This,” the last Hot Five recording. While Earl Hines provides some surprisingly arrhythmic piano runs in the build, Armstrong’s technically brilliant and anguished sixty-four bar solo is simply out of this world. This is the man in his moment, realizing his destiny. When I hear this solo, he sounds like the sculptor chipping away at the unnecessary stone that hides the underlying form. In this case, it feels like the thing he is trying to reach is some deep hurt, some pain that he needs to express through his horn. Though he downplayed the scars from his chaotic childhood, no one could have been raised the way he was with “multiple stepfathers” and an off-and-on mother without some residual effects. “Tight Like This” gives pretty strong evidence that he used music to express the joy and purge the pain. The track ends when he’s played himself out, a blessing indeed. No one could follow that solo.
Few people have ever possessed the talent of a Louis Armstrong; fewer still have had such an enduring impact on the arts. Despite his incredible gifts and worldwide fame, he was forever accessible, settling into a modest house in Queens where he would play with the neighborhood kids after returning from another long road trip. In an era dominated by ego-driven musicians whose primary goals are fame, money and adulation, Louis Armstrong stands as an eternal reminder that music is the pathway to the spirit and a proven way of bringing people of different cultures together. While I believe he was touched by the infinite, what I appreciate most is his fundamental humanity. What we hear in his work with The Hot Fives and Hot Sevens is a man who has found his mission and life and is absolutely delighted with the discovery.
Posted in: 1920's, Classic Music Reviews, Jazz | Tagged: alt rock chick, altrockchick, female blogger, female music blogger, Gary Giddins, Hot Five and Hot Sevens, jazz, kid ory, Louis Armstrong, music review, music reviews, Satchmo
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Review: Evangelion 2.0 – You Can [Not] Advance (Sub)
Elliot Page
Medium: Anime Film (108 minutes)
Genres: Action, Drama, Mecha, Science Fiction
Directors: Hideaki Anno (Chief Director), Kazuya Tsurumaki, Masayuki (Co-Directors)
Studios: Studio Khara, Gainax, et al.
Release Dates: June 27, 2009 (JP)
Rated: Not Rated (appropriate for 13+)
Before I get into the review proper I want to bring up a conflict of interest that I feel is important for readers to bear in mind. I am a massive fan of the original Neon Genesis Evangelion TV series, and as such am predisposed to enjoy this movie. I will try my best to put aside my preconceptions for the purposes of this review, but I wanted to point out this potential bias at the first instance. I consider it only fair to do so.
Like the first film, Eva 2.0 is a reimagining of the original Neon Genesis Evangelion TV series which follows the exploits of a small group of teenage pilots conscripted to fight in massive humanoid weapons (Evangelions) against monstrous creatures hell-bent on destroying humanity (Angels), and how they cope with this crushing responsibility. You can read an excellent review of this first installment by Uncle Yo on Ani-Gamers here. In the case of this second film, there is a large twist applied to the events from the series, which allows the film to emerge as its own fresh creation. The beloved core of the characters, robots, and events are still there but with refreshing changes: fat is trimmed, plot elements are tidied up, and entirely new material is added. In fact, those expecting a straight-up remake will find that the film will play on your expectations and fake you out to great effect, although thankfully these hints are packaged in a way that do not run the risk of wrecking the film for someone new to the franchise.
The extraneous elements removed from this adaptation are many in number, but none are worth mourning the loss of. The main beneficiary of this trimming is, rather surprisingly, the quieter moments in between the massive robot battles which have greater deal of clarity and impact due to the tighter writing. In particular, the fluctuating relationship between Shinji and his father is explored in a new depth, making it a much more tangible element in the storyline than simply a sterile case of “whiny brat hates his asshole dad.” One downside of this compression is that the relationships between Shinji and Rei/Asuka lose much of their subtlety. At some points the movie feels like it has switched genre to a harmless harem comedy show following a love triangle of socially useless robot pilots.
The film itself looks utterly amazing, with almost mind-wrecking detail lavished into the art and the robot models in particular. The Angel designs have had a complete overhaul and some pivotal examples have been re-worked with almost sick levels of care. The fights themselves sport amazing CG animation and are utterly engrossing in how they are presented for the most part — unlike other recent films that shall remain nameless. You can easily follow the fight and appreciate the overall tide of the battle, drawing you in. Fans of the original, who may think they know how every fight turns out, will be met by some surprising variations that keep the film feeling fresh and punish you for assuming that it is merely a remake of the original series. While the music during the quieter moments follows the previously used themes and leitmotifs from the TV show, the fight scenes have an all-new pulse-pounding score that amplifies the impact of the action to explosive levels.
It’s not without flaw though — there are times when the movie loses its way and forcibly ejects you from the experience. Most notable of these is the entirety of the first fight scene, which feels very roughly conceived and edited. You are introduced to a new character, mecha, and setting, but are never given time to absorb and appreciate what is being shown on the screen. I, for one, have no clear recollection of what the new Evangelion featured in this battle even looked like! One particular gripe, and one I assume will be fixed for the DVD/BD, is that most of the characters in this scene speak in mumbling "Engrish" at a level just barely louder than the surrounding battle.
Thankfully this poor presentation does not infect the rest of the film, but then neither does the newly introduced character. Strangely, she only appears and interacts with the principal cast twice for the entire rest of the film. While the things she does are important to the overall plot, you can’t help but feel that she was roughly shoehorned into the proceedings by an over-eager intern who would burst into meetings waving his new character design around. I imagine him saying something like:
“Duuuuuudes! You gotta include her; she has glasses and a ponytail! Plus, she has a bigger chest, so we can use her for the trademark Gainax Bounce!” At which point everyone cheered and went out for a round or five of drinks.
When they got back from having nine drinks each, the staff set to work on my personal pet peeve of the entire movie: CG people in the background of scenes. It wrenched me out of the film entirely to see tiny, stiff polygonal people from Quake 2 stuttering in the background of scenes that needed to include some humans for atmosphere. I hope they fix this for the inevitable revised version as in this theatrical version it looks just plain cheap and nasty.
These small flaws are all utterly forgotten, however, in the exuberant blur of activity that is the last 30 minutes or so. At this point the movie stops joking around and ramps every setting it can up to 11, utterly destroying any doubts you may have had festering about the film or the direction of the series overall. In remaking what was already a pivotal part of the original TV series, the creators went all out in providing a mind-blowing ending that left the cinema audience cheering through the end credits. I dare not spoil a single second of it, but I implore you not to leave your seat until after the credits are done or else you will miss the single craziest thing of the entire film, one which bodes well for the two that are to follow. I already can't wait to get my hands on the Blu-ray version so I can see it all again.
[Highly Recommended]
This review is based on a theatrical version of Evangelion 2.0 shown at the London BFI Cinema as part of its Biannual Anime Weekend. Admission and all related expenses were paid for by the reviewer.
Kazuya Tsurumaki
Review: GA Geijutsuka Art Design Class vols. 1-2 (Manga)
Review: Apollo's Song (Manga)
Review: El Cazador de la Bruja, Part 1 (Hyb)
Review: Seirei no Moribito - Guardian of the Sacred Spirit (Dub)
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Tuesday, Nov 03, 2009
Review: Ryoko's Case Files (Sub)
Friday, Dec 05, 2008
Review: Lupin III – The Castle of Cagliostro (Sub)
Tuesday, Apr 13, 2010
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The Language of Faith in Southern Africa: Spirit World, Power, Community, Holism
Hermen Kroesbergen
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The aim of this book is to provide a way to do justice to an African language of faith. In systematic theology, anthropology and philosophy of religion, similar debates about how to interpret an African language of faith are ongoing. Trying to avoid the ‘othering’ discourses of past generations, scholars are careful to take seriously what people in Africa say without portraying people’s beliefs as weird or backward. Yet, in their desperate attempts to avoid othering, these theologians, anthropologists and philosophers often painfully misconstrue the language of faith in Africa. Understanding the language of faith in Southern Africa is not an easy task. How should we take seriously the form of language that often seems so strange and different?
I argue that, after African inculturation theology and black liberation theology, a better way to make sense of being a Christian in Southern Africa is to pay close attention to people’s language of faith. The way in which people speak of the spirit world or powers in Africa appears strange to outsiders, and the sense of community and the holistic worldview differentiates the African way of life from its Euro-American counterparts. When proper attention is paid to the use of concepts like spirit world, power, community and holism, language of faith in Southern Africa is neither as strange as it may seem, nor as romantic. By investigating these distinguishing concepts that colour language of faith in Southern Africa, this book contributes to future projects of both fellow theologians who try to construct a contemporary African theology and those who are interested in theology in Africa given the well-known southward shift of the centre of gravity of Christianity.
Copyright (c) 2019 Hermen Kroesbergen (Author)
Open AccessScholarly BooksTheological and Religious Studies
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Review: The Epic KICKBOXER: RETALIATION Cements Alain Moussi’s Status as an Action Star (Reprint)
(Original Publication Date: January 28th, 2018) By: John M Jerva Review: KICKBOXER: RETALIATION Starring Alain Moussi, Sara Malakul Lane, Christopher Lambert, Jessica Jann, Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson with Mike Tyson and Jean-Claude […]
(Original Publication Date: January 28th, 2018) By: John M Jerva
Review: KICKBOXER: RETALIATION
Starring Alain Moussi, Sara Malakul Lane, Christopher Lambert, Jessica Jann, Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson with Mike Tyson and Jean-Claude Van Damme
Directed By: Dimitri Logothetis
The Plot: One year after successfully defeating the villainous Tong Po in Thailand, Kurt Sloane (Moussi) has put the past behind him and has married his true love Liu and is now a victorious MMA fighter competing on the circuit. After a recent victory, Kurt is ambushed by two thugs posing as agents and is sedated and forced back to Thailand. You see, when you not only defeat but kill the supreme money maker in the Thai fight game, it tends to piss a lot of people off. One individual is ruthless promoter Thomas Moore (Lambert) who wants Sloane to compete in one more fight to the death. The only problem is the man he wants him to fight is a 6 foot 10 specimen of modern science named Mongkut who is the new champion. Where Tong Po was a mountain of a man, Mongkut is a man who can move mountains. Do this and he can go free. Moore throws Sloane into a brutal Thai prison where he must fight for his life on a daily basis until he agrees to Moore’s terms. Sloane befriends one of the prisoners in the jail named Briggs (Tyson) who helps him train for the fight. Sloane is also reunited with Master Durand (Van Damme) who was blinded by the bad guys for his involvement in the Po fight but Durand is just as dangerous as he ever was. Moore kidnaps Liu and forces Sloane to take on his terms and the heroic kickboxer must now face his most deadly challenge yet. A challenge where, once again, only one man will walk away from.
The Review: After cutting his teeth as a professional stuntman for many years, martial artist turned actor Alain Moussi arrived in the leading role in 2016’s Kickboxer: Vengeance. The role shot Moussi into the action spotlight and with the sequel Kickboxer: Retaliation, Moussi cements his status as an action star. Moussi’s skills as a martial artist are top notch and he can perform with the best of them. In my review for Kickboxer: Vengeance, I labeled him the Tony Jaa of the West and I stand by that statement. Moussi’s aerial arsenal is a site to behold as he flawlessly executes one death defying combat move after another. He truly is one of the most exciting performers to watch in action films today and where the first film introduced us to his skills, the sequel cements the fact that he is one in a million. Moussi has a bright and shining future in the genre and the sky is literally the limit.
The cast in Retaliation is top tier as we have action icon Jean-Claude Van Damme (who played the role of Kurt Sloane in the original) back as Master Durand, Kurt’s mentor and trainer. Durand is the Xian of this generation and with Van Damme’s participation in the reboot series, he is putting his stamp of approval on Moussi as the next heir. Van Damme also gets to show us that he still has the moves and while he might be a supporting player, he leaves his mark. The Highlander himself, Christopher Lambert, is awesome as always as the slimy, ruthless Moore. Lambert always brings a high level of gravitas to any film and this is no exception. You know that Moore is a bad guy but you can’t help but think that he is still dignified in a socipathic kind of way. As the main enemy of the sequel, Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson is truly a wonder of the Earth. The man is just plain huge and if you thought that Dave Bautista was imposing in the first one, then you haven’t seen anything yet. Where Bautista’s Tong Po was a lethal and dangerous adveary, Björnsson’s Mongkut is the human incarnation of Godzilla. Boxing icon Mike Tyson (who is getting into the action genre with roles in Ip Man 3 and more) is great as Briggs, the prison inmate that reluctantly agrees to help train Kurt. Tyson brings a sense of authenticity to the training scenes and when he talks, people listen. Once you meet his character, you know that he is a man that is respected in the prison and for good reason. Sara Lalakul Lane is back as Kurt’s love Liu and her character is the foundation of what drives Kurt in the film.
Director Dimitri Logothetis, who was a producer on the first film, takes over in the director’s chair from John Stockwell who helmed the previous installment and he knows what the fans want. Logothetis doesn’t bog things down with subplots and what not, he just gives us 1 hour and 50 minutes of ass kicking. I wasn’t really aware of his work before this film but I am now. He shoots the action in the best way possible and he understands what it takes to make a great fight sequence. I will sign up to watch any other action film that he makes in the future because with Retaliation, he earned my trust. Job well done and a tip of the hat to you Sir.
The locales in the film are nothing but extraordinary and they take on a life of their own. From Las Vegas to Thailand, the cinematography is breathtaking especially when the film goes to Thailand. The city is just the perfect venue for a martial arts epic and you cannot help but get swept up in the visuals. From the city streets to the old temples of centuries long past, Thailand is its own character in the film.
Now lets talk about the action because lets face it, that’s what this movie is all about. I noted in my review for Vengeance that what separated it from Van Damme’s classic is that it had more fisticuffs. The original pretty much only had a few brief scenes followed by the training montages and then the climatic fight. Where Vengeance increased the action, Retaliation supercharges it with fighting galore. It feels like there isn’t a few moments that go by between fight scenes and they are all the stuff of legends. From an opening sequence on top of a moving train in the rain to the climatic 25 minute epic at the end, Retaliation delivers and delivers in spades. We get not one but two single shot fight scenes (which are my favorite by the way) with the extended prison fight scene being the highlight of the first half of the film. The camera follows Sloane up and down as he takes on a gauntlet of prisoners and the scene never edits or looks away for a second. All you see is Sloane gloriously kicking the snot out of all that gets in his way. I think I rewound the scene twice before I continued on.
The final battle in the film is an instant classic and it clocks in at over 25 minutes in length which is unheard of for a Western martial arts fight film. The first film did the same thing but the sequel’s beatdown roundhouse kicks the original in the face and knocks it on its ass. Just like Vengeance, this battle is 3 rounds of death and destruction and when I say death, I mean it. SPOILER ALERT! Sloane dies in the fight! He is pronounced dead by the doctor and just when you think all is lost, Liu grabs one of the syringes that the bad guys use for Mongkut and slams it into Kurt’s heart! Sloan then becomes a bone crunching, fist and feet flying energizer bunny who pummels Mongkut into submission in a barrage of unarmed carnage. It is here that we are treated to Moussi’s acrobatic moves of mayhem and when you see them in slow motion, your jaw will drop. Quick, somebody team this man up with Scott Adkins in an action film…STAT! I watched the film twice just to make sure that it was as awesome as I thought it was. It was!
To sum it all up. Kickboxer: Retaliation is one of those rare sequels that is far superior than the first film and I loved the first one! It fixes anything that was wrong with the original and it gives us fans the exhilarating, blood soaked action that we crave. The stunts in the film are top tier and are equal to any Hong Kong classic out there. Alain Moussi arrived with Kickboxer: Vengeance but with Kickboxer: Retaliation, he has officially cemented his place among action stars. He can throw down with the best of them, smile and say is that all you got. He is the new generation of action star and with the third film in the trilogy, Kickboxer: Armaggedon, in the works, I have officially started my countdown clock and will be waiting impatiently for the next adventure of Kurt Sloane. Bring it on! Nuk Soo Kow! Nuk Soo Kow! Nuk Soo Kow!
Check out my exclusive conversation with Alain right here!
VERDICT: ACTION-FLIX APPROVED X 100!!!!!
Posted on June 5, 2019 0 By jmjerva REVIEWS Posted in REVIEWS Tagged #Alain Moussi, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Kickboxer: Retaliation, Mike Tyson
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